Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n
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A65313
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Seven sermons on several select subjects preached by Mr. Tho. Watson ...
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Watson, Thomas, d. 1686.
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1689
(1689)
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Wing W1144; ESTC R38959
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64,277
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we rest and are safe Saith Austin I lay my self softly and rest upon my Saviours bleeding wounds Thirdly If we trust in God aright then we can repose our trust in God when all creature Refuges fail us Hab. 17. Though the Fig-tree should not blossom can we relie upon God upon his Promises upon his Attributes Can we trust in God in the deficiency of second causes Can we trust God without a Pawn Can we go to Heaven without Crutches then our trust is genuine a true trust When the Pipes are cut that use to bring us in comfort can we say still Yet all our fresh springs are in God Psal. 87.7 Fourthly We may know if our trusting in God be right by having a spirit of courage infused into us Unbelief breeds fear Faith breeds courage Prov. 28.1 The righteous man is bold as a Lion. Faith enables a man to appear in a good cause and to withstand all opposition Dan. 3.18 Be it known to thee O King we will not serve thy Gods nor worship thy golden Images Heb. 10.34 Such an invincible Christian was Basil the Great who feared not the threats of the Emperour he was like a Rock which no water could shake Fifthly We may know our trust is right when we obey God in all things he calls for There are two things in holy trust there is Affiance and Obedience Rom. 16.26 Observe they who expect what God promises they will perform what God commands Psal. 26.1 They have trusted in the Lord. Where was the tryal of this trust Psal. 119.66 I have kept thy Commandments They deceive themselves that say they trust in God and yet they will not serve him they deny to give God the kiss of Obedience Sixthly True trusting in God is purifying having purified their hearts by faith Faith purges out the love of sin as Physick purges out the noxious humours 1 Tim. 3.9 holding the mystery of faith in a pure conscience Faith is the wedding grace that marries Christ and Holiness is the Child that Faith brings forth The Woman in the Gospel who touched Christ by faith felt a healing virtue coming from him Let not that man say his heart is fixed trusting in God who allows himself in any sin what trust in God and yet swear and be drunk and unclean this is not trust it is presumption Just like those Jews Ier. 3.4 5. Wilt thou not cry unto me My Father what follows behold thou hast done evil things as thou couldst Those Hypocrites would call God Father yet sinned as fast as they could Seventhly True trusting in God it is a patient waiting a waiting trust Psal. 37.7 Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him Though a Believer hath not what he desires presently upon the return of prayer those smiles and love-tokens from God as he desires yet he is resolved he will be in a waiting posture he will wait till mercy comes That 's a fine Scripture Psal. 123.2 Our eyes wait upon the Lord our God until he have mercy upon us That man that hath not patience to wait he hath no faith to trust Remember that Isa. 28.16 He that believeth maketh not haste A Believer knows full well the longer he stays for a mercy the richer it will be when it comes As the longest Voyages have the greatest Returns Thus you see what this trusting in God is that fixes the heart in evil times Now let me in a few words reassume the Exhortation O! let us labour for this true Faith and trust to have our hearts fixt on God in evil times When all is done faith is the heart establishing grace Psal. 112.8 his heart is established The Hebrew word there for establish signifies thus much the heart is shored up it is a metaphor that alludes to an house that is shored up by pieces of Timber Thus faith shores up the heart when it is like to sink Oh! get this heart-fixing grace of faith thus you come to be resolved and undaunted even in the worst of times and dangers Now that we may labour thus consider but these two or three things First There is nothing but God we can fix our trust in Alas whatever else we trust to besides God it will prove an Ark of Bulrushes it will never shelter us in an hour of danger there is no trusting in Riches Prov. 23.5 Riches take themselves wings and flie There is no trusting in Friends they may die or which is worse they may deceive Micah 7.5 Our Lord Jesus was betrayed by a friend There is no trusting in Great men who can trust them that are not true to God Psal. 118.9 It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in Princes There is no trusting in your own hearts why alas the heart is full of lust full of deceit it is a bosom Traitor Prov. 28.26 He that trusts in his own heart is a fool Oh! but my Brethren trust in God he is a never failing Refuge A little Boat or Pinnace while it is tied fast to a Rock it is very safe So when the Soul is tied by faith fast to Christ Jesus the Rock of Ages then it is safe Psal. 46.11 My God is the Rock of my Refuge Secondly Fixing our trust in God brings sweet peace with it Peace is the Olive branch that faith brings in its mouth Turn to that excellent Scripture Isa. 26.3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee because he trusts in thee Pray observe perfect trust is blessed with perfect peace The word trust in God comes from the Hebrew which signifies to nourish why so because our trusting in God it doth nourish it doth cherish peace in the Soul. Faith represents God as reconciled this gives peace he that trusts in God he hath peace in the midst of storms and tempests he is like Noah in the Ark when the Deluge came he could sit and sing in the Ark. Thirdly and lastly Fixing our trust on God it is that which brings in mercy and comfort and deliverance to us Psal. 32.2 He that trusts in God mercy shall compass him about Were it not a fine thing in the midst of a fight to be compast about with a golden Shield that no Arrow or Bullet could pierce It is true Gods mercy like a golden Shield shall compass him about O therefore get this heart-fixing grace of faith To encourage your faith remember these two things you that Travel for the Churches deliverance Faith and Prayer are the two Midwives that deliver Gods Church when she is in Travel I will give you a clear Scripture 2 Chron. 14.11 Help us O Lord there was prayer for we rest on thee there was faith When we build our Affiance and Confidence on God he of himself is obliged in point of honour to defend and save us Isa. 28.7 My heart trusted in thee and I am helped To shut up all Let us above all things labour to have our hearts fixt on
him Justice is Gods strange work as if he was not used to it but mercy is his proper work it is as natural for him to shew mercy as for the Bee to give Honey Why may not mercy give the casting voice for this Nation according to that Scripture In his love and in his pity he redeemed them Love and pity will do great things Gods mercy it is not only free sending out pardons where he pleases but which is more Gods mercy can as well heal as it can save it is a healing mercy Hosea 14.4 I will heal their backslidings Observe Gods mercy it can reclaim the Persecutor it can soften the Impenitent it can bring back some that are gone astray Mercy can destroy the sins of the Nation and yet save the Nation it is a healing mercy I will heal their backslidings These are the sparks of light that God causes to arise Obj. But you will say Still things look and seem as in the dark and we would have more light What must we do how must we carry our selves till God makes light to arise to us in darkness Ans. 1. Let us in all dark Providences go into our chambers Isa. 26.20 Come my people enter thou into thy chamber and hide thy self Enter thou into thy chamber that is we must go and search our hearts by serious meditation and self-examination go into this chamber of your hearts Let us in the first place search our Evidences for Heaven bring our graces to the Touchstone let us see what faith we have and what love to God we have Doth Conscience witness we not only serve God but love him Can we cry out for God for the living God Are we carried up to Heaven in a fiery Chariot of love Is it thus with us Oh let us search into the chambers of our hearts and see how all things stand betwixt God and our Souls My Brethren when things are dark without we had need to have all clear within Secondly Let us go not only into the chambers of our hearts but let us go into the chamber of Divine Promises and there let us a while judge our selves Oh! these sweet Promises of God which our Souls may take comfort in God hath promised comfort to all his mourners God hath promised that he will strengthen the infirm Isa. 40.29 God hath promised a Crown of Glory Rev. 2.10 He hath said He will never leave us nor forsake us Let us now by faith hide our selves in these chambers That 's the first thing we are to do Secondly Having done this let us under all clouds of darkness in the next place commit our selves to God that he would safeguard and keep us This I ground upon that Scripture Psal. 37.5 Commit thy way unto the Lord in the Hebrew it is roll thy way upon the Lord Commit thy self and thy cause to God by prayer as an Orphan commits himself under the care of his Guardian so should we give all our care to God Commit thy ways unto the Lord. Let us do our duty and trust God with our safety It is our work to cast care it is Gods work to take care Thirdly Having gone into these chambers the chambers of our hearts and the chambers of Divine Promises so in the third place let us now wait Gods time till he shall make light to arise in our Horrison until God turns our darkness into the light of the morning God can of a sudden disperse the black clouds God can create light God can strike a straight stroke by a crooked stick God can remove the Mountains that lie in our way till light arises Let us patiently wait light will spring up the blessings that we are in expectation of are worth waiting for To see the golden Fleet of Prayer come laden home with rich returns of mercy To see Peace and Truth united To see Popery and Prophaneness abominated To see the beauty of Holiness shining forth like a Lamp that burneth To see Christ ride in triumph in the Chariot of his Gospel To see the Righteous honoured and renowned and be like the wings of a Dove covered with yellow gold These certainly are mercies worth waiting for therefore let us wait patiently And to encourage holy waiting I will shut up all with that Scripture Isa. 30.18 And therefore will the Lord wait that he may be gracious unto you and therefore will he be exalted that he may have mercy upon you for the Lord is a God of Iudgment blessed are all they that wait for him SERMON VII St. John 10.14 I am the good Shepherd and know my Sheep and am known of mine EVery line of Scripture hath a Majesty shining in it Jesus Christ is the very center of the Gospel if the Scripture be the Field Christ is the Pearl in this Field and blessed is he that finds this Pearl the Scripture gives various descriptions of Christ sometimes he is called a Physician he is the great healer of Souls sometimes he is call'd a Captain Heb. 2.10 Captain of our Salvation and here in the Text a Shepherd I am the good Shepherd and this Shepherd hath a Flock so it is in the Text I know my Sheep and am known of mine These Sheep are the elect company of Believers these are his rational Sheep First I shall speak of the Sheep then something of the Shepherd as they do relate one to the other First Concerning the Sheep I know my Sheep The Wicked are compared to Goats the Saints to Sheep Christs People they are his Sheep and there be some near Analogies betwixt them as First A Sheep it is an innocent Creature it is not hurtful or ravenous as other Creatures are but is very harmless and inoffensible so those Sheep that belong to Christ and are of his fold they are Innocent Phil. 2.15 That you may be blameless that you may be harmless the Greek Word is without Horn or without Pushing or Horning that you may be harmless Christs people walk so as near as they can that they may give no just offence they had rather suffer wrong than do wrong those that are set upon mischief are not Christs Sheep but they are Birds of prey Those who would plot the ruin of a Kingdom and spill Protestant blood these are none of Christs Sheep these are Wolves they have been suckled with the Milk of the Romish Whore these are Goats that Christ will set at his left hand Mat. 25.32 Secondly A Sheep it is noted for meekness in Scripture it is a meek Creature Let the Shearer take its wooll it doth not resist if you strike a Sheep it doth not snarl or fly in your face all Christs Sheep that belong to him are meek spirited 2 Sam. 16.12 Though a child of God may sometimes fall into a froward fit yet he grieves for it and weeps for his unmortified passion Thirdly A Sheep it is a cleanly creature it is neat and cleanly it delights most in pure Streams