Know in such a condition that though your condition be exceeding bad yet better than many thousands they never had Ordinances 2. God is able in such a case to support without Ordinances when hee calls into the Wilderness hee can carry along without Circumcision 3. Remember those that have had them but not now what 's become of Sion of the Church of c. 4. Your salvation may be carried on without Ordinances 5. There 's a time coming when you shall have no need of Ordinances In the mean time if you cannot get up to the Ark of God take heed of bowing to the Calves at Dan and Bethel If you cannot serve the God of Israel take heed you serve not the Gods of the Amorites What you will do I know not be sure Joshna would not chuse you saith hee this day whom you will serve whether the Gods which your Fathers served that were on the other side of the flood or the Gods of the Amorites in whose Land yee dwell But as for mee and my house wee will serve the Lord which brings mee to The Thirteenth Sermon Josh 24.15 As for mee and my house wee will serve the Lord. IN the words two things 1. An indefatigable Retortation Take your own choice follow your own discretion If you will go and bow down to a dumb Idol to a Captive God c. 2. An admirable Dehortation wee are at a pitch wee are resolved and if there be any Attractive in mee or my family you have it in this I and my house-hold wee will serve the Lord. The Observations were 1. Pious Governours of families are very zealous that their families as well as themselves should serve the Lord. Never hope of thriving in godliness till you bring your Families right for God to be of the same Religion with your selves 2. A true sincere Christian is resolved to chuse and follow God what ever else the world chuse and follow 1. Sincere Christians have much more satisfaction in the judgement and practice of God his Word Saints than in the judgement and practice of the World Hee knows their judgement to be depraved their choice and practice corrupt their end and conclusion worst of all therefore no wonder hee makes a better choice 2. They have the best Testimony in the world for their choice the Spirit and Son of God that this is their choice therefore no wonder c. But how do they chuse God Answer they chuse God as the object of their souls love as the chiefest of ten thousand as the lot of their inheritance as the companion of their souls to converse with him as the Commander of their waies to be guided by him as a shelter of their hearts as a refuge to flye unto in the time of danger The first Use was by way of Examination is God chosen as the chief object of our souls love can we truly say there is none in Heaven but thee none upon Earth I can desire besides or in comparison of thee Can wee say in having a God the lines are fallen unto mee in a pleasant place yea I have a goodly heritage Is communion with God our Heaven upon Earth Is God the Commander of our waies as well as wee hope to be the Saviour of our souls Is God our shield our buckler our retreat in danger The second Use was by way of Consolation Beleevers have you made choice of God Happy are the people that are in such a case thou hast the best assurance in the world to come to the best possession in this world peace and joy Peace without if not Peace within And Joy the best Joy in the world Joy unspeakable and full of glory And truly if so be that this be thy portion in having chosen God 't is no wonder thou dost not Apostatize from him 'T is no wonder that what ever comes upon a Beleever yet for that his heart is not turned back neither his steps declined from Gods way And this leads to The Fourteenth Sermon Psalm 44.18 Our heart is not turned back neither have our steps declined from thy way FRom these words two Observations 1. In times of sufferings and afflictions true Christians are to make a narrow inspection into their hearts to see how they stand affected Thus did the Church here 2. To keep stedfast and close with God notwithstanding all afflictions and sufferings wee undergo either from or for God is the duty and commendation of Saints 'T was our duty and 't is our honour Lord c. In prosecution of this point these seven preliminary Thesis was laid down 1. When man was first created his heart stood rightly bent towards God as his great center and mark 2. When man fell his heart immediately drew off and turned back from God 3. Though this be the case of fallen man yet poor creature he sees it not 4. The very Formalis Ratio of sin that wherein the formality of sin consists is in this not so much in sinning against God by outward Acts as in the hearts departing from God 5. All true Conversion to God begins at the heart 6. 'T is an argument of infinite love in God to bring back our hearts to him 7. When once the heart of a Beleever is brought back to God no suffering or affliction is able to turn that heart from him Quest When may a mans heart be said not to bee turned back notwithstanding all sufferings and afflictions Answ 1. When a man still retains the same esteem and estimate of God that ever he had When Job looks upon God as a God fit to bee blessed though God be plundering of him 2. When a man retains still the same affections the same love to him delight in him fear of him as much as ever 3. When wee hope and trust in God as much as ever Though hee kill mee yet will I trust in him 4. When we have the same resolutions to cleave to God as ever If a God in Israel as long as a God in Israel 't is all one makes not to the Gods of the Philistines this is for a mans heart not to be turned back from God By way of Use 1. Learn the heart of man is very apt to turn from God in daies of affliction our heart is not though their's were 2. It concerns us in time of affliction and suffering to see if our hearts be not turned back from God But what means shall I use that I may not turn a base Apostate Answ 1. Be watchful over your hearts they are exceeding slippery and deceitful The veryest Theeves in the World 2. Bee still bending of your hearts from the world and the flesh unto God As you bend a crooked stick to make it streight 3. Do not onely bend but binde your hearts tye them shackle them as you would one that hath broken Prison by holy serious scriptural necessary vows 4. Converse much with God That man that converses much with God it is not
and 't is in vain for us to build on any Foundation but this for 't is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure c. Col. 2.12 through the Faith of the operation of God working in you or doing in you or causing in you or making in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight Our work is to depend on God's work our outward working depends on God's inward working Again that which is acceptable in God's sight but 't is only through Jesus Christ Good works themselves though never so good agreeable to the Law and Gospel yet if God look not on our persons and works through Christ they will not serve the turn ye cannot be accepted working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ Will God be pleased with nothing but onely for Christ Jesus his sake and if it do not please Christ will it not please God 'T is truly plainly verily so That which God cannot accept of through Christ he doth not accept of at all But now things are so ordered that God hath put all things into Christ's hands Christ Jesus hath the ordering of the Worship and Government of the Church he hath the making of all the Articles of the Christian's Creed a Christian is bound to believe nothing but what Christ teaches as necessary to Salvation so that in Christ we are compleat if we believe as he teaches us to believe and if we worship God as he teaches us to worship God and have such order and government concerning his house and walk so as we desire in all things to please our Lord and Master and have him before our eye then are we returned unto Christ the Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls But if we present God with any kind of Creed Model of Worship 〈◊〉 Government that hath not Christ's Image and Stamp upon it God will say as Christ concerning the Money Whose Image or Superscription doth it bear If we can say Christ's the way of Worship we have learn'd from Christ that Order and Government in the Church we have learn'd from Christ then the Father and Son will own it If it have Man's Superscription on it not God's or Christ's I cannot tell how we should presume it can be acceptable to God through Christ for God hath so confin'd himself he will not be pleased but through Christ and that all Matters of Religion in the New Testament should be ordered according to Christ's mind as the Old according to Moses ' This necessary we enquire after Christ's mind in what we do If we can do any thing and in doing it are sure it will be acceptable to God through Christ well and good otherwise not This is the Apostle's Prayer That God would make them perfect in every good work to do his will working in them that which is well-pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ The Doxology Whether we refer it to God or Christ 't is all one we have no body to honour and glorifie in the Church but God through Christ We cannot tell how to divide those that are so nearly united Therefore when we glorifie God we glorifie Christ And this we must observe God hath ordered all man's Concernments so that we have nothing to plead for our Souls Salvation but God's Grace the Rule is his Word his Gospel that he hath made known to us and therefore Let the Word of God dwell in you richly in all wisdom There is a great deal of Do in God's Church about This and That he that must determine the business is Christ and there are but two ways the determining of things for the present and for the time to come hereafter by questioning the matter of fact for the present by making of your Rule When the question comes concerning the Matter of Fact these he receives our Rule What hath Christ said How hath Christ provided in things of this nature It 's plainly so and so but in dubious Matter and Customs and the like I know not how to answer them when we come to answer Christ when he shall put the Question Did you not know whom you was bound to fear Did I not speak nothing at all in the Case neither generally not particularly Could you not by any means come to understand my mind I doubt we shall not be able to answer this But we must say we found a certain state in the Word but having Laws and Customs among our selves therein were at a stand Why saith Christ was your Laws and Customs above or below my Word Must your Law be ruled by my Word or my Word by your Doctrine Did not all Christians hold out this that the Word of Christ was above all Authority in the Matters of Christ Shall the Members of the Body become greater then the Head Therefore you could not be ignorant in this Case your own professing me to be so great in all my Natures and Offices but when you come to practice then you will deny me Shall we be able to answer this We must consider of this that if we would please God it must be through Christ and then we must carry our selves as directed by Christ Jesus in his Word and nothing can take us off that Principle no pretence whatsoever for Christian Religion is such a thing in the nature and substance of it as Jesus Christ is the Author of Therefore if Christ be the Author all that belongs to Christian Religion as to its substance we should-account nothing â—â—moment in Reâ—gion but onely that which we can â—â—â—lbe to Christ 〈◊〉 the Author of it The care of 〈◊〉 Church is in thâ— hand of Christ whatsoever Providences are let in on thâ— Church to exercise or try the 〈◊〉 all must be boâ—â— patiently but every Member muâ—â—â—orship him God hath made Jesus Christ a Shepherd c. In what he findâ— fault we must not justifie what he commands we must approve what he calls to be done we must practise what is not his we must not own as his Much may be drawn from this both for Instruction and Consolation that Christ is the great Shepherd Though he dye in his Members he shall rise in his Members I may say though he dye in his Ministers he shall rise in his Minsters Isa 59.21 As for me this is my Covenant with them saith the Lord My Spirit that is upon thee and my words which I have put in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth nor out of the mouth of thy seed nor out of the mouth of thy seeds seed saith the Lord from henceforth and for ever This is a part of the Covenant that the Word and Spirit of Christ shall be continued among the Members throughout all Ages God will provide his Children shall not live without a Spirit neither without his Word God hath engaged himself for both for the one as well for the other that there shall be a super-addition
Conspiracy of thy Thoughts and Passions against thy Peace Thou mayst be quiet within and yet have war with God because as in the world there may be a Truce when there is no Peace the War may still continue tho there be a Truces between 2 Princes Or rather there is not a Truce between God sinner but as a Town that is besieged for many days may not feel the Battery of their Enemy because he is undermining them to blow them up at once so God doth not many times make his Battery against sinners but he is undermining them and the Fall at the last will be dreadful if there be not a composition Vse 2. By way of Exhortation Let me press you all to follow Peace it is a Duty which the Gospel enjoyns with the greatest vehemency with the greatest force of words and expressions The Apostle when he is to seal up his affections to them he doth it with that Prayer 2 Thess 3.16 Now the God of Peace himself give you Peace always by all means What strange expressions First he gives you here the Title of the God of Peace and then he saith Himself The God of Peace himself There 's a great deal of force in that word Peace is so excellent a blessing and there is such an abhorrency in our corrupt nature to it that it is onely the Lord himself that is able to effect it As if the Apostle had said The Lord must bow the Heavens he must come down himself to create Peace among you and to express the greater vehemency of his desire he saith Give you peace always by all means So another Scripture Pursue Peace Follow Peace with all men a word that imports our pursuit after it though it run from us This is the strain and tenour of the Gospel and this becomes you as Christians When Christ came to purchase our Peace he came as a Lamb an innocent and meek Creature Behold the Lamb of God When the Holy Spirit descended to seal the priviledge of Peace to us he descended in the form of a Dove a gaul-less Creature in whom there is no rancour nor bitterness What a strong engagement should this be upon all of us to pursue and promote Peace And for your encouragement consider First That in the times of the Gospel all the Promises do as it were empty themselves into this blessing the blessing of Peace Thus Isa 11.6 you shall find there a gracious Promise respecting the times of the Gospel The Wolf also shall dwell with the Lamb and the Leopard shall lye down with the Kid and the Calf and the young Lion and the Fatling together and a little Child shall lead them and the Cow and the Bear shall feed their young Ones shall lie down together and the Lion shall eat straw like the Oxe That which I observe from thence is this that God here promises to cause an universal Peace and Unity under the Gospel though it be as difficult as to perswade the most disagreeing Natures to a peaceable cohabitation For here the Scripture instances in those Creatures between which there is the most natural and therefore the most fierce Animosities The Lord will reconcile men though their differences he never so great What is too hard for the God of Peace to effect Is not God of infinite power of infinite love then it should quicken us to pursue Peace 1 By Prayer to him because he is able to effect it Certainly that God that was able to bring Order into the World when it was a meer lump and mass of Confusion is able to bring peace and to unite our spirits And it is observable the greater our differences and divisions are the more will the power of the God appear in reconciling them 'T is said in the Psalms That God's Throne is in darkness i. e. His ways of Providence are very difficult for us to trace and find out â— and therefore when our Divisions are at the highest he is able by one word to allay the storm This should encourage us in Prayer This is the course of God to glorifie himself by putting a stop to the greatest Troubles when nearest to us and to work out one contrary by another To give you some Instances that so we may encourage our Faith and quicken our Prayer to God for this blessing Consider how still God hath made difficulties the way for enjoyment for instance The Promises that Sarah should be the Mother of a Child but he made way for that by her dead Womb for all that numerous Progeny which like the Stars of the Sky descended from her That he first maimed Jacob and then gave him the blessing He brought Joseph from the Prison to a Princely Palace First David was harassed with Troubles and then his head was deck'd with the Imperial Crown So if you look into the Kingdom of Christ who would have thought that a few Fishermen should have advanced the Empire of Christ in the World had you lived to have seen those despicable beginnings when a few unlearned men were the Heraulds and Preachers of Christ how would this have caused you to fail and sink in your Spirits and yet the Gospel hath been preached in all the parts of the World and that by a few Fishermen The Providences of God are like those plated Pictures if you look one way upon them there is the appearance of a Serpent if you look on the other side there 's the appearance of an Angel So here many times God is pleased to suffer exasperations to go very high that so his power may appear more eminent in the composure of them He it is that enables the Faith of his people to draw Water out of the Rock when the Fountain is dry that makes meat to come out of the Eater as in Sampson's Riddle that is able to bring a peaceable harmony out of devouring differences and therefore it should quicken our Prayers to him Secondly To make us more serious in our endeavours after peace Consider what a dishonour it is to the Gospel that those that profess themselves Sons of the same God Members of the same Christ Temples of the same Spirit should be at deadly jars one with another It is strange and unnatural that Lillies should prove Thorns to one another that those who are Saints in pretence should be Devils in practice to one another that God's Diamonds should cut one another this is very strange yet thus it is But how especially it is most sad when Religion which should restrain and bridle our Passions is made fewel and insentives of them How for distant is it from the counsel of the Apostle Rom. 14.10 where he speaks concerning their lesser differences One values one day above another another esteems every day alike what 's his counsel He speaks as a person that was fill'd with bowels and compassion Oh saith he let not him that doth not esteem the day judge him that doth For we
as Jerem. 13.17 And that we shall not forget Jeremiah weeping for you And I trust likewise that we shall remember Stephen being on his knees for his Persecutours powring out his life and prayer together Acts 7.60 I doubt not but my Reverend Brother and my self shall remember Pauls willingness to spend and to be 〈◊〉 both in prayer and preaching for you all Though the more abundantly he loved the lesse he was beloved 2 Cor. 12.15 3. Maintain and nourish all tenderness in your Conscience all your dayes Oh go not without much lesse against the dictates of conscience rebel not against the light of it beware of stifling and suppressing a warning conscience lest a warning conscience prove a gnawing conscience and prove a tormenting conscience And consider first Remorse of Conscience hath an eye against all sin past Secondly Tenderness of Conscience which hath an eye to all sin to come Take heed then of all calmness of heart Fourthly Take heed of Apostatizing Chrysostome hath a notable saying namely That Ministers have a greater trouble because they never find their work as they leave it as other workmen do Oh in how short a time doth a poor Minister find all his work put out of frame and order Did not Moses find it so Exod. 32.8 Moses had no sooner turn'd his back as it were but the people were turned out of Gods way of worship And did not Paul find it so Gal. 1.6 The Galathians were quickly removed Paul was but lately gone from them and they were quickly apostatized Now this cometh to passe First It is by reason of a crafty subtil deceitful Devil as in the Gospel we read While men slept the Enemy came and sowed tares Mat. 13.25 And who this Enemy is we may see in Christs expounding the Parablâ—â— ver 39. And Secondly Partly by reason of mens own deceitful hearts as Heb. 3.12 observe it There is an evil heart of unbelief in the best it dwells in the best but it reignâ— in the wicked And what is that one of these evil hearts of unbelief in apostatizing in departing from the living God Thirdly It is partly by Reason of deceitful workers as the Apostle calls false Apostles It is partly by reason of such Then take heed of apostatizing either from truth of Doctrine purity of worship or practice of Conversation 1. From truth of Doctrine Be not weary of old truths take beed and beware of itching after novel Doctrines take heed and beware of admiring this or that opinion which as new lights drop down from heaven but indeed is but as the smoak of the bottomless pit 2. From purity of Worship also Let not your zeal be cold but kindled against every bracelet of the Scatlet Whore How often doth the Apostle call the people adulterers and adulteresses because they apostatize from the Word and Worship of God 3. In practice and Conversation Prize the Gospel love it and live accordingly to it With constancy look on every motion of thy soul and every action of thy life as a step to life or a step to death as a step towards Heaven or a step to Hell Heb. 10.38 To close this Counsel the Author of the Hebrews bringeth in the Lord protesting against apostatizing If any man draw back from Gospel-principle and Gospel-worship or froth a Gospel-conversation saith the Lord If any man draw back thus my Soul shall have no pleasure in him Tremble then at this thou Apostatizer whoever thou art wherever thou sittest or standest My Son shall have 〈◊〉 pleasure in thee I loath and abominate that person faith the Lord. 5. All of you then study peace and particularly you who do unfeignedly set your hearts and faces towards Heaven study peace and follow after it thouâ—â—â— run from you pursue after it You professe youâ— selves to be them that are truly fearing God anâ— truly honouring the King and truly loving one another Oh then seek peace You who do unfeignedly set your hearts and facâ—â— towards Heaven study peace alway and decline all dividing principles and practices among you and that you may not either breed or feed circumstantial differences or substantial divisions consider God 〈◊〉 the God of Peace our Saviour is the Prince of Peace our Comforter is the Comforter of Peace our Calling is the Calling of Peace our Way is the Way of Peace Oh that we may so live in Peace that the God of Love and Peace may dwell with us and that the God of Peace may live with us here that we may live with the God of Peace hereafter Mr. Bull of Newington-Green His Farewell Sermon in the Forenoon John 14.16 And I will send the Father and he shall give you another Comforter that he may abide with you for ever THe Observation that I commended to you 〈◊〉 of these words was this It is the great work for which the Spirit 〈◊〉 Christ is given by Ged to comfort the hearts of 〈◊〉 people You may remember that I have 〈◊〉 opeâ—â—â— the truth to you and have shewed you what this spititual comfort is that the Spirit of Christ works in the hearts of his Disciples I gave it you in this Description It is that inward spiritual satisfaction that the heart of a gracious person finds in and through Jesus Christ in all the various dispensations of God towards him whereby he is enabled to go on in chearâ—inesse in the way that God would have him whether it be by a way of doing or of suffering And herein I shewed 1. The nature of the spiritual satisfaction 2. The Author of it It is God by his Spirit 3. The Object of it God through Jesus Christ 4. The proper Subject of this inward spiritual comfort the people of God 5. And lastly The effects of the spiritual comfort it is to strengthen the heart both to do and suffer I came the last time to shew you how the Spirit of God doth this 1. He doth it as an enlightning Spirit by shewing where comfort is to be had by opening the eyes of the understanding as he did Hagars bodily eyes to see the Well of water 2. He doth it as a quickning Spirit bringing the soul into that capacity to take in the comfort for what comfort can a dead man receive a Cordial and a Puddle is all one to a dead man 3. He works this inward spiritual satisfaction by discovering the truth of this vitall Principle in the soul for a man may have a principle of Grace and spiritual life in him and not know it that though he has the spiritual comfort yet it is all one as if he had it not Now this is the great Question that is debated in the heart of a Child of God Whether he be regener a 〈◊〉 born again whether he hath grace in his soul 〈◊〉 grace that will qualifie him for glory and if he was â—â—risfied as to this he would not be a moment without comfort But he is afraid that he is dead
is the season for God to feed him with heavenly Manna Jacob had glorious Visions while he was flying from the wrath of his Brother when he had nothing but a heap of stones for his Pillow It was in the wilderness that God speakes to his Church Thus I told you of Mr. Glover a Prisoner who found no comfort in the time of his imprisonment but when he was going to the stake he cryed out He is come he is come meaning the Spirit the Comforter 4. Another Season of Comfort is after some special exercise of Grace godly sorrow for sin fresh actings in the pardon of sin and new engagements and Resolutions and Promises of more close walking with God after declining from him 5. Another Season of Comfort is After some great Trials and afflictions Light is then most pleasant when we new are come out of a dark place after Thunder comes Lightâ—ing after a storme comes a calm God led his people first into the Wilderness and then into the Land of Canuâ—◠〈◊〉 is often so in Godâ— Dispensations towards his people thâ—â— greatest afflictions go before their greatest deliverance and therefore let not the Saints of God despair when they are at the lowest when they walk in darkness and see no light yet set them trust in the Lord. 6 Another Season of Comfort is When men are conscientiously diligent in their particular Callings then they walk with God To this I gave you an instance in the Shepherds they were faithful and diligent in their callings they were watching over their flocks by night and then the Angel comes and tells them Lo you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord Luk. 2.11 A company of poor Shepherds keeping of their Sheep God appears unto them and manifesteth his comforting presence when the Scribes and Pharisees notwithstanding all their long prayers and their strict Rites and Ceremonies hear not a word of him 7 Another Season of Comfort is When we are either preparing for or in the spiritual act of some duty When grace is exercised to prepare the heart to pray and in attendance upon such an Ordinance then often times the Spirit of God is with them to let poor souls in their endeayours find acceptance with God Hannah had been praying to God but what melody did she find in her heart When Mary sate at Christs feet how doth Christ fill her heart with comfort sealing up her salvation to her I now come to close with some application Use of Information Use If it be the work of the Spirit of God to comfort the beaâ— of Christs Disciples then by way of Information I gather this That a poor soul is very hardly setled and satisfied in 〈◊〉 of comfort Sure it is a hard matter to comfort a poor 〈◊〉 when one of the persons of the blessed Trinity must be â—â—ployed on purpose to do it This is an Office belongâ—â—â— the Holy Ghost when he is to be the Paraclete the comâ—â—â— of the Holy Ghost This sure is a hard matter to comâ—â—â— the wounded spirit when the soul is fully 〈…〉 spirâ—◠〈◊〉 bondage Oh! the hesitancies the jealousies the doâ—â—â— and fears the objections that a poor soul makes against 〈◊〉 spiritual peace and comfort now it begins to take comfort then it doubts again now he believeth and takes courage but anon he is afraid there is a great deal adoe to fasten comfort upon a poor soul 2 Cor. 1.21 22. What a heap of words are there together and it is all little enough to comfort a poor soul Now he that establisheth us with you on Christ and hath annointed us is God and hath also sealed us and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts It is not without much tugging and drawing that the soul is first brought to beleeve and then when it doth believe it is a hard thing to perswade it that it doth believe There is a strange kind of squemishness upon the heart he thinks that there is no comfort to be taken that doth belong to him Luther says It is a harder thing to comfort a troubled Conscience than to raise the dead Surely it must be as hard when nothing but the sauâ—â— power must do it The soul is hardly convinced but all the glad ridings of the Gospel are golden streams and all the Promises are 〈◊〉 pleasant Fancies without any Reality but that these things should belong to him this he cannot believe for want of Faith So that the Spirit of God is fain to come in and end the controversie before the soul will be satisfied 2. If it be the work of the Spirit of God to comfort the hearts of his people then all the comfort of Christless and graceless souls is nothing worth there is no true peace for they are not the Disciples of Christ which are the propâ—â— subjects of this comfort they will not hearken to 〈◊〉 nor learn of Christ but they cast his words behind their back and break his bands a sunder Those that do not learn Christs precepts and follow Christs Canons and obey Christs Commands they are none of Christs Disciples and to be sure they have not the 〈◊〉 of Christ which is the Efficient â—n this 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 the root there cannot be the fruit for this inward peace 〈◊〉 the fruit of the spirit And therefore what comfort they have it is either a sinful comfort which to be sure will end in sorrow or else at best it is but a carnal comfort which wil soon vanish like the crackling of thorns under a Pot There is no peace saith God to the wicked there is no peace with God as long as you are at peace with sin 3. Here they are stumbled with the riddle that the people of God should be sorrowing yet always rejoycing as sorrowing yet always rejoycing the carnal world think this to be a contradiction though they be troubled without yet they have peace within though they have matter of sorrow in respect of outward affliction yet they have fellowship with the holy Ghost the Comforter which gives peace in affliction joy in sorrow light in darkness which fils them with joy unspeakable and full of glory Secondly If the holy Ghost be the only Comforter of the hearts of Gods people then let me exhort every one of you to labour for an interest in this Comforter Friends I beseech you be restless till you have got some evidence of the Comforter in your souls by the inhabitation of the Spirit in your hearts without you have an interest in Christ there is no comfort no true comfort to be expected no comfort in prosperity no comfort in adversity no comfort in life nor in death no peace with your consciences Men may make a shift to keep themselves at quiet for the present by lulling conscience they may have a kind of peace from a false principle Ah but what wil you do when storms arise whâ—â— wil you do
must go to God those Ministers that were wont to comfort us are now to be taken from us our Barnabaâ—'s Sons of consolation their mouths are to be stopped though Ordinances are now to be dammed up the houses of God made places of defilement our Teachers are removed into corners our troubles increase and we have none to tell us how long the light of our eys the comfort of our hearts in respect of the outward means are going from us whither shall we go we want bread for our souls we want cordials for our hearts blessed Saviour pity us and since thou wilt not come to us in thy own presence as thy Ambassadors do come to us by thy Spirit do now in heaven as thou didst on earth pray the Father for us do not leave us as so many Orphans without father or mother but send thy Spirit to refresh our souls see how we are hated and reviled and we must suffer these things now Let us have thy spirit 3 If you would have communion with the Spirit of Christ in his comforting work Take heed that you do not lay up your comforts in the creature This is for to seek for the living among the dead those that rejoyce in the creature rejoyce in a thing of nought and you that have an interest in God God will not take it well at your hands to seek it any where else no not in Ordinances though God would have you to seek comfort in Ordinances yet he would not have you to seek comfort from Ordinances 4 Sit down and be much in duty Psal 63.5 6. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips when I remember thee upon my bed and meditate on thee in the night watches If you look at the beginning of the Psalm you shall find this Psalm was penn'd when David was deprived of the Ordinances of God Many a man complains that he lives uncomfortably no wonder when he little thinks on Christ 5 Be much in the exercise of grace Then they walked in the fear of the Lord when they walked in the comfort of the Holy Ghost 6. Take heed of quenching and grieving the Spirit your Comforter by neglecting his motions or by acting any thing against the mind of the Spirit Do not sin against him as your enlightning Spirit that will hinder him as your Comforter I close with a word of Comfort to the people of God If it be one of the great works of the Spirit of God here is matter of great comfort to those that stick close to Jesus Christ 1. Sure your comforts will be satisfying Comforts sufficient because they are comforts of the Spirits working The Lord Jesus hath promised to make up the want of his bodily presence by sending his Spirit He was now going from them and tells them That he could not stay and this was sad newes to the Disciples who where ready to break their hearts and the best comfort that he could afford them was to tell them That he would send the Comforter If Christ can comfort his people in the absence of himself surely he can comfort them in the want of all other comforts that relate either to soul or body and so in the want of mercies in the want of outward Ordinances he can comfort the soul It is the Spirit of God that can comfort in the use of these and if he will he can do it in the want of them he can comfort us in the wildernesse where no water is when he doth deny the meanes he can cumfort us without where he denies the stream he can make us drink out at the Fountain 7. And Lastly The people of God find hereby that their comforts are abiding Your liberty your friends ah Ordinances and Ministers may be taken from you your Ministers may be banish'd your Ministers may be imprison'd but here is a Comforter that abides for ever And though they may keep your Ministers out of the Pulpit yet they shall not take the Comforter out of your hearts So that when I shall not Preach any more to you I shall Pray the Father that he would send you another Comforter that he may abide with you for ever Mr. Bull of Newington-Green His Farewel Sermon in the afternoon Acts 20.32 And now Brethren I commend you to God and to the word of his Grace who is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among them that are sanctified THe words are part of S. Pauls Farewel-Sermon or discourse to the Elders of the Church of Ephesus one of those famous seven Churches of Asia that we read of in the book of the Revelations It is not to be doubted as Calvin doth Comment upon the place that though the Apostle speaks immediately to the Elders yet he doth comprehenâ— the whole Church in the Speech Our holy Apostle had been a long time with the Church preaching among them taking pains with them both in publick and private as you may see in the 20 verse and declares to them the whole Counsel of God verse 27. and now being called away taken off by divine Providence by the will of his Master the last and best office that he thought he could do for them was to commit them to the care of God and to leave them in his arms and to recommend them to his Grace It would be more then the time would permit to look over the whole Apostles Sermon which is partly Narrative and partly Consolatory Narrative to put them in mind in what manner he had preached to them from verse 17. to verse 27. And it s partly Consolatory from the 27. to the Text wherein the Apostle could hold no longer but his love constrains him and makes him to break forth into this pathetical wish or rather prayer And now Brethren I commend you to his grace As if he had said I am just now going 〈◊〉 you not knowing that I shall see your face any more now I am a dying man as to my conversing with you anâ— more now I am departing this is the best Legacie I can bequeath unto To commend you to God and to his grace And he speaks to persons as standing in the same relation with God and Christ and having the same Father and the same elder Brother As if he should have said you are as dear to me as my own flesh as if you were my brethren by consanguinity and it is my sorrow that I must leave you but as it is my greatest grief to part with you yet I must leave you and this is the comfort that I shall leave you in safe hands I do not leave you to the wide world I do not leave you as Orphans without a Father as Sheep without a Shepherd but I commend you to God and to his grace O happy word Though I must leave you yet I trust God who is able will keep you as God is present every-where
by his Essence so by his gracious presence more especially God is present with his people I commit you I commend you to God I commit you to his care to his keeping so the word signifies so Ravanelus interprets the words I trust you with God I leave you as a depositum in Gods hands as a dying man leaves his children in a friends hands to look after them as Christ did his Mother in Johns hands so the Apostle leaves the Ephesians in the hands of God and to the word of his grace that is the Gospel that he had declared to them The Word of God in Scripture is often called his grace 2 Cor. 6. Eph. 3.5 because it is a declaration of the free grace of God to poor souls and because it is the Spirits instrument to work grace in the hearts of sinners This is remarkable that after the Apostle had recommended them to God he adds one word of his grace He doth not think it enough to mention recommending them to God but to the word of his grace The expression is not for Euphoniae gratia it is no Tautologie it is noâ— for more then needs but to shew how needful and how necessary the word of Gods grace is as well to the building up as for the converting of poor sinners and though God can build up a Saint immediately yet ordinarily he doth it not but through the word of his grace which is able to build you Beza and Calvin refer this Clause to God answering to that of the Apostle 2 Cor. 9.18 God is able to cause all grace to abound in you But Erasmus refers this word to the words of Gods grace which is able to build you up And this construction is favoured by those two places of Scripture and may very well be meant both in 2 Tim. 3 15. and Jam. 1 21. both which places attribute to the Word of God as this doth and in the second place Receive with meekenesse the ingrafted word which is able to save your souls So that both these words may be referred to this Clause The Word of God and The Word of his grace to God as the Principle and to the word of his grace as the instrumental cause to build them up as much as if he had said I commend you to the grace of God which is able to build you up The Apostle tels them that he left them to such a God as through the Gospeâ— was sufficient to build them up till he brought them to the full fruition of the Saints in light The Apostle commends this to his Church that were ready to weep and say at his departure O Paul God hath made thee a happy instrument of laying a good foundation among us of doing a great deal of good to our souls and we may blesse God that we ever saw thy face but now alas thou art going from us we are afraid all thy pains will come to nothing we should hope that if God had pleased to continue thee amongst us then we should have been built up and surely if God had intended good to us and brought us to Heaven at last he would not have taken thee from us No sayes the Apostle be not discouraged though I leave you yet I commit you to God and to the word of his grace If I be here it is God alone that must build you up I am but a poor weak instrument in the hand of God and when I am gone God can build you up by some means or other and carry you over or thorow all oppositions temptations and discouragements till he hath fitted you for himself and given you an inheritance amongst them that are sanctified Thus you have the words explained in that familiar Pâ—raphrase and being thus opened you may take notice that The words hold forth the special care of this blessed Apostle of Jesus Christ though he must leave them yet he takes care to leave them in safe hands that was able to give a good account of them You have the Apostle making a deed of trust for the securement of the Saints at Ephesus after his departure or if you will you have the Apostles last Will and Testament 1 You have the Person making over this trust St. Paul 2 You have the Trust it self and those were the Saints of Ephesus 3 You have the Trustees those to whom this trust is committed and they are two fold 1 To God 2 To the Word of his grace 3 Here is the time of making this Test now I am ledving of you 4 Here is the commendation of the Trustee from the power and ability of him to manage this trust and this is expressed in two particulars 1 He is able to build you up and then 2 To give you an inheritance as if he should have said I will leave you with such who are able to build you up I might raise a multitude of observations from the words as first of all Doct. 1. Thas it should be the care of a faithful Minister when he is by the providence of God taken from a people to recommend them to God and to the word of his grace 2 As it is the duty of a faithful Minister to do it so it is his comfort that he may do it that he may leave his people in the hand of God who is able to build them up in grace 3 It may be the comfort of any Church of Christ that when they are deprived of faithful Ministers that yet they are left in the hands of God 4 Though God can by his infinite power perfect grace and bring men to heaven without the use of means yet we have no ground or warrant to expect one or other but through the Word of Gods grace 5. And lastly Though their be a glorious inheritance purchased and prepared by Jesus Christ yet it is to be expected by none but those that are built up sanctified Or thus None must look for an inheritance hereafter but such as are born of the Spirit and built up in grace I might speak to many more but I shall gather all that I have said into this one general Proposition which is this Doct. That the best Farewel that a Gospel-Minister can give to his people that he loves and labours amongst when he by the providence of God is taken from them is to commend them to the Gospel and to the word of his grace Thus doth our holy Apostle when he was taken from his people and left to preach to them no more he recommends them to the hands of God And thus doth a greater then St. Paul even Jesus Christ himself the great shepherd of the Sheep as St. Peter calls him when he was leaving of the world and could no longer preach to them he commends them to God Joh. 17.11 And now says Christ to his Father I am no more in the world but these are in the world and I come to thee Holy Father keep through
burden any where else God will not lend you a finger to help you but if you place your hope in God God will help you your extremity shall be his opportunity 4 You must take God to be the guide of your hearts if you would have the priviledge of Gods guard you must keep in Gods way keep in Gods way and you will be sure of Gods protection do you keep Gods precepts and God will keep your person do what God commands and avoid what God for bids and then you need not fear what will become of you Let the World frown and Friends forsake you resolve that you will follow God wheresoever he leads you then he will be your God all your dayes and he will guide you here by his counsel till at last he bring you to his glory And this leads me to the second Exhortation in respect to the Gospel Secondly Brethren I commend you to the word of Gods grace I commend you to the Precepts of God to be obeyed by them I commend you to the Promises of God to be believed by you 1 Keep them and hold them fast carefully it is your treasure it is your life keep it and it will keep you it is all that you can shew for Heaven I leave it as a Depositum if you part with it take heed how you will answer it at the last day it is the talent which God hath committed to you for which you will be commended for keeping at the great day Hold fast the word of Gods grace there is old tugging by the Devil and his Instruments either to pull you from the word or the word from you Let any thing go rather than the Gospel let your Friends your Estates your Lives rather than let go the Gospel Study Gods word do not keep them by for no purpose Search the Scriptures for in them you hope for eternall life There 's the pearl of great price there is direction there is comfort this book of God will make you wise unto salvation If you never hear Sermon more you have enough by the use of the Bible to carry you to Heaven There 's Divinity there is holinesse and heaven almost in every syllable when you cannot have it preached to you Be much in the study of it Then practice it conscionably Be not only hearers but doers of it let your conversation be such as becomes the Gospel It was the Apostles advice to the Philippians and it 's mine to you Let your conversation be such as becomes the Gospel Let your conversation become the Precepts the Priviledges the Promises of the Gospel Having then thus commended you to God give me leave before we part to commend God and his Gospel to you 1. Make it your daily business to walk with God make him the companion of your lives converse with God every day in the inward of your hearts He that is a stranger with God God will soon be a stranger to him and if you neglect God one day you may be to seek him when you may most need him 2. Live in the daily exercise of grace and godlinesse 1. Live in the continual exercise of Faith live by it you have need of the exercise of that grace every day you caâ— as well live without food as live without faith it is that grace which feeds upon Christ 2 Be much in the exercise of the fear of the Lord all the day long be afraid to sin against God in the secret of your souls mind his presence in all places in all company in all businesses 3 Be much in the exercise of Humility live humbly and think better of others then your selves Humility will exceedingly adorn your profession 4 Be much in the exercise of Repentance Be frequent and constant in prayer Pray continually do it spiritually and do it exactly as to the season of it 5 Be fervent in spirit serving the Lord. Whatever you do for God do it with all your might do not put off God with the skin but give him the marrow 6 Be careful not onely to keep up secret but Family-worship the less preaching there is in publick the more catechising and instructing there should be in private I know no more likely means then the setting up the worship of God in private families 7. Prize the Sabbath be strict and exact in the observation of the Lords day I have shewed you many times wherein the spiritual observation of it doth consist it is your seed-time your market-day it is a sign you shall one day celebrate an everlasting Sabbath with God in the highest heavens 8 Be stedfast in the ways of God in a back-sliding age Keep your ground while others fall away stand fast in faith be not ashamed to own Christ before all the World teckon upon the reproaches of Christ and count them greater riches then the Treasures in Egypt Do not place Religion in a few shadows when the substance is neglected do not think that God will be put off with the skin without the substance and by your holy conversation labour to put to filence the foolishness and ignorance of wicked men that â—en may have nothing to accuse you but in the maâ—â—ers of Jesus Christ that you may cut off occasion from them that seek occasion Let no reproach make you lay aside holiness and say If this be to be vile I will be vile still And love all those that have been instrumental for your spiritual comfort Forget not to contribute to the necessities of the poor Saints think that God hath given you your Estates for such a time as this for this is acceptable to God Blesse them that curse you pray for them that despightfully use you so shall you heap coals of fire upon their heads when you are reviled revile not again Do your duty to your Superiours to those that God hath set over you and so carry your selves as it was in the case of Daniel that they may find nothing against you save in the matter of your God In all things let your conversation be as becomes the Gospel of Jesus Christ That I may rejoyce in the day of the Lord Jesus that we have not run in vain and laboured in vain And labour to keep up that Christian love which in this place hath been more eminent than any where I know I would preach St. Johns Doctrine Little children love one another And that my expression may be pathetical I shall speak it in the words of the Apostle in Phil. 2.1 2 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ if any comfort of love if any fellowship of the Spirit if any bowels and mercies fulfill ye my joy that ye be like-minded having the same love being of one accord of one mind I now have but a word more speaking of yours and mine own comfort under this sad Dispensation 1. It is a Ministers comfort that when he is taken from his people he can yet Commend them to
come unto you this day as a dying man for you know when this day is gone I must no more preach among you and I know you are come to see what I shall leave you for your Legacy which that I may do take these Twenty things as Counsel and Advice from a dying man and O that they may remain with you when I am dead First I shall give you Ten by way of Caution and secondly Ten by way of Counsel my Cautions are First Beloved I beseech you as you tender the welfare of your Souls take heed of breaking the Sabbath day of Prophaning the Lords day it hath been observable that whereever Religion hath flourished among any people there they have ever been careful and conscientious of the Sabbath day and on the contrary side where Religion is gone to decay and people grown to prophanenesse there they are alwaies loose on the Sabboth day pray remember I hope you will remember for God calls upon you and commands you so to do Exod. 20. v. 8. Remember the Sabboth day to keep it holy do not you take so much liberty as some will give you whoever you are that refuse thus to do I will leave this assertion upon you thou wretched man hath God given thee Six dayes and reserved but one for himself and wilt thou Rob him of that too what if he had given thee but one kept six for himself would you be so vile as not to keep them how much more then when God hath given thee so much preheminency in time this is the first be conscious in keeping the Sabboth day Secondly Take heed and beware of Idolatry this was John's caution to his beloved Children 1 Epist 5. v. 21. Little Children keep your selves from Idols There is no sin to which nor no sin by which we are in more danger than Idolatry First there is no sin to which we are in more danger than Idolatry Moses's back was no sooner turned but the people made them a brazen calf and bowed down to it and worshiped it as their God Exod. 32. v. 4. Jehojada was no sooner dead but Ioash returned to Idolatry if we were not prone to this sin what is the reason all the world turns Antichristians so Universally Secondly As there is no sin to which we are in more danger so there is no sin by which we are in more danger than Idolatry I do confesse if you will keep your garments clean undefiled with the mark of the Beast it may be you may come under shrewd temptations yet I intreat you as a dying man as you love your Souls and for God's sake flee from Idolatry notwithstanding your temptations for God hath promised that under all the temptations that happens to you he will support you if you flie and withstand the thing you are tempted to 1 Cor. 10. v. 13. there hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to men but God is faithful Will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able to bear but will with the temptation also make way to to escape that you may be able to bear it now see what use the Apostle makes of this promise in the next verse he follows with these words my dearly beloved flee from Idolatry seeing God will uphold us let us withstand any temptations to this end that God may uphold us this is the second Caution Thirdly Take heed of Apostacy of a degenerating backsliding spirit that ye do not fall off from the truth and ground of the wayes of God which ye have known and professed it is true it may be for standing to your principles you may lose the love of man I acknowledge it may be so but hear what God saith If any man fall back my Soul shall have no pleasure in him if thou goest on mans Soul may have no pleasure in thee but if thou fallest back Gods soul wil have no pleasure in thee thou doest by Apostacy declare to all the world that thou hast made trial of the wayes of God and thou doest not find them to be as good as thou thoughtest they were nay not so good as others O take heed of scandalizing the wayes of God here how God complains of those that so do Jer. 2.10 Go unto the Isles of Chittim and behold and send unto Kedar and take diligent heed and see whether there be such a thing hath a Nation changed their God for those which are no Gods but my people hath changed their glory for that which will not profit Hear O Heavens and be astonished at this for my people have committed two evils they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters and have hewed to themselves broken cisterns that will hold no water Whatever it is that would lead thee to Apostacy beware and flie it especially evil company of which I shall speak more anon let your love to Christ be augmented and love of your selves abased for unlesse you love Christ very much and your selves very little I cannot hope that you will stand to your principles Fourthly Beware of Covetousnesse it is Christs Caution Luke 2. ver 15. Take heed and beware of Covetousnesse here is a Caution with a double action take heed and beware believe me Brethren it stands upon us so to do for it steals upon us before we be aware of it there is no person will deal more injuriously with a Christian than a covetous man will he will betray his Life if it were in his hands into his Enemies hands for Money as Judas did A covetous man he will injure Christ in his Ordinances he will not come at them for the love he bears to the World will not suffer himstruly quoth he I have lost this or that while I was hearing a Sermon I 'le go no more I must stay at home and look after my businesse I could give you many instances of this but time will not give me leave I shall only touch this one what was it but the Love of this World that kept those who were bid to the Marriage Feast of the Great King of Heaven from coming One had bought a piece of Ground and he must needs see it another had bought Oxen and he must go to prove them a third had Married a Wife and therefore he could not come Of all persons in the world a covetous man cannot nor will not endure to bear the Crosse of Christ Phillippians 3. v. 8. For many walk of whom I have told you often and now tell you weeping that they are the Enemies of the Crosse of Christ whose end is destâ—uction who are these what manner of persons are they why they are such who make their Belly their God whose glory is their shame and who mind earthly things A covetous man he will lie with Ananias and Sarhira he will steal with Achab he will murther with Ahab he will betray with Judas what will he not do to attain his covetous
hear I take it for granted you will hear I hope you will for brown bread is better then none and a little is better then none at all yet I intreat you take these two words of Direction First Try the word you hear by the Truth Secondly Try your selves by the Truth First Try the word you hear by the Truth if it be not consonant to that believe it not let who will preâ—ch it Paul exhorteth the Galatians so to do Chap. 1.8 9. But though we or an Angel from Heaven preach any other doctrine unto you then that which we have preached unto you let him he accursed How Paul accursed sure you speak too high what if an Angel must he be accursed Sure you will câ—ll in your words again nay instead thereof he repeats them over again as we said before so I say again if any one preach any other Gospel then that which you have received let him be accursed If any man pretend a Revelation from Heaven and cannot bring Scripture for what he saith do not believe one syllable Take the noble Bereans for your example they would nor believe Pauls doctrine until they had searched to see whether it were so or no but then as you are to tâ—y the word you hear by the truth so try your selves by the word you hear as a truth that there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit Now try your selves by this truth and see whether or no you walk after the flesh or after the Spirit I have likewise two Directions about the preaching the Word First Do not you receive the Word for the persons sake that brings it I am apt to think that many of you will receive a Truth of one mans bringing which you would not receive of anothers and thus ye receive the Word of God with respect of persons which you ought not but first receive the Word for its own sake and secondly receive the person for the Words sake 1 Thes 5.12 13. we beseech you brethren to know them which are over you to 〈◊〉 monish you and labour among you in the Lord and to esteem of 〈◊〉 very highly in love for their works sake Sixthly My direction in the sixth place shall be concerning 〈◊〉 times we live in and I shall tell you how you ought to behave 〈◊〉 selves in two particulars First Blame thy self most that the times are so bad there is a general complaint about the sadnesse of the times but no particular every one puts the cause away from him and instead of accusing themselves are alwayes accusing others Ahab he said to Elisha Thou art he that troubled Israel Elisha said to Ahab Thou art he that troubled Israel Adam said to God The Woman which thou gavest me did give to me and I did eat The woman she said The Serpent beguiled her Thus do we put it off from our selves to others No man saith with Jonas for my sake is this come upon you I am the cause of all this No man saith what have I done would you have the times mend Oh then every soul of you condemn your selves and amend your wayes the times would not be so bad if we were not so bad would you have the effect cease then seek to remove the cause But then Secondly Pray not so much for better times as better hearts for had you never so good times and not good hearts your blessings would be cursings good times without good hearts will but fatten you the sooner to the slaughter Seventhly If you cannot do the good you would then do the good you can many people are so sullen that because they cannot do all they would do they will do none at all I beseech you be not of this temper what though you cannot serve God in publick will you not therefore serve him in private why may you not do as S. Austin was bid to do tolle legit take up and read this will be a reading and praying time with you and now you cannot hear as formerly you have done oh pray more and read more and the less you have in Publick the more you may have in private you may read and pray we are not forbidden that yet let us then make use of them Eightly My intreaty is unto you all that you would be careful and circumspect in your conversation Ephes 5.15.16 See then that ye walk circumspectly not as fools but as wise redeeming the time because the dayes are evil Walk as becometh the Professiors of the Cospel and labour to be blameless towards God and man Oâ— what notice will there be taken when any Professor doth but 〈◊〉 aside and do any thing amiss it is the joy of wicked mens hearts to see it and how diligently do they watch for it and often wish iâ— We have a Proverb That one man may better steal a Horse then â—â—â—ther look on I am sure a wicked man may better commit sevon sins then a Professor one for it is the failings the bad lives of Professors that makes Religion ill spoken of and hinders many a weak soul from closing with it sure think they their Religion cannot be good their conversations are so bad let us therefore be wary and careful in all our actions Ninthly Mourn and lament for the sin you cannot hinder it was â—â—id of Lot 2 Pet. 2.8 that his righteous soul was vexed with the wicked conversations of the Sodomites Oh that we were but so good as we should be then sure it would grieve us more then it doth to see the wicked and abominable lives of those among whom we live though thou dost not blaspheme God thy self yet it is thy God that is blasphemed and shall not that trouble thee how canst thou but reprove them whoever they be When a sick man seeth his Wife Children Friends and Physician lamenting his condition sure it will make him think his condition is worse then he thought iâ— or very bad at least or else why do they take on so if there was no cause of fear Thus it may be thy reproof may work upon a wicked man if when thou hearest him blaspheme God thou lamentest his condition and puts him in mind of his sad estate it may make him lay that to heart then which he never did before Tenthly The last thing that I have to beseech of you is That you would love one another I have not at all sought to proselyte you to my way but whatever you see in whoever it be that is of God oh love it be he of what profession he will he is a godly man Oh then love him you cannot love God if you do not love his people let brotherly love continue your Minister must not continue oh then let brotherly love continue 1 John 1.20 If any man saith he loveth God and hateth his Brother he is a lyar and the truth is not in him for if he
loveth not his Brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen We believe saith John in the next Chapter that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and he that loveth the Begetter must also love him that is begotten You would be loth to do otherwise in civil business will you refuse commerce with a man because he is contrary to you in opinion because he is not a Freeman of your City be not then so far from loving one another as to bear hatred one to another Thus you have heard what I had to say unto you by way of caution and counsel Oh that they may make such impressions on your hearts that they may be your continual practice in your lives and conversations I shall now close with the words of St. Paul 2 Cor. 13.11 Finally Brethren Farewel be perfect be of good comfort be of one mind live in peace and the God of love and peace shall be with you And the Lord grant that both ye and I when we come to the Judgement Seat of God render up our Accounts with joy and receive an immortal Crown with Christ in Heaven until which Day I beseech Almighty God to keep you and preserve you in his fear Amen FINIS Mr. Lye's SERMON Preached at the conclusion of the Morning-Exercise in LOMBARD-STREET John 13.17 If yee know these things happy are yee if you do them IN these words two things observable First A Supposition which is double 1. If you know these things 2. If you do these things There be many that do but do not know do not understand there bee many that know but do not do do not practice But our Saviour to his Disciples is If you know first and then If you do Knowing without doing is unprofitable doing without knowing is impossible 2. A Position If you so know as to do then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 blessed happy are yee First for the Supposition which is double First If you know this word Knowledge in Scripture contains two things 1. It intimates an act of the mind or understanding If you know 2. It 〈…〉 of the 〈…〉 faculty of the soul if you â—o â—how as to 〈…〉 From both these significations you have these two Observations 1. Our first great care should be this with all seriousness to apply our selves to the knowledge of the things of the Gospel wee must with the Angels 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 stoop down to look into to have a clear thorow perfect sight of those things that are discovered in the Christall-glass of the Gospel Wee must look into the perfect Law of liberty James 2.25 2. As the word imports an act of memory or remembrance it affords us this Observation viz. Next to our knowing of it should be our care to retain and remember the glorious Truths of the Gospel 'T is all one not to remember as not to know wee must not only attend to Wisdomes words but must keep them in the center of our hearts Prov. 4.21 2. If you do hence observe 'T is not enough to know and remember but wee ought to do according to what wee know and practice according to what wee remember 'T is some slight kind of happiness to know but so to know as to do this is the happiness If you know if you do Wee must not only bee hearers of the word but doers of the word Knowledge without practice 't is Rachel like fair indeed but barren practice without knowledge were it possible Leah-like fruitful but blear-eyed both together Rachel's fairness with Leah's fruitfulness a fit Spouse for a Solomon 2. For the Position Happy are you if you do them hence observe There is a blessedness annexed to 〈◊〉 knowing the Truths of God as to remember and 〈◊〉 to remember as to do the work of that word Iâ— you know if you do not otherwise blessed are yee Thus I have cut the words in peeces The second Observation is that I would first commend from the supposition If you knew that carries in it an act of memory namely That as it is our 〈◊〉 care to know so it should be our next care to remember what wee have known To this end let mee help your memories by way of a Summary rehearsal of our Morning-Exercise The first Sermon that was preached to you was built upon Isa 55.3 Hear and your soul shall live From that Text this Doctrine That that soul shall surely live spiritually blessedly eternally that so hears as to come to Christ himself The grand question upon that point was this What is to be done that wee may so hear 'T was answered something was to be done before something at something after hearing First Before hearing That holy dutie of hearing calls aloud for holy preparation so much at least as settles the bent of the heart heaven-ward so much at least as makes us humble and hunger after spiritual Manna so much at least as raises the heart into a posture of expectation of some divine and spiritual good from God Secondly a right demeanour in or at hearing which consists First The hearer ought to propound to himself spiritual and right ends and that 1. Negatively This must not be the hearers end to come and judge either the Word or the Minister of it nor 2. To come and hear things that will tickle his fancy if hee desire that let him go to those sinks of all wickednesse Play-houses nor 3. Must wee propose this our end meerly to better our parts nor 4. Meerly to know much less meerly to bee known that it should be said of us that wee have been at the Morning-Exercise every day this month But our end should be to profit by what wee hear Psal 119.33 Wee should hear that our souls may live Secondly Wee must labour to approve our selves true Gospel-hearers And to that end 1. Wee must be wakeful hearers 't is dangerous sleeping by a Candle set up by God 2. Wee must be Reverent hearers in the fear of God wee must worship though not towards yet in his holy Temple 3. Attentive hearers our ears and hearts should bee like Lydia's open to attend to those things spoken by Paul Act. 16.14 4. Receptive hearers Wee must take in what wee hear Act. 2.41 And this must be done with Faith with Love with Joy with Delight with Meekness with particular Application and this too not as the word of such a man or such a Minister I abhor that wicked notion among you the head of such a party and I know not what But as it is in deed and in truth the Word of God That man never hears as a Saint that when hee hears doth not look mostly at the Word as it is the Word of the God of Saints And if thus wee apply our selves to the Ordinances truly wee are in immediate capacity to have the Glory Spirit and Power of Christ to rest upon us in hearing And this leads mee to The Second
chosen rather then Suffering not in wicked men onely but in the best of men for as in water face answereth to face so the heart of man to man which lets mee into The fourth Sermon Prov. 27.19 As in Water face answereth to face so doth the heart of man to man IN this Proverb two things 1. The Proposition and that by a Similitude As in water face answereth to face 2. The Redition So doth the heart of a man to man Or in the words these two generals to be observed 1. A Glass 2. An Object to be seen in this Glass 1. A Glass a notable one that 's two fold A dead Glass Water A living Glass the Heart of Man 2. The Object to be seen in these Glasses In the dead Glass the face of man is to bee seen In the living Glass the heart of man There 's all the Species and Complections of the Sons nay of the Souls of the Sons of men to bee seen That as by looking into the water you may discern your own and other mens Countenances and that plainly and clearly So by looking into your own hearts if you could have a Casement into the hearts of other men there may you see of what Spiritual Complection Constitution and Make you are as clearly as a man may see his face in Water As in Water c. From these words this great Truth that the heart of every man in the world is a looking-Glass 'T is such a looking-Glass wherein he may see himself his Condition Constitution special Complection whether it be morally spiritually scripturally good or evil For the right improvement of this looking-Glass three things necessary which are optick principles but clear to those that have either phisical or natural light 1. There must be an Object that must bee seen And oh what visible objects are there in the hearts of men Man is call'd a little world a compendium of the whole world The heart of man is the man The heart of man is like the Ark of Noah which contains all sorts all kinds of clean and unclean Beasts 'T is an Epitomy of Heaven and Hell What is there in the heart of man Who but God can fathom the depth of it There are more objects in the hearts of men then Stars in Heaven or drops in the Ocean 2. There must be light to actuate this object If it were dark we could never see it There must be light both to actuate the eye and object Now this light that actuates the eye and object 't is either the natural light the light of Nature the light of Conscience the light of common Illumination the light of the Word or the light of the Spirit of God By all these lights we come to look into this looking-glass our hearts 3. There must be an Irradiation from the object i. e. a beaming forth from that object some Species or Ideas that carries the object to the eye and clearly makes out to the sence what that object is this beaming is by action from the heart mark it for it may be as necessary truth as was Preached among you that look what the stream is to the Fountain what the beam is to the Sun that the action is to the heart whether the act be manent or transient whether Internal in thought purpose election affection in joy in love in fear or External in the life in the practice and in the conversation So that look as a puddle stream alwaies declares a corrupt Fountain So all your humble holy faithful thoughts speak a clear spiritual heart within a holy Conversation speaks a holy Affection and a holy Affection declares a heavenly Constitution a new Nature Now for the Use of this is the heart of man a looking-Glass 1. See from hence of what concernment the actions of men are whether Internal or External The actions of men are like the streams you may certainly find the Fountain by them they speak the heart as the Root bears the fruit 'T is of infinite concernment 't is the Fountain of what principles within and conversation without descend but into thy own heart c. 2. This shews the sad condition of all natural poor souls your hearts are looking-Glasses but they are looking-Glasses in a Dungeon of darkness there be Toads Vipers and Devils there but thou canst not see them that hast no spiritual Light 4. Here is Consolation to Gods People Is the heart of man a looking-Glass What reason have they to rejoyce in their hearts that are the best looking-Glasses in the world not like our Gallants looking-Glasses that must not bewray their wrinkles sports c. But theirs will represent their Hearts Complexion Condition and Nature to them Nay in that Glass may be seen the face of a God Nay further because thy heart doth answer to another heart and his to his what ever Grace in any Beleevers it is there in thy heart semine there 's the seed 4. By way of exhortation Is the heart a looking-Glass then keep the looking-Glass very chary make much of it above all keepings keep thy heart and that with all diligence in all places at all times and in all things If any thing under Heaven will keep thee holy it is the keeping of thy heart There thou mayest see all thy spots defects desperate Hipocrisies Infernal Atheism all the deliques of thy Soul How prone to commit as vile sins as ever committed by the vilest of the sons of men once more keep it clean and keep it close Look into thy heart and thou shalt find it to bee a Coppy of the Role of Eternity where thou shalt see thy very name written in Letters of Gold or Blood for wee looking into our hearts may and do know that we are passed from death to live and that upon this ground because we love the Brethren And thus I advance to The Fifth Sermon 1 John 3.14 We know that wee have passed frâ—â— death to life because we love the Brethren IN these words five things 1. A supposed Estate in which we are all by nature and that is an Estate of death spiritual 2. A peaceable Recovery or mention of another state an Estate of life 3. A real Transition from this state of death to life we are passed c. 4. An inseparable property of all Regenerate souls in the world they do not hate but love the Brethren 5. A comfortable Conclusion that a Christian may make from that property he may know hee may be assured by this that he is passed from death to life because he loves the Brethren The observation thus a Christian may know his real Conversion and Transition to eternal life by this Character among the rest because he loves the Brethren This proposition was slipt into these two particulars 1. That every Beleever may have an assurance of his Transition from death to life 2. That love to the Brethren is one of the great eminent Symptomes of mans
that Ring As if a man in a Pulpit should come to shew what a brave Scholler he is this is to over-value Reason 2. Do not under-value Reason We have had a strange fancy that if a man that could not read English would but come and talke and preach to us he was far more desirable then a Black-Coat that hath been at University and learnt his root there as they say you will be glad of such as these This Learning hath spoiled all the world do you not know how many Schollers are Atheists and their learning made them the worse c. This is not the fault of their Reason had they more Reason they would improve it better It is want of Reason that makes them not Crucifie their Lusts Because corrupt men many times reprove that which is good will you therefore cast it off 2. For the Matter of Pauls Preaching and here observe 1. 'T is suitable to his hearers Faelix was a Judge though a corrupt one and so he reasons of Righteousnesse He and his Whore lived in Adultery and so he preaches of Temperance of Judgement to come know God will call thee to judgement Hence observe The Gospel is then preached aright when suted to hearers hearts conditions constitutions A man in the Pulpit ought not to shoot at random Paul speaks ad rem to his hearers suitably tells them of Righteousnesse Temperance Judgement to come 2. Consider it with Relation to his Scope which was to bring them unto Christ and what doth hee do He Preaches Grace Mercy and Peace no not a word of that but Righteousness Temperance Judgment to come Paul was a convincing Preacher hee knows his way to bring home Faelix and Drusilla to Christ was first to convince them of their sin and the wrath of God due to sin The whole summe of Pauls preaching is a preaching by way of conviction Sin and misery must be preached for this end that it may bring men unto Christ wee must not make men half dead and there leave them but bring them to the Chirurgion all our conviction is only for this end that you might be brought to Christ by Grace to Glory 3. For the Effects of Pauls preaching Paul preached and Faelix trembled doth not Drusylla tremble 'T is more then probable shee brought Paul to preach there that Drusylla had a months mind to hear what he had to say but Faelix trembled Hence observe Those that are first in enjoying may be last in receiving the Gospel Drusylla was a yet turns a wicked Apostate yet when come to hear a Sermon her Heathenish Husband Faelix that served the Devil instead of God trembled but not she Back-sliding Professors from the Truth are infinitely farther from melting under the Gospel then profane sinners that never heard of it A man had far better go and preach to Heathens then Apostates Then for the words Faelix Trembled Why There was Righteousness prosecuted and convinced Judgement to come threatned against him Now his knees begin to smite together now the Writing on the Wall now Faelix trembles Oh! poor soul wouldst thou not tremble at the hearing of the Preaching of Judgement to come submit to the Judge before he come wouldst thou not have thy Judge to condemn thee then Let him be now thy King to Rule thy Prophet to instruct thy Priest to reconcile Would you avoid the terrour of a Judgement to come Accept of the offer of a Christ coming coming did I say Nay he is come already Do but lay your ear close to that third of the Revelations and the twentieth you shall hear your Judge knocking which brings mee to The one and twentieth Sermon Rev. 3.20 Behold I stand at the door and knock if any man hear my voyce and open the Door I will come in to him and will Sup with him and he with mee THese are the words of our blessed Saviour words Coyned as it were for the close of the morning Exercise A continued metaphor wherein you have 1. An Important thing of weight intimated in that particle Behold 2. The state of men in the visible Church implied though they profess a Christ high thoughts of him and obedience to him yet many most of them keep their hearts shut against him behold I stand without at the door 3. Christs dealing or transaction with the poor Creatures for opening their hearts to him and that in four things 1. His standing waiting or dancing attendance on the soul and the place where I stand at the door 2. His earnest desire and importunity of entrance and knock 3. His call and Invitation for where a hearing is injoyned there must needs bee a calling implyed 4. The Argument or Motive he uses to perswade poor Creatures to let him in 1. Ab honesto If he will but open I will come in and take my abode An admirable thing to have such a Tennant 2. A Jucundo I will sup with him I will vouchsafe him fellowship and communion 3. He shall sup with mee There shall bee mutual fellowship between him and mee what I have shall be his and what he hath shall be mine we will walk love and lodge together I will lodge with him and he shall lodge with mee 4. To whom this invitation is made to every one all if any man or woman that â—ave sleighted my Ministers voyce months or years if 〈◊〉 he will open I will come in 5. The Sinners Duty and Interest 1. The opening the heart when Christ knocks that 's his duty because Christs Invitation is his command 2. His Interest because then Christ will come in c. The Doctrine was When Christ knocks and calls at the doors of our hearts 't is our Duty and Interest to open admit and let him in These two questions were proposed and prosecuted 1. When or now is Christ said to knock and call at the hearts of sinners 2. How sinners are said to hear and open 1. How is Christ said to knock and call at the hearts of sinners 1. If you regard the means whereby hee knocks i. e. by natural light of conscience within or by the light of the Ministry and Gospel without 2. If you regard the manner of Christs knocking or calling 't is either externally by the Word Ordinances Providences his Rod hath a voice as well as his Word or internally by the Spirit of God that accompanies that Word by the means of Grace by the motions of his Spirit 2. How are sinners said to hear his voice and open 1. For hearing it must not be an external but an internal hearing a hearing of the heart through the heart it must be a particular distinguishing hearing it must know the voice of Christ it must be a sensible an humble satisfying hearing 2. For opening it is either 1. Spâ—â—â—al opening at first when the door is shut those everlasting doors are at first open to entertain the King of Glory in our first Conversion 2. Progressive i.