But consider, to amplify that which I gave in a branch before, what reason hath a Christian to be ruled by ' fleshly wisdom,' when it hinders him from all that is good, if he yield unto it, and keeps him in imperfect good ?
I speak especially now to those that are not in the state of grace. What reason hath any one of you to be ruled by fleshly wisdom, when it keeps you in the state of unregeneracy ? It keeps you perhaps in some good, but it is imperfect good. You think you are good enough, and that all is sure, and God will be merciful, &c., whenas a reprobate may go be- yond you.
It hinders from good actions with pretences, for fleshly wisdom will teU us there will be danger, you shall be reproached if you do this and that, you shall be accounted thus and thus, and run into obloquy.
It hinders from doing good. ' There is a lion in the way,' Prov. xxvi. 13.
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It forecasts this and that danger. It keeps us in imperfect good that will never save us. It objects dangers. The sluggard that will not set on his spirit to laboiu-, he thinks himself wondrous wise in forecasting dangers. Oh, I shall want myself, &c.
It dulls and distracts us in good. He that hath a carnal protecting head, it eats up his soul, that when he comes to pray, or to hear, or to meddle with spiritual matters, the marrow and strength of his soul is eaten up with carnal projects, and he doth things by halves.
Nay, carnal wisdom, as far as it is in us unmortified, it sets itself against good by depraving good, that we may seem to be mischievous, and ill, and wicked with reason. Men are loath to go to hell without reason. There was none that ever went to hell yet without wisdom, a great deal of wisdom. And how doth their wisdom bring them to hell ? As in other respects, which I named before, so in this ; it whets the poisonfulness of their nature to invent and to raise scandals, or to be willing to take scandals when they are ofiered. ,
A carnal wise man, when he knows that such a degree of religion is con- trary to his carnal projects, he festeneth all the disgrace on it that he can, that he may be the less observed. Religious he would be, but with a limi- tation, with a reservation and restraint, as far as may stand with his carnal projects and purposes ; and so much religion as goes beyond that, and dis- covers him to be false and halting, so much he opposeth. The wisdom of the flesh is bitter and sharp against all the opposers of it, and stirs the em'sed nature of man to the opposing of that which is contrary to it.
Take a carnal man, either in magistracy or ministry, if he be not humbled with pains in his calling and with the word that he teacheth, what doth he most hate in the world ? What doth he oppose ? Is there anything but saving grace ? Is there anything but that which God loves most, and which is best for his soul, that is the object of his spite and of his poison and malice ?
To be led by this is even as if a man should be led by a pirate, by a thief, b}' an enemy. And what can become of that man, to be led ' as the fool to the stocks,' as Solomon saith, Prov. vii. 22. He is in the way of death. ' There is a way that seemeth good to a man in his own eyes, but the issues of it are death,' saith Solomon, Prov. xiv. 12 ; and that is the way that carnal wisdom dictates to men.
It hinders also from the reforming of ill. Policy overthrows policy, as we say. Policy overthrows commonwealths. Tell a man that is in place, You ought to reform this abuse and that abuse. He is ready to think, Oh, if I be not wary, others will inquire into my life too, and find me out.
So this cursed pohcy, this carnal wisdom, it makes men unfruitful in their places, by forecasting dangers ; and so it hinders from doing good, and from reforming gross abominations and abuses.
So it hinders from suffering when God calls to it. It forecasts : if you be religious, you must suffer, it will bring your good name in question, it will bring your life in question, it will hazard your estate. Whereas, in- deed, all the world is not worth the truth of God ; and a man loves not his life that will not hate it in such a case ; if it come to case of confession, and standing for the truth in a good quarrel.
But here fleshly wisdom objects this and that danger ; as we see in Spira and others. And thus man, yielding to fleshly wisdom, he grows desperate at length (qq).
There are two men in a man, as it were. There is the flesh and the
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spirit. The flesli saith as Job's wife said, ' Curse God and die,' or * Bless (rod and die,' read it whether you will (rr). There is the murmuring part iu the cross that bids us curse God ; and as Peter said unto Christ, ' Oh ! save yourselves, this shall not befal you,' Mat. xvi. 22 ; pity yourself, have regard of yourself.* The flesh when we are to suffer saith as Eve to Adam, as Job's wife to him, or as Peter to Christ, Oh spare yourself, be wise, be wise. And to colour the matter the more, there must be a pre- tence of wisdom ; whenas it is the greatest folly in the world to redeem any earthly commodity, even life itself, with the cracking of conscience, with the breach of that ' peace which passeth understanding,' Philip, iv. 7, and per- hiips with the loss of our souls. It is the gi'eatcst folly in the world ; it is to be penny wise and pound foolish. So we see whensoever we are about to suffer, carnal wisdom hinders us. As it hinders us from good, and in good, and hinders us from reforming evil ; and in suffering when we are called to it. So it provokes us to evil. And that we may swallow down the evil with the greater pleasure, and more deeply, it colours ill with good. We may thank this politic carnal wisdom, that truth and goodness ever goes with a scratched face, that it goes under disgrace, that it goes in a contrary habit; and that hypocrisy goes in its ruff, in its colours. I say we may thank carnal wisdom ; for if truth were presented in its own view, it would stir up approbation from all. And if men could see vice and wickedness uncased, if they could see it in its own hue, they would all de- test it. Carnal wisdom sees that this is not for the advancing of the pro- jects it hath, and therefore it disgraceth that which is good, and sets false colours on that which is ill.