this effect upon your own hearts it will put the meanest and most abasing thoughts of your selves into you it will draw out humble confessions self-accusations and acknowledgments of your own unworthiness This must needs put you in mind of your low estate sinful and miserable condition and the unspeakably free grace of God thereon appearing USE 2. For Exhortation This may serve to excite all true Believers to live in the constant exercise of Humility and Repentance You here see it is the proper work of a Convert Faith and Repentance are graces for exercise and should take up our whole lives And to help to this duty often ponder 1. Who it was that converted thee not thy self but God he came to thee and saved thee 2. What an one thou wert before conversion a poor Prodigal that had wasted all away and flagitiously provoked and dishonoured the Name of God 3. What it cost to make way for thy Conversion the cursed death of the Son of God 4. How obstinately thou didst oppose thine own Conversion Thou wert horribly averse to it and didst long withstand the strivings of the holy spirit 5. What love God hath expressed to thee in thy Conversion Words fall short and similitudes are too strait to demonstrate or give colour to it Set the love of God before thee as a glass in which to see and hate thy Sin and love thy God Let this make thee worthless in thine own eyes and account What expressions doth this love draw out from Paul 1 Tim. 1. 13 14. Act therefore these thoughts upon thy heart and get thy soul warmed with this sense And more especially 1. Art thou a young Convert newly of a Prodigal made and entertained as a Son This great change now requires an humble heart now thou art in the arms of mercy pour out thy confessions and bemoan thy self 2. Hast thou at any time more than ordinary discoveries of God's love to thee Now be improving this as an argument to abase thee Ask thy heart who hath done this and then who am I that he should do thus for me 3. Especially if these applications are after some fall or relapse into such Sins as have wounded thy peace and hidden his face for a season from thee Doth he after this notwithstanding come again Wonder and be ashamed of thy self when thou feelest his kisses and embraces again empty thy soul in confessions and self-judging acknowledgments into his bosom so shalt thou be led on to more and more experiences of his wonderful loveing kindness SERMON XXIV Vers 22. But the Father said to his Servants bring forth the best robe and put it on him and put a Ring on his hand and Shoes on his feet Vers 23. And bring hither the fatted Calf and kill it and let us eat and be merry Vers 24. For this my Son was dead and iâ— alive again he was lost and is found And they began to be merry THe next thing to be considered is the Provision which the Father made for and the entertainment which he gave to his returned Son described in these Verses I shall briefly insist on these things Here we may observe an Allegorical description of the great benefits which God bestows upon a sinner on believing or the wonderful change of his condition on Conversion Whiles the Son is complaining of his unworthiness and accusing his own prodigality his father not so much by words but by real acts gives him to find what favour he is received into In the words observe 1. The things that were done for him vers 22 23. in which are 1. The instruments used in doing them his servants 2. What they were to do bring forth c. What these things allude to will be considered of in their place 3. To what end let us eat and be merry 2. The reason given to it vers 24. for this my son c. 3. The fruit consequent upon it vers 24. and they began to be merry Christ under the welcome given by a tender father to his returning son would shadow to us the welcome that a penitent finds with God expressed with the greatest signs and tokens of a perfect reconciliation and deepeâ—t affection not only of love but of joy too at his return hence the servants are set to work the best robe is brought forth tocover his nakedness the fatted Calf killed not only to feed but feast him a Ring is put on his hand Shoes on his feet and the whole house is filled with songs and mirth and the very fields made to ring with acclamations of joy In general observe this DOCT. The day of a sinners Conversion to God is a day of great rejoycing When God comes to receive a penitent Prodigal into favour again it is a time of singing and mirth It is a day of joy 1. To God himself the father testified his joy for his Son's recovery by his entertainment so doth God by his of a sinner though God properly have no affections which are passions and tokens of imperfection yet he assumes such things to himself for our instruction and not only so but providentially in the application of himself to the soul he doth such things as are witnesses of such affections in men Where men love much they will do much Feasts are tokens of joy great feasts of great joy Reas 1. From his relation he is a son though he hath been a Prodigal he was chosen from Eternity and this relation blots out all Alexander told Antipater accusing his mother of vile actions one tear of a mother will obliterate all anger God useth this argument for Paul when Ananias speak hard of him Act. 9. 15. He is a chosen vessel Reas 2. From the great change wrought His son was dead and is alive was lost and is found With what joy did those women whose sons Elisha and Christ raised entertain them How glad is a tender Parent to find a Child that hath been lost here is matter of much joy Thus it is with a sinner he is raised from a grave of sin and found in the wilderness of his wandring Reas 3. Because now God's great design of glorifying his grace in this sinners recovery is brought about the foundation of that work is laid in his heart now all men are glad when their main designs are accomplished 2. To the blessed Angels These may in part be looked upon as the servants here employed who attended cheerfully in this fervice for they are ministring spirits for the heirs of Salvation Heb. 1. 14. And that Angels are glad at a sinners Conversion is asserted context vers 10. Reas 1. From their relation to Believers they are their brethren fellow Servants fellow Citizens and such for whose salvation they do minister Reas 2. From the great delight they take in the glory of God for which as they were made so they lay out their utmost labour and endeavour 3. If the spirits of just men made perfect could have
is described by three things 1. By the leading cause or occasions of it with an awful effect vers 14. â— The sordid course which he took for the reâ—ieving of himself in his distressed condition vers 15. 3. The utter failing of all relief and supply even the poorest of all vers 16. of these in order 1. The leading causes or occasions of it c. vers 14. 1. The causes or occasions here mentioned are two 1. The first is from himself or his former prodigality when he had spent all 2. The other is from the place which he was then in there arose a mighty famine in that land 2. The effect of this noted in the vers is the distress which he was now brought to He began to be in want His misery began from himself his own riot had wasted his substance and now all was gone It was a sad alteration which befel this poor young man a few dayes ago he was swaggering and spending with thâ— best his Coffers full and he scattered it by handfuls but now nothing remains all is gone and that not by some unfore-seen inevitable providence there had then been some room to have pittied and excused him but by his own improvidence he had lived to be his own Executor He had spent all The Word in the Text signifies to consume a thing not in a way of prudent and frugal expense but in foolish prodigality That poor man is the blameable cause of his own misery though it be a plain conclusion from the words yet having hinted at it before I pass it over here The main thing I would now take notice of in the words is that his own stock failed him all his portion came to nothing Hence DOCT. All that which natural or unregenerate men place their confidence in will fail and leave them short of Salvation Let men have never so much of Gods common favours without saving grace all will come to nothing in the end Man may make a flourishing shew with these things for a while but they will not last There are things which the Scripture tells us perish with the using such are all the common gifts of God For clearing this truth observe 1. That is properly said to be spent which is laid out unprofitably What men lay out for advantage is not spent but improved but that which brings in nothing again is not only expended but mispended The Scripture expresseth it by labouring for the East-Wind by laying out mony for that which is not bread by labouring in vain c. For a man to give his Gold or Silver in exchange for Cockles Pearls for Pebbles Substance for Shadows this is that which is deservedly accounted spending 2. Nothing is profitably laid out but what is expended for Salvation This is the only saving purchase that any of the Children of men can trade for A part in Christ is the only Riches a Crown of Glory is the only honour a place in the Paradice of God is the only pleasure which is worthy a Man's laying out of cost and care for and other purchases are empty and will be found loss Eccl. 1. 3. What profit hath a man of all the labour which he hath taken under the Sun 3. Though all mankind are in some sense trading for Salvation or Happiness yet the greatest number are there trading for it where it is not to be found they are seeking the living among the dead they are seeking heaven in hell happiness among an heap of miseries One man's wealth is his God anothers pleasures are his felicity another climbs the Pinacles of honour to seek for the seat of happiness Nature leads men no higher than something under the Sun and therefore such as see no higher must of necessity spend their time their wit their estate their all 4. The best improvement that nature can make of Gods common favours cannot bring them to find and enjoy blessedness Let men use them never so frugally and prudently according to the measures which they take of prudence and frugallity yet they will fall short Nature could never by its own strength arrive at saving grace nor by the outward help of all the common blessings of God A man may have health strength understanding ordinances many advantages but let him make his best of them all will fall short It is not of him that wills nor of him that runs Rom. 9. 16 these all are either but nature which is in a man or but external things which he enjoyeth and man cannot climb up to Heaven on the rounds of such a Ladder 5. Hence when the natural man hath done his utmost and taken the greatest pains in laying out his time strength and estate he loseth his soul Nay it is very certain that though a man be never so proud and confident in those many blessings God which he hath conferred upon him yet sooner or later he shall have a through and sensible conviction of his poverty that he hath nothing which is saving that he hath wasted and missimproved that which he had to unprofitable mispense Job 27. 8. USE 1. Here we see what a poor Portion unregenerate men have and therefore what little cause have they of pride or the people of God of envy God gives his enemies a great deal but alas what is it Poor perishing stuff spending wasting substance not indeed worthy of that name Think of this you that are proud of your wits your wealth your honour your priviledges what it is that you pride your selves in or what will you do when all is spent and such is the miserable exit of all that you are boasting your selves of you now flourish and spread your selves ere it be long all will be gone and no where to be found Psal 37. 37 38. There are thousands of casualties to which the object of your trust is daily exposed you are sure of nothing nay there needs no more but your selves and your own folly to spend it You may for a while carry before you a breadth in the world and bless your selves in what you have but it will not be long ere your mouths shall put upon you the name and title of fools Prov. 5. 11 12 13. Your wit will not direct you to happiness your wealth will not purchase you honour and glory if not before yet certainly in a dying hour they will all leave you and then your naked soul passeth into eternity with nothing to live upon for ever But if God intend your souls good you shall before that time have your eyes opened to see that all this is nothing your dependence upon these things shall be broken and your hopes vanish Lift not then up the born on high nor speak with a stiff neck And you that are the Saints of God be not envious go with the Psalmist into the Temple see their end and then shall you find all that which your mistake hath called happiness and prosperity to be nothing
look upon him but he knew him to be kind and that put him foreward so it should do thee hence God hath written his Name in letters of goodness Exod. 34. 6 7. And to help here 1. Consider how much God doth for such as never return to him nor ask mercy of him God's general goodness should lead sinners to repentance Rom. 2. 4. When you see how God spares prophane and wretched sinners and suffers them to live yea provides liberally for them fills them with hid treasures gives them more than heart can wish and the waters of an overflowing cup are wrung out unto them so that their hearts are filled with food and gladness they crown their heads with Rose-buds and spend their dayes in wealth and leave the residue to their babes Argue from hence what goodness hath he then in store for them that humble themselves forsake their sins repent and return to him with their whole hearts 2. Consider how many repenting Prodigals have upon their return been entertained and made welcome by him who once did as thou hast done run themselves out spent all and were ready to famish but betaking themselves to him they were fed and saved alive and this may give you hopes to find the like favour at his hand Consider therefore 1. They were such who as little deserved this favour as thou they had nothing of merit for which they should be bid welcome and relieved in their distress for all mankind stand guilty before God Rom. 3. 19. 2. They had gone away from him and wasted all in riot as thou hast done What a Prodigal was Manasseh how miserably had he run himself out yet he obtained favour What a great sinner had Paul been yet he was accepted 3. They were such as had as little to plead for themselves as thou hast They had nothing to plead but mercy condescending mercy undeserved mercy they had no more to say for themselves than the poor publican had Lord have mercy on me a sinner For themselves or of themselves all they could say was only to make this poor Prodigal 's acknowledgment vers 19. and yet were not rejected but found mercy 3. Consider what relentings there are in the hearts of men especiall of Parents towards their Children for that is the scope of the Parable to argue from the less to the greater q. d. If a father can have so much mercy a poor man that hath but a little kindness a little pitty with him what may we hope then that God will do Can a Prodigal so argue from his fathers bounty and encourage himself by it how much more a poor guilty sinner from the bounty of God with whom are everlasting mercies 4. Consider how richly God hath entertained returning sinners The poorest meanest Believer hath enough and to spare no Believer in Christs family wants for any thing that promise is fulfilled Ps 34. 10. God hath done for them more than they can express and though they sometimes seem to complain yet it is their infirmity and infidelity What can a Believer want which he hath not Pardon of sin title of inheritance to all good things favour with God grace to serve him a fatherly care for him yea and to spare he hath joyes consolations ravishing of soul he may not only feed but feast it by faith on Jesus Christ If you say what is all this to me who have no lot or share in this matter I answer it is this to thee it should encourage thee to hope and not utterly to despare of finding mercy and from hence to animate thy soul to go to God and wait upon him for it to seek him diligently in the use of means and to resolve not to sit still dy of the famine silently but to make thy moan to God and pour out thy complaint before him to arise and leave this far country where there is nothing but famine and death and with the Prodigal take up a resolution to return to God and ask gracious entertainment with him for a poor dying perishing sinner who is he alone with whom the fatherless findeth mercy SERMON XIV Vers 18. I will arise and go to my Father and will say unto him Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee Vers 19. And am no more worthy to be called thy son make me as one of thy hyred servants IN the former verse we had the Prodigal quickning and encouraging himself to return to his father which is the first part of his deliberation 2. In these words is set down his deliberate conclusion or consultation and determination what improvment to make of these arguments which is in summe to make proof of his fathers love in the most penitent and humble manner More particularly he resolves upon two things 1. That he will return to his father I will arise and go to my father 2. How he will demean himself when he comes to him viz. in the most submissive and self abasing manner that is possible and this appears both in his confession and petition 1. In his confession in which he acknowledgeth 1. His sin aggravated in two things 1. The object against whom against heaven 2. The presence in which before thee 2. The merit or desert of his sin I am no more worthy to be called thy son 2. His petition submitting to his fathers disposal Make me as one of thy hyred servants Before I enter upon particulars it will be needful to enquire to what head in Divinity this is to be referred whither to a preparatory or to a saving work and I suppose it may be made evident that it refers to a saving work and that true conversion is here deciphered and set forth in these and the following words verse 20. begin It is true we have in these words only his deliberate purpose expressed but we must remember that the will is the first subject of Religion and when that is truly turned to God there is a saving work wrought and the whole man will follow and so it did in this vers 20 he hath now renounced his far Country and made choice of God The work here described is Repentance but not a separate from but joyned with flowing from saving faith for it was the spirit of Grace working faith in him and acting of it who made him to draw this conclusion from the premises that enabled him to adventure his soul upon God and withal taught him how to do it in a penitent manner Hence those that place true Repentance in order before Faith mistake Though Faith usually first discovers it self to us in act of Repentance and the comforts of it are sensibly felt after Repentance yea the greatest and noblest actings of faith are those that are exerted in Repentance leading the soul in deepest sense of sin and unworthiness to adventure it self upon the mercy and power of a justly offended God in returning to him Furthermore we are not to think that because
it is well this is accepted of God and he that gives to will will also give to do But if it be not so what is thy hope built upon what are thy comforts but delusions what are thy assurances but undoing deceit USE 4. For Exhortation and let me direct it particularly to such as being under the sense of perishing in themselves have made discovery of the great power and goodness of God and received some preparatory hope by it he hence encouraged and counselled to arise and go to God Do you feel your selves under a condition so miserable and have you discovered an object so glorious and sutable take heart and resolve to adventure into his presence and throw your selves upon him Consider God therefore reveals himself to be such an one to such as you are to this very end that you may be wooed and won to him and if now you put him away by unbelief you will slight Mercy Remember withal though there be so much supply with God as is enough to make you compleatly happy and to spare yet it is only for comers If you will taste of this Feast you must accept of the invitation and come and be ghuests you must come out of those hedge-rows and high-wayes in which you ly starving you must go to the waters if you will have wine and milk Isa 55. 1. Halt no longer between two opinions if it be good perishing sit still but if it be good to be saved arise and come away come to a resolution draw up your conclusion If you object and say I can resolve nothing of my self except God put his Grace and resolution in me I answer It is true but remember also that as God is a free Agent so we are obliged by duty and the ty of it is such that we must except we will bring guilt upon our selves set about it and this is our duty to believe and resolve not in your strength but in the strength of God nay it is one of Satans cheats to tell us we must wait before we 〈◊〉 till we discover Grace coming in whereas the habits of Grace come in undiscerned and the first fruit of Grace is to be found in the resolution it self If God helps us to this resolution we must by that know that his Spirit is come into us and it is our duty in the use of means to stirr up our selves to believe Resolve then in the strength of God here thou art perishing there is mercy with him that he may be feared he saith if thou comest he will not upbraid thee he saith The hungry he will satisfie with bread and give the longing soul the desires of his heart he saith he will give the weary rest in a word if ever you obtain Salvation it must be with him hills mountains all created beings will not afford it Thou hast tyred thy self to no purpose in seeking it there already and why shouldest thou again make a vain essay if God will he can and he is a merciful God the fatherless have found him so Do thou but resolve to leave all for him and make choice of him for thy trust and he will do it for thee what ever it be that thou wantest grace glory and every good thing will he bestow upon thee SERMON XV. THus of the Prodigals resolution to return 2. His purpose how to demean himself on his return follows to be considered in which are shadowed out to us divers necessary concomitants of true Repentance or qualifications wherein the truth of it doth appear and serve to instruct us in the true and genuine working of saving Grace to the humbling of the soul and rendring him vile in his own eyes And this is in two things viz. his Confession and his Petition In the one he makes himself as bad as he can be as little as low and sinful in the other he yields himself to be what ever his father would make him To begin with the first 1. In his confession he acknowledgeth his sin and the merit of it 1. In the acknowledgment of his sin 1. He makes it his own I have sinned 2. He aggravates it 1. By the object against whom against heaven 2. By the presence in which before thee The phrase against heaven means against God himself the word Heaven is used both by Hebrew and Greek writers for God either as one of his names or else Metonymically because heaven is the place where he most gloriously appears Divers useful truths may hence be gathered I shall draw them all up into this one DOCT. Where God gives true Repentance such an one will confess his sins with the greatest aggravation He will not mince or extenuate and go about to make them look little and small but acknowledge them in their height greatness present them in their blackest and ugliest colours so doth this Prodigal son resolve to go to his father and so did Though every sin in its proper nature nakedly considered as it is a Transgression of the Laws of God an affront offered and an offence given to the Majesty of Heaven is on that account great yet there are several circumstances with which it is clothed which if truly looked upon do exaggerate or heighten the vileness of it these the Hypocrite endeavours to cover over and hopes thereby to excuse himself â tanto as the Pharisee I am not thus and so but contrariwise in sound Repentance when the sinner comes to humble himself before God and confess his sins he makes himself as vile as he can Sin is made exceeding sinful An hypocrite hopes to plead that he hath not been so bad therefore he may hope for mercy but Paul was of another mind 1 Tim. 1. 25. Christ came to save sinners of whom I am chief And David Psal 25. 11. Pardon mine iniquity for it is very great Now the aggravations in our text are three under which heads the most that can be said may be ranked these let us a little look into 1. He takes the whole blame upon himself I have sinned it is I have done this thing so David calls it his own sin Psal 51. 9. q. d. Whatever blame or guilt there is in it I take it all to my self He confesseth it roundly and plainly without any excuse or extenuations or putting it off to any other cause occasion or tempter And this is one difference between the repentance of an hypocrite and a true penitent the one would put off his sin as much as he can seek excuses find others to lay it upon and bear as little of the blame as possibly he may he would divide the fault that he may leave the least part of it to himself and he finds many occasions or causes to change it upon 1. He throwes it upon everlasting decrees and would make the holy counsel of God to have a causal influence into his wickedness and will say if God had intended me so to have been I
Esau Gen. 33. 4. Each doth now as it were breath himself into the others bosom they exchange souls manifesting by dumb signs that love which is too great for words to express so that by this expression we are taught 1. That God gives himself to the sinner to be his and takes him to himself makes himself to be his portion and bequeaths himself to him and receives him into arms of mercy making him his peculiar treasure and jewel 2. That he now infuseth his grace into his soul by breathing spiritual life into him He falls upon him with his spirit and grace and layes the foundation of spiritual life in him by putting a principle of it into his soul quickening him who was dead 3. He kissed him this is the last thing in the act and here is great favour indeed that when he might have killed him he kisseth him this word hath divorse expressions of love contained under it 1. God now opens and reveals that secret and everlasting love of his to his soul kissing was an outward act to intimate an inward affection Men often did it dissemblingly but God alwayes doth it really Now God begins to give the soul to perceive what was his purpose of good will to him from eternity what were his ancient thoughts about him this is a visible confirmation of that secret love 2. God now reveals that he is fully reconciled to and at peace with him that all former distances and alienations of heart are wholly taken away he is no more angry nor will any more condemn him David kissed Absolom to let him understand he was now reconciled God never kisseth and killeth as Joah dealt with Amasa his heart alwayes goes out with his promise It is a justifying kiss intimating that this soul shall never more have any more cause to fear the suffering the punishment of his sins or being exposed to condemnation 3. The father by this manifestly takes his son into the state of a son It is a kiss of Adoption David thus acknowledged Absolom The sinner had made himself an abject God now restores him again to that inheritance which he had rooted himself out of he is thus taken again into his fathers house and made to enjoy the priviledge of a Child 4. God by this draws out the love of the soul to him breaks his heart and wins him to himself By this testification of his love he attracts a reciprocal love from the sinner makes him now to chuse God and give himself up to him put himself into his hands and devote himself to his service for all this presently follows vers 21. Thus it is a sanctifying kiss 5. All this is done to restore comfort to the soul Sense of his sin and the great wrong that he had done to his father by so vilely leaving him and profusely spending his estate had filled him with sorrow and bitterness his Father now kisseth him to comfort him They are called the kisses of the mouth Can. 1. 2. which are given in the application of the promises to the soul and enabling of him to close with them suck the sweet out of them and draw to his consolation the good that is in them and thus it is also a glorifying kiss Put altogether and it telleth us what a wonderful declaration of God's love it is that comes into the soul at the hour of Conversion USE 1. For Information 1. We hence learn that the soul is passive in vocation I do not mean as it is a Rational but as it is a spiritual Agent If God had not come to the sinner he had never come to God nor could he have done it As well might the widows son lying upon the bier and carrying to the grave have fetcht back his departed soul as a sinner dead in trespasses and sins recover the lost Image of God Hither every Regenerate man ows his spiritual original viz. Not to the strength of his nature or flexibility of his will but to God who came to him there where he lay a dying and whence he was not able so much as to lift up his eyes towards heaven without God put the ability into him by reviving Grace And this proclaims the wonderful concescendency of the great God to undone men and women in that he is not only ready and willing to receive them when they come to him but he runs forth to meet them and to do them good The condition that all men are lying in at such time as he speaks that happy word to them live tends mightily to enhaunce or illustrate the unspeakable kindness of God and hence deserves an ingemitiation Ezek. 16. 5 6. None eye pitied thee thou wast cast into the open field I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood live yea I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood live 2. Here we see that in Regeneration the whole body of graces are brought into the soul at once and together In effectual vocation the soul receives Christ himself and that not only relatively by receiving his person into such relations wherby he becomes his Redeemer and Saviour applyes his righteousness to him for Justification and by marrying him admits him among the Adopted Children of God but also really by the communication of his graces and filling him with his spirit He falls upon his neck and kisseth him all grace is communicated in this act and there is great reason for it for Christ in giving of himself to the soul becomes its life Gal. 2. 20. Christ lives in me And Christ thus becomes his spiritual life not only by changing his relative state from what it was but especially life being a principle of operation by putting this new principle into him in which are contained all such habits and dispositions as are requisite to fit him to live spiritually i. e. the habits of all graces for all flow from one and the same principle viz. spiritual life 3. As a consectary from the former we hence see that at the instant of effectual vocation the soul is made partaker in every grace Justification and Adoption fully Sanctification and Glorification inchoatively and in their degrees these come all together and inseparable and are made over to the soul in the instant in which God converts him For when God gives Christ he gives all things with him Rom. 8. 32. Yea he gives him to be all to us 1 Cor. 1. 30. He is made of God to us Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption There is a succession of these Graces 1. Doctrinally they are to be handled orderly methodically and distinctly in the opening of the Doctrines of the Gospel 2. In the apprehension of a Believer who doth not immediatly discern all of them 3. In order of nature and consequence But in time they are contemporary and the reason is because the whole Covenant is sealed up in Conversion and all that is contained in it i. e. all grace 4. We here see the