Kingdom of God The Kingdom of God cometh not with observation Luke 17.20 it cometh not with outward Pomp and Splendour it comes not with observation because it is a hidden Kingdom a spiritual Kingdom inward Faith and Love and self-denial and other inward Graces because these are the things belonging to the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ and being not obvious to carnal eyes therefore they see no beauty in them Therefore this is a plain token they see no beauty in Christ they that see no beauty in Christs Kingdom in his Ordinances and in his Spiritual comforts certainly they see no beauty in Christ There wants no beauty in him but carnal men want eyes to behold him certainly spiritual things they are the most precious and invaluable Commodities that are therefore because thou feest no beauty in Heaven and in heavenly things spiritual things the graces of the Spirit and the comsorts of the Spirit thou art one that dost not prize the Lord Christ Secondly They do not prize the Lord Jesus Christ that prefer their lusts before him that prefer the wills of the Flesh and of the Mind as the Greek word signifies before him in Ephes 2.3 Those that say in their hearts though it may be they will not speak it with their mouths but it is the language of their hearts We will not have this man to reign over us we will walk in our own crooked ways and not in the ways of Christ in the ways of holiness Certainly they that prefer their lusts before him they do not prize him Thirdly They that do not prize the Messengers of Jesus Christ they do not prize Jesus Christ himself So says our Saviour himself expresly Luke 10.16 speaking to his Disciples and in them to his succeding Ministers He that heareth you beareth me and he that despiseth you despiseth me and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me When Hannun the King of the children of Ammon cast contempt on the Messengers and Ambassadors of David and so wickedly entreated them by cutting off their Garments in the middle to their buttocks and shaving off the one half of their Beards 2 Sam. 10 it was a plain token that he despised David also because he despised his Ambassadors Fourthly They do not prize the Lord Christ that can keep the best room they have I mean their hearts for creature-comforts but the Lord Jesus Christ as I may say with reverence is thrust into the Stable But you will say How does that appear Thus when a mans Liberty or Estate or Friends or outward reputation come to be hazarded if Christ be owned that man now that can prefer any of his creature-accommodations rather than run any hazard for the Lord Jesus Christ certainly that man does not prize Christ When it comes to a point that a man must part with some or all of his comforts and accommodation rather than part with his Saviour that man that can part with his Saviour rather than his comforts certainly that man does not prize Christ Thus was it with the Gadarens when it came to the Point that they must part with their Swine or with Jesus Christ they would part with Christ rather than with their Swine Fifthly They that do not prize his Ordinances that do not keep close to him to his way of worship those that do not set their hearts and souls to seek him to seek his Truth to seek his Face to rejoyce in his Love to content and satisfie themselves in him to say If I have but Jesus Christ though I be as poor as Job upon the Dunghil yet I am rich enough certainly these do prize the Lord Jesus Christ Oh that we could learn to be true to our own Souls and to love our selves so well as not to beguile our own Souls in the latter end That 's the second Use of Conviction Thirdly A third Use is this If Christ be thus precious to all true Believers then there are these three or four Lessons or Doctrinal Inferences that may be gathered from this conclusion or point of Doctrine First If Jesus Christ be so precious to Believers then it follows that Faith is an exceeding rich and precious Grace it is called precious Faith 2 Pet. 1.1 Simon Peter a Servant and an Apostle of Jesus Christ to them that have obtained like precious Faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ But why is Faith so precious a Grace because it makes Christ so precious to our Souls it makes a man look upon Christ with an admiring eye it ravishes the Soul with the love of this precious Redeemer and it makes him break out and say There is no Beloved like my Beloved Oh the Dignity of his Person Oh the Vertue of his Blood Oh the value of his Sufferings Oh the sweetness of his Graces Oh the Comforts of his Spirit Oh the excellency of those glorious and transcendent Hopes that are laid up in him You read of Moses that he scorned all the Treasures of Egypt Why because by Faith he beheld him that was invisible Heb. 11.26 27. By the eye of Faith he lookt upon Jesus Christ and he saw more beauty in him than in all the Treasures of Egypt more sweetness in one smile of his Face than in ten thousand Worlds Oh therefore that you and I could learn to trade for Faith more a great deal than for the World Oh let us trade for this rich and precious Grace look out for Faith and long for Faith and strive to believe for until this Grace of Faith be planted in your hearts Jesus Christ and you are strangers Christ and you stand at a very great distance but as soon as ever Faith is planted in the Soul then there is instantly a closing with Christ as quick a closing between Christ and the Soul as there is between the Loadstone and the Iron the Soul presently closes with him and cleaves to him as soon as ever it begins to believe Secondly If Jesus Christ be so prrcious to Believers then learn this Lesson by way of Inference That Believers are rich and honourable Persons Why because Jesus Christ is to them both Riches and Honour I gather this from the signification of the word in the Greek Text Jesus Christ is both a Price and an Honour to his for the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies both a Price and Honour Jesus Christ therefore is a Price to Believers he is a Pearl to them First He is a Pearl of inestimable Price to all those that have got an interest in him this Pearl of Price is better worth than ten thousand worlds by him we are enriched in all things 1 Cor. 1.5 I thank my God always on your behalf for the Grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ that in every thing ye are enriched by him And you read of the unsearchable Riches of Christ Ephes 3.8 Vnto me who am less than the least
what are they think you they are just in such a case as God threatneth Babylon shall be Isa 13.14 God says that Babylon shall be as the chased Roe and as a Sheep that no man taketh up This is the case of every one that is yet out of Christ exposed to be a prey to that roaring Lyon that walketh about seeking whom he may devour those that have not an interest in Christ God threatens them Hos 4.16 I will feed them as a Lamb in a large place I will feed them the same Hebrew word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that signifies to feed signifies to let them wander Num. 14.33 God let the children of Israel wander in the wilderness for forty years together So God lets those that have not an interest in Christ to wander in the Wilderness to their own destruction Oh that God would open the eyes of those that have not yet secured their interest in Jesus Christ that they may see what they are and where they are and what danger they are exposed to So much of the first Use of Instruction The second Use is by way of Examination How nearly does it concern every one of us to call our selves to an account whether we be in the number of Christs Sheep or no otherwise we can have no comfort by this Doctrine But may be you will say to me How shall we do certainly to know that we are the Sheep of Christ and that Christ is that Shepherd that feeds us like a Flock For answer to this We cannot curiously pry into Gods decree to tell you who are not his Sheep for it may be there are many that belong to the Election of Grace that is many are the Sheep of Christ that are not yet called nor converted that are wandring in the Wildernes yet and though the Lord will not suffer them to wander to Destruction yet for the present they are not brought into the Folds therefore we cannot say who are not his Sheep we cannot say who are Reprobate we may know who are Elected but we cannot know who are Reprobated we can tell who are his Sheep but we cannot tell who are not his Sheep Now they that are his Sheep that are Converted and brought home to the Folds of Christ they may be known by these four signs First If thou art a Sheep of Jesus Christ certainly the Shepherd hath set his mark upon thee whereby he does know thee and will own thee at the great day of his appearing John 10.14 I am the good Shepherd and know my Sheep and am known of mine I know every one of my Sheep 2 Tim. 2. 19 The Lord knoweth them that are his he knows them with a distinguishing knowledg There are and will be at the great and dreadful day of Jesus Christ abundance that will claim acquaintance with Jesus Christ Oh what seeking will there be to find his favour at that great day seeking and suing and crying with tears of blood for his favour at that day many will claim acquaintance and say Lord Lord Matt. 7.22 23 Have not we prophesied in thy name have not we heard thee teach in our Synagogues have not we heard thy Messengers which thou hast sent in thy name teaching on the Lords day and on the week-day nay have not we sate at thy Table with thee in the use of the Sacrament of thy Body and Blood to whom the Lord Christ will say I know you not Why because he does not see his Mark upon them nay they themselves when their consciences are once awakened and they begin to look and search for the Mark they cannot find it upon themselves and therefore they will hear that dreadful sentence Matth. 25 Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels But you will say What is this mark whereby Jesus Christ knows his sheep and whereby they may know that they are his I answer This mark is the holy Spirit of God which he bestows upon every true believer 1 Cor. 6.17 He that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit that is he that is united to Christ hath the same spirit that Christ hath hath one and the same spirit that Christ hath Rom. 8.9 Now if any man hath not the spirit of Christ he is none of his If any man have not this mark upon him the spirit of Christ our Saviour will never own that man for his Hence it is the Spirit of God is compared to a Seal or Mark Ephes 1.13 After ye believed ye were sealed with the holy Spirit of promise If thou hast received this mark this seal of the Spirit of God upon thy soul thou maist be as sure that thou art one of Christs sheep as if thou didst see thy name written in the Book of Life I but here it may be demanded But may not this Seal or this mark be counterfeited may not a man be mistaken and deceived in thinking he hath this mark the Spirit of God when indeed he hath it not To this I answer Yes it is possible for a man to be mistaken and therefore the Apostle so often presses this duty of Examination 2 Cor. 13.5 Examine your selves whether you be in the faith prove your own selves know ye not your own selves that Jesus Christ is in you except you be reprobates And let every man prove his own works the work of grace in his heart let him prove it Gal. 6.4 Then shall he have rejoycing in himself alone and not in another he shall have rejoycing in the testimony of his own conscience and not in the witness of anothers tongue therefore we should be examining our hearts what operations the Spirit of God hath had upon our spirits whether it hath been an enlightning a quickning a convincing a heart-warming a sealing and a healing spirit certainly the healing and sealing-work of the Spirit goes together as I have formerly shewed you Many boast of the Spirit of God they question not but they have the Spirit of God but I told you the Spirit of God never sets his feal to a blank there is first some work of the Spirit of God upon the soul enlightning convincing quickning and drawing the heart to Jesus Christ So we should examine the fruits and effects of the Spirit of God upon our souls Now there are four fruits especially whereby a man may know he hath received not the spirit that is of the world but the spirit that is of God 1 Cor. 2.12 by these four effects First An unseigned love to the servants of Jesus Christ that is one effect of the Spirit of God that proves Jesus Christ hath set his mark upon him that hath it John 13.35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another This is a mark I set upon my sheep So 1 John 4.7 8 12 Beloved let us love one another for love is of God and every one that loveth
bread thou mayst as well turn stones into bread as water into wine but then afterwards he comes to more gross and grievous temptations to cast himself down headlong to murther himself and commit the horridest Idolatry that can be named So Satan is modest at the first he will perswade thee to tell a merry jocond lye to tell a lye in jest that is no great matter from a jesting lye he perswades thee to tell an officious lye for an advantage to thy self or neighbour from an officious lye he will tempt thee to a pernicious lye to tell a lye for thy neighbours ruine for the ruine of thy neighbours Name or Goods or Life Oh observe the wiles of Satan his temptations are at fist more modest The sixth Rule is this Do not think when one temptation is conquered or resisted that therefore thy corruption is mortified or that the Devil is quite vanquisned or quite hath left thee no for Satan lest our Saviour but for a season Luke 4.13 after he was shamefully vanquished and foiled he left him for a season he came to him again as he did in John 4.30 The Prince of this world cometh and hath nothing in me The Devil like a Ram sometimes retires that he may come forwards with the greater violence Seventhly Would you be strengthned against temptations then above all take the Shield of Faith that is the Apostles Rule Eph. 6.16 Above all take the shield of faith whereby you may quench all the fiery darts of the devil Faith is the eye of the soul Now as a cunning Fencer when he is striving with his Adversary the first thing that he aims at is to strike out the eye of him with whom he is contesting if he can but strike out the eye then he knows he hath a great advantage so the Devil this cunning Fencer he strikes at the eye of Faith if he can but conquer thy Fath he knows he shall conquer thy soul therefore says he I fight neither against small nor great but against this King-Grace I fight against Faith therefore our Savour prays that Peters Faith should not fail so long as his faith did not fail though his other Graces be routed and broken yet Faith will recover all That was an admirable Captain who when the Battel was lost recovered it again himself when all his Soldiers fled and left him namely Shammah 2 Sam. 23.12 He alone stood to the battel and conquered a whole Troop and slew many of the Philistines Faith may be compared to Shammah when other Graces are foyled and routed our Faith will recover all again Now how should we strengthen Faith Faith is compared to a Shield now this Shield is composed of four or five plates First The gracious Promises that God hath made this is one plate that makes the shield of Faith you cannot be cast into such a condition wherein you may not meet with some Promise therefore study the Promises such as these When thou passest through the waters I will be with thee and through the Rivers they shall not overflow thee when thou walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burnt neither shall the flame kindle upon thee Isa 43.2 So that is an excellent Scripture Isa 42.19 And I will bring the blind by a way that they know not I will lead them in paths that they have not known I will make darkness light before them and crooked things straight these things will I do unto them and not forsake them What a precious Promise is that though God leads his people through a dark Wilderness as I may say and they see not one beam of light yet notwithstanding if they lean upon the Lord he will cause darkness to be light before them A second Plate that the shield of Faith is composed of and made up of is the glorious Attributes of God Gods Wisdom Power Mercy Goodness Truth all these put together do spell All-sufficiency the wisdom of God to guide us the power of God to protect us the mercy of God to pity us and the like Thirdly Another Plate is this the triumphant victory of Jesus Christ he hath conquered our Enemy blessed be his Name our Saviour he hath crusht the head of the Serpent as Luther said excellently Why should we fear a conquered world when the Conqueror himself is on our side so why should we fear a conquered Enemy a cursed Enemy when the Conqueror himself is on our side The fourth Plate is this The former Experiments we have had of Gods goodness 2 Cor. 1.10 Who delivered us from so great a death and doth deliver in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us And when the Prophet David was in those straits when he cryed out Will the Lord cast off for ever and will he be favourable no more hath God forgotten to be gracious hath he in anger shut up his tender mercy Oh says he This is my infirmity but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most high Psal 77.7 8 9 10 I will remember thee from the land of Jordan and of the Hermonites from the hill Nizar there I had a deliverance and there I had a deliverance and when my soul is cast down within me I will remember thee at such a place and at such a place where thou didst work a great deliverance for me Psal 42. Fifthly The last Plate the shield of Faith is made up of is Gods infinite love in giving of Jesus Christ He that spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him freely give us all things If God hath given us Jesus Christ he will give us supportation under trouble and he will give us deliverance out of trouble The last Direction is this Give not over praying Although for the present thou seest not the fruit of thy prayers give not over praying but remember he that was tempted for thee on earth is now interceding for thee in heaven Satan cannot be more ready to assault thee than Jesus Christ to assist thee Satan cannot be so busie on earth to hurt thee as Jesus Christ is busie in heaven to help thee and prayer through the intercession of Jesus Christ can cast out Devils Mr. Fox in his book of Martyrs in the second Volume speaking of Luther in the life of King Henry the eighth mentions a story of a man that was possessed with the Devil that had sold his soul to the Devil at Wittenburg But Luther got a company of praying Christians together to seek God on his behalf and would not give over seeking till they had received an Answer So at last the Devil in a great wind threw the Indenture in at the window Sometimes Prayer casts out the Devil God sometimes gives such signal testimonies of hearing Prayer for the enocuragement of his Servants therefore do not give over resisting Satans temptations nor praying against him Do as that blessed Saint Katharine Bretter when
is a Positive Unbelief and this is when men are ready to distrust Gods Power and his Providence and his Promises or when we do not so fiducially rest upon them as to obey the Gospel This is a Positive unbelief this is the sin which is so dangerous Now you must know this Positive Unbelief is twofold First Temporary Secondly Total or Final First There is a Temporary unbelief and this is that which may befall even Gods own Elect they may be under unbelief for a while True it is possible for an Elect Child of God to be under an act of unbelief though he cannot be brought into a state of unbelief for you must distinguish between these two between a state of unbelief and an act of unbelief A Child of God may be under an act of unbelief so you know was Godly Zachariah Elizabeth's husband he was under an act of unbelief And behold thou shalt be dumb and not able to speak until the day that these things shall be performed because thou believedst not my words which shall be fulfilled in their season Luke 1.20 And Thomas one of the twelve Apostles he was under an act of unbelief when he said Vnless I shall see in his hands the print of the Nails and put my finger into the print of the Nails and thrust my hand into his fide I will not believe Joh. 20.25 So were all the rest of the Apostles under an act of unbelief for a while therefore our Saviour when he was risen again he upbraided them the Text says with their unbelief Mark 16.14 After he appeared to the Eleven as they sate at meat and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen This is a Temporary Unbelief Secondly There is a Total or Final unbelief and that is the sin of those that live in a state of impenitency and abide in that condition those that abide in their unbelief until the wrath of God abides upon them You see what this unbelief is a distrusting of Gods Power and Providences and Promises and that not for a time which may be the condition of a Child of God but when it is a Total and Final unbelief That 's the first thing for Explication Secondly By way of Explication it may be demanded Why is this such a dangerous and destructive sin that it does debar men of this Heavenly Canaan I shall give you these three Reasons of it First Because you must know it is a sin that robs God of his Glory Look as by believing we do most of all honour God for by this we set to our Seal that he is true John 3.33 He that hath received his Testimony hath set to his Seal that God is true By believing we give him the honour of his Truth and Faithfulness and Mercy and Goodness and Power Thus Abraham by believing gave glory to God in Rom. 4.20 He staggered not at the Promise of God through unbelief but was strong in faith giving glory to God So on the contrary by unbelief we dishonour him in a high degree nay in the highest degree that can be named because we make him a Liar 1 John 5.10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself he that believeth not God hath made him a Liar because he believeth not the Record that God gave him of his Son Now what greater reproach or dishonour can be cast upon a man of worth than to give him the lye Unbelief therefore is a bold sin it steps into Gods Cabinet as I may say and it robs him of the choicest Jewel that he hath namely his Glory which he hath said He will not give to another Isa 42.8 I am the Lord that is my Name and my Glory will I not give to another neither my praise to the graven Images The glory of God it is nothing else but the reputation that God hath in the World Take away Gods glory and the reputation that he hath among the Sons of men then with reverence be it spoken he is little worth in the eyes of men Now Unbelief is that that robs God of his Glory Secondly Unbelief is such a dangerous destructive sin because it is the first sin that ever was in the World As it is the mother of all other sins so it was the first sin whereby the Devil got entrance into the heart of man I know there is a dispute amongst Divines What was the first sin our first Parents were guilty of whether Pride or Unbelief without all doubt it was Unbelief for God told our first Parents expresly Whenever they did eat of the Tree of life they should die the death as sure as they lived they should die but the Devil he goes and tells them You shall not die Now mark they believed the Devil more than they believed God Unbelief therefore was the first sin that ever was committed in the World and as it was the first sin whereby the Devil got entrance into the heart of man so may it be said to be the root and mother of all other sins therefore says the Apostle Take heed Brethren lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God Heb. 3.12 Look as Faith may be said to be the Mother of all other Graces because Faith lets in Jesus Christ into the Soul and so purifies the heart Act. 15.9 And put no difference between us and them purifying their hearts by Faith it applyes the purifying-blood of Jesus Christ So on the other side Unbelief may be said to be the mother of all other sins because it keeps out Christ and keeps out Grace and polutes the heart and defiles it and makes it no better than a Den for Satan to lodg in It is a good observation of an eminent Divine whom for honour sake I mention namely Doctor Sibs Look as the first return of the Soul to God is by Faith so the first departing of the Soul from God is by Vnbelief for from thence comes a departing to other sins and so unbelief being encreased the rent that is made between God and the Soul the estrangement between God and the Soul is still made wider and wider and so the Soul departs further and further and is still departing and departing from one sin to another till at last it comes to hear that fatal and final sentence Matth. 25 Depart thou cursed wretch into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels Well therefore may Unbelief be said to be the Mother of all other sins Unbelief and Apostacy are very near akin Unbelief may in some sense be said to be all disobedience The same Greek word that signifies unbelief signifies also disobedience Col. 3.6 For these things sake the wrath of God cometh upon the children of unbelief or children of disobedience And well may it be said to be the Mother of disobedience for
guilty of this sin of unbelief yea or no. I know every one of you will be ready to plead Not guilty Oh we do believe the Word of God and pity we should live if we did not believe the Word But let me tell you This is an inward secret lurking sin therefore not easily discerned But that you may know whether you be guilty of this sin or no I will give you these four plain undeniable Scripture-Evidences the Lord make you your own Judges in this particular First When men do slight the invitations of Jesus Christ slight the proffers of his Grace it is a token there is unbelief in the bottom for where Faith is once wrought in the heart there is instantly and readily a closing between Christ and the Soul there is a ready closure as there is between the Load-stone and the Iron When Jesus Christ says to a poor sinner Come to me though thou art weary and heavy laden the Believing Soul closes presently with Christ and answers Come thee Lord I I will creep to thee upon my hands and feet When Christ says to it again Do this or Do that the Soul says again O Lord give me strength to do what thou commandest and command what thou wilt But now when you find in you a backwardness to entertain Jesus Christ in your hearts this is a certain and undeniable evidence of your unbelief and is not this your sin Alas alas let Jesus Christ be tendred in the Ministry of the Word from day to day let him be proffered in the sweetest anst softest terms of Perswasions and Exhortations let Ministers use their best Art and Arguments to woo entreat invite and beseech you to accept of the Lord Jesus Christ as he is tendred to you in the Gospel and yet alas we poor Ministers can get no audience I speak of the most of you not of all scarce one of ten scarce one of a hundred will hearken to this Gospel-invitation to come unto Jesus Christ and to submit to him and to take him upon Gospel-terms Our Saviour complains in John 5.40 And ye will not come unto me that ye may have life Though I would give you life a life of Righteousness a life of Grace a life of Glory Yet you will not come to me that is You will not believe in me you will not embrace me you will not submit to me you will not solace your Souls in me Let the World call and you run straight let the flesh call and you obey it straight in the lusts of it nay let Satan call and you readily hearken to him but you will not hearken to me Just so may the Ministers of the Gospel at this day complain Lord Thou sendest us upon this Errand to bring Sinners in to thee thou sendest us upon the same Message Abraham sent his Servant to get a Wife for his Son Isaac Abraham gave his Servant Rings and Jewels and Bracelets to bestow upon her that would be Wife to Isaac So our Lord sends us with Rings and Jewels and Bracelets we have many Motives and Arguments to invite Sinners and to perswade and draw them But Lord we can do no good in our Ministry we tell men of the unsearchable Riches of Jesus Christ and what an unvaluable portion they shall have in him but they will not believe Lord Who hath believed our Report Now when there is a slighting of those invitations and proffers of Gospel-grace it is a certain token of Unbelief And that 's the first Sign or Character of Unbelief Secondly When men undervalue Christs Person and Portion this is a token of unbelief We tell men of the Beauty of Christs Person that he is white and ruddy white in his Innocency and ruddy in his Passion the choisest of ten thousand Cant. 5.10 and that there is nothing in him but brightness and sweetness and beauty and fulness and all sufficiency yet men believe it not They see no beauty in him why they should desire him Isa 53.3 Nay What is thy beloved more than other Beloveds say they Cant. 5.9 So when we tell men of the invaluable portion they shall have by the Lord Jesus Christ those unsearchable Riches the riches of his Merits and the riches of his Spirit and that rich and royal Redemption and that they shall have whatever their hearts can desire we tell them of this they shall have a portion of grace Jesus Christ will give them grace for grace for every grace in himself he will give them part of it by his Wisdom they shall be made wise by his Holiness they shall be made holy he will give them a portion of Glory a Crown of Eternal glory to them that love him but because they see not this Portion this Crown of glory they will not believe it they will not believe further than they see they are all for present pay Demas hath forsaken me having embraced this present world They will have good things for the present as for future expectations they regard them not Where there is an undervaluing of Christs person or portion there is a great deal of unbelief Thirdly When men are secure and fearless it is a certain effect and sign and symptom of unbelief for Faith breeds fear Heb. 11.7 By Faith Noah being wanned of God of things not seen as yet moved with fear prepared an Ark to the saving of his house by the which he condemned the World and became heir of the righteousness which is by Faith Faith makes men fear But now when men do nto stand in awe of God of the great God that is within us without us above us about us when we do not walk as in his eye nor walk as in his presence when men do not stand in awe of the Word of God and say with David Psalm 119 161 Princes have persecuted me without a cause but my heart standeth in awe of thy Word As if he should say I more stand in awe of thy Word than of all the Princes of the World When men are so over-awed by the Word of God as that they dare not sin against God for the Word of God stands as a Schoolmaster stands with a Rod in his hands over a Boy so that he dare not act any untowardness When men are not over-awed by the Word but they sin and spare not they sin and grieve not this is a token of their unbelief they do not believe God is Omniscient Omnipresent they do not believe his Justice they do not believe his Truth Where men are thus fearless and secure it is a plain token of their exceeding great unbelief Fourthly A fourth Sign of unbelief is this when men profess one thing and practice another thing when their practice crosses their Profession this is a certain token of reigning unbelief Let me give you some instances For example You profess God to be your Soveraign Lord and King and Law-giver and that you have but one Law-giver which is
very precious As if he should say You have an infinite and an invaluable benefit by him therefore you have great reason so highly to prize him Vnto you that do believe that is that can rest and rely upon this Rock of Salvation that can pawn your Souls upon him that can close with him and cleave to him and obey him as your Prince and your Saviour Vnto you says the Apostle he is precious or he is a price and an honour for so the Original word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies he is not only precious but of infinite price he is not only honourable but honour it self in the Abstract for the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies both price and honour The words being thus opended afford these two Points of Doctrine which lie clear in the Text. Doct. 1. That the Lord Jesus Christ is infinitely precious in himself Doct. 2. As Jesus Christ is precious in himself so he is exceeding precious in the eyes of all Believers and most highly prized by them Doct. 1. That the Lord Jesus Christ is infinitely precious in himself He is called in the 4th verse of this Chapter A living-stone chosen of God and precious And in Isa 28.16 Therefore thus saith the Lord God behold I lay in Sion for a foundation a stone a tryed stone a precious Corner-stone a sure Foundation For the better understanding of this Point two things are to be opened First What it is to be Precious or what may be included in this Phrase precious Secondly How this may be applyed to Jesus Christ or wherein the preciousness of Jesus Christ consists First What is it to be precious What is included in this Phrase precious The Hebrew word signifies divers things I will name you but these five or six and every one of those significations are rightly applicable to the Lord Jesus Christ Sometimes the word precious is taken for bright and glorious Thus the Sun and the Moon are said to walk in brightness Job 31.26 If I beheld the Sun when it shined or the Moon walking in brightness Job there speaking of the Moon says it walks in brightness it walks as it were through the Heavens honourably it walks in a great deal of brightness and glory Thus the Lord Jesus Christ in this sense is precious because he is the glorious sun of Righteousness as he is called Mal. 4.2 Vnto you that fear my Name shall the sun of Righteousness arise with healing under his wings And he calls himself the bright Morning-Star in Rev. 22.16 I am the bright Morning-Star Again Secondly The word precious is taken sometimes for that that is scarce and rare to be had for that which is not bestowed upon all but upon some few persons Thus the Word of God in Samuel's time was said to be precious 1 Sam. 3.1 And the Word of the Lord was precious in those days there was no open Vision it was communicated but to a few And in this sense also the Lord Jesus Christ may be said to be precious because he is communicated but to a very few A little Flock Luke 12.32 A little little Flock as the word signifies a very little Flock in comparison of those that have no interest in him nor any benefit by him For not many wise men after the flesh not many Mighty not many Noble are called 1 Cor. 1.26 There are but few very few in comparison of the great multitude that have an interest in him in that regard he is precious Thirdly Sometimes the word precious is taken for that which is dear and costly So the Lord Jesus Christ is very dear to his Father the dearly beloved Son of his bosom and his blood is very costly it is called precious blood If the blood of all the Princes upon Earth had been spilt nay if all the Angels in Heaven had lost their lives it had not been comparable to one drop of the precious blood of Jesus Christ which is called the blood of God Acts 20.28 Take heed therefore unto your selves and to all the Flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you Overseers to feed the Church of God which he hath purchased with his own blood Fourthly The word precious sometimes is taken for that which is pleasant and delightful Jer. 31.20 Is Ephraim my dear Son is he a pleasant Child There is the same word for precious called pleasant In this regard the Lord Jesus Christ may be called precious because he is so delightful to the Father Isa 42.1 Behold my servant whom I uphold mine Elect in whom my soul delighteth Fifthly That may be said to be precious that is of very great and invaluable use or that whereof we have an indispensable necessity Now in this sense also Jesus Christ is precious he is of infinite use to a Believer such indispensable need have we of him that without him we must perish everlastingly Except ye eat the flesh of Christ and drink his blood you have no life in you John 6.53 Lastly That is said to be precious which is honourable Since thou wast precious in my sight thou hast been honourable and I have loved thee therefore I will give men for thee and people for thy life Isa 43.4 And as I told you even now the Original word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 siguifieth honour as well as price So the Lord Jesus Christ he is infinitely honourable honourable in himself all the Angels honour and admire him and he is an Honour to his Church and Chosen to all those that have a part and interest in him therefore he is said to be The glory of his people Israel Luke 2.32 A light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel You see the first thing opened What it is to be precious Now the second thing for Explication is this How this Title precious may be applyed to Jesus Christ or wherein does the preciousness of Jesus Christ so much appear For answer to this You must know the preciousness of Jesus Christ does appear in these six Particulars First He is exceeding infinitely unconceivably precious in his Person God and Man united in one Person Co-essential with the Father that is having the same Essence and Substance with him in John 10.30 I and my Father are one And he is Co-equal with the Father He thought it no robery to be equal with God Pbil. 2.6 Being the brightness of his Fathers Glory and the express Image of his Person Heb. 1.3 Therefore he is infinitely precious in his Person Secondly As he is precious in his Person so is he precious in his Titles those rich and glorious Titles that are attributed to him For Example Isa 9.6 This is the name wherewith the Lord Jesus Christ is called Wonderful Counsellonr El the Mighty God the everlasting Father the Prince of Peace Pray mark with what a glorious Title he is called there The Mighty God How dare then any blasphemous Arrian or Atheist deny the Divinity
poured upon Aarons head run down to the skirts of his cloathing so from that fulness of Grace which is in Jesus Christ Believers receive and grace for grace a continual supply of grace from him he is the Author of all their graces he is the Author of their Faith he is called The Author and Finisher of their Faith Heb. 12.2 He is the Author of their Love Christ first warms their hearts with a sense of his Love before they can love him We love him because he first loved us 1 John 4.19 He is the Author of their Repentance God hath exalted him to be a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance and remission of sins to his people Acts 5.31 Thirdly And then they receive spiritual comforts by him too My peace I give unto you my peace I leave with you not as the world giveth give I unto yon let not your heart be troubled neither let it be afraid John 14.27 He gives Believers that peace that the World can neither give nor take away from them that peace and comfort that can hold up their heads in all outward storms In the world says he you shall have tribulation but in me you shall have peace John 16. ult At the same time when they have tribulation in the world they may have peace in Christ at the same time when there is ratling upon the Tiles there may be Musick in the Chamber outward tribulations and inward consolations they may stand together at the very same time In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy Comforts delight my Soul Psalm 94.19 So though there may be multitude of troubles within yet there may be comforts to refresh the Soul This is the third Reason why Jesus Christ is so precious to Believers Because they have much in hand from Christ they have Temporal Mercies and Spiritual Mercies Spiritual Priviledges Justification Sanctification and Adoption and Spiritual Graces and Spiritual Comforts Reas 4. Jesus Christ is very precious to Believers because they expect much from him As they have much in hand by him so they have more in hope from him they have much for the present but more for the future for what do they expect from him but an Inheritance incorrupted undefiled reserved in Heaven for them an everlasting Kingdom a Kingdom that cannot be shaken everlasting Communion with himself bosom-Communion with himself in Glory to have their Souls bathed in those Rivers of pleasure that are at his right hand for evermore yea the following the Lamb. wheresoever he goes to be triumphing in his Praises to be sounding forth those Hallelujahs to him that sits upon the Throne for ever to live and lie in his continual embraces Eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither hath it entred into the heart of man to conceive what God hath laid up for them that love him Now because with the eye of Faith they look upon these things and they fully expect to enjoy them therefore hence it is they do so highly prize Jesus Christ Reas 5. Jesus Christ is very precious to Believers they do most highly prize him Because Faith you must know is a uniting grace an espousing grace it is the Wedding-Ring as I have sometimes told you that makes up the Match between Jesus Christ and the poor Soul as soon as ever a man comes to be a Believer to take Jesus Christ to be his Head his Husband his Portion then is the Match made up between them Christ dwells in our hearts by Faith Ephes 3.17 Now then Believers being thus espoused to him thus united to him they cannot but dearly love him As a Wife that hath pitcht her affections upon a Husband and forsaken all others and hath vowed to cleave to him and him only while they both shall live therefore she does prize him above all the men in the World so when the Soul is once united to Christ marryed to him Thy Maker is thy Husband when the Soul is espoused to Christ it cannot but dearly love him and forsake all others in comparison of him Reas 6. Jesus Christ is very precious to Believers Because true Faith ever works by Love Gal. 5.6 For in Christ Jesus neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor Vncircumcision but Faith which worketh by Love True Faith will make a man dearly love the Lord Jesus Christ now if we love him we cannot but prize him whom we love so dearly The Use I shall make of this Point briefly First For Examination And O that you and I could engage our own hearts a while and call our selves to account in sad and serious thoughts whether Jesus Christ be precious to us yea or no Is he highly prized by you even by you that hear me this day Can you say with the Church My Beloved is white and ruddy the chiefest of ten thousand And with St. Paul I esteem all things but dross and dung in comparison of Jesus Christ the whole World the glory the beauty and treasures and pleasures of it but as a heap of dung in comparison of him this pitch and frame you must come unto or else you can never have any assurance that Christ is yours and that you are his for as our Saviour saith in the like case He that loveth Father or Mother more than me is not worthy of me c. Matth. 10.37 So here if any thing be more prized than Jesus Christ you can have no assurance that Christ is your portion if any thing be preferred before him or prized more highly than he is there not great need then that you should enquire whether Jesus-Christ be precious to you yea or no That I may press you to this enquiry consider but this one Motive this is one of the surest Characters to distingnish between a sincere-hearted Christian and an Hypocrite For he that is sincere and upright-hearted does lay Jesus Christ the nearest to his heart and says None but Christ nothing but Christ whereas ever observe it and you shall see a Hypocrite hath always something that lies nearer to his heart than Jesus Christ does however he may shew much love to Christ with his mouth yet his heart goes after his covetousness or after some base lust or other as God told the Prophet Ezek. 33.31 And they come unto thee as my People and they sit before thee as my People and they hear thy words but they will not do them for with their mouth they shew much love but their heart goeth after their covetousness So that Jesus Christ hath not the heart of a Hypocrite he may have the mouth of a Hypocrite a shew of love but there is something still that doth lie nearer his heart than Christ does Look into the parable of the Sower and you will find that Seed that was sown in the stony-ground it sprung up and made a fair shew for a while but there was something that lay between the seed and the Soil so there is something that lies between
Heaven the red leaf that was the blood of Jesus Christ the black leaf that was the torments of Hell You may look into Hell by contemplation and meditation that you may prevent Hell to all Eternity you may meditate upon the blood of Christ and steep as it were your souls in it by meditation it may be it may soften them It is said of the Goats blood when nothing can soften an Adamant the blood of Goats can the blood of Christ that can soften your hard hearts when nothing else can Thirdly A third thing you can do you can sorrow more and mourn more than you do there is none of you but can sorrow and mourn for outward losses loss of Friends as Husband and Wife or Child perhaps for the loss of a Horse what canst thou mourn for the loss of a Child and canst thou not mourn for the loss of a Soul when one Soul is worth all the Kingdoms in the World If any of you have lost a good Bargain or mist a good Market you can grieve for this O methinks you should mourn for this how many Market days have I lost for my Soul I have burnt out many a precious light and spent out my precious time and can you not mourn for the loss of such a Bargain as this is Suppose one of you should be sent for before a mighty Monarch and should be impeach'd of high Treason before him how would you tremble to appear before so mighty a King that hath power in his hands to cut you off instantly O you and I must appear before the great Judg of Heaven and Earth the King of Kings that knows all the sins and Treasons that ever we have committed and you should bless God if you are cast into fear and thereby be brought to mourn and grieve and sorrow for your sins Job 23.16 For God maketh my heart soft and the Almighty troubleth me that is soft by troubling of me Fourthly There is never a one of you but may leave gross and scandalous sins which I prove thus you can do it for fear of men and you may do it much more for fear of God A prophane Swearer if he be in the company of a Godly grave Minister he can refrain his mouth from vile talk he can forbear his Oaths and blasphemous Speeches and obscene expressions An Adulterer if a boy be but in the Room of seven years old he will forbear to act his uncleanness until the boy be out of the Room If you can forbear gross sins for fear of men much more can you do it for fear of God If a boy can say his Lesson with a Rod certainly he can do it without a Rod if you can abstain from gross sins for fear certainly you can do it without You read of the hypocritical Pharisee he abstained from gross sins Luke 18 God I thank thee saith he I am not as other men are Extortioners Vnjust Adulterers c. Fifthly Though it is true a man in a state of Nature is dead in trespasses and sin yet then at that time he may do many good works works morally good works materially good he may fast and pray and give Alms therefore it is that Daniel speaks to Nebuchadnezzar Break off thy sins by righteousness and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor Dan. 4.27 Certainly the Prophet Daniel would never have spoken so to him if it had not been in his power to do it The Apostle speaking of the Gentiles though they wanted the knowledg of the Law and had not the Law saith he Yet they did by Nature the things contained in the Law they were a Law to themselves which shews that the works of the Law are written in their hearts Rom. 2.13 14. They that are in an unregenerate estate they may pray they may make Conscience of praying in their Families though they cannot pray as they should yet they may pray as they are able they may fall down at the feet of God and say Lord I am a poor sinful wretch I cannot please thee praying or not praying thou hast promised to give the spirit of prayer to them that ask it Luke 11.13 If ye then being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to them that ask him Say Lord give me thy Spirit to break my hard heart take any way with me so my proud heart may be humbled and hard heart broken that I may welcom Jesus Christ to my Soul that I may believe in him and cast my Soul upon him So that Beloved I put you upon no more than you are able to do you may suffer the word of Exhortation you can ponder and weigh the Word in your own hearts you may sorrow and mourn for sin you may abstain from gross sins and you may do those works that are morally good do what you can do men are not damned because they can do no better but because they will do no better Matth. 23 O Jerusalem Jerusalem I would have gathered thee as a Hen her Chickens under her wings but ye would not If there were no will there would be no Hell saith St. Austin Do what you can set upon works of Holiness and Piety strive and put forth your strength to the uttermost endeavour of your Souls to get your hearts humbled to see sin and to sigh for it to grieve and groan for it lay your conditions to heart be feelingly apprehensive of that wrath that sin hath kindled of that Justice that sin hath provoked of that Mercy that sin hath abused of that vengeance and anger that sin hath deserved to be inflicted O were we but thus humbled we should have cause to bless God to all Eternity I shall close with one word to those that have been under a spirit of bondage that have been convinced awakened as this Jaylor was that have had their broken bones that have felt the burden of sin and it may be lie under that burden at this day O be you comforted it s better to be broken here than hereafter it is better to be convinced here than convinced hereafter it is better to be humbled here than for God to humble the Soul in Hell to all Eternity God will make thy Valley of Achor a Door of Hope Hos 2.15 Thou that art humbled now shalt be exalted and thou that mournest now shalt be comforted CHRIST THE Bread of Life John VI. 35. And Jesus said unto them I am the Bread of Life he that cometh unto me shall never hunger and he that believeth on me shall never thirst THis Chapter contains in it that admirable and Heavenly Sermon of our Saviour concerning the Bread of Life wherein you may take notice of three parts First The occasion of this Sermon that was the Peoples following of him because they did eat of the Loaves and were filled Verse 26. Secondly The Sermon it self and that is
part and interest in him Then let my counsel be accepted with you give no rest to your Eyes no satisfaction to your Souls in any condition with any portion or priviledg whatsoever until you have gotten this bread until you have gotten Jesus Christ to be your portion to be the food of your Souls That which Solomon speaks of Wisdom Prov. 4.7 Wisdom is the principal thing therefore get Wisdom and with all thy gettings get understanding So say I this is the principal Bread therefore get Christ and above all thy gettings get Christ I but may be you will say How shall we get him I answer First You must highly prize him esteeming all things but dross in comparison of him you must esteem all outward things but as Dogs meat in comparison of that bread which is in your Fathers House Secondly You must earnestly beg him you must pray as the Capernaites did Lord evermore give us this bread ver 34 of this Chapter Thirdly You must labour for him Labour not for that meat that perisheth but for that bread hat endures to eternal life John 6.27 But how must we labour for him You must labour for him in the use of his Ordinances as Praying Reading Hearing Communicating at the Lords Table and the like Fourthly When you have found him or know where this bread is to be had you must hunger and thirst for him for the Lord Christ will never bestow himself upon that Soul that doth not breathe and break with longing desires for him Fifthly You must be sure by Faith to apply him to your own Souls Bread when it stands upon the Table is common bread but when I have eaten it then it is my bread then it turns to my nourishment to my substance so you must make Application of Christ to your Souls Sixthly If you would have Christ you must learn to live upon him As a man lives upon bread so you must live upon Christ live upon him in point of Justification in point of Sanctification and Salvation As the living Father hath sent me and I live by the Father so he that eateth me even he shall live by me ver 57 of this Chapter If you live in him and live upon him you shall hereafter for ever live with him And so much of the first Branch of the Text the evident Proposition I come now to the comfortable Inference that is thence deduced He that cometh to me shall never hunger and he that believeth in me shall never thirst By coming to Christ is meant believing in Christ for the latter Phrase doth expound the former He that cometh to me that is he that believes in me Coming you know is a motion and in a motion there are two terms there is the terminus a quo and terminus ad quem something a man comes from and something a man comes to so believing is a motion of the Soul a man comes from himself from his own righteousness from his own ends he comes from the World and then he comes to Christ he comes to him as one that is able to give him fit and full satisfaction to his Soul He that comes to me shall never hunger and he that believes in me shall never thirst Christ speaks here of a spiritual hunger and of a spiritual thirst the meaning is this He that believes in me saith our Saviour he shall have all his wants supplied all his desires allayed and he shall have his Soul fully satisfied So then the Doctrine I shall give you from this second Branch of the Text is this Doct. Whosoever believes in Jesus Christ shall by Christ have all his spiritual wants supplyed and all his desires allayed and his soul fully satisfied Why is Jesus Christ not only compared to Bread but also to Water Isa 55.1 Ho every one that thirsteh come to the waters of life By water is meant Jesus Christ Why is he compared not to Water but to Wine and Milk Come buy Wine and Milk without Money and without Price but only to shew that he is able to give the Soul fit and full satisfaction Here are two Queries I shall speak to by way of Explication First How or in what sense this Doctrine is true He that believes in Christ shall have all his desires satisfied Secondly How it comes to pass or what is the reason that such a soul as believes in Christ shall have the spiritual desires of his soul satisfied First How or in what sense this Doctrine holds true That he that believes in Christ shall by Christ have all his desires answered In answer to this You must know the desires of the Soul are of three sorts there are sinful desires and sensual desires and spiritual desires First There are sinful desires of the Soul there is no man but naturally he doth as eagerly desire to sin as he desires to eat when he is hungry Prov. 4.17 They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the Wine of violence Naturally a man hath a Dog-like thirst after sin some after one lust some after another Do you think the Scripture saith in vain the spirit that is in us lusteth to envy James 4.5 That which is here spoken of Envy may be spoken of any other sin Some lust after covetousness some lust after pride some after envy some after one thing some after another But mark now as soon as the Soul comes to Jesus Christ and believes in him these desires and sinful lusts shall be quenched because the Lord Jesus Christ will make such a Soul to be dead to sin A dead man desireth nothing I know my Brethren that this is to be understood in part because our mortification is imperfect therefore all the sinful desires of the Soul will not be quenched in this life But thus far it holds true He that is born of God sinneth not 1 John 3.9 that is so far forth as a man is born of God he sinneth not there is a nature in him that sinneth not a Divine Nature for he is made partaker of the Divine Nature there is something in him that doth not sin that doth not lust after sin but lusteth against sin he hath something in him that doth not sin As the flesh lusteth against the Spirit so the Spirit lusteth against the Flesh Gal. 5.17 These sensual desires shall be quenched Secondly There are sensual desires that is a lusting after the lawful contentments of this life Some lust after one dish of the World and some after another Zacheus a pining Publican he lusted after the gain of the World I but when he comes to Christ this lustful desire of his is allayed for said he Lord now half of my goods I give to the poor and if I have done wrong I will make recompence fourfold Here is an admirable example for some to follow that make haste to be rich as Solomon hath it He that makes haste to be rich shall not be innocent Prov. 28.20 Such a one
and this turns all it toucheth into Gold Blessed is the man that by Faith can touch Jesus Christ no man ever toucht him by Faith but was healed by Grace Secondly You shall have this benefit it will yield you abundance of joy and satisfaction in the expectation of your desires before you come to the fruition of your desires You read of the joy of Faith Phil. 1.25 And the Apostle prays for the Romans that their hearts may be filled with joy and peace in believing Rom. 15.13 When Hannah had once poured out her Soul before God now her heart was quieted by Faith as if she had enjoyed her desires for the present She went away and did eat and her Countenance was no more sad 1 Sam. 1. Thirdly Faith will reallize all the Promises Heb. 11.1 It is the substance of things hoped for it makes things that are absent present that are afar off to be near at hand it will bring you to Heaven before you come to Heaven O what a precious grace is Faith And this is the grace you will most stand in need of in your approaches to the Lords Table Now the Lord strengthen this hand of Faith that by it we may make vigorous applications of the blood of Jesus Christ to our poor Souls who is the living bread that is able to give fit and full satisfaction to our Souls who is that living water whereof whosoever drinketh shall thirst no more CHRIST'S True Disciples ARE Doers of Gods VVill. JOHN VII 17. If any man will do his will he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self THese words are the words of our Saviour uttered at that great feast the feast of Tabernacles the occasion of these words was this The Jews marvelled at our Saviour as you may read Verse 15 How knoweth this man Letters having never learned That is how comes he to be so skilful in the Scriptures seeing he was never taught by man Our blessed Saviour to this Query answers two things First He tells them in the foregoing Verse the 16th verse that his Doctrine was not his own but was taught him of the Father Secondly He shews them an excellent way or means whereby they may discern truth from falshood true Doctrine from corrupt Doctrine namely by obedience to the will of God for If any man will do his will he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self So then in the Text you may take notice of two particulars First An Invitation to a Duty Secondly An Encouragement to that Duty First An Invitation to a Duty in these words If any man will do his will that is that will do the will of God my Father Secondly The Encouragement to it in these words He shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self that is he shall know which is true Doctrine and which is false which is the Doctoctrine according to God and Godliness or what is spoken for popular applause and spoke of a mans own head and according to these two parts of the Text there are these two Doctrines that may be raised from the words Doct. 1. That the true Disciples of Christ are Doers of the will of God Doct. 2. That they that do the will of God shall know more of it and shall be more confirmed in their knowledg I begin with the first That the true Disciples of Christ or true Christians are such as are Doers of the will of God For the proof of this Doctrine take two or three places of Scripture Matth. 7.21 Not every one that saith to me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the will of my Father which is in Heaven A true Child of God a true Professor of the Gospel is described by this he is a Doer of the will of God Rom 2.13 For not the hearers of the Law are just before God but the doers of the Law shall be justified that is shall be owned and accepted of God the Father So James 1.22 But be ye Doers of the Word and not Hearers only deceiving your own souls cozening your selves with false Syllogisms as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 there signifies If a man be a Hearer of the Word only and not a Doer of it he cozens himself with false arguments and the like you have in the 25 verse of the same Chapter But whoso looketh into the perfect Law of liberty and continueth therein he being not a forgetful Hearer but a Doer of the Word this man shall be blessed in his deed the man is a blessed Disciple of Jesus Christ But for the better Explication of this Point there are three things I shall open to you First What is meant by the Will of God Seconly How the Will of God must be done by those that are the Disciples of Christ Thirdly Why the Disciples of Christ must be Doers of the Will of God First What the will of God is Not to trouble you with the various distinctions of the Schoolmen briefly there is a twofold will of God mentioned in Scripture the one is called a Secret will the other is called a Revealed will you have them both mentioned in one Verse Deut. 29.29 The secret things belong unto the Lord our God but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our Children for ever that we may do all the words of the Law Now our Saviour speaks here in the Text of the Revealed will of God and it is called a Revealed will because it is made known to us in three Books In the Book of Nature In the Book of the Creature In the Book of the Scripture First The will of God is made known unto us partly in the Book of Nature Thus many of the better sort of Heathens that had nothing but the light of Nature by the dictates of their own Conscience knew what the will of God was as appears by that Rom. 2.14 15 For when the Gentiles which have not the Law do by Nature the things contained in the Law these having not the Law are a Law to themselves which shew the work of the Law written in their hearts their Conscience also bearing witness and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another Mark the Gentiles which had not the Law that is they had not the Law of Scripture yet did by Nature the things contained in the Law The Gentiles which had not the Law of the Scripture yet by the Law of Nature did those things that were agreeable to the will of God and by the dictates of their own Consciences did some things that were agreeable to the will of God and although this light of Nature was not sufficient to bring them to Heaven yet it was sufficient to leave them without excuse Secondly This will of God is revealed in the Book of the
supported him in that great distress On the contrary under less temptations and troubles if God do not support a man he will fall see it in Ahitophel because his counsel was not accepted God not supporting him under this light trouble he goes and hangs himself For the use of this If this be one way of Gods hearing our prayers when he strengthens us with strength in our souls Then call your selves to an account whether God hath strengthned your souls yea or no here is divers of you that have been made partakers of a strengthening Ordinance this day namely the Lords Supper which the Lord Jesus hath appointed for your spiritual confirmation and corroboration Now will it not nearly concern you to ask your own souls this question Hath God strengthened you with strength in your souls It may be you will say to me how shall we do to know it Answer me but these four or five questions and you may know it First tell me What are you in the time of troubles and temptations for what a man is in tryals that is the man Can you live in a time of straits fears doubts and dangers as the strength of a ship is tryed in the time of a storm if she can live in a storm then you may say she is a strong ship the strength of a Castle is tryed in the time of battel if it can endure the roaring Cannon then its a strong Castle now if you can keep your standing in a time of danger this argues you have received spiritual strength in your souls Secondly Can you bear variety of conditions without fainting can you pass through good report and ill report through honour and dishonour through a prosperous estate and decayed estate can you pass through these with an equal temper and frame of spirit as you are not puft up with prosperity so you are not too much cast down with adversity Saint Paul had this strength I have learnt saith he in what estate soever I am therewith to be content Thirdly Can you cleave close to Jesus Christ without weariness constantly if you be off and on if your way be uneven it 's a token you have little strength Fourthly Are you able to do duties in a spiritual manner the spiritual performance of holy duties argues the receiving of some spiritual strength By these and the like questions you may know whether you have received some of this spiritual strength yea or no. A second use I shall make it is by way of Exhortation Oh labour to read this Text experimentally read it I say so as your own hearts may make a commentary on it Oh Lord thou hast answered me Lord I can speak by experience I was as weak as water but thou hast strengthened me with strength in my soul Whatever was written aforetime was written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope This instance of David was written for your imitation and consolation O labour for this spiritual strength To press you to attain it I shall use but this one motive Consider the great need you have of this spiritual strength at all times but especially in times of general fears and dangers then you have special need of it In what regard may be you will say do we need so much strength in our souls I will tell you in these four respects especially or on this fourfold account First In regard of Duties that are to be performed Secondly In regard of Afflictions that are to be endured Thirdly In regard of the Enemies that are to be encountered Fourthly In regard of the danger of Apostacy that is to be prevented First You have great need of this spiritual strength in regard of the Duties that are to be performed Oh a Christian hath much work lying upon his hands in reference to eternity a great work it is to provide oyl in your Lamps grace in your hearts a great work it is to get the hazzard of eternity over to get an interest in Jesus Christ and to get an assurance of that interest A great work it is for you to make your calling and election sure sure to your own souls to be working out your salvation with fear and trembling a great work it is for you to be pondering the paths of your feet to keep your hearts above all keepings to be building up your selves in your most holy faith These are very great works It is the language of the Apostle Saint Jude verse 20 of his Epistle But ye beloved building up your selves in your most holy faith praying in the holy Ghost and to be pressing forward towards the mark for the price of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus Phil. 3.14 Nay a Christian hath yet a harder work than this to do for a Christian is to do that work that crosses his own carnal and corrupt will There are some difficult duties of Christianity that are to be performed as denying of our selves a hard duty the crossing of our carnal and corrupt Affections a hard duty the mortifying of a beloved Lust a very hard duty the plucking out of a right eye the cutting off of a right hand a parting with a sin that is as dear as our right hand and our right eye a difficult duty so for a man to be crucifying the flesh with the Affections and Lusts thereof to be contemning the world to trample upon the pleasures the flatteries the blandishments of it for a man to love his enemies to pray for them that persecute him to do good to them that despitefully use him How is it possible for a man to do all this work a difficult work this work which so much crosses his own carnal and corrupt frame if he have not a considerable portion of spiritual strength A weak Christian alas is offended with every thing he is ready to stumble at every straw every duty is a burthen to him every command of Christ seems grievous to him every yoke of Christ he is not able to take upon his neck it may be he may have some flashes of good desires now and then as Baalam had Oh that I might die the death of the righteous It may be he may have some good purposes and resolutions as Saul had 1 Sam. 26.21 Return my son David for I will no more do thee harm because my soul was precious in thine eyes this days But all his purposes came to nothing Nay may be sometimes he may have some endeavours faint feeble endeavours in the way of grace just like the third ground in the Parable which wanted root it brought forth indeed a blade but it brought forth the Text says nothing to perfection If a man be a weak Christian alas it is very little that he can do in the business of Eternity You have great need of strength therefore in this regard Secondly You have great need of strength in regard of the Afflictions Temptations Troubles and
and they that shall put their hands to the Plow and look back are not fit for the Kingdom of God Oh great is the danger of Apostacy but now without some considerable strength you will not be kept from failing and those failings will turn to fallings and those fallings to fallings away and at last falling into everlasting destruction Now these fallings and fallings away do usually follow this want of spiritual strength not being strengthened with strength in our souls But may be you will say to me What course must we take that we may get this spiritual strength in our souls I answer briefly make use of these rules and helps First Be very sensible of your weakness and infirmity be humble be base in your own eyes be nothing in your selves that you may be able to say In Jesus Christ have I righteousness and strength Isa 45.24 It was a sweet Meditation of Saint Augustin Lord I will be weak in my self that I may be strong in thee And the Apostle hath such a phrase For when I am weak then am I strong 2 Cor. 12.10 that is when I am most weak in my self then am I most strong in a Saviour Secondly If you would have this strength in your souls be acting the Grace which you have received already for action increaseth strength and strength will help action forwards the more you are doing duty the more will you gather strength to do duty It was the Motto of an eminent Divine in this Nation now with God The way to Holiness lyes in the works of Holiness so the way to get spiritual strength lyes in doing the work you have to do with that strength you have use strength and you shall have more strength Thirdly If you would have strength in your souls grow especially in corroborating and strengthening Graces What are those strengthning Graces 1. Faith that is a very strengthning Grace you read of the strength of Faith Abraham was strong in Faith and that made him do great things that he could against hope believe in hope that is against hope of sense believe in hope of a promise Rom. 4.18 so be strong in Love Love to Jesus Christ Love is a very strengthening Grace Love is strong as death Cant. 8.6 7 Death you know is so strong that it hath conquered all men that ever were in the World never was there any Gyant so strong but could be conquered by Death there is no discharge in that War the meaning is this never any man encountred with Death that came off but Love is stronger than Death If thy heart be fired with Love to Jesus Christ it will carry you with a great deal of strength through all difficulties and sufferings with patience and perseverance 3. Again Get more sincerity Job 17.9 The righteous also shall hold on his way and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger Oh the more sincere you are the more strong you are For example Wherein consists the strenth of a Pillar it is in the uprightness of it if it begins to bow and bend and be crooked then it falls but the uprightness of it is the strength of it 4. Joy Joy that is another strengthening Grace Nehem. 8.10 Neither be ye sorry for the joy of the Lord shall be your strength Oh the more inward joy in the Holy Ghost you have the more chearful you are the more strong you are grow in these strengthening Graces Fourthly Would you have this strength in your souls then take heed of rushing into any known sin for sin as it wounds the conscience it weakens the soul also sins against conscience are like a thief in the Candle which weakens our strength and wasts our joy Nothing weakned Sampson so much as his sporting with his Dalilah Never had he lost his strength had it not been for his running into that sin take heed therefore of sins against conscience Fifthly If you would have strength in your souls take heed of evil company shun them as a Pest-house for many times evil company weakens the soul more than any outward temptation Psal 119.115 Depart from me ye wicked for I will keep the Commandements of my God It is as if he should say he could never set about the work of Obedience so long as he kept company with the wicked Sixthly If you would have strength in your souls then get more intimate and bosom-communion with Jesus Christ every day for the truth is all our strength is from him I am able to do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me Phil. 4.13 The more you are acquainted with Christ the more will you have of this strength which David here in the Text speaks of Lastly If you would have this strength be much in prayer that is an excellent Scripture Psal 119.28 My soul melteth away for heaviness strengthen thou me according to thy word Oh the more we are in Prayer and Care and Watchfulness and Humility and Self-denial and in the exercise of Grace the more we shall find our spiritual strength increased then we shall experimentally say with David Thou hast strengthened me with strength in my soul LIGHT DISCOVERED AND MAN RECOVERED A SERMON Preach'd Augst 17. 1656. 2 Tim. 1.10 the latter part of the Verse And hath brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel THE Apostle in the beginning of this Chapter exhorting Timothy to a faithful discharge of his Ministerial Calling puts in this weighty caution in the 8 verse Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord nor of me his prisoner but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the Gospel according to the power of God that is be not ashamed of the Gospel that he calls there the Testimony of our Lord Jesus Though it may be thou maist meet with afflictions and oppositions in the profession of it yet seeing these afflictions are but sufferings for the Gospel-sake therefore bear them patiently it is better that thou shouldest suffer than that the Gospel should suffer This Caution or Exhortation the Apostle presses from an Argument drawn from the unspeakable benefit and advantage that comes streaming to us by the Gospel namely Eternal life and that the Apostle might be rightly understood he lays down the three causes of this Eternal life or Salvation First The principal and moving cause of this Salvation that is the Grace of God in the foregoing verse ver 9. Who hath saved us and called us with a holy calling not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began Secondly He lays down the meritorious cause of our salvation that is the Lord Jesus Christ who hath merited this salvation by dying for us in the middle part of the 10th verse who hath abolished death that is who hath taken away the sting and curse of Death Thirdly He lays down the instrumental cause of our salvation that is the
the Gospel may be said to increase a mans curse and condemnation Whereas now the Law in its own nature is said to be a killing Letter because it leaves a man in a state of death and leaves him under a curse and does not shew him the way at all â—ow to avoid that curse as the Gospel does therefore the Apostle says The Law is a killing Letter of it self but the Spirit giveth life 2 Cor. 3.6 because in the preaching of the Gospel the Spirit of God is conveyed into our souls which enables us in some acceptable manner to perform what the Gospel enjoyns and thus you have the Point opened to you That the knowledg of Life and Immortality that Eternal Salvation that is laid up for the Saints in light is discovered and revealed by the Preaching of the Gospel For the Use of the Point now And the first is by way of Information and there are four Doctrinal Inferences or Lessons that we may learn fron this point thus opened 1. See how infinitely we stand indebted and ingaged to our gracious God that hath lookt upon us here in this Nation and in this City who hath brought us into the fellowship of th Gospel and hath kept us in that fellowship for so many years together Oh that we should live under the showres and Sun-shine of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ for almost a hundred years together without interruption What a singular mercy is this if we did but know how to prize it He hath scarce dealt so with any Nation under Heaven as he hath dealt with us What did God see more in us than in Turks Indians and Pagans that never heard of God nor Gospel He foresaw how we would despise this precious Pearl and how we would be ready to trample it under foot God foresaw how weary we would be of those glorious Gospel-mysteries that are discovered to us from day to day yet it did not hinder him from bestowing this precious Jewel upon us therefore not to us not to us but to his own Name be the Glory 2. A second Lesson we may learn by way of inference is this If the knowledg of eternal life be discovered in the Gospel then it follows Where-ever God hath a Church planted or a Church to be planted there will still be need of a powerful quickning soul-searching Ministry for the discovery and making known the Mysteries of Salvation The publick preaching Ministry of the Gospel is that standing Ordinance that must continue in the Church of Jesus Christ so long as he hath a Church here upon earth and this appears by that of the Apostle Ephes 4.11 12 13 And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers for the prefecting of the Saints for the work of the Ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ How long till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledg of the Son of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ That is to the end of the World God will have a standing Ministry where-ever he hath a Church planted or to be planted God will have a Gospel standing Ministry till all the Saints be gathered If this be so then how justly are they to be reproved that think that a Gospel-ministry of all other things may be best spared if there be any such here mark what I say You could ill want any of the four Elements Earth Air Fire or Water You could ill want Salt Bread Drink Cloathing let me tell you a Gospel-ministry is as needful as any of these I have named as Earth Air Fire Water as Salt Bread Drink Cloathing for does not Solomon say Prov. 29.18 Where there is no vision the people perish and would you have your souls perish everlastingly Is not our soul worth a whole World It was a noble speech of Luther It were better that the whole World were in a Combustion and Confusion than that the Gospel should not be preached or that any one soul that belongs to Jesus Christ should be neglected And it was spoken concerning Chrysostom who was a famous Light in the Church It was better that the Sun should not shine than that Chrysostom should not preach and it was a witty observation of a Father speaking concerning the beheading of John Baptist Herod took off John Baptists head because of the promise he made to the Damosel Whatever she ask'd him to the half of his Kingdom should be granted says that Father speaking of this passage Herod might have kept his promise though he had not taken off John Baptists head for he promised the Damosel to give her to the half of his Kingdom But now says he John Baptists head was worth a whole Kingdom Pray tell me you that have slight thoughts of the Gospel or of a Gospel-ministry Does not the Scripture compare Ministers to Planters to Builders to Fathers to Remembrancers to Stars to spiritual Guides and to a City upon a Hill and the like If ever you be trees of Righteousness in Gods Garden it is a Ministry that hath planted you and if ever you be spiritual stones in Gods everlasting Building it must be the Ministry must build you if ever you be Sons and Daughters begotten to eternal Life it is the Ministry must beget you For in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel 1 Cor. 4.15 says the Apostle and if ever your seet be guided into the way that leads into everlasting life it is a Gospel-ministry must guide you and if ever you be led to Jesus Christ as the Wise-men were by the Star in the East when Christ was born in Betlehem it must be these spiritual Stars that are in the firmament of Gods Church that must lead you Now judg in your selves therefore whether a Gospel-ministry can be spared 3. The third Doctrinal inference is this If the knowledg of eternal Salvation comes by the Gospel then it teacheth us this Lesson also How infinitely it does concern us to prize and fruitfully to improve our Gospel-seasons those opportunities God puts into our hands for the enriching of our souls but especially we should improve our Sabbath-day opportunities because Sabbaths are the Market-days of Eternity the Markets wherein we must make provision for Eternity Oh how careful should we be to improve these Gospel-seasons Let me tell you Gospel-seasons are very precious seasons because marvellous precious things are tendred to you in the preaching of the Gospel more precious than all the Gold of Ophir more precious than all the Kingdoms of the World if they were in your own power for in the preaching of the Gospel a precious Christ who is the Pearl of price worth ten thousand thousand Worlds and more worth this precious Christ this Pearl of Price may now be obtained and a precious Covenant a Covenant made between God and the soul this precious Covenant may
carries them in his Bosom and gently Leads them and accordingly there are these two Points of Doctrine that are most eminently and clearly held forth in the Text. Doct. 1. That Jesus Christ is that Blessed Shepherd that is able both to feed and protect his People here and to give them eternal Life hereafter Doct. 2. That the Lord Jesus Christ in his carriage towards his People hath a tender respect to their Infirmities I begin with the first Doctrine The Lord Jesus Christ is that blessed Shepherd that is abundantly able to feed and protect his People here and to give them eternal life hereafter For the proof of this Doctrine take two or three Scriptures in Joh. 10.11 I am the good Shepherd the good Shepherd giveth his life for the Sheep and in Heb. 13.20 He is called the great Shepherd of the Sheep Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus that great Shepherd of the Sheep through the blood of the everlasting Covenant c. And he is called the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls in 1 Pet. 2.20 For ye were as sheep going astray but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls so that doubtless Jesus Christ is the most blessed the best the greatest the sweetest Shepherd that ever was as will appear by these four reasons First Because he hath the greatest care over them Secondly Because he hath the greatest love to his Sheep Thirdly Beeause he hath the greatest power that ever Shepherd had Fourthly Because he hath the greatest reward for them that can possibly be bestowed First Jesus Christ hath the greatest care over his Sheep for he seeks them when they are lost I come says he to seek and to save those which were lost Luk. 1.9 20 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost And he gathers them from the ends of the world he fetches them from all corners of the earth there is not one of his sheep that is not one that belongs to the election of grace but in what place soever he be though among Pagans Heathens and Infidels of what condition soever he be whether high or low rich or poor noble or ignoble of what calling or employment soever As some will be ready to complain and say I am lockt up under a Calling I would be better if my Calling would let me I but there is not one of Christs sheep that belongs to the election of Grace though he be lockt up under a Calling but the Lord Jesus Christ will seek him out in what condition or Calling soever he be That 's the first reason He hath the greatest care over his sheep to gather them into his Fold 2dly Because he hath the greatest love to his sheep such love as the like was never heard of Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friend John 15.13 There cannot be greater love manifested than this but such love hath the Lord Jesus Christ he hath laid down his life that good Shepherd laid down his life for his sheep as in the forenamed place John 10.11 I am the good Shepherd the good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep You know Jacob sheweth a great deal of love to his sheep in that as he tells you he was in the day-time parched with heat the drought consumed him and in the night-time pinched with frost and he broke his sleep many times to watch his sheep Gen. 31.40 My sleep says he departed from mine eyes That was great love but David shewed greater love to his Flocks Psal 78.70 he followed the Ewes great with young when God took him from the Sheepfolds to wield the Scepter And he shewed yet greater love to his Flock as he tells you in 1 Sam. 17.34 35 And David said unto Saul Thy servant kept his Fathers sheep and there came a Lion and a Bear and took a Lamb out of the stock and I went out after him smote him delivered it out of his mouth and when he arose against me I caught him by his beard and smote him and slew him thy servant slew both the Lion and the Bear David ventured very far he ventured his life for one Lamb of the Flock but Jesus Christ that blessed Shepherd did not only venture his life but he laid down his life for his sheep and he did not venture to grapple with an ordinary Lion but with that roaring Lion that walks about seeking whom he may devour Nay he did not only wrestle with that roaring Lion but with all the powers of darkness he wrestled with principalities and powers Nay he wrestled with the wrath of a sin-revenging God and all that he might save his poor sheep therefore never was there such a loving Shepherd as the Lord Jesus Christ That 's the second reason Thirdly He hath the greatest power and ability that ever Shepherd had for this is extraordinary that he makes all the sheep he hath all his sheep are the workmanship of his hands Psalm 100.3 Know ye that the Lord he is God it is he that hath made us and not we our selves we are his people and the sheep of his pasture He hath that power that he can do whatsoever pleaseth him in heaven and in earth All power in heaven and carth is given to him Matth. 26.18 He hath that power that he is able to deliver his sheep from the gates of hell He hath said that the gates of hell shall not prevail against them Matth. 16.18 He hath that power that he can do that for his sheep that all the world and all the Princes in the world cannot do for them and therefore he must needs be the best Shepherd That 's the third reason Fourthly He hath the greatest reward also to bestow upon every one of his sheep Alas his sheep give nothing to him My goodness does not extend to thee Psalm 16.2 We can bestow nothing upon this blessed Shepherd he hath no need of any thing we have I but he bestows a very rich portion upon his sheep a glorious reward he feeds them he cloaths them he protects them here in this world and gives them eternal life hereafter First This blessed Shepherd feeds all his sheep he feeds them first by his Word and then by his Sacraments He feeds them by his Word by sending his Messengers as under-Shepherds to feed his Flock It is a Gospel-promise that in Jer. 3.15 I will give you Pastors according to my own heart which shall feed you with knowledg and understanding And it was one end of our Saviours ascention into Heaven and a great blessing we have by it he ascended into heaven that he might give gists unto men Ephes 4.8 11 12 13 verses Wherefore he saith when he ascended up on high he led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men and he gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and
some Pastors and Teachers for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the Ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ He gave gifts to men he did not only give extraordinary gifts such as Apostles and Prophets and Evangelists but ordinary gifts to Pastors and Teachers for the building up of his own body And as he feeds his sheep with his Word so with his Sacraments and here is such feeding as you did never hear the like for this blessed Shepherd feeds his sheep with his own flesh and blood his own flesh that was crucified to satisfie Divine Justice and his own blood that was shed to quench the fire of Gods wrath that was kindled against them this is that our Saviour tells you of in John 6.51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven if any man eat of this bread he shall live for ever and the bread which I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world And in Revel 1.5 He hath loved us and washt us from our sins in his blood As they say of the Pelican when her young ones are ready to die she opens her breast with her bill and feeds them with her blood so the Lord Jesus Christ feeds every one of his sheep with his flesh and blood Again He feeds the souls of his sheep with the graces of his own blessed Spirit as Faith Repentance Love Humility Sincerity and the like which are spiritual food suitable to the spiritual nature of the soul So he feeds his sheep with the Promises which are said to be breasts of consolation Isa 66.11 That ye may suck and be satisfied with the breasts of consolation that ye may milk out and be delighted with the abundance of her glory With the breasts of consolation that is with the precious promises And this is that which that good King Hezekiah intended in that speech of his Isa 38.16 Oh Lord by these things men live and in all these things is the life of my spirit so wilt thou recover me and make me to live These precious promises made good to my soul by these do men live and these are the life of my Spirit Thus you see how this blessed Shepherd feeds his Sheep But yet more He does not only feed his Sheep but he gives them Stomachs also look as it is in point of knowledg we are not able to see him of our selves we cannot see him without him for he is our Light and as in point of performance we are not able to believe on him nor come unto him without him for he is our strength so here neither can we feed on Jesus Christ nor the promises nor the graces of his Spirit until he gives us a mouth to taste these things therefore the Apostle exhorts us as new-born Babes desire the sincere Milk of the word that we may grow thereby if so be we have tasted that the Lord is gracious as if he should have said You cannot feed unless you have tasted of this blessed Saviour 1 Pet. 2.2 3. Secondly As he feeds so he cloaths his Sheep here amongst men the Sheep cloaths the Shepherd the Fleece of the sheep cloaths the Shepherd But here this blessed Shepherd cloaths every one of his Sheep he cloaths them with costly raiment indeed Ezck. 16.10 11 12 I cloathed thee also with broidered work and shod thee with Badgers skin and I girded thee about with fine linnen and I covered thee with Silk I decked thee also with ornaments and I put bracelets upon thy hands and a Chain upon thy neck and I put a Jewel on thy forehead and ear-rings in thine ears and a beautiful Crown upon thy head thus wast thou decked with Gold and Silver and thy rayment was of fine Linnen and Silk and broidred work Therefore it is that you read that the Apostle bids us to put on the Lord Jesus Christ Rom. 13.14 He cloaths us with the Robe of his own Righteousness He covers us with the garments of Salvation as a Brridegroom decketh himself with Ornaments and as a Bride adorneth her self with her Jewels Isa 61.10 Thirdly He does protect his Sheep and watcheth over them from Morning to Evening he hath his eye continually upon them therefore David speaking of the Lord being his Shepherd then says he Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for thou art with me thy Rod and thy Staff they comfort me Psal 23.4 Fourthly and lastly He gives to his Sheep Eternal Life John 10.28 And I give unto my Sheep Eternal Life and they shall never perish neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand Thus you have the Point opened That Jesus Christ is that Blessed Shepherd who is abundantly able to feed and protect his People here and to give them Eternal Life hereafter because he hath the greatest Care over them the greatest Love to them the greatest Power that ever Shepherd had and the greatest Reward to give them that can possibly be bestowed Now for the Uses of this Point and they are three by way of Instruction Examination or Tryal and Exhortation First By way of Instruction Oh see the Blessed the Happy the Comfortable Condition of all those that have a part and interest in the Lord Jesus Christ this Blessed Shepherd what tongue of Men or Angels is able to express the happy and blessed condition of that man that hath gotten Jesus Christ for his Portion such a one shall be sure of Food of Cloathing of Protection of Joy of Comfort of Happiness of Eternal Life and what not Oh how may that soul dance for joy that hath gotten Jesus Christ to be his Shepherd surely it is a comfortable and heart-chearing meditation in these turbulent and stormy times when the Church of God hath so many enemies and so sew friends when the Antichristian Faction roars against the little Flock of this blessed Shepherd like so many Bears to devour them here is the comfort Jesus Christ sticks as close to his Flock as ever David did to his Flock when the Lyon and the Bear came to make a prey of them Fear not little Flock says our Saviour it is your Fashers good pleasure to give you a Kingdom Luk. 12.32 As he said when he was sailing in the Boat with Cesar the Boatman beginning to be afraid because of the tempestuousness of the waters Fear not man thou carriest Cesar and all his Fortunes with him so may it be said of every one that hath Jesus Christ in the Boat with him Let him not fear true indeed the Ship wherein Christ and his Sheep are may be tossed but it can never be over-turned because the Shepherd and Pilot are in it therefore happy is the condition of all those that have an interest in this Blessed Shepherd But on the contrary Oh the deplorable and desperate condition of all those that have not Jesus Christ for their Shepherd
is born of God and knoweth God He that loveth not knoweth not God for God is love And in ver 12 If we love one another God dwelleth in us and his love is perfected in us 2. We may know the Spirit of God is bestowed upon us by constancy in our profession and stedfastness in the ways of truth this is one certain mark of the Spirit of God when a man can hold fast his profession and that without wavering can keep close to the truth How did Job approve himself to be one that belonged to God My foot hath held his steps saith he his way have I kept and not declined Job 23.11 And how did David prove himself to be one of his sheep I have chosen the way of truth and I have stuck unto thy testimonies Psal 119.30 31. That is a dreadful Scripture in John 2.9 Whosoever transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God He speaks of transgression in Judgment in running into corrupt Opinions and he that abides not in the Doctrine of God but falls from the Truths of Christ he hath no part in God 3. By a zeal for Gods Glory his Cause his Truth especially in evil times That man that can stand up for God when others forsake him and sin againsthim that man that can be most zealous in maintaining of Gods Truth and can say with David in Psalm 69.9 The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me And Psalm 119.158 I beheld the transgressors and was grieved because they kept not thy word By this may we know the Spirit of God is in us 4. By sympathy and compassion towards our Brethren that are in afflictions and misery if one member suffer all the rest of the members suffer with it when we can sigh in their sorrows and bleed in their wounds and be affected with their miseries and calamities as if they were our own By these effects we may know whether we have received the mark of Christ that is the Spirit of Christ That is the first sign if you have received the Mark of Christ Secondly If thou be a Sheep of Christ thou art returned from thy former wandrings 1 Pet. 2.25 Ye were as sheep going astray but are now returned to the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls Canst thou say there hath been a work of Conversion wrought on thy soul Once thou wast unprofitable but now art profitable once thou wert wandring in the wilderness of sin but now thou art brought home to Jesus Christ Is there a work of Conversion wrought in thy soul canst not thou say now I am not the same man I was the same woman I was Certainly if there be a returning from your ways of wandring and walking in paths of new obedience and keeping in the Fold of Christ then you are the Sheep of Christ Thirdly If thou be a Sheep of Jesus Christ thou mayst know it by thy carriage towards thy Shepherd if thou art a Sheep of Christ thou wilt know thy Shepherd thou wilt know and see so much sweetness fulness and all-sufficiency in him that thou wilt say None but Christ none but Christ thou wilt count all things but dross and dung in comparison of Christ Thirdly Thou wilt hear his voice My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me John 10.27 Now to hear the voice of Christ is to be able to discern his voice from the voice of strangers The Spouse was able to discern the voice of her Beloved Cant. 2.8 The voice of my Beloved The great work he was to do was to work out redemption for me he was to do and suffer much but all could not daunt him But he comes leaping on the mountains and skipping on the hills Then they follow him Christ sheep have not only the Ear-mark to hear his voice but also the foot-mark they follow him whithersoever he goes when Christ calls them they say Lo here we are They follow him by imitating him in his Patience Meekness Humility c. And if thou wilt study how to be like him that thou mayst be made more and more conformable to his Image by thy carriage towards thy Shepherd thou mayst know if thou art his Sheep thou wilt know him hear his voice follow him and labour to be made conformable to him A fourth mark whereby thou mayst know whether thou art a Sheep of Jesus Christ is this Thou mayst know it by thy carriage towards the Flock that is towards thy fellow Servants towards those that are the members of Jesus Christ It is observed of Sheep that they are the most profitable creatures you can name so if thou be a sheep of Jesus Christ thou wilt not be an unprofitable burthen in thy station but thou wilt be fruitful in thy place and profitable to others 1 Cor. 10.33 Even as I please all men in all things not seeking my own profit but the profit of many that they may be saved And sheep as they are profitable so they are innocent and harmless creatures they wrong they injure none so if thou be one of the sheep of Christ thou wilt be harmless Phil. 2.15 That ye may be blameless and harmless the sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse Nation The Greek word for Harmless is there 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies without Horns not pushing one another if you be the sheep of Christ you will dearly love one another but if you bite and devour one another you are Dogs and not Sheep Fifthly Sheep are contented with their Pasture Oh! if thou be a sheep of Jesus Christ thou wilt bless God in any state and condition whatsoever thou art in thou wilt say If I have gotten Jesus Christ no matter how poor and low and despicable my condition on earth be Sixthly Sheep usually are united one to another they go in Flocks and Herds they do not willingly forsake one another If thou be a sheep of Christ thou wilt keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace Ephes 4.3 Thou wilt not forsake the assembly of Gods Saints Heb. 10.25 Oh my Brethren you should labour to find these sneepmarks upon your souls A third Use it is for Exhortation If Jesus Christ be the blessed Shepherd as you have heard him described that hath the greatest care and love and power and reward Oh! what an invitation might this be to every one to come to Jesus Christ and to stand out no longer many perswasions have been tendered to you many hundred times and yet some of you never brought home to Jesus Christ to this day Oh that this might be that blessed day wherein Jesus Christ and some wandring sheep may be brought together Consider who calls thee it is not a Judg but a Shepherd and consider why he calls not to hurt but to heal thee not to kill but to cure thee not to
punish but to pity thee Oh think therefore with thy self that thou hearest the Lord Jesus Christ to use a homely Phrase as it were whistling after thee as he doth in the ministry of his word sometimes he comes with secret whisperings sometimes he comes openly whistling speaking calling crying in the ears of sinners Oh do but think that thou heardst the Lord Jesus Christ calling and crying after thee Why wilt thou die and perish Why wilt thou be lost when thou mayst have a Saviour Oh but says the poor soul I fear I fear that I am so diseased and that the Lord Jesus Christ will not look upon me Remember that this Shepherd is compared to a Shepherd that hath healing under his wings Mal. 4.2 But says the soul I am afraid I have so displeased him he will never own me Remember he is a meek gentle and compassionate Saviour There are two things that make men afraid and they are Pride and Fury these are not in Christ I am meek and lowly says he Matth. 11.29 and fury is not in me But I am lost says the poor sheep Jesus Christ will seek that that is lost but if I do come will he certainly own me and look upon me I answer Look upon that comfortable Scripture Luke 15.4 5 6 What man of you having a hundred sheep if he lose one of them doth not leave the Ninety and nine in the Wilderness and go after that which is lost until he find it and when he hath found it he layeth it on his shoulders rejoycing and when he cometh home he calleth together his friends and neighbours saying unto them Rejoyce with me for I have found my sheep which was lost There are three or four things very observable in that Parable which I would have every poor sinner that is afraid to come to Christ to look upon First Observe the Shepherd he leaves ninety and nine in the Wilderness and goes and seeks after that one sheep that is lost Observe if there be but one sheep lost or missing the Lord Jesus Christ bestows as much pains and care in seeking that one sheep as if that all the sheep were lost there was but one sheep missing yet he hath so much care of that one that he leaves all the ninety and nine to seek that The Lord Jesus Christ hath so much care of every one of his sheep as if he had but one sheep to care for as the Sun for example would shine upon the world though there were but one man in it to shine upon so this blessed Son of righteousness if but one sheep be lost he seeks after that one Secondly Observe the Shepherd there seeks the sheep before ever the sheep seek the Shepherd The Lord Jesus prevents us with his mercies we cannot seek him till he first seeks us Psalm 119. v. last you have Davids Prayer I have gone astray like a lost sheep seek thy servant for I do not forget thy commandements Thirdly Observe when he hath found this sheep he carries it upon his shoulders or as the Text tells you he carries his lambs in his arms and gathers them in his bosom Mark this and let it sink into your hearts never did any man upon earth go to heaven any other way but upon the shoulders of Jesus Christ never was sheep saved but only by being embraced in the arms of this blessed Shepherd Fourthly Observe the Shepherd rejoyceth when he hath found the sheep he rejoyceth to find this one lost sheep observe this for thy comfort thou that art a poor wandring sheep discouraged from coming to Jesus Christ observe the Lord Jesus Christ will be more glad in receiving and entertaining thee than thou canst be in receiving him You see he rejoyceth that he hath found this one lost sheep Oh therefore be exhorted in Gods fear to stand out no longer but you that have not yet closed with Jesus Christ come to this Shepherd that whatsoever your diseases and maladies may be they may be all removed and your souls saved But may be you will say how shall we do to come to this Shepherd that so we may be saved by him I answer briefly That man that would come to Christ he must resolve First That he will flye out of himself and renounce all self-confidence and self-excellency and self-righteousness he that would come to Christ he must come poor come in the sense of his own poverty come like a poor distressed sheep without a Shepherd he must come in the sense and feeling of his own wants and weakness The Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost Matth. 18 1â— Luke 19.10 Lost we are lost by nature therefore Christ came to save all no that is not the meaning but he came to save those that feel themselves lost thou must be sensible of thine own spiritual want thou must be spiritually poor or poor in spirit Secondly Learn to see so much beauty and excellency in him that thou canst be content to part with any thing for him any thing that stands in competition with him or opposition against him let all go and say I would have Jesus Christ whatever I part with for his sake Again Be sure you hearken to the voice of Christ if thou wouldst have him for thy Shepherd John 10.4 5 And when he putteth forth his own sheep he goeth before them and his own sheep follow him for they know his voice and a stranger they will not follow but will flee from him for they know not the voice of strangers If thou art a sheep of Jesus Christ thou wilt learn the voice of Christ and not be seduced and led away with the error of the wicked to fall from your own stedfastness When Theodosius the Emperour desired to have some conference with Arius the Heretick the Empress perswaded him not to talk and confer with such a Heretick that was so envious for says she by hearing of him you may be perverted by his words and so insnared in his cursed opinion This was excellent counsel Lastly You must come to Christ in a way of Obedience you must take up a resolution to obey this blessed Shepherd The same Hebrew word that signifies to feed signifies to rule if Christ feed thee in his Pastures he must rule thee Vnite my heart to thee that I may fear thy name Psal 86.11 But what would you have me do Come with a full purpose and cleave to this Shepherd and never to leave him Do as the Disciples of Christ in John 6.67 68 Then said Jesus unto the Twelve Will ye also go away Then Simon Peter answered him Lord to whom shall we go thou hast the words of eternal life Oh that we had such a resolution as Peter had not only to say so but to do so Matt. 26.33 Though all men shall be offended because of thee yet will I never be offended Master though all forsake thee yet will we believe
of grapes if there be but one cluster If there be but one Cherry on a tree it shews there is some life in the tree one Cherry upon a tree it shews there is life as well as if there was twenty Pounds upon it one Cherry shews that it is a living tree and a man will not cut down that tree The Lord Christ will cherish the least beginnings of grace if there be but a spark of grace in the soul he will not quench it but blow it up into a flame Look as Physicians deal with diseased Patients they do not administer purging Potions according to the greatness of their distempers but according to the strength of their Patients So the Lord Jesus Christ deals with his own children not according to the diseases and distempers that are in them not according to the distempers of their sins but according to the measure of their strength he will not lay on them more than he will give them strength to bear These are the reasons of the point Before I come to the Application of the point Because this is Childrens bread and Dogs are ready to snatch at it that yet have no right to it therefore for the explication of the point there are these three Quaeries that would be satisfied First What an Infirmity is Secondly What are the causes of those Infirmities Thirdly What are the signs and symptoms of those Infirmities First What an Infirmity is An infirmity briefly in the soul is this Some sickness or indisposition of the soul that arises from the weakness of grace Or an Infirmity is this When the purpose and inclination of the heart is upright but a man wants strength to perform that purpose when the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak Matth. 26.41 when a man can say with the Apostle To will is present with me but how to perform that which is good I find not Rom. 7.18 When the bent and inclination of the soul is right but either through some violence of corruption or strength of temptation a man is diverted and turned out of the way As the needle in the Seamans Compass you know if it be right it will stand always Northward and the bent of it will be towards the North-Pole being jogged and troubled it may sometimes be put out of frame and order yet the bent and inclination of it is still Northward This is an infirmity That 's the first Secondly What are the causes of these Infirmities there are divers causes you must know of our infirmities as First An infirmity may arise from want of age for want of time to gather strength The Lord Christ you must know hath Lambs in his Fold as well as Sheep and he hath plants in his Orchard as well as stronger Trees and Babes as well as strong Men. Now says the Apostle I write to you Babes and little Children because your sins are pardoned for his name-sake 1 John 2.12 Observe there that remission of sin is bestowed not only upon young men that are strong to resist temptations not only upon aged men that are well experienced in the ways of grace but it is bestowed even upon Babes I write unto you little Children because your sins are pardoned for his name-sake Secondly Our infirmities may arise also from a want of the means of grace either when men want milk or the sincere milk of the word 1 Pet. 2.2 or have but little of it Thirdly Infirmities may arise from some secret corruption that was undiscovered in our first conversion This may be an occasion of an infirmity for that may both weaken the soul and exceedingly distemper and disquiet it Fourthly Our infirmities may arise from forsaking sound and solid truths and disquieting our thoughts with doubtful disputations as the Apostle calls them Rom. 14.1 when men trouble their heads with trifles or with matters of less moment and in the mean while neglect the marrow of Religion even as little Children that forsake wholsome food and feed on green apples and so put their bodies into distempers Fifthly Our infirmities may arise from this when our affections are too much carried out after the World and the things of the World for certain it is look how much the soul is carried out after the world so much the weaker it is the stronger our love to the world is the weaker is our love to Jesus Christ and to grace and spiritual things Sixthly Our infirmities may arise from the not right ordering of our company dead company dead and barren company many times make dead and barren hearts Seventhly Our infirmities may arise from our losing our first love remitting of the zeal and intention and forwardness that once we had in the ways of grace when we grow loose and slothful in the service of our God and do not stir up the grace of God that is in us 2 Tim. 1.6 Exercise you know encreaseth strength but want of exercise many times occasions weakness When a man prays coldly hears the word of God coldly communicates at the Lords Table coldly The more coldness there is in the performance of the Duties of Religion the more weakness there will be in the soul These are the causes of our infirmities Thirdly It may be demanded What are the signs and symptoms of an Infirmity briefly I shall give you these four First Where there are infirmities there is spiritual life though there be want of spiritual strength this is a certain sign of an infirmity You know there is a great deal of difference between a dead man and a weak man a dead man that hath not life and a weak man that hath life and wants strength It cannot be said of any wicked man that he is a weak man but he is a dead man neither can it be said that he does any thing weakly but he does it wickedly Observe what our Saviour speaks of a bruised reed he speaks of it as a thing that yet hath some life in it for a reed though it be exceeding weak that it is shaken with every wind yet by the side of the water it grows it hath life in it Make this sure to thy self that thou hast life in thee or else the comfort of this Doctrine cannot belong to thee if so be thou hast life in thee though thy Grace be weak yet if thou hast life it is but an infirmity But you will say How may I know I have life in me I answer You may know it thus First Thou mayst know it by thy spiritual feeling thou wilt feel what hurts thee thou wilt feel sin to be a great burthen and thou wilt groan under it and thou wilt bemoan thy self like Ephraim Jer. 31.18 I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus Thou hast chastised me and I was chastised as a Bullock unaccustomed to the yoak turn thou me and I shall be turned for thou art the Lord my God surely after that I was turned I repented and after that
other Fourthly He that sins through infirmity will still keep his conjugal love to Jesus Christ and although some failings in him may work a kind of estrangement between Christ and his soul yet notwithstanding his heart will still cleave to the Lord Jesus Christ and this appears thus Because he will chuse no other Husband he will chuse no other Saviour for all this but he would rejoyce with all his heart if he might be but reconciled to Jesus Christ though there hath been some unkindness between Christ and him He says I will return to my first Husband for then was it better with me than now Hos 2.7 and he is grieved for the unevenness of his carriage towards so sweet a Husband us he hath been to him If there be such a disposition in you to hold fast your conjugal love to Jesus Christ and still keep close to him though there may be some unkindness yet thou pitchest on no other Husband certainly this is but an infirmity But says the poor soul Can that be an infirmity that cleaves to me all my days that I have been vext and perplext with twenty thirty years together I answer Possibly there may be such infirmities cleave to Gods children As for example some deadness in duties dulness and deadness in hearing the Word it may be slipperiness of memory or forgetfulness of the words we have heard or it may be some strong corruption which is like a thorn in the flesh which the Lord Jesus hath left in thee to humble thee and to make thee base in thy own eyes all thy days But it may be then you will object and say How then will this stand with the Doctrine you delivered even now you made it a mark or token of spiritual life That Grace will prevail against corruption that the Government of the Lord Jesus Christ would be victorious I answer True Grace will be victorious at last but I do not say it will be all at once but it will be by degrees and it is some kind of victory and conquest over corruption when it is subdued though it be not quite extinguished if it be weakned and abated though it be not destroyed when a man can feelingly cry out of it as the Apostle did O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death and he breaks out and says thanks be to God through Jesus Christ Rom. 7.25 Secondly I answer God sometimes works by contraries God is carrying on the work of Grace in his Children when corruptions seem to be thriving and growing when God means to give his Children victory he suffers them to be foyled first the work of Grace in the heart sometimes goes backwards that it may go forwards As the Seed that is sown in the Field it rots in the ground before it springs and grows Sometimes you must know that God will strengthen us by our very slippings he will have us learn to stand by our very falls and bruises he will have us to be strengthened by our weaknesses and infirmities he will have us to be deep-rooted by our shakings Our infirmities are the keepers of our Graces it makes us look more carefully to our own standings it is good therefore to observe the methods and manner of Gods dealing with our souls and to learn to live by faith be acting of faith in the business of our infirmities for as I have often told you The life of faith is in the use of faith so much as we use faith so much we live by it it is good for a man to live by faith in point of his infirmities and to say when I am foyled I shall have victory when I fall I shall arise when I am weak I am strong as the Church said Micah 7.8 Rejoyce not against me O mine enemy when I fall I shall arise when I sit in darkness the Lord shall be a light unto me Thus you have the explication of the point what an Infirmity is and what are the causes of it and what are the signs and symptoms of it For the use of the point 1. For Consolation 2. For Caution 3. For Exhortation First For Consolation because that is the principal use of the Text And O that I could speak not only to the ears but to the heart of any poor doubting drooping dejected soul O that this Doctrine might be as a box of ointment to comfort such an one to refresh him O that I eould but drop in some Consolation into any poor bruised soul that hears me this day that such an one might lift up those hands that hang down and feeble knees that tremble Isa 35.3 And this is the comfort I have to tender to thee That the Lord will not reject thee for an infirmity He carries his Lambs in his Arms and gathers them in his bosom poor weak ones he carries them in his bosom when it may be the Leg is broken and they are not able to go he gently leads those with young in all their fears doubts and disquietments about their Condition he hath a tender care of his Lambs of his weak ones If thou art but one of Christ Lambs know thus much for thy comfort that he hath a care of the poorest Lamb that is in his Flock if thou art a Plant in his Vineyard know that he hath a care of the tenderest Plant never was it known that a merciful and compassionate Father cast off a child because of his weakness many times it may be when the child is so sick and weak that it is not able to speak but only to say Father it may be it cannot speak out then the Bowels of the Father yearns towards him the more the weaker the child is and unable to speak the more his compassions are rowling towards him O let not our unbelief make Jesus Christ unnatural Do we think that Jesus Christ has less compassion toward his Lambs than Jacob had Jacob was such a Shepherd that he had such a tender care of his Lambs that says he if you over-drive the flocks the lambs will die and do you think that Jesus Christ is less sollicitous for the good of his But alas says the poor soul my infirmities discourage me they weaken my assurance and rob me of my peace and comfort I answer true it is infirmities do so but they should not do so and that they may not do so take these three or four Considerations First Consider in every infirmity as there is something against God so there is something also from God There is something against God that is true because our infirmities are not suitable to the holiness and strictness of his Law and therefore we should strive against them with prayer and care and watchfulness But as there is something against God so there is something also from God It may be he le ts loose those infirmities upon thee even like a Messenger of Satan to buffet thee to humble
thee to prove thee and to teach thee to prise Jesus Christ so much the more It may be God le ts loose these infirmities as the avenger of blood was let loose upon the man slayer to force the man slayer to fly to the City of Refuge Numb 35 so these infirmities are let loose to force thee to fly to Jesus Christ the Refuge of thy soul Some there are that was it not for strong infirmities cleaving to them strong temptations meeting with them would never be beholding to Jesus Christ at all Look therefore in every infirmity not only at the evil of it but at the good God intends by it it may be God intends good to thy soul by them Whereas we as he said once many times make plaisters to become a poyson the Lord is able on the contrary to make a plaister of poyson We many times bring sin out of Grace God can bring grace out of sin he can bring Heaven out of Hell therefore as there is something against God so there is something from God in our infirmities therefore we should not be discouraged because of them Secondly Consider the great difference between thy self when thou wast in a state of nature and now when thou art a weak Christian and subject to infirmities did not God reject thee at that time and cast thee off when thou wast an open Traitor and Rebel marching on in a course of rebellion against him did he not cast thee off but had compassion on thee and did pity thee and spare thee then certainly he will not now cast thee off for some unvoluntary errour which thou bewailest and mournest for in his presence Did the Lord seek thee at that time when thou despisedst him certainly then he will not despise thee when thou feekest him That is a good argument of the Apostle to strengthen and support and comfort drooping spirits Rom. 5.10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his life Certainly therefore God will not reject thee for an infirmity if he was so gracious to thee in thy state of sin and enmity to him there is as great a difference between a state of grace and a state of nature as there is between Heaven and Hell though grace be never so weak and imperfect Thirdly Consider the great danger of being pluckt away from Jesus Christ by giving too much way to despondency Satans main drift and great plot is to drive thee away from Jesus Christ by thy infirmities he labours to bring thee to despond and despair and to say there is no hope for thee because Satan knows the more he draws thee from Jesus Christ the weaker thou wilt be Thy infirmities should not drive thee from Christ but they should drive thee to Christ to improve and make use of his gracious disposition in helping and healing thee in thy miseries and distresses Fourthly Consider what may be the causes of thy infirmities those infirmities will be cured in the causes For example if thy infirmities arise from want of age or time to gather strength that will be cured because the path of the just is as a shining light that shineth more and more to the perfect day Prov. 4.18 Or if from want of the means of grace or because the means of grace thou enjoyest are not such as others enjoy the Lord in such cases will have a tender respect to thee and measure to thee not according to what thou hast but according to what thou wouldst have Again if thy infirmities arise from some corruption that was not discovered to thee at thy first conversion thou must then pray and beg that the Lord would discover thy self to thy self more and more Again if thou hast forsaken some old truths of God and art grown weary of them and hankerest after Novelties and new Opinions then return from thy wandrings and prize solid meat above kickshaws beg that thy soul may taste once again the sweetness of Gospel-truths In a word what ever the cause of your infirmities be get the disease healed in the cause get thy heart more weaned from the World and stir up thy self to take hold of God remember thy former zeal and repent and do thy first works and this is the way to get thy infirmities healed That 's the first Use a Use of Comfort and Consolation The second Use is a Use of Caution The Lord Jesus Christ as you have heard hath a tender respect to his people a tender care of his people in respect of their infirmities let not a wicked man then apply this to himself and say the Lord Christ will have a tender respect to me that go on in the course of sin that live in sin and lye in sin and sleep in sin and wallow in sin No for there is a great deal of difference between the weakness of a Lamb and the wickedness of a Wolf the Lord Jesus Christ pities his Lambs for their weakness but he doth not pity a Wolf for his wickedness that is that man who is resolved to go on in a course of sin say a Minister what he can to the contrary if he is dead in trespasses and sins if he hath no spiritual life in him if there be no work of grace begun in him all that I have said concerning Christs tender care of his peoples infirmities doth not belong to him he hath no part in this Inheritance if thou beest a Wolf and not a Lamb the Lord Christ that hath a tender care of his Lambs will be sure to meet thee not as a Shepherd that carries his Lambs in his Arms but he will meet thee as a Lion Hosea 13.7 8 Therefore I will be unto them as a Lyon as a Leopard by the way will I observe them I will meet them as a Bear that is bereaved of her Whelps and I will rent the caul of their heart and there will I devour them like a Lyon the wild beasts shall tear them The same Christ that is a Shepherd to his People he knows how to be a Lyon a Leopard and a Bear to his Enemies That is an awakening Scripture Psalm 68.21 But God shall wound the head of his enemies and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in his trespasses If therefore thou art one that goest on in thy trespasses in an unreformed course if thou livest in sin and settest thy heart on wickedness and takest pleasure therein this doctrine doth not belong to thee thou art not a Lamb in Christs account he will not deal tenderly with thee nay he will deal most roughly with thee his wrath and fury will be powred out upon thee as the Prophet speaks That 's the second Use of Caution Lastly A word of Exhortation If the Lord Jesus Christ hath such a tender respect in his carriage to the infirmities of his People O then resolve to have no other
Master but the Lord Jesus Christ be under the conduct of no other Shepherd but only this O hear him fear him and follow him follow him whithersoever he goes follow him how by depending on him for direction by cleaving to him in heart and life follow him by imitation follow him by hearkning to his voice follow him by being ruled by him as before you are directed seeing he is the Lord over his own House let him Rule in his House let thy soul be his Temple wherein he may delight to dwell say Lord Rule in me as thou pleasest so I may but be thine Happy are they that are under the Government of Jesus Christ happy are they that submit themselves to his Guidance and Direction to his Law and his Spirit certainly such shall find him a merciful a meek a compassionate a tender-hearted Saviour who gathers his Lambs in his Arms and carries them in his Bosom and gently leads those that are with young Walking in Christ the Mark of our Receiving of Christ Coloss II. 6. As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk ye in him THE holy Apostle having instructed these Colossians in the Doctrine of Christ in the foregoing Chapter arms them against Seducers and false Teachers that would have corrupted that Doctrine in this second Chapter It is not enough for Ministers to give wholsome food unto their people but they must also give them Antidotes against the poyson of corrupt Doctrines It is not enough for Ministers to feed their people but they must also fence their people against Wolves that would devour the flock Thus does the holy Apostle here he forewarns these Colossians and so fore-arms them against those Seducers that would beguile them with Philosophy with legal Ceremonies and worshipping of Angels and other such corrupt Doctrines mentioned here in this second Chapter To that end he lays down this weighty rule for them to observe As ye have therefore received the Lord Christ so walk ye in him In the Text you may take notice of two things First You have here a holy Rule prescribed in these words As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord Secondly a Practice answering that Rule here enjoyned so also walk ye in him As ye have The words will admit of a twofold interpretation Either take the sense thus As you have received the Doctrine of Christ by Epaphras who was a faithful Minister of Christ Chap. 1 7 so do you persevere in that Doctrine and live according to it this is the usual interpretation given of the words Or else they may be taken in this sense As you have received the Lord Christ that is as you have received him into your hearts by faith who is the way to eternal life so walk ye in him And as you have received grace from Christ so accordingly act that grace that you have received this is the interpretation that some give I shall stick rather to this latter interpretation in the handling of this Text. Many Doctrines may be gathered from this verse but because my purpose is to dispatch it in one Sermon as looking upon it as a seasonable Text a suitable Subject for a day wherein we have been partakers of the precious Ordinance of the Lords Supper I will name but two or three Doctrines and pitch upon the principal First As you have received Christ Jesus Observe Where the Gospel is rightly received Jesus Christ is also received with it Mark the Apostle does not say As you have received the Doctrine of Christ but Christ himself he that rightly receives the Doctrine of Christ receives Christ himself Oh then in how high reverence and esteem should we have the Gospel and what a prodigious sin are they guilty of that tread the precious Gospel under foot what a dreadful account have they to give 2 Thes 1.7 8 When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ Secondly As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord. Mark It is not enough to receive Jesus Christ as a Saviour but he must be received as a Lord as a Ruler also according to the tenour of my last Text Acts 5.31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins Jesus Christ will be a Saviour to none but those to whom he is a Prince Bishop Davenant in his Commentary upon the Colossians says the false Apostles preacht Christ and their Disciples likewise received Christ but neither did the false Apostles preach him nor their Disciples receive him as Lord but they received him as a fellow-Servant with Moses therefore says the Apostle if you receive Christ rightly you must receive him as a Lord. Thirdly Here I might observe Walk ye in him That Christ is the way the living way the only way wherein we should walk The fourth and last Doctrine is that which will comprise the marrow of the Text and it is this That it is not enough for a Christian to receive Christ but he must also walk in Christ That you may understand the Doctrine aright let me open the terms to you There is a two-fold receiving of Christ an habitual and a gradual receiving of him First There is an habitual receiving of Christ of this speaks the Apostle 1 Joh. 12 To as many as received him to them gave he power to become the sons of God even to them that believe in his name But then secondly There is a gradual receiving of him and of this speaks the Apostle in this Chapter Col. 2.19 And not holding the head from which all the body by joynts and bands having nourishment ministred and knit together increaseth with the increase of God The whole body that is the Church of God and every Member being knit to the head that is to Jesus Christ having nourishment supplied from the head so the Members of Christ being supplied with nourishment from God increase with the increase of God Observe There is never a Member of Christ but is a growing Member there is a gradual receiving of Christ a receiving him more and more by degrees as well as an habitual receiving of him If you ask me What is the difference between these two receivings of Christ the habitual and gradual I answer the difference lies in two things First The habitual receiving of Christ is done but once the gradual is done often The habitual receiving of Christ is done but once as the Child is born into the World but once but it must be nourished and fed every day so we are spiritually born or regenerated but once but we must be nourished and we must likewise increase and grow in and up to Christ daily we must grow up to him as the Apostle phrases it grow up into him more and more Eph. 4.15 Secondly In
2 Cor. 1.4 5. The grace of God is given for this end to dispence to others Fourtly A fourth reason is this If you do not act your graces God shall lose his glory and his glory should be dearer to you than your liberty and all your outward comforts It is a true speech of him that said the truth of grace doth save my soul but the acting of grace makes for the honour of God the truth of Grace makes for my safety but the acting of grace makes for the service of God in the place I am in Now a child of God hath the glory of God lying near his heart says a child of God I would lose my life rather than the end of my life I would be usefully spent for God for the honour of God for the name of God in living in suffering in dying rather than to enjoy all the honours or pleasures or treasures that the world can afford Thus you see the point opened and made good to you Now for the Use of it and there are three Uses I shall make of it First By way of Information If they that have grace must be acting and increasing of it then certainly it follows That they that have no grace had need to get it If they that have received Christ Jesus must walk in him then they that have not received him certainly they have great need infinite need to close with him O the miserable and doleful and damnable condition of all those that for the present are in a Christless condition in a graceless condition no tongue of men or Angels is able sufficiently to express it no tears of blood can sufficiently bewail it If any of you die in such a condition you must resolve to die everlastingly and to suffer the vengeance of eternal fire Jude 7. you must resolve to be satisfying of a sin-revenging God in hell and yet never be able to satisfie him you must be always dying and yet never die Rev. 6 And in those days shall men seek death and shall not find it and shall desire to die and death shall flee from them This will be the condition of all those that die Christless that die graceless that have not received Christ into their hearts and that have not got grace into their hearts oyl into their lamps they shall be alway dying and yet never die O with what weeping and wailing and wringing of their hands and tearing of their hair and renting of the cawl of their hearts shall they cry out O that I might dye and dye and never have a being more O that I might dye the most cursed the most tormenting the most painful death that ever creature on earth dyed so I may but dye But this is the misery of all misery I live to dye and must live eternally This is the condition of all those that have not got Christ in their hearts O then why do you rest in such a condition one week nay one day O if ever there were any love to your souls kindled in your breasts any desire of salvation wrought in you any care of escaping those unconceivable tortures and torments resolve to receive Jesus Christ upon his own terms and say O Lord rule in me as thou pleasest so I may be but thine resolve to receive him as a Prince as well as a Saviour It was a point I pressed upon you with all my might from Acts 5.31 Receive Jesus Christ to give you repentance as well as remission of sins He is a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance and forgiveness of sins He gives repentance before he gives remission if he gives nor repentance for sin he never gives remission of sin O resolve to trade for him some of you know no other trade but to treade in the world to be tumbling up and down in dirt and clay and to provide for your Families a Heathen man may do as much as you do O that you would be perswaded to drive a Trade for heaven for grace for saving-grace That which Solomon speaks of wisdom I may say of every grace Prov. 4.7 Wisdom is the principal thing therefore get wisdom and with all thy getting get understanding So say I grace is the principal thing therefore with all thy getting get grace It is no matter though thou be poor in the World if thou beest rich in grace If thou shouldst be rich in the World and get thy Coffers full of gold and silver yet if thou get no grace in thy heart it had been better that thou hadst never been born Secondly By way of reproof Here is a just and sharp reproof even of Gods own children that have received Christ and yet do not walk in him do not walk worthy of him in all well-pleasing that have received grace and yet do not act grace but rather wrap it up like a Talent in a Napkin I cannot speak it without indignation How many Christians are there some of whom I am really perswaded they are the Servants of Jesus Christ yet they are sick of a spiritual Lethargy Appoplexy they are in a spiritual slumber a man in an Appoplex hath his reason he is a reasonable man but he cannot make use of his reason what is man the better for his wealth if he does not make use of his wealth so what am I the better for grace if I do not make use of it for the glory of God and the good of others In Matth. 25 you read the five wise Virgins slumbered as well as the five foolish It is a sad thing when even Gods own children true Professors shall be slumbering yet the five wise Virgins slumbered as well as the five foolish Yet this is the condition of the Servants of God at this day I can hardly meet with any but their grace is suspended they are fallen asleep their activity for for God and their acting of grace is lull'd asleep I pray God he do not thunder against us as once the Mariners did to Jonah What meanest thou O sleeper arise call upon thy God if so be that God will think upon us that we perish not Jonah 1.6 When the wind roars and the waters rage and the storms arise and there is but a step between thee death and thou asleep is it not a shame for thee to be snorting when the ship is in danger of sinking so may it be said of all us who are asleep in security I pray God that he do not awake us with a rushing wind It may be the rod may come sooner on us than we are aware and a sharper rod than we are aware of Oh that I could but awaken my own soul then I might hope to help to awaken you out of this spiritual slumber then you would say to me as David did to Abigail Blessed be God and blessed be thou that hast given me this counsel this day 1 Sam. 25.32 33. Blessed be God that thou hast awakened me out
of my sloth and security The third and last Use it is for Exhortation If so be it is not enough for Christians to receive Christ and to receive grace but they must be walking in Christ and they must be acting of their grace then I beseech you to hearken to the counsel of the Apostle here I cannot give you the exhortation in better words than these in the Text As ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk ye in him Oh be walking in Christ Oh be acting of your grace Oh be stirring up your selves to take hold of God Oh be stirring up the grace of God that is in you Oh be active Christians be not sleepy Christians be not dull drowsie dead-hearted in matters of everlasting salvation You have but little time to spend and you have need to spend it well every day brings you nearer your graves Oh that every day might bring you nearer to God God is continually acting for you he is an overflowing and an ever-flowing Fountain of goodness God is continually renewing his mercy upon you Jesus Christ is continually interceding for you the Spirit of God is continually knocking at the dore of your hearts And is God acting for you and will you act nothing for God Secondly consider Wicked men they are continually acting for Satan continually doing the Devils drudgery what a shame is it that wicked men should take more pains to go to hell than Gods children should take to go to heaven Judas was as busie as could be that night to betray his Master plotting and contriving how to betray Christ into the hands of the Jews when the rest of his Disciples were sleeping Judas was waking to do the Devils work I beseech you let not wicked men rise up in judgment against you let not them be more vigorous and active in the work of sin than you are in the work of grace and holiness Thirdly consider If you be not acting your graces God may justly leave you to be acting your corruptions if you be not acting one way you will be acting another way if you be not acting grace be sure the Devil will set you on work to be grinding of his grist The mind of man is like a Mill it is always grinding Chaff or Wheat if you be not doing Gods work you will be doing Satans work On the contrary see what the Apostle says Gal 5.16 This I say then walk in the spirit and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh Be walking in the spirit be acting the grace you have received then you shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh though it is true those lusts of the flesh and cursed corruptions will be stirring in you yet you will never fulfil the lusts of the flesh It may be you may be drawn to act them to be sold under sin as the poor captive is carried into captivity against his mind and will so you may be held under sin and carried captive by it but you will never willingly fulfil the lust of the flesh But then may be you will say What means or helps or directions can you prescribe to this end that we may act grace Briefly in answer to this and so I have done First I will shew you in whose strength you must act grace Secondly In what manner you must act grace Thirdly In what seasons you must act grace First in whose strength you must act grace I told you before no man can do it in his own strength therefore you must go out of your selves and run to the Lord Jesus Christ Hos 11.3 I taught Ephraim also to go taking them by their Arm. God does not only give us spiritual life but he also gives us strength He did not only give Ephraim life but he gave him strength I taught Ephraim to go leading them by the arm I remember the speech of Sampson Judges 16.20 when his locks were cut off the Text says And he awoke out of his sleep and said I will go out as at other times before and shake my self and he wist not that the Lord was departed from him I may apply it thus Many times we set about duty in our own strength and we think to do such and such duties as before but alas when the spirit of God is withdrawn we are as weak as Sampson was when his locks were cut off On the contrary Let the King sit but at his table then our Spicknard sendeth forth the smell thereof Cant. 1.12 that is let Jesus Christ be but with us then our graces which are compared to Spicknard send forth a sweet smell If the wind blow upon our Garden that is the spirit of God working in the soul Awake O North-wind and come thou South blow upon my Garden that the spices thereof may flow out Cant. 4.16 then the spices will flow forth If the Sun shine upon the Marygold how soon does the Mary-gold open Oh make sure of the presence of Jesus Christ with you say Lord let me have thy grace with me as well as thy grace in me Secondly I will shew you how or in what manner you must act Grace First You must act your Graces evenly not by girds and starts Walking we say is an equal and even Motion some there are that are very forward that will run for a quarter of a mile then they sit down having run themselves out of breath this is the case of many forward Professors Oh they seem for a while to be very zealous God-ward and Grace-ward but then they faint and flag and grow weary of the ways of God See what the Prophet David says Psal 119.112 I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes always even unto the end That is a right acting of Grace indeed a man that resolves to keep Gods statutes alway to the end Teach me O Lord the way of thy statutes and I shall keep it unto the end in verse 33 of the same Psalm Secondly As you must act Grace evenly so you must act it orderly that is you must not turn aside either to the right hand or to the left This is one of Gods own commands Deut. 5.32 Ye shall observe to do therefore as the Lord your God hath commanded you you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left Thirdly You must act your Grace Evangellically to do all your duties from Christ by Christ and to Christ from Christ as the Root by Christ as the Rule and to Christ as the end Let Christ be the Spring let him be the Guide and let him be the Centre of all your actings Fourthly See that you act all your Graces likewise couragiously that you may say Nothing shall daunt me or discourage me in the way that I have undertaken As David in the business of his dancing before the Lord which was an evidence of his exceeding great zeal when Michal scoft at him savâ— he I will yet be more vile than thus and
be more base in my own sight 2 Sam. 6.27 Lastly Act Grace humbly when you have done all that you can do say you are unprofitable servants and say with St. Paul It was not I but the grace of God which was with me 1 Cor. 15.10 Lastly I shall shew you in what seasons you must act Grace certainly Grace must be acted at all times but there are some special seasons wherein we must especially act Grace First Upon the receipt of some special Mercy then we should act Thankfulness more than ordinarily and say What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits towards me Psal 116.12 Is Gods hand enlarged in bounty then let my heart be enlarged with thankfulness Secondly When you lye under a smarting Rod a piercing Affliction then act Faith and Patience A man usually never acts Grace better than when he is under some abasement a soul can better mannage a state of adversity than it can a state of prosperity for when it is in a state of abasement then it is at a less distance from God as Roses they are never so sweet as when they are in a Still and fire is under them never does our Graces usually send forth a sweeter favour than when God is pleased to exercise us with Afflictions David was never better than when he was under the Rod then he made those heavenly soul ravishing Psalms that you meet with in the book of Psalms The best Psalms the most heavenly and spiritual Psalms were made when David was in a low condition witness the 34 Psalm it s one of the sweetest Psalms you meet with when was it made when David was in the lowest condition that ever he was in when he was in that straight he was forced to feign himself mad 1 Sam. 21.13 See how Davids heart was enlarged in the making of this Psalm Thirdly Another fit season to act Grace in is when you receive the seals of the Covenant of Grace in the use of the holy Ordinance of the Lords Supper that is a time for you to act Grace in then should you be acting brokenness of heart for can you look upon a broken Saviour without a broken heart upon a bleeding Saviour without a bleeding heart then should you be acting Humility and say as Mephibosheth What is thy servant that thou shouldst look upon such a dead dog as I am 2 Sam. 9.8 Nay but here is more that thou shouldst not only look on me but set me at thy Table what a beggar a loathsom leprous beggar to sit at the Table of the King of Glory Then act Love to Jesus Christ what hath he loved me so dearly Oh how should I love him above all expressions of love and be sick of love to him Then act Faith especially for that is a grace you have most need of when you come to the Lords Table as now faith is the very eye whereby we look upon him it is the hand whereby we receive him it is the mouth whereby we feed on him says Christ except you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no life in you Joh. 6.52 53. He does not here speak of a Corporal eating of him far be it from us to have such a thought as they of Capernaum had how can this man give us his flesh to eat that man that believes in Christ he feeds on Christ Then be acting of Thankfulness after you have received the Lords Supper Oh what thanks shall I return to the Lord my God! Oh! my whole course of life should be nothing but a continual gratulation to my Father for that never-sufficiently admired gift of the Lord Jesus Christ If I had ten thousand thousand tongues I could never praise him sufficiently Then act holy Resignation of your selves up to Christ what did the Lord give himself for me I will give my self up to him was he crucified for my sins I will crucifie my sins for him Study conformity to him and that will evidence that you have Communion with him There is no more certain evidence of our Communion with Christ in his Graces Comforts Merits and Spirit c. than in our conformity to him when we resemble him in Grace here it is a certain evidence that we shall resemble him in Glory hereafter In one word do but make it your business to be acting your Grace and you may trust God for the bringing in of your Comforts the more you are active in Grace the more shall be your Comfort If we had more activity of Grace we should have more evidence of Christs dwelling in our hearts here and God would have more Glory our souls would have more peace and we should have abundance of more rejoycing in the day of our Lord Jesus CHRISTS TEMPTATION THE SAINTS SUPPORTATION A SERMON Preach'd Decemb. 9. 1657. Heb. II. 13. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted he is able to succour them that are tempted THE scope of the Apostle in the former Chapter is to prove that Jesus Christ is truly God therefore far above the Angels for says he in the fifth verse of that Chapter Vnto which of the Angels said he at any time thou art my Son this day have I begotten thee In this Chapter the Apostle proves that Jesus Christ is truly man and therefore in that respect inferiour to the Angels Verse 9 But we see Jesus who was made a little lower than the Angels for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honour And because it might be demanded But why is it needful that Jesus Christ should be man why did he not take on him the nature of Angels but he took on him the seed of Abraham Verse 16. The Apostle give us four reasons why our blessed Saviour would be man why he took our human nature upon him First He did it for the sanctification of our nature and that reason is set down in v. 11 For both be that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one that is they are all of one and the same nature we come all from one common root Christ came from the same root that we did namely from Adam and this he did that he might sanctifie our nature Secondly The Lord Jesus Christ became man that he might in our nature and for our benefit destroy him that had the power of death that is the Devil that is set down in Verse 14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood he also himself likewise took part of the same that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death that is the devil Thirdly He became man that he might deliver us not only from the hurt of death but deliver us also from the fear of death and that 's set down in Verse 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their life-time subject to bondage Fourthly He became man that by the experience of his sufferings in our
nature he might be a merciful and faithful High-priest in things pertaining to God to make reconciliation for the sins of the people and that 's set down in Verse 17. And the ground of this Assertion the Apostle lays down in the words of the Text which I have now read unto you For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted he is able to succour them that are tempted So then the Text contains in it a singular benefit and advantage that believers have by Christs temptations namely a sanctified use of temptations and a gracious support under temptations For the clearing of this you must know all that ever our Lord and Saviour did here upon earth as Mediator was done not for himself alone but was done for us and for our good For example He took our flesh in the womb of a Virgin that he might sanctifie our nature He was born of a woman that he might sanctifie our birth He suffered in the flesh that he might sanctifie our sufferings He was buried in a grave that he might sweeten and perfume the grave that he might make the grave as a bed of spices He rose again from the dead that he might assure us that we shall be raised by his power 1 Cor. 6.14 And God hath both raised up the Lord and will also raise up us by his own power And he was tempted that he might be able to succour us when we are tempted Let me first open the words to you and then draw out the Doctrine I intend to pitch upon I shall dispatch this Text in one Sermon For in that he himself hath suffered The Lord Jesus Christ suffered indeed He was a great sufferer nay the greatest sufferer that you read of in the whole book of God He suffered in his Circumcision when he was but eight days old he condâ—scended to that painful Ceremony that painful Sacrament He suffered a painful pilgrimage for three and thirty years together and although he was heir of all things all the Kingdoms of the world were his yet he had not a house to hide his head in The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head Mat. 8.20 He suffered by Satan when he was led into the Wilderness to be tempted for forty days together which was a greater abasement to the Son of God than if the greatest Empress in the world should be solicited in her chastity by the basest Scullion that ever was Oh how did Satan hurry the body of our dear Lord and Saviour first to the pinacle of the Temple then he hurried it to a Mountain and carried it from one place to another Oh that the precious body of Jesus Christ should be thus basely used by a Vassal by a cursed Fiend by a cursed creature So he suffered by Satan And he suffered by men he suffered the contradiction of sinners he suffered himself to be reviled scorned reproached blasphemeed when they said Say we not well Thou art a Samaritan and hast a Devil Joh. 8.48 And he is mad and hath a Devil why hear ye him Joh. 10.20 He suffered on the Cross a shameful painful and cursed death He suffered in his body but most of all he suffered in his soul when he said My soul is heavy unto death is girt about with death Joh. 12.27 Now is my soul troubled and what shall I say He speaks as if he had been non-plust My soul is so troubled says he that I know not what to say I know not what to do So you see the Lord Jesus Christ he suffered Further the Text says he suffered being tempted Jesus Christ you know was tempted by Satan for forty days together and he was tempted by his Enemies the Pharises they required a sign of him tempting of him Luk. 11.16 Then he was tempted by the Herodians when they came with that captious question Shall we give tribute to Caesar or shall we not Mat. 22.17 18. Christ answered them Why tempt ye me ye hypocrites He was temptted by one of his Disciples Peter says he to him Master spare thy self and do not go up to Jerusalem insomuch that Christ sharply reproved him and said to him Get thee behind me Satan thou art an offence unto me for thou savourest not the things that be of God but those that be of men Mat. 16.22 23. And he was tempted even by his own dear Father when his Father hid his face from him when he seemingly did forsake him when he cryed out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Mat. 27.46 So you see that our Saviour suffered and our Saviour was tempted And why was he tempted that he might succour them that are tempted saye the Text. Why may some say did the sufferings and temptations of Jesus Christ add any thing to his ability to succour his tempted Servants which he had not before To this I answer You must know he had an ability of Power which was irresistable he had an ability of Power as he was God but the Apostle speaks here of an ability of Compassion or of an ability of Experience as he was man as he says in the like case Heb. 5.8 He learned obedience by the things which he suffered How did he learn it he learnt it experimentally So here by his suffering and temptations he learnt to succour them that are tempted he learnt compassion by his temptations How did he learn compassion he learnt it experimentally for now he hath learned by experience to know the kinds of temptations to know the wounds that temptations make in the soul of a poor sinner and to know the proper means and medicines for the curing of temptations so that if you ask But why was the Lord Jesus Christ tempted I answer he was tempted for these three ends especially First That he might teach us this Lesson If Satan was so bold with him that was the dear Son of God he will be much more bold in tempting us poor creatures If he was so bold with the Master much more will he be bold with the Servants If he were so bold with the Captain of our salvation much more will he be bold with his Soldiers If he were so bold in tempting him who was the King of glory a pure and spotless Saviour a Lamb without spot and blemish in whose mouth could be found no guile 1 Pet. 2.22 Oh he will be much more bold with us that are poor sinful creatures that have such impure and defiled natures How abominable and filthy is man Job 15.16 When the Devil came to tempt our Lord and Saviour he found nothing in him he found no matter to work upon he found no corruption on which he might fasten his temptation Joh. 14.30 The Prince of this world cometh and hath nothing in me All the temptations of Satan upon our Saviour were but like the jogging of pure and clean water in a Chrystal glass where
is no mud at all but now Satan never comes to us but he finds matter enough and ground enough to work upon there is a great deal of mud at the bottom therefore he prevails on us when he comes But that is one end that he may teach us to expect temptations he himself was tempted then certainly much more must we expect to be tempted Secondly Jesus Christ was tempted that he might know how to compassionate us in our temptations Thirdly He was tempted that he might take out the sting the poison the venom of every temptation that though we be sorely assaulted by Satan yet we may not be conquered by Satan That that David speaks to Saul Psal 188.13 Thou hast thrust sore at me that I might fall but the Lord helped me The like may Believers say of Satan Thou hast thrust sore at me if it were possible to thrust me into hell but the Lord is my helper nay God can so order it when Satan thrusts his forest darts at us he can ward off the blow or at least so order the temptation that it shall kill our sins and not hurt our souls As I have read a story of one Pareus Jason who was conflicting with his adversary when his adversary thought to have run him through with his sword God did so order it that it did open an imposthumation which all Physicians could not heal so that instead of killing of him he preserved his life so God can so order it when Satan is thrusting sorely at us with his temptations they shall kill our sins but shall not hurt our souls So then the words being opened to you the way to the Doctrine is made plain which is this Doct. Christs temptations and his sufferings for us stir up in his heart a tender compassion to succour us in our temptations and in our fufferings That which God commands Israel is suitable to this Exod. 23.9 Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger for ye know the heart of a stranger seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt So the Lord Jesus Christ knows the hearts of tempted ones and knows how to pity tempted ones because he himself was tempted That which the Apostle speaks 2 Cor. 1.4 God comforteth us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we our selves are comforted of God I may apply it thus The Lord Jesus Christ knows how to succour us to comfort us to support us in our temptations with the same spirit that he had in his sufferings and in his temptations though his temptations were so great that he himself needed an Angel to come and comfort him For the better explication of this point there are two Quaeries that would be satisfied First Why Christs sufferings and temptations stir up in his heart such tender compassion towards us to succour and relieve us in our temptations and sufferings Secondly How the Lord Jesus Christ does succour and relieve poor tempted ones in their distrsses and sufferings For the first Why does Christs sufferings and temptations stir up in his heart such tender compassions towards us I answer The reason is plainly this because the Lord Jesus Christ his suffering in our Nature makes him not only a merciful God but a merciful Man also the Lord Jesus Christ as he is God equal with the Father to all Eternity so his mercies are from everlasting to everlasting Psal 103.17 But now his sufferings in our flesh makes him not only a merciful God but a merciful man also a merciful Mediator between God and man so he hath not only beams of Majesty but bowels of mercy his sufferings made him a merciful High-priest that is touched with the sense of our infirmities as you read Heb. 4.15 for says he We have not an High priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities but was in all points tempted like as we are yet without sin The Lord Jesus Christ suffered all our natural infirmities though he did not suffer our sinful infirmities He was tempted in all things like unto us yet without sin a merciful High-priest he is and this is that that makes him so tender-hearted to the sufferings and infirmities of his People Oh what bowels of compassion hath Jesus Christ towards the souls of poor People Mat. 9.36 the Text says When he saw the multitude he was moved with compassion on them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepheard His bowels did earn towards them as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies he had compassion on their souls because they wanted those that might instruct them in the way of life and happiness And what compassion had he on the bodies of poor ones that waited on his Doctrine Mat. 15.32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said I have compassion on the multitude because they have continued with me now three days and have nothing to eat and I will not send them away sasting lest they faint in the way And what compassion had he towards the poor Widow that had lost her only son and they were now carrying him to the Grave the Text says he had compassion on her his Bowels did earn towards the poor Widow therefore he touched the Coffin and raised him up again Luke 7.13 Look as a Child-bearing woman that hath felt the bitter pangs and pains of Child-birth hath more compassion towards a woman in that distress than a barren woman that never felt those pangs and sorrows or as a man that hath been sorely afflicted with the Gout or Stone pitianother man that is afflicted with the same disease more than one that never felt the torment of that disease and as it is storied of Queen Elizabeth when she past once through an Hospital where she saw many poor Orphans and Fatherless and helpless Children Oh says she I was once an Orphan a poor helpless creature when I was shut up in prison therefore says she I have tasted of the sufferings of Orphans and I cannot but be merciful to Orphans and as it is said of Luther That he was a rare and and excellent man in comforting afflicted consciences those that were tempted and afflicted why because he himself was exercised with temptations for three years together so here the Lord Jesus Christ is a most rare and excellent Comforter a Physician good at all diseases especially at binding up broken hearts and comforting tempted souls why because he himself had experience of the sting and venom of temptations but some may say the Lord Jesus Christ is now in heaven hath he not left the bowels that he had on earth I answer No the Text says Isa 63.9 In all their afflictions he was afflicted and the Angel of his presence saved them in his love and in his pitty he redeemed them and he bare them and carried them all the days of old Act. 9.4 the Lord Christ cryes
out Saul Saul why persecutest thou me when a man treads upon another mans little toe the tongue complains why do you hurt me Jesus Christ when he is now in heaven he complains of himself being persecuted in his Members he hath such a simpathy with them That 's the first Quaery Secondly It may be demanded How does Jesus Christ succour and relieve his servants in their temptations I answer he succours and relieves them these five ways First By discovering to them that it is a temptation for many there are that misliste their temptations some take temptations for the impulsess or impresses of Gods spirit not considering that there are tempting providences as well as approving providences such a providence was that which you read of when David had Saul at an advantage 1 Sam. 26.8 When Saul lay sleeping in his trench and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster then said Abishai to David God hath delivered thine enemy into thy hand this day now therefore let me smite him I pray thee with the spear even to the earth at once and I will not smite him the second time Abishai thought that this was an approving medicine that God had delivered Saul into the hands of David and now he may be avenged upon him and cut his throat and smite him presently nay nay says David to Abishai destroy him not for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lords anointed and be guiltless David saw it was a tempting-providence not an approving-providence he would not have a hand in his blood he would not slay the Lords anointed though his enemy though a wicked man though a man guilty of blood for he had slain Fourscore of the Lords Priests at one time commanding Doeg to fall upon them and destroy them But says David I will not have a hand in the blood of the Lords anointed though he hath delivered him into my hand this was but a tempting-providence not an approving-providence this is a certain Rule that there are tempting providences as well as approving-providences to follow providence without the Word is dangerous to follow providence against the Word is damnable but to follow providence with the Word that only is safe and comfortable now David he had a providence here but he had not the Word of God going along with that providence and therefore he looks upon it as a tempting-providence Now Jesus Christ succours his people by discovering to them which is a tempting-providence and which is an approving-providence Secondly The Lord Christ succours and relieves them by his Gracious Supportation he does support them under their tryals that is a precious Scripture that tempted ones should be continually meditating upon 1 Cor. 10.13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man but God is faithful who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able but will with the temptation also make a way to escape that you may be able to bear it God sometimes draws the Bow to the Arrow head but he will not break the Bow if God lays heavy loads on poor tempted ones then he will make their shoulders so much the stronger by his Gracious Manutency or holding them by the hand Psal 73.23 Nevertheless I am continually with thee thou hast holden me by my right hand And when God holds a poor tempted soul by the right hand though he fall he shall not utterly be cast down because the Lord upholds him Psal 37.24 Thirdly Jesus Christ relieves and succours tempted ones by his gracious intercession for he sits at the right hand of God to make intercession for them Heb. 7.25 and if so be thou art but one that does but desire to believe in Jesus Christ and take hold of him though it be but with a trembling hand know thus much for thy comfort in every temptation that thou meetest with Jesus Christ does nominate thee to his Father he nominates thee in particular and he says to thee as he did to Peter I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not Luke 22.32 Fourthly Jesus Christ does succour and relieve tempted ones by making a diversion some way or other of them by a less temptation sometimes he prevents a greater that would even crush a poor soul to pieces sometimes by an outward affliction upon the body he prevents a greater affliction and trouble that would lye upon the spirit It is better a thousand times to be afflicted in the body than afflicted in the mind Fifthly The Lord Christ doth succour tempted ones by a gracious Abolition as I may call it by a total removal of the temptation when he treads Satan under our feet as he hath promised Rom. 16.20 And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly And when he gives Charge to Satan as he did to him concerning the poor Child that was possessed with a dumb and deaf spirit I charge thee that thou come out of him and that thou enter into him no more Mark 9.25 Thus you have the point opened Now briefly to apply it two Uses I shall make of it Frist for Information Secondly for Consolation First For information you may learn this Lesson by way of Inference That Gods own people his Elect true Believers must look for temptations nay they must look for divers temptations Jam. 1.12 My brethren count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations in 1 Pet. 6 Wherein ye greatly rejoyce though now for a season if need be ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations They must look for temptations of all sorts as the Apostle saith in the like case All that will live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution so all that will live godly must look for temptations Gods People may be tempted these four ways First Sometimes they may be tempted by their godly friends so was St. Paul Acts 11.12 when the Prophet Agabus foretold that Paul should be bound at Jerusalem and suffer so many things of the Jews Pauls godly friends disswaded him from going thither but Paul lookt upon it as a temptation for says he in the next verse What mean ye to weep and to break my heart for I am ready not to be bound only but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus Acts 21.13 Secondly Gods people are sometimes tempted by wicked men as Joseph was by his wanton and lascivious Mistress Thirdly Gods people are tempted sometimes by Satan they are tempted to presumption on the one hand and to desperation on the other hand For these are two great Rocks upon which thousands of souls suffer shipwrack but there are more that perish on the rock of Presumption than of Desperation Fourthly Gods Children are sometimes tempted by God himself it is said God tempted Abraham to try him Gen. 22.1 And it came to pass after these things that God did tempt Abraham and said unto him Abraham and he said behold here I
and say Lord what will become of me Lord what will become of me Vse 2. Of Exhortation I shall close this Point with a word of Exhortation If it is possible for many that profess the Truth and true Religion and are confident that they are in a state of grace and seem to come very near to Heaven and yet for all that to come short of it then as you love your God as you love your Souls as you love your Peace as you desire to appear with comfort before your Judg rest not in any bare outward profession rest not in a naked name of Religion Be not contented that you have the Lamps of Profession unless you have the Oyl of saving Grace Consider what advantage will it be for you to come near to heaven to come to the brow of the hill as it were and afterwards to drop down into hell What advantage will it be for a man to be lifted up to heaven and not lifted up into heaven it is the greatest curse that can possibly be expressed Oh what a cutting Corrosive what a gnawing Worm will this be to all Eternity for a man to say I came near to Heaven to the top of the Hill and yet I fell short of those glorious hopes that are laid up for the Saints in light O what a stinking Cockatrice will this be to them that have but a bare naked name of Religion an outward profession only It may be thou art no Swearer nor Lyar nor Sabbath-breaker but it may be thou art a covetous wretch over head and ears in the world tumbling up and down in dirt and clay as if there were no other happiness but here below It may be thou art but a formal Christian it may be thou art but a picture that hath hands and eyes but no legs it may be thou hast eyes but no feet to run the ways of Gods Commandments It may be it may be said of some of you young men that hear me this day what was said of the young man in the Gospel You are not far from the Kingdom of God what will this advantage you if you do not follow Jesus Christ fully and obey him sincerely that you may enjoy him eternally O that my counsel this day were accepted by you in the fear of the Lord give no rest to your eyes nor slumber to your eye-lids until you can say Blessed be God I am more than the best Hypocrite in the world though he can outstrip me in shew yet for the inside I outstrip him But it may be you will say What is this inside of Christianity this essential Religion wherein you would have us outstrip Hypocrites and those that come short of Heaven I will tell you in three words To the Essentials of Christianity there are these three things required 1. Union with Christ 2. Renewing Grace 3. A Compliance with the Will of Christ First Union with Christ Till you are united to him you have no interest in him nor benefit by him therefore look this that you have the Spirit of God to unite you to the Lord Jesus Christ Our Saviour saith John 15.4 As the branch cannot bear fruit of it self except it abide in the Vine so neither can you bring forth fruit unless you abide in me O labour for this Union when the Soul is once united to him then it hath communion with him in his life in his death in his resurrection in his intercession in his graces and comforts and all What is that which knits the Cistern to the Fountain You know it is the Leaden Pipe that is it that is the conveyance from the Conduit-head to the Cistern so here What is it that knits thy Soul to Jesus Christ that thou mayst be continually partaking of him who is the Fountain of light and life and peace and consolation What is it but this Pipe the Union that is between Christ and the soul Now a Hypocrite hath not this Union he is not united to Christ it may be he bears the name of Christ but never was ingrafted into him it may be he is tyed to Christ by the thred of an outward profession as the Seions is tied to the stock but yet he is not ingrafted into the stock Secondly It consists in renewing Grace If any man be in Christ he is a new creature 2 Cor. 5.17 An Hypocrite may have many trinkets and bables as we say I but a Regenerate man he brings forth one Jewel worth ten thousand of them An Hypocrite may have restraining grace but a truly Regenerate man he is renewed in the spirit of his mind he hath a new name which I spake of in so many Sermons the white Stone and the new Name Rev. 3. Thirdly This Essence of Christianity consists in a total compliance with the Will of Christ he that is a true Believer a true Regenerate man an inside Christian he can say Lord not my will but thy will be done Lord Rule in me as thou pleasest so I may be but thine take possession of my heart and dispossess sin and Satan he will say Whom have I in heaven but thee and there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee But now an Hypocrite it may be he gives up his name to Jesus Christ in profession but he doth not give up his heart to Christ in subjection and submission it is one thing to give up the name to Christ and another thing to give up the heart to Christ when you give up the key of the Castle to Christ then you will say Lord I will do what thou wouldst have me do and suffer what thou wouldst have me suffer and forsake what thou wouldst have me forsake there is nothing I have though it be as dear to me as my right-hand and right-eye but I will part with it at thy command To shut up all If you would not come short of them that come short of Heaven then rest not in a bare profession in a bare naked name of Christianity labour to be united to Christ labour for renewing Grace labour to give up your selves to Jesus Christ let there be a compliance in your will to the will of Christ Again If many may be confident that they are in a state of Grace and yet come short of Heaven O then take heed of self-delusion and self-flattery to think your selves something when you are nothing and so deceive your own souls It is better a thousand times for a man to think himself nothing when he is something than to think himself something when he is nothing saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 15.10 I have laboured more abundantly than they all and yet not I but the grace of God which was with me Beg earnestly of God that you may know the worst of your selves and the best of Jesus Christ and pray O Lord let me not be deceived in this great business of Eternity let me not go to hell with vain hopes of Heaven
Thirdly May a man come near to Heaven and yet come short of it O then take heed of these two sins Slothfulness and Apostacy Take heed of Slothfulness Be not slothful in business but fervent in spirit serving the Lord Rom. 12.11 The Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force Matth. 11.12 Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure set to the work with all your might put your whole strength to the work shake off all drowsiness and dulness And then take heed of Apotacy this makes many that come near to Heaven to come short of Heaven because they do not hold out to the end He that endures to the 〈◊〉 shall be saved blessed are they who notwithstanding all difficulties and discouragements that they meet with in Heavens way are resolved to hold out to the end and in the end Thus I have dispatcht the first Doctrine That it is possible for many that profess the Truth and are confident that they are in a State of Grace and seem to come near to Heaven and yet for all that to come short of Heaven Now I come to the second Doctrine in this last Branch of my Text from these words Come short of it And the Doctrine is this To come short of eternal Rest is such an unvaluable and unconceivable and irrecover able loss that it is to be trembled at by all sorts of persons whatsoever It is a loss to be trembled at by all those that have not quite lost their sense and feeling For the confirmation of this truth there are these two Queries I shall speak to First What it is to come short of this eternal Rest Secondly How it may appear that this coming short of Heaven is such an unvaluable irrecoverable and unconceivable loss For the first What it is to come short of this eternal rest What is it Oh! God grant that neither you nor I nor any soul here present may ever experimentally know what it is to come short of Gods eternal rest let me shew you what it is that you may avoid this dreadful danger The Original word here used is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and it signifies to come too late just as those five foolish Virgins that had no oyl in their Lamps they came and knockt Lord Lord said they open to us but the door of Mercy was shut they came too late Matth. 25.10 11. It signifies likewise to fail of that which a man expects Heb. 12.15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God Or it signifies this for a man to miss the Gole or Prize that he runs for and so it is a Metaphor from runners in a Race if they be heavy or lumpish or careless they lose the Prize they miss the Gole So Christians that are secure and careless and slothful and mind every thing more than that one thing that is necessary they come too late they fail of Grace and Glory they miss the Gole they lose the Prize they are deprived of that eternal happiness they expected this is to come short of this eternal Rest Second It may be demanded How will it appear that this coming short of eternal Rest is such an unvaluable unconceivable and irrevocable loss that it is to be trembled at I answer It will appear by these three reasons They that come short of Heaven they lose 1. The Presence Of God in eternal happiness They that come short of Heaven they lose 2. The Favour Of God in eternal happiness They that come short of Heaven they lose 3. The Fruition Of God in eternal happiness First They that come short of this Eternal Rest they lose the presence of God how great how unconceivably great this loss is it passeth my skill to tell you But conceive it thus David tells us in Psalm 16. ult In his presence is fulness of joy and at his right hand are pleasures for evermore Now if in the presence of God be the fulness of joy then certainly in the want of his presence is the fulness of misery If at his right hand are pleasures for evermore then certainly at his left hand is wo and misery and calamity for evermore even such misery as the Prophet Ezekiel speaks of Ezek. 2. ult A roll of a book was written within and without lamentations and mourning and wo And it stands with reason it should be so for if God be light then a separation from God must needs be darkness If God be life then a separation from God must needs be death If God be the fountain of Bliss then the separation from him must needs be the possession of all misery and wo and calamity and distress that can possibly be expressed or conceived This punishment of loss in the opinion of all Divines doth incomparably torment the soul more than all the punishment and tortures and torments of Hell-fire Nay the loss of that heavenly and unconceivable Joy the loss of one hours communion with the crowned Saints in glory the loss of one glimpse of the glorified Body of Jesus Christ is a greater and far more and considerable loss than the loss of all the Kingdoms of the World besides I know that carnal men have very carnal conceits of Heaven and happiness because they look usually upon heaven and spiritual things with carnal eyes but if they did but look upon them with such an eye as Moses did Heb. 11.27 By the eye of Faith he saw him that was invisible if they would not look upon things that are seen but upon things that are not seen For the things that arn seen are themporal but the things that are not seen are spiritual and eternal as saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 4.18 If they could but look upon them with spiritual eyes then they would acknowledg that a thousand thousand rendings of the body from the soul are far less than one rending of the soul from God It was the speech of one Nicostratus a curious Painter to one that admired at him for looking so wishfully upon a curious Picture Oh said he if thou hadst but my eyes thou wouldst admire what I admire so may I say to men that will not now believe that the loss of Gods presence is such a loss hadst thou but spiritual eyes thou wouldst acknowledg the truth of what I now say That the loss of Gods presence is such a loss as can never never be sufficiently bewailed no not with tears of blood It was the speech of Chrysostom and it was a savoury speech I had rather endure a thousand Hells than to hear that one dreadful sentence Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels And suitable to this was the speech of Augustine I could be contented to endure the torments of Hell for a while so I might but see the glorified body of Jesus Christ in Heaven for you know what our Saviour saith Father I will that they also whom thou
they have received they lose all they have and all they hope for All they have viz. Their present endeavours and all they hope for their future Reward 1. They lofe all they have all their praying reading hearing and communicating and humbling themselves before God all this will be lost if they do not persevere does not God himself say so Ezek. 18.24 When the righteous turneth away from his righteousness he does not speak there of one truly and really righteous in a state of grace one that is savingly righteous when he turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man doth shall he live all the righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned in his trespass that he hath trespassed and in his sin that he hath sinned in them shall he die So that a man loseth all he hath done in the business of Religion Saith Hierom We must be judged not by our past but by our present condition As the Tree falls so it lyes as death leaves us so shall judgment find us 2. He loseth all he hopes for too for the Crown is promised to none but to those that do hold out Be thou faithful to the death and thou shalt receive a Crown of life Rev. 2.10 Christianity is compared to a Race Let us run the race that is set before us Heb. 12.1 Now as in a Race it is not enough for a man to begin well but he must hold out else he loseth the Gole so is it in the Race of Christianity therefore saith the Apostle so run that you may obtain not only run but so run that you may not lose the Gole 1 Cor. 9.24 2. Such as Christs love is to us such must our love to Christ be Christs love to us is a constant and unchangeable love whom he loves he loves to the end John 13.1 The Lord Christ is not only the beginner but the finisher of our faith Heb. 12.2 He did not leave the work of our Redemption imperfect but he held out until he came to consummatum est till he cryed out upon the Cross it is finished Reason Third may be this Christians must hold fast the grace they have received because Apostatizing and turning our backs upon God is a most dangerous damnable soul-destroying sin 1. It is dangerous in the Original of it it springs from four bitter roots 1. It springs from Infidenlity or Unbelief take heed saith the Apostle lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelies in departing from the living God Heb. 3.12 Unbelief is a damnable sin where it is not bemoaned bewailed and striven against but reigning unbelief is a damnable sin so saith our Saviour Mark 16. ult He that believes not shall be damned And he that believes not the wrath of God abides upon him for ever John 3. ult Now this Infidelity makes the soul depart from God and it makes God depart from the soul It was a great observation of an eminent Divine now with God Look as the first return of the soul to God is by Faith for Faith sets the Soul in joint it brings Christ and the Soul together so the first departing of the Soul from God is by unbelief for from thence comes a departing to other sins and this departing to other sins encreaseth our unbelief and unbelief being encreased the rent or breach between God and the Soul is made wider and wider till at last the Soul comes to a total departing from God and then God totally departs from the Soul and says Depart from me thou cursed wretch I know thee not Now this same Apostacy it springs from Unbelief 2. This Apostacy springs from Hypocrisie for usually Hypocrisie ends in Apostacy as I have told you often Judas the Hypocrite proved Judas the Apostate Amaziah did that that was right in the eyes of the Lord but not with a perfect heart 2 Chr. 25.2 therefore Amaziah the Hypocrite proved Amaziah the Apostate In Psal 78.37 it is said there Their hearts were not upright neither remained they stedfast in his Covenant Why were they not stedfast why did not they keep constant to the ways of God to the Vows and Covenants made with God their hearts were not upright where grace is sincere it will be lasting but that which is counterfeit will be lost whatever is counterfeit is fading 3. It springs from Pride and Presumption when men think they have grace enough and holiness enough and have gone far enough in the way to Heaven this is the root of Apostacy there is a gradual as well as a total Apostacy the Saints and Servants of God may be guilty of gradual Apostacy so Peter was though not of total Apostacy it was Peters presumption that was one principal cause of his fall lofty Cedars are thrown down with a Tempest when the lower Trees in the Valley stand firm and fast So likewise lofty Christians high in their own conceits many times nestle themselves on high and their fall is great whereas Christians that walk humbly are supported and preserved Look as a man that gazeth at the Stars looks up on high quickly catches a fall because he looks not to his feet So a man that is highly conceited in his own opinion lifts up his head on high many times catches a feaful fall it is just with God to leave such men to try them Hezekiah though a very gracious King yet when his heart was listed up with Pride 2 Chron. 32.25 the Text saith God left him to himself to try what was in his heart in ver 31. That Solomon speaks of falling into misery is as true of falling and declining in grace Prov. 16.18 Pride goes before destruction and a haughty Spirit before a fall 4. Apostacy springs from Covetousness and worldliness look as the seed in the thorny ground it brought nothing to perfection because it was choaked with the cares riches and pleasures of this world as you may read in the Parable of the Sower Luke 8.14 So it is here where the heart is stuft with covetousness and the cares of this life that is usually a forerunner of a fearful fall Demas hath forsaken me having embraced this present world what was the ground of his Apostacy but his worldliness and selfishness so that Apostacy is dangerous in the Original of it Secondly It is damnable in the effects of it for 1. This puts Jesus Christ to open shame in Heb. 6.6 Apostates crucifie Christ afresh and put him to open shame for by falling away from him we do as much as tell the world we have found his service that it was an unprofitable service the service of the world is better than his service and that we have not found in Christ what we expected when we turn our backs on Christ and go to the world we do as much as openly proclaim the world is a better Master than Christ is When Soldiers forsake their
it was very pleasant therefore in the scituation of it Secondly It was pleasant in regard of the Air though it is true it was a hotter Climate than ours is yet it was a very temperate Climate it was a Climate of that temper that they were free from all noisome vapours so it was a healthful Land in that regard Thirdly It was a very fruitful Land a Land that did abound with Corn and Cattel and Vines and Fig-trees and Pomgranates as you may find Deut. 8.7 8 9 For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good Land a Land of Brooks of waters of Fountains and depths that spring out of valley and hills a Land of Wheat and Barley and Vines and Fig-trees and Pomgranates a Land of Oyl Olives and Honey A Land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness thou shalt not lack any thing in it a Land whose stones are iron and out of whose Hills thou mayst dig brass It 's a Land saith the Lord wherein thou shalt not lack any thing any thing that may be desirable any thing that may be comfortable for their subsistence for them therefore to despise such a Land as this was it could not but provoke the Lord to anger You know there is no juster provocation among men than kindness churlishly refused Now for the Israelites to despife this Land a free gift a gift of bounty and favour such a gift as they could not in the least merit at the hand of God you find God himself beating them off from that Deut. 9.4 Speak not then in thine heart after the Lord thy God hath cast them out before thee saying for my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this Land It was not for thy righteousness-sake but it was for his own Name-sake and his Promise-sake that he made to Abraham for them to possess this Land therefore it was a gift of favour and free bounty doubtless and it was a very great sin because ingratitude is hateful both to God and man Vnthankfulness as one calls it is the hellish bar or stop to all future mercies A man that is about to pour in some precious Oyl or Liquor into a Glass if he see the Glass be crack'd or there be a hole in it you know he will pour in no Oyl or Liquor in that Glass So here an unthankful man is a broken Glafs and God will not bestow his favours upon those that are unthankful at least he will not bestow them in mercy he sometimes gives these outward blessings in anger I gave thee a King in mine anger Hos 13.11 but he never gives mercies in love and favour to unthankful wretches This sin of unthankfulness sometimes provokes the Lord to strain for his Rent when men will not give him the quit-Rent of thankfulness Therefore says God Hos 2.8 9 Because she did not know that I gave her Corn and Wine and Oyl and multiplyed her silver and gold which was prepared for Baal therefore will I return and take away my Corn in the time thereof and my Wine in the season thereof and will recover my Wool and my Flax given to cover her nakedness says God I will strip her naked and leave her bare Unthankfulness provokes the Lord you see to take away all his mercies and to strain for his Rent but that is not all for it provokes the Lord to inflict some spiritual judgment when men are unthankful Rom. 1.21 and 24 verses compared together it 's said Because that when they knew God they glorified him not as God neither were thankful but became vain in their imaginations and their foolish hearts were darkned Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts to dishonour their own bodies between themselves So that you see despising or undervaluing those outward blessings or mercies that God bestows upon a People is a God-provoking sin a sin of ingratitude Let me briefly apply this for this is not the Point I intend principally to handle but only to touch at it I beseech you my Brethren Let every one of us enter into our own hearts and by some serious self-reflecting thoughts call our selves to an account whether we be not in the number of those that despise and undervalue those National mercies wherewith God hath enrich'd us We live in a pleasant Land in a Goshen for light in a Canaan for plenty We live here in a City that is lifted up to Heaven in Mercies in the use of Ordinances I believe there is not such a place under the Heavens of God not such a City that hath such plentiful provisions both for Soul and Body as we have But have we walked worthy of the Lord unto all well-pleasing Have we liv'd up to our light under our means under our mercies Have we thankfully prized and improved these National priviledges and blessings that we enjoy No no God knows and our own hearts know that it is not so Alas it may be said of these Nations as it was said of the Land of Canaan Ezra 9.11 The Land to which ye go to possess it it is an unclean Land with the filthiness of the People of the Lands with their abominations which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleanness So may it be said of this pleasant Land this goodly Land this goodly City that we live in it is an unclean City through the filthiness and abomination of many that live therein and therefore that which God threatens Levit. 18.25 And the Land it self vomiteth out her Inhabitants even so justly might our God deal with us because we have defiled the Land with our abominations and uncleanness therefore the Land should spew us out We have swallowed down his mercies without regarding him that bestowed those mercies upon us just like the Hog under the Acorn-tree that swallows down the Mast but does not look unto the Tree We have been a murmuring and discontented people so looking upon one cross as to forget a thousand mercies We have no way walked worthy of all the good things that our God hath given us to enjoy therefore it were just that God should deal with us as he threatens Deut. 28.47 48 Because thou servedst not the Lord thy God with joyfulness and with gladness of heart for the abundance of all things therefore shalt thou serve thine enemy which the Lord shall send against thee in hunger and in thirst and in nakedness and in want of all things and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck until he have destroyed thee c. Our unthankfulness is intolerable the Lord awaken us to repentance but I will not insist longer upon that Point I eome therefore to the second Notion Consider the Land of Canaan as it was a Type or Figure or Pledg or Earnest-penny of that same Heavenly Inheritance that God hath laid up for the Saints in Light and so their ingratitude was far greater they despised
will you not run do you not strive to enter Again You say you do not undervalue Heaven I beseech you consider What are you content to part with for Heaven will you sell all to buy this Pearl Will you part with any thing that stands in opposition to your hopes Will you take Christ in his own way and on his own terms and in his own time Can you be content to swallow down some discouragements and difficulties and temptations and bless God for them and say One smile of thy face will recompence a thousand years of adversity If I have Christ for my portion and Heaven in reversion though I carry a Rod of affliction at my back every day though I am fed with the water of affliction and with the bread of adversity Heaven will make amends for all But alas How many have weak hands and feeble knees and are not able to go on in the way of Salvation and will not come up to the price of Salvation Do not deceive your felves These are plain down-right Truths bottomed upon Scripture if I speak not the truth believe me not but if I do some of you have cause with serious self-reflection to smite upon your Thighs and you have cause greatly to fear this despising and undervaluing this heavenly Inheritance is your sin and Oh that it might be your sorrow and shame Secondly This Doctrine may justly serve for to reprove and I profess I know no reproof sharp enough for such persons as despise and undervalue that heavenly Inheritance that God hath prepared for the Saints in Light Let me say to some of you as God speaks Acts 15.41 Behold ye despisers and wonder and perish So say I Hearken ye despisers hearken ye secure careless sensless sottish Atheists I can call you no better Oh you that have such slight thoughts of Heaven you that look upon this heavenly Inheritance but as imaginary a Fools Paradise or as a meer conceit rather than any real existent thing you that never yet set your hearts and souls to seek the Lord Jesus Christ and his Kingdom you whose hearts are buried in Earth and Earthly things who mind nothing but Earth nothing in the World but raising great Estates and satisfying the brutish part of your selves Tell me Do you think that ever you shall enjoy this external Inheritance which you have despised Shall you ever taste of that everlasting happiness which you have so much undervalued Will the Lord cast Pearls before Swine Will he hang such a Jewel such an unvaluable Jewel which is better worth than ten thousand Worlds will be hang such a Jewel on a Swines snout No no you deceive your selves if you think so Do you think that Heaven will drop into your mouths as you lie a-dying Do you think our Saviour speaks in vain when he says Matth. 11.12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force If Heaven could be purchas'd with a Lord have mercy upon us if it could be procured in such a cold lazy luke-warm way as you walk in then certainly our blessed Saviour did not know what he said his exhorting to strive to enter in at the strait gate was to no purpose But if prizing of this Salvation and striving or this Salvation to the end of your lives if these must go before enjoying then as sure as the Lord lives you careless secure sottish Sinners that mind nothing less than that one thing necessary assure your selves you shall never have a portion in that Inheritance which is prepared for the Saints in Light no there is another place prepared for such Dogs and Swine as they are called that place without Rev. 22.15 For without are Dogs and Sorcerers and Whoremongers and Murtherers and Idolaters and whosoever loveth and maketh a lye You all cry out of Esau a prophane wretch the Spirit of God brands him for it a prophane Atheist that sold his Birth right for a Mess of Pottage he sold his Birth-right which was a Type of Heaven he sold this for an old Song as we say And you that neglect and undervalue and despise Heaven you are guilty of the same sin and have you not as prophane spirits as he You cry out of Judas because he sold his Master for thirty pieces of silver Oh hearken impenitent sottish Sinner It may be thou sellest Christ and Heaven and Glory and all may be for a base lust a base lye thou sellest it for some considerable advantage as thou conceivest for the present though at last it will be like Gravel in the Throat Take home this reproof with you the Lord set it home upon your Souls you that never set your hearts souls to seek the Lord. I have done with a word of Exhortation That is I beseech you and exhort you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that you would take heed of this God-provoking Soul-damning sin take heed of undervaluing this heavenly Inheritance Let it not be said of any of you that you despised the pleasant Land instead of despising it do you highly prise it and say as David Psalm 119.174 I have longed for thy salvation O Lord and thy Law is my delight And what a kind of longing was it Not a cold wish such a wish as Balaam had O that I might die the death of the Righteous that Heaven might drop into my mouth then but I would live as I list it was not such a desire no says David I have longed for thy salvation what then Thy Law is my delight That is a right longing that is accompanied with an endeavour he rightly longs for the Salvation of God that delights in the Commands of God In the 123 ver of the same Psalm Mine eyes fail in waiting for thy Salvation Look as the Lord Jesus Christ will never bestow himself upon that Soul that does not pant and breathe and break with longing desires after him So likewise he will never bestow this heavenly Inheritance upon that Soul that does not most earnestly wishfully and industriously pant after him and long for him and seek him that you may prize him Take heed in the fear of God of those four causes of undervaluing this Salvation First Take heed of Earthly-mindedness beg that you may be digged out of the thick Mire and Clay say Give me not my portion here O Lord How sad will it be with me if thou puttest me off only with these outward things Secondly Take heed of sloathfulness and sluggishness in the service of God and in seeking this Salvation Rom. 12.11 Not sloathful in business sèrvent in Spirit serving the Lord. Seek the Lord and seek his Salvation with all your might mind and strength Thirdly Be content to part with any thing for Christ take heed of placing your love upon the Creature be content to part with any thing that stands in opposition to or in competition with
what sin is there so gross and grievous that an unbeliever will not run into If a man believe not the threatnings he will practice no good For example if a man do but believe that terrble Scripture Rev. 21.8 But the fearful and unbelieving and the abominable and Murderers and Whoremongers and Sorcerers and Idolaters and all Lyars shall have their part in the Lake which burneth with Fire and Brimstone which is the second Death If a man did believe that Scripture durst he be a Coward to betray the Truths of God God speaks of the fearful ones in that sense to be cowardly Christians did he believe this durst he be such an abominable wretch to run into such abominable blasphemies which are not to be named which are belched out against God in these days Durst he be an Idolater a Lyar a Swearer certainly he durst not but he does not believe the Threatnings of God If a Tyrant should threaten any of you with the Rack or Strapado which would break your bones Oh what terror and trembling would take hold of you how would you fall down at his feet and seek his face and favour yet that Tyrant could take away nothing but a poor miserable mortal life But the great God of Heaven he threatens Sinners with the punishment of loss the loss of his presence of his favour of fellowship with him in Glory nay he threatens with the punishment of Sense those unconceivable tortures and torments in Hell for ever to all Eternity and yet Sinners do not tremble at this great God they do not fall down and seek his face and savour What is the reason because they believe not If so be a faithful man that was never yet known to break his word and a man of a great Estate that was able to make good his promise if he should promise any of you an Inheritance of two or three hundred by the year you would believe that man on his word and you would seek to please him you would prize his favour but now the great God of Heaven and Earth that was never yet known to break his Word he tells you of an heavenly Inheritance incorruptible undefiled reserved in Heaven and yet do you not seek to please him or prize his favour or obey him what 's the reason Because you believe not his Word So the truth is unbelief is the Mother of all disobedience That 's the second Reason Thirdly Unbelief is a sin thus dangerous and destructive to the Soul because God hath provided more Antidotes and Remedies against this sin of unbelief than against any other sin to cure this sin of Unbelief First God hath given us his Word which is a most faithful Word Heaven and Earth shall pass away saith our Saviour but my words shall not pass away Matth. 24.35 Secondly God hath given us his Promises Now all his Promises are sure and certain Yea and Amen God is faithful and will make good his promises 2 Cor. 1.20 For all the promises of God in him are Yea and in him are Amen unto the glory of God by us Thirdly He hath given us his Covenant and this Covenant is sure and stedfast and ordered in all things an everlasting Covenant sealed with the blood of Jesus Christ and cannot be altered 2 Sam. 23.5 Although my House be not so with God yet he hath made with me an everlasting Covenant ordered in all things and sure for this is all my Salvation and all my desire although he make it not to grow Fourthly He hath given us his Oath Ezek. 16.8 Yea I sware unto thee and entred into a Covenant with thee saith the Lord God and thou becamest mine Now an Oath you know is the strongest bond of assurance between man and man And the Apostle speaking of the Word of God and of the Oath of God that they are two immutable things wherein it is impossible for God to lye Heb. 6.17 18 Wherein God willing more abundantly to shew unto the Heirs of the Promise the immutability of his Counsel confirmed it by an Oath that by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lye we might have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us As it is impossible for God to die because he is life it self so it is impossible for God to lye because he is Truth it self Fifthly Because he hath given us his Seal also he hath given us his outward Seal which is the Sacrament both the Sacrament of Baptism and the Sacrament of the Lords Supper he hath given us also his inward Seal which is the Witness and Testimony of his own blessed Spirit sealing us up to the day of Redemption Sixthly He hath given us Experiences former Experiences and latter Experiences the Experience of all the Saints that have gone before us Psalm 22.4 Our Fathers trusted in thee they trusted and thou didst deliver them So in Psalm 34.6 This poor man cryed speaking of himself when he was in as low a condition as ever he was in scrabling on the ground and feigning himself mad 1 Sam. 21.13 says he This poor man cryed and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his trouble Therefore others will be exceeding glad when they hear how graciously he hath dealt with them So in Psalm 9.10 They that know thy Name will put their trust in thee for thou Lord hast not forsaken them that seek thee Now God hath given us experiences he hath given us all these Antidotes and Preservatives against unbelief hearken therefore O Unbeliever Well If thou do not believe thou must perish everlastingly God remains faithful and cannot deny himself 2 Tim. 2.13 If we believe not yet he abideth faithful he cannot deny himself But if thou do believe and perish if thou do believe and yet art damned then God hath broken his Word and broken his Promise and broken his Covenants and broken his Oath and broken the Seals of his Covenant which is as impossible as for God to cease to be God You see God hath provided so many Remedies and Antidotes against Unbelief therefore unbelief is such a dangerous and destructive sin It is observable when our Saviour came to his own Countrey that was Nazareth and preach'd to his own Country-men and did Miracles among them they believed not The Text says Mark 6.6 He marvelled because of their unbelief You do not read he marvelled at other sins as Ignorance Hypocrisie Pride Covetousness c. but our Saviour marvelled at their unbelief Oh when men shall sin against the Word of God and the Promise of God and the Covenant of God and the Oath of God and the Seal of God Heaven and Earth may stand amazed at their incredible incredulity Thus you see the Point opened For the Vse and Application of the Point First By way of Examination I beseech you to bring your hearts to the Touch-stone and see whether you be
God and that he has power to save and to destroy James 4.12 There is one Lawgiver who hath power to save and to destroy And you profess That he can do whatsoever he pleaseth in Heaven and in Earth and among all the Inhabitants of the Earth and that none can stay his hand none can say unto him what dost thou Dan. 4.35 You profess this God to be your Soveraign yet for all this you make no bones of flighting his Authority you dare flight the Authority of this Law-giver and make no bones of breaking his Commandments You can break the first Commandment by Atheism impenitency hardness of heart lukewarmness unthankfulness You can break the second Commandment by neglecting or mis-performing the duties of Gods Worship and Service You can break the third Commandment by not honouring God by not glorifying God you do not sanctifie and honour his Name in his Word in his Works in his Providences in his Ordinances in his Mercies You make no bones I say of breaking his Commands Thus you profess one thing you say that the Lord is your Lord your Law-giver but you practice another when you slight his Authority and break his Commands See how angrily our Saviour speaks Luke 6.46 And why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I command you Again You profess you believe the threatnings of God such dreadful threatnings as these Vpon the wicked he shall rain snares fire and brimstone and an horrible tempest this shall be the portion of their Cup Psalm 11.6 So Psalm 68.21 God shall wound the head of his enemies and the hairy scalp of such a one as goeth on still in his trespasses You profess you believe these threatnings but yet notwithstanding your practice crosses your Profession for let a Minister come and thunder these threatnings in your ears yea let a Minister come and spit fire and vengeance in the face of Sinners yet notwithstanding they do no more tremble than the seat they sit on It were well if some Snners had but as much fear as the Devils have James 2.19 for they believe the threatnings of God and fear them and know they shall be accomplished to the uttermost Thirdly You profess that you believe the Promises I that you do I but what Promises do you believe You believe the Promise of Eternal life because you believe Jesus Christ will be your Saviour I but do you believe the Promises for example for this life Do you believe if you seek the Kingdom of God and his Righteousness in the first place all other things shall be cast into the Bargain Matth. 6.33 Again Do you believe that Promise Psalm 34.10 The young Lions do lack and suffer hunger but they that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing Do you believe the Promises for this life let that be judged by your Covetousness by your carking carefulness that distracting dividing care that divides the mind from it self See what the Prophet Isaiah says Isa 28.16 He that believeth shall not make haste He therefore that does make haste to be rich does not believe He that makes haste to be rich shall not be innocent saith Solomon Prov. 28.20 You therefore that make so much haste to be rich you that make so much busling in the World wherefore is this craving carking whining after the things of this life It is a certain undeniable evidence of your distrusting Gods Providence and Promises and let me tell you You that will not believe him for the Body you will never believe him for the Soul You that will not believe him for your Estates and Children you will never believe him for your Eternal Salvation You that will not believe him for a Crust you will never believe him for a Crown And yet you say you believe his Promises that you do Fourthly You say you believe in the mercy of God for pardon I but when once Satan comes to shake your confidence but a little when you lie but under any temptation when God seems to hide away his face from you though never so little in the day of your fears and straits then you are ready to question whether you are the Children of God or no whether there be any thing of God in you or no you are ready to say then as Sion did Isa 49.14 The Lord hath forsaken me my Lord hath forgotten me my way is hidden from the Lord and my judgment from the Almighty It may be you may come to that condition to say with Cain My punishment is greater than I can bear my sin is greater than can be forgiven Gen. 4. God will never forgive such great sins as mine are You say that you believe in the mercy of God but when it comes to the trial it will be found no such matter Fifthly Again You say you believe a day of Judgment this is one thing you profess I but your practice is quite contrary for did you believe it seriously then you would pass the time of your sojourning here in fear 1 Pet. 1.17 Did you believe it seriously then you would be affected with it as that ancient Father was Whether I eat or drink or whatever I do methinks I hear the Trumpet sounding in mine ears Arise ye dead and come to judgment If you did believe the terror of the Lord 2 Cor. 5.11 certainly then you would exercise your selves to have Consciences void of offence both towards God and men Acts 24.16 Sixthly You say you believe that there will be a Resurrection of the Body and yet notwithstanding you carry your selves here upon the Earth as if so be there was no account or reckoning to come Some may be can live I am even ashamed to speak it they can live as if they had no God to serve and no Souls to save as if there would never come a day wherein they must appear before their Judg. I remember the speech of Saint Paul to King Agrippa Acts 26.27 King Agrippa Believest thou the Prophets I know says he that thou believest But I may say to many an impenitent unregenerate obstinate perverse Sinner Oh that there were none such in this Congregation I may say to many such Sinners Believest thou the Word of God Believest thou the Threatnings of God I know thou believest them not If thou didst believe the Commands of God Oh then thou wouldest say with Saint Paul What wouldest thou have me to do Lord Acts 9.6 Teach me the way of thy Statutes O Lord and I will walk in it and I will keep it to the end Psalm 119.33 If thou didst believe the Threatnings of God then thou wouldst be in the same condition that David was in Psalm 119.12 My flesh trembleth for fear of thee and I am afraid of thy Judgments If thou didst believe those dreadful Threatnings thou wouldst be in the same condition with the Prophet Habakkuk My belly trembled my lips quivered rottenness entred into my bones and I trembled in
believe this yet many of you can live as securely as merrily and madly as if so be you should never drop down into the dust here now indeed is a notional Faith I but there is not a practical Faith it is one thing to believe a Truth notionally and another thing to believe it practically Fourthly Would you have Unbelief removed then Oh beg and beg earnestly that God would take away your hearts of stone and give you hearts of flesh let this be your Prayer every day Do you not remember how I opened that Text to you A new heart also will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and I will give you an heart of flesh Ezek. 36.26 What is a stony-heart but a sensless heart a heart sensless of sin and a heart fearless of wrath Now do but observe that unbelief and hardness of heart they still go together In Mark 16.14 Afterwards he appeared unto the eleven as they sate at meat and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart Our Saviour upbraids them for their unbelief and hardness of heart Why are you so backward to believe it is because of the hardness of your hearts Fifthly I beseech you to meditate often of the danger of Unbelief meditate often what will be the woful Effects and Issues of your Unbelief consider the Threatnings the Precepts and the Promises of the Almighty In John 8.24 I said therefore unto you that you shall die in your sins for if you believe not that I am he you shall die in your sins What die in sin Oh what greater curse can possibly be uttered To die in sin to rot in sin to come out of your graves in sin to be presented before your Judg in your sins John 3. ult He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him The wrath of God abideth on him If it were only for a few days it might be born I but it will be abiding and abiding and abiding to all Eternity the wrath of God will abide upon that Soul that does not believe In a word and so I have done As God speaks to the Prophet in another case They will not see but they shall see I apply it thus You that will not believe I promise you you shall believe you that will not believe savingly you shall believe desperately you that will not believe that God is so just so strict so severe you shall believe when you feel the wrath of the Almighty seizing upon you never to be removed you that will not believe now to the saving of your Souls you shall believe as the Devils to believe and tremble you then will believe the torments of Hell in that day when you feel them in that place where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth It is better to believe these things now than believe them when you feel them The Lord work these things upon our hearts that this Soul-destroying sin may not be our ruin CHRISTS'S PRECIOUSNESS 1 PET. II. 7. Vnto you therefore which believe he is precious but unto them which are disobedient the stone which the builders disallowed the same is made the Head of the Corner THE holy Apostle that he might the better draw Christians to believe in Jesus Christ to love him embrace him and obey him as the Captain of their Salvation in the beginning of this Chapter commends to them both the Word of Christ and Christ himself who is the Kirnel and Substance of the Word he commends the Word of Christ to them in the first and second verses of this Chapter Wherefore laying aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisies and envies and evil speakings as new-born Babes desire the sincere milk of the Word that ye may grow thereby And he commends Jesus Christ himself to them two ways First By shewing what he is in himself Secondly By shewing what benefits Believers have by him First He shews what the Lord Jesus Christ is in himself in ver 4 To whom coming as to a living stone disallowed indeed of men but chosen of God and precious He is a living stone a stone that hath life in himself and a stone that gives life unto others For he that hath the Son hath life and he that hath not the Son hath not life 1 John 5.12 And not only a living stone but he is chosen of God and very precious the Pearl of the Gospel that precious only excellent one in comparison of whom all the Kingdoms of the World are but as a heap of dung But then as the Apostle commends him for what he is in himself so he commends Jesus Christ by what he hath done for all those that believe in him In the 5th ver Ye also as lively stones are built up a spiritual House an holy Priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ This invaluable benefit you shall have by him you shall not only be justified by him but you shall be sanctified you shall be made a holy Priesthood and all your services shall be made acceptable through him To confirm this weighty Truth the Apostle produces a Testimony out of the Prophet Isaiah Isa 28.16 Therefore saith the Lord God Behold I lay in Sion for a Foundation a stone a tryed stone a precious corner stone a sure foundation he that believeth shall not make haste Having thus confirmed this Doctrine he makes Application of it in this Verse and this Application is by way of Comfort to Believers and discomfort to those that believe not First It is a Doctrine that affords a great deal of comfort to Believers For says he to you that believe Jesus Christ is precious But it administers a great deal of discomfort to Unbelievers To them that are disobedient to them that hearken not to the voice of Christ for says the Apostle Though this Christ be despised by them yet he shall be infinitely advanced he is become the Head the Corner-stone and they notwithstanding their despising of him shall be everlastingly ruined for he will be to them a stumbling-stone and a rock of offence even to them which stumble at the Word being disobedient This is the Connexion or Context of these words with the former It is the first Branch of the Text here that I principally aim at in these words To you therefore that believe he is precious The words therefore hath reference unto the fore-going verse wherein the Apostle tells us that the Lord Jesus Christ is such a Foundation-stone such a Corner-stone such a rock of Salvation that whosoever believes in him shall not be confounded shall not be condemned For there is no condemnation to them that have a part and interest in him Rom. 8.1 Therefore saith the Apostle Certainly to you he must needs be
of the Lord Jesus Christ deny that he is God when this is one of the Titles wherewith he is called The Mighty God The Everlasting Father The Prince of Peace What glorious Titles are here So you shall read he is called his Fathers delight Isa 42.1 Behold my servant whom I uphold mine Elect in whom my sul delighteth And the Fathers bosom-friend John 1.18 No man hath seen God at any time save the only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father he hath declared him If the love of all the Parents in the World were concentred in one it were but as a drop of that infinite Ocean of Love that is between the Father and the Son Nay more he is called the Fathers Fellow Zech. 13.7 Awake O Sword against my Shepherd and against the man that is my Fellow saith the Lord of Hosts So likewise he is called The Head of the Church Eph. 5.23 and the Judg both of quick and dead Acts 10.42 In a word such is the Dignity of his Person such is the Excellency of his Merits such is the sweetness of his Graces such is the fulness of his Perfection that the Scripture does abundantly put those terms of honour upon the Lord Christ as sometimes comparing him to a Corner-stone because he does support us Ephes 2.20 Sometimes to A Vine because he does refresh us John 15.1 Sometimes unto a Physician because he does heal us Matth. 9.12 Sometimes to a Day-star because he does enlighten us Rev. 22.16 Sometimes to A Shepherd because he does lead us John 10. Sometimes to Manna or the Bread of life because he does feed us What glorious Titles are these that are given to Christ therefore he is precious in his Titles Thirdly As he is precious in his Titles so he is precious in his Offices in his Kingly Office in his Priestly Office and in his Prophetical Office First He is precious in his Kingly Office he calls himself The King of Kings and Lord of Lords Rev 19.16 The King of Kings He is such a King that conquers the enemies of our Salvation as Sin and Satan and Death and Hell and the World other Kings Rule over us but this King can only Rule in us My Kingdom is not of this world saith he The Kingdom of God is within you Lnke 17.21 This King can make Laws that can bind the Conscience he is such a King as hath all Power in Heaven and Earth committed to him Matth. 28.18 Again He is such a Priest as hath reconeiled us to God the Father and ever lives to make intercession for us who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities Col. 1.21 Heb. 7.25 Heb. 4.15 And he is such a Prophet as can perfectly instruct his Church others may preach to the ear but he hath his Pulpit in Heaven only that can preach to the heart other Preachers can open the Scriptures but it is Jesus Christ only that can open our understandings that we may understand the Scriptures Luke 24.45 Then opened he their underderstandings that they might understand the Scriptures O what glorious Offices are these Fourthly He is precious in his Ordinances For Example His Word is exceeding precious to all those that have tasted the sweetness of it how precious was it to David Psalm 119.72 The Law of thy Mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver How precious are Sabbaths to those that know how much of Heaven is wrapt up in the Sabbath Certainly these Sabbath-days are Market-days for our Souls wherein we may make provision for Eternity days wherein the Lord Jesus Christ many times communicates himself and much of his sweetness to those that wait upon him in holy Duties And how precious is the Ordinance of the Lords Supper wherein the Lord Christ makes us a feast of fat things a feast of Wines on the Lees of fat things full of Marrow Wines on the Lees well refined Isa 25. Wherein he gives his own flesh to eat his flesh that was crucified to satisfie Divine Justice and his own blood to drink that blood which only can quench the fire of Hell quench the fire of Gods anger which otherwise would have been burning and burning against us to all Eternity Fifthly As he is precious in his Ordinances so he is precious in his Prerogatives for he and he only is the Saviour of the World and besides him there was no other Saviour Acts 4.12 Neither is there salvation in any other for there is none other Name under Heaven given among men whereby we must be saved That is there is nothing can be named for it is but a Hebraism there is nothing can be named under Heaven whereby we can be saved but only the Name of Jesus Christ he had no Coadjutor or Helper in the work of our Redemption Isa 63.3 I have trodden the Wine-press alone and of the People there was none with me for I will tread them in mine anger and trample them in my fury and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments and I will stain all my rayment And as he is the only Saviour so he is the only Mediator too For there is one God and one Mediator between God and Man the Man Christ Jesus 1 Tim. 2.5 So he is the only Head of his Church Eph. 1.22 And hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the Head over all things to the Church He only hath the Supremacy and Authority as being Omnipotent and Omnipresent one that is able to protect his people from all injuries one that is able to prevent all the plots and projects that are hatcht and invented against them he hath these Prerogatives that cannot be given to any Creature in Heaven or Earth but only unto him therefore he is precious in his Prerogatives Sixthly The Lord Christ is precious also in the purchase of his blood the purchase he made for us by his blood is a very precious purchase and the portion that he bestows on his Elect that he hath purchased for them is a precious portion so he is precious not only in regard of his Person but in regard of his Portion For Example the Redemption that he hath wrought for us by his blood is a precious Redemption a Redemption from Sin and Satan and Death and Hell In whom we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins Ephes 1.7 Secondly The donation or bestowing of his Spirit it is a very precious gift that the Spirit of God should in his Name that is for his Merit be bestowed upon all those that do believe But the Comforter which is the Holy Ghost whom the Father will send in my Name he shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I have said unto you John 14.26 O what a precious invaluable gift is it to have the Spirit of God given us to quicken us to draw us to Jesus Christ and to carry on the
work of Grace in us Thirdly The Graces of the Spirit which likewise are purchased by him are precious Graces Faith is a precious Grace as it is called 2 Pet. 1.2 Simon Peter a Servant and an Apostle of Jesus Christ to them that have obtained like precious Faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ that the tryal of your Faith being much more precious than of gold that perisheth The tryal of Gold is the worst thing that belongs to Gold and the tryal of Faith is the worst thing that belongs to Faith yet saith the Apostle The tryal of your Faith is much more precious than that of Gold 1 Pet. 1.7 So Repentance that is a precious Grace because it is Repentance unto life as the Apostle calls it Acts 11.18 When they heard these things they held their peace and glorified God saying Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted Repentance unto life And Hope that is a stedfast Grace it is the Anchor of the Soul And Love that is a lovely Grace it brings the Soul into nearer Communion with God Then Wisdom that is a precious Grace a shining Grace A mans wisdom maketh his face to shine saith Solomon Eccles 8.1 And Job speaking of Wisdom saith he Job 28.12 13 But where shall Wisdom be sound and where is the place of Vnderstanding Man knoweth not the price thereof neither is it found in the Land of the Living it is of more price than Rubies it is of an invaluable price And Humility that is an honourable Grace And Fear that is a preserving Grace And Patience that is a supporting Grace And Perseverance that is a Crowning Grace All these Graces are precious Graces and they are all of them bestowed upon us meerly upon the account of Christs merits Fourthly The Priviledges that we have by Jesus Christ they are precious Priviledges U-union with him and Communion in his Life and Death and Resurrection and Comforts access to God the Father and that with boldness Fifthly The Promises that are sealed by his blood they are precious Promises promises for this life and promises for the life to come that Promise That all shall work together fer good to them that love God a big-bellied promise as I may so say All things work together for good and our prayers and our persons shall be accepted Lastly The Inheritance that he hath purchased for us is a precious Inheritance An incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved in Heaven In brief Such is the preciousness of the Lord Jesus Christ that compare him with the most precious things that can be named and you shall see they are but vile and base in comparison of him For Example 1. The Souls of men and women they are said to be precious but Oh how infinitely precious is Jesus Christ whose blood is a valuable and equivalent price for the Souls of all the men and women in the world 2. Light is said to be precious Christ said of himself I am the light of the world John 8.12 Light is precious to those that are in a Dungeon of darkness Now says Jesus Christ I am the light of the world 3. Truth is precious so precious that we are to buy it at any rate and sell it at no rate Jesus Christ says of himself I am the Truth John 14.6 4. Fountains and Springs of water are precious in hot and dry Countreys Oh the Lord Jesus Christ he is the Well of Salvation Isa 12.3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the Wells of Salvation 5. Bread is precious to those that are ready to perish a man will venture the getting of bread with the hazard of his life Lam. 5.9 We get our bread with the peril of our lives Now Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life John 6.48 6. Balm and Balsom is precious His blood is the only Balm that can cure wounded Souls so precious is the Lord Jesus Christ that all the Creatures in Heaven and Earth are but a picture of that beauty and preciousness that is in him he is the Abstract and Epitome of all perfections how precious must he needs be to whom all the Creatures in Heaven and Earth do contribute all their Excellencies to make him excellent and glorious Thus you see the Point opened Now for the Uses of it First By way of Information Is the Lord Jesus Christ so infinitely precious you may see then why the Souls of men and women are so precious because they are purchased by a precious Saviour purchased by his precious blood Hearken O sons of men why are you tumbling up and down in dirt and clay why do you not raise your hearts and thoughts higher and higher seeing that you have such precious Souls that are capable of a precious Inheritance why do you not look after a precious Covenant of Grace â—ealed to you and precious Promises confirmed to you by the blood of Christ why do you not look after that precious Pearl the Lord Jesus Christ who is worth more than ten thousand worlds Oh the baseness of the heart of man that should prefer dirt and dross and dung before him who is so infinitely precious that they should so undervalue their precious Souls that cost such an invaluable rate for their Redemption Secondly By way of Information see the horrible greatness of the sin of Unbelief that makes the Sinner undervalue this precious Redeemer Says Jesus Christ You will not come to me that you might have life John 5.40 Oh bewail your Unbelief that keeps Christ and your Souls a precious Christ and your poor Souls at such a distance Thirdly By way of Information take notice what a blessed condition they are in that have gotten the Lord Jesus Christ into their Souls If the Lord bestows this gift of all gifts this precious Christ upon you Oh it is more than if he had given thee the World nay then if he had given thee ten thousand Worlds for thy portion O rejoyce in thy portion for as soon as ever thou art a Believer thy heart is made a Cabinet for this precious Pearl the Lord Christ for He dwells in our hearts by faith Ephes 3.17 Oh manifest to the World the brightness of this Pearl let some lustre of Jesus Christ shine in thy Conversation shine through this Cabinet as Light shines through a Lanthorn The second Use is by way of Exhortation And here I must but name some few particulars answerable to the Explication of the Doctrine I insisted on more largely and there are several Duties I would briefly commend to you and the Lord give you hearts and me a heart and every one a heart to close with this precious Truth tendred to you in reference to this precious Redeemer First If Jesus Christ be so precious in his person as being God and Man then learn to honour him admire and adore him for This is the will of God the Father that all should
honour Jesus Christ even as they honour the Father See it exprefly commanded in John 5.23 That all men should honour the Son even as they honour the Father He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him Why should they honour the Son as they honour the Father because he is so precious in his person being God and Man united together in one person therefore see that you honour him therefore kiss the Son with a kiss of Reverence of Love and of Obidience lest his anger be kindled against you Secondly Is the Lord Jesus Christ so precious in his Titles as being the Delight of the Father the Fathers Fellow the Judg of the World the Judg of quick and dead O then never give rest to your eyes nor slumber to your eye-lids never rest satisfied with any condition with any portion with any parts priviledges whatsoever here below till you have got an interest in him that is every way so precious get him and get all want him and want all A man that catches at the shadow you know loses the substance but get the substance and you get the shadow with it So long as you look after other things besides Christ you lose him but if you get him you get the shadow of all you get life and peace and comfort and all that your hearts can desire be content to lose all to get him who when you have got you shall be sure never to lose Thirdly Is Jesus Christ so precious in his Offices as King Priest and Prophet then do you labour to be experimentally partakers of all those Offices that you also may be Kings And hath made us to be Kings and Priests to God and his Father Rev. 1.6 Labour to be Kings in Ruling over your own lusts over your own distempers and passions as he said excellently Do but conquer thy self and the world is conquered to thy hand A greater victory it is for a man to conquer himself than to conquer a Kingdom Labour in this sense to be Kings that your iniquities may not have dominion over you but that you may at length get victory over your lusts which fight against your Souls Again labour to be spiritual Priests to offer up spiritual Sacrifices to God acceptable through Jesus Christ and do you labour to be Prophets that is endued with such wisdom and spiritual knowledg that you may be able to admonish and instruct one another This is that which the Apostle speaks of to the great commendation of the Romans in Rom. 15.14 And I my self also am perswaded of you my Brethren that ye also are full of goodness filled with all knowledg able to admonish one another Do you my Brethren labour to be like Jesus Christ in all his Offices Fourthly Is Jesus Christ so precious in his Ordinances O then do you labour to taste the sweetness of every Ordinance taste the sweetness of the Word of God that you may say How sweet is thy Word to my taste yea sweeter than Honey to my mouth Psalm 119.103 Taste the sweetness of Jesus Christ in the precious Ordinance of the Lords Supper that you may say I sate down under his shadow with great delight and his fruit was sweet to my taste Cant. 2.3 And in Cant. 5. ult His mouth is most sweet His mouth is sweetnesses as the Hebrew phrase carries it and he is altogether lovely He is most sweet fn his Ordinances O say one hours Communion with him is better than all the pleasures of the World one taste of that spiced Wine and of the juice of the Pomgranate spoken of in Cant. 8.2 I would lead thee and bring thee into my mothers house who would instruct me I would cause thee to drink of spiced Wine of the juice of my Pomgranate One draught of that generous Wine that spiced Wine how pleasant and delightful would it be to my Soul Is Jesus Christ so sweet in his Ordinances Oh then labour to taste the sweetness of Jesus Christ in his Ordinances Fifthly Is Jesus Christ so precious in his Prerogatives he is the only Saviour the only Mediator then subject your selves to him and to none but him be subject to him as your only Prince and Saviour and say O Lord our God other Lords besides thee have had Dominion over us but by thee only will we make mention of thy Name Isa 26.13 Lastly Is the Lord Jesus Christ so exceeding precious in the purchase of his blood then do you labour to have an interest in his purchase what is it for you to hear of the purchase of Christs blood if this purchase be not yours if you have not a share and part in it What is Christ if he be not my Christ What is his purchase if it be not my purchase For Example If he hath purchased an Eternal Redemption by his own blood O do you labour every day to get an assurance that you are in the number of his Redeemed ones But how may we know that I answer If you be the Redeemed of Jesus Christ then you will walk in the way of the Redeemed of Christ and that way is called Holy Isa 35.8 And an high-way shall be there and a way and it shall be called the way of holiness the unclean shall not pass over it but it shall be for those the wayfaring men though fools shall not err therein Hath he purchased not only Redemption but the Donation of his Spirit Oh do you beg the Spirit of God that that Gift that great Gift may be bestowed on you according to that Promise a Text I opened to you in many Sermons And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my Statutes and ye shall keep my Judgments and do them Ezek. 36.27 If any man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of his Rom. 8.9 And do you put the Lord in mind of all those gracious Promises that he hath made I will pour water upon him that is thirsty and floods upon the dry ground I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed and my blessing upon thine off-spring Isa 44.3 Again Hath he purchased such precious Graces to be bestowed upon all his Children upon all those that have an interest in him O then do you labour to be truly gracious not only to have restraining grace but renewing grace not only common grace but sanctifying grace sound faith sincere love unfeigned obedience that you may have the graces of Humility meekness patience that you may have the Image of Jesus Christ stamped upon your Souls that you may receive of his fulness grace for grace that you may in every grace of Christ have a part that by his Wisdom you may be made wise by his Holiness we may be made holy Again Hath he purchased likewise such precious Priviledges for his Children O then do you labour to be made partakers of those precious Priviledges to be united to Christ and to have
Jesus Christ and the Soul of a Hypocrite You know the story of the young man in Matth. 19.22 When Jesus Christ made him a fair proffer Go and sell that thou hast says he and give it to the poor and thou shalt have treasure in Heaven and come and follow me He made a fair shew but the world lay nearer his heart than Jesus Christ did therefore when he bid them sell all and give to the poor he went away very sorrowful And you know the story of Orpah and Ruth Ruth 1. Orpah she gave her Mother-in-Law a kiss and bid her Farewel but Ruth clave to her Mother Naomi So it is here It may be an Hypocrite can complement with the Lord Jesus Christ can give him some outward Ceremonial observance but when it comes to this that he must part with any thing for Christ when Christ tells him If thou wilt be mine thou must take me on my own terms thou must look to bear my Cross as well as to wear my Crown thou must look for Hatred Persecution a Cross a Prison for my sake then he begins to shrink and draw back I love Jesus Christ well says he but I love pleasures better the World better Liberty better still there is something that a Hypocrite prizes before Jesus Christ But then you will say How may I do to know that Jesus Christ is precious to me indeed I will tell you briefly First See whether your desires be strongly carried out after the Lord Jesus Christ whether they be vehement constant and industrious desires or no for if your desires after Jesus Christ be right they will be very vehement desires like hunger and thirst that are commanding The appetite hunger it hath this property not only to be violent in its desires but to be terminated to one object I must have food says an hungry man and nothing but food will please him offer him Musick no that will not content him offer him Gold and Silver that will not content him he must have food and nothing in the World but food will content and satisfie him So that Soul that hath a true desire after Christ says I must have Christ and none but Christ will content me Riches Pleasures Honours will not satisfie my Soul I must have Christ none but Christ Secondly And are your desires constant and continued desires It may be some men may have flashes of desires when their Consciences are awakened when they lie tumbling upon a sick-bed or when the wrath of God begins to be kindled against them But tell me Are thy desires constant Canst thou say with David My soul breaketh for the longing it hath unto thy Judgments at all times Psalm 119.20 I know there may be an intermission of the act of desire but then the constant bent of the Soul is Chrisward As a Tradesman that makes it his Tâ—â—â—â— to buy and sell though he doth not always buy and sell so the Soul will be always trading in desire for Christ though there may be an intermission of desires Thirdly Are they industrious desires that make you not only to desire him but to seek him The desire of our Soul is to thy Name O Lord and to the remembrance of thee And then With my soul have I desired thee in the night yea with my Spirit will I seek thee early Isa 26.8 9. If so be your desires after Christ be right they will put you upon all means of Grace and the using of them carefully and conscientiously enquiring after him and following of him in the use of every Ordinance This is the first way whereby you may know whether Christ be precious to you See what your desires are if they be strongly carried out after Christ if they be vehement constant and industrious desires Secondly Would you know whether Jesus Christ be precious to your Souls yea or no then see whether your love to Jesus Christ be a true love unfeigned love whether you love him in sincerity or no Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity Amen Ephes 6. ult Implying many love him not in sincerity Thus you may know whether you love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity First You will remember Christ your hearts will be much taken up with him When I remember thee upon my bed and meditate on thee in the night watches Psalm 63.6 Are your thoughts taken up with him Secondly If you love him in sincerity you will hold no correspondency with sin you will hate sin and hate every sin Thirdly If your love to Christ be sincere it will be accompanied with smarting sorrow for your former unkindnesses to him as Mary Magdalen because she loved much she wept much Thus will such a Soul say Against thee have I sinned thee have I offended with Judas I have betrayed thee though thou didst never shed thy blood for him as thou didst for me therefore my sins are the greater because against thee I have sinned Thirdly Would you know whether Christ be precious to you or no let me then propound to you these three Soul-searching Questions First Tell me What are you willing to give for Christ Secondly What are you willing to lose for Christ Thirdly What pains are you willing to take that you may obtain him First If you would know whether Christ be precious to you then answer this Question What are you willing to give for Christ I know nothing can be given by way of merit do not understand me so but what are you willing to give in the use of means First Are you willing to give as much for Christ now as you would give in a time of sickness when you are lying upon your Death-beds when the Soul sits upon the lips and is ready to take its leave Are you willing to give as much now in health as you would give in a time of sickness Oh when a man lies on his sick-bed and Death knocks at his door Christ then it may be would be very precious to him Oh what would he then give for a Christ Those in Noah's time that never regarded the Ark all the while it was a building yet when the Flood came what would they have given for an Ark then What would you give for Christ at that time when you are upon a Death-bed ready to be delivered by your Death-bed to your cold Grave Certainly Christ is as precious now as he will be when you lie upon a sick-bed when you shall look Death in the face Again Are you willing to give as much for Christ now as at the day of Judgment Oh what seeking and suing will there be to Christ at that day Lord pity me Lord own me I am undone for ever without thee Oh what seeking and suing will there be to Christ at that day Certainly Christ is as precious now as he will be at that day when he shall come in Flames of fire taking vengeance on them that know him not
and obey not his Gospel 2 Thess 1.8 Can you be content to give as much for him now as you would give in that day for him Can you be contented to give as much for him as a damned Soul would give for him if it were possible he could purchase him Certainly he is as precious now as he would be to a damned soul if he could be made partaker of him In a word Tell me Are you willing to give up your selves to him wholly to be ruled by him to give up your Understandings to him to desire to know nothing but Jesus Christ and him crucified To give up your Will to him to say Rule in me as thou pleasest so I may be but thine to give up your Affections to him to love him to delight in him to rejoyce in him to say with the Apostle God sorbid I should rejoyce in any thing save in the Cross of Christ Gal. 6.14 If you can do thus then you have answered the first Question and you may know certainly Jesus Christ is precious to you Secondly Tell me What are you willing to lose for Christ to part with for a precious Redeemer First Are you willing to part with your sins though they may be never so near and dear to you though they be as your right hand and right eye can you throw them away from you with detestation Isa 30.22 Ye shall defile also the covering of your graven Image and the Ornament of thy molten Image of gold thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth thou shalt say unto it get thee hence they shall cast away their Idols with detestation Again Can you be content to part with the World your Estates your Liberties your Comforts any thing for Christ Understand me thus First If they come in competition with him Secondly If they stand in opposition to him First If they come in competition with him Tell me can you hate Father Mother Wife children any thing that is near and dear to you if it stand in competition with Christ or any thing that stands in opposition to him If any thing hinders the meeting of Christ and your Souls though never so near and dear to you can you cast it away can you be content to part with it Thirdly Answer me this Question What pains can you be contented to take for the gaining of the Lord Jesus Christ can you be as industrious and unwearied in the pursuit of those unsearchable riches that are laid up in Christ as you are after these temporary and transitory riches that oftentimes take to themselves wings and fly away can you be as unsatiable in seeking to gain Jesus Christ on the Lords Day as you are unwearied in your Callings on the Week day certain it is if Jesus Christ be precious to you you will think no pains too great you will think no cost too much you will think no industry can be great enough for the purchasing this Pearl of Price you will with the Wise Merchant in the Gospel sell all to purchase him you will seek him in the Streets as the Spouse did you will seek him in the Assemblies you will be driving a Trade still that you may get more of him more influences of Grace from him and more conformity unto him This is the first Use of Examination to discover whether Jesus Christ be precious to you or no if your desires be strongly carried out after him if your love be a servent and sincere love if you can be content to give any thing for him and to lose or part with any thing for his sake and if you can be content to take any pains and think no pains too great to gain him who is the Pearl of great Price The Lord make your own hearts your Judges in this particular And so much for the first Use of Examination There are three other Uses a Use of Conviction a Use of Information and a Use of Exhortation But I must refer them to another opportunity 1 Pet. II. 7. Vnto you therefore which believe he is precious I Have spoken to this Text in two Sermons already upon the like occasion of our solemn approaching to the Table of the Lord and there are two Points of Doctrine I have drawn from these words the first is this That Jesus Christ is infinitely precious in himself The second is this As Jesus Christ is infinitely precious in himself so is he also precious to all Believers and highly prized by them This Point I spake to upon the last Occasion and opened it to you and made one Use of Examination I now come to a second Use that is of Conviction If it be so that Jesus Christ is thus precious to all Believers then it follows few yea very few Believers there are in the World nay very few of those that do profess the Name of Christ because there are very few that do prize him very few that make that high account of him as becomes so rich so precious so invaluable a Redeemer But it may be you will say to me Who are they then that do not prize Jesus Christ who are they that do not value him I shall instance in four or five sorts of Persons First They do not prize the Lord Jesus Christ that see no beauty in him that they should desire him that see no beauty in spiritual things no beauty in Grace no beauty in the peace of a good conscience no beauty in Joy in the Holy Ghost in righteousness and holiness for in these things consists the Kingdom of God Rom. 14.17 For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost Now those that see no beauty in those things that lead the Soul to Christ in those things wherein the Kingdom of Christ consists certainly they do not prize Christ This is the great fault of the Jews for which they were rejected as the Prophet Isaiah foretold Isa 53.2 3 He shall grow up before him as a tender Plant and as a Root out of a day ground he hath no form nor comeliness and when we shall see him there is no beauty that we should desire him He is despised and rejected of men a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief and we hid as it were our faces from him he was despised and we esteemed him not The Jews look upon Christ with a carnal eye they look upon his Humanity the meanness of his Birth born in a Stable the lowness of his Parentage the House of David being at that time but like the stump of a Tree a dry Root he coming from the Root of Jesse they look upon his attendance a company of poor Fishermen they look upon his condition not having a House to lay his Head in therefore they slight him reject him and despise him Just thus it is at this day many there are that value not at all spiritual things neither value they the
of all Saints is this Grace given that I should preach among the Gentiles the usearchable Riches of Christ O when a man once is gotten into Christ his Riches cannot be told he hath the Riches of Redemption the Riches of Christs Merits the Riches of Christs Spirit and he hath the rich and glorious Purchase of Christs blood he hath all these for his portion he may say all these are mine and can you name such Riches as these are they are called unsearchable Riches Eye hath not seen Ear hath not heard neither hath it entred into the heart of Man to conceive what those unsearchable Riches are which a Believer receives by Christ therefore a Believer is infinitely Rich. And then A Believer is truly honourable by him the Lord Christ is not only a Price but an Honour to him he is a most glorious Redeemer Nay Christ is not only glorious but he is called Glory it self Isa 40.5 And the Glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it that is Christ shall be revealed The Prophet declares that John Baptist speaking of the coming of Christ says The Glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together Jesus Christ is called there the Glory of the Lord. So in the New Testament he is called the glory of his People Luke 2.32 A light to lighten the Gentiles and the Glory of thy people Israel Indeed no Glory can be put upon any one like this to be a Member of Christ to be the Spouse of Christ to be the Servant of Christ Theodosius that good Emperor esteemed it a greater honour to be Servus Christi than Caput Regni a greater honour to be a Servant to Christ than to be Head of the Empire Thirdly Learn this Lesson by way of Inference If Jesus Christ be so precious to Believers then certainly Unbelief is a most dangerous a most damnable a Soul-destroyiug sin why because Unbelief makes Jesus Christ to be of no worth no value no price no advantage at all To you that do believe he is precious I but says the Apostle in the next words to the Text To them which be disobedient that is to them that do not believe he is a Stone of stumbling a Rock of Offence to unbelievers the Lord Jesus Christ is as a thing of nought it is the Apostles own expression Saint Peter speaking of the Pharisees and the Rulers Acts 4.11 This is the Stone which was set at nought by you builders which is become the Head of the Corner They made nothing of Christ To an Unbeliever Christ is of no more worth than the dirt under his foot with Reverence be it spoken An Unbeliever he would sell Christ for thirty pieces of Silver with Judas nay he will prefer five shillings before him Of all sins take heed of this sin for this is the evil heart that is departing from the living God Heb. 3.12 Take heed Brethren lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God Hereby the Soul begins to depart to depart to depart till at last it hears that dreadful Sentence Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels As Faith is the first return of the Soul to God so Unbelief is the first departing of the Soul from God take heed therefore of Unbelief Fourthly Another Lesson by way of Inference is this If Jesus Christ be so precious to those that do believe in him O how infinitely precious will he be to them that do enjoy him If he be so precious to them that see him by the eye of Faith how infinitely precious will he be to them that see him face to face when our Faith is brought into fruition and our hope into our hand Abraham saw Jesus Christ afar off he faw him when he was to come two thousand years before he came into the World Abraham by an eye of Faith faw him and he rejoyced the Text says John 8.56 Your Father Abraham rejoyced to see my day and he saw it and was glad If he saw him when he was at such a distance and rejoyced how does Abraham rejoyce now when he sees him face to face Long for that time when you shall have a full sight of him which is called The Beatifical Vision that is the Vision that will make you everlastingly blessed One sight of Jesus Christ in Glory will so satisfie the Soul so beautifie it so rejoyce it that it is an expression that Austin used if so be a man were in Hell if you could suppose such a thing to be and had but one glimpse of the Beatifical Vision it would swallow up all the bitterness of Hell it self And this is that which Christ hath both promised and prayed for he hath promised We shall see him as he is and he hath prayed for it too John 17.24 Father I will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am that they may behold my Glory which thou hast given me for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world Oh long for that day when you shall see Jesus Christ as he is see him in his Glory then he will be infinitely and unconceivably precious indeed and that to all Eternity That 's the third Use of Information in these four Lessons That Faith is a most precious Grace That Believers are rich and Honourable Persons That Unbelief is a dangerous and damnable and Soul-destroying sin and that the sight of Jesus Christ face to face in Glory will be infinitely and unconceivably precious and glorious indeed A fourth Vse it is for Exhortation If Jesus Christ be so precious to Believers then let me beseech you and perswade you and prevail with you and the Lord bow your hearts to hearken to this Exhortation this day As ever you desire to have a certain proof and evidence that you are true Believers and that you are true Members of Jesus Christ and that you are real Saints for there are many nominal but there are but few true Saints that you are true Servants of Jesus Christ and truly united to him and have communion with him and have infinite precious priviledges by him O then do you learn to prize Jesus Christ at a high rate set a high price upon this precious Redeemer let him be highest in your esteem do your labour every day that he may be more and more precious and amiable and beautiful in your eyes Remember but that speech of our Saviour Luke 14.26 If any man come to me and hate not his Father and Mother and Wife and Children and Brethren and Sisters yea and his own life also he cannot be my Disciple He that does not hate Father c These words must not be understood simply as if our Saviour would have us to hate our Relations as Father Mother Wife Children and Brethren
and Sisters and our own lives certainly that is not the meaning of the words of our Saviour that he would have us to offer violation to the Law of Nature it is not spoken therefore simply but comparatively he that does not love me so much so as to hate all other in comparison of me he that does not prize me before Father Mother Wife Children Brethren House Lands yea life it self and all things that are desirable such a one hath no interest in me and shall have no benefit by me Now because it is an Exhortation of such infinite concernment therefore I shall divide it into three Branches First I shall shew you the manner how you should prize Christ Secondly The Motives which may perswade you to it Thirdly The means that may help you in it First For the manner how you must prize Christ It may be you will say In what manner must we prize Christ In what manner must Christ be precious to us Prize him in your Understandings in your Choice in your Affections and in his Ordinances First In your Understandings desiring to know nothing but Jesus Christ and him crucified 1 Cor. 2.2 And count all things but dross and dung in comparison of the excellency of the knowledg of Jesus Christ Indeed there is a thousand times more worth and beauty and sweetness and excellency in Jesus Christ than you can know as he said That man that knows Jesus Christ well although he be ignorant of all other things he is the right knowing man If a man had all the learning of both Universities concentred in himself and yet ignorant of Jesus Christ he were but a poor simple Sot Secondly Prize Jesus Christ in your Choice to pitch upon him as the adequate Object satisfying Object of your Souls pitch upon him as the only excellent one As a woman that selects and singles out one man from amongst all the rest upon whom she places all her Affections for her Husband so do you select and chuse out Jesus Christ for your Beloved and say Whom have I in Heaven but thee and there is none on Earth that I desire in comparison of thee Thirdly Prize Jesus Christ in your Affections love him above all expressions of love labour to be sick of love towards so sweet and precious a Saviour as the Spouse was Cant. 2.5 Stay me with Flaggons Comfort me with Apples for I am sick of love saying as David did in that mournful Elegy which he made for Saul and Jonathan speaking of Jonathan says he Thy love to me was wonderful passing the love of women 2 Sam. 1.26 I am distressed for thee my brother Jonathan very pleasant hast thou been unto me thy love to me was wonderful passing the love of women Then trust in him as the Rock of your Salvation trust to his Wisdom to lead you in his Power to support you trust in his Mercy and Merit to save you Again Do you rejoyce in him to say as the Virgin Mary did My Soul doth magnifie the Lord and my Spirit rejoyceth in God my Saviour And cleave to him as to that Rock that only can deliver you both from the raging Ocean of Gods everlasting displeasure and from the leaking boat of your own graces prize him in your Affections Fourthly Prize him in his Ordinances in his Word Oh how sweet is thy Word O Lord that brings me good tidings of a blessed Redeemer The Word of God is as a Letter sent from a dear and precious Husband to his Wife And prize him in the Sacraments which is as a Love token or Ring sent to you from the Beloved of your Souls Oh how should you prize these Ordinances In the Sacrament by an eye of Faith you may see him bleeding and pouring out his Soul an offering for sin in the Sacrament you may see him crying and dying for your sakes in a word esteem one hours communion with him better worth than all the pleasures in the World as that Noble Marquess of Italy did who said He was not worthy of Christ that did not esteem one hours Communion with him better than all the treasures in the World So much for the manner how we must prize Jesus Christ Secondly For the Motives that may perswade you to it and Oh that I knew what Motives might raise up your esteem of this precious Redeemer I will name but these three Will either worth or beauty or excellency or sweetness or Soul-satisfaction win upon your hearts all these are to be found in him He is an All-sufficient-Saviour All-sufficient for Justification his blood can pardon All-sufficient for Sanctification also for his blood can purifie All-sufficient for Redemption his blood can deliver from wrath to come Do but consider how precious this Christ is in himself as I shewed you in the former Doctrine precious in his Person precious in his Titles precious in his Offices being a King Priest and Prophet precious in the purchase of his blood Secondly I beseech you to consider that Jesus Christ is the only desirable good The common vote and voice of the World is this Who will shew us any good Psalm 4.6 But why do you not say Who will shew us Jesus Christ who is indeed the only needful good the All-sufficient good the Soul-satisfying good assure your selves nothing under Heaven can do you good without him nothing under Heaven can be good if you want him what are Riches without Jesus Christ what is Gold and Silver without Jesus Christ but rotten stinking dung what are the most Royal Robes that ever were put on by the greatest Emperour without Jesus Christ what are they but poluted clouts what is the most Princely Palace without Jesus Christ but a Pest-house what is Birth Endowments Education without Jesus Christ but glittering sins So your choicest comforts and accommodations without Jesus Christ they are no better than gilded damnation what are all your outward Blessings without Christ no better than curses And as nothing is good without him so nothing can do you good without him there is no creature in Heaven or Earth that can do you good without Christ neither Men nor Angels if you had all the Angels in Heaven to speak for you they could do you no good without Christ God himself will do you no good without Christ he will not if I may use such an expression truck or trade with you he will not exchange one word in the business of Salvation but by Christ John 14.6 Jesus saith unto him I am the way the truth and the life no man cometh to the Father but by me You cannot have any access to God approach to him to stand up for your lives or the life of your Souls without him who is the life of your lives and the Soul of your Souls Pray tell me therefore Are you contented to perish for ever in your sins Are you contented that the curses and threatnings of the Law those Treasures of wrath that
they should be your portion Are you contented to be banished from the presence of God and to be sent into a dungeon of darkness there to be and to be most miserable is all one Are you contented to be sent to that blackness of darkness for ever as the Apostle calls it Jude 12. I know you are not Oh then why do you not prize Jesus Christ by whom alone it is that you may escape eternal wrath and vengeance Isa 55. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread and your labour for that which will not satisfie Why do you trifle away your time in impertinencies in things that will not profit why do you pour out your hearts on every lust and vanity and in the mean time neglect him who only can give you remission of sin and a right to the Promises and reconciliation with God and Eternal Salvation Thirdly Let me use one Motive more Do but consider how infinitely precious the Lord Jesus Christ is to God the Father O what account does he make of him He esteem him the Son of his Love the Son of his Bosom the Delight of his Soul My Servant in whom my Soul delighteth Jesus Christ was both a Son and a Servant in our flesh when he took our Nature and became our Surety Isa 42.1 Behold my Servant whom I uphold mine Elect in whom my Soul delighteth I have put my Spirit upon him he shall bring forth Judgment to the Gentiles What account do the Saints in Heaven make of Christ they look upon him as the life of their lives and the Soul of their Souls as the heaven of their Happiness as the joy of their Joy the Heaven that the Saints now enjoy it is the beholding of Jesus Christ now in Glory Nay do but consider what account Sinners will make of him they that now slight him that prefer every base lust before him that mind the getting of every thing but Christ Oh what account will they make at that great day when they shall call to the Mountains fall on them and the Hills to cover them Oh what would they give for a smile of his face at that day when if they had ten thousand Worlds in their possession they would give it for a smile of his face Will Christ be so precious hereafter and shall he not be precious now will not these Motives work upon you are they jests and fables If my Brethren such Arguments will not prevail for my part I am out of hope to prevail with you Thirdly Let me but shew you some Means that may help you to prize the Lord Christ to make him precious to your Souls The Means or Helps briefly are these four or five First The Soul must be convinced of the indispensable need that it hath of Jesus Christ it is necessity that does inhance the price for till the Soul be convinced of this all the Arguments and Motives that we can use are but like water that runs besides the Bottle because the Bottle is stopt all our Arguments prevail nothing they take no impression upon the heart at all but when a Soul once sees either I must have Christ or I must perish for ever I am lost damned and undone for ever I am a fire-brand of Hell for ever O Christ is now Christ indeed to such a Soul If ever therefore you desire to prize him according to his worth be much in the duty of self-examination turn your eyes inward to see the vileness of your Natures the sinfulness of your hearts and the manifold transgressions of your lives reason thus with thy own Soul What am I by Nature but a child of Wrath and an heir of Hell and a bondslave to Satan a stranger to God and an enemy to him without God and without Hope the number of my sins are more than the hairs of my head my heart fails me in the remembrance of them and one sin is enough to sink me into Hell because it is committed against an infinite Majesty and therefore it deserves an infinite punishment for where God does punish he does punish infinitely his Justice must have an infinite satisfaction and there is no satisfaction can be given to God without blood Heb. 9.22 For without blood there is no remission saith the Apostle and no blood can expiate sin can take away the guilt of sin but the blood of an infinite value and no blood is of an infinite value but the blood of this precious Redeemer that is that blood that is of invaluable and unconceivable worth for for the Son of God to shed his blood it is more than if all the Angels in Heaven and Potentates of the Earth had laid down their lives to purchase one of our Souls therefore I must have this blood sprinkled on my Soul or else I must resolve to perish everlastingly consider therefore of the need that you have of Jesus Christ Secondly Do you desire to prize Jesus Christ then labour to eat this blessed Passover with bitter herbs I mean labour to partake of this Sacrament with the bitter remembrance of all your former unkindnesses all your miscarriages failings wandrings and back-slidings Oh let the remembrance of these be as bitter to you as Gall and Wormwood Oh labour to say feelingly It is an evil and bitter thing that thou hast provoked the Lord Jer. 2.19 that thou hast grieved his Spirit that thou hast forfeited his Love that thou hast abused his kindness that thou hast turned his grace into wantonness O say I have done enough a thousand and a thousand times to damn my Soul if the mercy of God were one jot less than infinite if the blood of Jesus Christ should not quench the fire of his anger it would be burning and burning and burning against me to all Eternity even as long as God shall be God it is a bitter thing that I have provoked my God You should in this Sacrament look upon him whom you have pierced and mourn over him as one that mourns for the loss of his only Son and be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his first-born Zech. 12.10 that is the Image of his Person and is as it were the prop and stay of his Family This is certain my Brethren there are none that do prize Jesus Christ so much as they that are stung with the sense of their own sinfulness of their own vileness none prize the Lord Jesus Christ so much as they that most of all feel the burthen of their own sins Let me give you two remarkable examples the one of a man the other of a woman Did ever man prize Jesus Christ more than St. Paul that counted all his Excellencies but as dirt under his feet in comparison of Christ he did esteem them as things that we cast to Dogs as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies Did ever woman prize Jesus Christ more than Mary Magdalen who you know washt
I do to be saved So that this Text tells you and describes to you the Jaylors carriage when God first struck his heart and gave him a sight of himself and of his sins and in this carriage of the Jaylor there are these three things very observable His Perplexity his Courtesie his Question his Perplexity in verse 29. His Courtesie and Question in verse 30. First His Perplexity He called for a light and sprang in and came trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas Secondly His Courtesie the Text says He brought them out Thirdly His Question Sirs What must I do to be saved It is the first of these I principally aim at namely the Jaylors Perplexity Then he called for a light darkness now was a terrour to him because he was a terrour to himself He was a Magor Missabib a terrour round about Jer. 20.3 And he sprang in that is he rush'd hastily into the Prison and like a man distracted knew not what to do nor which way to turn himself he came trembling being stricken with inward horror and terror of Conscience and pray observe it well There is not the stoutest man breathing upon Earth but if God set his Conscience against him like a Dog to fly in his face it will pull him down and lay him flat and fill him with that inward horror and terror and perplexity that he will be more afraid of himself than of all the world besides Thus it was with the Jaylor here when God came nigh him and awakened his conscience he fell down before Paul and Silas God had given him a sight of his sins and of the invisible Majesty of Christ that was in those his precious Servants Paul and Silas whom before he look'd upon as a couple of Rogues and that the Whip and the Stocks were good enough for them but now he reverenceth them and respects them and falls down at their feet Thus you see what his Perplexity was My purpose is not to insist upon every particular but to pitch upon that which is principally held forth in the words observe therefore when God was about to work the great work of saving Faith and sound Conversion in the heart of this Jaylor and by Faith in Jesus Christ to bring him to Salvation what is the first thing that he does First he humbles him and strikes him down and lays him flat he doth awaken and shake his conscience this unbroken Sinner is now amazed and perplexed and astonished and he knows not which way to turn himself So then the observation I would commend to you from the words is this Doct. Sound Humiliation is a necessary Antecedent or Fore-runner to Faith and Salvation Would you have it plainer then take it thus Those whom God intends to make true Believers and Heirs of his Everlasting Kingdom they are first soundly humbled and made sensible of their own dangerous and damnable condition Look as a Timber-tree that a man intends for building first he hews it down and then he fits it and squares it for the building so that Sinner whom God intends to frame for himself and build up by Faith to Salvation God first casts down to the ground and lays him flat and makes him sensible of his own lost and dangerous and damnable estate Look into the Scripture and you shall find that this is Gods Method and Jesus Christs and the Holy Ghosts Method First This is Gods Method and this course he took with our first Parents he arraigned them and past a sentence upon them and pronounced a curse against them before ever he brings them to the knowledg of a Saviour before ever he made that Promise that The seed of the woman should break the Serpents head Remarkable is that Scripture Job 33.21 22 it describes the manner of Gods converting a Sinner verse 14 God speaketh once yea twice yet man perceiveth it not God calls and cryes and knocks and tries this way and that way and the other way to bring the Sinner in to bring him home by Conversion but all will not do what doth he then Read verse 21 22. God humbleth the Sinner to the very dust His flesh is consumed away that it cannot be seen and his bones that were not seen stick out his soul draweth near unto the Grave and his life to the destroyers His meaning is this He is made a very Anatomy and God brings him to the very gates of Hell and what follows Then he is gracious unto him and saith Deliver him from going down to the pit I have found a ransom So this was the Method of Jesus Christ this course he took with St. Paul before he was converted he unhorst him and humbled him and struck him blind and all this while St. Paul must steep himself in sorrow before Ananias comes to him and speak words of comfort Acts 9. Christ would have us weary and heavy laden Matth. 11 weary with the work of sin and heavy laden with the weight of sin before he will give us ease he will have the Soul thirsty before he gives it the water of life Isa 55 Ho every one that thirsteth come ye to the waters that is to be sensible of the want of Christ and the worth of Christ before he gives the Soul to taste of the water of life and he will have the Soul sick of sin before the Physician comes to it The whole have no need of a Physician but they that are sick Matth. 9.12 He will have the Sinner sick of his sin before he will cure him And this is the Holy Ghosts Method too for you shall read the Spirit of God first convinceth of sin before he convinceth of righteousness John 16.8 First The Spirit of God convinceth of sin for humiliation before he convinceth of righteousness for Justification And this hath been the Method of all Master-builders John Baptist he comes levelling of Mountains and casting down proud Sinners before they come to Christ and St. Peter he prick'd his Hearers to the heart before he gave them any hope or comfort by a Saviour Acts 2. He let them blood at the heart before he directed them how to be saved But now because this is a weighty Truth and it may please God to do good to some of you all the days of your lives to know the Method and manner of bringing Jesus Christ and the Soul together for this is all the work we Ministers have to do let me speak to it by way of Explication and shew you three things First What this Humiliation is Secondly Whether the like measure of Humiliation be wrought in all that are brought home to Jesus Christ or no Thirdly Why God is pleased to take this course to fit men for Faith and Salvation thus first to humble them First What this Humiliation is Divines describe a twofold Humiliation 1. A Passive Humiliation 2. An Active Humiliation The Passive humiliation is that whereby God humbles the Sinner in the
3.24 The truth is the Soul will never run to Christ to the purpose until he be whipt by this School-master You know the story of the City of Refuge the Man-slayer never fled thither until the Avenger of blood pursued him The City of Refuge is Jesus Christ and the Sinner never flies to Jesus Christ to purpose until the vengeance of a sin-revengieg God and the curse of a condemning Law and the horror of a self-accusing Conscience pursue the Soul like a chased Deer now it flies to Jesus Christ to purpose Thirdly Without humiliation the Sinner will never obey Christ an unbroken Sinner is like an unbroken Colt that is not tamed or like an unbroken Heifer that will not submit to the yoke Jesus Christ may command what he will but he will do what he list But when a Sinner comes to be humbled and unhors'd as St. Paul was then he says Lord What wilt thou have me to do Though it be never so cross to my carnal and corrupt Nature yet I will do it Before the Sinner is humbled he is ever complaining of the unkindness of Gods dealing with him but after he is humbled he is ever complaining how unkindly he deals with God As all disobedience springs from pride so all obedience springs from humility Fourthly Without humiliation the Sinner will never constantly cleave to Jesus Christ There are many that seemingly close with Christ for a while just like those that rejoyced in John Baptists Doctrine for a while John 5.35 He was a burning and a shining light and ye were willing to rejoyce in his light for a season And you read of some that followed Christ for a while but they were offended and went back and walked no more with him John 6.66 There are many Professors just like the Corn cast into the second ground in the Parable It sprang up for a while but in time of temptation it withered why because it wanted root and why did it not root because the Plough of humiliation went not deep enough so there are many Professors that prove Apostates and disloyal to the Lord Jesus Christ but what is the reason because they were never throughly humbled they are weary of Christs yoke because ehey never felt the burden of the Devils yoke and of sins yoke that Soul that hath felt the burden of Satans yoke will say that Christs yoke is a sweet and easie yoke they that are truly humbled will never forsake Christ but will cling and cleave to him as a ship-wrack'd Mariner doth to a Rock he will not part with it because he knows it is for his life Fifthly This humiliation is necessary because without it we can never be conformable to Christ for Christ was first humbled before he was exalted He drank of the brook in the way before he lift up his head Psalm 110.7 Thus you have the Doctrine opened now let us see what Application we can make of this Point and the Vses are but two the one of Instruction and the other of Exhortation I shall give you two Instructions and two Exhortations The first Instruction or Lesson by way of Inference is this If sound humiliation be such a necessary Antecedent to Faith and Salvation then it justifies the practice of those Ministers that take this course in convincing and humbling and wounding and awakening sleepy Sinners you see what we Ministers may do nay you see what we must do if with care and conscience we would discharge our duty we must sometimes thunder and lighten as St. Paul did when he made Felix to tremble Acts 24.25 We must strike the Sinners heart with an Arrow of Conviction as the Arrow that was shot at Ahab entred in at the joints of his Armour and pierc'd his heart 1 Kings 22.34 We must hedg in the Sinner with inevitable Conviction and meet him with a drawn Sword as the Angel did Balaam Numb 22.23 We must sometimes knock at the door of their hearts and say to them O thou unregenerate man I have sad news to tell thee Thou canst never so long as thou art in this condition see the face of God with comfort or enter into his Kingdom thou mayst see the face of God indeed but it will be with frowns in his Forehead and indignation in his Countenance to thee when he shall sentence thee to that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that blackness of darkness for ever Jude 13. O Drunkard I have sad news to tell thee Thou must drink of the Cup of Gods wrath and indignation which will cause thee to spew and fall and never rise again O Swearer I have sad news to tell thee That the wrath of God is like a flying Rowl hangs over the house of ever Swearer Zech. 5. O ignorant and disobedient Sinner I have sad news to tell thee Jesus Christ will come in flames of fire to take vengeance on them that know him not and obey not the Gospel 2 Thess 1.7 8. In a word we must take any course to awaken Sinners out of their sloath and security Two sorts of persons there are that oppose this kind of Preaching but most do not love it but dislike it First the openly prophane and scandalous Sinner that would fain sleep in sin and go to Hell in a slumber and therefore he looks upon such awakening Sermons as tormenting Sermons Rev. 11.10 The two Prophets tormented them that dwelt upon the Earth Oh this convincing quickning and awakening Doctrine this is but a torment to many carnal men who cry out What ado is there with these Ministers they will not let me be quiet they torment me before my time Ah poor wretch Art thou afraid to be tormented before thy time and art thou not afraid to be tormented time without end There are some Beasts so furious that there is nothing but the fire will tame them so there are some men so brutish that they are mad upon their evil ways as it is said of the Chaldeans They are mad upon their Idols Jer. 50.38 So some are mad upon sinful ways and courses that a Minister must spit fire in their faces to rouse them out of their security and spiritual Lethargy Art thou angry with a Minister who in tender compassion to thy Soul would pluck thy Soul as a firebrand out of the fire and save it from eternal misery and burnings if one of you have a leg broken you will send for a Chyrurgion to set it and you will be contented that he shall put you to great pain for the recovering of your Limb and restoring you to your former state again and will you not allow your Ministers to put you to some pain and grief and trouble for the recovering of your Souls from that wound and breach that sin hath made upon you A second sort that oppose convincing Preaching are Antinomians that tell us there is no use of the Law under the Gospel and that Ministers must preach nothing but Christ and Grace and Peace
from vers 27 to ver 59. Thirdly You have the issue or consequence of the Sermon some believed and some revolted some murmured and some marvelled The Text that I have now read unto you is part of the Sermon it self wherein our Lord and Saviour because of the stupidity and incredulity of his Auditors doth again and again both press and prove this Heavenly Doctrine that he himself was the Bread of Life I am says he the Bread of Life he that cometh to me shall not hunger and he that believeth on me shall never thirst In which Text you may take notice of these two parts First An undeniable Proposition I am the Bread of Life Secondly A comfortable Inference upon that Proposition He that cometh to me shall never hunger and he that believeth on me shall nevtr thirst I shall begin with the first the evident and undeniable Proposition I am the Bread of Life which words must not be understood literally as if our Saviour was such Corporal Bread as could be chewed in the mouth and digested in the stomach as the Capernaites did fondly conceive when they said How can this man give us his flesh to eat this was as gross a conceit as Nicodemus's who askt If he should go into his Mothers womb again and be born But the words must be understood in a Metaphorical sense That as Bread strengthens the body and revives the spirit and supports the nature of a man and enables him to perform natural actions with more vigour and vivacity so likewise the Lord Jesus Christ strengthens the Soul and revives the spirit and supports us in our spiritual life and helps us to perform spiritual duties in a spiritual manner therefore he saith I am the Bread of Life He is not only bread but the bread of life because it is he that gives us spiritual life here and preserves that life and will hereafter give to us Eternal lise in Glory and therefore he is called The Bread of Life So then the Doctrine I would commend to you from hence is this Doct. The Lord Jesus Christ is that living bread that gives Spiritual and Eternal life to all those that have a part and interest in him This is a Truth so unquestionable that it is no less than six times repeated in this one Chapter And for the better Confirmation of it it may be demanded First Wherein doth our Saviour resemble bread Secondly And how doth it appear that our Saviour is better than bread I shall speak briefly to them both First Wherein doth our Saviour resemble bread I will name but three particulars though I know more might be reckoned up First Bread you know it is prepared food the Corn must be threshed and winnowed and ground in a Mill and baked in an Oven before it can be bread for us to eat So the Lord Jesus Christ he was threshed as I may say by afflictions and tribulations He was a man of sorrows and he was winnowed by temptations he was baked and scorch'd as it were in the Oven of his Fathers wrath for it was he that trod the Winepress of his Fathers wrath alone for us and all this was done before he could be made fit Bread that is a fit Saviour for our Souls Secondly Bread you hnow it is common food it is common to the poor as well as to the rich for the foolish as well as the wise the poor have bread if they have any thing so the Lord Jesus Christ he is a common Saviour common for all ranks and conditions of men for high and low and rich and poor noble and ignoble all are beholding to Jesus Christ here There is neither Greek nor Jew Circumcision nor Vncircumcision Barbarian Scythian Bond nor Free but Christ is all and in all Col. 3.11 Thirdly Bread you know it is the principal food it is the stay and support of a mans life therefore it is called The staff of bread Isa 3.1 So the Lord Jesus Christ he is the principal portion of the Souls of all Believers He is the choicest of ten thousand Cant. 5.10 We may better want any thing than bread The Lord Jesus Christ is as I may say not only the food of our Souls but the Soul of our Souls and the Life of our Lives Secondly It may be demanded But wherein doth Jesus Christ excel this corporal bread I answer in these four respects First Corporal bread though it doth help to preserve life yet it cannot give life but now the Lord Jesus Christ is he that gives spiritual Life he begins it and begets it in his People Ephes 2.1 You hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins And hence it is that the Lord Jesus Christ is called the second Adam The first man Adam was made a living Soul the last Adam was made a quickning Spirit 1 Cor. 15.45 And in John 5.21 For as the Father raiseth up the dead and quickneth them even so the Son quickneth whom be will Secondly Bread doth satisfie but one appetite namely hunger never was it known that bread could satisfie thirst but now the Lord Jesus Christ he can satisfie all the desires of the Soul and supply all the wants of the Soul he is both the bread of life and the water of life nay not only bread and water but he is cloathing to the Soul as it is in Rom. 13. ult Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ So that he is both Food and Spiritual Cloathing Thirdly Bread though it satisfie your hunger for the present yet it cannot so take away your hunger that you shall hunger no more if it satisfie hunger to day you will be hungry again to morrow But now the Lord Jesus Christ doth so satisfie the hunger of our Souls that we shall never hunger nor thirst more for so the Text tells you He that comes to me shall never hunger and he that believeth on me shall never thirst Fourthly Corporal bread you know is perishing and doth but nourish a perishing life John 6.27 Labour not for the meat that perisheth But now the Lord Jesus Christ is not perishing bread but that bread that endures for ever and that life that he gives is not a perishing life neither John 6.51 I am the living bread which came down from Heaven if any man eat of this bread he shall live for ever and the bread which I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world So you see the Point opened Let me briefly apply it because I principally aim at the second part of the Text the comfortable-Inference But for the improvement of this Point First By way of Information and then by way of Exhortation First By way of Information there are three Doctrinal Inferences from the Point thus opened that may be thence deduced First If the Lord Jesus Christ be that living bread that gives Spiritual and Eternal life to them that believe in him then you may learn this
Lesson That such and so great is the indispensable need that we have of the Lord Jesus Christ that without him we are undone for ever In the 53d verse of this exeellent Chapter Verily verily I say unto you except you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood you have no life in you He speaks there of eating of his flesh and drinking his blood in a spiritual manner You know there are many desires of the Soul that may be dispenced with but hunger is a desire that must be satisfied unless you have bread for your sustenance the body dies so unless you have Jesus Christ for your spiritual sustenance your Souls die and drop down into Hell for ever for look as the union of the Body with the Soul is the life of the Body so the union of the Soul with Jesus Christ is the life of the Soul O hearken to this thou that art yet in a natural and unregenerate estate uncalled unconverted that never was yet transplanted from off the old rotten stock of Adam and replanted into the true Vine the Lord Jesus Christ if thou livest in this estate and diest in this estate thou art undone for ever the poorest worm that crawls upon the ground is in a better condition than thou art in Acts 26.27 Believest thou the Prophets said St. Paul to King Agrippa I know that thou believest Believest thou this Doctrine say I to thee that art yet uncalled unconverted I know thou believest it not for if thou didst believe it thou couldest not rest contented in a Christless condition for one week no not for one day but wouldest by prayers and tears and supplications cry out Lord Jesus give me thy self whatever thou denyest me give me thy self though I be as poor as Job upon the Dunghil But we cannot perswade men that the danger of a natural estate and condition is so great as indeed it is but the Lord convince you and perswade you of it A second Doctrinal Inference that may be hence deduced is this If Jesus Christ be the living bread then it follows the vanity and emptiness and insufficiency of all Creature-accommodations is exceeding great name what you will of these outward accommodations that the World do so greedily gape after whether Riches or Honours or Pleasures or goodly brave Buildings this and that alas we may say of them they are not bread Isa 55.2 Wherefore do you spend your money for that which is not bread Your money that is your precious opportunities your time that is your money to make your Markets for Eternity with for Moments are the Markets for Eternity Wherefore do you spend your money for that which is not bread and your labour for that which satisfieth not Alas alas these outward things they are neither satisfactory nor permanent they are not satisfactory for Solomon tells us that He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver nor he that loveth abundance with encrease Eccles 5.10 As soom may you hope to fill a Chest with Wisdom and Knowledg as to fill a Soul which is a spiritual substance with temporal things And as these outward things are are satisfactory so neither are they permanent or lasting 1 Cor. 6.13 Meats for the belly and the belly for meats but God shall deslroy both it and them Look as the belly devours the meat so the worms at last shall devour the belly and so both meat and belly perish together But if you can but once get this spiritual bread the Lord Christ you shall never perish Alas alas consider your own folly and brutishness in seeking for satisfaction here below where none is to be found your bread without Christ is but gravel in your throats your moral Vertues without Christ are but glittering sins your bodies without Christ are but dust and ashes dust that will drop down into the Grave and ashes that are fitted for the Furnace of Hell-fire your Souls without Christ are but the Devils Palace your lives without Christ is but the service of sin and your deaths without Christ will be nothing else but the wages of sin Oh who would rest then in a Christless condition Who would sit down contented with these poor transitory shadowy comforts A third Lesson we may learn by way of Inference is this If Jesus Christ be the living bread then our main end and errand in coming to the Lords Table is not to feed the Body but to feed the Soul 1 Cor. 11.21 What have you not Houses to eat and to drink in saith the Apostle So that it is not the end of your coming to the Lords Table therefore you eat but a little piece of Bread and drink but a little draught of Wine to put you in mind that it is not the Body that you come to feed but you come to feed the Soul and therefore you should labour to get a preparation suitable to that spiritual bread that you are to taste of But what is that you will say I answer There should be something done before your coming and something done in the Administration of the Elements and something done after the receiving of the Elements First There should be something done before you come Oh beg a blessing upon your spiritual bread Man lives not by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God Matth. 4.4 I may apply it thus Your Souls will not live by this Sacramental Bread but by the Word of Gods blessing If God will bless this spiritual food to you your Souls shall live On therefore beg the Blessing of God upon this Heavenly Bread Secondly And then there is something to be done while you are eating this Bread you should get your hearts all on fire with love to this blessed Redeemer that was contented to be made bread to be prepared food as I told you even now to be threshed and winnowed and ground and bak'd and scorch'd in the Oven of his Fathers Wrath Oh how should your hearts be all on a flame with Love as the two Disciples were going to Emaus As Jesus Christ brake bread and gave it to them and opened to them the Scriptures their hearts did burn within them Luke 24.32 they were as it were all on a fire So should it be with you when you come to the Lords Table you should have your meditations wholly taken up with that which is the life of the Sacrament even the death of our Saviour let not your hearts be roving and wandering about watch them narrowly you will hardly keep them close to a duty two Minutes without great watching Thirdly There is something to be done after when you have eaten of this living bread that is to be exceeding thankful study to walk worthy of the Lord unto all well-pleasing That 's the first Use of Information The second Vse is of Exhortation Is Jesus Christ that living bread that gives eternal life to all those that have a
had need to think of restitution So the Disciples in the Primitive time they sold their possessions and brought them and laid them down at the Apostles feet Acts 4.35 Why at the Apostles feet because they regarded their outward possessions in comparison of Heavenly treasure which they were made partakers of no more than the dirt under their feet Saint Paul at the first was taken with the World it was as a fine Nosegay to him but afterwards when he was crucified to the World and the World to him he look'd upon it but as a withered Flower Thirdly There are some spiritual desires of the Soul and these shall be satisfied those thirsts after Grace shall be satisfied so that a man that once believes in Jesus Christ shall no more thirst for Grace no more thirst for Grace may some say why none thirst so much for Grace as they that have Grace It is true and yet I shall make my words good he shall not thirst for Grace in two senses or respects First He shall not have a total and painful thirst after Grace There is a twofold thirsting as Divines well observe after Grace There is a thirst arising from a total want of Grace this is a painful and deadly thirst now this thirst for Grace shall be quite quenched And then there is a thirst arising from a sense of the imperfection of the grace we have and this thirst it is true shall never be fully satisfied until we come to Heaven but the painful thirst that shall be taken away so saith our Saviour John 4.14 Whosoever shall drink of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a Well of water springing up into everlasting life Such a one shall never have a painful thirst more Secondly A man that believes in Jesus Christ shall not have a hopeless and helpless thirst although he may be thirsting after Grace still yet it is not a hopeless thirst because he hath a Spring and Storehouse to go to for satisfaction What is that Spring and Storehouse I answer There is a double Spring or Storehouse First The Lord Jesus Christ himself he is the Fountain of living water and he is that Spring that refresheth the Soul It pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell Col. 1.19 Secondly The precious Promises they are another Spring for the Souls satisfaction Oh what refreshing doth often flow into the Soul from those rich and precious Promises But it may be you will say to me When shall a Believer thus have all his desires satisfied his sinful desires quenched his sensual desires allayed and his spiritual desires after grace satisfied I answer partly in this life and partly in the life to come Partly in this life his desires shall be satisfied he shall have a fulness suitable to his condition while he lives upon the Earth as a Child hath strength suitable to a Child so a Believer shall have a fulness suitable to his condition The Prophet David cries out My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness Psalm 63.5 This was a suitable fulness But then in the life to come there shall be a perfect and compleat satisfaction given in to the Soul then shall this Scripture be fulfilled In thy presence there is fulness of Joy and at thy right hand are Pleasures for evermore Psalm 16.11 And saith he in Psalm 17.15 As for me I will behold thy face in righteousness I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness In that one Verse you have a picture of Heaven which consists in Vision of God I will behold thy face in righteousness in Conformity to God When I awake with thy likeness in Satisfaction in God I shall be satisfied Vision of God Conformity to God and Satisfaction in God this makes up Heaven And that is a most precious Scripture Matth. 25.23 Enter thou into the Joy of thy Lord. It is as if our Saviour should say This Joy cannot enter into thee because of thy straitness but thou maist enter into it because of its largeness The Sea cannot enter into a Hogshead because it is a Vessel that cannot contain it but the Hogshead may enter into the Sea because the Sea can fill it Every gaping desire of the Soul shall then be satisfied with as much Grace and Glory and Holiness and Happiness as it can be capable of receiving every Vessel shall then be filled according to its capacity A Pint it is true doth not contain so much as a Pottle but the Pint shall be filled filled as well as the Pottle Secondly But how comes this to pass that a Believer shall have all his desires satisfied I shall give you but two Reasons for it First Because Faith makes Jesus Christ a mans own it is the espousing Grace it is the Wedding Ring that makes up the Match between Christ and the Soul If Thomas do but put his finger into his Saviours side Oh saith he My Lord and my God now he saith Lord Jesus thou art mine The woman as soon as she is married to her Husband is partaker of an interest in all his Goods With all my worldly Goods I thee endow Thus the Lord Jesus Christ as soon as by Faith he is made ours all his is made ours He is made of God to us Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption Secondly Faith as it makes Jesus Christ ours so by making him ours it makes God the Father to be ours also Faith makes God our Father to be our Husband Isa 54.5 For thy Maker is thine Husband It makes God our Father to be our Friend our Portion our Shield our Rock our Refuge our Redeemer our All. Now when Faith hath made Christ to be ours and by Christ hath made God to be ours then we may say All is ours A man that hath the Sea cannot want water he that hath the Sun cannot want light he that hath a Golden Mine cannot want treasure So he that hath gotten Jesus Christ to be his Portion he hath all that his heart can desire he shall have all his Soul-wants satisfied Now briefly to make Application and there are but two Uses I shall speak unto First By way of Consolation because that is the proper Use of this Doctrine and therefore I put it in the first place Art thou one that art a true Believer Hast thou cast thy Soul into the arms of Jesus Christ Hast thou received Jesus Christ that is Hast thou believed in him Hast thou received him in all his Offices as King as Priest as Prophet Art thou as willing to be ruled by him as to be redeemed by him Hast thou got Jesus Christ not only by outward profession so all of you have that hear me this day but hast thou got Christ by inward possession so that Christ is thine Oh lift up thy head with joy O know assuredly that all thy sinful desires shall by
Saviour Jesus Christ These two go together if you grow in grace certainly you shall grow in knowledg if you grow in obedience certainly your obedience shall encrease your knowledg in the mysteries of God For the Explication of the Doctrine two Queries there are that would be satisfied First How or in what respect our obedience shall encrease our knowledg Secondly How it comes to pass or what reason can be rendred why the obedient Christian shall know more of Gods will For the first How or in what respect our obedience shall encrease our knowledg He that obeys the will of God shall know more of his will How shall he know more I answer The knowledg of an obedient Christian shall be encreased in three respects First In regard of its Subject Secondly In regard of its Object Thirdly In regard of the Manner of it First The knowledg of an obedient Christian shall be encreased in the Subject of it or the Seat of it where it is placed as I may call it now the Seat of knowledg is the mind of man the intellectual part of man his intellectual faculty shall be enlarged by his obedience it shall be made more capable of receiving Heavenly truths than it was before God will enlarge that mans understanding whereas before he was but a Babe in knowledg and understanding now he shall be a grown man whereas before he could not digest Milk now he shall be able to digest strong Meat whereas before he was but faint and feeble in knowledg now he shall be strong like David Zech. 12.8 In that day shall the Lord defend the Inhabitants of Jerusalem and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David Secondly The knowledg of an obedient Christian shall be encreased and enlarged in the Object of it the Object I call those matters or things that are to be known such a one shall know more truths more mysteries of Godliness more of Gods secrets he shall have more manifestations of the Spirit of God revealed to him more discoveries of Truth from day to day it is that which God hath promised Isa 11.9 The Earth shall be full of the knowledg of the Lord as the waters cover the Sea The Prophet speaks of a larger measure of knowledg and further discoveries of truths than was wont to be made Thirdly The knowledg of an obedient Christian shall be encreased in regard of the Manner of knowledg he shall know the Truths of God in a better manner than he was wont to do How is that you will say I answer and shall give you an instance in five particulars First He shall know truths more inwardly Secondly He shall know truths more experimentally Thirdly He shall know truths more transformingly Fourthly He shall know truths more powerfully Fifthly He shall know truths more satisfyingly First An obedient Christian shall know truths more inwardly more feelingly than he was wont to do not only have a bare apprehension but such a knowledg as shall take an impression upon his heart and therefore this inward knowledg is compared to seeing and to tasting and to smelling First It is compared to Seeing Eph. 3.8 9 Vnto me who am less than the least of all Saints is this grace given that I should preach among the Gentiles the Vnsearchable Riches of Christ and to make all men see not only know but see what is the fellowship of the mysterie which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God who Created all things by Jesus Chuist The Italian Translation renders it that all men may see what was the dispensation of the Mysterie which was hid from the beginning of the World which God was pleased to hide in himself from the beginning of the World that all men may see I quote that Scripture to prove that inward Knowledg is compared to Seeing and Seeing is more than a bare Report according to that of Job Job 42.15 I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear but now mine eye seeth thee I abhor my self in dust and ashes Secondly This inward Knowledg is compared to Tasting 1 Pet. 2.3 If so be that ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious Tasting is more than Knowing and Tasting is more than Seeing If all the Orators in the World should describe what the sweetness of Honey is they could not do it so well as a man that tasts it Now the Soul comes to tast the sweetness that is in Jesus Christ Notional knowledg is one thing and Tasting knowledg is another thing they have a feeling experimental knowledg in their own hearts That is another Thirdly This inward Knowledg is compared not only to Seeing and Tasting but it is compared to Smelling also Isa 11.3 And the Spirit of the Lord shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord So the words are read but the Hebrew phrase carries it thus and so it is in the Margin of your Bibles The Spirit of the Lord shall make him of quick scent or smell in the fear of the Lord That is a man that is once taught by the Spirit of God that is taught of God as our Saviour useth the Phrase such a man shall scent and smell and savour and breathe out nothing but holiness As our Saviour it is said of him All thy garments smell of Myrrh and Aloes and Cassia Psalm 45.8 And because of the savour of thy good Ointments thy Name is as Ointment poured forth Cant. 1.3 Look as the Ointment that was poured on our Saviours head left such a scent or smell behind it that the whole house was filled with the savour of it John 12.3 So is it in this case a man that hath once received the Spirit of God and is taught by the Spirit of God such a man shall have such a sweet savour of the knowledg of God that it shall be able to diffuse it self to others 2 Cor. 2.14 The Apostle Saint Paul blesseth God for this that he caused them to triumph in Christ and made manifest the savour of his knowledg by them in every place And our Latin word for Wisdom Sapientia it hath its derivation from this it is a savoury Knowledg So that this inward Knowledg is more than bare apprehension it is you see compared to Seeing Touching and to Smelling Secondly He shall know truths more experimentally than he did before and this is that you read of John 4.42 It is the speech of the Samaritans to the woman that had left her Water-pot and went into the City of Samaria and declared to them of the City what she had heard and seen concerning Christ Now say they we believe not for thy sayings for we have heard him our selves and know that this indeed is the Christ the Saviour of the world And thus likewise did the Disciples make a Confession of Christ John 6.69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ the Son of the living God
you practise what you know and live up to your light God looks upon all your Praying and Reading and Hearing and Communicating as nothing if so be you do not live up to what you know Jer. 32.23 And they came in and possessed it but they obeyed not thy voyce neither walked in thy Law they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst them to do What had they done nothing that God commanded them to do they had circumcised their Children in obedience to Gods Command they offered Sacrifices they came to the Temple they did many specious outward Duties but saith the Prophet They did nothing of all that God commanded them Why because they did not practise what they knew their lives were not answerable to the profession they made therefore God esteemed their profession no profession God esteemed their Sacrifices no Sacrifices take your Sacrifices to your selves Ezek. 20 Your new Moons and your Sabbaths and solemn Assemblies I am weary of them saith God they are an abomination unto me All their outward professions were nothing because they did not practise what they knew It is said of the Sons of Eli that they were sons of Belial they knew not the Lord 1 Sam. 2.12 It may be thou mayst have a great deal of notional knowledg thy tongue may be so tip'd with Religion that thoumayst be able to discourse upon Points of Religion very judiciously thou mayst be able to give an account of thy Faith thou mayst to able to answer an Argument thou mayst be able to defend the Truth yet if so be thou dost not live according to thy knowledg in Gods account still thou knowest nothing at all God notwithstanding all thy Knowledg looks upon thee but as an ignorant Sot as it is said of Israel Jer. 4.22 For my People are foolish they have not known me they are sottish children and have no understanding Again Though thou mayst hear a thousand Sermons if thou dost not frame thy life according to the Rule and Prescript of the Word of God in Gods esteem thou art as one that never heard a Sermon in all thy life and is not this a pitiful thing that a man for want of practise shall lose all that he hath done all his Prayers and all his Hearing and all his Communicating at the Lords Table for an unpractical Christian in Gods account hath done nothing at all methinks this should work upon your hearts If ever therefore you desire that God should look upon you as upon his Children that God should own you in a day when you would give a whole World for a smile of his face If ever you desire that Jesus Christ should give this testimony of you Father here are they that have kept thy Word if ever you would have God to say to you as he saith of some These are my Children then rest not in a bare notional profession of the Truth but let Profession and Practice Science and Conscience go together This is the first Branch of the Doctrine or the first Proposition They that obey the will of God shall know more of his Will JOHN VII 17. If any man will do his will he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self I Come now to the second Proposition which is this He that doth the will of God shall be more assured of what he knows This is that which our Saviour implies when he saith He shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self that is he shall know it more certainly know it more assuredly To this agrees that speech of our Saviour John 8.23 32 If you continue in my Word then are you my Disciples indeed and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free Such an assured Knowledg had the Disciples John 6.69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ the Son of the living God It was not a conjectural knowledg but a certain knowledg say they We believe and are sure And such a knowledg had Saint Paul 2 Tim. 1.12 I know whom I have believed and I am perswaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day He is able to keep my Soul my Salvation which he calls his Depositum which he had deposited with God For the better Explication of this Truth That he that doth the will of God shall be more assured of what he knows it may be demanded What is this certainty or assurance of knowledg First There are some things to be premised or Cautions to be observed for the finding out the Nature of this sure and certain Knowledg Secondly I will give you some distinctions of Knowledg whereby you may see what it is I am speaking of Thirdly I will then give you the Description of this sure and certain Knowledg 1. That you may know what this certainty of Knowledg is there are some things to be premised some Cautions for the finding out of this sure and certain Knowledg and the Cautions are these five First When I speak of sure and certain Knowledg I do not mean an assurance of Salvation neither do I speak of the reflect act of Knowledg whereby we know that which we know 1 John 2.3 Hereby we know that we know but I speak of that the Apostle calls the full assurance of understanding Col. 2.2 When a man is so rooted setled and established in the present truth Ephes 4.14 2 Pet. 1.12 that he is not always doubting imagining haesitating and carried about with every wind of Doctrine The second Caution is this When I speak of full assurance of understanding you must remember that there cannot be such a full assurance attained that will be absolute and perfect certainly an absolute perfect certainty of Knowledg cannot be attained in this life that is free from all doubting for our knowledg in this life at the best is but imperfect We know but in part saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 13.9 Although it be not absolutely perfect yet it is so strong that it will not be overswayed by the opinion of others though they be very learned men and this is that which the Apostle means in that Scripture 1 Cor. 2.15 The spiritual man judgeth all things but he himself is judged of no man That is he is able to judg and discern between Truth and Error between Copper and Gold between Food and Poison he is able to discern Error from Truth He himself is judged of no man that is he is so certainly assured of the truth that he holds that the contrary judgment of others though men of greater parts and greater Scholars shall not oversway him or make him to stagger It is true indeed Thomas staggered a while at the Doctrine of the Resurrection yet he recovered himself and afterwards came to that certainty that he cryed out My Lord and my God John 22.20 A man for Example
the Holy Ghost may have but it is that Knowledg that is darted into the Soul by the Holy Spirit of God 1 Cor. 2.9 10 Eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither have entred into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him The Apostle speaks it of the Kingdom of Grace as well as of the Kingdom of Glory Man doth not know the work of the Spirit of Grace upon the heart but saith he in the words following God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit for the Spirit searcheth all things yea the deep things of God And it is the Spirit of God that is said to guide us into all truth John 16.13 That is the first thing in the Description it is a saving work of the Spirit of God Secondly It is a Knowledg whereby a Believer hath received satisfying light First A Believer hath received light The truth is none doth know the Truth aright but he that believes it therefore believing and knowing the Truth are joyned together 1 Tim. 4.3 Forbidding to marry and commanding to abstain from meats which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the Truth Thirdly I note this whereby a Believer receiving satisfying light But what is that light may be some of you will say that may be called satisfying light I answer and shall give you an account of it in these five particulars First That is a satisfying Light that is joyned with a powerful Conviction upon the Conscience when the Spirit of God doth eonvince us of sin and of Righteousness and Judgment John 16.8 That is a satisfying Light when the Spirit of God breaks in upon the Soul with such an irresistible Light that a man cannot gainsay it or withstand it for example When the Sun is risen in the morning a man then knows it is day and if a thousand should say to the contrary he would say I know it is day Such is the light of the Spirit of God it is an irresistible light it breaks in upon the heart with that power that the heart cannot gainsay it Secondly That is a satisfying Light which settles and stablisheth a man in the present Truth that he will not be removed from it When a man is rooted in the Faith setled and stablished in Jesus Christ then he hath received a satisfying Light Thirdly That is a fatisfying Light when a man can act Faith upon that light he hath received and make bold adventures for the Truth that he hath embraced when he can act Faith upon it so did those three Worthies in Daniel 3.17 they had received such satisfying Light that God was the true God and his Worship the true Worship that they ventured a Furnace for it say they If it be so Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery Furnace and he will deliver us out of thy hand O King but if not be it known unto thee O King that we will not serve thy gods nor worship thy Golden Image which thou hast set up Fourthly That is a satisfying Light which will enable a man to discern between Truth and falsehood though Errour be masked with never such fair pretences yet notwithstanding a man shall be able to discover that Errour and abhor it and though Truth be eclipsed with never so many false Glosses and Interpretations and never so much opposed yet a man can discern it and close with it and cleave to it Fifthly This is a satisfying Light that will enable a man to reconcile some seeming differences that are in the Scriptures Let me give you an instance in one or two those two places compared together Gen. 6.6 And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the Earth and it grieved him at his heart but in Numb 23.19 it is said God is not as man that he should lye neither the Son of man that he should repent Now a man that hath this satisfying Light he knows how to reconcile these two places thus Repentance in God is not a change of his Will but of his Work God is said to repent after the manner of men because he doth those things that man doth when he repents Let me give you another instance Saint Paul tells us Rom. 3.28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by Faith without the deeds of the Law But Saint James he tells the quite contrary James 2.25 Ye see then how by Works a man is justified and not by Faith only Now a man that hath satisfying Light he reconciles these two thus Saint Paul he speaks of justification before God and Saint James he speaks of Justification before men We are justified before God by Faith only we are justified before men by works Again they may be reconciled thus Faith doth justifie our Persons but good works doth justifie our Faith Good works are no part of our Justification but only a proof of our Justification Lastly In the Description I say this A Believer having received a satisfying Light gives up his understanding resolvedly to those Truths that are revealed to him But you will say When doth a man give up his understanding resolvedly to those Truths revealed to him I will tell you First When he is resolved to part with every sin that the Word of God disallows and condemns though it be as dear to him as his right hand or his right eye and when he can practice every Duty that the Word of God commands though it be never so difficult As for Example the duty of Mortification and Self-denyal and contempt of the World when he can purifie his heart by believing and obeying the Truth 1 Pet. 1.22 Seeing you have purified your Souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit And it is said of many of the Priests that they were obedient to the Faith Acts 6.7 And St. Paul said Acts 26.19 that he was not disobedient to the Heavenly Vision Secondly A man gives up his understanding resolvedly to the truth when he can plead for the truth and not plead against it Saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 13.8 For we can do nothing against the truth but for the truth Doctor Taylor the Martyr in Queen Maries days he laid down his life for this truth That it was lawful for Ministers to marry I know said he that it is not a fundamental truth but because I know it is the truth of God rather than I will part with any truth I will part with my life So then when a man can thus resolvedly give up his understanding to the truth that he will part with his life rather than part with the truth then hath he attained to this certainty of Knowledg indeed And thus you see the Description of it and have the Point opened now let me make Application of it Vse 1. If this be a certain truth That they that do the Will of God shall not only know more of Gods
Will but they shall know it more assuredly they shall be sure of what they know and shall attain to this certainty of Knowledg that I have been speaking of then it serves to let us see what is the reason of all the Errours that are broached and so greedily drunk in in these days in which we live what is the reason of that uncertainty and unconstancy that is in Religion that men are giddy-headed turned with every wind of Doctrine and new Opinion and suck in such strange and corrupt Doctrines and that there is so many Sects and Schisms the reason is because men never attained to this full assurance of Understanding this certainty of Knowledg that the Text speaks of If any man will do his will he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self All the knowledg that they have of the Scripture it may be it is but an Opinion or a conjecture or a guess a notional knowledg a knowledg that is taken up upon tradition or trust not that they have any assurance of it in their own hearts and understandings All the knowledg of Scepticks those that you call Seekers Nullifidians that believe nothing all whose profession is to profess nothing all their knowledg is but a meer Opinion the truth is they have no knowledg at all If they did know the truth the truth would make them free If they had known the truth they would have been rooted and fetled and established in it they would part with their lives rather than part with the truth A second Lesson you may learn hence is this It lets us see what the reason is of all that Atheism and loosness and libertinism that is in the hearts of men and practises of men at this day the reason is because they never attained to any certainty of knowledg in the Doctrine of Christ and Mysteries of Religion they never did believe the Precepts and Promises nor Threatnings of God cordially For Example Did men but believe the threatnings of the Word to name two or three When God saith Vpon the wicked he will rain snares fire and brimstone and an horrible tempest this shall be the portion of their Cup Psalm 11.6 Again when God saith that he will wound the head of his enemies and the hairy scalp of such a one as goeth on still in his trespasses Psalm â—8 21 And God saith expressly that no unrighteous person shall inherit the Kingdom of God neither Fornicators nor Idolaters nor Adulterers nor Effeminate nor abusers of themselves with Mankind nor Thieves nor Covetous nor Drunkards nor Revilers nor Extortioners shall inherit the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6.9 10. And that Text saith expresly That the fearful and unbelieving and the abominable and Murderers and Sorcerers and Idolaters and all lyars shall have their part in the Lake which burneth with fire and brimstone Rev. 21.8 Did men but know these truths were they but assured of them durst they do as they do durst they venture their immortal Souls that must sink or swim for ever that are capable of endless bliss or endless remidiless misery in Hell more days than there are drops of water in the whole Ocean Durst they venture their precious Souls for the satisfying of every base lust as they do No they durst not Men do not know these truths and because they do not know them therefore it is that they do not believe them and because they do not know and believe them therefore there is in them an evil heart of unbelief to depart from the living God The first step of the Souls departure from God is by unbelief so the first step of the Souls approach to God is by Faith Unbelief is the cause of all other sins A man that doth not believe the Promises of God to embrace them nor the Threatnings of God to fear them nor the Precepts of God to obey them when he departs from God by unbelief he departs to other sins and still departs further and further so that the breach between God and the Soul is never made up again but such a man departs from God step by step until at last he comes to hear that Thunder-striking sentence Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels A second Use is by way of Examination and I beseech you my Brethren to call your selves to an account and examine whether you have this certainty of understanding this assured Knowledg that I have discoursed of May be you will say to me But how shall we know whether we have it or no Answ I will tell you how you may know it these three ways First By the names or expressions that the Spirit of God gives it Secondly By the Properties of it Thirdly By the Effects of it First You may know it by the names or Expressions that the Spirit of God gives it such Expressions as these now First It is called a Knowledg of those things which are most surely believed Luke 1.1 Not barely believed but certainly believed A second Expression is a being taught of God John 6.45 And they shall be all taught of God Thirdly It is known by this Expression by writing the Law of God in our hearts upon the Tables of our hearts Jer. 31.33 Heb. 8.10 Fourthly By this Expression by receiving the anointing that teacheth you all things 1 Joh. 2.27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you and ye need not that any man teach you but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things and is truth Fifthly It is known by this expression By having the mind of Christ or knowing the mind of Christ 1 Cor. 2. ult Sixthly It is known by this expression by bringing high thoughts into the obedience of Christ 2 Cor. 10.5 When there is such a light in a man that it can answer those Objections that are made against the truth when it can likewise so stifle those reasonings and cavils of his back-sliding heart that none of them shall be able to beat down the truth but he shall be able to stick to the truth notwithstanding such a man hath this certainty of Knowledg Lastly It is known by this expression the manifestation of the Spirit 1 Cor. 12.2 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal Secondly This certainty of knowledg may be known by the Properties of it I shall name but these four Properties First This assuring Knowledg is ever an heart-humbling knowledg Carnal knowledg natural knowledg unsanctifyed knowledg puffs a man up it makes him like a pair of Bellows as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Original signifies 1 Cor. 8.1 but this assuring Knowledg it ever makes a man base and humble in his own eyes the more you know of God and of the truths of God and of your own selves the more vile and base you will be in your own eyes I have