and woman thou art not undone for thy soul is safe Lord strike saith Luther strike onely pardon my sin And my Brethren well may you bee incouraged to undergo any difficulties and to bear the loss of the comforts of this world for the saving of your souls for indeed the Lord hath granted to us the way of salvation of souls at an easier rate than our Forefathers had If I should but tell you the way that many of our Forefathers had for the saving of their souls and many of the Saints of God in former times you would have said then that it was a difficult way to save souls and go to Heaven As I will but give you an instance of one man and another woman how hardly they came to salvation That blessed Martyr Bensesius see but what a way hee had to Heaven for profession of Christian Religion The Persecutors came to him and because hee would not deny the Truth they strike his body in all his members out if joynt and when they had done that they make wounds in all parts of his body then thirdly they bring Iron combs sharpened and so rake upon his body thus wounded and when they had done that they laid him upon an Iron grate and with instruments of Iron open those wounds and after that they melt hot burning salt and strew it upon those wounds being opened and then they come with hot Irons and fear him with those hot Irons and after that dragg him by the heels into a dungeon where they had prepared sharp shells and there hee lay and perished here is one that went to Heaven upon hard terms you will say but God calls not you to do so but to deny your selves in some base lust in some sinful and ungodly way in something that you may spare that you may spare as well as the water out of your shooes as wee use to say And then of a woman that was of Noble birth and yet shee being convented for Religion and answering boldly and resolutely and would not yeeld after many temptations and fair speeches they dragged her by the hair of the head from the seat of Judicature and having dragged her they pull off one joynt from another and having done that get the teeth and claws of wilde beasts and rake her flesh from the bones and having afterwards done that then they came with hot Irons and Torches and burning flames one of one side and another of another side and scorch and burn her to death in such a way as that was and yet shee goes on constantly so bee it shee might save her soul shee was willing to indure all this misery wee do not know what God may call you to before you die many of our Brethren have suffered very hard things and God may call you to hard things Oh that this Text might prepare you And now my Brethren as it hath been a means to carry others thorow temptations and many difficulties in this world so if you would lay but these truths to your hearts and if you cannot think of every particular passage yet do but think of the Text and take but this one Note and that is that whereas God calls others to spend their strength in suffering so great evils to save their souls bee you willing to spend the strength that God spares you in doing in serving spend your strength in active obedience so much the more by how much the less you are called to spend it in the way of passive obedience that so you may have cause to bless God for ever in Heaven when you shall come to see soul and body to bee blessed and saved eternally you may bless God for ever in Heaven for revealing such a truth and setting home such a Text What shall it profit a man though hee gain the whole world and lose his soul and what shall a man give in exchange for his soul FINIS Books printed for and sold by Thomas Parkhurst at the three Crowns over against the great Conduit at the lower end of Cheapside Folios A Practical Commentary or an Exposition with Observations Reasons and Uses upon the first Epistle General of John By that pious and worthy Divine Master John Cotâ—on Pastor of Bostox in New-England A Learned Commentary or Exposition upon the first Chapter of the second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians being the substance of many Sermons formerly Preached at Grayes-Inne London by that Reverend and judicious Divine Richard Sibbs D. D. sometimes Master of Katherine-Hall in Cambridge and Preacher to that Honourable Society Published for the publick good and benefit of the Church of Christ by Tho. Manton B. D. and Preacher of the Gospel at Stoake-Newington near London 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Divine Characters in two parts acutely distinguishing the more secret and undiscerned differences between 1. The Hypocrite in his best dress of seeming vertue and formal duties And the true Christian in his real graces and sincere obedience As also between the blackest weeds of daily infirmities of the truly godly eclipsing saving grace and the reigning sins of the unregenerate that pretend unto that godliness they never had By that late burning and shining Lamp Mr. Samuel Crook B. D. late Pastor of Wrington in Sommerset A Commentary upon the Divine Revelation of the Apostle and Evangelist John By David Pareus sometimes Professour of Divinity in the University of Heidelburg And specially some things upon the twentieth Chapter are observed by the same Author against the Millenaries Translated out of the Latine into English by Elias Arnold Quartoes A Theatre of flying Infects wherein especially the manner of right ordering the Bee is excellently described with discourses Historical and Physical concerning them with a Second part of Meditations and Observations Theological and Moral in three Centuries upon the same subject by Samuel Purchas M. A. Peoples Need of a living Pastor at the Funeral of Mr. Iohn Frost M. A. by Mr. Zach. Crofton 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or the Saint's Worthiness and the World's worthlesness both opened and declared in a Sermon preached at the Funeral of that eminently Religious and highly honoured Knight Sir Nathanael Barnardiston Aug. 26. 1653. By Samuel Faireclough Pastor of the Congregation at Ketton Holy things for holy men or the Lawyers Plea non-suited c. In some Christian reproof and pitty expressed towards M. Prynn's book intituled The Lord's Supper briefly Vindicated by S. S. Minister of the Gospel An Antid te against H. Haggar's poysonous Pamphlet intituled The Foundation of the Font discovered or a reply wherein his audaciousness and sophistry in arguing against Infant-Baptism Discipleship Church-membership is detected his cavils against M. C. M. B. and M. Hall are answered c. By A. Houghton Minister of the Gospel at Prees in Salop. Large Octavoes Four profitable Treatises very useful for Christian practice viz. The Killing power of the Law The Spiritual Watch The New Birth Of the Sabbath By the
come out from them and this was a great incouragement unto them to expect mercy from God because they were a people that the Lord would bring the great Saviour of the world out of And then thirdly That by the propounding of so great a mercy as Jesus Christ should bee to the world they might hereby have a help to their faith that surely God would not deny them lesser mercies what great matter was it for them to expect from God deliverance from some outward affliction when as God makes known unto them that love and that infinite compassion those tender bowels of his even to send his own Son into the world for them And then fourthly It was to teach them this that the way of deliverance from any outward affliction it was to exercise their faith upon Christ the Messia that was to come the Lord would teach his Church when it was in afflictions not so much to bee looking at the present affliction that was upon them and so to seek for outward help and means of deliverance but would have them exercise their faith upon the Messia that was to come though many hundred years after and this exercise of faith was so pleasing to God as it was the onely means or the chief means of deliverance from all outward afflictions Nay saith God if so be that they will relye upon mee and exercise their faith upon that great promise of mine to send my Son into the world as for their deliverance out of these outward troubles and afflictions it shall bee but a little matter for mee to do that for them ordinarily when wee are exercised with outward afflictions wee onely think of some natural helps and comforts contrary to those particular afflictions that are upon us whereas the way indeed for us to sanctifie Gods Name to do that that is acceptable to God when any outward affliction befalls us it is presently to exercise our faith upon the great promise of God in Jesus Christ upon the great Covenant of Grace that God hath made with us in him upon that great mercy of God in sending his Son into the world my condition is very sad and I am grievously afflicted I but surely that mercy that would send Jesus Christ into the world that mercy is enough to deliver mee out of any affliction or at least to bless it to mee therefore do not onely cry to God when you are sick or in trouble to deliver you from it but labour to exercise faith upon the Covenant of Grace in Christ upon that glorious mercy of God in his Son that is the way that God would have us to sanctifie his Name in And that is the reason why in times of great affliction there were such clear Prophesies of Jesus Christ as here in my Text For unto us a childe is born unto us a Son is given and his Name shall bee called Wonderful Counseller c. Now in this latter part of this verse wee have Christ set out unto us in five notable and famous Titles of his His Name is 1. Wonderful 2. Counseller 3. The Mighty God 4. The Everlasting Father 5. The Prince of Peace I intend onely to speak of the first His Name shall bee called Wonderful because I would have some kinde of proportion between what I have presented to you about God and what I shall about Christ And as for other things more largely about God or Christ it may bee afterwards but onely now I shall desire to present Christ unto you in this one Title of his His Name shall bee called Wonderful From whence the Point is this Doct Jesus Christ is the great Wonder of the world That is our point of Doctrine God himself above seven hundred years before hee was born gives him this Name Wonderful in the 19. of this Prophecie vers 20. wee read of a Saviour Isa 19.20 a Great one saith the Text surely Jesus Christ hee is a Saviour and a Great one hee is the Wonder of the world Judg. 13.17 18. The story of the Angels appearing unto Manoah Manoah would fain know his name And Manoah said unto the Angel of the Lord What is thy Name vers 18. the Angel of the Lord said unto him Why askest thou after my name seeing it is secret Now the word that is translated in your books Secret it is a word that signifies Wonderful And Austin in his Questions upon this Book of Judges hee is consident that this Angel was Jesus Christ and that his ascending up in the sacrifice that Manoah offered it was to fore-signifie Jesus Christ to bee the onely Sacrifice that should ascend up to the Father for a sweet savour in the nostrils of the Father it was Jesus Christ that did appear here to Manoah and his Name is Wonderful Luther hath such a speech I remember of Christ saith hee the most famous and wonderful and glorious Miracle of all Miracles is Jesus Christ hee is the Wonder of the world God is very wonderful in all his works in the works of Creation Psal 8.1 Oh Lord our Lord how excellent is thy name and in the end of the Psalm Oh Lord our Lord how excellent is thy Name in all the earth yea in that one work of his in making of our bodies Psal 139.14 I am fearfully and wonderfully made saith the Psalmist God hath made our very bodies fearfully and wonderfully it is a wonderful work of God the framing of our bodies in the womb It was a means of the conversion of Gallen from Atheism hee saw the Anatomy of a mans body and beholding the wonderful work of a mans body it did force him to acknowledge the God of Nature that there was a being above Nature Now though God bee wonderful in all his works yet all his wonderful works in the Heavens and in the Earth and in the Seas they must all stand by and give way to this great Wonder as the Stars though they be glorious creatures in themselves yet when the Sun arises all their light is eclipsed you see nothing of them so though God hath many wonders in the world and hath done many wonderful works yet when the Son of Righteousness doâ—h arise when Jesus Christ comes to appear all the other works of God are darkned with the glory of this great Wonder other things are wonderful unto us because of our ignorance because wee are not able to understand the reason of things things are wonderful to children that are little regarded by wise men and understanding men Ignorance makes men to wonder at many things that have nothing in them but Christ hee is a Wondeâ— so as God himself the Father accounted him a Wonder God himself gives unto Jesus Christ this Name Wonderful and no marvel though hee bee a wonder to the Angels themselves in Heaven 1 Pet. 1.12 The Angels are said to desire to look into the things of the Gospel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To pry into them They
would see them to bee plunged into the bottomless gulf of eternal misery hee would put himself into it to keep them out hee did it willingly When hee did fir stundertake this great work with his Father hee knew what hee should suffer A body hast thou prepared mee it is written in the volume of thy book I should do thy will Heb. 10 5 7. and lo I come I delight to do thy will And what was it It was the suffering of all these things that I have named unto you and I have but even named them unto you Eighthly And yet further the wonder of Christs humiliation my scope is now to present as briefly as may bee as much of Christ as I can unto you that you may have some help for your more clear apprehensions of Christ and how to make him the object of your faith The wonder of Christ appears in this that there should bee such a way to save men as this is that the Son of God should bee thus humbled and this wee finde clearly in Scripture set out to us but that God would have such a way to save sinners and no other this is as great a wonder as any thing it is certainly the astonishment of the Angels and the admiration of the Saints to all eternity that the Lord should look upon base man and that hee should have thoughts to save him that was nothing but when God saw that if hee bee saved hee must bee saved after this way that God should as it were trouble heaven and earth for the saving of a poor wretched sinful creature and though God saw that it would cost him so dear to save a soul yet that hee should go on with his work to save him here is the wonder but this is the way of salvation and this is that that is infinitely above reason not onely above sense but above reason which of the Heathens could have imagined that there should have been such a way to save man by as this Why how wilt thou bee saved I will cry to God for mercy and break off my sin and bee sorry with all my heart why if this were the way there was no wonder in that but know oh thou sinner whosoever thou art that if ever thou bee saved that thou must bee saved by a wonderful way and the truth is considering that this is the way of saving sinners wee may stand and wonder that any are saved when you hear of but few that go to heaven and that most people in the world perish and when you come to hear the way of saving man and what it cost and the great difficulty of it you may then stand and wonder that any should bee saved Oh when ever you think of salvation think wisely of this it is a wonderful work of God to save a sinner and the most wonderful work that ever God did do why because the way of saving a sinner is so strange and truly my Brethren then doth God begin to work savingly upon the heart of a sinner when the sinner begins to stand and wonder at the way of saving and till that time it cannot bee conceived that God is beginning savingly to work upon your hearts I appeal to your consciences you that have gone on in a secure dead-hearted way when was ever your hearts taken up in admiring at the way of Gods saving sinners why if it hath done so that is a good evidence that God is beginning to shew himself unto you in a saving way But now if you go on and have but low thoughts about the way of salvation if your hearts do not sanctifie Gods Name in admiring at the wonderful way of salvation know that yet the Gospel is hidden to you certainly you yet do not understand the counsels of God about the way of salvation when your hearts are not taken up with admiring at the glory of God in it A note of Trial. I will but leave this note of Trial with you whether Christ bee revealed to you have your souls wondred at him My Brethen there are divers things that men wonder at in the world and their hearts are taken with them and all because they understand not Christ the great Wonder of the world Wee read in Rev. 17. that when Antichrist had gotten a great deal of power that the world did wonder at him vers 6. When I saw her I wondred with great admiration c. Antichrist having a great deal of power makes men to wonder much at him Now in vers 8. The Beast which thou sawest was and is not and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit and go into perdition and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world when they behold the Beast that was and is not and yet is saith hee those whose names are not written the book of life that was written from the foundation of the world they shall make a wonder at Antichrist and at his great power and at the way of his falling too So in Rev. 13.2 3. And the Dragon gave him his power and his seat and great Authority c. When the Dragon had given his power to the Beast that is the Civil state and power had given its power unto Antichrist unto their Church-state so that they had the Civil sword in their own hands and were able by that Civil power to force all to come in to their Dictates now the Text saith That they all wondred at it but who are they in Chap. 17. v. 8. those whose names were not written in the book of life so that carnal hearts now may bee taken with the wondring after the pomp and glory of the word and after the power of Antichrist because Antichrist prevails in the world but they are those whose mames are not written in the book of life those whose names are written in the book of life they will never stand wondring at the excellency of Antichrist because of his outward glory no Those whose names are written in the book of life they have learned to wonder at Jesus Christ not at Antichrist let Jesus Christ bee never so mean and humbled and low and persecuted in his members in his Ordinances yet they see that excellency in Jesus Christ as makes them wonder and it is such a wonder as it doth darken all the wonders in the world besides The Fifth SERMON ON The Excellency of Christ Isaiah 9.6 And his Name shall bee called Wonderful THe point that wee are upon you may remember is this That Jesus Christ is the great Wonder of the world As is his Name so is hee Wonderful 9 Therâ— is yet more wonder in it if wee consider that God the Father was well pleased with all this it pleased him so you may finde in Isa 53.10 It pleased him to bruise him It pleased the Father For God the Father taking such delight
from the dead that is that look as the first fruits did sanctifie all the rest and all were consecrated in the first fruits being offered to God So all the elect ones in Christs Resurrection did rise again I say vertually in him and it was a pledge of their Resurrection the Resurrection of their souls spiritually to life here and their Resurrection to eternal life and so wee are to exercise our faith upon Christs Resurrection this is the mystery of godliness in Christs Resurrection and hence is that known place in 1 Tim. 3.16 Without controversie saith the Text great is the mystery of godliness God was manifested in the flesh justified in the Spirit A wonderful mystery there is in godliness why what mystery God was manifested in the flesh the Son of God came and took our nature upon him that was wonderful but this is as great a wonder as the other Justifyed in the Spirit it is all one as by being justified upon his Resurrection by the power of the Spirit hee was quickned and life was put into him and so hee rose again and thereby was declared before all the world to bee justified to stand acquitted from all the charge of our sins that was upon him and so if you compare that place Justified in the Spirit with that in 1 Pet. 3.18 Put to death in the flesh but quickned by the Spirit that is by the power of his God-head hee was quicked upon his Resurrection now that that one Apostle saith quickned another saith justified to shew that when hee was quickned that is rose again by the power of his Deity then both hee and all the elect ones stood just in the presence of God acquitted of all their sins and this is the mystery of godliness There is abundance in every one of these but it is not my purpose to handle the Resurrection of Christ or his Assention but meerly to give you a little glimpse of the mystery of godliness that there is therein that you may understand him aright so as you may bee able to exercise your faith upon him not onely Dying and Humbled but Conquering and Rising Christ Wonderful in his Ascention And for the Ascention of Christ into heaven the manner of it was wonderful There comes a cloud and carries him up and the Disciples stands gazing it was a wonder to bee gazed at the Ascention of Jesus Christ body and soul into heaven in that glorious way But especially if wee consider that Christ ascended likewise as our head ascended into heaven as the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies And it is said that wee are set together in heavenly places together with Christ so you have it in Eph. 2.6 And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in â—hrist Jesus For Christ went as in our names to take possession of heaven this is the mystery of godliness in Christs Ascention Hee went up to Heaven but hee went in the name of the Elect to take possession as a man that hath bought house and lands may have one appointed by him to go in his name to take possession of the house and land Jesus Christ in the name of all the elect from the beginning of the world to the end went up unto heaven to take possession there and on purpose to prepare Mansions for them against their coming Thus wonderful was Christ in his Ascention Christ sitting at the right hand of the Father And in heaven Christ sits at the right hand of the Father thereby declaring that God the Father was well-pleased with all that hee hath done because hee sets him at his right hand after Christ had made an end of all his work hee is said to sit down in Heb. 10.12 This man after hee had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever sate down on the right hand of God hee had done his work and God the Father approves of him and so honors him in setting him at his right hand and there gives unto him all power to rule together with himself as you heard in his Kingly Office and there hee is to make Intercession continually for his Elect and hath that weight of glory put upon him that is possible for humane nature to have put upon him that is the meaning of sitting at the right hand of God these four things are meant by it First When hee came to heaven God the Father that hee might acknowledge that his Son had fully done the work that hee was sent into the world about hee doth honour him by setting him at his right hand Secondly Hee gives unto him all Authority and Power to Reign together with himself Matth. 28.18 Thirdly There hee is as the High Priest to make Intercession for his Saints to bee their Advocate continually at the right hand of the Father to make Intercession for them Heb. 7.25 And then fourthly It is to signifie that Christ hath the highest degree of glory that it is possible for humane nature to bee capable of Therefore you must not understand the right hand of God in a corporeal way as if God had right hand or left but sitting so in those four respects as I have named And all these make Christ a wonderful Redeemer hee that shall come up to God the Father in Heaven and to have God own his being fully pleased with what hee did upon the Earth and there setting him upon his own Throne to reign with him and there to bee for ever to make intercession for the Saints and to have the height of all glory to bee bestowed upon him Certainly this is a wonderful Redeemer Christ wonderful in his coming to Judgement And then Christ shall in a wonderful manner come to judge the world again then hee shall come to bee admired indeed so you have it in 2 Thes 1.10 2 Thes 1.10 When hee shall come to bee glorified in his Saints and to bee admired in all them that beleeve Those that do beleeve in Christ they see him to bee wonderful now they do admire at him but when hee shall come again in glory at the great day then hee shall appear so wonderful as they shall all stand admiring and saying Well wee indeed heard that our blessed Saviour was the wonder of the world and wee saw so much as made us admire at his glory but wee never thought that wee had had such a glorious Saviour as now wee see wee have wonderful and glorious is Jesus Christ now but when hee shall come with his thousand thousands of Angels and when there shall bee such a wonderful change in the world the Elements melt with fervent heat and the Heavens depart like a scroul and the Heavens and Earth shaken and all the Princes and Monarks in the world and all the children of men appearing before him Oh wonderful then shall hee bee in his attendance and then in his own person Wonderful shall hee bee then in the
of rejection of Jesus Christ must needs bee a dreadful sin because Jesus Christ is so great a wonder as you have heard The Sixth SERMON ON The Excellency of Christ Isaiah 9.6 And his Name shall bee called Wonderful NOw wee come to the Application of all which is the work of this exercise Application First Certainly Jesus Christ is little known in the world if this bee hee this great wonder of the world Oh how little is Christ known Christ is but a meer Notion and Imagination to most people in the world you heard the very sound of this name and how Christ came into the world to save sinners but I appeal unto your consciences when were your hearts taken with the admiration of the glory of God shining in the face of Jesus Christ hath Christ been made the greatest wonder in the world unto you some of you have seen many wondrous works of God some of you perhaps in the Seas or abroad in other Countries or if not there yet you have seen the Heavens and the Earth at which you many times wonder but when did God dart light into your spirits to cause you to see so much of Jesus Christ as made him to bee the great wonder of all his works certainly that soul knows not God nor Christ savingly that knows him not as the wonder of the world it is impossible that such a poor creature as man is should come to understand such great mysteries of godliness as are in Christ in any measure but must needs admire at the glory of that great work and say with acclamation Oh the height and depth and breadth and length of the glory of God his Wisdome and Mercy and Truth and Power Many Notes of Trial there may bee of Faith but I know not any one more familiar than this is at least negatively it must needs bee a true Note that is that there cannot bee Faith without it namely if the heart hath not been taken up with the wonder of Christ so as all the wonders in the world have been darkened in the soul in comparison of Jesus Christ Secondly If Christ bee so great a wonder then O how vile a thing is it for the hearts of men to prefer any base filthy lusts before Jesus Christ when God hath manifested him in that wonderful way unto the children of men and so much of his glory in him yet that their hearts should bee taken off from him and every base lust to bee preferred before him Oh how just must the condemnation of such bee for ever wee may take up that complaint that there was in Psal 106.7 Psal 106.7 Our Fathers understood not thy wonders saith the Psalmist So the truth is as our Fathers did not so few there are that understand the wonders of the Lord in Jesus Christ and therefore every thing is preferred before him with what infinite indignation must God needs look upon that wretched soul that shall prefer every base lust before Jesus Christ I remember a speech of Chrysostome speaking of that Text That our vile bodies shall bee made like unto the glorious body of Christ saith hee were all the world turned into tears yet they were not sufficient to lament the misery of that soul that forsakes Jesus Christ his heart was so much taken with the excellency of Jesus Christ that hee thought it impossible to lament the misery of the creature that should forsake him and so St. Paul having his heart filled with the glorious Mystery of Christ hee breaks forth with this dreadful curse Hee that loveth not the Lord Jesus Christ let him bee Anathema Maran-atha as if St. Paul should say having his spirit filled with the glory of Christ Oh what shall God manifest so much of his glory in his Son and shall base wretched vile creatures prefer their lusts before him and have their hearts taken up with other vain things and not love the Lord Jesus Christ let that soul bee cursed with a bitter curse saith Paul such a soul doth deserve indeed to bee cursed with a bitter and an eternal curse that shall hear so much of Jesus Christ and how God hath revealed himself in that wonderful way in his Son and yet that soul shall not bee willing to forsake a base lust for all the good there is in Jesus Christ let that soul bee cursed with a bitter curse It deserves above all creatures to have the most bitter curse to bee upon it to all eternity certainly the more glory there is in Christ the more dreadful will the condemnation of wicked men bee This is the condemnation that such glorious light is come into the world and men chose darkness rather than light How many hear of Christ and minde little but onely have a noise they hear some strange things of Christ and let them pass by and think there is little reallity in what they hear but the onely real comfort is in satisfying of the flesh in the lusts of it In Act. 13.41 Act. 13.41 wee have an excellent Scripture for the reproof of such that hear the Gospel and minde it not Beware therefore lest that come upon you which is spoken of in the Prophets Behold yee despisers and wonder and perish for I work a work in your daies a work which yee shall in no wise beleeve though a man declare it unto you It is spoken concerning Christ as appears in the verse before And by him all that beleeve are justified from all things by which yee could not bee justified by the Law of Moses Now then it follows Beware therefore lest that come upon you which is spoken of in the Prophets Behold ye despisers and wonder and perish as if hee should say you hear the Gospel about the glorious way that God hath to reconcile sinners to himself to justifie sinners but in the mean time your hearts do close with your own Conceits and your own waies with the Law of Moses and think by your own good meanings and your own good works that you shall do well enough and shall stand before God but saith the Apostle Beware lest that come upon you which is spoken of in the Prophets Behold yee despisers and wonder you perhaps when you hear such things declared unto you you account it strange doctrine and you stand and wonder what the meaning of those things should bee but as you wonder so you do despise you condemn it as a strange thing that you were not wont to hear heretofore and as a thing you cannot understand the reason of this is the usual guize of carnal hearts when they hear any doctrine though there bee never so much of God in it and of the Mystery of the Gospel that is revealed in it yet if they understand not the reason of it if it appear to them as a new thing they wonder indeed but they despise withall and condemn it and slight it and pass it over as they did St.
low old and young What shall it profit any one to gain the whole word and to lose their own soul I have read of one that gave counsel to John King of Portugal that hee would repeat this Text to himself and spend one quarter of an hour in the meditation of it What shall it profit a man if hee gain the whole world and lose his own soul and that hee would make the words of this Text to bee the cloze of his prayer continually What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul This was wholesome counsel and certainly the tight meditation and understanding of this Text would bee of admirable use to every soul You have in the words these two things plainly hinted First That there is in every man a soul a spiritual substance besides what is visible and sensible And secondly That this soul of man is more worth than all the world it hath that excellency that if a man gains all the world and loses that when hee hath cast up his account hee may put his gains in his eye hee shall finde himself a miserable creature Wee might make more divisions or subdivisions of the words but I will content my self onely with those two things and speak chiefly to the latter Now to make way for that I will speak a little of the former What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his soul his Soul Every man hath a soul a rational spiritual substance beyond that that is visible or sensible in Job 32.8 But there is a spirit in man and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth him understanding There is a spirit in man besides the bodily substance that you see there is a spirit in man such a spirit as is capable of the inspiration of the Almighty to give understanding c. And in Gen. 2.7 it is said That God formed man of the dust of the earth and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life Here is another manner of mans-creation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 than of other creatures God did but say of other creatures let them bee Let the earth bring forth creeping things c. And it was so But when hee comes to man hee forms man out of the dust of the earth that is for his body and for his spirit hee breathes into his nostrils the breath of life I have read of a people that would not bee perswaded that there was any difference between beasts and them And truly there is somewhat to do to perswade carnal hearts of any great difference between a beast and them in relation to God or to another life But certainly there is a spirit in man there is somewat beyond that body of thine that is visible which doth infinitely concern thee to look to For first Wee see that there are actions in men that are beyond that which concerns the body at all And therefore surely there is a spirit in man besides what the body is the highest actions of men are such as do not concern the body as thus The knowledge of the heavens the knowledge of Angels of spirits what hath the body to do with such things the knowledge of the mysteries of the Gospel and the conversing with them they are abstracted notions from all kinde of bodily substances the knowledge of God and Christ yea the very knowledge of Mathematical notions many notions there are in Arts and Sciences that are abstract from all bodily things certainly then there is a spirit in man beyond that bodily substance that doth appear common with the brute beasts Yet secondly There is a power in man to curb his body to deny himself of that which is most suitable to the body saith Paul 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Subactum seu dejectumpremo in captivitatem reduco vel ut alii contundo Prov. 23.1 2. 1 Cor. 9.27 I keep under my body and bring it into subjection Surely there is somewhat in man that is above the body that hath so much command of the body as it appears the spirit of man hath to beat down the body If thou beest a man given to thine appetite when thou sittest at the table of a great man put a knife to thy throat a man is able to curb his appetite though the body hath never so strong a desire to such and such things yet the soul of man is able to curb his body and deny it Matth. 18.8 9. If thy right hand offend thee cut it off or thy right eye offend thee plâ—ck it out There is a power in man to deny the body that which it desires never so much which a beast cannot that cannot deny that which is suitable to his sense every way except therebe some stronger sensitive thing to take him off But man is able to deny his sense when there is no sensitive object before him to take him off By that dominion that the soul of man hath over his body hee is able to curb his body and to deny his body therefore surely there is a spirit in man 3. Again That which the Scripture makes the chief actions of man to consist in which have any reference to God is such things that are done by somewhat beyond the body Whatsoever a man doth if it bee but onely the body that is exercised and sense it is not acceptable to God 1. Tim 4.8 Bodily exercise profiteth little saith the Scripture and 1 Cor. 13.3 What if I give my body to bee burnt A man may give his body to bee burnt there all the senses may concur in it and yet if there bee not a spirit in man to act this upon any higher ends and grounds than any thing that is bodily can reach unto it is worth nothing it is not regarded Fourthly There is a spirit in man beyond this bodily substance for when this bodily substance is decaying mouldring away there are many thoughts in a man about an eternal estate and more fresh and lively sometimes when the body is mouldring away than ever there was before there are no creatures but Angels and men that take any cognizance of an eternal estate that take any thoughts about what is to come hereafter Now we say Nature doth nothing in vain Deus natura nihil aguâ—t frustra surely God would not have put such kinde of workings in man about another condition after this body shall moulder away but that there is somewhat that doth concern some other part of man besides that bodily substance of his Fifthly and then lastly There is certainly a spirit in man beyond his bodily substance for wee know that there are real pains and torments upon a mans spirit The burdens of conscience in the reflex act that a mans conscience hath upon himself summoning of him to appear before the great God Though a mans body be in never such health and hath all outward accommodations about
it is but a dissolution hee rather desired a dissolution that hee might bee with Christ which is best of all Certainly it was this that made the streight If I dye I shall bee with Christ immediately and if I live I shall injoy some communion with him and likewise do a great deal of service for him If Paul had thought that his soul and body should have dyed both together certainly hee would have desired to have lived rather than to dye for when hee did live his soul did injoy communion with Jesus Christ and hee did do abundance of service for him Now is it possible to think that a man that did so much service for Christ as ever man did and that injoyed so much sweet communion with Jesus Christ that such a man should bee willing to dye Certainly no but that hee knew that upon the dissolution of his body his soul should injoy further communion with Jesus Christ than it could do here It is an immortal substance it runs parallel with eternity of such an excellent nature the soul of man is And then further in this appears The excellency of it that it is the measure of all other kinde of excellency 5 The soâ—ls excellency shewed in being the measure of all other excellencies The soul of man is the measure of all other kinde of excellencies as thus look how far any thing may bee subservient for the good of the soul so far that thing hath an excellency in it and if it bee not subservient for the good of the soul it hath no worth and excellency in it as thus Suppose a man have a great estate in the world great comings in many friends many places now there is some excellency you will say in these things but are these subservient for the good of thy soul that thy soul can injoy communion with God so much the better then these things are good to thee but if so bee that these things hinder the work of thy soul and do not help it forward in the service that it is most capable of and made for there is no excellency in these things And indeed I know no one better sign that a man doth understand the true worth of his soul than this What doth hee account to bee the measure of the excellency of all the things of this world Thou wouldest fain have an estate and outward things in abundance as other men have Why thou sayest they are the good creatures of God I grant it they are so but now wherein dost thou think the excellency of these creatures doth most consist Certainly if thou comest to know the true worth of thy soul thou wilt say God gives mee these outward things and blessed bee his Name by a more large portion of these things am I inabled to do more large service for God my soul is freed from incumbrances in the world and they do help forward the work that my soul is specially concerned in viz. the service of God and therefore I account it a greater good to injoy these things than to bee without them now if thou comest to reason in this manner it is a sign that God hath shewn thee what the true worth and excellency of thy soul is 6 The price paid for souls proves its excellency But that I might draw to a conclusion This is that that above all things will demonstrate the worth and excellency of the soul The great price that was paid for it That Jesus Christ should bee willing to lay down his life to purchase the pardon of the sin of thy soul to deliver thy soul from eternal misery 1 Pet. 1.18 this shews the great worth of the soul Wee are not redeemed by silver and gold saith the Apostle Peter by any of these corruptible things Vers 19. but by the precious blood of Jesus Christ According to the price that is paid for one you may know the worth of such a one Suppose there were divers men that were taken captives one is but an ordinary Mariner you will say perhaps forty pound will redeem such a one but suppose the other bee a Gentleman or a Knight a Noble-man there must go five hundred or two or three thousand pounds for their redemption according to the excellency of the man so must bee the price of his ransome So my brethren when wee consider the price of mens souls that were taken captive by sin what was paid for them it was a price that was more worth than ten thousand thousand worlds certainly the soul is of an excellent nature Indeed it cannot bee imagined that Jesus Christ would have taken mans nature upon him and dyed an accursed death to have saved the whole world from being dissolved Suppose it had lain upon this that heaven and earth must have been dissolved except Jesus Christ would take mans nature upon him certainly Jesus Christ would have suffered heaven and earth to have gone to nothing rather than to have done as he did But when Jesus Christ saw that these immortal souls by their sin were brought into such a condition that they must perish to all eternity except hee come and take their nature upon him and lay down his life and dye an accursed death saith Jesus Christ rather than such precious souls which my Father hath made capable of injoyment of so much good from him and bringing glory to him rather than these should perish I am content to come and dye and suffer the wrath of my Father surely the price that was paid for souls doth hold forth the great worth of them In the death of Christ wee may read in large characters the worth of a soul And my brethren Even the body its self 7 The excâ—llency of the soul proved from the body because it is as the case of the soul it is a very excellent thing Of all the corporeal things that ever God hath made the body of man is the most excellent thing therefore David in Psal 139. speaking of his body saith verse 14. I am fearfully and wonderfully made marvellous are thy works and that my soul knoweth right well And then vers 15. My substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret and curiously wrought in the lowest part of the earth When I was curiously wrought From 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the word in the Hebrew signifies Imbroydred the body of man is Imbroydery and hence in Gen. 2. it is said there that God formed man ampigore and here in Psal 139. God did imbroyder him And therefore Gallen that was an Atheist a long time when hee came to see the Anatomy of a mans body hee cryed out Now I adore the God of Nature Now the Lord hath wrought the body so curiously because it is the case of the soul and that being such an excellent creature must have a suitable case As if you have a curious Watch you will not put it into
lame in thy body yet if thou canst walk in the wayes of Gods Commandements and run there thou art a happy creature It may be thou wantest food I but if God feed thy soul with spiritual Manna feed thee every day with food from heaven and take care for the feeding of thy soul thou art not so miserable as thou thoughtst thy self thou hast tattered cloaths I but if God hath provided the righteousness of his Son to bee a garment to cloach thy soul every time thou appearest before him thou art a happy creature in that therefore when thy heart is ready to murmure that God hath denied thee bodily mercies that hee hath granted to others think with thy self I but hath not God recompenced mee in soul mercies I make no question but there are many souls that bless God that ever they have lived to this time though they have suffered hard things for their bodies many that have lost and been plundered of all yet bless God that they have lived to the time wherein there was so much plenty of the food of souls Oh those truths of God that have been revealed unto us since those times but had those that had the power before had the power still continued wee had never had such truths made known unto us they account all recompenced in soul-mercies in Eph. 1.3 Blessed bee the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Mark what the Apostle saith there his heart is filled with this Blessed bee God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Wherefore that hee hath given us good trading and good incomes that hath given us food and rayment wee are to bless God for this I but the Apostles heart was above this therefore saith hee Blessed bee the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly things in Christ they are the blessings indeed that wee have cause to bless him for spiritual blessings soul-mercies as for bodily-mercies wee know that the Heathens and Reprobates have had as great a share in as any in the world but blessed bee God though wee bee denied these outward bodily favours yet wee have spiritual blessings Oh thanks bee to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ And this now would bee a good argument that you do know the worth of your souls if you can be blessing of God for spiritual blessings in Jesus Christ above all blessings and account your selves rich enough if you have the riches of spiritual blessings And then further Oh if the soul of man bee so precious What great pitty is it that God should not have the honour of mens souls of such a noble and excellent creature it is great pitty that there should bee any creature under the Sun that God should not have the honour of that God should not have honour from every pile of grass from every bit of bread that is eaten from every stone in the street But now that God should give to mankinde such an excellent spirit a soul more precious than all the world and yet that God should not have the glory of this Oh this is an evil thing under the Sun indeed this must needs go to the heart of God for the truth is God hath his glory from all other creatures by the soul of man As for other creatures hee hath his glory but passively from them but for mans soul hee doth expect to have his glory actively from that that man by his soul should come to know this God the infinite first-being of all things should fear him and worship him and serve him and have communion with him and praise him and therefore David in Psal 103. My soul praise thou the Lord and all that is within mee praise his holy name And again hee concludes My soul praise thou the Lord. And so in Psal 104. Now upon the consideration of what hath been said of the excellency of our souls wee should lay a charge upon them that they do honour God and serve God What a sad charge will this bee to many a man at the great day when God shall say Haddest thou been made a Dog I never had had so much dishonour as I have had I should have had more honour if I had made thee a Dog there I should have had my honour passively and no dishonour from thee But now thou being made an immortal soul as it was capable of honouring mee so of sinning against mee the more excellent a thing is the more capable of evil it is as well as of good no creatures but Angels and men are able to sin against God Oh it is pitty that God should not have the honour of thy immortal soul God had more honour from Nebuchadnezzar when hee was driven out among the beasts than when hee sat upon the Throne as a King And then further that should have been another Use to have laboured to perswade you to take heed of dishonouring these souls of yours God hath put a great deal of glory and excellency upon them do not you dishonour them and many wayes should have been said how men do put dishonour upon their souls only for the conclusion Oh that you would but learn to love your own souls To love them It is a strange exhortation you will say to exhort men to love their souls Oh that you would but do it Psal 22. David calls his soul his Darling the souls of men should bee indeed their Darlings not their bodies It was a speech of a Courtier to his friend saith hee I love you as mine own soul Oh saith hee then you love mee not at all if you had said you had loved mee as your body then I should have thought you had loved mee but I see no love you have to your soul It was the prayer of the Apostle St. John in the Epistle that hee writ to his host Gaius I suppose you that know Scripture are not unacquainted with it in his third Epistle Beloved I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and bee in health even as thy soul prospereth I shall close all I intend for the present with this Scripture it seems that Gaius was a holy man but a man of a weakly and sick body and therefore St. John writing to him hee prayes thus Above all things I desire that thy body may but prosper as thy soul prospereth As if hee should say O Gaius thou hast an excellent gracious soul indued with admirable graces of the Spirit of God full of God thy soul is though thy body bee weakly Oh that thou hadst but as good a body as thou hast a soul It seems Gaius had more care of his soul a great deal than of his body but now my brethren consider this Would not this bee a curse to
bee lost And here for the present every man and womans soul in the world by nature is a lost soul First Every man and woman as they come into the world are deprived of the glory and excellency that God did indow the souls of men withall in their first creation wee are all deprived of the glory of God saith the Scripture And secondly All our souls do now naturally wander away from God continually depart and wander from the infinite glorious first-being of all things Thou that art an old man or woman that hast lived many years and God hath not revealed himself in working the true work of conversion in thee to change thy estate know that thy soul hath been departing and wandring from the Lord all the dayes of thy life to this very present thou art like a lost sheep wandring up and down in the wilderness and in danger to bee destroyed every minute of an hour by some wilde beast or other though it is true thy soul is not made a prey to the Devil so as to destroy thee utterly yet thou hast been in danger all the while thou hast been wandring from the Lord to bee made a prey upon by the Devil and utterly to have been cast away Yea and thirdly There is a great deal of misery upon thy soul if thou knewest it as contrary to that light that hee hath set up in thy understanding there is blindness in thee there is errour in thee contrary to that holiness that was at first in thy heart and soul there is nothing but sin and wickedness all the spauns and seeds of all kinde of sin is in thy heart there is a great deal of that evil that is contrary to what thy soul was made withall at first there is enmity in thy soul against God himself Yea and fourthly Thy soul is in a succourless helpless shiftless condition in respect of what thou art able to do or what all the creatures in heaven or earth are able to do for thee let all the Angels in heaven and men in the world joyn together to seek to do good to thy soul they are not able to deliver thy soul from that evil that now it is in and that it is in further danger of And this is the reason of that phrase that you have in Luke 19.10 The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost Wee are all lost sheep going astray and Jesus Christ came to seek and to save lost souls Souls deprived of the glory of God Souls wandring away from God Souls filled with evil Souls succourless and helpless in regard of any power in any creature in heaven and earth to save them Christ beholding how such precious souls were every one of them lost if hee had not come to save them hee was pleased to come from heaven to seek and to save souls thus lost Now though souls bee for the present in a lost condition yet there is a further loss of the soul than this for if the soul be neglected here it will bee lost forever there are many that are lost now for the present and yet afterwards Christ findes them and there is joy in heaven at the finding of them but there is a loss that shall bee eternal and that loss is more dreadful than the former yet the former hath the degree of it but that the perfection of the former Now the loss of the soul in hell consists in these three particulars First The full and perfect eternal rejection of the soul from God and from all good in him together with the fulness of all kinde of evil that the soul is capable of this is the condition of a lost soul that perishes Secondly And then in the next place it consists in the making of this soul to bee perfectly sensible of the loss of that good and of all the evil it is possest withall making of it perfectly sensible of it Here men and women are in lost conditions but they know it not they are not sensible of it But God will bring the soul into such a condition as it shall bee made perfectly sensible of the loss of all the good that it might have had and of all the evil that is upon it Thirdly And then lastly It shall bee in such a condition so succourless so helpless as is not onely beyond the power of Angels and all men to help it but I say so succourless so lost as that Gods mercy and all the good there is in Christ shall never save it and as God hath set and ordered things can never save it Now then these things being opened to you you will understand what this Text means When you read this Text you think there may bee truth in it and in general you will â—ssent unto it but if you come to understand but these things then indeed you cannot but all subscribe to it and acknowledge Oh it is indeed a dreadful thing the loss of the soul But now because it is a point of so great moment I will not satisfie my self meerly in telling you these things but endeavour to open them unto you what the evil of this loss is that if it might bee by presenting this before the souls of men they may see more the danger that they are in and how the Devil hath gulled and deceived them all this while It may make many souls to bee at a stand if they come to know what this loss indeed doth mean Now I shall endeavour the opening of this in the three last particulars that I named First For the rejection of the soul from God so as to bee deprived of all the good there is in God and that it is capable of Now for the understanding of the evil of this wee must inquire what is that good that the souls of men are capable of or else wee cannot come to understand what an evil thing it is to lose it Now for the good that the soul is capable of I will but onely name some heads unto you for in a Treatise that some of you have in your hands of Moses looking to the recompense of reward there are the principal heads of the good and excellency that the soul is capable of and shall bee blessed in heaven eternally with And the apprehending the loss of these things will discover much The first part of the evil of the loss of the soul I will but in a very brief way present them unto you Why the Glory of God upon the soul the Image of God the Life of God the Divine nature that the soul is capable of Now for the soul never to live the Life of God nor to have his Image nor any of the Glory of Gold upon it this is a fearful evil to those that know the excellency of these things of the blessed vision of God in heaven to see him that is the infinite first-being of all things to see him as hee
is to see him that hath all excellency in him and to see all the good there is in God as the good of the soul The soul is capable of the understanding of the minde of God to have all the glorious Counsels of God about his works and wayes that hee hath had from all eternity to bee revealed unto so far as concerns it and as any way may make it happy To live to see what the wayes of God have been from all eternity and what they shall bee to all eternity and that for the good of this soul that it may bee for ever in his presence and to stand and look upon his face and see him as the portion of it Oh this must needs bee a glorious thing Certainly if the presence of God put such a glory upon the heavens it must needs put abundance of glory upon the soul that shall stand immediately alwayes in his presence To have eternal communion with God that is to have the imbracements of God imbracing the soul and delighting himself in it above all other his works but onely the Angels and his Son delighting I say himself in the soul and imbracing it communicating and letting out himself in all his lustre and glory when hee shall have inlarged the soul to bee able to the uttermost to receive in that glory that hee hath to communicate And for him to converse with the souls of men to all eternity in a familiar way as one friend with another and for the soul to bee letting out its self again to God for that is in communion there is Gods letting out himself to it and its letting out its self again to God now I say it is the greatest delight to what God hath in himself his Son and Spirit and Angels the letting out of himself to the souls of men those that shall bee saved And on the other side it must needs bee an infinite delight to the soul alwayes to bee letting out it self upon God as now what delight do men take in eating and drinking now if there bee such delight from the humour in the palat meeting with a peece of meat in the mouth because of the suitableness between one object and another Oh what delight must there needs bee when this immortal precious soul being inlarged to the uttermost with all excâ—â—â—ency shall then meet with an infinite God the infinite first-being of all things as the most suitable object to it and so bee letting of its self forth to God and God letting of himself forth to it again Again the good that the soul is capable of with God it is to have an union with God for the soul to be made one with God to be united so as to be made one with him Hee that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit saith the Apostle and saith Christ in Joh. 17. Father I will that those that thou hast given mee may bee one with mee as thou and I are one Spiritual things do most unite one to another there may bee a thousand beams of the Sun united and almost into one point because it is of a more spiritual nature so when the soul shall bee made one Spirit with God it being a Spirit and God likewise a Spirit there will bee an exact union one with another And so the more spiritual things are the more they communicate one to another as in nature the more corporeal a thing is the less it communicates its self the earth doth not communicate its self with any creature the water communicates its self more than that and the air more than that and the fire more than that the Sun that is less corporeal than any of these elements that wee have here and therefore that communicates its self more than the element doth Now God being a Spirit and the souls of men spiritual Oh what a communion will there bee of each to other And then further the soul is capable of fruition of God union and communion and fruition what is that you will say that is to have God not onely to bee united to it but to have a kind of possession of him to have the use of all that there is in God that can make mee happy to have the full use of it when I will then a man doth injoy a thing when hee can have the use of such a thing when hee will Now the souls of the Saints shall enjoy God that is shall have the use of all that glory and good there is in God that can make them happy when they will shall have as much use of God as they will surely they must needs bee happy that shall thus enjoy God If a man had the fruition of the world that hee could have the use of all the good things in the world when hee would you would think him happy but this is the happiness of the souls of the Saints that they shall have such a fruition of God that they shall have all the use of God that they will and when they wâ—ll And further Fruition hath this in it it hath a reflect act A man though hee hath a great deal of riches given him yet if hee doth not know this or if so bee that hee doth know it and yet have not the comfort of it hee doth not enjoy it such a man though hee bee born to a great deal yet if hee have not the reflect act to know that hee hath it hee doth not enjoy it So wee enjoy but little of God now because God though hee bee the portion of a gracious heart yet the heart doth not know this fully But knowledge when it shall bee perfect then the soul shall perfectly know what good there is in God and how far my soul may and is happy in the enjoyment of this God I shall know how to make use of God to the full and shall have continually the comfort of all that good there is in God And yet further the presence and communion with Jesus Christ that the soul shall have besides that of God the Father it shall bee with him where hee is It is a blessed thing here to follow the Lamb whithersoever hee goes but to bee alwaies with him to have alwaies fruition of him and to have communion likewise with all the Saints and Angels and all the blessed spirits that is a blessed thing indeed I remember I have read of Cato when hee was about to dye Oh blessed day saith hee for now I shall go to the souls of wise men and Philosophers and so upon that ground he did account the day of his death a blessed day because hee should go to have communion with the souls of Philosophers and wise men But how blessed is it then for our souls to have communion eternally with Angels and blessed spirits You are come to an innumerable company of Angels Heb. 12.22 23 and the spirits of just men made perfect When a soul is converted it
bee thou that art a carnal Master mayst see thy poor servant taken up to God and thou thy self shut out or it may bee the carnal Father or Mother may see their childe saved and yet they themselves lost Oh this will bee a sad aggravation of their loss And thus you have heard the dreadful loss of the soul together with the aggravations thereof in these ten particulars Now for the Use Is it so that the loss of the soul eternally is so dreadful a loss as you have heard it is Oh then let every one here bless God for their souls that their souls are not thus lost It might have been so long ere this time when such a kinsman of thine dyed or thy fellow-servant or when such a neighbour or acquaintance of thine dyed if thou hadst but dyed when they dyed thy soul it may bee had been eternally lost This I can assure you that naturally you are all lost and what makes the difference between thy soul and the condition of a lost soul as you have heard but onely the meer mercy of God Oh therefore now bless God for his mercy unto thee that thy soul is not as yet a lost soul and think thus with thy self Lord if these things bee true and so dreadful to hear of Oh then what would be my misery if it should prove that I should bee the person made sensible thereof by experiencing the misery I hear of to bee the miserable condition of a lost soul The Scripture doth say concerning the joy and happiness of the Saints That eye hath not seen nor ear heard 1 Cor. 2.9 neither hath it entred into the heart of man to conceive what their happiness shall bee that shall bee saved And the like may bee said of the misery of the souls that are eternally lost and the Scripture doth say That if our Gospel bee hid 2 Cor. 4.3 it is hid to them that are lost I beseech you therefore remember what hath been spoken concerning the condition of loâ—t souls and lay to heart what hath been spoken out of this Text lest within a little time you feel what hath been spoken to bee a truth and so bee forced to cry out True it is I heard such a day out of such a text what was the miserable condition of a soul eternally lost but now I finde it by experience to bee true and the one half I now feel I could not then conceive And know the reason my Brethren why we lay the misery of lost souls thus before you it is to this end that none of you might be thus lost And it is a blessed thing for you to hear these things for how many are there that have lost their souls which till they were thus lost never so much as heard any thing about the loss of their souls which if they had who knows what might have been done by them for the saving of their souls Beloved such a subject as this cannot be spoken unto you without trembling for certainly this subject will bee much adding to the prevention of the loss or else it will mightily aggravate the loss of your souls if ever they are eternally lost therefore all I have at present to counsel you to is to lay these things to your hearts seriously as also to bless God for your souls that as yet they are not in this dreadful eternally lost condition The Fifth SERMON ON The Excellency of the Soul Matthew 16.26 For what is a man profited if hee shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul Use IF the loss of our souls bee so dreadful as you have heard bless God that your souls are not gone and thus lost as hath been opened unto you It may bee thou hast lost thy husband or thy wife or thy childe or thy friend or a great part of thine estate but blessed bee God that thy soul is not lost In a great fire where men use to lose most if not all that they have when a man comes to view what hee hath lost and hee findes hee hath lost this thing that was in such a parlour and that that was in such a chest but if at length he comes to finde that such a Jewel that hee had in the house or such a bagg of gold in which most of his estate consisted that that is not lost though all the lumber all the houshold-stuff is lost that comforts him in all other of his losses So it should bee here whatever wee lose wee are to bee comforted in this that our souls are not gone and lost It is a notable Scripture in 1 Pet. 4. vers last Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing as unto a faithful Creator As if the Apostle should say you are like to meet with great sufferings you may likely bee deprived of all you have of your estates and of all your comforts and may come to suffer much yet commit the keeping of your souls to him in well doing as unto a faithful Creator Why they might have said but what shall become of other things if storms and tempests and sufferings come what shall become of our estates what shall become of our livelihoods and of our bodies why saith the Apostle as for them for your estates for your bodies it may bee they may perish you are not so much to look after them but commit the keeping of your souls unto him as unto a faithful Creator The Apostle here exhorts them what to do in times of sufferings and by what hee doth express hee doth imply that they should take no care for outward estate and body it is enough that your souls are well commit the keeping of your souls to him as unto a faithful Creator wee have enough if that bee safe You know in time of danger as fires and other times if a man hath any precious thing hee carries that presently to some special friend and commits the keeping of that to him his writings and such things wherein his estate is most So saith the Apostle in the time of publick danger Take care to commit the keeping of your souls to him as unto a faithful Creator and you are well enough That is the first Secondly If the loss of the soul bee so dreadful a loss Oh let us bless God then for Jesus Christ without whom all our souls had been eternally lost never a soul in the world but must have perished unto all eternity had not Jesus Christ come into the world to bee the great Saviour of souls All the Angels in Heaven and men in the world could never have saved one soul now Christ saw this and his bowels did even yearn towards so many thousands of precious souls and rather than they should perish hee was content to come and make his own soul to bee an offering for sin Isa 53.10 the soul of Christ was made an
other creature in this or the other manner So God is the fountain of all good to all creatures whatsoever they are to look upon him as having all coming from him And therefore hee alone is excellent and his glory is above the Heavens and Earth 14 Further As all things are from him so they depend upon him all excellencies that are in the creature as they come from God so they have their absolute dependency upon God so as God need do nothing to destroy a creature if hee doth but withdraw himself from it it falls to nothing presently take the most glorious Angels and the highest Heavens Sun Moon Stars Sea and Earth if God should but withdraw his hand from these creatures they would presently fall down to nothing they do depend upon God as the light upon the Sun there is no more light if the beams of the Sun bee withdrawn so if God withdraw his influence from the creature it can do nothing and it s nothing presently so that the influence that there is from God to the creature it is to maintain the creature in his being every moment the Lord must put forth as infinite a power to maintain thee and mee and every creature as hee did at the first for the making of the world Heb. 1.3 And this is Gods excellency to uphold all things they do so depend upon him If a work-man make a house hee goes away the house can stand without him but when God built the world the world could not stand one moment without him And not onely God must have an influence into the creature to preserve the being but likewise to inable the creature to act the creature cannot act one moment without God no creature can stir in the least degree Act. 17.28 except the Lord concur with it Therefore the Name of God alone is excellent By him saith the Scripture wee live wee move wee have our being not onely wee are upheld in our being and lives but wee move wee cannot stir one moment but God must concur with his creature for the motion and action of it 15 Further God alone is excellent in his operation in his power in the manner of his working though God give a power to other creatures to work yet God works in a different way from all other creatures First God hee doth whatsoever hee pleases either in heaven or earth The will of God as I shewed you before it cannot bee beyond Gods power God cannot will to do more than hee hath power to do Psal 115.3 Psal 135.6 Eccles 8.3 Therefore the Lord hee doth whatsoever hee pleases in heaven and earth The power of every creature can but work within the sphere so far as the causes give a vertue and efficacy so far it is able to work and no further Secondly The power of God appears in this that the Lord doth the greatest and the most difficult things as easily as hee doth the least and the easiest as thus God makes the whole world as easily as hee can make a crum of dirt God can make the Heavens Sun Moon and Stars and all the Seas and Earth with as much ease as hee can make a flye God can make ten thousand Angels as soon as hee can make one worm And therefore God hee can as soon speak the word to the soul of a man that is dead Joh. 5.25 to live hee can as soon raise aâ—l the dead out of their graves as hee can give them a peece of bread to eat while they are alive such is the infiniteness of Gods operation 3 Further God is excellent in all that hee doth There is nothing that God doth in any time but was decreed to bee done from eternity that is the excellency of Gods working the creature works something but perhaps a man did not think of what hee doth a few dayes ago but God doth nothing nor never will do any thing but it is that that was decreed from all eternity that hee would do and God will never do any thing to all eternity but what hee had decreed from all eternity before yet it is for us creatures to observe according to his revealed will but this is the excellency of God above all creatures whatever 4 And then there is a further thing that is as considerable as any of the other God is so far from needing any matter to work upon or instrument to work by when he doth do anything as there is no more required for any creature to bee or work at any time when God would have it but the alone act of Gods will that was from eternity As now the world it was not made six thousand years ago Now God willed from all eternity that there should bee a world in time and there was nothing required to make this world but that act of Gods will that was from all eternity that it should bee at that time Man hee doth will and decree to do such a thing now when the time comes then hee bestirs himself and takes this tool or instrument and puts forth a power that hee did not put forth before But the act of Gods will from all eternity was sufficient to make all creatures that ever since have been made and to provide for all creatures that ever since have been provided for one act of Gods will hath done all this and that act of the will of God that hath been from all eternity hath done it there are not several acts of Gods will but Gods act is himself Divers other things might bee shewed as this 5 Where God hath done any work all his works adde nothing to him The creature hath somewhat added to him by his works as thus A man that is a work-man hee can make a house and so hee hath the benefit of it to dwell in to keep off the weather and so hee makes cloath and hath the benefit of it But all the works of God adde nothing to him A man can do something by the work that hee hath made that hee could not do without his work but God can do nothing by any work that hee hath made but hee can do the same without that work when hee hath made all his works they are not helpful to him but this was a branch of the All-sufficiency of God 16 In the next place God alone is excellent in the manner of his communication of himself God doth so communicate himself to his creatures as one creature cannot to another First God can let out as much of himself as hee will to any creature now one creature cannot let out as much as hee pleases to another for instance A man that hath learning hee cannot make another as learned as hee will a man that hath holiness and goodness cannot make another as holy and as good as hee will but God can this is Gods propriety hee can let out of himself as much as hee pleases as much holiness as much
goodness as much power as hee pleases hee is able to let out Secondly the creature When it doth communicate any excellency the more it lets out the less it hath but God hath never a whit less by that that hee doth let out to his creatures as thus the Sea is full of water yet if you take out but a little water the Sea hath so much the less therefore some of the Fathers would set out Eternity by this that if a Sparrow should but once in a thousand years fetch one drop of water from the Sea in the bill of it yet the Sparrow would sooner empty all the Sea than the torments of the damned should bee at an end so that if a drop bee taken out of the Sea it is the less but God is such an infinite ocean of beeing of excellencies of happiness that let him let out and communicate never so much of himself yet hee hath as much still as ever hee had God hath let out excellency and good to all his creatures ever since the world began all the good the comfort the happiness the sweetness the beauty and excellency of all creatures have been from God that infinite fountain but now this fountain is as full as ever it was and will bee as full to all eternity as ever it was And here lyes the excellency of God beyond all creatures whatsoever 17 In the next place God alone is excellent there is no comparison to bee made between him and any thing else as thus Take the creature in what wee think it comes nearest to God and the truth is to speak properly it comes no nearer to God than those things that wee think come less as when wee say that God is a great God and fills all places if you should suppose a body that should fill all this world it is no nearer to Gods immensity than a moat that flyes in the Sun or thus Take never so many thousand years as wee spoke the last day if an Accountant that should write down figures all his life time they would come wee think to an infinite summe yet all those infinite millions of years come no nearer to Gods eternity than one minute doth and the reason that I give is unanswerable because that there must needs bee alwayes an infinite distance between what is finite and what is infinite and greater than an infinite distance there cannot bee now take such a body as should fill the space between heaven and earth there remains still an infinite distance between the Immensity of God and this body and take so many numbers of years as possibly can be imagined by Men or Angels yet there will remain an infinite distance between Gods eternity and those numbers of years now greater than an infinite distance there cannot bee therefore all those years do not come nearer to eternity than a minute and all the greatness doth not come nearer to Immensity than a moat in the Sun God is beyond all comparison whatsoever and the understanding that God is an infinite beeing will help us to understand all the rest that I have named 18 And there is one more and that is this Hee is the last end of all things Hee is the highest end for which all Creatures had their beeing and the more any Creature is subservient unto God the more excellency a Creature hath For of him and through him and to him are all things Rom. 11.36 to whom be glory for ever All things must tend to God as the highest end cursed bee that Creature that shall challenge to bee the highest end of any good thing whatsoever this makes it to bee a cursed thing for any man to make himself to bee his last end to make his name honour or credit to bee the end that hee aims at and indeed this is the very thing that makes pride to bee so great a sin the Scripture never speaks so of other things as it doth of pride it is said of other sins that God hates the workers of iniquity but it is said of no sin that God doth resist it onely the sin of pride why James 4.6 1 Pet. 5.5 because a proud man doth cross God in that which is indeed his excellency and that is this That God is the highest end of all things for whom all things were made now a proud man crosses God in this nay saith hee I will aim at my self as the highest end wee may aim at our own good in a subordinate way but wee must bee sure to lift up God as the highest end of all because hee is excellent above all now put all these together First That God hee is and there is none else Hee is such a beeing as in comparison of him nothing else hath a beeing Hee is that beeing that hath no succession that is alwaies the same Hee is an excellency in all places that fills all places without any local motion at all Hee is a beeing that hath all sufficiency in himself hee hath all excellencies in him is an universality of all excellencies hee hath all excellencies united in one that are scattered up and down in Creatures yea all the attributes of God are in him but one hee hath in him all possible good whatsoever all things that are in God are equally in him they are all infinitely in him they are eternally immutably essentially purely without mixture originally hee is the fountain of all good to the Creature all excellencie in the Creature doth absolutely depend upon him hee is excellent in his operation hee can do whatsoever hee will hee can do the greatest thing as easily as the least and one act from eternity is enough to do all that ever hee hath done Hee can communicate as much of himself as hee will to his Creature and hee hath never a whit the less in himself there can bee no comparison between him and the Creature the highest Creature comes not nearer him than the least and hee is the highest end of all things whatsoever and this God is our God this is the God that wee profess to serve that wee profess to worship and these are to bee the thoughts that wee are to have of God when we come before him Now you cannot but imagine that there must needs bee abundance of streams of Use and Application that must follow from these things all that I have done it is but to present what God is Now meethinks I hear many that give their minds to understand what God is even saying within themselves Oh that wee did but acknowledge God to bee thus surely there is a farther excellency in God than wee have imagined and might wee have but further sight into these things that have been thus briefly presented to us Oh of what excellent use might all these be I shall endeavour therefore to present but to you and even as briefly as I have done the other the several uses that may flow from all these things
I will onely give you a hint of one or two now Oh what infinite cause have wee all to bee ashamed of those low thoughts wee have had of God! Use If God bee thus as hee hath been but a little presented to us now and by what wee see wee may gather that there is infinitely more in God and God is infinitely higher than ever wee thought of I say then upon the very hearing of such things as these are and especially wee being conscious to our selves how little wee are able to understand of them wee may see cause to bee ashamed of the poor and low thoughts that wee have had of this infinite Majesty the unworthy thoughts that wee have had of him when wee have come into the presence of God you have come to prayer to God have you come to prayer as unto such a God have you had such kind of thoughts as these are that hee is that high Majesty Certainly you cannot sanctifie Gods Name but you must have high thoughts of God and though I will not say that those do not sanctifie Gods Name that have not every one of these thoughts of God yet thus much I will say that those that have not apprehended every one of these things of God have not sanctified Gods Name as much as they should for wee are to apprehend what it is possible for us to apprehend here in this world or otherwise wee do not sanctifie Gods Name so as wee ought when wee come to God in prayer or to worship him in any other duty of his worship if wee do not apprehend of God as much as wee possibly can in this world wee do not sanctifie Gods Name as much as wee ought to do and wee are to bee ashamed that wee have not such apprehensions of God as wee might possibly have if God bee such a God as this what poor thoughts of God are these that hee is as an old man in Heaven some have such poor apprehensions of God and when they hear the Scripture speak of Gods eyes and ears and hands they think that God hath a body when as the Scripture doth but speak to our capacities that is what a man can do with his eyes or hands or ears that God is able to do by his infinite power I appeal to you have you apprehensions of the majesty and glory of God beyond all majesty and glory that any Creature is capable of in this world wee do not sanctifie Gods Name except I say wee apprehend God higher in majesty and glory than all creatures in the world are Suppose you were to come to a King that had all the glory and honour put upon him that ever any creature had in this world with what fear and trembling would we come before such a Majesty as this is but if thou hast not come with further trembling and fear before God when thou camest into his presence if thou hast not come with higher thoughts of that God that thou hast to deal withall I say thou hast not glorified God as a God no marvel though people are so slight and vain in the duties of Gods worship because they do not know what a God hee is that they have to do withall Use 2 This sheweth you the dreadful evil there is in sin why because it is against such a God as this God is dost thou know whom it is that thou sinnest against Oh thou sinner dost thou know whom it is thou strikest at it is this infinite God that is thus presented to you Whose Name alone is excellent and whose glory is above the Earth and Heavens Know sinner and the Lord smite this upon thy heart thou that art a wicked and ungodly man all the daies of thy life thou hast done nothing else but fought against this God this infinite and glorious God thou hast been an enemy to all the daies of thy life and every time thou renewest thy sins thou dost do nothing else but strike at this infinite God and provokest the wrath of this infinite deity against thy soul and body and darest thou stand out against this God wilt thou put it to the trial to see whether that God that thou sinnest against bee such a God as this is wilt thou put it to the ttial that God should set thee apart to make thee an object upon whom to exercise all that infinite power that there is in God to bring evil and misery and torments upon thee for thy sin this is the case of all desperate sinners that do go on in a desperate way of sin the language of their sin is this I do hear much spoken concerning the greatness and excellency and glory of God I le try and venture I le put it to the experiment whether God bee such a God or no as hee hath manifested himself in his word Oh woe to that Creature that shall come to feel what the greatneâ—s of God doth mean Oh it is infinitely better for thee to fall down before him and therefore this should bee the Exhortation to all sinners Consider Exhort Oh sinful man or woman what a God it is thou dost contest withall shall the potsheard strive with his Maker let one potsheard strive with another but let not the Creature strive with the Almighty for hee will bee infinitely too hard for thee and hee will appear alone to bee excellent thou dost lift up thy will above his will as if so bee that thou wouldest rise above this infinite God but know in despite of thy heart hee will bee above thee hee hath thee under his feet this moment and the sword of his justice is at thy very heart and hee can take thy heart blood when hee pleases and send thee down to eternal miseries there is no striving with such a God as this is who is alone excellent Isa 45.23 Rom. 14.11 the word hath proceeded out of his mouth in Righteousness that every knee must bow unto him and every tongue must confess this God certainly one way or other hee will have his glory out of thee God can as well cease to bee as not to have his glory out of every Creature do but consider of this and learn to tremble before this God The Lord is excellent and glorious above all things and hee is resolved that hee will have his gloâ—y from every Creature one way or other and if it prove that hee comes upon thee to force it out of thee better ten thousand times that thou hadst never been born 1 Pet. 5.6 James 4.10 therefore according to the Exhortation of the Holy Ghost in Scripture Oh! let us humble our selves under the mighty hand of God and let us all say Thou O Lord art alone excellent and thy glory is above the Heavens and Earth and the desire of our souls is to lâ—ft up thy Name as the excellent thing above all Creatures While wee live here in this world this is our excellency and
knows my Name the Lord haâ—h a hath account of those that know his Name As for those ignorant creatures let them bee what they will in regard of outward things yet if they bee ignorant of God they are vile and low and base in Gods esteem but take a soul that knows Gods Name the Lord will set him on high such a one is high in the very thoughts of God and the Lord doth take pleasure to make such a soul to bee high Paul in Phil. 3.8 did account all things dung and dross for what for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ For indeed in the knowledge of Christ God is known and if you would study the knowledge of God it must bee in Christ you can never know God but in Christ Matth. 11.27 saith Christ there No man knows the Father but the Son and him to whom the Son shall reveal him It must bee Christ that must reveal the glory of God to our souls or else wee can never come to know him savingly Use 6 Sixthly If God bee thus excellent above all and his glory thus above the earth and heavens hence we are taught to labour to keep the sense of the infinite distance that there is between God and his creatures alwayes in our hearts And this is a point of marvellous consequence the sense of the distance between God and us If God bee infinitely above the creature then God expects that wee that profess any knowledge of him that wee should evermore have our thoughts upon Gods excellency raised in a kinde of infiniteness above what wee think of the excellency of any creature and our hearts then should work after God in a kinde of infiniteness more than ever they did work after any creature as there is an infinite disproportion between the excellency of God and the excellency that there is in any creature I beseech you observe what I am speaking for it is of marvellous use to help us to sanctifie God in all our wayes as there is an infinite distance between the excellency of God and of all creatures so there ought to bee in a kinde an infinite distance between what our hearts are in the working after God and the working after the creature otherwise wee lift not up Gods Name in his excellency and glory And indeed a gracious heart will make it so and in this I conceive the very work of grace consists in that it is such a principle in the soul of a man or woman that is converted that though such a one bee a finite creature yet it hath a kinde of infiniteness in the working of it after God You will say Infinite how can that bee True I confess properly it cannot bee infinite but thus it is infinite in its kinde that is such a creature hath such a principle as it would fain if it were possible work infinitely after God And Further This principle of grace doth cause this in the heart that it will never limit its self in any working after God and therefore hath a kinde of Infinitenesse and here is the difference between one that hath true grace and the most glorious hypocrite in the world An hypocrite hee will ever bee bounding his working after God and think thus much is enough what need any more If I do thus and thus why I may do well and go to heaven at last and so doth bound himself But now where there is the least dram of true grace though there bee many weaknesses in the soul yet such a soul doth never bound its seâ—f in working after God I indeed heretofore have â—et out my heart to the creature but now I would fain if I could let out my heart infinitely after God Why For I see an infinite distance between the good there is in the creature and the good there is in God certainly where this is there is grace and this one note were enough to discern the truth of grace in the heart If the sight of God have wrought this that whereas heretofore thy heart hath been let out after such and such creature-comforts now thou dost desire if it were possible to let out thy heart infinitely after God here is the work of grace and in this thou goest beyond any hypocrite Oh keep this constant in thy soul this is the especial sanctifying of Gods Name in all our wayes when wee see that God gives us leave to let out our hearts towards the creature in some measure then there is a great deal of danger that wee should have our hearts stick in the creature and that we should not have that disproportion in the letting out of our hearts to the creature and to God as ought to bee And this is the ground of all Idolatry in the world when men have seen some excellency in the creature they have been taken with it and there have stuck and have not been carried from the creature to God And that is Heathens Idolatry when they see an excellency in the Sun they think that is God So Christians Idolatry may bee in this If there bee any creature-comfort that thy heart closes withall and there thou dost stick and thy heart is not carried to God yea is not carried to God in such a disproportion as there is between him and the creature I say so far as thou wantest that that thou art capable of in this kinde so far thou art guilty of Idolatry Oh that this one note might stick upon us There is none like unto thee O Lord Canst thou say this out of the uprightness of thy soul as in the presence of God Lord thou that knowest all things knowest that though I have a vile heart that is let out after the creatures more than it ought to bee yet Lord thou knowest that my heart is let out after nothing so much as after thee that would bee a good argument of a gracious work of God upon thee Surely if none bee like unto the Lord then our hearts should bee after nothing so as after the Lord Wee must not content our selves with a little love to God Is there such a disproportion between thy love to the creature and thy love to God as there is between God and the creature Thou sayest thou lovest God I but it may bee thou lovest the creature as well Doest thou think that this will satisfie God When thou hearest that Gods Name alone is excellent God expects that thy love to hâ—m should bee in a kinde infinite above that love of thine to any creature else And there is this one thing further with which I will conclude Use 7 Surely if Gods Name alone bee excellent then in a proportion Gods people alone are the excellent people upon the earth According as a mans God is so is hee as you know men conceive their excellency to bee according to the excellency of him whom they serve according as a mans God is I say so is hee Now if God alone
stoop down to pry into those things of the Gospel Great is the mystery of godliness in Christ Jesus Oh there are many glorious mysteries of godliness in Jesus Christ And such things as eye hath not seen ear hath not heard neither can enter into the heart of man to conceive as the Scripture saith in 1 Cor. 2.9 yea they are revealed onely by the Spirit of God that searches all things yea the deep things of God the Spirit that searches the deep things of God must reveal the things of the Gospel unto that soul that ever comes to the knowledge of them It was a work of the Spirit of God to instruct Bezaleel and Aholiab in those Arts of Workmanship to work in Brass and the like it is a work of Gods Spirit to shew a man the reason of the things of nature but now when Gods Spirit comes to reveal Christ to the soul for it is the Spirit of God that searches the deep things of God this puts an emphasis upon it shewing that the things of the Gospel are deep things they are things that onely are revealed by Gods Spirit and not by an ordinary work of Gods Spirit but by an extraordinary work of the Spirit of God that Spirit that searches the deep things of God must declare these things to any soul that comes to the understanding of them His Name is Wonderful Now surely hee that God spake so much of before hee came into the world hee that so many wise men and Prophets did so long to see hee that was the expectation and joy of the whole Church of God from the beginning of the world before hee came hee that was so typified out by all the Sacrifices and Types of the Old Testament by the Temple that was the wonder of the world at that time Hee that when hee came into the world had his birth solemnized by the Angels a heavenly Quire singing Doxologies Hee that had upon his first coming the wise men from the East coming to worship him surely hee must bee some wonderful one some great one and therefore as wee read of the people in Luke 1.66 when they saw and heard of such strange things at John Baptists birth the Text saith All they that heard them laid them up in their hearts saying What manner of Childe shall this bee So when wee hear of these things that were done by way of preparation to the coming of Christ for some two thousand years together and such great things that were done upon his coming surely it must needs bee some wonderful one What manner of Childe is this that is given to us wherefore then as wee read of Moses in Exod. 9.9 when hee saw that wonderful sight in the wilderness the bush burning and not consumed saith Moses I will go and see what yonder great sight is So wee may well say when Christ is propounded thus Wonderful and God himself gives him this Name let us take off our thoughts from all other things and turn aside to see this great sight to see what this Wonder is Therefore for the opening of this Wonder that is in Christ to shew you how Christ is Wonderful and how well hee may challenge this Name and how proper this Title is to him to bee called Wonderful I shall open it in these several particulars First Christ is wonderful in his Natures Secondly Christ is wonderful in his Person Thirdly Hee is wonderful in the manner of his Incarnation Fourthly Hee is wonderful in the wonderful work that hee came for into the world the wonderful things that hee came to do Fifthly Hee is wonderful in his Anointment in his Offices Sixthly Hee is wonderful in his admirable Indowments Seventhly Hee is wonderful in his glorious Miracles that hee wrought Eighthly Hee is wonderful in that great glory of God the Father that appears in him Ninthly He is wonderful in the work of his Humiliation Tenthly Hee is wonderful in his Conquest Eleventhly Wonderful in his Exaltation and the degrees of it Twelfthly Wonderful in his Saints Lastly hee is wonderful and shall bee wonderful in the highest heavens in the Church Triumphant and in all these regards wee shall see what a wonderful Saviour wee have and what kinde of thoughts wee are to have of Jesus Christ As certainly for the want of the right understanding of God and the low thoughts and apprehensions wee have of him the Name of God is little sanctified among us so for the want of the right understanding of Jesus Christ Oh how little is the Name of God sanctified in the mysteries of the Gospel wee have the word God wee can say that God made us and so the word Christ and wee hope to bee saved by Jesus Christ But oh how far are wee either from apprehending God such an infinite and glorious God as hee hath already though very darkly been set out unto you and so before wee have done though it bee but in a Sermon or two you will finde that your thoughts of Jesus Christ have been too low and too mean Oh that wee could by any means heighten your thoughts upon God and Christ that you may know the Lord and his Son whom hee hath sent into the world First Christ is wonderful in his Natures These Heads that I have propounded they all might bee largely insisted on but I think it best at first to give you a short view of things and to present them together as briefly as I may Wonderful in his Natures for hee is God and man our Saviour is God and so hee is set forth unto us afterwards the Mighty God and is not this a wonderful thing that mankinde fallen from God should have no less Saviour than the Mighty God himself If all the Angels in Heaven and men in the world had undertaken to have been the Saviours of one soul they could never have done it they could never have accomplished what they had undertaken such is the state of man as if ever hee bee saved hee must have a Saviour above the Angels above all the strength that there is in all the Angels in heaven and creatures in all the world hee is that God that you have heard of whose Name is alone excellent whose glory is above the heavens and earth but that wee should bee saved onely by God may seem to some to bee no such great wonder who can save us but God I but know that here it is not God putting forth an Attribute to save us but it is God undertaking this relation of a Saviour and God putting himself in another condition as it were and taking upon him our nature therefore that is that indeed that makes the wonder God-Man Theanthropos 1 Tim. 3.16 Great is the mystery of godliness God was manifested in the flesh This is a wonderful mystery that there should be such a word Theanthropos God-Man is the greatest wonder that ever there was in the world that there should bee such a
higher than naturalness of the place If I shall make this place by the consecration of man to bee used as an Ordinance to draw mee nearer to God or God nearer to mee that is to think that my prayers in that place are more acceptable than in another that because I perform services in that place it shall bee more accepted Here I say man raises it higher than natural and puts a Divine Institution upon it and so it comes to bee sinful and so now you may come to know what the meaning is when wee say that Christ only can make Lawes for his Church and Officers for his Church Why because whatsoever is spiritual it must bee only by the Authority of Jesus Christ this great King of his Church 6 And then Sixthly Christ is a wonderful King in this that his Soveraignty is absolute which no Kings power is though they have great power in the world yet they have not an absolute power to doe what they list and certainly no Subjects are bound so farre to the humours of men that they shall doe what they list there is no absolute power that one man hath over another bur the power that Jesus Christ hath is absolute an absolute Kingly power his Will it is the Law no mans will in the World is sufficient to be a law but the will of this King it is sufficient 7 And then in the Seventh place hee hath power to bind Conscience his Laws are such as lay obligations and bonds upon the Consciences of men no Law that would be made by all the Angels in heaven could lay bonds upon conscience but the Lavv only of Jesus Christ all the Lavves that men can make must receive their povver and authority especially from the end of them and therefore if they should not conduce unto that end for vvhich God sets up Magistracy over men that is for the good of the place then the rule vvill hold that if there be not scandal or contempt there is no obligation upon a mans conscience meerly because it is the will of man But now the Lavves of Christ vvhatsoever they are they lay bonds upon consciences and if I doe offend them never so secretly I stand as guilty before the great God and that is the seventh thing 8 And then in the Eighth place Christs Kingly power it reaches to mens hearts I must not as I goe along enter into the large opening of any thing that may be controversal but meerly present vvhat at large might be opened to you about the Kingly povver of Christ I say Christs Kingly povver is vvonderful in this in that it rules over the hearts of men as vvell as their consciences Christ by his povver is able to subue the vvills of men and bring their hearts to obedience to him all the power there is in the World cannot doe this vvhy the Kings of the earth if they vvere put all together they could not subdue the heart of any one poor man in the world the will of the poorest Creature in the world cannot be subdued by all the powers of all the Potentates and Emperours upon the face of the earth they may beat his body or torter his body or kill his body but to subdue his heart to make his soul to bee subject and obedient to them that I say all the powers of all the Potentates in the world nay all the Angels in heaven cannot doe it the will of a man or woman is such that all the Angels in heaven cannot bring it down only God himself you many times say you will break the will of such a one that is you will make them not to doe such a thing but you are never able to break their wills Kings may prevail over their subjects to make them to doe what they would have them doe and their Estates and Liberties may come to be at their dispose but all this while it may be he hath never a one of their hearts and that is but a very mean kind of Kingly power only to rule over men by fear and they not to love him But now Christ in his Church he hath never a subject that is truly under his Kingly power but he rules his very will and hath never a subject but loves him where Christ doth rule Spiritually in the hearts of his people though they were never so stubborn and rebellious before yet when Christ comes and brings them under his power hee brings their wills and their hearts to him and that is the glory of the Kingly power of Christ 9 And then in the Ninth place Christ is a wonderful King in this that he hath the perfect knowledge of all his Subjects and of their wants alas Kings and Princes in great States they know but very few Subject that they have but now Jesus Christ takes notice of every subject that is in his Kingdom and knowes all their thoughts and all their vvayes and all their vvants all their conditions he knovves them all perfectly Oh this is the glory of this King and vvonderful is hee in his Kingly povver in this 10 Hee is present vvith them all in all the Administration of Justice the King hee cannot administer Justice but hee must use Instruments to doe it and hee cannot bee present alvvayes but Jesus Christ hee is alvvayes present in the Administration of vvhat ever is administred to any of his Subjects he stands by and looks upon them all 11 Christ is such a King as he hath no need of any Instruments at all hee may make use of them sometimes but he hath no need of any Kings can doe but very little vvithout some Instruments vvhat can a King doe for the ruling of a Kingdom but vvith such and such Instruments But Jesus Christ is vvonderful in his Kingly povver in that hee hath no need of any Instruments for the administration of any Justice but he can doe it all immediately himself if he pleases 12 Christ is glorious in his Kingly power in this that he doth over-rule all the plots and counsels of all the enemies of his Subjects for the furtherance of the glory of his Kingdome and the good of his Subjects now my brethren look upon these things as real and certainly by faith they are made real to the hearts of the Saints and they doe rejoyce in this if we had such kind of Governours that had power over all the plots and designs of the enemies what a happy condition would we think our selves to be in Now this is in our King the Lord Jesus Christ he hath power over all the plots and endeavours of all adversaries to work them all for the good of his Church 13 Further the Lord Christ is wonderful for his Kingly power in regard of his righteousnesse Thy scepter is a righteous scepter he is King of righteousnesse and so King of peace as Melchisedeck was It is a happy thing when people live under righteous Governours that they
typifie that Christ as hee was man hee had no Father and as hee was God hee had no Mother and hee had no beginning in his Priestly office it was from everlasting and it shall indure to everlasting So hee is a Priest for ever after the Order of Melchisedeck and not after the Order of Aaron 2 And in the next place All the Priests in the Law did typifie Christ and all did cease in him certainly hee must needs bee a great High Priest that was typified by them and in whom all ceased and vanished As when the Sun arises the light of the stars doth no more appear there was no further Priesthood when Jesus came and took that Office to himself in his humane Nature in this world 3 But further Christ is wonderful in his Priest-hood in this that hee had no need to offer for himself as others had for hee was blameless and without sin 4 Yea and consider what Christ offered and there you shall see him wonderful the Offering that Christ offered it was the blood of God I say it was that that wee may call safely according to Scripture language the blood of God and that will not seem to bee a hard expression if wee understand what the personal union of the two Natures are in Act. 20.28 faith the Apostle to the Church of Ephesus Take heed therefore unto your selves and to all the flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers to feed the Church of God which hee hath purchased with his own blood These kinde of phrases wee have that come from the Personal union of the two Natures so that the blood that Christ did shed and offer unto God as a Sacrifice for the sin of man it is that that the Scripture calls the blood of God Now the blood that other Priests did offer was the blood of Goats and Bulls and Lambs and Kids but now what a wonderful Priest have wee that comes to offer Sacrifice to the Father for us and comes to offer blood that is the blood of God Hee is wonderful in his Priestly Office in regard of his Offering 5 Further from this follows that Christ offered a Sacrifice unto God that was sufficient to satisfie God for all the wrong that ever was done him by mans sin they offered poor things unto God you know in the time of the Law things that were worthless But now the Sacrifice that Christ offered unto the Father when hee that High Priest came to offer it was a Sacrifice that did satisfie Gods infinite Justice did make up all the wrong that all the sins of the Elect had ever done to God it was that that infinite Justice said it was well-pleased withall It was worth all that Christ did render it up to his Father for not onely a Sacrifice that was a sweet savour because God would bee pleased to accept of it but a Sacrifice that had in its self such a savour that could not but bee sweet in the nostrils of God the Father for it did fully satisfie the Justice of God the Father for the sins of mankinde here is a wonderful High Priest now that hee should come and offer such a Sacrifice that should bee of such infinite merit and worth as it was 6 Yea and hee was wonderful because that hee did offer himself not onely his blood but himself soul and body hee made himself a Sacrifice none of the Priests did so in the time of the Law was there ever heard of such a Priest that came to offer sacrifice that did offer himself for such as hee would make attonement for Jesus Christ hee was anointed by God the Father as a Priest of his Church to offer sacrifice now hee must have so nothing to offer and Christ saw that whatsoever hee could offer if so bee that hee had offered that that had been the worth of Heaven and Earth whatsoever it had been it could never have been an Attonement for those souls which hee did undertake for therefore Christ offers himself as there is nothing but God can bee a satisfying portion to an immortal soul so no sacrifice but Christ himself could bee a Sacrifice to pacifie Gods wrath for the sins of mankinde if Christ should have said Father Thou hast made mee Lord over all the world and I will give it all for a Ransome for the soul of this poor sinner God would have said It will not do it but it must bee thy self I and Christ yeelds to it A body hast thou prepared mee Isa 53.10 And bee made his soul an offering for sin And a body hast thou prepared for mee both body and soul of Christ was offered to God the Father for a sacrifice that hee might smell a sweet savour of rest even concerning us who are wicked and wretched sinners Either Christ must offer himself soul and body to bee a Sacrifice for thy sin or else thy soul and body must have been offered as a sacrifice to Gods Justice and then it must eternallâ— have been under the stroke of Gods Justice but to that end to free that soul and body of thine if thou beest a beleever to free thee from the eternal Justice of God therefore Christ did offer his soul and body as a sacrifice to his Father 7 And yet further Christ was wonderful in his Priestly Office for hee was not onely the Sacrifice but the Altar It would bee wonderful to hear of a Priest that should offer himself but the Priest to bee the Sacrifice and the Altar too that should sanctifie the Sacrifice it is a greater wonder and because this expression seems to bee very hard I take this out of Heb. 9.14 How much more shall the bloud of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God he offers his body and soul as it were upon his Divine Nature that as the Altar did sanctifie the Offering so the Divine Nature of Christ did sanctifie the offering of his Humane Nature so that he indeed became both the Altar and the Sacrifice 8 And then further Christ is wonderful in his Priestly Office and that is in this That he offered but one Sacrifice and at one time now the Priests in former time they offered many Sacrifices and they offered often but now if you would read of Christs Priestly Office read especially the seventh eighth and ninth Chapters of the Epistle to the Hebrews and there you shall have as much almost as in all the Scripture besides of the Priestly Office of Jesus Christ The Priests in the Law they offered often but Christ offered but once and having but once offered hee sits down in glory upon his offering of himself but once before the Father it was available for ever for so the Scripture tells us in divers places of the Hebrews and hee was able to save to the uttermost upon his once offering of himself And then further Christ is wonderful in his Priestly Office in this which
is as much as in any thing and that is that he doth now exercise it in heaven at the right hand of the Father by his intercession for so the Scripture saith in the eighth of the Hebrews That we have such an high Priest who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens and there he is making intercession As the Priest you know in the time of the Law did exercise his Priestly Office not only by offering Sacrifice but by going into the Holy of Holies and there had the names of the Tribes ingraven upon his brest and so presented them before God and made intercession for all the Tribes Also Christ he is our wonderful High Priest for he having offered himself a Sacrifice to the Justice of his Father hee is gone to Heaven and hath the names of all Beleevers upon his brest upon his heart and there presents them all before his Father and is their Advocate makes intercession for them hee is alwayes holding before the Father all his Sufferings as it were pleading before God the Father for them Why thou art a poor Creature here and art it may be fallen down in thy closet pleading with God for mercy and thou art discouraged for the straitnesse of thy heart and the like but now learn how to make use of thy faith look upon Jesus Christ hee is the object of thy faith I but you must beleeve in Christ as the High Priest that is gone before into Heaven and now is at the right hand of the Father making intercession for thy soul It may bee thou art discouraged because thy prayers are poor and weak I but thy faith must bee exercised upon that God-man who is pleading with God the Father for thee and that by his own merits that are worth more than ten thousand thousand Worlds and except you doe exercise your faith upon Christ as a Priest thus you doe not exercise your faith aright Oh what strangers are most people in the world to the exercising of faith I appeal to you when did you exercise your faith upon Christ as such an High Priest you would see him to be a wonderful Saviour indeed if by the eye of faith you did behold him to be thus Thus he is wonderful in his Priestly Office oh what wonderful things are these if they were made real to us by faith How wonderful would be the comfort and joy of the Saints of God in the exercising of their faith upon this that I doe but now name unto you whereby as wee goe along you may see how farre short you have come from exercising your faith upon Christ as such a Saviour as the Scripture doth present him to you 9 Again his Priestly Office endures for ever hee lives for ever to make intercession the Priests in the Law they dyed but Christ he is a Priest for ever and hee makes intercession himself he hath no Deputy nor no Successors as others had but he himself makes intercession for ever for his people and his Priest-hood is confirmed by an Oath Psal 110.41 The Lord sware the Lord by an Oath confirmed the Priesthood of Christ after the order of Melchisedeck to the end that we might bee the more sure of such a wonderful mercy of God to Mankind that is the reason that he added an Oath to the Priest-hood of Christ because that aymed at higher things than the Priest-hood of Aaron did that was but an external Priest-hood but this ayming at such high things yea that Sacrifice that must bee tendered up to God for a full attonement for the sin of Mankind therefore God confirmed this by an Oath for beleevers when they hear such things those that are weak I but Lord think they are these things so is it possible that God should have such thoughts of Mankind to work so wonderful for mans Salvation therefore saith God I have confirmed this by an oath And then this Priest-hood of Christ is a Priest-hood of a better covenant the other was but after a carnal Commandement and in comparison of this it was but an external covenant for there was certainly a covenant of Works besides that of Grace that God did renew with the people of Israel even when he gave the Law the Ceremonial Law did not only typifie the Covenant of Grace that should bee revealed hereafter more fully but it was annexed to the Covenant of Works as it appears plainly in the Epistle to the Hebrews but yet still I say they had a Covenant of Grace that was coucht darkly in the Ceremonial Law therefore Christ is said to be a Mediator of a better Covenant he comes to deal between God and Man in a better Covenant than was before And then further the Priest-hood of Christ it comes to have more efficacy than that of Aaron had for it prevails to the purging of conscience which that could not doe And it brings the Saints into the Holy of Holies and that with boldnesse and for that you have a most excellent Scripture of the Saints being brought into the Holy of Holies by the Priest-hood of Christ in the tenth to the Hebrews Having therefore boldnesse to enter into the holiest by the bloud of Jesus Heb. 10.19 by the Sacrifice that this our Priest hath offered to the Father we come to enter into the Holiest of all and that with boldnesse It was not so in the time of the Law no but after the High Priest had offered Sacrifice hee alone goes into the Holy of Holies but now mark here not only Christ our High Priest but we may come with boldnesse which none of the people could doe in the Law that is thus there is such an efficacy in the Sacrifice of our High Priest as that every beleever may come though hee hath never so many sins of his own he may come with boldnesse into the Holy of Holies into the most immediate presence of God the Father through the sacrifice of this our Priest that hath made such a way by his Bloud for us to come and enter into the Holy of Holies the People in the time of the Law were to stand at a distance for this Sacrifice was not actually offered but since Christs coming and his actual offering up his Sacrifice now the Saints of God may come with boldnesse into the holy immediate and glorious presence of God that can bee let God appear never so gloriously yet the Saints have liberty and boldnesse to come into the most glorious presence of God and therefore Christ is wonderful in this Priestly Office of his Two or three things more should have been spoken That Christ hath made us Priests unto God wee have the glory of his Priest-hood upon our selves if wee belong unto him Priests that wee may offer up Sacrifice to God now acceptable were it not through the vertue of this Priestly Office of Christ we could not doe it But it is by the Priestly
things of the world those men that have the dullest capacity to understand the reason of things in the world those that are the most ignorant people in the world why Jesus Christ chuses out them and makes them to bee apprehensive of the mysteries of the Gospel such things as Angels themselves desire to pry into 1 Pet. 1.12 Here is a wonder that such poor weak dull ignorant creatures sometimes that can scarce be able to speak two or three sentences in good sense together to a man yet that they should have the clear understanding of the chief mysteries in the Gospel and such things as Angels desire to pry into here is a wonderful work and therefore wee read in Matth. 21.15 when the poor children came to understand somewhat of Christ When the chief Priests and Scribes saw the wondeful things that hee did and the children crying in the Temple and saying Hosanna to the Son of David ☞ they were sore displeased Mark how this is joyned to the wonderful things they saw the wonderful things that Christ did and the children crying in the Temple Hosanna to the Son of David they were displeased It is one of the most wonderful things in the world to see that sometimes poor young children and such as understand but very little in the matters of the world and yet that these shall come to understand the deepest mysteries of godliness those things that exercise the understanding of Angels and shall exercise them to all eternity yet poor children and youths shall come to understand these things further than the great Rabbies and Doctors of the world is not this a wonderful thing in the dispensation of the Prophetical Office of Christ You make this use when you see poor youths come to have understanding in the great things of the Gospel you think surely it is but a conceit Oh but rather make this use let your thoughts bee carried to admire at the wonderful dispensation of the Prophetical Office of Jesus Christ and so in Matth. 11.25 27. you shall see what a wonderful thing it is made even this dispensation of Christs Prophetical Office in vers 25. and so on At that time Jesus answered and said I thank thee 0 Father Lord of Heaven and Earth because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto Babes Now that the Father did hide them from the wise of the world and revealed them unto babes it was by Christ though hee thanks the Father and that it was done by Christ it appears in vers 27. All things are delivered to mee of my Father and no man knoweth the Son but the father neither knoweth any man the Father save the Son and hee to whom the Son will reveal him All things are delivered to mee so that Christ here makes the revelation of God unto babes to bee the fruit of Gods delivering up all things to him All things are delivered to mee and no man knoweth the Father but the Son and him to whom the Son will reveal him so that Christ having received all power from the Father upon this it is that these babes come to have such understanding in the mysteries of godliness and the wise of the world never come to understand And then that is very remarkable as wee go along that upon this ground Jesus Christ doth invite souls to come to him Come unto mee all yee that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest As if hee should say thus Conceive now as if Jesus Christ were preaching now personally to you and hee were saying thus to you All power is committed to mee by the Father and as a fruit of this that the Father hath committed to mee I do reveal him to whom I please and none can know the Father but by mee I have the dispensation of all the treasures of wisdome and the revelation of all the mysteries of eternal life from my Father Oh therefore come to mee come to mee all yee that labour and are heavy laden you labour under the burden of your ignorance perhaps you complain alas I do not know God nor understand the great mysteries of salvation I pray and hear and yet I cannot come to understand what God is Why come to mee saith Christ for all things are given to mee and if I reveal the Father you shall know him therefore all you that labour and are heavy laden all you that see the need you have of the knowledge of my Father and of the way of eternal life come to mee and I will reveal these things unto you and so will bring rest unto your souls Wonderful is Christ in the way of his Administrations and that is another consideration in the Prophetical Office of Christ 5 But further Christ is a wonderful Prophet in this that hee reveals things many times suddenly hee is not bound to those wayes that any man or Angel is bound to if a man or Angel would come to instruct others in the truths of the Gospel they must instruct them by degrees to understand one thing at once and another at another time and so deduct one thing from another in that way but Christ hee can make known the things of eternal life in an instant to the soul Whosoever comes to Christ must bee convinced of sin and bee emptied of himself and bee humbled all these things are in every soul that comes to Christ now all these things may by one beam of light bee wrought that Jesus Christ shall let into the soul As an Apothecary may get the very quintessence of all herbs in one drop though you cannot see the herbs so Jesus Christ I say sometimes by one beam of light lets in a hundred truths into the soul so that they do apprehend the substance of all those particulars that are spoken of and there is a proportionable work upon their hearts to bring them to Christ is not this a wonderful work of Christ that a man that hath been an ignorant sottish blinde creature a prophane ungodly man hating all godliness perhaps hee comes to hear a Sermon meerly to scorn as many have done this man comes in the very heat of his wickedness so that a man would wonder that some fruit of Gods wrath comes not from heaven to strike him into the bottomless pit yet it may bee at this very Sermon there shall bee some one beam of light darted into his spirit that may work his soul to heaven possibly if hee should dye at that instant though it is true ordinarily God begins to stir first and doth it not all at once but yet sometimes some that come into a Congregation most ignorant and sottish and know no other God but Mammon and lusts and yet coming to the word at one instant God darts in that light into his spirit as this man comes to have his heart turned to God and comes to know his misery and to know the way of
many Miracles and saith he Josephus Antiq. B. 18. e. 4 If it be lawful to call him a Man He was afraid to call him a man because of the wondrous things that he did But if any of you say How shall wee bee able to know certainly the truth of all those Miracles that hee did wee read in the Gospel how great things Christ did how he cast out Devils and cured the Blinde and Lame and raised up the Dead and the like but how can we know the truth of them For the answer of that Austine hath this Either all those things are true or they are not true if they be then hee is confirmed to be the Messias but if they be not true then saith he this is the greatest Miracle of all that such a supernatural Doctrin as that is to beleeve in him that was crucified to save the World and for men to venture their souls and eternal estates upon this without having this to bee confirmed by Miracles at first this is the greatest Miracle of all but we will passe by that only note it as we goe that Christ was wonderful in all the Wonders that hee wrought while he lived Christ wonderful in his Glorious indowments and excellency of his Person But further Christ he is the Wonder of the World in regard of those glorious endowments and excellencie of his Person those Personal endowments and excellencies that he had and herein he is the Wonder of the World Now the endowments and excellencies of Jesus Christ they are great and glorious Thou art fairer than the children of men It is he that received the Spirit without measure it is he that had the Treasures of wisdome and knowledge dwelling in him bodily and he must needs bee the Wonder of the World that Scripture in the second of the Colossians doth shew unto us what a wonderful Saviour we have it is such an expression that had wee not had it from the Holy Ghost we should never have dared to have ventured upon it as in Col. 2.3 In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdome and knowledge and then in vers 9. For in him dwelleth all the fulnesse of the Godhead bodily what an high expression is here All the fulnesse of the God-head doth dwell bodily in Jesus Christ surely he hath excellent endowments then he is filled with glorious things his Human Nature is elevated and inlarged to the highest capacity that a Creature can have to receive excellency And God hath raised up the Humane Nature of Christ to shew how high he is able to elevate a Creature and make it capable for the receiving of Glory that he might declare it to Angels and Saints to all eternity I say mans nature is raised to that height that God might to all eternity make known to the Angels and Saints this thing and say Behold to what a height is mine infinite power able to raise a Creature to be capable of happinesse Therefore Christs Human Nature is so raised and our nature in him which should be a wonderful comfort to us that our nature should be raised to so much glory in Christ And a great argument to us to take heed of the abuse of Humane Nature of thy Body and of thy Soul oh that ever any one should bee given up to that sottishnesse that is a man that hath Humane nature in him that should look after no greater good than meerly to eat and drink and play and satisfie his lust dost thou know oh Creature that thy nature is raised to such an height of excellency that God might declare to Angels and men what his power was able to doe and shalt thou that hast the same Nature that art a kin as it were to Christ shalt thou bee so base and vile to mind thy filthy and base lusts and mind no higher good than this the very thought of the raising our Nature in Christ it is a mighty argument to raise up the thoughts of one that is a man to a higher pitch than ever they have been think thus certainly my nature is capable of some higher good than meerly to ear and drink and play and to have a little Mony here for a while why now that shewes the personal excellency and endowments of Christ in general that all the fulness of the God-head doth dwell bodily in him and therefore Christ hee is called the Character and the ingraven form of the Image of God in the first of the Hebrews it is not said so of man though man be said to be made according to Gods Image yet it is never said of him That he is the brightnesse of Gods glory and the expresse Image of his Person so as it is said of Christ and in the Colossians you have mighty high expressions about the Personal excellency of Christ Chap. 1.15 Who is the Image of the invisible God the first born of every Creature and then he is the beginning of all things ver 18. He is the Image of the invisible God as God and man for so I must speak of him he is the Image of the invisible God in another manner and more fully than any creature is or possibly can be for Jesus Christ take him God and Man he hath the very character and ingraven form of whatsoever glory there is in the Father I say take him as God and Man as thus hee hath an omnipotency in him therefore it is said in the third of the Philippians latter end Who shall change our vild bodie that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body how according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself Now this is a great Mystery of godlinesse that God-Man should have an Omnipotency in him and then likewise he hath the expresse Image of all the knowledge of God for as he is God-man he is made the Judge of all the World and hee will bee the Judge not meerly as he is God but as God and Man now seeing hee is the Judge of all the World hee must have an infinite knowledge he must know the hearts of men and all the works of men and he must have an infinite Holinesse and Justice that must judge all the World And thus God-man hath an expresse Character of the Attributes of God which none else hath and then he hath an expresse character of the Immensity of God If you speak of his Body it cannot be every where but God-Man is in all places thus you have it in the third of John vers 13. it is a very strange expression and it can never bee understood but by understanding the personal union of the two Natures Why at that time hee was speaking to them there upon the earth and yet saith hee The Son of man which is in heaven At this time hee that is the Son of man is in heaven his body could not bee in two places at once but God-man was then in heaven Thus
from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. This Scripture hath very much in it hee speaks of the Gospel and compares that to a Glass wherein the glory of God shines so as wee may behold it with open face and so behold it as that we are changed into the very same image of it from glory to glory from one degree unto another Wee may behold the glory of God in the glass of the creature and never bee changed into the same image but when wee behold the glory of God in the glass of the Gospel wee then come to bee changed into the same Image and still to bee changed more and more and with open face wee do behold it And in chap. 4. vers 6. For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness hath shined into our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ Mark it hee is the knowledge of God the light of the knowledge of God and the light of the knowledge of the glory of God and all this is in the face of Jesus Christ in the face of the creature there may bee the knowledge of God but the light of the knowledge of the glory of God this is in the face of Jesus Christ Hee that hath seen mee hath seen the Father saith Christ to Philip It was a maxim among the Fathers in the time of the Law that no man could see God and live God was so glorious that they thought that hee could not bee seen but it would overwhelm any creature that was in the flesh that should see him but now mark in that Prophecy that wee have of the times of the Gospel in Isa 40.3 There is a Prophecie of Christ that is apparent The voice of him that cryeth in the wilderness prepare yee the way of the Lord which is in express words applied to John the Baptist the forerunner of Christ And in the very same words make streight in the Desart a high way for our God every valley shall bee exalted and every mountain shall bee made low and the crooked shall bee made streight and the rough places plain Then it follows in the fift verse And the glory of the Lord shall bee revealed and all flesh shall see it together before no man could see God and live Flesh was not able to behold God but now when the Word was made Flesh when the times of the Gospel came wherein God would make himself appear through his Son more clearly and fully now all Flesh shall see it shall see the glory of the Lord now the glory of God appears wonderfully in Christ in these four or five particulars The Power of God appears in Christ First The glory of Gods Attributes do shine more brightly in the face of Christ than any other wayes As for instance The power of God appears infinitely more in Christ than in making heaven and earth for God to unite God and man together in one Person is a greater work than making heaven and earth there is more power of God put forth in the hypostatical union of the Natures of Christ besides all the power of God that appears in the great Works that Christ did do and in carrying Christ through all those great Works that hee was carried through than in making of heaven and earth There is more power of God appears in the conversion of one soul to Christ than in making heaven and earth Then what power of God appears in Christ himself And the wisdome of God appears more in Christ than in the creation of heaven and earth The Wisdome of God appears in Christ Now for God to finde out such a glorious way of Reconciliation as hee hath found out in his Son in this the wisdome of God is more glorious than in all his works infinitely the glory of Gods wisdome in other things is darkned in comparison of his wisdome in this If God had put it to Angels to finde out a way of Reconciliation they could never have guest at such a way as this is that wee should bee reconciled in Christ here is the glory of wisdome There likewise doth appear the glory of Gods holiness more in Christ than in any other way it is true The Holiness of God appears in Christ the Law is a glass of Gods holiness and those that cast reproach upon the Law they spit in the very face of Gods holiness I but that is no such glass as Jesus Christ is there wee see the holiness of God in another manner than wee can do it in the holy Law that God hath made God never shewed his hatred of sin so much as hee did in Christ and it cannot bee devised by all Angels and men how it were possible to have such an Argument to manifest the hatred of sin so as it is manifested in Christ that God should deal so with his Son as hee hath done for the sin of man I say if an infinite Wisdome should set it self on work never so much to finde out an Argument to manifest the hatred of sin there could not bee a greater Argument So that when God sent his Son into the world to dye for mans sin hee did as it were say I have many wayes to manifest my holiness to the children of men how infinitely I do hate sin but here is a way that it shall appear to the uttermost they shall see it in my dealing with my Son certainly in Christ Gods wisdome hath found out an Argument to make us all to bee convinced of the infinite holiness of God that God hates sin more than hell its self and that wee should do so too Again the Justice of God appears in Christ more than in any thing else It appears not so much in all the torments of the damned as in Gods dealings with Christ The Justice of God appears in Christ in that hee required such satisfaction from him as hee did when as wee hear of the dreadful curses of the Law and of the torments that are in hell wee may thereby be put in minde of an infinite Justice Oh how righteous is God in his wayes there and his Justice seems to bee wonderful unto us But when you behold in this red glass of the blood of Christ Gods Justice it is a great deal more glorious here than in all the damned in hell If God should grant to any of you to stand upon the very brink of hell and there to look into the pit and see all the torments and tortures there and hear all the cries there then you think your hearts would bee affected with the Justice of God to fear it I but when God makes himself known to you in Christ when you hear of the sufferings of Christ for sin God would have you to bee more affected with his Justice and to fear it more than if you saw all the Torments of hell
manner of his proceedings in bringing forth all the books of Gods forbearance and the books of mens conscience and the book of the word to proceed with men and Angels for their eternal estate in this Christ will appear then to bee wonderful Thus Christ is wonderful in his humiliation and in his exaltation But further a word or two more Christ wonderful in his working towards his Saints and in the high esteem that the Saints have of him Great and marvellous are thy works O Lord God Almighty who would not fear thee O thou King of Saints The great things that Christ doth in the world towards his Churches are wonderful and the great esteem his Saints have of him they account all things as dung and dross for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ And hee shall bee wonderful eternally hereafter in the highest Heavens and there hee will bee the matter of the wonder of all the Angels and Saints and the matter of the admiration and the praises that God shall have to all eternity it shall bee from what the Angels and Saints do see in Jesus Christ therefore surely hee will bee wonderful in Heaven And then wonderful when the understandings of the Saints shall bee elevated to the highest pitch that they are capable of sometimes wee do wonder at things because of our ignorance ignorant people will wonder almost at any thing at the works of Arts and Sciences they wonder because they know but little but now that that the most understanding man in the world shall wonder at certainly it hath some great excellency in it Now Christ shall not bee the wonder of the Saints onely while they are here in in this world but when they shall bee in Heaven and have their understandings enlightened and enlarged to the height that possibly they can bee enlarged to and yet even then Christ shall bee their wonder and they shall wonder at Christ more than they do now abundantly Certainly that hath real excellency in it indeed and great excellency that the more understanding a man is the more hee shall admire at it perhaps poor people they may wonder at some men for their parts yet if they had any great understanding themselves they would see such a mans parts had little in them but if a man had such parts that the more any man came to understand him the higher in degree their understandings were the more they should wonder certainly this man had a great deal of excellency in him indeed So it is in Christ that when the Saints shall bee elevated to the height they shall so much the more admire at him Further In Heaven Christ shall bee wondred at for ever many things are wondred at for the present I but the wonder quickly ceases wee use to say of strange things they are but of nine daies wonder but Jesus Christ is not onely a wonder at first when the soul comes first to embrace Jesus Christ It is true poor sinners at their first embracing Jesus Christ for the very novelty of those things they see in him they do admire at them they never did understand such things before but the truth is if that grace bee true thou shalt not onely wonder when thou comest to Christ at first at the excellency in him but the longer thou continuest a Beleever the more thou wilt wonder and when thou comest to Heaven after thousand millions of millions of years thou wilt wonder as much at him as thou didst the first moment those men that have made profession of Religion and seem'd to come to Christ they wonder at first hearing of the Gospel like the stony-ground that received the word with joy Oh how wonderfully are they affected at the first hearing of the glorious things of the Gospel but now mark their wonder quickly ceases and their joy ceases within a little while they do not now see so great excellency to admire at it neither have they so great joy but where there is true Faith there the soul doth not onely wonder at Christ at his first comming to Christ but still more and more to all eternity And now my Brethren mee thinks that all wonders in the world should lye by a while upon this wonder of Christs being presented to you and as wee read in Dan. 6. of one that came in a vision and said Gabriel make this man to understand the visioâ— so shall I call to a Gabriel no to Jesus Christ to the Immanuel hee that is the great wonder Oh blessed blessed Redeemer make these souls to understand these things to understand somewhat of this wonder wee have many wonders of our own and wee tell this and that news but O that Christ would but shew himself now to your souls that you may understand somewhat of this wonder that your hearts may bee for ever taken off from wondring at any thing in this world I have seen saith David an end of all perfection but thy Law is very broad So wee may say and the heart would say that were brought to Christ Oh Lord I have seen an end of all the great things in the world but Jesus Christ is very great and glorious indeed it is hee that hath darkened all the glory that there is in the world but now I may say of all these things as it is said of Daniel in chap. 12. vers 10. None of the wicked shall understand but the wise shall understand these things that are spoken of Christ the wicked they will not understand those that God hath not given unto Jesus Christ will not understand but they will bee content to part with Christ for any thing for all this O detestable wickedness that there is in the heart of man that after this that hath been revealed to you about Christ so much of his glory held forth for the wonder of the world that after this yet thou shouldest prize thy base lusts before all the good and the glory that there is in Jesus Christ certainly that man or woman must needs have the Angels in Heaven and all the Saints to acknowledge the righteous judgement of God in the condemnation of them that hath lived under the Gospel and hath heard what a wonderful Saviour is come into the world if such a one should yet go away and prize a base filthy lust before all the good and glory that there is in Jesus Christ take heed of this certainly if it bee so if any of you bee found at the great day still going on in the waies of known fins this will bee your charge You lived in such a place wherein you heard that my Son was the great wonder of the world and glorious things were shewed you to allure you to beleeve in him and yet hee was nothing in your eyes but your own vile lusts were more glorious in your eyes O just and righteous is the condemnation of this creature for ever certainly the sin of unbeleef the sin
gain that end for which they were made ib. Doct. 2 That the loss of the soul is a most dreadful loss 243 Answers to that Question What Christ means by the loss of the soul ib. Not because they will bee annihilated ib. But 1 The loss of the soul is in the privations of it of all good 244 2 It consists in its departing from God ib. 3 In subjecting it to that misery and evil that is contrary to what good it is capable of ib. 4 In the suckerless and helpless condition it is brought into For 1 Every man and woman as they came into the world are deprived of that glory and excellency that God did indow the souls of men with at their first Creation 2 All our souls do naturally wander away from God 245 3 In its depravity and sinfulness ib. 4 Its being in a succourless helpless condition ib. Wherein consists the loss of the soul in Hell 246 1 In the full rejection of the soul from God ib. 1 From living the life of God 247 2 From having any union with God 249 3 From having any fruition of God ib. 4 From enjoying the presence of Christ 250 5 From being ever exercised in that blessed work of praising God 251 6 From ever living in God as the Saints do ib. A second thing wherein the misery of the souls loss consists in Hell is in its being made very sensible of the loss of its chiefest good 254 Which is 1 To bee cast under the eternal curse of God 255 2 To have all the faculties of the soul to bee filled with wrath 256 1 The infinite power of God put forth in inlarging their natures that they may bee the more capable of evil ib. 2 To uphold their natures that they sink not with those dreadful evils ib. 3 To let out on the soul whatever it can bear to make it miserable 4 To keep all the faculties of the lost soul in its utmost activity 258 3 Its misery appears in its succourless and helpless condition ib. For 1 All the power of God cannot help it 2 There can bee no Mediator between God and the lost soul ib. Several Aggravations whereby the misery of a soul that is lost doth appear As 1 If the soul be lost then the body is and will be lost also ib. Because 1 The body all the time a man doth live is the onely or most immediate instrument the soul hath to work and to sin by 259 2 Because the soul that is lost shall bee united to the body the very extremity of the soul must needs bring misery on the body also ib. 2 When the soul comes into this condition it comes into the most dreadfullest condition that any creature is in ib. 3 It will then have none to pitty it Jesus Christ will not pitty it The Angels will not pitty it The Saints will not pitty it Their kindred will not pitty it ib. 4 It will prove to most that are lost an unexpected loss 260 5 It will prove to bee a dreadful loss because it will prove to bee a wilful loss 261 6 It will bee a great loss for a little matter 262 7 Many will lose their souls that were very nigh the saviâ—g of their souls ib. 8 When they shall consider they have lost their souls and have nothing in lieu thereof 263 9 The shame that shall bee put upon such lost souls as shall perish eternally ib. 10 When they shall see others taken up to Heaven that were as unlikely to bee saved as themselves 264 Use 1 If the souls loss bee so dreadful bless God that your souls are not thus lost ib. 2 Let us bless God then for Jesus Christ 267 3 It must needs then bee a dreadful evil for any to have a hand in this loss 269 4 It rebukes the folly and madness of most people that have no care of their souls 272 Several waies by which men come to lose their souls As 1 Some lose their souls by wandring up and down in darkness all the daies of their lives ib. 2 Others by pawning them away 273 The pawning of the soul is most dangerous of all other 274 For 1 There is no such pawn as possibly can bee laid as this ib. 2 In laying of pawns there is a time prefixed for the redemption ib. 3 You bargain the bringing of somewhat that you have in your own power to redeem it ib. 3 Men lose their souls by wounding of them ib. Quest Wounding them how you will say By that I mean the commissions of sins against conscience 275 4 Men lose their souls by being gull'd of them 5 By selling of them away ib. Men sell their souls 1 When men seek advantage to themselves by any unlawful means 276 2 When men shall resolutely give up themselves to all manner of wickedness 277 6 Men lose their souls by poisoning them ib. And that 1 Either by wicked company Or 2 By wicked errors 7 Others lose their souls by venturing them 279 This a man may do in four cases 1 By rashness 280 2 By doing things that are doubtful ib. 3 By venturing upon Gods patience ib. 4 By venturing upon their own lives 281 8 Many lose their souls by starving them 283 9 Some lose their souls by surfeiting of them 285 10 And lastly By forfeiting of them ib. And that two waies 1 By not tendring that homage to God that is due ib. 2 By breaking Covenant with God 286 Use 5 It concerns us to examine whether our souls bee not in such a condition that if they should depart in they would bee lost ib. But who are they that are no better qualified Answer 287 1 That soul that God hath not convinc'd of the dangerous natural condition in which it is 2 That soul that hath not made it his greatest care above all things to save it self 3 That soul to whom the Lord hath not revealed the glory of the mysteries of the Gospel 4 That soul that hath no other righteousness to tender up to God but its own 289 Quest What other Righteousness is there Answer A supernatural Righteousness 290 5 That soul that God hath not made in some measure at least to feel the weight of sin ib. 6 That soul that walks after the flesh in a course of sin 291 7 That soul that is under the dominion of any one lust 292 Quest What is it for sin to domineer Answ When sin shall set up a kinde of Throne and give Laws as a King 293 8 That soul that hath not had such a change wrought by the Spirit as is a New Birth or Resurrection 294 9 That soul that hath not gone beyond those the Scripture brands for Hypocrites 296 Quest How shall a man know hee is gone further than these Answer 298 1 They could not say because the word is pure therefore they delighted in it 2 That they prized Jesus Christ as a sanctifier 3 That they lift up God as the highest
him as musick good cheer friends estate yet there is that horror and torment in his spirit sometimes through the consciousness of the guilt of sin that hee is not able to bear nay were there not somewhat beyond this bodily substance certainly this could never bee verily then there is a spirit in man and hence therefore you see that there is somewhat doth concern you all beyond your present outward and bodily condition Let no man think that hee hath provided well for himself when hee hath provided mony and house and lands and good chear and cloaths and such kinde of things do not think that thou art happy in that for these are things that concern thy outward man there is still another substance in thee that thou art to look after that takes little notice of such things as these are Neither do you think that you have provided well for your children when you have provided an estate an inheritance somewhat to leave them know that there is another substance in your children besides that outward bodily substance you look upon Do you see a fine feature comely parts comely countenance and your children finely cloathed I but know there is a spirit in that childe besides that bodily substance that you are to look to Certainly man is very far fallen from God that none scarce takes notice of his own spirit We do not only naturally live without a God in the world so as to know little of that infinite divine Spirit that is the first being of all things but wee live without the knowledge of our own spirits of our own souls Truly few men there are that know their own souls As a man by his eye sees things that are without him but he doth not see his own eye so by the soul wee come to understand many things without us but yet how little do wee understand of our own souls well might the Psalmist therefore complain and say in Psal 49.20 Man that is in honour and understandeth not is like the beasts that perish God did indeed make man at first in honour but now hee is become like the very beasts hee doth minde little or nothing more than the very beasts themselves hee blesses himself if hee hath but content for the body for a while as if there were nothing else concerned him I appeal unto your consciences in this thing whether the uttermost sphere of your thoughts have been any further than meerly within the compass of bodily content If you should come to a beast and talk to it about Trades and titles of honour and Arts and Sciences and such kind of things why what is all this to a beast Give a beast hay or corn and such kinde of things that are suitable to it and it mindes that more than it doth any high notions that you are able to tell it and truly thus it is with sensual men even as the Atheist who saith in his heart That there is no God so a kinde of Atheism there is in their hearts to say they have no souls that there is no difference between them and the brute-beasts hence it is that they savour spiritual things so little Tell carnal men of the excellency of the Name of God Tell them of Jesus Christ how wonderful hee is of the wonderful mysteries of the Gospel and of the things of eternal life they are dry things to such a one hee savours them not Tell him of money and meat and drink and sports and cloaths and such kinde of things they are suitable unto him there is some savour in them but for the great things of the Kingdome of God and of eternal life there is no savour at all in them and thus far is man fallen from God and lives for the most part as if so bee hee were capable of no higher good but meerly to eat and drink and live for a while here like a beast Thus doth the Devil gull and deceive most of us Now my brethren this is a work that I have undertaken and it concerns as much the Ministers of God to shew unto you what you are your selves what God hath made you as to shew you what God is and what Christ is that you may come to understand your selves you can never come to know your reference unto God untill you come to know what God hath made you this is therefore my scope in this Scripture to shew unto you what God hath made you and that you have souls within you and souls of exceeding great worth I will not say infinite for none is infinite but God himself but more worth than all the world than all the creatures that God hath made except the Angels in heaven The souls of the children of men are most excellent creatures did but a man or woman consider seriously that they have souls in them beyond their bodies it would raise them up a little But this next Point that is the main and principal Doct 2 Did they but know the worth of their souls it could not but raise them very high above those poor empty vanities that they have minded all this while Therefore there is in man not onely a soul but that that is more worth than all the world that if it should bee lost that man that gained the whole world would bee a great loser in his bargain Know therefore this that there is not the poorest man or woman living nay not the poorest childe that lyes begging a crust of bread at your door but this childe hath a soul in it that is more worth than heaven and earth this poor ragged tattered childe that lyes in rags I say crying at your threshold and begging a peece of bread it hath a soul in it that hath greater excellency than the Sun Moon and Stars than all the Heavens than the Sea than the Earth put all the creatures in the world together that are under Angels the spirit of this poor childe hath more excellency in it than all these things and that is the thing that I am to make out unto you Why natural life hath more excellency in it than any creature that hath no life I remember Austin saith of a Flye because it hath life that it hath more excellency in it than the Sun its self because though the Sun bee a glorious creature yet it hath no life in it life in the meanest creature hath a greater excellency than any thing else that hath not life But now the soul hath the highest natural life that is and capable of the highest happiness that any creature is capable of and therefore more excellent than all the world But that wee shall come too in its order The excellency of the soul may bee discovered first In the relation it hath to God The Excellency of the Soul discovered 1 In its relation to God God doth challenge a peculiar relation to the spirits of men and therefore in Heb. 12.9 â—od is called the Father
him but to keep his body from stinking yet know whatsoever thou art though now a sinful wretched vile creature and art deprived of the chief excellency that thy soul is capable of yet that soul of thine that thou hast is capable of the highest good thing that an infinite God hath to communicate Oh that God by your owning of this would a little but raise your spirits to think that you have been deluded and deceived all this while this is the excellency now of your souls in reference unto God Fifthly And yet there is in the next place A further reference that your souls have to God and that is the contiguity as I may so speak with God himself that is of all things that are here in this world the soul of man it is that that is next unto God himself Next to God you will say what do you mean when you say that the soul of man it is contiguous unto God I mean this that God hath made all creatures for himself but hee hath made them all for himself to come to him by man hee hath made all these inferiour things in the world for man and man for himself and so God comes to attain the end of all things in this world by man so that man is next unto God God would have the glory of all the creatures in the world but how by man saith God All these things that I have made I will have them bee in subjection to man for so they were in their first Creation and as I shall appear in all other of my works so shall this creature honour mee and fear mee and admire mee and magnifie mee upon the taking notice of and receiving in that good that there is in any creature All the goodness there is in the creature it comes to mee but how shall I have the glory of it all why I will make a creature that shall bee as it were between mee and other creatures that shall partake of the nature of other creatures but so as hee shall have a certain kinde of divine Beam of my excellency and shall bee able to take notice of mee and to receive in my goodness what hee doth receive in of the sweetness of the creature hee shall receive it in as my sweet and my goodness Incoms from mee and so hee shall reflect it upon my face again so that mans soul is like a Glass as you see a Glass that takes the beams of the Sun that shines upon it and casts it toward the Sun again as upon a wall the beams of the Sun comes into the Glass and then the Glass can reflect it this way or that way So the glory of God shines in the world and mans soul is as the glass and when it was in its first purity was as a clear chrystal glass and received in all the beams of Gods glory all the glory of God I say that did shine in all his creatures was received into mans soul as the beams of the Sun into a glass and now man was able to reflect the glory of these beams upon the face of God again and to return all again to God for as all things that are good come from him so all good should return again to him but now how comes the Lord to have an injoyment as it were of his goodness that hee lets out from himself How comes hee to have it return back again to himself Why the way of his returning it is by the Angels in heaven and the spirits of men these are the two excellent creatures that God doth make use of to fetch in all the glory that hee hath from all his creatures that they in an active way should reflect it all upon the face of God again certainly the soul of man is of an excellent nature then that is contiguous with God himself next unto him It is no matter whether a man bee rich or poor learned or unlearned yet hee hath a soul that is capable of this Yet further For the excellency of the soul The excellency of the soul discovered in its relation to Angels as it is excellent in relation to God so in relation to the Angels It is of the same kinde of nature that they are of they are spirits and so is the soul of man yea it hath the very same name with God himself God is a Spirit and so is the soul of man it is of the very same nature with the Angels and so is able to converse with them as well as with God himsâ—lf but for the way and manner of converse with those spirits that is little revealed in the word and therefore wee can say littâ—e of it And further The excellency of mans soul 3 The excellency of the soul in 1 Indowments of it it will appear in the excellent endowments of it Look upon the soul of man in his fallen estate and what admirable endowments some men have as in the excellent knowledge that some men have of Arts and Sciences the knowledge of the heavens it is a very gâ—orious thing that they are able to ascend up in their understanding and to know all the motions of the heavens and can tell you to a minute of an hour what kinde of motions there will bee as appears plainly by eclipses The arts of Navigation that they can compass the world up and down that way If it were but in these sensible things that wee see so much art in as in these mighty buildings which shows that a man out of a deal of rubbish can raise and erect such a building as this is this shows the excellency of mans soul and if there bee so much excellency in it naturally thâ—t it can do such things then what can it bee raised unto and inabled unto by a divine power What can it do when it is inlarged by grace and made partaker of the Divine nature 4. The souls excellency demonstrated from its immortality Luke 12.4 5. And further The excellency of the soul appears in the immortality of it Fear not them that can kill the body and can do no more Certainly if the soul were mortal as the body is then that man that kills the body kills the soul too and therefore wee may fear a man not onely because hee can kill the body but because hee can kill the soul but saith Christ Fear not them that can kill the body and can do no more The soul is as an Eagle when a man dyes that gets out of the Cage and so it flyes away saith Stephen when hee was to dye Act. 7.59 Lord Jesus receive my spirit Why if so bee that his spirit had dyed with his body he need not have said Lord Jesus receive my spirit Phâ—l 1.23 And so St. Paul I am in a streight and know not what to do whether to live or dye but hee thought it was better for him to bee dissolved it was not to bee destroyed
an ill-favouâ—ed dirty leather case but will have a curious silver case for it Now because the Lord did make a curious peece the soul of man which was the master-peece of Gods creation next to the Angels therefore hee puts it into a very curious case this shews the excellency of those spirits that are within us howsoever they are now defiled with sin yet thus they were made at first When we are speaking to men about their own excellency one would think that then they should attend I have spoken of God and Christs excellency they may seem to bee things above you But now I am speaking of your own excellency what you are and what you are capable off Oh remember this you poor people and others for as wee shall shew afterwards you have souls as excellent as the greatest men in the world And there is nothing to the contrary but you may have that spiritual substance of yours filled with so much good as is infinitely more worth than ten thousand thousand worlds if you have hearts to look after it The Second SERMON ON The Excellency of the Soul Matth. 16.26 For what is a man profited if hee shall gain the whole world and lose his own Soul or what shall a man give in exchange for his Soul I Shall adde one thing more which shews the excellency of the soul in the relation that it hath to God and that is this That it is satisfied onely with God himself there is nothing can fill the soul of man to satisfie it but God himself For the true object of mans understanding it is not this truth or the other truth but truth in general and the highest truth and that is God and the object of this soul it is not this or that good but good in general the highest and the chiefest good and that is God Let all the creatures in the world present themselves before the soul of man to bee the portion of him Mans soul would say these are not the things that can satisfie mee saith Austin Lord thou hast made us for thy self and our heart is unquiet till it comes unto thy self and this is the excellency of mans soul it is above all creatures it is a vertue in the soul of man to have a holy kinde of pride to think all creatures in the world to bee too little to bee the portion of it and God takes this well hee likes it well that we should know our own souls so far that wee should have this kinde of pride of spirit as wee may so call it or rather a right elevation of spirit to look upon all creatures in the world as too low and too mean to bee the portion of one immortal soul Many other things were delivered about the excellency of mans soul that so you might know something of your worth that you are too good to bee slaves to the Devil and it is good for you to know your own worth in this thing that so your hearts might bee elevated above those bare things that you sought to have your happiness in all those that ever have had true wisdome have accounted souls to bee very precious I remember Zozomen the Ecclesiastical Historian saith of the Martyrs that they suffered torment in their bodies as if they were other folks bodies and not their own they lookt not upon them as any part of themselves but on their souls as themselves and so you finde it in Scripture that it is the soul of man that is a mans self Compare for this my Text in Matthew with Luke 9. where you have the same speech of our Saviour setting out the excellency of a mans soul In the one it is What will it profit a man if hee gain the whole world and lose his own soul In the other it is If hee lose himself this is all one the losing of a mans soul and the losing of himself for a mans self it is his soul as for the body it is but the case it is but the out-side and so indeed some of the Heathens accounted their bodies Anaxarchus Tunde tunde Anaxarchi follem Anaxarchum enim non tundis when hee was beaten in a Mortar to death by the Tyrants hee calls to them Beat Beat as long as you will you beat but the outward part of Anaxarchus it is but the vessel in which hee is The Devil himself hath high esteem of souls the Devil cares not so bee it hee may gain mens souls what they have for their bodies the Devil doth not envy any wicked man to prosper in this world to have a healthful lusty body and to have stature and strength and beauty But now if hee sees that there bee any means for the good of their souls hee envies that may the Devil have but their souls hee cares not what they have otherwayes But wee come to the application of this first point in my Text Of the excellency of mans soul And the first Use is this Use Surely then wee ought to look upon every childe of man with some reverent respect and honour there is not the poorest childe as I told you the last day that lyes crying at your doors for a crust but hath a soul in it more worth than heaven and earth And the consideration of this should make us look upon the meanest childe servant the poorest body with an honourable esteem and respect how ever the glory of their souls bee darkned for the present yet they have still in them such souls as are capable of a kinde of infinite good more than all the other works that ever God made except the Angels do not look upon your servants that are under you with scorn and contempt do not use them doggedly as if they were brute-beasts Remember though you bee a Master a Mistress a Governour you are a Governour of one that hath an immortal soul more worth than all the world A good man saith the Scripture is merciful to his beast and surely then a good man will bee merciful to one that hath an immortal soul and it may bee an immortal soul better than his Governour how many have more respect to Dogs to brute-beasts than they have to servants and children and poor people who have immortal souls I have read of the Turks that though they bee noted for most cruel people to men as you heard of their cruelty to those in the Gallies yet they are very pittiful to brute-beasts and therefore they will give alms and stipends out of charity to maintain brute-beasts withall and there is a story of a youth that abusing a bird that had a long bill was like to have been stoned to death in the street they did so hate cruelty to those kinde of creatures though they bee cruel to men Many have this Turkish disposition that are dogged and cruel to those of their own kinde to those that have immortal souls together with themselves though pittiful even to brute-beasts
This is the first Use Look upon all that have these souls with an honourable respect considering they have that that is of so much worth Use 2 And then secondly If mans soul bee of so much worth how can wee look upon many people but have our hearts raised in the meditation of the dreadfulness of Gods Justice upon men for sin thus God hath made man an excellent creature and given to every one a soul more worth than the world but now when wee look upon some people that have lost the beauty of their souls and now have no other use of their souls but it may bee all their dayes to bee imployed in scraping of kennels and raking in the dust-heaps in your streets in attending upon horses and swine and this is all that they have to do in their lives Oh what a low condition is man fallen into that hath no other use of such a rational immortal substance that God hath given him but meerly to make him serviceable all his dayes to tend swine beasts horses scrape kennels and such kinde of things as these are But you will say It is lawful for men to bee imployed in these and poor people must bee imployed in them That is true It is lawful to bee imployed in such things but now when men and women have such poor and mean imployment and have no higher thoughts but meerly to get bread by such imployments and their souls busied all their dayes about nothing else but those things this shews the woful fall of man and manifests a dreadful fruit of Gods Justice upon the children of men for their sin Certainly Man that was made in honour is become like the beast that perisheth in this regard And when wee see the condition of men to bee so low so base and vile as they are so beneath the excellency of a rational and immortal soul Oh let us raise our thoughts to the meditation Gods divine Justice it is a fearful fruit of the justice of God upon man for sin what is this the creature that hath an immortal soul made by God more worth than ten thousand worlds that lies scraping from morning to night in a kennel and hath no other thoughts for any higher excellency but onely if it can get a lump of bread to live by there is all they have to do as if they were born for no other end Oh! think then is this the creature that hath such an excellent soul surely sin hath made a great breach between God and man and hath brought man-kinde into a very low and mean condition and yet worse are those than these that have no other use of their souls than to bee drudges to the Devil and slaves unto their lusts but of this wee shall speak to more afterwards but now I onely mention it as to give a hint to the meditation of Gods justice upon man for his sin Thirdly If the soul of a man bee of so great an excellency Use 3 then certainly it must needs bee an honourable work for to bee busied about souls an honourable imployment for God to set one man or more to look to and tend the souls of others Oh! what a difference is there in the imployment between working in Wood and Iron all day long or scraping in the dust heaps as before and in an imployment of attending upon souls to bee used by God as the instrument of converting of these souls and bringing of them to their former excellency in which they were made yea and to raise them to a higher excellency than ever they had in the first Creation If wee prize mens imployments by the subject of their imployment then certainly this is the most glorious imployment that any Creature in the world can bee capable ofâ— what is the reason you account a Gold-smith a better trade than a Black-smith but because of the subject that the one works about rather than the other one works upon Iron and the other upon Silver and Gold therefore one is a more honourable Trade than the other Now if the subject upon which they work makes one to bee more honourable than the other what Trade in the world can be so honourable as the work of the Ministery that works altogether about immortal souls in bringing them to God to live to God and to enjoy communion with him why do wee account a Physician a more honourable Profession than a Horse-leech one looks to the bodies of Beasts and the other to the bodies of Men If there bee such a difference between the body of a Beast and the body of a Man that hee that is imployed about the one is accounted honourable and hee that is imployed about the other is accounted low then certainly the imployment of the Ministery must needs bee honourable for it is about souls The Magistrate looks unto your peace the Lawyer to your estates the Physician to your bodies and the Divine to your souls though outward respects may bee given more and should bee to the Magistrate yet certainly the imployment about immortal souls must needs bee the honourablest in the world It is the honour of the Angels in Psa 91. to take care of the bodies of the Saints If it bee the glory of Angels to take care of Gods people what glory is it that God puts upon the Ministers of the Gospel to look to souls and truly in this thing God hath put more glory upon Men than upon Angels for God hath not made it to bee his set ordinance that Angels should convert souls but hee hath made it so that men should bee made use of to convert souls by preaching the word and let all the Angels in Heaven shew an imployment so honourable as this imployment is You would account it a great honour to have the Body of a Prince to watch over Surely there is no immortal soul but is more precious than all the Princes in the world and if the Lord should give unto you the care of all the Creatures except the souls of men it were not such an honourable work as to give you the care of any one immortal soul saith the Apostle in 2 Cor. 4. the beginning Let a man esteem of us as the dispensers of the Mysteries of Christ Let them esteem of us it is true Ministers of the Gospel should bee willing to lie under the feet of any to do good to their souls but because wee know that it is a great hinderance to the work of their Ministery when brutish carnal spirits have low and mean esteem of their work therefore wee finde that the Apostle would ever bee setting up the honour of this work Let a man esteem of us as the dispencers of the Mysteries of Christ and in 1 Thes 5.12 13. Wee beseech you brethren to know them which labour among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you and to esteem of them very highly in love for their works sake And so
must I lay this to pawn I thought I should never have lived to the day to lay such a thing to pawn I but when thou comest to lay thy soul to pawn thou layest a more precious thing than all the world is Secondly When thou layest a thing to pawn thou dost prefix thy own time for the redeeming of it again perhaps two three four months before thou bring that that is bargained for but when thou layest thy soul to pawn thou canst not set any time Luk. 12.20 What dost thou know oh Fool but that this night thy soul may bee taken away from thee Thirdly Yea and further When you lay such a thing to pawn you make a bargain for the bringing of somewhat to redeem it that you have in your own power or make account that you shall have in your own power to bring you will not make the bargain to bring such a thing that you are sure you shall not have in your own power Now when you lay your souls to pawn you lay them to pawn for that that you have not in your power nor all the creatures in Heaven and Earth cannot help you to in your need and that is Faith and Repentance All the Angels in Heaven nor men in the world cannot help you to it it is onely in the hands of God of the Infinite blessed God against whom you sin and whom you provoke and yet how many do thus pawn their souls and no marvel though men lose their fouls because they pawn them thus foolishly and wretchedly and that is the second way of mens losing of their souls Thirdly Men lose their souls by wounding them they give them deadly wounds upon which the souls of most do perish Quest Wounding how you will say Answ By that I mean the commission of sins against conscience to commit a known sin and a wilful sin oh this gives a wide gash in the soul a most fearful wound every sin against conscience gives a wound that requires a salve to heal it that is more worth than a thousand worlds the sins against conscience against light against knowledge they are deep wounds unto the souls of men and it is not usual for such wounds to bee healed for they do not onely strike at the life of the soul but they harden the heart of the sinner exceedingly and keep off the means that might do the soul good thou goest abroad into company and there thou committest a sin against thy conscience oh thou hast given a gash to that precious soul of thine thou hast given it a deep wound and except thou lookest to it and that presently thy soul perhaps may die for ever A man that hath received a deep wound hee presently sends for the Chyrurgion and if it bleeds well hee hopes the cure is more hopeful so when thou hast committed sin if indeed it bleed that is if thy soul presently bee sensible of it and affected with it and mourn and lament and so seek after the Chyrurgion there may bee hopes but men and women do wound their own souls by wilful sins sins against their consciences and yet they are not sensible of them they do not so much as bleed but they lye in the very open Air as it were and are not bound up at all Ah! thousand thousands there are that die and perish this way Fourthly And then a fourth sort there are that lose their souls by being gulled of them by being deceived of them Satan perswades them they are in a good condition that all is well with them and they need not fear what need they to trouble themselves these are but the melancholly thoughts of such and such kind of people there is no such great matters required in sorrow for sin and it is but a Lord have mercy upon us and but a being in Christ and hoping in Gods mercy and the like and thus by such kind of delusions as these are many souls are gulled and deceived by the Devil and so perish for ever They are like unto Jonas that was asleep and awakened in the midst of a dreadful tempest so certainly these souls when they come to know themselves and to bee awakened it will bee in the dreadfull tempest of Gods wrath As Sampson the Philistims are upon thee when hee lay in Delilahs bosome so there will bee that dreadful noise one day to these souls the wrath of God and the curse of the Law is upon thee that must lye upon thee Oh the dreadful sorrow there will bee when the soul shall see oh I am deluded and gulled many of you are vext extreamly when you are gulled of any little part of your estates but to bee deluded and gulled of your souls so as they must bee lost for ever this will bee extream horrour another day Fifthly A fifth way of losing our souls is by selling of them away selling of them away you will say what do I mean by that It is said of Alexander the sixth that was Pope hee sold his soul to the Devil for the Popedome there was an express contract between the Devil and him that if in such a year hee should come to bee Pope the Devil should have his soul But now there is a twofold selling of our souls to the Devil besides such a kind of contract as when the Devil shall appear in a bodily shape and so people sell their souls to him First As first When men seek advantage to themselves by any unlawful means seek the gain of the world or any profits or pleasures by cheating couzening wronging swearing or forswearing seek I say to gain any thing in such a way there is such a thing that thou wouldest have and that thou mayest have if thou wilt bee false in thy books in thy reckonings or forswear thy self for gain I say thou dost as truly sell thy soul for the getting of that gain as ever Conjurer did that did contract face to face with the Devil I would have such a gain why saith the Devil though thou dost not see him then thou must lye thou must couzen thou must swear and forswear I will do it saith the soul and thus thou dost many times sell thy soul to the Devil You that are chap-men if one should come and offer you a little matter for a commodity that is of price you have such a peece of ware in your shops that is worth forty shillings and one comes and offers you tâ—o-pence for it why you rise in disdain against it what offer mee two-pence for that which is worth forty shillings oh now that your hearts would rise in disdain when the Devil comes to buy your souls you should rise in disdain what shall I venture the selling of this soul of mine that is more worth than ten thousand worlds for such a poor gain as this is and yet many of you do Secondly And then there is a second way of a mans selling of his soul and that
thus long therefore hee will bee so still Wee may indeed venture upon the Grace of God in his Son as well for sanctification as for pardon but not to venture either upon patience or any thing else so as to continue in our sins though God hath been patient thus long thou dost not know but that upon thy next venture the cord of mercy may crack and thou mayest sink and perish eternally that may befall thee in one day that hath not befallen thee all thy life before take heed my brethren of venturing upon patience for that hath not a word of promise to strengthen it unto thee Indeed Faith is a kind of venture but that ventures upon the Word of God and the Promise of God and it is good venturing upon that but when thou venturest upon patience thou hast no word to assure thee that patience will hold Thou hast no word to make this good unto thee that though God hath been patient so many years therefore hee will bee so still Fourthly And then a fourth venture that men make it is to venture upon their own lives they are young and they hope they may live many years yet I know others they live to bee old men and why may not I live and have my pleasure as well as they and thus they venture Oh but what if the threed of thy life should bee snapt asunder what will become of thee then wilt thou venture thy eternal miscarrying upon such a brittle and frail thing as thy life is Oh it is a desperate venture when men and women will venture thus that if God take away my life now certainly I must perish for ever Now I put it unto every soul in this place let this bee the case now do you examine what you think in your consciences your conditions would bee if you should hear a voice from Heaven saying unto you presently this soul shall have no more time to make provision for eternity I am perswaded that in such a place as this is there cannot but bee many that would in their own consciences say If God should take away my life now I fear I should bee lost for ever I doubt if wee could go from one to another and lay our ears to the bosoms of men and could but hear what the consciences of men say upon this that is now put to them that thou shouldest dye in the condition in which now thou art and what repentance thou hast had bee it good or bad that thy soul must depend upon if it bee not right thy soul must perish I say I fear that upon such a message from Heaven many a mans and womans heart would ask within them and their consciences would tell them I am afraid I should bee lost for ever Oh for thee to bee content to bee in such a condition any one moment that if thou shouldest dye that moment thy soul should bee damned I say thou art a bold and presumptuous sinner a most desperate wretch The Sixth SERMON ON The Excellency of the Soul Matthew 16.26 For what is a man profited if hee shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul 8. MAny do lose their souls by starving of them that is such as neglect the Word that is the food of the soul the Word of God upon which the soul should feed as the body doth upon any food that neglect Gods Ordinances that care not to come to the Word either to feed upon it privately or publickly that think that there is no need of the Word but if they can procure food for their bodies and make shift to get up a living and that that may satisfie the flesh there is all that they look after but for the feeding of their souls by the Word it is that that is little minded or regarded by thousands Oh how many that belong to this Congregation perish eternally even that way by starving Wee pitty people that wee see ready to die that are starved if wee hear but of a prisoner starved even the poorest body wee account it an in humane thing in those that knew it and did not relieve them to see a beast to die by starving wee account it a cruel thing and it can scarse consist with the heart of a man to see I say so much as a dogg to perish by way of starving Now to see immortal souls thousands of them to die and perish and drop down to Hell as thick as may bee and that for want of the food of their souls meerly for starving it should bee an object of pitty and commiseration Now because wee are sensual wee are onely affected with such things as concern the body immediately but for the soul how many care not what kind of Ministry they live under Oh the curse of God is upon them as wee read of in Psal 106.15 Hee gave them their requests and sent leanness into their souls hee gave them their requests that is hee gave them Quails They lusted in the wildeâ—ness and tempted God in the desert and hee gave them Quails to feed upon but sent leanness into their souls wee may apply it thus unto those that seek after nothing else but Quails but that that may feed the flesh Oh the curse of God is upon their souls there is leanness there and they are starved there even unto death whereas those that do but know what the sweetness of the Word is to their souls and have fed upon the Word they had rather feed upon brown bread and water all their daies so bee it they may have the Word than have the greatest delicacies in the world without the Word I put this to your consciences answer it as in the presence of God if this should bee put to you can you say as in Gods presence that sees and searches the hearts of men that upon the real sweetness and good your souls have found in the Word that if God should put it to your choice either to live with bread and water and have the Word or to live with all the delicacies in the world without the Word you would a thousand thousand times sooner chuse to live with the Word with bread and water rather than without the Word with all delicacies Luther I remember hee hath an expression That hee had rather bee in Hell with the Word than in Paradise without the Word Ninthly In the ninth place there is another sort that lose their souls by surfeiting of them their souls do surfeit with the cares and pleasures of this life they glut their hearts with the delights and pleasures and cares of this world until their souls get a surfeit and die of them giving liberty unto their hearts to delight themselves in all outward contentments especially if they bee lawful Now a man or woman may surfeit their souls Licitis perimus omnes and undo themselves by lawful things as a man may not onely destroy his life by eating poison but by
to himself as ever was I think since the beginning of the world and the Devil knowing that hee could not get them to turn to lewdness and prophaneness presently again therefore hee labours to put them upon turning all their Religion into questions about controversal things which they could not be able to mannage and understand and so puts them off the thoughts of that great question What they should do to bee saved But O labour to inquire and to bee satisfied and resolved in that question betimes Secondly If you ask this question as you are to do it betimes so do it earnestly do it with a great deal of fervency of spirit as a matter of infinite concernment so in Matth. 10.17 When hee was gone forth into the way there came one running and kneeled to him and asked him good Master what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life Hee came running with a great deal of fervency and earnestness about the business and the fervency that youth hath should bee manifested in this in being earnest in the inquiring after the way of salvation people that are elder they think they are well enough and they have not lived so long they think as not to know how to bee saved all this while and therefore will not enquire so that their spirits do not boil with that fervency and heat as young ones do hee came running to Christ Thirdly If you do inquire inquire sincerely with a heart truly willing to do whatsoever God shall make known to you wee are this day about this great question what a man should do to save his soul I suppose many of you would bee glad to know what should bee done and mee-thinks every one is ready to ask such a question as this is But before wee come to answer it let mee speak to you as in the Name of God do you desire to know it with a heart truly willing to yeeld to whatsoever should out of Gods Word bee revealed to you put this to your own hearts before wee come to give any answer otherwise what do you hear this day if there bee not such a heart as this that you can appeal to God and profess that whatsoever this day the Lord shall reveal unto meâ— from his Word that I should do to save my soul here I am and profess to yeeld my self up to the truths of God if your hearts bee so fram'd then wee may have incouragement to come and shew you what should bee done Fourthly And you must inquire constantly too if you should not bee satisfied at one time never bee at rest till you are satisfied do not ask what I should do and come to hear what you should do and then pass it over and let every little thing take this out of your minds again but when you begin to bee inquiring after the way of salvation resolve that you will never give rest to your souls till you have gotten this question answered to you And there is a great deal of reason that wee should ask this question in such a way For Reas First Every one of your souls are in a lost condition naturally therefore it concerns you to bee inquiring after the way of salvation Secondly The salvation of a soul is the most difficult thing in the world if ever thy soul bee saved it must cost more than Heaven and Earth is worth to save it it is not therefore such a trifling business the saving of souls This I dare avouch as in the Name of God that the soul of the poorest girl or servant that is here if it bee saved it must cost more than Heaven and Earth is worth to save it therefore there is a difficulty in it Thirdly and lastly There are but few that shall bee saved there is nothing more clear in the Word of God than that that there are but few souls that shall bee saved wee cannot tell as I have said that this or the other soul cannot bee saved wee are not to enter into Gods counsels concerning particular souls but this wee may say Matth. 7.13 compared with Luk. 13.24 and have warrant from the Word to say that there are but few souls that shall bee saved Strive to enter in at the strait gate for strait is the gate and narrow is the way and few there bee that enter And upon that ground Christ himself raises that exhortation therefore strive therefore inquire you after the way of salvation with all your might if there should a voice come from Heaven at this time and say there are but few in this Congregation shall go out alive it would put every one to a stand every one would think with himself Oh Lord must I die here why there is this voice from Heaven that there are but few souls in the world but shall perish eternally then certainly it is not for us to bee quiet but it concerns us to bee restless in our conditions and every one to say what is it I what is it I when Christ did but say that one of you shall betray mee every one was inquiring Is it I Is it I but when it is said that there shall bee but few saved the flock of Christ is but a little flock the words in the original are two diminutives and may be translated a little little flock Oh it concerns you all to look about you But now these things being premised for the putting of you on to the enquiring after salvation with all your might now wee come to the answer of this question What wee should do that our souls may bee saved And in the answer to this wee must premise further First There is nothing that any man can do that saves him there must bee somewhat higher that what hee can do and yet God requires that hee should do what hee can do Indeed what any man can do of himself yea or by assistance from common grace yea wee will say further by assistance from any grace whatsoever though it may help forward his salvation by an ordinance of God yet it cannot be the thing that saves him the thing that saves him is higher than what is done by the creature it is what is done by Christ or what is suffered by Christ it is that that saves the soul and not I say what is done or suffered by us But yet now wee must not make such a vain and foolish and dangerous inference that therefore nothing is to bee done because the things that wee do are not the things that save us there is a great deal of evil comes from men and womens presuming to draw consequences they think that if this bee true the other will follow and so through the weakness of their understandings Ephes 2.1 John 15.5 they come to draw dangerous consequences from true positions Why wee are dead in sins by nature and without mee yee can do nothing saith Christ upon this here is this consequence drawn by
many ignorant people that pervert the Word to their own destruction If God bee not merciful to them therefore why should wee pray or read or hear or use any means let us lay aside all wee can do nothing wee are dead in sins and the like Now wee are to know that though nothing can bee done by us till God bring us into a state of grace and salvation that is acceptable so as certainly shall bring us to Heaven yet if it bee but that that shall stop us in the contrary way a little it is worth our labour If it be but that that any way may tend towards the bringing of us unto any means that may do us good why it is worth our labour and all our pains but especially if wee consider this that though wee are not able to do that that shall save us yet God is pleased often to convey his strength to those hee doth intend to save through the use of those means rather at that time when they do improve their natural abilities than at that time when they sit idle and do nothing and therefore you must bee up and bee doing Wee read in the Gospel concerning the young man that I told you came to Christ and inquired what hee should do for eternal life Christ profest to him that hee was not far from the Kingdome of Heaven hee was not so far as others It is true if a man abuses his doing and rests in his doing that sets him as far from the Kingdome of Heaven as prophane ones and therefore Publicans and Harlots may enter into the Kingdome of Heaven as soon as Scribes and Pharisees But there may bee many actions done by a common assistance of Gods Spirit that may bring some nearer to the Kingdome of Heaven than others and the denial of such a thing as that is would bee an extream boldness in any for they are the very words of Christ to the young man That hee was not far from the Kingdome of Heaven and therefore notwithstanding your inability and notwithstanding the things that wee do are not the things that save us yet wee have ground enough to put on men and women to do Now the meaning of this great question is this What is the way that God ordinarily takes to bring men and women to salvation by or how should I follow God on in his way that is a certain truth of the Antients Though God made thee without thee yet hee will not save thee without thee God works upon us as upon rational creatures and therefore it doth concern all the children of men that would have their souls saved to observe the work of God and to stir up what is in them to joyn with the work of God in the way of salvation and certainly whatever conceits there are to the contrary they are not onely foolish but extream dangerous and Satans policy and cunning is exceedingly much seen in them A further thing that I would premise before I come to particulars is this when I speak of any thing that should bee done I prescribe no particular order knowing that the works of God are various And sometimes God stirs up a soul to do one thing and sometimes to do another thing but take them in what order you will yet wee must name them for memory sake in some order and God expects them from you and you are to joyn with God in those works if you would have your souls to bee saved The great Question of what wee should do to bee saved answered First If you would have your souls saved do you joyn with God in what hee hath revealed to you concerning your lost condition labouring to understand those truths clearly that are delivered in the Word concerning the lost condition of souls by nature and to work those truths upon your hearts to bee sensible of them Those whom God intends to save hee shews unto them what this salvation is hee shews them from what it is they are to bee saved that so they may not run away vvith the meer word Salvation and saving of souls now God reveals this in his Word and when hee intends to save a soul hee doth by his Spirit stir it up to joyn with the Word of God and work those things upon its self so as to bee made sensible of them As thus the soul being solicitous how it should come to bee saved it searches the Scripture and there it findes how wee are by nature the children of wrath there it findes that God had made man according to his own Image at first but man hath sinned against God and broken the covenant upon which his eternal state did depend and in the sin of the first man all men have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God and now are conceived in sin and brought forth in iniquity so that there is a most dreadful breach between God and the soul and that man by nature is become an enemy to the Infinite God That now hee hath the seeds of all kind of sin in him and that all his life while hee continues in his natural estate here is nothing else but a fighting against God a flying in the very face of God Hee findes that by sin hee is brought under a most dreadful curse the curse of the Law and that hee is bound over by the bonds of the Law even to death to eternal death as the wages of sin these things the soul findes in Scripture now if thou wouldest bee saved when thou findest God revealing such things labour thorowly to convince thy soul of the truth of them and are these things so indeed is this my condition am I thus and thus naturally Oh what good then will it do to mee to have all the world and bee in such a condition as this is Oh my soul when wert thou sensible of this condition dost thou walk as it becomes one that is sensible of such a lost estate as this is Oh! labour to drink in these truths and to work them upon thy heart and cry to God to set them home upon thy spirit to make thy soul thorowly sensible of them as hee uses to make those whom hee hath a purpose to save Here 's the first thing And yet one thing about this further is That you must come to a conviction not onely of your lost estate but of your inability to save your selves and the inability that there is in all creatures in Heaven and Earth to save them that thy fall from God is so dreadful that all the created power in Heaven and Earth cannot help thee yea and that thou thy self now art unable to help thy self to save thy soul bee convinc'd thorowly of this This was the way that Christ took with the young man hee tells him of the Law first and then afterwards because hee was conceited that hee had fulfilled the Law and done it Christ puts him upon a duty that might convince him
himself from you I appeal to you suppose you did so depend upon any one man in the world that your life lay at his mercy and if hee should but speak a word you were a dead man or woman would you not when you come into his presence come with fear lest you should displease him would you say what do I care for him let him bee pleased or not pleased what is that to mee you would not dare to do it Now shall wee have less fear because hee with whom wee have to do is the Lord if wee had dependence upon any man in the world as wee have upon God wee would fear him Now I say shall God have the less fear because hee is a God hee should have the more fear Fear him saith Christ that when hee hath killed the body can likewise kill the soul Yea I say unto you fear him Christ puts an I say upon that and truly that soul begins to bee in a way of salvation that begins to have the fear of the great God to fall upon him Most people in the world they walk boldly and presumptuously in the presence of God as if God had nothing to do with them and as if they had nothing to do with God Alas these go on in the waies of death and destruction but that soul that God hath a purpose to save hee begins to reveal his glory to it and to shine upon it as hee did upon Saul when hee did shine from Heaven in a glorious manner and stopt him in his way when hee was riding post unto Hell and destruction hee cries to him I am hee that thou hast sinned against I am hee that thou persecutest then Saul falls down trembling and saith Lord What wiâ—t thou have mee to do as if Saul should say Lord I did not know thee but I see thee now to bee a great and a dreadful God I see that I am in thy hands to save or destroy as thou pleasest and therefore Saul comes with a trembling heart and cries to God Lord What wilt thou have mee to do I hee was in a good way of salvation and so when a vile sinner that hath gone on without the fear of God upon him shall now come in trembling beholding the dreadfulness of the Infinite God that eternal first-beeing that it hath to deal withall and now shall have his fear strike into it this soul is in a good way of salvation it is stopt in the way of destruction and it is in a good way of salvation and that is very observable further in the Text Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling for it is God that works in you That is a place that many people grosly abuse they think they need do nothing but mark how boldly do these people cross the Spirit of God in the Text for the Spirit of God makes this Argument do you work out your salvation because God works and say they It must bee God that works and therefore I will do nothing Oh! if you should wilfully go on in waies of provocation to God and upon your sick-bed and death-bed cry Oh Lord that now thou wouldest bee pleased to work upon my soul as thou usest to work upon those that thou intendest to save If God should make this answer Thou a bold wretch that hast provok'd the eyes of my glory all thy daies and dost thou now cry to mee to do it If any of you do think that there will ever bee a time when you will stand in need of Gods mercy to save your souls you had need walk with fear and trembling before this God Now I put this to the soul of every one here dost thou not think O thou sinful soul that there will bee a time that thou shalt stand in need of the mercy of God and what course dost thou take now before-hand is that course that thou takest before-hand a continual provocation of God is that a good preparation to that time if there were a man that you lived neer though for the present you care not for him but slighted him yet if you knew that there would bee a time that you must stand in need of that man so as if hee should forsake you you would bee a lost man would you dare to provoke that man wee all know what need wee shall have of the mercy of God and therefore wee had need walk with fear and trembling before him Sixthly Further If thou wouldest have thy soul saved attend upon those means that â—od hath appointed to save souls wait at wisdomes posts Now this one direction being clearly shewn out of Scripture will be enough to confute all that talk against doing If God hath appointed means to save then surely hee hath appointed that wee must attend upon those means Now in Rom. 1.16 The preaching of the Gospel there is called The power of God to salvation Now if you would bee saved you must bring your souls under that which is the power of God to salvation Because the Lord in the Ministry of the Gospel doth use to put forth his Almighty Power for the saving of souls therefore it is that the Gospel is called the power of God to salvation you cannot be saved without the Almighty Power of God and where is that put forth but in the preaching of the Gospel To whom is the Arm of the Lord revealed That is the Arm of God in the preaching of the Gospel so you know what the Apostle saith in Rom. 10. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God You will say can wee do any thing towards our salvation yes you may hear it is the duty of us as creatures to come and hear the Word and Faith comes by hearing so then Faith comes by somewhat that wee do but not so that God hath tied himself to give Faith to every one that hears I would not bee understood so But thus God hath appointed that hearing should bee a means for the working of Faith It is true it is the blessing of God in hearing but hearing is the way that God hath set God indeed can convey Faith from Heaven to any soul immediately I but where there is the preaching of the Gospel there do I expect that these creatures that do intend that I should work Faith in them should come and attend upon the preaching of the Gospel Christ could have opened the blind mans eyes without spitting upon the clay and anointing his face but hee would have that done and that must bee the means by which hee will open his eyes So if God will have hearing the Word of the Gospel to bee the means by which hee will work Faith in the soul take heed how this bee neglected Act. 20.18 Paul was sent to preach to what end To open their eyes and to turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God that they may receive forgiveness of sins and
beleeves that now surely the Lord intends salvation to mee the Lord hath laid such a ground-work upon my soul as I dare venture all upon it and now I have cause to hope that the hazard of miscarrying to all eternity is over O this is that that is the joy of the Holy Ghost joy unspeakable and glorious when the soul upon good grounds can have hopes that the hazard of its miscarrying to all eternity is over now My soul return unto thy rest Psal 16.7 saith such a one so that that is the next thing the rasing down of the old and raising up the new foundation Ninthly If thou wouldest have thy soul saved thou must keep thy soul under the authority of the Word and maintain the authority of the Word and the authority of conscience over thee this is the way if thou meanest to go in Gods way for salvation First For the Word The soul that God intends to save hee doth reveal unto it a dreadful authority that there is in this Book of God this is that word saith God to the soul wherein I have revealed my mind to the children of men Those counsels of my will that concern the eternal good of the children of men are in this book and all your souls are to be cast by this book by this word for eternity Now this being revealed to the soul the soul stands in awe of this word and trembles at this word fears the authority of it looks upon every threatning in the Word every command in the Word every promise in the Word as having a divine authority stampt upon it sees the broad Seal of Heaven stampt upon every thing in this Book and dares not wilfully transgress against any thing in the Word and so continues in keeping its self under the dreadful authority of the Word and that soul is in a good forwardness to bee saved that is kept under the dreadful authority of Gods Word in the constant course of it Now I appeal to you you would fain have your souls saved but can you say thus Indeed I have many sins yet God knows that knows all things that my soul it is kept under the dreadful authority of his Word continually and this I labour to do more and more and I am willing it should bee so I am not willing to have the authority of Gods Word cast off but I am gâ—ad that ever God did discover to mee the dreadful authority that there is in his Word Secondly And then the next thing is the authority of conscience if conscience have any enlightening it is that that will discover very much of the mind of God unto thee there is nothing will discover Gods mind more unto the heart of a man or woman than an enlightened conscience and it will discover it with power a Minister speaks and his words many times vanish in the Air but when conscience comes to discover Gods mind it comes with power and speaks particularly to this soul and the other soul and conscience when it hath light will bee pleading of Gods cause and admonishing and plucking the soul out of the waies of death and perdition and it will not easily bee put off you may easily put off the counsels of such and such friends but conscience will not easily bee put off it will come with such majesty upon the heart of a sinner that there is no gain-saying of it conscience will not regard the vain shifts that people have but still comes in a commanding power Oh keep the authority of conscience many men and women because they cannot go on freely in the waies of sin where conscience and the word have much authority over them therefore they seek to cast off the authority of the word and conscience but know this for a truth that that soul that hath cast off the authority of the word and conscience is going apace to Hell is going apace to destruction All the while the word and conscience kept thee under thou wert in some forwardness towards the way of life but if thou hast once cast off that then Oh how doth the soul grow hardened in sin how easily are the truths of God rejected and then it goes with greediness to satisfie the lusts of the flesh and ten thousand to one but such a soul perishes eternally Oh if there bee ever a soul in this place that had the authority of Gods word and conscience to bee over them with power and now through the violence of their lusts have cast it off Oh let such a one take notice of what is said unto them in the Name of God Oh thy soul is going apace to destruction But as for you that begin to feel any authority of the word or of conscience upon you Oh keep it for this it is that will carry and guide thee in the way that will bring to life at the last Tenthly If thou wouldest have thy soul bee saved take heed of sinning against the price of thy soul against the blood of the covenant and against mercy take heed of these three things take heed of sinning against Jesus Christ that paid the price against the Gospel that revealed the price of thy soul Oh take heed above all things of turning the grace of God into wantonness let not the free grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ bee turned to bee a means to harden thy soul in sin to think thou mayest take the more liberty to have the satisfaction of the lusts of the flesh why because Jesus Christ came to save sinners let mee say to thee as Peter to Simon Magus Oh Pray if it bee possible that the thoughts of thy heart may be forgiven thee If thou hast ever had such reasonings in thy heart why Jesus Christ came to save sinners and the grace of the Gospel that is free and full enough to save souls though they bee never such great sinners and upon that thou hast taken more liberty Oh thou hadst need fall down before the Lord and cry If it bee possible that such a thought of thy heart might bee forgiven thee if you look into the Epistle of Jude you shall finde a dreadful passage against such as turn the grace of God into wantonness it is made a sign of a Reprobate and it is as black a brand of a Reprobate as any one to turn the grace of God and especially that grace of God that is in the price that is paid for souls to turn that into wantonness is the most dreadful hinderance of saving of a soul that possibly can bee Oh take heed of sinning against Jesus Christ the great Saviour of souls but honour Jesus Christ all the waies you can would you fain have your souls saved Christ is the great Saviour of souls and you had need honour him Kiss the Son lest hee bee angry and love him Psal 2 1â— you had need love his ordinances and all his members and all his people you had need
Collins of Norwich The sum of practical Divinity or the grounds of Religion in a Catechistical way by Master Christopher Love late Minister of the Gospel an useful piece Heaven and Earth shaken a Treatise shewing how Kings and Princes and all other Governments are turned and changed by J. Davis Minister in Dover admirably useful and seriously to be considered in these times The Treasure of the Soul wherein wee are taught by dying to sin to attain to the perfect love of God A Treatise of Contentation fit for these sad and troublesome times by J. Hall Bishop of Norwich Select thoughts or choice helps for a pious Spirit beholding the excellency of her Lord Jesus by J. Hall Bishop of Norwich The holy Order or Fraternity of Mourners in Zion to which is added songs in the night or chearfulness under afflictions by J. Hall Bishop of Norwich The Celestial Lamp enlightning every distressed soul from the depth of everlasting darkness by T. Fetisplace Excellent 〈…〉 Mathematicks Geometry of Arithmetick 〈…〉 â—nd other Arts or Mechanicks The incomparablâ—â—â—â—atise of Tactometria sâ—â— Tetagmenometria or the Geometry of Regulars practically proposed after a new and most expeditious manner together with the Natural or Vulgar by way of Mensural comparison and in the Solids not onely in respect of Magnitude or Demension but also of Gravity or Ponderosity according to any Metal assigned together with useful experiments of Measures and Weights observations on gauging useful for those that are practised in the Art Metricald by T. Wybard Tectonicon shewing the exact measuring of all manner of Land Squares Timber Stones Steeples Pillars Globes as also the making and use of the Carpenters Rule c. fit to be known by all Surveyors Land-meters Joyners Carpenters and Masons by L. Diggs The unparallel'd work for ease and expedition entituled the Exact Surveyor or the whole Art of Surveying of Land shewing how to plot all manner of Grounds whether small Inclosures Champian Plain Wood-lands or Mountains by the plain Table as also how to finde the Area or Content of any Land to Protect Reduce or Divide the same as also to take the Plot or Chart to make a Map of any Mannor whether according to Rathburn or any other eminent Surveyors Method a Book excellently useful for those that sell purchase or are otherwise employed about buildings by J. Eyre The Golden Treatise of Arithmetick Natural and Artificial or Decimals the Theory and Practice united in a sympathetical proportion betwixt Lines and Numbers in their Quantities and Qualities as in respect of Form Figure Magnitude and Affection demonstrated by Geometry illustrated by Calculations and confirmed with variety of Examples in every Species made compendious and easie for Merchants Citizens Sea-men Accomptants c. by Th. Wilsford Corrector of the last Edition of Record Semigraphy or the Art of Short-writing as it hath been proved by many hundreds in the 〈…〉 â—â—â—don and other places by them practised 〈◊〉 â—â—owledged to bee the easiest exactest and swiftest Method the meanest capacity by the help of this Book with a few hours practice may attain to a perfection in this Art by J. Rich Author and Teacher thereof dwelling in Swithins-lane in London Milk for Children a plain and easie Method teaching to read and write usefull for Schools and Families by J. Thomas D. D. The Painting of the Ancients the History of the beginning progress and consummaâ—ing of the practice of that noble Art of Painting by F. Junius Excellent and approved Treatises in Physick Chirurgery and other more familiar Experiments in Cookery Preserving c. Culpeper's Semiatica Vranica his Astrological Judgement of Diseases from the decumbiture of the sick much enlarged the way and manner of finding out the cause change and end of the Disease also whether the sick bee likely to live or die and the time when Recovery or Death is to bee expected according to the judgement of Hyppocrates and Hermes Trismegistus to which is added Mr. Culpeper's censure of Urines Culpeper's last Legacy left to his Wife for the publick good being the choicest and most profitable of those secrets in Physick and Chirurgery which whilest he lived were lockt up in his breast and resolved never to bee published till after his death The Yorkshire Spaw or the virtue and use of that Water in curing of desperate Diseases with directions and rules necessary to bee considered by all that repair thither Most approved Medicines and Remedies for the diseases in the body of man by A. Read Doctour in Physick The Art of simpling an Introduction to the knowledge of gathering of Plants wherein the definitions divisions places descriptions differences names virtues times of gathering temperatures of them are compendiously discoursed of also a discovery of the lesser World by W. Coles Adam in Eden or Natures Paradise the History of Plants Herbs and Flowers with their several original names the places where they grow their descriptions and kindes their times of flourishing and decreasing as also their several signatures anatomical appropriations and particular physical virtues with necessary Observations on the seasons of planting and gathering of our English plants A work admirable useful for Apothecaries Chirurgions and other ingenuous persons who may in this Herbal finde comprized all the English physical Simples that Gerard or Parkinson in their two voluminous Herbals have discoursed of even so as to bee on emergent occasions their own Physicians the Ingredients being to bee had in their own Fields and Gardens published for the general good by W. Coles M. D. The Compleat Midwives practice in the high and weighty concernments of the body of Mankinde the second Edition corrected and enlarged with a full supply of such most useful and admirable secrets which Master Nicholas Culpeper in his brief Treatise and other English Writers in the Art of Midwifry have hitherto wilfully passed by kept close to themselves or wholly omitted by T. Chamberlain M. P. illustrated with Copper-Figures The Queens Closet opened incomparable Secrets in Physick Chirurgery Preserving Candying and Cookery as they were presented to the Queen by the most experienced persons of our times many whereof were honoured with her own practice True History and Divine Poetry The Tears of the Indians the History of the bloody and most cruel proceedings of the Spaniards in the Island of Hispaniola Cuba Jamaica Mexico Peru and other places of the West-Indies in which to the life are discovered the tyrannies of the Spaniards as also the justness of our War so successfully managed against them Harvey's Divine Poems the History of Balaam of Jonah and of St. John the Evangelist Fons Lachrymarum or a Fountain of Tears the Lamentations of the Prophet Jeremiah in Verse with an Elegy on Sir Charles Lucas by J. Quarles The Admirable ingenuous Satyr against Hypocrites Several other accurately ingenuous Treatises lately printed Themis Aurea The Laws of the Fraternity of the Rosie Cross in which the occult Secrets of their Philosophical Notions are brought
blessed is that man or woman that comes to see this to bee his or her excellency namely that I might lift up Gods Name in the place where hee hath set mee heretofore I have lift up other things as excellent if I could get an Estate c. But the Lord hath made mee to see that hee alone is excellent and his excellency hath darkned all the excellency of the Creature in my eyes I see nothing excellent but God and all in order unto God that is a good sign of the work of grace in a man or woman when hee shall see so much of the excellency of God as Gods excellency shall darken all the excellency in the world The Third SERMON ON The Nature of God PSAL. 148.13 For his Name alone is excellent BUt a second Use is this that wee are now to proceed in Oh how vile is sin then that is committed against such a God as this is there is nothing in the world can shew a soul the evil of sin but the sight of God If wee should tell you never so much of the terrours of the Law and of hell fire though you might see the desert of sin somewhat yet until you come to see with what a God you have to deal you can never know what the evil of sin means Against thee thee onely have I sinned Psal 51.4 saith David that was the thing that strook Davids spirit David knew that it was against God that hee sinned when God shall come to the conscience of a sinner and present himself before his conscience and say Oh wretched sinner it is I that you have sinned against as Christ did in Act. 9. unto Saul Saul Saul why persecutest thou mee Act. 9.4 So when God shall say Sinner sinner why dost thou rebel against mee If God would but give us one sight of himself that wee might behold him as hee is upon his Throne in this excellency of his Name above all things it were impossible but the heart of a sinner should even break at such a sight Certainly one day every sinner shall have a sight of God Happy it is now for us to have such a sight of God here in this world that may cause us to see the evil of our sins for otherwise the sight of God hereafter will certainly sink our souls into the bottomless gulf of horrour and despair When Daniel was about to confess his sin in Dan. 9. Mark how hee begins because hee would get his heart to bee affected with his sin and the sins of the people that there hee confest Mark how hee begins his prayer Dan 9.4 And I prayed saith hee in the 4. verse unto the Lord my God and made my confession and said O Lord the great and dreadful God thus hee begins I made confession saith hee I prayed and made confession of sin and said Oh Lord the great and dreadful God first hee looks upon God how great and dreadful hee was and this it was that caused him to confess his sin with humiliation you that say your prayers and will confess that you are sinners did you but at the beginning of your prayers when you go to confess your sin cast up one eye to heaven and behold this God upon his Throne and see him to bee the great and dreadful God it would cause you to confess sin after another manner than ever yet you have done It is a good thing therefore in our prayers when wee are about to confess sin first to set before our souls the greatness and the dreadfulness of that God that wee have sinned against When this Prophet Daniel would humble that proud Belshazzer in Dan. 5.23 Mark what hee saith And the God in whose hand thy breath is and whose are thy wayes hast thou not glorified This speech set home upon a mans conscience were enough to break the proudest and stoutest heart in the world If so bee that the eyes of the proudest stoutest sinner were opened to see God in his glory and to hear the Lord speak thus to him that God in whose hand is the breath of thy nostrils and all thy wayes that is the God that thou hast not glorified thou doest not think with whom it is that thou hast to deal but that is the God that you have heard preached of thus Whose Name alone is excellent such an infinite and glorious Deity is that Deity that thou hast neglected and despised and preferred thy lusts before Oh if God would but give commission unto your consciences to speak this with power to you that God that is thus glorious and excellent you have sinned against oh it would bee of wonderful force to break the hardest heart of men And in Psal 104.1 2. Psal 104.1 2. Do but see there how David had his heart rising against sin and sinners upon the consideration of the excellency of God there hee speaks of the same argument that wee have here in the Text Bless the Lord Oh my soul my God thou art very great thou art cloathed with honour and majesty and so hee goes on who coverest thy self with light as with a garment Hee proceeds in the Psalm describing the greatness and excellency of God But then when hee had done describing Gods excellency and found his heart warmed and inlarged and raised with the meditation of the excellency of God Mark how hee breaks forth in the last words of the Psalm Let the sinners bee consumed out of the earth and let the wicked bee no more Vers 35. bless thou the Lord Oh my soul As if holy David should have said thus Oh Lord I see thee to bee very great and thou art cloathed with honour and Majesty and thy Name is excellent above all things What And are there any wretched creatures that will dare to presume to rebel against thee who art so great that will dare yet to set their will against thy will and to prefer their lusts before thee Oh cursed bee those sinners Let the sinners bee consumed from the earth and let the wicked bee no more There is infinite reason that wicked wretched creatures should bee for ever consumed that sin against such a God as thou art who art so great as thou art My brethren it is no marvel though the people of God are so afraid of sin many of you wonder at the niceness of the consciences of many people that they dare not commit any known sin for a world you wonder at them why they should bee so nice you think it is foolishness Would you know the reason It is this God hath shewed unto their consciences a sight of himself they have had a sight of the glory of the Majesty of the great God Whose Name alone is excellent and it is that that makes them afraid of sin for ever and makes them look upon sin as the greatest evil and even tremble at the least temptation unto any sin whatsoever And that is the second