e` 392 DIRECTIONS FOR GETTING AND KEEPING when he takes that way. Read Mr. Herbert's "Church Militant of Rome," pp. 188-190. I could trace this deceiveryet further, and tell you, wherein, when he could not hinder reformation in Luther'sdays, he wouldneeds overdo in reforming ! But O how sad an exampleof it have we before our eyes in England ! Nevér peo- ple on earth more hot upon reforming! Never any deeper engag- ed for it ! The devil could not hinder it by fire and sword ;: when he sees that, he will needs turn reformer, as I said before, and he gets the word, and cries dowel antichrist, and cries up reformation, till he bath done what we see ! He bath made a Babel of our work, by confounding our languages; for though he will be for ref- ormation too, yet his name is Legion; he is an enemy to the one God, one Mediator and Head, one faith, and ope baptism, one heart, and one lip, and one way ; unity is the chief butt that he shoots at. Is baptism to be reformed ? Christ is so moderate a Reformer, that he only bids, Down with the symbolical, mystical rite of man's vain addition. gut the serpent is a more zealous re- former. He saith, Out with express covenanting; out with chil- dren; they are a corruption of the ordinance. And to others he says, Out with baptism itself. We might follow him thus through other ordinances. Indeed, he sooverdoes in his reforming, that he would not leave us a gospel, a ministry, a magistracy to be for Christ, no, nor a Christ; (though 'yet he would seem to own a God, and the lightof nature.) All these withhim are antichristian. By this time I hope you 'see that this way of overdoing bath another author than many zealous people do imagine ; and that it is the devil's common successful trade ; so that his agents in state- assemblies are taught his policy, ' When you have no other wayof undoing,let it be byoverdoing. And the same way he takes with the souls of particular persons. If he see them troubled for sin, and he cannot keep them from the knowledge of Christ and free grace, he puts, the name of free grace and gospel-preaching upon Antinomian and libertine errors, whichsubvert the very gospel and free grace itself. If he see men convinced of this, and that it is neither common nor religious libertinism ant sensuality that will bring men to heaven, then he will labor to make Papists of them, and toSet them on a task of external formalities, or macerating their bodies with hurtful fastings, watchings, and cold, as if self-murder were the highest pitch of religion, and God had pleasure to see his people torment themselves ! I confess it is very few that ever I knew to have erred far in the austere usage of their bodies. But some I have, and especially poor, melancholy Christians, that are more easily drawn to deal rigoroilywith their flesh thanothers be. And such writings as lately hav2 been published by some English Popish formalists, 'I have known draw men into this snare. I
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=