Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A42952
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Trade preferr'd before religion and Christ made to give place to Mammon represented in a sermon relating to the plantations : first preached at Westminster-Abbey and afterwards in divers churches in London / by Morgan Godwyn ...
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Godwyn, Morgan, fl. 1685.
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1685
(1685)
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Wing G974; ESTC R15652
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53,257
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54
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The knowledg and practice of the Truth being that alone which can reconcile her unto God and entitle her to his Favour which is the Life thereof For as Syracides saith The Bread of the Needy as well the Spiritual as the Temporal is their Life and he that defraudeth him of it is a Man of Blood And he that taketh away his Neighbours Living slayeth him and he that defraudeth him of his Hire is a Blood-shedder So likewise That the Soul should be without Knowledg it is not good saith the wise Solomon Indeed it is no other but to murther her And therefore he saith again That the Lips of the Wise disperse Knowledg the most proper and necessary Food for Men's Souls This was it which Almighty God complained of by his Prophet Hosea That his People were destroyed for lack of Knowledg Instruction the means thereof being withholden from them And likewise in Isaiah where it is lamented That they were gone into Captivity and their honourable Men were famished and their Multitude dried up with Thirst because they had no Knowledg This also was the sad condition of the poor Flock in Zechariah They fell into distress because there was no Shepherd or such only as did not regard nor pity them no not when they were sold and slain For those that were cut off they did not visit they neither sought out the young nor healed the broken nor fed that which was still But that that dieth let it die was all they cared so they might but eat the flesh of the fat retain the Oppressors Favour and so thrive and grow rich Wherefore to obviate this sore evil for the future Almighty God in the Chapter ensuing the Text promiseth to give them Pastours after his own Heart which should feed them with Knowledg and Vnderstanding the only sure Preservatives of the Soul Nor let any one here think to shift off this Guilt by lessening this Sin into an Omission only even where it so happens which is seldom It being our very great Crime to but omit what is our strictest duty to perform as most certainly it is to persuade others to both believe and practise whatsoever we hold our selves obliged to The forbearance whereof was in Moses's Esteem no less than a hating of our Brother who therefore thus directs us Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy Neighbour and not suffer Sin to rest upon him or as 't is in the Margent that thou bear not Sin for him intimating therein the danger of that Omission That all connivance at Wickedness is an encouragement to it especially in such who both can and ought to prevent it was the opinion of a virtuous Heathen Agreeable to that of St. James To him that knoweth to do good and doth it not to him it in Sin Solomon did not hold him excused who had only forborn to deliver those that were drawn unto Death and that were ready to be slain no not tho he pleaded Ignorance and should say that he knew it not For as it follows Doth not be that pondereth the Heart consider it and he that keepeth the Soul doth not he know it And shall not he render to every Man according to his works The Piety of the great Artaxcrxes would not allow that any should remain ignorant of the Laws of the God of Heaven And therefore in his Commission to Ezra he gives an especial charge for the careful instruction of those who knew them not It was not enough in our blessed Saviour's esteem for St. Peter to be converted himself but that being accomplished he was to employ the like charitable endeavours for his Brethren also And upon that so prevalent motive of Charity our Blessed Lord urgeth to all in general a seasonable Reproof and Admonition of our Brother For if he hear thee thou hast gained thy Brother and thereby saved his Soul This is that perfect love of God and of our Brother or Neighbour which cannot be separated and which whosoever wanteth is at once an Enemy both to God and to his Brother For he is a Lyar and a Murtherer saith St. John He walketh in Darkness and not in Light He abides in Death and can have no hopes of Eternal Life withal adding that such a Person is not of God and cannot love him that hates or doth not love his Brother confirming his Assertion with a most substantial Reason demanding How he can love God whom he hath not seen who hateth his Brother whom he hath seen For whom he ought to lay down his Life but much more to extend his Charity and to open his bowels of Compassion to him being in need whether of Spiritual or Temporal Assistance So that this Omission as they term it which of a charitable pious Christian renders a Man a Lyar a Murtherer and an Apostate c. is but a bad Plea and very far from an extenuation of our Crime But then if this love of our Brother by admonishing and reproving him be thus every Man's duty much more must it be of such who are peculiarly ordained and appointed to that work as we read the Watchman in Ezekiel was against whom it was determined That he should surely die if he did not speak to warn the wicked from his way Wherein it is observable that nothing of any Crime actually committed by the Watchman is therein mentioned but only an Omission of his Duty nor was this Penalty to be inflicted for any treacherous correspondence with the Enemy or for betraying his Cause or Party but only for holding his peace in a time of danger From hence alone could St. Paul acquit his Innocence as to the Blood of all Men because he had not omitted to declare to the Souls under his charge the whole counsel of God nor any thing that was profitable unto them Of which yet his partiality or silence must have impleaded him deeply Guilty For it had been a concealing of the Truth and therefore confessedly a shedding of their Blood and a murthering of them This was that Fruit which our Lord Christ acquaints his Disciples that they were to go and bring forth and that their Fruit might remain and which alone could qualify them for that honourable Title of his Friends viz. by an industrious and active conformity to all his Commands of which this we are speaking of was none of the least And how far those shifts and excuses which upon this occasion are usually produced will avail us at the last day the sad doom both of the slothful Servant and of the sleepy Virgins may serve to inform us And so much for my second Observable I proceed now unto III. THE Third which is to represent the most usual and common Inducements to this Sin And they are four Whereof The first is that root of Bitterness or spirit of Unbelief attended with a most violent Spite or Enmity to
let us do it better Only let us not under that pretence be said never to do it at all If any Man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his saith the Apostle Now Christ's Spirit was to promote the Salvation of Mankind But of what Spirit must those then be that do neglect and hinder it And if any Man love not the Lord Jesus Christ let him be Anathema that is utterly accursed from him But what love can there be in endeavouring to rob him of that which he so dearly purchased with his Blood All Knowledg all understanding of Mysteries and all Faith without this Charity is nothing Yea the bestowing of all our Goods to the relieving of the Poor and even the giving our Bodies to be burnt withoat it will profit us nothing This is a thing which all Sects and Parties do most generally agree in No Scruples to tender Consciences will from hence arise it being impossible that any should oppose it but such only who have lost all Conscience And certainly if Christianity and the Souls of Men be worth our care it cannot be but that something in order thereto will speedily be endeavoured the thing in its self being most easy and there wanting nothing but some resolute and wise Agent to push it forward As for the impotent railing of those Barjesuses and Elymases for God be thanked that is the worst they can do it is to be pitied and contemned rather than dreaded or regarded by us Or at the worst a vigorous pursuit would in a short time both disarm and silence them There being no Strumpet so impudent and void of shame as to assert and practice her lewdness in the presence of more vertuous People Nor has it been heard that any Thief has been so confident as to defend his Rapines and Slaughters before an upright Judg. And it being a thing so utterly incongruous and contradictory in it self for Men to call themselves Christians yea and of the most refined sort too and yet at the same time to oppose Christianity that it is impossible but at the first manful onset they must needs be baffled and shamed out of it For Wickedness as the wise Man saith condemned by her own Witness is very timerous and being pressed with Conscience always forecasteth grievous things So that there seemeth nothing more to be needful but the Watch-word from our vigilant and prudent Leaders to the faithful Souldiers of Christ boldly to fall on and to attaque them The Victory cannot but be easy over those that fight against God And pitty yea infinite pitty it would be that so Holy and Righteous a Cause should be so slightly lost and that a Matter of such Eternal Consequence so much tending to our Redeemer's Honour and to the good of those many Myriads of Souls viz. of our Negro's and Indians Slaves and Tributaries all of them the Subjects of this Kingdom and should be also of our care should be suffered to miscarry only through the want of a few words speaking a little endeavour and of so much courage as but to look the Enemies of Christ in the face and where the Act it self doth carry its Recompence and makes us full Amends For whilst we become Eyes to the Blind as holy Job speaks and Feet to the Lame delivering the Poor that crieth and those that have none to help them Whilst we put on Righteousness and it cloaths us and Judgment as a Robe and a Diadem Whilst we break the Jaws of the Wicked and do search out the Cause that we know not Whilst we become valiant for the Truth and do rebuke these Blasphemers to the face Then the Ear that hears us shall bless us and the Eye that sees us shall give witness to us our Glory shall be fresh in us and our Root shall spread out by the Waters The blessing of those that are ready to perish shall fall upon us neither shall we be afraid of destruction when it cometh For we shall be in league with the Stones of the Field and the very Beasts of the Field shall be at peace with us In Famine we shall be redeemed from Death and in this REBELLION from the Power of the Sword All which will be consummated and made up in that Repute Honour and Stability to our Church and Nation which will hereby be undoubtedly procured Amen 1 St. John 3. 18. Let us not love in Word neither in Tongue but in Deed and in Truth ERRATA IN the Title Page line 4. read reprehended P. 3. l. 7. for assert r. set off l. 8. r. Arguments P. 9. l. 17. f. Disciples r. Apostles l. 37. r. in bef snob P. 27. l. 20. r. extant P. 29. l. 11. f. it s r. his P. 31. l. 2. dele be l. 9. dele the. P. 32. l. 15. r. Industry P. 33. l. 19. r. Hypocrisy Add P. 28. ad finem Wickedness burneth as the Fire it shall devour the Briars and Thorns c. Isa 9. 18. Errata in the Margent P. 4. insert Acts 18. 6. bef Acts 20. Likewise the same again p. 6. P. 16. r. Cupiunt P. 24. after Miracles add c. 6. n. 1. P. 25. f. answer r. refute also insert p. 573. disc 3. c. 19. P. 26. r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Likewise add this of E. W's Protestants that never did nor shall hereafter do good to either Christian or Heathen Trade preferr'd before Religion AND Christ made to give place to Mammon Represented in a SERMON relating to the PLANTATIONS JER Chap. 2. Part of the 34th Verse Also in thy Skirts is found the Blood of Souls c. The whole Verse runs thus Also in thy Skirts is found the Blood of the Souls of the poor Innocents I have not found it by secret search but upon all these THis Particle Also standing at our first entrance into the Text requires us to raise our Eye to the foregoing Words both of this and of the former Chapter In the first of which we find our Prophet as it were opening his Commission asserting his Authority as derived to him from God himself Before I formed thee in the Belly I knew thee and before thou camest forth out of the Womb I sanctified thee and ordained thee a Prophet unto the Nations Therefore thou shalt go unto all that I shall send thee and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak And the better to qualify and enable him for this great Work it is added Behold I have put my words into thy Mouth And then to create a Resolution and Courage in him suitable thereto and that he might go on with a steady boldness and assurance in this so hazardous and thankless an Imployment it is promised that he should be an Iron Pillar and a brazen Wall yea a defenced City against them And that therefore he was not to be afraid or dismayed at their Looks that being the worst they should be able to do against