Piety and Godliness taught them I shall add further in commendation of this Psalm what the Learned Mollerus observes concerning it It is a Psalm of that excellency saith he that the more we 〈…〉 the more we shall like it and the oftner we meditate on it the more honey and sweetness will it afford to us I know not any Psalm saith he that has been cited so often by the Fathers that has been held in greater esteem amongst Christians or out of which the Church of God has in all Ages received more Comfort or more Instructions The great worth and excellency of this Psalm will I hope be sufficient to raise your Attention to those words I have chosen out of it for this solemn occasion They contain in them a serious and passionate Invitation made by Daâ—… one of the best and greatest of men unto sâ—ch 〈◊〉 are ignorant Come ye Children hearken â—nto mâ— I will teach you the fear of the Lord. For the fuller opening and handling of these words I will endeavour to shew you 1. The great necessity of teaching and instructing Children 2. The Persons that are to be taught and they are Children Come ye Children 3. What they are to be taught namely the â—â—ar of the Lord. 4. The persons that should take care Children be taught the fear of the Lord. Ye see 〈◊〉 a Magiâ—… a King thought it his duty to look after thâ—se maters Come ye Children hearken unto me I will teach you the fear of the Lord. 5. The duties of such as are to be taught they must come and they must hearken Come ye Children hearken unto me I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Of these parts in their order I. Let us consider the great necessity of teaching and instructing Children These words as I have told you already import a solemn serious and passionate invitation of exhortation made by King David and we should be very injurious both to the Prudence and Piety of that Holy man if we did not conclude from hence the great necessity of teaching and instructing Children a larger prospect of which necessity I shall give you in these following particulars 1. The great necessity of teaching and instructing Children may easily he concluded from those very significant and emphatical metaphors by which this duty is set forth in Scripture you 'll find it set forth by the metaphors of Milk of Principles and of a Foundation Will any say it is not necessary to give Milk to Children for the preservation of their Natural Life and will it not then be more necessary to feed them with the sincere Milk of the Word that they may grow in Grace till they come to the Perfect Man Is it necessary that Children should learn the first rudiments and principles of knowledge before they can attain any perfection in it And will it not be necessary they should learn their Catechism some form of sound words which shall contain the principles of Religion that so aâ— length they may arrive at the saying knowledge of the truth Is a foundation necessary to the building of an house no less necessary is it in the judgement of the Holy Ghost that Christians be I built upon the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles and on Jesus Christ who is the chief corner-stone These are the illustrations of this duty we find in Scripture and they sufficiently imply the necessity of it But 2. This necessity of teaching and instructing Children will further appear from the consideration of originaâ— sin and mans natural aversâ—â—â—ss unto all that is good Since the fall of Adam we are such wild Trees as require due manuring and good husbandry to make us fruitful In Zophar's comparison man by nature is like a wild Asses Colt an Asses Colt for rudeness and the Colt of a Wild Ass for unruliness Aristotle though a Great Philosopher spoke but like a Heathen when he compared the Soul of man to a Rasa Tabula a pair of clean Tables or a perfect blank for the Soul is sadly blotted and blurr'd by original sin it is all stained and polluted by natural corruption As the Psalmist speaks we are shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin and therefore let us begin as soon as we can to instruct and Catechize children we shall find sin and Satan have got the start of us and that they stand in need of Instruction long before they are capable of it Great necessity therefore there is of timely and early instructions if it be only to root out these weeds of corrupt Nature But 3. These early instructions of Children will be found necessary if we consider that delays will make the work more difficult and dangerous Sin has its several ages as well as man At first it has only the weakness of an Infant and may easily be master'd by Religious Education but in a short time it will arrive at the strength of manhood and by custome take a firmer possession of the Soul To this purpose is that sad observation of St. Austin Dum servitur libidini facta est consuetudo dum confuetudini non resistitur facta est necessitas c. Whilest men indulge themselves in the ways of wickedness they easily contract an evil custome and this if neglected ends at last in a fatal necessity Youth is much more capable of instruction than the inveterate sinner Train up a Child saith Solomon in the way he should go and he will not depart from it when he is old But such as are harden'd in wickedness will receive very small benefit from instruction The Ethiopian as the Prophet speaks may as soon change his skin and the Leopard his spots as those that are accustomed to do evil learn to do well 4. The necessity of teaching and instructing Children will yet further appear if we consider how necessary it is to fit and prepare the younger sort for the other ordinances of God Milk is useful for Babes that they may grow up unto men and be able to digest strongâ—r meat Such as are not well grounded in the rudiments of Religion will not be much profited or edified by Preaching St. Paul does more than hint this in his Epistle to the Hebrews leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ saith he let us go on to perfection Christians must first be well Catechized and instructed in the principles of Religion and then they will more easily advance to higher degrees of saving knowledge Nor is Catechizing only necessary to fit and prepare Christians for the hearing of the word but it will also prepare them for the due celebration of both the Sacraments In the Primitive Church when any Heathens were so far converted to the Faith of Christ as to desire Baptism they were for some time publickly Catechized And because Easter was a solemn time appointed for the Baptizing of such Proselytes Lent was a time in which Catechizing was more solemnly
performed and this is one reason why Catechizing at this day is more particularly enjoyned in Lent But though it be a rare thing now a days to have Adults baptized yet such as are baptized in their Infancy do seldome understand their Baptismal Vow until they are well instructed in their Catechism Hence our Church according to her wonted prudence begins her Catechism with Questions relating unto Baptism such as are fit to remind the Catechumens of that Solemn Vow which their God-fathers and God-mothers made at the Font in their names And as these Catechetical instructions are useful for the better celebration of Baptism so they are not less useful for the due celebration of the Lords Supper For this end King James of happy memory at the request and with the approbation of his Clergy appointed Bishop Oâ—eral then Dâ—an of Pauls to frame that very useful part of the Church-Catechism which treats of both did Sacraments Here Catechâ—mens are taught more fully the â—ature and design of Baptism here also they are instructed in the nature and design of the Lords Supper what is represented by the Bread and Wine what are the ends for which this Sacrament was instituted what the benefits worthy Communicants receive and what qualifications are required in worthy Communicants How necessary then must teaching and Catechizing Children be which will thus help â—o fâ—â— them for all the ordinances of Heaven 5. The necessâ—â—y of teaching and instructing Children will yet further appear if we consider how much it will contribute to the good and welfare of the Kingdom Kingdoms as the Great Philosopher long ago observed consist of Towns Towns of Families and Families of such as either are or were Children so that to train up Children in the fear of the Lord is the best way to make good Families good Families will make good Towns and good Towns will make a good and an happy Kingdom By Catechizing the younger sort Children will understand their duty to their Parents Servants to their Masters Subjects to their Princes and all of them that duty which they owe to God If Children be well grounded in the principles of Religion they will not easily be tossed about with every wind of Doctrine they will not easily be drawn into Schism and Heresie or be so apt as many are to disturb the peace both of Church and State By such early instructions Religion will be best preserved in the purity thereof and more safely propagated to succeeding Generations All which do so eminently conduce to the welfare of a Kingdom that Catechizing cannot but be acknowledged a most important duty Hence the Athenians when they consulâ—â—d the Oracle How they might make their Common-wealth most happy and prosperous Were answer'd They might make it so by hanging those things which were most precious at their Childrens Ears by which was meant instructing them in the principles of Piety and Vertue Having now shown you at large the great necessity of Catechizing I come in the next place II. To enquire who those persons are that must be taught and Catechized and they are Children come ye Children This word Children is allowed some Latitude in Holy Writ and does not only signifie those that are such in respect of their age but such also as are Children in respect of understanding Hence is that exhortation of St. Paul Brethren be not Children in understanding but in understanding be men Here such as are ignorant are accounted Children by the Holy Ghost though in respect of years they may be Men. It follows therefore that all Children as soon as they are capable of Instruction and all that are ignorant whether through the neglect of their Parents and Sponsors or their own default should diligently attend upon this most profitable ordinance of Catechizing We find in the Primitive Church Adults and such as were stricken in years among their Catechumens Nay we are told that Arnobius and St. Austin wrote many pieces of Divinity when they were Catechumens and St. Ambrose was but in his Catechism when he was chosen Bishop of Millaine I the rather mention these great examples that none whether young or old rich or poor married or unmarried may deprive themselves of the great benefits of Catechizing by reason of some unwarrantable bashfulness But if there are any who will not come and answer the Questions of the Church Catechism I know nothing should hinder them from being present at the Explications of it But if men are unwilling to go so far I can only add that they may be welcome to more private Instructions whenever they shall desire them King David in the Text solemnly invites such as are ignorant to come and receive Instructions So that it is their duty to come and it will be a dangerous aggravation of their sin still to continue in ignorance when the means of knowledge are plentifully afforded them and they solemnly invited to accept of them c. I hope they will be the more ready to come when III. They are told in the third place what Children and such as are ignorant are to be taught and that saith our Psalmist is the fear of the Lord The fear of the Lord is but another name for Religion For as our Psalmist tells us elsewhere the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom a good understanding have all they that do his commandments Solomon who may pass for a good Interpreter of his Fathers mind tells us the same that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdome and as it is the beginning of Wisdome so it is the end and perfection of it too and therefore in his Book of Ecclesiastes he makes this the conclusion of the whole matter Fear God and which is the proper effect of it keep his Commandments for this is the whole duty of man Thus the fear of the Lord is but another name for Religion which like a perfect circle begins and ends with this one point King David does not invite those that are ignorant to come and learn the arts and methods of great Estates or procuring wordly honours but the fear of the Lord which will enable them to live holily in this world and happily in the next He would not have them come and hearken to a few speculative notions or some curious niceties but he would have them acquainted with the practical truths of Religion such as are able to make them wise unto Salvation Wisdom is the principal thing saith Solomon and therefore get Wisdom saith he and with all thy getting get understanding Now Behold the fear of the Lord that is wisdome and to depart from evil that is understanding The Church of England out of her pious care of all that are in communion with her has provided for those that are ignorant an exact Catechism which does contain all that is here meant by the fear of the Lord. In it you will not find any old wives
fables or endless Genealogies in it you will not find any abstruse points concerning Election or Reprobation But througâ—â—ut the whole frame of it King James's golden rule is punctually observed viz. the avoiding of all odd eurious deep and iâ—…e Questions It is a form of sound words and an exact form too It is not so prolix as to burden the memories of the Catechumens noâ— yet so short as to leave out any thing that is necessary to be known in order to Salvation In the Apostles Creed we have all the â—redâ—nda or Articles of our Faith In the Decalogue we have all the Agenda or such things as are necessary to be practised by Christians and in the Lords Prayer that most absolute form of Prayer we are taught to pray for such things as are agreeable to the will of God If any thing yet be wanting which a Christian ought to know in order to his Souls health it must be what relates to the two Sacraments and yet both these Sacraments as was shown above are fully explained in that supplement which was made by Bishop Overal So that if men will not be wanting to themselves they may out of this excellent Catechism be fully taught the fear of the Lord. I come now in the Fourth place to enquire who those persons are which ought to take care Children and such as are ignorant be taught the fear of the Lord and we may learn this in some measure from King David's example which is here proposed to our imitation Though he was a King one who had the troublesome affairs of a whole Kingdom to exercise his parts and employ his time yet he is so far from thinking it either below him or no part of his duty to instruct others that he passionately invites them to come and receive instruction His Son Solomon writes after this fair Copy which was set him by his pious Father and assumes the title of Ecclesiastes i. e. an Instructer of the Ignorant And sure if such Royal persons who wanted not imployment thought it their duty thus to promote the Salvation of others I know none that can plead an exemption from it Nay Solomon will inform us further That the mouth of the righteous will be a Well of Life Bonum est sui communicativum True Goodness whereever it is will be communicative and none but a cursed Cain will put the Question Am I my Brothers keeper We know the law of God commands us to extend our pity even to our Neighbours Ox when fallen into a pit And can we think that God does take care of Oxen and not of the Souls of men Sure for their sakes he says it and would have us extend our Christian pity and compassion towards our Neighbours Soul when at any time we see it in danger to fall into the bottomless pit Our Blessed Saviour has told us that the Soul of man is of more value than the whole World and he gave a sufficient proof of it when for their Redemption he shed his own most precious blood one drop of which was of more value than ten thousand worlds He must therefore be a very great stranger to the worth of Souls and that infinite love which Christ bears towards them who does not employ his utmost endeavours to promote their Salvation We are all obliged in our respective stations to exhort one another daily to love and to good works and as members of the same body we are bound to take care one of another But though this duty be inoumbent upon all Christians yet some persons are more particularly obliged to promote the Salvation of others by teaching and instructing them in the fear of the Lord. 1. This duty is in a peculiar manner incumbent upon Ministers It is the very end and design of their office to promote the Salvation of others by teaching those that are ignorant the fear of the Lord. We find under the Jewish Oeconomy the Priests enjoyned to teach the Law of God to children in the publick Assembly For this end and purpose the 48 Cities of the Levites were dispersed abroad through all their Tribes that they might have as Josephus tells us they had in every Village one that was called the Instructer of Babes and to this practice of theirs St. Paul fairly alludes in his Epistle to the Romans where he aggravates the sin of the Jew upon this account because he â—ad been instructed or as the Greek word properly signifies Catechized out of the Law And as God commanded his Priests under the Law so Christ under the Gospel commands his Ministers to teach and instruct such as are ignorant Hence is that solemn and passionate charge which our Saviour gives St. Peter and in him all Ministers in St. John's Gospel Peter lovest thou me more than these He saith unto him Yea Lord thou knowest that I love thee He saith unto him feed my Lambs These words of our Saviour are very remarkable for he does not only command his Ministers in this place to feed his Sheep but also his Lambs nay he first commands them to take care of his Lambs nay further he charges them as they have any love for him to take care of these And we find the Apostles were very observant of this passionate command of Christ for we read in Scripture of milk which they had for Babes of the Analogy of Faith and a form of sound words Nay further we have several heads of the Apostles Catechism expressly set down by the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ let us go on unto perfection saith he not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith towards God of the doctrine of baptisms and of laying on of hands and of the Resurrection of the dead and of eternal Judgement And to this practice of the Apostles did the practice of the Church exactly agree in succeeding Ages For St. Peter ordained St. Mark to be the first Catechist at Alexandria and Eusebius notes that in the year 181. when Pantaenus was Catechist there this office had flourished for a long time to Pantaenus succeeded Clemens Alexandrinus Origen Heraclas and Dionysius At Carthage St. Cyprian ordained Optatus Catechist St. Cyril bore this office at Jerusalem in his youth and then wrote those expositions of the Catechism which are extant at this day St. Austin also mentions one Deogratias a Deacon that had this office in his time I might add many more testimonies of this nature but these I hope will be sufficient to remind both my self and my Brethren of that duty our Lord and Master hath laid upon us in a peculiar manner If we shall neglect a duty so necessary so important a duty commanded by Christ and recommended by the practice of the Church of God in all Ages we shall be
very unlike the Holy man in the Text a man after Gods own heart who though he had another employment and that a very difficult and troublesome one yet invites such as are ignorant to come unto him and professes his readiness to teach them the fear of the Lord. Nay I will add that we must also forget that obedience which we owe the â—hurch of England for she has enjoyned this office upon the Curates of every Parish under the heaviest penalties that are in her power to inflict viz. a sharp reproof for the first offence a suspension for the second and excommunication for the third 2. This duty of teaching and instructing Children is a duty peculiarly incumbent on School-masters Our Church therefore requires of all School-masters that they have a Licence before they undertake a School and before they can get a Licence they must subscribe the Articles of our Church and thereby solemnly engage themselves to teach their Scholars sound doctrine as well as good literature School-masters are as I may speak Ministers Ushers and must prepare their Youth for the higher Instructions of the Temple Hence it was a very good Inscription which was written on the Walls of Pauls School in London Schola Catechisationis in optima fide Christi Intimating that this famous School as all others ought to be was designed by the Founders of it for a nursery of Piety and for the Catechizing Children in the True Faith of Christ. Nicephorus reports of Constantine and Theodosius that they took more than ordinary care in the choice of fit Masters for Children One great cause of Julian's Apostasie was his having two Pagan School-masters Libanius and Iamblichus Such School-masters therefore as do not instruct the youth committed to their charge in the true Religion they forget the very end for which Christian Schools were erected they transgress the Canons of the Church and sadly disappoint religious Parents of their pious hopes and choicest comforts All other learning without this fear of the Lord availeth nothing nay it will only qualifie men to do more mischief in this world and be more miserable in the next 3. Parents also must take care their Children be taught the fear of the Lord. St. Paul lays this injunction on them and commands them to bring up their Children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. As they have been instruments in making them Children of Wrath by Natural Generation so must they endeavour to make them the Children of Grace by Spiritual Regeneration St. Austin has left this character of his Mother Monica that she travelled with greater care and stronger pain for his Spiritual birth than she had done before for his Natural 4. All Masters of Families must take care that their Servants be taught this fear of the Lord. We find God Almighty highly commending Abraham and thinking him worthy to be acquainted with the secrets of Heaven upon this very account I know him saith God that he will command his Children and his houshold after him and they shall keep the way of the Lord. Holy Joshua engages not only for himself but for all his Family as for me and my house we will serve the Lord saith he I cannot pass by a remarkable saying of Lewis the Ninth that pious King of France who being found Catechizing a Scullion-boy that belonged to his Kitchen and being asked the reason he returned this most Christian answer I know there is not the meanest person in my Family but he has a Soul as precious as mine own and such as was bought by the precious blood of the Son of God Thus ye see Parents and Masters of Families must take care their Children and Servants be taught this fear of the Lord. And if they will discharge a good Conscience in this particular they must teach their Children and Servants by their holy examples and wholsome instructions at home and as they have opportunity they must send them to the Church to be Catechized by the Minister and because most Parents and Masters of Families are too apt to sleight this most useful ordinance of Christ. I shall set down the words of that Canon which our Church has provided in this particular If Parents and Masters of Families do not send their Children Servants and Apprentices to be instructed in the Catechism for the first offence they shall be punished by the Ordinary with Suspension and after a months obstinacy with Excommunication 5. This duty is in a peculiar manner incumbent upon God-fathers and God-mothers these are ordinarily called Sureties because they have bound themselves by a sacred obligation to secure God and his Church that their God-children shall be brought up in the fear of the Lord And in order hereunto they solemnly promise to instruct them concerning their Baptismal Vow to see they be vertuously brought up and learn all such things as a Christian ought to know and believe in order to his Souls health These must remember therefore that as their Charity is great in undertaking so important a trust so their Sin will be as great if they deal falsely with God and prevaricate with his Church 6. This duty is also incumbent upon Magistrates and such as are in Authority they must take care that such as are committed to their trust be taught the fear of the Lord. This was the practice of King David in the Text and it will be the honour as it is the duty of all Magistrates to follow his example St. Paul commands us to pray for Kings and all that are in Authority that under them we may live quiet and peaceable lives in all Godliness and Honesty Magistrates must not only secure the publick peace and quiet of the Kingdom but they must take care of Honesty and promote Godliness and Religion in the World This is so plain a truth that Aristotle learned it in the School of Nature for when he comes to reckon up those things which most conduce to the happiness of a Common-wealth he names these six Food Arts Arms Money Justice and which I should have named first the care of Divine things Now this they must do by the lustre of their Example and the influence of their Authority They are styled Gods in Scripture to denote they should be holy as God is holy They are styled Shepherds and if they will be faithful they must secure Christs flock from the fury of Wolves and the subtilties of Foxes they are further called Nursing Fathers and must take care their Children be fed with the sincere milk of the Word Indeed they must not usurp the Pulpit or invade the Ministerial office no man taketh this honour upon him but he that is called as Aaron was but yet it is their duty to defend the Faith to encourage Gods Ministers by allowing them an honourable maintenance and speaking comfortably unto them so long as they teach the good