towards him And when the Captains went forth to battel David gave this charge that they should deal gently with him for my sake Thus you see how the hearts of parents works towards their children Fourthly That natural affection that God hath planted in the hearts of parents towards their children doth teach them to accept willingly any service that is done by their children though it be never so weakly done yet if the Father sees that the child hath done its good will in obedience and in love O! how acceptable is the least piece of service done by such a child And therefore the Lord taketh an argument from this to strengthen his peoples faith I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him Mal. 3. 17. Fifthly Natural affection will teach the parents to supply all the wants of the children O! what care doth parents take to supply their childrens wants that they may want nothing that is good for them They shall have that which is sutable to them Ye that are evil know how to give good gifts to your children What care do parents take of their children while young to supply their wants And what care do they take to make provision for their children when they are dead and gone Nay do not many a poor parent undoe himself to make provision for his children that he may make them great in this world and leave them something when he be dead and gone Sixthly and lastly to name no more The love that is in parents makes them exceeding unwilling to part with their children it is the greatest affliction in the world they had rather loose all their estates then loose their children Nay though parents many times be so poor as they cannot keep their children yet how loath are they to part with their children The poor Widdow we readâ—â— 2 King 4. 1. all her estate was gone nothing left her but her two sons the creditor came to take unto him her two sons from her but how loth was she to part with her two sons Nay how hard is it for parents to part with their children when God takes away their children by death You know that Instance of Job Job 1. he did bear very well all the afflictions and losses that he met withall till he came to loose his children the messengers came and told him that all his estate was taken away and you read of nothing that Job said but when they come and told him his children were slain then Job rent his mantle and fell down upon the ground and worshipped To loose his estate was nothing but to hear that all his children were slain he rent his mantle and fell down upon the ground a token of his great sorrow And you know how David was affected when they brought him word that Absolom was killed he went up to the chamber over the gate and he wept as he went saying O my son Absolom would God I had died for thee A most pathetical complaint that this poor man makes when his child was taken away though he was a wicked child and one that sought his fathers life Thus you see the first part of the Doctrine that God hath planted natural affection in the hearts of parents to their children But secondly I shall shewe you that where there is faith natural affection cannot work alone but faith will rectifie natural affection faith will teach Parents to love their children aright Natural affection will teach them to love their children ah but spiritual love that springs from faith will teach them to love their children aright Quest But you will say to me when may Parents be said to love their children aright or how shall we know that the love of Parents to their children is not only the working of Natural affection Answ First where there is faith it will teach Parents to love the souls of their children Nature will teach to provide for the body but the Spirit of the Lord that teaches Parents to look after the souls of their children now when the soul is loved and respected more then the body then do Parents love their children aright In Gen. 17. 18. you may see what a request Abraham doth make for his son Ishmael Oh! that Ishmael might live before thee God hath been making many gracious promises to Abraham concerning another Seed but Abraham did not forget his son Ishmael neither could he beg that he might have a great estate but that he might live in the sight of the Lord When Parents take care of the souls of their children then Parents love their children aright Secondly Parents love their children aright when as they do love them in obedience to the Lord when they love them and when they take pains and act for them and perform all offices of love to them in obedience to the Lord when Parents do bring up their children and perform every duty to them in obedience to the Lord these are the children that the Lord hath graciously given his servant and so he love them and perform duties to them that he may obey the Lord and be found working the work of his station and relation in bringing up these children to the Lord this is that love that is not only natural but spiritual Thirdly Again Parents love their children aright when as they have an eye to the Covenant of God concerning their children when they have an eye to the promises of God that he hath made to the children of Believers He hath said that they that come of thee shall build the old waste places When as Parents thus eye the Covenant of God in looking upon their children as the Lords and these are they that the Lord hath said he will own and so love their children more because they are the Lords then theirs because the Lord hath promised that he will own them and make use of them And so I conceive Moseâ—'s Mother had respect to this in her love to her child Hebr. 11. 23. By faith Moses when he was born was hid three Months of his Parents because they saw he was a proper child and they not afraid of the Kings commandment Her love sprung from faith when she hid her child Moses three months it was not from Natural affection but from faith By faith Moses when he was born was hid three months because they saw he was a proper child and they not afraid of the Kings commandment The Kings commandment was that all the Male-children should be drowned and to disobey his commandment it did endanger their own lives ah but by faith she ventured she looked upon her child as one that God would make use of she was perswaded that God would make use of this child Moses to do something for the future she knew that there was a promise that God would deliver his people and she knew not but that this might be the Man and so was not afraid but by faith hid him
Fourthly Parents love their children aright when as they are much praying for their children presenting their children to the Lord and praying for them crying to the Lord in their behalf for the blessing of the Lord upon them when they are very instant with God that he would take away the guilt of original sin that is upon their children and the guilt of actual transgressions that are found upon their children Job every day took a sacrifice and sacrificed for his Sons and Daughters he prayed for them he was careful that sin might not lie upon them Oh that was spiritual love that was found in Job it was of a right stamp he was careful that the guilt of sin might not lie upon them and therefore he every day offered a sacrifice to the Lord. And the woman of Canaan she cries in the behalf of her child she comes to Christ and cries to him for her child And so when Parents go to Christ for their children when under bodily Infirmities go to Christ for them and when under spiritual Infirmities go to Christ for them pleading with Christ for them then do Parents love their children aright Fifthly when Parents are careful to educate their children for God when they are careful that God may be honoured by their children that their children may be instructed so as to honour God when they desire and endeavour to prevent all dishonour that may be done to God by their children to reprove them and to rebuke them and not to be so indulgent as old Eli was which proved to be the ruine of the whole family I say when Parents are careful that God may not be dishonoured but labour that their children may be instrumental for God and they do seek the Lord for this thing and do deal with them upon this account and are careful to instruct them and to lay before them the mind of God and careful so to dispose of them as God may be served by them when this is the care of Parents this is a discovery that their love is not only natural affection but spiritual grace and their natural affection is set right by their faith which the Lord is pleased to bestow upon them For the Application First Take notice what a mercy it is that God hath planted such Natural affections in the hearts of Parents it is a great mercy it is that which is little taken notice of but it is that which we and all in the world have cause to bless God for that parents yea those that are evil can do so much good for their children give out of the good things which they have to their children there is much of the wisdom and goodness of God in it that Parents should do so much for their children when they doe not deserve it it is long before it can deserve any thing nay when grown up there are many times contrary deserts and that yet the hearts of arents should be kept up towards their children as I said before there is a great deal of the wisdom and goodness of God in it for there is a great deal of evil thereby prevented a great deal of sin and cruelty that is prevented by the Lords giving of natural affection Oh admire the wisdom goodness of God in this Secondly Let Parents know that this is not enough to have natural affection and love to their children but oh that Parents would labour to love their children aright It is not enough to love them much to have great natural affections but let Parents labour to love their children aright labour so to love them as to love their souls to take care of their souls which is a thousand times more worth then the body labour to love them in obedience to God labour to eye the Covenant of God in loving your children be more in seeking the face of God in the behalf of your children Oh that Parents would look upon it as their duty to pray more for their children Oh look upon Abraham and let him be your pattern how did he cry to the Lord in the behalf of Ishmael it lies upon all Parents to go to God for their children yea for every one in particular Oh that such an one might live in thy sight Look upon the woman of Canaan how did she cry to Christ for her daughter oh Lord have mercy upon me Now let Parents go to Christ for their children oh go and cry for the souls of thy children as this woman did for the body of her daughter oh Lord I see such a corruption in such a child and such a lust in such a child oh that the Son of David would have mercy on them We should go to Christ for the souls of our children that Christ would cast out those corruptions that we see sprouting in our children Thirdly Oh that this might provoke us all to look after faith what need have Parents to labour for faith in Jesus Christ if it be but upon this account that you may love your children aright oh look to Christ for faith cry unto Christ to give you faith that so you may love your children aright There may be a great deal of natural affection in parents they may dote upon their children and undo their children and yet not love them aright for it is impossible that a man or woman that hath not faith to love children aright they cannot love their children aright till they have faith And to provoke all parents to look after faith upon this account of their children let me say this to you that faith will teach you to love your children impartially There is a great deal of partiality in natural affection and it runs out much to one child and neglects another ah but with spiritual love it is not so When Parents love their children aright it will teach to love their children more equally not to love one more then another unless they see more of God in one then another Again let me tell you that faith will make your work to your children easie there is a great deal of labour travel and pains as you have heard to bring forth children and a hard work to bring up children when brought forth but faith will make your work more easie when as God is eyed in it and so you are bringing up children for God when as you are loving and caring for children in obedience to God Oh this will make your work more easie And further let me tell you that faith will make your work more acceptable to God That work you are doing for children when it is done in faith is accepted if you love your children in faith the Lord will take it well at your hand and the Lord will reward all the labour service travel and pains that Fathers and Mothers do undergo for their children That instance you find in Scripture of Moses his Mother when Pharoahs daughter found Moses by providence she commits
meet withall concerning their own Election First A poor soul may be thus tempted that it is an impossible thing for it to attaine to the knowledge of Gods love this is a secret this is that which was transacted in Heaven and therefore sure it is not possible for me to attain to the knowledge of this that the Lord hath loved me and hath written my name in the book of life Men may have some good hopes of it but surely saith the temptation it is presumption for any man to think or say he may come to assurance that the Lord hath written his name in the Book of life for there are these two things against it First Secret things belongeth to God Secondly No eye hath seen what is done in Heaven and if eye hath not seen it how shall I attaine to the knowledge of it In Answer to this temptation know and consider that many of the Saints of God hath attained to the knowledge of Gods eternall love and hath risen to this assurance that the Lord hath loved and will love with an everlasting love The Apostle Paul did attaine to it and he gloryes in it yea then when he speaketh in the person of all the Elect of God Rom. 8. 33. Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect it is God that justifieth Vers 34. Who is he that condemneth it is Christ that dyed yea rather that is risen again who is even at the right hand of God who also maketh intercession for us Vers 35. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ He stands up to challenge all the world and the powers of darknesse who dare lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect And in the 38. verse see what he further saith For I am perswaded that neither death nor life nor Angels nor Principallities nor Powers nor things present nor things to come Vers 39. Nor height nor depth nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the Love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. So then you see it is a thing not impossible to attaine to the knowledge of Gods eternall electing love Nay it is laid upon all the Saints as a duty to seek after the knowledge of it 2 Pet. 1. 10. Wherefore the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling and election sure for if you doe these things ye shall never fall So then election may be made sure and it is a duty which lyeth upon all believers to strive after that they may make their calling and election sure Now if it be so that this is a thing that may be attained unto and that the Saints hath attained unto and a duty which all the children of God are put upon then certainly this is a temptation and know it is a temptation that it is an impossible thing for any to attaine to the knowledge of Gods electing love But Secondly The second temptation concerning our election may be this a poor soul may be thus tempted it is true there may be the knowledge of Gods love and many of the Saints have attained to this knowledge but as for me I have no certainty I have striven and I have waited upon God and sought for assurance but I have not attained it and therefore I am ready to conclude surely the Lord hath not loved me others sought and they have attained and have assurance I have sought and I cannot meet with assurance of the love of God and therefore certainly the Lord hath not loved me I Answer to this temptation know that thou canst not conclude that God hath not called thee effectually because thou hast not assurance and if thou canst not conclude that God hath not called thee effectually because thou hast not assurance much less canst thou conclude that God hath not chosen thee from eternity because thou hast not assurance But Secondly In answer to this temptation hath not the Lord given thee a heart to close with Christ as held forth in the Gospel to poor lost sinners hath not God made thee willing to accept of Christ hath not the Lord in some measure inabled thee to cleave to Christ and dost now resolve to cast thy self upon Christ to venture all upon Christ even thy eternity why then know here is that which gives the essence the being of faith this accepting of Christ held forth in the Gospel with thy resting upon him it is the being of faith and this faith is no other but the faith of Gods elect the fruit of Gods electing love it springs from that eternall love which chose his people unto salvation through faith and therefore though there be not the comfort of faith assurance is the comfort of faith the flower that grows upon the fruit of faith yet if there be that which gives the being of faith thou mayst not conclude that the Lord hath not loved thee because thou hast not assurance Thirdly In answer to this temptation thou sayst thou hast no assurance of Gods electing love and therefore thou concludest that God doth not love thee As thou hast no assurance that God hath chosen thee so thou hast no knowledge of the contrary and mayest not conclude the contrary that God hath not chosen thee for if thou shouldst so conclude thou mayest lye against the truth and therefore cease to draw any conclusions of that which is not knowne to thee and give up thy self to doe the revealed will of God and what is that but that thou take hold of the offer of salvation and receive Christ that you believe in the name of his Son for this is his commandement 1. Joh. 3. 18. But Thirdly this temptation may arise in the soul namely a desire that God would give it a signe an extraordinary signe it resolves it cannot believe and will not believe unless God give itâ— signe This is a temptation that some of Gods people hath met withall To answer this temptation know that it is not Gods ordinary way to give satisfaction to the soul concerning his love by giving an extraordinary signe it is true the Lord may sometimes in some cases condescend to his people and may give an extraordinary signe yea the Lord may and hath prevented his people sometimes with an extraordinary signe to prevent their unbeleefe when they have not asked a signe You have heard of that woman that sometime lived in Cambridge that was many yeares in a tempted condition and being sorely afflicted one day she took up a glasse in her hand and cast it against the ground with this expression I am as surely damned as this glasse is broken and it pleased God so to order it that the glass was not broke which was to the conviction of her unbeliefe I say the Lord may give a signe yea when it is not asked but it is not Gods ordinary way but now for a soul to stand it out with God that it cannot beleeve unless God
doe give it some extraordinary signe oh this is a tempting of God and the Lord may leave such a soul for ever in its unbeliefe when it shall take up such a resolution that it will not believe though it hath the promise unless it hath a signe the Lord I say may leave such a soul in its unbeliefe And further in answer It is true this was Gods way formerly to satisfie his people by a signe by some extraordinary signe and vision but now since the coming of Christ God hath chosen to speak to us by his son see Heb. 1. 2. God who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the Prophets hath in these last dayes spoken unto us by his Son God formerly did reveale himself in an extraordinary way he did appeare sometimes and spake mouth to mouth to Abraham and Moses that was Gods way then but now God hath chose to speak to us by his Son God speaks by Christ and Christ speaketh by the Scripture heare him faith the Father Now Christ hath laid down a rule for our faith and for our obedience and know this that Jesus Christ by his Spirit can so make use of the word that it shall give as cleare and evident satisfaction to a soul concerning the love of God as if God should give a signe as if God should speak immediately from Heaven When the Spirit of the Lord will make use of the word of grace it shall satisfie the soul as fully of his love as if the Lord did appear from Heaven and speak to the soul mouth to mouth Further One thing more I shall speak to this Temptation you that desire a sign and would have an extraordinary sign that God loveth you why know that God hath given you a signe we have signs as well as our fore-fathers had what is the water in Baptisme but a signe to us and the bread and wine in the Sacrament but a signe to us that Ordinance of the Supper which we are partakers of this day the Lord hath condescended to us to give us a signe the bread is a signe and the wine is a signe and the sitting at the Lord Table a signe it is a signe unto faith to every beleeving soul these are signs that God hath loved it from everlasting and set it apart for communion with himself that he hath loved us and given his Son for us that Christ hath loved us and given his blood for us that he is reconciled and hath set us at his Table and we shall sit with him in his Kingdome here is a signe though not unto sence yet here is a signe unto faith We think that Abraham and the Prophets they were happy in that God did appear to them from Heaven and spake to them immediately When God appeared to Abraham and he called to him out of Heaven Now I know that thou lovest me and I have sworne by my self in blessing I will bless thee You think that Abraham and the Prophets were happy that he should tell them that he knew they loved him and that he would love them and would bless them But know it of a certaine that he hath dealt more graciously with us under the Gospel then with them in this very perticular in which we desire a signe in giving us these gracious signes for it was but seldome that God gave them a signe very seldome and it was but to some of them Abraham and the Prophets and Patriarks but now it is Gods ordinary way to give us a signe that which was very rare to them God hath made to us a standing ordinance so that we have a signe continually before us as often as we brake the bread and drink the wine the Lord gives a signe to faith and speaks to faith his everlasting love And therefore take heed that we doe not tempt God to seek another signe What saith Christ Math. 12. 39. The Scribes and Pharisees desired to see a signe from Christ vers 38. An evill and adulterous generation seeketh after a signe and there shall be no signe given to it but the signe of the Prophet Jonas They would not accept of the signe that Christ gave them no they would have other signs They are an adulterous Generation saith Christ and they shall have no other signe but the signe of the Prophet Jonas So when we are seeking for other signes and oh that God would worke extraordinary signes why saith God they shall have no other signes then the signe of the bread and wine and water these shall be sealing signes And know whereas we think some extraordinary sign should convince us and overcome our hearts such is the unbeleefe of our hearts that if we doe not believe when God gives us his word and these signes neither would we believe if God should speake in some extraordinary way from Heaven They have Moses and the Prophets saith Christ if they will not heare them neither will they hear if one rose from the dead Dives he was desirous that one should goe from the dead to his Brethren oh no they have Moses and the Prophets if they will not believe them neither will they believe though one rose from the dead Fourthly Another temptation may be this 〈◊〉 desire to be out of the World that so a man may know what that state is which God hath ordained him unto there may be such a temptation as this a hasting to dye and to goe out of the world that so men might know what their state in another world is what it is that God hath decreed and purposed concerning them I answer There is abudance of folly in this for let me say to such a soul under such a temptation 1. Either thou hast assurance of Gods eternall love or else thou hast it not 2. Thou knowest not but that thou mayest have it or 3. Thou despairest of ever having it Now to the first If the Lord hath given thee any evidence of his love and any hopes of blessednesse in the World to come thou dost very ill thus to make hast to be possessed of that which the Lord hath given thee thou shouldst rather waite the Lords time Remember what the Scripture saith He that believeth maketh not hast If thou hast faith if thou hast any hope of a blessed state in the world to come take heed that thou dost not make hast thou shouldst rather covet and desire to do that which is thy work before thou goest hence thou shouldst desire an opportunity of lifting up the name of the Lord before the Sons of men now there is no such opportunity of making the name of the Lord glorious in the grave and therefore thou shouldst rather desire to know thy work and to doe thy work before thou goest hence Secondly If it be so that thou hast no evidence of Gods love not any knowledge of it for the present yet thou art not without all hope
is the greatest mercy Now this woman had both she loved her child and loved her child aright And this woman may be a pattern to all parents to all those that have children and may teach every one of us not only to love our children but to love them aright So then to close with the Doctrine which is this That wheresoever there is faith in any man or woman it will rectifie natural affection in them faith will teach parents to love their children aright In the opening of this Point I shall shew you two things First That there is a great deal of love in natural affection in the hearts of parents towards their children Secondly Where there is faith it will rectifie those natural affections and teach to love Relations aright First It will not be unnecessary to shew you that there is a great deal of love in natural affection in the hearts of parents to their children it will not be altogether unuseful to see how much love there is in the hearts of parents to their children that children may see the love of their parents to them What a great deal of natural affection is there in the hearts of parents towards their children O Lord thou son of David have mercy on me for my daughter is grievously vexed with a Devil And you shall see that the Lords hand hath ingraven natural affection upon the hearts of parents and it is ingraven in such great letters upon the hearts of parents that it is almost impossible to wear it out Isai 49. 15. Can a woman forget her sucking child that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb It is a very hard thing to do it it is almost impossible that a woman should forget her sucking child It is true indeed some have done it some have forgotten it some have laid cruel hands upon their sucking child such are monsters rather then women but it is not possible that a woman that hath the compassions of a woman should forget her sucking child And our Saviour tells us that it is in the worst of men Matth. 7. 11. If ye then being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children There is this good thing in the hearts of the worst men living love in their hearts to their children And therefore it is that the Lord doth make use of the compassions that is in the hearts of parents to set forth his own love and compassion toward his people that place before Isai 49. 15 16. Can a woman forget her sucking child that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb Yea they may forget yet will I not forget thee Behold I have graven thee upon the palmes of my hands And so Psal 103. 13. Like as a father pittieth his children so the Lord pittieth them that fear him He maketh use of the bowels the pitty and compassion of Parents to hold forth what bowels are in his heart towards his children Now that you may see what this natural affection is and that you may see the greatness of the love of parents to their children consider how it works First of all Love makes them willing to undergo a great deal of pain and sorrow labour care and travel what is it almost that Parents are not willing to undergo for their children O how much sorrow do poor women meet withall in bearing and bringing forth children And yet their desire to children doth carry them through all A woman though she have a sore travel saith Christ when delivered forgets her sorrow for joy that a man is brought forth into the world And so when they are brought forth what great pains are parents willing to take for their children How long doe they hang upon their mothers breasts before they can shift for themselves And yet that affection that the Lord hath planted in parents makes them willing to doe all this Secondly that natural affection that the Lord hath planted in parents to their children maketh them to sympathize with their children in every burden and affliction every affliction that lieth upon their children to be their own affliction so this woman in the Text O thou son of David have mercy upon me The affliction was upon her daughter but it was her burden O Lord have mercy upon me The parent doth sympathize with the child and doth account the affliction of the child to be their own affliction for how are Parents affected when their children are ill and when the hand of God is upon their children If the childs head doth but ake it makes their heart ake so sensible are parents of their childrens troubles The Noble man that came to Christ see how he was affected when his child was sick John 4. 49. Sir come down ere my child die At verse 47. he besought Christ that he would come down and heal his son for he was at the point of death Christ delayed the businesse verse 48. then said Jesus unto him Except ye see signs and wonders ye will not believe But see how abruptly he answered Christ verse 49. Sir come down ere my child die He was not able to attend any thing else all his mind was upon his child O Sir come down ere my child die He could hear nothing till his child was healed and thus natural affection vvorketh tovvard their children Yea thirdly This natural affection vvill maâ—â— the parents to passe by many injuries that are done by children to parents and yet parents ready to pardon them upon the least submission the heart of a parent relents it is a very hard matter for a parent to cast off his child though there be many provocations See some Instances in Scripture that of Abraham is remarkable Gen. 21. 9 10 12. His son Ismail he vvas a vvicked child one that scoâ—fed at the son of the Promise and Sarah she maketh her complaint and desires that the bond-vvoman and her child might be cast out verse 10. And the thing was very grievous in Abrahams â—ight because of his son verse 11. Though he vvas a vvicked child a rebelliâ—â—s child a scoffer at good yet when it came to casting of him out it seems very grievous to Abraham because of his son And you know the Prodigal son that had spent his portion in riotous courses how willing was his father to forgive him to pardon all his miscarriages and to close with him again upon his first return and submission And you know that Instance of David which holds forth a great deal of affection that was in that good man towards a wicked child 2. Saâ— 18. 5. Deal gently for my sake with the young man even with Absalom He was a wicked and rebellious son one that rose up against his father one that would have turned his father out of his kingdome one that sought his fathers life one that had committed great wickedness in the sight of the Sun But oh how doth Davids heart yearn
God think upon all the Attributes of God are they not worthy of praise His name it is glorious and worthy to be exalted bless God for what is in himself Or Bless God for what he hath done for others if not for what God hath done for thee see if thou canst not get up thy heart to bless God for what God hath done for others and look upon the grace that God hath bestowed upon others and say though I can see little in my self for which I should bless God yet blessed be God that God hath given out of his Spirit to others and manifested his love to others and hath made others fruitful and serviceable and that there are so many to lift up the name of Christ in the world and if by any means the Lord will put thy heart into a thankful frame the temptation will soon vanish Endeavour it all thou canst wait upon God and look upon that which is matter of Thankfulness that thy heart may be put into a thankful posture to bless God for somthing bestowed on thee or somthing in himself or others and the Temptation will soon vanish Fiftly When thou art tempted about Election Resolve still to hold on in God's way though thou art in the dark and perplexed in thy spirit for want of the knowledge of God's love yet resolve in the strength of the Lord to hold on the Lord's way to keep in his way and to depart from iniquity take heed of turning out into crooked wayes desire to keep the way of the Lord which is a streight way Say well though I do not know my Election I do not know whether I shall come into heaven yet by the Lord's strength I will be found looking toward Christ I will be found looking to him who is able to save to the uttermost This is to keep the Lord's way And so also Resolve to be found walking in wayes of Holiness though I do not know that I shall be saved saved or not saved I will resolve to walk in wayes of holiness and to depart from iniquity take heed of every sinful way every crooked way The Apostle in 2 Tim. 2. 19. speaking about Election The foundation of the Lord standeth sure having this Seal the Lord knoweth them that are his Why then saith he Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity And so I say though Election be not sure to thee be sure to depart from iniquity resolve to walk with God in his way All this is come upon us yet have not we forgotten thee Psal 44. 17. and so do thou say though all this darkness be upon my spirit I resolve in the strength of the Lord not to forsake him though I do not know that the Lord will be for me I resolve to be for none else my soul shall be for no other Saviour and I will not be for any other way but the way of holiness I desire to depart from every way of iniquity And as I said before so I say again if God shall bring up the heart to this Surely the Lord will not alwayes suffer that soul to go on doubting but he will come and manifest his eternal love if the soul shall resolve thus in the strength of the Lord to be found in the Lord's way saved or not saved I will be looking to the Father through the Son and walk in every way of the Lord and depart from iniquity the Lord will not alwayes suffer that soul to go on doubting John 14. 21. He that hath my Commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father and I will love him and will manifest my self to him My Father shall love him that is my Father shall manifest love to him not that God begins then to love but my Father will come to that soul though that soul may walk in darkness though that soul may for the present be in a sad condition and not see the face of God and not know that God hath loved him from everlasting yet my Father will manifest love to him my Father will manifest that he doth love that soul and saith Christ I will love him and manifest my self to him Christ will come to that soul and say to it I see that thou lovest me and I know thou lovest me thou hast walked in the dark night yet thou hast not turned out from me thou hast resolved to cleave to me as to thy Saviour and hast resolved to keep my way and to depart from iniquity and now I see that thou lovest me and I will let thee know that I love thee that is that I love thee first that I have loved thee from everlasting And thus you have the five general Rules to silence all Temptations which may arise concerning Election Matth. 15. 24. But he answered and said I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel SERMON XVI FOr the Vse of the point and I shall speak but two words by way of Application because what I have spoken already hath been practical if the Lord make it to be so First To those that have not attained to the knowledge of God's love Secondly To those that through grace have attained to the discoveries of God's love First To those that have not attained to the knowledge of God's eternal love towards them and I shall speak the words of the Apostle 2 Pet. 1. 10. Wherefore the rather Brethren give diligence to make your Calling and Election sure for if ye do these things ye shall never fall That 's the word of the Lord to you give all diligence to make your Election sure rest not till your hearts be established through grace in the knowledge of God's love For Let me tell you first That it is a matter of great concernment That which this Apostle doth exhort us to to give all diligence to make our Election sure it is that which doth concern your whole state you had need give diligence to make it sure it doth not concern your temporal estate but it concerns your estate in another world all that you have to live upon in another world doth depend upon it you had need give diligence to make that sure What pains do men take to make that sure that concerns their outward Estates Men will make their Bonds and Bills sure their Evidences sure their Titles to Lands and Houses sure if there be any thing amiss in them what pains will men take to make them sure O that God would help us to give diligence in this great business that doth concern another manner of estate then that which you possess here even all that you have to live upon in the world to come Secondly Let me say to you to stir you up to be diligent in making your Calling and Election sure why You have an Adversary that taketh a great deal of pains
useth diligence to hinder you in this work the Divels great designe is to keep you in the dark to keep you in a puzled and perplexed condition to finde some flaw or other in your evidences to cast some blot upon them that you shall not be able to read them doubtless you will put God to it to leave you to be tryed in this at one time or other God for the most part leaves his people to be tempted concerning their Election and therefore you had need give diligence Thirdly Let me say That your comfort doth depend upon making your Election sure All your comfort in this world doth depend upon it the comfort of every condition doth depend upon it the sweetness of every mercy depends upon it Alas if a man had a thousand times more then he hath what is all he hath without the love of God Your comfort depends upon it Although your names be written in heaven yet you cannot have the comfort of it till it be made sure to you though it be sure before God yet you cannot be comforted but you are as if there were no thoughts of love in the heart of God toward you Your comfort depends upon it Fourthly Your Holiness doth depend upon it your usefulness your fruitfulness your serviceableness in your generations doth depend upon your knowledge of the love of God it is that which wil make a Christian useful serviceable when as his Election is made sure when he comes to be established in the knowledge of God's Election Put on therefore as the Elect of God holy and beloved bowels of mercies kindness humbleness of minde meekness long suffering Col. 3. 12. Your holiness doth depend upon it and your usefulness in your generation And truly till that be put out of question to a soul til the Lord gives some degrees of satisfaction to a soul concerning his love the soul is wholly taken up alwayes taken up about that which concerns it self O Lord Dost thou love me That 's the great question And when it goes to God in prayer Lord Dost thou love me And O that thou wouldest make out thy love to me The soul is wholly taken up about that and well it may but when God comes to give some satisfaction O then the soul hath a great deal of freedome to minde the things of Christ to put up many a Petition for others and many a request for Christ and his Kingdom and the Interest of Christ then his thoughts they run that way so that if you desire to be useful and serviceable in your generation it doth engage you to look after this to give all diligence to make your Election sure Quest But you will say How shall we do that O there is nothing in the world that I would sooner do then that but I know not how to make my Election sure I Answer It is the work of God it is the work of grace to make it out to you it is the work of free grace to give a soul assurance of that free and everlasting love But be found waiting upon God in this way First Look up to the Lord to clear up unto you the mysterie of the Gospel if you desire to make your Election look up to the Lord to clear up to your souls the great mysterie of Christ that thou mayest know the Lord Jesus as he was the gift of the Father the gift of love the gift of free grace O that the Lord would clear up to thee the great end of his giving that gift of Christ Wherefore was it that God sent his Son out of his bosome Wherefore was it that he gave Christ And wherefore was it that Christ gave himself to die What was the end of the Father's sending Christ and the end of the laying down his life It was to save lost sinners God so loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life John 3. 16. O! Look up to God to clear up this great Gospel mysterie to you the designe of God the Father in sending Christ and the great designe of the Son in laying down his life It is through ignorance of this Mysterie that many a poor soul is kept from establishment and from assurance of God's electing love But secondly Wait upon the Lord to draw thy soul to accept of Christ it is not enough to have a discovery of the mysterie this will not save thee though a man know the designe of God and know the end of it that will not save thee no but wait upon the Lord to draw thy heart to rest upon Jesus Christ as he is held forth in the Gospel see that there is a necessity that God the Father should draw thee No man comes to me saith Christ except the Father which hath sent me draw him John 6. 44. till he be drawn by the Father he cannot come to Christ therefore that man is mistaken that thinks it is an easie matter for him to come to Christ O! Many a man doth mistake faith of their own working for that faith which is of the operation of God When God hath beaten many a soul out of his Brest-works and the soul sees he can no longer defend himself there good works will not do it then he taketh up a resolution in his own strength well I willgo to Christ I will believe in Christ if I cannot have it by obedience I will have it by believing Ah! But he never saw that there was an impossibility for him to believe but he goes to Christ in his own strength and the faith is of his own working and it is such a faith as Christ will not own no when God deals with a soul in a saving way he discovers to it that it is no more able to believe in Christ then it can obey the whole Law and that there is a necessity that he should be drawn of God and in his spirit he breaths after God and saith Lord draw me for if thou dost not draw me I shall never come to Christ see a necessity of being drawn to Christ And when thou art drawn give up thy self to those breathings and workings of the Spirit of God after thou hast seen thy self in a lost condition and no possibility to help thy self either by thy works or by believing why then if the Lord open the word of Reconciliation to thee and is breathing sweetly upon thy heart and moving upon thy spirit while thou hearest the word of grace opened and the tender of Christ urged O then give up thy self to those drawings of the Spirit of Christ and do not hinder those drawings by thy unbelief but give up thy self to the Lord and say Lord I see thy hand onely is able and powerful to draw souls to thy self and I will stand out no longer That 's the second Thirdly Be diligent to make the best improvement of Jesus
Christ when God hath discovered the mysterie of Christ to thee and in some measure hath drawn thy heart and made thee to lye at the feet of Christ for life and salvation and for faith to believe in him be diligent to make the best improvement of Christ Improve Christ for holiness and sanctification if thou desirest to have Election made out to thee improve Christ for holiness The Apostle 2 Pet. 1. 5. exhorteth them to this Giving all diligence adde to your faith vertue and to vertue knowledge and to knowledge temperance and to temperance patience and to patience godliness and so he goes on and then follows at vers 10. Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure for if you do these things you shall never fall In this way give diligence to make your Election sure improve Christ for holiness for grace for strength for more strength be diligent in waiting upon the Lord for the carrying on the work of holiness let Christians endeavour to be continually in the exercise of grace and in the performance of every duty that the Lord calls them to adde grace to grace and wait upon Christ that one degree of grace may be added to another knowledge to knowledge faith to faith temperance to temperance truly it is in this way that God comes in with discoveries of electing love I do not say it is for your diligence and for your improvement of Christ and adding grace to grace but this is the way when the Lord doth enable his people to be thus faithful and diligent in the improvement of Christ and in the exercise of grace and performance of duty to God and man God comes in that way and giveth a soul a more clear discovery of his electing love Fourthly Desire the Lord to set a heavenly Byass upon your spirits if you desire to have your Election cleared and made sure take heed of an earthly heart and O! Look up to God earnestly that he would set a heavenly Byass upon your spirits that you may be able to say Our conversation is in heaven our heart is there from whence we look for a Saviour we groan to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven Truly Brethren if we look too much downward if we be grubling below and be writing upon the dust we shall hardly see what is written in heaven Though your names may be written in heaven O! the looking too much upon this world keepeth many a Christian from seeing his name written in heaven What pains will Astrologers and Star-gazers as the Scripture calls them take to see into the second heaven the starry heaven How often will they look up And how long will they look up to see as they pretend what is written there what is the language of the Stars And O! What a shame is it to Christians that we should look up no oftner and no longer into the third heaven that we may see our names written there Truly Brethren it is no easie matter for a Christian to see his name written in heaven though his name may be written there we shall hardly see it if our hearts be not much there and our conversations much there we use to say if children look off their Books they will never learn their Lessons well Truly if we look so much on the world and so little into heaven we shall hardly learn to read our names written in heaven But when as the Lord sees that his people are desirous to have their thoughts in heaven and their conversations in heaven the Lord will come and say to that soul well I see that thine eye is in heaven and thy heart in heaven know for thy comfort that thy name also is in heaven thy God is in heaven thy Christ is in heaven and thy portion is in heaven O! Beg of God that he would clap a heavenly byass upon your spirits Fifthly Take heed of sinning against the Lord take heed of giving way to any sin as you desire to have your election cleared up to you take heed of turning out into any crooked way Let not Christians give way to themselves nor allow themselves in any way of evil You know what the Apostle saith in 2 Tim. 2. 19. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure having this Seal the Lord knoweth them that are his And let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity The Lord knoweth them that are his Ah! but would you know your selves to be in that number Take heed that you do not give way to any sin do not allow your selves in any way of sin be not found in any way of iniquity every sin that is allowed it will cast a blot upon your Evidence and you shall not be able to read it This is the first Use unto those that have not God's electing love cleared up to them there is a necessity that every soul should give all diligence to have their Election made sure it is matter of infinite concernment and you have been taught in what way to wait upon God to make your Election sure The second Use is to those that have attained to the knowledge of God's electing love And it calls upon them First To be Thankful Secondly To labour to walk worthy of so great a mercy First To be Thankful O consider that it is the free love and the free grace of God that did make the difference between you and others Is there not cause then of Thankfulness You were no better then the worst in the world no better then those that are cast out of God's sight into utter darkness there is as much evil in our hearts as in Judas his heart that betrayed Christ O! It is free grace that hath put a difference if God hath made known to you that he hath chosen you know that it is free grace that hath put the difference O! Rich grace free grace that God should take you and leave another as deserving as you O it is free grace And that we may be stirred up to Thankfulness consider that all the mercies that ever you do enjoy or hope for spring from this Electing love O! What cause have you to admire this love Electing love it was a fruitful wombe all your mercies lay in it your comforts they all spring from it if the Lord had not given you his love from eternity he had never given you Christ as he did he had not given you the knowledg of Christ All the mercies and comforts that you do enjoy do spring from this love if it had not been for this love you had never known what pardon of sin had been you had never known what peace with God had been what a mercy it is to be reconciled to God your present mercies they all lye in this womb of God's Electing love O! what an engagement is this to Thankfulness Secondly Walk worthy of this love Christians you that see your Interest in
And then Fourthly Make some Improvement First To consider What is that Worship which the Lord requires of his people when afflicted and tempted 1. This Worship it is either the Worship of the Spirit Internal Or 2. It is the waiting upon God in those Institutions of his own which he hath appointed for his people to wait upon him in which is External Worship This Worship first is that of the Spirit You will say wherein doth it consist Why it consists First of all In that holy fear and Reverence which we owe unto the Lord and should be acting towards God when God brings into such a condition Fear and Reverence it is a part of Internal Worship Fathers of our flesh corrected us and we gave them reverence shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of Spirits Heb. 12. 9. When as the soul is filled with a holy fear fearful to sin against God and to dishonour him in affliction and temptation when the spirit is fearful to grieve the Spirit of God in affliction when it is fearful to take the name of God in vain in the time of affliction by unprofitable and unfruitful bearing of affliction when the spirit is thus composed to a reverend childe-like fear before the Lord in the time of affliction this is part of that Internal Worship the soul owes to God Secondly This Worship consists in Love as well as in fear when the soul is acting in love toward God in time of affliction or temptation as that it dares not conclude that God loves him the less though he be afflicted though he be in temptation so also he desires not to love God one jot the less notwithstanding all afflictions and temptations when the desire of the heart is towards God in time of affliction or temptation O! when wilt thou come unto me saith David Psal 101. 2. And saith the gracious heart let me have God's presence in affliction rather then deliverance from affliction when as the soul is carried out to delight in God in the time of affliction to rejoyce in God and to glory in God and to comfort it self in God as David did when he was sâ—rely distressed at Ziklag yet he encouraged himself in the Lord his God 1 Sam. 30. 6. Though God taketh away many comforts yet if he give himself the soul is looking towards his portion as a blessed portion one God is better then all the comforts that I have lost I have lost friends and relations but one God and Christ is more excellent then all the creatures in the world when the heart is thus breathing in love towards God in time of affliction or temptation this is a part of that Internal worship it owes to God Thirdly This Internal Worship is that Trust and Affiance the soul hath which it placeth in God alone when the soul is acting of faith in the Lord The Lord is my portion my soul hath said it and therefore I will hope in him I will look toward him I will rest upon his Arm doubtless thou art our Father though all this hath befallen us doubtless God's intentions are gracious it is for my good that he doth thus afflict me doubtless the Lord can and will make a good end of these afflictions for that is his promise Now when the soul is thus roling upon God and resting upon his promise cleaving to the faithfulness of God for the fulfilling of his Promise in time of affliction or temptation this is a great part of that inward worship which God doth require of the soul when it shall thus believe in hope above hope and against hope as Abraham the Father of the faithful did this is Inward Worship Fourthly It consists in the submission of the soul to God That Inward Worship that God doth require of his people in time of affliction or temptation I say it consists in the submission of the spirit unto God when a man desires to make a resignation of his Will unto God If this cup may not pass from me thy will be done when a soul is content to be at the dispose of God for the kinde of affliction and measure of affliction and the time of affliction well if God encrease my burthen let him encrease my strength and my soul shall glory in him if the Lord will continue my affliction longer and I must drink of this cup again and again yea the third time if the Lord will afford his presence in affliction my soul desires to submit to the Lord when thus the heart is affected toward God submitting falling down before the Lord and making a resignation of his Will to the Lord's Will This is that special Worship of the Spirit that Internal Worship that the Father of Spirits calleth for from his children in time of affliction But secondly This Worship must be External as well as Internal and it consists in the giving honour to God in those wayes that are of his own appointment especially in these two First In the pouring out of the soul in supplication before the Lord. Secondly In speaking good words of God These are two great parts of that external worship that God calls his children to in time of affliction to speak gracious words unto God and to speak good words of God to his praise and honour First It is the pouring out the Supplication of the Soul before the Lord in prayer it is a special exercise that God calleth his people to in time of affliction and temptation to be much in supplication pouring out their souls before the Lord. Now this Supplication this Prayer which the Lord doth require and doth delight in it is accompanied First With Humility As you shall finde in the example of this woman her prayer in the day of her distress it was a humble prayer a humble supplication one of the Evangelists observes the Evangelist Mark chap. 7. ve s 25. that she came and fell at his feet this woman came and fell at the feet of Christ and cryed to him Lord help me It is a humble prayer that the Lord doth delight in when the spirit lyeth low before the Lord when the creature is sensible of his own vileness and shall acknowledge with Jacob That he is less then the least of all those mercies which he doth desire and expect at the hand of God that if ever the Lord be gracious it must be free grace somthing in himself that must move him when the soul is enabled by the Spirit of the Lord to put up such a prayer this is a part of that external worship that the Lord requires Secondly You shall finde that this womans prayer was accompanied with Fervency her very expression doth hold forth and declare the ardency of her spirit she cryed before O Lord thou Son of David have mercy on me and now again she breaks forth into this expression Lord Help Why it is such a prayer that God taketh delight
of your own heart and satisfying your own lusts what-ever these men pretend they have not hope of the right stamp their hope is but as the spiders web or as the giving up of the ghost Thirdly Let me exhort you all to look after this saving lively hope for it is that which will keep your hearts from breaking in the evil time at one time or other the heart will break if men have not this saving hope therefore seek after this saving hope for it will keep you up in the midst of storms in the midst of evils and establish you in the midst of good it will do you good in a storm and it will be useful to you in a calm you can never take comfort in the good things you enjoy and your hearts cannot be established in peace if not grounded in hope therefore look after this lively hope this anchor of the soul yea soul wouldst thou dwell with God and live neer God and live upon him continually O then cast the anchor of your hope in God true hope will hold your souls close to him that you shall not depart from him Yea would you have your hearts made more holy purified and sanctified and get victory over your corruptions O then seek after this saving hope for that man that hath his hope cast on God and Christ that man is most free from corruption and most active for God true hope it will make you able to suffer it will make you able to rejoyce in tribulation why now dost thou desire all this why then seek after this lively hope But it may be you will say unto me how shall we obtain this hope I see it is exceeding useful and of absolute necessity how shall we come by it where shall we have this anchor to stay our souls For answer First Look to the free grace of God in Christ for it 't is he that doth beget this grace of hope in his people look to those tenders that free grace makes God holds forth his self and Son and pardon and life to poor creatures Free grace makes a render of all this unto you and therefore look to this free grace that so you may have that hope which shall not be confounded and ashamed Secondly Look to Christ for it especially look to the resurrection of Christ that place 1 Pet. 1. 3. Blessed be God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead Christ is risen from the dead he hath paid the debt and brought in everlasting righteousness and therefore look to the resurrection of Christ for by eying that this lively hope may be begotten in you Thirdly Look to the promise to the word of the Lord the word of the Lord is written that you might have hope Rom. 15. 4. For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope The Scripture is written that we might believe and in believing might have eternal life and therefore consult with the word of the Lord. You that desire to have hope strengthned look to the word and promises and behold the freeness of them and the unchangeableness of God in them O study the Scripture much and beg that the Spirit of the Lord may shine in them and give you a sight in them and so this hope may be begotten in you Fourthly Look to those patterns and examples of free grace that the Lord set forth for you to look upon the Apostle Paul 1 Tim. 1. 16. saith He was a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting That the Lord should reconcile such an enemy and set his love upon him that was injurious to the Saints one that thought he had sinned so much as that he had out-sinned mercy yet saith he I obtained grace that might be a pattern of mercy and therefore look to those patterns of grace and mercy that the Lord hath set forth before you that so you may be encouraged to come and hope in his mercy And to conclude all do not go on desperately any longer and do not say as they said Jer. 2. 25. But thou saidst there is no hope No for I have loved strangers and after them will I go They resolved to go on in the imaginations of their own heart they said there was no hope and they would do evil as they had done O let not this be the resolution of any poor soul for though you have no hope for the present you are invited to come to Christ that you may have hope The word of the Lord is come to you that you might have hope and those patterns of free grace are set before you that you might have hope O that the Lord would make you more intent in your spirits in looking after this anchor of hope What will you do another day when storms arise and to have no anchor It will be a most sad condition for a poor soul to see it self ready to split and to have no hope no anchor to stay upon O! who would venture to Sea without an anchor If you have no anchor when storms arise you will be at your wits end O that God betimes before it be too late would make you as wise for your souls as you would be for your bodies FINIS Artis est â—â—lare artem Chrysostomus illud quasi peculiare custodit ac proprium quod cum semper sollicitus sit semper vigilans noxii stuporis inimicus nusquam tamen ejus oratio in pompam elevatur dicentis sed tota aptatur ad utilitatem audientis est enim stilus ipse Ecclesiae auribus accomodandus Sixt. Senens Biblio lib. 4. de Jo. Chrysost Vers 21. Two great Wonders wrought by Christ 1. Wonder 2. Wonder The wonder of this womans faith appears first The declaration of thâ— womanâ— faith The Argugument this woman useth to move Christ How Christ tryed the womans faith The behaviour of this woman of Canaan under her tryals The victory of this womans faith 21. Verse spoken to three things to be considered Proposition or Doctrine Application Two sorts of people that exalt their rule above Christs Rule Second sort of people that exalt their rule above Christs Rule Object Answ Third thing laid down which is the place Christ came unto Observation The love of Christ to the souls of men Application Observation that God hath some in every place Observation Application Incouragement to seek Christ Who this woman was that come to Christ Doctrine Weak in estate many times chosen Weak in parts many times chosen Weak in age many times chosen Weak in respect of sex many times chosen Application A declaration of this womans faith Why this woman cals Christ the son of David How David was a type of Christ and how Christ like
Spirit is not given to discover any thing that is beside the rule that Christ hath left he shall guide you into truth ah but how he shall lead you to the rule and guide you into truth for he shall not speak of himself but what Christ hath spoken and what is written in the Word of the Lord and the Spirit is given to speak it with power and life and efficacy He shall take of mine and shew it to you no new thing but what is mine my Truth my Gospel he shall take of mine and shew it to you Object But you will say If the Spirit of the Lord be in me surely the Spirit need no rule to walk by but the Spirit of the Lord is in all the Saints what need have they of any other rule Answ I answer The Spirit needs no rule ah but the Lord saw that we needed a rule to walk by we were apt to be deceived to call darkness light and light darkness the Lord saw we had need of a rule and that rule is the Word of the Lord which is given us as our rule and no other rule but only the Word of the Lord And therefore be not deceived upon any pretence whatsoever take heed you be not drawn off from the Institutions of Christ from the Word of Christ the rule that Christ hath left all his people to walk by for if you be you will exalt something of your own something that you will place your Righteousness in and oh how provoking is that to Christ for a people that do so they cannot and shall not injoy the spiritual presence of Christ such as forsake Christs Rule and set up their own rule that Christ never made a rule they shall not injoy the presence of Christ no more then Christ afforded his presence with the Scribes and Pharisees And therefore doe but wait upon the Lord cleave to the Lord and hold fast his Rule and you shall see that the Lord will make it evident to all the world that he hath left them though they are never so seemingly high and spiritual yet it will appear that such as forsake him Christ will forsake them they are left of Christ in their judgements already and wait upon the Lord and you shall see that the Lord will leave them to corrupt themselves by a corrupt conversation for what way of Christ will not men only forsake but blaspheme and what sins so great will not such a man as leaves the rule be drawn to the commission of For if the Word be not the rule but a strong impulse of Spirit what impulses may not a man have he may have the strongest impulse to the greatest evil whatsoever if the Lord hath not yet left yet he will leave such a people to the commission of great evil As I remember the history of some of the low Countries they had such a pretence that the Word was not to be their rule but they were led by the impulse of the Spirit of God and I remember in that history it is recorded that many grievous wickednesses they did commit they came to marry many wives and one of the chief of them cuts off one of his wives heads And another upon a time he calls his kindred together and he in the presence of them all takes away the life of one of his brethren and said now the will of the Lord is done And what wickedness is it that men may not fall into by a strong impulse But so much for that I will give you but one hint more in that 21. v. â—esus went into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon You â—ee from whence Christ came which was from the â—arts of Judea and the occasion of Christs deâ—atture because they rejected his Word But wheâ—â—er came Christ He departed into the coast of Tyre and Sidon A word or two of that and so â—onclude The coasts of Tyre and Sidon First They were the uttermost parts of the â—and of Canaan Secondly It was a very dark place a place full 〈◊〉 darknesse and ignorance a people that were â—ixed with the heathen and had learned their sinâ—â—l customes and yet the Lord Christ when he goes â—â—om Jerusalem he goes into the parts of Tyre and â—â—don Briefly observe this The faithfulness of Christ 〈◊〉 his Fathers work and the love of Christ to the 〈◊〉 of men Tyre a hundred miles from Jerusaâ—â—m and yet Christ undertook this journey Oh 〈◊〉 faithfulness of Christ in his Fathers work he â—â—ares no labour no travel from place to place â—â—om City to City to the uttermost parts of the â—â—nd and all was to do his Fathers work Oh the â—â—ithfulness of Christ And take notice of the love of Christ to the â—â—uls of men it was in compassion to a poor woâ—â—n of Canaan that Christ took this journey she 〈◊〉 known to the Lord before and in compassion â—â—do her soul good and to release her daughter 〈◊〉 was possest with a Devil Christ takes this â—â—urney See the love of Christ to the souls of â—â—or creatures Christ knew the worth of a soul the preciousness of a soul what would it advanvantage a man to gain the whole world and loose his soul Why in compassion to this womans soul Christ takes this great journey And by way of Application Oh that we might learn of Christ to be faithful in that work which the Lord hath committed to us and to expresse more love to our own souls and the souls of others What a great way did Christ go to doe good to one soul if there be but one woman 〈◊〉 Canaan if but one woman of Samaria for Christ to preach to he takes that occasion Whatever work the Lord puts into our hand in the service 〈◊〉 our generation and for compassion to souls look 〈◊〉 Christ he thought no labour too much to do goâ—â— to the soul of one woman Secondly This was a very dark place the darknesse of ignorance and sin did abound in theâ—â— parts in the coasts of Tyre and Sidon and yet 〈◊〉 Christ goes from Jerusalem he departs into theâ—â— coasts You see the Lord hath some in every place no place so dark and sinful but there 〈◊〉 be some that may belong to the Lord and wheâ—â— there are any that do belong to the Lord in 〈◊〉 part of the world though never so dark yet 〈◊〉 Lord will send from heaven and visit them if 〈◊〉 one poor Canaanitish woman that belongs to thâ— Lord Christ will take care of that woman 〈◊〉 comes into these dark places that so he migâ—â— make known the light of the Gospel that this 〈◊〉 woman might believe where there are any 〈◊〉 belong to the Lord the Lord will find 〈◊〉 way to find them out he will visit theâ— with the discoveries of his Grace and Love by the declaration of the Gospel of Christ And oh that we might observe the wonderful dispensations of the grace of the
to free grace it is to be had in mercy there is healing for you I will heal their back-slidings and love them freely Oh that the Lord would help us all to flee to this refuge Doe you desire any thing Goe upon the account of mercy doe not stand upon any worthinesse any justification of your selves and if you be kept from Christ by your unworthinesse then you have an eye to your worthinesse O that we might not look upon any worthinesse If a man come to you and plead that you would take pitty upon him it would move your hearts more then if a man should come and require of you that you should doe so and so for him because you have done so and so for others No but if he falls down at your feet it prevails more with you and so when God sees that a man stands upon it upon his own justification O this does not prevail but when a soul cometh to the foot-stool of free grace and pleads nothing but mercy I am worthy to be cast out but thou hast given an invitation to sinners and here I will wait at the foot-stool of free grace this will move the bowels of Jesus Christ Quest Ah but may not a man cry for mercy and yet goe without it Answ True indeed it is possible a man may cry for mercy and call for mercy in a dead cold formal way many a poor creature will say Lord have mercy on me and he trusts to his Lord have mercy on me and so thinks that should save him but that is not to trust in mercy they trust in their saying so but they trust not in mercy It is possible that a poor wretch in time of extremity may cry out Lord have mercy and yet not apply himself to mercy for the soul that applies himself to mercy he applies himself in Gods way Now Gods way in shewing mercy it is in Jesus Christ if a man cries never so loud for mercy yet if he does not apply himself in Gods way look thorough the Mediator he may cry and go without it but he that doth apply himself rightly to mercy he seeks it in Chist for mercy will doe no good out of Christ therefore a gracious heart applies himself only to Christ and he that applies himself to mercy he waits the Lords time for mercy So that a man may say Lord have mercy and cry out for mercy and yet be far from obtaining mercy But now this let me say that if any poor soul that is sensible of his own misery that sees it is full of wants and full of sin and unrighteousness and full of weakness unable to help himself and full of enmity so that it can do nothing but sin against God I say a soul that shall see this and shall apply it self to mercy in mercies way look to God through Christ the Messias come as this woman to the Messias O thou son of David have mercy on me no soul that shall thus apply himself to the mercy of God thorough Christ being sensible of his own lost condition and shall there wait but certainly the Lord will make a good end with that soul and that soul as the Apostle speaks Shall find grace and mercy to help in time of need Matth. 15. 22. My daughter is grie vously vexed with a Devil SERMON VII YOu have seen this womans faith in her coming to Christ and closing with Christt as Lord and as the son of David We shall now see the love of this woman here is her love as well as her faith there was a great deal of love and compassion in her towards her daughter the stroke that was upon her daughters body fell upon her spirit and lay heavy there and therefore she doth not say Lord have mercy upon my daughter but Lord have mercy upon me It is my affliction and my burden Lord have mercy upon me for my daughter is grievously vexed with a Devil Her daughters affliction was heavy upon her spirit Quest But you will say Whether was this affection natural or spiritual grace Whether did she speak this from natural affection to her child or was this a fruit of her faith Answ I answer Here was both natural affection and spiritual grace for seeing this woman had a seed of faith in her as hath been proved natural affection could not work alone where there is the grace of faith in the heart it will not leave nature to work alone but grace will step in and rectifie natural affection order natural affection set bounds to natural affection set natural affection upon a right ground and make them look to right ends where there is grace natural affection cannot work alone Indeed in that heart where grace doth not dwell there nature works alone as the natural affections grief and sorrow and anguish in a natural man where the spirit is not nature works alone he cannot propound any spiritual consideration to himself to quiet his grief and sorrow he may fetch in some carnal considerations or he may stay till nature settle of it self time may wear out his grief but no work of grace to compose the spirit time must work it out But now in a gracious soul nature cannot work alone but grace will step in to order and rectifie to set bounds to the affections and will help to compose the spirit and so we may conclude of this woman here was first natural affection in her nature did teach her to love her child but natural affection did not work alone here was also the spiritual grace of faith faith taught her to love her child aright nature taugh her to love her child but grace taught her to love her child aright So that there was the working both of nature and grace Quest But you will say Was it not an evil to give way to natural affection Answ I answer No natural affection is not the corruption of nature Indeed there is a great deal of corruption in natural affection but natural affection is not the corruption of nature no natural affection is part of the Image of God the remnant of the Image of God which was left in man since the fall of Adam for it is a sin to be without natural affection The Apostle speaking of the sins of the last dayes he reckons up this as one without natural affection Rom. 1. 31. Natural affection is part of the Image of God and it is that without which the world could not be continued The Lord in abundance of mercy and wisdome hath planted natural affection in the hearts of Parents to their Children for if it were not so Gods name would soon be dishonoured and there would be all manner of cruelty and the race of mankind would soon be destroyed so that it is a mercy to have natural affection but to have spiritual grace to work with natural affection to have faith to set natural affection right and to cause it to work aright that
him to his own Mother to be his Nurse and she pays his own Mother for him And so the Lord he will deal with you that are parents that act in faith and perform your duties in faith the Lord will reward you for your love to your own children for taking care of your own children all your labour is taken notice of by the Lord and you shall be rewarded Oh! what an encourageis here to all Parents to look after faith in Christ that so your service may be accepted of the Lord One thing more and so I conclude and that is a word to children is it so that there is so much love in the hearts of Parents to their children is there so much that Parents do from love to children oh that children would labour to know what is their duty that they owe to Parents it cannot be told it cannot be exprest how much it is that children owe unto parents Children it is impossible that ever you should requite the love of your parents oh the pains the travel and sorrow of bringing forth and bringing up oh that children might know that there is a great engagement lies upon them to love their parents to respect their parents to take heed that they do not grieve their parents to pass by all in firmities of parents to shew all respect to them and when grown up to take care of them And this is a duty that Christ lays upon you though a Moral duty see what is said in 1 Tim. where children may see what Christ injoyns them 1 Tim. 5. 4. But if any widow have children or Nephews let them learn first to shew piety at home and to requite their parents for that is good and acceptable before God God lays this duty upon children you should labour to requite your parents to remember their love their care their sorrow their pains and travel and you are bound by the Law of Christ to requite your parents this is good this is piety and this is acceptable to God And so that place Levit. 19. 3. Ye shall fear every man his Mother and his Father and keep my Sabbaths I am the Lord your God Here is a duty that God lays upon children to fear every man his Mother and Father Children are most apt to despise their Mothers therefore the Lord begins there and lays that duty first that children should fear every man his Mother And take notice of it that this is a duty that the Lord sets before the keeping of his Sabbath as if the Lord should say in vain shall they pretend to be Religious if they do not fear and reverence every man his Mother and his Father I will not accept of your service It was a brand that was set upon Esau to all generations that he did that which was a grief to his Father and Mother Now children see your duty and remember your duty which the Lord Jesus lays upon you And oh that children would labour for faith that they may perform their duties Parents cannot love their children aright till they have faith and truly children cannot reverence their parents nor perform the duties they owe unto parents unless they have faith Oh then that Parents and children would look up to Christ for faith and then shall both be able through faith in Christ to perform that mutual duty that God requires from parents and children And to shut up all let this that hath been spoken strengthen the faith of all Gods people in Gods love to them Oh that by this we might ascend to the love of God! O that they that think they have not been concerned in what hath been spoken hitherto would know they are concerned in this The Lord would have you to ascend by the consideration of the bowels that are in parents to their children to a consideration of those infinite bowels that are in him towards you that are his children As the Father pitieth his children so the Lord pitieth them that fear him what ever workings of love are in the hearts of parents towards their children oh know that there is larger workings of love in the heart of God towards his children there are infinite bowels in the everlasting Father and if there be so much pity in the hearts of parents that they are willing and ready to give out good things to their children and willing to pass by and to pardon the miscarriages of their children oh how much more willing is our God to pass by and to pardon the failings of you that are his children oh that this might encourage prodigal children to return to the Lord If the father receive his child that hath been a prodigal why the Lord is ready to receive you though a prodigal if the Lord give you an heart to return though you have spent all and abused all your mercies yet the Lord is ready to pardon and to receive you And let it strengthen your faith and hope in Christ you that cleave to Christ for righteousness you that are the children of that everlasting Father oh know that Christ will plead for you Christ will cry to his Father for you Was the woman of Candan so affected with the misery of her daughter that she cries Lord have mercy on me my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil 〈◊〉 I say this found in this woman towards her daughter and shall not this be found in Christ towards his children oh then let this comfort you when you scarce dare go to God and cry your selves such and such a corruption doth annoy you such and such an unclean spirit is in you Oh! the Lord Jesus pities you under every spiritual burden when as you are troubled with unclean spirits he hath bowels of compassion towards you and know that he will go to his Father and cry to his Father and if he cry he cannot deny the son of his love but an answer shall be given to all those requests that Christ puts up for you or for any of his people Matth. 15. 23. But he answered her not a word SERMON VIII I Come now to speak of the trial of this womans faith and here is the first tryal of her faith he answered her not a word A very great trial a sore trial that this poor woman should in her great strait and under such a burden and pressure of spirit come to Jesus Christ and cry so earnestly unto him and believe so stedfastly upon him and yet Jesus Christ give her not one word of answer to her prayer this was a sore trial for this carriage of Christ it seems to be contrary to what she had heard of Christ and to what she believed was in Jesus Christ for Christ seemed now either to be without compassion to her he seems to take no notice not to be affected she complained and cried out of her great burden and Christ speaks not a word the Lord Jesus Christ seems either not to be affected with her
more As a man that delights in musick if the Musicians play he 〈◊〉 take no notice but lets them play on because he delighteth in it and so the Lord he takes delight in the prayers of his servants The prayerâ— the upright is his delight and he will give no present answer that so they may go on praying 〈◊〉 crying Secondly the Lord may seem to be silent 〈◊〉 the prayers of his people that so he may exerâ—â— the faith and patience of his servants It is great trial of the faith and patience of the Saiâ—â— when as the Lord seems to take no notice 〈◊〉 give no answer to their prayers it was for 〈◊〉 end that our Lord Jesus Christ gave not a 〈◊〉 of answer to this woman of Canaan it was that might try her faith and her patience and that might exercise it and that by the exerciâ—â— faith faith might be increased and her faith 〈◊〉 arise to a great faith by this exercise for at 〈◊〉 Christ commends her for her faith Oh 〈◊〉 great is thy faith be it unto thee even as 〈◊〉 wait Again the Lord is silent many times at the prayers of his people to try whether they will continue in prayer though the Lord doth give them no present answer oh here is the trial of perseverance God hath heard my prayer saith David therefore will I call upon him as long as I live Ah but that is no great matter for a man to say God hath heard my prayer and therefore I will call upon him still But for a soul to say I have been crying and calling and I will still wait upon him as long as I live I will wait upon God Oh here is perseverance in prayer in which Christ doth delight Fourthly the Lord is silent many times upon this ground he gives no present answer that so he may prepare an answer for them and that he may prepare them for an answer God gives no present answer that so he may prepare mercy and ripen mercy and make mercy fit for his people and that he may ripen them and fit them and their hearts for the mercy so that it is in abundance of grace and mercy and love that the Lord is pleased many times not to give out a present answer to his people for all the time the Lord is silent he is preparing of mercy and goodness for them he is making of the mercy fit for his people the mercy shall be ripe and the mercy shall be sweet and wholsome and do them good at the heart When the Lord hath thus prepared mercy for them and fitted them for the mercy they shall have the mercy see what is said in Isa 80. 18. And therefore will the Lord wait that he way be gracious unto you and therefore will he be exalted for the Lord is a God of judgement blessed are all they that wait for him He waits that he may be gracious he waits for the best season the fittest opportunity he will stay till the soul hath need of help in the fittest time the Lord will come in mercy when he may be most exalted for mercy when his people may see most of the hand of God when they most prize their mercies and glorifie God for mercy God waits for such a time And therefore you see it is for gracious ends that God many times seems to be silent for a season and gives not one word in answer to prayer as Christ here to this woman of Canaan For the Application of the Point First it speaks sadly of them that never regard whether the Lord give an answer or no to their prayer that pray and pray and look not after an answer How far are such men and women from the disposition of Gods children a gracious heart cannot but be affected when it speaks to the Father and the Father gives no answer And therefore surely when men and women make many prayers and look not up for an answer that regard not whether the Lord answer or not either they are none of his children or else under a sore temptation for let me say unto you that though it is not for your prayers that God doth regard prayer yet if you do not look up for an answer if you do not regard your prayers neither will God regard your prayers And let me say further that this is a great dishonour to God Oh what a 〈◊〉 is it it is a loss to God and it is a loss also to the soul for a man to lose all his prayers it is a loss indeed When as a soul doth not regard whether God answer or no God loseth he loses that glory which would redound to him in the answer of prayer Call upon me saith God in the day of trouble and I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorifie me Now if the soul call upon God and doth not observe whether God hears or no it cannot glorifie God for the return of prayer but God loses that honour that thankfulness and that love and obedience and that dependance which an answer of prayer might engage the soul to And as God loseth so the soul loseth oh they that look not after the return of prayer they lose that which would make their souls rich For a Merchant to lose all his return it will make him a poor Tradesman in conclusion that soul that doth not look after the return of prayer loseth a great deal of faith and dependance and experience for God by giving out an answer to the prayers of his people he doth encourage them and engage them to trust in him at all times so long as they live they that lose the return of prayer lose the strengthening of faith and the engaging of their heart to God But secondly let me speak to such poor souls as are in the same condition with this woman of Canaan that have prayed and have not met with one word of answer Poor souls is this the condition of any of you I know that it hath been and may still be the condition of the Lords dearest servants they may pray and the Lord may seem to give no answer Remember it was so with David Jeremiah and Habakkuk and with Christ himself And let me say this unto thee that if thou regardest any iniquity in thy heart any known sin that thou regardest or connivest at or if there be slightness in the performance of thy duty or contentest thy self with a slothful performance of thy duty or thou dost not regard thy prayer when thou hast put it up to the Lord for this we have cause to be humbled and no wonder the Lord do not answer our prayers But now if thy own spirit and the Spirit of the Lord can testifie that thou desirest to regard no iniquity in thy heart but to walk up to thy duty and desire to be conformable to Christ and desire to cry in faith and to wait upon the Lord for an answer be of good comfort
answer Oh justifie God and say the Lord is holy thus did the Psalmist Psalm 22. 3. But thou art holy O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel though thou dealest thus with me thou art holy thou art just and thou art righteous and thou art good and faithful though silent for the present to my prayer And so let us say if the Lord be silent to any of our prayers yet Lord thou art holy thou art righteous Thirdly this is thy duty labour to maintain good thoughts of God it is not enough to justifie not to charge God but to maintain good thoughts of God at that time that God is silent to our prayers and do thou believe that God is contriving good at that time now is the Lord waiting to be gracious and preparing an answer Oh this is a blessed frame of heart and how pleasing would it be to God to believe that he is good and that he is gracious and this very thing it is for good for the good of my soul that he may exercise faith and patience and try my perseverance and that he may fit me for mercy and mercy for me Oh that we could entertain good thoughts of a gracious God when he defers an answer Fourthly be looking to God through the Mediator close more with him through the Son look to the great God through the son of David look to him through that merciful and compassionate High-Priest look more to God through Christ and there rest Fifthly and lastly wait patiently for him oh take up a resolution to wait upon the Lord charge thy own heart to do it as David did and though he speaks not to day nor to morrow though he speaks not this month this year not in this opportunity yet say I will wait for the Lord I will wait in every season and get upon the watch-tower and wait patiently and see which way Christ will come to thy soul know it is thy duty to wait take hold of his promise he is a God of judgement and waiteth to be gracious he waiteth for an opportunity and therefore it is good thou shouldst wait it is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord. Matth. 15. 23. And his Disciples came and besought him saying send her away for she crieth after us SERMON IX CHrist as you have heard is silent to the prayer of the woman he answered her not a word whereupon the Disciples they step in and perform an office and duty of love for this poor woman they step in and they plead with Christ for her Lord send her away for she crieth after us It is a great question with some whether the Disciples did pray for this woman here or no some think that they did not make any request for her there is no mention of any they only say Lord send her away for she crieth after us Lord stop her mouth send her away give her an answer dispatch her for she crieth after us and this was done say they that so the trial of this womans faith might be the greater But I rather conceive that the Disciples in these words did pray for her they did perform an office and duty of love in interceding with Christ for her For First of all it seems they were very earnest in it they came and besought him saying send her away Surely if it had been only to stop her mouth to dispatch her the Disciples would not have been so earnest with Christ to beseech him good nature would have taught them more compassion and therefore grace teacheth them much more And then they seem to be affected with the cry of the woman she crieth after us send her away it breaks our hearts the cries that she makes Thou Son of David have mercy on me And thirdly it is clear and evident in the following verse from the answer that Christ gives upon their seeking of him I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel Therefore it is evident that the Disciples did not plead with Christ to send her away to stop her mouth but they did plead with Christ though not mentioned that he would grant her request The truth then which the words hold forth to us is this That it is the duty of Christs Disciples to present the conditions of others unto the Lord in prayer as well as their own We find that Moses the servant of the Lord was much in this work much in praying for others and interceding for Israel upon every occasion he steps in and pleadeth with God for the people And so David in many of the Psalms he presents the conditions of others unto the Lord. And our Lord Jesus Christ himself who is our great pattern was much in the performance of this duty John 17. you shall â—nd there that the most part of the time that Christ spent in prayer it was spent in praying for others there is but one petition that he put for himself in ver 1. and repeated again in ver 5. and all the rest of his time it was spent in praying for others for the Disciples for those that were converted and for those that did belong to God that were not converted Many requests the Lord Jesus makes in the behalf of others and but one for himself And so the Apostle Paul who was a follower of Christ he was much in this work of praying for others Rom. 1. 9. he did appeal to God that he did not neglect this duty For God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the Gospel of his son that without ceasing I make mention of you alwayes in my prayers And so 2 Tim. 1. 3. I thank God whom I serve from my fore-fathers with pure conscience that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers Paul did remember others before the Lord. But in the opening of the point I shall shew you First who they are that we are bound to pray for whose conditions Gods people are bound to remember before the Lord. Secondly what are the special time we are called unto this duty to remember others before the Lord. If you ask who they are that we are bound to pray for First we are bound to pray for them that have done us wrong a hard lesson but a lesson that Christs Disciples must learn we must pray for those that have done us wrong that have done evil and spoken evil of us See what our Saviour Christ saith Mat. 5. 44. But I say unto you love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you See here out of Christs own mouth this is our duty if we be Christs Disciples we must pray for them that persecute us and despitefully use us we should go to the Lord and beseech the Lord to forgive them thus did Christ Father forgive
not leave the ninety and nine and goeth into the mountains and seeketh that which is gone astray He goeth forth to seek the one sheep that is lost you being that one lost sheep and you looking upon your own condition to be lost and you are sensible that none is so lost as you he will leave the ninety and nine to seek you And therefore hear the glad tydings of your Shepherd he cometh forth to seek you be you willing to come to Christ and O! what joy will there be in heaven at your return Fourthly and lastly It lets us see and O that we might see the infinite riches of the grace of God in Christ to poor sinners O! here is grace indeed What rich mercy was that that sent out Jesus Christ to seek lost sheep O! that we might consider a little of the greatness of this grace of God the exceeding riches of it that the Lord should send forth his Son Jesus Christ to seek lost sheep O! consider what worthless creatures we were how unuseful and unprofitable both to God and man nay the Lord saw how little useful we should be afterward how little we are able to return to the Lord for this his great mercy yet the Lord sent forth his Son to seek you And consider that this was at such a time when we could never have returned to the Lord when we could never have found God though we had sought him we could not have found him if we had had any disposition to have sought after the Shepherd we could not have found him no by all our searching we could never have found him And then when it was so with us that we could not finde the way to go home again that he should send Jesus Christ to shew us the way that he makes by the Shepherd to lead the wandring sheep home O free grace If the Lord had sent forth the least Angel of heaven to have sought poor lost sinners it had been mercy but that God should not commit this work to his servants but give a Commission to his Son and make it his great work to seek poor lost sheep O great love nay when we could not finde God and when Angels could not have found us if they had sought us herein is the exceeding riches of grace Nay it was at such a time as the Lord might have sent his Justice to have found us out God might have sent the Avenger of blood after us the Lord might have set all our sins upon us to have found us out they might have followed us as so many Avengers of blood O that at such a time God should send Christ to finde us out after all our sinful wandrings from God! that he should make his Son to come and seek O infinite love And therefore let me speak to those that have received this grace Hath the Lord found out your souls Hath Jesus Christ found you out in your wandrings and through mercy brought you home to God Hath he brought home any poor soul to believe in Christ and to give up it self fully and for ever to Christ O! be thankful for this mercy and labour to walk worthy of it and study to know what is your duty now you that are Christ's sheep and were lost O! what is your duty Christ hath found you surely some duty you owe to Christ Why this is our duty It is our duty now to seek Christ to seek much faith in Christ if Christ hath sought us and took so much pains in seeking us that were not worth the seeking after O! how should we lay forth our selves to seek Christ Seek him every day seek much of Christ seek his face evermore seek more of Christ every day Christ sought us when we were not worthy and shall not we seek him who is infinitely worthy who is the desire of all Nations Again It is our duty to seek others Christ hath found us it is our duty to seek others to pity the sheep that are lost that for the present are in a lost estate and condition take some pains to seek them according to your Talent and opportunity O take pains to seek others Assoon as ever Christ found Andrew Andrew he findes Simon Peter O! Come saith he and see Christ I say if Christ hath found us let us labour to finde others labour to bring them to the knowledge of Jesus Christ the great Shepherd The Lord gave a Commandment Deut. 22. 1. That if any man saw his neighbours Oxe or Sheep go astray he should pity them he should not hide himself from them but he should pity the poor lost sheep and the lost Oxe Doth God take care for Oxen Doth Godtake care for Sheep That a poor lost Sheep be brought home to his Owner And that a poor lost Oxe be brought home to his Owner And doth not God take more care for poor lost souls And is it not a more acceptable work to bring home lost souls O pity poorlost souls tell them of Christ shew them the way to Christ and know that if you shall be an instrument in the Lord's hand to bring home a lost soul to Jesus Christ the Owner O it will be service very acceptable to God your Father Thirdly If Christ hath found us then we should lose no opportunity of honouring him Let us know that we are the Lord's we are not our own any longer but engaged to be the Lord's sought out by Christ and saved by Christ and brought from a wandring condition and lost in a wilderness and yet found by Christ in this wilderness condition O let us know that we are engaged for ever to be the Lord's therefore let not Christ's sheep lose any opportunity of doing service to Christ take heed that we do not lose any opportunity of being profitable to Christ bringing honour to Christ in our generation for that is expected by Christ the Shepherd So Paul did engage for Onesimus in the Epistle of Philemon Onesimus he was a poor run-away sheep Paul he findes Onesimus and he brings him home to Christ he was instrumental in his conversion and he sendeth him to his Master and he tells him that now he will be profitable before he was unprofitable but now he will be profitable to thee and to me and to Christ before unprofitable A sheep is of no use when lost but when it s found then it is profitable and so if the Lord hath found our souls O that we might do all we can to bring honour to Christ and lift up his name in this our generation for Christ hath sound us for that end Fourthly If Christ hath found us we should be content to lose all we have for him Let all go for Christ it matters not what we lose for Christ if Christ hath found us If God calls for our estates let that go if Christ hath found us we have that which is better then a great estate it had
life begins here in holiness and that is eternal life to know the Father and the Son that is the end for which God doth predestinate that they might be holy through the sanctification of the Spirit and that they might be blessed and happy for ever But in respect of God the great end of Election it is the praise of his own grace that so they that shall be saved they may for ever admire and advance that rich and free grace of God towards them that chose them so freely when as they were so vile this is the end of Election Fiftly We may consider the means by which God doth fulfil and execute his Decree of Election The means of executing his Decree it is Christ Jesus as Mediator he chose such and such to bring them to such and such an end by such means by Christ Jesus and by Faith in him Christ as Mediator he is the cause of the means of God's executing and fulfilling his Decree though not the cause of Election but the cause of the means of God's executing and fulfilling his Decree for God would save them no other way but by Jesus Christ in Ephes 1. 4. you have these all together According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in love Here you see it is an Act of God from eternity before the foundation of the world and at v. 5. you may see it is an Act of his Free Grace According to the good pleasure of his Will v. 5. He was not moved thereunto by any thing in the creature no it was according to the good pleasure of his Will And you see also the several ends for which God hath chosen v. 4. in respect of the creature the end is that we should be holy and at v. 5. that we should be happy and attain the inheritance of children and the great end of all is in v. 6. That this may be the praise and glory of his grace And then there is the means by which God doth execute this Decree v. 4. He hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world So that you see somthing of this great and wonderful mysterie of Election in this place But there are two things further which I shall insist upon for the clearing of the Truth to you in the opening of which I shall meet with those things that are most of all objected against this Truth This Act of God from eternity it was 1. Absolute 2. Immutable and Vnchangeable There are these two general heads which will clear up much of the minde and will of God in this Truth 1. God's Decree is absolute and free 2. It is unchangeable First It is absolute and free it doth not depend upon any thing in the creature God did not chuse because he foresaw men would be such and such he did not chuse any because he foresaw they would believe as some imagine he did not chuse any because he foresaw they would be holy his decree and choice and love it was not grounded upon any thing in the creature for the Lord he hath no such respect in his choice you may see what is said of Esau and Jacob in Rom. 9. 11. The Apostle is there treating of this mysterie and he doth there let us know that it is free and absolute and doth not depend upon the work or worthiness of the creature For the children being not yet born neither having done any good or evil that the purpose of God according to election might stand not of works but of him that calleth v. 12. It was said unto her the elder shall serve the younger v. 13. As it is written Jacob have I loved but Esau have I hated Before they had either done good or evil God made choice of Jacob God did not chuse him because he foresaw he would be better then his brother Esau no Esau and Jacob were all alike unto God nay if there were any preheminence Esau had it he was the first born and was not Esau Jacobs brother saith God yet I loved Jacob Mal. 1. 2 3. and I hated Esau I have bestowed special love upon Jacob less upon Esau Not that God hates the creature without some consideration but hating here is to shew a less love Christ saith a man shall hate his Father and Mother for Christ's sake that is love them less then Christ and Jacob had two wives one was hated the other loved Rachel beloved and Leah hated that is less loved and so God here he bestows special love upon Jacob and not upon Esau And it is evident from Scripture that God could not chuse for foreseen faith and holiness for the Scripture holds forth that both faith and holiness they are the fruits of Election and therefore not the cause of Election men therefore believe and are made holy because God hath chosen them from eternity Acts 13. 48. As many as were ordained to eternal life believed see here faith is made the fruit of Election and of God's love from eternity the words cannot be read thus That as many as believed were ordained to eternal life but as many as were ordained to eternal life believed and so holiness or sanctification cannot be the cause of Election no it is the fruit of Election see Ephes 1. 4. According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in love He hath chosen us that we should be holy not chosen us because we were holy but that we might be holy holiness then proceeds from God's special love And I shall make it further evident to you from some Arguments from Scripture that it is not possible God's choice should be grounded upon any thing in the creature but meerly an Act of his own good pleasure for First of all that which maketh the Will of God to depend upon the creature that cannot be a true doctrine but now if God doth chuse upon foreseen faith and works because he foresaw the creature to be such then the Will of God doth depend upon the creature which destroyes the divine nature of God and the freedom of God's Will it is not possible that God's Will should be determined but by its self now if God chose upon foreseen faith and works then God's Will is determined by some thing in the creature Secondly It doth derogate much from the freeness of God's grace as also from the greatness of the mysterie and of the wonder of the Gospel I say If God did chuse men because he foresaw that they would be holy it derogates much from the freeness of his grace If it be of works then it is not of grace If God's choice were grounded upon such a foresight of faith and holiness then it is not an election of grace And it derogates much from the great mysterie of the Gospel God will
to his people from eternity And that first love of God it is held forth as the cause of giving Christ Christ was not the cause of that first love but God loved from eternity and therefore he gave Christ God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son and love gave that Son Jesus Christ to be the Saviour Thirdly I answer we are said to be chosen in him not as being believers not that God did consider men as believing in Christ actually but they may after a sort be said to be in Christ even from eternity not actually but virtually Some do explain it thus as the corn that is sown and begins to bud why as soon as it begins to bud there is the blade and the ear and the corn virtually but not actually and so we were in him from eternity virtually as chosen together with him and given unto him but not actually in Jesus Christ till such time as men do believe in Jesus Christ There is a third Objection which I shall but touch But you will say Why then God makes choice of sinners and how can that be If God did not chuse men upon fore-seen faith and holiness and not consider them in Christ then he considered them as sinners but now how can God chuse men as sinners When the Scripture saith He is a God of purer eyes then to behold the least iniquity If a man be not in Christ he is a sinner and can God love a vile creature from eternity I answer There is a love of good will and a love of delight there was a love of good will that God had to his people from everlasting yea although that God saw they were in themselves vile sinful creatures but God doth not love them with the love of delight till they are washed and cleansed in the blood of Christ But you will say It is not possible that God should do so A good man he may not take a vile person to be his bosome friend or companion and he may not take one that is wicked into the relation of a wife or husband and how shall God do it who is a God of purer eyes I answer Though we may not make such a choice God may make such a choice why Because God is able to make them gracious and holy If we were able to make them holy then we might chuse the worst in the world But now there is power in God to do it if he chuse the unrighteous he can make them righteous and if he chuse unbelievers he can give them faith and if he chuse unholy ones he can make them holy Nay he chuseth for that very end that he might make them holy and blameless So that you have seen that God's Decree it is absolute that it is not grounded upon any consideration or worth in the creature but absolute in respect of the means And secondly As it is free and absolute so it is unchangeable God cannot he will not cast off any that he hath chosen no see what the Apostle saith 2 Tim. 2. 19. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure having this Seal the Lord knoweth them that are his This Decree of God is unchangeable for it is as a sure foundation The foundation is the beginning of the building and so this Decree it is the beginning of all that good and those spiritual blessings that God doth bestow upon his children and the foundation is sure and unmoveable if it be laid by a skilful and powerful hand foundations are laid sure why this foundation is laid by God's own hand it is laid by his wise and mighty hand and who shall remove the foundation that God hath laid All the men and Angels in the world cannot overturn the purpose and decree of God for the saving of one poor soul all the devils in hell cannot overturn this foundation and there is nothing in the creature can hinder it no sinfulness no unworthiness before conversion and after conversion for it is sure And it must needs be sure because God in his Essence is unchangeable and therefore his purpose unchangeable for the Will of God is God himself and therefore the purpose of God can be no more unchangeable then God himself So that you see there is an Election and this Election is of grace That 's the first particular The second particular which I shall but touch is That this Election may be known by the sons of men though it be transacted in heaven though their names be written in heaven yet it is possible for men to know this secret of God's Decree this great mystery it is possible that it may be known to others and it is possible that it may be known to our selves Our Election may be known to others see Phil. 4. 3. And I entreat thee also true yoke-fellow help those women which laboured with me in the Gospel with Clement also and with other my fellow labourers whose names are in the Book of Life The Apostle here speaking of such and such persons he concludes that their names are in the book of life and in 1 Thess 1. 3 4. Remembring without ceasing your work of faith and labour of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God and our Father Knowing brethren beloved your Election of God But you will say How can this be known Why it may be known by the fruits of Election when the Gospel comes with power when the Gospel doth overpower the heart when men and women are overcome to believe in the name of Christ when they make a resignation of themselves to Christ and when the Image of Christ is stampt upon them and they in some measure made conformable to Christ who is the head of the Church then others may conclude in the judgement of charity such and such are elected of God so far as we may know the truth of others faith so far we may in the judgement of charity know the election of others But secondly This may not only be known to others but to a mans own self that he is chosen of God before the foundation of the world for we are put upon it to make it sure 2 Pet. 1. 10. Brethren give diligence to make your calling and election sure strive to put it out of doubt be not content to be at uncertainties in this business it may not only be known but make it sure he doth not exhort them to make it sure in its self by doing this or that for it is sure in it self but make it sure as to your selves wait upon the Lord that your hearts may be confirmed in it that you are called and elected of God for it is possible for a man to know that he is elected Yea Christ puts his Disciples upon it to rejoyce in the consideration of this that they were elected Luke 10. 20. But rather rejoyce because your names are written
in heaven Rejoyce in this that God hath chosen you and loved you that he hath loved you with an everlasting love and that he hath given you to his Son and will bring you to life and happiness to the praise of his grace in this rejoyce And therefore it is that the Spirit of the Lord is given out to believers that they might know their election it is one end of Christ's sending the Comforter the Spirit of the Lord who searcheth the deep things of God and so reveals them unto believers Now this is among the deep things of God God's eternal love this is one of the depths that made the Apostle cry out when he considered God's way from eternity to poor creatures The Spirit searcheth the deep things of God and reveals them to his people the Spirit of the Lord stood by when he did write the names of his children in the book of life the Son was present and the Spirit was present even from eternity before the world was made when God writ the names of his people in the book of life and therefore the Spirit it is one of God's Witnesses and is given to testifie this to his people he is sent by Christ to testifie what he saw from eternity that the names of such and such were written in the book of life God hath given us of his Spirit that we might know the things that are given us freely of God 1 Cor. 2. 12. Now this is one of the things that are freely given us of God this absolute choice this love of God that was from everlasting if ever any thing were free this is free now the Spirit of the Lord is sent to cause us to know the things that are freely given us of God Now when the Spirit of the Lord doth make known to a soul that it is elected somtimes it makes use of the testimony of the blood of Christ and of the testimony of Water and somtimes he declares this to the soul by his own immediate witness the Spirit of the Lord doth sometimes make it known mediately and somtimes immediately Mediately There are three that bear record in earth the Spirit the Water and the blood and these three agree in one 1 John 5. 8. Now the Spirit that â—â—â—keth the blood of Christ anâ— sprinkles it upâ— the soul and causeth faith to be wrought in the soul to lay hold upon the blood of Christ and then there is the witness of the Blood And so all the Spirit of the Lord doth change the heart and renew the heart there is the witness of the Water now when the Spirit of the Lord doth shine upon these the soul can thorow these draw comfortable conclusions concerning its own election And somtimes there is a more immediate witness The Spirit it self bearing witness that we are the children of God Rom. 8. 16. Add his own Testimony beside all others that a soul is loved of God so that you see the second general head which is this that this great mysterie of election may be known it may be known unto others and to our selves And therefore O that we might wait upon God for the discovery of it Men are found negligent in this great business because they think it is too high for them who can ascend into heaven say they they think it is presumption for them to ascend into heaven and who can know say they that they are loved from everlasting But O! know souls that there is an absolute Election of grace and this Election may be known it may be known to others and it may be known to our selves O therefore that we might give the Lord no rest and our souls no rest till this great mysterie be made out to us though it be a secret a wonderful secret Yet there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets saith Daniel to King Nebuâ—â—â—dnezzar Dan. 2. 28. Thongh it was a secret 〈◊〉 past my reach saith he yet there is a God in â—aeven that revealeth secrets and so I say though 〈◊〉 be a secret yet there is a God in heaven that â—ealeth secrets and therefore wait upon the â—rd that we may know that we are elected Matth. 15. 24. I am not sent but unto the lost shâ— of the house of Israel SERMON XIII BUt to come to the third part of 〈◊〉 Doctrine which is this That the Doctrine of Election is a comfortable Doctrine It holds forth solid ground of comfort and greâ— refreshment to the people of God Although â—â—ny spurn at it and carnal reason ready to rise 〈◊〉 against it yet it is a doctrine of sweet and solâ— comfort to God's people And I shall shew yoâ— how it is such a comfortable doctrine First This is a ground of comfort to poor soulâ— that God's love doth not depend upon any thing 〈◊〉 the creature a ground of unspeakable comfort that God he fetcheth all his arguments of lovâ— out of his own bowels not from any desert in thâ— creature Alas if God's love had gone by desert in us there had been but little hope And I do not know what solid ground of comfort they can lay that contend so for a conditional Decree grounded upon the creatures acting for if the Lord had not loved and chosen till he had seen some worthiness in the creature till he had seen some better improvement in us then in others if the Lord had suspended to love and to chuse till then O! what little hope might any creature have had that know the contrary workings of his own heart What little hope of being saved But now when all is of Free grace and the Lord overlooks all unworthiness and chuseth freely and loves freely O this is a ground of hope and great consolation Secondly There is another ground of comfort and refreshment from this Doctrine It doth assure us that the Lord is very ready to be entreated that the Lord is not hardly brought off to shew mercy to poor sinners that there is not an unwillingness in God to this work as unbelief and the Tempter would suggest why It was that which was the purpose of God from everlasting I say God from all eternity hath purposed it It was the counsel of God the great work of God that which God spent his thoughts upon from all eternity they were as I may say the first thoughts of the heart of God to love and pity and to save and to bring about that great work of saving sinners by the blood of Christ this was the great contrivance of God and it is a great ground of comfort and refreshment A poor soul may doubt whether God be willing to save and willing to be reconciled to him that hath sinned so and so O! This Doctrine doth comfort exceedingly for certainly if it were the great work of God from eternity the Lord is not unwilling now to do it Christ tells his Disciples That the Father himself loveth you That is
a ground of comfort there was a love in the Father towards you before I made a request for you though the Father now love you more and better yet the Father himself loved you before I made any request for you Thirdly This is another ground of great refreshment from this Doctrine That the love of God towards his people it is an ancient Love a love that did not begin yesterday a love that is not of a few years standing but an ancient love it is as ancient as eternity it is as ancient as the Ancient of dayes as ancient as God himself no beginning but from eternity O! That commends love exceedingly when as love is an ancient love when as one hath born love to such a Family through many generations and hath provided love for such a family for many generations to come that exceedingly commends the love of a friend when a friend shall take care that there shall be an Estate entailed to such a family for many generations to come that he should provide a portion for them before they had a being O! that is ancient love and that doth commend the love of a friend and truly it commends the love of the Creator and it is full of sweetness and Refreshment that God hath loved his people from eternity love hath run down that long Tract of eternity and he hath provided a portion from eternity an inheritance from eternity oh that the Lord should make such provision for poor creatures before they had any being not only thousands of years but even from eternity before they had any being when there was no world no creature no being but only in the mind of God that God then should chuse them and provide an inheritance for them truly this commends the love of God and makes it very sweet Fourthly There is this ground of refreshment that the Doctrine holds forth that this love of God to his people it is a distinguishing love oh that commends love exceedingly when it is distinguishing when it puts a difference where there was no difference that love that makes a difference and so vast a difference when no difference that love is very precious See what is said in Hos 1. 6 7. For I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel but I will utterly take them away But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah and will save them by the Lord their God c. See here at the very time that God said he would not have mercy upon Israel he would have mercy upon Judah and would save them oh how sweet was the discovery of that love And truly this is the love of God that this Doctrine holds forth a distinguishing love that when there was no difference in the creature and one not better then another and yet that God should take those and chuse those that were as bad as those that were left oh this distinguishing love it is very sweet and hath a great deale of refreshment Fifthly This Doctrine holds forth a ground of joy there is a great deale of true grounded joy lasting joy that may arise and doth arise unto the people of God from the knowledge of this that God hath chosen them and loved them from eternity with an everlasting love it doth administer the best ground of comfort that can be found in all the World See that place Luke 10. 20. But rather rejoyce because your names are written in Heaven The knowledge of this speciall love that God hath written the names of poor creatures in Heaven it is a ground of unspeakable joy rejoyce not that the uncleane spirits are subject to you why they might rejoyce more in that then in any outward mercy whatsoever that the unclean spirits were subject to them for it is more then if all the men of the world were subject to them ah but yet in this rejoyce not rejoyce not so much in this for here is a more lasting ground for your joy that your names are written in Heaven it will afford such joy and will kindle such a flame of joy as all the waters of affliction cannot quench When a soul comes to know this and can make out this that his name is written in heaven a soul may then rejoyce in every condition rejoyce in Tribulation rejoyce in Persecution rejoyce in Poverty and distresse yea though they may loose all the comforts of life yet when God reveals to them that their names are written in Heaven they may rejoyce for they have a portion that can never be lost an inheritance that can never be taken away from them though they meet with never so much scorn and reproach from the World though men should cast out their names as vile yet if their names are written in Heaven they may rejoyce for their names are precious before God when vise before men and it is written there where it can never be blotted out so that it doth administer matter of sound and sollid joy such joy as will hold out and cannot be quencht with many waters Sixtly Another ground of comfort that doth arise from the knowledge of our election is this that we have and shall enjoy that great priviledge and benefit of the ministry and service of the holy Angels When God comes to make out his love to the soul why it may conclude that the Lord hath given his Angels charge over them that the Angels shall defend and the Angels shall protect and the Angels shall deliver from many dangers See what the Apostle saith in Heb. 1. 14. speaking of the Angels Are they not all ministring spirits sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation They that are chosen by God to an inheritance reserved in Heaven they have the ministry of all the holy Angels while on earth though we see it not with this bodily eye though we see not the Angels how they ascend and descend how they goe to Heaven and come from Heaven yet it is matter of faith the word of the Lord hath said they are all ministring spirits for the good of the Saints many a kindness the Angels doth us and we are kept from many a danger by the Angels He shall give his Angels charge and they shall bear thee up that thou dash not thy foot against a stone That is another ground of sweet comfort Seventhly It doth administer this ground of comfort that all that Gods people doe meet withall â—here in the world shall work for their good God will make an advantage of whatsoever his people doth meet withall See what the Apostle saith in Rom. 8. 28. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God to them who are the called according to his purpose All things shall work together for good to those who are called according to his purpose according to that ancient love in the bosome of God all afflictions all crosses
If there had been a Will in thee to have desired it he would have given thee Water of Life But if there be not a Will in man to have Faith Nay the heart of man doth secretly oppose it why then let not man lay the fault upon God But if the Lord hath given a Will and a man's Will be not against the Lord then there is a beginning of God's work and the Lord will certainly give out the gift of Faith and Christ to a poor Soul that shall be found waiting upon him And thus you have seen the several Temptations that may arise from the Doctrine of Election Now followeth somthing by way of Answer and Direction for the preventing and silencing of all Temptations of this Nature Matth. 15. 24. But he answered and said I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel SERMON XV. I Come now to lay down some general Rules for the silencing and overcoming of all Temptations of this Nature concerning Election And the first Rule is this Take heed that we do not give way to carnal reason that we do not set carnal Reason on work to finde out this great and wonderful Mysterie take heed of the very beginnings of carnal reason when you begin to reason concerning Election as to the causer of it why God should chuse one and refuse another Seek not to satisfie Carnal Reason in this for know that there is an infinite distance between God and the creature And therefore for the silencing of Carnal Reason Consider first of all That he is God and thou art man therefore do not quarrel and contend with God and seek to bring down God to satisfie thy reason in this Rom. 9. 20. Nay but O man Who art thou that replyest against God Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it why hast thou made me thus The Apostle he brings in this for the silencing of carnal reason that is too busie in prying into God's Election and will not be satisfied unless he hath a reason Man Who art thou consider that thou art man that thou art but a child of Adam and remember that as thou art man so he is God he is Jehovah he is an infinite incomprehensible Being he is absolute he is Independent he doth not depend upon any creature his will it is the rule of all goodness and righteousness he is God it is not the will of man nor the reason of man that must be righteous that must not be good which we will and which we comprehend no that is not the rule of goodness but the will of God and therefore remember that he is God and not man Secondly To silence carnal reason Remember that He is thy Maker Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it Why hast thou made me thus Why he made thee he fashioned thee and is it fit for the creature to contend with his Maker Should the Potsherd go and strive with his Maker There is as great a distance betwixt God and the creature as between the Potter and the clay nay a greater distance between God and us Of the same lump he maketh one a vessel of honour another of dishonour were this remembred we would not be so bold to call God to accompt Thirdly For to silence carnal reason consider That the more a man wades into this mysterie with his own reason the further he is and shall be from satisfaction for it is just as if a man should attempt to go and wade over the Sea on foot when a man sets the first step into the Sea it may be he is up to the knees the next step up to the loyns next step up to the neck and the next step over head and ears and can feel no bottome It is true by faith we may go down into this great deep and see the wonders of God by faith a man may go upon this great depth of the love of God and wonder at it and cry out O! the depth of the love of God! But if we go with carnal reason we shall be over head and ears and the more reason the further from satisfaction and he will confound his reason If a man gaze upon the Sun to know the nature of the Sun and think to comprehend the Sun the more he gazeth upon the Sun the more will the Sun confound the eye that he will not be able to comprehend the Sun and so when the dim eye of carnal reason shall gaze upon this glorious mysterie of God the eye will soon be confounded and we shall be further from satisfaction Fourthly Consider for the silencing of carnal reason That it is not possible that a man should go about to satisfie his reason but he shall dash against many dangerous Rocks that will split him all to pieces Many a man of learning have thought to comprehend this mysterie by reason and so they have split against many dangerous rocks of error and made shipwrack of Faith many have come to reason against Rom. 9. and have wished that it had been torn out of the Book of God O dangerous Rocks that men split themselves against that will have their reason satisfied in this deep mysterie I have known some I hope gracious that have been miserably shattered this way that would needs call God to account why God let Adam fall and why God did not save all the world and why God should take one and not another and they have reasoned thus until they have reasoned themselves out of good thoughts of God and out of acts of Faith and Hope and have reasoned themselves out of their duty to God and have been as poor creatures in the midst of an Ocean and have found no ground to set their foot upon And again consider That the Divel will make use of carnal Reason in this Mysterie of God to keep a poor soul in a dark and perplexed condition there is many a poor soul is kept in the dark and led into a labyrinth that they can finde no path they are kept in a fruitless condition many dayes and years an useless condition they are kept from their present work and duty by giving way to their carnal reason in this great mysterie And consider last of all for the silencing of carnal reason That it is an impossible thing to attain to satisfie it and therefore it is a vain attempt time is spent in vain and thou layest out thy self in vain while a soul seeks that which cannot be to know their Election in the first place before they come to Christ and be found believing and obeying and walking with God I say it is an impossible thing for you to know your Election before you believe in Christ and be a new creature It is true you are put upon it to make your Election sure ay but he does not say finde it out by reason have an account of it in the first place no make
righteous Justifie God though thou art in the dark and perplexed and troubled in Spirit about thine own Election or the Election of friends yet do thou resolve and say I wil justifie God though God hath not chosen me and my children though God hath not chosen my friends yet no unrighteousness in him Truly this is the way to overcome the Temptation and till a soul be brought to this a soul that is troubled about his Election will never finde rest till he come to justifie God and lye at the feet of the Lord and say Lord though thou condemnest me and all my children and friends thou art righteous till we justifie God we shall have no peace in our selves What a restless condition was Job in when he stood quarrelling with God's Decree He never had peace till he came to Justifie God Job 42. 2. I know that thou canst do every thing I will contend no more When Job came thus to justifie God then Job's Temptation vanished and then the Lord turned unto Job and Turned again his Captivity and doubled the mercies he had taken away That 's the third Rule Fourthly For the Overcoming and Silencing of these Temptations about Election Remember this that when-ever we are tempted about Election that we presently fall to worship the Lord Jesus so it was with this woman in the Text when she met with this Temptation about Election Christ said I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the House of Israel What follows She came and worshipped him She spake not a word of Discontent but falls down and worshipped him This is the way to overcome the Temptation when you are doubting concerining the love of God perplexed about Election presently fall to worship the Lord worship him Worship him How Worship him First With the Inward Worship of the Spirit Fear before him that is part of his Worship Reverence the Lord greatly in your hearts notwithstanding all that 's part of his worship Love the Lord let your souls be breathing in love towards him cleave unto him pursue after him with your Spirit that is part of the Inward worship Commit your souls unto him trust in him cast your selves upon the Lord and the word of his grace that is the Inward Worship Acknowledge your dependance upon him resolve there to hang say Lord my whole dependance is upon thee my blessedness is in thy hand all that I expect for eternity doth depend upon thee Go and cleave and clasp about the feet of Christ and by faith depend upon Christ and say Lord here I will hold and stay and will not away unless I be pulled away by violence from the feet of Christ This is Internal Worship and this is that worship that gives so much glory to God Abraham believed above hope and against hope and gave glory to God When you are tempted about Election thus worship him And secondly Worship him with External Worship There are two principal parts of this Worship that will tend to the silencing of all temptations about Election The first is Prayer The second is Thanksgiving When you are tempted about Election or doubt of the love of God fall to prayer go and pour out a cry before the Lord go and lament after him and say though I do not know whether thou wilt accept of me O Lord yet I will cry after thee I will lament after thee cry after himself his presence his face his favour his loving kindness go and cry after him this is the way to be rid of the temptation And truly this will be a discovery that God hath Elected thee In Luke 18. you have Christ speaking there of the unrighteous Judge who neither feared God or man but at vers 7. you have him speaking of the righteous Judge and saith he Shall not God avenge his own Elect which cry day and night unto him This is a good discovery that God hath chosen that soul though the soul knows it not when as it is crying after the Lord and resolves to cry and not give over They are his Elect that cry day and night and he will certainly hear their cry God will come in and manifest himself to the soul and therefore when tempted about Election go to Prayer Another part of External Worship is Thanksgiving an excellent Remedy against this Temptation about Election O! desire that thy heart may be put into a thankful frame look up to God for it and plead with the Lord that thy heart may be put into a thankful posture Consider what thou hast to be thankful for Is there nothing O certainly if thou art not exceeding ungrateful thou mayst see somthing to be thankful for in the worst condition O! the years of patience and goodness of the Lord toward thee think upon the bounty of the Lord toward thee Hath not the Lord tendred his Christ to thee And hath he not held forth his promises to thee Hath he not been working upon thy heart to overcome thy heart Is not this worthy of Thankfulness Those supports that thou hast met withall under affliction have not everlasting Arms been under thee Surely thou must say it that everlasting Armes have been under me and why dost thou not bless the Lord that he hath put underneath everlasting Arms Yea hath there not been some secret intimations of love though thou hast not received so much as another Yet hath there not been some secret hints of grace and love O! that is worthy of thankfulness Yea look to all the outward salvations that thou hast met withall look to all the years of goodness and all the years of mercy Hath not God come to thee and to thy Family with many sweet refreshments What None of these worthy of Thankfulness O that thou wouldest learn to creep if thou canst not go and every night when thou lookest back O say here is another day of goodness the Lord might have cut me off here is another day of patience and in the morning when thou wakest think of it the Lord might have cut me off this night Here is another night of patience and see if this cannot draw forth thy soul in thankfulness I have heard of a young man very lately in the Town of Yarmouth that being very weak and nigh to the grave and under the apprehensions of the wrath of God and supposing that he was presently going down to the pit he cries out O that God would spare me but two dayes He would have accounted it a mercy to be kept out of hell but two dayes O! God hath given thee more then two dayes many moneths many years in which the Lord hath exercised his patience O! may not all this provoke thee to thankfulness Well if thou canst not see any thing to be thankful for of that which God hath done for thee why then bless God for what is in himself O! Think upon the gracious Nature of God think upon the glorious Majesty of
Christ accounted as children there and servants there and friends there that they should walk so as Christ should be dishonoured Professors look to it and ye especially that are Church members your scandals your open sins bring more dishonour to Christ then the sins of the whole world your sins are a shame to Christ they reflect to the dishonour of Christ and shame to Christ It is a sad thing that men should look upon Professors and say they are like the world they make a profession Ah! but they are as greedy after the world as wicked men and they are as proud as the Devil himself O that Professors might not give occasion for wicked men thus to speak for this will be a dishonour to Christ When you see a childe rude and deboist you will say who is his father Or who is his Master What Hath he no Father Or no Master O! What a shame is it to the Master of the House And so for Professors when men shall look upon those of corrupt conversation and they shall say Who is their Master What Christ their Master And they speak so and so And walk so and so O that the Lord would make them that have the profession of Christ upon them watchful in this Take heed that you give no occasion to the world to speak evilly of Christ who is the Lord and Master of his House Thirdly It lets us see what a Priviledge it is to be a Member of the Church of Christ and to have Right thereunto Take that along O! What a priviledge is it What a desireable mercy is it How will every one strive to get their children into great mens houses If they can but get their sons to be one of a Noble-man's house you think it to be a great priviledge O what a mercy and priviledge is it to be one of Christs Family How many are the priviledges that they enjoy that are in Christ's House You had a taste of them before and O that the taste might draw all Christians to the performance of their duty O! How did David long and thirst after it Psal 27. 4. One thing have I desired of the Lord and but one thing What is that That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the dayes of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in his Temple O how desirous was David to dwel in the House of the Lord And he counts them blessed Psal 84. 4. Blessed are they that dwell in thy House Now if it be such a mercy and priviledge take heed that we do not contemn it and take heed that you do not slight it and say it is no great matter whether I be in the house of God or no so long as I am a Believer O! Take heed that you do not despise such a priviledge Fourthly and Lastly What an engagement doth lye upon all in Christ's house to be holy This is an engagement to duty First It engages the Saints in Church-fellowship unto the exercise of the grace of Love why they are all of one house and of one houshold and and they are engaged to love one another they are engaged to seek the good of one another you take it ill if a servant or childe should not regard what becomes of their fellow servants and fellow brethren every one must seek the good of th' other If one House we are engaged to a great deal of love and tenderness that we should express towards one another not to minde our own things but to minde the good of others but especially in the same house we are bound to do good to all the houshold of Faith but especially in the same house we have the strongest tye to love and to help one another if in Christ's house And if this be Christ's house O! What duty do we owe to Christ that are received into Christs house If in Christ's house we should keep Christ's Lawes the Rules of his house O! what Rules hath Christ given us to walk by Faith and Love the great Commandment of the Gospel O! if in Christ's house know that you are engaged to walk by Christ's Lawes And it engages you to do the work of Christ what is the work that is in Christ's house Surely there is some work for every one Christ will not have an idle person in his house some work Christ layes before every member O that we might be helpful there is somthing in which the meanest member may be serviceable to the house of Christ wait upon the Lord to know your work and wait for strength to do it And we should bless Christ for the provision of his house O! how engaged are we to wait upon the Lord for the blessing the provision of his house what a mercy it is for the Lord to take us into his house and send us the best things making us a feast of fat things wine on the Lees well refined a feast here and a feast in other Ordinance the Supper O! what an engagement to thrive and grow in grace It will be a shame to Christ if his people that enjoy so much if they shall be still lean and ill-thriving As the Lord hath taken us into his house so let us look up to the Lord for his blessing and for the fulfilling of his Promise he hath said That those that are in his house shall be fat and flourishing and well-liking and shall have strength to perform their duty O that they that are in the Lord's house would wait upon the Lord for his blessing Matth. 15. 25. Then came she and worshipped him saying Lord help me SERMON XVII I Come now in this 25the verse to consider the behaviour of this Womans spirit under her temptations she doth not stand to reason about her Election but she presently comes and worshippeth him She came and worshipped him saying Lord help This woman she was under great afflictions at this time such afflictions as made her come and cry to Christ Have mercy on me O Lord thou Son of David my daughter is grievously vexed with a Devil And this her affliction was accompanyed with Temptation and by a second Temptation Christ would make tryal of her faith And though she was under affliction and this affliction accompanied with temptation yet she falls down and worshipped him She came and worshipped him saying Lord Help So that I shall close with this Truth That it is the duty of Saints to worship Christ yea even then when they are in the midst of the greatest afflictions and temptations It is clear from the words and in the opening of the Point I shall First shew you What it is to worship the Lord what is that worship which the Lord doth expect from his people when in affliction and temptation Secondly I shall give you Scripture instances for the Proof of the Point And then Thirdly Consider the Grounds of the Point
unto thee into thy holy Temple When he was in this condition he prayed and he poured out his soul before the Lord. I shall only give you one instance more and that is of Christ himself when as he was in a sore affliction and his affliction accompanied with temptations then he prayed Luke 22. 39 40 41 42. And he came out and went as he was wont to the Mount of Olives and his Disciples also followed him And when he was at the place he said unto them Pray that ye enter not into temptation And he was withdrawn from them about a stones cast and kneeled down and prayed saying Father if thâ—â— be willing remove this cup from me Nevertheless not my Will but thine be done and at vers 44. it is said being in an Agony he prayed more earnestly His affliction doth increase and his temptations do increase and as they encrease so he cries the more earnestly to his Father Afflictions do not make Christ cease to worship no he worships the more and he cryeth the louder and prayeth the more earnestly Thirdly We shall consider the Grounds of the Point Why it is the duty of God's people to worship God in time of affliction and temptation First Because there is no affliction or temptation but it is from the Lord it is his Messenger it is of his sending we have to deal with God in it and it is fit that we should fall down and worship him when God sends affliction Isa 45. 7. I form the light and create darkness I make peace and create evil I the Lord do all these things It is not spoken of Natural darkness the darkness that is of the Ayre that was not created by God there is no creating cause withdrawing of light causeth darkness but God saith he creates darkness he creates Metaphorical darkness that darkness which he sends as an affliction to his own people I create it there is no darkness but that which is of the Lord 's forming and creating In the Creation of the world God said let there be light but God never said let there be darkness but now when God will afflict any of his people he creates darkness and there is no darkness till God say let there be darkness when God sayes let there be darkness in such a man's estate all his comforts shall wither when God says let there be darkness in such a man's family there shall be darkness for he can turn the Sun or Moon or Stars into darkness he can take away the head of the Family the children that are as the Stars of the Family if God speak the word though there be never so many in the family he can turn light into darkness and so when God sayes let there be darkness in such a man's spirit O then though it was comfortable before it will be as sad and as dark in the inward man even as it is with the Ayr at midnight darkness is of God's creating and therefore when-ever the Lord brings us into a state of darkness affliction and temptation either outward or inward it is time then to worship the Lord. Secondly We should then worship the Lord in time of affliction and temptation for it is the Lord only that can enable a man to bear temptation or affliction there is need I say that we should apply our selves to the Lord for he only can enable a poor creature to grapple with his affliction and temptation If the Lord help not the proudest helper in the world shall stoop and not be able to bear up a man under the least affliction especially when the affliction is accompanied with temptation and is wounding A wounded spirit who can bear It is only everlasting Armes that can support under such a condition surely therefore it is our duty in affliction and temptation to fall down and worship Thirdly The Lord only can give a sanctified 〈◊〉 of affliction he only can do us good by our manifold temptations affliction it self cannot profit sad experience shews it a man may have stroke after stroke and yet receive no profit no spiritual advantage I am the Lord thy God that teacheth thee to profit Isa 48. 17. God only can teach to profit Blessed is the man whom thou correctest and teachest Job 5. 17. When God's instruction and teaching go along with his correction that man is blessed that affliction shall be blessed Affliction it self cannot do it and therefore there is need that we should apply our selves to God Fourthly God only can remove the affliction and he only can rebuke the distemper and silence the temptation for certainly both affliction and temptation as I said before they are the Lord's messengers they are the Armies of the Lord of Hosts they go and they come at his command he gives out the word and he bids affliction to charge and it chargeth and if he bids it to retreat it shall retreat God only can deliver from affliction and from temptation therefore surely it is our duty to worship in affliction and temptation Fifthly It is the end of all afflictions and temptations to bring the soul nearer to God to drive the soul nigher God We are very prone to content our selves to live at a distance from God before I was afflicted I went astray saith David Psal 119. 67. Now the end of affliction and temptation is to fetch home the stragling sheep to bring God and the spirit nigher together therefore it is fit that we should fall down and worship for therein do we draw nigh to God when the soul falls down and worships God with Internal worship fear him love him trust him and submit to him and when it is pouring out its soul and lifting up the name of God speaking good words of the Almighty surely herein the soul draws nigh to God and so affliction attains its end Sixtly and lastly This is the way to ease and rest in our afflictions we cry out for ease and rest that is the thing we seek after the way to have ease and rest is to fall down and worship for by so doing the soul doth cast its burthen upon the Lord. When it doth thus fall down and worship with the worship of the Spirit fear and love and trust now the soul casteth its burden upon the Lord and his burden being left there it bringeth in unspeakable rest I say when the soul by inward worship hath gone to God and left his burden upon the Lord O! it bringeth in ease to the spirit whatever the affliction or temptation be Well then to Apply this in a word First What cause have we to be ashamed that we have come so far short of this Duty in the time of affliction or temptation We have been afflicted at one time or other who hath been free many of your souls have been exercised with temptations but O! What hath been the carriage of our spirits under them Have we fallen
of all in the vileness and sinfulness of our hearts and natures when as men or women come to be acquainted with the vileness of their nature and see what rebellion is in the heart and finde that there is a by as upon the spirit that doth carry it off continually from God the heart enclined toward vanity evermore O! How do vain thoughts and sinful imaginations croud in continually And they do defile the most holy Service that is taken in hand O! This proves matter of temptation This body of sin and death it made the Apostle cry out O miserable man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death Rom. 7. 24. It had been a pressing temptation if the Lord had not made a discovery of the way of deliverance and salvation to him for a poor soul is apt to fear surely there is nothing of God in me if there were any seed of God in me my heart would never be so vain and the byas of my spirit would never carry me out from God so O! I fear I am not made partaker yet of the Divine Nature The sight of that woful evil that is in the heart proves many times a sad temptation that it is hard for a poor soul to get over it And Secondly When the Lord doth leave a poor creature to sin after mercy and against mercy it hath been saved by the Lord delivered by his right hand pressed with such and such a mercy and yet overtaken in the snare of sin sinning against mercy many times proves a sore temptation O! I am afraid that I am none of the Lord's children mercy hath not its kinde work upon me it doth not bring forth those fruits which the Lord may look for when he gives out such mercies sinning against mercy many times proves a sore temptation Thirdly When the Lord leaves a poor creature to fall again and again into the same sin O! this proves matter of temptation when as the soul hath seen the evil of sin and hath bewailed it hath run to the Lord for strength against it yet hath been overtaken again and again in the same sin that I say proves matter of sore temptation Surely may the poor soul say my spot is not the spot of children I have been overtaken once and again whereupon the poor soul may be tempted to cast away his hope and confidence and not only tempted to cast away its confidence but tempted to depart from God and to go out from the wayes of obedience There is no hope say they in Jer. 18. 12. but we will walk after our own devices and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart We have back-slidden again and again and there is no hope for us we had as good go on and take our fill in sin This temptation is set on many times by falling into sin That is the first That unworthiness by reason of sin Secondly Unworthiness by reason of that miserable weak and frail condition that the children of men are in the great distance that man is at from God this proves matter of temptation to many a poor soul when he considers that he is a poor piece of dust and ashes and that there is an infinite distance between God and the creature he is from everlasting to everlasting he is Jehovah and changeth not But we are poor creatures that are of yesterday and are going down to the grave to day and shall be in the place of silence to morrow O this proves matter of temptation and discouragement Will the Lord look down upon such a poor creature and upon such a piece of dust and ashes Is it possible that the Lord should humble himself to take notice of me And besides that common condition of frailty which all men are in the Lord is pleased to bring some of his people into a lower condition then that which is the ordinary state of man and yet he is as low as dust Yet I say the Lord is pleased to bring some of his people into a lower condition then ordinary By affliction God makes mans state to be low when he brings him into an afflicted state and when God maketh mans comforts to be low taketh away those comforts and those relations which have been his refreshments I say when a man is brought thus into a low and afflicted condition this added to that common condition of frailty it setteth at a great distance from God and it proves many times matter of discouragement and temptation to a poor soul So it was with Job chap. 14. v. 1 2 3. Man that is born of a woman is of few dayes and full of trouble he cometh forth like a flower and is cut down he fleeth also as a shaddow and continueth not And dost thou open thine eyes upon such a one Lord saith he Is it possible that thou shouldest humble thy self so far to look down upon such a one That God should look down with the eye of pity upon such a one frail man is one that is brought so low one that sitteth upon the dunghil Unworthiness by reason of frailness proves a temptation many times to Gods own people Thirdly Unworthiness by reason of coldness and deadness in affection When a poor soul finds how dead his heart is towards God O! I have a heart for the world and I have affections to friends and relations there is love to creatures nay there is affection enough to vanity but little or no heart for God there are not those breathings those thirstings those pantings after God not that first love which somtimes it hath found to the Lord and to the things of Christ O! This proves matter of discouragement and temptation O! I fear that the love of God dwelleth not in me saith a poor soul I finde my heart so dead and so strait towards God open to the world but strait to God O! I fear that the love of God dwelleth not in me How can it be that God should set his love upon such a one Surely if the love of God were in me I should love the Lord more then I do Deadness and coldness in affection toward the Lord it proves many times a sore temptation Fourthly and lastly Unworthiness by reason of unusefulness and unserviceableness to God that is matter of temptation when as a poor creature sees that it can do little or nothing for the Lord O! I am a barren tree I am a dry branch I see that others are fruitful I see that others have the promise fulfilled to them they bring forth much fruit they are serviceable in their generation they are an honour to God and do good to men but as for me I know not wherein I can honour him I know not wherein I can be useful or serviceable O I bring forth no fruit unto God and therefore am afraid that I am the Tree the Apostle Jude vers 12. speaketh of without fruit twice dead plucked
up by the roots whose end is to be burnt This is matter of sore temptation and therefore hereupon there is many a poor soul that desires to be out of the world O Lord I can do no good it is best for me to be put into the place of silence I hinder some goodly Tree that would grow in my place and would bring forth more fruit upon this many a poor soul hastens to the grave This is matter of temptation and it is grounded upon this a mans own unworthiness and unusefulness and unserviceableness to Christ in his generation Quest But you will say Wherefore doth the Lord suffer his people to be tempted thus about their unworthiness Answ Why the Lord he hath gracious ends Sathan who helps on this temptation many times he hath destructive ends but God in suffering of it he hath gracious ends What are Gods ends First God would teach us to learn this lesson That the love of God goes not by the worthiness of the creature therefore God he suffers us many times to be bowed down by looking upon our unworthiness even to temptation because we would not learn this lesson that the love of God goeth not by the creatures worthiness but that it is altogether free and not for any thing in the creature it is only in the Breast of God there is the ground of his love no reason for it in the creature Go and take a woman of Whoredome one that hath played the Adulteress and yet beloved that was to shew forth and hold forth his love to the children of Israel What was there in such a woman that was lovely or desireable The woman of whoredoms no more worthiness in the children of Israel Neither is there in any soul and God would have us learn this and if we will not learn it he will suffer us to be carried into the School of Temptation to learn us this lesson That God loves not for any worthiness in the creature Secondly God would teach us to learn this lesson That the worthiness of the creature is out of it self therefore he suffers the soul to be brought into this School of Temptation and to be bowed down with the apprehensions of our unworthiness that we may know that the worthiness of man is out of himself a lesson hard to learn for a man is apt to seek his worthiness in himself and is loth to be beholden unto any no not unto God and not to Christ for his worthiness We have all learned this of Adam it was the first sin he would have his worthiness in himself he would not have depended upon God for it but he would stand by himself and have no dependance upon his Creator and so by seeking to stand on his own legs he fell down below the condition of a creature And truly ever since the sons of Adam have imitated their Father in this Man desires and seeks to have his worthiness at home in himself and he is loth to go out for it and therefore it is one of the hardest matters in the world to bring men to submit to the righteousness of Christ Corrupt Nature and Carnal Reason as it is corrupted teacheth men to look to their own righteousness Philosophers taught men That men needed not to go out of themselves to make themselves happy for a man had all blessings in himself and he needed not to go out of himself But Christ teacheth another lesson if ever man will be happy he must go out of himself and he must seek his worthiness elsewhere he must have it in the Son of God Now that we may learn this lesson God suffers us to be brought into the School of Temptation Thirdly God hath this gracious end Thereby he doth make his people more humble and lowly in Spirit which is a gracious and Christ-like disposition though the Devil he hath no such end when he presents our unworthiness to make us humble yet God will make that advantage of it You may see how humble and how meek this woman was when she was under this Temptation in the next words Truth Lord saith she yet the dogs eat of the crumbs all that thou hast said is true thou hast said I am a dog truth Lord so I am Thus she doth lye very low at the feet of Christ he calls her dog and she lies the lower she lies at the feet of Christ This is a gracious effect that God works by this Temptation Fourthly By this God doth make his people really to prize and to live upon and to exalt the Fathers free grace and the Sons worthiness and righteousness I say in this school of temptation God teacheth his people to exalt really and to prize really and to live upon the free grace of God the Father and the infinite worthiness and righteousness of Jesus Christ O saith a poor soul if I be so vile so unworthy O! what need is there of fleeing to the free grace of God What need is there of looking after the infinite righteousness of Jesus Christ O! This will make the soul desirous to live upon God and to live upon Christ to build upon free grace and to build upon the worthiness and righteousness of Christ and this will make the soul to exalt and to lift up this glorious name of God and of his Son O! What had become of me if it had not been for free grace If free grace had not over-looked all my vileness all my sinfulness all my distance from God all my coldness of affection all my unusefulness what had become of me if it had not been for the righteousness of Christ If Christ had not brought in everlasting righteousness to cover all this unrighteousness O I had been miserable and undone You see wherefore God suffers these temptations Briefly a word or two by way of Application First It may teach us to take heed that we do not help forward this temptation upon the spirit of those that are weak Christians I say Take heed that we do not help forward this temptation there is no greater temptation then when the soul is kept and bowed down to look upon the vileness and unworthiness of the creature many a poor soul cries out as David did concerning his sin O my sin is ever before me so many a poor soul sayes my unworthiness an vileness is ever before me my deadness is ever before me my distance from God my sin of Nature my sin of Heart my relapses Now take heed that we do not help forward the temptation by despising and undervaluing those that are weak by despising Christians for their weakness O! it may be as I said before their eye is upon it they look upon it themselves and therefore we should not so look upon it as to discourage them and not to cast off such as have any seed of God in them because they are weak but to cherish that which is of God though
the King should own me No cause of being lifted up but cause of lying low for who are we poor dead dogs that the Lord should make us children and bestow the portion of children upon us giving unto us childrens bread And to shut up all Let us look upon the Ordinances of the Lord as our Bread look upon the Word and look upon the Promises you that are children take hold of them improve them they are childrens bread they are provided on purpose for you And so that other Ordinance of the Supper look upon it as bread and make use of it as bread O that we might fetch out the sweetness of it for there is no piece of childrens bread but hath a great deal of sweetness in it sweetness in the Word and sweetness in the Supper and O that we might chew it and fetch out the sweetness What sweetness might we finde in the Supper of the Lord if we did set faith on work O! what abundance of the love of God is held forth and of the great mysterie of godliness God manifested in the flesh How much held forth of the sufferings of Christ and the benefits of the suffering of Christ O that we might chew the Ordinance and as bread make use of it for our refreshment and strength Matth. 15. 27. And she said Truth Lord yet the Dogs eat of the Crumbs which fall from their Masters Table SERMON XX. IN these words that I have read we have the carriage and the behaviour of this woman under those Tryals or Temptations which she met withal her carriage is very gracious it is such as doth discover First A depth of Humility Secondly A height of Faith She discovers first of all A depth of Humility Jesus Christ he had called her dog he had preferr'd others before her he had told her it was not meet to take the childrens bread and give it to such as she was Now she doth acknowledge all this nay she doth not only acknowledge it but she submitted unto it nay she confirms it Truth Lord Christ had said It was not meet to take the childrens bread and cast it to dogs Truth Lord What-ever thou hast spoken Lord is true Thou hast said that I am a dog Truth Lord Thou hast said the Jews are children Truth Lord Thou hast said it is not meet to bestow childrens bread upon dogs Truth Lord yet the dogs eat of the crumbs And as we have a discovery of her Humility so of her Faith her condition was low but her faith was high strong and glorious First of all By Faith she doth answer the temptation she findes out the strength of the temptation the scope of it where it lay and the Spirit of the Lord doth unfold and resolve the difficulty Christ had said the Jews were the children and 't was not meet to give the childrens bread to dogs there is the temptation She answers Truth Lord yet the dogs cat of the crumbs It discovers thus much Although the Jews are the children and they must be served first it is fit that they should have the first offer of mercy it is fit that they should have whole loaves set upon the Table and full dishes yet the Jews are not so the children that all others are excluded the Gentiles are not altogether excluded from mercy the Gentiles may have the crums especially when the children grow wanton and cast away their bread the Gentiles though dogs may have that which fall from their Table Thus by faith she doth finde out the force of the temptation and is enabled to make an answer to it Secondly The strength of her faith doth appear in this that she doth not only answer the temptation but she gains advantage by it her faith is strengthened and riseth higher and waxeth stronger and that which was matter of discouragement in it self it is matter of encouragement and strength unto her Christ had said she was a dog this is an encouragement to her Lord thou hast said that I am a dog and if I be a dog I am thy dog thou art my master and therefore surely the crumbs that fall from my masters table do belong to me in all Nations among all people the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters table Lord thou hast said that I am a dog but I will lie at thy feet and wait upon thee for crums of mercy that fall from thee Thus her faith is strengthened by that temptation which in it self did tend to drive her from Christ that temptation that would have driven her from Christ makes her run to Christ she is called dog and she waits under the Master's table for crumbs of mercy Thus you see the carriage of this woman under the temptation she carries it very humbly and with a great deal of faith and holy confidence in the midst of these discouragements There are divers useful truths in these words I shall now close with one Truth Lord saith she From whence Observe That the soul that is graciously and truly humbled before the Lord will justifie the Lord in all that he speaks and doth against it What-ever the Lord shall say whether it be in a way of discovery of sin vileness and corruption Or secondly whether it be a word of threatning In both these that heart that is truly humbled it will justifie the Lord. When God speaks himself and gives rebukes from himself or when God makes use of men to be instruments in his hand still a gracious heart that is truly humbled in all it meeteth withal it will justifie the Lord and say Truth Lord the Lord is true and the Lord is righteous in what he speaks and doth First When God comes and speaks in a way of discovery of sin when the Lord by his Spirit in his Word doth come and rip open a mans heart as it were discovers its vileness to him shews him what a wretched sinful polluted creture he is or when the Lord shall come and charge any particular sin upon a man that he hath committed set his actual sin in order before him when God shall binde with the cords of affliction as Job speaks and then discover a mans transgression if the soul be truly humbled it will say truth Lord I am indeed as vile and as wretched and as sinful nay worse then I can be charged with When God came to make a discovery to Job of his own heart in the 38 39 and 40 chapters God took much pains to discover Job to himself Job had stood too much upon his integrity upon his righteousness he had not all along justified the Lord in his proceedings but when God came to make a discovery to him and shew him what a poor vile frail worm he was and ript open his heart and shewed him his corruption Job then falls down and cries truth Lord Job 40. 3 4. Then Job answered the Lord and said Behold I am vile what shall I answer thee
I will lay may hand upon my mouth vers 5. Once have I spoken but I will not answer yea twice but I will proceed no further Behold I am vile as vile as thou hast discovered to me Lord I see it and therefore I will stand no more upon my own justification but I will justifie thee and truly so it is with every soul that is truly humbled when God comes and makes a discovery of its corrupt nature and life and chargeth sin upon him it is so and so aggravated thou hast sinned against light against knowledge against mercy and goodness truth Lord all is true saith the gracious heart yea not only when God speaks in the way of discovery of sin the soul that is humble will cry truth Lord and justifie the Lord. But secondly Even then when the Lord speaks very sharply in a way of threatening the soul that is truly humble it will justifie the Lord Psal 51. 4. Against thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest and be clear when thou judgest Here David he will justifie the Lord in all that he spake against him as much as if David should say I have made this publique confession and have penned this Psalm that I might clear thee before all the world that I might justifie God what ever God should do against David or speak against David I will say Lord thou art righteous He would justifie God in all that God had spoken against him and yet God spake terrible things against David by Nathan the Prophet 2 Sam. 12. 10 11 12. Verse 10. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house because thou hast despised me and hast taken the wife of sriah the Hittite to be thy wife Verse 11. Thus saith the Lord Behold I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house and I will take thy wives before thine eyes and give them unto thy Neighbour and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this Sun Verse 12. For thou didst it secretly but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the Sun See here what terrible things God threatens he threatens that the sword should never depart from his house That he would raise up evil against him out of his own house a terrible threatning Nay God threatens that he would give his wives to his Neighbours that should defile them before his face a terrible threatening Nay God tells him that this should be done before all Israel and in the face of the Sun And yet Lord I will clear thee when thou judgest and justifie thee when thou speakest Take another instance in old Eli and you shall see how he justified the Lord when the Lord spake against him 1 Sam. 3. 18. at verse 11. Behold I will do a thing in Israel at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle and at verse 14. I have sworn unto the house of Eli that the iniquity of Elies house shall not be purged with Sacrifice nor Offering for ever Now all this was told Eli at verse 18. And Samuel told him every whit and hid nothing from him And he said It is the Lord let him do what seemeth him good And so Hezekiah take that instance and see how he justified the Lord when the Lord spake terribly against him 2 Kings 20. 19. at vers 17 18. God threatens Hezekiah because he boasted of his treasure and shews it to the Ambassadors of the King of Babylon verse 17. Behold the dayes come that all that is in thine house and that which thy fathers have laid up in store to this day shall be carried unto Babylon nothing shall be left saith the Lord. Verse 18. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee which thou shalt beget shall they take away and they shall be Eunuchs in the Palace of the King of Babylon A hard lesson and yet he justifies the Lord Verse 19. Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken So that you see that a gracious heart that is truly humbled before the Lord it will justifie the Lord in all that he speaks against it when he discovers sin or threatens punishment still he will justifie the Lord and not only justifie the Lord in what he hath spoken but he will justifie the Lord in what he shall speak if God should speak seven times worse still a gracious heart that is truly humble resolves to justifie the Lord 2 Sam. 15. 26. saith David But if he thus say I have no delight in thee Behold here am I let him do to me as seemeth good unto him He did not only justifie the Lord in what he had spoken but in what the Lord should say if the Lord should say I will use David no more nor bring David back no more to his Throne David in that justifieth God and submits to the Lord. But secondly A gracious heart that is truly humbled desires to justifie God in his Actings when God shall act against him as well as speak against him it will justifie the Lord if the Lord shall prefer others before him in this he will justifie the Lord. Instance in this woman of Canaan the Jewes the children they must have whole loaves and full dishes and they must be preferr'd before her yet she justifies the Lord and says Truth Lord. But I shall make it out to you in divers particulars that you may see how a gracious heart that is truly humbled will justifie the Lord in his actings First of all If the Lord shall manifest more love more grace more favour unto others then to it self though there be nothing in all the world that it longeth more after then after the enjoyment of the presence of God yet if the Lord shall be pleased to discover more of himself and give out more clear full intimations of his love and grace to others then to it self it desires to justifie the Lord. Christ as I said he will deal with the Jews as with children give them whole loaves and full dishes this woman she justifies the Lord and if the Lord will give more tokens of acceptance to others then to it self still it desires to justifie the Lord The heart that is unsound cannot do this nothing is more hard to bear that the Lord should shew more favour to others then to them so it was with Cain the Lord shewed more favour to Abel his brother then to him God gave him a token of his acceptance Cain could not bear it and so the Prâ—digal's eldest brother the father shews a great deal of love to the returning Prodigal and the eldest brother could not bear it I have served thee all my dayes and thou hast not dealt so with me thou hast not killed the fatted calf for me But the soul that is truly humble it will justifie the Lord in this if the Lord gives
duty what-ever thoughts should be suggested into thy minde but know for thy comfort that those sinful thoughts and blasphemous thoughts which are cast in by Sathan they shall not be laid to thy charge if thy soul abhor them it is true if the heart did close with them and nourish them then they become the souls but when the soul abhors them and casts them out and cries to Christ against them it is not the souls sin therefore do not neglect thy duty because of these vain thoughts but set thy face to seek the Lord and remember and know that the Lord will make good his word he will meet thee and when God meets thee all these sinful and cursed thoughts shall be cast out And thus you have heard Brethren what encouragement there is to remember God But you will say It is a great Duty and much depends upon it how shall I be helped to remember God aright First Be often looking upon the Book of the Creature upon the works of Creation and look upon them for this very end that thou mayest Remember God for there is a Remembrance of God upon all creatures and if we be wise we may make a spiritual improvement and be led to the Remembrance of God by looking into the Book of the Creature Secondly Look into the Scripture and consult with that for there hath God declared his Name his glorious Name is written in his Word there are Letters that God hath written with his owne hand God hath subscribed I Jesus testifie these things There is the hand of God and of Christ in the Book of the Scripture and therefore if thou wouldest Remember God converse with the Word of God Thirdly Wait upon God in every Ordinance for all Ordinances are given for this end to Remember God the Word the Supper every Ordinance of God is given that so the soul might see God and Remember him and therefore when thou waitest upon God in any Ordinance let this be the end that thou propoundest to thy soul to Remember God Fourthly Lay up all the Love-tokens of God What-ever Experience thou hast met with from God in making supply to thy wants comforting of thee supporting of thee these are tokens that come from God and the mercy that he sheweth thee it is for this end that thou mayest Remember him and therefore lay up all the experiences that thou hast met withal for they will help thee to Remember God Fiftly Labour to get your hearts established and assured in the Knowledge of Gods love to thee that thou mayest come to the knowledge of this that God is thy Friend thy Father thy nearest and dearest relation for the â—ore the soul knows this the more it will Remember God It is not possible that a childe should forget a loving Father that a Wife should forget a loving and tender Husband O when a soul comes to know this that God is my Father my Husband this will help the soul to a sweet Remembrance of God Sixtly Look up to the Lord to increase thy love to him for the more love to God the more thou wilt Remember God but where there is little love to God there is little Remembrance of God and the reason that men Remember God no more is because there is so little love in their hearts towards God If a man loved his friend he would Remember him and not forget him O therefore be ashamed that no more love should be sparkling in thy heart to God when so much love is flaming in the heart of Christ towards thee And therefore Brethren beg it of the Lord that he would shed abroad more of his love in your hearts and blow up thy spark to a flame that thy soul may be fill'd with a constant Remembrance of him Seventhly Ure thy soul to holy meditation and thinking upon God last at night and first in the morning it will be a great help to keep up a constant Remembrance of God in the soul O let thy waking thoughts be toward the Lord Think of his Works of his Attributes of his Son there is enough for men to spend millions of thoughts upon and therefore let some be spent upon God assoon as man wakes in the morning there are a multitude of thoughts strive who shal get in first there stands God and Christ and the World and they which get in first have a great advantage to keep in the soul all the day long if the world gets in first the heart is made worldly but when God and Christ is let in first the heart is kept in a gracious frame all the day long and the more that your meditations are spent upon God the more Remembrance will you have of God And now Brethren you have seen your duty and your neglect of duty for which you have cause to be humbled and we have seen what cause we have to Remember God and what a great benefit comes in by Remembring God and we have seen what may be helpful to our souls in this duty Now let us look to the Spirit of the Lord to make them helps for we have need of all helps till we shall come where the soul shall Remember God perpetually and never forget him Heb. 6. 19. Which hope we have as an Anchor of the soul both sure and stedfast and which entereth into that within the Vail THe Apostle in the eighteenth verse speaking of the hope that is set before Believers and of their fleeing for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before them He takes occasion to speak of that hope that is begotten and raised in the hearts of all Believers by the hope of Christ In verse 18. He speaks of the Object of Hope Christ he is the hope set before believers but in this 19th verse he speaks of the grace of hope which hope we have as an Anchor to the soul both sure and stedfast this is spoken of the grace of Hope which is the sister of Faith And this Hope it differs from Faith thus Faith looks unto God and Christ in the Promises it looks unto the word of the Lord that is given for its security and it is the work of Faith to close with the Word and to hold fast the word of promise which the Lord Jesus doth hand out to poor souls But Hope that looks to the good things promised and it waits â—or the good things that are laid up in the promises Hope eyes them and waits for the full possession and fruition of that which is laid up in the promise and when the soul shall enjoy all those good things laid up in the promises then Hope shall cease Now that we may understand the nature of saving Hope and the use of it he sets it forth to us by a Metaphor of an Anchor which hope we have as an Anchor to the soul both sure and stedfast Hope it is of that use to the soul that an Anchor is to a Ship
to David Doctrine How true faith closeth with Christ as Lord. The necessity of believing in Christ as Lord. What the Socmians object against this truth The second part of the Doctrine that true faith comes to Christ as he is the son of David A grosse mistake concerning the body of Christ The necessity that every man and woman believe in Christ as man Something to be read in that name thou son of David First fruit of this womans faith Doctrine The Point confirmed by Instances from Scripture The grounds of the Point Application How to know whether we keep our eye upon God Doctrine The cry of the flesh what it is The first cry of the flesh The second cry of the flesh How to know whether the cry of the flesh be sinful Grounds why there are sinful cries in Gods own people What the cry of the Spirit is Application Tryals to know whether our cry be the cry of the flesh or the cry of the spirit Doctrine The second part of the Doctrine Application Doctrine Gracious ends why the Lord defers an answer to the prayers of his people Application How to know when God hath heard our prayer The duty of such souls to whose prayers God is silent and gives no answer First to mind their duty Secondly to justifie God Thirdly to maintain good thoughts of God Fourthly be looking to God thorow the Mediator Fifthly wait patiently Doctrine Who Gods people are bound to pray for What are the special times in which we are bound to remember others before the Lord. Application What those times are that we are bound more especially to call upon others to seek the Lord for us Doctr. 1. Doctr. 2. Satans design Gods design Historical Proposition Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Application Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. The Duty of souls whom Christ hath found Duty 1. Duty 3. Duty 4. Duty 5. Doctrine Election described Arguments proving Election to be an act of Gods good pleasure Quest. Answ Our Election known to others Our Election may be known to our selves Third part of the Doctrine How the Doctrine of Election is a comforting Doctrine Second ground of comfort Third ground of comfort The fourth ground of comfort The fifth ground of comfort The sixth ground of comfort The seventh ground of comfort Eigth ground of comfort Ninth ground of comfort Tenth ground of comfort Fourth part of the Doctrine Gods people may meet with many temptations concerning others election 1. Remedy 2 Remedy 3 Remedy Rom. 11. 33. 2. Temptation 1. Remedy 2. Remedy 3. Remedy 4. Remedy 3. Temptation Luke 17. 34 35 36. 4 Temptation How to silence the fourth temptation Gods people meet with many Temptations concerning their own election 2. Temptation 3. Temptation 4. Temptation 5. Temptation 6. Temptatiod 7. Temptation Rules to silence those Temptations Gods people may meet withall concerning their Election Rule 1. Rom. 9. 20. Rule 2. Rule 3. Rule 4. How to worship God Rule 5. Vse 1. To those that have not attained to the knowledge of Gods love It 's of concernment to make our Election sure The adversary seeks to hinder souls in making their Election sure Our comfort doth depend upon the making Election sure Our holiness depends upon the making Election sure How to make our Election sure What Duties electing love engages Christians unto The priviledges of the house of Christ Priv. 2. Priv. 3. Priv. 4. Priv. 5. Priv. 6. Priv. 7. Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Duties of Church-Members Duty 1. Duty 2. Duty 3. Duty 4. Doctr. What worship it is that God requires of his people when afflicted and tempted Wherein spiritual Worship consists External Worship what and wherein it consists Instance 1. of Job Instance 2. of David Instance 3. of Jonah Instance 4. of Christ Grounds of the point why it is the duty of Gods people to worship in time of affliction Ground 2. Ground 3. Ground 4. Ground 5. Ground 6. Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. What Gods people should beg for in time of affliction Doctr. This was a temptation to Moses To Isaiah To Jeremy To the woman that had the Issue of blood To the Centurion The particular discoveries of unworthiness that prove matter of temptation to Gods people Gods ends in suffering his people to be tempted about their unworthiness End 2. End 3. End 4. Vse 1. Vse 2. How to know when God presents unworthiness and when Sathan presents it What to do when tempted about our unworthiness Doctr. Who are the children that have right to the bread How persons may be said to be under an outward Administration of the Covenant Who are Dogs wicked men dogs Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Vse 1. Motives to perswade us to the duty of Justifying the Lord. How a young man may be delivered from his folly Doctr. What it is to remember God The Causes why we should remember our Creator The Advantages of remembring God in youth Vse 1â— The evil of not remembring God Isa 49. 15. Helps to remember God aright Every believer is as a ship upon the Sea of this World Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Vse 5. Vse 6. Vse 7. Vse 8. Doctr. 2. The efficient cause of true hope is God The formal cause of hope What is the object of hope The Concomitant of hope The anchor of a believing soul is sure and stedfast The ground that a believers hope is fastned upon Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. How to obtain true hope