Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A60346
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A funeral sermon. Delivered upon occasion of the death of that worthy gentleman John Marsh, Esq; who lived at Garston-Hall in Watford Parish in the county of Hartford; and died in the Lord, and was buried Septemb. 16, 1681. By Samuel Slater, late minister of the Gospel at Edmunds-Bury in Suffolk.
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Slater, Samuel, d. 1704.
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1682
(1682)
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Wing S3964; ESTC R222772
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32,362
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44
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good and comfort which he expects and waits for he goeth out full of hopes and returns home blank He looks for much but gets little he cannot see his Fathers face that is covered with a Cloud nor can he hear his Saviours voice for he hath withdrawn himself and is gone he cannot find those kindly meltings and warmings and quickenings and enlargings that he desires but he goeth with a pittifully cold hard straitned dead heart so that he begins to question Gods Love and his own Faith If he doth at any time meet with his gracious God and is sensible of his doing so If he can say God was with me of a truth I have this day sate under the shadow of my dearest Saviour with great delight and his Fruit hath been sweet to my taste Alas it is but short Rara hora brevis mora it comes but seldom and it lasts not long It is but a little visit and no sooner it may be hath the gracious Soul done blessing himself in his enjoyments but he sees cause to bemoan himself for his loss But however it be with some particular Saints upon whom the Sun of Righteousness stands and shines with constant beams yet this is most certain as to all the Saints that the most sweet and full enjoyment which they have of God while they are here the most pleasant and comfortable communion they have with him is but mediate Christ looks upon him through the Lattice and they see him but as in a glass darkly All their refreshings are conveyed by Pipes they do not lie at the Fountain-head When they are most present with the Lord they are even then absent from the Lord and upon this account it is no matter of wonder to see or hear that they are willing to exchange a dark vision for a clear one seeing in a glass for a seeing face to face to exchange interrupt pleasures for permanent and abiding ones and mediate fellowship for that which is immediate Love is an uniting affection and is set for the strictest and closest embraces of it's indeared object And so a Soul that truly loves God cannot but desire to be as near to him as it can be and ready to exchange the comforts of the way for the joys and pleasures of the Countrey 3. He that hath seen God's Salvation hath seen enough to deliver him from the dread and terrour of Death for this is evident and obvious that if Christ be any mans Salvation it is utterly impossible that Death should be his destruction A man that is in Christ is not out of the reach of Death but he is secured from the hurt of Death Take an unregenerate man one that is a stranger unto Christ and he cannot see any thing in Death that should commend it to him It hath a dreadful aspect and a worse issue he hath cause to fear both Death and its Followers He is stript at Death and lasht in Hell Death to him is a dark passage to outer and endless darkness But now as grim as Death looks a Believer can easily discover a great deal that will make it lovely even Death it self hath its beauty as thus It is a conquered Enemy Christ went into the Grave it 's strongest hold and there he baffled it broke its Chains and carried away its Gates he disarmed and unstung it so that Holy Paul did and every true Believer may play with it and triumph over it 1 Cor. 15. O Death where is thy sting O grave where is thy victory the sting of Death is sin and the strength of sin is the Law but thanks be to God who hath given us the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord. Though Death kill the Believer yet it doth not dammage him and though it separate between his Soul and Body yet not between him and God who shall separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord Shall Death saith Paul no saith he in that as well as in other things we are more than Conquerors through him that loved us Nay through Christ death is not only conquered but also reconciled to all the Saints it is now become your Friend and Servant and doth you a real kindness So that as Solomon tells us The day of your Death is better than the day of your Birth You came into the World crying but you may go out of it Triumphing and with the voice of melodie The Primitive Christians did not array themselves in Sables at the Funerals of their Friends but in White looking upon their Dying Day as the Day of their Nuptials It was most terrible to Nature to be torn in pieces by Wild Beasts to die at a Stake to breathe their last in Flames yet in such a Death did they glory counting Martyrdom their Crown What though Death carry you from all your present comforts it doth at the same time set you out of the reach of all troubles and as it carries you from comforts so it carries you to comforts yea to such comforts as are far better than those you part with It pulls down this decaying and tottering Tabernacle that a more beautiful and stately Fabrick may be erected It takes you out of your sorry Cottages and carries you to those Blissful Mansions which are in your Fathers House The Grave it self though it be darksome and lonely yet it is a good resting place ever since our Lord lay there He hath perfum'd it and made it both soft and safe That Bed of Dust is now better than a Bed of Down or Roses It is true in the Grave though Christ's Body did not yet ours must see Corruption they must putrifie and at last be Converted into Dust but that Dust is more precious than Gold Oar and shall accordingly be most curiously preserved not an Atome of it shall be lost And that Body which is sown in weakness shall be raised in power and cloathed with immortality and made like unto Christ's own most glorious Body 4. And Lastly That man who hath seen Gods Salvation hath also seen all things amiable and desireable in the other World whither Death will carry him He hath looked within the Vail and had a prospect of that better Countrey There hath he by the Eye of Faith seen incomparable beauties to enamour him an excellent Glory to adorn him unspeakable comforts to delight him the best of Friends to invite him and an innumerable Company of Angels and Saints to bid him welcome There shall be nothing at all that may offend nothing in him to offend God nothing without to offend him nothing of sin and nothing of sorrow no temptation no affliction no danger no loss no frown no fear no sickness no pain no want no angry withdrawings not one pricking Briar nor one vexing Thorn But there shall be all things that you can desire and are suitable to that glorious State unto which you shall be advanced all things that will contribute to your happiness and
A FUNERAL SERMON Delivered upon Occasion of the Death of that Worthy Gentleman John Marsh Esq Who lived at Garston-Hall in Watford Parish in the County of Hartford And Died in the Lord and was Buried Septemb. 16 1681. By Samuel Slater Late Minister of the Gospel at Edmunds-Bury in Suffolk Isa. 57. 2. He shall enter into peace they shall rest in their Beds each one walking in his uprightness LONDON Printed for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside near Mercers Chappel 1682. The Epistle Dedicatory To my Honoured Friends Madam Marsh and her Pious Son and Daughters AT the Motion and Desire of your since Deceased Father and Husband my Worthy Friend I did after the Solemnization of his Funeral deliver the following Discourse to you in Private And in order to Common Good I have here made it Publick The Father of Mercies accompany it with his Blessing upon you and all others into whose hands it shall come that thereby Love to and Faith in Christ may be promoted together with Holiness of Life and Comfort at Death That you may not be unmindful of that King of Terrors at his greatest distances nor terrified by him in his nearest approaches I was greatly pleased to see your gracious Deportment under that Afflictive Providence which deprived you of one so desireable and that you were duely affected with your Loss yet sweetly submissive to your God Though the Cup was bitter you did not faint nor murmur It was indeed a Mercy that you enjoyed him so long for he was full of Dayes and had a flourishing old Age. And it may be a Comfort that you shall see him again in Heaven where you shall Eternally rejoyce together in God That your Souls may prosper your Graces increase your Comforts abound your Daies may be filled with Mercy and Duty and your selves at last received into Glory is the Hearty Prayer of Your Friend and Servant in our dear Lord Jesus S. Slater Decemb. 22 1681. Errata corrigenda PAge 13 line 16 for primative read privative p. 14. l. 12. for places r praises l. 22. for Son r Sun p. 20. l. 10. for lusted r likened p. 22. l. 6. dele thus p. 23. l. 31. dele that l. 36. after am l r that l. p. 26. l. 20. for him r them p. 30. 1. 14. for Judges r Judge l. 37. for Lords and Gods r Lord and God p. 34. l. 34. for their r the. p. 35. l. 16. for in r is p. 36. l. 10. for not r now LUK. 2. 29 30. Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in peace according to thy word For mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation THESE are the words of Holy Simeon who is supposed to be the Son of Hillel and Chief of the great Synedrion and Father of the Learned Doctor Gamaliel at whose Feet the great Apostle of the Gentiles Paul was educated Concerning whom the Sacred Scripture testifies that he was a Just and Devout man i. e. Godly and Righteous Wary and Cautious A man that managed his Life and ordered his actions with that due circumspection as evidenced his sedulous care of approving himself to God This good man waited for the Consolation of Israel viz. the incarnation or coming of the Son of God the promised and longingly expected Messiah in whom all our comforts are laid up if we be Israelites indeed That Jesus alone can be our Consolation who is our Salvation It is only under his shadow we can sit with great delight because under that alone we can sit in safety Those men and Women that seek their comforts out of Christ will find themselves under miserable disappointment And by how much the higher they are raised in hopes and expectation by so much the lower they will be plunged into sorrow and vexation I do earnestly beseech you Christians to remember this that Christ is the Consolation of Israel and improve it for your Souls advantage Especially I speak this to you my Friends who are most nearly concerned in the late stroak of Providence and do now mourn under the smart thereof Learn whither you should repair for support and healing even to this Jesus who to this day yea for ever continues to be the Consolation of Israel and in whom you may find abundantly enough to sweeten this bitter Cup. This Simeon who thus waited was well rewarded for his Faith and Patience having this assurance given him that he should not see Death until he had seen the Lord's Christ. He should not see Death until Christ was born Christ should come upon Earth before Simeon should go to Heaven From whence you may learn this truth That waiting upon God is not in vain much time may be spent in it but it will not be time mis-spent God is not wont to send a waiting Soul mourning away Such an one may come to God with a tear in it's Eye but sooner or later it shall go from him with a smile upon it's Countenance Thou O mourning drooping Christian dost not see Christ now he covers himself with a Cloud well sink not under discouragement but let patience have it's perfect work and do thou charge thy Soul to wait on I am perswaded before thou seest Death thou shalt see Jesus Christ will manifest himself unto thee however as soon as Death hath closed thy bodily Eyes thou shalt both see him and thy self with him in Glory Well Simeon having waited long though not too long came into the Temple which did then exceed in Glory for there he met with Jesus And having met with him he toook him up in his arms and he was a most blessed arm-full doubtless the good old man was glad he had got him and his heart did leap within him He never before embraced so great and glorious an Object And I tell thee O Christian who hast got Christ in thy Heart and dost hug him in the arms of thy Faith thou hast as much reason to rejoyce as Simeon did when he had him in his arms for it is Christ in you the hope of Glory If he be formed in you you shall be saved by him Having taken Christ in his arms what did the good man do Oh! he blessed God and truly he had reason How could he be without his Song when he had got him who was his strength and Salvation We have cause to bless God for Creatures for our Health Strength Estates and Relations because we are less than the least of these but we have infinitely more cause to bless God for Christ because he is a gift of the dearest love and of the greatest excellency All Earthly comforts come from the hand of God but Christ comes from the Some part of that which Simeon spake upon this occasion you have in the words of the Text in which take notice of these two things 1. Simeons humble petition and request to God Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word 2. The ground