we may live with the God of Peace hereafter Mr. Bull of Newington-Green his Farewel Sermon in the Forenoon Joh. 14.16 And I will send the Father and he shall give you another Comforter that he may abide with you for ever THe Observation that I commended to you out of these words was this It is the great work for which the Spirit of Christ is given by God to comfort the hearts of his people You may remember that I have formerly opened the truth to you and have shewed you what this spiritual comfort is that the Spirit of Christ works in the hearts of his Disciples I gave it you in this Description It is that inward spiritual satisfaction that the heart of a gracious person finds in and through Jesus Christ in all the various dispensationâ— of God towards him whereby he is enabled to go on in chearfulness in the way that God would have him whether it be by a way of doing or of suffering And herein I shewed 1. The nature of the spiritual satisfaction 2. The Author of it It is God by his Spirit 3. The Object of it God through Jesus Christ 4. The proper subject of this inward spiritual comfort the people of God 5. And lastly The effects of the spiritual comfort it is to strengthen the heart both to do and to suffer I came the last time to shew you how the Spirit of God doth this 1. He doth it as an enlightning Spirit By shewing where comfort is to be had by opening the eyes of the understanding as he did Hagars bodily eyes to see the Well of Water 2. He doth it as a quickning Spirit bringing the Soul into that capacity to take in the comfort for what comfort can a dead man receiver a Cordial and Puddle is all one to a dead man 3. He works this inward spiritual satisfaction by discovering the truth of his vital Principle in the Soul for a man may have a principle of grace and spiritual life in him and not know it that though he has the spiritual comfort yet it is all one as if he had it not Now this is the great Question that is debated in the heart of a childe of God Whether he be regenerated and born again Whether he hath grace in his soul that grace that will qualifie him for glory and if he was satisfied as to this he would not be a moment without comfort But he is afraid that he is dead in sin that he is a stranger to the life of grace hence ariseth all the Spiritual troubles Now the Spirit of God comes in and resolves the case comes into the soul by his bright reflections and fills our souls with comfort Now we have received not the spirit of the World but the Spirit which is of God 4. The Spirit of God is a comforting Spirit as he openeth the vein of godly sorrow in the soul Truly this is the next way to spiritual comfort when a man can once spiritually mourn for sin Mat. 5.4 Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted Godly sorrow opens the vein and le ts out the matter that hinders comfort and causeth inward trouble in the soul A gracious man takes a great delight in godly sorrow Oh! it 's matter of marvellous comfort to a Child of God when he can kindly mourn for his sins 5. The Spirit of God comforts the soul as he is a mortyfying Spirit Thus he takes away that that is the ground and matter of Believers trouble mortifying that sin that is the cause of his sorrows pride unbelief inordinate love to the World 6. The Spirit of God works comfort in the hearts of his people by setting their own spirit to seek for comfort in Gods own wayes The last thing that I did for the explication of the Doctrine was to add some Propositions and they are such as these 1. Many a gracious heart that hath fellowship with the spirit of God in his sanctifying work may feel and find none in his comforting work The Sun may operate where it doth not shine A man may be in a state of Salvation when it doth not feel the joyes of Salvation Isa 51.3 You shall find those that fear the Lord and had the comforts of the Holy Ghost yet walked in darkness 2. Even those gracious souls that have the fellowship of the comforting spirit to day may want it to morrow This is not daily bread while the Saints are on this side Heaven The Solstice of a Christians comfort doth not last all the day long they are not feasted with this every day they have the night as well as the day there is a night as well as a day in the heart of a gracious soul as it is natural in the common course of nature the Sun may shine to day but it may be clouded to morrow Thus it was with that holy man Psal 30.7 Lord by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong thou didst hide thy face and I was troubled And God doth this in infinite wisdom to put a difference between Earth and Heaven this valley of tears and that state of Glory that so the hearts of Gods people may be kept in frame of longing after the state of Heaven God will have his people be groaning here that his people may groan after that condition when all sorrowing and sighing shall flee away God reserves perfect comfort to be the reward of perfect holiness while our graces are imperfect we must make account that our comfort will be so too Tears will be never wiped from our eyes till sin be quite taken out of our hearts 3. Those that have had this spiritual comfort in their Souls they may lose not only the impression of the Spirits comfort but they may feel the impression of Gods anger Haman complains That the wrath of God did bang upon him and that the terrors of God had out him off A gracious heart hath real grounds of Consolation though he hath not present sensible comforts A child of God hath always that that if he did see he could not be without comfort the Promises are his support he hath the first fruits of the Spirit and right to eternal life A Child of God shall always have so much to keep up his hopes and affiance upon God A Child of God in the darkest condition though he doth not see enough to make him rejoyce in God yet he sees enough to make him trust in God though he walk in darkness and see no light yet he trusts in God Job sayes Though the Lord slay him yet be would trust in him David was in great trouble while he was in that disquiet expostulation Why art thou cast down O my Soul and why art thou disquieted within me trust in God 5. Those that have inward comforts from the Spirit may at the same time have little comfort from Gods outward dispensations It may be dark without when it is light within
Martyrs 7. And lastly the Remish religion is a self-contradicting religion One of their Canons saith a man in some cases may take the Sacrament at the hand of an Heretick another Canon saith he may not A learned and judicious Writer observes above an hundred Contradictions in their Religion Therefore again I press the words of my Text Wherefore my beloved nay let me say my dearly beloved flee from Idolaâ—ry To shut up all let me exhort you to these two or three things First Hold fast the Doctrine of the true Orthodex Protestant Religion the very filings of this gold is precious Keep all the Articles of the Christian Faith if you let one fundamental article of your Faith go you hazard your Salvation When Samson pulled down but on Pillar immediately the whole Fabrick tumbled so if you destroy one Pillar if you let go one Fundamental of Truth you endanger all Secondly Hold forth the profession of the Protestant Religion I say do not only hold fast the Doctrine of the Protestant Religion but hold forth the Profession of the Protestant Religion Be not ashamed to wear Christs Colours Christians remember this one thing those Persons that are ashamed of Christ are a very shame unto Christ The Religion I exhort you to flee from is a novelty that which I press you to stand to is a verity it is consonant to Scripture it is built on the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles and hath been sealed to by the blood of many Saints and Martyrs Thirdly and lastly do not only hold fast and hold forth but also adorn the Protestant Religion this is holy Pauls Exhortation to Titus Tit. 2.10 Adorn the Doctrine of God our Saviour Adorn Religion with a holy Conversation There is nothing hardens Papists so much as the loosness of Protestants Therefore adorn your holy Religion with a holy Conversation Do as Christ did tread in his steps make your Saviour your Pattern Let me assure you I can hardly think they do truly beleeve in Christ that do not really conform unto Christ The Primitive Christians Sanctity did much-what propogate Christianity And this is that beseech you carry home with you Hold fast and hold forth the Protestant Religion and adorn it with a Holy and Bible-Conversation and when you do not hear me Preaching to you yet let me beseech you hear this good Word speaking in you Wherefore my dearly beloved flee from Idolatry Consider what hath been said and the Lord make it advantagious to all your Souls The Prayers of several of these Divines Mr. Calamy's Prayer at Aldermanbury OH most Holy thou ever blessed 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 powerfull assistance of thy Spirit that we may receive a token of thy love from thee at this time It is a singular favour that the doores of thy Sanctuary are open to us and that yet we may meet together in thy Name we pray the continue it to us and sanctifie it to us that every Sabbath may add to our stature in Jesus Christ We confess we have forfeited all our mercies wee have heard much of God and Christ and Heaven with our 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 VVe know how to scoff and mock at Sermons but we know not how to live Sermons It is a miracle of free grace thou hast not taken the 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 favours but thy Mercy in Jesus Christ We pray thee that thou wilt glorifie thy Soveraignty in being gracious to us and pardon our many and great transgressions Thou makest use of the malice of men for thy Glory Thou killest Goliah with his own Sword O help us to put our trust in thee thou that canst kill and cure by killing Blesse 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 Britiain 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 of 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 in the Blood of Jesus Christ Quicken our graces forgive our sins 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 unto us at this time and give us all grace to make conscience of 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. Nalton's Prayer at Foster-lane ETernal most Mighty and most glorious Lord God thou art 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 honour thy Name we can run away from thee but we cannot run unto thee unless thou dost powerfully draw us by the holy spirit We can grieve thy spirit but we cannot grieve for grieving of thy spirit Oh let thy strength be manifested in our weakness look upon us with the favour thou bearest to thy children Enter not into judgment 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 unprofitable our omissions commissions and presumptions have been multiplyed intolerably Oh! how often have we take 〈◊〉 Name in vain while we have been confessing our sins how often haâ—â— we run from confessing our sins to the committing of sins 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 than life we have parted with it upon easie terms Oh the pride and stubbornnesse that is in our hearts All the mercies thou hast bestowed upon us have not melted us into tears for our unkindnesse and all those blows that have fallen upon our backs have
to make up all those differences which fall out between God and us for you know Amity and Friendship is kept between Forraign States by their Residents and Agents that are kept in their several Courts so we have an Agent in the Court of Heaven the Lord Jesus Christ that was raised from the dead And as a Believer falls into sin which is a breach of Peace between God and us so that Peace is made up by the exercise of repentance on our part and by sprinkling of Christs bloud upon us on Gods part The renewed exercise of Repentance and application of Christs bloud preseryes that peace that is between God and Believers And to sum up the force of the Argument when we had fallen from God and it did not consist with the Majesty of God to make peace with us without satisfaction then was he pleased to pay our Ransom out of his own Treasury and Redeem us by the bloud of his Sonne So that all his Attributes might shine forth in their Lustre and glory in our Salvation and that upon sure terms we might be able to challenge an Interest in his Favour and Love It follows Through the bloud of the Everlasting Covenant It is called an Everlasting Covenant in two respects 1. In opposition to the Old Covenant which was made with Adam in Innocency but that Covenant which secures to us the reward of that Life Eternal did not secure to us the Condition that was perfect Obedience and in reference to this Old Covenant sometimes the Gospel is called a New Covenant sometimes a Better Covenant because it supplies all weaknesse in the first Covenant not as if the Law of God was weak and faulty in respect of its self for the Law is Holy Just and Good but weak in respect of us for it is impossible that that Covenant by the breach of which Sin and Death came in to us should reconcile us to God and appease his anger and therefore God contrived another Covenant for us a Covenant in the Gospel that was made with us in Christ and this is called an Everlasting Covenant because it remains for ever the tenor of it shall not be changed for the Frst Covenant is onely abrogated and made null while frustrated as to the intent it was first given 2. It 's called an Everlasting Covenant as it brings to those that are parties in it an everlasting Glory so the Lord Jesus his blood is called an Everlasting Redemption for it ransoms the souls of men from that Eternal Death to which they were liable and gives them a Title to Everlasting Life for this Covenant which now God hath made with us it not onely secures the Reward but the Conditions to which the Reward is made for God saith I will plant my fear in your hearts that you shall not depart from me I have now gone over the Title and that in order to the Prayer which follows Make you perfect to do his will working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight the general sum of it is this That God of Peace who is reconciled to us in his Son as he is the Father of mercies to us so he is the Fountain of Holiness to us and in this respect we can onely expect from him the treasures of Grace as he is the God of Peace for God as he is our Judge dispences to Sinners nothing but revenge there is nothing to be expected but the curse of his Law the Execution of that sentence of death from him For although the World despise holiness as a base and contemptible thing they had rather be ungracious than inglorious in the eyes of men and upon this account they are afraid to be Holy lest they should be the publick scorn and contempt of the place wherein they live although holiness is of so low a price in the world yet in Heaven next to God Christ and the Spirit Holiness is the most rich Jewel that God can bestow upon us and therefore we must first look upon him as the God of Peace before we can beg any grace from him And this is the Reason why the Apostle represents God by these Titles that he might encourage the Hebrews to believe God would grant this request When Christ dyed for us it was not his design only to quiet our consciences but to quicken our souls not onely to free us from Damnation but from the Domination of sin And therefore you shall find these two are joyned together Tit. 2.14 Who gave himself for us that he might Redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works The death of Christ as there was a value in it to purchase Gods favour so there was a vertue in it to restore to us Gods Image And the account of his dying for us is it that we must expect the least degree of Grace and Holiness from God And this is the reason why the Apostle prefaces this Now the God of Peace c. I know you expect I should say something as to my non-conformity I shall onely say thus much It is neither fancy faction nor humour that makes me not to comply but meerly for fear of offending God And if after the best means used for my illumination as prayer to God discourse study I am not able to be satisfied concerning the lawfulness of what is required if it be my unhappiness to be in error surely men wil have no reason to be angry with me in this world and I hope God will pardon me in the next Mr. Watson 's Forenoon Sermon Aug. 17. 1662. John 13.34 A New Commandment give I unto you that ye love one another as I have loved you VVE are this day called to a Love-feast and nothing can be more suitable than to treat of Christian Love Jesus Christ hath given us a great evidence of his Love to us he bled Love at every vein therefore we are to imitate him and as becometh Christians to Love one another 'T is a general complaint how true I know not That this is the great Grace that is defective among Christians Although they pretend much Love to Christ yet they have little Love one to another I have in former Sermons discoursed concerning Faith how that by Faith we must receive Christ in the Sacrament and now I shall speak something of Love Love is needful at a feast it is requisite when we sit down at our own Table I remember it is said of Augustin He would not suffer any to feast at his Table that came in a Spirit of Rancor and sate down in passion Sure I am they are not fit to be Guests at Christs Table that come not in a Spirit of Meekness and Love It is true we are to eat the Passover with bitter herbs but they must be the bitter Herbs of Repentance not the bitter Herbs of Malice Wrath and Fury we must come here with bitter Tears not with bitter
Let God have all your thoughts let him be your meditation this is the way to have the best company when you be alone David would meditate of him day and night and professed the meditation of him should be sweet to him Here consider two particulars First Consider that no place state or condition can hinder the soul of this way of secret communion with God and Christ this priviledge could not be denied to a benighted Jacob to an imprisoned Jeremy to an exil'd John in Patmos by this says Jerome Solitudo fit Paradisus a man may turn a Wilderness into a Paradise and therefore we read in Cant. 11.12 how the Spouse invites Christ to go with her as Isaac did into the Fields to meditate Come let 's go into the Fields and lodge in the Villages Secondly Consider in these secret silent visits of the Soul God and Christ do take abundance of delight our Night-thoughts our Field-thoughts our Closet-thoughts are very welcome to them yea when we can do no more but think of God our very thoughts shall be an accepted service Cant. 2.13 He loveth the Fig-tree that putteth forth her green Figges The ripe fruit is in the bud so holy endeavours in pure breathings and desires God accepts when our Infirmity or the Iniquity of the Times may be such that we can doe no more Seventhly If we will have God and Christ to make their constant abode with us then let us walk humbly with God He that beholds the proud afar off will be nigh to them that humble their Souls under his mighty hand Isa 57.15 Thus says the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity whose Name is Holy I dwell in the high and holy place with him also that is of an humble and contrite spirit God hath two Heavens in which he dwells First His Glory dwells in the high and holy place in Heaven above Secondly His Grace dwells in the humble and lowly spirit Here will I dwell says God Eighthly If you would have the constant abode of God and Christ with you be sure to look to your Hearts that you walk in your uprightness be true to the Word of God be true to your profession There is not in the world a more lively representation and image of God than the heart of the upright therefore God loves so much when he hath drawn his likeness upon them to walk with them therefore David resolves Psal 101.2 I will walk in the midst of my house with a perfect heart O when wilt thou come unto me This was the comfort of the Apostle that in simplicity and godly sincerity he had his conversation in the world God will be with such and such shall be with God Psal 37.37 Mark the perfect man behold the upright the end of that man is peace And thus God appointed Abraham to walk that he might be with him a God in Covenant Gen. 17. Walk before me be thou perfect and gives him this incouragement I am God all-sufficient God's all-sufficiency being sufficient to keep the soul upright being rightly improved There be two things which usually biass the soul away from God and makes it warp from its holy principles First the Frowns Secondly the Flatteries of the world Against both which there is a sufficient remedy in the All-sufficient God First That which often perverts the soul from the truth is the fear of troubles and wants If I keep my integrity says the soul I shall be undone I shall lose my estate embroyl my self in many troubles perhaps a Prison Exile or Death comes next But what force is there in this tentation if we hear on the other hand God saying If thou wilt be upright fear no troubles no wants I am a God All-sufficient as in Job 22.25 to the end of the Chapter The Almighty shall be thy defence then fear not force Thou shalt have plenty of silver thou shalt gather gold as dust and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the Brooks Then fear no wants Secondly There is another thing in the world that hath a very great influence upon the spirit of a man to pervert him and turn him from his integrity and that is the hopes of preferment and greatness of the world But this is but a poor bait if we look upon the All-sufficiency of God Doth the world promise thee Riches God will out-bid the world and give Eternal riches Will the world give Pleasures God will give better with him is fullness of joy and pleasures for evermore Will the world give Gold God will give Diamonds Will the world give all its glory God will give thee the glory of a better world rather than that shall be a snare unto thee Ninthly Pray much pray continually God will be in the hearts and houses of his praying people when he hath a curse in store for Prayerless Families in Jer. 10.15 And especially pray for these two things First That God will abide with you and the Kingdom in his Gospel and pure Ordinances that you may dwell in Bethel and not in Bethaven a house of vanity and grief Pray that God would not remove his Candlestick from you not utterly extinguish the light of the Kingdom Secondly Pray and I shall pray with you that God will give you a faithful Pastour after his own heart not according to your hearts that he may teach you by his Doctrine and his Life too a faithful Teacher to go in and out before you to shew you the Word of the Lord one that may be among you as it was said of Athanasius that he was Magnes Adamas 1. Magnes As a Load-stone to draw your souls with a gentle hand and melting heart from your sins Heaven-ward 2. Adamas as an Adamant of an invincible courage and zeal against all sin and prophaneness one that will not spare sin that he may save your souls Pray that God would give you a Star a Star out of his right hand not a churlish Orion that brings a cold barren and cloudy Winter but a benevolent and friendly Pleiades that there may be many Sons brought in to God and your souls may finde a continual spring and that you may be as Trees of his own planting And may flourish in the Courts of the House of our God And may bring forth fruit in old age Tenthly and lastly If you would have the constant abode of God and Christ with you conform conform universally and fully to the Gospel of Christ consent and assent unfeignedly to all the Truths and Doctrines thereof that you may walk worthy of God and all that grace which hath been revealed to you for Christ hath said If a man keep his Word the Father will love him and both Father and Son will come and make their abode with him Wherefore I shall conclude this Exhortation with that of the Apostle Phil. 1.2 7. Only let your conversation be such as becometh the Gospel of Christ that whether I come and see you
alimur ex quibus generamur is a true Maxim We are nourished of those of whom we are begotten Fathers when their children ask bread will not give them stones nor when they ask fish will they give them scorpions Mat. 7.9 He that provides not these things for his children is worse than an Infidel 1 Tim. 4.8 and hath God commanded this from Parents towards their children and will not God much more provide for his children that are truly regenerate and born again and that have his Image by faith engraven on their souls he would do it much more abundantly Mat. 7.11 If ye being evil know how to give good gifts to your children how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to those that ask him This then is one great priviledge that believers are made partakers of by vertue of this relation having God for their heavenly Father God will certainly provide good things for them both for their being and well-being here and hereafter and they may come to God as a Father with holy boldness of faith for all things that they shall stand in need of God takes care for those that are strangers and enemies to him and makes his rain to fall upon the unjust as well as upon the just Mat. 5.4 5 He giveth them rain from heaven silling their hearts with food and gladness Acts 14.7 And will he not much rather feed his own children he giveth food to all flesh Psal 136.25 And will he not much rather take care for his own children that are engrafted into him by faith that do love and serve him if God's bounty be largely extended to those that are strangers and enemies to him even to those that go on in sin and wickedness as many times it is then certainly he will kill the farted Calf for his own children as the Father of the prodigal did for his returning Son Nay in this the great God exceedeth earthly Parents as far as Heaven is above the earth for natural Parents they give good things to their children when they ask them but God the Father of Spirits will do much more abundantly for his children aboye what they are able to ask or think the Petitions of God's children may be large their desires and thoughts larger than heir Petitions for we are not always able to express outwardly what inwardly we desire but God will do more abundantly for his people beyond all these Let us look into the Word of God and we shall there see what noble provision he hath made for his people what food yea angels food he hath provided for them what a feast of fat things I mean of spiritual dainties and delicates he hath dressed for them for their bread they shall have the bread of life he that eateth thereof shall never hunger John 6.48 they shall have their fill of that hidden Manna laid up in the Sanctuary We read of Benjamins Messe Gen 4.3 last That it was five times as much as any of his Brethren but the children of God their food that they shall have from their heavenly Father shall be a thousand times better and more satisfactory than that which shall be given to the men of the World they shall have their measures heaped up pressed down and running over Psal 34.10 The young Lyons shall lack and suffer hunger but the children of God those that cry unto God their Father shall want no good thing but especially spiritual good things they shall be sure to have their fill of these and shall be satisfied with them even as with marrow and fatness and for their drink they shall have the heavenly Nectar the water of Life the bloud of Jesus Christ the which whosoever drinketh shall thirst no more John 4.14 they shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of his house he will make them drink of the River of his pleasures for with God is the fountain of life in his light they shall see light Psal 38.8 9. there is a River the streams whereof shall make glad the City of God Psal 46.4 and his Children shall drink of this River of Water of life clear as chrystal proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb Rev. 22.1 it is for these especially that God hath provided the spiritual milk of the Word that they may grow thereby they shall suck sweetness out of the promises those rich breasts of consolation and for their apparel the Children of God may say as the Prophet Isa 61.10 I will greatly rejoyce in the Lord my soul shall be joyful in my God for he hath cloathed me with the garments of salvation he hath covered me with a robe of righteousness as a bridegroom decketh himself with Ornaments and as a Bride adorneth her self with Jewels What shall I say they shall be cloathed with the righteousness of Jesus Christ a garment without spot or blemish white as snow even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of those Thus you have the first ground of consolation to Believers upon the account of having God for their Father he will certainly provide for them those things that shall be necessary both in this life and in the life to come Secondly Is God a Father to Believers then another ground of consolation is this That he will defend them from their enemies How mightily doth it provoke natural Parents to see their Children abused How quickly will their eye affect their heart and stir them up to come in and rescue them So will the Lord do for those that are his children by Adoption and Regeneration he will defend them he will be a wall of fire round about them so that all their enemies both spiritual and temporal shall not be able to do them any real hurt the Devil and all his wiles and temptations the World and all its tempting allurements yea all the policy and malice of Earth and Hell shall not be able to work their ruine the Lord is on their their side and they have more for them than they have against them Upon this consideration it was that David tells us in his Book of Psalms Though I walk saith he in the valley of the shadow of death yet will I fear none ill for thou O Lord art my Rock and my Fortress and my salvation eke for ever Would we not account him unworthy the name of a Father that would suffer his Children to be beaten and abused and destroyed before his face and not act in their defence and will God suffer his dear Children so to be No certainly He that toucheth them toucheth the apple of his eye Zach. 2.8 and God accounts what is done to them as if it were done to himself in person In as much as ye did it unto those little ones ye did it unto me Will Christ say one day as he tells us Mat. 25.40 and in as much as ye did it not unto the least of these my brethren ye did
interest in the Heavenly Kingdom they have Heavenly hearts if their Treasure be in Heaven their hearts will be there also Mat. 6.20 21. Lay up for your selves treasures in Heaven where neither Moth nor Rust can corrupt and Thieves break through and steal for where your Treasure is there will your hearts be also And is it so with us are our hearts taken up with the Heavenly glory Are our meditations and contemplations much on Heavenly objects Or else are they taken up only or mostly with earthly vanities Are our hearts on our Riches Pleasures c. Or else are they placed upon Heaven and Heavenly things If we have a title to the Kingdom of Heaven our hearts minds and affections will be Heavenly and taken up with Heavenly Objects Col. 3.1 2. If ye then be risen with Christ seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God Set your affections on things above and not on things on the Earth Thirdly Wouldest thou know whether thou hast an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven or no How dost thou like the employment of Heaven if thou likest the employment of Heaven then thou mayest comfortably conclude that thou hast an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven Canst thou say thou delightest to be employed in serving and in glorifying God and in worshipping of him in spirit and truth according to his word Canst thou say in truth that thou delightest to do the will of God here on earth as it is done by the Angels in heaven and the spirits of just men made perfect there Dost thou take delight to be employed in that employment that the Saints of heaven are and shall be for ever employed in Dost thou take pleasure to adore and praise and magnifie the ever blessed God Dost thou take pleasure in the duties of Religion and rejoyce to be conversing with God in prayer and in other holy exercises and to be enjoying communion with him if it be thus with thee as I have now described this this will evidently make out thy Title for Heaven Many Thousands pretend that their designs are to go to Heaven and they presumptuously conclude that they have an interest in that Kingdom when as they like not the Heavenly employment in themselves or others and they care not to get acquaintance with God here on earth and are strangers to the duties of Religion and to a life of holiness and perhaps spends and hour in a week or it may be in a moneth in secret prayer or in other holy exercises and it may be neglect the worship of God in their Families too but if we are unacquainted with the imployment of Heaven which is to praise and magnifie worship and adore God if thou delightest not so to do thou canst not conclude that thou hast a Title to Heaven but if thou hast an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven then thou dost most of all delight in that imployment which hath most of Heaven in it Fourthly If thou hast an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven thou hast a special love to the heirs of Heaven and thou hast a near and dear affection to the people of God though they be despised rejected scorned and persecuted by the prophane world and thou dost delight in the company of those on Earth which are like to be thy companions in Heaven and thou hadst rather have the society of those howsoever mean and low in the world that have the trueth of grace in them than of all the stately and glittering gallants of the World that are strangers to a Life of holiness and the more holy and heavenly they are in their hearts and lives the more amiable will their company be to thee 1 Job 3.14 Psal 15.4 Put thy self to the question whether it be thus with thee or no and thou shalt finde out thy title to heaven thereby Lastly If thou hast a title to Heaven then thou art so far at a point with all the riches and pleasures and enjoyments of the World as that thou wilt rather forgo them all than forsake Christ and rather part with them all rather than they shall hinder thee in thy way towards Heaven and if thou art brought so far at a pinch as that thou must either forsake thy interest in Christ and Heaven or to forgo thy worldly accommodations thou art very willing to forgo them all that thou mayest stick close to Christ and go forward in thy way to thy Heavenly Inheritance thus it was with the Apostle Paul Phil. 3.7 8. But what things saith he were gain to me those I accounted loss for Christ Yea doubtless I account all things but loss for the exceâ—ency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do account them but dung that I may win Christ And is it so with us then when riches honour and pleasure do stand in competition with Christ and hinder us in our progress in grace and holiness are we willing and ready to cast them away as we would cast away Dung if it be thus with us in reality then we may conclude we have a title to Heaven and an interest in the eternal glory By these things Beloved you may try whether you have an interest in Heaven or no. Having finished the Use of Examination I shall come to the next Use which is the last that I shall speak unto which an Use of Exhortation Is it so that the consideration of a Believers interest in the Heavenly Glory is enough to bear up his spirit under all the trials and tribulations of this Life then Oh that you which cannot upon Trial finde that you have a title to Heaven that you would labour after an interest in the Heavenly Glory if thou hast no interest there what good will all the enjoyments of the World do thee how quickly will all thy comforts and pleasures leave thee and what little cause hast thou to rejoyce in the abundance of outward things if thou hast no title to the durable riches if thou art void of the riches of grace here and hast no title to the riches of Glory hereafter what wilt thou do in a day of Tryal and in an hour of trouble and calamity What wilt thou do when Losses Crosses Troubles and Vexations shall compass thee about if thou hast not an Heavenly interest to support thee under them What wilt thou do when Pains and Anguish when Diseases Sickness and Death shall seize upon thee if thou hast not a Title to thy Heavenly inheritance These things will certainly and speedily come upon us how far off soever we may put them in our thoughts the proud looks of the lofty will quickly be turned into an earthly paleness though they look as big and carry themselves as high as if they had a protection from Hell and the Grave and those bodies which we now take so much care to please and pamper will
intemperately to the honour of his Idol only in dead Vessels of Gold and Silver But these in doing thus abuse living Vessels living bodies and living souls such Vessels as by Baptism were markt out for God and separated and sealed to his holy service they abuse and prostitute to a Lust to a Whore to the Devil Ah! who can but weep and weep again to see how much of our English Bloud is poyson'd with these beastly Enormities at this day and how many of our otherwise hopeful Gentlemen who might do God and their Country much service and be a great help to the publick good and peculiar blessing to the place where they live do basely and unworthily melt away their youth and Emasculate their spirits in drunken Societies and Effeminate Embraces Alas that so many Noble Births so many sparkling Wits should be prostituted to Satans service and imployed in carrying on Satans cause while they know it not If they had found a Golden Chalice as Augustine observes of Lucinus they would have given it to the Church But God hath given them a Golden Wit a golden Head and golden parts and in these golden Cups and Challices they drink themselves to the Devil both body and soul for evermore Ah deluded and degenerated Gentlemen think with your selves seriously what answer you will make to your Judge at the general Audit-day for taking the Members of Christ and making them members of an Harlot Never see my face more said Joseph unless you bring your brother Benjamin with you Oh friends never think to see Gods face to your comfort in Glory if you carry not holy bodies and holy souls and holy affections with you God tells you his minde in Heb. Follow peace and holiness without which you shall never see the Lord You may go to Heaven without a peny in your purse but you shall never come there without holiness in your heart Heaven is a City where Righteousness dwells and therefore though God in his wonderful patience to poor lost man suffer the Earth to give the ungodly a little house-room a while yet sure I am he will never cumber Heaven with such a crew Before Enoch was translated to Heaven he walkt holily upon Earth else God had never desired his Company so soon as he did And before the Saints departed commenced and took their degree of Glory they kept their Acts and performed the exercises of grace and so must you the Scripture is plain Without Holiness none shall see the Lord. It 's true none goes to Heaven for his Holiness and this shews the Insufficiency of Holiness But it 's as true that none goes to Heaven without holiness and this argues the necessity of holiness And therefore though it be no plea for Heaven yet it will be your best Evidence and will you have your Evidences to seek when you should have them to shew Ah then as you value a portion among the Saints in Light and hope to live in Heaven when you can live no longer upon Earth Be holy as your Father which is in Heaven is holy Caesars money must be known by Caesars Image and Superscription and so must the Christian at the Reckoning day by the Terror of his Conversation Not every one that saith Lord Lord but he that doth the will of the Lord shall be saved saith Christ Your works must be your witnesses and your deeds must declare whose you are and to whom you belong And therefore begin to live that life now which you intend and hope to live for ever and continue not one day longer in that condition in which you would not die and appear at Judgment in Therefore go home and dress your selves not with good Cloaths but with good works and while others are querying what they shall eat and what they shall drink and what they shall put on study you how to live and how to dye and to put on the Lord Jesus Christ making no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof And when others are projecting how to improve a barren piece of ground let your contrivance be how to improve a barren minde and as their care is that their fields should not lye fallow so let it be your study not to let your hearts lye fallow and the rather because you see that this is the will of God even your sanctification that every one of you should possess his Vessel in holiness 1 Thes 4.3 4. Now that this is the will of God will appear upon a two-fold account 1. First from the price with which he hath redeemed us to it 2. And Secondly from the Promise which he hath made to Reward us for it 1. The price he paid down upon the nail was his own blood Tit. 2.14 He gave himself for us that he might Redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people Had man kept his primitive holiness Christ might have kept his life and have spared his pains It was mans lost Righteousness lost Holiness that Christ came to recover But this is a Point that needs pressing rather than proving which I shall undertake to effect by these ensuing obrestations and intreaties I beseech you upon the account of these three Considerations that you would approve your selves a holy Nation a Seed which the Lord hath blessed I beseech you 1. For my sake 2. For your sakes 3. For Christs sake First for my sake who am to come to you as a Petitioner and Messenger from the Lord and the sum of my desires is this I beseech you in Christs stead that you would be reconciled to God I am not courting you for your silver but for your souls and what will you grant me if this be denied me O the Lord make you a willing people in the day of his power God hath sent me to you as Jesse to David with this Present in mine hands and these Breathings in my heart after your Salvation O may they but prove serviceable and successful to your souls and I shall bless God that hath put it into mine heart thus to visit you But if you will not hear nor fear to do no more so wickedly My soul shall weep in secret for you Is it not sad to a tender Physitian to see his Patients to dye under his hands much sadder sure to a poor Minister to see souls drop to Hell one by one under his Pulpit and cannot help them cannot save them this must needs be a heart-sadding sight to one that 's sensible of the worth of souls It costeth the Mother no small pains to bring forth a living Child But ah the bitter Throws of that Minister that travels all the year long nay all his life long with a dead Child a dead-hearted people That spends his strength and like a Candle Swails out his life amongst his Parish and is forced at last to take up the Prophets complaint Who hath believed our report and to whom is the Arm of the Lord
wholly flesh totally opposite to the holy Laws of thy Majesty and were it not for thy renuing and restraining grace we should break forth into as vile abominations as the vilest of men our lives have been a continuall piece of rebellion against God who did make us and doth feed and cloath us all thy paths have been paths of mercy to us but we have requited thee evil for thy good and hatted for thy love Oh foolish men and women that we have been I we acknowledge our Gospel-sins are of a deep dye Thou hast not been a VVildernss or Land of darkness to us we have been exalted to heaven in the means of salvation but Oh! how short do we come of knowledge to the time and means we have enjoyed and our obedience comes short of our knowledge we have not walked up to that light which thou hast given us We desire to lay our selves low before thee Oh do thou open our eyes and present us to our selves show us the vilenss of our lives Blessed be thy Name that thou hast laid help upon one that is mighty to save all that come to thy Majesty by him and thou hast promised all that beleeve on him shall not perish but have everlasting life Oh help us to receive him in all his Offices in our hearts help us to give him the keys of our hearts and help us to live and die to him that died for us and let our souls be united to thee by him that his death may be ours and his life ours and his intercession ours Oh let our unity to Christ be demonstrated to us by our communion with and conformity to him in grace and holiness And we pray thee dearest Lord pardon our sins in the Court of heaven and in the Court of our own consciences besprinkle our conscienees in the blood of Christ and say to all before thee at this time that desire to fear thee more and serve thee better Sons and Daughters be of good cheer your sins are forgiven you And do not only justifie us but sanctifie us purge our consciences from dead works inform our understanding conform our wills to thy holy VVill let our hearts and lives be comformed to the Image of thy Son that beholding thereof we may be changed from glory to glory and let us have more knowledge of thy will that we may do thy will und suffer thy will with more patience and be filled with the fruits of Righteousness which are to the glory of God Let us not be empty Vines that bring forth fruit to themselves but let us bring forth fruit to God whereby thou maiest be glorified Oh plant that great grace of Self-denial in our souls and let us take the Cross of Jesus Christ and follow him wheresoever he goes Remember all thine extend thy favour to those thou hast cast on beds of sickness and let there be a saving change wrought in them before that change by death shall come and they that are drawing nigh their time of Travel let the arms of the All-sufficient God be under them and be better to them than their Faith or our prayers and look graciously upon poor children entitle them to an inheritance that fadeth not away make them a blessing in themselves and a blessing to their Parents And those that deâ—re the conversion of Relations that walk in waies of perdition do not let them find peace in any way against thy Majesty and let them know that sin will be bitter in the latter eud Look upon us that are before thee at this time before we go hence and shall be here no more make thy face to shine upon us let our coming together be for the better and not for the worse to any of us let thy poor Servant be able to deliver thy Message plainly and powerfull and give thy People hearing ears and obedient hearts and let us rejoyce that we did wait upo thee in thy Worship this day and all For Christ his sake in whose Name and Words we call upon thee Our Father ' which art in Heaven c. Doctor Manton's Prayer at Covent-garden O Lord God all that we can do is nothing of our selves we can do nothing Oh let us have the gracious Assistance of thy Spirit as this time let thy love constrain us say unto us Thou art our Salvation Do not say that we shall fill up the measure of our Iniquities and there shall be no hope for us O Lord we are ashamed that we have waited so long in thine Ordinannances and have got no more profit to our toor pouls but we have given up our hearts to the pleasures and vanities of this world that are but for a season even those that thou hast drawn out after thee do not walk worthy of thee anseerable to that blessed hope of future Happiness in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation Jesus Christ is to many of us become a stumbling-blook and a reck of offence while our hearts are caried out after the wirld with such strong affections Oh! when shall we carry our selves so as those that profess themselves to be secke's of a better life We come into thy presence now for strength do thou manifest thy self to us thou hast promised to pour out thy Spirit upon all Flesh Oh let it be unto us according to thy promise O Lord our hearts naturally are averse to thee so that of our selves we shall never be able to do any thing that may be wel-plensing to thee but do thou regulate us by thy blessed Spirit that we may observe thy statutes and do them and that thy Commands may not be grievous to us that it may not be burdensom for us to do the work of God O Lord when shall our hearts be made sound in thy statutes we wait upon thee in the use of thine Ordinances that we may have a new supply from thee that at length we may come to see that thou art at work with us to save our soules O help us to be followers of them who with faith and patience do follow thee to do nothing unbecomming our holy Call suffer us not to swerve from thy Commandments but let us have a constant and earnest desire after thee Let the choicest of thy Mercies come down on our Sovereign Charles King of England Scotland France and Ireland let His heart be guided by thee let him always set the before his eyes that under the shadow of his Goverment we may have Peace in all Godliness and honesty Bless him in his Relations in his Councils Teach our Senators wisdom Be with all thy Faithfull Magistrates and Ministers let them be a terrour to evil doers and an encouragement to them that do well Be with us in the way of thy worship we are here met together to hear and handle thy holy Word Oh do thou command it to light upon all our hearts let it come in the evidence and demonstratian
of a place or any other thing 's 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 to be Gods are the words of the like importance or equivolence it s being Gods and his having a relation to it is the foundation and cause of its holiness And therefore if you look into Exod. 15.2 you shall there find God commands that they should sanctifie to 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 Luk 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 he 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 tythes of the Land is the Lords it is holy unto the Lord it is holy and therefore holy 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 ways 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 two-fold 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 consuming Bush here was a miraculous token of Gods presence We shall find in the fifth of Joshua and the last verse God commands Joshua to put off his shooes Loose thy shooes from off thy feet for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground And Joshua 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 voice 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 God-head ceasing the holiness of the 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 symboles 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 into 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 to 〈◊〉 and while these continued in a place he was looked upon to be there 2. Gods ordinary presence is considerable in the Religious service of his people and this I call the rather the more spiritual Presence of God that is that presence of God in the Ordinances which we have we hope this day and which Christ did promise Matth. 18.20 Where ever two or three are met together in my Name there am I present in the midst of them not in the midst of the place but of them when they do perform holy and institute Worship This spiritual presence of God is that that is afforded in the use of those Ordinances of Praying Hearing and Administration of Sacraments his Presence is there to accept of these and bless them and make them operative and to assist in these and to enable both Minister and people to go through their duty by his own power Nor can Gods Presence be ordinarily expected but in this his own way Now then 2. You must know that as the presence of God is the foundation of a places sanctity and as it is several so you must know Gods propriety in and relation to a place is declared by his Precept the precept of God is Gods propriety in a place as well as his Presence thus it belongs to him by command to make it holy he may do what he will and chuse out what places he will to be holy He to whom all things belong surely may have some places and things more proper to himself und peculiar so the Temple of old and the Tabernacle those Places of Levitical and Ceremonial Worship was separated and set apart by God by Divine institution Hence we have many commands 1. God commands that such a House and such a Tabernacle shall be built and this had been unlawful to do had it not been commanded 2. He directs the manner and the mode and that all things should exactly be done according to the pattern in the Mount And 3. God doth command it should be in such a place in the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite and that place that himself had chosen 4. He commands that he will be served in these places peculiarly rather than in any other place he would not have these places changed for others Herein this place tipifi'd Christ one that is onely able to make our services acceptable Hence
Nation to worship No my Brethren no Land no ground is now unholy as famous old Doctor Reynolds said every place is now a Judea no Coast but is a Judea every house is a Jerusalem every Congregation is now a Sion See here the goodness of God in indulging of us so far as to take any service done by us in a solemn and real manner as if it had been done in those places which were formerly appointed for it to be done in Thirdly I infer hence there are several persons to be reproved 1. We find hereby that all the holiness of Relicks of Saints doth fall to the ground and we see the folly of those that make Pilgrimages unto Saints and Reliques as the Papists do there was a time say they when such a Saints Relicks were laid up in such a place and these are more holy then other places so that this you see falls to the ground in its self I might tell you concerning their lying about their Relicks as one said that there were as many Reliques as would fill an hundred Carts but supposing so all that would not make that place the more holy 2. Hence the superstition of those is to be reproved which put holiness in place of Burial and make it more holy to be buried in one place then in another it is more holy say they to be buried in the Church then in the Church-yard and more holy under the Communion-Table then in any other part of the Church 3. This reproves them which cannot pray any where but in the Temple and they that use private prayers in Churches if you have houses and Rooms at home what is the reason that if Pauls or any other Church stand open you must run in thither and drop down behind a Pillar to say your Prayers 4. This reproves them that have reverence towards any place more then another as if they did deserve more holiness in one part then another as bowing to the Altar or Communion-Table or the like 5. It reproves those that have reverence for scituation of these places they must stand East and West and why not North and South All these things fall off like Fig-leaves if what I have said be true that there is no holiness in places and this I have made known to you not only as my judgment but as my duty Now for exhortation I shall desire you to take notice of four things and I have done and shall leave you to God and commit you to the word of his grace If this be so that there is no holiness in places then first of all bee the more encouraged to serve God in your Families in those places where God hath set you where God is as well pleased with your service as in publick places serve God upon your knees with devotion humility and reverence And therefore though I am against Superstition and Popish practices and those wicked cursed traps of innovations that the men of the World have disturbed the Church of God with yet I am against putting on your Hats in prayer and sitting in Prayer Those that are for holiness of places do not with Abraham in every place they come build God an Altar But let us in every closet and room build God an Altar let no morning nor evening go without a Prayer in thy Family pray often and pray continually let your houses be as so many Churches as you read in Rom. 16.5 Likewise greet the Church that is in their House and in the second verse of Philemons Epistle To the Church that is in thy Hovse There the Houses of the Saints are called Churches This will bring a blessing upon your Families And if you be not willing to have that curse denounced against you in Jer. 10.25 Pour out fury upon the Heathen that know thee not and upon the families that call not upon thy Name then neglect not Family-Prayers be much in Prayer and pray with frequency and encouragement because God binds you to no place The second Exhortation is this labour to promote personal holiness as well as Family Devotion I am against local holiness As one said that I heared once when I was a Youth Happy are those garments that can carry away any of the dust of the Temple but they think not that any of their Garments are unclean in wallowing in the mire of sin But I say do you labour to promote holiness in your lives in your hearts and conversations The Holy Ghost saith Vnless you be pure in heart you shall not see God And therefore put away sin for if you regard iniquity God will not hear your prayers It is not your ducking or bowing or cringing never so much or your going with your Hat off through the Church that will make God hear your Prayers these will but dishonour you because you live not accordingly 3. 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 where ever the Presence of God shines and where ever 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 methoughts there was a spiritual coldness and frozenness went over my soul Though the People of God are best company in Heaven yet they are very good company 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 to others 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 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 Fields that one can hardly get home to
only knoweth Do not add affliction to affliction be not uncharitable in judging of us as if through pride faction obstinacy or devotedness to a party or which is worse than all in opposion to Authority we do dissent the Judge of all hearts knows it is not so but it is meerly from those apprehensions which after prayer and the use of all means do yet continue that doing thus and thus we should displease God therefore deal charitably with us in this day of our affliction If we be mistaken I pray God to convince us if others be mistaken whether in a publick or private capacity I pray God in mercy convince them but however things go God will make good this truth to us in this work he will not leave us and our Father will not leave us alone for it is the unfeigned desire of our soul in all things to please God Dr. Bate's Forenoon Sermon August 17. 1662. Heb 12.20 21. Now the God of Peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus that great shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting Covenant make you perfect in every good work to do his will working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ To whom be glory for ever and ever IT would give light to these words if you consider the scope and design of the Apostle in this Epistle to the Hebrews the summe of which is he writes to them that he might animate their spirits against apostacy from the Doctrine of the Gospel they were liable to this from you and others upon this account because they dare not displease God I may in this caution aim at my self and other of my brethren this upon a double account 1. Partly in respect of those persecutions to which they were exposed for the Jews were filled with a bruitish zeal for the Ceremonies of the Levitical Law and exprest the greatest rancour against those who lest Moses to follow Christ This is the reason why the Apostle lays down so many preservatives against their revolting from Religion and he spends one part of this Epistle in a most passionate Exhortation to perseverance and doth in the tenth Chapter insinuate himself into them You have already tasted the first-fruits of affliction ver 3.4 You took joyfully the spoyling of your goods knowing in your selves that you have in Heaven a better and an enduring substance This is that temper that Martyrs have exprest who have not only parted with their goods but with their lives for the Gospel When they came to the Stake they would not so much as shed a tear to quench those flames wherein they should ascend to God as in a fiery Chariot You took joyfully the spoiling of your goods knowing in your selves that you have a better and an enduring substance Thus he insinuates himself by representing what they had done to encourage them to perseverance and partly he fortifies them against Back-sliding by those terrible judgements which he threatned against Revolters as you read Chap. 6.7 2. As they were liable to this Apostacy upon the account of Persecution so upon the account of the unsettledness and instability of their own spirits There were several of those who had given up their names to Christ who did compare the Ceremonies of the Law with the purity of the Gospel Now the Apostle to secure them from this mixture his great design is to represent the vanity and infectiveness of all the Ceremonial Law and to express and prove the virtue and efficacy of the Lord Jesus his death which was the substance of all the shadows And this takes up one great part of his discourse with them Now in these two verses he sums up by way of Recapitulation all that which he had discoursed of at large and in them you may observe these two things 1. A description of God to whom he addresses this Prayer 2. The substance of the Prayer it self The Description of God that he amplifies by these two things 1. From the Attributes and Qualities of God if I may so express it Now saith he the God of Peace 2. From the effects of his power and love That brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus that great Shepherd of the Sheep And these Titles they are not here set down by the Apostle to adorn his discourse meerly as an ornament but they have all a peculiar efficacy as to the obtaining of the request which here he makes for them I shall begin with the first the Description of God from that Attribute Now the God of Peace the Title that is used in the Old Testament frequently is this The Lord of Hosts but in the New he is called The God of peace There were darker representations of the mercy and love of God than the more full discoveries of his grace were reserved till the coming of Christ Their discoveries under the Old Testament were but as the Day-star which ushered in the Sun of Righteousness Now this title of the God of Peace imparts two things 1. That he is the Author of Peace and works it 2. That he loves and delights in peace First That he s the Author of it And if you consider Peace in all its notions and kinds it is a fruit of God and that which descends from him 1. Peace in Nature is the harmony that is between all the parts of the World the union that is between the disagreeing Elements that is from God for without him the whole Creation would presently disband and return to its first Chaos of confusion 2. Civil Peace which is among the Societies of men that which is so amiable and lovely and which needs no other foil to commend it and set off its lustre than the miseries and cruelties of war this peace comes from God likewise Every rash hand is able to make a wound or to cast a Fire-brand but it is only the God of Peace that is able to heal breaches and to allay those storms that are in a Nation You know those showers which render the Earth fruitful descend from Heaven from God so all the counsels of peace descend from above The fiery Exaltations ascend from the Earth Counsels of War disturbance proceeded from the devilish hearts of men Or 3. If you consider that Rational Peace which is in the spirits of men that is when the understanding exercises a coertion and restraint over our licentious appetites when all our inferior Faculties are under the empire and conduct of Reason this proceeds also from God For since the fall there is a great deal of tumult many riots and disorders in the soul of a man Reason hates a bad Guide and our Appetites those are evil instruments and so many times hurry Reason from its regular actings But 4. much more if you consider Spiritual Peace that peace doth not only import an Agreement of a man within himself but the Agreement of the soul with God This
is the fruit of the Spirit and it is only God that is able to convey this peace to us And upon a particular account this Title is given to him by way of eminency and property as 1. He is alone able to allow and dispence this peace unto us for all our sins are injuries committed against him against the Crown and Dignity all the Arrests of Conscience are made in the Name of God and therefore 't is only he that can speak peace As in the civil state it is an Act of Supremacy to give a pardon only he that can condemn is able to speak pardon so it is our God that is our Judge provoked and incensed by us he hath a judicial power to cast Body and Soul into Hell fire is alone able to speak peace and pass a pardon for us in the Court of Heaven and this is experienced by a wounded spirit It is just with such a person as with a Malefactour who stands condemned at the Bar he cannot receive encouragement from any of his spectators till the Judge speak peace unto him So if an Angel from Heaven should come and speak to a wounded Spirit it were impossible unless God did order command and dispence it that the Spirit should receive any peace because our sins are immediately committed against him 2. He is alone able to reveal and discover it there is nothing harder in the World than to calm and quiet a disturbed Conscience it must be the same power that makes light to spring out of darkness that must cause a chearful serenity in a dark and disconsolate Soul I know there is nothing more easie than that false peace which is so universal in the world for the most amongst us cheat themselves with presumption instead of peace with God and security instead of peace with Conscience but that peace which is solid and true can only be revealed by God himself We have an instance of this in David Psal 51. although Nathan had told him from God Thy sin is pardoned yet notwithstanding he saith Make thou me to hear joy and gladness that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoyce He still addresses himself to God that he would cause him to hear the voice of pardon and reconciliation for his soul could not be quiet by the voice of the Prophet There is so much infidelity in the soul of a man that when he comes to take a view of his sins in all their bloody aggravations only the Spirit of God himself is able to allay the terrors of the Conscience And this he doth by an over-powering Light when he doth in an imperative and commanding manner silence all the doubts of the soul and restablish it in peace with God Certainly he that shall but consider the terrors the faintings the paleness of a wounded Conscience when you shall see a person dis-relish all the things of this World upon this account fearing lest God is his enemy when all discourses that are addressed to him are ineffectual and but like warm cloaths to a dead carkasse cannot inspire any heat into him This shews only God is able to reveal peace So Job If he hide his face who is able to be at peace There needs no other fury to compleat the misery of a man than his own accusing Conscience Conscience is a verier Devil than the Devil himself and able more to torment and lash the creature Therefore if that be once awakened 't is only God to whose Tribunal Conscience is liable which is able to speak peace to the soul Now you see in what respect this Title The God of Peace is attributed to him as he is the Author and Worker of it 2. As he loves and delights in peace This is that which is so pleasing to him that he adopts those into the Line of Heaven who are Peace-makers for they shall be called the children of God Mat. 5.6 This characterizes persons to be his Children to be allied to him God he only delights in the reflection of his own Image for those things that we admire in the World and delight in do not affect his heart He delights not in the strength of the Horse he takes no pleasure in the legs of a man the Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him in thâ—se that hope in his mercy Nothing attracts his eye and heart but his own similitude and resemblance and therefore where he sees peaceable dispositions that is that which endears the soul to him and makes it amiable in his eyes You may judge of his delight in peace by this It is that grace which in an especial manner prepares us for communion with him for we can never really honour or enjoy him unless we bring to him those dispositions which if I may so speak are in himself And therefore it is no wonder that those have little peace of Conscience who make so little Conscience of Peace You know when God appeared to Elijah he did not appear in the storm nor in the fire but in the small still voice and when Elisha was transported with anger he was fain to allay that passion by Musick that so he might be prepared for the holy motions of the Spirit he called for an Instrument and then the Spirit moved in him I bring it for this end to shew how God delights in Peace and he will only maintain communion with those that are of calm and peaceable spirits So much way as we give to anger so much proportionably do we let in the Devil and cast out the God of peace Now the reason why this Title is given to God is upon a double account partly with respect to the Bloud of the everlasting Covenant which made peace between God and us partly with respect to the Covenant it it self which is founded in that Bloud 1. In respect of the Bloud of the everlasting Covenant For it was the bloud of Christ that hath sprinkled Gods Throne and made peace in Heaven You shall read therefore when Christ came into the World 't is said Luke 2.14 that the Heavenly host appeared and sang Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace c. Since the fall God and man are enemies there is a reciprocal enmity between God and man God hates the creature as it is unholy and man hates God as he is just the avenger of sin the Author of the Law Now Christ was the Umpire that composed this difference he was God and man in one person and so being allyed to both he was a fit person to reconcile both He was as Job speaks a days-man between us He hath paid every farthing that was due for he did not compound with God but paid the utmost that was due to him He it is that hath reconciled us to God by the power of his spirit in changing and renewing our Natures and Creating in us those dispositions which are like to God so that his bloud is the foundation of
this peace And now God appears to us not as a Consuming Fire but as a Refreshing Light full of calmness serenity and peace towards us Christ hath brought more honour to God by his obedience than we brought dishonor by our transgression and therefore without any injury to God he might be at peace with us You know all our sins were but the acts of finite Creatures and only infinite in regard of the object against whom they were committed But the Bloud of Christ was of infinite value in regard of the Subject for he was God and the enriching union of the Deity conveyed such worth and value to his bloud that he was able to appease God and not only to free us from condemnation but to make us the favorites of God We are not only pardoned but preferred upon the account of his Bloud 2. He is the God of peace as with respect to the bloud of Christ which is the purchase of peace so with respect to the Covenant which is made between God and us Through the bloud of the everlasting Covenant there are three sorts of Covenants amongst men some are Covenants of Friendship and Amity some are Covenants of Trade and Commerce and some are Covenants of Assistance and Help Now all these qualifications meet in this Covenant which is made between God and Believers it is a Covenant of Peace and Friendship for now we stand upon terms of amity with God Those who were strangers and enemies are now reconciled And there is between God and us perfect peace there is a League as the Scripture speaks between God and the Creature It is the Covenant of Trade there is now a way opened â—o Heaven we may now ascend to God in duties of holiness and God descends to us by the excitations of his grace and influences 〈…〉 And it is a Covenant of Assistance for he promises nor only to give us the reward of the Covenant but to secure unto us the condition he promises to enable us to discharge the condition of Faith and Repentance Now upon this account of that Covenant which is founded in the bloud of Christ he is the God of Peace to his people 1. Vse is by way of Conviction This may discover to us how distant their temper is from God who are enemies to peace We un-man our selves We unchristian our selves so far as we are opposite to this blessed temper of peace Certainly as disturbed Water cannot make any reflection unto us of that face that looks into it so when our spirits are disturbed by animosities exasperations heats and divisions 't is impossible for us to see the Image of God as he is the God of Peace And certainly there is no more doleful consideration in the World than this That man whom God made so sociable a creature who hath all the engagements and endearments laid upon him which may cause him to live in Peace and gentleness towards those who are of the same nature with him yet that in fierceness of our hearts should exceed those of the most Savage creatures Man comes into the World naked and altogether unarmed as if he were designed for the picture of Peace but could you look into the hearts of men you would find there such tumults such divisions such seeds of enmity against their fellow-creatures that Tygers and Lyons are Calm and peaceable in comparison of them Now how is this distant from the temper of the God of peace 'T is very strange to consider that when promises are made to bury all differences as rubbish under the foundation that nevertheless the great Work of many persons should be only to revive those former animosities to make those exasperations fresh and keen upon their own spirits but is this to imitate the God of peace These to promote divisions and disturbances amongst us clothe their enemies with the Livery of shame and reproach that so they may be baited by their Fury that make it their design to represent that Party which they think is dissonant from them with the most odious appearances you know this is the old Art and those showres of Calumnies which are in the World they usually precede the storm of persecution The Devil was first a Lier and then a Murtherer and those who are of this Seed they follow his Art In the Primitive times all the Persecutions of the Heathens arose from the reproaches of Christians so it is now It is an easie thing to blast the name of those persons who are design'd for ruine But if the contending Parties would consider if I may call one Party contending which is only liable to Penalties and is resolved to bear them patiently how unlike this is to that God of peace methinks it should allay the rancour that is in mens spirits and make an atonement between all the differences and divisions that is amongst them 2. If onely Peace come from God you may from hence take a tryal of that peace that is within you for hither to I have been only discoursing of civil peace whether it be an effect of this God of Peace I know nothing more common in the world than presumption there is a false Peace which doth not arise from the knowledge of a mans happiness but from the ignorance of this misery Peace which is only like a Torch to shine in the night or like Players that glitter only by Torch-light so is the false peace men cherish in their bosom meerly upon this account because they do not bring their souls to the light of the Word they never had it from this God of peace because 1. God never speaks peace to a soul but in the way of holiness and obedience And therefore you shall find 't is the counsel of the Scripture Acquaint thy self with God and be at peace Our peace is found in the way of Duty and there are none who are more blessed with the peace of conscience than those who with the greatest fervour frequency and delight maintain communion with God in holy duties For a friendship among men is cherished and preserved by visits and conversations so our peace with God is preserved by those visits we make to heaven in our prayers 2. That peace that comes from God always causes in us a war with sin for Gods Covenant with us is Offensive and Defensive and therefore it is impossible any person should have true and solid peace that waking tranquility of soul which is the reward of holiness and obedience that entertains sin for every sin thou dost wilfully commit 't is an act of hostility against God 't is that which makes him thine enemy and makes thee an enemy to him As Jehu said What peace so long as the whoredom of thy mother Jezabel and her witcherafts are so many So what peace can there be so long as thou dost indulge thy self in sin and make it thy business to gratifie thy outward sences though it be to the displeasure of God 'T is
the censures of a crooked generation A Christians zeal should be like winter fire that burns the hottest when the air is coolest or like the Lilly that looketh beautiful though among thorns so should a child of God though among sinners Fifthly In all conditions choose suffering rather than sinning If ever you would have peace choose suffering rather than sinning he that values peace with God or peace with conscience he must make this his choice Daniel rather chose to be cast to Lions than to lose the peace of his conscience the three Children chose rather to burn in the Furnace than to bow to the Image One said He would rather go to Hell free from sin than to live in Heaven with guilt on his Conscience My brethren let me a little enlarge because sufferings may overtake us for Persecution is the genius of the Gospel therefore let me leave for short Rules with you concerning sufferings See that your Cause be good your Call be clear your Spirit meek and your End right Sufferings cannot bring our peace without either of them but with them all our sufferings shall be peace First Let your Cause be good It s not the Bloud but the Cause that makes a Martyr it is not for every cause a Christian should engage to suffer every cause will no more bear suffering than every little stream will bear a ship nor will Christ let go sweetness to every suffering 1 Pet. 4.15 Let none of you suffer as a Murderer or as a Thief or as an Evil-doer or as a Busie-body in other mens matters To suffer thus is neither Christian-like nor comfortable some suffer rather as Malefactors than as Christs Martyrs Secondly Let your Call be clear It 's not amiss to have a good cause without a Call some may suffer for the cause of God and yet sin in suffering for want of a Call Christ calls not all to suffer to some it is given to others it is not if thy Call be clear thy Peace will be sweet though thy sufferings be never so great But you will say how shall I know when I am called to suffer Answ 1. When Truth suffers by our silence then are we called to suffer 2. When our lives will be the denial of Christ then are we called to deny our lives for Christ 3. When sin and suffering surrounds us that we cannot get out but we must either run through sin or suffering then I may safely conclude That Christ calleth me to suffer and in this cause we may expect the peace and sweetness of his presence Thirdly The third direction for suffering is this Our spirit must be meek so was Christ he went as a Lamb to the slaughter It is possible a man may be right in his cause and yet sinful in his carriage and if so no wonder if Christ be not sweet to us To be fierce and raging and reviling in suffering it is not becoming humanity and therefore much less like Christianity A Christian should be like Christ Act. 5.41 And they departed from the presence of the Council rejoycing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his Name .. It becomes those that are found in the spirit to give blessing for cursing the more of Christs spirit is in our sufferings the more comfort and joy we shall receive from our sufferings Fourthly See that your End in suffering be right If it be self or singularity or schism then Christ cannot be sweet to thee Some have died that their Ends may live Socrates died in the defence of the Truth and to prove that there is but one God but whether he died for Honour Applause or for Gods sake I think it is not hard to determine But let thy Cause be good thy Call clear thy Spirit meek and thy End right and then you shall have peace in all your sufferings that is the fifth thing Choose sufferings rather than sinning Sixthly If you would have peace be much in studying the Scriptures for as God is the God of Peace and Christ the Prince of Peace so the Gospel is the Gospel of Peace which God hath given to thee to lead thee in the ways of peace Great peace have they that love thy Laws Seventhly Take heed of Apostacy either in Doctrine or Principles Though a Believer is freed from Apostacy in the state of grace yet he is not freed from Apostacy in the degrees of grace He may fall sinfully though he cannot fall finally Demas fell by one St. Peter by the other Pray with David Psal 17.5 Hold up my goings in thy paths that c. Eighthly Make the Word of God your rule in all things be sure you have a Scripture warrant for all your practises but especially keep close to Scripture in matters of Gods worship There are endless discourses about the Mode of Gods worship I have no disputing time It is good in difficult cases always to take the surest side for instance if I follow the traditions of man for the worship of God I may but if I keep close to the directions of God in the Scripture I am sure I cannot sin for this is the sure word of Prophecy to which you do well to take heed therefore in such a doubltful case Gods will is that we take the surest side go to the Law and to the Testimony labour to be fruitful and grounded Christians Ninthly Keep up the power of Godliness do not let Religion down into a lifeless formality The righteous shall flourish like a Palm-tree He shall grow like a Cedar in Lebanon those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the Courts of our God Psal 92.12 13. My Brethren it is as much a duty in them that have grace to improve it as for them that have no grace to get it If you sit under the daily means the daily waterings of God and do not grow do you think this will be peace in the latter end surely no my Brethren your fruitfulness under the Gospel is of very great concernment It 's unfruitfulness that makes God lay his Vineyard waste It 's fruitfulness that procures the forwarding of your account in the day of grace Tenthly Observe that excellent rule of the Apostle Phil. 4.8 Finally brethren whatsoever things are true whatsoever things are honest whatsoever things are just whatsoever things are pure whatsoever things are lovely whatsoever things are of good report if there be any vertue and if there any praise think on these things And now my Brethren I commend you to God and to the Word of God that is infinitely able to make you wise to salvation with this Benediction which I shall make my Valediction Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ Mr. Calamy's Sermon at the Funeral of Mr. Ash Isaiah 57.1 The righteous perisheth and no man layeth it to heart and merciful men are taken away none considering that the righteous are
sword and all miseries But the Godly when they are scattered they are scattered as a blessing into what country 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 ways First they 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 Load-stone 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 300 could not be drowned So that the godly come as a blessing wherever they are scattered but the wicked are as chaff 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 cloaths and sullies them so the wicked wherever they are scattered they defile the place where they are scattered The godly are as Planets that wander 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 in 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 chaff and straw and therefore when Christ said of Josiah 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 Child of God 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 thee 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 Jedidiahs 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 Beast go out into the field Secondly Learn hear 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 than if a Merchant that hath abundance of Jewels in a far Countrey he should send for theâ— home Why death to a righteous man is nothing but God sending for his Jewels home Such a phrase there is in Mal. 3.17 In the day that I make up my Jewels they shall be mine In this life they are imperfect Jewels they are like Gold in the Oare mingled with a great deal of dross and death is nothing but a perfection of the Jewels death is nothing more and God doth nothing by death but as a Gold-siner gathers 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 time 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 dye though their death be matter of sorrow to us in regard of the loss 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 of those that are related to the righteous when they dye did you ever here of a Husbandman that mourned for the carrying in of his Corn into the Barn or a Jeweller mourn for making up of his Jewels Let us mourn rather that we are lest scattered among the wicked of the earth and from the glorious presence of God and Christ and let us morn for those that are scattered from Christ and from grace and for those that whilst they live are scattered and when they dye are gathered to the Devil and his Angels Let us not mourn for those that dye in Christ but let us mourn for those that live out of Christ let us not mourn over the body the soul hath left but let us mourn over the soul 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 befalls a Child of God in this life though he be scattered by wicked men from England into forreign Countries though he wanders up and down in Desarts and Wildernesses though he be scattered from house to prison yet there shall 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 Jeremiah 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 dye 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 tears to be burned in Hell or a bundle of Wheat to be carryed up into the Barn of Heaven I answer You may know it by four things 1. 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 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 Kingdom of God Damnation is entailed upon unrighteous men 2. If you are merciful you shall be gathered to Christ if you are one that is full of bowels of compassion to the distressed members of Christ Jesus for Christ hath said it Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy now if you are hard-hearted covetous worldly minded remember that Text He shall have judgement without mercy that shews no mercy 3. 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 a 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 joyned 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 injoyment of God with them to all eternity Confider this every man shall be gathered when he dies to those whom he delights and chooseth to keep pany with while he lives in this 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 is 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 labor to make the best use we can of our godly friends and Ministers before they be 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 whilst 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 and Ministers I have known many that have godly relations that have died that it hath been the greatest burden 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 so much solicitous when we see it but a stranger that comes from a far Country 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 borrows 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 that God may take away your Elâ—jahs from you this night Therefore make what use you can of them while you have them Secondly 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 that have rich places 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 labor to propagate your gifts graces that there may be no loss by your death Observe the cares of St. Paul the aged in his exhortation to Timothy 2 Tim. 3.4 5 Watch thou 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 faithful men that shall be able to teach others also Hath God committed any thing to you a treasure of Learning or Grace commit it to young Ministers that they may commit it to others that so there may be a succession of Gifts and Graces Do as Physitians do that labour to communicate their skill to their Children and to others so should we that there may be a succession of Godly ones that Godliness may be entailed upon us and our Relations Thirdly and lastly let us all labour to be such that when we dye when we come to be gathered we may be gathered to Christ and his Angels not to the Devil and his angels And for that purpose let us labour to be merciful and righteous and let us be gathered to Christ by Faith and to one another by love and dear affection and then we shall be gathered at the great day to Christ and the blessed company of the Saints Angels There are 4 observations yet behind but I must wave them at this time I have now another Sermon to preach and I cannot without
but then secondly A second Argument in the Text shall be drawn from the Object and that is two-fold there is faith and the profession of this faith that is to be held fast and there are Arguments from both First Faith hold fast faith why are we so greatly concerned and so highly obliged to hold fast Faith I will give you this one reason for it it is the most holy Faith There are many things may be called Faith that may not be called most holy Faith there are many faiths that are at least called holy Turkish faith is by them called holy faith the Romish faith is by them called holy faith I but this is the most holy faith there is an expression that Jude hath to commend faith to us in the 20 verse of his Epistle But ye beloved building up your selves on your most holy faith c. Let other pretenders be as holy as they can they can never rise to the holiness of this this is the most holy faith it is so holy in so high a degree as to be beyond compare I but now what is it that may denominate this faith to be the most holy faith why it hath for its Author the most holy God it is the gift of God and the work of God if we take it for the Act of faith and the doctrine of God if we take it for the doctrine of faith There are as the Apostle saith gods many but we know but one most holy God there are that will be called your Holiness in the world but this is the most holy God a God that is glorious in holiness yea whose glory is to be holy There is nothing stamps glory on any subject like holiness what is the difference between the Angels in Heaven and the Angels in Hell but Holiness that is their glory the the holy Angels and that is their shame the sinful Angels and what was it that made Canaan a better land than another was it not the holiness it was the holy Land what was it that made the Temple a better place than another was it not because it was the holy Temple Yea it is the glory of all the Attributes of God that they are holy His Justice would look like severity but that it is holy His Power would look like Tyranny were it not holy His Love would look like fondness were it not holy His Patience would look like a toleration of sin were it not holy therefore it is said the Lord God glorious in holiness Now this most holy God is the Author of this Faith and so it is a most holy faith it being the Word of the most holy God and will you leave and not hold fast this most holy Faith But then besides It may be â—aid to be the most holy faith in this sence too that it is its nature where ever it comes to make the subject in whom it is most holy saith the Apostle you hath God chosen to wit by Faith to be a peculiar people a holy Nation Acts 15.2 it is said He hath purified their hearts by faith and he will give them an â—nheritance among them that are sanctified by faith It may be called the most Holy Faith in these two respects First Considering the operation and effects it hath upon the hearts and lives of them in whom it is it makes them a holy People beyond all the people in the world And then upon this account too as to the uhimate effects of it that it admits us into the most holy places You know the Holy of Holies in the Temple was a Type of Heaven and Jesus Christ is said to enter into the Holy of Holies that is into Heaven Now this doth admit us into the most holy place where the most holy God is saith the Apostle Having therefore boldness to enter into the holiest by the bloud of Jesus Alas in the time of old they could go but into the outward court but now saith he We have all this boldness to enter into the most holy place by the bloud of Jesus Shall we leave such a Faith as this shall we not hold fast the most holy Faith that is from the most holy God that makes the most holy people and that admits us into the most holy place Where do we find such another Faith as this is if you leave this Faith that is so good in it self a Faith that doth so much good to us and which is better that makes us so good for it is much better to be made good than to have good done unto us and beloved what will it avail us if God should do us good all our days if we be not made good if we should have the good of health and wealth and long life and yet not be made good all this while it avails us not now this is the nature of Faith it is good in it self it doth good to us and it makes us good therefore beloved let us not lay it aside until we can find a better and that we shall never do unless we can find any thing more holy than God But secondly The second Branch of the Object is the Profession of our Faith It seems Beloved it is not enough to hold fast our Faith only but the Profession of it why so truly there is this in it the profession of faith is as necessary as the faith it self mark that See this from the mouth of that great Apostle I may say from the mouth of God himself Rom. 10.9 10. That if thou shalt with thy mouth confess thy Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thy heart that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation An unprofessed Faith hath no salvation annexed to it you see the Scripture maketh it as necessary to our salvation to profess our believing as to believe Now beloved if it be necessary to believe and necessary to profess it s then necessary to hold fast Faith and consequently as necessary to hold fast the profession thereof without Faith there is no salvation faith the Scripture and saith this Scripture without the profession of this Faith there is no Salvation now to say I will keep faith I will only part with a little profession it is all one in Scripture as to part with Faith it self for why the Scripture faith If thou believe with thy heart and confess with thy mouth thou shalt be saved so that as long as faith continues profession is to continue or there is no salvation faith without profession will do no more for you than profession without faith therefore observe what the Apostle speaks Heb. 3.13 saith he We are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end not else Thirdly A third Argument is drawn from the act with the qualifications let 's hold fast without wavering Now there
Be stedfast and unmoveable knowing that your labour shall not be in vain in the Lord. Mal. 3.13 there is the like instance Your words have been stout against me saith the Lord yet ye say what have we spoken so much against thee this God is always quarrelling with us and laying things to our charge what have we said in the 14 verse Ye said it is in vain to serve God and what prosit is it that we have kept his Ordinances we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts and now we call the proud happy yea they that work wickedness are set up yea they that tempt God are even delivered well now what follows They they that feared the Lord spake often one to another as if they had said let not these things take any thing off the edge of our affections or quench any flame of our love did God take any notice of this now that he had any such friends in the world yes saith he God hearkned and heard and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord and that thought upon his Name and they shall be mine saith the Lord of hosts in that day when I make up my Jewels and I will spare them as a man spares his own son that serves him there is a time coming the day will declare whether it be serving God or the Devil well then beloved as ever you would hold fast the profession of your Faith take heed of the error of the wicked never think it vain to serve God though you may lose bâ— it for if ye lose for him ye shall never lose by him Thirdly Would you hold fast the Profession of your Faith then lay up the word of Faith in a good and honest heart Luke 8.15 It is said there of the good ground they are they which have heard the Word kept it or hold it fast where do they lay it up now in a good and honest heart so that you must pull out his heart before that you can pull out the Word and will any man suffer his heart to be torn from him you never hold it fast till you lay it up in a good and honest heart if it be only in the hands as a Bible in your hands or in the head it will be gone but if it be in your hearts you will never let it go therefore observe saith he Having heard it they keep it and hold it fast in an honest and good heart and bring forth fruit with patience they had a great deal of sufferings to bring with patience for if they were not under suffering what need were there of patience Well beloved consider a little further as to this the Connection between the verse preceding the Text and the Text saith he Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled with a pure conscience and our bodies washed with pure water Let us hold fast the profession of our faith the purity of the heart is the best preservative of the Faith 1 Tim. 3.9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience a good and honest heart will never part with the mysteries of faith Lastly Would you hold fast the profession of your Faith then look much to and often consider Jesus Christ the Author and finisher of your Faith David had got the faculty of walking with God and how was it saith he I will keep thy loving kindness before mine eyes that I may walk with thee Oh! if we do but keep the loving kindness of God in Jesus Christ before our eyes we shall certainly keep the faith Saith the Apostle having a high Priest over the House of God let us draw near and let us hold fast a high Priest that is Jesus Christ our great high Priest Heb. 3.1 Wherefore holy Brethren he partakers of the heavenly calling consider the Apostle and high Priest of our Profession Christ Jesus Heb. 4.14 Seeing then that ye have a great high Priest that is passed into the Heavens Jesus the Son of God let us hold fast our Profession Heb. 12.2 Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the Cross despised the Shame and is set down at the right hand of the Throne of God! Oh! let us be thinking of and looking to this Jesus You will say what shall we think of him Oh! think of this condescension in the world of that vouchsafement which as was never the like of his how he humbled himself and suffered being God for man Think how he became poor that was rich that we that were poor might become rich think how he became a curse think how he became sin for us think what a good Confession he made before Pontius Pilate even to death and was obedient to the death Think how he conquered death by dying and how he rose again by his Almighty power and ascended into Heaven and ever lives to make intercession for those that come to the Father through him Think how he lived here on earth in a sad condition and joyed in it so that it might be for our good and shall we leave such a Christ as this Oh! can you look upon Christ and leave the Profession of your Faith It cannot be keep Christ before your eyes make him your pattern and you will not you cannot do amiss He that saith he abides in him ought to walk as he walked he walked in obedience all his days and was obedient to the death So must we we must walk in all obedience all our days though we dye for being obedient You see now how many Arguments there are for our holding fast the Profession of our Faith There are many now that might be added but the time is past therefore I shall shut up all in the words of Jude from the 20 ver of this Epistle to the end But you Beloved building up your selves on your most holy Faith praying in the Holy Ghost keep your selves in the love of God looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life and of some have compassion making a difference and others save with fear pulling them out of the fire hating even the garment spotted by the flesh Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling and present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy to the only wise God and Saviour be Glory and Majesty Dominion and Power now and for ever Amen Mr. Matthew Newcomen His Farewel-Sermon Preached at Dedham in Essex Aug. 20.1662 Rev. 3. Verse 3. Remember therefore how thou hast received heard and held fast and repent I Began this Scripture the last Lords day in this Congregation I told you then there were three Doctrines obvious in the Text the first was Doct. 1. That it is the Duty of Christians to remember those Truths that they have heard and received Doct. 2.
means never did Christ knock louder 7. I stand at the door a poor cold place I stand despised and contemned but besides many in the mean time are let in and I kept out and that out of my own house 8. I stand at the door ready to have my Patience turned into Fury therefore let me come in quickly 9. I stand I that am blessed in my self I that can make thee infinitely eternally blessed I that am c. do stand therefore prethee prethee open What 's that 'T is hear and know remember believe and do And this would give me a fair retreat into my Text If ye know these things happy are ye if you do them I beseech you to consider you have known these things cursed wretched for ever are ye if ye do not do them happy for ever if you do them Thus I have given you a short account of these things lately delivered to you you must not impute any of my weaknesses to my Reverend Brethrens labors that went before the God of Heaven bless you and reward them a thousand fold And oh whatever God doth keep up this exercise in the midst of us You have abundantly reaped Gods Spirit I hope there is something done in this Congregation that Eternity it self shall never be able to blot out I confess this is no Fasting-day but yet however we may make it such a day as since God is pleased to give us an Ocean to return him some drops Beloved 't is very probable that it will be the last motion that ever I shall make to you while I live in this way if I were now to go from my Pulpit to my Grave this should be the double motion I would make to you 1. For Gods sake prize the Word of God 2. Labor to prize the Word of God by the worth of it that you may never come to prize the want of God by the want of it And if you would express your prizing of the Word Never any man repented he had given so much to a good use doubtless my children wants it now or my Wife wants now c. And I can assure you I think there was never so many Thanksgivings made to God for this City of London as for their abundant Charity in this respect Mr. Craddacott's Farewel Sermon Phil. 4. latter part of Verse 9. And heard and seen in me do and the God of Peace shall be with you FRom this Verse we may observe three Doctrines That the Peoples eyes must be taught by the Ministers holiness of life as well as their ears by the Ministers soundness of Doctrine Paul did not preach one thing and practice another he practised as he preached and he both practised and preached the fore-mentioned Duties in the verse before the Text. And to this end the Lord appointed a Ministry to be perpetuated through all Ages of the World And it is the Lords appointment that the peoples ears should be taught with sour'd Doctrine to the matter and manner of it and it is the Lord appointment that the Peoples eyes should be taught by the Minister holiness of life as well as their ears by their soundness in Doctrine and this is necessary for the Minister himself and necessary for the people No marvel then that a faithful Ministry is the Butt of the Devils malice of his craft and cruelty and that the Devil hath in all Ages attempted and endeavoured utterly to overthrow the Ministry or to poyson and fly-blow it shamefully and this is the method whereby Satan hath endeavoured to fly-blow the Ministry Why then see the folly and madness of those people who affect or cry up those Ministers who do not teach their people with sound Doctrine or a holy life and whether there be no such Ministers which do not teach their peoples eares with soundness of Doctrine or their eyes with a holy life and whether there be not such a people as do cry up such Ministers and whether or no such people are not guilty of spiritual folly and madness judge ye Doct. A Ministers soundness in Doctrine and holiness of Life and Conversation doth lay a very great obligation on a people to a due conscientious practice of every commanded duty The Apostle we see maketh his Preaching and Practice an argument to excite the Phillippians to the fore-mentioned commanded duty as in the Text and the verse before the Text. As first of all the Appellations and Titles given in Scripture to such Ministers whose Doctrine is sound and whose lives and conversations are exemplary holy They are called 1. The Salt of the Earth as Math. 5.13 read that saith Christ to those great Teachers of the Gospel and Dispensers of his Oracles and in them to their Successors Salt hath two things in it namely Sharpness and Savouriness and thus Ministers First must rebuke sharply that people may be sound in the Faith as Paul enjoyns Titus as in the 1. of Titus and 13. verse And secondly Ministers must speak savoury things to every person and to every palat that their people may be savoury both in heart and life but to be as unsavoury as stinking Carrion in the Nostrils of the Almighty God under such a savoury and seasoning Ministry this is woful It is the nature of Salt to cause barrenness where it seasoneth not Therefore we read of Abimelech in Judges 9. ver 45. That be sowed the City with Salt So that people who live under a sharp and savoury Ministry and are not seasoned therewith and preserved from putrefaction in their sin and corruption thereby their case is very dangerous They are called again The Light of the world in Mat. 5.14 read that As for their Doctrine The Salt of the Earth so for their lives The Light of the world and they must therefore lead convincing lives as Job 5.35 read that It is there said of John the Baptist our blessed Lord and Saviour gives him this commendatory Character or Testimonial That he was a burning and a shining light burning in himself and shining to others Or as it was said of Basil Thundring in his Doctrine and Lightning in his Life and Conversation Now if good Ministers be the Light of the World then hence we may inferr 1. Inference First That without a godly and faithful Ministry the World lyeth in darkness ignorance error sin and misery It is said of Galilee in Mat. 4.16 That the people that sate in darkness saw great light read that Why had they not Priests and Levites I answer They had indeed sorry Priests but they had not a faithful Ministry and therefore the Evangelist tells them They sate in darkness yea in the region and shadow of death notwithstanding the sorry sottish Priests they had But when they had a faithful Ministry they are said to see a great light Again if good Ministers be the Light of the World then we may draw this Corollary That to be offended at the Light of a faithful a
while Stephen sees nothing but blood here below he saw Heaven above And Christ rells his Disciples In the world they shall have tribulation but in him they shall have peace 6. And lastly Though this be one great work of the Spirit of God to comfort the hearts of Christs Disciples yet there are some special seasons wherein the Spirit of God gives out this comfort There are seasons of sadness there is a season of heaviness and there is need of it There is a time to weep and a time to laugh a time to mourn and a time to dance I shewed you some of the Seasons 1. One special season of the Spirits comforting the renewing Soul is presently upon the Souls first salvation After the spirit is become a Spirit of Adoption presently it becomes a Spirit of Consolation after the Spirit hath come into the soul in the Law it then nextly appears a Spirit in the Gospel 2. Another season when the Spirit gives out this comfort is just before the Lord layes upon his people any great affliction When was it that Christ was transfigured and his face did shine as the Sun it was immediately before his bloody passion Christ was first taken into the Mount before he was lifted up upon the Cross When was the voice heard This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased but just before he was led into the Wilderness to be tempted When was Paul lifted up into Heaven it was immediately before Satan was sent to buffet him Thus God gives his people something beforehand to support their Spirits that they may not faint the Disciples were full of comfort Acts 5 41. And when was this immediately just before they were carryed before the Council and whipt up and down like Vagabonds and Rogues for preaching the Gospel 3. Another Season when the Spirit gives out this Comfort is in the time of suffering God comes in the nick of time especially if a man suffer for righteousness sake if this suffering be upon the account of Christ he seldom sails to send the Comforter for the relieving of his Spirit 1 Pet. 4.13 But rejoyce in as much as ye are partakers of Christs sufferings that when his glory shall be revealed ye may be glad also with exceeding joy Bodily confinement and in ward straits are the time of the souls greatest inlargement John had his vision in the Isle of Patmos When a Child of God is brought to a piece of bread then is the season for God to feed him with heavenly Manna Jacob had glorious Visions while he was flying from the wrath of his Brother when he had nothing but a heap of Stones for his Pillow It was in the Wilderness that God speaks to his Church thus I told you of Mr. Glover a Prisoner who found no comfort in the time of his imprisonment but when he was going to the stake he cryed out He is come be is come meaning the Spirit the Comforter 4. Another season of Comfort is after some special exercise of grace godly sorrow-for sin free actions in the pardon of sin and new Engageme â—â—s and Resolutions and Promises of more close walking with God after declining from him 5. Another season of Comfort is After some great Tryals and Afflictions Light is then most pleasant when we newly are come out of a dark place after Thunder comes Lightning after a Storm comes a Calm God led his people first into the Wilderness and then into the Land of Canaan It is often so in Gods Dispensations towards his people their greatest Afflictions go before their greatest Deliverances And therefore let not the Saints of God despair when they are at the lowest when they walk in darkness and see no light yet let them trust in the Lord. 6. Another Season of comfort was when men were conscienciously diligent in their particular Callings then they walk with God To this I gave you an instance in the Shepherds they were faithful and diligent in their Callings they were watching over their flocks by night and then the Angel comes and tells them To you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord Luke 2.11 A company of poor Shepherds keeping of their Sheep God appears unto them and manifesteth his comforting Presence when the Scribes and Phaâ—isees notwithstanding all their long prayers and their strict Rites and Ceremonies hear not a word of him 7. Another Season of comfort is when we are either preparing for or in the spiritual act of some duty When grace is exercised to prepare the heart to pray and in attendance upon such an Ordinance then oftentimes the Spirit of God is with them to let poor souls in their endeavors finde acceptance with God Hannah had been praying to God But what melody did she finde in her heart When Mary sate â—at Christs feet how doth Christ fill her heart with comfort sealing up her salvation to her I now come to close with some Application Vse of Information Use If it be the work of the Spirit of God to comfort the hearts of Christs Disciples then by way of Information I gather this That a poor soul is very hardly setled and satisfied in point of Comfort Sure it is a hard matter to comfort a poor soul when one of the Persons of the blessed Trinity must be employed on purpose to do it This is an office belonging to the Holy Ghost when he is to be the Paraclec the comfort of the Holy Ghost This sure is a hard matter to comfort the wounded spirit when the soul is full of the spirit of bondage Oh! the hesitates the jealousies the doubts and fears the objections that a poor soul makes against his spiritual peace and comfort now it begins to take comfort then it doubts again now he believeth and takes courage but anon he is afraid there is a great deal ado to fasten comfort upon a poor soul 2 Cor. 1.22 23. What a heap of Words are there together and it is all little enough to comfort a poor soul Now he that establisheth us with you in Christ and hath anointed us is God and hath also sealed us and given the earnest of the spirit in our hearts It is not without much tugging and drawing that the soul is first brought to believe and then when it doth believe it is a hard thing to perswade it that it doth believe There is a strange kind of squemishness upon the heart he thinks that there is no comfort to be taken that doth belong to him Luther says It is a harder thing to comfort a troubled Conscience than to raise the dead Surely it must be as hard when nothing but the same power must do it The soul is hardly convinced but all the glad tidings of the Gospel are golden streams and all the Promises are but pleasant Fancies without any Reality but that these things should belong to him this he cannot believe for want of faith
another and if he hath it not from the Spirit of God he will seek it some other way if he hath not comfort from the Spirit of God he will seek some sparks of his own kindling rather than they will sit in darkness without comfort they will light their candle at the Devil's fire And as he delivereth from temptation on the right so he delivereth from temptation on the left hand he that is filled with the comforts of the Holy Ghost what are sufferings to such a man he hath that within will carry him through all danger here is that comfort and that life by Christ which may ease us in our greatest crosses this will make a child of God speak of the sufferings of this world as a light matter Our light affliction which is but for a moment shall work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory They took joyfully the spoiling of their goods because in Heaven they had a better and more enduring substance Heb. 11.35 Some were tortured receiving no deliverance because in Heaven they had a better substance Oh if you would be kept from the snares of the World let your comforts be above the power and danger of temptation from any thing here below 3. By way of Direction How shall we have communion and aâ—t fâ—ith upon the Holy Ghost as your Comforter the Holy Ghost is designed and appointed by God the Father to this Office now you know none love to be slighted in their Office and if we do not act faith upon the Holy Ghost we slight his Office therefore we should have recourse to him in a way of believing as we should act faith upon Christ for the pardon of sin so we should act faith upon the holy Ghost for a sense of that pardon 2. Go often to Jesus Christ and beg him and beseech him to entreat the Father for you Go to God the Father in the name of Christ and beg it upon the account of Christs Prayer and Intercession that he would send the Comforter and you have a good argument to enforce the Petition the very same as the Disciples That Christ would when he went away Pray the Father and he should send you another Comforter Christ tells them that some there were that would kill them and in so doing think they did God good service therefore Christ in compassion to them in the state that he left them in prays the Father that he would send the Comforter So now we must go to God those Ministers that were wont to comfort us are now to be taken from us our Barnabas's sons of consolation their mouths are to be stopped though Ordinances are now to be damned up the Houses of God made places of defilement our Teachers are removed into corners our Troubles encrease and we have none to tell us how long the light of our eyes the comfort of our hearts in respect of outward means are going from us whither shall we go we want Bread for our Souls we want cordials for our Hearts Blessed Saviour pity us and since thou wilt not come to us in thy own presence as thy Embassadors to come to us by thy Spirit do now in Heaven as thou didst on earth Pray the Father for us do not leave us so many Orphans without Father or Mother but send thy Spirit to refresh our Souls See how we are hated and reviled and we must suffer these things now Let us have thy Spirit 3. If you would have communion with the Spirit of Christ in his comforting work Take heed you do not lay up your comforts in the Creature this is to seek for the living among the dead those that rejoyce in the Creature rejoyce in a thing of nought and you that have an interest in God God will not take it at your hands if you seek it any where else no not in Ordinances though God would have you to seek comfort in Ordinances yet he would not have you to seek comfort from Ordinances 4. Set down and be much in duty Psal 63.5 6. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips when I remember thee upon my hed and meditate on thee in the night-watches If you look at the beginning of the Psalm you shall finde that this Psalm was penned when David was deprived of the Ordinances of God Many a man complains that he lives uncomfortably no wonder when he little thinks on Christ 5. Be much in the exercise of grace Then they that walked in the fear of the Lord when they walked in the comfort of the Holy Ghost 6. Take heed of quenching and grieving the Spirit your Comforter by neglecting his motions or by acting any thing against the minde of the Spirit Do not sin against him as your enlightning Spirit that will hinder him as your Comforter I close with a word of comfort to the people of God If it be one of the great works of the Spirit of God here is matter of great comfort to those that stick close to Jesus Christ Sure your comforts will be satisfying comforts and sufficient because they are comforts of the Spirits working The Lord Jesus hath promised to make up the want of his bodily presence by sending his Spirit He was now going from them and tells them That he could not stay and this was sad news to the Disciples who were ready to break their hearts and the best comfort that he could afford them was to tell them That he would send the Comforter If Christ can comfort his people in the absence of himself surely he can comfort them in the want of all other comfort that relate either to soul or body and so in the want of mercies in the want of outward Ordinances he can comfort the soul It is the Spirit of God that can comfort in the use of these and if he will he can do it in the want of them he can comfort us in the wilderness where no water is when he doth deny the means he can comfort us without where he denies us the stream he can make us drink at the Fountain 7. And lastly The people of God find hereby that their comforts are abiding Your liberty your friends ah Ordinances of and Ministers may be taken from you your Ministers may be banished your Ministers may be imprisoned but here is a Comforter that abides for ever And though they may keep your Ministers out of the Pulpit yet they shall not take the Comforter out of your hearts So that when I shall not preach any more to you I shall pray the Father that he would send you another Comforter that he may abide with you for ever Mr. Bull of Newington-Green his Farewel Sermon in the After-noon Acts 20.32 And now Brethren I commend you to God and to the Word of his Grace which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among them that are
in these we may see him in these we may enjoy him by these we may be made like to him as in 2 Cor. 31.18 But we all with open faâ—e behold as in a Glass the glory of God and are changed into the same Image from Glory to Glory even as hâ— the Spirit of the Lord. Thirdly They make their abode with them in the Spirit which proceeds from the Father and the Son So they may both be said truly to abide with us while we have the Spirit the Comforter which proceeds from the Father and the Son as a pledge of their love Joh. 15.20 When the Comforter is come whom I will send unto you from the Father I will send him says Christ even the spirit of truth which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which proceedeth from the Father There is an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Procession of the Holy Ghost from the Father and the Son to the People that keep his Word and thus Believers are said to hold fellowship with the Father and the Son in the first Epist of John 23. It is by the Spirit we are drawn being drawn we come being come we are enabled to walk with God in Christ It is the Spirit that doth for all us As in the Eccho the Aire being moved by the voyce returns the same sound by its own motion So in all our Communion with God and Christ the Soul being moved by the Spirit returns answer by vertue of the Spirits motion in us Come says the Spirit I come says the Soul being taught by the same Spirit All the works wrought on the Souls of men in order to Salvation are wrought of God and Christ in us but by the Spirit As in these three special particulars First By the Spirit they instruct and teach The Spirit is an enlightening Spirit a Spirit of Judgment and of Burning The Spirit reveals the counsels of God the great Mysteries of the Kingdom leads into all Truth makes men wise to Salvation Secondly By this Spirit they quicken and comfort the Souls of men Rom. 5.5 It is by the Spirit that the love of God iâ— shed abroad in our hourts Our cold and frozen spirits are warmed and made fit for action and by this Spirit we are awakened Hence the Church prayes for the breathings of this Spirit Cant. 4.16 Awake O North-wind and come thou South blow upon my Garden that the Spices â—â—â—of 〈◊〉 flow out Thirdly By his Spirit they do strengthen and establish the hearts of men in the ways of Holiness thus they are made strong in the Lord and in the power of his might strong to resist temptations strong to suppress corruptions strong to perform duties by this Spirit they are carried through all difficulties by this Spirit their infirmities are healed they are made to persevere and kept stedfast and unmoveable alwayes abounding in the work of the Lord and sealed up to the day of Redemption Thus God and Christ do make their abode with them that keep the Words of Christ till they come to make an everlasting abode with them in Heaven And according to the workings of this Spirit more or less in the hearts of men God is said to be present or absent from his people Secondly The Reasons why God and Christ will make their abode with them that keep his words First Because of their special love to and care of them that keep his words Indeed all the care of God is concerning his people that he hath in the world therefore in the second Commandement he is said to shew mercy to thousands of them that fear him and keep his Commandments that do not cast his words behind their backs and forsaking his Appointments follow their own Inventions So that if we faithfully keep his Word he will abide with us in our work And this is the great Reason in the Text My Father will love him not but that he loves his Elect from Eternity but he will manifest his Love to them and therefore he will make his abode with them as the people of his Love for in Deut. 32.9 The Lords Portion is his People and Jacob is the Lot of his Inheritance And in Mal. 3.17 they are called his Jewels and men will abide with their Treasure Secondly Because of the near Relation that is between God and Christ and them that keep his Word That is a very full place of Scripture for this purpose Mat. 12.50 Whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in Heaven the same is my Brother and Sister and Mother What nearer Relation can there be than these So near are they to Jesus Christ that keep his Word observe his Will and be true and faithful to his Appointments and sure such near Relations will desire Cohabitations on both sides First God and Christ are said to stand Related in a Paternal Relation Secondly They are said to stand Related in a Conjugal Relation First God and Christ stand in a Paternal Relation to his People First God is their Father and they are his Sons and Daughters And this the Church doth acknowledge in Isa 63.16 Doubtless thou art our Father though Abraham be ignorant of us and Israel acknowledge us not thou O Lord art our Father c. And with this the Lord comforted mourning Zion Isai 49.14 15. But Zion said The Lord hath forsaken me and my Lord hath forgotten me But God says Can a Woman forget her sucking child that she should not have compassion on the Sons of her womb Yea they may forget yet I will not forget thee Behold I have graven thee on the palms of my hands c. My abode is with thee Secondly Jesus Christ is their Father Isai 9.6 The everlasting Father Therefore he promiseth his Disciples in this 14 John 18. I will not leave you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Orphans or Fatherless children He is the most affectionate tender-hearted Father Tam pater neâ—â— tam pius nemo None so good none such a Father as he says Terâ—ul Secondly God and Christ stand related to them that keep his Word in a Conjugal relation and God hath laid a special command of co-habitation upon persons in this relation The man must dwell with his own Wife First God is related as a Husband And will not God dwell with his People when he hath espoused to himself I will betrothed thee unto me for ever Hosea 2.19 Yea I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness and judgment and in loving kindness and in mercies I have even betreth thee unto me in faithfulness And in Isai 54.5 6. For thy Maker is thy Husband c. For the Lord hath called thee as a Woman forsaken c. Secondly Jesus Christ is the Husband of his People as we see in the whole Book of Canticles And so in Ephes 5. from the 29. Verse to the end of the Chapter Now where shall God and Christ make their abode but with their espoused Ones Doth Jesus Christ delight to
diligently enquire Thus David with a very vigilant eye seeks him whom his soul loved Psal 132.4 5. I will not give rest to mine eyes nor slumber to my eye-lids till I have found out a place for God c. Lastly Resolve with your selves never to give over till you come to the perfect and full enjoyment of them as Job said I will wait all the days of my appointed time so do you seek all the days of your appointed time if we would finde God and Christ we must all seek the days of our lives They that will finde what they seek must seek till they finde As God in the Creation did not rest till he had man so man should not rest till he hath found God and as in the Redemption Jesus Christ did never cease seeking till he found all the lost sheep of the house of Israel so we should never give over till we have made God and Christ our own This should be the work of our lives and upon this work I must leave you For now I must tell you that perhaps you may not see my face or hear my voice any more in this place yet not out of any peevish humor or disaffection to the present Authority of the Kingdom I call God and Man to witness this day it being my own practice and Counsel to you all to fear GOD and Honour the KING but rather a real dissatisfaction in some particulars imposed to which notwithstanding all endeavors to that purpose my conscience cannot yet be espoused Wherefore I hope in this and in all my abode with you I may say without ostentation with the Apostle in 2 Cor. 1.12 Our rejoycing is this The testimony of a good Conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity we have had our conversation in the World especially to you-wards And as he saith in Acts 20.26 27. So I take you to record this day that I have endeavoured to be pure from the bloud of all men for I have not shunned to declare unto you the whole counsel of God both by my life and Doctrine because I knew this very well that as one says Suadet loquentis vita non oratio that the Preachers life is the most lively Preaching I shall onely add this my Friends that though my Lips be sealed up that I may not speak from God to you yet I shall not cease to speak to God for you as ever I have done And though I cannot have you in my eye yet I shall lodge you in my heart and asking nothing of you but your Prayers shall hope to meet you daily at the Throne of Grace and that at last we may enjoy one another in Heaven And because they say the words of a dying man makes the deepest impression before I am altogether civilly dead I shall give you one Exhortation more Secondly Let it be your endeavour to keep God and Christ with you that they may make their abode with you in their hearts and houses that whatsoever you loose you may not be undone In the General First Take heed you do not slight or abuse his Providences Secondly Do not despise or neglect his Ordinances Thirdly Be sure you do not grieve his spirit Secondly Observe more particularly these ten Directions which I would leave with you That God and Christ may make their constant abode with you First Endeavour to please God and Christ and to walk as the Gospel commands in all well-pleasing And for this purpose Observe these three Rules First Entertain God and Christ like themselves Now they are come to you as Solomon did his Temple which he had prepared for God The Heaven of Heavens cannot contain thee much less this poor Tent so with the most humble frame of spirit admire his greatness and infinite condescension for he is the King of Glory as in Psal 24. And so give him suitable entertainment for he will dwell with the humble and contrite spirit If Elizabeth wondred at the visit which Mary gave her with a Whence is it that the Mother of my Lord is come unto me then admire that the Lord himself should come not only to visit your hearts but to make such a gracious abode with you And as the Centurion said unto Christ in the Gospel I am not worthy thou shouldest come under my roof So acknowledge your unworthiness of so rich and unparallel'd a grace that God and Christ should come in unto you to abide with you Secondly Wait upon God and Christ with all readiness of minde to observe every intimation of the will of God to you Stand always ready as Servants wait upon the hand of their Masters saying in your hearts Lord what wilt thou have me to do or what wilt thou have me to suffer It is the frame and posture which Christ commends unto his Disciples Luke 12.35 Let your loins be girded about and your lights burning to do his will as it is done in Heaven Thirdly Take pleasure and delight in the company and society of God and Christ above all the pleasures in the world Do nothing without first calling God and Christ into the action Remember this in these four cases especially First Pray God and Christ along with you into all your spiritual duties that you may be sure to perform them all according to the mind of God None knows better what will please God than himself do not enquire so much what others say but what God appoints 't is not what this or that man says how we must serve God but what God says himself as Augustin said to the Manichee in another case Nec egote nec tu me sed ambo audiamus Apostolum So hear what God and Christ says to us as to the performance of all our duties If we will entertain God and Christ and have their company we must set before them such savory meat as they like lest we be like them Mat. 15.9 of whom Christ says In vain do they worship me c. and our service be like theirs of which the Lord said Who hath required these things at your hands O what was that great evil the people were guilty of for which there comes that heavy judgment Psal 78.60 He forsook the Tabernacle of Shiloh the Tent which he placed among them Sure it was some great guilt in the former ver we find it to be their Hypocrisie Apostacy and Idolatry any taint of this kinde will make the jealous God forsake our solemn meetings Secondly Pray God and Christ into all your Civil affairs The Greeks 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with God in their entrance upon every work was a commendable practise It is reported of Publius Scipio the Roman that he would always go first to the Capitol and then to the Senate so we should begin our Civil employments with spiritual duties And do as Abrahams servant when he was to take a Wife for his Master's Son he took God along with him and thus to abide with God
his Disciples your Fathers good pleasure to give you the Kingdom 3. Doct. That every true Believer is interessed in the Kingdom of Heaven the great God will bestow the Kingdom of Heaven upon Believers 4. Dâ—ct That the Kingdom of Heaven is the free gift of God It is the Fathers good pleasure to give you a Kingdom The Kingdom of Heaven comes not to a Believer by his own merits nor by his own deservings but by God's free gift the free grace of God is the great motive it is God's good pleasure so to do The Saints cannot merit heaven by their holiest actions though they walk never so closely with God no no the Kingdom of heaven is God's free gift unto Believers 5. Doct. Lastly That the consideration of a Believers interest in the Kingdom of heaven should make him chearful and couragious in the practice of holiness and keep him from being dismayed and discouraged at all the afflictions and tribulations that he meets withall in the world this Doctrine is gathered from the Exhortation in the Text and the reason of it taken together the Exhortation viz. Fear not little Flock the reason of the Exhortation viz. For it is your Fathers â—ood pleasure to give you the Kingdom intimating that this one consideration that God will bestow the Kingdom of Glory upon his people hereafter should make them with all willingness and chearfulness to wade through all the calamities and incumbrances of this frail life A Believers heavenly interest should make him rejoyce in the midst of all his tryals and tribulations that he meets with from the hands of men here on earth I shall â—huse out the second and last of these observations to go on upon not having time and liberty to insist on them all that observation then which I shall first of all insist upon is this viz. Doct. That God is a Believers Father or that every true and sincere Christian hath God for his Father and is a child of God It is your Fathers good pleasure Before I come to the confirmation of this Truth I shall shew how many ways a people or person may have God to be their Father and they may be his Children First A people or person may have God for their Father by Creation as God is the great Creator of the World and they are his Creatures in this general sence God is a Father to all the Men and Women in the World to this refers that Scripture Mal. 3.10 saith the Prophet there Have we not all one Father Hath not one God created us but it is a more peculiar son-ship that belongs to Believers they have God for their Father in a more special and peculiar manner than this is Secondly A people or person may be the children of God and God may be their Father by profession Thus God was a Father to the Jewish Nation of old because they among all the Nations of the World did profess to own the Lord for their God and to serve and worship him and in this respect God doth profess himself to be a Father to Israel Jer. 3 9. I am a Father to Israel saith God Ephraim is my first-born And thus God is a Father to all those that do profess his Name But if this be all the claim that we can lay to God as our Father that he is so to us and that we are his children only by an external profession this will not entitle us to the Kingdom that eternal inheritance that God hath laid up for his people in the life to come it is therefore yet in a more peculiar manner that Believers have God for their Father Thirdly A person may have God for his Father by adoption and regeneration and thus true Believers and only such are the children of God and God is their Father 1 John 12.13 To as many as received him to them gave he power to become the Sons of God even to them that believe on his name which were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God These are the sons of God the strictest and most peculiar sons that shall be made partakers of all the priviledges of the children of God viz. those that receive Christ into their hearts by faith and such as are truly regenerate and born again these are the true and genuine children of the most High the heirs of God and coheirs of Jesus Christ as the expression is Rom. 8. these are the children of whom it was spoken 2 Cor. 6. last I will be a Father unto you and you shall be my sons and daughters saith the Lord Almighty Having thus shewn unto you the several respects in which we may have God for our Father I shall come to the confirmation of it and shall prove that Believers have God for their Father in this special and peculiar manner there are abundance of Scripture-proofs for this in which Jesus Christ speaking to his Disciples calleth God their Father Mat. 5.16 Let your light so shine before men that they seeing your good works may glorifie your Father which is in Heaven And ver 48. Be ye perfect as your Father which is in Heaven is perfect Mat. 6.8 Your Father knoweth what things you have need of before you ask them Mat. 18.14 Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in Heaven these little ones should perish Joh. 20.17 Go tell my brethren saith Christ that I ascend to my Father and to your Father to my God and to your God By these and other Scriptures we may see that God is set forth to Believers under the relation of a Father to them And as God is called in Scripture a Believers Father so they are called sons Gal. 4.6 Because ye are sons God hath sent forth the spirit of his Son into your hearts crying Abba Father Wherefore thou art no more a servant but a son and if a son then an heir of God through Christ Again 1 Joh. 3.2 Now we are the Sons of God but it doth not yet appear what we shall be when we shall appear we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is Gal. 3.16 The Apostle speaking to the unbelieving Galatians saith We are all the Children of God by Faith which is in Christ Jesus I shall no longer insist on the confirmation of this Doctrine but shall come to the application of it Vse Is it so that all true believers are the children of God and have God for their heavenly Father then the first use may be of comfort and consolation to the godly in that they are so nearly related to the great God believers by virtue of their son-ship having God for their heavenly Father have abundant ground of comfort and consolation upon these several accounts First They are under his fatherly care and providence fathers take care for their children to provide them things necessary as meat drink and apparel ab iisdem
keep him from being dismayed at all the trouble and calamities that he meeteth withall in the world Fear not saith Christ little flock for it is your Fathers good pleasure to give you the Kingdom In this Observation there is two things supposed First It is supposed in this Doctrine that believers have an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven This I need not now stand to prove having spoken to it already in the handling of the former Observation God being their Father he hath provided an eternal inheritance of glory for them in his eternal Kingdom Secondly It is supposed in the Doctrine that believers are like to meet with opposition from the world they are diligent in the practise of godliness are driving a Trade for Heaven they shall be sure to meet with abundance of trouble and hindrance from the world and the Prince of the world this is a truth exceeding manifest both from Scripture and experience We shall be hated of all men for his names sake Mat. 10.22 And because Christ hath chosen his people out of the world therefore the world hated him Jo. 15.19 And experience makes this evidence in all ages of the world those that are godly walk with God they have been sure to have their portion of afflictions and tribulations from the hands and tongues of the malicious and ungodly world my design is to shew what little cause the Servants of God that have an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven to be afraid or dismayed at any of these hindrances and oppositions that they meet withal in their way to Heaven For the handling of this Doctrine and the fiting of it for our improvement by Application I shall speak to these three things First I shall shew you by some instances from the word of God how the Saints that have had an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven have been incouraged in the ways of God and have had their spirits born up in their lowest condition and in their greatest tryals and troubles here below Secondly I shall shew you that believers are dehorted from dispondency and being dismayed under their sufferings upon the consideration of their Heavenly interest Thirdly I shall give you some Reasons why believers that have a Title to the Heavenly Glory should be couragious and undaunted and not dismayed at all their eternal Trials and Tribulations that they meet withal from the world and so shall come to the Application First For the first of these I might give you many instances from the word of God of the courage and magnanimity of the heirs of Heaven in their Tryals as David how couragious was he in the Lord even in his lowest condition Psalm 46.1 2 3 4. God is our resuge and our strength a very present help in Trouble therefore saith he will we not fear though the earth be removed though the Mountains be cast into the midst of the Sea though the Waters thereof roar and be troubled though the Mountains shake with the swelling thereof Selah Psalm 118.6 The Lord is on my side I will not fear what man can do unto me David he had put confidence in God and therefore was not afraid of man where the fear of God is and where the hope of glory is there the slavish fear of man will quickly vanish away this no doubt was that which made the three Children not to be afraid of the fiery Furnace nor Daniel of the Den of Lyons Dan. 3.16 and 6. We have a notable example to this purpose Hab. 3.17 18. Although the Fig-tree should not blossome nor fruit be in the Vine though the labour of the Olive should fail and the fields should yield no meat though the flocks should be out off from the fold and there should be no herd in the stall yet will I rejoyce in the Lord I will joy in the God of my salvation The consideration of his heavenly interest and that God was the God of his salvation was that which not only kept the Prophet from being dismayed but also made him to rejoyce in the absence of all creature joys and comforts the want of these worldly things were not able to abate his heavenly joy which he had in the God of his salvation The consideration of their heavenly interest and their title to the everlasting glory was that which made the Apostles of Christ so couragious and comfortable under all their sufferings that they underwent for Christ This was that which made the Martyr Steven so fearless and undaunted when he was on the brink of death and when the stones flew about his ears when he could look up into Heaven the place of his Inheritance where he was going and take a view of that Heavenly glory Acts 7 55. A believer that can look up by an eye of faith upon Christ and Heaven and take a view of the unseen world the place of his eternal rest and felicity will be able in some measure to undergo with comfort the sharpest and bitterest persecutions that the malice of Men or Divels can expose him to This was that which made Paul and Sylas sing praises at midnight when they were shut up in prison and their feet in the stocks Acts 16.25 This was that which caused the believing Hebrews to take joyfully the spoiling of their goods even the consideration of their interest in the Kingdom of Heaven Heb. 10.34 For ye bad compassion of me in my bonds and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods knowing that in Heaven you have a better and a more enduring substance Their knowledge of this their interest in the Heavenly riches made them willingly to part with the earthly riches for the sake of Christ Secondly The next thing to be spoken unto is this to shew that the people of God upon this consideration of their interest in the Kingdom of Glory have been dehorted from fear and dispondence and exhorted to courage and magnanimity in the ways of God Upon this consideration it is that Christ exhorts his little flock in the Text not to fear because that God would give them the Kingdom of Heaven How often are the Servants of God in Scripture dehorted from fear Isa 41.10 Fear not I am with thee be not dismaied I am thy God Vers 14. Fear not thou worm Jacob and ye men of Israel I will help thee saith the Lord thy Redeemer Isa 50.7 8. Fear ye not the reproach of men be not dismayed at their revilings for the Moth shall eat them up like a garment and the worm shall eat them like wool but my Righteousness shall be for ever and my Salvation from Generation to Generation And again Vers 12. Wâ—â— art thou that shouldest be afraid of a man that shall dye and of the Son of man that shall be made as grass and forgetteth the Lord thy Maker that stretched out the Heavens and laid the foundation of the Earth And our Saviour in the New Testament to the supporting of Believers
under their afflictions and tribulations tells them that it is a blessed thing thus to be dealt withal by the World Mat. 5 10 11 12. Blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and speak all manner of evil against you falsly for my sake rejoyce and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in Heaven And Luke 6.22 Blessed are ye when men shall hate you and when they shall separate from you their company and shall reproach you and cast out your name as evil for the Son of mans sake rejoyce in that day and leap for joy for behold your reward is great in Heaven The consideration of our interest in the Kingdom of Heaven should keep us from being dismaved though we are hated persecuted reproached by the prophane world but should make us rejoyce rather and leap for joy Thus much for the second thing which is That the people of God are dehorted from fear and dispondency and exhorted to courage and magnanimity in the ways of God from the very consideration of their interest in the Kingdom of Heaven Thirdly I shall give you the Reasons why Believers those that have an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven should not fear not be dismayed at any outward trouble opposition or tribulation that they meet with in the world First It is very unsutable for one that hath secured the heavenly interest and his title to eternal glory to be dismayed at thing of nought how unsutable is it for one that is an Heir of Heaven to be excessively grieved and disconsolate because he meeteth with some rubs in his way thither Oh how unseemly is it for a child of light to walk in darkness and heaviness because somewhat of the world falls a cross to his expectation or desire for one that is to enjoy eternal happiness in the life to come to be dismayed and perplexed at every petty cross that he meeteth here below how unseemly is it for a child of God and Heir of Heaven for one that shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the Heavenly glory to go up and down drooping at inconsiderable crosses and light afflictions which are but for a moment For a worldling that hath all his good things here and hath no other portion but in this life to be grieved and perplexed at his external losses and troubles this is not so much for such a one to be grieved when he is thwarted in his designs and when the world falls a cross to him this is but sutable and agreeable to such a one because he hath placed his Hope his Contentment his joy and delight in these things and therefore being deprived of them he is deprived of his best things his Portion his All. But for a Child of God one that hath an interest in eternal life and glory to be cast down and dismayed at such small things as the affliction trials and tribulations of the world Oh what an unseemly thing is this as if their Heavenly interest did not give them greater cause of joy and rejoycing then those external worldly afflictions do give them cause of sadness and disconsolation The Frantick mirth of the prophane World that are in the high way to Damnation and the groundless perplexities of the regenerate Children of God are both alike unsuitable and unseemly although not both alike dangerous To see a Worldling that hath nothing else to comfort and support him but the fading enjoyments of this present life to be merry and jovial as if all were well and on the other hand to see a believer that is an heir of Heaven to live in a drooping and disconsolate state because of these outward troubles is cause of pity and lamentation Secondly As it is unsuitable for a child of God that hath secured his eternal state and made sure of his heavenly interest to be dismayed at the afflictions of the world so it is very unwarrantble believers are commanded to be much in holy rejoycing Rejoyce saith Christ to his Disciples because your names are written in Heaven Luke 10.20 Be glad in the Lord Oh ye righteous and shout for joy all ye upright in heart Psal 32.11 Rejoyce in the Lord oh ye righteous for praise is comely for the upright Psal 33.1 Rejoyce evermore 1 Thes 5.16 Oh how exceeding unwarrantable is it then for those that have an interest in the heavenly Glory to be discouraged at their outward afflictions by which they do disparage Religion and frighten away others from the doors of grace Thirdly It is irrational for one that hath secured his interest in the Heavenly Kingdom to be afraid of his worldly afflictions and tribulations seeing all the losses and crosses in the World are as nothing comparatively to such an one Let a Child of God but weigh and ponder such things aright and compare the cause of joy that he hath by virtue of his heavenly interest on the one hand with the cause of sorrow that he hath by reason of the crosses of the world on the other and he will see that he hath a thousand times more cause of joy than of sorrow and therefore the thoughts of his heavenly interest should swallow up those of his worldly troubles and disappointments I reckon saith the Apostle Paul that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us Rom. 1.18 And the same Apostle tell us elsewhere Our light afflictions which are but for a moment work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory 2 Cor. 4.17 Now is it not unreasonable for a believer to be grieved and disquieted with those light afflictions which shall be recompenced with an eternal weight of glory What can a child of God lose as long as his God his portion his interest in Heaven is safe and secured to him What are all the losses that he can sustain in the World as long as he is interested in the Eternal Kingdom of Glory I must tell you Believers ye that walk holily and closely with God and have a title to the Kingdom of Heaven for you to be grieved and discontented because all things do not concur according to your desires in the World is unreasonable and absurd as if a rich man that hath a great Estate and fair Houses and Orchards should be disquieted because the winde bloweth away a few leaves from his Trees Is not the Kingdom of Heaven that thou art entitled to enough to make thee amends for all thy troubles and calamities in the end Art thou troubled by the profane World and vexed up and down by thy Enemies and not suffered to rest in quiet And is it not enough for thee that the Kingdom of Heaven is the place of thine eternal rest and happiness where thou shalt be for ever advanced above their reach Art thou
shortly become a feast for Worms though they may be adorned with all the Ornaments that the pride of man can invent and friends and riches and will but accompany us to the Grave and there leave us and Oh what will then become of us if we have no interest in Christ and Heaven and can no lay claim to the eveâ—laâ—ing Glory If you ask me how we shall do to secure our interest in the Kingdom of Heaven I answer it must be by a through closure with Christ by saith and chusing of him for our Lord and Saviour God hath ordained that those that are united to Christ by faith here on earth that they shall be with Christ and live with Christ in Heaven Heaven and Glory is the Dowry that God giveth with his Son Jesus Christ and they that will Marry the Heir shall have the Inheritance and if we are Christs then all will be ours 1 Cor. 3.22 23. Whether of Paul or Apoâ—os or Cephas or things present or things to come all is yours and ye are Christs They that have an interest in Christ have a Title to all Let us therefore contract our selves to Christ resolving to be no longer our own but his and to live no longer to our selves but to him let us chuse him to be our Lord and Saviour and take him upon his own Terms as he is offered to us in the Gospel to be our King Priest and Prophet and when we are once thus united to Christ by faith we shall be coheirs with him of the heavenly Inheritance all this will be ours when we are Christs by a self-resignation and submission and when Christ is ours by a believing choice and election when we have thus made choice of Christ upon his own terms to be our Lord and Saviour our portion and our all and have given up our selves to him to be wholly his and at his dispose this will undoubtedly give us a sâ—m and an unquestionable title to Heaven Secondly The next address that I have to make is to those that are the Heirs of this Kingdom and have a Title to this Heavenly Inheritance Is it so that a Believers interest in the Kingdom of Heaven is enough to bear up his spirit under all his troubles and afflictions and to keep him from being dismayed under his sorest Trials and Tribulations that he meeteth withal from the World then the Exhortation that I shall give to you is the same that our Saviour giveth in the Text Fear not little Flock for it is your Fathers good pleasure to give you the Kingdom You that have an interest in the Heavenly Glory Oh be not dismayed nor affrighted at those outward afflictions and tribulations that you meet with here below it is true God doth often exercise his dear Children with Trials Afflictions and Tribulations this is the way by which God doth discipline his Children while they are in their Minority here this Believers must count upon before hand but there is not any of those things that should make a believing Christian dismayed seeing his eternal concernments are so safe and his Heavenly interest is secure And there is no Trouble nor Cross that the Saints can meet withal but that we are somewhere or other in the Word of God exhorted not to be afraid of it Do we meet with reproach from men is that the Cross we undergo this indeed is heavy insomuch that the Psalmist complains that his heart was broken by it Psal 69.20 Yet the Servants of God the Heirs of Heaven are cautioned not to fear that â—a 51.10 Fear not the reproach oâ— men nâ—r be afraid of their revilings or is the affliâ—tion that thou meetest withal imprisonment for the sake of Christ and of a good Conscience this is likewise grievous and heavy to be born yet the Heirs of Heaven are exhorted not to fear that neither Rev. 2.10 it is Christs advice to the Church of Smyrna Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer behâ—ld the Devil shall cast some of you into Prisâ—n that ye may be tryed and 〈◊〉 shall have Tribulation Ten days be thou faithful unto the death and I will 〈◊〉 thee a crown of â—ife Those that hâ—â—◠〈◊〉 interest in the crown of life imprisonment for the sake of Christ if God shouâ—d call them thereunto nay put case thou wert to suffer death it self for the sake of Christ this is the greatest and sorest of all sufferings yet the servants of Gâ—d are cautioâ—ed not to fear that neither for it can be but a bodily death and it will make way for a better and happier life Mat. 10.28 Fear not them that can kill thâ— body but are not able to kill the soul Whatsoever thâ— sufferings be thou that art a Believer and hast an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven thou art exhorted not to be afraid of it Oh Christians I beseech you act faith upon your Heavenly Interest I might tell you it can never be more seasonable so to do than now the more you act faith hereupon the more you will be enabled to live above the frowns of a troublesome and vexatious world Oh look up by an eye of faith upon â—he recompence of rewards and you will be able to prefer the afflictions of the Saints before the vain and transitory pleasures of unregenerate sinners which endure but for a moment and to chuse the greatest affliction before the least sin as Moses did Heb. 11.25 26. And let the joy that is set before you make you to endure the Crosses of this world and to desâ—ise the shame as the Captain of your salvation hath done before you and let the hope of the Glory of God make you rejoyce notwithstanding all the scorn and contempt that you meet with from the world But because of our frailty and aptness to be afraid and dismayed at afflictions and tribulations I shall see before you some considerations which if well weighed might by the blessing of God do much to the curing and removing of those fears and discontents that are aâ—t to seize upon us when we are exposed to Trials and losses in the world First Consider Christians you that have secured your heavenly interest are you in sore Troubles and do you meet with hard dealings from men it may be you may bring more glory to God bâ—â—our afflictions lâ—sses and crosses in the world than if you should always be in a quiet prosperous and serene condition it may be God mâ—â— have a greater Revenue of glory by thy troubles and â—â—â—als than by thy prosperity in the world and shall we not be wilâ—â—â—g to bâ— in such a condition howsâ—ever unpleasant to our corrupt fleâ—h in which we may be most sâ—rviceable fâ—r Gâ—d and bring most hâ—â—â—uâ— and 〈◊〉 to him It is a sign that we have little love to God or indeed to 〈◊〉 own souls if we do not prefer the Glory of God before our own ease and carnal contentment what do we but
mock with God in our prayers when we pray that his Name may be glorified if we are dismayed and discontented when God is glorified by us in our sufferings because they are tedious and irksome to our flesh If we are unwilling that God should be glorified by our sufferings If we are unwilling to honour him in an afflicted state why do we then in our prayers pretend to beg that God may be glorified Oh how much is God glorified many times by the sufferings of his people when as he is dishonoured by the secure and sensual lives of many thousands that are in prosperous calm and quiet condition in the World I might give you many instances from the Scripture to such that the sufferings of Gods people have tended very much to the setting forth of the high praises of the Lord. Oh how much have the sufferings of the Israelites been all along of Joh of David of Hezekiah of the three Children of Daniel and so under the New Testament how have the sufferings of Stephen Paul Silas and the rest of the Apostles and Martyrs resounded to the honor and glory of God for whom they suffered Indeed Gods people do more honour and glorifie God by their sufferings than by their doings for him Let us not then be dismayed though we may be in a troublesome and suffering condition seeing this is a condition in the which we are most capable of doing service for God and of bringing most honor and glory to him Secondly Thou that hast an interest in the Kingdom of Heaven art thou in an afflicted suffering condition in the world to bear up thy fainting spirits consider that affliction and tribulation is that by which God is pleased to cleanse and purge his people from sin Afflictions are like Black-soap which doth seem to soil the Cloath and make it more filthy yet it purgeth and cleanseth it and maketh it more white at length it is as the fire into which the Gold may be thrown yet it is not consumed but refined and puriâ—ied thereby it loseth only its dross so the Saints are not quite consumed by their afflictions but sanctified and they lose only that filth dross and rust that doth mix it self with grace in their hearts by this shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged saith God speaking of afflictions and this is all the fruit to take away his sin and shall we be unwilling to have our sins purged It is true as for those that are Reâ—robates God usually lets them alone to go on and die and â—erish for ever when as yet God is pleased to correct his people and to cast them into the Furnace of affliction because he intends mercy to them and surely it will be known one day that there can be no greater Judgment befall poor Creatures than to be let alone without chastisements to take their own swing in sin and Oh how many thousands are now in Torment for that they were let alone in their sins and never chastised by Afflictions in their Life time when as Gods people are chastened of the Lord that they might not be condemned with the World 1 Cor. 11.32 And which is easier to be born external tribulations in this life or eternal torments in the life to come one of these two will certainly befall every man and woman of us either we shall be chastened here or condemned hereafter the wicked are oftentimes let alone here they are not in troubles as other men Psal 73. but they are condemned with the World The Goâ—ly they are often chastized of the Lord here but it is in mercy to them that they may be purged from sin and not condemned with the world And David tells us that by his afflictions he was reduced from going astray and brought back again into the Fold of God Psal 119.67 Before I was afflicted I went astray but now have I kept thy precepts And shall we be dismayed at the means whereby we are kept close to God and are kept from falling away from God A man is willing to take a bitter medicine to purge away that disease which would otherwise kill him Nor is he troubled at the working of his Physick though he have many painful gripes so long as it tends to the removing of those obnoxious humours and diseases which would otherways bring him to his grave And shall Christians be afraid of the bitter Cup of Afflictions which by Gods blessing purge away their sins which are the diseases of their Souls and so preserve them from eternal death Thy trials here are to purge thee and cleanse thee that thou mayest not lie in Eternal torments in the world to come And shall Christians be dismayed at that which tends to their Eternal health and Salvation and to the keeping of their Souls from Hell We should rather rejoyce to be in that condition whatsoever it be by which we may be most purged and preserved from sin Standing poâ—ls do usually contract filth and mud So those Christians that are setled upon the lees in a prosperous state and condition they do verâ— frequently get filâ—h and corruption The people of God are never made the freer from sin by their freedom from outward affliâ—tions This then is the second consideration to keep the Saints from being dismayed at their afflictions in the World because thereby they are purged from sin which would otherways prove the bane of their souls Thirdly You that are the heirs of Heaven and have an interest in the Eternal Glory you are in affliction and tribulation in the World be not dismayed For coâ—â—ider that the thing do tend to the exercisinâ— and increase of our â—â—aces and tâ— the making of â—ou eminent in Grace and â—â—linesâ— Aâ—d will you be daunted at that which tend to the making of you more holy Will you be grieved at that which tends to the increasing of your faith patience humility heavenly-mindedness and to the making of you more eminent for holiness and godliness Believers are usually greater gainers by their afflictions in the World than by their external prosperity yea many times they are losers by their prosperity when as they have been great gainers by their troubles and adversity Oh how many have gained in grace and holiness by their losses in the World the servants of God were never more eminent in grace than when they were least and lowest in their outward estate true graces are the diamonds that shine brightest in the darkest night and these shine clearest in the obscurest night of adversity The Saints in Scripture were then most eminent for holiness and godliness and all other graces when they lay under greatest troubles and tribulations from the World and how exemplary in holiness and how eminent in faith and heavenly-mindedness were the Martyrs when they were afflicted tormented imprisoned burned and persecuted with the most grievous persecutions from the hands of wicked men when as the prosperity and pleasures of the wicked did tend
of you but when we come again unto you I will have you to be of another manner of temper then now you are Well if all that I have said will not prevail with you I am sorry that nothing would prevail with you but the flames of Hell Oh then you will say Oh that we had but hearkened to the voice of God's Messengers that are sent to us Oh that we had our rousing Ministers to awaken us I have one of Advice to you that are the people of God whose hearts God hath humbled and I shall have done First I advise you that God hath humbled for sin now to look to your selves God will not now lead you you must learn now to go alone If you would keep tender hearts then be afraid of sin as well of the least sins as of the greatest Be afraid of a vain thought and if thou takest heed of a vain thought thou wilt be afraid of telling a lye and if thou takest heed of telling a lye thou wilt be afraid of swearing an Oath Secondly If thou wilt keep tenderness of heart then lye under the best Ministry you can get that there is a difference between some mens Preaching and others is plain by the effectual working of their Preaching upon the hearts of their hearers First Take heed of a blind ignorant Minister If the blind lead the blind they will both fall into the ditch If one that understands not what sin is nor feels not the guilt of sin Preaches Repentance it is ten hundred to one if ever God doth work upon your hearts by his Preaching Secondly Take heed of fly shun avoid an idle drunken Minister If you would ask me what we shall do in such a case I Answer Keep such a one out of your Parish if you can if you cannot then I advise you to take heed how you hear him First Because all such Ministers are no Ministers at all No what and are ordained No because they are not sent from God And let me tell you that men have no power to Ordain such to Preach the Gospal as are not sent by God I do verily believe that God never sent any Minister for to Preach the Doctrine of Salvation but such as God hath endowed with gifts and abilities to speak and if there be any Ministers that have not those qualifications that are fit for a Bishop to have then they are none of Gods Ministers although they are made Ministers by man 1 Tim. 3.1 2 3 4 5 6 7. This is a true saying If a man desire the Office of a Bishop he desireth a good work A Bishop then must be blameless the husband of one wife vigilant sober of good behaviour given to hospitality apt to teach not given to wine no striker not greedy of filthy lucre but patient not a brawler not covetous own that ruleth well his own house having his children in subjection with all gravity For if a man know not how to rule his own house how shall he take care of the Church of God Not a Novice lest being lifted up with Pride he fall into the condemnation of the Devil Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the Devil Here is all these excellent qualifications that a Minister of the Gospel ought to be endowed with Secondly I say that those Ministers that are not endowed with these qualifications but are ignorant drunken Ministers it is generally observed that people grow more wicked and that their hearts grow harder while they live under such a Ministry Object But how if we are forced to hear such and we can do no others wise if we will not hear them our purses must pay for it Answer To this I answer I wish that every place had an eminent Minister that you might gather up Manna at your own dores But if your Minister be wicked and prophane he is no Minister of Christ and in such a case you must rather hazard your purses than you souls But the Doctrin that he preaches it is good 'T is true it is so if it do not come out of a stinking vessel The water that is drawn out of a sweet Well if it be put into a stinking cask it will smell of the cask But I would not have you to be quarrelsome A Third advice that I shall give you is this Be sure that you ply the company of those that are of a tender heart It is a true saying Birds of a feather will flock together Take heed of being in the company of such as will swear and of living with such as scoff at religion It 's true a tender holy heart may live among wicked company as Lot did in Sodom but let me tell thee there 's danger they 'l tempt thee to be like them Lastly My advice is this Be sure that the Bible be much in your hand you that can read and beg of God to give you an understanding heart When God bids you to be holy think of Heaven Let the Bible be much in your hands and let God see you much in your Closets Mr. G. N. his Farewel-Sermon Rom. 8.38 39. For I am perswaded that neither Death nor Life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers nor things present nor things to come nor Height nor Depth nor any other Creature shall be able to separate us from the Love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. IF divine Providence shall make this the season of our separation it is good for us to part with each other in the meditation and consideration of that from which those that are Gods shall never be divided that is the Love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. The Apostle is very confident of it I am perswaded We shall conclude the Chapter with our present Imployment and therefore shall not stand long discoursing on every particular but first briefly open them unto you and after improve them First We meet with the. Apostles Confidence a strong perswasion from whence we may learn Confidence belongeth unto a Christian yea it is the priviledge of the Gospel Col. 2.2 That their hearts may be comforted being knit together in love and unto all riches of the full assuring of understanding c. This is what you may daily stand in need of therefore be perswaded to press toward it The Apostle calls to give all diligence to make your calling and Election sure Great diligence it is you give to assure the title of your earthly possession is it not of far greater concernment to assure your Calling and Election unto an everlasting enjoyment of divine Love And that you may do this remember to live 1. Lest unto this present World 2. More in heaven For then will you be more acquainted with the concernments and counsels thereof Do but draw up your hearts out of the cares pleasures and delights of this present world which choak the Word and
Christ Jesus Consult with flesh and blood and that will never teach you to believe but an ignorant presumptuous Faith This concerneth me not to have my thoughts plunged about this or that worldly care but to become a new Creature in the renewing of the spirit of the mind Fourthly Consider ever 1. To follow Peace 2. To follow Holiness 3. To exercise Patience 1. To follow Peace Two of these you have in the Hebrews Heb. 14. Follow Peace with all men and Holiness without which none shall see God Do not esteem it your interest to contend Let the Peace of God rule in your hearts Fret not thy self because of evil doers It is an easie matter to sin in our Anger a rare thing to moderate anger against sin so as not to sin in that anger 2. To follow Holiness Refuse Peace that cannot be enjoyed without Holiness It is upon the view of God I shall see what kind of love he is and Christ saith Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God Resolve to follow holiness not greatness riches c. And he that will do so Christ saith shall suffer persecution in this present world Wherefore it will be good to consider 3. To exercise patience Let us add upon that account 1. Love not the World 2. Love not your own Wills 3. Value your own Souls 1. Not the World The Text saith 1 Joh. 2.15 Love not the World neither the things that are in the world If any man love the world the Love of the Father is not in him For all that is in the world the Lust of the flesh the Lust of the eye and the Pride of life is not of the Father but is of the World And the World passeth away and the lust thereof but he that doth the Will of the Father abideth for ever The love of this world maketh a man to be in respect of the Prince of this world as a Bird in the Fowlers snare There is no way sooner to sin away their everlasting Love than to love this present World 2. Love not your own Wills That person is neither prepared to do for God nor to suffer for him that nath not learned something of this lesson of Self-denial There is no divine service but in doing Gods Will and that I cannot do but by parting with my own delivering up my self unto him to be led and guided by his holy Spirit Christ saith If any man will be my Disciple let him deny himself take up his Cross and follow me 3. Value your own Souls The great care and consult is for gratifying the body if but part of that time were spent on the soul which is on the needless care of the body it might render it in a far better and more goodlier posture Let every one think I carry that in my bosome is of more value than the whole worlâ— neither can the whole world recompence the loss of it and if we have such jewels let us take care to secure them A careless common spirit doth not become a Christian Let none imploy their time in disputing this or that vain Opinion but spend it on your souls Secondly In order unto the particular divine Providence now ending of our Ministry unto you 1. Whatever happeneth on this account let it be your exercise to cry out for the holy Spirit of Christ he will grant you a greater supply than you may expect from any man whatever So Christ comforteth his Disciples Though I go yet I will pray unto the Father and he shall send you another Comforter and he biddeth them pray for it also Even so as for what concerneth us this we cannot be denyed to pray that God would send out his holy Spirit among you and upon you and while we may speak unto you we desire you to pray for it also Our work did lye but to bâ—ing men to Repentance by conviction of sin to believing by the shewing of Righteousness and to convince of both by Christs conquest over sin This Christ sheweth his holy Spirit the Comforter can do Joh. 16.8 9 10 11. And when he is come he shall reprove the world of Sin of Righteousness and of Judgment Of sin because they believe not on me of Righteousness because I go to my Father and ye see me no more of Judgment because the Prince of this world is Judged This is a suitable and sufficient reply 1 Joh. 2.27 But the Anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you and ye need not that any man teach you but as the same Anointing teacheth you of all things and is truth and is no lye and even as it hath taught you ye shall abide in him That Anointing was the Spirit pour'd out on our Head Christ Jesus and ran down the skires of his garments not that instruction should cease but this Spirit can either fill it administred or supply it being wanting And the withdrawing of this present Ministry may be to cause you to pray more incessantly for this holy Spirit day and night And Christ promiseth The Father will give it to them that ask it 2. Be more frequent in your converse with the Scripture It is the Pillar of Truth and by a frequent converse with it also you will find a pure mind stirred up to remember 3. Be more frequent in Meditation Let not the world swallow up all your time so as not to meditate on your Souls the Scriptures and Heaven The meditation on Gods Law keepeth us from the Counsel of the ungodly from standing among sinners or sitting down in the seat of the scornful Psal 1. It is worthy of our wonder any should read the Scriptures believing them indicted by a holy Spirit and yet scorn Holiness Religion c. 4. Be more usual in personal private and family Duties Devotion God doth call those that know how to address themselves unto him to a more earnest private devotion Jacob was alone when he wrestled for a blessing There are particular seasons in which God calleth his people into a retirement Isaiah 26 20 21. Come my People enter thou into thy Chambers and shut thy dores about thee hide thy self as it were for a little moment until the indignation be over-past For behold the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the Inhabitants of the earth for their iniquities So also Zech. 12.11 12. And in that day shal be a great mourning in Jerusalem as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon And the Land shal mourn every Family apart the Family of the House of David apart and their Wives apart the Family of the House of Nathan apart and their Wives apart the Family of the House of Levi apart and their Wives apart all the Families that remain every Family apart and their Wives apart In that day there shal be a Fountain opened to the House of David and to the Inhabitants of Jerusalem for Sin and for Vncleanness If I
of thy Spirit and all for Christ his sake for whom we bless thee to him with thee and thy holy Spirit be Praise and Glory for evermore Dr. Anesley 's Prayer at Giles-Cripplegate HOly and great God of Heaven and Earth suâ—h his the condescention of thy Grace that thou art pleased to manifest thy special 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 than to behold iniquity 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 to mind the business that we come about and to deal very faithfully with our own souls in the matters of eternal moment Oh 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 souls may know what it is to be in the Spirit in the Lords day Dear Father thou canst deal with such hearts as ours for the curing of them we pray thee do it we must needs acknowledg hadst 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 agravations of our sins to render us monstrously abominable the means of grace we have afforded us the stirrings of thy spirit in us the patience and goodness 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 benum'd that the stirrings of them are scarce discerned or perceived our affections are spent upon the creature that we cannot gather them up again our wills are perverse our memories are apt to retain the dross and let out all that is good we pray thee for Christs sake make an experiment upon our souls what thou canst do what sinners Christ can save what corruptions the spirit of God can subdue in our souls teach all our hearts do not stand behind the wall and look through the latice do so much as may leave us without excuse but good Lord put thy hand in at the hole of the door and let thy fingers drop honey upon the handle of the Lock And oh set open these everlasting Doors that the King of glory may enter in Subdue us intirely to thy self do not ask our wills whether we be willing or no but make us willing do not ask us what we would have but give us what thou knowst is good for us Dear Lord we pray thee deliver us from sin according to thy hatred 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 those that wait upon thee shall renew their strengths we have no might the Devil bastles us our own hearts are treacherous to us The world intices us to sin against God oh deliver us from all these enemies especially from the plagues of our own hearts that we may perfect holiness in the fear of God give us spiritual blessings whatsoever thou givest us or whatsoever thou deniest us thou knowest thou art rather willing to give us spiritual blessings than any other mercies and we want spiritual mercies most Oh oh give us spiritual Mercies that we may say This is the way of God in his Sanctuary Where grace is not wrought work it where it is begun increase it Dear father convince those that are not yet convinced Make thy word a quickning word an ingrafted word to the saving of our souls help us to hear as for our lives as those that long after God Hear Prayers for the King bless him in his Royal Relations and grant under him we may live a quiet life in all godliness and honesty Bless the Magistrates and help them to remember that causes one day must be heard over again Help thy Ministers to keep close to thee in ways that are well pleasing Be with us at this time Lord assist the meanest of thy servants let our souls now find that thou dost magnifie thy word above all thy Name do us good receive us quicken us that we may live in heaven upon earth that we may know what it is to be filled with the fulness of God and know the heighth breadth depth and length of thy love that passeth knowledg Communicate thy self to us as thou usest to do to thy people let us feel thy presence let us not think of any thing but the business we are about let us with singleness of heart set our selves to mind thâ— concernment of our immortal souls and all we beg for Christ his sake who hath taught us thus to pray Our Father c. Dr. Bates his Prayer at Dunstans in the West O Lord thou art a most holy high God the Glorious Angels when they stand before thee cover their faces yet they dâ—d never violate thy Laws and if they how much more need have we to do it We are sinful dust and ashes our solemn Services are sin We desire to approach thy presence and to have an eye to thy glory in all our services and addresses We beseech thee give us a serious and a deep sense of our own hearts and vile affections that we may cast our selves down at thy feet with all humility We have infinite reason to be abased in our selves our God help us We came into the world with sin and as soon as we did breath in the air we infected it there is an infection and pollution in all our faculties what coldness is there in our affections and what unbelief in our faith and our wills do stand apopsite against thy holy nature VVe confess we have had ten thousand experiences of those corruptions that are within us for our while lives are full of provocations against God How many vain thoughts and how many rebellious actions Blessed Father we confess we are out of measure sinful we have sinned against the clearest convictions of thy word and the tender compassions of thy Gospel against the most severe promises we have made of our service to God against the checks of our own Consciences we confess the sins of the Heathens who live without God in the world are small in comparison of ours and we fear therefore a greater degree
of wrath will fall upon us O Lord how many ways hast thou used to reclaim us what Arts hath thy blessed Spirit used how many times hast thou approached to our souls and shewed us something of thy glory and the glory of heaven and the terrours of hâ—ll the one to allure us and the other to scare us But Oh! how many times have we grieved thy blessed Spirit who came to seal us and despised thy Son who came from heaven to earth and liv'd a sorrowful life and died a shameful death how often hath he offered us grace and glory if we would how to his Scepter but we have preferred a base lust before that excellency that he hath purchased us Oh how often hast thou condescended so far as to intreat us to be reconciled how easie hast thou been to forgive and how hard have we been to be forgiven VVe confess thou mighâ—est pass an eternal Doom upon us for we are sensible of the dishonour that we have brought upon thy Name Do thou at this time strike upon all these rocks that are in thy presence at this time give us hearts of flesh let our repentance pâ—eprare us for corversion let there be such a through conviction that thy grace and Mercy may be admirable in our eyes VVe intreat thee hear us pardon all our iniquities let us be monuments of thy grace and favour speak peace to our Consciences convey those clear evis dences of thâ—â—â—ve unto us that may inable us to scatter all our fâ—aâ—s that we may rejoice in God and have hope of glory Let the image of thy Son be engraven on all our hearts and let our souls be made subject to him while we are in the world preserve us from the evil of it If thou givest us out ward happiness give us withat inward holiness and if we do suffer help us with patience to bear all knowing we are in our journey and our passage to a better life and let our whole time be spent in a serious Preparation to appear before thy Tribunal and let us consider the unchangableness of that state hereafter Remember thy whole Church make the Name of Christ glorious in the world shed abroâ—d thy light and thy truth heavour back-slidings and love us freely Let thine Ordâ—nances continue among us and let thy blessing descend upon our sovereign Lord the King of England Scot and France and Ireland Defender of the Faith Incline his heart to thy Law make him an instrument of publick good protect his person and give him prosperous affairs Bless his Royal Consort his Relations his privy Counsel let them promote solid Piety and real Godliness Bless the Minister of thy Word and Sacraments Let their labours be precious in thy sight and remember all afflicted ones revive thy Mourners and let thy grace answer all their fears Let thy presence be in the midst of us and help us to hear as our last and let us be raised nearer heaven and make thy word powerful and effectual to all our souls and let thy word subdue our lusts and aâ—l we beg for the sake of Jesus Christ in whose Name and words we sum up our imperfect Prayers Our Father which art in Heaven c. Dr. Jacomb's Prayer at Martins Ludgate BLessed God thou art a God blessed for ever thou givest Mercy to all returning and repenting sinners thou art worthy to be praised by all that draw nigh unto thee Thou hast vouchsafed to us one Sabbath more Oh that we might all of us be in the spirit upon the Lords day that whatever we do we may do it in the strength of God that we may offer spiritual Sacrifices to God this day through our Mediator the Lord Jesus It is a very great condescention that thou shouldst suffer such as we are to come unto thee O Lord we are unclean we are unclean from the crown of the head to the sole of the foot we are overspread with the leprosie of sin all the faculties of our souls are defiled our understandings are darkened our wills are corrupted we have affections but they are carnal we have hearts but they are impure we have consciences but they are seared and as our inward man so our lives are unholy as the fountain is so is the stream besides that our general guilt that we brought into the world we are guilty of innumerable actual transgressions against thy holy Law We think O Lord there are no greater sinners in the world than we our sins are attended with many aggravations We have finned against Prayers against vows and promises we have had as much light shining before us as any in the world have had great is our unbelief Oh that we could lay these things to our hearts We do refuse to come to Christ we go about to establish a righteousness of our own and neglect the righteousness of God by faith in Jesus Christ how are our hearts glewed to the present things of this world Oh! what do we do for thy glory How unreformed are we under all the ways of God that he hath taken to make us a holy people Give us a sight of our sins O Lord we confess sometimes we do make a formal confession but we do not find our hearts melted for sin as they should Oh take away from every one of us this heart of stone give a heart of flesh give us tender hearts make us sensible of all our departing from thee Oh let us look upon him whom we have pierced let us mourn that the Water of penitential sorrow may flow from us we are strangers to our selves we do not see what a hell there is in our nature Oh! how should we put our mouths in the dust and loath our selves if so be there might be hope O Lord convince us of sin give us such a sight of sin as may make us flie to thee give us such a sight of our own guilt that maâ—â— prepare us for the Grace of Godâ— now we are sâ—ung with the fiery Serpents help us to come to Jesus Christ our brazen Serpent give us the holy Spirit to bring us out of the state of nature to let that God that made us Creatures make us new Creatures O Lord we are thine own work but we are dead in trespasses and sins give us grace and speak a word to them that are dead put out thine Almighty Power and draw some sinner to Christ this day and those that have any breathings after thee Oh! thou that gavest them that desire carry on thine own work in them where thou hast begun a good work carry it on let sin as the house of Saul grow weaker and weaker and grace as the house of David grow stronger and stronger Oh! increase our faith O Lord at this time we do not onely stand in need of grace but of a great measure of grace Oh! help us by faith to relie upon God that thou mayest help us at last Bless
pass and as vers 8. Fret not thy self in any wise to do evil 2. Take heed of such persons as by whom if you be not the more watchful you may be so offended as to be turned out of the way More particularly 1. Take heed of your selves This is that our Saviour calls for in that Mat. 16.24 If any man will come after me let him deny himself Our greatest danger is from our selves while we have within a deceiver and a traytor who is still conspiring to turn us out of the way Take heed therefore of your own selves consult not with flesh and blood Gal. 1.10 2. Beware of Satan This is that which the Apostle suggests 2 Cor. 3. I fear by any means lest as the Serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ And out of the like fear concerning you I beseech you beware of Satan and the rather for that as the Apostle saith vers 14. Satan is transformed into an Angel of light 2. Beware of false Teachers This is the advice of our Saviour in Mat. 7.15 Beware of false Prophets which comes to you in sheeps cloathing c. And though I cannot say I know with the Apostle in Acts 20.29 yet I am greatly afraid that after my departing shall grievous Wolves enter in among you not sparing the flock and that of your own selves shall men arise speaking perverse things to draw away disciple after them 4. Beware of worldly Friends such as will counsel you to spare your selves such as savour not the things of God but those that be of men This our Saviour calls for in that of Luke 14.26 Answer them as Christ answered Peter Mat 16.22 23. The proper use of this Point with respect to the people of God is to exhort and perswade them to wait on the Lord and keep his way however it be whoever they are that watch and plot against them however they may prosper in bringing wicked devices to pasâ— however they may prevail in oppressing the poor Saints yet this is the Exhortation that I have received from the Lord for you Wait on the Lord and keep his Way There are two branches of the Exhortation I shall speak to both of them distinctly And because the latter of them is the main and the former a help thereto in bad times I shall invert the order of the Text and speak to what is here the latter in the first place and the other as time will give leave 1. However it go Saints though the wicked watch to do you a mischief yet keep you the Way of the Lord diligently observing the way of his Commandements the way of your duty to walk therein For as much as it hath been the design of mâ— preaching all along to expound the Way of God to you and to instruct you in the way of the Lord And I am now directing my speech to the Saints of God who know own and profess the way of the Lord I shall not spend much time while I have so little left in recounting to you what I have taught you concerning the way of the Lord onely in general that way of truth and righteousness the way of faith and holiness which I have taught you from the word is intended You know the way of Gospel-Doctrine Gospel-Fellowship Gospel-worship Gospel-Discipline and Gospel-Conversation which I have preached and you have received And here beloved I call God to witness in whose Name I have preached to you that I have preached the way of the Lord sincerely and faithfully as I have received of the Lord by the teaching of his Spirit through the Word I therefore beseech and entreat you out of that hearty love I bear to you and that affectionate care I have for you that as you tender the Glory of God your own Peace here and eternal Happiness hereafter and the spiritual and eternal good of others that you will remember how you have heard and received and keep the way of the Lord. In the prosecuting of this I shall speak to these two things First Open this duty in a few particulars Secondly Give you some directions to help you herein For the first of these take it in these particulars 1. Be exhorted to keep the way of the Lord in your memories So Rev. 3 3. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard and hold fast I am speaking to those that have received the knowledge of the way of the Lord that they retain what they have learned and that they maintain an actual remembrance of it and the rather take heed to this every one of you with the greater diligence for that you are like to be deprived of the help of your Remembrancers viz. the faithful Ministers of Christ 1 Tim. 4.6 you have had their help a lâ—ng while in putting you from Sabbath to Sabbath in remembrance but this is taking from you as the Apostle in another case Heb. 2.1 Therefore ye ought to give the more earnest heed to the things ye have heard lest at any time ye should let them slip 2. Keep the Way of the Lord in your judgments and Consciences I am speaking to those whose judgments are enlightned and Consciences renewed to approve of the VVay of the Lord As therefore the Apostle unto them 2 Pet. 3.17 Ye therefore beloved seeing ye know these things before beware lest ye be led amay with the error of the wicked and fall from your own stedfastness So say I seeing ye know the VVay of the Lord and approve of it beware lest being led away with the error of the wicked and your own judgements being thereby corruped and your Consciences defiled you fall from your own stedfastness and I the rather press this for that as the Apostle hath it 2 Cor. 11.3 I fear lest by any means as the Serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ 3. Keep the Way of the Lord in your Profession I am speaking unto those who as Rom. 10.10 with the heart believe unto Righteousness and with the month make confession unto Salvation And you have the Exhortation in the words of the Apostle Heb. 10.23 Let us hold fast the profession of the Faith without wavering Be not ashamed of your profession as our Saviour speaks Mar 8.38 Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my Words in this adulterous and sinfull generation of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed when he cometh in the Glory of his Father with his holy Angels with Mat. 10.32 33. Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men him will I confess also before my Father which is in Heaven But whosoever shall deny me before men him will I also deny before my Father which is in Heaven 4. Keep the Way of the Lord in your hearts and affections loving rejoycing and delighting in the Way of the Lord