are now ashamed is not the end of these things death for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Iesus Christ our Lord. Let not therefore sin reign any more in your mortal bodies that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin but your members as instruments of righteousness unto God Be not afraid or discouraged at his Laws for there is none of them grievous saith the Apostle St. John The law of the Lord is perfect saith David Converting the soul his statutes are right rejoicing the heart they are more to be desired than gold yea than much fine gold sweeter also than honey or the honey-comb And in keeping them there is great reward For if being made free from Sin we become Servants to God and have our fruit unto Holiness our end shall be everlasting Life to the which God bring us all in his good time Amen SERMON XI A PREPARATION TO THE Holy Communion HEBREWS X. 22. Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil Conscience and our bodies washed with pure water THese Words are an Inference or Conclusion drawn from a Doctrine formerly delivered as appears from the illative Particle Therefore in the 19th Verse And there you have also the Summ of the Doctrine it self viz. That there is now free access unto God through Iesus Christ which the Apostle declareth in figurative Expressions with an Allusion to the Jewish Temple not only because he was writing to Hebrews but also because that Temple and the way of entering thereinto was a Type of this great Truth which is revealed by the Gospel That Iesus Christ is a true and the only Mediator betwixt God and Man that by him Men may confidently draw near to God and hope for Acceptance St. Paul has asserted and endeavoured to make out in the former part of this Epistle and indeed he hath proved and made it most evident so that there can remain no doubt thereof except in those who obstruct their own Conviction not desiring to be convinc'd Now the proper and practical Improvement of this certain important and most desireable Truth is what you have in the Words of our Text For they contain an Exhortation to lay hold on this gracious Privilege and with all they shew us how and after what manner we should do it so as to obtain it I shall first speak to the Exhortation it self next of the Qualities here required of such as design to comply with the Exhortation and lastly make Application of all to the present business of the Sacrament To begin then with the Exhortation which is in these words Let us draw near To what or whom we should draw near is not here express'd but is to be gathered from what goeth before whereby we understand that it is God to whom we are here desired to draw near And seeing it is so by drawing near here cannot be meant any Motion of our Body towards God for as to his Glorious and Majestick Presence in the Heavens we cannot approach it though we would and as for his other Essential Presence neither can we avoid it though we would too for he fills both Heaven and Earth Whither shall I go from thy Spirit Or whither shall I flee from thy presence said David If I ascend up into Heaven thou art there If I make my bed in hell behold thou art there To draw near to God therefore is a metaphorical Speech and must be understood not of any natural Action of the Body but of some moral Action of the Soul viz. The Desires and Endeavours after Peace and Reconciliation with God For because those who are Enemies and at variance together use to keep a Distance and shun each other's Company therefore in Scripture they who never think of God take no Care to please him and those who make no Difficulty to offend him are said to be far from God and to go a whoring from him And on the other hand because those who lay aside their Enmity and are desirous to be made Friends usually meet and resort to one anothers Company therefore drawing near to God in the Scripture Language is put for the Inclination of our Souls toward him the seeking to have all manner of Enmity betwixt God and us quite removed and that a true firm Peace be made up with him Sin is the Cause and Occasion of that Enmity which is fallen out betwixt God and Man And one would have thought that all the Difficulties of Reconciliation with God should have been on his part That his Justice his Honour his Authority should have interposed and not only not suffered him to accept of Peace but also to have obliged him utterly to destroy those despicable silly Creatures who had the foolish Insolency to rebel against him and to counteract his Will and Pleasure But behold Jesus Christ hath removed all Difficulties on God's Part he hath found out means to satisfie the Justice and to salve the Honour and Authority of God though Man be not destroyed though his Sin be passed over and pardoned God's Wrath is pacified he now looks favourably upon Man and is willing to receive him into Favour and to renew a Covenant of Grace and Peace with him whereby he obligeth himself to deal with Man as if he had not sinned as if he had never rebelled against his Maker Now could it have been expected that such a gracious Offer should not have been readily embraced But which is unaccountable Man stands out and will not be reconciled to God God hath made great Condescension and Man will make none God wooes and intreats and Man draws back and runs away God calls and sends Message after Message and the other will not hear he stretcheth forth his Hands but no Man regardeth he waits but they will not come or draw near Thus each acts as 't were not his own part but what in all Appearance doth more properly belong to the other God acts as if he were in Man's stead and Man behaves himself as if he were in the Place of God for as if God were the poor the needy the inferiour and miserable Party he sues and humbles himself first and as if Man were an independent Sovereign and All-sufficient Being who needed no Aid from any he rejects all the Treaty and disdains this proffered Friendship O! Wonderful Condescension of God And O the Stupidity and Foolishness and Madness of Man What Words are sufficient to hold out either of these And how hard is it to determine which of the two is most astonishing Whether God's Behaviour towards Man in seeking him offering Pardon and Peace or Man's Behaviour towards God in refusing and slighting the same Do ye thus requite the Lord O foolish People and unwise O ye sons of men how long will ye turn my glory
usual in the Scripture St. Paul calls Believers God's husbandry or tillage 1 Cor. iii. 9. And here we have proper Directions how to manage it with Skill and Profit Plowing Sowing and Reaping are main parts of Husbandry and should be well looked to by all that would thrive at the Trade he that neglects them or is ignorant how to go about them will certainly come both to Poverty and Shame They are as essential in the Spiritual Husbandry as the Natural and therefore should be well studied by all who wish well to themselves I pray God we may learn and practise the Lessons here laid before us and we shall become both perfect and happy thereby The Prophet begins with Sowing tho' it be not the first part of Husbandry something must go before it however we will not change the Prophets words but take them as they lye it being no great matter what be first or last taught providing all be carefully heard and observed Sowing then in a Moral sense signifies Action whether internal of the Mind or outward of the Body for as Sowing is always followed with some Crop the Grain thrown by the Husbandman's Hand tho' it be covered with Earth doth not perish it riseth again and produceth an answerable Harvest So Mens Thoughts Words and Actions do not vanish as soon as they pass from them they remain as the Seed doth and will spring up again either to their Shame and Confusion or Comfort and Glory It therefore concerns us very nearly to look well to all we think do and say A good Husband man will not sow at random any thing that comes nearest him but will consider what is the best time and will choose out the best Seed So a wise Man will not live at random speak and do whatever is suggested to him or comes in his Head but studieth the fittest times and season of things and he taketh care to give every time and season what is suitable thereto As Cockle and Darnel is never to be sown so neither ought Sin to be sown at any time or upon any account but whether we eat or drink or whatever we do we ought saith the Apostle to do it all to the glory of God And therefore the Prophet here bids us Sow in righteousness or righteousness it self for we cannot carry on the Glory of God or sincerely intend it any other way God can and doth turn the Wickedness of Men to his Glory but when he doth so he is not beholden to us for it and therefore the only way we ought to seek his Glory is to adhere closely to Righteousness When the Prophet saith Sow righteousness or in righteousness which is all one for some make it To others leave out the Hebrew Particle as Redundant He holds forth the quality of the Seed or Grain we should sow And by Righteousness here is not only meant the vertue of Justice and Honesty in our dealings with Man but it is taken in a larger sense of equal extent with Holiness which includes all Acts of Piety and Devotion towards God of Justice Charity and Kindness towards Men and what is good and comely for our selves St. Paul's Injunction to the Philippians iv 8. is a good Paraphrase on Sowing in Righteousness 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 virtue or any praise think on these things What things are so must be learned from the Scriptures the Word of God is the Rule of Righteousness it is the very good and precious Seed which we ought to sow and to sow in Righteousness is nothing else but to live and do according to the Word of God to practise what it teacheth Qui mandata veterit in opera seminat in justitia Jerom. Whosoever expresseth in his actions the Commands of God soweth in Righteousness And as we must thus look to the Quality of what we sow that it be Righteousness things agreeable to the righteous Word of God so we ought to take heed to the Quantity that we do not sow sparingly but plentifully This some will have to be the only meaning of the Words but there is more reason to refer the Expression to the Quality as we have done However this must be taken in too for he doth not sow in Righteousness sincerely and with delight that doth not abound therein His Heart is not right who serveth God by halves who doth only some few good things But he is a truly righteous Man who sets himself and gives all diligence to abound in the Work of the Lord. And we have all reason to do so for it is our Interest and Advantage Men use to ply well what redounds to their particular Profit what they think will certainly benefit them and truly we are sure of this it will fall particularly to our share It is remarkable that the Prophet calls the sowing righteousness a sowing to or for our selves as if nothing else could be reckoned so And indeed Men may be frustrated of all their other Labours but they can never be disappointed of this In the things of this World one may sow and another may reap what one builds and plants another often takes possession of Most Men labour for others If the most busied would cast up his accounts he should find but a very small part of his Travel and Projects to redound to himself It is not only the meanest sort of People that are to be esteemed Drudges to others but Men of all ranks from the highest are truly Servants of a different kind And the more Faithful and Diligent any one is in his Station or Imployment he becomes thereby only the more useful Servant to the rest of Mankind He only truly lives to himself who makes it his business to be found upright before God and to do that which is right in his sight He that neglects this quite neglects himself and carries away no Profit of all his Labour under the Sun What can the Wisest the most Industrious and most fortunate Worldling boast of at the best but a poor transitory enjoyment of perishing things In that Night his Soul is taken from him what reckoning can he make of his Barns Goods and Store whose are all these things not his to be sure and perhaps they fall into the hands of one who has little kindness for him or his Memory When he dieth saith the Psalmist he shall carry nothing away his glory shall not descend after him And then to how little purpose has he endeavoured to be made Rich and to get the Glory of his House increased But he that is stedfast and immoveable and always abounding in the Work of the Lord his Labour shall not be in vain the gain shall redound to himself What one doth in this is extra Fortunam not liable to any hazard runs not the fate of
rescue him I will go and return unto my place till they acknowledge their offence and seek my face In their affliction they will seek me early EPHRAIM is put here for the whole Ten Tribes who revolted from the House of David and embodied themselves into a distinct Kingdom Under Iudah is here comprehended also the Tribe of Benjamin which two Tribes as they kept close in Allegiance and Expressions of Loyalty to their lawful King so they made Profession of Serving the One true God in that way and after that manner prescribed by his Word By the Sickness of Ephraim and the Wounds of Iudah is meant those Afflictions and Calamities which God sent upon the several States because of their Sins and Transgressions And by considering this Prophesie and the History of these several Nations we find the Judgments they were visited with and which are here especially pointed at to have been a withdrawing the Necessaries and Comforts of Life Factions and Divisions within and Oppressions from Neighbours without By Ephraim going to the Assyrian and Iudah sending to King Iareb The same thing is understood by all Interpreters for they make Iareb either the proper Name of the King of Assyria then reigning or an Appellative title given to all the Kings of that Nation as Pharaoh was the title of the Kings of Egypt and Coesar or Augustus of the Roman Emperours or it is thought to be the Name of a City in Assyria where the Kings resided and that he is called King Iareb because he lived there or finally considering the Etymology of the word some will have the King of Assyria so called because the Iews and Israelites expected he should have vindicated and defended them wherefore the Translators of the Bible have put into the Margin Or to the King that should Plead But which soever of these ways be taken all conclude that Assyria is meant and that respect is had to what we read 2 Kings xv 19. xvi 17. 2 Chron. xxviii 16. Where we see how both Iudah and Israel entered into a League with Assyria and studied by Money and Presents both to procure his own Peace and also Assistance to curb and restrain others who infested them And when it is said he could not heal you nor cure you thereby it is represented how ineffectual this Method was for their relief for they were not put in a better state by his means so far from that that even he from whom they expected Ease became an Instrument of more Mischief and Trouble unto them as the Sacred History plainly shews The reason hereof is given in the 14th Verse to wit because God was angry with them and resolved to punish them he was determined to be as a Lion to Ephraim and as a young Lion to Iudah to tear them and take them away That is as these Beasts are strong to catch their prey and when they have set upon it do devour it and it is in vain to think to get it safe out of their clutches so God being incensed he will shew himself able and strong to punish those who had done it And it was a most foolish thing to think by Men or any other Means to prevent the Mischief he certainly determined It was like the offering to take back a prey from the Jaws of a hungry and raging Lion Who can rescue out of his Hands When he declares War who can make Peace Men may fight with Men but it is in vain to strive against God or to think that any Means or Projects will prosper where he is the Enemy And as these Savage Beasts when they have catch'd their prey and eaten it up use to retire to their Dens and Coverts and lurk there so in allusion to this God saith in the last Verse he will return to his place that is as it were shut himself up in Heaven that the Earth should no more feel his gracious Presence or the comfortable Effects thereof He would so leave them and forsake them by withdrawing the favourable Expressions of his Providence as that they should be tempted to think he had confined himself to Heaven and would no more visit the Earth nor the Children of Men. But all this God did not so much out of Wrath and for Destruction as out of Love that he might at last save them and make them Partakers of his great goodness They were so perverse as to resist his gentle Methods so stubborn as not to be wrought upon by his former Acts of Kindness that he was provoked and if it were proper to speak so of the Almighty constrained to take up the Rod and to deal with them thus roughly and severely But still his intent was not to cut them off utterly from him but rather to bring them into a stricter Union with him afterwards He let his anger out now upon them that they might afterwards be made capable of his Love to wit when they became sensible of their Sin and Folly in forsaking the Commands of God and resolved to seek him seriously in all time coming This saith he I will do till they acknowledge their offence and seek my face And as God had this end before him in their Punishment so there is here a gracious intimation that the Punishments laid upon them should be effectual for this purpose In their afflictions they will seek me early which words are not so much a Prediction of what probably they would do as a Promise what he would then by his Grace make them do Afflictions have indeed some natural tendency to soften Men to render them tractable and obedient but then only this is truly effectuated when God sanctifieth Afflictions and giveth his Grace with them And when Afflictions produce this when People are so happy as to be converted by them then God layeth aside all Quarrels he putteth off his anger and putteth on Bowels of Love and Compassion he hideth his Face while Men continue in their Sins and Transgressions All the time they are going astray from God he retires within his Place as is here said But when they begin to acknowledge their Offences and in all sincerity seek his Face then he comes forth of his Place and lifts the light of his Countenance upon them and speaks comfortably unto them his going forth is prepared as the Morning and then he cometh unto us as the rain as the latter and former rain unto the Earth which both refresheth it and maketh it fruitful Thus I have explained the words and given you the genuine Scope and Purport of them In the next place I intend to propose plainly such Instructions as they afford and as I judge them both useful and seasonable so I pray God they may be candidly heard meekly received seriously considered and carefully observed First then We may read and discern here the Cause and Occasion of all the Evils and Mischief which come either upon private Persons or on publick States viz. SIN This