to his Disciples more plainly than to others Mat. 13 11. This evidence of Brotherly Love we ought to give also 'T is not only the duty of Ministers but of every private Christian in his Station to counsel and instruct his Brethren to inform the Ignorant and seek their Conversion tell them their duty and danger and shew them how they may flee from the wrath to come And it will be their wisdom and interest thus to win Souls to Christ and save Sinners from Death and Hell This must we do to the most vicious as we have opportunity But as we owe a special degree of Love to Fellow Christians so we are especially to counsel and admonish them To advise them in difficulties explain what they do not understand endeavour to impart our Light to them to increase their knowledge make additions to their Grace and further their Happiness He that loves his Brother will seek to help his Ignorance rectifie his Mistakes free him from Error and communicate his own Experiences to preserve him from Sin encourage him in Duty and make his passage to Heaven more pleasant and delighful 6. In kind and friendly Reproofs Christ frequently gave this Testimony of his Love to his Disciples reproved the smallness of their Faith Pride and Ambition and unbecoming Passions and the like Sins Thus must we also act Smooth Flattery is an Argument of Hatred and neglecting Reproofs when necessary is a piece of negative Flattery but a smart rebuke is oftentimes a great Argument of Love Leâ—it 19. 17. When therefore we see our Brother erring from his way we must seek by moderate Reproofs to stir up his dying Graces and bring him back to his Duty Here indeed much Christian Prudence and Discretion is necessary We are too apt to aggravate the failings of others and extenuate our own far greater offences Therefore let us be more ready to behold our own stains than the lesser spots of others and first cover our own nakedness before we cast the Stones of Reproof at our Brother Neither must we reprove upon bare Rumors and Suspicions without certain knowledge of our Brothers offence This is to shoot the Arrow before we see the mark If we are not certainly assur'd either from our own personal Knowledge or the undoubted Testimony of credible Witnesses that our Brother is guilty our reproofs will be but Slanders and our Charity in offering the Cure will not be half so great as our uncharitableness in believing the Disease Neither must we reprove sharply for small offences for every unvoluntary slip and failing To dip our Reproofs in Gall and Satyr upon every little miscarriage is a piece of impertinent officiousness and shews we are very much in Love with the Office Further our Reproofs must be seasonable Prov. 15. 23. When our Brother is most calm and sedate his Passions hush'd and still and his reason Reseated on the Throne as Water falling on a Red hot Iron only causes a great deal of noise and disturbance so Reproofs just upon the very act of Sin when our Brothers Passions are in disorder will only cause him to fume and fret the more Moreover our reproofs must be given in gentle Language Gal. 6. 1. Rebukes in reviling words look like the upbraidings of an Enemy and not like the kindness of a displeased Friend Nay let not your Reproofs be before others lest it alienate thy Brothers Heart and make him suspect 't is hatred and not love that puts thee upon this ungrateful Imployment but let them be between him and thee alone with all the secresie and privacy possible That he may see 't is thy love that urgeth thee to this Office of Kindness and good Men will hearken and endeavour to amend whatever is amiss Psal. 141. 5. Rebuke a Wise Man and he will love thee Prov. 9. 8. 8. In dying for one another The greatest Testimony of Christs Love was his dying for us Iohn 15. 13. Rom. 5. 8. Hereby perceive we the Love of God in that he laid down his Life for us and we ought to lay down our Lives for the Brethren 1 Iohn 3. 16. If Christ who was so much exalted above us in Glory and Majesty did lay down his Life for us much more ought we to dye for our Brethren who are of the same mould by Nature partakers of the same precious Faith by Grace and heirs of the same Inheritance in Glory If Christ dyed for Enemies and Strangers Slaves to Satan and Rebels against Heaven surely we ought not to account it hard to dye for Friends link'd to us by the nearest Bonds of Union Members of the same Body and belonging to the same Glorious Head seeing Christ did not account his Life too dear for us we ought not to account this command an hard saying or burden too difficult to be born But this Duty is only to be perform'd when we are specially call'd to it and the publick good of Christianity requires it to lay down our Lives without such a Call is to become Murderers of our selves and may be to the wrong and not the benefit of our Brethren For thereby we are incapacitated from doing them any further service in this World The great instance wherein we are to lay down our Lives for our Brethren is when we are call'd to seal the Truth with our Blood The Glory of God and Spiritual Good of our Brethren ought to be so dear to us that we ought willingly to Sacrifice our Lives rather than by any base and sinful compliances harden Unbelievers unsettle weak and wavering Christians or grieve the Hearts of confirm'd Saints 3. Some Practical Improvement I shall conclude all with a word of Exhortation 1. To my Brethren in the Ministry I have taken upon me the Office of putting you in remembrance of your Duty We all call our selves the Messengers of Peace and Ambassadors of the God of Love and are now come together to testifie our Love to one another Let us now therefore take up an unanimous Resolution that we will live together as united Brethren and imitate the great Example of our Lord Redeemer who hath given us our Commission Let us not be strange or shy or suspicious one of another harbour any envy ill-will or hard thoughts Take up any evil reports or hearken to the Tales of Whisperers and Backbiters who make it their Business to sow Seeds of Discord among Brethren While we all profess the same Holy Religion worship God after the same manner and pursue the same design of winning Souls to Christ why should we be angry or displeas'd if perhaps we have not the same Sentiments in some lesser Matters of difficulty any more than because we are not of the same Age Stature or Complexion Why should we envy one anothers Parts or Gifts or Success Or be offended because perhaps the Assemblies of others may be larger than our own It ought to be our Joy if our Lord
Observation I shall raise from them is this That the last and great Command of our dying Saviour is that Christians should love one another as Christ hath loved them In Handling of which I shall observe this Method 1. I shall inquire who are the Objects of this Love 2. In what respects must we love one another as Christ hath loved us 3. Make some Practical improvement of the whole Discourse 1. The Objects of this Love 1. There is a common Love due to Men as Men all Men are God's Workmanship bearing his natural Image and capable of being serviceable to his Glory Thus Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thy self all Men are our Neighbours as partakers of the same Nature and capable of the same Happiness Special love to Christians doth not diminish but enlarge our common love to Men Wherever we see any part of Gods Image we must love it Our Saviour when he beheld that rich young Gentleman Mark 10. 21. he loved him he could not but be well pleased with his Morality though he was displeased he went no further Thus all the footsteps of Divine Goodness must be lov'd Vertue even in an Heathen is to be admired This will constrain us to Pity Pray for and hâ—lp all in distress according to our ability We must not be like the unconcerned Priest and merciless Levite in the Parable Luke 10. 30. who passed by the wounded Man and would not relieve him but like the good Samaritan who spoke comfortably to him supplied his Wants and bound up his Wounds 2. There is a Love due to Enemies Other Mens Faults and Sins against us give us no dispensation for the non-payment of this great Debt of Natures Law Loving all of the same kind Christ came to mortifie all Inclinations to Rage and Revenge and commands Affections and Words and Actions of Kindness and Benignity to those that have expressed the contrary unto us We must love our Enemies Mat. 5. 44. be cordially affected towards them wish them all the good in the World especially when they most need the good of their Souls Their Conviction Reformation and Amendment Other Mens Enmity must not pervert or blind our Judgments or hinder us from discerning what is amiable in them nor must it corrupt our Affections or hinder us from loving what is truly lovely We must bless them that curse us Not render reviling for reviling but give them friendly courteous words though they rail against us We must do good to them feed and cloth them if hungry or naked rescue them if in danger comfort them if in distress and all without the least Tincture of Malice or Revenge We must pray for them Forgive them our selves and pray to God to forgive them too Thus did our Saviour in the midst of his dying Agonies forgets not this Testimony of his Love to his imbitter'd Adversaries and with a generosity beyond Example pleads excuses for their Sin saying Father forgive them for they know not what they do Luke 23. 34. 3. There is a special Love due to all whom we charitably hope to be true Christians To this we are directed by the Text. Whoever makes a seemingly serious profession of Faith and Holiness and doth not disprove it by a contrary practice is to be allow'd the Name and special Love of a Christian. 'T is Gods Prerogative to see the Heart 'T is our Duty to observe the Life and he that makes a credible Profession and doth not live in wilful Sin is charitably to be esteemed as a Member of Christ. Though he differ from us in many Points yet if he holds the Foundations of the Christian Faith and manifests the Grace of God in his Life 't is uncharitable for us to judge he is not the object of Gods special Love and therefore it is unreasonable he should not be the object of ours Though he be weak in Parts and Gifts subject to many Passions and Infirmities consistent with real Grace though his Profession reach not to that heigth as to make him Eminent and his Conversation be not so exact as to make you confident of his Sincerity yet if he profess to be a true Christian and live not in any Sin which is the certain mark of an unbeliever he is to be lov'd as Christ hath loved us Gods Love indeed is Guided by Infallibility he loves none with a special Affection but sincere penitent Believers but our Love must be guided by our own weak and fallible discerning Where we see the Fruits of Piety in Mens Lives we must judge of the truth of their Graces according to the probability which those signs discover Though all be not so Eminent in Grace as Peter Iames and Iohn yet as the weakest Disciples it sincere are accepted by God so ought they to be embrac'd by us Christ will not break the bruised Reed nor quench the smoaking Flax. Nor ought we to despise the Babes in Christ but love them as Members of the same Body and Heirs of the same Inheritance 2. In what respects must we love one another as Christ hath loved us Ans. Not in all Respects Christ so loved us as to purchase Grace and Glory for us But we are not capable of thus Loving one another We cannot pay down a valuable satisfaction for our own Sins much less can we super-erogate or purchase pardon for others Our own Oyl must be perfum'd with the Incense of Christs Merits before it can make our Faces shine before God and we have so little for our selves that we have none to spare for our Brethren Christ alone paid down a compleat satisfaction for them and us nor can we love our Brethren with an equal degree of Love to what Christ did He had not the Spirit by measure but the fulness of the Godhead dwelt in him and therefore he lov'd us without any sinful mixture or imperfection but our Love as well as other Graces admit of very great defects The word As therefore doth not denote equality in degree but likeness in kind Our Love to one another must bear some likeness and resemblance of Christs Love to us 1. In the Inward Properties of it 2. In the outward Expressions of it 1. In the inward Properties of it 1. Our Love must be sincere and unfeigned as Christ's was Christ did not Hypocritically pretend Love or Dissemblingly feign Affection to us but sincerely lov'd us His Protestations of Love were all real and hearty not in Word and in Tongue only but in Deed and in Truth Thus ought our Love to be without Dissimulation Rom. 2. 9. A pretended Disciple indeed may like Iudas kiss and betray make large Protestations of kindness to the Saints and under this pretext of Affection hide a malicious heart and contrive their ruin But the true Christians Professions of Love as well as Prayers to God proceed not from feigned Lips 2. Our Love to one another must be fervent as Christ's was 'T was Love incomprehensibly great
manner For Peter he prays for strengthening confirming Grace Luke 22. 31. and he put up a famous Prayer for his Disciples and all that should believe on him Iohn 17. that they might persevere in the Faith live in Unity increase in Grace and at last be translated to Heaven and abide with him in Glory And he hath laid a special Obligation on us to do likewise Hence in that excellent Form and Directory of Prayer Mat. 6. 9. he teaches us to say Our Father intimating that if we would gain acceptance for our selves we must come to God as in union with Christ and his universal Church Our Prayers must not be only for our selves but for the whole Church of God throughout the World we must hold Communion with all Christians in Faith and Love and an holy Profession thereof and while absent in Body must be as present with them in Spirit and still beg of God for them a freedom from the same Spiritual Evils and enjoyment of the same Spiritual Priviledges we would desire for our selves If the Psalmist under the old Law pray'd for the Peace of Ierusalem Psal. 122. 6. 137. 5 6. and makes such solemn Protestations never to forget her surely it is our great duty now the Church is surrounded with Enemies so potent and numerous never to forget Spiritual Zion but always be mindful of our Ierusalem If the legal Priests and Watchmen were bound to be God's Remembrancers and give him no rest till he establish and make Ierusalem a Praise in the Earth Isa. 62. 6 7. Then surely it is the duty of Spiritual Watchmen under the Gospel to put up their Petitions with fervour for the distressed Christian Churches and Servants of God We ought with the Apostle to give Thanks to God always for all Saints and make mention of them in our Prayers Eph. 1. 16. Be compassionately sensible of all their Troubles and continually bow our Knees before God that all his dealings may tend to their good that their Lives may be a credit to their Profession and that their Faith and Love and Patience and Humility and Self-denial may be effectual to convince Unbelievers enlarge the Kingdom of Grace and add new Inhabitants to the Kingdom of Glory 3. In forgiving one another Christ so loved us as to forgive all the injuries and affronts we have offered to him pardon of Sin is the great purchase of his Death And though our Sins be more numerous than the Hairs of our Head and exceed the Sands of the Sea for Multitude yet if we sincerely repent of them we may be assured they shall be forgiven And as Christ doth thus testify his love to us so must we testify our love to one another Have they wrong'd and injur'd us we must not bear a Spirit of Revenge but freely forgive them God will not forgive us except we forgive others Mat. 6. 11 14 15. Where God pardons any he gives them a heart to forgive others That Servant in the Parable was very disingenuous who when his Lord forgave him Ten Thousand Talents cast his Fellow Servant into Goal and would not forgive him an Hundred Pence Mat. 18. 23. And are not we guilty of the same disingenuity who when we know what numerous Talents God hath forgiven us cannot pass by a small injury of our Brother against us This act of Christian Love you see is strictly required and a special degree of it is due to true Christians above all others We are bound indeed to forgive Enemies while continuing and remaining such so far as not to return Evil for Evil to entertain no revengeful Thoughts and perform all general Offices of Justice and Charity towards them But a Friend and true Christian that hath offended us and returns to his Fidelity must be forgiven and again treated and entrusted as a Friend if he gives sufficient Evidences of his Sorrow and Repentance for former Faults For is he the Friend of God and shall he be esteemed as our Enemy Is God reconciled to him and shall we still retain our Enmity against him Surely if God be his reconciled Father we ought to be his reconciled Brethren also Account him no longer an Enemy but a Brother beloved Philem. 16. 4. In our Alms and Bounty to the Necessitous Christ though he himself lived on the Charity of others and had not a sufficient supply for himself and Disciples yet we find he did out of that small pittance give something to the Poor for in this Chapter Iudas who was the Steward of Christ's Family bore the Bag and was to disburse Mony for those uses for which his Lord designed it When he went out after his receiving the Sop the Disciples thought he was gone either to buy Provisions for the approaching Passover or to give something to the Poor John 13. 29 thereby implying it was our Saviour's custom to give to the Poor And if he thus loved his poor Members surely we ought to do so likewise Those who have a fruitless love to others have but a fruitless Faith to themselves They who pretend love to their Brethren and yet relieve them not according to their ability their Professions of Religion are vain We are bound indeed to supply the Wants of all even of Strangers and Enemies according to our ability and opportunities But to true Christians we are bound to open our hands more wide and be more liberal and bountiful Do good to all especially to the Houshold of Faith Gal. 6. 10. God hath made us but Stewards of the Earthly Blessings we injoy and given us our Stock of Worldly Goods that we might lay them out on those whom Providence hath made the Objects of our Charity he interprets that as done to himself which is done to his Servants and Christ's distressed Members Christ is resolved at the day of Judgment to insist on this Duty more than on any other The true Christian is himself devoted to God and therefore will devote all he hath to him will honour him with his Substance and the first Fruits of his Increase expend the Blessings received to Cloath Feed and Supply the Naked Hungry and Distressed If God hath intrusted him with many Talents he will not be so unreasonable as to think he hath therefore liberty given to pamper his Lusts or gratify his Fleshly Appetite but like a Wise Steward will seek out fit Objects for his Charity and seeing his Lord Redeemer out of that little which he had gave to the Poor will imitate his great Example 3. and because much is given will be proportionably liberal and bountiful 5. In our Counsels and admonitions Christ was very frequent and earnest in his pious Counsels and Instructions he did not only heal the Diseases of Mens Bodies but the chief design of his coming was to free the Sons of Men from all their Spiritual Maladies and Distempers Throughout his whole Life he was still explaining to Men the whole Will of God and
THE Country's Concurrence WITH THE London United Ministers In their late HEADS of AGREEMENT SHEWING The Nature and Advantages of a General Union among PROTESTANTS In Two Discourses Delivered before an Assembly of Ministers in the County of Southampton By SAMVEL CHANDLER Author of The Excellency of the Christian Religion LONDON Printed for Iohn Dunton at the Raven in the Poultry and Iohn Salusbury at the Rising-Sun over against the Royal Exchange in Cornhil 1691. TO THE READER THE late happy Union between Two prevailing Parties among us is a fit Subject of Joy and Thankfulness That Differences which have been managed with too much heat for so many Years should now be so happily composed and the Contending Parties should mutually condescend and concur together in so fair an Agreement is a Blessing we have reason gratefully to acknowledge that the Country should so readily and unanimously agree with their Brethren in the City on the same Terms and throughout the whole Nation there should be such a willing consent to lay aside those distinguishing Names and Terms which have hitherto so miserably divided us These things afford sufficient matter for praise to that God who rules the Hearts of Men and stills the ragings of the People I have long waited that some Abler Pen should publickly express the Countries Sense of this great Mercy I said Days should speak and Multitude of Years should teach Wisdom But there is a Spirit in Man and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding Iob 32. 7 8. Being invited by my Brethren to Preach before them on this occasion I composed the following Meditations and have now made them publick for more general use I hope the honesty of the Intention will attone for the weakness and unskilfulness of the Manager I am willing to believe that Irenicums will now be more acceptable than they have hitherto been in this wrangling divided Age and the Sons of Peace will be no longer liable to Reproach and Scorn O how happy would it be if this Union were more extensive and an end were put to that Ceremonious War that hath infested our Borders ever since the Reformation God seems by his Providences to make way for such a glorious work he hath not long since by putting us in mind of our common danger inclined us to be more favourable one towards another He hath by surprizing Providences exalted to the Throne a Prince of known Piety and Moderation who hath placed such in the Episcopal Chairs as are Men Famous for their healing truly Christian Spirits happy endeavours have been used for stopping that inundation of Wickedness and Prophaness which hath so wofully overrun our Land All these are happy preparations for a general Union and blessed presages that God hath yet Designs of Mercy towards us and will not suffer our Enemies to prevail against us Let us all therefore help on so good a work by our Hearty Prayers Holy Lives and endeared Love Let us maintain an unity in Love and Affection though we arrive not at Uniformity in Rituals and the Ceremonial parts of Religion In a word to conclude all with the Expressions of excellent Bishop Hall Let us be at Peace with our selves and at War with none but Hell and Rome That these Discourses may be some way useful for the advancement of Love and Peace is the Hearty Earnest Prayer of a Lover of Peace and Truth Samuel Chandler 1 Thes. 5. 13. And be at Peace among your selves NOtwithstanding the frequent commands of our Lord to Love and Unity and the earnest Calls and Persuasions of all his Apostles yet how apt we are to forget and overlook them all our unpeaceable Strifes and censorious uncharitable Contentions are too sad a Witness Though our God be the God of Love and our Saviour the Prince of Peace and Love be the last Legacy and earnest Request of our dying Redeemer yet he that beholds the bitter malice and envy wrath and unchristian Jars of the Professors of the same Faith and Followers of the same Blessed Jesus must needs think it his great Duty to attempt the reviving that Love which is very much decayed and that Charity which hath almost forsaken the Earth When we see the Blood and feel the Smart and hear the Noises of Professed Christians armed with Malice and Spite against each other 't is the duty of every Messenger of Peace to sound a Retreat from this unnatural War and persuade the furious Combatants to cease those Strifes and forbear those hot Contentions which do so much dishonour God disparage Religion grieve our Friends and make such ridiculous sport for our Enemies That therefore I may endeavour to allay these unnatural heats and disorders I have chosen the Words read and if St. Paul had any reason in those early Ages of Christianity when Love most flourished and Christians were most peacefully united together to call upon them to be at Peace among themselves surely we have now far greater occasion to do so since Christianity is broken into so many odious fractions and by-names and every little difference is apt to provoke our Anger and cause our Passions to boyl up to too excessive heights God hath indeed highly favoured us by his Providence by now calming our Spirits removing our Jealousies and Mis-understandings one of another and reconciling those Differences which have unhappily divided us many Years So that now we can strengthen one anohers Hands in the work of our Lord and glory in the title of United Brethren We are now come together solemnly to testify our Thankfulness to God for this happy Union which many of us have long sighed and prayed and waited and laboured for in vain Suffer me therefore to shew you the nature and excellencies of Peace and direct my self and you to those Gospel methods whereby our Happiness may be continued and promoted Be at Peace among your selves For the connexion of these Words we need look back no further than ver 12. where the Apostle having persuaded the Thessalonians to a due respect to their Ministers and Spiritual Guides for their Works sake exhorts them here as a means to this to be at Peace among themselves as if he should have said unpeaceable disorders will grieve your Ministers hearts detract from that just esteem which is due to their Office and render their labours often useless and unsuccessful therefore be at Peace among your selves The Words are plain and easie in themselves and need rather an hearty Meditation and diligent improvement than any laborious Explication The Observation I shall raise from the Words is this That it is the duty and should be the practice of Christian Churches to be at Peace among themselves In handling whereof I shall use this Method 1. Explain the nature of Peace 2. Shew the Advantages of Peace in Christian Churches 3. Add some Directions for the better maintaining and promoting it 1. The nature of Peace 1. Peace implies a command over irregular Passions