he is a Lyar for he that loveth not his Brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen This deserves to be seriosly consider'd by those who make a great shew of Devotion and are at great pains in Prayer and Fasting and reading and hearing the Word of God and in all other frugal Exercises of Religion which stand them in no Mony lest all their Labour be lost for want of this one necessary and essential part lest with the young Man in the Gospel after they have kept all other Commandments they be rejected by Christ for lack of this one thing I have done with the first part of the Observation that Unmercifulness is a very great Sin I proceed to the 2d That it is such a Sin as alone and without any other Guilt is sufficient to ruin a Man for ever The Parable lays the Rich Man's Condemnation upon this it was the guilt of this Sin that tormented him when he was in Hell The Scripture is full of severe Threatnings against this Sin Prov. 21. 13. Whoso stoppeth his Ears at the cry of the Poor he also shall cry himself but shall not be heard God will have no regard or pity for the Man that regardeth not the Poor That is a terrible Text Ja. 2. 13. He shall have Judgment without Mercy that hath shewed no Mercy Our Saviour hath two Parables to represent to us the Danger of this Sin this here in the Text and that in Luke 12. concerning the Covetous Man that enlarged his Barns and was still laying up but laid nothing out upon the Poor upon which our Saviour makes this Observation which is the Moral of the Parable v. 21. So is he that layeth up Treasure for himself and is not rich towards God So shall he be such an issue of his Folly may every one expect who layeth up Treasure for himself but does not lay up Riches with God How is that The Scripture tells us by Works of Mercy and Charity this our Saviour calls laying up for our selves Treasures in Heaven Matth. 6. 20. And Luke 12. 33. he calls giving of Alms providing for our selves Bags that wax not old a Treasure in Heaven that faileth not There is no particular Grace and Virtue to which the Promise of eternal Life is so frequently made in Scripture as to this of Mercy and Charity to the Poor Matth. 5. 7. Blessed are the merciful for they shall find Mercy Which Promise as it does not exclude a Reward in this World so it seems principally to respect the Mercy of God at the great Day Luke 14. 12 13 14. When thou makest a Feast invite not the Rich for they will recompence thee again but invite the Poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind for they cannot recompense thee but thou shalt be recompensed at the Resurrection of the Just Luke 16. 9. Make therefore to your selves friends of the Mammon of Vnrighteousness that when ye shall fail they may receive you into everlasting habitations 1 Tim. 6. 17 18 19. Charge them that are rich in this World that they do good that they be rich in good works ready to distribute willing to communicate laying up in store for themselves a good Foundation as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is sometimes used a good Treasure against the time which is to come that they may lay hold of eternal Life But the most considerable Text of all other to this purpose is in Matth. 25. where our Saviour gives us a description of the Judgment of the great Day And if that be a true and proper representation of the process of that Day then the grand enquiry will be what Works of Charity have been done or neglected by us and accordingly Sentence shall be past upon us The proper Result from all this Discourse is to perswade Men to this necessary Duty Our eternal Happiness does not so much depend upon the exercise of any one single Grace or Virtue as this of Charity and Mercy Faith and Repentance are more general and fundamental Graces and as it were the Parents of all the rest But of all single Virtues the Scripture lays the greatest weight upon this of Charity and if we do truly believe the Precepts of the Gospel and the Promises and Threatnings of it we cannot but have a principal regard to it I know how averse Men generally are to this Duty which makes them so full of Excuses and Objections against it 1. They have Children to provide for This is not the case of all and they whose case it is may do well to consider that it will not be amiss to leave a Blessing as well as an Inheritance to their Children 2. They tell us they intend to do something when they die I doubt that very much but granting their Intention to be real why should Men chuse to spoil a good Work and to take away the Grace and Acceptableness of it by the manner of doing It shews a great backwardness to the Work when we defer it as long as we can He that will not do good till he be enforced by the last necessity diu noluit was long unwilling It is one of the worst Complements we can put upon God to give a thing to him when we can keep it no longer 3. Others say they may come to want themselves and it is Prudence to provide against that To this I answer 1. I believe that no Man ever came the sooner to want for his Charity David hath an express Observation to the contrary Psa 37. 25. I have been young and now am old yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken nor his Seed begging bread And tho' he use a general word yet that by the righteous here he intended the merciful Man is evident from the next words he is ever merciful and lendeth And besides David's Observation we have express Promises of God to secure us against this Fear Psa 41. 1 2. Blessed is he that considereth the poor the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble the Lord will preserve him and keep him alive and he shall be blessed upon the Earth Pro. 28. 27. He that giveth unto the Poor shall not lack 2. Thou mayest come to want tho' thou give nothing thou may'st lose that which thou hast spared in this kind as well as the rest thou may'st lose all and then thou art no better secured against want than if thou hadst been charitable Besides that when thou art brought to Poverty thou wilt want the Comfort of having done this Duty and may'st justly look upon the neglect of this Duty as one of the Causes of thy Poverty 3. After all our Care to provide for our selves we must trust the Providence of God and a Man can in no case so safely commit himself to God as in well-doing If the Providence of God as we all believe be peculiarly concern'd to bless one Man more than another I dare say
Lives remembring that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God I will conclude with the words of the Apostle immediately after the Text The earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed receiveth blessing from God But that which beareth thorns and briars is rejected and is nigh unto cursing whose end is to be burned And how gladly would I add the next words But beloved we are perswaded better things of you and things that accompany salvation though we thus speak SERMON VI. Christ the Author and Obedience the Condition of Salvation HEB. V. 9. And being made perfect he became the Author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him THIS is spoken of Christ our great High Priest under the Gospel upon the Excellency of whose Person and the Efficacy of his Sacrifice for the Eternal Benefit and Salvation of Mankind the Apostle insists so largely in this and the following Chapters but the Summ of all is briefly comprehended in the Text that our High Priest being made perfect became the Author of eternal salvation to them that obey him In which words we have these four things considerable 1st The great Blessing and Benefit here spoken of and that is Eternal Salvation and this implies in it not only our Deliverance from Hell and Redemption from Eternal Misery but the obtaining of Eternal Life and Happiness for us 2dly The Author of this great Blessing and Benefit to Mankind and that is Jesus Christ the Son of God who is here represented to us under the notion of our High Priest who by making Atonement for us and reconciling us to God is said to be the Author of Eternal Salvation to Mankind 3dly The Way and Means whereby he became the Author of our Salvation being made perfect he became the Author of Eternal Salvation The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 having consummated his work and finish'd his Course and receiv'd the Reward of it For this word hath an allusion to those that run in a Race where he that wins receives the Crown And to this the Apostle plainly alludes Phil. 3. 12. where he says not as though I had already attained 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not as if I had already taken hold of the Prize but I am pressing or reaching forward towards it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or were already perfect that is not as if I had finish'd my Course or had the Prize or Crown in my hand but I am pressing forward towards it In like manner our blessed Saviour when he had finish'd the Course of his Humiliation and Obedience which was accomplish'd in his Sufferings and had receiv'd the Reward of them being risen from the Dead and exalted to the Right Hand of God and crown'd with Glory and Honour he is said to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 made perfect and therefore when he was giving up the Ghost upon the Cross he said John 19. 30. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is finish'd or perfected that is he had done all that was necessary to be done by way of suffering for our Redemption And the same word is likewise used Luke 13. 32. concerning our Saviour's Sufferings I do cures to day and to morrow 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the third day I shall be perfected this he spake concerning his own death And therefore Chap. 2. 10. God is said to make the Captain of our Salvation perfect through Sufferings 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And thus our High Priest being made perfect in this Sense that is having finish'd his Course which was accomplished in his Sufferings and having received the Reward of them in being exalted at the Right Hand of God he became the Author of Eternal Salvation to us 4thly You have here the qualification of the Persons who are made Partakers of this great Benefit or the Condition upon which it is suspended and that is Obedience He became the Author of eternal Salvation to them that obey him These are the main things contained in the Text. For the fuller Explication whereof I shall take into consideration these five things 1st How and by what means Christ is the Author of our Salvation 2dly What Obedience the Gospel requires as a Condition and is pleased to accept as a Qualification in those who hope for eternal Salvation 3dly We will consider the possibility of performing this Condition by that Grace and Assistance which is offer'd and ready to be afforded to us by the Gospel 4thly The necessity of this Obedience in order to Eternal Life and Happiness And 5thly I shall shew that this is no prejudice to the Law of Faith and the free Grace and Mercy of God declared in the Gospel 1st We will consider how and by what means Christ is the Author of our Salvation and this is contain'd in these words Being made perfect he became the Author of Eternal Salvation that is as I told you before having finish'd his Course which was accomplish'd in his last Sufferings and having received the Reward of them being exalted at the right hand of God he became the Author of eternal Salvation to us so that by all that he did and suffer'd for us in the days of his Flesh and in the state of his Humiliation and by all that he still continues to do for us now that he is in Heaven at the right hand of God he hath effected and brought about the great Work of our Salvation His Doctrine and his Life his Death and Sufferings his Resurrection from the Dead and his powerful Intercession for us at the Right Hand of God have all a great influence upon the reforming and saving of Mankind and by all these Ways and Means he is the Author and Cause of our Salvation as a Rule and as a Pattern as a Price and Propitiation and as a Patron and Advocate that is continually pleading our Cause and interceding with God on our behalf for mercy and grace to help in time of need And indeed our condition requir'd an High Priest who was qualified in all these respects for the recovery of Mankind out of that corrupt and degenerate state into which it was sunk an High Priest whose lips should preserve knowledge and from whose mouth we might learn the Law of God whose life should be a perfect Pattern of Holiness to us and his Death a propitiation for the sins of the whole World and by whose Grace and Assistance we should be endowed with Power and Strength to mortifie our Lusts and to perfect Holiness in the Fear of God and therefore such an High Priest became us who was holy harmless undefiled and separate from Sinners who might have compassion on the ignorant and them that are out of the way and being himself compast with infirmities might have the feeling of ours being in all points tempted as we are only without sin and in a word might be able to
proper Pains and Torments of the damned but that his perfect Obedience and grievous Sufferings undergone for our sakes and upon our account were of that Value and Esteem with God and his voluntary Sacrifice of himself in our stead so highly acceptable and well pleasing to him that he thereupon was pleased to enter into a Covenant of Grace and Mercy with Mankind wherein he hath promised and engaged himself to forgive the Sins of all those who sincerely repent and believe and to make them partakers of Eternal Life And hence it is that the Blood of Christ which was shed for us upon the Cross is call'd the Blood of the Covenant as being the Sanction of that new Covenant of the Gospel into which God is entred with Mankind and not only the Confirmation but the very Foundation of it for which reason the Cup in the Lord's Supper which represents to us the Blood of Christ is call'd the New Testament in his Blood which was shed for many for the remission of Sins 4thly and lastly Christ is said to be the Author of our Salvation in respect of his powerful and perpetual Intercession for us at the right Hand of God And this seems to be more especially intimated and intended in that Expression here in the Text that being made perfect he became the Author of eternal Salvation to them that obey him Which Words of his being perfected do as I have shew'd before more immediately refer to his Sufferings and the Reward that followed them his Exaltation at the right hand of God where he lives for ever to make Intercession for us by which perpetual and most prevalent Intercession of his he procures all those Benefits to be bestowed upon us which he purchased for us by his Death the forgiveness of our Sins and our Acceptance with God and perfect Restitution to his Favour upon our Faith and Repentance and the Grace and Assistance of God's Holy Spirit to inable us to a sincere Discharge of our Duty to strengthen us against all the Temptations of the World the Flesh and the Devil to keep us from all Evil and to preserve us to his Heavenly Kingdom And this is that which our Apostle calls obtaining of Mercy and finding Grace to help in time of need ch 4. v. 16. of this Epist Our blessed Saviour now that he is advanced into Heaven and exalted on the right hand of the Majesty on high doth out of the tenderest Affection and Compassion to Mankind still prosecute that great and merciful Design of our Salvation which was begun by him here on Earth and in Virtue of his meritorious Obedience and Sufferings does offer up our Prayers to God and as it were plead our Cause with God and represent to him all our Wants and Necessities and obtain a favourable Answer of our Petitions put up to God in his Name and all necessary supplies of Grace and Strength Proportionable to our Temptations and Infirmities And by Virtue of this powerful Intercession of our blessed Saviour and Redeemer our Sins are pardoned upon our sincere Repentance our Prayers are graciously answered our Wants are abundantly supplyed and the Grace and Assistance of God's Spirit are plentifully afforded to us to excite us to our Duty to strengthen us in well doing to comfort us in Afflictions to support us under the greatest Tryals and Sufferings and to keep us through Faith unto Salvation And for this reason as the purchasing of our Salvation is in Scripture attributed to the Death and Sufferings of Christ so the perfecting and finishing of it is ascribed to the prevalency of his Intercession at the right Hand of God for us So the Apostle tells us ch 7. v. 25. That he is able to save to the uttermost all those that come to God by him seeing he ever liveth to make Intercession for us He dyed once to purchase Salvation for us and that we may not fall short of it but receive the full Benefit of this Purchase he lives for ever to make Intercession for us and thus he saves to the uttermost all those that come to God by him that is he takes care of the whole business of our Salvation from first to last And now that he is in Heaven he is as intent to procure our Welfare and Happiness and as tenderly concerned for us as when he lived here among us upon Earth as when he hung upon the Cross and poured out his Soul an Offering for our Sins for he appears at the right Hand of God in our Nature that which he assumed for our sakes which was made subject to and sensible of our Infirmities and which was tempted in all things like as we are only without Sin and therefore he knows how to pity and succour them that are tempted and from the remembrance of his own Sufferings is prompted to a compassionate Sense of ours and never ceaseth in virtue of his Blood which was shed for us to plead our Cause with God and to intercede powerfully on our behalf So that the Virtue and Efficacy of Christ's Intercession on our behalf is founded in the Redemption which he wrought for us by his Blood and Sufferings which being entred into Heaven he represents to God on our Behalf As the high Priest under the Law did enter into the holy place with the Blood of the Sacrifices that had been offered and in virtue of that Blood interceded for the People So Christ by his own Blood entred into the Holy Place having obtained eternal Redemption for us as the Apostle speaks ch 9. v. 12. He entred into the Holy Place that is into Heaven it self to make Intercession for us as the Apostle explains himself v. 24. Christ is not entred into the holy places which are made with hands but into Heaven it self to appear in the presence of God for us And ch 10. v. 12. speaking of Christ's appearing for us at the right Hand of God this Man says he after he had offer'd one Sacrifice for Sin for ever that is a Sacrifice of perpetual Virtue and Efficacy sat down at the right Hand of God that is to intercede for us in virtue of that Sacrifice From all which it appears that the Virtue of Christ's Mediation and Intercession for us in Heaven is founded in his Sacrifice and the price of our Redemption which he paid on Earth in shedding his Blood for us From whence the Apostle reasons that there is but one Mediator between God and Men by whom we are to address our Prayers to God 1 Tim. 2. 5. There is one God and one Mediator between God and Men the Man Christ Jesus who gave himself a Ransome for all His Mediation is founded in his Ransome or the Price which he paid for our Redemption The Apostle indeed does not say there is but one Mediator between God and Man in express words but surely he means so if by saying there is one God he means there is but one God for they
he should continue for some time in the Resolution and Practice of a holy and virtuous Life and afterwards fall off from it and turn from the holy Commandment deliver'd unto him his latter end would be worse than his beginning all his righteousness that he hath done would not be remember'd he should die in his iniquity For without holiness no man shall see the Lord. If any man draw back God's Soul will have no pleasure in him This is so very clear and plain from Scripture that no Man can entertain a contrary perswasion without contradicting the whole tenor of the Bible The Sum of what I have said is this that a virtual Obedience and sincere Faith and Repentance are sufficient where there is no time and opportunity for actual Obedience and the practice of a holy Life but where there is opportunity for actual Obedience and the continued practice of a good Life and perseverance therein they are indispensably necessary in order to our Eternal Salvation and a well-grounded hope and assurance of it 2dly There is a perfect and there is a sincere Obedience Perfect Obedience consists in the exact Conformity of our hearts and lives to the Law of God without the least imperfection and without failing in any point or degree of our Duty And this Obedience as it is not consistent with the frailty and infirmity of corrupt Nature and the imperfection of our present State so neither doth God require it of us as a necessary Condition of Eternal Life We are indeed commanded to be perfect as our Father which is in Heaven is perfect But we are not to understand this strictly and rigorously for that is not only impossible to Men in this present State of Imperfection but absolutely impossible to Humane Nature for Men to be perfect as God is perfect but the plain meaning of this Precept is that we should imitate those Divine Perfections of Goodness and Mercy and Patience and Purity and endeavour to be as like God in all these as we can and be still aspiring after a nearer resemblance of him as may be evident to any one who considers the connexion and occasion of these words By a sincere Obedience I mean such a conformity of our lives and actions to the Law of God as to the general course and tenour of them that we do not live in the habitual practice of any known Sin or in the customary neglect of any material and considerable part of our known Duty and that we be not wilfully and deliberately guilty of the single act of heinous and notorious Sins as I have formerly explained this matter more at large in another Discourse And this Obedience even in the best of Men is mixt with great Frailty and Imperfection but yet because it is the utmost that we can do in this State of Infirmity and Imperfection the terms of the Gospel are so merciful and gracious as that God is pleased for the sake of the meritorious Obedience and Sufferings of our Blessed Saviour to accept this sincere though imperfect Obedience and to reward it with Eternal Life And this I doubt not after all the intricate disputes and infinite Controversies about this business is the true and clear state of this matter And this sincere Obedience which the Gospel requires of us as a Condition of our Happiness though it be sometimes called by Divines Evangelical Perfection yet it is but very improperly so called for nothing is properly perfect to which any thing is wanting and great defects and imperfections must needs be acknowledged in the Obedience of the best and holiest Men upon Earth and they who pretend to Perfection in this Life do neither understand the Law of God nor themselves but as St. John says of such Persons they deceive themselves and the truth is not in them and besides other Imperfections these two are evident in them Ignorance and Pride And thus much may suffice to have spoken to this second Particular namely what Obedience the Gospel requires as a Condition and is pleased to accept as a Qualification for Eternal Life SERMON VII The Possibility and Necessity of Gospel Obedience and its consistence with free Grace HEB. V. 9. And being made perfect he became the Author of eternal Salvation unto all them that obey him FOR the Explication of these Words I propos'd to consider these Five Things 1st How and by what Means Christ is the Author of our Salvation 2dly What Obedience the Gospel requires as a Condition and is pleased to accept as a Qualification in those who hope for eternal Salvation 3dly The Possibility of our performing this Condition by that Grace and Assistance which is offer'd and ready to be afforded to us by the Gospel 4thly The Necessity of this Obedience in order to eternal Life and Happiness 5thly The Consistency of this method and means of our Salvation with the Law of Faith and the free Grace and Mercy of God declared in the Gospel I have handled the Two first of these and now proceed to the Third Thing I propos'd to consider viz. The possibility of our performing this Condition by that Grace and Assistance which is offer'd and ready to be afforded to us by the Gospel For if Christ be the Author of eternal Salvation only to those who obey him then those who live in disobedience to the Gospel are in a state of Damnation But there cannot be the guilt of Disobedience where Obedience is impossible no Man being guilty or justly liable to Punishment for the not doing of that which it was no ways possible for him to do Therefore the Covenant of the Gospel into which God is entred with Mankind doth necessarily suppose the possibility of performing the Condition of it otherwise it leaves them in as bad a Condition as they were in before because it only offers new Blessings and Benefits to us but sets us never the nearer the obtaining of them if so be the Condition upon which they are granted be altogether impossible to us nay it renders our State many degrees worse if our not performing the Condition of such gracious Offers bring us under new and greater guilt If it be said that some few Persons have great Benefit by it because they by an especial and effectual Grace shall be enabled to perform the Conditions of this Covenant is not this a mighty straitning to the Grace and Mercy of the Gospel to confine it within so narrow a compass as still to leave the greatest part of Mankind in a worse Condition than if Salvation had never been offer'd to them As it certainly does if as this Doctrine does necessarily suppose the Guilt and Punishment of Men shall be greatly increased and heightned by their Contempt of and Disobedience to the Gospel when at the same time it is acknowledged that it was not possible for those Men to obey it for want of that special and effectual Grace which is necessary to enable them thereto
for the blessed sight and enjoyment of God who is the Cause and Fountain of Happiness I come in the Fifth and last place To shew that this Method and Means of our Salvation is no prejudice to the Law of Faith and to the free Grace and Mercy of God declared in the Gospel The Gospel is called the Law of Faith and the Law of Grace in opposition to the Jewish Dispensation which is called the Law or Covenant of Works because it consisted so much in external Rites and Observances which were but types and shadows of good things to come as the Apostle calls them in this Epistle and which when they were come that Law did expire of it self and was out of date the obligation and observance of it was no longer necessary but a better Covenant which was establish'd upon better Promises came in the place of it and Men were justified by Faith that is by sincerely embracing the Christian Religion and were no longer under an obligation to that external and servile and imperfect Dispensation which consisted in Circumcision and in almost an endless number of external Ceremonies These are the works of the Law so often spoken of by St. Paul concerning which the Jews had not only an opinion of the necessity of them to a Man's Justification and Salvation but likewise of the Merit of them in opposition to both which opinions St. Paul calls the Covenant of the Gospel the Law of Faith and the Law of Grace But there is no where the least intimation given either by our Saviour or his Apostles that Obedience to the Precepts of the Gospel which are in substance the Moral Law cleared and perfected is not necessary to our acceptance with God and the obtaining of Eternal Life but on the contrary 't is our Saviour's express Direction to the young Man who ask'd what good thing he should do that he might obtain Eternal Life If thou wilt says he enter into Life keep the Commandments and that he might understand what Commandments he meant he instanceth in the Precepts of the Moral Law And indeed the whole tenour of our Saviour's Sermons and the Precepts and Writings of the Apostles are full and express to this purpose Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the Will of my Father which is in Heaven Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine that is these Precepts which I have delivered and doth them not I will liken him to a foolish man who built his house upon the sand and the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat upon that house and it fell and great was the fall of it If ye know these things happy are ye if ye do them In every Nation he that feareth God and worketh righteousness is accepted of him In Jesus Christ neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor Vncircumcision but Faith that is acted and inspired by Charity And that the Apostle here means that Charity or Love which is the fulfilling of the Law is evident from what he says elsewhere that neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor Vncircumcision but the keeping of the Commandments of God In which Text it is plain that the Apostle speaks of the terms of our Justification and what is available with God to that purpose And St. James to the same purpose tells us that by the works of Obedience our Faith is made perfect and that Faith without Works is dead and surely a dead Faith will neither justifie nor save any Man St. John likewise very earnestly cautions us to take heed of any such Doctrine as would take away the necessity of Righteousness and Obedience Little Children says he let no man deceive you he that doth Righteousness is righteous as he is righteous To all which I shall only add the plain words of my Text that Christ became the Author of eternal Salvation to them that obey him So that no Man hath reason to fear that this Doctrine of the necessity of Obedience to our Acceptance with God and the obtaining of eternal life should be any ways prejudicial to the Law of Faith and the Law of Grace For so long as these three things are but asserted and secured 1st That Faith is the Root and Principle of Obedience and a holy Life and that without it it is impossible to please God 2dly That we stand continually in need of the Divine Grace and Assistance to enable us to perform that Obedience which the Gospel requires of us and is pleased to accept in order to eternal life And 3dly That the forgiveness of our Sins and the Reward of eternal Life are founded in the free Grace and Mercy of God conferring these Blessings upon us not for the merit of our Obedience but only for the merit and satisfaction of the Obedience and Sufferings of our blessed Saviour and Redeemer I say so long as we assert these three things we give all that the Gospel any where ascribes to Faith and to the Grace of God revealed in the Gospel I have been careful to express these things more fully and distinctly that no Man may imagine that whilst we assert the Necessity of Obedience and a Holy Life we have any design to derogate in the least from the Faith and the Grace of God but only to engage and encourage Men to Holiness and a good Life by convincing them of the absolute and indispensable necessity of it in order to eternal Salvation For all that I have said is in plain English no more but this that it is necessary for a Man to be a good Man that he may get to Heaven and whoever finds fault with this Doctrine finds fault with the Gospel it self and the main end and design of the Grace of God therein revealed to Mankind which offers Salvation to Men upon no other terms than these which I have mentioned and to preach and press this Doctrine is certainly if any thing in the World can be so to pursue the great End and Design of the Christian Religion so plainly and expresly declared by St. Paul Tit. 2. 11 12. The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men teaching us that denying Vngodliness and worldly Lusts we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present World And if the Grace of God declared in the Gospel have this effect upon us then we may with Confidence wait for the blessed hope and the glorious appearance of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all Iniquity and purifie to himself a peculiar People zealous of good works and then he adds these things teach and exhort and rebuke with all Authority that is declare and inculcate this Doctrine and rebuke severely those who teach or practise contrary to it And he repeats it again with a more vehement Charge to Titus to press upon Men the necessity of
to be inwardly good and virtuous The great Arguments that must do that must be fetched not from the Pomp and Prosperity of this World but from the Eternal Happiness and Misery of the other Besides had he appeared in any great Power and Splendor the Christian Religion could not have been so clearly acquitted from the Suspicion of a worldly Interest and Design which would have been a far greater Objection against it than this which I am now speaking to Add to all this that the wisest of the Heathen Philosophers did teach that Worldly Greatness and Power are not to be admired but despised by a truly wise Man that Men may be virtuous and good and dearly beloved of God and yet be liable to great Miseries and Sufferings and whoever suffers unjustly and bears it patiently gives the greatest Testimony to Goodness and does most effectually recommend Virtue to the World That a good Man under the hardest Circumstances of Misery and Reproach and Suffering is the fittest Person of all other to be the Minister and Apostle and Preacher of God to Mankind And surely they who say such things which the Heathen have done had no reason to object to our blessed Saviour his low and suffering Condition As to that part of the Objection that he who promis'd Immortality to others could not save himself from Death and Suffering considering that he who was put to Death rescu'd himself from the Power of the Grave it is so far from being ridiculous that nothing can be more reasonable than to rely upon him for our hopes of Immortality who by rising from the Grave and conquering Death gave a plain demonstration that he was able to make good what he promised I have done with the Exceptions which were made against our Saviour and his Doctrine at their first Appearance in the World I proceed in the II. Place to consider the Prejudices and Objections which Men at this day do more especially insist upon against our Saviour and his Religion And they are many First Some that relate to the Incarnation of our Saviour Secondly To the Time of his Appearance Thirdly That we have not now sufficient Evidence of the Truth of Christianity the main Arguments for it relying upon Matters of Fact of which at this distance we have not nor can expect to have sufficient Assurance Fourthly That the Terms of it seem very hard and to lay too great Restraints upon Human Nature Fifthly That it is apt to dispirit Men and to break the Vigour and Courage of their Minds Sixthly The Divisions and Factions that are among Christians Seventhly The wicked Lives of the greatest part of the Professors of Christianty In answer to all which I do not propose to say all that may be said but as briefly as I can to offer so much as may if not give full Satisfaction yet be sufficient to break the Force of them and to free the Minds of Men from any great Perplexity about them As to the First which relates to the Incarnation of our Saviour and the Second to the Time of his Appearance I know that these and most of the rest I have mention'd were urged by the Heathen against Christianity But they are now more especially insisted upon both by the secret and open Enemies of our Religion The Objections against his Incarnation I have elswhere consider'd And therefore shall proceed to the John 1. 14. Serm. III. next viz. Secondly As to the Time of our Saviour's Appearance it is objected if he be the only Way and Means of Salvation why did he come no sooner into the World but suffer'd Mankind so long without any Hopes or Means of being saved This was objected by Porphyry of old and still sticks in the Minds of Men. To this I answer I. It is not fit for Creatures to call their Creator to too strict an Account of his Actions Goodness is free and may act when and how it pleaseth and as God will have Mercy on whom he will have Mercy so he may have Mercy at what Time he pleaseth and is not bound to give us an Account of his Matters This is much like the Objection of the Atheist against the Being of God That if there were such an Infinite and Eternal Being he would surely have made the World sooner and not have been without all Employment for so long a duration Such another Objection is this against our Saviour That if he had been the Son of God he would have begun this great and merciful Work of the Redemption of Mankind sooner and not have delay'd it so long and suffer'd Mankind to perish for four Thousand Years together But it seems in the one as well as the other God took his own time and he best knew what time was fittest The Scripture tells us That in the fulness of Time God sent his Son when things were ripe for it and all Things accomplisht that God thought requisite in order to it In judging of the Actions of our Earthly Governours those who are at a distance from their Councils what Conjectures soever they may make of the Reasons of them will neverthe less if they have that Respect for their Wisdom which they ought believe that how strange soever some of their Actions may seem yet they were done upon good Reason and that they themselves if they knew the Secrets of their Counsels should think so Much more do we owe that Reverence to the infinite Wisdom of God to believe that the Counsels of his Will are grounded upon very good Reason tho' we do not see many Times what it is 2. It is not true that the World was wholly destitute of a Way and Means of Salvation before our Saviour's coming Before the Law of Moses was given Men were capable of being received to the Mercy and Favour of God upon their Obedience to the Law of Nature and their sincere Repentance for the Violation of it by virtue of the Lamb that was slain from the Foundation of the World Men were saved by Christ both before and under the Law without any particular and express Knowledge of him There were Good Men in other Nations as well as among the Jews as Job and his Friends also seem to have been In all Ages of the World and in every Nation they that feared God and wrought Righteousness were accepted of him The Sacrifice of Christ which is the Meritorious Cause of the Salvation of Mankind looks back as well as forward and God was reconcileable to Men and their Sins were pardon'd by Virtue of this great Propitiation that was to be made In which Sense perhaps it is that Christ is said to be the Lamb slain from the Foundation of the World Heb. 9. 25 26 the Apostle intimates to us that if this Sacrifice which was offer'd in the last Ages of the World had not been available in former Ages Christ must have often suffer'd since the Foundation of the World but now hath he
to greater Care and Watchfulness according to that of the Apostle Let him that standeth take heed lest he fall which Admonition were surely to little purpose if it were impossible for them that stand to fall Lastly Others venture all upon a Death bed Repentance and their Importunity with God to receive them to Mercy at last This indeed is only to seek and not to strive to enter in and these perhaps are they whom our Saviour represents as standing without and knocking at the door saying Lord Lord open unto us Or as St. Matthew expresseth it Many shall say to me in that day Lord Lord which is most probably meant of the day of Judgment when their Case is brought to the last extremity and next to that is the day of Death when Men are entring into a state of endless Happiness or Misery And no wonder if the Sinner would then be glad when he can no longer continue in this World to be admitted into Happiness in the next but the Door is then shut to most Sinners and it is a Miracle of God's Grace and Mercy if any Repentance that Men can then exercise which at the best must needs be very confused and imperfect will then be accepted if any Importunity which Men can then use will be available For with what Face can we expect that after all the evil Actions of a long Life God should be mollified toward us by a few good Words and accept of a forc'd and constrained Repentance for all our wilful and deliberate Crimes and that he should forgive us all our Sins upon a little Importunity when we can sin no longer and would repent no sooner Let us then by all that hath been said be effectually perswaded to mind the business of Religion in good earnest and with all our might especially the Practice of it in the exercise of all the Graces and Virtues of a good Life Let us heartily repent of all the Sins of our past Life and resolve upon a better course for the future and let us not delay and put off this necessary Work to the most unfit and improper time of old Age and Sickness and Death but let us set about it presently and enter upon a good Course and make all the Speed and Progress in it we can And let us remember that whatever we do in Religion will not bring us to Heaven if we do not do the will of our Father which is in Heaven if we do not give up our selves to a constant and universal Obedience of his Laws This is to strive to enter in at the strait Gate And tho' we strive to enter in a Thousand other Ways we shall not be able and after all our Confidence and Conceit of our selves and our own Righteousness and Security of our Salvation from the Priviledges of any Church it will be a strange Damp and Disappointment to us to see the sincere Christians who have done the Will of God and lived in Obedience to his Laws to come from all quarters and Churches in the World and sit down with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of God when we who thought our selves the Children of the Kingdom shall be cast out because we have been Workers of Iniquity I will conclude all with those plain Words of the Apostle Rom. 2. 7 8 9. To them who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honour and Immortality eternal Life But unto them that are contentious and do not obey the Truth but obey Vnrighteousness indignation and wrath tribulat on and anguish upon every Soul of Man that doth evil in the day when God shall judge the Secrets of Men by Jesus Christ according to the Gospel SERMON X. The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus Sermon I. LUKE XVI 19 20. There was a certain Rich Man which was cloathed in Purple and fine Linen and fared sumptuously every day And there was a certain Beggar named Lazarus which was laid at his Gate full of Sores I Intend by God's Assistance to go over this Parable than which I think there is none in the whole Gospel which is more apt to affect Men or which is more artificially contrived and in the Circumstances whereof a greater Decorum is observed It is a great Question among Interpreters whether this Narration concerning the Rich Man and Lazarus be a Parable or a History or a mixture of both That it is not a History the resemblance between it and others of our Saviour's Parables will easily convince any Man that is not contentious besides that in some ancient Copies 't is usher'd in with this Preface And he spake a Parable to his Disciples A certain Rich Man c. But yet as some of the Ancients have not improbably conjectur'd it seems to be such a kind of Parable as had something of a real Foundation as namely that there was such a poor Man as Lazarus is here described and of that Name among the Jews For in a meer Parable 't is altogether unusual to name Persons nor is this done in any other of our Saviour's Parables But whether this be so or not is not worth the disputing because it alters not the case as to our Saviour's purpose and the Instructions which we may learn from it In the handling of this Parable I shall explain it as I go along and draw two sorts of Instructions or Observations from it The First sort of Observations shall be from the Circumstances which serve for the Decorum of the Parable And these I will not warrant to be all intended by our Saviour but only to be true in themselves and useful and to have a probable rise from some Circumstances of the Parable and therefore I shall speak but very briefly to them The Second sort of Observations shall be such as are grounded upon the main Scope and Intent of the Parable and these I shall insist more largely upon I begin First With those Observations and Instructions which I shall gather up from the Circumstances which serve for the Decorum of the Parable and I shall take them in order as they lie in the Parable Ver. 19. There was a certain Rich Man which was cloathed in purple and fine linnen and fared sumptuously every Day Some think that our Saviour in this description reflected upon Herod because he describes this Rich Man to be cloathed in Purple But this Conjecture is without reason for besides that it was not our Saviour's Custom in his Preaching to give secret Girds to the Magistrate 't is certain that it was long after our Saviour's time that Purple was appropriated to Kings It was then and a great while after the wear of rich and powerful Men and of the Favourites and great Men of the Court who are frequently in ancient Histories call'd the Purpurati those that wore Purple That which I observe from hence is that the rich Man is not here censured for enjoying what he had for wearing rich Apparel
Temptations of a wicked World and are possest of so great a Happiness by the free Grace and Mercy of God to do any thing whereby they may forfeit their Happiness or so much as to entertain a Thought of offending that God to whom they cannot but be sensible how infinitely they are obliged In this imperfect state few Men have so little Goodness as to sin without a Temptation but in that state where Men are perfectly good and can have no Temptation to be otherwise it is not imaginable that they should fall from that state 2. As to the state of the damned that that likewise is immutable the Scripture does seem plainly enough to assert when it calls it an everlasting Destruction from the presence of the Lord and uses such Expressions to set forth the continuance of their Misery as signifie the longest and most interminable Duration expressions of as great an Extent as those which are used to signifie the Eternal Happiness of the blessed and as large and unlimited as any are to be had in those Languages wherein the Scriptures are written Besides that wicked Men in the other World are in Scripture represented as in the same Condition with the Devils of whom there is no ground to believe that any of them ever did or will repent Not because Repentance is impossible in it's own nature to those that are in extream Misery but because there is no place left for it Being under an irreversible Doom there is no encouragement to Repentance no hope of Mercy and Pardon without which Repentance is impossible For if a Man did utterly despair of Pardon and were assured upon good ground that God would never shew Mercy to him in this case a Man would grow desperate and not care what he did He that knows that whatever he does he is miserable and undone will not matter how he demeans himself All motives to Repentance are gone after a Man once knows it will be to no purpose And this the Scripture seems to represent to us as the case of the Devils and damned Spirits Because their state is finally determined and they are concluded under an irreversible Sentence therefore Repentance is impossible to them Sorry no doubt they are and heartily troubled that by their own Sin and Folly they have brought this Misery upon themselves and they cannot but conceive an everlasting Displeasure against themselves for having been the Cause and Authors of their own Ruin and the Reflection upon this will be a perpetual spring of Discontent and fill their Minds with eternal Rage and Vexation and so long as they feel the intolerable Punishments of Sin and groan under the insupportable Torments of it and see no end of this miserable State no hope of getting out of it they can be no otherwise affected than with Discontent at themselves and Rage and Fury against God They are indeed penitent so far as to be troubled at themselves for what they have done but this Trouble works no Change and Alteration in them they still hate God who inflicts these Punishments upon them and who they believe is determined to continue them in this miserable state The present Anguish of their Condition and their despair of bettering it makes them mad and their Minds are so distracted by the wildness of their Passions and their Spirits so exasperated and set on Fire by their own giddy Motions that there can be no rest and silence in their Souls not so much as the liberty of one calm and sedate Thought Or if at any time they reflect upon the evil of their Sins and should entertain any thought of returning to God and their Duty they are presently checkt with this Consideration that their case is determined that God is implacably offended with them and is inexorably and peremptorily resolved to make them miserable for ever and during this Perswasion no Man can return to the love of God and Goodness without which there can be no Repentance This Consideration of the immutable state of Men after this Life should engage us with all seriousness and diligence to endeavour to secure our future Happiness God hath set before us good and evil Life and Death and we may yet chuse which we please but in the other World we must stand to that Choice which we have made here and inherit the Consequences of it By Sin Mankind is brought into a miserable State but our Condition is not desperate and past Remedy God hath sent his Son to be a Prince and a Saviour to give Repentance and Remission of Sins So that tho' our Case be bad it need not continue so if it be not our own fault There is a possibility now of changing our Condition for the better and of laying the foundation of a perpetual Happiness for our selves The Grace of God calls upon us and is ready to assist us so that no Man's Case is so bad but there is a possibility of bettering it if we be not wanting to our selves and will make use of the Grace which God offers who is never wanting to the sincere endeavours of Men. Under the Influence and Assistance of this Grace those who are dead in trespasses and sins may pass from death to life may be turned from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God So long as we are in this World there is a possibility of being translated from one state to another from the dominion of Satan into the kingdom of God's dear Son But if we neglect the oportunities of this life and stand out against the offers of God's Grace and Mercy there will no Overtures be made to us in the other World After this life is ended God will try us no more our final miscarriage in this World will prove fatal to us in the other and we shall not be permitted to live over again to correct our Errors As the Tree falls so it shall lie such a State as we are settled in when we go out of this World shall be fixt in the other and there will be no possibility of changing it We are yet in the hand of our own Counsel and by God's Grace we may mould and fashion our own Fortune But if we trifle away this Advantage we shall fall into the hands of the living God out of which there is no Redemption God hath yet left Heaven and Hell to our choice and we had need to look about us and chuse well who can chuse but once for all and for ever There is yet a space and oportunity left us of Repentance but so soon as we step out of this Life and are entred upon the other World our Condition will be sealed never to be reverst And because after this Life there will be no further hopes of Mercy there will be no possibility of Repentance This is the accepted time this is the day of Salvation therefore to day if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts lest God