Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A93339
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A sermon preached at the funeral oe [sic] the incomparably vertuous and truly pious gentlewoman Mrs. Dorothy Litster. By Edward Smith.
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Smith, Edward, 1620 or 21-1682.
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1660
(1660)
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Wing S4022; Thomason E1013_19; ESTC R208099
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15,181
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20
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show his power and Soveraignty over his Creature that he is Dominus vitae necisque might handle her in this manner our Divines hold that God may pro Dominio afflict an innocent person not that I go about to free her from sin she she herself would be the first if she knew it that would abhor me for it yet that she was tainted with any course inconsistent with the state of Grace I think malice it self cannot charge her 3. But I think this might be the maine reason God saw her the fittest person amongst us all to be made a monitor to us to use our health and wits to those ends for which they were given us she being one whose sufferings in this nature could not prejudice her future Happinesse as having before-hand secured that by an early working out her salvation with feare and trembling We are now drawing to the end of her life and this dicourse and we shall see that such was the goodnesse of God to her that she died as well as lived an excellent Christian renouncing all her own righteousnesse and expecting salvation meerly by Iesus Christ yea and that with much confidence and assurance as is cleare by the words she spake about 2 or 3. houres before her death viz. I acknowledge the great goodnesse of my Saviour Jesus Christ in saving my soul eternally Which said she gave up her soul to God And doubtlesse both in a spiritual and literall sense is presented a chaste Virgin to Christ in whose tender armes and ravishing imbraces we now leave her with this Congratulation if you l indulge me that liberty Enjoy thy Rest oh virgin-blessed soule And grant good God that we who survive may walk in her steps that so when Christ who is our life shall appear attended with her and thousands of other Saints and Angels we may together with her enter into those mansions of eternal Blessing which God hath prepared for those that love and fear him And in the mean time while we are in this vale of tears may so live that we may dye Rejoycing in hope of the Glory of God which is the Text I intend to speak to for our instruction upon this sad and solemne occasion of our meeting which I the rather make choise of because it suit so well with this Condition that sweet heavenly posture of soul I found her in delighting in nothing but prayer and praising God speaking and contemplating of the joyes above In which sweet and happy temper setting aside the violent fitts of her disease she lived and died ROM 5. latter part of the second verse And rejoyce in Hope of the Glory of God THese words are an amplification or a further enumeration of the priviledges Believers have by Jesus Christ Great and glorious advantages are held forth in this and the former verses We are justified being justified we have peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord by whom also we are brought into such favour and acceptance with God and this state of favour so secur'd to us by Christ that it begets in us not only hope of glory but rejoycing in hope of the Glory of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The word sayes Beza may well be explained in that in 2 Cor. 12. 10. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is maximam voluptatem ex iâ—s percipimus i. e. Non solum aequo animo sumus ab omni damnationis formidine liberi imo de peccatorum remissione per Christi sanguinem certiorati inde magna laetitia perfusi exultamus de haereditate coelesti quae nos manet Through Christ we have not only freedom from Hell but right to a glorious Inheritance the Hope whereof doth so hugely please and delight us that our Mouth is fill'd with laughter and our Tongue with singing We rejoyce in Hope of the glory of God We have in the words 1. An Object Glory 2. The qualification of it The Glory of God 3. A double act of the soul exercised about this Object Hope and Rejoycing Which several parts I shall handle in speaking to this general Point of Doctrine which takes in the whole Text viz. Doctrine That the future glory which Believers hope for is ground of their present rejoycing In speaking to this Point I shall first shew that Believers hope for Glory Then that they rejoyce in hope of it And as I speak to them shall gather several Doctrinal inferences by way of Instruction and Consolation 1. Concerning the hope of Believers these Questions are briefly to be answered Quest 1. What hope is Answ It is a certain expectation of those things that are promised us in Christ and yet exhibited Sometimes in Scripture Hope is put for the things hoped for but here I speak of the act or grace of Hope Quest 2. How Hope differs from Faith as respecting the promise of this Glory Answ Faith assents to the truth of the Promise Hope exspects the performance of it or as Luther excellently distinguishes Fides intuetur verbum rei Spes autem Rem verbi the Object is the same but the actings of the soul about the Object are different Faith looks upon the Truth of the Promise that God will give his Children eternal life Hope waits when this shall be done and the Hebrew word for Hope comes from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth expectavit a looking for a thing with a stâ—etching out of the spirit or mind therefore it is expressed in the Greek by a word that signifies a stretching or lifting up the head to look for a thing Rom. 8 19. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Faith is to Hope as a mother Hope back again to Faith as a pious and dutifull daughter which like the young Stork nourishes and supports its Dam when she grows weak feeble which pious affection the Greeks call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In this life-time we are as one observes beset with manifold Temptations The work of God seems oft-times contrary to his word and things apparently fall out otherwise than God hath promised That Faith is daunted and needs Hope to support it As for example Psal 50. 15. Call upon me in the day of trouble I 'le deliver thee According to this promise a Christian calling upon God and finding no deliverance begins to faint then comes in Hope and succours it with that counsaile Heb. 2. 3. Though deliverance tarry wait for it because it will surely come it will not tarry Quest 3. Vpon what is a Christians hope grounded Answ 1. It s grounded on the Grace of God 1 Pet. 1. 13. For so some read the words Be sober and trust perfectly on the Grace that 's brought to you by the Revelation of Jesus Christ For the Grace of God is free and powerfull and therefore affords ground for a Christians hope notwithstanding all discouragements or Temptations to distrust that may arise either from the sense of our own unworthinesse or weaknesse 2. On the Redemption that
A SERMON Preached at the FUNERAL OE THE Incomparably vertuous and truly pious GENTLEWOMAN M RS. DOROTHY LITSTER By EDWARD SMITH The Righteous shall be had in everlasting Remembrance The Righteous hath hope in his Death None considereth that they are taken away from the evil to come Blâ—ssed arâ— the dead that dye in the Lord. For they rest from their labours and their works follow them VIRTUS Post FUNERA vivit LONDON Printed by T. R. for Will. Palmer at the Palm-Tree in Fleet-street over against St. Dunstan's Church 1660. Madam WHat I should have deem'd presumption flattery or self-conceit to have offered on my own accord I reckon my duty to tender upon your request being fully assured that where the quick eye of your Judgment shall find a fault the tender hand of your goodnesse will blot it out and if you find many you have Charity enough to cover them all I never yet thought any thing I could do either worthy the acceptance of such a person or able to abide the test of such a judicious hearer or reader if you should mind to be critical and therefore should rather have run the hazard of being reputed rude and unmannerly in denying to transcribe the notes you lately heard than to be convict of ignorance and weaknesse under my owne hand But being fully assured that out of a dear love to the memory of that precious Gentlewoman your late dear sister who being dead yet speakes to you in what was spoken at her Funeral and it may be also out of a desire to incourag me in the work of my Ministry you have condescended to signify your good liking of what was then deliverd I have taken upon me the confidence to give you the Sermon as it is my Notes not as it was then curtail'd by the shortness of the time sharpness of the weather which I here humbly present to you and which I beseech you to look upon as a testimany of my thankful resentment of those many obliging favours I have received from you For to a service of this nature no consideration but that of Duty and Gratitude could ever have moved me What I spake concerning the sweet and precious Mrs Litster you have to a word almost as it was then delivered where yet I find my self in a straight those who knew her not will condemne me of flattery and lavishnesse in my expressions those who knew her will blame me as to low and scant wronging both her and the auditory to which I can only say God and my own conscience acquit me from the first my weakness and unfitnesse for a work so much above me will begg if not from others yet from you my pardon for the last Madam How much of the comfort of my life and of cheerfulnesse in the work of my Ministry I owe to Mr. Hartop and yourselfe I have a deeper sense than I have either power or opportunity at this time to expresse only to what I have said I add this God forbid I should sin against him in ceasing to pray and praise God for you and yours I humbly take leave and remaine Madam Your poore and unworthy but many ways obliged servant Edward Smith Hoby this 30. of December 1659. AS undue praises is a piece of flattery that suits only with base and slavish spirits who dare sacrifice their Consciences to satisfy some persons vain glorious humour endeavouring by the vermilion of their sale-oratory to paint them at their death like Saints who in their life-time were no better than Devils So on the other side to deny Commendations where true worth claimes them as due is a superstitious niceness savouring either of ignorance to descern it or of malice not to acknowledg it or of injustice to render it And therefore I think he was not mistaken to whom it seemed as reall apoynt of Religion to honour the vertues as to reliâ—ve then cessito is For I am sure as this is commanded by the Apostle James c. 1. v. 27. so the other is allowed by Solomon who spendeth almost the 31th chapter of the Proverbs in the praise of the vertuous women and v. 30. saith A woman that feareth the Lord she shall be praised I think such and none but such for according to Morall philosophy praise is a moral Consesequent of vertuous actions And as the wise man warrants our Commendation of the vertuous so the Knowledg that many here present had of the vertues of this deceased Gentlewoman will not only warrant but require it as a due satisfaction to their just expectation that as we are taught that we must die by this spectacle of mortality so how to live and die by setting before us though but in some darke and shaddowy representations the patteâ—n of her never dying vertues But I am given to understand that this is not regarded at any hands Yet I hope I may do my self that right as to pay some small tribute of that respect and honour which I do and shall owe to his precious Memory and you the service of quickning your graces by reminding you of hers which I doubt not wil be acceptable to some and I hope none here so squeamishly affected as to be offended at it And here I shall not mention her descent her being such a Knights Daughter this we owe to fortune if youâ— allow the woâ—d that often favous fooles or necessity such a discourse would be here but a troublesome impertinency which it may be if one were tied to speak of some great persons must be the principall argument for want of better But though many of our degenerate Nobility and Gentry think it honour and Dignity sufficient that they be known to be the Sons Daughters of such Parents such a Noble mans son such a Knights daughter and Glory worldly Nobility necessarily descending upon them need not endeavour to excel in any worthy or well-doing yet I am sure this deceased Gentlewoman was otherwise minded counting it a small thing that she was such a Great mans Daughter unless she was also Daughter to a Greater Father even to the Lord Almighty 1 Cor. 9. For where Vertue is wanting Great men as Sir W. Raleigh truly says are but like painted papers whom ignorant persons worship in stead of Christ our Lady or other Saints That therefore which will for ever endear her memory to us is her care to enoble her birth by Grace making honour which usually yea naturally descends to go up the Channel For it was not so much honour to her that Sir Mart. Litster was her Father as it was to him that he had such a Daughter Such a Daughter I say whose tender yeares were seasoned with Grace who as if she had foreseen how short her day was like a good Houswife got up in the morning of her life and finished her work before the night of Death could surprize her The time would fail me should I speak of her rare natural Endowments