the Gospel may be said to increase a mans curse and condemnation Whereas now the Law in its own nature is said to be a killing Letter because it leaves a man in a state of death and leaves him under a curse and does not shew him the way at all â—ow to avoid that curse as the Gospel does therefore the Apostle says The Law is a killing Letter of it self but the Spirit giveth life 2 Cor. 3.6 because in the preaching of the Gospel the Spirit of God is conveyed into our souls which enables us in some acceptable manner to perform what the Gospel enjoyns and thus you have the Point opened to you That the knowledg of Life and Immortality that Eternal Salvation that is laid up for the Saints in light is discovered and revealed by the Preaching of the Gospel For the Use of the Point now And the first is by way of Information and there are four Doctrinal Inferences or Lessons that we may learn fron this point thus opened 1. See how infinitely we stand indebted and ingaged to our gracious God that hath lookt upon us here in this Nation and in this City who hath brought us into the fellowship of th Gospel and hath kept us in that fellowship for so many years together Oh that we should live under the showres and Sun-shine of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ for almost a hundred years together without interruption What a singular mercy is this if we did but know how to prize it He hath scarce dealt so with any Nation under Heaven as he hath dealt with us What did God see more in us than in Turks Indians and Pagans that never heard of God nor Gospel He foresaw how we would despise this precious Pearl and how we would be ready to trample it under foot God foresaw how weary we would be of those glorious Gospel-mysteries that are discovered to us from day to day yet it did not hinder him from bestowing this precious Jewel upon us therefore not to us not to us but to his own Name be the Glory 2. A second Lesson we may learn by way of inference is this If the knowledg of eternal life be discovered in the Gospel then it follows Where-ever God hath a Church planted or a Church to be planted there will still be need of a powerful quickning soul-searching Ministry for the discovery and making known the Mysteries of Salvation The publick preaching Ministry of the Gospel is that standing Ordinance that must continue in the Church of Jesus Christ so long as he hath a Church here upon earth and this appears by that of the Apostle Ephes 4.11 12 13 And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers for the prefecting of the Saints for the work of the Ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ How long till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledg of the Son of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ That is to the end of the World God will have a standing Ministry where-ever he hath a Church planted or to be planted God will have a Gospel standing Ministry till all the Saints be gathered If this be so then how justly are they to be reproved that think that a Gospel-ministry of all other things may be best spared if there be any such here mark what I say You could ill want any of the four Elements Earth Air Fire or Water You could ill want Salt Bread Drink Cloathing let me tell you a Gospel-ministry is as needful as any of these I have named as Earth Air Fire Water as Salt Bread Drink Cloathing for does not Solomon say Prov. 29.18 Where there is no vision the people perish and would you have your souls perish everlastingly Is not our soul worth a whole World It was a noble speech of Luther It were better that the whole World were in a Combustion and Confusion than that the Gospel should not be preached or that any one soul that belongs to Jesus Christ should be neglected And it was spoken concerning Chrysostom who was a famous Light in the Church It was better that the Sun should not shine than that Chrysostom should not preach and it was a witty observation of a Father speaking concerning the beheading of John Baptist Herod took off John Baptists head because of the promise he made to the Damosel Whatever she ask'd him to the half of his Kingdom should be granted says that Father speaking of this passage Herod might have kept his promise though he had not taken off John Baptists head for he promised the Damosel to give her to the half of his Kingdom But now says he John Baptists head was worth a whole Kingdom Pray tell me you that have slight thoughts of the Gospel or of a Gospel-ministry Does not the Scripture compare Ministers to Planters to Builders to Fathers to Remembrancers to Stars to spiritual Guides and to a City upon a Hill and the like If ever you be trees of Righteousness in Gods Garden it is a Ministry that hath planted you and if ever you be spiritual stones in Gods everlasting Building it must be the Ministry must build you if ever you be Sons and Daughters begotten to eternal Life it is the Ministry must beget you For in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel 1 Cor. 4.15 says the Apostle and if ever your seet be guided into the way that leads into everlasting life it is a Gospel-ministry must guide you and if ever you be led to Jesus Christ as the Wise-men were by the Star in the East when Christ was born in Betlehem it must be these spiritual Stars that are in the firmament of Gods Church that must lead you Now judg in your selves therefore whether a Gospel-ministry can be spared 3. The third Doctrinal inference is this If the knowledg of eternal Salvation comes by the Gospel then it teacheth us this Lesson also How infinitely it does concern us to prize and fruitfully to improve our Gospel-seasons those opportunities God puts into our hands for the enriching of our souls but especially we should improve our Sabbath-day opportunities because Sabbaths are the Market-days of Eternity the Markets wherein we must make provision for Eternity Oh how careful should we be to improve these Gospel-seasons Let me tell you Gospel-seasons are very precious seasons because marvellous precious things are tendred to you in the preaching of the Gospel more precious than all the Gold of Ophir more precious than all the Kingdoms of the World if they were in your own power for in the preaching of the Gospel a precious Christ who is the Pearl of price worth ten thousand thousand Worlds and more worth this precious Christ this Pearl of Price may now be obtained and a precious Covenant a Covenant made between God and the soul this precious Covenant may
I was instructed I smote upon my thigh I was ashamed yea even confounded because I did bear the reproach of my youth Secondly Thou mayst know it by that spiritual strife and combat and conflict that is in thee certainly there will be a conflict in thy soul because there are two contrary principles there put water to water or fire to fire and there is no conflict but put water and fire together and there will be a great conflict So corruption will not strive with corruption but where there is Grace and corruption in one soul there will be a combat and conflict the Flesh will lust against the Spirit and the Spirit against the Flesh Gal. 5.17 Thirdly Thou mayst know thou hast life in thee by thy spiritual crying thou wilt cry out for deliverance from danger and evil O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death Thou wilt make this the chief subject of thy suit and supplication to God from day to day O that once I might be freed from a base whorish backsliding-heart that continually is departing from God Fourthly If thou hast life certainly that grace thou hast though it be but weak though it be but little though it be but as a spark yet it shall prevail against corruption for wherever the Lord Christ enters into the soul to dwell there he comes like a Conquerour and he brings forth Judgment unto victory Matth. 12.20 That is his Government shall be victorious over all the opposition of sin and Satan Grace like oyl will be uppermost if there be but a spark of Grace in thy heart it shall not be quenched but it shall rather increase more and more and at last shall grow up into a flame as the fire of the Lord that came upon Elijahs offering 1 Kings 18.38 consumed the burnt-sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust and licked up the water that was in the trench Grace is a fire that comes down from Heaven though there be but a little spark of it at first yet by little and little it will lick up all the water of our corruptions and consume our sins Grace will grow stronger and stronger and corruption weaker and weaker That is the first symptom of an infirmity If there be spiritual life in the soul but if there be not spiritual life there is no infirmity Secondly The second Sign or Symptom of an infirmity is this That may be said to be an infirmity when some particular action crosses the main intention of the heart If thine eye be single if thy heart be upright if the Byas and bent of thy soul be towards God then all the obliquity or all the swervings in thy life are but lookt upon as infirmities For example A good Archer that is handling his Bow may-be his eye is right and his aim is right but through the weakness of his hand or the distemper of his Bow he may miss the Mark that is an infirmity So here if thy eye be right towards Gods Commandments if thy intention be to please God if the bent and byas of thy soul be God-ward not sin-ward then all the rest of the obliquity or swervings that are in thy actions are lookt upon but as infirmities As a Traveller for example in his journey if he set his face the right way and he be enquiring the way and willing to follow the way or if when he goeth out of the way he check himself though he may miss of the way through ignorance or may be seduced by some that told him wrong yet that may be said to be but an infirmity So here when thou canst set thy face towards Heaven as the children of Israel and Judah are described Jer. 50.5 They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward saying Come let us joyn our selves to the Lord in a perpetual Covenant that shall not be forgotten When a man thus sets his face towards Heaven then his wandrings out of the way if they be beside the intention of his purpose and mind are lookt upon but as infirmities David was out of his way when in a fury he would be avenged on Nabal for his churlishness when he said God do so to me and more also if I cut not off Nabal and every one that belongs to his Family yet when Abigail a wise Woman comes and tells him he was out of his way how glad was he and stops his course and said Blessed be the Lord God of Israel which sent thee this day to meet me and blessed be thy advice and blessed be thou which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood and from avenging my self with my own hand 1 Sam. 25.32 33. See the difference between the sin of Judas and the sin of Peter Judas you know he sinned with deliberation and his intention was stark naught his intention and purpose of betraying his Master was to inrich himself he was a Thief and nibled money out of his Masters Bag therefore his intention was naught But on the contrary look on Peter when he thrice denyed his Master it was a great sin too but it was without his intention or purpose certainly Peter had no intention at all to deny his Master but it fared with him as a man that is writing with his Pen in his hand and writing a straight Line but it may be some body comes and joggs him on the Elbow so he makes a crooked line against his will Or as a man that is shooting at a Mark but some body comes and joggs his Elbow and makes his Arrow to go awry thus was it with Peter This is the second Sign or Symptome of an infirmity Thirdly That is an Infirmity when a mans judgment is kept sound and upright that he does not approve of any sin when no sin hath any allowance or approbation in his heart this was the fruit of John Baptist his Preaching Isa 40.4 Every Valley shall be exalted and every Mountain and Hill shall be made low and the crooked shall be made straight and the rough places plain that is those that are converted by John Baptists preaching they would not look on crooked things as plain or plain things as crooked that is they would not defend or justifie themselves in sin but look upon sin as sin and duty as duty and they would not look upon the ways of God as crooked but straight they were indeed crooked to them before because their judgment was not sound but now they look upon them as straight and all his ways to be equal ways A child of God will be sure to commend that duty which yet he cannot practise and he will be sure to condemn that sin into which yet he often slips and falls and that because his judgment is right duty will be duty in his eye and sin will be sin in his eye though through infirmity he may fail in the one and fall into the
bread thou mayst as well turn stones into bread as water into wine but then afterwards he comes to more gross and grievous temptations to cast himself down headlong to murther himself and commit the horridest Idolatry that can be named So Satan is modest at the first he will perswade thee to tell a merry jocond lye to tell a lye in jest that is no great matter from a jesting lye he perswades thee to tell an officious lye for an advantage to thy self or neighbour from an officious lye he will tempt thee to a pernicious lye to tell a lye for thy neighbours ruine for the ruine of thy neighbours Name or Goods or Life Oh observe the wiles of Satan his temptations are at fist more modest The sixth Rule is this Do not think when one temptation is conquered or resisted that therefore thy corruption is mortified or that the Devil is quite vanquisned or quite hath left thee no for Satan lest our Saviour but for a season Luke 4.13 after he was shamefully vanquished and foiled he left him for a season he came to him again as he did in John 4.30 The Prince of this world cometh and hath nothing in me The Devil like a Ram sometimes retires that he may come forwards with the greater violence Seventhly Would you be strengthned against temptations then above all take the Shield of Faith that is the Apostles Rule Eph. 6.16 Above all take the shield of faith whereby you may quench all the fiery darts of the devil Faith is the eye of the soul Now as a cunning Fencer when he is striving with his Adversary the first thing that he aims at is to strike out the eye of him with whom he is contesting if he can but strike out the eye then he knows he hath a great advantage so the Devil this cunning Fencer he strikes at the eye of Faith if he can but conquer thy Fath he knows he shall conquer thy soul therefore says he I fight neither against small nor great but against this King-Grace I fight against Faith therefore our Savour prays that Peters Faith should not fail so long as his faith did not fail though his other Graces be routed and broken yet Faith will recover all That was an admirable Captain who when the Battel was lost recovered it again himself when all his Soldiers fled and left him namely Shammah 2 Sam. 23.12 He alone stood to the battel and conquered a whole Troop and slew many of the Philistines Faith may be compared to Shammah when other Graces are foyled and routed our Faith will recover all again Now how should we strengthen Faith Faith is compared to a Shield now this Shield is composed of four or five plates First The gracious Promises that God hath made this is one plate that makes the shield of Faith you cannot be cast into such a condition wherein you may not meet with some Promise therefore study the Promises such as these When thou passest through the waters I will be with thee and through the Rivers they shall not overflow thee when thou walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burnt neither shall the flame kindle upon thee Isa 43.2 So that is an excellent Scripture Isa 42.19 And I will bring the blind by a way that they know not I will lead them in paths that they have not known I will make darkness light before them and crooked things straight these things will I do unto them and not forsake them What a precious Promise is that though God leads his people through a dark Wilderness as I may say and they see not one beam of light yet notwithstanding if they lean upon the Lord he will cause darkness to be light before them A second Plate that the shield of Faith is composed of and made up of is the glorious Attributes of God Gods Wisdom Power Mercy Goodness Truth all these put together do spell All-sufficiency the wisdom of God to guide us the power of God to protect us the mercy of God to pity us and the like Thirdly Another Plate is this the triumphant victory of Jesus Christ he hath conquered our Enemy blessed be his Name our Saviour he hath crusht the head of the Serpent as Luther said excellently Why should we fear a conquered world when the Conqueror himself is on our side so why should we fear a conquered Enemy a cursed Enemy when the Conqueror himself is on our side The fourth Plate is this The former Experiments we have had of Gods goodness 2 Cor. 1.10 Who delivered us from so great a death and doth deliver in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us And when the Prophet David was in those straits when he cryed out Will the Lord cast off for ever and will he be favourable no more hath God forgotten to be gracious hath he in anger shut up his tender mercy Oh says he This is my infirmity but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most high Psal 77.7 8 9 10 I will remember thee from the land of Jordan and of the Hermonites from the hill Nizar there I had a deliverance and there I had a deliverance and when my soul is cast down within me I will remember thee at such a place and at such a place where thou didst work a great deliverance for me Psal 42. Fifthly The last Plate the shield of Faith is made up of is Gods infinite love in giving of Jesus Christ He that spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him freely give us all things If God hath given us Jesus Christ he will give us supportation under trouble and he will give us deliverance out of trouble The last Direction is this Give not over praying Although for the present thou seest not the fruit of thy prayers give not over praying but remember he that was tempted for thee on earth is now interceding for thee in heaven Satan cannot be more ready to assault thee than Jesus Christ to assist thee Satan cannot be so busie on earth to hurt thee as Jesus Christ is busie in heaven to help thee and prayer through the intercession of Jesus Christ can cast out Devils Mr. Fox in his book of Martyrs in the second Volume speaking of Luther in the life of King Henry the eighth mentions a story of a man that was possessed with the Devil that had sold his soul to the Devil at Wittenburg But Luther got a company of praying Christians together to seek God on his behalf and would not give over seeking till they had received an Answer So at last the Devil in a great wind threw the Indenture in at the window Sometimes Prayer casts out the Devil God sometimes gives such signal testimonies of hearing Prayer for the enocuragement of his Servants therefore do not give over resisting Satans temptations nor praying against him Do as that blessed Saint Katharine Bretter when
little and little be quenched though God do leave some corruptions in thee to conflict with and to teach thee to prize the Righteousness of Jesus Christ at a high rate yet all these sinful desires shall by little and little be mortified and all thy spiritual desires fully satisfied though not perfectly in this World yet when thou comest to enjoy him in Glory but yet here in this life thou shalt have so much satisfaction that thou mayst say with the Prophet David My Soul is satisfied as with Marrow and Fatness And all thy sensual desires shall be allayed though it may be thou hast but a poor pittance of these outward things for God sees it fit many times that his best and soundest Sheep should be kept on the shortest Commons although this be true that thou hast but a small pittance of these outward things thou wantest riches and honours and outward accommodations which are so much admired yet thou mayst say with the Apostle 2 Cor. 6.10 As having nothing and yet possessing all things Though I have nothing yet I possess all things How Really I possess all things I have all things in Capite in Christ my Head and really by Faith Oh what comfort is this Secondly I might in the second place make this a Touch-stone of tryal to discover to you whether you be true Believers or no. Are thy desires after the World allayed that now thou canst say with St. Paul I have learned in every state therewith to be content Hast thou not a painful thirst arising from the guilt of a self-accusing Conscience as thou hadst heretofore then it is a token that thy Faith is a true Faith and by this thou mayst know whether thou art a weak Believer or a strong Believer for according to the measure of your satisfaction in these things so you may know the measure of your Faith If thy Soul hath large satisfaction then thou art a strong Believer but if thy Soul hath but little satisfaction then thou art but a weak Believer But to close all with a word of Exhortation and the Exhortation is to two sorts briefly First To those that are not Believers Secondly To those that are true Believers First To those that are not Believers and my Exhortation to them is this O you that have not yet closed with Jesus Christ you that have not yet seen so much beauty in him as to prize him and insatiably to desire him O that now you would begin to close with him you that have not been perswaded by all former Exhortations and Invitations of Ministers heretofore be perswaded now O come come to Jesus Christ come to the water of life Come buy Wine and Milk without money and without price come to this bread of life thou mayst come as freely to Jesus Christ O Sinner whoever thou art as the wounded Israelites might come to the Brazen Serpent in the Wilderness O consider what satisfaction is to be found in him Run through all the courses of the World run through all conditions in the World run through all the delights of the sons of men and see whether they can give you satisfaction yea or no. Can sin give you satisfaction Truly the satisfaction which sin gives I will tell you what it is like it is just like the sprinkling of water upon the Smiths Forge that makes the fire to burn so much the hotter or like the pouring of Oyl upon a flame that makes it flame so much the fiercer this is the satisfaction that you have by sin Or can the World give you satisfaction Alas the World deals with you just as Absolom's Mule did with him leaving his Master hanging in the Oak when he had most need of her so when you have most need of comfort and relief Worldly riches and profits they leave you In a day of wrath can any of these give you satisfaction Prov. 11.4 They profit not in a day of wrath Can any of these outward things give you satisfaction alas the Soul of man hath a kind of infiniteness of desires in it therefore nothing can give the Soul satisfaction but the infinite mercy of a Gracious God and the infinite merits of a blessed Redeemer and the infinite Comforts of the Holy Ghost As long as you live without Christ never look for satisfaction look for no satisfaction from the things of this life Isa 65.13 Therefore thus saith the Lord God behold my Servants shall eat but ye shall be hungry my Servants shall drink but ye shall be thirsty behold my Servants shall rejoyce but ye shall be ashamed Look for no satisfaction from temporal things and I am sure in Hell there will be no satisfaction for you for there you will be always thirsting thirsting with a painful and tormenting thirst Dives although he had never so much wealth to tumble himself up and down in here while he lived yet when he came to Hell though perhaps he might by some flattering Preacher in a Funeral Sermon be lodged in Abrahams bosom yet when he came to Hell he had not a drop of water to cool his tongue There is no satisfaction to be had in any Enjoyment nor in any condition or place until we come to Jesus Christ and then we shall hunger no more nor thirst no more then all tears shall be wiped from our eyes and sorrow and grief from our hearts My second Exhortation is to true Believers Oh labour for further degrees of Faith according to your measure of Faith such will your fulness and satisfaction be Psalm 81.10 O could you open your mouths wide that is could the desires of your Souls this day be widened and enlarged they should all of them be filled open thy mouth never so wide and God will fill it Oh do not content your selves with a small measure of Faith but labour for a strong and great Faith according to your Buckets so shall your waters be drawn Draw water out of the Wells of Salvation Isa 12.3 What are the Wells of Salvation but God and Jesus Christ and his Spirit and the Graces of the Spirit and the Ordinances of God these are the Wells of Salvation If you bring but little Buckets you will get but little water if you bring large Buckets you will get a large deal of water If you bring but little Faith you will receive but little from Christ but if you bring a strong Faith a large and strong Bucket O how much refreshing and Soul-satisfaction might you receive There are three benefits which you shall have by a strong Faith First Faith hath this Property it makes whatever it toucheth its own According to thy Faith be it unto thee Matth. 18.13 So if thy Faith do but touch Jesus Christ it will make him yours if it do but touch the Promises it makes them yours The truth is there hath been a great deal of talk of the Philosophers stone but I know no other Philosophers stone but Faith