Selected quad for the lemma: life_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A27038
|
A sermon of iudgement preached at Pauls before the Honourable Lord Maior and aldermen of the city of London, Dec. 17, 1654 and now enlarged / Rich. Baxter.
|
Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.
|
1655
(1655)
|
Wing B1408; ESTC R13294
|
85,241
|
312
|
said this much of the Certainty of the Execution I should next have spoke somewhat of the manner and the Instruments and have shewed how God will be for ever the Principal Cause and Satan and their own Consciences the Instruments in part and in what manner Conscience will do its part and how impossible it will be to quiet or resist it But having spoke so much of all this already elsewhere as is said before I will forbear here to repeat it leaving the Reader that desireth it there to peruse it The Vses Vse 1. BEloved hearers it was not to fill your fancies with news that God sent me hither this day nor to tell you of matters that nothing concern you nor by some terrible words to bring you to an hours amazement and no more But it is to tell you of things that your eyes shall see and to foretell you of your danger while it may be prevented that your precious souls may be saved at the last and you may stand before God with comfort at that day But because this will not be every mans case no nor the case of most I must in the name of Christ desire you to make this day an enquiry into your own souls and as in the presence of God let your hearts make answer to these few Questions which I shall propound and debate with you Qu. 1. DO you soundly Believe this Doctrine which I have preached to you What say you Sirs do you verily Believe it as a most certain Truth that you and I and all the world must stand at Gods barr and be Judged to Everlasting Joy or Torment I hope you do all in some sort Believe this but blame me not if I be jealous whether you soundly believe it while we see in the world so little of the effect of such a Belief I confess I am forced to think that there is more infidelity then faith among us when I see more ungodliness then godliness among us And I can hardly believe that man that will say or swear that he believeth these things and yet liveth as carelesly and carnally as an Infidel I know that no man can love to be damned yea I know that every man that hath a reasonable soul hath naturally some love to himself and a fear of a danger which he verily apprehendeth he therefore that liveth without all fear I must think liveth without all apprehension of his danger Custom hath taught men to hold these things as the Opinion of the Country but if men soundly believed them surely we should see stranger effects of such a faith then in the most we do see Doth the sleepy soul that liveth in security and followeth this world as eagerly as if he had no greater matters to mind that never once trembled at the thoughts of this great day nor once asked his own soul in good sadness My soul How dost thou think then to escape I say doth this man Believe that he is going to this Judgement Well Sirs whether you believe it or not you will find it true and believe it you must before you can be safe For if you do not Believe it you will never make ready Let me therefore perswade you in the fear of God to consider that it is a matter of undoubted Truth 1. Consider that it is the express word of the God of Truth revealed in Scripture as plainly as you can desire So that you cannot be unbelieving without denying Gods Word or giving him the lye Mat. 13.38 39 40 41 42 43 49 50. Mat. 25. throughout Rom. 2.5 6 7 8 9 10 16 and 1.32 John 5.28 29. The hour is coming in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth they that have done good unto the resurrection of life and they that have done evil unto the Resurrection of damnation Heb. 9.27 It is appointed to all men once to dye and after this the Judgement Rom. 14.9.12 So then every one of us shall give Account of himself to God Rev. 20.12 And I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the Books were opened and another book was opened which is the Book of life and the dead were Judged out of those things which were written in the Books according to their works Mat. 12.36 37. But I say unto you that every idle word that men shall speak the shall give account thereof in the day of Judgement For by thy words thou shalt be Justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned Many more most express Texts of Scripture do put the Truth of this Judgement out of all question to all that believe the Scripture and will understand it There is no place left for a Controversie in the point It is made as sure to us as the Word of the living God can make it And he that will question that what will he Believe What say you Sirs Dare you doubt of this which the God of Heaven hath so positively affirmed I hope you dare not 2. Consider it is a master-part of your faith if you are Christians and a fundamental Article of your Creed that Christ shall come again to Judge the quick and the dead So that you must Believe it or renounce your Christianity and then you renounce Christ and all the hopes of mercy that you have in him It s impossible that you should soundly Believe in Christ and not believe his Judgement and Life Everlasting because as he came to bring Life and Immortality to light in the Gospel 2 Tim. 1.10 so it was the end of his Incarnation Death and Resurrection to bring you thither and its part of his honour and office which he purchased with his blood to be the Lord and Judge of all the world Rom. 14.9 Joh. 5.22 If therefore you believe not heartily this Judgement deal plainly and openly and say you are Infidels and cast away the hypocritical vizor of Christianity and let us know you and take you as you are 3. Consider that it is a Truth that is known by the very light of nature that there shall be a happiness for the Righteous and a misery for the wicked after this life which is evident 1. In that we have undenyable natural reason for it 1. God is the Righteous governor of the world and therefore must make a difference among his subjects according to the nature of their waies which we see is not done here where the wicked prosper and the good are afflicted therefore it must be hereafter 2. We see there is a necessity that God should make promises and threatnings of everlasting happiness or misery for the right governing of the world for we certainly perceive that no lower things will keep men from destroying all humane society and living worse then bruit beasts and if there be a necessity of making such threats and promises then there is certainly a necessity of fulfilling them For God needeth no lye or means of deceiving
sleepily now but O that you would consider how the review of them will then awake you You now make light of the warnings of God and man and of all the wholsom advice that is given you but God will not then make light of your contempt Oh what cutting Questions will they be to the hearts of the ungodly when all the means that were used for their good are brought to their remembrance on one side and the temptations that drew them to sin on the other side and the Lord shall plead his cause with their consciences and say Was I so hard a Master or was my work so unreasonable or was my wages so contemptible that no perswasions could draw you into my service was Satan so good a Master or was his work so honest and profitable or was his wages so desirable that you would be so easily perswaded to do as he would have you Was there more perswading Reason in his allurements and deceits then in all my holy words and all the powerful Sermons that you heard or all the faithful admonitions you received or all the good examples of the righteous or in all the works of God which you beheld Was not a reason fetcht from the love of God from the evil of sin the blood of Christ the Judgement to come the glory promised the torments threatned as forcible with you and as good in your eyes to draw you to holiness as a Reason from a little fleshly delight or worldly gain to draw you to be unholy In the name of God sinners I intreat you to bethink your selves in time how you will sufficiently answer such Questions as these You should have seen God in every creature that you beheld and have read your duty in all his works what can you look upon above you or below you or round about you which might not have shewed you so much of the wisdom and goodness and greatness of your Maker as should have convinced you that it was your duty to be Devoted to his will And yet you have his written word that speaks plainer then all these And will you despise them all will you not see so great a Light will you not hear so loud and constant calls shall God and his Ministers speak in vain And can you think that you shall not hear of this again and pay for it one day You have the Bible and other good books by you why do you not read them You have Ministers at hand why do you not go to them and earnestly ask them Sir What must I do to be saved and entreate them to teach you the way to life You have some neighbors that fear God why do you not go to them and take their good advice and imitate them in the fear of God and in a holy diligence for your souls Now is the time for you to bestir your selves Life and Death are are before you You have gales of Grace to further your voyage There are more for you then against you God will help you his Spirit will help you his Ministers will help you every good Christian will help you the Angels themselves will help you if you will but resolvedly set your selves to the work And yet will you not stir Patience is waiting on you Mercies are enticing you Scourges are driving you Judgement stayeth for you the Lights of God stand burning by you to direct you And yet will you not stir but lie in darkness And do you think you shall not hear of this Do you think this will not one day cost you dear IX THE ninth part of our work is to shew you What are those frivolous excuses by which the unrighteous may then endeavour their defence Having already shewed you what the Defence must be that must be sufficient to our Justification If any first demand Whether the Evidence of their sin will not so overwhelm the sinner that he will be speechless and past excuse I answ. Before God hath done with him he will be so But it seems at first his dark understanding and partial corrupted conscience will set him upon a vain Defence For Mat. 7.22 23. Christ telleth us that Many will say to me in that day Lord Lord have we not prophesied in thy name and in thy name have cast out Devils and in thy name have done many wonderful works And then will I profess to them I never knew you Depart from me ye workers of Iniquity And in Mat. 25.11 The foolish Virgins cry Lord Lord open to us And vers. 44. Then shall they also answer him saying Lord when saw we thee an hungred or thirst or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not Minister unto thee And vers. 24 25. They fear not to cast some of the cause of their neglect on God himself Then he which had received the one Talent came and said Lord I knew thee that thou art an hard man reaping where thou hast not sown and gathering where thou hast not strawed and I was afraid and went and hid thy talent in the earth lo there thou hast that is thine It is clear then that Excuses they will be ready to make and their full Conviction will be in order after these Excuses at least as in their minds if not in words But what the particular excuses will be we may partly know by these Scriptures which recite them and partly by hearing what the ungodly do now say for themselves And because it is for their present benefit that I now make mention of them that they may see the vanity of all such Excuses I will mention them as I now meet with them in the mouths of sinners in our ordinary discourse And these Excuses are of several sorts some by which they would Justifie their estate some excuses of particular Actions and that either in whole or in part some by which they would put by the penalty though they confess the sin some by which they lay the blame on other men and in some they vvould cast it upon God himself I must touch but some of them very briefly The first Excuse I am not guilty of these things which I am accused of I did love God above All and my Neighbor as my self I did use the world but for Necessity but God had my heart Answ. The All-seeing Judge doth know the contrary and he will make thy conscience know it Look back man upon thy heart and Life Hovv seldom and hovv neglectfully didst thou think of God hovv coldly didst thou vvorship him or make any mention of him hovv carelessly didst thou serve him and think much of all that thou dâ—dst therein Thou rather thoughtest that his service vvas making more ado than needs and didst grudge at those that vvere more diligent than thy self But for the world How heartily and how constantly didst thou seek and serve it And yet wouldst thou now perswade the Judge that thou didst Love God above all He will shew