Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A46360
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The upright man's peace at his end open'd in a funeral discourse, Decemb. 18. 1681. upon the death of Mr Martyn, citizen of London. By T. Jacombe, D.D.
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Jacombe, Thomas, 1622-1687.
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1682
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Wing J120; ESTC R218744
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22,595
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39
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to drop into the Flames Or he is at Sea in a Storm yet insensible of any danger though the Waves threaten to swallow him up every Moment Such a thing is the Peace of these Men all is quiet within when alas there is but one poor breath between them and Hell They are dropping into Eternal Flames but they see not their danger and therefore are without trouble But the Peace here promised to the Godly Man is a quite other Peace a real Peace not a flashy Peace a well-grounded Peace not a presumptuous Peace And fuch Peace the Godly only have at their End they only are within that blessed * Ps 85.10 Link Mercy and Truth are met together Righteousness and Peace have kissed each other Vse 4. I Should in the last place have turn'd my Discourse to these Perfect and Vpright Persons Three things I should have urged upon you who are such 1. To admire and adore the Goodness of God Oh that it should please him to reward imperfect Grace imperfect Obedience imperfect Holiness with this blessed Peace Not only with Peace in Life but in Death too Ay and with that Peace too which infinitely surpasseth what we have here the Heavenly peace what matter of admiration is this The End of that Man is Peace but why so not from any Merit or Worthiness in him or in his Holiness Uprightness but meerly from the infinite dignation and grace of God Oh let him be adored for this by all Saints 2. To presevere in upright Walking with God You are in a good way oh hold on it You shall not lose by an Holy life sincerity shall not be in vain to you you shall be a Gainer by it while you live when you come to die and then in Heaven to all Eternity Pro. 23.18 Surely there is an End and thine expectation shall not be cut off There is an End this end by Death is sure and certain and whenever it shall come thine expectation shall not be cut off thy hope in God as for other good so for inward Peace shall be accomplisht oh hold on in the good ways of God! 3. Be as chearsul as ever you can Living or dying let this Peace that you have be made as visible to Others as may be As your light of Grace should shine forth so your light of Comfort should shine forth too Let it appear Male vivit quisquis nescit benè mori Sen. de Tranq you have liv'd well by dying well Men are to mark and observe you in your Course and in your End that your End is Peace if you walk dejectedly live and die dejectedly what will become of this marking What will Men have to observe about you to make them in love with Religion Oh amongst other things you must improve your Peace for God to credit his Service and Ways But I must not further stay upon these things I would say something upon the sad Occasion that is before us the Death of a worthy Member of this Society Mr. Martin I think I may say with a great deal of Confidence this Scripture was verified in him He was indeed an Upright and Perfect Man a truly pious Man one that was very sincere in his Profession I have known him long somewhat above Forty Years and in all my knowledge and observation of him abating humane infirmities I never saw any thing in his Conversation or Carriage but what did speake him a down-right Godly Man In his Calling in his Trusts in his Relations in all the personal Duties of Religion he carried it like one that did sincerely fear God this many of you know as well as my self And I question not but when Death made its seizure upon him which it did very suddenly for it dispatched him in one Night and a sew hours in the Morning just about the time when he used to come hither to wait upon God in his Ordinances he went to Heaven But I say at his Death and End I question not but he had this Peace In the midst of all his Pains and Agonies which indeed were very sharp yet all was quiet and calm within And I do less question but that he is entred into the Heavenly Peace Oh he is there in the full fruition of God and of all Good in God receiving a full Answer to all his Prayers reaping the fruit and benefit of all his Holy walking with God He fully knows what the Peace of Heaven is of which we have been speaking but very imperfectly this day Well his Life was good and his End was good and what can I say more and what can you expect or desire more Let this comfort us under this very sudden and very afflictive stroak of Providence You especially his near and dear Relations let it comfort you Your Loss is his Gain Your loss is great his gain is far greater you have lost the Comfort of a Creature but he is full of Comfort in the enjoying the ever-blessed God Be you at Peace in this respect i. e. be patient quiet submissive considering who has made this breach upon you and what a blessed state your near and dear Relation is now put into He is not lost but advanc'd Cur doles si periisse non credis Tertull. We in this Congregation have a great loss being depriv'd of one that was discreet and prudent considerably active and useful to us upon many Accounts Let me hereupon commend three things to you 1. Pray to God that he will make up this breach That now when such a Mnason such an old Disciple of Christ is taken away it would please God to work upon some Young Ones in his room to bring them in to God It 's sad to see how many old Professors die and we have but few young Converts brought in to succeed them in what is good If the old Plants be pluckt up and there be no young Ones set in their stead the Plantation is like to come to nothing 2. Let the suddenness of his Death quicken and awaken you to a speedy and serious preparation for your own Death He was in all appearance in very good Health a few hours before he died In hoc fallimus nur quod moriem prospicimus Sen. Ep. 1. ad Lucil. he went to Bed well but never came out of it more no sooner was he laid down in it to sleep but violent pains surpriz'd him which put a speedy Period to his Life Oh Sirs are we prepared for such a sudden Change Shall we have such Memento's of our frailty and yet be secure We cannot assure our selves of a long sickness that Death will make its slower steps towards us we may be cut off in a Night yea in a Moment oh let us always watch and be ready 3. Let us follow the good Example of this good and Holy Man that living as he did we may die as he did and experience this as to our selves that our End is Peace May we but so live and so die we shall not need much fear to die God make us all wise unto Salvation FINIS
and chusing in Duties something he will do something he will omit No but he * Num. 14.24 Ps 119.6 follows Godly fully and has respect to all the Commands of God 3. Constancy and fixedness in what is Good Hos 6.4 Mat. 13.21 The Upright man his Righteousness is not like the Morning dew that goeth away not like the Fruit that grew up but had Root and therefore dured but a while he is one that is uniform constant and fixed in what is Good 4. Walking always as under Gods Eye Gen. 17.1 and doing all as in the sight of God 5. The making of the glory of God the Supreme and ultimate End in all actions Whether we eat or drink or whatever we do 1 Cor. 10.35 doing all to the Glory of God Here 's the Perfect and Upright Man 1. He is one that whatsoever he doth in the things of God he doth it from an inward Principle 2. He is one that is Vniversal in his Obedience 3. He is one that is steady and persevering in the good ways of God 4. He is one that wherever he is and whatever he doth he always looks upon himself as under God's Eye 5. He is one who in all his Actings intends and aims at Gods Glory as his Supreme End But I am straitned by the Time and must not enlarge upon these Heads Vse 3. The third Use shall be to excite and urge all to endeavour after the Qualification and Character here laid down I would improve the Opportunity which the present sad Occasion gives me to be earnest with you to labour after Sincerity Oh Sirs I beseech you Hear Pray Read Meditate mortifie Corruption use all Means for the attaining of it What a world of Arguments might I set before you to raise and elevate your desires and endeavours after it Sathan Sin the World the Flesh all have their Arguments against it such as they are but they are all weak and fallacious of no weighth if compared with the Arguments which I might set before you for it Upright Walking sincere Godliness is a thing that God is highly pleased with and takes singular delight in Such as are Vpright in the Way are his delight Prov. 11.20 God hath a very open Hand and Heart to upright Christians he thinks nothing too much to give to them or to do for them Psal 84.11 The Lord God is a Sun and a Shield the Lord will give Grace and Glory and no good thing will he with-hold from them that walk Vprightly No good thing What a comprehensive Expression is that Poor and Afflicted Sincerity is infinitely better then Rich and Prosperous Wickedness it may not appear so at present but it will be found to be so at last Pro. 28. â—6 Better is the Poor that walketh in his Vprightness than he that is perverse in his ways though he be Rich. The Upright Man does not only do good to himself but to his Posterity also Mercy is entail'd by him upon his Offspring Prov. 20.7 The just Man walketh in his Integrity and his Seed are blessed after him Such who are Upright with God God will be Upright with them with the Vpright thou wilt shew thy self Vpright Psal 18.25 But passing by these Motives this One in the Text methinks may be enough to prevail with you to close with and endeavour after Sincerity and real Holiness Is the End of the Perfect and Upright Man Peace Such Peace as has been described Oh who would not be Such a Man that he may partake of Such an End Holy Paul look't upon all his Sufferings as nothing Acts 20.24 if he might but finish his Course with joy Such an high Sense had he of this Peace at his end It is precious at all times but most precious in a dying hour Oh when the King of Terrors the most terrible of all terribles Job 18.24 shall approach us then to be above affrighting Fears to have all paecate and quiet within What a blessed thing is this How does it * Magna res est diu discenda cum advenerit hora illa inevitabilis aequo ammo exire Sen. Ep. 30. concern us all to make sure of it The poor besotted Sinner who slighted this Peace when Death was at a distance from him now upon it's near approach to him if Conscience be not quite seared and he void of all sense of Eternity what would he give for it had he a Thousand Worlds at his dispose he would willingly part with them all for a little of this inward Peace But alas in his Life he knew not the way of Peace Rom. 3.16 and therefore in his Death he must not have the Blessing of Peace What an Incentive to Holiness is the bad End of bad Men they all say 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Herodot Whoever looks upon us let him learn to be Religious according to the Inscription upon Seunacherib's Statue or Tomb in one of the Aegiptian Temples And can it be otherwise with them Can it be imagined that he who has lived a Wicked Life should die a comfortable Death No no! He that lives ill cannot die well unless it please God to work some great Change at the last If it be Sin in the Life allowed and unrepented of it will be dread and horror in the Death 'T will not be enough for us when we come to die to wish for a peaceable and happy Death the Death of God's People this Balaam did Numb 23.10 Oh saith he Let me die the Death of the Righteous and let my last End be like his he knew that to be a good End and therefore he desir'd that his might be like it but that would not bring him to the attianment of it I say 't is not enough for us barely to wish for this End but we must take the right Course and use those Means that have a proper tendency to it Such as fervent and frequent Prayer Serious Repentance thorough Mortification of Sin Holy and Upright walking with God for there 's no separating of the Means from the End Oh that I might this Day prevail with you with every one of you to resolve for sincere Godliness Mark the Perfect Man the End of that Man is Peace God seems to single out this Man from all other Persons to lay his Hand upon him and say Ay this is Man the only Man who shall have Peace Others may presume upon it but this Man only shall enjoy it Here 's Certainty as to him and also Exclusion as to others the End of that Man is Peace of that Man only Others are altogether Strangers to it If thou art not such an one as that Man there will be no Peace for thee at thy End whenever it shall come and God knows how soon it may come Shall we not all endeavour upon this to be Upright Holy and Good To bid adieu to Sin for will not that be bitterness in the latter End