-- Tit. 1. Directions against Evil and Idle Thoughts
CHAPTER VI
Directions for the Government of the Thoughts I HAVE shewed you, in my "Treatise of Walking with God," how much man's thoughts are regarded by God, and should be regarded by himself; and what agents and instruments they are of very much good or evil: this therefore I shall suppose and not repeat; but only
Direct you in the governing of them. The work having three parts, they must have several Directions. 1. For the avoiding of evil thoughts. 2. For the exercise of good thoughts. 3. For the improvement of good thoughts, that they may be effectual.
Tit. 1. Directions against Evil and Idle Thoughts Direct. I. 'Know which are evil thoughts, and retain such an odious character of them continually on your minds, as may provoke you still to meet them with abhorrence.' Evil thoughts are such as these:
1. All thoughts against the being, or attributes, or relations, or honour, or works of God: atheistical and blasphemous, idolatrous and unbelieving thoughts: all thoughts that tend to disobedience or opposition to the will or Word of God: and all that savour of unthankfulness, or want of love to God: or of discontent or distrust, or want of the fear of God, or that tend to any of these: also sinful, selfish, covetous, proud studies: to make a mere trade of the ministry for gain: to be able to overtalk others: searching into unrevealed, forbidden things: inordinate curiosity, and hasty conceitedness of your own opinions about God's decrees, or obscure prophecies, prodigies, providence, mentioned before about pride of our understandings.
All thoughts against any particular word, or truth, or precept of God, or against any particular duty; against any part of the worship and ordinances of God; that tend to irreverent neglects of the name, or holy day of God: all impious thoughts against public duty, or family duty, or secret duty; and all that would hinder or mar any one duty: all thoughts of dishonour, contempt, neglect, or disobedience to the authority of higher powers set over us by God, either magistrates, pastors, parents, masters, or any other superiors. All thoughts of pride, self-exalting ambition, self-seeking covetousness: voluptuous, sensual thoughts, proceeding from or tending to the corrupt, inordinate pleasures of the flesh: thoughts which are unjust, and tend to the hurt and wrong of others: envious, malicious, reproachful, injurious, contemptuous, watchful, revengful thoughts: lustful, wanton, filthy thoughts: drunken, gluttonous, fleshly thoughts: inordinate, careful, fearful, anxious, vexatious, discomposing thoughts: presumptuous, and secure, despairing, and dejecting thoughts: slothful, delaying, negligent, and discouraging thoughts: uncharitable, cruel, false, censorious, unmerciful thoughts; and idle, unprofitable thoughts. Hate all these as the devil's spawn.
Direct. II. 'Be not insensible what a great deal of duty or sin are in the thoughts, and of how dangerous a signification and consequence a course of evil thoughts is to your souls.' They shew what a man is, as much as his words or actions do: "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." A good man or evil is denominated by the good or evil treasure of the heart, though known to men but by the fruits. O the vile and numerous sins that are committed in men's thoughts! O the precious time that is lost, in idle, and other sinful thoughts! O the good that is hindered hereby both in heart and life! But of this having spoken in the treatise aforementioned, I proceed.
Direct. III. 'Above all be sure that you cleanse the fountain, and destroy those sinful inclinations of the heart, from which your evil thoughts proceed.' In vain else will you strive to stop the streams: or if you should stop them, that very heart itself will be loathsome in the eyes of God. Are your thoughts all upon the world, either coveting, or caring, or grieving for what you want, or pleasing yourselves with what you have or hope for? Get down your deceived estimation of the world: cast it under your feet, and out of your heart; and count all, with Paul, but as loss and dung, for the excellent knowledge of God in Christ: for till the world be dead in you, your worldly thoughts will not be dead; but all will stand still when once this poise is taken off: crucify it, and this breath and pulse will cease. So if your thoughts do run upon matter of preferment, or honour, disgrace, or contempt, or if you are pleased with your own pre-eminence or applause; mortify your pride, and beg of God a humble, self-denying, contrite heart.
For till pride be dead, you will never be quiet for it; but it will stir up swarms of self-exalting and yet self-vexing thoughts, which make you hateful in the eyes of God. So if your thoughts be running out upon your back and belly, what you shall eat or drink, or how to please your appetite or sense; mortify the flesh, and subdue its desires, and master your appetite, and bring them into full obedience unto reason, and get a habit of temperance; or else your thoughts will be still upon your guts and throats: for they will obey the ruling power; and a violent passion and desire doth so powerfully move them, that it is hard for the reason and will to rule them. So if your thoughts are wanton and filthy, you must cleanse that unclean and lustful heart, and get Christ to cast out the unclean spirit, and become chaste within, before you will keep out your unchaste cogitations. So if yon have confusion and vanity in your thoughts, you must get a well furnished and well composed mind and heart, before you will well cure the malady of your thoughts.
Direct. IV. 'Keep at a sufficient distance from those tempting objects, which are the fuel and incentives of your evil thoughts.' Can you expect that the drunkard should rule his thoughts, whilst he is in the alehouse or tavern, and seeth the drink? Or that the glutton should rule his thoughts, while the pleasing dish is in his sight? Or that the lustful person should keep chaste his thoughts, in the presence of his enamouring toy? Or that the wrathful person rule his thoughts, among contentious, passionate words? Or that the proud person rule his thoughts, in the midst of honour or applause? Away with this fuel: fly from this infectious air if you would be safe.
Direct. V. 'At least make a covenant with your senses, and keep them in obedience, if you will have obedient thoughts.' For all know by experience how potently the senses move the thoughts. Job saith, "I made a covenant with my eyes, why then should I think upon a maid." Mark how the covenant with his eyes is made the means to rule his thoughts. Pray with David, "Turn away my eyes from beholding vanity." Keep a guard upon your eyes, and ears, and taste, and touch, if you will keep a guard upon your thoughts. Let not that come into these outer parts, which you desire should go no further.
Open not the door to them, if you would not let them in.
Direct. VI. 'Remember how near kin the thought is to the deed; and what a tendency it hath to it.' Let Christ himself tell you, "But I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause, shall be in danger of the judgment. I say unto you that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." A malicious thought and a malicious deed are from the same spring, and have the same nature: only the deed is the riper serpent, and can sting another; when the thought is as the younger serpent, that hath only the venomous nature in itself. A lustful thought is from the same defiled puddle, as actual filthiness:
and the thought is but the passage to the action: it is but the same sin in its minority, tending to maturity.
Direct. VII. 'Keep out, or quickly cast out all inordinate passions:' for passions do violently press the thoughts, and forcibly carry them away. If anger, or grief, or fear, or any carnal love, or joy, or pleasure be admitted, they will command your thoughts to run out upon their several objects. And when you rebuke your thoughts, and call them in, they will not hear you, till you get them out of the crowd and noise of passion. As in the heat of civil wars no government is well exercised in a kingdom; and as violent storms disable the mariners to govern the ship, and save it and themselves; so passions are too stormy a region for the thoughts to be well governed in. Till your souls be reduced to a calm condition, your thoughts will be tumultuating, and hurried that way that the tempests drive them. Till these wars be ended, your thoughts will be licentious, and partakers in the rebellion.
Direct. VIII. 'Keep your souls in a constant and careful obedience unto God.' Observe his law: be continually sensible that you are under his government, and awed by his authority. Man judgeth not your thoughts: if you are subject to man only, your thoughts must be ungoverned: but the heart is the first object of God's government, and that which he principally regardeth. His laws extend to all your thoughts: and therefore if you know what obedience to God is, you must know what the obedience of your thoughts to him is: for he that obeyeth God as God, will obey him in one thing as well as another, and will obey him as the governor and judge of thoughts. The powerful, searching word of Christ is a "discerner of the thoughts and intentions of the heart, and as a two-edged sword is sharp and quick," and will "pierce" and "cut" as deep as the very "soul and spirit." "It casteth down every imagination and bringeth into
captivity every thought to the obedience of Christq." Therefore David saith to God, "Search me O God, and know my heart, try me and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." And you find God's laws and reproofs extending to the thoughts: "Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquitys." The fool's heart-atheism is rebuked, Ps. 14:1. He reproveth a rebellious people, for "walking in a way that is not good, after their own thoughts." Seehow Christ openeth the heart, Matt. 15:9. He chargeth them to "beware that there be not a thought in their wicked hearts" against the mercy which they must shew to the poor. He detecteth the "inward thought" of the worldling, that "their houses shall continue for everx." He saith, "The thought of foolishness is sin." The old world was condemned because the "imaginations of their hearts were only evil continuallyz." And when God calleth a sinner to conversion, he saith, "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him." You see then if you are subject to God, your thoughts must be obedient.
Direct. IX. 'Remember God's continual presence; that all your thoughts are in his sight.' He seeth every filthy thought, and every covetous, and proud, and ambitious thought, and every uncharitable, malicious thought. If you be not atheists, the remembrance of this will somewhat check and control your thoughts, that God beholdeth them. "He understandeth" your "thoughts afar off." "Doth not he that pondereth the heart consider itc." "Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?" saith Christ.
Direct. X. 'Bethink you seriously what a government you would keep upon your thoughts, if they were but written on your foreheads, or seen by all that see you, yea, or but open to some person whom you reverence.' O how ashamed would you then be, that men should see
your filthy thoughts, your malicious thoughts, your covetous and deceiving thoughts! And is not the eye of God ten thousand times more to be reverenced and regarded? And is not man your god, if you are awed more by man than by God? and if the eye of man can do more to restrain you?
Direct. XI. 'Keep tender your consciences, that they may not be regardless or insensible of the smallest sin.' A tender conscience feareth evil or idle thoughts; and will smart in the penitent review of thoughts: but a seared conscience feeleth nothing, except some grievous, crying sins. A tender conscience obeyeth that precept, "If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thy hand upon thy mouth."
Direct. XII. 'Cast out vain and sinful thoughts in the beginning, before they settle themselves and make a dwelling of thy heart.' They are more easily and safely resisted in the entrance. Thy heart will give them rooting and grow familiar with them, if they make any stay. Besides, it shews the greater sin, because there is the less resistance, and the more consent. If the will were against them, it would not let them alone so long. Yea, and their continuance tendeth to your ruin: it is like the continuance of poison in your bowels, or fire in your thatch, or a spy in an army: as long as they stay they are working toward your greater mischief. If these flies stay long they will blow and multiply: they will make their nests, and breed their young, and you will quickly have a swarm of sins.
Direct. XIII. 'Take heed lest any practical error corrupt your understandings: or lest you be engaged in any ill design: for these will command your thoughts into a course of sinful attendance and service to their ends.' He that erreth and thinks his sin is his virtue or his duty, will indulge the thoughts of it without control; yea, he will
drive on his mind to such cogitations; and steal from the authority and Word of God, the motives and incentives of his sin. As false prophets speak against God in the name of God, and against his
Word as by the pretended authority of his Word; so an erring mind will fetch its arguments from God and from the Scripture, for those sinful thoughts which are against God and Scripture. And if evil thoughts will so hardly be kept out when we plead the authority of God and his Word against them, and do the best we can to hinder them; how will they prevail when you plead the authority of God and the sacred Scriptures for them, and take it to be your duty to kindle and promote them? For instance; all the sinful thoughts by which the Roman clergy are contriving the support of their kingdom of darkness in the world, and the continuance of their tyranny in the church, are but the products of their error, which tells them that all this should be done, as pleasing to God, and profitable to the church.
All the bloody thoughts of persecutors, against the church and holy ways of Christ, have been cherished by this erroneous thought. "The time cometh that whoever killeth you, will think that he doth God service; and these things they will do unto you, because they have not known the Father nor me." All Paul's bloody contrivances and practices against the church did come from this. "I verily thought with myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth: which thing I also didg." All the scornful and reproachful thoughts and speeches of many of the ungodly against a holy life, are hence: "They think it strange that you run not with them to excess of riot, speaking evil of you." The vain babbling of hypocrites, who cheat their souls with idle lip-labour, instead of the spiritual service from the heart, and the sacrifice of fools, who offer
God some outward thing, while they deny him their hearts and holy obedience, do proceed from this, that "They think to be heard for their much babbling," "and they consider not that they do evilk." All the self-flattery and presumption of the ungodly, and consequently,
all their angodly lives, are much from their erroneous thoughts: "He that thinketh he is something when he is nothing, deceiveth himself."
O come into the light, and forsake your darkness! for sinful thoughts are like hobgobline and hags, that fly from the light; and like worms and serpents, that creep into holes, and crawl and gender in the dark.
Direct. XIV. 'Remember what an opening of thoughts there will be, when you come into the light, either here by conviction, or at the furthest at the day of judgment.' Then you will be ashamed to see what filth and vanity you entertained; and with what dross and rubbish you stuffed your minds. When the light comes in, what abundance of things will you see to your astonishment, in the dungeen of your hearts, which now you take no notice of!
Remember, that all your hidden thoughts must one day be brought into the open light. Say not that this is a thing impossible, because they are so numerous: for God who seeth them all at once, and causeth his sun to illuminate so many milliens at once, can make you see them all at once, and yet distinctly, and see the shame and filthiness of every one of them.
Direct. XV. 'When you find that some thoughts of sin and vanity are following you still, for all that you can do, you must not therefore plange your souls into so much selicitousness, fear, and trouble, as may discourage and distract your mind; but wait conditionis admoceaton God in the complacential and obediential way of cure.' It is the tempter's method to keep sinners utterly careless of their thoughts, and senseless of any sin that is in them, as long as he can; and when that hope faileth him, he will labour to make a humbled, obedient soul so sensible of the sin of his thoughts, and so careful about them, as to confound him, and cast him into melancholy, discouragement, and despair, and then he will have no command of his thoughts at all; but they will be as much ungoverned another way,
and feet continually upon térror. The end of this temptation is to distract you and confound you. The pretence of the tempter will be contrary to his end: for while he driveth you with terrors to think of nothing else but what you have been or are thinking on, and to make your own thoughts the only or principal matter of your thoughts, he will confound you, and make you indisposed to all good, and unable to govern your thoughts at all. But if you principally study the excellencies of God and godliness, and take the course which tends to make religion pleasant to you, and withal keep up an awful obedience to God, this complacential obedience will best prevail.
Direct. XVI. 'Therefore deliver up your hearts to Christ in love and duty, and consecrate your thoughts entirely to his service, and keep them still exercised on him, or in his work: and this will most effectually cure them of vanity and sin.' If you have a friend that you love entirely, you will not feed swine in the room that must entertain him: you will not leave it nasty and unclean: you will not leave it common to every dirty, unsuitable companion, to intrude at pleasure and disturb your friend. So love and pleasure will be readily and composedly careful, to keep clean the heart, and shut out vain and filthy thoughts, and say, 'This room is for a better guest; nothing shall come here which my Lord abhorreth: is he willing so wonderfully to condescend, as to take up so mean a habitation, and shall I straiten him, or offend him, by letting in his noisome enemies? Will he dwell in my heart, and shall I suffer thoughts of pride, or lust, or malice, to dwell with him, or to enter in? Are these fit companions for the Spirit of Grace? Do I delight to grieve him? I know as soon as ever they come in, he will either resist them till he drive them out again, or he will go out himself. And shall I drive away so dear a friend, for the love of a filthy, pernicious enemy? Or do I delight in war? Would I have a continual combat in my heart?
Shall I put the Spirit of Christ to fight for his habitation, against such