Ordinances of Religion are tiresome and a weariness to the Flesh that the Holy Scripture tells us Acts 14.22 Heb. 12.6 That thro' much tribulation we must enter into the Kingdom of God That those whom God loves he chastneth and That straight is the Gate Matth. 7.4 and narrow is the way that leads to Heaven and eternal Happiness And if so then certainly it cannot be so happy and pleasant a State of Life as I have represented it To which I shall briefly Answer That many of those Texts of Scripture which speak of the Difficulties attending a religious Course of Life are to be understood of those times when the Christian Religion was persecuted by the Heathen Emperors of Rome and the Professors of it in danger of losing their Lives for the Testimony of the Gospel It must be confess'd That even in our Times when Kings are become the nursing Fathers of the Church those Persons who have been long habituated to a sinful and wicked Course of Life will find it a very difficult matter to forsake it and to give themselves entirely up to obey the Commands of God and the Duties of the Christian Religion But yet it may be a mighty Incouragement to consider That 't is only the first Entrance on a religious Course of Life which is attended with so great Difficulty that it will become every day more and more easie and at last pleasant and delightful to them When they have for some time accustom'd themselves to it the Comforts of a well-spent Life will flow in upon them and nothing will yield them greater Satisfaction than to be allow'd the Privilege of pouring out the Desires of their Souls before God and begging Supplies from him and returning him thanks for his Blessings bestow'd upon them They will earnedly desire to come and appear before God and as the Hart panteth after the water Brooks Psal 42.1 so will their Soul pant after their God and their Redeemer But yet supposing that there should be some Difficulty in the leading of a good Life that God should see fit to make the Profession of his Truth hazardous and the Practice of their Duty chargeable Yet what generous and Praise worthy undertaking can be perform'd without Pains and Diligence All that is excellent and noble requires Labour and Industry and the Pains Men take makes the dear-bought Blessing more acceptable to them Do they not undergo much greater Difficulties for things of lesser moment tho' their Success is seldom answerable to their Expectations Do they not compass Sea and Land leave their best Friends and nearest Relations and dig even into the very Bowels of the Earth in quest of Wealth tho' for the most part they find a Grave where they seek their Treasure Do they not toil and sweat and wade thro' a Sea of Blood in pursuit of Honour tho' they expect no other recompence for their Pains but a Lawrel-Wreath or the Applause of the People And shall not Heaven and eternal Happiness deserve our Care Shall we not take as much Pains for a never fading Crown as we do for a withering Garland But let us suppose the greatest Difficulties we can possibly imagine in the Practice of a good and Holy Life Suppose as we are apt to fancy that there are Lyons in our way to Heaven Mountains which cannot be remov'd by our natural Strength and Ability yet even the most formidable Evils will not fright us from the Practice of Virtue and Holiness if we consider Thirdly That the worst Circumstances a good Man can be reduc'd to are to be preferr'd before the prosperous Condition of the wicked as will appear from these following Considerations 1. That in the lowest and most afflicted Condition the good Man enjoys the Comfort of a quiet Mind and the Peace of a good Conscience which is a sufficient Compensation for all the Evils he can possibly endure in this Life All other Evils are supportable and may be undergone by a stable and well resolved Mind The spirit of a man may bear his Infirmities Prov. 18.14 but a wounded spirit who can bear This is the only Load which is insupportable and is for the most part the Lot of the prosperous wicked Man 2. The good Man is furnish'd with never-failing Remedies against all the Evils of this present Life He is assur'd that all Afflictions shall be for the good of those that serve God and that God disposes all things with the Wisdom and Love of an indulgent Father that the Wheels of God's Providence have an Eye within them which always guides them to some wise end or other 2 Cor. 12.9 That Gods grace will be sufficient for him and that he will proportion his Assistance to his Wants so that if he should call him out to give his Body to be burned and to lay down his Life for his sake he will also give him strength to undergo the fiery Tryal and chearfully to praise him in the Flames And 3. The good Man is assur'd that the Evils he suffers will soon be at an end that the time draws on apace when he shall be eas'd of all his Troubles Rev. 7.17 Have all tears wiped away from his Eyes and receive a Hundred fold for all those momentary Afflictions he has undergone in this Life Whilst he endures the Cross his Faith shews him the Crown of Glory hanging over his head and the lively Hopes of it make him not only patient but thankful for and chearful under Affliction And I am perswaded that St. Paul when in Chains and under all his Calamities and Persecutions was infinitely more contented than Caesar or Seneca than any of the most fortunate Princes or wisest Philosophers amongst the Heathens From these and such like Considerations I think it is sufficiently evident 1. That there is very little true Pleasure to be found in a debauch'd and wicked Course of Life 2. That the way to lead a comfortable Life even in this World is to be vertuous and religious 3. That the worst Circumstances a good Man can fall into are to be preferr'd before the most prosperous Condition of the wicked And if so then from hence we may reasonably conclude That Godliness has the Promises of the Life that now is i.e. That our Happiness in this World is best secur'd by leading a Holy and religious Life It only remains that I shew Secondly That a Holy and religious Life fits and prepares us for everlasting Happiness in the world to come And this is evident because a State of Grace and a State of Glory only differ in degree Grace is Glory begun and Glory is Grace perfected and consummated So that every good Action and religious Duty that we perform is a step towards our everlasting Happiness it both qualifies us for it and leads us nearer to it for by a Holy and religious Life we Copy out the Perfections of the Divine Nature and become more like God and the
to refrain from good Works because a Papist hopes to merit by them I 'll learn from a Turk to die for my Religion and to search the Scriptures from a Jew Our Saviour makes the unjust Steward's Wisdom a Pattern for his Disciples The Ox and the Ass are made use of to teach Men Gratitude and the Pismire Wisdom Nay we may learn Diligence and Care of our eternal Salvation from the Devil himself Who compasseth the whole Earth 1 Pet. 5.8 and walketh about like a roaring Lyon seeking whom he may devour 2. Let us bear with them in things indifferent following after those things which make for Peace and where we lawfully and with a good Conscience may becoming all things to all men Zech. 8.19 that we may save some In short we must love both Truth and Peace i. e. both of them in Conjunction one with the other We must so love Peace as not to lose Truth in matters substantial And so love Truth as not to break Peace in matters indifferent Lastly Let us turn away and avoid only that which is evil in them this is of the same Import with that Caveat which our Saviour gave to his Disciples against the Scribes and Pharisees To beware of their Leven i. e. all that is sour and infectious which will spread the Contagion and propagate the mischief Let us distinguish the good from the bad the light from the darkness Let the one be call'd day and the other night Let the one be imitated and the other avoided Eph. 5.11 Let only the unfruitful works of darkness be rejected But let us welcome the Light and embrace Love and imitate the good where-ever we meet with them And if we do so then Mercy and Truth shall meet together Righteousness and Peace shall kiss each other Truth shall flourish out of the Earth and Righteousness shall look down from Heaven Yea the Lord shall shew Loving-kindness for his Salvation is nigh unto them that fear him that Glory may be in our Land Amen SERMON IV. PROV XIX 25. Smite a Scorner and the Simple will beware and reprove one that hath Vnderstanding and he will understand knowledge THE Proverbs of Solomon are a Collection of wise Sentences and Apophthegms grounded upon the long Observation and ripe Experience of one of the most Potent Princes and wisest of Men And since Proverbs in general are observ'd to contain the Wisdom of all Nations therefore we may reasonably expect to find a rich Treasure of Divine Truths in those of which Solomon was the Author or else by Collection made his own All the Books of the Old Testament may well be compar'd to a fruitful Soil but this of the Proverbs abounds with a more rich Vein and is of the greater Use because it contains Precepts accommodated to all the Necessities of humane Life for the most part they have no coherence but are set down just as they came to the Mind of the inspired Author The Verse which I have read to you is of the nearest Importance and shews us the prudent use which a wise Man makes of a friendly Reproof and what great advantages he reaps by it Reprove one that hath understanding and he will understand knowledge i. e. 't is a Sign of a Wise a Good and an understanding Man to take Reproof patiently and thankfully to give an attentive Ear to it to be very quick-sighted in discovering his own Faults when they are laid open to him and very diligent and industrious in reforming himself Reprove one that hath understanding Psal 55.32 and he will understand Knowledge From which words I shall shew I. The Excellent use which a wise Man makes of a friendly Reproof II. The great Difficulty of performing this friendly Office III. I shall lay down some Motives to engages us to set about it And IV. Give some Rules and Directions for a right Management of our selves in the Execution of it And first of the excellent Use which a wise Man makes of a friendly Reproof Prov. 25.12 As an Ear-ring of Gold and an Ornament of fine Gold so is a wise Reprover upon an obedient Ear which is thus Paraphras'd by a Right Reverend Father of our Church A good Man will not think himself reproach'd but rather oblig'd by a prudent Reproof which meeting with an attentive considering and patient Mind makes a Man take it so kindly that he esteems him who bestows it as much as if he had hung a Jewel of Gold or put the richest Ornament about his Neck There is nothing harder to find than a true Friend and he is the truest and best Friend who will most impartially Reprove us for our Faults shew us the Errors of our Lives discover to us those Rocks on which we split and faithfully tell us when we do amiss and therefore this is one way of making a Friend of an inveterate Enemy by taking notice what fault or weakness he upbraids us most with and accuses us of and thus by coming to the knowledge of our Errors we take the first step towards the Amendment and Reformation of them And if Reproof is so useful from an Enemy how much more beneficial may it be made from a Friend Who will both inform us when we go astray and set us in the right Path who will conceal our Faults from other Men and yet impartially expose them to our own View who knows first how to Lance and lay open the Sore and then to apply a fit Remedy to it Certainly he who has got such a Friend is possess'd of an inestimable Treasure and there is requir'd only an understanding Mind and a sanctify'd Heart to make him capable to receive Benefit by his Advice But alas For the most part Self-conceit is so prevalent in us that we doat even upon our Blemishes and Imperfections because our own we fall in Love with our own Pictures tho' never so deform'd and ugly and there is no readier and surer way to disoblige us than by performing the most friendly Office in the World the giving us a faithful Glass to behold our selves in and setting our Actions in a true Light This seems to be such an Act of Superiority as few Men can admit of for tho' we must give the Pre-heminence to others in Riches and Power and the Gifts of Fortune yet few Men are willing to believe any one is more Wise Prudent and Discreet than themselves And therefore II. It must needs be a very difficult Task to perform this kind and friendly Office and that in Respect either 1. Of the Reprover or 2. Of the Person who is to be reproved And first I shall consider the Difficulty of it with Respect to the Reprover For 1. A Wise and good Man and such Persons are only fit to Reprove others is for the most part too modest to reprove other Men. Either he has too low and mean Opinion of himself and his performances or else he is desirous
as well upon the bad as the good of his fullness all receive Grace for Grace Joh. 1.9 And tho' the Grace of God is not imparted to all alike yet every Man receives a sufficient Portion of it sufficient to supply all his Wants both Temporal and Spiritual For as if you dip Vessels of different Sizes into the Sea every one will be full of Water though every one doth not hold the same quantity so tho' there are different Gifts and different Administrations and different measures of Grace communicated to Men yet God with-holds from no Man sufficient Grace to enable him to be good and vertuous and to answer all his pressing and unavoidable Necessities The Israelites in the Wilderness gathered Manna Exod. 16.18 according to every Man 's eating when they did measure it with an Omer he that had gathered much had nothing over and he that had gather'd little had no lack So God gives his Grace unto Men according to every Man's necessity measure it with an Omer weigh all the Circumstances and you will find That neither he that has little has Cause to repine nor he that has much to boast One Man is surrounded with Temptations burthen'd and loaded even to the ground with Afflictions oppress'd with Difficulties and to this Man God gives a greater Portion of his holy Spirit he assists him more powerfully he strengthens and confirms him after an extraordinary manner and enables him to close and grapple with the Difficulty or Temptation which assaults him Another has been nurtur'd in Vice and brought up in Debauchery and it is necessary that he should be reclaim'd from his Evil doings with a strong hand and an out-stretch'd Arm. A third has been long accustom'd to good and is naturally inclin'd to Sobriety and Vertue and requires only the ordinary Assistance of God's Grace to keep him so Thus God like a Wise Housholder proportions his Gifts to the Wants and Necessities of his Children and Servants and will require of every one according to what he has receiv'd and reward them according to their Works he that has but one Talent given him if he well employs that one may obtain the Government of one City though he has not the highest place in the Kingdom of Heaven yet he will find Admittance there where the least degree of Happiness will consist of Joys unspeakable which transcend all comparison But if God call out any one to give Testimony to the Truth or to be an eminent Example of Patience or Long suffering or taking up the Cross he will furnish him with proportionable measures of Strength so that the good Christian may rest assur'd that though at present he finds himself weak and frail and unable to undergo the Affliction which he fears will suddenly fall upon him yet I say he may assure himself that the Divine Assistance will always attend him God will never leave him nor forsake him but as his troubles grow upon him so shall he be supply'd with more Power more Courage and more Ability to bear up under them God is faithful 1. Cor. 10.13 and will not suffer us to be tempted above what we are able to bear as St. Paul assures us And that God has been faithful in the performance of this as well as his other Promises we need no other Testimony but that of our own Consciences For if we look back upon the past Transactions of our Lives we shall find how frequently God's Grace has suggested to us This is the Way walk in it when we were in suspence how to behave our selves and has as it were Pointed out our Duty to us how often we have been prick'd at the heart when we have committed any Sin and stir'd up and incited to do good and the Reason why we have done amiss and transgress'd God's Commands has generally been because we have not improv'd those good Motions and followed the Dictates and Impulses of God's Grace within us For tho' we are not to look for any other Directions for the Government of our Lives besides those of God's written word and if we have any thing suggested to us which is opposite to this establish'd Rule of our Duty we ought to look upon it as a snare of the Devil and the Instigation of an evil Spirit Yet on the contrary when we find any vigorous and strong Inclination to do that which we are fully assur'd is our Duty to do at that time and in that place then we may assure our selves that this is the Motion of God's holy Spirit the Grace of God working in us and that 't is our Duty to comply with it to encourage and improve it and if we do so then it will certainly bring to pass that Effect for which God at the first design'd and intended it It remains therefore That God's Grace is sufficient for us i. e. gives us Strength Ability and Means enough to subdue the Devil the World and the Flesh and that if we are brought under the Dominion and Power of any of these we must accuse our own Sloth and Laziness in neglecting to use and improve to the uttermost those means and helps which God has afforded us This will be made more evident by considering 3. The Person to whom this Promise is made My Grace is sufficient for thee And if we consider the Person here spoken of the Apostle St. Paul according to that account which is given of him in the Holy Scripture we shall find in his Life such variety of Circumstances so very remarkable and instructive that there is hardly any Condition we can fall into wherein we may not receive Benefit by his Example and have an Instance of the Powerfulness and sufficiency of God's Grace Let us consider him as a Jew how zealous was he in the Profession of that Faith how furious in the Persecution of all such who either taught or liv'd in the Observance of the Christian Religion Acts 23.6 He was a Pharisee the Son of a Pharisee And by consequence a rigid Observer not only of the Rites and Ceremonies of the Law but also of all the Traditions of the Rabbies so that though he liv'd at that time when our Saviour Christ was on Earth and had heard of if not seen the Miracles which he wrought yet was he an inveterate Enemy to him and his Religion And this mistaken Zeal for the Mosaical Law carried him forth to a furious Persecution of the Church he was consenting to the Death of the Martyr St. Stephen Acts 22.20 Acts. 8.3 Acts 9.1 He made havock of the Church and breathed out nothing but threatnings and slaughter against the Disciples dragging Men and Women to Prison and procuring Letters of Inquisition against them from the High Priest and yet for all this God's Grace was sufficient to bring him from the bondage of the Law to the Freedom of the Gospel and the only Righteousness in Christ Jesus to make him Preach that