my Discourse All that may be said to manifest this truth unto you may be comprehended in those few Lines with which I concluded my former Sermon on this Text True Faith Roots all Feare out of a Christians Heart and turnes all his Expectation into Hope even through the strength of this Perswasion that All things worke together for Good to them that love GOD and also that Himselfe is One of Them I have now Finished the Doctrine I raised from this Text That Faith enables a man to draw Comfort from all the objects of his Thoughts Having shewne you Particularly how the Faithfull take Comfort in all things that concerne themselves from whence as I said in the beginning of my Former Sermon you may easily apprehend how they may also Comfort themselves in the Notice they take of other things as of all those Workes of Providence which they see in the Affaires of the World c. therefore I shall not extend my Discourse to any of them but proceed to application And here I shall speake first to the Faithfull those that have taken CHRIST'S Yoke upon them utterly renouncing the Filthy Conversation of the Wicked those who Mind Earthly things absolutely resolving to Walke with GOD in true Holinesse and Righteousnesse all their dayes And if at any time being Overborne by some sudden and impetuous Temptations as the Best of Christians often are they Fall back into any Uncleannesse not like Swine in the myre to Wallow in it but to Repent and to Cry unto God their Father to help them up to * Purifie their hearts by Faith to wash and Cleanse them by his Spirit in the * Blood of JESUS CHRIST His Sonne Then I shall speake to those that Go on in the Wayes of the Ungodly those that * Regard Iniquity in their Heart those that do not absolutely resolve never to Allow themselves in any One Knowne Sinne Praying continually that God would so strengthen them by his Grace that their Iniquities may not Prevaile against them that if they have been Drunkards they may be Drunke no more if they have beene Wantons they may be Wanton no more if they have been * Desirous of Vaine Glory provoking envying their Brethren they may be such no more if they have delighted themselves in Foolish Talking or Jesting * or that Elaborate Scurrility and Witty malice in which some men of Parts and Learning Exercise their Invention then which what can be more Opposite to The Spirit of meekenesse to the Calme and Sweet Nature of the LAMBE and the DOVE that they may do so no more Briefly to speake in the * Apostles words that Denying ungodlinesse and worldly Lusts they may live soberly righteously and godlily Those that have not taken such a resolution and such I feare are some of you I must reckon amongst the Wicked If therefore any of you are conscious to your selves that you are such as here I have Described Apply to your selves I beseech you for the good of your Immortall Soules what I shall speake in the second place but first as I said but now I shall speake to the Faithfull c. Beloved Brethren You know by Experience the truth I have spoken E're since you took CHRIST'S Yoke upon you have you not found Rest unto your Soules E're since you Bare that Easie yoke since your Hearts stood in * awe of GOD's Word Have you not found your selves most Sweetly and Gently and yet most Powerfully Restrained from Following the Track of your Lusts and Extravagant Affections from Breaking over the Inclosures of a strict and holy Conversation to * Run with the men of the world to the same excesse of Riot In a word have you not found all your Christian thoughts in what Subject soever you have imployed them to Worke Comfort for your soules Surely you have good thoughts are the Beames of the SUN's OF RIGHTEOUSNES which Stream forth continually upon the Hearts of Christians to warm Comfort them and to cherish and to make to Grow the Fruits of the Spirit Well my Brethren hath the Holy one of Israel the Great and Glorious GOD Shewne himselfe so Gratious to you Sinfull Creatures Dust and Ashes wormes and no men as to send his Beloved SON into the World to Dye for you by Faith in whose Blood you Rejoyce in some measure even in this Vale of Teares this miserable life and shall shortly even when a few dayes are past be inhabitants of Heaven see the Face of GOD * In whose presence there is fulnesse of joy and at whose right hand there are pleasures for evermore Well my Brethren hath GOD Dealt so Bountifully with you and will you not love him will you not with all the Powers of your Soule Warre against your Lusts that you may be no more as formerly you have been what ever Temptations befall you Lovers of Pleasures more then Lovers of God I beseech you Brethren by the Mercies of GOD by all that Sweetnesse Love and Favour of His towards you that your Soules have ever Tasted That you would This Day Renew your Vowes Resolve afresh To Love the LORD your God with All your Heart That You may no more Judg of Things as the Vulgar doe amongst whom give me leave to reckon most of those that are commonly Accounted Great Scholars or Fine Gentlemen that you may not Esteem any Action Wise Prudent Noble or any way Praise-worthy and becoming a Generous Spirit but what is done To the Glory of God 1 Cor. 10.31 in Defiance of the Wicked WORLD And on the other side That you may Account nothing Base Sordid and Degenerous but what is Done in Compliance with your own Lusts or the Vaine Humours of other men contrary to the Commands of that All-Glorious Majesty to whom we Owe Homage for the Air we Breath In Him we Live and move and have our being Acts 17.28 And as for those Absurd Fellowes who own the Name of CHRISTIANS and yet Delight in scorning You and call you Puritanes and I know not what You must be so farre from being Fierce and Raging against Them from thinking of Revenge c. that you must from the heart Pity them as it may be they say they Pity you for your Weaknesse and imprudence as they terme your Wisedome and Spirituall Understanding you must I say heartily Pity such men and Pray for Them as Your Fellow Creatures yea as Your Brethren in ADAM who miserably expose Themselves to the Utmost Danger of Everlasting Destruction Ah Poore Soules What Madnesse and Folly hath possessed Them Doe They say they Believe that there is an HEAVEN and an HELL and yet esteem those for a Ridiculous sort of people Who by what they Write Talke or Do for the most part plainly Discover that their Mind is wholy Bent upon This that They may Enter into the Kingdome of GOD Poore Soules Simple Ones indeed Doe They say They Believe that the
such a man we may find many Expressions in the Booke of Psalmes * God is my King of Old * I remembred thy Jugements of Old O Lord and have comforted my selfe * I was cast upon thee from the Wombe Thou art my GOD from my mothers Belly All that may be said upon this Subject may be Summ'd up and concluded in this That for any one who hath been Godly all his dayes to Remember his life past is to call to mind the mercies of God to reflect upon those Gifts and Graces which God hath bestowed on him from time to time to meditate on those Sacred Truths which have been continually Held forth unto him by the Spirit of Wisdome as a Light to direct him in all the Darke and Slippery passages of his life And what is this but to Looke on the Tokens and Read over the Letters which have been sent him from his dearest and best Friend his Father his God And what delight satisfaction think you does he take in this surely they only can rightly imagine that have had some Experience of it Thus my Brethren when a man calls to mind the time he hath spent in the Service of God he doth as it were live over againe his Holy and Righteous and therefore most Happy life Vivere Bis Vitâ posse Priore Frui * Now come we to shew you that a true Christian can take Comfort in the apprehension of his Present Condition as to his Inward man whether he be Weake or strong in Faith If he be weake and his Iniquities often prevaile against him then it is true when he ruflects upon himselfe and sees the Fiery darts of Satan sticking in his sides his thoughts do not Directly bring him any Comfort but as I said but now upon another occasion by consequent they doe that is to say when he considers the Weaknesse of his Faith he cannot but be grieved but when he reflects upon this consideration considers that he does consider his Spirituall Weaknesse and is thereupon Applying himselfe for help unto Christ whose Grace is Sufficient for him who would support him still and keep him from Falling away totally and finally though his Faith should be ten thousand times Weaker then it is in this he takes Comfort And is ready to say with Saint Paul * Most gladly will I glory in my Infirmities that the Power of Christ may rest upon Me Thus a Christian Comforts himselfe even in his Weake Faith not that he is Weake but that Christ's strength is made perfect that is manifests its sufficiciency and perfection in his Weaknesse not that he is of himselfe so ready to Fall but that through his owne Vanity and Unsteadinesse he discernes the power of Christ by which he Stands Now let us consider a Christian strong in Faith in whom there is scarce any Lust that can make the least resistance against the Soule who can say with holy David * I hate vaine Thoughts but thy Law do I Love Oh how comfortable are the thoughts of such a man unto him when he considers his Estate how Unspeakable is his Joy when he reflects upon himselfe and sees the Image of God the Beauty of Holinesse in his owne Soule When he considers that God hath granted him that he hath so often prayed for A Cleane Heart That through Christ enabling him he hath overcome all those temptations to Sinne and Uncleannesse which he sees to have Power over the Generality of Men The whole World saies the Apostle lyeth in Wickednesse Upon such considerations as these the Soule of a Christian delights herselfe in Running unto God as Little Children are wont to do to their Fathers to Hug and Embrace him and expresse all manner of Affection unto him in such an Holy Passion as David was in when he * said I love the LORD because he hath Heard my Voyce and my Supplications I * will Love Thee O LORD my Strength Thus you see how a Christians Meditations concerning the State of his Inward Man Worke Comfort for him continually either by Discovering the Evils and perturbations of his Soule that they may be Removed or by Representing those things that are Good and Excellent to Please and Delight him And now I come to the last thing that I propounded to my selfe to speake of at this time That a Christian takes Comfort in the Expectation of any thing that may befall him for the future as to his Inward Man and that I shall briefly Demonstrate thus Either he expects that he shall Fall into many Temptations many Spirituall Straits and Distresses if so he Rejoyces in the God of his Life who is Able * to Save him to the Uttermost and * will with the Temptation also make a way to escape Or else he expects that God will Lead him in a Plaine Path as the Psalmists expression is that he shall have no more such Temptations and Stops in His Christian Course as hitherto he hath had that those Lusts which warre against the Soule shall no more rise up against him if so he Sings his {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} and Triumphs over Sinne and Death saying with Saint Paul Thankes be to God who giveth us the Victory through our LORD JESUS CHRIST In a word True Faith Roots all Feare out of a Christians Heart and turnes all his expectation into Hope which is you know the Comfortable Foresight of some future Good even through the Strength of this Perswasion that as Saint Paul saies All things worke together for GOOD to them that Love GOD And also that Himselfe is One of Them SERMON II. Take my yoke upon you c. Mat. 11.29 IN my Last Sermon I told you that a true Christian through Faith takes Comfort in the Remembrance of what he hath been and in the Apprehension of What He is and in the Expectation of What He may be for the future as to his Inward man I shall now prove the same of him as to his Outward man And here I shall Insist longest upon the middle Proposition to wit That a Christian takes Comfort in the Apprehension of the Temporall Condition he is in what ever it be I suppose the particular Notions implyed in the Two other Propositions will be easily discovered from the Explication of This Remembrance and Expectation being nothing else as all Scholars will soon grant but a kind of Apprehēsiō by the Former we Take back the Species and Impresses of Things Past by the Latter we Anticipate and Take them before-hand As for the First Proposition that I am to Handle to wit That a Christian takes Comfort in the Remembrance of what he hath been I shall briefly demonstrate it by Shewing you the Originall and Spring of that Comfort which is the Observation of the Love of GOD Manifested unto him in a Way Suitable to the condition he hath been in If he have beene in Adversity
my selfe Necessitated as it were to set his Faith on Worke to procure Comfort for him whilst Without he finds nothing but Poverty and Distresse what Spirituall Delight and Sweetnesse such a man may Suck out of these Brests of Consolations as the Scripture expression is thinke you who are true Believers Joy in the Holy Ghost in which as in effect I said but now commonly those Christians most abound who possesse least of the Things of the World No man can ever fully expresse and none but such as you can in any measure rightly conceive I come now to shew you that Sicknesse also affords matter of Comfort to any true Believer This truth I might easily make appeare unto you many wayes but because I shall hasten to the Application wherein I shall spend more time then ordinary I shall onely mention one Reason of it Sicknesse you know naturally puts a man in mind of Death and what can be more Comfortable to a Syncere Christian then the thoughts of that What can be more Comfortable to a Child of GOD then the thoughts of that happy time when he shall Goe Home to his Father when he shall fully enjoy his Maker and his Redeemer To speake more at large A Syncere Christian whose thoughts his Heart being as it were Set on Fire with Love to God continually Fly upward as Sparkes towards Heaven Usually when he Feeles any Paine presently considers the Naturall Frailty and Mortality of his Body thereupon his Soule Rejoyces in this Hope that shortly when a Few * Dayes are past She shall cast it off from her as that which so Clogs and Hinders her and deprives her of that Vigour and Quicknesse which she desires in her Spirituall Operations in the Service of her Maker which she is mainly yea wholly intent upon Now Beloved if Death be so Desirable to a true Christian Judge yee what Comfort his Sicknesse affords him which continually supplies him with fresh thoughts and strong Apprehensions of Mortality And thus I have briefly demonstrated unto you that a Christians Faith is able to extract Comfort out of those two things which are so terrible to the generality of Men Poverty and Sicknesse I am now to shew you how this Victorious Grace by which we Overcome the World softens unto us also that other Hard Thing DISGRACE or the Losse of our Good-Name and Esteem amongst men making the Sowernesse of the Worlds carriage towards us serve us as it were for Sauce at the Feast of our Good Conscience The heavyest Disgrace or Infamy which in this life a Child of GOD lyes under is occasioned by these or the like meanes A Report that he hath beene guilty of some notorious Basenesse and Impiety or a Misconceit of his good Actions which proceeding from such Principles as Carnall men who are by farre the greatest part of the World are in no wise able to Apprehend cannot but be Misconstrued Hence it is that they Nick-Name all his Vertues endeavour to render him most Odious and Contemptible for those Actions by which he knows himselfe chiefly to deserve Love and Respect from all those that are truly Noble and Heavenly-minded Thus when a Christian shewes himselfe Humble how do the men of the World mistake him for a Sneaking mean-spirited fellow when Magnanimous for Proud and selfe-conceited If the Infamy a Christian suffers be occasioned by such a Report as I mentioned but now if it be true he Comforts himselfe in it upon this account that it is unto him a continuall Memento to Repent and Bemoane himselfe for the Commission of that Sin and to Rejoyce in GOD by whose Spirit he is perswaded that his Sins are forgiven him If the Report be false the Abused Christian greatly Rejoyces in the Thoughts of that Grace which Restrained him from that Action of which hee is supposed to be Guilty into which if he had been left to himselfe he might have Rushed * As the Horse Rusheth into the Battell being Naturally prone to every thing that is Evill Another Ground of the Comfort a Godly man takes in such a Case is that he finds himselfe often Stirr'd up to Pray unto GOD saying with Holy DAVID Hold up my goings in thy paths * that my Footsteps slip not upon this consideration that there are so many that would Rejoyce over him if he should but Fall These and a thousand other occasions of Comfort do the Godly apprehend to Lighten their hearts to delight their Soules whensoever they reflect upon those heavy Censures Calumnies and Revilings with which they are continually Loaden The more the World hates them the stronger apprehensions they have of the Favour of GOD He is their * Covert from storme and from raine In him they Rest secure from the Stormy Wind of all those Ill Reports Calumnies and Reproaches they heare continually raised against them with such a kind of Delight as a man hath when he lyes Warme in his Bed and hearkens to a Tempest But now as for that Misconceit which all the World hath of the Good Actions of Pious men as for that Shame which they must expect as they are Christians constantly to suffer for discovering their Zeale for GOD and their Fiery indignation against any Allowed wickednesse amongst those with whom they converse being usually accounted Phreneticke Hot-headed fellowes for contemning the things of the World Childish and Imprudent for Disdaining to be guided by mere Example in any Course they take Proud and Haughty for separating themselves from Vaine Conversation Singular and Self-conceited As for this I say it is so farre from troubling those that are Christians indeed that they exceedingly Rejoyce in it Remembring those words of their Saviour * Blessed are yee when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evill against you falsly for my sake Rejoyce and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in Heaven for so persecuted they the Prophets which were before you I shall now conclude this point that a true Christian takes Comfort in the Apprehension of his Present Estate shewing you to confirme you in the Apprehension of this most Usefull Truth the Generall Cause and Well-head of all those streames of Consolation which continually flow into his Soule whensoever he reflects upon the condition he is in here it is he is assur'd through Faith that The Great GOD the Author and Disposer of all things Loves him and will love him for ever and hereupon he assumes this confidence that the condition he is in is that which at This Time is Best for Him As for the last Proposition that I promised to demonstrate unto you that a true Christian through Faith takes Comfort in the Expectation of any condition he may be in for the Future I shall not need to spend many words on it it appeares so plaine in what hath been already delivered Expectation being a kind of Apprehension as I said in the beginning of
SON of the Living God that Glorious Person Shed His most pretious Blood for You and Them and yet will not suffer You to Love Him to talke of Him and upon all Occasions to Discover Your Zeale for the Honour of his Name without Taunts and Flouts Calumnies and Reproaches I shall only speake a word or two more to heighten your Commiseration of these foolish men miserable Creatures and then I shall proceed to the other Part of my Application Dearly Beloved when ever any of these Phantasticall Things that walke in the vanity of their Minds and Delight in nothing more then in Foolish Jesting c. Continually Scoffing or Railing at any one in whom They Discover the Power of Godlinesse The true Light of CHRISTIANITY whilst They no more Understand it being so Rare and strange in these Daies of Sin and Darknesse then a Dog doth the Light of the Moone which he Barks at as they at this I say my Brethren when ever any of these men If Things so Irrationall may be call'd Men Raile on you and give out False Reports of you or to your face scorn and deride you let your Hearts Pity them considering that the time drawes on apace when Their laughter shall be turn'd to mourning and their joy to heavinesse He that sitteth in the Heavens shall laugh the Lord shall have Them in derision Psal. 2.4 And what now remains but that I Exhort you in the words of the Apostle To rejoice evermore 1 Thes. 5.16 Be Glad in the LORD and Rejoyce ye Righteous and shout for Joy all ye that are upright in Heart And now I shall speake to you who are Conscious to your selves that you have not taken Christ's Yoke upon you that you still Do Wickedly and Talke Vanity That the things you have or aime at are Vexation of Spirit vaine and Dissatisfactory to your Immortall soules sure I am you will hardly deny Nay if you have but an Historicall Beliefe of the word of God as I presume you have you cannot deny it when ever you reflect on your vain Conversation and Consider your Designes meane and Low being such as These To make your selves acceptable to some Merry Companions Such it may be as have acquired some civill Accomplishments and Humane Learning that you may gaine from them the Name of Ingenious Men c. or to Jeare and Grin at those whom you Maligne and Envy or to Drink and Droll with your Cronies or and this you think most Prudent and Manly To Get a great Estate in the World that you may Weare Brave Cloathes and keep Company with the Best as they say not to name your more Abominable Intentions which are themselves Anxiety and Labour and the Effects of them Horrour and Anguish I say Sirs when you Consider the things you enjoy or Aime at pittifull meane things at best are you not fill'd with Vexation of Spirit do you not Abhor as it were and Loath your selves for the Guilt and Filth of your SINS which you resolve still to wallow in Base and Degenerate Creatures who being Made after the Image of God have made your selves Earthly and Sensuall Well Sirs you see that Sins are Troubles and Sinners of all men most Miserable even whilst They are in their proper Element that I may so speak in this present World but what will become of them Wretches when this Life is ended and sure I am our Last Houre draws on apace Could I but expresse the thousandth part of those everlasting Paines They shall then beginne to Feele in HELL it would make the most Stif-necked Sinner in the world to Bow if he should Hear mee Ah! Sirs is This true indeed that if you take not CHRISTS Yoke upon you that is if you do not strongly and sincerely Resolve to Breake off from every Known Sin you shall never finde any Rest unto your Soules You shall be Everlastingly Miserable Is this true I say and will ye acknowledg it so to be as you must needs doe If you have so much as an Historicall Beliefe of the Word of GOD as I said but now And yet not Resolve no more to Allow your selves in any Way of Wickednesse c. no more to Deride those who having their Hearts possest with the thoughts of Eternity can in no wise suit themselves to your worldly Conversation But having once found Rest in CHRIST will no more returne to that Labour and Toile which the Generality of Men Continually Undergoe in the Pursuite of that They call Happinesse Now Sirs if you are no whit moved at what hath been spoke but Stick close to your Beloved Sinnes though our Lord and Saviour JESUS CHRIST who is Over all God blessed for ever so lovingly invites you to Come over unto him assuring you that The waies of wisdome are waies of pleasantnesse and all her paths are peace assuring you that if you take HIS YOKE upon you it will not Gall your Necks and be Troublesome unto you but onely Restraine you that you may Find rest to your Soules from Breaking over His Inclosures the Bounds of True Reason and Holines To Follow your Lusts and exorbitant Affections If you be not Moved at this but Stand fast in the Way of Sinners and will for ever remaine Lovers of pleasures more then Lovers of GOD of GOD that made you of GOD who for your sakes sent his BELOVED sonne into the world to be Mocked Scourged Crucified AH Srs If you are not Moved at This nor ever will be I must tell you in the Name of GOD you shall never finde Rest unto your Soules you shall never Tast one Dram of True Comfort Sweetnesse of Spirit all your dayes And when your Dayes on the Earth which as David saith are as a Shadow shall Vanish away you shall Certainely be Tormented with the Devill and his Angells Yea perhaps within a Weeke or two for how many Young Men have your selves knowne in this place that have beene Healthy and Dead within the compasse of far lesse Time then that I say Srs within a Weeke or two you may be seized on by some Disease or other the Small Pox or a Feaver or a Surfeite or the like and be Cutt off from the Land of the Living and be turned into Hell Consider this you that forget God you that talke vanity But now if any of you finde your selves Moved at what you have Heard and what manner of Men are you if you doe not if you finde your Hard Hearts in the least measure Softened I beseech you Srs for your Soules sakes for the GOD OF LOVES sake Pray earnestly that the LORD would Perfect the Good worke He hath Begunne in you that he would Continually Warme and Soften you and Supple your hearts with the BLOOD OF IESVS CHRIST that they may be Pliable to his will in All things to speake more plainely that Hee would make you so Tenderly and Affectionately to Apprehend His Everlasting Kindnesse towards you that you may forever LOVE Him and Keepe His Commandements that you may Live Precisely Walke with GOD all your Daies Despising the shame of the Wicked world not fearing the Reproaches and Revilings of this Base and Filthy Generation I shall hold you with no longer Discourse If yee Doe these things HAPPY are yee FINIS ERRATA Page 3. lin. 13. for A Good man is only a Friend to Himselfe read A good man only is c. Page 4. l. 16. for rash read vain p. 15. l. 18. adde Hoc est p. 32. l. 13. for SVN's read SVN As for the false Points the intelligent Reader may Correct them himselfe * Eccl. 1.14 * Prov. 3.17 Isa. 58.21 * Psa 38.18 * 2 Cor 7.10 * Matt. 5.4 * 2 Cor. 7.11 * Psal. 73.25 * Psal. 46.1 * Psal. 74.12 * Psal. 119.52 * Psal. 22.10 * Mart. * 2 Cor. 12.9 * Ps. 119.113 1 Iohn 5.19 * Ps 116.1 * Ps 18.1 * Heb 7.25 * 1 Cor 10.13 Ps 27.11 Rom 8.28 * {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} * Ps. 107.43 Mat 5.16 * Mat. 19.24 | Mistake me not I doe not speak against the Vse of these things but against those Persons who are so Madd as to set their Hearts on them * Luke 6 20. * Iob. 14.1 1 Iohn 5.4 * Ier 8.6 * Ps. 17.5 * Isaiah 4.6 * Mat. 5.11.12 2 Pet. 2.7 * Acts. 15.9 * 1 Iohn 1.7 * Ps 66.18 * Gal. 5.26 * Eph 5 4· Gal 6.1 * Titus 2.12 * Ps. 119.101 * 1 Pet. 44. * Psal. 16.11