thing that was in his Eye in his desire of prolongation of life For indeed it is the chief good of Man whom God made for himself and who therefore is to have this end continually in his aim and to be often thinking What shall I do to glorifie God For of him and through him and to him are all things to him be glory for ever Amen And all is lost that ends not in him that is Omega to whom you may well afford this honour when you consider that he is Alpha. He that is the first must be the last Take heed then of a narrow selfish Spirit which never looks so far as to this end and that makes many so unactive for God and his Glory You must therefore believe more and love more and then you will act to this end more c. Secondly Your love to the glory of God must extend to the Generations to come You must not therefore limit it to the present Generation and never be concerned that God may be glorified in future Ages even to the Worlds end But your desires herein must reach to the very end of the World For note the words of the Apostles Paul To God be glory in the Church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages world without end Amen His love to God's glory ran through all Ages even to Eternity And so should your love do or else you do not sincerely love it neither indeed can you love that his Glory be upheld during your own time and not love the continuance of it to the Worlds end And such was the love of the Saints in the Scriptures to the praise and glory of God say they We will shew forth thy praise to all generations And therefore 1. They desired the continuance thereof to the Worlds end 2. They would also endeavour it With my mouth saith the Psalmist will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations And this hath been their care still That the people which shall be created may praise the Lord. Thus you must love God's Glory both Intensively and Extensively As you must love the Glory of God that it may be extended to future Ages so likewise you must love his Kingdom or else you will never attend this great work unto which you have been exhorted God's Kingdom Power and Glory must go together in your prayers And this was much upon Hezekiah's heart when he said The Father to the Children shall make known thy Truth For he doth not say I will make known thy Truth to my Children though he purposed so to do but the Father that is every Father that feareth God not only in my time but in the generations to come Thus must your love be extended to the Kingdom of God and Thy Kingdom come must be always in your desires and endeavours Come how long even to the end of the world and never cease coming till Christ himself come Now if this be upon your heart and if you love that Christ should reign in the world you will do your utmost to promote it in your capacity in attending to the several Particulars propounded As you love God's Glory and Kingdom so must you love his Gospel For it is the Word of the Kingdom That is The Word whereby God's Kingdom is erected enlarged governed perfected It is that in which and by which our Lord Jesus doth reign in the world viz. as to his Spiritual Kingdom therein of which I now speak especially And you see in my Text Hezekiah's love to the Truth and to the making of it known from Generation to Generation whereas the Gospel is the Truth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Truth with an excellency called therefore The Word of Truth and The Word of the Truth of the Gospel The Truth made known not by the Light of Nature but by Revelation a mysterious Truth and therefore a great Truth that we use to say As true as the Gospel Now if you love this Truth as you have cause enough so to do you will do any thing that may tend to the publication and propagation of it by your praiers pains purses Counsels c. Fourthly As you must love God's Glory Kingdom and Gospel so you must love Souls The Father to the Children shall make known thy Truth Therefore the Father must love the Souls of posterity and have a zeal for the salvation of them that shall succeed And this will quicken your endeavours to the service of your Age when you shall look upon the Souls of successours as of equal value with your own seeing the ransom given for all Souls is the same And it is a blessed thing to be a lover of souls it makes a man like unto Jesus Christ whose love to Souls shines in his own blood wherein the kindness and love God our Saviour towards Man appeareth His kindness and Philanthropy i. e. love towards Man For God and our Saviour are great lovers of Men so should we be And Christ's delights were with the sons of Men from eternity We should not therefore terminate our love in Men's bodies we should love the Jewel far above the Cabinet and be frequently looking upon Mens Souls 1. In comparison with our own and 2. In the Blood of the Son of God and 3. In relation to Eternity especially the Souls of such as are near to us And the enlargement of our affections this way will amplifie our endeavours In Heaven we shall love Souls that are saved but here we must love Souls that they may be saved A work which determineth in Glory Now all this requireth a publick Spirit and an heart carried far beyond our selves For a narrow Spirit acteth within a narrow compass and is limited to private concernments And that is the reason why there is so little Generation-service performed All Men seek their own and not the things which are Jesus Christs Whereas our care should extend far beyond our own salvation and love to God's Glory future Ages Christ's Kingdom Gospel and precious Souls should all have a large room in our hearts and affections Thus you have had a great deal of work set before you which will dye together with you And to quicken you to it Consider That you know not how soon you may leave this world As Isaac said to Esau I am old and know not the day of my death and yet he lived 43 years after that Few men in Scripture knew the day of their death so as Hezekiah here did to whose life 15 years were added and he resolveth to spend them for God's Glory and the good of Posterity So do you as for the remainder of your days which may not be a quarter so many as his Only have a care to perform better than he did For when he was recovered he rendred not again according to the benefit done unto him Why what was the matter His heart was lifted up
their lives in not answering the end of them They are meer Earth-cumberers and such who have lived only to themselves Thirdly But which is worse some have lived to wicked purposes having spent their days in sin and been offensive both to God and Men who as last will come to dye like Jehoram without being desired And such another was Hezekiah's Father even that King Ahaz who when he died was buried like Jehoram and not brought into the Sepulchres of the Kings of Israel And such another was that persecutor Jehoiakim for whom they lamented not saying Ah Lord or ah his glory Oh! these are to be exploded out of the Land of the living For Men shall clap their hands at them and hiss them out of the world he never did good work while he lived and he shall have never a good word when he dieth So much for Reprehension This Point instructs us in matter of Humiliation What hath been said should humble even the very best of God's people in that they have done no more service for Jesus Christ in their Generation You have possibly done something for him but you might have done more You might have praised him more declared the Truth more to your Children you might have projected and designed more for the glory of God and the good of Posterity you might have devised liberal things lived more exemplarily been more zealous of good works more edifying in your conversation you might have adventured more for Christ and whereas you have gained two Talents for him you might have gained five Truly for my part I might have done more and it humbleth me that I have done so little I remember it is said of Doctor Vsher in the Narrative of his Life and Death that when he was a dying he was humbled for his omissions And indeed they are great sins and the judgment of Christ at his appearing will pass much upon good works on the one side and omissions of them on the other And therefore we had need to sit in judgment upon our selves for our omissions before we dye For it is not enough to do good sometimes but we should be rich in good works and prepared unto every good work always abounding in the work of the Lord giving a portion to seven and also to eight going about as Christ did doing good And he that is thus exercised is fit to live and fit to dye But let us be humbled this day for our neglects For have not our hearts sometimes checked us upon reviews of the loss of our opportunities to do such or such a good work Saith a gracious and tender heart when he is come from such a person or such a place or such a company or occasion Alas what have I omitted I might have put in such a word for Jesus Christ I might have reproved such a sin or given such or such counsel or stopt such a vain discourse or given such an example or moved for such a good work c. Alas who knows the errors of his life this way and therefore this consideration calls for deep Humiliation and self-judging at this time 3. Exhorted We are here Exhorted and the Point affords Exhortation several ways To do all the good you are able during your abode here below seeing death will put an end to all your opportunities If God enable you to speak a good word to his honour and to the edification of others when you lye a dying you are never like to do so much good again to Eternity When you take your leave of the world you take your leave of doing good And therefore you had need bestir your selves while your Bodies and Souls abide here together Whatsoever therefore thy hand findeth to do do it with thy might for there is no work nor device nor knowledge nor wisdom in the Grave whither thou goest And suppose you have done well hitherto like a good and faithful servant be not yet weary of well doing but up and be doing still and in due time you shall reap if you faint not What a deal of good had Hezekiah done before he fell into this sickness He destroyed the Monuments of Idolatry set up a notable Reformation brought back the Tribes of Israel to the Lord God of their Fathers And yet you see here he is willing to live longer to do more So Peter had done much good in his time you know he converted about three thousand Souls at the beginning of his Ministry he had a most happy hansel Acts 2d And yet he takes another opportunity and sped well And after this he passeth through all quarters and came at last to Lydda Saron and Joppa you know what good he did in the house of Cornelius c. At length he becomes old then he writes to the Saints For saith he I think it meet as long as I am in this Tabernacle to stir you up by putting you in remembrance knowing that shortly I must put off this my Tabernacle even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me Moreover I will endeavour that you may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance First saith he I am aware of death approaching Secondly I will therefore do all the good I am able both with my Tongue and Pen. Thirdly I will endeavour that the good I do may live when I am dead that you may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance Even thus we should endeavour to live in this world after our departure Survive your Funerals and out-live your deaths For it is not enough that we shall then live in Heaven but we should endeavour to be doing of that good while we live that may make us live on Earth even when we are dead And in this way the memory of the Just shall be blessed and the Righteous had in everlasting remembrance It is the Saints happiness to have Glory and Honour and Immortality in Heaven but it is much to the glory and honour of God for the Saints to be immortalized on Earth and to live in their good Examples good Counsels good Names and good Works when their Souls are shining in Heaven Particularly 1. Dilate and diffuse the praises of God and make his Name glorious to the utmost of your power And let this be often sounding in your ears The living the living he shall praise thee Speak much and live much to his praise Let the high praises of God be in your mouthes Ainsworth and the Dutch Interpreters render it Let the exaltations of God be in your throat and it suits with the Original as also with the Translation of the 70. The Exaltations i. e. the lifting up of God in his Name Attributes Precept Promises Threatnings Providences c. let them be in your throats i. e. exalt your voices in exalting
She spake indeed of more then an ordinary devoting him to the Lord viz. in the way of Nazariteship But yet she bound however to have given him back to the Lord in and by an ordinary way of dedication common to her self with all Parents who are bound to this duty by the Law of Nature and by many commands in the Word of God which I have already mentioned Train up therefore a Child or Catechize him in the way he should go So did David deal with Solomon as you have heard and so Lois with Eunice and Eunice with Timothy and so the godly Fathers in their generations It was as you have heard a Testimony and a Law in Israel And when you brought your Children to Baptism you did solemly engage unto this duty For the Covenant which gave your Children right to that Ordinance and which sealed it to them strongly obliged you to give them up to God in the use of all such means as he hath appointed And therefore you are a Covenant-breaker in the neglect of this duty which is the ruine both of many Children and Families as of Elie's in particular and yet Eli did reprove his sons but did not do his utmost And this is the reason why many Children of godly Parents prove lewd and vicious and their Families at last lose all power of godliness if they grow not loose and prophane For it is with Children as with the Flowers in your Gardens which without care and culture will soon degenerate Remember therefore your Covenant and attend the terms thereof which concern you in relation to your posterity And say I am not only naturally but also federally bound to use all means to train up my Children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and to serve the purpose of God as to their Eternal Salvation For do you think it enough that you breed them up to live in this world And is it enough that you provide Meat and Drink and Apparel Portions and Trades aud ways of livelihood for them Or that you give them civil Education and teach them how to carry themselves as men will you love their bodies and neglect their souls Do you know the price of your own souls and not of theirs too Or are not theirs as precious as yours Or is it all one to you where you spend your Eternity and whether you go to Heaven or Hell In the mean-while where is your Religion where your love of God and Godliness Where your Conscience as to your Covenant Or what care have you that Godliness may flourish in the next generation who take not the course that it may thrive in your own Family Take heed lest you prove to be an Hypocrite at last Oh remember the care of good Manoah when the Angel told him he should have a son But saith he How shall we order the Child and what shall we do do unto him And seeing you are a Covenanter with God and have given up your Children to him who hath accepted of them and sealed the Covenant to them you should now consider that they are his Children his Sons and Daughters as well as yours as he expresly calleth them And he puts them out to you to Board and Breeding and you must give an acount to him how you have bred them up for him And what will ye rob God of his Children and bestow them upon the world or sacrifice them to devoured and cause them to pass through the fire as God challengeth those Parents in the aforesaid place of Ezekiel I mean to be devoured of that roaring Lion and not to pass through the fire but to dwell with devouring fire and with everlasting burnings Doth not Nature teach Men to propagate their kind And doth not Grace teach them to propagate the Truth and true Religion without the first Mankind would perish without the second Religion would soon be extinguished or have you more care to uphold the World than to propagate the Gospel of Christ's Kingdom if so you are no better than a Man or Woman of this generation I perceive there are many Bills presented for prayers in behalf of ungodly Children It is well if their Parents have not been wanting in their duty towards them If they have not let them not despond as to the success of their endeavours I have lived to see the blessed fruits of pious Education and that though Children so Educated have gone astray for a while yet they have been graciously reduced at the last made their Parents joyful And I think it is not usual that a Father should be a true fearer of the Lord and one that conscionably dischargeth his duty towards his Children and yet all of them should prove ungodly and none of them be converted sooner or later but perish in the uncircumcision of their hearts Perhaps Parents may not always live to see it but it is well enough if their Children come to Heaven after them I have insisted the more upon this Point it being the great duty of my Text and of such concernment as to generation-service The Exhortation reacheth Ecclesiastick Fathers such as are the Ministers of the Gospel For such Fathers also to their Children shall make known the Truth And that is the reason why we make known those Truths to you viz. that we may discharge our duties to our Children that you may discharge the like to yours And every week and every Sabbath and every Sermon we preach can testifie that we are careful to make known the Truth unto you For we have kept back nothing that was profitable for you nor have shunned to declare unto you all the Counsel of God For as John saith to Gaius We have no greater joy than to hear that our Children walk in truth even in the Truth that we make known unto them And let all that fear the Lord bless his Name that in such a day as this is there are yet such Spiritual Fathers who know the Truth and labour to make it known to their Spiritual Children For the time may come that you may want them when the Truth which is now made known to you by us may be impugned by them that shall come after us There are also Scholastick Fathers who have the care of training up Children in Learning and these have their place as well as the former in the fifth Commandment And a great advantage is put into their hands to make known the Truth unto their Children as well as to inform their understandings in a way of Humane Learning And I know no Calling nor Relation excepting that of the Ministry that hath the like opportunity of making known the Truth unto posterity There are likewise Fathers Political For there is the Father in the Family the Father in the Church the Father in the School and the Father in the Common-wealth or Countrey And some think that Naaman's servants called him Father
hand the glory of the Saints receives encrease as their labours and pains are fruitful as Divines say of Paul's glory One Heaven is too much for the best Saint that ever lived were not the reward of Grace and yet your Heaven shall multiply according to the fruit of your good doings which you left behind you And this will be instead of doing good in Heaven when the Saints leave that behind them which keeps fructifying after they have left this world Why what is that which they may thus leave behind them Their good Works and Words and Examples and holy Lives their Instructions Exhortations Counsels Encouragements their remarkable Actions and Sufferings for Christ By all which they act and speak even after death And there is no other way that I know whereby to do good when you are in Heaven And in this way shall the glorified Saints know in Heaven whether the good works which they left behind them do fructifie for they shall find and feel it in their enlarged Crowns further Augmentations and additional Glories And then they shall break out into new Songs of praise to God and the Lamb for helping them to sow their Seed on Earth which still fructifieth after they are gone to Heaven And in this way a Father may convert his Child or Children after his death as as I doubt not but many have done And then he heareth of it in Heaven two wayes 1. By his additional Glory 2. By the joyful Acclamations of the Angels for the conversion of a sinner Wherefore let us endeavour so to live here a little while that our good Works may live when we are dead and act when we are at rest and speak when we are gone down into silence and bring forth fruit unto holiness when we are in endless happiness and bring Souls to Heaven after us to tell us that our good Works and Words and Examples Instructions Exhortations Counsels sufferings Graces are yet all alive and well and like to yield a further Crop and Harvest of Joy and Honour to them that sowed them before their death Oh it is a blessed thing and the Wisdom of Saints to leave a stock of good Works behind them whereby to have a Trade going here on Earth which will afford them fresh Incomes of Glory whil'st they are already shining as the Sun in the the Kingdom of their Father And thus much for the first Use of Exhortation to do all the good we are able during our dwelling here on Earth 2d Branch of Exhortation Let the second Exhortation be to call upon you to value your Opportunities to make the best improvements of time whil'st you are in the Land of the living so as the World is often called For Hezekiah began now to consider the price of time who but lately was at the Gates of the Grave and deprived as he thought of the residue of his years that is which he might have lived according to the ordinary course of Nature Saith he Mine age is departed and removed from me as a Shepherds Tent That is which the Shepherd removeth from Plain to Plain according to his occasions as the matter shall require Now I am living here by and by my Body must lodge in the Tent of the cold Grave and my Soul return to God that gave it I have cut off like a Weaver my life he that is God will cut me off from the Thrum Ver. 12. I have cut off my life by my Sins and God hath cut it off by his righteous hand upon me Saith he I reckoned till morning Ver. 13. I shall be dead by the morning And now Hezekiah begins to prize time and cries The living the living he shall praise thee Thus when once the swift Shuttle of your life is come to a Thrum then you will see the value of Opportunity and cry The living the living c. and reckon till the morning and say There is but one day more between my life and Eternity And it may not be long ere that Morning or Evening cometh For little did Hezekiah a few dayes before think that he had been so near unto death being now but thirty nine years old and God having wrought so wonderfully for him in his late preservation from Senacharib For saith he Behold for peace I had great bitterness God lately destroyed the Host of the King of Assyria and gave me peace and I said I shall now now dye in my Nest and multiply my dayes as the Sand but I little thought of such a sickness to ensue my peace It seems he was surprized and so may you be if you look not well to it for God now gives fair warning of it They that will not prize Opportunity shall have an opportunity to prize it If they prize it not living they shall prize it dying Wherefore manage your seasons for the best ends while you have them and fill up your dayes with duty and be not so eager upon the World and the things thereof Opportunity is a golden Mattock to dig for Heavenly Treasure do not wear it out as many do in digging for Pibbls and at your latter end become a fool Beware therefore of idleness on the one side and cumbring your self with Worldly Occasions on the other but consider wherefore hath God given you life and time but to be serviceable in your day and to work for him in whom you live He did not give you time to play the Truant and design and labour to be rich and to grow great in the World and to arrive at such a Revenue and proportion of worldly Estate but he sent you into the World to do his work and to improve your Time and Talent for him And therefore when the World or the Flesh is putting such Employments upon you which will devour much time and divert you from the one thing necessary tell them That you must give an account of your time and you must not rob your Lord and Master of his hours which he sent you to improve in his service c. And certainly it is an undervaluing also of Heaven to think to go thither and to do little or nothing for God upon Earth though yet the recompence of reward is purely gracious or of meer Grace let our Labours for the Lord be never so many for what are all our Studies Works Sweat and blood and Spirits and Cost and Care and Time expended upon Christ in comparison with an exceeding Eternal weight of Glory Prize therefore and improve your times Here are several of you that are young or in your middle age or about Hezekiah's years Call your selves to an account and enquire of your own hearts what you have done Peradventure but little for God and what will turn to a comfortable account What then if God should now lay you as he did Hezekiah upon your sick Bed and threaten to cut off the Thrum of your lives Would