〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a hater of God and hated of him When thou hast such a stinking soul God must needs loath it as a most loathsome thing and so thou art not behind God neither Thy filthinesse makes God abhor thee and thou abhorrest him And this is thy case by hating thou art hated of God Nor is this all the enmity There is enmity also betwixt all that belongs to God and all that belongs to us Gods children and the wicked have ever an enmity betwixt them such an enmity as will never be reconcil'd It 's set down in Prov. 29.27 An unjust man is an abomination to the just and he that is upright in his way is an abomination to the wicked Just as it is between God and the seed of the serpent so it is between both the seeds A wicked man is an abomination to the just and an upright man is an abomination to the wicked There is a pale of abomination set between them so that this is the second woe We come now to the third 3. And the third woe is that which immediatly follows Gods leaving of us When we have polluted our selves with sin and God by reason thereof abhors us and turns from us then are there others ready presently to take up the room so soon as God departs the Devil steps in and becomes thy God He was thy God by Creation this by usurpation He was thy Father that would have given thee every good thing but now thou art fatherlesse or rather worse thou hast the Devil for thy Father and better is it to to be without one When the Devil is thy Father his works thou must doe When the Spirit of God departed from Saul presently the evil Spirit entred into him 1 Sam. 16.14 If the good Spirit be gone out the evil Spirit soon comes in he comes and takes possession and is therefore called The God of this world And while we are in that state we walk after the course of him that worketh in the children of disobedience We would account it a terrible thing for our selves or any of our children to be possessed of a Devil But what it is to be possessed of this Devil thou knowest not It 's not half so bad to have a Legion possesse thy body as to have but one to possesse thy soul. He becomes thy God and thou must doe his work he will tyrannize over thee What a fearful thing therefore is this that assoon as God departs from us and forsakes us and we him that the Devil should presently come in his room and take up the heart Mark that place in Eph. 2.2 Where in times past ye walked according to the course of the world according c. Assoon as God leaves a man what a fearful company assail him They all concur together the world the flesh and the Devil These take Gods place The world is like the tide when a man hath the tide with him he hath great advantage of him that rowes against the tide But here is the Devil too The world is as a swift current and besides this comes the Devil and fills the heart the Prince of the power of the aire While thou wert carried with the world thou went'st with the stream and hadst the tide with thee but now the Devil being come thou hast both wind and tide and how can he choose but run whom the Devil drives But this is not all There must be something in thine own disposition too that it may be compleatly filled Though there be wind and tide yet if the ship be a slug it will not make that haste that another light ship will Therefore here is the flesh too and the fulfilling the desires thereof which is a quick and nimble vessel and this makes up the matter So that if we consider the wind and tide and lightnesse of the ship it will appear how the room is filled And how woful must the state of that man be It is a fearful thing to be delivered up unto Satan but not so fearful as to be delivered up to ones own lusts But by the way observe this for a ground God never gives us up God never forsakes us till we first forsake him He is still before hand with us in doing us good but in point of hurt we our selves are first In the point of forsaking we are always before hand with God If it should be proposed to thee whether thou wilt forsake God or the Devil and thou dost forsake God and choosest the Devil thou deservest that he should take possession in thee When a man shall obstinately renew his grosse sins doth he not deserve to be given up Observe the case in our first Parents God told the woman one thing the Devil perswades her another she hearkens to the Devil and believes him rather then God and when we shall desire to serve the Devil rather then God the God that made us and that made heaven for us doe we not deserve to be given up to him For his servants we are whom we obey And thus we see how fearful a thing it is to be delivered up to our selves and to the Devil Psal. 81.11 First they forsake God God comes and offers himself unto them I will be thy God thy Father thou shalt want nothing yet notwithstanding Israel would not hear they would have none of me And then if thou wil◠have none of me I will have none of thee saith God Then see what follows v. 12. God commits the prisoner to himself I gave them up to their own hearts lusis c. And there 's no case so desperate as this when God shall say If thou wilt be thine own Maste◠be thine own Master Thus to be given up to a mans self is worse then to be given up unto Satan To be given up unto Satan may be for thy safety but there 's not a mountain of Gods wrath greater then to give a man up unto himself We would fain goe over the hedges but when God loves us he hedges up our ways Hos. 2.6 If God love us he will not leave us to our selves though we desire it But when God shall say goe thy wayes if thou wilt not be kept in be thy own Master this is a most fearful thing And this is the third woe First the soul is polluted with sin it forsakes God and God forsakes it then the world the flesh and the Devil these fill up the room and then what follows when these three rule within but all kinds of sin And so all kinds of punishment which is the next woe 4. And this woe brings in all the curses of Almighty God an Iliad of evils Sin calls for its wages viz. Death Death That 's the payment of all The wages of sin is death And this is the next thing which I shall open and explain Now in handling hereof I will first shew how death in general must of necessity follow sin that thou who hast forsaken the fountain of life art
jealousie shall smoke against that man c. We are but now entred into the point but it would make your hearts ake throb within you if you should hear the particulars of it All that I have done is to perswade you to make a right choise to take heed of Satans delusions Why will ye die Ezek. 33. Therefore cast away your sins and make you a new heart and a new spirit for why will you die Where the golden candlestick stands there Christ walks there he saith I am with you Where the word and Sacraments are there Christ is and when the woâ—d shakes thy heart take that time now choose life Why will you die Consider of the matter Moses put before the people life and death blessing and cursing We put life and death before you in a better manner He was a Minister of the letter we of the spirit Now choose life But if you will not hearken but will needs try conclusions with God therefore because you will choose your own confusions and will not hearken unto God because you will needs try conclusions with him will not obey him when he calls therefore he will turn his deaf ear unto you and when you call and cry he will not answer Prov. 1. I presse this the more to move you to make a right choise But now to turn to the other side as there is nothing but death the wages of sin and as I have shew'd you where death is so give me leave to direct you to the fountain of life There is life in our blessed Saviour if we have but an hand of faith to â—ouch him we shall draw vertue from him to raise us up from the death of sin to the liâ—e of righteousnesse 1 John 5.12 He that hath the Son hath life he that hath not the Son hath not life You have heard of a death that comes by the first Adam and sin and to that stock of original sin we had from him we have added a great heap of our own actual sins and so have treasured up unto our selves wrath against the day of wrath Now here is a great treasure of happiness on the other side in Christ have the Son and have life The question is now whether you will choose Christ and life or sin and death Consider now the Minister stands in Gods stead and beseeches you in his name he speaks not of himself but from Christ. When he draws near to thee with Christs broken body and his blood shed and thou receive Christ then as thy life and strength is preserved and encreased by these Elements so hast thou also life by Christ. If a man be kept from nourishment a while we know what death he must die If we receive not Christ we cannot have life we know that there is life to be had from Christ and he that shall by a true and lively faith receive Christ shall have life by him There is as it were a pair of Indentures drawn up between God and a mans soul there is blood shed and by it pardon of sin and life convey'd unto thee on Christs part Now if there be faith and repentance on thy part and thou accept of Christ as he is offered then thou mayst say I have the Son and as certainly as I have the bread in my hand I shall have life by him This I speak but by the way that the Sun might not set in a cloud that I might not end only in death but that I might shew that there is a way to recover out of that death to which we have all naturally praecipitated our selves ROM 6.23 The wages of sin is death THe last day I entred on the Declaration of the cursed effects and consequents of sin and in general shew'd that it is the wrath of God that where sin is there wrath must follow As the Apostle in the Epistle to the Galathians As many as are under the works of the Law are under the curse Now all that may be expected from a God highly offended is comprehended in Scripture by this term Death Wheresoever sin enters death must follow Rom. 5.2 Death passed over all men forasmuch as all had sinned If we are children of sin we must be children of wrath Eph. 1.3 We are then children of wrath even as others Now concerning death in general I shew'd you the last time that the state of an unconverted man is a dead and desperate estate He is a slave It would affright him if he did but know his own slavery and what it is that hangs over his head that there 's but a span betwixt him and death he could never breath any free aire he could never be at any rest he could never be free from fear Heb. 2.15 the Apostle saith that Christ came to deliver them that through fear of death were all their life time subject to bondage This bondage is a deadly bondage that when we have done all that we can doe what 's the payment of the service Death And the fear of this deadly bondage if we were once sensible if God did open our eyes and shew us as he did Belshazzar our doom written did we but see it it would make our joynts loose and our knees knock one against another Every day thou livest thou approachest nearer to this death to the accomplishment and consummation of it death without and death within death in this world and in the world to come Not onely death thus in gross and in general but in particular also Now to unfold the particulars of death and to shew you the ingredients of this bitter cup that we may be weary of our estates that we may be drawn out of this death and be made to fly to the Son that we may be free indeed Observe that Death is not here to be understood of a separation of the soul from the body only but a greater death then that the death of the soul and body We have mention made of a first resurrection Rev. 20.6 Blessed and happy is he that hath his part in the first resurrection for on such the second death hath no power What is the first resurrection It is a rising from sin And what is the second death It is everlasting damnation The first death is a death unto sin and the first resurrection is a rising from sin And so again for all things the judgments or troubles that appertain to this death all a man suffers before It is not as fools think the last blow that fells the tree but every blow helps forward 'T is not the last blow that kills the man but every blow that goes before makes way unto it Every trouble of mind every anguish every sicknesse all these are as so many strokes that shorten our life and hasten our end and are as it were so many deaths Therefore however it is said by the Apostle It is appointed for all men once to die yet we see the Apostle to
in the Accursednesse of it p. 384. in the shame of it p. 385. in the painfulnesse of it p. 386 Christ suffered not the pains of Hell proved p. 388. yet he suffered in his Soul immediately from God p. 389 Whether Christ takes away all the sins of the world p. 395. Christ's being offered for us no comfort unless he be offered to us p. 356 That Christ dyed sufficiently for all is an improper speech p. 356 To receive Christ what p. 399. Christ offered freely p. 397 402. He that hath a will to receive Christ hath a warrant to receive him p. 404 Christ the proper and immediate Object of justifying Faith p. 418. Christ loved and valued above all by true believers p. 427. Christ and the Cross go together in this life p. 426 Christ very compassionate p. * 368 Christ is our Peace p * 454 To be a Christian indeed is no easie matter p. 426 Civil Righteousness See Morality Men deceived by Comparing themselves with others p. 46. and with themselves p. 47 The Conditions of Faith and Obedience required hinder not the freedom of Gospel grace p. 389 416 Confession of sin necessary and why p. * 376 Carnal Confidence as to our spiritual estate dangerous the vain grounds of it discovered p. 43 c. Conscience one of the Tormenters in Hell p. 153 Peace of Conscience See Peace Conviction necessary to Conversion p. 39 80 Conviction a work of Gods Spirit p * 364 Two hindrances of Conversion p. 4 A limited time for it p. 9 10 Crucifying a Cursed Shameful Painful death p. 384. c. The manner of it p. 386. The Curse followes sin p. 98 The Curses attending an unregenerate man in this life p. 120 c. The Curses on his Soul p. 127 The Curses at his death p. 130 Custom in sin hardens the heart p. 28 D. DAy of grace limited p. 9 10 34 35. The folly and danger of neglecting it p. 16 17 Death the wages of sin p. 110. The comprehensivenesse of the word Death p. 119 Death terrible p. 112. The teriblenesse of Bodily Death set forth in three particulars p. 131 c. What the first and second Death is p. 141 The Death of Christ described p. 384 c. Death-bed-Repentance See Repentance Deferring Repentance dangerous p. 16 17. The reasons of Carnal mens Deferring Repentance p. 21 c. The vanity of them ibid. Desires after Christ may be stronger in Temporaries then in true Believers p. * 388 The Devil takes possession of those whom God leaves p. 106 107 The Reason of Christians Doubting p. * 438. E. WHat use to make of the Doctrine of Election and Reprobation p. 35 Encouragements for sinners to come to Christ p. 402 Examination of a mans self See Self-Examination F FAith why required to the receiving of Christ since he is a free gift p. 398. Faith consists not in a mans being perswaded that God is his God and that his sins are pardoned p. 402.413 It 's proper and immediate object is not that forgivnesse of sins but Christ p. 418. Faith must have a ground for it out of the word p. 414. What Faith justifies p. * 384. c. Faith jusstifies not as a vertue but in respect of its object p. 419. Faith justifies not as a Habit but as an act p. * 417. The Acts of Faith p. 423. By what sins the Acts of Faith are hindred p. 417. How those obstructions are removed ibid. Faith an instrument to receive Justification not to procure it p. * 424 * 434 Why Faith chosen for an instrument of Justification rather than any other grace p. * 437. A weak Faith justifies as much as a strong p. * 435 yet a strong Faith is to be laboured for and why p * 436. How Faith alone justifies p. * 436 Faith may be certainly known p. * 407. There may be Faith where there is no feeling p. 412 425 * 373 Faith strongest when sense least p. * 451 Encouragements to Faith p. 402 Carnal Fear its sinfulness and danger p. 140 141 Men apt to Flatter themselves as to their spiritual estate 41 Five false glasses that cause this self Flattery p. 43 c. Forgivnesse of sins not a distinct thing from Imputation of righteousness p. 399 c. Forgivness is properly of sins past only p. * 403. It is one continued act p. * 414. and therfore may be prayed for by a justified person ibid. Forgivnesse frees from guilt and punishment p. * 418 419 God forsakes none till they forsake him p. 108 True beleevers forsake all for Christ p. 427 428. Free grace in bringing sinners to Christ p. 398 No Freewill to good p. 404 G TO be given up to our selves a more fearfull thing then to be given up to satan p. 108 109.128 The Gospel not seasonable nor savory till the Law hath been preached p. 80. How the Gospel differs from the Law p. 86 The fulnesse and freedome of the Grace of the Gospel not hindred by the conditions of Faith and Obedience p. 398.416 Guilt of sin taken away in Justification p. * 420. H HArdnesse of heart a hindrance to Conversion p. 2 3 4 Hell for whom provided p. 139 Hell described p. 143 c. That Christ suffered not the pains of Hell proved p. 388. Christians rejoice in Hope p. * 458. The Humiliation of Christ see Christ I IMputation of Righteousnesse See Righteousnesse To be given up to Insensiblenesse a wofull thing p. 129 130 Joy in the sense of Gods love surpasseth all worldly Joy p. 430. It is attainable p. ibid. The reason why many beleevers are strangers to it p. 430 431. Some Joy may be in a Temporary p. * 393. How to try true Joy p. * 360. Means to get it p. * 462 463 Justification what it signifies p. * 396. How the Fathers used the word p. * 732 Justification one simple act of God p. * 400 How we are said to be Justified by Faith and how by Christs blood p. 420. * 422. In what sense we are Justified by Faith according to Paul and in what sense by works according to James p * 398. Impossible to be Justified but by imputed Righteousnesse p. * 402 * 410 411. In the instant of Justification no sins are remitted but those that are past p. * 411 412. A twofold Justification p. * 409 Why a justified person may and must pray for the remission of sins past p. * 413 414. Justification frees from the punishment and guilt too p. * 418 419 420. Justification confounded by the Papists with sanctification p. * 422. The difference between them p. * 423. * 429. No Justification before Faith p. * 440 How we are Justified by Faith alone p. * 439. Judgment in Scripture sometime taken for Righteousnesse inherent p. * 433 How men are deceived in Judging of their spiritual estate p. 43 K KNowledge one act of Faith p. 423 L THe use of the Law p. 79.354 * 366. It is necessary to be
of the bridegroom and as Nazianzen I thank God I have a little learning to sacrifice to Christ. such a Precedent is worth the printing Thirdly that had not this course been taken a worse might have befallen directly contrary to the will of the godly Bishop For some of these notes were in the hands of divers persons who were much taken with them and much desired and it was feared might have endeavoured a private printing of them more imperfectly then now you have them That faithfull Minister mentioned in the frontispiece whose Latine Epistle is prefixed having with much adoe got this Copy out of their hands thought as the rest who have attested it 't was much better to publish these as now you see them then to indanger the creeping out of a more surreptitious Copy The general subject of these Sermons is of Conversion and so mightily did the Lord blesse them not only to the Edificationâ— and Consolation of very many but also to the Conversion as we have good cause to judge of some I will say no more the Name of Doctor Usher by which he is more known to some and the Name of the most Reverend and Learned Father of our Church Doctor James Usher late Arch Bishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland by which he is more known to others not onely in these our Kingdomes but in forreign parts his great and good Name I say every where as oyntment poured forth prefixed before this Book though with some allay is enough to raise high Expectation of whatsoever cometh after these words and is argument enough to invite the Reader to look within and read them over and then he will find the least filing of this Master workmans Gold very precious Good Wine they say needs no bush and if this Wine was so sweet at first running I presume whosoever tasts it now though he have it but at the second or third hand will find it hath not altogether lost its strength nor will he repent his labour in reading what was taken after him if he be one that desires to profit his soul more then to please his Palat. That out of the ashes of this Phoenix the Lord would raise such successors as may by Pen Life and Doctrine do as this burning and shining Light hath done before them is the prayer but scarce the belief of him that prayeth for the peace and prosperity of Jerusalem and therein hopeth to have his share in the Concurrent prayers of every Godly Reader Stanley Gower Dorchester October the third 1659. Speedy Conversion the onely means to prevent imminent Destruction Heb. 4.7 Again he limiteth a certain day saying in David to day after so long a time as it is said to day if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts I Have enter'd on these words in the other Vniversity on a day of Publique Humiliation as being suitable to the occasion the chief matter of them being the Doctrine of the Conversion of a sinner Forasmuch as Gods judgments are abroad upon the earth and hang over our heads the only means to prevent and remove both temporal and eternal is our speedy conversion and return unto God Else he will whet his sword bend his bow and make it ready to our destruction Psal. 7.12 God did bear a deadly hatred against sin in the time of the Psalmist and so he doth still for his nature cannot be changed If we return not we are but dead men The eternal weight of Gods wrath will be our portion both here and in the world to come if we repent not In the words there are three observable Points 1. Continuance in sin brings certain death Or For sin Gods judgments are on particular Nations and persons 2. If particular Nations or persons turn away from their evil courses no hurt shall come near them God takes no delight in the death of a sinner nor that he should despair of his mercy but would have us turn out of the broad way which leads to destruction 3. It behooves every one speedily to set about the work of conversion Nor esteem this a vain word I bring you those things whereon your life depends Obeying it you are made for ever neglecting it you are undone for ever Unless you embrace this message God will bend his bow and make ready his arrows against you Know therefore 1. That continuance in sin brings certain death There will be no way of escaping but by repentance by coming in speedily unto God The words of this Text are taken from Psal. 95. Harden not your hearts as in the provocation and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness If when God calls us either to the doing of this or leaving that undone yet we are not moved but continue in our evil wayes What 's the reason of it It 's because we harden our hearts against him The Word of God which is the power of God to salvation and a two-edged sword to sever between the joynts and the marrow The strength of the Almighty encounters with our hard hearts and yet they remain like the stony and rocky ground whereon though the Word be plentifully sown yet it fastens no root there and though for a season it spring yet suddenly it fades and comes to nothing We may have a little motion by the Word yet there 's a rock in our souls a stone in our hearts and though we may sometimes seem to receive it with some affection and be made as it were Sermon-sick yet it holds but a while it betters us not why because it 's not received as an ingrafted word Therefore saith St. James Receive with meeknesse the ingrafted word Jam. 1.21 Let the word be ingrafted in thee one sprig of it is able to make thee grow up to everlasting life Be not content with the hearing of it but pray God it may be firmly rooted in your hearts this will cause a softning To day if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts against Almighty God If you do expect him also to come against you in indignation Hearken what he saith by his Prophet I will search Jerusalem with candles and punish the men that are setled on their lees that say in their heart the Lord will not do good neither will he do evil Zeph. 1.12 Mark I will search Jerusalem and punish those that are setled on their lees When a man is thus setled and resolved to go on in his sins to put the matter to the hazard come what will come there 's a kind of Atheism in the soul. For what do's he but in a manner reply when God tells him by his Minister that he is preparing the instruments of death against him do you think us such fools to believe it What does this but provoke God to swear that we shall never enter into his rest What 's the reason of this It 's because men are not shifted they have no change they
that is full of malice and envy towards his neighbour consider what a false glasse this is the man that wants love see how the good and bad deeds of his neighbour shew themselves to him when he looks on the good actions of his neighbour they appear but very small he is alwayes abridging and contracting his vertues and good things making them seem lesse then they are On the other side all things he sees amiss in him this want of love makes them far greater then they are Love breeds the contrary when a man loves himself his good things seem very great and his evil things very small those he abridges and contracts and hereupon is that instance brought of the Jewes Rom. 2.3 Thinkest thou O man that judgest them them that do such things that thou shalt escape c. When such a man looks upon his own sins they appear small to him but when on the infirmities of others they seem very great With one eye he looks on himself with another on his neighbour This man perchance is drunk as well as his neighbour covetous as well as him yet he concludes them great evils in his neighbour but extenuates them within himself self love causes this difference As long as this sways us that we love things because they are our own we shall never be able to guesse at our own condition If another man should look on you both would he not account thee partial If a man hath a son or a daughter though they be not so wise or beautiful as another mans yet he delights in them as much he loves them because they are his own Let a man be born in a barren Countrey he will praise it most not because there is none so good but because he loves it best it is his own Countrey Thou wilt never be a good Judge of thine own estate if thou viewest thy self in this false glasse for it will easily deceive a man True I know self-love is a deceitful glasse and looking therein a man will be favourable to himself and so deceive himself for it renders things in a bigger shape then they are But 2. I thank God my neighbor also and all others that know me speak well of me I have not only a good conceit of my self but every man about me can speak well of me cannot say black is mine eye I have a good report of all men But if this were enough and sufficient to assure thee of the goodnesse of thy estate it were well but it is not enough True it is a good report from men for fair and honest dealing is not to be despised yet it will do no good unlesse thou have it from God It was one of the happinesses of our Saviour that he was in favour with God and men it was with God too as well as men When both meet together it 's well indeed Demetrius in John 3.12 we read had a good report of all men and of the truth it self To have a good report from men and also from the truth is an happy thing but having it not from the truth Woe to us when all men speak well of us What folly is it to rest upon a good report from men when I have it not from the truth The like madnesse it is as for a man to trust in the absolution of his fellow-prisoner when the Law of the Land condemnes him Shall a sick man be so mad as to say he is well because others say so As if we should seek our selves out of our selves and not within our selves No Let every man prove his own work and then shal he have rejoycing in himself and not in another Rom. 2. ult He is a Jew which is one inwardly whose praise is not of men but of God Not as if this did dis common or turn out the praise of men but it is comparatively spoken and it 's meant whose praise is not so much of men as of God So that this is the second false glasse when a man concludes himself to be in a good estate because men praise him thinks it well with him because others think so and say so He hath a good opinion of himself but that 's not all other men give him a good report too And this follows the former a man needs never fear flattery from others that doth not flatter himself But these are not my onely grounds that I have so good opinion of my self and that others speak well of mâ— but when I compare my self with my self I find wherein I may rejoyce So that this is the 3. 3. Third glasse when a man compares himself with others and himself 1. When he compares himself with others I thank God saith he I am better then twenty of my neighbours I know this man follows such courses and another lives in such a foul sin Sure saith he I am not such a sinner as these therefore I am happy and I doubt not of room in Heaven This is the cause that the Pharisee went home unjustified because looking on other men he justified himself God I thank thee I am not as other men no extortioner c. This fellow is so far from begging any thing of God that he fills up his time with thanksgiving he thinks he wants nothing and that is his error he looks on other men and compares himself with them and thence concludes he is well enough because he is not so bad as this or that man This is the common deceit when men take this for a rule that because they are not so bad as the off-scouring of the world but are better then the ordinary sort of men therefore they suppose they are very well or as well as they need to be As if a sick man should say I am not so sick as such a man who is at the point of death therefore I am very well I would desire such men that as they look on those that are under them so they would a little cast up their eyes on those that are above them When you look on the Publican this and that man and blesse your selves because you are not so bad as these who perchance are before you in points of morality If you stand on comparisons look on those that are above you that go beyond you in grace and zeal and look not so much on the sins of others as your own Another mans sins may condemn him they cannot save thee When a Thief and a Murtherer are both arraign'd at the Bar for their lives will the Thief say to the Murtherer thy sin is greater thy fault is of an higher nature therefore I shall be saved because mine is not so hainous when they both are punishable with death The fault of another will not make thy case the better It 's no point of Justification thus to deceive thy self and to conclude because another is worse then thee thy estate is blessed So we see the degrees of
some shew of Religion in it He whipt both out not only those that had residence there but those that passed through he would suffer none but those that could justifie what they did by the Law Now as God would not have sin lodge make its abode in the soul so he would not have it made a thorow fare for sin he would not have vain thoughts come up and down in the hearts Now By the Law comes the knowledge of these secret sins Reason is a glasse much to be esteemed for what it can shew but it is not a perfect glasse sometimes it shewes a sin but mâ—ny times diminishes it that we cannot see it in full proportion The Apostle makes this use of the Law that by it sin became exceeding sinful Thou mayst see sin to be sin by natural reason but to see it exceeding sinful this morality comes short of thou must have this from the Law of God 5. There is another false glasse when the Devil transforms himself into an Angel of light when he preacheth Goâ—pel to a man Beware of â—he doctrine when the deceiver preacheth This may be his doctrine He that believeth and is Baptized shall be saved From this by Satans cunning delusion the natural man thus concludes A meer heathen shall be shut out of Heaven gates but I believe in the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost therefore I am in a good condition Why then should I trouble my self any further there is no man can accuse me and my own good works will testifie unto me that I do enough Strâ—ctnesse in Religion is troublenesse and it is an unreasonable thing to do more but this is but a meer delusion of Satan for there is nothing more quiet and satisfies a man then Religion there 's nothing in the world more reasonable then the service of God First then know thy disease and then apply those sweet balms It is no easie matter for a man to believe we block out the strait wayes of God if we think it an easie matter to believe of our selves It must be done by the mighty power of God It 's as great a work of God as the Creation of the world to make a man believe It 's the mighty power of God to salvation Such a one must not receive Christ as a Saviour but as a Lord too He must renounce all to have him must take him on his own terms He must deny the world and all looking before hand what it will cost him Now for a man to take Christ as his Lord denying himself the world and all to resolve to pluck out his right eye cut off his right hand rather then to part with him and account nothing so dear to him as Christ is no small matter Thou canst not be Christs Spouse unlesse thou forsake all for him Thou must account all things as dung and drosse in comparison of him and is not this a difficult thing is this an easie task Easily spoken indeed not as easily done it must be here as in the case of mariage a man must forsake all others yea the whole world else Christ will not own him Observe the speech of the Apostle Eph. 1.19 What is the exceeding greatness of his power to us ward that believe c. Mark is to believe so easie a matter think you why unlesse the mighty power of God be engaged for it with that strength as it was engaged in raising Christ from the dead it cannot be When thou art to believe and be united unto Christ the agreement is not that thou shalt take him as thy wife and thou shalt be his husband No he must be thy husband and thou must obey him Now for a man to be brought out of his natural condition and to take Christ on any termes so he may be saved by him in the end is not so easie Canst thou think there is no more required but onely the outward Baptism or that there is no more in Baptism but the outward washing of the flesh No He 's not a Jew that is one outwardly neither is that circumcision which is in the flesh but he 's a Jew that is so inwardly and circumcision is that of the heart Thou then entrest into Gods livery Mark this for by it I strive onely to bring thee back to thy self Thou entrest into covenant with him thou bindest thy self to forsake the world the flesh and the Devil and we should make this use of Baptism as now to put it in practice When we promised there were two things in the Indenture one that God will give Christ to us the other that we must forsake all the sinful lusts of the flesh this is that makes Baptism to be Baptism indeed to us The other thing required is that we forsake all Rom. 6.2 It is not confined to the very act but it hath a perpetual effect all the dayes of thy life I add it never hath its full effect till the day of our death till the abolition of the whole body of sin That which we seal is not compleat till then till we have final grace The water of Baptism quenches the fire of Purgatory for it is not accomplished till final grace is received We are now under the Physicians hands then shall we be cured Baptism is not done onely at the Font which is a thing deceives many for it runs through our whole life nor hath it consummation till our dying day till we receive final grace the force and efficacy of Baptism is for the washing away of sin to morrow as well as the day past the death of sin is not till the death of the body and therefore it s said we must be buried with him by Baptism into his death Now after death we receive final grace till when this washing and the vertue thereof hath not its consummation Let no man therefore deceive you with vain words take heed of looking on your selves in these false glasses think it not an easy thing to get Heaven the way is strait and the passage narrow There must be a striving to enter there must be an ascending into Heaven a motion contrary to nature And therefore it 's folly to think we shall drop into Heaven there must be a going upward if ever we will come thither EPH. 2.1 2 3. And you hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins where in times past you walked according to the course of this world according to the Prince that ruleth in the Aire the Spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience Amongst whom also c. THe last time I declared unto you the duty that was necessarily required of us if we look to be saved that we must not onely take the matter speedily into consideration and not be deluded by our own hearts and the wiles of Satan but that we must not do it superficially or perfunctorily but must bring our selves to the true touchstone and not look
liable to everlasting death And for this see some places of Scripture Rom. 6.2 3. The wages of sin is death Consider then first what this wages is Wages is a thing which must be paid If you have an hireling and your hireling receive not his wages you are sure to hear of it and God will hear of it too James 5.4 He which keeps back the wages of the labourer or of the hireling their cry will come into the eares of the Lord of Sabbath As long as hirelings wages are unpaid Gods eares are filled with their cries Pay me my wages pay me my wages So sin cries and it is a dead voice Pay me my wages pay me my wages the wages of sin is death And sin never leaves crying never lets God alone never gives him rest till this wages be paid When Cain had slain Abel he thought he should never have heard any more on 't but sin hath a voice The voice of thy brothers blood cries unto me from the ground So Gen. 18.20 the Lord saith concerning Sodom Because the cry of Sodom is great and their sin very grievous therefore I will goe down and see whether they have done according to the cry that is come up into mine eares As if the Lord had said It 's a loud cry I can have no rest for it therefore I will goe down and see c. If a man had his eares open he would continually hear sin crying unto God Pay me my wages pay me my â—ages kill this sinful soul And though we do not hear it yet so it is The dead and doleful sound thereof fillâ— Heaven it makes God say I will goe down and see c. Till sin receive its wages God hath no rest Again see Rom. 7.11 Sin taking occasion by the commandement deceived me and by it slew me I thought sin not to have been so great a matter as it is We think on a matter of profit or pleasure and thereupon are enticed to sin but here 's the mischieâ— sin dâ—ceives us Iâ— is a weight it presses down it deceâ—â—es men it 's more then they deemed it to be The committing of sin is as it were running thy self upon the point of Gods blade Sin at first may flâ—â—ter thee but it will deceive thee It 's like Joabs kisse to Amasa Amasa was not aware of the spear that was behind till he smote it into his ribs that he died When sin entices thâ—e on by profits and pleasures thou art not aware that it will slay thee But thou shalt find it will be bitternesse in the end A sinner that acts a tragedy in sin shall have a bloody Catastrophe Rom. 6. What fruit had you then in those things whereof you are now ashamed Blood and death is the end of the Tragedy The end of those things is death The sting of death is sin 1 Cor. 15. What is sin It 's the sting of death Death would not be death unlesse sin were in it Sin is more deadly then death it self It 's sin enableth death to sting enableth it to hurt and wound us So that we may look on sin as the Barbarians looked on the viper on Pauls hand they expected continually when he would have swollen and burst Sin bites like a snake which is called a fiery serpent not that the serpent is fiery but because it puts a man into such a flaming heat by their poyson And such is the sting of sin which carries poyson in it that had we but eyes to see our uglinesse by it and how it inflames us we should continually every day look when we should burst with it The Apostle James 1.15 useth another metaphor Sin when it is accomplished bringeth forth death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith the Original sin goeth as it were with child with death The word is proper to women in labour who are in torment till they are delivered Now as if sin were this woman he useth it in the faeminine gender 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So is it with sin sin is in pain cries out hath no rest till it be delivered of this dead birth till it have brought forth death That is sin growes great with child with death and then it not only deserves death but it produceth and actually brings forth This is generally so Now consider with your selves death is a fearful thing When we come to talk of death how doth it amaze us The Priests of Nob are brought before Saul for relieving David and he saith Thou shalt surely die Ahimelech And this is your case you shall surely die death is terrible even to a good man As appeares in Hezekiah who though he were a good man yet with how sad a heart doth he entertain the message of death the newes of it affrighted him it went to his heart it made him turn to the wall and weep How cometh it to pass that we are so careless of death that we are so full of infidelity that when the word of God saith Thou shalt die Ahimelech we are not at all moved by it What can we think these are fables Do we think God is not in earnest with us And by this means we fall into the temptation of Eve a questioning whether Gods threats are true or not That which was the deceit of our first Parents is ours Satan disputes not whether sin be lawful or not whether eating the fruit were unlawful whether drunkennesse c. be lawful he 'l not deny but it is unlawful But when God saith If thou dost eat c. thou shalt die he denies it and saith ye shall not die He would hide our eyes from the punishment of sin Thus we lost our selves at the first and the floods of sin came on in this manner when we believed not God when he said If thou dost eat thou shalt surely die And shall we renew that capital sin of our Parents and think if we do sin we shall not die If any thing in the world will move God to shew us no mercy it 's this when we slight his judgments or not believe them This adds to the heigth of all our sins that when God saith if thou dost live in sin thou shalt die and yet we will not believe him that when he shall come and threaten us as he doth Deut. 29. when he shall curse and we shall bless our selves in our hearts and say we shall have peace though we goe on c. The Lord will not spare that man but the anger of the Lord and his jealousie shall smoke against him It is no small sin when we will not believe God This is as being thirsty before we now adde drunkennesse to our thirst That is when God shall thus pronounce curses he shall yet blesse himself and say I hope I shall doe well enough for all that There are two words to that bargain Then see what follows The anger of the Lord and his
rather and they have expressed it to be torn in pieces by wild horses so they might be freed from the horrours in their consciences When the conscience recoyles and beats back upon it self as a musket o're charged it turns a man over and over And this is a terrible thing This sometimes God gives men in this world And mark where the word is most powerfully preacht there is this froth most rais'd which is the cause many men desire not to come where the word is taught because it galls their consciences and desire the Masse rather because they say the Masse bites not They desire a dead Minister that would not rub up their consciences they would not be tormented before the time They would so but it shall not be at their choise God will make them feel here the fire of hell which they must endure for ever hereafter This is the sensible blow when God le ts loose the conscience of a wicked man and he needs no other fire no other worm to torment nothing else to plague him he hath a weapon within him his own conscience which if God lets loose it will be hell enough 2. But now besides this blow which is not so frequent there is another more common and more insensible blow God saith he is a dead man and a slave to sin and Satan and he thinks himself the freest man in the world God curses and strikes and he feels it not This is an insensible blow and like unto a dead palsie Thou art dead and yet walkest about and art merry though every one that hath his eyes open seeth death in thy face O this deadnesse this senselesnesse of heart is the heaviest thing as can befal a sinner in this life It is the cause the Apostle speaks of in the Rom. when God delivers up a man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to a reprobate mind And so in the Epistle to the Ephes. 4.19 declares such a man to be past feeling Who being past feeling have given themselves over to lasciviousnesse to work uncleannesse even with greedinesse Although every sin as I told you before is as it were the running a mans self on the point of Gods sword yet these men being past feeling run on on on to câ—mmit sin with greedinesse till they come to the very pit of destruction they run a main to their confusion When this insensibleness is come upon them it is not Gods goodnesse that can work upon them Who art thou that despisest the riches of Gods goodnesse not knowing that the goodnesse of God leadeth unto repentance It is not Gods judgments that will move them they leave no impression as Rev. 9.20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands that they should not worship Devils c. brass nor stone and wood which neither can see nor hear nor walk They repented not though they were spared but worshipped Gods which cannot see not hear noâ— speak so brutish were they to be led away by stocks and stones I think the Papist Gods cannot doe it unlesse it be by couzenage yet such is their senselesnesse that though Gods fury be revealed from heaven against Papists such as worship false Gods yet are they so brutish that they will worship things which can neither hear nor see nor walk They that made them are like unto them and so are all they that worship them as brutish as the stocks themselves They have no heart to God but will follow after their Puppets and their Idols and such are they also that follow after their drunkennesse covetousnesse c. Who live in lasciviousness lusts excess of riot 1 Pet. 4.2 that run into all kind of excess and marvel that you do not so too They marvel that ye that fear God can live as ye do and speak evil of you that be good call such hypocrites dissemblers and I know not what nick-names This I say is a most woful condition it 's that dead blow When men are not sensible of mercies of judgments but run into all excesse of sin with greedinesse and this is a death begun in this life even while they are above ground But then comes another death God doth not intend sin shall grow to an infinite weight His Spirit shall not always strive with man but at length God comes and crops him off and now cometh the consummation of the death begun in this life Now cometh an accursed death 3. After thou hast lived an accursed life then cometh an accomplishment of curses First a cursed separation between body and soul and then of both from God for ever and that is the last payment This is that great death which the Apostle speaks of Who hath delivered us from that great death So terrible is that death This death is but the severing of the body from the soul This is but the Lords Harbinger the Lords Serjeant to lay his Mace on thee to bring thee out of this world into a place of everlasting misery from whence thou shalt never come till all be satisfied and that is never First Consider the nature of this death which though every man knoweth yet few lay to heart This death what doth it First It takes from thee all the things which thou spentst thy whole life in getting It robs thee of all the things thou ever hadst Thou hast taken paines to heap and treasure up goods for many years presently when this blow is given all is gone For honour and preferment it takes thee from that pleasure in idle company keeping it barrs thee of that Mark this is the first thing that death doth it takes not onely away a part of that thou hast but all it leaves thee quite naked as naked as when thou camest into the world Thou thoughtst it was thy happinesse to get this and that Death now begins to unbewitch thee thou wast bewitcht before when thou didst run after all worldly things thou wast deceived before and now it undeceives thee it makes thee see what a notorious fool thou wast it unbefools thee Thou hadst many plots and many projects but when thy breath is gone then all thy thoughts perish all thy plottings and projectings goe away with thy breath A strange thing to see a man with Job the richest man in the East and yet in the evening we say as poor as Job He hath nothing left him now Now though death takes not all things from thee yet it takes thee from them all all thy goods all thy books all thy wealth all thy friends thou mayst now bid farewel now adieu for ever never to see them again And that is the first thing 2. Now death rests not there but cometh to seize upon thy body It hath bereaved thee of all that thou possessedst of all thy outward things that 's taken away Now it comes to touch his person and see what then It toucheth him it rents his soul
forgettest thy Maker You have seen the main the ring â—â—aders which are these fearful faithlesse dastardly unbelieving men Now see what the filthy rabble is that followeth after and they are Abominable Murtherers c. Abominable that is unnatural such as pollute themselves with things not fit to be named but to be abhorred whether it be by themselves or with others They are the abominable here meant such as Sodome and Gomorrah who were set forth to such as an example suffering the vengeance of eternal fire Jude v. 7. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 such are abominable being given up to unnatural lust Let them carry it never so secretly yet are they herâ— ranked amongst the rest and shall have their portion in the burning lake After these come Sorcerers Idolaters Lyars Though these may be spoken fairly of by men yet cannot that shelter them from the wrath of God they shall likewise have their part in this lake when they come to a reckoning If there be I say a generation of people that worship these say what you will of them when they come to receive their wages they shall receive their portion in that burning lake with hypocrites Those that make so fair a shew before men and yet nourish hypocrisie in their hearts these men though in regard of the outward man they so behave themselves that none can say to them black is their eye though they cannot be charged with those notorious things before mentioned yet if there be nothing but hypocrisie in their hearts let it be spun with never so fair a web never so fine a thred yet they shall have their portion in the lake they shall have their part their portion c. Then it seems these of this black guard have a peculiar interest unto this place And as it is said of Judas Acts 1.25 that he was gone 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to his proper place So long as a man that is an enemy to Christ and yeilds him not obedience is out of hell so long is he out of his place Hell is the place assigned to him and prepared for him he hath a share there and his part and portion he must have till he come thither he is but a wanderer The Evangelist tells us that the Scribes and Pharisees went about to gain Profelytes and when they had all done they made them seven times more the children of hell then themselves filios Gehennae So that a Father hath not more right in his son then Hell hath in them He is a vessel of wrath fill'd top full of iniquity and a child of the Devils So that as we say the gallows will claim its right so hell will claim its due But mistake me not all this that I speak concerning Hell is not to terrifie and affright men but by forewarning them to keep them thence For after I have shewn you the danger I shall shew you a way to escape it and how the Lord Jesus was given to us to deliver us from this danger But if you will not hear but will try conclusions with God then you must to your proper place to the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone A Lake 't is a River a flaming River as Tophet is described to be a lake burning with fire and brimstone a Metaphor taken from the judgment of God on Sodome and Gomorrah as in that place of St. Jude before mentioned as also in 2 Pet. 2.6 where 't is said God turned the Cities of Sodom into ashes making them an example to all them that should after live ungodly Mark the judgment of God upon these abominable men the place where they dwelt is destroyed with fire and the situation is turn'd into a lake full of filthy bituminous stuff called Lâ—cus Asphaltites which was made by their burnings And this is made an instance of the vengeance of God and an Embleme of eternal fire therefore said he you shall have your portion with Sodome Nay shall I speak a greater word with Christ and tell you that though they were so abominable that the Lake was denominated from them yet it shall be easier for Sodome and Gomorrah then for you if you repent not while you may but goe on to despise Gods grace But can there be a greater sin then the sin of Sodome I answer yes For make the worst of the sin of Sodome it is but a sin against nature But thy impenitency is a sin against grace and against the Gospel and therefore deserves a hotter hell and an higher measure of judgment in this burning pit But what is this second death 2. Sure it hath reference to some first death or other going before A man would as it is commonly thought think that this second death is opposed to that first death which is the harbinger to the second and separates the soul from the body but it 's far otherwise That alas is but a petty thing and deserves not to be put in the number of deaths The second death in the Text hath relation to the first Resurrection Rev. 20 6. Blessed and holy is he that hath his portion in the first resurrection on such the second death shall have no power The first death is that from whence we are acquitted by the first resurrection and that is the death for that is a kind of death as S. Paul speaking of a wicked and voluptuous widow saith she is dead while she liveth and the time shall come and now is when they that are dead shall hear the voice of the Son of man and they that hear shall live And again Let the dead bury their dead So that the first resurrection is when a man hearing the voice of the Minister is rouzed up from the sleep of sin and carnal security and the first death is the opposite thereunto So that the death of the body is no death at all for if it were then this were the third death For there would be a death of sin a death of the body and a death of body and soul This death of the body is but a flea-biting in comparison of the other two This second death is the separation of the body and soul from God and this death is the wages of sin and God must not will not lie in arrear to sin but will pay its wages to the full All the afflictions a wicked man meeteth withal here are but as Gods press money and part of payment of that greater summe But when he dies the whole summe comes then to be paid Before he did but sip of the cup of Gods wrath but he must then drink up the dregs of it down to the bottome and this is the second death It 's called death Now death is a destruction of the parts compounded a man being compounded of body and soul both are by this death eternally destroyed That death like Sampson pulling down the pillars whereby it was sustained pulled down the house draws down the tabernacles
preached before the Gospel p. 80 * 366 Men are under the Law till they come to Christ p. 84 how fearfull a thing it is to be under the Law p. 84 85. the difference between the Law and the Gospel in three particulars p. 86. Love of God twofold p 415. No temporary beleever loves God p. * 396. To be given up to our own Lusts a more fearfull thing then to be given up to Satan p. 108 109 M WAnt of Meditation one cause why most beleevers have so little joy in God p. 430 431. Mistakes in judging our spiritual estates See Judging Morality too much trusted to p. 49. It 's insufficient to bring men to heaven ibid. N NAtural reason not to be trusted to p. 49 Too short to convince of sin thorowly p. 51 Mans condition by Nature described p. 59. The Natural man dead in sin p. 67. His best works cannot please God and why p. 68 69 The Curses attending a Natural man in this World p. 120 c. Two blowes that God gives a Natural mans soul in this life the one sensible p. 127 the other insensible p. 128. The Curses attending him at Death p. 130 c. O CHrists active Obedience mixed with his passive p. 372. Wherein his active Obedience consisted p. 375. c. Wherein his passive p. 378 Partial Obedience a false glasse to judge our estates by p· 48 To designe only our Old age for God is dishonourable to him p. 22 23. Old age most unfit for Repentance p. 25 27 Men apt to have too good Opinion of themselves p. 41. The causes of it p. 43 c. Men deceived in judging of their estates by the good Opinions of others p. 44 P PArtial Obedience see Obedience Passive Obedience see Obedience Peace a fruit of faith p. * 441 * 447. Why many Christians want the sense of it p. * 442 443. * 450 451 The differences between a true and a false Peace p. * 448 c. The Causes of a Carnal Peace p. * 449. * 452 Christ is our Peace p. * 454 Spirit of Prayer what p. * 377 378 1. The Importunity and efficacie of it p. * 379 380 Why a person already justified may and must Pray for the forgivnesse of sins past p. * 413 414 R NAtural Reason see Natural To Receive Christ what p. 399. What Reformation may be in a natural man p. * 390 392 Repentance prevents ruine p. 7 Repentance not in our own power but in gods gift p. 13 14. The sinfulnesse of deferring it p. 11 c. Death-bed Repentance the hindrances of it p. 30 Not to be trusted to p 31. Hard to prove it sound p. 32 Superficial Repentance is vain p. 57 Repentance in what respects necessary to justification p. * 417 Remission of sin See Forgiveness Resting or Relying upon God a proper Act of Faith p. 425 Righteousnesse two fold p. * 397. * 409 Imputative Righteousnesse what it is p. * 402 * 410. Impossible to be justified without it and why p. * 410 411 S. Sanctification a distinct thing from Justification p. * 423. p. * 429 Satan See Devil A difficult thing to be Saved p. 53 Sealing a distinct thing from Faith p. * 428 The Causes of Security p. * 449 Self-Examination necessary to Conversion p. 39.57 a mark of a sound believer p. * 407 Self-flattery See flattery Self-Love how it deceives men in judging their estates p. 43. Sin continued in hastens Gods judgements p. 3 4 5. Sin compared to a weight p. 26. to Cords p. 27. Sin gets strength by continuance p. 28. The Sinfulnesse of Sin set forth in 6. considerations p. 90 c The dreadfull fruits and consequences of Sin It pollutes the Soul p. 100. It makes men loathsom to God p. 104. It brings the Devill into the heart p. 106. It calls for wages p. 110 The greatness of Sin should be no barr against believing in Christ p. 401 406. No Sin overtops the value of Christ's blood ibid. Encouragemets for Sinners to come to Christ page 401 c. Sin not discovered thorowly but by the spirit p. * 364. Sin may be cast away and yet no true Conversion p. * 392 Sin is only a Privation and no positive being p. * 399 * 400 Sins not pardoned before they be committed p. * 403. The guilt and punishment of Sin taken away in Justification p. * 418 c. Spirit of Bondage what p. * 365 Spirit of Prayer see Prayer T A Temporary Faith how far it may go p. * 388 c. How to know it from true faith p. ibid Temporary beleevers desire Christ only in affliction p. * 388 389 They do but only tast of Christ p. * 393. They desire mercy but not grace p. * 394. They do nothing out of love to God p. * 395 The sinfulness of thoughts p. 102 103. The end of Gods Threatnings p. 7. U UNregenerate Men See Natural Our unworthiness should not keep us from coming unto Christ p. 397. W THe Will wrought by God as well as the deed p. * 371 The Will more then the Deed 372. How God takes the Will for the Deed p. * 374 He that hath a Will to receive Christ hath a warrant to receive him p. 404. God alone inclines the Will to receive Christ ibid. A wofull thing to be suffered by God to have our own Wills in this world p. 355. Our Wills must be crossed here or for ever hereafter ibid. The Willingness of Christs sufferings rendred them the more meritorious p. 374 The Word presented to our faith under a double respect viz. 1 as a true Word p. 403 2 as a good Word p. 424 Works spiritually good cannot be performed by an unregenerate man and why p. 67 68 71. In what sense we are said by James to be justified by Works p. * 398 Wrath a Consequence of sin p. 98 Y YOuth the fittest time to Repent and break off sin in p 25 22 29. FINIS Male dum recitas c. * Lord in special forgive my sins of omission see Dr. Ber. Life and death of the Arch. Bp. of Armagh p. 110 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * Sheffeild in Yorkshire· James Meath Anagram I am the same See Dr. Bernard page 52. See Dr. Ber. Epist. to the Reader in his life and death c. * See the Reduction of Episcopacy to the form of Synodical Government Received in the Antient Church published by Doctor Bernard in a Book entituled The Judgement of the Late Arch Bishop of Armagh c. * 2 Sam. 1.22 * Isa. 50.4 * 2 Cor. 3.2 * Acts 11.21 * Dan 12.3 * Heb. 2.13 * Tim. 4.12 * Mark 6.20 * Acts 1.1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * Mat 7.29 * 1 Cor. 2.4 5. 1 Cor 14.24 25. * Acts 18.24 Collatis scripturae locis Probans nempe sicuti solent artifices aliquid Compacturi singulas partes inter se comparare ut inter se alia aliis ad amussim quadrent Bez. In Act. 9.22 Efficere condescensionem ut sic dicam id est argumentis propositis efficere ut aliquis tecum in eandem sententiam descendat Mr. Leigh Critic sacr In verb. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * Ser. before K. James Wansted June 20. 1629 page 34 35. * Ecl. 12.10 11 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * John 16.5 * Psal. 16.3 * Acts 13.12 * Psal. 119.63 * Math. 11 29. * Mal. 2.4.5 6 7 8 9. * Esay 43.27.28 * 1 Sam. 2 30. * Deut. 33 11. * Math. 5.12 and 10.25 * Math 21.44 * Rev. 11.11 * 2 Sam 6.22 * Calvino illustri viro nec unquam sine summi honoris prefatione nominando non assentior Bp Andrews De Vsuris * 3 John 12. * Declarat what books are his what not Dr. Ber. page 20 l 21. * See Dr. Ber. Loc. Citat * See their Epist to the Reader Ibidem * See Mr. Cottons Epist. to Mr. Hildersams Book on John 4. * See Capt. Bell. Narat before Luth. Mensal Colloq * Liber ille â—onvivalium sermonum non est Lutheri nec Luthero approbante aut etiam vivente editus sed est Rapsodia sine Judicio Intellectu consarcinata Polan syntag de canonic Authorit script page fol. 45. * Heb 11.4 * Bp. Andrews serm 7. of Rep. and Fast. * John 3.10.19 Obs. Obs. Obs. Obj. Sol. Obj. Sol. 1. Order of outward things 2. The nature of sin Sin is compared to cords To defer repentance hardens the more The folly of those that defer their repentance till death Obj. Sol. Impediments to repentance on our death-bed Trust not to death-bed repentance It will be hard to prove death-bed repentance to be ound Gen. 6.3 What use to make of Election and Reprobation It 's our wisdom to arm against Satans fallacy and hearken to God in his accepted time 1 Glass Self-love 2 Glass Others good opinion 3 Glass When a man compares himself with others 4 Glasse Partial Obedience· Obj. Sol. Another false Glasse The Devil transforms himself into an Angel of light Superficial repentance will not change the nature of man No morality nor external change of life will do without quickning grace and a new life wrought Quest. Ans. Obj. Sol. Doct. Obj. No natural man doth judge himself so bad as he is The best works of a natural man cannot please God Look to the oginal of duties Look to the end of duty It 's necessary to preach the Law before the Gospel This is the 1 Instance 2 Instance 3 Instance Noâ—e Well Our Remedy or our Redempâ—ion by Christ. Christs humiliation in life and death The second degree of his humiliation that he might become a servant Christ accounted as a bâ—ndman Exam. Joseph for the calcu 14400000. drachms (x) Which were 120000. (z) Have the quotient 120 Drachms Four Drachms went to a Shekel so divide 120. by 4. your quotient is 30. shekels for each man which was the ordinary rate c. Gen. 9.25 John 13.21 Now this Obedience is two fold 1. Active 2. Passivâ— 1. For his active obedience in the whole course of his life 2. For his active Obedience after his Death
fancy then to peirce the Heart to tickle the Ear rather then wound the Conscience or save the precious the Immortal Soul At that time when we lay thus weltring in our Bloud and Vanity was the Lord pleased to Cause this star to arise and shine in our Horizon and by his light and influence to guide us to Bethlehem A time of love it was an accepted Time a Time never to be forgotten specially by those who through grace can from thence date the Aera of their sound Conversion The persuasion of Armaghs incomparable Learning the Observation of his awfull Gravity the Evidence of his Eminent and exemplary Piety all improved to the heigth by his Indefatigable Industry drew students to flock to him as Doves to the windowes It joyes us to recollect how multitudes of Scholars specially the heads of our Tribes throng'd to hear the sound of his silver Bells How much they were taken with the voice of this wise Charmer How their ears seemed as it were fastened to his lips that were like Lillies dropping sweet smelling Myrrh How did many very many at that time Galatians-like receive this Aged Paul as an Angel of God yea even As Christ. Surely if ever t was then that the Gospel ran and was glorified in Oxon. Then then it was that the Lord seem'd to lay the foundations of his spiritual Temple there with saphires and the Corner-stones thereof with Agats Here might you have seen a Sturdy Saul changed into a submissive Paul a persecutor transformed into A preacher There A tender hearted Josiah lamenting after the Lord and with Ephraim smiting on his thigh saying what have I done Others with the penitent Jews so stabd at the Heart as that they are forced to cry out in the Bitternesse of their souls Men Brethren Fathers oh what shall we do These were some of the blessings from on high which attended These Sermons when preached to the ear oh that a like or a greater might follow them now they are printed to the eye These Notes t is true were taken by such who All had the pens of ready writers and after that compleated by A strict comparing of several distinct papers This is the Body the Bulk of these Heavenly sermons The gloss the Spirit The Energy of them was and must be wholly from Above We Trust the publishing of these Notes will not be interpreted by any in the least to reflect on the unparalleld worth of the Preacher to whose very Dust we owe A sacred Reverence If any thing seems not to speak him let it be charged not on him but the Publishers who have only this to add viz. Their fervent prayers That these sermons may find the like influence on the hearts of others in the reading that they had on their own in the hearing then will Both have Abundant Cause to bless the Lord. Thy Servants for Jesus sake Jos. Crabb Will. Ball. Tho. Lye Imprimator Edm. Calamy A PREFACE Concerning the Author and these NOTES THough I might be silent concerning either the most famous Preacher of these Sermons or these notes now published which were taken after him yet such is the high esteem I have of him and the due respect I hear to them for his sake cheifly that I could not withstand the request of divers who Importuned some Lines from me upon this occasion both concerning the one and the other First I commend unto the Reader a diligent perusal of the life and death of the most Reverend and Learned Father of our Church Dr. Jam. Usher late Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of all Ireland put forth by Reverend and Learned Dr. Bernard where he shall meet with many delightfull passages concerning His Stock and pedigree Great parts Gifts and Graces Ingenious Education Admirable Proficiency Timely Conversion Rare Learning Indefatigable Industry Strict and holy Conversation Pious Government of his Family Amicable correspondence with Forreign Churches Prophetick Spirit Learned writings Comfortable Visitation Dying words never to be buryed Blessed Death Ever to be lamented Losse Fit Parallel to Samuel among the Prophets to Augustine amongst the Fathers with many other things worthy Observation and when he hath pondered these well he will the lesse wonder that his name hath filled the Christian world as much as ever did Augustine or Athanasius of old or Whitakers and Reynolds of later times Secondly I tender these spices gathered to the Embalming of this Rare Phoenix out of his own ashes holding my self engaged as much as any to cast my mite into the treasury of his blessed memory as having had my Bene esse most from him First by him I was examined and admitted into the Vniversity near Dublin in Ireland his native City and Countrey above fourty years ago Secondly whil'st I continued there which was the space of eight years he took special care of me and account of my studies there Thirdly by him I was ordained or to use the Apostles word put into the ministry and the same day admitted his Chaplain in ordinary now two and thirty years ago though then able to do him little service being called to a Congregation in another nation which call his Grace did then approve of Having given this account to the Reader I shall only mention three things Concerning him and forbear many more that might be added First to the testimonies concerning him from Spanhemius Ger. Vossius Buchartus Simplitius â—ud de dieu Paulus Testardus Blessensis Arnoldus Bootius Mr. Selden Dr. Prideaux Bp. Davenant Bertius Mr. Cambden Sir Rog. Twisden and the whole University of Oxford beside the forced testimony of his adversaries Moranez Beaumont Alias Rookwood Challoner Hen. Fitz-Symonds for all which I refer to the book aforesaid give me leave to add the testimony of Dr. William Chappel sometimes fellow of Christs Colledge in Cambridge and afterwards Provost of Trinity Colledge near Dublin which from such an acute man as he was may amount to the like equivalent testimony from the Universitie of Cambridge He gave me once three reasons why he thought Doctor Usher then Bishop of Meath was in his esteem the greatest Scholar in the Christian world 1. One was because of his rare natural parts the foundation of his other Learning having a quick Apprehension a prompt Wit a strong Memory a clear Understanding a piercing Judgement and a ready utterance Seldom said he shall you meet all these in an Eminent degree in the same person but in him they so concurred that it is hard to say in which he most excelled 2. Another was because few men though they had such parts were either able or willing to make so rich improvement of them by choice Libraries unwearied studying in them and searching out the Rarities of any other few mens bodies and brains he beleeved would bear it 3. The third was because he was so esteemed both in these Universities and in those beyond the seas and indeed whosoever conversed with him
But let me in this particular unrip the heart of a natural man What 's the reason that when God gives men a day and cries out This is the day of salvation this is the accepted time what in the name of God or the Devils name rather should cause them to put salvation from them to defer and desire a longer time Thus a natural man reasons with himself I cannot so soon be taken off from the profits and pleasures of the world I hope to have a time when I shall with more ease and a greater composednesse of mind bring my self to it or if it be not with so much ease yet I trust in a sufficient manner I shall do it wherefore for the present I le enjoy the profits and delights of the state and condition wherein I am I will solace my self with the pleasures of sin for a season I hope true repentance will never be too late This is well weigh'd but consider whether these thoughts which poise down our hearts be not groundlesse see whether they will hold water at the last and whether in making such excuses to great presumption we add not the height of folly To pretend for our delay the profits and pleasures of sin and yet hope for heaven at the last as well as the generation of the righteous it 's but a meer fallacy and delusion of Satan to fill our hearts with such vanities Can it be expected that we should have our good in this world and in the world to come too This is well if it might be But let us try the matter and begin with your first branch You are loth to part with your profits and pleasures But consider what a grand iniquity this is Can you offer God a greater wrong and indignity Do you thus requite the Lord you foolish and unwise Dost thou think this the way to make thy peace with God whom thou hast offended as long as thou mayst to be a rebel against him What an high dishonour is it to him that thou shouldst give him thy feeble and doting old age and the Devil thy lively and vigorous youth thy strength and spirits Dost thou think he will drink the dregs and eat the orts will he accept thee in the next world when thou thus scornest him here If you offer the blind for sacrifice is it not an evil If you offer the lame and sick is it not evil Offer it now unto thy governor will he be pleased with thee or accept thy person saith the Lord of hosts Mal. 1.8 But mark how he goes on v. 14. Cursed be the deceiver which hath in his flock a male and voweth sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing Mark God accounts such service a corrupt thing Never look for a blessing from God in heaven when thou sacrificest to him such corrupt things We are to offer and present our selves a living sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God Rom. 12.1 Now judge whether they offer God the living who say when my doting days come my lame days that I cannot go my blind dayes that I cannot see I le offer my self a sacrifice to God Will this be acceptable to him Is not this evil saith the Lord to offer me such a corrupt thing Nay more he 's accursed that offers such an offering such a polluted sacrifice God will not like with it when we serve our selves first with the best and choise Do you thus requite the Lord do you think he will accept it at your hands Go offer such a gift to thy Ruler to thy Prince will he accept it or be pleased with it No a Landlord will have the best and the choise and it must needs provoke God when we give him the refuse I am King of Kings saith the Lord my name is dreadful and I will look to be served after another manner Let no man then thus delude himself with vain hopes but let him consider how dishonourable a thing it will be to God 2. And how unprofitable to him whoever thou art 1. It 's the ready way to thy destruction Heaven and happinesse and eternal life are laid up for those that embrace the acceptable time death horrour and eternal misery for those that refuse it and wilt thou hazard soul and body on this Moses on this ground did rather choose to suffer affliction in this world with the people of God then to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a moment When these things are past what profit will you have of those things whereof then you will be ashamed When a man comes to see truly and throughly into himself he will find no profit of such things as these death will certainly follow us both temporal and eternal if we repent not the more speedily that 's all the profit we shall find 2 But suppose thou prevent everlasting death by repentance yet what profit is there of those things whereof we are now for the present ashamed The best can come is shame 3. Thou art loth to part with the pleasures of sin for a season and hereafter thou thinkest thou canst amend all But consider the particulars and then shall you see how you are befool'd in your hearts and soules Believe it for an undoubted truth there 's nothing in the world by which Satan more deludes a man then by this perswading him to neglect his day and repent well enough hereafter That you may expel this suggestion out of your soule pray unto God that he would go along with his Word and cause you to lay this to heart that by his Spirit your understanding may be enlightned to see the truth Though I make this as clear as the Sun that it is a false supposition and meer folly on which we build in deferring our return to God yet God from heaven must teach you or you will be never the wiser Know therefore that this very day God reaches out the golden Scepter to thee and what folly were it to neglect it since thou knowest not whether he will ever proffer it thee again And assure thy self that he is a lyar that tells thee thou mayst as well repent hereafter as now and this will appear whether we consider the order of outward things in the world or the nature of sin 1. For external things every Age after a man comes into the world if he embrace not the present opportunity for repentance is worse then other and are each of them as so many clogs which come one after another to hinder it As for thy childish Age that 's meer vanitie and thy riper Age will bring many impediments and hindrances that youth never thought of Thou art then troubled about many things and perplexed how to provide for maintenance in the midst whereof know that thou hast not a body of brass but a corruptible and fading body and yet such is the folly of the heart of man that the less ground he hath to go the fewer dayes to spend the
a good disposition and perform such acceptable service as that God cannot chuse but grant them a pardon But think not all will be well if thou shalt shake hands with God at thy journeys end when thou hast not walked with him all the way Obj. But did not the thief repent at the last on the Crosse and why may not I on my death bed Sol. This is no good warrant for thy delay for Christ might work this miraculously for the glory of his Passion Trust not therefore on this nor content thy self with good intentions but set about the businesse in good earnest and presently Our death-beds will bring so many disadvantages as will make that time very unseasonable whether we respect 1. External hindrances such as are pangs and pains in thy body which must be undergone and thou shalt find it will be as much as thou well canst do to support thy self under them Every noise will then offend thee yea thou wil not be able to endure the speech of thy best friends When Moses came to the children of Israel and told them God had sent him to deliver them what acceptation found this comfortable message The Text saith Exod. 9.6 They hearkned not through anguish of their spirits See here the effects of anguish and grief Moses spake comfortably but by reason of their pains they hearkned not unto him they were indisposed to give attendance So shall it be with us on our death-beds through the anguish of our spirits we shall be unfit to meddlâ— with ought else especially when the paines of death are upon us the dread whereof is terrible how will it make us tremble when death shall come with that errand to cut off our soules from our bodies and put them into possession of hell unlesse we repent the sooner Now thou art in thy best strength consider what a terror it will be what a sad message it will bring when it comes not to cut off an arm or leg but soul from body Now then make thy peace with God but that these men are fooles they would through fear of death be all their life-time in bondage It 's the Apostles expression Heb. 2.15 The consideration hereof should never let us be at rest till we had made our peace with God it should make us break our recreations and sports The considerations of what will become of us should put us in an extasie Nor are these all our troubles besides these outward troubles when a man is to dispose of his wife and children house and lands so that he must needs be very unfit at this time for the work of repâ—ntance These things will cast so great a damp on his heart as that he shall be even cold in his seeking after peace with God 2. But suppose these outward hindrances are removed that neither pain of body nor fear of death seize on thee neither care of wife nor children houses nor lands distract thee but that thou mightst then set about it with all thy might though thou wert in the most penitent condition that might be to mans seeming yet where 's the change or new nature should follow thy contrition unlesse we see this in truth we can have but little comfort Shall I see a sinner run on in his ill courses till the day of his death and then set on this work I could not conclude therefore the safety of his soul because it 's the change of the affections not of the actions that God looks after for the fear of death may extort this repentance where the nature is not changed Take an example of a covetous man which dotes on his wealth more then any thing else in the world suppose him in a ship with all his riches about him a tempest comes and puts him in danger of losing all both life and goods in this strait he sticks not to cast out all his wealth so he may preserve his life and shall we therefore say he is not covetous No we will account him neverthelesse covetous for all this nor that he loved his goods the lesse but his life the more It 's so in this câ—se when an impenitent person is brought upon his death bed 〈…〉 to cry out in the bitternesse of his soul If God will but grant me life and spare me now I le never be a drunkard swearer or covetous person more Whence comes this Not from any change of his nature and loathing of what he formerly loved but because he cannot keep these and life together fear alters his disposition the terrors of the Almighty lying upon him I have my self seen many at such a time as this that have been so exceeding full of sorrow and penitent expressions that the standers by have even wished their souls to have been in the other souls cases and yet when God hath restored them they have fallen into their former courses again And why is this but because when repentance comes this way it alters only the outward actions for the present not the sinful dispositions things that are extracted from a man alter the outward appearance not the nature Therefore saith the Lord I le go and return to my place till they acknowledge their offence and seek my face In their affliction they will seek me early Hos. 5. last Mark when Gods hand is on them they will seek him and as in the 6. Chap. 1. v. say one to another Come let us return unto the Lord for he hath torn and he will heal us he hath smitten and he will bind us up How penitent were they when Gods hand was on them but let it once be removed and hear how God presently complaines of them O Ephraim what shall I do unto thee O Judah what shall I do unto thee for your goodness is as a morning cloud and as the early dew it goeth away Mark thy goodness is as a morning cloud such a goodness as is extorted that is as temporary as earthly dew Another considerable place we have in the Psal. 78.34 When he slew them then they sought him and they returned and enquired early after God Was not this a great conversion When they were in this dismal condition they were not troubled with cares for Wife or Children Houses or Lands how can we think but that these men died in peace that were in so good a humour yet see what followes verse 36. Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouths and lied unto him with their tongues Besides consider the unworthiness of it I le forsake sin when sin forsakes me We leave it when we can keep it no longer Thank you for nothing may God say if you could you would sin longer this is that folly which deferring our repentance brings us to But to draw to a conclusion God hath set us a certain day and if we pass the time woe be to us For though he is full of mercy and patience yet patience hurt oftentimes
harmes and provokes the Almighty to fury God will not alwaies strive with man but his daies shall be an hundred and twenty years if he convert in that space and return well if not he shall be swept away And to this purpose is that parable Luke 13.6 A certain man had a fig-tree planted in his vineyard and he came and sought fruit thereon and found none Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard behold these three years I came seeking fruit on this fig-tree and find none Cut it down why combreth it the ground There is an appointed time then fore-ordained by God wherein he offers us grace Let it alone saith the dresser one year more it may be seven years or ten it may be but two hours for ought thou knowest that God may offer thee longer this space No man knowes the time and its continuance but he that hath appointed it to this purpose which is a point I thought not to speak of but now I will You hear much talk of Gods eternal everlasting election and we are too apt to rest on this that if we are elected to salvation we shall be saved and if not we shall be damned troubling our selves with Gods work of Praedestination whereas this works no change in the party elected until it come unto him in his own person What is Gods election to me that he chooses the godly and refuses the wicked It s nothing to my comfort unlesse I my self am actually elected We are to look to this actual election The other is but Gods love to sever me But what is my actual election It s that when God touches my heart and translates me from the death of sin to the life of grace Now there are certain times which God appoints for this election wherein he uses the means to work on us and of which he can say what could I do more then I have done Now if it be thus in the point of election what must we think of the point of reprobation May there not be actual rejection as well as actual election And mayst thou not fear since thou hast lived thus long under the means of grace That God hath waited these not only three but many years the dew of heaven continually falling on thee and that yet thou shouldst remain unfruitful Doest thou not fear I say that dismal sentence cut it down why combreth it the ground Gods grace is not to be dallied with as Children doe with their meats if we do thus slight him he may justly deprive us of all See a terrible place to this purpose Heb. 6.7 8. The earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed receiveth blessing from God but that which beareth thornes and briers is rejected and is nigh unto cursing whose end is to be burned Consider these places God calls us where the droppings of his grace are consider then do we bring forth that fruit which is meet for the dresser answerable to those continual distillings and droppings on us If our consciences witnesse for us happy are we but when there have been these showers of grace out of Gods Word flowing down upon us and yet we have received so much grace in vain O what can we then expect but a curse in this life and eternal death in the world to come What can we look for but the fig-trees curse which was barren The tree was not cut down but withered We are near the same curse if we answer not Gods grace When we have had so long a time the Ministery of the Word and yet suffer it to be lost through our barrennesse our condition is sad and woeful we can look for nothing but withering But beloved I must hope better things of you and such as accompany salvation Labour therefore to prevent and arm your selves against this suggestion and fallacy of Satan and resolve to hear God in this acceptable time now to set to the work which if we do all will be well God will be gracious to us If otherwise we are undone for ever Till you have learned this lesson you can go no further Wherefore let not Satan possesse you with that madnesse to cause you to passe and let slip this golden opportunity through a false conceipt that you may have a more seasonable day of your own for repentance hereafter Gal. 6.3 4. For if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing he deceiveth himself But let every man prove his own work and then shall he have rejoycing in himself alone and not in another HAving entred on the Doctrine of the conversion of a sinner in that Text Heb. 4.7 upon which depends our everlasting salvation I laboured to perswade you of the necessity of taking the accepted time of embracing the proffers of Gods grace and of the necessity of doing it speedily I shewed you that there is a certain time in which God will be found and that this time was the present time I declar'd unto you the great danger that would follow if we took not God at his word but refused his day for a day of our own as if we were wiser than he If when God calls and holds out the golden Scepter we refuse to draw neer and touch it Also what danger there is of being deluded by Satan and our own hearts I shewed you farther that the work was half done if this were done if we could but learn this lesson And now all that I shall speak will be to little purpose if this be not first wrought If it be already wrought in us blessed are we Our condition were thrice happy would God now strike in and cause us to return to himself It 's not good to dally with God the time will come when it will be too late when we shall wish we had done otherwise and taken the accepted time Now I will go on to a farther point which is this When Satan cannot prevail with a sinner to say to his soul or to think with himself I will do it hereafter or I will at the day of death when he cannot prevaile with him to defer it and leave it quite undone for the present then he will give way to his doing a little to it but it shall be so superficial and on such false grounds that he had as good leave it undone For Satan makes him thus conclude with himself well since I see it is a duty so necessary I will not defer I will not put it off to an hour but yet I see no such matter required in conversion no such great need of being new moulded But now in the point of conversion there are two things to be thought on 1. First what estate the sinner is in for the present and then when he hath made search and found it to be amisse then the next thing is he must turn unto God
the Corinthians of the great conflicts that he had in 2 Cor. 11.23 saith that he was in labours abundant in stripes above measure in prisons frequent in deaths oft In deaths often what 's that That is however he could die but once yet these harbingers of death these stripes bonds imprisonments sicknesses c. all of them were as so many deaths all these were comprehended under this curse and are parts of death in as much as he underwent that which was a furtherance to death he is said to die So we read Exo. 10.17 Pharoah could say Pray unto your God that he would forgive my sins this once and intreat the Lord that he will take away from me but this death onely Not that the locusts were death but are said to be so because they prepared and made way for a natural death Therefore the great judgments of God are usually in Scripture comprised under this name Death All things that may be expressions of a wrath of an highly provoked God are comprehended under this name All the judgments of God that come upon us in this life or that to come whether they be spiritual and ghostly or temporal are under the name of death Now to come to particulars look particularly on death and you shall see death begun in this world and seconded by a death following the separation of body and soul from God in the world to come 1. First in this life he is alwayes a dying man Man that is born of a woman what is he He is ever spending upon the stock he is ever wasting like a candle burning still and spending it self as soon as lighted till it come to its utter consumption So he is born to be a dying man death seizeth upon him as soon as ever it findeth sin in him Gen. 2.1 In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt die saith God to Adam though he lived many years after How then could this threatning hold true Yes it did in regard that presently he fell into a languishing estate subject and obnoxious to miseries and calamities the hasteners of it If a man be condemn'd to die suppose he be reprieved and kept prisoner three or four years after yet we account him but a dead man And if this mans mind shall be taken up with worldly matters earthly contentments purchases or the like would we not account him a fool or a stupid man seeing he lightly esteemes his condemnation because the same hour he is not executed Such is our case we are while in our natural condition in this life dead men ever tending toward the grave towards corruption as the gourd of Jonah so soon as ever it begins to sprout forth there is a worm within that bites it and causes iâ— to wither The day that we are born there is within us the seed of corruption and that wasts us away with a secret and incurable consumption that certainly brings death in the end So that in our very birth begins our progresse unto death A time a way we have but it leads unto death There is a way from the Tower to Tyburn but it is a way to death Until thou comest to be reconciled unto Christ every hour tends unto thy death there 's not a day that thou canst truly say thou livest in thou art ever posting on to death death in this world and eternal death in the world to come And as it is thus with us at our coming into the world so we are to understand it of that little time we have above ground our dayes are full of sorrow But mark when I speak of sorrows here we must not take them for such afflictions and sorrows as befal Gods children for theirs are blessings unto them chastisments are tokens of Gods love For as many as I love I chasten saith God Affliction to them is like the dove with an Olive-branch in her mouth to shew that all is well But take a man that is under rhe Law and then every crosse whether it be losse of friends losse of goods diseases on his body all things every thing to him is a token of Gods wrath not a token of Gods love as it is to Gods children but it is as his impress-money as part of payment of a greater summe an earnest of the wrath of God the first part of the payment thereof It 's the Apostles direction that among the other armour we should get our feet shod thâ—t so we might be able to goe through the afflictions we shall meet withall in this life Eph. 6.15 Let your feet be shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace What is the shooing of the feet a part of the armour Yes For in the Roman discipline there were things they called Caltrops which were cast in the way before the Army before the horse and men they had three points so that which way soever they threw them there was a point upwards Now to meet with and prevent this mischief they had brazen shooes that they might tread upon these caltrops and not be hurt As we read of Goliah amongst other armour he had boots of brasse To this it seems the Apostle had reference in this metaphorical speech The meaning is that as we should get the shield of faith and sword of the Spirit so we should have our feet shod that we might be prepared against all those outward troubles that we should meet with in the world which are all of them as so many stings and pricks all outward crosses I say are so And what is it that makes all these hurt us what is it that makes all these as so many deaths unto us but sin If sin reign in thee and bear rule that puts a sting into them It is sin that arms death against us and it is sin that arms all that goes before death against us Hast thou been crossed in the losse of thy wife children good friends c. why the sting of all is from sin sin it is which makes us feel sorrow What shall we then doe Why get thy feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace Prepare thy self get God at peace with thee and if God be at peace with thee thou art prepared and then whatsoever affliction cometh howsoever it may be a warning-piece to another that Gods wrath is coming yet to thee it is a messenger of peace Now these outward troubles are the least part of a wicked mans payment though all these are a part of his death so long as he remains unreconciled whatsoever comes upon him whereby he suffers either in himself or in any thing that belongs unto him they are all tokens of Gods wrath and are the beginnings of his death In the 26th of Levit. and the 28th of Deut. the particulars of it are set down But this is that I told you the last time how that the law of God is a perfect law and nothing is to be added to it yet
shew'd you the last day and did then promise to shew you the other to wit the wofulnesse of his estate being once come into his place The act done to the sinners soul before he is sent to hell is the deprivation of his light the taking away of his talent For whilst a man is in this world he hath many good things in him too good to accompany him to hell Now all these excellent gifts and natural endowments which did adorn a wicked mans soul before the soul is hurled into hell must be taken away from him There is a kind of degradation of the soul it is depriested 〈◊〉 were and becomes likâ— a degraded Knight that hath his honour taken from him All the rich talents and all the rich prizes that were put into the fools hand shall be taken from him Is there any moral vertue Are there any common graces and natural endowments in the miserable soul it shal be stript of all and packt to hell You that have abused your learning and gifts that God hath given you do you think that they shall go with you to hell No such matter you shall be very sots and dunces there All your learning shall be taken from you and you shall goe to hell arrant blockheads He that had fortitude in this world shall not carry one drachm of it to hell all his courage shall then be abased and his cowardly heart shall faint for fear Fortitude is a great advantage to a man in distresse but let not the damned soul expeâ—t the least advantage his fortitude which he had whilst he was in the way shall be taken from him It may be he had patience in this world Now patience is â— vertue unfit for hell therefore shall that be taken from him A man if he were in most exquisite torments yet if he had patience it would bear it up with head and shoulders as we say but this shall adde to his torments that he shall not have any patience left him to allay it A man hath perhaps hope in this world and as the Proverb is were it not for hope the heart would burst yet even this too shall be taken away from him he shall have no hope left him of ever seeing Gods face again or of ever having any more tasts of his favour And so what hath been said of some may be said of all his graces and endowments he shall clean be stript of all ere he be sent to hell I come now to speak of the place of torment it self wherein the sinner is to be cast eternally which is the second act But think not that I am able to discover the thousandth part of it no nor any man else God grant that no soul here present ever come to find by experience what it is What a woful thing is it that many men should take more paines to come to this place of torment then would cost them to goe to heaven that men should wilfully run themselves upon the pikes not considering how painful it is nor how sharp those pikes are And this I shall endeavour to my power to set forth unto you This Text declares unto us two things 1. Who they are for whom this place is provided 2. The place it self and the nature of it 1. For whom the place is provided The Text containes a Catalogue of that black Roll though there are many more then are here expressed but here are the grand crimes the ring-leaders to destruction the moâ—â—er sins And here we have in the first place the Fearful whereby is not meant those that are of a timorous nature for fear simply is not a sin those that are simply fearful but such as place their fear on a wrong object not where it should be that fear not God but other things more then God Such as if affliction and iniquity were put to their choise will rather choose iniquity then affliction Rather then they will have any cross betide them rather then they will incur the indignation of a man rather then they will part with their life and goods for Gods cause will adventure on any thing choosing iniquity rather then affliction being afraid of what they should not fear never fearing the great and mighty God This is the fearful here meant See how Job expresses it Job 36.31 This hast thou chosen This that is iniquity rather then affliction to sin rather then to suffer Christ biddeth us not to fear poor vain man but the omnipotent God that is able both to kill and to cast into hell The man that feareth his Landlord who is able to turn him out of his house and doth not fear God who is able to turn him into hell this dastardly spirit is one of the Captains of those that goe to hell those timerous and cowardly persons that tremble at the wrath or frowns of men more then of God But what 's the reason men should thus stand more in fear of men then of God Why it is because they are sensible of what men can doe unto their bodies but they cannot with Moses by faith see what that is that is invisible They are full of unbelief for had they 〈◊〉 they would banish all false fears See what the Lord saith Esa. 41 14. Fear not thou worm Jacob I will help thee saith the Lord. He saith not Fear not ye men or thou man for then perhaps thou mightst be thought to have some power to resist but fear not thou worm A worm you know is a poor weak thing apt to be crushed by every foot yet be this thy case be thou a worm unable to resist the least opposition yet fear not thou worm Fear not why for I will help thee saith the Lord. Couldst thou but believe in God this would make thee bold and hadst thou faith thou wouldst not fear When word was brought to the house of Jacob that two Kings were come up into the Land to invade it Esay 7.2 it is said his heart was moved as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind But what is the remedy of this fear See Esay 8.12 Fear not their fear nor be afraid that was a false and a base fear sanctifie the Lord in your hearts and let him be your fear and let him be your dread Esay 51.12 there is an object of our faith and comfort and a remedy against fear proposed I even I am he that comforteth thee who art thou that shouldst be afraid of a man that shall die and the son of man that is as grass What art thou one that hast God on thy side how unworthy art thou of that high favour if thou fear man The greatest man that lives cannot shield himself from death and from a covering of worms and wilt thou be afraid of a man and forget the Lord thy Maker The more thou art taken up with the fear of man the lesse thou fearest God and the more thou remembrest man the more thou
of our bodies pulls body and soul in sunder A thing which hath little hurt in it self were it not for the sting of it which makes it fearful To die is esteemed far worse then to be dead in regard of the pangs that are in dying to which death puts an end This temporal death is in an instant but this other eternal whereby we are ever dying and never dead for by it we are punished with an everlasting 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 2 Thess. 1.9 and that from the presence of the Lord by the glory of his power Then which place I have no need to adde more for as much as can be sâ—id of men and Angels is fully comprehended in it The Apostle terms this a fearful thing indeed Heb. 2.15 whereon if a man but think if he hath his wits about him he would for fear of it be all his life long subject to bondage He would scarce draw any free breath but would still be studying how to avoid it and would still be in bondage and drudgery till he were delivered Thus I have declared the nature of the place and of this second death That I may now goe farther know that this Lake and this place is the place that the Lord hath provided for his enemies It is the Lords slaughter-house it s called a place of torments Luke 16. a place wherein God will shew the accomplishment of his wrath and revenge upon his enemies Those mine enemies that would not have me to reign over them bring them forth and slay them before my face Those vessels of wrath those rebels the King is in raged and his wrath is as the roaring of a Lyon which makes all the beasts of the forrest to tremble Prov. 19.12 And where there is the wrath of such a King the issue thereof must needs be death Prov. 16.14 The wrath of a King is as a messenger of death How much more fearful is the wrath of the King of Kings God hath sharp arrows and he sets a wicked man as his Butt to shoot at to shew his strength and the fierceness of his wrath See the expression of Job in this case The arrows of the Almighty stick fast in me and the venome thereof hath drunk up my spirits In so few words there could not be an higher expression of the wrath of God First that God should make thee a Butt and then that thou shouldst be shot at and that by Gods arrows And then they are not shot by a child but as the man is so is his strength by the Almighty by his bow wherein he draws the arrow to the head And then again these arrows are poyson'd arrows and such poyson as shall drink up all thy soul and spirit Oh what a fearful thing is it to fall into the hands of such a God! It 's a saying of Moses Psal. 90.11 for 't is Moses Psal. Who knoweth the power of thine anger the power of Gods anger is unknown And so in his Song Deut. 32.22 he sets it out in some measure A fire is kindled in mine anger which shall burn unto the lowest hell c. So that the King being thus provoked is provoked to curse thee Mat. 25. It 's put into the form of thy sentence this cursing shall be thy lot in hell it shall be thy very sentence Goe ye cursed into everlasting fire There is nothing but cursing As Job cursed himself and the day of his birth so then shall cursing be all thy song thou wilt curse thy self that thou didst not hearken to the Preacher that thou wouldst not accept of Christ and the meanes of mercy and grace when it was offered thee and thou wilt curse the time thou wert acquainted with this man and that man and others will curse thee for drawing them to sin God curses thee and man curses thee and God curses not in vain when he curses others will curse thee and thou thy self and others and think then how cursed will be thy condition All the curses that can be thought on and all the curses that cannot be thought on shall rest on the head of an impenitent sinner to shew Gods terrible and just indignation against him Oh beloved to deliver us from this curse Christ the Son of God was made a curse for us the curse is so great nought else can free us from it But now that I may rank these punishments of the damned and bring them for memories sake into some order although there be no order there for it 's a place of confusion you may consider that the penalties of Gods enemies are penalties partly of losse and partly of sense 1. Of loss And that consists in the deprivation of every thing that might administer the least comfort to him and for this cause hell is termed utter darknesse Now darknesse is a privation of all light so is Hell of all comfort to shew that there is not the least thing that may give thee content nor is the poorest thing thou canst desire to be had there Darknesse was one of the plagues of Egypt though there were no kind of sense in it yet we may think what a plague and vexation it was to them to sit so long in darkness The darknesse of Hell is darker then darknesse it self They shall not see light saith the Scripture they shall not have so much as a glimpse of it To be cast into this utter darkness where shall be nothing to administer the least comfort what an infinite misery will that be Were it only the losse of the things we now possesse and enjoy of all which death robs us as pomp honour riches and preferment this were grievous to a wicked man These are things death dispossesses a man of these cannot follow him nought but thy works accompany thee thy friends may follow thee to the grave but there they shall leave thee To have been happy and to be miserable is the greatest woe to have lived in good fashion and to be wretched is the greatest grief How will this adde to the sinners misery when he shall say to himself I had once all good things about me but have now for my portion nothing but woe I had a bed of down but it is now exchanged for a bed of fire I was once honourable but now I am full of shame and contempt this will greatly adde to his misery But all this is nothing these are but the beginnings of his sorrow in regard of losse for a man to be rich and wealthy to day and to morrow to be stript of all and left not worth a groat to have all swept away this is a woful case 2. But if this be so grievous what is it to lose Heaven Certainly to lose the highest and greatest good is the greatest evil and punishment that can be inflicted upon a creature Which makes many Divines think that the penalties of losse are far greater then those of sense though they seem not to
gain and profit is there in our blood Psalm 30.9 God is full of Grace and Compassion and he considers that we are but dust And happy are we that we are but dust Had we been more glorious Creatures as Angels we had not had the benefit of a Saviour When they rebelled God considered their mettal And as with an high hand they rebelled So the Lord reserved them in everlasting chains under darkness unto the Judgement of the great day Jude 3. 1 Thes. 1.10 They fell without a Redeemer It is well for us that God considereth that we are but dust For by Jesus Christ he saveth us from the wrath to come It had been better for us never to have been born then to be born fire-brands of hell But now the point is that we are Brands pluckt out of the fire Zach. 3.2 It is fit therefore we should know who is our Redeemer Now as I have shewed you the last day it is Jesus Christ And here consider 1. Christ Jesus offered for us for the satisfaction of Gods Justice and this is his priestly office 2. As there was no Remission without shedding of blood therefore after the blood is shed and the Priest offered himself there comes a second thing else we are never the better and that is Christ offered to us This makes up our comfort Many talk of the extent of Christs Death and Passion saying he dyed sufficiently for us which is an improper speech For what comfort were this that Christ was offered for us if there were no more A bare sufficiency in Christ serves not the turn this were a cold comfort As if a man that were in debt afraid of every Serjeant every Sheriffe should be told Sir there is money enough in the Kings Exchequer to discharge all your debts This is very true but what is that to him what comfort hath he by it unless the King make him an offer to come take freely for his discharge And a cold comfort were it to us to know Christ to be sufficient for us unless he invite us to take freely of the waters of life Ho every one of you that thirsteth come you to the waters c. Isa. 55.1 Thus unless Christ be offered to us as well as for us we are never the near Now to make this appear Observe that in every Sacrament there are two acts of the Minister The one hath Relation to God a Commemoration of the Sacrifice in which respects the ancient Fathers called it a Sacrifice the other the breaking of the Bread and pouring out of the Wine wherein there is a Commemoration of the body broken and the blood shed not as they are concomitants the Wine in the bread as the foolish Papists dream for that were rather a commemoration of his life then of his death when the blood runs in the veins The commemoration of Christs death is made by separation of the blood from the body and as there is one Act of the Minister in consâ—crating by breaking the body and pouring out the blood so there is a second Act which is ministerial When the Minister saith Take eat This is my body as if Christ were present and said Come Take my body thou hast as free an interest to it as when thou art invited to thy friends table thou hast right to the meat before thee So that as Christ is offered for thee so he is offered to thee And what now should hinder thee unless thou art one that will obstinately oppose thy own salvation and say I will not have this man to rule over me thou canst not miscarry But if thou wilt be thine own lord perish in thine infidelity Here be the keyes of the Kingdom of Heaven given unto Gods Ministers unless thou wilfully oppose thine own salvation and shut that door of salvation which Christ hath opened so wide for thee See the ways of God are plain Christ hath paid a great price for thee and then as great as it is he offers it to thee Now for the former of these which is Christs satisfaction made unto the Father for us I made choice of this place of Scripture which sets it out particularly Herein two things are to be observed 1. The person who it is that will thus humble himself the Apostle grounds his Exhortation on the fourth verse where he tels us We ought not to look every man on his own things but every man on the things of others Let this mind be in you which also was in Christ Jesus If Christ had looked only on his own things he might have saved himself a great deal of labor and pains He being the Son of God might as soon as he was born have chalenged a seat with God in Glory He need not go per viam He might be Comprehensor in meta but he would pass on to his journeyes end in a thorny and troublesome way Let then the same mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus who minded not his own things but the good of others 2. What it was wherein he humbled himself he took upon him the form of a servant and was obedient unto the death of the Cross. The highest humiliation that can be that he who is above all praise whom Angels adored that he should be brought from heaven to earth and not only be a pilgrim there but have a sorrowfull and pittifull pilgrimage and at last to be cut off by a shamefull death from the land of the living this humiliation hath no parallel The depth of the humiliation consists in the height of the person thus humbled and were not he so high it could have done us no good It 's no small satisfaction that can appease Gods wrath therefore the Apostle to the Hebrews speaking of Melchisedeck the type of Christ concludes how great this man was Consider the invaluable price how great he was who being in the form of God he who was fellow and fellow-like with God as good as himself as great as himself was thus humbled It was the second person in the Trinity he and no other that was thus humbled for thee He was weary for thee and reviled for thee sweated and fainted for thee hungred for thee and was buffeted for thee It was he the second person of the Trinity in proper speech without either Trope or Figure shed his blood for thee died for thee and suffered all these things in his assumed nature taking on him the form of a servant though not in his divine He remaining God alone could not die but yet die fain he would for thee therefore he took thy nature on him that he might die for thee in the assumed nature He took not on him the nature of Angels but the seed of Abraham He being the fountain of life and the Prince of our life and without sheding of blood no Redemption could be wrought having not blood to shed as God therefore took our nature on him as it
is Heb. 10.5 Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not but a body thou hast prepared me then said I Io I come in the volumn of thy book it is written of me to do thy Will O God As if he should have said Lord I am not able to accomplish thy Will or to be subject to thee in thy nature therefore thou hast made me a man that in the form of a servant I might shew obedience which I could not while I was in nature equal unto thee Now consider how great this person is that hath suffered all for thee Rev. 1.5 Jesus Christ who is the faithfull witness the first begotten of the Dead and the Prince of the Kings of the earth to have a great Prince bound like a thief araigned and executed the consideration of this state of the person would move a stony heart Rev. 17.14 He is the Lord of Lords and King of Kings Amongst men the Father is more honourable then the Son and the Son is but a servant untill he be emancipated but it is not so in the Divinity but the Father and the Son are both alike honourable Among men the Son hath the same specifical nature with the Father but not the same individual but it is not so in the Divinity the Father and the Son there have the self same individual nature I and my Father are one therefore there must be an equality The Pharisees themselves could draw this conclusion that if he were the Son of God he was equal with God John 5.18 Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him because he said God was his Father making himself equal with God A man would think how could that follow He was but Gods Son but Gods Son must be equal to the Father In making himself Gods Son he made himself equal with God and therefore know upon this and by this stands the point of our Redemption If a pure and holy Angel had suffered never so much it would not have availed for our Redemption It is a price no man nor Angel must meddle with all It will require a greater Price It was God himself that suffered in his assumed nature He and no other person for we must understand though Christ took on him the nature of a man yet not the person of a man here stands the point the second person in the Trinity is the Suppositum of all this humiliation and therefore observe when the point of suffering comes there 's a remarkable speech Zach. 13.7 Saith the Son to the Father it was against his heart to smite him the expression is a lively one it went to his heart to smite one that was his equal that did him no wrong Awake O sword against my Shepherd and against the man who is my fellow You know of whom it is spoken by Mâ—thew Mat. 26.31 I will smite the Shepherd and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered The Lord is ready to break him Isa. 53. The sword was as it were unwilling to smite The man that is my fellow A blow lighting on Gods fellow equal with God of what value is it Consider the difference betwixt a man and a man The State of a Prince makes great odds between that is done to him and that is done to another man When David would adventure himself into the battel Thou shalt say they go no more with us least they quench the light of Israel 2 Sam. 21.17 and more fully 2 Sam. 18.3 Thou art worth ten thousand of us they would not hazzard the person of the King in the battel Why because thou art worth ten thousand of us The dignity of a Prince is so great that ten thousand will not countervail the loss of him If this be the esteem and worth of David what is the worth of Davids Prince If thus with a King what with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords This is a great ground of the sufficiency of Christs suffering Heb. 9.13 If the blood of Buls and Goates sanctifie to the purifying of the flesh how much more verse 14. shall the blood of Christ who through his eternal Spirit offered himself to purge your Consciences from dead works to serve the living God It is not the offering of the body only but he did it through his eternal Spirit When the Martyrs and Saints offered themselves a sacrifice they offered it through the flames of their love and therefore embraced the stake and love is described as strong as death but Christ did not offer his sacrifice with the flames of his love though love was in him the greatest that ever was but with the everlasting flames of his God-head and Deity with that fire from heaven which is a consuming fire He did the deed that will purge our Consciences from dead works Act. 20.28 Take heed unto your selves and to the flock over which the holy Ghost hath made you overseeâ—s to feed the Church of Gâ—d which he hath purchased with his precious blood God hath purchased the Church with his own blood Who 's blood Gods blood The blood of God must be shed He who thought it no robbery to be equal with God must shed his own blood As Zippora saith to Moses A bloody husband hast thou been to me Exod. 4.25 So may Christ say to his Church a bloody Spouse hast thou been to me that my blood must be shed for thee 1 Cor. 2.8 Had they known they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory that is they would not have crucified God He that was crucified was the glorious Lord God Acts 3.15 You denyed the holy one and killed the Prince of life Here 's the matter unless the Prince of life had been killed thou couldst not have life This the Apostle sets down as the ground of all before he comes to the particularities of his humiliation and sets down who it was who was thus humbled He whom the Heaven of Heavens could not contain he must descend unto the lower-most parts of the earth that 's a descent indeed His Humiliation appears in this that he who was thus high became a man and being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross. In this humiliation consider I say these two Points 1. The person who was humbled 2. The point of his humiliation Some things hath regard to the whole course of his life others to the conclusion or period of his life All his life from his incarnation to his passion was a continual thred of humiliation from his Cradle to his Cross from his womb to his Tomb so here is set down the humbled life of our blessed Saviour For I would not have you think his humiliation consisted only in coming to the Cross when they so mercilesly handled him it cost him more then so as sinners have the curse of God on them in their life as well as in their death so Christ must have a
miserable life as well as an accursed death Though the heat came at the end of the Tragedy yet his whole life was a continual suffering Consider the degrees of it 1. He made himself of no Reputation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he emptied himself It was the second person in the Trinity that thus humbled and emptied himself not in his divine nature but his assumed of all his transcendent endowments Consider the particulars of it he took on him the form of a servant Was not this a great humiliation That the second person in the Trinity should stoop so low as to take on him the nature of one who is not worth the looking on that he should take dust and ashes upon him Psalm 113.5 6. Gods greatness is thus expressed Who is like unto the Lord our God who dwelleth on high who humbleth himself to behold the things in heaven and in the earth What Humiliation is that compare these two humiliations together It is but an humiliation to cast but his eye upon the heavens to look upon the most glorious of all his works to look upon the Angels but what is man that thou so regardest him that thou shouldst not only look upon him but take him up make him an inmate under thine own roof this is a greater abasement but here 's a further degree Christ during the time of his pilgrimage was content to deprive himself of his Glory that he now enjoyes by reason of his Hypostatical Union with the God-head he deserves all honor and glory When he brought his first begotten into the world he saith And let all the Angels worship him Heb. 1.6 Every knee bows to him that is thus highly exalted We see Christ crowned with glory and honor all Dominion and Power being made subject unto him yet he for thirty three years and an half was content to be exiled from his Fathers court John 17.5 Glorifie thou me with the glory I had with thee before the world was which is expounded in the Proverbs where the Wisdome of God was shewn before the world was framed Prov. 8.30 Then I was by him as one brought up with him and I was dayly his delight rejoycing always before him this was the work before the foundation of the world which God was doing the Father was glorifying the Son and the Son was glorifying the Father The Father took infinite delight in the Son and the Son took infinite delight in the Father and the Holy Ghost in them both To be deprived of such a sight and such a glory as this and for thy sake to be banisht from that high Court where not to enjoy that fulness of joy was an emptying of himself yet all this he did for thee 2. He minded not his own things if he had he might have presently sat at Gods right hand where is fulness of joy for evermore but his bowels yearned on us and took upon him the form of a servant and was found in shape of a man that is as an ordinary man We know what the nature of servitude is Every man naturally desires liberty but Christ that he might make thee free was content to be bound as an Apprentice and endure a servile estate Christ both in respect of God and man took on him the form of a servant 1. For him to be Gods servant was an Humiliation though for us it be the greatest honour to be Gods servants Saint Paul makes it his prime Epithite Paul a servant of Jesus Christ. And David calls himself the servant of the Lord O Lord I am thy servant truly I am thy servant But it was an Humiliation for Christ to become Gods servant For him who thought it no robbery to be equal with God to become Gods servant and to take a nature on him that he might say My Father is greater then I behold my Father and I were one but now taking on me a humane nature I am made inferior to my Father I am become his servant Behold my servant in whom I am well pleased Isa. 53. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many there is much difference in servants A free servant a bond servant A very bond-man doth Christ make himself being man and accounts it as great honour as may be not only to be his Fathers servant but his bond-man Can I shew that there is any such humiliation as this Look on Heb. 10.5 Sacrifice and burnt offerings thou wouldst not but a body hast thou prepared me these words have relation to that of the Psalmist Psalm 40.6 Sacrifice and burnt offerings thou didst not desire but mine ears hast thou opened it is in the margent mine-ears hast thou digged or hast thou bored The boring of the ear was an expression of everlasting servitude Another servant that had not yet his ear bor'd might be free at the year of Redemption at the seventh year but if not his ear was bored that he might be a servant for ever according to that Exod. 21.4 He that loved his service so well as to have his ear bored is a servant for evermore Mine ear Lord hast thou bored I will be thy servant for ever Christ took on him the form of such a servant nay Christ was more then an ordinary slave he was one bâ—und to an everlasting slavery for he was the Son of an hand-maid Now the Children of an hand-maid wâ—re not to go forth at the year of Jubilee Exod. 21. The wife and her Children shall be her Masters and he shall go out by himself meaning thus he that was the son of an hand-maid must be bound Partus sequiter ventrem Now that Christ was the son of an hand-maid we have Maries own confession Behold thâ— hand-maid of the Lord and he hath looked upon the low estate of his hand-maid Luke 1. Hence David saith Psal. 116.16 O Lord I am thy servant and the son of thine hand-maid I am not only thy servant but thy bond-servant I am he who was born in thy house and out of thy house I will never go Thus is Christ a servant in respect of God But it is not only thus he is not only a servant in regard of God but he took on him the form of a servant in respect of men too Look what relations are between men that have superiority and Subjects Christ who was born a free child yet made himself a servant unto man he had a reputed father but a true and a natural mother from the twelft year of his age till the thirtieth he went with them and was subject unto them Luke 2.51 No Apprentice was more subject to his Master in his Trade then he was to his reputed father he kept him close unto his Trade Look on him out of the family in the Common-wealth He paid Tribute He might stand upon his priviledge Of whom do the Kings of the earth exact Tribute c. they answer Of strangers Then are the Children free If the
son of a temporary Prince be free how much more shall the Son of God be free But yet it behoves us to fulfill all righteousness He would be a subject unto Caesar and in recognition of his subjection he would pay Tribute though he fetched it out of the fishes belly Hence the Apostle tells us Rom. 13. For this cause you pay Tribute to testifie your subjection Neither was Christ only a servant to them who were in some Authority but generally among men he was in the state of a servant Mat. 20.28 The son of man came not to be ministred unto but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many Not to be a Master to command and have others to attend him but he came to be a servant see in what esteem he was had We account a servant in the next degree unto a beast for liberty is that whereby a man breâ—â—hs and a man were better be dead then have his liberty took from him and so Christ was not only a bond-man in regard of hâ—s Father but in regard of men In the estimation of men he was vilified for a bond-man and that will appear by the price for which he was sold. It was thirty pieces of silver To consider what the price was is a considerable part of his passion There is a Prophesie cited out of Jeremy in your books but it is Zachary though I have seen some copies which mentioned neither but only according to the words of the Prophet it is Zach. 11.13 Cast it unto the potter a goodly price that I was prized at of them He speaks it with disdain And I took the thirty pieces of silver and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord. Exod. 21.32 There is a place parallel to it which will expound it clearly If an Ox shall push a man-servant or a maid-servant that he die the Owner of the Ox shall give to the Master of the servant thirty shekels and the Ox shall be stoned It was the very price that was paid for a slave Thirty shekels which is 3 l. 15 s. in our money A base estimation they had of Christ as if he were a bond-man the same price that was given for a slave that was killed by an Ox for this same price was he sold. In the second book of Josephus cap. 12. When Ptolomaeus Philadelphus would redeem all the Jews which were bond-men It s set down what he paid for a slave There is set down a great summ of money and the number of the slaves Here stands the valuation divide the number of Drachms by the number of slaves and you shall find the quotient for every man 120 drachms four Drachms make a shekel thirty shekels was the ordinary rate cryed in the Market for the price of a bond-man Thus Christ took on him the form of a bond-man not only Gods bond-man but in the estimation of men so despicable that they valued him at no higher rate then thirty pieces of silver This is but the beginning and entrance on Christs humiliation to be made in the similitude of sinfull flesh and in the verity of true flesh Christ had all infirmities as weariness hunger thirst which follow a sinfull man which were not sinfull such a nature he took upon him and then he became obedient both by active and passive obedience That which remains of the pains of his life to the passage of his dolefull death we will speak of the next time FINIS PHIL. 2.8 And being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto the death even the death of the Cross. IN these words and those that went before you see there is delivered unto us the point of the humiliation of the Son of God It stands in this 1. That he took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of man God the Son the second person in the Trinity did assume our dust and ashes unto the Unity of his own sacred person 2. This humane nature being thus assumed he was content to deprive himself a long time of that beatifical vision which he might have still enjoyed in that time was as obedient as the meanest and poorest servant of his Father Nor was he only actively but passively obedient He was obedient unto the death he was content to lay down his life for our Redemption And it was not every death that would serve the turn but it must be the death of the Cross the most accursed shamefull and painfull death that death which was most suitable and best able to answer the wrath of God First He humbled himself by taking our nature upon him He that thought it no robbery to be equal with God took upon him the form of a man If it were an abasement for God to look upon heaven the most glorious of his works how much more to take upon him a clod or peice of this earth and unite it to his own sacred person for ever This was a descending indeed he descended first that he might ascend Eph. 4.9 Now that he ascended what is it but that he descended first into the lower parts of the earth That is he descended into the womb of the Virgin and it was a great abasement indeed for him thus to descend Wherefore the Psalmist speaking of the wonderfull framing of the Babe in the womb saith Psalm 139.15 My substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth So that we see God descended into the lowermost parts of the earth and there was he fashioned A great humiliation it was for him to be thus inclosed Thus did he humble himself in taking our nature Had he taken the form of a King upon him it hâ—d been a great humiliation how much more when he took on him the form of a servant He came not in state to be ministred unto but to minister as we shewed the last day Nor was he only his Fathers servant but a servant of servants and therein underwent Canaans curse A servant of servants shalt thou be Our Saviour became such a servant He which was the Author of freedom John 8.26 If the Son make you free then are you free indeed He I say who was the Kings son and so the most free the Author of it to all that enjoy any spiritual freedom became a servant that we which were servants might be made free But besides this it s added here that he humbled himself Having taken on him the form of a servant he humbled himself Where we may observe what made the suffering of our Saviour so meritorious It was because it was active free and voluntary Our Passions are contrary to our Will We are drawn to it as it is said of Peter When thou art old they shall lead thee whether thou wouldst not John 21.18 Peter dyed the same death our
Saviour did according to the external Passion but they led him whether he would not Our Saviour was an Actor in it Humbled himself A bare suffering God regards not so much but when it is done willingly and in obedience to God And as he was obedient in his death so also in his other passions In the Gospel according to St. John whereas the Text reads he was troubled the marginal note hath it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he troubled himself he was the Author of his own sufferings John 10.17 He was not humbled as a meer patient but he humbled himself and so it is said in Scripture oft He gave himself for us and in all his passive obedience he had an eye to do the Will of God The merit of his passive obedience ariseth from a mixture with his active This was a great part of his Priest-hood his humbling And how doth he take his Priest-hood upon him it was by his Fathers call He was cal'd unto it as was Aaron Heb. 5.4 No man saith the Apostle taketh this honor upon him but he that is called Now Christ being called to it he did it to follow his call And thus he did it actively it was not a bare suffering as those in hell suffer but according to his Fathers call Observe Heb. 10.9 That place taken out of the Psalm I am come to do thy Will O God c. What was it only in his active obedience No it was thy Will that he should suffer as the words following in the tenth verse import By the which Will we are sanctified and by the body of Jesus Christ once offered so that Christ offered up himself to do his Fathers Will so that his passive obedience was in his active So John 10.17 Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life that I may take it up again no man taketh it from me but I lay it down Our Saviour when he laid down his life put it off as a man that puts off his cloak and layes it from him They wondred that he was dead so soon it was because himself laid down his life His soul then was not drag'd or forced out of his body It was not only passive but active obedience No man taketh it from me I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it up This had I from my Father They are grosly deceived then that say Christs active obedience was not free and voluntary because he was commanded for as well may they say his passive is not voluntary and so not meritorious because it likewise was commanded which none can deny Thus Christs offering was a free-will offering though it was a most bitter one yet this being a part of his Fathers Will he went as voluntarily to the pains of the Cross as thou dost to thy dinner when thou art throughly hungry For his meat and his drink was to do his Fathers Will Jo. 4.34 And this makes it of such worth and efficacy that he did it willingly See it in the type that went before him in Isaac Isaac was grown up he was no Babe he was able to carry wood enough to burn himself when he went to be sacrificed and therefore sure he had strength if Isaac had pleased he might have ran away from the old man his Father yet he suffers himself to be bound and to be laid upon the wood a true type of our Saviour his also was a free-will offering and so a sweet smelling sacrifice unto God It being the highest active obedience it presently pacifieth the wrath of his Father He humbled himself and became obedient This obedience of our Saviour is the matter and ground of our Justification Rom. 5.18 As by the offence of one Judgement came on all unto condemnation so by the righteousness of one the free-gift came on all to Justification of life By the obedience of this blessed Saviour many are made righteous so that now our Saviours obedience followeth next Now this obedience is double Active or Passive 1. Active And this was that whereby he did all the Will of his Father The reason why he came into the world if we look the place before alledged will appear Heb. 10.5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world he saith Sacrifice and burnt-offering thou wouldst not have but a body hast thou prepared me In burnt offerings and Sacrifice for sin thou hast no pleasure then said I Behold I come in the volumâ— of thy book it is written of me that I should do thy Will O God When he cometh into the world saith he Lo I come For what to do thy Will O God The reason why he came into the world was that he might be obedient unto his Father Thus it behoveth us saith he to John to fulfill all Righteousness John wondred that he that was pure and spotless should come to him to be baptized He knew Baptism presupposed some sin or blot some stain or corruption to be washed off and therefore it s said Mark 1.5 That there came unto him all the Land of Judea to be baptized confessing their sins And sure if one should come to John and say he had no sin and yet desired to have been baptized by him he had no right to Baptism yet our Saviour saith Let alone let it be so that we may fulfill all Righteousness I have no need indeed in regard of my self but I have taken upon me the form of a servant and therefore what the lowest of them must do that must I do therefore was I circumcised and therefore am I baptized I came not to destroy the Law but to fulfill it And he fulfilled it to the utmost both in his active and passive obedience Now for his active Obedience it had a double 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or consummatum est First For his active Obedience in the whole course of his life I have glorified thy name and finished the work that thou gavest me to do Would you know what it is to glorifie God in this world It is to finish the work which he giveth us to do Art thou a Minister if thou wouldst glorifie God finish the work he gave thee to do then mayst thou say Glorifie thou me with thy Glory c. But now Christs work was not â—ll ended when he said he had finished it the greatest part was behind to wit his Passive obedience All the works of his life were done of which actions there Christ is to be understood but then cometh his Passion and that being finished there is something to do yet after that for he was to rise again to our Justification but for the oblation of the sacrifice it was fully finished If we look upon our blessed Saviour in the whole course of his life For 1. Though he lived in a whole world of sin yet he was free from all manner of sin 2. He was inriched with all manner of good works graces and
vertue Chrst had both of these He was free from any spot of sin though in the midst of a wicked world and there was nothing in him which could expose him to any temptations He was continually assaulted and yet he was spotless The Prince of the world came and yet he found nothing in him Satan could find nothing in him whereon to fasten any temptation Such a Priest it became us to have who was holy and harmless Heb. 7.16 Vndefiled separate from Sinners There is the purity of his nature he is holy and in his carriage harmless he did no man hurt· Undefiled a pure and innocent Lamb a lamb without blemish separate from sinners and could not contract any guilt of sin Though he conversed with Publicans and sinners at the Table yet they could not infect him He knew no sin neither was there guilâ— found in him 1 Pet. 1.19 Therefore we see when it comes to the point that the Devil would tempt him yet he himself must needs say What have I to do with thee thou holy one of God He is forced to acknowledge him to be so And so if we look on the place where he saith I do the Will of my Father alwayes there likwise he shews himself the holy one of God In a word as he was thus obedient unto God so was he subject to men too to his Father in the family and to Caesar in the Common-wealth As he tâ—ught he did subjection towards Governors was his Doctrine rather then he would not pay Tribute he would have it out of the fishes belly To shew a Recognition of his subjection unto higher powers the text tels us He went about doing good This man say they hath done all things well and at the last cast when all the quarrels and Accusations were brought against him they could bring nothing that could hold water that he could boldly challenge them all as it were Which of you can accuse me of sin You that pick so many holes in my coat come forth spare me not accuse me yet at the last he is accounted a just man Judas himself could acknowledge him to be blameless and that he had sinned in betraying his innocent blood Pilates wife could say to her husband Have thou nothing to do with that just man and Pilate himself washed his hands and would be free from the blood of that innocent person The thief crucified with him acquits him his whole life was a perfect obedience to the Law of God Christ is the end of the Law that the Righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us not by us we are not able to fulfill the Law but in us Christ did it for us and the Father is better pleased with the thirty three years hearty obedience of his Son then if Adam and all his posterity had been obedient throughout the whole course of the world So acceptable was this obedience to God And thus much of his active Obedience 2. Now for his passive obedience his suffering If our Saviour will be a sacrifice he must be used like one he must be slain if he will make satisfaction to his Father for us He must for our eating sower grapes have his own teeth set on edge Consider his humiliation both in life and death if we look on the service of Jacob under his Uncle Lakan his service was an hard service twice seâ—en years did he serve the drought consumed him by day and the frost by night and the sleep deparâ—ed from his eyes twenty years hard service foâ—rteen yâ—ars for his two wives and six years for his cattle Gâ—n 31.41 Our Saviour spent thirty three years in â—is hard sâ—rvice and full oft did the sleep depart from his eyes When Israel came to appear before Pâ—aâ—aoâ— My dayes sâ—ith he have been 130 years few and eâ—il have the days of thy servant been The true Israelite might say more Jacobs days were few but as few as they were they were 130 years but if we look upon our Saviours dayes they were scarce a quarter so many And thâ—t is a part of our Saviours humiliation that he was cut off in the midâ—l of his dayes If we look into the Psalm we shall find it a curse on the bloody and deceitfull man that he shall not liâ—e out half his dayes The livelie part of a mans age from Moses his time to this day in that Psalm of Moses Psalm 90. is â—hreescore years and ten half this is thirty five years and our Saviour is taken off before this thirty five is expired He was to take on him all the curses due to sinners to the bloody and deceitfull man he is cut off and cropt off in the midst of his vigour he that is that Melchisedeck â—hat hath neiâ—her beginning nor end of days was cut off as a branch lopt off as a â—wig from the land of the liâ—ing Iâ—a 53. He 's â—ul'd cut so his days were few far fewer thâ—n Jacobs he was not suffered to live out half his days yet if we look upon his days they were evil too evil enough as few as they were full of trouble and full of misery from his first coming into the world to his last going out 1. When he did descend into the lowermost part of the earth He was nine moneths in the womb of his mother and if we take the opinion of the Schoolmen he had his full understanding and Judgement all that time the free use of sense and reason though I do not aver it to be a truth only I say if it be so it makes his humiliation insupportable What an extream burthen would it be to us to be so long in the womb and in ripe understanding therefore there was somewhat in that But now 2. Look at his coming forth into the world though his mother were in her own City yet he was so despicable that there was not room for them in the Inn. Our Saviour that should one would think have been brought into a stately Palace was fain to have his lodging among the beasts and a Cratch for his Cradle The wise men when they came to worship him found him in no better case and what a disgrace was it instead of a Palace the Kings of the East should find our Saviour in a Cratch 3. And now when eight days are over he must have his skin cut off he must be circumcised and give the first payment or earnest of his blood How painfull and irksom a thing Circumcision was appears by that story in Gen. 34 where the sons of Jacob offering the Shechemites the condition of Circumcision and they accepting it it was so troublesome a thing that by reason of their soreness and weakness by it two of the sons of Jacob Simeon and Leâ—i slew a whole City The pain was so great that they could not manage their weapons therefore two men slew thousands of them Our blessed Saviour was thus served when the eight dayes were over he
was thus made sore and this was the first effusion of his blood 4. After the eight days are over then come the forty days and then he must be carried a long journey to be offered up to the Lord and his mother as if she had brought an unclean and impure thing into the world must be cleansed and purified And then she came to offer a sacrifice according to the Law of the Lord. Luke 2.24 A pair of turtle doves or two young Pigeons But was this the Law it were good if the Law were looked into See Levit. 12.8 The Law is this She shall bring a Lamb or if she be not able to bring a Lamb then two Turtles or two young Pigeons If she be not able but the margent hath it If her hand cannot reach to a Lamb if she be so poor that she cannot offer a Lamb. As if the Text should have said Alas poor woman poor Lady all she had was not able to reach to a Lamb so poor was she Doubtless her heart was as large as anothers but she was not able to offer a Lamb and is therefore content with two Turtles 5. Hence we may conceive in what state our Saviour lived till he came into the Ministry questionless in a poor house and he made many a hungry mâ—al when his mother was not worth a Lamb. All that they had must be by hard labor 6. Now our Saviour notwithstanding after he had travelled that weary journey to Jerusalem must return again and be subject to his Parents but how even as a servant in his Trade They had not bread to spare but what was gotten by hard laborious work At his Fathers Trade I say for so it s said of him Is not this the Carpenter It s put in the nominative case The Carpenter Mark 6. And whereas this is cast as a curse on our first parents and their seed Gen. 3.49 That in the sweat of their brows they should eat their bread Our Saviour must undergo this curse too he must work hard for his living with his own hands he must get a living for himself and his poor mother by a laborious Trade No wonder if he went many a morning without his break-fast and made many a hungry meal that lived in so poor a house and by so poor a Trade 7. If we come now to the time he lived after he came from his Father and Mother that same three years when he shewed himself more publickly in the world and you shall find him subject to those dangers diâ—ficulties and distresses which accompany evil dayes He was a Pilgrim and had no abode The Foxes haâ—e holes and the birds of the air nests but the Son of man had not where to lay his head He was a diligent Preacher of the Gospel although he had neither Prebend nor Parsonage he had nothing of his own but was relieved often by the Charity of certain devout and religious women 2. Besides all the reproaches that could be cast on a man were laid on him This man is a Wine-bibber and a Glutton a friend of Publicans and sinners And again Do we not say well thou art a Samaritan that is a Heretick He was a caster out of Devils and therein they denyed not but he did good but see the villany of it he was a good witch as we call them and though he did good yet it was by the help of Belzeâ—ub when he drew near his death see Mark 12. the Text saith They accuse him of many things Few things are expressed yet a great many comprehended in these words those that are expressed are hainous and notorious crimes First Against the first Table they accuse him of Blasphemy and therefore condemn him in the Ecclesiastical Court Do you hear his Blasphemy say they Then against the second Table they post him to the civil Court and there they lay to his charge high Treason against Caesar for he say they That maketh himself a King is an enemy unto Caesar and yet the innocent Lamb for all this opened not his mouth Insomuch that Pilate wondred he spake not a word in his own defence and the reason was because he came to suffer and to have all these slanders and reproaches put upon him not to excuse himself 3. He led a life subject to dangers when he went amongst his own people to preach the acceptable year of the Lord they bring him upon an high hill to the brow thereof with a purpose to cast him down and break his neck Others threaten to kill him too The Devil here follows him with temptations even to Idolatry it self Maâ— 4.6 The Devil himself tempts him forty days and then left him not as if he would return and tempt him no more but as St. Luke renders it The Devil left him for a season Luke 4. not as if he intended to leave him quite but to come and try him again The Scribes and Pharisees they tempt him too and prove him with hard questions which if he could not answer they would proclaim him an insufficient man and all the people would have laugh'd him to scorn Nor was this all his Ministry All his life was as it were paved with temptations every step was as it were a gin and trap to ensnare him 4. Add to all this that he was not like us He knew when and by what death he should die He knew in all the time of his suffering what he should suffer and what should come upon him at his death If any of us should know that he must die a cursed shamefull and painfull death and knew when it should be it would marr all our mirth and put us to our dumps in the midst of our jollity Our Saviour in the midst of all his joy on earth saith I have a Baptism to be baptized with he knew the cruel death which he should suffer on the Cross. And how is he pained till it be accomplished The pains of it run through all his life and might well make his whole life uncomfortable unto him In the twelft of John 23. a little before the Passover saith he The hour is come that the Son of man shall be glorified and then verse 27. Now is my soul troubled and what shall I say Father save me from this hour When the time was drawing nigh some five or six days before the consideration of it troubled him though he knew he should be glorified yet the fright of it enwrapt him with fear Now is my soul troubled what shall I say Father save me from this hour Such a kind of life did our Saviour lead few but evil were his dayes As evil as few he had no comfort in them Come we now to the point of his death the last thing and those things that did touch him therein are the Curse Shame and pain of it If there were any death more accursed he must die that death If any death more shamefull or more painfull
God will not know them that know not him If thou knowest not what the signs are or the relation of them to the thing signified hast no insight or understanding of the Mysteries Know that its to no other purpose to thee to come to the Sacrament then if thou wentest to a Mass to see a Mass to see the Gesticulations Elevations or if thou wentest to see a play not knowing to what end and purpose it was done Such a one is not a friend of God but an enemy that shall be destroyed in everlasting fire that knows not him Deceive not then your selves but seriously weigh it and consider what a Judgement falls on us for this What an unworthy thing is it when as in one moneths space or less if a man had any care he might learn as much as would bring him to heaven What saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 15.34 Some have not the knowledge of God I speak this to your shame And a shamefull thing it is indeed when the knowledge of the Principles of Christian Religion may be had in so short a space to be so grosly ignorant as commonly many are It s a most unworthy and a shamefull thing to think the knowledge of Christ not worth thus much pains Thou that carest not for the knowledge of Gods wayes what hast thou to do to take his Word into thy mouth to tread in his Courts I doubt not but very many here too are but Babes in Christ. An ignorant person then cannot possibly come worthily for we are to come with faith and Faith cannot be without knowledge And hence are they joyned both together By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many Isa. 53.11 By his knowledge not subjective but objective the knowledge of him if thou knowest not him his Nature and Offices the end of his offering himself and will be still a meer Ignoramus come not to Gods Table go to Nebuchadnezzar and feed with him amongst the beasts thou hast nothing to do here This is the first sort 2. The second are those that obey not the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They have wit enough and can talk of Religion fast enough but where is the obedience is required I know Christ gives me the proffer of Christ Jesus Can I cast down my own proud Will and submit it lay down my stately plumes and take him not only as my Priest to sacrifice himself for me but as my Lord and my King to be guided governed and ruled by him when such a one comes that hath not the power of grace in him who is filled with nothing but Rebellion and profaneness when such a one comes and presumes to sit down at Gods Table it is a most unworthy Act It s more fit that such a one should feed amongst the swine then eat the body and drink the blood of his Saviour Nor is it an unworthy Act for these only but also for civil honest persons though civility be a good stock whereon the sience of grace may be grafted but if a man had nothing besides what nature Education can teach what moral Phylosophy can store us with we have nothing to do at this Table of the Lord. How can I dare presume to eat Christs body and drink Christs blood that am not acquainted with God know not the Principles of Religion and will not be swayed by him nor be obedient unto his Gospel These are the particulars then which make a man an unworthy Receiver when he is an ignorant person and will not obey the Gospel of Jesus Christ such persons are to be discarded and casheer'd they eat the Judgement of condemnation unto themselves But there are as I shew'd you a second sort that come that have interest in the business such as have Knowledge Grace and Faith in Christ and shall taste of the new wine with Christ in the world to come and be with Christ which notwithstanding may eat and drink unworthily and come unpreparedly and irreverently whereby they lose that comfort that otherwise they might have and these though they eat not the Judgement of condemnation yet they do the Judgement of chastisement they put Gods seal to a blank but the former sort put it to a false instrument they put it to a blank I say and by that means loose much comfort yea life it self too perchance They eat a Judgement of Chastisement by putting it thus to a blank they taste Gods displeasure in sickness weakness and death but I will shew you how you may avoid this why come worthily Fit your sâ—lves to the purpose set to it and thou shalt see one Communion will even bring thee to Heaven I say if that thou couldst but one Communion fit thy self to come worthily thou wouldst find exceeding comfort in it Try the Lord once and see what a mighty encrease of grace this will bring unto thee That you may know how you may come worthily there are three things requisite to every worthy Receiver at the Lords Table 1. Some things are requisite before the Action be enterprized or else I shall come very unworthily 2. Some at the time and in the very act of Receiving 3. Others after the Communion is ended Many will be perswaded that there is some preparation to be used before hand but never do as much as dream of any after whereas if a man neglect this the Lords meat is as it were lost in us 1. As for those things which are requisite before we come to the Lords Table they are these 1. A Consideration what need I have of the Sacrament Is there any such necessity of it Examine then what need have I to eat my meat and drink When we see God brings this before us let us reason thus with our selves it is as needfull for the nourishment of my soul to receive the Sacrament as for my body to take meat and drink This is that whereby we are spiritually strengthned and enabled to hold out to the last And here I 'le not stand to dispute the case whether a man may fall from Grace or not And no doubt but he may yet I say not that he doth I say no doubt but he may and why there is such an opposition and antipathy betwixt the flesh and the spirit that did not God refresh the spirit now and then it might be overborn by the bulk of our corruptions Now Gods Ordinances are appointed to keep it in heart and refresh it as the sick spouse was staid with Apples and comforted with flagons And God hath appointed his Sacrament of the Lords Supper to strengthen and continue that life which we received in Baptism as by spiritual nourishment In Baptism our stock of life is given us by the Sacrament is confirmed and continued If a child be born only and after birth not nourished there is none but will know what a death such a soul will die So it is here unless Christ be pleased to nourish that life which he
will not be in good liking that eats but once a year but a man must eat once a day at least A Christian should feed on Christ every day make him his ordinary food renewing every day the acts of his faith receive Christ crucified by faith every day If a Christian would consider that God offers Christ unto him every day and thou renewest thy faith and claspest him every day it would be a special way whereby joy should be raised in the soul. It s said in Rom. 15.13 We rejoyce in the hope of the glory of God Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost Thus when thou hast exercised the acts of faith in believing and then upon that rejoycest then its seasonable and true joy and not the counterfeit joy of the wicked when it arises and springs from believing when that procureth it it likewise distinguishes it from all false joys The Apostle tells us Phil. 1.24 Having this confidence I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith It is called the joy of faith because it springs from that principle of rejoycing from the mother grace that your rejoycing may be the more abundant The preaching of the Word whereby faith is wrought brings abundance of joy That place of St. Peter is remarkable 1 Pet. 1.8 Whom having not seen ye love in whom though now you see him not yet believing ye rejoyce with joy unspeakable and full of glory yet believing that is yet exercising the acts of faith which we too much neglect If we did exercise these acts every day we should have our Charter of joy renewed every day yet believing ye rejoyce 3. Pray and be thankful praise and thanksgiving are those fruits which fulfill all our joy when thou prayest thou conversest with God thou speakest with him face to face as Moses did He who can pray spiritually and pray hard unto God as Moses face shined when he talked with God so will thy soul thrive praying hard and being thankful there is no greater means then this to get this joy Psal. 37.1 Rejoyce in the Lord O ye righteous for praise is comely for the upright Upon this hangs all our comfort praise alwayes brings rejoycing the one begets the other In Isaiah The comfort there that Gods children receive is the changing of rayment Christ preaching the acceptable year of the Lord to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion to give to them beauty for ashes the oyle of joy for mourning the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness The ground of praise is joy one follows the other Observe God will give us the oyle of joy Christ was anointed with this oyle above his fellows Christ hath fulnesse of joy this oyle doth not come on his Priesthood alone but it trickles down unto the lowermost hemme of his garment I will adde in the last place when a man considers the great things which are given to him by God and what an estate we get by Christ. I have forgivenesse of sins and blessed is the man whose sinnes are forgiven Christs blood is wine and my name is written in the book of life Do not rejoyce saith our Saviour because the Divels are subject unto you but because your names are written in the book of life When I consider that I am not in the black Roll and it is my faith which strengthens me which makes me reckon Christ my chiefest wealth this makes me rejoyce in mine inheritance and in hope of the glory of God When I consider the great reward in the world to come this is a great cause of rejoycing and therefore Gods children long for the coming of Christ it is made Tit. 2.13 a mark of those that shall be saved That they long for the appearance of Jesus Christ looking for and hastning unto the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. And in 2 Pet. 3.12 Looking for and hastning unto the coming of the day of God A longing expectation not only they but we also that have the first fruits of the Spirit groan and long for the coming of it and therefore the last breath of the Scripture is breathed in this Rev. 22.20 He that testifyeth these things saith Surely I come quickly Amen even so be it come Lord Jesus there is a sweet Allegory to expresse this in Cant. ult 14. make haste my beloved and be like the Hinde and like the Roe Come Lord Jesus come quickly and come as the Hinde and as the Roe and as a Hart upon the Mountaine of spices Make hast and come quickly be swift and do not tarry and in a better place I cannot end FINIS A TABLE An Advertisement That the Printers mis-paging may be no hindrance to the use of this Table the Reader is to take notice that it refers to the pages as they are figured not as they should be and that whereas after page 431. the numbers take their rise back at 361. and from thence are repeated over again this Asterisk * placed before any figure notes the latter order of pages so figured A ACceptation and Affiance two acts of Faith page 424 Active Obedience See Obedience Aggravations of sin p. 90 A temporary Believer desires Christ only in Affliction p. * 388 389 Assurance no part of justifying faith p. 428. It is attainable p. * 457 Why so many Christians want it p. * 438 B. Baptism what it obliges to p. 54. It hath not its full effect till the day of our death ibid. To believe is a hard matter p. 53.426 To believe is our duty p. 408 Five words or Scripture-wayes that God uses to perswade sinners to Believe in Christ viz. General Proclamation p. 402. Special invitations p. 405. Entreaties p. 406. Commands p. 408. Threatnings p. 409 To Believe is to come to Christ p. * 350 It is exprest by Hungring and Thirsting p. * 372 A Believers case like the Beggars p. * 376 A true Believer distinguished from a Temporary 1. by the ground of his desires p. * 388. 2. by his desiring Grace as well as Mercy p. * 394 3. by his Love to God p. * 395 A Believers priviledge p. * 456 C. GOd Calls sinners to Christ by five words p. 402 Christ's equality with God p. 360. It renders his Humiliation the greater and more meritorious p. 361 Christ's Humiliation the extent degrees and particulars of it p. 363 371 372. Part of his Humiliation to be Gods Servant p. 365. He was a Serant on earth in respect of men p. 367. used and valued at the rate of a bond-man p 368 Christ's sufferings the more meritorious because voluntary p. 374. Christ's Active Obedience in the course of his life p. 375. his Humiliation and sufferings from his Conception to his death described p. 379. c. Christ's death described