Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n
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A60141
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Of long life and old age a funeral sermon, occasion'd by the death of the much honour'd Mrs. Jane Papillon, who departed this life, July 12th, 1698. AEtat. 72 / by John Shower.
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Shower, John, 1657-1715.
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1698
(1698)
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Wing S3677; ESTC R33839
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29,289
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117
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and at Home by Sea and Land in one Country and another and compassed me about with thy Salvation How many Personal how many Relative Blessings How many Temporal how many Spiritual Mercies have I had How many Useful Excellent Exemplary Christians Ministers and Magistrates have I follow'd to the Grave and seen their Bodies laid in the Dust And yet God has spar'd and preserv'd me unto Old Age that I might be more ripe for Heaven And Oh that this may be the Fruit of all that I may be so And with the Consideration of what God has done for you you old Disciples should acquaint others that are younger with what you your selves have found and what their Children and Childrens Children will find to be true as to Religious and Civil Prudence In this especially Days should speak and multitudes of Years teach Knowledge Job 33.9 Admonish them to remember their Creator in the Days of their Youth charge them to be followers of you so far as you have been followers of Christ in hopes that among all your Children or Grand-Children there may not be one Son of Perdition nor one Daughter of Belial Thus David Come ye Children hearken unto me I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Psal 34.11 Thus Solomon at large Prov. 4.1 2. Hear ye Children the Instruction of a Father and attend to know Understanding Thus Timothy's Mother and Grand-Mother taught him Tell them of the Snares of Satan of the Deceitfulness of Sin of the certain Disappointment if we expect much from the World tho' it may be they will hardly now believe it Thirdly Let the last part of your Lives abound in the Fruits of Righteousness and be much imploy'd in serious Devotion Let more Time be spent in Prayer and Meditation and secret Converse with God In what a Frame doth the Psalmist speak when he was Old Psal 71.17 18. * Which Holy Rivet was wont to repeat every Day in his Old Age. O God thou hast taught me from my Youth and hitherto have I declared thy wonderous Works Now also when I am Old and Grey Headed O God forsake me not until I have shewed thy Strength unto this Generation and thy Power to every one that is to come Though in the Morning we must sow our Seed yet in the Evening we must not with-hold our hand we know not which shall prosper most Whether you may not please and honour God in your Old Age by suitable Fruits of Righteousness as much as ever heretofore in your Younger Years I have lost a world of time said the Learned Salmasius on his Death-Bed if I had One Year longer I would spend it in reading David 's Psalms and Paul 's Epistles I repent of all my Life said another on his Death-Bed but that part I have spent in Communion with God and in doing Good O Pray much for your selves and for your Children and for Theirs after them that none of them may be lost that none of them may dishonour their Parentage blemish their Family break the Fetters of their Education and cast off their Fathers God and their Mothers God Methinks 't is a Pleasant and Comfortable Passage Heb. 11.9 That Abraham dwelt in Tents with Isaac and Jacob That is they all did so though not in the same House and were all Heirs of the same Promise Father Son and Grand-Son All Heirs of the same Promise All Believers All within the Bond of the Covenant All pleasing God and accepted of him 'T is a singular Mercy to be able to say Lord I am thy Servant truly I am thy Servant the Son of thine Handmaid the Son of thy Servant I hope my Father's God my Grand-Father's and Grand-Mother's God is my God and shall be the God of mine And here I can hardly forbear something more particular of the Excellent Person Deceased who is now above our Praises Her Character and History is not to be summ'd up in the few Syllables of a Funeral Ring that she liv'd to such an Age and dy'd at such a Time I might say of her with strict Justice upon my own knowledge very many Things Great and Praise-worthy but that it was against her Desire nor is it His who hath a greater Power over me than that comes to There are Multitudes who knew her Example who are Mourners for her Death in City and in Country besides Relations Multitudes who by her Charity were enabled to praise God Who will tell one another of this and the other Particular which I shall not name And if any think that her dislike of a Funeral Commendation do add to her Character and really greaten it I cannot help or gainsay that Let me urge this a little further upon Elder Christians who have been for many Years planted in the House of the Lord that they would bring forth Fruit in their Old Age. Sirs Be not weary of Well-doing God is not weary of doing you Good he hath provided for you in Old Age that your Youth should be renewed like the Eagles God's Goodness to you doth not abate but increase He may say to you as to old Israel Isa 46.3 4. You were born by me from the Belly and carried from the Womb even unto Old Age I am he and even to Hoary Hairs will I carry you You have had a long Time to take deeper Root and to bring forth riper and better Fruit than Others and now you are preparing for a Remove within a near prospect of it you know it can't be long for Old Age is the next Condition to the Grave 'T was the Honour of Thyatira that her Last Works were better than her First and of Zacharias and Elizabeth both well stricken in Years that they were both Righteous before God walking in all the Commandments and Ordinances of the Lord blameless And of Anna who was of a great Age that she departed not from the Temple but served God Day and Night Luke 2.36 They had need look to this who can't reasonably think to be many Years short of the Everlasting World who have no other Business now to mind but that they may finish their Course with Joy that they may have fresh Supplies of Spiritual Life and suitable actings of Grace to the very last that their Breaches may be repaired their Backslidings healed that what is weak may be strengthened and what is decayed may be recovered c. There is such a Thing as a Spring in Autumn a latter Spring and though it be inferiour to the first yet the Husbandman cannot spare it and 't is reckon'd a sign of barren Ground if there be no Attempts to put forth afresh towards the end of the Year God expects the like from Christians in their Old Age Especially from such who have made a great Appearance and Profession of Religion in their Younger Years 'T is dreadful for any such to be Dead and Cold and Worldly and Selfish and Earthly-minded Though the Fruit be somewhat different in
honouring their Parents as are strict and conscientious in the Government of the Tongue as are Exemplary for Justice towards Men and Charity to the Poor Now every Good Man who hath Sincerity enough to carry him to Heaven can't expect the accomplishment of these and the like Temporal Promises which are made to Persons who are peculiarly eminent for such Vertues I conclude this Head with the words of the Wise Man Eccl. 8.12 13. Though a Sinner do evil a hundred times and his Days be prolonged yet surely I know it shall be well with them that fear God that fear before him But it shall not be well with the Wicked neither shall be prolong his Days which are as a shadow because he feareth not before God Job 21.7 20. The Wicked live become old yea are mighty in Power His Eyes shall see his Destruction he shall drink of the Wrath of the Almighty I come now to consider That Old Age with the Grace of God and a Course of serious Religion is a very great Blessing when the Soul is fitted and ripened for Heaven And this is the Benefit of a long Life that we may know and serve and praise and glorifie and enjoy God more than others this has made the best Men desire and pray for a longer Life Psal 39. ult Spare me that I may recover Strength and be fitted for my Duty and thy Service and fitter to leave the World when thou shalt call me Psal 71.18 Isa 38.19 This is the proper Blessing of a prolonged Life to do God more Service in this World and lay up a good Foundation for hereafter viz. the Comforts of a good Conscience against a dying Hour and a greater meetness for the Heavenly Inheritance 'T is doubtless true that the Grace of God doth beautifie every Age but how Lovely and Honourable is the Hoary Head when found in the way of Righteousness After the resistance of many Temptations and enduring many Years Conflicts that yet the Soul is fixt for God and Heaven and its Choice abides When after many Years Experience they like their Master's Service the better when they have faithfully serv'd him for Fifty Sixty or Seventy Years To say with good Obadiah 1 Kings 18. I have feared Jehovah from my Youth It was a Title of Honour given Gnason of Cyprus that he is call'd an old Disciple Acts 21.16 So Anna the Prophetess was of a great Age Luke 2.36 So Paul the aged and now also a Prisoner of Christ Philemon v. 9. What a stock of Grace must such an old Disciple be supposed to have who was early planted in the House of God and for several Years flourish'd in the Courts of the Lord who hath been treasuring up and increasing from Year to Year adding Grace to Grace and proceeding from Strength to Strength And 't is but an equitable Supposition that such have understood their Opportunities and manag'd their Time and Talents to good Advantage How comfortably may such a one reflect on the past Instances of God's Wisdom and Faithfulness Kindness and Compassion On the sweet Communion he hath had with God in his younger Years at his first Dedication of himself to be the Lords under such a Man's Ministry who is long since dead at the Table of the Lord in such or such an Assembly of Christians in the City or Country What comfortable Reflections can he make What pleasant Reviews may such a one have of Spiritual Inward Experimental Religion Who can say with David I have known thy Testimonies of old Psal 119.152 who hath often seen the Word of God fulfilled to himself and others Who hath observed how Publick and Private Providences did comment upon the Holy Scriptures and it may be hath had the Pleasure and Joy to see his Prayers answered and his Endeavours prospered in the Education of Children that they and theirs after them might know and serve the Lord 'T is a great Blessing to live to such an Age and find this How helpful may their long Experience be to inable them to do good in the last part of their Life more than in their younger Years For Wisdom is gotten by Experience and generally speaking they who have longest Time to improve must be the wisest People And 't is as rare almost to see a Young Man Wise and Prudent as to see an Old Man Strong and Healthy Therefore Two or Three Years of the Life of an Aged Experienced Christian especially if imploy'd in any Publick Station of Service either in Church or State may be of more use than many Years of Younger less Experienced Men. And there are many Services and Duties for the Honour of God which we are now call'd to that even the Saints in Heaven are not capable of The faithful improvement of our Talents as to these may increase our Happiness in another World If there be different Degrees of Glory he that hath a long Life of Service and Improvement in Grace may hope to rise higher than others How Useful may be the Example of an old Disciple and how Beneficial his Prayers to the Publick But especially to his own Family and Relations And there are many who understand the Blessing of long Life in the Fifth Commandment which is promised to those that Honour their Parents to be the Consequence of Parents Blessing their Children by their Prayers and Intercession to God for them And since the Apostle tells us that without Contradiction the less is blessed of the greater and the Prosperity of Children depends very much as in Reason and Experience is evident it doth upon the earnest Prayers of holy Parents for their obedient Children one may wonder that Children should now be taught by any otherwise good People not to ask that Blessing not to beg those Prayers which have so manifest an Advantage Especially when the doing it hath the general Attestation of all Christendom and is no contemptible Testimony of that Honour and Respect which is due from Children to their Religious Parents I say Religious because to make Old Age Honourable and a Blessing those Graces must be supposed which are the Ornaments of that Age Sobriety and Temperance Gravity and Seriousness Soundness in the Faith Charity Patience and Diligence to finish the Work God hath given them to do How honourable and excellent is such a one Full of Days and full of good Works Who hath serv'd his Generation according to the Will of God and is now trimming his Lamps girding up his Loins and waiting for the coming of his Lord What a Priviledge what a Blessing is this As to the Metaphor in the Text As Corn fully ripe fit to be gathered into the Barn many Things might be consider'd for Illustration What a variety of Seasons it passeth through before it be ripe how * See a large and ingenious Account of this by Sir Matthew Hale in his Magnetismus Magnus or Metaphysical and Divine Contemplations on the Loadstone 8vo 1695. on Psal