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piece of their religion and zeal to dissent and be otherwise minded. Christ saith love shall wax cold in the latter days, Mat. xxiv. 12 ; the context showeth it is meant of this dispensative love. Ludolfus said, the world was at first destroyed with water for the heat of lusts ; but it will be destroyed with fire for the coldness of love.i Oh ! that we could stir you up to endeavour peace and reconciliation. The first work is the people's ; things are most managed according to your love and hatred. Herod could do nothing to John for fear of the people, and it is said of others they could not do what they would because of the people. Oh ! therefore, come, as the people did to John, and say, What shall we do ?
Truly much is to be done by you. I shall touch upon a few things. Besides reconciling yourselves to God, which is the best way to make others be at peace with you, and is to be heeded in a chief place ; for when you are at one with God, he will give you the one heart, and one way with other of his people : all agreement ariseth from that oneness with God and Christ ; but, I say, besides this general rule, let me entreat you to mind these things.
[1.] Let every one of us mortify such ill affections as may any way engage us to a disturbance and vexatious bitterness. Ill affections do as often divide us as ill opinions ; wars come from our lusts, James iv. 1 ; distempered spirits occasion distracted times. It is observed that when there was strife among the Philippians, the apostle doth not state the controversies, but giveth rules against pride and vainglory and self-seeking, Phil. ii. 3, 4. There are many evils in the heart of man. I shall instance in these : There is an itch of novelty ; naturally we adore things that are new ; they flocked about Paul because they supposed him a setter forth of new gods. Acts xvii. Seneca observeth right, Homini ingenitum est magis nova quam magna mirari — men admire a glaring meteor and comet more than they do the glorious sun. So pride ; that will make a man singular. There is a holy singularity : Prov. XXX. 31, the going of the he-goat is comely ; that is, as he walketh before the flock. Thus to be a leading man in religion is honourable, but pride puts a man upon an evil singularity, Col. iL 18, ' intruding himself into things not seen, being puffed up with his own fleshly mind.' It puts men upon ungrounded conceits, quintes- sential extracts, foolish niceties. So envy ; that begets an evil eye upon each others' renown and esteem : therefore, when God would reconcile Ephraim and Judah, he would take away their envy : ' And Ephraim shall not envy Judah, nor Judah vex Ephraim,' Isa. xi. 13. So revenge and discontent. Porphyry and Julian, two bitter enemies, receiving injuries from the church, became atheists. The devil worketh upon stomach and discontent, thoughts of disrespect. So there is self- seeking : men care not what they do so they may accommodate their OAvn ends ; they ' speak perverse things to draw disciples after them/ Acts XX. 30. Some men love to be in the head of a train, and there- fore, if God's truths will not serve their ends, they can easily baulk them. So self-conceit ; men make idols of their own conceptions, love an opinion non quia veram sed quia suam, not because it is true, but theirs ; they are angry because others dissent from them, not from
^ Ludolfus de Vita Christi, lib. ii. cap. 87.
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Christ ; as appeareth plainly, because those that know little or nothing of the mind of Christ make most bitter and loud outcries against errors. Men are passionate in their own cause, and would have every one embrace their fancies : pray, what is the spring of all your dis- putes ? Self, or Christ's glory ? I cannot go over all the corruptions ; only 3'oa see from small sparkles a great fire is kindled ; that which goeth up in thin exhalations descendeth in great showers ; that which is at first but a lust, a vain desire, a corrupt working in your own hearts, is at length a tumult and combustion in a church or state. Therefore, in the general, note that a mortified spirit is the most peaceable.
[2.] Keep yourselves pure from ill opinions. You must as carefully avoid an error in judgment as a vice in conversation ; many dally with errors, not considering the danger of them. Oh ! consider, God hateth filthiness of the spirit as well as filthiness of the flesh, and a vain mind is as great a judgment as vile affections, Eom. i. 26, 28 : Yea, certainly, to the public, errors are more dangerous than vices, for vices and gross sins are more against natural awe and shame, and so less spreading, and though we yield to sin in ourselves, yet we do not love it in others ; and so among persons openly vicious there is nothing to allure and draw into a faction or party. Therefore be cautious and wary, if not for your own soul, yet for the common peace ; as Tertullian said to Scapula, Si non vis tibi parcere, parce Gartlior gini. So, if you will not pity yourselves, pity England ; a man would be careful of being accessary to a kingdom's or a church's ruin ; where the influence of an action is so public, you had need proceed with good deliberation and advice. However, that I may not in this point seem to press too hard upon any one party, let me discover the ex- tremities on both hands. There are two evils abroad — easy credulity and stubborn prejudice,^ and both of them increase the differences, whilst some men's judgments are forestalled by a tradition, others seduced by an invention ; therefore it is good to take the mean between both, which is the course the apostle prescribeth, 1 Thes. v. 21, ' Prove all things, hold fast that which is good ; ' prove all things, that we reject not truth by over-much prejudice ; hold fast that which is good, that we close not with error by over-much credulity. You owe so much to everything that pretendeth to God as to consider it. When Ehud told Eglon, ' I have a message from God, he arose out of his seat,' Judges iii. 20. I say, you owe so much reverence to everything that challengeth descent from heaven as to weigh the claim. I do the rather urge this, because the adversaries of Christianity have been always those that have least inquired into it. Tertullian observeth it of the enemies of the truth in his days, nolentes audire quod auditum damnare non possent — they would not hear that which they had a mind to hate. 2 God, that gave man reason, never intended that he should take up love or hatred by chance ; therefore it is good to try things. Sometimes a man may meet with an angel unawares, Heb. xiii. 2 ; only, on the other hand, remember I persuade you to a