God Intends them If you water your Gardens in these dry times you aim at the Herbs but yet the Water will fall among the Weeds So the Lord He Aims at His Herbs and Flowers though the Gospel be dispensed to others Thirdly Though God sees there be none for the present yet God layes in for time to come God will send His Gospel to a place though He sees this Generation will get no good by it and God may Intend the good of the Generation that is to come by sending His Ministry in this particular Generation though He sees that they will not Entertain it yet some that may come after them may Entertain it As they say in China they prepare Work for many Hundred years before The Parents they are preparing Work for their Children to enjoy And so the Lord layes In in one Generation for the Children that are coming after and therefore whether you Entertain it or no God notwithstanding will have His End accomplisht Fourthly Another Reason why God sends His Gospel where He knows it will not be Entertain'd by the Generallity it is this To leave Men wholly without Excuse I may put these two together To discover the Abominable sinfulness of the Hearts of Men and to leave them wholly without Excuse There is nothing in the World that doth discover the sinfulness of Mans Heart more than this That when the Lord sends this Gospel among them yet it is rejected The Preaching of any Moral Truths do nothing so much argue the sinfulness of Mans Heart in the rejection of them as when the Gospel is Preached and that is rejected That argues the Abominable wickedness of Mans Heart yea for ought we know more than is in the very Devil We do not know that there is so much Perversness in any of the Devils in Hell as there is in the Heart of that Man that doth reject the Ministry of the Gospel And why Because God never tried them God never put it to trial to offer any Terms of Peace to them and never told them that He would be Reconcil'd to them upon any Terms And therefore whether they have such perverseness of heart or no it is not discovered so as thine is But if thou Livest where the Ministry of the Gospel is Preached and yet continuest wicked and ungodly thou art discovered to have that wickedness in thy Heart that for ought thou knowest it is beyond the wickedness of any Devil in Hell The Devils might say Lord hadst thou offered Terms of Peace to us we would not have so rejected it And then it doth leave Men utterly without Excuse I do not say that this is Gods primary Intention but this comes in Why the Lord doth suffer the Gospel to be Preached to leave them wholly without Excuse And for that you have that Text in the fore-named place John 15. 22. If I had not come and spoken unto them they had not had sin But now have they no Cloak for their sin Sin Why are there any Men in the World that have no sin Why did Christ coming bring sin to them It did not add sin but it did Discover their sin and it took away their Cloak for their sin Now upon my coming to them and when they shall reject me and the offer of Grace that I bring from my Father now they have sin to purpose now their sin is of a Scarlet Colour now they have no Plea they cannot say Lord if thou hadst sent to us to Reveal to us thy Mercy and the danger of our sin The danger of your sin may God say Did not I send those to you that did Preach that nothing but the Heart Blood of my Son could pacifie for your sin Could there have been any thing more to reveal the evil of your sin than this was O now you have no Excuse at all for your sin Fifthly Another Reason is this which is one of the chief That the Lord might cause all those hereby that do not entertain the Gospel to see the Freeness of His Grace towards them A poor Soul that the Lord is pleased to work upon by the Gospel hath no cause to attribute any thing to himself There are others and such a Multitude of People more Learned than I and Men and Women that had greater parts than I they had the Gospel preached to them and they do not see those things that the Lord hath Revealed to me I can tell no Reason of this Difference only Free-grace And certainly Those People whom God is pleased to make the Gospel effectual upon the hearing of this Point and seeing how it is Verified in the Examples of others O they have cause to Cry out Grace Grace to the Lord. What is there in me rather than others as Proud and Stout and Vile Hearts as any and we see the Gospel is rejected by them and what reason is it that it is not so with me John 14. 22. It 's a speech of Judas not of him that betrayed Christ Lord How is it that thou Revealest thy Self unto us and not unto the World Lord We cannot devise how it should be that thou shouldst Manifest thy Self to us and not unto the World We see that the World rejects Thee O this is that we may have the more Cause to Bless the Name of God here and to Magnifie His Free-grace to all Eternity afterwards Sermon V. Luke 10. 6. Your Peace shall rest upon it c. APPLICATION First IS it so that even the Blessed Ministry of the Gospel the Opening of Jesus Christ and the Riches of Gods Grace may be Rejected by People and is often The Consideration on of this First should Teach us to bewail the horrible Wickedness of Mans Heart and the Dishonour that is done to God in this When those Riches of Gods Grace that glorious Work of God in Christ the Blessed Son of God coming to Ransom Souls and to Deliver them out of the neathermost Hell yet he Rejected There 's no Object that ever was in the World that is such an Object of Lamentation as this is When Christ came to Jerusalem He falls a Weeping Upon what ground O if thou hadst known saith He at least in this thy day those things that concern thy Peace Thou didst not know those things that did concern thy Peace Perhaps it may be meant outward Peace In great part it is But if that be such an Object of Lamentation as to draw Tears from Christ what an Object of Lamentation is it to Rend indeed the Hearts of those that understand what Christ is what the Offer of Christ means That Christ should be Preached in any place and yet rejected When Jeremiah went to Preach though not such a Message as this is that now we are Speaking of yet when he saw the People would not hear Chap. 13. ver 15. Hear ye and give ear be not Proud for the Lord hath Spoken But in ver 17. But if ye will not
hear it my Soul shall weep in secret places for your Pride and mine Eyes shall weep sore and run down with Tears because the Lords Flock is carried away Captive If ye will not hear That indeed should be the work of the Ministers of the Gospel when they are Rejected Not to be Careless and say I have done my Work and what need I care But they should take it to Heart and Lament it as the greatest Affliction that can befal them yea more than any Affliction whatsoever That the Blessed Message that they are sent withal is Rejected by Wretched and Sinful Men. Secondly If God in Christ be sometimes Rejected all the Mercy of God in His Son we should not think much though our love and kindness towards others be many times Slighted and Disregarded Indeed there 's nothing goes more to any Ingenuous Heart than to have his love and kindness to be Disregarded But when we find our Hearts troubled at this O that such a one that I have done so much for and yet that he should deal thus with me Lay thine hand upon thy Heart and consider what God hath done for thee in Christ and how ill thou hast requited Him Is it so much for thee a poor Worm not to have thy Love and Kindness imbrac'd What is it then for the Infinite God not to have that Infinite Love and Mercy of His to the Children of Men not Imbraced but Rejected Thirdly Let 's learn from hence never to trust our own Hearts We think often had we such means as others have then we should not do as they do surely we should do better Men are very ready to trust their own Hearts and in the use of Means But let us learn from hence never to trust in our own Hearts or in the use of any Means God may send you Means and Reveal glorious Truths unto you yet it may so fall out that you may never come to be partakers of the good of those things It hath been so with many and you must look to your own Hearts Do not Bless your selves in this Through Gods Mercy the Lord hath sent us His Word plentifully and the Gospel comes to be Opened clearly among us That 's not enough what God hath done but look you into your own Hearts how you Imbrace it otherwise the Gospel may come among you and yet you never come to be Saved by it But this indeed is a sad Condition wheresoever it is Fourthly Further Gods Ministers are to Learn from hence not to be Discouraged They come and Preach and with an Expectation to prevail with the Hearts of People to draw them to Christ When they have been in their Studies labouring to find out some Truths of the Gospel and to sit it to the Hearts of their Auditors and have been Praying over it They come now with Expectation that some good may be done that some Soul may be drawn in to Christ yet perhaps find it quite otherwise and the People to sit Dead under it it may be Slight it Contemn it Scorn it Disobey it But they must not be I say Discouraged in this as if so be a strange thing had befallen them What art thou more than Jesus Christ thy Master What art thou more than Paul and other of the Apostles They have been rejected all in their Ministry and what art thou that thou canst not bear any Rejection Indeed it is the hardest thing to be Born by a Minister of the Gospel that possibly may be But consider That it is not a new thing for the Gospel to be Rejected I remember I have read of Melancthon he had such thoughts that when he began to Preach he should Convert all that heard him He thought there was so much Reason in what he Spake and so much Evidence and Power to prevail with the Hearts of People that he thought he should prevail with every one but he found it otherwise by Experience And though indeed when any Minister that is acquainted with the Glorious things of God and Christ come to open them to People they are ready to think such things will surely prevail with the Hearts of People but the Lord teaches him to know that the Blessing depends upon Himself That though the things be never so Excellent and Moving yet all will not do except the Lord comes in by His Almighty Power Fifthly Let all those with whom the Ministry of the Gospel doth prevail in any measure Bless God that makes such a difference between them and any others It is Preached unto many but doth them no good But the Lord hath Called thee out and it hath struck thy Heart converted thy Spirit Thou seest cause to stand and admire at the Glory of God in Christ and thou wonderest perhaps that all People are not taken with the Riches of the Glory of Gods Grace in Christ Well Bless God that hath made a difference between thee and others It may be in the same Family another Scorns it and Contemns it perhaps one that came out of the same Womb despises it and God hath taken thee and revealed Himself to thee it may be thy rich Neighbour Contemns it but God looks upon thee a poor Creature and makes Himself known to thee It may be a Learned Man he slights it and makes nothing of it and thou who art but a Babe hast those things Revealed Thou hast cause to thank God for it For Christ doth He thanks His Father for this thing That He should be pleased to pass by the Wise and great ones of the World and chuse Babes Mat. 11. 25. At that time Jesus Answered and said I thank thee O Father Lord of Heaven and Earth that thou hast hid these things from the Wise and Prudent and hist revealed them unto Babes Now this Scripture that I bring not only to shew you that God doth sometimes Reveal the great Mysteries of the Gospel to Babes and hide them from the Wise but as a Text to stir up your Hearts to Bless God if He hath done so for any of you Upon this ground Jesus Christ doth thank His Father for it then surely thou hast cause to thank God the Father for this great Mercy of His to put such a difference between thee and others For indeed it is one of the most glorious Works of God This Work of the Lord making known the Great and High Mysteries of the Gospel to poor weak ones when as the Great and Rich and Mighty and Learned of the World do not come to understand it It is one of the great Miracles by which the Lord doth Confirm the Gospel to be His own as great a Miracle as other Miracles that were Wrought by Christ And for that this is very observable that we have in the place where John sends to Christ to know whether He were the Messias or no. Now mark the Answer that Christ gives unto John's Messengers Jesus Answered and said unto them Go and
oftentimes far otherwise to us than they do to God God looks upon things otherwise than we do Then let Him do what seemeth Him good Not what seemeth good to me nor what seems good to others but unto God Then fourthly That this is a very Commendable and Acceptable work upon the first Manifestation of any Displeasure of God presently to yield and submit without any more adoe Not after a great deal of riggling and stir then to yield but to yield presently upon the first Manifestation against his Family he presently falls down and saith It is the Lord let Him do what seemeth Him good These are the four Conclusions in the Text and I shall desire to go through them all and speak to mine own Heart and yours in them It is the Second that is the chief and main there we shall pitch most But briefly of the First That a gracious Heart in all Afflictions looks up to God It is the Lord. Not this Cause and the other Cause or this Accident or the other thing that takes up his Thoughts so much but God in it The truth is a Heart that is truly Gracious loves to Converse with God in every thing If it be a Mercy presently the Heart gets through the Creatures by which God bestows a Mercy and looks up to the God of that Mercy And so if it be Afflictions the Heart that is Gracious having some of the Divine Nature in it presently works it's self up to God in the 6th of Micah ver 9. there 's a famous Scripture for this Saith the Prophet there The Lords Voice crieth unto the City and the Man of Wisdom shall see thy Name hear ye the Rod and who hath appointed it The Man of Wisdom shall see thy Name The Name of God is written upon his Rod and where there is a Man of Wisdom he sees the Name of God that is there written It 's a special part of the Wisdom of a Christian to be able to see Gods Name and to read Gods Name written upon his Rod The Men of the World have not the skill to read the Name of God written upon his Rod but it 's a priviledge of the Saints that they see Gods Name written there It is a special part of the Worship that is due to God the Acknowledgment of God in all his Administrations That 's Worship when we acknowledge God in all his Providences towards us In all thy wayes acknowledge Him and in all His Wayes he must be acknowledged As we must acknowledge God in all our wayes so we must acknowledge God in all His Wayes and thereby we come to Worship Him Secondly It 's a means to compose the Heart to strike the Heart with awful Fears and Reverence of God when we look at Him in our Afflictions and beyond the Creature It is a Way to make us search and examine our Hearts what there is between God and us when once we take notice it's God that doth it this presently puts the Heart upon a Scrutiny What is there between God and my Soul What is there between God and my Family And then it is a special means to put the Soul on to seek God for Help for Assistance for Blessing for a Sanctified Use of what ever Affliction is upon it There 's a great deal of good in seeing the Lord in an Affliction in seeing that we have to deal with Him but the special good is that that we shall come to in the second Point The working of the humble submission of the Heart to God Only for the present let this Rebuke such who are of Carnal and Atheistical spirits That whatever befals them look no higher than the Creatures by which God works It 's an Argument that they have little to do with God that they know not what it is to Converse with God that will cry out of their Afflictions They howl upon their Beds as the Holy Ghost saith in the 7th of Hosea But they seek not to Me or turn not to Me. And such as have slight and vain hearts in the time of their Afflictions it 's a very ill thing that for Men to think to take Courage to themselves so as not at all to be sensible of the Hand of God God expects we should be so though we should not have dishonoured Hearts yet we should have precious Hearts For when one have to deal with God in any thing we had need be serious the Presence of God should work our Hearts to Seriousness And therefore slightness and vanity of Spirit in the day of Affliction it is very unbeseeming Thou doest not sanctifie the Name of God in that Administration of His towards thee who hastâ—â— vain and slight Spirit in the Day of thine Affliction And surely that 's an Argument that thou never sawest God in His Mercy when thou doest not see him in thine Afflictions but that thou didst enjoy Gods Mercy but in a Brutish way when thou doest behave thy self under thine Afflictions in a Brutish way But this shall suffice for the first The second and that 's the main That the sight of the Hand of the Lord is that that hath a great deal of Power in it to work the Heart that is Gracious to an humble submission to Him It is the Lord let Him do what seemeth Him good That that 's here spoken of Ely we may find mentioned by divers of the Servants of God in Scripture I 'll give you but only two Scriptures for it and those are concerning David In this Book of Sam. 15. 25. If I shall flnd favour in the Eyes of the Lord he will bring me again and shew me both it that is the Ark and the City and his Habitation but if he should say I have no delight in thee behold here am I let him do to me as seemeth good unto him So you see how David he looks up to God here If I find favour in the Eyes of the Lord he will bring me again and if he say I have no delight in thee behold here I am let Him do what seemeth good unto him And in the 39th Psal ver 9. I was dumb I opened not my Mouth because thou diddest it It was the sight of the Lord in it that made him Dumb and not open his Mouth And you know what He did in the case of Shimei when He Curst him The Lord hath bid him saith he Now this Point is very large I shall briefly propound unto you the several Considerations from the Hand of God in an Affliction for to quiet the Heart and to help the Heart to sanctifie his Name As first â—â—us It is the Lord It is he that is infinitely above me above us all and therefore He must be submitted to It is the Great and Blessed God that is infinitely above Angels and above all Creatures that hath done it and therefore He must be submitted to It may may be you could not tell how to bear a
than Paul did and yet death was Gain to him he should get much by it Why many things might make the death of Paul Gainful I remember the last time I spake to you I spoke about an Argument of the Victory over Death that we have by Christ I will not speak now of what then I spake to but meerly Confine my self for otherwise the Argument might be very large to shew the Gain of death to Believers But I 'll confine my self to the very thing that the Apostle speaks of here in this Chapter That he should be present with Christ Therefore now I 'll speak of the Gain of being with Christ Now I confess there are many things that might be opened The Communion of the Soul departed with Jesus Christ As First It shall be immediate the Souls of the Saints while they are in the Body they have Communion with Christ but it is Mediately by other things by Ordinances and Means whereby Christ conveys Himself to them but there they shall have Communion with Christ Immediately only Christ and the Soul together Now the more Immediate the Communion is with Christ it is the more pure Here we have some Communion with Christ but a great deal of Sin mixt together with it That that is immediately from the Fountain is more pure that that comes in the Streams hath Dirt mixed with it So that that we shall have with Christ immediately shall be pure we shall have Communion with Him and nothing else We shall have no mixtures at all of any evil in our own Spirits And then Secondly Immediate communion with Christ it is more Sweet As the more Pure so the more Sweet As now the Wine that comes immediately from the Grape it hath more Spirits and is more delightful than that that is poured from Vessel to Vessel That which we have here from Christ it is that that is poured from Vessel to Vessel but that which Souls departed have from Christ is immediate and so comes more Sweet As if the Child suck Milk from the Breast it is more sweet to the Child than the Milk in a Spoon That that we have from Christ here is Milk as it were from the Spoon but that that Souls have that are departed they suck from Christ immediately and so comes to be more sweet Thirdly And more especially we account that that comes Immediately to have more Love in it As that that a Friend gives by his own hand is better and more comfortable to us So that that comes from God Immediately it 's a great deal more sweet As now here while we Live in the World the more immediate a Mercy is the more sweet it is to a gracious Heart Indeed a Mercy that comes by second Causes it 's comfortable because God Over-rules all the Causes but when it can see God immediately in a Mercy the more immediate the Hand of God is here Though God doth not work so Immediately here as He will do afterwards but the more Immediate God is here the more sweet it is And therefore in a Judgment the more Immediate the Hand of God is the more Terrible as in the Plague So in a Mercy though every Mercy is sweet yet the more Immediate God is in a Mercy the more sweet it is And then O how sweet is all the Good that the Saints have immediately from Christ therefore it 's Gain to them And then Fourthly It 's more strong The first Rebound is more Powerfull than a second and the first Gushings out are more strong The Beams of the Sun when they are first Reflected than if you take a Glass and Reflect them again and again And so that that comes Gushing out as it were of the very Heart of God it 's more strong a great deal and there is greater Impressions upon the Heart by it than that that comes by second Causes Fifthly That that comes Immediate it comes without Labour The Soul draws it from Christ and is not put to so much Pain and Labour as now we are put to If we would have Communion with Jesus Christ we must stir up our selves to the Humbling of our Hearts to the Acting of our Faith to Exercise our Graces and put the Body to it If you would have any communion with Christ in Prayer it must put you to some Labour And so in the Word and Sacraments And the Labour of a Christian is very great But when we come to have Immediate communion with Christ it will be the flowings in of Christ to the Soul without any Labour at all Sixthly It shall be more full when we come to be United to the very Fountain it self there it will be more full than the Stream Certainly there is that Good and Excellency in Christ that is too much for any Creature in the World to convey Yea take all the Creatures in the World and Ordinances they are too scant to be able to convey the Good that is in Christ yea that Good that Christ takes delight to communicate to the Souls of His People And that 's the Reason that here we have but a little Why Because the Conduits are so Narrow and Small that there can be but a little let out through those Conduits but when the Soul is with Christ immediately then it hath the Fulness of the Lettings out of Gods Mercy There will be an Eminency of every sort of Good to every poor Christian I remember Jerom speaking of that Text Christ being All in all He makes this Interpretation of it saith he Christ is here but some to some but not all to all As for Instance saith he Here some Men have some Eminency of some particular Grace conveid to them and some other Eminency of some particular Grace As Moses had an Eminency of Meekness Abraham an Eminency of Faith Job an Eminency of Patience and Solomon an Eminency of Wisdom but saith he Where was there ever a Man Eminent in all Graces But then saith he Christ shall be All in all That is Christ shall convey all Grace to all His Saints that all the Saints shall have an Eminency and Fulness in all Grace whatsoever This will be an Excellent thing Surely it 's Gain then to Die for a gracious Heart where Christ shall be thus All in all to them to convey this Fulness of Good in all things unto them Those Saints that are the Meanest now whose Souls have the least degree of true Grace they shall have an Eminency of all Grace Wouldst not thou think thy self happy if thou hadst as much Faith as Abraham as much Meekness as Moses and as much Patience as Job and as much Insight into the Misteries of the Gospel as Paul Now hadst thou as much as all the Saints ever had were not that Gain Why now as soon as thy Soul is departed from the Body thou shalt have an Eminency in all Graces as much as all the Saints ever had since the beginning of the World
the Gospel in the Heart and for the Heart to keep it It is a very great and close Mercy a greater Mercy than to have Christ to be Born of the Body of a Woman in Luke 11. 27. And it came to pass as He spake these things a certain Woman lift up her voice and said unto Him Blessed is the Womb that Bare thee and the Paps which thou hast Sucked But He said Yea rather blessed are they which hear the Word of God and keep it Those that when they have heard the Word of the Gospel and shall keep it in their Hearts and not let it Vanish away from them but keep it I say in their Power and Life upon their Hearts they are rather Blessed than the Womb was Blessed that Bare Jesus Christ or than the Paps were Blessed that gave Jesus Christ Suck I suppose there is no Woman here but would account her self a blessed Woman if her Womb had Porn Jesus Christ and if her Paps had given Jesus Christ Suck Now here is a greater Blessedness than this for a Woman to hear the Word of the Gospel Preached unto her and to have this Word of the Gospel to rest in her Heart and for her to keep it in her heart in the Power and Life and Efficacy of it this Woman now hath a greater Blessing than if she had Born Jesus Christ in her Womb. Surely it is a great Blessing to have the blessed things of the Gospel to be kept in the Soul after the hearing of them And further A great Mercy because there is such a wonderful Power in the good things of the Gospel and therefore it must needs be a great Mercy to have those things abide upon the Heart They have such a mighty power to work good upon the Heart a mighty Convincing power they have to Convince any Soul in the World Let a Man or Woman be never so Wicked or Prophane yet there are such blessed Truth in the Gospel that is enough to Convince his Soul I say though it be never so vile and to take his Heart And we have little Cause to fear the working upon the Hearts of People only if we could but procure this that those things that we Speak might but abide upon their Hearts If we were but sure that what we Deliver in the Name of God would but abide upon their Spirits we need not fear the working upon any Soul Living let them be never so Vile there is such a mighty Power and Efficacy in those blessed things of the Gospel when they come to be Revealed And so there is a mighty Comforting power to Comfort the Soul with such Consolation as is Infinitely above all Consolation that ever it was Acquainted withal before There is a mighty Power to resist any Temptation If the Truths of God were but kept in the Soul we might make little of all Temptations in the World The Devil could have little hope to prevail with any Temptations if the Word of the Gospel did but abide upon the Heart of a Man or Woman that doth hear it This is the advantage that the Devil hath at any time when one hath been hearing of the Word if he knows that the Word is past from them and it doth not abide then he can come with Temptations and makes no question of prevailing But if the Devil knows that those Truths do abide and rest upon the Soul the Devil can have little hope to prevail The Peace of God shall keep your Hearts Fro Resi shall Guard your Hearts It shall be as a Troop of Horse to keep you from Temptations from the power and strength of Temptations You complain and say O that you would do better but Temptations are so strong that they prevail upon you Why are Temptations so strong It is because thy Soul is not acquainted with the Blessed and Glorious things of the Gospel and the Power and Life of them doth not abide upon thy Spirit And likewise the Truths of the Gospel O they have a mighty deal of Power to cleanse your Hearts 1 Pet. 2. 20. There you have mentioned the Power of the Knowledg of the Gospel when it abides in one that might be an Hypocrite and therefore not of that Efficasie that the true saving Knowledg is Yet Observe what is said there For if after they have escaped the Pollutions of the World through the Knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Now then If that Knowledg have such a cleansing Power O what Power then hath the true saving Power of the great things of the Gospel and the Glorious things of it to Cleanse the Heart Yea If those Truths do abide upon the Spirits they have a Transforming power they have a power to change the Heart into the same likeness According to that Scripture 2 Cor. 3. 18. But we all with open face beholding as in a Glass the Glory of the Lord are changed into the same Image from Glory to Glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. Now this Gospel of the Lord is nothing else but the good things of the Gospel We behold them and that as with open Face as we do behold the Gospel of the Lord. And what then We are changed into the same Image Oh! this is a Blessed abiding it is a Blessed thing for the things of the Gospel to rest upon the Soul Why Because they have such a Power in them to Change the Heart to Transform the Heart into the very Image of them and the Truths of the Gospel have the clearest Image of God upon them the Glory of God is Imprinted upon the Truths of the Gospel Now that these should rest upon the Spirit it must needs be a great Mercy Another is this It is that which makes them indeed to be Saving All those Blessed things of the Gospel that are Revealed they never come to be Saving until they come to rest upon the Soul to be got into the Heart and there to dwell and rest Mark that Scripture in James 1. 21. Wherefore lay a part all Filthiness and Superstuity of Naughtiness and receive with Meekness the Ingraffed Word which is able to save your Souls Mark Receive with Meekness the Word But how The Ingraffed Word which is able to save your Souls The Word of God can never save your Souls till it comes to be an Ingraffed Word Now these things I premise to shew you the Excellency of this that so I might have the more ground for an Exhortation by and by To labour to keep the Word of God I mean those Truths of the Gospel that at any times comes to be discovered to you Now by way of Application as brief as may be First In the First place Hence we see cause the Ministers of the Gospel especially see cause bitterly to Lament the want of this in their Auditory ordinarily It 's true There are few that are faithful Preachers of the Gospel but they do find that
be full when they can tell how to pick out the temptation to enjoy the thing and yet avoid the temptation There are some because they hear there are many temptations in the enjoyment of the comforts of the Creature they think there is no way but to fling away the Creature As that Aristippus because he saw that so many were hurt by their wealth he cast his money into the Sea saying I will drown you least you should drown me Now this is not to learn how to be full that is because I would avoid the temptation not to enjoy the comfort and the blessing as many men and women through weakness and tenderness of conscience being afraid that they shall get hurt by the use of the Creatures that God doth give them Upon that they deny themselves abundance of comfort in the Creature that they should have Now though God may accept of their desires to honour him and of their fearfulness of sinning against him but yet this argues a great deal of weakness The strength of a Christian is to enjoy Gods Creatures to take the use of that that God doth afford to take out the sweetness and yet to avoid the temptation to take away that that 's good and cast away that that is naught As there 's many kind of Meats which you may not eat all of them and a child who must either have all or none you will not give it meat that hath something mingled with it that is naught because he knows not how to pick it out But now one that hath understanding he knows how to pick out the good and fling away the naught and not to fling it all away because there 's something that is naught as well as good Now that 's the third thing and there 's very few that understand this Lesson but they must swallow down all without thinking of any temptation that is annexed to the fullness that they do enjoy Fourthly Then doth a man know how to be full when he can have all that he doth enjoy under his command and he can have the command of his own spirit in what he doth enjoy As thus when he is not a slave to what he hath but he makes what he hath a slave to him Some men that are rich you say they have such possessions the truth is their possessions have them rather than they their possessions they are under their possessions But now Then a man knows how to be full when all that he hath he makes his underling he makes his servants he makes it to be serviceable to him and he can command any thing that he hath according as there is use of it He will never be a servant to his servant It 's a sordid disposition for any man or woman to be a servant to their servant but now to your Estates you will be a servant they shall command you and your Credit and you will be a servant But it 's a sign you know not how to be full As a man doth not know how to rule if he will be under his servant so he doth not know how to be full except he hath a command over what he doth enjoy in the world yea and a command over his own spirit in the use of what he doth enjoy That 's thus When a man or woman can let out as much of his heart to the Creature as is useful and no more and can call it in again when there is cause As ordinarily people do not let out their spirits a little to joy but they let them out so as they have no command over their spirits but they have lost the command of their spirits they cannot call in their spirits again to be serious and humble and to be mourning for sin when God calls them to it As now for instance when you say you will be merry and go and visit your friends and have good cheer God gives you leave to do so if you know how to make use of this But now Do not you let out your hearts so far as you cannot call them in again you let them out so that when you should come at night to go and humble your souls before God in prayer your hearts are light and vain and you have no command over your spirits at all and perhaps the next day you are worse for it It s just with your hearts as with little Children let them have but their wills a little while and you shall have no rule over them for many dayes many weeks after So when you let your hearts have liberty a little while to rejoyce in the Creature you have little command over your hearts for many weeks after Now you may be merry Religion keeps not one from mirth but yet so as to have a command over our spirits that I can call my heart in again when there is occasion I will rejoyce in the Creature I but I will reserve my chief joy for something else there is something else that I am to rejoyce in more than in the use of the Creature If you let out your heart so when you rejoyce in the Creature as you make it your chief joy your onely joy your joy is not right But it is not so with the heart that knows how to be full Fifthly Then hath a man or woman learned how to be full when they can so use the creatures of God as yet they are in a readiness to part with all their comforts if God will call for them If I enjoy comfort but in such a manner as my heart lies down before God ready prepared to give up those comforts that I do enjoy whenever God will have me Then I have learned to be full When a man or woman shall have their hearts taken so with the Creature as they cannot leave them whatever comes of them They must preserve their Estate now having had full Estates and lived full handed they cannot live meanly rather venture upon sin or any thing in the world to preserve their Estates O how is it possible for a man as hath had such bringing up as I saith one now to be put to straits that I can scarce have bread And upon this the hearts of men rather then they will come to part with the comforts of the Creature when God would have them they will keep them as it were whether God will or no. O thou hast not learned how to be full If thy heart were right in thy fulness thou wouldst take the comfort of the Creature when God gives them But Lord If thou hast use of them any other way here I am do with me what thou pleasest The Lord gives and the Lord takes and blessed be the Name of the Lord. I 'll take them as long as thou wilt have me and when thou wilt sanctifie thy Name in my want Lord take them We are too eager upon the Creature when our hearts cleave to it and we cannot be taken
hath prospered me in my way and course in any kind now let me go to God and exercise Faith in his Word and seek unto him in prayer that I may have a sanctified use of all these things then that God hath granted to me In 1 Tim. 4. 4 5. Every Creature of God is good and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving for it is sanctified by the Word of God and Prayer A little to open this Scripture That the Creature is sanctified by prayer that I suppose is easie for you to understand that is when I have any good in any Creature then I am to seek to God by prayer for a sanctified use of it unto me But how is it sanctified by the Word Now that that the Apostle doth intend here in sanctifying by the Word is this that he would shew to us That a godly man hath another kind of interest in the Creature than another man hath saith he All things are good but how shall they be good to me How shall I know that they are good to me That must be by the Word saith he I cannot know that they are good to me that I have a sanctified use of them that is that all the comforts I have I do enjoy them in order to eternal life for then a thing is sanctified when it is consecrated as it were and made holy that is when it is made useful to the highest and last end As a place is sanctified when it is separated from other things for God so when the blessing of God is upon my estate to make it to be to his glory and my last good then it is sanctified Now how comes this This is by the Word of God for we by our fall have lost all our interest in the creature unto our outward comfort Now God indeed out of his bounty doth give to some men abundance here in this world I he gives them those things that are in themselves good I but how shall they come to be good to him that must be by the Word saith he that is God by the Word of his Gospel the Covenant that he hath made with his poor servants in Christ revealed in his Word it is that that gives the godly man a sanctified use of what he hath If he hath it in a natural way it may prove a curse to him if he hath it onely by Gods general providence by the command of God in his works of providence that is no sanctified use But now if a man comes to enjoy what he hath by the word of the promise by the word of the Gospel that reveals Christ unto us and our renewed interest unto all we do enjoy by Jesus Christ This is the Word that sanctifies all to us Most men look upon what they enjoy onely but in a way of general providence Now a gracious heart looks upon what he enjoys by the word of the Promise the word of the Covenant that gives him a sanctified use and through the power of this word he comes to know how to be full and use all his abundance in a right way so that the way he takes for the making use of his fulness it is when God blesses him presently to exercise faith in the Word in the Promise to look into the Covenant Godliness hath the promise of the things of this life and of that which is to come And so he comes to make use of the promise and improve it by faith and so comes to have a sanctified use and improvement of all the good things that he doth enjoy in this world Is not this a mystery to most rich men Doth it put them upon prayer more than before and upon the exercise of Faith in the Word more than before One that is godly never prayes more than when God doth prosper him in this world It is usual for men to pray much in times of affliction In their affliction they will seek me early I but that 's a sign of a carnal heart But now a godly man when God prospers him he sees cause to pray most then I it is for poor people to live by faith that have nothing in the world You will think it 's fit for them to believe and trust in God I but a godly man uses the more faith when he hath the most in the world That 's a good way in the mystery of knowing how to be full And then a Fifth way in the mystery of knowing how to be full is this A godly heart by his fulness growes to increase his humility growes sensible of his unworthiness by his fulness Now this is a way of mystery too It is a good thing for a man to have humility together with his fulness but to have humility by his fulness this is a very great mystery it 's a rare thing to see humble prosperity but to see a man humble by his prosperity this is rare indeed Affliction will humble men that 's true every one can understand that but how prosperity should humble men that 's very hard to understand I 'll give you a clear Scripture for this how prosperity will humble a gracious heart it 's in the 2 Sam. 7. 18. The Lord there had told David of great things that he would do for him and spake to him of the honour that he had put upon him and that he would still put upon him and he would continue his House to be a great House and honourable like the great men of the earth Mark one would have thought that the heart of David should have been raised up when God told him not onely the great things that he had done but the great things he would do This would have pufft up a carnal heart But then mark in the 18 verse Then went King David in and sat before the Lord and he said who am I O Lord God and what is my house that thou hast brought me hitherto and this was yet a small thing in thy sight O Lord God but thou hast spoken also of thy servants house for a great while to come and is this the manner of men O Lord God and what can David say more unto tbee for thou Lord God knowest thy servant for thy words sake and according to thine own heart hast thou done all these great things to make thy servants know them wherefore thou art great O Lord God He doth not bless himself O God hath made me great but wherefore thou art great and what am I and what is my house and it is according to thine own heart and not according to any thing in me saith David The larger God was in telling of him the great things he had and should have the more humble was the heart of David O this is a good sign of true humility when you find your comings in to be more then heretofore as if you have had a great voyage many hundreds coming in of clear gain then for
Church in the Book of the Lamentations as if she should say Well the temptation saith that God hath left me the Devil saith thus I but thou art my portion saith my Soul That was comfortable If so be that God speaks peace it 's more than if our own Souls speaks peace Thou shalt choose our inheritance Thy choice is better then our own If we had alwayes what 's good in our own Eyes wo were to us we were undone You would not think it but certainly it is as heavy a judgment as can befal one in this world that God should say You shall do and you shall have what is good in your own eyes Suppose that God should say but this morning concerning every one of you Well you shall hencforward have whatsoever is good in your own Eyes why you would think that you might go away and be glad of this Glad you had cause of going away with ringing of Hands and howling and crying if God should say thus concerning any of you O no it 's better that our Lives Liberties Estates Comforts Happiness and all be in Gods Hands than our own to be disposed of so as seemeth good in Gods Eyes rather than to be disposed of so as seemeth good in our own Eyes I verily believe that many of you may be able to look back to the providences of God towards you and to say That suppose God had Twenty years ago said to me I 'll give you leave to dispose of your selves as you would O many may be able to say They certainly could never have disposed so well of themselves as God hath And they would be loath to go back again to the Twenty years past though they should begin and have liberty to dispose of themselves as they please In Heb. 12. 11. saith the Apostle there No Affliction for the present seemeth Joyous to us but Grievous but afterwards saith the Text it works thus and thus I but things do seem to God as they are present alwayes but they do not seem so to us till afterwards After the Affliction is over then they seem good to us but they seem good to God at the very present We judge things by the outward appearance but God judges things according to what they are Things seem to us according as they either make for or against our outward good we are led so much by sense But they seem to God according as they are for or against his Glory and the last good of all They seem good or ill to us according as they are for or against some particular good if they strike at such a particular we judge by particulars But now God he judges things by the proportion they have to the general to all things at once It 's that that makes us to give very wrong Judgment of things when we look but to particulars and do not compare one with another and raise a Judgment upon things all things considered So God doth God doth not so much look at things how they are in reference to this or the other good but how things are in reference to all together in the general We know some things may cross some particular but they may be useful to another Now that that 's good in the general doth seem good to God though it may go cross to some particular And then further We look at things but just as they appear present to us but now God looks upon things as they shall be a great while hence God is working that that we shall not understand perhaps in our lives or working in his Administrations towards us some thing that he intends shall come to pass a great while hence so that if they come to pass in our Lives yet we shall not have the fruit of them for many years God He looks a great way off Wherefore learn by this Not to be too Sudden nor so Peremptory in the judging of Gods Administrations Why Why because whatever they may seem to you they may seem otherwise to God stay till you know Gods Judgment about them As you if you have any Wisdom when you hear of strange Rumours if you know that there be any that knows the thing better than you you will not give a judgment upon it till you have the judgment of such and such that you know may understand it better than your self So in the Wayes of God towards us Let not us presently give a Judgment upon those things but let us stay first till we have the Mind of God O let 's learn to resign up our Judgments to Gods and let Him Judge Neither let us trouble our selves about other mens Judgments As things seem otherwise to God than to us so they seem otherwise to God than to other men As we should not trust too much to the judgments of our own hearts so we should not be so much troubled at other mens Judgments For whatever they think still it is otherwise in Gods account Men they will say 't is for this Cause and the other Cause and the like but it 's otherwise concluded in Heaven And that 's the Third Point The last should have been this That 't is not enough for Christians after a great deal of ado to submit to God that is after the Affliction hath been upon them a great while and when they see they cannot help themselves then to begin to have thoughts of yielding to God It 's well that they do it at last O but it 's more commendable a great deal if we do it at first At what instant God strikes presently for the heart to come in and yield As it is a most excellent thing to yield to Gods Word when God first speaks upon the least intimation of Gods Will O this is acceptable unto God For those that are young ones the first time they come to hear the Word or if not the first time they come to hear it yet the first time God speaks to their hearts the very first word that speaks presently for them to yield it 's a most excellent thing So in the time of Affliction for the heart to bow and submit presently to God O this is an Argument of much cleanness that there is in the heart that the heart is very clean that there is not much Corruption there for then there would be a standing out against God and it would manifest it self in time of Affliction As we know where there is Corruption in the Body it will manifest it self if it come to endure Hardship so it is with the Soul c. And it argues much Grace as little Corruption So there is strength of Grace that can make the Heart bow presently to God When Grace reigns in the Heart when Grace can say Come and the Soul comes Go and it goes when Grace can say This is the Administration of God towards you and now you must work thus and presently the Soul doth it It should not
then the Blessedness you spake of For I bear you record that if it had been possible you would have plucked out your own Eyes and have given them to me The meaning is this When the Gospel came at first to be Preached among them generally they cried out O this Blessed Gospel O the Blessedness O these blessed Truths that is come among us such Truths as we were not acquainted withal O they are blessed Truths indeed Mark They were thus taken with the Truths of the Gospel when they were first Preached But now saith Paul Where is the Blessedness ye spake of Your Hearts are not now so taken with the Gospel as they were at first now you seem to be taken off from it Where is the Blessedness you spake of I make no Question but many Ministers in many Congregations have Cause to make Use of these words of the Apostle when God sent them at first The Hearts of People were taken with the Ministry of the Gospel but within a while they are off again And well may their Ministers say Where is the Blessedness you spake of The Peace of the Gospel it doth not abide upon them but one thing or other takes it off from them So in Heb. 6. There you read of some that yet were not Sav'd by the Gospel or were not in a Condition at least for the present to be Sav'd yet they had a taste of the Heavenly Gift They did not only hear the Word and understand it but they Had a taste of the good Word of God O they said It was the good Word of God And Mark Of the Powers of the World to come That is of those powerful Truths of those Truths that do concern the World to come that were powerful Truths For so certainly my Brethren the Truths that do concern the World to come as powerful Truths they have a mighty deal of Power to work upon the Heart And these had not only the Apprehensions but a taste of the Powers of the World to come and yet it appears that they had not those things that did accompany Salvation Many other Scriptures might be shewed that there are many that are Affected with the Gospel yea they are Convinc'd and they have some taste of it and their Spirits taken yea almost perswaded with him that we read of almost perswaded to become a Christian and yet for all this this Mercy that is here promised to the Sons of Peace is not their Portion the peace of the Gospel doth not rest upon their Spirits It is a Blessing beyond that which any Hypocrite in the World hath to have this peace of the Gospel to rest and abide upon his Spirit That is First To be set up as a constant Light before the Soul not to come as a meer flash of Lightning suddenly come and suddenly gone but then it may be said to rest when the Lord sets up those glorious Truths of the Gospel as a constant Light before the Soul And Secondly When as the Lord works those Truths by Meditation upon the Heart the Lord causes those Truths to follow the Thoughts of the Mind and so to work them upon the Heart yea into the Heart of the Thoughts of the Mind when the Lord gives a constant real Taste of those Truths and Savour of them that though they be not alwayes Hearing of them yet the Savour and Relish doth abide in a constant way upon their Hearts when the Lord causes those Truths of the Gospel to spread all over the Faculties of their Souls that it is as the Holy Ghost compares it in Scripture to Leven The Kingdom of God is like unto Leven which in a little time doth Leven the whole Lump So when the Lord causes the Truths of the Gospel not only to be in the Mind in the Understanding in the Conscience but to get into the Heart to get into the Affections and as it were to Leven in a good sense the whole Soul by the Sweetness and the Goodness and the Excellency of those Truths Yea when the Lord shall cause those Truths to be dearly Rooted in the Heart to take such Root as Temptations and Deducements any Provocations without shall never be able to take out those Truths which are upon the Heart When the Lord shall cause them to stick so fast to sinck so deep into the Heart let there come what will to take off the Heart from them or take them out of the Heart yet they shall never be able to take them out of the Heart As a Martyr said saith he You may take my Heart out of my Body but you shall never take the Belief of these things out of my Heart O the Blessing and the Truths of the Gospel did so rest upon his Soul and they had gotten so near into his Heart that nothing in the World could take it off Many People that are a little stirr'd upon the Hearing of the Gospel and they think it is good and the Truths are Blessed Truths and they had good Resolutions but perhaps when they come Home from Hearing of the Word they shall have a Fellow-servant Jearing of them or the Father or Mother Speaking against them or the Husband the Wife or the Wife the Husband and so perhaps they come to lose all those Truths which formerly they were so taken with But those that are the Sons of Peace they have the Peace of the Gospel resting upon them as hath been Opened to you and this is a very great Blessing of God O this is a Mercy indeed for the Lord to grant the Truths of the Gospel and the Good of it thus to rest upon the Heart that the Heart doth keep it as a Treasure within it it is a great Mercy First Because it is a special Fruit of the Covenant of Grace according to that Text in Jer. 31. where God promises as the Fruit of the Covenant that he will Write His Law in their Inwards parts Now certainly by the Law it is not meant the Letter of the Ten Commandments But when He saith I will Write my Law that is My Will The great Counsels of my Will And the saving Truths of God are there meant by the Law For when David Expresses his love to the Law he means also the Soul-saving Truths that are Revealed in the Word of God and certainly there because it was in the time under the Law the Language of the Holy Ghost was suitable to the Time But certainly It is meant in a more especial manner the Truths of the Gospel That look as the Law was Written in Adams Heart at first so now those that are received into the Covenant have the Law of the Gospel and the Truths of that Written in their Hearts That is When ever they shall come to hear the Truths of the Gospel Opened to them they shall find as it were a Counterpain of the blessed Truths of the Gospel in their Hearts Yea further To have the Word of
God doth at sometime or other Convice Men and somewhat stir their Hearts O but this is that that they have cause bitterly to complain of that those things that they deliver to them that are the Precious and Glorious things of Jesus Christ yet though they stir them a little for the while yet they do not rest upon them It was a Complaint of Chrisostom saith he We Ministers are in a worse Condition than any Work-men whatsoever Take a Carpenter he comes and works and leaves his Work over-night and comes the next day and finds it where it was as he left it his Work is no more forward neither backward Oh! But it is not so with us Preachers for we come and work upon the Hearts of People and we bring it into a reasonable good forwardness and we leave it one Night and come the next day but woe to us we find it not where we leave it We work upon their Hearts one Lords Day and it may be they go away with some Resolutions that they will break off their evil way and they will attend to the Ministry of the Word but before the next Lords Day they are quite off again They are got again into some wicked Company or other and they begin to harden their Hearts against those Blessed Truths so that our Condition is worse than any Work-mans whatsoever But though it be a sad Condition for the Ministers of the Gospel yet know it is a sadder Condition for your selves You that heretofore have heard those Blessed things of the Gospel and your Hearts have been taken with them have they rested upon you I put this to you in the Name of God I say Hath the Peace of the Gospel rested upon your Hearts It may be some of you may know Two or Three years ago God began to work upon you you began to have some Enlightning of Jesus Christ and of the Kingdom of God and you began to say Blessed are those that shall be partakers of those things but have these rested upon you Hath not the Ministry of the Gospel been to some of you like a Ship that when it is Sailing in the Water it makes a great Impression for the present but let the Ship be gone and the Water is as smooth as ever it was So many times when the Minister comes and open the Blessed Truths of the Gospel they make a mighty Dent upon the Hearts of their Auditors but within a little while their Hearts are like the Water no man can see that ever there was an Impression of any Truth upon their Hearts Now know that this is a very sad thing to have the Gospel begin to Affect the Heart but not to Rest First Consider How vile is thy heart it is an argument of strong corruption that is in thy heart that the things of the Gospel cannot stick there And Consider How vild it is that wicked thoughts vile base unworthy unclean filthy thoughts can abide upon you If the Devil dart in temptations they will abide and rest why when he darts them in over-night he can find them in the morning perhaps if you have some vain or unclean thoughts you can role them up and down in your mind for half a night together perhaps day after day and night after night base and filthy thoughts are rol'd up and down in your Spirits these things can abide Now what shall vile filthy ungodly thoughts rest in your hearts and shall not the Blessed and Glorious Truths of Jesus Christ and the things of the Kingdom of God rest upon your hearts Yea Consider further That it is a most dangerous thing for an essay of mercy to pass away and to do no good for mercy to come and as it were make a trial upon the heart and then leave it and no good done this is a sad condition It is not so dangerous while Men and Women are in such an estate as the mercy of God hath not made an essay as it were upon them But now When the Grace of the Gospel shall come to make an essay upon the heart to make as it were a tryal upon the heart and to have the repulse this is a dangerous thing for an offer of Gods Grace to be rejected is very sad to loose one opportunity of Gods Mercy is a very sad thing how dost thou know that ever they will come upon thy heart with that power that once they did and therefore thy condition is very sad And know further That when the Lord begins to reveal to thee the things of the Gospel and thou puttest them off those flashes of affection and conviction that thou hast had will prove to be matter of terror of conscience another day Some poor Soul may say Then Lord what shall become of me God knows this is my condition I come many times to hear the word and I meet with those truths that do mightily take my heart for the present but the Lord knows all vanishes again I think I could remember every thing that the Minister speaks while I am hearing of them but they go out again I hear that this is the Blessing of God upon the Sons of Peace that the Truths of the Gospel should abide upon their hearts and rest there O they do not rest with me Now and then they come to me but they do not rest with me Now for the Answer to this Perhaps they may not rest in thy memory but yet if the Fruit and effect of them doth rest in thy heart thou hast the Gospel resting in thy heart As thus Why perhaps the Water may pass through a Vessel go quite through it and not stay I but yet there is so much Fruit of the passage of it thorow as to keep the Vessel sweet Though you cannot take up any Water from it but it is all gone yet I say it keeps the Vessel sweet So I may say to those that have the weakest memories and yet the Lord hath wrought any degree of Grace though thy memory be so weak that thou canst not remember I speak this to those that have weak memories naturally and there is nothing that their Souls do more desire then this O that they might keep those things that they hear they would think themselves the most happy Creatures in the world if those truths that sometimes they hear might rest upon them I speak to those Is it so with thy heart Then though thou canst not remember yet if those truths keep thy heart sweet they keep thy heart from filthy lusts that they do not abide in thy heart thy heart is kept savory by them if there be this effect abiding upon thy heart to keep it savory and sweet this Peace of the Gospel may rest with thee though thou canst not remember particulars A Man or Woman perhaps they cannot remember what Meat they ate a little while since but they find themselves nourished by that Meat So for the word of God that
shew John again those things which ye do hear and see the Blind receive their sight and the Lame walk and the Lepers are cleansed and the Deaf hear and the Dead are raised and the Poor have the Gospel Preached to them And as some of the Evangelists have it Poor receive the Gospel Observe why Christ brings this He brings it in as an Argument that he was the Messiah John would know whether He was the Messiah How shall he know it Why go and tell him The Blind receive their sight the Lame walk the Lepers are cleansed the Deaf hear the Dead are raised These are good Arguments to prove that Christ was the Messias If Christ could Work such Miracles as to give sight to the Blind to make the Lame to walk to cleanse the Lepers to cause the Deaf to hear and to raise the Dead these indeed were good Arguments But how comes in the last And the Poor receive the Gospel How is this an Argument that Christ is the Messias One would think that this should rather be an Argument that He is not the Messias They might say I indeed there are these great things done by Him but there is one thing makes us suspect that He is not the Messias For our Great Rich and Learned Men they do not receive Him only a Company of poor Ignorant People this Vulgar sort For so was the Arguing of the Pharisees there in John 7. 48. say they when the Officers were Affected with the Ministry of Christ Have any of the Rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him Have any of them Believed on Him But this People that knoweth not the Law are Cursed Only a Company of poor Ignorant People they believe on Christ But the Rulers have any of the Rulers or of the Pharisees the Great Men and the Rich Men the Learned Men Have they believed You see that this was a Stumbling-block whereby they would perswade Men that Christ was not the Messias But mark That which Men make the great Stumbling-block why Christ is not the Messias that Christ makes unto John the great Argument why He was the Messias Because the Poor receive the Gospel And Christ doth put this among his other Miracles And you will say How is this an Argument Thus It is one of the greatest Miracles that ever Christ wrought and it may well be Reckoned among those Miracles of giving Eyes to the Blind and Hearing to the Deaf Thus To make one that is a poor weak Creature that hath but a mean Capacity yet that such a one shall be able to see into the Great and High and Glorious Mysteries of the Gospel that the Angels desire to pry into So to see into the Reolity and the Certainty and the Glory of those Mysteries that he dares venture his Soul and his Eternal Estate upon I say This is as great a Work of a â—od as ever any Work that God did in this World and therefore it may well be put among Christs Miracles â—nd an Argument that Christ is the Messias If Christ shall Reveal such Glorious things that are the Objects of the Understanding of Angels to poor Illiterate People when as the Wise of the World shall not be able to see them but shall Reject them They shall not see so much as to dare to venture the loss of a Lust for them of any Creatures contentment for them but a poor weak Man or Woman Illiterate that understands but little in other things shall come to see so much the Glory of God shining in the Face of Christ as he dares venture not only all outward Comforts in this World but his Soul and Eternal Estate upon the Grace of God in his Son Here 's a mighty Work of Christ The Poor they come then to receive the Gospel it is Preached to them and they receive it and hereby Christ shews his Power Now hath Christ shown such a Miraculous Work of his upon thy Soul when he hath past by others that are Understanding and Men of Parts yet Reveal'd such deep and hidden Mysteries of the Gospel unto thee Oh admire at the Grace of God in his Son to thee and Bless him for this is not an ordinary Mercy it is a choice Mercy The Gospel is Rejected many times where it comes and thou seest it only God hath made a separation between thee and others As I told you of that Speech of Judas not Iscariot Lord saith he Why is it that thou Revealest thy self unto us and not unto the World Thou hast cause to wonder at it indeed Sixthly And then further that we may hasten to what remains If this be so that Gods sends the Gospel where it is Rejected hence be not Scandalized when you see it Despised and Contemned Let none be Scandalized at it so saith Christ in Mat. 11 when he saith The Poor have the Gospel Preached to them in the next words And Blessed is he whosoever is not offended in me For Men are ready to be offended when they see great Ones Reject the Ministry of the Gospel But you hear that God sends it where it is Rejected therefore be not you offended do not think that because others do not Imbrace it therefore there is nothing in it and why should I There is this Temptation in the Hearts of many though while they are Hearing of the Gospel Preached their Hearts are taken with what they Hear and they are Convinc'd but when they go away and are among their Companions and others that they find to slight all and to disregard all their Hearts are taken off likewise But O learn by this Point never to be Scandalized by others casting off the Gospel For it is that which Christ hath forewarned his Ministers when they go to Preach he doth intimate to them that they must expect that their Ministry must not prevail with all 7ly Lastly Is this true That God sends the Preaching of the Gospel where he sees it will and doth not prevail with many Now let every one of you lay his hand upon his Heart and think thus with himself Is it I Am I the man am I the Woman to whom Jesus Christ shall be Preached and shall not prevail O the Lord forbid that this should be so though it doth not prevail with others such and such yet God forbid that it should not prevail with my Heart let me imbrace it so much the rather Do I see Jesus Christ rejected by others O it is that which should go neer to my Heart that the Lord is rejected by any and shall he be rejected by me too the Lord forbid that as Christ said to his Disciples when others forsook him And will ye also go away O whither shall we go from thee saith Peter for with thee are the words of Eternal life so dost thou see others slight and neglect the glorious Ministry of the Gospel and wilt thou do so wilt thou add to the dishonour of the Gospel too
shall command your Children to observe to do all the words of this Law Mark it Why what 's the matter v. 47. For it is not a vain thing for you because it is your life It may be some of them when they heard Moses declaring the Law of God they would be ready to think it is a good Law and Moses doth well in telling of us the Law but there is no great consequence of it how our Hearts be taken with it O but saith Moses do not you come to hear the Law upon such tearms but set your Hearts upon what you hear Why because it is your life Much more cause have the Ministers of the Gospel thus to say when they come to preach Jesus Christ to a people Set your hearts to what is delivered When they come and say Peace be to this place to this People the Doctrine of the Gospel be preached to them O set your hearts to what is delivered Why for it is your life When you come to Hear a Sermon you should come so as to consider that your Life may lye upon that Sermon for ought you know and the rather look to it because the Lord with whom you have to deal is a great God and a God that will not be dallyed withal and trisled withal but if you disobey the Message of the Gospel the Lord may deal very quick with you and that let 's me into the Last Point which now we are to finish this Text in and that is this That those that shall not Entertain the Gospel the Lord will deal very quick with them Your Peace shall return again the Lord will not stand long about the matter I in the naming of the point have already spoken of a Scripture or two Now is the Axe lay'd to the root of the Trees when John Baptist came to Preach the Kingdom of God And that in the Last of Mark v. 16. Go and Preach saith Christ to his Disciples he that believes shall be Saved he that believes not shall be Damned The Lord Christ tells how quick the Lord will be with those that shall not entertain the Gospel and there are many Texts that are very full for this purpose and because it is a great Point and that it should strike much upon your Consciences therefore I will present it in the fulness of the Evidence of Scripture That place that you have in Matth. 10. it is just parallel to this in Luke 10. there where Christ sends his Apostles forth as he doth the 70. he gives the same Directions in effect but mark here Saint Matthew goes farther than Saint Luke Let your Peace Return to you and whosoever shall not receive you nor hear your words when you depart out of that House or City shake off the dust of your feet Verily I say unto you it shall be more tollerable for the Land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of Judgment than for that City See here the quickness of God with those that do reject the Gospel So in John 3. that is very famous for this in ver 18. He that believeth on him is not Condemned but he that believeth not is Condemned already You will say he is Condemned already because his Natural Condition is such that he is under Condemnation No but I take it the Scripture doth aim at something further He is not only Condemned by reason of his sins against the Law but he is condemned already because he hath not believed on the Name of the only Begotten Son of God How could he Believe in the Name of the Only Begotten Son of God before ever he heard it but here it is spoken of Light that is come into the World for so it follows in ver 19. And this is the Condemnation that light is come into the world and men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil That is when Christ shall come to be preached to any People and they will not believe presently there is a sentence of Condemnation that 's the meaning of the Text he is Condemned already the Lord is very quick with such And in Acts 17. 30. a place famous And the Times of this Ignorance God winked at He saw and would not see as it were he overpast that but Now saith he that is Now when Christ comes to be Preached Now he Commandeth all men every where to Repeent as if he should say Look to your selves that you Repent now whatsoever you did before though you could prophane Sabbaths before look to your selves now though you were vain and superstitious and carnal take heed now to your selves as if the Holy Ghost should say The Lord is willing to pass by all that was before but for rejection of his Son look to that he will not pass by that so easily that One sin so easily as he will pass by all the other All the sins that men have Committed all their Lives before may more easily be past by than that one sin of Rejection of the offer of Grace by Jesus Christ Now he calls all men to Repentance And then a third Text is that in 2 Cor. 2. a Text that I made use of the last Day for another purpose For we are unto God a sweet Savour of Christ in them that are saved and in them that perish to the one we are the savour of Death unto Death What 's the meaning of that It is somewhat a strange phrase and expression we are the savour of death unto death Savour of death I take the meaning of the phrase to be thus he compares his Ministery that was the Ministry of the Gospel unto those things that had a mighty efficacy in them a strong vertue so strong as their very savour was enough either to kill or to make alive As there are some things so strong as the very sent of them can kill a man or even raise a man from a Sound so saith the Apostle our Ministry to sin is the savour of death unto death it is a deadly savour to them Thus you may see that the Ministry of the Word it hath a mighty quickness in it one way or other either from Heaven or Hell to Save or to Destroy And another Scripture we have in Heb. 4. there the Apostle speaking of the Word the Word of the Gospel for certainly that 's that that he speaks of v. 12. For the Word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two edged Sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of Soul and Spirit and of the Joynts and Marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the Heart The Word of the Gospel whensoever it comes to any Congregation it is no dull matter you may not look to sit dully under that but it is a quick Word it will either slay thy sin or slay thy Soul one of the two it must slay one and that quickly And in Heb. 6. there the Apostle compares