study upon his knees Those truths that are got by Prayer leave an unusual sweetness upon the heart If Christ be our Teacher it becomes all his Saints to be at his Feet Inference 4. If Christ be the great Prophet and Teacher of the Church We may thence discern and Iudge of Doctrines and it may serve us as a test to try them by For such as Christ is such are the Doctrines that flow from him Every errour pretends to derive it self from him but as Christ was holy humble heavenly meek peaceful plain and simple and in all things alien yea contrary to the wisdom of the world the gratifications of the flesh such are the truths which he teacheth They have his Character and Image ingraven on them Would you know then whether this or that Doctrine be from the Spirit of Christ or no Examine the Doctrine it self by this rule And whatsoever Doctrine you find to incourage and countenance sin to exalt self to be accommodated to earthly designs and interests to wrap and bend to the humours and Lusts of men in a word what Doctrine soever directly and as a proper cause makes them that profess it carnal turbulent proud sensual c. You may safely reject it and conclude this never came from Jesus Christ. The Doctrine of Christ is after godliness His truth sanctifies There is a gustus Spiritualis judicii a Spiritual taste by which those that have their sences exercised can distinguish things that differ The Spiritual man Iudgeth all things 1 Cor. 2.15 His ear tryes words as his mouth tasteth meats Job 34.3 Swallow nothing let it come never so speciously that hath not some relish of Christ and holyness in it Be sure Christ never reveal'd any thing to men that derogates from his own glory or prejudices and obstructs the ends of his own Death Inference 5. And as it will serve us for a test of Doctrines so it serves for a test of Ministers and hence you may Judge who are authorized and sent by Christ the great Prophet to declare his will to men Surely those whom he sends have his Spirit in their Hearts as well as his words in their Mouths And according to measures of grace received they faithfully endeavour to fullfil their Ministry for Christ as Christ did for his Father as my Father hath sent me saith Christ so send I you Joh. 20.21 They take Christ for their pattern in the whole course of their Ministration and are such as sincerely endeavour to imitate the great Shepherd in these six particulars following First Jesus Christ was a faithful Minister the faithful and true witness Rev. 1.5 He declared the whole mind of God to men Of him it was Prophetically said Psal. 40.10 I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart I have declared thy faithfulness and thy Salvation I have not concealed thy loving kindness and thy truth from the great congregation To the same sence and almost in the same words the Apostle Paul professed in Acts 20.20 I have kept back nothing that was profitable unto you and vers 35. I have shewed you all things Not that every faithful Minister doth in the course of his Ministry anatomize the whole body of truth and fully expound and apply each particular to the People no that is not the meaning but of those Doctrines which they have opportunity of opening they do not out of fear or to accommodate and secure base low ends withhold the mind of God or so corrupt and abuse his words as to subject truth to their own or other mens Lusts. They Preach not as pleasing men but God 1 Thes. 2.4 For if we yet please men we cannot be the servants of Christ Gal. 1.10 Truth must be spoken though the greatest on earth be offended Secondly Jesus Christ was a tender hearted Minister Full of compassion to souls He was sent to bind up the broken in heart Isa. 61.1 He was full of bowels to poor sinners He grieved at the hardness of mens hearts Mark 3.5 He mourned over Ierusalem and said O Ierusalem Ierusalem how oft would I have gathered thy Children as a Hen gathers her brood under her wings Matth. 23.37 His bowels yearned when he saw the multitude as Sheep having no Shepherd Matth. 9.36 These bowels of Christ must be in all the under Shepherds God is my witness saith one of them how greatly I long after you all in or after the pattern of the bowels of Christ Iesus Phil. 1.8 He that shews a hard heart unaffected with the dangers and miseries of souls can never shew a commission from Christ to authorize him for ministerial work Thirdly Jesus Christ was a laborious painful Minister he put a necessity on himself to finish his work in his day A work infinitely great in a very little time Ioh. 9.4 I must work the works of him that sent me while it is day the night cometh when no man can work O how much work did Christ do in a little time on earth He went about doing good Acts 10.38 He was never idle When he sits down at Iacobs Well to rest himself being weary presently he falls into his work Preaching the Gospel to the Samaritaness In this must his Ministers resemble him Striving according to his working that worketh in them mightily Col. 1.28 29. An idle Minister seems to be a contradiction in adjecto as who should say a dark light Fourthly Iesus Christ delighted in nothing more than the success of his Ministry To see the work of the Lord prosper in his hand this was meat and drink to him When the seventy returned and reported the success of their first Embassie Lord even the Devils are subject to us through thy name Why saith Christ I behold Satan fall as lightning from heaven As if he had said you tell me no news I saw it when I sent you out at first I know the Gospel would make work where it came And in that hour Iesus rejoyced in Spirit Luk. 10.17 18 21. And is it not so with those sent by him Do'nt they value the success of their Ministry at an high rate it is not saith one the expence but the recoyling of our labours back again upon us that kills us Ministers would not die so fast nor be gray-headed so soon could they but see the travel of their Souls My littlle Children saith Paul of whom I travel again in birth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 till Christ be formed in you Gal. 4.19 As for those that have the name of Shepherds only who visit the flock only once a year about shearing time who have the instruments of a foolish Shepherd â—fâ—rcipes mulctra the shears and pail Zech. 11.15 Woful will be their condition at the appearing of this great Shepherd Fifthly Iesus Christ was a Minister that lived up to his Doctrine His Life and Doctrine harmonized in all things He pressed to holiness in his Doctrine and was the great Pattern of
how apt are we to regret at providences as if it had no conducency at all to the glory of God or to our good Exod. 5.22 Yea to limit providence to our way and time thus the Israelites tempted God and limited the Holy One Psal. 78.20 41. How often also do we unbelievingly distrust providence as though it could never accomplish what we profess to expect and believe Ezek. 37.11 Our bones are dry our hope is lost we are cut off for our part So Gen. 18.13 14. Isai. 40.27 There are but few Abrahams among believers who against hope believed in hope giving glory to God Rom. 4.20 And it is but too common for good men to repine and fret at providence when their wills lusts or humours are crossed by it This was the great sin of Ionah Brethren these things ought not to be so Did you but seriously consider either the design of providence which is to bring about the gratious designs and purposes of God upon you which were laid before this world was Eph. 1.11 or that it is a lifting up of thy wisdom against his as if thou couldst better order thine affairs if thou hadst the conduct and management of them Or that you have to do herein with a great and dreadful God in whose hands you are as the clay in the Potters hand that may do what he will with you and all that is yours without giving you an account of any of his matters Iob 33.13 Or whether providence hath cast others as good by nature as your selves tumbled them down from the top of health wealth honours and pleasures to the bottom of Hell Or Lastly Did you but consider how often it hath formerly baffled and befool'd your selves Made you retract with shame your rash headlong censures of it and enforced you by the sight of its births and issues to confess your folly and ignorance as Asaph did Psal. 73.22 I say if such considerations as these could but have place with you in your troubles and temptations they would quickly mould your hearts into a better and more quiet frame O that I could but perswade you to resign all to Christ. He is a cunning workman as he he is called Prov. 8.30 and can effect what he pleaseth It 's a good rule de operibus Dei non est judicandum ante quintum actum Let God work out all that he intends have but patience till he hath put the last hand to his work and then find fault with it if you can You have heard of the patience of Iob and have seen the end of the Lord. Iam. 5.11 Inference 3. If Christ be Lord and King over the providential Kingdom and that for the good of his people let none that are Christs henceforth stand in a slavish fear of creatures It 's a good note that Grotius hath upon my text It 's a marvailous consolation saith he that Christ hath so great an Empire and that he governs it for the good of his people as an head consulting the good of the body Our Head and Husband is Lord General of all the Hosts of Heaven and Earth No creature can move hand or tongue without his leave or order The power they have is given them from above Ioh. 19.11 12. The serious consideration of this truth will make the feeblest spirit cease trembling and fall a singing Psal. 47.7 The Lord is King of all the earth sing ye praises with understanding that is as some well paraphase it every one that hath understanding of this comfortable truth Hath he not given you abundant security in many express promises that all shall issue well for you that fear him Rom. 8.28 All things shall work together for good to them that love God And Eccles. 8.12 Verily it shall be well with them that fear God even with them that fear before him And suppose he had not yet the very understanding of our relation to such a King should in it self be sufficient security For he is the universal supream absolute meek and merciful victorious and immortal King He sits in glory at the Fathers right hand and to make his seat the easier his enemies are a footstool for him His love to his people is unspeakably tender and fervent He that touches them touches the apple of his eye Zech. And it 's hardly imaginable that Jesus Christ will sit still and suffer his enemies to thrust out his eyes Till this be forgotten the wrath of man is not feared Isai. 51.12 13. He that fears a man that shall die forgets the Lord his Maker he loves you too well to sign any order to your prejudice and without his order none can touch you Inference 4. If the Government of the world be in the hands of Christ then our engaging and entitling of Christ to all our affairs and business is the true and ready way to their success and prosperity if all depend upon his pleasure then sure it 's your wisdom to take him along with you to every action and business It 's no lost time that 's spent in prayer wherein we ask his leave and beg his presence with us And take it for a clear truth that which is not prefaced with prayer will be followed with trouble How easily can Jesus Christ dash all your designs when they are at the very birth and article of execution and break off in a moment all the purposes of your hearts It 's a Proverb among the Papists that Mass and Meat hinder no nan The Turks will pray five times a day how urgent soever their business be Blush you that enterprise your affairs without God I reckon that business as good as done to which we have gotten Christs leave and engaged his presence to accompany us to it Inference 5. Lastly Eye Christ in all the events of providence see his hand in all that befals you whether it be evil or good The works of the Lord are great sought out of all them that have pleasure therein Psal. 111.2 How much good might we get by observation of the good or evil that befals us throughout our course First In all the evils of trouble and affliction that befal you eye Jesus Christ in it all And set your hearts to the study of these four things in affliction First Study his Soveraignty and Dominion For he creates and forms them They rise not out of the dust nor do they befal you casually But he raises them up and gives them their commission Jer. 18.11 Behold I create evil and devise a device against you He elects the instrument of your trouble He makes the rod as afflictive as he pleaseth He orders the continuance and end of your troubles And they will not cease to be afflictive to you till Christ say leave off it is enough The Centurion wisely considered this when He told him Luk. 7.8 I have souldiers under me and I say to one go and
but you must work to obey the commands of Christ into whose right ye are come by Redemption You must work to testifie your thankfulness to Christ for the work he finished for you You must work to glorifie God by your obedience Let your light so shine before men For these and divers other such ends and reasons your life must be a working life God preserve all his people from the gross and vile opinions of Antinomian Libertines who cry up grace and decry obedience Who under specious pretences of exalting a naked Christ upon the throne do indeed strip him naked of a great part of his glory and vilely dethrone him My pen shall not english what mine eyes have read Tell it not in Gath. But for thee Reader be thou a follower of Christ imitate thy pattern Yea let me perswade thee as ever thou hopest to clear up thine interest in him imitate him in such particulars as these that follow First Christ began early to work for God He took the mornning of his life the very top of the morning to work for God How is it said he to his Parents when he was but a child of about twelve years that ye sought me Wist ye not that I must be about my Fathers business Reader if the morning of thy life be not gone oh devote it to the work of God as Christ did If it be ply thy work the closer in the afternoon of thy life If a man have any great and necessary business to do it 's good doing in the morning afterwards a hurry of business and diversion comes on Secondly As Christ began betime so he followed his work close He was early up and he wrought hard so hard that he forgat to eat bread Joh. 31 32. So zealous was he in his Fathers work that his friends thought he had been besides himself Mark 3.21 So zealous that the zeal of Gods house eat him up He flew like a Seraphim in a flame of zeal about the work of God O be not ye like Snales What Augustus said of the young Roman well becomes the true Christian whatsoever he doth he doth it to purpose Thirdly Christ often thâ—ught upon the shortness of his time and wrought hard because he knew his working time would be but little So you find it Joh. 9.4 I most work the works of him that sent me whilst it is day the night cometh when no man can work O in this be like Christ. Rouze your hearts to diligence with this consideration If a man have much to write and be almost come to the end of his paper he will write close and pack much matter in a little room Fourthly He did much work for God and made little noise He wrought hard but did not spoil his work when he had wrought it by vain ostentation When he had exprest his Charity in acts of mercy and bounty to men he would humbly seal up the glory of it with this charge see ye tell no man of it Matth. 8.4 he affected not popular air All the Angels in Heaven could not do what Christ did and yet he called himself a worm for all that Psal. 22.6 O imitate your pattern Work hard for God and let not pride blow upon it when you have done It 's hard for a man to do much and not value himself for it too much Fifthly Christ carried on his work for God resolvedly No discouragements would beat him off though never any work met with more from first to last How did Scribes and Pharisees Jews Gentiles yea Devils set upon him by persecutions and reproaches violent oppositions and subtil temptations but yet on he goes with his Fathers work for all that He is deaf to all discouragements So it was foretold of him Isai. 42.4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged O that more of this spirit of Christ were in his people O that in the strength of love to Christ and zeal for the glory of God you would pour out your hearts in service and like a River sweep down all discouragements before you Sixthly He continued working whilst he continued living His life and labour ended together He fainted not in his work Nay the greatest work he did in this world was his last work O be like Christ in this be not weary of well doing Give not over the work of God while you can move hand or tongue to promote it And see that your last works be more than your first O let the motions of your soul after God be as all natural motions are swiftest when nearest the center Say not it is enough whilst there is any capacity of doing more for God In these things Christians be like your Saviour Inference 6. Did Christ finish his work Look to it Christians that ye also finish your work which God hath given you to do That you may with comfort say when death approaches as Christ said Joh. 17.4 I have glorified thee on earth I have finished the work thou gavest me to do and now O Father glorifie thou me with thine own self Christ had a work committed to him and he finished it you have a work also committed to you O see that you be able to say it 's finished when your time is so O work out your own Salvation with fear and trembling and that I may perswade you to it I beseech you lay these considerations close to heart First If your work be not done before you die it can never be done when you are dead There 's no work nor knowledge nor device in the grave whither thou goest Eccles. 9.5 10. They that go down to the pit cannot celebrate the name of God Isai. 38.18 Death binds up the hand from working any more strikes dumb the tongue that it can speak no more for then the composition is dissolved The body which is the souls tool to work by is broken and thrown aside The soul it self presented immediately before the Lord to give an account of all its works O therefore seeing the night cometh when no man can work as Christ speaks Ioh. 9.4 make haste and finish your work Secondly If you finish not your work as the season of working so the season of mercy will be over at death Do not think you that have neglected Christ all your lives you that could never be perswaded to a laborious holy life that ever your cries and entreaties shall prevail with God for mercy when your season is past No no it 's too late Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him Job 27.9 The season of mercy is then over as the tree falls so it lies Then he that is holy shall be holy still and he that is filthy shall be filthy still Alas poor souls you come too late The Master of the house is risen up and the doors are shut Luk. 19.42 the season is over Happy had it been if ye had known the day of your
say to you of this place You are a people that were born under and bred up with the Gospel It hath been your singular priviledge above many Towns and Parishes in England to enjoy more than 60 years together an able and fruitful Gospel Ministry among you The dews of Heaven lay upon you as it did upon Gideons Fleece when the ground was dry in other places about you You have been richly watered with Gospel showers You with Capernaum have been exalted to Heaven in the means of Grace And it must be owned to your praise that you testified more respect to the Gospel than many other places have done and treated Christs Ambassadors with more civility whilst they prophesied in Sackcloth than some other places did These things are praise worthy in you But all this and much more than this amounts not to that which Jesus Christ expects from you and which in his name I would now perswade you to and oh that I the least and unworthiest of all the Messengers of Christ to you might indeed prevail with all that are Christless among you 1. to answer the long continued calls of God to you by a through and sound Conversion that the long suffering of God may be your salvation and you may not receive all this grace of God in vain O that the damned might never be set a wondering to see a people of your advantages for Heaven sinking as much below many of themselves in misery as you now are above them in means and mercy Dear friends my hearts desire and prayer to God for you is that you may be saved Oh that I knew how to engage this whole Town to Jesus Christ and make fast the marriage knot betwixt him and you albeit after that I should presently go to the place of silence and see man no more with the Inhabitants of the World Ah sirs methinks I see the Lord Jesus laying the merciful hand of an holy violence upon you methinks he calls to you as the Angel to Lot saying arise lest ye be consumed and while he lingred the men laid hold upon his hand the Lord being merciful unto him And they brought him without the City and said escape for thy life stay not in all the plain escape to the Mountain lest thou be consumed Gen. 19.15 How often to allude to this hath Jesus Christ in like manner laid hold upon you in the Preaching of the Gospel and will you not fly for refuge to him Will you rather be consumed than endeavour an escape A beast will not be driven into the fire and will not you be kept out The merciful Lord Jesus by his admirable patience and bounty hath convinced you how loath he is to leave or loose you To this day his arms are stretched forth to gather you and will you not be gathered Alas for my poor neighbours Must so many of them perish at last what shall I do for the daughter of my people Lord by what Arguments shall they be perswaded to be happy what will win them effectually to thy Christ they have many of them escaped the pollutions of the World through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour They are a people that love thine Ordinances they take delight in approaching to God thou hast beautified many of them with lovely and obliging tempers and dispositions Thus far they are come there they stick and beyond this no power but thine can move them O thou to whose hand this work is and must be left put forth thy saving power and reveal thine arm for their salvation thou hast glorified thy name in many among them Lord glorifie it again 2. My next request is that you will all be perswaded whether converted or unconverted to set up all the duties of Religion in your families and govern your Children and Servants as men that must give an account to God for them in the great day O that there were not a prayerless Family in this Town How little will your Tables differ from a manger where beasts feed together if God be not owned and acknowledged there in your eating and drinking And how can you expect blessings should dwell in your Tabernacles if God be not called upon there Say not you want time for it or that your necessities will not allow it for had you been more careful of those duties it 's like you had not been exposed to such necessities besides you can find time to be idle you can waste a part of every day vainly Why could not that time be redeemed for God Moreover you will not deny but the success of all your affairs at home and abroad depends upon the blessing of God and if so think you it is not the right way even to temporal prosperity to engage his presence and blessing with you in whose hand your all is Say not your Children and servants are ignorant of God and therefore you cannot comfortably joyn with them in those duties For the neglect of these duties is the cause of their ignorance and it is not like they will be better till you use Gods means to make them so Besides prayer is a part of natural worship and the vilest among men are bound to pray else the neglect of it were none of their sin O let not a duty upon which so many and great blessings hang fall to the ground upon such silly not to say wicked pretences to shift it off Remember death will shortly break up all your families and disband them and who then think you will have most comfort in beholding their dead The day of account also hastens and then who will have the most comfortable appearing before the just and holy God Set up I beseech you the ancient and comfortable duties of reading the Scriptures singing of Psalms and Prayer in all your dwelling places and do all these conscientiously as men that have to do with God and try the Lord herewith if he will not return in a way of mercy to you and restore even your outward prosperity to you again How ever to be sure far greater encouragements than that lye before you to oblige you to your duties 3. More especially I have a few things to say to you that have attended on the Ministry or are under my oversight in a more particular manner and then I have done And First I cannot but with deep resentments observe to you the goodness of our God yea the riches of his goodness Who freely gave Jesus Christ out of his own bosom for us and hath not withheld his spirit Ordinances and Ministers to reveal and apply him to us Here 's love that wants an Epithete to match it Who engaged my heart upon this transcendent subject in the course of my Ministry among you A subject which Angels study and admire as well as we Who so signally protected and overshadowed our Assembly in those dayes of trouble wherein these truths were delivered to you You then sate down under
I determined not to know The meaning is not that he simply despised or contemned all other studies and knowledge but so far only as they stand in competion with or opposition to the study and knowledge of Jesus Christ. And it is as if he should say it is my stated setled Judgement not a hasty inconsiderate censure but the product and Issue of my most serious and exquisite enquiries after I have well weighed the case turned it round viewed it exactly on every side ballanced all advantages and disadvantages pondered all things that are fit to come into consideration about it this is the result and final determination that all other knowledge how profitable how pleasant soever is not worthy to be named in the same day with the knowledge of Jesus Christ This therefore I resolve to make the scope and end of my Ministry and the end regulateâ— the means Such pedantick toys and ayrie notions as injudicious ears affect would rather obstruct than promote my grand design among you therefore wholy waving that way I applyed my self to a plain popular unaffected Dialect fitted rather to pierce the heart and convince the conscience than to tickle the fancy this is the scope of the words In which three things fall under consideration First The subject-matter of his Doctrine to wit Iesus Christ. I determined to know nothing i. e. to study nothing my self to teach nothing to you but Iesus Christ. Christ shall be the Center to which all the lines of my Ministry shall be drawn I have spoken and written of many other subjects in my Sermons and Epistles but it is all reductively the Preaching and discovery of Jesus Christ of all Subjects in the world this is the sweetest if there be any thing on this side Heaven worthy our time and studies this is it Thus he magnifies his Doctrine from the excellency of its subject-matter accounting all other Doctrines but arrid things compared with this Secondly We have here that special respect or consideration of Christ which he singled out from all the rest as the excellent Truths of Christ to spend the main strength of his ministry upon And that is Christ as Crucified and the rather because hereby he would obviate the vulgar prejudice raised against him upon the account of his cross for Christ Crucified was to the Iews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness chap. 1.23 this also best suited his end to draw them on to Christ as Christ above all other subjects so Christ Crucified above all things in Christ there is therefore a great Emphasis in this word And him Crucified Thirdly The manner in which he discoursed this transcendent Subject to them is also remarkable he not only Preached Christ Crucified but he Preached him assiduously and plainly he Preacht Christ frequently and when ever he Preacht of Christ Crucified he Preached him in a Crucified stile This is the sum of the words to let them know that his spirit was so intent upon this subject as if he neither knew or cared to speak of any other all his Sermons were so full of Christ that his hearers might have thought he was acquainted with no other Doctrine Hence observe DOCT. That there is no Doctrine more excellent in it self or more necessary to be Preached and studyed than the Doctrine of Iesus Christ and him Crucified All other knowledge how much soever it be magnified in the World is and ought to be esteemed but dross in comparison of the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ Phil. 3.8 in him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge Col. 2.3 Eudoxus was so affected with the glory of the Sun that he thought he was born only to behold it much more should a Christian Judge himself born only to behold and delight in the glory of the Lord Jesus The truth of this Proposition will be made out by a double consideration of the Doctrine of Christ. First Let it be considered absolutely and then these lovely properties with which it is naturally cloathed will render it superiour to all other Sciences and Studies First The knowledge of Jesus Christ is the very marrow and Kernel of all the Scriptures the scope and center of all Divine revelations both Testaments meet in Christ. The Ceremonial Law is full of Christ and all the Gospel full of Christ the blessed lines of both Testaments meet in him and how they both harmonize and sweetly concenteâ— in Jesus Christ it is the chief scope of that excellent Epistle to the Hebrews to discover for we may call that Epistle The sweet Harmony of both Testaments this argues the unspeakable excellency of this Doctrine the knowledge whereof must needs therefore be a Key to unlock the greatest part of the Sacred Scriptures for it is in the understanding of Scripture much as it is in the knowledge men have in Logick and Philosophy if a Scholar once come to understand the bottom principle upon which as upon its hinge the controversie turns the through knowledge of that principle shall carry him through the whole controversie and furnish him with a solution to every argument even so the right knowledge of Jesus Christ like a clew leads you through the whole Laberynth of the Scriptures Secondly The knowledge of Jesus Christ is a fundamental knowledge and foundations are most useful though least seen the knowledge of Christ is fundamental to all Graces Duties Comforts and Happiness First It 's fundamental to all graces they all begin in knowledge Col. 3.10 the new man is renewed in knowledge as the old so the new Creation begins in light the opening of the eyes is the first work of the spirit and as the beginnings of grace so all the after improvements thereof depend upon this increasing knowledge 2 Pet. 3.18 But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour see how these two grace and knowledge keep equal pace in the soul of a Christian in what degree the one increases the other increases answerably Secondly the knowledge of Christ is fundamental to all duties the duties as well as graces of Christians are all founded in the knowledge of Christ must a Christian believe That he can never do without the knowledge of Christ Faith is so much dependent upon his knowledge that it is denominated by it Isa. 53.11 by his knowledge shall my righteous servant Iustifie many and hence Ioh. 6.40 Seeing and believing are made the same thing would a man exercise hope in God That he can never do without the knowledge of Christ for he is the author of that hope 1 Pet. 1.3 he is also its object Heb. 6.19 its ground-work and support Col. 1.27 and as you cannot believe or hope so neither can you pray acceptably without a competent degree of this knowledge the very Heathen could say non loquendum de deo sine lumine i. e. men must not speak of God without light the true way
sins of the Elect he bare the sins of many and by the manner of his bearing it viz. meekly and forgivingly he made intercession for the transgressors this was his work 2. The Reward or fruit which is promised him for this work therefore will I divide him a portion with the great and he shall divide the spoil with the strong wherein is a plain allusion to Conquerours in War for whom are reserved the richest garments and most honourable captives to follow the Conquerour as an addition to his magnificence and triumph these were wont to come after them in chains Isa. 45.14 see Iudg. 5.3 3. The Respect or Relation betwixt that work and this Triumph some will have this work to have no other relation to that glory then a meer antecedent to a consequent others give it the respect and relation of a meritorious cause to a reward 't is well observed by Dr. Featly that the Hebrew particle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which we render therefore noting order it is not worth so much contention about it whether it be the order of causality or meer antecedency neither do I foresee any absurdity in calling Christs exaltation the reward and fruit of his humiliation however 't is plain whether one or other 't is that the Father here agrees and promises to give him if he will undertake the redemption of the elect by pouring out his soul unto death of all which this is the plain result DOCT. That the business of mans salvation was transacted upon Covenant-terms betwixt the Father and the Son from all Eternity I would not here be mistaken as though I were now to treat of the Covenant of Grace made in Christ betwixt God and us it is not the Covenant of Grace but of Redemption I am now to speak to which differs from the Covenant of grace both in regard of the foederates in this 't is God the Father and Jesus Christ that mutually Covenant in that it 's God and man they differ also in the preceptive part in this it is required of Christ that he should shed his blood in that it is required of us that we believe they also differ in their promises in this God promises to Christ a name above every name ample Dominion from Sea to Sea in that to us grace and glory so that these are two distinct Covenants The substance of this Covenant of Redemption is Dialogue-wise exprest to us in Esa. 49. where as Divines have well observed Christ begins at the first and second verse and shews his Commission telling his Father how he had both called and prepared him for the work of Redemption the Lord hath called me from the womb he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword and made me a polished shaft c. q. d. by reason of that super-abundant measure of the spirit of wisdom and power wherewith I am anointed and filled my Doctrine shall as a sword pierce the hearts of sinners yea like an arrow drawn to the head strike point blank into souls standing at a great distance from God and Godliness Having told God how ready and fit he was for his service will know of him what reward he shall have for his work for he resolves his blood shall not be sold at low and cheap rates hereupon vers 3. the Father offers him the elect of Israel for his reward biding Low at first as they that make bargains use to do and only offers him that small remnant still intending to bid higher but Christ will not be satisfied with these he values his blood higher than so therefore in vers 4. he is brought in complaining I have laboured in vain and spent my strength for nought q. d. this is but a small reward for so great sufferings as I must undergo my blood is much more worth than this comes to and will be sufficient to redeem all the elect dispersed among the Isles of the Gentiles as well as the lost sheep of the house of Israel hereupon the Father comes up higher and tells him he intends to reward him better than so and therefore vers 6. tells him it 's a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the Tribes of Jacob and to rest over the preserved of Israel I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles that thou maist be my Salvation to the ends of the earth Thus is the Treaty carryed on betwixt them transacting it after the manner of men Now to open this great point we will here consider 1. The persons transacting one with another 2. The business transacted 3. The quality and manner of the transaction which is foederal 4. The articles to which they agree 5. How each person performs his engagement to the other And lastly the antiquity or eternity of this Covenant transaction First The persons transacting and dealing with each other in this Covenant and indeed they are great person◠God the Father and God the Son the former as a Creditor the latter as a surety the Father stands upon satisfaction the Son engages to give it if it be demanded why the Father and the Spirit might not as well have treated about our redemption as the Father and Son It is answered Christ is the natural Son of God and therefore fittest to make us the adopted Sons of God Christ also is the middle person in the Trinity and therefore fittest to be the Mediator or middle person betwixt us and God the Spirit hath another office assigned him even to apply as Christ's Vicegerent the redemption designed by the Father and purchased by the Son for us The business transacted betwixt them And that was the redemption and recovery of all Gods elect our eternal happiness lay now before them our dearest and everlasting concerns were now in their hands the elect though not yet in being are here considered as existent yea and as fallen miserable forlorn creatures how these may again be restored to happiness salvâ justitia dei without prejudice to the honour justice and truth of God this this is the business that lay before them For the manner or quality of the transaction it was foederal or of the nature of a Covenant it was by mutual engagements and stipulations each person undertaking to perform his part in order to our recovery We find each person undertaking for himself by solemn promise The Father promiseth that he will hold his hand and keep him Isa. 42.6 The Son promiseth he will obey his Fathers call to suffering and not be rebellious Isa. 50.5 and having promised each holds the other to his engagement The Father stands upon the satisfaction promised him and when the payment was making he will not abate him one farthing Rom. 8.32 God spared not his own Son i. e. he abated nothing of the full price he was to have at his hands for us And as the Father stood strictly upon the terms of the Covenant so did Christ also
Ioh. 17.4 5. I have glorified thee on earth saith he to the Father I have finished the work thou gavest me to do and now father glorifie me with thine own self as if he had said father the work is done now where 's the wages I was promised I call for glory as my due as much my due as the hire of the labourer is his due when his work is done More particularly we will next consider the Articles to which they do both agree or what it is that each person doth for himself promise to the other And to let us see how much the Fathers heart is engaged in the salvation of poor sinners there are five things which he promiseth to do for Christ if he will undertake that work First he promiseth to invest him and anoint him to a threefold office answerable to a threefold misery that lay upon the elect as so many bars to all communion with and enjoyment of God for if ever man be restored to that happiness the blindness of his mind must be cured the guilt of sin expiated and his captivity to sin led captive answerably Christ must of God be made unto us wisdom righteousness sanctification and redemption 1 Cor. 1.30 And he is made so to us as our Prophet Priest and King but he could not put himself into either of these for if so he had acted without commission and consequently all he did had been invallid Heb. 5.5 Christ glorified not himself to be made an High-Priest but he that said unto him thou art my Son A Commission there for to act authoritatively in these offices being necessary to our recovery the Father engages to him to seal him such a three-fold commission He promiseth to invest him with an eternal and Royal Priesthood Psal. 110.4 The Lord hath sworn and will not repent thou art a Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedeck this Melchisedeck being King of Righteousness and King of Salem that is Peace had a Royal Priesthood and his descent not being reckoned it had an adumbration of eternity in it and so was more apt to Type and Shadow forth the Priesthood of Christ than Aarons was Heb. 7.16 17 24 25. as the Apostle accommodates them there He promiseth moreover to make him a Prophet and that an extraordinary one even the Prince of Prophets the chief Shepherd as much superiour to all others as the Sun is to the lesser Stars so you have it Isa. 42.6 7. I will give thee for a light to the Gentiles to open the blind eyes c. And not only so but to make him King also and that of the whole Empire of the World so Psal. 2.6 7 8. ask of me and I will give thee the Heathen for thine inheritance and the utmost ends of the earth for thy possession thus he promiseth to qualifie and furnish him compleatly for the work by his investiture with this Three-fold office Secondly And for as much as he knew it was a hard and difficult work his Son was to undertake a work that would have broken the backs of all the Angels in Heaven and men on earth had they engaged in it therefore he promiseth to stand by him and assist and strengthen him for it so Isa. 42.5 6 7. I will hold thy hand or take hold of thee with my hand for so it may be rendred i. e. I will under-prop and support thy humanity when it 's even over weighed with the burden that is to come upon it and ready to sink down under it for so you know the case stood with him Mark 14.34 and so it was foretold of him Isa. 53.7 He was oppressed c. and indeed the humanity needed a prop of no less strength than the infinite power of the God head the same promise you have in the first verse also Behold my Servant whom I uphold Thirdly He promiseth to crown his work with success and bring it to a happy issue Isai. 53.10 He shall see his seed he shall prolong his days and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand He shall not begin and not finish he shall not shed his invaluable blood upon hazardous terms but shall see and reap the sweet fruit thereof As the Joyfull mother forgets her pangs when she delightfully embraces and kisses her living Child Fourthly The Father promiseth to accept him in his work though millions should eternally perish Isai. 49.4 Surely saith he my work is with the Lord. And verse 5. I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord. His faith had therein respect to this compact and promise accordingly the Father manifests the satisfaction he had in him and in his work even while he was about it on earth when there came such a voice from the excellent glory saying This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased Fifthly He engaged to reward him highly for his work by exalting him to singular and supereminent glory and honour when he should have dispatched and finished it So you read Psal. 2.7 I will declare the decree the Lord hath said unto me thou art my Son this day have I begotten thee It 's spoken of the day of his resurrection when he had just finished his suffering And so the Apostle expounds and applies it Acts 13.32 33. For then did the Lord wipe away the reproach of his Cross and invested him with such glory that he looked like himself again As if the Father had said now thou hast again recovered thy glory and this day is to thee as a new birth-day These are the incouragements and rewards proposed and promised to him by the Father This was the joy set before him as the Apostle phraseth it in Heb. 12.2 which made him so patiently to endure the Cross and despise the Shame And in like manner Jesus Christ restipulates and gives his engagement to the Father that upon these terms he is content to be made flesh to devest as it were himself of his glory to come under the obedience and malediction of the Law and not to refuse any the hardest sufferings it should please his Father to inflict on him So much is carryed in Esai 50.5 6 7. The Lord hath opened mine ear and I was not Rebellious neither turned away back I gave my back to the Smiters and my cheeks to them that pulled off the hair I hid not my face from shame and spitting for the Lord God will help me therefore shall I not be confounded I have set my face as a flint and I know that I shall not be ashamed When he saith I was not Rebellioâ—s he meaneth I was most heartily willing and content to accept the terms for there is a Meiosis in the words and much more is intended than expressed And the sense of this place is well delivered to us in other terms Psal. 40.6 7 8 9 10. Then said I loe I come I delight to do thy will O God thy Law is within
keep those his Father gave him in this world Ioh. 17.12 to raise up the Saints again in the last day Ioh. 1.54 are all these with many more I might name the effects of the meer humane nature Or were they not performed by him as God-man and besides how could he as Mediator be the object of our Faith and religious adoration if we are not to respect him as God-man But I long now to be at the Application of this And the first inference from it is this Inference 1. That it is a dangerous thing to reject Iesus Christ the only Mediator betwixt God and Men. Alas there is no other interpose and skreen thee from the devouring Fire the everlasting burnings Oh! it 's a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God And into his hands you must needs fall without an interest in the only Mediator Which of us can dwell with devouring Fire who can endure the everlasting burnings Esa. 33.14 you know how they singed and scorched the green Tree but what would they do to the dry Tree Luke 23.31 indeed if there were another plank to save after the Shipwrack any other way to be reconciled to God beside Jesus the Mediator somewhat might be said to excuse this folly but you are shut up to the Faith of Christ as to your last remedy Gal. 3.23 You are like starving Beggars that are come at the last door O take heed of despising or neglecting Christ if so there 's none to interceed with God for you the breach betwixt him and you can never be composed I remember here the words of Eli to his prophane Sons who caused men to abhor the offerings of the Lord 1 Sam. 2.25 If one man sin against another the Iudge shall Iudge him but if a man sin against the Lord who shall intreat for him the meaning is in common trespasses betwixt men the civil Magistrate takes cognisance of it and decides the controversie by his authority so that there is an end of that strife but if man sin against the Lord who shal intreat or arbitrate in that case Elies Sons had despised the Lords Sacrifices which were the sacred Types of Christ and the stated way that Men their had to act Faith on the Mediator in Now saith he if a man thus sin against the Lord by despising Christ shadowed out in that way who shall intreat for him what hope what remedy remains I remember it was the saying of Luther and he spake it with deep resentment nolo deum absolutum I will have nothing to do with an absolute God i. e. with God without a Mediator Thus the Divels have to do with God but will ye in whose nature Christ is come put your selves into their state and case God forbid Inference 2. Hence also be informed how great an evil it is to joyn any other Mediators either of reconciliation or meritorious intercession with Iesus Christ. O this is an horrid sin and that which both pours the greatest contempt upon Christ and brings the surest and forest destruction upon the Sinner I am ashamed my Pen should English what mine Eyes have seen in the writings of Papists ascribing as much yea more to the mediation of Mary than to Christ with no less than blasphemous impudence thus commenting upon Scripture What is that which the Lord saith I have trode the Wine-press alone and of the People there was no Man with me true Lord there was no man with thee but there was a Woman with thee who received all these wounds in her Heart which thou receivedst in thy Body I will not blot my Paper with more of this but refer the learned Reader to the Margent where he may if he have a mind to see more be informed not only what blasphemy hath dropt from single Pens but even from Concels to the reproach of Jesus Christ and his Blood How do they stamp their own sordid works with the peculiar dignity and value of Christs Blood and therein seek to enter at the Gate which God hath shut to all the World because Jesus Christ the Prince entred in thereby Ezek. 44.2 3. He entred into Heaven in a direct mediate way even in his own name and for his own sake this Gate saith the Lord shall be shut to all others And I wish men would consider it and fear lest while they seek entrance into Heaven at the wrong Door they do not for ever shut against themselves the true and only Door of happiness Inference 3. If Jesus Christ be the only Mediator of reconciliation betwixt God and Men then reconciled Souls should thankfully ascribe all the Peace favour and comforts they have from God to their Lord Iesus Christ when ever you have had free admission and sweet entertainment with God in the more publick ordinances or private duties of his worship when ye have had his smiles his Seals and with hearts warmed with comfort are returning from those duties say O my Soul thou maist thank thy good Lord Jesus Christ for all this Had not he interpos'd as a Mediator of reconciliation I could never have had access to or friendly communion with God to all eternity Immediately upon Adams sin the Door of Communion with God was lockt yea chain'd up and no more coming nigh the Lord. Not a Soul could have any access to him either in a way of communion in this World or of enjoyment in that to come It was Jesus the Mediator that open'd that Door again and in him it is that we have boldness and access with confidence Eph. 3.12 we can now come to God by a new and a living way consecrated for us through the Vayl that is to say his flesh Heb. 10.20 the Vayl had a double use as Christs flesh answerably hath It hid the glory of the Sanctum Sanctorum and also gave entrance into it Christs incarnation rebates the edge of the divine glory and brightness that we may be able to bear it and converse with it and it gives admission into it also O thank your dear Lord Jesus for your present and your future Heaven These are mercies which daily emerge out of the Ocean of Christs blood and come swiming in it to our Doors Blessed be God for Jesus Christ. Inference 4. If Jesus Christ be the true and only Mediator both of reconciliation and meritorious intercession betwixt God and Men how safe and secure then is the condition and state of Beleivers Surely as his mediation by sufferings hath fully reconciled so his mediation by intercession will everlastingly mantain that state of Peace betwixt them and God and prevent all future breaches Being justified by Faith we have peace with God through our Lord Iesus Christ Rom. 5.1 it 's a firm and lasting peace and the Mediator that made it lies as a lidger in Heaven to maintain it for ever and prevent new jarrs Heb. 9.24 there to appear in the presence of God for
can command or open the heart We may stand and knock at mens hearts till our own ake but no opening till Christ come He can fit a key to all the cross wards of the will and with sweet efficacy open it and that without any force or violence to it These things are carried in this part of his office Consisting in opening the heart Which was the first thing propounded for explication Secondly In the next place let us see by what acts Jesus Christ performs this work of his and what way and method he takes to open the heart of Sinners And there are two principal ways by which Christ opens the understandings and hearts of men viz. By His word And spirit First by his word to this end was Paul commissionated and sent to preach the Gospel Act. 26.18 To open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God The Lord can if he pleases accomplish this immediately but though he can do it he will not do it ordinarily without means because he will honour his own institutions Therefore you shall observe that when Lydia's heart was to be opened there appeared unto Paul a man of Macedonia who prayed him saying come over into Macedonia and help us Act. 19.9 God will keep up the reputation of his ordinances among men And though he hath not tyed himself yet he hath tyed us to them Cornelius must send for Peter God can make the earth produce corn as it did at first without cultivation and labour but he that shall now expect it in the neglect of means may perish for want of bread Secondly But the ordinances in themselves cannot do it as I noted before and therefore Jesus Christ hath sent forth the Spirit who is his Pro Rex his vicegerent to carry on this work upon the hearts of his Elect. And when the Spirit comes down upon Souls in the administration of the ordinances he effectually opens the heart to receive the Lord Jesus by the hearing of faith He breaks in upon the understanding and conscience by powerful convictions and compunctions so much that word Iohn 16.8 imports he shall convince the world of Sin Convince by clear demonstration such as inforces assent so that the Soul can not but yeeld it to be so And yet the door of the heart is not opened till he have also put forth his power upon the will and by a sweet and secret efficacy overcome all it's reluctations and the Soul be made willing in the day of his power When this is done the heart is opened Saving light now shines in it and this light set up by the Spirit in the Soul is First a new light in which all things appear far otherwise than they did before The name of Christ and Sin the word Heaven and Hell have an other sound in that mans ears than formerly they had When he comes to read the same Scriptures which possibly he had read an hundred times before he wonders he should be so blind as he was to over look such great weighty and concerning things as he now beholds in them and saith where were mine eyes that I could never see these things before Secondly It is a very affecting light A light that hath heat and powerful influences in it which makes deep impressions on the heart Hence they whose eyes the great Prophet opens are said to be brought out of darkness into his marvelous light 1 Pet. 2.9 The Soul is greatly affected with what it sees The beams of light are contracted and twisted together in the mind and being reflected on the heart and affections soon cause them to smoak and burn Did not our hearts burn within us whilst he talked with us and opened to us the Scriptures Thirdly And it is a growing light Like the light of the morning which shines more and more unto a perfect Day Prov. 4.18 When the Spirit first opens the understanding he doth not give it at once a full sight of all truths or a full sence of the power sweetness and goodness of any truth but the Soul in the use of means grows up to a greater clearness day by day It 's knowledge grows extensively in measure and intensively in power and efficacy And thus the Lord Jesus by his Spirit opens the understanding Now the use of this follows in 5. practical deductions Inference 1. If this be the work and office of Jesus Christ to open the understandings of men Hence we infer the misery that lyes upon those men whose understandings to this day Iesus Christ hath not opened Of whom we may say as it is Deut. 29.4 To this day Christ hath not given them eyes to see Natural blindness whereby we are deprived of the light of this world is sad but spiritual blindness is much more sad See how dolefully their case is represented 2 Cor. 4.3 4. But if our Gospel be hid it is hid to them that are lost whose eyes the God of this world hath blinded lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the image of God should shine unto them He means a total and final concealment of the saving power of the word from them Why what if Jesus Christ withhold it and will not be a Prophet to them what is their condition truly no better than lost men It is hid 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to them that are to perish or be destroyed This blindness like the covering of the face or tying the handkerchief over the eyes is in order to their turning off into Hell More particularly because the point is of deep concernment let us consider First the Iudgement inflicted and that 's spiritual blindness A sore misery indeed Not anuniversal ignorance of all truths O no in natural and moral truths they are often times acute and sharpe sighted men but in that part of knowledge which wrape up eternal life Iohn 17.2 there they are utterly blinded As it 's said of the Iews upon whom this misery lies that blindness in part is happened to Israel They are learned and knowing persons in other matters but they know not Jesus Christ there is the grand and sad defect Secondly the subject of this Judgement the mind which is the eye of the soul. If it were but upon the body it would not be so considerable this falls immediately upon the soul the noblest part of man and upon the mind the highest and noblest faculty of the soul whereby we understand think and reason This in Scripture is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the spirit The intellectual rational faculty which Philosophers call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the leading directive faculty which is to the soul what the natural eye 〈◊〉 to the body Now the soul being the most active and restless thing in the world always working and its leading directive power blind Judge what a sad and dangerous state such a soul is in Just like a fiery high metled
the High-Priests entring with the blood of the Sacrifice and sweet incense into the holy place Levit. 16.12 13 14. And he shall take the censer full of burning coals of fire from off the Altar before the Lord and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small and bring it within the vail and he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the Testimony that he die not And he shall take the blood of the bullock and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy-seat Eastward c. Christs offering himself on earth answered to the killing of the Sacrifice without and his entring into Heaven there to intercede was that which answered to the Priest going with blood and his hands full of incense within the vail So that this is a part yea a special part of Christs Priesthood and so necessary to it that if he had not done this all his work on earth had signified nothing nor had he been a Priest that is a compleat and perfect Priest if he had remained on earth Heb. 8.4 Because the very design and end of sheding his blood on earth had been frustrated which was to carry it before the Lord into Heaven So that this is the principal perfective part of the Priesthood He acted the first part on earth in a state of deep abasement in the form of a servant but he Acts this in glory whereinto he is taken up that he may follow on his design in dying and give the work of our Salvation its last compleating Act. So much is imported in this Scripture which tells us by reason hereof he is able to save to the uttermost c. The words contain an incouragement to believers to come to God in the way of faith drawn from the intercession of Christ in Heaven for them In which you may take notice of these three principal parts First The quality of the persons here incouraged who are described by a direct act of faith as poor recumbents that are going out of themselves to God by faith but conscious of great unworthiness in themselves and thence apt to be discouraged Secondly The incouragement propounded to such believers drawn from the ability of Jesus Christ in whose name they go to the Father to save them to the uttermost i. e. fully perfectly compleatly For so this Emphatical word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies The saving us wholly throughly compleatly and altogether giving our Salvation its last act and complement Thirdly The ground or reason of this his saving ability Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession i. e. he hath not only offered up his blood to God upon the tree as a full price to purchase pardon and grace for believers but lives in Heaven and that for ever to apply unto us in the way of intercession all the fruits blessings and benefits that that pretious blood of his deserves and hath procured as a price for them The words thus opened that point I shall single out from among many that lie in them as most suitable to my design and purpose is this DOCT. That Iesus our High-Priest lives for ever in the capacity of a potent intercessor in Heaven for believers Here we will enquire First what it is for Christ to be an intercessor Secondly By what acts he performs that work in Heaven Thirdly Whence the potency and prevalency of his intercession is Fourthly and Lastly How he lives for ever to make intercession for us First What it is for Christ to be an intercessor for us To intercede in general is to go betwixt two parties to intreat argue and plead with one for the other And of this there are two sorts First ex charitate ut fratres That whereby one Christian prays and pleads with God for another 1 Tim. 2.1 Secondly Ex officio mediatorio that whereby Christ as an act of office presents himself before God to request for us Betwixt these two is this difference that the former is performed not in our own but anothers name we can tender no request to God immediately or for our own sake either for our selves or for others Joh. 16.23 Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name he will give it you But the latter which is proper to Christ is an Intercession with God for us in his own name and upon the account of his proper merit The one is a private act of Charity the other a publick act of Office And so he is our Advocate or Court-friend as Satan our accuser or Court-adversary Satan is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 one that charges us before God 1 Pet. 5.8 And continually endeavours to make breaches between us and God Christ is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 our Attorney Advocate or Lidger that pleads for us and continues peace and friendship between us and God 1 Joh. 2.2 If any man sin we have an advocate with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous And thus to make intercercession is the peculiar and incommunicable prerogative of Jesus Christ. None but he can go in his own name to God And in that sense we are to understand that place Ezech. 44.2 3. Then said the Lord unto me this gate shall be shut it shall not be opened and no man shall enter in by it because the Lord the God of Israel hath entred in by it therefore it shall be shut It is for the Prince the Prince he shall sit in it to eat bread before the Lord c. The great broad gate called here the Princes gate signifies that abundant and direct entrance that Christ had into Heaven by his own merits and in his own name this faith the Lord shall be shut no man shall enter in by it all other men must come thither as it were by collateral or side doors which looked all towards the Altar viz. by vertue of the Mediator and through the benefit of his death imputed to them And yet though God hath for ever shut up and bar'd this way to all the children of men telling us that no man shall ever have access to him in his own name as Christ the Prince had How do some notwithstanding strive to force open the Princes gate So do they that found the intercession of Saints upon their own works and merits thereby robbing Christ of his peculiar glory but all that so approach God approach a devouring fire Christ only in the vertue of his blood thus comes before him to make intercession for us Secondly We will inquire wherein the Intercession of Christ in Heaven consists or by what acts he performs this Glorious Office there And the Scriptures place it in three things First In his presenting himself before the Lord in our names and upon our accounts So we read in Heb. 9.24 Christ is entred into Heaven it self now to appear in the presence of God for us The Apostle manifestly alludes to
or Satan be in the Throne and sways the Scepter over our souls Reader the work I would now engage thy soul in is the same that Jesus Christ will throughly and effectually do in the great day Then will he gather out of his Kingdom every thing that offends separate the tares and wheat Divide the whole world into two ranks or grand divisions how many divisions and sub-divisions soever there be in it now it neerly concerns thee therefore to know who is Lord and King in thy soul. To help thee in this great work make use of the following hints for I cannot fully prosecute these things as I would First To whom do you yield your obedience His Subjects and servants ye are to whom ye obey Rom. 6.16 It 's but a mockery to give Christ the empty titles of Lord and King whilst ye give your real service to sin and Satan What is this but like the Jews to bow the knee to him and say hail Master and crucifie him Then are ye his disciples if ye do whatsoever he commands you Joh. 15.14 He that is Christs servant in jest shall be damned in earnest Christ doth not complement with you His Pardons Promises Salvations are real O let your obedience be so too Let it be sincere and universal obedience this will evidence your unfeigned subjection to Christ. Do not dare to enterprize any thing till you know Christs pleasure and Will Rom. 12.2 Enquire of Christ as David did of the Lord 1 Sam. 23.9 10 11. Lord may I do this or that or shall I forbear I beseech thee tell thy Servant Secondly Have you the power of godliness or a form of it only There be many that do but trifle in Religion and play about the skirts and borders of it spending their time about jejune and barren controversies but as to the power of Religion and life of Godliness which consists in communion with God in duties and ordinances which promotes holiness and mortifies their Lusts they concern not themselves about these things But surely the Kingdom of God is not in word but in power 1 Cor. 4.20 It is not meat and drink that is dry disputes about meats and drinks but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy-Ghost for he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men Rom. 14.17 18. O I am affraid when the great Host of Professors shall be tried by these rules thâ—y will shrink up into a little handful as Gideons Host did Thirdly Have ye the special saving knowledge of Christ All his Subjects are translated out of the Kingdom of darkness 1 Col. 13. The Devil that ruleth over you in the daies of your ignorance is called the Ruler of the darkness of this world His Subjects are all blind else he could never rule them Assoon as their eyes be opened they run out of his Kingdom And there is no retaining them in subjection to him any longer O enquire then whether you are brought out of darkness into his marvelous light Do ye see your condition how sad miserable wretched iâ— is by nature Do ye see your remedy as it lies only in Christ and his pretious blood Do ye see the true way of obtaining interest in that blood by faith Doth this knowledge run into practice and put you upon lamenting heartily your misery by sin Thirsting vehemently after Christ and his Righteousness Striving continually for an heart to believe and close with Chirst This will evidence you indeed to be translated out of the Kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of Christ. Fourthly With whom do ye delightfully associate your selves who are your chosen Companions Ye may â—ee to whom ye belong by the Company you join your selves to What do the Subjects of Christ among the slaves of Satan If the Subjects of one Kingdom be in another Kings dominions they love to be together with their own Countrymen rather than the natives of the place so do the servants of Christ. They are a company of themselves as it is said Act. 4.23 They went to their own Company I know the Subjects of both Kingdoms are here mingled and we cannot avoid the company of sinners except we go out of the world 1 Cor. 5.10 But yet all your delights should be in the Saints and in the excellent of the earth Psal. 16.3 Fifthly Do ye live Holy and Righteous lives If not you may claim interest in Christ as your King but he will never allow your claim The Scepter of his Kingdom is a Scepter of Righteousness Psal. 45.6 If ye oppress go beyond and cheat your brethren and yet call your selves Christs Subjects what greater reproach can ye study to cast upon him What is Christ the King of Cheats Doth he patronize such things as these No no pull off your vizards and fall into your own places you belong to another Prince and not to Christ. Inference 3. Doth Christ exercise such a Kingly power over the souls of all them that are subdued by the Gospel to him O then let all that are under Christs government walk as the Subjects of such a King Imitate your King the examples of Kings are very influential upon their Subjects Your King hath commanded you not only to take his yoak upon you but also to learn of him Matth. 11.29 Yea and if any man say that he is Christs let him walk even as Christ walked 1 Joh. 2.6 Your King is meek and patient Isai. 53.7 As a Lamb for meekness shall his Subjects be Lyons for fierceness Your King was humble and lowly Matth. 21.5 Behold the King cometh meek and lowly Will ye be proud and lofty Doth this become the Kingdom of Christ Your King was a self-denying King He could deny his outward comforts ease honour life to serve his Fathers design and accomplish your Salvation 2 Cor. 8.9 2 Phil 1.2 3 4 5 6 7 8. Shall his servants be self-ended and self-seeking persons that will expose his honour and hazard their own souls for the trifles of time God forbid Your King was painful laborious and diligent in fulfilling his work Ioh. 9.3 Let not his servants be lasie and slothful O imitate your King follow the pattern of your King this will give you comfort now and boldness in the day of Judgement if as he was so ye are in this world 1 Ioh. 4.17 The SEVENTEENTH SERMON IEPH XXII And hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head over all things to the Church THE foregoing verses are spent in a thankful and humble adoration of the grace of God in bringing these Ephesians to believe in Christ. This effect of that power that raised their hearts to believe in Christ is here compared with that other glorious effect of it even the raising of Christ himself from the dead Both these owe themselves to the same efficient cause It raised Christ from a low estate even from the dead to
few particulars of Christs humiliation in his incarnation Next we shall infer somethings from it that are practical Inference 1. Hence we gather the fulness and compleatness of Christs satisfaction as the sweet first fruits of incarnation Did man offend and violate the Law of God Behold God himself is become a man to repair that breach and satisfie for the wrong done The highest honour that ever the law of God received was to have such a person as the man Christ Jesus is to stand before its Bar and make reparation to it This is more than if it had poured out all our blood and built up its honour upon the ruines of the whole creation It is not so much to see all the Stars in Heaven overcast as to see one Sun eclipsed The greater Christ was the greater was his humiliation and the greater his humiliation was the more full and compleat was his satisfaction and the more compleatness there is in Christs satisfaction the more perfect and steady is the Believers consolation If he had not stoopt so low our joy and comfort could not be exalted so high The depth of the foundation is the strength of the superstructure Inference 2. Did Christ for our sakes stoop from the Majesty glory and dignity he was possessed of in Heaven to the mean and contemptible state of a man what a pattern of self-denial is here presented to Christians What objection against or excuses to shift off this duty can remain after such an example as is here propounded Brethren let me tell you the Pagan world was never acquainted with such an Argument as this to press them to self-denial Did Christ stoop and cannot you stoop Did Christ stoop so much and cannot you stoop in the least Was he content to become any thing a worm a reproach a curse and cannot you digest any abasements Do the least slights and neglects rancle your hearts and poyson them with discontent malice and revenge O how unlike Christ are you Hear and blush in hearing what your Lord saith in Joh. 13.14 If I then your Lord and Master wash your feet ye also ought to wash one anothers feet This example obliges not as a learned man well observes to the same individual act but it obliges us to follow the reason of the example That is after Christs example we must be ready to perform the lowest and meanest Offices of love and service to one another And indeed to this it obliges most forcibly for it is as if a Master seeing a proud sturdy Servant that grudges at the work he is imployed about as if it were too mean and base should come and take it out of his hand and when he hath done it should say doth not your Lord and Master think it beneath him to do it and is it beneath you I remember it is an excellent saying that Bernard hath upon the nativity of Christ. Saith he what more detestable what more unworthy or what deserves severer punishment than for a poor man to magnifie himself after he hath seen the great and high God so humbled as to become a little Child it is intollerable impudence for a worm to swell with pride after it hath seen majesty emptying it self To see one so infinitely above us to stoop so far beneath us Oh how convincing and shaming should it be Ah how opposite should pride and stoutness be to the spirit of a Christian I am sure nothing is more so to the Spirit of Christ. Your Saviour was lowly meek self-denying and of a most condescending Spirit He looked not at his own things but yours Phil. 2.4 And doth it become you to be proud selfish and stout I remember Ierom in his Epistle to Pamachius a godly young noble-man adviseth him to be eyes to the blind feet to the lame yea saith he if need be I would not have you refuse to cut wood and draw water for the Saints and what saith he is this to buffeting and spetting to crowning with thorns scourging and dying Christ did undergo all this and that for the ungodly Inference 3. Did Christ stoop so low as to become a man to save us Then those that perish under the Gospel must needs perish without apology What would you have Christ do more to save you Loe he hath laid aside the robes of Majesty and glory put on your own garments of flesh come down from his Throne and brought Salvation home to your own doors Surely the lower Christ stooped to save us the lower shall we sink under wrath that neglect so great Salvation The Lord Jesus is brought low but the unbeliever will lay him yet lower even under his feet he will tread the Son of God under foot Heb. 10.28 for such as the Apostle there speaks is reserved something worse than dying without mercy What pleas and excuses others will make at the Judgement Seat I know not but once it 's evident you will be speechless And as one well observes the vilest sinners among the Gentiles nay the Devils themselves will have more to say for themselves than you I must be plain with you I beseech you consider how Iews Pagans and Devils will rise up in Judgement against you The Iew may say I had a legal yoak upon me which neither I nor my fathers were able to bear Christ invited me only into the garden of nuts where I might sooner break my teeth with the hard shells of Ceremonies than get the kernel of Gospel-promises In the best of our Sacrifices the smoak filled our Temple smoak only to provoke us to weep for a clearer manifestation We had but the old edition of the Covenant of grace in a character very darkly intelligible you have the last edition with a Commentary of our rejection and the worlds reception and the spirits effusion You had all that heart could wish I perish eternally may the poor Pagan say without all possibility of reconciliation and have only sinned against the Covenant of works having never heard of a Gospel Covenant nor of reconciliation by a Mediator O had I heard but one Sermon had Christ but once broke in upon my soul to convince me of my undone condition and to have shewn a righteousness to me but wo is me I never had so much as one offer of Christ. But so have I must you say that refuse the Gospel I have or might have heard thousands of Sermons I could scarce escape hearing one or other shewing me the danger of my sin and my necessity of Christ but notwithstanding all I heard I wilfully resolved I would have nothing to do with him I could not endure to hear strictness prest upon me It was all the hell I had upon earth that I could not sin in quiet Nay may the Devil himself say it 's true I was ever since my fall malitiously set against God but alas as soon as I had sinned God kickt me out of Heaven and told me
these are honourable scars and highly grace and commend it to his Spouse for whose dear sake he here received them They are marks of Love and Honour And he would be so drawn or rather he so drew himself that as oft as his people look'd upon that portraicture of him they may remember and be deeply affected with those things he here endured for their sakes These are the wounds my dear Husband Jesus received for me These are are the marks of that Love which passes the Love of creatures O see the Love of a Saviour This is that Heavenly Pelican that feeds his young with his own blood We have read of pitiful and tender women that have eaten the flesh of their own children Lamb. 4.10 But where is that woman recorded that gave her own flesh and blood to be meat and drink to her children Surely the Spouse may say of the Love of Christ what David in his Lamentations said of the Love of Ionathan thy Love to me was wonderful passing the Love of women But to prepare the point to be meat indeed and drink indeed to thy soul Reader I shall discuss briefly these three things and hasten to the application First What it is to remember the Lord Jesus in the Sacrament Secondly What aptitude there is in that Ordinance so to bring him to our remembrance Thirdly How the care and Love of Christ is discovered by leaving such a memorial of himself within us First What it is to remember the Lord Jesus in the Sacrament Remembrance properly is the return of the mind to an object about which it hath been formerly conversant And it may so return to a thing it hath conversed with before two waies speculatively and transciently or affectingly and permanently A speculative remembrance is only to call to mind the history of such a person and his sufferings That Christ was once put to death in the flesh An affectionate remembrance is when we so call Christ and his death to our minds as to feel the powerful impressions thereof upon our hearts Thus Matth. 26.75 Peter remembred the words of the Lord and went out and wept bitterly His very heart was melted with that remembrance his bowels were pained he could not hold but went out and wept abundantly Thus Ioseph when he saw his brother Benjamin whose sight refreshed the memory of former daies and endearments was greatly affected Gen. 43.29 30. And he lift up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin his mothers Son and said is this your younger brother of whom ye spake to me and he said God be gracious unto thee my Son And Joseph made haste for his bowels did yearn upon his brother and he sought where to weep and he entred into his Chamber and wept there Such a remembrance of Christ is that which is here intended This is indeed a gratious remembrance of Christ the former hath nothing of grace in it The time shall come when Iudas that betrayed him and the Iews that pierced him shall hystorically remember what was done Rev. 1.7 Behold he cometh with clouds and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him They I say Iudas shall remember this is he whom I perfidiously betrayed Pilate shall remember this is he whom I sentensed to be hanged on the tree though I was convinced of his innocency Then the Souldiers shall remember this is that Face we spet upon that head we crowned with thorns Lo this is he whose side we pierced whose hands and Feet we once nailed to the Cross. But this remembrance will be their torment not their benefit It is not therefore a bare hystorical speculative but a gratious affectionate impressive remembrance of Christ that is here intended and such a remembrance of Christ supposes and includes First The saving knowledge of him We cannot be said to remember what we never knew nor to remember savingly what we never knew savingly There have been many previous sweet and gratious transactions dealings and intimacies betwixt Christ and his people from the time of their first happy acquaintance with him much of that sweetness they have had in former considerations of him and hours of communion with him are lost and gone For nothing is more volatile hazardous and inconstant than our Spiritual comforts but now at the Table there our old acquintance is renewed and the remembrance of his goodness and Love refreshed and revived We will remember thy Love more than wine the upright Love thee Cant. 1.4 Secondly Such a remembrance of Christ includes faith in it Without discerning Christ at a Sacrament there is no remembrance of him and without faith no discerning Christ there But when the pretious eye of faith hath espied Christ under that vail it presently calls up the affections saying come see the Lord. These are the wounds he received for me This is he that Loved me and gave himself for me This is his flesh and that his blood sic Occulos sic ille Manus c. so his Arms were stretched out upon the Cross to embrace me So his blessed Head hung down to kiss me Awake my Love rouze up my Hope flame out my Desires come forth O all ye powers and affections of my soul come see the Lord. No sooner doth Christ by his Spirit call to the Believer but faith hears and discerning the voice turns about like Mary saying Rabboni my Lord my Master Thirdly This remembrance of Christ includes suitable impressions made upon the affections by such a sight and remembrance of him And therein lies the nature of that pretious thing which we call communion with God Various representations of Christs are made at the Table Sometimes the soul there calls to mind the infinite wisdom that so contriv'd and laid the glorious and mysterious design and project of redemption The effect of this is wonder and admiration O the manifold wisdom of God! Eph. 3.10 O the depths the heights the length the breadth of this wisdom I can as easily span the heavens as take the just demensions of it Sometimes a representation of the severity of God is made to the soul at that Ordinance O how inflexible and severe is the Justice of God What no abatements No sparing mercy not to his own Son this begets a double impression on the heart First Just and deep indignation against sin Ah cursed sin 'T was thou usedst my dear Lord so For thy sake he underwent all this If thy vileness had not been so great his sufferings had not been so many Cursed sin thou wast the knife that stab'd him Thou the sword that pierced him Ah what revenge it works I remember it 's storied of one of the Kings of France that hearing his Bishop as I remember it was Remigius read the Historie of Christs trial and execution and hearing how barbarously they had used Christ he was moved with so tragical and pathetical a
Christ as many of his other enemies did of whom it 's said 1 Cor. 2.8 That had they known him they would not have crucified the Lord of glory But he did it for mony to make his market of Christ. He sold Christ as a man would sell an Ox or a Sheep to the Butcher for profit He was fully of the mind of the Pope whose motto was the smell or savor of gain is sweet let it rise out of what it will If he can get any thing by Christs blood it shall be a vendible commodity with him What will ye give me saith he and I will betray him Matth. 26.15 Fourthly He sells him and he sells him at a low rate too which shewed how vile an esteem he had of Christ. He is content to part with him for thirty pieces of silver If these pieces or sheckles were the sheckles of the sanctuary they amounted but to three pounds fifteen shillings But it 's supposed they were the common sheckles which were mostly used in buying and selling and then his price that he put upon the Saviour of the world was but one pound seaventeen shillings and six pence A goodly price as the Prophet calls it that he was valued at Zech. 11.12 13. I confess it 's a wonder he asked no more knowing how much they longed for his blood and â—hat they offered no more for him but how then should the Scriptures have been fulfilled O what a sale was this to sell that blood which all the Gold and Silver in the world is not worth one drop of for a trifle Still the wickedness of this fact rises higher and higher Fifthly He left Christ in most Heavenly and excellent imployment when he went to make this soul undoing bargain For if he went away from the Table as some think then he left Christ instituting and administring those Heavenly Signs of his body and blood There he saw or might have seen the bloody work he was going about acted as in a figure before him If he sate out that Ordinance as others suppose he did Then he left Christ singing an Heavenly hymn and preparing to go where Iudas was preparing to meet him When the Lord Jesus was in the most serious and heavenly exercise the wretch slinked away from him into the City or else went under pretence to buy some necessaries But his design was not to buy but to sell whatever his pretences were Nay Sixthly What he did was not done by the perswasions of any The High-Priest sent not for him and without doubt was surprised when he he came to him on such an errand For it could never enter into any of their hearts that any of his own Disciples could ever be drawn into a confederacy against him No he went as a Voluntier offering himself to this work which still heightens the sin and makes it out of measure sinful Seaventhly The manner in which he executes his treasonable design adds further malignity to the fact He comes to Christ with fawning words and carriages Hail Master and kist him Here 's hony in the tongue and poyson in the heart Here 's hatred hid under lying lips This was the man and this was his fact Let us enquire Thirdly The cause and motives of this wickedness how he came to attempt and perpetrate such a villany Maldonate the Iesuit criminates the Protestant Divines for affirming that God had an hand in ordering and overruling this fact But we say that Satan and his own Lust was the impulsive cause of it That God as it was a wicked treason permitted it And as it was a delivering Christ to death was not only the permitter but the wise and holy director or orderer of it and by the wisdom of his providence overruled it to the great good and advantage of the Church in respect of which happy issue Iudas his treason is called faelix scelus a happy wickedness Satan inspired the motion Luk. 22.3 4. Then entred Satan into Judas sirnamed Iscariot and he went his way c. his own Lusts like dry tinder kindled presently his heart was covetous there was predisposed matter enough for the Devil to work on so that it was but touch and take Vers. 25. They covenanted to give him mony and he promised c. The holy God disposed and ordered all this to the singular benefit and good of his people Acts 4.28 they did whatsoever his hand and counsel had before determined to be done And by this determinate counsel of God was he taken and slain Acts 2.23 Yet this no way excuses the wickedness of the Instruments For what they did was done from the power of their own lusts most wickedly what he did was done in the unsearchable depth of his own wisdom most holy God knows how to serve his own ends by the very sins of men and yet have no communion at all in the sin he so overrules If a man let go a Dog out of his hand in pursuit of a Hare the Dog hunts meerly for a prey but he that let him go uses the sagacity and nimbleness of the Dog to serve his own ends by it Iudas minded nothing but his own advantage to get mony God permitted that Lust to work but overruled the issue to his own eternal glory and the salvation of our souls Fourthly Lastly but what was the end and issue of this fact As to Christ it was his death for the hour being come he doth not meditate an escape nor put forth the power of his Godhead to deliver himself out of their hands Indeed he shewed what he could do when he made them go back and stagger with a word He could obtain more than twelve legions of Angels to have been his life-guard one of whom had been sufficient to have coped with all the Roman legions but how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled or our Salvation accomplished No he resists not but Iudas delivering him into their hands at that time was his death And what got he as a reward of his wickedness It ended in the ruine both of his soul and body For immediately a death-pang of despair seized his Conscience which was so intollerable that he ran to the halter for a remedy And so falling headlong he burst assunder and all his bowels gushed out Acts 1.18 And now he that had no bowels for Christ hath none for himself As for his soul it went to its own place vers 25. Even the place appointed for the son of perdition as Christ calls him Iohn 17.12 His name retains an odious stench to this day and shall to all generations It 's a by-word A Proverb of reproach This was his end We will next improve it Corollary 1. Hence in the first place we learn that the greatest professors had need be jealous of their own hearts and look well to the grounds and principles of their professions One of the Antients would have had this Epitaph engraven upon
Which still increaseth and aggravateth the misery of it If a man must die a violent death it 's a favour to be dispatcht As they that are pressed to death beg for more weight And it 's a favour to those that are hanged to be smitten on the breast or plucked by the heels by their friends On the contrary to hang long in the midst of tortures to have death coming upon us with a slow pace that we may feel every tread of it as it comes on is a misery The Tyrant that heard the poor Martyr was dead under his first torments said as one disappointed Evasit He hath escaped me For he intended to have kept him much longer under torments And it was the cruel counsel of another to his executioner Let him die so as he may feel himself how he dies And surely in this respect it was worse for Christ than any other that was ever nailed to the Tree For all the while he hanged there he remained full of life and acute sence His life departed not gradually but was whole in him to the last Other men die gradually and towards their end their sence of pain is much blunted They faulter fumble and expire by degrees but Christ stood under â—he pains of death in his full strength His life was whole in him This was evident by the mighty outcry he made when he gave up the Ghost Which argued him then to be full of strength contrary to the experience of all other men Which made the Centurion when he heard it to conclude Surely this was the Son of God Mark 15.37 39. Sixthly It was a succourless and helpless death to Christ. Sometimes they gave to malefactors amidst their torments Vinegar and Myrh to blunt dull and stupifie their Sences And if they hanged long would break their bones to dispatch them out of their pains Christ had none of this favour Instead of Vinegar and Myrh they gave him Vinegar and Gall to drink to aggravate his torments And for the breaking of his bones he prevented it by dying before they come to break his legs For the Scriptures must be fulfilled which saith not a bone of him shall be broken This now was the kind and nature of that death he died Even the violent painful shameful cursed slow and succourless death of the Cross. An Ancient punishment both among the Romans and Carthaginians But in honour of Christ who died this death Constantine the great abrogated it by Law ordaining that none should ever be Crucified any more because Christ died that Death Secondly As to the manner of the execution They that were condemned to the death of the Cross saith a Learned Antiquary of our own bare their Cross upon their own shoulders to the place of execution Then was stript of all their cloaths for they suffered naked And then were fastned to the Cross with nails The manner how that was done one gives us in these words They stretch him out meaning Christ like another Isaac upon his own burden the Cross that so they might take measure of the holes And though the Print of his blood upon it gave them the true length of his body yet how strictly do they take it longer than the truth Thereby at once to Crucifie and rack him Then being nailed like as Moses lifted up the Serpent so was the Son of man lifted up And when the Cross with the Lord fastned on it fell into its socket or basis it Jerked the whole and every part of his sacred body And the whole weight hanging on his nailed hands the wounds by degrees grew wider and wider till at last he expired in the midst of those tortures And that the equity of their proceedings might the better appear to the people the cause of the punishment was written in Capital Letters and fixed to the Tree over the head of the Malefactor Of this appendant to this kind of death I shall speak distinctly in the next Sermon before I come to handle the manner of his death there being so much of providence in that circumstance as invites us to spend more than a few transient thoughts upon it Mean while in the next place Thirdly We will enquire briefly into the reasons why Christ died this rather than any other kind of death And amongst others these three are obvious First Because Christ must bear the curse in his death and a curse by Law affixed to no other kind of death as it was to this The Learned Masius upon Iosuah 2.29 Commenting upon the death of the King of Ai who was hanged on the Tree until evening tells us that the principal reason of the malediction and execrableness of this death was because the death of Christ was prefigured in that mysterie Christ came to take away the curse from us by this death and so must be made a curse On him must all the curses of the Moral Law lie which were due to us And that nothing might be wanting to make it a full curse the very death he died must also have a Ceremonial curse upon it Secondly Christ died this rather than any other kind of death to fulfil the Types and prefigurations that of old were made with respect to it All the Sacrifices were lifted up from the earth upon the Altar But especially the brassen Serpent prefigured this death Numb 21.9 Moses made a Serpent of Brass and put it upon a pole And saith Christ Ioh. 3.14 As Moses lifted up the Serpent in the wilderness so must the Son of man be lifted up that so he might correspond with that lively Type made of him in the wilderness Thirdly Christ died this rather than any other death because it was predicted of him and in him must all the predictions as well as Types be fully accomplished The Psalmist spake in the person of Christ of this death as plainly as if he had rather been writing the History of what was done than a Prophesie of what was to be done so many years afterwards Psal. 22.16 17. For dogs have compassed me about the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me they pierced my hands and my feet I may tell all my bones they look and stare upon me Which hath a manifest reference to the distâ—ntion of all his members upon the Tree which was as a rack to him So Zech 12.10 They shall look upon me whom they have pierced Yea Christ himself had foretold the death he should die in the forecited Ioh. 3.14 Saying he must be lifted up i. e. hanged between heaven and earth And the Scriptures must be fulfilled Thus you have a brief account both of the kind manner and reasons of this death of Christ. The improvement of it you have in the following Inferences of truth diducible from it Inference 1. Is Christ dead And did he die the violent painful shameful cursed slow and succourless death of the Cross Then surely there is forgiveness with
That Iesus Christ hath perfected and compleatly finished the great work of Redemption committed to him by God the Father To this great truth the Apostle gives a full testimony Heb. 10.14 By one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified And to the same purpose speaks Joh. 17.4 I have glorified thee on earth I have finished the work thou gavest me to do Concerning this work and the finishing thereof by Jesus Christ upon the Cross we shall enquire what this work was how Christ finished it and what evidence can be produced for the finishing of it First What was the work which Christ finished by his death It was the fulfilling the whole Law of God in our room and for our Redemption as a Sponsor or surety for us The Law is a glorious thing The holiness of God that fiery attribute is engraven or stampt upon every part of it Deut. 33.2 From his right hand went a fiery Law The jealousie of the Lord watched over every point and tittle of it for his dreadful and glorious name was upon it It cursed every one that continued not in all things contained therein Gal. 3.10 Two things therefore were necessarily required in him that should perfectly fulfil it and both found in our surety and in him only viz. a subjective and effective perfection First A subjective perfection He that wanted this could never say it is finished Perfect working always follows a perfect being That he might therefore finiâ—h this great work of obedience and therein the glorious design of our Redemption loe in what shining and perfect holiness was he produced Luk. 1.35 That holy thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God and indeed such an High-Priest became us who is holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners Heb. 7.26 So that the Law could have no exception against his person Nay it was never so honoured since its first promulgation as it was by having such a perfect and excellent person as Christ to stand at its Bar and give it due reparation Secondly There must be also an effective perfection or a perfection of working and obeying before it could be said it is finished This Christ had for he continued in all things written in the Law to do them He fulfilled all righteousness as it behoved him to do Matth. 3.15 He did all that was required to be done And suffered all that was requisite to be sufferâ—d He did and suffered all that was commanded or threatned in such perfection of obedience both active and passive that the pure eye of divine Justice could not find a flaw in it And so finished the work his Father gave him to do And this work finished by our Lord Jesus Christ was both a necessary difficult and pretious work First It was a necessary work which Christ finished upon the Cross. Necessary upon a threefold account It was necessary on the Fathers account I do not mean that God was under any necessity from his nature of redeeming us this or any other way For our Redemption is opus liberi consilii an effect of the free counsel of God but when God had once decreed and determined to redeem and save poor sinners by Jesus Christ then it became necessary that the counsel of God should be fulfilled Act. 4.28 To do whatsoever thy hand and counsel had before determined to be done Secondly It was necessary with respect to Christ. Upon the account of that previous compact that was betwixt the Father and him about it Therefore it 's said by Christ himself Luk. 22.22 Truly the Son of Man goeth as it was determined i. e. as it was fore-agreed and covenanted under the necessity of fulfilling his engagement to the Father he came into the world and being come he still minds his engagement Joh. 9.3 I must work the works of him that sent me Thirdly Yea and it was no less necessary upon our account that this work should be finished For had not Christ finished this work sin had quickly finished all our lives comforts and hopes Without the finishing this work not a Son or Daughter of Adam could ever have seen the face of God Therefore it 's said Joh. 3.14 15. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness so must the Son of man be lifted up that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life On all these accounts the finishing of this work was necessary Secondly As it was necessary this work should be finished so the finishing of it was exceeding difficult It cost many a cry many a groan many a tear many a hard tug before Christ could say it is finished All the Angels in Heaven were not able by their united strength to lift that burden one inch from the ground which Christ bare upon his shoulders yea and bare it away But how heavy a burden this was may in part appear by his propassion in the Garden and the bitter out-crys he made upon the Cross which in their proper places have been opened Thirdly and Lastly It was a most pretious work which Christ finished by his death That work was dispatched and finished in few hours which will be the matter of everlasting songs and triumphs to the Angels and Saints to all eternity O it was a pretious work The mercies that now flow out of this fountain viz. Justification Sanctification Adoption c. are not to be valued Besides the endless happiness and glory of the coming-world which cannot enter into the heart of man to conceive If the Angels sang when the foundation stone was laid what shouts what triumphs should there be among the Saints when this voice is heard It is finished Secondly Let us next inform our selves how and in what manner Jesus Christ finished this glorious work And if you search the Scriptures upon that account you will find that he finished it obedientially freely diligently and fully First This blessed work was finished by Jesus Christ most obediently Phil. 2.8 He became obedient to death even the death of the Cross. His obedience was the obedience of a servant though not servile obedience So it was foretold of him before he touched this work Isai. 50.5 The Lord God hath opened mine ear and I was not rebellious neither turned away back i. e. my Father told me the very worst of it He told me what hard and heavy things I must undergo if ever I finished this design of redemption and I was not rebellious i. e. I heartily submitted to and accepted all those difficulties For there is a Meiosis in the words I was content to stoop to the hardest and most ignominious part of it rather than not finish it Secondly As Christ finished it obediently so he finished it freely Freedom and obedience in acting are not at all opposite to or exclusive of each other Moses his Mother nursed him in obedience to the command of Pharaohs daughter yet most
visitation Lastly If your work be not finished when you come to die you can never finish your lives with comfort He that hath not finished his work with care can never finish his course with joy Oh what a dismal case is that soul in that finds it self surprized by death in an unready posture To lie shivering upon the brink of the grave saying Lord what will become of me O I cannot I dare not die For the poor soul to shrink back into the body and cry Oh it were better for me to do any thing than die Why what 's the matter Oh I am in a Christless state and dare not go before that awful Judgement-seat If I had in season made Christ sure I could then die with peace Lord what shall I do How dost thou like this Reader Will this be a comfortable close When one asked a Christian that constantly spent six hours every day in prayer why he did so He answered O I must die I must die Well then look it that ye finish your work as Christ also did his The THIRTY SIXTH SERMON LUK. XXIII XLVI And when Iesus had cried with a loud voice he said Father into thy hands I commend my spirit and having said thus he gave up the ghost THese are the last of the last words of our Lord Jesus Christ upon the Cross with which he breatheth out his soul. They were Davids words before him Psal. 31.5 and for substance Stephens after him Act. 7.57 They are words full both of faith and comfort Fit to be the last breathings of every gratious soul in this world They are resolvable into these five particulars The Person depositing or committing The Lord Iesus Christ who in this as well as in other things acted as a common person as the head of the Church This must be remarked carefully for therein lies no small part of a believers consolation When Christ commends his soul to God he doth as it were bind up all the souls of the Elect in one bundle with it and solemnly present them all with his to his Fathers acceptance To this purpose one aptly sences it This commendation made by Christ turns to the singular profit and advantage of our souls in as much as Christ by this very prayer hath delivered them into his Fathers hand as a pretious treasure when ever the time comes that they are to he loosed from the bodies which they now inhabit Jesus Christ neither lived nor dyed for himself but for believers What he did in this very act refers to them as well as to his own Soul You must look therefore upon Christ in this last and solemn act of his life as gathering all the souls of the Elect together and making a solemn tender of them all with his own soul to God Secondly The depository or person to whom he commits this pretious treasure and that was his own Father Father into thy hands I commit Father is a sweet encouraging assuring Title Well may a Son commit any concernment how dear soever into the hand of a Father Especially such a Son into the hands of such a Father By the hands of the Father into which he commits his soul we are not to understand the naked or meer power but the Fatherly acceptation and protection of God Thirdly The depositum or thing committed into this hand my Spirit i. e. my soul now instantly departing upon the very point of separation from my body The soul is the most pretious of all treasures it 's call'd the darling Psal. 35.17 Or the only one i. e. that which is most excellent and therefore most dear and pretious A whole world is but a trifle if weighed for the price of one soul Matth. 16.26 This inestimable treasure he now commits into his Fathers hands Fourthly The Act by which he puts it into that faithful hand of the Father 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I commend We rightly render it in the present tense though the word be future For with these words he breathed out his Soul This word is of the same import with 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I present or tender it unto thy hands It was in Christ an act of Faith A most special and excellent act intended as a president for all his people Fifthly And Lastly the last thing observable is the manner in which he uttered these words And that was with a loud voice He spake it that all might hear it and that his enemies who judged him now destitute and forsaken of God might be convinced that he was not so But that he was dear to his Father still and could put his soul confidently into his hands Father into thy hands I commend my Spirit Taking then these words not only as spoken by Christ the Head of all believers and so commending their souls to God with his own but also as a pattern teaching them what they ought to do themselves when they come to die We observe DOCT. That dying believers are both warranted and encouraged by Christs example believingly to commend their pretious Souls into the hands of God Thus the Apostle directs the Faith of Christians to commit their souls to Gods tuition and Fatherly protection when they are either going into prisons or to the stake for Christ 1 Pet. 4.19 Let them saith he that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing as unto a faithful Creator This Proposition we will consider in these two main branches of it sc. what is implied and carryed in the souls commending it self to God by Faith when the time of separation is come And what warrant or encouragement gratious souls have for their so doing First What is implyed in this Act of a believer his commending or committing his soul into the hands of God at Death And if it be throughly weighed you will find these six things at least carried in it First It implies this evidently in it that the soul out-lives the body and fails not as to its being when its body fails It feels the house in which it dwelt dropping into ruins and looks out for a new habitation with God Father into thy hands I commend my Spirit The soul understands it self a more noble being than that corruptible body to which it was united and is now to leave in the dust It understands its relation to the Father of spirits and from him it expects protection and provision in its unbodied state and therefore into his hands it puts it self If it vanished or breathed into air and did not survive the body if it were annihilated at death it were but a mocking of God to say when we die Father into thy hand I commend my Spirit Secondly It implies the souls true rest to be in God See which way its motions and tendencies are not only in life but in death also It bends to its God It rolls it even puts
Soul and be satisfied In which words thrâ—e things fall under our consideration First The travailing pangs of Christ. So the Agonies of his soul and Torments of his body are fitly call'd not only because of the sharpness and acuteness of them being in that respect like the birth pangs of a travailing woman for so this word signifies But also because they forerun and make way for the birth which abundantly recompences all those labours I shall not here insist upon the the pangs and Agonies endured by Christ in the garden or upon the Cross which the Prophet stiles the travail of his Soul having in the former Sermons open'd it largely in its particulars but pass to the Second Thing considerable in these words and that is the assured fruits and effects of this his travail He shall see the travail of his Soul By seeing understand the fruition obtainment or enjoyment of the ends of his sufferings He shall not shed his blood upon an hazard His design shall not miscarry but he shall certainly see the ends he aimed at accomplisht And Thirdly This shall yield him great satisfaction as a woman forgets her sorrow for joy that a man is born into the world Joh. 16.21 He shall see it and be Satisfied As God when he had finished the work of Creation viewed that his work with pleasure and satisfaction so doth our exalted Redeemer with great contentment behold the happy issues of his hard sufferings It affords pleasure to a man to see great affairs by orderly conduct brought to happy issues Much more doth it yield delight to Iesus Christ to see the results of that most profound wisdom and love wherein he carried on Redemption work All runs into this DOCT. That all the blessed designs and ends for which the Lord Iesus Christ humbled himself to the death of the Cross shall certainly be attained to his full content and satisfaction My present business is not to prove that Christ shall certainly obtain what he died for nor to open the great satisfaction and pleasure which will rise to him out of those issues of his death but to point at the principal ends of his death making some brief improvements as we pass along First Then let us enquire into the designs and ends of Christs humiliation at least the main and principal ones and we shall find that as the sprinkling of the Typical blood in the Old Testament was done for four weighty Ends or Uses answerably the pretious and invaluable blood of the Testator and surety of the New Testament is shed for four weighty Ends also First That blood was shed and applied to deliver from danger Exod. 12.13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are and when I see the blood I will pass over you And the Plague shall not be upon you to destroy you when I smite the Land of Egypt Secondly That blood was shed to make an attonement betwixt God and the people Levit. 4.20 And he shall do with the Bullock as he did with the Bullock for a sin offering so shall he do with this and the Priest shall make an attonement for them and it shall be forgiven them Thirdly That blood was shed to purifie persons from their ceremonial pollutions Levit. 14.6 7. He shall dip the Cedar wood and Scarlet and Hysop with the living bird in the blood of the bird that was kill'd over the running water and he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the Leprosie seven times and shall pronounce him clean and shall let the living bird loose in the open field Fourthly That blood was shed to ratifie and confirm the Testament or Covenant of God with the people Exod. 24.8 And Moses took the blood and sprinkled it on the people and said behold the blood of the Covenant which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words These were the four main Ends of shedding and sprinkling that Typical blood Sutably there are four principal Ends of shedding and applying Christs blood As that Typical blood was shed to deliver from danger so this was shed to deliver from wrath even the wrath to come That was shed to make an attonement so was this That was shed to purifie persons from uncleanness so was this That was shed to confirm the Testament so was this As will appear in the particulars more at large End 1. First One principal design and End of shedding the blood of Christ was to deliver his people from danger the danger of that wrath which burns down to the lowest Hell So you find 1 Thes. 1.10 Even Iesus who delivered us from the wrath to come Here our misery is both specified and aggravated Specifi'd in calling it wrath a word of deep and dreadful signification The damned best undâ—rstand the importance of that word And aggravated in calling it wrath to come or coming wrath Wrath to come implies both the futurity and perpetuity of this wrath It 's wrath that shall certainly and inevitably come upon sinners As sure as the night follows the day As sure as the Winter follows the Summer so shall wrath follow sin and the pleasures thereof Yea it 's not only certainly future but when it comes it will be abiding wrath or wrath still coming When millions of years and Ages are past and gone this will still be wrath to come Ever coming as a râ—ver eâ—er flowing Now from this wrath to come hath lesâ—s delivered his people by his death For that was the price laid down â—or their redemption from the wrath of thâ— grâ—at and terrible God Rom. 5.9 Much more then being â—ustified by his blood we shall be saved from wrath through him The blood of Jesus was the price that ransomed man from his wrath And it was shed not only to deliver them from wrath to come but to deliver them freely fully distinguishingly and wonderfully from it First Freely by his own voluntary interposition and susception of the mediatorial office moved thereunto by his own bowels of compaossion which yearned over his Elect in their misery The Saints were once a lost generation thaâ— had sold themselves and their inheritance also and had not wherewithall to Redeem either but they had a near kinsman even their elder Brother by the Mothers side to whom the right of Redemption did belong who being a mighty man of wealth the heir of all things undertook to be their Goell and out of his own proper substance to Redeem both them and their inheritance Them to be his own inheritance Eph. 1.10 And heaven to be theirs 1 Pet. 1.4 All this he did most freely when none madâ— supplication to him No sighing of the prisoners came before him He design'd it for us before we had a being And when the purposes of his grace were come to their parturient fulness then did he freely lay out the infinite treasures of his blood to purchase our
illumination Ier. 31.34 Gratious softness and tenderness of heart Ezek. 11.19 The awful dread and fear of God Ier. 32.40 The Copy or transcript of his Laws on your hearts in gratious correspondent principles Ier. 31.33 These things speak you the Children of the Covenant the persons on whom all these great things are settled Inference 2. To conclude it is the indispensible duty of all on whom Christ hath settled such mercies to admire his Love and walk answerably to it First Admire the Love of Christ. O how intense and ardent was the Love of Jesus who designed for you such an inheritance with such a settlement of it upon you These are the mercies with which his Love had travailed big from eternity and now he sees the travail of his soul and you also have seen somewhat of it this day Before this Love let all the Saints fall down astonished-humbly professing that they owe themselves and all they are or shall be worth to eternity to this Love Secondly And be sure you walk becoming persons for whom Christ hath done such great things Comfort your selves under present abasures with your spiritual priviledges Iam. 2.5 And let all your rejoycing be in Christ and what you have in him whilst others are blessing themselves in vanity Thus we have finished the state of Christs humiliation and thence proceed to the second state of his Exaltation HAving finished what I designed to speak to about the work of Redemption so far as it was carried on by Christ in his humbled state we shall now view that blessed work as it is further advanced and perfected in his State of Exaltation The whole of that work was not to be finished on earth in a state of suffering and abasure therefore the Apostle makes his Exaltation in order to the finishing of the remainder of his work so necessary a part of his Priesthood that without it he could not have been a Priest Heb. 8.4 If he were on earth he should not be a Priest i. e. if he should have continued alwaies here and had not been raised again from the dead and taken up into glory he could not have been a compleat and perfect Priest For look as it was not enough for the sacrifice to be slain without and his blood left there but after it was shed without it must be carried within the vail into the most holy place before the Lord Heb. 9.7 So it was not sufficient that Christ shed his own blood on earth except he carry it before the Lord into heaven and there perform his intercession work for us Moreover God the Father stood engaged in a solemn Covenant to reward him for his deep humiliation with a most glorious and illustrious advancement Isa. 49.5 6 7. And how God as it became him made this good to Christ the Apostle very clearly expresses it Phil. 2.9 Yea Justice required it should be so For how could our surety be detained in the prison of the Grave when the debt for which he was imprisoned was by him fully discharged so that the Law of God must acknowledge it self to be fully satisfied in all its claims and demands His Resurrection from the dead was therefore but his discharge or acquittance upon full payment Which could not in Justice be denyed him And indeed God the Father lost nothing by it for there never was a more glorious manifestation made of the name of God to the World than was made in that work Therefore it 's said Phil. 2.11 Speaking of one of the designs of Christs Exaltation it was saith the Apostle That every Tongue should confess that Iesus Christ is Lord to the Glory of God the Father O how is the Love of God to poor sinners illustriously yea astonishingly displayed in Christs Exaltation When to shew the Complacency and delight which he took in our recovery he hath openly declared to the world that his exalting Christ to all that glory such as no meer creature ever was or can be exalted to was bestowed upon him as a reward for that work that most grateful work of our Redemption Phil. 2.9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him there is an Emphatical Pleonasmus in that word our English is too flat to deliver out the elegancy of the Original it is Super-Exaltation The Seriack renders it he hath multiplyed his Sublimity The Arabick he hath heightened him with an height Iustin he hath famously exalted him Higher he cannot raise him a greater Argument of his high satisfaction and content in the recovery of poor sinners cannot be given For this therefore God the Father shall have glory and honour ascribed to him in Heaven to all Eternity Now this singular Exaltation of Jesus Christ as it properly respects his humane nature which alone is capable of advancement for in respect of his divine nature he never ceased to be the most high So it was done to him as a common person and as the head of all believers their representative in this as well as in his other works God therein shewing what in due time he intends to do with the persons of his Elect after they in Conformity to Christ have suffered a while What ever God the Father intendeth to do in us or for us he hath first done it to the person of our representative Iesus Christ. And this if you observe the Scriptures carry in very clear and plain expressions through all the degrees and steps of Christs Exaltation viz. his Resurrection Ascension Session at the right hand of God And returning to Iudge the World Of which I purpose to speak distinctly in the following Sermons He rose from the Dead as a common person Col. 3.1 If ye then be risen with Christ saith the Apostle so that the Saints have Communion and fellowship with him in his Resurrection He Ascended into Heaven as a common person for so it 's said in Eph. 2.6 He hath raised us up or exalted us together with Christ. He sits at Gods right hand as a common person for so it follows in the next clause and hath made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Iesus We sit there in our representative And when he shall come again to Judge the World the Saints shall come with him So it is Prophesied Zech. 14.6 The Lord my God shall come and all the Saints with thee And as they shall come with Christ from Heaven so they shall sit on Thrones with him judging by way of suffrage They shall be assessors with the Judge 1 Cor. 6.2 This deserves a special remark that all this honour is given to Christ as our head and representative for thence results abundance of comfort to the people oâ— God Carry it therefore along with you in your thoughts throughout the whole of Christs advancement Think when you shall hear that Christ is risen from the dead and is in all that glory and authority in Heaven How sure the salvation of his Redeemed is For if
When thou makest a feast call the poor the maimed the lame the blind and thou shalt be blessed for they cannot recompence thee for thou shalt be recompensed at the Resurrection of the Iust. It was the opinion of an eminent modern Divine that no man living fully understands and believes that Scripture Matth. 25.40 In as much as ye have done it to one of the least of these my brethren ye have done it unto me How few Saints would be exposed to daily wants and necessities if that Scripture were but fully understood and believed Inference 3. Is Christ risen from the dead and that as a publick person and representative of believers How are we all concerned then to secure to our selves an interest in Christ and consequently to this blessed Resurrection What consolation would be left in this world if the hope of the Resurrection were taken away 'T is this blesed hope that must support you under all the Troubles of life and in the Agonies of Death The securing of a blessed Resurrection to your selves is therefore the most deep concernment you have in this world And it may be secured to your selves if upon serious heart examination you can discover the following Evidences Evidence 1. First If you are regenerated Creatures brought forth in a new nature to God for we are begotten again to a lively hope by the Resurrection of Iesus Christ from the dead Christs Resurrection is the ground-work of our hope And the new birth is our title or evidence of our interest in it So that until our souls are partakers of the spiritual Resurrection from the death of sin we can have no assurance our bodies shall be partakers of that blessed Resurrection to life Blessed and holy saith the Spirit is he that hath part in the first Resurrection on such the second death hath no power Rev. 20.6 Never let unregenerated souls expect a comfortable meeting with their bodies again Rise they shall by Gods terrible Citation at the sound of the last trump but not to the same end that the Saints arise nor by the same principle They to whom the spirit is now a principle of Sanctification to them he will be the principle of a joyful Resurrection See then that you get gratious souls now or never expect glorious bodies then Evid 2. If you be dead with Christ you shall live again by the life of Christ. If we have been planted together in the likeness of his death we shall be also in the likeness of his Resurrection Rom. 6.5 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Planted together some refer it to believers themselves Jews and Gentiles are planted together in Christ. So Erasmus believers grow together like branches upon the same root which should powerfully inforce the great Gospel duty of unity among themselves But I would rather understand it with reference to Christ and believers with whom believers are in other Scriptures said to suffer together and be glorified together to die together and live together to be Crucified together and buried together all noting the communion they have with Christ both in his death and in his life Now if the power of Christs death i. e. the mortifying influence of it have been upon our hearts killing their Lusts deading their affections and flatting their appetites to the Creature then the power of his life or Resurrection shall come like the animating dew upon our dead withered bodies to revive and raise them up to live with him in glory Evid 3. If your hearts and affections be now with Christ in Heaven your bodies in due time shall be there also and conformed to his glorious body So you find it Phil. 3.20 21. For our conversation is in heaven from whence we look for the Saviour the Lord Iesus Christ who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like unto his own glorious body The body is here called vile or the body of our vileness Not as God made it but as sin hath marred it Not absolutely and in it self but relatively and in comparison of what it will be in its second edition at the Resurrection Then those scattered bones and dispersed dust like pieces of old broken battered Silver will be new cast and wrought in the best and newest fashion even like to Christs glorious body Whereof we have this evidence that our conversation is already heavenly The temper frame and disposition of our souls is already so therefore the frame and temper of our bodies in due time shall be so Evid 4. If you strive now by any means to attain the Resurrection of the dead no doubt but you shall then attain what you now strive for This was Pauls great ambition that by any means he might attain the Resurrection of the dead Phil. 3.11 He means not simply a Resurrection from the dead for that all men shall attain whether they strive for it or no. But by a metonymy of the Subject for the Ajunct he intends that compleat holiness and perfection which shall attend the state of the Resurrection so it is expounded vers 12. So then if God have raised in your hearts a vehement desire and assiduous endeavour aftâ—r a perfect freedom from sin and full Conformity to God in the beauties of holiness that very love of holiness your present pantings and tendencies after perfection speaks you to be persons designed for it Evid 5. If you are such as do good in your Generation If you be fruitful and useful men and women in the world you shall have part in this blessed Resurrection Ioh. 5.29 All that are in the Graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth they that have done good unto the Resurrection of Life Now it is not every act materially good that entitles a man to this priviledge but the same requisites that the School-men assign to make a good prayer are also necessary to every good work The person matter manner and end must be good Nor is it any single good act but a series and course of holy actions that is here meant What a spur should this be to us all as indeed the Apostle makes it closing up the Doctrine of the Resurrection with this solemn exhortation 1 Cor. 15. Last with which I also close mine Therefore my beloved brethren be ye stedfast unmoveable alwaies abounding in the work of the Lord for as much as you know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. Thanks be to God for his unspeakable Gift The FORTIETH SERMON JOH XX. XVII Iesus saith unto her touch me not for I am not yet ascended to my Father but go to my Brethren and say unto them I ascend unto my Father and your Father and to my God and your God IN all the former Sermons we have been following Christ through his Humiliation from the time that he left the blessed bosom of his Father and now having finished the whole course of his obedience on
the account of his Office and the benefits we receive by him We are obliged even on the score of gratitude and ingenuity to obey him For he is sent in the quality of an Advocate to help us to pray To indite our requests for us To teach us what and how to ask of God Rom. 8.26 He comes to us as a Comforter Ioh. 14.16 And none like him His work is to take of Christs and shew it to us i. e. to take of his death Resurrection Ascension yea of his very present Intercession in Heaven and shew it to us He can be with us in a moment he can as one well observes tell you what were the very last thoughts Christ was thinking in Heaven about you It was he that formed the body of Christ in the womb and so prepared him to be a sacrifice for us He filled that humanity with his unexampled fullness So fitting and anointing him for the discharge of his Office 'T is he thaâ— puâ—s efficacy into the Ordinances and without him they would be but a dead letter 'T was he that blessed them to your conviction and câ—nversion For if Angels had been the Preachers no conversion had followed without the Spirit 'T is he that is the vinculum unionis bond of union betwixt Christ and your souls without which you could never have had interest in Christ or Communion with Christ. 'T was he that so often hath helped your infirmities when you knew not what to say Comforted your hearts when they were overwhelmed wiâ—hin you and you knew not what to do Preserved you many thousand times from sin and ruine when you have been upon the slippery brâ—nk of it in temptations 'T is he in his sanctifying work that is the best evidence your souls have for Heaven It were endless to enumerate the mercies you have by him And now Reader dost thou not blush to think how unworthily thou hast treated such a friend For which oâ— all these his Offices or benefits dost thou grieve and quench him O grieve not the holy Spirit whom Christ sent assoon as ever he came to Heaven in his Fathers name and in his own name to perform all these Offices for you Inference 5. Is Christ ascended to the Father as our fore-runner then the door of Salvation stands open to all believers and by vertue of Christs ascension they also shall ascend after him far above all visible Heavens O my friends what place hath Christ prepared and taken up for you What a splendid habitation hath he provided for you God is not ashamed to be called your God for he hath prepared for you a City Heb. 11.16 In that City Christ hath provided mansions 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 resting places for your everlasting abode Ioh. 14.2 and keeps them for you till your coming O how August and glorious a dwelling is that where Sun Moon and Stars shall shine as much below your feet as they are now above your heads Yea such is the love Christ hath to the believer that as one saith if thou only hadst been the chosen of God Christ would have built that house for himself and thee Now it is for himself for thee and for many more who shall inherit with thee God send us a joyful meeting within the vail with our fore-runner and sweeten our passage into it with many a fore-sight and fore-tast thereof And mean time let the Love of a Saviour inflâ—me our hearts so that when ever we cast a look towards that place where our fore-runner is for us entred our souls may say with melting affections Thanks be to God for Iesus Christ and again Blessed be God for his unspeakable Gift The FORTY FIRST SERMON HEB. I.III. part of the Verse When he had by himself purged our sins sate down at the right hand of the Majesty on high CHrist being returned again to his Father having finished his whole work on earth is there bid by the Father to sit down in the seat of honour and rest A seat prepared for him at Gods right hand that makes it honourable and all his enemies as a footstool under his feet that makes it easie How much is the state and condition of Jesus Christ changed in a few days Here he groaned wept laboured suffered sweat yea sweat blood and found no rest in this world but when he comes to Heaven there he enters into rest Sits down for ever in the highest and easiest throne prepared by the Father for him when he had done his work When he had by himself purged our sins he sate down c. The scope of this Epistle is to demonstrate Christ to be the fulness of all Legal Types and Ceremonies and that whatever light glimered to the world through them yet it was but as the light of the day Star to the light of this Sun In this Chapter Christ the subject of the Epistle is described and particularly in this third verse he is described three ways First By his Essential and primaeval glory and dignity he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the brightness of his Fathers glory the very splendor of glory the very refulgency of that Son of glory The primary reason of that appellation is with respect to his eternal and ineffable generation light of light as the Nicene Creed expresses it As a beam of light proceeding from the Sun And the secondary reason of it is with respect to men for look as the Sun communicates its light and influence to us by its beams which it projects so doth God communicate his goodness and manifest himself to us by Christ. Yea he is the express Image or Character of his person Not as the impressed Image of the Seal upon the Wax but as the engraving in the Seal it self Thus he is described by his essential glory Secondly He is described by the work he wrought here on earth in his humbled state and it was a glorious work and that wrought out by his own single hand when he had by himself purged our sins A work that all the Angels in Heaven could not do but Christ did it Thirdly and Lastly He is described by his glory the which as a reward of that work he now enjoys in Heaven When he had by himself purged our sins he sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high i e. the Lord cloathed him with the greatest power and highest honour that Heaven it self could afford for so much this phrase of sitting down on the right hand of Majesty imports as will appear in the explication of this point which is the result of this clause viz. DOCT. That when our Lord Iesus Christ had finished his work on earth he was placed in the seat of the highest honour and authority at the right hand of God in Heaven This truth is transformingly glorious Stephen had but a glimpse of Christ at his Fathers right hand
and it caused his face to shine as it had been the face of an Angel Act. 7.56 this his high advancement was foretold and promised before the work of redemption was taken in hand Psal. 110.1 The Lord said unto my Lord sit thou at my right hand untill I make thine enemies thy footstool And this promise was punctually performed to Christ after his resurrection and ascension in his supream exaltation far above all created beings in Heaven and earth Ephes. 1.20 21 22. We shall here open two things in the doctrinal part viz. what is meant by Gods right hand and what is implied in Christs sitting there with his enemies for a footstool First What are we to understand here by Gods right hand It 's obvious enough that the expression is not proper but figurative and borrowed God hath no hand right or left but it 's a condescending expression wherein God stoops to the Creatures understanding and by it he would have us to understand honour power and nearness First The right hand is the hand of honour the upper hand where we place those whom we highly esteem and honour So Solomon placed his Mother in a seat at his right hand 1 King 2.19 So in token of honour God sets Christ at his right hand which on that account in the Text is called the right hand of Majesty God hath therein exprest more favour delight and honour to Jesus Christ than ever he did to any creature To which of the Angels said he at any time sit thou on my right hand Heb. 1.13 Secondly The right hand is the hand of power we call it the weapon hand and the working hand And the setting of Christ there imports his exaltation to the highest authority and most supream dominion Not that God the Father hath put himself out of his Authority and advanced Christ above himself no for in that he saith he hath put all things under him it is manifest that he is excepted which did put all things under him 1 Cor. 15.27 But to sit as an enthroned King at Gods right hand imports power Yea the most soveraign and supream power and so Christ himself calls the right hand at which he sits Matth. 26.64 hereafter ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power Thirdly And as it signifies honour and power so nearness in place as we use to say at ones elbow and so it is applied to Christ in Psal. 110.5 The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through Kings in the day of his wrath that is the Lord who is very near thee present with thee he shall subdue thine enemies This is that then we are to understand by Gods right hand Honour power and nearness Secondly In the next place let us see what is implied in Christ sitting at Gods right hand with his enemies for his footstool And if we attently consider we shall find that it implies and imports divers great and weighty things in it As First It implies the Complement and Perfection of Christs work that he came into the world about After his work was ended then he sat down and rested from those labours Heb. 10.11.12 Every Priest standeth daily ministring and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can never take away sins but this man when he had once offered one sacrifice for sins for ever sat down on the right hand of God Here he assigns a double difference betwixt Christ and the Levitical Priests they stand which is the posture of Servants he sits which is the posture of a Lord. They stand daily because their sacrifices cannot take away sin he did his work fully by one offering and after that sits or rests for ever in Heaven And this as accurate and judicious Dr. Reynolds observes was excellently figured to us in the Ark. which was a lively Type of Jesus Christ and particularly in this it had rings by which it was carried up and down till at last it rested in Solomons Temple with glorious and Triumphal sollemnity Psal. 132 8 9. 2 Chron. 5.13 So Christ while he was here on earth being anointed with the Holy Ghost and wisdom went about doing good Act. 10.38 and having ceased from his works did at last enter into his rest Heb. 5.10 which is the heavenly Temple Rev. 11.19 Secondly His sitting down at Gods right hand notes the high content and satisfaction of God the Faâ—her in him and in his work The Lord said to my Lord sit thou at my right hand the words are brought in as the words of the Father welcoming Christ to Heaven and as it were congratulating the happy accomplishment of his most difficult work And it is as if he had said O my Son what shall be done for thee this day thou hast finished a great work and in all the parts of it acquitted thy self as an able and faithful servant to me what honours shall I now bestow upon thee the highest glory in Heaven is not too high for thee come sit at my right hand O how well is he pleased with Christ and what he hath done He delighted greatly to behold him here at his work on earth and by a voice from the excellent glory he told him so when he called out of Heaven to him saying Thou art my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased 2 Pet. 1.17 and himself tells us Joh. 10.17 therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life c. for it was a work that the heart of God had been upon from eternity He took infinite delight in it Thirdly Christs sitting down at Gods right hand in Heaven notes the advancement of Christs humane nature to the highest honour even to be the object of adoration to Angels and men For it is properly his humane nature that is the subject of all this honour and advancement and being advanced to the right hand of majesty it 's become an object of worship and adoration Not simply as it is flesh and blood but as it is personally united to the second person and enthroned in the supream glory of Heaven O here 's the mysterie that flesh and blood should ever be advanced to the highest throne of Majesty and being there installed in that glory we may now direct our worship to him as God-man and to this end was his humanity so advanced that it might be adored and worshipped by all The Father hath commited all Iudgement to the Son that all men should honour the Son even as they honour the Father And the Father will accept of no honour divided from his honour Therefore it 's added in the next clause he that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him Joh. 5.22 23. Hence the Apostles in the salutations of their Epistles beg for grace mercy and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ and in their valedictions they desire the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ to the Churches
Fourthly It imports the soveraignty and supremacy of Christ over all The investiture of Christ with authority over the Empire of both worlds For this belongs to him that sits down upon this throne When the Father said to him sit at my right hand he did therein deliver to him the dispensation and oeconomy of the Kingdom Put the awful scepter of government into his hand and so the Apostle interprets and understands it 1 Cor. 15.25 He must raign till he have put all his enemies under his feet And to thâ—s purpose the same Apostle accommodates if not expounds the words of the Psalmist thou madest him a little lower than the Angels i. e. in respect of his humbled state on earth thou Crownnedst him with glory and honour and didst set him over the work of thy hands thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet Heb. 2.7 8. He is over the spiritual Kingdom the Church absolute Lord there Matth. 28.18 19 20. He also is Lord over the providential Kingdom the whole world Psal. 110.2 and this providential Kingdom being subordinate to his spiritual Kingdom he orders and rules this for the advantage and benefit of that Ephes. 1.22 Fifthly To sit at Gods right hand with his enemies for a footstool implies Christ to be a Conqueror over all his enemies To have ones enemies under his feet notes perfect conquest and compleat victory As when Iosuah set his foot upon the necks of the Kings So Tamberline made proud Bajazet his footstool They trampled his name and his Saints under their feet and Christ will tread them under his feet 'T is true indeed this victory is yet incompleat and inconsummate for now we see not yet all things put under him saith the Apostle but we see Iesus Crowned with glory and honour and that 's enough Enough to shew the power of his enemies is now broken and though they make some opposition still yet it is to no purpose at all for he is so infinitely above them that they must fall before him It is not with Christ as it was with Abiâ—ah against whom Ieroboam prevailed because he was young and tenderhearted and could not withstand them His incapacity and weakness gave the watchful enemy an advantage over him I say 't is not so with Christ he is at Gods right hand And all the power of God stands ready bent to strike through his enemies as it is Psal. 110.5 Sixthly Christs sitting in Heaven notes to us the great and wonderful change that is made upon the state and condition of Christ since his ascention into Heaven Ah 't is far otherwise with him now than it was in the days of his humiliation here on earth quantum mutatus ab illo Oh what a wonderful change hath Heaven made upon him It were good as a Worthy of ours speaks to compare in our thoughts the Abasement of Christ and his Exaltation together as it were in Columes one over against the other he was born in a Stable but now he raigns in his Royal Palace Then he had a Manger for his Cradle but now he sits on a Chair of State Then Oxen and Asses were his companions now thousands of Saints and ten thousand of Angels minister round about his throne Then in contempt they called him the Carpenters Son now he obtains by inheritance a more excellent name than Angels Then he was led away into the Wilderness to be tempted of the Devil now it is proclaimed before him let all the Angels of God worship him Then he had not a place to lay his head on now he is exalted to be heir of all things In his state of Humiliation he endured the contradiction of sinners in his state of Exaltation he is adored and admired of Saints and Angels Then he had no form nor comliness and when we saw him there was no beauty why we should desire him now the beauty of his countenance shall send forth such glorious beams that shall dazel the eyes of all the Coelestial inhabitants round about him c. O what a change is here Here he sweat but there he sits Here he groaned but there he triumphs Here he lay upon the ground there he sits in the throne of glory When he came to Heaven his Father did as it were thus bespeak him My dear Son what an hard travail hast thou had of it What a world of wo hast thou past through in the strength of thy love to me and mine Elect Thou hasâ— been hungry thirsty and weary scourged crucified and reproached ah what bad usage has thou had in the ungrateful world Not a days rest and comfort since thou wentest out from me but now thy suffering days are accomplisht now thy rest is come rest for evermore Henceforth sit at my right hand Henceforth thou shalt groan weep or bleed no more Sit thou at my right hand Seventhly Christs sitting at Gods right hand implies the advancement of believers to the highest honour For this session of Christs respects them and there he sits as our representative in which regard we are made to sit with him in heavenly places as the Apostle speaks Ephes. 2.6 How secure may we be saith Tertullian who do now already possess the Kingdom meaning in our head Christ. This saith another is all my hope and all my confidence namely that we have a portion in that flesh and blood of Christ which is so exalted and therefore where he reigns we shall reign where our flesh is glorified we shall be glorified Surely it 's matter of exceeding joy to believe that Christ our head our flesh and blood is in all this glory at his Fathers right hand Thus we have opened the sence and importance of Christs siâ—ting at his Fathers right hand Hence we Infer Inference 1. Is this so great an honour to Christ to sit enthroned at Gods right hand What honour then is reserved in Heaven for those that are faithful to Christ now on the earth Christ prayed and his prayer was heard Joh. 17.24 That we may be with him to behold the glory that God hath given him and what heart can conceive the felicity of such a sight it made Stephens face shine as the face of an Angel when he had but a glimpse of Christ at his Fathers right hand Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty Isai. 33.17 which respected Hezekiah in the Type Christ in the truth But this is not all though this be much to be spectators of Christ in his Throne of glory we shall not only see him in his Throne but also sit with him inthroned in glory To behold him is much but to sit with him is more I remember it was the saying of a heavenly Christian now with Christ I would far rather look but through the hole of Christs door to see but the one half of his fairest and most comly face for he looks like Heaven suppose I should never win in to
with other Martyrs that were bound with Cords to Execution and he for his dignity was not bound he cryed give me my Chain too let me be a Knight of the same order Disgrace it self is honourable when 't is endured for the Lord of glory And surely there is as one phraseth it a little Paradise a young Heaven in sufferings for Christ. If there were nothing else in it but that they are endured on his account it would richly reward all we can endure for him but if we consider how exceeding kind Christ is to them that count it their glory to be abased for him that though he be alwaies kind to his people yet if we may so speak he overcometh himself in kindness when they suffer for him it should make men in Love with his reproaches Inference 5. If Christ sate not down to rest in Heaven till he had finished his work on earth then 't is in vain for us to think of rest till we have finished our work as Christ also did his How willing are we to find rest here To dream of that which Christ never found in this world nor any ever found before us O think not of resting till you have done working and done sinning Your life and your labours must end together Write saith the Spirit blessed are the dead that die in the Lord for they rest from their labours Rev. 14.13 Here you must have the Sweat and there the Sweet 'T is too much to have two Heavens Here you must be content to dwell in the Tents of Keder hereafter you shall be within the curtains of Solomon Heaven is the place of which it may be truly said That there the weary be at rest O think not of sitting down on this side Heaven There are four things will keep the Saints from sitting down on earth to rest viz. Grace Corruptions Devils and wicked men First Grace will not suffer you to rest here Its tendencies are beyond this world It will be looking and longing for the blessed hope A gratious person takes himself for a Pilgrim seeking a better Country and is alwaies suspicious of danger in every place and state It 's still beating up the sluggish heart with such language as that Mica 2.10 Arise depart this is not thy rest for it is polluted It s farther tendencies and continual Jealousies will keep you from sitting long still in this world Secondly Your Corruptions will keep you from rest here They will continually exercise your Spirits and keep you upon your watch Saints have their hands filled with work by their own hearts every day Sometimes to prevent sin and sometimes to lament it And allwaies to watch and fear to mortifie and kill it Sin will not long suffer you to be quiet Rom. 7.21 22 23 24. And if a bad heart will not break your rest here then Thirdly There is a busie Devil will do it He will find you work enough with his Temptations and suggestions and except you can sleep quietly in his arms as the wicked do there 's no rest to be expected Your adversary the Devil goeth about as a roaring Lyon seeking whom he may devour whom resist 1 Pet. 5.8 Fourthly Nor will his Servants and instruments let you be quiet on this side Heaven Their very name speaks their turbulent disposition My Soul saith the holy man is among Lyons and I lye even among them that are set on fire even the Sons of men whose teeth are Spears and Arrows Psal. 57.4 Well then be content to enter into your rest as Christ did into his He sweat then sate and so must you The FORTY SECOND SERMON ACT. X. XLII And he commanded us to Preach unto the people and to testifie that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Iudge of quick and dead CHrist enthroned in the highest glory in Heaven is there to abide for the effectual and successful government both of the World and of the Church untill the number given him by the Father before the World was and purchased by the blood of the Cross be gathered in and then cometh the Judgement of the great day which will perfectly separate the pretious from the vile put the redeemed in full possession of the purchase of his blood in Heaven and then shall he deliver up the Kingdom to his Father that God may be all in all This last act of Christ namely his Judging the world is a special part of his Exaltation and honour bestowed upon him because he is the Son of man Joh. 5.27 In that day shall his glory as King and absolute Lord shine forth as the Sun when it shineth in its strength O what an honour will it be to the man Christ Jesus who stood arraigned and condemned at Pilates bar to sit upon the great white Throne surrounded with thousands and ten thousands of Angels Men and Devils waiting upon him to receive their final Sentence from his mouth In this will the glory of Christs Soveraignty and power be eminently and illustriously displayed before Angels and men And this is that great truth which He commanded to be Preached and testified to the people namely that it is he which is ordained of God to be the Iudge of quick and dead Wherein we have four things to be distinctly considered viz. The Subject Object Fountain and Truth of this supream judiciary authority First The Subject of it Christ. It is he that iâ— ordained to be Iudge Judgement is the act of the whole undivided Trinity The Father and Spirit Judge as well as Christ in respect of authority and consent but it 's the act of Christ in respect of visible management and execution and so it 's his per proprietatem by propriety the Father having conferred it upon him as the Son of man but not his per appropriationem so as to exclude either the Father or Spirit from their authority for they Judge by him Secondly The Object of Christs Judiciary authority The quick and dead i. e. all that at his coming do live or ever had lived This is the Object personal All the men and women that ever sprang from Adam all the Apostate Spirits that fell from Heaven and are reserved in chains to the Judgement of this great day And in this personal object is included the real object viz. all the actions both secret and open that ever they did 2 Cor. 5.5 Rom. 2.16 Thirdly The Fountain of this delegated authority which is God the Father for he hath ordained Christ to be the Judge He is appointed sc. as the Son of man to this honourable office and work The word notes a firm establishment of Christ in that office by his Father He is now by right of redemption Lord and King He enacts Laws for government then he comes to Judge of mens obedience and disobedience to his Laws Fourthly And lastly here is the infallible Truth or unquestionable certainty of all this He
gave us Commandment to Preach and testifie it to the people We had it in charge from his own mouth and dare not hide it Hence the point of Doctrine is plainly this DOCT. That our Lord Iesus Christ is ordained by God the Father to be the Iudge of quick and Dead This truth stands upon the firm basis of Scripture authority You have it from his own hand Ioh. 5.22 The Father judgeth no man but hath committed all Iudgement to the Son viz. in the sense before given And so the Apostle Act. 17.31 He hath appointed a day in the which he will Iudge the world in righteousness by the man whom he hath ordained whereof he hath given assurance c. And again Rom. 2.16 In the day when God shall Iudge the secrets of men by Iesus Christ. Three things will be opened here First the certainty of a Judgement to come Secondly the quality and nature of it Thirdly that it 's a special part of Christs Exaltation to be appointed Judge in this day First The certainty of a Judgement This is a truth of firmer establishment than Heaven and Earth It 's no devised fable no cunning artifice to keep the world in awe but a thing as confessedly true as it is awfully solemn For First As the Scriptures fore-mentioned with these 2 Cor. 5.10 Eccles. 12.14 Matth. 12.36 and many other the true and faithful sayings of God do very plainly reveal it so the Iustice and righteousness of God require it should be so For the Judge of all the earth will do right Gen. 18.25 Now righteousness it self requires that a difference be made betwixt the righteous and the wicked Say ye to the righteous it shall be well with him wo to the wicked it shall be ill with him Isa. 3.10 But no such distinction is generally and fully made betwixt one another in this world Yea rather the wicked prosper and the righteous perish There is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness Eccles. 7.15 Yea not only in but for his righteousness as it may be fairly rendred Here the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than himself Hab. 1.14 As the fishes of the Sea where the great and strong swallow up the small and weak And even in Courts of Judicature where the innocent might expect relief there they often meet with the worst oppressions How fairly and justly therefore doth the wise man infer a Judgement to come from this consideration Eccles. 3.16 17. I saw under the Sun the place of Iudgement that wickedness was there and the place of righteousness that iniquity was there I said in my heart God shall Iudge the righteous and the wicked for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work q. d. the Judgement to come is the only relief and support left to poor innocents to quiet and Comfort themselves withal To the same purpose also is that Iam. 5.6 7. Ye have condemned and killed the Iust and he doth not resist you be patient therefore brethren unto the coming of the Lord. It is confest that sometimes God vindicates his providence against the Atheism of the world by particular strokes upon the wicked but this is but rare And as the Father well observes if no sin were punished here no providence would be believed again if every sin were openly punished here no Judgement hereafter could be expected Besides Secondly Man is a reasonable being and every reasonable being is an accountable being He is a capable subject of moral government His actions have relation to a Law He is swayd by rewards and punishments He acts by counsel and therefore of his actions he must expect to give an account as it is Rom. 14.12 So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God Especially if we add that all the gifts of body mind estate time c. are so many Talents concredited and betrusted to him by God and every one hath one Talent at least therefore a time to render an account for all these Talents will come Matth. 25.14 15. We are but Stewards and Stewards must give an account in order whereto there must be a great audit day Thirdly And what need we seek evidence of this truth further than our own conscience Lo it is a truth engraven legibly upon every mans own breast Every one hath a kind of little Tribunal or privy Sessions in his own conscience which both accuses and excuses for good and evil which it could never do were there not a future Judgement of which it is now conscious to it self In this Court Records are now kept of all that we do even of our secret actions and thoughts which never yet took air but if no Judgement what need of Records Nor let any imagine that that this may be but the fruit of education and discourse We have heard of such things and so are scared by them For if so how comes it to obtain so universally Who could be the Author of such a common deception Reader bethink thy self a little if thou hadst a mind as one saith to impose a lie upon all the world what course wouldst thou take How wouldst thou lay the design or why dost thou in this case imagine what thou knowest not how to imagine 'T is evident that the very consciences of the Heathens have these offices of accusing and excusing Rom. 2.15 And it 's hard to imagine as an ingenious Author speaks that a general Cheat should bow down the backs of all mankind and induce so many doubts and fears and troubles amongst them and give an interruption to the whole course of their corrupt living and that there should be no account of it And therefore it 's undoubted that such a day will come But I shall rather chuse in the Second place to open the nature and manner of this Judgement than to spend more time in proving a truth that cannot be denyed without violence offered to a mans own light If then the question be what manner of Judgement will this be I answer First It will be a great and awful day It 's called the Iudgement of the great day Jud. 6. Three things will make it so the manner of Christs coming The work he comes about And the issues or events of that work The manner of Christs coming will be awfully solemn For the Lord himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout with the Trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air c. 1 Thes. 4.16.17 Here Christ breaks out of Heaven with the shouts of Angels 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it signifies such a shout saith one as is to be heard among Seamen when after a long and dangerous voyage they first
Rock they refuse to return Will not your very Relations be your accusers To whom you have failed in all your relational duties Yea and every one whom you have tempted to sin abused defrauded over-reacht all these will be your accusers So that it is without dispute you will have accusers enough to appear against you Thirdly Being accused before Jesus Christ what will you plead for your selves Will you confess or will you deny the charge If you confess what need more Out of thine own mouth will I Iudge thee saith Christ Luk. 19.22 If you deny and plead not guilty thy Judge is the searcher of hearts and knows all things So that it will not at all help thee to make a lye thy last refuge This will add to the guilt but not cover it Fourthly If no defence or plea be left thee then what canst thou imagine should retard the Sentence Why should not Christ go on to that dreadful work Must not the Iudge of all the Earth do right Gen. 18.25 Must he not render to every man according to his deeds 2 Cor. 5.10 Yes no question but he will proceed to that Sentence how terrible so ever it be to you to think on it now or hear it then Fifthly To conclude if Sentence be once given by Christ against thy Soul what in all the world canst thou imagine should hinder the Execution Will he alter the thing that is gone out of his mouth No Psal. 89.34 Dost thou hope he is more merciful and pitiful than so Thou mistakest if thou expectest mercy out of that way in which he dispenses it There will be thousands and ten thousands that will rejoyce in and magnifie his mercy then but they are such as obeyed his call repented believed and obtained union with his person here but for unbelievers it 's against the settled Law of Christ and constitution of the Gospel to shew mercy to the despisers of it But it may be you think your tears your cryes your pleadings with him may move him these indeed might have done somewhat in time but they come out of season now Alas too late What the success of such pleas and cries will be you may see if you will but consult two Scriptures Iob 27.8 9. What is the hope of the Hypocrite though he hath gained when God taketh away his Soul Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him No no and Matth. 7.22 Many will say unto 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 done many wonderful works And then will I profess unto them I never knew you depart from me ye that work iniquity And must it come to this Dismal Issue with you indeed God forbid it should Oh then Inference 3. If Christ be appointed of God to be the Judge of all How are all concerned to secure their interest in him and therein an eternity of happiness to their own souls by the work of regeneration Of all the business that men and women have in this world there is none so solemn so necessary and important as this O my Brethren this is a work able to drink up your Spirits whiâ—◠〈◊〉 do but think of the consequences of it Summon in then thy self-reflecting and considering powers get alone Reader and forgetting all other things ponder with thy self this deep dear and eternal concernment of thine Examine the state of thine own soul. Look into the Scriptures then into thine own heart and then to Heaven saying Lord let me not be deceived in so great a concernment to me as this O let not the trifles of time wipe off the impressions of Death Judgement and Eternity from thy heart O that long word Eternity that it might be night and day with thee That the awe of it may be still upon thy Spirit A Gentlewoman of this Nation having spent the whole Afternoon and a great part of the Evening at Cards in much mirth and jollity came home late at night and finding her waiting Gentlewoman reading she lookt over her shoulder upon the Book and said poor melancholy soul why dost thou sit here poring so long upon thy Book That night she could not sleep but lay sighing and weeping her servant asked her once and again what ailed her at last she burst out into tears and said O it was one word that I cast my eye upon in thy Book that troubles me there I saw that word Eternity How happy were I if I were provided for Eternity Sure it concerns us seeing we look for such things to be diligent that we may be found of him in Peace O let not that day come by surprizal upon you Remember that as Death leaves so Judgement will find you Inference 4. Is Jesus Christ appointed Judge of quick and dead then look to it all you that hope to be found of him in peace that you avoid those sins and live in the daily practice of those duties which the consideration of that day powerfully perswades you to avoid or practise For it not only presses us to holiness in actu primo in the being of it but in actu secundo in the daily exercise and practice of it Do you indeed expect such a day O then First See you be meek and patient under all injuries and abuses for Christs sake Avenge not your selves but leave it to the Lord who will do it Don't anticipate the work of God Be patient my Brethren to the coming of the Lord Jam 5.7 8 9. Secondly Be Communicative publick hearted Christians studying and devising liberal things for Christs distressed members And you shall have both an honourable remembrance of it and a full reward of it in that day Matth. 25.34 35. Thirdly Be watchful and sober keep the Golden bridle of moderation upon all your affections And see that ye be not over charged with the cares and love of this present life Luk. 21.34 35. Will you that your Lord come and find you in such a posture O let your moderation be known to all the Lord is at hand Phil. 4.5 Fourthly Improve all your Masters Talents diligently and faithfully Take heed of the Napkin Matth. 25.14 18. Then must you make up your account for them all Fifthly But above all be sincere in your profession Let your hearts be found in Gods Statutes that you may never be ashamed for this day will be the day of manifestation of all hidden things And nothing is so secret but that day will reveal it Luk. 12.1 2 3. Beware of Hypocrisie for there is nothing covered which shall not be revealed neither hid that shall not be made known Thus I have finished through Divine aids the whole Doctrine of the Impetration of Redemption by Jesus Christ we shall winde up the whole in a General Exhortation and I have done The General USE AND now to close up all let me perswade all those for whom
Didst ever give a cup of cold water in the name of a Disciple and not receive a Disciples reward Matth. 10.42 Hast thou not found inward peace and comfort flowing into thy soul upon every piece of sincere obedience Oh what a good Master do Saints serve You that are remiss and unconstant in your obedience you that are heartless and cold in duties hear how your God expostulates with you Ier 2.31 Have I been a Wilderness to Israel or a Land of darkness q. d. have I been a hard Master to you Have you any reason to complain of me To whom soever I have been straight handed surely I have not been so to you Are the fruits of sin like the fruits of obedience Do you know where to find a better Master Why then are you so shuffling and unconstant so sluggish and remiss in my work Surely God is not behind hand with any of you May you not say with David Psal. 119.56 This I had because I kept thy precepts There is fruits in holiness even present fruit It is a high favour to be imployed for God Reward enough that he will accept any thing thou dost But to return every Duty thou presentest to him with such comforts such quicknings such inward and outward blessings into thy bosom so that thou maist open the the treasury of thine own experiences view the varieties of encouragements and Love-tokens at several times received in Duties and say this I had and that I had by waiting on God and serving him Oh what an ingagement is this upon thee to be ever abounding in the work of the Lord Though thou must not work for Wages yet God will not let thy work go unrewarded For He is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of Love Thirdly Your Father hath further obliged you to this holiness and purity of life by signifying to you as he hath frequently done the great delight and pleasure he hath therein He hath told you that such as are upright in the way are his delight Pro. 11.20 That he would not have you forget to do good and to communicate for with such sacrifices he is well pleased Heb. 13.16 You know you cannot walk worthy of the Lord to all pleasing except ye be fruitful in every good word and work Col. 1.10 And oh what a bond is this upon you to live holy lives Can you please your selves in displeasing your Father If you have the hearts of Children in you sure you cannot O you cannot grieve his spirit by loose and careless walking but you must grieve your own spirits too How many times hath God pleased you gratified and contented you and will not you please and content him This mercy you have asked of him and he gave it that mercy and you were not denyed in many things the Lord hath wonderfully condescended to please you and now there is but one thing that he desires of you and that most reasonable yea beneficial for you as well as pleasing to him 1 Phil. 27. Only let your conversation be as becometh the Gospel of Iesus Christ. This is the one thing the great and main thing he expects from you in this world and will not you do it Can you expect he should gratifie your desires when you make no more of grieving and displeasing him Well if you know what will please God and yet resolve not to do it but will rather please your flesh and gratifie the Devil than him pray pull off your vizards fall into your own rank among hypocrites and appear as indeed you are Fourthly The Father hath further obliged you to strictness and purity of conversation by his gratious promises made to such as so walk He hath promised to do great things for you if you will but do this one thing for him If you will order your conversation aright Psal. 50. ult He will be your Sun and Shield if you will walk before him and be upright Gen. 15.1 He will give grace and glory and no good thing will he withhold from him that walketh uprightly Psal. 84.11 And he promises no more to you than he hath made good to others that have thus walked and stands ready to perform to you also If you look to enjoy the good of the promise you are obliged by all your expectations and hopes to order your lives purely and uprightly This hope will set you on work to purge your lives as well as your hearts from all pollutions 2 Cor. 7.1 Having these Promises let us cleanse our selves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God Fifthly Yea He hath yet more obliged you to strict and holy lives by his confidence in you that you will thus walk and please him He expresseth himself in Scripture as one that dare trust you with his glory knowing that you will be tender of it and dare do no otherwise If but a man repose confidence in you and trust you with his concerns it greatly obliges you to be faithful What an engagement was that upon Abraham to walk uprightly when God said of him Gen. 18.19 I know him that he will command his Children and his household after him and they shall keep the way of the Lord q. d. as for this wicked generation whom I will speedily consume in my wrath I know they regard not my Laws they will trample my commands under foot they care not how they provoke me but I expect other things from Abraham and I am confident he will not fail me I know him he is a man of another spirit and what I promise my self from him he will make good And to the like purpose is that in Isa. 63.78 I will mention the loving kindness of the Lord and the praises of the Lord according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us and the great goodness towards the house of Israel which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies and according to the multitude of his loving kindnesses For he said surely they are my people Children that will not lie or fail me so he was their Saviour Here you have an ample account of the endearing mercies of God to that people ver 7. and the Lords confident expectations of suitable returns from them ver 8. I said i. e. speaking after the manner of men in like cases I made full account that after all these endearments and favours bestowed upon them they would not offer to be disloyal and false to me I have made them sure enough to my self by so many bonds of Love Like to which is that expression Zeph. 3.7 I said surely thou wilt fear me thou wilt receive instruction Oh how great are the expectations of God from such as you I know Abraham there 's no doubt of him And again they are Children that will not lie i. e. they will not fallere fidem datam Break their Covenant with me Or they are my people that will not shrink as