as appeares by the next words but the righteous sing and rejoyce Ier. 2. 19. Thine owne wickednesse shall correct thee know therefore and see that it is an evill thing and bitter that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God and that my feare is not in thee Thy sinnes certainly will be bitter to thee one day sooner or later Take this for an undoubted truth thou must either temporally heere or eternally hereafter in hell lament and be waile and weepe for thy sinnes Luc. 13. 28. There shall be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth when ye shall see Abraham and Isaac and Iacob and all the Prophets in the Kingdome of God and your selves thrust out How much more when they shall see and feele the torments that are prepared in hell for them Now when God as an angry judge strikes and afflicts the soule with sorrow for sinne even in this life ô that sorrow is terrible and intolerable when hee smites the heart he so sets it on as no man is able to abide it Heb. 10. 31. It is a fearefull thing to fall into the hands of the living God Prov. 18. 14. A wounded spirit that is which God in his anger hath wounded who can beare Nah. 1. 6. Who can stand before his indignation and who can abide in the fiercenesse of his anger his fury is powred out like fire and the rocks are throwne down by him And the best way to prevent the Lord from wounding and afflicting our soules is to smite and afflict our owne hearts for our sinnes the way to prevent those intollerable and everlasting sorrowes which God in his fury will bring upon wicked men is to worke our hearts to this godly sorrow our selves and to humble our owne soules this is plaine by that speach of the Apostle 1 Cor. 11. 31. If wee would judge our selves wee should not bee judged of the Lord hee meanes as appeares in the next verse O thinke of this thou merry Greeke that art all for mirth and pleasure thou drunkard and whoremaister that findest such joy and sweetnesse in thy sinne thou pleasant witted fellow that canst so wittily breake jests upon religion and the servants of God that thou canst set all the company on laughing the time will come when thy sinnes which thou canst not abide to thinke of shall be set in order before thine eyes that thou shalt not be able to looke of from them they shall never out of thy thought Psal. 50. 21. Thou that canst not abide to heare of thy sinnes nor to be told of them nor reproved for them by any of Gods servants who are as Elihu speakes Iob 33. 6 7 8. in Gods stead unto thee formed out of the clay aswell as thy selfe whose terror need not make thee affraid shalt one day heare the Lord himselfe reproving thee for them Psal. 50. 21. I will reprove thee saith he and that will be such a kind of reproving as is mentioned Psal. 2. 5. Then shall hee speake to them in his wrath and vex them in his sore displeasure better to have an hundred of Gods poore servants to reprove thee then to have the Lord doe it Thou that canst not abide to let any sadnesse or sorrow for sinne to come neare thy heart but hatest sorrow as the Devill and abandonest it from thee with all thy might doe what thou canst sooner or later it will seize upon thee When Gods servants that have beene much given to mourning for sinne shall sing for joy of heart thou shalt cry for sorrow of heart and howle for vexation of spirit Esay 65. 14. Luke 6. 25. Woe unto you that laugh now for ye shall mourne and weepe Yea 2. thinke of this all you that feare God were it not much better for you to take paines with your owne hearts to humble and afflict them then to leave it to God to doe it in his wrath You have heard hee will certainly doe it if you doe it not and the way to prevent him from doing it is to doe it your selves And these are the motives that may stir up in every one of us a desire to seeke for this grace of an humbled and broken heart It followeth now that I shew you the meanes whereby you may atteine it And these are of two sorts 1. Some such as wherein you must use the helpe of others 2. Some such as wherein you must be the agents your selves Of the first sort I will name to you but two The first is the ministery of the Word If thou wouldst have a soft heart able to mourne for sinne thou must conscionably frequent the faithfull ministery of the Word strive to live under a forcible ministery such as will search thy heart No meanes in the world have ever wrought so mightily to the saving humbling and afflicting of the soule as this hath done By this meanes they that had crucified Christ and were so hardned in their sin that when they saw that wonderfull miracle even the Apostles that were poore Galileans speake in all languages the wonderfull things of God they mocked them and said these men are full of wine Act. 2. 13. were so pricked and wounded in their hearts that they knew not what to doe till the same hand that wounded them had healed them againe as you may read Act. 2. 37 41. And what was it that brought David to such a saving sense of his sinne in numbring of the people that his heart smote him for it and he cryed I have sinned greatly in that I have done I have done very foolishly 2 Sam. 24. 10. Surely God had sent Gâ—d the Prophet unto him as you may see in the next words verse 11. For when David was up in the morning the Word of the Lord came unto the Prophet Gâ—d Davids Seer saying c. and though it be said of Manasses 2 Chron. 33. 12. that when he was in affliction he besought the Lord his God and humbled himselfe greatly before him yet if you looke into the 18. verse of that chap. you shall find he had a mightier and stronger meane to worke that humiliation in his heart then his affliction was the Lord had sent to him Seers and Prophets that spake unto him in the name of the Lord. His affliction was but a subordinate meanes to make him the better able to receive profit by the word the words and ministery of the seers was that that wrought this mighty work There is more force in the ministery of the Word to worke sound and saving humiliation then in all the afflictions in the world Psal. 94. 12. Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest O Lord and teachest him out of thy Law See a notable experiment of this in Rehoboam and the Princes of Iudah 2 Chron. 12. 2 6. When God had for their apostacy sent Shishak King of Egypt with a mighty and invincible army against them and brought them thereby into extreame perill and distresse
apprehension and sense of mine owne unworthinesse and sinne how can I be importâ—nate with God in my prayer How can I pray in faith or be confident that He will heare me This must needs deprive a man of all boldnesse discourage and make him afraid to speake unto God This effect the sense of sinne seemes to have had in David when he cryed Psal. 40. 12. Miâ—e iniquities have taken hold upon me so that I am not able to looke up they are more than the haires of mine head therefore mine heart faileth me But to this I answer that no faithfull man hath cause to feare this For Gods people have never beene so strong with Him in prayer as when they were most abased and dejected in themselves insense of their owne weakenesse and unworthinesse When I am weake saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 12. 10. weake and dejected in my selfe through sense of mine owne infirmities and afflictions then am I strong strong in the Lord and fittest to do Him service in an acceptable manner See an example and type of this in Iâ—cob Gen. 32. 25 26 Never was he so strong with God as when the hollow of his thigh was out of joynt He had power over the Angell over Christ the Angell of the covenant saith the Prophet Hos. 12. 4. and prevailed He wept and made supplication unto Him He found Him in Bethel Why wept he so Certainly from the sense of his owne infirmity and unworthinesse but he prevailed with God in his supplications neverthelesse but much the more for that See this also in the good woman of Canaan do you not thinke she was much abased in her selfe upon those three repulses that she had received Mat. 15. 27. yet was her prayer then most strong and effectuall with God Vers. 28. And this is surely another cause why our prayers for our brethren have beene so weake and without force with God we are too strong too well perswaded of our selves to do Gods people any good with our prayers Fourthly We must bring with us unto prayer an unfeigned desire and a full purpose and resolution of heart to reforme that that is amisse both in our selves and others and so to remove the cause of Gods displeasure that is kindled against us Certainly this would give wonderfull force unto our prayers This was that that gave such force unto the fasting and praying of the Ninivites Ion. 3. See their care and desire Let them turne every one from his evill way say the King and his Nobles in their proclamation Verse 8. and from the violence that is in their hands See also both the performance of that they resolved to do and how nothing so much prevailed with God for the successe of their prayers as this Verse 10. God saw their workes that they turned from their evill way and God repented of the evill that He had said He would do untâ— them and He did it not Therefore hath it been usuall with Gods people in their solemne fasts not onely to make full and particular confession of their sinnes but also to vow unto God that they would leave and forsake them yea they were wont solemnly to bind themselves unto this All this is evident â—eb 9. 12 38. 10. 29. When Phinehas stood up and executed judgement upon Zimri and Cozbi as Moses and the Iudges had before done of many others that were joyned unto Baal-Peor Numb 25. 4 5. and so removed the cause of Gods displeasure the plague was stayed saith the Prophet Psal. 106. 30. All the weeping of the whole congregation before the doore of the tabernacle of which we read Numb 25. 6. could do nothing without that O that God would put into the hearts of all our Magistrates not onely to appoint and keep solemne and generall fasts but also by severe execution of the lawes to remove the causes of all our plagues Our King and State blessed be God have made good Lawes against idolatry swearing prophanation of the Sabbath murther and drunkennesse but alas we want such as Phinehas to see the lawes executed upon any of these offendors and therefore it is no marvell though the plague be not stayed While these fowle sinnes are winked at and go unpunished what hope can we have that either our owne prayers or the prayers of all the Saints upon earth should prevaile with God for our Land Till the Achans be found out and punished as found they may easily be for they do every where declare their sinne as Sodom they hide it not as the Prophet speaketh Esa. 3. 9. but till they be punished as God did say to Ioshua Icsh. 7. 10 11. Get thee up wherefâ—re lyest thou thus upon thy face Israel hath sinned so will He to us why do you thus fast and pray and make such shew of humiliation as you do find out the sinnes and punish them that are the causes of Mine anger and then I wil be appeased toward you and your Land Certainly one chiefe cause why our fasting and praying hath done so little good is because this â—aâ—h not beene done Nay many of these lewd men that are guilty of these foule sinnes intrude themselves into our assemblies and joyne with us in these holy duties And we know that the sacrifice of the wicked is abomination unto the Lord Prov. 15. 8. Let me therefore exhort you beloved that as you desire to please God in this profession of humiliation that you make and to benefit your selves or your brethren by your prayers resolve both to forsake every knowne sinne and vow unto God this day amendment of life in such particulars as thine owne heart can tell thee thou hast most offended God by and which of us all is it that hath not something to reforme remembring alwayes that speech of the Prophet Psal 66. 18. If I regardiniquity in my heart the Lord will not heare me as also 2. to do what lies in thee to reforme others Fiftly and lastly We must joyne workes of mercy with our prayers 1. Let no man thinke he shall be a looser by that that he gives out of conscience towards God unto the poore He that hath pitie upon the poore lendeth unto the Lord saith the Holy Ghost Prov. 19. 17. and that that he hath given will He pay him againe 2. Of all almes that is given that is best and most pleasing unto God that is given in our Church-assemblies for it is an ordinance of God and even a Sabbath-duty that collection should be made for the poore when we meet together as is plaine by that speech of the Apostle 1 Cor. 16. 1 2. And of that that is thus given you may have much more assurance that it shal be given to them onely that have need than you can have of much of that that you give at your doores 3. There is great force in this worke of mercy to further the good successe of our prayers els would not the Angell have said thus unto Cornelius
Acts 10. 4. Thy prayers and thine almes are come up for a memoriall before God His almes-deeds made his prayers more available with God than otherwise they would have beene SERMON III. Sept. 7. 1625. THe two first points observed in this Verse we have already dispatched that is first the time wherein he shewed his kindnesse unto them and the occasion he tooke to do it when they were sicke secondly the duty and meanes whereby he expressed his kindnesse unto them he prayed in an extraordinary manner for them Now this extraordinary prayer he made for them is sâ—t forth 1. by the outward and bodily helpes he used in this prayer 2. by the inward disposition of his mind and heart in it The outward and bodily helpes he used in this his prayer were two the cloathing of himâ—â—lfe with sackcloth and fasting For the first of these we shall find it was much used by Gods people in their extraordinary prayers Nehem. 9. 1. The children of Israel were essembled with fasting and with sackclâ—athes and earth upon them Ion. 3. 5. The people of Niniveh proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest of them even unto the least of them Yea the Lord Himselfe sometimes commanded them to do so Esa. 22. 12. The Lord God of hosts called them to girding with sackcloth Ioel 1. 13. Lie all night in sackcloth ye Ministers of my God And least you should from hence conceive that we also are now bound to use it you must understand First that in those dayes it was neither enjoyned nor used as a religious ceremony appropriated to this part of Gods worship but as a civill signe whereby men were wont to testifie their sorrow as wearing of blacke is now among us So in that mourning for Abner wherein there was no prayer nor religious duty performed David commanded 2 Sam. 3. 31. Rent your clothes and gird you with sackcloth and mourne before Abner So Hezechia and his nobles upon the hearing of Rabshakehs blasphemy to testifie their sorrow though they kept no fast then covered themselves with sackcloth 2 King 9. 1 2. Yea Benhadâ—ds servants though they knew not what extraordinary prayer meant when they were to sue to Ahâ—b for mercy to professe their sorrow and humility put sackcloth on their lâ—ines and ropes on their heads 1 King 20. 32. But how should it be so much used in this so solemne a part of Gods worship and enjoyned also by the Lord if it were meerely a civill thing and no religious ceremony I answer We are now enjoyned in our Church-assemblies to weare such apparell as is comely decent and fit for our estate and condition I will saith the Apostle speaking of the behaviour of all Gods people in the publike assemblies 1 Tim. 2. 9. in like manner also that women adorne themselves in modest apparell with shamefastnesse and sobriety and yet is that no Ecclesiasticall ceremony no matter of religion but a thing meerly civill Secondly We must understand that in these civill things that might be decent and fit in one Country and consequently commanded of God which in another Country is utterly undecent and consequently forbidden It was a great sinne among the Corinthians for a woman to come into the congregation with her head uncovered that is without a veile to cover her whole head 1 Cor. 11. 5. In our congregations because it is undecent it were a sinne for a woman to come so attired In which respect though we have oft in the New Testament mention of fasts both publike and private of sackcloth used in them we have no mention at all Now this being premised for the understanding of the words the thing we have to observe in them for our instruction is this that David in his extraordinary prayer used these outward and bodily exercises as helpes to his prayer and from this we have to learne what we should do in the like case that is That in the dayes of our humiliation besides fervent prayer and the inward afflicting of the soule there are certaine outward and bodily exercises to be used by Gods people As in our ordinary prayers there be certaine outward things may helpe us much and consequently may not be neglected as 1. fit time and place wherein we may be freest from distraction Our blessed Saviour himselfe in the morning before day went out and departed into a solitary place and there prayed as we read Mar. 1. 35. and commands us Mat. 6. 6. to go into a closet to make our private prayers and to shut the doore to us and 2. fit gestures also as kneeling when we can O come let us worship and fall downe let us kneele before the Lord our maker saith the Prophet Psal. 95. 6. and standing up when we cannot conveniently kneele The Publican though he were much humbled and dejected in himselfe stood when he prayed even in the Temple as we read Luke 18. 13. For that also is a signe of reverence and humility When Eglon heard Ehud say he had a message to him from God he arose out of his seat Iudg. 3. 20. so in our extraordinary prayers there be certaine outward and bodily exercises that may helpe us much and are therefore not to be neglected by us And those are of two sorts some consist in doing and performing certaine duties and some in forbearing some such things as at other times we may use Foure things I find performed by Gods people at the times of their extraordinary prayers and dayes of humiliation specially such as have been publike and solemne First The reading and preaching of the Word Two notable examples we have for this Neh. 9. 3. They stood up in their place and read in the Booke of the Law of the Lord their God one fourth part of the day And how did they read That you shall find Neh. 8. 8. They gave the sense and caused them to understand the reading Yea they applied it so effectually that it wrought marvellously upon the peoples hearts as appeareth Verse 9. The other example is Ier. 36. 5 6. Ieremiah commanded Baruâ—h saying I am shut up I cannot go into the house of the Lord therefore go thou and read in the roll which thou hast written from my mouth the words of the Lord in the eares of the people in the Lords house upon the fasting day And why did they use this Not so much for the inlightning and informing of the judgement as 1. for to worke upon the heart and further it in humiliation for the Word is powerfull that way Ier. 23. 29. Is not my Word like a hammer that breaketh the rocke in peeces It is like Aarons rod that is able to fetch water out of the rocke Exod. 17. 6. And 2. to quicken the heart to fervent prayer This reason Ieremy gives why he would have preached to them on the day of their fast and when he could not do that would needs have Baruch read the
Lord is nigh saith he to them that are of a broken heart If we would strive in our daily prayers when wee make confession of our sinnes to doe it with feeling and not formally it would not onley make our prayers more effectuall with God but keepe our hearts from hardning and bring them to a good temper Luk. 18. 13 14. When the Publican made confession of his sinnes with that feeling smiting upon his breast and saying God be mercifull to mee a sinner It is said â—ee went home to his house justified rather then the other Fourthly This daily accustoming our selves unto this worke of calling our selves to account and afflicting our hearts for our sinnes would make it more easy and familiar unto us when we shall have extraordinary occasion to betake our selves to it That which is said by the Prophet of the Lords chastening of us may fitly be applyed to this chastening of ourselves Lam. 3. 27. It is good for a man that he beare the yoke in his youth and to have beene accustomed to stoop unto and to beare patiently the Lords afflicting hand By this that hath beene said you see it is good for us to be doing somewhat in this worke every day Yet are there five speciall times and seasons that will yeeld us great helpe in this businesse more then other times will doe The first fit time to worke our hearts to godly sorrow is presently after some fall we have received some grosse sinne we have slipped into A great advantage it will be unto us to humble our soules for it presently and without delay For first sinne newly committed may be better knowne and remembred with all the circumstances whereby it is aggravated And that is a great helpe to the humiliation of the soule as wee may perceive in Davids speech Psal. 51. 3. For I acâ—nowledge my transgressions and my siâ—â—e is ever before me Secondly The heart will not be so hardned by sinne that is newly committed but more easily wrought upon and softned then when sin hath lyen long upon it As a bone that is out of joint the longer it is neglected will be set againe with more difficulty and paine A Leopard may as soone leave his spots an Ethiopian his blacknesse as he can do his sinne that hath lyen long in it Ier. 13. 23. Secondly Another fit season for this worke is when wee prepare our selves to renew our covenant with God in the holy Sacrament For 1. at that time God requires of us a speciall care to examine our selves and call to mind our sins and to judge our selves for them else it is not possible we should receive worthily 1 Cor. 11. 28. 29 31. When thou bringest thy gift to the altar saith our Saviour Mat. 5. 23. as at the Lords table we doe offer and present our selves unto God our soules and bodyes as a holy reasonable and lively sacrifice unto him and there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee Teaching us that at that time specially we should remember and call to mind what our brother and much more what our heavenly father hath against us 2. At that time men if they have any spark of grace in them are apt to find in themselves some stirrings of their affections unto goodnesse some motions of Gods spirit some dispositions unto devotion and remorse for sinne Ministers that use to deale privately with their people at that time shall find them more easie to be wrought upon and so shal every man his own heart then at other times These good motions should bee followed without delay As it is said that they that lay at the poole of Bethesda stroue to get in so soone as euer the Angell had stirred the water Iohn 5. 4. And Iosuah so soone as God by a vision had stirred him up to search and find out the sinne that had provoked God against Israel Iosh. 7. 16. went without delay immediatly about it So should we doe in this case When we feele God begins to soften our hearts and to stirre up these good dispositions to devotion in us then should wee set our selves seriously to this worke of calling to mind our sinnes and bringing our hearts to sorrow for them For 1. when God stirs up such motions he knocks at the doore of our hearts and sheweth himselfe willing to enter in Rev. 3. 20. 2. Satan will bee ready to quench the spirit in these good motions As it is said he watched the infant to devoure it so soone as ever it should be borne Rev. 12. 4. Thirdly The dayes and times wee set apart for fasting and prayer upon whatsoever just occasion are a most fit season for us to goe about this work For 1. we find Gods people have had their hearts wonderfully softned at such times The Israelites in the fast that they kept for successe against Benjamin came into the house of God and wept Iudg. 20. 26. And in the fast they kept as Mispeh they wept so abundantly that they are said 1 Sam. 7. 6. to have drawne water as by buckets full out of their hearts and to have poured it out before the Lord. 2. This exercise of a religious fast is a great help and furtherance to this work As wee see heere in Davids example Psal. 35. 13. I humbled my selfe with fasting 69. 10. I wept and chastened my soule with fasting Fourthly When any judgements of God lye heavy upon our selves or our brethren that is a fit season to goe about this work When these men were in misery David fell heere to afflicting of his soule Psal. 35. 13. For 1. the Lord by every one of his judgements doth testify from Heaven that he hath matter against us as Naoâ—i saith Ruth 1. 21. Why doe you call mee Naomi seeing the Lord by taking away my husband and my children hath testified against me and the Almighty hath afflicted me 2. God by his judgements doth call upon us to examine our wayes and humble our selves before him Hag. 1. 5 6 7. Now therefore saith the Lord of Hosts coâ—sider your wayes yee have sowen much and brought in liâ—le thus saith the Lord of Hosts consider your wayes And Esa. 22. 12. In that day did the Lord God of Hosts call to weeping and to mourning 3. God by his judgements softneth the hearts of men and worketh in them more remorse more pronenesse and aptnes to repent then at other times Iob 23. 16. God maketh my heart soft saith Iob and the Almighty troubleth mee A man shall find himselfe fitter to pray then then at other times and we should take the advantage and opportunity of this time for it Iam. 5. 13. Is any afflicted let him pray This hath beene oft seene even in many notable hypocrites who how profane soever their hearts have beene at other times yet in their affliction have found in themselves a disposition to pray and to repent Psal. 78. 34. When he slew them then they sought him
be very small yet many heaped together will make an intollerable burden Iob 6. 3. Iob saith his grief was heavier then the sand of the Sea If for one sinne Adam was so terrified that he fled from God Gen. 3. 8. what cause of terrour have I maist thou well say to thine owne soule Fiftly How oft thou hast relapsed and fallen backe againe into the same sin that thy heart hath smitten thee for and thou hast repented of and covenanted with God that thou wouldst forsake it returning with the dogge to that thou hast loathed and vomited up 2 Pet. 2. 22. An arme once broken cannot be cured without paine but if often the cure will be more dangerous and painefull If thou hadst broken thy promises and covenants with men thou wouldst count it a matter of infamy and shame unto thee what cause of shame is it then that thou hast broken thy promises unto God See also how this circumstances doth aggravate sinne Eccle. 5. 4. When thou vowest a vow unto God deferre not to pay it for hee hath no pleasure in fouls Sixtly How thou hast by thy sinne corrupted others whereof it may bee some are in Hell already and some in the way to Hâ—ll and thou canst not draw them unto repentance Indeed if thou canst truly repent this shall not hinder thy salvation that thou hast beene a meane of the damning of others for so was Paul Act. 26. 11. Yet must it needs be a heart-breaking to thee whensoever thou dost seriously thinke of it all the dayes of thy life and so was it unto Paul If thou hadst beene the meane to undoe another in his outward estate much more if thou hadst taken away his life it would be a just cause of heavinesse to thee how much more cause of humbling is it that thou hast beene a meane of destroying the soule of any Matth. 18. 7. Woe to the man by whom the offence cometh Ier. 6. 28. they are brasse and iron they are corrupters Seventhly consider the person against whom thou hast sinned Psal. 51. 4. Against thee thee onely have I sinned And consider the Lord 1. in his greatnesse and excellency of power and justice If one man sinne against another saith Ely to his sonnes 1 Sâ—m 2. 25. the judge shall judge him but if a man sinne against the Lord who shall intreat for him 2. But specially in his goodnesse towards thy selfe Consider that that God whom thou hast offendâ—d thou dost not onely live by Act. 17. 28. but also hee is of that gracious difposition that notwithstanding all thy rebellions he would not have thee perish For 1. he is apt to forgive thee upon thy repenâ—ance Esa. 55. 7. 2. He hath proclaimed a generall pâ—rdon and not excluded thee Ioh. 3. 16. but will have it offred unto thee Mar. 16. 15. 3. Hee seâ—kes to thee to be reconciled 2 Cor. 5. 20. 4 He hath done more for thee hee loves thee with the love of a father for to such specially I speake and thou hast received the spirit of adoption whereby thou art able to cry Abba father Rom. 8. 15. Consider well of this and it will have more force to mollifie thy heart then any thing else in the world The sense of our desperate estate without this may make us roare and rave and rage against the Lord like a wild Bull in a net as the Prophet speaketh Esay â—1 20. but nothing will humble the heart so kindly nor make it melt in godly sorrow as the true consideration of this love of God Psal. 130. 4. there is forgivenesse with thee that thou mayest bee feared It was not the crowing of the Cock twice that made Peters heart melt but the gracious looke that Christ cast upon him Luke 22. 61 62. The Lord turned and looked upon Peter then Peter remembred the Word of the Lord and Peter went out and wept bitterly This was that that wrought upon the heart of the prodigall Luk. 15. 18. I will arise and goe to my father and I will say father I have sinned And so must thou say to thine owne heart if ever thou wouldst have it to melt and thine eyes shed teares for thy siâ—nes It is my father my father that I have so offended Say to it as Moses doth to the Iewes Deut. 32. 6. Have I 〈◊〉 requited the Lord O foolish and ungratious wretch that I am Is hee not my father hath he not made mee and established mee The fourth and last thing we must doe to bring our hearts unto this godly sorrow is fervent prayer For thou must 1. complaine to God of the hardnes of thy heart as Esa 63. 17. O Lord why hast thou hardned my heart from thy feare 2. Begge this grace of him and cry to him for it That which the Apostle saith of wisdome may bee said of this grace also Iam. 1. 5. If any of you lacke a soft heart let him aske of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him 3. Challeng him with his promise and in a holy reverence charge him with that covenant mentioned Ezek. 36. 26. I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and I will give you an heart of flesh And Zach. 12. 10. I will poure upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Ierusalem the spirit of grace and of supplications and they shall looke upon mee whom they have pierced and they shall mourne for him as one that mourneth for his onely sonne and be in bitternesse for him as one that is in bitternesse for his first borne 4. Bee importunate in this suite as one that will take no nay nor give it over till thou hast obtained it as David Psal. 27. 4. and the woman of Canaan Mat. 15. 27. 5. Waite for an answer and pray still limit not the Lord his time Lâ—ke 18. 1 Wee ought alwayes to pray and not to faint Consider how oft the Lord called upon thee before thou didst answer him and how long hee waited for thee Romans 10. 21. All the day long have I stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gaine-saying people Remember that promise Esay 49. 23. They shall not bee ashamed or disappointed that wait for mee SERMON VIII August 2. 1626. IT followeth now that we proceed to â—hew you the signes and notes whereby wee may bee able to discerne whether wee have beene yet rightly humbled for our sinnes whether that sorrow for sinne that we have felt in our selves be unfeigned yea or no whether it be that saving sorrow of Gods elect unto which all these promises of comfort and mercy that we have heard of doe belong And surely it is a matter of great use and necessity to have notes given us out of Gods Word to try our humiliation and sorrow for sinne by First Because as it is certaine our sinnes are not pardoned unlesse we have truly repented of them Act. 5. 31. Christ giveth repentance to
as any that they could heare yet could they receive no comfort or benefit at all by it Moses spake so saith the text Exod. 6. 9. unto the children of Israel but they hearkned not unto Moses for anguish of spirit and for cruell bondage 3. Admit we were never so able and fit to minde this matter then and to go about this weighty businesse admit we could be then more apt to seeke reconciliation with God than at any other time yet have we just cause to feare that because we have wilfully neglected this worke so long and presumptuously put it off till the last houre the Lord in his righteous judgement will refuse to be found of us at that time Thus we shall find the Lord hath threatned to do Prov. 1. 24 26 28 29. Because I have called saith he and ye refused I have stretched out mine hand and no man regarded I also will laugh at your calamity I will mocke when your feare commeth Then shall they call upon me but I will not answer they shall seeke me early but they shall not find me for that they hated knowledge and did not choose the feare of the Lord. Now if you shall aske me how may this be done I answer That he that would make this sure to himselfe that when he dies he shall go to heaven must do these three things 1. He must repent of all his knowne sinnes He must call them to mind bewaile them unfainedly confesse them to God and crave earnestly of him the pardon of them and resolve with himselfe to forsake them all For 1. Sinne is the sâ—ing of death as the Apostle cals it 1 Cor. 15. 56. And if that be once done away and forsaken death can never hurt a man nor hath he any cause to feare it at all 2. On the other side no man can hope to go to heaven with his sinnes unrepented of Know ye not saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 6. 9. that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdome of God Be not deceived neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor effeminate nor abusers of themselves with mankind nor theeves nor covetous nor drunkards nor revilers nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdome of God Any one of these sinnes unrepented of will certainly exclude a man utterly out of the kingdome of heaven 3. Though it be dangerous for a man to live in sinne yet is it a matter of farre greater danger to him to die in sinne and to be over-taken by death before he have repented of it This our Saviour noteth as the extreme unhappinesse of the wicked Iewes and repeats it often Iohn 8. 21. 24. that they should die in their sinnes 2. Get good assurance by a lively faith that Christ is thine and then shalt thou be able to die in peace and in a certaine hope to go to heaven when thou art dead When old Simeon had seene Christ whom he had waited for by faith and longed to see and was thereby confirmed much in that faith he had in him before He blessed God anâ— said Luke 2. 28 29 30. Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace for mine eyes have seene thy salvation They that have once seene and embraced Christ as he did spiritually by faith I meane and not corporally onely shall die in peace and none but they can do so For 1. It is Christ onely that hath overcome death for us and taken away the sting of it When the Apostle had said 1 Cor. 15. 56. that sin is the sting of death But thanks be to God saith he Verse 57. which giveth us victory through our Lord Iesus Christ. Death is overcome so that it cannot hurt the true believer at all but him that is nor in Christ it will sting unto death even unto the second death 2. We can have no hope to come to heaven but onely through him Christ is in you saith the Apostle Col. 1. 27. the hope of glory There is no hope to come to glory but onely by Christ. Nay there is no hope to come to glory through him unlesse he be in us unlesse he dwell in us by a lively faith 3. If thou wouldst be sure to go to heaven when thou diest labour whilest thou livest to lead an unblameable a godly and fruitfull life even to do all the good that God gives thee power and opportunity to do As we have opportunity saith the Apostle Gal. 6. 10. which none of us can tell how soone it may be taken from us let us do good unto all men especially unto them that are of the houshold of faith See what comfort Hezechia found in this when he was to die Remember now O Lord I beseech thee saith he Esa. 38. 3. how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart have done that which is good in thy sight Now on his death-bed his conscience gave this comfortaâ—â—e testimony unto him that he had lead a holy life and now doth he even before the Lord comfort himselfe in that against the feare of death See also what a testimony the holy Apostle gives unto good workes even to the workes of charity and mercy in this case Charge them that are 〈◊〉 in this world saith he 1 Tim. 6. 17 19. that they 〈◊〉 good that they be rich in good workes ready to distribute willing to communicate laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come that they may lay hold on eternall life Workes of charity not as a meritorious cause of salvation but as a sure evidence that by a lively faith we have interest and title to the merits of Christ shal be rewarded with stable and durable riches in time to come and will make a man able with confidence of hope to lay hold on eternall life And that which the Apostle saith of certaine bad men 2 Cor. 11. 15. that their end shal be according to their workes may be said of all good men also their end shal be according to their workes A good life will certainly end in a blessed and comfortable death Foure things are wont to be objected against this which I will briefly give answer unto Experience sheweth daily that many do die willingly and quietly and comfortably also that have neither lived so unblameably and fruitfully nor used any such means to prepare themselves for death as you have prescribed To this I answer 1. That we may not thinke that every one that dies quietly and speakes gloriously of his willingnesse to die and of the peace and comfort that he finds in the assurance of his salvation doth die happily and comfortably indeed For the Holy Ghost speaks of some that were most wâ—cked and wretched men that have no bands in their death Psal. 73. 4. In outward things all things aswell in death as in life fall alike to good and bad as Salomon saith Eccles. 9. 2. 2. We have just cause to suspect the peace