Downame - Houston-Packer Collection BX5133.D76 C552 1611 v.2

58 What is requiredtofacing vertuesandgoodworker. 4.Se8.6. Thirdly, all our vertues and duties mu fl be grounded on ourvertnes the true knowledge ofGod, and his will reuealed in his maiibegrowl- word; for wemuff notrake vertues vpon the worlds cotn- dedon true mendation, nor performe duties which haue no othergroúd knowledge. thenour owne wils, inventions, andgood meanings, for fo may we in tertainevice for vertue,andoffer toGod for duty, that which he hath exprefly condemned as wicked, idola- trous and fuperflitious; but wee mutt fearch intohis word and reuealed will, declining therefrom, neither on the right Perfeïta virtiu hand nor on the left : for as one.faith, Perfeíl verrue ie not nonefi fsecog- without the knowledge the truth, nor the truthwithout the nitioneverita. g e o f cif, net veritas loose ofvertue. Blind deuotion therefore will not ,.profit vs, _ fineamere vir- neitherwill it auaile vs,thatwe run onheadlong in an igno- tutit. rant zeale for as Anfiinefaith,-he that runnethmoftfwiftly, Bernard. fer.z. being out ofthe way, is fomuch the moremiferable,becaufe giña.aluere the fafcerhe runneth, the further he is from hisiorncyesend: Augult.prafat, and therefore it is better to halt inthe way oftruth, then to in Plalm. runneapace in the wayoferror: yea itispoflìble thatinthe feruencieofour deuotion, being ignorant ofthe truth, we maybe perfecuterofit, and thofe whoprofeffe; as we may fee in the exampleofPaul, who in his blindzeale perfecuted the members ofChrifl, &afterwards was himfelfperfecuted AasJ3 50. out ofthe ignorardeuotiô ofcertaine honorablewomen.So that ifwe hauenot the light of theknowledge ofGod and his truth to guide vs in ourgoodmeaningsandbell deuoti- ons, wemay be no better then cruell perfecuteds,andconic- quently fubie6t to Gods wrath, to which all theignorant AEts 2.4.1 r. are liable ; for fo theApofile faith, that Chrilllefur/hall f ew z.Theffa .8. himfelfefrom heauen withhis msghtie cfingel r, inflaming fire, rendringvengeance vnto themthat donotknowgod, andwhtch obey not to the Ço fiellofourLord !elmChriatt. 4.Sef7 Fourthly,all our vertues andgood dutiesmull be ioyned our vertues with faith, as the Apoflle requirerh, for without faith it is muttbe ioyned impoflible topleafeGod, becaufewhatfoeueris not doneof ot purpofe btraefaátM' faith is onefaith thatiffaithbenotfrfh z Hebr.r r.6. . begot in ourhearty, other vertues cannot begood, although they Rom.6.z3. fermegood, &e. becauf it awritten, that without faith stit im- Sífides prima o tbte toNeale God.Whero we are not to vnderflaadan hiflo- in corae noFiro P P f ricall

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