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cause_n	good_a	know_v	let_v	2,834	5	4.0034	3	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A62467	A sermon preached at the assizes held at Chelmsford in the county of Essex, September 2d, 1691 before the Honourable Sir William Dolben, Knight, one of the justices of the Court of Kings Bench by Stephen Thornton ...	Thornton, Stephen, 1657 or 8-1744.	1691 (1691)	Wing T1061; ESTC R16613	14,636	34

Religion and shall first consider the common Obligations to it then that of National Interest and lastly a Modern Prejudice against it First Common Obligations to Religion are 1. It 's Authority This is that short way of Satisfaction so much in esteem with some of the Philosophers who saved themselves the labour of Reasoning by the Authority of their Masters And what is this setting up Men for Gods but worshipping Error and Impertinence But if the Authority be truly Divine it self is the highest Reason Now that the Religion which we profess has such an Authority was demonstrated by those Persons who were entrusted with the propagation of it in the World not by the pretence of secret Conferences with Nymphs or resort to far distant Oracles as in the known Stories of Numa and Lycurgus but by the active Presence of a Divine Power with them in their Ministry and by a Conduct that might clear their Sincerity to Mankind It would be too much to send those that deny this so many Ages backward they are commonly too weak and lazy to travel so far after an Argument let them then but look about them at the Progress that this Religion has made in the World and give a tolerable account how all this could come to pass without such a Divine Power None speak more of the dulness and unpoliteness of the Apostles than they With what a spiteful sort of satisfaction are the Characters of the same Vertue in Seneca admired in St. Paul blasphemed How have some Heathen Writers in their judgment for fineness of Wit and Expression out-done the Teachers of Christianity Cast into this Account all the Contempts the Corinthians treated their Apostle with thô the most learned of them all his presence weak perhaps homo tricubitalis his speech contemptible without any graces of Oratory 2 Cor. 10.10 Allow all their little Witticisms upon the Apostles mean Accomplishments and way of Life And what does all this come to but that it proves them assisted with a Divine Power 'T is true Tully and Seneca c. spoke fine things concerning Vertue and Felicity but who ever heard of their Conversions in the World A Fisherman under the prejudice of Drunkenness with a plain inartificial speech brings in 3000 Souls Acts 2. A Tent-maker ventures to Preach at Athens the Seat of Learning and the Mechanick finds Proselytes among the Philosophers Acts 17. Look into the present state of the World and where-ever there is Learning and Civility the Writings of these Men are kept are reverenced are consulted as Oracles Never was Philosophy Wit all Science so far advanced and yet the wisest and most accomplish'd of the Age grow old in studying these Apostles nor has all Tully so much Comment as one Paragraph of the Tent-maker It will be hard to perswade any considering Man that all this could proceed from Men of their Figure without the help of a Divine Power St. Paul acknowledges that this treasure was put into earthen vessels and makes advantage of it in favour of the Gospel that the excellency of the power might be of God and not of men 2 Cor. 4.7 We must then confess a Miracle on one hand for either those attributed to the Apostles are true or else the success of Christianity will it self be the greatest Miracle that ever was in the World And take which side you will it proves the Divine Authority of our Religion 2. The Nature of the things it propounds which are of the greatest Consequence to us imaginable The highest Enquiry of our Life is after Blessedness De Finib l. 5. id esse in bonis ultimum secundùm naturam vivere Ex hominis naturâ undique perfectâ c. Omnes sapientes esse beatos sed tamen fieri posse ut sit alius alio beatior and this Christian Philosophy kindly offers us her Hand in the Search Cicero whom I mention for a Pattern has a whole Treatise of Beatitude wherein beside some Learning in sorting the Opinions of the Ancients we find little of any thing positively asserted but That our supream Good is to live according to perfect Nature and that all Wise Men are happy but in several degrees This goes a good way toward a Confession that Beatitude is to be expected in some other state But indeed herein was the weakness of that Philosophy that it still left Men upon the Confines of Felicity But a moderate Proficient in revealed Religion knows more than a whole Age of Philosophers From what cause proceed the Miseries that vex and embitter Humane Life what allays may be given to them here what Corrections of Nature what approaches to be made to the Divine and Original Life That our Souls are immortal and shall subsist in another state wherein they shall better know what belongs to Felicity What Manifestations the Supream Being has made of himself and his Love to the World how to understand and submit to his Providences and make use of all the parts of Life what hope we have of Mercy and what assistance of a Divine Grace by what Duties we may please and enjoy our Creator these are Propositions of our Religion And how worthy are these to employ our most serious Considerations It is only in such that our Minds are match'd with an Object What was Heavenly in them expires while they mingle too freely with the Dust Let our thoughts then arise and soar to the utmost reaches of our Nature and let us distinguish our selves from the Brutes leaving them their own Enjoyments Nothing but Religion can sufficiently vindicate us from being part of the Herd 3. It s Reasonableness This joyned to its Authority is wonderfully obliging without which that might seem Tyranny over the Soul but this brings the engagement of Love Now Religion is Rational as to Points of Faith That God is is as certain as that there is a World as that there is a Cause which it self is not also the Effect of something else He that knows his own frame finds a great many steps of a Divine Wisdom that has been there Reason it self is one of the greatest Wonders and its own Argument of a God The great thoughts of a Soul shew a great Original and it can conceive no less of its Powers but that there is a Being who has them in perfection It self is a little Deity governing its own World which must needs facilitate the belief of something parallel in the Universe And as it is evident from Reason that God is so that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him Heb 11.6 and consequently that there is a future state And thô we were not agreed upon Revelation as to the necessity of a Redeemer it would be no irrational Belief We can't but confess the Debt of a perfect Obedience to our Creator and yet all find a strange Iniquity in their Natures which God placed not there and therefore is not bound to make allowances for which

it be fulfilled in specie it will be to Politick Bodies to Nations Were there no more in it but the removing those things that provoke God against us it would deserve all the good we can say of it When a People have had the Gospel so long that they are ashamed of it and God so nigh unto them in all things that they are weary of him such merciful vicissitudes of Providence and all presently forgotten like some antediluvian History when Blasphemy has corrupted the Language of a Nation and bold Excesses and Fornication its Morals the case of such a People is not to be considered at a common rate Had they been placed in some dark part of the World they might with more safety have worshipt the Pagods and fallen down to the Rising Sun Now in such publick Danger how useful would true Religion be in the hearts and lives of Men One Property is that it is full of Prayers gets into the Gap and will not suffer Destruction to break in With all those Cries of Sodom Gen. 18. had there been but Ten Righteous Men to have mingled their Prayers they had out-done them Were then a Nation Religious what a Security would this amount to What an Harmony of publick Desires what strong Cries They do much now with all the noise of Blasphemy but were this the breathing of all our Souls what a sweet-smelling savour would it be We should with less Expence tread down our Enemies and if it be a greater Blessing to have none we should have that too for when a man's ways please the Lord he maketh even his Enemies to be at peace with him Prov. 16.7 The result of all is That we cherish our Religion as our Palladium What Balak could not do by Balaam's Inchantments he compassed by his Counsels To lay a stumbling-block before the Children of Israel to eat things offered to Idols and commit Fornication Rev. 2.14 We have much the same Obligation to the debauched part of the Nation nay thô they talk high for the Government and Church and give the Enemies of them to the Devil they do so too by their own Souls and Blood every day This helps not us Hoc Ithacus velit Let them reform their Lives and we shall be glad of their Prayers otherwise let them not name us It looks like a desperate Cause where they have any Interest Let them take our Religion altogether or go seek one to which their Lives will be no scandal but is as bad as themselves They deprive us of our Rock our Strength our Salvation and instead of him they will defend us Let them not mistake us what Achish says in the case of David Have we any need of Mad-men Sirs it is our hard Fate that we have our Nation to deliver out of the hands of these Men as well as our most professed Enemies If it be possible let us pray down their Blasphemies Yet Prayers themselves will be but noise except they be the Offerings of pure Minds and our Lives too be sanctified to God Thus we shall serve our Country better than in a Century of Campagnes But beside a Personal Reformation some have Families to bring in to the Common Service some other Charges And to Address with all Respect to you The Honourable and Worshipful the Magistrates you are Ministers of God too We are not forgetful how greatly you merited of us in times when it was not very safe to dare to be Englishmen By you we do not look back with sorrow upon the Ruins of a Nation and cry Fuimus Troes Only pardon me if I remember you that your worthy Conduct has raised our expectations to see the Laws against common wickedness better executed and that you have not saved them in vain Our Gracious Princes have not such Designs as stand in need of the wickedness of their People Stand up then for the Honour of God who has imparted to you his Authority and his Name Psal 82.6 Let not Vice bear it self out with State and Quality nor the floods of ungodly men make you afraid We find that the naked Proposition of Vertue will not do and must beg your Hand for languishing Religion Mark Vice with the Infamy the Laws have assigned it restrain Atheism from Proselyting in this Light at least frown all Profaneness out of gentile Society let it be seen that you really hate the evil and love the good and we shall not take it ill if you call upon us too in our turns that we may all rise up with united Zeal for the Honour of our God for our Altars for all our dearest Interests and for our afflicted Brethren the Remnant of Joseph Thirdly I shall consider a Modern Prejudice against Religion That good is to be loved and evil hated scarce any will deny but the perplexity is that what some Teachers of Religion call good others call evil so that some People think it reasonable to be of none at all till they are agreed which is so far from being to be expected that the same Teachers are not alway at agreement with themselves but what they call good at one time they call evil another 'T is a scandal to some that a sort of Doctrines taught so earnestly a few years ago are scarce now to be heard of except with some temperaments and softnings 't is a scandal to others that they were ever heard of The iniquity of one Humour is unaccountable The same People are angry with us for our scruples about the present Settlement and our compliances too our Repentance is made our Crime and if the Teachers of Religion know their business no better it is no matter what any of them say nothing is certain of it but that it is all Cheat Priestcraft is the Modish word and in vain Men heat themselves so about Fundamentals for the time will come when they will take their turns too to be out of season This is the true state of the Objection which I could not decline however it may seem to come in here And indeed if all did not go to the account of Religion we could be silent thô we want not what to say for selves We could in part deny the Fact Men that never took the pains to understand our Doctrines may bring us in for more than we taught and because we don't agree with their Fancies think we do not agree with our selves If we now leave the Nature of the Government to more proper Judges in the main we teach the same Obedience to it If this be done with less heat it is because the occasion is ceased and the Debaucheries of the Age especially the Objectors find us sufficient work But my Design is not to vindicate our selves but Religion which I shall do upon a Supposition that what is contained in the Objection is true 1. In general Differences in Religion rightly considered are a Confirmation to it It has foretold them There must be Heresies 1