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A89792
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A sermon preached to the Honorable citizens of London, September 29. 1659. being the day of the election of their Lord Major. Wherein is distinctly shewed, I. The usefulness of a powerful ministry to the civil governor. II. Integrity when in conflict is most amiable and in its highest glory. III. What virtues are desireable in a good magistrate. By Philip Nye a servant of Jesus Christ in his gospel.
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Nye, Philip, 1596?-1672.
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1660
(1660)
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Wing N1500; Thomason E1048_6; ESTC R208118
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17,332
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35
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A SERMON Preached to the Honorable Citizens of London September 29. 1659. being the day of the Election of their Lord Major Wherein is distinctly shewed I. The Usefulness of a powerful Ministry to the Civil Governor II. Integrity when in Conflict is most Amiable and in its highest Glory III What Virtues are desireable in a Good Magistrate By PHILIP NYE A Servant of Jesus Christ in his Gospel London Printed by Peter Cole and Edward Cole Printers and Book-sellers at the Printing-press in Cornhil neer the Royal Exchange 1661. Ireton Major A special Court holden the 25. day of October 1659 in the Afternoon IT is ordered that Mr. Nye be from this Court desired to Print his Sermon at the Election of the Lord Major of this City Sadler To the Right Honorable Sr. THOMAS ALEIN Lord Major of the City of LONDON My Lord These few pages thus presented to your hand at your Command contain the message of the great God spoken from him to this Honorable City and more especially to your Lordship being then elected the Nehemiah or Governor thereof The publishing of this Sermon though thus late yet I cannot but deem it seasonable not only for that the word of God hath a season even out of season 2 Tim. 4.2 but this being the time that you give up your trust it doth seasonably serve to provoke you as from the Lord to a serious and strict account within your self how you have discharged it In the Parable of the steward our Lord Christ calleth upon all any way intrusted to give an account of their stewardship Then when they may be no longer stewards Luke 15.2 My confidence thus far is that the substance of this Sermon is such as by comparing your own heart and waies with the contents thereof It wil prove helpful to you in the casting up your present great account of this years Government betwixt God and your own soul which is required by him of you now to be done you will here see upon what terms you took this Office of the Lord and what he instructed and directed as your Lordships duty How much you have prized the assistance of a Godly ministry in carrying on your Government this year what Eminency of sincerity hath appeared in any difficulty or Conflicts with what a publick spirit with what Wisdom Piety and Courage the Government of this City hath been carried on in your Lordships hand the time is now come and God cals upon your Conscience most seriously to consider there wil be a final and great account which you as we all must give of our several stewardships but that wil not excuse the omission of this I am bold to conclude with the Apostles words I now write the things unto you that you formerly heard And did then acknowledg 2 Cor. 1.13 And I trust you will acknowledg now at the end and to the end as he there speaks And acknowledging make that use thereof I have been now insisting on My earnest Prayer unto God is that as this Sermon was by divine appointment the Early Rain at the first Spring of your Government so that now it may obtain the Blessing of the latter Rain at the Inning of the Harvest September 1660. Your Lordships most humble Servant PHILIP NYE A SERMON Preached to the Right Honorable the Citizens of the City of London upon the twenty ninth of September 1659. being the day of the Election of their Lord Major The TEXT Nehemiah 6.11 And I said should such a man as I flee and who is there that being as I am would go into the Temple to save his Life I will not go in JErusalem that famous City had Nehemiah their chief Governor set over them by that Higher power under which for their sins they then were in bondage Artaxerxes appointed this Nehemiah to that trust and its more then probable Considering their then distracted Condition they would not have chosen so wel for themselves If your just rights should be taken out of your hands yet they wil be found in Gods hand for you who many times by a less pleasing way doth better for us then we would do for our selves Nehemiah was a person eminently qualified for a Governor I have chosen him to be the Pattern by which you may direct your choyce this day As the trust of Nehemiah was great and the people of God greatly concerned in his well or ill management of it so was his opposition The Stratagems and Devices of Tobias Sanballat with the great Wisdom and courage of Nehemiah in wrestling through and escaping them is the sum of this whol Chapter Their first assault begins with ver 1. which was subtile and importunate enough but defeated and is storied in the nine first verses yet ver 10. they are on again and with greater craft in their design but to as little purpose though the Temple was the snare and a Prophet the Driver yet all miscarries this Holy man will not go into the Temple How indefatigable are the Churches Enemies Good Nehemiah when got over one brunt He praies for strength against another ver 9. Now therfore O God strengthen my hands Such a praier at such a time a praier for strength after he had found strength and got the victory evidently implies either First That a Good man though he prevail in a conflict yet may be left under such feebleness in his mind and discouragement in his work as will need a recruit from above In our Militia if praier be neglected we shall not be able to stand two brunts together as at meals so in our Conflicts pray before and after Or Secondly If our work be great and we steady in it opposition likewise wil be great and constant against it The Enemy though every foot defeated yet wil rally again How wil Balaam go from place to place and try conclusions that he may find out a way to curse Israel Pharoah how oft disappointed in his designs upon the people of God yet in what a wretched Constancy is his resolution to mischief them first or last This must every good Soldier of Christ mind No sooner give fire and discharge but load again and stand in an expecting posture in a readiness to receive a second assault This latter tryal of Nehemiah by the return of Tobiah and Sanballat upon him in another shape and the blessed Issue of it is that part of the story only which is to be the subject of our present discourse in handling whereof two particulars are to be insisted upon 1. The snare or design it self and great artifice used in the projection of it 2. The blessed frame of heart in this prudent and holy man by which he works through it For the design An Apostat Clergy-man Nehemiah's affection to that tribe being generally known is hired by Sanballat and Tobias verse 12. To ffaine Nehemiah into an eminent suddain danger such as there is but one way in the world
just whatsoever things are pure whatsoever things are lovely whatsoever things are of good report if there be any virtue if there be any praise think of those things These Laws have also their penalties and rewards from the multitude according as they are observed or neglected namely the general praise or reproach of men A man shal be commended according to his wisdom but he that is of a perverse heart he cares not whom or what he Crosses shal be despised Prov. 12.8 A man must be of vast merits in the eyes of all men that will be singular and of a peculiar humor and not be extreamly contemned This was the thing the enemies of Nehemiah would have put upon him to do unlike himself and otherwise then what the Law of vulgar expectation laid upon him and upon Magistrates Though there had been no dishonest thing in the sight of God his life lay on it yet if he should not have answered what the World expected they would have spoken evill and punished him with Reproaches as verse 13. which he looked upon and indeed is a matter of great Consequence to a Magistrate or person of publick imployment Paul was of his judgment and choyce in such a case and professeth it were better for him to die than that he should make his glorying void 1 Cor. 9.15 Jesus Christ himself engaged in publick service enquires how he stood in the opinion of men Math. 16.13 What do men say of me As you are called gods so mind your Glory that is know who you are and do like your selves we can mind our selves and who we are if an affront or neglect be given from want of observance from others Shall such a one as I bear it do not you know my Lord Major c Let him and all in Authority know themselves and do accordingly and they wil be acknowledged their works wil discover and praise them in the Gate Prov. 31. 3. A man of Courage and Resolution Constant and fixed in his Course there is nothing within or without shall daunt him talk to him of danger Death advise him to stoop but a little below himself and it wil be his security No saith Nehemiah a man of Courage will rather take the bullet though it take his life than make a stoop at the report to avoid it another man may do this but it becomes not a Soldier Shal such a man as I flee Shal I go into the Temple to save my life I will not go in I will not save my life upon such terms Courage is requisite to those that are publick persons in Civil as wel as in Military imployment hence they mutuate titles as Dux Eques Armiger Major c. Thus God to Joshua Josh 1.6 Be strong and of a good Courage again verse 7. ONLY be thou strong and very Couragious as if it were the All of a Ruler Shall I go into the temple I will not go in this repetition sheweth the fixedness of his resolution like that of Paul 2 Cor. 11.12 What I do I will do that I may cut of occasion from them that seek occasion c. An uneven unsteady Magistrate is the same at somtimes that an easie and weak one is at all times and the same advantages may be taken upon him if we do but put our selves to the trouble to wait our season I have said you are Gods ye shall die like men to be a god is to be above all fears all Hopes all Temptations to be immutable and not to appear so much as in the shadow of a change Ye shall die like men til Death comes you are gods there shal be no diminution of your god-head of your greatness by me if you diminish it not your selves keep up therefore a Courage answerable 4. Wisdom This is another Star in the Constellation Nehemiah by his great reach and depth of understanding was able to see through all their Colors and subtil pretentions To disappoint the devises of the Crafty Job 5.12 is mentioned as a Character of the greatest wisdom Elisha begs that the Spirit of Elias may be doubled upon him because he was to be a publickTeacher that is he must now teach himself and others so a Magistrate must seek of God a double spirit of wisdom because he is not only to govern himself but a City A Nation The least Star is sufficient to give light to it self but no less then a Sun is sufficient to inspect a world The want of wisdom in a Magistrate as it is of greatest detriment to his people so with greatest difficulty supplied Men of weak and low parts have such Jealousies of those that are more able that for the most part they carry on their Counsels rather with persons of the same proportion for wisdom with themselves 5. Holiness Nehemiah was a person that feared God of great Integrity and uprightness It may be said of him as of David Psal 78.72 He fed them according to the integrity of his heart and guided them by the skilfulness of his hand where skilfulness or wisdom and Integrity meets it 's of singular advantage in Goverment under such Governors We may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all Godliness and Honesty GODLINES wil thrive if planted in a City in a Nation though the Governors be enemies to it but this is that great and choyce blessing and Priviledg enjoyed by a people where such persons Govern we may not only be Honest but Godly and this not only in some parcels of devotion according to the mode of the times But in all Godliness these blessed Privildges enjoyed not in Corners and with difficulty and molestation hunted from place to place but all godliness with a quiet and peaceable life where such Magistrates are over us HONESTY with quiet and peace may be our portion and enjoyed if a Heathen or Infidel were our Governor But a freedom to be Godly and according to this extent with quiet to be expected only where a Nehemiah is Governor 6. Humility What a deal of this Grace lies out visible in those few words who is there that being as I am would do otherwise than I do Although his doing was so singular as you wil not find such Honor such Courage such a publick Spirit no not in one Governor of a hundred yet he assumes nothing unto himself peculiar I have done but what any man would have done There are that for doing half so much for the publick think themselves to have merited red Letters and for half so much Self denial ought to have a place in the Calendar Peter was a godly man a chief Apostle yet found in as great a distance in the frame of his spirit from this of Nehemiah's as the Compass of Grace can well permit Master saith he Math. 26.23 though all should be offended yet wil I never He conceits himself singular for Courage and Constancy and all no man shall shew himself so resolute no man shal