remembred and of all things God only shut out O my friends Take heed of this great sin this Mother sin Forgetting God But secondly I beseech you to Remember thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth Young man do not put off your remembrance of God it may be you will say to me you will remember God hereafter that is folly The Wise man teacheth you better giveth you better counsel Remember thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth As much as if he should say Remember now thy Creator in what part of your youth soever you be Remember Now thy Creator Now seek after the knowledge of Christ if ten yeers old Now Remember God if fifteen years old if twenty yeers old Now Remember thy Creator yea if thirty years old and so to every Age to which the word of the Lord comes Even Now Now remember thy Creator And O that young men and young women would think upon the advantages that many have by remembring God in youth they were spoken of before And let me further tell you for your encouragement young men that to remember God betimes it is a great prerogative and a great dignity to be the first in Christ the Apostle speaks of some that were first in Christ and he speaks honourably of them Eph. 1. 12. That we should be to the praise of his glory who first trusted in Christ And it was the honour of that people that were first in bringing back David great honour was put upon them that went out first to meet David their King And so to be the firstâ— that go out to meet with Christ the first that honour him the first that close with him and believe in him this is a prerogative and it is kindness that God will never forget Jer. 2. 2. Thus saith the Lord I remember thee the kindness of thy youth the love of thy espousals when thou wentest after me in the Wilderness in a Land that was not sown the kindness of thy youth I will not forget saith God And the Lord will say so to young men and young women that are looking after Christ and remember him betimes thou remembredst me in thy youth and I will remember the kindness of thy youth when thou leftest all to follow me thy vanity thy comforts thy contentments that other young men closed with and followed after though they lead to destruction this kindness of thy youth Christ will remember to the very last day And let none that hear me this day think that they are too young and 't is not for them to trouble themselves with such matters to remember God and to look after God as young as you have remembred God Jeroboams childe remembred God Josiah at sixteen years of age set himself to seek after the Lord And I pray consider youth go the grave as well as others nay more die in their youth then in their old age O that young men would remember God betimes And there is none so young but must be accountable to God there is sin enough to condemn the youngest if not actual sin thou hast a sinful Nature and that is enough to condemn the youngest that hears me this day And therefore O that the Lord would perswade young men to remember betimes their Creator and know that it will be your comfort in the latter end As the neglect of God in youth will be a great deal of sorrow when God smites and comes to lay you upon the bed of sickness and ready to give out your breath then it may be you will cry out Lord Remember me but how sad will it be to reflect upon your selves and to think that you have not remembred God When as it hath been the comfort of many a poor soul that their work hath been done and when they have lain upon their sick bed they have given up themselves willingly to God having gotten the knowledge of God and gotten faith in Christ they are blessing God that their work is done for them by Christ O how sweet and comfortable will it be to you young men when you come to die to see that your great work is done and that you have believed and have nothing to do but to die Solomon was very pittiful to your souls young men and therefore he calls upon you to Remember your Creator in the dayes of your youth And in the bowels of Christ I speak to you this day to study this lesson of lessons To Remember Now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth And let me say to old men if young men had need to remember God Oh what cause have old men to remember God They that have lived many years and not remembred God O it is high time that thou shouldest make haste thou art going to the grave the land of forgetfulness where there is nothing can be done for eternity when once in the grave O that God would perswade the Ancient Such as have neglected to remember God that they would now remember their Creator and do not say I have mispent my youth and I fear my time is over and there is no hope for me I had as good go on in my wayes of sin O say not so The thoughts of the Lord are not as your thoughts nor his wayes as your wayes but as the Heavens are higher then the earth so are his thoughts above yours and his wayes above yours You have spent many years in sin and vanity and forgotten God and your thoughts have been upon vanity it may be many years but the thoughts of the Lord to do good to his people are from eternity O that Now you would at last in your old age remember God! Old men I beseech you to remember your Creator there is hope wherefore hath God spared you so long Reason so with with your selves to encourage you to look to Christ when through Unbelief you say there is no hope you have walked in sin and God might have cut you off and it is infinite mercy that God hath not cut you off but seeing the Lord hath spared me surely I may hope though I have forgotten God in the dayes of my youth yet say I will now remember my Creator and seek after faith in him And know for thy comfort and encouragement that there is infinite thoughts of mercy in the Lord Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon him and turn to our God for he will abundantly pardon Isa 55. 7. O stay no longer venture no longer for there is one evil day upon you the evil day of old age is upon you and there is another a coming O Remember God and make haste to do it quickly before the Sun and Moon and Stars be darkned before the body return to the earth and the spirit to stand before God that made it But I shall now come to press this duty upon
him no if Christ had intended that Christ would never have come into those coasts and therefore his intent was not that she might not have found him he might have gone into the wilderness and gone where she might never have heard of him no that she might seek him and exercise faith and presse in upon him And oh that this might give incouragement to you poor souls who are looking after Christ who hath hid himself from you O consider that if Jesus Christ had intended so to hide himself as you should never find him Christ would never have come upon your coasts Christ would have gone some where else he would never have come so nigh to you as he hath done he would never have come so nigh to your souls and never have drawn nigh to you in such a word of grace and promise no he hides himself that you might seek him and not with an intent you might not find him Secondly consider what an ingagement this doth lay upon all our souls this example of the woman of Canaan in finding out Christ and pressing in upon Christ when she had no invitation Oh what an ingagement is this for our souls to believe in Christ What an ingagement to come to Christ to come in faith seeing Jesus Christ doth not hide himself in a private house as he did then no Christ he draws nigh to us and stands as it were upon the house top Wisdome stands in the open street and there she cries and makes proclamation O ye fools how long will you love folly ye simple ones how long will you love simplicity So then if she came to Christ when Christ hid himself what an ingagement have we to come to Christ when Christ stands upon the house top If she press'd in to Christ when she had no invitation O what an ingagement lies upon us in the day of grace to come to Christ We have many a word of incouragement He sayes Look to me and be you saved And he sayes Behold me to a nation that was not called by his name O the gracious invitations that we hear from Christ from day to day Christ sets the door of Grace wide open let him come and whoever will let him come and he doth ingage that whosoever comes shall not be shut out shall not find the door of Grace shut against him whoever comes to Christ by faith shall find that all their sins and iniquities shall not shut the door against them And therefore to conclude this if this woman came when she had no invitation to come O what an ingagement is it for us to come to Christ now Christ stands so as he may be seen afar off O that God would perswade the heart of some poor sinner to come to Christ by faith But to passe by this We shall now consider who this woman was A woman of Canaan came First Described first by a woman a woman is the weaker vessel more weak ordinarily then men stronger passions greater fears subject to doubts and yet here is a woman Behold a woman came Secondly She is described to be a Canaanite a woman of Canaan she was of the stock of the Canaanites a cursed Nation cast out of the Land for their abominations and their Land given to Israel for a possession and yet this woman though a Canaanite comes to Christ Thirdly She being a Canaanite it follows that before the Lord revealed himself to her she was a very sinful woman so the rest of the Canaanites were not only vile in respect of kindred but vile in respect of actual transgression and yet behold this woman of Canaan here coming to Christ So then the Doctrine is this That the Lord many times is pleased to make choice of the most weak and the most unworthy and the most sinfull and causeth them to come to Jesus Christ She was a woman there is her weaknesse a Canaanite there is her unworthiness sinful in respect of actual transgression even as the rest of the Canaanites We shall clear this Point to you from the Word of God and give you Instances that the Lord makes choise many times of the weakest and unworthiest and win upon their hearts and cause them to believe in Christ First of all for Gods chusing those that are weak and bringing home such to Christ it will appear that God many times chuseth the weakest Weak in respect of Estate Parts Age. Sex To clear these first Such as are weak in estate poor such as are mean in estate for the most part the Lord makes choice of such Go and tell John saith Christ Matth. 11. that which you have heard and seen unto the poor is the Gospel preached and the poor receive the Gospel And in James 2. Hearken my beloved brethren hath not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heires of the Kingdom Some rich some of great estates are chosen but for the most part the vein of Gods election runs thorough the loins of those that are poor Secondly Weak in parts If you consider such as are weak in parts and gifts that have no great natural parts and gifts God many times nay for the most part makes choice of such 1 Cor. 1. 26 27. For you see your calling brethren how that not many wise men after the flesh not many mighty not many noble are called but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the mighty Thirdly If we consider those that are weak in respect of age young men the Lord many times makes choice of young men bringing them in and revealing more of himself to them then he doth to old men youth is weak young men are weak though not in natural strength yet in morral strength for youth is accompanied with strong passions and lusts that weaken the mind and understanding young men for the most part are most rash and inconsiderate Arguments of weaknesse Young Rehoboam his young Counsel what rash judgement did they give to their King that cost him his life And young men are most apt to be lifted up with pride and therefore saith the Apostle A Bishop must not be a novice and yet many times notwithstanding young men are accompanied with so many weaknesses yet the Lord is pleased to make choice of them There are many Instances of it that the Lord hath made choice of young men and brought in young men He made choice of Samuel when he was very young he ministred before the Lord God spake to him and gave out visions to him concerning Elie's house when he was a child And so if you look upon all the Kings of Judah you shall find none more zealous for God then Josiah was Josiah was brought home to God when he was a young man 2 Chron. 34. In the eight year of his reign he made a great reformation
because it is hard to make impression upon young men they being very apt to put the evil day far from them and to put the good day far from them too the day of conversion and returning to God being the first of all good dayes the day-break of Eternity he therefore doubles his Exhortation to them And he begins in chap. 11. verse 9. there he gives one warning piece to young men Rejoyce O young man in thy youth and let thy heart cheer thee in the dayes of thy youth and walk in the wayes of thine heart and in the sight of thine eyes But know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into judgement Youth is very sinful and it is very hard for young men to bear reproofs That Solomon speaks in an Ironical way that it might make impression upon their hearts as if he should give them leave 〈◊〉 do what they will Let thy heart cheer thee in the dayes of thy youth and walk in the wayes of thine heart and in the sight of thine eyes Take youâ— pleasure and run after vanity and scorn reproofâ— and satisfie your lust as much as you will do saith he But take this also with you Know that for all these things God will bring thee to judgement But how shall a young man be delivered from his folly What remedy is there against this evil in youth By what means may a young man be cleansed He sets down a remedy in the Text Remember thy Creator If thou wouldest be turned from sinful vanity in thy youth Remember God in thy youth And he presseth the Exhortation with many Arguments Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth Remember him So I will saith the young man I have health and strength and time before-hand I am but in the beginning of my youth and I may remember my Creator though I do it hereafter O! Take heed young man saith he Remember now thy Creator Take heed of delaying take heed of putting it off till another time do it now the future time is not in thy power thou know'st not what to morrow will bring forth and therefore if thou would'st remember God do it now And good reason that thou shouldest do it now for he is thy Creator thy being and thy soul is from him thy life is from him and thy comforts are from him He is thy Creator therefore remember him now And he presseth this Duty by the advantages which a man may have in youth of seeking after God and the disadvantages that will come by putting off seeking after God in early yeers There are evil dayes a coming saith he and therefore Remember now thy Creator before the evil day come There is the evil day of old age a coming and that Solomon describes by an excellent Allegory or Metaphor from vers 2. to ver 7. In verse 2. he sets forth the evil day of Old Age While the Sun or the Light or the Moon or the Stars be not darkned nor the Clouds return after the rain The Sun and the Moon and the Stars will be darkned saith he that is all the powers the faculties of thy soul thy understanding thy affections thy internal and external senses thy memory thy hearing and thy seeing and all other helps which he calls the Sun Moon Stars and Light they will be darkned there will be a decay in all the faculties of Nature The clouds return after the rain The body will be full of infirmities a cloudy day it will be the clouds return after the rain after the day when it hath rained insomuch as you think it would rain no more the clouds return again and so in old Age the clouds will return again and again upon thee there is a cloudy day a coming and a dark day in old age when thou canst not see to do thy work and therefore Now Remember thy Creator And there is another evil day that he speaks of in verse 7. and that is the day of death Then shalâ— the dust return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it Therefore considering all this I counsel thee to remember thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth The Proposition or Doctrine then is this That it is the duty of all the children of men to seek after God in the day of youth Therefore the Scripture takes notice of some of the servants of God and sets them forth as patterns and examples that every man should remember God in the dayes of his youth The Scripture takes notice of some good thing that was found in Jeroboam's childe 1 Kings 14. 12 13. Arise thou therefore get thee to thine own house and when thy feet enter into the City the child shall die And all Israel shall mourn for him and bury him for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave because in him there is found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam In all the Family there was but one good childe and there is notice taken of him and the Lord thought of him in mercy that he did not see the evil that came upon his fathers house The Scripture takes notice also of Josiah in 2 Chron. 34. 3. For in the eighth yeer of his Reigne while he was yet young he began to seek after the God of David his father He was but sixteen yeer old and yet then did he seek after the God of David his father And David he tells us He trusted in God from his youth Psal 71. 5. For thou art my hope O Lord God thou art my trust from my youth And O that young men would look upon these patterns wherefore doth God take notice of them and wherefore are they recorded in Scripture but that young men might make them patterns and tread in their steps to Remember their Creator â—in the dayes of their youth But in the opening of the Point I shall first shew you what it is to remember God Secondly Shew you what cause all men have to Remember God Thirdly What advantage it is to Remember God in youth Fourthly Make some Improvement First What is it to Remember God First To Remember God is to know God knowledge is the beginning of remembrance there is no man can remember that which he doth not know therefore that man that is ignorant of God he doth not remember God neither can he because he doth not know God So then when Solomon saith Remember thy Creator in the dayes 〈◊〉 thy youth it is as much as if he should say betimes seek after the knowledge of God to know him as he is in himself and as he is in his Son to know him for your God and your portion and your Inheritance and your Saviour where there is no knowledge of God there is no Remembrinâ— of God Therefore the Prophet Isaiah dotâ— press men to seek after the knowledge of God and in the
Providences there is some remembrance of God upon every mercy all those mercies that have been made thy portion which thou hast enjoyed since thou hadst a beeing wherefore are they but that thy soul might remember God Nay God hath written his name upon his judgments in the earth that he might be remembred wherefore God he doth work wonderfully that as his mercies are wonderful so his judgements are wonderful wherefore doth God do such great things in the earth Doubtless that he might be remembred that men may say Verily there is a reward for the righteous and a God that judgeth the earth Nay God hath set up Conscience in every mans soul and wherefore hath God set up Conscience in every man but that Conscience might put us in minde of God That every man's Conscience might speak for God that it might stand up and cry for God Remember God and Conscience doth cry and doth speak and men may hear the cries of Conscience if they will not stop their ears When men sin Remember saith Conscience that for all these things God will bring thee to judgement Nay further God hath engraven his Name upon his Ordinances and the great end is that he might be remembred This is the great end of the Ordinance of the Lord's Supper Do it in remembrance of me saith Christ and so every Ordinance the Word that is preached to you it is that you might remember God wherefore is Prayer and every Ordinance but that the sons of men might remember God He hath engraven some remembrance of himself upon all his Ordinances See then what cause there is that you should remember God seeing God hath done so much that he might be remembred Thirdly There is cause that the sons of men should remember God for God is their Creator Remember thy Creator Now God being our Creator it is but a just and equitable thing that thou shouldest remember God thy Creator thy being is from him thy life is from him thy soul is from him thy comforts are from him all thy enjoyments are from him thou hast not the least comfort in the world but what comes from God he being thy Creator it is but a just thing that thou shouldest remember him yea thy dependance is upon him as he is thy Creator thy life is not only from him but thy life is in his hand and thy soul is not only from him but thy soul is in his hand it is in his power to kill and to save to destroy both body and soul And if there be so great a dependance that man hath upon his Creator that not only thy comforts but thy breathing thy soul and thy eternity is in his hand there is good cause that thou shouldest remember thy Creator Fourthly There is good cause that we should remember God for while you remember God you remember your selves for all good comes to the creature by remembring God thy peace and thy rest thy comforts thy satisfaction and thy contentments thy establishment of heart thy hope for life for heaven for glory there is not any good thing that a creature can enjoy or hope to enjoy but it must come in by remembrance of God And while you remember God you remember your selves remembring God thou enjoyest God and enjoying God thou enjoyest all good whatsoever good reason then that thou shouldest remember him That 's the second particular Thirdly I shall shew you what advantage it is to man to remember God in youth First There is this great advantage for the most part that soul that remembers God betimes in its coming unto God he findes the easie and the ready way to God the longer a man forgets God the further he goes from God every day he is going from God and therefore it will be the harder task to come back again it is a harder task to cast over a great Account then to cast it up while lesser though in respect of God all things are alike and God can as easily forgive many transgressions as few he can wash away great sins as well as small but yet when poor creatures come to look towards God through their unskilfulness they make it a difficult thing to finde God and to return to God when they go a great way from him the greater account they have to cast up it proves so to man because of his unskilfulness though to God all things are alike So that the sooner men begin to look after God they finde an easier way to come to Christ they have some helps in nature that when a man is once turned to the Lord his natural abilities being sanctified become great helps so that young men have more advantage in respect that natural parts are more strong the Understanding and Memory and Reason the Senses Internal and External they are all more vigorous and these prove helps to a man when once the heart is sanctified and the sooner a man turns to God the more he hath of these helps Yea Christ is very ready to go out to meet such children and young men Are the hearts of young ones towards the Lord The heart of Christ is towards them and he is mightily taken with such and will go forth and meet them The young Progigal in the Gospel no sooner did he think of returning to his fathers house but his father ran out to meet him But you will say for ought we see young men meet with as much trouble as others and when they come to remember God they are afflicted as much as others and it proves hard to them as to others I answer If it be so hard when they do return to God in youth it would have been much more hard if they had stayed till old age and if they do meet with difficulties and temptations and it prove a hard way it is because that the Lord seeâ— it is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth and I might add that the Lord will recompence all with abundance of grace and with the discoveries of himself That is the first advantage that young men have many times for the most part they finde the ready way to Christ Secondly They have this advantage The Lord for the most part doth discover more of himself to them that begin betimes to remember God then to those that begin more later Joel 2. 28. And it shall come to pass that I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh and your Sons and your Daughters shall Prophesie your old men shall dream dreams your young men shall see visions Let not old men grudge at God's dispensation it is mercy to them that they shall dream Dreams but the young men shall see Visions they shall have clearer discoveries of God and that is a great advantage Thirdly There is this advantage They that remember God betimes they have an opportunity of doing more for God then other men have for when men begin late it is work enough to get
to David Doctrine How true faith closeth with Christ as Lord. The necessity of believing in Christ as Lord. What the Socmians object against this truth The second part of the Doctrine that true faith comes to Christ as he is the son of David A grosse mistake concerning the body of Christ The necessity that every man and woman believe in Christ as man Something to be read in that name thou son of David First fruit of this womans faith Doctrine The Point confirmed by Instances from Scripture The grounds of the Point Application How to know whether we keep our eye upon God Doctrine The cry of the flesh what it is The first cry of the flesh The second cry of the flesh How to know whether the cry of the flesh be sinful Grounds why there are sinful cries in Gods own people What the cry of the Spirit is Application Tryals to know whether our cry be the cry of the flesh or the cry of the spirit Doctrine The second part of the Doctrine Application Doctrine Gracious ends why the Lord defers an answer to the prayers of his people Application How to know when God hath heard our prayer The duty of such souls to whose prayers God is silent and gives no answer First to mind their duty Secondly to justifie God Thirdly to maintain good thoughts of God Fourthly be looking to God thorow the Mediator Fifthly wait patiently Doctrine Who Gods people are bound to pray for What are the special times in which we are bound to remember others before the Lord. Application What those times are that we are bound more especially to call upon others to seek the Lord for us Doctr. 1. Doctr. 2. Satans design Gods design Historical Proposition Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Application Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. The Duty of souls whom Christ hath found Duty 1. Duty 3. Duty 4. Duty 5. Doctrine Election described Arguments proving Election to be an act of Gods good pleasure Quest. Answ Our Election known to others Our Election may be known to our selves Third part of the Doctrine How the Doctrine of Election is a comforting Doctrine Second ground of comfort Third ground of comfort The fourth ground of comfort The fifth ground of comfort The sixth ground of comfort The seventh ground of comfort Eigth ground of comfort Ninth ground of comfort Tenth ground of comfort Fourth part of the Doctrine Gods people may meet with many temptations concerning others election 1. Remedy 2 Remedy 3 Remedy Rom. 11. 33. 2. Temptation 1. Remedy 2. Remedy 3. Remedy 4. Remedy 3. Temptation Luke 17. 34 35 36. 4 Temptation How to silence the fourth temptation Gods people meet with many Temptations concerning their own election 2. Temptation 3. Temptation 4. Temptation 5. Temptation 6. Temptatiod 7. Temptation Rules to silence those Temptations Gods people may meet withall concerning their Election Rule 1. Rom. 9. 20. Rule 2. Rule 3. Rule 4. How to worship God Rule 5. Vse 1. To those that have not attained to the knowledge of Gods love It 's of concernment to make our Election sure The adversary seeks to hinder souls in making their Election sure Our comfort doth depend upon the making Election sure Our holiness depends upon the making Election sure How to make our Election sure What Duties electing love engages Christians unto The priviledges of the house of Christ Priv. 2. Priv. 3. Priv. 4. Priv. 5. Priv. 6. Priv. 7. Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Duties of Church-Members Duty 1. Duty 2. Duty 3. Duty 4. Doctr. What worship it is that God requires of his people when afflicted and tempted Wherein spiritual Worship consists External Worship what and wherein it consists Instance 1. of Job Instance 2. of David Instance 3. of Jonah Instance 4. of Christ Grounds of the point why it is the duty of Gods people to worship in time of affliction Ground 2. Ground 3. Ground 4. Ground 5. Ground 6. Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. What Gods people should beg for in time of affliction Doctr. This was a temptation to Moses To Isaiah To Jeremy To the woman that had the Issue of blood To the Centurion The particular discoveries of unworthiness that prove matter of temptation to Gods people Gods ends in suffering his people to be tempted about their unworthiness End 2. End 3. End 4. Vse 1. Vse 2. How to know when God presents unworthiness and when Sathan presents it What to do when tempted about our unworthiness Doctr. Who are the children that have right to the bread How persons may be said to be under an outward Administration of the Covenant Who are Dogs wicked men dogs Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Vse 1. Motives to perswade us to the duty of Justifying the Lord. How a young man may be delivered from his folly Doctr. What it is to remember God The Causes why we should remember our Creator The Advantages of remembring God in youth Vse 1â— The evil of not remembring God Isa 49. 15. Helps to remember God aright Every believer is as a ship upon the Sea of this World Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. Vse 4. Vse 5. Vse 6. Vse 7. Vse 8. Doctr. 2. The efficient cause of true hope is God The formal cause of hope What is the object of hope The Concomitant of hope The anchor of a believing soul is sure and stedfast The ground that a believers hope is fastned upon Vse 1. Vse 2. Vse 3. How to obtain true hope
though thou dost not meet with one word of answer from the Lord though thou hast cryed nights and dayes weekes months and years and hast not met with with one word of answer yet be comforted this may be the condition of Gods own people And let me say further by way of encouragement that the Lord he extends much good to thee in this deferring and delaying to give out an answer it is for gracious and merciful ends to thy soul that the Lord do not give thee the present mercy thou prayest for he will exercise the spirit of prayer he will exercise thy faith and patience and he will fit thee for mercy and mercy for thee and thou shalt have it so at last as thou shalt bless God for it Yea let me say further though an answer be not given out thy prayer is heard and thy person 〈◊〉 accepted Thy prayer is heard with the Lord oh that that might be a stay to poor souls that are in this condition as the woman of Canaan was that cry and have cryed long I say thy prayer is heard Oh sayes the soul that I knew my prayer were heard if I did but know that the Lord hath heard my prayer I would be content to wait all my dayes for an answer I have been crying for the light of his countenance and for the assurance of his love I have been crying night and day and if the Lord hath heard my prayer I should be content to wait for an answer But how shall I know that the Lord hath heard my prayer I answer thus First of all by that secret support by those secret hints which the Lord is pleased at one time or other to bring to thy spirit some hint of life some hint of comfort Surely if thou hast observed while thou hast waited upon the Lord there hath been some secrets hints of comfort that after thou hast been before the Lord thou hast been at ease and thy trouble is not so great as it was Hannah when she poured out her soul before the Lord she was in great distress but before she went away the Lord heard her prayer and this was the sign there was some ease in her spirit her burden was taken off a great deal refreshed in her spirit and so though the Lord hath given thee but the least hint of comfort the Lord hath heard thy prayer and in due time he will give a full answer Secondly thou mayst know that the Lord hath heard thy prayer by that strength he hath given thee to go thorow Thou art under sore afflictions and temptations such as are ready to break thy very spirit to make thy soul fade and faint and yet thou art supported thou hast cryed to the Lord and thou saist thou hast no answer why doth nor the Lord support thee if the Lord doth support thee and bear thee up under thy burden he doth in some measure answer thee or else how comes it to pass thou hast not sunk under thy burden when Paul besought the Lord under his temptation he prayed thrice that is often that God would take off the Messenger of Satan the temptation was not taken off ah but Paul was heard in his prayer in that the Lord did bear him up under his temptation My grace is sufficient for thee though I do not think good to remove the temptation I have heard thy prayer my grace is sufficient for thee So then remember poor soul that if the Lord hath supported thee the Lord hath heard thy prayer Thirdly doth the Lord carry on thy soul to continue in thy prayer that although thou hast prayed and met with no answer yet thou art resolved still to go on and sayst though the Lord hath not spoken one word to me I will not give over speaking to him but my soul shall still cry after God That was the resolution David took up Psal 27. 4. One thing have I desired of the Lord that I will seek after I have desired it and though I have not attained it I will seek after it as long as I live Is it so that the Lord doth carry up thy spirit still to wait upon him and still thou art crying and breathing after the Lord in prayer that very thing is a certain sign that the Lord hath heard thy prayer Fourthly doth the Lord enable thee and make thee willing to wait upon him thou hast not a present answer yet thou wilt wait as David when he had been at prayer he waited for the mercy Psalm 27. 14. Wait on the Lord be of good courage and he shall strengthen thine heart Wait I say on the Lord. Oh my heart wait I say wait on the Lord Hast thou through grace so spoken to thine own heart I have no answer but I desire to wait and I check mine own heart that I can wait no more quietly I speak to mine own heart to wait I say wait on the Lord if it be so the Lord hath heard thy prayer Fifthly observe how thy spirit and how thy carriage is towards God in that time of Gods delay Is thy heart kept up towards God and thy conversation in a way of obedience that thou art desirous still to walk with God and thou durst not go out from God though God give thee no answer but thy heart is made more humble and thou art more meek and more obedient and more watchful and observant of thy heart and watchful over thy wayes is it so the Lord hath heard thy prayer though he gives thee no answer And therefore I say take no care for an answer I speak to such poor souls as have prayed and cryed and have not met with one word of answer from the Lord take no care for an answer only mind that which is thy duty and let the Lord alone he is preparing an answer he is waiting to be gracious he waits for a fit season for such a season as his grace and mercy may be most exalted be not thou so solicitous about an answer but mind what is thy work and thy duty And do thou hold on thy duty in praying to pray in crying to cry yea do thou cry louder then even and the more Christ seems to stop his ears and shut his mouth and give no answer the louder do thou cry as this poor woman did ver 25. Lord help me Secondly this is thy duty while the Lord thus deals with thee to justifie God and condemn thy self clear the Lord lay the blame upon thy self say the Lord is righteous and the Lord is holy and though he make wait me longer and longer yea many years for this mercy yet the Lord is righteous and there is no iniquity in him the Lord cried and I did not hear and the Lord is righteous though he makes me wait long the Lord is gracious that he speaks at all to such a poor creature that there is any promise that he will give out an
man in respect of Saul's House yet he justified the Lord the Lord sees that I am a bloody man though not in that particular and therefore saith he The Lord hath bidden him Either thou art guilty or not guilty when God suffers men to revile and speak evil and to fasten such accusations upon thee if thou art guilty it is thy duty to make use of it by whomsoever God shall discover it make use of that which comes out of the enemies mouth to finde out the evil that is in our own hearts But if thou art clear and not guilty of that which thou art accused of yet in respect of the Lord there is cause of justifying the Lord So David though he was not guilty in that respect that Shimei said he was guilty yet saith he it is just with the Lord and it is a righteous thing that I should be thus accused by Shimei And for the quieting of thy spirit use those Arguments that David did Behold the Son out of my Bowels riseth up against me and therefore shall I think it a great matter for a stranger to do it So let us say behold here is that which riseth up in mine own heart the corruptions in mine own bosome that doth me many an ill turn shall I think much that strangers do accuse me And consider also that which David said The Lord doth hear the curses of Shimei and will do me good by it And so if thou canst approve thy heart to God and art not guilty of what men do accuse thee of and that thou canst say it is false in respect of man but in respect of God thou sayest Truth Lord Know that the Lord he can do thee good by it and that he will turn those very curses of men to thy good Again One word of Use more and so I shall conclude Look up to the Lord for this grace of Humility O! What cause have we to give up our hearts into God's hand that he may make us truly humble Surely we shall never be able to justifie the Lord if the heart be not laid low and made truly humble The Lord Jesus he had humbled this woman he had laid her very low he had sanctified her affliction to humble her she had met with great afflictions her daughter was vexed with a dvvil the Lord sanctified that affliction to humble her And she also met with great temptations three sore Temptations we read of and the Lord also sanctified those temptations to humble her And she had also met with discoveries of grace and love the Lord revealed himself very gloriously to her faith or else she could never have held out the Lord also sanctified those discoveries to humble her and lay her low Truly if this woman had not had a humble heart she could never have carried it so in the time of affliction and in the time of this temptation but she would have flown in the face of Christ Christ calls her dog and tells her That it is not meet to take the childrens bread and give it to dogs if her heart had not been humble she would have discovered her self to have been a dog she would have barked against him but she carried it very graciously and in all that Christ spake justified him Truth Lord. O that we might go to the Lord and beg of God that he would give out more of this grace of humility to us A proud heart will never justifie God when he speaks himself or when he suffers men to speak a proud heart will never take a repulse from God nor reproofs from men O! There is need of the grace of humility that will enable a soul to justifie the Lord in what-ever he shall speak and in what-ever he shall do The Apostle saith God resisteth the proud but he giveth grace to the humble He gives this grace to the humble that they shall carry it graciously when the Lord speaks against them when the Lord shall make a discovery of their hearts to them of their Corruptions to them of the deserving of their Transgressions to them they shall justifie the Lord and say Truth Lord all is true And when God shall suffer men to speak against them the Lord gives grace to the humble they shall have this grace made able to justifie the Lord. And truly When the soul is brought into this posture when the soul is thus truly humbled before the Lord and can justifie the Lord when the Lord speaks it is not far from deliverance Salvation is nigh Deliverance is at hand the time of God's Controversie is at an end When God hath thus humbled the soul under his mighty hand and made it willing to lye low and to justifie the Lord in all that he speakes and doth surely the time of refreshment from the presence of the Lord is not far off The Prophet Ezekiel he lay low before the Lord there were discoveries of the glorious Majesty of the Lord made to him at the latter end of the first Chapter As the appearance of the Bowe that is in the Cloud in the day of Raine so was the appearance of the brightness round about this was the appearance of the likenesse of the Glory of the Lord and when I saw it I fell upon my face See here he lay low before the Lord and in Chap. 2. and Verse 2. What is said And the Spirit entred into me when he spake unto me and set me upon my feet And truly Brethren When the Lord giveth out such a frame of spirit that the heart is made so humble as to lie low before the Lord and to justifie the Lord in what he speakes and doth the Spirit of the Lord is not far Salvation is not far off As the Spirit did enter into Ezekiel and set him upon his feet so the Spirit of the Lord will come into that soul and fill it with joy and refreshment from the Lord's presence Eccles 12. 1. Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth while the evil dayes come not nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them SOlomon having spent a great part of his life in following after vanity and being brought by the Spirit of God to a serious consideration of his wayes he doth write this Book of Ecclesiastes as the Book of his Repentance and like a true penitent he takes care of the souls of others and gives warning to all men that they should take heed that they do not split against those Rocks against which he cast himself He is exceeding careful of the souls of men and in a special manner he takes care of the souls of young men he speaks once and again to them that they might be warned by him and not spend their youth in vanity that they might not lose the comfort that they might enjoy by enjoying God and that they might not lose their opportunities of doing God service in their youth Now
the heart established in the knowledge of the love and free grace of God it is a great work and a long time before the heart be established upon Christ and the Promises and till that be done little work or service is done for God But when men begin betimes they have time to get their hearts established upon Christ and the Promises and upon the free grace and righteousness of Christ and then they have time also to act for God and the Lord makes use of them to do him much service in their generation And O what a great advantage is that So that you have seen the Point handled First What it is to Remember God Secondly What Cause the Sons of men have to Remember God Thirdly What Advantage it is for the Sons of men to Remember God in youth Now by way of Application First of all It discovers and reproves the folly and madness that is bound up in the heart of the children of men If this be the duty of all the sons of men and a point of great wisdome to remember God betimes then this discovers the folly and madness that is in mens hearts to forget God How many in this Congregation I fear may fall under this reproof that have not yet emembred God How many in their youth and how many past youth that have not yet remembred God that have all their dayes forgotten the Holy One of Israel O that the Lord would convince poor creatures of this evil not Remembring God Shall I shew you the evil of it and O that God would shew you the evil of forgetting God First of all It is the Mother and cause of all other sins whatsoever for it were not possible that many should sin against God as they do if they did not forget God all sin grows upon this root of Forgetting God The Psalmist maketh it the cause of all evil that is committed because men do forget God Psal 50. 19 20 21 22. Verse 18. When thou sawest a thief then thou consentedst with him and hast been partaker with Adulterers Verse 19. Thou givest thy mouth to evil and thy tongue frameth deceit Verse 20. Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother thou slanderest thine own mothers son Verse 21. These things hast thou done and I kept silence thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thy self but I will reprove thee and set them in order before thine eyes Verse 22. Now consider this YE THAT FORGET GOD lest I tear you in pieces and there be none to deliver you As much as if he should say here is the cause of this evil that is committed by you your Forgetting God It were not possible that men should dare to sin in the face of God if they did not forget God And it were not possible that men should sin in secret against God if they did not forget God they forget that God is an all-seeing God and that for all these things he will bring them to judgement It is not possible that children and servants should lye and steal and be unfaithful if they did not forget God if they did but remember that he would bring them to judgement and that no lyar shall come into the New Jerusalem if men did remember God they would not sin against God But this is the cause of all the sin in the world Mens forgetting God Secondly There is this Evil It makes a man spend all his time in vanity he comes up and goes down to the grave in a momen and hath lost all the time that he hath lived The truth is he hath not yet begun to live that hath not remembred God he hath not lived to the end of his life what is the end of his life but that he may remember God But man forgetting God his life is a fruitless life a vain life he comes up and sins and lives in vanity and goes down to the pit and never lives to the end of life because man remembers not God Thirdly There is this evil in it It makes men altogether unwilling and unable to dye as it makes their lives unprofitable so it makes their deaths dreadful what is the cause that men fear death Because they did not remember God in life if they had remembred God if they had known God and trusted in God and walked with God they would not have been so fearful of death but when men come to be made sensible that they have spent no thoughts upon God but upon their lusts and sin and so brought their dayes to an end they must needs fear to go to God see then how much evil there is in this great sin of not remembring God But you will say We hope that we do remember God God forbid that we should forget him What Forget God We hope we shall never do that while we live O my friends It is a harder matter to remember God then the world dream of how many thousands in the world are there that forget God that would be loth to be told that they are forgetters of God And yet I fear will be found so another day They that walk contrary in wayes of sin they are forgetters of God let them say what they will though they may have a way of worship and prayer to God and hear of God and read of God yet if they be found walking contrary to God such men will be interpreted by God to be forgetters of him Consider this all ye that forgâ—â— God Psal 50. 22. speaking of the Hypocrites â— Why they had many prayers and did many good works are they forgetters of God Yes their hearts were never upright with God they never trusted in the Name of God they were never found serving of God so as they might pleasâ—â— him and therefore the Lord calls them Forgetters of God O that the Lord would convince you of this great evil of forgetting God Secondly By way of Exhortation I beseechâ— you in the Name of the Lord to Remember God This day Remember God Remember him and Remember him in youth I shall speak a little to each of these First I beseech you Remember God to know God to trust in him to love him to obey him and to spend your thoughts upon him let the endeavours of your heart be after the Lord This is to Remember God And O that God would call upon you all and call you up to such a remembrance of him O remember how worthy God is to be remembred and remember what God hath done that so the sons of men might remember him and if after all this that God hath done after all the remembrance that God hath written of himself in his Word and upon his Works and upon his Ordinances and Providences men shall be found Forgetters of God as all sinners are how sad will their condition be another day You have a memory for the world and what No remembrance of God! God only worthy to be