the service therein performed this is not in the times of the Gospel God is present at the places of Religious performances not in respect of the place but to the performers Therefore God doth not say I will be present in that place for the places sake but for the duties sake Prayers in the time of the Ceremonial Law were regarded for the places sake but we must abhor this piece of Judaisme and utterly deny Consecration in this day of the Gospel when the Altar sanctified the Gift this is done by Gods institution But to say places or things can now do so it makes the appointments of men equall with the Institutions of God The Temple sanctified the duties or performances not they the Temple it s quite contrary now Our Churches and Meetings are not holy without relation to the duties performed Our duties are holy without relation to the Church but the Church not holy without relation to the duties therein performed None but God can consecrate a place to bee an effectuall means of Worship The Jewes worshipped in the Temple Now God is worshipped elsewhere the places have no influence at all into our duties at the most but helpfull to the bodies Conveniency The third thing I deny is this There is now no place so holy as to exclude another place from being as holy we have not now the precept of God to preferr one place above another Wee have not now the miraculous presence of God God hath not given us those Symbolls of his standing residency amongst us as in former dayes he did his People as the Arke ' the Mercy Seat c. As for his Ordinances and the performance of them if we make a Place holy in regard of Gods speciall and spirituall presence I say the Closet or Dining Room or Chamber the Field or the River side is holy humane consecration make no place truly holy I say it again it s the speciall presence of Christ in his Ordinance maketh one place more holy then another then any Utensils in the Church are more holy then the Church the Font and the Communion Table then the body of the Church and so you make a difference between holynesse in holy places in holy things and so bring in plain Judaisme A new Table where the Sacrament was never administred cannot be so holy as the old by this the very Mouthes of the Communicants would be so holy that they must not eat nor drink any more but they would defile it I conclude this with this assertion that Religious difference of places is removed the Gospel takes it quite away the Gospel is so far from giving or making such a difference 1. Tim. 2.8 I will therefore that men pray every where lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting John 4.21 22 23. Jesus saith unto her Woman believe me the hour cometh when ye shall neither in this Mountain not yet at Jerusalem worship the Father Ye worship ye know not what we know what we worship for Salvation is of the Jews But the hour cometh and now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in Spirit and in truth for the Father seeketh such to worship him 1 Cor. 1.2 Vnto the Church of God which is at Corinth to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus called to be Saints with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord both theirs and ours Therefore where two or three are met together there am I in the middest of them Mat. 18. â—0 This is the sum of all That Gods institution is to be regarded humane institution to be rejected 4. Lastly No place is so sanctified by the miraculous special presence of God but that presence ceases when the tokens of Gods residence cease the Ark the Mercy-seat the places became as before For us to go a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and to the Temple is an abominable thing how many bloody battels have since been sought there these places where the presence of God was when abused to the dishonour of God they become worse and worse whatever we use in holy uses looses their holinesse when abused It 's boldnesse for us to tye the presence of God to any place for God hath not tyed himself to any place I cannot but wonder how it 's possible for men to hold that the Lords day which God hath been pleased to set apart for himself that its holinesse can cease for that they say the Lords day is not holier longer than the service is in doing yet that the Church that God never appointed should retain its holinesse that you must not tread there but with your hat off nor come there without bowing the knee Give me leave to wind up all with profitable inferences that floweth from hence Vse 1. The first inference See the great difference betwixt the sanctity and holinesse of places under the Old and under the New Testament Those under the Old had the miraculous presence of God so long the places were holy They had their Temple their Altar their Mercy-seat the Ark c. these places were holy you cannot say the like now we have the presence of God but we have not the precept of God as they had places now differ from places then Vse 2. I note the great goodnesse of God to give to us such a sweet dispensation that now hee doth not tye us to places as heretofore he did the Jenes no land now is holier nor place now holier then another every coast is a Iudea every Congregation is now a Zion a Temple you may pray as well now in your closets as then in the Temple Vse 3. There are several persons to be reproved those that take pilgrimages to particular places because of that holinesse they suppose in them I might tell you of their lying Reliques I will not trouble you with them suppose them true what is this to Institution and command of God where have you a command for such a thing I might take notice of those that put holinesse in places of Burial in the Church think it holier than the Church-yard and one part of the Church holier than another private prayer rather than joyn in publick for any to bow towards the place of the Communion Table rather than to any other place of the Church Vse 4. I shall desire you to take notice of four things you that are Christians First Let this encourage you to serve God in your Families and places that God hath set you in with humility and reverence as becomes that God with whom you have to do Though I am against Superstition and Popish Innovations yet I am for positive reverence wherever Abraham came he built God an Altar Let no morning or evening passe without Prayer in your Families Pray pray often let every one of your houses be a Church this will bring a blessing on the place where you live Be much in Prayer for the Lords sake Secondly Labour to promote personal Holinesse as well as Family duty Since you have heard something of holinesse of places let us labour to become holy Do you think those wretches are not the more to be lamented that swear and drink and lye and whore and think that the very dust of the Temple touching their garments will make them Holy oh put away uncleannesse pride drunkennesse and covetousnesse else though you bow and cringe God will not hear your Prayers Thirdly Love the holinesse of the living Temples of God wherever thou seest any thing of holinesse be in love with that soul if there be a heaven upon earth it is to enjoy the company of Saints this will blow up the coals of spiritual love to God and goodnesse A famous man had this expression When I was in the company of Saints I thought I was as if I had been among living coales but when I was separated from them and came among Swearers and Drunkards I found a spiritual frozennesse all over mee Though the people of God are best company in Heaven yet they are good company on earth Whatever thou hast received impart it Grace may be imparted it cannot be impaired Fourthly Labour to preserve the holinesse of Gods true Institutions those things that are of divine consecration For humane consecration alas what is it But for the Sabboth the Lords day labour to keep it holy We talk much of Holy dayes this is so indeed The Lords Supper that 's of Divine Institution labour for a holy participation thereof If any thing in the world would drive mee to a Passion this would to hear men plead for the holinesse of places and live unholy Lives to stand up for humane and not regard Divine institutions Oh that our King and Parliament might do something more than is done for keeping the Sabboth holy oh that we could mourn for that we cannot mend The Sacraments are Holy it is the duty of Ministers to labour to keep them holy The Lords Word that 's Holy Ministry and the Ordinances of Jesus Christ labour to keep in High esteem We ought to hear with the same reverence as if Jesus Christ himself was here to preach Live like walking Temples Many of these truths might be further inlarged but I have not time nor strength I could discharge my duty without speaking somthing to these What you have received with the right hand do not east off with the left I have better hopes of you my dearly beloved I hope God will bring home these and all other those truths to your soules which in much weaknesse I have delivered to you and be more to you than his poor Minister though he should have remained with you FINIS
son and fell foul on his mother because of him See this in the case of Esther though it was death to go in to the King to plead for the Jews yet for all this she says If I perish I perish resolved I am come what will come of it in I will go I can die but I cannot be silent Fourthly In that they will relieve them and help and supply them with all needful good things they can if they cannot do what they would they will do for them what they can See this in the case of Jeremiah chap. 38. vers 8 11 12 13. Ebedmelech went forth out of the Kings house and spake to the King So Ebedmelech took the men with him and went into the house of the king under the treasury and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah And Ebedmel on the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine arm-holes under the cords And Jeremiah did soâ— So they drew up Jeremiah with cords and took him up out of the dungeon and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison He would never be quiet till he had got the Prophet out of the dungeon and though the cords were lined with rags yet more with love and this savour of Ebedmelech God remembred 1 Kings 18.4 Obadiahs master was not only an oppressor of the Saints and Prophets of God but a very great persecutor This good man Obadiah took and hid 400 Prophets of the Lord and fed them with bread and water I will not undertake to prophesie to you this day yet time may come when bread and water may be good food for a faithful Prophet Here note the gracious disposition of good Obadiah as well as the providence of God in this act 2 Tim. 1.16 17 18. The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus for he oft refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chain But when he was in Rome he sought me out very diligently and found me The Lord grant unto him that he may finde mercy of the Lord in that day and in how many thing 's he ministred unto me at Ephesus thou knowest very well A most admirable Scripture to this purpose Blessed Paul being thrown into prison being in bonds Onesiphorus often refresht him and was not ashamed of his chains How did he shew this When he was in Rome he sought him out diligently By the way note That Rome was the place where the cruel Nero was Emperour it was the place where much blood of the Martyrs was spilt yet there this good man sought out Paul diligently Mark what follows which is the prayer of Paul The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day I profess Sirs I had rather have the prayers of Paul then the preferments of the greatest Court on earth Christians it is the greatest treasure in your house to have the prayers of good men to God for you You that have shewn your great and abundant love to the Saints and Servants of God in distress I do from my soul beg the like mercy for you that whatever you have done for his may be ten thousand times made up by him that you may find mercy in that day and truly Sirs in that day mercy will be worth receiving Fifthly They supplicate to God for them they do not go to the Throne of Grace for themselves but Sion is in their thoughts I am confident it is so with some and am perswaded it is so with all they never beg daily bread for themselves but they remember Sion In the 51 Psalm David was under trouble of Conscience soul-trouble which is the soul of trouble yet at the latter end of the 51 Psalm he breaks out into this earnest supplication to God Do good in thy good pleasure unto Sion build thou up the walls of Jerusalem So long as it is ill with the people of God so long they are earnest with God and though they cannot overcome men with their prayers which by the way they are to endeavour yet they will never leave supplicating the Almighty till they have overcome As the sufferings of Gods people are precious in the sight of God so they are in the sight of the people of God I come now to shew whence it is That there is such an high esteem in the people of God of the people of God when under trouble and distress for this take two Heads of Reasons First In regard of those of the people of God that do behold their sufferings Secondly In regard of those people of God that are in sufferings First In regard those of the people of God that do behold their sufferings troubles and distresses in three regards First Those of the people of God that look upon others in trouble though they are such as may differ from them in regard of outward estate one may be in honour the other in dishonour yet they have an interest in the same head and do belong to the same body that they do they are not wooden leggs nor glasse eyes therefore Christ is called the ommon aviour and the Saviour of the body the whole Church Faith it is called the like precious faith 2 Pet. 1 ch in the beginning The saith of one believer does as trnely lay hold on Christ as the saith of another This salvation is called common salvation my meaning is this outward disproportion as to birth and education puts no difference at all in a spiritual respect between believer and believer a King and a Beggar all one in Christ a Iew or a Greek a great Scholar or a poor ignorant man as to the spiritual state all one made happy the same way Secondly Because they look at Spiritual excellency and are able to discern spiritual excellency they have a renewed Judgement as they look upon their old courses and sinnes with a new eye so they look upon their company with a new eâ—e those that before they highly esteem'd they now disesteem those persons that before hey esteem'd a damp to their mirth they now look upon them as the excellent ones of the earth Prov. 12. v. 26. The righteous is more excellent than his neighbour In the 16 Psalme sayes David My goodnesse extends not to thee but to the Saints the excellent ones in whâ—m is all my delight Here was a renewed estimation David saw excellency in these which worldlings despised A carnal eye sees no glory but in carnal objects Worlding blesse the Covetous whom the Lord abhorrs A gracious heart sees a spiritual worth in a man divested of worldly enjoyments as a curious eye may and does see a great deal of Art and Curiosity in a picture though in a broken frame A Beast can see the shining of a Diamond but knowes not the worth of it a beast will rather lick up a lock of Hay then a Diamond though
which he hath made in praise and in name and in honour and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the Lord thy God as he hath spoken God is said there to avouch his people to bee his and his because he is said to have Separated them For this take two Scriptures more 19 Deut. 2. 7. verses Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possesse it Wherefore I command thee saying Thou shalt separate three Cities for thee And in the 20th of Joshua and the 2d verse and so on That which in one place is called Separation in the other place is called Sanctification And hence it is that a thing is said to be unholy when it is Common and not set apart to holy Uses Acts 10.14 But Peter said Not so Lord for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean Hebr. 10.29 Of how much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the bloud of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace Secondly This setting apart of places for holy uses must have two properties 1. It must be alienated from other uses to holy uses the imploying of them to civil uses must be lookt upon as sinfull and unlawfull when Times or Things or Persons are reputed holy when they are to be exempted from Common Imployment The Sabbath day an Holy day Common imployment must not be done on that day The vessels of the Tabernacle they were holy not to be imployed in ordinary uses Some accounted this to be the sinne of Belshazzer because he used the vessels of the Temple Thus the oyl and the oyntment fore-mentioned 2dly More particularly concerning this Holinesse This must be such a separation as a service done to God in those places must be accounted and look'd upon as a Betâ—er service and more acceptable thon if it had been don elswhere As places are said to be holy because they only are to be for Holy services Holy services are only to be done in those Holy places My Brethren I defire you to take Notice Places were said to be Holy which did sanctifie the Worship that was done in them and sanctified the Worshipper The very places were part of Worship These places were not only those in which God was worshipped but by which God was worshipped Thus the Sabboth was sanctified and so the Altar when that was Holy and Sanctified it made the Gift to be so Mat. 23.19 Ye fools and blinde for wâ—ether is greater the gift or the Altar that sanctifieth the Gift The Altar you see sanctified the gift and the incense the Services done in such Garments more acceptable because done in such Garments More generally in respect of separation the cause and foundation of a place or any other things holinesse is its belonging to God Gods propriety and peculiar relation to it therefore to be holy and to be Gods are in Scripture equivolent its being Gods and God having relation and propriety to it makes it become holy Exodus 13.2 Sanctifie unto me all the first-born whatsoever opens the worth among the Children of Israel both of man and of beast it is mine God commands that they should sanctifie to him all the first born they shall be holy to me whatsoever opens the womb it is mine The cause and reason of its being holy it because it is Gods Luke 2.23 As it is written in the Law of the Lord every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. This command is there again repeated but in other words as it is written every male that openeth the womb shall be holy unto the Lord That which in one place is said to be separated is here said to be holy and therefore holy because separated by God Yet more particularly the declared propriety that God hath in any place or its belonging to God is declared two wayes 1st From his presence 2d From his precepts 1st From his presence extraordinary or ordinary 1st Extraordinary the extraordinary presence of God is seen by his miraculous discovering of himself by some sign as here in the Bush Joshua 5.15 And the Captain of the Lords bost said unto Joshua loose thy Shee from off thy foot for the place whereon thou standest is holy and Joshua did so Hence it is that in 2 Pet. 1.18 And this voyce which came from Heaven we heard when we were with him in the holy Mount The Mountain of Christs transfiguration is called the holy Mountain There was an extraordinary manifestation of Gods presence so long as that continued that was called an holy Mountain this ceasing the holynesse of the place ceased likewise Peter did not call it holy because it was so when he writ but because it had been so otherwise it would have been unlawfull to have imployed it to any other use 2d His ordinary presence makes a place holy the presence of the standing Residency by some externall Symboll 2d His speciall presence in the religious Services of his people concerning the first of these this was confirmed in the Time of the Ceremonial Law as instance the Altar the Temple the Ark the Mercy-Seat They were all Symbolis and signes of Gods presence amongst his people That God was truly present in a more then ordinary way to do them good He recorded his name there Psalm 68.1 where it s said Let God arise and his Enemies be scattered Hence it was they mourned so much for the taking of the Ark because the visible sign of Gods presence was taken away so long as these continued He was look'd upon as there and thither the people went to worship 2. Gods ordinary presence is considerable in the religions services of his people This I call the Spiritual presence of God in his Ordinances 18 Matth. verse 20. Where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them Not in the Midst of the place but of the people Praying Preaching Sacraments in the due dispensation thereof he is present to accept them His Spiritual presence to blesse them His presence there to Assist in the due performance of them Neither can his presence be ordinarily expected but in his own wayes 2dly As the presence of God is the cause of a place its holinesse so Gods propriety and relation to a place is declared by his precept He may choose whom he will and what place he will He unto whom all things belong may more peculiarly have something belong to him than others Thus the Temple and the Tabernacle of old they were consecrated and set apart for God by vertue of his divine command 1st He must have them Just according to the pattern 2. He commanded them to be done in such a place and in no other Here in this place is
God is eminently discovered we should not shut our eyes I am farr from being a Fanatick or led by unscripturall grounds yet I cannot but observe the Hand of God in these dayes wherein we now live we have seen and heard of strange sights wonderfull wonders and I question whether there hath not been something as strange as this the hand of God is not to be neglected though it cannot be perfectly understood It is a sign of a wicked man to have the works of God out of his fight Sirs you may trust this God that hath wrought such wonders as in our dayes he hath done he hath all the creatures at his command we should dread and stand in awe of offending this God 3dly We have here consider able the Monitory admonition of God In that he doth forbid Moses to draw nigh and then he doth bid him to pull off his Shoes the reason of the former will be understood by the opening of the latter I shall briefly take notice of two things 1. An injunction Put of thy Shooes 2dly The argument because the place whereon thou standest is holy ground I shall not give you the severall glosses of some Criticks upon the words the plain meaning is this Gods scope and drift is to require of Moses reverence when he was to draw nigh to him His design herein was to prepare him for obedience and therefore God required that of him which some Servants were wont to do when they came before their Lords or Masters to testifie their reverence to those before whom they came it was an ancient custome I might spend the hour in giving you instances or examples to this purpose This Galeatius observes the bareing the feet or putting off the Shooes is in Scripture held forth as a token of reverence Hence we read of S. John Baptist speaking of Christ as having his Shooes on and of himself as unworthy to unty his Shoo-lachets Isaiah 20.2 And the same time spake the Lord by Isaiah the son of Amoz saying Go and loose the sackloth from off thy loins and put off thy Shoe from thy foot and he did so walking naked and bare-foot Ezekiel 24.17 Forbear to cry make no mourning for the dead bind the tire of thine head upon thee and put on thy Shooes upon thy feet and cover not thy lips and eat not the bread of men Mourners are there said to go unshod to note submission or subjection On the other side when God would show the deliverance of his people he is said to put on Shooes on their feet So the reception of the Prodigall into his Fathers house is according to the judgement of some learned men intended by that expression the putting on Shooes on his feet Luke 15.22 But the Father said to his Servants bring forth the best Robe and put it on him and put a ring on his hand and Shoes on his feet As much as if God had said shew thy reverence due submissivenesse and subjection of Spirit together with thy servile readinesse to do whatever I shall command and enjoyn Calvin hath an excellent note upon this place If so excellent a Servant of God as Moses was had need to be quickened by such a Ceremony as this was doubtlesse we who are more backward to obedience we should both signifie the reverence of our souls by outward expressions and of our bodies by bodily gesture by kneeling lifting up the hand and the like the presence of God is great We that are by the law of Creation much below him and by the illegall Law of Sin much against him should certainly show our Humility when he calls to us or wee addresse to him The reason because the place whereon Moses stood was holy ground It was holy in regard of this miraculous Vision not as if the place were of its own Nature holy but God doth hereby import that that place by the speciall Testimony of his presence in relation to the miracle because he was miraculously there present that made the place holy Thus it was then I do not understand how I can so profitably discourse of this unto you unlesse I take notice of the holinesse of places now in the times of the Gosple and consider Quest how one place may be said to be more holy then another I was not willingly put upon this imployment if it had not been extorted from mee by something that I have seen formerly and lately written and by some and those not of the Leanest or Ignorant but most Learned and accounted most Knowing Bellarmine tells us these words The Temples consecration is deservedly holy and venerable and indued with a divine efficacie and vertue so Great is the Holinesse of Churches that those things may be forbidden perpetually to be done in them which may be lawfully done elsewhere Here I shall Endeavour to explain the Question then Try and faithfully resolve it First For the opening of it 1. I shall shew you what it is for a place to be holy 2. What that is that is the foundation or cause of the Holiness of places Quest For the first What it is for a place to be holy wherein the Nature of a place's holinesse doth Confist Answ To this I answer First Generally Secondly more Particularly First Generally The Holinesse of a place consists in the Separation thereof the setting of it apart exalting of it above and before other places thus the Notion of Holinesse is taken in Scripture in 30 Exodus ver 31. And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel saying This shall be an holy anointing oyl to me thorowout your generations You shall there read concerning the Holy Ointment that He prescribes to be compounded for his service it was set apart only for that purpose The Holinesse there of consisted in the separating of it from other uses and other oyles in the 37 38 verses of the same Chapter And as for the persume which thou shalt make you shall not make to your selves according to the composition thereof it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord Whosoever shall make like unto to smell thereto shall even be cut off from his people The like we have in the zoth of Leviticus 24 and 25 verses But I have said unto you Ye shall inherit their land and I will give it unto you to possesse it a land that floweth with milk and beney I am the Lord your God which have separated you from other people Ye shall therefore put difference between clean beasts and unclean and between unclean fowles and clean and ye shall not make your souls abominable by beasts or by fowl or by any maner of living thing that creepeth on the ground which I have separated from you as unclean 26 Deuteronomy 18 and 19 verses And the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people as he hath promised thee and that thou shouldest keep all his commandements And to make thee high above all Nations