THE CAUSES AND CURE OF MENTAL ERRORS. 465
and horses, as Ave have to baptize infants. Oh the madness of car- nal reason !
To take down the arrogance, and prevent the mischief of carnal reasonings, let us be convinced,
Remedy 1. That it is the will of God that reason in all believers should resign to faith, and all ratiocination submit to revelation.
Reason is no better than an usurper when it presumes to arbi- trate matters belonging to faith and revelation. * Reason's proper place is to sit at the feet of faith, and instead of searching the secret grounds and reasons, to adore and admire the great and unsearch- able mysteries of the gospel. None of God's works are unreason- able, but many of them are above reason. It was as truly, as inge- nuou^y said by one ; Never doth reason shew itself more reason- able than when it ceaseth to reason about things that are above rea~ son. " Vv here is the wise ? Where is the Scribe ? Where is the " disputer of this world ? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom " of this world ? For after that in the wisdom of God, the world by " wisdom knew not God; it pleased God, by the foolishness of " preaching, to save them that believe,'' 1 Cor. i. 20, 21. It is not reason, but faith that must save us.
The wisdom of God in the gospel is wisdom in a mystery, even hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glo- ry, 1 Cor. ii. 7. Such wisdom as the most eagle-eyed rationalists, and famed Philosophers of the world understood not. " Eye hath " not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of " man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love " him." But God hath revealed them to us by his Spirit, ibid. ver. 9, 10.
Remedy 2. Be convinced of the weakness and deep corruption of natural reason ; and this will restrain its arrogance, and make it modest and wary.
A convinced and renewed soul is conscious to itself of its own weakness and blindness ; and therefore dares not pry audaciously into the arcana coeli, nor summon the great God to its bar : it finds itself posed by the mysteries of nature, and therefore concludes it- self an incompetent judge of the mysteries of faith.
The arrogancy of reason is the reigning sin of the unregencrate ; though it be a disease with which the regenerate themselves are in- fected. When conviction shall do its work WDon the soul, the
* Man liaving sinned l)y pride, the wisdom of God humbles him at the veiy root of the tree of knowledge, aud makes him deny his own understanding, and submit to faith ; or else for ever to lose his desired felicity. Laud, against Fisher^ jj. 5.
466 A BLOW AT THE HOOT ; Olf,
plumes of spiritual pride quickly fall ; and it saith with Job, *' Once have I spoken, but I will speak no more ; yea, twice, but " I will proceed no further,"' q. d. I have done, father, I have done ; " I have uttered things that I understand not,'' Job xlii. S. Spiritual illumination cures this ambition.
Remedy 3. Consider the manifold mischiefs and evils flowing from the pride of reason.
It doth not only fill the world with errors and distractions, but it also invades the rights of heaven, and casts a vile reflection upon the wisdom, sovereignty, and veracity of God. It lifts up itself against his wisdom, not considering that " the foolishness of God " is wiser than men," 1 Cor. i. 25. It spurns at his glorious so- vereignty, not considering that " he giveth no account of his mat- " ters," Job xxxiii. 13. It questions his veracity, in saying with Nicodemus, '' How can these things be ?^'' John iii. 9.
Cause 9. The last evil disposition I shall here take notice of in the subject, is rash and ignorant zeal; a temper preparing the mind both to propagate furiously, and receive easily, erroneous doctrines and opinions.
When there is in the soul more heat than light, when a fervent spirit is governed by a weak head ; such a temper of spirit Satan desires and singles out as fittest for his purpose, especially when the heart is graceless, as well as the understanding weak. A blind horse, of an high mettle, will carry the rider into any pit, and venture over the most dangerous precipices.
Such were the superstitious Jewish Zealots ; they had a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. This -/.axo^>j?./a, blind zeal^ St. Paul charges justly upon the Jewish bigots^ Rom. x. 2. as the proper cause of their dangerous errors about the great point of jus- tification ; and surely no man understood the evil of it more than he, who, in his unregenerate state, was transported by it to the most furious persecution of the saints. Acts xxvi. 11. and even to dotage, and extreme fondness upon the erroneous traditions of his fathers. Gal. i. 14.
Blind zeal is a sword in a madman's hand. No persecutor like a conscientious one, whose erroneous conscience offers up the blood of the saints to the glory of God, John xvi. 2. The blind but zea- lous Pharisees would compass sea and land to make one proselyte, Matt, xxiii. 15. as our modern Pharisees, the Jesuits, have since done, wlio have mingled themselves with the remotest and most barbarous nations, to draw them to the Romish errors. Of the same temper v/as the false teachers taxed by the apostle. Gal. iv. 17. they zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would ex- clude you (viz. from our society and ordinances) that you might affect them.
HIE CAUSES A\D CURE OF MENTAL ERRORS. 437
And as it is the great instrument by whicli Satan propagates er- rors, so it makes a fit temper in the souls of the people to receive them : For, by this means error gains the jKJssession of tlie affec- tions, without passing a'previous and due test by the understand- ing, and so gains tlie soul by the advantage of a surprize. Every thing, by how much the more weak and ignoble it is, by so much the more it watcheth upon surprisals and advantages. Error cares not to endure the due examination and test of reason ; and there- fore seeks to gain by surprisal what it despairs of ever gaining by a plain and fair trial.
There be few Errorists in the world of Alexander's mind, who would rather lose the daij than steal the victory. Hence it comes to pass, that the greatest number of those they lead captives are silly women, as the apostle speaks, who are the most affectionate, but least judicious sex.
From this blind zeal it is that ihey cunningly wind their errone- ous opinions into all their discourses where they have any hope to prevail. A rational and modest contradiction puts them into a flame, it breaks the nearest bonds of friendship and society.
Kabshakeh in 2 Kings xviii. would not treat with Hezekiah's counsellors of state, but with the common people upon the wall : And error cares not to treat with sound reason, able to sift it through the scripture-search, but with the affections ; as well know- ing, it is in vain to make war in reason's territories without first gaining a party among the affections.