Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
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A26158
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Ten sermons preach'd before Her Royal Highness, the Princess Ann of Denmark at the chappel at St. James by Lewis Atterbury ... LL.D. and one of the six preachers to Her Royal Highness.
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Atterbury, Lewis, 1656-1731.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing A4157; ESTC R35290
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112,085
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264
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Labour of proving to you the absolute and indispensable necessity which lies upon every one to continue in the Practice of this Duty And in truth this has been the usage of good and vertuous Men in all Ages of the world not only of those whose Examples are recommended to our Imitation in the Holy Scripture but also of those Heathens who have been eminent for Vertue and Morality The Psalmist tells us Psal 77.6 That he us'd constantly to call himself to an Account I call to remembrance my song in the night I commune with my own heart and my spirit made diligent search Amongst the Fathers of the Primitive Church we find all those who wrote upon practical Subjects pressing this Duty of Self-examination The time would fail me should I instance in the Precepts of St. Chrysostom Basil Gregory and the rest Neither were the Heathen Moralists wanting in the recommendation of it both by Precept and their own Examples That Precept of Pythagoras in his golden Verses is generally known 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ask thy self says he every Night What Sin have I committed this day What Good have I done What Good have I left undone which I ought to have done Seneca tells us Quotidie apud me causam dico I every day pass Judgment upon my own Actions when I am in Bed and the Light is taken away I run over all my Words and Deeds I consider how I have spent that day I omit nothing which I can recollect for why should I be afraid to reflect on my own Failings when I can say to my self this was not well done but do so no more He also tells us of his Friend Sixtus the Philosopher who duly thus examin'd himself before he went to rest What Disease of thy Soul or what Vice hast thou cur'd this day What Sin hast thou subdu'd Art thou a better Man to day than thou wast yesterday If so thou hast liv'd to some Purpose but if not thou hast but consum'd and lost thy time And to name no more the Divine Plato when he saw any Man do a wicked or unbecoming Action us'd to ask himself this Question 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 have I never been guilty of this Crime If this Sin looks so ill in that Man is it not worse in me If I have never been guilty of it let me be sure to avoid it for the time to come I might easily heap up many like Instances for this has been the Practice of good and vertuous Men in all Ages and in truth 't is hardly possible for a Man to be good and vertuous who omits or neglects the Performance of it And therefore I shall take this for granted And proceed Secondly To lay down some Directions how we may perform this Duty to the best advantage And 1. When we design to perform this Duty of Self-examination let us first free our Minds from all the Cares and Business of Life from every thing which will take up our Thoughts and apply our selves to this Task with seriousness and attention For since the Interests of this World and the next are widely different it will be impossible to attend on the one whilst our Thoughts are taken up about the other And we may as well fix our Eye upon two opposite Objects at the same time as keep our apprehensive Faculty intent both on Things temporal and Things spiritual When we have cleans'd and purg'd our Souls from all carnal and worldly Thoughts and Affections let us beseech God from whom are the Preparations of the heart that he will enable us impartially to examin and search into our own Souls enlighten our Understandings assist our Memories and discover to us those Sins which lie hid in our Consciences and teach us those things we know not which either we never took notice of or which we have forgot That we may have the same apprehensions of them at present we shall hereafter be affected with when we come to lie upon a Sick-bed and to have a Prospect of the other World Having thus fitted and prepared our selves let us consider how and after what manner we must Examine our selves And I. The time when we ought to employ our selves about this Duty II. What ought to be the Subject of our Examination And 1. As to the time when this Duty will be most seasonably perform'd I have already made it appear That it has been the Practice of good Men in all Ages to examine themselves daily and this with very good Reason For since Confession of Sin is one Condition which God requires of us before he will Seal the pardon of our Sins 't is impossible we should make a full and particular Confession of them unless we examine our selves daily The number of our Sins is so great that should we defer it till a farther time many of them would slip out of our Memories and then God has reveal'd to us no other Condition of Pardon but that general Confession of them Psal 19.12 cleanse thou me from my secret Sins and how can we call those Sins secret which are conceal'd from us only because we will not take the Pains to discover them What time of the day is most proper for this Employment every Man's Prudence must determine this must be directed by the Exigency of his Affairs but for the most part it will be requisite even in this Case Eccles 11.6 to follow the Advice of the wise Man In the morning sow thy seed and in the evening with-hold not thy hand To consider in the Morning what Temptations we are like to meet with that day what opportunities of doing good and making the most strong and firm Resolutions that we will resist the one and embrace the other And to call our selves to account in the Evening how well we have put these Resolutions into Execution whether we have perform'd our vows unto God or else shamefully given up his Cause and yielded to the importunity of a prevailing Temptation But besides this daily Examination of our selves there are other times when we ought to call our selves to an Account 'T is the great Duty of the Lord's Day A Day set apart on purpose that those Persons who all the week long are cumber'd with the Cares of this world employ'd in the Business of their Callings and in making provision for their Bodies might have some time to recollect themselves and to secure the eternal Welfare of their Souls And how can Men employ this day better I mean that part of it when they are not call'd upon to joyn in the publick Offices of Religion than in recollecting themselves how they have spent the week past what Sins they have been guilty of what good Actions they have perform'd what Progress they have made in a holy and vertuous Life and in considering what Temptations they are like to be expos'd to the following Week and in taking up Resolutions of walking more strictly and more
Undertakings depends much on our right timing of them and in nothing more than in Administring Reproof God came to Adam in the cool of the day and the best time to advise a Man is when he is Sedate and Calm and at leisure to consider of the Counsel we give him Every Man has his mollia tempora fandi Seasons when he is willing and dispos'd to receive an Impression and the way to make our Advice successful and profitable to him is to lay hold on these Opportunities for as Solomon well observes A word spoken in due season Prov. 15.23 how good is it it is like Apples of Gold in Pictures of Silver There must be also regard had to the place for the more private our Reproof is it is for the most part the better Matth. 18 15. If thy brother trespass against thee tell him his fault between thee and him alone Publick Correption is then only necessary when others are to be warn'd to leave the same Sin and avoid the same Snare Neither are all Persons to be treated after the same manner Inferiours must be very careful how they behave themselves towards their Superiours and Governours Is it fit to say to a King Job 34.18 thou art wicked and to Princes ye are ungodly Great Care must be had least what we think Zeal for God and the Good of our Neighbour should be justly interpreted Sawsiness and and Presumption And therefore when Nathan was sent by God himself to Reprove David he doth it after the most modest and submissive manner by representing his Case to him in a Parable and decently veiling his Reproof under the name of another Man With our Equals and Inferiours we may use greater Liberty and Freedom only taking Care that whilst we reprove the Vice we do not shew any distaste to the Person Many more Rules might be given but in this as in such like Cases much is to be left to Christian Prudence and he who carefully observes the first Rule I laid down with which I shall also conclude cannot do very much amiss Which is That we make the Glory of God and the good of our Neighbour the End and Aim of our Reproof as well as of our other Actions SERMON V. PREACH'D When the CHAPEL was newly Furnish'd and Beautify'd PSALM XCVI 9. O Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness 'T IS agreed on by the whole Current of Interpreters that the inspir'd Pen-man of this Psalm sets forth the Kingdom of the Messiah and the blessed Effects of it the Conversion of the Jews and the Salvation of all Nations and hereby shews us not only how God was worship'd under the Law but points out to us how he expects to be worship'd under the Gospel The beginning of this Psalm contains an Exhortation to all the People of the World as well Heathens as Jews to praise God for that wonderful Blessing of sending a Saviour to preach the Gospel unto them and revealing the Doctrine of Remission of Sins and therefore he commands his Worshippers To declare his Glory among the Heathen and his wonders among all the People that all the Earth should sing unto the Lord and that they should shew forth his Salvation from day to day so that their Praise might be as extensive as his Benefits and in some measure bear Proportion with his Blessings which were to be shed upon all the Nations of the world and to continue for ever Ver. 1 2 3. In the following Verses he inforces this Duty of praising God by some Arguments drawn from the Consideration of his glorious and wonderful Attributes his Majesty Glory Power and Wisdom which were after an extraordinary manner display'd and manifested in the Incarnation of our Blessed Saviour and from thence he concludes Ver. 7 8 9. That it was the Duty of all Men to frequent the place of God's Publick Worship to Prostrate themselves before him and to admire reverence and adore his Holy Name Honour and Majesty are before him Strength and Beauty are in his Sanctuary Give unto the Lord Glory and Strength give unto the Lord the Glory due unto his name bring an Offering and come into his Courts And having in these words describ'd the Worship of God after the manner of worshipping him under the Law by approaching his Temple and bringing a Sacrifice in the words of the Text he explains himself that he doth not mean that these Sacrifices should continue under the Gospel and that those who liv'd under the Reign and Kingdom of the Messiah should worship as the Jews did but that it would be their Duty to worship God in the Beauty of Holiness i. e. with such a pure and devout Frame of Mind such suitable Affections such becoming decent and orderly Behaviour as were typify'd and denoted to them by the Rites and Ceremonies of the Jewish Law O Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness In which words we have these two plain Lessons taught us I. That all Christians are oblig'd frequently to meet together for the Publick Worship of God II. That the Publick Worship of God ought to be perform'd in the most decent and solemn manner imaginable 1. That all Christians are oblig'd frequently to meet together for the performance of God's Publick Worship By Worship I mean that immediate Worship which is offer'd up to God in his Sanctuary that Publick Acknowledgment of his Government and Soveraignty over us by the performance of those Duties which are enjoyn'd us in the first Table such as are praying to him magnifying his Holy Name hearing his Word and receiving his Sacraments which Duties are in a peculiar manner call'd the Worship of God because they have God for their immediate Object they are address'd to him and terminate in him The Will of God is the Reason why they are perform'd and his Honour and Glory ought to be the ultimate End of the performance of them So that the Worship here meant may be defin'd that religious Adoration which is offer'd up unto God in the Publick Assemblies of Christians The Command of worshipping God in the Text was Originally given to the Jews but hereby was denoted and typify'd to us that more pure and spiritual Worship which was to succeed that of the Jews and was to be offer'd up unto God under the Gospel For there is a rich Vein of Gospel Truths which runs through the Old Testament and particularly the Book of the Psalms of which one of the Principal is this Command of Worshipping God in Publick which is as obliging to us Christians as ever it was to the Jews As may be made appear from these following Considerations 1. Because God has instituted and commanded this sort of Worship 'T is not only a branch of the Law of Nature but also a Principal part of instituted and reveal'd Religion The Light of Nature will teach us that there is one first Cause of all things who contains in himself all those Perfections