of Nature will tel us something of the mercy of God but there 's nothing that sets out the bowels of Gods mercy so as the Gospel of Jesus Christ doth there you have the very bowels of Gods mercy indeed made legible to all the world in Luke 1. 78. Through the tender mercy of our God whereby the day-spring from on high hath visited us The tender mercies of our God the bowels of mercy so the words are here 's the depth of the bowels of mercy held forth in the Gospel of Jesus Christ it 's imposible that we could have understood the depth of those bowels of mercy but by the Gospel Adam in innocency knew little of the mercy of God for he not being in misery had no need of that mercy to help out of misery but though he by his understanding must needs know that mercy was a good thing and therefore in God the First being of all but yet he did not understand that mercy that the Gospel holds forth yea the Angels in Heaven know it not but by the Gospel and so they desire to pry into those deep mercies of God unto man kind Oh here are the mercies of God that shall be the subject of the praises of Angels and of the Saints to all eternity held forth in the Gospel You think 't is a great mercy when a child is sick that God recovers it you think it is a great mercy when you are at Sea that God turns the wind when if it had stood but one half hour more that way it did you had lost Vessel lives and all when you have been in any danger abroad in forraign parts that the Lord was a present help in time of trouble when there hath been any affliction upon your family that God hath sent deliverance to you these are mercies that God is to be praised for Oh! but what are all these to the mercies of God in Jesus Christ His right-hand mercies and indeed this would be a good argument of a gracious heart when any particular mercie is granted unto them either family mercies or personal mercies Thus to meditate Lord I am less I am less than the least of all thy mercies yet here is seasonable comfortable mercies to me and mine c. but O Lord what is all this to that infinite fountain of mercy in Christ thy mercies in the Gospel thy mercies in thy Son there 's depths infinite depths of mercy indeed this is but a drop and indeed that 's sweet but the infinite Ocean of mercy it is in Jesus Christ Christ is the mercy of God to mankind in the bowels of which all other mercies are conceived and brought forth in the world All my fresh springs both upper and neather springs are in him who is All in All. Oh it were a good argument that the Gospel is revealed to you if you admire at Jesus Christ as the great mercy of all mercies though thankful for every mercy yet when you come to consider of the mercy of Christ look upon that as mercy of wonder stand amazed at the thought of that mercy well it 's the Gospel that holds forth the glory of the riches of the mercy of God God is said in the word to be rich in mercy He is not said so much to be rich in power as rich in mercy Now what Conversation is sutable to this What 's that but as Christ himself saith Be ye merciful as your heavenly father is merciful Oh have you a merciful heart one towards another look with a merciful eye upon those who are in great misery this is it that becomes the Gospel of Jesus Christ Oh a harsh rugged and cruel disposition it is infinitely unbeseeming the Gospel of Christ To see a Christian one that professes the Gospel that makes more profession of the knowledge of God and of the free grace of God in Christ than others and yet when it comes to it that he hath to deal with such as are in misery to have a hard heart Oh a hard hearted Christian is a monster I say a hard hearted Christian is a monster in the world not to be ready to forgive others and to do any thing for others that are in misery is devilish but to rejoyce that they may have any object to shew pity and compassion unto Oh this is that which becomes the Gospel of Christ though they be strangers to you that are in misery yet be merciful to them for you were strangers to God Yea Be merciful to your enemies not only be willing to be at peace but be merciful Do you see any that have wronged you to be in misery do not let them perish but let bowels of compassion even work towards them Oh that our hearts did yern towards all Christ when He came neer unto Jerusalem He wept over it Oh that the like spirit were in us as was in Jesus Christ There 's no such argument for mercy to others as the consideration of the mercies of God in Jesus Christ Oh bowels of mercy beseems the Gospel of Christ and it should be manifested really Let not people that are in misery have verbal mercies from you that is you seem to pity them in words Oh but let there be real mercies to them open your hearts and let something drop from you for releef of them that are in misery it is a notable Scripture in Ephes 4. 31 32. and sutable to that in Col. 3. 13. in the 4. of the Ephes there the Apostle speaking of the mercies of Christ saith he Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice and be ye kind one to another tender hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Be tender hearted Oh God manifests the tenderness of His heart in the Gospel and this is beseeming the Gospel to set forth this as a pattern the tenderness of Gods heart to poor sinners in the depth of misery do you see any to be in misery and do not you find your heart begin to break towards them if you do not find your heart breaking Oh set before you the infinite tenderness of Gods mercies in Jesus Christ and 't is that will break your hearts if any thing in the world will And so in Col. 3. 13. a place somewhat paralel to this Forbearing one another and forgiving one another if any man have a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you so also do ye and above all these things put on charity You see the Apostle accounts this the great argument of all and therefore know that the Lord takes it very much to heart when the bowels of Professors are turned into gravel Search into that remarkable Parable Matthew 18 from vers 28. to vers 35. where Jesus Christ Preacheth down all cruel and unchristian like dispositions in those that are fellow servants belonging to one and the same Master and
living under one roof yea the Zeal of Christ did break forth like thunder and lightning against such a servant as takes his fellow by the throat therefore saith the text ver 31. His Lord was wrath and delivered him to the tormentors til he should pay al that was due to him The Lord Christ delivered that cruel servant that hard hearted wretch to the tormentors that did a thing so unbeseeming the mercy he himself had received from Christ Oh saith Christ art thou cruel and unmerciful when thou hast received so much favour from me as a full discharge of thy many great debts get thee to the tormentors let the most cruel executioners of my sierce wrath torment thee without any mercy and compassion Oh those that have hard hearts walk unsutable to the Gospel of Jesus Christ which is full of the riches of Gods grace to all Oh you that have received any pardoning mercies from Jesus Christ take heed of cruelty to your servants to your children It 's very sad to see how some Professors cast the Gospel of Christ behind their backs if their passions are but moved what will ye bite and devour one another when ye receive the least offront either by tongue or hand Oh where is you bearing and forbearing with one another for shame do not fly in the faces of any as a Bear bereaved of her whelps when ye are buffetted by men Oh remember Jesus Christ Oh remember you that stand in so much need of mercy every day from God for you to be cruel towards other Oh here 's a Conversation infinitly unbeseeming the Gospel of Christ and it is unbeseeming the grace that is offered to have a sullen a despairing and an unbeleeving disposition when as we see those that are Disciples and yet every little thing causeth them to despair and to be sullen and their hearts to snk within them Oh friends is this an Evangelical frame of spirit let me speak plainly to you when you come to hear the glorious riches of the grace of the Gospel set before you in the Word ye seem to be somewhat taken with it but when you go home to your family are ye not ready under the least cross then to bury a thousand mercies Oh what a dishonor is this to the Gospel of Jesus Christ that reveals so much mercy of God in it that it doth call for Christians that do profess it to go through troubles and through discouragements with cheerful hearts and although there be many things that might daunt the spirits of others that do not understand what the mercies of God in Christ are yet those that profess the Gospel should shew undaunted spirits for why It is infinite free rich glorious grace that is made known to them by the word of Christs lips Obj. You will say I if I knew that this mercy were mine Ans I but dost thou hear in the Gospel that it is free and there is no soul hath any right to this mercy but by casting its self upon this mercy and therefore it is as free for thee to cast thy self upon it as another indeed the mercy that is revealed by the light of Nature Is such mercy of God that is more conditional that is if I do such and such things then God will be merciful unto me the light of Nature goes no further than this if I obey and leave my sin then I may hope that God will be merciful to me It 's true the Scripture tells us if I do not leave my sin God will not have mercy I but the Gospel holds forth mercy thus There is mercy in God first to pardon thy sin and then to take away thy sin now the Gospel reveals Gods mercy in justifying the ungodly though I am poor and blind and miserable and naked and have not power to leave my sin yet I have free leave to cast my soul upon Gods mercy both for pardon and for power together against my sin for so it must be indeed I have no power I may not stay till I have power against my sin and then I will venture all that I have upon Jesus Christ this is the mercy of the Gospel I speak of this despairing and sullenness of heart as it 's manifested in the Conversations of men and women by which they do dishonor the Gospel of Christ when they live in their families and their hearts sink in such a sullen way as if there were nothing in the Gospel of Christ for encouraging of poor troubled souls no more than men might understand by the light of Nature Indeed if I did live better and honor God I might have encouragement that God would shew me mercy but the mercy of the Gospel it is such that there is mercy to pardon and to heal my soul too and therefore though I be sinful I must not stay from believing in Gods mercy till I be heal'd but I must believe in Gods mercy that I may be heal'd That 's the third particular that the Gospel holds forth unto us Now the Fourth thing that the Gospel reveals is this That though God be infinitly merciful yet He is merciful in such a way that justice shall not be wronged and this is proper to the Gospel too It 's impossible for Men or Angels to come to understand this Mystery but by this Gospel-light how God should be infinitly merciful and yet that He should be infinitly just too this is held forth in Rom. 3. 25 26. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past through the forbearance of God To declare I say at this time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which beleeveth in Jesus Now this is a great mystery of the Gospel a Scripture that Luther fasted and prayed that he might understand and he was a great while before he could know the mind of God therein Now the Gospel saith this I will manifest infinit riches of my mercy but yet so as my infinite justice shall be no loser and therefore though I le save Man-kind yet I 'le save them by such a way as I 'le have as much glory of my justice as if all the men in the world had bin damned to all eternity this is the mysterie of the Gospel and 't is cleer that though God manifest infinit mercy yet God hath a way for the manifestation of his mercy in the Gospel by which the justice of God is as much honored and satisfied as if all the men in the world had been cast into everlasting burnings that is through his Sons dying for mans sin being made a curse for us this is the great point of the Gospel which unlesse we understand we know nothing of Christ and his Gospel as we ought to know it Most men and women in the world they seek to God for mercy Lord be merciful to me a sinner but they think not of a way of Gods shewing mercy so as yet he may have the glory of infinite justice God seals the forgivenes of sin in
miscarrying there it is over I blesse God that is over for that now my obedience it is not that I might work out and earn salvation but my obedience to God now is being set safe upon the shore that I might live to the praise of the grace of God that hath delivered me from al danger of miscarrying and hath set me with Jesus Christ in heavenly places I am now already set in heavenly places with Jesus Christ and as sure of Heaven for so a Believer may come to be as if so be that I were there already and so I am now to begin the life of Heaven to be blessing and magnifying God not in word only but in my life therefore am I to hold forth the glory of God in my life and Conversation that I might blesse and magnifie the Name of God that hath delivered me from darkness and hath translated me into the Kingdom of his dear Son and upon these terms do I serve God now I do not serve God as one that is in hazard for ever to miscarry and out of a base and slavish fear lest I should miscarry I do endeavor to work out my salvation but it is as one that is redeemed and delivered from eternal misery yea I now begin to joyn with the Saints and Angels that are in Heaven that are there magnifying God and shal be to al eternity praising of Him for His free grace towards them surely this Conversation should be in a higher degree of holiness than the Conversation of Adam could be even in Paradise Yet still remembring this we cannot in this life attain to such a Conversation as to be without mixture of evil but we should be more spiritual and heavenly in our waies we have more cause to be so than Adam had in his innocency and we do not walk answerable to the Gospel except our hearts do rise in a more spiritual and heavenly way than his heart could rise when it came new out of the hand of his Creator That 's the first consideration of the Law as it was a Covenant of life to him and al man-kind in him Oh that as we go along we would but consider what cause we have of humiliation then Oh how far are our Conversations short of that that becomes the Gospel if it should rise to so high a pitch as this is that hath been mentioned Secondly Consider we the Law as in the administration of it to Moses and so to the people of the Jews The administration of the Law to them it was under another notion it was to bring them to Christ and that they might come to see their inability of keeping of that Covenant and come to understand Christ so much the more and to be driven unto Christ by having the Law presented to them God did never intend by giving of the Law to the people of the Jews that it should be a Covenant of eternal life to them indeed there was this in the administraon of it somewhat different from us some special Covenant about their living in Canaan and about mercies in that promised Land beyond that that we have in the Law as we find in the new Testament they I say had this annexed to it The Law that was first given unto Adam and written in his heart afterwards even obliterated then it was transcribed by the same hand in tables of stone and given unto them chiefly to shew them their misery and their need of Christ to be a preparation for Christs coming into the world and with this one addition beyond what we have in the new Testament that there was a temporal Covenant annexed unto it that concern'd their living prosperously in the Land of Canaan so far we are delivered even from the Law as it was given by Moses that is from the connexion of the Covenant that was added unto the delivering of the Law concerning their happy and comfortable condition in the Land of Canaan upon the keeping of their Law but now how ever it was certainly that Conversation that becomes the Gospel should be beyond what could be even from godly men in the time of the Law As first The Law to them it was given under low Promises their promises were but very low that were under the Law It 's true they had somewhat of the Gospel that we have but extream darkly and very little that they knew of it but the chief Ministration of God towards them was then in a legal way and that had but low promises as their living in Canaan you shall find generally al the promises that are annexed to the Law even by Moses it is but that they shall prolong their daies in the Land the Lord their God shall give them That they should be blest in their basket and store their Promises were under Heaven-Promises Promises of this life only and therefore it could raise them but to a very low degree of holiness Secondly Their Ordinances were but poor and mean and beggerly in comparison of our for so the Gospel cals them Col. 2. They were but beggerly rudiments which stood only in meats and drinks and divers washings and carnal Ordinances imposed on them untill the time of reformation Heb. 9. 10. They had an earthly Tabernacle a worldly Sanctuary Heb. 9. 1. c. Thirdly The burden of them under the Law was very great they were under a heavy yoke burden that did bow them down A man that is under a heavy burden it makes him stoop bend in the back he cannot stand so upright nor fast as others that have no such weight upon them Fourthly The administration of the Law was with Thunder and Lightning very terrible It made even Moses quake and tremble as the Author to the Hebrews speaks Fiftly Their spirits were very servile under the Law they were subject to bondage even all their daies God so ordered things as to carry on his people even in a very servile way they were but mean servants then hewers of wood and drawers of water But now under the Gospel First our Promises are far better and our Covenant better in Heb. 8. 6. there the Apostle compares their Condition and ours Who serve saith he unto the example and shadow of heavenly things There was but the shadow of heavenly things the Gospel hath the Heavenly things themselves and they are but the shadow for so you have it in Heb. 10. 1. For the Law having a shadow of good things to come and not the very image of the things They had but a shadow of good things to come and not the very image it self As Moses was admonish'd of God when he was about to make the Tabernacle For see saith he that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the Mount And then in Heb. 8. 6. But now hath he obtained a more excellent Ministry that 's Christ By how much also he is the Mediator of a better Covenant
in general so that there should be love even towards all from the knowledge of the Gospel Oh that it might be said of men and women that were of rugged harsh and malitious dispositions before yet since it pleased God that they came to the Ministry of the Gospel and heard the Truths of the Gospel opened to them Oh since that time their hearts have been altered and changed Oh of what sweet dispositions they are of now the husband towards the wife and the wife towards the husband in a family there was nothing but harshness and brawling but now nothing but sweetness and love and this from the knowledg of the love of God in Jesus Christ that love will be a Divine grace indeed that 's raised in the hearts of men and acted from this principle of the knowledg of the love of God in Jesus Christ This is the first thing and the great thing that is held forth in the Gospel namely the love of God to man-kind I 'le but name one or two things more now and the next is this The infinite willingness of God to be at peace and to be reconcil'd unto those who have offended him yea to his enemies what is the scope of the Gospel the eternal love of God to man-kind in Christ That 's the first thing Then the second thing is the infinite willingness that there is in God to be at peace to be reconciled to such as have offended him this is held forth in the Gospel the Gospel is the Ministry of reconciliation now what Conversation should be in us becoming this in the Gospel that is held forth And then the infinite mercy of God in the Gospel in delivering poor creatures out of a depth of misery that 's a main thing in the Gospel and many other particulars as the infinite hatred that God hath against sin and the great price paid for souls that 's held forth in the Gospel too with divers other things that might be spoken of But I beseech you consider of the point that we are about namely to shew you what the Gospel holds forth to us and then what Conversation becomes all these things and is sutable to them If God would but be pleased to go along even with this one point that we are now upon we hope it may lighten the Conversation of Christians and withal may commend this word of grace to those that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death and may if God will say Amen unto it in some measure recover the dishonor that hath been cast upon the Gospel of Christ in these latter times by that loose and uneven walking amongst professors themselves which hath very much darkned the glory of this marvellous great light Which should be a lamp unto their feet and a light unto their paths Oh that Jesus Christ from whose hand and heart this Gospel came would now preach it home to every heart of us that the truths thereof may be turned into grace spirit and life in the midst of us so that our lives and Conversations may be a daily practical sermon of holiness in particular That we love one another as becomes the Gospels SERMON IV. PHIL. 1. 27. Only let your Conversation be as becomes the Gospel of Christ WEE closed with this the last day that we should love one another This holds forth unto us not only the love of God the Father but the infinit love of Jesus Christ the second Person in Trinity and this cals for love one to another And I 'le hint unto you one or two Scriptures more about this there is union of Christian hearts in one bend of love No duty more inculcated in the new Testament next unto Faith that great engin of the Covenant of grace than Love and love one unto another and upon the consideration of the infinit love of God and of Jesus Christ unto us Ephesi 3. 19. compared with Ephesians 4. 1. And to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge that ye might be filled with all fulness of God Then in the beginning of the 4. Chapter I therefore here 's an inference with the use of it the prisoner of the Lord beseech you That you walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called You are called to Christ to the Gospel and there you have the love of Christ made known How shal they walk worthy of this vocation with all lowliness and meekness with long-suffering forbearing one another in love Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace He prayed before that they might know the love of Christ therefore upon that he doth exhort them and builds his exhortation or rather his beseeching that they would with all lowliness meekness and long-suffering forbear one another in love for you are called to the profession of the Gospel and there you have the love of the Father and of Christ set forth unto you now would you walk worthy of this calling then let there be much meekness and forbearing one another in love In Ephes 5. 2. And walk in love as Christ also hath loved us and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour Walk in love as Christ hath loved us that is sutable as if the Apostle should say would you walk sutable to the Gospel of Christ that you profess Walk in love then as Christ hath loved us this is a principal thing In the Gospel you come to know the love of Christ otherwise than other men do know it therefore walk in love Walk in love as Christ hath loved us make the love of Christ to be a pattern for your love there is nothing as I told you that is more unbeseeming the Gospel of Christ than a hateful malitious rugged dog star disposition than for Christians to be tearing one another falling out one with another as those beasts at Ephesus that Paul complains of Oh this is infinitely unbeseeming the Gospel of Christ Do you know what the love of God means in Jesus Christ are you sensible of the love of Christ Oh this love should sweeten your hearts that there should be no more bitterness in you but you should live in this Element of love Saith an Ancient what doth beastly fierceness and cruelty and savigeness do in the breast of a Christian it is unbeseeming the name of a Christian Therefore let your Conversation be as becometh the Gospel of Christ that holds forth love Oh let there be much love in you be you acted by love in all your waies so that they that run may reade this new Commandment which Christ left unto his followers That they love one another in deed and in truth Secondly The Gospel of Christ it holds forth this The infinit willingness of God to be at peace with man-kind to be reconciled unto man unto those who have offended him yea to those who are enemies unto him This is the
the Court of Justice as well as in the Court of Mercy few think of this and that 's the reason why people are ready many times to despair because a great while they having but slight thoughts of God they hope Christ will be merciful to them yet in time of temptation when the Devil comes and doth set before them the dreadfulness of Gods justice that God is a most just God as well as merciful this makes their hearts to sink like a stone within their breasts But now the soul that sees the way of God in the Gospel sees that God is infinitly set upon mercy and likewise sees a way how Gods infinit justice may be satisfied and seeing both these this is a mighty help to faith now let there come never so many temptations when the soul is catching hold upon Gods mercy I but saith temptation God is a just God as well as merciful and dost not thou presume No saith the soul the way of mercy that my soul rests upon I see there is in it a way of satisfaction to infinite justice as well as a way for the manifestation of mercy and therefore though God be a righteous God and a just God yet here I see a way for my soul to be sav'd yet for Divine Justice to have no wrong neither and therefore I can beleeve and venture my soul upon this It 's impossible for a sinner to venture his soul upon any way of mercy if it comes to understand with what a God it hath to deal except it comes to know God in Jesus Christ in that way wherein infinit justice is satisfied to the utmost farthing which is declared in the Gospel Now what Conversation is sutable to this Hence let there be that Conversation in you that may manifest that you do not turn the grace of God into wantonness Oh a wanton Conversation is infinitly unbeseeming the Gospel Oh there is infinite mercy and free grace treasured up here and what wilt thou be wanton and vain and loose therefore there is infinite grace but what way doth God take to manifest infinite grace Is it not in a way wherein the dreadfullest Justice of God appears too Is not the grace of God let out to you through the blood of his Son wherein the most dreadful fruit of Gods justice is manifested that ever was since the beginning of the world or ever shall be manifested to the end of the world if so be thou shouldest see all the damned in Hell the chambers of death unlocked under the wrath of God there flaming out in fire and brimstone it would not be such a dreadful sight as to see Jesus Christ made an offering for sin and lying under the vials of the wrath of his Father falling down upon the ground grovelling and sweating out great drops of water and blood and crying out upon the Cross My God my God why hast thou forsaken me This is the way of the purchase of thy mercy therefore there is infinit justice together with infinite mercy Oh be not wanton then do not turn the grace of God into wantonness but rejoyce in Gods mercy yet rejoyce with trembling and with fear and reverence of the Name of God When thou speakest of the free grace of God and when thou comest to beleeve in the free grace of God in the Gospel thou maiest come cheerfully and boldly I but come with reverence and holy humble fear I do not mean despairing fear nor servile slavish fear but with awful reverence of the glory of God that doth appear in the Lord Jesus Christ I need not send you to the Law to cause fear in your hearts there is enough in the Gospel to cause your souls to tremble before God as well as to beleeve in God Even our God is a consuming fire Oh what was he to Jesus Christ I need go no further to lift up God to make him an object of my fear but to look upon him in his dealings with his Son and therefore those Christians that walk loosly and altogether upon slight thoughts of mercy without any fear to ballast their hearts Oh certainly their Conversations are not Gospel Conversations for if thou didst understand the way of Gods mercy in the Gospel thou wouldest see that that should fill thy heart with fear and reverence all the daies of thy life And as to take heed of wantonness so to reverence Gods Justice even the dreadfulness of it so as the Gospel holds forth to think that God would only have you to have your thoughts about his mercy and not to have your hearts to give glory to his justice it is certainly a vain conceit and I fear it will cause the Gospel to vanish into little in the hearts of men when men apprehend the Gospel so as not to apprehend the dreadfulness of his justice as if so be that God would not have the glory of his justice Christ hath satisfied that Hath Christ satisfied that consider what thou saiest when thou saiest so do but consider how much of the glory of Gods justice doth appear in what Christ hath done and suffered I desire to hold forth no further the glory of justice than by holding forth Jesus Christ to thee Doest not thou think that God would have thee to sanctifie in thy heart and life all the Attributes of God that doth appear in Jesus Christ Now the glory of justice doth appear as much in Christ as the glory of mercy doth then thou that doest profess the Gospel thou must sanctifie this Attribute of God as well as the other thou sanctifiest them both in honoring Gods justice I do not say that thou shouldest have a despairing heart nay it will keep thee from despairing or that thou shouldest have a servile spirit but that thou shouldest sanctifie it with reverence And another thing that is very considerable What is God so set upon the glory of his Justice in the Gospel Oh labour you to be just in all your Conversations you see how God prizes justice that he will rather have his Son die and be made a curse than justice should not have honor Oh take heed of injustice the sin of injustice is a sin unbeseeming the Gospel and here 's an argument against injustice a stronger than I know any in all the Book of God or can be imagined by men and Angels which is this That in the Gospel I find that God hath His heart so set upon justice that rather than justice shall not be satisfied he will not spare his Son one farthing as the Scripture saith He spared not his own Son but His Son must pay to the uttermost His Son must bear his very wrath and all that God may shew his infinite love to justice Oh then let Christians love justice
to any sin that I should think to cover it by another sin by adding one sin to another to think to shift for my credit or esteem by adding more sin to that already committed Oh no the Lord in his mercie hath made known unto me in the Gospel of Christ what sin means the evil of sin and therefore I have learned rather to endure any thing than to multiply iniquity Indeed before I came to understand Jesus Christ I thought sin was an evil thing and I abstain'd from gross sins by that dim light of Nature that is within me but since I came to understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ the great mystery of godliness in his Son the dealings of the Father with his Son the Lord knows now I abhor a sin in secret though I were sure no body in the world should ever know it more than I do abhor Hell its self I such a Conversation as would manifest such a work of God upon the heart as this is would become the Gospel of Christ indeed Whereas otherwise brethren if any of you that do profess the Gospel of Christ shall make sin but as a slight thing and shall be ready to entertain sin in thy bosom know that by this means you do no other but trample under foot the Blood of Jesus Christ as a coÌ„mon thing as a thing that had no worth at all in it This doth despight to the Gospel of Christ you do dishonor Jesus Christ and you do put him to open shame whose Name you have taken upon you by your profession I 'le give you a Scripture now for this in Heb. 6. 4. c. He speaks of some that were once enlightned and had tasted of the Heavenly gift and were made partakers of the holy Ghost and tasted of the good word of God that 's the Gospel and the powers of the world to come if they should fall away it were impossible to renew them to repentance Mark the reason Seeing they crucifie to themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame Such as fall off after the profession of the Gospel into sinful waies they are said here to crucifie the Son of God afresh and to put him to open shame This is far from walking as becomes the Gospel And so you have another text in Heb. 10. 29. c. he speaks of those that had fallen off from their profession into sinful waies Of how much sâ—rer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy of who hath troden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despight unto the Spirit of Grace See how the holy Ghost speaks of such as fall from their profession into sinful waies again And there 's a great deal of reason for it for 't is not so much for those that never made profession of the Gospel to fall to sin not such a horrid thing for them but for those that have made profession of the Gospel that they hold forth thus much this is the language of their actions though they dare not say so Lord I acknowledge that I have seen the fruit of thy hatred of sin in the death of thy Son that thou didst so hate sin that thou madest thy Son to be a curse for sin but yet for all this such is the strength of my lusts I must have my lusts though it be so vile in thine eyes as the blood of thy Son went for it yet I must have it rather than deny my lusts Oh what a dreadful thing is this how provoking must it needs be to the holy God Oh happy had it been for such men and women that they had never heard of the Gospel of Jesus Christ But of the evil of walking unbeseeming the Gospel of Jesus Christ we shall speak to after when we come to the application That 's then the sixt particular of what the Gospel holds forth The infinite hatred of God against sin Now the seventh thing that is held forth in the Gospel that cals for a Conversation beseeming is this The great price of souls There 's nothing in the world that ever God did that doth discover the worth of mans immortal soul so as the Gospel of Jesus Christ doth there God manifests to all the world what a price he puts upon mans soul the Lord saw that men by sin had undone themselves and that those souls that he made were like to perish to all eternity yea were under the sentence of eternal death and must certainly perish eternally if so be that some way were not found out by an infinit wisdom for to ransome them now saith the Lord rather than I will have all souls perish it 's true the love that I have unto my Justice is such as for many souls I 'le let them go and they shall perish but yet that I might shew that I have an high esteem of the souls of the children of men for the ransoming of that number that I have appointed from all eternity to save I 'le send my Son and he shall die for the saving of souls that souls may not perish If the Lord should have said concerning any one soul I do so highly prize this soul and account the worth of it to be such as rather than it shall perish I 'le disolve heaven and earth heaven and earth shall perish rather than this soul shall perish you will say this had been a great testimony of Gods esteem of a soul But know that the Gospel holds forth a higher esteem of a soul than this comes to when God shal say Rather than this and the other soul shall perish I 'le send my Son to be made a Curse This the Gospel holds forth this is infinitly a higher price that God puts upon a soul You know therfore what the Apostle saith in 1 Pet. 1. 18 19. Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed saith he with corruptible things as silver and gold Then in the 19. verse But with the precious blood of Christ as of a Lamb without blemish or without spot 'T is not silver and gold or any corruptible thing that can redeem you but the precious blood of Jesus Christ Oh that blood that 's more precious than the world even all the world must let the redemption of a soul alone for ever all the Angels in Heaven if they would have joyned together to have redeem'd a soul and would have ventured themselves to have been destroyed for ever that they might have redeem'd a soul it would not have been they must all let the redemption of a soul alone for ever the matter then of the redemption of a soul is more than we are aware of and we could never have come to have known this but by the Gospel of Jesus Christ The full price of a soul is writ down by the finger of Gods Spirit in the Gospel of Christ
glory and a Kingdom and a Crown of eternal life now they expect not to have it done presently they are content to stay Oh these are the best Traders the best Merchants that will trade with God for great things and be content to stay you will chuse that you have here for the present and therefore you have your portion Fourthly These things that are here they are the only sutable things to your hearts and what will you do with any more hereafter these things do exceedingly please you and give you content as agreeable to you and the things that are to come are disagreeable what would men do that are carnal and wicked now what would they do in Heaven Certainly if you hate Gods Saints now that have but a little Grace for their Grace sake you would hate them infinitly more afterwards when they are perfect in Grace when they shall be perfect and then when all your common gifts shall be taken away for so it shall be Now the things of God are unsutable to you though you have now many common 〈◊〉 and you now abhor the Grace of God though it be imperfect what then when all common gifts shall be taken from you and Grace made perfect how unsutable will it be then to you Therefore expect nothing hereafter Fifthly You abuse your portion you have now what will you do with more Who will trust you with the true riches You abuse that you have Indeed men of the world that are wicked and very rich are presently in places of honor and power Oh! what a deal mischief they do in the world what dreadful evils are they unto the earth Such men how do they abuse their portions Why now as it is with the Tooth in a mans head a Tooth indeed is prefer'd to have an eminent place in the Head but when the Tooth comes to be rotten and put us to pain what do we but pull it out and throw it away So when God prefers men to eminent places when through their wickedness they grow rotten and so do a great deal of hurt the Lord plucks them out in His anger and throws them away they abuse their portion and do a great deal of hurt and therefore must expect no more But above all the argument is Sixthly Because they have no interest in Jesus Christ The rich Treasures of the infinite grace of God they are let out in Jesus Christ God hath divers Conduit-pipes as I may so say of His Grace to let out unto His Creatures there are some lesser Conduit-pipes and those Conduit-pipes may be open'd through the general bounty of God but now the Lord hath the great Current of His eternal mercies for some that He doth intend eternal good unto and this great Current of His it is stop't by justice the infinite justice of God doth stop this great Current so as it cannot be open'd to have any drop of the mercy let out until Divine Justice comes to be satisfied In the mean time the other smaller pipes they run the general bounty of God Now then this is the very work of Jesus Christ Christ the Second Person in Trinity and it is the very mystery of the Gospel The Second Person in the Trinity sees that the children of men are capable of eternal happiness eternal glory and that there are glorious treasures with God to be communicated to the children of men but through mans sin this great Current is stop't in the mean time Gods general bounty lets out a great many outward comforts Christ therefore out of pity to man-kind that man-king may not be put off with these general outward comforts He comes and satisfies Gods infinite justice that He might open the Current the sluice of His infinite and eternal Grace to others Now happy are those Creatures who have interest in the Lord Christ for this is His work to satisfie the Justice of the Father that so the great pipe may be opened and then flows in all Grace infinit eternal Grace when that comes once to be opened No mervail though we hear of such glorious things that the Saints of God have in the life to come no mervail for Christ doth come and open the great sluice of Gods infinite Grace and Mercie to them as for the men of the world they have but a little of the drizling of Gods general bounty through some crannies but the Floudgates of Gods grace are opened in Christ therefore til Divine Justice be satisfied there can be no further good for a Creature here but the fruits of Gods general bounty patience There are some Creatures whom the Lord hath left to the Course of justice they shall have what they earn and no more this is the difference between Gods dealings with some Creatures and others I say some there are that shall have what they earn and no more others there are whom God hath set His Heart upon and whether they earn or no God intends eternal mercies unto them and will bring them unto eternal mercies Here 's the difference of the Covenant of works and the Covenant of Grace and therefore the one is left to Himself and the other Christ the Head of the Covenant comes to undertake for him that that he cannot do and here is the very Cut between the condition of some men other men that some have their portion in this world and others have another higher portion in the world to come Those have no interest in Christ these have Seventhly They are no Sons no Children and therefore they must not expect childrens portions As many of you rich men when you die you will leave your servants some Legacie perhaps you 'l give every servant in the house five pounds or so but when you come to your children to write in your Will what such a Son such a Daughter shall have that is another manner of business than 4. or 5 l. great things you leave to them Now the truth is the world may be divided between Children and Servants for though the truth is all men are at defiance with God yet God makes them servants one way or other and there is some little Legacy that servants shall have but they must not expect the Childrens portion therefore they have it here but must not have it hereafter In Ezek. 46. 16. Thus saith the Lord If the Prince give a gift unto any of his sons the inheritance shall be his sons but if to his servants then it shall be but till Jubile This was Gods Law that if a Prince gave a gift to his son the son should inherit it for ever but if he give it but to a servant it should continue with him but for a while So here is the difference of Gods administration of all His gifts He gives some to servants and these shall continue but for a while within a little while all will be called for again all the good and all the comfort thou hast God
2. may prove to be your portion it is spoken of Doeg This is the man saith the Psalmist that did not make God his trust but trusted in his great riches this is the man So you may be pointed out one day This is the man Doeg was a great Courtier and because he was an Officer of King Sauls and because he had his favour he trusted in the favour of the King and in his riches and what did he care for David Yea by the Text it appears he was one that made some shew of Religion too in the 1 of Sam. 21. 7. He was detained before the Lord Tremelius thinks either out of some Religious vow or to keep the Sabbath or somewhat concerning the Law he was detained before the Lord and yet he was a vile Malignant against David and all because he trusted in the great countenance he had at Court Now this is the man that made not God his trust but that trusted in his great riches the Lord forbid this Scripture should be made true of any of you I leave this Text with you that are rich men take heed you trust not in your great riches I leave this Text with you that are in places of dignity and honor take heed you have not your portion in this world I leave this Text to Voluptuous men given up to pleasures take heed you hear not one day this Son remember in thy life-time thou hadst thy pleasure I leave this with those that dare not trust God for a portion to come And above all I leave this with all Hypocrites let them take heed it be not said to them Here is your reward Consider what hath been said and the Lord give you understanding in all things FINIS THE ALPHABETICAL TABLE A ABuse see Body Adam First Adam what he was and what he should have been had he stood Page 43 The state of Adam compared with the state of the Saints 44 Admiration Admiration of Saints and Angels 90 Adrian Adrian the Pope his wofull death 339 Alexanders rebuke 349 Angels Angels are the Saints keepers 155 Angels see Love Honor Anger Anger must be avoided 38 Arbitrary Arbitrary Government and the differences of it 324 Antichrist Antichrists great design 49 Argument see Gospel B Beginning Beginings of sin to be feared 83 Beleevers Beleevers draw strength from Christ 45 Beleevers should manifest Christ in their actions Ibid Beleevers cannot fall away 46 Beleevers are not without mixture of evil ib. Beleevers under the Law were as children under age 100 Beleevers under the Gospel are children of full age ib Beleevers must not be of earthly hearts and why 270 Beleeve The manner how to beleeve 76 Bishops see Prelats Blood The Blood of Christ takes us off from vain conversations 98 Body The body of sin must be mortified 39 The body of sin is unknown to Nature 40 Abuse not your bodies and why 92 Boldness see Saints Boniface Boniface his answer 288 Bowels Bowels of mercy beseem the Gospel 71 Branch see Christ C Canaan The Land of Canaan a type of Heaven 47 Carelesness see Profession Christians Carnal Carnal worship opposeth the soul of godliness 49 Carnal see Weapons Heart Ceremonies Ceremonies condemned and why 97 Chastisement Chastisements for sin what they are 148 Children see Beleevers Christ Christs love known in the Gospel 69 Christ is the mercy of all mercies 70 Christs kept the Law and why 78 Christs self denial 93 Christ is the Root and we are the Branches 103 Christs is a great King 116 Christ God-man governs all things and why 136 Christs Rule 139 Christs Law ibid See Dependance Subjects and Peace Christians Christians must be carefull of their families 19 Christians should eye those whose Conversations are above them 29 Christians subject to grow careless by degrees 31 Church Church of God as a City 3 Circumvent We must not circumvent one another 275 Citizen A Citizen's wretch'd speech 320 Civil Civil mens worship of God 35 Companions see Tribulation Compulsion see Persecution Conscience Liberty of Conscience the way to procure it 22 Contentment Motives to contentment 349 Conversation The meaning of this word CONVERSATION 3 What Conversation becomes the Gospel 5 Our Conversation must be looked to after conversion 7 Conversation becoming the Gospel 57 How our Conversation should be manifested 350 What Conversation becomes the Gospel 115 See Image Wanton Cook Cook his opinion of the Martyrs 308 Covetousness Covetousness unbeseeming a Saint 270 Customs Old Customs an hindrance to spiritual worship 100 D Daies Difference between daies of fasting and thanksgiving and holy daies 99 See Observing Danger see Help Deceivers Self Deceivers how 13 Dependance No dependance between the Kingdom of Christ and this world 284 Design see Gospel Despair The reason of despair 75 Despise Despise not the meanest of men 92 Difference Difference which the Gospel makes 122 Difference betwen Saints and worldly men 312 Divisions Divisions whence they come 105 Duty see Time Dying Dying one for another becomes the Gospel 58 E Elevation Elevation of spirit upon what ground 91 Enmity How enmity against God is kept up 15 Epistle The Saints should be the Epistles of Christ 113 Eternal life Little mention of Eternal life in the Old Testament 110 Excellency The Excellency of a Saints portion wherein it consists 354 Eyes The eyes of all are upon Professors 23 What the eyes of a Christian should be set upon 354 F Faith Faith acts upon Christ as a King aswell as a Savior 135 Necessity of living by faith 285 Fleshly-lusts Fleshly lusts unsutable to the Gospel 102 G Gentils see Partition German The speech of a German Divine 137 God Gods willingnesse to be at peace with man 63 See Hatred Love Glory People Mercy God is full of goodness 64 How the utmost of Gods glory is manifested 90 Godly Why godly men are willing to live 2 Gospel What the Gospel is 3 Gospel-Conversation what it is 38 Gospel Obedience proceeds from love 40 Difference between the Law of Adam and the Gospel 41 Those that live under the Gospel must live in an higher way of holiness than those that lived under the Law 42 The great Design of the Gospel 54 The Gospel cals for love 58 Gospel-arguments are the strongest arguments 69 Difference between the Gospel the light of Nature 73 See Law Mallice Christ Conversation Dying Bowels Wanton Worship Beleevers Power Government see Arbitrary Great ones see Religion H Hard-hearted see Monster Hatred Gods hatred of sin how to know it 81 Heart Carnal hearts will not trust God 351 Help Helps against the danger of the times 24 Holy Ghost The Holy Ghost dwells in our bodies 90 Honor How the honor of Religion is kept up 15 More honor put upon Men than upon Angels 89 I Jewes The error of the Jews about Christs Kingdom 117 See Partition Image How man holds out the Image of God Injustice A remedy against Injustice 77 Institution Whereon institution of Worship depends