when as the Lord does thus prevent us with his grace and is at our bed-side with his grace when we lie sleeping and never think of mercy and grace an ingenious soul should say thus What is all this but a plain rebuke to the slothfulness of my duty Come up prayer up duty oh my soul be up sooner Yea through the Lords grace I will be up sooner at Heaven gate in duty than ever I was before His preventing grace teaches me thus much that I am not soon enough at Heaven gate with my duty Again 2. Duty Hath the Lord prevented any of you with grace and caused the Kingdom of Heaven to draw neer to you before you drew neer to it Do you do the like labour in your love to be like to Christ to be like to God We stand upon our terms when we have to deal with men upon our terms of State had Jesus Christ stood upon terms of State when he came to save sinners what had become of us We say we will forgive such a man for wrong done to us upon his acknowledgement Oh! but did Christ do so Did not Christ prevent us Beloved ye see how 't is with the water it moves downward but if the fire get into it if there be water in a pot upon the fire and fire get into the water the fire makes it move upward it moves according to the nature of the fire then So now if the love of Jesus Christ get into our hearts it will make us move like unto Christ How does the love of Jesus Christ move Oh saies Christ Father forgive them they know not what they do Luke 23.34 Christ did not stay for acknowledgement a poor and a low thing for a Christian Enough for a Heathen to say so I will forgive such a man for wrong done to me upon his acknowledgment Let our love be like unto Christs and labour to prevent others with our love as Jesus Christ hath prevented us Thirdly Then let all men waith upon others 3 Duty with all longsufforing and patience for their Conversion and the revelation of truth unto them Thou art a Parent and desirest thy Child may be Converted and hast taken a great deal of pains with him for his Conversion and yet it will not be Thou art a governour of a family and would'st fain have such a servant converted to Christ and hast taken a great deal of pains and yet it won't be A friend you have and you would fain that he knew such a Truth and much pains you have taken to beat such a Truth into him and he don't take it and you are ready to be angry but remember this The Kingdom of Heaven draws neer to us before we draw neer to it Grace must come to thy Childs soul first before it does come to Christ Mercy must come to the soul and the Lord must come and bring truths unto the soul What is then to be done Then be not angry with him wait with all long suffering and all patience and go to God go to God for thy Child go to God for thy friend go to God for thy servant upon this ground Because the Kingdom of Heaven must come to us first before we can come to it But Especially 4. Duty and Fourthly Trust in the Lord for ever Oh! all you that are the servants of the Lord upon this ground Trust in the Lord for ever Does the kingdom of Heaven approach and draw neer to us before we draw neer unto it Then say within your souls Doubting shall be no more Some there are that doubt of their salvation because of the lgnorance that is in them darkness causes fear they don't know the mercifull disposition of Jesus Christ and so they doubt of his love The Devil as he labours to change himself into an angel of light so he labours to change Christ into an angel of darkness But beloved ye have heard of the merciful sweet disposition of Jesus Christ he is willing to save sinners and the greatest sinners brings neer the Kingdom of Heaven to us before we draw neer to it Oh! wilt thou doubt again poor Christian wilt thou doubt again Some there are that doubt of their salvation because they are afraid their duties shall not be accepted prayers shall not be accepted Oh! if I could but be perswaded saies one that the Lord would hear my prayer and accept of my duty then I should know indeed I should be saved but I am afraid the Lord doth not hear my prayers and accept of my duties and therefore I fear I shall not be saved Man or woman where ever thou standst or art hear the Word of the Lord. Does the Lord cause the Kingdom of Heaven to approach and draw neer to us before we draw neer to it will the Lord be found of those that seek him not and will he not be found of you that do seek him Will the Lord come with his grace and make an offer of grace and mercy to a sinner and a great sinner and will not the Lord receive you when you do come unto him Think of this and surely then you will say Doubting shall be no more Some there are that doubt of their salveation because they cannot pray their hearts are dead pray I cannot and hear I cannot and reade I cannot performe duty I cannot and therefore I have cause to fear I shall never come to Heaven Well but though you cannot Man or Woman Christian pray as thou art able and hear as thou art able and reade as thou art able the Lord Christ is of this sweet disposition That he does canse the Kingdom of Heaven to draw neer to us before we draw neer to it Oh! therefore you that are the servants of the Lord Trust in the Lord for ever for ever trust in the Lord and let doubting be no more I conclude all with one word of Exhortation Applic. 2 and it is unto those that have not yet submitted unto this Kingdom of Heaven this Kingdom of Grace Is there a truth in this Doctrine That the Kingdom of Heaven grace mercy and free remission does approach unto us before we draw neer unto it and that because indeed we are not able to draw neer to it before it draws neer unto us Then all you that have not yet submitted unto this Kingdom of grace and the offer of grace and mercy in the Gospel when ever any offer shall be made unto ye take heed that ye neglect not so great salvation You see how 't is with the sea-man because the sea-man is not able to raise a wind or turn the wind when 't is raised he lies upon the sea-coast ready waiting upon the wind and when the wind turns then he hoists up his sailes for saies he now the wind is come about and if I lose this gale I am likely to lose my voyage I cannot turn the wind I cannot make the wind So
18.15 A Prophet will I raise up like unto thee I 'l put My Name in him He shall be called God Jehovah as I am Then the Lord proclaimed before Moses himself to be the Lord gracious merciful forgiving iniquity transgression and sin reserving mercy for thousands Then the Lord gave the Law and least they should think that God intended it as a Covenant of works He did at the same time give the Ceremonial Law that thereby they might reade the satisfaction of Jesus Christ for any sin they should commit against the Moral Law Here was a higher Advance But because this was still under-vail'd And it is a pain to love to conceal it self the Lord does make a further revelation of His Grace of Christ by His servant David for after David and Solomons time we reade of the Eternal generation of Christ Proverbs the 8. Of the Incarnation of Christ Loe I come Psal 40.7 in the volume of thy Book saies the Psalmist Of the Death and Suffering of Christ Psalm the 22.1 and divers other Psalms My God My God why hast thou forsaken me Of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ in the 118. Psalm and the 16. Psalm Thou wilt not suffer thine holy One to see corruption Of all the Three Offices of Jesus Christ His Kingly Office The second Psalm Yet will I set my King upon my holy Hill His Prophetical Office He shall declare the Decree Psal 2.7 And His Priestly Office Thou art a Priest for ever after the Order of Melchisedech Psal 110. Of the Ascention of Jesus Christ Psal 68. He hath ascended on high and received gifts for men Of the Sitting at the right hand of God the Father the 110. Psal The Lord said unto my Lord sit thou on my right hand Thus you see in Davids time the Gospel had Advance further had gotten a great deal of ground But the Lord was not yet contented but causes more of His Grace to break forth in the times of the Prophets more concerning Christ He tells them of the very Time Christ should be born Daniel the 9. Of the Place where He should be born At Bethlehem The Person that should bear Him Mic. 5.2 Isa 7.14 Mal. 3.1 A Virgin shal conceive Gives them divers Characters whereby they should know Him when He came And I will send my Messenger before Him The voice of one crying in the wilderness He will ride upon an Asses colt Behold thy King Isa 40.3 Zac. 9.9 11.12 Isa 53.5 comes riding upon an Asses colt He shall be sold for Thirty pieces of silver saies the Prophet Zachary He shall die not for His own sins but ours The chastisement of our peace shall be upon Him And as if all this were not enough The Lord speaks out the Covenant of Grace expresly in Jer. 31.31 The daies come saie the Lord that I will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah verse the 33. This shall be the Covenant that I will make with them after those daies saith the Lord I will put my Law into their inward parts and write it in their hearts and will be their God and they shall be my people And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor and every man his brother saying Know the Lord They shall all know me from the least of them unto the greatest of them saith the Lord for I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more What a mighty Advance had Grace made now Is there any more yet Yes our Savior Himself comes and then Grace Advances higher by much higher then Grace enlarges her Quarters extending it self unto all the world go teach all Nations Go teach all Nations saies our Savior That house of Israel would serve such a candle as Moses was Mat. 28.19 But when the Sun arises no less then the whol world for him to display his beams upon He had set up a school of Grace in that corner of the world in Jenny But when the Lord Jesus Himself comes a Free-School is set up the School of Free Grace for all the children of men to come unto Go teach all Nations Yea in the second place Although our Savior Christ did go unto our fore fathers the Jews and preach unto them by His Spirit He came to them as Joseph to his brethren at the first in a hidden way under a vail But now the vail of the Temple is rent asunder and the most common people may see into the Holy of Holiest Now we all with open face behold as in a glass the Glory of the Lord. The Jews 2 Cor. 3.18 they had the Shadows and we have as it were the Picture but the Substance the Thing it is yet to come These Three ye find in that first verse of the 10. Chapter to the Hebrews For the Law having a shadow of good things to come and not the very Image of the thing Here 's the Shadow and here 's the Image and here 's the Thing it self The Thing it self it is yet to come They indeed had the Shadow but we have the Image and look how much an Image or the picture of a man goes beyond a shadow So much does the discovery of Christ now go beyond the discoveries of Him then Luther saies The whol world is but one day as it were And as the evening and the morning made the day so saies he our fore fathers the Jews they had the evening but we have the morning Again Though there were many Doctrines of Grace and mercy communicated to our fore fathers the Jews Yet notwithstanding they were so tempered with the Law that the very Gospel seem'd to be Law to them As now we have the Law among us but 't is so temper'd with the Gospel that the Law it self is Gospel-wise to us They had Christ in the hand of Moses and we have Moses in the hand of Christ A mighty difference As we have a Baptized and a Christian Moses so they had a Circumcized and a Mosaical Christ They had Grace in the hand of the Law And therefore you shall observe that when the Lord appear'd unto them in way of greatest mercy He appear'd still with tokens of Majesty and Greatness But now we have Grace in the hand of Grace we have Grace with the tokens of Grace and with the tokens of Love And this difference the Apostle makes out cleerly in the 12. of the Hebrews from the 18. unto the 25. Again Though they had many Doctrins of Grace and of free Grace yet themselves were not made free thereby but they were as the children of the bond-woman they were not free from Ceremonial Rites They had the free use of the creature their hearts were not free and enlarged towards God Indeed those that were Godly among them they were Children Gal. 4.1 4 5 6. But as the Apostle speaks they being under age they differed not
Action of Christ may be our instruction Nothing in Christ not imitable some things more especially For Example Our Lord and Savior Christ He made it His great business and design To bear witness to the Truth For this Cause came I into the world Joh 18.37 That I might bear witness unto the Truth Again He would stoop to any work though it lay much below Him wasn His Disciples feet lay His Excellencies at the feet of their Infirmities Again When He went upon any work He was much in Prayer first Judas knew His Praying place And when He was at Gods work He would not know His own Natural Relations And therefore saies He to His Mother Moman My time is not yet come He does not say Mother Joh. 2.4 My time is not yet come but Woman in Gods Work He would not know His owne Naturall Relations If He had to deal with man He had a high esteem of the Saints though they were never so low And He had a low esteem of the wicked though they were never so rich He did again so exercise one Grace as He might exercise another He would so rejoyce in God as He might grieve for sin not His own but ours and He did so grieve for sin as he might rejoyce in God He was very Zealous yet he was Wise too He was wise and yet he was Zealous too He was a Lamb and a Lyon a Lamb in his own Cause and a Lyon in Gods Cause Oh! that in these thigns you would labor to be like unto Him It would be infinit indeed it would be beyone me if I should single out all his Graces that were eminent in Him He was a Heaven of Grace full of shining stars Behold Him in His Doings The only way for you to be like to Him in your Doing is to behold Him in His Doing And so for His Sufferings Ye shall observe He would not suffer till He was called unto it Therefore He stood so precisely upon His Time Joh. 7.8 My Time is not yet come And when He was called unto it He would not be put out of His way If they cast water upon Him it made Him flame the more Mat. 16.23 Isa 53.7 Get thee behind me Satan In all His sufferings He had an especial eye to other mens good then He went very quietly and meekly As a Lamb dumb before the shearers so He opened not His mouth And He was more sensible which I pray mark of Gods withdrawing from Him in His sufferings than of all the pains disgrace and misery that He did undergo And therefore when He was upon the Cross saies He My God My God why hast thou forsaken me Mat. 27.6.4 The Sun did forsake Him too the Sun did withdraw his light and yet He does not say Oh! Sun why doest thou thus forsake me The Disciples al forsook Him and yet He does not cry out Thomas Why doest thou now forsake me Peter why doest thou now forsake me He cries not out of them His body was nail'd to the Cross and he does not cry out and say Oh! my hands Oh! my body Oh! the pain that I indure but here he cries out of this Oh! My God My God why hast thou forsaken me He was more sensible of Gods withdrawing from Him tnan of all the other miseries that He did indure Oh! my beloved that you would labor now for to be like unto Jesus Christ in your Doing in your Suffering for to be like to Him The sight of a gracious Christ will make us gracious if any thing will do it Labor now to be like unto Him more and more This is your duty that does flow from hence You that are Saints you that are Christ's you that have received Grace for Grace Christ expects work for work and doing for doing that you should shine as He shin'd and that you should live as He lived that you should so walk and be in the world that those that do live with you may say Here 's a man or woman that is like to Christ that hath received Grace for Grace now we see this Doctrine true I cannot think of any Grace of Christ but I see it shining forth in this man and woman This is your Duty Thirdly by way of Application If this be true Appli 3. That the Saints and People of God do receive of Christs Fulness Even Grace for Grace How infinitly are we bound unto God the Father for our Lord Jesus Christ glorious is the fellowship and communion that the Saints have with Christ as ye heard they have not only fellowship with Him in His sufferings to have suffering for suffering but they have fellowship with Him in His Graces Grace for Grace and this fellowship hath God the Father brought you into Mark therefore that place again which you have in the 1 Cor. 1.9 God is faithful by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord. By whom ye were called unto this fellowship Therefore still the Apostle he blesses God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Blessed be God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Not barely Blessed be God but Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Beloved Ye know there are Two great Gifts that the Scripture makes mention of First God makes the world and Man and having made man He gives all the world to man there 's one Gift and a great Gift Man having fallen and lost his former Happiness Christ comes into the world the second Person becomes man and this man he gives unto the world First He gave the world to man And Secondly He gives Christ this man unto the world and His second Gift is the greater Gift it 's a greater Gift when Jesus Christ was given unto the world than that the whol world was given to man For now take the world and though it hath many glorious pieces of Gods workmanship His Power and Wisedom yet God may give all the world to man and not give him Himself but when He gives Jesus Christ to man He gives Himself with Him Though there be many several pieces beautiful pieces of Gods workmanship in the world yet they carry with them but the Footsteps of God Oh! but Jesus Christ He is the express Image of the Father and when He gives this express Image unto a soul as Christ is the express Image of the Father so the soul becomes the express Image of Jesus Christ Ye know what the Apostle saies concerning our Savior Christ Col. 2.9 mark In whom the fulness of the God-head dwels bodily That is look what Attributes and Excellencies are in God the same are in Jesus Christ as Mediator Whatsoever Attribute is in God as God the sameshines forth in Jesus Christ as Mediator The Fulness of the God-head dwels in Christ bodily and the Fulness of Christ dwels in every Saint Spiritually Jesus Christ He hath Perfection for Perfection
First Proposition The Second afforded this Observation That all the Saints and People of God do partake of the Fulness of Jesus Christ in a way of receiving This fals asunder into Two Parts or Two Branches First That there is a Communication of the Fulness of Jesus Christ unto all Beleevers Secondly That what ever Grace or Holiness the Saints have from Christ they have it in a way of receiving I have done also with the First of these And am now God willing to speak to the Second Whatsoever Grace or Holiness the Saints and People of God have from Christ they have it all in a way of receiving Of His Fulness all we have received The former Branch told us That Christ Communicates This tels us That we Receive There the Emphasis lay upon Christs Communicating And here the Accent is set upon our Receiving The Grace of Jesus Christ is not borne with us We do not go to Jesus Christ in the strength of our Nature to take of His Fulnesse to our selves But Jesus Christ gives out and we receive All in a way of Receiving The Grace and Mercy of our Justification and remission of Sins is by way of Receiving Rom. 5.11 Not only so but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have now received the atonement Atonement is to be had it is to be had by Christ and this in a way of Receiving Again The Grace and Mercy of our Adoption is to be had in a way of Receiving Gal. 4.5 He came to redeem them that were under the Law that we might receive the Adoption of Sons Adoption is a Blessing that is most desirable This Christ gives and this we receive Again The Grace of our Sanctification is to be had in a way of Receiving What is the Cause and Original of all our Grace or Holinesse but the Spirit of God And that is received Gal. 3.2 This only would I learn of you Received ye the Spirit by the works of the Law or by the hearing of Faith The Schools say that the word Grace is either taken for The Gifts of the holy-Ghost or for Saving and Sanctifying Grace Take Grace for The gifts of the holy-Ghost as sometimes the Word is used in Scripture and that is in a way of Receiving Acts 10.47 They heard them speak with Tongues at the 46. ver Then answered Peter Can any man forbid water that these should not be Baptized which have received the holy-Ghost That is The Gift of the holy Ghost Take Grace for Holiness and Sanctification and that is also in a way of Receiving to be had in a way of Receiving Rom. 8.15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear But ye have received the Spirit of Adoption whereby we cry Abba Father There are Gifts of Prayer And there is the Spirit of Prayer of Adoption crying Abba Father The First may be without Grace but the Second not where ever the Second is there is Grace And this is Received saith the Apostle here In general all is by way of Receiving Col. 2.6 As ye have Received the Lord Christ saies the Apostle see that ye walk in Him And in another place 1 Cor. 4.7 What hast thou that thou hast not Received What hast thou that thou hast not Received All in a way of Receiving He shall come down saies the Psalmist in the 72. Psalm speaking concerning our Lord and Savior Christ and His Grace at the 6. verse He shall come down like rain upon the mowen grass Or as some write it for so the Original will bear it He shall come down like rain upon the Fleece having relation to Gideons Fleece He shall come down like rain upon the mowen grass as showers that water the earth A Psalm for Solomon saies the Title But there are many things in this Psalm that cannot properly be understood of Solomon but in a type properly belonging to Jesus Christ For as Strigelius does well observe at the 7. verse the verse next following this text it is said In his daies shall the righteous flourish and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth Solomon did not live so long as the moon endures This therefore is to be understood of Christ And at the 5. verse it is said They shall fear thee as long as the Sun and moon endure throughout all generations They did not fear Solomon men did not fear Solomon as long as the Sun and moon endures through all generations This therefore must be understood of Christ Now see therefore what is said of Christ and concerning His Grace saies the Text in the 6. verse He shall come down like rain upon the mowen grass Like rain rain you know is that that does make the earth fruitful Non ager sed annus facit fructum 'T is not the sowing but 't is the Year that causes fruit 't is the rain that causeth fruit And so 't is the Grace of Jesus Christ that does make us fruitful His Grace the cause of our Grace I will be as a dew saies the Lord in the 14. of Hosea unto Israel and then follows fruitfulness Again The rain cometh by special appointment from God Amos. 4.7 Judg. 6.38 39 40. with a kind of dis-crimination He maketh the rain to fall upon one City saith the Prophet and not upon another As wee reade concerning Gideons Fleece the dew fell upon the Fleece when all the earth was dry round about it And then the dew fell upon the ground when the Fleece was dry And this was a Type of the Grace of Christ when the Jewes were bedewed with the Grace of Christ then all the Nations round about they were dry And then when God bedewed the Gentiles the Nations round about with His Grace then the Jews were dry and they are dry to this day Again The rain falleth 't is the Scripture phrase the rain falleth and falleth upon the earth and the earth is a recipient to receive it it is meer recipient at the first and then brings forth it 's fruit the Rain falleth And so doth the Grace of Christ the Grace of Christ falls upon the souls of men and women saith the Text here He shall come down like the rain upon the mowne grass So doth the Grace of Jesus Christ it comes down upon a poor soul All in a way of receiving al in a way of receiving whatever grace or holiness a man hath on this side Heaven it is all in a way of Receiving And this will appear further to you if you consider The insufficiency of Nature The Supernaturallity of Grace The Shortness of all means that are appointed thereunto The work and nature of Faith And the posture and true behaviour of Prayer First of all There is a Natural inability in a man unto what is good truly Spiritually good First A man is unable by Nature to overcome any sin though it be never so small A man by Nature
And if you look into this first Chapter of John you find That those that are regenerate and borne again 't is said concerning them at the 13. verse that they are not borne of Bloods in the plural number your English hath it Blood in the singular You are not born of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God Some there are and were that thought themselves to be the children of God because they came of godly parents because of their bloods because of their education Ioh. 8.33 So the Jews Wee are the Children of Abraham Some there are and were that think themselves the Children of God because of some Legal workings and monkish devotion all those legalities under the Gospel are called flesh Some there are that think themselves the children of God because of some more refined and raised and heroical actions That he might obviate all these saies he We are not born of bloods nor of the will of the flesh nor of the wil of man but of God You are for Free-will and you think Free-will hath a great stroke in mans Conversion but how can ye look this Scripture in the face No way of will not of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man If it be any will it must be either the will of the flesh or the wil of man but I tel you saies he We are not borne of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man no way of will but of God To the like purpose you have in James 1.17 Every good giving and every perfect gift is from above In some of your books you reade thus Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above But it is rather to be read Every good giving Every good gift and every good giving is from above Not only the Thing given is from above but the very Donation the very Exhibition the very Giving out of the thing that is good it is from above Every good giving and every perfect gift is from above So that plainly then there is an utter Insufficiency in Nature unto what is good As for the Al-sufficiency of Jesu Christ Rom. 8.29 Rev. 1.17 He is the first born among many Brethren He is the first fruit that sanctifieth all the rest I am the first and the last saies he The first is the cause of the rest The Sun is the first and the great light so the cause of all other light Jesus Christ He is called the first in this same Chapter 15. verse This was He saies John of whom I spake He that cometh after me is preferred before me for He was before me So ye reade it but it is He was my first preferred before me 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for He was my first and therefore the first giving a Being unto all that follows Jesus Christ He does give a Being unto all our graces I am the way the truth and the life saies He. Joh. 14.6 I am the Way Would you go to Heaven You cannot go thither but you must go in some Way A man cannot go unto a City but he must go some way or other if he go by water go by land this way or that way still he goes some Way or other Saies Christ if you would go to Heaven I am the Way This same word Way it notes the means unto a thing and when He saies I am the way 't is as if He should say That look what ever means you do use in order to Heaven all those means they have their vertue and their power and their efficacy from me I but a man may be in a way and in a right way and yet notwithstanding if he have not some guide he may lose his way True saies He therefore I am the Truth and 't is observable how Truth lies between Way Life as if the way to Life were thorough Truth as if Truth were the great road or the thorough-fare to life saies Jesus Christ I am that too I am the Way and the Truth too I but though a man be in the right Way and have a guide he may fall sick and die and never come to his journeyes end Therefore saies Christ I am the way and the Truth and the Life too I even I am He that gives life unto all your motions and actions for Heaven all Grace from Christ He it is even He alone that hath every mans heart and soul under lock and key There are Three great doors that must ordinarily be opened before converting-Grace can get into the soul of man 1 Cor. 16.9 Job 33.16 Acts. 16.14 Rev. 3.7 The door of a Powerful Ministry A large and an effectual door is opened The door of the Eare He openeth the eare and sealeth instruction The door of the Vnderstanding and of the heart Lydias heart was opened Now if you look into the Scripture you will find that Jesus Christ hath the opening of all these doors He hath the key of David He openeth and no man shuts and shutteth and no man openeth in the 1. of the Revelation and the 18. He saies That He hath the keyes of Hell and of death No man goes into the grave but He opens a door to let him in and no man goes to Hell but Jesus Christ He locks him up there He locks him up there unto all eternity if He did not lock him in he would not be there unto all eternity So that whatsoever Grace or holiness there is in any mans heart He opens the door He lets it in 't is by His ordering and His sending thither And Beloved if Jesus Christ were not the great Lord-Keeper of His Fathers wardrobe why should those Names and Titles be given to Him which you find so frequently in Scripture Cast your eyes where you wil you shal hardly look upon any thing but Jesus Christ hath taken the Name of that upon Himself If you cast your eyes up to Heaven in the day and behold the Sun He is called Mal. 4.2 Rev. 22.16 Col. 1.18 Rom. 13.14 Ioh. 6.35 Ioh. 10.9 Ioh. 10.11 Ioh. 1.29 Luk. 15.23 Zac. 13.1 Isa 28.16 Pro. 3.18 The Sun of righteousness If you cast your eyes in the night upon the Stars or in the morning upon the morning star He is called The bright morning star If you behold your own Body He is called the Head and the Church the Body If you look upon your own Clothes He is called your Rayment Put ye on the Lord Jesus If you behold your Meat He is called Bread The Bread of life If you look upon your Houses He is called a Door If you look abroad into the fields and behold the Cattel of the fields He is called The good Shepherd He is called The Lamb He is called The fatted Calf If you look upon the Waters He is called A Fountain The Blood of Christ a Fountain If you look upon the
yet wait on Jesus Christ Again Would you walk Humbly Be very humble and get a ferious and deep humiliation for sin committed the study of this truth will help you do it You know what the Prophet Isaiah saies Oh! Lord saies hee wo is me Isa 6.5 I am undone I am undone Why what 's the matter Oh! saies he mine eyes have seen the King If you look into the 3. Chapter of Matthew you will find there in John the Baptist such a self-humbling speech Christ-advancing speech as you shal not meet with many of the like again Sales he at the 11 verse Whose shoes I am not worthy to bear or as other Gospels hath it Whose shoes latchet I am not worthy to unloose Beloved I pray confider it a little John then which there was not a greater the great Preacher that al the Countrey followed John cryes out saies Whose shoes latchet I am not worthy to unloose What made him think thus what wrought his heart into this humble this self-denying frame The very Doctrine we are now upon saies he I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance but He that cometh after me is mightier then I whose shoes I am not worthy to bear he shal baptize you with the holy Ghost with fire As if he should say thus I may baptize you outwardly but the efficacy of al these ordinances it is from Jesus Christ therefore because the efficacy of every ordinance is from Jesus Christ saies he as for me I am not worthy to bear His shoes to undo His latchet Yet further in the general Would you be Fruitful would you be fruitful in your life and conversation People they complain of Barrenness Would you be Fruitful Observe what course the Gardiner takes with the Apricock This is a fruit saies he that will not grow every where but surely if it will grow any where it will grow upon the back of this Chimney the warm heat the heat of the Chimney wil nurse it up Or else it wil grow against that Wall I 'le set it in the face of the Sun that it may have the smiles of the Sun-beames and then it will grow he sets it there and then it grows and brings forth a pleasant fruit Doest thou complain thou art not fruitful what 's the reason may be thou grow'st in the shade may be thou grow'st in the shade but come and bring forth thine heart set it in the Sun under the warm beames of the love of Jesus Christ see if thy heart be not fruitful then And beloved what greater love then this That Jesus Christ hath dyed for sinners that He hath dyed for sinners that He hath purchased all Grace for sinners and He keeps their stock in His own hand to give it out unto them according to all their wants Here is love Here is grace This is the way to be fruitful I come to the Application Is it so Applic. That all Grace is from Christ that whatfoever Grace the Saints have they have it from Jesus Christ Christ Meriting and Christ Working That all our Efficiency and Sufficiency and Al-sufficiency if from Christ That He is the great Joseph the worlds Joseph the Lord-Keeper of all our Graces the Lord-Treasurer of all our comforts Then Oh! what infinite cause have we all to advance and lift up the Name of Jesus Christ to hallow Jesus Christ not verbally but really Cōmanded ye are to honor your parents they give you a Being and yet by that Being you are brought forth under the wrath of God but yet honor them because you have your being from them I and by your birth and by your nature exposed unto the wrath of God for ever Yet honor them because you have your being from them And shall wee honor our parents because we have our outward being from them and shall not we honor Jesus Christ from whom we have the being of all our Graces the being of our souls unto all Eternity What infinite ingagements are upon us all to honor Jesus Christ You will say unto me Quest This indeed does naturally follow but how shall we honor Jesus Christ according to the heighth of this Doctrine how shall we honor Jesus Christ according to the heighth of this Truth that is now before us Give me leave to spend some time in this this is that I have bin driving at all this while Some particulars herein First Ye cannot honor Jesus Christ Ans Vnless that you do offer up your own Christ unto him I say unless you offer up yor own Christ to him I mean your natural Christ to him Some there are that make a Christ of their goad meaning and think to be saved thereby rest upon that think to be saved thereby Some rest upon an honest and sober Conversation think to be saved thereby Some rest upon their Duties inlargments in Duties and think to be saved thereby Some rest upon their very resting trusting is not to be trusted to but some rest upon their very resting and think to be saved thereby Some rest upo those Injoyments and Sweetnesses that they meet withall in duty and think to be saved thereby Beloved you may observe That when the Lord commanded His People in the old Testament to honor Him He commands them to sacrifice such things to Him which other Nations did make their Gods they should sacrifice sheep and oxen and birds such things they should offer up unto God that others did worship as God Plainly teaching this That he that will honor God must give that unto God which the world makes it's God So say I if you would honor Christ you mst give that up unto Jesus Christ which other men do make their Christ Many false Christs there are that are made by men you cannot honor Jesus Christ if you don't give up those to Him Again You cannot honor Jess Christ If you count it a small matter to belong to him A servant that honours his master does count it a great matter to belong to Him And therefore David he does title some of his Psalms so A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord He does not say A Psalm of David the King of Israel but A Psalm of David the Servant of the Lord Counting it more honor to be the Lords Servant then to be King of Israel he counted it a great matter to be the Lords Servant because he honored the Lord. Those that honor Christ they look upon the things of Christ as great matters the words of Christ as great works and the Ordinances of Christ as great matters and a great matter to belong to Christ and if they lose any thing or lose any friend they will relieve themselves here Oh! but yet I belong to Jesus Christ yet I belong to Jesus Christ Thirdly Ye cannot honor Jesus Christ and give the worst to Him Abel honored God and he offered the best and because he offtered the best therefore he
to Marah they could not drink of the waters of Marah for they were bitter therefore the name of it was called Marah And the people murmured against Moses saying what shall we drinke and he cried unto the Lord and the Lord shewed him a tree which when he had cast into the waters the waters were made sweet The speciall waters and blessings of Gods people come to them thus Againe the sentence of death may be put upon your mercy in another mans hand It was a great mercy even to Isaac that by him all the Nations of the world should be blest but the sentence of death was put upon this mercy in Abrahams hand as well as in his owne Thou comest it may be to the preaching of the word and thou art converted by such a sermon thou doest not see how the sentence of death was put upon this mercy before thou hadst it may be the sentence of death was put upon it in the Ministers hand in the Preachers hand may be he had laid aside those Doctrines and those Truths and thought to preach upon another matter may be the sentence of death was put upon thy mercy in his hand so sometimes it is in another mans hand Againe though the sentence of death be put upon a mercy before a beleever comes to it yet it is much according to the life of the mercy that is afterward If the life be great the death is great If the life be small the death is small And sometimes the sentence of death falls mostly upon the apprehension as it was with Hagar she was in the wildernesse and she thought she should die for want of water only said she I won't see my child die and there was a Well by So that now here the sentence of death lay mostly upon her own apprehension And thus you have it also with Joshua of whom you reade in the first of Ioshua the Lord makes him a great promise now therefore arise sayes he at the second verse go over this Iordan thou and all this people every place the sole of your foot shall tread upon that have I given unto you And at the latter and of the fift verse I will be with thee I will never leave thee nor forsake thee Now if you look into the seventh Chapter you find that Joshua had rent his clothes in the sixt verse and fell to the earth upon his face before the arke of the Lord untill even-tide and Ioshua said alas O Lord God wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Iordan to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites to destroy us would to God we had been content and dwelt on the other side Jordan why what 's the matter you read there went up 3 thousand men of the Israelites and thirty six men of them were smote by the men of Ai. Here was cause now of fear but no cause of such expressions as did fall from Ioshua a sentence of death passes upon the mercy but it lay mostly upon the apprehension of Ioshua Sometimes it fals more upon the apprehension and lesse upon the thing sometimes it fals more upon the thing and lesse upon the apprehension but alwayes more or lesse when God intends any great or speciall mercy to his people to the children of Abraham he does first cause the sentence of death to passe upon it and upon all the meanes that do lead unto it You will say then Quest why does God give the promise I confesse this is true I seldome had any great mercy in all my dayes but first of all the sentence of death came upon it But one thing seemes very strange to me that the Lord should give out a promise first a promise given out and then comes the sentence of death upon the mercy and upon the meanes that do lead unto it What should be the meaning of this why does the Lord deal thus give out a promise first A promise is given out twice At the first Answ 1 before we do use the meanes to incourage us thereunto Afterwards upon some incouragements that we do meet with in the use of means When the Lord does first give out the promise a sentence of death then passes that he may shew you where the mercy lies As the mother does deale by her child showes the child where the meat stands child thou art not yet fit for it thou shalt have it in due time look here it stands Or as a father that showes the child where the money lies child time is not yet but there the money lies ther 's the bag it 's in none shall take it from thee So does God do you thinke that the Mercy lies in the second cause No sayes God here here 's the bag that it lies in Therefore he does first give out the promise that he may tell the soule where the Mercy lies show the soule where it is And then againe Answ 2 God does therefore give out the promise notwithstanding the sentence of death because he intends not to give the Mercy presently You think it may be that assoone as you have a promise set on upon your heart you shall presently injoy the Mercy Nay but God does therefore give you a promise because you shall not have it presently As for Example If I would pay a man my money down presently I would not give him a bond but my very giving him a bond argues I am not to pay him presently So the Lord he gives out a promise and you thinke now you must have it presently No sayes the Lord but because a sentence of death is to come and thou shalt not have it presently therefore I give out the promise And againe thirdly Answ 3 God does therefore give out the promise notwithstanding his sentence of death that your hearts may be borne up against all discouragements when the wombe of the second Cause shall be dead God sees that his child or servant is going to a great storme ther 's such a child of mine sayes God he is going into a great storme and his Faith will be put to a great stresse therefore I will furnish him with Cables and good Anchors I 'le throw him out a promise You thinke because God gives you a promise because God gives you Cables because God gives you Anchors therefore you shall come to land presently the Lord does therefore give you a promise because he does see that a storme is coming you mistake the way of God in his promise this is Gods way he gives out a promise and then causes the sentence of death to passe upon the businesse and upon all the meanes that do lead unto it I come unto the Application Whilst I stand upon this truth Applicat me thinkes I see matter of great and everlasting incouragement to all the Saints and people of God be not discouraged but rather keep silence waite and stay upon God when the darkest times go over your