The Farewell SERMONS of Mr. Calamy Mr. Watson Mr. Sclater Dr. Iacomb Mr. Case Mr. Baxter Mr. Ienkins Mr. Lye Dr. Manton Mr. Ashes funerall Mr. Collins An EXACT COLLECTION OF Farewel Sermons PREACHED By the late London-Ministers VIZ. Mr. Calamy Mr. Watson Dr. Iacomb Mr. Case Mr. Sclater Mr. Baxter Mr. Ienkin Dr. Manton Mr. Lye Mr. Collins To which is added Their PRAYERS before and after Sermon AS ALSO Mr. Calamy's Sermon for which he was Imprisoned in Newgate His Sermon at Mr. Ashe's Funeral And Dr. Horton's at Mr. Naltons Funeral The last Edition being much Enlarged and more Perfect than any yet Extant 2 SAM 23. 1. Now these are the last Words of David the sweet Singer of Israel Printed in the Year 1662. THE PUBLISHERS TO THE READER THE words of dying men usually are very serious weighty and much regarded The ensuing Notes being the Preachers last Legacies to their several Congregations a little before their Civil though Voluntary Death by reason of the great Concourse of people that were then assembled in all Churches to hear their dying Pastors preach their own Funeral Sermons whilest they were yet alive many being too distant from them or too much disturbea by the crowd fell short of their share and portion in them others having lost much of what they committed to their memories addressed themselves to their friends that writ But it being found too tedious a work to satisfie the desires of all by Transcriptions some who had taken after them as followeth by the importunity of many have been prevailed with for the satisfaction of their friends to expose their Notes to publick view It is not to be expected though all care and faithfulness hath been used that the Picture should answer the Person in all things what defects therefore in any kind may be found herein we humbly pray may not be imputed to the Reverend Authors but unto the Publishers hereof We conceive we need not adde any thing to take off that clamour that is cast upon them as if out of an humour faction or which is worse disobedience to Authority they refused to conform Enough is said by themselves to give an account why they chose to take up their Cross and follow Christ in a way of conscience and fidelity Reader we will detain thee no longer from partaking of the fruit we here present thee with but conclude praying that the Lives of these worthy Ministers Hearers may be their legible Epistles seen and read of all men and that their Conversations may be such as becomes the Gospel of Christ that whether they yet again come and see them or else be absent they may hear of their affairs that they stand fast in one spirit striving together for the Faith of the Gospel Farewell Mr. Calamy's Prayer at Aldermanbury OH most Holy and ever â—…lessed Lord God! thou fillest Heaven and Earth with thy presence we pray thee fill all our hearts with the presence of thy Grace and let it appear that thou art in the midst of us with that powerful assistance of thy Spirit that we may receive a token of love from thee at this time It is a singular favour that the doors of thy Sanctuary are open to us and that yet we may meet together in thy Name we pray thee continue it to us and sanctifie it to us that every Sabbath may add to our Staturâ—… in Iesus Christ. We confess we have forfeited all our mercies we have heard much of God and Christ and Heaven with ouâ—… ears but there is little of God Christ and Heaven in our hearts We confess many of us by hearing Sermons are grown Sermon-proof we know how to scoff and mock at Sermons but we know not how to live Sermons It is a miracle of free Grace that thou hast not taken thy Gospel from us ere this time but thou art a merciful God and though we cannot please thee yet Mercy pleaseth thee and we have no argument to bring along with us to beg thy â—…avour but thy mercy in Iesus Christ. We pray thee that thou wilt glorifie thy Sovereignty in being gracious to us and pardon our many and great transg essions Thou makest use of the malice of men for thy glory thou killest Goliah with his own sword oh help us to put our trust in thee thou that canst kill and cure by killing Bless these Nations of England Scotland and Ireland and find out yet a way to save us pour down thy blessings upon the head and heart of our Sovereign CHARLES by thy Grace King of Great Britain thou hast done great things for him let him do great things for thee bless him in his Royal Consort in his Royal Relations in his Council bless the Magistrates and Ministers oâ—… this Realm Lord forgive us for we live as if we had been delivered to work wickedness we cannot sin at so cheap a rate as others do we pray thee humble us under our great and grievous sins give us Repentance unto Salvation and a lively faith through the bloud of Jesus Christ quicken our graces forgive our sies make alive our souls let us be such as thou wouldst have us to be make us Christians not only by an outward profession but an inward conversation that we may live in Heaven while we are on Earth and come to Heaven when we shall leave the Earth To that purpose bless thy Word unâ—…o us at this time and give us all grace to make conscience what we hear and how we hear And all for Jesus Christ his sake to whom with thy blessed Self and Spirit be all glory and honour Amen Mr. Calamy's Farewell Sermon August 17. 1662. 2 SAM 24. 14. And David said unto Gad I am in a great strait let us fall now into the hand of the Lord for his mercies are great and let me not fall into the hand of man IN which words we have three Parts 1. Davids great perplexity and distress I am in a great strait 2. Davids resolution 1. Affirmative Let us fall into the hand of the Lord. 2. Negative Let me not fall into the hand of Man 3. We have the Reason of Davids choice for the mercies of God are great The mercies of wicked men are cruel therefore let me not fall into the hands of men But the mercies of God are many and great therefore let uâ—… now fall into the hands of God 1. For the first that is Davids great Distress wherein we must speak 1. To the distress it self Then â—… To the person thus perplexed I am in a great strait David a great man David a godly man 1. In the perplexity it self we shall consider 1. The reality of this perplexity 2. The greatness of it 1. For the reality of it after David had sinned in numbring the people God sends the Prophet Gad to him and puts three things to his choice as you may read in vers 12. God was determined to make David smart for numbring
persons And the Tabernacle and the Temple were holy and not to be used in civil employments 2. More particularly concerning this holiness I desire to shew you what it is by shewing you it must be such a holinesse and separation as that the service done to God in those places must be accounted and looked upon as a better service and more accepteble then if so be it had been done elsewhere more acceptable to God and advantagious to our selves Now as places are said to be holy in regard they are only to be for holy services so 2. Holy in regard that holy services are only to be done there with acceptation or advantage at least with so great acceptation And therefore I desire you to take notice that places in Scripture were said to be holy which did sanctifie the Worship which was done in them and sanctifie the Worshippers and so the very places are part of worship and so not only places in which God was worshipped but by which God was worshipped And thus the Sabbath was sanctified and so the performance of Gods worship therein made Gods service more acceptable and sanctified And so the Altar when it was holy it made the gift the more holy and sanctified and so the more acceptable the Altar sanctified the gift Mâ—…t 23. 18 19. And so the Incense was acceptable to God as being put into such a Censor And so the service done to God in such Garments was more acceptable because done in them which God had instituted and appointed for Aaron and his Sons to wear And so I have opened the first thing in the explanation and that is to shew you wherein hoâ—…iness consists and how it is that places or things may be said to be holy and I think I have sufficiently cleared the notion to you 2. To shew what the cause or the foundation of this holinese is for this my Brethren I shall desire you also to take notice of it more generally and then more particularly 1. More generally That the cause and the foundation of a place or any other things holiness it is its belonging to God Gods peculiar relation to it and propriety in it declared as he shall please And therefore to be holy and to be Gods are words of the like importance or equivolent its being Gods and his having a relation to it is the foundation and cause of its holiness And therefore if you look into Exodus 13. 2. you shall there find God commands that they should sanctifie unto him all the first-born it is mine there now is that which is the cause and reason and ground of its being sanctified or holy it is God himself God hath a propriety in it And therefore I desire you to look into Luke 2. 23. it will open this notion to you there you shall see that this command is again repeated but yet in other words and therefore ye saith As it is written in the Law of the Lord Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord that which is said in one place to be sanctified or separated is here said to be holy and therefore holy because separated to God Levit. 27. 30. All the Tithes of the land is the Lordâ—… it is holy unto the Lord it is holy and therefore holy because because it is the Lords So that here is the general answer This is the foundation ground and cause of its holiness Gods peculiar propriety in it it is the Lords 2. More particularly That the declared propriety that God hath in any place or his relation to a place or its belonging unto God that is the foundation of its holiness This belonging unto God or Gods propriety in it is declared two wayes It s belonging unto God is declared 1. From his presence 2. From his Precept 1. By his presence Now the presence of God that was the foundation of the holiness of a place was twofold 1. Extraordinary 2. Ordinary 1. The Extraordinary presence of God was by his miraculous Apparitions and discovering himself by some miraculous token vision sign or manifestation of his presence as now here in this burning and not coâ—…sumed â—…ush here was a miraculous â—…oken of Gods presence We shall and in the fifth of Ioshua â—…nd the last verse God commands Ioshua to put off his shooes Loose thy shooes from off thy feet for the place wheâ—…eon thou standest is holy ground And Ioshua did so And therefore as I conceive hence it is the Mountain in which Christ was transfigured is called The holy Mountain 2 Pet. 1. 18. And this voyce which came from Heaven we heard when we were with him in the holy Mount Why holy Not as if it were holy at that time when the Apostle writ that Epistle but it were manifest there was an extraordinary manifestation and sign of Gods presence and so long as this extraordinary manifestation of Gods presence continued it was called holy And this miraculous manifestation of the gloriousness of Christs Godhead ceasing the holiness of that place ceased also And remember this place now of Gods extraordinary miraculous manifestation of himself in the Bush was holy for that time and no longer wherein he did manifest himself for otherwise in the time of the Law it were unholy to offer up sacrifice there 2. As the presence of God was extraordinary so it is ordinary which is two fold 1. The presence of his standing residence in a place by some visible or external Symbole or else 2. The presence of God is a spiritual presence in the religious services and performances of his people in the place of their Meetings and Assemblies Now concerning the first of these 1. The presence of God by the more visible and lasting tokens of his presence which was chiefly afforded in the time of the Levitical Pedagogue so the Altar Temple Ark and Mercy-seat were symbols of Gods presence among that people by them God signified his presence he recorded his name there by those visible tokens of his presence and therefore the Ark was said to be Gods face and when the Ark was lifted up it was said Let God arise and let his Enemies be scattered Hence they so much rejoyced when the Ark came intâ—… the City of David because it was the sign of Gods presence and mourned when it was taken away captive And God is said to deliver his glory into captivity that is the token of his glorious presence and as long as this continued God was looked upon as there present and thither the people went to pray and offer Sacrifice And thus God more fixedly declared his durable relation to a place by these tokens and while these continued in a place he was looked upon to be there 2. Gods ordinary presence is considerable in the Religious services of his people and this I call the rather the more spiritual presence of God this is that presence of God in the Ordinances which we have we hope this day
accordingly 5. Love the holiness of the living members be not so much in love with the holiness of wood and timber bricks and stones but wheresoever you see the Image of Christ be in love with that soul whereever the presence of God shines and whereever thou seest one that gives up himself to God in holy duties do thou say Oh! my soul delight to come into the company of these men The righteous is more excellent then his neighbour If there be a heaven upon earth I tell you it is in the company of godly men I remember a famous man hath this expression saith he When I was in the company of the Saints and people of God I was as a living coal but when I was separated from them and was among the wicked swearers and drunkards me-thoughts there was a spiritual coldness and frozenness went over my soul. Though the people of God are best companie in heaven yet they are very good companie here on earth And Christians should stir up one another and be provoking one another to love and good works and where ever you have grace be sure to impart it Endeavour to love the holiness of Saints and be willing to impart your experiences to others for this is your duty Do not make a Monopoly of holiness but carry company with you to Heaven Lastly to name no more labour to preserve the holiness of Gods true Institutions those things which are of a divine consecration What is humane consecration without divine institution The Sabbath day is of divine institution labour to keep it holy this is a holy-day indeed and this labour to keep your families from profaning of but for other holy dayes and holy things they are much alike for holiness The Lords day is a holy day indeed and for shame do not let your children gad abroad on this day Truly I do verily believe that though here be a great company of people in the Congregation yet they are but a handful in comparison of what are drinking in Ale-houses and whoring and walking in the field that one can hardly get home to their house for the crowd of people that are going thither For shame let not this be told in Gath nor published in Askelon What! shall we stand up for the holiness of places and yet oppose the holiness of the Lords day which God hath enjoyned and instituted Oh! that the Magistrates of London Oâ—… that Englands King Oh! that Englands Parliament would do something for the reformation of this to oppose wickedness and prophanesse which will otherwise bring upon us the judgement of Sodom and Gomorrah and make us guilty and worthy of a thousand punishments And labour by prayer in your families to overcome that flood of prophanesse which you cannot by your strength prevent And then for the Sacraments of Christ Baptisme and the Lords Sâ—…pper these are Ordinances of Gods appointment they are holy and therefore should not be given to those that are unholy and yet those who are so much for the holinesse of places do not care who come to the Sacrament if they have but a nose on their face they shall come and partake of the Ordinances let them be what they will this is to prefer mans institution before Gods institution And then for the Lords Message and Word that is a holy thing and therefore love his Messengers the Messengers of God delivering his Message with fear and reverence you are to hear them with the same fear and reverence and resolution to be holy as if Christ were present And for the Word of God it is not enough for you to have a choice Sentence written upon the walls of your Churches but let Gods Law be written in your hearts and consciences and practised in your lives that all the world may see you live as men dedicated to the true God in all the duties of his wayes and obedience Many of these things might have been inlarged What I have given you with the right hand I pray you Christians do not take with the left for if you do you will make your selves guilty of a double sin First Because you do not obey the truth you hear And secondly For putting a wrong construction upon it But I have better hopes of you my Beloved Hearers and hope that the Lord will be better unto your souls then his Ministers Word or any thing else can be God blesse you and his Ordinances and discover his mind and will at this time to you Mr. Jenkins's Prayer after Sermon O Lord our God thou art never weary of doing us good if we either consider the mercies thou givest to us or the miseries that thou keepest from us that yet we have another opportunity of drawing nigh to thee we beseech thee O Lord let not our mis-interpreting of such opportunities as these are cause thee to take them from us or thy self from them if thou dost Lord we cannot but justifie thee and abase our selves and lie low before thee because we have sinned against thee O Lord we bless thee that we are yet alive to bless thee that yet we have not sinned our bodies into a cold grave nor our souls into a scorching Hell thou givest us our beings if thou withdraw thy self we cease to be and shall return to our first nothingness from whence we came the living the living they praise thee as if we know our own hearts we desire to do at this time Praised be God for Iesus Christ that he died and rose again and is now a pleading at thy right hand for poor sinners Praised be God that he is offered to us for his sake O God pardon all our sins let our lusts die that would not let the Lord of life live let not any one of them live one quiet moment in these hearts of ours let us give up our selves and all that we are or can do to the purpose of thy praise we beseech thee prepare us for a blessed eternity that we may not be ashamed before thee nor ashamed of thee nor thy wayes in the midst of a crooked perverse unclean idolatrous generation Dear Father we most humbly pray thee prepare us for communion with thy self assist us in the ensuing duties of this day let all the work be done by thee let all the praise redound unto thee prepare us by hearing for prayer by both for practice by all for glory Lord set up thy truth ruine Babylon build up Sion delight yet to dwell in the midst of us and do us good though we are a sinful back-sliding God-provoking Nation Mayest thou not say of us as of old what couldst thou have done more for us then thou hast done yet how ill have we requited thee for all thy benefits Poure down the richest showers of thy choicest blessings upon the head and heart of our Dread Soverain Charles the Second by thy especial grace of England Scotland France and Ireland King as follows in his Royal
as the righteous I answer it is true the unrighteous are scattered in this life and gathered by death as well as the righteous but with a great deal of difference First The wicked are scattered in this life but they are scattered from God but the godly are scattered for God and for a good Conscience many times as they at Ierusalem were scattered The godly are scattered from the glorious presence of God in Heaven but the wicked are scattered from the gracious presence of God on earth Again the scattering of the wicked is a curse to them and it is threatned as a curse Levit. 26. 32. I will scatter you among the heathen and draw out my sword after you And wherever the wicked come in what part soever of the world the wicked are scattered they bring the curse of God with them and they bring the Judgements of God on Towns or Cities where they are as Plague Famine and Sword and all miseries But the godly when they are scattered they are scattered as a blessing into what Countrey or Town soever they come they come as a blessing they come like a ship laden with Corn to a Town ready to perish with Famine they come as a blessing four wayes First By their Prayers to pray down a blessing on the place where they come Secondly They come as a blessing by their holy life and conversation that is a Loadstone to draw others to holiness Thirdly They come as a blessing by their holy advice and counsel that they give to the place where they come Nay fourthly their very presence is a blessing as long as Lot was in Sodom Sodom could not be destroyed so long as Paul was in the Ship the three hundred could not be drowned So that the godly come as a blessing where-ever they are scattered but the wicked are as chaffe scattered by the wind and they are scattered as the dust of the earth You know when the dust is scattered it gets into mens eyes and blinds them and falls upon their clothes and sullies and defiles them so the wicked wherever they are scattered they defile the place where they are scattered The godly are as Planets that wander and move from one part of Heaven to another carrying light to the world Secondly As the wicked are scattered while they live so when they die they are gathered it is true But how Not to God and Christ and his Angels but they are gathered to the Devil and his Angels and to damned spirits not as bundles of Wheat into the Barn of Heaven but as bundles of Tares to be burned for ever in everlasting fire Now if the righteous perish as well as others and if their perishing be nothing but a gathering to God and Christ Then First Learn hence the preciousness of every righteous man the great God will not gather things of no value great men do not use to gather chaffe and straw and therefore when God saith of Iosiah I will gather thee to thy fathers it was a sign he was a precious Pearl worth the gathering and of a high value and account in the sight of God and so is every true Childe of God s right dear and precious are they in the sight of God both living and dying they are bought with a great price not with gold and silver and other corruptible things but they are bought with the precious blood of the Son of God They are as precious to God as the apple of his eye so precious that he hath given Christ for them and to them so precious that he called them his Jewels his peculiar treasure his Iedidiahs and therefore God will not suffer them to perish but gather them to himself before the evil day come as the Husbandman gathers in the Corn before the beasts go out into the field Secondly Learn here what reason we have to be comforted in the death of a righteous man or woman because their death is not a perishing but a gathering to God and Christ and the society of Saints and Angels The death of a righteous man is no more then if a Merchant that hath abundance of Jewels in a far Countrey he should send for them home Why death to a righteous man is nothing but Gods sending for his Jewels home Such a phrase there is in Mal. 3. 17. In the day that I make up my Iewels they shall be mine In this life they are imperfect Jewels they are like Gold in the oar mingled with a great deal of drosse and death is nothing but a perfecting of these Jewels death is nothing more and God doth nothing by death but as a Gold-finder gather up all his ends of gold and silver It is nothing but just as if a Father should send for his Son home that had been a long while absent from him to his own house it is a carrying us to our Fathers house And therefore let us be comforted when our righteous Friends die though their death be matter of sorrow to us in regard of the losse that we sustain by their death and because their death is a warning-piece of evil to come yet in regard of them we have no cause to mourn I speak this to those that are related to the righteous when they die Did you ever see a Husbandman that mourned for the carrying of corn into the Barn or a Jeweller mourn for making up of his Jewels Let us mourn rather that we are left scattered among the wicked of the earth and from the glorious presence of God and Christ and let us mourn for those that are scattered from Christ and from grace and for those that whilest they live are scattered and when they die are gathered to the Devil and his Angels Let us not mourn for those that die in Christ but let us mourn for those that live out of Christ let us not mourn over the body that the soul hath left but let us mourn over the soul that God hath left The third Use is of Consolation to all the people of God in reference to evil times that are coming upon us or to the evil of times Whatever befals a Child of God in this life though he be scattered by wicked men from England into forreign Countries though be wander up and down in Desarts and Wildernesses though he be scattered from house to prison yet there will be a gathering time shortly there will a time come when all the Saints shall be gathered to Christ and to one another never to part any more The death of Gods people is not a perishing but a gathering comfort your selves therefore with these words against the fear of death look upon death as a gathering as a gathering to Christ You are here as Daniel in the Lyons Den as Ieremiah in the Dungeon yet there will come a gathering and if you dye in a good cause you shall not perish but be gathered to Christ to his Saints and Angels But you will say
If I were sure when I die that I should be gathered to Christ to live for ever with him this would be matter of great consolation to me but you told me the wicked are gathered by death as well as the godly how shall I know whether when I come to dye I shall be gathered to the Devil and his Angels or to Christ and his Angels How shall I know whether I shall be gathered at death as a bundle of tares to be burned in Hell or as a bundle of Wheat to be carried up into the Barn of Heaven I answer you may know it by four things First If you are righteous then you shall be gathered to Christ at death for the righteous shall go into everlasting life Heaven is entailed upon righteous men by righteousness I mean the imputed righteousness and the imparted righteousness of Jesus Christ I wave the explication of them because time will not give leave Know you not saith the Apostle that no unrighteous man shall inherit the Kingdome of God Damnation is entailed upon unrighteous men Secondly If you are merciful the merciful man shall be gathered to Christ If you are one that is full of bowels of compassion to the distressed Members of Jesus Christ for Christ hath said it Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtainmercy Now if you are hard-hearted covetous worldly-minded remember that Text He shall have judgement without mercy that shews no mercy Thirdly He that is gathered to the second Adam by faith in this World shall certainly be gathered unto Christ by vision in the other World Christ Jesus will save all his Members and you must know that Faith is a transplanting Grace it is not only a heart-purifying but a World overcoming Grace it takes a man out of the old Adam and puts him into the new Adam it takes a man out of the root of scattering and puts him into the root of union and conjunction wherefore you that are now joined to Christ by faith here shall be joyned to Christ in glory hereafter But now you that are Vagabonds Cains and Aliens from the life of God and from the life of Grace You that are wooden members wooden legs in Christs body that have no real conjunction with Christ you shall not be gathered to him in glory Lastly If you are gathered here to the Saints by love then you shall be gathered to the Saints in Heaven and to the everlasting enjoyment of God with them to all Eternity Consider this Every man shall be gathered when he dies to those whom he delights and chooseth to keep company with while he lives in the world if you are gathered to the wicked in love and affection here you shall be gathered to them at death in Hell and destruction for it's pity companions should be parted Wheat must to Wheat and Tares to Tares for Wheat and Tares shall not be bound together at the last day The last Use is of Exhortation If the righteous must perish and if their death be nothing but a gathering then take this threefold Exhortation First Let us labour to make the best use we can of our godly friends and Ministers before they are gathered let us do as Elisha did he was told that his Master Elijah was to be taken up to Heaven and therefore he would never leave him till he had got the spirit of Elijah doubled upon him If Elisha had not thought that Elijah would have been taken up that day he would never have followed him so punctually and inseparably as he did O beloved did you believe that text Zach. 1. 5. of which we have often had experience Your Fathers where are they and the Prophets do they live for ever Indeed if they did live for ever we might get good from them when we please because we are sure never to lose them but they live not for ever but must perish and be taken up to Heaven And therefore whilest we have them let us make what use we can of them before they be taken away from us It is a great fault among the people of God that they make no more use of their godly Friends und Ministers I have known many that have godly Relations that have died that it hath been the greatest burthen on their Consciences that they got no more good by those godly Relations while they lived Many of us deal with our Ministers as we do with a strange sight that is to be seen near our doors we are not much we are not much solicitous when we see it but a stranger that comes from a far Countrey is curious and very careful presently to see it So do we in this City especially I have had experience of it by being here many years strangers that come out of the Country many times get that good by a Minister that his own people do not because they think their Minister is continually with them But a stranger knows he is there but for a day and he hears so that he carries Christ home with him and a great deal of consolation also Beloved this is a great fault I beseech you remember the righteous must be gathered let us therefore do with them as we do with Books that are borrowed if a man borro vs a Book he knows he must keep it but for a day or two and therefore he will be sure to read it over whereas if the Book be a mans own he laies it aside because he knows he can read it at any time Remember your Ministers are but lent you they are not your own and you know not but God may take your Elijahs from you this night Therefore make what use you can of them while you have them 2dly Must the righteous be taken away Then let the righteous make conscience of doing what good they can before they are taken away Beloved if it were possible for the godly to grieve in Heaven this would be their greatest sorrow that they have done God no more service here upon Earth Be wise for God O ye righteous do as old men do that have rich places and offices they labour to buy the reversion of their places for their Children so must you to whom God hath given great gifts and graces labour to propagate your gifts and graces that there may be no loss by your death Observe the câ—…re of S. Paul the aged in his exhortations to Timothy 2 Tim. 4. 5 6. Watch thou in all things endure afflictions do the work of an Evangelist make full proof of thy Ministry why so for I am now ready to be offered and the time of my departure is at hand and therefore work thou see that thou endure affliction preach the Gospel as becomes a Minister of the Gospel that there may be no loss by my departure so in 2 Tim. 2. 2. The things that thou hast heard of me among many Witnesses the same commit thou to saithful men that shall be able to teach
been acquainted with him many years He was not onely a Minister but the Son of a Minister his birth and education suiting together He lookt upon it not onely as an honour but as an engagement to be carefull to walk in those steps set before him and to continue the work of the Ministry begun by his Religious Father Certainly the Children of godly and holy Parents cannot come off so cheap in their carriages as others they have greater accounts to make as having greater examples set before them greater advantages of prayer exhortation c. and so greater engagements this was thought on and observed by him And as he was the Son of a Minister so when he came to years and was fitted he took upon him the Ministry as he was one of great abilities so accordingly he discharged them faithfully and conscienciously He was a spirituall powerfull consciencious Preacher he preached by his Life for as Erasmus saith we should not onely love to speak truths but we should digest truths on our own hearts before we commend them to others and so they will be the more effectual He was a man of a very meek sweet and humble spirit a man of great humility and of great meekness in the midst of great abilities which was a great Ornament in him a man full of tenderness and condescension to others a man of a very yeilding and melting fram of spirit soon dissolved into tears It was the saying of one that a good man is full of Tears so this good man was full of Tears not affected but very real and hearty drawn from the fullnesse of his Spirit as the Apostle Paul saith he served the Lord in much humility and many tears This was remarkable that in these times our Reverend Brother was full of tears in delivering his Doctrine which was sutable to the age we live in being full of sin and calamity there is much need of a bewailing spirit to bewaile the iniquities and miseries of the times they that cannot bewaile themselves need the tears of others He was a man of great integrity and single-heartednesse in his exhortations he had much of the simplicity of Christ as the Apostle Paul speaks In reference to the Ministry he had no worldly and base affections he had no carnall designes therein but his chief design was to bring souls home to Christ that was his chief businesse As the Apostle saith of himself may also be said of him that in simplicity and godly sincerity he had his conversation in the world not walking in craftinesse nor handling the word of God deceitfully but by the manifestation of the truth commending himself to every mans conscience in the sight of God 2 Cor. 4. 2. He was a man that had ability to speak a word in season he was very compassionate to a wounded spirit he himselfe having been much afflicted He was a man much in communion with God and had much acquaintance with God and was carefull in improvement therein he was a Iacob in wrestling with God a Moses that stood in the Gap an Elijah that prayed earnestly the whole Land was the better for such a Person being much with God he made many addresses to him and had much holy familiarity with him And as in his publick performances he was very faithful and beneficial so in his family and private he was very fruitful and serious In a word not to multiply much in this kind you need it lesse in this Auditory but onely by way of grateful memorial there was much of God and Christ in him and he was a great example to his fellow-servants there was much of his Treasure spoken of in the Text in this earthen Vessel as in the matter of it he was one of a Gospel spirit and in the conveyances of it he had great abilities for the work of the Ministry and discharged it with a great deale of successe As he had this Treasure in an Earthen Vessel so his Vessel his fraile body was no disparagement to him but the advancement of the Treasure in setting forth the power to be of God his outward man was much weak and worn away but his inward man was upheld by the grace of God His first work in the Ministry was in that place where my self have relation to he was an assistant to my predecessor being then past labour Mr. Richard Couder and performed the work so well that he was exceedingly beloved of Mr. Couder and well beloved of the Parish and other places He left a good impression behind and I found good effects by the foundation there laid The Apostle Paul indeed desired not to work there where another had laid the foundation but I thought it a great advantage that the foundation was laid by such a Master-builder He was called into the Country to Rugby in Warwick-shire there he continued very fruitfull and did much good For some occasion he removed and returned into the City and came into this place where he continued about 18. or 19. years discharged the work of the Lord carefully I need not say much of his carriage in this place I appeal to your own Consciences I may say of this servant of Christ as the Apostle Paul said of himself 1 Thes. 2. 10 11. Ye are his witnesses and God also how holily and justly and unblameable he behaved himself among you as you know how he exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a Father doth his Children that ye would walk worthy of God who hath called you unto his kingdome and glory Therefore there lies an engagement upon you to walk answerable to the truths he delivered and to follow his steps considering the end of his conversation I shut up all in the words of the Apostle Paul to the Phillippians Ch. 4. 9. Those things which ye have both learned and received and heard and seen in him Do and the God of peace shall be with you Mr. Nalton's Prayer Iuly 20. 1662. at Foster-lane ETernal most Mighty and most glorious Lord God Thou aâ—…t God alone and besides thee there is no Saviour or Helper our strength stands in thy Name who hast made both Heaven and Earth of our selves we are able to do nothing that is pleasing in thy sight we can pollute thy name but we cannot honor thy name we can run away from thee but we cannot run unto thee unlesse thou dost powerfully draw us by thy Spirit we can grieve thy spirit but we cannot grieve for grieving of thy spirit Oh let thy strength be manifested in our weaknesse look upon us with the favour thou bearest to thy Children Enter not into judgement with thy servants for we cannot answer thee one of a thousand not one thought of a thousand thoughts not one word of a thousand words Most of our actions have been reproveable and the best of our services have been improfitable our omissions commissions and presumptions have been multiplyed intolerably Oh how often
have we taken thy name in vain while we have been confessing our sins how often have we run from confessing our sins to the committing of sin and from committing sins to the confessing sin again as if we had but mocked thy sacred Majesty though we know thy favour is better then life we have parted with it upon easie terms Oh! the pride and stubbornnesse that is in our hearts All the mercieâ—… thou hast bestowed upon us have not melted us into teares for our unkindnesse and all those blows that have fallen upon our backs have not beat folly out of our hearts we have been unprofitable all our dayes some have done thee more service in one year then we in all our time we have forgotten thee in the day of prosperity and sung a â—…ullaby to our own souls oh that we could speak these things with broken and bleeding hearts but as in the time of our ignorance we could sin without reluctancy so now we can sin without repentance oh that thou wouldst smâ—…te the rock that there may flow out teares We can do nothing by way of expiation if we could weep out our eyes nothing but the blood of Christ can take away our guilt O that there might be a spring of that blood upon our souls at thâ—… time Oh that that blood may at this time bring a report of love and a message of mercy to us Do we beg any more then thou hast promised oh hast not thou accepted of that satisfaction that Christ hath made in his own person if we had suffered the torments of hell it could not have made that satisfaction that Christ has made give us the witness of the spirit and thy love and we will say we have enough give us hearts of flesh crush the head of the serpent in our soules O Lord Christ thou camest into the world to destroy the works of the Devill in our hearts and to build up the Kingdome of the Spirit in us oh when shall we see the old man decay in us and the old man to live more and more Oh be wisdome to guide us and righteousnesse to cleanse us from guilt and redemption to deliver us from the wages of sin let us be nothing in our selves that we may be all in thee our Saviour oh honour us so far that we may honour thee We pray thee strengthen our weak faith quiet our consciences we would not live a day longer then that we may honour thee tread Satan under our feet sit us for our places and employments let not our conditions be so low but that our hearts may be lower we are pâ—…sting to death oh let sin dye before we die let us know our names are written in the book of life before thou take away our life Look upon thy Servant our dread Sovereign CHARLES of Great Brittain France and Ireland King oh inrich his Royall heart with all those saving Graces of thy Spirit in order to a wise and happy Government of these Kingdomes Look upon his Royall Consort his Royall Relations the Lords of his Privy Councill and make them blessing to this Nation Oh sanctifie thy good word oh give thy gracious assistance to us both in speaking and hearing let us hear it as that word by which we must be judged that we may be convinced by it and say it is the power of God to salvation to every soul of us Let our meeting â—…e for the better to all of us that we may be built up in the most holy Faith and let us know we have not sought thy face in vain for Iesus Christ his sake our dear Saviour for whom we blesse thy Majesty to whom with thee and the Spirit be praise for ever Amen Dr. Anesleye's Prayer at Giles-Cripplegate HOly and great God of Heaven and earth such is the condesâ—…nsion of thy grace that thou art pleased to manifest thy speciall presence to thy poor Creatures though thou hatest sin with a perfect hatred yet thou lovest sinners with an infinite love though thou art of purer eyes then to behold iniquitie yet thou art pleased to manifest thy love to sinners that approach to thy service O Lord when shall we admire enough thy grace and love how thou art pleased to communicate thy self to a poor man Dear Father raise and fix our hearts help us â—…o mind the business that we come about and â—…o deal very faithfully with our own souls in the matters of eternall moment O that we could pray so that our prayers through grace might be returned upon us with a blessing O that we could wait upon thee to hear thy Word as the Oracles of God let us hear what Christ will discover to us for our spiritual benefit Lord grant that our Soules may know what it is to be in the Spirit upon the Lords day dear Father thou canst deal with such hearts as ours for the curing of them we pray thee to do iâ—… we must needs acknowledge had'st not thou laid help upon one that is mighty that is able to save to the uttermost we must have perished to all eternity for we do not know any upon the earth more vile then our selves The very aggravations of our sins do render us monstrously abominable the means of grace we have afforded us the stirring of thy Spirit in us the patience and goodnesse of God towards us makes it a wonder that our hearts do remain so blockish But dear Lord we do find by experience that our immortal souls are much debased all the faculties of our Souls are out of tune our understandings are so dark our conceptions of God are so low our consciences are so benummed that the stirrings of them are scarce discerned or perceived our affections are spentupon the creature that we cannot gather them up again our wills are perverse our memories are apt to retain the drosâ—… and let out all that is good we pray thee for Christs sake make an experiment upon our Soules what thou canst do what sinners Christ can save what corruptions the Spirit of God can subdue in our soules teach all our hearts do not stand behind the wall and look through the â—…attice do so much as may leave us without excuse but good Lord put in thy hand in at the whole of the Door and let thy fingers drop hony upon the handle of the Lord. And oh set open these everlasting Doores that the King of Glory may enter in subdue us intirely to thy self do not ask our wills whether we â—…e willing or no but make us willing do not ask us what we would have but give us what thou knowest is good for us Dear Lord we pray thee deliver us from sin according to thy batred of it and pour out thy grace upon us according to thy love of grace that our Souls may be refreshed that we may find thy thoughts are above ours as high as Heaven is above the Earth Dear Father it is thy promise that