pray for Grace To do God's Will on Earth as it is done in Heaven we either ask we know not what or we do but mock God if we endeavour not to Serve Him with the same Diligence as near as we can attain it where with the Host of Heaven serve Him constantly Lastly The Example of God Himself Blessed for ever whom we are so oft required to imitate Be ye Holy for I am Holy Be ye Perfect as your Father in Heaven is Perfect This beyond all should constrain us to shew forth our utmost Diligence Shall God be so Sollicitous to promote our Salvation and Shall we sleight and despise it as if it were not worth Regarding God the Father imploy'd His Blessed Thoughts about it from all Eternity devising Means to bring home His Banished that they should not be Expelled from Himself to Reconcile His Mercy and His Justice to Punish the Sin and Spare the Sinner and made all his Glory pass before Him in the Accomplishment of it display'd all His Attributes in their brightest Lustre and in a word gave His Son the Dearly Beloved of His Soul in whom He took Infinite and Everlasting pleasure to be made a Man and then to be made a Curse And God the Son came down from Heaven for us Men and for our Salvation And having done so spent His time in the World according to the Ends for which He came into it which was to Glorify His Father do His Will and do Good to the Souls and Bodies of Men and He did it all with a Zeal that even Consumed and Eat Him up and made the Foolish World say He was Mad or Besides Himself as they are ready to do of all that follow Him And at last after a Life spent in preaching whole Dayes and praying whole Nights and Working mighty Miracles He Finish't all with a Willing Obedience to the most painful shameful and accursed Death and even now He is in Heaven He is as Diligent as ever making Intercession without Intermission and watching and ordering all things for the Good of those who shall be Heirs of Salvation And the most Holy and most Blessed Spirit is as busie and sedulous as either of the Former knocking calling striving warning wooing Sinners to return to God to be so Wise as to be contented to be Happy upon God's Terms which in one word are That you Work out your Salvation with Fear and Trembling and improve your Seasons with meet Diligence while you have them Working while 't is Day before that Night over-take you in which no Man can Work Which that we all do The Good Lord vouchsafe us that Grace and Wisdom which may Assist us and Direct us to do accordingly Amen FINIS A DISCOURSE SHEWING The sinfulness and danger of unfruitfulness under the Gospel containing the substance of some Sermons Preached upon St. Luke xiii 6 7 8 9. A certain man had a fig-tree planted in his Vineyard and he came and sought fruit thereon and found none Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard behold these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree and find none cut it down why cumbereth it the ground And he answering said unto him Lord let it alone this year also till I shall dig about it and dung it And if it bear fruit well and if not then after that thou shalt cut it down AS time is measured out to us by the revolution of days and months and years so is Gods patience magnified towards us by multiplying the returns of them And as his Patience is magnified so is our Account increased and Impenitency aggravated according to the number of the portions of time which pass over us and the more we have wasted and sent home empty to him that expected fruit from us in them all the more we have cause to expect and fear that every next and new one should be our last for God will not always bear the disappointment of his expectation but tho he bear long will not forbear always but will at length curse to a with'ring or cut down for burning the barren Tree which bears either none or no good Fruit year after year This consideration hath induced mee in the beginning of another year to chuse this Parable to discourse of to press you with all the earnestness I can after so many years of provoking unfruitfulness to tempt Gods long-suffering no longer by impenitency and barrenness under the Gospel lest if being let alone this year also you continue only incumbrances of Gods Vineyard He continue no longer to spare you nor Christ to interceed for you that you may be spared nor good men be able to prevail for you nor your own Consciences have any plea left but that ye be cut off without pitty on Gods part without remedy on mans and without excuse on you own There is not a place in all the Holy Scriptures wherein Repentance and that both sound and speedy is more vehemently urged and more emphatically enforced than the beginning of this Chapter For as those who heard our Lord urge the similitude of the Creditor and Debtor laid down in the two last verses of the preceeding Chapter against procrastination may seem to have taken occasion thence to tell him the story of the Galileans Whose blood Pilate had mingled with their Sacirfices so our Lord takes occasion further to improve that his Doctrine against neglect and deferring Repentance by applying that story now told him and another of eighteen men on whom the Tower of Siloam had fallen and destroyed them which were both true and real Stories of things which had actually and lately hapned and were fresh in all mens memories and mouths Now these being very awakning examples and startling instances of sudden and surprizing Judgments Our Saviour according to his great wisdom and faithfulness will not let slip so fair an opportunity to press his hearers from them to speedy and sincere Repentance As if he had said these were not greater not more flagitious sinners than their Neighbours no nor then your selves and yet these things you hear and know hapned unto them and as bad or worse may happen unto you nay will unless you Repent and now especially since God hath given them to be such warnings to awaken you If you do not now repent ye shall all likewise perish Your impenitency aggravated by slighting such an alarum as their fall gives you will provoke God to meet with you some way or other and if in any case he cut you off before you have Repented truly you perish unavoidably and that for ever Little did the Galileans think when they went to offer Sacrifice they should themselves be made a Sacrifice Little did the Eighteen men who were in or nigh the Tower of Siloam well and safe and secure from fear think to be crusht to death in a moment in the twinkling of an Eye and yet these things befel them both And so may it be
in in them Sixthly He that is the Amen the true and faithful one the God that cannot lie gives you many great and precious promises which are founded upon his word that is more firm than the mountains than the foundations of the Earth than the Ordinances of Heaven than the course of day and night in their Seasons That he will abundantly pardon that he will heal your back-slidings and love you freely that he will blot out your iniquities as a thick cloud that he will cast all your Traâ—sgressions into the depth of the Sea even that Ocean of Mercy which hath neither shore nor bottom that whosoever comes to him he will in no wise cast him out And hundreds more of the like endearing and sweetest signification Seventhly As if it were not enough on his part to give us leave to be happy he hath made it our duty to be so and obliged us by the strictest commands to that which will infallibly render us so He commands all men every where to repent Act. 17.30 This is his commandment that we believe on the Name of his Son Jesus Christ 1 John 3.23 and that believing we might have life by his Name John 20 31. And who dare question his sincerity as if he did not heartily desire what he so earnestly injoyns Eighthly He steps down from the Throne of the Imperative Mood to the humble Foot-stool of the Optative 'T is a sign of weakness to fall to wishing and an argument of impotence to cry O si O si to sigh out our Options And yet the Omnipotent God disdains not to appear to us thus to shew and express the pathos of his blessed mind the vehemency with which he desires our good and wellfare Oh that there were such an heart in them Deut. 5.29 Oh that they were wise Deut 32.29 Oh that my people had hearkened unto we Psal 81.13 Oh that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments Isa 48.18 Whose heart would it not break with shame and sorrow to hear an holy God breathing out the longing desires of his heart in this wise that we may he assured of his hearty readiness in accepting us when we perform what he wishes with such assumed passions that we would perform Ninthly He stoops yet lower and does what is infinitely indecent I will not say for him to do but I must say for us to occasion him to do and more to suffer him to continue to do but most of all to suffer him to do in vain that is to intreat us pray us woe us beseech us to accept his mercy to pity our selves to be reconciled to him and to accept his pardon which he offers ready sealed and to touch that Golden Scepter which he reaches out from Heaven to us Abraham sent but once to take a wife for his Son Isaac from amongst his Kindred and a short woing by a servant serv'd the turn when they saw the Bracelets and the Jewels and the Ear-rings and heard the rest reported how soon do they yield and send away Rebeckah Gen. 24. Yet God sends one Embassador one Paranymph and Spokes-man after another to woe to court us to be Brides to the true Isaac the Heir of all things who is become our Kinsman and hath all the right imaginable to claim us to himself and offers more Dower than we can ask to joyncture us in the whole Land of Promise to settle upon us the inheritance which is incorruptible and undefiled which fades not away reserved in Heaven to give us an eternal Kingdom yea the eternal King himself to be our everlasting Portion and is it possible to doubt his willingness to conclude the Match after all this Tenthly But to make all sure beyond all possibility of any rational ground to remain to stick and scruple at his heartiest reality in designing our happiness he adds to all the rest his Oath which puts an end to Controversies God being willing more abundantly to shew unto the Heirs of Promise the immutability of his Counsel confirm'd it by an Oath that by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lie we might have strong consolation Heb. 6.17 18. Two things that is his Promise and his Oath upon his promise or two things the two by which he swears his life his holiness as if he had said as true as I am a living God as true as I am an holy God I will pardon you I will yet spare you if yet at last you bring forth good fruit let me never be esteemed a living God never accounted an holy God more if I do not or two things I use this only allusively I urge it not as the proper meaning of the place God swears by the two Sacraments for a Sacrament is an Oath As truly as this water which I now touch and lay my hand upon will wash what is foul and make it clean soak what is hard and make it soft quench what is kindled and put out its burning refresh what is scorched and make it fruitful and slack his thirst who drinks it and chear and revive his spirits so shall the Blood and Spirit of my Son which I will pour out upon all who thirst for it and are willing to receive it do for them proportionably in their Souls cleanse soften quench satisfie and make them fruitful and as truly as this Bread will nourish them who eat it and become the staff of their lives and as truly as this Wine will chear the hearts of them that drink it so truly so certainly shall the Body and Blood of my Son which I here freely and heartily offer to you nourish and cherish you unto eternal life if you will indeed by faith receive it and feed upon it Eleventhly He will make your Estate as happy as if you had come sooner provided you come now in earnest without more delay They received every one a penny and there are last who shall be first Twelfthly He 'll not twit you or upbraid you with your coming late He giveth liberally and uphraideth not Nay he will himself be thy Apologist and against them who reproach thee for labouring but one hour he will plead thy Cause Friend I do thee no wrong is thy eye evil because I am good Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own I will give to this last as unto thee Matth. 20.14 This is a little of the much that might be said upon this Argument a little of that mellow prolifick earth to be laid to your Roots God Almighty set it home by the hand of his own Spirit and in his name I do assure you if either this digging or this dunging these threatnings or those promises either singly or both joyntly prevail to make you yet fruitful God will assuredly spare you and repeal his sentence given out against you But then you must do it quickly Agree with thy Adversary quickly whilst thou art in the way with him Look
therefore could not do it in Faith For what-ever is not of Faith is Sin Rom. 14. ult The Heart cannot be Good without Knowledge nor thy Work Good without a Good Heart Wisdom is the Principal Thing to direct thee in thy Work therefore Get Wisdom and with all thy getting get Vnderstanding Prov. 4.7 No Man can aim Right that Shoots blindfold Ignorance will blind thy Eyes that thou can'st not see thy Mark God's Glory and thy own Salvation The Text is express That in the Night no Man can Work And one Reason given to Confirm it was Because 't is too dark to see to work in The most thou can'st do in the Night of Ignorance is to grope like a Blind Man and how thou art like to Finish so curious a Work in such a case I leave it to thy self to Judge Therefore provide against so Real and so Great a Hinderance The Second Real Hinderance is The Indulging of the Flesh and a Desire to gratify it by the Inordinate Love of Ease and Pleasure If this Humour prevail and thou be Delicate Soft and Tender thou wilt shrink and give back at the first Difficulty which steps forth to meet thee He is not fit to make a Souldier that can endure no Hardship Thou therefore endure Hardness as a Good Souldier of Jesus Christ 2 Tim. 2.3 He that loveth Pleasure shall be a Poor Man Prov. 21.17 And who so loves his Ease Poverty shall come upon him as an Armed Man They can never serve God acceptably who serve their Lusts and Pleasures willingly And they Who are Lovers of Pleasures more than Lovers of God may possibly attain a Form of Godlyness but will certainly Deny the Power of it 2 Tim. 3.4 5. For the Pleasures of this World choak the Seed of the Word and they bring forth no Fruit unto Perfection Luk. 8.14 The Third Real Hinderance is Incumbrance with Multitude of Cares and Worldly Affairs This over-charges the Heart and distracts the Mind that it cannot wait on God No Man can serve God and Mammon Our Breasts are too narrow to lodge so many and so contrary Inmates We cannot look Upwards and Downwards both at once If Carmina secessum scribentis otia poscunt a Poet's Thoughts must be free and disintangled Religion requires it much more Enter thou into thy Closet and shut to thy Door to shut out Distractions I deny not but while we Live in this World wee need the things of this World and we may lawfully seek them and use them But then we must seek and use them lawfully which is done when we keep them at due Distance allow them at most but the Second Place Vse them as if we us'd them not remembring the Time is short and that the Fashion of this World passeth away If Hagar domineer and begin to despise her Mistriss Sarah she must be made to know she 's but a Bond-Maid and she must be cast out Next to them who cannot find an Heart to serve God they are to be pittyed who cannot find Time to serve Him And the truth is they therefore can find no Time for this Work because they can find no Heart to it and they therefore can find no Heart because the World hath stolen it away 'T is said by the Prophet Wine and Women take away the Heart Hos 4.11 And 't is as true Riches and Business and Multiplicity of Affairs and a Croud and Hurry of Employments take it away no less If some Men can scarce find time to Eat and Sleep as well as they love their Bodies What Time do you think they will find to Read and Pray and Meditate and search their Consciences and purify their Souls Of all Remote Advantages which Religion may have I esteem none Greater than Retirement Vacancy a Time to be still and Commune with our Hearts call our Wayes to Remembrance to think and consider and to have Leisure to Converse with God I acknowledge the Truth of Solomon's Vae soli Woe to him that is alone yet 't is as as true Vae nunquam soli Woe to him that will not Woe to him that cannot but most of all Woe to him that dares not be alone The Second Branch of this Vse is to Direct you to the Helps which will Promote your Diligence which amongst others are these Willingness Love Wisdom Speed Industry Courage Constancy or Perseverance First Willingness or a Good Will to your Work The willing Man will be a Diligent Man Willingness is the Rise or leading Step to Diligence 'T is not only Oyl to your VVheels but the very VVheels themselves And Men drive heavily like Pharaoh's Chariot's when the VVheels were taken off when they want a Willing Mind to what they are engaged in VVhen on the contrary Willingness makes them like the Chariots of Aminadab Cant. 6.12 sets them on the Chariots of my Willing People as the Margin there The First VVork upon the Soul is described Psal 110.3 Thy People shall be Willing in the Day of Thy Power In God's Offerings for the Tabernacle the Directions were to Receive them from them who brought them with a Willing Heart Exod. 35.5 21 29. And when they were Willing they bring more than enough Exod. 36.5 Willingness will need a Bridle rather than a Spur. That Picture of Diligence drawn by Solomon's Pen of the Virtuous Woman hath This inserted as the Soul of all the Rest She worketh Willingly with her Hands Prov. 31.13 Willingness to your VVork will help your Diligence in it many wayes For it will make you Docible and Careful to learn your VVork You use to let Children chuse their Professions knowing they will learn that soonest they have most mind to 'T will make you Cheerful and Ready in the Undertaking it We use to say There is nothing to a Willing Mind What the Naturalist saith of the Hand the Moralist saith of the Will It is the Instrument of Instruments A Man treads that Path in which his Will leads him as if he did not feel the Ground he goes on 'T is the best Sauce all things Taste as it doth Season them And Things are Dear or Cheap according to the Ptice it sets upon them It will make Men Serious and in good Earnest they will netiher speak faintly nor act coldly about what they have engag'd their Wills in They will not trifle as those do who are in Bivio know not their own Minds nor what themselves would have Be Willing therefore to your Work that will make you Diligent at it Secondly Love to your Work will double your Diligence about it Love is the Flower the Cream of Willingness nay the Quintessence and Spirits of it If Willingness gives Feet Love will give Wings Jacob served Seven Years for Rachel and they seem'd but as so many Dayes because he Lov'd her The Servant that Lov'd his Master would refuse the Freedom the Law provided for him and would have his Ear bored at his Door-Post and be his
Blind and the Lame with many other Expressions which imply Neglect and Sleightiness in his Service Vers 14. But Cursed be the Deceiver which hath in his Flock a Male and Voweth and Sacrificeth to the Lord a Corrupt Thing As much as to say who had Opportunities and Abilities to serve God better yet through Sloath and Negligence presumes to serve Him worse The Servant who hid his Talent in a Napâ—in when he should have traded for his Master with it is first punish't with the Loss of his Talent Take the Talent from him And then with sorer Vengeance Bind him Hand and Foot and cast him into utter Darkness Not only those who rob'd and spoyl'd them but those who neglected to Relieve Christ in His poor Members Shall go away into Everlasting Punishment And other Negligence in what God requires will meet with a Proportionable Doom Secondly Negligence in God's Work casts a great Damp upon others weakens their Hands discourageth their Hearts The World is exceeding prone to be taken with such Examples as gratify their Lusts and indulge their Ease Now when Men who are too ready of themselves to be Slack and Remiss in these Matters see you who are their Betters Sleight and Sloathful How will they argue from and improve so bad a Precedent and say to themselves 'T is safe to do so as the Apostle argues in another Case 1 Cor. 8.10 Shall not the Conscience of him that is weak be emboldned So may I in this Shall not others be imboldned to be as Careless as thy self And so thou wilt destroy thy Brother for whom Christ Dyed And sin against his Soul and sin against Christ and against thy own Life all at once And I appeal to your own Consciences What is it that makes Forwardness and Zeal in Religion and Diligence in God's Work be look't upon with so shy and suspicious an Eye in most places Yea with Disgrace Reproach and Scorn as if it were more ado than needs But the general Coldness and Deadness of Men call'd Christians and professing themselves the Servants of the true God And if any do tacitely reprove them by being more forward they 'll Revenge themselves with the Lowdest Reproaches and Infamous Reflections of Affectation of Singularity Hypocrisy Hair-brain'd Zeal and what not And so when their Spiritual Interest urges them and Conscience urges them to Diligence in their Great Work they dare not endeavour it for fear of Jeers Scorns and being laught at for their Singularity and as Men who would pretend to be wifer than their Neighbour and are either cog'd out of the Power of Godlyness by the flattering Example of the Lazy or Bug-bear'd out on 't by the Reproaches of Singularity But Woe be to him by whom such Offences come It were better a Mill-stone were hanged about his Neck and he were cast into the Sea than that he should offend one Little One who believes in Christ St. Matth. 18.6 If it be so dangerous to be Partaker of other Mens Sins What is it to be the Author of other Men's Sins And if no Murderer of Men's Bodies hath Eternal Life What shall become of those who thus Murder Souls Consider our Lord's Words St. Matth. 23.13 Woe to you Scribes and Pharisees Hypocrites Ye shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against Men for ye neither go in your selves and them that were entring in ye hinder Thirdly Thy Sloathfulness in God's Work greatly dishonours Him not meerly as it disobeys Him but by the Sinister Reflections it makes upon Him as if His Work deserved no better 'T is Natural to us when we see any Design pursued Remisly to conclude 'T is not worth the while to bestow more Pains about it and consequently it greatly provokes him For He that despiseth Him shall be lightly esteemed God regards the manner of our Duties as much nay more than the Duties themselves 'T is not the doing Good pleaseth Him so much as the doing of it Well Not only Eat but so Eat Let a Man Examine himself and so let him Eat Not only Read Pray Hear but Read Considerately Hear Attentively Pray Earnestly So Read so Pray so Hear or else thou may'st do all these more to thy Hurt than Benefit As the Apostle speaks of some Mens Eating and Drinking their own Damnation Not only serve God but Keep thy Heart diligently when thou art about it And be not Sloathful in this Business but Fervent in Spirit serving the Lord Rom. 12.11 The Luke-warm is the worst Temper God will spew such out of His Mouth Rev. 3.16 The Fourth Head from whence we may draw Moitves to excite our Diligence in this Work is by making Comparisons And this will yield us several very Cogent Ones First Compare God and the World and thy Self with thy Self in reference to These thy Worldly Self with thy Religious Self And Alas What vast odds appears even at the first View What are all the Things yea and all the Men of the World put together in Comparison of Him To whom will ye liken God or What Likeness will ye compare to Him Behold the Nations are as the Drop of a Bucket and are counted as the small Dust of the Ballance he taketh up the Isles as a very little Thing All Nations before Him are as nothing and they are counted to Him less than nothing and Vanity Isa 40.15 17 18. What miserable Comforters what deceitful Helpers when their Breath goeth out and their Thoughts perish Yea before that while they Live and are in their Best Estate they are altogether Vanity How Weak how False how soon Weary are all the Men in the World in Comparison of the Almighty All-wise All-sufficient most Faithful and Unchangeable God How Empty how Unsatisfying how Perishing how Deceitful what Lying and Vexing Vanities are all the Honours Profits Pleasures thou can'st pursue or hope to catch in Comparison of Him who is the only full pleasing satisfying Object of the Heart of Man Now argue hence If Men if thy Self yet seek for these with so great Warmth and Heat with so much Life and Vigour and Rise up Early and Sit up Late and Wear out themselves and Labour as in the Fire to grasp these Shadows What Zeal what Diligence should we use in the Work of God that we may please Him and enjoy Him for Ever Solomon observes That Many seek the Rulers Favour Prov. 29.26 How will Men fawn and flatter and crouch and debase themselves and comply with the Humours nay the Lusts of them who can Advance them Though the Psalmist who was a Mighty Prince himself bids us not to Put Confidence in Princes nor in the Sons of Men in whom is no Help Psal 146.3 And giving the Reason for it ver 4. directs us ver 5. shewing us in the Enjoyment of whom true Happiness Consists Happy is the Man who hath the God of Jacob for his Help whose Hope is the Lord his God who made Heaven and Earth and keepeth Truth for
ever And Psal 118.8 9. It is better to Trust in the Lord than to put Confidence in Man than to put Confidence in the Greatest or the Best of Men. And if Men will be so Diligent to please a Landlord a Justice a Master or a Father How much more Careful should we be to please the Great God of Heaven And the Apostle argues Heb. 12.9 We have had Fathers of our Flesh and we gave them Reverence Shall we not much rather be in Subjection to the Father of Spirits and live And God himself Mal. 1.6 And so for the Things of the World No Study or Contrivance of the Head no Labour nor Travel of the Hands or Feet is thought too much How did Jacob Serve for Rachel See how he describes his Diligence Gen. 31.40 In the Day the Drought consumed me and the Frost by Night and my Sleep departed from mine-Eyes And 't is easier to find an Hundred following him in this than Two or Three in his Wrestling with God and not letting Him go till they obtain the Blessing Most Men being serious about Trifles and only trifling and dallying about this Serious Work The One Thing necessary Spending their Money for that which is not Bread and their Labour for that which satisfies not Isa 55.2 Forsaking the Fountain of Living Waters and hewing out broken Cisterns that will hold no Water Jer. 2.13 Being wise to do Evil but void of Knowledge to do Good Compare thy Self with other Men How many Younger than thy Self have got more Knowledge How many Poorer than thy Self can spare more Time to Read and Meditate and Pray How many of weaker Parts and under smaller Helps and intrusted with fewer Talents yet have far out-stript thee in your common Master's Work And thou wilt say 'T is like 't is well done of them And thy Judgment approves and praises them For shame then Practise thy Self what thou canst not but applaud in Others Yea let Shame to find thy Self out-stript by so Many that were once behind thee and are so still in many Respects quicken thee to double thy Diligence till thou recover and over-take them yea get again before them Again Compare thy Self with GOD if thou be not afraid to entertain a Thought of so unequal a Comparison Lord What is Man a Worm a Clod a Bubble a Shadow Yea Man in Honour is like the Beast that perisheth and in his best Estate is altogether Vanity And yet as Mean and Inconsiderable a Thing as thou art thou standest upon it thou wilt have it thus and thus and thy Will must be done with Diligence and thy Work with Care and with Exactness and art presently upbraiding those about thee for the least Neglect with What do I keep you for And wilt rid thy self of such unprofitable Incumbrances and wilt not retain an Idle Faithless Servant in thy Family a Jade in thy Stable a Barren or Unthristy Creature amongst thy Caâ—ttle or a Fruitless Tree in thy Orchard And How darest thou be such towards the Great King of all the Earth as thou wilt not suffer any of thy Fellow-Creatures to be towards thy self who art so far below Him so Inconsiderable a Nothing in comparison of Him Once more Compare the Sweet and Easie Indulgence the Gospel hath provided for thee in the Work of God with the Hard Service imposed and exacted under the Law and the Gracious Assistance offer'd and communicated under this Dispensation with the little Help afforded then How Chargeable and Costly were the Sacrifices How Long and Tyring the Journey 's up to Jerusalem How Insupportable the Yoke of those Observances And How small the Aids afforded What would'st thou have done then if thou stickest if thou grudgest if thou repine at what is now expected and shall be accepted As Naaman's Servants said wisely to their Master My Father if the Prophet had bid thee do some great Thing Wouldst thou not have done it How much more when he saith unto thee Wash and be Clean 2 King 5.13 If God if Christ had bid thee do some Harder Work Wouldst thou not do it to save thy Soul for ever How much more when he hath made the Way more Easie than of Old and offer'd and assur'd greater Help than then to enable thee to do it Lastly Compare thy Work for the True God with what Idolaters and Hypocrites perform to False Ones or to the True One Falsly That you may be moved to Jealousie with those which are not a People and provoked by a Foolish Nation Deut. 32.21 How do the Worshippers of Baal cry whole Dayes and Cut themselves with Knives and Lances till the Blood gushes out How do the Profelytes of Rome Whip themselves pour out their Money to their wily Priests which make Merchandize of them for Masses Indulgences c. How do they Lavish out Gold and Impoverish themselves and Families to inrich the Shrines of Dead and Dumb Idols and undergo hard Penances and tedious Pilgrimages And all in vain led only by a False Opinion of Meriting by what God will despise And How Profuse will Hypocrites be Thousands of Rams and Ten Thousand Rivers of Oyl Yea what is Dearer still The First-Born of their Bodies for the Sin of their Souls Mich. 6. How Shall not only the Queen of the South but the Great Whore of the West Rise up against you and Condemn your Sloath Fifthly We are under many Great and Indispensible Engagements to Diligence in this Work We are bound in Conscience and 't is our Duty that we must We are bound in Gratitude upon receiving so many Talents and Opportunities by which we may We are bound in point of Interest our own Safety and Happiness depends upon it and 't is our Wisdom if we will thus work A word of every one of these may serve First 'T is our Duty and we are bound by His Authority who is our Lord. He hath commanded us to keep His Precepts diligently The First and Great Command is To Love the Lord our God which is the very Soul and Life of this Work with all our Heart and all our Soul with all our Might and all our Strength Every Step in this Way must be trodden heedfully See that ye Walk circumspectly not as Fools but as Wise Not at Peradventure Keep thy Heart with all Diligence Prov. 4.24 Joshua's Words are very pressing Chap. 22.5 Take diligent heed to do the Commandment and the Law which Moses the Servant of the Lord charged you to Love the Lord your God and to Walk in all His Wayes and to Keep His Commandments and to Cleave to Him and to Serve Him with all your Heart and all your Soul As we must agree quickly with our Adversary so we must give Diligence to be delivered from him We must not only Work at but Work out our own Salvation As we must Receive the Word with all readiness so we must take most Diligent heed to the Things we have heard lest at any time we
Table from being Moral but in common speaking those of the Second are chiefly understood And they are Naturâ notiora more easily discerned by the light of Natural Conscience and he may see his duty in what is easily known who sees it not in what is harder to discover How shall he love God whom he hath not seen who loveth not his brother whom he hath seen But he is without excuse who pretends to know and do the hardest And will neither know nor do the easiest A sober and honest Conversation in the fight of men is a fair body of a Christian but there must be a Soul and Spirit to enliven it as he said to him who wondered that a Statue with such perfect lineaments could neither go nor stand Deest aliquid tnius There wants a living Principle within With the putting off the Old man according to the Conversation and putting on the new there must be a renuing in the Spirit of the mind Eph. iv 23. Many Heathens excelled in the exercise of Vertues Aristides Cato Regulus And yet if you will believe St. Augustine they were but splendida peccata shining sins they wanted both right Principle and end and the sprinkling with Christs Blood We must add Faith to our Vertue as well as Vertue to our Faith See that you do the great things of the Law but besure you leave not undone the greater things of the Gospel A lively work of Faith to purifie your hearts unite you to Christ and make you partakers of his Spirit for sound Regeneration and through Conversion without this you are undone for ever Fifthly Not being of the true Church or of this or that Party or Persuasion 'T is a wonder so many should be cheated with so groundless an error not only Papists who have an Hypothesis which tempts them to it That the Faith of the Church and Treasury of the Church may be Communicated to them by being Members of it But many others crying I am of Paul I of Appollo I of Cephas A true Son of the Church one of the Godly Party one of the Friends But I beseech you take notice 'T is not being of the truest and best Religion in the world will save you but being true to that Religion and living up to it Salvation was of the Jews Theirs was the Religion God dispenc'd Salvation in yet all Jews were not saved All are not Israel who are of Israel nor all the children of Abrahams Faith who were the children of his flesh Surely Judas was of the true Church when he was of our Lords own Family and yet went thence to his own place a place to which you would be loath to follow him Be thy head never so Orthodox as to the Articles of Faith if thy life be Hetrodox as to the Rule of Practice the goodness of thy Faith will be so far from excusing the badness of thy Life that it will greatly aggravate thy Condemnation and the more clearly thou knowest thy Masters will and the more firmly thou believest it with more stripes shalt thou be beaten for disobeying it Tho bad Company occasions many mens damnation and good Company may be an help to yet never was it never shall it be a cause of any mans Salvation I mean that he should be saved meerly for professing the same Religion with them who are saved tho not for the Professing but Practising of their Religion Lastly Not believing in Christ or presuming rather they do so without any Fruits of Faith to prove it true and lively God forbid I should make any sinister reflections on the Doctrine of our Church and a Doctrine so clear in Scripture as that of the Justification and Salvation of sinners by Faith in Christ yea by Faith alone God who regarded the lowliness of his hand maid when his Son was Conceived hath had regard to this humble lowly Grace as to the Conceiving Christ in our Hearts That Christ may dwell in your hearts by Faith 'T is appointed to receive Christ Jesus and to make us the Sons of God by so doing And whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life John iii. 16. I know no other way of Salvation for my self I teach no other way to you yet after all I say to you look well to your selves that your Faith be Faith indeed not a dead faith not a bold presumption not a self delusion The stronger and purer the Liquor is with which the Poyson is mixed the more dangerous will its Operation be I fear the Poyson the Devil infuses in this Holy this pure Doctrine of the Gospel kills multitudes for want of caution I beseech you therefore be very cautious lest you be deceived in your Faith The question is not whether Faith will save thee and makes thee ready for Christ But whether thou indeed have Faith that is true Faith 'T is certain Faith alone justifies a sinner but as certain that that Faith which is alone justifies no sinner The Eye alone sees The Hand alone works but if the Eye or Hand be alone that is separated from the Body they neither see nor work Tho Faith justifies us as a passive Grace receiving Christ and the gift of Righteousness by and with him and Sanctifies as an active Grace yet 't is the same Faith that doth both and if it do not both it will do neither With the same Hand we receive what is given us and with the same Hand we work what is injoyned us The same Faith that receives Christ as a Saviour engages you to serve him as your Lord and King And the same Faith which justifies your Persons must Sanctifie your Natures Act. xxvi 18. And purifie your hearts Act. xv 9. And work by love and make you new Creatures in Christ 2 Cor. v. 17. if it ingraft you into him and will constrain you to live to him if you do in good earnest believe he dyed for you and if your Faith have not these Fruits to prove it true and living it makes you not ready for Christ thou rather dreamest thou believest in Christ than dost so really and whilst thou art in this stumber thy Lamp will go out like the foolish Virgins Matth. xxv 8. and thou wilt have nothing to meet Christ with when ever he comes Thus have I shewed you negatively what will not make you ready for Christ tho too many flatter and befool themselves that it will and will not suffer themselves to be convinc'd of their error till it be too late to redeem and mend it I earnestly exhort you and most heartily beg of God you may never be found in that number And now I proceed to the positive part to shew wherein Readiness for Christ consists And First To be ready for Christ is to be a Good man a Righteous man an Holy upright Godly Man One who desires to do the whole will of God sincerely both by ceasing to do evil and learning to do good
did Isaac or Esaw Jacob or as a Wolfe doth love a Sheep The Righteous is abomination to the Wicked Prov. xxix 27. And what a kind of Heaven would it be for an unsanctified man to be shut up with such Company as he hates with the worst of Antipathies and vilifies with the bitterest censures and most despightful scorn Nor could the Company of Heaven like him better than he likes them For God is not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness nor shall evil dwell with him Psal v. 4 5. Christ saith to them depart from me ye that work iniquity Matth. vii 23. The Holy Spirit will not entertain him who would never open the door to him knockt he never so earnestly and long but all ways shut him out of his heart 'T is the Offices of the blessed Angels to gather out of the Kingdom all things that offend and them that do iniquity and to cast them into a furnace of fire Matth. xiii 41 42. And they will do their Office impartially As for the Saints as they could give them no Oyl to help them in Matth. xxv 9. So would they give them no countenance should they get in without it Moses accuses them John v. 45. The souls under the Altar cryed against them whilst they lived Revel vi 9. And shall judg them when they dye 1 Cor. vi 2. The whole Herd makes head against a blown Deer Those Loyal Subjects will not harbour such Traitors against their Lord and King Then shall be the great Excommunication and the Church of the first born will put from amongst them every wicked person as 1 Cor. v. 13. injoyns Therefore Oh unsanctified sinner bethink thy self in time To which of the Saints wilt thou turn Job v. 1. Thirdly The Work of Heaven which he hath neither skill to perform nor time nor heart to learn renders an unsanctified man as uncapable of Heaven as either of the former For the Work of Heaven is to serve the Lord incessantly And his servants shall serve him Rev. xxii 3. To do his Will so perfectly that 't is fet as a pattern how to do it on Earth Thy will be done on Earth as 't is in Heaven Mat. vi To love the Lord with perpetual extastes and ravishments of Soul to Worship him that sits upon the Throne and give him glory throwing down their Crowns at his feet and saying thou art worthy O Lord to receive glory and honour and power to sound forth Eternal Hallelujahs and not to cease either day or night from crying Holy Holy Holy to him which was and is and is to come Rev. iv To sing the Song of Moses and the Lamb who redeemed them from the Earth and made them to his Father Kings and Priests to offer up the pure incense of Eternal Praises And such as this being the incessant endless imployment of Heaven I beseech you give me leave with freedom to Appeal to your Consciences who either never Pray nor Praise or slubber over a few formal Devotions for custom sake and to stop the Mouth of Conscience with the greatest weariness as the most irksome task and druggery of your lives and are so tyr'd at a Prayer or Sermon that nothing tries your patience like it or seems so tedious and so much the more as the service is more spiritual and searching what would you do in Heaven what corner would you find to sleep in How many wearyed and longing Eyes would you cast upon that Glass of Eternity which will never be run out How tedious would that everlasting Sabbath seem when you so often ask of these below when will they be gone Amos viii 5. I intreat you therefore be convinced of the indispensible necessity of Sanctification to make you fit to go to Heaven with Christ For either God must change the Nature of Heaven to fit it to thy Phansie which he will never do or thy heart must be made like it even Holy and Heavenly to savour and delight in the things of God or else Heaven it self would be no Heaven to thee In a word without Justification thou canst not go to Heaven as a state of happiness tho thou wouldst and without Sanctification thou wouldst not go to Heaven as a state of Holiness tho thou mightst See Col. i. 12. Giving thanks to the Father who hath made us meet to be partakers of the Inheritance of the Saints in light Mark 'T is an Inheritance thou must be made a Son to have a Title to Inherit there 's Justification But 't is an inheritance of the Saints in light and thou must be made a Saint and Child of Light to be meet to enter into the possession of it There 's Sanctification 1 Cor vi 9 10 11. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God be not deceived neither Fernicators nor Idolaters c. shall inherit the Kingdom of God and such were some of you how then came they to be capable But ye are washed but ye are sanctified but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God Here you have them both expresly St. Paul again tells you Rom. viii 30. Whom he justified them he also glorified In which place also we have both these the first explicitely you must be justified before you can be glorified the second implicitely for therefore glorified signifies perfectly sanctified Grace is glory in the Bud and Blosom Glory is Grace in the full blown Flower and ripe Fruit Now as no ripe Fruit without a Blosom no full blown Rose without a Bud so no Glory without Grace preceeding From glory to glory 1 Cor. iii. ult That is from Glory inchoate in Grace on Earth to Glory consummate in Bliss in Heaven As child-hood is before man-hood and he that never was a child shall never be a man So he in whose heart Christ was never formed by the immortal seed Who never was born of the Spirit Who never as a new born Babe desired the sincere Milk of the Word to grow thereby shall never arrive at the Stature of the fulness of Christ shall never attain to that perfect Image of the Son of God to which all his are Predestinated to be Conformable shall never be a perfect man in Christ nor appear before him perfect in Zion to follow the Lamb upon that Holy Mountain The Conceptions which the best men have of Heaven are very low obscure and imperfect but certainly those which ignorant and prophane men have of it are strangely absurd and brutish or it were impossible they should ever hope to get thither till their sins be both pardoned and subdued for 't is next to a contradiction to think they can reign with Christ in whose mortal Bodies or immortal Souls sin is allowed and continues to reign For least of all in this sence can corruption inherit incorruption Thirdly Tho the two things we last insisted on are the main to constitute us
and not live Prevent in time of Health the distractions the unsetledness of thy worldly Affairs may and will give thee in the last Stage of thy life leave nothing which may hinder thy following Christ readily without once looking back when he is about to lead thee out of this world Remember Lots Wife Luke xvii 32. Readiness to go into another world Supposes Readiness to go out of this Lastly Call in the assistance and help of others 'T is the Character of a wiseman that he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 inquisitive When John Baptist came Preaching Repentance and shewing them their danger that the Ax was laid to the root of the tree And that every tree that brought not forth good fruit should be hewed down and cast into the fire Luke iii. 9. They all fall to asking verse 10. The people asked of him what shall we do then verse 10. The Publicans Master what shall we do ver 12. And the Souldiers likewise demanded of him saying What shall we do verse 14. Also Christs Hearers John vi 28. said unto him What shall we do that we may work the works of God And the afrighted Jayler cryed out Sirs what must I do to be saved Act. xvi 30. But where 's the man that moves such questions now adays Or asks the way to Zion If you feel the least grudging of a Distemper in your Bodies the Physitian is sent for presently Or fear a flaw in your Estates you run to the Lawyer but every man thinks himself Physitian skilful enough for his Souls Distempers and Lawyer good enough for his Title to Heaven And tho The Priests lips should preserve knowledg and the people should enquire the Law at his mouth because he is the Messenger of the Lord of Hosts Mal. ii 7. Yet tho he be A Messenger one of a thousand an Interpreter to shew to man his uprightness Job xxxiii 23. To declare to him whether his Spiritual condition be good and safe and such as makes him ready for Christ yet may he sit in his study till he dye before any come to interrupt him with such business It 's true indeed it may be you will send for him when you are Sick I blame not this better then than not at all provided it be not too late as too oft it is When the Physitian leaves you and gives you over as hopeless and you are drawing on and have scarce any use of Sence or Reason left As the Foolish Virgins beg for Oyl when sickness and the approaching pangs of death gave them that smart Alarum Behold the Bridegroom cometh go ye forth to meet him And then you would be getting when you should be using it what your whole life was lent you for And then you would be taught in one quarter of an hour and when the indispositions both of Body and Mind have made you past learning or at least very unfit to learn what is a Lesson hard enough for many years even the calmest and least disturbed of them and when thou didst injoy a sound Mind in a sound Body I beseech you friends resolve me nay rather resolve your selves if it be good to consult your Spiritual Guides then is it not better to do it sooner whilst you are capable to take their Counsel and have time to follow it and if they may do you good then may they not do you more good in a fitter season Why then will you chuse the less before the more and the worse before the better I therefore with repeated importunity again intreat you call in all the help you can both from experienced humble Christians who make it their business in good earnest to be ready for Christ themselves And also from your faithful Pastors Who watch for your souls Soloman tells us twice that in the multitude of Counsellors there is safety Prov. xi 14. xxiv 6. and hath a vaeâ—soli woe to him that is alone Eccl. iv 10. He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool Prov. xxviii 26. And he that trusteth to it is little better For besides its deceitfulness and our Natural Partiality to our selves Our ignorance and inadvertency needs much help from the prudence and fidelity of others Chuse therefore some ferious Soul-friend to whom thou mayest with modesty and freedom lay open thy Spiritual state And as I told you before that nothing is worse than a Bosome-sin So nothing is better than such a Bosome-friend to help thee into Abrahams Bosome and the Arms of Christ And this for the first Use of Direction which I have enlarged much beyond my first intentions and therefore will be very brief in the two that follow next Second Use Reprehension I shall name three sorts only to be reproved for sinning against the Truth we are handling First Those profane ungodly sinners who are so far from endeavouring to be ready against Christs coming that they rather live without any sence of Death and Judgment and Christs coming at all saying at least in their hearts and in their lives with those Scoffers walking after their own lusts 2 Pet. iii. 4. Where is the promise of his coming As if they had made A Covenant with death and were at an agreement with hell As the Prophet describes them Isay xxviii 15. Who rather work out their own damnation with security presumption and provocation than their Salvation with fear and trembling But such monsters of men under the disguise and shape of Christians are fitter to be abhorred of all than reproved of any These Leviathans esteeming our Scripture Artillery as he in Job lxi 27.28 Doth Iron Brass and sling-stones as stubble straw or rotten wood Tho God can make these feeble weapons mighty in his time to pull down the strongest holds of Satan Secondly Those who tho they believe these things in general and approve them and commend others for making ready for Christ yet neglect the practice and performance of them resting in some common hopes some faint desires some outward observances some ineffectual half endeavours and rather wish they were ready for Christ than take care to be so and will rather put it to the venture than be at the pains of any Spiritual Industry to be ready in good earnest which is the very case of multitudes of common Christians Thirdly Those who tho they are convinc'd they ought and also resolve they will get ready and stick at nothing which may make them so yet put off and delay from day to day and year to year Semper victuri as Seneca calls them all way about to do it but never do it always learning but never coming to the knowledg of the truth Stick in the birth and therefore are unwise Hos xiii 13. And indeed nothing makes a man a greater fool or more proves him to be such than this to know what should be done and to resolve to do it and yet never set about it And therefore God brands them with this reproachful Character
of folly which men are so impatient of He that was so very busie in taking care for many years â—ears presently Thou fool this night And â—o the Foolish Virgins who had Lamps and Vessels to hold Oyl yet filled them not And indeed what folly greater than for men to go to Hell with their Eyes open To know their danger and yet to play and dally with it till it surprize and snap them and to stand where the Bullets fly thickest and yet neither get an Armor nor hasten their escape to be out of reach of Gun-shot What will if this will not prove men to be indeed foolwardly Third Use Examination Expect not from me here a large enumeration of the signs of Grace I design not that But a brief tryal of thy readiness for Christ Try thy self therefore as to that whether you be ready as the Text requires There is no knowledg more necessary or more worthy of a wise mans pains than the knowledg of himself and his Estate towards God It hath obtained the Authority of a Celestial Aixome even amongst Heathens Know thy self è coelo descendit 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And questionless it may be obtained if we believe either St. Peter or St. Paul for the first bids us give diligence to make our calling and election sure 2 Pet. i. 10. Therefore surely he thought it feasible The second injoyns us thus Examine your selves whether you be in the Faith prove your own selves know you not your own selves how that Christ is in you except you be Reprobates 2 Cor. xiii 5. Doubtless therefore he judged we might without special Revelation even by serious self-examination know this of our selves First Therefore try it by the verdict of thy own Conscience ask it soberly and let it answer freely and it will speak and not lye Great is the force of Conscience on either side both to acquit and to condemn Rom. ii 15. Their Conscience bearing witness and their thoughts accusing or excusing one another And if the blind Consciences of the darkned Gentiles had this power how much more the Consciences of Christians enlightned by the Gospel and assisted at least by the common influences of the Holy Spirit Bring in thy Bill therefore to this Grand Inquest before these mille testes thousand Witnesses 'T will not write Ignoramus on it 'T is Magni Judicii prejudicium a Petty Sessions to the great Assize a previous Judgment to the last and most awful one Neither bribe it nor stop its mouth and it will speak as he would have it whose Deputy it is The spirit of a man is the Candle of the Lord searching all the inward parts of the belly Prov. xx 27. That which is most hid and secret this light will discover find out and manifest The things of a man the spirit of a man which is in him knows tho none else can 1 Cor. ii 11. And therefore the Testimony of our Conscience yields great rejoycing when it witnesses our Simplicity and Godly Sincerity 2 Cor. i. 12. And St. John tells us If our heart condemn us not then have we confidence towards God 1 Eph. iii. 21. Weigh not thy self therefore in the false ballance of other mens Opinions Nec te quaesiveris extra as Persius could advise But get into thy Closet retire be still Commune with thine own heart Psal iv 4. and let it speak freely 't will answer like an Oracle of God Interrogate thy heart in this or such like manner Have I with desire desired Have I with a thirsty Appetite panted after this readiness for Christ Have I with constant and restless diligence endeavoured to attain it Have I arrived at least at some setled hope that if Christ should now come I should be found of him in peace Secondly By the scope and tendency of thy life by the Fruits thou bearest Examine whether thou art a Tree which if now cut down must be Fuel for the fire which shall burn for ever or building Timber for the House not made with hands Eternal in the Heavens If others may know us and we may know them by the Fruits which either bear why may we not much rather know our selves by them the frame of our hearts and the scope of our lives are great indications whither we are going If our hearts be in Heaven and our Conversation be in Heaven our soul shall be received there If thou fix thy choice thy delight and love on right-hand blessings thou shalt stand at Christs Right hand at the last day If thou walk in the straight and narrow way it will lead thee to and into the straight gate which gives entrance into Life But the broad way of Hell will never lead any man to Heaven Thirdly By thy willingness to dye thy looking for and hastning to the day of God and loving the appearance of Jesus Christ Not but that Nature may recoil and shrink and the flesh may draw back and be loath to part for even where the Spirit is willing the Flesh is weak but upon sedate recollection the willingness of the Spirit will fortifie the weakness of the Flesh and cry out Go forth my Soul for he is a gracious Lord thou art going now to meet Fourth Use Exhortation I hasten to that in which I designed the chief improvement of this truth that is to exhort and quicken you to the speediest diligence and care to get ready for Christs coming And tho I desire to work both upon your Consciences and your Affections to set before you your Obedience and your Interest to urge you in point of duty and in point of wisdom and to press you to avoid both the sin and danger procrastination will involve you in yet I shall not curiously distinguish the motives to rank each Series by themselves But as God hath twisted his glory and our happiness so close together in great wisdom and mercy that we cannot promote the one but we advance the other nor neglect the one but we destroy and lose the other So is it in our sin and danger they are prevented or incur'd together and therefore I may well wreath into one chain the motives which concern either of them to draw you out of your delay and twist them into one cord wherewith to quicken and accelerate your motion And not to heap up here the many Scriptures which speak so home and plainly to this matter but to leave them to fall in to inforce each motive to which they more properly belong I shall begin with that which stands so near the Text that it is urged in the same verse as a reason to inforce the duty Be ye therefore ready for or because The Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not The first Motive is taken from the uncertainty of the time of our death and our Lords coming And the Inference is so obvious that the Light of Nature and common Reason hath clearly discovered it and excellently
their Duty and their Wisdom to engage them to improve their Opportunities speedily for the Work of God and their own Souls which I could make good by more than Twenty of the best Expositors both Antient and Modern if 't were needful I shall now proceed to grasp the Strength and Scope of the whole Verse into one full and comprehensive Observation alwayes Useful and to the present Occasion very Seasonable Take it in these plain Words and easie to be understood The Consideration of the Work we have to do and the Time allowed and limited for the Doing of it in indispensably oblige us to the utmost Speed and Diligence in the Doing of it I conceive these Expressions are fairly Commensurate with the Text And as they leave out nothing which is material in it so they add nothing to it but what is evidently Comprehended in it as will be farther manifest by explaining these Three Particulars 1. What is meant by this Work we have to do 2. What is the Time or Season allowed to do it in call'd in the Text a Day or While it is Day 3. What is the Limitation by which this Time is bounded and to which it is restrained which is partly imply'd in calling it a Day which is a definite and measur'd Portion of Time partly express'd in the word Night which puts an End and Period to the Day These as they relate to Christ which I touch because he first applyes them to Himself and shall after wholly wave and supersede were as to his Work To prove Himself to be the Son of God the True the Promised Messiah To reveal the Will and Counsel of his Father to the World To shew to Men the way of Salvation and Eternal Life To declare the Covenant of Grace and Preach the Gospel And to manifest both Himself and his Doctrine to be of God by working many and mighty Miracles and by speaking as never any other Man spake and doing such Works as never any other Man did and Approving Himself mighty both in Word and Deed before God and all the People Luk. 24.19 till he had confirm'd the Faith of them who believed in Him and left the Incredulous and Obstinate without Excuse And such was the Work of Opening the Eyes of him that was born Blind Recorded in this Chapter and the Words he spake upon that Occasion Secondly For His Day It was the Time allotted him of his Father to continue in this World the Season of his Ministry the Space in which a Restraint was laid upon the Powers of Darkness from hindring him to fulfil all that was fore-told concerning him and to accomplish all that was needful to be done for his Father's Glory and his Peoples Salvation before his last Suffering Thirdly The Night was his Death and going out of this World the Hour of the Wicked and the Power of Darkness to which he was to be subject in his Passion St. Luk. 22.53 in which according to his Father's Determinate Counsel he did voluntarily suspend his Power of working Miracles and would not deliver Himself but suffered Himself first to be Apprehended and then Condemned to Dye and then by Wicked Hands to be Crucifyed and Slain Act. 2.23 I have thus briefly glanc'd at the Meaning of the Words as they relate to our Saviour to whom they were primarily apply'd that this may facilitate the Understanding of them as applicable to our our selves to which I shall confine my self in the Handling and Improving of them And therefore the Work to be done as it concerns us is to believe in Jesus Christ This is St. Chrysostome's from Joh. 6.28 29. What shall we do that we may work the Works of God Jesus answered and said unto them This is the Work of God that ye Believe on Him whom He hath sent That is the Work He hath enjoyn'd us according to 1 Joh. 3.23 This is his Commandment That ye Believe on the Name of his Son Jesus Christ Our Work is to Repent sincerely of our Sins and turn to God with our whole Hearts and to bring forth Fruits meet for Repentance Thus Gregory the Great upon the Fourth Penitential Psalm What are these Works of his Father which he sayes Are to be wrought by Day and not by Night Nisi agri intellectualis cultura The Tillage and Cultivating of our Souls which the Prophet Jeremiah's Description of Repentance agrees well with Jer. 4.3 4. Break up your Fallow Ground and sow not among Thorns Circumcise your selves unto the Lord and take away the Fore-skin of your Hearts Kill the Thorns and Weeds of your Lusts and Corruptions by plowing up the Roots of them by the Plough of Godly Sorrow Mortification and Amendment of Life This Work is To work out our own Salvation with Fear and Trembling Phil. 2.12 In a word It is to become good Men good Christians and to live as becomes those who profess to be such to get our Peace made with Heaven to be fit to Dye to Glorify God and to save our own Souls which is the One Thing necessary the Work God hath sent us into this World for Secondly The Time the Season allowed us to do this Work in is the Day of our Natural Life as a Good Expositor upon the Words The space of every Mans Life is his Day Therefore as the Shortness of the Day quickens Work-men to Industry and Sedulity lest the Darkness of the Night should over-take them in the Midst of their Endeavours and before their Work is finished So we knowing the Time of our Life is but short should be asham'd and afraid to loyter and freeze in Sloath and Idleness and must not delay at all lest our Opportunities slip from us past Recovery And farther Our Day is the Day of Grace while we have the Sun of Righteousness shining in the Light of the Gospel and while we have God's Ordinances without and the Motions and Assistance of his Spirit within before the Means of Salvation be taken from us or the Blessing be taken from the Means And God's blessed Spirit for our often quenching grieving and resisting of Him and refusing his proffered Aids and gracious Help with-draw and leave us and Blackness of Darkness over-shade yea over-whelm our Minds as the Dreadful Beginnings of Eternal Night Thirdly By Night which limits our Day is to be understood as may be gathered from the Opposition betwixt these two the contrary to what is meant by Day And therefore it signifies our Natural Death or any notable Degree or Tendency toward it Loss of our Senses Reason or such decayes of them as make us incapable of Acting as Men in our great Concerns Or the setting of the Gospel Sun the removal of God's Kingdom and Candlestick God's departure from us and taking away his Light and Guidance His Grace and Spirit without which we can do nothing but wander and wilder and lose our selves and do no Work but what hath Death for its Wages and find no
on unto Perfection It must not be begun only and continued in a little but finish't or else as good ne'r a whit as ne'r the better As in a Race you must run to the End of it and come timely to the Goal or you had as good not start at the giving of the Signe You know the reproach and loss that Builder incurr'd in the Gospel-Parable who began to Build but was not carefull to Finish and the Galations though they ran well for some time yet because they gave over and made an unseasonable halt are called Fools and compared to Men bewitch't for stopping in so good a Course He that puts his Hand to the Plough must not look back Lot's Wife went out of Sodom yet she never reach't to Zoar. Christ had many Disciples Who Walkt with Him a while and then forsook Him and Walk't no more with Him Joh. 6.6 and their short Discipleship profited them nothing Beginning in the Spirit will not advantage those who End in the Flesh When the Righteous Man turns away from his Righteousness and committeth Iniquity and doth according to all the Abominations that the Wicked Man doth Shall he Live All his Righteousness which 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 Dye Ezek. 18.24 He that 's but half a Christian shall be wholly Damn'd 'T is the End which Crowns the Work Rev. 3.11 Behold I come quickly hold fast that thou hast that no Man take thy Crown and 2.10 Be thou Faithful to the Death and I will give thee a Crown of Life if the Salt lose its Savour it is fit for nothing but the Dunghil Eternal Life is promised to them Who by patient continuance in well doing seek for Glory Rom. 2.7 Let us therefore endeavour to Perfect Holiness in the Fear of God 2 Cor. 7.1 Remembring what Christ Wrote to the Church of Sardis who had a Name to Live and was Dead Rev. 3.2 Be watchful and strengthen the things which remain that are ready to dye for I have not found thy Works perfect before God Thou can'st not be ready to dye in a good sence if the best things in thee be ready to dye in so bad an one Fifthly Because 't is a Work it shall be Rewarded This I add that you may not want incouragement amidst so many difficulties And I hope we may innocently speak God's Language without suspition or danger of poisoning it with the fond Opinion of Merit How often do we read thy Work shall be Rewarded and Who rendereth to every Man according to his Works and verily there is a Reward for the Righteous and the like Every Work shall have its proportionable Recompence The same Chapter which gives us this Rule He that cometh to God must believe that HE IS and that He is a Rewarder of them that diligently seek Him Heb. 11.6 gives us the Example of Moses having Respect to the Recompence of the Reward Vers 26. Every Work shall have its Wages If we do our Own Work we must be our Own Pay-Masters and if the Devil 's we must expect no better than he useth to give But if we be Speedy Faithful Diligent in this Work of God we may expect and shall not be disappointed of God's Reward yea that He Himself will be our Exceeding great Reward as He promised the Father of the Faithful Gen. 15.1 and will perform to all his Children Let us therefore not be weary in Well-doing for in due time we shall Reap if we faint not Gal. 6.9 Wherefore Whatsoever you do do it heartily as to the Lord knowing that of the Lord you shall receive the Reward of the Inheritance for ye serve the Lord Christ Col. 3.24 who is not Vnrighteous to forget your Labour of Love Heb. 6.10 If this were not a Work appointed and enjoyned of God all our Recompence might be Who hath required these Things at your Hands But seeing it is the Work of God we so run not as uncertain that is not as uncertain of Assistance for He will help us to do His own Work nor of Acceptance for He cannot but be pleased to see His own Work carryed on nor of a Gracious Reward for He is Faithful who hath promised and the Promise of Eternal Life is made by that God who cannot Lye Tit. 1.2 Therefore my Beloved be ye Stedfast and Vnmoveable alwayes abounding in the Work of the Lord forasmuch as you know that your Labour is not in vain in the Lord 1 Cor. 15.58 And This may suffice to provoke our Speed and Diligence from the First Consideration That 't is Work implying its Necessity its Precedency its Difficulty its required Perfection and its sure Reward I proceed to the Second Reason While it is Day that is because a fit Season and Opportunity is vouchsafed and allowed us to do this Work in A Day That is the Time of this present Life and the Enjoyment of the Means of Grace outwardly in the Gospel and inwardly by the Assistance of His Spirit And let us consider this as a Day 1. For Quality 2. For Quantity First For Quality God called the Light DAY Gen. 1.5 The Day is Tempus Lucis the Time of Light affording us necessary Help to see to do our Work Therefore the Day is appointed for Labour because 't is a fit time for it Psal 104.22 23. The Sun ariseth Man goeth forth unto his Work unto his Labour until the Evening If any Man walk in the Day he stumbleth not because he seeth the Light of this World But if a Man walk in the Night he stumbleth because there is no Light in him St. John 11.9 10. The Time of this Life is called Light in Opposition to Death which is a State of Darkness and the Grave which is the House of Darkness the Land of Darkness as Job describes it ch 10.21 22. Before I go whence I shall not Return even to the Land of Darkness and the Shadow of Death A Land of Darkness as Darkness it self and of the Shadow of Death without any Order and where the Light is as Darkness And Chap. 18.18 He shall be driven from Light into Darkness and chased out of the World Once more Chap. 33.28 30. He will deliver his Soul from going into the Pit and his Life shall see the Light To bring back his Soul from the Pit to be enlightned with the Light of the Living And the Season of Grace is call'd a Day from the Similitude of the Fitness of a Natural Day for the Works of this World and of the Day of Grace for the Works of the World to come and from the Likeness of the Causes of either of them The Rising of the Sun and its Presence makes Day and nothing but the Sun can make it not the Moon or Stars in their greatest Brightness So the Son of Righteousness as Christ is called Mal. 4.2 arising and shining
tells you It comes apace it comes quickly Time is painted with long Wings and no Wings are pruned for so swift a flight It flows like a Torrent and sweeps us away with it There 's no stemming this Tyde And 't is as Uncertain as 't is Swift Thy Pulse beats incessantly and thy Breath is puffing out and drawing in each Moment and thou knowest not that the One shall repeat its Stroaks or the Other be Restored thee once more This Night comes like a Thief in the Night When we lye still and sleep that wakes and is in perpetual Motion And this may suffice for the Proof of this Observation That the Consideration of the Work we have to do and the Time allowed and limited for the Doing of it should engage us to the Vtmost Diligence and Speed in doing of it I now proceed to the Vseful Improvement of this Weighty Truth with equal Plainness And if the Work we have to do and the Season allowed and limited for the doing of it in engage us to such Diligence and Speed in the doing of it This serves 1. To Justify those who act according to these Engagements 2. To Condemn those who neglect them or act contrary to them 3. To Exhort and Excite us all to act suitably to them by shewing all Diligence and Speed about our Great Work First This Justifyes the Wisdom and Zeal of those who Live up to and act according to these Engagements And I wish to God the Number were Greater that deserves such Encouragement But because they are so few therefore do they need it the more For Good Company confirms Good Resolutions and when many walk together they embolden each other and mutually strengthen one anothers Hands and Hearts But the Narrow-Way which leads to the Streight-Gate being found and trodden by so few and they meeting with so much Opposition to stop them in it or divert them out of it do greatly need all the Encouragements that can be given them For Prophane Ungodly Men hate them and Proud and Formal Pharisees despise them and reproach them And all that are so busy in doing the Work of another Master are mad against them for their Diligence about their Master's and their Father's Business He that departeth from Evil maketh himself a Prey Isa 59.15 God's Heritage is a Speckled Bird the Birds about her are against her Jer. 12.9 The Law of Enmity betwixt the Two Seeds is more unalterable than the Laws of Medes and Persians It discovered it self betimes in Cain and Abel in Ishmael and Isaac the Two signal Types of the Two Visible kinds of Persecution which have prevailed in the World ever since by the Mouth of the Sword or the Sword of the Mouth Cain who was of that Wicked One slew his Brother and wherefore slew he him Because his own Works were Evil and his Brothers Righteous 1 Joh. 3.12 And Ishmael Mocked Gen. 21.9 which in St. Paul's Language is He that was Born after the Flesh persecuted him that was Born after the Spirit Gal. 4.29 And as the Apostle added for the time in which he wrote as it was then so is it now So may we for the times in which we Live and so will they have cause to do who shall Live after us For the Rule 2 Tim. 3.12 All that will live Godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer Persecution is as Universal for Ages and Places as Persons no Temporary one to expire like an Antiquated Law but will last while this Evil World lasts and they shall find it in one kind or the other And where the Laws pinion the Hands of Cain the Tongue of Ishmael will be Lawless and where they dare not kill their Bodies their Throats those open Sepulchres will swallow them alive like the Grave and with Black Mouths full of Lyon's Teeth will rend their Names and tear their Reputations till they wound their very Souls If a Volly of Lyes or a Shower of those invenom'd Arrows bitter railing and opprobrious Words will stop you in or fright you from your Work The Father of Lyes hath more Tongues than Argus had Eyes or Briarius had Hands and will find Monstrous Heads enough both whose Ears grow upon one side But let none of these Things move you neither count your Lives nor your Names dear to you so that you may Finish your Course with Joy Act. 20.24 St. James urges to Patience thrice in a Breath with one of the Arguments in our Text. Jam. 5.7 8 9. Be patient Brethren unto the Coming of the Lord. Be patient stablish your Hearts the Coming of the Lord draweth nigh Grudge not behold the Judge standeth at the Door Gratify not the Devil or his Instruments so much as to grow Remiss at your Work for fear of their Reproaches But keep on your Way though the Dogs bark thou 'lt soon be past them and out of the Noise It would be a dear Purchase to buy their Silence at the Price of abating thy Zeal for God St. Peter teaches you a safer and better Way to do it even by Well-doing and by a good Conversation in Christ to make them ashamed to speak Evil of you This is the most Innocent Revenge you can take on them to resolve the more they deride you or reproach you for your Work the more earnestly to mind it and to follow it the more diligently And 't is the best Security for your selves to prevent being disturbed He that minds his Business intently hath no Ears to hear nor Leisure to take notice of what is design'd to interrupt him Convince them you are led by a better Spirit by being able to bear with Meekness their loudest Slanders most spightful Reproaches While they cannot bear the Silent and undesigned Reprehension your Diligence and Zeal reflects upon their Sloath Trifling in the Work of God and their own Souls 'T is an Immutable and Eternal Truth that the glorifying God and saving our own Souls is our Supream Concern and deserves our First and Highest Care and who ever acts according to it shall in spight of Men and Devils be justifyed as a Wise and good Man in so doing And their Master 's Euge Well done good and faithful Servant enter thou into thy Master's Joy will put it out of doubt and controversy for ever And Wisdom shall be Justifyed of her Children though Fools condemn and the Sons of Belial Blaspheme both the Mother and her Off-spring He that hath Truth on his side and Reason on his side and a well-guided Conscience on his side hath God Himself on his side and need not trouble himself who or what-ever is against him And thus 't is certainly with every one who makes Religion his Business in good Earnest And even the Men whose Mouths Reproach you in their Hearts must Reverence you And their Consciences will approve what the Interest of their Lusts provokes them to condemn in others that they might escape being condemned of themselves Be not
chiefly to this Great Work And this will be yet more evident if we consider it in the several Parts All the Scripture may be reduced to these Seven Heads The Doctrines the Precepts the Exhortations the Promises the Threatnings the Examples and the Prayers therein Recorded And I shall give an Instance or two how every one of these is chiefly designed to be Subservient to this End This is the Total Sum plac't at the Foot of the Account when the Wisest of Men had Cast it up exactly Let us hear the Conclusion of the whole Matter Fear God and keep his Commandments for this is the Whole of Man For God shall bring every Work to Judgment with every Secret Thing whether it be Good or whether it be Evil Eccles 12.13 14. As if he had said When we have said all that can all that may be said this is in one word the Sum and Substance of the Whole All the several Lines from how different Points soever they are drawn terminate and end in this as their Centre Be Diligent in God's Work What doth the Doctrine teach us but To deny Vngodlyness and Worldly Lusts and to live Righteously Soberly and Godly in this present World Looking for that Blessed Hope and the Glorious Appearing of the Great God and our Saâ—iour Jesus Christ That there is a God Infinitely Glorious in all Perfections who hath made all Things for His Glory and Man especially to pay Him that Tribute of Glory which is due to Him from all His Works That Man hath an Immortal Soul more worth than all the World And that there is an Eternal Estate after this Life an Heaven and an Hell And that Man 's great Business is to attain the One and escape the Other That there shall be a Resurrection both of the Just and Vnjust That God will bring every Work to Judgment and render to every Man according to their Works That They who have done Good shall go into Eternal Life and They who have done Evil into Everlasting Punishment That the Good and Faithful Servant who was Diligent in God's Works shall receive his Master's Euge and be Advanced But the Wicked and Sloathful Sâ—rvant shall be bound Hand and Foot and cast into Vtter Darkness for his Neglecting it What do the Precepts enjoyn us but To Love the Lord with all our Heart and Soul with all our Strength and all our Might To Serve Him with a Perfect Heart and with a Willing Mind To Glorify Him in our Spirits and our Bodies To Work out our own Salvation with Fear and Trembling To Seek for Immortality and Eternal Life by patient Continuance in Well-doing To Strive to Enter the Streight-Gate To Give all Diligence to be admitted into Christ's Kingdom In a word The Sum of them is to Command us to Honour God and be Wise to Salvation And Thou hast Commanded us to keep these Precepts diligently Psal 119.3 As to the Hortatory Swasory Argumentative Part of the Scriptures 't is chiefly imploy'd to allure us to this Work To draw us by the Cords of a Man or to fright us out of our Negligence and drive us as with Whip-Cords To Convince us by the Clearest Light To Advise us by the Wisest Reasons To Beseech us by the Sweetest Mercies To Warn us by the Sorest Dangers To Perswade us by most Cogent Arguments To Oblige us by most Indispensible Engagements In a word To Prevail upon us by what-ever the Frame and Constitution of our Nature is capable of being moved by to mind our Work in Earnest or to leave us for ever inexcusable if we slight it or trifle at it As to the Promises 'T is said in general That Godliness hath the Promise of the Life that now is and of that which is to come And these Promises are for Number many Some who have reckoned them up affirm them no fewer than Six Hundred For Naâ—ure Great and Precious For Certainâ—y Immutable being bottom'd on the Truth of Him who cannot Lye He is Faithful that hath Promised And the Sum of them all is to give the strongest Assurance that God will Reward them that Diligently seek Him and that with exceeding great Rewards A Crown of Glory an Eternal Kingdom an Incorruptible Inheritance Fulness of Joy and Everlasting Life And the Threatnings which are as Terrible as the Promises are Comfortable the severest Wrath of God being Reveal'd from Heaven in them are all Levell'd against those who prefer the Devil's Work before God's or are Remiss and Careless in it How shall we Escape Great Damnation if we neglect so Great Salvation Vpon the Wicked He shall rain Snares Fire and Brimstone and an Horrible Tempest this shall be the Portion of their Cup. A Cup of Trembling indeed a Cup of Bitter and Poysonous Mixture and yet the very Dregs of it shall be wrung out to them and they must suck them up What hot and burning Thunder-bolts are such Sentences as these charg'd with Cursed be the Man that doth the Work of God deceitfully He that Believeth not shall be Damned Vnless ye Repent ye shall all Perish The Ax is laid to the Root of the Tree every Tree therefore which bringeth not forth Good Fruit shall be Cut down and cast into the Fire unquenchable If any Man love not our Lord Jesus Christ let him be Anathema Maranatha The Lord Jesus shall be Revealed from Heaven with His Mighty Angels in flaming Fire taking Vengeance on those who know not God and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall be destroyed with Everlasting Destruction from the Presence of the Lord and the Glory of His Power And Hundreds more which sound and signify as dreadfully as these Thou canst not hear such Sentences pronounc't without Affrightment unless thy Heart be like Leviathans hard as the Nether-Mill-stone And How wilt thou bear the Execution when thou comest to feel it The Histories and Examples to which I Reduce the Parables which are seigned Histories the Scope of all these is to shew God's Care of good Men and the Pleasure He takes in those who delight and love to do His Work with Diligence Such as Abel Enoch and the Holy Patriarchs Noah Abraham Isaac Jacob Joseph Moses Joshua Caleb and after David Jehosophat Hezechias Josiah c. with the Holy Apostles and Saints Recorded in the New-Testament Or His Wrath against Wicked Men and the Vengeance He inflicts upon Ungodly and Unfaithful Ones such as Cain and Cham and the Ten Spyes who brought up an Evil Report on the Good Land and discouraged their Brethrens Hearts from seeking it such as Nadab an Abihu who offered Strange Fire and were paid in their kind with as Strange a Fire which devoured them Such as Hophni and Phineas those Sons of Belial who polluted their Priesthood and caused Men to Abhor Oh horrible Wickedness the Lord's Service Such as Judas Ananias and Saphira Demas the Foolish Virgins Dives and the Slothful Servant and abundance more all
an Estate by his own Industry takes more Pleasure in it than Five who stumbled upon it unlook't for and it drop't as we say into their Mouths Labour gets the best Stomach and a good Stomach is the best Sawce and so a good Conscience is the best Feast That Bread is sweetest which we Earn Jus dat Labor Such Bread is not Gritty we Eat it without Regret As a Minister who thrusts himself into that Office as a Trade to get Money as a Means to relieve a Broken Fortune as a Ladder to climb the Pinacle of Honour and neither designs the Glory of God nor Good of Souls If this Man should by chance Convert a Sinner it would yield him no Comfort because his Heart tells him He neither design'd it nor desir'd it So if another whose Soul is set to save them who hear him yet plough upon the Rock and see not the desired Success upon Men yet shall he assuredly find it with God Though Israel be not gathered yet shall I be Glorious in the Eyes of the Lord and my God shall be my Strength Isa 49.5 And St. Paul We are to God a sweet Savour in Christ in them that Perish and in them that are Saved 2 Cor. 2.15 When earnest Endeavours hold the Plow and hearty Desires sow the Land the Crop shall assuredly be Peace and Comfort And Diligence is as Honourable as Comfortable Nothing reflects a greater Glory upon a Man than Sedulity And those who are too Lazy to imitate him will yet either Admire or Envy him and to be Envyed is as Honourable as to be Envious is Base Diligence haâ—h such an Interest in every Man's Conscience that it cannot but obtain Applause and Approbation and they will Praise it who will not Practice it And as the prosperous Success of Good Men's Industry is the Fuel of Bad Men's Envy so let the Envy of such Men more and more kindle and inflame thy Diligence Secondly With Respect to others A Good Man hath no greater Care nor Pleasure next to the saving of his own Soul than to promote the Salvation of others 'T is the Voyce of a Cain Am I my Brother's Keeper He which Converteth another from the Errour of his Wayes shall save a Soul from Death and shall cover a Multitude of Sins Jam. 5.20 And by scattering those Clouds shall himself Shine as the Stars for ever and ever Dan 12.3 One Diligent Man who is active in the Work of God may be as a Soul to put Life and Spirit into a great many Your Zeal hath provok'd many 1 Cor. 9.2 'T is agreat Blessing to be a Blessing to others and he is the greatest Blessing to others who leads them to the Attainment of Eternal Blessedness No Man doth me so much Good as he that makes me Good and no Man doth so much to make me Good as he that gives me good Example He 's most like to have good Servants who himself works with them who saith not Go ye But Come with me or Let us go The spreading and flourishing Estate of Religion was fore-told by the Prophet Zechariah in Chap. 8. 21. in words very remarkable to this purpose The Inhabitants of one City shall go to another saying Let us go speedily to Pray before the Lord and to seek the Lord of Hosts I will go also The Emperour Partiâ—â—x's his word was Militemus A Lyon to their Captain would make an Army of the most fearful Creatures fall on Gideon taught his Souldiers by Exampel Look on me and it shall be that what ye see me do that shall ye do Judg. 7.17 Alexander us'd to March First And Q. Curtius tells us That in storming a City he was the First that leap't down off the Walls amongst the Enemies which made his Souldiers even fly down after him Caesar us'd to leave his Horse and go on Foot in Hard Marches that the Private Souldiers might not be discouraged with those Hardships in which their General bore the First Part. 'T will get a Crazy Man a Stomach to see an Hungry Man feed Be Diligent therefore in this Work of God that thou may'st make others so And besides the Benefit which they shall reap it will redound to thy Advantage All the Good they do shall in some measure be acounted thine beeause thou wert the Occasion of their doing of it Remember that of the Poet Ergo opera ejus mea sunt All the Exploits of Achilles's Valour are challenged by Vlysses because he brought him to the War Thirdly But all that our Diligence can be either to our selves or others is as nothing in Comparison to what it is in God's Account For though next to pleasing God 't is very considerable what Influence it may have upon our own Good or the Good of others yet our main Interest is and our Business ought to be to please Him according to that of the Apostle 2 Cor. 5.9 We labour or are Ambitious as the Original Word signifies that we may be Accepted of Him because we must all appear before the Judgment-Seat of Christ that every one may receive the Things done in His Body according to that he hath done whether it be Good or Bad. Now God esteems our Diligence and Faithfulness in His Work and Service to be our honouring and glorifying Him as is implyed in that Place Sam. 2.30 Him that Honoureth me that is Serves me Diligently which Eli's Sons had neglected and by that Neglect were accounted to despise Him So This People honoureth me with their Lips Matth. 15.8 which was indeed but a Mock-Honour because it was no more but had been Real Honour if it had proceeded from their Hearts And we Glorify God in our Bodies and Spirits 1 Cor. 6.20 when we dedicate both to His Service And Christ saith Hi Father is glorifyed when His Disciples bear much Fruit Joh. 15.8 which is the Effect of Diligence Sloath may do a little but 't is Diligence which doth much And it Honours Him many wayes First His Authority 'T is the Honour of a Lord or Master to have his Servants exactly Obedient and Observant of his Will to go when he bids them come when he calls them and do what he enjoyns them readily and with all their Power as the Israelites promised to Joshua Chap. 1.16 17 18. which was greatly for his Honour So our Diligence in God's Work gives Him the Honour of being a Wise a Righteous a Gracious an All-sufficient a Faithful GOD Fit to Rule us Able to Protect us Careful to Reward us and in all makes His Praise glorious Secondly It Honours His Goodness and Excellency when we declare we prefer the Enjoyment of Him infinitely before all other things and make it manifest we count it worth our utmost Cost and Pains and Care and all that Diligence includes to attain it Proclaiming openly The Pearl is so Precious 't is impossible to purchase it too Dear And we make a good Bargain if we get it though it Cost
let them slip Heb. 2.1 We must be Zealous and Repent We must Believe with all our Hearts We must Love Christ in Sincerity We must Obey from the Heart the Form of Doctrine delivered to us In a word We must do all God's Work as in His Sight remembering He stands by and looks on and as near as may be as the Saints and Angels do in Heaven And to be sure that is Diligently indeed 'T is our Duty Secondly We are bound by Gratitude and Ingenuity which Bond like Silken ones should be the Stronger for its Softness If a Friend lend Money or a Stock to Trade with which he that wanteth cannot Trade at all this is a great Engagement upon those who Receive it to Trade the more Industriously Thus God hath dealt with us hath Trusted us with Talents and with Opportunities and expects the best Improvement of them Why is there a Price put in the Hand of a Fool to get Wisdom seeing he hath no Heart there-to Prov. 17.16 When God sets up His Tabernacle 't is to this End That Men may seek him in it Act. 15.16 17. The Kindness of that Benefactor is abused basely who furnisheth him with Tools who will not use them Leave Opportunity Help to do our Work is as great an Obligation as can be laid on any Ingenuous Man to make him Diligent How oft doth Christ say He that hath Ears to Hear let him Hear Luk. 8.8 10. As we commonly ask What did God give you Eyes and Ears and Hands for but to See and Hear and Work Thirdly We are bound by Interest and 't is our Wisdom to Promote this Work for the Advantage redounds to our selves If thou be Wise thou shalt be Wise for thy self and if thou Scornest thou alone shalt bear it Prov. 9.12 God sets us not to Work as Pharaoh did the Israelites to Make Brick for his Buildings But we work for our selves though He sets us our Work and we shall Suffer Loss if our Work abide not Blessed is the Man that heareth Me watching daily at My Gates waiting at the Posts of My Doors For whoso findeth Me findeth Life and shall obtain Favour of the Lord. But he that sinneth against Me wrongeth his own Soul all they that hate Me love Death Prov. 7.34 35 36. Men are greatly Ambitious to be accounted Wise and 't is the Greatest Wisdom to be Wise to Salvation And so is that Man who understands his own Interest so well as to do his Work with Diligence Do it therefore so and it Shall be thy Wisdom and Vnderstanding Deut. 4.6 The Last Head from which I shall draw Motives to excite your Diligence is Example Than which none can be more fit and proper in this Subject Man is naturally prone to be led by Example especially in Working and the Principal Force of the Text depends upon our Saviour's urging our Duty by His own Example I must work the Works of Him that sent Me. Now we have great Variety and Multitude of Examples to draw us yea provoke us unto Diligence no less than the whole Creation nay more For all the Creatures and the Creatour Himself are our Examples herein God Himself is Purus Actus as the Schools call Him a Spirit an Active Quickening Spirit all Life Activity and Motion who is Eternally Busie never Idle Unimploy'd or Acting Wearily or Faintly My Father hitherto Worketh and I Work saith our Lord. And the whole Creation like its Maker had naturally na Sloathful Piece 'till Sin and Vice had taught them to be such and even since the Worst are Busie in their Wickedness and Diligent in doing Mischief which should Shame us and Provoke us to out-do them in our Better Work But I 'le briefly touch this Argument by Parts And First The Inanimate Creatures What David calls upon them to do Psal 148. they do most Diligently Obey the Law of their Creation Fulfil their Maker's Will and Do the Work He made them for The Sun the Moon and Stars and all the Host of Heaven give both their Light and Influence move Swiftly Regularly and Constantly measure to us Time and Seasons by their Equal Revolutions and never stop unless He bids them and yet one Word of His checks them in their full Career and they Stand or go Back as He commands them The Wind the Rain the Hail the Snow the Storms and Tempests and the Meteors do the like The Sea Ebbs and Flows raises its Billows or smooths its Face at His least Beck The Earth gives forth its Strength for Man and Beasts rests and is quiet or Quakes and Trembles at His Word yea Cleaves asunder under those He bids it swallow down The Trees bring for their Fruit or cast their Leaves at His Appointment and know their Spring and Autumn And all the Bruit Creatures are Strangers to Sloath and Enemies to Disobedience but Patterns of Diligence and Wisdom The Ant the Turtle the Crane and the Swallow keep their Seasons and do their Work in them and the Stolid Ox and Stupid Ass know their Owner and their Master's Crib and will wear His Yoke who Feeds them Secondly The Devil and Wicked Men For Fas est ab hoste Doceri Satan Compasses the Earth and walks about in it goes about continually seeking whom he may devour is alwayes contriving Mischief by his Wiles Depths Methods Stratagems or acting it by Temptations which he multiplyes one after another that if one succeed not another may as he did with our Lord Himself for Forty Dayes together Beelzebub the God of Flyes is more importunate than any Fly desiring to winnow even the Disciples as Wheat is winnowed To sift Men to the Bran a Phrase importing utmost Diligence Alwayes restless never weary and gives not over till Restrain'd and Chain'd up by a strong Hand And Wicked Men are like him They accomplish a Diligent Search they weary themselves to commit Iniquity and cannot Sleep unless they cause some to fall Commit their Wickednesses with both Hands greedily And take more pains to go to Hell than would suffice if well imploy'd to bring them to Heaven And Oh! What a Shame is it that Satan's Envy against God and Malice against Man should make him more Diligent in his Work than our Zeal for God's Glory and Love to our own Souls can make us in the Work of God for our own Salvation And What pity is it that so bad a Master as wicked Men serve should be served with more Vigor Industry and Life than the Lord of Glory whom we pretend to serve and profess we believe to be the Best of Masters Thirdly The Saints and Angels in Heaven They Cease not Day or Night to give Glory to Him that sits upon the Throne crying Holy Holy Holy The Cherubims in Ezekiel's Vision were represented by Wheels and there and alwayes having Wings both Emblems of Velocity and Speedy Diligence And as they be set for our Patterns in the Lord's Prayer while we are taught to
neither allow you to kill your King nor eat your God nor purchase Heaven for your mony nor flatter you with hopes that you may go to Paradise in the broad way and have that done for you by others when you are dead which should have been done by your self while you were alive In a word a Religion not made up of Tricks and Artifices of Pomp and Pageantry of a Fardle of unaccountable Rites and Ceremonies and unintelligible mystesteries and contradictions to comply with all mens humours tempers constitutions Severities for the Sowr and Melancholy Carnivals and Stews for the Airy brisk and Sanguine Whips and Austere Discipline as sharp as the Lancets of Baals Priests for the sullenly Superstituous And easie Indulgences and Commutations into gentle Penances for the soft and delicate A Religion tho profest and owned by many sinful men yet neither invented nor headed by the man of sin But a Religion holy and undefiled like its Author plain and simple like the Gospel which contains and teaches it Spiritual and Heavenly like the place it leads them to who love and practise it sincerely Such is the Religion we yet injoy through Gods great goodness but he threatens to bereave us of for our sins against it Let me therefore beseech you and adjure you by all that 's dear to you be zealous and repent speedily sincerely that you force not a jealous God to cut down this Tree to remove his Kingdom and take away his Candlestick because you would not bring forth the Fruits of the one nor walk in the Light of the other and deprive your selves and your Posterity of the greatest blessing God ever did or can bestow on this or any other Nation on this side Heaven But I shall rather chuse to inlarge my self in that Application of this Parable which is more sutable to so private an Auditory tho I cannot deny neither can any man deny the former in our circumstances to be very seasonable and therefore very necessary I shall therefore in what remains consider the Fig tree as a Figure and Type of particular persons Under which notion every individual man and woman is sentenced to be cut down and cast out of the Vineyard of the Church by some Temporal or Spiritual Judgment who hath been planted and admitted into it by Baptism and stands and grows in it injoying all the advantages and priviledges which belong to a Member of it under the Gospel and yet continues Fruitless or bears no good Fruit. Gets no saving Knowledg no true Faith no sound Repentance nor sincere Amendment of Life No real sence or favour of the things of God in a prevalency of Religion in Godliness and Holiness against and above Formality Prophaneness or the love of this present world No Justice Righteousness Truth and Honesty against Defrauding Cousenage Oppression Lying and Slandering of his Neighbours No Temperance Sobriety subduing of his sensual Lusts and Appetites against Uncleanness Drunkenness Debauchery and other defiling pleasures and sensualities in a word who are not foundly Converted and turned from placing their happiness and hopes in sin and creatures to fix them on God and Christ as their only blessedness and satisfying portion Or in St. Paul's express Language who will not learn that great Lesson which the Grace of God that is the Gospel was revealed from Heaven as the clearest light to teach the Sons of men that is To deny all ungodliness and worldly Lusts and to live Righteously Soberly and Godly in this present world in hope of a blessed immortality Nor heartily and in good earnest endeavour to become such as they are by their Baptismal Vow and Covenant obliged to be To every such man to every such woman I denounce this day in the name of the great the dreadful God of Heaven and Earth if thou turn not and that speedily and throughly That God the Lord of Hosts the supream the Omnipotent the Irresistible judg of all the Earth Hath prepared for thee the instruments of death He hath whet his Sword he hath bent and made ready his Bow his Arrows are upon the string suddenly will he shoot at thee and not spare or miss his mark The Ax is laid to thy very Root to cut thee down for fire unquenchable God already despiseth reproacheth and upbraideth thee for cumbring of his Ground hath actually pronounced the Sentence against thee to cut thee down the word is gone out of his mouth only in admirable Patience he hath reprieved thee one year more a little longer to try whether thou wilt yet at last sue out a Pardon return repent amend that thou mayst live Yet if thou do it not quickly he will compensate the former disappointments of his expectation whilst year after year he came looking for Fruit and found none together with the aggravated abuse of his long-sufferance which vouchsafes another year with a severer vengeance with a greater Damnation As for our parts who are Gods Ministers it is no pleasure nor delight to us to be Messengers of so heavy tydings to come on so harsh and terrifying an Errand We had rather be sent on Embassies of Peace and speak what might be more welcome and pleasing to you provided it might also be profitable for you But we must not chuse our own Message but the Word God puts into our mouths that must we speak What we have received from the Lord that must we deliver to you according to our Commission and our Instructions written in his Word must we proceed in the discharge and execution of our Office We must not sow Pillows under your Armpits nor dawb with untempered mortar at the Price at the Peril of our own Souls Nor promise Life where God hath threatned Death Nor speak Peace where God saith there is no Peace And there is no peace to the wicked saith my God Isa lvii 21. This were but to betray you and ruin our selves To lead you blindfold into the Ditch and plunge our selves in together with you into the Lake of fire and brimstone and to have the guilt of the blood of your souls added and heapt up upon that of our own to sink us deeper in the bottomless Gulph What we may do and what we can do that by the Grace of God we will do We will Pray to God to let you alone this year also Spare thy people good Lord spare this and that other Fruitless-Tree one year more try them O Lord a little longer it may be they will consider it may be they will bethink themselves it may be they will yet bear Fruit. And then it shall be no grief of Heart to thee O blessed Lord that thou didst not cut them off suddenly in thy sore displeasure Many have made some amends for an unfruitful youth by bringing forth more Fruit in their Age. Great Sinners have become great Saints What had thy Church lost what had thy Glory lost if thou hadst struck Saul dead when thou didst