come to cast away the Idols of your souls to repent and bee converted in the Prim-rose of your youth that your sins may bee blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord Act. 3.19 or else woe woe to you that ever you were born I have read a story of one who being risen from the dead and being asked in what condition hee was hee made answer no man doth beleeve no man doth beleeve no man doth beleeve And being further asked what he meant by that repetition hee answered no man doth beleeve how exactly God examineth how strictly God judgeth how severely hee punisheth Oh that the waies of most young persons did not declare to all the world that they do not and that they will not beleeve the dead and terrour of that day that will admit of no plea nor place for Apology or appeal The Turks have a tradition and frantick opinion that wicked men shall at the great day carry their sins in latchels after their Captain Caine but well would it bee for them if this should bee all their punishment in that great day the highest and last Tribunal can never bee appealed from or repealed Now if for all that hath been said you are resolved to spend the flower of your daies and the prime of your strength in the service of sin and the world then know that no tongue can express no heart can conceive that trouble of mind that terrour of soul that horror of conscience that fear and amazement that weeping and wailing that crying and roaring that sighing and groaning that cursing and banning that stamping and tearing that wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth that shall certainly attend you when God shall bring you into judgement for all your loosnesse and lightnesse for all your wickednesse and wantonnesse for all your prophaneness and basenesse for all your neglect of God your grieving the comforter your trampling under foot the blood of a Saviour for your dispising of the means for your prizing Earth above Heaven and the pleasures of this world above the pleasures that bee at Gods right hand Chrysosteme speaking of this day saith for Christ at this day to say depart from mee is a thing more terrible than a thousand hells Chrysost Hom ad Pop. Antioch Oh how will you wish in that day when your sins shall bee charged on you when justice shall bee armed against you when conscience shall bee gnawing within you when the world shall bee a flaming fire about you when the gates of Heaven shall bee shut against you and the flame of Hell ready to take hold of you when Angels and Saints shall sit in judgement upon you and for ever turn their faces from you when evil spirits shall be terrifying of you and Jesus Christ for ever disowning of you how will you I say wish in that day that you had never been born or that you might now bee unborn or that your mothers wombs had proved your Tombs O how will you then wish to bee turned into a bird a beast a stock a stone a Toad a Tree O that our immortal souls were mortal O that wee were nothing Joan Damasc et Author Anonym de quat Noviss Imprâ—ss Daven Anno. 1494. O that we were any thing but what we are I have read a remarkable story of a King that was heavy and sad and wept which when his brother saw hee asked him why hee was so pensive because saith hee I have judged others and now I must bee judged my self And why saith his brother do you so take on for this it will hapily bee a long time ere that day come and besides that it is but a flight matter The King said little to it for the present Now it was a custome in that Countrey when any had committed Treason there was a Trumpet sounded at his door in the night time and hee was next day brought out to bee executed now the King commanded a Trumpet to bee sounded at his brothers door in the night time who awakening out of his Sleep when hee heard it arose and came quaking and trembling to the King How now saith the King what 's the matter you are so affrighted I am saith hee attached of Treason and next morning I shall bee executed why saith the King to him again are you so troubled at that knowing that you shall bee judged by your Brother and for a matter that your Conscience tells you you are clear off How much more therefore may I bee afraid seeing that God shall judge mee and not in a matter that my conscience frees mee off but of that whereof I am guilty and beside this if the worst come is but a temporary death you shall dy but I am liable to death eternal both of body and soul I will leave the Application to those young persons that put this day afar off and whom no arguments will move to bee good betimes and to acquaint themselves with the Lord in the morning of their youth But now to those young men and women who beginne to seek serve and love the Lord in the Primerose of their days the day of judgement will be to them melodia in aure ubilum in corde like musick in the ear and a jubilee in the heart Act. 3.19 20 21 22. Mic. 7.7 8 9 10 11. Rev. 19.6 7 8 9 10. Mat. 25.34 to v. 41. this day will be to them a day of refreshing a day of redemption a day of vindication a day of coronation a day of Consolation a day of Salvation it will bee to them a marriage day a harvest day a pay day now the Lord will pay them for all the Prayers they have made for all the Sermons they have heard for all the tears they have shed in this great day Christ will remember all the individual offices of love and friendship shewed to any of his now hee will mention many things for their honor and comfort that they never minded now the least and lowest acts of love and pity towards his shall bee interpreted as a special kindnesse shewed to himself Now the Crown shall bee set upon their heads 2 Tim. 4.8 Mal. 3.17 18 and the Royall Robe put upon their backs now all the World shall see that they have not served the Lord for naught Now Christ will pass over all their weaknesses and make honorable mention of all the services they have performed of all the mercyes they have improved and of all the great things that for his name and glory they have suffered Quest But here an apt question may be moved viz. Whether at this great day the sinnes of the Saints shall bee brought into the judgement of Discussion and discovery or no whether the Lord will in this day publikely manifest proclaim and make mention of the sins of his people or no I humbly judge according to my present light that he will not and my
cordially tendred I hope none of you into whose hands it may fall will say as once Antipater King of Macedonia did when one presented him with a book treating of happinesse his answer was Ou Scholazo I have no leisure Ah! Young men and women young men and virgins as you tender the everlasting welfare of your souls as you would escape hell and come to heaven as you would have an interest in Christ a pardon in your bosomes as you would be blessed here glorious hereafter find time find leasure to read over and over the following treatise which is purposely calculated for your eternal good But before I go further I think it needful in some respects to give the world some further account of other reasons or motives that hath prevailed with mee once more to appear in print and they are these First Having preached a Sermon occasionally upon those words on which this following discourse is built I was earnestly importun'd to print the Sermon by some worthy friends I did as long as in modesty I could withst and their desires judging it not worthy of them but being at last overcome and setting about the work the breathings and comings in of God were such as hath occasioned that one Sermon to multiply into many Luther tells us that when hee first began to turn his back upon Popery hee intended no more but to withstand Popish pardons and selling indulgencies yet neither would God or his enemies let him alone till hee resolved with Moses not to leave a hoof of Popery unopposed c. God many times in the things of the Gospel carries forth his servants beyond their intentions beyond their resolutions But Secondly The kinde acceptance and good quarter that my other peeces have found in the world and those signal and multiplyed blessings that have followed them to the winning of many over to Christ and to the building up of others in Christ hath incouraged mee to present this Treatise to the World hoping that the Lord hath a blessing in store for this also Gracious experiences are beyond notions and impressions they are very quickening and encouraging Thirdly That I might in some measure make up others neglects whose age whose parts whose experiences whose graces hath long called upon them to do something considerable this way and that they may bee provoked by my weak assay to do better and to make up what is wanting through my invincible infirmities and spiritual wants and weaknesses which are so many as may well make a sufficient Apology for all the defects and weaknesses that in this Treatise shall appear to a serious judicious eye But Fourthly The love of Christ and souls hath constrained mee to it 2 Cor. 5.14 2 Cor. 12.15 Solus amor nesci◠difficultates Love knows no difficulties as there is an attractive so there is a compulsive vertue in divine love Love to Christ and souls will make a man willing to spend and bee spent hee that praies himself to death that preaches himself to death that studies himself to death that sweats himself to death for the honour of Christ and good of souls shall bee no looser in the end divine love is like a rod of Myrtle which as Pliny reports makes the traveller that carries it in his hand that hee shall never bee faint or weary Divine love is very operative si non operatur non est if it do not work it is an argument it is not at all divine love like fire is not idle but active hee that loves cannot bee barren love will make the soul constant and abundant in well doing God admits none to heaven saith Justin Martyr but such as can perswade him by their works that they love him The very heathen hath observed Seneca that God doth not love his children with a weak womanish affection but with a strong masculine love and certainly they that love the Lord strongly that love him with a Masculine love they cannot but lay out their little all for him and his glory But Fifthly I observe that Satan and his instruments are exceeding busy and unwearied in their designs attempts and indeavours in these dayes to corrupt and poyson It is said of Marcellus the Roman General that he could not bee quiet Nec victor nec victus neither Conquered nor Conquerer such a one is Satan to defile and destroy the young the tender the most hopeful and most flourishing plants among us Latimer told the Clergy in his time that if they would not learn diligence and vigilance of the Prophets and Apostles they should learn it of the Devil who goes up and down his Dioceses and acts by an untired Power seeking whom hee may destroy when the wolves are abroad the Shepheard should not sleep but watch yea double his watch remembring that hee were better have all the bloud of all the men in the world upon him than the bloud of one soul upon him by his negligence or otherwise Satan is a Lyon not a Lamb a roaring Lyon not a sleepy Lyon not a Lyon standing still but a Lyon going up and down as not being contented with the Prey the many millions of souls hee hath got he seeks whom he may sip up at a draught as that word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the 1 Pet. 5.8 imports his greatest design is to fill hell with souls which should awaken every one to bee active and to do all that may bee done to prevent his design and to help forward the salvation of souls Chrysostome compares good pastors Chrys in Mat. Ho. 15. to fountains that ever send forth waters or Conduits that are alwayes running though no pail bee put under But Sixthly and Lastly 1 Cor. 15. ult I know the whole life of man is but an hour to work in and the more work any man doth for Christ on earth the better pay he shall have when hee comes to Heaven 2 Cor. 9.6 Every man shall at last reap as he sows Opportunities of doing service for Christ and souls are more worth than a world therefore I was willing to takehold on this not knowing how soon I may put off this earthly Tabernacle 2 Pet. 1.13 14 and remembring that as there is no beleeving nor repenting in the grave Eccl. 9.10 So there is no praying preaching writing nor Printing in the grave we had need to be up and doing to put both hands to it and to do all wee do with all our might John 9.4 knowing that the night draws on upon us wherein no man can work A Christians dying day is the Lords pay day that is a time to receive wages not to do work And thus I have given the World a true account of the Reasons that moved me to print the following discourse before I close up I desire to speak a word to young persons and another to aged persons and then I shall take leave of both My request to you who are in
simple young man among many whereas late times afford greater store Ah! too many of the youths of this age in stead of flying from youthful lusts they post and pursue after youthful lusts Chrysostome speaking of youth saith it is difficilem jactabilem Chrysost Homil. 1. Ad populum fallibilem vehementissimisque egentem fraenis hard to bee ruled easy to bee drawn away apt to bee deceived and standing in need of very violent reines The Ancients did picture youth like a young man naked Lapide with a vail over his face his right hand bound behinde him his left hand loose and Time behinde him pulling one thread out of his vail every day intimating that young men are void of knowledge and blinde unfit to do good ready to do evil till Time by little and little make them wiser Well young man remember this that the least sparklings and kindlings of lusts will first or last cost thee groans and griefs tears and terrors enough These five are the sins that usually are waiting and attending on youth but from these the young man in the text was by grace preserved and secured which is more than I dare affirm of all into whose hands this treatise shall fall But though these five are the sins of youth yet they are not all the sins of youth for youth is capable of Other sins attends youth as 1 Ignorance 1 Cor. 14 20. 2 Falshood Psal 58.3 3 Excessive love of liberty 4 Impatience of councils and reproofs Jer. 31.18 19. 5 Impudency Isa 3.5 6 A trifling spirit Eccles 11.10 7 Prodigality Use and subject to all other sins whatsoever but these are the special sins that most usually waits and attends on young men when they are in the spring and morning of their youth I shall now hasten to the main use that I intend to stand upon and that is an use of Exhortation to all young persons Ah sirs as you tender the glory of God the good of your bodies the joy of your Christian friends and the salvation of your own souls bee exhorted and perswaded to bee really good betimes It was the praise and honour of Abijah that there was found in him some good thing towards the Lord in the Primrose of his child-hood Oh that it might bee your honour and happinesse to bee really good betimes that it might bee to you a praise and a name that in the morning of your youth you have begun to seek the Lord and to know and love the Lord and to get an interest and propriety in the Lord now that this Exhortation may stick and take Encouragements to Young men I beseech you seriously to weigh and ponder these following motives or considerations First 1. Motive consider It is an honour to bee good betimes A young Saint is like the morning star hee is like a pearl in a gold Ring It is mentioned as a singular honour to the beleeving Jews that they first trusted in Christ that wee should bee to the praise of his glory Ephes 1.12 who first trusted in Christ this was their praise their crown that they were first converted and turned to Christ and Christianity So Paul mentioning Andronicus and Junia doth not omit this circumstance of praise and honour Rom. 16.7 that they were in Christ before him Salute Andronicus and Junia my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners who are of note among the Apostles who also were in Christ before me And so it was the honor of the house of Stephanas 1 Cor. 16.15 that they were the first fruits of Achaia it was their glory that they were the first that received and wellcomed the Gospell in Achaia T is a greater honor for a young man to out-wrastle sinne Satan temptation the world and lusts than ever Alexander the Great could attain unto 2 Sam. 19.15 It was Judah his praise and honor that they were first in fetching home David their King Ah! Young men and women it will bee your eternal praise and honor if you shall before others if you shall bee the first among many who shall know the Lord and seek the Lord who shall receive the Lord and imbrace him who shall cleave to the Lord and serve him who shall honor the Lord and obey him who shall delight in the Lord and walk with him The Romans built Vertues and Honours Temple close together to shew that the way to honor was by vertue and indeed there is no crown to that which goodness sets upon a mans head all other honour is fading and withering Adonibezeck a mighty Prince Judg. 1.7 is suddenly made fellow commoner with the Dogs Dan. 4.28 And Nebuchadnezzar a mighty conqueror turned a grazing among the oxen And Herod reduced from a conceited God Act. 12.23 to bee the most loathsome of men living carrion arrested by the vilest of creatures upon the suit of his affronted Creatour Est 7.10 And Haman feasted with the King one day and made a feast for Crows the next I might tell you of Bajazet and Belisarius two of the greatest Commanders in the world and many others who have suddenly fallen from the top of worldly honor and felicity into the greatest contempt and misery but I shall not at this time But that honour that arises from mens being gracious betimes is such honour that the world can neither give nor take it is honour it is a Crown that will still bee green and flourishing it is honour that will bed and board with a man that will abide with a man under all tryals and changes that will to the grave that will to heaven with a man Ah Sirs It is no small honour to you who are in the spring and morning of your days that the Lord hath left upon record several instances of his Love and delight in young men 1 Sam. 16.11 12 13 hee chose David a younger brother and passes by his elder brothers hee frowns upon Esau Rom. 9.12 13 and passes by his door and sets his love and delight upon Jacob the younger brother he kindly and lovingly accepts of Abels person and sacrifice Gen. 4.3 4 5 6 and rejects both Cains person and sacrifice though hee was the elder brother Among all the Disciples John 13.23 John was the youngest and the most and best beloved There was but one young man that came to Christ Mar. 10.19 20 21. and hee came not aright and all the good that was in him was but some moral good and yet Christ loved him with a love of pitty and compassion 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Greek word signifies to speak friendly and deal gently with one and so did Christ with him all which should exceedingly encourage young men to be good betimes to be gracious in the morning of their youth no way to true honour like this but Secondly The sacrifices in the Law were young Lambs and young Kids to shew that Christ our
the Cross for souls he trode the Wine-Press of his fathers wrath for souls he dyed for souls hee rose again from death for souls Ioh. 14.1 2 3 he ascended for souls he intercedes for souls and all the glorious preparations that he hath been a making in heaven this sixteen hundred years is for souls Ah! young men young men do not play the Courtier with your precious souls the Courtier doth all things late hee rises late dines late sups late goes to bed late repents late Ah Sirs the good of your souls is before all and above all other things in the World to be first regarded and provided for ' and that partly because O anima Dei in signita imagine desponsata fide donata spiritu Bern. it is the best and more noble part of man and partly because therein mostly and properly is the Image of God stampt and partly because it is the first converted and partly because it shall be the first and most glorified Ah! Young men Young men if they bee worse than Infidels 1 Tim. 5.8 that make not provision for their families what monsters are they that make not provision for their own souls this will bee bitterness in the end Caesar Borgias being sick to death lamentingly said when I lived I provided for every thing but death now I must dye and am unprovided to dye this was a dart at his heart and it will at last be a dagger at yours who feast your bodies but starve your souls who make liberal provision for your ignoble part but no provision for your more noble part If they deserve a hanging who feast their slaves and starve their Wives that make provision for their enemies but none for their friends James 4.2 3 Hos 7.13 14 how will you escape hanging in hell who make provision for every thing yea for your very lusts but make no provision for your immortal souls Wee hate the Turks for selling Christians for Slaves and what shall we think then of those who sell themselves their precious souls for toyes and trifles that cannot profit who practically say Callenuceus relates this story what once a prophane Noble man of Naples verbally said viz. that hee had two souls in his body one for God and another for whosoever would buy it Ah young men young meâ— do not pawn your souls do not sell your souls do not exchange away your souls do not trifle and fool away your precious souls they are Jewels more worth than a thousand worlds yea than Heaven and earth if they are safe all is safe but if they are lost all is lost God lost and Christ lost and the society of glorious Angels and blessed Saints lost and Heaven lost and that for ever Grandensis tells of a woman that was so affected with souls miscarryings that shee besought God to stop up the passage into Hell with her soul and body that none might have entrance Ah! that all young persons were so affected with the worth and excellency of their souls and so allarmed with the hazzard and danger of loosing their souls as that they may in the spring and morning of their dayes enquire after the Lord and seek him and serve him with all their might that so their precious and immortal souls may bee safe and happy for ever but if all this will not do then in the last place Tenthly Consider young men that God will at last bring you to a reckoning hee will at last bring you to judgement Rejoyce O young man in thy youth Eccles 11.9 and let thy heart chear thee in the dayes of thy youth and walk in the wayes of thine heart and in the sight of thine eyes but know thou that for all these things God will bring thee unto judgement In these words you have two things 1 An ironical concession hee bids him rejoyce c. hee yeelds him what hee would have by an irony by way of mockage and bitter scoff Now thou art young and strong lively and lusty and thy bones are full of marrow thou art resolved to bee proud and scornful to indulge the flesh and to follow thy delights and pleasure well take thy course if thou darest or if thou hast a minde to it Hierom still thought that that noise was in his ears surgite mortâ—i venite ad judicium arise you dead and come to judgement if thy heart bee so set upon it Rejoyce in thy youth c. The second is a commination or a sad and severe praemonition But know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into judgement will bring thee these words import two things first the unwillingnesse of youth to come to judgement secondly the unavoidableness that youth must come to judgement but how soon you shall bee brought to judgement is only known to God Augustine confesses in one of his books that as long as his conscience was gnawed with the guilt of some youthful lust hee was once insnared with the very hearing of a day of judgement was even a Hell to him Histories tell us of a young man who being for some capital offence condemned to dye grew gray in one nights space and was therefore pittied and spared Ah young men young men that the serious thoughts of this great day might put you upon breaking off the sins of your youth and the dedicating of your selves to the knowledge love and service of the Lord in the spring and flower of your dayes An young men consider the errours of your lives the wickednesse of your hearts the sinfulnesse of your wayes and that strickt account that ere long you must bee brought to before the Judge of all the World The Heathens themselves had some kinde of dread and expectation of such a day and therefore when Paul spake of judgement to come Felix trembled though a Heathen The bringing into judgement is a thing which is known by reason Act. 24.25 The Philosophers had some dreames of a severe day of accounts as appeareth by Plato's Gorgi as many passages in Tully c. and is clear by the light of nature wherefore in Austria one of the Nobles dying who had lived fourscore and thirteen years and had spent all his life in pleasures and delights never being troubled with any infirmity and this being told to Frederick the Emperour from hence saith hee wee may conclude the souls immortality for if there bee a God that ruleth this world as Divines and Philosophers do teach and that hee is just no one denyeth surely there are other places to which souls aster death do go Eneas Sylvius and do receive for their deeds either reward or punishment for here wee see that neither rewards are given to the good nor punishments to the evil Ah young men 2 Cor. 5.9 10 11. knowing therefore the terrour of the Lord and the terrour of this day Oh that you would bee perswaded to flee from the wrath to
which you are bound Ah! who can thus look upon his chains his sins and not loathe them and not labour for freedome from them Justinus the Emperours Motto was Libert as res inestimabilis liberty is unvaluable if civil liberty bee surely spiritual liberty is much more if you ask souls that were once in a state of bondage but are now Christs free-men they will tell you so It was a good observation of Chrysostome Chrysost Hom. 19. in prior Epist ad Corinth that Joseph was the free-man and his Mistrisse was the servant when shee was at the beck of her own lusts when shee tempted and hee refused Such as live most above sin and temptation are the greatest freemen others that live under the power of their lusts are but slaves and in bonds though they dream and talk of freedome Tit. 3.3 Thirdly If you would break league with sin and arm and fence your selves against it then look alwayes upon sin under the notion of fire Jude 23. Arpazontes signifies a violent snatching as the tender-hearted Mother to save the life of her child pulls it hastily and with violence out of the fire And others save with fear pulling them out of the fire Oh! snatch them out of their sins as you would snatch a child a friend out of the fire or as the Angel snatch't Lot out of Sodom hastily and with a holy violence natural fire may burn the house the goods the treasure the servant the child the wife the body but this fire burns the soul it destroies and consumes that noble part which is more worth than all the treasures of a thousand worlds every man hath a hand and a heart to quench the fire which burns his neighbours house but few men have either hands or hearts to quench the fire that burns their neighbors souls this is and this shall bee for a lamentation D. Denisons theeefold resolution part 2. Sect. 2. I have read of one who upon the violence of any temptation to sin would lay his hand on burning coals and being not able to abide it would say to himself Oh how unable shall I be to indure the pains of hell and this restrained him from evil but what is the fire of hell to the fire of sin now to provoke you to look upon sin under the notion of fire consider with mee the sundry resemblances between material immaterial fire between corporal common fire and between this spiritual fire Sin As First Fire is terrible and dreadful a ship on fire a house on fire Oh how dreadful is it so sin set home upon the conscience is exceeding terrible and dreadful Mine iniquity so the Hebrew is greater than I can bear sin or iniquity is often put for the punishment of sin by a Metonymie of the efficient for the effect Gen. 4.13 Mentiris Cain thou lyest Cain saith one on the Text. for sin is the natural Parent of punishment Mine iniquity saith Cain is so great and lies so heavy so terrible and dreadful upon my conscience that it cannot bee forgiven and thus by his diffidence hee stabs two at once the mercy of God and his own soul So Judas Mat. 27.3 4 5. I have sinned in that I have betrayed innocent blood and hee went and hanged himself As there is no fighting with a mighty fire so there is no bearing up when God sets home sin upon the conscience a man will then chuse strangling or hanging rather than living under such wounds and lashes of conscience Histories abounds with instances of this nature but I must hasten to a close Secondly Fire is most dangerous and pernicious when it breaks forth of the chimny or of the house so it is with sin Sin is bad in the eye 2 Sam. 12.9 10 11 12 13 14 15. worse in the tongue worser in the heart but worst of all in the life Fire when out of its proper place may do much hurt in the house but when it flames abroad then it doth most mischief to others Sin in the heart may undo a man but sin in the life may undo others as well as a mans self Set a guard upon thy eye Job 31.1 Prov. 4.23 Ephes 5.15 a greater upon thy heart but the greatest of all upon thy life Salvian relates how the Heathen did reproach some Christians Salvianus de G. D. l. 4. who by their lewd lives made the Gospel of Christ to be a reproach where said they is that good Law which they do beleeve where are those rules of godlinesse which they do learn they read the holy Gospel and yet are unclean they hear the Apostles writings and yet are drunk they follow Christ and yet disobey Christ they professe a holy Law and yet do lead impure lives But the lives of other Christians have been so holy that the very Heathens observing them have said surely this is a good God whose servants are so good It is brave when the life of a Christian is a commentary upon Christs life One speaking of the Scripture Augustin saith verba vivenda non legenda they are words to bee lived and practised not read only Plutarch A Heathen adviseth us to demean our selves so circumspectly as if our enemies did alwaies behold us And saith another for shame Epictetus either live as Stoicks or leave off the name of stoicks Sirs live as Christians or lye down the name of Christians Thirdly Fire hardens it makes the weak and limber clay to become stiff and strong for the Potters use So sin hardens it hardens the heart against the commands of God the calls of Christ Jer. 5.3 ch 19. ult Isa 9.13 and the wrestlings of the Spirit As you see in Pharaoh the Jews and most that are under the sound of the Gospel Ah! how many hath this fire sin hardened in these daies by working them to slight soul-softening means Jer. 2.25 ch 18.12 and by drawing them to entertain hardening-thoughts of God and to fall in with soul-hardening company and soul-hardening Principles and soul-hardening examples of hardened and unsensible sinners one long since thus complained that they did patientius ferre Christi jacturam quam suam more calmly passe by the injuries done to Christ than those which are done unto themselves this age is full of such hardened unsensible souls Fourthly Fire is a lively active element so is sin Gen. 22. Psal 51. Job 3. Mat. 26. Rom. 1.15 c. Ah how lively and active was this fire in Abraham David Job Peter Paul and other Saints though Christ by his death hath given it its mortal wound yet it lives and is and will be active in the dearest Saints Though sin and grace were not born together neither shall they dye together yet while beleevers live in this world they must live together There is a History that speaks of a Fig-tree that grew in a stone wall and all means was used to kill it they cut
the primerose of your dayes is this if ever the Lord shall be pleased so to own and Crown so to bless and follow this following discourse as to make it an effectuall means of turning you to the Lord of winning you to Christ of changing your natures and converting your souls for such a thing as that I pray hope and beleeve that then you would do two things for me First That you would never cease bearing of me upon your hearts when you are in the mount that I may bee very much under the pourings out of the Spirit that I may be clear high and full in my communion with God and that I may bee alwayes close holy humble harmless and blamelesse in my walkings with God And that his work may more and more prosper in my hand Secondly Psal 66.16 1 Pet. 3.15 That you would by word of mouth letter or some other way acquaint mee with what the Lord hath done for your souls if he shall make mee a spiritual father to you do not hide his grace from mee but acquaint mee how hee hath made the seed that was sown in weakness to rise in power upon you and that First That I may do what I can to help on that work begun upon you that your penny may become a pound your mite a million your drop an ocean Secondly That I may the better English some impressions that have been upon my own spirit since I begun this work Thirdly 1 Thes 2 19 20 2 Cor. 9.2 That my joy and thankfulness may bee increased and my soul more abundantly engaged to that God who hath blest the day of small things to you ponder these scriptures 2 Cor. 7.3 4 13. Phil. 2.2 ch 4.1 Philemon ver 7. 2 John 3.4 And then be ashamed to declare what the Lord hath done for you if you can Fourthly Mat. 25.23 Dan. 12.3 Prov. 11.30 it is better to convert one than to civilize a thousand and will turn more at last to a Ministers account in that day wherein he shall say Loe here am I and the children that thou hast given mee Isa 8.18 such a man with his spiritual children about him shall look on God with more comfort and boldness than those that are onely able to say Loe here am I and the many Benefices here am I and the many Ecclesiastical dignities and glories here am I and the many hundreds a year that man had given and I have gotten But Fifthly Act. 9.3 Isa 6.5 Mal. 2.5 6 7. c. and Lastly The conversion of others is a secondary and more remote evidence of a mans own renovation and conversion Paul was converted himself before God made him instrumental for others Conversion Gods usuall method is to convert by them who are converted I do not remember any one instance in all the scripture of Gods converting any by such who have not been converted first themselves yet I know his grace is free and the wind blows where it lists when it lists and as it lists To aged persons I have a word and then I have done First To Gray-headed Saints Ah Friends ah Fathers would you see your honour your happiness your blessedness then look into this Treatise and there you will finde what an unspeakable honour it is to bee an Old disciple what a glory it is to be good betimes and to continue so to Old age Secondly To white-headed Sinners whose spring is past whose summer is overpast and who are arrived at the fall of the leaf and yet have a hell to escape a Christ to beleeve in sins to pardon hearts to change souls to save and heaven to make sure would such be incouraged from scripture grounds to repent beleeve and hope that yet there is mercy for such let them seriously peruse this Treatise especially the latter part of it and there they may finde enough to keep them from despairing and to incourage them to adventure their souls upon him that is mighty to save There are many things in this Treatise that are of use to all and several things of moment that are not every day Preach't nor read I have made it as pleasureable as time would permit that so it might be the more profitable to the reader and that I might the better take the young man by a holy craft 2 Cor. 12. ch 15.2 Prov. 11.30 which is a high point of heavenly wisdome there being no wisdome to that of winning of souls I shall now follow this poor peice with my weak prayers that it may be soblest from heaven as that it may bring in some and build up others and do good to all and so rest Your friend and Servant in the Gospel of Christ THOMAS BROOKS The Contents THe explication of the words from page 1. to page 10. Doct. That it is a very desirable and commendable thing for young men to be really good betimes this truth proved p. 10 11 12 Twelve Reasons of this point 1 Because he commands it whose Commands are not to be disputed but obeyed from p. 12. to 16 2 Because they have means and opportunities of being good betimes from p. 16. to 20 3 Because then they will have fewer sins to answer for and repent of p. 20 21. 4 Because time is a precious talent that Young men must be accountable for from p. 21. to 26 5 Because then they will have the greater comfort and joy when they come to bee old from p. 26. to 28 6 Because an eternity of felicity and glory hangs upon those few moments that are allotted to them from p. 28. to 33. 7 Because they do not begin to live till they begin to be really good from p. 33. to 36 8 Because the promise of finding God of enjoying God is made over to an early seeking of God c. from p. 36. to 44 9 Because the time of Youth is the choicest and fittest time for service from p. 44. to 47 10 Because death may suddenly and unexpectedly seize on youth youth being as fickle as old age from p. 47. to 52 11 Because it is ten to one nay a hundred to ten if ever they are converted if they are not converted when they are young from p. 52. to 55 12 Because else they will never attain to the honour of being an Old Disciple p. 55.56 The honour of an Old Disciple shew'd in seven particulars 1 All men will honour an Old Disciple from p. 56. to 58 2 God usually reveals himself most to old Disciples to old Saints p. 58. to 62 3 An old Christian an old Disciple hath got the art of serving God p. 62. to 63 4 An old Disciple an old Christian is rich in spirituall experiences from 63 to 67 5 An old Disciple is firm and fixt in his resolutions from 67 to 70 6 An old Disciple is prepared for death from 70. to 73 7 An old Disciple shall have a great reward in heaven from 73. to 79 Use of
Duty and Excellency ISHAL only stand upon the latter part of this Verse because that affords me matter most sutable to my designe Because in him there is found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam These words are a commendation of Abijahs life in him was found some good thing toward the Lord c. when Abijah was a Child vers 3.12 when hee was in his young and tender years hee had the seeds of grace in him he had the Image of God upon him hee could discern between good and evill 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and hee did that which pleased the Lord. Is used for a young man or stripling Gen. 22.5 and often for a servant though he be a man of tipe years Estâ—er 2.2 Such as one Evangelist â—alleth young 〈◊〉 Luk. 12. 〈…〉 other 〈…〉 fellow 〈…〉 The Hebrew word Nagnar translated Child vers 3. is very often applied to such as wee call youth or young men Exod. 24.5 Numb 6.11 1 Sam. 2.17 c. Of such age and prudence was Abijah as that he could chuse good and refuse evill hee was a Lot in Sodom hee was good among the bad the bent and frame of his heart was towards that which was good when the heart both of his Father and Mother was set upon evill Abijah beganne to bee good betimes hee crost that pestilent proverb a young Saint and an old Devill T is the glory and goodness of God that hee will take notice of the least good that is in any of his 1 Pet. 3.6 There was but one good word in Sarahs speech to Abraham and that was this shee called him Lord and this God mentions for her honour and commendations shee called him Lord God looks more upon one grain of Wheat than upon a heap of Chaff upon one shining Pearl than upon a heap of rubbish God findes a Pearl in Abijah and hee puts it into his Crown to his eternal commendation There was found in him some good thing towards the Lord c. for the words There was found in him the Hebrew word Matsa sometimes signifies finding without seeking Isa 65.1 I am found of them that sought mee not so Psal 116. v. 3. The sorrows of death compassed mee and the pains of hell got hold upon mee I found trouble and sorrow I found trouble which I lookt not for I was not searching after sorrow but I found it There 's an elegancy in the Originall The pains of hell gat hold upon mee So wee read but the Hebrew is The pains of hell found me one word signifies both they found mee I did not find them There was found in Abijah some good thing towards the Lord i.e. there was found in him without searching or seeking some good thing towards the Lord it was plain and visible enough men might see and observe it without inquiring or seeking they might runne and read some good thing in him towards the Lord. Secondly The word sometimes signifies Finding by seeking or enquiry Isa 55.6 Seek yee the Lord while hee may bee found c. So upon search and enquiry there was found in Abijah though young some good thing toward the Lord. Thirdly Sometimes the word notes the obtaining of that which is sufficient Josh 17.16 Numb 11.22 Judg. 21.14 in Abijah there was that good in him toward the Lord that was sufficient to evidence the work of grace upon him sufficient to satisfy himself and others of the goodness and happinesse of his condition though hee died in the prime and flower of his days c. And in him was found some good thing the Hebrew word Tob that is here rendered good Signifies First That which is right and just 2 Sam. 15.3 See thy matters are good and right i.e. just and right Secondly that which is profitable Deut. 6.11 Houses full of all good things i. e. houses full of all profitable things Thirdly That which is pleasing 2 Sam. 19.27 Do what is good in thine eyes i.e. do what is pleasing in thine eyes Fourthly That which is full and compleat Gen. 15.15 Thou shalt bee buried in a good old age i.e. thou shalt bee buried when thine age is full and compleat Fifthly That which is joyfull and delightful 1 Sam. 25.8 wee come in a good day i. e. wee come in a joyful and delightfull day now put all together and you may see that there was found in Abijah when hee was young that which was right and just that which was pleasing and profitable and that which was matter of joy and delight In the words you have two things that are most considerable First That this young mans goodnesse was towards the Lord God of Israel many there are that are good nay very good towards men who yet are bad ya very bad towards God This age affords many such hypocrites such Monsters c. Some there are who are very kind to the creature and yet very unkind to their Creator many mens goodnesse towards the creature is like the rising Sun but their goodness towards the Lord is like a morning cloud Hos 6.4 or as the early dew which is soon dried up by the Sun-beams but Abijahs goodnesse was towards the Lord his goodnesse faced the Lord it look't toward the glory of God Two things makes a good Christian good actions and good aimes And though a good aim doth not make a bad action good There may bee Malum opus in bona materia as in Jehues zeal as in Vzzah yet a bad aime makes a good action bad as in Jehu whose justice was approved but his policy punished the first Chapter of Hosea and the fourth verse doubtless Abijahs actions were good and his aims good and this was indeed his glory that his goodness was towards the Lord. It s recorded of the Catanenses that they made a stately monument of Kingly magnificence in remembrance of two Sons who took their aged parents upon their backs and carried them through the fire when their fathers house was al in a flame these young men were good towards their Parents but what is this to Abijahs goodnesse towards the Lord c. A man cannot bee good towards the Lord but he will bee good towards others but a man may be good towards others that is not good towards the Lord Oh that mens practises did not give too loud a Testimony every day to this assertion c. Secondly Hee was good among the bad Happy are those souls that with the Sturgion or Crab-fish can swim against the stream of custome and example and that with Atticus can cleave to the right though loosing side he was good in the house of Jeroboam t is in fashion to seem at least to bee good among the good but to bee really good among those that are bad that are eminently bad argues not onely a truth of goodness but a great degree of goodness this young man was good in the house of Jeroboam who
c. Secondly Young men must bee really good betimes because they have means and opportunities of being good betimes Never had men better means and greater opportunities of being good of doing good and of receiving good than now Ah Lord how knowing how beleeving how holy how heavenly how humble might young men bee were they not wanting to their own souls Young men might bee good very good yea eminently good would they but improve the means of grace the tenders of mercy and the knocking 's of Christ by his Word Works and Spirit The Ancients painted Opportunity with a hairy forehead Erasmus but bald behinde to signifie that while a man hath opportunity before him hee may lay hold on it but if hee suffer it to slip away hee cannot pull it back again How many young men are now in everlasting chains who would give ten thousand worlds had they so many in their hands to give to injoy but an opportunity to hear one sermon more to make one prayer more to keep one Sabbath more but cannot this is their hell their torment this is the Scorpion that is still biting this is the Worm that is alwayes gnawing Wo wo to us that wee have neglected and trifled away those golden opportunities that once wee had to get our sins pardoned our natures changed our hearts bettered our consciences purged and our souls saved c. * Bellarm. In concione de cruciatibus Gehennae I have read of a King who having no issue to succeed him espying one day a well-favoured youth took him to Court and committed him to Tutors to instruct him providing by his will that if hee proved fit for government hee should bee crowned King if not hee should bee bound in chains and made a Gally-slave Now when hee grew to years the Kings executors perceiving that hee had sadly neglected those means and opportunities whereby hee might have been fit for State government called him before them and declared the Kings will and pleasure concerning him which was accordingly performed for they caused him to bee fettered and committed to the Gallies Now what tongue can expresse how much hee was affected and afflicted with his sad and miserable state especially when hee considered with himself that now hee is chained who might have walked at liberty Now hee is a slave who might have been a King now hee is over-ruled by Turks who might once have ruled over Christians the application is easie Ah young men young men T is storied of Charles King of Sicily and Jerusalem that hee was called Carolus Cunctator Charles the lingerer this age affords many such lingerers c. shall Satan take all opportunities to tempt you shall the world take all opportunities to allure you shall wicked men take all opportunities to ensnare you and to undo you and shall Christian friends take all opportunities to better you and shall Gods faithful Messengers take all opportunities to save you and will you will you neglect so great salvation Plutarch writes of Hannibal that when hee could have taken Rome hee would not and when hee would have taken Rome hee could not Many in their youthful dayes when they might have mercy Christ pardon Heaven they will not and in old age when they would have Christ pardon peace Heaven they cannot they may not God seems to say as Thesius said once go sayes hee and tell Creon Thesius offers thee a gracious offer yet I am pleased to bee friends if thou wilt submit this is my first message but if this offer prevail not look for mee to bee up in arms The third Reason why Young men should bee really good betimes Lord saith Austin I have loved thee late the greater was his sins and the more were his sorrows is because then they will have fewer and lesser sins to answer for and repent of multitudes of sins and sorrows are prevented by being good betimes The more wee number our dayes the fewer sins wee shall have to number As a coppy is then safest from blotting when dust is put upon it so are wee from sinning when in the time of our youth wee remember that wee are but dust The tears of young penitents do more scorch the Devils than all the flames of Hell for hereby all their hopes are blasted and the great underminer countermined and blown up Mane is the Devils Verb hee bids tarry time enough to repent but Mane is Gods Adverb hee bids repent early in the morning of thy youth for then thy sins will bee fewer and lesser Well young men remember this hee that will not at the first hand buy good council cheap shall at the second hand buy repentance over dear Ah young men young men if you do not begin to bee good betimes those sins that are now as Jewels sparkling in your eyes Psal 25.7 Job 13.26 will at last bee milstones about your necks to sink you for ever Among many things that Beza in his last will and Testament gave God thanks for this was the first and chief that hee at the age of sixteen years had called him to the knowledge of the truth and so prevented many sins and sorrows that otherwise would have overtaken him and have made his life lesse happy and more miserable Young Saints often prove old Angels There is nothing puts a more serious frame into a mans spirit than to know the worth of his time but old sinners seldome prove good Saints c. The fourth ground why young men should bee really good betimes is this viz. because time is a precious Talent that young men must be countable for the sooner they begin to bee good the more easy will bee their accounts especially as to that great Talent of time Cato and other heathens held that account must bee given not only of our labour but also of our leisure at the great day it will appear that they that have spent their time in mourning have done better than they that have spent their time in dancing and they that have spent many dayes in humiliation than they that have spent many dayes in idle recreations I have read of a devout man who when hee heard a clock strike hee would say here is one hour more past that I have to answer for Ah young men as time is very precious so it is very short time is very swift it is suddenly gone in the 9. of Job and the 25. vers My dayes are swifter than a Post they flee away they see no good The Hebrew word Kalal translated swifter than a Post signifies any thing that is light because light things are quick in motion The Ancients emblem'd time with wings as it were Sophocles Phocilides not running but flying Time is like the Sun that never stands still but is still a running her race the Sun did once stand still yea went back but so did never Time Time is still running and flying it is a bubble a shadow
their Paradise that eat the fat and drink the sweet that cloth themselves richly and crown their heads with rose-buds that they would seriously consider of eternity so as to hear as for eternity and pray as for eternity and live as for eternity and provide as for eternity That they may say with that famous Painter Zeuxes Aeternitati pingo I paint for eternity we do all for eternity we beleeve for eternity wee repent for eternity wee obey for eternity c. O that you would not make those things eternal for punishment Cur ea quae ad usum diuturna esse non possunt ad supplicium diuturna deposces Ambrose in Lu. 4. T. 5. that cannot bee eternal for use Ah! young men and women God calls and the bloud of Jesus Christ calls and the spirit of Christ in the Gospel calls and the rage of Satan calls and your sad state and condition calls and the happiness and blessedness of glorified Saints calls these all call aloud upon you to make sure a glorious eternity before you sail out into that dreadfull Ocean All your eternall good depends upon the short and uncertain moments of your lives and if the threed of your lives should bee cut before a happy eternity is made sure woe to you that ever you were born Do not say O young man that thou art young and hereafter will bee time enough to provide for eternity for eternity may bee at the door ready to carry thee away for ever Every days experience speaks out eternity to bee as neer the young mans back as t is before the old mans faâ—â— O graspe to day the diadem of a blessed eternity least thou art cut off before the morning comes though there is but one way to come into this world yet there is a thousand thousand ways to bee sent out of this world well young men and women remember this as the motions of the soul are quick so are the motions of divine justice quick also and if you will not hear the voice of God to day if you will not provide for eternity to day God may swear to morrow that you shall never enter into his rest it is a very sad and dangerous thing to trifle and dally with God his word his offers our own souls and eternity therefore let all young People labour to bee good betimes and not to let him that is goodness it self alone till hee hath made them good till hee hath given them those hopes of eternity that will both make them good and keep them good that will make them happy and keep them happy and that for ever if all this will not do then know that ere long those fears of eternity of misery that begets that monster Despair which like Medusa's head astonisheth with its very aspect and strangles hope which is the breath of the soul will certainly overtake you as it is said Dum Spiro Spero so it may bee inverted Dum Spero Spiro other miseries may wound the spirit but despair kills it dead my prayer shall bee that none of you may ever experience this sad truth but that you may all bee good in good earnest betimes which will yeeld you two heavens a heaven on earth and a heaven after death The seventh Reason Why young persons should be really good betimes and that is because they do not beginne to live till they beginne to bee really good till they beginne to bee good they are dead God-wards and Christ-wards and heaven-wards and holiness-wards till a man beginnes to bee really good hee is really dead Phil. 2.1 and that first in respect of working Respectu operis his works are called dead works Heb. 9.14 the most glistering services of unregenerate persons are but dead works because they proceed not from a principle of life and they lead to death Rom. 6.21 and leave a sentence of death upon the soul till it bee wash't off by the bloud of the Lamb. Secondly Respectu honoris Hee is dead in respect of honour hee is dead to all priviledges hee is not fit to inherit mercy who will set the crown of life upon a dead man The crown of life is only for living Christians Rev. 2.10 The young Prodigal was dead till hee begunne to bee good till hee begunne to remember his fathers house and to resolve to return home My Son was dead but is alive Luk. 15.24 and the Widow that liveth in pleasure is dead while shee liveth 1 Tim. 5 6 As t is a reproach to an old man to be in Coats so t is a disgrace to be an old babe i e. to be but a babe in grace when old in years Heb. 5.12 13 14. When Josaphat asked Barlaam how old hee was hee answered five and forty years old to whom Josaphat replyed thou seemest to bee seventy true saith hee if you reckon ever since I was born but I count not those years which were spent in vanity Ah! Sirs you never begin to live till you beginne to be good in good earnest There is the life of vegetation and that is the life of plants secondly there is the life of sense and that is the life of beasts Thirdly there is the life of reason and that is the life of man Fourthly there is the life of grace and that is the life of Saints and this life you do not beginne to live till you beginne to bee good if a living Dogg is better than a dead Lyon as the wise man speaks Eccl. 9.4 and if a Fly is more excellent than the heavens because the Fly hath life which the heavens hath not as the Philosopher saith what a sad dead poor nothing is that person that is a stranger to the life of grace and goodness that is dead even whilst he is alive Most men will bleed sweat vomit Meconas in Seneca had rather live in many diseases than dye And Homer reporteth of his Aâ—hilles that he had rather be a servant to a poor Countrey Clown here than to be a King to all the Souls departed purge part with an estate yea with a limb I limbs yea and many a better thing viz. the honour of God and a good conscience to preserve their natural lives as hee crys out Give mee any deformity any torment any misery so you spare my life and yet how few how very few are to bee found who make it their work their business to attain to a life of goodness or to beginne to bee good betimes or to bee dead to the world and alive to God rather than to bee dead to God and alive to the world this is for a lamentation and shal be for a lamentation that natural life is so highly prized spiritual life so little regarded c The eighth Reason Why young persons should bee really good betimes and that is because the promise of finding God of enjoying God is made over to an early seeking of God Prov. 8.17 I
love them that love mee and they that seek me early shall find me Or as the Hebrew hath it they that seek mee in the morning shall find me by the benefit of the morning light wee come to find the things wee seek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Shahhar signifies to seek inquisitively to seek diligently Exod. 16.21 Scipio went first to the Capitol and then to the Senat. Tully an heathen frequently called G d Optimum maximum the best and greatest God is Omnia super omnia to seek timely in the morning As the Israelites went early in the morning to seek for Manna And as Students rise early in the morning and sit close to it to get knowledge so saith wisdome they that seek mee in the spring and morning of their youth shall finde mee Now to seek the Lord early is to seek the Lord firstly God hath in himself all the good of Angells of men and universal nature hee hath all gloryes all dignities all riches all treasures all pleasures all comforts all delights all joyes all beatitudes God is that one infinite perfection in himself which is eminently and virtually all perfections of the creatures and therfore hee is firstly to be sought Abstracts do better express him than Concretes and adjectives hee is being bonity power wisdome justice mercy goodness and love it self and therefore worthy to bee sought before all other things Seek yee first the good things of the mind saith Philosophy Cicero and don't Divinity say as much Again To seek early is to seek opportunely to seek while the opportunity does present Daies of grace have their dates therefore take heed of saying Cras Cras to morrow to morrow Judg. 9.33 Thou shalt rise early and set upon the City that is thou shalt opportunely set upon the City Such there have been who by giving a glass of water opportunely have obtained a kingdome as you may see in the story of Thamastus and King Agrippa Ah! Young men and women you do not know but that by an early Heb. 12.28 by an opportune seeking of God you may obtain a kingdom that shakes not and glory that passeth not away There is a season wherein God may bee found Isa 55.6 Seek ye the Lord while hee may bee found call yee upon him while hee is neer and if you slip this season you may seek him and miss him Ier. 11.11 Isa 1.15 Mic. 3 4 Prov. 1.28 Though they cry unto mee I will not hearken unto them when yee make many prayers I will not hear Then shall they cry unto the Lord but he will not hear Then shall they call upon mee but I will not answer they shall seek mee early but shall not finde mee This was Sauls misery The Philistines are upon mee and God will not answer mee 't is justice that they should seek and not finde at last who might have found had they but sought seasonably and opportunely c. Again to seek early is to seek earnestly affectionately With my soul have I desired thee in the night Isa 26.9 yea with my spirit within mee will I seek thee early The Hebrew word signifies both an earnest and an early seeking in the morning the spirits are up and men are earnest lively and affectionate Ah such a seeking shall certainly bee crowned with finding My voice shalt thou hear in the morning Psal 5.3.11 12. O Lord in the morning will I direct Heb. martial my prayer unto thee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and will look up Hebrew look out like a watchman Let all those that put their trust in thee rejoyce let them ever shout for joy because thou defendest them Hebrew thou coverest over or protectest them Let them also that love thy Name bee joyful in thee for thou Lord wilt blesse the Righteous with favour wilt thou compasse him Hebrew crown him as with a shield None have ever thus sought the Lord but they have or certainly shall finde him Seek and yee shall finde Matth. 7.7 your heart shall live that seek God Psal 69.32 The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It signifies such a working as notes the liveliest activity that can bee James 5.16 or as the Greek hath it the working-prayer of a righteous man availeth much that prayer that sets the whole man awork will work wonders in Heaven in the heart and in the earth Earnest prayer like Sauls sword and Jonathans bow never return empty One speaking of Luther who was a man very earnest in praier said hic homo potuit apud Deum quod voluit this man could have what hee would of God c. Again to seek early is to seek chiefly primarily after this or that thing what wee first seek wee seek as chief Now to seek the Lord early is to seek him primarily chiefly In the 63. Psal and the 1. vers Thou art my God early will I seek thee that is Omne bonum in summo bâ—no I will seek thee as my choicest and my chiefest good God is Alpha the fountain from whence all grace springs and Omega the Sea to which all glory runs and therefore early and primarily to bee sought God is a perfect good a solid good id bonum perfectum dicitur cui nil accedere solidum cui â—â—l decedere potest Lactantius that is a perfect good to which nothing can bee added that a solid from which nothing can bee spared such a good God is and therefore early and chiefly to bee sought 1 John 1.5 God is a pure and simple good hee is a light in whom there is no darknesse a good in whom there is no evil The goodnesse of the Creature is mixt yea that little goodness that is in the Creature is mixt with much evil but God is an immixt good Quicquid est in Deo est ipse Deus hee is good hee is a pure good he is all over good hee is nothing but good God is an Al-sufficient good walk before mee and bee upright I am God Al-sufficient in the 17. of Genesis and the 1. vers Habet omnia qui habet habentem omnia Aug. Hee hath all that hath the haver of all God hath in himself all power to defend you all wisdome to direct you all mercy to pardon you all grace to inrich you all Righteousness to cloath you all goodnesse to supply you and all happinesse to crown you Cant. 2.3 God is a satisfying good a good that fills the heart and quiets the soul in the 33. of Genesis and the 11. vers I have enough saith good Jacob I have all saith Jacob for so the Hebrew hath it Cholli I have all I have all comforts all delights all contents c. In having nothing I have all things because I have Christ having therefore all things in him I seek no other reward for hee is the universal reward saith one As the worth
and value of many peeces of silver is to bee found in one peece of gold So all the petty excellencies that are scattered abroad in the Creatures are to bee found in God yea all the whole volum of perfections which is spread through Heaven and Earth is epitomized in him No good below him that is the greatest good can satisfie the soul a good wife a good child a good name a good estate a good friend cannot satisfie the soul these may please but they cannot satisfie Omnis copia quae non est Deus meus mihi egestas est Aug. Soliloq c. 13. All abundance if it bee not my God is to mee nothing but poverty and want said one Ah that young men and women would but in the morning of their youth seek yea seek early seek earnestly seek affectionately seek diligently seek primarily and seek unweariedly this God who is the greatest good the best good the most desirable good who is a sutable good a pure good a satisfying good a total good and an eternal good The ninth Reason why young persons should be really good betimes and that is because the time of youth is the choicest and fittest time for service Now your parts are lively senses fresh The dayes of youth are called aetas bona in Cicero and aetas optima in Seneca memory strong and nature vigorous the dayes of your youth are the spring and morning of your time they are the first-born of your strength therefore God requires your nonage as well as your dotage the wine of your times as well as the lees Exod. 13.2 Exod. 22.9 as you may see typified to you in the first fruits which were dedicated to the Lord And the first-born The time of youth is the time of salvation it is the acceptable time it is thy summer thy harvest time O young man therefore do not sleep but up and bee doing awaken thy heart rouse up thy soul and improve all thou hast put out thy reason thy strength thy all to the treasuring up of heavenly graces precious promises divine experiences and spiritual comforts against the winter of old age and then old age will not bee to thee an evil age Gen. 25.28 but as it was to Abraham a good old age do not put off God with fair promises and large pretences till your last sands are running and the dayes of dotage hath overtaken you Mal. 1.14 That 's a sad word of the Prophet cursed bee the deceiver which hath in his flock a male and yet offereth to the Lord a corrupt thing Jer. 1.11 The Almond tree blossomes in January while it is yet Winter and the fruit is ripe in March Ah young men and women who are like the Almond tree you have many males in the flock your strength is a male in your flock your time is a male in the flock your reason is a male in the flock your parts are a male in the flock and your gifts are a male in the flock now if hee bee curst that hath but one male in his flock and shall offer to God a corrupt thing a thing of no worth of no value how will you bee curst and curst curst at home and curst abroad curst temporally curst spiritually and curst eternally who have many males in your flock and yet deal so unworthily so fraudulently and false heartedly with God as to put him off with the dreggs of your time and strength while you spend the Prime-rose of your youth in the service of the world Mat. 21.20 the Flesh and the Devil The Fig-tree in the Gospel that did not bring forth fruit timely and seasonably was curst to admiration the time of youth is the time and season for bringing forth the fruits of righteousness and holiness and if these fruits bee not brought forth in their season you may justly fear that the curses of heaven will secretly and insensibly soak and sink into your souls and then woe wo to you that ever you were born the best way to prevent this hell of hels is to give God the cream and Flower of your youth your strength your time your Talents vessels that are betimes seasoned with the savour of life never loose it Pro. 22.6 The Tenth Reason Why young persons should bee really good in good earnest betimes and that is because Death may suddenly and unexpectedly seize upon you Pares nascuntur pares moriuntur in the womb and in the Tomb they are all alike you have no lease of your lives Youth is as fickle as old age the young man may finde Graves enough of his length in buriall places as green wood and old logs meet in one fire so young Sinners and old Sinners meet in one hell and burn together when the young man is in his spring Job 21.23 24 and prime then hee is cut off and dies one dieth in his full strength or in the strength of his perfection T is an Allegorical description of the highest prosperity as the Hebrew hath it being wholly at ease and quiet His breasts are full of milk and his bones are moistened with marrow Davids children dies when young so did Jobs and Jeroboams c. Every days experience tell us that the young mans life is as much a vapour as the old mans is I have read of an Italian Poet who brings in a propper young man rich and potent discoursing with Death in the habit of a mower with his Sythe in his hand cutting down the life of man For all flesh is grass Isa 40.6 and wilt thou not spare any mans person saith the young man I spare none saith death Deaths motto is Nulli Cedo I yeild to none mans life is but a day a short day a winters day oft-times the Sun goes down upon a man before it be wel up your day is short your work is great your journey long and therefore you should rise early and set forward towards heaven betimes as that man does that hath a long journey to go in a winters day The life of man is absolutely short Psal 39.5 Behold thou hast made my days as a hands breadth The life of man is comparatively short and that if you compare mans life now to what hee might have reacht had hee continued in innocency Sinne brought in death death is a fall that came in by a fall or if you compare mans life now to what they did reach to before the Flood then several lived Gen. 9 six seven eight nine hundred years or if you compare mans dayes with the days of God Mine age is as nothing before thee Psal 39.5 or if you compare the dayes of man to the dayes of eternity Ah! The Heathen could say that the whole life of man should be nothing else but meditatio mortis a meditation of death Young men young men can you seriously consider of the brevity of mans life and trifle away
your time the offers of Grace your precious souls and eternity c. surely you cannot surely you dare not if you do but in good earnest ponder upon the shortness of mans life It is recorded of Philip King of Macedon that he gave a pension to one to come to him every day at dinner and to cry to him memento te esse mortalem Remember thou art but mortal Ah! Young men and old had need bee often put in mind of their mortality they are too apt to forget that day yea to put farre from them the thoughts of that day I have read of three that could not endure to hear that bitter word death mentioned in their ears and surely this age is full of such monsters And as the life of man is very short so it is very uncertain now well now sick alive this hour and dead the next Death doth not always give warning before hand sometimes hee gives the mortal blow suddenly hee comes behind with his dart and strikes a man at the heart before hee saith have I found thee O my enemy Eutichus fell down dead suddenly Act. 20.19 Death suddenly arested Davids Sons and Jobs Sons Petrach telleth of one who being invited to dinner the next day enswered Ego a multis annis crastinum non habui I have not had a morrow for this many years Augustus dyed in a complement Galba with a sentence Vespasian with a jest Zeuxes dyed laughing at the picture of an old woman which hee drew with his own hand Sophocles was choaked with the stone in a Grape Dâ—odorus the Logician dyed for shame that hee could not answer a joculary question propounded at the Table by Stilpo Joannes Measius preaching upon the raising of the woman of Naims sonne from the dead within three houres after dyed himself Ah! Young men and women have you not cause great cause to bee good betimes for death is sudden in his approaches nothing more sure than death and nothing more uncertain than life therefore know the Lord betimes turn from your sinnes betimes lay hold on the Lord and make peace with him betimes that you may never say as Caesar Borgias said when hee was sick to death when I lived said hee I provided for every thing but death now I must dye and am unprovided to dye c. The Eleventh Reason Why young persons should bee really good betimes and that is because t is ten to one nay a hundred to ten if ever they are converted if they are not converted when they are young God usually begins with such betimes Hos 11.1 When Israel was a child then I loved him c. that hee hath had thoughts of love and mercy towards from everlasting the instances cited to prove the Doctrin confirms this argument and if you look abroad in the world you shall hardly finde one Saint among a thousand but dates his conversion from the time of his youth 'T was the young ones that got through the wilderness into Canaan If the Tree do not bud and blossome and bring forth fruit in the Spring Numb 26.64 it is commonly dead all the year after An Hebrew Doctor observes that of those six hundred thousand that went out of Egypt there were but two persons that entered Canaan if in the spring and morning of your daies you do not bring forth fruit to God it is a hundred to one that ever you bring forth fruit to him when the evil dayes of old age shall overtake you wherein you shall say you have no pleasure For as the Son of Syrach observes if thou hast gathered nothing in thy youth Eccles 25.5 what canst thou finde in thy age t is rare very rare that God sows and reaps in old age usually God sows the seed of grace in youth it yeelds the harvest of joy in age Though true repentance be never too late yet late repentance is seldome true Millions are now in Hell who have pleased themselves with the thoughts of after repentance The Lord hath made a promise to late repentance but where hath he made a promise of late repentance yea what can bee more just and equal Pro. 1.24 32. that such should seek and not finde who might have found but would not seek and that hee should shut his ears against their late prayers who have stopt their ears against his early calls The Ancient warriours would not accept an old man into their army as being unfit for service and dost thou think that God will accept of thy dry bones when Satan hath suckt out all the marrow What Lord what Master will take such into their service who have all their dayes served their enemies and will God will God The Circassians a kinde of Mongrel Christians are said to divide their life betwixt sin and devotion Breerw Enqui dedicating their youth to rapine and their old age to repentance if this bee thy case I would not bee in thy case for ten thousand worlds I have read of a certain great man Beda hath this story that was admonished in his sickness to repent who answered that hee would not repent yet for if hee should recover his companions would laugh at him but growing sicker and sicker his friends pressed him again to repent but then hee told them that it were too late Quia jam judicatus sum condemnatus for now said hee I am judged and condemned The twelfth and last Reason why young men should bee really good betimes and that is because else they will never attain to the honour of being old disciples It is a very great honour to bee an old Disciple Now this honour none reach to but such as are converted betimes but such as turn to the Lord in the spring and morning of their youth It is no honour for an old man to bee in coats What more ridiculous than puer contum annorum a child of an hundred years old nor for an old man to bee a babe in grace An A. B. C. old man is a sad and shameful sight O but it is a mighty honour to a man when hee is old that hee can date his conversion from the morning of his youth Now that it is an honour to bee an old Disciple I shall prove by an induction of particulars As It is an honour to bee an old Disciple First All men will honour an old Disciple A Crown is a very glorious thing but there are but few of them Prov. 16.31 The hoary head is a Crown of glory if it bee found in the way of Righteousness God requires that the aged should bee honoured Levit. 19.32 Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head and honour the face of the old man the old man here is by some expounded the wise man and fear thy God I am the Lord. Hoariness is only honourable when found in a way of Righteousness a white head accompanied with a holy heart makes a man
sacrifice should dye and suffer for our sins in the flower of his age Consider Christ loved poor Sinners and gave himself for them when hee was in the prime of his age being supposed to bee about thirty and three and will you put him off with the worst of your time Ah! Young men young men Christ gave himself up to death hee made himself an offering for your sins for your sakes when he was in the prime and flower of his age and why then should you put off Christ to old age Did he dye for Sin in the prime of his age and will not you dye to sinne in the prime of your age Did he offer himself for you in the spring and morning of his years and will not you offer up your selves to him in the spring and morning of your years Rom. 12.1 2 O give not Christ cause to say I dyed for you betimes but you have not lived to mee betimes I was early in my suffering for you but you have not been early in your returning to mee I made haste to compleat your redemption but you have made no haste to make sure your vocation and election I stayed not 2 Pet. 1.10 I lingered not but soon suffered what I was to suffer and quickly did what was to be done for your eternal welfare but you have stayed and lingered like Lot in Sodom and have not done what you might have done in order to your everlasting good Gen. 19.16 in the Prime-rose of my days I sweat for you I wept for you I bled for you I hung on the cross for you I bore the wrath of my father for you but you have not in the Primrose of your days sweat under the sense of divine displeasure nor wept over your sins nor mourned over mee whom you have so often grieved and pierced Zach. 12.10 I could not be quiet nor satisfied till I had put you into a capacity into a possibility of Salvation and yet you are well enough quieted and satisfied though you do not know whether ever you shall bee saved Ah Sirs how sad would it be with you if Jesus Christ should secretly thus expostulate with your consciences in this your day Oh! how terrible would it bee with you if Christ should thus visibly plead against you in his great day Ah! Young men young men and women who but souls much left of God blinded by Satan 2 Cor. 4.3 4 and hardned in sin can hear Jesus Christ speaking thus to them I suffered for Sinners betimes I laid down a ransome for souls betimes I pacified my fathers wrath betimes I satisfied my fathers justice betimes I merited grace and mercy for Sinners betimes I brought in an everlasting righteousness upon the world betimes c. I say who can hear Jesus Christ speaking thus and his heart not fall in love and league with Christ and his soul not unite to Christ and resign to Christ and cleave to Christ and for ever be one with Christ except it be such that are for ever left by Christ Well remember this Quanto pro nobis vilior tanto nobis charior the more vild Christ made himself for us the more dear he ought to be unto us Ah! Young men remember this when Christ was young hee was tempted and tryed when he was in the morning of his dayes his wounds were deep his burden weighty Nolo vivere sine vulnere cum te video vulneratum Bonaventur Oh my Gâ—â— as long as I see thy wounds I will never live without wound his cup bitter his sweat painful his agony and torment above conception beyond expression when he was young that blessed head of his was crowned with thornes and those eyes of his that were purer than the Sunne were put out by the darkness of death and those ears of his which now hears nothing but Hallelujahs of Saints and Angels were filled with the blasphemies of the multitude and that blessed beautiful face of his which was fairer than the sons of men was spit on by beastly filthy wretches Aut Deus naturae pa titur aut mundi machina dissolvitur said Dionysius Alexandrinus Either the God of nature suffered or the frame of the world will be dissolved and that gracious mouth and tongue that spake as never man spake was slandered and accused of blasphemy and those hands of his which healed the sick which gave out pardons which swayed a Scepter in heaven and another on earth were nailed to the Cross and those feet that were beautiful upon the mountains that brought the glad tidings of peace and salvation into the World and that were like unto fine brass were also nailed to the cross All these great and sad things did Jesus Christ suffer for you in the prime and flower of his days and Oh! what an unspeakable provocation should this be to all young ones to give up themselves betimes to Christ to serve love honour and obey him betimes even in the spring and morning of their youth Let the thoughts of a crucified Christ saith one be never out of your mind let them be meat and drink unto you let them be your sweetness and consolation your honey and your desire your reading and your meditation your life death and resurrection The third motive or consideration to provoke you to begin to be good betimes is this viz. The Philosopher once said solus sapiens dives onely the wise man is the rich man that it is the best and choicest way in the world to be rich in gracious experiences betimes which are the best riches in all the world as hee that sets up for himself betimes is in the most hopeful way to bee rich betimes so he that is good in good earnest betimes hee is in the ready way the high-way of being rich in grace and rich in goodness they usually prove men of great observation and great experience God loves to shew these his beauty Psal 63.1 2. Exod. 3.3.19.22 c. Psal 65.11 12 and his glory in his sanctuary He delights to cause his glory and his goodness to pass before such these shall finde all his paths drop marrow and fatness for these the Lord of hosts will make a feast of fat things Ifa 25.6 a feast of wines on the lees of fat things full of marrow of wines on the lees well refined these shall have all manner of pleasant fruits laid up at their gates for their well beloved Can. 7.13 none have so many choice pledges of Christs love nor so many sweet kisses of Christs mouth nor so many imbraces in Christs arms as those souls that are good betimes O the grace the goodness the sweetness the fatnesse that Christ is still a droping into their hearts Christ will make their hearts his largest treasury hee 'l lay up most of his heavenly treasure in their souls Earthly Riches are full of Poverty Divitiae corporales paupertatis
his word as you may see by comparing these scriptures together Deut. 29.18 19 20. Psal 78.36 Psal 36.1.2 Job 17.5 Ezek. 12.24 Dan. 11.21 32 34. Ps 12.2 3. They speak vanity every one with his neighbour with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak Karath signifies any cutting off either by death or banishment c. The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips and the tongue that speaketh proud things And as God declares sadly against them in his word so hee hath declared terribly against them in his works as you may runne and read in his judgements executed upon Ahabs flattering Prophets and upon Haman and upon Daniels Princely false accusers c. And why then will not you stop your ears against those wretches that the hand and heart of God is so much against Again A preacher in Constantines time presumed to call the Emperour Saint to his face but he went away with a check Euseb de vit Const l. 4.4 As God declares against them so good men detest them and declare against them as you may see by comparing these Scriptures together Psal 5.8 9 10. Prov. 2.16 Prov. 7.21 Prov. 28.23 Job 32.21 22. 1 Thess 2.5.20 Prov. 20.19 Meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips Why so why because a man that flattereth his Neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet Prov. 29.5 The Hebrew word Mahhalik from hhalak that is here rendred flatterer signifies a smooth boots a soft butter-spoken man because flatterers useth smooth soft speeches Also the word signifies to divide because a Flatterers tongue is divided from his heart Flatterers have their nets and those that give ear to them will bee taken to their ruine A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it The Hebrew word and a flattering mouth worketh ruine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prov. 26. ult A flattering mouth ruines name Dahbah signifies such aviolent forceing of one as he cannot stand it signifies to throw down to drive on forwards till a man fall into destruction same estate body soul life Valerian the Roman Emperour used to say Non acerba sed blanda not bitter but flattering words do all the mischeif When Alexander the Great was hit with an Arrow in the siege of an Indian City which would not heal hee said to his Parasites you say that I am Jupiters son but this wound cryes that I am but a man Now shall good men detest them and abhor them as they are the pest of pests the plague of plagues and will you own them will you take pleasure in them to your ruine here and hereafter the Lord forbid Oh say to all flatterers as hee to his Idols Hos 14.8 Get you hence for what have I more to do with you Nay once more consider that not onely the good but the bad not onely the best but some of the worst of men have manifested their detestation of Flatterers and flattery Leo the Emperour used to say occulti inimici pessimi a close enemy is farre worse than an open When a Court Parasite praised Sigismund the Emperour above measure the Emperour gave him a sound box on the ear When Aristobulus the Historian presented to Alexander the Great book that hee had written of his glorious acts wherein hee had flatteringly made him greater than he was Alexander after he had read the book threw it into the River Hydaspes and said to the Author it were a good deed to throw thee after it When the Flatterers flattered Antigonus hee cryed out mentiris mentiris in gutture Hae virtutes non laetent in me thou liest thou liest in thy throat these vertues that thou speakest of I have not in me but I am like a Leopard that have ten black spots to one white Augustus Caesar and Tiberius Caesar were deadly enemies to flatterers insomuch that they would not bee called Lords by their own children A good Symbole is attributed to Trebonianus Gallus viz. Nemo amicus idem et adulator no Flatterer can be a true friend Aristippus the Philosopher seeing Diogenes washing of herbs for his dinner said if Diogenes knew how to make use of Kings hee need not live upon raw herbs as he doth to which Diogenes replyed that if Aristippus could content himself with herbs hee need not to turn Spaniel or to flatter King Di nysius for a meals meat Ah! Young men Young men shall God shall good men shall bad men detest and declare against Flatterers and flattery and will not you turn a deaf ear upon them yea fly from them as from a Serpent and shun them as you would shun hell it self if you do not the very Heathens but now cited will rise in judgement against you Flatterers are the very worst of sinners The Flatterers told Caesar that his freckles in his face were like the starres in the Firmament they bought and sold Aurelius the Emperour at pleasure And Augustus complained when Varrus was dead that hee had none now left that would deal plainly and faithfully with him So men may gain by Flattery they will bee like Harpaelus who said Quod Regi placet mihi placet that which pleaseth the King pleaseth mee When Astyages set his own Sonne before him to feed upon him O but let every young man say into whose hands this treatise shall fall Quod Deo placet mihi placet that which pleaseth God pleaseth mee I have been the longer upon this out of love to young mens souls Whilest an Asse is stroaked under the belly you may lay on his back what burden you please who are so apt to bee insnared in the Flatterers net if ever you would bee good in good earnest you must abhor Flatterers as the first born of the Devil and as such that are most pernitious to mens happinesse both here and hereafter It is reported of one Oramazes that hee had an enchanted Egg in which as hee boasted himself hee had inclosed all the happiness of the World but being broken nothing was found in it but Wind. Flatterers are the greatest cheaters the greatest deceivers in the world They say of the Crocodile that when hee hath killed a man he will weep over him as if hee were sorry and did repent for what he had done the Application is easy Fourthly If you would bee good betimes if you would seek and serve the Lord in the spring and morning of your dayes then take heed of engageed affections to the things of the World The Young man in the Gospel took many a step towards heaven Mat. 19 16-24 All these things have I kept from my Youth up what lack I yet Christ makes a very fair offer to him in the next words Jesus said unto him if thou wilt be perfect go and sell that thou hast and give to the Poor and thou shalt have treasure in heaven and come and follow mee thou shalt have heaven for earth a Sea for a drop a
and cryed if any man thirst let him come to mee and drink So in that Rev. 22.17 Let him that is a thirst come and whosoever will let him take the water of life freely so in that Rev. 3.20 Cant. 2.8 Christ comes leaping upon the Mountains and skipping upon the hills to shew his readinesse and willingness to do good to souls Behold I stand at the door and knock if any man hear my voice and open the door I will come in to him and will sup with him and hee with mee and so in that Luk. 14.21 The Master of the house said to his Servant go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the City and bring in hither the Poor and the maimed and the halt and the blinde Here is no man of quality of dignity of worldly pomp or glory or of any self-sufficiency that is invited to the feast but a company of poor raged deformed slighted neglected impoverished wounded sinners these are invited to feast with Christ Concerning this willingness of Christ I shall speak more when I come to deal with Old sinners in the close of this discourse and to that I refer you for further and fuller satisfaction concerning the great readiness and willingness of Jesus Christ to entertain returning Sinners Fourthly If you would bee good betimes then you must know betimes that Jesus Christ is designed sealed and appointed by the Father to the office of a Mediatour John 6.27 The father sealed even God so the Greek hath it Labour not for the meat which perisheth but for that meat which endureth to everlasting life which the Son of man shall give unto you for him hath God the father sealed God the father hath made Christs Commission authentical as men do theirs by their Seal It is a metaphor a simile taken from them who give Commissions under hand and seal God the father hath given it under his hand and seal that Jesus Christ is the onely person that he hath appointed and sealed allowed and confirmed to the office of our redemption If Jesus Christ were never so able to save and never so willing and ready to save poor Sinners yet if hee were not appointed designed and sealed for that work the awakened Sinner would never look out after him nor desire union with him nor interest in him and therefore it is of very great consequence to know that God the father hath sent and sealed Christ to be a Saviour to his people him hath God the father sealed sealed by way of destination and sealed by way of qualification sealed by his doctrin sealed by his miracles sealed by his baptism sealed by his Resurrection but above all sealed by his glorious unction Isa 61.1 2 3 Luk. 4.18 Christ was anointed of God 1 By way of designation 2 By way of Qualification 3 By way of Inauguration This annointing was ordinarily used in the installing men to offices of any eminence The spirit of the Lord is upon mee because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tydings unto the meek hee hath sent mee to bind up the broken hearted to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the Prison to them that are bound To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God to comfort all that mourn to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion to give unto them beauty for ashes the oyle of joy for mourning the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness that they might bee called trees of righteousness the planting of the Lord that hee might bee glorified neither Saints nor Angels are sealed and anointed to the great work of redemption but the Lord Jesus is you should always look upon the Lord Jesus as sealed and anointed to the Office of a Mediatour and accordingly plead with him Ah Lord It is thy Office as thou art a sealed and an anointed Saviour and Redeemer to subdue my sinnes to change my nature to sanctify my heart to reform my life and to save my soul and therefore do it for thy names sake O do it for thy Office sake do it for thy glories sake Psal 41.8 Act. 4.27 Thou art anointed with the Oile of gladness above thy fellows thou hast a larger effusion of the spirit upon thee than others thou art anointed with the Holy-Ghost Act. 10.38 and with power after an extraordinary measure and manner thou art indued with all Heroical gifts and excellencies plentifully John 1.16 John 3.34 abundantly transcendently thou art sealed and predestinated thou art invested into this office of Mediatorship under the fathers hand and seal and therefore whether should I go for salvation for remission for redemption for grace for glory but to thee Fiâ—thly If you would bee good betimes then you must know betimes that there is no way to salvation but by Jesus Christ Act. 4.12 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is by or thorow the mediation of any other neither is there salvation in any other speaking of Christ for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved if ever you are saved you must bee saved by him and him onely you must not look for another Saviour nor you must not look for a co-saviour you must be saved wholly by Christ and onely by Christ or you shall never be saved Act. and Mon. you must cry out as Lambert did when hee was in the fire and lifted up his hands and fingers ends flaming none but Christ none but Christ When Augustus Caesar desired the Senate to joyn two Consuls with him for the better government of the State Suetonius the Senate answered that they held it as a diminution of his dignity and a disparagement of their own judgement to joyn any with so incomparable a man as Augustus Ah Friends It is a dimiuntion of Christs dignity sufficiency and glory in the business of your salvation to joyn any thing with the Lord Jesus and it is the greatest disparagement in the World to your own judgments knowledge Prudence and wisdome to yoak any with Christ in the work of Redemption in the business of salvation Augustin saith that Mercellina hung Christs picture and the picture of Pithagoras together many there are not only in Rome but in England yea I am afraid in London who joyn Christ and their works together Christ and their Prayers together Christ and their Teachers together Christ and their mournings together Christ and their hearings together Christ and their Alms together Ah! what a poor what a weak what an impotent what an insufficient Saviour doth these men make Jesus Christ to bee Except these men come off from these things and come up onely to Jesus Christ in the great businesse of salvation they will as certainly and as eternally perish notwithstanding their hearing knowing and talking much of Christ as those that never heard of Jesus Christ In the Old Testament Deut.
22.11 ch 19. v. 19 God commands them not to wear a Garment of diverse sorts as of woollen and linnen together Neither shall a garment mingled of Linnen and woollen come upon thee This Law was figurative and shews us that in the case of our justification acceptation and salvation wee are not to joyn our works our services with the righteousness of Christ Phil. 3.9 10 Rev. 19.8 Gal. 3.28 c. 2.16 God abhors a linsy-woolsy righteousnesse And as by the Letter of this Law in the Hebrews account one threed of wool in a Linnen garment or one Linnen threed in a Woollen garment made it unlawful So the least manner of mixture in the business of justification makes all null and void And if by grace then it is no more of works otherwise grace is no more grace Rom. 11.6 Eph. 2.5 Rom 5.15 16 8 But if it bee of works then it is no more grace otherwise work is no more work hee that shall mix his Righteousness with Christs hee that shall mix his puddle with Christs purple bloud his rags with Christs royal Robes his copper with Christs Gold his water with Christs wine c. is in the ready way to perish for ever On earth Kings love no consorts power is impatient of participation Christ will bee Alexander or Nemo no body hee will bee all in all in the businesse of Justification 1 Cor. 1.30 Rom. 5.19 20 or hee will bee nothing at all wee must say of Christ as it was once said of Caesar socium habet neminem hee may have a companion c. but hee must not have a competitor Let us say of Christ as the Heathen once said of his Petty gods contemne minutulos istos Deos modo Jovem propitium habeam so long as hee had his Jupiter to friend hee regarded them not So so long as wee have our Jesus to friend Eph. 3.9 10 Psal 71.15 16 19 compared and his righteousness and bloud to friend we should contemn all other things and abhor the bringing of any thing into competition with him a real Christian cares not for any thing that hath not aliquid Christi Something of Christ in it Hee that holds not wholly with Christ doth very shamefully neglect Christ Aut totum mecum tene aut totum omitte saith Gregory Nazienzen There is no other name no other nature no other blood no other merits no other person to bee justified and saved by but Jesus Christ Isa 55.2 Rom. 10.3 you may run from Creature to Creature and from duty to duty and from Ordinance to Ordinance and when you have wearied and tyred out your selves in seeking ease and rest satisfaction and remission justification and salvation in one way and another you will bee forc'd after all to come to Christ and to cry out Ah! none but Christ none but Christ Ah! none to Christ none to Christ no works to Christ no duties no services to Christ no prayers no tears to Christ no righteousnesse no holiness to Christ Well friends remember this that all the tears in the world cannot wipe off meritoriously one sin nor all the grace and holiness that is in Angels and men buy out the pardon of the least transgression All remission is only by the blood of Christ Sixthly and lastly If you would bee good betimes then you must know betimes that the heart of Jesus Christ is as much set upon sinners now hee is in Heaven as ever it was when hee was upon earth Christ is not lesse loving lesse mindful less desirous of sinners eternal welfare now hee is in Heaven in a far Country than hee was when hee lived on earth 2 Cor. 5.20 witnesse his continuing the Ministery of Reconciliation among poor sinners in all ages witnesse the constant Treatise that by his Embassadors and Spirit hee still hath with poor sinners about the things of their peace the things of eternity Rev. 3.20 Isa 16.4 Isa 27.5 witnesse his continual knocking 's his continual callings upon poor sinners by his word Rod Spirit to open to repent to lay hold on mercy and to be at peace with him witness his continual wooing of poor sinners in the face of all neglects Cant 1.2 3. Luk 14. and put offs in the face of all delaies and denials Pro. 6.9 Mat. 22.4.23 37. in the face of all harsh entertainment and churlish answers in the face of all gain-sayings and carnal reasonings in the face of all the scorn and contempt that wretched sinners put upon him and witnesse that plain word Jesus Christ the same yesterday Heb. 13.8 and to day and for ever Christ is the same aforetime in time and after time hee is unchangeable in his essence in his promises and in his affections I am Alpha and Omega Re. 1.8 11. ch 21.6 ch 22.13 the beginning and the ending saith the Lord which is and which was and which is to come The phrase is taken from the Greek letters whereof Alpha is the first and Omega the last It was a custome among the Turks to cry out every morning from an high Tower God alwaies was and alwaies will bee and so salute their Mahomet the first and last letter of the Greek Alphabet is a description of mee saith Christ who am before all and after all who am above all and in all who am unchangeable in my self and in my thoughts and good-will to poor sinners therefore do not poor souls entertain any hard thoughts concerning Jesus Christ as if hee was lesse mindful lesse pittiful and lesse merciful to poor souls now hee is in Heaven than hee was when his abode was in this world And thus I have gone over those six things that you must know concerning Christ betimes if ever you would bee good betimes When Pope Leo lay upon his death bed Cardinal Bembus citing a text of Scripture to comfort him hee replied Apage has nug as de Christo away with these bawbles concerning Christ but I hope better things of you and do desire that you will say of all things below this knowledge of Christ that I have opened to you as that devout Pilgrim who travelling to Jerusalem and by the way visiting many brave Cities with their rare monuments and meeting with many friendly entertainments would often say I must not stay here this is not Jerusalem Ah! so do you young men and women in the midst of all your worldly delights and contents cry out Oh wee must not stay here this is not Jerusalem this is not that knowledge of Christ that I must have if ever I am happy here and blessed hereafter Fourthly and lastly If you would bee good betimes then you must acquaint your selves with those that are good betimes if you would bee gracious in the spring and morning of your youth then you must begin betimes to bee much in with them who are much in with Christ who lye near his heart and knows much of his mind
all worldly delights and contents c. Secondly In pardon of Sin Blessed is hee whose transgression is forgiven whose Sinne is covered Psal 32.1 2 Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity and in whose spirit there is no guile It is not blessed is the honourable man but blessed is the pardoned man it is not blessed is the rich man but blessed is the pardoned man it is not blessed is the learned man but blessed is the pardoned man it is not blessed is the politick man but blessed is the pardoned man it is not blessed is the victorious man but blessed is the pardoned man Do with me what thou wilt since thou hast pardoned my sins saith Luther Thirdly In a compleat fruition and enjoyment of God when wee shall be here no more Blessed are the pure in heart Mat. 5.8 for they shall see God Now they see him but darkly 1 Cor. 13.12 but in heaven they shall see him face to face they shall know as they are known but of these things I have spoken largely elsewhere and therefore shall satisfy my self with these hints Lastly If you would be good betimes then you must break your covenant with sin betimes you must fall out with your lusts betimes you must arme and fence your selves against Sin betimes Isa 28 15.18 a man never beginnes to fall in with Christ till hee beginnes to fall out with his Sins till sin and the soul bee two Christ and the soul cannot be one Now to work your hearts to this you should alwayes look upon sin under these notions First If you would have the league dissolved betwixt sin and your souls betimes then look upon sin under the notion of an enemy betimes Dearly beloved 1 Pet. 2.11 Sins especially against knowledge are peccata vulner antia et divastantia wounding and wasting I befeech you as strangers and Pilgrims abstain from fleshly lusts which warre against the soul As the Viper is killed by the young ones in her belly so are poor Sinners betraied and killed by their own lusts that are nourished in their bosomes Pittacus a Philosopher challenging Phlyon the Athenian Captain in their warres against them to single combate carried a net privily and so caught him and overcame him So doth Sin with poor Sinners the dangerous pernicious malignant nature of Sinne you may see in the story of the Italian who first made his Enemy deny God and then stabbed him to the heart and so at once murdered both body and soul Sin betrayes us into the hand of the Devil as Dalilah did Sampson into the hands of the Philistims Sugred poysons go down pleasantly Oh! But when they are down they gall and gnaw and gripe the very heart-strings asunder it is so with sin Ah! Souls have not you often found it so When Phocas the Murderer thought to secure himself by building high-walls he heard a voice from heaven telling him that though he built his bulwarks ever so high yet Sinne within would soon undermine all Ambrose reports of one Theotimus that having a disease upon his body the Physitian told him that except hee did abstain from intemperance Drunkenness Uncleanness he would loose his eyes his heart was so desperately set upon his Sins that he crys out then vale lumen amicum farewel sweet light Ah! how did his lusts warre both against body and soul The Old man is like a treacherous friend and a friendly Traitour though it be a harder thing to fight with a mans lusts than it is to fight with the Cross yet you must fight or dye if you are not the death of your Sins they will prove the death of your souls The Oracle told the Cirrheans diesque belli gerendum they could not be happy unless they waged warre night and day As one of the Dukes of Venice dyed fighting against the Nauratines with his weapons in his hand no more can wee except wee live and dye fighting against our lusts Ah Young men Can you look upon Sin under the notion of an enemy and not break with it and not arm against it Well remember this the pleasure and sweetness that follows victory over sin is a thousand times beyond that seeming sweetnesse that is in sin and as victory over sin is the sweetest victory so it is the greatest victory there is no conquest to that which is gotten over a mans own corruptions Hee that is slow to anger is better than the mighty and hee that ruleth his spirit than hee that taketh a City It is noble to overcome an enemy without but it is more noble to overcome an enemy within it is honourable to overcome fiery flames but it is far more honourable to overcome fiery lusts When Valentinian the Emperour was upon his dying-bed among all his victories only one comforted him Rom. 7.22 23 2 Cor. 10.3 4 5 6. Gal. 5.17 and that was victory over his worst enemy viz. his own naughty heart Ah young men young men your worst enemies are within you and all their plots designs and assaults are upon your souls your most noble part they know if that fort Royal bee won all is their own and you are undone and shall bee their slaves for ever and therefore it stands you upon to arm your selves against these inbred enemies and if you ingage Christ in the quarrel you will carry the day and when you shall lye upon your dying-beds you will then finde that there is no comfort to that which ariseth from the conquests of your own hearts your own lusts Secondly If you would break covenant with sin if you would arme and fence your selves against sin betimes 2 Pet. 3.6 Gal. 3.10 Joh. 8.34 then look upon sin as the souls bonds for as bonds tie things together so doth sin tie the sinner and the curse together it bindes the sinner and wrath together it links the sinner and hell together I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitternesse and in the bond of iniquity iniquity is a chain a bond now bonds and chains gall the body and so do sin the soul and as poor captives are held fast in their chains so are sinners in their sins they cannot redeem themselves by price 2 Tim. 2. uit nor by power Ah young men young men no bondage to soul-bondage no slavery to soul-slavery the Israelites bondage under Pharaoh and the Christians bondage under the Turks Augustine saith of Rome that shee was the great Mistriss of the world and the great drudge of sin is but the bondage of the body of the baser and ignoble part of man but yours is soul-bondage soul-slavery which is the saddest and greatest of all Ah friends You should never look upon your sins but you should look upon them as your bonds yea as the worst bonds that ever were all other chains are golden chains chains of Pearl compared to those chains of Iron and Brasse those chains of lusts with
off the branches and it grew again they cut down the body and it grew again Isedore the Monk was very much out who vaunted that hee had felt in himself no motion to sin forty years together they cut it up by the root and still it lived and grew untill they pulled down the stone-wall till death shall pull down our stone-walls Sin will live this fire will burn Wee may say of sin as some say of Cats that they have many lives kill them and they will live again kill them again and they will live again so kill sin once and it will live again kill it again and it will live again c. Sin oftentimes is like that Monster Hydra cut off one head and many will rise up in its room Fifthly Fire is of a penetrating nature Isa 1.5 6. Rom. 7.13.17 Sin is malum Catholicum A Catholick evil Quodcunque in peccato peccatum est whatsoever is in sin is sin it peirceth and windeth it self into every corner and chinck and so doth sin winde it self into our thoughts words and works it will winde it self into our understandings to darken them and into our judgements to pervert them and into our wills to poison them and into our affections to disorder them and into our consciences to corrupt them and into our carriages to debase them Sin will winde it self into every duty and every mercy it will winde it self into every one of our enjoyments and concernments Hannibal having overcome the Romans put on their armour on his shoulders and so by that policy they being taken for Romans won a City but what are Hannibals wiles to sins wiles or Satans wiles if you have a minde to bee acquainted with their wiles look over my Treatise called Precious Remedies against Satans Devices Sixthly and lastly Fire is a devouring a consuming Element Psal 21.9 it turns all fuel into ashes It is a Woolf that eats up all 2 Pet. 2.5 6. Pro. 6.32 Eccles 9.18 Prov. 13.13 ch 20.29.1 Pro. 11.3 ch 15.25 ch 21.7 so Sin is a fire that devours and consumes all it turned Sodom and Gomorah into ashes it hath destroyed the Caldaean Persian and Graecian Kingdomes and will at last destroy the Roman Kingdome also this Woolf ate up Sampsons strength Absoloms beauty Achitophels policy and Herods glory c. It hath drowned one world already and will at last burn another even this Oh the hopes the hearts the happinesse the joyes the comforts the souls that this fire Sin hath consumed and destroyed c. Peter Camois Bishop of Betty in France in his draught of Eternity Num. 75. tells us that some devout personages caused those words of the Prophet Isaiah to bee written in letters of gold upon their chimny peeces Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire Isa 33.14 who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings Ah young men young men I desire that you may alwaies look upon sin under the notion of fire yea as such fire as laies the foundation for everlasting fire for everlasting burnings and this may work when other things will not I have read of a grave and chaste Matron who being moved to commit folly with a lew'd Russian after some discourse shee call'd for a pan of burning coals requesting him for her sake to hold his finger in them but one hour hee answered it is an unkind request to whom she replyed that seeing hee would not do so much as to put one finger upon the coals for one hour she could not yeild to do that for which shee should bee tormented both body and soul in hell fire for ever The application is easy c. Fourthly If you would break with Sin betimes if you would arm against Sin in the spring and morning of your dayes then you should look upon Sin under the notion of a Thief and indeed Sin is the greatest Theif the greatest Robber in the World it robbed the Angels of all their glory 2 Pet. 2 4 Gen. 3 it robbed Adam of his Paradise and felicity and it hath robbed all the Sons of Adam of five precious Jewels the least of which was more worth than heaven and earth 1 It hath robbed them of the holy and glorious Image of God which would have been fairly engraven upon them had Adam stood c. 2 It hath robbed them of their son-ship and of sons have made them slaves 3 It hath robbed them of their friendship Well did one of the fathers call Pride and Vain-glory the sweet spoiler of spiritual excellencies and a pleasant theif and made them enemies 4 It hath robbed them of their communion and fellowship with Father Son and Spirit and made them Strangers and Aliens 5 It hath robbed them of their glory and made them vile and miserable It hath robbed many a nation of the Gospel and many a parish of many a happy guide and many a Christian of the favour of God the joyes of the spirit and the Peace of Conscience Oh the health the wealth the honor the friends the relations that Sin hath robbed thousands of Nay It hath robbed many of their gifts their arts their parts their memory their judgement yea their very reason as you may see in Pharoah Nebuchadnezzar Belshazzar Achitophel Haman Herod and those Babylonish Princes that accused Daniel And so in Menipus of Phenicia who having lost his goods strangled himself And so Dinarcus Phidon at a certain losse cut his own throat to save the charge of a cord And so Augustus Caesar in whose time Christ was born was so troubled and astonished at the relation of an overthrow from Varrus Suetonius that for certain months together he let the hair of his beard and head grow still and wore it long yea and other whiles would run his head against the doors crying out Quintilius Varrus deliver up my Legions again by all which it is most apparent that Sin is the greatest thief in all the World Oh then who would not break league and covenant with it and be still in pressing of God to do justice upon it c. Fifthly Nah. 1.1 Hab. 1.1 Mal. 11 If you would break with Sin and arm and fence your selves against Sin betimes then you must look upon sinne under the notion of a burden betimes and indeed sin of all burdens is the heaviest burden in all the world Innumerable evils have compassed me about Psal 40.12 mine iniquities have taken hold upon mee so that I am not able to look up they are more than the hairs of my head therefore my heart faileth me and again Mine iniquities are gone over my head saith the same person as an heavy burden Psal 38.4 they are too heavy for mee to bear Sin is a weight that easily besets poor souls Heb. 12.1 it is a burden that so troubles them and puzzles them that so curbs them and girds them Rom. 7.13 ult that so presses and oppresses
them as that it wrings many bitter tears from their eyes and many sad and grievous sighs and groans from their hearts Again As Sin is a burden to Christians so it is a burden to heaven Judâ— 6 it made heaven weary to bear the Angels that fell no sooner had they sinned but heaven groans to be eased of them and it never left groaning till justice had turned them a groaning to hell Again Numb 16.26.35 as Sin is a burden to Heaven so it is a burden to the earth witness her swallowing up Korah Dathan and Abiram their Wives children Goods servants c. Ah! Sinners your sins makes the very earth to groan they make the earth weary of bearing you Oh! How doth the earth groan and long to swallow up those earthly wretches whose hopes whose hearts are buried in the earth these shall have little of heaven but enough of earth when they come to dye Cornelius Alapide tells a story that he heard of a famous Preacher Rom. 8.19 20 21 22 23 who shewing the bondage of the Creature brings in the Creature complaining thus Oh! that wee could serve such as are Godly Oh! that our substance and our flesh might bee incorporated into godly people that so wee might rise into glory with them Oh! that our flesh might not bee incorporated into the flesh of sinners for if it bee we shall go to hell and would any creatures go to hell Oh! we are weary of bearing sinners wee are weary of serving of sinners thus the creatures groan thus the creatures complain the Sinners sins forcing them to it c. Again Sin is a burden to God Behold I am pressed under you Amos. 2.13 as a cart is pressed that is full of shcaves by this plain pithy countrey comparison God shews how sadly hee is pressed and oppressed how sorely hee is wearied and tired with those peoples Sins Divine patience is even worn out Justice hath lift up her hand and will bear with them no longer God seems to groan under the pressure of their Sinnes as a Cart seems to do under a heavy load of this God complains by the Prophet Isaiah Isa 43.24 Thou hast made me to serve with thy sins thou hast wearied mee with thine iniquities I am as weary of your Sins as a Travelling woman is weary of her pains saith God Sin was such a burden to God that he sweeps it off with a sweeping Floud Gen. 7. c. Again Luk. 22.44 A strange watering of a garden Bern. 1 Pet. 2.24 Sin is a burden to Christ it made him sweat as never man sweat it made him sweat great drops of clotted or congealed bloud Sin put Christs whole body into a bloudy sweat it made him groan pittiously when he bare our Sins in his body on the Tree Sin made his soul heavy even to the death and had he not been one that was mighty Isa 6.6 yea that was all-mighty he had fainted and failed under his burthen And thus you see what a burthen Sin is to man to the Creatures to heaven to earth to God to Christ and therefore as you would break with Sin betimes look alwayes upon it as a burden yea as the greatest and heaviest burden in all the world c. Sixthly and Lastly If you would break Covenant with Sin and arm and fence your selves against it betimes then you must look upon it betimes under the notion of a Tyrant Tit. 3.3 and indeed Sin is the worst and greatest Tyrant in the world Other Tyrants can but Tyranize over our bodies but Sin is a Tyrant that tyranizes over both body and soul as you may see in the sixth and seventh of the Romans Sin is a Tyrant that hath a kinde of jurisdiction in most mens hearts it sets up the Law of Pride the Law of Passion the Law of Oppression the Law of Formality the Law of Hypocrisy the Law of Carnality the Law of Self-love the Law of Carnal-Reason the Law of unbeleef and strictly Commands Subjection to them and proclaims fire and sword to all that stand out this Saints and sinners good men and bad do sufficiently experience Sin is a Tyrant of many thousand years standing Thales one of the seven Sages used to say that few Tyrants lived to be old but it is far otherwise with this Tyrant Sin Prov. 4.16 and though it hath had many a wound and many a foil and received much opposition yet still it playes the Tyrant all the World over O! the hearts that this Tyrant makes to ake the souls that this Tyrant makes to bleed Pharoahs Tyranny was nothing to Sins Tyranny this Tyrant will not so much as suffer his slaves to sleep They sleep not except they have done mischief their sleep is taken away unless they cause some to fall The wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot rest whose waters cast up mire and dirt Isa 57.20 21. There is no peace to the wicked saith my God Other Tyrants have been brought down and brought under by a humane power but this cannot but by a divine the power of man hath brought down many of the Tyrants of this World but it is onely the power of Christ that can bring down this Tyrant that can cast down his strong holds 2 Cor. 10.3 4 5 6 c. therefore ingage Christ in the conflict draw him into the battle and in the end the conquest will be yours Vitellius who had been Emperor of all the World yet was driven thorow the streets of Rome stark naked and thrown into the River Tyber c. Andronicus the Emperor for his cruelty towards his People was by them at last shamefully deposed and after many contumelies hanged up by his heels Ptolomy was put on a Cross Bajazet in an iron Cage Phoras broken on the Wheel Lycam cast to the Dogs as well as Jezabel Attales thrust into a Forge King Gath into a Beer-barrel c. But none of these that have tameed these Tyrants that have brought down these mighty Nimrods have been able to tame to bring under the Tyrants the sins the lusts that hath been in their own bosomes many a man hath had a hand in bringing down of worldly Tyrants who notwithstanding have dyed for ever by the hand of a Tyrant within c. And thus much for the directions that young men must follow if they would bee good betimes if they would seek and serve the Lord in the spring and morning of their dayes The Young mans objections Answered I shall now give some brief Answers to the Young mans Objections and the Old mans scruples and so close up this discourse Ob. But some young men may object and say you would have us to bee good betimes and to seek and serve the Lord in the Prime-rose of our dayes but it may be time enough hereafter to follow this Counsel wee are young and it may bee time enough for us to minde these
leave Where Christ beginnes to love he always loves Jer. 31.3 I have loved thee with an everlasting love Now who would not venture the loss of all friends in the world to gain such a friend as this is Ah! Young men and women let mee say to you what Seneca said to his friend Polibius Fas tibi non est de fortuna conqueri salvo Caesare never complain of thy hard fortune as long as Caesar is thy friend so say I never complain of your loss of Friends so long as by loosing of them you gain Christ to be your friend Secondly Thou were 't better be without their friendship and favour than to enjoy it upon any sinful and unworthy accounts thou were 't better run the hazard of loosing thy friends and their favour by seeking and serving the Lord in the Primerose of thy dayes then to run the hazard of losing God Christ heaven Mat. 16.26 Mark 8.36 eternity and thy soul for ever by neglecting the things of thy peace It was a gallant return which the noble Rutilius made his friend requesting of him an unlawfull favour in such language as this I had as good bee without such a friend as with him who will not let mee speed in what I ask to whom hee replyed I can want such a friend as you if for your sake I must do that which is not honest The application is easy Well Young man remember this the torments of a thousand hells were there so many comes far short of this one vice to bee turned out of Gods presence with a Non novi vos I know you not Mat. 7.23 Ah! Young man Young man thou wer 't better ten thousand thousand times to bee cast out of the thoughts and hearts of thy carnal friends and relations than to bee cast out of Gods presence with cursed Cain for ever Gen. 4 than to be excommunicated out of the general Assembly of the Saints Heb. 12.23 and Congregation of the first-born which are writen in heaven and therefore away with this objection but Thirdly The favour and friendship of such carnal persons is very fickle and inconstant it is very fading and withering Now they stroak and anon they strike now they lift up and anon they cast down now they smile and anon they frown now they kiss and anon they kill now they cry Hosanna Hosana anon they cry Crucify him crucify him Haman is one day feasted with the King and the next day made a feast for Crows Esth 7. The Princes of Babylon were highly in King Darius his favour one day Dan. 6 and cast into the Lyons den the next The Scribes and Pharisees that cryed up Judas one day did in effect bid him go and hang himself the next day Mat. 27.3 4.5 Such mens favour and friendship Valerian Valens Belisareus Bajâ—zet Pythias Dionysius Pompey William the Conqueror and many other have found it so are as Venice Glasses quickly broken and therefore not much to bee prized or minded Histories abounds with instances of this nature but I must hasten onely remember this that every dayes experience tells us that wicked men can soon turn Tables and cross their books their favour and friendship is usually like to a morning cloud or like to Jonahs Gourd one hour flourishing and the next hour withering and why then shouldest thou set thy heart upon that which is more changeable than the moon Glaucus who changed his Armour of Gold with Diomedes for his Armour of Brass stands upon record for a fool c. But Fourthly and Lastly who but a mad man would adventure the loss of the Kings favour to gain the favour of his Page who but a stark Bedlam would run the hazard of loosing the Judges favour upon the Bench to purchase the good will of the Prisoner at the Barre Socrates preferred the Kings countenance before his Coyn and so must you prefer the favour of God Psal 4.6 7 the countenance of Christ and the things of eternity above all the favour and friendship of all the men in the World when your nearest friends and dearest relations stands in competition Psal 45.10 Mat. 10.37 Luk. 14.26 27 with Christ or the things above you must shake them off you must turn your backs upon them and welcome Christ and the things of your Peace hee that forsakes all relations for Christ shall certainly finde all relations in Christ hee will bee father friend husband Child hee will bee every thing to thee who takest him for thy great all Object 3. I but I shall meet with many reproaches from one and other if I should labour to bee good betimes if I should seek and serve the Lord in the spring and morning of my youth now to this I answer First What are reproaches to the great things that others have suffered for Christ his Gospel Hebâ—ews ch 10. â—â— read the ten persecutions and the maintaining of a good conscience what is a prick of a pin to a stab at the heart what is a chiding to a hanging a whipping to a burning no more are all the reproaches thou canst meet with to the great things that others have suffered for Christs sake Ah! Young men you should be like the Scythian that went naked in the Snow and when Alexander wondred how hee could endure it Answered I am not ashamed for I am all forehead So should you in the cause and way of Christ you should not bee ashamed you should be all forehead you should bee stout and bold Colonus the dutch Martyr under all his reproaches called to the judge that had sentenced him to death and desired him to lay his hand upon his heart and then asked him whose heart did most beat his or the Judges All the reproaches in the world should not so much as make a Christians heart beat they should not in the least trouble him nor disturb him but Secondly I Answer That all the reproaches thou meetest with in the way of Christ and for the sake of Christ they do but adde Pearls to thy Crown they are all additions to thy happiness and blessedness 1 Pet. 4.14 If yee be reproached for the name of Christ happy are yee for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you on their part hee is evil spoken of but on your part hee is glorified the more you are reproached for Christs sake on earth Mat. 5.11 12 the greater shall bee your reward in heaven they that are most loaded with reproaches here shall bee most laden with glory hereafter Christ hath written their names in golden letters in his book of life that are written in black letters of reproach for his sake on earth T was a good saying of one Chrysostom a Reproacher saith hee is beneath a man but the reproached that bear it well are equal to Angells of all Crowns the reproached mans Crown will weigh heaviest in heaven But Thirdly
matter of joy and rejoycing to him shall hee look upon reproaches as a Crown of honor and will you look upon reproaches as a Crown of thorns Oh Look upon reproach as a royal-Diadem Sufferings are the ensigns of heavenly Nobility saith Calvin look upon it as Christs livery and count it your highest ambition in this World to wear this Livery for his sake who once wore a Crown of Thorns for your sakes When Babylas was to dye hee required this favour to have his chains buried with him as the ensigns of his honour But Seventhly I Answer It was an Observation of Mr. John Lindsay that the very smoak of Mr. Hamilton converted as many as it blew upon That by a wise and gracious behaviour under the reproaches thou meetest with for Christs sake thou maiest be instrumentall to win others to Christ It was a notable saying of Luther Ecclesia totum mundum convertit sanguine et oratione the Church converted the whole world by bloud and prayer Divers have been won to Christ by beholding the gracious carriages of Christians under their sufferings and reproaches for Christ Wee read of Cicilia a poor Virgin who by her gracious behaviour under all her sufferings and reproaches for Christ was the means of converting four hundred to Christ Adrianus beholding the gracious cheerful carriages of the Martyrs under all their sufferings and reproaches was converted to Christ and afterwards suffered Martyrdom for Christ Justin Martyr was also converted by observing the holy and cheerful behaviour of the Saints under all their sufferings and reproaches for Christ See also the Hist of the Councill of Trent p. 418.2 Edit During the cruel persecutions of the Heathen Emperours the Christian faith was spread thorow all places of the Empire because the oftner they were mown down saith Tertullian the more they grew And Austin observed that though there were many thousands put to death for professing Christ yet they were never the fewer for being slain Ah! Young men you may by a wise and gracious bearing of reproaches for Christ be instrumental to win others to Christ and therefore never plead there is a Lyon in the way but I must hasten and therefore in the eighth and Last place Consider How bravely several of the very Heathen have bore Reproaches and let that provoke you in the face of all Reproaches to seek and serve the Lord in the morning of your youth c. When Demosthenes was Reproached by one I will not saith hee strive with thee in this kind of fight in which he that is overcome is the better man When one came and Reproached Xenophon sayes hee you have learned how to reproach and I have learned how to bear Reproach And Aristippus the Philosopher said you are fit to cast Reproaches and I am fit to bear Reproaches Demochares an Athenian Oratour was sent to King Philip as Embassadour Philip asked him how hee might pleasure the Athenians for-sooth said he if you will hang your self the Prince patiently sent him home again and bid him ask whether were more Noble the patient hearer or venter of such unseemly language When one wondered at the patience of Socrates towards one who reviled and reproached him if we should meet one saith hee whose body were more unsound then ours should we be angry with him and not rather pitty him why then should we not do the like to him whose soul is more diseased than ours Augustus Caesar in whose time Christ was born bid Catullus the railing Poet to Supper to shew that he had forgiven him It is a notable example that wee finde of one Pericles Plutarch in vita peric who as he was sitting with others in a great meeting a foul mouthed fellow bitterly Reproached him and railed all the day long upon him and at night when it was dark and the meeting up the fellow followed him and railed at him even to his door and he took no notice of him but when he came at home Themistocles professed that if two wayes were shewed him one to hell and the other to the bar he would chuse that which went to hell and forsake the other this is all he said friend it is dark I pray let my man light you home Josephus reports of that Herod that is made mention of in that Act. 12.23 that when one Simon a Lawyer had grievously Reproached and scandalized him before the people he sent for him and caused him to sit down next to him and in a kinâ—e manner hee spake thus to him Tell mee I pray thee what thing thou seest fault worthy or contrary to the Law in mee Simon not having any thing to answer besought him to pardon him which the King did and was friends with him and dismissed him bestowing gifts on him Ah young men young men shall the very Heathen make nothing of reproaches shall they bear up so prudently and bravely under the greatest loads of reproaches and will not you will not you who in your light in your mercies and in all Gospel engagements are so highly advanced above them Oh that none of them may bee called to the Bar in the great day to witnesse against any of you into whose hands this Treatise shall fall and so much by way of answer to the third Objection But Fourthly The young man objects and saies you presse us to bee good betimes and to seek and serve the Lord in the spring and morning of our daies but wee observe that most men minde not these things but rather give liberty to themselves to walk in waies that are most pleasing to the flesh and why then should wee bee singular and nice wee were better do as the most do c. Now to this I answer 1 That though bad examples are dangerous to all yet usually they prove most dangerous and pernicious to young persons who are more easily drawn to follow examples than precepts especially those examples that tends most to undo them Praecepta docent exempla movent Precepts may instruct but examples do perswade 2 King 15.9 It is said of Zacharia the King of Israel that hee did evil in the sight of the Lord as his Fathers had done hee departed not from the sins of Jeroboam hee would bee as his Father was and do as his Father did whatever came on it So the Samaritans of whom it is said 2 King 17.41 These Nations feared the Lord that is they made some kinde of profession of the true Religion as the ten tribes had done and served their graven Images too both their Children and their Childrens Children did thus as did their Fathers so do they unto this day By evil examples they were both drawn to Idolatry and rooted and confirmed in it so the main reason why the Kingdome and Church of Judah were so setled in their Idolatry that there was no hope of reclaiming them was this that their Children remembred their Altars and their groves by the
my heart to adde drunkenness to thirst The Lord will not spare him but then the Anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoak against that man and all the Curses that are written in this book shall lye upon him and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven In these words you may observe that God is absolute in threatning to shew that he will bee resolute in punishing Psal 11.5 A lover of Iniquity is a liver in Iniquity upon choice 6. The wicked and him that loveth iniquity doth his soul hate Upon the wicked he shall rain snares fire and brimstone and an horrible tempest this shall be the portion of their cup. Ah! That all poor sinners would make these two Scriptures their companions their constant bed-fellows till they are got above that sad temptation of turning the mercy of God into an incouragement to sin Whilst Milo Crotoniates was tearing a sunder the stock of an Oake his strength failing him the clift suddenly closing was held so fast by the hands that he became a prey to the beasts of the field All the abusers of mercy will certainly and suddenly become a prey to the justice of God that will rent and tear them in peices as the Psalmist speaks Psal 50.22 Wo wo to that soul that fights against God with his own mercies that will bee bad because hee is good that will be sinful because he is merciful that will turn all the kindnesses of God that should bee as so many silver cords to tye him to love and obedience into arrows and so shoot them back into the heart of God Abused mercy will at last turn into a Lyon a fierce Lyon and then wo to the abusers and despisers of it But Thirdly In Answer to that part of the Objection concerning the Thief on the Cross I offer these things briefly to your thoughts First Exemplum latronis servati est admirandum non imitandum That as one was saved to teach Sinners not to despair so another was damned to teach them not to presume A pardon is sometimes given to one upon the Gallows but who so trusts to that the rope may be his hire it is not good saith one to put it upon the Psalm of miserere and the neck verse for sometimes hee proves no Clerk and so hangs for it Secondly It is an example without a promise here is an example of late repentance but where is there a promise of late repentance Oh! Let not his late and sudden conversion be to thee a temptation till thou hast found a promise for late and sudden conversion it is not examples but promises that are foundations for faith to rest on he that walks by an example of mercy without a precept to guide him and a promise to support him walks but by a dark Lanthorn that will deceive him well young man remember this examples of mercy increase wrath when the heart is not bettered by them But Thirdly This was a rare miracle of mercy with the glory wherof Christ did honour the ignominy of his Cross and therfore wee may as well look for another crucifying of Christ as look for a sinners conversion when he hath scarce time enough to reckon up all those particular duties which make up the integrity of its constitution But Fourthly I Answer This Theif knew not Christ before he had not refused neglected nor slighted Christ before the Sermon on the Cross was the first Sermon that ever he heard Christ preach and Christs prayer on the Cross was the first prayer that ever he heard Christ make he knew not Christ till hee met him on the Cross which proved to him a happy meeting his case was as if a Turk or Heathen should now be converted to the faith and therefore thou hast little reason O young man to plead this example to keep Christ and thy soul asunder who art every day under the call the intreaties and wooings of Christ But Fifthly and Lastly I Answer The circumstances of time and place are rightly to be considered Now when Christ was triumphing on the Cross over sin satan and the world when he had made the devils a publik spectacle of scorn and derision when hee was taking his leave of the world and entering into his glory Now hee puts a pardon into the Theifs hand and crouds other favours and kindnesses upon him As in the Roman Triumphs the Victor being ascended up to the Capitol in a Chariot of state used to cast certain peeces of coyn among the people for them to pick up which hee used not to do at other times So our Lord Jesus Christ in the day of his Triumph and solemn inauguration into his heavenly kingdome scatters some heavenly jewels that this Theif might pick up which he doth not nor will not do every day Or as in these days it is usual with Princes to save some notorious malefactors at their coronation when they enter upon their kingdomes in Triumph which they do not use to do afterwards So did Jesus Christ carry it toward this Thief but this is not his ordinary way of saving and bringing souls to glory and therefore do not O young man let not the Thiefs late conversion prove a temptation or an occasion of thy delaying thy repentance and trifling away the primerose of thy dayes in vanity and folly And thus much may suffice to have spoken by way of Answer to the Young mans Objections The old mans Doubts Resolved I shall now speak a few words to Old men and so close up Now Is it so commendable so desirable and so necessary for young men to be good betimes to seek and serve the Lord in the spring and morning of their Youth as hath been sufficiently demonstrated in this Treatise Oh then that I could so wooe aged persons as to win them who yet have put off this great work to seek and serve the Lord before their glass be out their Sun set and their souls lost for ever Oh that that counsil of the Prophet might take hold upon your hearts Jer. 13.16 Give glory to the Lord your God before hee cause darknesse and before your feet stumble thorow age upon the dark mountains and while yee look for light he turn it into the shadow of death and make it gross darkness I but aged Sinners may reply is there any hope any help for us is there any probability is there any possibility that ever such as we are should return and finde mercy and favour with the Lord wee who have lived so long without him we that have sinned so much against him we that to this day are strangers to him yea in arms against him Is there any hope that we white-headed sinners who have withstood so many thousand offers of grace and so many thousand motions of the spirit and so many thousand checks of conscience and so many thousand tenders of Christ and heaven that ever we should obtain mercy that