Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n
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A26339
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A sermon preach'd at St. Clement-Danes, the 29th of Septemb. 1700 occasion'd by the recantation of Mr. Clement Joynes, (lately a Quaker) / by J. Adams ...
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Adams, John, 1662-1720.
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1700
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Wing A487; ESTC R21388
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15,699
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30
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Therefore the Psalmist does not Appeal here to the mixt multitude of Jews much less to all Mankind but to those alone who fear'd God And these undoubtedly were transported with holy Joy at what he related to them How much more will they be so in the like Cases who believe truly in the Son of God For they who are always remembring the sweet Commands of Mercy and Love which the Gospel of Peace breaths out continually they who have always before their Eyes those Holy Examples of Goodness and Charity which our blessed Lord left us will also have a tender Concern upon them for the Good of their Neighbour especially in what relates to the Salvation of his Soul and therefore will rejoice to see him Recover'd from the very brink of Ruin to behold him turning back when just falling into Eternal Damnation 't is to these then alone that we Appeal at present in the Words of the Text Come and hear all ye that fear God c. 2. Let us consider the Publickness of that Acknowledgment which he design'd to make and his Earnestness with them to Attend to him Come and hear and I will declare unto you Tho' David was a very great Prince and the Sins which he fell into were very great both in their Nature and their Circumstances as being against much Knowledge and long Experience of God's Goodness and therefore the more Shameful yet He is always ready to make a Publick Confession of them as He does particularly in the 51 Psal upon the Matter of Uriah But Humane Nature generally is very Averse to this whither in Returning from Error to Truth or from Vice to Virtue With what strange Confidence do some Men Value themselves upon the foulest Vices With what Impudence do others Scoff at all Religion and Blaspheme the Son of God! With what Harden'd Obstinacy and sullen Bitterness do others again Break thro' all the Laws of Modesty and Charity to bear their Testimony to the Grossest Errors but if thro' the Mercy of God they become sensible of this and cool by Degrees from the Violent Heats of Debauchery or Enthusiasm and are Willing to Return again to themselves and to their God yet how full of Fear and Shame are they With what Caution and Privacy do they Proceed What care is taken to secure their Honour or cover their Reputation lest they should be Censur'd for want of Judgment or Levity and Inconstancy But how Unreasonable is this The want of Judgment surely was Discovered at first in the falling into Error nor in the Disclaiming it so the Levity and Inconstancy was Notorious in the Turning out of the Right way into every Dirty By-Lane and mistaking the Hot Vapours of a Distemper'd Brain for the Light of Revelation To persist in an Error for fear of being Censur'd by Weak and Wicked Men for leaving it is Obstinacy not Constancy 't is the Walking on steddily to Hell in Compliance to our Acquaintance for 't is not only making Reason Useless but doing despight to the Spirit of Grace denying the Holy Jesus while we pretend to profess Him and putting Him to Open Shame to secure ones own Reputation Whereas if Men considered things impartially if they reflected as they ought to do upon the Majesty of that God whom they have offended how much his Honour and Glory suffers by any Wickedness but especially by foul Apostacy and Enormous Crimes how the Saving Name of Jesus is expos'd to the Blasphemy of Atheists and Infidels while People Embrace such Doctrines as make Void his Cross and Render the Blood of the Covenant shed there a common or Contemptible thing If I say they wou'd be sensible of this then sure the least that they can do wou'd be to acknowledge publickly that they are so In Quarrels which happen between one another before Company To ask Forgiveness in Private is not look'd upon as sufficient Satisfaction but this must be as Publick at least as the Injury was Alas shall we proceed so nicely in the little mistakes between Brethren and Fellow Christians and yet Scruple to do any thing of this Nature after we have been Guilty of the Greatest Sins of Deserting or Rebelling against the most High and most Holy God The use of this is twofold 1. That since Men are so generally averse so very much asham'd to own their Errours and this still the more the greater those Errours are Where People Break thro' these Difficulties to own in the Face of the World Errors of the Grossest kind we ought to be satisfied of their Sincerity and Conclude with ourselves that they do that upon mature Deliberation and firm Resolution which they chuse to do before so many Witnesses 2. That what is so done and must be so acceptable to God ought to Raise our Value and esteem for such Persons and Restore them as well in Justice to themselves as for the Encouragement of others not only to our good Opinion but our Friendship and Affection for who is there that does really fear God himself that wou'd not Run forth in Holy Joy to meet any mistaken Christian Returning to His Duty that wou'd not Embrace him with the most tonder Compassion and Love and Praise and Magnify with him the Father of Mercies forasmuch as this their Brother was Dead but is alive again was lost but is sound This I am persuaded Every one wou'd Gladly do when they consider Attentively the Greatness of the Benefit Receiv'd which is our 3d. Point The most Important indeed of all included in these Words what He hath done for my Soul As this concerns the Psalmist the Benefit for which He Praises God was as may be seen by the Verses following God's Accepting of his Humiliation and Prayers and Restoring him to the Peace of a Good Conscience But to bring this directly to the Case in Hand Namely the Greatness of the Mercy which this Person hath Receiv'd together with these others his Friends and Acquaintance here Present and to move you to join with them in Praising of God accordingly it will be necessary to shew you the Greatness of that Danger which they have been in and the monstrous Errours which the People call'd Quakers with whom they lately joined are fallen into concerning the Fundamental Articles of our Faith This will be done most fairly and Impartially by Quoting to you their own Words in several Remarkable Passages taken out of such Books as were Written by their first or chief Teachers and are still own'd by them such I say as I have perus'd and Examin'd Diligently my self and most of them with others upon a Particular occasion Whereas then it is most plainly and positively affirm'd in the holy Scriptures That Jesus Christ the Son of God was Conceiv'd of the Holy Ghost made Flesh and Born of the Virgin Mary That he was put to Death upon the Cross That thro' his Blood-shed there we have Redemption That as he Died for our Sins so he Rose
A SERMON Preach'd at St. Clement-Danes the 29th of Septemb. 1700. Occasion'd by the Recantation of Mr. Clement Joynes lately a Quaker By J. ADAMS Chaplain in Ordinary to His MAJESTY Published at the Request of the Persons concerned and several others of that Parish LONDON Printed for D. Brown without Temple-Bar and Peter Buck in Fleetstreet 1700. THE RECANTATION OF Mr. CLEMENT JOYNES Read in the Parish Church of St. Clement Danes the 29th of Sept. 1700. Published by his Desire I Clement Joynes of this Parish upon mature Deliberation and full Conviction of the many and great Errours which I have faln into and zealously maintaind ' for near Seven Years past Declare and Acknowledge to this Congregation my hearty Repentance for the same humbly desiring to be Admitted again into the Communion of the Church of England establish'd by Law into which I was Baptiz'd and from which I have Rashly and Ignorantly departed I confess with Shame and Confusion that in the Year 1694 I was deluded by the Quakers and embrac'd with great fervency their Antichristian Heresies and Monstrous Principles till of late Examining 'em more carefully by the Assistance of God's Grace I discover'd their Falshood and Impiety and how directly contrary they were to the Holy Scriptures particularly in their Denying the LORD that Bought them by Disowning that Jesus who suffer'd on the Cross to be the Son of God Also for their Denying that his Human Body ascended into Heaven and throwing aside with scorn and contempt the Holy Sacraments of Baptism and the Lords Supper together with the Belief of the Resurrection of the Dead These with many Other Gross Errours which may be seen more at large in a late Book call'd The Quaker's Creed containing 13 Articles I acknowledge I did Embrace and Defend But do now utterly Detest Abhor and Renounce with all others inconsistent with the Doctrin of the Church of England whose 39 Articles I have carefully consider'd and do hereby Declare that I do own as the Summe and Substance of my Faith desiring to continue in the Communion of that Church while I Live and to Dye the Death of the faithful Members of it And whereas I did not only fall thus dread fully my self but labour'd with great dilligence to mislead several of my nearest Relations and Friends and did unhappily succeed in doing so I acknowledge with unfeigned sorrow this sad aggravation of my Crime promising solemnly in the Presence of God of which I desire you All to be Witnesses that I will faithfully endeavour to Reclaim every one of them and I bless my gracious God from the bottom of my heart that I have already Recover'd some who are now here present During my Doubts concerning the Quakers Doctrine I went to George Whitehead the Chief of them and Ask'd him with Respect and Humility to inform me upon what my Salvation did depend After some little Discourse but no Offence given or intended by me he spoke these Words with some Passion Repent speedily or else the Lord will confound thee Thou readest Enemies Books Young Man I caution thee not to take prejudice against any Friend for if thou dost the Lord will Confound thee and bring thee to nought And this is the Word of the Lord to thee But tho' I was thus Us'd and tho' I do heartily Abhor and Detest the aforesaid Errours yet I bless God that I have Charity for all those of my former Acquaintance among the Quakers and earnestly beg of You to join with me in my Prayers that it may please God to bring them into the Way of Truth and give them a right Knowledge of the only Redeemer Christ Jesus God and Man To Whom with the Father and Holy Spirit be all Honour and Glory both now and for evermore Amen A SERMON Preach'd at St. Clements Danes Psal 66.16 Come and Hear all ye that Fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my Soul THESE Words were the Choice of the Person whose Recantation you have heard in order to the setting forth farther the Sincerity of his Repentance and the greatness of the danger from which he has been deliver'd that others may be prepar'd to avoid the same and join with him in the praising of God accordingly Which design has so much of Justice and Goodness in it that as I am order'd to Comply with it by Authority so I willingly and gladly Obey And indeed the Words are very proper for this Purpose for not to insist upon the particular Occasion upon which the Psalmist might speak them they afford us a most excellent Example How any Person who has fall'n into great Errours either as to Faith or Practice and afterwards upon his sincere Repentance felt the Joys of Forgiveness and the blessed Transports of being restor'd to a good Conscience ought to behave himself both to his Neighbour and to his God This will appear if we consider them more particularly in this manner 1. The Persons whom the Psalmist appeals to All ye that fear God 2. The Publick Acknowledgments which he makes of God's mercy to him including also his own Unworthiness and his Earnestness with them to give him Attention Come and hear and I will declare 3. The Greatness of the Benefit which he had receiv'd under those Words What he hath done for my Soul Come and hear all Ye that fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my Soul 1. The first thing which deserves our consideration is the Persons to whom the Psalmist appeals All ye that fear God that is All of what Rank or Degree whatsoever that had a due Sense of Religion and Virtue that had a well-grounded and well-govern'd Zeal for God's Glory These were the Persons that were most likely to afford him Attention to be pleas'd with his being Reconcil'd to God and to join with him in his Praise and Thanksgiving As for those who do not fear God but are loose in their Belief and consequently loose in their Practice they wou'd have been so far from being pleas'd with any thing of this kind even in David himself that they wou'd rather have condemn'd or despis'd it For as such People know little what a good Conscience is so they cannot be much Concern'd at any others being restor'd to it and as they do not believe in God at all so what is it to them who is in the Right or the Wrong who persists in his Errours or who forsakes them Nay the latter is the more Offensive the more publickly 't is done Because when a Man acknowledges His Errours with Sorrow and Humility he seems to upbraid them for continuing obstinately in theirs If it be an Abomination to Fools as Solomon call those who are Impudent and Stubborn in their Wickedness to depart from Evil themselves 13 Prov. 19. Is it possible they shou'd be satisfy'd when others do so Or if such Wretches make a Mock of Sin will they not make a Mock of Repentance also