both There is one God and one Mediator between God and Men that is there is but one God and one Mediator But then they of the Church of Rome endeavour to avoid this plain Text by distinguishing between a Mediator of Redemption and a Mediator of Intercession But now if Christ's Mediation by way of Intercession be founded in the Virtue of his Redemption then if there be but one Mediator of Redemption then there is but one Mediator of Intercession in Heaven for us There is one God and one Mediator between God and Men the Man Christ Jesus who gave himself a Ransome for all So that the Power and Prevalency of his Intercession is founded in his Ransome that is the Price of our Redemption in virtue whereof alone he intercedes with God for us as the Apostle to the Hebrews does most plainly assert So that all other Intercessors in Heaven for us are excluded from offering and presenting our Prayers to God besides our High Priest who is at the right hand of God and lives for ever to make intercession for us and by virtue of his Intercession is able to save to the uttermost all those that come to God by him that is who put up their Prayers to God in the alone Virtue of his Mediation So that as there is no need of any other if his Intercession be available to save to the uttermost So there is great danger in applying to any other whether Saint or Angel or even the Blessed Virgin if the benefit of his Innercession be limited to those who come to God by him And thus I have shewn by what means Christ is the Author of our Salvation which was the first thing I propos'd to be consider'd I proceed to the Second thing I proposed to enquire into namely what Obedience the Gospel requires as a Condition and is pleased to accept as a Qualification in those who hope for Eternal Salvation And this I shall explain first Negatively and then Positively 1 st Negatively It is not a mere outward profession of the Christian Religion and owning of Christ for our Lord and Law-giver that will be accepted in this case Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord saith our Saviour shall enter into the Kingdom of God By which we may very reasonably understand all that profession of Religion which falls short of Obedience and a Holy Life as the profession of Faith in Christ being baptized into his Name and Religion the mere belief of his Doctrine and the ownig of him for our Lord and Saviour no nor the external Worship of him and profession of Subjection to him by Prayer and hearing his Word and communicating in the Holy Sacrament No though this be set off in the most glorious manner by prophesying and working Miracles in his Name for so it follows in the next words Many shall say to me in that day Lord Lord have we not prophesied in thy Name and in thy Name have cast out Devils and in thy Name have done many wondrous works We have eat and drank in thy presence and have heard thee preach in our Streets But he tells us that nothing of all this without Obedience to his Laws will be sufficient to gain us admission into Heaven 2 dly Positively That which God requires as a Condition and will accept as a Qualification in those who hope for Eternal Life is Faith in Christ and a sincere and universal Obedience to the Precepts of his Holy Gospel Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of God but he that doth the will of my Father which is in Heaven And here in the Text it is expresly said That Christ is the Author of Eternal Salvation to them that obey him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to them that hearken to him that is to them that do so hear and believe his Gospel as to obey it to them and no other he is the Author of Eternal Salvation And that we may the more clearly and distinctly understand what Obedience it is which the Gospel exacts as an indispensable Condition of Eternal Salvation and a necessary qualification in all those who hope to be made partakers of it we may be pleased to consider that there is a virtual and an actual Obedience to the Laws of God a perfect and a sincere Obedience to them the explication of these Terms will give us a distinct conception of the thing we are speaking of 1 st There is a virtual and there is an actual Obedience to the Laws of God By an actual Obedience I mean the Practice and Exercise of the several Graces and Virtues of Christianity and the course and tenor of a Holy Life when out of a good Conversation Men do shew forth their Works and by the outward actions of their Lives do give real Testimony of their Piety Justice Sobriety Humility Meekness and Charity and all other Christian Graces and Virtues as occasion is ministred for the Practise and Exercise of them By a virtual Obedience I mean a sincere belief of the Gospel of the Holiness and Equity of its Precepts of the Truth of its Promises and of the Terror of its Threatnings and a true Repentance for all our Sins This is Obedience in the Root and Principle for he who sincerely believes the Gospel and does truly repent of the Errors and Miscarriages of his Life is firmly resolved to obey the Commandments of God and to walk before him in Holiness and Righteousness all the days of his Life so that there is nothing that prevents or hinders this Man's actual Obedience to the Laws of God in the course of a holy and good Life but only the want of time and opportunity for it And this was the case of those who upon the hearing of the Gospel when it was first preached to them did heartily embrace it and turn from their Sins and the Worship of Idols to the true and living God but perhaps were cut off soon after as there were many who being but newly gained to Christianity were presently put to Death and suffer'd Martyrdom for that Profession There is no doubt to be made but that in this case a virtual Obedience was in such Persons a sufficient qualification for Eternal Life But where there is time and opportunity for the Exercise of our Obedience and the practice of the virtues of a holy Life there actual Obedience to the Laws and Precepts of the Gospel is necessary to qualify us for Eternal Happiness so that tho' a man do sincerely believe the Gospel and truly repent of his Sins and resolve upon a better Life yet if he do not afterwards in the course of his Life put this resolution in practice and bring forth fruits meet for Repentance and amendment of Life and persevere in a Holy Course his first Resolution of Obedience though it were sincere will not avail him to Salvation Nay if he should continue for some time in the Resolution
before Few are so impartial as to quit those things which they have once laid great weight upon and kept a great stir about because this is to acknowledge that they were in an Error and mistaken in their Zeal which few have the ingenuity to own tho' it be never so plain to others and therefore it is no wonder that our Saviour's Doctrine met with so much resistance from those who were so much concern'd in point of Honour and Reputation to make head against it And this account our Saviour himself gives us of their Infidelity John 5.44 How can ye believe which receive honour one of another and seek not the honour which cometh of God only And Chap. 12.43 For they loved the praise of Men more than the praise of God And besides the point of Reputation those that were Rich were concerned in point of Interest to oppose our Saviour and his Doctrine because he call'd upon Men to deny themselves and to part with Houses and Lands yea and life it self for his sake and for the Gospel's which must needs be a very hard and unpleasant Doctrine to Rich Men who had great Estates and had set their Hearts upon them Upon this Account it is that our Saviour pronounceth it so hard for a Rich Man to enter into the Kingdom of God and compares it with those Things that are most difficult and Humanly impossible I say unto you it is easier for a Camel to go through the eye of a Needle than for a Rich Man to enter into the Kingdom of God But now the Poor were free from these Incumbrances and Temptations they had nothing to lose and therefore our Saviour's Doctrine went down more easily with them because it did not contradict their Interest as it did the Interest of those who had great Estates and Possessions Secondly Another Reason of this is that those that are Poor and enjoy little of the good things of this Life are willing to entertain good News of Happiness in another Those who are in a state of present Misery and Suffering are glad to hear that it shall be well with them hereafter and are willing to listen to the good News of a future Happiness and therefore our Saviour when he had pronounced the Poor Blessed Luke 6.20 He adds by way of Opposition v. 24. But wo unto you that are rich for ye have received your Consolation They were in so comfortable a Condition at present that they were not much concerned what should become of them hereafter whereas all the Comfort that Poor Men have is the hopes of a better Condition non si male nunc olim sic erit that if it be bad now it will not be so always and therefore no wonder if the Promises and Assurance of a future Happiness be very welcome to them Thirdly If by the Poor we do not only understand those who were in a low and mean Condition as to the Things of this World but such likewise as had a Temper and Disposition of Mind suitable to the Poverty of their outward Condition which our Saviour calls Poverty of Spirit by which he means Meekness and Humility there is no doubt but that such a Frame and Temper of Spirit is a great Disposition to the receiving of Truth And that this is included in the Notion of Poverty is very plain both from the Words of the Prophecy I cited before Isa 61.1 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good Tidings to the meek and to bind up the broken-hearted and likewise from our Saviour's Description of these Persons in one of the Evangelists Matth. 5.3 Blessed are the Poor in Spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of God So that by the Poor who are so nearly disposed to receive the Gospel our Saviour intended those who being in a poor and low Condition in Respect of outward Things were likewise meek and humble in their Spirits Now Meekness and Humility are great Dispositions to the entertaining of Truth These Graces and Virtues do prepare the Minds of Men for Learning and Instruction Meekness and Modesty and Humility are the proper Dispositions of a Scholar He that hath a mean Opinion of himself is ready to learn of others he who is not blinded by Pride or Passion is more apt to consider things impartially and to pass a truer Judgment upon them than the Proud and the Passionate Passion and Pride are great Obstacles to the receiving of Truth and to our Improvement in Knowledge Passion does not only darken the Minds of Men but puts a false Biass upon our Judgments which draws them off many times from Truth and sways them that way which our Passion inclines them A Man of a calm and meek Temper stands always indifferent for the receiving of Truth and holds the Ballance of his Judgment even but Passion sways and inclines it one way and that commonly against Truth and Reason So likewise Pride is a great Impediment to Knowledge and the very worst Quality that a Learner can have it obstructs all the Passages whereby Knowledge should enter into us it makes Men refuse Instruction out of a Conceit they need it not Many Men might have known more had it not been for the vain Opinion which they have entertained of the sufficiency of their Knowledge This is true in all kinds of Learning but more especially as to the Knowledge of Divine things For God loves to communicate himself and bestow his Grace and Wisdom upon meek and humble Minds So the Scripture tells us Psal 25.9 The Meek will be guide in Judgment and the Meek will he teach his Ways And 1 Pet. 5.5 Be clothed with Humility for God resisteth the proud and giveth Grace to the humble And thus I have shewn in what Respects the Poor were more disposed for the receiving the Gospel than others I proceed now to the Second Thing namely What those Prejudices and Objections are which the World had against our Saviour and his Religion at their first Appearance as also to enquire into those which Men have at this Day against the Christian Religion and to shew the Weakness and Unreasonableness of them I begin First With those Prejudices which the World had against our Saviour and his Religion at their first Appearance Both Jews and Gentiles were offended at him and his Doctrine but not both upon the same account They both took Exceptions at him especially at his low and suffering Condition but not both upon the same Reason I shall begin with the Exceptions which the Jews took against our blessed Saviour and his Religion and I shall reduce them all or at least the most considerable of them as I find them dispersed in the History of the Gospel and in the Acts of the Apostles to these Six Heads First The Exceptions which they took against him upon account of his Extraction and Original Secondly At the Meanness of his Condition contrary to
suffer nothing but Truth and Reason to weigh with them We generally pretend to be Pilgrims and Strangers in the World and to be all travelling towards Heaven but few of us have the Indifferency of Travellers who are not concern'd to find out the fairest and the easiest Way but to know which is the right Way and to go in it Thus it should be with us our End should always be in our Eye and we should chuse our way only with Respect to that not considering our Inclination so much as our Design nor chusing those Principles for the Government of our Lives which are most agreeable to our present Desires but those which will most certainly bring us to Happiness at the last and that I am sure the Principles of the Christian Religion firmly believed and practised by us will do Let us then be persuaded by all that hath been said upon this Argument to a firm Belief of the Christian Doctrine I hope you are in some Measure satisfied that the Objections against it are not such as ought much to move a wise and considerate Man If we believe that God hath taken so much care of Mankind as to make any certain Revelation of his Will to them and of the way to Eternal Happiness let us next consider whether any Religion in the World can come in Competition with the Christian and with half that Reason pretend to be from God that Christianity is able to produce for it self whether we consider the Things to be believed or the Duties to be practised or the Motives and Arguments to the Practice of those Duties or the Divine Confirmation that is given to the whole And if we be thus persuaded concerning it let us resolve to live up to the Laws and Rules of this Holy Religion Our belief of it signifies nothing without the Fruits and Effects of a Good Life And if this were once resolved upon the Difficulty of believing would cease for the true Reason why Men are unwilling to believe the Truths of the Gospel is because they are loth to put them in Practice Every one that doth Evil hateth the Light The true Ground of most Mens Prejudice against the Christian Doctrine is because they have no mind to obey it and when all is done the great Objection that lies at the bottom of Mens Minds against it is that it is an Enemy to their Lusts and they cannot profess to believe it without condemning themselves for not complying with it in their Lives and Practice SERMON IV. Jesus the Son of God prov'd by his Resurrection ROM I. 4 And declared to be the Son of God with Power according to the Spirit of Holiness by the Resurrection from the dead ST Paul in the beginning of this Epistle according to his Custom in the rest stiles himself an Apostle particularly call'd and set apart by God for the preaching of the Gospel the main Subject whereof was Jesus Christ our Lord Who as he was according to his Divine Nature Vol. V. the eternal Son of God so according to his Human Nature he was not only the Son of Man but also the Son of God According to the Flesh that is the Weakness and Frailty and Mortality of his Human Nature he was the Son of David that is of his Posterity by his Mother who was of that House and Line Made of the seed of David according to the Flesh v. 3. But according to the Spirit of Holiness that is in regard of that Divine Power of the Holy Ghost which was manifested in him especially in his Resurrection from the Dead he was demonstrated to be the Son of God even according to his Human Nature Declared to be the Son of God with Power according to the Spirit of Holiness by the Resurrection from the dead All the Difficulty in the Words is concerning the meaning of this Phrase of Christ's being declared to be the Son of God The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which most frequently in Scripture does signify predestinated decreed determined but it likewise signifies that which is defined declared demonstrated Ser. 4. put out of all Doubt and Controversy And in this Sense our Translation renders it As if the Apostle had said that our Lord Jesus Christ though according to the Frailty and Weakness of his Human Nature he was of the Seed of David yet in respect of that Divine Power of the Holy Ghost which manifested it self in him especially in his Resurrection from the Dead he was declared to be the Son of God with Power that is mightily powerfully demonstrated to be so so as to put the matter out of all Dispute and Controversy And therefore following our own Translation I shall handle the Words in this Sense as containing this Proposition in them That the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ from the Dead by the Holy Ghost is a powerful demonstration that he was the Son of God And it will conduce very much to the clearing of this Proposition to consider these Two things First Upon what Account Christ as Man is said to be the Son of God Secondly In what Sense he is said to be declared to be the Son of God by his Resurrection from the Dead The Consideration of these Two Particulars will fully clear this Proposition and the Apostles Meaning in it First Upon what Account Christ as Man is said to be the Son of God And for our right Apprehension of this Matter it is very well worthy our Observation that Christ as Man is no where in Scripture said to be the Son of God but with relation to the Divine Power of the Holy Ghost some way or other eminently manifested in him I say the Divine Power of the Holy Ghost as the Lord and Giver of Life as he is call'd in the Ancient Creeds of the Christian Church For as Men are naturally said to be the Children of those from whom they receive their Life and Being so Christ as Man is said to be the Son of God because he had Life communicated to him from the Father by an immediate Power of the Spirit of God or the Holy Ghost First at his Conception which was by the Holy Ghost The Conception of our Blessed Saviour was an immediate Act of the Power of the Holy Ghost overshadowing as the Scripture expresseth it the blessed Mother of our Lord And then at his Resurrection when after his Death he was by the Operation of the Holy Ghost raised to Life again Now upon these two Accounts only Christ as Man is said in Scripture to be the Son of God He was really so upon Account of his Conception but this was secret and invisible but most eminently and remarkably so upon account of his Resurrection which was open and visible to all 1. Upon Account of his Conception by the Power of the Holy Ghost That upon this Account he was called the Son of God St. Luke most expresly tells us Luke 1.35 where the
Obedience and good Works Chap. 3.8 This is a faithful saying and these things I will that thou affirm constantly that they who have belieed in God be careful to maintain good Works All that now remains is to make some useful Inferences from what hath been said upon this Argument and so to conclude this Discourse First of all To convince us that an empty Profession of the Christian Religion how specious and glorious soever it be if it be destitute of the fruits of Obedience and a holy Life will by no means avail to bring us to Heaven No profession of Faith in Christ no Subjection to him tho' we be baptized in his Name and list our selves in the number of his Disciples and Followers tho' we have made a constant Profession of all the Articles of the Christian Faith and have performed all the external parts and duties of Religion have gone constantly to Church and frequented the Service of God and have joined in publick Prayers to God with great appearance of Devotion and have heard his Word with great Reverence and Attention and received the blessed Sacrament with all imaginable expressions of Love and Gratitude to our belessed Redeemer nay tho' we had heard our blessed Saviour himself teach in our streets and had eaten and drunken in his presence yet if all this while we have not done the will of God and obeyed his Laws none of all these things will signifie any thing to bring us to Heaven and make us Partakers of that Salvation which he hath purchased for Mankind But we cannot plead so much for our selves as those did of whom our Saviour speaks None of us shall be able to alledge for our selves at the great day that we had prophesied in his Name and in his name had cast out Devils and in his name had done many wonderful Works and yet if we could alledge all this it would do us no good All that such can say for themselves is that they have call'd him Lord Lord that is they have made profession of his Religion and been call'd by his Name that they have paid an outward Honour and respect to him and declared a mighty Love and Affection for him but they have not done his will but have hated to be reformed and have cast his Commandments behind their backs they have only born the Leaves of an outward Profession but have brought forth no fruit unto Holiness and therefore can have no reasonable expectation that their End should be everlasting Life So that when these Men shall appear before the great and terrible Judge of the World they shall have nothing to say but those vain Words Lord Lord to which our Saviour will answer in that Day why call ye me Lord Lord when ye would not do the things which I said Notwithstanding all your profession of Faith in me and subjection to me ye have been workers of Iniquity therefore depart from me I know ye not whence ye are Secondly The consideration of what hath been said should stir as up to a thankful acknowledgement of what the Author of our Salvation hath done for us and there is great reason for thankfulness whether we consider the greatness of the Benefit conferred upon us or the way and manner in which it was purchased or the easie and reasonable terms upon which it may be obtained 1 st If we consider the greatness of the Benefit conferred upon us and that is Salvation eternal Salvation which comprehends in it all the Blessings and Benefits of the Gospel both the Means and the End our Happiness and the Way to it by saving us from our Sins from the guilt of them by our Justification in the Blood of Christ and from the Power and Dominion of them by the sanctifying grace and virtue of the Holy Ghost And it comprehends the End our Deliverance from Hell and the Wrath to come and the bestowing of Happiness upon us a great and lasting Happiness great as our Wishes and Immortal as our Souls all this is comprehended in eternal Salvation 2 dly If we consider the way and manner in which this great Benefit was purchased and procured for us in a way of infinite Kindness and Condescension in the lowest Humiliation and the unparallel'd Sufferings of the Son of God for never was there any sorrow like unto his sorrow wherewith the Lord afflicted him in the day of his fierce Anger in his taking upon him the form of a Servant and the person of a Sinner and his becoming obedient to death even the death of the Cross which was the Punishment of the vilest Slaves and the most hainous Malefactors The Son of God came down from Heaven from the highest pitch of Glory and Happiness into this lower World this Vale of Tears and sink of Sin and Sorrow and was contented himself to suffer to save us from eternal Ruin to be the most despicable and the most miserable Man that ever was that he might raise us to Glory and Honour and advance us to a state of the greatest Happiness that Humane Nature is capable of 3 dly If we consider the easie and reasonable Terms upon which we may be made Partakers of this unspeakable Benefit and that is by a constant and sincere and universal Obedience to the Laws of God which supposeth Repentance towards God and Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ as the Root and Principle of all the Virtues of a good Life that is by doing that which best becomes us and which is most agreeable to the original Frame of our Nature and to the dictates of our Reason and which setting aside the consideration of the Reward is really best for our present Benefit and Advantage our Comfort and Happiness even in this World for God in giving Laws to us hath imposed nothing upon us but what in all reason ought to have been our choice if he had not imposed it nothing but what is for our good and is in its own nature necessary to make us capable of that Happiness which he hath promised to us And what can be more gracious than to make one Benefit the Condition of a greater Than to promise to make us happy for ever if we will but do that which upon all accounts is really best and most for our Advantage in this present Life Thirdly Here is abundant Encouragement given to our Obedience we have the divine Assistance promised to us to enable us to the performance of the most difficult parts of our Duty we have the holy Spirit of God to help our Infirmities to excite us to that which is good and to help and strengthen us in the doing of it For our further Encouragement we are assured of the divine Acceptance in case of our sincere Obedience notwithstanding the manifold Failings and Imperfections of it for the sake of the perfect Righteousness and Obedience and the meritorious Sufferings of our blessed Saviour and tho when we have done all that we can do
both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and in Samaria and unto the uttermost parts of the earth But see the strange power of Prejudice to blind the Eyes even of good Men in the plainest matters The Disciples of our Saviour for all they had entertained a new Religion yet they retained the old Pride and Prejudice of their Nation against the rest of the World as if none but themselves had any share in the favour of God or were to have any part in the Salvation of the Messias Our Saviour did so far consider this Prejudice of theirs that he never in his life time acquainted them with this matter so as to make them fully to understand it because they were not able to bear it And it is very probable that this is one of those things which our Saviour meant John 16.12 13. I have yet many things to say unto you but ye cannot bear them now Howbeit when the Spirit of truth is come he will guide you into all truth That is he should lead them into the knowledge of those Truths of which they were not then capable And tho' our Saviour after his Resurrection seems to have declared this sufficiently to them yet by their practice after his Ascension it appears that they understood all this only of the Jews namely that they were to preach the Gospel first to the Jews that were at Jerusalem and in Judea and then to those that were dispersed in other Nations for 't is clear from the History of their first Preaching recorded in the Acts that they preached to none but to the Jews and the Proselytes of the Jewish Religion So strong was their Prejudice that they had not the least suspicion that this Blessing of the Gospel was intended for the Heathen World nor were they convinced to the contray 'till St. Peter had a special Vision and Revelation to this purpose and the Holy Ghost came upon the Gentiles in miraculous gifts as he had done before upon the Jews that were converted to Christianity And thus the Spirit of God led them into this Truth and then they understood this Command of our Saviour's in a larger Sense And to this St. Peter plainly refers Acts 10.42 where he tells us how that Christ after his Resurrection appeared to them and commanded them to preach unto the People So likewise do Paul and Barnabas Acts 13.46 where they speak thus to the Jews It was necessary that the word should first be preached to you but seeing you put it from you lo we turn to the Gentiles for so hath the Lord commanded us Now he no where commanded this but in this Commission which he gave them before his Ascension Secondly You have here a particular declaration how they were to manage this work of making Disciples to the Christian Religion 1. By baptizing them into the Chrstian Faith 2. By instructing them in the Precepts and Practices of a Christian Life 1. By baptizing them into the Christian Faith which is here call'd baptizing them into the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost Baptism is a solemn Rite appointed by our Saviour for the initiating of Persons into the Christian Religion But it was a Ceremony in use before both among the Jews and Gentiles The Heathen observed it at the initiating Persons into their Religious Mysteries and the Jews when they admitted Proselytes to their Religion at which time the Males as Maimonides tells us were both circumcised and baptized the Women were only baptized One Circumstance of the Baptism of grown Persons was that standing in the Water up to the Neck they recited several Precepts of the Law And as the Jewish Writers further tell us this Ceremony did not only belong to them that were of grown Years but to the Children of Proselytes if it were desired upon condition that when they came to Years they should continue in that Religion Now tho' this was a religious Ceremony used both by Jews and Gentiles and without any Divine Institution that we know of our blessed Saviour who in none of his Institutions seems to have favour'd unnecessary Innovations was so far from the superstition of declining it upon this account that it had been in religious use both among Jews and Gentiles that he seems the rather to have chosen it for that very reason For seeing it was a common Rite of all Religions and in it self very significant of that Purity which is the great design of all Religion it was the more likely to find the easier Acceptance and to be most suitable to that which he intended to be the universal Religion of the World As for the form of Baptism into the name of the Father of the Son and of the Holy Ghost it plainly refers to that short Creed or Profession of Faith which was required of those that were to be baptized answerable to the reciting of the Precepts of the Law at the baptizing of Proselytes among the Jews now the Articles of this Creed were reduced to these three Heads of the Father Son and Holy Ghost and contains what was necessary to be believed concerning each of these And this probably is that which the Apostle calls the Doctrine of Baptism Heb. 6.2 viz. a short Summary of the Christian Faith the Profession whereof was to be made at Baptism of which the most ancient Fathers make so frequent mention calling it the rule of Faith It was a great while indeed before Christians tied themselves strictly to that very form of Words which we now call the Apostles Creed but the Sense was the same tho every one exprest it in his own Words nay the same Father reciting it upon several Occasions does not confine himself to the very same Expressions A plain indication that they were not then strictly bound up to any form of Words but retaining the sense and substance of the Articles every one exprest them as he pleased So that to baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost is to perform this Rite or Sacrament by the Authority of and with special Relation to the three Persons of the blessed Trinity Father Son and Holy Ghost as the chief Objects of the Christian Faith whereof solemn Profession was then made So that upon this form in Baptism appointed by our Saviour compared with what is elsewhere said in Scripture concerning the Divinity of the Son and the Holy Ghost is principally founded the Doctrine of the blessed Trinity I mean in that simplicity in which the Scripture hath delivered it and not as it hath been since confounded and entangled in the Cobwebs and Niceties of the Schools The Scripture indeed no where calls them Persons but speaks of them as we do of several Persons and therefore that word is not unfitly used to express the difference between them or at least we do not know a fitter word for that purpose By baptizing then in the name of the
Christianity Christ hath promised to be with them The performance of this Condition doth primarily concern the chief Governours of the Church and next to them the Ministers of the Gospel in general that they would be diligent and faithful in their respective Stations teaching Men to observe all things whatsoever Christ hath commanded And if we would make this our great Work to instruct our respective Charges in the necessary Doctrines of Faith and the indispensable Duties of a good Life we should have far less trouble with them about other matters And that we may do this Work effectually we must be serious in our Instructions and exemplary in our Lives Serious in our Instructions this certainly the Apostle requires in the highest degree when he chargeth Ministers so to speak as the Oracles of God to which nothing can be more contrary than to trifle with the Word of God and to speak of the weightiest matters in the World the great and everlasting Concernments of the Souls of Men in so slight and indecent a manner as is not only beneath the Gravity of the Pulpit but even of a well regulated Stage Can any thing be more unsuitable than to hear a Minister of God from this solemn place to break Jests upon Sin and to quibble upon the Vices of the Age This is to shoot without a Bullet and as if we had no mind to do Execution but only to make Men smile at the mention of their Faults this is so nauseous a Folly and of so pernicious consequence to Religion that hardly any thing too severe can be said of it And then if we would have our Instructions effectual we must be exemplary in our Lives Aristotle tells that the manners of the Speaker have 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the most soveraign power of Perswasion And therefore Cato puts it into the definition of an Orator that he is vir bonus dicendi peritus a good Man and an eloquent Speaker This is true as to all kinds of Perswasion the good Opinion which Men have of the Speaker gives great weight to his Words and does strangely dispose the Minds of Men to entertain his Counsels But the Reputation of Goodness is more especially necessary and useful to those whose proper Work it is to perswade Men to be good and therefore the Apostle when he had charged Titus to put Men in mind of their Duty he immediately adds in all things shewing thy self a Patern of good Works None so fit to teach others their Duty and none so likely to gain Men to it as those who practise it themselves because hereby we convince Men that we are in earnest when they see that we perswade them to nothing but what we chuse to do our selves This is the way to stop the Mouths of Men and to confute their Malice by an exemplary piety and Virtue So St. Peter tells us 1 Pet. 2.15 For so is the will of God that by well doing ye put to silence the Ignorance of foolish Men. SERMON IX The Difficulties of a Christian Life consider'd LUKE XIII 24 Strive to enter in at the strait Gate for many I say unto you will seek to enter in and shall not be able THERE are two great Mistakes about the Nature of Religion equally false and equally pernicious to the Souls of Men and the Devil whose great design it is to keep Men off from Religion by any Means makes use of both these Mistakes to serve his own Purpose and Design upon the several Tempers of Men. Those who are melancholy and serious he disheartens and discourageth from attempting it by the extream trouble and difficulty of it representing it in so horrid and frightful a Shape encumber'd with such Difficulties and attended with such Troubles and Sufferings as are insuperable and intolerable to Human Nature whereby he perswades Men that they had better never attempt it since they may despair to go through with it On the other hand those who are sanguine and full of hopes he possesses with a quite contrary Apprehension that the business of Religion is so short and easie a Work that it may be done at any time and if need be at the last Moment of our Lives tho' it is not so well to put it upon the last hazard and by this means a great part of Mankind are lull'd in security and adjourn the business of Religion from time to time and because it is so easie and so much in their Power they satisfie themselves with an indeterminate Resolution to set about that business some time or other before they die and so to repent and make their Peace with God once for all These Pretences contradict one another and therefore cannot be both true but they may both be false as indeed they are and truth lies between them Religion being neither so slight and easie a Work as some would have it nor so extreamly difficult and intolerable as others would represent it To confute the false apprehensions which some have of the easiness of it our Saviour tells us there must be some striving and to satisfie us that the difficulties of Religion are not so great and insuperable as some would make them our Saviour tells us that those who strive shall succeed and enter in but those who only seek that is do not vigorously set about the business of Religion but only make some faint Attempts to get to Heaven shall not be able to enter in Strive to enter in at the strait Gate for many I say unto you will seek to enter in but shall not be able The occasion of which words of our Blessed Saviour was a Question that was put to him by one of his Disciples concerning the number of those that should be Saved v. 23. One said unto him Lord are there few that be Saved To which curious Question our Saviour according to his manner when such kind of Questions were put to him does not give a direct Answer because it was neither Necessary nor Useful for his Hearers to be Resolved in it it did not concern them to know what Number of Persons should be Saved but what course they should take that they might be of that Number and therefore instead of satisfying their Curiosities he puts them upon their Duty admonishing them instead of concerning themselves what should become of others to take care of themselves And he said unto them Strive to enter in at the strait gate for many I say unto you shall seek to enter in and shall not be able He does not say that but few shall be saved as some have presumptuously ventur'd to determine but only few in comparison of those many that shall seek to enter in and shall not be able In these Words we may consider these Two Things First The Duty enjoined Strive to enter in at the strait gate Secondly The Reason or Argument to enforce it for many shall seek to enter in and shall not be able First The
liar for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen This deserves to be seriously consider'd by those who make a great shew of Devotion and are at great pains in Prayer and Fasting and reading and hearing the Word of God and in all other frugal Exercises of Religion which stand them in no Money lest all their Labour be lost for want of this one necessary and essential part lest with the Young Man in the Gospel after they have kept all other Commandments they be rejected by Christ for lack of this one thing I have done with the first part of the Observation That Unmercifulness is a very great Sin I proceed to the 2 d That it is such a Sin as alone and without any other Guilt is sufficient to ruin a Man for ever The Parable lays the Rich Man's Condemnation upon this it was the guilt of this Sin that tormented him when he was in Hell The Scripture is full of severe Threatnings against this Sin Prov. 21.13 Whoso stoppeth his Ears at the cry of the Poor he also shall cry himself but shall not be heard God will have no regard or pity for the Man that regardeth not the Poor That is a terrible Text Jam. 2.13 He shall have Judgment without Mercy that hath shewed no Mercy Our Saviour hath two Parables to represent to us the Danger of this Sin this here in the Text and that in Luke 12. concerning the Covetous Man that enlarged his Barns and was still laying up but laid nothing out upon the Poor upon which our Saviour makes this Observation which is the Moral of the Parable v. 21. So is he that layeth up Treasure for himself and is not rich towards God So shall he be such an issue of his Folly may every one expect who layeth up Treasure for himself but does not lay up Riches with God How is that The Scripture tells us by Works of Mercy and Charity this our Saviour calls laying up for our selves Treasures in Heaven Matth. 6.20 And Luke 12.33 he calls giving of Alms providing for our selves Bags that wax not old a Treasure in Heaven that faileth not There is no particular Grace and Virtue to which the Promise of eternal Life is so frequently made in Scripture as to this of Mercy and Charity to the Poor Matth. 5.7 Blessed are the merciful for they shall find Mercy Which Promise as it does not exclude a Reward in this world so it seems principally to respect the Mercy of God at the great Day Luke 14.12 13 14 When thou makest a Feast invite not the Rich for they will recompence thee again but invite the Poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind for they cannot recompense thee but thou shalt be recompensed at the Resurrection of the Just Luke 16.9 Make therefore to your selves friends of the Mammon of Vnrighteousness that when ye shall fail they may receive you into everlasting habitations 1 Tim. 6.17 18 19. Charge them that are rich in this world that they do good that they be rich in good works ready to distribute willing to communicate laying up in store for themselves a good Foundation as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is sometimes used a good Treasure against the time which is to come that they may lay hold of eternal Life But the most considerable Text of all other to this purpose is in Matth. 25. where our Saviour gives us a description of the Judgment of the Great Day And if that be a true and proper representation of the process of that Day then the grand enquiry will be what Works of Charity have been done or neglected by us and accordingly Sentence shall be past upon us The proper Result from all this Discourse is to persuade Men to this necessary Duty Our eternal Happiness does not so much depend upon the exercise of any one single Grace or Virtue as this of Charity and Mercy Faith and Repentance are more general and fundamental Graces and as it were the Parents of all the rest But of all single Virtues the Scripture lays the greatest weight upon this of Charity and if we do truly believe the Precepts of the Gospel and the Promises and Threatnings of it we cannot but have a principal regard to it I know how averse Men generally are to this Duty which makes them so full of Excuses and Objections against it 1. They have Children to provide for This is not the case of all and they whose case it is may do well to consider that it will not be amiss to leave a Blessing as well as an Inheritance to their Children 2. They tell us they intend to do something when they die I doubt that very much but granting their Intention to be real why should Men chuse to spoil a good Work and to take away the Grace and Acceptableness of it by the manner of doing It shews a great backwardness to the Work when we defer it as long as we can He that will not do good till he be enforced by the last necessity diu noluit was long unwilling It is one of the worst Complements we can put upon God to give a thing to him when we can keep it no longer 3. Others say they may come to want themselves and it is Prudence to provide against that To this I answer 1. I believe that no Man ever came the sooner to want for his Charity David hath an express Observatinn to the contrary Psa 37.25 I have been young and now am old yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken nor his Seed begging bread And tho' he use a general word yet that by the righteous here he intended the merciful Man is evident from the next words he is ever merciful and lendeth And besides David's Observation we have express Promises of God to secure us against this Fear Psal 41.1 2. Blessed is he that considereth the poor the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble the Lord will preserve him and keep him alive and he shall be blessed upon the Earth Pro. 28.27 He that giveth unto the Poor shall not lack 2. Thou mayest come to want tho' thou give nothing thou may'st lose that which thou hast spared in this kind as well as the rest thou may'st lose all and then thou art no better secured against want than if thou hadst been charitable Besides that when thou art brought to Poverty thou wilt want the Comfort of having done this Duty and may'st justly look upon the neglect of this Duty as one of the Causes of thy Poverty 3. After all our Care to provide for our selves we must trust the Providence of God and a Man can in no case so safely commit himself to God as in well doing If the Providence of God as we all believe be peculiarly concern'd to bless one Man more than another I dare say the charitable Man will not have the least Portion 4.
the mediation of Angels seems not to be true for St. Stephen tells us that the Law was given by the disposition of Angels Acts 7.53 And St. Paul that it was ordained by the Angels in the hand of a Mediator that is Moses Gal. 3.19 But that the Revelation which was made to him had some singular Prerogatives above those of other Prophets is plain from Scripture Numb 12.5 6 7 8 when Aaron and Miriam contended with Moses as being equal to him God tells them that there was a vast difference between him and other Prophets Hear now my Words if there be a Prophet among you I the Lord will make my self known unto him in a Vision and will speak unto him in a Dream My Servant Moses is not so With him will I speak Mouth to Mouth even apparently and not in dark Speeches c. Ex. 33.11 And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face as a Man speaketh unto his Friend Deut. 34.10 And there arose not a Prophet since in Israel like unto Moses whom the Lord knew face to face All which signify at least this that God made the clearest and most familiar and most perfect Discoveries to Moses of any of the Prophets only our Lord Jesus Christ by whom God hath discovered his Will to us under the New Testament did excel Moses Moses being but a faithful Servant that is humilis amicus a meaner sort of Friend but the Lord Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of God who came from the bosom of his Father and was intimately acquainted with the secrets of his Will and had not the Spirit given him by measure but the most plentiful Effusion of it being anointed above his Fellows Now these being the several sorts and degrees of Revelation which God hath made of himself to the World the Holy Scriptures are a System or Collection of these the authentick Instrument or Record by which the things revealed any of these ways are transmitted to us and is therefore call'd the Word of God as containing those things which God in several Ages hath spoken to the World that is matters of Divine Revelation which are necessary to be known by Men in order to their Eternal Happiness And this being now the great and standing Revelation of God which is to continue to the end of the World I intend to limit my Discourse solely to this as being the only Revelation which we are concern'd to enquire after And therefore in the 3 d Place to shew you what Advantages this standing Revelation of the Scriptures hath above private Revelations made to particular Persons and frequently repeated and renewed in several Ages that so it may appear both agreeable to the Wisdom of God to settle Revelations in this way as being more commodious and likewise to his Goodness it being a real Priviledge which these later Ages of the World enjoy that they have a more fixt and certain way of being acquainted with the Will of God than those Ages had which were govern'd by such private Revelations as were now and then made to particular Persons And the Advantages are these 1. It is a more certain way of conveyance of things and more secure and free from Imposture Suppose a Revelation made to a particular Person which is of general Concernment that this may have a general and lasting effect he must impart it to others as many as he can and give them the best Assurance he can of it and these must relate it to others and so it must pass from hand to hand to be delivered from Parents to their Children Now this way of conveying a Revelation by Oral Report must needs be liable to many Uncertainties both by involuntary Mistakes through Weakness of Memory or Understanding and wilful Falsifications and Impostures out of Malice and Design So that the effect of an unrecorded Revelation can neither be large nor lasting it can but reach a few Persons and continue a little while in its full Credibility and the further it goes the weaker like Circles made in Water which the more they inlarge themselves and the longer they continue the less discernable they are 'till at length they quite disappear Whereas being once recorded by Persons secured from Error by Supernatural and Divine Assistance they are not liable to those easie Falsifications or Mistakes which traditional Reports and Relations are necessarily through human Malice or Weakness liable to 2. It is a more general and universal way of Conveyance Which is evident from the common Experience of the World who have pitched upon this way of writing things in Books as that which doth most easily convey the knowledge and notice of things to the generality of Men. 3. It is a more uniform way of Conveyance that is things that are once written and propagated that way lye equally open to all and come in a manner with equal Credit to all it being not morally possible that a common Book that passeth through all hands and which is of vast Importance and Concernment should be liable to any material Corruption without a general Conspiracy and Agreement which cannot be but that it must be generally known So that considering the commonness and universal Concernment of this Book of the Scriptures all Men are in a manner equally that is every Man is sufficiently and competently assur'd of the credit of it that is that we are not in any material thing imposed upon by false Copies But in traditional Revelation it is quite otherwise Traditional being a very unequal and ununiform way of Conveyance For seeing it may be of general Concernment and all cannot have it at the first hand that is immediately from him to whom it was made but some at the second others at the third fourth or fifth hand or much further off the Credit of it will be necessarily weakned by every Remove A Report that comes through many Hands being like the Argument we call Induction and as the Strength and Goodness of that depends upon the Truth of every one of those Instances that make it up so that if any of them fail the whole Argument is naught so the credit of a Report that passeth through twenty hands depends upon the Integrity and Sufficiency of all the Relators and whatever there is either of Falshood and Malice or of Incapacity of Understanding or Frailty of Memory in any of the Relators so much Weakness is derived into the Report or Testimony and consequently the assurance which we can have of a private Revelation which is deliver'd traditionally through a great many Persons must needs be very unequal 4. It is a more lasting way of Conveyance Which likewise appears by Experience we having now nothing at all of the History of ancient times but what is conveyed down to us in Writing 5. It is a more human way of Conveyance which requires less of Miracle and supernatural Interposition for the Preservation of it This Book of the Scriptures may with ordinary
and Folly The wisdom of the world saith St. Paul is Foolishness with God The Rich Man in the Parable who increased his Goods and enlarged his Barns and laid up for many years did applaud himself and was no doubt applauded by others for a very Wise Man but because he laid up Treasure for himself and was not rich towards God that is did not employ his Estate to good and charitable Purposes therefore God who calls no body out of his right Name calls this Man Fool Thou Fool this night shall thy Soul be taken from thee and then whose shall all these things be And our Saviour here in the Text while he commends the Wisdom of the Children of this World he adds that which is a considerable blemish and abatement to it The Children of this world are wiser 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for their Age for the concernments of this present Life but this is but a short and purblind Wisdom which sees but a little way and considers only things present and near at hand whereas true Wisdom hath a larger and farther Prospect and regards the future as well as the present and takes care to provide for it Nay our Saviour gives the Wisdom of this world its utmost due when he says The Children of this World are wise for their generation for this is the very best that can be said of it it seldom looks so far and holds out so long Many Men have survived their own Projects and have lived to see the Folly and ill Fate of their covetous and ambitious Designs So the Prophet tells us Jer. 17.11 As the Partridge sitteth on eggs and hatcheth them not so he that getteth riches and not by right shall leave them in the midst of his days and at his end shall be a Fool. This is Wisdom to regard our main Interest but if we be wrong in our end as all worldly Men are the faster and farther we go the more fatal is our error and mistake The Children of this world are out in their end and mistaken in the main they are wise for this world which is inconsiderable to eternity wise for a little while and Fools for ever 2 dly From what hath been said we may infer that if we lose our Souls and come short of eternal happiness it is through our own fault and gross neglect for we see that men are wise enough for this world and the same prudence and care and diligence applied to the concernments of our Souls would infallibly make us happy Nay our Saviour here in the Text tells us that usually less wisdom and industry than the Men of this world use about the things of this world is exercised by the Children of light who yet at last through the mercy of God do attain eternal Life So that it is very plain that if Men would but take that care for their immortal Souls which they generally do for their frail and dying Bodies and be as heartily concern'd for the unseen world and for eternity as they are for things visible and temporal they would with much more certainty gain Heaven than any Man can obtain worldly Riches and Honours And can we in conscience desire more than to be happy for ever upon as easy and upon more certain Terms than any Man can be rich or great in this world For we may miss of these things after all our travel and pains about them or if we get them we may lose them again But if we seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness if we be sincerely good we are sure to have the reward of it even that eternal life which God that cannot lie hath promised if we lay up for our selves Treasures in Heaven they will be safe and secure there where no Moth can corrupt nor Thieves break through and steal If we would seriously think of the other world and were throughly possest with a firm belief of the eternity of that happiness or misery which remains for Men after this Life we should pray to God and hear his Word and perform all the Duties of Religion with the same care and concernment with the same fervour and intention of Mind as Men prosecute their worldly business Were we fully perswaded of the unseen Glories and Torments of the other world we should be much more affected with them than with all the Temptations and Terrors of sense because in Reason they are much more considerable The Disgrace of the Pillory will fright Men from Perjury and will not everlasting shame and Confusion The fear of Death will deter many men from robbing and stealing who would perhaps venture upon these Crimes if there were no danger in them and will not the Horrors of the second Death of the worm that dies not and the fire that is not quenched have as great an awe and influence upon us If they have not it is a sign that we do not equally believe the danger of Human Laws and the Damnation of Hell Surely Men have not the same belief of Heaven and Affection for it that they have for this world If they had their Care and Diligence about these things would be more equal For we are not so weak as we make our selves we are not yet so degenerate but if we would set our selves seriously to it and earnestly beg the Assistance of God's Grace we might come to know our Duty and our Wills might be engaged to follow the directions of our Understandings and our Affections to obey the Command of our Wills and our Actions to follow the Impulse of our Affections Much of this is naturally in our Power and what is wanting the Grace of God is ready to supply We can go to Church and we can hear the Word of God and we can consider what we hear we can pray to God and say we believe Lord help our unbelief and enable us to do what thou requirest of us and we can forbear a great many Sins which we rashly and wilfully run into a great present Danger will fright us from Sin a terrible Storm will drive us to our Devotion and teach us to pray a sharp fit of the Gout will take a Man off from drinking the Eye of a Master or Magistrate will restrain Men from many things which they say they cannot forbear So that we do but counterfeit and make our selves more Cripples than we are that we may be pitied for if Fear will restrain us it is a sign that we can forbear if the rod of Affliction will fetch it out of us and make us do that which at other times we say we are unable to do this is a demonstration that it is in us and that the thing is in our Power It is true we can do nothing that is good without the Assistance of God's Grace but that Assistance which we may have for asking is in effect in our own Power So that if the matter were searched to the bottom it is not want