tollis meum.

of God, but by Chrift; for it is in and by him that we receive of divine fulness, John 1. 16. Hence was that of the devout father, tolle meum, tolle Deum; to which I may add, Tolle Jefum, & The fulness of a fountain is nothing to me, except it be mine. There is bread enough in my father's houfe, fays the poor prodigal, but for all that I perifh with hunger: fo there are living waters evermore in this uncreated life, this infinite fpring of all perfections; yet many fouls are choaked with thirst, because the fountain is not theirs; it is a fountain fealed, as Solomon fpeaks in another cafe; The well is deep, and they have nothing to draw with, as the woman faid concerning another well, John iv. Therefore be fure you get an intereft in the fulnefs and fufficiency of God; or as Solomon speaks in another cafe, Prov. v. 15. Drink waters out of thine own well.

3. Converfe with the felf-fufficient fulness of God, by delighting your felves in it. Drink of this fountain,. yea drink abundantly ye beloved of God, Cant. v. 1. yea, lie down by it, Pfal. xxiii. 2. yea, bathe yourfelves wholly in it; Enter into the joy of your Lord, lie down in his bofom, fpread yourselves in his love and fulness. The beloved difciple leaning upon the breast of his Lord at fupper, was but a dark fhadow, a poor fcant resemblance of a beloved foul, which by the lovely acts of joy and confidence, and delight, lays itself down in the bofom of Jefus, and doth not feed with him, but feed upon him, and his all-fufficiency. Then do we converfe indeed feelingly and comfortably with the infinite fulnefs, when the foul is fwallowed up

in it, doth reft in it, is filled with it, and centered upon it. Oh the noble and free-born spirit of true religion, that disdaining the pursuit of low and created things is carried out with delight to feed, and dwell, and live upon uncreated fulness! Then is a foul raised to its juft altitude, to the very height of its being, when it can spend all its powers upon the fupreme and selffufficient good, fpreading and ftretching itself upon God with full contentment, and wrapping up itself entirely in him. This is the foul's way of living above loffes; and he that fo lives, though he may often be a lofer, yet shall never be at a lofs. He who will feed upon created goodness or sweetness, may foon eat himself out of all; the ftock will be spent, and which is worse, the foul will be dried up, that hath nothing else to nourish it. But he that lives upon uncreated fulness, is never at a loss, though he lose never fo much of the creature: for who will value the fpilling a difh of water, that hath a well of living water at his door, from whence he had that, and can have more as good, though not the fame. Nay, to fpeak properly, this is the only way to lofe nothing. For how can he be properly faid to lofe any thing, who poffeffeth all things? And fo doth he I am fure, who is filled with the fulness of God. Be fure therefore, that in the want, in the loss of all things, you live upon the fountainfulness, delight yourself in the Lord, after the example of the prophet, Habakkuk, cap. iii. 17, 18.

I have gone through the doctrinal part of my difcourfe upon these words, which was the thing I mainly intended. Many inferences might be

drawn

drawn from it. But I fhall content myself to forbid, and so as it were to remove out of the way, fome things that hinder this great duty; and fo fhut up all with one word of exhortation.

Converfe not with creature-comforts, the poor, low, and scant enjoyments of this world: for fo İ may well call them, though they be never fo high in the opinion of them that have them, and never fo largeas to the proportion that any one hath of them: They are low in comparison of that high and fupreme good for which the foul was made; and fcant as to any real happinefs, or fatisfaction that they can poffible give. For indeed those finful and fenfual fouls that take up their reft and happiness most in. them, are not properly fatisfied, but furfeited; not filled, but for the prefent glutted with them, There are many unlawful, and hurtful ways of the foul's converfing with created comforts : I will not run thorough them all, as not intending any large discourse upon these heads. Converse not. with them, fondly delighting in them, and doating upon them: especially take heed of this when God is fhaking his rod over any of them. Doth God arife and begin to plead with you in judgment, laying his hand upon any of thefe, and threatning to take them from you? Oh then hands off! touch them not. What an unfeemly, and indeed monftrous fight is it to see a creature pulling and tugging against his Creator, and maintaining his fuppofed right against heaven itfelf! Is it for a heaven-born foul to ftand gazing and doating upon, or paffionately weeping over created friends, carnal liberty, corporal health, houses made with hands, things below God, yea,

and

and below itself too? Pore not too much upon them; value them only in God, and refer them freely to him. If you can fay, you have any thing. of your own, make much of it, and spare not: but give unto God the things that are God's, and by that time you have done fo, I think need you not dote upon what's left. We ought indeed at all times to enjoy all our creature comforts with hearts loosened from them: but if formerly our hearts have been too much joined to them, it is time now to loosen them.

2. Converse not with creature caufes in a time of affliction. This is a ftrange kind of Atheistical temper, into which we are very prone to fall: I fpeak properly, when I fay, fall, for it is indeed a falling down from God in our hearts, in whose infinite effence all creature-causes are lapt up; and in whofe hand the several fucceffes and events of them all lie. Let a beast that judges by fenfe, kick at the poor thorn that pricks him: but let rational fouls fix upon the highest and fupreme agent, who in an infinite powerful and fkilful manner, ufes what creature he will, for what end he will, and fends it of an errand which itself knows not. Why do we run hunting poor partridge-inftruments upon the mountains of contemplation? Shall the noble faculties of an immortal foul fpend themselves upon fuch an inquifition? Or is it just to pursue an innocent creature out of breath for being an inftrument in the band of God? To quarrel with the fword, because it fuffered itself to be drawn, or beat the air, because it is infected? This were indeed to go out with the king of Ifrael, with much warlike prepa

ration,

ration, to catch fleas.* I deny not but that wife men may look into fecond causes, and make many profitable observations from them, both for present and future; and all men may and ought to learn many wholesome leffons even from the inftrument that afflicts them: but fure I am, a godly man will not dwell upon thefe; he will not fix here, but readily refolve all into an higher caufe, and fo falls to converfe with that: much lefs will he blame or murmur at a poor harmlefs arrow, that flew no further than it was fhot, nor pierced deeper than it was bidden. Yea, though the fecond cause were a finful cause, a rational agent, and fo confequently acted by malicious and evil principles; yet a godly foul knows how to diftinguish between him and his action: he hates him as a finner; but comports well enough with him as God's inftrument: and though he condemns his action as it varies from God's command, yet he approves of it as being ordered by God's hand and counfel. David hated curfing as much as any man; yet did he fo eye the hand of God in every thing, and comply with it too, that there was a time when he faid concerning Shimei, So let him curfe. Concerning this I hinted fomething before under another head. Therefore,

3. Converfe not with creature-cures, creature-relief. Thefe may indeed be looked out after, and fafely made ufe of when they are found: Nay, I will add further, that they are to be fought diligently, and used carefully. They who know the infinite fovereignty, power and wifdom of God, will not tye him to means, much less to these or * Alluding to 1 Sam, xxvi, 20.

thofe