of it but fail in the Principle and Manner of the Duty and never look to the [g] The end of all Exercises of Piety and Devotion is more and mine to dispose our Hearts to the Love and our Wills to the Obedience of our blessed Creatour and Redeemer And busying our selves in any of them without this Design may well be counted in the Number of the fruitless and unaccountable Actions of our Lives Thus to do is prodigally to waste and mis-spend our Time as the Jews were upbraided by one of their Adversaries with doing upon the account of their Sabbath saying They they lost one Day in seven Dr. Fowler 's Design of Christianity pag. 186. End of the Duty have no real Design and hearty Intention to please and glorify God thereby and to gain and encrease in true Holiness of Heart and Life If you act not out of a Principle of Love and inward Life and Liking but only out of some external respect If you perform your Services not out of a filial ingenuous Disposition but merely out of a Slavish Fear of being beaten or of losing the Wages you expect for your Work If you use only a careless and supine Devotion If you matter not at all how little you do for God or what is the Frame of your Minds and Hearts in what you do If you give way to vain Thoughts in holy Duties If you be not intent in your religious Services but instead of using the World as if you used it not you use good Duties as if you did not use them observe the Lord's-Day as if you observ'd it not confess and repent as if you did no such thing hear as if you heard not and pray as if you prayed not If you pray only out of Custom and do not mind and well consider what you say nor are affected with what you speak nor desire what you ask If you pray and reade and hear only because you are brought up so to do and have taken up such a Practice or because you would satisfy natural Conscience and have the good Opinion and Word of all in your Families and be commended by your Neighbours for religious Persons and do not pray to this necessary End that so you may enjoy Communion with God and get and obtain Pardon and Grace and Strength from God nor reade the Scripture and good Books and hear the Word preached that so you may know your Duty in Order to the Practice and Performance of it all the Time that is thus spent in Duty is in a manner Time lost and mis-spent in so doing you lose your Duties and you lose your Time too But especially if any shall dare to do nothing but whisper and talk and laugh to mock and jeer at the Word and the Minister of it to be undecent and rude and profane in their Carriage and Behaviour in a Christian Assembly in the Time of Divine Worship in the [i] Vae mihi quia ibi pecco ubi peccata emendare debeo Bernard de interior Domo c. 33. Presence of the great God and in the Sight of the holy * 1 Cor. 11.10 Angels This is to lose the Time of publick Duty if it be to be lost at all This is to lose the Time of Duty with a Witness And so I have done with the third Vse namely of Reproof and Rebuke to several Sorts of Persons who are guilty of the Loss the lamentable Loss of their precious Time and unvaluable Opportunities CHAP. VI. The fourth and last Vse is of Exhortation to Magistrates Ministers the People in general Six quickening Motives to press the Duty of Redemption of Time 1. Consider how notably Jesus Christ redeem'd the Time when he was here in the World 1. He redeem'd the Time to save us 2. He redeem'd the Time to be an Example to us 2. Consider further that as Christ did once redeem the Time to save us So the Devil does daily redeem the Time to destroy us 3. Consider how very notably many of the Saints and Servants of God have improved and redeemed their Time 4. Consider that it is an Act of spiritual Wisdom to rodeem the Time and mere Madness and gross Folly not to redeem the Time 5. Consider that if now thou losest and squanderest away thy Time thou wilt at last be forced thy self to condemn thy foolish Neghgence and to justify the Care and Diligence of others that were wiser for their own Souls then thy self 6. Consider that do what we can to redeem our Time we shall never repent at last of any Care we have had to redeem it but shall certainly blame and find fault with our selves for being so careless of our Time so negligent of good Opportunities as we have been Serious considerative Christians do blame themselves for their Loss of Time even in their Life-time but they are especially sensible of it and exceedingly ashamed of themselves for it at their Death THe fourth and last use shall be of Exhortation to put you upon the Duty of Redeeming Time Let Magistrates vigorously redeem the Time in the faithful Execution and impartial Administration of governing Justice and in being active and zealous bold and couragious in the Cause of God and Goodness * Rem 13.3 in being a Terrour to Evil and not to good Works and in acting for the †i Pet. 2.14 Punishment of Evil-doers and for the Praise of them that do well in repressing Vice and checking Profaneness and daily dashing Sin out of Countenance and in countenancing and encouraging nourishing and cherishing Sobriety and Temperance Vertue and Godliness Holiness and Religion Let Ministers industriously redeem the Time in ‖ Acts 20.27 not shunning to declare to the People all the Counsel of God in urging Truths upon their own Hearts and pressing and enforcing them upon others Souls in labouring abundantly in the Lord's Vineyard in (*) Verse 28. taking heed unto themselves and (†) 1 Tim. 4.16 to their Doctrine and to all the Flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made them Over-seers in feeding the Church of God with the wholsome Food of sound Words in (‖) Heb. 13.17 watching for Souls as they that must give Account in [*] Acts 20.31 daily warning Sinners with Tears in perswading Men with Earnestness and Importunity as those that well [†] 2 Cor. 5.11 know the Terrour of the Lord in endeavouring to [‖] 1 Tim. 4.16 save themselves and them that hear them to () Jude 23. save some with Fear pulling them out of the Fire in taking all possible Care lest they [] 1 Cor. 9.26 beat the Air and * Gal. 2.2 Phil. 2.16 run in vain and labour in vain left their Peoples †Ezek. 3.18 Blood be required at their Hands and lest when they have preached to others they themselves should become * 1 Cor. 9.27 Cast-aways in discharging their Duty so painfully and faithfully that though
hearty Thankfulness to Christ for it your Obedience to your Lord who does not only vouchsafe it as a Priviledge but command it as a Duty Do this in Remembrance of me Perform this easie sweet Command of thy dying Lord and Saviour who has freed and delivered thee by his Death from the heavy Yoke and grievous Bondage of Jewish Sacrifices and Observances O let our Hearts at such a Time be broken and bleed at the Remembrance of our Sins which brake Christ's Body and shed his Blood Behold in the Sacrifice and bloody Death of Christ represented in this Sacrament the odiousness and baseness of your own Sins and resolve to be the Death of that which was the Death of Christ and rather to die than willingly to do that for which Christ died Abhorr the Thoughts of wilfully choosing so great an Evil as once brought so great a Punishment upon so great a Person as the holy Jesus the well-beloved Son of God Consider seriously upon this Occasion that if God would not spare Christ when he who knew no Sin was by voluntary charitable Assumption of our Guilt to answer for our Sins to be sure then he will not spare us if we wilfully run on in Sin and obstinately allow our selves therein notwithstanding so convincing a Demonstration of his sin-hating Holiness and vindicative Justice Upon due Meditation draw this Conclusion which is the excellent Reasoning of the [p] Facilis est collectio si Deus ne resipiscentibus quidem peccata remittere voluit nisi Christo in poenas succedente multò minùs inultos sinet contumaces Grot. de Satisfact Christi learned Grotius that if God would not pardon the Sins no not of penitent Persons unless Christ did substitute himself in their Room and stand in their Stead to bear the Punishment much less will he suffer unreclaimable Rebels and contumacious Sinners to go unpunished When Christ is set forth in this Sacrament crucified before your Eies think how he intended and aimed at our Mortification and Sanctification in his Death and Passion * Tit. 2.14 Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all Iniquity and purify to himself a peculiar People zealous of good Works †Pet. 2.4 Who his own self bare our Sins in his own Body on the Tree that we being dead to Sin should live unto Righteousness Let us yield that Christ should have his End in his Death and never allow our selves to live in Sin which will render us uncapable of receiving the Benefit of Christ's Death Think how the Unholiness of our Lives is a greater wrong to Christ than the Jews being the very Death of him because as the [q] D. Jackson Vol. 3. p. 343 344 345. learned Dr. Jackson notes it is more against the Will and Liking and good Pleasure of our Saviour whose Will was regulated by Reason and was a constant Rule of Goodness for though a painful shameful Death and that inflicted by his own People went much against his human Will yet he chose rather to die and to suffer the most afflictive Circumstances of Death for us than to suffer us to live and die in our Sins and in the Servitude and Power of Satan Shall we pretend when we approach to the Table of our Lord affectionately to remember a loving dying Saviour and to desire to have his Memory continued and transmitted to Posterity and yet so much forget him upon the return of any Temptation as to repeat that which was the Death of him Shall we weep at the Sacrament and seem to be hugely troubled for those Sins which were the Cause of Christ's Sorrows and yet go about again to destroy and to crucify Christ afresh Shall we commemorate at the Lord's Supper our wonderful Redemption by the precious Blood of Christ and when we have done shall we do the Devil more work and service than the Lord Christ O what a Reproach is this to Christ and what a Sport to the Devil that they that pretend to remember Christ's Dying for them should not find in their hearts to live to him [q] Ego pro istis quos mecum vides nec alapas accepi nec flagella sustinui nec crucem pertuli nec sanguinem fudi nec familiam meam pretio passionis cruoris redemi sed nec regnum illis coeleste promitto nec ad paradisum restitutâ immortalitate denuò revoco Tuos tales Christe demonstra vix tui meis pereuntibus adaequantur qui à te divinis mercedibus praemiis coelestibus honorantur Cypr. de Opere Eleemosynis p. 220. St. Cyprian brings in the Devil boasting and bragging against our Saviour and insulting over us silly and sinful Wretches in this manner I have endured no Buffetings nor born Smitings with the Palms of Men's Hands I have suffer'd no Scourgings nor under-gon the Cross for any of these nor have I redeem'd my Family with the Price of my Passion and Blood-shedding yet shew me O Christ so many so busy so painful so dutiful Servants of thine as I am able to shew thee every where of mine Bring forth if thou canst such a Number of Persons who devote themselves and give their Labours Estates and Time to thee as I can easily produce of those who do all this to me When thou professest to remember that Christ died for thee O die to that for which he died Offer thy self to him and lay out thy self for him who once offered himself for us and in the Sacrament offers himself to us Think no Duty too much for him For Shame for Shame do not serve any longer a bloody Murtherer instead of a blessed Saviour and merciful Redeemer Let our Thoughts and Meditations dwell upon the Demonstration given us in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper of Christ's exceeding incomparable Love to Mankind See there how contrary the sweet and kind Nature of Christ is to the cruel and execrable Nature of the old Tyrant the Devil For as the learned [r] His Mystery of Godliness p. 133 245. Dr. More very well observes whereas the Devil who by unjust Vsurpation had got the Government of the World into his own hands tyrannizing with the greatest Cruelty and Scorn that can be imagined over Mankind thirsted after humane Blood and in most Parts of the World required the Sacrificing of Men which could not arise from any thing else but a salvage Pride and Despight against us This new gracious Prince of God's own appointing Christ Jesus was so far from requiring any such villainous Homage that himself became at once one grand and all sufficient Sacrifice for us to expiate the Sins of all Mankind and so to reconcile the World to God Shall not all this disengage us from Sin and Satan and win and gain us over to Christ And let Christ's Death make thee study to do something answerable to the dearest Love of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has
will use all Diligence and good Conscience in their Calling and Trading on the Week-day And their Pains-taking and honest Dealing is likely to bring God's Blessing on their outward Estates Besides They that faithrully worship God on the Lord's-day will seek to God for a Blessing on the Week-day and they that seek it are likely to find it Once more God won't be wanting to those who would not be wanting to him God will bless you six Daies for your Blessing and Serving him one whole Day in seven 2. Our Observation of the Lord's-day as it is a spiritual wise redeeming of that special Season so it is a good Help to the spiritual Redeeming of all the six Daies following The more Liberty Men allow themselves upon the Lord's-day the more loose their Hearts are and negligent of good Duties and religious Exercises all the Week after They that pray not on the Lord's-day will hardly so much as say a Praier all the Week long They that hear not a Sermon on this Day will searcely read a Chapter the whole Week They that rob God of his due on the Lord's-day will rarely deal justly and honestly with their Neighbour on the Week-day But if we keep holy the Lord's-day then every Week-day will have a Tincture and Savour of the Lord's-day Our being Spiritual on the Lord's-day will put us into a very good Frame of Heart will awaken Principles of Conscience compose our Minds six our Wills call in and set in order our Assections Our Sanctification of this Day will season and sanctify us sit and dispose us for a close and holy Walking with God all the Week after If we attend upon God and converse with him on this special Day of his own Appointment we shall find a sensible spiritual Vigour a divine Power and heavenly Strength to carry us through all the Duties of the whole Week following relating either to God or Man If we earnestly redeem the Lord's-day the Observation of that Day will have a strong and mighty Influence on our Lives on other Daies too We shall endeavour to carry our selves after it suitably to it to live and walk and act continually as those that have newly or lately enjoyed so blessed and happy an Opportunity as those that have heard of God heard from him spoken to him had to do with him we shall labour to live in pursuance of the End and Design of the work and Business of the Lord's-day Mot. 2. Our Sanctification and good Improvement of the Lord's-day will fit and prepare us to keep and enjoy a blessed Rest and eternal Sabbath in Heaven They that delight in God here will much more delight in him hereafter and those whom God delights in here he will delight in for evermore They that keep holy the Christian Sabbath here shall be translated and admitted to sanctify and celebrate an everlasting Sabbath in Glory hereafter [g] The Church-porch p. 15. He that loves God's Abode and to combine With Saints on Earth shall one Day with them shine But on the other side your gross continued Neglect and wilful resolved Profanation of the Lord's-day will unfit and unqualify you to keep a glorious festival and a joyful happy Holy-Day in Heaven God can take no Complacency and Delight in you if you can take no Complacency in him no Delight in his Sabbaths no Pleasure in his Worship and Service They that refuse to sanctify a Sabbath and totally to rest on that Day from their worldly Labours and secular Negotiations have reason to fear lest God sware in his Wrath that they shall never enter into his Rest. They that will not rest from their Works and Pleasures on this Day have cause to conclude that in Hell they shall have no Rest neither Day nor Night They that will do their own Works on the Lord's-day may expect to suffer for their evil Deeds in the Day of the Lord. They who wilfully absented themselves from God's House on God's Day have no ground to hope that God will receive them to Communion with himself in his heavenly Kingdom And as God can take no delight in you so if you pollute and profane break and violate the Lord's-Day neglect Religion contemn the Worship and despise the Service of God if you changed your place you would there no more delight in God than you do here Heaven would be a Burden Heaven would be an Hell to the unsuitable Spirit of an irreligious profane voluptuous Person Thou that art weary of Praiers and Praises here what wouldst thou do in Heaven tro there is nothing else there You that are sick of a Sabbath here and long till it be over and can't endure to think of spending a whole Day in Religious Exercises what wilt thou do in Heaven where there is a perpetual Sabbath to be kept for ever Thou that hatest the Communion of Saints here I wonder what thou wouldst do in Heaven where next to the Fruition and Enjoyment of God in Glory the best Entertainment will be the Company and Society of the holy Angels and of the blessed and glorified Saints to all Eternity I have given you some Motives to perswade and engage you to the due Observation and right Redemption of the Lord's-Day Now what are you resolved upon Shall your former Profanation of this Day be the present Burthen of your Spirits and Sadness of your Souls Will you live as those that are convinced that Religion depends upon the Sanctification of this Day and your Salvation upon Religion Will you forbear any more to break into God's Inclosure to encroach upon God's Propriety sacrilegiously to engross God's Day to your selves or to make bold with any Part of it for worldly Employments or vain Pleasures or such Recreations as are apt to prove Lets and Hindrances of your Duties and Devotions and be careful to give God that Portion of Time which is his due Will you for the future sequester your selves from worldly Cares Affections Affairs on this Day and henceforth dedicate the Lord's-Day to the Honour of God and Christ Will you not only cease to censure those serious Christians who dare not lose this choice Time and precious Opportunity as profanely and desperately as formerly you have done But will you so consider the Worth of this Time and so far weigh the great Consequences and weighty Concernments of the well or ill spending of it as to count it honourable and keep it holy without intermixing of secular Matters or indulging profane Thoughts and introducing inconvenient improper Discourses in any part of it Will you labour to walk accurately exactly precisely on this Day and not be afraid of being [h] He keeps the Lord's-day best that keeps it with most Religion and with most Charity Bp. Taylor 's Rule and Exerc. of Hol. Lif chap. 4 sec 6. rul 8. Hypocrites are out disputing the Obligations to their Duty and asking How do you prove that it is a Duty to pray in my Family
unweariedly in the holy Path though he has but few to bear him company in the narrow Way to Heaven Though the common Vote should go against us yet with holy * Josh 24.15 Joshua le us be singular in our vertuous Choice and plous Resolution Let us with Noah be upright and walk with God even when †Gen. 6.12 all Plesh have corrupted their way Let us with Lot be righteous even in Sodom and keep our Garments underfiled and unspotted with the Flesh even in a Sink of Sin and Uncleanness Let 's use all possible Arts and Means to retain our Healthfulness in a very bad and corrupt Air to keep the Spark of Grace alive in the very midst of the Ocean to preserve and maintain a gracious Disposition in the mids of a Deluge of Temptation Let us labour to be like Fish sweet and fresh in salt Water like Pearls or Jewels sparkling in a Dunghill yea to be like the Sun shining upon a Dunghill whose pure Raies and clear Beams are no way polluted with the Filthiness of it Let 's endeavour to be righteous among the Unrighteous and zealous among those that are careless and negligent of God and Religion And let the Coldness of the ambient Air. without not extinguish or weaken but fortify and strengthen our supernatural Heat within Though we live in bad Times yet let 's keep our selves free from the Evil of the Times And the freer we keep and preserve our selves from the Taint and Infection of the common Corruption we shall the more notably reprove and condemn discourage and discountenance the reigning Sins and abounding Vices of the Times we live in Though we be in the World which lies in Wickedness yet let us not be of the World but pray to God to keep us and endeavour to keep our selves * Joh. 17.15 from the Evil of the World Let not us be the worse for these evil Daies for if we be made worse by them we shall also make them worse Let our Care and Endeavour be to be good in evil Daies and as the Evil of Sin abounds let us encrease in Holiness Farther 3. Let us labour as to be good so to do good in evil Daies As to be good our selves so to make others good in the worst Times that can be By a holy and exemplary Conversation to be instrumental to their Conversion and if it be possible a Means effectual to bring the very Worst and Wickedest home to God In the †Phil. 2.15 16. midst of a crooked and perverse Nation let us shine as Lights in the World holding forth the Word of Life By our vertuous Lives adorned with excellent Actions let 's shine as so many Stars before them and be as so many Lights set up in Towers to direct others how to steer aright their Christian Course and safely to arrive at the Port of eternal Rest and the Haven of heavenly Happiness Let us pity and pray for those who pity and pray not for themselves let us exhort admonish them rebuke reprove them and ‖ Jude 23. save them with Fear pulling them out of the Fire Let us labour in this manner to make the evil Men of the Times as much better as we can By way of Motive Consider seriously these three Things Mot. 1. That if we grow bad in evil Times we can fetch no excuse from the Times for our Sins Men are apt indeed to translate the blame of their own Actions upon the Times and Places in which they live [s] Intelligas tua vitia esse quae put as renum Non ego ambitiosus sum sed me mo aliter Romae potest vivere Non ego fumptuosus sum sed Vrbs â—psd magnds impensas exigit Quid nos decipimus non est extrinsecus malum nostrum intrà nos est in visceribus ipsis sed t. Seneca E0 50. Seneca complains of some too ready to do so in his Daies that would argue and plead thus for themselves I am not ambitious but no man can live otherwise in Rome I am not extravagantly sumptuous but the City enforces great Expences it is costly and chargeable living in the City But why do we deceive our selves says he This Evil is not from any Cause without us it is within us it is seated on and sticks in our very Bowels If our Minds and Hearts were well disposed and rightly enclined Temptations would prove like Fire falling upon [t] Nec interest ex quà m magna causa ira naseatur sed in qualem perveniat animum Sic ignis non refert quà m magnus sed quò incidat nam etiam maximum solida non receperunt rursus arida corripi facilia scintiliam quoque fovent usque adiacendium Seneca Ep. 18. in sine uncombustible Matter Evil Times and Places are indeed an Occasion of Sin but the Cause is our own Hearts and Wills If we would carefully watch over our selves and above all keepings keep our Hearts we might keep our selves * Jam. 1.27 unspotted from the World in the corruptest Times and Places as well as others recorded in Scripture for our Example and Encouragement have done before us The Badness of the Times as [u] Of the Decelifulness of Man's Heart p. 157. Mr. Dyke occasionally citing my Text notes well upon it did not serve with St. Paul for a Cloak to excuse our Conformity to the Times but as a Spur to excite us to be so much the more careful of our selves not to be swaied with the common Stream And good reason have we saies he to make this use of the Corruption of the Times for if the Air be generally infectious had we not need to be so much the more strict in our Diet and careful in the use of wholesome Preservatives Surely as the same Author adds the worse the Times are the nearer grow they to their End and therefore so much the more apprehensive ought we to be of the Occasions of good because the Day in which only we can work is declining apace and that fearful Night approacheth wherein none can work Consider Mot. 2. It will be our high Praise and Glory to be religious and holy when the Times are profane and ungodly To be good Husbands in redeeming the Time when others are prodigals round about us [i] Sicut gravior is culpae est inter bonos bonum non esse it a immensi est praeconit bonum etiam inter malos extilisse Greg. l. 1. Mor. c. 1. As it 's a great Sin to be bad in good Times so 't is an admirable Vertue to be good in bad Times It is not so praise worthy to be good in good Times and among good Persons But to resist the Stream of evil Times and Persons to tug hard against Wind and Tide to resolve to be good and to endeavour to do good against all Opposition and Discouragement whatever Not to follow others in any sinful Waies and
think yet farther That it will be an Act of Justice for God to do this That though he Sin yet he does not revoke the Sentence but in due Time will execute Judgment and Vengeance upon it for the first Sin that Man committed and for all the rest that have been acted in it That Man not only being a Tenant at will but having unworthily broken his Covenant and forfeited his Possession by breaking the Articles of his Lease his Lord at last will turn him out of Doors or rather pull down his House about his Ears and not suffer it to be alwaies a Nest of Rebels and Covenant-breakers That this World the Creature made for the Use of Man being defiled and abused by him to serve him in his Sin when the Sins of the Inhabitants of the Earth as of the * Gen. 15.16 Amorites of old shall arrive to a * Gen. 15.16 Fulness when once the rebellious Generations of Adam shall have fill'd up the Measure of their Iniquities and are ripe for Judgment the Day of Dissolution will then certainly come called expresly †2 Pet. 3 7. the Day of Judgment and Perdition of ungodly Men That then the wicked and abominable Men shall be burnt in the Place of their Wickedness and the Objects and Instruments of their Sin shall be destroyed with them and become the Instruments of their Punishment For so the Garden of Eden wherein Man was at first plac'd was destroyed and defac'd when once he had sinned in it And what more usual even among Men than to order the Execution of notorious Malefactors in the Places where they have committed their Wickedness and to sentence the Houses wherein themselves and their Families liv'd to be demolished ‖ Dan. 3.29 Their Houses shall be made a Dunghill You have heard of great and terrible Fires in the World and of famous Cities consum'd thereby and have seen not many Years since the devouring desolating Flames of London the Metropolis and chief City of our Nation But think with thy self that all this is nothing at all to that great Fire which one Day God will kindle at once setting Heaven and Earth in a Flame together Let me here assist your Meditation by proposing and presenting to you a notable Description given by a very learned [k] Dr. More 's Myst of Godl p. 238. Concerning the Partibility of the Conflagration of the Earth See there Book 6 c. 7 8. Doctor of the general and final Conflagration of the Earth Christ will cause saies he such an universal Thunder and Lightning that it shall rattle over all the Quarters of the Earth rain down burning Comets and falling Stars and discharge such Claps of unextinguishable Frie that it will do sure Execution wherever it falls so that the Ground being excessively heated those subterraneous Mines of combustible Matter will also take Fire which inflaming the inward Exhalations of the Earth will cause a terrible Murmur under Ground so that the Earth will seem to thunder against the tearing and ratling of the Heavens and all will be fill'd with sad remugient Echo's Earth-quakes and Eruptions of Fire there will be every where and whole Cities and Countries swallowed down by the vast gapings and wide Divulsions of the Ground And this fiery Vengeance shall be so thirsty that it shall drink deep of the very Sea nor shall the Water quench her devouring Appetite but excite it Wherefore the great Channel of the Sea shall be left dry and all Rivers shall be turned into Smoak and Vapour so that the whole Earth shall be inveloped in one entire Cloud of an unspeakable Thickness which shall cause more than an Egyptian Darkness clammy and palpable to be felt which added to this choaking Heat and Stench will compleat this External Hell Consider how the Scripture testifies that God will do this and the Power of God assures us that he can do it for nothing is hard or difficult to him much less impossible Think of the Creation God's raising and building this Frame of the World out of nothing and reason thus with thy self Cannot he that made it by the Word of his Power easily dissolve it And argue further in this manner Cannot he that destroyed the old World by a Floud of Waters destroy this by Fire and cause this to die of a Feaver as the did of a Dropsy Cannot he that turned Sodom and Gomorrah into Ashes do the like with the World it self also Is not he that made Mount Sinai shake and smoak at the giving of the Law able to dissolve all these Things The close and intent Meditation of this general Dissolution will clearly convince thee that Sin is an evil and a bitter Thing and will move thee to hate and abhor to shun and avoid Sin which is of a Nature so mischievous and destructive which is the meritorious procuring Cause of so dreadful a Judgment which not only of old brought the Floud of Water upon the World of the Vngodly and forced down Gehennam de Coelo as Salvian speaks caused God to rain Hell-sire and Brimstone from Heaven * Jude 7. 2 Pet. 2.5 6. upon Sodom and Gamorrah and miserably destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple and turned their fruitful Land into a barren Wilderness but will one Day set this World on fire and put it in a flame and turn this stately Structure and beautiful Frame into a rude confused Chaos The deep and earnest Thoughts of this will affect and influence thy Heart and Life and quicken thee exceedingly to all Sincerity Diligence and Zeal in the Exercise of Godliness to an holy Fear and Aw of him who can and will destroy the World 'T will constrain thee to use the Words of the Apostle and to say in good Sadness * 2 Pet. 3.11 Seeing then that all these Things shall be dissolved what manner of Person ought I to be in all holy Conversation and Godliness Seeing this Destruction shall thus involve all what an engagement does this lay upon me to live the most pure strict Life that ever Man liv'd It will incite thee by a constant course of true Piety wisely to provide for thy Escape in that Day to save and secure thy self from the Evil and Danger of it that thou maiest not be undone by this general Dissolution nor suffer Loss in this Conflagration nor perish in this Burning 'T will put thee in mind to sit thy self for this Day of Dissolution of all Things by getting the Works of the Devil throughly dissolved in thee and the Kingdom of God set up and established in thy Soul The due Consideration of this general Dissolution and final Conflagration will certainly keep thee from setting thy Heart inordinately upon any outward earthly Things from heaping up Treasure to thy self here from dreaming that any of thy Houses here shall continue for ever from having unlimited everlasting Affections for flitting fugitive transitory Things for the World the †1
stedfastly resolvest and earnestly endeavourest to work the Work of God now when there is some Opportunity remaining and Power left which if thou wouldst thou couldst employ in the Devil's Work if indeed this be thy case if truly it be thus with thee then be of good comfort for I dare assure thee that God in Christ will graciously accept thee and gloriously reward thee Remember and consider that they that were hired about the * Mat. 20.9 12. eleventh Hour received every Man a Penny and were made equal unto those which had born the Burden and Heat of the day This indeed gives no Encouragement to any that study to delay from day to day because these Persons in the Parable were never call'd before the eleventh Hour they stood no longer idle but went into the Vineyard as soon as they were call'd without any the least delay Nor does it afford sufficient comfort to a [m] As concerning the man which was called the last Hour of the day to labour in the Vineyard I pray you take notice that this man was a Labourer and though he took pains but for a short time yet Labour he did whereas he that shall defer his Repentance and Amendment of Life till his last Hour if he indeed prove sorry for his Sins yet labour he cannot the best that he can do is to make Offers and Resolutions to work the good VVork of God if it shall please him to snare him Life But that those Resolutions of his shall be accepted with God instead of real very Labour indeed I find no Commission to assure you Chillingworths serm 6. on Luke 16 9. p. 397. Death bed Penitent because these Persons that went in late laboured soundly and wrought full hard for the space of an Hour before they received their Pay which Death-bed Penitents have no time to do But yet this Passage gives good ground of great Comfort to all such Persons as timely think upon their Waies turn their Feet unto God's Testimonies and enter into the Race of Godliness when they could stand idle a while longer or still continue and run on further in foolish Waies and sinful Courses To conclude all I exhort and beseech you and let me effectually perswade and prevail with you by all that with any reason has been offer'd to your consideration to [n] Quare vis procrastinare propositum tuum Surge in instant â—â—ncipe die Nunc tempus est faciendi nunc tempus est pugnandi nunc tempus est emend indi A Kemâ—is l 1. c. 22. n. 5. break off all your Delaies Excuses Discouragements and to give all speedy careful chearful Diligence to redeem the Time to work out your Salvation and to make your Calling and Election sure by bringing forth the seasonable proper plentiful Fruits of an undelayed Repentance Take the excellent Counsel of the wise Son of Sirach * Ecclus 18.19 10 21 22. Vse Physick or ever thou be sick Before Judgment examine thy self and in the day of Visitation thou shalt find Mercy Humble thy self before thou be sick and in the time of Sins shew Repentance Let nothing hinder thee to pay thy Vow in due time and defer not until Death to be justified Follow likewise the Advice and practise according to the profitable Direction of the Learned Gerhard Timely and faithfully [o] Vtamur mediis conversionis salutis vivamus in vero timore Dei insistamus precibuâ— resistamus peccatorum principus ne cogitatio prava delectationem delectatio consensum consensus opus gignat opus consuetudinem consuetudo necessitatem necessitas pertinaciam pertinacia desperationem desperatio damnationem pariat Gerhard Harm c. 201. p. 2000. use the means of Conversion and Salvation live in the true Fear of God pray without ceasing resist the Beginnings of any Sins lest an evil Thought raise Delight Delight draw on Consent Consent produce an evil Work evil Works beget an evil Habit an evil Habit induce a kind of Necessity of sinning and such Necessity breed Pertinacy Pertinacy cause Despair and Desperation end in Damnation FINIS