Solemnities thither the Tribes went up the Tribes to the Testimony of Israel Hierusalem was as pleasant a place as any was at that time in the world and Absolom being the King's Son had undoubtedly accommodations as good as the City could afford But Absolom had displeased his Father and was sensible he was under his frown and it was not for the pleasantness of the City that he desired a liberty to return but that he might see the reconciled face of his Father and therefore he saith What should I do at Hierusalem if I may not see the King's face Without that Hierusalem was to him but as another place nay in this worse than another place because it was a place where others enjoyed that which he wanted Every Courtier every ordinary Servant of David's Family saw his face Absolom might not I do only allude to it In or near Hierusalem was Mount Zion called the Mountain of the House of the Lord because the Temple stood nigh to it It was prophesied Isa 2. 2. That in the last dâ—ies the Mountain of the Lord's House should be established in the top of the Mountains and should be exalted above the Hills and all Nations should flow unto it And many people should go and say Come you and let us go up to the Mountain of the Lord and to the House of the God of Jacob and he shall teach us of his waies and we will walk in his paths 'T is not the going up to the Mountain that pleaseth a gracious Soul unless it finds it self when there taught something of God's waies and inabled to walk in the Lord's paths I shall prets this Exhortation by some Arguments and offer you something of Advice in this case First For Arguments what I gave you for Reasons may serve Thus you shall shew your selves to be Christians indeed The Wise must see the face of an Husband though a little Child may be pleased with the Picture Take an Ordinance of it self it hath something of the impression of God upon it God is there as a man in a Picture but this can never satisfie a truly thirsty Soul after God he thirsts after God himself My Soul saith David thirsteth for thee David must see the power and glory of God in the Sanctuary An Hypocrite may have a fancy to go to Ordinances to hear Sermons c. that 's common to persons that shall perish with such as shall be saved There may be many ends which Hypocrites may have which that may serve well enough But herein as to this point stands a good Christian distinguished from all Hypocrites and Formalists in the world as to this particular Secondly Till your hearts be brought to this Duties will be nothing else but a continual task and a burden to your souls There will be no great pleasure arising to any Soul from a bare reading or hearing the Word of the Lord. The Formalists among the Jews that lookt at nothing but the bodily labour quickly came to prophane the Table of the Lord and to account the meat there contemptible and to say Behold what a weariness is it Mal. 1. 13. Amos tell us chap. 8. 5. that they said When will the New Moon be gone that we may sell Corn and the Sabbath that we may set forth VVheat Nothing will deliver the Soul from the burden of religious duties I mean the looking upon them as such but some Sweetness discerned in them or some Profit which it discerneth arising from them neither of which will be discerned by any Soul which tasteth nothing of God in them nor hath any Communion with him by and through them but these things I before touched upon as also the danger of a meer bodily labour in this religious Duty I shall therefore rather spend the Remainder of my time in directing you what to do that you may not only hear the words of Christs Mouth but be kissed with the Kisses of his Mouth Go out to hear the word of God as the word of God The Apostle blesseth God on the behalf of his Thessalonians 1 Thes 2. 13. That when they received the word of God they received it not as the word of men but as it was in truth the word of God which effectually worketh in them that believe I am afraid this is one thing which is much wanting in many Preachers more hearers the former do not go out to preach the word as the word of God The other do not go out to hear it under that notion as the word of God It is a Phrase hath a great deal in it and is comprehensive of all that previous preparation which is our duty with reference to an Institution of God and that to so great an End as the Salvation of the Soul is If I remember right Plutarch doth somwhere complain of the Heathen that they went to the Temples of the Gods 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not as men do to a place to which they set out upon design and due deliberation considering whither they are going and what their business was there but as men who step in by the by into a place Whereas he saith they should come 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 prepared out of their Houses What wonder is it if God should not meet them in his Ordinance who come not out of any fixed design to meet him Your Friend hardly thanks you for making his House your Inn stepping out of your Road to see him when your main design is at anothers Journeys end But he thanks you that that is the main design of your Journey 1. That man goeth to hear the word of God as the word of God that aright fixeth his end before he goeth to hear Our Saviour seemeth to reflect upon the want of this in those that went to hear John the Baptist Matth. 11. 7. VVhat went ye out into the wilderness to see A Reed shaken with the wiâ—d But what went ye out for to see A man cloathed in soft Raiment Behold they that wear soft Raiment are in Kings houses But what went ye out for to see A Prophet yea I say unto you and more than a Prophet I would have every Man and Woman before he or she goes out to hear the word of God say to himself My Soul whom am I going to hear A man that shall speak to me smooth things and deliver himself in words that are proper to express what he saith But whom am I going to hear One that hath a pleasant Voice like one that singeth to or playeth well upon an Instrument such a one I may hear in the Schools of Rhetorick and Oratory But whom do I go out for to hear One that can discourse rationally upon an Argument I may hear such a one in the Schools of Aristotle and Plato Whom then do I go to Church for to hear A Prophet One that discourseth of the things of God yea and more than a Prophet I am going to hear God
so appear and the more goodness or sutableness to a Souls necessities is in any object and appears to the Soul the stronger must be the Souls motions to and towards it Now there is nothing in the World can possibly appear to a pious Soul to have that degree of goodness in it that an Vnion and communion with God hath they being things suited to the Souls highest wants Our communion with God is the great testimony of our union with him and that Soul that hath no evidence of a communion with God will find it self at as great a loss to evidence its union with him Besides good is generally valued and adjudged either by profit or pleasure The pious Soul knoweth that the more full or free and less interrupted its communion with God is the more sweet and pleasant it is duties are more our tasks and burdens then our delight and pleasure when the Soul hath but a broken interrupted and distracted communion with him And as to profit nothing can be more considerable to the Soul considering that the peace of the Soul and the increase of its grace are both much advantaged by it David cryeth out Psal 73. v. 25. Whom have I in heaven but thee and there is none upon Earth that I desire besides thee The desire of God upon Earth mentioned by the Psalmist must be a desire of fellowship and communion with God which being in it self desirable the more the Soul hath of it the more full and free and less interrupted that communion is the more still it must be the object of every pious Souls desire This in the first place will shew us a certain difference betwixt the Child of God and an hypocrite The profane man despiseth communion with God and looks upon all discourses concerning union and communion with Christ as mere canting The hypocrite pretends to something of communion with God but any slight degrees of it any acts by which he can but fancy he hath any such communion serve his turn and satisfy him A formal hypocrite possibly cannot stop the mouth of his natural conscience nor save his reputation with the World without the performance of some duties which God hath instituted wherein the People of God have a communion with God he must sometimes pray and hear a Sermon but whether his heart be united to God in Prayer whether he attends to the Words of the Prayer whether he finds any fervency of Spirit or any freedom of Spirit to or in the duty whether his Soul performeth it with any exercise of faith in God these are things he looks not after neither are they the objects of his desires or indeavours Hence therefore conscientious Christians may take some just measures of themselves A Christian indeed is not to be judged from his praying or hearing but from his hungring and thirsting after a communion with God in the duties he performeth unto him and after such a communion with God as I have been describing unto you and if there be such desires in your Souls they will be evidenced 1. By the trouble of your Souls when you find you come short of it Desire not obtained as well as hope deferred will make the heart sick no true Christian but at some times will find his thoughts more wandring his Affections more cold his Spirit more straitned his Faith more languid to find this and not to be concerned for it or troubled at it is a very ill evidence against the Soul that it hath no such desires as I have been discoursing of 2. Secondly Such desires will be attended with indeavours to avoid whatsoever may hinder such a communion with God Real desires are always attended with proportionable indeavours He that desires a more free and full communion with his friend will go out of a croud of company where he knows he cannot injoy it He that desires such a communion with Christ will find some time to get out of the crouds of Worldly business and company where he knows he cannot have it 3. And Lastly The truth of such desires will be evidenced by the use of all probable means that may conduce to it He vainly pretends to desire a thing who will use no means within his reach and power to obtain it And that brings me in the last place to a Word of exhortation to the use of such means For though it must be by an influence a great influence of grace that any Soul comes up to this yet that is to be obtained by the use of due means on our part I shall briefly hint some probable means of this nature 1. Make Religion as much your business as you can I know it cannot be all our business while we are in the world But the more it is our business the more our communion with God will be When a Boy is first bound Apprentice he knoweth not how to keep his mind to his business it is much running after his idle diversions and recreations but when he hath once been habituated to his work by degrees he grows more serious and fixed So will the Soul as to its great business of communion with God 2. Prepare your hearts to seek the Lord by prayer by sequestring your selves sometime from your secular concerns There lyes much in this for want of it we are much accessary to our own distractions and that interrupted broken communion with God of which we complain 3. Vse your indeavours to lift up your hearts to God in duties and to keep off such things as would hinder it Frown upon your hinderances If a man frowns upon one that would come to disturb him in any serious discourse with his friend he must be very impudent that should continue such interruptions or repeat them 4. Lastly Beg of God to make up what thou canst not do Hitherto I have only discoursed a notion of my own as to the Sense of my Text. I told you that the generality of Interpreters take notice of the Noon as the hottest time of the day when the Sun emits its most direct beams so by it understand a time of Affliction and trial for which interpretation they have that of our Saviour Math. 13. 6. 21. This will afford us two notions the one more implyed the other more plainly expressed I shall speak something onely to the first of them at this time Prop. That Christ hath feeding and resting places and shades wherewith and wherein to refresh his Saints in the most scorching times of trial and affliction I shall onely open the Proposition by shewing you what these shades these feeding resting places are then shortly apply my discourse As to the first I shall instance only in three particulars David in his 23 Psal maketh use of this very Metaphor The Lord saith he is my Shepherd v. 2. He maketh me to lye down in green pastures he leadeth me besides the still Waters It is the work of a Shepherd to find out
and they will find at last that God will give men for them and People for their lives Possibly some will say to us but how shall we know these whom Christ calls the fairest amongst women if we knew them we should give a a due respect to them It is true the Apostle saith The world knoweth us not Nor can they perfectly know them for the Kings Daughter is glorious within saith the Psalmist But yet our Saviour tells you Math. 7. 16. By their fruits you shall know them do men gather grapes of Thorns or Figs of Thistles even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit Will you know what is good fruit see Gal. 5. 22. The fruit of the Spirit is love joy peace long suffering gentleness goodness faith meekness temperance against these there is no law No law of God Add to this Phil. 3. 3. We are the circumcision which Worship God in the Spirit and rejoice in Jesus Christ and have no confidence in the flesh these are the true Jews that are such inwardly in the heart and in the Spirit and not in the letter whose praise is not of men but of God See you therefore any man or woman or any party of men and women in the World who disclaiming any confidence in the flesh any priviledges of birth or Church-state or the merits of any works they have done or can do place their hope for Salvation in Jesus Christ alone trust in him rejoyce in him and Worship God in the Spirit tho it may be not with those external rites and Ceremonies that you do nor under the same circumstances yet heartily Worship God according to the rules which God hath given them that Love God and have a love to all men though more especially to those that fear God and desire to live in Peace as much as in them lyes with all men that are gentle and meek not giving way to rude and boisterous Passions that are good in their behaviours temperate no drunkards no unclean Persons but squaring their lives by the rule of reason because it is also the law of God Let me tell you that against these there is no law No law of God which is the regula regulans the rule by which all the rules and laws of men must be guided or they are nullities and no rules at all These are those whom that God whom you own as your Creator and the great Lord of Heaven and Earth that Christ whom you call your Redeemer your Saviour and who most certainly shall be your Judge and give unto you at the last according to what you have done in the flesh calls the fairest amongst women the most beautiful and lovely Souls in the whole creation judge you whether you ought not so also to call so to account them so to deal with them These are the best men and women in your Cities Parishes c. Take â—reed of using hard Speeches concerning them God will for them execute Judgment as well as for ungodly deeds much more take heed of any hard actions against them he that toucheth them toucheth the apple of Gods Eye Zech. 2. 8. Deut. 32. 10. They have prayed with David Psal 17. 8. Keep me as the apple of thine Eye God hath said concerning them Zech. 2. 8. He that toucheth them toucheth the apple of his Eye Be wise now therefore O ye Princes be instructed O you men of the Earth whether great or small be assured Christ will revenge his Spouses quarrels even the quarrels of all those whom he judgeth the fairest amongst women Let none think to cover their malice against Religion and Godliness under pretences of executing humane Laws the Apostle saith against such is no law no law that will be justified by the law of God no law that will justify either the lawgivers in making it or the Executors in execution of it 1 Tim 1. 9. The law is not made for a righteous man but for the lawless and disobedient for the ungodly and for sinners for unholy and profane for Murderers of Fathers and Murderers of Mothers for Whoremongers for those who defile themselves with mankind for Man-Stealers for Lyars for perjured Persons and other things contrary to sound Doctrine The law that is the law of God is not made for them that is to punish afflict torment them it is made for them to live according to the rule of it It is made to protect them For rulers are not a terror to good works but the evil Rom. 13. 3. And all Magistrats ought to be Ministers of God to Christians for good Rom. 13. 4. Now all humane laws must be either in affirmance of the law of God and to force that or in civil things left to their power as they shall judge to be most for the publick Peace or necessary to uphold Nations and Polities O therefore take heed what you do lest you be found fighters against God Much less let any think to cover their malice with pretences that the Persons they run upon with such a rage are hypocrites Hypocrisy can be but in the heart when there is no contradiction in the conversation that man is no judge of But is it not possible to reconcile at least some part of the men of the World to those to whom the Lord Jesus Christ hath given such a Character Is he not a better Judge then men are Will you make your selves believe for a cloak for your rage that these men are not what they pretend to be I would ask you but one question are they not more righteous then you Are they not more in reading the Word Hearing Prayer Fasting and are not these things duties commanded in that Word which you own to be your rule and to be holy just and good are they not stricter in the observation of Sabbaths Which is so great a piece of Religion that the Prophet expresseth a great part of it under that notion Isa 56. 4 6. Into their hearts you cannot look but their Words are audible do not they fear an Oath more Do they swear and curse and Blaspheme like you or many others do they exceed Heathens Dii omnes deaeque te perdant by their Dammees do they rail and revile and lye like other men Do they drink and whore steal and murder gripe and oppress is not the contrary to this the beauty of a Soul in the Eye of humane reason You have therefore no reason to judge them none of those whom Christ calls the fairest amongst women you must own they are fairer then you or any of your converse and stamp You must find some in the World that are better then your selves or they must be the most comely and beautiful Souls Sirs I beseech you consider how much it becometh a man as a man to judge according to truth And what can be a better standard then the judgment of Christ O let not the People of
shewed much love but their hearts went after their covetousness And v. 32. the Prophet was to them as a very lovely Song of one that had a pleasant voice and could play well on an Instrument they heard his words but they did not do them And in the time of the Propher Isaiah there was a generation that sought the Lord daily and delighted to know the Lord's waies as a Nation that forsook not the Ordinances of God and took delight in approaching to God Isa 58. 2. yet the Lord sent his Prophet to cry aloud against them not to spare to lift up his voice like a Trumpet to shew them their transgressions and the house of Jacob their sins And doubtless there is such a generation still as a generation of prophane persons that despise the Word and Ordinances of God and blaspheme God and his Word so another generation that must read and must go and hear and may take some delight in it They may delight in the stile and phrase and wit of the Preacher or in the Learning that is mixed up with the discourse or in the Notion of the Sermon and desire to hear especially some kind of Preachers upon these accounts or to furnish their minds with some notional knowledge of the things of God that may serve them as to their credit and reputation in the world or furnish their tongues with discourse in religious company all this will speak nothing to prove a man a Christian indeed one whose heart is changed and transformed into the likeness of the Word All this may be without any desire after the kisses of Christ's mouth but a desire after the feeling the power of the Word upon our hearts and a dissatisfaction of spirit until a man findeth something of this upon his Soul this will speak a man or woman not to rest in a form of godliness without the power of it yet even this dissatisfaction may be too much and this happeneth when it proceedeth from some mistake and misapprehension of Religious Souls This principally happeneth in two cases 1. The Soul 's judging it self from its sensible experiences not from its direct motions toward God and its desires The motions of our Souls towards God must be warily distinguished from the sensible returns of God upon our Soul The first will speak the Soul beloved The latter speaks it highly favoured 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 much graced by God A pious Soul is not to judge it self so much from God's returns to it in this particular as from God's workings in it kindling in it those holy desires which move it after what it may be it doth not yet seem meet to the wisdom of God that it should attain I have not told you that the Spouse of Christ doth at all times find that Christ hath kissed it with the kisses of his mouth but that such a Soul's desires will be steady and constant after such a thing and will not be satisfied with a meer bodily labour and external performance of a duty The 2d mistake may be from the Soul 's not considering the variety of those kisses by which our blessed Lord may kiss the Souls of Believers in and by the Word but keeping its Eye upon some particular influence of grace which it passionately desireth and not finding that God satisfieth it as to that it concludeth it hath had no influence from God at all As now supposing a Soul sad and troubled it is exceedingly desirous of comfort and satisfaction and saith Lord when wilt thou comfort me In expectation of meeting God in this way it goeth out to hear the Word and not meeting with that peace and comfort which it wanted it is ready to conclude that it hath met with nothing and hath had no near inward spiritual communion with God As to this the Soul must rectifie its mistake the profit of the Word is not limited to one thing it is saith the Apostle profitable for reproof and correction and instruction in righteousness There is a kiss of instruction in righteousness It may be thou canst not find that God by the Word which thou hast heard hath spoken or sealed peace to thy Soul but thou art still full of troubles and fears doubts and dejections well but if thou findest that God hath more sealed and confirmed some Truth to thee that he hath made thee to see further into the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God to see some Truths of concernment to thy Soul in a clearer and fuller light do not say that thou hast not met with God in the Ordinance The opening of the Eyes especially to discern the Mysteries of the Gospel is one of the kisses of Christ's mouth If thy love be not so far as thou canst see further influenced yet if thy Faith be promoved this is a great thing It may be thou camest to hear hoping for strength against the temptation God possibly hath met thee and hath given thee a further light to discern the temptation the methods and depth of Satan's subtilties in it this is a kiss There is an instruction in Duty as well as Doctrine which deserveth this name Thou comest to the Word hoping God will speak peace to thee and take the thorn out of thy flesh that buffeteth thee It seems not good to God to do this but thou goest home from hearing more submitting to the Will of God more resolved to wait upon God more convinced that it is thy duty to lie at the foot of God and to wait his will and good pleasure This also is a kiss of his mouth There is a kiss of Reproof and Correction When God by his Word reproves and corrects a Soul when he reproves the Soul and the Soul is reproved as is said of Abraham when the Pagan King reproved him this is a kiss of his mouth Reproof and correction are things for which God hath told us that his Word is profitable for and a Soul ought to look upon it self as having had a communion with God in his Word when a wise reproof hath met with an obedient Ear. In short if a Soul after hearing though it hath not the desired mercy yet findeth it self more prepared to want it more quieted in the present want of it more patient under the afflicting hand of God that the grace of God is more sufficient for it than it was this is an excellent kiss of Christ's mouth a certain token that God in the Word communicated himself to the Soul though it may be it hath not been just in that way and method and particular dispensation that the Soul expected I shall finish my Discourse upon this Proposition with a Word of Exhortation If this be the frame of one that is the Spouse of Christ let us labour to find our hearts in this frame I remember the words of Absolom What saith he do I at Hierusalem if I may not see the King's face Hierusalem is called the City of
he had withdrawn himself and was gone She sought him but she could not find him she called him but he gave her no answer It is the case of many good and pious Soul The holy Spirit moves it to some evident piece of spiritual duty for I am not speaking for extravagant impulses to things no where prescribed or directed in the Word of God the Soul is under some spiritual Torpor and listlesness it agrees the thing ought to be done and disputes nothing but the necessity of doing it presently it neglecteth it it may be when it would open to it s Beloved it finds that he hath withdrawn himself and is gone It seeketh him but it cannot find him 2. Secondly We are as prone also vainly to think within our selves If we sin we will repent if we fall we will rise Or though we run into temptation yet we will not fall by it All this while forgetting that although we live yet it is not we but Christ lives in us and we shall stand in need of drawing grace to run after God It is true that if the Believer sinneth he hath an Advocate with the Father even Jesus Christ the Righteous If he falls he shall rise God will succour him when he is tempted but all this proceeds from an influence forreign to him God is able to make him to stand and faithful so as he shall stand But yet his own endeavours are necessary to his standing and Divine Grace is necessary if he be lapsed to his recovery and though he may know if he knows that he is Elected and effectually called and justified that he shall not perish for ever yet this can by no means encourage his presumptuous sinning for these two Reasons 1. Because while he lies under the guilt of sin not repented of he can have no knowledge of his Election or Effectual Calling but hath reason to suspect he hath all this while mistaken the case and state of his own Soul 2. Because he may be saved as through fire and go with an aking conscience even to the gate of the City of God Now it is impossible that in the Judgment of any Soul under the conduct and command of reason the pleasure of sin should appear compensative of the rack of Conscience and the feeling the terrours of God upon the Soul but for a few days If indeed man having fallen from his integrity had a power to rise again at pleasure by the help alone of his own hands he might have from hence a motive to indulge his corruptions but if he hath no such power but what he derives from drawing grace certainly it is the vainest thing imaginable for man to sin upon a presumption of what is not in his power and though he be certain of it in the issue yet he may want it so long as may leave him little pleasure of his sinning little fruit of those things for which he hath been so long ashamed Thirdly From this representation of the state the present state of Man We may observe the difference betwixt our present state and the state of our Pro-parent Adam in the state of Innocency It is a point not half enough thought of and the want of a due consideration of it causeth so many swellings against and blasphemings of the Truth of God in this point They will not understand that although God made Man upright and in Honour yet he abode not in Honour but by seeking out inventions became like unto the Beast that perisheth The state of Man at first was such 1. That he needed not have come to Christ for life he had his liâ—e in his hands There needed no Saviour before we were lost no Mediator or Intercessor before man had offended and consequently no applications of our Souls unto him for life and Salvation and this by the way may shew you the weakness of their reply who when they are told that it is no more injustice with God to call to us for those exercises of Grace in order to our salvation which in our lapsed state we have no power to perform than it is in man to call to him to whom he hath lent a great sum which he by his debauchery hath spent to pay him what he oweth him and to lay him in Prison though he hath nothing to pay for God in creation gave unto man a power to do whatsoever in that state was necessary to his Salvation I say when they are told this they usually tell us That Adam never had a power to repent and believe in Christ Nor was repentance or faith in Christ necessary in that state wherein Adam was created nor would it ever have been necessary either to him or us had he stood in that estate God gave unto Adam and to us in him whatsoever was necessary in that state and if our Fore-fafather and we who dyed in him and fell with him have made a Mediator necessary and repentance and faith in the Mediator necessary and we have no power to these acts nor ever had no not in Adam how yet is God unrighteous in requiring those acts of us though we have no power to perform them Secondly As in that state there was no need of a Christ of a Saviour a Redeemer nor consequently of a being drawn or a coming to him So neither was there need of any such potent drawing in order to our running after him Adam had a perfect power connatural to him to walk with God in the obedience of his will It was the fall that lamed us in our feet and introduced this necessity of Christs drawings in order to our running Let us in a word or two take a view of man now in this that he stands in need of these divine drawings 1. He now stands in need of a Mediator and there is no name given under Heaven by which any Soul can be saved but only the name of the Lord Jesus Christ no Salvation by any other 2. He stands in need of drawing to this Mediator not only of a Child to be born a Son again a Saviour prepared but of the work of the Father and the holy Spirit to draw us to and after this Mediator 1. Drawing as I have shewed you imports a fair treating intreating alluring Souls to what is their great and only happiness this speaks man 1. In a state of aversion from God and his only felicity Mans supreme happiness lies in his union and communion with God as the supreme and greatest good yet he must be drawn to it drawn with the cords of a man allured by mans Rhetorick persuaded to it by mans Logick and ratiocination we as the Embassadours of Christ must beseech and intreat men to be happy in being reconciled to God and thus much is granted to us by those who make themeanest and most jejune interpretation of this drawing 2. Drawing secondly signifieth an act of power This speaketh us not only averse but impotent
Assemblies I cannot away with even the Solemn Meetings Your New Moons and your appointed Feasts my Soul hateth they are a trouble to me God had appointed all these things he had commanded they should tread his Courts bring Oblations offer Incense keep New Moons and Sabbaths but all these things ought to have been done out of love to God with a Faith in Christ and with pure hearts not being so performed they were no Godliness but meer abomination unto God The case with us under the Gospel is the same though our Acts of homage there prescribed be of another more reasonable and spiritual nature God hath required of us to pray to praise to hear his Word to partake of his Supper He hath also prescribed us the manner in which we ought to do these acts in Faith in Obedience with the intention of our minds attention of our thoughts fervency of spirit Separate the more external acts from these they are no better than formal performances bodily exercises neither acceptable to God nor profitable to our selves If men will call these Godliness or Holiness it is a great mistake The external acts are indeed such as men that live under the Gospel may be excited to perform and may perform without any special influence of Grace by vertue of his natural powers and abilities and the common Grace of God not denied to any But when they are done without due affections and principles and inward motions of the heart correspondent to the nature of the actions according to the revelation of the Divine Will they are no Holiness but Hypocrisie and thus they cannot be performed without the assistance and influence of special Grace Thus from this notion of the necessity of Christ's drawing both with reference to our first coming to Christ for life and further following him walking with him and running after him Christians may be able to judge both concerning the Truth of their Faith and also of their Holiness If either be true they must be the effect of Divine special Grace and more than any can do from the powers of Nature even the best educated Nature not renewed changed and influenced by special and distinguishing grace I am fully of their mind who think that those Souls who are no further changed and reformed or converted than might be from the power of Nature rationally improving Moral Principles and Gospel Motives and Arguments cannot be saved But yet I am so charitable as to think that many may be saved who think they have no other conversion than this the workings of the Spirit of God upon our Souls are so indiscernable and internal that we may possibly mistake them for the workings of meerly our own powers and faculties under the advantages of the Gospel but they must be more than such or else as I have before said man is the first Author of all spiritual good both with respect to action and fruition to himself and clearly his own Saviour and must make himself to differ from another and that by the highest and most spiritual difference and one man's Soul must have different and inequal vertues from the Soul of his Brother whose Soul is of the same species and hath the same faculties But I have dwelt long enough upon this branch of Application Let every one now by this Examine himself whether the Faith that he thinks he hath be a meer Assent to the Proposition of the Gospel upon the Evidence of it he hath had from the Church or from men or a meer languid incertain Assent from probable Arguments of Reason or a meer presumption bottomed upon no Promise Or whether it be a firm and fixed Assent to the Truths of the Gospel understood by him conjoyned with a reliance upon the Person of the Mediator clearly revealed in the Gospel as the only Saviour of Man and producing an endeavour in all things to live up to the condition of the Promise Whether the Holiness which he thinketh his Soul hath arrived at lieth in a meer Moral Righteousness a forbearance of gross and scandalous courses of sin and a doing such acts of Justice and Charity as a man may do from the meer improvement and conduct of reason and a meer Formality of Godliness a performance of such acts of homage as God hath prescribed without respect to the manner in which God hath willed them to be performed If your pretended Faith and Holiness be no more trust not to them as Evidences that you are come to Christ all this may be without any thing of this drawing your Faith is no more than that mentioned Matth. 7. 22. where our Saviour tells you that many pretendedly trusting in and relying upon him as may appear by what they said should say to him in that day Lord Lord Have we not prophesied in thy Name and in thy Name have cast out Devils and in thy Name done many wonderful works to whom he would say I never knew you depart from me you workers of iniquity God had never promised Heaven Salvation to a prophesying in his Name nor to a casting out of Devils so as their confidence or reliance on or in Christ was the growing up of a Rush without Mire a trusting without a ground or bottom Your Holiness and Righteousness is no more than that of the Pharisee who gloried Luk. 18. 11 12. That he was not as other men were Extortioners Unjust Adulterers he fasted twice a week and gave Alms of all that he possessed Our Saviour saith he went away not justified And Matth. 5. 20. Except your Righteousness exceed the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees you can never enter into the Kingdom of God Say to your selves severally My Soul thou must one day come before the Judgment Seat of Christ and begging for admittance into Heaven thou wouldest be loth to hear the Lord in that day say to thee Depart from me I know thee not My Soul what hast thou more to trust to than they had Canst thou say any more than Lord I am not as other men I am no Swearer no Drunkard no Reviler no Extortioner no Whoremonger Lord I fast often I go to prayers often and to Church often to hear the Word if thou hast no more to say the Pharisee had as much The interest of a man 's own body or estate the examples of other men the credit and applause of the world may move a reasonable Soul under no other power than that of reason nor other influence than that which all within the compass of the Church where the Gospel is Preached may carry thee thus far without any influence of powerful special Grace Further yet this notion of Truth may help to relieve many good Souls who are discouraged either because they seem to themselves to stick in the New Birth Or because they find in themselves a great weakness to spiritual duties Or impotency in the resistance of their own intrinsick motions to sin or forein
more strict and close walking with God Let this ingage us to perfect holivess in the fear of the Lord. Study therefore the closest degrees of fellowship and communion with God the strictest course of an holy conversation There is a great deal of difference even in good mens communion with God some are more upon the mountwith God then others are more in holy meditation and contemplation more in secret duties more in prayer more in watchfulness more warm and zealous for God David had many worthies but he had a first three to which the others did not come up though they did worthily God hath many Souls that he loveth that are dear and precious in his Eyes but he hath also his first threes some that excel and out-run others these are they that have most of Gods Ear for tho the first grace be not given because men keep his Commandments yet further grace the manifestations and signal tokens of Divine love are given out according to the promise Jo. 14. 21. as men love and keep the Commandments of God you therefore that would excel in the favour of God that would have Gods ear fully and presently open to your supplications study to excel in holiness Doth a poor Courtier in the Courts of Earthly Princes bless himself in having the Ear of his Prince that if he hath a Petition to put up unto his Prince he can go immediately into his presence and have his Petition presently signed whereas the Petitions of others are rejected or at least deferred so as he is constrained to wait months or years And is this no priviledge no happiness at all that a poor Soul can immediately go unto the Lord of Heaven and Earth to him who is the Fountain of all grace and goodness and if he wants any thing freely present his Petition to him and have it signed presently not let the Lord go until he hath blessed him when as a wicked man tho he maketh many prayers yet is not heard yea those that may have some interest in God yet walking more loosely and more imperfectly may cry a long time and yet not be answered if we had nothing more then this to commend to us holiness in all manner of conversation and the strictest degrees of walking with God yet this certainly should be enough I shall add but one word more in application of this discourse I put into the Proposition the term sometimes God doth not alwaies but sometimes give in a quick answer to his peoples prayers Let not the people of God therefore think it strange if they have not presently an answer to their prayers God is not alwaies alike quick in his returns to the prayers of his people He always heareth them he will be certain to answer them but he is not alwaies equally quick in the answer of them This is many times the trouble of Souls that belong to God it was Davids trouble expressed Psal 22. 2 3. It was Asaphs trouble though God did at last hear him as you read v. 1. yet he had first spake as in v. 7. 8 9. Will the Lord cast off for ever and will he be favourable no more Is his mercy clean gone for ever Doth his promise fail for evermore Hath God forgotten to be gracious hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies yet because the not hearing of prayers is threatned as a judgment and punishment upon wicked men and mentioned in holy writ as the reward of mens regarding iniquity in their hearts This often causeth a great deal of trouble in the Spirits of Gods People Let me therefore shut up this discourse in advising alittle what that man or woman should do that lieth at least under some apprehensions that God doth not hear or hath not heard their prayers they cry in the day time and are not silent in the night season yet God heareth not 1. In the first place Let such a Christian examine whether it be not his own mistake Thou thinkest God hath not heard nor answered thy prayers art thou not in a mistake All answers of prayers are not discernable to our sense It may be God hath answered thee by denying thee the particular thing that thou askedst of him thus he answered Paul by denying him as to the thing he asked which was the taking the thorn out of his flesh He better knoweth what we have need of then we our selves know it the general desire of thy Soul was for some good thou didst therefore desire health riches c. because thou didst apprehend them suitable and convenient and so good for thee God who knoweth thy Soul the frame and temper of it he seeth that these things would be for thy hurt he therefore with-holdeth them and so in not answering answereth thee in not answering thy particular request he doth answer the general desire of thy Soul and only correcteth thy ignorance in thy request 2. You have heard that God sometimes answereth by giving though not the thing yet the value of the thing which thou askest i. e. that which is every way as sutable and convenient and as profitable for thee as that which thou didst desire Hath not God according to thy prayer removed thy affliction yet hath he supported thee under it hath he filled thee with inward consolations hath he told thee as he did Paul that his grace should be sufficient for thee Dost thou call this no answer God answers the prayer of that Soul to whom he giveth the full value of the thing it asketh though he doth not give the thing itself 2. If thou canst not find that God hath answered thee neither in kind nor in value Review thy prayer and see if thou canst not find some failure in that for which God with-holds his answer I suppose thee a person reconciled to God through the blood of Christ other Souls either pray not at all or if at all they make a meer formality of the duty and put up prayers as Children shoot arrows never regarding whither they flie or what becometh of them but even in a good mans prayer there may be such failures as may give God a just cause to with-hold an answer without any breach of Gods truth or faithfulness thou mayest not have prayed in faith but too much doubting thou mayest have prayed for something which thy wise Father saw was not good for thee or at least not good for thee under some present circumstances under which thou art if thou findest any thing of this nature thy work is to correct thy prayers if thou wouldst receive an answer 3. If thou dost not find this if thou canst not charge thy want of an answer upon some defect or failure in thy prayers nor yet find that God hath answered thee either giving thee the thing which thou didst ask of him or the value of it in a quiet and contented frame of Spirit in the want of it or in the supportations or consolations of
miserable blind and naked On the other side Paul complained that he was the least of the Apostles not worthy to be called an Apostle c. Yet so false are our hearts that there may be hypocrisy even in our confessions of our sin and blackness whether to God or to man we must therefore take heed both to our design and end in these confessions and also to the truth and manner of them The hypocrite never confesseth his blackness but in hopes that for his confession he shall be reputed white and the praise of men is all that he seeks after Hence 2. he doth it without any serious sense of the sin which he confesseth or heart contrition for it A confession of sins which is but a bare recitation and Enumeration of them is not that confession which God requireth or accepteth Secondly This calleth to us all for the practice of this duty I have shewed you that there is a threefold confession of our sin which is our duty 1. A confession unto God 2. Uâ—to the faithfull Ministers and Servants of God 3. Vnto the men of the World The first is our duty at all times and under all circumstances and we have nothing to regard as to that but knowing the matter of confession keeping a watch upon our hearts and ways that we may know our errors and the plague of our own hearts that we do it in such a manner as God hath directed and prescribed confession must not be the meer Sacrifice of the Calves of our lips but the Sacrifice of a broken and contrite heart But this is not that of the Text where the Spouse is not speaking to God but to the daughters of Hierusalem it is to them the Spouse faith I am black In what cases this confession to men is our duty I have largely shewed you as also what advantage may arise from it both with reference to Gods glory and the good of our own and others Souls I shall onely offer you some few directions for the more advantageous performance of it 1. There is a great deal of prudence to be used in the choice of that friend to whom thou doest thus unbosom thy self 1. Conceal not thy self from that able and faithful Minister of Christ whom thou hast intrusted with the charge of thy Soul I am very far from pleading for that auricular confession in the Ear of the Priest which the Papists make such a stir about Amongst other supernumerary Sacraments which they have added to those 2 which alone were instituted by Christ they have one which they call the Sacrament of Penance In order to which they require in Lent especially but at other times also a circumstantiated confession of all men and womens particular sins which being so confessed to the Priest who is therefore called their confessor he appointeth them a penance to be done for them and so absolveth them from the guilt of them as they pretend As we know of no Satisfaction to be given for sin but what is given by the death of Christ excepting only in cases of wrong done unto men capable of reparation Nor of any power in any to forgive sins but only in God only the Minister may declare what God hath done or will do in cafe of our true repentance and faith so we know of no incumbent duty upon any Christian to make a particular confession of sin to the Priest and only judge such particular confession necessary in some particular cases for the disburthening and easing of Christians consciences pressed under the guilt of some particular sins and in such a case an able and faithful Minister of Christ is doubtless the most proper Person to make confession to both because as by his office he is both an Interpreter of the mind and will of God and to pray for the People so he is or ought to be one of a thousand like Saul taller then his Brethren by the head and shoulders in knowledge gifts of greater knowledge judgment in the things of God and so more able to minister a word in season It is sad that it cannot be said of all they are so but it is to be presumed that the same wisdom which teacheth every man and woman to commit the business of his bodily health to the ablest most faithful Physitian he can chuse and the concern of his Estate to the most able faithful Lawyer he can will also direct a Christian to commit the far more weighty concerns of his Soul to the most able and faithfull Minister that he can nor ought any Christian to be more abridged in his liberty with reference to the latter of far more concernment then with referenceto the former of far more minute concernment to him But I say a good Christian having made choice of such a Person he is undoubtedly the fittest Person to confess our sins unto when they lye heavy upon our conscience and we cannot recover our Peace and that with respect to both the ends of such confession whether Prayers for us or Counsel and advice and that both with respect to the abilityes of such a person which cannot but be presumed greater in order to the revealing the mind and will of God to us and so giving us advice and counsel and with reference to his Office he being one whom God hath set over us and gifted with reference unto us But set aside the case of a disturbed conscience not able otherwise to gain peace or some particular cases upon which cases of conscience and perplexing questions may arise too hard for a private Christian to answer without some help I see no need of any particular Confession unto Ministers more then others 2. As to more private Christians I have also shewed you several cases wherein some particular Confessions of sin may be highly expedient if not necessary It must be the care of a good Christian so to manage this duty that he may attain the ends which he aimeth at in it without dashing upon such Rocks as every good and prudent Christian ought to avoid To that end 1. Christians ought to use so much wisdom as may protect their profession from reproach and scandal which may prejudice the repuâ—e either of themselves or others walking in the holy ways of God The honour of the Gospel and profession of it is a great thing and though we must not commit the least sin that any such good may come of iâ— yet whatsoever prudence we can use to prevent any thing of this nature is doubtless our duty This evil ariseth from the needless publication of the sinful failings of professors He that hath sinned openly ought to be rebuked openly and openly to confess his sin that the Church of God offended by his fall may be satisfied in the truth of his repentance and recovery out of the snare of the Devil but where the sin is of another nature and hath been committed secretly there is
not only no need of such a publick confession but it may be of a greater mischief and ill consequence then good by reason of a wicked world which watcheth for Gods Peoples haltings to reproach profession and the holy name of God Though therefore in such cases private Confession even of more private sins may be necessary and expedient yet it ought to be managed with prudence as to the manner that is in the best consistency with the end to which it is directed and for the avoiding such things as may tend to the dishonour of God and disadvantage of the more publick interest and cause of God and therefore much wisdom is to be used in the choice of a friend in this case for though Solomon hath advised us Pro. 25. 9 To debate our case with our Neighbour yet in the next words he hath added discover not thy secret to another thereby informing us that Neighbour in that Text is not to be expounded in that latitude as in the Parable concerning him who fell amongst Thieves Every one no not every good man is to be trusted with the Secrets of Souls Considering the end of this action and the great thing that is to be avoided in the performance of it Three things seem requisite in the choice of a private Christian to whom a prudent Christian may thus unbosom himself 1. Silence and Secrecy 2. Knowledge and Wisdom 3. One of whom we may presume that he hath some more then ordinary interest in God 1. I say first Silence and Secrecy Your ordinary experience telleth you that even amongst good men some have a much better command and government of their tongue then others and as it is observable that such fall into more errors themselves then others for in a multitude of words there wanteth not sin so such persons are least to be trusted with the Secrets of Souls 2. Secondly he that confesseth his faults to another doth it in order to his advice and counsel this maketh knowledge and spiritual wisdom requisite in the person whom we chuse to unbosom our selves in this manner unto every man who hath knowledge enough to guide his own Soul in the ways of God yet hath not knowledge judgment or experience enough to give spiritual advice and counsel to his Brother 3. If this Confession be made in order to obtaining the benefit of prayers the same wisdom will direct us to make choice of such as we can reasonably judge to be persons likely to prevail with God in prayer there are some that are more mighty in the Scriptures more exercised in the ways of God then others these are most fit for advice and counsel There are some that are more exercised in prayer then others and more prevailing with God these are fittest to hear our Confessions in order to our advantage by their prayers and these generally are such as walk most uprightly and closely with God The Lord heareth not sinners but if any man be a Worshipper of God and doth his will him he heareth John 9. 31. The prayer of the upright saith Solomon is his delight Secondly As there is a great deal of prudence to be observed in the choice of Persons to whom we own and acknowledge our blackness so there is a great deal of piety and charity to be shewed in the manner of the doing of it That which of charity is to be shewen in it is to do it where the Soul of our Brother may be advantaged by the performance of it That of piety which is to be shewed in its Eyes 1. In a right sixing of our end which ought to be the glory of God the general end of all our actions When Joshua exhorted Achan to confess his sin My Son saith he confess and give glory unto God you read in Scripture of a confession of the Lords name a confession of truth and a confession of sin The glory of God is the end of all that is the praedication of his glory for that is all the way we have to glorify God A man by confession of his sins either unto God or men may give glory to God for in confeffing himself a sinner he owned the Lords Power and Soveraignty over him the Holiness and Righteousness of his Law and his patience long-suffering and goodness that he is not cut off and thrown into Hell and indeed there is no confession of sin our duty where this end cannot be attained some way or other God doth not delight in the shame and confusion of our faces but he doth delight in the exalting of his own name and in the praedication of his own praise and glory 2. Secondly Piety is concerned in the manner of the action So it must be doá¹…e with tenderness of heart brokenness and contrition of Spirit indeed without this the enumeration and recital of our sins is but either a glorying in sin or at best but a formaltty and shell of duty A glorying in sin is but a glorying in our shame and what will be far from the Soul of a Child of God A formality of duty is but hypocrisy It is a great vanity for any Soul to think that God should be pleased with a meer empty noise of words which are not expressive of any inward disposition of the heart in which he hath declared himself pleas'd Words in prayer and confession of sins are our duty but they must be such words as are thrust out of our lips by the force of the inward affections of our hearts If a man confesseth his sin unto God either publickly or privately this is requisite Therefore you shall observe that the main thing which God requires is our humbling our selves that signifieth the affection of the heart A man cannot humble himself by the words of his lips without the inward shame and brokenness of his Soul The same thing is necessary in our confessions unto men Under the old law there was Oyl and Frankincense to be poured upon the Meat Offering Lev. 2. 2. and several other Offerings as you will read in that Book but upon the Sin Offering there was no Oyl nor Frankincense to be put Lev. 5. 11. Oyl signified Gladness hence you read that they used it when they would make their Face to Shine and you read of the Oyl of Gladness the Confession of Sin under the Gospel is a Sin Offering to God and must not be offered without a sutable sense and Sorrow of Heart This is a requisite in all Confessions of Sin Lastly We ought with the acknowledgment of our Blackness whether to God or Man to join also the acknowledgment of our Comeliness so far as God hath made any discovery of it to our Souls we ought not indeed to Glory beyond our line and measure but we ought not to conceal what God hath done for our Souls In this both the Glory and Honour of God and the good and incouragement of our dejected and disconsolate Brethren are both concerned nor
say some interpreters desires his manifestation in the Flesh the publication of the Doctrine of the Gospel together with the comfortable application of those Doctrines to her conscience I am sure there is a truth in that Let me therefore a little make use of their notion Take this for the Proposition Prop. It is of the nature of a believing Soul to thirst after a communion with Christ in his Word his Gospel especially and the teachings of his Spirit in and by that I here join two of those propositions together which I distinguished upon the opening of the words She desires the kisses of his Mouth 2. That he should kiss her with the kisses of his Mouth This Proposition will offer me an opportunity to discourse to you the affection of the believing Soul to the words of Christ both in the more external and more spiritual and internal teachings and ministrations of it The words of the Gospel are the words of Christ the kisses of his mouth whether they be applied and set home to the particular conscience yea or no. The ministration of the Gospel is in itself exceeding glorious Therein saith the Apostle is the Righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith Rom. 1. 17. Therein in Gods way of Salvation revealed to lost sinners and by it life and immortality are brought to light Now this word of God is to be considered As written for our Instruction For saith the Apostle Rom. 15. 4. whatsoever things were written before were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope As preached So it is the Ordinance of God for our faith and therefore called The word of Faith Sanctification Consolation and Eternal Salvation for indeed the supply of all the spiritual wants and necessities of our Souls Hence there are three ways by which our Souls have a communion with God in his Word Reading Hearing and Meditation Reading is one means by which we come to the knowledg of the will of God in his Word The King of Israel was commanded to read in the Book of Gods Law all the days of his life that he might learn to keep the Law of his God and there is a blessing pronounced to him that readeth Indeed he that readeth the word as it lyeth before us in our Bibles hath this advantage that he is sure what is there plain to his understanding is the undoubted pure Word of God and while a man readeth the Scriptures he is but repeating of Gods Word to his own soul or hearing God immediately speaking to him Hearing the word preached is another means of communion with God in his Word This is an Ordinance of God and such a one as he honoureth with being the great means of calling and saving such as he hath ordained to life So as in that ordinance a soul hath an opportunity to meet God to draw nigh unto him to hear him speak unto it We must take heed that we do not think that all which we hear out of pulpits is spoken by God God no further speaketh by the Minister than the Minister keepeth unto his Text speaketh according to the Scriptures either by way of interpretation or application And therefore every good Christian is to search the Scriptures whether what their Preachers deliver be consonant to them Those noble Bereans mentioned Acts. 17. did so when St. Paul was the Preacher and are commended for it The Scriptures are to be judged by no other rule but Sermons are to be measured by the holy Scriptures No man hath communion with God by hearing further than so far as that is consonant to the will of God which he heareth But admitting the Minister of Christ answereth his name and Office and faithfully revealeth and applieth the will of God while we hear we have communion with God God communicateth his holy will unto us and we communicate with him by an obedient Ear who hath comanded us to hear that our souls may live A third way is by Meditation This is an act of our inward man standing upon the things which we have read or heard as necessary to the souls spiritual nourishment as Digestion is to the nourishment of our bodies by what is their proper food a duty much practised by David Psal 119. 97 99. And a good man is described by it Psal 1. 3. He meditateth in the law of the Lord night and day By this the soul doth not only fasten the word of God upon it self but it also dives deeper into the depths of it I say this communion with God in his word is very desirable to the spouse of Christ I added his gospel especially The Word of God in the holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament is made up of several parts There is in it sacred history no unuseful part of holy Writ it being that which more than any other acquainteth us with Gods way of of providence with his people of old You have in it many Moral Instructions and Precepts of Christianity and Godliness an admirable part of Scripture that which makes the holy Scriptures to be what no other book in the world is a light to our feet and lanthorn to our paths Shewing us what we are to do what to decline and avoid but yet these are not properly called Gospel doctrines You have in it many Prophesies or predictions of what God intended to do in the world most of which are fulfilled some we yet live in the expectations of You have also in it many terrible threats and curses and many woes denounced against the violaters of the law of God these are excellent portions of holy Writ to keep your souls in awe and make us afraid of sinning against God but these are not properly Gospel Doctrines but properly belong to the Law which declareth and worketh wrath You have also in those sacred books many declarations of the good will and love of God to poor lost Sinners declared in and through Jesus Christ You have an historical part of the Gospel declaring what Christ hath done and Suffered for us a declarative and promissory part proclaiming Salvation to poor lost creatures and promising life and Salvation and all grace to some poor undone sinners promises for the conferring and increase of grace These and such like I principally understand by Gospel Doctrines The Doctrine of Gods free grace in the pardoning of sin and the imputation of Christs Righteousness to the soul Doctrines that reveal Christ and tend to bring the soul to Christ or direct the soul in walking with him Now I say tho the believing soul values every line of holy Writ and hath a reverence for the whole Word of God and desires a communion with God in reading and hearing and meditating in every part of his revealed will yet it hath a special thirst after those portions of it which contain these Revelations Other parts are
motions of the Affections as it is said Sechem's heart clave to Dinah But I extend it further to all overt Acts by which this inward Affection may be discovered in the same sense as we say to our Friends I will stick to you or I will stand by you Christ performs his part he sticks he cleaves to the Believers in all its Spiritual Combates and Dangers with or from the World the Flesh and the Devil Thus must we cleave to him Fourthly 'T is a piece of Conjugal Communion That the Wife does nothing but she will first acquaint her Husband with it ask his Counsel take his Direction The Husband also imparts much of his Counsel to his Wife 'T is a piece of our Communion true Communion with Christ to do nothing without taking Counsel of him in his Word without asking his Directions in Prayer in every difficulty where we have not a clear direction in the Word of God to fly to him by Prayer and Supplications Are your Souls willing to entertain such a Communion with Christ as this is Are you desirous of it Do you pray for it This speakâ—eth well for the Union betwixt Christ and your Souls nothing less than this will This Discourse may be further useful to some Souls that it may be cannot satisfie themselves in that Communion which they have with the Lord Jesus they would willingly that Christ should impart more of his Loving-kindness and of his Power to their Souls and they are troubled that they can no more freely no more fully give up themselves to him their Hearts are not united enough to love and fear God and indeed the best Souls are seldom satisfied in the Reception of Grace or in the Actings of it Now such Souls as are overmuch troubled in this case troubled to that degree as for want of degrees to suspect all the truth of Grace in their Souls This may be some satisfaction to hear that it speaks a Soul to be the Spouse of Christ to be truly willing sincerely desirous much in Prayer for those degrees of nearest Communion with Christ which it stands in need of In Earthly Marriages three things are required 1. Consent of Parties 2. Consent of Parents 3. Publication of it to the World The first alone is essential to the Union The second to make it a perfectly lawful Act. The third only to avoid Scandal and to keep up Civil Order in the World In the Spiritual Marriage the Consent of Parties makes the Union Christs Consent to be united to thy Soul is evidenced in his Word declared by us who are his Proxies to espouse you to this Husband If thy Soul also truly consents if thou truly desirest this Union and that Communion which followeth and ought to follow it the Match is made thou art joined to the Lord though it may be there be not a Publication of it to thy own Soul much less to the World I shall conclude with a Word of Exhortation To labour for this evidence of Grace That you may be truly willing to truly desirous of such a Communion with Christ as I have been describing You that are yet strangers to it labour for the beginnings of it You that find any thing of it labour to uphold it and labour for the Perfection of it To the first by way of Counsel I would only speak a few things 1. Labour to be convinced of your sad condition till Grace hath brought you into this better State Christ told the Woman of Samaria she had had many Husbands and he whom she then enjoyed was not her Husband Unregenerate Men have many Paramours for there is no Soul but cleaveth to somthing one mans Heart cleaveth to his Pleasures another to his Profits but all these are not the reasonable Souls Husbands the Soul cannot feed upon these things Let a Woman be married to a Man and run away from him she may have another Paramour but he is not her Husband It is Mans Case he was in Creation united to God he is run away from God and followeth many Lovers but none of these are the Souls Husbands O therefore return to your first Husband what can you imagine God should do for any of your Souls more than any one of you would do for a Wife that had run away from you and clave to another man 2. Look as the Woman that wanteth her Husband hath none that so naturally careth for her none that will be a covering to her Head or a Light to her Eyes so neither hath the Soul in its state of disunion with God any that will care for it as to its Spiritual and Eternal Concerns I might add the infinite advantages of this Union and Communion I remember the Argument used by Hamor and Sechem to persuade their People into a Willingness to be circumcised that Sechem might be married into Jacob's Family Shall not say they their Cattle and Substance and all that they have be ours only consent to them Shall not the Grace and Glory and Kingdom of Christ be yours only consent to him and be willing to a Communion with him But it is the Lord that must persuade Japhet to come and to dwell in the Tents of Shem. No man comes to the Son but he whom the Father draweth and while there is a spiritual Union it is unreasonable to think there should be any Willingness in a Soul to any near Communion with Christ We may use Arguments with Souls estranged from God to reconcile them to him and it is our Duty so to do till God concurreth with the work of his Spirit they will be of no force Let me therefore turn to such with whom this mystical Union is made Nor shall I need use words with any such to persuade them to a consent or willingness to or desire of this near Communion with Christ which I have been discoursing there is no such Soul but must be willing must be desirous of it But there is none of them which hath attained there 's no such Soul but hath attained somthing nor any that hath attained to Perfection none but may receive from Christ more than it hath received none but desireth his Heart might be more in subjection to Christ than it is The way further to attain is Prayer rightly ordered Prayer It is the Spouse that speaketh in the Text she had attained she was already united to her Spiritual Bridegroom but yet she finds her Soul in a continuing need of his Influences and further Tokens for good to be shewed unto her for these she useth Prayer as an apposite means Only we may ask and not receive because we ask amiss Let us look over the form of the Spouses Petition and see what we may learn from thence to guide our Souls in our Applications to God First The word in the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the future Tense which is often used for the 〈◊〉 Mood in the Hebrew and may indifferently
contain three Petitions which the Spouse by which we understand the Church or the believing Soul maketh to her Beloved the Lord Jesus Christ The first I have done with together with the Arguments ments which she used to enforce it I am now come to the second comprehended in this Verse with the Arguments by which she presseth it Her first Petition was in those words Let him kiss me 〈◊〉 the kisses of his mouth Here she saith Draw me Our English Annotations make the connexion thus Lord do not only invite and call me by the Preaching of thy Gospel which are the kisses of thy mouth but command me by the Power of thy Spirit Or thus Let me not only be passively happy in receiving tokens of love from thee but make me active in maintaining communion with thee Let me run after thee and to this purpose do thou draw me Thus the coherence of her Petitions seemeth to lie Some there are that do not make this a new Petition but adjoyn the beginning of this Verse to the latter end of the former and read it thus The Virgins love thee and have drawn thee after them thus the Seventy read it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and after them Origen and Greg. Nyssen expounding it of the Faith of the Saints by which they draw Christ after them according to his Promise Where two or three are gathered together in my Name I will be in the midst amongst them But though there be something of truth in this yet this Interpretation is I think justly slighted by Lud. de Ponte and others even of the Papists the greatest Admirers of the Fathers And although the Copies of the Seventy which we have indeed thus read it yet Symmachus and Aquila the two other Antient Greek Translators read it as we translate it And I am sure that is the true Translation of the Hebrew where the Verb is in the Imperative Mood though there be a little change of the Vowels in regard of the Affix according to the Rules of Grammarians For 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so I conclude they are clearly a Petition and thus the Vulg. Lat. reads them with the Tigurine Translators Pagnine Montanus Piscator Junius and indeed almost all others Agreeing therefore in that let me consider 1. The parts of the Text 2. Then open the terms And thirdly and lastly Raise and handle such Propositions as it will afford and may be useful to us You may in the Text please to consider 1. The Spouse's Petition Draw me 2. The Argument by which she enforceth this Petition We will run after thee Where 't is observable 1. The parties promising We. 2. The thing promised A running after Christ 3. The Spouse's Acknowledgment of her Beloved's speedy Answer to her Prayers The King hath brought me into his Chambers 4. And lastly The Effects this Answer had upon her they are three 1. We will rejoyce 2. We will be glad in thee 3. We will remember thy Loves more than Wine Then you have the Spouse's Justification of her self in this passion The upright love thee Let me now come to open the terms This word for it is but one in the Hebrew contains the Spouse's Petition It is agreed by all that it is the Spouse that speaks by which the Jews who understand nothing of the Gospel-Church in this Song understand Abraham and the Church of the Jews Aben-Ezra a Jewish Doctor would have these the words of Abraham speaking to God to draw him out of his own Country into Ur of the Chaldees according to that hard Precept to flesh and blood Gen. 12. Solomon Jarchi another of them makes it the voice of the Jewish Church speaking to God to bring them back again to Hierusalem out of Captivity The old Chaldee Paraphrast and Lira with him make it the voice of the Church of the Jews coming out of Egypt speaking unto God that he would go before them as he did by the Cloud and the Pillar The Righteous of that Generation then said Draw us after thee O thou Lord of the whole world We will follow thee in the way of thy goodness Mr. Cotton makes the Spouse to be either Solomon himself desiring to be drawn to Christ or the Church of the Jews desiring Solomon by Laws and Edicts and Proclamations to draw them to their duty Rupertus his notion applying the words to Elizabeth John Baptist's Mother and of some Popish Writers making them the words of the blessed Virgin are hardly worth mentioning any more than theirs who would make them the words of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon We have fixed the Spouse with the most and best Interpreters to be the true Church of God and every individual believing Soul and then it is easie to know to whom the words are directed viz. unto God and whether we understand the first or second Person in the Trinity is not at all material For besides that they are both but one in their operations respecting the creature Drawing is made in Scripture the act both of the Father and the Son No man saith Christ cometh unto me unless the Father draweth him And again When I am lifted up I will draw all men after me But drawing is a term of motion there must be a term to which Whither would the Spouse be drawn This is not so plainly exprest in the English as in the Hebrew I shall speak more to it by and by but I shall first open the term Draw and shew you what the Spouse desireth of her Beloved in this term I find the Verb 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Hebrew signifying four things 1. It sometimes signifies no more than to go to go on and forward so Jud. 4. 6. Go and draw toward Mount Tabor Exod. 12. 21. Draw out and take you a Lamb that is go out Job 21. 33. Every man shall draw after him that is by little and little follow him to the Grave But it would spoil the sense to interpret it so in this place The Me following makes this sense inconsistent 2. Sometimes it signifieth the pulling of a thing or person to a place by some violence or force Thus you read of the Heifer that had not drawn in the yoke Deut. 21. 3. So it is said God draweth the mighty with his power Job 24. 22. And you read of the man that drew a Bow at adventure That is an act of strength and power you know 1 King 22. 34. So they drew Joseph out of the Pit and Jeremy out of the Dungeon Gen. 37. 28. Jer 38. 13. And David prayeth that he might not be drawn away with the wicked Psa 28. 3. In all which places this word is used 3. Because in love and fair persuasion there is a kind of force compelling a reasonable and ingenuous person The word is sometimes used to express also such an action It is said of the wicked Psal 109. v. 12. He draweth the poor into
David saith before he was afflicted he went astray but his affliction had learned him to keep Gods Statutes Psal 119. But it is said of Ahaz 2 Chron. 28. 22. In the time of his distress he trespassed more against the Lord This is that King Ahaz and I am sure the same is said of the body of Israelites Amos 4. 6 7 8 9 10 11. God followed them with judgment after judgment yet they returned not unto him Afflictions are good remembrancers to them who have learned their duty before but they must be some particular afflictions that give leisure for Instructions to be then first given or time for the digestion of them if they can be given I conclude in short whatever use God may sometimes make of Afflictions it is not the drawing by them which the Spouse here prays for Secondly There is a drawing by liberal distributions of mercies of common Providence Thus God saith Hosea 11. 4. I drew them with the Cords of a man with bands of love So Jer. 31. 3. With loving kindness have I drawn thee Love is of a drawing nature it is like the hook in the intrails of a Creature which draweth more forcibly than Cords fastened to the flesh and outward part But experience teacheth us that this is not a sufficient Cord to draw Sinners Souls to God God in his parable of the Vineyard Isaiah 5. repeats what he had done for the Israelites and concludes v. 4. What could have been done more to my Vineyard that I have not done in it Yet when he looked it should bring forth Grapes it brought forth wild Grapes Oppression instead of Judgment and a cry instead of righteousness How many thousands are there in the world that are incompassed with Mercies of this nature they have healthy bodies pleasing relations full barns plentiful estates they want nothing yet are they Enemies to God and to the Cross of Christ nor do the People of God ordinarily run most after or walk most close with God when they most abound with the good things of this life Gods People Jer. 2. that followed him in a Wilderness and in a land of droughts forsook him when they came into a land that flowed with Milk and Hony whence Agur prayed as much against Riches left he should being full blaspheme God as against poverty And even the man according to Gods own heart offended more when he was come to sit upon his Throne in Hierusalem than when he was hunted like a Partridge in the Wilderness and knew not where to rest and this is seen in our ordinary experience 3. God draweth us thirdly by the potent arguments of the Gospel as it lieth before us to be read or as it is opened and applied to us by the Ministry of the Word Man hath a tunable ear and is a reasonable Creature so as arguments have a great force upon humane nature and the more as any of us are more knowing and rational and able to raise conclusions from Principles Into this sense Interpreters do interpret those words of our Saviour John 12. 42. When I shall be lifted up I will draw all men after me after my death upon the Cross I will send my Apostles up and down the world to be witnesses of my death resurrection and ascension and to persuade men to receive me in my true notion as the true Messias and Saviour of the world Accordingly the Apostle tells the Corinthians that Christ had committed to them the word of Reconciliation Now then saith he 2 Cor. 5. 20. We as Embassadours for Christ as tho God did beseech you by us we pâ—ay you in Christs stead to be reconciled to God and this must be the meaning of that command to the Servants Luke 14 23. Compel them to come in Christ is not there speaking to Magistrates or of their duty but of the duty of Ministers who have no power from him to compel any but by a lively and powerful Preaching the Gospel the potent arguments of which set home upon reasonable and ingenuous Souls by the gifts God hath given to his Ministers have a kind of compulsory force and power in them and the Apostle tells us that Faith comes by hearing Rom. 10. and as men are by it drawn to Christ so they are also by it drawn after him and therefore Peter exhorts Christians 1 Pet. 2. 2. As new born babes to desire the sincere milk of the Word that they might grow thereby The believing Soul followeth Christ in the scent or favour of his precious Ointments It is the publishing of the Gospel that makes the name of Christ an Ointment poured out Fourthly God may be said to draw men by the common motions of his Spirit impressing good thoughts upon us either upon occasion of his Providential dispensations or while we read or hear the word some say that there is a common Ministration of the Spirit attending the preaching of the word sufficient to assist every Soul that will to repent and believe and to do what God requires of us in order to Salvation that the holy Spirit doth ordinarily attend the preaching of the word and suggest to and imprint upon the hearts of those that hear it some good thoughts is what will not be denied I believe there are but few who have used to attend the preaching of the Gospel where it hath been faithfully and livelily preach'd but must own that he hath heard the Lord standing at his door and knocking But still the question is whether this be all the drawing which the Spouse here begs No doubt but she begs such a cause such operations of a cause as should be productive of the effect The effects are coming unto Christ running after Christ Coming is not expresly mentioned in this Text but it is Joh. 6. 44. No man cometh unto me except the Father who hath sent me draw him and it is included in the term running The question therefore must be whether such a drawing as is by common mercies by the preaching of the Gospel or by the common work of the Holy Spirit all which reprobates may have is sufficient to innable a Soul yet a stranger to God to come to Christ or to innable any Soul already come to Christ to run after him I think not and therefore I conclude in the last place 5. That both in the Souls first motions to Christ and its further motions after him the Lord putteth forth a powerful influence of his Spirit of grace beyond the arguments of the word the suasion of his Minister and the common work of the Spirit attending all faithful preaching of the Gospel This I take to be that drawing the Spouse here prayeth for and which our Saviour mentions John 6. 44. as some think with an allusion to the phrase of this Text nay some bring that Text John 6 44. to prove this Book quoted in the New Testament This I firmly believe because I am convinced there is such a work
others to move very slowly others with great heaviness and difficulty All this difference depends upon the inequal distributions of Divine Grace for although when this Oil is once in the Cruise it shall not fail from it till Grace shall be swallowed up in glory but so much influence of Grace shall be continued as to justify the Lord in his promise that he will never depart from the Soul to do it good and he will put his fear into the heart that it shall never depart from him and the Soul shall be preserved by the power of God through faith to Salvation yet there may be and are great differences as to the degrees of Gods Administrations Nor yet possibly must the blame of these Souls not running rest upon God for not drawing For although the Lord may sometimes do it upon his prerogative and soveraignty 1. To shew the freeness of his Grace in all the emanations of it and that he is under no obligations to measure out to every Child an equal portion of the riches of his Grace but as in the disposal of his other talents of Riches common gifts he may if he please make inequal distributions as it pleaseth him giving out to some 10 to others 5 to others but one so he may do as to his Talents of distinguishing Grace whiles yet every one hath enough to conduct and preserve his Soul unto eternal life and happiness 2. Secondly He may do it to lay his people under the potent conviction of this truth That their running depends upon his drawing God himself sometimes assigns this as the reason of his substraction of worldly enjoyments that they might know who it is that gave them Hosea 2. 8. 9. For she did not know that I gave her Corn and Wine and Oil and multiplied her Silver and Gold which they prepared for Baal Therefore will I return and take away my Corn in the time thereof and my Wine in the season thereof and will recover my Wool and my Flax c. Thus also the Lord may do as to the dispensations of his Grace that Grace I mean which is not necessary to Salvation did we alwaies find an equal strength against our lusts and to our Spiritual duties an equal readiness to and chearfulness in the Service of God we should attribute too much to our renewed nature and not know in what a daily derivation from and dependance upon God even the best Souls live and that all our fresh springs are from him Did we Sail to Heaven through the Sea of this world alwaies with a Trade wind we should not understand that the wind of Divine Grace which is the breathing of the holy Spirit bloweth where it listeth But when we are becalmed in our voyage for the new Hierusalem and forced to lie at Anchor then we learn that without Christ we can do nothing But though this must be said to aver the Soveraignty of God and to assert his wisdom yet most ordinarily these withdrawings are upon some provocations on our parts the Clouds in the Heavens are caused from the Vapours which arise from the Earth God can never be so provoked against a justified Soul as to withdraw himself wholly but he may be and is oft-time so far provoked as to withdraw his gradual influences so as the Soul shall feel that it is not with it as at former times and cryeth out where is my God become When the Lord offereth a wind and the Soul refuseth to open its Sails when he moveth and the Soul quencheth its motions and grieveth him in his operations he many times hides his face from it it is troubled the Soul that hath grieved the quickning Spirit shall smart alittle for the want of quickning Grace complain of dulness heaviness listlessness to its Spiritual Duty I say this oft-times yea most ordinarily is the cause So as though it wants these divine drawings yet its want of them is the punishment of its iniquity I shall conclude this discourse with a word of advice what such Souls should do under such dispensations 1. Search and see whether some late sin hath not provoked God to these withdrawings See if thy conscience which in this case is thy best informer doth not tell thee that such a time thou hadst an impulse or motion to prayer or such a duty and that under convenient circumstances and thou neglectedst it or offered thee some help and thou neglectedst it And now the righteous Lord hath left thee to thy own strength and thou feest what thou art and humble thy Soul before God and renew thy covenant with him 2. If thou canst not find that any such blot hath clave to thy Soul yet acknowledge the Lords wisdom the freeness of his grace and his righteousness in his dispensations We must allow God to do many things in infinite wisdom and righteousness though we cannot see or understand it we must not look in this life to understand the reason of Gods works It is enough for us to know that he hath done it and that all his works are done in wisdom and righteousness 3. Take heed of lowing thy Sails when thou thinkest the wind abates This you know is contrary to the methods of Mariners I am sure it is contrary to the wisdom of Christians keep thy heart at such a time with the most diligence working and striving against sin Tow thy Ship if thou canst not Sail as at other times Go if thou canst not run and keep thy Soul ready for a wind whenever God will please to send it 4. Fourthly Beg the returns of the blessed Spirit Tell God of thy Souls weakness or the strength of thy corruptions or temptations say unto God as Jehosaphat said in another case Lord I have a mighty host coming against me I know not what to do I have no strength against it but my Eyes are unto thee 5. After this I know nothing more to be done but a patient waiting for God according to the resolution of the Church Isaiah 8. 17. I will wait upon him that hides his face from the house of Jacob I will look for him Sermon XX. Canticles 1. 4. Drawme and We will run after thee I Am dwelling yet upon the first Proposition of Doctrine I observed from these words That the Soul must be drawn to and after Christ before it will run after him It is a great point and I am willing to make the utmost improvement of it that I can The improveableness of it for our instruction is all you have yet heard In the next place certainly there may be made some improvement of this notion to assist to judge concerning our spiritual state concerning faith and holiness These being from the ordination of God so necessary to Salvation that without them we cannot see God mistakes about them are like diseases that affect the vital parts exceeding dangerous All that this Doctrine will help us in as to this
when that other never so declared his mind to him or any one else And 2. The Promises being not made to persons by name but to persons that do thus thus it is altogether as unreasonable for any to pretend a rest and confidence in Christ for the collation of those spiritual blessings as it had been for any Commanders in the Jewish Army having heard Saul 's declaration of his Will That whosoever killeth Goliah should have his Daughter to Wife should have promised himself Saul 's Daughter without incountring the Philistine Now this resting and relying on Christ which is the only true reliance is so difficult by reason of our former sins and daily infirmities of humane nature and the lapses and backslidings we are guilty of that no man thus comes to Christ until he be drawn Thus far I have shewed you how far this discourse may be useful to guide us in our enquiry whether we be drawn and come to Christ yea or no directing you to distinguish true Faith both from a faint and languid assent and from a natural presumption of our good Estate with reference to Eternity 2. But it may be further useful also to try your holiness That also must be the effect of Drawing Grace There are two usual mistakes about holiness 1. The first is when what we usually call Moral Virtue is called holiness 2. When we mistake it for a formal running a round of Religious Duties I say first When we mistake holiness for what we usually call Moral Virtue or Moral Righteousness I put in those words we usually call because I perceive some modern Writers possibly because pinched with their Arguments who have contended for something else besides Moral Virtue to be necessary tó salvation have extended the notion of Moral Virtue far beyond what Aristotle and the rest of the Philosophers learnt us to understand by that name and do not only bring Faith within the compass of it but will pretend it to be necessary to it that the action to be done should be performed from a Principle of Faith and Love and Obedience and directed to the Glory of God as their end These acts and actings our Fore-fathers were wont to call Grace but to let us know that those in our days who have inlarged the acts of Morality mean no more than what men may do by nature having no more than the motives of the Gospel and the assistances of the Spirit common to all to whom the Gospel is Preached therefore they well call these things Moral Virtues As to Moral Virtue in the latter notion of it it cannot be mistaken for holiness for it is so It is in the antientest and most proper notion of it that I am speaking to it So Chastity Sobriety Temperance Liberality Justice are moral habits and the acts of them are acts of Moral Virtue and Righteousness whether he that doth them doth them out of any Principle of Faith or Love or Obedience or with any respect to the Glory of God yea or no but if any thinks this is holiness he is wonderfully mistaken for it is essentially necessary to an act of holiness that it should be done from a Principle of Faith the Soul being fully persuaded that it is the Will of God and in Obedience to his Will eying his command in our action And 3. Proposing to our selves the Honour and Glory of God for our end So that though the same acts be done yet if they be done from other Principles and to other ends they may be acts of Moral Virtue that is under the government and conduct and guidance of reason but no acts of holiness Besides there are many actions which are our duties in obedience to the Will of God the reasonableness of which is not to be concluded nor ever was concluded by the men of reason amongst the Heathens from any other Principle than this That it is the highest reason that we should do what God commands us So that to reduce our duty as Christians to the Precepts of what we have used to call Moral Virtue is partly to secure our selves from a great part of our duty by that Art and partly to do what we do out of such Principles as God will never more thank us for than we will do our Servants for doing what we would have them do but they do out of respect to themselves without any regard to the pleasing of or obeying us Now though it be true that acts of Moral Virtue that is conformable to natural reason may be performed by men without any special influence of the Holy Spirit Yet without such a Drawing Influence the Soul will neither do those acts from any true Principle or to any right end Nor yet do many things which are required of us under the notion of holiness in order to eternal life Besides the holiness required of us is in all our conversation 2 Pet. 3. 11. Now it is observed of the greatest Moralists that they failed here and indulged themselves in some things of immorality yet went for morally virtuous men if they excelled in Justice though they failed in Temperance Sobriety and Chastity c. And indeed herein is the drawing of Divine Grace with respect to holiness seen and from hence to be judged If the Soul finds it self under a constant obligation to whatsoever God hath commanded and that because God hath commanded it and that it might please him and do what is acceptable in his sight This no Soul doth from a meer natural power and though the renewed Soul be made willing yet to keep on in this course it stands in need of the daily excitings and quickenings and assistances of the Holy Spirit 2. A second mistake which men may be deceived by as to Holiness is when they take a formal performance of Religious duties to be it Holiness lieth in Godliness and Righteousness And as men may mistake Righteousness towards men for Holiness so they may as easily mistake a Form of Godliness which may consist as the Apostle teacheth us with a denial of the Power of it to be Holiness Godliness in the sense I am speaking to it signifieth the performance of those acts of homage and worship which God hath required of us to his more immediate Service and Glory This lieth in the performance of some external actions of God immediately according to the prescription of his Divine Will which respecting the manner as well as the matter all such actions as are meer bodily labour are indeed no Godliness but meer formal performances and things so short of obedience to the Commands of God that God in Scripture is said not to require them that is not them alone or them performed in such a manner as Isa 1. 12. When you come to appear before me who hath required this at your hands to tread my Courts Bring no more vain Oblations Incense is an abomination unto me the New Moons and Sabbaths the calling of
is with the Soul its Spiritual distemper many times is not so much a weakness as a spiritual deadness dulness and inactivity so as it wants a promptness and readiness to its duty It cannot say with David My heart is ready O God my heart is ready I will pray and sing Praise Running argues the absence of this ill temper If the Lord draweth the Soul it will not only serve him but it will serve him with a ready mind and free Spirit praise and duty will wait for God in the Soul it will not only walk but run the ways of Gods Commandments David hath an expression to this purpose Psal 119. 60. I made hast and delayed not to keep thy Commandments Every Soul that loves God keepeth the Commandments of God it is the test of our love to God He that hath my commandments and keepeth them saith Christ John 14 21. he it is that loveth me But there is a great deal of difference in mens keeping and fulfilling the commandments of God The meanest weakest Christian doth in his measure keep the Lords commandments all the commandments of God Psal 119. 6. Then saith David shall I not be ashamed when I have a respect to all thy Commandments He that hath the least of saving Grace sets the law of the Lord in his Eye and makes the word of God a light to his feet and a Lanthorn to his paths and hath a reverence and regard to all the commandments of God and To will is present with him he would walk perfectly with God but in many things he doth offend through weakness and in many things through a dulness and heaviness which sometimes doth affect and afflict his Soul he doth not only want a strength to perform but he wants a life and quickness of Spirit in what he doth but now if the Lord draweth the Soul makes hast and delayeth not to keep the Commandments of God Jacob himself had forgot the vow which he had made unto God when he fled from the face of his Brother Esau God draweth him saith unto him Gen. 35. 1. Arise go up to Bethel make there an Altar to God c. then Jacob made hast and delayed not v. 2. When there is a suspension of this drawing Grace in its co-operating and concurring influences the Soul moves heavily like Pharaohs Chariots when the Wheels are taken off it hath a view of its duty and lieth under convictions as to it and it may be finds strength enough to the performance of it but wants a readiness of mind and is ready when it hath a monition to duty from such as wish well to it to say as he said to Paul Go thy way when I am at leisure I will send for thee Or tomorrow or at such or such a time I will do it as the young man in the Gospel whom Christ bid follow him said suffer me first to go and bury my dead So sometimes the Soul is ready to say suffer me first to go and do such or such a thing So the Soul is ready to delay and put off good motions but when the Lord draweth then it maketh hast and delayeth not to keep his Commandments It longeth for times of duty It is glad when they say unto it Come let us go up to the House of the Lord it sayeth when shall I come and appear before God There is a time when the Soul saith when will the Sabbath come the hour of Prayer come that I may appear before God and pour out my Soul before him This is now when God draweth hard when the Spirit of God cometh upon the Soul in a more than ordinary influence and there is a time when the Soul saith when will the Sabbath he gone the hour of duty be run out This is when the Lord doth not draw in such a manner The believing Soul like the flowers opens or shuts as the Sun of righteousness shineth more or less upon it Let me again allude to that Text Psal 65. 1. Praise watteth for God in Zion Praise is a rent due from our Souls to God we farm much mercy from the great Landlord of all good Praise is all the rent we pay Now look as it is in the world a bad tenant never hath his rent ready so it is with a bad Man he lives upon mercy and it may be hath liberal portions of mercy but God never hears of him to pay his acknowledgments A good Tenant if the times be good hath alwaies his rent ready for his Landlord so as his rent waiteth for his Landlord but if the times be bad even the best Tenants though they have an heart to pay their rent yet may not have it to pay their Landlords may wait for their rents so it is with the best Souls If the Sun of righteousness shines out clearly upon them and the Spirit of Grace draweth powerfully Praise waiteth for God in their Souls If not God may wait for his Praises Hence David so often prayeth Quicken me according to thy word Psal 119. 25. Quicken me in thy way v. 37. Quicken me in thy righteousness v. 40. I have now opened the term Run The Proposition opened lies thus before you That the Soul of a Christian once drawn not only by the motives and arguments of the Gospel improved by the gifts of Gods Minister but by the secret and powerful influence of the Spirit of God upon it doth no longer lie still as the Soul dead in sin nor move from a forreign power put forth upon it but from an inward principle within itself and that not weakly and impotently but with might and strength and that not dully and heavily but with life freedom speed and chearfulness after God in the way of its duty keeping the Commandments of God with its whole heart being first made willing it willeth being first set on work it worketh yet not of itself meerly nor principally I live saith the Apostle yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live I live by the faith of the Son of God I can do all things saith the same Apostle to the Philippians through Christ that strengtheneth me and without me you can do nothing saith Christ to his Disciples Joh. 14. 3. The truth of this further appears from Gods Peoples promises of running upon Gods drawing in that excellent 119 Psal you shall find many passages of this tendency v. 32. I will run the ways of thy Commandments when thou shalt inlarge myheart 33 Teach me O Lord the way of thy Statutes and I shall keep it unto the end v. 34. Give me understanding and I shall keep thy Law yea I shall observe it with my whole heart v. 35. Make me to go in the paths of thy Commandments v. 36. Incline my heart to thy testimonies The inlarging of the heart his prayer for giving him understanding making him to go in the paths of Gods Commandments c. are but all several phrases
Hypocrite would seem to be somthing but is nothing he doth nothing he is inconcerned in the good of others Souls whereas if he were a true Plant of righteousness he would cast his Seed Prov. 10. 21. The Lips of the Righteous feed many It is an iâ—l sign that there is a truth of grace wanting in that Soul in which are found no endeavours to propagate the knowledge fear of God But I shall shut up my Discourse upon this Argument with a word of Exhortation to all those who profess themselves to have received the special grace of God So to manage their conversation that others by their examples or by their means may be provoked to run after Christ Christ tells his Disciples Mat. 5. 13. That they were the Salt of the Earth and v. 14. The light of the World a City set upon an Hill that God had not lighted up a light in their Souls to be hid for no Man lighteth a Candle to put to it under a Bushel saith he but to be set on a Candlestick that it might give light to all them that are in the House Upon this he foundeth an Exhortation v. 16. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in Heaven I see no reason to restrain those Texts unto those that are the Ministers of the Gospel they are true of all true Christians the Children of God in the World are the Salt of the World and it is their duty to season others They are the light of the World and to shew light to the World they are obliged so to live that being themselves drawn others also by their means may run after Christ You will say to me how shall this be How should a Christian so live as to draw others to run after Christ I answer It will very much depend upon 1. The Seriousness of his pious behaviour towards God 2. The Humility and Inn cency and quietness of his behaviour toward men 3. His abounding in good works 4. His Communicativeness both of his Gifts and of his Experiences I will a little inlarge upon all these 1. I sav First It will much depend upon the Evenness and Seriousness of a Christians pious behaviour toward God Religion is in it self a lovely thing and many who cannot get leave of themselves to be pious and devout yet are constrained to commend it in others where they see the Practitioners in it serious and even in their practice for nothing is more odious even to common Eyes than to see men act a part in Religion but for a Christian in praying to pray in hearing to hear to be serious and in earnest in his acts of devotion so to demean himself that he shall appear to others to mind what he is about to be fervent in Spirit while he is serving the Lord is lovely in all mens account to see men gaping about the Church whiles they are pretending to pray sleeping or talking when they are pretending to hear the Word of God winneth none but rather estrangeth the World from God and makes them think there is nothing in Religion but a vain shew But to see a Christian serious and servent in prayer diligent and attentive in hearing hanging as it were upon the Preachers Lips as it is said of those who heard Christ Luke 19. 48. we translate it they were very attentive to hear him the Greek is they did hang upon him this makes People think there is something in Godliness Especially when men are even in their pious conversation that their warmth in Piety is not by fits but there are the same at all times having to do with the same God and being in the same service of God 2. A second thing upon which the inciting others to come to and to run after Christ doth much depend is Christians behavior towards men so three things much commend the grace of God to the World 1. Humility Pride and self exalting are generally odious to all men and men as it were by a natural instinct conclude there is nothing of God in those in whom they see much of Pride discovered by an immoderate boasting uncharitable judging and censuring superciliousness a scorn and contempt of others but now where men have the advantage of the Word of God which commands men to deny themselves to be cloathed with humility in honour to prefer others before themselves to learn of Christ for he is meek and lowly c. they are much more confirmed in this and any thing of pride in Christians doth rather estrange men from God and Christ then cause them to run after him 2. Innocency in Christians is another thing which much commends the ways of God to others Christ commanded his Disciples to be wise as Serpents innocent as Doves Paul exhorteth the Philippians 2. Phil. 15. to be blameless and harmless the Sons of God without rebuke Most People have a natural Notion of God that he is full of goodness and doth no Man harm and those who are in any measure acquainted with the Scriptures observe that Christ's conversation on Earth was an innocent harmless conversation the Apostle Heb. 7. 26. calleth him not only undefiled and separate from Sinners but holy and harmless Now an innocent conversation implieth righteousness in all injustice there must be harm done to others 3. A third thing that makes an honest and winning Conversation towards men is quietness and peaceableness in opposition to Tumultuousness Sedition and quaâ—reling The Apostle commands us to study to be Qâ—iet 1 Thess 4. 11. I need not enlarge upon this Experience tells you how much a quietness and peaceableness of behaviour obligeth the World and how much a contrary temper disobligeth it from Men and Women professing to Religion and Godliness God is the God of Peace and delighteth not in confusion 3. A third thing upon which much depends the winning and gaining of others to run after Christ is abounding in good works I here restrain the Notion of good works understanding by them acts of Mercy and Charity towards men Our Saviour bids us make our selves Friends of the Mammon of Vnrighteousness and by it teacheth us that good works of this Nature are not unprofitable as to our own Souls though they are no fit price to purchase Heaven with But they are also of great use to save the Souls of others as they have a tendency to commend the grace and ways of God unto other men On the other side acts of Oppression Cruelty and uncharitableness have a great malignity to estrange Souls from Religion and Godliness It is a sad story I have somewhere met with upon the Cruelty shewed by the Spaniards to the Indians upon their pretended converting them to the Faith of the Gospel A great Person of the Indians would know whither the Souls of the Spaniards went when they died to Heaven or to Hell and being told they went to Heaven replied Then
his possession v. 8. which Kingdom he doth not only exercise over all in order to the gathering of his Church subduing the hearts of people unto himself and then over his Church gathered by giving laws to it and setting Officers over it but more particularly in the hearts of all believers in whom he ruleth by his Spirit But why doth the Spouse here speak to her beloved or of hÄ—r beloved in this lofty stile and not rather in that familiar stile which she generally useth in this Song What if we should say 1. That in other places of this Divine Song she is speaking to him here she is speaking of him God is the King of Kings the Lord of Lords yet when we pray unto him we are licensed and commanded to say unto him Our Father when she speaks of him to others she useth another stile and saith the King though we are allowed an holy boldness in our accesses and addresses to the Throne of Grace yet this is not exclusive of that holy fear and reverence which we owe unto God as our King we ought to remember that he who is our Beloved our Father is also our King 2. What if we should say that this lofty compellation is used to enhance the favour that she had received She was not admitted into ordinary Chambers but into Royal Chambers the King hath brought me into his Chambers No words are too big to express the singular favour of God to our Souls 3. What finally if we should say that she changeth her stile to intimate the persons who must expect signal favour from God and to remember her self of her duty in consideration of such favours I say first to intimate to us who those Persons must be that expect any singular favours from God they must be such as apprehend and receive Christ not for a Saviour as a Priest only but such as own and acknowledge him as a King as their Lord to command and to rule over them according to that promise John 14. 21. He that hath my Commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me and he who loveth me shall be loved of my Father and I will love him and manifest my self unto him It might also remember her of the duty she owed unto God in consideration of his favour to her she resolveth to own and to acknowledge him as her Lord her King But these things being premised I come to that Propesition which I raised from the connexion of these words testifying the Lords hearing of her Prayers the words are immediately annexed to her Petition Whence I observed That it pleaseth God sometimes to make very quick returns to his Peoples Prayers That it is so appears 1. By the Lords answering his People sometimes before they speak or while they are speaking Isaiah 65. 24. It shall come to pass that before they call I will answer and while they are yet speaking I will hear Nothing can be quicker then that for God to take notice of what his people have in their hearts to ask and to give it before they can form it by their lips into words or while they are speaking to give an answer you have the first exemplified in David Psal 32. 5. I said I will confess my transgression unto the Lord he had not confessed he had only said in his heart that he would confess his transgression to the Lord and saith he thou sorgavest the inquity of my sin you have an instance of the latter in Hannah the Wife of Elkanah 1 Sam 1. She was praying her lips moved but her voice was not heard yet the Lord heard her and though the time must be fulfilled before she could have a Son yet 1 Sam 1. 18. It is said of her at present that she went away and did eat and her countenance was no more sad She had a present answer of peace her mind was quieted her countenance was no more sad you have another instance in Daniel to name no more Dan. 9. 20. Daniel with the rest of the Jews had been in the captivity of Babylon near 70 years the time was almost expired as to which God had promised they should come out Daniel sets himself to pray and you have a copy of his prayer from Dan. 9. v. 4. to v. 20. Observe now v. 20. And while I was speaking and praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my People Israel yea v. 21. While I was speaking in prayer the man Gabriel whom I had seen in a vision at the beginning being caused to fly swiftly touched me about the time of the evening oblation and he informed me and talked with me and said O Daniel I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding at the beginning of thy supplication the Commandment came forth and I am come to shew thee for thou art greatly beloved c. Here now the Lord made a very quick return to Daniels prayer while he was speaking the Lord answered him But a return of prayers may be quick though it be not thus quick but after the interval of some few months days or years Abraham was thus answered as to his Prayer mentioned Gen. 17. and David glorieth in the assurance of this Psal 4. 3. The Lord will hear when I call upon him But now because on the one hand this is a very desirable mercy and many times the Souls of Gods people are discouraged and flagg in duty because the vision is yet for an appointed time It will not be out of our way to inquire what prayers these are that meet with so quick an audience from God God doth not this at all times nor for all persons no not for those who are most beloved of him David himself complaineth Psal 22. 2. O my God I cry in the day time but thou hearest not and in the night season and am not silent The Church complains of some times when God is angry with the prayers of his people Psal 80. 4 Gods own People sometimes shoot arrow after arrow to find what they shot first hence you so often meet with it as a piece of the Saints Prayer Hear my prayer O God give ear to my Supplications Let us a little enquire from whence this variety of Providence proceeds as to this hearing and answering of prayers God is the Lord that changeth not therefore we are not consumed we must therefore find the cause in the persons praying or in the prayers which maketh this difference as to Gods answers That so quick and gracious answers may be obtained something is necessary on the party praying Something with respect to the matter prayed for Something as to the manner of putting up the prayer 1. As to the Person praying 1. No Soul can expect such an answer unless persons in special favour with God this the Angel told Daniel Dan. 9. 23. At the beginning of thy supplication the commandment came forth and I am come to shew thee c. for
hurt God denieth it because he would do us good and not hurt In this case if the Lord giveth us an heart content to be without the thing we ask he abundantly answereth our prayers and giveth us the general and true desire of our Souls God sometimes answereth our prayers by giving us idem the same thing which we ask but this he never doth but where he seeth it is for our good and that under our present circumstances sometimes he answereth us by giving us tantundem the value of the mercy though not the particular thing which we ask of God thus he answered Paul as to the thorn in his flesh and this is a real answer and with this every Child of God ought to be fully satisfied and contented But this is enough to have said to this point how Christians may know whether Gods time his set time to favour his Church or the Souls of his people is come a point of great concern in order to the satisfaction of Christians why they have not a present answer to their prayers to abate their dissatisfaction as to the inequal motions of Divine Providence in this answer of prayers 3. Lastly Something is necessary with reference to the manner of our prayers if we would so pray as to receive a present answer So two things are necessary 1. That we pray Believingly 2. Fervently 1. Believingly I opened this before under the first head and therefore shall say nothing to it here 2. Fervently That is that which alone I shall here speak to This is much mistaken if it be thought to lie in the vehemency of our tone and expression it lyeth much deeper in the intension of the mind and the Souls secret affection to and in the duty James tells us ch 5. v. 16. The effectual servent prayer of the righteous availeth much The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which properly signifieth operative and working and so working as it produceth the effect The Prophet speaking of God Isaiah 41. 4. useth this expression who hath wrought and done it the Septuagint translate the Hebrew word there by this word the Apostle useth it to express such a working as that by which God bringeth about his decrees Eph. 1. 11. Who worketh all things according to the counsel of his will and again he useth it to express the working of the Devil in wicked men whom he calleth Children of disobedience Eph. 2. 2. In the primitive times those who were acted by the Devil were called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because of the great power and force which the evil Spirit put forth upon and shewed in those miserable creatures that were possessed Piscator upon the Text Jam. 5. 16. translates it Ardens the burning flaming prayer Beza translateth it Efficax the efficacious prayer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doubtless signifies that prayer which setteth the whole Soul on work There is a cold dead lazy prayer where the tongue only is set on work or only the tongue and the head or the fancy the one to invent and compose matter the other to utter it but neither of these is that fervent prayer which St. James speaketh of but that prayer which setteth the whole Soul in motion towards God where not only the fancy and imagination and understanding are imployed to invent and suggest matter the will to will it but the affections which indeed in a reasonable creature are but the motions of the will towards its object with the utmost intension to desire it to exercise an hope in God for it c. this is the fervent working prayer mentioned by St. James this prayer doth much with God Jacobs prayer was such a prayer Moses saith he wrestled with God until the morning he said unto God I will not let thee go until thou blessest me the Prophet expounds it Hosea 12. 4. He wept and made supplications unto him by this prayer he had power over the Angel and prevailed as it is there in the words immediately preceding yea and he had a present answer God blessed him before he parted with him as you read in his History Such a prayer was Daniels to which he received also a present answer Dan. 9. v. 3. I saith he set my face to the Lord God to seek by Prayer and Supplications with fasting and sackcloth and ashes such was Elijahs prayer 1 Kings 18. 42. The text saith He put his face betwixt his knees a posture signifying the great intension of his mind and spirit It is a praying with strong cries and groans which cannot be uttered which is the Apostles phrase Rom. 8. 26. This praying comes up to the first and great commandment Yhou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy Soul and all thy strength This is like the drawing the arrow to the head which sendeth it with more force to the mark nor indeed is there a better sign of a sudden answer than when the Lord hath thus prepared the heart A man seldom finds his Soul more then ordinarily fervent and importunate with God for a mercy but when the Lord hath determined suddenly to give it in to him Thus now I have shewed you in what cases God ordinarily gives in speedy answers to his peoples prayer But God doth not do this alwaies David himself complaineth Psal 22. 2. O my God I cry in the day time but thou hearest not and in the night season and am not silent The Church crieth out Psal 80. 4. O Lord God of Hosts how long wilt thou be angry with the prayers of thy people And again he shutteth out my prayer Lam. 3. 8. What should be the reason of these inequal dispensations from the hand of the same God and gracious Father I answer 1 Why may not God do it that we may not track him in his ways He will be known to be a free agent He will sometimes give present answer that his people may be confirmed in their faith that God is a God hearing prayer The God that never said to the seed of Jacob seek my face in vain he will not alwaies give a present answer that we may not ascribe too much unto prayer nor will he alwaies delay that we may not ascribe too little to it If God should alwaies give a present answer we should ascribe too much to prayer and make an idol of a duty That the Lord might secure his own glory and be owned as the God of our mercies the object of our faith and dependence the free fountain of all our good things God is pleased sometimes sooner sometimes later to give in answer to his peoples prayer 2. But there may be reason enough for it fetched from the prayers themselves One prayer may be made more in faith than another more fervent than another more fitted to Gods set time for the bestowing of a mercy than another it is true nothing of these can render the prayer more meritorious our prayers take them at the best are too
when they find more strength against motions to sin more ability and courage to suffer for the name of God when they find their Souls more ready to more free and chearful in their duty when they find more serenity peace and comfort within than they have formerly experienced then may the Lord be said to have brought them into his Chambers the Chambers of his presence when these abate and the Soul lives and no more but lives complaining that it is without strength ready to be overthrown by every motion of lust by every forreign temptation that the thoughts of God are troublesome to it it may be terrible that it moves heavily it doth something of its duty but it is rather its task and burthen than its pleasure and delight its heart is sad and heavy and dejected in such cases as these Now God is present with the Soul that is his for he dwelleth in it but he entertaineth it as it were in his low Rooms Cubiculum saith Bernard upon the Text est locus ubi vere quiescens quietus Deus cernitur The Chamber is a place where the Soul seeth God quiet and at rest Sometimes the Soul apprehendeth God as it were returned to his place to speak in the Prophets Dialect as it were risen up from the Soul and returned to Heaven only to be found there by fasting and weeping and earnest seeking after him it apprehends God as angry and not at rest in it sometimes it discerns him at rest in it the Soul can say Lo this is my God I have waited for him I have waited for him I will rejoice and be glad in his Salvation then the Soul returneth unto its rest Psal 116. 7. Return unto thy rest O my Soul saith David for the Lord hath dealt graciously with thee When God is at rest in the Soul then is the Soul at rest within itself then hath the King brought the Soul into his Chambers David when he was under apprehensions that the Lord sustained him resolves to lay himself down in peace and sleep Psal 4. 7. God had dealt graciously with him These now are the Kings Chambers and what I conceive to be here chiefly intended 5. Gregory hath another notion of these Chambers What saith he should we understand by these Chambers but the mysteries of holy contemplations The Astronomer indeed that spends his time in the contemplation of the Stars chuseth the roof of the House or some lofty room for his contemplation and we all chuse the highest places of the House for our prospects of things afar off and all contemplative Persons chuse Chambers as places of privacy for their contemplations When the Lord raiseth the Soul to further degrees of spiritual-mindedness and gives the Soul a power further to contemplate him in his Divine Nature and goodness then he may be said to have brought the Soul into his Chambers There is a time when the Soul remembreth God and is troubled thus it was with the Psalmist Psal 77. 3. Another time when the meditation of God is sweet to the Soul so it was with David Psal 104. 34. when the Soul is able to meditate of God without distractions or disturbance and can fit alone and fancy that it seeth even the Heavens open and beholdeth the glory of God and its Redeemers arms open to receive it and there is another time when it is not able to lift up an Eye to God nor to behold him with any pleasing aspect When the Soul is in the former state then the King may be said to have brought the Soul into his Chambers but this the observing person will see sell under the aforementioned consideration Lastly There are yet some other Chambers into which God sometimes brings the Souls of his people in the description of which I will not enlarge because they are more peculiar Closets into which God hath taken and may for ought I know yet take the Souls of some particular Servants of his into which believers in general cannot expect to be brought they being such as God in all times hath been pleased but to take some few of his people into and generally such as he hath designed to make some more publick use of in the world I may call them Chambers of particular instruction Before God had fully revealed his will in the holy Scriptures written for our instruction and consolation God was pleased at sundry times and in divers manners as the Apostle speaketh Heb. 1. 1. to speak unto the Fathers by the Prophets Persons whom God admitted to a more special degree of fellowship and communion with him and sometimes more plainly sometimes more typically and darkly to instruct them concerning his mind and will both concerning what they were to do and to avoid and concerning what God intended to do in the world or some particular place in it into these Chambers he took Abraham when he did not hide from him what he intended to do to Sodom and Moses when he took him up into the Mount and there gave him his law instructing him in his mind and will that he might instruct the people under his charge in these Chambers the Lord entertained Samuel Elijah Elisha Gad and Nathan and all the Seers and Prophets of whom you read in the Old Testament and after them the blessed Apostles and some primitive Christians But the bringing of any Souls now into these Chambers is no matter of our faith and expectation though we must not limit the holy one of Israel nor hath that we know he any where as to this limited himself indeed as to one part of the revelation he hath None can expect nor have any new revelation of duty for the holy Scriptures are a perfect rule and able to make the man of God wise to Salvation But we may have a fuller revelation of what is revealed and thus doubtless there is a further discovery of duty in this than in former ages no new light of truth but a new light in our Souls to discern the revelations of the word And doubtless there may be to some particular Souls some more revelations of what God intends to do in the world and as to his or their particular circumstances than others have they are things we cannot expect hope or believe for but what some may receive and for the tryal of the truth of them the issue must be expected and from that the truth of their revelations and prophecies must be judged And it seemeth by the answer of the Prophet Jeremy to Hananiah that under the old dispensation this was a piece of the Judgment Jer. 28. 8 9. The Prophets saith he which have been before me and thee of old prophesied both against many Countries and against great Kingdoms of War and of pestilence the Prophet which prophesieth of peace when the word of the Prophet shall come to pass then shall the Prophet be known that the Lord hath truly sent him Yet they must doubtless at that
time have had some other way to discern a true Prophet from a false Prophet how else could they have been charged with sin in not hearkning to their voice unless it were in such things which they required them to do or to avoid in force of the law of God given them by Moses for though some of them wrought miracles as Moses Elijah Elisha yet we read no such thing of Isaiah Jeremiah Ezekiel Daniel c. But whatever that way was it is hidden from us though I dare not but say that God may yet to some particular Servants of his not only more fully and clearly reveal what he hath in his word revealed so as they may more clearly understand the Scriptures and be more able to teach others but also reveal his mind and will as to future contingencies with reference to Nations or Persons yet I know no reason any hath to expect or pray for any such Revelation nor any others to believe it but yet when the thing those Prophets prophecy comes to pass then shall we know that the Lord hath sent them But though these be special degrees of communion special favours which the Lord may vouchsafe to some Souls yet these are not certainly those Chambers of which the Spouse here speaketh I have before told you what I judge those to be Will any one that heareth me now say unto me Why will the Lord thus please to do 1. Why will he bring any Souls into his Chambers allow them a nearer fellowship and communion with him then he will allow unto otheâ—s and if he will thus treat any why not all I shall add a few words to satisfy such Souls as are so curious and inquisitive and then come to the practical application of this discourse 1. He will do it to some to manifest that he hath a delight in the Sons of men the wise man thus speaketh of Christ from all Eternity as Rejoycing in the habitable part of the Earth and having his delights with the Sons of men Who can give a reason of love and its motions in the creature the affections of some persons to others as we daily see are inaccountable things we find our own Souls cleaving to some Neighbours some Friends and that we take a greater delight and complacency in seeing them hearing them discourse being with them and having them with us then in others Others can give no account of it nor see any reason for it and it may be we our selves can give our selves no great account of it but so we do though we know not why and shall any one think to call God to account to know why he sheweth more favour to one Soul then to another how cometh God to be more a debtor to his Creature then man is to his Neighbour what Man or Woman lives without their more intimate and special friends What Prince tho never so ingenuous and good natured and kind to all his Subjects is without his more particular and special favourites Christ as God blessed for ever before ever that he had assumed our nature he had a delight in the Sons of men but upon his taking unto him our nature we cannot but apprehend him more specially inclined he therefore took our flesh that he might be touched with the seeling of our infirmities Heb. 2. 17. And in all things saith the Apostle it behoved him to be made like unto us that he might be a merciful and saithful High Priest Christ thus being not only ingaged by the infinite goodness of the Divine Nature to a communication of his goodness but also by his choice and assumption of the humane nature engaged to a delight in the Sons of Men though considering his Majesty and greatness it behoved him not to make every Soul a Favourite taking it up into the nearest degrees of communion and fellowship with himself yet it behoved him to make choice of some Souls to whom he will more fully and freely make known himself in the riches of his grace 2. Secondly He is concerned to it 〈◊〉 point of faithfulness because of his promises God hath given us many great and precious promises some concerning this life some respecting that which is to come we have promises of special providence special protection from dangers support under them deliverance from them promises of special grace manifestative love Joh. 14. 21. I will love them and manifest my self unto them c. promises of comfort strength c. Now these promises are not made good to every Soul at all times but it is necessary to uphold the Lords faithfulness that they should be made good to some Souls and at some times by this we know that none of his words shall fail that his promises are in and through Christ all of them yea and Amen 3. By this the Lord also incourageth others to their duty It is sad that we should not be willing to serve God for nothing at least without sensible reward but so crost is our duty to the grain of our flesh so many are our temptations and discouragements that even the most spiritual Souls must have their incouragements to duty from sensible rewards whiles we think that every labourer in Gods Vineyard shall have his penny we are apt to think it is of no avail for us to labour more then others God is therefore pleased though one mans penny in glory may be brighter then anothers to incourage us also with sensible rewards in this life one Christian shall have more freedom and liberty in his Spirit then another more quiet and peace in his Spirit then another he shall find more strength unto his duty then another If any further ask why the Lord doth not please to deal thus with all who yet truly love and fear him we cannot enter into Gods secrets or pretend to give an account of Gods motions I shall only shew you that it is reasonable that God should not so deal with all but with some only and that he should not at all times deal alike with the same Souls 1. In regard of our own incertainty and mutability and disproportion to others though we be made partakers of the same special saving grace that they are there is nothing more evident upon observation then that some walk more close with God are more in prayer more in reading and hearing the Word of God more in spiritual contemplation and meditation more reserved from the world more watchful upon their own hearts and waies nay that the same Christian hath not alwaies the same heart for God nor doth walk with God the same pace nor by the same steps Now though the Lord doth not distribute rewards strictly according to our merits yet he distributeth punishments according to our demerits and the withdrawing of these gradual influences being species of punishments it is very reasonable that as our hearts and ways are uneven before God so his ways in these dispensations should also be
can we imagine that we should be more concerned to discover our own vileness and naughtiness then Gods Grace and Mercy But of this I shall speak more fully in my handling the Second part of the Proposition Sermon XXXV Canticles 1. 5. I am Black but Comely O ye Daughters of Hierusalem c. I Come now to the second part of the Proposition I raised from these words I had no more time in my last discourse then to handle the former Prop. There are times when Christians are bound to own their graces and to declare what God hath done for their Souls There are such times when good Christians must not only say they are Black but also own that they are Comely That this is a duty appeareth from the practice of the Servants of God in holy Writ Psal 66. 16. Come and hear all ye that fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my Soul And indeed what are most of the Psalms of David but declarations of this nature to say nothing of Pauls speeches before Festus and Agrippa c. But whatsoever I intended for the proof of it I shall bring under the explication applying it to the particular cases The Question is Qu. When and in what cases are Christians concerned to own acknowledg and declare unto others their grace and what God hath done for their Souls As I said of the other piece of a Christians duty so I shall say of this It is their duty 1. To own and acknowledg it to God 2. To the Church of God 3. To the Men of the World sometimes 1. To God This is their unquestionable duty at all times and you shall find it the frequent practice of the Servants of God in Scripture If we have any Comeliness it is Christs Comliness put upon us and it is but reasonable that God should have the acknowledgment of it to his Honor and Glory But of this there is no question neither is this the acknowledgment of the Text she is here speaking not unto God but to the Daughters of Jerusalem It is our duty also in some cases to own our Comeliness through grace unto men 2. To the Church of Christ and to particular Christians 1. To the Church and that in two cases 1. Upon our Admission into it 2. Upon our Re-admission and restoring to the Priviledges of it We find in the first Plantation of Churches of the Gospel there was ordinarily such a confession and acknowledgment It is said Mat. 3. That those who were Baptized of John were Baptized in Jordan confessing their Sins Matth. 3. 6. After Christs Ascension into Heaven we read of the three thousand Souls added to the Church that they were first pricked at the Heart and said to Peter and to the rest of the Apostles Men and Brethren what shall we do and in Acts 8. 36. when the Eunuch said to Philip Here is Water what doth hinder me to be baptized Philip answereth if thou believest with all thine heart thou maiest and he answered and said I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God In those first admissions into the Gospel Church it is plain that Confession of Sin and Profession of a Faith in Christ were required as necessary and previous to Baptism by which Persons were admitted into a fellowship with the Church of God But altho the first admission into Gospel Churches were only of Grown Persons able to make Confessions of their Sins and a Profession of their faith in Christ which were alwaies done upon such admissions yet the Children of such persons so Baptized have been alwaies taken to be within the Covenant and so Members of the Church also but whether compleat Members or no hath been a question and indeed generally denied and something further required of them before they have been taken into a full Communion with the Church in the Ordinance of the Supper For that being an Ordinance of the Gospel which is a Seal of the Righteousness of Faith as was said of Circumcision with reference to Abraham Rom. 4. 11. It is but reasonable to conclude that none have a right unto it but such as are made Partakers of that Righteousness of Faith those that by an eye of Faith can discern the Lords Body by an hand of Faith lay hold upon Christ under those sensible signs and representations and that by Faith can Eat the Flesh and Drink the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ while with the Mouths of their Bodies they Eat the Bread and Drink the Wine Hence the Apostle commands us to examine our selves and so to Eat of that Bread and Drink of that Cup and telleth us that whoso Earteth the Flesh and Drinketh the Blood of the Lord unworthily Eateth and Drinketh Judgment unto himself and hence it is that some evidence both of Knowledg and Regeneration is judged necessary to such as have a full Communion in this Ordinance with the Church of Christ The best evidence whereof is undoubtedly an holy conversation That a verbal declaration in this case is absolutely necessary I cannot say which may be made in hypocrisie and it made signifies nothing if not confirmed by an holy Life where it can be made in truth and with freedom of Spirit it is doubtless exceeding satisfactory both to the Ministers of Christ who are Stewards of the Ministries of God of whom it is required that they should be faithful distributing their Masters goods according to their Masters order and to the Members of the Church with which they are joined But I by no means think that it ought to be insisted on as to many Christians who may be under fears and doubts and despondencies but evidence the change of their hearts by a holiness of life Thus far I have a little digressed to give you my judgment in this point By which you may se how little the difference in this case is betwixt Brethren would they calmly listen to hear and to understand one another and not judge each other not heard 2. Upon our re-admission or restoring to the Church of God The judicial separation of Scandalous persons from the Church is a sufficient evidence that no persons unholy in their lives ought to be admitted into a communion with it and that they are no more then presumptive members of it or if you will visible members that is such as in outward appearance are so but when by any open action they discover the contrary they ought to be separated from it and not restored without repentance of which repentance indeed it being the change of the heart we are no infallible judges having no rule of judgment but being forced to trust to the sincerity of Profession joined with a visibly reformed Conversation The Church of Christ in all ages so far as we may trust any account we have had of it hath required both 1. A verbal declaration of what God hath done for the offending party working in him or her a Godly shame
easily be gathered the reasonableness of this duty There are four things that call to us for it and make it our duty 1. The first is the honour and glory of God This is the great end of all our actions for this cause we were born for this cause we came into the World I have before told you that we have no other way to glorify God but by the predication or speaking of his greatness or goodness or some other of his attributes and by our holy life and conversation in obedience to his will Now of all Gods attributes there is none wherein he more delighteth then in shewing mercy and whoso tells of Gods acts of grace doth eminently glorify God for the riches of his grace and goodness are discovered in Christ and as in his giving of Christ for poor lost sinners so in the application of that purchased redemption to the Souls of his poor creatures Bless the Lord O my Soul saith David Psal 103. v. 1 2 3. and all that is within me bless his holy name Blessthe Lord O my Soul forget not all his benefits who forgiveth all thy iniquities healeth all thy diseases 2. The Second reason is the good of our Brother Next our immediate magnifying and glorifying of God there is nothing more our duty then the consulting the good of our Brethren and he is highly serviceable to God who is any way serviceable to the Souls of others either in winning them to God or advantaging them in their walking with God The Souls of Christians have often great advantages by hearing what God hath done for the Souls of others in their circumstances It incourageth them to make their applications to God to hope and trust in his mercy to wait untill he will be pleased in like manner to be gracious to them David Psal 69. 32. makes this as an argument with which he pleadeth with God for mercy for his Soul He promiseth first v. 30. That he would praise the Lord with a song and magnify him with thanksgiving then he addeth v. 32. The humble shall see this and be gladand your hearts shall live that seek God for the Lord heareth the poor and despiseth not his Prisoners By the humble is to be understood as in many other Texts of Scripture Persons in low mean and afflicted conditions It much conduceth to the raising up of the Spirits of a man under torments of bodily pain and affliction if one comes and tells him I was in the same condition and had the same pain yet I by such and such applications recovered and it is of no less usefulness to one of a poor and broken Spirit for one to come to him under his doubts and fears and despondency because of the guilt of sin when another Christian comes to him and tells him I also was a blasphemer a drunkard an injurious Person yet I obtained mercy I bless God my doubts are resolved my fears scattered and I am inabled through grace to hope in the frèe gerace and mercy of God through the Lord Jesus Christ Wher now such an opportunity as this is which is not very frequent there the good of our Brother calls to us for such a declaration what God hath done for our Souls 3. A third reason is the duty of a Christian so far as he may to avoid Scandal and Offence Offences and mutual dissatisfactions one in another destroy all the freedom and sweetness of Christians communion each with other and it is our duty so to walk as to give no offence to Jews or Gentiles much less to the Church of God 2. Cor 20. 32. There are two ways by which offence is given 1. By doing some actions as to which we are at a perfect liberty by which we cause our Brother to sin against God As to these the Apostle cautioneth Christians very largely both in his Epistle to the Romans and to the Corinthians But these kind of offences are not obviated by Christians declarations of what God hath done for their Souls as to the influences of saving grace but rather by the declaration of his knowledge and forbearing such actions as he hath a liberty to but no necessity that presseth him to the doing of them at least till his Brother be Satisfyed in the lawfulness of them 2. By some Scandalous actions these indeed are Scandala data Scandals that are given and such sores as a Christian ought by all means in his power to endeavour healing of and whether such things have been done before or after a change wrought in our hearts it is our duty to do what in us lyeth to remove the Scandal of them which I know not how it can at first be done without some declaration to the party or Church offended what God hath done for us what a change he hath wrought in us until by a contrary conversation which is a work of time the best evidence we can make it more really to appear to them 4. Lastly The Credit of our professions some times calls to us for it and this is the reason of the performance of this duty with reference to the men of the World who seek all advantages to reproach the good and right ways of the Lord. But this is enough to have spoken doctrinally upon this argument From hence in the first place we may observe That a Child of God may know that he or she is comely Indeed this is not the lot of every Child of God at all times and for them that do know it there are degrees of their knowledge Some have a more some a less certain knowledge but I say a good Christian may know it The Papists indeed make all a Christians faith to be languid and uncertain but Paul was perswaded that nothing should separate him from the Love of God The Spouse knew she was sick of Love and here that altho she was black yet she was also comely tho as the tents of Kedar yet as the Curtains of Solomon also Peter knew that he loved his Master so as he durst appeal to him and say Thou that knowest all things knowest that I Love thee and St. John giving us rules how we might know that we are translated from death to Life supposed that it might be known and if it had not been possible surely Peter would not have quickened us to the use of all diligence to make our calling and election sure That every good Christian doth not certainly know his Spiritual Estate is unquestionable That he who doth know it this day may fall into doubts and fears concerning it is also certain But it is as plain in Scripture that a Christian may walk in the sense and view of his own sincerity and uprightness he may know it by the more special influence of the holy Spirit which witnesseth with our Spirits that we are the Children of God and this is of all other the most certain and comfortable knowledge He may also
Body of Christ to the Body natural for the order of the Parts and Members the several offices of the Members the mutual subserviency of one Member to another and that sympathy which should be found betwixt the Members Hence we are commanded by the Apostle to rejoice with those who rejoice and to weep with those that weep and Paul saith of himself who is weak and I am not weak who is offended and I burn not and again we are commanded to remember those who are in bonds as if we were bound with them and those that suffer adversity as being our selves in the Body So that 1. The precept of God obligeth us to it who having made his people all one Body hath made them also Members each of other 2. Their relation calleth to them for it It seems to be the law of nature upon all near relations for it is not only where as in natural Bodies the natural union is made by Nerves and Sinews but where love hath made an union as in the union betwixt Parents and Children Husbands and Wives c. Nor is this to be extended only to such cases where the person beloved feels a burthen or misery but where they lie under it though they be not sensible of it what Husband or Wife is not affected with the affliction of their correlate in an Apoplexy or under some distempers of which themselves possibly have iittle or no sense So will every good Christian be affected at the case of his Brother fallen tho he possibly hath not that due sense of his own fall which he should have and at the case of the Church under its blackness though possibly the Rulers or generality of the Members be not so sensible of their own corruptions and deviations and to look upon the Spouse of Christ in her blackness with a mournful pitying and compassionate Eye is very much the duty of every good Christian and what we find the constant and religious practice of the People of God at all times 2. We may so far look upon the Spouses blackness as our sight of it may inform us better or quicken us to seek God on her behalf It is our duty to pray for one another James 5. 15. Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another They are put together and the first seemeth to be mentioned as a means in order to the other How can I plead for a Church or a particular Child of God if I know nothing of their state how can I know it if I may not look upon it It is a divine indulgence granted by God to his People that they shall not be heard only praying for themselves but for their Brethren also 1 John 5. 16. If any man see his Brother sin a sin which is not unto death he shall ask and he shall give them life for them who sin not unto death All a Christians sins in their own nature are mortal and unto death The Papists err in their distinction of sins into such as are mortal and such as are venial but no sin is mortal in that sense as it signifies what cannot be forgiven saving only the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost mentioned by our Saviour and in respect of Gods gracious Ordination no Child of God sinneth or can sin unto death Now where the sin is not unto death God hath promised us on the behalf of our Brethren that if we see them sinning and pray for them their sins shall be forgiven them Now if they may not look upon them in any sense or to any purpose how should they pray for them And thus it is highly the duty of Gods People to look both upon the Church and the People of God because of their blackness through affliction Is any man afflicted saith James 5. 14. let him pray and let them send for the Elders of the Church and let them pray over them and the prayer of the faithful shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise him up and if he hath committed sin it shall be forgiven him In this sense it is so far from being Christians sin that it is their duty to look upon the Spouse because she is black 3. Lastly It is Christians duty to look upon the Spouse because she is black so far as to inable us in any measure to the purging out their corruptions A good Christian ought so far to consider the corruptions of a Church as in his place to endeavour its reformation and consequently it cannot be his duty to have communion with her in those things wherein she deviateth from the rule of her Lord. It is true the effectual Authoritative Reformation of a National Church belongeth to the Rulers if they be Christians as appeareth by all the instances of the Old Testament concerning the Kings of Judah and such a Reformation of a particular Church or Congregation belongeth to the Officers of Christ in it but every private Christian hath his part viz. to inform such in whom the power is to bear a testimony against such corruptions and not to have fellowship with the Church in such things I cannot grant that all Corruptions in the Doctrine Worship or Discipline of a Church are a sufficient cause to conclude it no true Church and wholly to withdraw himself from the communion of it But I doubt not to say that it is my duty to withdraw Communion from a Church in such acts as without sin I cannot have communion with it but of this more by and by The case is the same in the case of a lapsed Brother I am bound to admonish him to tell him of his offence and if he will not hear me to take two or three with me If he will not hear them to tell the Church that he might be separated from the Communion of it The Apostle hath directed us If our Brother be overtaken with a fault to restore him in the Spirit of meekness Gal. 6. 1. Now in order to the performance of this I may yea it is my duty to look upon my Brother when he is black for the Lord who hath willed the end must be understood to have also willed the means that are necessary to that end Let me in the next place shew you what kind of looking on the Spouse in her blackness is sinful this I shall more largely open in several particulars 1. First We ought not to look upon them with a censorious and condemning Eye Neither for their seeming blackness through Afflâ—ctions nor yet for their real blackness through coorruption either breaking out of a Christians heart or appearing in a Church Judge not saith our Saviour Luk. 6. 37. and you shall not be judged condemn not and you shall not be condemned He that judgeth the truth of a Christians Grace or of a Churches state from the more external providences of God either towards the one or towards the other doth not consider what hath been the lot of the
admitted set up and encouraged in all these cases we may presume Christ hath forsaken a Church we may go after him In other cases we ought only so far to look upon her because she is black as not to colly and defile our selves by any communion with her in what things in her are irregular andout of order being so far Separate as not to touch the uncleanthing 5. Fifthly We should not look upon the Spouses blackness so as to be moved thereby either to think or speak ill of Religion or the good ways of God or to depart our selves from them I know of no Religion whose principles teach debauchery Much less doth that which is pure and undefiled before God We must therefore carefully distinguish betwixt the Vices and faileurs of Persons and the faults of principles and the way of Religion So as it is a most unrighteous thing for any Person to entertain ill thoughts of Religion or to speak Evil of it for the errors failings or miscarriages of those who profess it Yet how ordinary a thing is this in the world how common is the unreasonable clamour of such as hate God Crimine ab uno Disce omnes They are all alike You see what their religion teacheth them Indeed upon the account of this it is that the sins of Professors are so hainous When God by the Prophet had let David know he had pardoned his sins yet he threatens him with a severe punishment because he had given occasion to the Enemies of God to blaspheme Saint Paul writes to the Thessalonians 1. Thâ—ssal 3. 3. That none should be moved by his afflicti ons for God had appointed him his Church his People thereunto I would speak to you for one thing more That none should be Scandalized and offended at the wayes of God for the breakings out of corruptions in particular Persons owning and professing Religion for there never were any so white but they had some black Spots 6. Lastly We ought least of all to look upon the Spouses blackness so as to be collâ—ed by it to copy it out for our practice or plead it in justifiâ—ation of our selves The use we should make of the failings and sins of professors should be that while we stand we should take heed lest we fall The failings of Christians ought to be for our caution not for our imitation And to this end Christians should not only consider David sins but Davids punishment also his broken bones his watering his couch with tears the sword never departing from his house the difficulty he expresseth in his penitential Psalms to recover the sense of Gods Love his hard work of repentance and they will see little incouragement to sin after Davids copy Nor yet after Peters if they consider how bitterly he wept after his fall before he recovered the kind look of his Master This is enough to have spoken Doctrinally as to this point indeed the whole discoursehath been practicall I may therefore be very short in the application In the first place I desire from this discourse that we may all observe both the Excellency of the Divine rule and the crookedness of the heart of man How much sin is committed in the World How many indecencies may be observed in the conversations of men of Christians from their undue looking upon the Spouse of Christ because she is black What a comely society would the society of Christians be would they bear one anothers burdens and every one have a fellow feeling of each others miseries and afflictions And would look no further on the blackness of Professors then to inform and direct them how to apply themselves to God on their behalf or to them or any others any way in order to their help and cure if Christians would not look upon the Church or each other in afflictions or under any lapses with a censorious Eye to condemn one another but with a charitable Eye hoping the best and helping towards it Not with a glad and rejoycing Eye but with a mourning and weeping Eye being grieved for the afflictions each of other and much more grieved for the breaking out of one anothers lusts and corruptions Not with a Scornfull Eye but with an humble Eye pitying one another under the hand of God upon them or bewailing the frailty and infirmity of humane nature Not shunning and avoiding one anothers Societeis but keeping to the Divine Rule so far keeping company with the worst of our brethren as our company may serve them for any good to their souls I say were it possible to reduce the whole society of Christians to this order how beautifull a society would it be This is our rule if any walk not up to it let not religion suffer for their passions and uncharitable behaviour But ah how many fall under a severe reproof if what you have heard in this discourse be ture and the duty of all such as profess themselves to be the disciples of Christ How many censorious Christians and rash judgers have we that will not consider that the finest gold must have some grains of allowance how many that will undertake to determine the state of Souls from external providences that happen to them and from particular acts and miscarriages How glad are a great many in the world when they can but hear a report of the failings of Persons owning Religion That say report and we will report it and watch for their haltings saying peradventure he will be enticed How many that sit in the seat of the scornful despising one another for their afflictions because themselves are at ease How many of Gods People may repeat those words of the Psalmist Psal 123. 4. Our Soul is exceedingly filled with the scornings of those that are at ease and with the contempt of the proud How little tenderness is to be found amongst Christians towards lapsed brethren how little care to restore such as are overtaken with faults in the Spirit of meekness Is this not to look upon the Spouse because she is black How ready are Christians to shake off all fellowship and communion with Churches and particular Christians for some partial blackness And how ready are others for the failings of professors to reproach even Religion it self and to take up prejudices against the right ways of God How ready are others to copy out the sinfull miscarriages of Christians and to justify themselves from them Certainly these things ought not to be Oh that all you who are Daughters of Hierusalem who profess to Religion as you do not come behind in many other things that are good so that you would not come behind in this The many errors of Christians in this one piece of duty the due and right behaviour of themselves towards Churches and particular Souls Let us know that it is a great piece of Christians perfection that whereunto the most have not as yet attained remember it is a great piece of your
Heresies So as we are not to wonder if the things that have been still are whiles the state of the Church is yet militant we are not indeed to cause them or be the Authors or Abettors of them but neither are we to be discouraged or condemn Churches for them who may be comely though they have something of this blackness thus caused I shall shut up this discourse with a few words of Exhortation 1. To all such as own themselves Christians and glory in the name of the Sons and Daughters of the Church That they would answer that name and relation and not be a cause of the Spouses blackness or appearing blackness There are two ways by which we may be so 1. By a loose and scandalous conversation 2. By being angry with our Brethren By the first we make the Spouse black By the second we cause her to be reproached and called and counted black 1. Take heed of a loose and scandalous conversation This makes you spots in the Assemblies of Christians and declares you to be but presumptive Members Can a man be a Member of Christ and a Member of a Harlot Christs Companion and a Pot companion A Disciple of Christ who hath commanded us not to swear falsly idly or prophanely and yet being a common Swearer and Curter and Blasphemer Only let your conversation saith the Apostle he as becometh the Gospel of Christ Loose livers are the blots of any Church the Church is a body of called ones now you are not called to uncleanness or profaneness but unto purity and holiness It is for your sake that the name of Christ and the body of Christ is evil spoken of Consider that though it be the way of God to denominate his Church a parte meliori from the better part of it and therefore he calls the Church those that are called and sanctified in Christ Jesus though they all be not so that are Members of the visible Church yet it is the way of the World out of their hatred both to Christ and all that have relation to him to denominate them a parte deteriori from the worser part and to call all Professors of Religion by the name that belongeth only to the worser part of them But this is not so proper an application of this Proposition which speaks of the anger of false Brethren as the cause of the Spouses blackness 2. Therefore let me speak to you whose corruptions will not allow you to be so strict in your walking with God as others are whether in matters of Worship or your more ordinary conversation yet not to be angry with those who desire to walk more closely with God then you think needful and in some things dare not give themselves that liberty which you dare allow your selves I will offer three things to your consideration which may help you to abate your wrath 1. Consider first How little reason there is for you to be offended You all profess to be going the same journey aiming at the same end you all profess to be going towards the new Hierusalem Your dispute is only about the nearest way you are satisfied that this way of worshipping God this course of Religion will bring you to your journies end others cannot be so satisfied but take a straiter way what reason is there here for thy wrath who thinkest a broader will bring thee as well to thy Journies end how doth his walking more strictly prejudice thee Thou thinkest thou doest enough in the Service of God another thinks he can never do too much never do enough and therefore he heareth more and readeth more and prayeth oftner wherein art thou hereby prejudiced Hast thou not rather cause to bless God for the good example of others and to examine thy own ways and why another should not take up with those measures in duty with which another cannot be satisfied Thou thinkest that in the Worship of God thou mayest be guided and limited by the precepts and practices and traditions of other men others considering that it is but reasonable Worship being an Homage which the Soul payeth to God that God should prescribe his own Homage and considering that God hath declared himself to be a jealous God and affixed the declaration of this his jealousy to the second Commandment which concerneth his external Worship and that in the whole course of Scripture the revelations of Gods wrath appear more against sins relating to the Worship of God then any other sins they dare not in the matters of Divine Worship deviate from the Divine Rule wherein art thou by this prejudiced What reason is there for thine anger Surely they walk most safely that finding the Holy Scriptures a perfect rule able to furnish a man to every good work keep close to that and dare not in practice admit any thing but what they find there commanded or practised Thou ownest the Holy Scriptures as thy rule Why art thou offended that another keepeth closer to it then thou dost 2. Consider you are a great cause of the Spouses appearing black She is reproached for the contentious divisions and Schisms that are in it who are the cause of them those that keep to the rule of Gods Word or those that depart from it Surely the whiteness and purity of any Church lieth in its adherence to the Divine Rule the more a particular Christian or any society of Christians keep close to the pattern which Christ and his Apostles have set them and to the rule which God hath given them the more pure the more white and comely they are Their deviation from it is their blackness so are those contentions and divisions which arise in the Church because of those deviations it is a dreadful text 1 Cor. 3. 17. If any man defile the Temple of God him shall God destroy The Apostle is there speaking with reference to the Bodies of Professors which he had called the Temple of God But it is as true concerning the Church of God that is the Temple of God this is destroyed or defiled for the word may be translated by either of these words God saith the Apostle will destroy him who are they that defile the Church and indeed destroy it but those that are the cause of scandals in it either of its being black or of its appearing black unto the World 3. Lastly Let the words of our Saviour sink into your hearts Mat. 18. 7 Woe unto the World because of offences for it must needs be that offences must come but woe to that man by whom the offence â—ometh Luke repeating that passage ch 17. v. 1. addeth v. 2. It were better for him that a milstone were hung about his neck and he cast into the Sea then that he should offend one of these little ones Whoso considereth the Church as the only body of People in the World by whom God is spontaneously glorified and how God hath expressed his favour and love to it must dread the laying
doubtless were the Israelites in Jeroboam's time not only to the men of Judah who adhered to the true Worship of God and the sincerer part of the Ten Tribes who left them and came to Hierusalem to worship But the generality of the Israelites in Ahab's times in the sight of Elijah and those seven thousand whom God told Elijah he had at that time in Israel who had not bowed their knee to Baal nor kissed him with their lips The Use of this will be very short only warning us to be very tender in this point very careful of having to do with these Vineyards It is inconsistent with the keeping of our own the things which God hath committed to our trust It renders Churches and particular Souls also black It is an abatement to our beauty and comeliness These things are spots in our beauty shadows to our glory Nothing more offendeth the Eyes of the Divine Glory nothing more provoketh the Lord to jealousie To those who consideringly read the History of the Jewish Church recorded in the Old Testament nothing need be added upon this Argument I come now to the second sense of these words to which I told you I more inclined to From whence the Proposition is this Prop. That great intanglements in secular affairs will make the Spouse of Christ to appear black Demas did once appear white twice you have an honourable mention of him Col. 4. 14. Luke the beloved Physician and Demas salute you He is reckoned amongst Paul's fellow-labourers Philemon v. 24. but the world made him black 2 Tim. 4. 10. Demas saith the Apostle hath forsaken us and imbraced the present world Martha was doubtless white in her Lord's Eyes yet being cumbred about many things she appeared something black Mary had chosen the better part Luk. 38. 40 41. The Apostles left their Nets when they followed Christ When therefore one askt leave of our Saviour before he followed him to go and bury his dead Christ replied Let the dead bury the dead follow thou me You know the excuses those made Matth. 22. that were invited to the Marriage Feast one had bought a Farm another had bought five yoke of Oxen. Our Saviour hath determined Matth. 6. 24. No man can serve two Masters but either he will cleave to the one and neglect the other or neglect the one and be overcareful for the other What need we any Scripture in the case shew me that man or woman that is intangled in a multitude of worldly affairs and hath not lost something of his beauty if he or she ever had any as to the power and practice of Religion Holiness But it will be demonstratively clear to us if we consider either how much of our time the world will take up or how much of our strength and spirits how it will distract and divide us how much it will allure and intice us or to how many scandals it will expose us Of all these I shall speak a word or two 1. I say first if we consider how much of our time worldly occasions take up All humane actions require time as well as place There is no religious action but requireth time and the more time is spent in our worldly employments the less must or can be spent in religious duties the more our intanglements are in secular affairs the less time we must spend in the acts of our more immediate homage to God Alass how little time hath he who is much imployed in the world for reading hearing praying for any religious service and this is the ordinary plea that men make for the non-performance of them they have no time to read the Scriptures or to pray in their Families or to instruct them or to hear the Word or to imploy their thoughts upon spiritual things Solomon saith of the covetous man that the multitude of his riches will not let him sleep It may be said of others the multitude of their businesses will not let them pray or keep up any course of Religion in their Families it suffers but a few to spend the Lords Sabbath as they ought to do they are so far from sparing God any of their own time that they are more ready to steal his time though it be but one day of seven 2. Secondly Worldly businesses do not only take up much of our time but also much of 〈◊〉 spirits and strength God doth not only require our love and such acts of homage in testification of our love as he hath prescribed but also that we should love him and do those acts with all our hearts with all our might and strength and excess of worldly labour and business wasts our Spirits takes away that might and strength which we fhould spend in the service of God Ah what heartless lifeless prayers and religious duties are performed by men and women taken up with an undue proportion of secular imployments 3. Thirdly They fill the head with a multitude of distractions 1 Cor. 7. 35. The Apostle upon this account v. 34. commendeth a single life to those to whom God had given that gift for saith he The unmarried Woman careth for the things of the Lord that she may be holy both in Body and Spirit but the married Woman careth for the things of the World that she may please her Husband And this saith he I speak to you for your own profit not that I might cast a snare upon you but for that which is comely and that you may attend upon the Lord without distraction Distractions in religious services though they appear not to the world yet really are the blackness of the Soul and it is our duty as much as in us lyeth to serve the Lord with the greatest attention of our thoughts and with as few distractions as we can now the more we are incumbred with secular affairs the greater we shall find our distractions in the service of God For as it is upon the ringing of a Bell though the man's hand be off the Rope and the Bell begins to be still yet for some time we shall discern a din in the sides of the Bell caused from its former motion and agitation So will every observing Christian find that when his hand is off his secular business yet his head will for some time be working upon it and this more especially sheweth a preparation of heart necessary for those in particular who are much imployed in worldly business before they draw nigh to God in the Solemn Duties of his Worship that the noise of their secular affairs may be out of their heads and they may serve the Lord without distractions and not be like to the People whom God complaineth of Ezek. 33. 31. They said come and let us go and hear the Word of the Lord. And saith God they come unto thee as the People cometh and sit before thee as my People and they hear thy words but they will not do them for with their
have a command more then another in it to make our addresses to God nor any to which any promise is made nor concerning which it can be said God hath in it more Manifested himself to People seeking him yet there are two sort of places in which we have more advantage then in others for a communion with God 1. Places of Solitude 2. Places where 2 or 3 meet together or a greater number of Gods People so meet to pray or in any manner to Worship God 1. The first give us advantage by freeing us from the noises business and distractions of the World hence you read of Jsaac's going into the field for meditation and our Saviour's going so often up to a mountain for Prayer Mar. 6. 46. Matth. 14. 23. 2. The second gives us advantage as from the promise of God made to the assemblies of his People so from the influence that the Affections of pious Souls in holy duties have one upon another of which it is an hard thing to give an account but it is no more then I believe any good Christian will find upon his or her experience that their hearts are otherwise affected when they are in a society of serious Christians praying to God or performing any acts of Worship then when they are alone Hence it is that you find serious Christians so covetous of opportunities to withdraw into their closets or when they may join with other serious and consciencious Christians in more publick Worship If any shall for the further explication of this notion ask me from whence a more full free and uninterrupted communion with God is to be adjudged and determined I answer shortly I have before told you That all communion speaks a mutual or reciprocal communication of two or more each to other God communicateth himself to the Soul in his influences of grace the Soul communicateth it self to God in the actings and exercises of its gracious habits so as the fulness freedom and more near communion with God is to be judged from several things 1. First from the attention of the Souls thoughts in the duty A Soul hath more or less communion with God in a duty as his thoughts more or less deviate and wander from the thing he is about When there is a meer bodily service performed either by the lips or knee or Eye the duty is but a mere formality the Soul hath no communion with God in it in Praying the man doth not Pray nor in hearing hear nor in singing sing As to this the best of Gods People must cry God be merciful to us sinners so that the degree of perfection attainable in this life as to this thing is but comparative some may have more of this attention then others or more at one time then at another but none is perfect in this thing Only the pious Soul as in other things so in this thing is striving after perfection pressing forward towards the mark and daily humbling himself for his imperfection and flying to Christs intercession and advocation and exercising faith on his more perfect righteousness A second thing wherein a fuller communion with God on the Souls part lyeth is fervency of Spirit this chiefly respecteth the duties of Prayer and Praise The effectual Prayer must be servent 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Prayer which setteth the whole Soul on work and while we sing we must make melody in our hearts to the Lord Eph. 5. 19. Prayer is oft times in Scripture expressed under the notion of crying wrestling with God pouring out of the heart before the Lord Psal 142. 2. Psal 62. 8. David calleth this a pressing hard after God Psal 63. 8. some think it is a metaphor from hounds pursuing their game in view 3. A third thing is a Freedom of Spirit This is as I take it that which David calls largeness of heart Psal 119. v 32. I will run the way of thy commandments when thou shalt enlarge my heart There is no good man but findeth his heart more free to duty and in duty at one time then at another there is a straitness of heart which at some times is the great grievance and incumbrance of pious Souls it is caused sometimes from immoderate sorrow sometimes from fear sometimes from one cause sometimes from another but what ever the cause be it certainly abates the Souls communion with God at least its communications of it self to God And by consequence a freedom of Spirit a readiness of heart to duty with a liberty not of tongue onely but of Spirit also for without the latter the former is but hypocrisy advantageth and promoveth the Souls communion with God 4. A fourth thing which maketh the Souls communion with God more full is An ability more strongly to exercise its saith upon God without doubting whether it be in a stronger adherence or more firm persuasion 5. On Gods part the Souls communion is more full when it receiveth from God more influences of grace testifying his acceptance of the Souls addresses unto him or filling it with the sensible manifestations of his love or inabling it more fully to communicate it self unto God that it can be more attent in its thoughts more fervent in Spirit more free to and in its performances or exercise its faith more powerfully and strongly This I conceive to be enough to have spoken in the explication of the Proposition hinting you both wherein this more full and free communion with God is discernable and also what those times or places are where and when it may most ordinarily and probably be obtained which I conceive is the thing which the Spouse in the text expresseth her desire towards and which she begs that her beloved would instruct her as to That this is the desire of every good Christian appeareth 1. From its deprecation of those things which would hinder it and avoiding them so far as it can Those things that hinder it are 1. Intestine lusts and motions to sin Vanity of thoughts c. 2. Diabolical Suggestions Now there are no two things which the pious Soul more deprecateth then these two Worldly distractions Observe David how he bewailed his dwelling in Meshek And having his habitation in the tents of Kedar and how bitterly in three several Psalms he bewails his being banished from Hierusalem Psalm 42. Psal 84. Psal 63. So Psal 120. v. 5. How sadly doth St. Paul bewail his body of death Rom. 7. 24. 2. From its thirstings after times and opportunities of communion with God of which also you have instances in all the Psalms before mentioned Psal 86. 11. He prays for an heart united to fear the Lords name Psal 86. 11. And rejoiceth in a fixed heart Psal 57. 7. Psal 208. v. 1. Nor indeed can it possibly be otherwise as will appear to any Soul that understandeth what communion with God is That which is the object of any rational Souls desire must come under the notion of good and
23. 4. Though I walk through the shadow of death I shall fear none evill for thou art with me thy Rod and thy Staff comfort me 2. That done a Christian's next work is to look out the Promises which God hath made either such as are more general and respect his People under any Trial or such as are more special and relate to the People under any Trial or such as are more special and relate to the People of God under such particular pressures of Affliction that they lie under The Book of holy Scriptures is a great Store-house there is scarce any condition of Christians to which some Promises are not suited It is of great use for a Christian to know and understand and be acquainted with the Promises They are as the Jointure to the Wife all that she hath to live upon only with this difference the Woman liveth not upon the Jointure which her earthly Husband hath made her till he be dead Christ died once he dieth no more but ever lives but the Promises are what the Soul liveth upon when God seems as dead withdrawing himself from the support and protection of his People A good Christian ought not therefore to be a stranger to them 3. It is the duty of a Christian to betake himself to these shades to eye the Promises to commit himself unto them to hope in them these are acts and exercises of Faith Come my People saith God by his Prophet Isaiah Enter into the Chambers and hide thy self for a little time till the indignation be overpast Our coming is by Faith committing our selves unto God and trusting in him 1 Pet. 4. 19. Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their Souls unto him in well doing as unto a faithful Creator Christ is the primary object of our Faith the Promises are the proximate objects In such a time therefore let every good Christian call the Promises to his mind whet them upon his Soul offer his Soul to them call upon it to trust in them 4. It is the duty of a Christian at such a time to wait upon God with patience God ought to be trusted in regard of his Truth and Faithfulness his Power and Goodness He ought to be waited upon in regard of his Majesty and Greatness and Wisdom The Promises are oft-times made in general for help deliverance strength and the like without specifying the particular way and method which God will use and without limitations of time He that believeth maketh not hast 5. There must be a close walking with God though we be sore broken in the place of Dragons and covered with the shadow of death yet we must not forget the Name of our God our heart must not turn back from him we must not deal falsly in our Covenant with him nor suffer our steps to decline from his way Psal 44. The Promise Psal 37. 4. that we shall dwell in the Land and be certainly fed is prefaced with a Precept to trust in the Lord and to do good And the advice of the Apostle Peter is to commit our Souls in well doing unto God as to a faithful Creator 6. Lastly Prayer must be added the promises are Gods bonds by which he hath made himself a Debtor to his Creature Prayer is an action of ours by which we put these bonds in suit Sermon XLIII Cant. 1. 7. Tell me O thou whom my Soul loveth where thou feedest where thou makest thy flocks to rest at Noon for why should I be like one of them that turneth aside by the flocks of thy Companions I Am still upon the Spouses third Petition to her Beloved Tell me O thou whom my Soul loveth where thou feedest where thou makest thy flocks to rest at noon Methinks I could say with Peter when he was with his Master upon the Mount of Transfiguration It is good for us to be here let us build here two Tabernacles one for the Spouse another for her Beloved What she would have in this Petition clouded with Metaphors I have more fully before opened either a more full communion with Christ most free from interruptions Or his more special influence upon her in her hours of affliction and persecution I have spake something already to it in both these senses I have but one thing to add before I come to the words which are the reason of her Petition that is from the form of the words considered as a prayer so expressive both of her wants and desires a supply The Proposition I shall shortly speak to is this Prop. That though a Believer at all times fees a need of the presence and influence of the grace of Christ yet more especially in the time of afflictions and tryals Return unto me for I am married unto you saith the Lord was Gods language of old to his ancient Spouse the People of the Jews The Apostle largely pursueth the same metaphor Eph. 5. 32. This is a great mystery I speak concerning Christ and the Church so he concludeth his discourse the Wife desireth her Husbands presence at all times God hath made the Woman the weaker sex and the Wife stands in daily need of her Husband whom God hath made her head to guide and conduct her she is not only as a Vine for fruitfulness but for weakness and dependency also so is every believing Soul it hath alwaies need of that promise I will never leave you nor forsake you But as the Wife hath more especial need of the Influence and assistance of her Husband in times and matters of difficulty and distress so hath the believing Soul so that he at all times prayeth with David Psal 27. 9. Hide not thy face from me put not away thy Servant in anger thou hast been my help leave me not neither forsake me O God of my Salvation The Child of God knoweth what will follow at any time if the Sun of Righteousness doth not shine upon him all his protection strength life healing is in the shadow of his Wings But yet I say he or she seeth a more especial need of his presence and influence in the noon of sharp Trials and Afflictions Hence you shall observe that though the Servants of God have kept their daily courses of prayer yet at such times they have used themselves to more solemn addresses and applications to God of which you have plentiful instances in Scriptures in the solemn fasts and prayers put up to God in such times and their more special Petitions put up with reference to such times and dispensations of Providence Hence David cryeth out Psal 22. 11. Be not far from me for trouble is near for there is none to help me and again v. 19. Be not thou far from me O God make hast to help me so again Psal 35. 22. It was a time of great outward straights with David as you may see by reading all the former part of that Psalm v. 22.
unbeliever one that is not married to thee Those senses of the words express her fear of scandal Prop. That sin and Scandal are the two great objects of the believing Souls fear What sin is I need not spend many Words to tell you The Apostle gives you the full notion of it when he calleth it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A Non-conformity to the divine law which notion comprehendeth original sin which lyeth in the absence of the divine Image and the ill complexion of the Soul resulting from it and actual sin which is well described by Augustine to be every thought Word and deed which is contrary to the holy Law of God Sin is often in Scripture set out under the notion of erring wandring going astray and that dependeth upon another Metaphor we often meet with in Scripture comparing a course of holiness unto a way with relation to which sin which is a deviation from holiness is expressed by the notions of erring wandering going astray turning aside c. The Precepts of God are expressed also under the notion of a rule and a guide hence sin is called a crooked way Now all sin is the object of the believers fear but not all alike For as there is a difference in the guilt of sin so there will be a difference in the Souls fear it will most tremble at those sins which render it most obnoxious to the wrath of God of which nature Idolatry is and indeed the guilt of it much lyeth here that in that sin the creature is made the companion of God and the Worship due unto God alone is either given unto it or shared betwixt God and it The notion of Scandal is not so obvious I shall therefore inlarge a little in my discourse on that The Words Scandal and Scandalize are hardly found in any Prophane Authors the Scripture therefore must open that term to us A Scandal properly and strictly is something laid in a mans way at which one is prone to stumble and fall the Word which the Septuagint translate by this Word we translate a stumbling block Levit. 19. 14. Thou shalt not put a stumbling block before the blind The Hebrew Word is by our translators rendred offence 1 Sam. 25. 31. This is all we can get from the Etymology of the Word it signifies any thing at which another stumbles and falls thence it is applyed to such things as are to others occasions of sin which is the stumbling and falling of the Soul so Aquinas I think rightly describeth Scandals to be any Words or actions of ours by which others have an occasion of ruin That is sinning which is the Spiritual ruin of a man or woman In this sense man only can be Scandalized he cannot be tempted to evil But two wayes a Scandal may reflect upon God 1. As by our carriages his glory may be prejudiced amongst men his name blasphemed his wayes reproached and these actions which produce such effects we call Scandals 2. As others by our carriages may be induced to sin against God So that Scandals may be committed two wayes When we so behave our selves as we cause the Master which we serve the Gospel which we profess or the way wherein we walk to be evil spoken of or that others by our example are inticed to sin Scandals are ordinarily divided into such as are not only taken but given also and such as are meerly taken but not given 1. The latter is what is called Seandalum Pharisaeorum The scandal of the Pharisees because they were so offended at our Saviour This is when men are offended at us and speak evil of us or of the wayes of God for our sake though we do nothing but what is our duty and we must not omit for the offence of any Persons These are now only passive Scandals Scandals taken and not given and the guilt lyeth not upon those who do the actions but upon those who are troubled that others are more righteous then they and will do what they judge God requireth of them without regard to the pleasing or displeasing of any These are not the Scandals which a good man feareth 2. But then there is an active Scandal or a Scandal given and this may be two wayes 1. By any open sinful actions Thus we call open sinning Scandalous sinning Because it giveth a just offence to all good People and because it of its own nature tendeth to cause the name of God to be blasphemed and the Gospel and wayes of God to be reproached and evil spoken of and is an inducement to others also to sin against God 2. It is also committed by an ill use of our liberty in things where Gods Law hath left us our liberty when we will do actions which although we think we may do yet others think are unlawful and our doing of them may either cause them that have another opinion to reproach us and our profession or induce them doubting concerning the lawfulness of them yet to do them because they see us whom they look upon as stronger doing of them thus we abuse our liberty by chusing that action by which our Brother is offended grieved or made weak now these Scandals are such as next to our personal plain sinnings ought to be the object of all good Christians fear I must confess as to these last mentioned Scandals by actions in which I judge God hath left me in his Law a full and perfect liberty but others have not the same apprehensions so as my taking one part may cause in other Christians hard thoughts or hard speeches concerning me Or if not so yet my example may induce them though they doubt yet to adventure upon the same actions and sin against God for he that doubteth is damned if he eateth that which another who doubteth not may freely eat I say as to such Scandals there is a very hard question in Divinity viz. what is a Christians duty suppose him pressed by a Superiours command on the one side if he doth not do it he disobeyeth his Superiours in a thing which he confesseth not to be forbidden by the Word God and so seemeth to sin against the Precept of obedience to them On the other side he seeth that if he doth the thing he shall not onely grieve many good Christians who think the thing lawful but possibly cause them to intertain hard thoughts of him or to speak hardly of him or if not so yet which is worse to do the same thing though they doubt of the lawfulness Nay further it may be that the command of Superiors in the case may be attended with penalties which may ruin a man his family What is to be done here is an hard case That it is not our duty to obey Superiours in all things is out of question that we ought to obey them in things of which we are strongly persuaded that they are unlawful whether they be so or no is what no weighed
pretended fear But if you see Christians in all their other waies strict and conscientious taking heed to their waies though I may think that in some things they fear too much and scruple what I do not scruple nor see any sin in yet I hope I shall alwaies reverence such Persons I may be mistaken as well as they and who hath made me more infallible than they are It is a noble temper to be afraid of sinning against God and so consequently to be afraid of scandal not only of doing acts that are openly sinful but of doing such actions which we think we cannot do without grieving offending and making to stumble and fall those for whom Christ died If Christ had such a value for Souls as for the Redemption of them to come down from Heaven to Earth and to die upon the Cross certainly they should not be so cheap in my sight as for the good of them I will not forbear the least thing which I may as well forbear as do It is possible that Religious People may fear scandal too much They may in some particulars be afraid of their duty for fear of offending Brethren they may lay too great a stress upon a scandal of grief But these are very pardonable things in comparison of mens neither fearing God nor men and running on in courses of actions without regarding the offence of God or of men Every good man will in your City be wary of leaving ladders in streets or heaps of muck or any pits uncovered from whence Persons in the dark may receive any mischief and this is but in conformity to the antient Law of God which commanded the Jews to lay no stumbling blocks in the way of the blind Have we charity for our neighbours Bodies and have we none for their Souls Are we tender of making them wound or break a bodily limb and have we no regard to the making them wound the honour and glory of God and the peace of their own Souls and to hazard their own eternal Salvation If men had any drams of true Brotherly Love they would at least forbear actions as to which they have a perfect liberty with which they know any number of fâ—ber Persons will be offended This I speak as to things in which they have a perfect liberty For what things I apprehend that I ought to do as my duty toward God or to forbear upon that account I can neither do the one nor forbear the other to avoid offending others the reason is because Charity as we say ought to begin at home every man or woman is obliged in the first place to attend and look after the Peace and eternal Salvation of his own Soul Obj. But you will say to me What shall we do in cases where we are under the command of Superiours to do things which yet we see we cannot do but we shall give occasion of offence to Christians not so well satisfied as we are Sol. I told you before that I apprehend this a very hard case The Law of God obligeth me to obey my Superiours it also commandeth me to give no offence to lay no stumbling block before my Brother and this Law concerneth Superiours as well as Inferiours As I ought not to do any such actions which probably may give occasion to my Brother to sin so no Superiours ought to command me to do any such things Superiours therefore unquestionably sin in making any such things the matters of their command But admit they will not do their duty still the question is what is mine I do not think the command of a Superior in this case can take hold of my conscience my reason is because his command in this case is contrary to the command of God who hath commanded him as well as me to give no offence to lay no stumbling block in the way of his Brother If he sinneth in the matter of his command I cannot sin in withholding my active obedience that is certain But if he will not be sensible of his duty nor only command but command under penalties that I though originally at liberty must do the thing or ruin my self and family this much narroweth the case Here now the question lyes Whether in a matter as to which I have originally a perfect liberty and so judge but through the iniquity of a Superiors command must either do or forbear this or that action or ruin my self and family and on the other side if I do do it or do forbear it I see I shall not only grieve my Brother but cause him to sin probably what is my duty Whether ought the contingency of my Brothers stumbling and sinning by my example to rule me and cause me rather to chuse the loss of all I must confess I do here a little hesitate My reason is because my Brothers fall is not necessitated by my action he ought to live by rule not by example to follow me no further then I follow Christ to allow me to live by my own faith while yet he lives and walks by his own faith That may be lawful to me which to him is not lawful because he doubteth and cannot see with my eyes Oh! how happy would the World be if Superiors would only press things which they apprehend necessary by a divine Precept I mean in relation to the things of God for in civil things Superiours are more absolute Judges and if in any thing they mistake and apprehend things such which indeed are not they would be very tender for that can be but in very few cases and if private Persons would learn not to judge others but in things where they see them act apertly and plainly against the will of God and not arrogate infallibility to themselves and others would learn not to be too positive upon their own apprehensions nor make others practice their rule but to live by their own faith But this is but a digression I say It is a good thing to fear sin and to fear Scandal I shall shut up this discourse with an Exhortation to Christians to make sin and Scandal the objects of their fear I shall not need to inlarge much upon the first it being the confessed duty of every one that owneth the name of a Christian or any relation to Jesus Christ He that feareth not what is plainly sinful feareth God in no sense he neither feareth the Lord and his greatness nor yet the Lord and his goodness I shall only tell you that he who feareth sin feareth the occasions and appearances of it But I shall rather press the exhortation with reference to Scandal calling upon you to take heed of any actions 1. Which may draw out the lusts and corruptions of other mens hearts to entertain any hard thoughts or use any hard speeches concerning Profession and Religion Now these are in the first place 1. All actions that are openly sinful this was that which stuck to David when he had
communion with Christ 1. Some will pretend to the Spirit as their rule They have an anointing they tell us which teacheth them all things and so pretend to follow the motions and impressions of the holy Spirit But there is no certainty in this pretended Rule for all Spirits are not of God The Spirit hath given us the Rule of the word for you heard before That all Scripture is given us by divine inspiration and that it is able to make the man of God wise to Salvation The Spirit teacheth nothing contrary to the Word The Word directs us to follow the footsteps of the Flock There can be no certainty in pretended impressions from the Spirit which are contrary to the Word of God no nor any security For all such pretences must Issue in the deceit of our own hearts we following our own lusts and imaginations in stead of the holy Spirit or which is worse the impressions of the evil Spirit Yet this is the rule of all Enthusiasts 2. Others call out to us to follow the Church the practice of the Church in all ages And indeed if they could make appear to us what that was they would say something but what certainty can there be in this rule while they that talk of it can neither make that Church appear to us nor yet what their practice was we know who were the Church in the Apostles age and we know what their practice was by the records of holy Writ but who the Church were and what their practice was in latter ages we cannot tell and by consequence there is no certainty in this rule we may follow the steps of the Synagogue of Sat an instead of the steps of the flock of Christ 3. The Papists call to us to follow Traditions and indeed for the Traditions delivered us by the Apostles we see reason to follow them and if they could by an unquestionable record make out any thing to us which had been received as an Vniversal Tradition of the Vniversal Church we should have a great respect and reverence for it but for unwritten Traditions which the Papists put into an equal ballance with the Word of God for Christians rule being as they pretend delivered as rules by the Apostles to the Church of God as we know no need we have of such so we have no certainty that any such things were ever so delivered and therefore can see no security in receiving them or giving any ear unto them 4. There is a 4th sort that in distresses are much for seeking God and walking according to the impressions we have upon such seeking this practice is founded upon an excellent bottom 1. A Precept for the owning and acknowledging of God in all our ways 2. A Promise that he will direct our steps Prov. 3. v. 6. Seeking of God at all times at such times especially is the great duty of Christians and if rightly done cannot be in vain but for the right performance of it a Christian must have respect both to the matter of his Prayer and also to the manner of it It is to the matter of our Prayers onely that I am here concerned to speak As to this our rule is that it must be something consonant to the will of God I mean his will revealed in his Word Hence it followeth 1. That when God hath revealed his will in his Word for or against a thing which we are about to do for us to seek God whether we should do it or no forbear it or no is to tempt and provoke God This is like Balaams going to inquire of God whether he should go with the Messengers of Balak after that God had plainly told him he should not go We ought to acquiesce in the determination of Gods will in his Word whether in the Precepts or the examples of the Servants of God recorded there and for things forbidden to avoid them for things commanded to do them here 's no place for seeking God as to the doing or forbearing so that although for things of this nature as to what God hath commanded us to do we may and ought to seek God for direction help and assistance in the doing of them And as to things forbidden we may seek God for strength to avoid them and all temptations to them yet we may not seek God whether we should do the things so commanded and forbear the things so forbidden yea or no. Such seeking of God is but asking leave to sin against him 2. In particular actions as to which Gods Word hath not particularly directed us it is our duty to seek God for direction and having first well considered the general rules of the Word of God if we find the action neither commanded nor forbidden according to them we may for ought I know attend the impressions we find upon our Spirits after such sincere and serious seeking of God And take them to be the will of God concerning us as to such actions But this is but a digression from my subject This is enough to shew you there is no such security or certainty in any direction we can have as in following the footsteps of the flock of Christ the prints of whose feet we find in the Word of God 2. It is as reasonable that we should feed by the Shepherds Tents that is attend upon Divine institutions if we would enjoy any fellowship and communion with God for it is unreasonable to expect the influences of Divine Grace in any way but such only as God hath promised he will give them in much less in the neglect or contempt of any such means as he hath appointed The promise is Exod. 20. 24. In all places where I record my name I will come unto thee and bless thee Our communion with God depends upon his coming to us and blessing us Where God will come unto us and bless us there we may there we shall have communion with him Now where will God come unto us and bless us In all places where he recordeth his Name to dwell what doth that signify but in all his sacred ordinances and institutions Conformable to this is his promise in the New Testament Mat. 18. 20. Where two or three are gathered together in my name that is at my command or by my order there am I in the midst amongst them and to his Ministers his promise is made Mat. 28. 19 Go you therefore and teach all Nations Baptizing them in the Name of the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you and loe I am with you alway to the end of the world Where can we expect communion with God but where he hath promised to be with his People to meet them and to bless them Observe from hence how unreasonable they are that talk of a communion with God or expect any such thing who make not the Word of God a light to their Feet who go not
see your good works Shew me thy saith by thy works faith James Faith without works is dead It were endless to reckon up the several Texts of Scripture by which God hath directed the Government of our Tongues our Eyes our Ears our Hands our Feet In short the several Precepts for good works are all proofs of this 2. It must be so if we consider what influence the heart and will affections have upon our whole outward man commanding all the outward members out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh from the dictates of the heart the Eye looketh the hand moveth the mouth speaketh the Feet turn this or that way So that if the Tree be good the fruit must be good also the Fig-tree brings not forth thistles nor the Vine thorns A naughty tongue eye hand foot is a certain indication of a corrupt and naughty heart 3. The â—â—liever is made conformable to Christ He went up and down doing good finishing the work which his Father had given him to do glorifying his Father on Earth doing his will manifesting his name no guile was found in his mouth no iniquity in his hand No iniquity towards God no unrighteousness towards men 4. See the Patterns of holy men upon Scriptural record Abraham and David all the holy Servants of God you will find their holiness did not lye only in the obedience of their heart but of their whole external converse a strict walking with God in obedience to his will 5. Observe the promises of God they are not onely made to Faith and Love and the more inward habits of the mind but to external acts such as Prayer hearing the Word Sanctification of the Sabbath shewing mercy to the poor doing justly walking righteously 6. The descriptions of holy men also make out this They are described to be men fearing God and eschewing evil walking in the Commandments of God Working righteousness all which expressions signify that a believer must not only be internally holy but externally so also Lastly the end which they serve shews also a necessity of it they are lights to inlighten the World and therefore they must not be hid under bushels They are Salt to season the World and therefore must be exposed to their use their end is to glorify God before men which cannot be without an external as well as an internal holiness thus the first thing appeareth I have passed over these things easy enough to have been extended into a much larger discourse Because it is a point so exceeding obvious and indeed agreed by all men The 2d thing is that holiness is a believers beauty it is so in the Eyes of Christ which is here spoken of Nor is this of any thing more difficult demonstration then the other What is that which we call beauty but an amiable external appearance of a Person arising from a Symmetry of parts a due mixture and Proportion of colours in conformity to some Original Pattern or Idea A Christians Original Pattern is God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be you holy at your Heavenly Father is holy As I am holy saith the holy Writ What can be a Christians beauty but his conformity to God and that amiableness which ariseth from that All Spiritual beauty is to be measured from the symmetry of the Soul to the divine law That which makes the Soul amiable to God and to all those who are like God This is holiness But I shall sum up all in some few Words of application I shall first observe from hence two or three Corollaries for our instruction then close all with a few words of exhortation Observe then That it is not enough for one that owneth the name of a believer to glory in a good inside There goeth a good outside as well as a good inside to make up a good Christian There are 2 Sorts of hypocrites and I am at loss with my self to determine which is worst The first sort glory in appearance but not in reality The Pharisees were of this Sort they were painted Sepulchers they made clean the outside of the platter of this Sort are men that pretend much to acts of devotion praying fasting hearing and acts of righteousness toward men and perhaps charity but are without any true faith in God or love to God full of malice and envy and cruelty and covetousness these are Pharisaical Hypocrites The 2d are such as will pretend to a good inside but they have a bad outside These men bite and devour their brethren lye and cheat and defraud and oppress neglect duties of Religion c. And yet tell you they have a good heart they have faith in God Love to God c. Thou Hypocrite shew me thy faith by thy works thy pretended Love to God by thy keeping his commandments Truly of the two these are the worst they pretend to holiness but which way will you look for it What notion of holiness have these men taken up Will you look for it in their conscientious constant attendance upon duties of publick Worship there you see their places empty or if they be filled observe their behaviour they are prating or sleeping or sporting or with their Eyes compassing the whole congregation Will you look for it in their private families There it may be you may hear the voice of Cursing or Swearing or reviling but the voice of Praying of reading the Word of those that sing praise unto God is seldom or never heard in their Houses Will you look for their holiness in their behaviour toward men you shall there find neither Justice nor Charity cheating defrauding Oppression cruelty hard-hearted behaviour c. Yet they will tell you they have good hearts Either now these men have Souls not like other mens Souls that have no command of their tongues and hands c. Or else they speak falsely I say these are of all others the Vilest Hypoerites 1. Because they have nothing good the first mentioned do some good things materially good they read fast pray walk justly give alms But these wretches have nothing do nothing at all that is good There is nothing good in their lives and that assureth us there 's nothing good in their hearts 2. These men do much more hurt then others do these are they that cause the name of God to be Blaâ—â—â—emed and evil spoken of Brethren be not deceived they are fifty men that you can impose upon but you cannot impose upon that God who searcheth the heart tryeth the reins Let none be deceived by the pretences of these Hypocrites The Spouse of Christ hath beautifull Cheeks and a beautiful Neck as well as a beautiful inside her Cheeks are comely betwixt rows of Jewels She hath a Chain of gold upon her Neck The laws and instructions of her Heavenly Father are an Ornament to her head and a Chain upon her Neck She durst not before men dishonour God Let this be the first
The necessities of their families being first provided for is spent on these things 2. The difference between habits for distinction of Persons in magistracy and habits for vanity where there is no such distinction 3. The time that is spent in the dressing up worms in this manner 4. The proneness of our hearts to value our selves upon these accoutrements I cannot but think that there is more forbidden in those Texts then that Christians should look upon these as their only or Principal Ornaments Especially when I also consider that as God in the old Testament forbad his People the habits of Heathens So he hath commanded his People Rom. 12. 2. Not to be conformed to this World Rom. 12. 2. 3. Thirdly Consider the sinfulness of some of these things Where these adornings are beyond the quality of Persons and beyond what their estates will bear in consistency with that Proportion of good works which God requireth of them where they are temptations to draw out the lusts of others Where they are offences and Scandals to such as fear God they are doubtless â—inful Cyprian in his Book de Virginum disciplina hath several arguments against the new arts of the World for Ornaments especially that of painting God saith he made us after his own Image it is the Devil who maketh the alteration O the vile presumption of those who dare attempt to alter the workmanship of God! Art not thou afraid saith he that God in the resurrection should not own thee and say opus meum hoc non est This is none of my workmanship Again saith he is not this poor wretch alwaies a torment to her self She hath her Eyes alwaies in her glass and is never pleased with her self Consider lastly how inconsistent these things are with that Ministring to the necessity of Saints That richness in good works that mortification The declaration of our sense of Gods dispensations to us which are the duties of Christians God requires that we should labour with our hands that we may have to give to him that needeth Eph. 4. 28. And should not we think you leave off a Silk garment or a little Silver or Gold lace a Ring a Jewel a costly dress that we might have more abundantly to give to those that need Are you rich in the World and will your estate bear such expences and hath not God charged such 1 Tim. 6. 18. To do good to be rich in good works ready to distribute willing to Communicate laying up in store for your selves a good foundation against the time to come that you may lay hold on Eternal life Can you be rich in clothes and habits and rich in good works also If you could doth not the Apostle tell you That those who are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts thereof Gal. 5. 24. Is this your crucifixion of the flesh with its affections and lusts What is a gratifying and pleasing the flesh what is a making provision for the affections and lusts of it if this be not To what other use or end can these things be Doth adorning our selves with Jewels and Silks and Ribbands patchings and paintings speak a mortified heart to the World a Crucified heart to the flesh They speak nothing less then this surely they speak flesh that is wanton and proud and puffed up It is the Observation of a learned Author That heretofore Christians wounded their flesh for mortification we wound it for pride folly and vanity the Ears are boared to hang Jewels in But how much better is that boaring of the Ear mentioned Psal 40. 6. A boaring of the E ars in Testimony that we will be the Lords Servants for ever Besides look throughout all the Scripture you shall find Gods People conformed their habits to Gods dispensations towards them This was done by Gods direction Exod. 33. 5. I will come up saith God into the midst of you in a moment and consume you therefore now put off thy Ornaments from thee that I may know what to do unto thee They did so v. 6. Accordingly you shall observe Gods People all along in holy Writ under sad dispensations putting on Sackclot h throwing ashes on their heads rending their garments Behold faith God to â—â—ruâ—h Jer. 45. 4. What I have built I will break down and that which I have planted I will plack up even this whole land And seekest thou great things for thy self seek them not I beseech you look about see what God looks as if he were doing with us doth not he look as if he would come into the midst of us in a moment and consume us As if he would strip us all naked and make us all bare Is this a time to seek fine and gay things for our selves How little do we consider what God is about to do in all appearance in the midst of us 2. Secondly Study holiness If you will look after beauty study the true the inward beauty that which commendeth the Soul to God your labour for the other many times destroys your Souls it consumes the time which should be spent in reading in praying fasting It devours your estates which should be spent in good works The beauty vain Persons labour for is but Jezebels beauty study the beauty of Sarah of which you read in 1 Pet. 3. 5. The Ornaments with which holy Women of old adorned themselves Ornaments which become such as do not profess Pride and vanity but Godliness Put Christs Chains about your Necks his rows upon your Cheeks The Pharisees prided themselves in their Phylatteries They did ill to adorn themselves with those Scrowls of the law in their Skirts while they lived not up to the rule and true sense of it in their lives but there are no such rows of Jewels as those of Gods Precepts 3. Lastly with which I shall conclude this discourse Satisfy not your selves with dreams and fancies of meer inward Spiritual beauty I again tell you it must be a counterfeit There may be an external appearing beauty without any inward beauty but that is but a counterfeit there can be no inward beauty without an external beauty Faith and Love too must be shewed by works where holiness to the Lord is ingraven in any man or Womans heart it will also be written to use the phrase of the Prophet Zechariah Ch. 14. 20. upon the very bells of the Horses yea every pot in Hierusalem shall be holiness to the Lord. We have a great cry of Religion and for Religion in these days We hear a bundance talking as if there were no Saints in the World but themselves but wherein doth their Religion lye In a fine tongue they can as Luther said Crepare Christum make a crack and boast of Christ But where are the rows of Jewels upon their Cheeks The Chains of Gold about their Necks Where is their strict and consciencious waiting upon God in Ordinances Where 's the fear of God to be seen in
their lives These times make me often to think of that saying of Hierom Grande est Christianum esse non dici To be a Christian that is a great and difficult thing to be called so that is a poor and mean and very easy thing Look abroad and see how few serious and uniform Christians are to be found in the World how few who in any measure answer that great name by any severity of life and conversation If Luxuriousness in meats and drinks if excess in apparel and dresses if griping the poor if cruelty towards Persons in distress and oppression and covetousness and adding house to house speak Christians we have too much of these things even amongst Professors But if a true believer must shew forth his faith by works of piety towards God and works of righteousness and charity towards men if they must abound in good works and their light must shine before men so as they may see their good works and glorify their Father which is in Heaven how small is the number of Christians in this age wherein there is so much talk of it We must say of many Professors to Religion as once Isaac said of Jacob Gen. 27. 22. The voice is Jacobs voice but the hands are Esaus hands There are many whose voice indeed is Jacobs voice they talk like Saints O but their hands are Esau's hands Let them come unto you that you may feel them Their habits are Esau's habit they eat and drink like Esau they deal in the World like Esau They are Virgins upward beasts downward monsters in Religion Oh let not this be any of your Character Know it to be your duty as much to abound in Prayer hearing fasting exercises of repentance and mortification as others make it their vanity to abound in good words costly apparel in Pride and Luxury You must have Christs rows upon your Cheeks his Chains about your Necks I shall conclude with that of the Apostle to the Philippians Philip. 4. 8. 9. Finally Brethren whatsoever things are true whatsoever things are honest whatsoever things are just whatsoever things are pure whatsoever things are lovely whatsoever things are of good report if there be any vertue and if there be any praise think on these things These things which you have both learned and received and heard and seen in me do And the God of peace shall be with you Sermon L. Canticles 1. 11. We will make thee Borders of Gold with Studs of Silver THE Chaldee Paraphrast out of his unreasonable fondness to make this whole Song to be nothing else but a discourse betwixt God and the Congregation of Israel thus glosseth upon these words It was then said unto Moses go up to the firmament and I will give thee there two Tables of stone cut out of the Sapphire of the throne of Glory shining like the best Gold ordered with lines written with my own Fingers in which are ingraven the Ten commandments which are more pure then Silver purified seven times c. I should hardly mention this ancient Jewish Paraphrast so often but to convince the Atheistical Spirits of latter ages that the Jews did not understand this excellent Song as a meer wanton Love Song between Solomon and the Daughter of Pharaoh Neither did Gregory Nyssen Gregory the great nor Bernard who with others of the Ancients have wrote Commentaries upon it so understand it though they agreed not with this Paraphrast concerning the Persons in it The Paraphrast you see makes the law given on mount Sinai to be the Borders of Gold and studs of Silver I am not much satisfied with the translation of the words by our interpreters because I find no other Interpreters agreeing with them The 70 interpreters who are followed by those who made the Arabick Version interpret it images or pictures The Syriack Interpreters translate it Chains Arias Montanus and the Vulgar Latine translate it Collars Junius and Tremellius translate it Golden threds Pagnine translateth it Golden Jewels Besides the word here used is the same with a small alteration of the form which we had in the foregoing Verse and there we translated it Rows why we should here translate it Borders I cannot tell I think the Tigurine Version translateth it best They translate it Ornament a convenientia Convenient Ornaments It is certain the word signifieth some such Ornaments as Women used in those times and Countries Ornaments differ both in several Countries and in several Ages in the same Country so that it is no wonder if Interpreters are at a loss so many hundreds of years since exactly to translate words signifying things so variable after such a distance of time and in another country The more general translation of Ornaments suitable Ornaments is doubtless the best I am as little satisfyed with the translation of the other word studs others translate it Points the Sepeuagint 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 marks It is granted by all that the word is derived from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifyeth to point This word is not that I can find used any where in holy Writ except in this Text â—and Gen. 30. 31. in those chapters it signifyedâ— the spots which were upon the lambs after the sheep had conceived upon the sight of the pilled and straked rods which Jacob had laid before them in the troughs The Dutch translators interpret the Term Buttons or knobs of Silver doubtless the truest translation were with Badges or spots of Silver Mercer faith the Phrase doth signify the highest and most excellent Ornaments But the difference about the words maketh no difference in Interpreters as to the sense so that it is but a light difference The sense is we will give thee yet more and more excellent Ornaments Let me only note to you four or five things which will much conduce to clear up the sense and lead us to that Proposition of truth and point in Divinity which the Text holds forth 1. I conceive first That you will all here understand a Metaphor drawn from Women who delight much in Ornaments of Gold and Silver and other precious things Christ here speaketh to his Spouse as to a delicate Woman which Loves such Ornaments and promiseth her such My Spouse faith Christ shall have her Ornaments too answerable to though infinitely excelling Ornaments of Gold and Silver Most excellent Ornaments tho Spiritual and of a far other Nature 2. He had before said That her Cheeks were comely between the Rows of Jewels and her Neck with Chains of Gold she was richly adorned but saith Christ she shall have more also Habenti daâ—itâ—â— To her that hath shall be given and she shall have more abundantly I will not cease to adorn her 3. Thirdly He doth not say Thou shalt buy thee Borders of Gold with thy mony No not yet I will give the some mony which thou shalt improve and with the improvement buy thee more Grace is not merited Nor is the first grace given
to the King There 's no Faith in Christ nor pure Love to God and Christ to be got at Athens Flesh and Blood will not convey these things into a Soul Lastly Observe how the whole Trinity is concerned in the dispensations of grace It is the note of the Learned Mercer That the Mystery of the Trinity is here held out to us in the Plural Verb 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I touched upon this before though indeed the works of the Trinity within it self be divided The Father begetteth and is not begotten The Son is begotten but doth not beget The Holy Ghost proceedeth from both and doth neither beget nor is begotten and although to denote the order of working in the holy Trinity Creation is made the work of the Father Redemption the work of the Son and Sanctification the work of the Holy Spirit yet it is most certain that all the works of the Trinity out of it self are individed what one person doth all do All that grace of which the Believer is made partaker floweth from the whole Trinity it is from the Father through the merits of the Son and by the Holy Ghost In the second place Will Christ go on in giving to his Saints more grace Let not then those of little Faith be discouraged Let not those that are strong despise the weak nor those who are weak be discouraged and despond in themselves If the Child of God hath Faith but as a grain of Mustard seed it shall increase If it hath but a stock of grace like the Widdows Meal in the Barrel and Oil in the Cruise yet the Meal shall not fail from the Barrel nor the Oil from the Cruise If the Child of a rich and indulgent Parent be despised by another that hath finer Clothes and richer Ornaments than the Wisdom of its Parent thinks fit at present to allow it it will comfort its self that its Father is able to do as much for it that he wants no love to prompt him to it that it hath a large Inheritance that is made sure unto it Shall not the Child of God thus comfort himself from its hopes of glory though it as yet hath but a small earnest of it from that fulness of grace which is in Christ He shall be holden up saith the Apostle speaking of the weak Brethren for God is able to make him stand Rom. 14. 4. And from that readiness that is in Christ and his Promise to give to him that hath so that he shall have more abundantly from the Promise of Christ to the Soul whose cheeks are already comely with Rows of Jewels and Chains of Gold that he will make for it Borders of Gold with spots or badges or studs of Silver Let true grace in the Soul be never so faint and weak it is the Seed of God it shall abide yea it shall grow and increase Hypocrisie is alwaies withering the Hypocrite groweth worse and worse his fair shews and appearances daily decay but true grace is alwaies growing Christ is alwaies adding to it And indeed this is one thing which distinguisheth a sincerity and truth of grace from all the counterfeits of it A Child of God is alwaies growing better and better the Lord is adding to his spiritual habits Wicked men and Hypocrites are growing worse and worse In the last place This Notion calls to all the People of God 1. For an admiration of the Love of God towards them what a God do we serve what a Saviour what a Friend what a Beloved hath every Soul whose Soul sincerely loveth the Lord Jesus Christ The Beloved of your Souls is not like anothers Beloved in himself he is not he is the chiefest of ten thousand he is altogether desires He is not to you as anothers Beloved he is unweariable in his acts of grace and dispensations of goodness Are there any Souls here whose iniquities are forgiven whose sins are covered whose Souls are regenerated renewed through the Sanctification of the Spirit might not these Souls go into their Closets with David and sit down and say Who are we O Lord God! and what were our Souls that the Lord should bring us hitherto that God should wash our Souls white in the Blood of the Lamb and give us another Spirit than we had by Nature a new Heart a new Nature that he should make us partakers of the Divine Nature But this was yet a small thing in the sight of God he hath spoken also of his Servants for a great while yet to come he hath spoken of more grace of making for us Borders of Gold with Badges of Silver A faithful man shall abound with blessings The beginnings of saving grace in the Soul in the Justification of the Soul and the first change and renovation of our Natures are blessings of that nature as Eternity will be too short a time to admire the Love of God in and for but will the Lord also add to his Servants stock and increase their heap will he be still making and preparing new Ornaments for them and giving further grace to them till all their wants shall be supplied all their emptinesses filled up what manner of Love is this Let our Souls be swallowed up in the admiration of this Love Let our Souls and all that is within us bless his holy Name 2. How doth this Notion call to us for all manner of holiness Holiness lyeth in two things 1. The mortification of lusts and sinful habits with the eschewing and declining of sinful acts which are the fruit of those trees 2. The exercises of Godliness Let me shortly press both from this notion of out beloved's being preparing still and making for us Chains of Gold and spots of Silver I will begin with the 2d 1. The exercises of our selves unto Godliness in all those positive duties which God requireth of us Whether they may be more internal such as faith hope Love or more external in our more external communion with God in Prayer reading hearing his word receiving his holy Sacrament Or in our conversation before and towards men I shall press these from this notion upon a twofold consideration 1. These exercises are the way to keep Christ still at work making for us these further Ornaments 2. They are the wearing and using of these Ornaments I say first these exercises will keep our Lords hand continually at work so as he will never be weary but be still adding to our Ornaments of grace I have had occasion often in my former discourses to hint to you that although God be ingaged by his covenant and faithfulness to bring the Souls of believers to glory and consequently to give out to them such necessary supplies of grace as shall make them meet for that inheritance yet he is at liberty as to the gradual manifestations of his grace to dispense them according to his own infinite wisdom and his Peoples behaviour toward him And the promises of that
night betwixt my breasts There are two Propositions which I named from these words and which yet remain to be discoursed 1. That the believing Soul is wonderfully desirous of Christ's abiding with it 2. That to engage him to such an abode she will allow him a room betwixt her breasts The latter will be a proof to the former come in collaterally while I handle the former Prop. That a gracious heart will be exceeding desirous of Christ's abiding with it I shall speak to this Proposition in this Method 1. Shewing you what are those lodgings and abidings of Christ with and upon the Soul of which the gracious heart is so exceedingly desirous 2. How it doth appear that a believing Soul is so fond of Christ's abidings with it 3 Whence it is that she is thus exceeding fond of Christ's lodgings and abidings with it 4. I shall apply the whole Qu. 1. What is to be understood by the lodging or abiding of Christ with the Soul You read in Scripture of Christ's abiding with the Soul and the Soul 's abiding with Christ The first is mentioned as our priviledge the second as our duty Of the first you read John 14. 23. My Father and I will come unto him and we will make our abode with him Of the second John 15. 6. If a man aâ—ide not in me he is cut off c. So again v. 6. each depending upon the other for it is God's Covenant I will never depart from you to do you good and I will put my fear into your hearts that you shall never depart from me Abiding or lodging in the primary Notion signifieth the continuance of some corporeal presence transferred to spiritual things it signifies The continuance of a priviledge or perseverance in a duty Christ's abode with us signifies the first our abiding with him signifies the latter each of them expressed in Scripture by various expressions Christ's abiding with us is expressed John 14. 16. By the abidings of the Comforter by the abiding of the anointing Oil 1 Joh. 2. 26. It is opposed to the momentany and short refreshings of grace when to use that other phrase of Scripture God is to the Soul but as a wayfaring man that tarries but for a night Our abidings with and in Christ are also variously expressed by the abidings of that in us which we have received 1. Joh. 2. 24. by abiding in light 1 Joh. 2. 10. and the Word of God abiding in us v. 14. by abiding in the Doctrine of Christ Joh. 2. ep v. 9. But I have nothing to do save only with the former Notion In short The abidings of Christ with the Soul import two things 1. The permanency of his Union with the Soul continuing the state of Justification 1 Joh. 3. 24. Hereby we know he abideth in us by the Spirit which he hath given to us 2. The constancy of his gracious Influences upon us which Joh. 14. v. 21. he calls A manifesting of himself unto us and v. 22. his abode with us This is also the abiding of the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Comforter mentioned v. 16. This is the lodging of Christ betwixt the Soul's breasts This it is of which the gracious Soul is so exceeding fond and covetous And so much shall serve for the first Question I come to the second Qu. 2. How doth it appear that a gracious Soul is so desirous of Christ's abidings with it There are three waies by which the Earnest desire of our friends abode with us are discernable to others 1. By Verbal Expressions 2. Real Actions 3. Vehement Passions By all these the believing Soul's desires that Christ should lodge with it have been and are discernable 1. Verbal Expressions before the World was so far debaucht as now that none knows by the Index of the Tongue what the Clock strikes in the heart were sufficient Evidences of cordial desires The Children of God cannot lye unto him we may therefore from their words conclude still If you look upon the Saints or Church in former times see what the Church saith Jer. 14. 8. O thou hope of Israel the Saviour thereof in times of trouble why shouldest thou be as a stranger in the Land as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night The expressions of David in the Psalms this way are very many this is it which he means by the lifting up of God's Countenance upon him which he so passionately desires above Corn Wine and Oil Psal 4. for which he prefers the place of a door-keeper in the house of God before dwelling in the Tents of wickedness Psal 84. Indeed if you look upon the whole sum of the desires both of David and other Saints who stand upon sacred Record you will find that as to spiritual things all their desires are comprehended in this one that God would abide with them lodge all night betwixt their breasts And the same Spirit yet breatheth in the Souls of all that fear the Lord. I need do no more for the proof of this than appeal to the experience of all such who have in the least degree tasted how good the Lord is what 's the sum of all their prayers what 's their language to one another and to all the Ministers of God to whom at any time they address themselves but oh that they might find the Abidings of the Comforter with their Souls the abidings of the strengthening and quickening Spirit of God with them Oh that Christ would not be as a stranger in their Souls nor as a wayfaring man that turneth in to their Souls for a night 2. The Earnest desires of gracious Souls for the abidings of Christ with them are evident also upon the consideration of what they will be ready to do for the continuance of them This is in part hinted in the Text He shall lodge or stay or lie all night betwixt my breasts which metaphorical expression signifies by interpretation these two things 1. I will deny him nothing which he shall desire of me so I may but keep his company 2. I will entertain him with the highest demonstrations of cordial Affection 1. I will deny him nothing which he shall desire of me The Mother will deny nothing to that Child nor the Wife to that Husband which either of them allow to lodge betwixt their breasts The believing Soul will deny Christ nothing so it may keep his presence with her Will he have the man do for him Lord saith Paul Act. 9. 6. What wilt thou have me to do Will he have the man to die for him I am ready saith Paul Act. 21. 11. not to be bound only but also to die at Jerusalem for the Name of the Lord JÄ—sus Will he have it deny it self distribute and give to the poor make satisfaction where he hath done injury No sooner is Zacheus told that Christ was come to his house but he cries Luk. 19. 5 8. Lord the half of my goods I
p. 886. l. 36. r. not exclusive p. 888. l. 19. r. were added p. 901. l. 3. r. verbum audibile p. 903. l. 34. r. which is pleasant AN Alphabetical TABLE Containing Directions to find the Principal things opened and discoursed in the Book A. A Biding of Christ with the Soul and the Soul with Christ what it signifies 799 800. The Souls advantages by it 804 805. How Christs abidings with the Soul may fail 805 806. How to know if we be willing that Christ should abide with us 806 807. Adam's state and ours how different what power he had 276 277. Afflictions the lot of Christ and of the believing Soul 536 537. Whence they are so How they make Christs Spouse black 539 540 541. What use we ought to make of it 542 543. Arminians Opinion of grace with the absurdities of it 263 264 265 266 267 268. B. BEauty of believers of what Nature 638 639 640. Whence it is 657 658. How it renders them to Christ lovely 642 643. what use to make of it 648 649 650. Beauty of Christ in what it excelleth the beauty of Saints 852 853 854. Beams and rafters of Christs house what why of Cedar and fir 890 892 893. Bed of Christ what 870 871. Behold what it signifieth 832 833. Believers thirst after distinguisâ—â—ing â—ercies 59. Whence it is 61 62 63. Arguments to 〈◊〉 it 64 65 66. Their thirst after all manifestations of grace and â—hy 83 84. Arguments persuading â—ach a thâ—â—st 90 91. 〈…〉 93 94. Their thirst after Christ in his word and Ordinances especially in the Gospel and the teachings of his Spirit 95 96 97. Their earnest desire after communion with Christ 136 137 138. Why 138 139. Their duty in the Noon of trials 618 619 620. Their more special need of the presence of Christ at such a time and why 622 623. What use they should make of that 624 625. They may be at loss sometimes how to maintain Communion with Christ 653 654 655 656. Blackness of Christs Spouse what and whence 465 466. Breasts of Christ what they import or signifie 47. 48. C. CAmphire or Copher what 811 812. Causes of Persons not coming to Christ 285 286 287. Chambers of Christ what 172 173 174. Chains about the Spouses neck what 721. Christ the Souls beloved 598 599. What are his feeding and resting places for his flock at noon 615 616 617. How the Spouses companion fellow and friend 687 688 689. 691 692 What duty ariseth from those notions of Christ 698 6â—9 How he is beautiful transcendently 852 853. How he is to be used as a bundle of myrrh 79â— 796 797. Why he is the peculiar object of the Spouses love 816 817 818. How he is fair 852 853. How he is pleasant 861 862 863. How he is the cause of the Spouses fruitfulness 870 871. Cheeks of the Spouse what they sign sie 717 718. Cedar or Cypress famous for what 884. Church of Christ what how it is Christs and the believers house 885 886 887 What this speaks of dignity or duty 888 889 890. Communion with God what 106 107. In his word how many ways 94. why desirable by believers 97 98 99. The nature of more external communion with God in his word and of more internal communion with God by his word and Spirit 107 108 109 Why believers cannot be satisfied in a more external communion with God 118 119 120. What Châ—istians should do that they may have such communion 129 130 131. Where Christians may have the freest communion with Christ 606 607. In what the Julness and freedom of a Souls communion with God lyeth 609 610. What may be done by us to obtain or maintain it 612 613 666 667. Comeliness of the Spouse what 470. How she is comely in her blackness and in whose Eyes she is so 472 473. Whence it is 473 474 475. Confession of sins to be made to whom and in what cases 494 495. Before men in what cases 497 498. Whence the Spouse is so free to it 501 502 503. Directions as to it 504 405 506. Conflicts of Christians with their lusts 550 551. Of the Church with corrâ—pt members make Christians appear black 552 553. Reasons of it 553 554 555. Conversation of Christians must be holy 721 722. D. DAnger of thinking we have our life in our hands 305 306. Defires the true object of them 176 177. What desires will evidence a truth of grace 182 183 184. Of Christs abiding with us how manifested 800. Drawing what it signifieth how many ways God draweth us 251 252 253. A powerful drawing necessary to conversion 255 256 257. The Nature of Gods drawing 257 258. Why necessary 260 261 262. The absurdity of those who deny any need of such powerful influence of God 265 266 267 268. How such powerful influences may be promoved or hindred 311 312 313. What may draw men to some degrees of reformation who yet are not drawn to Christ 313 314. Gods drawing of some is a means to make others run 333 334 335 336. Drunkards reflected on as preferring wine before Christs Loves Doubting a term or phrase what it signifieth 834 835. Doves Eyes What the commendable qualities of them are 837 838 839. why the Spouse is said to have them 839 840. Persons persuaded to get Dovos Eyes 845 846 847. E. ENgedi what it signifies 810 811. Eyes of the Spouse of Christ why they are commended 835 836. F. FAith saving what 292 293. How it worketh in Prayer 349 350. Flock why the Church is compared to it what that flock of Christ which the Spouse of Christ is obliged to follow the footsteps of 671 672 673 668 669. Folly of resisting vexing or quenching or grieving the holy Spirit 271 272 273. Fortitude in Christians how distinguishable from a natural stomack and a moral courage 705 706. Means to promove it 709. Arguments to persuade it 710 711 712. Fruitfulness of a Church or a particular Soul floweth from Christs conjunction with and influence upon it proved 871 872 873. what use to make of it 879 880. G. GRace of God what various several distinctions of it 81 82 83. All the Emanations of it desired by believers 83 84. why 85 86. Graces of Christ what and in what respects like to good Ointments 201 202 203. The Nature of special saving grace as in its operation powerful and yet sweet 280 281. Grace to be owned to others and in what cases and to whom and in what cases 508 509 510. The reasonableness of it 512 513. Christians persuaded to it directed in it 514 515 516 517. more grace to whom given 732 733 734. Grace in the Soul gives a smell what contributes to its smell 750 751 75â— 753. It s smell much dependeth upon Christs presence with the Soul 761 762. Greenness of Christs bed what it signifieth 874 875. H. HIerusalem what 456 457. Holiness mistakes about it 297 298. How distinguished from mere moral vertue 298.
work thou gavest me to do Christ and his Disciples have in the general one and the same work to glorifie God Though if we come to speak of the particular actions by which God is glorified by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Believer there is a great deal of difference Christ glorified his Father by performance of the acts of our Redemption according to his Fathers Will we by those good works which he hath commanded yet in the general scope viz. the glorifying of God and the more general mean by which this general End is attained viz. obedience to the Will of God they are both the same Christ glorified his Father by obedience to his Will The Child of God glorifieth God by obedience to his Will both of them glorified God by the praedication of his Name by praising him c. Christ took upon him the form of a Servant and became obedient Phil. 2. 7 8. The Child of God is by Birth a Servant and by Covenant a Servant there is that difference betwixt them but they are both Servants both obedient to the Will of God and both by that obedience serve the great End of glorifying God which justifieth the Notion though the Acts of their obedience differ according to their several spheres and stations In a great Family you know they are all fellow-servants though some of them have a more some a less noble Imployment 3. Christ is their Fellow-worker their Fellow-helper not only with reference to the Father as they both work to the same End and by the same general Means viz. obedience to the Will of God but as he worketh in them and excites their habits of grace and strengtheneth them in the exercise of them Phil. 4. 13. I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me Phil. 4. 13. Without me you can do nothing Joh. 15. 3. His Spirit helpeth our infirmities Rom. 8. 26. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it lifts over against them The Child of God without the presence and assistance of Christ cannot pray a prayer nor hear a Sermon nor perform any spiritual duty so as that Christ is not only to the Believer a Fellow labourer and Fellow-servant doing the same work that they do or at least having done the same work but he is their Fellow-helper as to all their own spiritual Motions and Actions 4. You in holy Scripture read of a Fellow-Prisoner Aristarchus and Epaphras are both of them called Paul's Fellow-prisoners Coloss 4. 14. You read also of a Fellow-Souldier Philip. 2. v. 25. Philemon 2. This Notion signifieth one that is a Partner and Fellow to another in Conflicts Combates c. a common Partnership in hazards and sufferings In this sense our Lord properly calleth his Spouse the Believing Soul his Fellow He fought and overcame the same Enemies with whom they daily fight The Christian hath three great Enemies the World the Flesh and the Devil It is true Christ had none of the second to incounter he was born without sin he lived without sin he had no body of death But yet he had to die for our sins all our sins were set in Battel Array against him they were those which nailed him to the Cross but he conquered and declared his Conquest by his Resurrection from the dead The World is our Enemy one of those Enemies against which we are to maintain the Spiritual Fight It was also his Enemy he fought against it and overcame it Joh. 16. 33. Be of good cheer I have overcome the World The Devil is another of our great Enemies against whom we are commanded to put on the whole Armour of God Christ overcame him also Heb. 2. 14 15. Through death he destroyed him who had the power of death even the Devil And the same Apostle in the same Epistle tells us that he was therefore tempted that he might be able to succour those that are tempted The Apostle mentioneth Christ in this Notion when he calleth him The Captain of our Salvation It is long since that he let his People know by his Prophet Isaiah that In all their afflictions he was afflicted He took himself concerned in the persecution of his Church and therefore calleth from Heaven Saul Saul why persecutest thou me Indeed it is not easie to determine what kind of Sympathy the most perfect Nature of Christ is capable of but that he is their Fellow-sufferer the Scripture plainly determineth Thus you see that it is not in a complement that Jesus Christ speaking to his Saints speaks to them in this dialect Thou that art my Fellow But our Translation reads it O my Love and the word as I before shewed you is also so translated properly enough A Friend hath this name in the Hebrew because he is alwaies the companion and associate of his correlated Friend Hence we translate it My Loves and conformably to this our Lord speaketh Joh. 15. 14. You are my Friends if you do whatsoever I have commanded you And again v. 15. Henceforth I call you not Servants I call you Friends Let us a little inquire how Christ approveth himself a Believers Friend Friendship speaketh 4 things 1. Love 2. Free and ingenuous love 3. Mutual and reciprocal Love 4. Mutual communion and converse each with other 1. It Speaketh Love Amicus ab amando This is so obvious to every one that either understandeth any thing of the Revelation or History of holy Writ that it will need very few words to demonstrate Besides the frequent friendly compellations which Christ hath given his People whoso considereth his conjuction with his Father in the Eternal Purposes for their Salvation and all those means by which they are made meet for the inheritance of the Saints in light his concern in the Eternal Covenant of Redemption and of Grace in which he became a Surety for them his taking upon him humane Nature walking up and down in our flesh Dying upon the Cross for us sinners his resurrection from the dead for their justification his ascending up into Heaven and giving Gifts unto men Pastors and Teachers for the perfecting of the Saints his sending his Spirit to convince the World of sin righteousness and Judgment his daily influence upon his People strengthening quickening and comforting of them his being their advocate with the Father in case both of Sins and duties his passionate expressions while he was on the Earth for the conversion of Souls his intreating them by his Ministers as his Embassadors that they would be reconciled to God the charge that he hath given the World against offending them his declarations of his coming to judge the World to render tribulation to them that trouble them and to them Rest and Peace I say he that considereth any of these things much less all of them together must say that he loved them with an Everlasting unchangeable Love alone suted to all the necessities of his poor Creatures and that he hath willed them good sutable to all
their Evils 2. Secondly Friendship speaketh free and ingenuous Love Not the Love of a Child to a Father which is Natural to which he is obliged by a filial duty because of his Fathers care of and provision for him not the Love of a Servant which is purchased by a kind usage and dependance A friend loveth freely The Love of true Friends is ordinarily an inaccountable thing They love one another and can hardly give one another an account of it further than a goodness and excellency a suitableness and likeness which they discern or at least think they see each in other Christs Love to us is free He healeth our backslidings and loveth us freely He hath mercy on whom he will have mercy The reciprocal Love of the believing Soul is not so free and so ingenuous as is his beloveds love to him Yet it is thus far ingenuous that it is not only for that the Soul hath from Christ but for that goodness and excellency which it discerneth in Christ this we had before Because of the Savour of thy good Ointments therefore do the Virgins Love thee 3. Love properly doth not make a friend unless it be mutual and reciprocal Indeed in a large sense a man may be said to be a friend to his Enemy That is to wish well to him and to do him some kind Offices But this is not friendship All Friendship implyeth a reciprocation of Love Christ Loves the believer and every true believer loveth Christ So they are Friends in the strictest and most proper sense Indeed there is a great difference which is well expressed by one of the Casuists thus We will good to him but we do not bestow that good upon him which we will him But he while he willeth good to us also giveth us that good which he willeth and by his loving us maketh us good and lovely But every Child of God truly loveth Christ truly I say that is sincerely though not with that kind or degree of Love with which Christ loveth him Lord saith Peter thou that knowest all things knowest that I Love thee And If any man Loves not the Lord Jesus saith the Apostle let him be Anathema Maranatha 4. Lastly Love of friendship alwaies speaketh Communion betwixt the two Lovers We are bound to Love our Enemies and in every good man there is such a Love even to those that hate them but this is no Love of friendship for the Precept of Love to Enemies obligeth onely against malice and private Revenge and to common Offices of kindness it doth not oblige to intimacy or to any near fellowship and Communion with them We are so far obliged to Love our Enemies as to bear no malice against them to take no private Revenge upon them to be ready to do any acts of kindness for their Souls and any common offices of love But I say we are not by it obliged to make them our intimates nor to keep any fellowship or communion with them But in a Love of friendship there is alwaies Communion or a mutual Communication of the Parties loving each to others Christ gives this account of his love of friendship to his disciples John 15. 15. Henceforth I call you not Servants for the Servant knoweth not what his Lord doth but I have called you Friends for all things I have heard of my Father I have made known to you Christ Communicates himself to believers to such as are his disciples indeed he is in them they in him and he is daily Communicating of his life and strength to them for John 15. 4. Without him they can do nothing They are daily communicating themselves unto him making a secret surrender to him of their hearts their wills their affections Communicating their wants and desires to him by Prayer c. Thus I have justified the notion of Christs Love his friend his Companion to be agreeable to what the Scripture revealeth concerning Christ and the believing Soul This in the first place leadeth us into a just admiration of the Divine Love and condescension Who is this that calleth from Heaven to Earth to the Worms of the Earth and speaketh in this language My Love My Friend My Fellow Is it not he who is the Eternal Son of God God over all blessed for ever he to whom there is none like and besides whom there is no God He whom God calleth his fellow and who thought it no robbery to be equal with the Father And to whom doth he speak Is it not to those who must say to corruption thou art my Mother and to the Worms you are my brethren and my Sisters To those whose Fathers are Amorites and whose Mothers are Hittites who by nature are dead in trespasses and sins unclean Children of unclean Parents Will the Lord Love such Ethioptans as we are by nature Such Enemies as we have shewed our selves by practice Will the Lord make himself a companion to the creature that is but as the dust of his feet What manner of Love and condescension is this For him whom the Eternal Father hath proclaimed to be his Son and that Son in whom he is well pleased in whom the Lord hath set up his rest he whom Kings and Prophets desired to see whom Angels and glorified Saints adore to whom the Father hath given a name above every name he who hath Heaven for his throne the Earth for his footstool and the utmost ends of the Earth for his possession to say to us My Love My Friend My Companion Certainly these terms ought to ravish our hearts and to affect them with in expressible admiration and to whom doth he say thus Is it only to the Glories and beauties of the World To the Emperors Rings Princes and Nobles thereof No he saith thus to every believer even the meanest that treadeth upon the Earth to the most poor distressed afflicted creature to Job that sits upon a dunghill scraping himself with a potsheard to Lazarus that lyeth at the rich mans gate full of sores and begging bread while the Dogs lick his sores to the poorest believer living in the meanest and dirtiest Gottage to those whom the World revileth slighteth scorneth to those who have spit in his face and abused his patience and despised his goodness that have hardened their hearts against him grieved his holy Spirit Yet having repented of these things and being turned to him to these he calleth to these he saith My Love My Friends My Companions He upbraideth them not for their former miscarriages to these he becometh a fellow Prisoner in these he becomes a fellow helper these shall be joint heirs with him Hear O Heavens be astonished O Earth never was Love like this never such matchless Love Let all our Souls swallow up themselves in this gulph of unfathomable Love and while we are sinking let us cry out O the height and depth and length and breadth of the Love of God in Jesus Christ It is a