that is, be careful in frequenting, and using the ordinary meanes of the word, the Ministery that God hath set up in his Church, for thy directi∣on, Prov. 8.33. be thou careful to attend at the gates of wisdome; be frequent in hearing the VVord of God opened and expounded, and be sure to come to the hearing, and reading of the Word of God, with an humble heart, that thy heart be not lift up with a conceit of thy own understand∣ing, but be emptied of all self-conceit, and pride, in respect of the preg∣nancy of thy own wit, and to this joyn earnest and hearty prayer unto the Lord, be attentive to the means that serve to open the word, come to the hearing and reading of it with an humble heart, and also be instant in in∣vocation, and calling upon the name of the Lord, that the Lord would open thine eyes and ears, and give thee the Spirit of Revelation, of un∣derstanding: do as David did, Psal. 119.18. Lord open mine eyes, that I may behold the wonders of thy Law. It is a worthy saying of an Ancient Divine, (saith he) though there be many things in the Scripture, hard to be under∣stood, difficult to reach into the depth of them, yet whatsoever is neces∣sary and needful to be known to salvation, it is plainly set forth in the Scri∣pture, and easie to be understood to them that will read diligently, mark attentively, pray heartily, and judge humbly; come without any self-con∣ceit of thine own wit, come even as a fool to the Word of God, in com∣parison of the wisdom of God revealed in it, and then by this meanes we shall come to a right application of the Word of God, and effectually un∣derstand and apply it.
Come we now to the Apostles reason, all they are not Israel, that are of Israel, that is, all they are not the true Israelites, and elect and chosen seed of Abraham, that are descended of Israel according to the flesh: hence we are plainly taught thus much,
[Doctrine.] That indeed all are not true Israelites, that bear the name of Israelites; or thus, all they are not true Christians, that have taken upon them the name of Christ, and bear the name of Christians: or thus, all they that are in the visible Church, and are of the visible Church, yet they are not members of the true Church of God: And for the further manifestati∣on of this, if we look in the Book of God, we shall find, that in all ages from the beginning, there hath been some in the visible Church, and of the visible Church, that were not true members of the Church of God. Thus it was in the dayes of Moses, in the dayes of Christ, and of the Apo∣stles, yea when the Church of God was in one Family, in Abraham, in Isaac, and in Jacobs Family; in Abrahams Family was an Ishmael, as well as an Isaac; in Isaac's Family, an Esau, as well as a Jacob; and so in all ages: and hence it is, that Christ compareth the Church to a field, that hath not onely good wheat, but tares, Matth. 13.26. and in the 47. and 48. verses. Christ speaketh of some that said they were Jewes and were not, they were Jewes by birth and nation; but they were the Synagogue of Satan: and in Revel. 3.9. he saith, some called themselves Jews and were not, they were in the visible Church, and yet they were not the true Church of Christ.
[Reason.] Because all they that live in the bosome of the visible Church, and make open profession of it, they are not all such as God hath set apart to life and salvation, though they be in the visible Church, and of the visible Church, and make the same profession, yet indeed they are not true members of the Church; 1 Joh. 2.19. where John saith, they went out from us, because they were not of us; they did not truly believe in Christ, and if they had been of us, they would have continued with us: but by this it appeareth, that they were not of us, because they have made a disjunction from us: now to apply this.
[Ʋse.] First of all, this truth now delivered, beareth witnesse strongly against the foolish conceit of the Separatists; (and what is their opinion?) They