Temptations are to be feared and warily used Riches and outward Prosperity is a Temptation our Money and our Lands and our businesses in the World are Temptations He that will be Rich falleth into Temptation c. and therefore must so be feared as to make us the more wary and circumspect in the seeking and using of them follow your Trades with fear go into your Fields and Markets with fear Eat and Drink with fear fear your fine Houses fear you Plentiful and Prosperous Estates lest by these you be led away to sin and to forget God You are every day among Temptations throughout the whole time of your lives and therefore is the Exhortation of the Apostle 1 Pet. 1.17 Pass the time of your Sojourning here in fear 4. The punishments of sin are to be feared The wrath and the curse of God that Everlasting death which is the wages of sin as I told you before fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul in Hell He is able and he will do it if thou continue in thy sin This fear is planted in the heart as the Sword of the Angel was placed in the way of Balaam to keep him back from his wicked designs This world is a wicked world notwithstanding that God hath placed such a flaming sword in sinners ways notwithstanding all their fears how wilfully wicked are they but what world would this world be if there were no fear upon mens hearts to bridle or restrain them Secondly We are to keep the heart out of fear of what it should not fear to suppress and keep down all unreasonable and sinful fears There are two things especially which men fear but should not fear 1. The Yoke of Christ the difficulties and severities of Religion some men continue to be sinners because they are afraid to be Saints they continue under the power of the Devil because they are afraid of Christ They look on Christ as an hard Master his service as hard service his Yoke as an hard Yoke some desires they have after Religion they could wish themselves Christians but they are afraid to venture The difficulties and the severities of a Godly life keep them off they are afraid of them that they shall never bear them As God placed a flaming sword in Eden Gen. 3. so these fears are a flaming sword of the devils placing to keep the way of the tree of Life to keep sinners back from Christ they dare not come to Christ for fear of him and the heavy yoke that he would put upon their Necks 2. The Cross of Christ that is 1. The sufferings of this Life These are not to be feared Rev. 2.10 Fear none of those things which you shall suffer And this very charge not to fear them is an Evidence that even Christians are too apt to fear Sufferings 2. Death for Christs sake Luke 12.4 Fear not them that kill the body Fear not the worst that men can do You may not only be persecuted by evil men imprisoned spoiled of your Goods but you may be slain put to death by them yet fear them not and as a violent death a being put to death for Christ so neither is a natural death to be feared death is the King of terrours The Apostle tells us Heb. 2.15 That for fear of death men are all their life time subject to bondage There is a natural fear of death implanted in every man even in Christ himself and there is a sinful fear of death and then 't is sinful when 't is excessive when there is so great a fear of death as to distress and distract us in the duties of our lives When there is so great a fear of death that we cannot quietly and patiently submit to its stroke when we cannot comfort and support our selves against the fear of death by the hope we have in our death the righteous hath hope in his death Prov. 14.32 As the Apostle speaks concerning sorrow for the dead 1 Thes 4.13 Sorrow not as men without hope the same may be said concerning the fear of death fear not as men without hope The righteous hath hope in his death he lies down in hope goes to his grave in hope and this hope fortifieth his heart under all its fears Now friends would you keep your hearts under Government learn these two Lessons 1. Keep your hearts in fear and particularly 1. keep you in the fear of God keep up the Aw and Reverence of God in your hearts get you trembling hearts before the Lord behold the severe and jealous eye that is upon you live under such a deep sense of the Greatness Glory and Majesty of the great God as may constantly awe you Sanctifie the Lord God in your hearts and let him be your fear and your dread Those that live not under an awe of God lye open to the Devil and all his Temptations It is this the fear of God that is the bridle to keep us in due order 2 Keep you in fear of sinning against God Psal 4.4 Tremble and sin not Art thou a professor of faith in God and dost thou not yet fear to sin against God dost thou believe that God is the observer of all ungodliness that thine iniquities are all marked before him dost thou believe that God is the avenger of all ungodliness and that all thine iniquities shall be recompensed and returned upon thine own head how is it then that thou art no more afraid of iniquity Art thou an hypocritical professor and doth not thine hypocrisie make thee afraid art thou a proud Professor or a worldly Professor or a luke-warm or froward or carnal or slothful Professour how is it that thy pride thy covetousness that thy coldness or frowardness or carnality or slothfulness doth not make thee afraid are these Evils this Pride and this Hypocrisie this Coveteousness this frowardness rooted and raigning in thy heart where are thy fears all this while call up fear put on fear and let this suppress these lusts which will else be breaking forth into practical iniquity If you would fear a life of Covetousness a life of Pride fear this heart of Pride this worldly carnal heart if you would fear a froward look a froward tongue fear a froward heart crush this Cockatrice Egg before it hatch into practical wickedness 3. Fear Temptation to Sin What does use to foment or heighten the lusts of thine heart What doth use to draw them forth into practice Whatever it be fear it as you would fear the Devil Particularly 1. Fear whatever you over love in the World 1. When you have your pleasant dishes before you and varieties of them when you have your pleasant cups before you fear your being tempted to excess feed not your selves without fear especially feast not without fear put a knife to thy throat if thou be given to appetite when thou seest dainties before thee Prov. 23.2 Look not on the wine when it is red in
who will reply why they were even as good come amongst us as amongst some of your selves and as much they are like to get and as little harm by us as by you Friends I have more than once provoked you to be more Spiritual and more Heavenly in your Converses but what hath been the fruit Is it better then it hath been O that you could tell me it was I thank God it is a little better I have set mine heart upon it I have put my self to it to bring forth something of what I have learned for others benefit I must tell you this unprofitableness is an ill sign as to your selves as well as it may be a snare to others barren lips are a sign of barren hearts 't is to be feared there is not so much of Christ within you when there is so little coming forth that there is but little truth in your hearts when there is so little Grace in your lips O Friends that you would yet check your selves for this neglect that you would yet charge it upon your hearts to be more fruitful this way To what purpose are you preach'd unto to what purpose do I warn you if you will not amend I 'le tell you one way to help it Let your own hearts be more set upon God get more spiritual savour more life and power of holiness in your own spirits and it will find an easier vent More divine Communion will be the best help to more holy Communication But this by the way 5. For our Grief or Sorrow I shall shew here 1. That the Object of our Sorrow is evil The Evils we are to greive for are 1. Sin 2. Misery or Affliction 2. What are the due degrees and just limits of our Grief 1. Sin This is the great and special object of Sorrow and sorrow for Sin is the best and most necessary of sorrows Sin is a grievous evil and it most calls for grief of heart He loves neither God nor himself that grieves not for sin Sin is the abuse of God and the wrong of our own Souls How canst thou say thou lovest God if thou canst abuse him or see him abused without sorrow how canst thou say thou lovest thy self when thou canst wrong thy self and not be grieved what wilt thou grieve for if not for that which is so provoking to God and so distructive to thy self Sin seems good in the eyes of sinners and therefore it seldom troubles them 't is that which pleaseth them and suits with their tempers 't is that which profits them and brings them in all their gains Sinners that must hereafter die for their sins do at present live by their sins they are beholding to their sins for their livelihood Some men live by lying and stealing and defrauding by Coveteousness and oppression 't is that which brings them in their Estates they had been some of them but poor men if their sin had not gotten them Estates Others live by their Pleasures and carnal merriments 't is their mirth and their pleasure that keeps them alive Sorrow and Melancholy they think would kill their hearts Sinners live upon their sins and therefore will not be grieved at them But though thou thinkest thou livest by thy sins thou must die for thy sins thy sins are making a grave for thee and carrying thee to it thy sins are preparing an Hell for thee and leading thee down to the chambers of Death Thy sin spoils thee at present of all that is good and makes thee good for nothing but to be fuel for the fire Holiness prepares the Saints and makes them meet for the inheritance of the Saints in light Col. 1.12 and sin prepares sinners and makes them meet for the inheritance of everlasting darkness fit to serve none but the Devil fit to dwell with none but the Devil Sinners you that go on in your sins you are herein but fitting and preparing you for the Devil This Pride that you live in these Pleasures that you live in this Covetousness that you live in by all these the Devil is preparing you for Hell There is a fire prepared for you Mat. 25.41 Everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels there is an Hell prepared for you and your sin is as fast as it can preparing you for that place of Torment Your going on in your sin is your ripening for wrath thou art almost ripe already and art ripening every day and as soon as thy sin hath but made thee fully ripe thou droppest as ripe fruit uses to do down thou droppest to rottenness into the grave and into the darkness of the pit Thou art grown to that height in sin that thou mayst be ripe before to morrow and as soon as thou art ripe thou wilt be rotting thy Body in the dirt thy Soul in Hell This is the fruit that sinners get and shall get at last by their sins Rom. 6.23 The wages of sin is death But yet because at present they live by their sins their sins make them merry their sins make them Rich they get money by them they get Estates by them therefore they are not troubled though they sin they will not sorrow Thou hast smitten them but they have not grieved Jer. 5.3 'T is said with respect to the punishment of sinners and it might be said concerning them they have smitten themselves and yet have not grieved Sin seems good in the eyes of sinners and therefore it doth not trouble them but sin seems to be sin to Saints Rom. 7. that is the greatest and worst of Evils for so sin when it appears to be sin doth appear to be the worst of Evils and therefore to them its matter of Sorrow When sin appears to be exceeding sinful as the Apostles Expression is before then the heart will be exceeding sorrowful the degrees which by the right Government of the heart this sorrow for sin is held up to and the bounds and limits it is held within are these 1. This sorrow must be so great as to answer the ends and bring forth the proper fruits of it The end of this sorrow and the fruits it must bring forth the Apostle tells us 2 Cor. 7.9 is Repentance I rejoyced that ye sorrowed unto Repentance And ver 11. This self-same thing that ye sorrowed after a godly manner what carefulness it wrought in you yea what clearing of your selves c. What ever trouble for Sin what ever sorrow any of you have in your hearts if it doth not bring forth Repentance a forsaking and turning from sin if this sorrow doth not work a fear of falling back into sin if it doth not work a care of preventing your fall if it do not work to Indignation and Zeal against Sin if it leave you the Friends of sin still the followers of sin still if this be all you can say I am troubled at it but I cannot help it it 's my trouble that I am a Drunkard it
to be found Reprobates at Judgment and then to have the sentence of reprobation pronounced upon you why sure sinners the very next misery to that is to be in a state of reprobation O take this home to you as your portion from the Lord every unconverted one take this word home to you take it into your own mouths O what shall I do I am a lost child I am a lost soul wo is me I am undone a son of perdition and an heir of damnation What is it to me that I have kept my body in good case that I am in health What is it to me that I have kept my estate and have not been such a prodigal of that that I have my house and my lands and my money what is it that I have kept my credit and my friends O my soul my poor soul is lost and what good shall my estate or my health or my credit or my friends or my life do to me 2. Mens souls are not so lost here but that they are recoverable In a little time if they look not to it they will be past recovery for ever Yet a little while and the Gospel will be a sealed Book to you never again to be opened yet a little while and the door of mercy and grace will be shut against you never again to be unlocked When death hath once sealed up sinners eyes when the grave hath shut her mouth upon them then every one of you that is found in his sins the Gospel is sealed up the door of mercy is shut up and thou wilt be lost forever irrecoverably lost But yet sinners these lost souls may be recovered There is great hazard at present that thou mayest not be recovered but yet there is hope 1. Ther 's great hazard at present that thou mayest not be recovered Do not make light of the hazard that is do not make sure say not such a word I doubt not but by the grace of God I shall have mercy and be saved Ther 's great hazard that that soul of thine which is a lost soul this day may be lost for ever and never be converted and saved How great that hazard is I have formerly told you out of the Pulpit and now you may read the same things from the Press namely in my discourse on Prov. 28.14 read that book carefully once especially from p 171. to page 198 where you may understand how great hazard there is that lost souls may not be recovered 2. Yet there is hope thou mayst be recovered For 1. Your souls are yet every one of them within the reach of the bloud of Christ You are come to that bloud of sprinkling Heb. 12.24 Which speaks better things then the blood of Abel There is not one Sinner among you but at present the bloud of Christ speaks for you and what doth it speak Father if this Sinner turn and repent let him not be rejected let him be pardoned and be saved For Believers it speaks thus Father these my Friends have believed and have repented and therefore I pray thee let them not fail of having the benefit of my bloud let them not fail of their pardon and salvation Thus for Saints and even for every unconverted Sinner it speaks conditionally ut supra if they will believe if they will yet turn let them also have the benefit of my bloud Hitherto every one of you are thus far within the reach of the bloud of Christ it pleads thus with the Father for you and if you will come in will make an attonement for and redeem and recover you from all your sins When once Death hath closed your eyes in your unconverted estate you are gone for ever out of the reach of the bloud of Christ it can now no longer profit you nor plead for you There is nor one drop of that pretious bloud shall ever fall into the Pit nothing of the bloud of Christ shall come into Hell and find you out there but only the guilt of his bloud that shall fall upon Sinners in Hell the guilt of despising his bloud the guilt of trampling on his bloud This is all that shall be said to sinners there in the Pit these are they that would none of me I would have washed them with my bloud but they would not be washed I would have saved them by my bloud but they would not be saved I called upon them to turn from their sins and come unto me but they would not turn they would not come I offered to purge them from their sins to pardon and make reconciliation for their iniquities but they would not be pardoned nor purged they loved their sins and hardened their hearts and threw back my bloud in my face they would none of me and now let the guilt of my bloud be upon them to heighten their flames and burn in their bowels for ever The guilt of his bloud shall reach to Hell but the expiation and attonement of his bloud shall never come there After Death there is nothing but Hell and out of Hell there is no recovery those Sons of Perdition are lost for ever O thank God Sinner that thou art not yet fallen in thither thank God that that soul of thine is not in Hell How many younger sinners than thou are there already roaring under the sense of their madness in neglecting Christ and his Redemption O thank God that thou art here thank God that thou art yet alive that Christ yet calls to thee to come to him that Christ yet offers thee that if thou wilt but turn and repent his bloud shall cleanse thee from all unrighteousness and save thee from coming into condemnation Sinner there is yet hope of thee that thou mayest be saved though there be hazard great hazard that thou wilt yet harden thy heart to thy destruction that thou wilt never be converted and be saved there is great hazard that though thou be yet out of Hell thou wilt be there shortly though thou art yet within the reach of the bloud of Christ thou wilt in a little time be without its reach but though there be such great hazard that thou mayest die for ever and be irrecoverably lost yet there is at present hope concerning thee that thou mayest be recovered and there is this hope concerning thee that thou art yet within the reach of the bloud of Christ O thank God for it and do not go on to harden thy heart till thou art past recovery I say again thank God that thou art here but yet I must add thank God and repent thank God and be converted or else it were even as good that thou wert in Hell this hour as to be here in thy sins nay it were better for thee that that body of thine were now rotting in the Grave and that soul of thine were now roaring in Hell this would be better for thee than to be here hearing the Gospel if after all thou shouldst
my soul is lost You have been told how these lost souls may be recovered but What thought hath there been in thine heart since about taking the course for thy recovery Thou dost not think of these things it is true but canst thou not think of them Thou knowest thou canst 5. Men can stop and make a stand in their evill ways from going on further in them from making their condition worse than it is and their recovery more difficult Canst thou not lay thine Hand upon thy mouth when thou art about to lie or to swear or to scoff and bite in those evil words that are coming out Canst thou not keep thee from thy Companions and thine old drunkenness and riot Canst thou not keep thee out of the Ale-house or the Tavern Thou canst do it such outward acts are in the power of the will to restrain Men may be true if they will and sober if they will If thou wilt be a Drunkard or a Swearer or a Lyar who can help thee But if thou wilt thou mayst help it thy self It is true thy case is miserable enough and thy cure hard enough by thy continuing in thine evil way hitherto but as bad as it is with thee it is growing worse and worse every sin thou goest on to commit is a new gash wherewith thou givest a deeper and more deadly wound to thy poor perishing soul If thou stop thy course that is something towards aâ— recovery Well these things thou canst do towards thine own recovery Thou canst pray thou canst hear thou canst give heed to what thou hearest thou canst think and thou canst stop and make a stand in thy evil ways And if thou wilt but do what thou canst thou mayst have hope that God will do that for thee which thou canst not 3. How we may know whether we are recovered or no. This I shall shew 1. Negatively 1. Those whose understandings are not recovered their soules are not recoverd Those whose understandings are still lost their souls are lost Those that are not come to themselves are not come to Christ Every ignorant soul is a lost soul 2. Cor. 4.3.4 If our Gospel be hid it is hid to them that are lost from whom is the Gospel hid see v. 4. From those whom the God of this world hath blinded their minds lest the light of the glorious Gospel should shine unto them Art thou an ignorant soul ignorant of the Gospel Doth not the light of the glorious Gospel shine into thee i. e. dost thou not understand the Gospel So long is the Gospel hid from thee and if the Gospel still be hid to thee thou art a lost soul What multitudes are there to whom the Gospel is preached that yet understand nothing of it Thou hast been an hearer of the Gospel these many years but what dost thou understand of it As Philip said to the Eunuch Acts. 8.30 Vnderstandest thou what thou readest So it may be said to thee understandest thou what thou hearest No thou dost not understand though the light shines round about thee yet not a beam of it hath shined into thy heart It is all dark within thee what ever light be shining round about thee Though the light hath shined into thy darkness yet thy darkness comprehendeth it not Ioh. 1.5 Poor ignorant ones in what a case are you you are every one of you lost souls And what is like to become of you We bring the light among you but we cannot open your eyes we preach Christ to you we instruct you in the knowledg of God we cry unto you get knowledg seek understanding seek for it as silver search for it as for hid treasures But say what we can you will not be perswaded you will not receive instruction The God of this world hath blinded your minds and we cannot heal your blindness There bosome of you that know you are ignorant that will confess it yet not to bemoan your selves but to excuse your selves I am but ignorant I am not book learned What not learned in the book of God What not acquainted with the book of life No God help me I am not what then Why therefore I hope it is not so bad with me as with others that know I hope God will forgive me because I am ignorant This is a wretched principle that is gotten into the hearts of the ignorant that because they are so God will not be extreme to mark what is done amiss by them O remble in pleading your ignorance you therein confess that which will prove you to be lost souls You may as well say I am a damned soul as say I am an ignorant soul 2. These whose consciences are lost Who though they may be recovered to be men of understanding yet are not recovered to be men of conscience We trust we have a good conscienc willing to live honestly in all things Heb. 13.18 Thus it is with recovered souls they are men of a good conscience Where conscience is laid waste the soul still lyes open to the government and dominion of the Devil Conscience is a bar and a bulwark against his assaults and temptations Where conscience is not the soul is as a City that hath neither Gates nor Bars but is left open to the Devil to rule it at his pleasure God hath not recovered the rule of any soul till Conscience be awakened and hath recovered its authority Art thou an unconscionable man or woman Dost thou make no conscience of thy ways Hast thou slighted conscience hast thou wounded conscience so long that now it lets thee alone to thy will and thy lust Or if it checks thee sometimes for thy evils yet thou bearest it down and goest on thy way against its reproofs and contradictions Art thou a man of no conscience Is it not against thy conscience to lie or to defraud or to drink to drunkenness to live without praying or minding God or thy soul Does conscience let thee alone to live thus Or if it doth smite thee yet goest thou still on against it Art thou a man of no more conscience than this what dost thou think of thy self What ever thou thinkest thou art a lost soul while conscience is lost thy soul is lost Till conscience be recovered thy soul is not recovered and conscience is never recovered till it hath recovered its authority and hath gotten the rule and the Government of thee 3. Those who make light of their disease and their misery Men are never recoverd till they are first made sensible of their disease Sin is thy disease and thy death and thou art never recovered from that death till thou art brought to a sense of thy disease Where there is life there will be sense They were dead souls alienated from the life of God who were past feeling Eph. 4.18.19 Those that make light of sin it is a sign they are not recovered Sin is felt as an heavy thing by those souls that have the
censure those that fear God as fools and to charge Religion with folly Proud Fool get thee a little more understanding and then thou wilt see what an ignorant poor mistaken soul thou art The convert looks upon the Gospel and the goodness of God and the grace of Christ and the holiness of the Spirit as marvellous things excellent things he sees an excellency in Religion a beauty and desirableness in all the ways of God he sees the folly of Sin and the wisdom of Religion the baseness and unworthiness and the filthiness of Sin and the worth and the purity of Religion he sees himself to have been a very beast and a fool whilst he continued and went on in his sins and can never have a good thought of himself but as far forth as he is changed from his sins he looks upon that little change that is begun as a blessed change and a comfortable change Now I have something of the understanding of a man returned into me Now I thank God I begin to live and stand up from among the dead O I thank God for this little wisdom that is begotten in me I was a very fool till now I have been told I was a fool I have been told I was a beast many a time but I could never see it till now until the Lord hath thus opened mine eyes this is some degree of the sinners recovery such an opening of his eies though it is possible he may be very much recovered in this respect and yet be a sinner still 2. The man whose heart is opened Thus Lydia's conversion is expressed Acts. 16.14 Whose heart the Lord opened There is a double opening of the heart 1. An opening of the heart to the Lord so as to receive and embrace him when offered The hearts of natural men are shut against the Lord they are not only void of grace and without Christ but bolted and bar'd up against Christ and his grace they are unwilling of conversion unwilling of sanctification Jer. 13.27 O Jerusalem wilt thou not be made clean No they will not O sinner wilt thou not have the Lord to be thy God wilt thou not have Jesus to be thy Lord Wilt thou not that he should come into that soul of thine and wash thee with his bloud and govern thee by his spirit make thee a new soul and of another spirit than thou hast been No thou wilt not thine heart is shut against Christ To the Devil thou wilt open to the world and its lusts and its pleasures thou wilt open thine heart nay it stands open night and day to these but it is shut against Christ and his grace thou art not willing that Christ should come in Sinners if your hearts would but open Christ would come in this very hour and bring in his salvation to thee There is not one man amongst you all that shall go home this day without Christ without the sanctifying grace of Christ that is but unfeignedly willing to give entertainment to him Art thou willing of Christ willing to have grace Wilt thou so receive Christ as to resign up thy self to his guidance and government art thou really willing this is the very opening of thine heart to the Lord wherein thy conversion stands Thou art the man whose heart the Lord hath opened 2. An opening the heart to godliness or christianity The former opening notes a readiness of the heart to receive Christ in and his Grace in This opening of the heart notes the souls letting it self out after Christ and his holy ways a letting its self out in holy desires in love and holy affections in resolutions and holy purposes to serve and cleave to the Lord. When the heart is open to Christ it is open to Christianity When it hath received Christ Jesus the Lord it will be for walking in him The heart of the Hypocrite though it professeth to be open to Christ yet it is shut against Christianity Hypocrites are willing of a part in Christ in the priviledges and hopes and comforts of the Gospel and so will trust in Christ and boast of Christ and glory and rejoice in Christ Jesus but as to the exercise of Christianity especially in those harder and severer parts of it the mortifying the flesh the denying themselves the being crucified to the World the close and downright and industrious following the Lord in holiness of this they are not willing their hearts are shut against it That heart that is sincerely opened to the Lord and hath indeed taken Christ in doth freely open it self to all the ways of the Lord and hath a propension and disposiâ—ion and resolution for powerful and practical Christianity He is a resolved Disciple of Christ a resolved follower of Christ Now this is the recovered soul the man whose eyes are opened who hath the knowledge of God of the beauty and excellency and goodness of all the ways of God and the man whose heart is opened who hath both received Christ Jesus the Lord and who is resolved to walk in him this is the soul that was dead and is alive Vse Are sinners lost souls then let us take up a lamentation over them What a lamentation did the Prophet take up over the sinful Jews Jer. 9.1 O that my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughters of my people O what a slaughter hath sin made amongst us our Houses our Streets our Congregations how full are they of the dead dead souls whom sin hath slain Behold the dead that are in every place so many sinners so many dead and lost souls Here be the dead but where are the mourners Verse 17. Consider ye and call for the mourning women that they may come and send for cunning women skilful at mourning and let them make hast and take up a wailing for us that our eyes may run down with tears and our eye-lids gush out with water Women are more pityful than men and more apt to mourn Call says he for the pityful among women let them take up a wailing for us and let them set us a mourning let the women set the men a mourning that our eyes may run down with tears and v. 20. let the Mothers teach the daughters wailing and every one her neighbour lamentation Why what is the matter v. 21. O Death is come up into our windows and is entered into our palaces our houses are houses of the dead It is not onely with us as with Egypt when their first-born were slain when there was not an house in the Land wherein was not one dead there are but few houses in our Land where there is one alive they are almost all dead dead Fathers dead Children dead Husbands dead Wives dead in trespasses and sins Death hath not onely entered in at our windows and slain here and there one but the doors have been set open to it whole Families are destroyed Our houses are become Sepulchres places of the dead But why should we mourn over lost souls 1.
come and make a Saint of thee Hath Sin made a very Devil of thee and art not thou willing that Christ should make thee a Saint What wouldst thou do in Heaven if thou wilt not be made a Saint or dost thou think thou mayest continue a Devil whilest thou livest on the earth and yet at last be a Saint in Heaven What say you sinners There be some it may be of you that have made a mock at holiness that have despised the saints that are on earth and made them the objects of your scorn rather than your desire but speaks man art thou yet willing that Christ should come this day and make thee a saint Wilt thou that he should humble thee and bring thee to repentance Wilt thou that he should wash thee and bring thee to holiness Wouldst thou who camest hither an ignorant sinner an hardned sinner an impenitent sinner be glad at thine heart if thou mayst r turn an enlightned a convinced yea a converted sinner a beleiver a sincere christian Wouldst thou carry home another heart than thou broughtst hither a new heart transformed and changed into the image of him that created thee or art thou content to go home as thou camest such an ignorant hardned polluted creature as thou camest hither If thou be heartily willing of such a change as this that is a great part of thy cure Art thou willing to be cured willing to be cleansed Then bring forth that leprous soul of thine lay it at the feet of Christ and speak to him as the leper did Mat. 8.2 Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me clean As vile a state as this soul of mine is in as deadly as my diseases are as very a Leper as my soul is become yet Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me clean Let Christ hear such a word from thee Lord help me Lord heal me if thou wilt thou canst And then there is hope that thou maiest hear the same words from Christ as that poor Leper did I will be thou clean And immediately his Leprosie was cleansed 2. Take Christs medicines To what purpose is it that the physitian comes to a sick man and prescribes to him and adviseth him to what will recover him if he will not take what he prescribeth Christ hath medicines to recover sick souls but his medicines must be taken or they will not recover them Christs medicines are 1. His bloud His bloud is purging and cleansing bloud Heb. 9 14. 1 Joh. 1.7 Therefore he is said to wash us in his bloud By the bloud of Christ is meant the same with the death of Christ There is vertue in the death of Christ to destroy the life of sin Our old man is crucified with him that the body of sin might be destroyed Rom. 6.6 It is the body of sin that must be first laid at The inward pravity of our natures our original corruption Christs physick must be firstly applyed to the root and fountain of our disease those sinful natures those depraved habits and sinful dispositions within you must be changed The inward enmity must be slain and there is nothing will do that but the bloud of a crucified Iesus That is the soveraign medicine that must help and heal you But how must this medicine the bloud of Christ be taken 1. Christ himself must be taken Christ offers himself to you to be yours and you must accept of him for your own Your hearts must by faith consent unto Christ to put your selves into his hands to put your life into his hands expecting and depending upon him trusting your selves with him for your recovery It is Christ alone with whom I lay up all mine hopes upon whose sufficiency and faithfulness I will venture my soul If I die I le die under his hand and if I live I look for life only from him Put your selves thus into the hands of Christ and take Christ into your hearts Take him as your own he gives himself to you to be your own Christ offers to every sinner among you I will be thine own thine own Jesus thine own Saviour if thou be willing to have me Take him at his word Since he says to thee I will be thine own if thou wilt let thy heart lay hold on this blessed word and say content Lord since thou wilt thou shalt be mine own I accept thee with all my heart Now if Christ be once yours his bloud shall be yours his death shall be yours and all the benefits of his death Whereas nothing of Christ can be yours nor any fruit of his death if he be not first yours Let Christ be once imbraced by you and if there be any purging or cleansing or sin-killing ver ue in his bloud your sins shall be purged away If all that the bloud of Christ can do for thee will recover thee thou shalt be recovered 2. You must have frequent recourse to the bloud of Christ by renewed acts of faith Look up to this crucified Jesus Cast thy polluted soul into the fountain of his bloud Zach. 13.1 He is a fountain opened for sin and for uncleanness His bloud is the fountain cast thy soul into it You are come into the bloud of sprinkling Heb. 12.24 Christians are so and they may freely lay hold on it for their cleansing 1. Believe that there is such vertue in him to cleanse thy soul Say with the woman Mat. 9.21 If I may but touch him I shall be made whole 2. Believe that it is free for theâ— Thou mayst come with boldness to him Christ would have thee to be bold with him and to lay thine help upon him Believe that it is free for thee to lay hold on the bloud of Christ and 3. Come and lay hold upon it Lean upon him for his help and trust him for it 4. Lift up a prayer to him Lord here is a polluted dying soul that is even lost and choaked up in the mud and mire of my sins there is no help for me but I must die and perish in them if thou wilt not look upon me and save me In thy bowels I have hope in thy bloud I have hope and that is all the hope I have O sprinkle me with thy bloud wash me in thy bloud and my soul shall live Wherefore Lord didst thou die Wherefore didst thou shed that precious bloud Was it not for the recovery of lost souls for the cleansing of polluted souls Is not my poor soul one of the number of those for whom Christ died Have not I as great need of of thee as any Is it not thou thy self that hast brought this my soul to thy door crying for thine help Lord Jesus hear let some drops of that bloud some of the vertue of thy death be shed abroad upon my sinful heart and it shall live My sins must die Lord or my soul will never recover I must get this lust destroyed this enmity slain this proud and hard and stubborn
day Am not I concerned in it Was not this word spoken to me Am not I one that committeth sin Do not I live after the flesh Was I ever regenerated or born again What then Why then think farther Is it nothing to be of the Devil Is everlasting death nothing Is it nothing to be shut out of the kingdom of God Awaken O my sleepy soul yet break and melt and tremble oh mine hardned heart awaken escape for thy Life there is but a step betwixt thee and everlasting death Consider this now whilst the day of adversity comes nor but if thou shouldst be so unwise as not to consider at present yet at least in the day of thy distress consider Then think how little the word hath done to the breaking and awakening of thee What a stock what a senseless stone hath it left thee Then think now God is using one means more to cure me of this sleepy hardned heart God hath laid this sickness upon me or this poverty upon me to humble me and awaken me And now I am come to my last remedy if affliction if distress if sickness if the sight of death and the grave do not work upon me nor cause the word which I have heard to work yet upon me what then Why then I am undone forever I am within a step of the Pit just dropping in and then this lost soul of mine will be past recovery forever O sinners how does this word sit upon your hearts Are not you greatly concerned in it Does not thy life lie at stake thy soul lie at stake upon thy considering or slighting thy warning O consider let present consideration prevent the great necessity of sickness consideration of death-bed consideration At least when any of you shall come to be in distress when pains shall come upon you or poverty come upon you or death make its approach to you then remember the warning of this day In the day of adversity consider 3. Take your physitians counsel and follow his rules Physitians besides their medicins do usually give rules to their Patients for their well ordering themselves and these rules they must observe or they are never like to recover and there are these three rules which ordinarily Physitians give which our great Physitian of souls gives also to them that will be recovered by him 1. Keep a good diet 2. Vse good exercise 3. Take heed of taking cold 1. Keep a good diet Abstain from all such things as will nourish and feed your diseases What is it that hath brought thee to this wretched pass That hath made thee this sick and miserable soul Thou hast been with the prodigal Luk. 15. Feeding upon husks Thou hast been with Israel Is 44 20. Feeding upon ashes Thou hast been with Ephraim Hos 12.1 Feeding upon wind These husks and these ashes and this wind have been all thy poor soul hath been feeding upon the vanities of this world the lust and the pleasures the carnal delights and the profits of this world these are but windy food for thy soul these are the very ashes and husks that have filled thee with such sore diseases thou hast fed thine heart so long with these carnal things thy soul hath been eating these ashes and drinking this wind so long that it is even turned into ashes and wind it is becom an earthly soul a fleshly soul a vain frothy soul and never think to be recovered to a better case till thou feed upon better food Wouldest thou be recovered and get thee a new heart and a new soul Then abstain from thy old feeding Abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul 1. Pet. 2.11 Make no provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof Rom. 13. ult Deny all ungodliness and worldly lusts Tit. 2.12 My meaning plainly is this If ever you would recover allow not your fleshly appetites the liberty as formerly Come off from your carnal pleasures which have been such a band to you Come off from your carnal companions drink no more with the drunken run not with them to their excess of Riot No more such vain sportings and revellings Not in chambring and wantonness not in Riot and Drunkenness Come off from this greedy worldly life feed not your souls upon your lands or your monies or your trades Though you must have something of these for your bodies yet feed not your hearts with them Set not your hearts upon them that is the advice of the Psalmist Psal 62.10 If riches increase or whether they do increase or no set not your hearts upon them Let not your souls be drudges to your flesh to gather in provision for it nor let them feed with your flesh at the same trough You have better things for your souls to feed upon you have God to feed on you have the bloud of Christ the Covenant of grace the hope of Salvation the joys of the spirit the pleasures of Eternity the bread that comes down from Heaven the wine that makes glad the city of God Let these be the food of your souls feed your thoughts upon them Think often of God of his infinite goodness and grace of his eternal treasures and everlasting pleasures Think of Christ what he hath done for you what he hath purchased for you how he hath loved you and washed you in his bloud and saved you by his death Feed your affections on God and his Glory to come feed your desires upon him let this be your voice Js 26.8.9 The desire of my soul is to thy name Enlarge your desires here you cannot be too greedy and of too eager an appetite Delight your selves in the Lord get the savour and relish of things spiritual taste the pleasures of religion taste the sweetness of Christianity Do not onely spend now and then a sudden thought upon God and the things above but live in such frequent and serious meditation that you may get down something of the sweetness and fatness of heaven and digest holy meditations into holy affections Never count you have thought of God to any purpose till you can love and taste and get out good nourishment for your souls by which you may thrive and flourish and with which you may be so delighted as to wean you from the Love and Lusts of this world Believe it friends as loth as you are to let go your pleasant morsels the stolen waters of your own Cisterns as hard as you find it to diet your souls so as to deny your selves the pleasures and contentments of a worldly fleshly life as strongly as your hearts lust after ease and lust after the world and the contentments thereof get but once to be so inwardly acquainted with religion as to taste the pleasure thereof and you will be able to despise this carnal life and all its advantages and wonder at your selves that ever you should find out contentment in such a life as you have lived And now your souls are like
to you Be more Zealous for the Salvation of your own Souls be more fearful of their Damnation be more tender of wounding and wronging your Souls Take heed of sin Prov. 8.36 He that sinneth wrongeth his own Soul all they that hate me love Death You that sin against God ye wrong your own Souls Love your Souls better and you will never be such proud Livers or such Worldlings or such Drunkards or Rioters you would be sober and serious and circumspect If you lov'd your Selves better you would take heed of this Lying and these Oaths and this unrighteous Dealing of this hardness of Heart in your sins you would fall upon your Knees you would fall upon your Faces and be ashamed and bewail and repent of your sins and return to the Lord from them all had you more of this true Self-love within you Sinners why come you not in to Christ Why will you not yet be perswaded to repent Why Man hast thou no love to thy Self The Apostle tells us Eph. 5.29 No Man ever yet hated his own Flesh but nourisheth and cherisheth it He useth that word to press Husbands to love their Wives who says he are their own Flesh Dost thou not love thy Self What wouldst thou say of a Man that doth not love his Wife but would play the Tyrant and Tygre brawling and snarling yea fighting and beating her You would say This were a Monster among Men rather than a Christian worse than the very Brutes amongst whom it 's seldom seen that the Male snarleth or biteth or pusheth at the Female What then is he that loveth not his own Soul Lovest thou thy Self Lovest thou thine own Soul Then take heed of going on in thy Sins then take heed of standing it out against Christ You hear what a reward there is for the Righteous you hear what an Inheritance Christ hath laid up for his Saints an Inheritance in Light Life Love Joy everlasting Pleasure and everlasting Glory Christ would make those poor Souls blessed Souls joyful Souls glorious Souls partakers of the everlasting Riches of his Glory and Joy But what wilt thou say My Soul shall have no part in it My Soul shall never come there my Lot shall never be with the Saints but shall be without amongst Unbelievers Impenitents amongst Dogs and Sorcerers and Idolaters In refusing to come to Christ to Repent and be made Holy thou sayest in effect my Soul shall never come to Heaven Let it to Hell amongst Dogs and Devils and that vile and wicked Generation of the Damned But Sinner hast thou forgot that thou art a Man Art thou a Monster of Men Hast thou lost all love to thy Self to thine own Soul Doest thou neither love nor pity thine own Soul Wouldst thou that Christ should ever love thee when thou whilt not love thy Self Wouldst thou that Christ should ever pity thee when thou wilt not pity thy self O Sinners love your own Souls pity your own Souls be not so cruel and hard-hearted to your selves Will you for the love of your Lusts for the love of the World sell your Souls to the Devil sell them to Hell to make Faggots for the everlasting Burnings Where are your Bowels O pity pity that poor blind and miserable Soul of thine and bring it to Christ for pity's sake go on in thy evil ways no longer be a Drunkard no longer a Worldling no longer a Lyar a Scoffer no longer be no longer hardned in your sins but come away to Christ and escape for your Lives if you love your Selves come if you have any pity for your Selves come let the dread of the Cruelties of the Devil bring you back from following him and come you in and cast your Selves upon the Blood upon the Bowels and Compassions of Christ who is such an High Priest as can have compassion upon the Ignorant and those that are out of the way and even on the worst of Sinners that will return to him What shall I say more to you I will speak but the same words let every one of you see that he so love himself as Christ loved the Church washing it and saving it by his Blood Love your Selves and save your Selves love your Selves and bless your Selves in the God of Truth Don't bless your selves in the Earth in your Money in your Lands in your carnal Pleasures in your carnal Friends these things are not nor ever think they will be your Blessedness but bless your Selves in the God of Truth bless your Selves in Jesus whom God hath sent to bless you in turning you from your Iniquities Act. 3.26 Turn to Christ and you shall be blessed be Believers and you shall be Blessed come in this day and let your Names be written among the blessed of the Lord come every one of you and put in your Names among the Disciples of Christ Let me be one Lord let me be another write down my Name for one among thy Disciples I am willing to be thine and do solemnly covenant and this very day give my Self to Thee Who of you are there that will thus come in Will you be perswaded to it or must I lose my labour Are there any of you Is there any one of all the Sinners in this Company that will thus come in Come then in the Name of the Lord come get your Names to be thus written in the Lamb's Book and and he will write it in Heaven there it will be found in the last Day written in the Book of Life this do and then you that have been hitherto the Haters and Wrongers and Cruel will hence-forth appear to be Lovers of your own Souls 2. There is a sinful Self-love this is the great Heart Idolatry and the Root of all Rebellion and Disobedience to God Here I shall shew you 1. What this sinful Self-love is 1. It is a Love of mistaken Self of Carnal-self a love of the Flesh and it's Affections and Lusts a love of that Flesh which Christ would have us to hate and deny Mat. 16.24 Himself that is his Flesh or Carnal-self Men are mistaken in themselves and count that their Self which is not their Self as Christ said to the Woman of Samaria John 4. concerning her Husband He that thou hast for an Husband is not thine Husband so may it be said to Sinners That which thou takest for thy Self is not thy Self this Flesh which thou takest for thy Self and lovest as thy Self is not thy Self You that love your Flesh you love your Enemy you that please your Flesh you are pleasing your Enemy you that are working for your Flesh and providing for your Flesh and pampering your Flesh you are working for and feeding your Enemy you count you are seeking of and working for your Self no 't is for your Enemy this Flesh is your Mortal Enemy Now this is one sort of sinfull Self-love when we love our Flesh or our corruptions when we love our Selves as Fleshly-minded Men when we love to please and
life of Christ begotten in them O what multitudes of lost souls are there among us if every soul be lost that makes light of sin What account dost thou make of it Thou sinnest dayly thou livest an idle and a careless and a sinful life thou art proud or covetous or a sensual flesh-pleaser and is not all this this sin Thou art a Liar a Promise-breaker a defrauder and is not this thy sin Thou art perverse and peevish and of a froward heart and is not this thy wickedness But what account dost thou make of all this Is it an heavy thing to thee to be thus sinful No not at all thou makest light of thy pride and light of thy covetousness and light of thy frowardness thou makest just nothing of them or at least but small matters Thou dost not feel them to be such a weight and burthen to thee but thou canst bear them and go out with them well enough Or if thou dost sometimes feel some smart or pain by them yet it is but such a light touch that what ever thou thinkest at present thou wilt quickly after them again at thy lying again at thy swearing again at thy froppish and froward carriages again It is such a deep sense of sin as will make us beware of it for the future that wil prove our recovery What shall we then think of them that make a mock of sin that make a sport of sin that take pleasure in iniquity Without all controversie these are lost souls and those that make but little reckoning of it that pass by their sins as small matters that are either not toucht at all or but lightly toucht for them so lightly that their sin hath still the power and dominion over them thou that art but such a one thou art a lost soul thy soul is lost and not recovered 4. Th sâ— that make light of Christ their recoverer Christ that is sent down as the Physitian of souls to seek and to save them that are lost hath ordinarily the same entertainment as the King in the Parable had amongst the Guests that he invited to his Feast Mat. 22.5 but they made light of it Here 1. There are some sinners that do make light of Christ Jesus Christ is worthy of all acceptation What is Jesus Christ He is the Son of God full of grace and truth Joh. 1. God equal with the Father the brightness of his Fathers glory the express image of his person and upholdeth all things by the word of his power Heb. 1.3 He is the Head of all Principalities and Powers the Prince of the Kings of the earth Rev. 1 5. What is Jesus Christ to sinners He is the everlasting Father the Prince of Peace Is 9.6 his name shall be wonderful What comes this Jesus into the world for To reconcile them to God to save them from their sins to die for the sins of the World and to wash them in his own bloud And to what end comes he to particular sinners wherefore is he preached to them wherefore is he offered to them To what end is it that sinners are so importunately invited to entertain and accept of him to be willing that he that was the Saviour might become their Saviour that he that was the Reconciler might become their Recoverer to recover them from the snare of the Devil and to bring them into the everlasting Kingdom This is that Jesus that by the Gospel is preached unto you Who could imagine that such a great and mighty and glorious one who is the everlasting King the God of all the earth who would think but he should be reverenced where-ever he come They will reverence my son said the King in the Parable Mat. 22.37 It might be well presumed they would however it proved in the issue Who could imagine that one that came upon such a gracious design to reconcile poor Rebels unto God to redeem poor Prisoners out of Prison to recover and raise the dead to life and ransom them from the Pit and give them an entrance into the everlasting kingdom who would think but Christ coming upon such a gracious and glorious design should have wonderful chearful entertainment Who would think but that the whole World should ring with acclamations of joy and praise at his appearing amongst them Who would think but when Christ comes to particular sinners and makes a free offer of himself to them to be theirs their Redeemer their Saviour but such an offer should be greedily catched at and readily embraced Doth the King of Glory come unto me Hast thou shed thy bloud and poured forth thy soul and laid down thy liâ—e and purchased pardon and an interest in Heaven for me And dost thou now come to give thy self and all that thou hast purchased to be mine What answer would any one think would be given by lost souls to such questions Wilt thou be mine Shall I be thine Art thou willing to be redeemed to be washed from thy sins to be healed of thy diseases Shall my bloud which is shed for the salvation of sinners shall my bloud be thine and the peace and reconciliation it hath made be thine Shall I come into that miserable soul of thine and dwell there and rule there and cast that Devil out that hath been thy destroyer and murderer Shall I love thee and delight in thee and bless thee with my salvation What answer would any one think that undone lost sinners should give to such questions What wilt thou come unto me love and bless me With all my soul Lord come in thou blessed Lord all that is within me shall rejoyce that thou wilt thus enter upon me and take me for thy possession and habitation This one would think should be the answer that sinners would give But behold such miserably foolish souls are sinners become that they make light of all this A cup of drink a carnal companion a lust a sensual pleasure is made more reckoning of than Christ and all his love As it is said of those Builders the Scribes and Pharisees Acts 4.11 It is true of all sinners this stone this pretious stone this corner stone this foundation stone upon which alone their hopes of salvation might be built this stone is set at nought by them Is 53.3 He was despised and rejected of men they made no account or reckoning of him but even tread under foot the Son of God And this is the general entertainment that Christ hath among the sinners of the earth so light do they make of him he comes to them but they will not receive him How often says he would I have gathered you Mat. 23.37 but you would not And what is the common case of sinners is it not thy case Art not thou one that makest light of Christ He hath been preached unto thee he hath come and tendered himself to thy soul That vile heart of thine sinner that dark hole where the Devil and Lust
Because there are such multitudes of them Come where you will into what Country into what Family into what Congregation you will and you may see almost as many dead men as you may see men It is but here and there one living soul is to be found such a great slaughter as sin hath made calls for great lamentation 2. Because they are in such a pitiful and lamentable case What is it to be a dead and lost soul where shall we have them a little while hence Those that are under the power of death are under the power of the Devil and those that are under the power of the Devil you may look to find them shortly in the place of the Devil At present they seem to be in a paradise they live at ease and in plenty and in peace there are none seem to be so much alive as the sinners of the earth as Mal. 3.15 We call the proud happy and the prophane and flesh-pleasers and the covetous these are counted happy ones They are far they shine they glitter who but sinners These are the only men the only happy men as the world counts them but what ever there be upon their backs or in their bellies their poor hearts are dead and where shall we find these flourishing and prospering ones a few days hence It would pity ones heart to think where What if you should see all these dead buryed buryed in Flames cast into the Pit of everlasting darkness and everlasting burning You cannot but foresee that there they will be shortly thither they are travelling their way is the way of death and their steps lead down to hell and how suddenly may they be swallowed up of the Pit O pity these lost souls have you any bowels Parents have you any bowels for your sinning children Friends have you any bowels for your sinning Friends Draw forth your bowels in sighs and lamentations pour forth your hearts at your eyes and fall a weeping over them look upon the ignorant and sottish ones look upon the loose and prophane ones the lying children the swearing and cursing and drinking and unruly children among you and let your eye affect your heart Yea weep not for them only but as Luke 23.28 Weep for your selves and for your children 3. Because they will not mourn for themselves They are not sensible of their own misery nor will lay it to heart These lost souls are men besides themselves distracted ones out of their wits ut supra The prodigal was out of his wits whilst he was running his wild course he was not himself What sense have mad men of their misery They count themselves to be wise and happy men and all others to be fools but themselves How shall we hear distracted souls talking of their lands and inheritances boasting some of them that they are Kings and Lords and Gentlemen though they be even stark naked half starved bound with Thongs and chains yet still they have high thoughts and make great boastings of themselves Such mad souls are the miserable souls of sinners Job 11.12 Vain man would be wise though he be as a wild Asses colt These wild men that run a wild course that have lost their reasons it their lusts they would be taken for wise men and they will not be perswaded out of their vain conceits of themselves Bray a fool in a mortar Prov. 27.22 Yet will not his foolishness depart from him Now this is cause of great lamentation that these lost souls are such stupid and sensless souls that will not mourn for themselves nor be brought to understand that they are objects of pity and lamentation they think they are wiser than their teachers that they have more wit than to become sober and serious Christians that they have no need of the Physiâ—ian no need of counsel and instruction and thereupon are ready to fall a laughing at those that mourn over them and mock at repentance and conversion Surely those that are in such a miserable case and have not the heart to mourn for themselves or to count themselves mournful and pitiful spectacles there is the more reason we should take up a lamentation over them Let us lament therefore that there are such multitudes of miserable souls that there are so few amongst those multitudes of lost ones that we ever see to be recovered O how few are the Converts to Christ How seldom do we hear of any lost sheep brought into the Fold You that are brought in pity those that are left without mourn for them let fall a tear over them lift up a prayer for them that though they have gone astray like lost sheep yet at length they may return to the Shepherd and B shop of their souls And you that are these lost souls how is it that you are noâ— yet come so far to your selves as to see what pitiful case you are in Sinners will you yet go away conceited that it is well enough with you Is it better with you than if you were Converts Are the Bâ—ick-kilns of Egypt as long as you can eat of the Leeks and On ons and Melons better than the freedom of Canaan Do the pleasures of sin make your chains pleasant to you Is it better to go on to serve the Devil and your Lusts than to come about and be the servants of the Lord Or whether it be better or worse wisdom or folly discretion or madness are you resolved however to continue as you are Have you not the sense in you as to be able to say it is a sorry case I am in Or do you see it is bad enough with you and yet have not the power to make out after a recovery Hast thou not pity upon that poor soul of thine but thou wilt give it up to be racked and torn and burned forever rather than for its sake thou wilt deny thy will or thy lust or thine appetite Art thou still so mad as to say live or die heaven or hell what ever be the issue I will not turn out of my course I will not come unto God and be his servant If there be a God I will venture his wrath if there be an Hell I will venture on its flames rather than not enjoy my will or mine ease or my pleasure Is this thy case Judge then if thou be not a pitiful and lamentable thing and an object of mourning and if thou canst get so much of a man in thee so much of the reason and understanding of a man so much of the heart and compassion of a man O pity thy self pity thy poor soul pity and mourn over it mourn and repent repent and pray that if it be possible thou mayest recover thy self out of the snare of the Devil who art thus held captive by him at his will 2. Let us take up a
rejoicing over the recovered souls Our great joy should be every man over the recovery of his own soul With what joy should this word be spoken this my soul was dead and is alive and we should rejoice over any other recovered souls It is matter of rejoicing when we can say this my Child or this my Brother or this my Neighbour was dead and is alive What joy is it to a travailing woman when she is safely delivered of a living child J h. 16.21 A wâ—man when she is in travail hath sorrow because her hour is come but as soon as she is delivered of thâ— chilâ— she remembreth no more the anguish for joy that a man child is born into the World Sinners your deliverance may cost you pain and travel but when you are once delivered and recovered you will forget all this pain then you will and then you ought to rejoice What joy is the day of victory to the triumphing Souldier What joy was the year of Jubilee to the indebted or the servants when they were to go out free from there debts and service What joy to the Mariner who hath been tossed with tempests to have gotten safe to shore Hast thou shot the gulf and gotten safe to land Hast thou gotten death and hell under thy feet Is death destroyed and is life and immortality brought to light in thy soul Art thou passed from death to life O what a day of joy what a day of praise should this be to thee Rejoice in the Lord O ye righteous and again I say Rejoice Phil 4.4 Stand Christian stand and look back on that death that was lately feeding on thy soul stand and look down into the hole of the pit from whence thou art delivered Remember how it was with thee not long since when thou wert without Christ and without hope and without God in the World when thou wert a slave to every lust in thy heart to every vile companion when thou wert by led by the Destroyer and posting on to destruction When thou Wert without fear and without sense of that danger and misery which was running upon thee like a floud Remember how it was with thee when God first open'd thine eyes and thy fears came upon thee How did thy soul cry out I am lost I am undone when thou sawest what a gulf there was fixed between thy natural estate and the state of grace When thou sawest a necessity of conversion and yet wert astonished at the difficulty of obtaining it When thy proud heart would not stoop thine hard heart would not break nor yield unto the Lord When thou wert afraid that thou shouldst have perished in the birth and never have seen life remember how it hath been with thee and how it is now What hath the Lord delivered thee from thy fears conquered to thee thy difficulties Is thine heart broken and brought about to the Lord Is the day broken and the day star risen in thine heart art thou passed from death to life What s y st thou now Is it not meet thou shouldst rejoice Is not this birth day the day of thy new birth a day of joy and praise Dost thou not bless thy self that it is not with thee as it hath been Does not thine heart shake to think what if I had been let alone let to go on in the way that I was going I went with the Drunkards I was among the Lyars and Swearers and Covetous and the Scoffers I was one of them As much against a new heart and new life as any of them as true a drudge to my flesh and this world as the worst of them How is it that the Lord God singled my soul out of that wicked crowd and brought me up out of that state of the dead and brought me into the light of life and hath written me amongst the living in Jerusalem Bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me bless his holy name Magnifie the Lord O my soul and let my spirit rejoice in God my Saviour He that is mighty hath done for me great things and holy is his name 3. Let us again take up a lamentation over the imperfection of our recovery Rejoice in the Lord but rejoice with trembling Psal 2.11 Rejoice that the work is begun that thou art come to the morning of the day of redemption that the day is dawned that the Sun is risen upon thee yet lament that there are still such clouds yea so much of the darkness of the night remaining upon thee Rejoice that thou art born again but yet lament that thou art but as a new born Infant so imperfectly washed from thy pollution in thy bloud and that so much of the shame of thy nakedness is yet appearing that though thou art made a child of light yet there is so much of thine old darkness of thine old ignorance and unbelief abiding upon thee that though thou art born from above yet thine heart should be so much below that though thou art risen with Christ thy affections should be so little set on things above that though thou art born of the Spirit the Flesh should still have such power in thee Lament and bewail it that thou art no more perfectly recovered that it can yet hardly be discerned whether thou be alive or dead or if it appear thou art alive lament that thou art such a a dwarf still or such a sickly and unthriving child that thou art such a froward and unruly child Lament that thy recovery is so imperfect and be growing up towards perfection be working out those remains of thine old corrupt state be working out this carnality and this earthliness and working up thine heart to more spirituality and heavenliness and let both thine heart and thy life be as the path of the just which shineth more and more unto the perfect day Prov. 4.18 Christians whilst I have hope of many of you that you are passed from death to life and in this hope do rejoice over you yet I have sorrow in mine heart for you that you that have life have it no more abundantly that you are yet so imperfectly recovered from among the dead and that you are not which I doubt is the case of too many among you contending and reaching forwards towards perfection How many living Christians soever there be of you yet I can see but few growing Christians among you Pray Friends look inwards what sensible improvement have any of you made of late years Yea how many of us are there that do not lay it to heart that do not lament it that they are improved no more Who of you can say that you are breathing and thirsting after an increase or if you thirst for more grace how very few are reaching forth and labouring and that in so good earnest that they are impatient in their spirits and restless till it may be better with them O what might I do to whet your appetites after
over much in any of the good things below we may rejoice in our outward good things James 1.9 Let the Brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted that is let the Poor rejoice when he is made Rich Poverty is an Affliction and Riches are a Mercy and such a Mercy as we may rejoice in But though we may rejoice in every outward Mercy yet we may not rejoice overmuch in them particularly for the limits of this Joy they must be such as these 1. Joy not in any of these good things as if they were your happiness they may be Means to our happiness but must not be made the Matter of our happiness to make our Estates our happiness is to make them our God and the way to make us miserable he is a miserable Rich Man who maketh his Riches his Happiness 2. Joy not so much in them as to rejoyce ever the less in God You have so much need of God in the greatest Plenty and Prosperity as you have when you have nothing and you should so much thirst after the Joy of God in your greatest Worldly Joy as in your Sorrow Take not your Worldly Joy in stead of Joy in God think not to supply your want of Joy in God by the abounding of Worldly Joy You may as well feed your Souls with Meat and Drink you may as well provide for your Souls by your Money or Estates as comfort them by that Joy that ariseth out of these Earthly things Souls must have a God the Comfort of God the Joy of God to refresh them and support them that Soul is a Carnal Soul that can feed upon Carnal Joys you nevertheless need the Joy of God for any Worldly Joy and you must look to it that your Worldly Joys be never to that height as to lessen your esteem of the Joy of the Lord. The Joy of God will quench your thirst after the World and then the Joy of the World exceedeth it's Bounds when it quencheth your thirst after God and the light of his Countenance Thou art Rich thou art full and prosperest in the World thy Bull gendreth and faileth not thy Cow calveth c. thy Oxen are strong to labour thy Sheep bring forth Thousands and ten Thousands in the Streets and now thou hast Hearts Ease and rejoycest in thy Portion but how standest thou now in respect to God Is God ever the less needed Is God ever the less loved Is the Joy of God still thy chief Joy Or dost thou not even forget that thou hast a God or a Soul and leave it to them that have nothing below to rejoyce in God that is above What thinkest thou of thy self Hath this Earth eaten up Heaven Hath the Joy of this Earth swallowed up the Joy of the Lord Sure it hath transgressed its Bounds It may be thou wilt say as the Prophet Hab. 3.17 18. and it is well if thou canst say so Although the Fig-Tree doth not Blossom c Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord and Joy in the God of my Salvation When thou art Poor and in Want and hast nothing left thee in the World to comfort thine Heart in then thou wilt look to the Lord and he shall be thy Joy and thy Comfort but how is it with thee when the Fig-Tree doth Blossom when thou livest in the abundance of all things Dost thou then feel thou hast as much need of a God dost thou then take as much Joy in God canst thou say of all here below These are miserable Comforters if God be not my Comfort these are miserable Pleasures if God be not my Joy This is something and thus it should be 3. Rejoice with Trembling That 's the Psalmist's Counsel Psal 2.11 Serve the Lord with Fear and rejoice with Trembling in allusion to that let me say Seek the World with Fear and rejoice in the World with Trembling let fear be a Bridle to prevent the excess of your Worldly Joy Fear what should we fear Why fear lest you should forget God lest that which is your Joy become your Snare and turn you aside from God lest your Joy in the World should prove Worldly Joy and serve for nothing but to feed and heighten your Worldly Lusts fear lest this Joy of the World should do the same by you as sometimes the Sorrows of the World do which the Apostle says 2 Cor. 7. Worketh Death fear lest it kill your Souls there is nothing that does more corrupt and endanger the Soul than Carnal Mirth Eccle. 11.9 Rejoice O young Man in thy Youth c. but what followeth Know that for all these things God will bring thee to Judgment that is to Condemnation These Joys drag the Soul to the Bar of Justice and thence to Execution in the Fire There is scarce any thing that does Ripen Men faster for Ruin than the Mirth of the World Job 21.10 11. Their Bull gendreth and faileth not there 's the matter of their Joy their Children Dance they take the Timbrel and the Harp and rejoyce at the sound of the Organ there 's the Measure and Expression of their Joy they are so lifted up that they must have the Musick and their Dancing to heighten their Mirth but what 's the end In a Moment they go down to the Grave and thence into the Bottomless Pit O the Madness of this Merry World That can see nothing in God to Joy them in and yet can rejoice in a thing of nought that undo themselves by their own Felicity their Joy and Mirth Joy is the sweetest Flower that grows in that Garden the Heart of Man and this Flower must be the Poyson to kill them and is never sweet to them but when it growes up out of a Dung-hill out of their Fleshly Lusts What Multitudes have surfeited and Died of their Carnal Mirth and yet foolish Souls will never fear it but this must be their only Heaven which leads to Hell what do these Carnal Joys serve for but to corrupt Men first and then to confound Men Worldly sorrow it 's said worketh Death but it may be said of Worldly Sorrow and Mirth as of David and Saul Saul hath slain his Thousands and David his ten Thousands Worldly Sorrow hath slain many but nothing so many as Carnal Mirth whilest that Saints wade through their Temporal Sorrows to everlasting Joy Sinners pass through their Worldly Joy to everlasting Sorrows Isa 50.11 Behold ye that kindle your Fires c. Here 1. Sinners have their Fires that is to comfort and chear and warm their Hearts these their comforting Fires are their Joy and Jollities 2. Sinners Fires are of their own kindling their comforts come not from God but they raise them up to themselves they comfort themselves and chear themselves but are not comforted of God 3. Sinners Fires are all but Sparks a Spark will not warm and will not last the Triumphing of the Wicked is short and the Joy of the Hypocrite is