Heavens declare the Glory of God and the Firmament sheweth his handy work Psalm 19.1 And thus the Angels and Saints in Heaven declare His Glory And thus all His People on Earth declare His Glory The Heavens declare His Glory Naturally and Saints declare His Glory Spiritually They shew forth His Glory and do manifest to their own Consciences Dominum magnificat qui Domini magnificentiam praedicat Euseb Emiss hom 6. and to the World how highly they prize and esteem His Glory and how earnestly they desire and as much as in them lieth endeavour it that all other Men would also with them acknowledge and admire the same Sing Praise to the Honour of His Name make His Praise to be glorious Psalm 66.1 The Prophet doth not say make His Essence to be more glorious than it is in it self but make His Praise to be more and more glorious in the Eye and Esteem of Men Psalm 145.11 12. That Men may speak of the Glory of His Kingdom and talk of His Power And make known to the Sons of Men His Mighty Acts and the glorious Majesty of His Kingdom So Psalm 96. 2 3 6 7 8. Sing unto the Lord Bless His Name shew forth His Salvation from day to day Declare His Glory among the Heathen His Wonders among all People Honour and Majesty are before Him Strength and Beauty are in His Sanctuary Give unto the Lord O ye Kindreds of the People give unto the Lord Glory and Strength Give unto the Lord the Glory due unto His Name When we endeavour by our Thanksgivings Confessions Faith Obedience and Good Works to bring God's true Religion and Worship into request to win a due Reverence to His Holy Name and Word to beget in others more High and Honourable Thoughts concerning God in all these His most Eminent Attributes of Wisdom Power Justice Mercy c. This is according to Scripture Language to glorifie God. 1. To glorifie God supposeth that we know what a God He is a God full of all Perfection a God glorious in Holyness glorious in Majesty and Power otherwise we cannot give Him Glory no more than a Blind Man can praise super-eminent Beauty or Excellent Colours 2. It supposeth that there be an inward Delight in His glorious Excellencies 3. Then will follow an outward testifying and acknowledging of His Excellencies declaring what a God of Glory He is We do not by shewing forth His Glory increase His Glory We add not Light to the Sun when we praise and commend the Lustre of it God's Excellencies are His Praise our Acknowledgment makes this His Praise glorious A Man would think the glorious Angels and Saints in Heaven were fitter Instruments for such an Employment than such poor Worms of the Earth as we are It is confessed they in Heaven are fitter to do it and there it is best done but it is more needful to be done here upon Earth and if it be sincerely done here it is very acceptable unto God. It is not so much the thing done that God regardeth as the performance of it in singleness of Heart Let that be set right first and then be the performance what it will we both Please and Honour God therewith Whoso offereth Praise glorifieth me saith the Lord Psal 50.23 That is so He intendeth it and so I accept it Wherefore the Glory of God the setting forth of His Eminencies and Excellencies should be the end of our Lives and the principal thing we should aim at We begin with it in the Lord's Prayer Hallowed be thy Name It should be our main Employment Of Him and by Him are all things to Him be Glory for ever Rom. 11. We should therefore give God that which is His own Thine is the Glory as it is in the Conclusion of the Lord's Prayer When we begin the first Petition we are to put up is Hallowed or Glorified be thy Name We are to pray that His Name may be Hallowed or Glorified And when we have gone through all the Petitions we are to wrap up all in the Conclusion with this Acknowledgment that to Him alone belongeth all the Kingdom the Power and Glory for Ever and Ever God's Glory must have the first place in all our Designs Prayers Intents and Purposes It is the end of all Obedience Matth. 5.16 Let your Light so shine before Men that they may see your good Works and glorifie your Father which is in Heaven This is a notable Tryal of all our dealings and this is that which may humble the best Christians who are too apt to respect themselves and cannot keep their Eye directly and only upon God and His Glory And that we may glorifie God we must 1. Pray and Endeavour after the Knowledge of God for without it we cannot discern the Excellency of His Name nor in any measure sanctifie Him in our Hearts Ignorant People have no esteem of Mens Gifts Learning c. because they know them not much less can we have a due Estimation of God's Perfections without Knowledge God made the World and the Creatures thereby to make Himself known for His Glory And more clearly did He make Himself known by His Word that He might be glorified But they that come not to the Knowledge of God cannot glorifie Him. 2. We must endeavour that in our hearts we may have a due Reverence and Awful Admiration of the Lord's Excellencies that we may rightly conceive of Him and that we may discern Him in His Word and in his Works and rightly be affected towards Him in His Worship 3. We must likewise in our Words endeavour to express due Reverence towards Him upon all occasions speaking to His Praise and Glory And 4. That all our Works and Actions may be directed to His Glory and that in them others may discern a due Respect to His Majesty And here let us take heed of aiming at our own Glory in God's Service this is the way to lose a Reward from God for herein a Man serveth himself and not God and therefore no marvel if the Lord deny him any Wages Yea herein a Man putteth himself in God's place and therefore deserveth that Punishment which is due to such as rob Him of His Glory Obj. Oh but we are bid to let our Light shine before Men that they may see our good Works Respon The Words reconcile themselves We are bid to let our Light shine before Men to this end that seeing our good Works they may glorifie our Heavenly Father We are bid not to do them before Men for this end to be seen of Men. In the second place we are to enquire what we are to understand by these Fires in my Text Glorifie ye the Lord in the Fires c. Fire is taken in Scripture diverse ways 1. There is an Internal Metaphorical Fire a Fire in the Conscience Thus God sends an evil Conscience into many wicked Men which is like a flaming Furnace much worse than King Nebuchadnezzar's Furnace
LONDONS Remembrancer OR A SERMON Preached at the CHURCH of St. MARY LE BOW ON September the 3d 1688. The Second Day being the Lord's Day which was appointed by Act of PARLIAMENT for the CITIZENS of LONDON and their Successors to retain the Memorial of the sad Desolation of that CITY by FIRE in the Year of our LORD 1666. By WILLIAM GEARING Rector of Christ-Church in Surrey LONDON Printed by J. Richardson for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside 1688. Licensed September 10th 1688. To the Right Honourable Sir JOHN EYLES Kt. LORD MAYOR of the CITY of LONDON My Lord GOD hath inflicted many Judgments upon this great City and kindled many Dreadful Fires among us which have at several times overthrown and consumed many Thousand Dwellings and yet most People are regardless of this Judgment There be three Duties to be done in respect of God's Judgments 1. When they fall out there must be special Notice taken of them They must be observed Marked and Commented upon both in our Meditations and Conferences Psalm 9.16 The Lord is known by the Judgments which He executeth or the Lord maketh Himself known by His Judgments what a Just and Powerful God He is God complains of some Isa 5.12 That they regard not the Work of the Lord nor consider the Operation of His Hands And Psalm 64.9 All Men shall fear and declare the Works of God for they shall wisely consider of His doings 2. God's Works of Justice must be magnified and God magnified in them Job 36. Remember that thou magnifie His Work which Men behold Every Man may see it and behold it afar off It is one thing to see God's Work which a Man cannot avoid if his Eyes be open another thing so as to see and agnize God's Greatness in them so as to cry out as Moses and the Children of Israel did when God drowned Pharaoh and his Host in the Red Sea Exod. 15.11 Who is like unto Thee O Lord among the Gods glorious in Holiness fearful in Praises and in doing Wonders We must observe and glorifie the Justice of God especially considering how His Judgments are many times sutable to Mens Sins 3. God's Works of Justice must be remembred Psalm 111.4 He hath made His wonderful Works to be remembred Therefore we ought always to keep them in mind Remember Lot 's Wife c. Obj. But is it not an easie thing to remember any strange Judgment that a Man hath tasted of seen or heard of Who is there that doth not remember such things Resp The Remembrance that God calls for is not a bare Historical Remembrance It is common and easy enough to remember the Story of Lot's Wife or any other on whom God's Judgments have been Executed The Remembrance that is required of us is an Operative and Practical Remembrance so to remember them as to be warned by them and to take heed of the same or such like Sins as such Judgments came for so to remember them as to be quickned to the Fear of God and to Obedience to His Precepts and to glorifie His Name in His fiery Dispensations towards us God hath not wrought such great things in the World whether respecting Persons or Nations nor kindled so many Fires in this City that we should write them upon the Water or in the Sand which the next blast of Wind defaceth and blows out But He hath made such wonderful Works of His to be remembred He will have them written in Brass as it were with the Pen of Iron and the Point of a Diamond And indeed all God's Works are so made that they are worthy to be remembred by us My Lord I humbly dedicate this ensuing Sermon to Your Lordship and present it to the touch and test of Your Judgment My utmost Ambition in this mean Tender is no more than that Persians was who having nothing to present the King Artaxerxes with ran to the River and brought him his handful of Water I hope this poor Present shall find acceptance with You and that my good Intentions stamped upon it may advance the Price of it as the poor Widows Charitable Mind in the Gospel did raise the Value of her Mite The Lord Direct and Assist You in all Your weighty Affairs in the Government of this City And so recommending You to the Rich Grace of God I humbly take my leave and remain September 13. 1688. Your Lordships in all Gospel-Services to be Commanded WILLIAM GEARING LONDONS Remembrancer OR A SERMON Preached at the Church of St. Mary-le-Bow On the 3d of September 1688. Isaiah xxiv 15. Wherefore glorifie ye the Lord in the Fires even the Name of the Lord God of Israel in the Isles of the Sea. IN the former part of this Chapter ye have the Description of a terrible consuming Judgment Behold the Lord maketh the Earth empty and maketh it waste and turneth it upside down and scattereth abroad the Inhabitants thereof The Effects here spoken of are like those that follow a Terrible Fire they make the Earth empty overturn Houses and scatter abroad the Inhabitants driven out of their Habitations The Prophet shews that this Judgment should make no difference in regard of any outward Estate or Condition of Men namely in reference to their outward Conditions The Judgments of God look upon all alike therefore saith the Prophet verse 2. It shall be As with the People so with the Priest as with the Servant so with his Master as with the Maid so with her Mistress as with the Buyer so with the Seller as with the Lender so with the Borrower as with the taker of Vsury so with the giver of Vsury to him They shall be all wrapt up in one bundle of Judgments without discrimination Then the Prophet goes on to describe the Consequents of it verse 3. The Land shall be utterly emptied and utterly spoiled for the Lord hath spoken this word The Earth mourneth and fadeth away the haughty People of the Earth do languish And so on to the end of the Twelfth Verse But now though the Judgments of God go thus forth and consume all sorts alike who be alike in their Sins yet the Lord knows how to make a difference and in the most common Calamities he usually hath a Reserve But the Reserve is made not upon any outward Consideration but the difference is in reference to the Spiritual Estate and Internal Condition of Man. Therefore he saith in the Thirteenth Verse When thus it shall be in the midst of the Land among the People there shall be as the shaking of an Olive Tree and as the gleaning of Grapes when the Vintage is done They shall lift up their Voice they shall sing for the Majesty of the Lord they shall cry aloud from the Sea. That is there are some though possibly they may be much afflicted and in great distress yet their Comforts shall not be quite removed It shall be with them as is expressed verse
so to discourage him and take him quite off from sacrificing any more to make him despair of ever thriving in the way of such Services in the way of those Duties as if he should have said I will offer up no more Burnt-Offerings for I shall never appease the Anger of God nor any way benefit my self If Satan by such prejudices as these against Holy Duties can cause us to lay them aside he hath vanquished us and our Souls are left naked and unarmed If we give over Prayer and other Duties we have no ground to expect God's Assistance or Protection 5. All sorts of Judgments are Fires especially great and dreadful Judgments Behold saith the Lord I will kindle a Fire in thee and it shall devour every green tree in thee and every dry tree Ezek. 20.47 By Fire is meant that warlike Invasion by the Babylonians who by Sword and what accompanied it laid all wast And it shall devour every green Tree in thee and every dry Tree Hierome makes these to be Saints and Sinners So some others Expound the green Tree of the Righteous and the dry Tree of the Wicked But Ezek. 9.4 the Righteous mourned for all the Abominations that were in Jerusalem and were marked that they might not be destroyed Therefore by Green Tree I understand the Rich and Wealthy the Young and Lusty the High and Mighty and by the Dry Tree the Poor the Aged and Weak and those whose Strength is exhausted And then it followeth in that 20th Chapter of Ezekiel The flaming Flame shall not be quenched It is in the Original The Flame of Flame The doubling of the word notes the Intention of it a vehement Flame such as should continue and by no Art Power or Policy be extinct that Affliction should be wonderful sore and lasting The War begat Famine Famine begat the Plague and the Plague Death Here was a Flame of a Flame they strove by the Egyptians to quench that Fire but could not As a Fire dovours all before it so do the fierce Judgments of God ruine People be they high or low weak or strong and dryeth up the Spirits of those that are living So saith the Prophet Lament 4.8 Their Visage is blacker than a Coal they are not known in the Streets their skin cleaveth to their bones it is withered it is become like a stick When once God kindleth a Fire in His Judgments being once begun they cannot be staid by the Skill or Power of the Creature The flaming Fire shall not be quenched The Jews used all their Policy and Power to divert the Babylonians from coming against them to remove them being come but nothing prevailed God's Fires are not extinguishable by the Arts Counsels or Forces of Men. As we cannot avoid God's Judgments threatned so we cannot remove them being inflicted Every thing that is a Judgment or an Effect of Wrath that is a Fire Wheresoever then is a manifestation of the Wrath of God in some sad Dispensation in whatsoever Matter or Subject it is it may be called a Fire So that the Fires we are here to glorifie God in are those sad Dispensations of God of what Nature soever they are every Judgment is a Fire as well as Fire it self may be a Judgment There are Fires in God's Wrath though no flame break forth A Fire is kindled in His Wrath The Anger of God is a Fire and there is no standing before the Wrath of God when that burneth And we are to glorifie God in His Wrath as well as in His Mercy Quest Here it may be demanded Why are the Judgments of God clothed with this Title of Fire Take the Answer in these four things First From their sudden breaking forth especially that Fire which is a Judgment an accidental Fire such a Fire as cometh not by blowing It was threatned upon Wicked-Men Job 20.26 That a Fire not blown shall consume him This circumlocution intimates more than an ordinary Fire We ordinarily kindle Fires by blowing but this is a Fire not blown Many of the Greeks interpret this of Hell. There needs no Bellows to kindle that Fire Ignis Gebennae cum sit incorporeus neque studio humano succenditur neque lignis nutritur sed creatus durat inextinguibilis The Breath of the Lord as a River of Brimstone shall kindle it Isa 30. ult Tophet is prepared of old it needs no blowing to make it burn But though the Fire of Hell may be called a Fire not blown yet I conceive this Scripture hath no Relation to it The Lord sends many Fires and Troubles in the World that we may easily see how they come and who were the Bellows to blow up these Fires such as the Fires of Discord and Contention among Brethren By these Fires many are consumed and it is no difficult thing to find out such Bellows We call Men of strife Incendiaries such as foment unnatural Fires endeavouring what in them lieth to set Church and State on fire It is the study of some Men to kindle fire between Party and Party yea to make them of the same Party suspitious of one another till all be in a flame How vehemently hath this fire been blown in these days and yet is blowing And we have sometimes seen the Bellows themselves as they well deserved it burnt in it By the blessing of the Righteous saith Solomon Prov. 11.11 The City is exalted but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked that is by the contentious Words and dividing Counsels of the Wicked These stir the Coals and blow up the Fire Prov. 29.8 Scornful Men bring a City into a snare or as the Margin expresseth it Set a City on fire But though such Men and their inflaming Practices are often discernable by all yet sometimes the Fire of Contention and Trouble kindleth whilst every one stands wondering who bloweth it Both Nations and Persons have been ruin'd by an invisible Hand that they are consumed they do perceive but how and by whom they know not No Man goes to blow a Fire to burn an House except such wicked Wretches that do it on purpose Such Fires as come suddenly seldom can any one give an account how they are kindled So many of God's sad Dispensations upon a Place or People they come very suddenly and unexpectedly they break out no Man knows how The Heathens have taken notice of this as a great aggravation of Suffering not to know whence their Misery came Secondly Because there is a Terror in the Judgments of God and a pain in sufferings Fire is a terrible and a painful Element and worketh through all The Judgments of God are like Fire in this respect There is no Affliction for the present joyous but grievous saith the Apostle God sometimes sends such Judgments upon the Wicked as shall be an astonishment and an affrightment to those that behold them The Lord threatens the Wicked Deut. 28.59 I will make thy plagues wonderful Thirdly Fire
answerableness as these Rules call for Mark what the Prophet saith in a like case Psalm 66. O God saith the Prophet Thou hast proved us and tryed us as Silver is tryed verse 10 and verse 12. We went through Fire and Water that is Thou hast brought us through all manner of Evils For all kinds of Afflictions in Scripture are understood by Fire and Water And we presently find upon this a glorifying of God. I will go into thine House with Burnt-Offerings I will pay thee my Vows which my Lips have uttered and my Mouth hath spoken when I was in trouble And verse 16. Come and hear all ye that fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my Soul. Now to press you to this Duty let me lay some Considerations before you 1. Unless ye glorifie God in the Fires ye do not answer God's end in kindling these Fires among you Do you think that God kindled these Fires among you for nothing If a Sparrow falls not to the ground without God's Providence do ye think that God would kindle so many Fires in this City and throw down so many Thousand Houses as He did in the great Conflagration for nothing Mark what God saith Mal. 1.10 Who is there even among you that would shut the Doors for nought Neither do ye kindle Fire upon mine Altar for nought The Words may be understood two ways in reference to their Ceremonial Worship Ye do not kindle a Fire upon mine Altar for nought That is every Man had some end that did it which he propounded to himself in the doing of it He brought a Sacrifice to offer Secondly He did it not for nought that is without any profit He should have that which should answer his Charge answer the kindling of that Fire Now as Men shall not kindle a Fire for nought so God will not kindle a Fire in your Houses for nought Ye defeat God of His End when ye glorifie not God in the Fires 2. If ye glorifie God in the Fires these very Fires shall be your Glory Then these Fires are Blessings when we can bless and glorifie God for them It changeth the Nature of these Fires it turneth Evil into Good when we can glorifie God in these Fires When the Cross sits heavy upon our backs and the Fire of Affliction is ready to consume us yet if we can glorifie God and bless Him from the Heart for them it will be as a Crown of Glory upon our Heads 3. To glorifie God in the Fire of Affliction is in some degree a higher Dignity than God puts upon the Angels in Heaven The Angels only glorifie God in a way of Service it is only the Saints on Earth that glorifie Him in a way of suffering 4. If ye do not glorifie God in the Fires that He hath kindled among you you do but put God upon kindling new Fires among you If one be not big enough He can make more and bigger and if one will not do it another shall He will fetch up His Glory one way or other and ye do but make more combustible matter for the Judgment of God if ye do not yield Him His ends in kindling so many Fires among you Josephus tells us That Titus the Son of Vespasian the Roman Emperour was very unwilling to destroy the Temple in Jerusalem that he laboured to quench the Flame after it was set on fire Joseph de bello Judaico and suffered some prejudice in his Wars about it it was done divino quodam impetu by a certain Divine Stroke as the same Author observeth But Joseph being a Jew was ignorant of the main cause of the Destruction of the City and Templeof Jerusalem scil their Rejecting and Murthering the Son of God. 5. Suppose God kindle no more Fires and bring no more such a Judgment upon you yet be ye assured of this that they who glorifie not God in the Fires shall find God Himself to be a Fire unto them Heb. 12.29 Our God saith the Apostle is a consuming Fire Not that He will consume His People He will consume their Dross only But to His Enemies He will be a consuming Fire He will consume them for ever Ye that are Wicked and Ungodly though ye walk all your days in the warm Sun yet God will be a consuming Fire to you at last Who would set Briars and Thorns against me in Battel saith the Lord I would go thorough them I would burn them together Psalm 27.4 Mark what the Prophet saith Isa 33.14 The Sinners in Sion are afraid fearfulness hath surprized the Hypocrites Who among us shall dwell with the devouring Fire Who among us shall dwell with Everlasting Burnings God is before His own People as a Fire but they can come near to it and not be burnt But the Hypocrite trembleth at it saying Who shall dwell with devouring Fire It is a sad thing to have Burnings in your Dwellings that last but a few Hours how woful is it then to dwell with Everlasting Burnings Now God will be a Devouring Fire and Everlasting Burnings to all them that are drossy and continue in Sin. Therefore I beseech you study to put this Exhortation in my Text in Practice viz. To glorifie God in the Fires The Apostle saith In every thing give thanks Let God do what He will with His People they have cause in every thing to glorifie Him. Tho. de Kempis de imitat Christi l. 1 3. c. 5. Therefore Thomas de Kempis speaks excellently in his Book of the Imitation of Christ I give Thee hearty thanks O Lord my God that Thou hast not spared my faults but hast visited me with thy Stripes for them Thy Correction shall Instruct me and Thy Rod shall Tutor me unto Salvation Gregory speaks sweetly to this purpose Who can be unthankful even for Blows when as He went not out of the World without Stripes who came into and lived in it without Faults Therefore He is of a right Judgment who not only glorifieth God in Prosperity but also who blesseth His Name for Calamities If thou shalt by Thanksgiving in Adversity gain the Peace of God with the Things which thou hast lost shall be restored with Multiplication and moreover Eternal Joys for the short time of thy Sorrow shall be surely added Thanks must be given to a Father for his Scourges and severest Discipline for the Blows of a Father are better than the Kisses of an Enemy This is the very Will of God to give Thanks always In every thing to give Thanks argues a Soul rightly Instructed Hast thou suffered any Loss any Evil if thou wilt it is no Evil give Thanks to God and glorifie Him and then thou hast turned the Evil into Good. Say thou also as Job when he had lost all The Lord hath given the Lord hath taken blessed be the Name of the Lord. Job then did more deeply wound the Devil when being stript out of all he gave Thanks to God than if he had distributed all to the Poor and Needy For it is much more to be stript of all and to bear it patiently and thankfully than for a Rich Man to give Alms as it here hapned to Righteous Job Hath the Fire taken hold upon your Houses and turned any of you out of your Dwellings and consumed your whole Substance Remember the Sufferings and Losses of Job Give Thanks to God who could though He did not have hindred that Mischance and thou shalt be sure to receive as equal a Reward as if thou hadst put all into the Bosom of the Indigent Therefore let us not rest in this that we bear Afflictions and suffer Losses but labour to bring our Hearts to glorifie God in the Fires of Affliction FINIS Books lately Printed for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside A Discourse of Old Age tending to the Instruction Caution and Comfort of Aged Persons By Rich. Steel Minister of the Gospel Conversion of the Soul with a warning to Sinners to prepare for Judgment By Nath. Vincent A True Touchstone which shews both Nature and Grace with sundry Meditations relating to the Lord's Supper By Nath. Vincent Minister of the Gospel A Treatise of Free Grace by David Clarkson Minister of the Gospel Baptismal Bonds Renewed some Meditations on Psalm 50.5 By Oliver Heywood Minister of the Gospel A Discourse on the Sacrament the 2 d Edition with Additions By Rich. Kidder Minister of the Gospel An Alarum to the Unconverted to which is added several Cases of Conscience judiciously answered By Joseph Allen Minister of the Gospel Grand Charter granted by Jesus Christ A Discourse upon Matth. 28.18 19 20. By George Lawson late Rector of More in Shropshire The difference between the Spots of the Godly and of the Wicked By Jer. Burroughs Illustrious Providences Recorded especially in New England By Increase Mather Minister of the Gospel in New England A serious Exhortation to Self-Examination in 5 Sermons 2 Cor. 13.5 By Tho. Wadsworth late Minister of Newington-Butts Southwark