Immortal soul and thy comfortable appearance at the great day of Christ I have the thing which I intended and desired The Lord open thy Heart and accompany his Truth with the Blessing of his Spirit Amen A SERMON Of Judgement Preached at Pauls before the Honourable Lord Maior and Aldermen of the City London Dec. 17. 1654 2 Cor. 5.10 11. For we must all Appear before the Judgement Seat of Christ that every one may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad Knowing therefore the terrors of the Lord we perswade men IT is not unlikely that some of those wits that are taken more with things New then with things Necessary will marvel that I choose so common a subject and tell me that they all know this already But I do it purposely upon these following Considerations 1. Because I well know that it is these common Truths that are the great and necessary things which mens everlasting happiness or misery doth most Depend upon You may be ignorant of many Controversies and Inferiour points without the danger of your souls but so you cannot of these Fundamentals 2. Because its apparent by the lives of men that few know these Common Truths savingly that think they know them 3. Because there are several degrees of knowing the same Truths and the best are imperfect in degree The principal growth in knowledge that we should look afâ—er is not to know more matters then we kneâ— before but to know that better and with a clearer light and firmer apprehension which we darkly and sleightly knew before You may more safely be without any knowledge at all of many lower Truths then without some further degree of the knowledge of those which you already know 4. Besides it is known by sad experience that many perish who know the Truth for want of the Consideration of it and making use of what they know and so their knowledge doth but condemn them We have as much need therefore to teach and help you to get these Truths which you know into your hearts and lives as to tell you more 5. And indeed it is the impression of these great and master-Truths wherein the vitals and essentials of Gods Image upon the soul of man doth consist And it is these Truths that are the very Instruments of the great works that are to be done upon the heart by the spirit and our selves In the right use of these it is that the Principal part of the skill and holy wisdom of a Christian doth consist and in the diligent and constant use of these lyeth the life and trade of Christianity There is nothing amiss in mens hearts or lives but it is for want of sound knowing and believing or well using these fundamentals 6. And moreover me thinks in this choice of my subject I may expect this advantage with the hearers that I may spare that labour that else would be necessary for the proof of my doctrine and that I may also have easier access to your hearts and have a fuller stroak at them and with less resistance If I came to tell you of any thing not Common I know not how far I might expect belief from you You might say these things are uncertain to us or all men are not of this mind But when every hearer confesseth the Truth of my Doctrine no man can deny it without denying Christianity it self I hope I may expect that your hearts should the sooner receive the Impression of this Doctrine and the sooner yield to the duties which it directs you to and the easier let go the sins which from so certain a truth shall be discovered The words of my text are the reason which the Apostle giveth both of his perswading other men to the fear of God and his care to approve to God his own heart and life They contain the Assertion and Description of the great Judgement and one use which he makes of it It assureth us that Judged we must be and who must be so Judged and by whom and about what and on what terms and to what end The meaning of the words so far as is necessary I shall give you briefly We all both we Apostles that Preach the Gospel and you that hear it must willing or unwilling there is no avoiding it Appear stand forth or make our appearance and there have our hearts and wayes laid open and appear as well as we Before the Iudgement seat of Christ i.e. before the redeemer of the world to be Judged by him as our Rightful Lord That every one even of all mankind which are were or shall be without exception May receive that is may receive his sentence adjudging him to his due and then may receive the execution of the sentence and may go away from the barr with that Reward or Punishment that is his due according to the Law by which he is Judged The things done in his body that is the due Reward of the works done in his body or as some copies read it The things proper to the body i.e. due to the man even body as well as soul According to what he hath done whether it be good or bad i e. This is the cause to be tried and Judged whether men have done well or ill whiles they were in the flesh and what is due to them according to their deeds Knowing therefore c. i.e. Being certain therefore that these things are so and that such a Terrible Judgement of Christ will come we perswade men to become Christians and live as such that they may then speed well when others shall shall be destroyed or as others Knowing the fear of the Lord that is the true Religion we perswade men Doct. 1. There will be a Judgement Doct. 2. Christ will be the Judge Doct. 3. All men shall there appear Doct. 4. Men shall be then Judged according to the works that they did in the flesh whether good or evil Doct. 5. The end of Judgement is that men may receive their final due by Sentence and Execution Doct. 6. The knowledge and consideration of the terrible Judgement of God should move us to perswade and men to be perswaded to careful preparation The ordinary method for the handling of this subject of Judgement should be this 1. To shew you what Judgement is in the General and what it doth contain and that is 1. The persons 2. The cause 3. The Actions 1. The parties are 1. the Accuser 2. the Defendant 3. Somtime Assistants 4. The Judge 2. The cause contains 1. the Accusation 2. the Defence 3. With the Evidence of both 4. and the Merit The Merit of the cause is as it agreeth with the Law and Equity 3. The Judicial Actions are I. Introductory 1. Citation 2. Compulsion if need be 3. Appearance of the Accused II. Of the Essence of Judgement 1. Debate by â— the Accuser 2. Defendant called the Disceptation of the
not save you we are not Justified if we Absolve our selves 1 Cor. 4.4 how unable then shall we be against Gods Sentence to Justifie you If all the world should say you were holy and penitent when God knows you were unholy and impenitent it will do you no good You pray every day that his will may be done and it will be done It will be done upon you because it was not done by you What would you have us say if God ask us Did you tell this sinner of the need of Christ of the glory of the world to come and the vanity of this Should we lie and say we did not what should we say if he ask us Did not you tell them the misery of their natural state and what would become of them if they were not made new would you have us lye to God and say we did not Why if we did not your blood will be required at our hands Ezek. 33.6 and 3.18 and would you have us bring your blood upon our own heads by a lye Yea and to do you no good when we know that lyes will not prevail with God No no sinners We must unavoidably testifie to the confusion of your faces If â—od ask us we must bear witness against you and say Lord we did what we could according to our weak abilities to reclaim them Indeed our own thoughts of everlasting things were so low and our own hearts so dull that we must confess we did not follow them so close nor speak so earnestly as we should have done we did not cry so loud nor lift up our voice as a Trumpet to awaken them Isa 58.1 we confess we did not speak to them with such melting compassion and with such streams of tears beseech them to regard as a matter of such great concernment should have been spoken with We did not fall on our knees to them and so earnestly begg of them for the Lords sake to have mercy upon their own souls as we should have done But yet we told them the Message of God and we studyed to speak it to them as plainly and as peircingly as we could Fain we would have convinced them of their sin and misery but we could not Fain we would have drawn them to the admiration of Christ but they made light of it Mat. 22.5 We would fain have brought them to the contempt of this vain world and to set their mind on the world to come but we could not Some compassion thou knowest Lord we had to their souls many a weeping or groaning hour we have had in secret because they would not hear obey and some sad complaints we have made over them in publike We told them that they must shortly dye and come to Judgement and that this world would deceive them and leave them in the dust we told them that the time was at hand when nothing but Christ would do them good and nothing but the favour of God would he sufficient for their happiness but we could never get them to lay it to heart Many a time did we intreat them to think soberly of this life and the life to come and to compare them together with the Faith of Christians and the reason of men but they would not do it many a time did we intreat them but to take now and then an hour in secret to consider who made them and for what he made them and why they were sent into this world and what their business here is and whether they are going and how it wil go with them at their latter end But we could never get most of them to spend one hour in serious thoughts of these weighty matters Many a time did we intreat them to try whether they were Regenerate or not whether Christ and his Spirit were in them or not Whether their souls were brought back to God by Sanctification but they would not try We did beseech them to make sure work and not leave such a matter as everlasting Joy or Torment to a bold and mad adventure but we could not prevail We intreated them to lay all other businesses aside a little while in the world and to enquire by the direction of the word of God what would become of them in the world to come and to Judge themselves before God came to Judge them seeing they had the Law and the rule of Judgement before them but their minds were blinded and their hearts were hardned and the profit and pleasure and honour of this world did eâ—ther stop their ears or quickly steal away their hearts so that we could never get them to a sober consideration nor ever win their hearts to God This will be the witness that many a hundred Ministers of the Gospel must give in against the souls of their people at that day Alas that ever you should cast this upon us For the Lords sake Sirs pitty your poor Teachers if you pitty not your selves We had rather go a 1000. miles for you we had rather be scorned and abused for your sakes we had rather lay our hands under your feâ—t and beseech you on our knees with tears were we able then be put on such a work as this It is you that will do it if it be done We had rather follow you from house to house and teach and exhort you if you will but hear us and accept of our exhortation Your souls aâ—e precious in our eyes for we know they were so in the eyes of Christ and therefore we are loth to see this day we were once in your case and therefore know what it is to be blind and careless and carnal as you are and therefore would fain obtain your Deliverance But if you will not hear but we must accuse you and we must condemn you The Lord Judge between you and us For he can witness that it was full sore against our wills We have been faulty indeed in doing no more for you and not following you with restless Importunity the Good Lord forgive us but yet we have not betrayed you by silence 2. All those that fear God that have lived among ungodly men will also be sufficient witnesses against them Alas they must be put upon that same work which is very unpleasant to their thoughts as Ministers are They must witness before the Lord that they did as friends and neighbors admonish them that they gave them a good example and endeavoured to walk in holyness before them but alas the most did but mock them and call them Puritans and precise fools and thought they made more ado then needs for their salvation They must be forced to testifie Lord we would fain have drawn them with us to hear the word and to read it and to pray in their families and to sanctifie thy holy day and take such happy Opportunities for their souls But we could not get them to it we did in our places what we were able to give them
a poor cover for your wilful ungodliness and Christ will convince you of the vanity of these Excuses The thirteenth Excuse The Scriptures were so dark that I could not understand them And I saw the wisest men differ so much in the exposition of them that I thought it was in vain for me to trouble my self about them If God would have had us live according to the Scriptures he would sure have written them plainly that men might understand them Answ. 1. It is all plainly written according to the nature of the subject But a prejudiced disaffected yea or but untaught disused soul cannot at first understand the plainest Teaching The plainest Greek or Hebrew Grammer that can be written will be utterly obscure to him that is but newly entred the English School yea after many years time that he spends in learning Did you study hard and pray for Gods teaching and enquire of others and wait patiently in Christs School that you might come to further knowledge by Degrees and were you willing to know even those Truths that called you out to self denyal and that did put you on the hardest flesh displeasing duties Had you done thus you would have admired the Light of the Holy Scripture and now have rejoyced that ever you saw them and not have quarreled at its seeming Darkness This word might have made you wise to salvation as it hath done others Act. 20.32 2 Tim. 3.15 16 17. This Law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul the Testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple The statutes of the Lord are Right Rejoycing the heart the Commandement of the Lord is pure enlightning the eyes Psal. 19.7 8. 2. So much as is of Necessity to salvation is as plain as you could desire Yet if you be Judged by these you will be condemned For you did not obey that which was most plain What darkness is in such words as these Except ye Repent ye shall All perish Luk. 13.3 5. Love not the world nor the things in the world if any man love the world the love of the Father is not in him 1 John 2.15 He that will come after me let hâ—m deny himself c. Matth. 16.24 3. If there had been nothing that seemed difficult to you would you not have despised its simplicity and have thought your selves wise enough at the first Reading and needed no more The fourteenth Excuse There were so many seeming Contradictions in the Scripture and so many strange improbable things that I could not believe it Answ. The contradictions were in your fancy that did not understand the word which you read Must the raw unexperienced Learner despise his book or Teacher as oft as in his ignorance he thinks he meets with contradictions Did you think God was no wiser then you and understood not himself because you understood him not Nor could reconcile his own words because you could not reconcile them You would needs be a Judge of the Law instead of obeying it and speak evil of it rather then do it Jam. 4.11 2. And those things which you called improbable in the word were the wonders of God of purpose to confirm it If it had not been confirmed by wonders you would have thought it unproved and yet now it is so confirmed you will not believe the Doctrine because the witness seems incredible And that is because they are matters above the power of man As if they were therefore above the power of God! You shall at last have your eyes so far opened as to see those seeming contradictions reconciled and the certainty of those things which you accounted Improbable that you may be forced to confess the folly of your Arrogancy and Unbelief and then God will Judge you in Righteousness who presumed unrighteously to judge him and his word The fifteenth Excuse It seemed so unlikely a thing to me that the merciful God should damn most of tht World to everlasting fire that I could not believe it Answ. 1. And did it not seem as unlikely to you that his word should be false 2. Should it not have seemed as unlikely that the Governor of the world should be unjust and suffer his Laws to be unexecuted and the worst to speed as well as the best and to suffer vile sinful dust to despise his mercy and abuse his patience and turn all his Creatures against him without due punishment 3. Did you not feel pain and misery begin in this life 4. You saw Toads and Serpents which had never sinned And you would rather live in any tolerable suffering then to be a Toad And is it not Reason that it should go worse with contemptuous sinners then with those creatures that never sinned 5. Could you expect that those should come to heaven that would not believe there was such a state but refused it and preferred the world before it And to be out of heaven is to be out of all Happiness and he that is so out of all happiness and knows that he lost it by his own folly must needs Torment himself with such Considerations were there no other Torments And as man is capable of greater felicity than bruits so must he needs be capable of more misery The sixteenth Excuse The things which God promised in heaven and threatned in Hell were all out of my sight and therefore I could not heartily believe them Had I but once seen them or spoke with one that had seen them I should have been satiâ—fied and have contemned the things of the world Answ. Wâ—ll you not believe till you see or feel was not Gods word sufficient Evidence would you have believed one from the dead that had told you he had seen such things and would you not believe Stephen that saw them Act. 7 5â— Or Paul that heard and saw them 2 Cor. 12.3 4. Nor Christ that came purposely from heaven to reveal them why flesh and blood cannot see them You see not God will you not therefore Believe that there is a God Indeed whatever you imagine if you would not Believe Moses and the Prophets Christ and his Apostles neither would you have belâ—â—ved though one had risen from the dead For â—ods word is more credible then a dead mans and Christ did rise from the dead to attest it Blessed are they that have not seen and yet believed Noah saw no rain when he was preparing the Ark but because he believed he made ready and escaped Heb. 11.7 when the world that would not Belâ—eve did perish But seeing Gods word was of no more weight with you and no knowledge would serve your turn but by seeing and feeling you shall see and feel everlastingly to your sorrow The seventeenth Excuse It was so strict a Law that God would have Ruled me by and the way to Heaven was so strait and difficult that I could not endure it I was not able to deny my flesh and live such a life Answ. 1. You were
in vain then to cry to hills to fall on you and the mountains to cover you from the presence of him that sitteth on the Throne It will be in vain now to Repent and wish you had not sleighted your salvation nor sold it for a little pleasure to your flesh It will be then in vain to cry Lord Lord open to us O spare us O pitty us O do not cast us into these hideous flames Do not turn us among Devils do not Torment thy Redeemed ones in this fire All this will be then too late Poor sinner whoever thou art that readest or hearest these lines I beseech thee in Compassion to thy soul Consider How fearful the case of that man will be that is newly doomed to the Everlasting fire and is haled to the Execution without Remedy and what mad men are those that now do no more to prevent such a misery when they might do it on such easie terms and now have so fair an Opportunity in their hands The time was when Repentance might have done thee good but Then all thy Repentings will be in vain Now while the day of thy Visitation lasteth hadst thou but a heart to pray and cry for mercy in faith and fervency through Christ thou mightest be heard But then Praying and Crying will do no good shouldst thou roar out in the extremity of thy horror and amazement and beseech the Lord Jesus but to forgive thee one sin or to send thee on earth once more and to try thee once again in the flesh whether thou wouldst not love him and lead a holy life it would be all in vain Shouldst thou beseech him by all the mercifulness of his nature by all his sufferings and bloody death by all the merciful promises of his Gospel it would be all in vain Nay shouldst thou beg but one dayes reprival or to stay one hour before thou were cast into those flames it would not be heard it would do thee no good How earnestly did a deceased Gentleman Luk. 16.24 beg of Abraham for one drop of water from the tip of Lazarus's finger to cool his tongue because he was tormented in the flame And what the better was he He was sent to Remember that he had his Good things in this life and that Remembrance would torment him more And do not wonder or think much at this that Christ will not then be intreated by the ungodly You shall then have a Remember too from Christ or Conscience He may soon stop thy mouth and leave thee speechless and say Remember man that I did one day send thee a Message of peace and thou wouldst not hear it I once did stoop to Beseech thee to return and thou wouldst not hear I besought thee by the tender mercies of God I besought thee by all the Love that I had shewed thee by my holy Life by my cursed Death by the Riches of my Grace by the offers of my Glory and I could not get thee to forsake the world to deny thy flesh to leave one beloved sin for all this I besought thee over and over again I sent many a Minister to thee in my name I waited on thee many a day and year and all would not do thou wouldst not Consider Return and Live And now it is too late my sentence is past and cannot be recalled Away from me thou worker of Iniquity Matth. 7.22 23. Ah Sirs what a case then is the poor desperate sinner left in How can I write this or how can you that read or hear it without trembling once think of the Condition that such forlorn wretches will be in When they look above them and see the God that hath forsaken them because they forsook him first when they look about them and see the Saints on one hand whom they despised now sentenced unto Glory and the wicked on the other hand whom they accompanied and imitated now Judged with them to everlasting misery when they look below them and see the flames that they must abide in even for evermore and when the Devils begin to hale them to the Execution Oh poor souls Now what would they give for a Christ for a promise for a time of Repentance for a Sermon of mercy which once they slept under or made no account of How is the case altered now with them who would think that these are the same men that made light of all this on earth that so stoutly scorned the reproofs of the word that would be worldly and fleshly and drunk and proud let Preachers say what they would and perhaps hated those that did give them warning Now they are of another mind but all too late Oh were there any place for Resistance how would they draw back and lay hold of any thing before they would be dragged away into those flames But there is no resisting Satans Temptations might have been Resisted but his Executions cannot Gods Judgements might have been Prevented by Faith and Prayer Repentance and a holy life but they cannot be resisted when they are not prevented Glad would the miserable sinner be if he might but turn to nothing and cease to be or that he might be any thing rather than a reasonable creature but these wishes are all in vain There is one Time and one Way of a sinners Deliverance If he fail in that one he perisheth for ever all the world cannot help him after that 2 Cor. 6 2. I have heard thee in a time accepted and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee Behold now is the Accepted time behold now is the day of salvation Now he saith Rev. 3.20 Behold I stand at the door and knock If any man hear my voice and open the door I will come in to him and will sup with him and he with me But for the time to come hereafter hear what he saith Prov. 1.24 25 26. Because I have called and ye Refused I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded but ye have set at nought all my counsel and would none of my Reproof I also will laugh at your Calamity I will mock when your fear cometh when your fear cometh as Desolation and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind when distress and anguish cometh upon you then shall they call upon me but I will not Answer they shall seek me early but they shall not find me for that they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord They would none of my counsels they despised all my Reproof therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way and be filled with their own devices for the Turning away of the simple shall slay them and the Prosperity of fools shall destroy them But who so hearkneth to me shall dwel safely and shall be quiet from fear of evil I have recited all these words that you may see and consider whether I have spoke any other thing than God himself hath plainly told you of Having
3. That it is a matter of unquestionable certainty I have partly shewed you already and more would do if I were Preaching to known Infidels If the careless world had any just reason to think it were uncertain their carelesness were more excusable Me thinks a man should be affected with that which he is certain shall come to pass in a manner as if it were now in doing 1 Thes. 5.2 Ye perfectly know that the day of the Lord so cometh c. saith the Apostle 4. This day is not only certain but it is neer and therefore should affect you the more I confess if it were never so far of yet seeing it will come at last it should be carefully regarded But when the Judge is at the door Jam. 5.9 and we are almost at the barr and it is so short a time to this Assize what soul that is not dead will be secure Alas Sirs what is a little time when it is gone how quickly shall you and I be all in another world and our souls receive their particular Judgement and so wait till the body be raised and judged to the same Condition It is not a 100. years in all likelyhood till every soul of us shall be in heaven or hell and its like not half or a quarter of that time but it will be so with the greater part of us and what is a year or two or a 100 how speedily is it come how many a soul that is now in heaven or hell within a 1000 years dwelt in the places that you now dwell in and sate in the seats you now sit in And now their time is past what is it Alas how quickly will it be so with us You know not when you go to bed but you may be Judged by the next morning or when you rise but you may be judged before night but certainly you know that shortly it will be and should not this then be laid to heart Yea the General Judgement will not be long For certainly we live in the end of the world Qu. 4. MY next Question is Whether are you ready for this dreadful Judgement when it comes or not Seeing it is your selves that must be tried I think it concerns you to see that you be prepared How often hath Christ warned us in the Gospel that we be alwaies ready because we know not the day or hour of his coming Mat. 24.44.42 and 25.13 1 Thes. 5.6 and told us how sad a time it will be to those that are unready Mat. 25.11 12. Did men but well know what a meeting and greeting there will be between Christ and an unready soul it would sure startle them and make them look about them What say you Beloved Hearers are you ready for Judgement or are you not Me thinks a man that knoweth he shall be Judged should ask himself the Question every day of his life Am I ready to give up my Account to God! Do not you use to ask this of your own hearts unless you be careless whether you be saved or damned me thinks you should and ask it seriously Qu. But who be they that are ready how shall I know whether I be ready or not Answ. There is a twofold readiness 1. When you are in a safe case 2. When you are in a comfortable case in regard of that day The latter is very desirable but the first is of absolute necessity this therefore is it that you must principally enquire after In General all those and only those are ready for Judgement who shall be justified and saved and not condemned when Judgement comes They that have a good cause in a Gospel sense It may be known before hand who these are for Christ Judgeth as I told you by his Law And therefore find out whom it is that the Law of grace doth justifie or condemn and you may certainly know whom the Judge will Justifie or Condemn for he Judgeth righteously If you further ask me who these are remember that I told you before that every man that is personally righteous by fulfilling the Condition of Salvation in the Gospel shall be saved and he that is found unrighteous as having not fulfilled them shall perish at that day Q1 Who are these Answ. I will tell you them in a few words lest you should forget because it is a matter that your Salvation or Damnation dependeth upon 1. The soul that unfeignedly repenteth of his former sinful course and turneth from it in heart and life and loveth the way of godliness which he hated and hateth the way of sin which he loved and is become throughly a New creature being born again and sanctified by the Spirit of Christ shall be Justified but all others shall certainly be condemned Good news to repenting converted sinners but sad to Impenitent and him that knows not what this means 2. That soul that feeling his misery under sin and the power of Satan and the wrath of God doth believe what Christ hath done and suffered for mans Restauration and Salvation and thankfully accepteth him as his only Saviour and Lord on the terms that he is offered in the Gospel and to those ends even to Justifie him and sanctifie and guide him and bring him at last to everlasting glory that soul shall be Justified at Judgement and he that doth not shall be condemned Or in short in Scripture phrase He that believeth shall be saved and he that Believeth not shall be condemned Mar. 16.16 3. The soul that hath had so much knowledge of the goodness of God and his love to man in Creation Redemption and the following mercies and hath had so much conviction of the vanity of all creatures as thereupon to Love God more then all things below so that he hath the chiefest room in the heart and is prefered before all creatures ordinarily in a time of tryal that soul shall be Justified at Judgement and all others shall be condemned 4. That soul that is so apprehensive of the absolute Soveraignty of God as Creator and Redeemer and of the Righteousness of his Law and the Goodness of his holy way as that he is firmly Resolved to obey him before all others and doth accordingly give up himself to study his will of purpose that he may obey it and doth walk in these holy waies and hath so far mortified the flesh and subdued the world and the Devil that the Authority and Word of God can do more with him then any other and doth ordinarily prevail against all the perswasion and interest of the flesh so that the main scope and bent of the heart and life is still for God and when he sinneth he riseth again by true Repentance I say that soul and that only shall be Justified in Judgement and be saved 5. That soul that hath such Believing thoughts of the life to come that he taketh the promised blessedness for his portion and is resolved to venture all else upon it and in hope
These things are not indifferent but of flat necessity THE tenth Direction Do all your works as men that must be judged for them It is not enough at least in point of Duty and Comfort that you Judge this preparation in General to be the main business of your lives but you should also order your particular Actions by these Thoughts and measure them by their Respects to this approaching day Before you venture on them enquire whether they will bear weight in Judgement and be sweet or bitter when they are brought to tryal Both for matter and manner this must be observed Oh that you would Remember this when Temptations are upon you When you are Tempted to give up your minds to the world and drown your selves in earthly cares will you bethink you soberly whether you would hear of this at Judgement and whether the world will be then as sweet as now and whether this be the best preparation for your Tryal When you are Tempted to be Drunk or to spend your precious time in Ale-houses or vain unprofitable company or at Cards or Dice or any sinful or needless sports bethink you then Whether this will be comfortable at the Reckoning and whether time be no more worth to one that is so neer eternity and must make so strict an account of his Hours and whether there be not many better works before you in which you might spend your time to your greater advantage and to your greater comfort when it comes to a Review When you are tempted to wantonness fornication or any other fleshly intemperance bethink you soberly with what face these Actions will appear at Judgement and whether they will be then pleasant or displeasant to youâ— So when you are tempted to neglect the daily worshipping of God in your families and the Catechizing and Teaching of your children or servants especially on the Lords Day bethink your selves then what account you will give of this to Christ when he that entrusted you with the care of your children and servants shall call you to a reckoning for the performance of that trust The like must be Remembred in the very manner of our Duties How diligently should a Minister study how earnestly should he perswade how unwearyedly should he bear all oppositions and ungrateful returns and how carefully should he watch over each particular soul of his charge as far as is possible when he Remembers that he must shortly be Accountable for all in Judgement And how importunate should we all be with sinners for their Conversion when we consider that themselves also must shortly be Judged Can a man be cold and dead in prayer that hath any true apprehension of that Judgement upon his mind where he must be accountable for all his prayers and performances O Remember and seriously Remember when you stand before the Minister to hear the word and when you are on your knees to God in prayer in what a manner that same person even your selves must shortly stand at the Barr of the dreadful God! Did these thoughts get throughly to mens hearts they would waken them out of their sleepy Devotions and acquaint them that it is a serious business to be a Christian How careful should we be of our thoughts and words if we believingly remembred that we must be accountable for them all How carefully should we consider what we do with our Riches and with all that God giveth us and how much more largely should we expend it for his service in works of Piety and Charity if we believingly remembred that we must be Judged according to what we have done and give account of every Talent that we receive Certainly the believing consideration of Judgement might make us all better Christians then we are and keep our lives in a more innocent and profitable frame THE eleventh Direction As you will certainly renew your failings in this life so be sure that you daily renew your Repentance and fly daily to Christ for a renewed pardon that no sin may leave its sting in your souls It is not your first pardon that will serve the turn for your latter sins Not that you must Purpose to sin and Purpose to repent when you have done as a Remedy for that is an hypocritical and wicked purpose of repenting which is made a means to maintain us in our sins But sin must be avoided as far as we can and Repentance and Faith in the blood of Christ must remedy that which we could not avoid The righteousness of pardon in Christs blood is useful to us only so far as we are sinners and cometh in where our Imperfect Inherent Righteousness doth come short but must not be purposely chosen before innocency I mean we must rather choose as far as we can to obey and be innocent than to sin and be pardoned if we were sure of pardon THE twelfth Direction In this vigilant obedient penitent course with confidence upon God as a Father Rest upon the Promise of Acceptance and Remission through the Merits and Intercession of him that Redeemed you Look up in hope to the Glory that is before you and believe that God will make good his Word and the patient expectation of the righteous shall not be in vain Cheerfully hold on in the work that you have begun and as you serve a better master than you did before your change so serve him with more willingness gladness and delight Do not entertain hard Thoughts of him or of his service but rejoyce in your unspeakable happiness of being admitted into his family and favour through Christ Do not serve him in drooping dejection and discouragement but with Love and Joy and filial fear Keep in the Communion of his Saints where he is cheerfully and faithfully praised and honoured and where is the greatest visible similitude of heaven upon earth especially in the celebration of the Sacrament of Christs Supper where he seals up a Renewed pardon in his blood and where unanimously we keep the Remembrance of his Death until he come Do not cast your selves out of the Communion of the Saints from whom to be cast out by just Censure and Exclusion is a dreadful emblem and fore-runner of the Judgement to come where the ungodly shall be cast of the presence of Christ and his Saints for ever I have now finished the Directions which I tender to you for your preparation for the Day of the Lord and withal my whole Discourse on this weighty point What effect all this shall have upon your hearts the Lord knows it is not in my power to determine If you are so far blinded and hardened by sin and Satan as to make light of all this or coldly to commend the Doctrine while you go on to the end in your carnal worldly condition as before I can say no more but tell thee again that Judgement is neâ—r when thou wilt bitterly bewail all this too late And among all the rest of the Evidence that comes in against thee this Book will be one which shall testifie to thy face before Angels and men that thou wast told of that Day and intreated to prepare But if the Lord shall shew thee so much mercy as to open thy eyes and break in upon thy heart and by sober Consideration turn it to himself and cause thee faithfully to take the warning that hath here been given thee and to obey these Directions I dare assure thee from the word of the Lord that this Judgement which will be so dreadful to the ungodly and the beginning of their endless terror and misery will be as joyful to thee and the beginning of thy glory The Saviour that thou hast believed in and sincerly obeyed will not condemn thee Psal. 1.5 6. Rom. 8.1 John 3.16 It is part of his business to Justifie thee before the world and to glorifie his merits his Kingly power his holyness and his rewarding Justice in thy Absolution and Salvation He will account it a righteous thing to recompence Tribulation to thy Troublers and Rest to thy self when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power Even then shall he come to be glorified in his Saints and to be admired in all them that believe in that day Even because his servants Testimony and his Spirits among them was believed 2 Thes. 1.6 7 8 9 10. That day will be the great marriage of the Lamb and the Reception of thee and all the Saints into the glory of thy beloved to which they had a Right at their first Consent and Contract upon earth And when the Bridegroom comes thou who art Ready shalt go in to the Marriage when the door shall be shut against the sleepy negligent world and though they Cry Lord Lord open to us they shall be repulsed with a Verily I know you not Mat. 25.10 11 12 13. For this day which others fear maist thou long and hope and pray and wait and comfort thy self in all troubles with the remembrance of it 1 Cor. 15.55 56 57 58. 1 Thes. 4.17 18. If thou were ready to be offered to death for Christ or when the time of thy departing is at hand thou maisâ— look back on the good fight which thou haâ—t fought and on the course which thou hast finished and on the Faith which thou hast kept and maiâ—t confidently conclude that henceforth there is laid up for thee a Crown of Righteousness which The Lord the Righteous Judge shall give thee at that day and not to thee only but unto all them also that Love his Appearing 2 Tim. 4.6 7 8. Even so Come Lord Jesus Rev. 22.20 FINIS
thoughts and in their secret Closets when they thought that no witness could have disclosed them Therefore it s said that the Books shall be opened and the dead Iudged out of the books Rev. 20.12 Dan. 7.10 The second Evidence will be the knowledge of the Judge If the sinner would not be convinced yet it is sufficient that the Judge knoweth the Cause God needeth no further witness he saw thee committing adultery in secret lying stealing forswearing in secret If thou do not know thy own heart to be unholy it is enough that God knoweth it If you have the face to say Lord when did we see thee hungry c. Mat. 25.44 yet God will make good the charge against thee and there needeth no more Testimony then his own Can foolish sinners think to lie hid or escape at that day that will now sin wilfully before their Judge that know every day that their Judge is looking on them while they forget him and give up themselves to the world and yet go on even under his eye as if to his face they dared him to punish them 3. The third Evidence will be the sinners Confession God will force their own Consciences to witness against them and their own tongues to confess the Accusation If they do at first excuse it he will leave them speechless yea and condemning themselves before they have done Oh what a difference between their language now and then Now we cannot tell them of their sin and misery but they either tell us of our own faults or bid us look to our selves or deny or excuse their fault or make light of it but then their own tongues shall confess them and cry out of the wilful folly that they committed and lay a heavyer charge upon them then we can now do Now if we tell them that we are afraid they are unregenerate and least their hearts are not truly set upon God they will tell us they hope to be saved with such hearts as they have But then Oh how they will confess the folly and falsness of their own hearts You may see a little of their case even in despairing sinners on earth how far they are from denying or excusing their sins Judas crys out I have sinned in betraying Innocent blood Mat. 27.4 out of their own mouth shall they be Judged That very tongue that now excuseth their sin will in their torments be their great Accuser For God will have it so to be 4. The fourth Evididence will be the witness of others Oh how many thousand witnesses might there be produced were there need to convince the guilty soul at that day 1. All the Ministers of Christ that ever preached to them or warned them will be sufficient witnesses against them we must needs testifie that we preached to them the truth of the Gospel and they would not believe it We preached to them the goodness of God yet they set not their hearts upon him we shewed them their sin and they were not humbled We told them of the danger of an unregenerate state and they did not regard us we acquainted them with the Absolute Necessity of holiness but they made light of all We let them know the deceitfulness of their hearts and the need of a close and faithful examination but they would not bestow an hour in such a work nor scarce once be afraid of being mistaken and miscarrying We let them know the vanity of this world and yet they would not forsake it no not for Christ and the hopes of glory We told them of the everlasting felicity they might attain but they would not set themselves to seek it What we shall think of it then the Lord knows but surely it seemeth now to us a matter of very sad consideration that we must be brought in as witnesses against the souls of our neighbors and friends in the flesh Those whom we now unfeignedly love and would do any thing that we were able to do for their good whose well fare is dearer to us then all worldly enjoyments Alas that we must be forced to testifie to their faces for their condemnation Ah Lord with what a heart must a poor Minister study when he considereth this that all the words that he is studying must be brought in for a witness against many of his hearers with what a heart must a Minister Preach when he remembreth that all the words that he is speaking must condemn many if not most of his hearers Do we desire this sad fruit of our Labours No we may say with the Prophet Jer. 17.16 I have not desired the woful day thou knowest No if we desired it we would not do so much to prevent it we would not study and preach and pray and intreat men that if it were possible we might not be put on such a task And doubtless it should make every honest Minister study hard and pray hard and intreat hard and stoop low to men and be earnest with men in season and out of season that if it may be they may not be the condemners of their peoples souls But if men will not hear and there be no remedy who can help it Christ himself came not into the world to condemn men but to save them and yet he will condemn those that will not yield to his saving work â—od takes no pleasure in the death of a sinner but rather that he repent and return and live Ezek. 18.23.32 and yet he will rejoyce over those to do them hurt and destroy them that will not return Deut. 28.63 And if we must be put on such work he will make us like-minded The holy Ghost tels us that the Saints shall Judge the world 1 Cor. 6.2 3. and if they must Judge they will Judge as God Judgeth you cannot blame us for it sinners we now warn you of it before hand and if you wil not prevent it blame not us but your selves Alas we are not our own Masters As we now speak not to you in our own names so then we may not do what we list our selves or if we might our wills will be as Gods will God will make us Judge you witness against you Can we absolve you when the righteous God will condemn you when God is against you whose side would you have us be of We must be either against God or you And can you think that we should be for any one against our Maker and Redeemer We must either condemn the Sentence of Jesus Christ or condemn you and is not there more reason to condemn you then him can we have any mercy on you when he that made you will not save you and he that formed you will shew you no mercy Isa. 27.11 Yea when he that dyed for you will condemn you shall we be more merciful then God But alas If we should be so foolish and unjust what good would it do you If we would be false witnesses and partial Judges it would
grieved the Spirit Act. 7.51 As the Spirit witnesseth with the Spirits of the righteous that they are the children of God Rom. 8.16 so doth he witness with the conscience of the wicked that they were children of Rebellion and therefore are justly children of wrath This Spirit will not alway strive with men at last being vexed it will prove their enemy and rise up against them Gen. 6.3 Isa. 63.10 If you will needs Grieve it now it will Grieve you then Were it not a Spirit of Grace and were it not free mercy that it came to offer you the Repulse would not have been so condemning nor the witness of this Spirit against you so heavy at the last But it was the Spirit of Jesus that came with recovering Grace which you resisted And though the wages of every sin is death yet you will find that it will cost you somewhat more to Reject this salvation than to break the Creators Law of works Kindness and such Kindness will not be rejected at easie rates Many a good motion is now made by the Spirit to the Heart of a sinner which he doth not â—o much as once obseâ—ve and therefore doth not now Remember them But then they shall be brought to his Remembrance with a witness Many a thousand secret motions to Repentance to Faith to a Holy Life will be Then set before the eyes of the poor unpardoned trembling sinner which he had quite forgotten And the Spirit of God shall testifie to his Confusion At such a Sermon I perswaded thy heart to Repent and thou wouldest not At such a time I shewed thee the evil of thy sin and perswaded thee to have forsaken it but thou wouldest not I minded thee in thy secret thoughts of the neerness of Judgement and the Certainty and VVeight of everlasting things of the need of Christ and faith and holyness and of the Danger of sinning but thou didst drown all my motions in the cares and pleasures of the world Thou harkenedst rather to the Devil than to me The sensual inclinations of thy flesh did prevail against the strongest Arguments that I used Though I shewed thee Reasons undenyable Reasons from thy Creator from thy Redeemer from nature from grace from heaven and from hell yet all would not so much as stop thee much less turn thee but thou wouldest go on Thou wouldest follow thy flesh and now let it pay thee the wages of thy folly Thou wouldest be thy ovvn guide and take thine ovvn Course and novv take vvhat thou gettest by it Poor sinners I beseech you in the fear of God the next time you have any such motions from the Spirit of God to Repent and Believe and Break off your sins and the Occasions of them consider then what a mercy is set before you and how it will confound you at the day of Judgement to have all these motions brought in against you and that the Spirit of Grace it self should be your Condemner Alas that men should choose their own Destruction and wilfully choose it and that the foreknowledge of these things should not move them to relent So much concerning the witness that will be brought in against the sinner 5. The fifth Evidence that will be given in against the sinner will be The Instruments and Effects You know among men if a man be found murthered by the high-way and you are found standing by him with a bloody sword in your hand especially if there were a former dissention between you it will be an Evidence that will prove a strong presumption that you were the Murderer But if the fact be certain by other Evidence then many such things may be brought for aggravation of the fault So a twofold Evidence will be brought against the sinner from these things One to prove him guilty of the fact the other to Aggravate the fault and prove that his sin was very great For the former 1. The very creatures which sinners abused to sin may be brought in against them to their Conviction and Condemnation For though these creatures shall be consumed with the last destroying Fire which shall consume all the world yet they shall have a Being in the memory of the sinner an esse Cognitum The very Wine or Ale or other liquor which was abused to drunkenness may witness agaâ—nst the Drunkard The sweet morsels by which the Glutton did please his Appetite and all the good creatures of God which he luxuriously devouâ—ed may witness against him Luke 16.19 25. He that fared deliciously every day in this life was told by Abrahâ—m when he was dead and his soul in Hell Remember that thou in thy life time receivedst thy good things and likewise Lazarus evil things but now he is comforted and thou art tormented Though their sweet morsels and cups are past and gone yet must they be Remembred at Judgement and in Hell Remember Son saith Abraham Yea and Remember he must whether he will or no Long was the Glutton in sinning and many a pleasant bit did he taste and so many Evidences of his sin will lie against him and the sweetness will then be turned into gall The very cloathing and ornaments by which Proud persons did manifest their Pride will be sufficient Evidence against them as his being cloathed in Purple and fine linnen is mentioned Luk. 16.19 The very lands and goods and houses of worldlings will be an Evidence against them Their Gold and Silver which the covetous do now prefer before the everlasting Riches with Christ will be an Evidence against them Jam. 5.1 2 3 4. Go to now ye Rich men weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you Your Riches are corrupted and your Garments moath-eaten Your Gold and Silver is cankered and the Rust of them shall be a Witness against you and shall eat your flesh as it were fire Ye have heaped Treasure together for the Last daies Behold the hire of the Labourers which have reaped down your fields which is of you kept back by fraud cryeth and the cryes of them which have reaped are entred into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth Ye have lived in Pleasure on the Earth and been wanton Ye have nourished your hearts as in a day of slaughter Oh that worldlings would well considâ—r this one Text and therein observe whether a life of earthly pleasure and fulness of worldly Glory and Gallantry be as desirable as they imagine and to what Time and Purpose they now lay up their Treasures and how they must hear of these Things hereafter and what effect the review of their Jovial daies will have upon their miserable condemned souls 2. The very circumstances of Time Place and the like may Evidence against a sinner to his Condemnation The drunkard shall Remember In such an Ale-house I was so oft drunk and in such a Tavern I vvasted my time The Adulterer and Fornicator shall Remember the very Time the Place the Room the Bed vvhere they
sleepily now but O that you would consider how the review of them will then awake you You now make light of the warnings of God and man and of all the wholsom advice that is given you but God will not then make light of your contempt Oh what cutting Questions will they be to the hearts of the ungodly when all the means that were used for their good are brought to their remembrance on one side and the temptations that drew them to sin on the other side and the Lord shall plead his cause with their consciences and say Was I so hard a Master or was my work so unreasonable or was my wages so contemptible that no perswasions could draw you into my service was Satan so good a Master or was his work so honest and profitable or was his wages so desirable that you would be so easily perswaded to do as he would have you Was there more perswading Reason in his allurements and deceits then in all my holy words and all the powerful Sermons that you heard or all the faithful admonitions you received or all the good examples of the righteous or in all the works of God which you beheld Was not a reason fetcht from the love of God from the evil of sin the blood of Christ the Judgement to come the glory promised the torments threatned as forcible with you and as good in your eyes to draw you to holiness as a Reason from a little fleshly delight or worldly gain to draw you to be unholy In the name of God sinners I intreat you to bethink your selves in time how you will sufficiently answer such Questions as these You should have seen God in every creature that you beheld and have read your duty in all his works what can you look upon above you or below you or round about you which might not have shewed you so much of the wisdom and goodness and greatness of your Maker as should have convinced you that it was your duty to be Devoted to his will And yet you have his written word that speaks plainer then all these And will you despise them all will you not see so great a Light will you not hear so loud and constant calls shall God and his Ministers speak in vain And can you think that you shall not hear of this again and pay for it one day You have the Bible and other good books by you why do you not read them You have Ministers at hand why do you not go to them and earnestly ask them Sir What must I do to be saved and entreate them to teach you the way to life You have some neighbors that fear God why do you not go to them and take their good advice and imitate them in the fear of God and in a holy diligence for your souls Now is the time for you to bestir your selves Life and Death are are before you You have gales of Grace to further your voyage There are more for you then against you God will help you his Spirit will help you his Ministers will help you every good Christian will help you the Angels themselves will help you if you will but resolvedly set your selves to the work And yet will you not stir Patience is waiting on you Mercies are enticing you Scourges are driving you Judgement stayeth for you the Lights of God stand burning by you to direct you And yet will you not stir but lie in darkness And do you think you shall not hear of this Do you think this will not one day cost you dear IX THE ninth part of our work is to shew you What are those frivolous excuses by which the unrighteous may then endeavour their defence Having already shewed you what the Defence must be that must be sufficient to our Justification If any first demand Whether the Evidence of their sin will not so overwhelm the sinner that he will be speechless and past excuse I answ. Before God hath done with him he will be so But it seems at first his dark understanding and partial corrupted conscience will set him upon a vain Defence For Mat. 7.22 23. Christ telleth us that Many will say to me in that day Lord Lord have we not prophesied in thy name and in thy name have cast out Devils and in thy name have done many wonderful works And then will I profess to them I never knew you Depart from me ye workers of Iniquity And in Mat. 25.11 The foolish Virgins cry Lord Lord open to us And vers. 44. Then shall they also answer him saying Lord when saw we thee an hungred or thirst or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not Minister unto thee And vers. 24 25. They fear not to cast some of the cause of their neglect on God himself Then he which had received the one Talent came and said Lord I knew thee that thou art an hard man reaping where thou hast not sown and gathering where thou hast not strawed and I was afraid and went and hid thy talent in the earth lo there thou hast that is thine It is clear then that Excuses they will be ready to make and their full Conviction will be in order after these Excuses at least as in their minds if not in words But what the particular excuses will be we may partly know by these Scriptures which recite them and partly by hearing what the ungodly do now say for themselves And because it is for their present benefit that I now make mention of them that they may see the vanity of all such Excuses I will mention them as I now meet with them in the mouths of sinners in our ordinary discourse And these Excuses are of several sorts some by which they would Justifie their estate some excuses of particular Actions and that either in whole or in part some by which they would put by the penalty though they confess the sin some by which they lay the blame on other men and in some they vvould cast it upon God himself I must touch but some of them very briefly The first Excuse I am not guilty of these things which I am accused of I did love God above All and my Neighbor as my self I did use the world but for Necessity but God had my heart Answ. The All-seeing Judge doth know the contrary and he will make thy conscience know it Look back man upon thy heart and Life Hovv seldom and hovv neglectfully didst thou think of God hovv coldly didst thou vvorship him or make any mention of him hovv carelessly didst thou serve him and think much of all that thou dâ—dst therein Thou rather thoughtest that his service vvas making more ado than needs and didst grudge at those that vvere more diligent than thy self But for the world How heartily and how constantly didst thou seek and serve it And yet wouldst thou now perswade the Judge that thou didst Love God above all He will shew
he hath a grimmer face to shew you when temptations have conquered you and torments must succeed As those that write of Witches say he appeareth at first to them in some comely tempting shape till he have them fast tyed to him and then he beats them and affrights them and seldom appears to them but in some ugly hew Believe it poor sinners you do not hear or see the worst of him when you are merry about your sinful Pleasures and Rejoycing in your Hopes of the Commodities or Preferments of the world he hath another kind of Voice which you must hear and another face to shew you that will make you know a little better whom you had to do with You would be afraid now to meet him in the dark what will you be to live with him in everlasting darkness Then you will know who it was that you entertained and obeyed and plaid with in your sins 3. And as the Text tells us that it is a fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels So it telleth us that is An everlasting fire It had a beginning but it shall have no end If these wretches would have chosen the service of God they would have met with no difficulty or trouble but what would have had a speedy end Poverty and Injuries would have had an end scorns and abuses would have had an end fasting humiliation sorrow for sin watching and fighting against our spiritual enemies would all have had an end But to avoid these they chose that ease that pleasure which hath brought them to that torment which never will have end I have said so much of these things already in my Book called the Saints Rest that I will now say but this much It is one of the wonders of the world how men that do believe or think they do believe this word of Christ to be true that the wicked shall go into Everlasting fire can yet venture on sin so boldly and live in it so fearlessly or sleep quietly till they are out of this unspeakable Danger Only the Commonness of it and the known wickedness of mans heart doth make this less wonderful And were there nothing else to convince us that sinners are Mad and Dead as to spiritual things this were enough That ever the greatest pleasures or profits of the world or the most enticing baits that the Devil can offer them should once prevail with them to forget these endless things and draw them to reject an Everlasting Glory and cast themselves desperately into Everlasting fire Yea and all this under daily warnings and Instructions and when it s told them before hand by the God of Truth himself For the Lords sake Sirs and for your souls sakes if you care not what Ministers say or what such as I say yet will you soberly read now and then this 25. Chapter of Matthew and Regard what is told you by him that must be your Judge and now and then bethink your selves soberly whether these are matters for wise men to make light of and what it is to be Everlastingly in Heaven or in Hell fire 2. We have seen what is the Penalty contained in the sentence against the ungodly The next thing that the Text directs us to is the Cause or Reason of the Sentence vers. 42 For I was hungry and ye gave me no meat c. The Reason is not given expresly either for their sin against the Law of works that is Because they were sinners and not perfectly Innocent Nor yet from their unbelief which is the great sin against the Law of Grace But it is given from their not expressing their Faith and Love to Christ in works of mercy and self-denyal And why is this so 1. We must not suppose that these words of Christ do express the whole Judicial process in every point but the chief parts It is supposed that all men are convicted of being sinners against the perfect Law of the Creator and that they are guilty of Death for that sin and that there is no way but by Christ to obtain deliverance But because all this must be acknowledged by the righteous themselves as well as by the wicked therefore Christ doth not mention this but that only which is the turning point or cause in the Judgement For it is not all sinners that shall be finally Condemned but all Impenitent Unbelieving sinners who have Rebelled finally against their Redeemer 2. And the reason why Faith it self is not expressed is 1. Because it is clearly implyed and so is Love to Christ as Redeemer in that they should have Relieved Christ himself in his members that is as it s expressed Matth. 10.42 they should have received a Prophet in the name of a Prophet and a Disciple in the name of a Disciple All should be done for Christs sake which could not be unless they Believed in him and Loved hâ—m 2. Also because that the bare Act of Believing is not all that Christ requireth to a mans final Justification and Salvation But holy self-denying Obedience must be added And therefore this is given as the Reason of their Condemnation that they did not so obey We must observe also that Christ here putteth the special for the general that is one way of self denying Obedience and expression of Love instead of such Obedience in general For all men have not ability to relieve those in misery being perhaps some of them poor themselves But all have that Love and self-denyal which will some way express it self And all have hearts and a Disposition to do thus if they had ability without such a Disposition none can be saved It is the fond conceit of some that if they have any love to the godly or wish them well it is enough to prove them happy But Christ here purposely lets us know that whoever doth not Love him at so high a rate as that he can part with his substance or any thing in the world to those uses which he shall require them even to relieve his servants in want and sufferings for the masters sake that man is none of Christs Disciple nor will be owned by him at the last XI THE next point that we come to is to shew you the Properties of this Sentence at Judgement When man had broken the Law of his Creator at the first he was lyable to the Sentence of Death and God presently sate in Judgement on him and sentenced him to some part of the Punishment which he had deserved But upon the Interposition of the Son he forbore the rest resolving on a way that might tend to his Recovery And Death is due yet to every sinner for every sin which he commits till a pardon do acquit him But this Sentence which will pass on sinners at the last Judgement doth much differ from that which was passed on the first sin or which is Due according to the Law of worâ—s alone for 1. As to the Penalty called the Pain of
to rule the world 2. And as we see it by Reason so by certain experience that this is discernable by the light of nature for all the world or almost all do believe it Even those nations where the Gospel never came and have nothing but what they have by nature even the most Barbarous Indians acknowledge some life after this and a difference of men according as they are here Therefore you must believe thus much or renounce your common Reason and humanity as well as your Christianity Let me therefore perswade you all in the fear of God to confirm your souls in the belief of this as if you had heard Christ or an Angel from heaven say to you Oh man thou art hasting to Judgement Qu. 2. MY next Question is Whether you do ever soberly consider of this great day Sirs do you use when you are alone to think with your selves how certain and how dreadful it will be how fast it is coming on and what you shall do and what answer you mean to make at that day are your minds taken up with these considerations Tell me is it so or not Alas Sirs Is this a matter to be forgotten Is not that man even worse then mad that is going to Gods Judgement and never thinks of it when if they were to be tryed for their lives at the next Assize they would think of it and think again and cast 100 times which way to escape Me thinks you should rather forget to go to bed at night or to eat your meat or do your work then forget so great a matter as this Truly I have often in my serious thoughts been ready to wonder that men can think of almost any thing else when they have so great a thing to think of What! forget that which you must remember for ever forget that which should force remembrance yea and doth force it with some whether they will or not A poor despairing soul cannot forget it He thinks which way ever he goes he is ready to be Judged Oh therefore Beloved Fix these thoughts as deep in your hearts as thoughts can go Oh be like that holy man that thought which way ever he went he heard the Trumpet sound and the voice of the Angel calling to the world Arise ye dead and come to Judgement You have warning of it from God and man to cause you to Remember it do not then forget it It will be a cold excuse another day Lord I forgate this day or else I might have been ready you dare not sure trust to such excuses Qu. 3. MY next Question to you is How are you affected with the Consideration of this day Barely to think of it will not serve To think of such a day as this with a dull and senseless heart is a sign of fearful stupidity Did the knees of King Belshazzar knock together with trembling when he saw the hand-writing on the wall Daâ— 5.6 How then should thy heart be affected that seeth the hand-writing of God as a summons to his barr When I began to preach of these things long ago I confess the matters seemed to me so terrible that I was afraid that people would have run out of their wits with fear but a little experience shewed me that many are like a dog that is bred up in a forge or furnace that being used to it can sleep though the hammers are beating and the fire and hot Iron flaming about him when another that had never seen it would be amazed at the sight When men have heard us 7 years together yea 20 years to talk of a day of Judgement and they see it not nor feel any hurt they think it is but talk and begin to make nothing of it This is their thanks to God for his Patience Because his Sentence is not executed speedily therefore their hearts are set in them to do evil Eccl. 8.11 As if God were slack of his Promise as some men Account slackness 2 Pet. 3.9 When one day with him is as a 1000. years and a 1000. years as one day What if we tell you 20 years together that you must dye will you not believe us because you have lived so long and seen no death coming Three or four things there be should bring any matter to the heart 1. If it be a matter of exceeding weight 2. If it concern not others only but our selves 3. If it be certain 4. If neer All these things are here to be found and therefore how should your hearts be moved at the Consideration of this great day 1. What matter can be mentioned with the Tongue of man of greater moment For the poor creature to stand before his Maker and Redeemer to be Judged to Everlasting Joy or Torment Alas all the matters of this world are playes and toyes and dreams to this Matters of profit or disprofit are nothing to it Matters of credit or discredit are unworthy to be named with it Matters of temporal life or death are nothing to it We see the poor bruit beasts go every day to the slaughter and we make no great matter of it though their life be as dear to them as ours to us To be Judged to an Everlasting death or torment this is the great danger that one would think should shake the stoutest heart to consider it and awake the dullest sinner to prevent it 2. It s a matter that concerneth every one of your selves and every man or woman that ever lived upon the earth or ever shall do I am not speaking to you of the affairs of some far Countrey that are nothing to you but only to marvail at which you never saw nor ever shall do no It is thy own self man or woman that hearest me this day that shalt as surely appear before the Judgement-Seat of Christ as the Lord liveth and as he is true and faithful and that is as sure as thou livest on this earth or as the heaven is over thee That man that heareth all this with the most careless blockish heart shall be awakened and stand with the rest at that day that man that never thought of it but spent his time in worldly matters shall leave all and there appear that man that will not believe these things to be true but make a jest of them shall see and feel what he would not Believe and he also shall be there The godly that waited in hope for that day as the day of their full Deliverance and Coronation they shall be there Those that have lain in the dust these 5000. years shall rise again and all stand there Hearer whoever thou art believe it thou mayest better think to live without meat to see without light to escape death and abide for ever on earth then to keep away from that Appearance Willing or unwilling thou shalt be there And should not a matter then that so concerneth thy self go neer to thy heart and awake thee from thy security
of this glory doth set light comparatively by all things in this world and waiteth for it as the end of his life choosing any suffering that God shall call him to rather then to lose his hopes of that felicity and thus persevereth to the end I say that soul and none but that shall be Justified in Judgement and escape Damnation In these five marks I have told you truly and briefly who shall be justified and saved and who shall be condemned at the day of Judgement And if you would have them all in five words they are but the Description of these five Graces Repentance Faith Love Obedience Hope But though I have laid these close together for your use yet lest you should think that in so weighty a case I am too short in the proof of what I so determine of I will tell you in the express words of many Scripture Texts who shall be Justified and who shall be condemned John 3.3 Except a man be born again he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God Heb. 12.14 Without holiness none shall see God Luk. 13.3 5. Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish Acts 26.18 I send thee to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an Inheritance among the sanctified by Faith that is in me John 3.15 16 17 18 19. Whoever believeth in him shall not perish but have everlasting life he that believeth on him is not condemned he that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not Believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God and this is the condemnation that light is come into the world and men loved darkness rather then light because their deeds were evil John 5.28 29. The hour is coming in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth they that have done good to the Resurrection of life and they that have done evil to the Resurrection of damnation Mat. 25.30 Cast the unprofitable servant into outer darkness there shall be weeping and gnashing of Teeth Luke 19.27 But those mine enemies which would not that I should raign over them bring hither and slay them before me Mat. 22.12 13. Friend how camest thou in hither not having on a wedding garment And he was speechless Then said the King to the servants Bind him hand and foot and take him away and cast him into outer darkness c. Mat. 5.20 For I say unto you that except your Righteousness exceed the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees ye shall in no wise enter into the Kingdom of heaven Mat. 7.21 Not every one that saith Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the wâ—ll of my Father which is in Heaven Heb. 5.9 He is become the Author of eternal salvation to all them that obey him Rev. 22.14 Blessed are they that do his Commandments that they may have right to the tree of life and may enter in by the Gate into the City Rom 8.1 13. There is then no Condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus that walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit For if ye live after the flesh ye shall dye but if ye through the Spirit do mortifie the deeds of the body ye shall live Rom. 8.9 If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his Gal. 5.18 But if ye be Led of the Spirit ye are not under the Law Gal. 6.7 8. Be not deceived God is not mocked for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap for he that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap Corruption but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life Everlasting Matth. 6.21 For where your Treasure is there will your heart be also Read Psal. 1. and many other Texts to this purpose of which some are cited in my Directions for Peace of Conscience Dir. 11. p. 115 116. And thus I have told you from Gods Word how you may know whether you are Ready for Judgement which is the fourth thing that I would advise you to enquire after O Sirs what shift do you make to keep your souls from Continual Terrours as long as you remain unready for Judgement How do you keep the Thoughts of it out of your mind that they do not break your sleep and meet you in your business and haunt you every way you go while Judgement is so neer and you are so unready But I shall proceed to my next Question Qu. 5. AND in the last place to those of you that are not yet Ready nor in a Condition wherein you may be safe at that day my Question is How are you resolved to prepare for Judgement for the time to come Will you do no more than you have done hitherto Or will you now set your selves with all your might to make preparation for so great a day me thinks you should be now past all demurrs delays or further doubtings about such a business and by the consideration of what I have said already you should be fully Resolved to lose no more time but presently to awake and set upon the work Me thinks you should all say We will do any thing that the Lord shall Direct us to do rather than we will be unready for the final doom O that there were but such hearts in you that you were trully willing to follow the gracious Guidance of the Lord and to use but those sweet and reasonable means which he hath prescribed you in his Word that you may be ready for that day Alas it is no hard matter for me to tell you or my self what it is that we must do if we will be happy and it is no very hard matter to Do it so far as we are truly willing but the difficulty is to be truly and throughly willing to this work If I shall tell you what you must do for preparation shall I not lose my labour Will you resolve and promise in the strength of Grace that you will faithfully and speedily endeavour to practise it whoever shall gainsay it Upon hope of this I will set you down some brief Directions which you must follow if ever you will with comfort look the Lord Jesus in the face at the hour of Death or in the Day of Judgement THE first Direction is this See that your souls be sincerely established in the Belief of this Judgement and Everlasting life For if you do not soundly believe it you will not seriously prepare for it If you have the Judgement and belief of an Infidel you cannot have the Heart or the Life of a Christian Unbelief shuts out the most of the world from heaven see that it do not so by you If you say You cannot Believe what you would I answer Feed not your unbelief by wilfulness or unreasonableness Use Gods means to overcome it and
counterfeit of any Grace and plead with God any shells of hypocritical performances and to think to prove a Title to heaven by any thing short of Gods Condition all these will be vain attempts 3. And as impossible will it prove by fraud or flattery by perswasion or bribery or by any other means to pervert Justice by turning the mind of God who is the Judge Fraud and flattery bribery and importunity may do much with weak men but with God they will do nothing Were he changable and partial he were not God 4. If God be Judge you may see the Cavils of Infidels are foolish when they ask How long will God be in Trying and Judging so many persons and taking an Account of so many VVords and Thoughts and Deeds Sure it will be a long time and a difficult work As if God were as man that knoweth not things till he seek out their Evidence by particular signs Let these fools understand if they have any understanding that the infinite God can shew to every man at once all the thoughts and words and actions that ever he hath been guilty of And in the twink of an eye even at one view can make all the world to see their wayes and their deservings Causing their consciences and memories to present them all before them in such a sort as shall be equivalent to a verbal debate Psal. 50.21 22. he will set them in Order before them 5. If Jesus Christ be the Judge then what a comfort must it needs be to his members that he shall be Judge that loved them to the death and whom they loved above their lives and he who was their Rock of hope and strength and the desire and delight of their souls 6. And if Iesus Christ must be the Iudge what confusion will it bring to the faces of his enemies and of all that set light by him in the day of their visitation to see Mercy turned against them and he that dyed for them now ready to condemn them and that blood and grace which did Aggravate their sin to be pleaded against them to the increase of their misery how sad will this be 7. If the God of Love and Grace and Truth be Judge then no man need to fear any wrong No subtilty of the Accuser nor darkness of Evidence no prejudice or partiality or whatsoever else may be imagined can there appear to the wrong of your cause Get a good cause and fear nothing and if your cause be bad nothing can deliver you III. FOR the third point Who are they that must be Judged Answ. All the rational creatures in this lower world And it seems Angels also either all or some But because their case is more darkly made known to us and less concerns us we will pass it by Every man that hath been made or born on earth except Christ who is God and man and is the Iudge must be judged If any foolish Infidel shall say VVhere shall so great a number stand I answer him that he knoweth not the things invisible either the nature of spirits and spiritual bodies nor what place containeth them or how but easily he may know that he that gave them all a Being can sustain them all and have room for them all and can at once disclose the thoughts of all as I said before The first in Order to bejudged are the Saints Mat. 25. and then with Christ they shall Judge the rest of the world 1 Cor. 6.2 3. not in an equal Authority and Commission with Christ but as the present Approvers of his Righteous Iudgement The Princes of the earth shall stand then before Christ even as the Peasants and the honourable as the base the rich and the poor shall meet together and the Lord shall judge them all Prov. 22.2 No man shall be excused from standing at that Barr and giving up their Account and receiving their doom Learned and unlearned young and old godly and ungodly all must stand there I know some have vainly imagined that the righteous shall not have any of their sins mentioned but their graces and duties only but they consider not that things will not then be transacted by words as we do now but by clear discoveries by the infinite Light and that if God should not discover to them their sins he would not discover the Riches of his Grace in the pardon of all these sins Even then must they be humbled in themselves that they may be glorified and for ever cry Not unto us Lord but unto thy name be the glory IV. FOR the fourth particular VVho will be the Accuser Answ. 1. Satan is called in Scripture the Accuser of the Brethren Rev. 12.10 and we find in Iob 1. and other places that now he doth Practice it even before God and therefore we judge it probable that he will do so then But we would determine of nothing that Scripture hath not clearly determined 2. Conscience will be an Accuser though especially of the wicked yet in some sense of the righteous for it will tell the truth to all and therefore so far as men are faulty it will tell them of their faults The wicked it will accuse of unpardoned sin and of sin unrepented of the godly only of sin repented of and pardoned It will be a Glass wherein every man may see the face of his heart and former Life Rom. 1.15 3. The Judge himself will be the Principal Accuser for it is he that is wronged and he that prosecutes the cause and will do Iustice on the wicked God judgeth even the Righteous themselves to be sinners or else they could not be pardoned sinners But he judgeth the wicked to be impenitent unbelieving unconverted sinners Remember what I said before that it is not a verbal Accusation but an opening of the Truth of the Cause to the view of our selves and others that God will then perform Nor can any think it unworthy of God to be mens Accuser by such a disclosure it being no dishonour to the purest light to reveal a dung-hill or to the greatest Prince to Accuse a Traytor Nor is it unmeet that God should be both Accuser and Judge seeing he is both absolute Lord and so far beyond all suspition of Injustice His Law also doth virtually accuse Iohn 5.45 but of this by it self V. FOR the fifth particular How will the sinners be called to the Barr Answ. God will not stand to send them a Citation nor require him to make his Voluntary Appearance but willing or unwilling he will bring them in 1. Before each mans particular Judgement he sendeth death to call away his soul A surly Serjeant that will have no Nay How dear so ever this world may be to men and how loth soever they are to depart away they must and come before the Lord that made them Death will not be bribed Every man that was set in the Vineyard in the morning of their lives must be called
out at evening to Receive according to what he hath done then must the naked soul alone appear before its Judge and be accomptible for all that was done in the body and be sent before till the final Judgement to remain in happiness or misery till the body be raised again and joyned to it In this appearance of the soul before God it seemeth by Scripture that there is some Ministery of Angels for Luk. 16.22 it is said that the Angels carried Lazarus that is his soul into Abrahams bosom What local motion there is or situation of souls is no fit matter for the enquiry of mortals and what it is in this that the Angels will do we cannot clearly understand as yet But most certain it is that as soon as ever the soul is out of the Body it comes to its account before the God of Spirits 2. At the end of the world the bodies of all men shaâ—l be raised from the earth and joâ—ned again to their souls and the soul and body shall be judged to their endless state and this is the great and general Judgement where all men shal at once appear The same power of God that made men of nothing will as easily then New make them by a Resurrection by which he will add much more perfection even to the wicked in their Naturals which will make them capable of the greater misery even they shall have immortal and incorruptible bodies which may be the subjects of immortal woe 1 Cor. 15.53 Iohn 5.28 29. Of this Resurrection and our Appearance at Judgement the Angels will be some way the Ministers As they shall come with Christ to Judgement so they shall sound his Trumpet 1 Thes. 4.16 and they shall gather the wicked out of Gods Kingdom and they shall gather the Tares to burn them Mat. 13.39 40 41. in the end of the world the Angels shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just and shall cast them into the Furnace of fire Mat. 17.49 50. FOR the sixth particular What Law is it that men shall be Iudged by Answ. That which was given them to live by Gods Law is but the sign of his will to teach us what shall be due from us and to us Before we fell he gave us such a Law as was suitable to our perfection when we had sinned and turned from him as we ceased not to be his creatures nor he to be our Lord so he destroyed not his Law nor discharged or absolved us from the duty of our obedience But because we stood condemned by that Law and could not be Justified by it having once Transgressed it he was pleased to make a Law of Grace even a new remedying Law by which we might be saved from the deserved punishment of the Old So we shall be tryed at Judgement upon both these Laws but ultimatly upon the Last The first Law commanded perfect Obedience and threatned Death to us if ever we disobeyed the second Law finding us under the Guilt of sin against the first doth command us to Repent and Believe in Christ and so to return to God by him and promiseth us pardon of all our sins upon that Condition and also if we persevere everlasting Glory So that in Judgement though it must first be evinced that we are sinners and have deserved Death according to the Law of pure nature yet that is not the upshot of the Judgement For the enquiry will be next whether we have accepted the remedy and so obeyed the Law of grace and performed its Condition for pardon and salvation and upon this our Life or Death will depend It is both these Laws that condemn the wicked but it is only the Law of grace that justifieth the righteous Obj. But how shall Heathens be judged by the Law of grace that never did Receive it Answ. The express Gospel some of them had not and therefore shall not directly be judged by it but much of the Redeemers mercy they did enjoy which should have led them to repent and seek out after Recovery from their misery and to come neerer Christ and for the neglect and abuse of this they shall be judged and not meerly for sinning against the Law that was given us in pure innocency So that Christ as Redeemer shall judge them as well as others though they had but one Talent yet must they give an account of that to the Redeemer from whom they received it But if any be unsatisfied in this let them remember that as God hath left the state of such more dark to us and the terms on which he will Iudge them so doth it much more concern us to look to the terms of our own Iudgement Obj. But how shall Infants be judged by the Gospel that were uncapable of it Answ. For ought I find in Scripture they stand or fall with their parents c. on the same terms but I leav each to their own thoughts VII FOR the seventh Head VVhat will be the cause of the day to be enquired after VVhat the Accusation and what the Defence Answ. This may be gathered from what was last said The great Cause of the Day will be to enquire and determine who shall dye and who shall live who ought to go to heaven and who to hell for ever according to the Law by which they must then be Iudged 1. As there is a twofold Law by which they must be Iudged so will there then be a twofold Accusation The first will be that they were sinners and so having violated the Law of God they Deserve Everlasting Death according to that Law If no defence could be made this one Accusation would condemn all the woâ—ld for it is most certain that all are sinners and as certain that all sin deserveth Death The only defence against this Accusation lyeth in this Plea Confessing the charge we must plead that Christ hath satisfied for sins and upon that consideration God hath forgiven us and therefore being forgiven we ought not to be punished To prove this we must shew the pardon under Gods hand in the Gospel But because this pardoning Act of the Gospel doth forgive none but those that Repent and Believe and so return to God and to sincere Obedience for the time to come therefore the next Accusation will be that we did not perform these Conditions of forgiveness and therefore being Vnbelievers Impenitent and Rebels against the Redeemer we have no right to pardon but by the sentence of the Gospel are lyable to a greater punishment for this contempt of Christ and Grace This Accusation is either true or false where it is true God and Conscience who speak the truth may well be said to be the Accusers Where it is false it can be only the work of Satan the malitious adversary who as we may see in Iobs case will not stick to bring a false Accusation If any think that the Accuser will not do so vain a work at