A caveat to the standing Christian, and to him that thinketh he standeth by William Gearing ...

CHAP. XVII.

Ʋse 1. THe first Use is of Exhortation: You that think you are in the state of grace, and have abun∣dance of the Spirit poured out upon you, have a watch∣ful eye that ye spill not a drop of the grace of God; it is Gods own image, will ye not be careful to keep that from the least defacing? it is the divine nature, will you part with that? it is the blood royal of Heaven, lose not a drop of it: Do you desire to maintain communion with God, to walk in the light of his countenance, to be filled with the joy of Christ? do you desire to run like a Giant the course of Christianity? then take heed of falling from that measure of grace you have received.

Quest. What must we take heed of, that we fall not?

Resp. 1. Take heed of the neglect of holy duties: Watermen say, they lose more by missing one stroke, then they can gain by many: So may a Christian lose more by neglect of one duty, of one Ordinance, then he can gain

by many: that man will not grow rich in grace, that grows poor in duty; the praying, the hearing, the medi∣tating Christian, is the thriving Christian: as in nature, the seed brings forth the flowers, and the flowers bring forth the seed, if one fail, both will fail; so in grace, the seed of saving grace brings forth the flower of spiritual duties, and the flower of spiritual duties brings forth the seed and fruit of grace.

2. Take heed of remissness in duty; remissness in grace will follow upon it; in praying we must pray, in hearing hear; serve God with all your might, then God will strengthen us with all might in the inner man; that man that doth not exercise his graces in duties, will lose his graces; he that prays not in faith, will lose faith in praying: it is an heavy curse, if a man in seeing see not, and in hearing hear not; it is no less, when a man in praying prayeth not.

3. Take heed of over-much love of the world; the love of the world is a cause of total apostacy from God, as we see in Judas and Demas: he that is too careful in seeking the things of the world, will be too careless in seeking the things of Christ. The Arabians have a Pro∣verb, Claude fenestras ut luceat domus, Shut the windows that the house may be lightsom: So say I, shut your eyes from beholding the glory of the world, that your souls may glister with grace: why doth our Saviour so often give forth Caveats against covetousness, but because he knoweth earthly employments are heavenly impediments?

4. Take heed of pride, because of your graces; for pride goes before a fall: Angels and Adam were too proud of their glorious gifts, and they fell fearfully; God can∣not endure pride in any thing, though it be grace it self: God to prevent pride in Paul sent a messenger of Satan to buffet him. When the Roman Emperour saw the people grow so proud as to wear jewels in their shoes, he took them away: Beware therefore of pride, and always re∣member, that God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

5. Take heed of ill principles and ill opinions; corrupt opinions and principles destroy holy practices; some dan∣gerous opinions entertained have brought a great decay of grace upon many Professors: it is the Divels policy to busie the heads of many about opinions, that the heart may sit loose in holy practices.

6. Take heed of self-confidence: Peter fails in his faith, because he was too confident of his love to Christ: That soul doth most strengthen his grace, who liveth in an holy fear of decaying in grace; he that hath a jealous fear over his own heart, will be most watchful over it: where there is a fear of decay, there is the greatest circum∣spection; God hath the greatest communion with such, who are afraid to depart a step from him.

7. Beware of spiritual niggardliness in laying out your graces; the more grace you lay out, the more increase; To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abun∣dance: having there is put for using; for the unfaithful servant had a talent, but did not use it; this is the talent in the napkin, to have grace, and not to use it: he that is slothful in improving grace, decayeth in grace; improve∣ment of every thing is the advancement and increase of it; money is increased by improvement, ground is made fruitful by improvement; so is grace also increased by an holy improvement of it.

Ʋse 2. That you may not fall from the measure of grace you have received, labour to grow in grace; and to this purpose,

1. See that you grow up in Christ in all things by the operation of the Spirit of Christ upon your souls, which Spirit is as the soul of the new life within you, so enlarg∣ing and corroborating every spiritual member, that it may be a meet instrument of righteousness to bring forth fruit to God; be not like a Giant in a painted cloth, that never attained to those dimensions by any growth from any vital principle; but be ye in your spiritual growth in proportion like the humane nature of Christ in his child∣hood,

encreasing in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man, Luke 2.52. see that grace have the same efficacy upon your souls, which the soul hath upon the body; while the body is in a growing condition, the soul enlargeth the body in all the parts and dimensions of it, that the members may not only fill more cloaths, but take in more nourishment, and so be more strengthened and fitted for service.

2. See that you grow not only without, but also from within; to live under the powerful dispensation of the Word, to converse with lively and growing Christians, men may catch something here and there that may make them seem to grow, and by observing their shining con∣versations and godly examples, they may endeavour to be like them; they may be bigger in notions, in words and phrases, in the outward garb and motion of a Christian, but in the mean time wither and decay within; such mens discourses of God and Religion are but like the pratings of Parrots, being taught by others, they speak like men, but know not what they say: If ye will increase in all the in∣creases of God, as you have your nourishment from without, so your growth must be from within; if you first grow within, you will then grow without: see that ye be first engraffed into Christ by the Word of God, then from Christ the heart will draw out so much nou∣rishment, as that Christ shall be formed in you, and from thence you will grow and become fruitful in your conver∣sations, not only in bringing forth the leaves of professi∣on, but also the fruits of obedience to God. A seeming∣ly growing Christian grows not at all in the inner man, but in the outward parts only; it is only (as one noteth) like the growth of the hair and nails, which Nature puts forth as excrements of the skin and outward parts, which grow even when a man is dead, as long as there is any moisture to feed upon: It is not enough to grow external∣ly, unless we have also internal growth; if we have no more but the growth of knowledge, of zeal and affection,

and some outward formalities, it is but as a wen in the body, or an exuberance in the blood that seeks vent by the pores; such knowledge the Scripture accounteth no knowledge, 1 Cor. 8.2. such zeal no zeal, Rom. 10.2. and such grace to be no grace, Acts 8.21. such a one, like the Church of Sardis, hath a name that he liveth, but is indeed dead, even dead while he liveth. See that your growth proceed not from the excrescency of nature and corruption, but from the divine nature in you.

3. See that you grow every day more fruitful, that you go from faith to faith, from strength to strength; that ye grow in grace, not for a fit and start, or for a humour, but for continuance upon setled resolution and serious de∣liberation; see that you hold on in your way (as it is said of the righteous man) and grow stronger and stronger, Job 17.9. that ye be always going forward toward per∣fection, that your good works be moe and better at last then at first, that ye grow more fruitful in old age, even fat and flourishing; it is not enough that ye bear fruit, but ye must bring forth the best fruit at last; the Lord still bestoweth more husbandry, and is at more cost upon them that do still abound in the fruits of righteousness, that being purged they may bring forth more fruit, Joh. 15.2. as trees of the Lords planting, the older you grow, see that ye be the more fully laden with the fruits of righ∣teousness, being filled with all the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ unto the praise and glory of God, Phil. 1.11. although your outward man decay, see that your inward man be renewed day by day: Oh how many Professors of Religion are there that grow very fast at first, but soon wither like the seed cast into the stony ground, as that did for want of depth of earth, for lack of root! Jonah's gourd was up in a night, and became a great shadow to him, but there was a worm at the root that smote the gourd, that it also withered; so some se∣cret lust lying in the heart, blasteth a forward spring of profession in many Christians.

4. See that your growth in grace be a proportionable growth; the formal Christians growth is like the growth of a child that hath the Rickets, that is big in the head, but thriveth not in any other parts of the body; so many seeming Christians are big in knowledge, but little in conscience, full of seeming zeal, but little in judgment and discretion; yea one part is the occasion of the decay of another; as in the body of man the increase and swel∣ling of the spleen, causeth the body to languish; so where there is only a seeming growth in grace, true love to God and his ways utterly decayeth: see therefore that your growth be proportionable in every part; there is an effe∣ctual working from the Head in the measure of every part: every Christian is a member and a part of Christ; and all his members are the fulness of Christ; and every part must aspire to the nature and figure of the Head in his proportion, that it may be a model and resemblance of the whole body, which is the fulness of him that filleth all in all: see that every part and piece of each part grow in Christ, that when you grow in knowledge, you grow in grace also, and by growing in grace you will grow more in spiritual knowledge; there is no true growth in the one without the other: be still therefore adding to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness, and to god∣liness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity; and be ye careful not only that these things be in you, but that you abound in them, 2 Pet. 1.5, 6, 7, 8. It is true, some Christians have been more eminent then others in some one particular grace; Abraham was eminent for his faith, Moses for his meekness, Job for his patience, David for his zeal, John for his fervent love to Christ: as it falls out in the parts of the body, some have a stronger arm, some a better leg, another a taller stature, another a more love∣ly countenance; they may have some one or other part that may more affect the spectator, yet all comely and holding a good proportion: so it should be among Chri∣stians

in the endowments of the soul; some may excell more in one grace then in another, but if your growth in grace be kindly, no one grace will hinder the growth of another, or render any unserviceable or disproportiona∣ble to the rest. There is no body that is altogether per∣fect, so that it is wholly free from obstruction or distem∣per in some parts of it; neither is there any soul here so exact, but that there may be an obstruction of some gra∣ces in their growth, so that some graces may not hold pace with the rest: some violent distemper in the body may be an impediment to a childs growth for a while; so some dregs of corruption may obstruct our spiritual growth, which being purged away, a Christian grows more fruitful afterward.

5. See that your growth in grace be more then a seem∣ing growth, that it be a real growth; see that ye be not like stakes or posts pitch'd in the ground, standing as if they grew, but grow not; be not you like those women the Apostle speaks of, ever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth, 2 Tim. 3.7. but as thriving plants in Gods Orchard labour to increase more and more; and like the Vine that shoots out as far as he can, while either the wall or the pole will help him along.