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A55560
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The beauty, vigour and strength of youth bespoke for God in a sermon lately preached to young men / by Thomas Powell ...
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Powell, Thomas, 1608-1660.
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1676
(1676)
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Wing P3069; ESTC R33947
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28,699
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91
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THE Beauty Vigour Strength OF YOUTH Bespoke for GOD IN A SERMON Lately Preached to YOUNG MEN. By THOMAS POWELL Minister of the Gospel LONDON Printed for Ben. Harris at the Stationers Arms in Sweetings Rents near the Royal Exchange in Cornhill 1676. TO THE READER Christian Reader THE greatest and highest Honour of the Reasonable Creature is to serve Him who is the best Good and the last End which is the design of this little Treatise The Excellency and Necessity of what is here treated justly merits a larger Volumn But I studied Brevity and that upon a two-fold account First Because I was desired that there might be little or no Variation from the Sermon as it was Preached either in Altering or Enlarging though something of each I have done yet so I hope as to please both thee the Reader and they who had the Opportunity of Hearing the same Secondly Because I was willing that more might have a share in it which possibly could not have been if I had not endeavoured to crowd my Meditations in a little room Birds when they come to a full heap of Corn chirp and call for their fellowes Goodness and Light are of a diffusive Nature And now since this is Midwifed into the World which was not intended by me such as it is I offer it to thee as the product of my sincere and cordial Love to the Souls of young Men. Let not the Plainness of the Matter and the Homeliness of the Style offend thee I designed it not for a curious Pallate being preached unto a plain Countrey-people I aymed at their Edification and not at any Popular Applause The Treatise is usefull for all that are enquiring after true Felicity especially the younger sort of People being such for the most part that were present when this Sermon was Preached What thou Reader apprehendest not Sound carry it to the Touch-stone of the Word and if but a Mite of saving Knowledge may be through Gods Blessing added to thy Understanding let God have the Glory and the Author hath his End who is Southwark Decemb. READER Thy Friend and Souls servant Thomas Powell ECCLES XII 1. Remember Now thy Creatour in the Dayes of thy Youth while the Evil Dayes come not nor the Years draw nigh when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them GOD set up two great Lights in Solomons Heart one shewing the Excellency of Christ in the Canticles the other the Vanity of the Creature as in Ecclesiastes which is the second Book of Solomon and it is called Ecclesiastes because Solomon was so called And that either because he speaks unto a Multitude at once or else because of his Wisdom with which he was indeed after a copious manner endowed The whole Book is a declaration of Solomons repentance written in his old age as may be gather'd both out of the title of it and the closure of it in the six last verses and also out of the whole body of it being written upon a serious view of the passages and practices of his life past and the great and manifold experience he made and found therein He treats chiefly of the worlds vanity true felicity the maladies of old age the Advantage of being good betimes Hence it is that young men in the conclusion of all are call'd upon to mind their Creator and that whatsoever they are employed in besides is vanity of vanities and no wise yielding true satisfaction but anxiety and torment unto their souls Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth while the evil dayes come not nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them The words in general do press unto a duty of the greatest moment in the world wherein you may take notice of these several things 1. The Act Remember 2. The Object Creator 3. The adjunct of Time Now in the dayes of thy youth exegetically repeated while the evil dayes come not nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them The words will afford us many points of Doctrine I shall only observe two and so insist upon them Doct. 1. That above all things whatsoever we should not forget but Remember our Creator Doct. 2. That there is great reason why we should remember our Creatour in the dayes of our youth even while we are young and before old age over-takes us These in order and with the first I begin viz. That above all things whatsoever we should not forget but Remember our Creator The prosecution of this Point I purpose through Gods assistance in this wise 1. I shall set my self to amplifie it 2. To Apply it The amplification will consist of Explication and confirmation 1. Explication and so I shall shew you 1. What this Creator is 2. What it is to remember our Creator 3. What it is to remember our Creator above all things whatsoever First I am to shew you What this Creator is whom we are call'd upon in the text to mind Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth In the Hebrews it is Thy Creatours alluding to the Trinity so that by Creatour we are to understand God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost for though the Creation of the world is peculiarly ascribed to God the Father and look't upon as his proper work in respect of order and relation as he is the first person of the Trinity yet not so as to exclude the rest for all the persons of the Trinity to speak after the manner of men had a hand in the Creation of the world Gen. 1. 26. And God said Let us make man ni our Image after our likeness who should the Father speak unto here Let us but unto the Son and the Holy Ghost Secondly What it is to Remember our Creator It is not onely a bare thinking on him and that now and then but to remember our Creator implyes these several things First To know him to know that he is and what he is That God is and that he is to be worshipped is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Law written in the heart of man and that which the book of the Creatures teacheth as well as the book of the Scriptures But now who This God is and the right mode of worshipping him many are at a loss and the candle-light of Nature without the help of the Holy Spirit in and by the Scriptures cannot direct us neither can our knowledge of God by them be a comprehensive knowledge what God is in his Essence in his Attributes in his persons in his works no man or Angel hath doth or ever shall know Though we must if we would remember our Creator aright know something of each yet he must have the wisdom of God and so be a God that comprehendeth God in his Essence Attributes Persons and works what say you now Sirs do you remember your Creator in this
Desire of seeking God but now Youth improved will make the Performance of the Duty more facile Opportunity improv'd sayes one facilitates every Action and Employment making a work come off sweetly smoothly and with facility It is as the laying of the Knife upon the Joynt when we would divide the Bone It is Wind and Tide to the Oars of Industry Thirdly The more Wrath you will treasure up unto your selves by having more sins to answer for The sooner we begin the less we shall have to answer for but the longer we deferre the more we shall have to answer for Fourthly Young Men shall come to Iudgement as well as those of riper years You think that you have a Priviledge by your Age Youth must have its course say some they must sow their wild Oats But now the Counsel of the Spirit is otherwise In the Morning sow thy Seed and in the Evening withhold not thy hand for thou knowest not whether shall prosper And David doth tie up your untamed Age to the horns of the Altar saying That even You must cleanse your wayes by taking heed thereto according to Gods Word Think not I say because you are Young you shall be excused For the dead small and great shall stand before the Lord and you that now take your pleasures know that for all that ye shall come to Judgement and your Pleasures shall have an End Methinks that Scripture in the 11 of Eccles. v. 9. should cool the Courage of such Young men who go on in their Career to Hell in the midst of their Pleasures Rejoyce O young Man in thy youth and let thy Heart cheer thee in the dayes of thy youth and walk in the wayes of thy heart and in the sight of thine eyes but know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into Iudgement Fifthly You will not Repent that you have call'd God to mind so soon But thou shalt esteem Gods Grace the more for it rejoyce in the sense of it and in Comfort conclude thy Life whensoever God shall call thee hence I would fain lay down some Cautions and Exhortations unto the Young Men of this Age which if observed by them I am confident would help them much in remembring of their great Creator But should I doe this it would make this little Book swell too much which for the Poor's sake I would prevent and yet a little too I will venture First more generally have a care Young Men of laying a stress on Parentage Birth Education Civility and your Natural Endowments They are all but painted shews of Righteousness and crack'd Titles to Heaven Faith comes not by Birth Generation or Education and he who is Gifted is not alwayes Believing But Secondly more particularly I would caution you from these Vices which tend much to the Corruption of Youth First I would caution you from Love of the World If any man love the World the love of the Father is not in him 1 Joh. 2. 15. O let not the World lye so neer your Hearts as it did to the Young Man 's in the Gospel You can never Love your Creator so as to die for him if the World get root in your Heart Have a care I beseech you of preferring the Gifts of God before God himself All Creatures that the Lord made he made for Man and Man for himself But this is a fearfull Contempt of God and disestimation of his Majesty when the Creature is better lov'd than God as Evah for the love of an Apple lost the love of the Lord and Esau for a Mess of Pottage sold his Birthright and the Gadarens counted their Swine more precious than the Son of God Christ Iesus He that loveth these bodily worldly and perishing Riches cannot love the spiritual heavenly and eternal Riches Love not this World because the Devil is the God of it love not this World because it cools thy Affections to God and the things of God Love not this World because it is the Bird-lime of spiritual Punishments Love not this World because the Love of the World is Enmity towards God The Riches in this World are call'd Thick Clay Hab. 2. 6. which will sooner break the Back than lighten the Heart O that I could but disswade Young men from this peccatum peccatorum sin of Earthly-mindedness Consider O young Men what Solomon sayes of this World who knew as much as ever any did as to the sweetness of sensual pleasures Three Advantages Solomon had above others to know the Vanity of the Creature 1 In regard of his Wisdome 1 Kings 4. 29 30. 2 Riches 1 King 10. 23. 3 In that he gave himself to make trial and Experience of the Creature Yet Vanity of Vanities saith the Preacher Vanity of Vanities all is Vanity Five times Vanity 1. Vanity not vain onely but Vanity it self in the Abstract 2. Excessive Vanity Vanity of Vanities Hebraism superlative by doubling he signifies most vain imperfect uncertain transitory void of Content full of Grief 3. An heap of Vanities Vanity of Vanities an Hebraism and imports most great Vanity 4. An universal Proposition all is Vanity Fugiamus hinc ubi nihil est ubi inane est omne quod magnificum putatur Let us flye from this World wherein is nothing but Vanity Nihil siquidem a somni Vanitate differt rerum praesentium figura sive illae tristes sint sive prosperae The most excellent Shews of this Life are but Dreams which may affect for a time but do vanish so soon as the man awaketh And this is the first Caution Love not the World The Love of the World is an Obstacle that must be removed where Love to Christ and to thy Soul Young man is to be shewn Secondly I would caution you from Evil Company I know very well that we are mighty apt to follow a Multitude to do Evil I know that Youth above all is apt to keep Company especially had Company And how many have been brought to Ruine thereby Have not many at the Gallowes laid their sins at the Door of bad Company forewarning all to shun the same and take Example by them Every man is as his Company The Heathen could say Noscitur ex comite qui non cognoscitur ex se He is known by his Company that cannot be known by himself A Mans Company is as it were a Commentary on his Life A Company or Multitude and I pray Young Men do you especially take notice of it is not the Rule you should walk by as for doing Evil so for doing Good He that doth Good because a Multitude doth it will also do Evil because a Multitude doth it We must not saith Austin do a good thing because Many do it but because it is Good If others doe that which is Good saith he I will rejoyce because they doe it but I will not do it because they do it c. Keep good Company we