and is thus spoken against every where spoken against When we hear such an Out-cry as this made against Christianity it is natural to us to enquire as Pilate did when such a Clamour was raised against its Author Why what evil hath it done Truly we may say concerning it as Pilate did concerning him We find no fault in it Which of all its Opposers convinceth it of Sin or Error It invades no Man's Right breaks in upon no Man's Property is no Disturbance of the Peace no Enemy to the Welfare of Families and Societies is no Prejudice at all to the Interests of States aad Princes but to all these highly Beneficial and Advantageous Why then is it thus accused condemned and spoken against We will endeavour to find out the true Reason of it though it is impossible to assign a justifiable Reason of that which is most unreasonable 1. The Adversaries of Religion speak against it because they do not know it Sound Knowledge hath not a greater Enemy in the World than Ignorance Our Lord Jesus was therefore despised and hated by the World because the World knew him not John 1.10 If they had known the Dignity of his Person the Excellency of his Doctrine and the gracious Design and Purpose of his coming into the World certainly they would not have Crucified the Lord of Glory 1 Cor. 2.8 They that did it did it through Ignorance and knew not what they did Thus they who say to the Almighty Depart from us could not say so if they did not at the same time studiously decline the knowledge of his ways No Man will speak against Religion and the Power of it that hath either seriously weighed the Proofs and Evidences of it or impartially tried the Comfort and Benefit of it If they knew this Gift this inestimable Gift of God instead of speaking against it they would covet it earnestly as the best Gift He that looks at a distance upon Men Dancing would think them to be mad It was Peter Martyr's Comparison in a Sermon which had so good an influence upon the Conversion of the Marquess of Vico But let him come nearer them and observe the Regularity and Harmony of all their Motions and Postures and he will not only admire their Order but find in himself an inclination to join with them So he that contents himself with a distant and transient view of the Practice of Piety will perhaps take up hard thoughts of it but a better Acquaintance will rectify the Mistake When the Spouse in the Canticles had given a Description of her Beloved to the Daughters of Jerusalem the same who before had scornfully ask'd What is thy Beloved more than another Beloved Now as seriously enquire Whither is thy Beloved gone that we may seek him with thee The People of God are called his Hidden Ones and their Life is a Hidden Life their way above and therefore it is that the World speaks evil of them because it knows them not 1 Joh. 3.1 They who speak evil of these Dignities speak evil of those things which they know not as the Apostle speaks Jude 8.10 How unjust then and unreasonable is the Enmity and Malice of the Adversaries of Religion to condemn that which they never enquired into and to load that with the vilest Reproaches which for ought they know merits the highest Encomiums And how excellent then are the ways of God which none speak ill of but those that are unacquainted with them while those that know them witness to the goodness of them and Wisdom is justified of all her Children Mat. 11.19 2. They speak against it because they do not like it and we know Ill-will never speaks well Tho' they have little acquaintance with Religion yet they know this concerning it in general that it is not agreeable with the way of their hearts which they are resolved to walk in nor with the course of this World which is the Card and Compass they steer by and from which they take their measures they know this that it lays a restraint upon their Appetites and Passions and consists much in the mortifying of their beloved Lusts and Corruptions and therefore they have a secret Antipathy to it The Carnal Mind which is enmity against God is so against all that bear the Image of God Christ hath bidden his Disciples to expect the Hatred of the World and not to marvel at it Joh. 15.18 c. They who hate to be themselves reform'd will never love those that are reform'd Out of the abundance therefore of the Heart and the Malignity that is there it is no marvel if the mouth speak where the Root of Bitterness is it will bear Gall and Wormwood The Daring Sinner that stretcheth out his hand against God finds his hand too short to reach him but say they with our Tongue will we prevail our Lips are our own The Beast that made War with Heaven in the Apocalyptick Vision though he had ten Horns and those crown'd yet is not described doing mischief with them but opening his Mouth in Blasphemy against God to blaspheme his Name and his Tabernacle and them that dwell in Heaven Rev. 13.5 6. The Poison of the Serpents Seed is under their Tongue Rom. 3.13 3. They speak against Religion because it speaks against them They who have fellowship with the unfruitful Works of Darkness hate the Light which discovers them Joh. 3.19 Nor do any curse the Rising Sun but those that are scorch'd by it Why were the Pharisees so exasperated against our Saviour but because he spake his Parables against them and laid them open in their own colours Why did the World hate him who so loved the World but because he testified of it that its Works are evil Why had Joseph's Brethren such a spleen against him but because he was a Witness against them and brought to his Father their evil Report Why did Ahab hate Micajah and call Elijah his Enemy but because they were the faithful Reprovers of his Wickedness and never prophesied Good concerning him but Evil Why did the Inhabitants of the Earth rejoyce when the Witnesses were slain but because those two Prophets by their plain and powerful Preaching tormented them that dwelt upon the Earth The everlasting Gospel is a Testimony either to us to convince us or against us to condemn us and then no wonder if those speak against it who hate to be convinced by it and dread to be condemned by it The Prophet complains of those that laid Snares for him that reproveth in the gate and why is it faithful Ministers are so much hated but because their Business is to shew people their Transgressions If they would flatter Sinners that flatter themselves in a sinful way and cry Peace to them to whom the God of Heaven doth not speak Peace they might avoid a great deal of Reproach and Censure but they dare not do
length if Almighty Grace prevent not to set in the seat of the Scornful Let us therefore abide by that which Job and Eliphaz even in the heat of Dispute were agreed in that the Counsel of the Wicked shall be far from us which Protestation we have Job 21.16 and 22.18 It 's dangerous making Friendship with those that have an enmity to serious Godliness lest we learn their way and get a Snare to our Souls There are two common Pretences and seemingly plausible ones under which those that speak against Religion shelter themselves but they are neither of them justifiable 1. They pretend that it is only for Argument sake that they object against Religion and pick quarrels with it and so little esteem they have of the thing call'd Sincerity they will not be thought to mean as they say And are the great Principles of Religion become such Moot-points such Matters of doubtful Disputation that it is indifferent which side of the Question a Man takes and upon which he may argue pro or con at his pleasure That grave and weighty saying of a Learned Heathen is enough to silence this pretence Mala enim impia consuetudo est contra Deos disputandi sive ex animo id fit sive simulate It 's an ill thing to talk against Religion whether a Man means as he saith or no or in the Language of our Age whether he speak seriously or only banter Julian the Apostate when before he threw off his Disguise he frequently argued against Christianity pretended it was only for Disputation sake But out of the abundance of the Heart the Mouth speaks and whence can such evil things come but from an evil Treasure there 2. They pretend that it is not Religion that they ridicule and expose to Contempt but some particular Forms and Modes of religious Worship which they do not like And this is one ill effect of the unhappy Divisions among Christians that while one side hath labour'd to make the other contemptible Religion in general hath suffer'd on all sides To reprove what we think amiss with Prudence and Meekness is well but to reproach and make a Jest of that which our Fellow-Christians look upon as Sacred and make a part of their Religion cannot be to any good purpose at all To scoff at the Mistakes and Weaknesses of our Brethren is the way to provoke and harden them but not to convince and reform them They who think to justify this way of ridiculing those that differ from them by the Instance of Elijah's jeering the Priests of Baal perhaps Know not what manner of Spirit they are of no more than those Disciples did who would have their intemperate Heats countenanced by the Example of that great Prophet Fifthly Let us that profess the Christian Religion be very cautious that we do not give occasion to any to speak against it If there are those in all places that are industrious to cast reproach upon Religion then we have need to walk circumspectly and to look well to our goings that those who watch for our halting may have no occasion given them to Blaspheme It is certain that tho' in Religion there is nothing which may be justly spoken against yet among those that profess it there is too often found that which deserves to be tax'd and which cannot pass without just and severe Reflections Pudet haec opprobria nobis Are there not those within the Pale of the Church through whom the Name of God and his Doctrine are blasphemed and by reason of whom the way of Truth is evil spoken of Are there not those who wear Christ's Livery but are a Scandal to his Family Spots in the Love-Feasts and a standing Reproach to that worthy Name by which they are call'd Now though it is certainly very unjust and unfair to impute the faults of Professors to the Religion they profess and to reproach Christianity because there are those that are call'd Christians who expose themselves to Reproach yet it is without question the Sin of those who give Men occasion to do so This was the Condemnation in David's Case and entail'd the Sword upon his House though the Sin was pardon'd that by it he had given great occasion to the Enemies of the Lord to blaspheme 2 Sam. 12.14 Let us therefore double our diligence and care to give no offence either to Jew or Gentile that Religion which hath so often been wounded in the House of her Friends may never be wounded through our sides If we enquire as we are commanded to do what it is that gives occasion of Reflection upon Religion we shall find that the Imprudences of those that profess it give some occasion but their Immoralities much more 1. The Imprudences of Christians often turn to the Reproach of Christianity There may be such over-doing even in Well-doing as may prove Undoing When more stress is laid than ought to be upon some instances of Religion to the justling out of others and the Exercises of Devotion are either mis-timed or mis-placed or mis-proportion'd Religion is hereby mis-represented or look'd upon to disadvantage Rash and indiscreet Zeal may give occasion to those who seek occasion to speak against all religious Zeal Therefore walk in Wisdom towards them that are without Religion is a most sweet and pleasant and amiable thing Let not us by our Indiscretion make it a Task to our selves and a Terror to others The more the Children of God are Children of Wisdom the more they justify it and its ways Christian Prudence is very much the beauty and strength of Christian Piety Though it will secure the welfare of our own Souls if we walk in our Integrity yet it is necessary for the preserving of the Credit of our Profession that we walk in Wisdom that Wisdom of the Prudent which is to understand his way that Wisdom which is profitable to direct And if any Man lack this Wisdom let him ask it of God who gives liberally and upbraids us not with our Folly Pray with David Psal 27.11 Teach me thy way O Lord and lead me in a plain Path because of mine Enemies Hebr. because of mine Observers Our Enemies are our Observers and will be ready to reproach our Way for the sake of the false steps we take in it and therefore we have need to ponder the Path of our Feet and let Discretion guide and govern our Zeal 2. The Immoralites of those who profess Christianity turn much more to the reproach of that Holy Religion when those that are called Christians are griping and covetous and greedy of the World when they are false and deceitful and unjust in their Dealings sowre and morose and unnatural to their Relations turbulent and unquiet in Societies when they are froward and passionate proud and haughty hard-hearted and oppressive loose and intemperate When they are found guilty of Lying and Cheating Drunkenness or Uncleanness When it appears
That the Lord Jesus who so loved the World is so much hated and despised by the World The Reproaches of them who thus reproach our Master if we be his faithful Servants we should feel as falling upon us And if he take what is said and done against his People as said and done against himself much more reason have they to find themselves aggrieved in that which is said and done against him If we pray heartily that God's Name may be hallowed as we should do every day we should grieve heartily that his Name is dishonoured as we see it is every day And our resentments of the Reproach cast upon God and Religion we should make a humble and pious Remonstrance of before God in Prayer as King Hezekiah spread Rabshakeh's blasphemous Letter before the Lord with that tender and affectionate Request Lord bow down thine ear and hear Open Lord thine eyes and see 2 Kin. 19.16 How pathetically doth Joshua plead chap. 7.9 What wilt thou do unto thy great Name And with what a concern doth the Psalmist in the name of the Church insist upon this Psal 74.10 O God how long shall the Adversary reproach Shall the Enemy blaspheme thy Name for ever And v. 18. Remember this that the Enemy hath reproached O Lord and that the foolish People have blasphemed thy Name And how earnestly doth he beg v. 22. Arise O God plead thine own Cause Thus should the Honour of God and Religion lie nearer our Hearts than any other concern whatsoever 2. Consider the miserable Condition of those that presumptuously speak against God and Religion Tho' they may do it with an Air of Assurance as if they run no hazard yet he that rolleth this Stone it will certainly return upon him sooner or later They that speak against Religion speak against their own Heads and their own Tongues will at last fall upon them We have reason to bewail their Madness and to pity and pray for them for they know not what they do Miserable Souls How will they be deceived at last when they shall find that God is not mocked And that while they were studying to put contempt on Religion they were but preparing eternal Shame and Confusion for themselves The Lord is a jealous God and will not hold them guiltless that thus profane his Name Their Wit and Learning and Figure in the World may embolden them in their Sin and bear them up a while in an open Defiance of all that 's Sacred but nothing can prevent their utter Ruine besides a serious and sincere Repentance which is an unsaying with Shame and Self-lothing of all that which they have proudly spoken against God and Godliness They that pervert the right ways of the Lord will certainly fall therein and they that wrest the Scriptures do it to their own Destruction Religion's Motto is Nemo me impune lacessit 'T is ill jesting with edg-tools Jerusalem will certainly be a burthensome Stone to all People that burthen themselves with it They that spurn at the Rock of Salvation will not only be unable to remove it but will find it a Stone of Stumbling and a Rock of Offence And we find those who ridicul'd the Word of the Lord broken and snared and taken Let all those therefore that mourn in Sion weep over those that will not weep for themselves and look with pity and compassion upon those that look upon them with scorn and contempt 3. Consider the Mischief that is hereby done to the Souls of others They who thus err their error remaineth not with themselves but this poisonous and malignant Breath infects others Words spoken against Religion eat as doth a Canker and they who speak them seldom perish alone in their iniquity for many follow their pernicious ways Unwary Souls are easily beguil'd and brought to conceive rooted Prejudices against that which they hear every where spoken against and few have Consideration and Resolution enough to maintain a good opinion of that which they that set up for Wits make it their business to cry down Sergius Paulus was a prudent Man and yet St. Paul saw him in danger of being turned away from the Faith by the subtle Suggestions of Elymas the Sorcerer which therefore the Apostle resented with a more than ordinary keenness It is sad to think how many Young People who perhaps were well Educated and Hopeful when they go abroad into the World by conversing with those who lie in wait to deceive have their minds insensibly vitiated and debauch'd and perhaps they are made seven times more the Children of Hell than those that first seduced them Under a pretence of free Thought and fashionable Conversation and a generous Disdain of Preciseness and Singularity Atheistical Principles are imbib'd the Restraints of Conscience shaken off Brutish Lusts not only indulg'd but pleaded for and serious Godliness and Devotion look'd upon with Contempt and thus the Heart is impregnably fortify'd for Satan against Christ and his Gospel Wrath is treasur'd up against the Day of Wrath and those who might have been the Blessing prove the Plague of their Age which is a Lamentation and shall be for a Lamentation to all that wish well for the souls of Men and to those especially that are desirous of the welfare of the rising Generation Fourthly Let us take heed that none of us do at at any time directly or indirectly speak against the ways of Religion and Godliness or say a Confederacy with those that do so Submit to Divine Instructions given with a strong hand not to walk in the way of those People that speak ill of Religion Take heed of embracing any Notions which secretly tend to derogate from the Authority of the Holy Scriptures or to diminish the Honour of Religion in the Soul or of accustoming your selves to such Expressions as treat not Sacred Things with that awful Regard which is due to them Those were never reckon'd Wise Men that would rather lose a Friend than a Jest much less are they to be accounted so that will rather lose the Favour of their God Those that in their common Converse make themselves merry with serious things how can it be expected they should at any time be serious in them or experience the influence and comfort of them It is not likely that those who make the Word of God the subject of their Jests should ever make it the Guide of their way or find it the spring of their Joys Let us not chuse to associate with those that have light thoughts of Religion and are ready upon all occasions to speak against it It is not without good reason that among the many words with which St. Peter exhorted his New Converts this only is recorded Save your selves from this untoward Generation Acts 2.40 Those that listen to the Counsel of the Vngodly and Stand in the way of Sinners as willing to walk with them will come at
for the Faith and striving against Sin now it is desirable to know which of these contesting Interests will be victorious and we may be assur'd that the cause of God and Religion will certainly carry the day Contradicted Truths will be effectually clear'd and vindicated Despised Holiness will be honour'd Mistakes rectify'd Reproaches roll'd away and every thing set in a true Light Then you shall return and discern between Truth and Falshood Right and Wrong which now it is not always easie to do The Day of the Lord is said to be in the Valley of Decision Joel 3.14 Because then and there will this great Cause be decided which has been so long depending and a definitive Sentence given from which there will ly no Appeal and against which there will be no Exception Our God will then come and will not Keep Silence whoever now Speak against Religion he will then speak for it and will undoubtedly be justified when he speaks and clear when he judgeth Particular Parties and Interests as such will wither and come to nothing But Catholick Christianity that is Denying Vngodliness and Worldly Lusts and living Soberly Righteously and Godly in this present World in expectation of the Blessed Hope This is Good and the Goodness of it being founded on the unchangeable Will of the Eternal Mind it is Eternally Good and no doubt will be Eternally Glorious whatever is said against it This this is that Gold and Silver and those Precious Stones which will stand the Test of the Fire that shall try every Mans Work 1 Cor. 3.12 13. and will be found unto Praise and Honour and Glory at the Appearing of Jesus Christ Assure your selves Christians there is a Day of Recompences for the Controversy of Sion coming and it is at Hand Behold the Judge standeth before the Door Then Vice and Wickedness which now appear so daring so threatning will be effectually and irrecoverable crush'd and such a fatal and incurable Blow given to the Serpents Head that he shall never hiss shall never spit his Venom any more Then shall the Vpright have the Dominion Psal 49.14 and all the faithful Souldiers of the Lord Jesus shall be call'd to set their Feet upon the Necks of Principalities and Powers Then Atheists and Blasphemers the Debauchees and prophane Scoffers of the Age will have their Mouths stopt with an irresistable Conviction will have all their vile Calumnies visibly confuted their Hearts fill'd with unspeakable Horror and their Faces with everlasting Shame Their Refuge of Lies will then be swept away and Rocks and Mountains call'd upon in vain to shelter them Then shall the Righteous who are now trampled upon and despised shine as the Sun in the Firmament of their Father Wisdom and her Children shall be first justified and then glorified before all the World And they that through Grace have gotten the Victory over the Beast and over his Image shall solace themselves and praise their Redeemer with everlasting Songs of Triumph The Dirt that is now unjustly thrown upon them will not only be wiped off but will add to their Glory and every Reproach for the Testimony of Jesus will be a Pearl in their Crown The Righteous Judge of Heaven and Earth will shortly render to every Man according to his Work To them who by patient continuance in Well-doing seek for Glory and Honour and Immortality in the other World and in pursuit of that patiently bear Disgrace and Contempt in this to them he will render Eternal Life which will make them as Happy as they can desire far more Happy than they can now conceive But to them that are Contentious and do not obey the Truth but contradict it and rebel against the Light and Laws of it being resolv'd to obey Vnrighteousness to them he will render with a just and Almighty Hand Indignation and Wrath the effect of which will be such Tribulation and Anguish to the Soul as will make them feel eternally what now they will not be perswaded to believe that it is a fearful thing to fall into the Hands of the living God for never any hardned their Hearts against him and prosper'd Brethren These are the true Sayings of God on the certainty of which we may venture our Immortal Souls They who speak and act so much against Religion design to run it down and extirpate it that the Name of it may be no more in remembrance and perhaps you hear them sometimes boast of their success herein If they can but handsomly as they think ridicule the sacred Text or Banter any of the Divine Mysteries or Hector over a good Man they are ready to triumph as if they had run down Religion Run down Religion In the Name of my great Master I defy all the Powers of Hell and Earth to run it down They may sooner run down the flowing Tide or the Sun when he goes forth in his strength than run down the least of the Dictates of Eternal Truth not one iota or tittle of which shall fall to the Ground Dagon will certainly fall before the Ark of the Lord and the Rod of Aaron will Swallow up the Rods of the Magicians Do they talk of running down Religion and the Scriptures and the Ordinances of Christ The Virgin the Daughter of Sion hath despised them and laughed them to scorn the Daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her Head at them and hath therefore put them to shame because God hath despised them as it is said Psal 53.5 He that sets in the Heavens enjoying himself and rides upon the Heavens for the Help of his People derides their Attempts against the Kingdom of his Son as vain and fruitless The Lord shall laugh at them for he sees that his Day is coming They have their Day now it is their Hour and the Power of Darkness But God will have his Day shortly and a Glorious Day it will be when our Lord Jesus shall appear in all the Power and Grandeur of the Vpper World to the everlasting Terror and Confusion of all his Adversaries and the everlasting Joy and Honour of all his faithful Servants and Soldiers With the believing Hopes and Prospects of which Day let all those who heartily espouse and plead Religion's righteous Cause Comfort themselves and one another FINIS Jam. 1.27 1 Tim. 1.15 1 Thes 2.15 16. †Tertullian confidently asserts Primum Neronem in hanc Sectam tum maxime Romae orientem Caesariano gladio terocisse Apol. cap. 5 Inquisitione agnitione neglecta Nomen detinetur Nomen expugnatur Vox sola praedamnat Tert. Ap. c. 3. Acts 17.11 John 1.46 Prov. 18.13 John 7.51 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Electio optio An Opinion not forced upon us by the Evidences of Truth but chosen by us with some forreign Design 2 Cor. 5.19 Luke 2.14 Joh. 1.29.3.16 1 John 2.2 Secta dicitur à Secando Eph. 2.14 15 16. John 11.52 Luk 9.56 Luke 10.36 37. Phil. 2.8 Heb. 3.1 2 Cor. 1.12 Rom. 14.17 18. Luke 12.1 1 Cor. 1.2 Jam. 3.17 1 Pet. 2.15 1 Cor. 4.3 4. Doct. Rev. 12.17 Psal 118.22 Isa 53.2 3. Mat 27.39 Luke 23.11 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Eph. 1.20.21 Phil. 2.6 Cant. 5.9 Jude 15. Gen. 3.4 Ps 10.13 Jer. 12.2 Deut. 28.58 Jude 16. Isa 8.21 Psal 73.9 * Trident Concil Sess 4th Ps 137.3 Dan. 5.2 3. Zach. 3.8 See this at large represented by Caecilius in Minucius Felix 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Theatre they plaid upon cui septima quaeque fuit lux Ignava Juvenal sat 5. Dicimur sceleratissimi de Sacramento infanticidij pabulo inde post convivium incesto c. Tertull. Apol. cap. 7. 1 Pet. 1.18 Acts 17.18 19. See Dr. Cave's Primitive Christianity lib. 1. ch 1. Greg. Nazian Invectiv in Julian Orat 1. p. mihi 42. Lollards from Lolium Tares so my Ld. Cook from Mr. Fox Rev. 13.17 Rev. 13.17 Isa 5.20 1 Pet. 4.3 4 Psal 12.8 Isa 59.15 Eph. 4.21 compar'd with Tit. 1.1 Acts 3.15 17. Luke 23.34 Job 21.14 John 4.10 Cant. 5.9.6.1 Psal 83.3 Col. 3.3 Prov. 15.24 Psa 105. Quid iniquiusquà m ut oderin◠homines quod ignorant Tunc enim meretur quando cognoscitur an mereatur Tert. Apol. cap. 1. Antè nos incipiunt odisse quam nosse ne cognitos aut imitari possint aut damnare non possint Min. Fel. p. mihi 30. Rom. 8.7 1 Joh. 3.13 Job 15.25 Psa 12.4 Mat. 21.45 John 7.7 Gen. 37.2 1 Ki. 22.8.21.20 Rev. 11.10 Mat. 24.14 Naturale est odisse quem times quem metueris infestare si possis Min. Felix Isa 29.21 Isa 58.1 Gal. 1.8 9. Gal. 1.10 Heb. 11.7 Prov. 29.10 1 John 3.12 Eccl. 8.11 Ps 50.12 2 Pet. 3.3 4. 2 Pet. 3.9 Rom. 1.18 Psal 50.3 Jude 14.15 Mat. 22.12 Mat. 26.63 Joh. 19.9 Heb. 10.13 2 Sam. 16.10.4 1 Pet. 2.23 Ps 83 3 4. Acts 5.38 See this excellently enlarged upon by the learned Grotius de v. R. C. l. 2. Acts 19.20 2 Kin. 18.34 Exod. 3.3 4. Rev. 6.2 Acts 28.3 Mat. 16.18 See the learned Dr. Humfrey Prideaux's excellent History of the Life of Mahomet lately published Rev. 12.10 11. Isa 52.5 Psa 69 10. Mat. 25.45 Psa 64.8 Gal. 6.7 Hos 14.9 2 Pet. 3.16 Zach. 12.3 1 Pet. 2.8 Isa 28.13 2 Tim. 2.17 2 Pet. 2.2 Act. 13.7.8 9 10. Isa 8.11 12. Psal 1.1 Cic. de Nat. Deor. lib. 2. ad Fin. Luk. 9.55 Ro. 2.24 2 Pet. 2 2. Jude 12. The foulest Reproaches of the Primitive Christians took rise from the vile practises of the Gnosticks and other Pseudochristians Of which Vid. Euseb Eccl. Hist l. 4. c. 7. Col. 4.5 Luk. 7.35 Prov. 14.8 Ec. 10.10 Jam. 1.5 2 Cor. 6.3 1 Tim. 6.1 Col. 1.10 Tit. 2.10 Mat. 5.14 2 Thes 5.12 1 Pet. 2.12 v. 15. Psal 38.33 Eccl. 3.7 Luk. 12.9 2 Tim. 2.12 Prov. 25.23 Luke 1.4 1 Pet. 3.15 2 Cor. 6.7 Col. 2.2 Psal 8.2 Isa 30.21 Isa 51.7.8 12. 2 Thes 3.2 Eccl. 10.3 Arch Bp. Tillotson's Serm. on 2 Pet. 2 3. Job 5.1 Deut. 32.7 Job 28.28 Prov. 3.17 Mal. 3.18 Psal 50.3 Psal 51.4 1 Pet. 1.7 Isa 34.8 Jam. 5.9 Jos 10.24 Isa 28.17 Rev. 6.16 Ma. 13.43 Rev. 15.2 Mat. 5.11 12. Rom. 2.6 7 8 9. Heb. 10.31 Rev. 19.9 Psa 83.4 Magna est Veritas praevalebit Mat. 5.18 Ex. 7.12 Isa 37.22 Psal 2.4 Deut. 33.26 Psa 37.13
under the Curse of God for neglecting it It is a very small thing to be judged of Man's Day but he that judgeth us is the Lord Let us therefore be more afraid of being Sectaries than of being call'd so Secondly The Christian Religion is here said to be every where spoken against That it was spoken against was evident enough but that it was every where spoken against was more than they could be sure of They did not know all Places nor had they correspondence with or intelligence from every Country but we must not wonder if those that oppose the Truth as it is in Jesus make no conscience of transgressing the Laws of Truth in common Conversation But we will suppose that the Acquaintance and Converse of those Jews at Rome lay mostly with those that were Enemies to Christianity and spoke against it and they therefore concluded it every where spoken against because they found it spoken against in all places that they came to or had advice from Thus apt are we to embrace that as a general Sentiment and Observation which we find received by those that we usually associate with and so we run our selves into mistakes which larger and more impartial Enquiries would soon rectify But we will take it for granted however that what they said was true not because they said it but because the experience of all Ages doth confirm it and concur with it So that a little Acquaintance with Books and the World will prove the Observation which we ground upon this Text That it is and always hath been the Lot of Christ's Holy Religion to be every where spoken against Or thus That true Christianity hath all along met with a great deal of Opposition and Contradiction in this World I purpose not to enter into a particular Disquisition of that which has been and is spoken against Religion nor do I undertake at present to shew how false and unreasonable it is That hath been done many a time by the best Hands and so effectually that every impartial eye must needs look upon the cause of the Adversaries of Religion to be a baffled Cause But I shall only make some improvement of this general Observation which cannot be unseasonable in an Age wherein the Gates of Hell seem to be making their utmost efforts against the Church and the Devil as the Calumniator and False Accuser to be more wroth than ever with the Woman the Church and to push on the War with an unusual vigor against the remnant of her Seed which keep the Commandments of God and have the Testimony of Jesus Christ I shall therefore 1. enquire what it is in Christianity that is spoken against And 2. shew you why so Holy and Excellent a Religion is spoken against and then draw some Inferences from this Observation For the first Who and What it is that is spoken against 1. Jesus Christ the Author of our Religion is every where spoken against When the First-begotten was brought into the World old Simeon among other great things pronounced this concerning him that he was a sign which should be spoken against and by that means was set for the fall of many Luke 2.34 when he was here upon Earth he was spoken against The Stone which was design'd to be the Head of the Corner was rejected and set at naught by the Builders It was not the least of his Sufferings in the days of his flesh that he endured the contradiction of Sinners against himself Heb. 12.3 They spoke against his Person as mean and contemptible and one that had no form nor comliness They spoke against his Preaching as false and deceiving John 7.12 as factious and seditious Luke 23.2 as senseless and ridiculous for the Pharisees derided him for it Luke 16.14 They spake against his Miracles as done in Confederacy with Belzebub the Prince of the Devils Mat. 12.24 They spoke against his Morals charging him with Blasphemy against God Profanation of the Sabbath-day and all the instances of Debauchery which were usually met with in a Gluttonous Man a Wine-bibber and a Friend of Publicans and Sinners Mat. 11.19 They spoke against his Followers as a company of ignorant despicable People John 7.48.49 When he was in his Sufferings pass through all the steps and stages of them and you will find him every where spoken against They reproched him in all his Offices In his Office of Teaching when they challenged him to tell who smote him In his Office of Saving when they challenged him to save himself as he had saved others In his Office of Ruling when they challenged him to prove himself the King of the Jews by coming down from the Cross The common People spoke against him even they that passed by reviled him The Pharisees chief Priests the Grandees of the Church were as severe as any in their Reflections upon him Princes also did sit and spake against him Herod and his Men of War set him at nought made nothing of him that made all things Nay even now he is set down at the right-hand of the Majesty on high far above all Principalities and Powers i. e. both good and evil Angels so as to be no more hurt by the contradictions of the one than he is benefitted by the Adorations of the other yet still he is spoken against Besides the Contempt cast upon him by the Jews and Mahometans are there not with us even with us those that daringly speak against him Arians and Socinians are daily speaking against him as a meer Man thinking that a Robbery in him which He thought none to be equal with God Quakers and Enthusiasts speak against Him as a meer Name setting up I know not what Christ within them while they explode that Jesus that was Crucified at Jerusalem Atheists and Deists speak against Him as a meer Cheat accounting the Religion he established a great Imposture and His Gospel a Jest Profane and Ignorant People speak slightly of Him as if our Beloved were no more than another Beloved and some speak scornfully of Him as Julian the Apostate did that call'd Him in disdain the Galilean and the Carpenter's Son Such as these are the hard speeches which ungodly Sinners have spoken against Him the Lord rebuke them even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke them 2. God himself the great Object of our Religious Regards is every where spoken against It is not only the Christian Revelation that is thus attack'd by virulent and blasphemous Tongues but even Natural Religion also The Glorious and Blessed God the great Creator and Benefactor of the Universe that doth Good to all and whose tender Mercies are over all His Works even He is every where spoken against Some deny His Being Tho' His Existence be so necessary so evident that if He be not t is impossible any thing else should be yet there are Fools who say in their hearts what they
dare not speak out that there is no God Psal 14.1 And he that saith there is no God wisheth there were none and if he could help it there should be none Others Blaspheme the Attributes of God that charge the All-seeing Eye with Blindness saying The Lord shall not see Psal 94.7 that charge the Eternal Mind with Forgetfulness saying God hath forgotten Psal 10.11 that charge the Almighty Arm with Impotency saying Can God furnish a Table in the Wilderness which is there call'd speaking against God Psal 78.19 20. Those speak against God that promise themselves Impunity in Sin saying They shall not surely die and God will not require it And those that boldly allow their Impiety and Irreligion saying unto the Almighty Depart from us Job 21.14 15. Some speak meanly of God tho' He is infinitely Great and Glorious others speak hardly of Him tho' he is infinitely Just and Good The Name of God is spoken against by the profane using of it so it is construed Psal 139.20 They speak against thee wickedly thine Enemies take thy Name in vain Can there be a greater slight put upon the Eternal God than for Men to use his Sacred and Blessed Name as a By-word with which they give vent to their exorbitant Passions or fill up the vacancies of their other Idle-words The Name of God is thus abus'd not only by those that belch out bloody Oaths and Curses which make the Ears of every good Man to tingle but by those that mention the Name of God slightly and irreverently in their common Conversation in whose mouths he is near when he is far from their reins To use those forms of speech which properly signify an Acknowledgment and Adoration of God's Being as O God or O Lord or an Appeal to his Omniscience as God knows or an Invocation of his Favour as God bless me or God be merciful to me I say to use these or the like expressions impertinently and intending thereby to express only our wonder our surprize or our passionate resentments or any thing than that which is their proper and awful signification is an evidence of a vain mind that wants a due regard to that glorious and fearful Name The Lord our God I see not that the Profanation of the Ordinance of Praying is any better than the Profanation of the Ordinance of Swearing The serious consideration of this I hope might prevent much of that Dishonour which is done to God and to his Holy Name by some that run not with others to an excess of Riot The Providence of God is likewise every where spoken against by Murmurers and Complainers that quarrel with it and find fault with the disposals of it and when they are hardly bestead curse their King and their God Thus is the mouth of the ungodly set against the Heavens and their Tongue walketh through the Earth 3. The Word of God the great Rule of our Religion is every where spoken against so it was when it was first preached wherever the Apostles went preaching the Doctrine of Christ they met with those that spake against it contradicting and blaspheming Acts 13.45 So it is now it is written Atheists speak against the Scriptures as not of Authority Papists speak against it as dark and uncertain further than it is expounded and supported by the Authority of their Church which receives unwritten Traditions pari pietatis affectu ac reverentiâ with the same pious affection and reverence that they receive the Scripture nay and if we may judge by their practice with much more Thus is the Word of God blasphemed by them who call themselves the Temple of the Lord. But if we take away Revelation as the Deists do all Religion will soon be lost and if we derogate from the Scriptures as the Papists do all Revelation is much endangered Those also speak against the Scriptures who profanely Jest with them and that they may the more securely Rebel against Scripture Laws make themselves and their idle Companions merry with the Scripture Language The Word of the Lord is unto them a reproach as the Prophet complains Jer. 6.10 And another Prophet found it so whose serious word of the necessity of Precept upon Precept was turned into an idle Song as Grotius understands it Isa 28.13 The word of the Lord was unto them Precept upon Precept Very likely it was done by the Drunkards of Ephraim spoken of v. 1. and it gave occasion to that Caution v. 22. Be ye not mockers lest your Bands be made strong Profligate and Debauched Minds relish no wit like that which ridicules the Sacred Text and exposeth that to Contempt As of old the insulting Babilonians must be humour'd with the Songs of Sion and no Cups can please Belshazzar in his drunken Frollick but the Sacred Vessels of the Temple Thus industrious are the Powers of Darkness to Vilify the Scriptures and to make them contemptible but he that sits in Heaven shall laugh at them for in spite of all the little efforts of their impotent Malice He will magnifie the Law and make it honourable according to the word which he hath spoken Isa 42.21 4. The People of God the Professors of this Religion are every where spoken against Not only those of some particular Perswasion or Denomination but without regard to that such as have been zealous in fearing God and working Righteousness have been in many places very much spoken against Our Blessed Saviour hath told his Disciples what Treatment of this kind they must expect that they should be revil'd and have all manner of evil said against them falsly Mat. 5.11 12. that they and their Names should be cast out as evil Luke 6.22 And if they called our Master Belzebub no nick-names fastned upon his Followers can seem strange Mat. 5.25 Mocking was an old way of persecuting the Covenant-Seed for thus He that was after the Flesh betimes persecuted them that were after the Spirit Compare Gen. 21.9 with Gal. 4.29 God's Heritage hath always been as a speckled Bird that all the Birds are against Jer. 12.9 And his Children for signs and for wonders in Israel that every one hath a saying to Isa 8.18 Even Wisdoms Children have been call'd and counted Fools and their life Madness The Quiet in the Land represented as Enemies to the Publick Peace And those who are the greatest Blessings of the Age branded as the Troublers of Israel The Primitive Christians were painted out to the World under the blackest and most odious Characters that could be as Men of the most profligate Lives and Consciences and that even placed their Religion in the grossest Impieties and Immoralities imaginable Their Enemies found it necessary for the support of the Kingdom of the Devil the Father of Lies and Slanders fortiter Calumniari to Characterize them as the worst of Men to whom they were resolv'd to give the worst and most barbarous Treatment It had