Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A65293
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The doctrine of repentance, useful for these times by Tho. Watson ...
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Watson, Thomas, d. 1686.
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1668
(1668)
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Wing W1122; ESTC R38513
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84,062
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186
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so discompose body and mind that one is but in an ill posture at such a time to take care for his soul. In sickness a man is scarce fit to make his will much less to make his peace The Apostle saith Is any sick among you let him call for the Elders of the Church Iam. 5. 14. He doth not say is he sick let him pray but let him call for the Elders that they may pray over him A sick man is very unfit to pray or repent he is like to make but sick work of it When the body is out of tune the soul must needs jar in its devotion Upon a sick bed a person is more fit to exercise impatience than Repentance We read that at the pouring out of the fourth Vial when God did smite the Inhabitants and scorched them with fire They blasphemed the Name of God and repented not Rev. 16. 9. So when the Lord pours out his Vial and scorcheth the body with a Feaver the sinner is fitter to blaspheme than repent 4. How dost thou who puttest off all to a sick bed know that God will give thee in that very juncture of time grace to repent The Lord usually punisheth neglect of Repentance in time of health with hardness of heart in time of sickness Thou hast in thy life time repulsed the Spirit of God and art thou sure it will come at thy call Thou hast not taken the first season and perhaps thou shalt never see another spring-tyde of the Spirit more All this considered may hasten our Repentance Do not lay too much weight upon a sick-bed 2 Tim. 4. 21. Do thy diligence to come before winter There is a winter of sickness and death a coming therefore make haste to repent let thy work be ready before winter To day hear Gods voice Heb. 3. 7. CHAP. X. The Trial of our Repentance IF any shall say they have repented let me desire them to try themselves seriously by those seven Adjuncts or Effects of Repentance which the Apostle laies down 2 Cor. 7. 11. 1. Carefulness The Greek word signifies a solicitous diligence or careful shunning all temptations to sin The true penitentiary flies from sin as Moses did from the Serpent 2. Clearing of our selves The Greek word is Apology The sense is this though we have never so much care yet through strength of temptation we may slip into sin now in this case the repenting soul will not let sin lye festring in his conscience but doth judge himself for his sin he pours out tears before the Lord he begs mercy in the Name of Christ and never leaves till he hath gotten his pardon Here he is cleared of guilt in his conscience and is able to make an Apology for himself against Satan 3. Indignation He that repents of sin his spirit riseth against it as ones blood riseth at the sight of him whom he mortally hates Indignation is a being fretted at the heart with sin The penitent is vexed with himself David calls himself a fool and a beast Psal. 73. 22. God is never better pleased with us than when we fall out with our selves for sin 4. Fear A tender heart is ever a trembling heart The penitent hath felt sins bitterness this Hornet hath stung him and now having hopes that God is reconciled he is afraid to come near sin any more The repenting soul is full of fear he is afraid to lose Gods favour which is better than life he is afraid he should for want of diligence come short of salvation he is afraid lest after his heart hath been soft the waters of Repentance should freeze and he should harden in sin again Prov. 28. 14. Happy is he that fears alwaies A sinner is like the Leviathan who is made without fear Iob 41. 29. A repenting person fears and sins not a graceless person sins and fears not 5. Vehement desire Sowre sauce sharpens the appetite So the bitter herbs of Repentance sharpen desire But what doth the penitent desire he desires more power against sin and to be released from it 'T is true he hath got loose from Satan but he goes as a prisoner that hath broke Prison with a fetter on his leg he cannot walk with that freedom and swiftness in the waies of God he desires therefore to have the fetters of sin taken off he would be freed from corruption he cries out with Paul Who shall deliver me from this body of death Rom. 7. 24. In short he desires to be with Christ as every thing desires to be in its centre 6. Zeal Desire and zeal are fitly put together to shew that true desire puts forth it self in zealous endeavour How doth the penitent bestir himself in the business of salvation How doth he take the Kingdom of Heaven by force Matth. 11. 12. Zeal quickens the pursuit after glory Zeal encounters with difficulty is imboldened by opposition tramples upon danger Zeal makes a repenting soul persist in godly sorrow against all discouragements and oppositions whatsoever Zeal carries a man above himself for Gods glory Paul before conversion was mad against the Saints Act. 26. 11. And after conversion he was judged mad for Christs sake Act. 26. 4. Paul thou art besides thy self But it was Zeal not Phrenzy Zeal doth spirit and animate duty it causeth fervency in Religion which is as fire to the sacrifice Rom. 12. 11. As fear is a bridle to sin so Zeal is a spur to duty 7. Revenge A true Penetentiary pursues his sins with an holy malice he seeks the death of them As Sampson was avenged on the Philistines for his two eyes He useth his sins as the Jews used Christ he gives them gall and vinegar to drink he crucifies his lusts Gal. 5. 24. A true child of God seeks to be revenged most of those sins which have dishonoured God most Cranmer who had with his right hand subscribed the Popish Articles was revenged on himself he put his right hand first in the fire David did by sin defile his bed after by Repentance he watered his bed with tears Israel had sinned by Idolatry and afterwards they did offer disgrace to their Idols 1 Sam. 30. 22. Ye shall defile the covering of thy graven Images of silver Mary Magdalen had before sinned in her eye by adulterous glances and now she will be revenged on her eyes she washeth Christs feet with her tears she had sinned in her hair it had intangled her Lovers now she will be revenged on her hair she wipes Christs feet with it The Israelitish women who had been dressing themselves by the hour and had abused their Looking-glasses to pride afterwards by way of revenge as well as zeal offered their Looking-glasses to the use and service of Gods Tabernacle Exod. 38. 8. So those Conjurers who used curious Arts oâ—… Magick as it is in the Syriack when once they
repented brought their Books and by way of revenge burned them Act. 19. 19. These are the blessed fruits and products of Repentance and if we can find these in our souls we have arrived at that Repentance which is never to be repented of CHAP. XI A necessary Caution inserted SUch as have solemnly repented of their sins let me speak to them 1. By way of Caution Though Repentance be so necessary and excellent as you have heard yet take heed that you do not ascribe too much to Repentance The Papists are guilty of a double errour 1. They make Repentance a Sacrament Christ never made it so and who may institute Sacraments but he who can give vertue to them Repentance can be no Sacrament because it wants an outward sign A Sacrament cannot properly be without a sign 2. The Papists make Repentance meritorious they say it doth ex congruo merit pardon this is a gross errour Indeed Repentance fits us for mercy As the Plough when it breaks up the ground fits it for the seed So when the heart is broken up by Repentance it is fitted for remission but it doth not merit it God will not save us without Repentance nor yet for it Repentance is a qualification not a cause I grant repenting tears are precious they are as Gregory saith the fat of the sacrifice And as Basil saith the medicine of the soul. And as Bernard the wine of Angels but yet tears are not satisfactory for sin We drop sin with our tears therefore they cannot satisfie Austin saith well I have read of Peters tears but no man ever read of Peters satisfaction Christs blood only can merit pardon We please God by Repentance but we do not satisfie him by it To trust to our Repentance is to make it a Saviour Though Repentance helps to purge out the filth of sin yet it is Christs blood washeth away the guilt of sin therefore do not idolize Repentance Do not rest upon this that your heart hath been wounded for sin but rather that your Saviour hath been wounded for sin When you have wept say as he Lord Iesus wash my tears in thy blood CHAP. XII Comfort to the Repenting Sinner 2. LET me in the next place speak by way of comfort Christian hath God given thee a repenting heart know these three things for thy everlasting comfort 1. Thy sins are pardoned Pardon of sin circumscribes blessedness within it Psal. 32. 1. Whom God pardons he crowns Psal. 1â—…3 4. Who forgiveth thy iniquities who crowneth thee with loving kindness A repenting condition is a pardoned condition Christ said to that weeping woman Thy sins which are many are forgiven Luk. 7. 47. Pardons are sealed upon soft hearts O thou whose head hath been a fountain to weep for sin Christs side will be a fountain to wash away sin Zach. 13. 1. Hast thou repented God looks upon thee as if thou hadst not offended he becomes a friend a father he will now bring forth the best Robe and put it on thee God is pacified towards thee and will with the Father of the Prodigal fall upon thy neck and kiss thee Sin in Scripture is compared to a cloud Isa. 44. 22. No sooner is this cloud scattered by Repentance but pardoning love shines forth Paul after his Repentance obtained mercy 1 Tim. 1. 16. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I was all bestrowed with mercy When a spring of Repentance is open in the heart a spring of mercy is open in Heaven 2. God will pass an Act of Oblivion he so forgives sin as he forgets Ier. 31. 34. I will remember their sin no more Hast thou been penitentially humbled the Lord will never upbraid thee with thy former sins After Peter wept we never read that Christ upbraidâ—…d him with his denial of him God hath cast thy sins into the depth of the Sea Micah 7. 19. How not as Cork but as Lead The Lord will never in a judicial way account for them God when he pardons doth as a Creditor that blots the debt out of his Book Isa. 43. 25. * Some move the question whether the sins of the godly shall be mentioned at the last day The Lord saith he will not remember them and he is blotting them out So that if their sins be mentioned it shall not be to their prejudice for the debt-book is crossed 3. Conscience will now speak peace O the musick of conscience Conscience is turned into a paradise and there a Christian doth sweetly solace himself and pluck the flowers of joy 2 Cor. 1. 12. The repenting sinner can go to God with boldness in prayer and look upon him not as a Judge but a Father He is born of God and is heir to a Kingdom Luk. 6. 20. He is incircled with Promises he no sooner shakes the tree of the Promise but some fruit falls To conclude the true penitentiary may look on death with comfort his life hath been a life of tears and now at death all tears shall be wiped away Death shall not be a destruction but a Gaol-delivery Thus you see what great comfort remains for repenting sinners Luther said before his conversion he could not endure that bitter word Repentance but afterwards he found much sweetness in it CHAP. XIII The resolving of a Question SOme may propound a question Whether must our Repentance and sorrow be alwaies alike A. Though Repentance must be alwaies kept alive in the soul yet there are two special times wherein we must renew our Repentance in an extraordinary manner 1. Before the receiving of the Lords Supper This spiritual Passeover is to be eaten with bitter herbs Now our eyes should be fresh broached with tears and the stream of sorrow overflow A repenting frame is a sacramental frame A broken heart and a broken Christ do well agree The more bitterness we taste in sin the more sweetness we shall taste in Christ. When Iacob wept he found God And he called the name of the place Peniel for I have seen God face to face Gen. 32 30. The way to find Christ comfortably in the Sacrament is to go weeping thither Christ will say to an humble penitent as to Thomas Reach hither thy hand and thrust it into my side and let those bleeding wounds of mine heal thee Another time of extraordinary Repentance is at the hour of death This should be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a weeping season Now is our last work to be done for Heaven and our best wine of tears should be kept against such a time We should repent now that we have sinned so much and wept so little that Gods bag hath been so full and his bottle so empty We should repent now that we repented no sooner that the garrisons of our hearts held out so long against God ere they were levelled by Repentance We should repent now that we have loved Christ no