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A62638
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Several discourses of repentance by John Tillotson ; being the eighth volume published from the originals by Ralph Barker.
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Tillotson, John, 1630-1694.; Barker, Ralph, 1648-1708.
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1700
(1700)
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Wing T1267; ESTC R26972
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169,818
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480
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Arguments which the Gospel useth to persuade Men and encourage them to Repentance are greater and more powerful by so much is the Impenitence of those who live under the Gospel the more inexcusable Had we only some faint hopes of God's Mercy a doubtful Opinion and weak Persuasion of the Rewards and Punishments of another World yet we have a Law within us which upon the probability of these Considerations would oblige us to Repentance Indeed if Men were assur'd upon good grounds that there would be no future Rewards and Punishments then the sanction of the Law were gone and it would lose its force and Obligation or if we did despair of the Mercy of God and had good Reason to think Repentance impossible or that it would do us no good in that case there would be no sufficient Motive and Argument to Repentance for no Man can return to his Duty without returning to the love of God and Goodness and no man can return to the love of God who believes that he bears an implacable hatred against him and is resolved to make him miserable for ever During this Persuasion no Man can repent And this seems to be the reason why the Devils continue impenitent But the Heathens were not without hopes of God's Mercy and upon those small hopes which they had they encouraged themselves into Repentance as you may see in the instance of the Ninevites Let them turn every one from his evil ways and from the violence that is in his hands Who can tell if God will turn and repent and turn away from his fierce anger that we perish not Jonah 3.8 9. But if we who have the clearest Discoveries and the highest Assurance of this who profess to believe that God hath declared himself placable to all Mankind that he is in Christ reconciling the World to himself and that upon our Repentance he will not impute our Sins to us if we to whom the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of Men and to whom Life and Immortality are brought to Light by the Gospel if after all this we still go on in any impenitent Course what shall we be able to plead in excuse of our selves at that great day The men of Nineveh shall rise up in Judgment against such an impenitent Generation and Condemn it because they repented upon the Terror of lighter threatnings and upon the Encouragement of weaker hops And therefore it concerns us who call our selves Christians and enjoy the clear Revelation of the Gospel to look about us and take heed how we continue in an Evil Course For if we remain impenitent after all the Arguments which the Gospel superadded to the Light of Nature affords to us to bring us to Repentance it shall not only be more tolerable for the men of Nineveh but for Tyre and Sidon for Sodom and Gomorrah the most wicked and impenitent Heathens at the day of Judgment than for us For because we have stronger Arguments and more powerful Encouragements to Repentance than they had if we do not repent we shall meet with a heavier Doom and a fiercer Damnation The Heathen World had many excuses to plead for themselves which we have not The times of that ignorance God winked at but now commands all men every where to repent because he hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the World in righteousness by that Man whom he hath ordained whereof he hath given assurance unto all men in that he hath raised him from the dead FINIS Books Printed for R. Chiswell SCRIPTORVM ECCLESIASTICORVM Historia Literaria facili perspicua methodo digesta in 2 Vol. Fol. Authore GVL. CAVE S. T. P. His Primitive Christianity 5th Edit 8 o. His Dissertation concerning the Government of the Ancient Church by Bishops Metropolitans and Patriarchs 8 o. Arch-Bishop Tenison's Conference with Pulton the Jesuit His nine Sermons on several Occasions Eight Volumes of Arch-Bishop Tillotson's Sermons Published from the Originals by Dr. Barker Vol. 1 st of Sincerity and Constancy in the Faith and Profession of the True Ruligion 3 d Edition Corrected 1700. Vol. 2 d Of the Presence of the Messias the Glory of the Second Temple Of Christ Jesus the only Mediator Of the Nature Office and Employment of good Angels Of the Reputation of good men after Death c. The 2 d Edition Corrected 1700. Vol. 3 d Of the Sin and Danger of adding to the Doctrine of the Gospel Honesty the best Preservative against Dangerous Mistakes in Religion The Nature and Evil of Covetousness The Wisdom of Religion c. The 2 d Edition Corrected 1700. Vol. 4 th Of Natural and Instituted Religion c. Second Edition Corrected 1700 Vol. 5 th Proving Jesus to be the Messias c. Second Edition Corrected 1700. Volumes 6 th and 7 th Upon the Attributes of God Second Edition Corrected 1700. Volume 8 th Of Repentance Ten Sermons on several Occasions by Bishop Patrick His Hearts Ease or Remedy against all Troubles The 7 th Edition 1699. His Commentary on Genesis Exodus Leviticus and Numbers in Four Volumes His Commentary on Duteronomy 1700. Valentine's Private Devotions The 26 th Edition 1699. Wharton's Sermons in Lambeth-Chappel in 2 Vol. 8 o. With his Life The Second Edition 1700. Dr. Conant's Sermons in Two Vol. 8 o. Published by Bishop Williams Dr. Wake of Preparation for Death The 6 th Edition 1699. Dr. Fryer's Nine Years Travels into India and Persia Illustrated with Copper Plates Fol. 1698. Bishop Williams Of the Lawfulness of Worshipping God by the Common-Prayer With several other Discourses Mr. Tulley's Discourse of the Government of the Thoughts The 3 d Edition 12 o 1699. The Life of Henry Chichele Arch-Bishop of Canterbury in which there is a particular Relation of many Remarkable Passages in the Reigns of Henry V. and VI. Kings of England Written in Latin by Arthur Duck L. L. D. Chancellor of the Diocess of London and Advocate of the Court of Honour Now made English and a Table of Contents annexed 8 o 1699. The Judgment of the Ancient Jewish Church against the Vnitarians in the Controversy upon the Holy Trinity and the Divinity of our Blessed Saviour With a Table of Matters and a Table of Texts of Scriptures occasionally explained by Peter Alix D. D. Short Memoâ—â—â—s of Thomas Lord Fairfax Written by himself Published 1699. The Life of John Whitgift Arch-Bishop of Canterbury in the times of Queen Elizabeth and King James I. Written by Sir Geo. Paul Comptroler of his Grace's Houshold To which is annexed a Treatise intituled Conspiracy for pretended Reformation Written in the Year 1591. By Richard Cosin L. L. D. Dean of the Arches and Official Principal to Arch-Bishop Whitgift 8 o. 1699. An Exposition of the 39 Articles of the Church of England by Dr. Burnet Bishop of Sarum Fol. 1700. His Sermon to the Societies for Reformation of Manners March 25. 1700. A Practical Discourse of Religious Assemblies By Dr. William Sherlock Dean of St. Pauls The 3d. Edition 1700. A Treatise concerning the Causes of the present Corruption of Christians and the Remedies thereof 1700. In the Press The Fourth and Last Part of Mr. RVSHWORTH's Historical Collections Containing the Principal Matters which happen'd from the beginning of the Year 1645. where the Third Part ended to the Death of King Charles the First 1684. Impartially Related Setting forth only Matter of Fact in Order of Time without Observation or Reflection Fitted for the Press in his Life-time To which will be added Exact Alphabetical Tables
the Efficacy of it in Conjunction with our Repentance and Fasting and Prayers I shall only offer to your consideration a few plain Texts of Scripture which need no comment upon them Dan. 4.27 it is the Prophets advice to Nebuchadnezzar Break off thy sins by righteousness and thine iniquity by shewing mercy to the poor if so be it may be a lengthning of thy tranquillity Acts 10.4 the Angel there tells Cornelius Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God Isa 58.5 Is not this the fast which I have chosen to loose the bands of wickedness to undo the heavy burthens and to let the oppressed go free and that ye break every yoke Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house when thou seest the naked that thou cover him and that thou hide not thy self from thine own flesh Then shall thy light break forth as the morning and thine health shall spring forth speedily and thy righteousness shall go before thee and the Glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward then shalt thou call and the Lord shall answer thee thou shalt cry and he shall say here I am To which I will only add that Gracious promise of our Saviour Blessed are the merciful for they shall find mercy and that terrible sentence in St. James He shall have Judgment without mercy that hath shewed no mercy SERMON III. Serm. 3. Of Confession and Sorrow for Sin PSAL. XXXVIII 18 I will declare mine iniquity and be sorry for my Sin IN this Psalm David does earnestly beg Mercy and Forgiveness of God and in order to the obtaining of it he declares both his Sins and his Repentance for them in these Words which contain in them two of the Necessary Ingredients or at least Concomitants of a true Repentance viz. Confession of Sin and Sorrow for it Vol. 8. I shall speak something of the first of these viz. Confession of Sin but the Second viz. Sorrow for Sin shall be the main Subject of my Discourse I. Confession of Sin I will declare mine iniquity or as it is in the Old Translation I will Confess my wickedness Of which I shall speak under these three Heads I. What Confession of Sin is II. How far 't is necessary III. What are the Reasons and grounds of this necessity I. What Confession of Sin is It is a Declaration or Acknowledgment of some moral evil or fault to another which we are conscious to our selves we have been Guilty of And this Acknowledgment may be made by us either to God or Man The Scripture mentions both Confession of our Sins to God is very frequently mentioned in Scripture as the first and necessary part of Repentance and sometimes and in some cases Confession to men is not only recommended but enjoyned II. How far Confession of our Sins is Necessary That it is necessary to confess our Sins to God the Scripture plainly declares and is I think a matter out of all dispute For it is a Necessary part of Repentance that we should confess our Sins to God with a due sense of the evil of them and therefore the Scripture maketh this a Necessary qualification and Condition of Pardon and Forgiveness Prov. 28.13 Whoso confesseth and forsaketh his sins shall have mercy 1 John 1.9 If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness implying that if we do not confess our sins to God the guilt of them will still remain to God I say for of Confession to him St. John plainly speaks when he says He is faithful and just Who God surely who tho' he be not named before yet is necessarily understood in the words before If we confess our sins i. e. to God he is faithful and just A general Confession of our sins is absolutely necessary and in some cases a particular acknowledgment of them and repentance for them especially if the sins have been great and deliberate and presumptuous in this Case a particular Confession of them and Repentance for them is necessary so far as we can particularly recollect them and call them to Remembrance Whereas for sins of ignorance and infirmity of surprize and daily incursion for lesser Omissions and the Defects and Imperfections of our best Actions and Services we have all the Reason that can be to believe that God will accept of a general Confession of them and Repentance for them And if any Man ask me where I find this distinction in Scripture between a general and particular Repentance I answer that it is not necessary it should be any where exprest in Scripture being so clearly founded in the Nature and Reason of the thing because in many cases it is not possible that we should have a particular Knowledge and Remembrance of all our particular Sins as is plain in Sins of ignorance since our very calling them by that Name does necessarily suppose that we do not know them It is impossible we should remember those Sins afterwards which we did not know when they were committed And therefore either a general Repentance for these and the other Sins I mentioned of the like Nature must be sufficient in order to the Pardon of them or we must say that they are unpardonable which would be very unreasonable because this would be to make lesser Sins more unpardonable than those which are far greater And yet tho' this difference between a general and particular Repentance be no where expresly mention'd in Scripture there does not want foundation for it there Psal 19.12 Who can understand his errours Cleanse thou me from secret Sins i. e. Such as we do not discern and take notice of when they are committed And yet David supposeth that upon a general Acknowledgment of them and Repentance for them we may be cleansed from them tho' we cannot make a particular Acknowledgment of them and exercise a particular Repentance for them because they are secret and we do not particularly understand what they are As for our confessing our Sins to Men both Scripture and Reason do in some cases recommend and enjoyn it As 1. In order to the obtaining of the Prayers of good men for us James 5.16 Confess your Sins one to another he said before The prayer of faith shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise him up This in all probability is meant of the Miraculous Power of Prayer which St. Chrysostom reckons among the Miraculous Gifts of the Spirit bestowed upon Christians in the first Ages of the Church and this is very much countenanc'd and confirm'd by what presently follows after this command of Confessing our Sins one to another and praying one for another and given as the Reason of it for the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous Man availeth much the Original is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the inspir'd prayer which in the verse