Agnoia tou psychikou anthråopou, or, The inability of the highest improved naturall man to attaine a sufficient and right knowledge of indwelling sinne discovered in three sermons, preached at St. Marie's in Oxford / by Henry Hurst ...

4. Reason. Because 〈◊〉〈◊〉 is unwilling to appeare otherwise then as he may beast, and glory in himselfe.

A naturall unwillingnesse that he should, and a strong resolution that he will not ap∣peare in other colours, then those he can de∣light in, and which he judgeth beautifull: The naturall man is unwilling to walke a∣broad in his owne cloathes, which are filthy, and to be set forth in his owne colours: He

hateth the light, Joh. 3.20. because his na∣ture, and his workes are indeed, and will ap∣peare in the light to be evill. He is a crafty, and deceitfull tradesman, who will not shew his indifferent, and bad wares, but with the advantage of a darke shop: if there be a par∣cell better then other, he perswades you to take thē to the light; he is willing to own thē, they will prove enough to his intended ad∣vantage: so let what seems good, and such as he thinks may approve it selfe upon a tri∣all, be done by a naturall man, And the neighbourhood shall ring of it, he will walke abroad in that dresse, in it he admires him∣selfe, and hopes others will do so too, for he would faine be 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Therefore hee'l stand it out with Preachers, and dispute the conviction, and maintaine while he can, with Saul, 1 Sam. 15.20. I have obeyed the commandement of the Lord, my wayes are equall, as the proud selfe justifying Jew said, Ezek. 18.25. Naturall men trust they are righteous, and seek this righteousnesse in themselves, Luke 18.9. they establish their owne righteousnesse, Rom. 10.3. they will either find or make roome for boasting: the multitude of Pharisees in our Saviour's time, and all men before and since (of this stamp)

servants to their' lusts, and estranged from the life of God, all our proud merit mongers: all our selfe-charitable, lazy, professours who do not indeed so much as others, but they thinke as well, for they themselves are perswaded, that God loves them, accepts of them, and in this cloathing they will appeare to us (I say) the multitude of such persons, are very evident, and undenyable arguments of the Naturall man's unwillingnesse he should, and resolution that he will not ap∣pear (if he can help it) in his right colours: and this indeed is both a fruit of sinne, and a punishment of it: that though the sinner loves, and embraceth it, yet he would not see the thing he loves; He would not court that with eye which he adores with his heart, He will not part with his sinne, for price bet∣ter then all the world, he will not leave it for heaven; and yet he would not for all the world have a full sight of it, though the enjoyment of his sinne be dearer to him then Heaven, the sight of it is unwelcome to him as hell. A cleare testimony of the base∣nesse both of sin, and of the sinner. Now certainly he will rather turne his eye from prying after sinne, then by a farther search discover what he is unwilling to find. So

that could you suppose him able to find out; yet his unwillingnesse would hinder him, that he never should put forth that ability to the utmost, nor make any discovery of sinne, farther then his unwillingnesse would give him leave; for never did any sinner see more of his sinne then he was willing to see of it, unlesse when God brought him to suf∣fer in some kind or other for his sinne, then he seeth more of it indeed: but let him be quiet, and secure from the hand of the Almighty, and hee seeth no more then he is willing to see of it. Hell hereafter, and punishment now, will convince a sinner, and make him looke on sinne, and see somewhat more then he could desire to see in it: but in the case before us, in an ordinary enquiry after sinne, in order to detect it, and in or∣der to a right knowledge of it; His sight of sinne is never greater then his willingnesse: Nor will be ever see more then he desires to see of it: if the spirit of renovation power∣fully change the sinner, and make him a Saint, it will change this frame of heart, and make him earnestly desirous, and truly willing to see his sinne, and to have a full, and cleare sight of it: The sinner who is enamoured with, and espoused to his sinne, will deale

well with his Beloved in the search, as Mi∣chal did with David, when her father sent to apprehend him, 1 Sam. 19.16,17. when a messenger from God in his Word, or pro∣vidence is sent to search for the beloved lust of a sinner, then 'tis either sick, (as one that needs not now be feared it is dying) or if this serve not, but the lust must be brought out, and so endangered: then 'tis conveyed away, and secured from the stroke of the word and rod, Naturall men will deny the abode of their sinne, as Rahab the Spies: And they have a deepe and darke well to hide their lust in when it is enquired after, as the woman had to hide Jonath: and Ahimaaz, 2 Sam. 17.21. and Bread-corne to spread over it, a faire pretence, that, what (we sup∣pose) is a sinfull lust and working to sinne, is but a necessary provision for the life, and welfare of the man.

Nor doth the Scripture onely tell us that men are thus selfe admirers, and unwilling to appeare to themselves in any cloud which might darken this lustre: but also Reason, or Nature. Hence the proud boasts of our vain Philosophy, Neque est ullum bonum de quo non is qui id habeat honestè possit gloriari: and yet higher then this, they boast of a soule

that trusts to his own good and abilities Animus suis b••nis viribús{que} fidens, and else where Benum mansurum-nullum est nisi∣quod animus ex se sibi invenit Senec. 27. Epist.

Best improved nature seeks after what good may be gotten hold on arising from its own soile, and manuring, for the quieting and satisfying of it's mind, and willingly heares no other language then that the Stoicks were wont to speak in, that the wise man (and he is that wise man for every natu∣rall man though vaine would be accounted this wise man) is to be reputed

• 1. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 without passion, the soft name which they give to a sinfull and inordinate principle of the soule and so the man must be thought not diminutively bad, but per∣fectly good as Senec, 85. Epist: And Zeno. referente Cicerone 1. Academ.
• 2. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 too so much elevated in his own opinion that he thinks himselfe infalli∣ble in judging.
• 3. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 undesectible in acting, so steady in his aime, and drawing the bow that he never misseth the marke and yet this were little unlesse he were,
• 4. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 in the possession and enjoy∣ment of himselfe, and so equall to a deity, as

• who so will may see if he will but observe the proud dictates of these vaine men and their swelling Paradoxes, gathered together by Lipsius.

Now can it be supposed ratio∣nally probable or possible? that men so strangely possessed with an opinion of such high perfections, should ever be willing to own, or able to discover, such a redundancy and fulnesse of evill in their nature. But fifthly and lastly,

Notes

• Sinners dote on their sins Ezek. 23.5,7.
• Cicer. Pa∣do••. 1.
• Seneca ci∣ted by Lip∣sius Stoic. Phil. l. 1. dis. 5.
• Lipsius Stoica Phi∣los. l. 3. tot.