thistles Oh no Gal. 6.7 8. Be not deceiv'd mistake not your selves God is not mocked for whatsoever a man soweth that he shall reap he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting And saith the Apostle Rom. 6.16 Know ye not that 's strange Know assuredly that to whom ye yield your selves servants to obey his servants ye are to whom ye obey whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousnesse that is unto life He that is now thy Lord and Master he that is now thy Soveraign and King will then pay thy wages 'T is a short question Whose Will do you do if the will of men verily you have your reward if the will of sin you shall have sins wages which is you may heare it but how will you bear eternal death Surely men that like sins work will never like sins wages But if thou do the Will of God thy wages shall be his gift eternal life Well then try for Gods sake and your soules sake try your selves for you may know whose you are and shall be The third word or head is for exhortation let every one then that names and calls upon the Name of the Lord as he loves his soule depart from iniquity alas if you will not depart from iniquity for Gods sake you must there 's no remedy you must depart from God for iniquities sake and shall iniquity be dearer to you then God and your souls Why call you me Lord Lord Le ts either lay aside the Name of the Lord or our iniquity for what hast thou to do thou bold impudent daring sinner to take Gods Name into thy mouth and hatest to be reformed doest thou think that he will hold thee guiltlesse that takest his Name in vain Oh no he will require his Name and glory at thy hands Because God keepeth silence doest thou think he gives consent thinkest thou that he is such an one as thy self No no he will reprove thee and set thy sins in order before thy face and ask thee how thou durst say Lord Lord by way of Profession Prayer â—nd Appeal and yet wouldest not depart from iniquity what wilt thou answer when he riseth up thou wilt then stand speechlesse as being self-condemned Oh let me then beseech you to do the Will of God be not hearers of the Word but doers also lest you deceive your selves What is it to make a good Profession and not to make good the Profession what is it to be a Christian as farre as if it be no further then a few good words will go what is it to speak Christ fair to say Haile Master and kisse him if thou kick with the heel against him Trust not in lying words which cannot profit you will ye steal murther commit adultery sweare falsely burn incense to Baal and walk after other gods your belly and your covetousnesse and come and stand before me in this house and say The Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord are these Is this house which is called by my Name become a den of robbers in your eyes Behold saith God even I have seen it and will require it Good words will never engage God to be a Patron to bad works Think ye to lean upon the Lord and say Is not the Lord among us behold thou art called a Jew and restest in the Law and makest thy boast of God and knowest his Will Behold all this what will it come to if thou through breaking the Law dishonourest God and causest his Name to be blasphemed what wilt thou do in that day when God shall judge thee according to this Gospel My beloved let me beg you for your precious and immortal soules sake not to dally with God not to trifle away these few moments of yours on which eternity depends but up and be doing the Will of God that it may go well with you for ever 'T is said of some 2 Kings 17.33 That they feared the Lord but served their own gods but saith the text v. 34. They feared not God for they do not after the Commandments which God commanded Jacob. Alas my beloved how often must I say it 't is not a forme of Godlinesse 't is not saying Lord Lord 't is not quaint civility nor specious morality much lesse painted hypocrisie that will bear you out opinions will not passe for Religion in the day of judgement nay do not think as I may say to make Christ a pack-horse to lay thy sins on his shoulders and thou in the mean time to keep them in thy bosome to say he hath done the Will of God and thou carest not to do his Will Alas the losse will be your own God will lose nothing as he that is wise is wise for himself so he that sinneth wrongeth his own soul Be exhorted then and suffer the word of exhortation which speaketh on this wise Do the Will of God surrender resign your selves to him as ever you expect to enter into the Kingdome of Heaven There are these two provoking Arguments from the text 1 It is for no lesse then a Kingdome yea for no lesse then the Kingdome of Heaven and is that worth nothing The Gospel is called the Gospel of the Kingdom Matth. 4.23 And the Word of the Kingdome Matth. 13.19 For by it we are called to his Kingdome and glory Shall not a Kingdome shall not of all Kingdomes this Kingdome be glorious in our eyes which is the Kingdome of glory The devil offered Christ as his greatest argument of hope to prevaile by the Kingdomes of this world and their glory but what 's that to this what 's time to eternity what 's earth to Heaven what are visibles to invisibles what the things of sense to things of saith what this glory to that which is to be revealed We all naturally love greatnesse and glory and can there be greater glory or more glorious greatnesse then this to be Kings to God here Kings with God hereafter and to reign with him more then a thousand years You see what a do there is in the world and I wish there be no evil done in the world for Crowns Scepters and Kingdomes do all the Kingdomes of the earth suffer violence and do the violent take them by force and shall not the Kingdome of Heaven suffer seeing 't is willing to suffer violence Oh that the violent would take it by force The nature of this Kingdome is to keepe thee from evil the Kingdomes of the earth are not I feare they are not had without much evil Well will you consider this to engage you to do the Will of God 'T is for a Kingdom 2. Consider this argument too if you neglect to day it may be too late to morrow Now or never now or never for what is your life but as a vapour that passeth away Do not you
Lord Lord by way of appeal yet I professe unto you I never knew you I never approved of you I know the way of the righteous but the way of the wicked shall perish Depart from me ye workers of iniquity So that 't is not Profession nor Prayer nor Appeal that will give a man entrance into the Kingdome of Heaven Not every one that saith Lord Lord c. By the Kingdome of Heaven is to be understood that state of blessednesse after this life called elsewhere salvation glory and eternal life Which indeed is begun in this life for * Joh. 17.3 This is life eternal to know thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent and therefore the dispensation of grace by Jesus Christ is often called the Kingdom of Heaven Repent for the Kingdome of Heaven is at hand but I think the future state to be here principally if not only intended For Then shall the righteous shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdome of their Father Matth. 13.43 But I purposing to speak to the latter clause shall wave this first having given you two or three Observations from the text and context 1. From the connexion of this text with the foregoing verse I shall observe That men are better known by what they do then by what they say Even a childe saith Solomon Prov. 20.11 Even a childe is known by his doings whether his work be pure and whether it be right So saith Christ By their fruits ye shall know them Not every one that saith c. Men are better known by their doings then by their sayings If a man speak well and do ill Charity it selfe cannot speak well of that man as to men God indeed judgeth of their words and their works by their hearts * God judgeth the out-side by the in-side but man judgeth the in-side by the out-side but men cannot judge of men but by their works By their fruits ye shall know them Not by their Profession for they may professe like Saints nor by their Prayers for they may pray like Saints nor by their Appeales for they may appeal like Saints they may say Lord Lord but by their fruits ye shall know them 'T is not the words but the works of men that tell us what they are Indeed saith he they come to you in sheepes cloathing but they are ravening wolves They have as one sayes on the place Jacobs smooth tongue but Esaus rough hand Audi nemo meliùs specta nemo pejùs They speak like Angels of light but they act like Angels of darknesse They defie the devil in words but deifie the devil in works they deifie Christ in words but defie him in works God likes not this Court-holy-water of faire Professions and deep Protestations when mens hearts are not with him when there is not the power of Religion and the practice of Godlinesse By their fruits ye shall know them Not every one that faith c. 2. Good words without good works will never turne to a good account holy sayings without holy doings will never admit into the holy place Not every one that saith Lord Lord c. there will little come of that 3. God is a very curious observer of what men say and of what men do in the world Jesus Christ here observes that they say Lord Lord but withal he observes that they do not the Will of his Father but are workers of iniquity Men indeed may but God will not God cannot be put off with complements Shall not he that made the eye see shall not he that made the eare heare shall not he that made the heart know what is therein Surely saith David Psal 139. thou understandest my thoughts and there is not a word in my tongue but lo thou knowest it altogether And as for the works as he saith to the Church of Ephesus I know thy works But I proceed to the second clause He that doth the Will of my Father which is in Heaven Whence I lay down this Conclusion That they and none but they who do the Will of God shall enter into the Kingdome of Heaven For the clearing of this there is this Querie to be made as to the termes What are we to understand by the Will and by the doing of the Will of God which being answered we may more safely proceed to prove the truth of the Proposition But before I can do this 't is requisite to premise these two things 1. That the Will of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ are one The Father and he are one and agree in one and indeed 't is in him and by him that we know the Will of God No man saith John chap. 1.18 hath seen God at any time the only begotten Son which is in the bosome of the Father he hath declared him And as the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 2.16 Who hath known the minde of God but we have the minde of Christ wherein and whereby we have the minde of God The Father saith of the Son as Pharaoh did of Joseph Gen 41.55 Go unto Joseph what he saith unto you do And as his Mother said to the servants at the wedding Iohn 2.5 Whatsoever he saith unto you do it Just so his Father saith This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased heare ye him So that whatever Christ saith unto you is his Fathers Will and therefore verse 24. he calleth them his sayings and pronounceth them blessed that hear and do them for they are his Fathers Will. 2. As to the termes I premise this also That these phrases the Will of God the Word of God the Work of God the Commands of God c. are all equivalent and signifie the same thing So then I answer that by the Will of God we are to understand 1. The Credenda Faith 2. The Agenda Holinesse Good works or the * Rom. 16 26. obedience of faith not either but each of them not one or the other but both one and the other the doctrine of faith or things to be believ'd and the doctrine of holinesse or things to be done and practised As faith excludes not doing with respect to salvation so doing excludes not faith for as faith without works is dead so works without faith are dead also as 't is impossible that faith without works can please God so no lesse impossible for works without faith to please God and therefore what God hath joyn'd together man should not put asunder Yea you shall finde that believing is expressely called the Will of God John 6.27 c. Labour not saith Christ for the meat which perisheth but for that which endureth unto everlasting life which the Son of man giveth you Whence by the way observe that Gods giving and mans labouring are not inconsistent free grace and full duty may joyne hearts and hands But say they ver 28. What shall we do that we may work the works of God Jesus answered v.
the Apostle James saith James 1.27 is pure Religion and undefiled before God the Father 2. A second demonstration is this None can enter the Kingdome of Heaven but they who are prepared for it and none are such but they that do the Will of God in the sense explain'd Heaven is not only prepared for them but they also are prepared for Heaven and the truth of it is This world is but a Purgatory for men that they may here be purified and refined and thereby put into a capacity as Hester was in another case to enter into the Kingdom of God for no unclean thing can enter there And that we must be made meet to be Partakers before we partake is clear from Col. 1.12 where the Apostle exhorts them having pray'd that they might give thanks to the Father who had made them meet to be Partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light who had fitted them for the Kingdome of Heaven for that 's the inheritance of the Saints in light and how that was done he tells us in v. 13. by delivering us from the power of darknesse into the Kingdom of his dear Son a man must be in the Kingdome of the Son which is the Kingdome of Heaven on Earth and be thereby fitted for before he can be admitted into the Kingdome of God and this translation is no other but the fitting us by enabling us to do the Will of God for being in the Kingdome of Christ is opposed to being under the power of Satan and therefore must carry in it a sense contrary to it Now when we were under that power we wereled by him at his Will as Eph. 2.2 3. We were at his beck and bidding his Will was our Law therefore to be translated from thence into the Kingdom of Christ can denote no lesse then our obedience to him or our doing his Will whereby we are made meet to be Partakers c. 3. A third demonstration is this None can enter into the Kingdome of Heaven but they to whom its promised They that have no promise can expect no performance Now it is promised to none but such as do the Will of God Hath not saith the Apostle James 25. God chosen the poor of the world rich in faith and heires of the or as the margin hath it of that Kingdome which he hath promised to them that love him * Love is the fulfilling of the Law and who they are we were told before such as keep his Commandments and to whom the keeping of his Commandments or the doing of his Will is not grievous 4. A fourth demonstration is this None but the friends of God shall inherit the Kingdome of God as for his enemies that would not that be should * Their enmity is seen in a non-subjection to the Law of God Rom 8 7. reign over them they shall never reign with him No saith he bring them forth and slay them before my face Christ will see execution done upon his enemies but his friends they and none but they shall inherit the Kingdome Abraham was Gods friend and Paradise it self is called Abrahams bosome and the state of our glory in one part of it is this we shall sit down with Abraham the friend of God with Isaac and Jacob and the rest of the friends of God in his Kingdome But who are his friends then that Christ will tell us Matth. 12.50 Whosoever shall do the Will of my Father which is in Heaven or as Mark rendens it the Will of God or as Luke hath it who hear the Word of God and do it which are all parallel expressions the same is my brother and sister and mother my nearest and dearest friends Yet a more if a more pregnant place may be produced John 15.14 where Christ saith to his disciples Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you So then none but friends can enter and none are friends but such as do his Will 5. A fifth demonstration is this None shall enter into the Kingdome of Heaven but them that are * If a man be not new-born it had been good for him he had not been born borne again and none are borne again but such as the text mentions the Scripture is expresse in both these The Proposition is laid down by Christ himself John 3.3 with a double Verily Verily verily of most certain and undoubted truth I say unto thee except a man be born again or from above or as elsewhere of God he cannot see which is expounded v. 5. unlesse he be borne of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the Kingdome of God Now there are none borne of God but this is their character 1 John 2.29 Ye know that every one that 's borne of him doth righteousnesse and again 1 John 3. Whosoever is borne of God doth not commit sin because he is borne of God that is he doth not live in sin is not under the dominion or command of sin sin doth not reigne in him that he should obey it in the lusts or wills thereof 6. The sixth and last demonstration is this None can enter into the Kingdome of Heaven but holy ones for saith the text Hebr. 12.14 Without holinesse no man shall see God now what is holinesse but doing the Will of God This is the Will of God even our sanctification and He that hath this hope viz. of glory or the Kingdome of Heaven purifies himself as God is pure Thus I think I have fully proved and demonstrated this to be the truth of God according to the Scriptures that they and none but they shall enter into the Kingdome of Heaven who do the Will of God That is that do believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and bring forth the obedience of faith But happily there may be this question moved if it be thus Who then can be saved when Christ had said that it was hard and it is no lesse hard to this day for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God They have so much bag and baggage as the camel hath his buneh on his back they said Who then can be saved the Answer was given and is now That which is impossible with men is possible yea very feasible with God But to this let me more distinctly lay down these few Positions 1. That all satisfying and all meriting work is done 't is all already done to our hands by the Lord Jesus Christ who offered up himself once for all and needeth not again to be offered up In burnt-offering and sacrifices for sin which are offered by the Law thou hadst no pleasure no content nor satisfaction therefore thou wouldest not have them any longer saith Christ to the Father but a body hast thou prepared me then said I Lo I come to do thy Will by which Will viz. done and accomplish't by him we are * Freed from sin and consecrated to the service of God sanctified by the
the pursuit of his chiefest good he walks in darknesse and knowes not whither he goes he stumbles and falls yea in seeking to save he loseth himself It is with him as it was with the blinde Sodomites who groping to finde the doore went further from it then they were at first Or like the Dove when it left the Ark alwayes upon the wing ever flying and fluttering up and down but never found where to fix the sole of her foot just thus 't is with man since he left God he knowes not where to rest the foot of his soule Nunc hîc nunc vertitur illîc he goet forward and then back again to the right hand and to the left as Job in another and Solomon in thi◠case to see if he can finde out what is that good for the soules of the sons of men which they should do under the Heaven all the dayes of their life that after this life of dayes is ended they may enjoy life eternal with God in Heaven But alas I must say it again Man is still at a losse Now man being in this pitifully sad and miserable condition it pleased God who is a lover of the souls and the Preserver of men in tender mercy to mankinde to speak * Heb. 1.1 at undry times or by peece-meal and in divers manners unto the Fathers by the Prophets but in the fulness of time to send and in these last dayes to speak to us by his Son he hath discovered his Will fully and wholly by him so that we may not look for another there being no name under heaven but him by which we can be saved whither then should we go for the discovery seeing he only hath the words of eternal life him I say hath God sent to guide our feet into the way of peace yea that he might be the way and the truth and the life unto us He sent Christ from Heaven to earth that Christ might send men from earth to Heaven Accordingly Christ hath acquitted himself like a faithful Steward he hath finished the work which his Father gave him to do He hath done and suffered all that was commanded him for the good of men so that he is pure from the blood of all men having declared unto them the whole counsel of God and chalked out the way wherein they are to walk that they may be happy The summe whereof he hath given us in the text and that is the doing of his Fathers Will. Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the Will of my Father which is in Heaven Christ Jesus having in the thirteenth verse exhorted them to enter in that is as Luke expounds it chap. 13. verse 24. to strive to enter in at the strait gate with forcible arguments to provoke thereunto he doth in the fifteenth verse advise them to beware of false Prophets that they might not be misled and miscarry in a businesse of so great importance to them and therefore tells them verse 16. which is again repeated verse 20. how they may know them viz. by their fruits by their works not by their words happily they may speak as others so that they may not be known by their words but saith he by their fruits ye shall know them Having done this he layes down this position in the text as of greatest concernment not only to them but to all Not every one that saith Lord Lord c. I shall a little open the expressions and then draw the Point which I intend to handle Not every one that is not any one Non omnis est ne unus not every one is as much as if he had said no not one 't is a universal negative without exception Not any one that saith and doth not that saith I go Sir but goeth not that saith and but saith Lord Lord. Lord Lord admits of a threefold explication Not every one that saith Lord Lord 1. By way of Profession 2. By way of Prayer 3. By way of Appeal 1. Not every one that saith Lord Lord by way of Profession that professeth me to be his Lord as Joh. 13.13 Ye call me Lord and Master and ye do well that is so far ye do well for so I am but if I am your Lord and Master where is mine honour or as he saith Luke 6.46 Why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I say Why that is to what end and purpose viz. to none in vain do ye professe me to be your Lord unless you practise obedience to me your Lord. 'T is not Profession but practice at least not Profession without practice It will not do any man any good to be but a Pretender to Religion He that in words confesseth Christ and in works denieth him hath but a forme of Godlinesse without the power and such a man will not be justified by his good words but condemned by his bad works What will it avail to have the name to live and to be dead while we live to have the name of a Christian and not to be as our name is Many a ship hath had the name of Safeguard and Good speed that yet hath miscarried and been cast away Many a man hath had a good name and yet alas hath made a bad end a very bad end whose end hath been to be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of him whom they have called Lord Lord for not every one that saith c. 2. Not every one that saith Lord Lord by way of prayer as they Matth. 25.11 Lord Lord open to us and they Luke 13.25 Lord Lord open to us Though it be and be truly said that every one that calleth on the Name of the Lord shall be saved yet you see that a man may call upon the Name of the Lord I and that again and again he may call Lord Lord and yet be damned His repetitions will be in vain because they are vain repetitions A man may adde prayers to his Profession and yet notwithstanding all his Professions and his Prayers may go to hell for Not every one that saith Lord Lord either by way of Profession or Prayer or both shall enter c. 3. Not every one that saith Lord Lord by way of Appeal as in verse 22. Many shall say to me in that day Lord Lord have we not prophesied in thy Name have we not we make our appeal to thee we call thee to witnesse and make thee our Judge Thus the Name of the Lord is often called too too often called upon as by them in Jerem. 42.5 The Lord say they be witnesse between thee and us But Appeales made for Justification do not alwayes justifie nor are they justified For saith Jeremiah to them Ye did at that time at that very time when you appeal'd to God ye did dissemble in your hearts And saith Christ at this time though you say unto me
of whom it s said Gen. 5.24 that he walked with God which is all one as if it had been said he did the Will of God and was not was no more on earth for God took him up to Heaven This is all that 's said of Enoch in the Old Testament and not one word mentioned of faith but that his believing was therein comprehended is clear from Hebr. 11.5 where we are told the former story more at large By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death and was not found because God had translated him for before his Translation he had this testimony that he pleased God or as 't is in Genesis that he walked with God now that he could not walk with or please God but by faith is fully asserted v. 6. for without faith it is impossible to please him and that that faith there spoken of relates to Christ is clear because none can so seek him as to finde the reward but by Christ For none cometh to the Father but by him Yea that Enochs had special respect to Christ may be gathered from his own Prophecie Jude 14. where he saith Behold the Lord viz. the Lord Christ as appeares by comparing this with 2 Thess 1.7 8 c. the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his Saints so that Euoch was a believing walker or a walking believer and as such translated The second instance is David of him it s said Acts 13.22 that God rais'd him up and gave testimony to him saying I have found David the son of Jesse a man after mine own heart who shall fulfil all my Wills and v. 26. 't is said of him that after he had served his own generation by the Will of God or as it may be more properly read after he had served the Will of God in his generation he as to his body fell asleep Many men serve their generations by the Will of God that serve not the Will of God in their generations but David served the Will of God Now that David also in serving the Will of God acted as a believer is evident from Hebr. 11.32 33. What shall I what need is there that I should say more for the time would faile me to speak of Gideon c. and of David also who by faith wrought righteousnesse c. so that David also as a believer doing the Will of God went to Heaven 2. As it appears by the testimony that God hath borne to the persons gone to Heaven so also by the testimony God bears against the persons that are gone and are to go to hell as in the verse following the text Depart from me ye Workers of iniquity And so again Luke 13.27 Depart from me all ye that work iniquity yea yet again Mat. 25.41 Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire Why For I was an hungred and ye gave me no meat c. that is ye did not mine or my Fathers Will. Now how comes this to passe that men are Workers of iniquity but from unbeliefe as by comparing a few texts will eafily appear Eph. 2.2 You were dead in trespasses and sins wherein ye walked according to the Prince of the power of the aire that is according to his Will who still worketh in the children of disobedience the word is of unbelief * As good works spring from saith so bad workes spring from unbeliefe their disobedience was of unbelief and indeed unbeliever is as comprehensive a word as workers of iniquity therefore it s said of them that do not Gods Will Luke 12.46 He will appoint them their portion with unbelievers and who were they that entred not into rest but them that believed not so we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief Heb. 3.18 19. by reason of which unbelief they were workers of iniquity Hence we have these solemn cautions given us Hebr. 3.12 Take heed brethren lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief to depart from the living God and again Heb. 4.1 2. let us therefore fear lest a promise being left of entring in any of you should come short viz. through unbeliefe as 't is ver 11. Let us labour therefore to enter into rest lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief So then you see beloved that they that were admitted did believingly do the Will of God and they that are to be shut out are such as do from unbelief work iniquity or not do the Will of God 3. It further appears by this that there can be no acts of grace proved powerful and saving but by doing the Will of God For of knowledge it s said 1 John 2.4 He that saith I know him and keepeth not his Commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him viz. the truth of that knowledge which he pretends to for the saving of his soul And as for love the Apostle is no lesse expresse in 1 John 5.3 This is the love of God that we keep his Commandments and his Commandments are not grievous The like might be said of the rest as of faith c. above mentioned in the opening of the Point Well then you see that no man hath any ground to expect entrance into the Kingdome of Heaven that doth not do the Will of God that doth not walk with God in faith and obedience or in the obedience of faith If therefore any should suppose that they may marry the Rachel of Heaven without their serving the Will of the Father and before they have married the Leah of obedience let them know for God will tell them as Laban did Jacob Non est mos loci 'T is not the custome of the countrey to marry the younger before the elder But if this that hath been said should not be thought sufficient but you will needs yet have further witnesse proof and evidence of this truth I will give you six Scripture-demonstrations of it 1. No man can enter into the Kingdome of Heaven but he for whom it is prepared Now it s prepared for none but them that do the Will of God Therefore none but they can enter Both these Propositions are asserted by Christ himself The major is laid down in Mat. 20.23 saith he To sit at my right hand and on my left hand in the Kingdome as she prayed before is not mine to give to any but for whom it is prepared of my Father The Kingdome of Heaven is no common Inne 't is not a receptacle for all but a peculiar place for a peculiar people and who they are the minor or second Proposition tells us none but they that do the Will of God and this Christ himself tells us also Matth. 25.34 Then shall the King say to them on his right hand Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdome prepared for you viz. you who did my Fathers Will who fed me when I was hungry clothed me when I was naked c. which as
offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all Heb. 10. Now its great consolation to us we are not to make a purchase by our doing the Will of God we are not to obey as paying a price for our inheritance that 's done already and by faith we do but receive and by obedience walk worthy of or answerable to the Kingdom and glory whereunto we are called by our Lord Jesus Christ in the Gospel 2. Doing the Will of God here if you take it for works only is not that whereby we are justified but that which doth justifie that we are justified and by which our faith is made perfect as the Apostle saith concerning Abraham James 2.22 'T is not that which doth give us our title to Heaven but doth prove that we have a title given us 3. As to such things as we would do but cannot God will accept the will for the deed provided we be as willing to do as to will the deed Thus Abraham is said to have offered up his Son because he was willing to do it And this is the consolation the Apostle had when to will was present with him but to do he had no power that with his minde he did serve the Law or the Will of God Rom. 7. The Saints cannot do the things that they would because the flesh lusteth against the Spirit Gal. 5.17 and in such a case Christ doth excuse his disciples with this The spirit indeed mark that the spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak Matth. 26.41 and upon this account 't is that Christ tells his Father John 17.6 that his disciples had kept his Word though they failed very often because their heart was to it 4. By doing the Will of God here is not to be understood such an exactness as will not dispense with any failings that if a man fall short in any thing he should perish and be undone according to that of the Law cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this Law to do them Deut. 27.26 Or as the Apostle quotes it Gal. 3.10 Cursed be every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the Law to do them For from this rigour and curse we are free by Christ Jesus he being made a curse for us Gal. 3.13 but that which is required of us hereby is a continual care of doing and making it our businesse to do the Will of God as I make appear thus Mat. 7.13 saith Christ Enter in at the strait gate I it s soon said enter in but what is the meaning why Luke as I said before expounds it thus Strive to enter in at the strait gate so that Striving is put for entring because such shall enter and the Apostle Peter with respect to this Kingdome expresseth the duty by giving all diligence 2 Pet. 1.11 Wherefore the rather Brethren give diligence to make your calling and election sure for if ye do these things ye shall never fall but an entrance shall be ministred to you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdome of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ 5. I adde this that to such God hath promised assistance so that though the work be too hard for us yet through Christ strengthening us we may be able to do all these things and therefore Phil. 2.12 13. when the Apostle had said Work out your salvation with fear and trembling He presently addes by way of encouragement God worketh in you both to will and to do God will not be wanting to us if we be not wanting to our selves God will blesse the diligent hand And this shall suffice for the doctrinal part I come now to the Application and here there are three words or heads that I have to speak to and by the way having spoken of three words let me take off an unjust blame often laid on Ministers for saying they have but a word or a word or two more one word in Scripture-phrase is put for one head The ten Commandments are called but ten words God spake these ten words saying c. they are more then ten words but no more in this sense they are ten heads of things therefore let none shew their folly hereafter in laughing at the Ministers saying but a word more though he speak many These then are the three words or heads which I have to speak unto 1. Information 2. Examination 3. Exhortation The first is Information and that of these several truths The first Corollary Inference or Deduction call it what you will from hence is this That very few will go to Heaven This very Doctrine which I have handled was preach't by Christ upon this Querie there was that said unto him Luke 13.23 Are there few that shall be saved and he said by way of answer Strive to enter for many shall seek and shall not be able and it is not every one that saith Lord Lord that shall enter Heaven but he that doth the Will of my Father whence I infer what Christ grants that there are but few a very few that will go to Heaven I beseech you beloved look about you and lay it to heart it is no such common thing to be saved as the world thinks for Reade but a few Scriptures and judge you whether many or few will be saved * Only one ground of foure brought forth fruit to salvation And how few of the old world when the floodcame how few of Sodom when hell came from Heaven I mean in comparison of them that will be damned in 1 Cor. 6.9 10. saith he Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God the unrighteous that 's a large word who are they why Be not deceiv'd neither fornicatours and are none of you such nor idolaters nor adulterers and are none of you such nor effeminate nor abusers of themselves with mankinde nor thieves nor covetous and are none of you such no nor drunkards saith he and are none of you such nor revilers nor extortioners and are none of you such be not deceived none of these no not a man of these thus living and thus dying shall inherit the Kingdom of God sad Lord what will become of this sinful world If we should go throughout this City and separate the forenamed sinners alas how few would remain to be saved See another place Gal. 5.19 c. Now the works of the flesh are manifest which are adulterie fornication uncleannesse lasciviousnesse idolatry witchcraft hatred variance emulation wrath strife seditions heresies envyings murthers drunkennesse revellings and such like Doth not the whole world almost iâ— in some or other of these is not this the fruit it brings forth Well what will become of them The Apostle tells us v. 21. Of the which I tell you as I have told you in time past that they which do such things shall not no they shall not enter into the Kingdome of God Beloved what do we think