bear the Yoke of Christ in the time of Youth is the summary of all that is truly Good In the handing of this Doctrine I shall speak to these three things I. To open what Christ's Yoke and the bearing of it is II. To clear it up to you that to come under and bear it in time of Youth is the summary of all that is truly Good III. To close all with some Motives to excite and Rules to direct young Ones to come under this Yoke and to bear it in their Youth I. To open what this Yoke of Christ is To set this in its clear light Man is to be considered in a double Relation 1. As a reasonable Creature and 2. As a wretched Sinner Now answerable to both these Christ's Yoke consists of two parts 1. Moral 2. Evangelical 1. The Moral part of this Yoke chiefly respects that Duty which Man as a reasonable Creature oweth to God as his Creator and that is to serve and obey him as his Rightful Lord and to love him as his chiefest Good Now this still belongeth to us For Man as a Creature lieth under an eternal Obligation to love and serve his Creator neither ought you to entertain the least thought as if Jesus Christ the Son of God the Saviour and Redeemer of lost Souls when he came into the World did ever abolish or dissolve this Obligation and Bond of Duty to be in Subjection to our Creator O no that would have been as if Christ came to supplant his Father and dethrone him of his Authority and Government over Man O let this be far from any of us to think as besure it was from any design or purpose of our Blessed Redeemer when he came into the World For you read expresly that he came to redeem us to not from God Rev. 5. 9. and when he suffered for us the just for the unjust it was to bring us to God 1 Pet 3. 18. i. e. that he might bring poor Apostate Man back to love serve please and enjoy his God again And this brings me to the second Part of this Yoke 2. The Evangelical Part of Christ's Yoke which chiefly respects Man's Duty considered as a wretched Sinner And that he is as soon as he begins to be as the Psalmist acknowledgeth Behold I was shapen in Iniquity and in Sin did my Mother conceive me Psal 51. 5. Now this State and Condition of Man superinduceth a new Yoke which tho it was none of that which Man in Innocency was called to bear yet now Man having sinned and fallen from that Estate God in Christ out of his abundant Mercy calleth him to bear Remember whence thou art fallen and repent c. Rev. 2. 5. The Gospel Part to Christ's Yoke principally stands in its Commands and Precepts of Repentance Faith Self-denial and sincere Obedience as you may see in these following Scriptures Repent ye for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand Math. 3. 2. And Jesus preaching the Gospel saying the Kingdom of God is at hand Repent ye and believe the Gospel Mark 1. 15. Repent and be converted that your Sins may be blotted out c. Acts 3. 19. But now God commands all Men every where to repent Acts 17. 30. And our Saviour saith I am not come to call the Righteous but Sinners to Repentance Math. 9. 13. And in Luke 13. 3. he saith Except ye repent ye shall perish And so likewise for Faith without which it is impossible to please God Heb. 11. 6. And God so loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting Life John 3. 16. And when the poor trembling Jaylour cried out what shall I do to be saved the Apostle said Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved Acts 16. 30 31. And to this purpose you read That this is the will of him that sent me saith Christ That every one that seeth the Son and believeth on him may have everlasting Life John 6. 40. And again This is his Commandment that we should believe on the Name of his Son 1 John 3. 23. And our Lord severely threatens That if we believe not we shall die in our Sins John 8. 24. And that he who believeth not shall be damned Mark 16. 16. And so for Self-denial and Obedience Jesus Christ affirmeth If any Man will come after me he must deny himself Math. 16. 24. and Luke 9. 23. And that Christ is the Author of Eternal Salvation to them that obey him Heb. 5. 9. And the Gospel-threatning runs That Christ shall be revealed from Heaven with his mighty Angels in Flaming Fire taking Vengeance on them that obey not the Gospel 2 Thess 1. 7 8. And hence it is that the Children of Disobedience in Sacred Writ are called Children of Belial i. e. Qui nullis legum vinculis teneantur such as are without Yoke Masterless who are not will not be held by the Bonds of Christ's Commandment So that it is evident that by the Yoke of Christ is meant his Commands to repent believe and obey the Gospel all which have no other tendency but the Good and Happiness of fallen Man Quest But here it may be demanded why this is called a Yoke since its chief end and design is to make Man happy Answ That it is for the Good and Happiness of Man is most certain as you will see in its proper place But then it is here to be considered that it is not now with the humane Nature as it was when it first came out of the Hands of God but a quite different thing It is now become apostate and corrupt since the Fall The carnal Mind is Enmity against God it is not subject to the Law of God neither indeed can be Rom. 8 7. It hates to be reformed loves to wallow in the filth of Sin as the Swine in the Mire It is so woful daily Experience sheweth it as well as Scripture So that now Repentance Faith Conversion c. tho it be no other than the recovery of a lost Soul to God yet it s irksome and tedious to our corrupt Natures like plucking out a right Eye or cutting off a right Hand It is a pleasant thing to behold the Sun but it is a torment to a sore Eye Food is pleasant to the Healthy to the Hungry but loathsome to the Sick Alas by Nature we are sick unto Death and love Darkness rather than Light there is an aversness to Self-Reflection especially in time of Youth O how backward and unwilling are Youth to retire and consider their Sins and take pains with their Hearts to get them affected with their Danger they cannot endure the Yoke of Conviction of Sin and Reproof for Sin nor to be restrained their vain Company and sensual Pleasures but as Zophar saith Man is born like the Ass his Colt Job 11 12. exceedingly given to ramble and run a stray eagerly bent
of Water O the astonishing height and depth of this Grace especially when you shall consider the readiness of our compassionate Redeemer to impart of this Fullness to poor undone Sinners that come to him and this is also necessary to know and understand in coming under his Yoke for unless the Soul be perswaded of this it will be clogged with such insuperable Difficulties and Discouragements and loaded with such innumerable Doubts and Fears as that it will have little heart to move towards or venture upon Christ and his Yoke Wherefore he is stiled a merciful and faithful High-Priest who knows how to have compassion on the ignorant and them that are out of the way Heb. 2. 17. and ch 5. 2. How readily did this Merciful Jesus impart of his Fullness to poor Sinners in the Days of his Flesh upon their coming to him and how affectionately did he invite the heavy laden in the day of their trouble for Sin to come unto him Math. 11. 28. and how pathetically did he weep over obstinate Jerusalem that would have none of him to reign over them Luke 19. 41 42. how lovingly did he treat that froward and perverse Woman of Samaria saying If thou knowest the Gift of God and who it is that saith unto thee give me to drink thou would have asked of him and he would have given thee living Water John 4. 10. And in the 5th of John 40. how doth he breath out his Grief at our backwardness to come to him saying ye will not come unto me that ye might have Life In a word never was the full Breast of a tender Mother more desirous of being drawn than Christ in whom all Fullness dwells is willing and ready to let out Supplies of Grace and Mercy to poor Sinners now this is necessary to be known in order to our coming under his Yoke Which leads me in the fifth place to shew you That 5. You are to understand if ever you come under Christ's Yoke what his Terms are on which he who is able to save is willing to bestow himself and all his saving Benefits upon you Here now I would by no means be misunderstood as if by Terms I intended any thing of Merit or any degree or shadow of it as if what we do could commend us to God For my part I do freely acknowledg that I know of no Merit of Ours but that of Hell and Damnation but for that of Salvation it must be for ever left entirely to the Blood of Christ which alone could make satisfaction to the Justice of God So that by Terms or what lieth upon you to do you must by no means think to recompense God or hope thereby to compound with him and make amends for the Wrongs your Sins have done and so piece up a Peace between his offended Justice and your guilty Souls O no this would be the direct way to loose all your Souls your Prayers Services and Hopes for ever he is too Great too Holy a God to be dealt with on any such Terms it was no less a Price than the costly precious Blood of his own Son that could expiate your Guilt and make your Peace but then if ever you come savingly to share in the Blessing of Peace and Pardon purchased by that Blood it is necessary that there be an effectual application of it to your Souls and that can never be without a Union between him who shed that Blood the Lord Jesus and you whose undone Case required so Great a Sacrifice Now there can be no Union without Faith whereupon the infinitely Wise and Holy God in his Love and Grace hath by the Constitution of the Gospel established and appointed his Son Jesus as the only center of Union between himself and poor Sinners and also Faith as the great Instrument and Term of Union between his Son and Sinners in order to their actual Interest in the Benefits of Justification Reconciliation Adoption c. purchased by his Death O then How may they return ashamed who have nursed up a parcel of blind Hopes and vain Confidences of Pardon and Heaven Saying God is now their reconciled Father Christ has died and never consider the indispensible necessity of Faith as the only way and means of Union with Christ but all this while have continued under the Power of Unbelief and Love of Sin in their unregenerate State as if Christ had died and shed his Blood in kindness to their Sins and his Name had been called Jesus to save them in and not from their Sins O Damnable Delusion to talk of hopes to be saved by Christ in your wretched unsensibleness of your lost and sinful Condition by Nature in your Ignorance and Pride and constant neglects of so great Salvation Ah poor Creature see how thou hast befooled thy self and cheated thy Soul with such carnal groundless Presumptions Look ye Sinners as the Sin of our first Parents could never have hurt us except there had been a Union with their Nature by Generation so the Redemption wrought out by Christ will never benefit us except there be a Union with him by Faith in the time of our Regeneration and effectual Calling Let Christ be never so able and willing to save Sinners yet according to the Tenor of the Gospel not one adult Person that ever was in the World from Adam to this Day or ever shall be to the end of this World can ever be saved by Christ in their Unbelief and Impenitency Mark 16. 16. Luke 13. 3. Now this is necessary to acquaint your selves with if ever you come under Christ's Yoke viz. the necessity of coming to Christ by Faith out of a deep sense and feeling of your Sin and Misery repairing to him and casting your miserable selves down at his Feet spreading your Case before him imploring his healing Blood to be sprinkled on your guilty Souls intreating his Holy Spirit to cure you of your blind Minds and hard Hearts And this brings me in the sixth place to tell you 6. That in order to your coming under Christ's Yoke you must understand that it is the Greatest and most Important Business you have to mind and attend in this World viz. Compliance with God's established way and means of Life and Salvation or your coming under Christ's Yoke by Faith accepting of Christ as thy Saviour and Lord with humble Reverence and Thankfulness entirely resigning surrendring and subjecting your self to the governing Power of Christ Pray what have you Life and Time in this World for but this Can you soberly and reasonably think it was to mind and attend the Trifles and Toys of this foolish and deceitful World in which you have no long abiding place and out of which you must shortly and may suddenly be removed Have you not an Immortal Soul that must be eternally saved or damned as soon as thy Mortal Body is dissolved And can you tell any other Terms Or do you know another way besides this of
us by his Word and Spirit the Will of God for our Salvation renouncing to lead to our own Understandings and set up our own Conceits as our Rule verily accounting all that Wisdom and carnal Reason to be but meer Foolishness which lifteth up it self against any Truth of Christ in the Gospel As for instance it is one of the great and most concerning Truths of Christ Luke 13. 24. Strive to enter in at the strait Gate for many I say unto you will seek to enter and shall not be able Now when the Mind gives a free and full assent to this Truth as it is in Jesus not listning to any that shall rise up in opposition to the Wisdom of this great Prophet and say what need so much ado about this striving The Gate and way that leads to Heaven is smooth and broad but on the contrary heeds it hides it in the Heart by Faith that it may thereby be excited quickned to Diligence in striving the more earnestly This is one main Ingredient in coming under and bearing the Yoke Hence you read Eph. 4. 21 22. and John 10. 27. Of learning the Truth as it is in Jesus and of Christ's Sheep hearing his Voice and following him not a Stranger And in 1 Cor. 2. 14. speaking of the natural Man i. e. a Man unsubdued to the Yoke of Christ That he receives not the things of the Spirit of God Young People naturally receive not the Truths that directly and more especially concern them such as Eccl. 12. 1. 2 Tim. 2. 22. To remember their Creator to know the Scriptures to flee Youthful Lusts to hearken to Instruction c. but foolishly imagine it is time enough to mind the Concernments of their Souls herein now consists Rebellion to Christ's Yoke when the Mind attends not but holds in Unrighteousness stifles resists these Truths On the other hand when the Mind becomes studious to know opens yields to the light quarrelleth not with it but welcomes reverenceth and receiveth it as becometh a meek tractable and humble Disciple pondering and revolving such Thoughts as these I may never have the like Advantage again savingly to know the things of my Peace it cannot be too soon to hearken to Instruction it may be too late if I now trifle my Danger is great I stand upon the brink of Eternity and hereupon as the new born Babe desires the sincere Milk of the Word that he may grow thereby 1 Pet. 2. 2. looks into the Scriptures and then looks up to Heaven and saith Lord What I know not teach thou me and wherein I have done Iniquity I 'le do so no more I confess my Blindness Darkness Dullness Foolishness I am a poor ignorant erring Creature none more apt go astray But there 's none can teach like thee thou hast the Key of David that openest and none can shut c. thou hast the Eye-Salve for the cure of blind Hearts O take away the Vail that is upon my Heart and write thy Law there anoint my Eyes with the heavenly Unction of thy Holy Spirit open my Understanding that I may see the wonderous things contained in thy Law give me to know the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven c. Thus a sound and sincere Mind seeketh and savoureth the Truths of Christ and herein consisteth its Subjection to his Yoke the Understanding is subdued to the Wisdom of Christ in his Prophetical Office so as that when at any time he shall please by his Word and Spirit to let into the Mind the light of any Truth it yields quietly and readily to the Authority and Power of that Truth will not dare not invent Excuses to defeat its Erraud be it never so hard to cut off a right Hand Lust c. but saith Amen Lord be it so I am content thou should'st use the severest Methods for slaying my Corruptions O let it be done whatever it cost me any thing Blessed Jesus rather than Sin unsubdued O let thy Word King it over my Lusts and be enthron'd in my Heart accordingly when it falleth like a two edged Sword upon such a Sin the sound and submissive Mind willingly lies under the Blow and saith more of this good Lord strike again and again lay the Ax of this Truth to the Root of my Heart Lust and down with it Root and Branch What then shall become of those whose Minds are so far from a ready compliance with the Truths of Christ as a Prophet as that they rebelliously controul him in his Office It may be he hath come in such a Sermon and by his Spirit hath directed the Arrow of Conviction to such a Man's Conscience and thereby instructed him how ready he is to assist in getting off Sin 's Yoke and putting on Christ's Well! what has been the Carriage and Behaviour of this Wretch under this why instead of siding and taking part with the Light of the Spirit in this Truth of Christ he has sided with Satan and his own Corruption labouring to extinguish this Candle of the Lord and to blow out this Light of Conviction and set his Lust in battel array to fight against the Truth and will rather part with his Blood and Life than with his Sins O this is high and open Rebellion against Christ The Lord keep you young Ones from it This then is the first thing contained in bearing Christ's Yoke viz. Subjection of the Understanding and Mind to the Truths and teaching of Christ the great Prophet of his Church 2. It containeth in it a subjection of the Will to Christ both to obey him as King and fiducially to receive and trust in him as the Great High-Priest who alone was able to make Atonement and Reconciliation for Sin by his once offering up himself a Sacrifice to satisfy Divine Justice Now herein chiefly consists our Subjection to Christ's Yoke when the Will is won over to a full consent to receive and obey him both as Jesus and Lord Col. 2. 6. This answereth both the great Design and Intendment of the Gospel of Christ and also the Exigency of our lost and undone State when the Will comes up to a true Closure to say as in Isa 26. 12 13. O Lord thou wilt ordain Peace for us for thou hast wrought all thy Works in us O Lord our God other Lords besides thee have had Dominion over us but by thee only will we make mention of thy Name Also in Acts 9. 6. And he trembling speaking of Paul at the time of his Conversion or coming under Christ's Yoke and astonished said Lord What wilt thou have me to do Hence Psal 110. 3. we read Christ's Subjects are said to be a willing People in the Day of his Power And Acts 11. 23. Barnabas exhorteth to cleave to the Lord with full purpose of Heart There is indeed an imperfect ineffectual Work often found in young People Agrippa-like Acts 26. 28. Then Aprippa said unto Paul almost thou perswadest me to be