that very spirit which is in Christ being in us thereby we are united unto him grow in him live in him and he in us rejoyce in him and so are kept and preserved to be glorified with him He is the second Adam from whom we receive the influence of all good things showring down and distilling the graces of his spirit upon the least of all his members That look as it was said of Aaron who was a type of the second Adam and of that holy Oyl representing the graces of his spirit Which did not only run down his head and beard but the skirts of his garment also and all his rich attire about Psal. 133.2 So when I see the Oyl of Christ's graces and spirit not only rest upon the head but also descend and run down upon the lowest of his members making me now as one of them in some sort another man than I was or my natural state could make me by the same spirit I know I am united unto Christ. To this purpose is that which Christ to stands upon in Joh. 6. unto the Jews where speaking of the eating of his flesh and that bread of life which came down from heaven lest they should be mistaken he adds It is the spirit that quickneth the flâ—sh profiteth nothing the words that I speak unto you they are spirit and they are life So that we see it is the spirit that gives a being to a thing And therefore the Apostle proceeds to shew As many as are led by the spirit of God they are the sons of God Rom. 8.13 That look as Christ is the â—â—ue natural Son of God so we as truly by conveyance of the same spirit into us are his Sons by Adoption and so heirs with God yea and joynt heirs with Christ this he begins to shew vers 13. So that being in this excellent estate they were not only servants and friends a most high Prerogative but they were now the Sons of God having the spirit of Adoption whereby they might boldly call God Father In which Verse the Apostle opposeth the spirit of bondage which doth make a man fear again unto the spirit of Adoption which frees a man from fear Now two things may be observed hence 1. The order the spirit of God keeps e'er it comforts it shakes and makes us fear This the Apostle speaks to Heb. 2.14 where he shews that the end of Christ's coming was That because the children were partakers of flesh and blood he also himself took part of the same that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death that is the Devil and deliver them who through fear of death were all their life time subject unto bondage The first work then of the comforter is to put a man in fear 2. Here is shewed that until the spirit doth work this fear the heart will not stoop The Obstinacy is great yea so great that if hell gates were open ready to swallow up a man he would not yield until the spirit set in to convince the heart Therefore St. John tells us Joh. 16. That when the spirit it come he will reprove the world of sin that is he will convince and shew a man that he is but a bond-man and so from this sight he makes us to fear No man must think this strange that God deals with men at first after this harsh manner to kill them as it were before he make them alive nor be discouraged as if God had now cast them off as none of his For this bondage and spirit of fear is a work of God's spirit and a preparative to the rest yet it is but a common work of the spirit and such a one that unless more follow it can afford us no comfort But why then doth God suffer his children to be first terrified with this fear I answer That in two respects this is the best and wisest course to deal with us or else many would put off the matter and never attain a sense of mercy First in respect of God's glory Secondly in regard of our good First in respect of God's glory and that first because as in the work of Creation so in the work of Redemption God will have the praise of all his attributes for as in the work of Creation there appeared the infinite wisdom goodness power justice mercy of God and the like so will he in the work of our Redemption have all these appear in their strength and brightness and when we see and acknowledge these things to be in Gâ—d in the highest perfection hereby we honour him as on the contrary when we will not see and acknowledge the excellency of God's infinite attributes we dishonour him yea and I may safely add that the work of Redemption was a greater work than the work of Creation for therein appeared all the treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge in the conveying of it unto the Church Herein appeared first infinite Wisdom in ordering the matter so as to find out such a way for the Redemption of Mankind as no created understanding could possibly imagine or think of And secondly for the Mercy of God there could be none comparable to this in not sparing his own Son the Son of his Love that so he might spare us who had so grievously provoked him And thirdly there could not be so much Justice seen in any thing as in sparing us not to spare his Son in laying his Son's head as it were upon the block and chopping it off indeed the death unto which he gave his Son was not only more vile than the loss of his head but far more painful and terrible to nature the death on the Cross in renting and tearing that blessed body of his even as the Veil of the temple was rent which was a type of him so was he rent and tore and broke for us when he made his soul an offering for sin This was the perfection of Justice And thus was he just as the Apostle speaks and the Justifyer of him him that believeth in Jesus God would have Justice and Mercy meet and kiss each other and that for two reasons for the magnifying of his Justice and for the magnifying of his Mercy First For the magnifying of his Justice The spirit must first become a spirit of bondage and fear for the magnifying of God's Justice Thus the Prophet David having sinned was driven to this practice Psal. 51.4 Against thee thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest and be clear when thou judgest Thus he a holy man was brought to confess his sin to give God the glory of his Justice And so to this end that a man might pass through or by as it were the gates of hell unto heaven the Lord will have his Justice extended to the full for which cause lessening or altogether for a time abstracting all sight of mercy he turns the
not to terrifie and affright men but by forewarning them to keep them thence For after I have shewn you the danger I shall shew a way to escape it and how the Lord Jesus was given to us to deliver us from this danger But if you will not hear but will try conclusions with God then you must to your proper place to the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone A Lake 't is a River a flaming River as Tophet is described to be a lake burning with fire and brimstone a Metaphor taken from the judgment of God on Sodom and Gomorrah as in that place of St. Jude before mentioned as also in 2 Pet. 2.6 where 't is said God turned the Cities of Sodom into ashes making them an example to all them that should after live ungodly Mark the judgement of God upon these abominable men the place where they dwelt is destroyed with fire and the scituation is turn'd into a lake full of filthy bituminous stuff called Lacus Asphaltites which was made by their burnings And this is made an instance of the vengeance of God and an Emblem of eternal fire therefore said he you shall have your portion with Sodom Nay shall I speak a greater word with Christ and tell you that though they were so abominable that the lake was denominated from them yet it shall be easier for Sodom and Gomorrah than for you if you repent not while you may but go on to despise Gods grace But can there be a greater sin than the sin of Sodom I answer yes For make the worst of the sin of Sodom it is but a sin against nature but thy impenitency is a sin against grace and against the Gospel and therefore deserves a hotter hell and an higher measure of judgment in this burning pit But what is this second death 2. Sure it hath reference to some first death or other going before A man would as it is commonly thought think that this second death is opposed to that first death which is the harbinger to the second and separates the soul from the body but it 's far otherwise That alas is but a petty thing and deserves not to be put in the number of deaths The second death in the Text hath relation to the first Resurrection Rev. 20.6 Blessed and holy is he that hath his portion in the first Resurrection on such the second death shall have no power The first death is that from whence we are acquitted by the first Resurrection and that is the death for that is a kind of death as St. Paul speaking of a wicked and voluptuous Widow saith she is dead while she liveth and the time shall come and now is when they that are dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God and they that hear shall live And again Let the dead bury their dead So that the first Resurrection is when a man hearing the voice of the Minister is rouzed up from the sleep of sin and carnal security and the first death is the opposite thereunto So that the death of the body is no death at all for if it were then this were the third death For there would be a death of sin a death of the body and a death of body and soul This death of the body is but a flea-biting in comparison of the other two This second death is the separation of the body and soul from God and this death is the wages of sin and God must not will not lye in arrear to sin but will pay its wages to the full All the afflictions a wicked man meeteth withal here are but as Gods press-money and part of payment of that greater sum But when he dies the whole sum comes to be paid Before he did but sip of the Cup of Gods wrath but he must then drink up the dregs of it down to the bottom and this is the second death it 's called death Now death is a destruction of the parts compounded a man being compounded of body and soul both are by this death eternally destroyed That death like Sampson pulling down the pillars whereby it was sustained pulled down the house draws down the Tabernacles of our bodies pulls Body and Soul in sunder A thing which hath little hurt in it self were it not for the sting of it which makes it fearful To dye is esteemed far worse than to be dead in regard of the pangs that are in dying to which death puts an end This temporal death is in an instant but this other eternal whereby we are ever dying and never dead for by it we are punished with an everlasting 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 2 Thess. 1.9 and that from the presence of the Lord by the glory of his power Then which piece I have no need to add more for as much as can be said of men and Angels is fully comprehended in it The Apostle terms this a fearful thing indeed Heb. 2.15 whereon if a man but think if he hath his wits about him he would for fear of it be all his life long subject to bondage He would scarce draw any free breath but would still be in bondage and drudgery till he were delivered Thus I have declared the nature of the place and of this second death That I may now go farther know that this Lake and this place is the place that the Lord hath provided for his enemies It is the Lords slaughter-house it s called a place of torments Luke 16. vers 24 28. a place wherein God will shew the accomplishment of his wrath and revenge upon his enemies Those mine enemies that would not have me to reign over them bring them forth and slay them before my face Luke 19.27 Those vessels of wrath those Rebels the King is inraged and his wrath is as the roaring of a Lyon which makes all the beasts of the Forrest to tremble Prov. 19.12 And where there is the wrath of such a King the issue thereof must needs be death Prov. 16.14 The wrath of a King is as a messenger of death How much more fearful is the wrath of the King of Kings God hath sharp arrows and he sets a wicked man as his Butt to shoot at to shew his strength and the fierceness of his wrath See the expression of Job in this case The arrows of the Almighty stick fast in me and the venome thereof hath drunk up my spirits In so few words there could not be an higher expression of the wrath of God First that God should make thee a Butt and that thou shouldst be shot at and that by Gods arrows And then they are not shot by a child but as the man is so is his strength by the Almighty by his bow wherein he draws the arrow to the head And then again these arrows are poyson'd arrows and such poyson as shall drink up all thy soul and spirit Oh what a fearful thing is it to fall into the hands of such a
them take them to whom they appertain viz. Whosoever shall fall upon this stone shall be broken But on whomsoever it shall fall it will grind him to peices If their own destruction will not take them off from touching the Lords anointed and from plucking the stars out of his hand let yet the Anguish and vexation that shall accompany their destruction either deter them or confound them For he hath said it who will make it good that there shall be a Resurrection both unto Gods truths and to such as bear Testimony thereunto Mean while let this satisfie such as are faithful whilst God and those that truly fear God prize faithful Ministers it matters not what the rest think of them As King David said in not much an unlike Case of those shall they be had in honour I have now done with the most famous Author of these Sermons of whom I may say as one very Learned saâ—d of Mr. Calvin That famous Man and never to be named without some Preface of Honour Or as another of a Learned and Godly Man God hath so provided that they who lived in Heaven whilst on Earth shall live on Earth whilst in Heaven That they shall leave their Names for a blessing when others leave them behind them for a curse or rather with the Apostle of Demetrius he hath a good Report of all men and of the truth it self A word now concerning these Sermons of his by occasion of the publishing whereof I have thus enlarged They are not so exact as his Immanuel or the Incarnation of the Son of God so accurately couched that you cannot find a word defective or redundant because they wanted his own hand for their publication but yet they are such wherein the Reader may discern much of the Gracious and Heavenly Spirit of this unparalleld Bishop They were preached ad populum in the Vniversity of Oxford the general Subject of them is Conversion or turning from Sin unto God and so mightily did the Lord bless them not only to the Edification and Consolation of very many but also to the Conversion of some as we have good cause to Judge I will say no more the Name of Doctor Vsher by which he is more known to some and the Name of the most Reverend and Learned Father of our Church Doctor James Usher late Arch Bishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland by which he is more known to others not only in these our Kingdomes but in foreign parts his great and good Name I say every wrere as oyntment poured forth prefixed before this Book though with some allay is enough to raise high Expectation of whatsoever cemeth after these words And is argument enough to invite the Reader to look within and read them over And then he will find the least siling of this Master Workmans Gold very precious Good Wine they say needs no bush and if this Wine was so sweet at first running I presume whosoever tasts it now though he have it but at the second or third hand will find it hath not altogether lost its strength nor will he repent his labour in reading these Sermons if he be one that desires to profit his soul more then to please his Palat. That out of this Phoenix the Lord would raise such successors as may by Pen Life and Doctrine do as this burning and shining Light hath done before them is the prayer but scarce the belief of him that prayeth for the Peace and Prosperity of Jerusalem and therein hopeth to have his share in the concurrent prayers of every Godly Reader Stanley Gower Dorchester October the third 1659 A TABLE Directing to the TEXTS of SCRIPTURE Handled in the Following SERMONS Sermon I. HEbrews 4.7 Again he limiteth a certain day saying in David to day after so long a time as it is said to day if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts pag. 1 Sermon II. Heb. 4.7 Again he limiteth a certain day saying in David to day after so little time as it is said to day if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts p. 8 Sermon III. Gal. 6.3 4. For if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing he deceiveth himself but let every man prove his own work and then shall he have rejoycing in himself alone and not in another p. 16 Sermon IV. Ephes. 2.1 2 3. And you hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world according to the Prince that ruleth in the Air the spirit that worketh in the Children of disobedience Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature the Children of wrath even as others p. 24 Sermon V. Gal. 3.22 But the Scripture hath concluded all under sin that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe p. 32 Sermon VI. Lament 5.16 Woe unto us that we have sinned p. 40 Sermon VII Rom. 6.23 The wages of sin is death p. 48 Sermon VIII Rev. 21.8 But the fearful and unbelieving and the abominable and murtherers and whore-mongers and sorcerers and idolaters and all lyars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone which is the second death p. 55 Sermon IX Phil. 2.5 6 7 8. Let this mind be in you which also was in Jesus Christ who being in the form of God thought it no robbery to be equal with God but made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men and being found in fashion of a man he humbled himself unto the death even the death of the Cross. p. 65 Sermon X. Phil. 2.8 And being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became Obedient unto the Death even the Death of the Cross. p. 92 Sermon XI John 1.12 But to as many as received him to them gave he power to become the Sons of God even to them that believe on his Name p. 82 Sermon XII Ephes. 1.13 In whom ye also trusted after that ye heard the words of truth the Gospel of your Salvation in whom also after you believed you were sealed with the holy Spirit of promise p. 90 Sermon XIII 1 Cor. 11.29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself not discerning the Lords body p. 99 Sermon XIV Heb. 4.16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of Grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need p. 108 Sermon XV. Rom. 5.1 Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. p. 117 Sermon XVI Rom. 5.1 Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ p. 127 Sermon XVII Rom.
mans soul There is blood shed and by it pardon of sin and life convey'd unto thee on Christs part Now if there be faith and repentance on thy part and thou accept of Christ as he is offered then thou mayst say I have the Son and as certainly as I have the bread in my hand I shall have life by him This I speak but by the way that the Sun might not set in a cloud that I might not end only in death but that I might shew that there is a way to recover out of that death into which we have all naturally praecipitated our selves by our apostacy from God ROM 6.23 The wages of Sin is death THe last day I entred on the Declaration of the cursed effects and consequents of sin and in general shewed that it is the wrath of God that where sin is there wrath must follow As the Apostle in the Epistle to the Galathians As many as are under the works of the Law are under the curse Now all that may be expected from a God highly offended is comprehended in Scripture by this term Death Wheresoever sin enters death must follow Rom. 5.12 Death passed over all men forasmuch as all had sinned If we are children of sin we must be children of wrath Eph. 1.3 We are then children of wrath even as others Now concerning death in general I shewed you the last time that the state of an unconverted man is a dead and desperate estate He is a slave it would affright him if he did but know his own slavery and what it is that hangs over his head that there 's but a Span betwixt him and death he could never breath any free air he could never be at any rest he could never be free from fear Heb. 2.15 the Apostle saith that Christ came to deliver them that through fear of death were all their life time subject to bondage This bondage is a deadly bondage that when we have done all that we can do what 's the payment of the service Death And the fear of this deadly bondage if we were once sensible if God did open our eyes and shew us as he did Belshazar our doom written did we but see it it would make our joynts loose and our knees knock one against another Every day thou livest thou approachest nearer to this death to the accomplishment and consummation of it Death without and Death within Death in this World and in the World to come Not only death thus in gross and in general but in particular also Now to unfold the particulars of death and to shew you the ingredients of this bitter Cup that we may be weary of our estates that we may be drawn out of this death and be made to fly to the Son that we may be free indeed observe that Death is not here to be understood of a separation of the Soul from the Body only but a greater death than that the death of the Soul and Body We have mention made of a first Resurrection Rev. 20.6 Blessed and happy is he that hath his part in the first Resurrection for on such the second death hath no power What is the first resurrection It is a rising from sin And what is the second death It is everlasting damnation The first Death is a Death in sin and the first Resurrection is a rising from sin And so again for all things the judgments or troubles that appertain to this death all a man suffers before It is not as fools think the last blow that fells the Tree but every blow helps forward 'T is not the last blow that kills the man but every blow that goes before makes way unto it Every trouble of mind every anguish every sickness all these are as so many strokes that shorten our life and hasten our end and are as it were so many deaths Therefore however it is said by the Apostle It is appointed for all men once to dye yet we see the Apostle to the Corinthians of the great conflicts that he had in 2 Cor. 11.23 saith that he was in labours abundant in stripes above measure in prisons frequent in deaths oft In deaths often what 's that That is however he could dâ—e but once yet these harbingers of death these stripes bonds imprisonments sicknesses c. all of them were as so many deaths all these were comprehended under this curse and are parts of death in as much as he underwent that which was a furtherance to death he is said to die So we read Exod. 10.17 Pharaoh could say Pray unto your God that he would forgive my sins this once and intreat the Lord that he will take away from me but this death only Not that the Locusts were death but are said to be so because they prepared and made way for a natural death Therefore the great judgments of God are usually in Scripture comprised under this name Death All things that may be expressions of a wrath of an highly provoked God are comprehended under this name All the judgments of God that come upon us in this life or that to come whether they be spiritual and ghostly or temporal are under the Name of Death Now to come to particulars look particularly on Death and you shall see death begun in this world and seconded by a death following the separation of body and soul from God in the world to come 1. First in this life he is always a dying man Man that is born of a woman what is he He is ever spending upon the stock he is ever wasting like a Candle burning still and spending it self as soon as lighted till it come to its utter consumption So he is born to be a dying man death seizeth upon him as soon as ever it findeth sin in him Gen. 2.1 In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt dye saith God to Adam though he lived many years after How then could this threatning hold true Yes it did in regard that presently he fell into a languishing estate subject and obnoxious to miseries and calamities the hastners of it If a man be condemn'd to dye suppose he be reprieved and kept prisoner three or four years after yet we account him but a dead man And if this mans mind shall be taken up with worldly matters earthly contentments purchases or the like would we not account him a Fool or a stupid man seeing he lightly esteems his condemnation because the same hour he is not executed Such is our case we are while in our natural condition in this life dead men ever tending toward the Grave towards corruption as the gourd of Jonah so soon as ever it begins to sprout forth there is a worm within that bites it and causes it to wither The day that we are born there is within us the seed of corruption and that wasts us away with a secret and incurable consumption that certainly brings death in the end So that in our very