PRECEPTS FOR Christian Practice: Or the Rule of the new CREATURE, Containing Duties to be daily observed by every Believer.  
The second Edition, Corrected, Enlarged, and now Published according to Order.  Gal. 6.16. 
As many as walk according to this rule, Peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.  
LONDON, Printed by Rich. Cotes for John Bellamy, and are to the sold at his Shop at the three Golden Lions in Cornhill, near the Royal Exchange, 1645. Jan. 31 1644   

Precepts for Christian practice, or the Rule of the new CREATURE.  

Duty 1.  
1. BE always sensible of thy original corruption, and consider how it inclineth thee continually to all evil, and indisposeth thee to any good; groan under it, and bewail it, as Paul did, Rom. 7.24.  
Also take special notice of your actual sins, or daily infirmities, in thought, word, deed. Endeavour to make your peace with God for them before you go to bed: which must be done these four ways.  

1. By repenting and confessing your sins to God, working your heart to grief and sorrow for them, by some such melting considerations as these. 

First, of God's goodness to you.  
2. Of the unreasonableness and every way unprofitableness of sin.  
3. Of the great prejudice and damage that cometh to the soul by sin. John, 1.1, 9    
2. By believing, and casting yourself wholly on Christ's righteousness for remission of sin, and for reconciliation with God, Rom. 3.22, 24, 25.  
3. By cleaving to God's promises of pardon, and peace, Isaiah, 43.25. Rom. 5.1.  
4. By waiting till the Lord shall speak to you, Psal. 85.8.    

Duty 2.  
Get your union with Christ, and interest in Christ cleared and confirmed to you daily more and more, that you are a branch in his vine, and a member in his body, 2 Cor. 13.5. This may be done three ways.  

1. By daily renewal of your faith in Christ, especially of that act of faith, whereby the soul knits, or ties itself unto Christ, casts, or rolls itself on Christ for salvation. 'Cause your heart in a solemn manner every day to act this part, or to put forth this primitive act of faith in the view of the whole soul. The daily exercise hereof will increase, & strengthen the divine habit of faith in the soul, and make the soul sensible of the very act of it. By frequent believing you shall feel at your very heart, that you do believe; so shall you have a witness in yourself, that you are in Christ, 1 Joh. 5.10.  
2. By examining your heart upon what grounds you take Christ to be yours. The grounds are these five; 

1. A sight and sense of of your sins, as of the guilt, power, and punishment of them, and of your misery by them, Mat. 9.13.  
2. Your want of Christ seen, and felt at your very heart, to justify, sanctify, redeem, and save you, else you are utterly lost, and undone everlastingly, Luke 19.10.  
3. God's free and general offer of Christ to any that will take him by faith, John 3.16. there are manifold promises to this purpose: And the grounds of all God's offers and donations of Christ to the poor soul are free grace, rich mercy, undeserved love, Ephes. 2.4, 5, 7. Tit. 3.4, 5, 6.  
4 Christ's sweet and gracious invitation of such to come to him as are weary of sin, Matth. 11.28. to buy, as have no money, Isaiah 55.1. no worth, or desert in themselves.  
5. As sinful vile wretches as you are, have been sought of Christ, and found in Christ, as 1 Cor. 6.9, 10, 11. 1 Tim. 1.13. Paul was a blasphemer, persecuter, and yet obtained mercy, and therefore why may not you? Thus the more clearly you discern upon what grounds you take Christ, the more clear is your title to Christ, evinced to your own soul.    
3. By surveying and observing in what manner you take Christ daily. Which is, whether, 

First, you do wholly renounce all opinion and conceit of your own righteousness and desert, Mark 8.34. Phil. 3.7, 8, 9 so that you come to Christ empty of yourself, very vile, yea, nothing in your own eyes, unworthy to receive him.  
2. Whether you lay hold on Christ alone with an empty hand of faith, joining nothing at all with Christ in the matter of salvation; as the holy Martyr at the stake cried out, None but Christ, None but Christ.  
3. Whether you find the Father drawing your heart after Christ, Joh. 6.44. which is in hungering and panting desires, that will never be satisfied without him; so that the stream, both of your Judgement, Phil. 3.7, 8. and affections run towards him, 1 Cor. 2.2. Gal. 6.14.  
4. Whether you take Christ as a Lord to rule you, as well as a Jesus to save you, Col. 2.6. As one that is all in all to you, your wisdom, your righteousness, your sanctification and redemption, 1 Cor. 1.30. your spiritual food, John 6.48. your Raiment, Rom. 13.14. your Strength, Phil. 4.13. your life, Gal. 2.20. Col. 3.3.  
5. Whether you seek and wait for Christ, (out of the sense of your spiritual want and penury) in every ordinance public and private, Word, Sacraments, Prayer, Meditation, Conference; not as they are your own works of sanctification, but as they are Gods Ordinances appointed of purpose for the manifestation & communication of Christ to the soul.     
Frequent perusal hereof will clear to you your manner of taking Christ, and that will evidence to you your right and title which you have in Christ Jesus.   

Duty 3.  
Labour to draw and derive from Christ (by the powerful attractive force of faith) spiritual ability sufficient for the day. 

1. To perform all your duties, Phil. 4.13.  
2. To exercise all your graces, 2 Cor. 3.5.  
3. To resist and overcome all your tentations and corruptions, Rom. 8.37.  
4. To undergo all your trials, and afflictions thereof, John 1.16.    
Make your provision of grace and strength from Christ every morning, fetch from him so much as you shall have occasion to use all day long; yea, and upon all occasions that fall out in the day, go to Christ still for the wisdom that must direct you, for the holiness that must character you, for the shoulder which must bear your crosses, for that strength that must resist your tentations, and for ability to perform all duties as duties.  
To this end act your faith daily in the promises of grace, and strength, as John 1.16. Ezek. 36.26, 27. Isaiah 44.3. Zech. 10.12. these and the like promises are security given you by God, that you shall receive grace in the use of the ordinances, which are as the conduit-pipes or instruments of conveying the same from Christ unto you.  
This is the way and means to do all in the strength of Christ, and to take forth a great deal of Christ into your soul, that not you, but Christ may live in you, Gal. 2.20.   

Duty 4.  
Perform daily duties both in family, & closet (especially these three, of Prayer, Meditation, Reading) and do them with serious intention, heat of affection, diligence and delight, Jerem. 48.10. Mal. 1.14. 1 Chron. 21.24. To this end, 

1. Watch to these duties, keep the heart in a good frame for them, undefiled with sin, untainted by the world, Ephes. 6.18.  
2. Take the fittest time for the performance of them all; when you are least dull and sluggish. Begin the day constantly with thoughts of God, Psal. 57.7, 8, 9  
3. Be very real, serious, and substantial with God in them, endeavour to feel all duties at your heart, inliving, enlarging, inflaming your affections.    
These be the duties of most importance and consequent, commodity and comfort to the soul, because they properly aim at, and reach to souls good, and celestial happiness, to train up a soul for heaven, Deut. 4.29.   

Duty 5.  
Fortify yourselves every morning against your special lusts to which you are by nature most prone, or shall be most tempted, be it pride, passion, convetousnesse, etc.  
This is done, 

1. by Arguments and holy reasonings within yourselves, drawn from the sad effects thereof, as disprofit, discomfort, disgrace, or the like, to discover the unreasonableness of your sins, and make your soul ashamed of them. For example, shall I be proud? then I am sure to fall, for pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall, Prov. 16.18. and God will count me for his enemy, for God resisteth the proud, Jam. 4.6. Shall I be angry? if I let passion in, I cannot keep Satan out, Ephes. 4, 26, 27. Again, I shall grieve the holy Spirit of God, Ephes. 4.30, 31. Shall I be covetous? I cannot but be very sinful, sigh the love of money is the root of all evil, 1 Tim. 6.10.  
2. By pondering in your mind upon the precepts in God's book against your sins, Prov. 6.23, 24. And on the judgements threatened or inflicted for them; as on proud Herod, Acts 12.23. voluptuous Dives, Luk. 16.23. churlish Nabal, 1 Sam. 25.38.  
3. By applying promises of mortification close to your hearts, as a plaster to the sore, for subduing your iniquities, Mic. 7.19. Rom. 6.14.  
4. By drawing virtue from Christ's death into the soul, which hath in it a kill force of sin, Rom. 6.4.5.6. Phil. 3.10.     

Duty 6.  
Get your hearts strongly fixed on God, by trusting on him, Psal. 112.7. and submitting to him, 2. Sam. 15.26. 1. Sam. 3.18. against all the fears, cares, doubts, trials, afflictions of every day, for sufficient to the day is the evil thereof, Mat. 6.34. To this end, 

1. Be prudent to foresee your personal trials, and troubles, whatsoever they are like to be, Pro. 22.3.  
2. Go hide, and lay up yourself in God, run unto his name, for God is a rock of habitation to which a poor soul may continually resort, God will give commandment to save him, Psal. 71.3. 1 Peter. 4.19.  
3. Especially commit that very thing to God, put into his hands, whatsoever you desire to keep, or fear to lose, 2. Tim. 1.12. be it life, liberty, name, friends, maintenance, etc. What you would have resolved, if it be a doubt, Psal. 37.5. Or supplied, if it be a want, Prov. 16.7. Or removed, if it be a cross, Psal. 50.5 And together with the thing, cast all your care, fear, sorrow, and trouble of mind about it wholly on the Lord, Mat. 6.31. 1 Pet. 5.7. Psal. 55.22.  
4. Renew your faith in those promises every day which most concern your present estate; as in promises, 1 Of supplies, if you be in want, Psal. 34.8. & 37.3. & 84.11. Mat. 6.30. 2 Of protection, if you be in danger, Psal. 34.7. 3 Of direction, if in doubt, Jam. 1.5. 4 Of deliverance, if in trouble, Job. 5.19. 5 Of a good end, and sanctified use of all. Deut. 8.1. Jam. 5.11. Rom. 8.28. Heb. 12.10.  
5. Labour to see God's hand, Psal. 39.9. believe his love, Heb. 12.6. Rev. 3.19. and with all meekness, and patience to resign up yourself wholly to his will in every affliction, Mat. 26.39.     

Duty 7.  
Get, and keep a savoury relish continually of your christian privileges, wherewith you are invested as you are new creatures in Christ: to wit, 

1. Of your dignity, that you are God's sons, 1 Joh. 3.1, 2. Christ brethren, Heb. 2.11. heaven's heirs, James. 2.5. partakers of a high, and heavenly calling, Heb. 3.1.  
2. Of your liberty, that your are the Lords freemen, Cor. 7.22. delivered out of the hands of all your enemies, 1 Sam. 12.11. 2 Kings. 17.39.  
3. Of your victory, that you are through Christ more than Conquerors over all the world of Creatures, 1 John. 5.4. of evils, of temptations, of persecutions, Rom. 8.35.37.  
4. Of your safety, that you have almighty God for your place of refuge, Psal. 48.2. a hedge of providence, Job. 1.10. a Guard of angels, Psal. 91.11. an enclosure of mercy, Psal. 32.10. and God's promise as a writ of protection for your defence. Heb. 13.5.6.  
5. Of your riches as durable substance in heaven, Heb. 10.34. and incorruptible inheritance, 1 Pet. 1.4. a kingdom of glory, and a crown of life, for you are heirs of God, and coheirs with Christ.  
6. Of your joy and pleasure, precious for kind, and plentiful for measure, Psal. 16.11. peace unconceivable, Phil. 4.7. joy unspeakable, 1. Pet. 1.8. the master's joy.    
Get your hearts affected with all these as being yours. Chew, and suck them by serious Meditation, work, and warm them on your hearts by close application, rubbing them into your affections. Oppose these your spiritual privileges to all your temporal pressures, setting the one against the other; as your heavenly friends to your earthly foes, your high dignity in Christ to your meaness in outward condition, your wealth above to your want below your future joys and rest to your present troubles, and sorrows. This will make you not only patiented under the afflictions of this life, Rom. 12.12. but also joyful in them, Rom. 5.3. & triumphant over them, 1. Cor. 15.55. Thus did the Apostle, Rom 8.18. 2 Cor 4.17. & 6.8.9.10.  
These will provoke to duty, 1 Peter. 2.9.11.12. and preserve from feigning, 2 Cor. 4.16.17. and from trouble of heart, John. 14.1, 2.   

Duty 8.  
Sanctify God in your heart daily, 1 Pet. 1.15. make him your fear, Isaiah. 8.14. your love, & delights, Psal. 37.4. To this end, 

1. Have often high, and honourable thoughts of God, serious meditations of his glorious Atributes, as his wisdom, power, truth, mercy, Justice, etc. and work them upon your hearts, that they may Echo to them with pure, and melting affections. This will increase, and nourish up the divine nature in you, 2 Pet. 1.4.  
2. Labour to be affected with all the works of God, as first to behold, and admire the wisdom of God in the creatures, Psal. 136.5. 2 To see, and taste God's goodness in every mercy Psal. 34.8. 3 To take notice of, and tremble at the anger, and displeasure of God in all his Judgements, Psal. 119.120. Habb. 3.16. 4 That you may answer the dispensations of God's providence with suitable dispositions; your hearts carrying a counterpane in affection to all God's actions, Isay. 26.8.  
3. Wrestle with God by praying, and believing for an heart of flesh, Ezek. 36.26. which will receive impressions from the very thoughts of God in the mind.  
4 Apply promises of particular affections: as first of love, Deut. 30.6. 2 of fear, jer. 32.40. 3 of delight, Isa. 58.14. There is heart, and life in the se promises, sufficient to quicken and warm thy dead, and frozen affctions.     

Duty 9  
Get a public spirit to mind the things of Jesus Christ, as naturally as if they were your own things, Phil. 2.20, 21. to look on the things of others, and prefer, first, Jerusalem's welfare before your chiefest joy, Psal. 137.5, 6. and 2. the Gospel's liberty before your own, as Paul did, and to mourn for the sins of the times, as the Godly in Jerusalem did, Ezek. 9.4. Especially lay to heart, 

1. The Church's misery, when God's Ordinances go down, and superstition goeth up, when God's cause and side are put to the worst; when any thing falls out, which gives a blow to Religion, or proves an impediment to the Gospel. If the Ark be taken, call your comforts Ichabods, 1 Sam. 4.2.  
2. The afflictions of Joseph, Amos 6.6. The sufferings of God's servants, whether Ministers or people. O sympathise with them, Heb. 13.3. Neb. 1.4. labour to feel their troubles & sorrows at your very hearts; and pray earnestly for them as the Church did for Peter, Act. 12.5.  
3. The signs of the times, Mat. 16.3. which hypocrites cannot discern, though they be well versed in the face of the Sky, to wit, the sad symptoms, and presages of approaching Judgements, as, 

First, the commonness of sin; for all sorts transgress in all kind of open sinfulness with a high hand against the light of nature, and the means of grace, Ezek. 12.3.  
2 Contempt of God's Ordinances, misusing of his Ministers, 2 Chron. 36.16.  
3 Departure of God's glory from his house, Ezek. 9.3.  
4 Incorrigibenesse after former, and under present judgements, Leu. 26.14. to the end of the chapter.  
5. The death of many righteous men, Isaiah 57.1. the carrying away of others to hiding places.  
6 The vials of God's wrath poured on the Churches beyond the Seas, jer. 17.12.14.  
7 An inundation of spiritual judgements, as a spirit of error, superstition, apostasy, etc. which do commonly end in temporal plagues, Isa. 6.10, 11.      
Now the Holy ghost is a public spirit breathing and acting in all the members of the mystical body of Christ: Pray for it, Luke 11.13. believe for it, Gal. 3.14. Ezek. 36.37.   

Duty 10.  
Get your hearts weaned daily from the world, and from those creatures and comforts in it, which are dearest and sweetest to you. As wife, children, friends, goods, liberty house, life. This Christ requires of those that follow him, Luke 14.26, 27. Mark 10.29, 30. this will prepare you either to suffer or to die when God calls you to it. To this end consider seriously; 

1. That these things cannot satisfy your heart, when you have enjoyed them to the full, Eccles. 4.8. & 5.10. you soon grow weary of them, or glutted with them, so that you desire some new delights, or more of the old, or some over again.  
2. Nor can they sanctify you, but expose you oft to many lusts, 1 Tim. 6.9, 10. tentations, distractions, to a spirit of the world, and they hinder from following Christ, Mat. 19.22.  
3. Nor can they save you from God's wrath, from death or judgement, Prov. 11.4.  
4. The wicked whose portion is only here, have often the greatest share of them, Psal. 17.14. Job. 21.7. to 14.  
5. They serve only for this life, whilst we are on this side of the grave; they shall not be the least Ingredients into our celestial happiness. When we do come to be happy in heaven, we shall stand in no need of food, raiment, physic, marriage, etc. Mat. 22.30. for we shall be like the Angels of God in heaven, we shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, Rev. 7.16. we shall live by the all-sufficient Spirit of God, which never needs refreshing; we shall be clothed with long white robes of immortality Rev. 7.9. In a word, when we come to heaven the place of God's Habitation, we shall enjoy the face, and beatifical presence of the most glorious Jehovah, blessed for ever, as an object, wherein all the powers of our souls will be satisfied with ineffable delight, and everlastingness. God will be unto us all in all, 1 Cor. 15.28.     
FINIS.