all his Promises Yea and Amen Why art thou perplext Why art thou cast down O my Soul Wouldst thou be reading thy Destiny in the hidden Books of Fate Wouldst thou fain know what these secret Decrees say of thee O foolish Soul Why so curious to know things too high for thee which are hid from thee and therefore hid because the Knowledge of them is of no Use to thee nor would it give thee any Satisfaction Whatever be the secret Decrees they do not they cannot contradict those Eternal and Immutable Purposes which are revealed viz. That they who repent and believe and obey the Gospel shall be saved this Sentence cannot be reversed Believest thou this if you believe do accordingly and there is no Cause of Fear whatever come of others you are surely predestinated to Eternal Life If thou canst believe all things are possible Blessed are they who believe for there shall be a performance of those things which are told them of the Lord. Some are not contented with this Assurance That God has certainly declared his infallible Purpose of accepting returning Sinners but they would be infallibly assured that they themselves are actually accepted and justified which I confess would be a great Comfort neither do I doubt but some Men have this Infallible Assurance but it is an unreasonable and preposterous thing for any to expect it at their first Approaches to God or in the beginnings of their Conversion This were to ask Fruit before the due time as if one should seek Fruit on the Tree he hath but newly planted This Assurance never goes before our Reconciliation to God though sometimes of his extraordinary Mercy it may follow after and therefore we cannot expect it let us desire it never so much until we have really performed the Conditions here required If thy Assurance be built on another Foundation 't is not to be trusted to and if thou knowest that this Foundation is laid if thou canst say that in all Sincerity thou hast done what was sought of thee what makes thee not to have a rational and comfortable Assurance All Doubts of our Salvation should only arise from our Doubts of performing our part And if upon a strict and impartial Examination of our selves we find that we have performed our part then we ought to have such a comfortable Degree of Assurance as may quiet our Consciences and support us against our natural Fears because God cannot but perform his most gracious Promises But that particular infallible sort of Assurance which some Men cannot be satisfied unless they have is an extraordinary Gift which God is pleased sometimes to give tho' he is not bound to give it He hath sometimes refreshed the Souls of Martyrs and Confessors with it to support them in the midst of their Torments but it is not of ordinary Dispensation and therefore not to be expected because it is a miraculous Gift which is not to be asked but with great Submission to the Will of God who knows when it is fit for the Support and Consolation of a pious Soul But to proceed The Third Qualification here is that we have our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience which with what follows is the inseparable Effect of the two former they cannot be first and the other cannot be without them we must have true and believing Hearts before we can be sprinkled from an evil conscience or have our bodies washen but once having this the other will follow for Light and Heat may be as well disjoined from the Sun as Purity of Heart and Holiness of Life from true Faith and a sincere Mind to God Many pretend Faith but the tree is known by its fruit hereby may it be known whether thy Faith be good if so be thy heart be sprinkled from an evil conscience In this Speech the Apostle alludes to the Rites and Ceremonies under the Law 't was the Custom then to sprinkle both the Priests and the People in their Solemn Approaches to the Lord sometimes with Blood sometimes with Water Oyl or Ashes But now these legal Ceremonies are laid aside yet the thing signified by them is still required viz. What the Apostle makes mention of here that our hearts be sprinkled from an evil conscience By the heart is meant the Soul or inner Man by the evil conscience those things which pollute the Soul which keep one from having a good conscience void of offence towards God and Man such as brutish Lusts inordinate desires unworthy Passions evil Thoughts and sinful Inclinations whether born with us or contracted afterwards All these must be mortified and purged out before we can be throughly reconciled to God for as Iehu said to Ioram when he ask'd Is there Peace what peace so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Iezabel and her witchcrafts are so many So I say to those who draw near to God how can they look for Peace from him while their Pride Vain-Glory Malice Wrath Covetousness and other filthy and ungodly Lusts live and reign in them God is willing to be reconciled to our Persons but not to our Sins we must part with them or if our Sins and we cannot be separated we must give up Fellowship with God Truly God is good to Israel but 't is to such only as are clean in heart He cannot love foul polluted Souls he cannot chuse but loath and hate them for he is not a God that hath Pleasure in Wickedness neither shall evil dwell with him As therefore when we entertain great Persons we use to remove all things nasty and unhandsome and whatsoever may readily offend them or shame our selves and are careful to have all things about us decent and fashionable so being to approach the holy Presence of God let us lay aside every thing offensive and unsuitable viz. the Love and Inclination to every Sin for he is of purer eyes than that he can behold iniquity he naturally abhorrs it and let us give all Diligence to adorn our Souls with holy Thoughts and heavenly Dispositions for the righteous Lord loveth righteousness his countenance doth behold the upright But if this be wanting we can have no Acceptance If I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me saith David Psal. lxvi 18. Even David shall be rejected if he regard Iniquity Some will say if the Case be thus none can have Hopes or who can say their Heart is clean 'T is true in our present State our Hearts cannot be so clean as to have no Blemish there will be ever some Remainders of Sin in us and now and then perhaps some sinful Motions will arise in the best but this will not be imputed to us neither hinder our Reconciliation with God unless we regard them with Love and Delight cherish and follow them If we look on these Irruptions of our corrupt Nature with Sorrow and Regret if we take care to prevent and suppress them and are filled with Grief when they
because I do not look upon them as matters of such moment in themselves or of such concernment to me But believing the Truth of the Gospel and knowing the importance of what is revealed therein I find it my duty to esteem it as my necessary Food and that it is as proper and necessary to refresh my Soul with serious and daily Meditations thereof as to give my Body those repasts which Nature daily calls for This made our Apostle desire to know nothing save Iesus Christ and him crucified and to say doubtless I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Iesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung that I may win Christ. And as such a Faith is required in all the Mysteries of the Gospel so more particularly in the Mystery of the Cross the Death and Sufferings of Jesus Christ and that Satisfaction he has made thereby for Sin These we should have an Eye to all in our Addresses to God and more especially such solemn Addresses as those we are now to make For he who believes this relies thereon and by vertue thereof draws near to God does confess himself a great Sinner that it had been just for God to have damned him eternally that it is only for the sake of Christ he is saved and that the Wisdom and Mercy of God is highly to be magnified in finding out such excellent Means and Methods for the Salvation of Man and by such Acknowledgments the greatest Sinner endears himself to God and conciliates his Favour and Kindness But he who denies this or has no respect thereto when he draws near to God must either not own himself a Sinner or not think it necessary to satisfie God's Justice or to repair his Honour which is provoked and affronted by Sin or he must not believe that Jesus Christ hath done this for us and that he is the only Mediator betwixt God and Man but must fancy he can come to God by himself or through some other besides Christ and which soever of these perswasions he has he is so far from finding acceptance that he at once both exasperates God and provoketh him who had undertaken to make his Peace and who only could do it I am the way the truth and the life no man cometh to the Father but by me therefore it 's said He that believeth on him is not condemned but he that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God Secondly I told you the Faith here required must also have a respect to our acceptance with God that is we must not only be firmly perswaded of God's Mercy and his good Will to save Sinners But that we our selves in particular shall find Grace in his Sight if we approach as we ought and bring no Impediment along with us and 't would seem the Translators of our Bible have chiefly respected this act of Faith in the Translation of this Text. Christ required of all those who came to him to be cured of their bodily Distempers Faith both in his Power and good Will And St. Matthew tells us He did no mighty works in his own countrey because of their unbelief St. Mark saith further that he could not do it Which we are not so to understand as if our Lord's Power could be restrained by any or that he depended upon Men for the exercise thereof but only that the want of this Faith rendred those Men unworthy of his Benefits and indisposed them for receiving them And as these temporal and bodily Benefits were not commonly conferred without this precious Faith so neither will spiritual and temporal Blessings as Mercy and Salvation be granted except to those who are disposed for them by earnest Desires and a sincere belief of God's being ready and willing to bestow them or at least if they be given to any other 't is not according to those ordinary Rules and Methods of the Dispensation of Grace which we ought to walk by For this Faith is always required as a necessary condition All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer believing ye shall receive saith Christ. And St. Iames saith Let not that man who wanteth Faith think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. This Faith is requisite both to animate our Endeavours after the means of Grace and Salvation and also to excite God's love and to encline him to be merciful to us 'T is natural to love those who put confidence in us and he has no spark of generosity who will not do his utmost for those who altogether rely on him if a Sinner can confide in God notwithstanding that he hath offended him if he throw himself at his Feet and can but believe that God has so much Mercy as to forgive him all his Sins and upon his Repentance to receive him into Favour for the sake of Christ He by this act so honoureth God and so obligeth him to Mercy by his trust in him that he will not he cannot abandon him This is set forth to us in the Parable of the Prodigal for when the Penitent Son was yet a great way off his Father saw him and had compassion and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him And as this Faith enclines God to Mercy so it animates our Endeavours it excites and quickens us to a cheerful Performance of all the Means and Conditions of Salvation The Husbandman soweth when he has Hope and the Merchant Tradeth when he has Hope of Gain and every Man plyeth heartily what he believes will succeed but Men are discouraged and made to give over their Endeavours when they take up a Perswasion that they shall but labour in vain A double minded man saith St. Iames that is one who hangs in suspence who is tossed with Doubts and Fears he is unstable in all his ways Such an one is inconstant he pursues not his Enterprizes but desists he is not steadfast and unmoveable and always abounding in the work of the Lord as every one ought to be and as he will be who knows and believes that his Labour is not in vain When therefore we draw near to God let us do it in this full Assurance of Faith that we may do it heartily so as to please God let us not entertain Doubts and Fears which but disquiet our own Minds and cast dishonour upon God Would not a Servant reflect either upon the Ability or Honesty of his Master if he questioned his Reward for the sincere Performance of his Service If ye who are evil and sinful think your selves oblig'd to love and be faithful to those who seek to please you will not God think you be more faithful and just to forgive us and to receive us into his Favour if we approve our selves unto him Is there any thing surer than his Word Are not
rescue him I will go and return unto my place till they acknowledge their offence and seek my face In their affliction they will seek me early EPHRAIM is put here for the whole Ten Tribes who revolted from the House of David and embodied themselves into a distinct Kingdom Under Iudah is here comprehended also the Tribe of Benjamin which two Tribes as they kept close in Allegiance and Expressions of Loyalty to their lawful King so they made Profession of Serving the One true God in that way and after that manner prescribed by his Word By the Sickness of Ephraim and the Wounds of Iudah is meant those Afflictions and Calamities which God sent upon the several States because of their Sins and Transgressions And by considering this Prophesie and the History of these several Nations we find the Judgments they were visited with and which are here especially pointed at to have been a withdrawing the Necessaries and Comforts of Life Factions and Divisions within and Oppressions from Neighbours without By Ephraim going to the Assyrian and Iudah sending to King Iareb The same thing is understood by all Interpreters for they make Iareb either the proper Name of the King of Assyria then reigning or an Appellative title given to all the Kings of that Nation as Pharaoh was the title of the Kings of Egypt and Coesar or Augustus of the Roman Emperours or it is thought to be the Name of a City in Assyria where the Kings resided and that he is called King Iareb because he lived there or finally considering the Etymology of the word some will have the King of Assyria so called because the Iews and Israelites expected he should have vindicated and defended them wherefore the Translators of the Bible have put into the Margin Or to the King that should Plead But which soever of these ways be taken all conclude that Assyria is meant and that respect is had to what we read 2 Kings xv 19. xvi 17. 2 Chron. xxviii 16. Where we see how both Iudah and Israel entered into a League with Assyria and studied by Money and Presents both to procure his own Peace and also Assistance to curb and restrain others who infested them And when it is said he could not heal you nor cure you thereby it is represented how ineffectual this Method was for their relief for they were not put in a better state by his means so far from that that even he from whom they expected Ease became an Instrument of more Mischief and Trouble unto them as the Sacred History plainly shews The reason hereof is given in the 14th Verse to wit because God was angry with them and resolved to punish them he was determined to be as a Lion to Ephraim and as a young Lion to Iudah to tear them and take them away That is as these Beasts are strong to catch their prey and when they have set upon it do devour it and it is in vain to think to get it safe out of their clutches so God being incensed he will shew himself able and strong to punish those who had done it And it was a most foolish thing to think by Men or any other Means to prevent the Mischief he certainly determined It was like the offering to take back a prey from the Jaws of a hungry and raging Lion Who can rescue out of his Hands When he declares War who can make Peace Men may fight with Men but it is in vain to strive against God or to think that any Means or Projects will prosper where he is the Enemy And as these Savage Beasts when they have catch'd their prey and eaten it up use to retire to their Dens and Coverts and lurk there so in allusion to this God saith in the last Verse he will return to his place that is as it were shut himself up in Heaven that the Earth should no more feel his gracious Presence or the comfortable Effects thereof He would so leave them and forsake them by withdrawing the favourable Expressions of his Providence as that they should be tempted to think he had confined himself to Heaven and would no more visit the Earth nor the Children of Men. But all this God did not so much out of Wrath and for Destruction as out of Love that he might at last save them and make them Partakers of his great goodness They were so perverse as to resist his gentle Methods so stubborn as not to be wrought upon by his former Acts of Kindness that he was provoked and if it were proper to speak so of the Almighty constrained to take up the Rod and to deal with them thus roughly and severely But still his intent was not to cut them off utterly from him but rather to bring them into a stricter Union with him afterwards He let his anger out now upon them that they might afterwards be made capable of his Love to wit when they became sensible of their Sin and Folly in forsaking the Commands of God and resolved to seek him seriously in all time coming This saith he I will do till they acknowledge their offence and seek my face And as God had this end before him in their Punishment so there is here a gracious intimation that the Punishments laid upon them should be effectual for this purpose In their afflictions they will seek me early which words are not so much a Prediction of what probably they would do as a Promise what he would then by his Grace make them do Afflictions have indeed some natural tendency to soften Men to render them tractable and obedient but then only this is truly effectuated when God sanctifieth Afflictions and giveth his Grace with them And when Afflictions produce this when People are so happy as to be converted by them then God layeth aside all Quarrels he putteth off his anger and putteth on Bowels of Love and Compassion he hideth his Face while Men continue in their Sins and Transgressions All the time they are going astray from God he retires within his Place as is here said But when they begin to acknowledge their Offences and in all sincerity seek his Face then he comes forth of his Place and lifts the light of his Countenance upon them and speaks comfortably unto them his going forth is prepared as the Morning and then he cometh unto us as the rain as the latter and former rain unto the Earth which both refresheth it and maketh it fruitful Thus I have explained the words and given you the genuine Scope and Purport of them In the next place I intend to propose plainly such Instructions as they afford and as I judge them both useful and seasonable so I pray God they may be candidly heard meekly received seriously considered and carefully observed First then We may read and discern here the Cause and Occasion of all the Evils and Mischief which come either upon private Persons or on publick States viz. SIN This
but be sure to carry away the Victory If the Devil assault you resist him till he flee from you Are you persecuted troubled and afflicted maintain a Christian Courage and Magnanimity bear all with an invincible Patience and suffer the utmost rather than do what is dishonourable what may offend God or wound your own Conscience Doth the wind of false Doctrine blow from all quarters let us take heed that we be not carried away therewith let us search for the Truth and never suffer Lyes and Falshoods to have any Impression upon us And that other Errors may not find entrance let us shut out that great and gross one and the Mother of many viz. That it is no matter what Men think or believe that Opinions are not dangerous for the Apostle tells us That there are some Heresies damnable All Truths are not to be alike accounted of nor are all Errors dangerous But certainly some Truths are of such importance and are delivered with such evidence that to deny or question them is to resist God and question his Veracity and there are some Errors which debauch the Understanding as much as Vice doth the Heart and the one doth alienate from God as well as the other If we be tempted to mingle our Devotions with Idolatry and Superstition that the Worship of God may be splendid and magnificent let us not yield for God is not to be Worshipped with that which pleaseth him not nor must we study to Honour him by ways which he has forbidden Neither out of a pretext of shunning this let us be carried to the other extreme of Indecency Irreverence and of a nasty Familiarity Whatever be in vogue among others let us both in publick and in private keep up that Worship which is grave serious and deliberate which is suitable to the Majesty of God and proper to beget in us great and worthy thoughts of him which kindleth our Love to him heighteneth our Reverence and Esteem for him which instructs us in his Will and quickeneth our Obedience to his Commands Finally and particularly let us with all care escape the Pollution that is in the World thorow Lust let us stave off Vice and withstand the wicked Practices of this Age we live in and study to be found the Children of God without all rebuke even in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation whatever be the practices of others let us make it our business to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearance of the Son of God If we do not strive to overcome in this last particular our Victory in the rest will be to little purpose What will it avail us to stand out against Persecutions to resist Errour and Heresies Idolatry and Superstition if we be Slaves to Lust and suffer Sin or any manner of Impiety to reign in us All our Zeal for Christ's Kingdom without will profit us nothing if we do not set it up within us Though we Prophesie in Christ's Name and in his Name cast out Devils and in his Name do many wondrous Works yet if we do the works of Iniquity he will say to us in that day Depart from me I never knew you Thus you have seen your task and what as Christians is required of you Your task indeed is great but your Assistances are as great and if you resolve to acquit your selves well you must be active and diligent There is no place for Idleness or Loitering You have much to do but however do not despond for there shall be strength given you from above He that is with you is greater than any that can be against you If you have the heart be ready and willing God will enable you to overcome the greatest Goliah of the Philistines And if at any time you should faint look unto Iesus the author and finisher of your Faith let his Example direct and encourage you and as he did also look unto the Recompence of Reward consider what shall be done to you if you overcome You shall not be so meanly rewarded as they were who obtained the Mastery in Olympick Games who only got Crowns of Flowers Laurels and Myrtles nor yet as the Romans when they returned Victorious over their Enemies who only had the Honour of a days Solemnity and Triumph nor is it a Crown of Gold which shall be bestowed on you which is the greatest reward to be expected in this World but it is a Crown of Life Glory and Righteousness I have fought a good fight saith St. Paul I have finished my course and henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness Nothing is reckoned more August and glorious than a Crown some have been at great Pains and have run many Hazards to win one But there is no Crown so glorious as this which awaits us in the other World The splendor of it is represented by the Whiteness of the Stone in the Text Its Excellency and Magnificence by the weight thereof and its Duration and Continuance by the firmness of it Be ye therefore stedfast and immoveable and abounding always in the work of the Lord Forasmuch as you see that your labour is not in vain And unto him who is able to make you overcome and who has promised thus to reward you if you do overcome be Glory Honour and Praise for Ever and Ever Amen SERMON X. On LUKE VI. 46. Why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I say THE Name of Lord is not only a title of Honour but it implies Dominion and Authority so that to call one Lord is to acknowledge him Superiour and to profess Subjection to him Christ is called Lord by David Psal. cx And is almost always design'd so in Scripture This Name is due to him both by vertue of his Nature and Office so that to call Iesus Lord is to receive and Acknowledge him for the Son of God the Messias or Christ and the Saviour of the World For these Reasons he is our Lord and is called so in Scripture and they do not understand what they say who do not mean these things when they call Iesus Lord. By the things which Christ saith is to be understood the whole Doctrine of Christ as it respects both Faith and Manners A true Disciple will receive whatever his Lord saith and will own all that his Authority is concerned in But he is disobedient and rejects his Authority who rejects either the Truths required to be believed or the things commanded to be done To do then what Jesus saith is to frame both the inward Temper and Sentiments of our heart and our outward Conversation according to the Doctrine of Christ it is to receive by a Sincere Faith all the Truths revealed by him and to make Conscience of observing what he has commanded The Credenda or things to be believed are
into shame how long will ye love vanity and seek after leesing Do ye slight God set at nought your Maker and court the World Are ye taken up with Toys and Trifles and will ye despise Life and cast behind you eternal Bliss Be astonished O ye Heavens at this And be horribly afraid be ye very desolate saith the Lord for my People have committed two great evils they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters and hew'd them out Cisterns broken Cisterns that can hold no water O! that Men were wise O! that they did understand O! that they would but seriously consider this Come I pray you let us reason together call in your Thoughts consult your Knowledge advise with your Experience and then tell me what you have ever found preferable to God Is there any thing more worthy your Thoughts or Care What is it that doth equal his Favour and Love Or what can compensate the Loss thereof Will Riches will Honours will Pleasures or will any thing else be profitable as God Can we expect to draw from them either separately or jointly as much Comfort and Satisfaction as from him Behold every Day lets us see that all these things are frail brittle and uncertain and that there can be no fast hold of them But though they were more certain and stable yet being unsuitable to the Nature of our Souls 't is impossible to draw from them alone that good which our Souls crave It is indeed somewhat hard to convince Men but though they should act over all the Experiments of Solomon and prove what good is under the Sun they could not draw another Conclusion than what he has left us viz. That all things are vanity and vexation of Spirit and that Mans chief and only good is to seek God and to delight themselves in him The Lord is my portion saith my soul therefore will I hope in him O consider what an Honour it is to be admitted into Favour and Fellowship with God The Psalmist falls into Admiration when he beheld Man but a little lower than the Angels and invested with Dominion over the Fowls of the Air the Beasts of the Field and the Fish of the Sea And whatever Reason there be for Praise and Admiration in that Case yet Angels being but Fellow-Creatures and the other destitute of Reason and Understanding and so far below us this is nothing so considerable as to be advanc'd into Communion with God himself this is indeed a Heighth and Dignity which may both amaze the Beholders and those on whom it is conferred To be made the Friends of God is truly an Honour to our Nature nothing else can give any Lustre or Glory to us but this is the highest can be aspir'd to either by Angels or Men and therefore we have great Reason to cry out Lord what is Man that thou shouldest be so kind to him And so kind too after he had turn'd Rebel and Traytor is indeed beyond Expression Behold what manner of love the father hath bestowed on us that we should be called the sons of God Constantine had good Reason to say that he gloried more in being a Member of the Church than in being Head of the Empire for to be a true lively Member of the Church doth unite us to God and so is more to be desired than the greatest Dominion or an universal Monarchy For hereby we are not only highly honoured but greatly enriched we have not only an honourable Title and Relation conferred on us but also the largest Emolument Eliphaz advised Iob to seek unto God that he might be relieved out of all his Trouble and if he got him his Friend he told him he should be in League with the stones of the Field and the beasts of the Field should be at peace with him for God will certainly oblige all his Creatures to keep Peace with those with whom he is at Peace as a King maketh Peace not only for himself but for all his People or if he let any of them break Peace it is that he may make those his beloved and peculiar Friends to be the more glorious by gaining a Victory over them He that draws near to God is sure of his Hearts wish Delight thy self in the Lord and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart What can any wish for more than what an infinite Wisdom can contrive an infinite Power act and an infinite Bounty bestow Now he who hath God his Friend is allied to infinite Power Wisdom and Goodness which will ever interess themselves in all his Concerns Happy are the People whose God is the Lord blessed is the Man who chuses God for his Inheritance for he will give grace and glory and will with-hold no good thing from him All things shall work together to the good of them that love God Trouble as well as Prosperity and the saddest Affliction as well as the greatest outward Plenty Many say who will shew us any good But saith David Lord lift thou up the light of thy Countenance upon us Thou hast put gladness in my heart more than in the time that their Corn and Wine increased They who draw near to God have Joy which the World cannot rob them of the Ground of their Happiness and Comfort is not liable to Rapine or Violence nor doth it ever decay Peace I leave with you my Peace I give unto you saith Christ but not as the World giveth give I unto you that is he gives neither so inconsiderable nor yet so brittle and uncertain a Peace as what the World gives but what is more solid and substantial wherefore he adds let not your hearts be troubled neither be afraid If we have Peace with God through Christ we need not startle at any thing neither at private Personal Disasters nor at publick Calamities Because God is our refuge and present help The Children of God cannot be without Crosses and Afflictions but God will not suffer these to marr either their present inward Comfort or after Happiness their Joy cannot be taken from them He will let them be tossed up and down with the Waves of Trouble but they shall not be swallowed up they shall have a joyful exit Mark the perfect and behold the upright for the latter end of that Man is Peace Psal. xxxvii When Men draw near the end of their Life when their Days are near a Period whether through Age or by any Accident they have need of some comforting Cordial to keep them from fainting and nothing is possible to administer this but the Hopes of Peace with God The Sense of God's Favour and Love will make Death appear without a frightful Visage though generally it is esteemed the King of Terrours this will make one to be so far from abhorring Death as in many Cases to be even glad of it because it opens a Door to eternal Rest unspeakable Joy and Fullness of Glory Is it not then good for
us to draw near to God But if so much real good as thus accrues by drawing near to God be not Motive enough to engage us to do it I pray consider the Danger of neglecting it which is no less than utter Misery and certain Destruction for lo they that are far from thee shall perish saith the Psalmist thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee It may certainly be matter of Astonishment how Men can rest be merry or enjoy any Quietness while they live in Enmity with God and have no Assurance of Peace with him Men are troubled if they understand any Alteration of their King's Favour toward them nay if but some Difference fall out between them and some Favourite of the Court though the King's Anger may be many ways avoided and that before the Sun hath finished his Course twice the Favourite may be turned out of Court and put in a Condition which obliges him as much to depend on others as others now on him But however is the Wrath of frail mortal Man so much to be feared Is their Displeasure so carefully to be avoided And should the Wrath of God be little regarded How much more Reason have we to fear God than Man There is no concealing ones self if he search out nor is there any resisting his Power if he be resolved to punish and who may stand before him if his anger be kindled but a little Ye who will not be perswaded to draw near to God how think ye to save your selves how can ye escape if ye neglect so great Salvation as is now tendered you Can you muster Forces equal in Strength and Number unto God's And if you cannot why do you not seek Peace before he come in Wrath to revenge himself for the Affront you have done him in rejecting so great Love and Kindness as he hath proffered by his own Son Ye Atheists and Prophane who now laugh at Religion and make a mock at Sin what will ye do or say for your selves when God enters into Judgment with you Do you think to put on then your present Boldness and unmannerly Impudence or will you make God retire by your Prophane drolling and jesting as you use now to affright all sober and modest persons from your Company Then your Tongues will be bound up your Wits will fail shame shall cover your faces you shall stand trembling and shall feel that power to your confusion which at present you scorn and little regard Ye who cannot find time to seek God who have no leisure to Pray to read the Scripture or to attend God's Publick Worship or Ordinances how do ye think to come off will ye say that ye had your Business to wait on that ye were taken up with the pursuit of Honours and Riches that ye were drawn away with Pleasures with Gaming and Sporting That is to tell him plainly you loved him not you preferr'd all things before him and thought it time enough to seek him when you had nothing else to do Or do you imagine to bribe him but he will not be brib'd and tho' he could what would you give you have nothing you leave all behind you you pass naked into the other World There is no Remedy then but submit you must and you can expect no Mercy for it is out of time and when it was offer'd you contemn'd it O consider this ye that forget God lest he tear you in pieces when there shall be none to deliver Now is the acceptable time now is the day of Salvation now you may have Peace be wise therefore and let not such opportunities slip but seek the Lord while he may be found and call upon him while he is near Draw near to God and he will draw near to you Cleanse your hands ye sinners and purifie your hearts ye double minded I have now spoken to the Exhortation and proposed what may make it take effect and I hope you are thereby moved to draw near to God It follows next that we consider the manner how we should draw near for this we should also look to otherwise we will be disappointed of Peace with God He is ready and willing to accept of any who come aright as they ought He that cometh to me I will in no ways cast out Joh. 6. 37. But yet every drawing near will not find acceptance some come and are rejected not for the want of good will on God's part but for the want of those Qualifications and Conditions on their own which are necessary and requisite to recommend them to the favour of God Now what these are the Apostle shews you here The first is a true Heart The Heart is not made mention of with a design to exclude the Body for that is also required as appears by what follows But because God is a Spirit who searcheth the heart and trieth the reins who knoweth the inward Thoughts of Man the inward Temper and Disposition of their Minds and with what Designs and Affections they present themselves before him therefore the Heart is in the first place mentioned that Men may not presume to mock God by outward Fawnings and Caresses whiles in their Hearts they have no true Kindness for him nor sincere Love to him God will not value the Bowings and Prostrations of Mens Bodies their sad Looks mournful Tone fair Words and Professions if these proceed not from the Heart and be not the real intimations of the inward Purposes and Affections of their Soul But if in the midst of these they retain any secret aversion to God his Will or his Ways or if there lurks with them some love and inclination to what offends him then he will abhor them and all their Offers and Services This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth and honoureth me with their lips but their heart is far from me therefore saith God in vain do they worship me There is no true Friendship where there is not an Union and closing of Hearts Indeed sometimes Enemies will meet shake hands and make many fair Protestations and yet their old Grudge and Quarrel will continue which cannot be reckoned a cordial reconciliation it 's only a patcht agreement to please some third Person or to shun some present inconvenience which will never last But as there is nothing to oblige God to patch up a Peace with us against his Will or contrary to his Honour so there is no Peace with him who is the Father of Spirits but when it is with the Heart neither will he look favourably upon any heart except a true heart that is a sincere heart free of Hypocrisie and Deceit he who draws near to God must be like Nathaniel a true Israelite in whom there is no guile that is who sincerely and in good earnest loves and desires that which he professeth and pretends to seek One Man may deceive another he may make him believe what is not in his
fighting the good fight and endeavouring to do all things commanded us through Christ that strengtheneth us More Reasons might be given but these are sufficient not only to clear the Divine Wisdom and Goodness of all Imputation but also to make them appear eminently in such Dispensations towards his best and most beloved Servants When I first entred on this Discourse I intended to have taken in the two following Verses not thinking that this one would have furnished matter enough for a Discourse but you see how far the handling of it hath carried us and how without digressing from the Purpose of the Text or doing Violence to the Words thereof several material and important Observations have been drawn From which we may see as St. Chrysostom observes the fullness of the Scripture and that an inexhaustible Treasure of Wisdom and Knowledge is contained in it when one single Verse and so barren at the first Appearance can afford so many and so useful Instructions If one Verse can do such what may the whole do Surely It is able to make us wise unto Salvation and beyond all Question is profitable for Doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction in righteousness that the Man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto all good works God grant that this Word of his may dwell in all Christians richly in all Wisdom but especially in the Ministers of the Gospel whose Office it is to instruct others therein Amen FINIS Snake in the Grass A General Call to all Persons Joh. 5. 40. Isai. 55. 1. Rev. 22. 17. Why all Men are said to Labour and to be heavy Laden I. Because of Afflictions II. The Emptiness and Vanity of Life Ezek. 24. 〈◊〉 2. Isa. 29. 8. Eccl. 1. 5. 9. 2. 17. 4. 2 3. III. The fear of Death IV. Sin Psal. 38. 2. Prov. 18. 14. How Christ giveth rest I. From Sin Matt. 9. II. From the fear of Death Rev. 3. 7. III. Under the Vanity of this Life IV. From Troubles and Afflictions The necessary Qualification to the rest Promised I. Coming to Christ is 1st To follow his Counsel 2d To believe in him Heb. 11. 6. 2 Cor. 4. 3. Heb. 3. 12. 3d. What Faith is 1 John 5. 9. Chap. 2. 22 23. II. Taking the Yoke Gal. 5. 1. Gal. 5. 13. 1 Pet. 2. 16. III. Learning of Christ. John 13. 15. Phil. 2. I. The Scope and Coherence of the Text. II. The Truths contain'd in the Text. III. The perverse disingenuity of the Socinians in their Explication of this Text. 2 Pet. 2. 1. Hydra Socinianismi Tom. 2. Praef. * Naked Gospel IV. Of Iesus Christ his Pre-existence and Deity V. Of his humane Nature and Humiliation VI. Inferences from the Nature and Quality of Iesus Christ. 1st Admiration 2d Love III. Comfort against Tentations and Afflictions I. Of Iesus Christ his Person Nature and Quality Gal. 4. 4. Isa. 7. 14. 9. 6. II. His Actions and Sufferings They were voluntary Joh. 10. 17 18. What his Humiliation referrs to His great Obedience His Death III. Why Iesus abased and humbled himself For the Glory of God and Man's Redemption To demonstrate God's Love and Mercy His Iustice and Authority The heinous Nature of Sin The Dignity of Humane Nature The Perfection of it The Exaltation of Iesus Christ. Eccles. 7. 2 3 4. I. The Womens Behaviour A Comfort to Women An Example in dangerous times The Greatness of the Womens Sorrow The Cause of it Lam. 1. 12. II. Our Lord's Check to the Womens Sorrow The Prohibition not absolute The glorious Effects of Christ's Death III. Why Iesus Christ requireth us to mourn rather for our selves than him Is. 5. 3 4 5. IV. The dreadful Effects of the death of Iesus Christ upon the Impenitent Iesus may be Crucified again V. The Application I. The Author of our Happiness God Jam. 1. 16 17. God and the Father * Qui 〈◊〉 udam Dei Majestatem extra Christum mente concipiunt Idolum habent Dei loco sicut Iudaei Turcae proinde quisquis verum Deum verè cognoscere cupit hoc patris Christi titulo ipsum vestiat nisi enim quoties mens nostrae Deum quaerit Christus occurrat vaga confusa errabit donec prorsus deficiat Calvinus in locum II. The Motive which induced God His abundant Mercy * Posset Apostolus saith Fulgentius vasa misericordiae potius vasa justitiae nuncupare Sed si vasa justitiae vocarentur forsitan ex seipsis habere justitiam putarent Nunc autem cum vasa misericordiae dicit proculdubio quid ipsi fuerint non tacuit quare quid eis à Deo collatum sit evidenter ostendit Lib. de Praedest p. 58. III. The Benefits conferred Begotten again A lively Hope An Inheritance Incorruptible Undefiled It fadeth not away In the Heavens IV. The ground of Assurance Iesus his Resurrection I. Iesus Christ is the Son of God Philip. 2. 9. 10 11. II. What is meant by Having the Son True Faith described Matth. 7. 22. Cor. 10. 5. Gal. 2. 20. Heb. 11. Rom. 10. 17. 2 Cor. 4. 3. III. Life explained 1 Tim. 4. 8. 1 Cor. 15. 19. Why Heaven and the future State of the righteous is called Life 1. Cor. 15. 31. Mad. Antonia Borignian and some others 1 Cor. 2. 9. Revel 21. 23. 22. 5. Rev. 7. 16. 1 Cor. 15. Philip 3. 21. 1 Cor. 13. 12. Luke 19. 36. Iesus Christ the Discoverer of this Life 2 Tim. 1. 10. John 1. 7. And the Author of it Rev. 3. 7. Rev. 2. 10. IV. Faith gives a right and title to Life Joh. 5. 24. 3. 18. Joh. 6. 56. John 17. V. Practical Inferences 1. 2. Heb. 12. 2. Rom. 8. 18. 3. Rev. 2. 10. 4. I. Misery and Trouble not peculiar to a state of Christianity Job 18. 20. Isai. 57. 20. II. They are Common to the state of Mankind in this World Eccl. 4. 23. III. Christians and Good men more liable to be miserable in this Life than others And the Reason why it is so Mat. 10. 37. Luke 14. 26 27. 2 Tim. 3. 12. 1 Thes. 3. 3. 1 Tim. 4. 8. Psal. 37. 16. IV. The Force of St. Paul's Argument for the Proof of another Life V. Inferences First Second Third 1 Cor. 4. 16. Rev. 7. 16 17. Fourth Joh. 3. 36. I. All Christians are concerned in this Advertisement II. Of Hearing It s Necessity The manner of doing it Whom we should hear III. Of Overcoming Christianity is a Warfare The Nature of the Christian Warfare What Christian Victory is No Victory so honourable Prov. 16. 32. IV. Of the hidden Manna It is an Allusion to the Custom of entertaining Conquerours and to what the Iews fed upon in the Wilderness The Nature and Quality of the Entertainment appointed for Christian Conquerours Joh. 4. 13. Iesus Christ is the hidden Manna V. Of the white Stone Ovid Metam Lib. xv Psal. 32. 1. Rom. 8. 1. VI. Of the New Name VII How these words No man knoweth but he