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A52175
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The waters of Marah sweetned A sermon preached at the funeral of Mrs. Clare Wittewronge, eldest daughter to Joseph Alston Esq; and late wife to John Wittewronge Esq;: who was interred at Stantonbury in the county of Bucks. Octob. 22. 1669. By Mr. John Mason, minister.
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Mason, John, 1646?-1694.
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1671
(1671)
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Wing M923; ESTC R213830
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13,714
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37
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for leave It was once the speech of a good man I have been seeking death these forty years and cannot find it I care not when nor where nor how I die And seeing our lives be so miserable it is our happiness that they be mortal Truly our condition would be very sad if we should have immortal sins immortal cares immortal miseries but death proves mortal to them all And whereas our bodies shall be recovered from a state of death in the Resurrection our sins and sorrows die and rise no more I must needs say 'T is an happiness to be Christs Souldier in the field of this World but O how happy are his Courtiers They are resting in their beds whiles we are toiling in the house of bondage They are singing on the Shore whiles we are floating on the Waves we are sowing in tears but they are reaping in joy and rejoycing as in the joy of harvest We are wrestling with Devils but they are conversing with Angels But when the Lord Jesus shall descend from Heaven with a shout with the voice of the Archangel and the Trump of God then shall these blessed souls attend upon him and they shall immediately recover their proper bodies after their long separation and then soul and body shall mutually comfort and welcome one another and rejoyce together being both dressed up into a conformity to the glorious Image of God the King of Glory and arrayed suitably to the solemnity of that day Imagine we two Travellers sweetly and sociably walking together till night overtakes them one of them loses himself in the dark and being tired with his journey lies down and falls asleep The other being more vigorous and lively walks on till he spies a light in a stately Lodge there he knocks and finds good entertainment and is kindly invited to stay There he refreshes himself after his travel and enjoys himself yet he wishes for the company of his fellow-traveller to compleat his felicity When morning light appears he goes out and seeks his Companion that had been sleeping upon the cold earth all night there he renews his acquaintance with him and brings him into the presence of his new-found friend where they both share in his courtesie and bounty These two Travellers are the soul and body of a Christian. Their days journey is the twelve hours of their life the night is death Both walk friendly together till night parts them the weary body falls asleep the active soul keeps on her way till she comes to the light of Heaven where she is most kindly treated by the Lord and his Angels But yet in the midst of her entertainment she cannot forget her old mate but is ready to say Lord I have a body below which used to pray with me and to fast for me Well it is not long e're morning-light appears and then the soul looks abroad and takes acquaintance with her body and carries it into the presence of her noble and gracious Lord where both are welcomed with his Smiles and enriched with his Favours Such honour have all his Saints How happy is our Friend departed She is with her Father above with her Husband above and with her Children in Glory I shall not insist much on her praises for though Solomon saith A vertuous woman shall be praised yet he says in another place Her own works shall praise her in the gate They that knew her most loved her best Among several good things that were found in her there are four which I would not have buried with her in the Dust but shall publish them as worthy of your Imitation 1. Her private Conversings with God 2. Her affectionate Hearing of Gods Word 3. Her professed Esteem of the Merits of her Saviour 4. Her frequent savoury Discourses of her own Mortality Her Infirmities she oft bewailed and they served but to enhance the price of her Saviours Blood She professed she was willing to die that she might cease from sin And upon her Death-bed she rejoyced in hope of the Glory of God She hath left us such Evidences of her Holiness that we doubt not of her Happiness And how happy are the Saints departed Again Learn from hence how to die and how to prepare for Judgment We all know we must die but who knows how to die Death is the way of all the Earth but an happy death is a way that few find out Now seeing we cannot make a Covenant with Death let us labour to have Death in the Covenant Wouldst thou die and go to the Grave in peace Then 1. Meditate on the Death of Christ. Some harden themselves against the fear of death because 't is the general Lot of Mankind All must die say they It is appointed for all men once to die But alas what Comfort can it be to them to be bound up in a Bundle of Tares and to be cast into unquenchable fire But poor Christian let this be thy Comfort that death was the Lot of Jesus Christ that he hath consecrated a dying state for us in his own Body and that he poured forth his Soul unto death that our Souls might be bound up in the Bundle of Life The Life of our Souls lies in the Blood of Christ. O my Beloved take heed of slighting a crucified Christ. They that are against Christ either in their Judgments or Hearts that dispute against him or live against him seem to hate their own Souls and to be in love with Damnation as it is in Prov. 8. ult How can such ever look death in the face that hide their faces from Christ and esteem him not Where will they find such another Saviour In vain do you run from Mountain to Hill Christ Christ alone can secure you from the Plagues and Hellish terrors of death He is the Foundation of an Holy life and Happy death The readiest way to learn this long Art of dying well is to study the Death of Christ. Now the Intendment of the Death of Christ was not meerly to teach us to die Patiently but to enable us to die Comfortably And if thou wouldst depart this Life in peace then first possess thy Soul with a right apprehension of the Death of Christ. Study the words of the Apostle Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many and to them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation In these words you have four things touching the Death of Christ very considerable 1. The Death and Blood of Christ was Vicarious instead of many Many deaths were summed up in his one death He was offered upon the Cross to bear the sins of many The Jews thought he died worthily for his own sins for Blasphemy and Treason No but it was our Blasphemies and Treasons our sins against God and Man that he died for Isa. 53. 4. We did esteem him striken smitten of God and afflicted viz. for his own sins that was their great mistake
which the Church of God corrects in the next verse But he was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him 2. Observe Christs deaths was an Offering He was offered in Sacrifice to God upon the Altar of the Cross. He did not fall as a Sacrifice to the Rage of the Jews for he could easily have rescued himself out of their hands but he was offered up to the Justice of his Father Eph. 5. 2 Christ hath loved us and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour 3. In respect of sin Christs death was not only Penal but also Expiatory He bore the sins of many i. e. the punishment due to them even what was equivalent to a thousand Hells There are not such Torments to be found in Hell as he suffered upon the Cross where he bore the sins of his people And yet he did so fully discharge himself of sin that at his second Coming he shall appear without sin 4. In respect of his Enemies the Death of Christ was Victorious Once he was devoted for his people Cursed Tortured by a bitter death But in death he overcame Death and all the Powers of Hell And therefore Death could not hold him the Grave could not detain him the wicked One could not touch him Heaven could not refuse him He died once for sin but he shall die no more for his death was Triumphant over sin And he shall shortly appear without sin to the terror of his Enemies and the Salvation of his dear People We should treasure up such sweet Notions of a dying Jesus to prepare us against our dying day To die my Friends is a solemn Work it is a loud Summons that calls the Soul to appear before her Judge We go from Funeral to Funeral and may see death riding through our Towns but little do we think what it is to have Death come home to our selves O what strange thoughts of heart what hurrying of passions will the sight of death beget when it layes close Siege to a man and begins to make its breaches upon the Body Then the Soul views and reviews her self As all the Virgins looked into their vessels when they were awakned by the loud Cry at midnight to see if they had Oyl for their Lamps Then all the signs of Grace and grounds of Hope must be brought to tryal then she examines whether her matters be right and good whether her condition be safe But be it safe or perillous death comes in haste as Martha to her Sister The Master is come and calls for thee and thou must away Then all the world could not redeem one hour for Repentance Now how if thou shouldst be surprised and taken away by a sudden stroke and arrested by death before thou hast well thought of it what a sad blow would that be O therefore now be wise be wise for thy self It is a great point of wisdom to consider our latter end As the Lord saith O that they were wise to consider their latter end I beseech you therefore familiarize death in your thoughts make it near What thinkest thou Durst thou dye this night Durst thou meet thy Judge this night Thy heart it may be trembles at the thoughts of this O spare me a little But then ask thy self why thou wouldst not dye what art afraid of Let me offer some consolatory Meditations to a poor Soul that is trembling under the fears of death Art thou afraid of the wrath of God Then meditate But Christ died as a propitiatory Sacrifice to satisfie the Justice of God He drank off the very dregs of Gods wrath in the Cup of his Death Art thou afraid of losing thy Soul for ever O but Jesus Christ died for the Redemption of poor Souls His Soul went for our Souls and his life for our life He gave his life a ransom for many Mat. 20. 28. The price of Christs Blood is a Souls Ransom Art thou afraid of falling short of Heaven But the Death of Christ opened our passage to Heaven The renting of the vail of his blessed Body made an open passage into the Holy of Holies Art thou afraid thy sins should find thee out in another world Then meditate The Lamb of God that great Sacrifice takes away the sin of the world Sin was condemned in the Death of Christ and receives its final execution in the death of a Christian. Art thou afraid the Law should condemn thee Then remember the Death of Christ hath rebated the edge of the Law and hath abolished the Curse of the Law Art thou afraid the Devils should fetch away thy soul at death But the Lord Jesus hath destroyed him that had the power of death and hath bruised the Serpents head by the power of his death Thus you should anoint your heads against your Funeral with the precious Oyntment of the Name of Christ and bathe your souls in such heavenly comfortable Meditations 2. It is not enough for us to meditate on the Death of Christ but we must apply it to our selves by a lively Faith that it may have an influence upon our death Have Faith in the Blood of Christ. The Blood of Christ is the Wine and Marrow of the Gospel-feast the strength of our Sacraments the foundation of an everlasting Covenant This Blood seasons all the mercies of a Believer sanctifies all his offerings It makes his heart chearful his life comfortable his death precious his grave sweet his soul fit to enter into the Holy of Holies O derive the stream of it upon thy soul. Thou canst not instantly believe that Christ died for thee yet labour to stay thy heart upon the satisfaction sufficiency and worthiness of the Death of Christ. Hide thy self in the clefts of the Rock the Wounds of thy Saviour Embrace a crucified Christ and lay him in thy heart as Joseph did in his Garden Why hath the Righteous hope in his death but because he hath Faith in the Death of Christ A living Faith in a dying Christ is a soveraign remedy against the plagues of death and an infallible prevention of the pains of Hell Joh. 11. 26. Whosoever lives and believes in me he shall never die as we read it But yes he shall die once by Gods appointment but he shall not die 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as in Original He shall not die ever he shall not die to eternity Death is cast into the lake of fire They that are thrown into the Lake of fire meet with death there In the Lake of fire they are ever dying But he that hath faith in the Blood of Christ passeth from death to life What was it that gave the Israelites safe passage through the Red Sea Read Heb. 11. 29. By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land which the Egyptians through presumption assaying to do were drowned Even so death will drown us and sink us into Hell if we have not Faith to clear our passage for us Lastly Would you hold up your heads in the day of Judgment then look for the Coming of Christ. Wo be to those souls to whom Christ shall come unlooked for O how sadly shall the drowsie world be surprised by the sudden Appearance of Christ But Christ shall appear to the Salvation of those faithful Servants that are watching and waiting for his second Coming He shall come to them not as a Thief in the night but as a Friend in the day Faith and Love combine together in an earnest expectation of Christ and that is the reason that it is so kindly accepted and so richly rewarded And therefore good Christians keep watching if you have any affection for Christ. Cannot you watch one hour It is but yet a little while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry You have but two things to do and Christ will either meet you or send for you and that is to finish your work and to fill up the measure of your Graces God hath something to do for us and something to do by us and then he will take us to himself 1. We must be careful to dispatch our business and to finish our Task Herod might threaten death but our Saviour could not die till he had finished the work which God gave him to do So neither shall a Christian die till his work be done We read Act. 13. 36. David after he had served his own generation by the will of God fell on sleep Or as others read it When David had served the will of God in his age and generation c. Both are true He was serviceable to God and an useful Instrument in the Church and when all his work was ended he fell on sleep and sweetly rested in the Lord. 2. Again We must fill up the measure of our Graces There is a certain measure and proportion of Grace assigned to every Member of the Body of Christ. Some have more some less Every one shall have his proper sufficient measure A Christian shall not enter into Glory till he hath received his measure of Grace Read the Parable of the seed growing secretly Mark 4. 26 27 28 29. And observe that passage After that the full corn is in the ear and the fruit is ripe immediately he putteth in the sickle When our Grace is like full Corn in the ear when the fruit of Gods Spirit is ripe in us then immediately comes the sickle of Death then we are meet to be partakers of an inheritance with the Saints in light O then we shall come and appear before God Consider what hath been said For you see all flesh is grass and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass the grass withers the flower thereof falls away But the Word of the Lord endures for ever FINIS Doct. Acts 20. 28. Hos. 13. 14. 2 Pet. 1. 14. Gal. 3. 13. Heb. 2. 13. 1 Cor. 3. 22. 1 Cor. 13. 9 11. II. Part of the Doctr. 2 Thess. 1. 7 8. Psa. 22. 6 7. 1 Cor. 4. 3. 1 Cor. 6. 3. Vse 1. Joh. 8. 24. Joh. 8. 21. Isa. 63. 16. Job 7. 16. Vse 2. Mat. 25. Joh. 11. 29. Deut. 32. 28. Heb. 10. 19 20. Joh. 1. 19. Gal. 3. 13. Heb. 3. 14. Rev. 20. 14. Heb. 10. 37. Luke 13. 23. Eph. 4. 7. 1 Pet. 1. 24 25.