opening of the eyes But I add there is no true confession but it is particular the Spirit useth not to be wilder mens spirits in a general notion only and a wild field of unknown sins And such are many of your convictions You mourn for sin as you say and yet you cannot condescend on a particular that burdeneth your conscience you grant you have many sins but sit down to compt them and there is a short compt of them Now do you not reflect back upon former humiliations in publick and former acknowledgements of sins in private do you not yet return upon your own hearts to lay home this sad challenge I have never repented I do not yet repent must not all your solemn approaches be iniquity and abomination while your souls are not afflicted for sin while you can see so few sins c. The fasting dayes of Scotland will be numbered in the roll of greatest provocations because there is no real and spiritual conviction of sin among us Custom now hath taken away the solemnity and there remaineth nothing but the very name Is this the fast that the Lord chooseth No believe it this shall add to your provocation and rather hasten lingering judgement then keep it off we would beseech you this day pray for pardon of former abused fasts If you had no more to mourn for this might spend the day and our spirits both and exhaust all our present supplications even the wall of partition that stands between God and Scotland which all our former solemn humiliations hath built up a great deal higher then other sins could reach There is none that calleth upon thy Name Did not this people make many prayers Isai 1. 15. before the captivity And did they not cry which noteth some fervency in it And fast a little before it in Jeremiahs time Chap. 11. 11. and 14. 12. in the time of it Ezek. 8. 18. Mic. 3. 4. Zech 7. 3. How then is it that the Prophet now on the watch-tower looking round about him to take up the peoples condition and being led by the Spirit so far as to the case of the captives in Babel can find no prayer no calling And was not Daniel so too Dan. 9. 13. Lo then here is the construction that the Spirit of God putteth on many prayers and fastings in a Land There is none calleth on thy Name there is none that prayeth faithfully and fervently few to count upon that prayeth any It may be there are many publick prayers but who prayeth in secret and mourneth to God alone There are many prayers but the inscription is To the unknown God to a nameless God your praying is not a calling on his Name as a known God and revealed in the Word This then we would say unto you that there may be many prayers in your account and none in Gods There are many prayers of men that God counteth no more of then the howling of a dog First The cry of mens practices is often louder then their prayers and goeth up to Heaven that the cry of prayer cannot be heard When mens conversation is flat contrary to their supplications supplication is no calling on his Name but charming rather Sodoms abominations had a cry up to God Gen. 18. 21. So Ahels blood had a cry for vengeance which Cains prayers could not out-cry Thus the Lord would not hear many prayers Isa 1. 15. because hands and practices were polluted you that know no worship of God but in such a solemn duty your religion is summed up and confined within the limits of Temple-worship Family exercise and prayer Certainly the rest of your conversation must speak more God will not heat but such as worship him and do his will Joh. 4. 31. Your prayer is a dark parable if your conversation expone it not This I speak for this end to put many of you out of your false ground of Confidence you have nothing but your prayers to trust unto And for your conversation you never go about it effectually to reform it but goeth on in that which you pray against we declare unto you the truth your prayers are Abomination Pro. 28. 9. The wicked may have prayers And therefore think not to please God and flatter him with your mouths when your conversation is rebellion since you hear not him in his commands God will not hear you in your petitions Pro. 1. 24. 28. You stopped your ear at his reproof God will stop his ear at your request If you will go to heaven by your own righteousness I pray you follow more after it make the garment more to cover your nakedness the skirt of a duty is not sufficient Secondly When iniquity is regarded in the heart and idols set up in Gods place God will not own such a worship but sendeth a man to the Idols he serveth Psa 66. 18. Ezek. 14. 3. 4. Do you not often pray to God against a corruption when your heart cleaveth unto it and what your mouth saith your heart contradicteth Light and Conscience often extort a confession of beloved sins while the temper of the heart hath this language Lord grant not my request And therefore if there be a prayer for pardon of guilt yet there is no through resolution to quite the sin And as long â—â— a soul is not resolved to quite the sin there can be no ingenuous confession of it and no prayer for removing the guilt can be heard You cannot imploy Christ in his office of Mediatorship as a Priest to interceed and offer sacrifice for sin unlesse you as sincerely imploy him as a sanctifier and Redeemer And therefore prayer that separateth Christs offices and calleth not on whole Christ calleth not on his name for his name is Lord Jesus Christ How can the Lord be inquired of by such a one who cometh to mock him puteth up an Idol in the heart and yet prayeth against it or some other sin while he is not resolved to quite it Shall God be resolute to help when we are noâ— earnest in seeking it No wonder God answer you according to the Idol No wonder you be given up to serve Idols and your sin grow upon you as a plague for your hypocrisy when you ingadge your heart too much to any creature and comes to pray and inquire of the Lord in your necessity shall it not be righteousness with him to send you to your God when thou cryest let thy companies deliver thee Isa 57. 13. O man cry unto thy bosome idol and let it help thee since thou trustest to it and spendeth thy heart on it Deut. 32. 37 38. Where is the God that drunk the Wine of your offerings and eat the fat of your sacrifices where is the creature that you have made your heart an altar to to send up the flames of your choicest thoughts and affections to it let this rise up and help you now saith the Lord. Therefore we exhort you if you would have
of Israel by this Redeemer But now we are surrounded with Consolation before and behind Christ already come so that we may in joy say lo this is our God we have waited for him others waited and longed and we see him and Christ shortly to come again without sin to our Salvation And what could be able to take our Joy from us if we had one Eye always back to his first coming and another always forward to his comeing again SERMON XV. Isai 64. 6 7. But we are all as an unclean thing and all our righteousnesses as filthy raggs c. THis peoples condition aggreeth well with ours though the Lords dealing be very different The Confessory part of this Prayer belongeth to us now And strange it is that there is such odds of the Lords Dispensations when there is no difference in our Cohditions Always we know not how soon the complaint may be ours also This Prayer was prayed long before the Judgment and Captivity came one so that it had a Prophesy in the bosome of it Nay it was the most kindly and affectionat way of warning the people could get for Isaiah to pour forth such a prayer as if he beheld with his Eyes the Calamity as already come And indeed it becometh us so to look on the Word as if it gave a present beeing to things al 's certain and sensible as if they were really What strange stupidity must be in us when present things inflicted Judgments committed sins do not so much affect us as the forefight of them did move Isaiah Always as this was registrat for the peoples use to cause them still look on Judgements threatned as performed and present and anticipat the day of Affliction by repentance and also to be a Patern to them how to deal with God and plead with him from such grounds of Mercy and Covenant Interest So it may be to us a warning especially when sin is come to the Maturity and our secure backsliding Condition is with Child of sad Judgements when the harvest seemeth ripe to put the sickle in to it There is in these two Verses a confession of their own sinfulness from which grounds they justify Gods proceeding with them They take the cause upon themselves and justify him in his Judging whither Temporal or Spiritual Plagues were inflicted In this Verse they take a general survey of their sinful Estate concluding themselves unclean and all their performances and commanded Duties which they counted once their righteousness And from this ground they clear Gods dealing with them and put their mouth in the Dust and so from the Lords Judgment they are forced to enter into a search of the Cause so much sin and from discovered sin they pronounce God righteous in his Judgment perceiving a great difference in the Lords manner of dealing with them and their fathers they do not refound it upon God who is righteous in all his ways but retort it upon themselves and find a vast discrepance between themselves and their fathers Verse 5. And so it was no wonder that Gods Dispensation changed upon them God was wont to meet others to shew himself gracious even to prevent stroaks But now he was wroth with them Nay but there is good cause for it They rejoyced and wrought righteousness but we have sinned And this may be said in the general never one needeth to quarrel God for severe dealing If he deal worse with one then with another let every man look into his own bosome and see reason sufficient yea more provocation in themselves then others Always in this Verse they come to a more distinct veiw of their loathsome condition Any body may wrap up their repentance in a general notion of sin but they declare themselves to be more touched with it and condescend on particulars yet such particulars as comprehend many others And in this Confession you may look on the Spirits work having some Characters of the spirit in it First they take a general view of their uncleannesse and loathsome Estate by sin Not only do they see sin but sin in the sinfulnesse of it and uncleannesse of it Secondly They not only conclude so of the Natural Estate they were born into and the loathsomnesse of their many foul scandals among them But they go a further length to passe al 's severe a sentence on their Duties and Ordinances as God hath done Isai 1. and 66. The spirit convinceth according to Scriptures Light and not according to the dark spark of Natures Light and so that which Nature would have busked it self with as its Ornament that which they had covered themselves with as their Garment had spread their Duties as robs of Righteousnesse over their sins to hide them all this now goeth under the name of filthinesse and sin They see themselves wrapt up in as vile raggs as they covered and hid Commanded Duties and manifest Breaches come in one Category And not only is it some of them which their own Conscience could challenge in the time but all of them and all kinds of them Moral and Ceremohial Duties that were most sincere had most Affection in them all of them are filthy raggs now which but of late were their righteousnesle Thirdly there is an universality not only of the Actions but of Persons not only all the Peoples or Multitudes performances are abomination but all of them Isaiah and one and other the holiest of them come in in this Category and Rank we are all unclean c. Though the people it may be could not joyn Holy Isaiah with themselves yet humble Isaiah will joyn himself with the people and come in in one prayer And no doubt he was al 's sensible of sin now as when he began to prophecy and growing in holinesse he must grow also in sense of sinfulnesse Seing at the first sight of Gods Holinesse and Glory he cryed unclean c. Isai 6. 5. Certainly he doth so now from such a principle of accesse to Gods Holinesse which maketh him abhore himself in Dust and Ashes Fourthly They are not content with such a general but condescend to two special things two spiritual sins to wit Omission or shifting of spiritual Duties which contained the substance of Worship None calleth one thee few or none none to count upon calleth on thee that is careth for immediat accesse and approaching unto God in prayer and meditation c. Albeit External and Temple Duties be frequent yet who prayeth in secret or if any pray that cannot come in compt the Lord knoweth them not because they want the Spirits stamp on them This must be some other thing nor the general conviction of sin which the world hath who think they pray all their days Here people who though they make many prayers Isai 1. Yet they see them no prayers and no calling on Gods Name now But Fifthly to make the challenge the more and the confession more spiritual and compleat there is discovered
tree yet behold the wind of the Lord may arise that shall drive you away take your soul from these things and then whose shall they be If you will not fear temporal judgements yet I pray you fear eternal fear hell May not the Lord shake you off this tree of time and take you out of the land of the living to receive your portion There is not only an universal deadness of spirit on the land but a prophane spirit Iniquities abominable sins abound Every Congregation is overgrown with scandals and for you None may more justly complain we are all unclean sin is not in corners but men declare their sin as Sodom sin is come to the Maturity Defection and Apostacy is the temper of all Spirits and above all the general contempt and slighting of this glorious gospel is the iniquity of Scotland so that we wonder that the withered leaves yet stick to that the storm is not yet raised and we blown away Now you are like stones your hearts as Adamants and cannot be moved with his threatnings the voice of the Lords word doth not once move you you sin and are not afraid Nay but when Gods anger shall joyn with iniquity and the voice of his rod and displeasure roar this shall make the mountains to tremble the rocks to move and how much more shall it drive away a leaf You seem now mountains but when God shall plead you shall be like the chaff driven too and fro O how easy a matter shall it be to God to blow a man out of his dwelling place sin hath prepared you for it he needeth no more but blow by his Spirit or look upon you and you will not be You who now are lofty and proud and maintain your self against the word when you come to reckon with God and he entereth in judgement you shall not stand you will consume as before the moth your hearts will fail you Who may abide the day of his coming It will be so terrible and so much the more terrible that you never dreamed of it If the example of this people will not move you do but cast your eyes on Ireland who all do fade as a leaf and their iniquities have taken them away out of their own Land Shall not the seeing of the eye nor the hearing of the ear teach you What security do you promise to your selves Have not we sinned as much as they Were not they his people as we Certainly since God waiteth longer on you the stroak must be the greater provoked patience must turn fury If you would then prevent this peoples complaint go about such a serious acknowledgement of your sins search your wayes and turn again to the Lord. And let not every man sit down in a general notion of sin but unbowel it until you see uncleanness go up to the fountain head Original corruption go down to all the streams even the iniquity of holy things let every man be particular in the search of his own provocations personal and every one be publick in the general sins of the Land that you may confesse out of knowledge and sense we are all unclean c. SERMON XVIII Isai 64. 7. And there is none that calleth upon thy Name that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee c. THey go on in the Confession of their sins Many a man hath soon done with that A general notion of sin is the highest advancement in repentance that many attain to You may see here Sin and Judgement mixed in thorow other in their complaint They do not so fix their eyes upon their desolat estate of captivity as to forget their provocations Many a man would spend more affection and be more pathetick in the expression of his misery when it is pungent nor he can do when he speaketh of his sins We would observe from the nature of this confession something to be a patern of your repentance And it is this When the spirit convinceth and men are serious in repentance then the soul is more searching more universal more particular in acknowledgement of sins These are characters of the Spirits work First The Spirit discovereth unto men not only sin but the loathsomeness of sin its hainous nature how offensive it is to Gods holy eye Many of you know abundance of evil deeds and call them sins but you have never taken up sins ugly face never seen it in the glasse of the holy Law uncleannesse it self because you do not abhore your selves poor and low thoughts of God maketh mean and shallow thoughts of sin You would be as Job vile ch 40. 4. And abhore your selves in dust and ashes ch 42. 6. As Gods holiness grew great in your eyes Sins uncleanness would grow proportionably Is 6. 3. 5. And here your repentance halteth in the very entry But Secondly The Spirit discovereth not only the uncleanness of mens natures and leadeth them up to original corruption but the Spirit also leadeth men alongs all the streams not only these that break out but those who go under ground and have a more secret and subtil conveyance It concludeth not only open breaches of the command under filthiness but also all a mans own righteousness though never so refined it concludeth it also a defiled garment so that the Soul can look no where but see sin and uncleanness in its ornaments and duties And thus it appeareth before God without such a covering openeth up its Soul hideth not sin with the covering of duties but seeth a necessity of another covering for all Now therefore let the most part of you conclude that you have never yet gotteh your eyes open to see sin or confesse it because when you sit down to compt your sins there are many things that you call not sin you use not to reckon your praying and repentance among sins Nay because you have so much confidence in your repentance and confession you have never repented you must see a necessity of a covering of Christs righteousness above all Faith in Jesus must cover repentance and it self both with the glorious object of it But alas how soon are many at an end of confession some particular grosse actions may come in remembrance but no more Sum up al your confessions they have never yet pitched on the thousand part of your guiltiness no not in kinds let be in number But thirdly The Spirit convinceth spiritually and particularly both it convinceth of Spiritual sins as we said last of the iniquity of holy things and especially of the most substantial duties faith and prayer John 16. 8 9. there are not many of you have come this length to see your want of prayer No your own words do witness against you for you use to say I pray day and night I believe in God with all my heart Now therefore out of your own mouth shall you be condemned when the spirit convinceth you of Sin you will see no faith no prayer at the first
your prayers a delight be upright in the thing you seek and see that you intertain no known sin give it no heart allowance Thirdly There are many prayers not heard not known because the mouth outcryeth the heart It is the sacrifice of the contrite heart that God despiseth not The prayers of this people were such Isai 29. 13. They drew near with the mouth but the heaâ—t was far away It is worship in spirit and truth that God loveth Joh 4. 23. Since Prayer is a communion of God with the Creature a meeting of one with God and speaking face to face God who is a Spirit and immortal must have a spirit to meet with a soul to speak to him Now do you not find your hearts gading abroad even in duty Is it not most about your Corns and Lands in the time of solemn worship Therefore God getteth no more but a carcasse to keep communion with He may have as much fellowship with the stones of the wall and timber of the house as he can have with your ears and mouths while you remove your hearts to attend other things And I would say more if your mind be present yet your heart is gone sometimes yea often both are gone abroad Sometimes the mind and thought stayeth but the affection and heart is not with it and so the minds residence is not constant Your thought may come in as a wayfaring man but tarrieth not all night dwelleth not Now speak to it even Christians may not your Prayers often have a contrary interpretation to what they pretend You pray so coldrifely and formally as God will interpret you have no mind to it we ask as we seemed indifferent whether our petition be granted or not Should the Lord be affected with your petitions when you your selves are not affected much Should his bowels of zeal sound within him when yours are silent It is fervent prayer availeth much Isai 5. 16. A heart sent out with the petition and gone up to Heaven cannot but bring back an answer If Prayer carry not the seal of the heart and soul in it God cannot own it or send it back with his seal of acceptation Fourthly Many Prayers are not calling on Gods Name And no wonder that when people pray yet the Spirit say None calleth on thy Name for Prayer is made as to an unknown God and God is not taken up according to his Name which are his glorious Attributes whereby he manifesteth himself in his Word To call on Gods Name is so to pray to God as to take him up as he hath revealed himself And what is the Lords Name Hear himself speak to Moses Exod. 33. 19. and 34. 6 7. The Lord the Lord God merciful and gracious long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth keeping mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin and that will by no means clear the guilty Now to call on this Name is for the soul in Prayer to have a suitable stamp on it every Attribute of God taking deep impression in the heart And so Gods Name to be written on the very petitions And shortly we may say the Spirit should have the impression of Gods greatnesse and Majesty of his goodnesse and mercy of his terriblenesse and justice This is the order that God proclaimeth his Name into In the entry the supplicant should behold the glorious Soveraignty and infinite distance between God and the Creature that he may have the stamp of reverence and abasement upon his spirit and may speak out of the dust as it becometh the dust of the ballance and footstool to do to him who sitteth on the circle of the Heaven as his Throne And this I must say there is little Religion and Godlinesse among us because every man is ignorant of God Even Gods children do more study themselves and their condition then Gods greatnesse and absolutenesse Who searches Gods infinitnesse in his Word and Works till he behold a wonder and be drowned in a mystery O but the Saints of old did take up God at a greater distance from the Creatures they waded far into this boundlesse Ocean of Gods Majesty till they were over head and ears and werâ— forced to cry out Who can find out the Almighty to perfection All these are but parts of him his back-parts There is more real Divinity and knowledge of God in one of Jobs friends discourses one of Davids prayerâ— then now in twenty Sermons of gracious men or many prayers or conferences of Saints But withal you must study his goodnesse and mercy and this maketh up the most part of his Name The definition of God hath most of this so that it may be said truly that mercy is his delight mercy as it were swelleth over the rest God were not accessible unlesse mercy did temper it Behold then greatnesse to humble and goodness to make bold that you may have accesse As greatness should leave the stamp of reverence on your petitions so should mercy and goodnesse imprint them with faith and confidence And that the rather because as Christ is said to be the Fathers Face and tâ— image of his Person 2 Cor. 4. 6. and Heb. 1. â— So may he be called the Fathers Name and â— doth God himself call him Exod. 23. 20 21. Tâ— Angel that went before them in the wilderness wâ—â— voice they ought to obey his Name is in him aâ— this Angel is Christ Jesus Acts 7. 37 38. â— then Christ Jesus is Gods Name God as â— revealeth himself in the Word is God in Châ— reconciling the world unto himself 2 Cor. 5. â— And therefore Christians you ought to prâ— alwayes in Christs Name and this is to call â— his Name Not only encourage your selves â— come to God because of a Mediator becaâ— he is God in Christ but also offer up all yoâ— prayers in Jesus his Name that his Name caâ—led on them may sanctifie them otherwise yoâ— affection at prayers cannot be acceptable â— God for he loveth nothing but what comâ— thorow the Son Prayer must have an evil sâ—vour when it is not put in the Golden Censâ— that this Angel hath to offâ—r up incense with tâ— prayers of the Saints And likewise you woâ— know Gods justice and wrath that you mâ— serve in fear and trembling And when treâ—bling is joyned with the rejoycing of faith thâ— is acceptable service You ought to fear to â—fend his holiness while you are before him Lâ— Gods terribleness have a deep impression â— your spirit both to make sin bitter and to maâ— mercy more sweet Thus should Prayer asceâ— with the seal of Gods Attributes and then is a calling on his Name Now is there any câ—ling on his Name among us Who maketh â—udy to take up God in his glorious Names â—herefore you call not on a known God and â—nnot name him Now all of you take this â—le to judge your prayers by Think you not â—at you make many prayers You both think and
his Creature as these are and no more Isai 66. 3. Noâ— that they looked never beyond the Ceremonies it is evident because they boasted in them theâ— used to find out these as a remedy of their sins and a mean to pacifie Gods Wrath Micah 6. 6. Paul bears witnesse of it 2 Cor. 13. 14. Moses had a Vail of Ceremonies over his Face and the Children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that Mystery Christ Jesus but their minds were blinded and is so to this day in the reading of the Scriptures And this Vail of hardness of heart shall be done away when Christ returnes them again Now I say it is just so with us there was never a people liker other nor we are like the Jews We have many external Ordinances Preaching Hearing Baptism Communion Reading Singing Praying in publick Extraordinary Solemnities of Fasting and Thanksgiving Works of Discipline and Government publick Reproof to sinners Confessions and Absolutions What would ye think if we should change the terms of Sacrifices and new Moons and speak all this to you To what purpose is the multitude of your Fasts and Feasts of your Preachings and Communions of your Praying in secret and in your Families of Conference and Prayer with others of running to and fro to hear Preaching â—o partake of the Lords Table I am full of them â— delight not in them When ye come here on â—he Sabbath who required at your hand to read my Courts Come no more to hear the Word run no more after Communions seek â—o more Baptism to your Children call no â—ore Solemn Assemblies it is all iniquity Oh â—ay ye that is a strange Preaching indeed must â—e Pray no more Hear no more Sing no more Did not God command these Why do ye discharge them We do not mean so that these should not be but they should be in another way All these want the Soul and Life of them which is Jesus Christ in them Do ye not think your selves religious because ye frequent these The multitude of the people think that these please God and pacifie his Wrath Ye have no other thing in your mind but these If ye can attain any sorrow or grief for sin or any tears to signify it presently you absolve your selves for your repentance The scandalous who appear in publick thinks the paying of a penalty to the Judge and bowing the knee before the Congregation satisfies God Ye miss nothing when ye have these I speak to the professors of Religion also who pretend to more knowledge then others when ye have gone about so many Duties ye are well satisfied if ye get liberty in them If ye can satisfy your self ye doubt not of Gods satisfaction And if ye do not satisfy your selves in your Duties ye cannot believe his satisfaction Ye get the Ordinance and misses nothing Now I say in all this ye do not reacâ— to the end of this Ministry Jesâ—s Christ ye dâ— not stedfastly behold him to empty your selveâ— in his bosom to turn over all the unrighteousness of your holy things upon him who bearâ— it That which pleaseth you is not he in whom the Father is well pleased but the measure oâ— your own Duty O! the Establishing of ouâ— own Righteousness is the ruine of the Visiblâ— Church This is the grand Idol and all Sacrifice to it Know therefore that the most part of your performances are abomination and iniquity because ye have so much confidence in them and puts them not upon Christ as filthy raggs or do not cover them with his Righteousness as well as your wickedness I know ye will say that ye are not satisfied with them and that is still the matter of your Exercise Well I affirm in the Lords Name from that ground that ye have confidence in them for if your diffidence and disquietness arise from it your confidence and peace must come from it also Is there any almost that maintains Faith except when their own conditions please them well And that Faith I may call no Faith at least not pure and cleanly entire Faith As for the multitude of you you must know this that God is not pleased with your prayers and fasting and hearing c. Because ye have such an esteem of them because ye can settle your selves against all Threatnings and never once remember of Jesus Christ or consider the end of his coming into the world Because ye find no necessity of pardon for your prayers and righteousness but stretches the garment of these over the uncleanness of your practices What delight hath the Lord in them when they are put in his Sons place Will he not be jealous that his Sons Glory be not given to another In the second place the Lord rejects their performances because there was nothing but a meer shadow of service and no worshipping of God in the Spirit Ye know what Christ saith God is a Spirit and he that worships him must do it in spirit and truth Jo. 4. 24. It is thâ— Heart and Soul that God delights into Mâ— son give me thy heart for if thou give not hy heart I care for nothing else The heart iâ— the whole man What a mans Affection is that he is Light is not so it brings not thâ— man alongs with it Christ Jesus hath giveâ— himself for us and he requires that we offer ouâ— selves to him If we offer a Body to frequenâ— his House our Feet to tread in his Courts ouâ— Ears to hear his Word what cares he for it aâ— long as the Soul doth not offer it self up in Prayer or Hearing And this was the sin of thiâ— people Isai 29. 13. They draw near with thâ— lips and their heart is far from the Lord. Now are not we their Children and have succeeded to this Is there any thing almost in our publick Services but what is publick Is therâ— any thing but what is seen of men Ye comâ— to hear ye sit and hear and is there any more The most part have their minds wandering no thoughts present for your thoughtâ— are removed about your Barns and Corns oâ— some business in your head And if any havâ— their Thoughts present yet where are Affections Which are the Soul and Spirit of Religion without which it is no true fire but wildâ— fire if it be not both burning and shinning Are ye serious in these Ordinances Or ratheâ— are ye not more serious in any thing beside And now especially when Gods Providencâ— calls you to earnest thoughts when it crys to alâ— men to enter into consideration of their owâ— ways I pray you is there any Soul-affliction in your Fasts even for a day Is there any real grief or token of it Not a Fast in Scripture without weeping We have kept many and have never advanced so far Shall the Lord then be pacified Will not his Soul abhore them How shall they appease him for your other provocations when they are as Oyl to
the Flame to increase his Indignation The most part of Christians are guilty here We come to the Ordinances as it were to discharge a Custome and perform a Ceremony that we may have it to say to our Conscience that it is done and there is no more intent and purpose We do not seek to have Soul communion with God We come to Sermon to hear some new thing or new truth or new fashion of it To learn a Notional Experience of Cases But alas this is not the great purpose and use of these things It is to have some new sense of these things we know We know already but we should come to get the Truth mâ—re received in our Love to serve God in our Spirits and to return to him our selves in a Sacrifice acceptable This is the greater half if not the whole of Religion Love to Jesus Christ who loved us and living to him because he died for us and livihg to him because we love him Now all our Ordinances and Duties should be Channels to cary our Love to him and occasions of venting our Affections Thirdly the Lord rejected this peoples services because they were exact and punctual in them and neglected other parts of his Commandments And this is clearly expressed here I will not hear your prayers though there be many of them Why Your hands are full of blood Ye come to worship me and pray to me and yet there are many Abominations in your Conversation which you continue in and do not challenge in your selves Ye have unclean hands and shall your prayer be accepted which should come up with pure Hands They took his Covenant in their mouth and offered many Sacrifices but what have ye to do with these things sayeth the Lord since ye hate to be reformed since ye hate personal Reformation of your Lives and in your Families what have ye to do to profess to be my people Psal 50 19 17 The Lord requires an universality if ye would prove sincerity If ye have respect to any of his Commands as his Commands then will ye respect all If ye be partial and choose one Duty that is easy and refuse another harder ye will come to the Church and hear but ye will not pray at home Ye will fast in publck but not in private Then sayes the Lord ye do not at all obey me but your own humour ye do not at all fast unto me but unto your selves As much as your interest lyes in a Duty so much are ye carried to it And I take this to be the reason why many are so Eager in pursuing publick Ordinances following Communions and Conferences with Gods people ready to Pray in publick rather then alone If ye would follow them into their secret Chamber how much indifferency is there how great infrequency how little fervency VVell sayes the Lord did ye pray to me when ye prayed among others No ye prayed either to your selves or the company or both Did ye seek me in a Communion No sayeth the Lord ye sought not me but your selves If ye sought me indeed with others ye would be al 's earnest if not more to seek me alone Zech. 7. 6. And again the Lord especially requires the weightier matters of the Law to be considered As it was among the Jews their Ceremonies were commanded and so good but they were not so much good in themselves as because they were means appointed for another end and use But the Moral Law was binding in it self and good in it self without relation to another thing And therefore Christ lays this heavy Charge to the Pharisees Ye tithe mint and anise Mat. 23. 23. Woe unto you for ye neglect the weightier matters of the Law Judgement Mercy and Faith these ye ought to have done and not left the other undone Are there not many who would think it a great fault to stay away from the Church on the Sabbath or Week day and yet will not stick to swear to drink often VVoe unto you for ye strain at a gnat and swallow a camel Therefore are the Prophets full of these Expostulations The people seemed to make Conscience of Ceremonies and External Ordinances but they did not order their Conversation aright They did not execute Judgment and relieve the oppressed did not walk soberly did not mortify sinful lusts c. Alas we deceive our selves with the noise of a Covenant and a Cause of God we cry it up as an Antidot against all evils use it as a charm even as the Jews did their Temple and in the mean time we do not care how we walk before God or with our Neighbours Well thus saith the Lord Trust ye not in lying words Jer. 7. 4 5 6. If drunkenness reign among you if filthiness swearing oppression cruelty reign among you your Covenant is but a ly all your professions are but lying words and shall never keep you in your Inheritances and Dwellings The Lord tells you what he requires of you Is it not to do justly and walk humbly with God Mic. 6. 7. This is that which the grace of God teaches To deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly towards your God your neighbour and your self Tit. 2. 11 12. And this he prefers to your publick Ordinances your Fasting Covenanting Preaching and such like Is not this to know me saith the Lord Jer. 22. 15. 16. You think you know God when you can discourse well of Religion and intertain conferences of practical Cases You think it is knowledge to understand Preachings and Scripture But thus saith the Lord To do justly to all men to walk humbly towards God to walk soberly in your selves is more real knowledge of God then all the Volumes of Doctors contain or the heads of Professors Is this knowledge of God to have a long flowrishing discourse containing much Religion in it Alas no to do justly to oppress none to pray more in secret to walk humbly and soberly this is to know the Lord practice is real knowledge indeed it argues that what a man knows he receives in love that the Truth hath a deep impression on the heart that the Light shines into the heart to inflame it What is knowledge before God As much as principles Affection and Action as much as hath Influence on your Conversations If you do not and love not what you know is that to know the Lord Shall not your knowledge be a Testimony against your practice and no more SERMON X. Isai 1. 16. Wash ye make you clean put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evil c. IF we would have a sum of pure and undefiled Religion here it is set down in opposition to this peopleâ— shadow of Religion that consisted in External Ordinances and Rites We think that God should be al 's well pleased with our service as we our selves therefore we choose his commands which our humour hath no
with their oath and curse and they never trouble themselves more Oh what mocking of God is this Now al 's long as it is thus there is no imployment for the Son of Gods Blood they can do their own turn Men will not come to Christ because it is the best way if they see any else beside None will come till he see it is the only way None can wash in Christ except they wash all If ye have any thing that needs not washing his Blood is not for you his righteousnesse is not known when ye establish all or a part of your own I fear the most part of you have no imployment for Christ Ye have extream need of him but ye know it not For there are many things which ye will not number among your sins your Prayers your Hearing Reading Singing publick and private Worship giving Alms c. How many of you were never convinced of any sin in these Do ye not conceive God is well pleased with you for them Your Conscience hath convinced you it may be of grosse sins as drunkennesse filthinesse swearing c. But ye are not convinced for your well doing Ye find not a necessity of a Mediator for these I think many of you never confessed any such thing except in a general notion Alas how ignorant are men of themselves We are unclean how can any thing we do cleanse us Are not we unclean and do not our hands touch our own works Shall not then our own uncleannesse defile our good Actions more then they can cleanse us Hag. 2. 13. The ignorance of this makes men go about to build up their old ruined righteousnesse and still seek something in themselves to make up wants in themselves Always when the Light of God hath discovered you to your selves so that ye can turn your eye no where but uncleannesse fills it though your Conversation be blamelesse in the world so as men can challenge nothing yet ye have found within and without nothing but matter of mourning I say this is an evidence that the Spirit hath shined and inlightened thy darknesse Now when thou hath fled unto Jesus Christ for a covering to thy righteousnesse al 's well as unrighteousnesse it remains that thou now put away the evil of thy doings Put not away thy doings but the evil of them We challenge your Prayers Services and publick Duties even as the Prophet did We declare unto you that God is as evil pleased with them as your drunkennesse whoreing intemperance c. The most part of you are no more acceptable when ye come to the Church then when ye go to the Tavern your praying and cursing is almost all one What shall we do then say ye Shall we pray no more and hear no more No say I put not away your Prayers and Ordinances but put away the evil of them from before his sight Rather multiplie your doings but destroy the evil and iniquity of your doings And there is one evil or two above all that makes them hateful to him Ye trust to much in them Here is the iniquitie ye idol of jealousie set up ye make your doings your righteousnesse and in that notion they are abomination There is nothing makes your worship of God so hateful as this ye think so much of it and justifies your self by it And then God knows what it is that ye so magnifie and makes the ground of your claim to Salvation it is even an empty ceremony a shadow without substance a body without a Soul You speak and look and hear you exercise some outward Senses but no inward Affections And what should that be to him who is a Spirit They did not observe the Iniquity of their Holy things and therefore are they marked by him they are in his sight They did not see so many faults in their Prayers and Services They wondered why God did chide them so much But God marks what we misse he remembers when we forget We cover our selves with a Vail of External Duties and think to hide all the Rottennesse of our Hearts but it will not be hid from him before whom Hell hath no covering all hearts are open and naked before him Your secret sins are in the sight of his Countenance Men hear you Pray see you present at Worship they know no more at least they see no more Nay but the formâ—lity of thy Worship the wanderings of thy Mind are in his sight And O! how excellent a Rule of walking were this to do all in his sight and presence Oh that ye were perswaded in your hearts of his All-seing All-searching Eye and All-knowing Mind VVould ye not be more sollicitous and anxious anent the frame of your hearts then the liberty of your speech or External gesture Oh how would men retire within themselves to fashion their Spirits before this All-searching and All-knowing Spirit If ye do not observe the evils of your hearts and ways they are in his sight and this will spoil all acceptance of the good of them If ye observe the evils of your well doing and bring these also to the Fountain to wash them and be about this earnest indeavour of perfecting Holinesse of perfecting well-doings in the Power and Fear of God then certainly he will not set your sins in the Light of his Countenance the good of your way shall come before him and the evil of it Christ shall take away Cease to do evil c. These are the two Leggs a Christian walks on if he want any of them he is lame and cannot go equally ceasing from evil and doing good Nay they are so united that the one cannot subsist without the other If a man do not cease from evil and his former lusts he cannot do well or perfite Holiness There are many different Dispositions and Conditions of men There are generally one of two Some have a kind of abstinence from many grosse sins and are called civil honest men they can abide an inquest and censure of all their Neighbours they can say no ill of them But alas there is al 's little good to be said He drinks not swears not whores not steals not Nay but what doth he well Alas the World cannot tell what he doth for he prays not in secret nor in his family he is void of some offences towards men but there are many duties called to towards both God and men he is a stranger to He oppresses not the poor nay but he is not charitable either to give to them He defrauds no man but whom helps he by his means Again there are others they will boast of some things done they pray they keep the Church well they do many good turns and yet for all that they do not cease to do evil They were drunkards so they are They can swear for all their prayers are given to contention to lying to filthiness c. Now I say neither of these Religions is pure and undefiled Religion
shining into the Soul that hath cleared them but their perpetual darknesse that blindeth them I say then in the Name of Jesus Christ that ye never knew the peace of God who knew not warr with God Ye know not love who have not known anger But this is the Souls true peace and tranquillity when it is once awakened to see its misery and danger How many Clouds overspread it what Tempests blow what Waves of Displeasure go over its head But when that peace which is made in the High Places breaketh thorow the Cloud with a Voice Son be of good comfort thy sins be forgiven thee when that Voice of the Spirit is uttered presently at its command the Wind and Waves obey the Soul is calmed as the Sea after a Storm It is not only untroubled but it is peaceable upon solid grounds because of the word which speaks peace in Christ The peace of the most of you is such as ye were born and Educated withal It is not a created peace a spoken peace the fruit of the lips and so no true peace Ye had not your peace from the word but ye brought it to the word Yâ— have no peace after trouble and so it is not the Lords peace The Christian may have peace in regard of his own Salvation and eternal things and in regard of all things that befalleth in â—ime The first is when the Conscience is sprinkled with the Blood of Jesus Christ and getteth a good answer to all the challenges and accusations of Conscience and of the Law and Justice 1 Pet. 3. 21. when the Spirit of God shines into the Soul with a new Light to discover these things that are freely given 1 Cor. 2. 12. And this is the Sealing of the Spirit after believing Eph. 1. 13. When a Soul hath put to its Seal by believing Gods word and hath acknowledged Gods Truth and Faithfulnesse in his word the Spirit Sealeth mutually the Believers Faith both by more Holinesse and the knowledge of it And how great peace is this when a Soul can look upon all its iniquities when they compasse about a man and outward trouble sharpeneth and setteth on edge inward challenges and yet the Soul will not fear it hath answers to them all in Christs Blood Psal 49. 5. This is a greater word then all the world can say Many mens fearlesnesse proceedeth from ignorance of sin their iniquities were never set in order before them but if once they compassed them about and wrath like a fiery wall compasse them about also so that there were no escaping Oh it would be more terrible then all the Armies of the world Ye would account little of a Kingdom ye would exchange it for such a word as David hath upon good grounds Now I say again the Soul that hath thus committed it self to him as a faithful keeper may have peace in all Estates and Conditions And this peace floweth from that other peace There is a peace which guards the heart and mind Phil. 4. 6 7. Opposed to carefulnesse and anxiety and this Paul is Examplar for I have learned in every estate therewith to be content to want and abound c. vers 11. The Soul of a Believer may be in an equal even Tenur and Disposition in all conditions It may possesse it self in patience Impatience and Anxiety makes a man not his own man he is not himself he injoys not himself he is a burden to himself and is his own tormenter But if Souls were stayed upon God certainly they would possesse themselves dwell securely within their own breasts We may find that the most part of men are exposed to all the floods and waves of the times They move inwardly as things are troubled outwardly Every thing addeth moment to their grief or joy Any Dispensation casteth the Ballance and either weights them down with discouragement or lifteth them up with vanity and lightnesse of mind But the Believers priviledge is to be unmoved in the midst of all the Tossings and Confusions of the times Psal 128. 1 2. Ye would be as Mount Zion if ye trusted in God No Dispensation should enter into the Soul to cast the Ballance upon you Ye might stand upon your Rock Jesus Christ and look about the Estates Persons Affairs and Minds of men as a troubled Sea fleeting tossed up and down and ye stand and not be moved or not greatly moved Ps 62. 2. And this is to be wise indeed If I would describe a wise man I would say he is one man beside him no man is one with himself but various inconstant changeable He is unwise who is unlike himself who changeth Persons according to Dispensations Wisdom is the stability of thy times and Faith is Wisdom it Establisheth as Mount Zion so as a man cometh out still one in prosperity not exalted in adversity not cast down in every Estate content and this is the man who is blessed indeed This werâ— wisdom to will the same thing and nill the same thing Semper idem velle atque idem nolle I need not saith Seneca add that exception that it be right which you desire for no one thing can universally and always please if it be not good and right So I say he were both wise and happy who had but one grief and one joy Should not a Believers mind be calm and â—erene seing the true Light hath shined it should be as the upper world where no blasts no storms or clouds are to ecclips the Sun or cloud it while our peace and tranquillity is borrowed from outward things certainly it must change But a Belâ—evers peace and tranquillity of mind having its rise from above from the unchangeable word of the Lord it needeth not to change according to the vicissitudes of Providence He needeth not to care before hand because there is one who careth for him And what needeth both to care He needeth not be disquieted or troubled after because it shall turn about to his good All things shall do so Rom. 8. 28. He needeth not be Anxious about future Events because he hath all his burden cast upon another by prayer and supplication VVhat needeth he then take a needlesse burden Prayer will do that which Care pretends and cannot do and that without trouble He needeth not be troubled when things are present for he cannot by his thought either add or diminish take away or prevent There is one good and necessary thing that his heart is upon and that cannot be taken from him And therefore all things else are indifferent and of small concernment to him Now what wanteth such a man of perfect peace who is reconciled to God and at peace within himself VVhen peace guardeth the Heart and Mind within compasseth it as a Castle or Garison to hold out all the vain Alarms of External things May not all the world be troubled about him VVhat though the Floods lift up their Voice if they come not into the
as the â—â—n you would wash by it Secondly the uncleannesse of mens practice maketh unclean performances unclean hands make unclean prayers Isai 1. 15. When men go on in sin and use their members as instruments of unrighteousnesse against God and guiltinesse is above their head unrepented of and unpardoned then whatever the members act for God in religious Duties it must be also abominable for will God take prayers from such a mouth thaâ— cursing cometh out of Isai 3. 10 11 12 Shall sweet water come out of one Fountain with bitter Or can a Fig Tree bear both Thistles and Graps Certainly profane Conversation must make unclean profession And therefore your coming to the Church and Ordinances your praying in your Families or such like must of necessity be defiled since out of the same mouth cometh cursing railing lying filthy speeches Your tongues are so often imployed in Gods dishonour to blaspheme his Name to slander your Neighbours to reproach the Saints that all your prayers must be of the same stamp and al 's bitter as the other stream of your actions When you stretch forth your hands to make many prayers to take the Bread and Wine shall not God hide his Face from such hands as are unclean with many abominations some murdering some abusing their Neighbours some Sabbath-breaking some filthinesse how oft have your hands and feet served you to evil turns And therefore your good turns will never come in remembrance Nay believe it you cannot be heard of God while you cover any offence And this I may say in general even to the Saints any known sin given way to and intertained without controlment without wrestling against it hindereth the acceptation of your solemn approaches If your heart regard iniquity shall God hear Ps 66. 18. No believe it the least sin that you may judge at first venial and then give it toleration and indulgence shall separat between Gods Face and you Your prayers are abomination because of such an idol perked up in the heart beside God that getteth the Honour and Worship due to him and God must answer you according to it Ezek. 19. 1 3 4. God will not be enquired of such as give allowance to sin Ezek. 14. 2 3 4. And on the other hand no sin how great and hainous soever can hinder Gods gracious acceptation when Souls fly unto Jesus and turn their back upon sin or giveth it no heart allowance And to the multitude I say all that you do or touch in a Duty must be defiled because your whole way is unclean Hag. 2. 12 13 14. Think you to sin all the week thorow and worship God on the Sabbath will you lie swear commit adultery rail and curse and come and stand before me saith the Lord No certainly you cannot be accepted And will you hate reformation in your lives and yet take his Covenant in your mouth and call your selves by his Name Christians And shall not God challenge you for that al 's much as for your swearing and cursing and lying c. Indeed the Lord putteth all in one Roll and you need not please your selves in such things Psal 50. 16. Jer. 7. 9 10. For it is all one to you to go to Tavern to drink and come to the Sermon to blaspheme Gods Name and call on it because the profanity of the one defileth the other and the holiness of the other cannot make you holy Thirdly the natural mans performances want the uprightness reality and sincerity that is required it is but a painted Tomb full of rottenness within it is but a shadow without substance for he wanteth the spiritual part of worship which God careth for who will be worshiped in spirit and truth Joh. 4. 23. Now what is it that the most part of you can speak of but an outside of some few duties soon numbered You hear the preaching and your hearts wander about your business You hear and are not so much affected as you would be to hear some old story or fable told you A stage play acted before this generation would move them more then the Gospel doth So that Christ may take up this Lamentation We have piped to you and you have not danâ—ed lamented to you and you have not mourned You use to tell over some words in your prayers and are not so serious in any approach to God as in twenty other things of the world Whatever you plead of your hearts rightness and have recourse to it when your conversation cannot defend you yet your hearts are the worst of all and have no uprightness towards God for you know that what Duties you go about it is not from an inward principle but from Education or Custome or constraint Are you upright when you are forced for fear of censure to come here or to pray at home Is that sincerity and spiritual worship And for the more polished and refined professors you have this moth in your performances and this flea to make your Oyntment to stink that you do much to be seen of men therefore what little fervour of spirit is in secret Duties There you may measure your altitude and your life And O how wearisome how lifeless are secret approaches you would not have many errands to God if you thought no body looked upon you And for spirituality it is a Mystery in all mens practice Who directeth his Duty to Gods Glory If you get some flash of liberty you have your desire But who misseth Gods presence in Duties which a world will approve Who go mourning as without the Sun even when you have the Sun-shine of Ordinances and walketh in the light of them And fourthly though your performances had uprightness of heart going alongs and much affection in them yet all are filthy because of want of Faith in Jesus Christ When you make your Duties a covering of your sins and think to satisfy Gods Justice for the rest of your faults by doing some point of your Duty then it cannot choose but be polluted in his sight And this very thing was the cause of Gods rejecting the Jews righteousness even because they did not look to the end of the Mystery Christ Jesus Did not pull by the vail of Ceremonies to see the Immaculat Lamb of God slain for sin And therefore doth the Lord so quarrel with them as if he had never commanded them to do such things Isai 1. 12 13. Who hath required these things at your hands bring no more vain oblations all is Abomination Even as God should say to you when you come to the Church who required you to come Who commanded you to come to hear the Preaching What have you to do to pray What warrand have you to communicat All your Praying Hearing Communicating is Abomination who commanded you to do these things Would you not think it a foolish Question You would soon answer that God himself commanded you and will he not let us do his bidding Indeed this
all is cursed And therefore Christians all you do cannot commend your persons to God for if he examine you by the rule of the Law O how shorâ— will the holiest come Paul and Isaiah dare not come in such a reckoning Neither is all obeyed nor any in the measure and manner commandeâ— And therefore you might cry down all your performances when you could challenge them with no particular blot with this All is short of the command and infinitly short I have been aiming at holiness so long I have stretched out my strength and what have I attained It may be I have outstriped equals and there seemeth to be some distance between me and others Nay but the command is unspeakably more before me nor I am before others I have reached but a span of that boundless perfection of holiness It is but a grain weight of the eternal weight of grace and I must forget it and stand before God as if I had Iost mind of duties appear in his presence as if I had attained nothing for the length that is before my hand drowneth up all attainments Thirdly Nay but put the case man were perfect yet should he not know his soul but despise his life The Lord putteth no trust in his servants and his Angels he chargeth with folly and the Heavens are not clean in his sight how then must man be abominable that hath his foundation in the dust and drinketh in iniquity like water How should God magnifie him or he be righteous that is born of a woman Job 25. 4 6. and 15. 14 15. and 4. 18 19. Job was a great length in the sight of his own vileness and Gods holiness when he saw this Though I were perfect yet I would not know it but despise it I would not answer him though I were righteous Chap. 9. 14 15 21. So unspeakably pure and clean is his Holiness that all created holiness hath a spot in it before his and evanisheth as the Stars disappear when the Sun riseth which seem something in the darkness The Angels holiness the Heavens glory is nothing to him before whom the Nations are as nothing so that it is all the wonder of the world that ever God stooped so far below himself even to righteous Adam as to make such a Covenant with him to account him righteous in obedience What is man that thou should magnifie him When I look to the Heavens and the Sun the work of thine hands Lord what is man What is innocent man in his integrity that thou should magnifie him to give him a place to stand before thee magnifie him to be a party-contracter with thy glorious Majâ—sty Psal 8. 4 5 6. But now when this Covenant is broken it is become impossible to a son of Adam ever to stand before God in his perfection for how should man be righteous that is born of a woman Job 14. 15. Since we once sinned how should our righteousness ever come in remembrance Therefore hath God chosen another way to cover mans wickedness and righteousness both with his own righteousness his Sons Divine-humane righteousness which is so suited in his infinit wisdom for us It is a mans righteousnesse that it may agree with men and be a fit garment to cover them It is Gods righteousnesse that it may be beautiful in Gods eyes for he seeth his own image in it And it is not the crâ—ated inherent righteousnesse of Saints glorified that shall be their upper garment that shall be their Heaven and glory-suit so to speak they will not glory in this but only in the Lambs righteousnesse for evermore Saint-holinesse must have a covering above for it cannot cover our nakednesse And all the songs of them that follow the Lamb make mention of his righteousnesse even of his only The Lamb is the light and Sun of the City the Lamb is the Temple of it in a word he is all that is beautiful and glorious Every Saint hath put on the Lord Jesus and is perfect thorow his comelinesse At least if the holinesse of spirits of just men made perfect be the glorious habit above yet all the beauty and glory of it is from Christ Jesus whose image it is and the Spirit whose work it is It shall be still true All our righteousnesse as ours is filthy and all holinesse as it hath a relation to us cannot please God it must be spotted before his pure eyes but only it is accepted and clean as it is Christs and the Spirits as it is his own garment put upon us and his own comlinesse making us perfect It is not so much the inherent cleanness of the Saints robs that maketh them beautiful in his eyes as this That they are washed in the blood of the Lamb Rev. 7. 14. Now from all this we would speak a word to two sorts of you There is one great point of Religion that is the principal and foundation of all other even free Justification by Faith in Jesus without our own righteousness And the most part stumble here in the entry It is the greatest obstruction of souls coming to Christ Jesus even the ignorant and blind conceit and fancy that almost every man hath of himself and his own performances The world will not make many believe the half of the evil of themselves that is spoken in the Word If you have a general conviction of sinfulnesse and misery yet you think to help it If you sin you use to make an amends run to your prayers and repentance to give God a recompence and satisfie your own Consciences Speak now is not this the way you think to be saved I shall do what I can pray and mourn for sin and what I am not able to do God must forgive you will do all you are able or can and Gods mercy must come in to supply the want of your righteousness But this is to put a new piece of cloath in an old garment to make the rent worse Many of you have no other ground of confidence in the world nothing to answer the challenge of Conscience or satisfie Justice but this I repent I am sorry I mourn I shall amend I resolve never to do the like again Now then from this ground we would declare unto you in the Lords Name you are yet unclean both in persons and actions unjustified because you have no other covering but your own duties and performances And let these be examined and weighed in the ballance of the Sanctuary and they will be found light All your righteousnesse saith the Lord is filthinesse You are unclean you cannot deny both by birth and education you have often defiled your selves with sins you must confesse Now I ask you How will you cover that uncleannesse and nakednesse How will you hide it from Gods eyes and your own Conscience You know no way but this I will pray I will repent and amend So then you cover your self with prayer with sorrow and tears
needeth not hinder his praise And the discovery of grace in them needeth not marr your shamâ— God hath most glory when we have most shame these two grow in just proportion so much is taken from God as is given to the creature Thirdly we would also press you from this ground to long much to be clothed upon with immortality to put off the filthy raggs of time and earth-righteousness and to be clothed upon with the white robs of the righteousness of the Saints As you would dwell near the fountain here and be still washing your garments and offering all your sacrifices in him who sanctifieth all so would you pant and thirst for this spotless garmeâ—t of glory Glory is nothing but perfect holiness holiness washen and made clean in the Lambs blood your rags are for the prison and for so journing when you come to your fathers house your raiment shall be changed Therefore Christians every one of you aspire higher sit not down in attainments forget what is behind and presse forward let perfect holinesse be in your eye and purpose sit not behind it All our time-duties have much filthinesse long for the pure stream that waters the City above Grace is not in its native place it is corrupted and mixed here Heaven is the own Element of it and there is grace without mixture Undervalue all your performances till you be above where that which is in part shall be done away where no unclean thing entereth Fourthly This likewise holdeth out to you a continual necessity of washing You must take up house beside the fountain opened in the house of David and never look on any piece of inherent righteousnesse but see a necessity of dipping it in the Lambs blood And therefore should you pray alwayes in Christs Name that the prayer which of it self would be cast as dung on our face may have a sweet favour from hiâ— Cover your holinesse with Christs righteousneâ— and make mention of it only SERMON XVII Isaiah 64. 6. And we all do fade us â— leaf and our iniquities like the wind have taken us away HEre they joyn the punishment with the deserving cause their uncleanness and their iniquities and so take it upon them and subscribeth to the righteousnesse of Gods dealing We would say this much in general First No body needeth to quarrel God for his dealing he will alwayes be justified when he is judged If the Lord deal more sharply with you then with others you may judge there is a difference between your condition and theirs as well as in the Lords dispensation even as this people do vers 5. 6. It is a strange saying Lam. 3. 31. The Lord doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men That is as we conceive the Lord hath not such pleasure in trampling on men as he might do on the dust of his feet Though he be absolute soveraign Lord of the Creature and men be but as the dust of his feet and he may do with his own what he pleaseth and none ask What dost thou Yet the Lord useth not to walk according to his own absoluteness he hath another ordinary rule whereby he worketh a rule of justice and equity especially in the punishing of men he useth not to â—fflict men for his pleasure as tyrants use to destroy their people The Lord exerceth his soveraignty another way and if he be absolute and illimited in any thing it is in shewing mercy oâ— men But in judgement there may be still some reason gotten for it in the creature beside the will of God So that to speak with reverence of his Majesty stroaks are often drawn out of his hands he getteth so much provocation ere he strike and holdeth off so long threatneth and giveth warning thus before stroaks as if it were against his will to lay on as if his heart werâ— broken with us Secondly if men knew themselves and their own sinfulness they would not challenge God with unrighteousness but put their mouth iâ— the dust and keep silence And it is from thiâ— ground that this people do not charge God Sin is of such infinit desert and merit because against infinite Majesty that God cannot go beyond it in punishment And therefore Jeremiah when he is wading out of the deep waters of sore temptation and sad discouragement he pitcheth and casteth Anchor at this solid ground It is of the Lords mercy that we are not consumed Lam. 3. 22. What do I mean thus to charge God as if he dealt rigorously No no It is his mercy that a remnant is left our stroaks are not pure justice our cup is mixed mercy is the greatest part what ever is behind utter destruction whatever is below the desert of sin which is hell and damnation all this must be reckoned up to mercy That I am yet alive and so may have hope this is mercy For why should a living man complain vers 39 That a rod is come to awake â— out of security this is mercy for we might haâ— slept to death And this wholsome counsel gâ— Job of his friends to stay his murmuring an grudging at Gods dispensations Job 11. 6. Whâ— dost thou complain Job Know but thy sins an there shall be no room for complaint look bâ— unto Gods secrets of wisdom and his Law aâ— see it is double to what you have known yoâ— obligation is infinit more then you thougâ— upon and then how great and numberless muâ— iniquities be Know therefore saith Zophâ— God exacteth of thee less then thine iniquitiâ— deserve God exacteth not according to Law he craveth not according to the obligation bâ— bids write down fifty in his bill of affliction when an hundred are written in our bill of deserving So then complain not it is merâ— that life is saved Are you men and liviâ— men wonder at this and wonder not thâ— you are not wealthy are not honourable seinâ— you are sinners All that came on Jerusaleâ— maketh not Ezra think God out of boundâ— Chap. 9. 13. As we are less then the least oâ— Gods mercies and all our goodness deserveth none of them so is the least sin greater then the greatest of all his judgements and deserveth still more Nay if there were no more but original corruption common to men and the filthiness that accompanieth mens good actions yeâ— is God righteous in punishing severely and this people acknowledge it so You use to enquire what sin hath such a man done when so terrible judgements come on Nay enquire no more he is a sinner and it is mercy there is not more and it is strange mercy that it is not so with you also You use to speak foolishly when Gods hand is upon you I hope I have my punishment here I hope to suffer here for my sins Poor souls if God make you suffer for sins it will be another matter though now your punishment be above your strength and patience yet it is below your sin As sin
say it as you use to say I pray both day â—d night Nay but count after this rule and â—ere will be found few prayers in Scotland alâ—it you reckon up both privat and publick â—nce scrape out of the compt the prayers of the â—ophane and scandalous whose practice deâ—eth their prayers And again blot out the â—ayers of mens tongues and mouths when â—arts are absent And again set aside the â—ormal dwyning coldrife indifferent suppliâ—tions of Saints and the prayers that carry no â—eal of Gods Name and Attributes on them â—rayers made to an unknown God And will â—ou find many behind No certainly any of â—ou may take up the complaint in behalf of the â—and There is none that calleth on thy Name or â—ew to count upon You may say so of your â—elves if you judge thus I have almost never â—rayed God hath never heard my voice and â—ou may say so of the Land This would be a â—ell spent day if this were but our exercise to â—nd out the sins of our duties in former humiliaâ—ions If the Spirit did so convince you as to â—ot out of the roll of Fasts all the former If â—ou come this length as to be convinced solidly â—at you have never yet prayed and mourned for â— I have lived this long and been babling â—ll this while I have never once spoken to God â—ut worshipped I knew not what fancied a God like my self that would be as soon pleaseâ— with me as I was with my self If the Lorâ— wrought thus on your hearts to put you â—â— your own righteousness you should have moâ— advantage in this then in all your Sabbaths anâ— Fasts hitherto Secondly Although the Lords hand be upoâ— them and they fade as a leaf and are driveâ— into another Land yet none calleth on his Name This maketh the complaint more lamentablâ— and no doubt is looked upon as a dreadful sigâ— and token of Gods displeasure and of sorâ— stroaks Daniel an eye-witnesse confirmeth thâ— foretold truth Chap. 9. 13. All this is come upon us yet have we not made our prayer to the Lord oâ— God Well may the Lord make a supposition and doubt of it Lev. 26. 40 41. After so many plagues are come on seven added to seven and again seven times more and yet they will not be humbled And when it is even at the door neâ— to utter destruction and consumption he addeth If then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled and they take with the punishment of sin c. We need ask no reason of this for bray a fool in a morteâ— his folly will not depart from him Prov. 27. 22 Poor foolish man is a foolish man folly is born with him folly is his name and so is he He hath not so much wisdom as to hear the voice oâ— the rod and him that appointeth it Poor Ephraim is an undaunted heifer Nature is a bullock unaccustomed with the yoke and so it is chastised more and more Jer. 31. 18. Man is like aâ— untamed beast as the horse or as the mulâ— Threatnings will not do it God speaketh once yeâ— twice and man perceiveth it not Job 33. 14. God instructeth by the Word and men receive no instruction All the warnings to flee from the wrath to come are as so many tales to make children afraid He saith in his heart I shall have peace though I walk in the imagination of my own heart Since therefore he will not incline his ear to the Word God sendeth his rod to seal the Word and yet men are so wilde that they sight with Gods rods and will not submit to him A yoke must be put on Ephraim a bridle in mens mouths Psal 32. 9. They will put God to more pains then speaking and it shall cost them more pain For he that will not be drawn with the cords of a man love and intreaties must be drawn with the cords of a beast and yoked in a heavy yoke Yet men are unruly and the yoke groweth the heavier and sorer that they strive to shake it off An uncircumcised heart cannot be humbled How can the Leopard change his spots no more can my people return to me Jer. 13. 23. It is strange that a people so afflicted will not take with the punishment of their iniquity but will say in their heart Wherefore come these things upon me But here it is how can an uncircumcised heart be humbled God may beat on men with rods as on a dog but he will run away from him still the more Isai 9. 13. Nay it may be there will be more stirring after God and more awaking by the first stroak of affliction then when they are continued and multiplied The uncouthness of rods may affect people something but when his hand lyeth on but a little custome breedeth hardness aâ— more and more alienateth spirits from him Now we need no more to seal this truth â—â— our own experience I think never peopâ— might speak more sensibly of it It hath beâ— the manner of the Lords dealing with us to â— fair means to gain us to threaten before he laâ— on to give a proclamation before his stroakâ— And yet it hath been our manner from oâ— youth up to harden our selves against him anâ— go on in our own way Therefore hath thâ— Lord after long patience laid on sad stroaks anâ— smitten us yet have we not turned to him â— may be when the chastisement was fresh aâ— green some poured out a prayer and in trouble visited God Isai 26. 18. but the body of the Laâ— hath not known him that smote them and nâ—ver ran into their hiding place but the temptâ—tion of the time like a flood hath carried them awâ— with it And for the Lords children how soâ— doth the custome of a rod eat out the sense â— it and prayer doth not grow proportionably â— the Lords rods The Lord hath expected thâ— some might stand in the gap and interceed yet fâ— or none called on his Name General correction of the Land have made general apostacy froâ— God not a turning in to God So that we maâ— say we never entered a furnace but we havâ— come out with more dross contracted dross iâ— the fire Mens zeal and tenderness hath beeâ— burnt up reprobate silver may God call us We have had so much experience of the unprofitableness of former afflictions that we knoâ— not what the Lord shall do with us We thinâ— it may be the Lords complaint of Scotland Why should you be afflicted any more you will revolt more and more Isai 1. 5. What needeth another roâ— You are now all secure it is true because you are not stricken Nay but what needeth a rod for it cannot awake you all the fruit of it would be not to purge away sin but to increase it General judgements will prove general tentations and will alienate you more from me and make you curse God and the Covenant And indeed the truth is we know not what
compassions fail not and so he is never so angry but there is room left for manifestation of Mercy on those that come to him Gods anger is not an humor and passion as ours is he can take the poor Child in his Armes admit it into his bosome when outward Dispensations frown Mens anger is like the sons of Belial Briers and Thornes that none may come near to lest they be hurt but God angry is accessible because his anger is still tempered and mixed with Clemency and Mercy and that mixture of Mercy is so great and so predominant in all his Dispensations here that they being rightly understood might rather invite to come then scarre from it there is more Mercy to welcome then Anger to drive away Secondly Look upon the very end and purpose of Gods hiding himself and withdrawing it is this that we may come and seek him early Hos 5. 15 When God is angry Mercy and Compassion principleth it for anger is sent out to bring in wanderers His anger is not humor but resolute and deliberate walketh upon good grounds Because David in his prosperity missed not God When all things went according to his minde then he let God go where he will Therefore the Lord in mercy must hide his own Heart with a frowning countenance and cover himself with a Cloud that David may be troubled and so take hold on God Psal 31. 7 8. Since then this is Gods purpose that you may come nearer to him and since he goeth away that you may pursue certainly he will never so run away as you may not find him out nor will he run further nor he strengtheneth thee to pursue him Thus Ps 63. 8. God was flying and David pursuing Nay but the flyer giveth leggs to the pursuer he upholdeth him as it were against himself So did the Angel strengthen Jacob to overcome himself Now shall it not be pleasant to God that you lay hold on him as your own even when he seemeth to be cloathed with vengeance seing he changeth his outward Countenance for this very end he seemeth to go that you may hold because when you think he stayeth you hold not as the Child while the nurse is near will look about it and take hold of any thing but when she withdraweth the Child cleaveth the faster to her But Secondly we ought to stirre up our selves more now then any other time Times of Gods withdrawing calleth for extraordinary and doubled approaches So Hab. 5. 15. they will seek me early And therefore the Lords Children in Scripture have made great advantage of such Dispensations The truth is as long as we are well dealt with security creepeth on and Religion is but in a decaying condition Duties are done through our sleep We are not as men awaking and knowing what we do and whither we go But when the Lord beginneth to trouble us and hides his Face then it is a time to awake out of sleep before all be gone And there ought to be first more diligence in Duties and approaching to God because your case furnisheth more matter of supplication And as matter of supplication groweth prayer should grow If necessity grow and the cry be not according to necessity it is ominous And therefore David useth to make his cry go up according to his trouble In a prosperous Condition though every thing might call a tender hearted loving Christian to some nearness to God yet ordinarly if necessity presse not prayer languisheth and groweth formal Sense of need putteth an edge on supplication wheras prosperity blunteth it The heart missing nothing cannot go above sublunary things but let it not have its will here and the need of Heaven will be the greater Now I say if you sit so many calls both from a Command and from your own necessities you do so much the more sin Affliction will make even a hypocrite seek him and pour out â— prayer and visit him Psal 78. And Isai 26. And if you do not take advantage of all these pressures you must be so much the more guilty And therefore God as it were wondereth at their obstinacy They return not to him that smiteth them All this is come upon us yet have we not prayed And secondly it is sent for that end that you may be more serious and therefore you ought so much the more to awake to lay hold on him This is the way the Lord useth with his secure and wandering Children Psal 119. 67. For the Lord findeth us often gripping too strongly to a present world and taking it in our armes as if we were never to part with it Mens souls cleave to outward accomodations Therefore the Lord useth to part us and our idol that we may take hold of him the faster It is Union with himself that is our felicity and it is that which God most endeavoureth When he removeth beloved Jewels it is because they were a stumbling block and divorced the Soul from God When he seemeth to withdraw himself his going proclaimeth so much Oh follow or perish Thirdly it is a very dangerous thing when he withdraweth and you follow not when he is angry and you care not doth not fly in to make peace with him certainly his anger must wax hotter and desertion will become a spiritual plague Rods must be tempered with much bitterness What mixture of Mercy can be in such a Dispensation where the fruit of it is to harden But if the Lords hardest dealing wrought you to more nearness and Communion with himself then certainly you have a fair advantage against the present trouble and you have your Cup mixed You shall at length blesse God for such Dispensations they may be reckoned for good to you Next there ought to be more exercise of Faith and laying hold on the grounds of Consolation in God in such a time 1. For as difficulties grow Faith should fortify it self against them so much the more The greater the storm be it should fly the more into the Chalmbers Faith in the time of a calme day getteth no tryal Faith bulketh much because it hath not much to do But except there be some fresh and new supplies it cannot hold out in a temptation But it is a singular proof of a Noble and Divine Faith that can lay hold on him and keep him when he would go that can challenge kindness on a miskening Jesus that can stand on the ground of the Promises when there is not a foot breadth of a Dispensation to build on While all things go with you ye have no difficulty to maintain your Faith Nay but when the Lord seemeth to look angry then awake and gather strength take hold on his strength Look what is in your Condition or his Dispensation what is good or omnious then take hold on the other hand on him and look what is in him to answer it and swallow it up Ye ought to be well acquaint with the grounds of Consolation that are
in God in the worst case and then ye might lay hold on him though he seemed a consuming fire It is then a time that calleth most for secureing your interest in him a time when there is no external advantage to beguile you a time when the only happiness is to be one with God Therefore the man who in such Calamities and Judgements is not a waked to put his eternal Estate out of question he is in a dangerous case For do not most part drive over their dayes and have no assurance of Salvation they dare not say either pro or contra It may be and it may not be And this is the length that the most part come a negative Peace No positive Confidence No clear concluding on sure grounds an Interest Alwayes ye are most called to this when God afflicteth the Land or you If ye do not then make Peace it is most dangerous 3. The Lord loveth Faith in a difficulty best it is the singlest and the cleanliest it is that which most honoureth him and glorifieth his Truth and Faithfulnesse and Sufficiency and Mercy for then it is most purely Elevated above Creatures and pitcheth most on God And therefore bringeth men to this No help for my soul but thou art my portion And this commendeth God most when he is set alone Prosperity bringeth him down among Creatures and secure Faith maketh little distinction But awakening Faith grippeth strongly and singly puteth God alone Secondly Oftentimes when God is departing none stirreth up himself to lay hold on him Although there may be praying and doing of many duties yet there is nothing beyond ordinary The varieties and accessions of new grounds of supplications doth neither make greater frequency nor more fervency This our experience may clear unto us both in duties and faith First There is very little diligence in seeking of God in the way and means appointed even when God seemeth to bid farewel to the Land and go away No body cometh in as an intercessor Men keep on their old way of praying and never addeth to it come what like Who is it that riseth above his ordinary as the Tide of Gods dispensation is There ought to be such an impression made by the changes of Gods countenance as might be read on the duties of his people There should be such a distance between your ordinary and such times as between a sleeping man and a waking man that whatever your attainment of access to God be ye might stir up and go beyond it according as matters call Will God count your publick Fasts a performance of this duty Alas we fast sleeping and none stirreth up himself to these things Is there any difference betwixt your solemn Humiliation and another Sabbath And is there any difference between a Sabbath and a week day save the external duty Is not this palpably our case Is there any wakening among us No security is both the universal disease and complaint And it is become an incurable disease since it became a complaint Doth any of you pray more in private then ye used Or what edge is on your prayers Alas the Lord will get good leave to go from us It feareth me that we would give Christ a Testimonial to go over Seas Hold him hold him Nay the multitude would be gladly quite of him they cannot abide his yoke his work is a burden his word is a torment his discipline is bands and cords And what heart can ye then have to keep Christ What violence can ye offer to him to hold him still All your intreaties may be fair complements but they would never rent his garment Secondly There is no up-stirring to faith among us and laying hold on Jesus Christ albeit all his dispensations warn us that it is now high time There are not many who are about this point effectually to stir up their faith or to secure their interest Think ye that conjectures will carry you thorow difficulties The multitude think they believe much but any temptation proveth their mistake The most part of Scotland would deny God and his Son Jesus Christ if they were put to it Alwayes it is a time ye would not ly out from your strong hold faith only uniteth you to Christ and if ye would be kept in any trial stir up faitâ— Thirdly Prayer and Faith diligence and laying hold on God must go together and help one another Not calling on his Name and not laying hold on him go together and have influence oâ—e upon another First Faith hath influence on Prayer Laying hold on God in Christ will make right calling on his Name it learneth men how to call God to call him Abba Father Faith useth to vent iâ— self in Prayer I say much consideration of God and claiming in to him and to the grounds of confidence in him must both make Prayer acceptable and carry the stamp and impression of Gods Name or Christâ— Nâ—mâ— oâ— it and also make much prayer for when a soul hath pitched on God as its only felicity and thus made choice of him it findeth in him all-sufficiency all things for all things There is no necessiâ—y but it findeth a supply in his fulness for it And therefore it applyeth a man to the fountain to draw out of the wells of salvation There is nothing can be so sweet and refreshing as for such a soul to pour out it sâ—lf every day in him to talk with him face to face Faith ingageth the heart to come to God with all things whereas many difficulties would have been and the secure or unsettled heart would have gone as many different wayes to help them Faith laying hold on God knoweth but one and bringeth all here And therefore access to God is a fruit of it access unto the grace wherein we stand by faith And again how can Prayer be acceptable as long as Faith doth not principle it It is but like a beasts groaning under a burden Laying hold on God himself makes a mans duties acceptable because he speaks and asks believing that he shall receive he trusteth God and doth not tempt him Where lively faith is not intertained there cannot be much affection which is the oyl of the wheels There may be in some bitterness of spirit much vehemency but that is not a pure flame of divine love that burneth upward to him and it is soon extinguished and lasteth no longer nor present sense and then the soul groweth harder as iron that had been in the fire Secondly when there is not much prayer and calling faith cannot be strong and violent for prayer is even the exercise of faith if you wear out of that faith rusteth There may be much quietness with little prayer but there cannot be much and strong and lively faith for where it getteth not continual imployment it faggs And indeed prayer is a special point of holding God fast and keeping him Therefore joyn these if ye would thrive in any one of
God himself laid hold upon and made ours is more nor removing a temporal Calamitv It is an eternal weight to weigh down all Crosses and Disapointments For what can present things be Is there not in the favour of his countenance that which may drown them in Oblivion Are ye like to sink here Is not God a sure Anchor to hold by And if you do not this your trouble is nothing in respect of the danger of your Soul Secure and loose lying out of God not putting this matter to a full poynt is worse nor all your outward fading Therefore we exhort you in the Lords Name to fly in to this Name of the Lord as a strong tower to run to and be safe When the Lord seemeth now to be angry with us run not away from him though he should yet cloath himself with vengeance as a Garment But First O ye poor people who have never asked this Question whether have I any Interest in Jesus Ask it now and resolve it in time If trouble come on if scattering and desolation come on and our Land fade as a Leaf certainly the Lords anger will drive you away What will ye do in the time of his Indignation All of you put this to the tryal how matters stand between God and you And Secondly if ye find all wrong do not sink in discouragement All may be amended while it is seen wrong in time Nay God taketh away outward Accomodation to make you more serious in this And it is the very voice of Rods every one fly in to your hold every one make peace with me You may take hold and do it feckfully Thirdly You who have fled to Jesus take more hold of him you are called also to renew your Faith and begin again Make peace with God let your confidence be kept fast and thus shall ye be immoveable because he changeth not God will not go from you if ye believe hold him by Faith Christ could not do great things in Galilee because of their unbelief and so be departed from them As unbelief maketh an evil heart to depart from the God of all Life and Consolation So doth it make Goâ— depart from us But Faith casteth a knot upoâ— him to speak with reverence it fasteneth hiâ— by his own Word and Promise and he cannot go by it It is a violent hand laid oâ— God I will not let thee go till thou blesâ— me Fourthly Faith and Prayer or holding oâ— God by believing in him and much imploying him needeth much stirring up unto and awaking That stirreth up himself to take hold oâ— thee Security is the moth of both these and eateth out the life of Faith and Supplication It maketh Prayer so coldrife that it it cannoâ— prevail and Faith so weake that it cannot usâ— violence Fâ—â—st security apprehendeth no evil no need A secure condition is a dream that one is eating and yet his Soul is empty Looâ— how the people of Laish were quiet and secure apprehending no evil Destruction cometh then on as an armed man Always it is much necessity that administers fewel to a mans Faith and Supplication David Psal 30. 7. I saiâ— in my prosperity I shall not be moved Nay but many say in adversity and cry peace peace where no peace is Security pleadeth innocency and then believeth immunity I am innocent therefore shall his anger turn away Jer. 2. 35. Security applyeth not sin and so refuseth the curse of sin and wages of it And thus is a man in his own eyes a lord and then he will come no more to God Jer. 2. 31. It is almost impossible to awake men by general Judgments â—o apprehend personal danger and men never stirr out of their nest till it be on fire We can behold or hear of our neighbours spoyling and violence done to them but till the voice of a cry be heard in our own Streets and Fields no body will take the Judgement to themselves It is well said that which is spoken to all is spoken to none so what is done to all in generall is done to hone The voice of a general Rod speaketh not particularly and maketh not men apprehensive of sad things and thus men are not pressed unto prayer are not put out of themselves It is onely necessity that sapps the roots of it and makes it green Secondly Security is lazy and not active putteth not forth its hand to work and so dieth a beggar for onely the hand of the diligent maketh rich Laying hold on God is a duty that requireth much spirit in it Men do not grip things well in their slumbering There is no Duty that needeth so spiritual and lively Principles If a man do not put on such a peece of resolution and edge upon him he cannot come to the wrestling of Prayer and violence of Faith Although the exercise and acting of Grace dependeth more upon the Spirit of God his present Influence then upon the Soul of man yet this is the way the Lord communicateth his Influence by stirring up and exciting the Creature to its duty as if it could do it alone Grace is one thing and the stirring up of it is another thing For when we ly by and sleep over our time and go not about tâ— matter so seriously as it were life aâ— death it is but a weak hold we can takeâ— God According to the measure of a mâ— apprehending necessity and according the measure of his seriousness in these thinâ— so will the hand of Faith grip and lay hoâ— with more or lesse violence As a mâ— drowning will be put from sleeping aâ— when one is in extreem hazard all his strengâ— will unite together in one to do that whiâ— at any ordinary time it could not do so ougâ— it to be here A Christian assaulted wiâ— many temptations should unite his strengâ— and try the yondmost O but your whoâ— spirits would run together to the saving â— your self if ye were very apprehensive of necessity The exercise of Faith is a dead griâ— that cannot part with what it grippetâ— Therefore first we must say to you it is 〈◊〉 so easy a thing as you believe to lay hold â— God there must be stirring up to it Aâ— when the Lord speaketh of our stirring our selves certainly he meaneth this like wayeâ— that he must stirr us ere we stirr our selveâ— Secondly above all be afraid of a secure condition It is the enemy of Communioâ— with God and spiritual Life therefore look about you and apprehend more your necessity and then give no rest and quietness to your self till you have imployed and engaged him Be as men flying to lay hold on the refuge set before you Thirdly It must be a time of little accesse to God and little Faith when we are all secure and no body goeth about Religion as their work and business We allow our self in it Therefore we do exhort you first to purpose this as your end to aim at and