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A45490 A sermon preach'd at the Church of St. Mary le Bow, to the Societies for Reformation of Manners, December 26, 1698 by John Hancock ... Hancocke, John, d. 1728. 1699 (1699) Wing H642; ESTC R21383 12,830 50

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Word or the Methods of his Providence 1. The Declarations of his Word Solomon says Righteousness will exalt a Nation but Sin is the Reproach and will be the Ruine of any People The Prophet Esay tells the Jews Isa 1. If they be willing and obedient they shall eat the Good of the Land but if they refuse and rebel they shall be devoured with the Sword But Scriptures to this purpose are so numerous that 't is needless to insist upon them 'T is true the Sins and Impieties of wicked Men have of themselves at least many of them a most pernicious Influence upon the Publick Good Saint James tells us most of those Wars and Confusions that infest the World spring originally from Mens Lusts that war in their Members For Instance A prodigal and profuse way of Living when it grows in Fashion begets Poverty that improves into Discontent which often ends in some Publick Disturbance How often do Ambition and Covetousness upon very small occasions disturb Government and destroy the Peace and Quiet of the World But if this were not so as long as there is a just God in Heaven the bold Impieties of Men on Earth must meet with condign Punishment Publick Debaucheries will seldom fail to draw down Publick Judgments 2. This is agreeable to the Methods of God's Providence The History of all Ages is but one continued Confirmation of this Truth We find it has been so and we may well conclude it will be so still We read in the Book of Judges that when the Israelites sin'd against God he raised up the most contemptible People to be their Oppressors So that as it is very fit that God should so we see he has and may be sure sooner or later he will visit for the Wickedness of a People Well if these Things be so how justly may we of these Nations expect the sharpest Visitation How may we wonder at the Goodness and Patience of that God that is yet pleased to prolong our Tranquility God after all his other Gracious Dispensations has lately given us an Happy Peace He seems inclined to try us a little longer whether the milder Methods of his Mercy will work upon us to a general Repentance and Reformation But 't is to be feared we shall do as we have often done before not become the better but rather the worse for his Mercy 'T was too obvious to observe after our Deliverance from the late unhappy Civil Wars pardon me if I say we ran mad with our Joy and too many of us because Religion had been made a pretence by some threw off all pretence to it A sad perversion this of that Goodness of God the proper End of which was to ingage us to Obedience I heartily wish our late Deliverance and our present Peace may have a better influence upon us As yet God knows there is little sign of it Scepticism and Impiety go hand in hand and 't is to be feared get ground upon us If that of the Apostle Phil. 3. were ever true of any Age I fear it is of this Mens God is their Belly their Glory in their Shame they mind Earthly things I wish our End may not be Destruction too We want not indeed in this Age an useful and practical way of Preaching and such as may recommend it self to the Reason as well as work upon the Passions of Mankind We have the great Things of another World lively laid before us and the absolute necessity of a good Life dayly prest upon us But the Age is Proof against the Voice of the Charmer charm he never so wisely We are boldly told by some they look upon the great Things of our Religion but as idle Tales with publick allowance And a great many others though they do not speak out yet plainly live as if they had the same Opinion of them So that I fear Infidelity is spread further than we are aware of and if there should be thus a fault in the Spring there is like to be no regular Motion in the whole Machine And no wonder if the generality of Men swim down the stream of Popular Wickedness and follow a Multitude to do Evil. In such a Case as this 't is highly necessary to call in the Assistance of the Civil Magistrate and 't is very much his Interest as well as Duty to maintain the Cause of Religion and to punish open and scandalous Impiety If the Terrors of the Lord will not prevail with Men to become good Christians the Terrors of the Law may make them tolerable Men. And though the inflicting of Legal Penalties may not make Men so Good as they should be yet 't is something if it restrain them from being so bad as they would be Nor does this imply the weakness and insufficiency of Religion that it needs the Support of the Civil Power but only argues the Corruption of Humane Nature that will not be kept in Bounds without it The Sun is not dark though Men may shut their Eyes and not see the Light of it Nor are Things really sweet to be accounted bitter because they may taste so to some vitiated Palates The great Things of Religion are such as are apt to work upon Reasonable Men But if Men either through Prejudice do not believe or through Carelesness do not consider them no wonder if they do not prevail upon them The laying Penalties upon plain and scandalous Sins is so far from being unsuitable to the Nature of Religion that it is a Debt the Civil Power owes to the Honour of God and the Peace of the World Saint Paul Rom. 13. tells us That Rulers are not a Terror to Good Works but to the Evil and that he is the Minister of God a Revenger to execute Wrath upon him that doth Evil. That is a good Ruler one that answers the Design of his Office will be so How this can be without the enacting and inflicting of some Penalties something that is terrible to Humane Nature is not easie to imagine For the bare Command of them that we are sure either cannot or will not hurt us is not very dreadful And here we may thankfully acknowledge our Happiness that the Law is yet a Guard to the Practice of Religion And the Legislative Power hath given its Testimony against Vice and Irreligion by making it Penal to be guilty of it For this I may refer you to the many Acts of Parliament made against Profaneness particularly that against Swearing and other Vices ordered to be read once a Quarter in our Churches His Majesty likewise hath been graciously pleased to shew His Zeal for the work of Reformation not only by issuing out His Royal Proclamations strictly requiring inferiour Magistrates to put the Penal Laws against Vice and Profaneness in execution But by recommending it more than once to the Consideration of the Parliament to take yet a more effectual Course to stop the Growth of Irreligion This so needful work of