for the Glory of God and the Advancement of his own Kingdom I say the Glory of God Rom. 6. 10. In that he liveth he liveth unto God His own Kingdom Psal. 110. 1. Sit thou at my right Hand till I make thine Enemies thy Footstool He is at the right-hand of God and there shall abide till he return to judge the World In the mean time he hath the Inspection of all Affairs All Iudgment is put into his Hands Joh. 5. 22. Things are not left to the Will of Man nor to their own Contingency but are guided and ordered by him with good Advice However Matters go Christ is Governor who is not cannot be deposed from his Regal Office nor justled out of the Throne As Luther said upon some Loss that befel the Friends of the Gospel Etiamnum vivit regnat Christus When the Floods lifted up their Voice and all things seemed to threaten Ruin and to over-whelm then follows The Lord reigneth The Lord on high is mightier than the Noise of many Waters Psal. 93. 1 4. It is spoken of the Kingdom of Christ for the advancing and preserving of which he gives forth signal Testimonies of his Regal Power 2. In spiritual Distresses when we want Life and Quickning are opposed with troubled thoughts about our sinful Infirmities Your Redeemer hath Life in himself but not for himself alone he came into the World that we might have a fuller Communication of his Grace Ioh. 10. 10. Now he is gone back again to God and filled with the Spirit to communicate it to the Members of his Mystical Body Eph. 4. 10. He is ascended up to fill all things When we are dead our Redeemer liveth as a Fountain of Life to God's People 3. In outward Calamities He liveth when other Comforts fail or are taken away from us he will prove the nearest and best Friend when all others forsake us he will not only sympathize with us but help us and knoweth how to to give a comfortable Issue out of the sorest Troubles 2 Cor. 4. 14 16. Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Iesus shall raise up us also by Iesus and shall present us with you For which cause we faint not 4. It is a great Comfort in Calumnies and Slanders when our Names are taken up in the Lips of the Taunters and cast forth as evil Iob here when his Friends suspected him as fallen from the Grace of God puts his Cause into the Hands of the great Mediator who was now with God in Heaven making Intercession for him and will one Day stand on the Earth judging the World We need not fear any partial Judge here below nor be troubled at their Prejudices and Misconstructions Christ is the true Judge who will bring to light the hidden things of the Heart and then shall every Man have praise of God 1 Cor. 4. 15. That is every one that hath done well Though we have Failings yet those that flee to a Redeemer for Pardon and Reconciliation with God and Grace to walk uprightly shall then be acquitted 5. Chiefly it is a Comfort against the Fears of Death that you may yeeld up yourselves into Christ's Hands Thoughts of dwelling with God in Eternal Life are less comfortable because Death and the Grave interpose we must pass through them before we can enjoy him But though we die Christ liveth who is the Resurrection and those that believe in him shall live though they die Ioh. 11. 25. For our Souls he standeth ready to receive them Acts 7. 54. Lord Iesus receive my Spirit And our Bodies at the last day shall be raised again to immortal Life When Christ who is our Life shall appear we shall appear with him in Glory Col. 3. 4. We need not fear Death for by his dying and rising again the Powers of the Grave are shaken and Death it self is become mortal The Grave is not a Prison but a Place of Repose Isa. 57. 2. And Death not a final Extinction but a Passage into Glory It is ours 1 Cor. 3. 22. All things are yours Life Death Things present Things to come all are yours And it is Gain Phil. 1. 21. For to me to live is Christ and to die is Gain Therefore we may go to the Grave with Comfort and Hope Christ died and yet is alive so shall we He is risen as the First-fruits of them that sleep 1 Cor. 15. 20. The whole Harvest was blessed and sanctified by an handful of the first-Fruits dedicated to God When Christ arose he virtually drew all the Elect out of the Grave with him being renewed and reconciled by his Grace they may be confident of a joyful Resurrection for Christ is their fore-fruits The First-fruits did not bless the Tares Darnel and Cockle that grew amongst the Corn no Man that ever offered the first-Fruits desired a Blessing upon the Weeds no Bind the Tares in Bundles and gather the Wheat into my Barn But if he indeed be your Redeemer and hath redeemed you from all Iniquity that is from the Guilt and Power of Sin it is a Comfort to you to know that he lives gloriously with God and will draw all his own after him that they may live gloriously with him He is our Fore-runner Heb. 6. 20. Who is gone to Heaven and hath taken Possession for himself and in our Behalf to make the Way more passable for us When we die we do but go thither whither he is gone before us he standeth upon the Shore ready to receive us into Glory Use of Exhortation I. Believe it and be perswaded of this Truth that you have a Redeemer living with God in the Heavens 1. This is a matter of meer Faith and therefore it must be soundly believed before it can have any efficacy upon us Some points of Faith are mixed partly evident by Natural Reason partly by Divine Revelation as that there is a God it is matter of sensible Experience Rom. 1. 20. and a matter of Faith also whosoever comes to God must believe that God is Nature helpeth forward the entertainment of these things but Redemption by Christ is a matter of pure and meer Faith and is received by believing Gods Testimony 2 Thess. 1. 10. there is no improving these points till we soundly believe them 2. Because we often think we believe these general Truths when indeed we do not believe them at all or not with such a degree of assent as we imagine Our Lord when he speaks of these Truths Joh. 11. 26. He that believeth in me shall live though he die Believest thou this Joh. 16. 31. Do ye now believe We conceit our Faith to be much stronger than indeed it is about the main Articles of Faith 3. Because among them that profess themselves Christians there are monstrous defects in their Faith Naturally we look upon the Gospel as a well devised Fable 2 Pet. 1. 16. and many that dare not speak it out yet do but speak of Christ
prejudices to smother the belief of it they would be glad in their Hearts to hear such news that Christ would never come Now their wishes do easily commence into opinion Christ's coming is the burden and torment they would willingly get rid of And Men readily believe what they earnestly desire 2. The second sort It is dreaded by the Wicked and Impenitent And therefore hated and abhorred by them At the mention of it Felix trembled Acts 24. 2. There is reason for it for Christ comes to them as a terrible Judg. In Scripture his coming is set forth by Light and sometimes by Fire Light is comfortable but Fire dreadful 2 Thess. 1. 8. He shall come in flames of Fire to render vengeance to them that obey not the Gospel But 3. To the Godly it is not matter of Terror but Delight not like the hand-writing on the Wall to Belshazzer but like comfortable tidings to one that expects news from far they long for it and would hasten it if they might have their desire Cant. 8. 14. Make haste my Beloved and be like a young Hart or Row upon the Mountains of Spices Christ is not slack but the Churches Affections are strong therefore she saith Make haste So Rev. 22. 20. Christ saith I come and the Church like a quick eccho takes the words out of his Mouth even so come Lord Iesus come quickly Christ's Voice and the Churches Voice are Unisons You will say this is the desire of the Church in general but doth every particular Believer so desire it I answer the part follows the reason of the whole the same Spirit is in all the Faithful the Spirit in the Bride says come the Holy Ghost in necessary things works uniformly in all the Saints therefore he breeds this desire in them The meanest the weakest even those that tremble at their own unpreparedness have some inclination that way There may be a drowziness and indisposition but no total extinction of the desire of meeting with Christ. 3. There is Waiting and here it is exprest by its adjunct patient waiting for patient waiting is an act of Hope as well as longing expectation 1 Thess. 1. 3. Knowing saith he your work of Faith and labour of Love and patience of Hope Faith or a sound belief of things will break out into practice therefore the work of Faith Love will put us upon Labour and Hope produces Patience There is a threefold Patience spoken of in Scripture all the branches are near a-kin for they are all begotten by Hope 1. The bearing Patience which is a constancy in Adversity or a perseverance in our Duty notwithstanding the difficulties and tryals that we meet with in our passage to Heaven Heb. 6. 12. Be ye Believers of them who through Faith and Patience have inherited the Promises As we cannot inherit the Promises without Faith so not without Patience for our Obedience and Fidelity to Christ requires not only labour and great pains but courage and constancy to suffer as well as to do Heb. 10. 36. Ye have need of Patience that after ye have done the will of God you might inherit the Promise A Child of God cannot be without Patience because he must reckon for troubles and molestations We have indeed our calms as well as our storms many intermissions but at other times God will exercise us and shew us our Fidelity is not sufficiently tried in doing good but before we go to Heaven we must sometimes suffer evil God hath something to do by us and something to do with us We must be prepared for both to endure all things and readily and willingly suffer the greatest evil rather than commit the least Sin that so at length we may be accepted in the Judgment 2. There is a waiting Patience to wait God's leisure The evil is present the good is absent now we long for the good as well as bear the evil Rom. 8. 25. But if we hope for that we see not then do we with patience wait for it This is the work of Patience to wait to refer it to the good pleasure of God when our Warfare shall be accomplished and our Troubles at an end and our final Deliverance come about The time cannot belong for what are a few years to Eternity This waiting Patience is delivered to us under the Similitude of an Husbandman Jam. 5. 7. who waiteth for the precious Fruits of the Earth and hath long Patience for it till he receive the early and the latter rain The Husbandman that hath laid out all his Substance in Seed-Corn cannot hope for a present Harvest or that he should receive the Crop as soon as the Seed is cast into the Ground no it must lie a while there it must endure all Weathers before it can spring up in the Blade and Ear and ripen and be fit to be reaped So though we venture all upon our everlasting hopes yet we must expect our Season till we see the fruit and recompence of it This is the waiting Patience 3. There is the working Patience which is a going on with our self-denying Obedience how tedious soever it be to the Flesh. Thus we are told the good Ground bringeth forth fruit with Patience They were hasty to have present satisfaction or else grew weary of Religion and turned aside to worldly things So the Heirs of the promises are described Rom. 2. 7. To be those that continued with Patience in well-doing And to the Church of Ephesus God saith Rev. 2. 2. I know thy works thy labour and thy Patience Religion is not an idle and sluggish profession the work of it is carried on by diligence and faithfulness Lusts are not easily mortified neither do Graces produce their perfect work with a little perfunctory care Much labour and serious diligence is required of us we have many things to conflict withal there is the burden of a wearisom Body the seducing Flesh unruly Passions disordered Thoughts a dark Mind dead Affections and sometimes the misery of a troubled Conscience that we conflict withal and therefore we need much Patience that we may not faint but be accepted of the Lord at his coming Well then to live in this constant and patient expectation of Christ is the perpetual necessary duty of all those that love him II. The Connection and Affinity between it and the Love of God For if a Man love God he will wait for the coming of Christ. The one is inferred out of the other The Lord direct your Hearts to the love of God and the patient waiting for Christ. 1. They that love God level all their thoughts and desires to this that God may be enjoyed that God may be glorified 1. That he may be enjoyed in the fullest manner and measure they are capable of Now this full enjoyment is the fruit of Christ's coming then we shall be ever with the Lord. 1 Thess. 4. 17. When Christ shall appear we shall see him as he is and be
to the uttermost all that come to God by him seeing he ever liveth to make Intercession for them Christ is there compared with the Levitical Priesthood They were many that succeeded one after another and being hindred by Death could never bring their Work to perfection but this Priest ever liveth to plead the Churches Cause with God presenting his Human Nature in his Sight and appearing continually before his Fathers Throne and this for all that come to God by him They are his Clients and he is their Advocate it is against the Rules of that Court to plead for others that continue in their Unbelief and Impenitency After the Beast was slain without the Camp the Levitical High-Priest did enter into the Sanctuary with Blood So Christ after his Sacrifice did enter into the Heavenly Sanctuary with the Names of the twelve Tribes of all the Saints on his Breast and Shoulders there to appear before God for us Heb. 9. 14. He ever liveth to accomplish the Fruits of his Purchase for those that are reconciled to God by him as an High-Priest to answer the Accusations of Satan as our Advocate to stop the breaking out of Wrath. As Ionathan in Saul's Court did mitigate his Father's Anger against David so Christ doth interpose Night and Day to prevent Breaches and to preserve a mutual Correspondence between God and us as our Lieger-Agent to sue out Grace sutable to our Conflicts Difficulties and Temptations as our Friend in Court to procure the Acceptance of our Prayers as our Mediator and Intercessor Heb. 8. 2. 4. His Living is the Root and Cause of our Life For he having purchased Eternal Life not only for himself but for all his Members ever liveth to convey it to them and maintain it in them Ioh. 14. 19. Because I live ye shall live also Joh. 6. 57. As I live by the Father so he that believeth in me shall live by me By reason of the Mystical Union that is between Christ and Believers they may rest upon it that as long as the Head hath Life the Members shall not be utterly without Life for Christ is a Pledg and a Pattern of that Power that shall work in us in order to Life Spiritual and Eternal 4. The next Ground of Comfort is the Certainty of Perswasion I know that my Redeemer liveth As if he had said I do not doubt of it nor suspect it in the least I know implies 1. A clear Understanding of this Mystery The more fully we understand the Grounds of Faith the more Efficacy they have upon us to beget Confidence and Joy of Faith in us The Fears that haunt us are the Fruits of Darkness and Ignorance accompanied with a sense of Guilt but as Gospel-Knowledge increases they vanish as Mists do before the Sun Psal. 9. 10. They that know thy Name will put their Trust in thee If God were better known he would be better trusted 2. I know implies Certainty of Perswasion This is either Certainty of Faith or of Spiritual Sense First Of Faith which depends on the Certainty of God's Revelation that was either the general Promise in Paradise Gen. 3. 15. God had said The Seed of the Woman shall break the Serpents Head Now upon this Promise Iob is as confident of a Redeemer as if he had seen him with his bodily Eyes Thus Abraham is said to have seen Christ's Day Iohn 8. 56. And Heb. 11. 13. These all died in Faith not having received the Promises but having seen them afar off and were perswaded of them and embraced them Or his Faith was built upon some particular Revelation Heb. 1. 1. God who at sundry times and by divers manners spake unto the Fathers by the Prophets They had a sufficient Discovery of the Redeemer to be a Ground of Faith Certain it is the Eyes of Believers were then upon him We are told that Christ was the Lamb slain from the Foundation of the World Rev. 13. 8. He is set forth in Prophecies and Types Now Faith is the Evidence of Things not seen not seen by Sense but clearly seen in the Promise He was the Joy of all Ages even of those that lived before he came in the Flesh. The same is true after the Coming of Christ as well as before for we believe in him whom we have not seen 1 Pet. 1. 3. We should as heartily love him and rejoyce in him as if we had conversed with him bodily Only we have an Advantage History is not so dark as Prophecy and it is more easy to believe what is past where we have the Suffrage and Experience of so many Ages to confirm us than to expect what is to come where we have only God's bare Word to support us The Mystery is now more clearly revealed to us than before the Exhibition of our Saviour Therefore according to our Advantage so should the Increase of our Faith be We should be able to say 2 Tim. 1. 12. I know whom I have believed and I am perswaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him We should rest upon Christ with more confidence Secondly The Certainty of Spiritual Sense We know that he is a Redeemer by the discovery of the Word that he is our Redeemer by the Application of the Spirit as he manifests himself to us and in us This Knowledge of Spiritual Sense is often spoken of Iob 13. 18. I know that I shall be justified Heb. 10. 34. Knowing in your selves that ye have in Heaven a better and an enduring Substance Rom. 6. 6. Knowing this that your old Man is crucified that is feeling Now both these are of great Comfort the Certainty of Faith and the Sweetness of Sense for without the Certainty of Faith the Soul is only left to blind Ghesses and loose Conjectures and so can never have solid Comfort Without the Knowledge of Sense that is of our Interest in Salvation the Soul loses much of its Joy and Peace As Novices and Men that have never before been at Sea are troubled at the swelling of every Wave and Billow though they are safe yet because they do not know they are safe their Voyage is a Torment to them So those that take the Assurance of the Word of God for the Truth of Redemption by Christ and tremblingly build upon it yet because they know not their own Interest have not the Comfort of the Spirit their Journey to Heaven is the more troublesom Therefore it concerneth us to build upon a sure Foundation so to get a clear Interest II. How this is applicable in all Afflictions That easily appears from these Premises 1. In publick Troubles and Difficulties We are amazed and perplexed many times at the Events that fall out in the World and know not whereunto these things will grow Yet this is some Comfort and Support to all that are concern'd in Sion's Affairs that Christ is alive at his Fathers right-Hand and will pursue all things that make
Conversion how doth God deal with Paul Stephen had prayed for him too among the rest Lord lay it not to their Charge yet God gave him some smart remembrance of his Sin When Paul and Barnabas had been preaching at Iconium though Barnabas had irritated them as well as Paul they called Barnabas Iupiter and Paul Mercurius because he was the chief Speaker Barnabas who was equal with him in Preaching God ordered it so he was not Stoned but Paul that had consented to Stephens Stoning was Stoned himself and carried out for Dead What need have we to be exact in observing what is required of us here for the Lord by one means or other will return it into our Bosoms We have done that to others which we would not should be done to our selves and therefore will God do that to us which we do to others Application Use 1. To Inform us First What an advantage Religion is to Mankind even with regard to the present Life The World hath a prejudice against Religion as if it were an ill natured thing and made Men forget Equity and humane respects in favourable dealings with others But certainly there is no reason for this Prejudice when it doth require not only love of all in their several Capacities but to do to them all the good possibly we can and to seek out Objects to whom we may do good and be of a God-like Affection Therefore see that it be so in your Profession and Practice that you may recover the credit of Religion by this Rule If this were practised 1. How securely and safely might we live one by another Whence come all the Oppressions and Injuries wherewith the World aboundeth but for want of love to their Neighbours as themselves How easily might we be brought to pardon Wrongs And how patiently would we bear the modest Dissent of others when their Judgments are not of our Size and Mould How far would we be off doing hurt to others even as far as doing hurt to our selves 2. Consider how beneficial and mutually helpful Men would be to each other seeking others good as their own and rejoicing in an others Welfare as our own If the World would but consider how much of Christianity doth consist in loving and doing good as if all the World had but one Soul one Interest it would render it very amiable to them Take this Rule quite away and there is nothing so false bad cruel that you would not be drawn to think or say or do against your Brother Secondly It informs us how much Mankind is degenerated and how few true Christians are in the World Witness our Injustice to the Names Persons and Estates of others We are very critical in determining our own Rights and Proportions and what others owe to us Surely we have all reason to allow others what they justly expect When you are slandered you are Passionate and therefore should not you be tender of other Mens Names and Estates When your Debts are detained you complain of Wrong should we not be as Conscionable for the speedy Payment of others To buy with a great Measure and sell with a less is an Abomination to the Lord and to Men. We judg things done to us thus and thus and shall we be careless what we do to them Uncharitableness and want of Sympathy with us in our Troubles much more insulting over us in our Miseries we look on with detestation and shall we pursue and afflict others when we have Power to do hurt Use 2. Exhortation As that Emperor wrote it on the Doors of his Pallace and Courts of Justice so the Exhortation is to press you to get this Rule deeply graven and written upon your Hearts In all Matters of dealing towards others be exact for God that is the Patron of Human Societies observes whether you do as you would be done unto Remember it is a short Rule yet sufficient and it is a clear Rule therefore it should more prevail with you 1. It 's a short Rule and yet if it were well learned and kept it would save the World a great deal of Mischief Change the Persons and we need not many perplexing Rules to guide us if this were done to me would I take it kindly turn the Tables put your selves in their stead 2. 'T is a clear Rule Look as the Apostle saith of Onesimus when he was converted that he was doubly dear to Philemon both in the Flesh and in the Lord so the same say I of this Rule it is doubly dear to us both by Nature and Grace The Light of Nature binds us and it is prescribed by Christ. 1. If you break this Rule you offer violence to an inbred Principle of Conscience There are many talk of being Christians Yea but get to be good Heathens first Never speak of higher Mysteries of believing in Christ and Communion with Christ while you live so contrary to the Light of Nature What the Apostle discourseth concerning the Natural Branches and the Branches contrary to Nature is applicable in this Case Rom. 11. 24. what he speaks of Persons is true of Doctrines For if thou wert cut out of the Olive Tree which is wild by Nature and wert graffed contrary to Nature into a good Olive Tree how much more shall these which be the natural Branches be graffed into their own Olive Tree The meaning is if the Gentiles were taken into a Covenant Stock how much more shall the Iews be graffed into their own Stock So it is true of Doctrines if the Doctrines contrary or above Nature have brought in Souls to believe in Christ and the higher Mysteries of Christianity certainly much more should those Doctrines which are agreeable to our Nature have a greater respect and regard by you 2. It is also prescribed by Christ now our Lord reasons Luke 6. 46. If you call me Lord and Master why do ye not the things I say It is a mockage to call Christ Lord and Master and disobey his Commands as it was for them to say Hail King of the Iews that spit upon him and buffeted him Therefore whatsoever ye would have others do to you do ye the same to them for he hath told you and confirmed it This is the Law and the Prophets SERMON XIX EPH. 2. 10. For we are his Workmanship created in Christ Iesus unto good Works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them THe Apostle in the Context asserteth that our whole Salvation is of Grace not of Works he now proveth it That which is the Effect of Salvation cannot be the Cause of it but our well-doing is the Effect of Salvation if you take it for our first recovery to God but if you take it for full Salvation or our final deliverance from all Evil Works go before it indeed but in a way of Order not meritorious Influence To think them altogether unnecessary would too much depreciate and lessen their presence or concurrence to