Fenner - Houston-Packer Collection BX5133.A1 F37 1657

------- 1 Treatif /e of the .tifedibn:r. Firft,becaufe nothingbut God is ailgood,Every good betides God bath but z. one or two goodneffes in ir,None but Godhath all goodueflés in him;what Becaufe nothin is meat (rood tor,but onelytofeed one ? when thouhaft it,thou muff defire a- hilt God is aa- r gain to have raiment,for meat wil not cloth thee?what is raimentgoodfor,but good. only to cover one; when thou haft ir, thoumuft defire again tobe fed, for rai- ment will not feed thee; what is monygood tor, but only to buy with ? when thou haft it,thoumutt defire again tobe recoveredof thyftcknefs, for moray wil not cure thee ofthe Fever:thus no good thing in the world can give thine affe&ions a reft,becaufe theyhave but one or twogoodnefíes apiece in'tlern, but the Lordsgoodnefs is infinite, he is all-good.; ifthouhaft him, thoutan teft nomanner ofthing that is good, They thatfeekthe Lordpall not want any, good thing,Pfal.34.I o.For everygood thing }sin him.He is bread tothe huh-' gry,aïiddrink to the thirfty,and health to the fick,and libertyto thecaptivç all in all to them that let their affeaions onhim. Frufirafit per plurayuod `iei`i poteft per pauciora.If thineaffe&ions go to anycreanire,thou fetcheft but a lit- tlegood at once,thine affe&ions will be fain to go a thoufand anda thoufand times over and over,thou getteft fo little at once,that thoushalt be tempted to beaffecting the oftner;but if thineaffections go toGod, thou goeft to the fountain,there thou haft it bydrops,never enough, here thoumayeff haveit at once. Whowould be fo mad to fetch water at a Cock that airmail by drops,when the Fountain is by ? Secondly, becaufe nothing but Cod is the ultimategood. Thou affe&eft the 2 things ofthis lifc,alas they will never give reff, for full there is fomerhingbe- Nothing but yond them,but God is the utmoft ofall goods,when the foul isonce fetledón eig a it`° him, it bathno further to go ; like the {tone, when itscome to the centre, it hall no further to go. I amAlphaand Omega, the beginning and the ending, the firfi andthe laff,faies Chrift;ifthe foul be inChrift,Chrift ishis láft,the foul is at rat; why? it hathnowhere togo:whether fhould wego,faies Peter to Chrift? Thouhaft the words ofeternal life,John 6.Chrift firft,and Chrift next,&Çhrift laft;Chrift is the utmoft andulcimat good of the foul;the foul bath no further to go:and thereforehere mutt thou fix thine affe&tions,fix them upon Chrift. Thirdly,bccaufe nothing is it Pelfwithout God the things of this life,theyare good I confefe, but they are not themfelves without God ; if God be c 5.. not in them the very good that they have, is not in them. When thou felfhnbou afte&eft pleafure and delight, anfwer me, why doeft thou affe& it, is God, it not for the good that is in it ? when thou afte&eft profit, or health, or peace,or friends,.orcredit, or what ever thou afte&eft, tell me in thy confci- cuce whydoeft thou affe& them ; is it notfor the good that is in them?they- are good,therefore thouafet -left them:but if thou haft not Chrift,and God, andhisSpirit,and hisgrace,ifshots haft not the Lord in thefe things,theyare notthemfelves , neither havethey thegood that is in them. Riches is rio ri- ches without grace, but afnare ; health is no health Without Chrifk, but a curfe ; peace and pleafurearenot themfelves without God, but poyfon ; thy goodparts are thy bane, thymoney is thyvengeance, thy goods are a witnç,e againft thee without Chrift. Ifthou beef} not in Chrift, ifnot a new creature, one day thou fhalt curie that ever thouWert born,and therefore much more halt thou curfe that ever thou had means,or maintenance,or life, orhealth, or any thing; the more thou had ft of thefe blellìngs, if Chrift be not with them, as he is not, ifthou beeft not a new creature, ì fay, if Chrift benot in them thebieflingsarenot themfelves; theyhave notthe good that is inthem without Quiff. David had a Caftlesand a Bucl`ler,and a Horne,but they were not themfelves without God. Lord thou art my Caftle, andmy Buckler, and the Horne ofmy falvatios, David had a `fervant to make his bed in his fickneffe, but to let us know that this bleflìng, was not it Pelf without God, he puts the phrafc uponGod, Who made his bed in hisfick;zeffe 5 no* E 2 bleffrag

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