and all of you Children of the most High. They are Gods Vicegerents Gods Representatives they are Terrestrial Gods. But be not proud of that be not high minded but fear and to that end he whispers in their Ear or rather tells them upon the House-top but ye shall die like Men. You may ask what may be the meaning of that I Answer You may take it thus They shall die like Men i.e. they know no more when they shall die than other Men whether some years hence or to morrow or to day and they can tell no more than other Men how they shall die whether a natural or violent Death whether on a sudden or by some lingering and tedious Distemper And again they die like Men as to the Consequences of Death They must be stript of all their Ornaments and Royal Robes and their Bodies must return to Dust and both Soul and Body must come to Judgment Kings that are Supreme and all Inferiour Magistrates must stand before the Tribunal of Christ and there be judged their Rule shall be inspected their Government examined all their Words and Actions considered and all the Sentences that have been here past by them all the Punishments that have been inflicted by them by their Authority and Order shall be curiously and exactly weighed in the Ballance of Justice Oh! be wise and consider this and remember your latter end But though Christ died once He died but once He shall not die a second time Death hath no more Power over him This Friend may fall and that Comfort may wither and that Prince may die under whose Shadow the People rejoyced but so doth not Christ He abides for ever Psalm 102. Thou hast laid the Foundations of the Earth the Heavens are the work of thine Hands They shall perish but thou shalt endure yea all of them shall wax old like a Garment as a Vesture shalt thou change them and they shall be changed but thou art the same and thy years shall have no end Secondly Christ shall reign as well as live He shall live and that like himself in State and in Power and Glory His and our Father who hath set him up for King upon his holy Hill of Sion hath settled him there and fixed him there the Sacred Scriptures do abound with Expressions to this purpose that we might have a full assurance of Faith in the Matter which is so important As to instance in a few Ps. 45.6 Thy Throne O God is for ever and ever So Ps. 110.1 2. The Lord said unto my Lord Sit thou at my right hand until I make thine Enemies thy Footstool The Lord shall send the Rod of thy Strength out of Zion rule thou in the midst of thine Enemies He now rules in the midst of them and in spite of them and the Father will subdue them all Christ sits expecting till it be done And as the Father was not failed in his Expectation from Christ so Christ shall not be failed in his Expectation from the Father All his Enemies shall be brought to an under either in a way of gracious Conversion or in a way of most dreadful Confusion Either they shall willingly bow to him in the day of his Power or else they shall against their wills be broken by him in the day of his wrath either they shall submit to his golden Scepter or they shall be dashed in pieces like a Potters Vessel by his Iron Rod. In a word Either they shall by a chearful Resignation put themselves into his hand to be moulded guided and ordered by him or else they shall be under his Feet to be trampled upon with Scorn and Indignation and at last kicked to Hell as fewel for those unquenchable Flames And yet further He must Reign till he hath got the actual and full possession of all that unto which he hath an unquestionable Right by virtue of his Fathers donation i.e. till the Heathen and uttermost parts of the Earth be brought in to him Of the continuance of his Kingdom and the increase of his Government there shall be no end till that happy time come wherein all the Kingdoms of the World shall become the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ i. e. they shall renounce all Idolatry and false Worships and embrace the Gospel and walk in the Light thereof and according to its Rules Yea it is said Rev. 11.15 He shall Reign for ever and ever till time shall be no more Thirdly Rejoyce in this That the Church of the living God shall be preserved and continued in the World. Though there have been dreadful concussions and are so at this present and are like to be till all be shaken down that God hath not set up yet there shall be no overturning of this House no ruining thereof The Ship may be and frequently is sorely tost with Tempests but it shall live since Christ is Pilot and sits at the Helm and steers the Course I say it shall live as the Ark did in the Deluge when the Waters were at the highest Notwithstanding all the Rage and Malice all the Power and Plots of Men and Devils Christ will have a Church upon Earth Though they may prune this Vine which Gods right Hand hath planted yet they shall never be able to pull it up by the roots It may bleed grievously even to Fainting but not to Death It is true this or that particular Church may fail The Church of the Iews did though once dearly yea only beloved and so have the seven Famous Churches in Asia And so may others Therefore that was excellent and no more than necessary Counsel which Paul more likely to be an Apostle to them than Peter gave them Rom. 11.20 21. Because of unbelief they i. e. the Iews were broken off and thou standest by Faith be not high-minded but fear Which Counsel he followeth with this weighty Reason For if God spared not the natural Branches take heed lest he spare not thee That was Pauls advice to the Church at Rome when he wrote this Epistle to them But whatever hath become of Her or may of this or that particular Church our Lord Iesus will certainly take effectual care that there shall be a true Church upon Earth And though at first it be but as a little Stone yet shall it smite the Image upon his feet and break them to pieces and become it self a great Mountain and fill the whole Earth Let every one look to it that they be true and living Members of that true Church and continue so without turning aside to any Synagogue of Satan or having any Fellowship with Devils The End.
of the Day of Christ. The first Day of the Week which is in Scripture called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Lords Day Rev. 1.10 I was in the Spirit on the Lords Day This is the Day wherein that Jesus who died for our Offences arose again for our Justification This is the Day wherein he was let out of Prison as one that had fully discharged the Debt we owed for which he as Surety was arrested and clap'd up This is the Day whereon he finished the work of our Redemption and gloriously Triumphed over Death and Hell all the Enemies of our Salvation This was the Day whereon he was declared to be the Son of God with Power This is the Day which the Lord hath made and separated from the rest of the Days This is the Day which the Apostles and Primitive Christians observed and met upon for Divine Worship and Christ did honour those their Meetings with his Personal Appearance among them This is that Day which is now to be particularly remembred and kept holy by us Read what God saith Ezek. 20.12 I gave them my Sabbaths to be a sign between me and them that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctifie them And again v. 20. Hallow my Sabbaths and they shall be a sign between me and you that ye may know that I am the Lord your God. What God there speaks concerning the Iewish Sabbaths is true and to be affirmed of the Christian Sabbath It is a sign between Christ and us and by our keeping of that we own him for our Lord-Redeemer for our Prince and Saviour a polluting of that Day is a practical renouncing of Christ. And it hath been and always will be found that Religion gains or loseth in a Nation or City Godliness flourisheth or withers according as the Inhabitants are more strict or remiss in their Observation of that Day Therefore it concerns all Persons and particularly Governours whether in Families or in Cities to be exceeding careful to this Purpose And I do lay this upon you as a burthen of Duty that you do not suffer the Lords Day to be profaned either by opening of Shops and following of Trades or by Sports and playing in Streets or Fields or by Tipling and Gaming in Publick Houses for Entertainment Follow the Pattern which that excellent Governour set you Nehem. 13.15 c. Be you as careful for the observation of Christs Day as others are for the observation of their own Days So may you with an humble confidence pray as that good Man did Nehem. 13.22 Remember me O my God concerning this and spare me according to the greatness of thy Mercy Secondly Do all that you can against the abounding and growing Immoralities of Men. His Majesty hath graciously been pleased to issue out his Royal Declaration for a Liberty of Conscience but not a word for Licentiousness of Life But what multitudes take that lawless Liberty which neither God nor Man allow It is strange to see what flagitious Wickednesses are redundant among us what Abominations of all sorts and sizes O London how art thóu fallen from what thou wast and some of us can well remember thee to have been After a dreadful Conflagration thy Houses are raised out of their Ashes more glorious but many of thine Inhabitants are grown more vitious Instead of a lovely beautiful Face of Religion what and how much of the Power of Ungodliness is visible and apparent among us Instead of reading the sacred Bible and other good Books Catechizing Children and Servants singing of Davids Psalms what horrid Oaths and Curses are there to be heard in our Streets as if without them Men could not speak What more than swinish Drunkenness What brutish and monstrous Whoredom All which are a reproach to the English Nation a dishonour to the Christian Name and a disparagement to the precious everlasting Gospel which hath for so long a time been preached and profest among us Mend those things which you can and mourn under what you cannot mend I beseech you labour to stem this Tide of Profaneness lest overflowing Sin be quickly followed with an overflowing Scourge If there be as there are those that will not live like Christians soberly righteously and godly let not them have liberty to live worse than Heathen Make them know that though there be a great Degeneracy yet still there is some fear of God in this place And I beseech you to do this in your Day which how short it may be none knows All your Hours are golden Ones and it is pitty that any of them should be lost Blessed be God that you have begun I read your Precept my Lord and rejoyced in it see that it be put in execution Let it not be brutum fulmen Do not only shake the Rod over the Backs of obstinate Offenders but lay it on and make them feel it unless they will grow better Make them know you are as much resolved for Justice as they are for Wickedness And do not only command and imploy others who may wink and be bribed and some of them be as deep in Guilt as any but do you and your Brethren act your selves Let inferiour Officers have your Zeal and Activity for their President and Encouragement And having begun well go on and hold out to the last Let nothing hinder your Progresses cool your Zeal nor blunt your Edge Let your Bow abide in Strength And Oh! that in the work and duty of your Office the Arms of your Hands may be made strong and kept from flagging by the everlasting Arms of the God of Iacob that so your Resolutions for God may not abate any thing of their Vigour nor any of your righteous and religious Purposes be broken off Be of good Courage and shew your selves Men. And if others dare to be bold and audacious and impudent in those things which are Evil let them see that you also dare to be Good and to do Justice and to walk with an upright Heart in a perfect way Regard not the Face nor Fury not the Flouts and Jears not the Envy nor Malice of those that bear ill will to you The great God will own you and stand by you and I do not doubt but His Majesty who under God hath given you the Power will be ready to encourage you in the due Managing and Improvement of it Look carefully to the Principle you act from that it be Right and to the End you level and aim at that it be Noble and to the Way you walk in for the attaining of that End and then hold on that Way and grow stronger and stronger more and more resolved and active though there be in it never so many roaring Lions and hissing Serpents And I counsel you to be much in Prayer certainly praying Magistrates are great Blessings when Debauchees are Plagues and Curses You will be often waiting upon his Majesty to receive Orders and Commands from him Go more
often to God and beg Wisdom and Strength from him and the raising of you up as high as you ought to be that is above the Fear of Man so that nothing may be able to divert you from nor hinder you in the Path of Truth Justice and Holiness Cowardize and Timorousness speak a low mean and base Spirit It is intolerable in a Souldier truly it is as bad if not worse in a Magistrate As the former will in a time of danger flie from his Enemy so the other will in times of Difficulty and Discouragement turn his back upon his Duty When one was hired by Tobiah and Sanballat to persuade Nehemiah's going into the Temple and shutting the Doors for fear of the Enemies Designs He returned to him this brave and truly Heroick Answer Nehem. 6.11 Should such a Man as I flee And who is there that being as I am would go into the Temple to save his Life Thus do you think with your selves every one of you Doth such and such a thing become me Should such a Man as I one that hath made such a Profession as I have done one that is advanced to such a Place as I am in do so or so And if a well informed Conscience saith no then do not do it if it saith yes this is your Duty this becomes your Profession and Place then apply to it whatever Flesh and Blood this and that sort of Men say to the contrary But it is high time now to come to the third and last Use. Vse 3. And in that I shall speak some things by way of support and comfort to those in this Congregation yea and all others to whom this Discourse shall come that bear good will to Sion and to that blessed Lord Jesus who Reigns there Though the Times into which we are cast are very cloudy and evil upon many accounts and though the Providences of God up and down in the World are abstruse and mysterious hard to be understood they are such Riddles as we do not know how to interpret them In many places the dark side of the Pillar is turned toward the Israel of God Yet let me say at this Day as the Holy Prophet said formerly in Psalm 149.2 Let Israel rejoyce in him that made him let the Children of Sion be joyful in their King. It cannot rationally be denied but that we have cause of Fear and Mourning when we look into our selves and take a view of our own Hearts and Ways and there discover Sins more than enough to provoke the fierce Wrath of God against us and to bring down his desolating Judgments upon us and also when we look abroad into the Nation and the World and consider the Designs of bad Men and the Divisions of good Men the Heats and Anâ—mosities among professed Christians and how great strangers they are to that Healing Spirit by which they all ought to be acted yet I am sure we have great cause of Comfort and Rejoycing when we look up to Christ And therefore that Command of the Apostle Phil. 4.4 Rejoyce in the Lord alway and again I say rejoyce He repeats the Command because of the excellency of the Duty and of how much concernment and advantage it is to the Christian For this Joy is his Strength while Dumpishness and Melancholy infeebles him unfits him for Service and exposeth him to Temptations Yea and of how much Concernment it likewise is unto Religion This Joy is its Honour It is a comely and beautiful thing and makes it shine even in the Eyes of By-Standers Therefore he saith Rejoyce always 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 at all Times in all Places and in all Conditions not only when the Sun of Prosperity shines upon your Tabernacles and divine Protection hedges your way and Mercy paves it not only when Goodness follows you and Favour compasseth you about and you have as much as Heart can wish but even when the Fig-Tree doth not Blossom neither shall Fruit be in the Vines the labour of the Olive shall fail and the Fields shall yield no Meat Hab. 3.17 18. At such a time and in such a case do you rejoyce but remember in what and in whom not in things below that is a mushrom Joy that is rejoycing in a thing of naught it is not worth your while Your Joy must not be Carnal but Spiritual your Faith must draw it up out of the Well of Salvation fetch it into you from Christ in whom there is cause enough You can never form to your selves right Thoughts of Christ never look upon him with a believing Eye but in him you will discover abundant cause of Rejoycing yea of Triumphing As you meet with that Expression 2 Cor. 2.14 Thanks be unto God which always causeth us to triumph in Christ. Yea the Apostle would have Believers so full of Joy in Christ as that he would have them quite empty of all disturbing and carking Cares In the same Phil. 4.6 Be careful for nothing but in every thing by Prayer and Supplication with Thanksgiving let your Requests be made known to God. And indeed He would have us live comfortable and chearful Lives in the World as well as holy and gracious Lives and if we do not the Fault is our own we are miserably wanting to our selves for he hath in his Revelations of himself and in his Covenant and Promises made ample and abundant Provision in order thereunto And therefore let us now in the close of all a little look to Jesus a little consider the Apostle and High Priest of our holy Profession this glorious King of Sion and Saints and take notice of some things in him which very well may raise feed and maintain our Joy. First We have great cause to rejoyce in this that Christ always lives Others do die it is appointed for all Men for mean Men the Shrubs shall be stubb'd up and great Men too the Cedars must fall Dives died as well as Lazarus Death doth not regard their Honours nor will it be brib'd with their Riches Great Men must die they are not too big for Death to wrestle a Fall with and so do good Men too yea the best of them those that have been most holy and useful Moses the Typical Mediator was commanded to go up to Mount Nebo and die there David was a Man after Gods own Heart and he served his Generation according to the Will of God so long as God would have him and in good measure in such a manner as God would have him He walked in Communion with God and he ruled in the Fear of God but when he had done his work he fell asleep The Sleep of Death came with a Commission from Heaven and closed his Eyes the Scepter dropt out of his Hand and he dropt into his Grave That is the House of all the Living Princes and Nobles Kings and Emperours must take that for their long home Psal. 82.6 7. I have said Ye are Gods