for himself Prov. 16 4. In them who are not obedientially conquered by his kindenesses he will be glorified Proud hard-hearted Pharaoh stubbornly withstood all the assaults of God made upon himself and his people both by plagues and deliverances yet God saith Exod. 14. 4. I will be honoured upon Pharaoh and upon his host And those who are made obedientially fruitfull by the showres and Sun-shine of divine indulgence they being filled with the fruits of righteousnesse are by Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God Phil. 1. 11. So that all administrations doe at last determine and center in the honour of the most high God who is the authour and orderer of them Yea beyond the duties of obedience the welfare and happinesse of them who are sincerely obedient both here and hereafter is ordained and intended by God himself as an end subordinate unto his own eternall praise Oh that there was such an heart in them saith the Lord that they would keep all my commandments alwaies that it might be well with them Deut. 5. 29. And the Apostle having provoked the believing Romans unto the work of sanctification addeth these words Ye have your fruit unto holines and the end everlasting life Rom. 6. 22. Having premised these cautions these propositions to prevent misapprehensions and that the meaning of my Text and Doctrine might be truly understood I proceed unto the Application thereof which is the second thing promised in the prosecution of the point The improvement of this seasonable instruction thus far unfolded Vse is that which I had principally in mine eye in the choice of this Text and I pray God so to assist me in this last and the greatest part of my Sermon that I may reach your hearts unto your edification and spirituall advantage All that I shall say by way of Use I will give in under these three heads 1. Information 2. Reprehension 3. Exhortation The two former sorts of Uses I shall dispatch quickly but I shall crave leave to enlarge the last because most profitable and most pertinent unto this Congregation and most conducing to promote the realizing of those praises which this day we present unto our God Hence it naturally and necessarily follows That the disobedience Information of those persons is most abominable and inexcusable who have been under the most and best administrations of the Almighty Such offenders doe not only violate the Laws of Soveraignty but of Amity Their neglects their miscarriages are not only undutifulnesses but unthankfulnesses and unkindnesses It is here considerable how the holy Ghost doth ordinarily cast this circumstance as a loading aggravation upon the sins both of Nations and persons to break their hearts in the deepest humiliation and to justifie God in his sharpest corrections Thus Samuel 1 Sam. 12. 6. sets upon unsubdued Israel 1 Sam. 12. 6. And Samuel said 7. unto the people It is the Lord that advanced Moses and Aaron and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt Now therefore stand still that I may reason with you before the Lord of 8. all the righteous acts of the Lord which he did to you and to your fathers When Jacob was come into Egypt and your fathers cried unto the Lord then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron which brought forth your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell 11. in this place c. And the Lord sent Jerubbaal and Bedan and Jephthah and Samuel and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side and ye dwelled safe Here is the commemoration of mercies Now follows the sin therby aggravated And 12. when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you ye said unto me Nay but a king shall reign over us when the Lord your God was your king Beloved I may not spend time in paralleling these passages with Gods providences towards this poor Kingdom and this Kingdoms miscarriages towards the Lord. Do it your selves I pray you and I doubt not but the serious doing of it will be advantagious both in the advancing of our God and in the abasing of our selves before him Englands deliverances and mercies Londons deliverances and mercies have been more and greater then of other Kingdoms and Cities therefore Englands sins and Londons sins are more hainous horrid high provocations of the most high God And as the evils of a people are thus aggravated by the Lord so are the offences of particular persons also In this manner Samuel greatens the disobedience of King Saul 1 Sam. 15. 16. 1 Sam. 25. 16. 17. Then Samuel said unto Saul Stay and I will tell thee what the Lord said unto me this night When thou wast little in thine own sight wast not thou made the head of the tribes of Israel and the Lord anointed thee King over Israel And the Lord sent 18. thee on a journey and said Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites and fight against them till they be consumed VVherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord but 19. didst flie upon the spoyl and didst evil in the sight of the Lord I will not glosse upon this Scripture which might truly be applied unto many of the richest and chiefest rank in this City but I humbly beseech you to remember from what low and little beginnings the Lord hath advanced many of you and then reflecting upon your lives consider what account you can give unto his Majestie for your obedience or for your disobedience rather to his holy Commandments Yea this course God hath been wont to take with his own dearest servants to work them unto true repentance Davids scandalous fals are well known I might say they are ill known by too many who thence take encouragement to offend and I believe you are not ignorant of that course which his God took by Nathans ministery to present his sins as very sinfull in his own sight 2 Sam. 12. 7 8. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel I anointed thee king over Israel and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul And I 2 Sam. 12. gave thee thy Masters house and I gave thee the house of Israel 7. and of Judah and if that had been too little I would moreover 8. have given unto thee such and such things Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord to doe evil in his sight 9. c. Herein herein lies the aggravation Wherefore hast thou Thou so preserved thou so preferred How canst thou answer this Give me leave to touch one instance more which I doe the rather adde because it concerneth men of mine own cloth and calling that you may be convinced We Ministers desire to aggravate our own faults by the self-same circumstances whereby we greaten yours Eli his sinfull indulgence to his wicked sons is notorious now mark how a Messenger from the Lord paints out this his
provocation in black colours 1 Sam. 2. 27. Thus 1 Sam. 2. 27. 28. saith the Lord Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father when they were in Egypt in Pharaohs house And did I choose 29. him out of all the Tribes of Israel to be my Priest to offer upon mine Altar to burnincense before me And did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice c. And honourest thy sons above me We who are the Ministers of the Lord should look upon our aberrations as the more loathsome because God hath honoured us with an high and holy imployment in speciall attendance upon himself I might much enlarge this meditation by acquainting you that guilt under this notion is most grievous unto a truly gracious repenting heart It was this that cut good David to the quick when he cried out Against thee thee only have I sinned Ps 51. 4. But I must leave this Use because not so fully sutable unto the peculiar service of this day The next Use follows which is for the just reproof of two sorts Reprehension of persons whose practices do point blank oppose this purpose of God in conferring favours which my Text makes report of First who in handling this doctrine can hold his hand off them who are the lesse obedient and the more dissolute in their lives because of Gods long-sufferance and loving kindenesse This sticks as a black brand upon King Rehoboam 2 Chro. 12. 1. It came to passe that when Rehoboam had established the kingdom and had strengthned himself he forsook the Law of the Lord. It may be truly said of many that they had not been so bad and base in their lives if God had not bin so bountifull to them in his bestowings Herein men discover their egregious folly which can no way be excused Do ye thus requite the Lord ye foolish people ūwise is not he thy father that hath bought thee hath he not made thee established thee Remember the days of old c. De. 32. 6 7 Yea herein appears the vile malignity of our natures the inbred poysonous disposition of our unhallowed hearts which Spider-like suck venome out of those sweet flowers from whence the little laborious Bee draweth wax and honey I have three things to say unto such persons which I heartily wish may tend unto their humiliation and amendment 1. That this hainous abuse of Gods bounties is a sad sign of an unregenerate estate Let favour be shewed to the wicked yet will he not learn righteousnesse in the land of uprightnesse will he deal unjustly Isa 26 10. I have heard the Hypocrite sometimes compared to a Top which goes no longer then it is lashed The expressions of the Psalmist concerning such unfound hearts are here notable Psal 73. 34. When he slew them then they sought him and they returned and they enquired early after God c. Neverthelesse they did flatter him with their mouth and they lied unto him with their tongues for their heart was not right with him neither were they stedfast in his Covenant 2. That in this particular idolaters expresse more respects unto their vain dumb idle Idols then these people do unto the only true living world-governing God God blessed for ever For observe how the Prophet Hosea bringeth in the idolatrous reasoning for their Idol-worship Hos 2. 5. I will go after my lovers that give me my bread and my water my wool and my flax mine oyl and my drink In which respect we may take up against these malefactours the patheticall complaint of the Lord Jer. 2. 9. I will yet plead with you saith the Lord. For passe over the Isles of Chittim and see send unto Kedar and consider Jer. 2. 9. 10. 11. diligently and see if there be any such thing Hath a Nation changed their gods which are yet no gods but my people hath changed their glory for that which doth not profit Be astonished ô ye heavens at this and be horribly afraid be ye very desolate saith the Lord c. 3. That this carriage is no better then brutish Jesurun saith Moses waxed fat and kicked thou art waxed fat thou art grown thick thou art covered with fatnesse Then he forsook God which made him and lightly esteemed the rock of his salvation Deut. 32. 15. The Metaphor is taken from the foolish Asse which being kept low will come to the Masters hand but being put into a full pasture waxeth wanton and either runs away from his feeder or else turns heels and strikes him And the zealous Prophet Jeremiah doth with much sharpnesse speak in like manner unto these beastly kinde of men When I fed Jer. 5 7. them to the full then they committed adultery and assembled themselves by troops in the Harlots houses They were as fed 8. horses in the morning every one neighing after his neighbours wife Shall I not visit for these things saith the Lord and shall not my soul be avenged on such a Nation as this 9. The Lord awaken the sleeping consciences of such whom this quick reproof doth reach that they may be the better for it through his rich grace in Jesus Christ The second sort to be blamed I shall touch with a more gentle Vse 2 hand viz. all those whose ends and aims in seeking and Reproof in bestowing favours are directly contrary unto the command and practice of our blessed God I here point at offenders in the same kinde under a double head 1. Such who in the pursuit of outward advantages and accommodations for themselves do only intend the gratifying of the flesh the satisfying of their own hellish lusts The Apostle James checketh these men Jam. 4. 3. Ye ask amisse that ye may consume upon your lusts And there is a smart rebuke of Baruch wrapped up in that Question which the Prophet Jeremiah propoundeth to him Jer. 45. 5. Seekest thou great things for thy self Those must take this home to themselves who minde nothing so much as sloth sensuality pride luxury revenge and the like in coveting and hunting after vast estates places of honour and command in the world 2. Those who in conferring places of profit authority imployment and trust upon others doe principally if not only aim at the making of a party the strengthening of a faction against the government and waies of Jesus Christ I will make no instances but leave it to your wisedom and consciences to make application and improvement of this generall Item If there be any whose purses power votes vigour are to fill offices with men whose mindes hearts hands are against the power of godlinesse the purity of Gospel-ordinances the progresse of our Church-Reformation I wish they would consider that they are not herein acted by the Spirit of God I will not make any application of Balacks promise to promote Balaam Numb 22. if he would
Josh 24. 14 16 vers 17. forsake the Lord for the Lord our God he it is that brought us up and our Fathers out of Egypt from the land of bondage and 18. which did those great signs in our sight c. Therefore we will also serve the Lord. And again when Joshua seemed by his words to suspect their 21. sincerity The people said unto Joshua Nay but we will serve the Lord. And yet once more Joshua putting them to it unto purpose The people said unto Joshua The Lord our God will we serve 24. and his voice will we obey But I will come lower then Israel professing dependance upon God The very Heathens wicked ones moved only by morall principles will requite kindenesses in respect to the law of retaliation If you do good to them which do good to you what thank have ye for sinners also do the same And yet in reference unto God I now request no more Doe but Christianly endeavour to answer Gods kindenesses with an obedientiall carriage and I call for no more I remember when cruell Saul plotting and practising Davids death was yet by Davids forbearance to slay him having power and opportunity so overcome that he brake forth into these words My son David I will no more do thee harm because my soul was precious in thine eyes this day 1 Sam. 26. 21. Gods long-sufferance and loving kindenesse to us-ward doth wonderfully exceed all that David either did or could expresse towards Saul He hath not only with-drawn his own revenging hand though we have infinite times provoked him to his face but he hath also held the bloudy hands of cruell men who have desired our death yea we doe not only enjoy safety but rich supplies of comforts from our God How much rather therefore should we resolve no more to dishonour God by our disobedience but to observe his statutes and to keep his laws 2. This gratefull obedience the Lord will graciously accept as a full contenting recompence for all his bounties When Moses had numbred up multitudes of blessings bestowed upon Israel he adds Deut. 10. 12 13. And now ô Israel what doth the Lord thy God require of thee but to walk in all his waies to keep his Commandments As if he had said this is all he will be satisfied with this he looks for no more O beloved how deeply are we indebted unto the most high God and yet such is his indulgence that upon sincere observation of his laws which by vertue of our being reasonable creatures we are bound to yeeld he will cast a quietus est a full acquittance into our bosomes But if this consideration cannot prevail with you yet I pray you consider on the other hand how unkindely the Lord taketh their disobedience towards whom he abounds in benefits How patheticall is that complaint of God himself against his Israel breathed forth by the Evangelicall Prophet Hear ô heavens and Isa 1. 2. give ear ô earth for the Lord hath spoken I have nourished 3. and brought up children but they have rebelled against me The 4 Ox knows his owner and the Asse his masters crib but Israel doth not know my people doth not consider Ah sinfull Nation In reference unto this lamentation which the Lord maketh over stubborn unthankfull ones I will only say thus much Have you not yet offended your God enough but will you proceed to grieve him still 3. This practising of Gods praises will be many waies beneficiall to our selves 1. It will render us wise in the account of all such who with any seriousnesse consider our great obligations unto God Keep therefore and do them for this is your wisdome and understanding in the sight of the Nations which shall hear of these statutes and say Surely this great Nation is a wise and understanding people For what Nation is so great who hath God so nigh unto them as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for Deut. 4. 6 7. Is it not wisdome to observe him who secures our persons and comforts whose ever-waking and all working providence is for our good in every kinde And how can man more manifest his wisdome then by making Gods ends his ayme in every thing Now Gods end in the administrations of his love is That we may observe his statutes and keep his laws 2. This obedientiall improvement of Gods goodnesse will evidence the uprightnesse of our hearts Mark Davids argument which he pleads before the all-knowing God Psal 26. O Lord I have walked in mine integrity ver 1. For thy loving kindenesse is before mine eyes and I have walked in thy truth vers 3. Threats and blows drive hypocrites to duty but cords of love draw the gracious heart unto exact walking with his God 3. When former favours produce better obedience then may we boldly expect the multiplication of future mercies Moses having Deut. 29. specified some of Israels rich receits from Gods good hand from vers 2. to the 9th he thus concludes Keep therefore the words of this Commandment and doe them that ye may prosper in all that ye doe The self-seeking husband-man will cast precious seed with a liberall hand into a fruitfull soyl which is wont to return an answerable crop God hath the end of his bounties in our obedience And his promises to follow Deut. 28. 1-14 Lev 26. 1-12 and to fill them who are obedient with blessings of all sorts are manifold in the holy Scriptures 4. Many and heavy are the judgements threatned against them who continue stubbornly disobedient notwithstanding the sweet assaults made upon them by Gods gracious administrations That commination in Deut. 28. 47 48. hath often affected and affrighted my heart in reference to this trembling Kingdome Because thou servedst not the Lord thy God with joyfulnesse and with gladnesse of heart for the abundance of all things mark that for the abundance of all things therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the Lord shall send upon thee in hunger and in thirst and in nakednesse and in the want of all things and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck untill he hath destroyed thee When Samuel had pressed the bettering of obedience by Gods remarkable works which is the very exhortation which I have now under hand he sets it on by the self-same Argument 1 Sam. 12. 24 25. Fear the Lord and serve him in truth with all your heart for consider how great things he hath done for you But if ye shall still doe wickedly ye shall be consumed both ye and your King Beloved we know to our sorrow that both our King and his Kingdoms are in a wasting condition God forbid O God forbid that our continued disobedience should work our utter consumption and desolation This which I have said is sad and I have made mine own heart say by saying it yet that is much more lamentable which the Apostle Paul reports concerning