the Sabbath that they practise And indeed as the leavers of the Lords-day-duties so the liveâ—esse in the duties of the Lords day who would not condole their conditions and endeavour to quicken their affections These latter we as Ministers should much lament and if possible amend The wonted way and day of Gods worship how doth it wax old in our Land Like David when he was old and stricken in years they covered him with cloathes but he gat no heat wherefore his servants said to him Let there be sought for my Lord the King a young Virgin and let her stand before the King and let her cherish him and let her lie in thy bosome that my Lord the King may get heat 1 Kings 1.1 2 3. 'T is not ordinary cloaths or bare outward Ordinances that will bring warmth into this blessed day that now seems with us to wax old and cold We must seek for the Spirit of God the spirit of duty which as the soul being brought into its bosome will put new life with warmth thereinto And were but the Lords day thus recovered to its heat and health other duties of Religion would not long lie sick yea though all religious duties with divers lie dead in our dayes yet if this live they would live likewise Of the lively Lords day we may say as 't is said of Eve Gen. 3.20 She was the Mother of all living As the Lord of the Sabbath is the Father so the Sabbath of the Lord is the Mother of all spiritual life In the womb of a wel-spent Sabbath are the most vigorous and best spiritual conceptions In the armes and by the breasts of such blessed Sabbaths are born and brought up many new-born babes for God yea let the Spirit of the Lord spring life in the Lords-day-duties and Ministerial endeavours how soon would sunk Christians decaying and dying professors be fetched back that are going apace to the grave of Apostasie And other raised that are â—ven dead and buried in sin Indeed some have sunk so low and God-ward been dead so long that we may say of them as Martha of her brother Lord by this time he stinketh Joh. 11. yet we might look to see even such Lazarusses arise from their Sepulchers of sin upon the spiritual living of Sabbaths and the sacred service of God such things I also considering my encouragments have encreased thus publickly to appear in this present Treatise Yet as great cause requireth reflecting upon my many infirmities crosse thoughts have sometimes beset me not knowing what to do but looking up to the Lord at length I resolved to let it go considering likewise that the Lord oftentimes does great matters by litle and unlikely means The Prophet was pulled out of a dark deep Dungeon by cast clouts and rotten rags that onely seemed fit for the Dunghil Jer. 38.11 12 13. If thâ— Lord will my poor weak word may be some means to draw Sabbaths and sacred Ordinances out of those Dungeons of contempt into which they seem now to be cast And therefore good Reader joyn with me in prayer that a blessing from above may abide this book and that the great God of heaven would go with it from heart to heart and make it some help to this holy Sabbaths and servants Now the good Lord put life into every leafe line and letter and the Lord out of his goodnesse more enliven my soul and thine Who am thine in the Lord glad to do thy soul any good Philip Goodwin August 9. 1654. To the Reader THe matters of Almighty God and of mans immortal soul are things of the greatest concernment in all the world This truth is in the generall readily acknowledged by all and yet there is no one truth more contradicted by the constant courses of the most of men The businesse of the Sabbath is a convincing instance for although Gods honour and mens welfare are very much engaged herein yet many in opinion and more in their practice do oppose the right observation thereof as holy to the Lord. First Gods concernment herein may many wayes be made manifest This is one of those ten Commandements charged by the Creatour of heaven and earth upon man â—eut 4.13 â—â—o 31.18 Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy And the engrossing of this charge God did not leave to any Amanuensis but he writ it with his own finger â—eut 4.13 â—â—sworth Also to intimate that his intentions were to perpetuate this with the other precepts of the Decalogue in the morality thereof the Lord himself imprinted it not in paper but upon Tables of stone yea when the first Tables of stone were broken â—xo 34.1 â— â—en 2.2 â—hald Paâ—phr â—a 58.13 â—oc ad â—eum non â—d homines â—ferri deâ—t Calv. â—ark 2.28 his Majestie gave expresse order unto Moses to have other Tables like to the former prepared and he wrote thereon the same Law the second time As the Lord delighted in the first institution of the Sabbath so he accounts himself honoured by its sanctification yea he taketh this as a title of glory to be called The Lord of the Sabbath whereas this is his complaint and charge against them who are regardlesse of his Sabbath I am profaned amongst them Ezek. 22.26 Secondly Mans obligations to keep the Sabbath would neither be judged few nor weak Ezek. 20.12 Ezek. 20.20 Ezek. 20.12 Heb 4.4 5 8 9. if principles of sacred self-love might prevail For the Sabbath is givin not as a task but as a priviledge to Gods people to be a pledge of their interest in God and a confirmation unto their hope of their further sanctification as also of their everlasting Sabbatisme or rest after their wearisome wandrings in this World â—sa 58.13 Sabbathum deliciarum And for the sweetning of the Wildernesse-Way unto the heavenly Canaan the Lord hath provided a Sabbath for our spiritual feasting every Week in which respect he commandeth us to call it and to observe it as a day of delight The Text opened and improved in this ensuing Treatise giveth instance of an heavenly rapture Isa 58.13 Sabb thum delicatum quia delicatè et te nerè est observanduâ— Lapid locum â—n with which Saint John in his exile was refreshed on the Lords Day and the servants of Christ have in all ages had abundant experience of spiritual Cordials given in upon their consciencious keeping of this Sabbath therefore the rather should we observe it with holy tendernesse as Solomon counselleth every one to keep Gods Law as the Apple of his eye Prov. 7.2 Upon the first consideration we may condemn the profaners of the Sabbath as guiltie of sacriledge Exo. 20.10 Rev. 1.10 for it being the Sabbath of the Lord and the Lords Day that time is stollen from God himself which is spent otherwise then he alloweth And how sad this sacriledge and theft is I find unfolded in the following Treatise Onely observe
this sin against God in Sabbath-abuse is abominable and inexcusable because we are charged only with one day weekly to be kept as holy unto the Lord. I remember Deut. 5. that Moses maketh mention of this as an Act of Gods great indulgence towards man and that having written the ten Commandments he added no more And should not we with obediential submission acknowledge the same concerning the Sabbath Upon the second consideration men may without uncharitablenesse be censured also as inexcusably regardlesse of their own soules good both in regard of grace and comfort here and hereafter who disrespect the Sabbath day which is the market-Market-day of the soul as worthy Mr. Rich. Rogers was wont to call it And that smart sentence which was misapplyed unto Christ for he strictly kept the Sabbath of the Lord his God may be applyed to that person who is a wilfull ordinary profaner of that holy time Joh 9.16 This man is nor of God because he keepeth not the Sabbath day According to a mans regard or disregard of the Sabbath is his respect or disrespect unto all the rest of Gods Commandements Here I might take occasion to bewail bitterly Englands wofull declinings both in matters of doctrine and practice concerning the Sabbath In former times no Reformed Church was so famous either for soundnesse in judgment or exactnesse in conversation in relation to the Lords Day But our Apostasie began to be Notorious when the Book for the allowing of sports on that day was promoted to gratifie the profane and Popish party then predominant in England And hereupon many both Bishops and others for alas how apt are men even Ministers among others to swim down the tide with them who bear rule appeared in the Pulpit and in the Presse to decry the moralitie and exact observation of the fourth Commandment Many worthy servants of Christ looked upon Germanies Warres as a fruit of this high provocation there and they have judged our late-yeares troubles an effect of the like profanation At this day notwithstanding our Covenanted Reformation how wofully is Gods Sabbath neglected every where and may we not say that the loosenesse of them who are Atheistically wicked is not so dangerous to poor England as the carnal liberty of such who pretend unto the highest pitch of sanctitie How many even amongst them under pretence of Gospel immunities and of observing every day as a spiritual Sabbath do both take and plead for that libertie on the Lords Day which old Puritans amongst whom the power of godlinesse shined gloriously did decry and abominate Many years since I heard this speech uttered with much affection from famous Mr. John Rogers Take away the Sabbath and Religion will soon wither And is not this too much verified amongst our selves in England at this day We have had and we have Acts Ordinances Orders for the better keeping of the Lords Day but who knoweth not that the life of the Law lyeth in the execution Proclamations and Papers will not pluck down profanenesse except they be strengthened by the vigorous actings of persons in power The Lord threateningly complaineth of the Priests in former times because they hid their eyes from the Sabbath Ezek. 22.26 The meaning of the complaint is judged to be either more generally their regardlesnesse thereof 〈◊〉 more particularly their not taking notice when and how and by whom profaned that they might by roproof seek redresse This I mention that we Ministers may mind our Duties in this regard more The Reverend Authour of this Usefull Treatise hath expressed vigorous affections with forcible arguments to awaken quicken and encourage people unto the better keeping of the Christian Sabbath And what considerations can be more commanding and conquering unto an ingenuous experienced Christian then those two hinted and handled from the Text which this godly man undertaketh and pursueth to good purpose in this present Treatise viz. 1. Christ whose Day the Sabbath is in a way of sanctified peculiarity 2. Spirituall joy with which the Lord is wont to crown the sanctifiers of this his holy Day The former usefull Works of this my worthy good friend have found so good acceptance amongst Gods people that I hope this piece for its own sake rather then for my poor Testimony will also be welcomed and improved I commend this savoury Treatise to thy serious perusal and thy self therein to the blessing of God Almighty I am Thy friend and servant in and for Jesus Christ Simeon Ashe August 7. 1654. THE Contents of the first Part. 1. HOw God from the Beginning before the Law ordained a set Day for Religious Duties pag. 6 2. How God after under the Law did more unfold and confirm the same pag. 7 3. Why Christ under the Gospel should have a set Day for his Service p. 10 4. Wherein the work of Redemption surpass'd the work of Creation p. 11 5. Wherefore the first Day of the week is called The Lords Day p. 15 6. What warrant for the change of the Sabbath from tke last to the first Day p. 34 7. Their Objections answered who oppose the Doctrine of the Lords Day p. 36 c. 8. Of the Lords-Day-Duties what they are and where to be perform'd p. 58 125 9. Their Objections answered who neglect the Duties of the Lords Day p. 65 c. 10. The Multitudes of sinners against the Lords Day discovered p. 20 c. 11. The Magnitude of their sin opened in several respects p. 83 c. 12. The sad Judgments to which Sabbath-breakers are subject p. 96 c. 13. Gods Delay of executing Judgment upon many that mis-spend his Day why p. 110 c. 14. What all are to do to help on due Sabbath-observance p. 120 c. 15. What especially some are to do that the Sabbath-Day may be duly observed p. 132 c. 16. The Necessary Use of the Sabbath To whom and for why p. 138 c. 17. The probable losse of the Lords Day when and wherefore p. 148 c. 18. How the Lords Day being removed may be long before its return p. 160 c. 19. How the Lords Day may remain amongst some as a sore curse p. 166. c. 20. How equal it is to observe one Day in seven holy to God p. 169 c. 21. The excellency of the Lords Day being well observed p. 179 c. 22. The commodity of well keeping this our Christian Sabbath p. 196 c. 23. The comforts of the Christian Sabbath well kept p. 214 24. Their Objections answered who cannot find the comfort and profit p. 225 c. 25. How the Lords Day in the worst times may be certainly and sweetly continued p. 244. THE CONTENTS of the second Part. 1. TO be in the Spirit on the Lords Day as S. John was what it is p. 259 2. Why some of Gods Servants are on the Lords Day in the Spirit p. 281 3. How any others of the servants of God may be in the
difficulltie But the redemption of souls was difficult and painfull To effect the former God did but speak the word VVhereas to fulfill the latter the Lord Christ did shed his dearest blood 3. Most profitable unto us men is this mighty work of Christ Indeed to have earth to tread on air to breath in meat to feed of light to walk by are benefits but the subduing the strength of the Divell the removing the sting of sin with all the astonishing and sad sequels thereof The reconciliatian of Gods anger and The reparation of mans nature These and the like are benefits more abundantly benenficiall 'T is a mor admirable and andvantagious work for Christ to pull brands out of the fire then for God to bring a world out of the water After such works then may not Christ well require a day of religious rest A Sabbath to be sanctified for his service one day in seven Secondly The same honour is due to the Son that was done to God the Father John 5.23 All men should honour the Son of God even as they honour the Father In the times of the Old Testament all men did honour the Father with a day of holy worship and was a special part of his honour therefore all men must honour Christ the Son in the times of the New Testament with a set day for his solemne service To Christ for his Honour is ascribed The service of the day and therefore The day for the service is his due We find Christ honoured by attributing to him the Word Coloss 3.16 The Sacraments of Baptisme Act. 8.16 of the Supper 1. Cor. 11.24 So prayer John 16.23 Yea the whole Gospel-Ministery 1. Cor. 4.1 Sure then he ought for his honours-sake to have a Sabbath-day for the exercise of all these And are there not as great endeavours in these last dayes to lay the honour of Christ in the dust as ever before was to trample down the glory of God the Father Yea and far greater For Christ and the things of Christ As they are much above nature created So they are most against nature corrupted Yea and the corruption of nature was never so active and opposite against the dignities of Christ as in these last daies 1 John 2.18 Little Children it is the last time and as ye have heard that Antichrists shall come even now are there many Antichrists whereby we know that t' is the last time or the last hour as in the Greek And the divell knowing his time is short as he is the more malicious Quanto potestas Diaboli decrescit in tempore tanto crescit in malignitate so he is the more expeditious and industrious to dash down all the dignities of Christ and to hinder him the honour of his day which for his honour is his due Thirdly that the first day in the week is the day due to Christ THE LORDS DAY And this is fitly called the Lords day for a double cause Because of what was done by the Lord on this day and Because of what upon this day was done unto the Lord First Such things the Lord did upon this day as might well denominate it The Lords Day as 1. His resurrection from the dead upon this day Luk. 24.1 2. John 20.1 Very early in the morning did this Sun rise upon the first day in the week And well might he settle this day most observable for by his this day rising he made himself Most honourable Most profitable Most comfortable First Hereby honourable manifesting his marvellous Power when after three daies dead the Sepulchre sealed the stone rolled a strong watch placed yet he broke through all bars beat down all opposition as a Triumphing Conquerour over death and devills Lazarus John 11. When he rose came up with his grave-clothes bound but Christ cast off his grave-clothes leaving them in the Sepulchre Joh. 20. signifying he had victory over death wereas Lazarus was subject to die again Plus erat de sepulchro surgere quam de cruce descendere plus mortem resurgendo destruere quam vitam descendendo servare Greg◠The Jewes cryed Let him come down from the Crosse and we will believe T' was more sayes one for Christ to ascend from his sepulchre then to descend from the Crosse more to vanquish death by rising then to save his life by escaping O the honour of this 2. Hereby profitable The death of Christ was at the sowing of the Corn Joh. 12.24 The raising of Christ is as the springing up of the Corn. The benefits of Christs death are reaped in his resurrection the death of Christ was as the casting of Joseph into the pit selling him into Egypt and putting him into Prison the raising of Christ is like the preferring of Joseph by which he comes into a capacity to enrich all his Relations 3. Hereby comfortable O the joy of a raised Christ The Christians in the Primitive Church were wont when they saw one another to have this joyful salute The Lord is risen and the others ordinary answer was True 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Plus gaudere propter resurrectionem gloriosam quam dolere propter passionem ignominiosam Bern. The Lord is risen indeed We should not so much mourn saith a good Author at Christs ignominious Passion as we should rejoyce at his glorious resurrection The day therefore of Christs rising may well set up this Christian Sabbath 2. Christs appearing to his Disciples was upon this day he shewed himself five times upon the very day he rose first to Mary Magdalen in the morning Mark 16.9 Secondly to the women Matth. 28.9 10. Thirdly to the two Disciples Luk. 24.18 Fourthly to Peter Luk. 24.33 Fifthly to the Eleven Mark 16.14 Excepting Thomas Joh. 20.24 When the Disciples were assembled Christ came in and he stood in the midst among them as the tree of life in the midst of Paradise and unto them we may observe He spake peace and He gave power He said unto them Peace be unto you Peace From outward foes and From inward fears And when fears were out joyes were in Joh. 20.20 Then the Disciples rejoyced when they saw the Lord never did their spirits so spring within them Never before did such a day of comfort dawn And upon this day he gave them a threefold power To Preach the Gospel To administer the Sacraments and To exercise Church-Discipline As is evident Matth. 28.16 17 18 19 20. Mark 16.15 16 17. Joh. 20.21 22 23 c. Hereby He did both sanctifie the day for such Ordinances And he did signifie such Ordinances were for the day And again the very next first day of the week after he arose from the dead he appeared to his Disciples Thomas being with them Then he did for his sake more familiarly and fully unfold himself then before This made one say He was more beholding to Thomas doubting then to Peter believing for upon the occasion of that Disciples doubts our dear
Christ 1. The Persons that the Sabbath was for appears to be the praying Saints of God though Jewes by Nation Christians by profession and therefore the day they ought to observe was suitable 2. The season of this Sabbath-day was during that Sabbath which should be at the time of the sacking and sad desolating the City Jerusalem About fourty years after Christs death that dreadful and terrible time came when according to the voyce heard in the Temple Let us depart hence Gods people departed thence to Pella and other places and for the Unconverted Jewes as Eusebius reports whereas they had sold Christ for thirty pence thirty of them were sold for a peny and so many hundreds of them who crucified Christ were crucified themselves in one day that there were not places enough for Crosses not Crosses for bodies Then then were Gods faithful ones fain to fly for their lives yet then were they to be serious and incessant in Sabbath-day-duties then all Ceremonies were abolished And that special day which the Jew had observed being Ceremonial was before abrogated and a seventh day as a holy Sabbath upon an another account then kept and so to continue 2. That which our Saviour saith of himself as concerning the Sabbath we see Mark 2.28 The Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath-day Which notes in Christ touching this day two things His Authority for it and His Propriety in it The Sabbath is such a day that the Lord Christ For it gives a special command and In it keeps a special Interest Other time the Lord allots and allows men for their ordinary affairs but this day he reserves as his proper and peculiar Portion Truly may we say of the Sabbath as 't is said of Jacob Psal 135.4 The Lord hath chosen it unto himself for his peculiar treasure Vox segulah significat rem quandam auctam charam sive the saurus fuerit sive res aliae quae cunquâ— His Segullah Time the Lord gives out but this he keeps as his store and as that which to him is most dear THE LORDS DAY Christ he is clearly the Lord of all but especially THE LORD OF THE SABBATH The Sabbath at first considered with other dayes As Christ hath separated it from them So Christ hath elevated it above them Above all dayes he doth estimate this 't is emiminently his And he the Lord of this day It being from him in respect of its Rise And it being for him in respect of its Use Christ was the raiser of it and Christ is the ruler in it This is that high day he hath set upon stable grounds This is that great day he doth guide unto noble ends The grounds on which this day is erected are The Lords abundant care of And His abiding Covenant with his Church and people throughout all ages Such is the care the Lord hath for the spirituall profit of his People and to perpetuate the Practice of Religion as thereupon he appoints this present day Yea and that it might abide he hath bound it by covenant to continue through all generations Vid. Willets Hexapla in locum Exodus 13.16 17. The ends to which this day is directed are The honour of God And The happinesse of man Hence is that Isay 58.13 If thou call the Sabbath a delight the holy of the Lord honourable and shalt honour him And hence is that Isay 56.2 Happy or blessed is the man that doth this the son of man that layeth hold on it that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it To say now no more this is that sweet day upon which Saint John had such Soul-ravishing-Revelations in the Spirit I was in the Spirit upon the Lords Day The Use two-fold Of Information Of Exhortation First we are here informed of mens fearful evills relating to the Lords Day viz. Both The sinfull evill they are guilty of The Penall evill they are subject to First to set out the sinfulnesse of men against the Sabbath I shall consider and clearly discover The Multitude of the sinners And The Magnitude of the sin Sinners against the Holy Sabbath are of severall sorts Some sinning against the doctrine of the day And Some sinning against the duties of the day 1. Some that in point of judgment lye crosse to the Lords Day Of such There be some grosse in their opinion And others in their opinion more loose The former deny the day Positively and in whole The latter deny the day respectively and in part Those that do not at all believe the Lords Day are of two sorts Some that more Sordidly declare it Some that more subtilly conceale it 1. There be some that publiquely proclaime their denyall of this Holy Day and of them we may observe two sorts Some that did never better appear in time past And Some that in time past did much better appear Some that have been so Sottishly and abominably bred up that a conviction of the Lords Day they never let in Sabbath-Principles they never laid up And some whose education and profession hath formerly declared their belief of the Lords Day but now run in ranting and riotous waies publishing their opinions against all Sabbath-observance yea are come to scorn and mock at the Sabbaths of the Lord like those Lam. 1.7 Of such what shall I say But declare them utterly unclean because the Leprosie is in their heads I allude to that Levit. 13.44 verse Secondly there be others that carrie Some Sabbath-day-shew they abstain from their ordinary works and meet where some matters of Religion are managed but not from any tye upon conscience or obedience to any divine Authority The Papists upon an Ecclesiasticall and others upon a Politicall account and because of the civill power otherwise in their own opinions they are set Sabbath-free They do not embrace the Sabbath that 's crosse to their inward principles yet they doe not disclaim the Sabbath that may prove their outward Prejudice This is plain hypocrisie in the Lords Day and woe to such hypocrites in the Day of the Lord. I proceed next to consider them that assent somewhat to a Sabbath-day but their assent thereunto is not right and through Of such there be two sorts Some which deny that this is the Day And Some who deny that of the Day which is Some grant the Lord hath a Day for his service but they plead against the first and for the last day in the week the particular day which the Jewes kept to be still the standing Sabbath-day In this is a subtile design of Satan when he sees as Sabbath-men will have he seeks to set it where it may be sure to fall and though about this scruples may be in some consciencious yet the principall Patrons for the Jewish Sabbbath do it out of a secret design to lay waste the Lords Day Conatus eorum tanquam Pestilentissimus est retundendus Musc Loc Com. Part. 1. fol. 148. This made Musculus to
their mad merriments when they are most Jovial vain and voluptuous And were it not for Gods wonderful Patience while they are thus polluting the holy seasons of God it should be to them as to Belshazzar when he was abusing the holy vessels of God In the same hour came forth fingers of a mans hand and wrote upon the plaister of the wall MENE MENE TEKEL c. Then the Kings countenance was changed and his thoughts troubled him so that the joynts of his loyns were loosed and his knees smote one against another Danniel 5.3 4 5 6. To be sinful upon the Sabbath-day Hieron in Isaiam cap. 5. August Tract 4. in Joan. 'T is an aggravation of sin And 'T is an assimilation of Satan Thus a man greatens his sin by sinning upon the Sabbath a man not only offends against the fourth Commandement but other Commandements by such sins are also violated which makes the offence more deep and double As to be good in evill dayes is that which heightens a mans praise and declares the eminency of his grace so to be evill on good dayes sinfull upon the sacred Sabbaths of the Lord is that which makes a mans case more culpable and his sin the more abominable Thus a man likens himself to Satan who is ever bad but worst upon the best dayes The wickedest act that ever the Divell did was when he met man in the holy place of Paradise and O what sinfull designs hath Satan upon the sons of men when he meets them upon the holy time of Sabbaths Of all sins such Satan is most prone to promote that will most provoke God and such are the sins of the Sabbath 1. Cor. 6.15 Shall I sayes the Apostle take the members of Christ and make them the members of an Harlot God forbid so should a man say Shall I take the dayes of Christ and make them the dayes of sin and vanity of gluttony and drunkennesse God forbid Unto God sin is ever offensive but to sin upon the Sabbath does most incense God Ezra 9.13 Seeing O Lord thou hast given us such a deliverance as this should we break thy commandements and joyn affinity with the people of these abominations wouldest not thou be angry till thou hadst consumed us and so as there should be no escape Thus ought men to argue O Lord seeing thou hast given us such A DAY as this should we transgresse thy commands and practise abominations thereupon would'st not thou be very angry c. Chrysost de Lazar. con c. 1. Chrysostome well observes that the Sabbath is the Day God appoints to purge and cleanse men from sin and therefore on that day for men to mix themselves in sin is exceeding sinful Secondly in earthly actings there are those that spend out the Sabbath-Day ravelling and running out this rich and precious time of the Lords Day Some upon their worldly businesse Others about their businesse in the world In Sabbath-time are some set upon their ordinary affaires As Sea-water it will not abide in its own banks but beats and eates upon the Land and drownes the dry ground so many mens worldly callings will not keep within their weeks compasse but eate upon the Lords Day and drown up Sabbath-time God in the creation went on through all the works of the World till he had made man and then he took his Seventh Dayes rest and sanctified it how sad is it to see man stay in worldly works and never care to come at God in a Sanctified-Seventh-Days-rest True there are some who though they will not be in the open Sabbath upon their ordinary week-day-work yet they will be about such things as have tendency thereunto We find in the 14. of Luke of some that when they were sent to at Super-time they made their excuse One said I have bought a piece of ground and I must needs go and see and another said I have bought five yoke of Oxen and I go to prove them The one sort did not at that very time purchase their Farme but went then to see it nor the other did not then buy their Oxen but went then to prove them Thus some in Sabbath-time though they are not upon the common work of their Trades yet then they go to see and are busie about the disposing of their week-day-works As God in the Creation wrought out the works of the World in six several dayes but the very first day he fitted and ordered the matter for the whole frame Thus men upon the first day of the week OUR LORDS DAY are busie about the ordering of matters for their earthly affairs in the following dayes All this proceeds from Satan that evil one and from covetousnesse the root of all evil 1. The Divel upon the Lords day when he cannot draw to that which is wicked he will to what is worldly Thereby To augment the sin of man and To prevent the service of God 1. Hereby Satan encreases the sin of man he well knowes those works which are upon the week dayes lawful are upon the Sabbath sinful and so sets men thereupon 2. Hereby Satan opposes and suppresses the Service of God God upon this account requires as Austin excellently notes men upon the Sabbath to forbear their worldly businesse August de civit Dei lib. 6. cap. 11. Idem de tempore Serm. 25â— that they may then be the more free and full prompt and ready for religious service and fot this cause thâ— Divel puts people then upon their earthly businesse that he may beat them off from Gods blessed service upon his holy Sabbath day The Divel does not like diligence in a lawfull calling but upon sinful designs he unseasonably sets men thereupon I could report of a poor woman oft under strong temptations whom I have heard sometimes sadly say she was not able all the week to go about the necessary works of her calling but when the Lords day was she knew not how to keep from her worldly work being violently provoked thereunto True the more common case is for Satan upon the Sabbath to hold men on in their earthly affairs who are eagerly bent thereabout all the week besides As the subtile Serpent said to Eve Gen. 3. Yea hath God said ye must not eat of every tree so Satan subtilly sayes to men Hath God said Ye shall not work upon every day ye may work 't will be for your benefit Yea should Satan be silent to survile work on the Sabbath 2. A principle of covetousnesse puts men hereupon What made Eve to eat of the tree thâ—â— was forbidden of God And what caused Achan to take the wedge of gold that was otherwise disposed and set apart of God but covetousnesse And whence is it that men upon the Sabbath day which God hath separated for himself are so carried about their own common business but from covetousnesse Covetousness Colos 1.5 is called Idolatry This Idol the world it takes up that time of service
which does belong to God The Sun must bear the swey of the Day though the Moon rules the Night and though the World hath the predominancy all the week yet 't is meet Christ should have the command of his own day THE LORDS DAY I proceed to a second sort that sinne against this Lords day by not doing on the day what they ought Concerning Sabbath-day-duties we shall consider The kind they are to be of and The place they are to be in For the kind the duties on the Lords day to be done are Of Piety towards God and Of Charity towards men For the place the duties to be done on the Lords day Are in our publike meetings Or in our private dwellings Now persons who do not their Sabbath duties and so sin against this day are of two sorts Some that Idle out the day and do nothing of the duty and others that trifle in the day and of the duty do but something 1. Too many are manifest that spend this holy day in Idlenesse By the Law the Priests upon the Sabbath day were to offer double sacrifice whence Chrysostome collects Chrysost concion de Lazaro that the Sabbath ought not to be a day of ease and Idlenesse but of double diligence in holy exercises In the Gospel even the Lord of this day is revealed not as in an idle but an active posture During the dayes of his flesh he went about doing good Act. 10.38 And the Sabbath was the day of his best and most abundant works as is well observed and therefore this Lords day calls for diligence in the best duties and does not indulge Idlenesse The Jewes use to call the seventh year the Idle year because then the ground lay follow no Plowing or sowing or bringing forth of Corn. Many Christians may call the seventh day the Idle day for then is no praying hearing c. or bringing forth any fruit that is good the whole day to the man and the whole man in the day lyes like the desert dry and barren where no seed is sowen through Idlenesse on the Lords day men they become Most culpable in their sin and Most lyable unto Satan 1 To be Sabbath-idle increases a mans sin Idlenesse is ever evil but never so bad as upon this good day No time is allowed for Idlenesse As of every idle word Matth. 12.36 so of every idle hour a man must give account at the day of judgement and as one upon the place further infers Sâ— pro etioso verbo reddemus rationem videamus ne reddamus pro otioso silentâ—o Ambros de ossic lib. 1. cap. 3. ut nullo die intermittantur certa tempora orandi Aug. Haeres 57. We shall not onely give account for our idle sayingâ— but we must give account for our idle silence for our not speaking when men do not take unto themselves words in prayer and the like but he like the Prophets Idols having mouthes and speak not ears and hear not c. Some religious exercises are every day duties Austin upon that place of the Apostle Pray continually Expounds it See that in no day there be any intermission of certain times for prayer But then from prayer and other holy duties to be idle vacant and voyd on the Lords day deepens the sin because on such dayes Men have best work And most work to do 1. The Sabbath is a day of the best work Most of the week-work is world-work poor in comparison of this That 's like digging in a dark pit this as reaping in a pleasant field As 't is best being with God so 't is best working for God Weekly labour is but bodily labour burdensome labour Sabbath-work is chiefly soul-work and all sweet work Men work on the week that they and theirs may live well in this world a while But the Lords Day-work is our meal for ever Therefore for any to be idle on this day aggravates their sin of Idlenesse Secondly the Sabbath is a day of the most work men on that day should do more in the service of God then all the week besides The Jews did much on their Sabbath Christians are to do more on their Lords Day If we compare Numb 28.9 with Ezek. 46.4 we shall find that the offerings in the time of the Gospel prophesied of were more then those in the time of the Law In Num. we find but two Lambs but in Ezekiel we find six Lambs and a Ram for the Sabbath This signifies that in the settled times of the Gospell Gods Worship upon the Christian Sabbath should be solemnized more fully then in former times under the Law Now for men to be idle when they have most work to do causes idlenesse to become the more culpable and the greater sin Secondly to be Sabbath-idle exposes souls to Satans service hence so many do the divells drudgery and draw the divells cart upon the Lords day When Satan especially in Sabbath time sees men idle and not about any thing that is good then he soone sets them about that which is naught so that upon this day men are most eager to go on the divels arrand though to their own ruin Yea men upon the Lords Day that lye idle they tempt the Tempter and do invite the Divell to their dwellings and as it were ask if he hath no work or what service he will command them They are ready each saying Here am I send me As in supper-time Satan entred into Judas so in Sabbath-time Satan takes possession of such idle ones Some keep the Sabbath like their cattel they go not to plow in deed but nothing good they go about They are in their houses as their horses in ther stables yea perhaps in their beds as their hogs in their styes Or on the Lords Day if they be not as beasts they are as birds that flye from place to place so do they wander from town to-town idly passing away of Sabbath-time Yea 't is with many in this as with the Divells they believe a Sabbath but they observe no Sabbath as they can keep no Sabbath in point of rest so they will keep no Sabbath in point of work Men are on earth as the damned in hell who never are in any religious duties they may be crying for water to coole theie tongues but never praying for grace to change their hearts or for mercy to remit their sins For thousands of idle Sabbaths hath God with some to reckon and let them be fure that as God will not hold them guiltlesse that take his Name in vain so God will never hold them guiltlesse that spend his time in vain Secondly I come to consider such as indeed do somewthat of duty in the day of the Sabbath but of these there are that take up their Sabbath-work Either in some one part of the day Or in some one place for the day The part of the Lords day wherein the exercises of religion ought to lye being both
read of many such sad examples Some within doors their brains beat out others abroad their bodies burnt with Lightning and beat down dead with claps of Thunder as some recite Object We see no such punishments in our present times upon persons profaning the Sabbath Answ The Lord now leaves men unto that which is worse then punishment to wit sin Both in the time of the Sabbath And out of Sabbath-time O the sad sins of several even upon the Sabbath day Such sins set Musculus upon the fourth Commandement to make a sad moane and Bucer upon the 92. Psalme does bitterly bewaile such sins O that we had some so seriously mourning for we have now many miserably so sinning yea and also at other times Men are in sin when they are out of the Sabbath God leaves men to week dayes transgressions as a punishment of Sabbath day omissions The Lord lets men on the week dayes do the evil they should not because on the Sabbath day they did not the good they should Yea let 's sadly consider our abominable sins Both in judgment And in practice The sinking of Sabbaths is the rising of all errors Hence we note Arminian Socinian Pelagian opinions published almost in every place With our sins against the day of Christ we have sinful errors against the death of Christ against the whole Doctrine of Christ Dignity of Christ Deity of Christ I have found some affirming that 't was a piece of the Divels policy to hinder the Sabbath from being called the Lords day that he might the more keep men from knowing and imbracing the Lord of truth and the truth of the Lord. I dare say 't is Satans design that he might make men vent and advance Venomous opinions against the pure and precious truths of Christ he causes them to become carelesse in keeping the Lords day 'T was observed among the Jewes that when they grew remisse concerning the Sabbath they became corrupt in their Tenents touching the works of God in the Creation And it may be observed among Christians that since men have fallen to soul neglects of the Lords day they have about the works of Christ redemption wax'd wilde in their imaginations yea errors of all sorts hath God suffered as filthy froggs to infect our English air 2. Sinful and prodigious practices are also plentiful in every place As the observation of the Sabbath is that which brings on all the duties of godlinesse cease that and all sinks so the violation of the Sabbath is the inlet of al loosenesse a door to all the works of darknesse what wickednesse will not rise up where the Lords day is down As in the Decalogue the command for the Sabbath is set in the middle being the band of the whole and that which hath an influence into all thus in the Catalogue of Jerusalems sins Ezek. 22. the sin against the Sabbath is set in the midst amongst them as being the main and that through which all the rest move Read vers 7 8 9 10. In thee have they set light by father and mother in thee have they dealt by oppression in thee have they vexed the father lesse and the widow Thou hast despised my holy things and hast profaned my Sabbath In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood in thee they commit lewdnesse thou hast greedily gained by extortion and hast forgotten me saith the Lord God Now for the Lord in a Land to suffer such sins is worse then if he should in an ordinary way punish punishment not being so great an evil as sin Sin is the common cause of punishment In evil things the cause is more corrupt then the effect punishment is the work of God sin is the proper work of the Divel punishment is opposite to the peace and quiet of the creature sin 't is repugnant to the very being of man yea of God himself 'T is sin alone which formally and causally separates a soul from God the chiefest good and therefore is the greatest evil 'T is sins that are Bars in Heaven-gates that there is no entering in and Bonds in Hell flames that there 's no getting out If I sayes Anselme were in hell without sin I should not be kept in and were I in heaven with sin I should soon be turned out This sayes Chrysostome do I think and this I will ever Preach that 't is worse by sin to offend Christ then to be tormented in hell-fire for ever May not we then well think that sin is a sorer evil then any punishment possible And therefore though God does not punish persons for polluting his Sabbath yet in that he leaves them upon this unto other sins their case is a thousand fold worse Yet of such too many are manifest men who on the Sabbath do not regard Gods assisting grace to help them in good God on the week dayes withdraws his restreining grace that might keep them from evil even sin the worst of evils 2. Though God does not in visible wayes punish such men yet he does in various wayes whereof they are not aware viz. Negative and Positive 1. 'T is a punishment that God does not punish them Hosea 4.14 I will not punish your Daughters when they commit whoredome Infignis est poena vindicta impietatis connivere Deum indulgere peccantibus Philo. lib. de confus linguarum c. When God does not punish persons for polluting and neglecting his Sabbath this is a sore punishment Yea 't is a notable punishment sayes a learned Writer and a dreadful revenge when God seems to indulge and as it were oversee sinful men As God shewes love in correcting so he shewes wrath when he does not correct 'T was mercy to me may some man say that I was chastised 'T was good for me sayes David that I was afflicted So every wicked one shall one day say 't was ill for me I was not afflicted 't was a judgement to me God did not correct me The lesse smart on earth the more pain in hell 't is a terrible punishment upon some Sabbath-breakers to break the Sabbath and yet to passe unpunished 2. God sends in sad Judgements for this sin which men do not see as a Judge he smites them with blindnesse of mind and hardnesse of heart for this God threatens Levit. 26. to make the earth as brasse and heavens as Iron Iron-hearts are worse then Iron-heavens If sometimes on the Lords day to the Congregatiō men of hard hearts come yet that word which is a mercy to some is a judgement to them * Quum sanctae exhortationis verba aliamens suscipit alia recipere recusat super unam civitatem pluit Dominus non super aliam Grego in Ezek. Hom. 10. 't is Gods expression in the Prophet That he caused it to rain upon one City and not upon another that is sayes an ancient Writer the same words of exhortation which God as a loving Father causes some to receive
parts of the service Suitable to their places for the service Concerning the service of the Lords day it self observe The spring of it and The spread of it What it must proceed from and What it must extend unto 1. Sabbath-service must proceed from a spring of love The service of our Christian Sabbath-love Amor meus pondus meum eo feror quocunque feror Aug. 'T will facilitate it and 'T will perpetuate it Love it will lead out and carry through the wole businesse of this blessed day with ease to the end Love is the best Load-stone through all the Lords day-duties This is one of the dayes of the Lords appearing which every Christian is bound to love 2 Tim. 4.8 And who ever loves the day will not leave the duty 2. The service of the Sabbath is of such extent that there are divers duties duly to be performed Both secretly in our Habitations And openly in the Congregation In our private dwellings Religious duties upon the Lords day are required of every one as Prayer Meditation and holy Conference Prayer whereby we speak to God Meditation whereby we speak to our selves And good Conference whereby we speak one unto another Prayer The Sabbath is indeed a day God hath sanctified yet 't is not sanctified as to us nor we to it without prayer Our Sabbath in heaven shall all be imployed in praysings of God but prayer to God must have a prime part of every Sabbath we observe on earth Are there Sbbbath duties to be performed we must pray that God would make us able Are there Sabbath mercies to be received we must pray that God would count us worthy Meditation The Sabbath is the day for the bodies rest from earthly affairs and therefore the mind is then most meet to be about the best businesse Theophil in Marc. 1. et 21. One well notes that the Lord commands rest upon the Sabbath that men might read the Word and meditate upon the Word they read The Word and the Works of God are indeed every day to be meditated on but most upon the Lords day Augustine gives this reason why God was six several dayes in the works of the World to wit that upon the seventh day man might the more orderly think upon those Works of God Conference The Sabbath is the day when all in a family have more liberty to be together then on any other day On the week dayes persons in a house are as Bees in a Hive that go forth several wayes to work but on the Lords day their common work abroad ceases so that they may the better set themselyes to assist each other in soul concernments Exhorting one another while it is called to day Heb. 3.13 In our publick meetings The religious duties which upon the Lords day are required be Either more ordinary Or lesse ordinary Ordinary and constant duties for the exercise of all As Prayer to God Hearing the Word and Singing of Psalmes Prayer Upon the Lords day though one be made the Mouth yet 't is meete there should be as many praying hearts as present bodies Prayer was a principal thing the practice of which the Primitive Christians continued in their congregated assemblies Act. 2.42 Austine sadly complains of some in his time August de tempore Serm. 251. who when they should be entring in the Church doors they are tarrying in the Church-yard playing without when they should be praying within idly talking of the world when they should be seriously seeking the Lord c. O that this abuse had dyed in his dayes but the Lord knows it lives for us to lament Hearing Upon the Lords day a great duty is diligent attention to Gods word read and preached They sayes a reverend Writer who rightly use the Sabbath day Gualt in Marc. 3. Hom. 23. they go to the publick assemblies to hear the holy word of God And herein what was the practice of Gods people in the time of the Apostles is plain Act. 13.14 15 16 42 44. Act. 15.21 Act. 20.7 c. And Justine Martyr who dyed for the cause of Christ in the year of our Lord 170. in his second Apologie for Christians reports the people of God to gather into one place perpetually on the Lords day to hear the Scriptures read and to attend exhortations thereupon Singing Upon the Lords day it being the day of Saints sweetest delight holy Psalmes are seasonable to be sung And in ancient times there were some Psalmes penned and purposely appointed for the Sabbath day as is expressed in the Preface of Psal 92. Pliny in his letter to Trajan tells how in those times the Christians upon their set dayes of solemn worship used early in the morning sweetly to sing together unto the praise of God August lib. 9. confessio cap. 6. Austin in this publike exercise sayes he had often wept for joy joy c. Some seek to cut off and cast this comfortable service quite out of doors contrary to the example of Christ Matth. 26.30 the practice of the Apostles Act. 16.25 and other expresse texts in the New Testament August in lib. Psal Prolog Basil de virt laud. Psal Tom. 1. as Colos 3.16 Ephes 5.19 Jam. 5.13 Among other ancient Writers Basil speaks large in the praise of praysing God in this way and abundantly blesses God for the Book of the Psalmes as a fit foundation for this duty Lesse ordinary yet frequent duties upon the Lords day to be done they do relate to Sacraments administring Censures inflicting and Necessities supplying Sacraments The transacting of these suites best unto the Sabbath season One well observes that upon the day of the ancient Sabbath the sacrifices were doubled Danaeus Ethic. Chr. lib. 2. cap. 10. And our Sacraments succeeding these should not onely come in their room but be at their time as services most seasonable for the day of our Sabbath Chrysostome reports how in the primitive times the Lords day had a double name 't was called Chrysost de Resurr Serm. 15. The day of light and The day of bread Of light Because on that day the Sacrament of Baptisme was wont to be openly administred Of bread Because the Sacrament of the Lords Supper used to be celebrated on that day in the Assemblies of Christians And this was the manner of the Disciples in the time of the Apostles Act. 20.7 Censures The exercise of Discipline is fit for the Lords day when the servants of Christ are assembled then to remove from among them scandalous persons both in opinion and practice that 's a plain place 1 Cor. 5.4 In the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ when ye are gathered together viz. on our Lords day and my spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ to deliver such a one unto Satan c. And the first power for this purpose that our Saviour gave to his Disciples was upon the day of our Christian Sabbath the first day of the week see
the day of his Birth but I never read of any that cursed the day of his New Birth This is the day of rescuing the prey from the mighty the day of opening the Prison-dores and setting the captive free Exod. 12.42 It is a night much to be observed to the Lord for bringing them out from the Land of Egypt This is that night of the Lord to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations So may we say of the Sabbath 'T is a day much to be observed to the Lord for bringing souls from the bondage of sin This is the day much to be observed to the Lord of all the children of God throughout all generations This hath been the day of many a spiritual Marriage or the day of Gods espousing many souls to Christ Thus hath God honoured this his holy day highly And as for this holy day it doth highly honour God exalting all that appertains to God It beautifies the service of God It dignifies the servants of God 1. Hereby the service of God is beautified Eccles 3.11 Every work sayes the Wise man is beautiful in its season Holy duties are best in season upon holy dayes Preach the Word sayes the Apostle 2 Tim. 42. Be instant in season and out of season rebuke exhort c. In season That is upon the Sabbath day Out of season That is in the week-time So several sound Expositors upon the place Prov. 25.11 Words spoken in season are like apples of gold in pictures of silver Thus Prayers made and Sermons preached in season are as golden apples in silver pictures one helping to honour the other The golden apples grace the silver pictures and the silver pictures set out the golden apples Thus the Sabbath-service advances the Sabbath-season and the Sabbath-season exalts the Sabbath-service and all lifts up the honour of God who hath prepared silver dishes for golden apples and put golden apples into silver dishes Appointing blessed dayes for sacred duties and sacred duties for blessed dayes 2. Hereby the servants of God are dignified God in giving the whole Law and so in proclaiming the Command for the sanctifying of the Sabbath made use of the Ministery of Angels not for necessity to him but dignity to them 'T was an honour to the Angels to be present and assistant when the Sabbath was set forth Gala. 3.19 .. Thus God in the continued management of the Sabbath and carrying on the sanctification thereof in the world makes use of the Ministery of men as a dignity to them Among other respects there are two most remarkable things that do dignifie the office of Ministers above all other Functions The subject they are imployed for viz. The Souls of men And the Season they are imployed in viz. The Sabhaths of God Other callings their work lies upon the week-daies but the Minister in his businesse lies bound for the Sabbath O let not any earthly discouragements sink the soules of my dear brethren but let 's honour that God who hath so honoured us as to bend and bind our businesse to this blessed Day Hath God magnify'd our office to labour on this day Let us magnifie our office by this days-labour Steadfast immoveable abounding in the Lords work upon the Lords day That God who hath blessed the day for our work will blesse our work in the day 2. The Sabbath consider'd as Christian hath honour Christianity brings on dignity Theodosius accounted himself more noble as he was a Christian then as he was an Emperour Hence Luther professed He had rather be a Christian beggar then Heathen Alexander Our Sabbath is Christian and therefore excellent The excellencie of our Christian Sabbath may be seen by two sorts of things Some more Principal Some lesse Principal The principall things that put a price upon the Sabbath lie In the appointing of it and In the abyding of it This day may appear precious if we ponder The person by whom and The reason for why 't was appointed 1. The person through whom this appointment came was Christ and his Institution August de temp Serm. 36. To this Austin applies that prediction of the Prophet Psal 118.24 This is the day which the Lord hath made we will rejoyce and be glad therein Jesus Christ himself set out this Sabbath-time Christ in person Christ in the Apostles THE LORD CHRIST Coelum eâ— Christus non patiantur hyperbolen O how excellent is he Christ and Heaven says Luther in their praise can be no excesse Too little we may speak never too much All the excellencies of God and man meet in Christ That then must needs be excellent whereof Christ is the Author That Child is nobly born which can call Christ Father The Sabbath derives its pedigree from Christ 2. The reason upon which this Day was ordained was Christ in his Resurrection The Resurrection of Christ was the first degree of his exaltation Had he not risen from the dead he had never ascended into heaven never sat down at the right hand of God And therefore his rising day may well be our resting day that day on which Christ took the first step to all his great honours is an honourable day and a day much to be honoured God hath highly honoured this day As by converting on it the Souls of men So by raising on this day the Body of his Son 2. We may see this days excellency in its permanency As the Priesthood of Melchizedeck was more excellent then the Priesthood of Aaron because of its order for ever Hebr. 7.17 So the Sabbath of Christians is more excellent then all the Sabbaths of the Jews because it continues To this Sabbath it might be said in regard of all the Jewish Sabbaths They shall perish but thou remainest and they shall all wax old as doth a garment As a vesture shalt thou roul them up and they shall be changed but thou art the same and thy years shall not fail Heb. 1.11 12. To this day all the powers of earth hell shall never put a period Lastly we may look into the large dignity of this Day From the timing of it and From the naming of it 1. This day is so tim'd as is a help to its honour 'T is the first day in the week We have a rule That the first in every kind is more excellent then all the rest August de civit De. ili 11. Cypria Serm. de Spir. S Austin Cyprian and other of the Ancients much advance the excellency of the Sabbath from the circumstance of time That 't is the seventh Day The number seven being most perfect that which they say comprises many mysteries of moment But that which is more meet for us to consider is the settling of our Christian Sabbath upon the first day of the week Luke 2.23 we read how 't was written in the Law that every Male that first opened the womb was called holy to the Lord our Sabbath it is
that day which first opened the womb of time that day which first opens the womb of every week and therefore may well be kept holy to the Lord and be accounted honourable in the world Whereas the Jewes Sabbath was upon the last ours is upon the first day of the week So that the Jewish Sabbath might well say concerning the Christian as John Baptist of Christ There comes one after me that is to be preferred before me 'T is more excellent as 't is time 2. Our Sabbath as it is named transcends in excellency Heb. 1.9 't is said of Christ in respect of the Angels He hath obtained a more excellent name then they so may it be said of our Sabbath in respect of all the Judaicall Sabbaths It hath obtained a more excellent name then they it is called THE LORDS DAY True there is excellency in the name Sabbath as it signifies rest Rest is the Centre to which all living creatures move Rest is the perfection and satisfaction of all creatures after their tyring and troublesome motions But in this name excellencie more abounds THE LORDS DAY As it made much for the honour of Jacob when he had another name added Israel Jacob signified The supplanter of weak man Israel signified The prevailer with a strong God The latter the far more excellent name This is the honour of the Sabbath it hath another name and the former was not like this last THE LORDS DAY There is admirable excellency in all that is called the Lords The Lords Gospel The Lords People The Lords Praier The Lords supper 1. The Lords Gospel There is excellencie The Law of God hath beauty but the Gospel excells in glory The Jewish Rabbins were wont to say That upon every letter of Gods Law hang Mountaines of admirable matter But Luther of the Gospel goes further saying That the shortest line and the least letter thereof is more worth then all Earth and Heaven The very Angels look out from Heavens Glory stooping down to see into the glory of the Gospell 1 Pet. 1.12 1. The Lords people There is excellencie They are the honour of the earth the glory of the world the ornaments of Townes and Cities As one pearl says Chrysostome is more worth then a thousand pebbles So one pious man is more precious then ten thousand sinners The whole wicked world may say to a Saint as the people of Israel to David Thou art worth ten thousand of us 2. Sam. 18.3 We may say of Saints in the world as our Saviour said of the Lilies of the field Solomon in all his glory was not cloathed like one of these Matth. 6.29 3. The Lords prayer There is excellency Some have called it The Abridgement of the Bible and others Tertul. li. de orat ca. 1. Cypr. ser de orat Dom. The Epitome of the Gospel And several observe that though it be little for phrase of words yet it is great for matter and sweet for order pithy and precious in every part A short prayer may be full of God as there may be little of God in a prayer that is long The Lords prayer is as it were a Breviary and Compendium of the great God Infolded Gods worth and Mans wants 4. The Lords Supper There is excellency 'T is that Ordinance wherein Saints the most excellent of persons and wherein faith the most excellent of graces hath the highest activities Here the precious blood of Christ and the precious faith of Christians meet Cypr. de coe Dom. Here faith sayes Cyprian layes its mouth close to the wounds of Christ and sucks in sin-killing and soul quickning blood O blessed be God! Thus 't is evident what is the Lords is excellent And is not the Lords day Let us observe All time from the Beginning was precious Gospel-time is more precious then any before it The Lords day is the most precious part of Gospel-time 'T was a brave expression of Galeacius Garacciolus that Italian Marquesse when a great summe of money was offered him to draw him to his own Popish Countrey and kindred Let all their money perish with them who account all the wealth of the world worth one dayes Communion with Jesus Christ One Sabbath-dayes society with a Saviour ought to be of higher esteem then all the honours of the earth O let us not sink down the dignity of this day in our hearts but every way let us labour to lift up its Honour higher and higher For As 't is sad to debase it So to advance it is good 1. To debase and despise the Lords day is common now in our Nation Men for the most part make no more of this then of any other day Cant. 5.9 What is thy beloved more then another beloved say they to the Church extolling of Christ Upon this she fell to a more full discovery of the dignities and excellencies of Christ Some had need set up Gods Sabbath-honour the more there are so many that say in their hearts What is the day of the Sabbath more then another day yea and indeed it is no more as many in their lives sinfully make it Dalilah prevailing upon Sampson he lost his locks and his strength and became like another man The Devil with divers hath prevailed so far against the Sabbath that it hath lost its life and lustre glory and honour and is become like another day which I am sure is no sign of good to come Some say that if the Sun which is the chief of planets be Eclipsed it signifies great Commotions Mutations Destructions I dare say that when the Sabbath which is the chief of dayes is clouded and covered over with black opinions and practices it intimates heavy evils to come O how do men pollute that which God hath sanctified and debase that day which God hath dignified Act. 10.15 What God hath cleansed call not thou common And what God hath honoured O man account not thou base 2. To advance this day is its due and our duty And indeed could we in England but recover the Sabbaths honour that this Sabbath-Sun might shine again in its beauty and lustre and our Horizon be filled with the bright beames thereof it would remove the fogs of filthy errors prevent the inflicting of sad calamities regain the credit of contemned Ordinances Joh. 12.32 as there the Lord of the Sabbath said If I be lifted up I will draw all men to me So may the Sabbath of the Lord say If I be lifted up I will draw all to me Then all the things of God shall rise As when Christ was risen Matth. 27.52 Many bodies of Saints which were asleep in their graves arose and went into the holy City c. Thus were the Christian Sabbath raised the whole body of Christian Religion would be brought out of its grave and many of Gods Saints that are as it were now asleep upon the beds of sad seducing errors would arise and come forth to the holy service of God
Take week-day-delights as in worldly matters and ordinarily there is a deadly hook within a pleasant bait Our Mother Eve Gen. 3. looked upon the fruit of the forbidden tree and it was pleasant for her eye Ai Ai but that which was pleasant for her sight it was perillous for her soul It was but week-day-pleasure in a Garden-tree had she continued innocent and tasted of Sabbath-day-delights in a glorious God of that fruit she might have eate and at that Fountain she might have drunk safely 2. These are the sweetest joyes Weekday-sports in lawful delights are but as pills rolled up in Sugar bitter-sweet sweet without bitter within As the Prophets Book that was as honey in the mouth and as gall in the belly These earthly pleasures are as garden-Roses which as they have their pleasant leaves so they have their pricking stalks Whereas true Sabbath-delights are throughout sweet Some bitter drops may possibly fall in them but they are not properly of them For as there is saltnesse in every drop of Sea-water So there is sweetnesse in every dram of true Sabbath-comfort 3. These are the firmest joyes Unto sinful men their week-delights are weak delights that rise and soone fall that spring up and soone wither away One blast of Gods displeasure it blowes out those Candle-comforts One drop of a troubled conscience sayes Luther swallowes up a Sea of worldly joy Whereas to Gods Saints Sabbath-delights are surer delights stable and strong As the strength of the Lord is their joy So the joy of the Lord is their strength Their delights in the Sabbath of the Lord Is by delighting in the Lord of the Sabbath Isay 58.13 Thou shalt not do thy pleasure on my holy day but call the Sabbath a delight the holy of the Lord honourable and shalt honour him not doing thine own wayes nor speaking thine own words What then Then shalt thou delight thy self in the Lord. I will cause thee to ride upon high places and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy Father Here is a firme foundation for Saints Sabbath-delightings viz. God and his gracious dealings 4. These are the fullest joyes Sabbath-feasting-delights are soul-filling-delights Week-day-pleasures in worldly matters are ever swelling but never filling They are windy and empty and so apt to swell men with pride and self-conceits But they do not fill men so as to give them any good satisfactions Soul-satisfying joyes are Sabbath-sanctifying joyes Comforts in and communions with God give full content Some of Gods Saints who have had their souls filled with sorrowes all the week yet upon the Sabbath God hath turned their water into wine August de tempore Serm. 154. Austin is of the judgement that that Marriage in Cana of Galilee Joh. 2. was upon the Sabbath-day when the six water pots being fill'd with water to the brim Christ made all into wine When with some the six-week-dayes have been like those six water pots all fill'd brim full with the waters of sorrow the Lord upon the day of our Christian Sabbath hath changed all into the best wine of soul-refreshing comfort Joseph de bello Judaico lib. 7. cap. 24. Josephus writes of a River near Jerusalem that upon the six dayes in the week was dry through the failing of the water from the spring head but upon the Sabbath which was the seventh day the springs sent out so fast that the banks were filled whereupon it was commonly called The Sabbath-River I cannot affirm the truth of this But this is truth There are that can by experience speak it When little hath come from the spring head of comfort all the week yet upon the Sabbath day soul-eomforts have flowed in and filled up amaine About the tents of the Jewes Manna fell from heaven onely upon the week-dayes none was found upon the Sabbath 'T is otherwise with Christians that Manna of heavenly joy that falls not all the week is to be found upon their Sabbath day so as that therewith their souls are safely sweetly and firmely filled O how much might this promote among us the careful keeping of our Christian Sabbath viz. The profitable comfort and the comfortable profit that may in the same be possessed Yet upon the souls of several of Gods Saints some things may be supposed sadly to sit Some complain that though past there hath been a long continuance of the Sabbath yet they have found no such profit and comfort Others confesse they have found much comfort and profit but they fear a short continuance of the Sabbath for the future The former are damp'd in the duty and service of the day because they feel no present profit and comfort coming The latter are damp'd in their comfort and profit for present because they fear the day will not publickly endure But that neither the want of the comfort of the day may dishearten the duty Nor the doubt of the continuance of the day may diminish the comfort Some things suitable to both sorts may be said to help in such cases of sadnesse First for such of Gods Saints as are under temptations discouraging from the service of the Sabbath because they have not had such good successe in Sabbaths observed 1. Be it so yet such ought in the Sabbath-day-duties to continue their diligence We are bound to perform duty though we should not receive mercy 't is the mark of meer Mercenaries without some recompence no obedience Indeed the recompence of reward may be in our eye though it be not our end In our work we do we may have a love to the reward but for meer love of the Reward we are not to do our work God is our great Lord and Master though 't is not servile obedience yet 't is obedience of servants we owe to him daily and much more upon his holy day If he should not be as a liberal Master to pay us wages for it yet we must be as loyal servants to perform his work in it A learned Author reports Cassianus lib 4 cap. 24. that he knew a young man who meerly in obedience to a superiours command for a whole year together he went two miles every day onely to poure water on a dry withered stick We ought every Lords day to come under Gospel-waterings though our hearts should remain as withered dry and dead sticks or hard stones though we should feel no softenings quickenings comfortings 't is enough we have a command the duty is ours the day is Christs who is over all God above all blessed for ever 'T is a favour God will imploy us though he should not reward us Angels are glad God will send them on his businesse though they have no new recompence They are chearful to increase their duty though they do not enlarge their glory We be not to conceive of the Angels that some God hath to stand up by him and others are sent out of him for sayes the Apostle Are they not all ministring spirits sent
good that others do for the People of God 1. God puts into his people for their good gracious Habits Principles of holinesse disposing them to all parts of his worship yea the Spirit of holiness to act up those principles that so his people may be ready pressed and prepared alway to every good work much more for the Sabbath in the service thereof 2. Others as Ministers they prepare for the Sabbath-good of Gods people 'T is fit people should prepare to hear as they prepare to preach Gods faithful Ministers before the Sabbath do not onely prepare matter to speak but they prepare their hearts to speak the matter As Cocks when they are about to Crow they lift up themselves and clap thair wings they may be well awake Thus good Ministers when they are to teach they rouse up themselves and strive to raise up their own hearts and that Gods Word it may be as a fire in their bones Bernard in a Sermon breaks out thus to the people Bern. in festo omnium sanct Serm. 1. To prepare you meat my heart all this night hath been seething within me and in my meditations I have been enflamed as with fire Is it not meet that people be prepared when prechers thus prepare for the people And as for the evil actings of some they are sad There are such who on the Sabbath prepare for their worldly work in the week Calvin complaines of some Christians in his time Let us consider sayes he whether they which call themselves Christians do any otherwise regard the Sabath then thereon to attend their worldly affairs Calvin in Deut. 8. Serm. 34. they reserve to themselves this day as if they had no other to deliberate for the whole week to come c. Upon the Lords day men cut out their work and cast their businesse how to have this and that done upon this and that day Shall men on the Sabbath prepare for the week and shall not we in the week prepare for the Sabbath Is Mammon more to be minded then God 3. The profit that will be to our souls by such Sabbath preparance is precious By such a serious preparation our hearts will be well fitted Both with abilities to performe Sabbath-duties And with capacities to receive Sabbath-mercies 1. The duties of the Sabbath will the better and freer come off We shall then with more dexterity agility facility transact the several parts of Gods service A cause why we are so oft upon the Lords day lame in duty drive heavy because we did not aforehand oyl our wheeles inure our selves When David had put on Sauls Armour his helmet sword and coat of Male he assayed therein to go and fight with Goliah but he is at a stand saying I cannot go in these for I have not proved them 1 Sam. 17.39 Thus a Christian when he is to go out in the service of the Sabbath he is so straitened stiffe and bound up he knowes not how to go on in such duties because he hath not proved them or prepared for them We should aforehand put our selves into Sabbath-Armour and see how we can go how we can pray preach hear c. this would much help 2. The mercies of the Sabbath will the larger and fuller come in According to our preparations are our after-participations According to the number and measure of sacks the sons of Jacob prepared and carried with them out of Canaan so were they filled with Corn when they came to Joseph in Egypt Gen. 44.1 According as we prepare our hearts at home in the week-time so our comfortable fillings be when we come before the Lord on his own day He that would have from his field a large crop in harvest-time must aforehand take pains in plowing and well preparing the ground We do not aforehand take preparative pains which is the reason we reap so little in Sabbath-time 2. We are to consider wherein this preparation of our selves for the Sabbath consists Now this work does comprize acts of two sorts viz. Reflect acts on our selves from others and Direct acts towatds others beyond our selves 1. Each man amongst us must act inward upon himself In self-examination And self-humiliation We must diligently examine our selves What sin hath been before the Sabbath And what need we have of the Sabbath Sin before must be found out lest we come to Sabbath-day-work under week-day-guilt If for week day sinnes God be against us when in Sabbath day service we seek to be with God no wonder then if things work crosse The Mariners in Jonah they rowed hard but the Sea wrought and was tempestuous against them and they could not get the ship to shoare till Jonah was found and flung out Thus in the service of the Sabbath we may row hard yet not get ship to shoare heart into heaven by reason of some sin before committed that hath set God against us Yea we must so set into our selves as to discern the necessities that we have of Sabbath-helps Because of the prevalencies of sin And the imbecillities of grace We must also deeply humble our selves and be low in self-abasements Those herbs rise high in the summer-time that in the winter shrink low into the ground Those hearts that in the week-time are laid lowest they rise highest upon the Sabbath day Yea there must be such soul-humblings for sin as there may be sin-removings from the soul else the day of Gods service comes but we cannot serve God in the day Joshua 24.19 Thus before the Sabbath we must bethink our selves commune with our heart and make diligent search with penitent sorrowes 2. We must act onward towards others to wit God-ward and World-ward 1. Towards God we must prepare for the day By consideration of him and By supplication to him 1. God must be seriously thought upon Out of desires to the God of the Day we should long for the Day of God Psal 42.1 2. My soul thirsteth for the living God O when shall I come and appear before God As she said Judg. 5. Why is the chariot so long in coming and why tarrie the wheâ—les of the chariot So let each soul say Why is the Sabbath so long in coming c Amos 8. some say When will the Sabbath be gone that we may sell corn Let us say O when will the Sabbath be come that we may sell all and buy that Pearl When will the Sabbath be come Not that we may sell but onely that we may buy of God wine and milk without money Esay 55.1 That we may buy of Christ eye-salve white rayment and tryed gold Rev. 3.18 O when will the Day come that we may have communion with God Father Son and Holy Ghost As that Martyr with a leap said when he was going to the stake There is but one stile more and I am at my Fathers House A good man on Saturday-evening going to bed leaps saying 'T is but one Night more and I shall be in the
Lord upon this day drew forth most infallible testimonies of the truth of his resurrection and so left not onely to his present Disciples but to his succeeding servants a more firm foundation for their faith in himself and a more strong Argument to inforce their following observance of the same day Joh. 20.26 27 28 29. August detempore Ser. 25. Bellarm de cultu sanctorum l. 3. cap. 11. Tertul. li. de carne Christi 3. The Mission or Christs sending down of the holy Ghost was upon this day It appears the Apostles met upon the day of Pentecost Act. 2.1 this was a day instituted in remembrance of the Law delivered to Moses in the Mount fifty dayes after their departure out of Egypt Answerably whereunto the holy Ghost and Gods love thereby Rom. 5.5 is sent out and shed abroad the fiftieth day after Christ our Passeover was Sacrificed for us which by computation of the learned both Orthodox and Popish was the first day of the week Christ being gone up the holy Spirit he comes down A blessed bargain saith an ancient Writer hereby was made betwixt heaven and earth to triumphing Saints was given the presence of Christs body and to Militant Saints was sent the comforts of Christs Spirit The Spirit of Christ the Comforter came down upon this day That cannot but be a holy day wherein the holy Ghost came down There be 3. works of excellency applyed to the three Persons in Trinity to wit The work of Creation to God the Father The work of Redemption to God the Son And The work of Sanctification to God the holy Ghost Times and things Persons and seasons he sanctifies The holy Spirit passing through this day hath made it holy This being the day of the Lord his thus doing 't is THE LORDS DAY 2. To the Lord upon this day hath been done Sabbath-service In the Primitive times and In posteriour times The holy Apostles punctually set apart this first day of the week for the worship of God And they were men eminently endowed with the Spirit of Christ Yea men intimately acquainted with the secrets of Christ men immediately instructed by the person of Christ Christ in his own person before his death did discover things to them as to no other men John 15.15 and after his resurrection they were the men whom he did commissionate to erect a Gospel-Church and to order all things therein and therefore he did continue with them for the space of forty dayes before he ascended that he might fully furnish them for those great appointments wherein he found them faithfull And how successeful they were we see Act. 2. when on this same day were gained three thousand souls at one Sermon O blessed day blessed day And as for the Apostle Paul I shall pray you to ponder both His practice and His precept binding the day His practice in the day is plainly expressed Act. 20.7 And upon the first day of the week when the Disciples came together Paul preached unto them and continued his speech till midnight being to depart on the morrow c. His precept for the day is plainly implyed 1 Cor. 16.1 2. the Apostle there speaking of Collections for Saints upon the first day of the week when they should meet about the works of Gods worship adds this As I have ordained in the Churches of Galatia Piscator in Gene. 2.3 fol. 52 c. even so do ye In that He Ordains such duties for the day He Ordains the day for such duties And above fourty years after this as Chronologie saith Saint John tells us in the text of such a continued day The Lords day And as for other good Authors since the holy Apostles they report concerning the Christian Sabbath upon the first day of the week things of two sorts Some more remote as being a Preparance for it and Some more immediate asserting the observance of it Some things they recite as referring to this first-dayes-Sabbath August de tempo Ser. 25. Austin notes that this very day was the first day of the Worlds Creation when Angels Elements and lights were made and that of all the six dayes-works the work of the first day was greatest because then the first matter and Model the principals and Platform of all was laid Austin also observes that this was the day of Noahs entring into the Ark August de civit Dei lâ—b 16. cap. 26. of Infants receiving Circumcision of Mannas first falling in the Wildernesse Origen before him saith that if the Manna were gathered six dayes together as the Scripture declares Origen Homil. 7. in Exod. and it ceased upon the seventh day which was the Sabbath without doubt it began on the first day which is the Lords day and so he concludes the Lords day to be more excellent then the Jewish Sabbath This was the day say others of Christs Nativity and Baptisme of the Stars appearing at Bethlehem to the Wise men of Christs feeding five thousand persons and other particulars which are in this case collected But I proceed to such as insist upon matters more immediate affirming this first day of the week to be celebrated for the Sabbath of Christians In Eusebius we read the witnesse of Dionysius the Corinthian that they diligently kept holy this Lords day in those times Tertullian naming the Solemnities of Christians begins first with the Lords day which they he saith most carefully kept declaring their exercises theron Justin Martyr names the same day and shewes their works Ignatius against some that being Christians would retain the Jewish Sabbath saith in plain terms Plinius sub Trajano scripsitsolitos hoc stato die convenire Christianos ancle lucem carmenque Christo quasi â—eo communi voce dicere postea Sacramento se obstringere non in scelus aliquod ne furia ne latrocinia ne adulteria committerent c. Magdeb. cent 2. cap. 6. We celebrate no longer the Sabbath of the Jewes but every one that loves Christ keepeth now holy the Lords day An Historian writes of the Christians custome in the Emperour Trajans time how they met upon this same set day early in the morning sung a Psalm received the Sacrament and bound themselves in Covenant to fly sin c. And t' was a common question put to Christians when they were brought before Pagan Governours Dost thou observe the Lords day and the ordinary answer then was I am a Christian and I dare not intermit it I shall shut up my discourse about this setling the Christian Sabbath onely by considering Something that Christ himself said concerning that and Something concerning that Christ said of himself That which our Saviour saith of the Sabbath we find Matth. 24.20 Pray ye that your flight be not in the winter nor on the Sabbath-day We may observe the Sabbath our Saviour means it was for such as were converted to the faith of Christ and 't was for to remain long after the death of
The former and The latter Some men they take the one but then leave the other and will not let the Lord have his time entire They say of the Lords day as she in the Kings of the living child Divide it Divide it Yea they make the time of the Sabbath like the Vaile of the Temple at Christs death to be rent in twain viz. between the Lord and the World or which is worse between the Lord and their lusts whereas not a bone of Christs body was to be broke so not an hour in his day As not a member of that so not a minute of this As our Saviour said concerning the loaves and the fishes Gather up the fragments let nothing be lost so he seems to say concerning his holy Sabbath Gather up the parcells thereof let not minutes be lost which are precious like the least parings of gold It hath been perillous to clip a Kings Coyn t is more dangerous to clip the Lords day O the dreadful death and doome of Ananias who kept back part of the price and brought onely a certain part and laid at the Apostles feet whereas before 't was all in his own power Act. 5.3 4. But this holy time was never ours nor ever was any part thereof in our power therefore to keep back any hour of this holy day is worthy of death If no part be the Lords why do you give him any if the whole be the Lords why do you put him off with part 2. The places wherein religious exercises are to lye upon the Lords day being Both publike And private Some rest in the publike and neglect the private And others are all for the private and contemn the publike First There are some all whose religion upon the Lords day lyes at Church no praying reading of Scriptures repeating of Sermons instructing their charge or any such duty done in their houses all the day long 'T is said Exod. 12. that there was a great cry at midnight in all the dwellings of Egypt for there was not a house where there was not one dead but not so much as upon the Lords day from the dwellings of divers does any holy cry go up to heaven 'T is doubtfull in divers houses there are not any alive by grace to bewaile them that lye there dead in sin while yet 't is easie to hear and evident to see what rudenesse they suffer in their children and servants on the Sabbath day Hast thou kept the commandement of the Lord said Samuel to Saul in destroying all Amelek What then means the bleating of the Sheep and lowing of the Oxen which I hear to day So may we say to many a man hast thou kept the commandement of the Lord in observing his Sabbath What meanâ— then the laughing and sporting and foolish talking of children and servants which is then heard in their houses Such parents and ungoverning governours sure the Lord will one day charge with the breach of his blessed Sabbath See what God sayes to Eli 1 Sam. 2.29 Wherefore kickest thou at my sacrifice and honourest thy sons above me c did Eli kick at the sacrifice of God no but his sons did and he restreined them not and therefore Gad accounts it upon him Will not God thus say to some Fathers and Masters Wherefore prophane ye my Sabbath and why have ye polluted my holy day for they so do in their children and servants whom herein they do not restrain They are careful to provide for family necessities but carelesse to perform family-duties though it be the Lords day when they should look to all within their gates Exod. 20.10 2. There are others what they do in Gods service on the Sabdath 't is private for in the publike Assemblies they are seldome or never seen For the Israelites to sit still in their houses when a thick darknesse was abroad in all parts of the land was excusable I pray God there be not a near approach of such a time upon England when through worse then an Egyptian darknesse people be constreined to stay at home in their houses But to lye at home on the Lords day while through the open light of the Gospel the land is like Goshen is an inexcusable evil And sure Chrysost in Act. 3. Hom. 9. Hom. 2. in 1 Cor. 1. 't is no good presage when people despise publike Ordinances even on the Lords day does not to such the Lord say 1 Sam. 2.29 Wherefore do ye kick at my sacrifice and at mine offering which I have commanded in my habitation Read but those Gospel-Prophesies and Promises Isay 2.2 3. Isay 56.7 Mich. 4.1 which import the gatherings of Gods people for his publike worship There are those who withdraw themselves from such duties and while they think to prejudice others they do themselves the greatest wrong 'T is clear they do not onely fall from holy ordinances but they fall into ugly errours and filthy evills many of them come to act Chrysosto Serm. cont Anomeos Chrysostome concludes that there is nothing more causes stablenesse in the truth and keeps up holinesse of life and corrects opposite vanities and vices then a constant frequenting of the publick assemblies and a careful and chearfull there hearing the holy Word of God And hence Augustin so earnestly exhorts and perswades in some of his Sermons Aug. de tempore Ser. 251. not to separate but to congregate upon the Lords Day and to the Gospel publickly preached to apply themselves Just Mart Apol. 2. Justin Martyr reports of the Christians in the primitive times how they would call one another out of their houses to meet together in the most solemne manner they might upon the Lords Day And if we come out of the Ocean of the Ancients and go into the streames of our late * Calv. in Deut. 5. c. Pet. Mart. in 1. Sam. 1.3 Bucer in Math. 12.11 Zanch. in 4. Precep Bullinger Gualterus in Act. Writers as they all urge the observance of the Lords Day so they presse the practice of publike duties in open assemblies as most necessary unto the right and religious observation thereof Give me leave I hope I dote not on any holinesse of places but prize the publike gatherings of Gods people especially upon the Lords Day to tell you that such servants the Lord hath had in preceding times that would pitch upon places of publike worship not onely therein to serve the Lord but to suffer for the Lord therein thither they would run to die where they use to pray and rather then they would be driven from them they would be destroyed in them thinking it good going together from thence to heaven Eusebius reports that under the cruell persecution of Dioclesian many thousand Christians were burned in the Temple of Nicomedia being assembled to celebrate the Day of Christ And another mentions how at Ments in Germany Hieron Epistol ad Geront the Citie being taken in the Church were
a great variety yet there is no contrariety In the soule of a Saint there be contrary principles flesh and spirit one opposing another but there are not in the Sabbath contrary practices each to other repugnant one duty does not thwart another but Sabbath-services are to each other helpfull Prayer fits for hearing and hearing prepares for prayer 5. The diversity and change of Sabbath-work shewes the Lords wisdome yea and the love of the Lord to make exercises the more easie that holy labour may not be heavy labour nor men tyred all Sabbath-time with one continued work the Lord lets them passe from one imployment to another for refreshment 6. On the Sabbath we have several works yet in all we serve but one Master Indeed had we divers Masters it might discourage but to us there is but one Lord. Upon the Sabbath in religious services we change our place and we change our businesse but we do not change our Master All is to Christ to Christ men should say upon a Sabbath-morning Though other Lords in the week-time have had too much dominion over us yet now we will make mention of thy Name onely 7. If multitude of services be tedious what will multitude of sufferings be Jam. 1.2 sayes the Apostle My brethren count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations How will they rejoyce in divers daily distresses that shrink back because exercises are divers upon the Lords day Object The Sabbath ceases when publike exercises end no longer holy day then while holy duty Answ If so sure then with some Sabbaths are very short But shall we think that men can begin and end a Sabbath when they list The Churches of Christ in ages past have determined of an entire day due to the Lord. The Sabbaths Iren. cont Valent. lib. 4. cap. 31. August de temp Serm 251. sayes Irenaeus do require a compleat day and the perseverance of that whole day in the Lords service Austin declares his judgement touching the time of the Sabbath from that text Levit. 23.32 From even to even shall ye celebrate your Sabbath 'T is evident from that place of the Apostle Jam. 2.10 that whosoever carelessely casts by any part of Gods precept transgresses the whole law of God and thus whosoever wilfully neglects any part of Gods Sabbath is guilty of breaking this whole holy day men must not suite the day to their duties but their duties to the day while the day endures their duty remains Object But so to keep the whole day is terribly tyring a hard service who can do it Answ God because of our infirmities does afford what may refresh the better to bear up our bodies the Lord allowes moderate sleep in the night and temperate food in the day True it was in Tertullians time a dispute Tertul. de coron milit cap. 3. Tom. 1. pag 747. whether it be not a duty on the Lords day to fast but our Saviours Apologie for his Disciples in plucking and eating the ears of Corn upon the Sabbath day may easily quiet that question Mark 2.25 And blessed be the Lord for the allowances of his love 2. Men do not complain of whole dayes for the world They rise early and go to bed late and eat the bread of carefulnesse Psal 127.2 They do not say all the week when the morning is Would God it were evening but rather in the evening they wish would it were morning again to go after the world afresh yet we find some even in sinful wayes so unwearied that when one day is past they pitch upon the very next day with inlarged resolutions Come ye say they I will fetch wine and we will fill our selves with strong drink and to morrow shall be as this dâ—y and much more abundant Isai 56.12 3. We may see what some of Gods servants have desired instance David that dear servant of God Psal 27.4 One thing have I desired of the Lord sayes he and that will I seek after that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the dayes of my life As if he should wish it were alway Sabbath day with him Psal 84.4 10. O blessed are they that dwell in thy house c. For a day in thy Courts is better then a thousand I had rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God then to dwell in the tents of wickednesse Were men of Davids mind a day in seven for the service of the Lord would not be too long 4. There have been them that have spent divers dayes and nights also in the service of God see a considerable instance Luk. 2.37 A widow of about fourscore and four years which departed not from the Temple but served God with fastings and prayers night and day For her sexe A woman For her case A widow not having the company or comfort of a husband For her age About fourscore and four years yet night and day with fasting and prayer serving God in the Temple 5. For such as are tyred out with the time of a Sabbath would they go to heaven There 't is ever Sabbath alway singing serving and setting up of God Bernard urges the observation of the Sabbath and holding out in holy exercises thereon upon this account that by present rest men may learn to live in rest eternal Bern. super Saluz Regina Serm. 4. Col. 1744. and by persevering service men may be prompt to perpetuate the Lords everlasting praise But how would men do to endure heaven and a never ending Sabbath there who know not here how to bear out the durance of a Sabbath day Object I cannot so tend duties on the day for I have other works of necessity to do Ans 1. There are works of necessity which we grant may be done upon the Lords day Vid. Lyra. in Exod. 20. in Jonna 5.8 Beda in Marc. 2.23 Zanch in 4. praece as by food to refresh our bodies to resist the invasion of enemies to stop the irruption of waters to quench the rage of fire to preserve the life of our Cattel and the like 2. Those that say on the Sabbath such things they must necessarily do ought yet carefully to see it be not A fained necessity or A made necessity To pretend a things necessity when yet indeed no necessity of such a thing to be done is to commit a double sin To do what is not good and To say what is not true Men must also beware they bring not a necessity upon themselves upon the Sabbath to do such things as they might prevent through a prudent foresight this is to make a sin with a necessity Isay 58.13 Thou shalt call the Sabbath a delight not doing thine own wayes nor finding thine own necessities so some Paraphrasing expound the Hebrew word men have many necessities which yet are of their own causing and not of Gods appointing 3. There are things necessary in their season that yet are not necessary upon the
world and in this world is to exercise Kingly power in respect of his dispose of persons and seasons times and things 'T is the message that every Sabbath-breaker sends to heaven Christ shall not be our King we will not have him to reign over us 2. Christ as a Prophet is herein put off Tertul. li. contra judaeot An ancient writer affirmes that Christ by his coming into the world accomplished the prophecies of precedent Prophets and as it were sealed up them but left a Prophetical office of his own to be fulfilling even unto the end of the world and the Sabbath day to be the especial day for his exercise in this office Ramus de relig lib. 2. cap. 6. Another calls it the school-School-day wherein Christ the great Doctor of his Church whose chair is in heaven August Serm. 4. in fest Jo. B. keeps School on earth and those persons proudly contemn Christs teaching who neglect Sabbath-time Is not this then a great sin a sin against God and Christ a sin against Law and Gospel a sin which Pagans and Divels are not guilty of Object This is the sin of such as prophane and pollute the Lords day but I do not so though I do not the duties thereof * Polluitur Sabbathum cum cujus gratiâ instituitur à plerisque plane non curatur Muscul Answ They pollute the Lords day who do not keep it holy as they are said to defile Gods Name who do not sanctifie the Name of God Jer. 34.16 To fanctifie the Sabbath is to spend it in holy exercises Lyra. in Exod. 26. Bulling in Rom. 14.5 and not to sanctifie it is to pollute it There are things men may be said to destroy them when they do not take care to preserve them So such are said to defile the Sabbath who do not use the means to sanctifie it But for this that saying of the Prophet may suffice Isay 56.2 Blessed is the man that doeth this and the son of man that laith hold on it which keepeth the Sabbath holy and polluteth it not By which place it plainly appears that as he doth not pollute the Sabbath who keeps it holy Zanchi de tribus Eloh part 2. lib. 3. cap 9. de oper creat par 3. lib. 1. cap. 1. Idem in 4. praecep so he who keeps not the Sabbath holy doth pollute it Now all accord that to keep the Sabbath holy is to passe the whole day in pious duties Indeed divers they think they very well keep the Sabbath day if they forbear wicked and worldly works though that day little be done in the service of God But as God speaks in the Prophet Isay 58.5 Is it such a fast as I have chosen so is it such a Sabbath as I have appointed a day for men to do what they will to take up and lay down duties as they please Is it such a Sabbath as I have commanded a day for men to take their carnal ease to be idle slothful and vain Is not this the day that I have ordained to be loose from earthly delights worldly cares to be free from all entanglements for God Is it not for men to give themselves wholly to holy service Is it not to pray fervently to heare diligently c The neglect of these upon the Lords day is a loud sin 2. The judgements that such sinners are subject to come next to be noted These are Both Privative And positive Penalties Through this are Good things renounced and Evil things inflicted Gods judgements of the Privative sort are either In temporal matters or In Spiritual means 1. God in judgment removes or restreines matters necessary for men in this world for the sinful neglect of his Sabbaths and service As things needfull For their personal sustentation For their political preservation 1. Things neeedful and good for the supporting of their bodies as they are men God removes as a punishment for this sinful neglect of the Lords day Hence God does not hear the heavens the heavens do not hear the earth the earth does not hear the Corn. Cypria contra Demet. Cyprian hath an elegant saying thou complaiest that now adaies the fountains are not so flowing nor the air so wholesome nor the rain so plentiful nor the earth so fruitful c. Dost thou serve God by whose means all serves thee dost thou waite on him by whose beck all waits on thee c God withdraws his bounty when men omit their duty When the Lords day and religious duties his house and holy things are laid waste what follows let the Lord himself speak Levit. 26.2 16.19 Hagg. 1 9. with several such texts 2. Things needfull and good as people are embodyed for the preserving of their civil State God in punishment pulls them away for sinfulnesse against his Sabbaths as order government good lawes just administrations amongst men Let justice be removed sayes an ancient Writer and what are Kingdoms and Common-Wealths but great robbing places where might overcomes right Let government be gone and multitudes of miseries break in Nations of men are made as the fishes of the Sea and as the creeping things that have no Ruler over them ruines rush in upon them Yet such are the sad sequels of Gods slighted service and neglected Sabbaths as may be easily evidenced from that of the Prophet Jer 17.24 25. Jer. 22.8 9. 2. Judgements privatively considered which sinners against the Sabbath are like to suffer in removing of Spiritual good things Both Instrumental And Principal 1. Things Instrumental for much good God removes from men not minding his Sabbaths and service I mean the means of grace the Ministery of the Gospel A miserable punishment True such as have an immediade hand in removing the Word of God preached from a people are guilty of a very great sin And wo wo wo sayes Luther to them that leave the Church without a Preaching Ministery through which great Towns of people come to be like dark dens of wilde beasts And a dreadful doom it is on such as suffer under a famine of the Word of God Yet such a famine God inflicts for sinning against his blessed Sabbath See Amos 8. 5. some saying When will the Sabbath be gone that we may set forth wheat c. vers 11. Behold the dayes come saith the Lord I will send a famine in the land not of bread but of hearing the word of the Lord. 'T was ill with Israel when there was no Smith found in all the Land but the Israelites were forced to go to the Philistines every man to sharpen his Share and his Coulter his Axe and his Mattock 1 Sam. 13.19 20. And will it not be ill with England if no faithful dispensers of the Gospel should be found in the Land but poor people should be put to go to Papists and other persons of corrupt opinions thinking thereby to quicken and comfort their dead and sad hearts c. The God
as an angry Judge he makes others to reject Yea God for sinnes against his Sabbath gives men up to follow their own fancies and eagerly to pursue their own seducements Ezek. 20.24 25. Because they despised my statutes and polluted my Sabbaths I gave them statutes that were not good and I polluted them in their own gifts c. Under such punishments poor people perish and perceive it not We see mens Sabbath-sins against God and Gods judgments are upon men for those sins though we see them not 3. Though God does not appear presently to punish such men yet he will ere long God is fitted himself to be sure and God has fixed his day which is neer 1. God himself is fitted to inflict punishment upon such as defile his holy day for as he is the Lord of the Sabbath so he is the Lord of hosts The same that in the Hebrew term is the Lord of the hosts in the Greek Septugint is the Lord of the Sabbath and so does the New Testament expresse it Except the Lord of hosts sayes the Prophet had left us a remnant we had been like Sodom Isay 1.9 Except the Lord of the Sabbath sayes the Apostle Rom. 9.27 repeating the words of the Prophet It appears he that is the Lord of this day hath many hosts at his command wherewith he is ready to give Battel to all the breakers of his blessed Sabbath Josephus lib. 5. Ant. Judaâ—car cap. 6. Josephus speaking of the Battel Judg. 5. wherein God fought against Sisera with an host of Men an host of Stars an host of Stormes an host of Rain Haile and Winds for sayes he there fell such a sudden and terrible tempest beating full in the faces of the Canaanites as took away their sight and benummed their hands that they could not hold their shields not fling their darts but beat so on the backs of the Israelites as emboldened them the more God indeed does not immediately make war with men that misuse his Sabbath but he hath his forces ready to fight them his Armies are mustered and ready to march all his weapons of war are prepared Psal 7.12 13. 2. God hath such dayes drawing neer when he will certainly proceed against Sabbath-sinners and pursue them to death As a day of National Judgment And a day of general Judgement Indeed a dismal day of calamity may our Land look for wherein the polluters of the Lords day shall be drawn out to suffer Gods severe vengence There be some offenders and Malefactors which the Magistrate does not immediately punish but they are bound over to the next Assizes Though Sabbath-breakers by Gods immediate blowes be not beaten down yet they be bound over to such an Assizes as we never yet saw in England God may not aforehand inflict exemplary punishments upon particular transgressing persons because he means to come with common calamities upon the whole body of a Nation when transgressors shall be destroyed together Psal 37.38 if a National repentance prevents not Such a day of National distresse drawes neer wherein Sabbath-breakers with other sorts of sinners shall assuredly suffer The Lord will either lay the Land in blood or in water If waters of sorrows do not flow from men fires of fury will flame from God and then wo to such as sinned down the day of the Sabbath 2. The great day of Gods general Judgement is now apace approaching when such as sin against Gods sacred Sabbath The Lord will disown them and The Lord will condemn them Disown them so that they who regarded not the Lords day shall not be regarded in the day of the Lord nor of the Lord in his day Condemn them down to endure pains perpetual and torments eternal O how sweet would one Sabbath of rest be from Hell-torments in ten thousand years But they who would not keep the Lords day of rest shall never have a day of rest to keep The day when Sabbath-slighters shall be certainly adjudged so to suffer now draws on God in some former ages might more exemplarily punish Sabbath-abusers because then this Judgment-day was at a further distance this day now drawing nearer the Lord may more let men alone and they may escape present penalties But they that neglect the Lords day shall not escape the dreadful day of the Lord. We may observe a double day that men for the most part mind not The present day of the Lords Sabbath and The approaching day of the last Judgment Men live as if there were no Sabbath day to be religiously imployed in and as if there were no Judgement-day to be diligently prepared for I eat I drink I play Bernard de interna Domo cap. 33. sayes Bernard as if I were gone beyond the day of Judgement Thus may many a man say I eat I sport I sleep I leap and laugh as if I had passed over and got above Gods blessed day Men are as if they were now exempted from attendance on the Lords day and as if they should hereafter be excused from appearance at the day of the Lord. But the day drawes neer when all men must appear before the Judgement-seat of Jesus Christ and answer for non-attending upon his holy day Hieron Epist de scient legis Tom. 4. Oh what shall we do sayes Jerom in that day when the Lord shall come with Trumphet sounding fire flaming sinners fainting stars falling mountains melting poor creatures crying to graves to hold them and hills to hide them Let none that abuse the Lords day suppose this day of the Lord to be far off for Beâ—old sayes the Apostle The Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones to execute judgment c. Jude 14 15. The comming of the Lord draws nigh Jam. 5 8. Tâ—e Lord is at hand Phil. 4.5 Heare this all ye who with the Lords good day put off the evil day of the Lord. Lastly though the Lord does not evidently punish all such men yet he hath openly of late laid hold upon some Yea herein the Lord hath spoken so loud from heaven against Sabbath-sinners that I cannot be silent We hereabout have had in a short time terrible tokens of Gods severe vengeance upon men not minding the service of his day Among our selves a sad example a Townsman going into the Parish and gathering Cherries on the Lords day fell from the tree and in the fall was so battered and bruised that he never spake more but lay groaning in his blood untill the next day and then he dyed Another man not far off this Cherry-time fell from a Cherry-tree and lay in dreadful dolour all the week and the very next Lords day dyed A grown youth upon the Lords day not long ago in a Neighbour-Town scrambling with others for Pears thrown out of some pockets in the Church-yard broke his main thigh-bone and the bone of his leg on the same side in such a miserable manner as a precious man who set those bones assured me though
Joh. 20.19 23. Therein directing them as on this day to exercise that power and that power it does appear was upon this present day principally put in execution afterward thus Origen Cyprian and others relate Orig. can Cels lib. 3. Cypr. ad Pomp. Epi. 62. Greg Nys orat And O how pure and clean would our waters boyl could we on this day so cast off our scum Help Lord c. Necessities The duty of charitable relief is proper for the Lords day 1 Cor. 16.1 2. Tertullian tells in his Apologie for Christians how carefull the Christian Churches were to works of mercy on the Lords day whereby their Brethren in bonds were bountifully supplied and the bellies of the afflicted refreshed Irenaeus contra Valenti lib. 4 cap. 19â— Another of the Ancients does excellently note from the example of our Saviour Luk 13.15 that the right sanctifying the Sabbath day does consist in acts of pitty works of mercy and how charitable deeds become this comfortable day Luk. 14.1 2 3 4 5. is full These Sabbath-duties some way concern the whole body of a people more promiscuously 2. There be some duties on the Sabbath that do concern some persons principally as Magistrates and Ministers Parents and Masters All ought to concur in their care for the keeping of this day Indeed the Lords day is the Fort-royal of Religion let all stand to it in their places we be not beaten out of that especially now when so many lay siege thereunto Some set their wits awork and oppose the doctrinal part of it Others set their wills awork and impugne the practical part of it and as they will not rest on the Lords day so they will not let the Lords day to be at rest but mount their Cannons and make what batteries they can c. O let all and especially such as may do more then others now bestirre themselves to raise the Sabbath siege and to maintain our Sabbath Fort if we dye let us dye in a couragious keeping of this indeed if this be taken all is lost hold this and yet there is hope Let us that are in publike places play the men As the two milch-kine 1 Sam. 6. being coupled together they bore up and carried on the Arke of God Thus let Magistrate and Minister be united to hold up the holy day of God and the holy worship of God upon his day Let Sabbath-breakers for multitude be like a numerous Army if Magistrate and Minister would but joyn we should route them all O how commendable were it if these two in this regard would agree like Joab and Abishai his brother 2 Sam. 10.11 12. If the Syrians be too strong for me then thou shalt help me but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee then I will come and help thee onely be of a good courage let us quit our selves like men for our people and for the Cities of our God and the Lord do that which seemeth him good So let us do what we are able to the utmost for the Sabbaths and the service of our God and then the Lord do with us what seems him good O that those who bear the sword were fired with some of that Sabbabth-zeal that once Nehemiah had Chap. 13.17 18 19. 'T was a high praise that Ambrose gave of Theodosius that he was more solicitous to preserve the things of God as a Magistrate then to preserve himself as a man And it was a good caution that Austin gives upon Psal 2. Magistrates are to be admonished Vid. Pet. Martyr in judg cap 1. saith he as not to grant men immunity to any false worship so not to allow men liberty to leave the true worship of God The Magistrate upon the Lords day is not onely to see men forbear the outward works of their callings but to see that they be about the visible works of Gods worship August Bonif. comiti Epi 50. praecip Tom. 7. Cont. epist Parmeniani lib. 1. cap. 7. Tom. 7. lib. 2. contra Epist Gaudentii cap. 16.17 Austin more then once commends Imperial Lawes against the Donatists for separating from the publike worship of God and gathering into private houses upon the Lords day there to promote their Anti-magisterial opinions Which Lawes were to punish the ordinary people with fines of Money their leaders with banishment the places of their meeting to be forfeited to the Emperour and that none of them should have power to bestow their goods by will or to enjoy any Legacy to them by will bequeathed And he gives Instances of the execution of these Laws and the good successe thereof encouraging the Magistrate therein And when people are brought to the publike Pool Joh. 5.2 3. the Minister is as the Angel that upon this Sabbath-season must move and work in the waters to wit be active in all the Ordinances of God that such as by divine assistance step close in may meet God for the cure of their souls And as the Minister is more immediately to manage the worship of God upon this holy day yea his place is to presse that men do not on this day of the Sabbath satisfie themselves in a bare bodily way to worship God but to see they on the Sabbath serve God in Spirit and truth Thus these two as the two Cherubims that looked one towards another and both upon the Mercy-seat they should with respect look one upon another and both upon the service of the Sabbath that so the Lord may have his day and his due Lastly Let governours of families Parents and Masters contribute their best assistance to see the Sabbath well observed for which end towards their children and servants there is required upon the Lords day a double duty A taking of them to the publike means And a taking with them private pains 1. You are to bring them with you unto the publike Ordinances In the time of the Old Testament people that went to worship God they carried their flocks and their herds with them Hose 5.6 that in sacrifice they might offer them up to God In these times of the New Testament men are to carry their children and servants with them to the worship of God upon his holy day offering them up with themselves as a sacrifice to God When 't was required that the whole body of the Israelitish people should go out from their dwellings in Egypt to serve the Lord together in the Wildernesse Pharaoh called Moses and said Go ye serve the Lord but let your flocks and your herds be stayed but what sayes Moses We will go with our flocks and our herds with our sons and our daughters with our young and with our old will we go there shall not a hoofe be left behind for we must hold a feast unto the Lord and serve the Lord our God Exod. 10.9 24 26. Such Religious resolutions become Christians in the present case 2. Such of you as are heads
of families must upon the Lords day be diligent in houshold-duties We find in the 4 th of Mark yea and likewise Luke 14. how our Saviour on the Sabbath day when he had publikely preached to the people as a Minister of the Gospel he after privately examined his Disciples and further instructed them as a Master of a family From which example of Christ an excellent Expositor observes Chemnit examen cap. de dieb fest how unto the sanctification of the Sabbath besides publike duties there is work to be done in Families as instructing servants repetition of Sermons reading Scriptures counselling and quickning such as are under our care that all may keep holy the Lords day So we see the matters men are exhorted unto I come now to consider the motives by which hereunto men are to be exhorted These are of two sorts Some more driving and Others more drawing Motives that more drive unto diligence in these Duties may arise by observing concerning the Christian Sabbath these four things The necessity of it's continued being The Jeopardy of its future losing The uncertainty of its sudden regaining and The possibility of its present cursing 1. The being of the Lords day is necessary note Negatively and Affirmatively Not that God needs any Sabbath-service or such holy duties as additionals to his Dignity Indeed as to us the honour of God seems to sink when Sabbaths cease And the supporting of Sabbaths seems the advancing of Gods glory but the intrinsecal glory of God can receive no increase God would be infinitely happy though men keep no day holy we need his service not he our obedience When our Saviour sent Luk. 19. to unloose the Colt the Disciples were to give the owner this reason thereof The Lord hath need of him We call indeed to a careful keeping of the Sabbath but we do not say the Lord hath need of it The gods of the Heathen need the supports of such as serve them but so does not the God of heaven Hence sayes the holy Apostle Act. 17.24 25 God that made the world and all things therein seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth dwells not in temples made with hands neither is worshipped with mens hands as though he needed any thing seeing he giveth to all life and breath and all things One well observes of the Angels Chrysost in Matth. Hom. 9 they are not poor though they have no flocks of sheepe they are not in want though silver gold they have none they do not need these things because they have better things abide them Thus God does not want our service in Sabbaths neither needs he any of our duties on holy dayes because of those most perfect felicities and glorious excellencies that are in himself abiding As the Lord is omniscient and needs not any man to assist his knowledge So the Lord is all-sufficient and needs not any thing to help his happinesse And therefore the necessity of Sabbath-observance does not referre to God But to observe Sabbaths the necessity is in reference to us for a double cause viz. Necessitas duplex Praecepti Medii Gods Injunction towards us and Our condition towards God 1. 'T is necessary for us to observe the Sabbath day in all its duties because of Gods injunction And here 't is meet of two things to take good notice to wit Every command of God causes a necessity of our obodience and here is a necessity of our obedience because of Gods expresse command 1. Whereever God gives a word of command there is a work of our obedience necessary I had rather sayes Luther obey the Lords commands then to work Miracles If Miracles need be wrought God will do his own work but 't is needfull we obey commands for God will not do mans work As God by his promises binds himself to vouchsafe mercy So God by his precepts binds us to perform duty As God promising mercy requires our faith so God commanding duty requires our obedience Obedience 't is a debt which as we certainly owe so we must necessarily pay Some they owe to God the debt of passive obedience as they are his prisoners all they owe to God the debt of active obedience as they are his creatures 2. Here God gives a word of manifest command and therefore visibly to obey is necessary Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day Exod. 20.8 Touching this commandement That the Sabbath day be kept holy we may observe Who was the Giver of it Mediatorem hic appellat Christum declarans quòd ipse ante legem fuerit legem tulerit Chrysost In principio mundi Christus Mediator erat hominum etfi nondum erat homo c. Orig. Ambros lib. 4. in Luc. and To whom it was given 1. He who gave this Sabbath Command was Christ the Mediatour He who came down upon Mount Sinai and gave the whole Law is called Jehovah Exod. 20.2 Deut. 4 11. This the Septuagint translate Lord And the same the holy Apostle applies to the Mediatour our Lord Christ Gal. 3.19 And Origen Chrysostome Ambrose with almost all the Ancients in expounding that place of the Apostle do affirme that 't was Christ the Mediatour both of the Old and New Testament by whom the Law was given So Calvin Junius Marlorat and other able Writers since assert upon the same text We are therefore to look upon this sanctifying the Sabbath as that for which Christ hath given a positive Command 'T was not a Mosaical Ceremony pointing to Christ but 't is a Moral duty appointed by Christ and so to remain under the Gospel and government of Christ untill Christ shall deliver up the Kingdome to God the Father and set an end to all times and things in this world 2. He to whom this Sabbath-Command was given is every one Individually Thou Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day Thou Not as a Jew but as a man every man both Jew and Christian Herein whosoever exempts himself deceives himself Yea and of all the commands not any have such a Memorandum upon it as that which concerns the sanctifying of the Sabbath Remember As it related to a duty to be performed in dayes past so it related to a people that in dayes past should still perform that duty A Christian Church to come Remember If men forget all the rest yet let them remember this and if they well remember this not any of the rest will be forgoten That which Luther affirms of the first may wel be referred to the 4. Commandment that in the observance of that obedience to all the rest is comprized 2. The Sabbath day in all its duties is necessary for men to sanctifie because of their condition whether they be considered As unregenerate Or as regenerate 1. For men in an unregenerate estate they need to have a holy Sabbath observed And of such there are two sorts Some in a sinful estate and know it not and others that know
you will think they doe God good service John 16.2 Rom. 11.3 Or if such places be not plucked down they abuse them to abominable worships When ye shall see the obomination of desolation stand in the holy place Math. 24.15 Instead of a preaching Ministery a wooden Idol 'T is said of the Egyptian Temples they are beautifull without but within ugly formes To have the places of our publike meetings filled with deformed faces and blaspheming voices Owles to dwell there and Satyres dance there Isay 13.22 23. Yea upon this losse followes not onely the desolating the places of publike worship that be in the Land but the desolating the Land it self wherein the places of publike worship be Levit 26.31 33. I will bring your Sanctuaries into desolation and I will not smell the savour of your sweet odours Yea I will make this whole Land desolate that your enemies shall be astonished thereat Then shall the Land enjoy her Sabbaths as long as it lies desolate The Land shall have Sabbaths of rest from plowing when Sabbaths of praying cease Now let us hence learn how lamentable the loss of the Lords Day would be I fear some are so profane that they think while Sabbaths are kept the losse is great August de civit Dei li. 6. ca. 11. Austin reports of that heathen Philosopher Seneca That he severely blamed the Jews for resting on the Seventh Day because thereby they lost the seventh part of their time Some I doubt that are called Christians that yet are of such a Paganish opinion that they think that time lost which is spent in the Service of God But this this is indeed that losse which the Lord help us to lay close to heart not to have the Service of God to spend Sabbath-time in and not to have Sabbath-time to spend in the Service of God To lose the Sabbath is not alone the losse of bare time but of blessed time time sanctified and set apart by a Divine Ordinance c. 3. The Lords Day lost in a land may be long before it be regained The way of Sabbaths once ceased may not soone if ever return as may evidently appeare in a double respect viz. Of God inflicting this losse and Of Men on whom this losse is inflicted 1. Because God does not make Sabbaths to cease in a sinfull Land but when there is great wrath in him stirred up and great wrath of him to be poured out 1. When God takes away his holy Sabbath from a people he is with great wrath provoked The Lord does not deprive a people of such precious priviledges as his holy times and things till he is very angry and exceedingly incensed so as that himself forsakes them Now great wrath in God as it is not suddenly raised so it is not presently appeased but it may remain long Zech. 1.12 2. When God takes away his holy Sabbath from a people he hath great wrath to execute The Lord hath caused the Sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion Lam. 2.6 This was when God had great anger against Zion and Zion was sadly covered with the anger of God How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger Lam. 2.1 He hath thrown down in his wrath the strong holds of the daughter of Zion v. 2. He hath cut off in his fierce anger all the horne of Zion v. 3. He hath poured out upon Zion his fury like fire v. 4. c. Now when God hath much fury to bring forth and in the way of his judgments much work to do he takes time God in the wayes of his mercie goes swift because therein he moves with delight Micah 7.18 But as God is slow to execute wrath so he is slow in the wrath he executes Dolet Deus quoties cogitur esse ferox for herein he moves with a kind of grief Judg. 10.16 Lam. 3.33 2. Such men as suffer this sad punishment the cessation of Sabbaths 'T is long As before they come to a true sense of it So before they may make a good use of it Men are many times long before they are sensible Either of their sin which is the cause of punishment Or of the punishment that is the effect of their sin Commonly men that come under this Spiritual Judgement the deprival of the Lords holy day Either they are pleased with it Or they are stupid under it Some they please themselves in being Sabbath-free as we may see at present in some parts of the Nation Can it be believed that in England or Wales there should be Parishes wherein the people know not when the Sabbath comes neither do they enquire but are contented and account liberty from Gods Ordinance a great deliverance People are pleased when well-spent Sabbath dayes are down Because then they are gone who disturbed them and Because then they find others in place that flatter them Such as caused them some soul-disquiet are gone Revel 11. See how merry the world makes it when Gods witnesses are slain They that dwell upon earth shall make merry rejoyce and send gifts one to another because the two Prophets that tormented them are dead vers 10. Yea and then such as keep them in a carnal quiet and sinfull secure peace are present See the people of the Jewes when Moses was gone from amongst them and they got Aaron to be of their own minds and made them a golden Calf O what dancings and merry doings there was Exod. 32. It liked them well but it wrought them woe 'T was that which had a sad influence into all their after troubles Hence it grew a Proverb Non est poena supra Israelem in qua non est uncia vitult That there was no punishment upon Israel in which there was not an ounce of the goldden Calf Thus people when they can get such Ministers among them Sabbatum aurei vituli August as will help make them a Sabbath of the golden Calf as Austin calls it that they may huddle and slubber over a little service to God and passe the principal of the day in dancing feasting and Jovial meetings this is to their minds but 't will be misery in the end 'T will put a sting into every trouble on earth and torment in hell Others under this judgement of Sabbath-ceasing are sottish and brutish Abundance such there be now abroad in England where for want of a publike Ministery the Lords day it laid by and since that liberty hath been granted to some upon the Sabbath wholly to separate into private houses others have taken the advantage to live like Atheists and Epicures as if there were no Sabbath for God nor any God for a Sabbath Yea people are in such a posture that if the Lord should punish the Land with the losse of Sabbaths 't is not like soon to be laid to heart With many the Lords day is already lost in the Land As they that being asked whether they had received
the holy Ghost Answered We know not whether there be any holy Ghost So aske many now adayes whether they have observed the Lords holy day they are ready to answer they know not whether there be any such holy day to be observed Time was a Book was set out to give liberties upon the Lords day men now take their liberties from the Lords day without any Book And they that do not are so listlesse and livelesse in the Lords-day-duties that I doubt if God should judicially deprive us of Sabbath-Seasons we should not thereof soon be sensible And so the time of Sabbath-returnes may likely be long Again if the Lord should lay such a Judgement upon the whole Land as the losse of Sabbaths 't is not probable people will presently make such a profitable use thereof As to prize them highly And to pray for them earnestly Highly God will have them prized God will raise Sabbath-esteems before he makes Sabbath-returns before God brings back his blessed Day as men shall feele the want so know the worth thereof and be of Davids mind One day in thy Courts is better then a thousand Psalme 84.10 vers Heartily God will have them prayed for Sabbath-Liberties Men shall be humble Petitioners for them before they be happy possessors of them 'T was one of the three things Latimur did so ordinarily and earnestly pray for in Queen Marys dayes That the Gospell might be restored to England once again once again c. That Sabbaths might be openly observed and Gods worship publikely performed Once again once again Which words he used to repeat with great vehemencie of spirit Others concurred in the same request and had from God a most gracious grant What are David desires and prayers Psalm 63.2 That I may see Lord thy power and thy glory so as I have seen thee in the Sanctuary And Psalm 42.4 When I remember these things I pour out my soul within me for I had gone with the multitude I went with them to the house of God with the voice of joy and praise with the multitude that kept holyday Should holy Sabbath-dayes cease some I doubt not but upon knees bended would beg their bringing back though the Major part would likely make little of it O that men would yet make much of Sabbath-Seasons lest such a time come when they would they cannot Time will be sayes our Saviour to his Disciples Luke 17.22 when ye shall desire to see one of the daies of the Son of man and shall not see it O if you might but have one Sabbath as in former times Luke 19.42 43. When he came near he beheld the City wept over it saying If thou hadst known even thou at least in this thy Day the things that belong to thy peace but now they are hid from thine eyes The things with the day and the day with the things thereof are now past and gone Amos 8.11 Behold the dayes come saith the Lord I will send a famine in the Land not of bread but of hearing the Word And men shall wander from Sea to Sea and from the North to the East they shall run to and fro to seek the Word of the Lord and shall not find it O now now while it is called to day THE LORDS DAY before Sabbaths and Sermons cease though there should not come such a time over all the Land yet it may be upon particular places rain may fall on one City and not upon another Amos 4.7 Brighr beames of the Sun may shine on one field and the very next field under a dark shadow and over it a black cloud There shine Here rain O the clear light that hath shined upon the Lords Day and the sweet Sabbaths that have been kept in some Townes of England not long since but now Ichabod The glory is gone God knowes whose turn it may be next O let me beseech you of this place to look to the Lords Day be diligent hold fast God never takes away his Sabbaths till people are weary of them and willing to part with them 4. To a people the Lords Day may not be lost but last yet all lie under a curse They may be curs'd to the Sabbath The Sabbath may be curs'd to them The soules of men may be curs'd towards Sabbaths Never let fruit grow on this tree Never let Sabbath or Sermon do this people good No sooner had our Saviour curs'd the fig-tree but it withered at the roots May there not be found amongst us men and women that are most miserably withered Both branch And root Not onely the branch of their outward profession but also the root of their inward affection withered What shall we say of such Galatians who would now pluck out Paul's eyes that were once ready to pluck out their eyes for Paul Are not they withered Are not they under Gods dreadful curse For men to be curs'd in the trades they follow fields they possess is sad but to be curs'd in the Sabbaths they spend and curs'd in the Sermons they hear is worse For God to say to a Minister every time a Sabbath comes Go indeed to the Pulpit and preach to that people Hearing they shall hear but shall not understand seeing they shall see but not perceive For the heart of this People is waxed grosse their ears are dull of hearing their eyes have they closed Now make their hearts hard their eares deafe their eies blind that they may never be converted never healed but live and die under a Gospell-curse and their Soules sinking under a Sabbath-curse yea and so Sabbaths themselves may be cursed to the soules of men As men by their sins may pollute that day which otherwise is holy So God by his judgement may curse that day which otherwise is blessed and so Sabbath-mercy may be turned into a judgement as Moses Rod was turned into a Serpent It would have been ill for Israel if the brazen Serpent should have become a fiery Serpent that mortally to sting them that was made to heal them And will it not be ill for any if the Lords day which is a day of life shall become a day of death This saving day changed into a damning day 1 Sam. 12.17 We see 't was terrible when God turned a day of Harvest into a day of tempest and that time wherein they should have gathered their Wheat with the labour of their hands on earth God scattered it with thunder and hail from heaven And who would not fear such an effect for God to turn a day of Rest into a day of Wrath and therein not to blesse but thereby to blast mens hearts and hopes 'T is sweet for Saints when to them the very curses of men are blessed but 't is sad for sinners when to them the very blessings of God are cursed Mal. 2.2 I saith the Lord will send a curse upon you I will curse your blessings yea I nave cursed them already yet ye lay
it not to heart Beware then I beseech you how you spend the Lords day lest the Lord make this blessed day to become a curse But I proceed from these Motives that are more driving Generosus animus facilior ducitur quam trahitur to insist upon such Motives as are more drawing for upon Generous and Ingenuous minds such Arguments work most And here I beseech you consider The carefull keeping of the Lords day and the Lords day carefully kept It is Equitable It is Honourble It is Profitable It is Delectable And O that God from heaven would set to the help of his own hand that unto diligence in the Lords-day-duties you might be drawn by this fourfold Cord. 1. For the equity That 't is just and fit we all do the utmost of our endeavours in the duties of this day divers reasons may be drawn Some from God Some from other men and From our selves some 1. If we consider God in his gracious dealings there is much may draw to a diligent observance of his holy Sabbath As his general dealing towards us with others And above many others his special dealing with us Let us mark how well God hath herein dealt with man-kind in common as for instance His mercy in appointing this day out of other time and His bounty in affording so much time beside this day First if we consider Both our souls And Bodies There 's much mercy The common rest of the day is mercy to our bodies And the holy work of the day is Gods mercy to our souls For the saving of our souls God injoynes the work And for the casing of our Bodies God Ordains the rest That neither our souls fall into hell-torments Nor our bodies faint under earthy toylings God is pleased in pitty to set apart a Sabbath Hence 't is said Mark 2.27 That the Sabbath was made for man That is for mans use in order to mans advantage Gualter in Marc. 2. Homil. 22. A learned Expositour upon the place does excellently open this Even as had it not been for man a Saviour had never been born So had it not been for man a Sabbath had never been made For their sakes sayes Christ do I sanctifie my self And for their sakes sayes God do I sanctifie my day Now it cannot but be manifest to as many as mark this mercy how meet it is for each man to make much of the day of God 2. Let us see how liberal the Lord hath been in allowing man so much other time viz. six dayes with a reserve to himself This ONE As Joseph Gen. 39. said to Potiphars Wife My Master hath not kept back any thing from me but thee because thou art his Wife So may each man say to the Sabbath God the great Master hath kept back no time from me but thee because thou art his DAY We read how under a Parable Nathan the Prophet aggravated Davids sin 2 Sam. 12. A rich man that had many flocks of sheep yet when a traveller came to his house he spared to take of his own but took and killed the one ewe-Lamb that this poor neighbour had nourished up for himself This aggravates the sin of many a man when a temptation comes to his heart and businesse he is to go about he spares to take of his own time though he hath several dayes but takes of this ONE DAY which God hath set out for himself Luk. 13. There are six dayes wherein men ought to work in them therefore come and be bealed but not on the Sabbath day So say I There are six dayes for lawfull labour in them men may go and trade and travel but not on the Sabbath day What sayes the Apostle 1 Cor. 11.21 Have ye not houses to eat and drink in or despise ye the Church of God So I say What have ye not nights to sleep in and have ye not dayes to buy and sell in and have ye not time to recreate and take any lawfull delights in but pollute ye the day of God Seeing 't is but one day in seven how unwearied in holy workings ought we to be As Christ said to his Disciples when he found them asleep Could ye not not watch with me one hour So will the Lord say to some at the last and great account Could ye not work for me one day Seeing the Lord hath been so bountiful as to give us six daies for our necessary concernments in the World he may well claim our close attendance upon this one day God might as one well observes have required all dayes to be spent in the works of his worship See Pet. Martyr Gen. 2.3 Read Cal. upon Deut. 5. Ser. 35. and set us by night to get our necessary living Had all time been ours then if God had taken out one whole day for himself and his service and left us six we might have made some exception But when all time was Gods so that for men to have a minute is a mercy yet to have such a plentifull portion as six-days-time of God every week with so small a reserve to himself is well worthy of wonder But O how much more to be admired is God in his goodnesse towards us of this Nation and especially in these parts thereof in settling amongst us for so many years such Sabbath-Helpers and Helps for Sabbaths Should we go into many parts of the Christian world yea into divers parts of this Land we might see poore people sitting of Sabbaths destitute Matth. 20.6 7. 't is said to some Is it not the eleventh hour Why stand ye here all the day idle they said Because no man hath hired us Thus might it be said to severall Is it not the Sabbath why walk you about or sit you at home all the day idle They may answer Because we have no Minister to preach to us For want of the Ministery of the Word in many Churches of this Land the Lords Day lies dead and buried the generality of people running into Atheisme ready for Popery and all Soul-poysoning opinions yet God is good to us and gives us Sabbath-supplies Sermons in season and out of season Week-day-lectures as preparatives to Sabbath-day-labour and preservatives of Sabbath-Day-life to keep up quickenings in Christians that what they gain on the Lords Day they may not lose in the week Behold what manner of love is this And is it not meet that this Day should be duly observed 2. Let us consider some men and we shall see the observance of this day more meet viz. Adam before Moses The Jewes before Christ 1. For Adam Peter Martyr upon Genesis the second observes that man immediately after his creation was to enter upon this Holy-day-duties God having made him a woman for his wife soone made them a Sabbath for their work And Chrysostome notes Chrysost Gene. 2. Homil. 18. how God in setling the very first week of the world sanctified a Sabbath thereby says he insinuating
will fight for me Which when the Duke heard he disbanded his forces saying he would not contend with that man that engaged God in his quarrel Let who will resolve warre against us this dayes reforming would prevent the Lands ruining Indeed while Religion is languishing Nations are perishing while Sabbaths are sinking Cities are shaking O what a controversie hath God! O what a fire did God threaten within the walls of Jerusalem for the breach of his blessed day Jer. 17.27 Breakin gs of Sabbaths brings burning of Cities And the best way for the safe keeping of Cities is the well keeping of Sabbaths 2. The sanctification of the Sabbath is of singular use against evil ones As the Devil And Antichrist Much good against the Devil may this day be done To the delivering from him and To the conquering of him O the rare rescues of souls from the power of Satan upon the Sabbath day Luk. 13.16 We see a poor woman eighteen years bound by the Divel was upon the Sabbath-day loosed from her bond Some under the sore bondage of Satan twenty thirty fourty years have been delivered upon the Lords day God hath made heavy chains to fall off and Iron gates to fly open which hath put the Jaylor the Divel in a rage to see upon the Sabbath souls pulled out of his prison and sinners set free from his fetters And O the successeful Battels that have been sought against Satan upon this day of the Sabbath We read Josh 10. That when five Kings came out in Battel against Israel there was a day the Sun stood still and the Moon stayed at the command of Joshua And sayes the text There was no day like that before it nor after it that the Lord so hearkened to the voyce of man for the Lord fought for Israel and they had that day a very great victory vers 13 14 c. Thus upon the Lords day combinations of Devils have been broken and beaten no day like this wherein God hearkens to the voyce of man Heaven and Earth stand still God fights and the Divel falls Luk. 10.18 2 Cor. 10.4 5. Yea and much good may be done this day against Antichrist and all his Adherents both by The preachings of Christs Gospel And the prayings of Gods people This dayes preaching of the Gospel brings on Babylons fall Rev. 14.6 An Angel flies in the midst of heaven having the everlasting Gospel to preach to men that dwell on the earth And what followes v. 7 8. Another Angel saying Babylon is fallen is fallen The words are doubled to foretell a double fall of Babylon The one Spiritual The other Literal Babylons spiritual fall viz. in the hearts of Princes and people this is wrought by the Word Babylons literal fall viz. in its visible pomp and power this shall be done by the sword The former falling makes way for the latter The more purely the Word is preached and the more clearly the Gospel shines the more the Mysterious workings of that man of sin is made manifest and the more he loses in the minds of men 2 Thes 2.8 Then shall that wicked one be revealed whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth and destroy with the brightnesse of his coming It notes the coming of Christ in the clearnesse of the Gospel to cast down Antichrist and call home the Jewes Amen Lord Jesus come quickly 2. Sabbath-dayes prayings of the people of God this brings Babylon down Luther was wont to call his and the Churches Teares and Prayers their great Guns and Cannons Upon the Lords Day the Lords people play with their Cannons aganst the walls of Babylon and make irrepairable batteries and breaches Joshua 6. Every day the army of Israel went round the city of Jericho but on the Seventh day they compassed the city seven times And at the seventh time the Priests blew the trumpets and the people shouted and then the walls fell and the City was taken Every day the Saints of God in their sighs and suits should besiege Babylon but on the Sabbath day beset it seven times Ministers preach and people pray Upon this day all the souldiers of Jesus Christ must march out of their quarters into the open fields to fight the battel of the Lord against Satan and Babylon Hell and Rome and when they be in prayer fervent then they are in the heat of battel then shout shout this would make walls fall O even upon this account let us keep up Sabbaths and therein cry mightily Jerem. 50.14 15. Put your selves in aray agâ—inst Babylon round about all that bend the bowe shoot at her spare for no arrowes shout against her round about her foundations are fallen her walls are thrown down Upon this day let all Gods people in all parts put themselves in aray against Rome Mysticall Babylon pour out teares put up prayers all Artillery-Christians bend the bowe shoot spare for no arrowes cry again and again With the hands of the Prayer of faith lay hold as Sampson upon the pillars of the great Philistine-house bowing himself with all his might then down it fell Judges 16.30 O let us every Lords day bow our selves with all our might 2. Samuel 17.13 Counsell was given to Absalom that if David were got into a City all Israel should bring ropes to that City and draw it into the River till not one small stone be found there Is not Antichrist got into a City Every Sabbath let all Gods Israel bring their ropes pull hard by holy prayer draw all into the River till not a stone be left upon a stone No marvell Antichrist and the divell seeks to throw down Sabbaths for Sabbaths will throw down the divel and Antichrist Again great is the profit of this precious Sabbath For good things towards men and For men towards good things First this brings on things that much concerns mens good In Church And in State Let Sabbaths be well observed and we shall see Good Governours to be obeyed and Good obedience to Governours To keep holy the Sabbath is a sure way to settle a succession of Governours that are good Jerem. 17.24 25 26. If ye diligently hearken to me saith the Lord and hollow the Sabbath-day Then shall there enter into the gates of this City KINGS and PRINCES sitting upon the throne of David riding in Chariots and on horses they and their Princes the men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and this City shall remain for ever This speaks good things to the State And they shall come from the Cities of Judah and the places about Jerusalem and from the Lana of Benjamin c. bringing burnt-offerings and Sacrifices of praise unto the house of the Lord. This speaks good to the Church and all upon this account The well keping the Sabbath If then in Church and State we would have things go well and do desire a series of such settled as may govern for God let us see to the Sanctification of
darknesse might be over all the Land for some few years Those strange astonishing turnings which we have seen in our times whether they tend to the overturning of the holy times and things of God God knows Should we have our deserts and some their desires there would soone be seen a sad sinking of Sabbaths Should some succeed in their designs yet the Day of God might say as the Church of God Mieh 7.8 Rejoyce not against me O mine enemy when I fall I shall arise c. Yea and 't is hopeful it would not be long after its falling before it is rising We are in the last times wherein God as he hath great works to do so great works he may permit men to do yet in all he will have quick dispatches Should the Gospel-Sabbath and the Gospell with the Sabbath be beaten down in England yet mangre the might and malice of all their enemies we have some grounds to hope it would not be long before the Lord lifts them up again The time for the conversion of the Ancient Jews and the subversion of the Antichristian Rome now draws nigh for the batteries of whose external part God will make use of Externall Powers And it appears by consulting Revel 17. that these Nations of Europe who have taken part with the beast and born her up shall beat her down The most Orthodox that I meet make England one of those ten hornes which shall hate the whore and make her desolate and naked and shall eat her flesh and burn her with fire Now sure it will be England beset with Sabbaths that shall send out and be assistant in this Service When Joshuas shall be forth abroad with their armies in the valleys many Moses's shall be at home in the mount especially on the Lords Day preaching and praying with hands lifted up unto the most High God then shall be the ruine of this Romish Amalek this day drawes near I think indeed it is impossible punctually to determine the time of Romes finall fall except we could be exact in the time of Antichrists first originalls but certain that time does apace approach Therefore should any party acted by the Spirit of Antichrist for a time interrupt the Lords Day and oppresse the precious priviledges thereof yet they shall not long prevail they shall prove but as Athanasius said of Julians power A cloud that will presently passe Indeed should Sabbaths fail and fall in respect of sinfull men as I have said before there would be grounds of great fear that it might be a long time before God returns them but in respect of good men there is and will be good grounds of hope God will shorten that sad time For the Elects sake those daies shall be shortened Matth. 24.22 Our Saviour there speaks of such a sad time as even upon Sabbath-days there might be such dangers that men instead of resting and serving God they should then be running to preserve themselves verse 20. Ai but such a time should not be long For the Elects sake God would cut it short Indeed as the least time of the Lord of the Sabbaths absence So the least time of the Sabbath of the Lords hinderance to gracious hearts will be grievous long Bernard upon that saying of our Saviour John 16. Yet a little while and ye shall see me and a little while and ye shall not see me A little while Lord says he A little while Thou canst not be gone the least while but it will be a long time So the Sabbath cannot cease the smallest season but the time to Gods Saints will seeme exceeding long and therefore that time which in it self and to others would indeed be long God for their sake makes it short 2. There is a possibility notwithstanding the projects of men and perils we are in to preserve with us the present liberties of the Lords Day But then let us observe Some things towards the Sabbath of the Lord And some things towards the Lord of the Sabbath Towards the Sabbath of the Lord let us labour To advance Sabbath-esteemes and To revive Sabbath-decays The Sabbath we ought all to consider in respect Of its worth And its work In its worth let us rise to higher opinions and In its work let us strive to quicker affections 1. Let our opinions rise higher in the worth of the day Indeed with the best Gods holy times are of too low esteemes but with the most Gods glorious Day is covered with great contempt buried in the minds of men under the Tombestone of deep forgetfulnesse or under heapes of base and unbeseeming thoughts Lamentations 4.2 The precious stones of Zion comparable to fine gold how sayes the Prophet are they esteemed as earthen Pitchers the work of the hands of the Potter So may I say the precious Sabbaths of God better then the finest gold how are they esteemed as ordinary week-dayes fit onely for the common work of mens labouring hands But let us estimate this above all other times and things Let God and his holy Sabbath have the highest roome in our hearts and the chief place in the prime of our thoughts The Jewes were wont to call the whole week by the name of the Sabbath and to say Chrysost in 1. Cor. 16. Hom. 43. Hieron ad Hedibi Quaest 4. Theophyl in Luc. 18. Lyra. in eundem Beza in 1. C. 16. 1. Tremel in Syriac Paraphras Matth. 28.1 c. the first second third c. Day of or after the Sabbath and so the Greek in some texts of the New Testament reads it as Luk. 18.12 Mark 16.2 c. This they did as learned Writers observe 1. For to discriminate themselves in calling the dayes of the week otherwise then the Gentils who called them by the names of their Idols 2. For to demonstrate the dignity of the sabbath-Sabbath-day and that above all the dayes of the week it was with them of the greatest account they had that reverend esteem thereof as to denominate the whole week thereby And ought not Christians much rather to hold up an high and honourable esteem of the Gospell-Sabbath as a more glorious day 2. Let our affections become quicker in the work of the day O how of late hath the Lords day layen a dying through the dulnesse yea deadnesse of Christians in the duties thereof The way to revive the Sabbaths of God is to revive the service of God and the way to revive the service of God is to revive Gods Saints in the service And if that we would have such Sabbath-revivings Therein Let our visions of God be clearer And our approaches to God be closer 1. The clearer upon the Sabbath we can see God the better will our revivings be It is said Gen. 45. that when Jacob saw the waggons that Joseph his Son had sent his spirit within him revived Did his spirit revive when he saw the waggons his Son had sent O what were his revivings of spirit when he saw
are such as that his heart is prompt prepared for every precept purpose and providence O God my heart is prepared my heart is prepared sayes David One observes how he doubles the expression to imply he was willing to a differing condition Paratum cor meum ad prospera paratum ad adversa paratum ad sublimia paratum ad humilia paratum ad universa quae preceperis c. Bern. Ser. 2. de quadrages If God would have him high or low rich or poor a shepherd again or a Prince still His heart was prepared prepared Thus is it with a pious man his heart is prepared to put on after God in any condition his Spirit is upon such wheels of love to the Lord that he is oft carried out beyond and before he is aware Cant. 6.12 Or ever I was aware my soul made me as the Chariots of Amminadib The spirit of the Spouse did unexpectedly rise and run out after Christ as a Chariot upon the wheeles And are the spirits of Gods Saints set into such a frame for the Lord and may not they be in the Spirit on the Lords day 4. Indefatigable are the spirits of Gods people in following the Lord. In Gods worship their spirits are unwearied when their bodies are weakened Their spirits may be weary in but are never weary of any worship of God or any work for God in his worship their hearts and minds Being pitched down And girt up for God The heart of a holy man is pitched down and firmly resolved for God his mind does not fluctuate hover and waver in unsettled uncertainties he is not upon demurs and disputes confers not with flesh and blood Baron An. 261. num 30. Cyprian that blessed Martyr when the Governour bad him advise with himself answered Sir do your office in a righteous cause I am not now to resolve A man of a wavering spirit is soon wearied out and wrought off from God A good man indeed his heart is fixed for God though he be not fixed firmely in the wayes of God yet for the wayes of God he is firmely fixed Though he hath some doubtings in his way yet he hath not doubtings of his way and so walks on unweariedly His heart will not be tyred or turned out Yea the heart of a holy man is girt up and closely united to God his mind is not divided between the Lord and the world Frederick the Elector of Saxony who was a prisoner to Charles the fifth being offered liberty and dignity if he would come to Masse answered I have but one Master one soul and one Saviour I dare not serve two A man of a double heart that halts between God and Baal God and Mammon never holds out He may seem for a while to out-run many but he will be weary A gracious man his spirit is not onely for God gathered in one but it is so knit up as to be one with God 1 Cor. 6.17 He that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit and hence he holds out to the end never weary And they who in the wayes of the Lord are of such unwearied spirits may not they be in the Spirit on the Lords day There is none of Gods Servants but possibly now may be as some of the servants of God cettainly have been upon the Lords day in the Spirit I was in the Spirit upon the Lords day The USE IS Of Information Of Exhortation 1. This may clearly declare the ill case of two kinds of men neither of which are in the Spirit on the Lords day Some that are not nor possibly can Some that pâ—ssibly may yet are not 1. 'T is the sad case of all unsanctified men they neither are nor possibly can be upon the Lords day in the Spirit This will plainly appear considering Both what they be And what they do Men remaining in a sinful estate we may observe what they be Both privatively And positively Privatively They cannot be in the Spirit on the Lords day because They be without the Spirit of the Lord And towards the Lord they be without spirit 1. As men in natures estate are without God and without Christ Ephes 2.12 so they are without the holy Spirit Rom. 8.9 Jude 19. As when man was to be created the three Persons they all concur Let us make man Gen. 1.26 And no sooner is man corrupted but they all conclude with a Let us leave man So that every sinful man is forsaken of God the Father Son and holy Ghost Such men be without Gods holy and blessed Spirit whether we consider Some more prophane Others more refined Men that expresse nothing but vice and vanity sons of Belial chief servants to the Divel such as do that for the Divel as he cannot do for himself Satan himself because of spiritual being cannot commit many sins But men that herein they may fulfil his will they run into drunkennesse and all kind of corporal uncleannesse they swear and curse steale and commit adultery and wallow in all worldly filthinesse and have they the Spirit of holinesse Men whose mouthes are as that Gate of Jerusalem out at which was carried forth all the filth of the City Their throats are as open Sepulchres their tongues are set on fire of hell and have they the holy Spirit of God in their hearts Other men there are who professe better They speak high but live low Their voice is Jacobs but their hands are Esaus Like Peters fish that had silver in the mouth but none in the belly Nothing of the spirit appears in their waies yet much of the Spirit may be heard in their words As if the Dove were in their Arks onely and none had the Spirit of God but they Thus Muncer the Anabaptist while he called Luther a spiritlesse man a silly soule one without the Spirit of God he pretended himself to be all full of the Spirit c. Men may think they have the Spirit yet not have the Spirit which they think And indeed whatever any unregenerate man think they all are without the good Spirit of God They cannot have the Spirit who are not born of the Spirit and they who never yet all their daies were born of the spirit they cannot be in the Spirit on the Lords Day On the Lords Day a man may not be in the Spirit that yet every day dwells the Spirit in him And can they be on the Lords Day in the Spirit of God who to this day have not Gods in-dwelling Spirit in them 2. Such men God-ward are without spirit As Absalom stole away the peoples hearts from David So sin and Satan hath enticed and taken away all these mens hearts from God Hose 4.11 Or else the world hath so won upon them that their hearts and spirits are gone God-ward The Queen of Sheba when she was at King Solomons Court and saw the house he had built and the meat of his table and the sitting of his servants
be uttered 'T is not prayer nor any other part of Gods service upon the Sabbath that we can spiritualy perform except the Spirit assist The Spirit helpeth Or claspeth in with us together as the Greek word notes As when a businesse is too big a work too weighty for one others put to their helping hands lifting and labouring together The work of the Sabbath especially to be spirituall therein is above our abilities except the Spirit closes in and sets to his assisting hand service will be sleepy and souls will be dead As 't is said that the whole soul is in the whole body and the whole soul in every part of the body to animate and actuate all Thus the holy Spirit must be wholly in the whole body of Sabbath-businesse and whole in every particular duty that all may be active heavenly and lively Upon the Lords day Gods people need the help of Gods holy Spirit Both to transport them And to support them 1. The Spirit upon the Lords day to transport and carry them out in holy duties beyond ordinary formalities and their own abilities though in the week their wings have been wetted in the world yet upon the Sabbath they are made fit to fly and soar up to God Though upon this day Christ rose from the dead yet it was fourty dayes after he ascended into heaven But to a Christian through the Spirit as it is his resurrection day so it is his Ascension day As on this day he comes up from the dead So on this day he goes up unto God 2. The Spirit upon the Lords day to support and keep them up in holy and heavenly frames of heart That in Gods service they sink not Either through sinful inclinations Or through Satans temptations Good mens hearts are as Moses hands when they are lifted up they must be born up Ever since Adams fall mans natural motion is downward The soul that ascends will soon descend if Gods blessed Spirit does not bear it up This made David pray when he saw the people for the service of the Temple with their hands liberal and their hearts lively O Lord God sayes he keep this up for ever in the thoughts of the hearts of thy people c. And Satan he sets in to sink the soul down when it is highest in holy movings and heavenly mountings Matth. 4. we find when our Saviour was taken up into the holy City and sâ—t upon a pinacle of the Temple then Satan solicits him that if he were the Son of God he might cast himself down Such is Satans design when he sees Gods Saints taken up in holy service and set upon the pinacle in the practical part of holy Sabbaths then he privily puts in presently to pull them down but the Spirit helps and holds them up 2. There must be the close concurrings of our spirits with God or the Lords day cannot be spiritually spent Not our bodies barely but our very souls must so set in with God in Sabbath-service as Freely to stirre and Firmely to stand 1. To stirre freely with readinesse and willingnesse of mind moving about the businesse of Gods blessed day Though there seems difficulty in work and Though there is diversity of work Although some of the service of the Sabbath may seem difficult yet with a prompt and ready mind to move thereto and with all agility apt to act therein As some of the men that Mosâ—s sent to search Canaan they came back and their hearts sunk O say they The Cities aâ—e walled and the people are strong and we can never do the work But Caleb who had another spirit and was of a ready and resolute mind Come sayes he let us go up and take it at once Num. 13.30 Some are as awke to enter upon holy Sabbaths as upon walled Cities their hears shrink back and they say The service is too great they cannot do it whereas Christians of another spirit whose minds are bent upon Sabbath-businesse they say Come let us go up through God we shall do great things this day Yea to have a heart free and fit to move although the duties of the Lords day be divers viz. Works of piety works of charity Works together works asunder Sometimes lowly abasing our selves for sins committed Sometimes highly advancing God for good vouchsafed c. As a well-tuned instrument the strings are ready to stir upon a light touch to divers lessons which the Musician may play as he please one after another Thus to have a well-framed heart apt upon the Lords day to its divers duties prompt to pray swift to hear ready to distribute prepared to every good work 1 Tim. 2.21 Tit. 3.1 Yea to have a heart freely moving not onely about divers Ordinancts but about the same Ordinance To set in a way of work severall graces and To set the same grace several wayes a work As in prayer in hearing the Word in receiving the Sacrament in any one such service of the Sabbath to act up in the soul several graces Faith Hope Love Sincerity Humility Fervency c. To have the heart in a ready exercise of all these at the use of any Ordinance Yea such an Ordinance one of these is wherein the soul of a Christian is to exercise the same grace several wayes As in receiving the Supper of the Lord there is a manifold use of faith Faith here it is as an eye to see as a hand to take as a tongue to taste as a mouth to feed as the stomach to digest retein c. Thus when Gods Saints upon the Sabbath do not onely use sacred Ordinances but therein also exercise several and suitable graces yea and are active in their exercise so that their spirits are quick in co-working with the good Spirit of God then indeed do they Spiritually spend this holy day 2. To stand firmely when the Saints of God upon the Lords day as they labour to get their hearts up so they are loath to let them down all the day long Whereupon they strongly strive Rising to stand fast they may not fall and Falling to rise they may the faster stand 1. That rising their hearts may stand fast and not fall in holy duties while the day lasts As when General Joshua was in the heat of battel against the enemies of Israel having his spirit fixed he looks up to the firmiament saying Sun stand thou still upon Gibeon and the Sun stood still and hasted not to go down about a whole day So a Saint of God when he is in the heat of Sabbath-service his affections all on a flame he looks in and says to his soul O my soul now stand thou still Hold here and so the heart holds up and the soul stands still all the Lords day 2. That falling their hearts may rise again to a more fixed affectionate performance of all holy duties Prov. 24.16 The righteous falleth seven times a â—â—y and risâ—th again Seven times even upon
fire I will be with thee Water and fire both may referre to afflictions be they various and violent God will be with Yea in the waters of suffering and in the fire of service God is with us Or though we cannot say God is with us when we are in the water to wit when we be cold or lukewarme in his work Yet we may be sure God is with us when we are in the fire to wit fervent and zealous in the works of his worship Is God with us in the fire of heavy afflictions And is not God with us in the fire of holy devotions And let the Lord thus abroad in the Land be with his service and servants and with his servants in service O what great and good things will follow As the cleansing out of pollutions And the closing up of divisions Pollutions cleansed Were the holy Spirit thus up in the Nation the unclean spirit would be soon forced to passe out of the Land Zach. 13.2 This would not onely keep informing Ordinances that are but reforming Ordinances that are not would be also brought in In our English-house we might hope to have the Besome as well as the Candle Luk. 15.8 As the Candle of good Doctrine So the Besome of good Discipline The Besome of Discipline to sweepe out dust As well as the Candle of Doctrine to drive out darknesse 'T is lamentable to see how the Leprosie hath taken our house Levit. 14. And O what an infection hath broke out even in the new building Infliction of due censures would be a good means to remove the plague-stones out of the wall and so to heal the house and help its standing Could we but encrease our Sabbath-zeal sure Church-Keyes would not lie so rusty yea the civil sword would have a sharper edge When God came down upon Sinai in thunder and lightning fire and much smoak God commanded Moses to set bounds about the Mount that the people might not presumptuously break in Thus were there for the Sabbath that fire of zeal that is fits the Civil Power would set bounds that persons might not so profanely break out Those intolerable tolerations we now see would soon cease Those Anti-Congregations that are now Assembly against Assembly in the same place at the same time It is the cause of many sad evils Hence is it that if there be any that will not afford their presence at the publick preaching of the Word or if there be any that cannot abide the power of the Word publickly preached there be those by that will invite them from us and abet them against us Hence is it that the common sort account Sabbath dayes and duties but as indifferent things matters they may use or omit if they please Hence is it that the vilest of men have learned to vilifie and blaspheme the wayes which God hath blessed to speak evil of the Instruments and Ordinances God hath sanctified and by which God is glorified and which of God shall one day be justified c. Did but the spirit of the Lords day rule in the Land those that are opposite we should either reduce or restrain Those grosse abuses and great prophanenesse that is grown amongst us would be either redressed or suppressed Divisions closed If Christians on the Sabbath were higher raised by a spirit of fervency they would at other times be better ruled by a spirit of unity Were there in men more of the spirit of life upon the Lords day there would be more among men of the spirit of love all the week long Men are not spiritual but carnal which is the cause divisions are common There is among you envying and strife and divisions are ye not carnal and walk as men For while one saith I am of Paul and another I am of Apollo are ye not carnal 1 Cor. 3.3 4. To heal the Land of divisions will be Both the beauty and The safetie of it Beauty Rents and divisions are to a Land as fits of convulsions to a child which draws the mouth awry and pulls parts out of their place and causes all to be uncomely cure the Convulsions and the beauty of the Babe returns Safety Rents and divisions are to a Nation as cracks and clifts in a building which yet Art may stop and the house may be strong and the dwellings therein may be safe and sweet Now that which will most powerfully repair our breaches is the Spirit of the Lord which is a Spirit of love and of a sound mind 2 Tim. 1.7 As it is a spirit of love it unites affections and As it is the spirit of a sound mind it unites opinions And so brings all into one Nothing can so cause union of spirits as the spirit of union Were we more carried out by a spirit of power we should be more carried on with a spirit of peace This spirit would be in us out of Sabbath-service were we in the spirit upon the service of the Sabbath yea O the abundant benefits that would abide our Nation upon this spiritual being and being in the Spirit Then would the works of the Divel be dissolved the darknesse of ignorance dispelled Errors outed blasphemies banished the Gospel cherished truth established iniquity would be lesse the love of many would wax warme formalities would fall and the power of Godlinesse rise Ministers would be vigorous and Magistrates valorous and Christians in Gods cause Couragious Inferiours well governed and Families well ordered so that Old England would become New and we should find New England in Old O happy day O let me beseech all that my weak words may reach for our souls sakes for the Sabbaths sake for the Lords sake and the Lands sake let us be spiritual spiritual in Sabbath-service O let us be like St. John in the text upon the Lords day in the Spirit I was in the Spirit on the Lods day Now that the Lords day may be thus spiritually spent there be duties of three sorts to be observed Anteceden t Concomitant Consequent Antecedent duties Before the Sabbath comes Christians that would well keep the day are required to be Both valiant in resisting temptations against it And diligent in making pâ—eparations for it Temptations that may turn soulâ— aside from this observing the Sabbath may proceed From some more remote or From some more immediate There be some remote that may suggest what may draw off from the Lords day and its spiritual duties There be evil spirits now abroad whose bent is to beat down the day of God and to beat off from the soul-benefitting duties thereof As the spirit of Atheisme And the spirit of Sectarisme The spirit of prophanenesse and The spirit of separation The former fight against the Sabbath day and its due observers in open field by professed battels The latter labour to cut off the Lords day and all its lovers by secret and subtill Stratagems Men that separate from our settled Congregations and run wilde in their opinions
House of God upon his Holy Day Meet God himself in the use of Holy Things 2. God must be seriously sought unto Prayer in this preparative work hath a Principal Task Our Prayer should precede the Sabbath In Sunder If not Together It hath been the manner of some the day before the Sabbath to meet and spend some time in seeking God by Prayer and quickening one another This fervently perform'd would lay a great Ground of a GOOD DAY indeed to follow Melancthon who lived with Luther in lamentable times though his heart was ordinarily oppressed with fears yet finding on a time a company of good Christians together praying Now sayes he there be some good dayes coming Say dayes be evil yet how would this raise hopes in hearts that there be many good dayes coming if the Lords Day this good Day were by a holy prayer duly prepar'd for Indeed for want of prayer-preparation Gods good Day may be as to us an evil Day But upon due preparing Prayer we may safely say of an approaching Sabbath Behold even as to us there is a Good Day coming O pray pray pray before-hand pray that Ordinances may be accompanied Instruments encouraged pray that there may be dischargings of sins enlarging of soules Seek to set our hearts well upon the wheeles Pray that we may be upon the wing in the work Pray sayes our Saviour that your Flight be nâ—t on the Sabbath day Matth. 24. But thus pray that your Flight may be on the Sabbath day to wit from earth to Heaven holding a holy converse with God 2. Towards the world what we are to do in this due preparing for the Lords Day is Sequestration from the Matters of the World And Reconciliation with Men in the World 1. We must make off from worldly Hinderances As Mariners that intend a Voyage to Sea they put the Ship off from the Land so if we mean to serve God on the Sabbath our hearts and minds must be put off from the world Put off thy shoes sayes God to Moses for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground Exod. 3.5 We must put off earthly affections for the Sabbath we are to observe is a Holy Day The affaires and cares of the world we must cast off for 't is not fit with them to come before the Lord in the Day of the Sabbath Joh. 5.10 the Jewes said unto the man whom Christ had cured It is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed because it is the Sabbath day Upon the day of the Sabbath it is not lawfull for to carry about us our worldly minds and matters Therefore from these we must get free before A bird sayes a learned Writer that she may fly Musculus loc comm praecept 4. she flutters with her wings and frees her self all she can from what may hinder her flight And shall not we when we are to come to Gods service on the Sabbath labour aforehand to deliver our selves from all earthly lets who are in our spirits upon the Lords day to be lifted much higher sayes he then birds can fly It was Nehemiahs care when the Sabbath came on to have the Gates of the City shut up that not any might enter in with their burdens It ought to be our course to shut up the Gates of our souls when the Sabbath is at hand that no burdensome cares may come in That Christ might make us a Sabbath to keep in body he first rose from the earth In heart we must rise from the earth before ever we can well keep the Sabbath Christ hath made 2. We must make up earthly differences before the Lords day comes While we are at a sinful distance with men we shall hardly make any good Sabbath approach to God Some they come to Sabbath-day-service in weekday-malice So that on the Sabbath thougb their bodies be together their hearts are asunder When you come together in one place sayes the Apostle I hear there be divisions among you This is not to eat the Lords Supper 1 Goâ— 11. Though on the Sabbath we meet in one publick place yet if we have our private grudges amongst us and unreconciled dissensions betwixt us this is not to keep the Lords Sabbath If thou bring thy gift to the Altar and remember thy brother hath ought against thee leave thy gift and go first and be reconciled to thy brother and then come and offer thy sacrifice Matth. 5.23 If men unreconciled were unmeet for a legal sacrifice how unmeet then are unreconciled Christians for a Gospel-Sabbath It sets us off from God and gives way to the Divel to end a day in strife and wrath but in an angry case to end a week is worse then to let the Sun go down upon our wrath gives place to the Divel against the next day Ephes 4.27 There is no Sabbath-duty but strife and wrath renders us unfit for unfit to hear unfit to pray I will sayes the Apostle that men pray lifting up pure hands without wrath 1 Tim. 2.8 They that will be swist to hear must be slow to wrath Jam. 1.19 O then especially when the Lords day approaches we should put away all bitternesse wrath and anger and evil speaking and kindly close one with another Did we thus at the end of every week make up breaches distances would not grow so great and Lords dayes would be better spent Thus much for Antecedaneous duties to the day of the Sabbath Let us now consider the dayes Concomitant duties These referre To the entrance The progresse and To the end of the day 1. For the right entring of the Lords day our duty is That our bodies be early up and That our hearts be largely ope Bodies up early A great ground of our Christian Sabbath is Christ his Resurrection upon this day Now Christ he rose early in the morning Before the rising of the Sun our Saviour was risen Matth. 28.1 Mark 16.1 It is the judgment of Orthodox Authors that our Sabbath day begins in the morning when Christ rose Shall a Christ be quick to get out of his grave and shall a Christian be slow to get out of his bed Shall the Lord make haste to begin the day even soon after midnight say some And shall we make no haste when the day is begun When our Saviour saw Zaccheus in the Sycomore-tree he said to him Make haste and come down fot this day I must abide at thy house O the haste that he then made to get down c. Luk. 19.5 6. A Christian in the morning as he lies in his bed should think as if the Lord looked down from heaven saying Make haste and get up for this day I must abide in thine heart and this day thou must meet me in mine house When Abraham was to offer his son in sacrifice to God He rose early in the morning and sadled his Asse and took two of his servants and Isaac his son with wood cleaved for a burnt-offering
and went to the place of which the Lord had told him Gen. 22.5 6. And shall not we on the Sabbath morning be early up our selves and our famlies to go to the place the Lord hath appointed and to offer our bodies and souls in service to God The Israelites who lay in siege against Jericho upon the seventh day they being to compasse the City seven times the text sayes And it came to passe on the seventh day that they rose up early about the dawning of the day and they compassed the City after the same manner seven times Joshua 6.15 Upon the Sabbath day we are to compasse the City of God seven times to encompasse heaven with multiplied prayers and thetefore we stould be early up To helps hereunto let us take to wit A timely going to rest the night before and An entire love to the work of the day that followes 'T is too common a fault even with some professing Christians they clog the night before the Sabbath with a multitude of worldly businesses which brings them to sit up late A Sabbath let And a certain fault Hence in the morning when they should be up with God they lie sleep-bound in their bed And alas we have too little love to the Lords-day-work and so but little list to be at the work of the day Were there love to it we should long to be at it Our minds would be upon it in the night and we should catch the first hour of the day With my soul have I desired thee in the night and with my spirit within me will I seek thee early sayes the Prophet to God Esay 26.9 Hearts open largely The door of the heart upon the entrance of the Sabbath must be set wide shut to the world but open to God Ezek. 46.1 Thus saith the Lord God The gate of the inner Court that looketh toward the East though shut all the six working dayes yet shall be opened as soon as the Sabbath comes Thus the gate of the heart that is the inward Court however kept shut all the week yet as soon as the Lords day is come it ought to be opened to wit In delights at the day of the Lord and In desires to the Lord of the day Delights at the day should enlarge the heart joy to see a Sabbath appear A learned Author reports that near the Pole where the nights endure divers Moneths the inhabitants in the end of such a night when the Sun begins to be seen they deck themselves in their best apparel and get up to the highest mountains with joy saying Behold the Sun the Sun appeareth The day the day is come Were we for several moneths kept without a Sabbath how would our spirits spring at such a dayes appearance Why should the commonnesse of the Suns shining and the Sabbaths comming diminish the mercie How should we every Lords-day-morning have our minds mounting and say Behold the Sabbath of the Lord It is come it is come Desires to the Lord our hearts should be enlarged in The day being begun we should begin to pour out our hearts and breath out our requests to God in prayer that he would prosper us with his presence O how well will it be if God shall say Go and prosper pray and prosper preach and prosper hear this day and prosper Fear not for I am with thee I will help thee I will uphold thee I will strehgthen thee Thus in the morning we shall have encouraging mercies if we take care to perform our morning duties Moses Exod. 34.4 rose up early in the morning and presented himself before God in the top of mount Sinai with two tables of stone ready hewed in his hand for the finger of God to write what he would Thus a Christian on the Lords-day-morning should present himself before God upon the mount of meditation and prayer with a heart ready for what God will that day write thereupon waxy and willing to take whatever impression God please to stamp therein Not any of us are then to be content to have a heart stiffe and straight hard and dead The true Mother 1 King 3. was filled with trouble when in the morning she found a dead child by her 'T is the trouble of a true Christian when on a Sabbath day-morning he finds a dead heart in him a heart that 's hard cold and closed up His labour is to begin with a heart lowly and lively to feel those quickenings and kindlings of heart as may encourage to the day in all the duties thereof 2. For the progresse and principal part of the Lords day our duties are considerable In their varieties for matter And in our properties for manner For matter the varieties of duties on the Lords day required have been already declared For manner in performing the Lords day-duties we in our properties must be Knowing Willing Unite Fervent Cheerfull Watchfull Knowing Knowledge it must be the Guide Usher Pilote and promptor of practice In mysteries of faith we may as a blind man sometimes not see our way But in matters to obedience we must not go blind-fold but the eye of understanding must see how we ought to go and what we ought to do So in Sabbath-work we must know how to manage the matter of God and actions of Godlinesse We must know how to order and time our duties that each act may go out in its place Ignorant people in the publick Congregation will be reading when they should be praying and praying when they should be hearing c. Every work sayes Solomon is beautiful in its season We must know how to season and proportion our duties not greaten one to straiten another Like one that Artificially drawes out the picture of a man as he sets every part in its place so he gives every part its due proportion which is the beauty of the body So it is the beauty of the whole body of Sabbath-day-duty when every member hath its measure every act is in order and the whole businesse of Religion hath its due proportion We must also know whereat to aime and how to eye God whence to fetch strength and how to go straight wherein lies our wants and where our supplies c. Willing Psal 100.3 Thy people shall be a willing people in the day of thy power or a people of willingnesses in the plural To shew how exceeding willing-hearted the Lords people should be in the day of the Lords power The day wherein the Lord powerfully converts men and that day wherein men by a spirit of power are converted to the Lord a day of Grace a Gospel-day Indeed the day of the Sabbath is a day of the Lords power wherein all the Lords people should be most willing in the work of the Lord. In what we can do we are willing and What we cannot do we are willing to On the Lords day we would do more good and more for God if we could 'T is a complaint that
she had been at sactifice she presumes sordidly to sin But 't is the property of persons truly pious whatever good they have done upon the Lords day they labout to compleat the service will not neglect their evening-sacrifice in private prayer meditation conference care of their families keeping up their kindled affections least in the cool of the evening they lose the heat of the day Or lest by neglect of the evening they lose any part of the day Gods sincere servants they keep the Sabbath as Souldiers keep a City they look with care to every Gate and part thereof And such care becomes Christians Sabbath-ward not to watch one Gate and leave another open to work one part and be the other idle To be quick and lively at first and to stagger and grow sluggish at last Yea some experienced Christians can say that upon their continued care throughout the Sabbath though their hearts in the former part of the day have been down dull and dead yet towards the latter end the Lord hath come with large enlivenings of soul As the poor Israelites weary in travel and fainting for food ready all day long to perish with hunger At even there went forth a wind from the Lord that brâ—ught so many Quailes from the Sea as came and covered the Camp O the quickening comforts that God in great abundance hath brought in upon the evening of a Sabbath to the souls of his Saints who before in the day were ready to sink with sadnesse and deadnesse Of this day to some we may say as the Prophet of another day Zech. 14.6 7. It shall come to passe in that day that the light shall not be clear nor dark but it shall come to passe that at evening-time it shall be light and living waters shall go out Christians should never be satisfied to end the Sabbath-day in the dark and in a drought without some sweet refâ—eshings from God Lastly for subsequent duties when the day is done and gone they come forth upon a double case In case it hath not been well with us In case with us it hath been well If we have been dull in our dutie and met with little of mercy then our endeavours should be To enquire the cause and To lament the losse 1. We should reflect to find out the cause of our heartlesse and fruitlesse passing Gods precious day What way layd our work what kept God and our souls asunder all the day long When the Egyptians were pursuing the Israelites God set a cloud betwixt them that darkned the camp of the Egyptians so that they and the camp of Israel came not near one another all the night Exod. 14.20 What hath caused a dark cloud betwixt us and God so that we have not come near one another all the day Enquire this 2. We must sadly bewaile the losse of a Sabbath 'T was the rxpression once of a great man when a day was gone and he had not done that good he was wont he brake out to some about him O my friends I have lost a day The losse of any day is matter of mourning but to lose the Lords day and the Lord in the day may cause a loud cry When Elisha was going with Elijah and a Chariot of fire came and parted them asunder carrying Eijah to heaven and leaving Elisha on the earth he looked up and cryed My Father my Father 2 King 2. Hath God and thee O Christian been parted asunder upon the Sabbath and hath the Lord left thy heart upon the earth and gone himself up into heaven O think so upon this as to cry My Father my Father Repent for the losse of the Lords day and lament after the Lord that on his day thou hast lost If on the Lords day we have been fired in duty and filled with mercy and found much of God both in mercy and duty In that case the things of us required are To be thankfull To be carefull To be faithfull To be fruitful 1. For to be thankful all have much cause Yet some have more cause to be thankful For the space of the Sabbath and the use of Ordinances all ought to be thankful to God Had not our good God prevented evil designs we had had no Sabbaths And had not God preserved us a Sabbath we had been like the places of Papists and Pagans Except the Lord of Hosts had left us a Sahhath we had been as Sodome and had been like unto Gomorrah Rom. 9.29 The Lord hath shewed himself loath to leave us yea expressed his love to our Land in the lengthened liberties of Sabbaths The Sabbath in the first appointment was a pledge of large love but in the perpetuall preserving the Sabbath the pledge of Gods love is larger He is worthy say the Jewes of the Centurion to Christ for whom thou should do this for he hath loved our Nation and built us a Synagogue Luk. 7.5 The Lord is worthy of this praise for he hath loved our Nation and kept us a Sabbath The Prophet reproves the sin of some who say not in their hearts Let us now fear the Lord our God that giveth both the former and the latter rain in his season and reserveth the appointed weeks of the harvest Jer. 5.24 O the sin of such who say not in their hearts Let us fear love laud the Lord who reserveth to us the appointed dayes of the Sabbath which is a greater mercy then to reserve for us the appointed weeks of the harvest But how much more thankfull ought some of us to be to our good God who giveth us not onely the space but the grace of the Sabbath not onely the use but the juyce of Ordinances when Sabbaths Sermons Sacraments are to several but saplesse things When the the Lord giveth us with his holy Sabbath his holy Spirit Nehem. 9.14 20. Thou O Lord commandedst thy people precepts and statutes by the hand of Moses thy servant and madest known unto them thy holy Sabbath And thou gavest them also thy good Spirit to instruct them and withheldest not Manna from their mouths but gavest them water for their thirst What cause had they Such cause have we to be thankfull to whom the Lord with a Sabbath of mercy gives the mercies of the Sabbath A comfortable day and the comforts of the day O let the Lord have the high and heated praises of our hearts in heavenly Hallelujahs 2. Let us be very careful to keep off from sin and Satan Satan after the best spent Sabbaths hath oft the worst assaults 'T was the expression of an experienced precious man I look for the Divel every munday-morning I am sure then he will come to rob my soul of Sabbath-good if possible I read of a great Captain who being very sad the day after a mighty victory one enquired the cause who answered Yesterday my heart was too much lifted up I had need lye low to day Have any of our hearts been raised
and ravished enlivened and enlarged upon the Lords day we had need look to it on the following day and keep our selves lowly lest that mind which hath been one day heavenly be the next day haughty Pride is a worme apt to breed within the best wood Beware beware 3. Let us be faithful to keep up the good we have got we are apt to catch cold after the greatest heats And after some close attendance in Gods service to grow more loose and remisse in duty Let us look to our selves we do not lose the things we have wrought we do not break the bounds we have set or slack the holy bonds wherewith we have been begirt To be unloosened on the Sabbath from week-day bonds is comfortable but in the week-time to unloose the Lords-day bonds is abominable 4. Let us be fruitful to bring forth more good for God both in our general and particular callings That our week day carriage may be the springing up of Sabbath-day seed yea our whole lives must be a walking in Sabbath-day strength Tertul. C. Jud. 4. Origen in Numb Hom. 23. cont Cels lib. 8. Pag. 522. c. Chrysoâ—t in Matth. tract 29. Aug. de civit Dei lib. 22. cap. 30. Idem Epist 119. cap. 12. Et de cons Evang. lib. 2. cap. 77. And thus ought we to keep a holy Sabbath throughout the whole course of our dayes Divers of the Ancients dwell much upon this perswading Christians so to practise piety and pursue sanctity as to perpetuate a Sabbath As upon the Lords day we should be full of spirits so after the Lords day we should be spiritual still As on that day we should live in the Spirit so afterward we should walk in the Spirit Gal. 5.25 This I say then Walk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh If all the week we be carnal how can it appear we are spiritual on the Sabbath A good Author speaks well in this case Have we well served the Lord upon his day Bucer in Matth. 12.11 let our manners shew it let our works prove it let the holinesse of our lives decleare it Who will believe that he hath been present in publick Assemblies and with a sincere heart hath heard Gods holy Word who passes the following part of his life more loosely vainly carnally coveteously c 'T is this will evidence that on the Sabbath we have been with Jesus when afterward our faces and graces shine our lips and lives hold out the praises of Christ and the power of his Gospel When the Lords day comes we should be as lively firy and full as if we were then to begin and end Gods work We should be found in such a frâ—me every Lords day as if that were the first Sabbath that ever we spent and as if it were the last day that we should live on this earth or as if the weight of all our work lay upon that single Sabbath for which we were sent into the World or as if our eternal being were to be determined hereby And yet after the day is over we must endeavour still to be doing as if no work were done For as we must be all abundant and fervent on the Sabbath day in the service of God as if after were no holy duties So we must be as full and forward to all following duties as if there had been no Sabbath before Before the Sabbath day and after we must do all the good we can even as if there were no Christ to be relyed upon and yet our relyance both in life and death must be on our dear Lorld as if there never had been the least good done We must be precise for the Sabbath-day and duty And yet yet Duty shall not be our Redeemer Nor the Sabbath our Saviour Whether Sabbath-day or week-day we will do as much good as ever we are able but begin and end all in Christ The end with us shall be the glory of the Lord And with the Lord in glory shall be our end Amen Amen FINIS AN Alphabetical Table directing to some Principal things in this Treatise A ADam in Innocency to keep the Sabbath pag. 7 175 Advocate how Christ is and for whom p. 402 Angels they have a twofold knowledge p. 216 Angels all Ministring spirits pag. 227 Angels helpers in all holy Duties p. 228 Angels delight in Sabbath-service p. 217. Atheists of two sorts p. 32 Antichrists ruine how wrought p. 198 Augustine's answer to a Manichees p. 328 Assent to Divine truths what p. 121 B BAbylons fall two-fold p. 203 Baptisme of Infants why many against it p. 401 Baptisme of Infants its great use pag. 340 Book of Psalmes how excellâ—nt p. 129 Blood of Christ what it purchased p. 92 Blessing of God how desireable p. 197 Breaches abundance how they come p. 339 C CHange of the Sabbath upon a double cause p. 34 Christian liberty wherein it consists p. 36 37 Charitable Duties how fit for the Sabbath p. 66 132 Church-Discipline exercised on the Lords Day p. 131 Censures in the Church how to be inflicted p. 407 Chearfulnesse in Gods service required p. 462 Collections for the poor how to be managed p. 340 Conscience good what it is p. 253 Conscience troubled how sad p. 222 Contentions of Brethren how bad p. 328 Communion with Christ how sweet pag. 102 Christ spiritual in all his Estates p. 390 Covetousnesse the root of evil p. 50 D DAyes all how they are the Lords p. 4. Difference of Dayes how under the Gospel p. 38 Doctrine of the Lords Day strongly to be held p. 122 Day of Judgment drawes near p. 116 Delights in the Lords Day required pa. 456 Desires after God discovered p. 350 Discipline requisite in the Church p. 429 Divel a bitter enemy to tht Sabbath pag. 410 Divel large in knowledge p. 321 Divels called spiritual wickednesses why p. 412 Divisions the evil of them p. 431 Divisions how closed p 432 E ENgland one of the ten horns p. 241 England old how made new p. 433 Enmities in man against God p. 319 Errours against the Sabbath how sad p 83 F FAther 's of three sorts p. 208 Faith beyond feeling p. 335 Faith hath its Dimensions p 289 Faith its various Vse p. 387 Faith in the state and in the Acts differenced p 235 Faith the best beloâ—ed Grace p. 248 Fervency in prayer how fit p. 398 Forgetfulnesse of God how sinfull pag. 87 Fourth Commandment most excellent pa. 9 G GOd what he best liketh p 424 Gospel whereunto it guideth p. 122 Gospel vailed in the Law p. 177 Gospel it excels the Law p. 190 Government of Christ how ordered p. 394 Grace in its actings most excellent p. 416 Ground why to be till'd by Adam p. 7 H HAnds given for a threefold work p. 75 Hearts of Gods Saints like Vials p 302 Heart is the best part in a Saint p. 305 Heart of a wicked man as a bow p. 321
Hearing Gods Word a Duty p. 128 Hereticks not endure Scripture p. 364 Honour to Christ due as to God p. 305 Humble how necessary p 325 Humility how wrought p. 326 Hypocrite how far observing the Sabbath p. 417 I IDlenesse on the Sabbath a great sin pag. 52 Judgments of God upon Sabbath-breakers p. 103 Jewish Sabbath ceased p. 31 Judgment Day now approaching p. 116 Jewes had divers Sabbaths p. 176 Israel a more excellent Name then Jacob. p. 189 Isle Patmos where it was p. 2 John the Apostle compared to the Eagle p. 1. Intercession of Christ how performed pa. 393 Judgments of God on Sabbath-breakers p. 105 K KNowledge of God by his Judgments p. 118 Knowledge necessary to practice p 458 Knowledge to sin against it sad p. 144 L LAst dayes many Antichrists p. 14 Law given by Christ p. 141 Law and Gospel differing p. 38 Libeâ—ty under the Gospel what it is p. 36 Light of Nature to what it leads p. 122 Love the spring of all Gods Mercies p. 470 Love the spring of all our obedience p. 125 Lords Day how excellent a Name p. 189 Lords Prayer how excellent p. 190 Lords Supper how excellent p. 191 Lord of the Sabbath why Christ so called p. 24 Lord of Hosts why God so stiled p. 112 M MAgistrates who honour them most p. 208 Magistrate his duty on the Lords day p. 134 Minister on the Lords Day his duty p. 135 Masters of Families their duties thereon p. 136 Ministers Office most excellent wherein p. 184 Mission of the Holy Ghost when it was p. 19 Meditation how excellent p. 370 Man a compound creature p. 257 Ministers work differing from others p. 353 Ministers must preach though none profit p. 229 Motions spiritual how discovered p. 348 N NAzienzen's saying of Athanasius p. 326 Necessary what works are for the Sabbath p. 74 Necessary the Sabbath for all sorts of men p. 144 O OBedience to God is a debt upon all p. 141 Obedience double due to God p. 148 Ordinances their great Vse p. 369 Ordinances the best not above them p. 147 Ordinances of God are all spirituall pa. 395 Order in Gods service requisite p. 459 P PAtience its necessary Vse p. 335 Pleasures of sin and sinful pleasures differ p. 43 Places of publick Worship to be frequented p. 63 Publick preaching above private reading p. 64 Punished here some sinners are and not other so why p. 118 Psalmes of David fit to be sung pag. 129 People of God more excellent then oâ—her men p. 190 Power given to the Apostles threefold p. 18 Prayer the admirable force thereof p. 204 Praising of God more excellent then prayer p. 371 Preparation to the Sabbath opened pag. 444 Presence of God how with his Ordinances p. 358 R RAnting condemned p. 341 Rainbow sign of peace p. 321 Reading the Scriptures in publick necessary p. 367 Reason cannot rule many men p. 334 Redemption surpasses the work of Creation p. 11 Robbery worse then theft p. 88 Resurrection of Christ how excellent p. 16 Remembrance of Good what it implyes p. 438 Reliance must be on Christ alone p. 476 Relapsers of three sorts p. 146 Resting in Ordinances how bad p. 369 Ruine of Rome drawes nigh p. 241 S SAbbath how it ought to be continuall p. 39 Sabbath the whole Day to be kept p. 56 71 Sabbath-breaking how great a sin p. 86 Sabbath not sanctified is polluted p. 95 Sacrifices dead suited Jewish Sabbaths p. 374 Sacriledge how great a sin p. 89 Sin worse then punishment p. 109 Sin against Ordinances how great p. 90 Singing of Psalmes a sweet Duty p. 128 Soul of man how excellent p. 154 Sacraments to be administred on the Sabbath day p. 130 Segullah what it signifies p. 26 Sacrament of the Supper how excellent p. 191 Separation the evils thereof p. 337 Seducers why called spirits p. 413 Seraphims why Angels so called p. 422 Soul of man hath a double Mansion p 260 Spirie how variously taken p. 257 Spirit of God moves freely p. 329 T THankfulnesse for Sabbath liberties p. 470 Tree of life more excelllent then the Tree of knowledge p. 345 Trinity of persons their proper works p. 20 U UNity among Christians the good fruits thereof p. 433 Vnity in Religion how obtained p. 432 Vnthankfulnesse a great sin p. 86 W VVAldenses whence their Rise p. 120 Watchfulnesse in Gods servants needfull p. 463 Withering branch and root how sad p. 166 Week-day Lectures their good p. 174 Weâ—k-day plâ—asures their danger p 221 Works not to be done on the Sabbath two sorts p. 42 Works on the Sabbath to be done of two sorts p. 51 Works Christ did the same God did p. 10 Willingnesse required in Gods service pag. 459 Word preached better then Word read pa. 64 Wrath unfits men for good Duties p. 452. Z ZEal in Gods service good p. 375 Zion deprived of Sabbaths sad pa. 152 Some Scriptures occasionally explained Genesis ch ver pag. 2. 3. 197 13. 8. 327 Exodus ch v. pag. 32. 19. 161 Leviticus ch ver pag. 26. 33. 153 1 Sam. ch v. pa. 28. 15. 363 Job ch ver pag. 1. 6. 228 Proverbs ch ver pag. 24. 27. 183 25. 11. 183 Psalm 41. 1. 306 51. 12. 283 108 1. 306 Esay ch ver pag. 43. 1. 413 Jeremiah ch ver pag. 17. 27. 104 Lamenta ch ver pag. 2. 6. 103 Amos. 4. 7. 111 Matthew Ch. Ve. Pag. 5. 3. 266 12. 44 316 24. 20. 24 Mark ch ver pag. 1. 23. 316 2. 28. 26 Luke ch v. pag. 2. 37. 73 5. 6. 237 15. 8. 267 John ch ver pag. 20. 24. 17 Romans ch ver pag. 8. 7. 319 8. 9. 262 8. 26. 382 9. 16. 230 12. 2. 258 Galatians ch ver pag. 3. 9. 141 5. 25. 261 2 Timothy ch v. pag. 4. 2. 183 2 Thessalonians ch v. pag. 2. 8. 204 Hebrews ch ver pag. 4. 12. 360 1 Peter ch v. pag. 2. 2. 64 Jam. ch ver pag. 4. 5. 316 1 John ch v. pag. 4. 1. 325 Revelations ch ver pag. 4. 8. 265 5. 8. 302 12. 15. 381 14. 6. 203 21. 22. 147 22. 1. 290 FINIS
conclude their cunning endeavours were perillous and pestilent and by all meanes possible to be suppressed Such men lift up Moses to throw down Christ advance God the Father to abase Christ the Son and to deface his glory due Zanchius de oper redempt li. 1. ca. 19 fol 612. And though they seem to be for God and his Law yet 't is an unlawful and ungodly thing sayes Zanchius as to have no certain day for Gods publick service so to undermine and to overturn that day which is certainly setled for the Lords Day Secondly some grant this to be the very Lords Day but they do not believe 't is a day so precisely to be celebrated As there are few so far Atheists as absolutely to deny there is a God A God many grant there is that yet deny the true God and many acknowledge the true God that yet cannot be convinced he is such a God so just holy pure and perfect Thus there are few so far opposite to Sabbath as wholly to deny there is any day A day they yield there is but then they do not confesse the right day or they do not confesse the day aright a day to be kept so holy and strict this they withstand whence they are very loose and take large liberties upon the Lords Day And of these there are two sorts Some so minded for want of better Instructions And some so minded from the force of base Corruptions 1. Some have strange latitudes in their judgements of the Lords Day and indeed the very Doctrine of some Churches and Canons of Synods set the door wide allowing liberty for worldly labour recreations and sports upon the Sabbath-day But these are black sports that blemish their beauty in the sight of God 2. Some who live where they might learn better the light of the Lords Day in the Doctrine of it breaking out more bright and shining forth clear and pure yet they cannot see the holinesse of the Day through the filthinesse of their flesh and their dear indulgings of their delightful lusts Neither are they willing to see the Sabbaths Sanctity lest it should disturb their sinful security If for the Lords Day they should be strict in their opinions they could not with conscience-quiet be loose in their practice these persons in this point of corrupt principles and erroneous judgements object divers things as 1. Objection The Sabbath is mutable and moveable from one day to another and therefore may be removed quite and made utterly to cease Answer The Sabbath 't was mutable being altered from the last to the first day of the week but 't is not possible there should be such another change in that there can never possibly be such another cause To that change we may consider a double cause concurring The material cause for it and The actuall cause of it The cause upon which the day was altered viz. Christs Resurrection The cause through which the day was altered viz. Christs Institution So that the cause on which and the cause by which this was done all was Christ In this change of the Sabbath we may observe a double use Originall and Organicall The primary Id sine dubio tenendum quod Ecclesia ab Apostolis Apostoli à Christo Christus à Deo suscepit c. Tertul. Nostrae potestatis non est sanctificare Deus est qui sanctificat c. Muscul Loc. Com. Praecept 4. principall efficient cause of that change was Christ The holy Apostles were the Secundary and Instrumentall cause for to such purposes all their power was from Christ who did extraordinarily call qualifie and commissionate them upon such accounts as never can come the like The Lord himself set up his own Sabbath and indeed 't is onely for him to give a being to a Sabbath that can give a blessing to a Sabbath this is the work of the Lord alone to blesse and sanctifie a day Therefore not any person may assume power nor by any power may persons presume to alter and settle any other Sabbath Men must not alter the ordinance for the day as they may not alter the ordinances in the day to bring in other Sacraments another Gospell Gal. 1.8 If an Angel from heaven should preach another Gospel to you then that you have received let him be accursed and so he that shall cry up amongst you any other Sabbath then what ye have observed let him be accursed 2. Object 'T is contrary to Christian liberty to be limited to a day wherein to worship God Answer Christian liberty learned out is taken Either more strictly Or more largely Strictly Christian liberty is a release from Mosaical Ceremonies and Judaical circumstances but this doth not free from a fixed day for the Lords service which is not a ceremonie a circumstance but the very Soul and substance of Christian religion Largely Christian liberty or Gospel-freedome it does comprise these two things Freedom from the service of sin and Freedom in the service of God First to be free from sins servitude this implies freedom from death and divel the curse of the Law and the wrath of God the sequels of sins slavery Sins service is the sorest bondage Austins Position is proper August de civit Dei li. 3. cap. 4. A good man though he serves yet he is free a wicked man though he reigns he is a servant Rome saith he is the great Mistresse of the World yet the drudge of sin Chrysos Hom. 19. in priorem Epi. ad Corinth and hence Chrysostome concludes Joseph was the freeman and his Mistesse who obeyed her lusts was the servant 2 Pet. 2.19 While they promise themselves liberty they themselves are the servants of corruption for of whom a man is overcome of the same he is brought into bondage Secondly to be free in the service of the Lord is sweet liberty this is the case of Christians whatever they do towards God as their duty 't is under a freetenure viz. the Covenant of Grace T is through a freee mover viz. the Spirit of Christ yea and their own spirits set free by Christ The precepts of the Lord are a good mans large walks Psal 119.45 I shall walk at liberty for I seek thy precepts BEDDACHAH at large that is the onely free life that 's spent in seeking serving obeying and blessing God So then into Christian liberty let 's look never so farre we shall not find that a discharge from the Lords day is any breach thereof And therefore a strict observance of this Lords day is no breach thereof 3. Objection Under the Gospel there is no difference of dayes to be observed Answer For satisfaction herein we shall consider first That there is a difference between dayes which it is sinful for to observe And Secondly That yet there is a difference of the Sabbath from other dayes which not to observe is sinful Sinful it is to observe such a difference of days as is Heathenish Jewish
A Sabbath well spent As it is formidable to the Devil So 't is acceptable to God We go from Sabbath-day-duties Prayer well made Sermons well heard and Sacraments well received sayes Chrysostome as Lyons breathing fire terrible to the Devils themselves But that which is bitterly displeasing to the Devil is most sweetly pleasing to God So Calvin expounds that place of the Prophet Isay 58.13 Thou shalt call the Sabbath a delight Or Delights in the plural as that worthy Interpreter renders it from the Hebrew and refers it not to men but to God saying That the right observation of the Sabbath is the delights of the Lord nothing to God more grateful And indeed no lesse from the place appears Thou shalt call the Sabbath a delight the holy of the Lord HONOVRABLE and shalt honour him The Prophet seems to set down a double reason why the Sabbath should be the delights of the Lord viz. 'T is the holy of the Lord and 'T is the honour of the Lord. That sure is the delight of the Lord which is the holy of the Lord. A holy God cannot but delight in a holy day That which is so suitable to him must needs be acceptable with him And that which is the Lords honour is certainly the Lords delight The Sabbath it is the honour of God displayed 't is the great Engine God moves in this world to make out his honour As God hath honoured this day by making it holy for us so we much honour God by keeping it holy to him What is his honour is his pleasure 2. The Angels of God are greatly delighted to see Sabbaths observed which may arise from a double advantage viz. To themselves and To others Through our Sabbath-day-exercises Angels do much advantage themselves in that their knowledge comes hereby constantly to encrease Austin well observes that the Angels of heaven have Both their Morning and Also their Evening-knowledge Their morning-knowledge This they have by Creation from the Worlds beginning as soon as they were made they were able knowingly to contemplate God heavens glory and their own felicities Their evening-knowledge This they have by inspection and diligent observation of the affairs of the Church and Mysteries of the Gospel made manifest in the end of the World Ephes 3.10 1 Pet. 1.12 Those Gospel-discoveries of Christ upon the Lords day the Angels delight fully to look into and enlarge their knowledge by 2. Through Sabbath-day-exercises Angels see great advantage to others and this makes the day their delight This being the day wherein lost Goats are found strayed sheep are brought home and prodigal sons return to their Fathers house O the musik it makes in heaven and joy among the Angels of God Luk. 15. Luk. 2. we see what rejoycing was among the Angels upon the day of Christs Birth singing Glory be to God good will to men Tydings of great joy To you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord. If Angels reioyced at the day when Christ is born to men do they not rejoyce on the day wherein men are born to Christ Ut homâ—nes nascerentur ex Deo primo ex ipsis natus est Deus August in Joan. c. 2. The very end as Austin observes why God was first born of men was that after men might be born of God Therefore Angels who rejoyced at the other may well rejoyce at this Yea Angels who are present in the publike Assemblies of Gods Saints 1 Cor. 11.10 not only to observe but to assist them in Sabbath day-duties O how much is it Angels delight to find us this day fervent in praying painful in preaching diligent in hearing c Persons inferiour that herein find pleasure are Faithful Ministers and Faithful Christians 1. To Ministers that are faithful the Sabbath is a day of sweet delight Upon the Lords day labouring Either they have herein their desired successe Or they have not that successe herein they do desire Sometimes God gives them good successe in their Sabbath-Day-endeavous that is their delight Austin having preached an excellent sermon some of his hearers thinking to please him with their applause fell into his high praises the good man sighed saying Alas these are but leaves it is fruit we delight in The peoples fruit and profit is the Ministers delight and pleasure Let a faithful Minister meet with never so many molestations all the week yet if upon the Sabbath God prospers and the peoples profit lo this is his delight and comfort this his crown and joy John 16. it is said of a Mother she forgets her pain and travels for joy that a man-child is born into the world Thus a good Minister forgets all his week-day-difficulties and discouragements in the world for joy that a soul on the Sabbath is born again to God And if they have not such successe yet the day of their labour is the day of their delight 2 Cor 12.15 I will very gladly spend and be spent for your soules though the more abundantly I love you the lesse I be loved Here the Apostle in all his Ministerial paines seemes to have poore successe cold encouragement Little love for great labour Yet for the desired good of souls he gladly yea very gladly spends himself is spent Faithfull Ministers if they find good successe of their Sabbath-service then they rejoyce because they have a sure reward from God If upon the service of the Sabbath they have no such successe yet they can rejoyce because they have asure reward with God Isay 49.4 I have laboured in vain I have spent my strength for nought yet SVRELY my Judgement is with the Lord my REWARD with my GOD. Vers 5. Though Israel be not gathered yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord. If Israel be gathered then are we glorious in the eyes of men If Israel be not gathered yet are we glorious in the eyes of God who looks more to our sincere intent in our work Nos octavâ die quae ipsa prima est perfecti Sabbeti festivitate laetamur Hilar Prolog in Psal pag. 335. then at the successeful event of our work We may well therefore make our labouring day our delighting day The day of our greatest paines the Day of our sweetest Pleasure 2. To Christians that are fruitful the Lords Day is a day of large delight This is the day which the Lord hath made we will rejoyce and be glad therein Psal 118.24 As there is not a day which the Lord hath not made So there is not a day wherein Saints may not be glad but as the Lord hath made this DAY to differ from all the rest so saints may be otherwise glad on this day then at any other times Which will be evident if we consider 2. The properties of Sabbath-joyes as to Gods Saints They are The safest and The sweetest They are The firmest and The fullest joyes 1. These are the safest joyes
his son who sent the waggons The Ordinances upon the Lords day they are the waggons that for us God hath sent it is some reviving to see them O but to see God whence these waggons are and whose the Ordinances be how reviving is that O sayes David to God that I may see thy power and thy glory so as I have seen thee in the Sanctuary Psal 63.2 2. The closer upon the Sabbath we can draw to God the better will our revivings be We read 2 King 13.21 of a dead man that being let down into the Sepulchre of Elisha as soon as he touched the bones of the dead Prophet he presently revived Thus Christians whose hearts are dead yet coming close to God in the Sabbath have sudden soul-revivings and most comfortable quicknings And this is the way to recover the life of the Lords day and so to settle the liberties thereof which at least to some seem to be shaking Towards the Lord yet further that his day may endure let us Keep in the presence of the Lord Keep up prayer to the Lord. 1. The presence of the Lord kept in with us will hold holy Sabbaths amongst us Indeed let the Lord depart and then the dayes of grace and means of grace will immediately remove When Christ goes he calls Come with me my Sabbaths Ordinances and all my holy Institutions Time was Christ walked in the midst of the seven golden Candlesticks Rev. 1.13 That is those seven once famous Churches of Asia had the presence of Chirst with them and the Ordinances of Christ among them the Lords day was a known day But now the Sabbath of the Gospel and the Gospel with the Sabbath is gone because Christ there was not kept O sayes Martha Lord if thou hadst been here my brother had not died If thou hadst been present my brother had not departed So may those Asian people now say to Christ Lord if thou hadst aboad with us thy holy Times and Things had never been stirred Matth. 28.20 Christ there hath promised his presence even in the use of Ordinances unto the end of the world The way to retain Christs presence Is to believe his promise No hands like faith to lay hold upon Christ Faith sayes Luther is like the beloved Disciple it leans in Christs bosom it will not leave him nor let him go Faith it produces A vigorous love and A vertuous life Unto a people both will bind Christ 2. Prayer to the Lord kept up by us will hold holy Sabbaths amongst us In the land were the Spirit of prayer up Sabbaths would never go down Indeed it will be a hard matter to make Sabbaths stand if still praying hands fall O pray pray pray And in prayer plead with God To send out more Sabbath-labourers and To blesse Labourers more in the Sabbath 1. Pray that more may be sent out who will be faithful in the labours of the Sabbath Matth. 9.37 38. The harvest is plenteous but the labourers are few pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that he will send forth lavourers into his harvest Many places in this Land are as fields of ripe Corn and alas how do the Divels those fouls of the air Math. 13.4 and wicked men those swine of the earth Matth. 7.6 wholly waste and spoil all for want of Sabbath-labouring men to gather into Gods Barn In divers places upon the Lords day O what dark doings people being as a black Lanthorne without any Candle And shall not we pray that God would set up lights and send out labourers that his day may be duly observed and that we may pre his day 2. Pray that those who are sent out may be fruitful in their Sabbath-labour that they may see the travels of their souls and be satisfied That Gods good work may prosper in their hands and their peoples hearts That every Sabbath they spend and every Sermon they preach may prove as the bowe of Jonathan which from the Battel never returned empty There is a precious promise fit in prayer to be pressed Esay 54.10 11. As the rain comes down and the showers from heaven and returns not thither but watereth the earth making it bud and bring forth seed to the sower and bread to the eater So sayes God shall my Word be that goes out of my mouth it shall not return to me void O pray we that neither the Red or the Black horse be harnessed out to the Battel But that Christ on the white horse may conquer Rev. 6. Many souls in the Sabbath by the Gospel may be gained over to God This would perpetuate Sabbaths and make the Lords day lasting Last of all unto Gods Saints a Sabbath in some sense is sure never to cease Gods people Shall either have the Sabbath of the Lord Or to them the Lord will be a Sabbath Ezek. 11.16 Thus saith the Lord I will be to them as a little Sanctuary in the Countries where they shall come Gods people in Babylon when they could not go to worship God in the great and beautifull Temple at Jerusalem yet then God was as a little Temple to them And this little Temple was better then the great Thus the Saints of God when they cannot have the Sabbath that is present God will be to them a Sabbath more precious God is the best Sabbath 1 Sam. 1.8 Elkanah sayes to Hannah his Wife Am not I better to thee then ten sons One God better then ten Sabbaths and twenty Sermons to the souls of his Saints No Sabbath of God is like God a Sabbath no Sabbath-rest like to the rest that is in this Sabbath no comfort in a Sabbath like this Sabbath of comfort Yea let Gods sincere Saints live or die they have a Sabbath will last an everlasting Sabbath If they live their Sabbath will be ever with them and If they die they shall be ever with their Sabbath Ambros in Psal 119. August de cavit Dei lib. 22. cap. 30. Some of the Ancients were wont to call that eternal life God gives in heaven The great Sabbath And That long Sabbath-day that hath no night O but then God himself who in heaven gives life eternal what a Sabbath is he O the height and depth breadth and length of this Sabbath Christus est magnum sempiter-numque Sabbatum cujus parvum illud Judaicum exemplar in illo siquidem Sabbato requiescimus cum in illo solo spem ponimus cum hunc toto cordis amore diligimus c. Epiphan lib. 1. Haeres 30 Greg. Nyss de Resurre Orat. 1. Yea I find of the Ancients who affirme that to Gods dear Saints in the dayes of the Gospel there is a double enduring Sabbath viz. Christ And a good conscience Christ is the great and eternal Sabbath which in the Gospel God hath set up and in this Sabbath we rest when we repose our hearts and hopes upon him This is an unchangeable Sabbath Christ the same yesterday to
and hopes have been down and dead yet then to look back and call to mind mercies of old tracing the former foot-steps of God in their soules looking up and reading over the Lords love letters long since sent and then comes quickening life into their hopes and hearts Psal 77.5 6 7 8. Lam. 3.18 19 20 21 22. And though these gracious actings may be at other times yet I appeal to the most experienced Christians whether they have not found themselves best bent about such Soule-work upon the Sabbath-day 2. Direct actings Upon the day of the Sabbath the soules of Gods Saints may be set a work Onwards towards the People of God and Upwards towards the God of his People In grace admirably acting towards their Brethren Both in sufferings scattered And in service assembled 1. Where ever a good mans body be found or fixed yet in spirit he goes visiting his fellow-servants in prisons and the forreign Churches of Christ in all their afflictions Beza reports of Calvin That he was so tenderly affected to Christian Churches remote as if he had carried them on his shoulders or born them in his bosome often sighing out Vsque quo Domine How long Lord more lamenting the Churches calamities then his own adversities Thus the holy Apostle 2 Cor 11.28 29. Besides those things that are without viz. severall sad afflictions upon his own body that which cometh upon me daily more then all the rest the care of all the Churches Who is weak and I am not weak Who is offended and I burn not c. Yea and in such Christian compassions to others in affliction Gods dear Saints are most deep upon that day wherein they see their own sweet liberties priviledges and Gods precious things peaceably possessed 2. Where ever a good mans body abides yet in soul he will be sure at some place in which Gods People publikely meet for Sabbath-service David when in body he was banished and lay hid in the Land of Hermon yet he was in spirit at Jerusalem and went with good people to the Temple for the service of the Sabbath My soul sayes he thirsteth for God for the living God Oh when shall I come appear before God viz. In body also When I remember these things I pour out my soule within me for I had gone with the multitutde I went with them to the House of God with the voyce of joy and praise with a multitude that kept Holy Day Psal 42.1 2 3 4. The Jewes that were bodily at Babylon yet in soule they kept their Sabbaths at Jerusalem Psalme 137.5 6. Jonah though his body was in the bottom of the sea and belly of the Whale yet in spirit he was in the Temple at Jerusalem Then I said I am cast out of thy sight yet I will look again towards thy holy Temple Jonah 2.4 Though the body of Saint John was a prisoner at Patmos an Island as some write near Affrica yet was he in spirit with the Churches of Christ at Asia and with them he kept the Lords Day When Saint Paul was in body at Philippi yet in spirit he was with Gods Saints in their assemblies at Corinth I verily as absent in body yet present in spirit have judged concerning him that hath done this deed in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ when viz. on the Lords Day ye are gathered together and my spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ to deliver such a one to Satan c. So when he was in body at Rome yet in spirit he was with Gods assembled Saints at Colosse Though sayes he I am absent from you in the flesh yet I am with you in the spirit rejoycing to behold your order viz. in their Church-assemblies c. Colossians 2.5 But above all are the soules Sabbath-actings in Grace God-ward Though the body is then carried out by the soul Yet the soule to God is then carried beyond the body A mans soule is then so set as that it incites the body and the body is so brought on that it sayes to the soule as Ruth to Naomi Whither thou goest I 'le goe where thou stayest I will stay thy God shall be my God and thy people my people nothing but death shall part thee and me As Joseph and Mary went together to seek Christ So on the Sabbath soul and body in publike and private go together to serve God Even upon week-dayes when the body as Martha is about worldly and household-businesse the soule as Mary sits at the feet of Christ But upon the Sabbath when they be both serving of God yet the soul does the most and the best work Body and soul are upon the Sabbath as those two Disciples that went out to Christs Sepulchre but the soule is as that Disciple which out-ran his fellow John 20.4 It comes quickest in and closest up to Christ Yea. suppose the heart and mind of a good man may all the week-time be as a boat that beares upon the ground yet upon the Sabbath the soule may be set as a boat upon a strong stream and goes as a Ship full saile for God In meditations of him And applications to him O the admirable meditations this day on God! The mind that in the week hath been as the foot of Jacobs ladder standing upon the earth upon the Sabbath the soule hath been as the top of that ladder reaching up to heaven in high thoughts of God One observes of the Virgin Mary Hieron Epist 17. when the holy Ghost had over-shadowed her and that holy thing was conceived in her womb she arose went up into the hill-countrey Luke 1.39 When the holy Spirit comes upon the soule of a Saint and holy thoughts are conceived in the heart O how the mind mounts up hill to God in heaven Such a soule-frame is most frequent in Sabbath-time And O the close applications this day made to God In prayer and In praises A good Expositor gives this glosse upon what the Apostle does here expresse Vid. Aret. in Locum I was in the Spirit That is he was in prayer upon the Lords Day It is one thing to be at prayer And another to be in prayer There is never a day comes over a good mans head but he is at prayer Bernard in Fâ—st Pen-Pentec Serm. 1. but to be in prayer on the Lords Day that is more Not only praying by the Spirit but in the Spirit of prayer Prayer does not onely ascend to God from the soule but the soule it self ascends to God in prayer In prayer wrestling with God and With God reasoning in prayer So that such beames break out Greg. Orat. de laudib Basilii as make the mans heart burn and his face shine It is reported of Basil that the Emperour Valence coming in upon him while he was in prayer he saw such lustre in his face as struck him with terrour that he fell back Luk. 9.29 And Jesus went up into
shape assume the body of man so he can in shew assimulate the Spirit of God 1 John 4.1 Beloved believe not every spirit but try the spirits whether they are of God or no. Whence we note 1. That there are spirits which pretend to be of God and are not 2. That such meere pretending spirits may much resemble the true Spirit of God 3. That their resemblance may proceed so farre that professing Christians may be prone to believe they are the very Spirit of God 4. That such spirits may not be believed a discovery of them is to be made by tryall 5. That the tryall to discover spirits to be not of God must be exact and prudent Try the spirits viz. as skilfull Lapidaries do their stones or as wise Goldsmiths do their mettalls by touch and weight as the word imports Now that men may so try as to discern whether upon the Sabbath as at other seasons they are moved by the Spirit of God Be it known that The Spirit which is Swelling Smiting Roving 'T is not â—he Spirit of God Renting Ranting Driving 1. A swelling spirit that puffâ— men up with pride is not the Spirit of God One of the chief lessons taught by Gods holy Spirit is humility of heart And upon this account Gods Spirit suggests to a man His Iniquity and His mortality When mans heart begins to swell the Spirit of God puts in Berna August Serm. 21. Christ was humble yet without sin and shall a sinner be proud What thou proud dust and ashes For pride God plunged Angells out of heaven and will he spare thee a rotten creature a worm that must die tomorrow Swelling in heaven Angells sunk and shalt thou proud upon a dunghill passe unpunished Ambros lib. de viduis As Christ sayes a good Author cured the blindnesse of the man by putting clay upon his eyes so the Spirit of Christ cures the swelling pride of mans heart by putting thoughts into his mind of his mortall and dying condition That while he lives he is but a piece of warme clay That is the Spirit of God which as it enlarges a mans abilities it increases the mans humility As Nazianzene said of Athanasius He was high in worth and humble in heart Of such instances the Holy Scriptures are full But some their soules are swelled with pride as Simon Magus who gave out that himself was some great one Act. 8.9 Such a one was Muncer the Anabaptist in Germany as Sleiden reports his proud pranks and bragging boasts such a one is that man of sin who exalteth himself above all that is called God 2 Thess 2.4 The Spirit of God it is not that moves these men 2. A smiting spirit that makes men clamorous and contentious is not the Spirit of God Chrysost homil ad Pop. Ant. 36. et 51. the Spirit of God it makes men peaceable pittifull To act pitty and shew mercy sayes a good man is a more glorious work then to raise the dead or to build temples for God Yet this lesson men learn through the help of Gods holy Spirit A meek and a quiet spirit Such a spirit acted in Abraham Genes 13.8 And Abraham said to Lot let there be no strife I pray thee between me and thee or between my herdmen and thy herd-men for we are Brethren Is not the whole land before thee take either the right hand or the left c. Abraham said though he were the Elder and Superiour Let there be no strife His spirit did so incline to peace that he would not have the least breach I pray thee he begged agreement so greatly did his soul desire it I scorn sayes Luther to the Pastors of Stratsburge that any should be more earnest then I for peace Brotherly peace and bowells of pitty are the fruits of the Spirit Gala. 5.22 Likewise long-suffering gentlenesse meeknesse temperance It is an evill spirit that makes men tumultuous mutinous contentious apt to smite both with hand and tongue 2. Chron. 18.23 And Zedekiah smote Micaiah on the cheek saying Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to thee It was not the Spirit of the Lord but a lying spirit that moved Zedekiah against Micaiah Such a spirit wrought in them against the Prophet Jer 18.18 Come let us smite him with the tongue and let us not give heed to any of his words A false spirit is so all for speaking that it cares not to hear 1 Joh. 4.6 Hereby we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error He that is not of God heareth not us Thus a Manichee furiously contesting with Augustine clamoured and cryed out Hear me hear me To whom the good man modestly answered Neither hear me or I thee but let us both hear the blessed Apostle Some they are all upon speaking wording of it with a full and fierce mouth against others As Samsons foxes that had fire on their tailes and set all the fields on a flame So some have such a fire on their tonges that they set Cities and Countreys in a blaze Those movings such men have are not from the Spirit of God 3. A driving spirit that hurries men to move about matters wherein they do not consider or consult Times or Means Grounds Or ends But on they go this is not the Spirit of God Gods Spirit moving to any great matter does not drive but draw and so leads men as to let them Both consider with themselves And consult with others Whether the time be seasonable Viz. The means approvable The grounds warrantable And the ends comfortable When Gods Spirit is the mover a man so examines the matter about which he is moved that 1. He considers if the time be fit he is moved in He knowes that which is untimely is uncomely things being beautiful in their season Eccl. 3. 2. He considers if the means be right he is moved by and that which he is to make use of For as the least false weight is not allowed for the getting of the largest gain No more is the least evil lawful for the attaining of the greatest good 3. He considers if the grounds be sure he is moved on Not successe in the world But an expresse from the Lord. A warrant from Gods revealed will in his Word for that onely can bear him out in his obedience 4. He considers if the ends be safe and good he is moved to not onely in respect of his purpose and intendment of good therein but in respect of Gods promise and engagement for good thereupon Such a man is certainly moved by the good Spirit of God Yea and in respect of others Counsel He both asks And takes That both from God And men In holy prayer he humbly asks counsel of God When David had lost all by a Troop of the Amalekites horse who had plundred Ziklag his spirit sparkled to be up and after them But David first calls for Abiathar the Priest to bring the
Ephod and enquired of the Lord saying Shall I pursue after this Troop and shall I overtake them 1 Sam. 30. Thus Jehoshaphat before he would march with Ahab to Ramoth-Gilead he desires all the Prophets of God and God by the Prophet Micaiah might be consulted with Ahab transported with a false spirit presses onely Horse and away Let Micaiah say what he will To Ramoth-Gilead he must 2 Chron. 18. Whereas counsel given a good man takes and turnes his designes So David when he was with his men upon the march against the house of Nabal Abigail meets him and he stops upon her advice blessing God that he shed no blood 1 Sam. 25. Now an evil spirit having sprung a design at least seemingly good yet violently provokes and impetuously presses to prosecute men not considering or consulting except with such as are on the same mind No seeking to God except some prayer as a colour They first resolve their businesse and then go to prayer then ask counsel but if contrary come they cast off all Yea this spirit it drives and will rarely leave or let them have time to take advice Satan that evil spirit in the Serpent having upon Eves sight of the pleasant fruit begun to move gave her no time to seek God confer with her husband or consider the sad events onely eat she must So Judas the Divel suggesting a Booty to betray his Master he immediately goes out Joh. 13. rises from Supper even when the best dish was to come as the Learned conceive he never stayes to speak a word but away about his work He considers not what guilt of blood he should bring Matth. 27.3 Then Judas which betrayed him when he saw what was done he repented himself c. It seems he thought things would never have come to that That spirit which thus drives men in considerately precipitately c. 't is not the Spirit of God 4. A roving spirit that wheeles and whurries men obout is not the Spirit of God Men rove Psal 78.8 Esay 19.14 Jam. 1.6 7 8. Observe From what and In what There is a spirit that in moving makes men to rove viz. Ordinarily from the rules of Scripture And often from the rules of Reason Scripture-rules men rove from They will make Scripture go with them as far as ever they can and being they must go further they leave it They wrest and rack Scripture and stretch it as far as for their own advantage Thus that wicked spirit did with our dear Lord Matth. 4. Thus doe such unstable spirits in these last dayes 2 Pet. 3.16 They make holy Scriptures as their hired servants who when they will no further serve their design they turn them off Every good man moved and managed by Gods good Spirit sayes to Scripture as Ruth to Naomi Where thou goest I will go where thou stayest I will stay thy God shall be my God and thy people my people nothing but death shall part thee and me Sozomen reports of Constantine that whatever was pressed he would say Bring me the Book of God when things were disputed and various wayes urged he used still to stand up and call for Gods Book commanding all should there settle and none from thence swerve That spirit which in moving men makes them swerve and rove from Gods good Word is not the Spirit of God Yea beyond the rules of reason as well as Scripture men are made to rove through an ill-moving spirit Hence they roll and rove Both from using reason And from reason used They do not use that reason which might stay themselves From men of no reason the Apostle prays he may be delivered That we may be delivered from unreasonable men 2 Thess 3.2 Neither can that reason which others use stay them As they have not reason to rule themselves no more will they be ruled by reason Grounds of reason and strength of arguments will no more bound nor bind them then green wit hs could Samson The things in which an evil spirit moving makes men to rove are Both inward And outward Viz. In their opinions And affections In their discourses And courses Men of rolling spirits who hold many things yet hold to nothing Like those Arrians of whom Athanasius reports now they held one thing and anon another and never were at any certain stay Socrat. Scho. lib. 1. cap. 25. wandring Stars fixed to no Orb Meteors carried about with every gust as children tossed to and fro with every wind Ephes 4.14 They like and dislike cry up and cry down hot and cold ramble and rest at no point unstable in all their wayes Constantly inconstant men given to change See Seneca lib. de tranq and that love to wander as unsetled as the waves of the Sea Such Christians even Heathens condemn Such motions are not from the Spirit of God 5. A renting spirit that moves men to make divisions and fractions is not the Spirit of God The Spirit of God 't is All is uniting The Spirit of faith The Spirit of love The Spirit of patience By faith the Spirit unites and knits us up to God and by love the Spirit unites and knits us one unto another and by patience the Spirit unites and knits each one within himself And for want of the Spirit of God in these graces there are a multitude of sad severings For want of faith a man breaks and falls off from God For want of love a man breaks and falls off from his Brethren And for want of patience a man breaks in pieces and falls asunder within himself All evidences an evil spirit present and prevalent Mark 9. There is a man possessed with a spirit that did oft-times cast him into the water and into the fire and wheresoever it did take him it did tear him that he gnashed his teeth and foamed at the mouth O what a spirit does possesse such men as does cast them into that water whereby their love is quenched and into that fire whereby their wrath is kindled and so takes them as it tears them with impatiency infidelity and separation from Christian-society Sure such have not the Spirit of God Jude 19. These be they who separate themselves sensual having not the Spirit 'T is not the Spirit of God that hath moved some to separate themselves from our publick Assemblies Vid. Cameron de Eccles tract de Schism They having no good cause for it and There being many bad effects upon it No cause good If we in our assemblies are not separated from God they have no cause to separate from us Are we separate from God Is not the drift of our daily endeavours to draw men to God Is not this the bent of our businesse to bring men into obedience to God communions with God to set up God in hearts and houses Is it not the enjoyments of God after which we seek Is it not worshippings of God in Spirit truth after which we presse