as an acceptable service to him as wee find it Cant. 5. 2 5 6. when Christ had knockt and cry'd unto his spouse to open and to let him in and shee neglected afterwards when shee arose and opened the dore shee could not find him Christ had withdrawn himselfe v. 6. yet those indeavours of the spouse were very pleasing unto Christ and full of comfort to her selfe I rose up saith she to open to my beloved and my hands dropped with myrrhe and my fingers with sweete smelling myrrhe upon the handles of the locke If God should thus withdraw himselfe from us and for a season dash our hopes it would be just for our delayes but your indeavours with such zeale and forwardnesse to let in Christ amongst us will be very sweet to Christ and sweet to you your hands drop myrrhe Isa 49. 4. and your fingers sweet smelling myrrhe upon the handles of the locke Though England be not saved yet shall you be glorious in the eyes of the Lord your judgement is with the Lord and your reward with your God Therefore I say this is well this should be done but leave not the maine undone the making of your peace with God Oh take some care and paines about that worke this day that left undone by you may possibly undoe us all thinke upon the Israelites condition God is resolv'd upon it hee will have the Locusts purg'd the land I meane so as they shall not hurt his people as he resolved here how Benjamine should smart for what he did now what was Israels case had they made their peace with God at first hee might have trusted them in doing of that work without delayes and out of love and zeale to God they had done that which afterwards from passion and desire of revenge in some respect they over did which peace when they neglected God was put upon it to let Israel be beaten that so the people being thus incensed might doe full execution upon Benjamine their brother Thus if you make your peace with God this day hee then may trust you in this worke so as you may prevaile at first without the spilling of much blood if not then least it should be done to halves God will be put upon some such device whereby to make you thorow in his worke and how sad and heavy that may prove who knows Moreover doe ye not consider how God deales with people many times according as their carriage is upon such dayes as these see what hee said to Israel once upon a like occasion Exodus 33. 5. put off thine ornaments sayes God that is humble your selves by fasting and prayer that I may know what to doe to thee he speakes it after the manner of man as if the Lord were at a stand in point of executing judgement till he saw their carriage in that duty and who knowes but God may be at such a stand with us and that his sentence shall goe forth against or for us as your carriage is this very day in turning from your evill wayes and making of your peace Now if it be demanded what is to be done the Israelites example is before us let that be your patterne 1. They humble themselves 2. They flee to Christ for pardon 3. They give up themselves in covenant with God The first thing therefore is humiliation and you must be active in your own abasements If my people humble themselves c. sayes God I will forgive their sinne and heale their Land Now be perswaded 2 Chron 7. 14. therefore and set all your strength on worke to lay your selves low before the Lord this day be not satisfied with out-sides with shadowes or with ceremonies of repentance Israel did not only fast but weepe and so must you Turne to mee saith God with fasting and with weeping and with mâ—urning and for this pâ—rpose call up to remembrance all your sins make them to appeare before you both in their number and their greatnesse and make swords and spears of them to wound your hearts call to mind your sins of youth of elder years of all sorts and take to your selvs such words in your confessions such thoughts and meditations as may cause your soules now in the presence of your God to melt and bleed I will not name particulars it would be too long I need not I will only name some few considerations in the generall which if the Lord shall throughly set home and cause to take impression though they are but two or three like Ionathan and his Armour-bearer midst an army of corruptions and sinnes yet many more things of the like importance towards this humbling of our selves will come in also and doe their part upon our soules Consider therefore sinne 1. In the Root 2. In the Fruit. 3. In the Cure 4. In the Object against whom it is committed 1. Consider it in the Root and so we find it is our nature we brought it with us when we came into the world Borne in sinne conceived in iniquity Ps 51. If any thing will breake our hearts the thought of this will doe it this originall corruption of our natures Ps 51. David when he set himselfe to humble his soule in that his penitentiall Psalme hee brings in many things whereby to doe it as that his sinne was against his God Against thee sayes hee have I sinned against his knowledge even that hidden wisdome which the Lord had given him but in a speciall manner doth hee mention his Originall corruption that he brings in with an Ecce Behold sayes he I was shapen in iniquity and in sinne did my mother conceive me And the Apostle Paul what bitter moane he makes for this hee suffered great afflictions in his time In stripes above measure in prisons frequent in deaths oft much more hee sayes but never doth hee so complaine 2 Cor 11. 23 24 25. as at the mention of Originall sinne Rom. 7. 24. having first discoursed how hee found a Law that when he would doe well evill was present with him and a law in his members warring against the Law of his mind and bringing him into captivity to the law of sinne See how he cryes out O wretched man that I am who shall deliver mee from the bodie of this death And there is reason for it why the thought of this should wound so deepe a three-fold mischief comes upon it that our natures are thus sinnefull and corrupt 1. It makes our persons odious and loathsome unto God that is it which makes a Toade a loathsome thing because poyson is the nature of a Toade poyson in a Dogge makes him an object of our pitty because 't is his disease so also sinne in Gods people is their disease therefore God pitties them the more because of sinne Psal 103 13. As a Father pittieth his children so the Lord pittieth them that feare him but where sinne is nature to a man which is the case of all
with the Prophet Isaiah what complaints Isa 6. 5. to 8. he makes of his unfitnesse for the office and imployment of a Prophet Woe is me saith he I am undone because I am a man of uncleane lips God doth but assure him that his sinnes were pardoned and how ready is he and forward to the worke v. 6. one of the Seraphims touched his lips with a coale from the Altar that is he was toucht by that Spirit of grace and life Rom. 8. 1. Heb. 1â— 1â— which is in Christ our Altar whereby as the Apostle sayes we are made free from the Law of sinne and death and sayes unto him thy iniquity is taken away and thy sinne purged then when God cryes whom shall I send and who will goe for us here am I sayes the Prophet send me See what a pardon does to fit us for the work of God not that now he began to be a Prophet or that now his sinnes were first pardoned but this fresh evidence of pardon gave to him a new strength and courage to the work Another instance we have of this in Saul and David Saul was a man of the goodliest person and for gifts of nature was the likeliest of all the men of Israel to make a King and such a King as should deliver Israel from oppression by his enemies he was higher than any of the people from the shoulders upward 1 Sam 10. 23. the testimony that Samuell gave of him was this see him whom the Lord hath chosen that there is none like him among all the people v. 24. He was a man of such hopes and Samuel himselfe had such expectations what God would doe for Israel by his hand as we see how he mourns for Saul when God had cast him off But this mans sinnes were never pardoned he never made his peace with God in all his life and how ill the work of God succeeded in his hands he does his work to halves God sends him to destroy Amalek against whom he had an ancient quarrell Saul spares Agag Exod. 17. 16. and the fattest of the cattell Israel in the time of his reigne was brought to such a bondage to the Philistines as that there was not found a Smith in Israel and 1 Sam. 12. 6. 19. the people hid themselves in caves in thickets and in rocks and high places it is true at the beginning of his reigne something he did but yet if Saul slew his thousands David his ten thousands and what was David a man but of a slight appearance in comparison but a man after Gods own heart one that had 1 Sam 13. 14. Ps 63 1. his sinnes pardoned and could say O God thou art my God and of Gods favour that it was better than life to his soule he slayes Goliah with a sling and a stone 1 Sam. 17. when Saul stands trembling in his tent and how did he prosper against the enemies of God throughout his reigne Well this David breakes his peace with God and then how feeble and how weake he growes that sinne in the matter of Vriah he confesses broke his bones Ps 51. 8. Againe at ver 12. see what he saies Restore to me the joy of thy Salvation and establish me with thy free Spirit then will I teach transgressours thy wayes and sinners shall be converted to thee David was a Prophet but he could not teach the wayes of God untill the joy of Gods Salvation was restor'd him The joy of the Lord is our strength Nehem. 8. 10. Now in handling this Point however that in my Text from whence it riseth be an instance onely of a warre that Israel under-tooke for God yet I shall not there confine my selfe but insist upon it in the generall as it is a truth in any case whatever nor shall I so desert my Text not onely because the truth is universall and holds paralell in all cases wherein we appeare for God but also because as the Nation of the Iewes was a type of the Churches of the Gospell so such like passages of providence and dealings with that people have in them much of the mind of God about the most spirituall affaires of the Churches of the New Testament as we see the Apostle Paul applies that great Deliverance of the people out of Aegypt at the red-Sea and in the Wildernesse to the Church of Corinth 1 Cor. 10. 1. Therefore I say I shall handle it as that which holds true in any worke we undertake for God it prospers bâ—st with those whose peace is made with him For the further clearing of it take first one demonstration that it is a truth then I shall give the Reasons whence it comes to passe That it is a truth appeares in this because a man not reconciled to God ere long growes weary of his worke The house upon the Sand our Saviour saies will fall and the stonie Mat. 7. 26 Mat. 13. 20. ground that is an heart wherein there is no through worke of grace will bring forth fruit but for a season Sooner or later at least in some degree of Apostasy a man unsound falls off from God The ways of the Lord are right and the Righteous walke in them but Hos 14. 9. the Transgressours shall fall therein which is an evidence his worke did never kindly prosper in his hands that is one cause of all Apostasyes when men will doe for God and what they doe comes off with losse and disadvantage For instance when a man will pray but looses of the tendernesse of his heart by prayer or heares the word and for a season heares with joy yet is the worse for hearing or ventures himselfe for God in standing for his cause and every time with lesse content and comfort in his venture in every duty driving still the Christians trade to losse what followes upon this At last he is discourag'd quite and saith in his heart that he shall not doe good upon the way turns Apostate and fals away from God Looke into mens Apostasyes you 'l find this still hath been one cause thereof Despaire is ever an ingredient in that sinne and that arises partly from such like experiments What is said of God in that he does for man in his conversion and salvation is true of us in that we doe for God Heb. 10. 38. If any man draw backe sayes Heb. 10. 38. God my soule shall have no pleasure in him Hee speakes it of such persons who come forward kindly in conversion unto such a pitch and then fall off Now saies the Apostle thus it is with Christ in this particular A man that is as it were betwixt his hands in fashioning and moulding to salvation so long as he comes kindly on in his conversion Christ takes pleasure in him and rejoyces over the worke of his owne hands upon his soule but if he prove a knotty peece that comes not forward in the worke resisting still the Holy
men unregenerate there is no Toad or Serpent so odious in the eye of man as such a man is in the eyes of God and this is every mans condition as he comes into the world as the Prophet saies no eye pitties us but wee are throwne out into the open field to the loathing of our Ezek. â—6 5 persons in the day that we are borne We are not objects of compassion but of detestation thinke upon it well and let it humble us is this a small thing in our eyes that we by nature are a lumpe of filthinesse and that the God of Heaven and Earth the righteous Iudge abhorrs our persons Secondly sinne being nature to us this also followes that it works exceeding powerfully in us so as we are the slaves of sinne it leades us captive what workes by nature workes with power therefore is it said that we are captivated to the Law of sinne that Rom. 7. 1. v. 23. is to the naturall working of it in us and that we find a Law that when we would doe well evill is present with us that is vve find an irresistible course of nature in us that way tending The courses of nature in Scripture are call'd a Law the naturall motions of the heavenly bodies are called Ordinances of Heaven Ier. 31. 36. The nature of every creature is the Law of it's creation therefore the new nature is expressed by that phrase The Law of God vvritten upon the heart Ier. 31. 33. and it is called the Law of the Spirit of life vvhich is in Christ Rom. 8. 2. So as this is our misery by nature we can as well forbeare to eate and and drinke or any duty that we owe to nature as forbeare to sinne shall not the thought of this abase and humble us What more unworthy of a man than slavery No slavery to that of sinne it sets us to the basest drudgery in the vvorld it keepes us alwayes at it and it gives us nothing for our paines What fruit had you in those things whereof yee are Rom. 6. 21 now ashamed It puts us to an endlesse toyle about a base imployment and the wages that it gives is shame and death Thirdly since it is our nature allbeit the misery be such it brings upon us farre beyond vvhat we are able to expresse yet we by nature are secure and feel no burthen nature is no burthen Wee may stand amaz'd to see how men indued with admirable gifts of reason able for to judge of matters in the world when they have heard how sinne vvill utterly destroy them soules and bodies how it vvill be bitternesse at last and sinke them into hell yet can goe on in vvickednes vvithout remorse or trouble nay can give up themselves to such notorious vvayes of sinne as they can see apparantly vvill ruine bodies and estates without an a king conscience I say vve may be well amaz'd at this but here is the reason sinne is our nature and vvhat ever nature gives us is no burthen to us of all mischiefes is not this one of the greatest to be most miserable and not to feele it this keepes a man in that his misery all the meanes of grace are fruitlesse by it to his soule and that which made our Saviour bleed upon the Crosse and brought him to his agony and sweat of blood cannot obtaine a teare from us but is despis'd and sleighted in our hearts and thus it 's vvith us all so farre as vvee are unregenerate and sinne prevailes O let the thought of this at least in this our day of Fast doe something towards the humbling of our selves before the Lord 2. Consider sinne in it's effects and Fruits it threw the Angels out of Heaven Angels of light they were Iob â—8 7. Iude v. 7. sinne entring once upon them made them heapes of everlasting darkenesse and confusion as for man it cast him out of Paradise stript him of his beauty bereav'd him of the right use of his reason and fills his heart Eccl 9. 3. with madnesse whilst he lives the wisdome of God is foolishnesse unto him it destroyes the tendernesse of 1 Cor. 2 7 14 Heb. 3. 12 Ro. 1. 31 Ioh. 3. 36. his heart and by degrees extinguisheth his naturall affection and eats out all good nature in him it layes him for ever naked to the wrath and curse of God and sinkes him downe to hell that which is worst of all it makes a man despise a pardon and to trample under foot the sonne of God how oft would I have gathered you saith Christ as an hen gathereth her chickens under her wings and ye would not Who would nourish such a viper in his bosome this do we but shall it not afflict our soules whilst we consider how 't is with us and what miseries we have brought upon our selves thereby if all this will not make our hearts relent let us a little turne our thoughts upon the temporall afflictions that it brings there we have an object of affinity with sense which is a great advantage unto teares Looke upon the miseries of Ireland the blood which there is spilt by cruell blood-thirsty and deceitfull men the dolefull miseries we feare in this our Land from warre me thinks I heare the little children the infants now unborne to call for teares this day from parents trying if possibly the Lord will be intreated by us and such woe and misery may be prevented but what ever is already or hereafter comes upon us in that kind should it be which God forbid the ruine of our Cities destruction of the people corruption of Religion losse of all that 's dearest to us and the overthrow of Kingdomes all is the fruit of sinne Looke upon it therefore in the miseries and desolations it has caus'd in all the world and let it so provoke your soules to mourne before the Lord this day 3. Let sinne also be considered in the cure The pretious blood of Christ that surely will make our hearts to yeeld the blood of Abel cry'd against the wicked Cain much more the blood of Christ against our sinnes such is the vilenesse of it as no other sacrifice but Christ could pacifie the wrath of God all the creatures in the world Angells and men could not make up the price of mans redemption Psal 49. 7 8. None of them can by any meanes redeeme Rom. 5. 9 10. Gal. 3. 13 his brother nor give unto God a ransome for him for the redemption of the soule is precious but was not the holy life of Christ enough No he must dye and it must be a cursed death nor will his body's death suffice his soule must dye Isa 53. 10. His soule Mat. 26 38. was made an offering for sinne and v 12. He powred out his soule to death nor had all this been sufficient had not the blood of Christ been the blood of God Act. 20. 28. God purchased his Church by his
1 Joh. 3. 16. own blood Well have our sinnes cost Christ his blood and shall they not cost us some teares think upon him how he bled upon the crosse and how he hung while all was finished and for shame let it doe something towards the breaking of our hearts It will wound the deeper if 4. In the last place we consider who it is we have Act. 17. 28 Mich. 7. 15 Ezech. 33. 11. Ezech. 18. 31. Jer. 13. 17. Luk. 15. 10. Luk. 19. 41. offended even this Christ who thus hath shed his blood upon the crosse for sinners that God in whom we live and move that makes our lives so sweet by many mercies that pardoneth iniquity and reteineth not his anger for ever because he delights in mercy that calls upon you with such tender bowells of affection why will ye dye and will ye not be made cleane when shall it once be that when you are converted unto life rejoyceth when you stand it out by unbeleefe weeps over you To you who are his people I may say that God who hath ingag'd himselfe to love you and to be your portion husband friend and father Well shall not all this love of his make us relent and mourne for sinne whereby we have abus'd him shall he weep for us and we not for our selves his Spirit grieveth when his people sinne what hearts have we that are so little moov'd for what we doe against him Thus have we dispatcht the first thing in the making of our peace this humbling of our selves I have stood the longer upon this because it is a principall and main part of the duty of this day and that indeed on which the rest will much depend You heard in opening of the Text there is no peace to an unbroken heart therfore we find it in the first place called Lev. 23 27 2 Chro. 7. 14. for by God in dayes of Fast and the first thing put in practice here by Israel his people The second is our fleeing unto Christ for pardon let Jer. 31. 32 33. Ps 89. 33 34. Ps 16. 5. Eph. 5. 32. Joh. 15. 15. Isa 9. 6. Act. 8. 36. this also be a part of this dayes worke Are we sensible in any measure of the misery of sinne and weight of Gods eternall wrath let us then stirre up our selves to take hold of his mercy which he freely offers let every one of us thus reason with himselfe as once the Eunuch said to Philip loe here is water what hinders me to be baptized so let us say see here is a Christ a Saviour a pardon offered why should not I beleeve a fountaine for sinne and for uncleannesse Zach. 13. 1 2 King 5. 13. what hinders me from stepping in had he commanded me some great thing to be done for life eternall should I not have done it how much rather when hee saith wash and be cleane believe and be saved and why should I deferre a work of such importance that may now be done more easily than ever should I live a thousand yeares since every day without repentance addes something to the hardnesse of my heart and why doe I neglect eternity and dote upon these transitory things below when Jesus Christ hath shed his blood for pardon why doe I refuse to sue it out thus let us plead and overcome our selves and runne to Christ for mercy and forgivenesse nor doe I speake this only unto such who are yet strangers to the life of God but even to all The Num. 28. 3. burnt-offering was the daily sacrifice morning and evening it was renew'd and it is the businesse of our morning and evening prayer to renew our peace from time to time with God repentance is the constant work of every believer especially it must be done upon a day of fast Thirdly give up your selves in Covenant with God that is the peace offering or thank offering he expects this day even your selves given up to him a living Rom. 12 1 Rom. 6. 13. sacrifice your members as instruments of righteousnesse to God to be possessed by his Spirit to be govern'd by his will give up your hearts into his hands and let him worke his will upon them let him bring what light he please into your understandings let him kindle what affections he desires in your hearts let godly sorrow have a perfect worke and let him bring into your soules the strongest cosolations of his Spirit doe not put them by however heretofore you have neglected this salvation yet now betake your selves to Christ and venture life and soule and all upon his mercy say if we perish we perish Jesus Christ shall be our stay his service our employment there we will set up our rest for ever we will be his servants he shall be our God Thus in these three things we see what must be done in making of our peace oh that the Lord would now perswade your hearts to doe it You especially that never tasted of the sweetnesse of a pardon God is about to doe great things for the Kingdom yea for the whole world it is a time of bounty with him put you in for mercy for your soules And why should any heart refuse what is the cause doe we doubt his willingnesse to pardon he is more ready to embrace than we to come Have you not consider'd what complaints he made about his casting off an unrepenting apostatizing people Hos 11. 8. How shall I give thee up O Ephraim sayes God how shall I make thee as Admah how shall I set thee as Zeboim that is as the Cities which the Lord destroy'd with Sodom and Gomorrha My heart is turn'd within me my repentings are kindled together he sayes as much of you that stand demurring and pretending yeelding to the secret desperate misgivings of an unbeleeving heart whilst you cry out O how shall God accept of us he cryes as fast how shall I cast off such a people such a soule doth he not intreat you to be reconcil'd what can you desire more 2 Cor. 5. 20. We are Ambassadours for Christ as though God did beseech you by us we pray you in Christs stead be ye reconciled to God Doe ye thinke ther 's no contentment in the wayes of God and you must live a sad uncomfortable life like those in Malachy that say It is in vaine to serve the Lord and what profit is it Is Mal. 3. 14. this the matter then what think you of all those glorious things the Scripture speakes of joy unspeakeable 1 Pet 1. 8. 1 Cor 2. 9 10. and full of glory that which neither eye hath seene nor eare heard nor hath entered into mans heart to conceive what God hath prepared for them that love him and reveales unto his people by his Spirit what thinke you of Christ did he dye to delude his people with Joh. 6. 55. a phansy no they know his flesh is meate indeed and his blood