Selected quad for the lemma: love_n
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A48444
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A funeral sernom [sic] delivered upon the sad occasion of the much lamented death of John Gould, late of Clapham, Esq; who put on immortality, Aug. 22, 1679 / by P. Lamb ...
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Lamb, Philip, d. 1689.
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1679
(1679)
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Wing L207; ESTC R41395
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22,449
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89
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Visibles or things seen as what they have of Invisibles or things not seen nor by what they have of this World in their present possession as by what they have of another World in futurition nor by what they are but what they shall be not according to the occurrences of Life but their happiness in Death which he thus demonstrates from his own observation and experience in the Text and context In the 35. v. of this Psalm he shews us the Wicked in all their pomp and grandeur I have seen the Wicked in great power and spreading himself as a green Bay tree or as in the Margin a green Tree that groweth in his own Soil And what is this goodly shew in the 36. verse he saith Yet he passeth away and loe he was not yea I sought him but he could not be found And why could he see no more of him He gives a reason in the 38. verse The Transgressors shall be destroyed together the end of the Wicked shall be cut off But is it so with the Saints No Though they be like a dry Tree yet mark the Perfect man trace him through all the troubles of life Behold the Upright for the end of that man is Peace The Text is a description of the Life and Death of a Pious man First his Life that is Perfect and Upright Secondly his Death and that is Peace The conclusion arises out of the Premises Mark the Perfect man and behold the Upright c. From the doubling of the terms we may learn these three things as intended thereby First to mark him with a curious eye of observation and serious consideration to mark how he carries it toward God towards man how he is at home and abroad how he deports himself in every condition of Life mark him exactly in all his Natural Civil and Spiritual actions observe him Inside and Outside the more you know him the better you will love him and the better you love him the more you will look upon him Behold his Life and if there be no comliness in the outward appearance yet there is comfort enough in his Death The end of that Man is Peace Even Balaam did wish Oh that I might die the death of the Righteous that my latter end may be like his Secondly Mark him and behold him with an eye of imitation let the Upright man be the Copy after which you write Though we cannot safely follow Man in all things because the best Lights out of Heaven are but Moon-lights at best and have their blemishes yet we may safely follow them in their Uprightness and 't is our duty to follow them as they are followers of Christ Jesus especially in these three Specimens of their Uprightness First the Purity and Singleness of their heart having the testimony of a good Conscience that there is no way of Wickedness in them but they are like the followers of the Lamb in Rev. 14.5 In whose mouth was found no Guile for they are without fault before the Throne of God Secondly in the Beauty and Purity of a spotless life whose Conversation as well as Conscience is without spot and blame abstaining from all appearance of evil according to that Exhortation in Phil. 2.15 That ye may be blameless and harmless the Sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse Nation among whom ye shine as lights in the World Thirdly In a faithful perseverance in the ways of God to the end as in Prov. 4.25 26 27. Let thine eyes look right on and let thine eye-lids look straight before thee Ponder the path of thy feet and let all thy ways be established Turn not to the right hand nor to the left which implies these two things especially First That there must be no decays nor faintings in the way and work of Holiness but a continual increase as in Prov. 4.18 The path of the Just is as the shining light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day lest it be with us as it was charged upon Ephesus as in Rev. 2.4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee because thou hast left thy first love As some understand she had left Christ who was the Object of her love or as others She left that degree and measure of love wherewith she at first loved him We must not only keep up the same heat of love and heighth of affections to Christ but love to Christ being a Divine fire must increase more and more till the Soul ascend in a holy flame into his Bosom Secondly There must be no diversion or turning from the ways of God neither to the right hand nor to the left i. e. either to avoid the frowns on the one hand or to enjoy the smiles of the world on the other hand Or else First Not turn to the right hand by any excesses or doing more than God hath commanded for God will say to men â—hat do so Who hath required these things at your hands Or charge us as he did the People Jer. 7.81 That they did that which came not into his heart Their hearts can never be right with God that is only right in their own eyes Secondly Turn not to the left hand by any defects or neglect of what God hath commanded but go straight on as the Kine that carried the Ark 1 Sam. 6.12 They went straight on and turned not as they went Let it be your aim to be thorow-pac'd in Religion throughout with God that though you cannot do all the good and shun all the evil you would yet you may be able to say as in Psal 18.21 I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God and in the shutting up oâ— our days appeal with good Hezekiah Isa 38.3 Remember now O Lord I beseech thee how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart Thirdly It implies To behold the Upright man till he comes to the Grave Mark the Perfect man observe his Life behold him till ye see his latter end till ye see how he comes off the Stage the end of that man is to be considered as well as his beginning see him in Life see him in Death Death is said to be a mans End in several respects 1. As it puts an end to all the actions of his life when death appears it shuts the Windows binds up or breaks the Working-instruments Eccles 9.10 Solomon tells us Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do do it with thy might for there is no work nor device nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest 2. 'T is the end of man because it brings man to the end of his Journey therefore when man dyeth he is said to go to his Long home Eccles 12.5 the Grave is said to be his Long home not his last home for the body must not lodge there for ever nor is it said to be his long home because he is long
world Joh. 16.33 These things I have spoken unto you that in me ye might have Peace In the World ye shall have Tribulation but be of good chear I have overcome the World Thirdly It is a peace that springs up from Purity and Sanctification the heart being purged the Conscience refined the Soul is full of peace within by the help of the testimony of a good Conscience goeth triumphant into his Eternal rest Thirdly Reason Reasons I shall give you some grounds or Reasons why they that are Perfect and Upright in their life shall certainly have peace in their death Reason 1 Reas 1. Because the God of peace hath an infinite intimate and everlasting love for his upright ones he loves them and they love him above all the world Cant. i. 4. We will be glad and rejoice in thee we will remember thy love more than wine the upright love thee And he loves them as in Psal xi 7. The righteous Lord loveth righteousness his countenance doth behold the upright He bids us behold the upright yea he beholds them with delight himself And in Psalm iv 3. He hath set apart him that is godly for himself he hath made a Covenant with them a Covenant of Peace and because he loves them he will lodge them in his Bosom Though Death can break the Knot of all human love and friendship yet it can never loosen the Bond of Divine Love as the Apostle says in Rom. viii 37 38. Nay in all these things we are more than Conquerors through him that loved us For I am persuaded that neither Death nor Life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers nor things present nor things to come Nor heigth nor depth nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Secondly Reason 2 Reas 2. Because he hath proclaimed and promised Peace Rest and Glory to such Isa lvii 2. He shall enter into peace they shall rest in their beds each one walking in his uprightness And Rev. xiv 13. And I heard a voice from Heaven saying unto me Write Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth yea saith the Spirit that they may rest from their labours and their works do follow them And Psalm lxxxiv 11. The Lord God is a Sun and Shield the Lord will give Grace and Glory no good thing will be withhold from them that walk uprightly His time of Life is his time of War at the instant of Death the Warfare is ended and everlasting peace proclaimed his life is his Seed-time his end is the beginning of Harvest a full Harvest of peace and joy Psalm xcvii 11. Light is sown for the Righteous and gladness for the Upright in heart When the body and soul of the Upright do part asunder the body betakes it self to rest in the Grave the soul flies into the regions of peace in the Divine Presence Thirdly Reason 3 Reas 3. Because God is righteous and he will recompence his Saints 2 Thess i. 6 7. It is a righteous thing with God to recompence tribulation to them that trouble you And to you that are troubled rest with us And thus you shall see Christ leading them into a land of peace Rev. vii 14 15 16 17. These are they which came out of great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the bloud of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his Temple and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them They shall hunger no more neither thirst any more neither shall the Sun light on them nor any heat For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes It is great trouble that Saints undergo and a hard matter for a man to maintain his integrity amidst so many snares frowns and flatteries of the world This is their great comfort and encouragement and shall be their reward to inherit peace at the last As Lamech said Gen. v. 29. When the Lord gave him his Son Noah whose name signifies Rest and whose person was a type of Christ This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed Which the Apostle also intimates 1 Cor. xv 19. If in this life only we have hope in Christ we are of all men most miserable Implying 1. That Saints are not altogether hopeless in this life 2. That all their hope is not here Fourthly Reason 4 Reas 4. Because when a Perfect and Upright man dieth he is gone out of the reach of all those things that might annoy his peace where the wicked cease from troubling and the weary be at rest Job iii 17. and are wafted over into Emmanuel's Land where they have all those glorious enjoyments in which they shall eternally acquiesce 1. He is totally freed from all evil sin cannot be there Rev. 21.27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth Here he is full of complaints Rom. 7.24 O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death But when he dies he sings this Epinikion I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 2. When the Perfect and Upright man dies he and his Portion and Inheritance are brought together the Heir is restless in his expectations till he comes to the Inheritance but here the Portion is God himself which the Saint hath many times with much pleasure survey'd and hath had thereof many a delightful prospect of Faith rejoycing in it as sweet and full and satisfying and now doth possess that Inheritance incorruptible undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved for him in Heaven 1 Pet. 2.4 and shall ever be with the Lord 1 Thes 3.17 3. He comes to enjoy his Beloved in Glory of whom he said when he saw him by Faith Cant. 5.10 My Beloved is white and ruddy the chiefest among ten thousands and in the 16. verse Yea he is altogether lovely What will he say when he shall see him and be with him in his highest Exaltations in Glory 4. All his Graces shall be then compleated and there shall be no more place for desire for he shall sit down at that Fountain-head where is fulness of joy and pleasures for evermore Verse 1 Vse Informs that if the Perfect and Upright mans end be Peace then his life is full of trouble he hath trouble within and trouble without as the Apostle says of himself 2 Cor. 7.5 That he had no rest in the flesh but was troubled on every side without were fightings within were fears Saints in this life sail as it were upon a Sea of glass mingled with fire the Persecutions of men the Buffetings of Satan the Law in their Members make their present state unquiet How