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A67012 The duty of compassion to the souls of others in endeavouring their reformation being the subject of a sermon preached December the 28th 1696 at St. Mary-le-Bow before the Societies for Reformation of Manners in the city of London / published at their request by Josiah Woodward. Woodward, Josiah, 1660-1712. 1697 (1697) Wing W3515A; ESTC R26400 16,419 58

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God upon a Land For in the Case of uncertain Murder Deut. 21. the Elders of the City were to protest That their Eyes had not seen the Fact as well as that their Hands had not done it And alas how great are the Dangers of this our Nation by reason of this deplorable neglect of doing Justice upon publick Wickedness Vice has so long been uncontroll'd that it 's now grown Impudent yea it has been so long encouraged by great Examples and dandled upon the Knees of some Magistrates who ought to have trampled it under their Feet and with Samuel to have hewn it to pieces as he did Agag before the Lord that it is grown Monstrous Scandalous and Crying And therefore as you would be found Lovers and Servants of God and not Fighters against him and as you would avert and not pull down his Judgments upon your Native Land I earnestly entreat you yea I charge it upon your Consciences as my Text impowers me to do that you seriously and resolutely set your selves from henceforth to a vigorous Prosecution of all legal Methods of Reformation as you would prevent the Judgments of God on Earth and avoid the Vengeance of his Eternal Wrath. I shall now conclude all with a few practical Inferences from the whole Infer 1. We may from what has been said perceive what a gross Mistake the pretended Kindness of Compartners in Sin is If it be Hatred not to rebuke a Person for Sin what a fatal Enmity is it to lead him into it and caress him in it The filthy Acquaintance of the Adulterers and Adulteresses and of all sinful Companions is not only Enmity against God but against themselves also They trip up each others Heels and tumble in each others Arms into the bottomless Pit The Rebukes of the Text have infinitely more kindness in them than such treacherous Embraces tho such abandoned Creatures have not competent Sense to perceive and value it Infer 2. Since God requires us to rebuke the Sins of our Companions in the Text how difficult shall we find it to be innocent in ill Company 'T is very uneasy in some Tempers to reprove a Friend or a Superior and 't is more uneasy to a tender Conscience to omit a proper Season for Reproof And sometimes a defect in your Zeal may cause you to slip the fit Opportunity and this will be to your wounding when you reflect upon it with due Seriousness and Tenderness So that you will always find your Integrity and Peace best preserved by a careful shunning of vain and loose Company as much as possible And in truth this demonstrates the usefulness of those Religious Societies which are of late erected in this City which I pray God confirm and increase For it is an invaluable Benefit for young Men to know what Conversation is proper for their Intimacy and where they may join themselves with those who are going towards Everlasting Bliss The want of such edifying Company and the Poison of the contrary has been the Ruin of many a hopeful young Man and Woman Infer 3. Lastly How sad a Thought is it and how should it cut us to the Heart That there is so little Zeal for God in a Nation of professed Christians How unlike are the most of those who bear the Name of Christ to him of whom it is said The Zeal of thine House hath eaten me up Yea how unlike are we to those Primitive Christians whose holy Fervency carried them through the most threatning Dangers whose Religion scattered the gross Fogs of Profaneness and Superstition with its bright and warm Beams and made the Christian Name Illustrious and Honourable in the World O Sirs as we love our Lord and Saviour let us act something like our Holy Profession and our infinite Hopes Let our whole course of Life demonstrate that we are indeed resolv'd for Heaven Let our Speeches savour of our Holy Faith and let us continually breathe of God and the things of his Eternal Kingdom and let it be seen in all Places and Companies that we cannot bear the appearance of any Contempt of the Great God and of his Holy Will and Authority Truly if ever our Holy Religion regains its Primitive Reputation and Renown it must be by the exemplary Purity Zeal and Fervour of its Professors even by a general vigorous and resolute Opposition to Vice and a zealous and conscientious Practice of all Christian Duty To which Holy Frame I beseech God to raise every Soul of us that we may not only escape the Pollutions of this World our selves but be a means of pulling others out of the Mire of Sin here and of saving them from the eternal Vengeance of God which will otherwise be their Portion for ever Consider what has been said and the Lord give you Vnderstanding in all Things Amen FINIS