forsaken the fountain of life art liable to everlasting death And for this see some places of Scripture Rom. 6.2 3. The wages of sin is death Consider then first what this wages is Wages is a thing which must be paid If you have an hireling and your hireling receive not his wages you are sure to hear of it and God will hear of it too James 5.4 He which keeps back the wages of the labourer or of the hireling their cry will come into the eares of the Lord of Sabbath As long as hirelings wages are unpaid Gods eares are filled with their cries Pay me my wages pay me my wages So sin cries and it is a dead voice Pay me my wages pay me my wages the wages of sin is death And sin never leaves crying never lets God alone never gives him rest till this wages be paid When Cain had slain Abel he thought he should never have heard any more on 't but sin hath a voice The voice of thy brothers blood cries unto me from the ground So Gen. 18.20 the Lord saith concerning Sodom Because the cry of Sodom is great and their sin very grievous therefore I will goe down and see whether they have done according to the cry that is come up into mine eares As if the Lord had said It 's a loud cry I can have no rest for it therefore I will goe down and see c. If a man had his eares open he would continually hear sin crying unto God Pay me my wages pay me my â—ages kill this sinful soul And though we do not hear it yet so it is The dead and doleful sound thereof fillâ— Heaven it makes God say I will goe down and see c. Till sin receive its wages God hath no rest Again see Rom. 7.11 Sin taking occasion by the commandement deceived me and by it slew me I thought sin not to have been so great a matter as it is We think on a matter of profit or pleasure and thereupon are enticed to sin but here 's the mischieâ— sin dâ—ceives us Iâ— is a weight it presses down it deceâ—â—es men it 's more then they deemed it to be The committing of sin is as it were running thy self upon the point of Gods blade Sin at first may flâ—â—ter thee but it will deceive thee It 's like Joabs kisse to Amasa Amasa was not aware of the spear that was behind till he smote it into his ribs that he died When sin entices thâ—e on by profits and pleasures thou art not aware that it will slay thee But thou shalt find it will be bitternesse in the end A sinner that acts a tragedy in sin shall have a bloody Catastrophe Rom. 6. What fruit had you then in those things whereof you are now ashamed Blood and death is the end of the Tragedy The end of those things is death The sting of death is sin 1 Cor. 15. What is sin It 's the sting of death Death would not be death unlesse sin were in it Sin is more deadly then death it self It 's sin enableth death to sting enableth it to hurt and wound us So that we may look on sin as the Barbarians looked on the viper on Pauls hand they expected continually when he would have swollen and burst Sin bites like a snake which is called a fiery serpent not that the serpent is fiery but because it puts a man into such a flaming heat by their poyson And such is the sting of sin which carries poyson in it that had we but eyes to see our uglinesse by it and how it inflames us we should continually every day look when we should burst with it The Apostle James 1.15 useth another metaphor Sin when it is accomplished bringeth forth death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith the Original sin goeth as it were with child with death The word is proper to women in labour who are in torment till they are delivered Now as if sin were this woman he useth it in the faeminine gender 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So is it with sin sin is in pain cries out hath no rest till it be delivered of this dead birth till it have brought forth death That is sin growes great with child with death and then it not only deserves death but it produceth and actually brings forth This is generally so Now consider with your selves death is a fearful thing When we come to talk of death how doth it amaze us The Priests of Nob are brought before Saul for relieving David and he saith Thou shalt surely die Ahimelech And this is your case you shall surely die death is terrible even to a good man As appeares in Hezekiah who though he were a good man yet with how sad a heart doth he entertain the message of death the newes of it affrighted him it went to his heart it made him turn to the wall and weep How cometh it to pass that we are so careless of death that we are so full of infidelity that when the word of God saith Thou shalt die Ahimelech we are not at all moved by it What can we think these are fables Do we think God is not in earnest with us And by this means we fall into the temptation of Eve a questioning whether Gods threats are true or not That which was the deceit of our first Parents is ours Satan disputes not whether sin be lawful or not whether eating the fruit were unlawful whether drunkennesse c. be lawful he 'l not deny but it is unlawful But when God saith If thou dost eat c. thou shalt die he denies it and saith ye shall not die He would hide our eyes from the punishment of sin Thus we lost our selves at the first and the floods of sin came on in this manner when we believed not God when he said If thou dost eat thou shalt surely die And shall we renew that capital sin of our Parents and think if we do sin we shall not die If any thing in the world will move God to shew us no mercy it 's this when we slight his judgments or not believe them This adds to the heigth of all our sins that when God saith if thou dost live in sin thou shalt die and yet we will not believe him that when he shall come and threaten us as he doth Deut. 29. when he shall curse and we shall bless our selves in our hearts and say we shall have peace though we goe on c. The Lord will not spare that man but the anger of the Lord and his jealousie shall smoke against him It is no small sin when we will not believe God This is as being thirsty before we now adde drunkennesse to our thirst That is when God shall thus pronounce curses he shall yet blesse himself and say I hope I shall doe well enough for all that There are two words to that bargain Then see what follows The anger of the Lord and his
jealousie shall smoke against that man c. We are but now entred into the point but it would make your hearts ake throb within you if you should hear the particulars of it All that I have done is to perswade you to make a right choise to take heed of Satans delusions Why will ye die Ezek. 33. Therefore cast away your sins and make you a new heart and a new spirit for why will you die Where the golden candlestick stands there Christ walks there he saith I am with you Where the word and Sacraments are there Christ is and when the woâ—d shakes thy heart take that time now choose life Why will you die Consider of the matter Moses put before the people life and death blessing and cursing We put life and death before you in a better manner He was a Minister of the letter we of the spirit Now choose life But if you will not hearken but will needs try conclusions with God therefore because you will choose your own confusions and will not hearken unto God because you will needs try conclusions with him will not obey him when he calls therefore he will turn his deaf ear unto you and when you call and cry he will not answer Prov. 1. I presse this the more to move you to make a right choise But now to turn to the other side as there is nothing but death the wages of sin and as I have shew'd you where death is so give me leave to direct you to the fountain of life There is life in our blessed Saviour if we have but an hand of faith to â—ouch him we shall draw vertue from him to raise us up from the death of sin to the liâ—e of righteousnesse 1 John 5.12 He that hath the Son hath life he that hath not the Son hath not life You have heard of a death that comes by the first Adam and sin and to that stock of original sin we had from him we have added a great heap of our own actual sins and so have treasured up unto our selves wrath against the day of wrath Now here is a great treasure of happiness on the other side in Christ have the Son and have life The question is now whether you will choose Christ and life or sin and death Consider now the Minister stands in Gods stead and beseeches you in his name he speaks not of himself but from Christ. When he draws near to thee with Christs broken body and his blood shed and thou receive Christ then as thy life and strength is preserved and encreased by these Elements so hast thou also life by Christ. If a man be kept from nourishment a while we know what death he must die If we receive not Christ we cannot have life we know that there is life to be had from Christ and he that shall by a true and lively faith receive Christ shall have life by him There is as it were a pair of Indentures drawn up between God and a mans soul there is blood shed and by it pardon of sin and life convey'd unto thee on Christs part Now if there be faith and repentance on thy part and thou accept of Christ as he is offered then thou mayst say I have the Son and as certainly as I have the bread in my hand I shall have life by him This I speak but by the way that the Sun might not set in a cloud that I might not end only in death but that I might shew that there is a way to recover out of that death to which we have all naturally praecipitated our selves ROM 6.23 The wages of sin is death THe last day I entred on the Declaration of the cursed effects and consequents of sin and in general shew'd that it is the wrath of God that where sin is there wrath must follow As the Apostle in the Epistle to the Galathians As many as are under the works of the Law are under the curse Now all that may be expected from a God highly offended is comprehended in Scripture by this term Death Wheresoever sin enters death must follow Rom. 5.2 Death passed over all men forasmuch as all had sinned If we are children of sin we must be children of wrath Eph. 1.3 We are then children of wrath even as others Now concerning death in general I shew'd you the last time that the state of an unconverted man is a dead and desperate estate He is a slave It would affright him if he did but know his own slavery and what it is that hangs over his head that there 's but a span betwixt him and death he could never breath any free aire he could never be at any rest he could never be free from fear Heb. 2.15 the Apostle saith that Christ came to deliver them that through fear of death were all their life time subject to bondage This bondage is a deadly bondage that when we have done all that we can doe what 's the payment of the service Death And the fear of this deadly bondage if we were once sensible if God did open our eyes and shew us as he did Belshazzar our doom written did we but see it it would make our joynts loose and our knees knock one against another Every day thou livest thou approachest nearer to this death to the accomplishment and consummation of it death without and death within death in this world and in the world to come Not onely death thus in gross and in general but in particular also Now to unfold the particulars of death and to shew you the ingredients of this bitter cup that we may be weary of our estates that we may be drawn out of this death and be made to fly to the Son that we may be free indeed Observe that Death is not here to be understood of a separation of the soul from the body only but a greater death then that the death of the soul and body We have mention made of a first resurrection Rev. 20.6 Blessed and happy is he that hath his part in the first resurrection for on such the second death hath no power What is the first resurrection It is a rising from sin And what is the second death It is everlasting damnation The first death is a death unto sin and the first resurrection is a rising from sin And so again for all things the judgments or troubles that appertain to this death all a man suffers before It is not as fools think the last blow that fells the tree but every blow helps forward 'T is not the last blow that kills the man but every blow that goes before makes way unto it Every trouble of mind every anguish every sicknesse all these are as so many strokes that shorten our life and hasten our end and are as it were so many deaths Therefore however it is said by the Apostle It is appointed for all men once to die yet we see the Apostle to
rather and they have expressed it to be torn in pieces by wild horses so they might be freed from the horrours in their consciences When the conscience recoyles and beats back upon it self as a musket o're charged it turns a man over and over And this is a terrible thing This sometimes God gives men in this world And mark where the word is most powerfully preacht there is this froth most rais'd which is the cause many men desire not to come where the word is taught because it galls their consciences and desire the Masse rather because they say the Masse bites not They desire a dead Minister that would not rub up their consciences they would not be tormented before the time They would so but it shall not be at their choise God will make them feel here the fire of hell which they must endure for ever hereafter This is the sensible blow when God le ts loose the conscience of a wicked man and he needs no other fire no other worm to torment nothing else to plague him he hath a weapon within him his own conscience which if God lets loose it will be hell enough 2. But now besides this blow which is not so frequent there is another more common and more insensible blow God saith he is a dead man and a slave to sin and Satan and he thinks himself the freest man in the world God curses and strikes and he feels it not This is an insensible blow and like unto a dead palsie Thou art dead and yet walkest about and art merry though every one that hath his eyes open seeth death in thy face O this deadnesse this senselesnesse of heart is the heaviest thing as can befal a sinner in this life It is the cause the Apostle speaks of in the Rom. when God delivers up a man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to a reprobate mind And so in the Epistle to the Ephes. 4.19 declares such a man to be past feeling Who being past feeling have given themselves over to lasciviousnesse to work uncleannesse even with greedinesse Although every sin as I told you before is as it were the running a mans self on the point of Gods sword yet these men being past feeling run on on on to câ—mmit sin with greedinesse till they come to the very pit of destruction they run a main to their confusion When this insensibleness is come upon them it is not Gods goodnesse that can work upon them Who art thou that despisest the riches of Gods goodnesse not knowing that the goodnesse of God leadeth unto repentance It is not Gods judgments that will move them they leave no impression as Rev. 9.20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands that they should not worship Devils c. brass nor stone and wood which neither can see nor hear nor walk They repented not though they were spared but worshipped Gods which cannot see not hear noâ— speak so brutish were they to be led away by stocks and stones I think the Papist Gods cannot doe it unlesse it be by couzenage yet such is their senselesnesse that though Gods fury be revealed from heaven against Papists such as worship false Gods yet are they so brutish that they will worship things which can neither hear nor see nor walk They that made them are like unto them and so are all they that worship them as brutish as the stocks themselves They have no heart to God but will follow after their Puppets and their Idols and such are they also that follow after their drunkennesse covetousnesse c. Who live in lasciviousness lusts excess of riot 1 Pet. 4.2 that run into all kind of excess and marvel that you do not so too They marvel that ye that fear God can live as ye do and speak evil of you that be good call such hypocrites dissemblers and I know not what nick-names This I say is a most woful condition it 's that dead blow When men are not sensible of mercies of judgments but run into all excesse of sin with greedinesse and this is a death begun in this life even while they are above ground But then comes another death God doth not intend sin shall grow to an infinite weight His Spirit shall not always strive with man but at length God comes and crops him off and now cometh the consummation of the death begun in this life Now cometh an accursed death 3. After thou hast lived an accursed life then cometh an accomplishment of curses First a cursed separation between body and soul and then of both from God for ever and that is the last payment This is that great death which the Apostle speaks of Who hath delivered us from that great death So terrible is that death This death is but the severing of the body from the soul This is but the Lords Harbinger the Lords Serjeant to lay his Mace on thee to bring thee out of this world into a place of everlasting misery from whence thou shalt never come till all be satisfied and that is never First Consider the nature of this death which though every man knoweth yet few lay to heart This death what doth it First It takes from thee all the things which thou spentst thy whole life in getting It robs thee of all the things thou ever hadst Thou hast taken paines to heap and treasure up goods for many years presently when this blow is given all is gone For honour and preferment it takes thee from that pleasure in idle company keeping it barrs thee of that Mark this is the first thing that death doth it takes not onely away a part of that thou hast but all it leaves thee quite naked as naked as when thou camest into the world Thou thoughtst it was thy happinesse to get this and that Death now begins to unbewitch thee thou wast bewitcht before when thou didst run after all worldly things thou wast deceived before and now it undeceives thee it makes thee see what a notorious fool thou wast it unbefools thee Thou hadst many plots and many projects but when thy breath is gone then all thy thoughts perish all thy plottings and projectings goe away with thy breath A strange thing to see a man with Job the richest man in the East and yet in the evening we say as poor as Job He hath nothing left him now Now though death takes not all things from thee yet it takes thee from them all all thy goods all thy books all thy wealth all thy friends thou mayst now bid farewel now adieu for ever never to see them again And that is the first thing 2. Now death rests not there but cometh to seize upon thy body It hath bereaved thee of all that thou possessedst of all thy outward things that 's taken away Now it comes to touch his person and see what then It toucheth him it rents his soul
of the bridegroom and as Nazianzen I thank God I have a little learning to sacrifice to Christ. such a Precedent is worth the printing Thirdly that had not this course been taken a worse might have befallen directly contrary to the will of the godly Bishop For some of these notes were in the hands of divers persons who were much taken with them and much desired and it was feared might have endeavoured a private printing of them more imperfectly then now you have them That faithfull Minister mentioned in the frontispiece whose Latine Epistle is prefixed having with much adoe got this Copy out of their hands thought as the rest who have attested it 't was much better to publish these as now you see them then to indanger the creeping out of a more surreptitious Copy The general subject of these Sermons is of Conversion and so mightily did the Lord blesse them not only to the Edificationâ— and Consolation of very many but also to the Conversion as we have good cause to judge of some I will say no more the Name of Doctor Usher by which he is more known to some and the Name of the most Reverend and Learned Father of our Church Doctor James Usher late Arch Bishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland by which he is more known to others not onely in these our Kingdomes but in forreign parts his great and good Name I say every where as oyntment poured forth prefixed before this Book though with some allay is enough to raise high Expectation of whatsoever cometh after these words and is argument enough to invite the Reader to look within and read them over and then he will find the least filing of this Master workmans Gold very precious Good Wine they say needs no bush and if this Wine was so sweet at first running I presume whosoever tasts it now though he have it but at the second or third hand will find it hath not altogether lost its strength nor will he repent his labour in reading what was taken after him if he be one that desires to profit his soul more then to please his Palat. That out of the ashes of this Phoenix the Lord would raise such successors as may by Pen Life and Doctrine do as this burning and shining Light hath done before them is the prayer but scarce the belief of him that prayeth for the peace and prosperity of Jerusalem and therein hopeth to have his share in the Concurrent prayers of every Godly Reader Stanley Gower Dorchester October the third 1659. Speedy Conversion the onely means to prevent imminent Destruction Heb. 4.7 Again he limiteth a certain day saying in David to day after so long a time as it is said to day if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts I Have enter'd on these words in the other Vniversity on a day of Publique Humiliation as being suitable to the occasion the chief matter of them being the Doctrine of the Conversion of a sinner Forasmuch as Gods judgments are abroad upon the earth and hang over our heads the only means to prevent and remove both temporal and eternal is our speedy conversion and return unto God Else he will whet his sword bend his bow and make it ready to our destruction Psal. 7.12 God did bear a deadly hatred against sin in the time of the Psalmist and so he doth still for his nature cannot be changed If we return not we are but dead men The eternal weight of Gods wrath will be our portion both here and in the world to come if we repent not In the words there are three observable Points 1. Continuance in sin brings certain death Or For sin Gods judgments are on particular Nations and persons 2. If particular Nations or persons turn away from their evil courses no hurt shall come near them God takes no delight in the death of a sinner nor that he should despair of his mercy but would have us turn out of the broad way which leads to destruction 3. It behooves every one speedily to set about the work of conversion Nor esteem this a vain word I bring you those things whereon your life depends Obeying it you are made for ever neglecting it you are undone for ever Unless you embrace this message God will bend his bow and make ready his arrows against you Know therefore 1. That continuance in sin brings certain death There will be no way of escaping but by repentance by coming in speedily unto God The words of this Text are taken from Psal. 95. Harden not your hearts as in the provocation and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness If when God calls us either to the doing of this or leaving that undone yet we are not moved but continue in our evil wayes What 's the reason of it It 's because we harden our hearts against him The Word of God which is the power of God to salvation and a two-edged sword to sever between the joynts and the marrow The strength of the Almighty encounters with our hard hearts and yet they remain like the stony and rocky ground whereon though the Word be plentifully sown yet it fastens no root there and though for a season it spring yet suddenly it fades and comes to nothing We may have a little motion by the Word yet there 's a rock in our souls a stone in our hearts and though we may sometimes seem to receive it with some affection and be made as it were Sermon-sick yet it holds but a while it betters us not why because it 's not received as an ingrafted word Therefore saith St. James Receive with meeknesse the ingrafted word Jam. 1.21 Let the word be ingrafted in thee one sprig of it is able to make thee grow up to everlasting life Be not content with the hearing of it but pray God it may be firmly rooted in your hearts this will cause a softning To day if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts against Almighty God If you do expect him also to come against you in indignation Hearken what he saith by his Prophet I will search Jerusalem with candles and punish the men that are setled on their lees that say in their heart the Lord will not do good neither will he do evil Zeph. 1.12 Mark I will search Jerusalem and punish those that are setled on their lees When a man is thus setled and resolved to go on in his sins to put the matter to the hazard come what will come there 's a kind of Atheism in the soul. For what do's he but in a manner reply when God tells him by his Minister that he is preparing the instruments of death against him do you think us such fools to believe it What does this but provoke God to swear that we shall never enter into his rest What 's the reason of this It 's because men are not shifted they have no change they
thine iniquity that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God v. 13. See God makes us the worst and vilest of all and yet as it were intreats us to return See then the Conclusion of the second Point how if God give us but grace to repent let our former evils be what they will the danger is past But I leave this and come to the Third for which I chiefly chose this Text. You have seen how dangerous a thing hardness of heart is how it brings certain death and that if we have the heart to repent we are safe As to make it appear in an instance It 's not the falling into water but the lying under it that drowns a man Art thou faln into sin only lift up thy head if thou canst be but thus happy the promise of salvation belongs to thee The main thing then is this 3. It behooves us to set about the work of repentance presently God is angry with us and we know not whether God will execute his judgments on us this day or no therefore go about it presently God will remove all our adulteries and put away all our sins if we will come to him within a day Now what madness is it to neglect it After a certain time saith the Apostle according to that in the Psalmist Psal. 95. God hath limited a certain day Thou hast provoked the Holy Ghost and now he limits thee a day Heb. 3.7 Wherefore saith the Holy Ghost to day if you will hear his voice Now is it safe think you to pass this day A hard heart is a provoking heart and as long as it continues hard it continues provoking God and despising the Holy Ghost To day therefore hear his voice that is this present day But which is that day It 's this very time wherein you stand before God and in which you hear me If you embrace the opportunity happy are you if not you shall give as dear an account as for any thing you ever heard in your life There is no dallying with God take his proffer take him at his word in a matter of salvation He calls to thee to day peradventure he will speak no more therefore Heb. 3.13 we shall find it 's a limited day Exhort one another to day whilst it 's called to day lest any of you be hardned through the deceitfulness of sin While it is called to day that is stay not till to morrow but embrace the present opportunity This day God holds out the golden Scepter and my life for yours if you accept it you will be saved If you take it not to day your heart will be more hardned to morrow and so it may be you will never touch it your hearts will be like stones and you 'l be uncapable of yeilding God is angry with us Psal. 7.11 Why He is our adversary because we bear arms against him and will try the mastery with him We oppose him in hostile manner as long as we continue sinful against him What 's the best counsel in this case Agree with thine adversary quickly while thou art in the way with him It 's wisedome to do that soon which must of necessity be done If it be not we perish for ever Kisse the Son lest he be angry and thou perish from the right way Psal. 2. ult Obj. But what needs such haste I may do it hereafter when I come to my journeys end Sol. There needs haste The day is limited A thousand to one if God be angry but we perish from the way I have heard thee in an accepted time and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee behold now is the accepted time now is the day of salvation 2 Cor. 6.2 It 's a day of salvation and would not we be glad to know this time Behold this is the accepted time Seek the Lord while he may be found call on him while he is near This is the accepted time this is the day of salvation Esa. 49. Embrace this time for now he may be found this instant is the time the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the present now God at this time stirrs the waters if now thou wilt step in and close with God casting down thy weapons then this will be the day of thy salvation this is call'd as Gods day so our day O Jerusalem Jerusalem if thou hadst known in this thy day the things that belong unto thy peace but now they are hidden from thine eyes Luke 19.42 Mark If thou hadst known in this thy day So that if we pass by in this acceptable time those things which belong to our peace they will be hidden from our eies Therefore should the enemies of Jerusalem lay her even with the ground because she had neglected this opportunity the day of Gods visitation Wilt thou be so hard-hearted as to put from thee Gods grace If thou findest now that Satan hides this from thee and perswades thee to do it to morrow and to take a day of thine own neglecting Gods day Know and remember that he is a lyar from the beginning Give me leave to presse this to you for nothing more brings destruction then this putting from us the proffers of Gods grace unlesse we return to the Almighty humbling our selves there will be bitterness in the end There 's the matter whether God must wait on us or we on him This is the day of salvation saith God and we must take time to think of it whether it be seasonable or no. Alas 1. By this means we incur the highest presumption and this is no light thing inconsiderately to be passed over Shall God offer you such a proffer and you be so presumptuous as to think such a one more seasonable It 's high presumption for thee to make thy self wiser then God to neglect that he prescribes and that with a promise too as if thou hadst God at command If thou resolve to take to morrow it is requisite that thou have 1. Space to repent and 2. Grace to do it Now neither of these are in thine own hands if they were thou hadst ground for a farther delay If thou hadst power to say I will live so long or could by thine own might prolong thy life it were something but it 's otherwise In refusing Gods proffer thou refusest him that hath thy life in his hand What high presumption is this See it in Jezabel Rev. 2. I gave her space to repent but she repented not As if God should have said it 's I gave it her I gave her time to live I might have cut her off in the midst of her whoredomes Observe here by the way the reason why God gives us this space it is to repent What presumption must that be when we will go quite contrary to God and because we have space therefore we will not repent Why does not God smite thee from heaven when thou thus audaciously settest thy self against him Why do's he
But let me in this particular unrip the heart of a natural man What 's the reason that when God gives men a day and cries out This is the day of salvation this is the accepted time what in the name of God or the Devils name rather should cause them to put salvation from them to defer and desire a longer time Thus a natural man reasons with himself I cannot so soon be taken off from the profits and pleasures of the world I hope to have a time when I shall with more ease and a greater composednesse of mind bring my self to it or if it be not with so much ease yet I trust in a sufficient manner I shall do it wherefore for the present I le enjoy the profits and delights of the state and condition wherein I am I will solace my self with the pleasures of sin for a season I hope true repentance will never be too late This is well weigh'd but consider whether these thoughts which poise down our hearts be not groundlesse see whether they will hold water at the last and whether in making such excuses to great presumption we add not the height of folly To pretend for our delay the profits and pleasures of sin and yet hope for heaven at the last as well as the generation of the righteous it 's but a meer fallacy and delusion of Satan to fill our hearts with such vanities Can it be expected that we should have our good in this world and in the world to come too This is well if it might be But let us try the matter and begin with your first branch You are loth to part with your profits and pleasures But consider what a grand iniquity this is Can you offer God a greater wrong and indignity Do you thus requite the Lord you foolish and unwise Dost thou think this the way to make thy peace with God whom thou hast offended as long as thou mayst to be a rebel against him What an high dishonour is it to him that thou shouldst give him thy feeble and doting old age and the Devil thy lively and vigorous youth thy strength and spirits Dost thou think he will drink the dregs and eat the orts will he accept thee in the next world when thou thus scornest him here If you offer the blind for sacrifice is it not an evil If you offer the lame and sick is it not evil Offer it now unto thy governor will he be pleased with thee or accept thy person saith the Lord of hosts Mal. 1.8 But mark how he goes on v. 14. Cursed be the deceiver which hath in his flock a male and voweth sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing Mark God accounts such service a corrupt thing Never look for a blessing from God in heaven when thou sacrificest to him such corrupt things We are to offer and present our selves a living sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God Rom. 12.1 Now judge whether they offer God the living who say when my doting days come my lame days that I cannot go my blind dayes that I cannot see I le offer my self a sacrifice to God Will this be acceptable to him Is not this evil saith the Lord to offer me such a corrupt thing Nay more he 's accursed that offers such an offering such a polluted sacrifice God will not like with it when we serve our selves first with the best and choise Do you thus requite the Lord do you think he will accept it at your hands Go offer such a gift to thy Ruler to thy Prince will he accept it or be pleased with it No a Landlord will have the best and the choise and it must needs provoke God when we give him the refuse I am King of Kings saith the Lord my name is dreadful and I will look to be served after another manner Let no man then thus delude himself with vain hopes but let him consider how dishonourable a thing it will be to God 2. And how unprofitable to him whoever thou art 1. It 's the ready way to thy destruction Heaven and happinesse and eternal life are laid up for those that embrace the acceptable time death horrour and eternal misery for those that refuse it and wilt thou hazard soul and body on this Moses on this ground did rather choose to suffer affliction in this world with the people of God then to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a moment When these things are past what profit will you have of those things whereof then you will be ashamed When a man comes to see truly and throughly into himself he will find no profit of such things as these death will certainly follow us both temporal and eternal if we repent not the more speedily that 's all the profit we shall find 2 But suppose thou prevent everlasting death by repentance yet what profit is there of those things whereof we are now for the present ashamed The best can come is shame 3. Thou art loth to part with the pleasures of sin for a season and hereafter thou thinkest thou canst amend all But consider the particulars and then shall you see how you are befool'd in your hearts and soules Believe it for an undoubted truth there 's nothing in the world by which Satan more deludes a man then by this perswading him to neglect his day and repent well enough hereafter That you may expel this suggestion out of your soule pray unto God that he would go along with his Word and cause you to lay this to heart that by his Spirit your understanding may be enlightned to see the truth Though I make this as clear as the Sun that it is a false supposition and meer folly on which we build in deferring our return to God yet God from heaven must teach you or you will be never the wiser Know therefore that this very day God reaches out the golden Scepter to thee and what folly were it to neglect it since thou knowest not whether he will ever proffer it thee again And assure thy self that he is a lyar that tells thee thou mayst as well repent hereafter as now and this will appear whether we consider the order of outward things in the world or the nature of sin 1. For external things every Age after a man comes into the world if he embrace not the present opportunity for repentance is worse then other and are each of them as so many clogs which come one after another to hinder it As for thy childish Age that 's meer vanitie and thy riper Age will bring many impediments and hindrances that youth never thought of Thou art then troubled about many things and perplexed how to provide for maintenance in the midst whereof know that thou hast not a body of brass but a corruptible and fading body and yet such is the folly of the heart of man that the less ground he hath to go the fewer dayes to spend the
harmes and provokes the Almighty to fury God will not alwaies strive with man but his daies shall be an hundred and twenty years if he convert in that space and return well if not he shall be swept away And to this purpose is that parable Luke 13.6 A certain man had a fig-tree planted in his vineyard and he came and sought fruit thereon and found none Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard behold these three years I came seeking fruit on this fig-tree and find none Cut it down why combreth it the ground There is an appointed time then fore-ordained by God wherein he offers us grace Let it alone saith the dresser one year more it may be seven years or ten it may be but two hours for ought thou knowest that God may offer thee longer this space No man knowes the time and its continuance but he that hath appointed it to this purpose which is a point I thought not to speak of but now I will You hear much talk of Gods eternal everlasting election and we are too apt to rest on this that if we are elected to salvation we shall be saved and if not we shall be damned troubling our selves with Gods work of Praedestination whereas this works no change in the party elected until it come unto him in his own person What is Gods election to me that he chooses the godly and refuses the wicked It s nothing to my comfort unlesse I my self am actually elected We are to look to this actual election The other is but Gods love to sever me But what is my actual election It s that when God touches my heart and translates me from the death of sin to the life of grace Now there are certain times which God appoints for this election wherein he uses the means to work on us and of which he can say what could I do more then I have done Now if it be thus in the point of election what must we think of the point of reprobation May there not be actual rejection as well as actual election And mayst thou not fear since thou hast lived thus long under the means of grace That God hath waited these not only three but many years the dew of heaven continually falling on thee and that yet thou shouldst remain unfruitful Doest thou not fear I say that dismal sentence cut it down why combreth it the ground Gods grace is not to be dallied with as Children doe with their meats if we do thus slight him he may justly deprive us of all See a terrible place to this purpose Heb. 6.7 8. The earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed receiveth blessing from God but that which beareth thornes and briers is rejected and is nigh unto cursing whose end is to be burned Consider these places God calls us where the droppings of his grace are consider then do we bring forth that fruit which is meet for the dresser answerable to those continual distillings and droppings on us If our consciences witnesse for us happy are we but when there have been these showers of grace out of Gods Word flowing down upon us and yet we have received so much grace in vain O what can we then expect but a curse in this life and eternal death in the world to come What can we look for but the fig-trees curse which was barren The tree was not cut down but withered We are near the same curse if we answer not Gods grace When we have had so long a time the Ministery of the Word and yet suffer it to be lost through our barrennesse our condition is sad and woeful we can look for nothing but withering But beloved I must hope better things of you and such as accompany salvation Labour therefore to prevent and arm your selves against this suggestion and fallacy of Satan and resolve to hear God in this acceptable time now to set to the work which if we do all will be well God will be gracious to us If otherwise we are undone for ever Till you have learned this lesson you can go no further Wherefore let not Satan possesse you with that madnesse to cause you to passe and let slip this golden opportunity through a false conceipt that you may have a more seasonable day of your own for repentance hereafter Gal. 6.3 4. For if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing he deceiveth himself But let every man prove his own work and then shall he have rejoycing in himself alone and not in another HAving entred on the Doctrine of the conversion of a sinner in that Text Heb. 4.7 upon which depends our everlasting salvation I laboured to perswade you of the necessity of taking the accepted time of embracing the proffers of Gods grace and of the necessity of doing it speedily I shewed you that there is a certain time in which God will be found and that this time was the present time I declar'd unto you the great danger that would follow if we took not God at his word but refused his day for a day of our own as if we were wiser than he If when God calls and holds out the golden Scepter we refuse to draw neer and touch it Also what danger there is of being deluded by Satan and our own hearts I shewed you farther that the work was half done if this were done if we could but learn this lesson And now all that I shall speak will be to little purpose if this be not first wrought If it be already wrought in us blessed are we Our condition were thrice happy would God now strike in and cause us to return to himself It 's not good to dally with God the time will come when it will be too late when we shall wish we had done otherwise and taken the accepted time Now I will go on to a farther point which is this When Satan cannot prevail with a sinner to say to his soul or to think with himself I will do it hereafter or I will at the day of death when he cannot prevaile with him to defer it and leave it quite undone for the present then he will give way to his doing a little to it but it shall be so superficial and on such false grounds that he had as good leave it undone For Satan makes him thus conclude with himself well since I see it is a duty so necessary I will not defer I will not put it off to an hour but yet I see no such matter required in conversion no such great need of being new moulded But now in the point of conversion there are two things to be thought on 1. First what estate the sinner is in for the present and then when he hath made search and found it to be amisse then the next thing is he must turn unto God
some shew of Religion in it He whipt both out not only those that had residence there but those that passed through he would suffer none but those that could justifie what they did by the Law Now as God would not have sin lodge make its abode in the soul so he would not have it made a thorow fare for sin he would not have vain thoughts come up and down in the hearts Now By the Law comes the knowledge of these secret sins Reason is a glasse much to be esteemed for what it can shew but it is not a perfect glasse sometimes it shewes a sin but mâ—ny times diminishes it that we cannot see it in full proportion The Apostle makes this use of the Law that by it sin became exceeding sinful Thou mayst see sin to be sin by natural reason but to see it exceeding sinful this morality comes short of thou must have this from the Law of God 5. There is another false glasse when the Devil transforms himself into an Angel of light when he preacheth Goâ—pel to a man Beware of â—he doctrine when the deceiver preacheth This may be his doctrine He that believeth and is Baptized shall be saved From this by Satans cunning delusion the natural man thus concludes A meer heathen shall be shut out of Heaven gates but I believe in the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost therefore I am in a good condition Why then should I trouble my self any further there is no man can accuse me and my own good works will testifie unto me that I do enough Strâ—ctnesse in Religion is troublenesse and it is an unreasonable thing to do more but this is but a meer delusion of Satan for there is nothing more quiet and satisfies a man then Religion there 's nothing in the world more reasonable then the service of God First then know thy disease and then apply those sweet balms It is no easie matter for a man to believe we block out the strait wayes of God if we think it an easie matter to believe of our selves It must be done by the mighty power of God It 's as great a work of God as the Creation of the world to make a man believe It 's the mighty power of God to salvation Such a one must not receive Christ as a Saviour but as a Lord too He must renounce all to have him must take him on his own terms He must deny the world and all looking before hand what it will cost him Now for a man to take Christ as his Lord denying himself the world and all to resolve to pluck out his right eye cut off his right hand rather then to part with him and account nothing so dear to him as Christ is no small matter Thou canst not be Christs Spouse unlesse thou forsake all for him Thou must account all things as dung and drosse in comparison of him and is not this a difficult thing is this an easie task Easily spoken indeed not as easily done it must be here as in the case of mariage a man must forsake all others yea the whole world else Christ will not own him Observe the speech of the Apostle Eph. 1.19 What is the exceeding greatness of his power to us ward that believe c. Mark is to believe so easie a matter think you why unlesse the mighty power of God be engaged for it with that strength as it was engaged in raising Christ from the dead it cannot be When thou art to believe and be united unto Christ the agreement is not that thou shalt take him as thy wife and thou shalt be his husband No he must be thy husband and thou must obey him Now for a man to be brought out of his natural condition and to take Christ on any termes so he may be saved by him in the end is not so easie Canst thou think there is no more required but onely the outward Baptism or that there is no more in Baptism but the outward washing of the flesh No He 's not a Jew that is one outwardly neither is that circumcision which is in the flesh but he 's a Jew that is so inwardly and circumcision is that of the heart Thou then entrest into Gods livery Mark this for by it I strive onely to bring thee back to thy self Thou entrest into covenant with him thou bindest thy self to forsake the world the flesh and the Devil and we should make this use of Baptism as now to put it in practice When we promised there were two things in the Indenture one that God will give Christ to us the other that we must forsake all the sinful lusts of the flesh this is that makes Baptism to be Baptism indeed to us The other thing required is that we forsake all Rom. 6.2 It is not confined to the very act but it hath a perpetual effect all the dayes of thy life I add it never hath its full effect till the day of our death till the abolition of the whole body of sin That which we seal is not compleat till then till we have final grace The water of Baptism quenches the fire of Purgatory for it is not accomplished till final grace is received We are now under the Physicians hands then shall we be cured Baptism is not done onely at the Font which is a thing deceives many for it runs through our whole life nor hath it consummation till our dying day till we receive final grace the force and efficacy of Baptism is for the washing away of sin to morrow as well as the day past the death of sin is not till the death of the body and therefore it s said we must be buried with him by Baptism into his death Now after death we receive final grace till when this washing and the vertue thereof hath not its consummation Let no man therefore deceive you with vain words take heed of looking on your selves in these false glasses think it not an easy thing to get Heaven the way is strait and the passage narrow There must be a striving to enter there must be an ascending into Heaven a motion contrary to nature And therefore it 's folly to think we shall drop into Heaven there must be a going upward if ever we will come thither EPH. 2.1 2 3. And you hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins where in times past you walked according to the course of this world according to the Prince that ruleth in the Aire the Spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience Amongst whom also c. THe last time I declared unto you the duty that was necessarily required of us if we look to be saved that we must not onely take the matter speedily into consideration and not be deluded by our own hearts and the wiles of Satan but that we must not do it superficially or perfunctorily but must bring our selves to the true touchstone and not look
out his own sins in their weight and number Psal. 38.4 Mine iniquities are gone over my head as an heavy burthen they are too heavy for me The continual multiplying of them adds to their heap both in number and weight Thus I have shew'd you what the Law does in respect of sin the benefit of being under the Law that it makes sin appear in its own colours and sets it forth to be as indeed it is exceeding sinful But the Law does not yet leave sin nor let it scape thus But as the Law discovers our sinfulnesse and accursednesse by sin its wretchednesse and mans misery by it till his blessednesse comes from the hands of his Jesus so it layes down the miserable estate befalls him for it If he will not spare God with his sins God will not spare him with his plagues Let us consider of this accursednesse sin brings on us God will not let us go so but as long as we are under the Law we are under the curse and till we are in Christ we can expect nothing but that which should come from the hand of a provoked God Assure thy self thou thâ—t pleasest thy self in thy abominations that God will not take this at thine hands that by so base a creature as thou art so vile a thing as sin is should be committed against him But of the woful effâ—cts of sin which is Gods wrath we will speak the next time LAM 5.16 Woe unto us that we have sinned I Declared unto you heretofore what we are to consider in the state of a natural man a man that is not new fashioned new moulded a man that is not cut off from his own stock a man that is not ingrafted into Christ he is the son of sin he is the son of death First I shew'd you his sinfulnesse and now Secondly I shall shew you his accursednesse that which follows necessarily upon sin unrepented of I declared before what the nature of sin is And now I come to shew what the dreadful effects of sin are the cause the consequence that follows upon sin and that is woe and misery Woe unto us that we have sinned A woe is a short word but there lieth much in it Doct. Woe and anguish must follow him that continueth sinning against God And when we hear this from the Ministers of God it is as if we heard that Angel Rev. 8.13 flying through the midst of heaven denouncing Woe woe woe to the inhabitants of the earth The Ministers of God are his Angels and the same that I now deliver to you if an Angel should now come from Heaven he would deliver no other thing Therefore consider that it is a voice from Heaven that this woe woe woe shall rest upon the heads upon the bodies and soules of all them that will not yeild unto God that will not stoop to him that will be their own masters and stand it out against him woe woe woe unto them all Woe unto us It 's the voice of the Church in general not of one man but woe unto us that we have sinned That I may now declare unto you what these woes are note by the way that I speak not to any particular man but to every man in general It is not for me to make particular application doe you doe that your selves We are all children of wrath by nature In our natural condition we are all alike we are all of one kind and every kind generates its own kind 'T is an hereditary condition and till the Son make us free we are all subject to this woe By nature we are all children of wrath as well as others Eph. 2.3 Now that I may not speak of these woes in general I have shew'd how two woes are past and a third woe is coming God proceeds punctually with us And are not our proceedings in Judiciary Courts after this manner The Judge when he pronounceth sentence doth particularize the matter Thou shalt return to the place from whence thou camest thou shalt have thy bolts knockt off thou shalt be drawn to the place of execution thou shalt be hanged thou shalt be cut down and quartered and so he goes on And this is that which is the witnesse of Justice Thus is it here the Spirit of God thinks it not enough to say barely the state of a sinner is a woful estate but the woes are punctually number'd and this shall be my practice Now 1. The first thing that followeth after sin is this After the committing of sin there cometh such a condition into the soul that it is defiled polluted and becometh abominable And this is the first woe 2. The soul being thus defiled and abominable God loaths it for God cannot endure to dwell in a filthy and stinking carrion-soul he startles as it were and seems afraid to come near it he forsakes it and cannot endure it And that 's the second woe First sin defiles it then God departs from it there must be a divorce 3. When God is departed from the soul then the Devil enters in he presently comes in and takes up the room there will be no emptinesse or vacuum And this is a fearful woe indeed for as soon as God is departed from a man he is left to the guidance of the Devil his own flesh and the world There will be no emptinesse in the heart no sooner God departs but these step in and take Gods place 4. Then in the fourth place after all this is done comes sin and cries for its wâ—ges which is death That terrible death which comprehends in it all that beadroll of curses which are written in the Book of God and not onely those but the curses also which are not written Deut. 28. which are so many that they cannot be written Though the Book of God be a compleat Book and the Law of God a perfect Law yet here they come short and are imperfect For the curses not written shall light upon him which are so many as pen and ink cannot set down nay the very pen of God cannot expresse them so many are the calamities and sorrows that shall light upon the soul of every sinful man Now let us take these woes in pieces one after another 1. The first woe is the polluting and defiling of the soul by sin A thing it may be that we little think of but if God once open our eyes and shew us what a black soul we have within us and that every sin every lustful thought every covetous act every sin sets a new spot and stain upon the soul and tumbles it into a new puddle of filth then we shall see it and not till then for our eyes are carnal and we cannot see this If once we did but see our hateful abominable spots that every sin tumbles us afresh into the mire did we see what a black Devil we have within us we would hate and abhor our selves as Job did It would be
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a hater of God and hated of him When thou hast such a stinking soul God must needs loath it as a most loathsome thing and so thou art not behind God neither Thy filthinesse makes God abhor thee and thou abhorrest him And this is thy case by hating thou art hated of God Nor is this all the enmity There is enmity also betwixt all that belongs to God and all that belongs to us Gods children and the wicked have ever an enmity betwixt them such an enmity as will never be reconcil'd It 's set down in Prov. 29.27 An unjust man is an abomination to the just and he that is upright in his way is an abomination to the wicked Just as it is between God and the seed of the serpent so it is between both the seeds A wicked man is an abomination to the just and an upright man is an abomination to the wicked There is a pale of abomination set between them so that this is the second woe We come now to the third 3. And the third woe is that which immediatly follows Gods leaving of us When we have polluted our selves with sin and God by reason thereof abhors us and turns from us then are there others ready presently to take up the room so soon as God departs the Devil steps in and becomes thy God He was thy God by Creation this by usurpation He was thy Father that would have given thee every good thing but now thou art fatherlesse or rather worse thou hast the Devil for thy Father and better is it to to be without one When the Devil is thy Father his works thou must doe When the Spirit of God departed from Saul presently the evil Spirit entred into him 1 Sam. 16.14 If the good Spirit be gone out the evil Spirit soon comes in he comes and takes possession and is therefore called The God of this world And while we are in that state we walk after the course of him that worketh in the children of disobedience We would account it a terrible thing for our selves or any of our children to be possessed of a Devil But what it is to be possessed of this Devil thou knowest not It 's not half so bad to have a Legion possesse thy body as to have but one to possesse thy soul. He becomes thy God and thou must doe his work he will tyrannize over thee What a fearful thing therefore is this that assoon as God departs from us and forsakes us and we him that the Devil should presently come in his room and take up the heart Mark that place in Eph. 2.2 Where in times past ye walked according to the course of the world according c. Assoon as God leaves a man what a fearful company assail him They all concur together the world the flesh and the Devil These take Gods place The world is like the tide when a man hath the tide with him he hath great advantage of him that rowes against the tide But here is the Devil too The world is as a swift current and besides this comes the Devil and fills the heart the Prince of the power of the aire While thou wert carried with the world thou went'st with the stream and hadst the tide with thee but now the Devil being come thou hast both wind and tide and how can he choose but run whom the Devil drives But this is not all There must be something in thine own disposition too that it may be compleatly filled Though there be wind and tide yet if the ship be a slug it will not make that haste that another light ship will Therefore here is the flesh too and the fulfilling the desires thereof which is a quick and nimble vessel and this makes up the matter So that if we consider the wind and tide and lightnesse of the ship it will appear how the room is filled And how woful must the state of that man be It is a fearful thing to be delivered up unto Satan but not so fearful as to be delivered up to ones own lusts But by the way observe this for a ground God never gives us up God never forsakes us till we first forsake him He is still before hand with us in doing us good but in point of hurt we our selves are first In the point of forsaking we are always before hand with God If it should be proposed to thee whether thou wilt forsake God or the Devil and thou dost forsake God and choosest the Devil thou deservest that he should take possession in thee When a man shall obstinately renew his grosse sins doth he not deserve to be given up Observe the case in our first Parents God told the woman one thing the Devil perswades her another she hearkens to the Devil and believes him rather then God and when we shall desire to serve the Devil rather then God the God that made us and that made heaven for us doe we not deserve to be given up to him For his servants we are whom we obey And thus we see how fearful a thing it is to be delivered up to our selves and to the Devil Psal. 81.11 First they forsake God God comes and offers himself unto them I will be thy God thy Father thou shalt want nothing yet notwithstanding Israel would not hear they would have none of me And then if thou wil◠have none of me I will have none of thee saith God Then see what follows v. 12. God commits the prisoner to himself I gave them up to their own hearts lusis c. And there 's no case so desperate as this when God shall say If thou wilt be thine own Maste◠be thine own Master Thus to be given up to a mans self is worse then to be given up unto Satan To be given up unto Satan may be for thy safety but there 's not a mountain of Gods wrath greater then to give a man up unto himself We would fain goe over the hedges but when God loves us he hedges up our ways Hos. 2.6 If God love us he will not leave us to our selves though we desire it But when God shall say goe thy wayes if thou wilt not be kept in be thy own Master this is a most fearful thing And this is the third woe First the soul is polluted with sin it forsakes God and God forsakes it then the world the flesh and the Devil these fill up the room and then what follows when these three rule within but all kinds of sin And so all kinds of punishment which is the next woe 4. And this woe brings in all the curses of Almighty God an Iliad of evils Sin calls for its wages viz. Death Death That 's the payment of all The wages of sin is death And this is the next thing which I shall open and explain Now in handling hereof I will first shew how death in general must of necessity follow sin that thou who hast
the Corinthians of the great conflicts that he had in 2 Cor. 11.23 saith that he was in labours abundant in stripes above measure in prisons frequent in deaths oft In deaths often what 's that That is however he could die but once yet these harbingers of death these stripes bonds imprisonments sicknesses c. all of them were as so many deaths all these were comprehended under this curse and are parts of death in as much as he underwent that which was a furtherance to death he is said to die So we read Exo. 10.17 Pharoah could say Pray unto your God that he would forgive my sins this once and intreat the Lord that he will take away from me but this death onely Not that the locusts were death but are said to be so because they prepared and made way for a natural death Therefore the great judgments of God are usually in Scripture comprised under this name Death All things that may be expressions of a wrath of an highly provoked God are comprehended under this name All the judgments of God that come upon us in this life or that to come whether they be spiritual and ghostly or temporal are under the name of death Now to come to particulars look particularly on death and you shall see death begun in this world and seconded by a death following the separation of body and soul from God in the world to come 1. First in this life he is alwayes a dying man Man that is born of a woman what is he He is ever spending upon the stock he is ever wasting like a candle burning still and spending it self as soon as lighted till it come to its utter consumption So he is born to be a dying man death seizeth upon him as soon as ever it findeth sin in him Gen. 2.1 In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt die saith God to Adam though he lived many years after How then could this threatning hold true Yes it did in regard that presently he fell into a languishing estate subject and obnoxious to miseries and calamities the hasteners of it If a man be condemn'd to die suppose he be reprieved and kept prisoner three or four years after yet we account him but a dead man And if this mans mind shall be taken up with worldly matters earthly contentments purchases or the like would we not account him a fool or a stupid man seeing he lightly esteemes his condemnation because the same hour he is not executed Such is our case we are while in our natural condition in this life dead men ever tending toward the grave towards corruption as the gourd of Jonah so soon as ever it begins to sprout forth there is a worm within that bites it and causes iâ— to wither The day that we are born there is within us the seed of corruption and that wasts us away with a secret and incurable consumption that certainly brings death in the end So that in our very birth begins our progresse unto death A time a way we have but it leads unto death There is a way from the Tower to Tyburn but it is a way to death Until thou comest to be reconciled unto Christ every hour tends unto thy death there 's not a day that thou canst truly say thou livest in thou art ever posting on to death death in this world and eternal death in the world to come And as it is thus with us at our coming into the world so we are to understand it of that little time we have above ground our dayes are full of sorrow But mark when I speak of sorrows here we must not take them for such afflictions and sorrows as befal Gods children for theirs are blessings unto them chastisments are tokens of Gods love For as many as I love I chasten saith God Affliction to them is like the dove with an Olive-branch in her mouth to shew that all is well But take a man that is under rhe Law and then every crosse whether it be losse of friends losse of goods diseases on his body all things every thing to him is a token of Gods wrath not a token of Gods love as it is to Gods children but it is as his impress-money as part of payment of a greater summe an earnest of the wrath of God the first part of the payment thereof It 's the Apostles direction that among the other armour we should get our feet shod thâ—t so we might be able to goe through the afflictions we shall meet withall in this life Eph. 6.15 Let your feet be shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace What is the shooing of the feet a part of the armour Yes For in the Roman discipline there were things they called Caltrops which were cast in the way before the Army before the horse and men they had three points so that which way soever they threw them there was a point upwards Now to meet with and prevent this mischief they had brazen shooes that they might tread upon these caltrops and not be hurt As we read of Goliah amongst other armour he had boots of brasse To this it seems the Apostle had reference in this metaphorical speech The meaning is that as we should get the shield of faith and sword of the Spirit so we should have our feet shod that we might be prepared against all those outward troubles that we should meet with in the world which are all of them as so many stings and pricks all outward crosses I say are so And what is it that makes all these hurt us what is it that makes all these as so many deaths unto us but sin If sin reign in thee and bear rule that puts a sting into them It is sin that arms death against us and it is sin that arms all that goes before death against us Hast thou been crossed in the losse of thy wife children good friends c. why the sting of all is from sin sin it is which makes us feel sorrow What shall we then doe Why get thy feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace Prepare thy self get God at peace with thee and if God be at peace with thee thou art prepared and then whatsoever affliction cometh howsoever it may be a warning-piece to another that Gods wrath is coming yet to thee it is a messenger of peace Now these outward troubles are the least part of a wicked mans payment though all these are a part of his death so long as he remains unreconciled whatsoever comes upon him whereby he suffers either in himself or in any thing that belongs unto him they are all tokens of Gods wrath and are the beginnings of his death In the 26th of Levit. and the 28th of Deut. the particulars of it are set down But this is that I told you the last time how that the law of God is a perfect law and nothing is to be added to it yet
forgettest thy Maker You have seen the main the ring â—â—aders which are these fearful faithlesse dastardly unbelieving men Now see what the filthy rabble is that followeth after and they are Abominable Murtherers c. Abominable that is unnatural such as pollute themselves with things not fit to be named but to be abhorred whether it be by themselves or with others They are the abominable here meant such as Sodome and Gomorrah who were set forth to such as an example suffering the vengeance of eternal fire Jude v. 7. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 such are abominable being given up to unnatural lust Let them carry it never so secretly yet are they herâ— ranked amongst the rest and shall have their portion in the burning lake After these come Sorcerers Idolaters Lyars Though these may be spoken fairly of by men yet cannot that shelter them from the wrath of God they shall likewise have their part in this lake when they come to a reckoning If there be I say a generation of people that worship these say what you will of them when they come to receive their wages they shall receive their portion in that burning lake with hypocrites Those that make so fair a shew before men and yet nourish hypocrisie in their hearts these men though in regard of the outward man they so behave themselves that none can say to them black is their eye though they cannot be charged with those notorious things before mentioned yet if there be nothing but hypocrisie in their hearts let it be spun with never so fair a web never so fine a thred yet they shall have their portion in the lake they shall have their part their portion c. Then it seems these of this black guard have a peculiar interest unto this place And as it is said of Judas Acts 1.25 that he was gone 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to his proper place So long as a man that is an enemy to Christ and yeilds him not obedience is out of hell so long is he out of his place Hell is the place assigned to him and prepared for him he hath a share there and his part and portion he must have till he come thither he is but a wanderer The Evangelist tells us that the Scribes and Pharisees went about to gain Profelytes and when they had all done they made them seven times more the children of hell then themselves filios Gehennae So that a Father hath not more right in his son then Hell hath in them He is a vessel of wrath fill'd top full of iniquity and a child of the Devils So that as we say the gallows will claim its right so hell will claim its due But mistake me not all this that I speak concerning Hell is not to terrifie and affright men but by forewarning them to keep them thence For after I have shewn you the danger I shall shew you a way to escape it and how the Lord Jesus was given to us to deliver us from this danger But if you will not hear but will try conclusions with God then you must to your proper place to the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone A Lake 't is a River a flaming River as Tophet is described to be a lake burning with fire and brimstone a Metaphor taken from the judgment of God on Sodome and Gomorrah as in that place of St. Jude before mentioned as also in 2 Pet. 2.6 where 't is said God turned the Cities of Sodom into ashes making them an example to all them that should after live ungodly Mark the judgment of God upon these abominable men the place where they dwelt is destroyed with fire and the situation is turn'd into a lake full of filthy bituminous stuff called Lâ—cus Asphaltites which was made by their burnings And this is made an instance of the vengeance of God and an Embleme of eternal fire therefore said he you shall have your portion with Sodome Nay shall I speak a greater word with Christ and tell you that though they were so abominable that the Lake was denominated from them yet it shall be easier for Sodome and Gomorrah then for you if you repent not while you may but goe on to despise Gods grace But can there be a greater sin then the sin of Sodome I answer yes For make the worst of the sin of Sodome it is but a sin against nature But thy impenitency is a sin against grace and against the Gospel and therefore deserves a hotter hell and an higher measure of judgment in this burning pit But what is this second death 2. Sure it hath reference to some first death or other going before A man would as it is commonly thought think that this second death is opposed to that first death which is the harbinger to the second and separates the soul from the body but it 's far otherwise That alas is but a petty thing and deserves not to be put in the number of deaths The second death in the Text hath relation to the first Resurrection Rev. 20 6. Blessed and holy is he that hath his portion in the first resurrection on such the second death shall have no power The first death is that from whence we are acquitted by the first resurrection and that is the death for that is a kind of death as S. Paul speaking of a wicked and voluptuous widow saith she is dead while she liveth and the time shall come and now is when they that are dead shall hear the voice of the Son of man and they that hear shall live And again Let the dead bury their dead So that the first resurrection is when a man hearing the voice of the Minister is rouzed up from the sleep of sin and carnal security and the first death is the opposite thereunto So that the death of the body is no death at all for if it were then this were the third death For there would be a death of sin a death of the body and a death of body and soul This death of the body is but a flea-biting in comparison of the other two This second death is the separation of the body and soul from God and this death is the wages of sin and God must not will not lie in arrear to sin but will pay its wages to the full All the afflictions a wicked man meeteth withal here are but as Gods press money and part of payment of that greater summe But when he dies the whole summe comes then to be paid Before he did but sip of the cup of Gods wrath but he must then drink up the dregs of it down to the bottome and this is the second death It 's called death Now death is a destruction of the parts compounded a man being compounded of body and soul both are by this death eternally destroyed That death like Sampson pulling down the pillars whereby it was sustained pulled down the house draws down the tabernacles
something of the eternity of the torments of the damned but I am not able nor any one else sufficiently to express it It shall continue ten thousand thousand yeares and after that an hundred thousand times ten thousand and yet be no nearer end then at the first beginning Thou must think of it seriously thy self and pray to God to reveal it to thy soul for none else sufficiently can 2. But besides as it is everlasting so is it unabateable If a man were cast into a fire the fire coming about him would in short time blunt his senses and take away his feeling and besides the materials of the fire would soon spend and waste But it is not so here here is not the least abatement of the horror nor the least inch of torment taken away throughout all eternity It was a poor request of Dives one would think that Lazarus would dip the tip of his finger in water and cool his tongue A cold comfort but one drop of water for the present which would soon be dried and yet that is denied him he must have no abatement of his torment Nor is there any abatement of thy feeling but thou art kept in full strength and as long as God is God shall Tophet burn and thou feel it Obj. But may some say this is preaching indeed this would affright a man and make him out of his wits this is the way to make him goe hang him self sooner then be converted Sol. True should God let loose the cord of our conscience it were the way such would be the terrours of it to make a man find another cord did not God restrain him I desire not by this to hurt you but to save you I am a messenger not sent from Abraham as Dives entreated but from the God of Abraham to forewarn you that you come not to that place of torment But now Beloved there is a way to escape this misery and that is by Jesus Christ Mat. 1.21 He was for this end called Jesus because he saves his people from their sins and consequently from wrath which how it is done I shall shew in a word and that is 1. By Christ Jesus offered for us And 2. By Christ Jesus offered to us By Christ offered for us he must die for us and if there be any death more cursed then other that death must he die if any more painful that must he suffer Thus he undertakes thy cause and suffers what for sin was due to thee And then being offered for us he is offered to us as we may see in the Sacrament where there are two acts of the Minister the one the breaking the bread the other the offering it to the people Thou hast as good warrant to take Christ offer'd as thou hast to take the bread and wine which thou art commanded to receive Thus I thought good to adde something to sweeten the rest that I might shew that there is a way to be freed from the bitter pains of eternal death PHIL. 2.5 6 7 8. Let this mind be in you which also was in Jesus Christ who being in the form of God thought it no robbery to be equal with God but made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men and being found in fashion of a man he humbled himself unto the death even the death of the Cross. YOU have heretofore heard that point of Christian Doctrine which concerns the knowledge of our misery and wretched estate by nature The substance of all is That we are the Children of wrath and disobedience as well as others You see then in what state every man stands before he hath made his peace with God as long as he stands on terms of Rebellion You see what the Holy Ghost saith They are the sons of disobedience and Children of wrath as well as others This I tell you as hath often been declared not to discourage a sinner or to drive him to desperation but because it 's fit he should know his estate in which he is If they will try conclusions with God if they oppose him the Lord cometh with a Bar of Iron and will break them in pieces like a Potters vessel Those mine enemies that will not have me to raign over them bring them and slay them before me It is fit every man should know this This part is only for this end that it may awaken us otherwise to what purpose do we preach unto you Till the Law awaken us we sleep securely in our sins till the dreadfull Trumpet of mount Sinai comes with thundring and lightning as Eph. 4. Awake thou that sleepest c. Unless this awaken us in what case are we Men as sleepers that are a dreaming as the Apostle speakes Jude 8. A sleeping sinner will be a dreaming sinner he never sees things as they are in their proper shape but he thinks with the Church of Laodicea That he is rich and wants nothing when as he is poor miserable blind and naked He thinks he shall be admitted into heaven as soon as the proudest but this is a dream Isa. 29.8 As the hungry man dreameth and behold he eateth but when he awakes behold he is empty or as a thirsty man that dreams he drinketh but awake and behold he is faint Thus it is with us we think we are entring upon the suburbs of heaven and yet we are but in a dream and in a sleep Now being thus awaken consider with thy self what thou hast to do when the dreadfull trumpet of the Law hath awâ—kened thee consider thy state if thou sleepest this night Hell-fire will be thy portion It were better for thee therefore to awake before the flames of hell-fire awake thee Consider likewise that thou must not be led by thy self thou must renounce thine own will Our Estates may be pleasing unto us to enjoy in a dream our hearts lusts here on earth but consider unless thou cross thy Will here it shall be crossed hereafter yea it shall be the main cross a man shall have in hell besides the eternal weight of Gods wrath that he can will or desire nothing but he shall be crossed in it not the least thing he desires but he shall have the contrary world without end Learn then what a wofull thing it is to be our own lords to follow our own lusts and pleasures see what we shall gain by it never shalt thou enjoy the least portion of thy will in the world to come if thou wouldst have but a drop of cold water thou shalt be crossed in it Nothing thou desirest but thou shalt have the opposite to it Thus having truly and plainly shewed our Sinfulness Wretchedness and Cursedness by nature I come unto the second part which I proposed to wit Our Remedy or our Redemption by Christ. And God forbid that he should create man the best of his Creature for destruction What
full strength and cry out so strongly and immediately to give up the Ghost this is a great Miracle Truly this man was the Son of God This adds unto the greatness of his torment that he had his full and perfect sense that he was six full hours thus on the Rack and the extremity of pain took not away his sense He was as strong at the last as at the first These things seriously weighed Oh! how do they aggravate the depth of his humiliation Seriously weigh them they are miserable and lamentable matters yet in these lie our comfort Through these words is there a passage open for us into the Kingdom of Heaven When he had overcome the terrors of death he opened the Kingdom of Heaven to all Believers these were now but the out-side of his sufferings which did belong to man for his sins He suffered not only bodily sufferings but sufferings in soul and that he did in a most unknown and incomprehensible manner But now may some say Object Did Christ suffer the pains and torments of Hell Sol. No He suffered those things that such an innocent Lamb might suffer but he could not suffer the pains of Hell The reason is because one thing which makes Hell to be Hell is the gnawing worm of an accusing conscience Now Christ had no such worm He had so clear a conscience as that he could not be stung with any such evil Another great torment in Hell is Desperation arising from the appprehension of the perpetuity of their torments which makes them curse and blaspheme God and carry an inexpressible hatred against him but Christ could not do so he could not hate God God forbid that Christ should be lyable to these Passions But it is certain God the Father made an immediate impression of pains upon his soul his soul did immediately suffâ—r Look on him in the Garden he was not yet touched nor troubled by men and yet he fell in a sweat Consider the season of the year this was then when they that were within doors were glad to keep close by the fire he thus did sweat in the garden when others freez'd within this was much but to sweat blood thick blood clotted congealed blood for so the words will bear it not like that in his veins and yet it came through his garments and fell to the ground this is a thing not to be comprehended Our blessed Saviours encountring with his Father he falls a trembling is overwhelmed as it were with the wrath beseeching God intensively saying Father if it be possible let this cup pass from me thou mayst give free pardon which affections in Christ are such a thing as pussels us all we must not say Christ did forget for what he came but he did not remember these words proceeded from the seat of passion which while it is disturbed reason suspends its Acts. Christ had Passions though no impurity in them As take a clean Vial full of pure water from the fountain and shake it it may be frothy yet it will be clean water still Christ did not forget only he had the suspension of his faculties for a time As a man in a sleep thinks not what he is to do in the morning and yet he is not said properly to forget He cryed My God my God why hast thou forsaken me He was contented to be forsaken for a time that thou mighst not be forsaken everlastingly and this was no faint prayer if you read the place in the Psalm He cryed out unto God And Heb. 5.7 It s said Who in the days of his flesh when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong cries and tears He cryed to the Almighty he made Gods own heart to pity He would break Isa. 53. yet his heart is repenting and rolled together so that he sent an Angel to support and comfort him Psal. 27. those strong cries are expressed with a more forcible word My God my God why hast thou forsaken me why art thou so far from helping me and from the words of my roaring Consider how it was with Christ before any earthly hand had touched him when he beseeched God for his life this shews the wonderfull suffering of Christ and for that point Why hast thou forsaken me Consider it was not with Christ as with the Fathers they suffered a great deal of punishment and taches and would not be delivered yet Christ was more couragious then they all He had a spirit of fortitude he was anointed above his fellows yet he quivers Our Fathers cryed unto thee they trusted in thee and were not consumed they were delivered but I am a worm and no man I can find no shadow of comfort Lord Why art thou so angry with me this speech came not from the upper part of the soul the seat of reason but from the lower part the seat of Passion My God my God these were not words of desperation He held fast to God Why hast thou forsaken me these are words of sense thus you see the price is paid and what a bitter thing sin is God will not suffer his Justice to be swallowed up by Mercy It must be satisfied and our Saviovr if he will be a Mediator must make payment to the uttermost farthing Consider what a time this was when our Saviour suffered The Sun with-draws her beams the earth shakes and trembles What aileth thee O thou Sun to be darknâ—d and thou earth to tremble was it not to shew his mourning for the death of its Maker The soul of Christ was dark within and its fit that all the world should be hung in black for the death of the King of Kings But mark when he comes to deliver up his life and to give up the Ghost the vail of the Temple rent in twain and that was the ninth hour which in the Acts is called the hour of prayer it was at three a Clock in the afternoon Hence it is said Let the lifting up of my hands be as the evening sacrifice The Priest was killing the Lamb at that time there was a vail that severed the Holy of Holies it was between the place of oblations nnd the Holy of holies which signifies the Kingdom of Heaven Assoon as Christ died the vail rent and Heaven was open the Priest saw that which was before hidden Our Saviour saith the Apostle entred through the vail of his flesh unto his Father and fit it was that the Vail should give place vvhen Christ comes to enter But vvhat becomes of Christs foul novv his soul and body vvere pul'd assunder and through the vail of his flesh as it vvere vvith blood about his ears he entred the Holy of Holies unto God saying Lord here am I in my blood and here is blood that speaks better things then the blood of Abel that cries for vengeance this for blessing and expiation of our sins FINIS JOHN 1.12 But to as many as received him to them gave he
Power to become the sons of God even to them that believe on his Name HHaving heretofore declared unto you the wofull estate and condition wherein we stand by nature I proceeded to the Remedy that God of his infinite Mercy hath provided for the recovery of miserable sinners from the wrath to come And therein I proposed two things that our Saviour that was to advance us and raise us out of this condition when we had lost our selves in Adam We having eaten sowre grapes he was to have his teeth set on edge we accounted him smitten of God and buffeted but we had sinned and he was beaten That when the Lord in his wrath was ready to smite us he underwent the dint of Gods sword and stood betwixt the blow and us the blow lighted on him that was equal with God and deserved not to be beaten Awake O sword against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow The sword was unwilling to strike him and thus being smitten he became a propitiation for our sins The chastisement of our peace was on him He offered himself a sacrifice Here are two things considerable 1. How Christ was offered for us 2. How he is offered to us First For us and so he offered up himself a Sacrifice a sweet smelling Sacrifice unto God Mark the point is he is not only the Sacrifice but the Sacrificer He offered up himself saith the Apostle He was the Priest and it was a part of Priest-hood to offer up himself The Sacrifices in the old Law that typified him were only sufferers The poor beasts were only passive but our Saviour he must be an Actor in the business He was active in all that he suffered He did it in obedience to his Fathers Will yet he was an Agent in all his Passion John 11.33 He groaned in Spirit and was troubled the Greek is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or as it is in the Margent He troubled himself With us in our Passions it is otherwise we are meer sufferers Our Saviour was a Conqueror over all his passions and therefore unless he would trouble himself none else could trouble him unless he vvould lay down his life none could take it from him unless he vvould give his cheek to be smitten the Jews had no power to smite it Isa. 50.6 I gave my back to the Smiters and my cheek to them that pluckt off the hair and hid not my face from shame and spitting In all these we should consider our Saviour not as a Sacrifice only but a sacrificer also an Actor in all this business their wicked hands were not more ready to smite then he was to give his face to be smitten and all to shevv that it was a voluntary Sacrifice He did all himself He humbled himself unto the death And now by all this we see what we have gotten vve have gotten a Remedy and satisfaction for our sins That precious blood of that immaculate Lamb takes avvay the sins of the world because it is the Lamb of God under which else the World vvould have eternally groaned Object But doth this Lamb of God take away all the sins of the world Sol. It doth not actually take avvay all the sins of the vvorld but virtually It hath povver to do it if it be rightly applyed the Sacrifice hath such vertue in it that if all the World vvovld take it and apply it it vvould satisfie for the sins of the vvhole World but it is here as with medicines they do not help being prepared but being applyed Rhubarb purgeth choller yet not unless applyed c. Exod. 39.38 there is mention made of a Golden Altar Christ is this Golden Altar to shew that his blood is most precious We are not redeemed with silver and gold but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. He is that golden Altar mentioned in the Revelation vvhich stands before the Throne He was likevvise to be a brazen Altar for so much vvas to be put upon him that unless he vvere of brass and had infinite strength he vvould have sunk under the burthen Its Jobs Metaphor Job in his passion saith Is my strength the strength of stones or is my flesh brass Job 6.12 If Christs flesh had not been brass if he had not been this brazen Altar he could never have gone through these now he is prepared for us a sacrifice for sin Rom. 8.3 For what the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin for sin make a stop there condemned sin in the flesh This same for sin hath not reference to condemned To condemn sin for sin is not good sence but the words depend on this God sent his Son that is God sent his Son to be a Sacrifice for sin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the word is translated Heb. 10.6 a sacrifice for sin It was impossible the Law should save us not because of any transgression or failing in the Law but because our weakness is such as that we could not perform the conditions therefore God was not tyed to Promises by reason then of the weakness of our flesh rather then we should perish God sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh in that flesh of his condemned all our sins we need not look that sin should be condemned in us when he bare our sins on the tree then were our sins condemned therefore it s said Isa. 53. When he had made his soul an offering for sin that is in the Original when he had made his soul sin then he saw his seed Isa. 57. We come now to the second thing if Christ be offered for us yet unless he offer himself to us unless any man may have interest in him it s nothing worth Here then stands the Mystery of the Gospel Christ when he comes to offer himself to us he finds not a whit in us that is to be respected nothing And that is the ground of all disturbance to ignorant consciences for there is naturally in men pride and ignorance they think they may not meddle with Christ with Gods Mercy unless they bring something unless they have something of their own to lay down This is to buy Christ to barter betwixt Christ and the soul but salvation is a free gift of God As the Apostle speaks Christ is freely given unto thee when thou hadst nothing of worth in thee Faith when it comes empties thee of all that is in thee To whom be the Gospel preached to the dead Now before Christ quicken thee thou art stark dead rotting in thy sins Here 's the point then when there is no manner of goodness in thee in the world In me saith St. Paul that is in my flesh there is no good thing When I have been the most outragious sinner I may lay hold on Christ. Christ comes and offers himself to thee Now when Christ offers the other
and feet But that which he shed in the garden in the cold winter time when he shed great drops great clots of blood thickest blood that pierc'd his garment and ran down upon the ground Consider how much blood he lost when he was whipped and lashed when the spear came to the very Pericardium thus let us weigh his torments and it will be a means to make us much affected with his sufferings for us But this is not all there is another thing yet in the blood this was but the outward part of his sufferings Yet some there are who are against Christs sufferings in his soul If it were so say they then something either in the sacrifices of the old Testament or in the new Testament should signifie it What ever such persons object against it I am sure there was as much in the sacrifices of the old Testament as could possibly be in a Type to signifie it Now that I may make this to appear know that in every sacrifice there were two parts or two things considerable and those were the Body and the Blood the whole was to be made a sacrifice viz. both Body and blood the body was to be burned the blood to be poured forth Now nothing in a beast can signifie the sufferings of Christ in soul better then the pouring out of the blood Lev. 17.11 The blood was the life and this is that which had a relation to the soul and was therefore as in the same place appears poured out as an attonement for the soul And to this in our common prayers there is an allusion viz. Grant us gracious Lord so to eat the flesh of thy dear son Jesus Christ and to drink his blood that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his body and our souls washed through his most precious blood And in Isa. 53.12 The Metaphor holds He poured out his soul unto death for us So that whatever some have fondly thought its evident and manifest that Christ suffered both in soul and body both soul and body were made an offering for sin who knew no sin I should have gone further but the time cuts me off FINIS HEB. 4.16 Let us therefore come boldly ùnto the throne of grace that we may obtaine mercy and finde grace to help in time of need IN handling heretofore the Doctrine of the conversion of a sinner I declar'd and shew'd you what mans misery was and what that great hope of mercy is that the Lord proposeth to the greatest sinner in the world I shew'd unto you the means whereby we may be made partakers of Christ and that was by the grace of faith which doth let fall all other things in a mans self and comes with an open and empty hand to lay hold on Christ and fill it self with him I shew'd you also the acts of Faith as it justifies And now because it is a point of high moment wherein all our comfort stands and in which it lies I thought good to resume it all again so farre as may concerne our practice that we may see what the work of Gods Spirit is from the first to the last in the conversion of a sinner from the corruptions and pollutions of the flesh in which he wallowed and to this purpose have I chosen this place of Scripture wherein we are encouraged by Gods blessed Word that what ever we are though accursed and the greatest sinners in the world and that whatever we want we should come to Gods throne of grace And we are to think that whatever sinnes are or have been committed and though our sinnes are never so great yet that they are not so great as the infinitenesse of Gods mercy especially having such not only an Intercessor but Advocate to plead the right of our cause so that Christ comes and he pleads payment and that however our debts are great and we runne farre in score yet he is our ransome and therefore now Gods justice being satisfied why should not his mercy have place and free course This is the great comfort that a Christian hath that he may come freely and boldly to God because he comes but as for an acquittance of what is already paid As a debtor will appear boldly before his creditor when he knows his debt is discharg'd he will not then be afraid to look him in the face Now we may come and say Blessed Father the debt is paid I pray give me pardon of my sinnes give me my acquittance And this is that boldnesse and accesse spoken of Rom. 5.2 In whom we have accesse by faith Now that I may not spend too much time needlesly come we to the ground and matter in the words Wherein there is 1. A preparative for grace 2. The act it self whereby we are made partakers of the grace of God First the preparatives are two The law and the Gospel and wrought by them The first preparative 1. Wrought by the Law The Law works in a time of great need this is the first preparative for a man to be brought to see he stands in great need of Gods mercy and Christs blood so that the sinner cries out Lord I stand in great want of mercy His eyes being thus opened he is no longer a stranger at home but he sees the case is wondrous hard with him so that he concludes Unlesse God be merciful unto me in Christ I am lost and undone for ever This is the first preparative and till we come to it we can never approach the throne of grace The second is 2. Wrought by the Gospel I see I stand in great need but by this second preparative we see a Throne of grace set up and that addes comfort unto me If God had onely a throne and seat of Justice I were utterly undone I see my debt is extreme great but the Gospel reveals unto me that God of his infinite mercy hath erected a Throne of grace a City of refuge that finding my self in need my soul may flie unto And now to fit us for this Gods blessed Spirit works by his Word to open unto us the Law and our wants to enlighten our understandings that we stand in great need to win our affection and open the Gospel and its comforts Therefore first for the time of need the Law reveals unto us our woful condition to be born in sin as the Pharisee said and yet not able to see it Every man may say in generalities I am a sinner yet to say and know himself to be such a sinner as indeed he is to stand in such need that he cannot do This one would think to be a matter of sence but unlesse Gods Spirit open our eyes we can never see our selvs to be such sinners as we are or else what is the reason that the child of God cries out more against his sinne and the weight thereof after his conversion than he did before What are his sinnes greater or more than they were
hath the promise And therefore the Scripture compares it to conjunction with Christ. And as in the Sacrament we spiritually eat his flesh and drink his blood the conjunction is between Christ and his Church And therefore the Scripture compares our conjunction by faith to the mystery of wedlock What makes a marriage its consent Wilt thou have this man to be thy husband she answers I will that expression makes the marriage The knot is knit by this mutual pledging of troth all other things are but subsequents of it So God saith Wilt thou have my Sonne Thou shalt have with him all his wealth though for a time thou must go bare and fare hard yet thou shalt have a Kingdome When a man considers deliberately here is the losse I must deny my self and obey him but I shall have a Kingdome Gods blessing and peace of conscience All things considered casting the best with the worst then the resolution is this is a true saying worthy of all acceptation c. I 'le take him on any termes be they never so hard for I shall be a saver in the end when we can take Christ as it were with all his faults this is the will which God requires There is another comparison in Scripture John 6.35 it s compared to hunger and thirst Believing was exprest by coming Believing is exprest by hungring and thirsting So when I see such a will and desire after Christ that I hunger and thirst after him that a hungry man longeth not more for bread nor the Hart thirsteth more for the water-brooks than my soul doth for Christ why then there is a promise made unto us and a promise is never made unto us till we be in Christ. Matth. 5. Rev. 22. Esay 55. We finde promises in them all in Mat. 5.6 Blâ—ssed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousnesse for theirs is the Kingdome of heaven they shall be filled Consider here what the nature of hunger and thirst is they shall be filled which implies they were empty before but now they shall be filled Suppose now I am not fill'd with Christ What am I without him No I want him yet there 's a blessing to the hungry and thirsty and there 's no blessing without faith If we be not heires of the faith we cannot be heires of the blessing Dost thou finde in thy self an hungring and thirsting after Christ Thou art blessed this faith will save thee Now faith will say I am wonderfully pained faint and even starved that I cannot be filled with Christ yet be content man thou shalt be filled with him in the mean while thou hast him and hast blessednesse and shalt be blessed It 's said 1 John 5.13 These things have I written unto you that believe in the Name of the Sonne of God that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may believe on the Name of the Sonne of God Mark how the Apostle distinguishes these two things thou believest on the Name of Christ yet sayst thou though I believe I am not sure of my salvation I do not know it Why let not that much trouble thee that 's a consequent of it and that assurance will follow after therefore you should not confound it with believing These things have I written unto you that ye might know c. then there is a conclusion to be deduced from the premisses so that a man may have full hold of Christ and yet not be fully assured of his salvation So then here is the will which is the first thing But the Lord works the deed also And whereas it is said that God takes the will for the deed the place had need be well understood when we say God takes the will for the deed it is not alwayes true unlesse it be thus understood When a man hath done to the utmost of his power what he is able hath endeavoured by all means then God will take the will for the deed but if there be ability in me and I do not as much as I am able I do not my utmost endeavour then God will not take it but now God works the will and the deed when a man comes to the Throne of grace and sets forward in his journey towards God the first thing he doth is to come to the Throne of grace with Christ in his armes and then having fast hold on Christ he hastens and delayes not having hold as Joab on the horns of the Altar He hastens he sees its no time to delay he sees its now a time of need and Need as the old proverb is makes the old wife trot Is it not need to make haste when the pursuer of blood follows to the City of Refuge who would make delays and demurs and not run as fast as his legs would carry him Asson as I apprehend my need and see the golden Scepter stretched out then I come with might and main with Christ in my armes and present him to the Father and this is the approaching and drawing near in the Text to the Throne of grace But now when I am come thither what do I say there What shall I come and say nothing The prodigal soon resolved to go to his Father and say I will up and go there 's the will and say there 's his speech The believer is not like to the sonne that said to his father I will go but went not but when his father bids him come he will come he will not onely say so but will draw near and then he hath a promise He that cometh to me I will in no wise cast off But when we come thither what must we do why we must take unto our selves words according to the Prophets expression Hos. 14.2 Take unto you words and go unto the Lord and say Take away all our iniquities and receive us graciously so will we render the calves of our lips When he comes to the Throne of grace the thing that he doth is he presents unto the Father Christ bleeding gasping dying buried and conquering death and when he presents Christ to him he opens his case and confesses his sin to the full and sayes Lord this is my case As a beggar when he comes to ask an almes of you he will make a preface and tell you his extremity Sir I am in great want I have not tasted a bit of bread in so many dayes and unless you help me by your charity I am utterly undone Now when these two concur that there is true need in the beggar and liberality in him of whom he begs it encourages the beggar to be importunate and he prevails you may know when the beggar hath need by his tone accent or language The needy beggars tone and accent is different from the sturdy beggars that hath no need but yet though the beggar be in great misery if he see a churlish Nabal go by him he hath no heart to beg and follows him
not an instrument at all faith only is the instrument â—aith justifyeth me from sinne hereafter as well as before The case is this faith brings life The righteous shall live by his faith as the Prophet Habakkuk speaks What doth then new sinnes do There are two sorts of sinnes one of ordinary incursion which cannot be avoided these break no friendship betwixt God and us these only weaken our faith and make us worse at ease But there are other sinnes which waste a mans conscience A man that hath committed murder adultery and lives in covetousnesse which in the Apostles is Idolatry as long as a man is in this case he cannot exercise the acts of faith we must know faith justifieth not as an habit but as an act applying Christ to the comfort of the soul. Now a wasting sinne it stops the passage of faith it cannot act till it be opened by repentance Physitians give instances for it Those that have Apoplexies Epilepsies and the Falling sicknesse are thought to be dead for the time as it was with Eutichus yet saith Saint Paul his spirit was in him Every one thought him dead yet his spirit is in him however in regard of the operation of his senses it did appear he was dead So if thou art a carelesse man and lookst not to thy watch and to thy guard but art overtaken in some grosse and grievous sinne thou art taken for dead I say not a man can lose his life that once hath it but yet in the apprehension of others and of himself too he may appear to be so As in Epilepsies the nerves are hindred by obstructions so sinne obstructs the nerves of the soul that there cannot be that life and working till these sinnes be removed Now what is repentance why it clears the passages that as faith could not act before now it gives him dispositions unto it As a man in a swound cannot do the acts of a living man till he be refreshed again so here its repentance which clears the spirits and makes the life of faith passe throughout Now when repentance clears the passages then faith acts and now there is a new act of faith faith justifies me from my new sinnes faith at first and at last is that whereby I am justified from my sins which I commit afterwards But this forgivenesse of sinnes what doth it free us from In sinne we must consider two things the fault and the punishment Now consider sinne as it is in it self and as it respects the sinner as acted by him as respecting the fault of the sinner it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a transgression of the Law The punishment is death as it respects the sinner it is guilt The sin is not guilt but the guilt the sinners For instance a man that hath told a lye or sworn an oath the act is past but a thing remains which we call the guilt As if a man commit murder or adultery the act is past but yet if he sleep or walk or wake the guilt follows him If he live an hundred years he is a murderer still and an adulterer still the guilt follows him and nothing can take away the murder or adultery from the soul but the blood of Christ applyed by faith First God takes away the punishment There is now saith the Apostle no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit what nothing in him worthy condemnation God knows we are worthy of a thousand condemnations There are two Judges there is a double guilt when a man is brought to the barre first the Jury judge the fact and then the Judge that sits on the Bench he judgeth the punishment one saith guilty or not guilty the other saith guilty then he judgeth him Now when we are justified we are freed from both these guilts sinne when it is accomplish't it bringeth forth death You know the natural work of sinne 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it labours with death now God will stop the acts of it that it shall not do that which it is apt to do which is as good as if the sinne were taken away when there were wilde guords sliced into the pot 2 Kings 4.31 it 's said the Prophet took that venemous herbe away i. e. though the thing were there yet it is as if it were not there it shall do no manner of hurt Bring now and poure out and there was no evil thing So in respect of us though there be an evil thing in punishment and if we had our due would bring condemnation yet when we are sprinkled with the blood of Christ it can do us no evil no hurt it 's said in the Scripture that the stars fell from heaven why the starres are of that bignesse that they cannot fall from heaven to the earth but they are said to fall when they give not their light and do not that for which they were put there so though I have committed sinne yet when God is pleased for Christs sake to pardon it it is as if it were not there at all This is a great matter but I tell you there is more we are not only freed from the guilt of the punishment but which is higher we are freed from the guilt of the fact I am now no more a murderer no more a lyar when I have received a pardon from the blood of Christ he frees me from that charge the world is changed with me now Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect If the Divel lay any thing to thee thou mayst deny it Such a one I was but I am justified but I am sanctified A man hath committed High Treason against the King and the King gives him a pardon for the Treason if I call him a Traytor he can have no remedy against me for he is one the pardon takes not away the guilt But if his blood be restored unto him by Act of Parliament then if I shall call him Traytor he may have remedy against me because he is restored fully and is not lyable to that disgrace This is our case though our sinnes be as red as scarlet yet the die shall be changed it shall not be so bloody Thou hast the grace of justification and this doth not only clear thee from the punishment but from the fault it self See in Jer. 50.20 the place is worth gold In those dayeâ— and in that time saith the Lord the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none and the sinnes of Judah and they shall not be found for I will pardon them whom I reserve what is the matter what a sinful man and no sinne what when there is search made for sinne in such a man shall it not be found you will say this is meant of the grace of sanctification no I will pardon them that pardoning of sinne makes the sin not to be found What a wonderful comfort is this
â—his Kingdome of grace before you come to the Kâ—ngdome of glory First here â—s set down the mother and radical grace of all the rest and â—hat is justification by faith and then followeth the blâ—â—sed fruit that issueth from thence 1. Peace wâ—th God 2. A graciâ—us accesse into his presence 3. A joyfuâ— hope arising from that great glory that we shall enjoy for tâ—e time to come 4. In the â—orst of our troubles and midst of our afflictions this â—oy is so great that it cannot be abated by any of them â—ea it is so far from being abated by them that they are a fuel to kindle it we rejoyce in affliction saith the Aâ—ostle that which would undo the joy of a carnal man is made the matter of this mans joy Concerning the first of these justification that is the ground or foundation of all the rest being justififyed by faith that 's the root and ground without which there is no fruit no peace no joy no hope much lesse any kinde of rejoycing in tribulation Faith is that which seasoneth all we must first be justified by faith before we have any other comforts for that 's the first ground the first rudiment of a Châ—istian in the School of Christ. Therefore I proposed unto you three things for the understanding of it 1. What that faith is that justifieth 2. What that justification is that is â—btained by faith 3. What relation the one of these hatâ— to the otâ—er Concerning the first of these I sheved you that it is not every faith that justifieth I shew'â— you that there is a dead faith whereupon the Apostlâ— saith The life that I now live I live by the faith of the Sonne of God A dead thing cannot make a living maâ— it must be and I shew'd you how a living faith Again I shew'd that beside the trâ—e faith there was a temporary faith which is active 〈◊〉 and comes near the other It had the operations of the Spirit but it wanted root It had supernatuâ—â—ll works but it wanted the new creature There wâ—â— a conception that was but an abortive kinde of birth it came not to maturity not to a full growth it did not continue And I shew'd unto you how a man migâ—t discern one of these from the other for herein lyeâ— the wisdome of a Christian not to content himself 〈◊〉 be deceived with flashes therefore the Apostle exhorts us to prove and try and examine our selves it 's an easie matter to be deceived and therefore Gods people should be careful to examine themselves to have their senses exercised herein that however others may slight and slubber over the matter they must and will be careful in it and then they will not only do it themselves but they will crave the aid of God also Prove me O my God c. try me c. Then for the second thing concerning that justification that is obtained by faith I shew'd you that the word justification was derived from justice or righteousnesse and as many wayes as justice and righteousnesse may be taken so many wayes may justification be taken Sometimes for justification of righteousnesse in a man and sometimes it is opposed to condemnation so it s taken in Saint Paul and it signifieth an acquital sometimes it s opposed to hypocrisie and pollution in a mans soul so it signifies sanctification whereby God not only covers our sinnes past but heals our natures The first is perfect but imputed the second inherent but imperfect When the time cometh that God will finish his cure he will then make a perfect cure when final grace cometh we shall not need to think of a Popish Purgatory Death is the Lords refining pot then there is not a jot of sinne shall be left in a Christian Now when God hath taken away our drosse then to think we shall be put in a refining fire that an intire soul that hath no blot that one that hath no spot should be purged after final grace hath made him clear and whole this is against reason and common sense They might have learned better of their own Thomas all the fire in the world will never put away sinne without the infusion of grace This by the way concerning them I shew'd besides that these two being both righteousnesses the Church of Rome confounds them both together Saint James his justification wâ—â—h Saint Pauls They confound inherent righteousnesse which is begun and shall be perfected in final grace with the other so that the point is not between us and Rome Whether faith justifieth by works or no but Whether it justifieth at all in truth that is the state of it The question is this whether there be another justification that is distinguish't from sanctification or whether there be another grace besides justification Do not think that we are such block-heads as to deny faith and sanctification yet faith is but a piece or part of that traine of vertues There justification is taken for sanctification we acknowledge a man is justified by faith and works but the question is between us and them whether there be any justification besides sanctification i. e. whether there be any justification at all or no we say sanctification is wrought by the Kingly office of Christ he is a King that rules in our hearts subdues our corruptions governs us by the Scepter of his Word and Spirit but it is the fruit of his Priestly office which the Church of Rome strikes at i. e. whether Christ hath reserved another righteousnesse for us besides that which as a King he works in our hearts whether he hath wrought forgivenesse of sinnes for us we say he hath and so saith all the Church till the new spawn of Jâ—suites arose They distinguish not remission of sinnes from sanctification Bellarmine saith remission of sinnes is the extinguishing of sinne in the soul as water though it be cold yet the bringing in of heat extinguishes the cold and so remission of sinnes is the bringing in of inherent righteousnesse which extinguisheth all sinne which was before A strange thing and were it not that the Scripture does speak of a cup in the hand of the Harlot of Rome whereby she makes drunk the inhabitants of the earth with the wine of her fornications except men were drunk it were impossible that a learned man should thus shake out an Article of their Creed which hath ever been believed by all the Churches When the Scripture speaks of forgivenesse of sinnes see how it expresseth it Ephes. 4.32 Be ye kinde one to another Brethren tender-hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Observe in the Lords prayer we pray that the Lord would forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those that trespasse against us Let him that hath common understanding judge Do we forgive our neighbours by extinguishing sinne in the subject I forgive you i.e. I take away the ill office you did me Doth he
forgive thus Alas no! forgivenesse is without a man I have an action against you perhaps an action at Law I will let fall my suit my charges I will forgive this is forgivenesse God justifieth who shall condemn Though God has just cause to proceed against me as a Rebel yet he is content to let fall his action to fasten it upon the Crosse of his Sonne there to fix the Chirographum the hand-writing against us He will let fall that which was the ground of a suit against us all that he could say against us That you may understand the thing the better there are two things two kinds of righteousnesse the one of justification the other of sanctification The Holy Ghost distinguisheth them by several terms 1 Cor. 1. ult Of him are ye in Christ Jesus who is made unto us wisdome righteousness sanctification and redemption You see here are two distinct graces righteousnesse and sanctification they make them but one sanctification and remission of sinnes Moreover whom he did predestinate them he also called and whom he called them he also justified and whom he justified them he also glorified Here justification and sanctification is nothing else but justification and glorification Saint Paul speaks of a thing past not of the glory to come i. e. sanctification which is inchoate glory For what is the glory we shall have in heaven but the inlargement of those inherent graces God begins in this world Here is the seed there is the crop here thou hast a little knowledge but there it shall be inlarged now thou hast a little joy there thou shalt enter into thy Masters joy here some knowledge but there thou shalt have a full knowledge and a full measure Here glory dwelleth in our Land but there we shall with open face behold as in a glasse the glory of the Lord and be changed into the same image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord 2 Cor. 3.18 i. e. we are more and more conformed to the image of Almighty God by â—â—edience and holy qualities infused into us that we grow from one degree of sanctification unto another And so you see how these are distinguished by their termes Justification and glorification justification and sanctification There is another place in Saint John an hard place but yet as I take it these two righteousnesses that have the same name to be distinct in their termes It is said Joh. 16.8 That when the Spirit shall come he shall reprove or as we should translate it he shall convince the world concerning sinne righteousnesse and judgment Thus I say it should be translated for 't is no sense to say that God shall reprove the world of righteousnesse on what occasion this was spoken we must not stand to speak but righteousnesse and judgment is justification and sanctification And the drift of the place is this when the Spirit shall come how not upon me or thee but the Spirit here spoken of is that Spirit that should come upon the Apostles it shall begin at the day of Pentecost and these 1. should set forth like twelve Champions to conquer the world and to bring them unto the Scepter of Christ. He shall convince the world i. e. when the Spirit shall come on you and your tongues be tip't with that spiritual fire which shall be active it shall convince the world concerning three particulars of sinne righteousnesse and judgment Oâ— the point of humiliation for sinnes the point of justification by righteousnesse imputative and the glory of sanctification in judgment and righteousnesse inherent This method Saint Paul useth in the Romans to stop every mans mouth First He convinceth the Gentile which was easie to be done after he convinceth the Jew that there is righteousnesse to be had in another though none in my self He shall convince the world c. As if he should say To be shut up under unbelief is to be convinced of all sinnes Now consider what is the nature of unbelief it is to fasten all sinnes upon a man and when I have faith all my sinnes are put out of possession they are as if they were not but if we are shut up under unbelief we are dead The second work of Gods Spirit is the Ministry of the Word He shall convince the world that there is righteousnesse to be had by a communion with another though we are guilty in our selves yet he will set us free and the reason is because I go to my Father As if he should say though you be convinced of your sinnes that you are wholly dead in trespasses and sinnes and have no means in the world to put that away yet notwithstanding the second work of Gods Spirit is to convince of righteousnesse that there is a righteousnesse to be had in Christ because he was our surety arrested for our debt he was committed to prison where he could not come out till he â—ad paid the utmost farthing There is a justification to be had in me I go to the Creditor I have made no escape not like one that brake the prison and run away but I am now a free-man I have not made an escape before the debt is paid then I might be brought back again but the debt is discharged and therefore I go to my Father to maintain my place and standing I was given unto death for your sins but I am risen again for your justification and I now sit at my fathers right hand this is the second thing But is there not a third thing that the work of the Ministry must do Yes to convince the world that there is judgment or righteousnesse inherent There is a hard place I shall speak of it it is usual in Scripture to joyn righteousnesse and judgment together The words of the Lord are righteousnesse and judgment And the integrity of a mans heart which is opposed to hypocrisie is called judgement as God liveth who hath taken away my judgment Job 27.2 How did God take away his judgment is it meant that he had taken away his wits no but but he hath put his heavy hand on me that hath put a conceit in the minde of my friends that I am an hypocrite and therefore he falls on him ver 6. My righteousnesse I hold fast and will not let it go my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live His judgment was taken away i. e. the opinion they had of his integrity and this will expound another place in Matth. 12.20 A bruised reed shall he not break and smoking flax shall he not quench untill he send forth judgment unto victory what is that untill he send forth judgment This judgment signifies nothing but those inherent graces those infused qualities that God sends into the heart of a Christian. In a mans first conversion there are but beginnings of grace what is faith hope patience and fear it is like a smoaking flax i. e. like the smoaking wick
of a candle made of flax as when a candle burns in the socket it s now up now down you know not whether it be alive or dead so in the first conversion of a Christian infidelity and faith hope and despair mount up and down There 's a conflict in the beginning of conversion but he will not give it over untill he bring forth judgment untill he get the victory of all opposition from the flesh And what is the reason Because the god of this world is judged He shall convince the world of an inherent righteousnesse in spite of the Divels teeth because he is condemned He that before worked in the children of disobedience is now cast down The strong man is cast out and therefore upon that ground you have the third point Besides the grace of justification following upon Christs death there is another the Divel shall be dispossessed the Divel is strong where he doth wicked things but he shall be disarmed he shall not touch thee the wicked one shall not hurt thee I now go forward The third thing I noted besides faith and justification was That we must observe what relation one hath to the other and how it comes to passe that justification is attributed to faith there being more noble graces in us than faith I answer the reason is because faith is brought as the only instrument whereby we receive our justification purchased by the merits of Christs death When we say faith is an instrument we must understand it right well we say not faith is an instrument to work my justification Christ alone must do that it 's no act of ours nothing is in us faith is said to be an instrument whereby we get our justification in respect of the object it is a nearing us to Christ it is the instrument of application the only instrument whereby we apply the medicine and the plaister of Christs blood whereby we that were strangers and afar off are made near faith is the only hand which receiveth Christ when the hand layeth hold on a thing it layeth hold on a thing without it self so is faith a naked hand not as a hand that gets a mans living but like a beggars hand that receives a free almes given by the donor as the Apostle speaks Rom. 5.17 For if by one mans offence death reigned over all by one much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousnesse shall reigne in life by one Jesâ—â— Christ. There is abundance of grace and a gift of righteousnesse faith is the only means whereby we receive this gift whereupon I inferred this which was of great consequence seeing faith did justifie not as an active instrument but as it did receive the gift of grace it did follow that the weakest faith that was did get as much justification as the strongest faith of any whatsoever because faith justifieth not only as a work but as it did receive a gift therefore our Saviour saith O ye of little faith yet as little as it was it was builded upon the Rock and though Satan desired to winnow them and sift them as wheat yet they remained firme as our Saviour saith of the faith of miracles If ye had faith as much as a graine of mustard-seed ye should say to this Mountain be removed and it would obey you So for common faith which the Apostle calleth so because it is common to all the Elect if thou hast so much faith thou shalt be able to remove Mountains of corruptions suppose thou hast a trembling hand scarce able to hold yet have the perswasion of the woman in the Gospel If I may but touch him I shall be whole I shall be saved healed if I can but touch him And mark our Saviour The people throng'd about him and he saith Who is it that toucheth me A wonder that he when they crowded him should ask such a question but Christ knew that some body touched him beside the touch of the multitude it s said in the Text The poor woman came trembling and told him all the truth And he said Be of good comfort though thou hast a paralytick and palsie sick-hand yet the touch is enough the least faith brings as much life as the greatest Object But then what need a man look for a great faith Sol. Yes by all means for though thou hast much comfort by a little weak faith yet the more faith the more comfort and therefore 't is to very much purpose to labour after a strong faith Abraham it is said stagger'd not through unbelief if thou hast a strong faith thou wilt have a strong consolation Thou mayst by thy weak faith be healed of thy disease yet by the weaknesse of thy faith mayst want much of the strength of thy comfort therefore thou must go from faith to faith but know this that a new-born childe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is not yet so strong as a man yet he is as much alive as the strongest and tallest man so that again thus thou art yet but a new-born babe not so strong or so lively as one more grown but yet thou hast all the lineaments of the new creature in thee though thou art not so strong and lively as another may be Object Did not you tell me that it was not every faith that did justifie but a working faith how then doth faith alone justifie Sol. I answer When faith justifieth there is one thing said of another the subject and the predicate faith justifies Justification is attributed unto faith Look on the word only whether it doth determine the subject or the predicate doth faith which is alone severed from good works justifie so the proposition is false First that faith which is alone separated from love and the fruits of good works doth not justifie but let the word alone be put to the predicate faith justifieth alone i. e. faith is the only vertue in the soul whereby a man is justified that is true As if a man should say the eye alone seeth 't is true if we put it thus the eye severed from the members of the body seeth its self If the eye were taken out of the head it would neither see alone nor at all but the meaning is this the living eye is the organ whereby a man discerns a visible object so faith though joyn'd with other graces yet takes not other with it for helps of justification Object But why should God select this vertue among others that are more noble Sol. I say as before God had respect to the low estate of his hand-maid it was reason that God should choose the lowest and the meanest God selected this poor beggars hand for two reasons First in respect of God I say 1. Therefore it is of faith that it might be by grace to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed not to that only which is of the Law but to that also which is of the faith
in the Accursednesse of it p. 384. in the shame of it p. 385. in the painfulnesse of it p. 386 Christ suffered not the pains of Hell proved p. 388. yet he suffered in his Soul immediately from God p. 389 Whether Christ takes away all the sins of the world p. 395. Christ's being offered for us no comfort unless he be offered to us p. 356 That Christ dyed sufficiently for all is an improper speech p. 356 To receive Christ what p. 399. Christ offered freely p. 397 402. He that hath a will to receive Christ hath a warrant to receive him p. 404 Christ the proper and immediate Object of justifying Faith p. 418. Christ loved and valued above all by true believers p. 427. Christ and the Cross go together in this life p. 426 Christ very compassionate p. * 368 Christ is our Peace p * 454 To be a Christian indeed is no easie matter p. 426 Civil Righteousness See Morality Men deceived by Comparing themselves with others p. 46. and with themselves p. 47 The Conditions of Faith and Obedience required hinder not the freedom of Gospel grace p. 389 416 Confession of sin necessary and why p. * 376 Carnal Confidence as to our spiritual estate dangerous the vain grounds of it discovered p. 43 c. Conscience one of the Tormenters in Hell p. 153 Peace of Conscience See Peace Conviction necessary to Conversion p. 39 80 Conviction a work of Gods Spirit p * 364 Two hindrances of Conversion p. 4 A limited time for it p. 9 10 Crucifying a Cursed Shameful Painful death p. 384. c. The manner of it p. 386. The Curse followes sin p. 98 The Curses attending an unregenerate man in this life p. 120 c. The Curses on his Soul p. 127 The Curses at his death p. 130 Custom in sin hardens the heart p. 28 D. DAy of grace limited p. 9 10 34 35. The folly and danger of neglecting it p. 16 17 Death the wages of sin p. 110. The comprehensivenesse of the word Death p. 119 Death terrible p. 112. The teriblenesse of Bodily Death set forth in three particulars p. 131 c. What the first and second Death is p. 141 The Death of Christ described p. 384 c. Death-bed-Repentance See Repentance Deferring Repentance dangerous p. 16 17. The reasons of Carnal mens Deferring Repentance p. 21 c. The vanity of them ibid. Desires after Christ may be stronger in Temporaries then in true Believers p. * 388 The Devil takes possession of those whom God leaves p. 106 107 The Reason of Christians Doubting p. * 438. E. WHat use to make of the Doctrine of Election and Reprobation p. 35 Encouragements for sinners to come to Christ p. 402 Examination of a mans self See Self-Examination F FAith why required to the receiving of Christ since he is a free gift p. 398. Faith consists not in a mans being perswaded that God is his God and that his sins are pardoned p. 402.413 It 's proper and immediate object is not that forgivnesse of sins but Christ p. 418. Faith must have a ground for it out of the word p. 414. What Faith justifies p. * 384. c. Faith jusstifies not as a vertue but in respect of its object p. 419. Faith justifies not as a Habit but as an act p. * 417. The Acts of Faith p. 423. By what sins the Acts of Faith are hindred p. 417. How those obstructions are removed ibid. Faith an instrument to receive Justification not to procure it p. * 424 * 434 Why Faith chosen for an instrument of Justification rather than any other grace p. * 437. A weak Faith justifies as much as a strong p. * 435 yet a strong Faith is to be laboured for and why p * 436. How Faith alone justifies p. * 436 Faith may be certainly known p. * 407. There may be Faith where there is no feeling p. 412 425 * 373 Faith strongest when sense least p. * 451 Encouragements to Faith p. 402 Carnal Fear its sinfulness and danger p. 140 141 Men apt to Flatter themselves as to their spiritual estate 41 Five false glasses that cause this self Flattery p. 43 c. Forgivnesse of sins not a distinct thing from Imputation of righteousness p. 399 c. Forgivness is properly of sins past only p. * 403. It is one continued act p. * 414. and therfore may be prayed for by a justified person ibid. Forgivnesse frees from guilt and punishment p. * 418 419 God forsakes none till they forsake him p. 108 True beleevers forsake all for Christ p. 427 428. Free grace in bringing sinners to Christ p. 398 No Freewill to good p. 404 G TO be given up to our selves a more fearfull thing then to be given up to satan p. 108 109.128 The Gospel not seasonable nor savory till the Law hath been preached p. 80. How the Gospel differs from the Law p. 86 The fulnesse and freedome of the Grace of the Gospel not hindred by the conditions of Faith and Obedience p. 398.416 Guilt of sin taken away in Justification p. * 420. H HArdnesse of heart a hindrance to Conversion p. 2 3 4 Hell for whom provided p. 139 Hell described p. 143 c. That Christ suffered not the pains of Hell proved p. 388. Christians rejoice in Hope p. * 458. The Humiliation of Christ see Christ I IMputation of Righteousnesse See Righteousnesse To be given up to Insensiblenesse a wofull thing p. 129 130 Joy in the sense of Gods love surpasseth all worldly Joy p. 430. It is attainable p. ibid. The reason why many beleevers are strangers to it p. 430 431. Some Joy may be in a Temporary p. * 393. How to try true Joy p. * 360. Means to get it p. * 462 463 Justification what it signifies p. * 396. How the Fathers used the word p. * 732 Justification one simple act of God p. * 400 How we are said to be Justified by Faith and how by Christs blood p. 420. * 422. In what sense we are Justified by Faith according to Paul and in what sense by works according to James p * 398. Impossible to be Justified but by imputed Righteousnesse p. * 402 * 410 411. In the instant of Justification no sins are remitted but those that are past p. * 411 412. A twofold Justification p. * 409 Why a justified person may and must pray for the remission of sins past p. * 413 414. Justification frees from the punishment and guilt too p. * 418 419 420. Justification confounded by the Papists with sanctification p. * 422. The difference between them p. * 423. * 429. No Justification before Faith p. * 440 How we are Justified by Faith alone p. * 439. Judgment in Scripture sometime taken for Righteousnesse inherent p. * 433 How men are deceived in Judging of their spiritual estate p. 43 K KNowledge one act of Faith p. 423 L THe use of the Law p. 79.354 * 366. It is necessary to be