Order and Purity and will make Religion and Truth to flourish to our Praise and Renown Abroad our Peace and Comfort at Home and to further and facilitate our attainment of Eternal Life hereafter Amen SERMON IX On REV. II. 17. He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden Manna and will give him a white stone and in the stone a new name written which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it THESE words were first directed to the Church of Pergamus but they were not intended for that Church only for every one is required to give ear to them We have all the same Vocation the same Obligations are on us and the same rewards are proposed to us and therefore likewise we are all tied to the same Duty The different Stations and Orders of the Church do indeed call for some difference in Persons behaviour but otherwise all Christians have the same task enjoined them and what is spoken to one is spoken to all The first thing here called for is an Attention to the Voice of God a listning to what his Spirit saith unto us Let him who hath an ear hear c. So likewise began the Law and the Prophets for their usual Preface was Hear O Israel Hearing is a sign of a ready and willing Mind and is necessary to prepare the way to those other Acts and Exercises required of us It is indeed neither the only nor the main thing we have to do and therefore they who are only Hearers deceive themselves as St. Iames speaks As the Body would be deformed if it were all Ear so that Mans Religion is mis-shapen which is wholly exercised in Hearing But however Hearing is necessary it must not swallow up all other Parts of the Christian Service but neither must it be slighted and neglected He who turns away his Ear and will not hear shews an averseness to his Duty and though he would set himself to it he could not go rightly about it for all our knowledge of Spiritual things comes by Hearing This is not to be fetcht from within and therefore he who heareth not must continue in gross Ignorance We should begin with Hearing and we should never cease to hear that we may be informed of our Lord's Will that we may be kept in Mind of it and finally quickned to it as Servants wait daily on their Masters to know their Pleasure and to receive their Commands so should we wait on God I will saith the Psalmist hear what God the Lord will speak This is every ones Duty none are exempted from it not the Ignorant to be sure nor yet he who thinks he hath Knowledge The Man of leisure and he who is retired from the World can pretend no excuse nor will the Man of business be excused if he neglect to hear As many as have Ears and Faculties to perceive are obliged and commanded to hear for the words of our Text are Let him who hath ears which certainly comprehends all and every one But as we are obliged to hear so we ought to take heed how we hear as it is Luke viii 18. That we hear aright else we had better not hear at all Now he hears not rightly who lets only the Voice or the sound of the Word strike his Ear But who suffers it to pierce thorow to his Mind and inner Man and to leave an impression there Wherefore as we must hear so we ought to have our Ears well purg'd of whatever may stop what is spoken from going to the Heart or hinder its working there For the hearing here required is opus animi non auris It 's a pondering with the Mind as well as hearkning with the Ear. Wherefore as St. Iames adviseth we ought to lay aside prejudice and filthiness and all superfluity of naughtiness and to receive with meekness the ingrafted Word of God And sure none can refuse this who considers either the dignity of him who speaks or the excellency of what is spoken He who speaks is greater than Socrates or Plato or any of the ancient Philosophers whom many travelled far to hear speak He is greater than Solomon whom the Queen of Sheba was so desirous to hear And what is delivered doth not tickle the fancy but satisfies and ravishes the Mind It is not airy Notions and fruitless Speculations which we are bid hear but a Word which is able to save our Souls And that we may hear this joyful and comfortable Word we must not listen to the dictates of our corrupt Nature nor to the Maxims of a degenerate World nor to the particular Traditions of Elders for these do often misguide us and tho' sometimes they seem to speak fair yet they only flatter that they may the better deceive and ensnare us to make void the Commandments of God Neither the Clamours of the People nor the Calls of the Court are always to be hearkned to for the Psalmist tells us that both the one and the other have sometimes consulted and conspired against the Lord and against his Christ. We must not answer every Voice nor believe every Spirit for there be many Lying and false Spirits in the World But we must only hearken to what the Spirit of God saith and then we are sure not to be deceived This holy Spirit sometimes speaks to us by inward Motions and Inspirations to Truth and Goodness and would certainly do it oftner if we were rightly disposed and careful to attend to them but it always speaketh to us in the Scriptures they are the Voice of God which we ought to hear for no Scripture is of private Interpretation neither did the Penmen of Scripture speak and write of their own Head but as they were moved by the Holy Ghost So then it is not Man who speaks to us in the Scripture but the Spirit of God And seeing God is not like Man that he should alter his Mind seeing his Will as his Nature is unchangeable therefore nothing is from God which contradicts what is said to us in the Scripture and therefore also whatever Voice we hear whether within us or without us we ought to compare the same with what the Spirit saith to the Churches in the Scripture If it agree therewith we have reason to believe and obey it But if they sound not alike if there be no Harmony but a perfect Discord betwixt them then that is not from God It is but a Cheat and Delusion which disagreeth with the written Word and ought to be rejected whoever brings it But it is to be remembred that the quoting Texts of Scripture and the speaking in Scripture terms is not a certain sign that they who do so are true Prophets or that their Doctrine is true and from God for Men may and often do wrest the Scripture and use it ignorantly and impertinently The Devil when
are now ashamed is not the end of these things death for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Iesus Christ our Lord. Let not therefore sin reign any more in your mortal bodies that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin but your members as instruments of righteousness unto God Be not afraid or discouraged at his Laws for there is none of them grievous saith the Apostle St. John The law of the Lord is perfect saith David Converting the soul his statutes are right rejoicing the heart they are more to be desired than gold yea than much fine gold sweeter also than honey or the honey-comb And in keeping them there is great reward For if being made free from Sin we become Servants to God and have our fruit unto Holiness our end shall be everlasting Life to the which God bring us all in his good time Amen SERMON XI A PREPARATION TO THE Holy Communion HEBREWS X. 22. Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil Conscience and our bodies washed with pure water THese Words are an Inference or Conclusion drawn from a Doctrine formerly delivered as appears from the illative Particle Therefore in the 19th Verse And there you have also the Summ of the Doctrine it self viz. That there is now free access unto God through Iesus Christ which the Apostle declareth in figurative Expressions with an Allusion to the Jewish Temple not only because he was writing to Hebrews but also because that Temple and the way of entering thereinto was a Type of this great Truth which is revealed by the Gospel That Iesus Christ is a true and the only Mediator betwixt God and Man that by him Men may confidently draw near to God and hope for Acceptance St. Paul has asserted and endeavoured to make out in the former part of this Epistle and indeed he hath proved and made it most evident so that there can remain no doubt thereof except in those who obstruct their own Conviction not desiring to be convinc'd Now the proper and practical Improvement of this certain important and most desireable Truth is what you have in the Words of our Text For they contain an Exhortation to lay hold on this gracious Privilege and with all they shew us how and after what manner we should do it so as to obtain it I shall first speak to the Exhortation it self next of the Qualities here required of such as design to comply with the Exhortation and lastly make Application of all to the present business of the Sacrament To begin then with the Exhortation which is in these words Let us draw near To what or whom we should draw near is not here express'd but is to be gathered from what goeth before whereby we understand that it is God to whom we are here desired to draw near And seeing it is so by drawing near here cannot be meant any Motion of our Body towards God for as to his Glorious and Majestick Presence in the Heavens we cannot approach it though we would and as for his other Essential Presence neither can we avoid it though we would too for he fills both Heaven and Earth Whither shall I go from thy Spirit Or whither shall I flee from thy presence said David If I ascend up into Heaven thou art there If I make my bed in hell behold thou art there To draw near to God therefore is a metaphorical Speech and must be understood not of any natural Action of the Body but of some moral Action of the Soul viz. The Desires and Endeavours after Peace and Reconciliation with God For because those who are Enemies and at variance together use to keep a Distance and shun each other's Company therefore in Scripture they who never think of God take no Care to please him and those who make no Difficulty to offend him are said to be far from God and to go a whoring from him And on the other hand because those who lay aside their Enmity and are desirous to be made Friends usually meet and resort to one anothers Company therefore drawing near to God in the Scripture Language is put for the Inclination of our Souls toward him the seeking to have all manner of Enmity betwixt God and us quite removed and that a true firm Peace be made up with him Sin is the Cause and Occasion of that Enmity which is fallen out betwixt God and Man And one would have thought that all the Difficulties of Reconciliation with God should have been on his part That his Justice his Honour his Authority should have interposed and not only not suffered him to accept of Peace but also to have obliged him utterly to destroy those despicable silly Creatures who had the foolish Insolency to rebel against him and to counteract his Will and Pleasure But behold Jesus Christ hath removed all Difficulties on God's Part he hath found out means to satisfie the Justice and to salve the Honour and Authority of God though Man be not destroyed though his Sin be passed over and pardoned God's Wrath is pacified he now looks favourably upon Man and is willing to receive him into Favour and to renew a Covenant of Grace and Peace with him whereby he obligeth himself to deal with Man as if he had not sinned as if he had never rebelled against his Maker Now could it have been expected that such a gracious Offer should not have been readily embraced But which is unaccountable Man stands out and will not be reconciled to God God hath made great Condescension and Man will make none God wooes and intreats and Man draws back and runs away God calls and sends Message after Message and the other will not hear he stretcheth forth his Hands but no Man regardeth he waits but they will not come or draw near Thus each acts as 't were not his own part but what in all Appearance doth more properly belong to the other God acts as if he were in Man's stead and Man behaves himself as if he were in the Place of God for as if God were the poor the needy the inferiour and miserable Party he sues and humbles himself first and as if Man were an independent Sovereign and All-sufficient Being who needed no Aid from any he rejects all the Treaty and disdains this proffered Friendship O! Wonderful Condescension of God And O the Stupidity and Foolishness and Madness of Man What Words are sufficient to hold out either of these And how hard is it to determine which of the two is most astonishing Whether God's Behaviour towards Man in seeking him offering Pardon and Peace or Man's Behaviour towards God in refusing and slighting the same Do ye thus requite the Lord O foolish People and unwise O ye sons of men how long will ye turn my glory
forth It is the express Condition of all the Promises and without Faith it is declared That we cannot look for Mercy Pardon or eternal Life And this is not a new thing introduced by the Gospel But the Divine Oeconomy from the beginning of the World did require Faith which is a Second Proof of its being absolutely necessary now As it appears now to be the chief Condition required of Men under the Gospel so it was under the Law as St. Paul declares Heb. ii Nay before the Law as appears from Abraham and the other Patriarchs Of Abraham it is said That he believed in the Lord and he counted it to him for righteousness Gen. xv 6. Moreover Faith was exacted of Man even before the Fall while he was in a State of Innocence For the two Trees of Knowledge and of Life which God set apart in Paradise and the Interdiction of the First by that severe Sanction in that day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die was to try and exercise Man's Faith Thus the Divine Oeconomy before the Fall and ever since before the Law under the Law and by the Gospel hath always required Faith as a necessary Condition to the obtaining God's Favour In respect to the certain and unalterable Order and Method of which Oeconomy it is that St. Paul saith without faith it is impossible to please God And tho' the Counsel of God be secret and his Methods for the most part unaccountable yet the Reasonableness of this doth appear from this that without Faith in this present State we neither can acknowledge all the Divine Attributes nor yet worship him with all our Faculties His Veracity Truth and Faithfulness cannot be owned otherwise than by Faith by believing his Word assenting to his Declarations relying on his Promises and trembling at his Threatnings And as all those Divine Attributes can only be acknowledged by Faith so it is only by Faith that we worship him with our Understandings It is reasonable that we worship God with the whole Man all our Faculties ought to pay him Homage But how can he have Homage from our Understandings unless we believe It is only by Acts of Faith that we declare the Submission of our Judgment to God for if we will admit or receive nothing but what is demonstrable and what we can clearly comprehend then we deny God's infinite Wisdom and Knowledge and refuse to own his Reason to be above our own which is intolerable Pride and Insolence For this Cause even to try our Faith and to give us occasion to pay him this due Homage of our Reason and Understanding it is that God proposeth to us Mysteries which are incomprehensible and hence it is also that he often absconds himself as it were he worketh not always in a God-like manner that is in a splendid glorious or such a visible Way as may force Acknowledgment from Men but often after a secret and covert manner under the Shadow of Means and Instruments of divers sorts that hereby it may be proved whether we believe him Almighty and the wise Disposer of all things and Author of all Events In the other World Faith shall cease there will be no place for it because there will be a present immediate Intuition of the Divine Nature and Attributes but now that we are absent from the Lord we walk by Faith Thus you see that as Faith is required here so it is necessary and why it is so I have also briefly laid before you And as the Text obliged us to speak of this so the times we live in make it necessary for Atheism and Infidelity are setting up their Heads and some have the Impudence in this licentious Age to dispute both the Reasonableness and Necessity of what God has clearly revealed As for you My beloved I beseech you build your selves up in your most holy Faith and let not the weak Efforts of insolent Wits shake your Faith Stand up and strive vigorously for the Faith of the Gospel which has been confirmed by so many Miracles and Prophecies by such evident Demonstrations of the Spirit and Power that if it be hid it is hid to them that are lost in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not least the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the Image of God should shine unto them Take heed Brethren saith St. Paul lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God When we let go Faith and entertain an Heart of Unbelief we depart from God lose the Promises forfeit Heaven render our selves uncapable of Mercy and give our selves to a reprobate Mind here and to Damnation hereafter He that layeth aside Faith may also put off the Name of a Christian and all the Pretensions which that Name may give to Blessings earthly or heavenly bodily or spiritual temporal or eternal For Faith is necessarily implyed in that Name and as requisite to him that would deserve it as the Skill of Law or Physick to one that sets up for a Lawyer or Physician or Philosphy to a Philosopher Seeing therefore we own our selves to be Christians that we may be worthy of so sacred a Name let us evermore pray God with the Man in the Gospel Saying Lord encrease our Faith and help our Unbelief But now it may be very pertinently asked what this Faith is which is thus required In answer to this St. Paul hath told us the first and lowest Acts of Faith when he saith He that cometh to God must first believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them who diligently seek him We must begin with the Belief and Perswasion of God's Existence Power Wisdom Providence and what else Reason and the Light of Nature teacheth of him But then that our Faith may be perfect we must add to it Knowledge and extend it to all the Manifestations which God hath made of himself from time to time we must embrace all the Divine Revelations and what they contain All the Declarations Laws Promises and Threatnings in God's Word are proposed as Objects of Faith and by Faith we ought to receive them that is we must own and acknowledge them to be of God and by a constant regard to them in all our Actions testifie the Firmness and Sincerity of this Belief and Perswasion More particularly our Faith must respect the Person Offices Doctrine and Actions of the Lord Jesus Christ we must receive him as the Person who was promised to Adam Abraham and the Patriarchs who was foretold by the Prophets prefigured by the Law expected by the Jews and even waited for by the Gentiles we must receive him and rely upon him as the Son of God and Saviour of the World we must embrace him as the Person whom God hath set forth to be a Propitiation for Sin and the Mediator by whom and through whom only we have access unto
in it self and is become so peevishly selfish that it cannot move but by the narrow springs of Self-love Now all Persons and Things are only considered with a relation to one's self and a Concernment for them is more or less according as they are found more or less useful Consider Men in their present Natural state before the Grace of God and true Religion inspire and enable them all their Actions are performed only with a respect to themselves and their own particular Interest they look only to their own things and providing these things be well they are not concerned how it fare with others nay are so far from thinking themselves obliged to those Vertues the Apostle is recommending so far from looking upon this humble and charitable serviceableness as commendable or praise-worthy that they are ready to condemn it as a mean silly officiousness some think it far below them that it is a debasing of themselves and their Quality and Character to serve Inferiours to bestir themselves for their Advantage especially if their former Carriage and Behaviour has been a little provoking and not so obliging Wherefore St. Paul to take off Mens prejudice against these Vertues of humble Charity or charitable Humility to perswade them to the practice of them he shews they are Divine and God-like and for a proof of it he proposeth the example of the Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing readily will more convince enflame and animate than the Example of some great Person And if the Example of Men have a powerful Influence what ought the Example of God himself to have And if it be not below the Deity if it has not been thought unworthy of the Godhead to condescend to serve Man nay if the God-head has accepted the occasion for furthering its Glory and upon that account has been employed in very humble Offices how ambitious should Men be of this temper of Mind how ready and forward to embrace the occasions of shewing it Can Men act more honourably than to act like God Can any thing more become them than to imitate and resemble him Now that by humbling themselves to serve others to give them true Pleasure or Profit that this way they come to resemble God doth eminently appear from the Lord Jesus Christ who being in the form of God c. Thus you have a view of the Words with a reference to the Scope and Purpose of the Apostle in this place We proceed next to consider them abstractly and so they hold forth those Three very important Points of our Religion First The Pre-existence and Godhead of Jesus Christ ver 6. Secondly His Incarnation and Humanity ver 7. Thirdly His Humiliation and Ignominious Death ver 8. So that from the Text alone all the Ancient and Modern Enemies of our Blessed Lord and Saviour may be clearly baffled and all those damnable Heresies which either divest him of his God-head or deprive us of the comfort of his powerful Mediation and meritorious Death I say such damnable Heresies may from this Text be plainly refuted So pat is this Text against the Socinians that they are exceedingly gravelled with it and use a great many Subterfuges to shift the force of it by which they discover their own disingenuity and shew that their not embracing the Truth proceeds not from want of sufficient Conviction but because they bear not love and good will to the Truth Thus say they the word which is rendered Form in the 6. v. imports never any reality of substance but only a mere semblance and appearance and so Jesus being in the form of God is no more than that there appeared some Rays of Divinity in him and about him that he was vested with some shadow of Divine Power while in the mean time he was in himself and in his Nature only a weak Man as others Thus they play with the word Form as if it were exclusive of all reality And by this means what St. Paul saith here of Jesus might be with as great truth said of some of the Prophets and especially of Moses To this is replied by Dr. Hammond and other learned Criticks that the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is never used for an external or accidental appearance but for such visible tokens as flow from and are the Effects of a real Essence and so according to the common acceptation of Authours the word which we have for Form is all one with Nature or it doth signifie the external or visible appearance of an inward and real or natural Essence I shall not trouble you with Instances to prove this But even the Unlearned may see this from the Text for as St. Paul speakketh of the form of God so of the form of a Servant and sets those two in opposition If therefore the one was real why not the other If by the one all acknowledge the Nature of Man why should not the Nature of God be understood by the other And seeing the Apostle doth not ascribe to Jesus Christ the form of a Servant more positively than the form of God therefore unless we turn the whole Gospel into a Sham and all its Mysteries into imaginary Dreams and Visions and make the Apostles who published them so many Visionaries we must say that Jesus Christ was as really in the form of God as in the form of Man that is was God as really as Man and did partake of the real Essence and Nature of the one no less than the other Again to give you a further instance of the Socinians Dis-ingenuity in this place As they dwindle the other words he thought it not robbery to be equal with God into just nothing and endeavour to put this gloss on them viz. That he would not boast himself equal to God nor retain those Rays and Appearances of Divinity communicated to him to the prejudice of the God-head which is to pervert the Apostles plain words and to put a contrary sence on them So they contend that all this 6th Verse is to be understood of Jesus Christ after he was Born and had made his appearance among Men that is he was Man before he was in the form of God or in that state in which it was no Robbery or no Presumption and Usurpation in him to pretend an Equality with God And if this be not to wrest the Apostles words to make him speak Nonsence and to give the Lye to his plain Assertions I know not what may be said to do it When I consider how the Socinians treat this and other Passages of Holy Scripture how they rack their Invention to do force and violence to the plainest Texts and rather than own or receive the Truth they will father Nonsence Absurdities and palpable Contradictions upon the Pen-men of Scripture I cannot but look upon them as willful Resisters of the Truth who are without all excuse If one search for the Truth but cannot find it he is to be pitied if he shew
and Consummation of this visible Frame at the last Day all these things I say and more than we know were designed for the Glory and Honour of Christ And as they have all a reference to him so the Beauty and Wisdom and Goodness of those Divine Transactions are not cannot be seen but by Establishing the Incarnation of the Son of God and Therefore to reject this great Mystery is to set at nought the Eternal Purposes of God and all those Glorious Designs which his Infinite Wisdom and Goodness have Devised This is to smother the Divine Wisdom and Goodness which is conspicuous in these things and to deny and deprive him of that Glory which so much Wisdom and so much Goodness and so many and so great Expressions thereof do bring unto him Wherefore not to acknowledge Jesus to be the Son of God our Lord and God as it is wilful and unaccountable Obstinacy there being so many Irrefragable Testimonies and unquestionable Proofs thereof so it is inexcusable Impiety and downright Rebellion against God He who doth not receive the King's Vicegerent nor will own him whom he Deputes and Entrusts with the Government both affronts the King's Authority and reproacheth his Conduct he reflects alike on his Prudence and Authority And is he not guilty of the same Crime Is he not equally wicked against God who rejecteth his own Son whom he hath sent into the World for to this purpose God hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name that at the name of Iesus every knee should bow of things in Heaven and things in Earth and things under the Earth and that every tongue should confess that Iesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father Now this owning and acknowledging of Jesus Christ the receiving him as the Son of God is what the Apostle calls the having the Son as appears from the following Verse where he expounds it by believing on him And in the following Epistle Verse 9. he makes it to be the abiding in his Doctrine He then hath the Son who believes in him who receives his Gospel who gives a full and hearty assent to the truth of all that is said of him either as to his Nature or Offices the Dignity of his Person or the Power and Privilege he hath received from the Father In a word he hath the Son who stedfastly believes whatever he has Revealed concerning God or Man our present Condition or Original State our Duty here or Reward hereafter for if we believe him to be the Son of God we will believe also whatever he hath delivered and will not fail to adhere to this Belief and Perswasion Thus we see That it is Faith in Christ to which Life is here promised But we deceive our selves if we think it any kind of Faith a bare knowledge or naked Speculation of Gospel Truths a mere and simple assent to them which rests in the Brain and Understanding and goes no farther No this is not that Faith which is so magnified in Scripture and to which so many glorious things are promised Many may have all that this comes to and yet fall short of Life Many will say to me in that day saith Christ Lord Lord have we not prophecied in thy Name and in thy Name cast out Devils and in thy Name done many wonderful Works And then I will profess unto them I never knew you depart from me ye that work iniquity True Faith is always Lively Active and Operative it is not barren and Unfruitful it ever worketh by Love and keepeth the Commandments it purifieth the heart of Pride and Lust and casteth down Imaginations and every high thing that exalteth it self against the knowledge of God and bringeth into Captivity every thought to the Obedience of Christ it rectifies all inward Disorders and makes us New Creatures framed according to the Image of God in Christ it so renews us to the Spirit of our Minds and so conforms us to the Son of God that our Thoughts are his Thoughts his Ways our Ways we love what he loves hate what he hates believe what he Promises and obey what he Commands so that our Life is hid with Christ in God And of every true Believer it may be said as St. Paul saith of himself I am Crucified with Christ nevertheless I live yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the life which I live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me Look what those Saints and Worthies recorded in the Epistle to the Hebrews did through Faith they subdued Kingdoms wrought Righteousness obtained Promises stopt the mouths of Lions quenched the violence of Fire escaped the edge of the Sword out of weakness were made strong waxed valiant in fight turned to flight the Armies of Aliens c. Was not this a strong and a noble Faith Now such must our Faith be for as our Apostle tells us Verse 4. of this Chapter it must overcome the World he that believeth that Iesus is the Son of God he it is that overcometh the world and all that is in the world viz. the lust of the Flesh the lust of the Eyes and the pride of Life Thus you see what Faith is that it is no mean and silly thing that it is no dull lazy unactive Principle but that it is strong and mighty quick and powerful in its operation Be not deceived then my Friends Examine well whether you believe in Christ whether or no you have the Son of God dwelling in you by Faith and do not flatter your selves with the conceit unless it be so indeed Consider O Man and tell me Art thou sensible of thy Misery by Nature of thy guilt thrô thy manifold Transgressions Dost thou feel the Necessity of a Saviour Dost thou run to that Fountain which is opened to the House of David and to the Inhabitants of Israel for Sin and for Uncleanness Dost thou hope in the Mercy of God and rely upon the Merits of Christ And art thou therefore humble and penitent and ready to forgive and resolved to amend thy Life Dost thou or art thou sincerely resolved to resist the Devil and wrestle against all Temptations not in thy own but in the Name and Strength of Christ Can'st thou despise the Vanities of the World all sublunary Riches and Pleasures can'st thou freely quit them rather than offend thy God Is thy Heart with God and can'st thou confidently trust him with thy self and all thy Concernments and wait for the accomplishment of his Promises Is thy Care are thy Thoughts and Endeavours chiefly employed about the Kingdom of God and the Righteousness thereof how to grow in Grace and the Knowledge of Christ how to abound in good Works and to bring forth Fruit unto Holiness that thy End may be Eternal Life Can'st thou answer to those things positively Dost thou find
Fears The difference betwixt the godly and the wicked may be compared to that of two Persons at Sea in a most dangerous Storm where there is Hope of saving Life but nothing else But the one has a goodly Inheritance to live upon when he comes to Land and therefore cannot be much cast down whereas the other having lost his whole Stock and Substance is not only miserably damped with Grief for the Loss of that but also quite confounded with the Thoughts of his after Poverty and Misery Thirdly This Doctrine of the Certainty of another better Life serves greatly to comfort us under the Miseries and Calamities of this and therefore that we may have this Comfort let us both firmly fix the Belief of it in our Hearts and also frequently meditate thereon It is in vain for any to expect to pass thorow this World without Trouble and Affliction and there is no true support under any Affliction but the lively hope of that glory which is to be revealed with this one may bear the heaviest Cross chearfully and without it the lightest Affliction may overwhelm the spirit For this cause saith St. Paul we faint not for though our outward man perish yet the inward man is renewed day by day for our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory Cheer up thy Spirit whosoever thou art that liest under the pressure of any Affliction if thou repentest of thy Sins if thou lovest God and be resolved to walk so as to please him why shouldst thou be cast down Lift up thine Eyes unto yonder Regions above and consider what an Interest thou hast there what a blessed Inheritance is there reserved for you Is thy condition here uneasie and troublesom and art thou still tossed about remember when thou comest there thou shalt have all Rest and Peace Art thou hated by Men and persecuted with their Hands and Tongues let not that vex thee seeing thou art Beloved of God and hast Friends Above who will shortly receive thee unto their everlasting Habitations where are good things which neither eye hath seen nor ear heard nor can the heart of man conceive them Take the spoiling of your Goods joyfully knowing that ye have in Heaven a better and an enduring substance Dost thou here suffer the want of all things bear it for a while patiently for when thou ascendest Heaven and enter'st into the presence of God thou shalt find fulness of joy and rivers of pleasures for evermore The bitterness of this Life shall be abundantly recompenced by the sweetness and happiness of the other There it is where we shall be comforted for all the days wherein we have been afflicted For there men shall hunger no more neither thirst any more neither shall the Sun light on them nor any heat for the Lamb which is in the midst of the Throne shall feed them and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes When Columbus set first out to Sea in order to discover a New World he suffered unspeakable Straits Hardships and Difficulties The very reading of them is astonishing yet he still bore out by the hope of discovering Land which was very faint and uncertain for he only conjectured that there might be such a thing Now if such a faint and uncertain hope of an Earthly Country could make one run upon so many Hazards and bear up under such Disasters what a support to our Minds and a Comfort to our Spirits should the hope of an Heavenly Country be a Country whose Riches and Glory and Felicity we poor Mortals cannot conceive much less express And which is no Dream or Conjecture but which is clearly demonstrated to us by the Word of God And from which nothing can obstruct us if we be but stedfast and immoveable and always abounding in the work of the Lord. Death might have prevented Columbus's Discovery and robb'd him of that Satisfaction but Death cannot impede our passage unto Heaven for it is the very means of entring into it It is the very loosing of the Fetters and removing the Cloggs which detain us in this miserable Life and a setting us at Liberty to return to God whence we came and to take possession of that glorious Life which Christ hath purchased for us Fourthly and lastly Is there a Life after this and a blessed Life too Then certainly it becometh us to give all diligence to secure it for our selves 't is no less our Interest than our Duty It will not fall to our Lot by Chance and without we use true endeavours after it It is true Jesus Christ hath purchased this Life for us and payed the price of it without which no Man could ever have expected it But still it lies on us to qualifie our selves for it by the Performances of those Conditions on which it is granted and these are Faith and Holiness First We must have Faith for without this saith the Scripture it is impossible to please God And if it be impossible to please him without Faith it is impossible to expect Heaven without it for he will never admit one there who doth not please him He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life and he that believeth not on the Son shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him If you ask what Faith is It is to believe the Existence of God his Almighty Power his Infinite Wisdom his Incomprehensible Goodness and his most Wise and Watchful Providence It is to give a most hearty assent to the Truth of his Word to the Authority and Goodness of his Laws to the ineffable greatness of his Promises and to the Justice of his Threatnings It is to receive with Zeal and Affection the Lord Jesus Christ to own the miraculous Nature and Dignity of his Person and to acknowledge the Necessity Vertue and Usefulness of his Offices of Prophet Priest and King Finally it is to admit by a profound Humility the Incomprehensible Mystery of the Trinity and to depend upon the Influence and Operation of the Holy Spirit the third Person of the God-head Our Faith must comprehend all this And without this Faith no Man can be saved For unless a Man believe all that God has clearly proposed he not only does not honour God as he ought but he actually dishonours and affronts him Now the true evidence of this Faith is Holiness which is also the other Condition required of those that would be saved Faith without works saith St. Iames is dead And without holiness saith St. Paul no man shall see the Lord Heb. xii 14. How fit and proper unsanctified Persons may be for settling and propagating Christ's Kingdom upon Earth I do not well know but this I know and am sure of that none shall share of his Heavenly Kingdom but they who are pure as he is pure
he tempted our Saviour quoted Scripture but we ought to look to the nature and tendency of the Doctrine and consider whether it agree to the Scope of the Scipture in its particular Precepts for that is the true Standard and Measure Ye shall know saith our Saviour the tree by its fruit Now the sum of what the Spirit saith to the Churches and to us by the Churches in the Scripture is what we have in the Text viz. To him that overcometh c. In handling of which words we shall first explain what is meant by overcoming Then Secondly what is the Reward here promised to him that overcometh As to the First seeing there is mention here of overcoming that necessarily supposeth Fighting for there can be no Victory without Fighting and if there must be a Fight there must also be Enemies for we cannot fight but against Enemies And by this it appears that the Life of a Christian is a Warfare and that by coming to Christ we become Soldiers who are engaged to fight Idleness and Ease is not the End of our Calling nor are we listed merely for shew and ostentation for we are called to Wrestle and Fight and that so stoutly and valiantly so constantly and stedfastly until we overcome It is not enough to begin to make ready and present our selves to the Battel nor yet to Fight a while to hold out against two or three Onsets but we must never turn back never yield or give over but must hold out to the end and so too as to carry away the Victory for the Promise is here only to him that overcometh As in the Olympick Games none got the Prize until he had first got the Mastery over his Antagonists and as among the Romans a Triumph was granted not to him that had essayed the War but to him who had come off Victorious So Christians are not to expect these glorious things here proposed unless they have not only enterprized the good Fight but gained a Victory therein If any man turn back saith God my soul shall have no pleasure in him But blessed is he who endureth to the end for the same shall be saved Heb. x. 22. But then you 'll ask whom we are to fight with and after what manner In the first place our Text speaks not of Carnal Fighting we are not to understand it of Mustering Human Forces of Encamping Armies setting of Battels laying of Sieges making Assaults upon Cities to take them nor of using these or any other Stratagems of War where there is occasion of shewing Military Art and Valour and where only Carnal and Material Weapons are used The Rewards of these Earthly Victories are Conquests of new Dominions the Submissions of the Conquered acquirements of great Power and Riches the erection of Trophies in the places of Victory Publick Triumphs and the result of all Vain-glory and false Renown which reach not further than this lower World But the Manna the white Stone and new Name and the Glories signified by them are true substantial and eternal and regard the life to come which is Everlasting And tho' doubtless some great Warriors are in Heaven some great Conquerours will triumph with the Lord Jesus at the last Day yet most of those who acquired Kingdoms in any Ages here below will lose that above and be condemned at the last Judgment as Thieves Robbers and Murtherers for Plunder and Rapine and shedding of Blood But as for those few warlike Princes who have gone to Heaven they have not got thither by their mighty feats of Arms but by the Justice and Equity of their respective Causes for which they took up Arms and by using of them with Mercy and Tenderness and with a sincere intention for Peace or else if their Wars were Unjust by true and serious Repentance for all the Violence committed in them and by making Restitution and Satisfaction for all Injuries to their utmost power But the Spiritual Conquerours cannot fail of Heaven their very Conquest entitles them to it and all the Glories of it because it is a Spiritual Conquest and the Weapons of their Warfare are not Carnal but Spiritual and the World the Flesh and the Devil the Enemies which they conquer are Spiritual Enemies against which they Arm themselves with the whole Armour of God with the Girdle of Truth the Brest-plate of Righteousness the Shield of Faith the Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God because as the Apostle saith we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against Principalities against Powers against the Rulers of the darkness of this World against spiritual wickedness in High places Eph. vi 12. More particularly if we do well consider these Letters to the Seven Churches which our Lord shuts up with these words to him that overcometh we shall find the Enemies he proposeth to be encountered are such as go about to destroy our Faith to defile our Worship to extinguish our Charity and to stain the Purity of our Christian Life and Conversation Persecutions and Trouble for the sake of the Gospel or any part of it Idolatry and Superstition Heresie and false Doctrine the Corruption and inordinate Lusts within us and the Pollution and wicked Practises of the World without us are the things we have to struggle and wrestle with And the word overcome in our Text hath a reference to a perpetual War which ought to be maintained against all and every one of them For it is not enough to attack or resist stoutly any one of them if we do not withstand all He doth not overcome according to the Text nor can he claim the Reward promised therein who strikes in with any one of these or meanly yields to it though he stand never so stiffly out against the rest As for Example He cannot be said to overcome who resists Errour and false Doctrine and yet suffers himself to be captivated by Vice or Sin nor is he to be accounted Victorious who meets Trouble and Persecution with Courage and Undauntedness and in the mean time is not careful to keep a sound Faith and a good Conscience it is Treachery and Cowardice to yield to or make an Agreement with any Enemy whatsoever But wherein will you say doth this Victory properly consist Doth Christ require us to destroy the Superstitions and Idolatries of the World to amend the Corruption of the Age we live in and to stop Persecution and Trouble which come upon the Church For according to the usual way of speaking he overcometh that gets the upper hand of his Enemies and ruins them Truly the Church of God should not suffer Idolatry and Superstition to creep into its Worship and should guard its Discipline and Constitutions from being vitiated and if it were in her power to deliver her self from Persecution by ways just and lawful the Motions of Nature would induce thereto and Nature in this is not contrary to the
somewhat more Spiritual than what these amount to But to leave this and come to an Application This Text in both parts may be accommodated to the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper These words Let us draw near may be without stretching applied to our coming to this Ordinance for this is one way of drawing near to God and the most solemn we can make in this Life and an earnest of that intimate admission into his glorious presence hereafter and hereby also is set forth that which procur'd us this gracious Privilege viz. The Death and Sufferings of Jesus Christ. Wherefore those who desire to draw near to God and would have the comfort of his Favour and the hopes of everlasting Glory should embrace readily and chearfully the occasion of the Sacrament And to speak freely to you I know nothing can keep People from this Sacrament and make them slight it but the want of a true desire after God and the little concern they have for their Eternal Salvation I pray God forgive those who have made some believe it a mark of Religion or greater Sanctity to withdraw themselves from our Communion I intreat you be not easily deceived believe not every Spirit but examine well what you hear whether it be agreeable to Truth None that knows the Truth or loves the Purity of the Gospel can join in Communion with the Church of Rome But I appeal to all your Consciences if there be any Doctrine taught in this Church or any thing practised in our Worship disagreeable to the Word of God And if there be not why should Persons withdraw from our Communion And what can excuse such withdrawing These Tables are indeed too seldom covered but when they are covered let them be filled with Guests and if they be not what a shame is it Let not this poor Church be miserably torn with needless and unwarrantable separations whereby we become both a prey and a laughing-stock to our Enemies How comely a thing is it saith the Psalmist for brethren to dwell together in unity and it is as profitable as comely Are the Times bad We should meet to pray God to make them better Is this a wicked generation That should not make us forsake the assembling our selves together but we should the rather do it to provoke one another to love and good works Let not any pretend a liberty of doing what they please or say they are not accountable to us whether they go or come Consider I pray you that you are all accountable to God as also as Christians and Members of his Church you are all accountable to his Ministers especially to his Supream Ministers under Christ the Bishops to whom you are subject as to your Spiritual Superiours and ought to obey them This is his Command and therefore you are obliged to do what he Commands and not what is right in your own Eyes or in the Eyes of others let therefore his Laws be punctually observed and his Ordinances waited on And let none take to themselves a Dispensation from any of these lest they incurr his displeasure which of all things is most to be feared But though I wish all would come to this Sacrament yet I would not have any to come unworthily and without due Preparation for St. Paul has told us the sad danger of that Now what is required to render one worthy you may learn from the Text he hath the wedding garment who hath the qualifications in the Text. Let me therefore beseech you all to retire Home to lay aside the thoughts of other Business and in all seriousness to examine how it stands between God and you see whether you be already adorn'd with these Qualifications here spoken of if you have them rejoice and bless God and come up to Morrow to the House of God and to this Sacrament that they may be confirmed and perfected in you If as yet ye are Strangers to these Qualifications do not resolve to withdraw for that is to continue in your sin and so without God but be ye rather more earnest this Night in acquiring them In so short a time 't is true you cannot bring them to Perfection but you may have them in Sincerity which for the present will be admitted O! rouze up your Faith and let it operate in your Minds besprinkle your selves with the Tears of true Contrition and cleanse your selves with stedfast Purposes of departing from all Iniquity and of keeping ever hereafter the Commandments of God and if you do so you shall go back justified in God's Sight Amen SERMON XII On HOSEA X. 12. Sow to your selves in righteousness reap in mercy break up your fallow ground for it is time to seek the Lord till he come and rain righteousness upon you THESE words contain a sound and wholsome Advice to a miserable People lying under the weight of God's Anger and threatned with many sad and grievous Judgments The People were Israel the Children of the Ten Tribes with whom God had a Controversie because there was no Truth nor Mercy nor Knowledge of God in the Land They had cast off the Service of the true God and corrupted themselves with the Idolatry Superstition and other Abominations of the Heathen Nations among whom they dwelt For which God's Wrath was kindled against them and this Prophet was sent forth to intimate the Divine Displeasure and how severely it would fall on them But the Divine Threatnings are for the most part like Ionathan's Arrows shot for Warning rather than Destruction In the midst of Wrath he remembers Mercy and when he denounceth War he intends to spare and therefore denounceth it that Men may be awakened to their Duty and so prevent if not the Temporal Evils which they deserve yet their Eternal Ruin which is worst of all Wherefore it is that the Prophet so often intermixeth his Threatnings with Exhortations to Repentance Obedience and seeking the Lord as here in our Text. This Advice has no particularity in it to restrain it to those to whom it was here given but it may very well suit with any other People who are desirous of God's Favour and have reason to fear his Displeasure Nay here is laid down the general and indispensable Conditions on which any People may expect Peace and Reconciliation with God and the sure means of obtaining good things from him and so they are proper to be considered by you at this time Hosea speaks here in Metaphorical terms borrowed from Husbandry which as it is the most ancient Employment of Mankind So according to Cicero it is of all others most becoming and worthy of a Gentleman and hath employed the Pens of the greatest among the Romans and there is a great deal both of Grace and Force in the terms of it to carry the things recommended by the familiar use of them home to the Minds of Men and render them more effectual Upon which account nothing is more
and do justice on those who had been the Instruments of their Misery he would set them at Liberty and restore them to their Prosperity and Glory which is meant by bringing them to the Light And then to their great comfort and joy they should behold and understand his righteousness that is That he is just and righteous in all his ways true and faithful in his promises and wonderful in all he doth as David said I know O Lord that all thy judgments are right and that out of faithfulness thou hast afflicted me Psal. cxix 75. Thus I have explained and cleared the Text and shewn you the Occasion Sense and Scope thereof I proceed next to draw such Observations and Instructions as the words afford and as are useful and proper for our consideration And First To rejoice at the Calamities and Afflictions of others and to insult over them who are in Misery is a sign of a Prophane and Ungodly Spirit They who rejoiced at the Calamities of the Israelites were the Idumeans Chaldeans and Babylonians who were no greater Enemies to them than they were to God and the true Religion And Psal. lxix 26. among other Characters of the Wicked this is one That they persecute him whom thou hast smitten and talk to the grief of those whom thou hast wounded When Iob declareth his Integrity he giveth this as one proof thereof That he rejoiced not at the destruction of him that hated him nor lift up his soul when evil found him Neither saith he have I suffered my mouth to sin by wishing a curse to his soul. To make God's Judgments on others tho' Enemies a matter of Laughter doth very much bewray a want of the Spirit of God and is inconsistent both with the true Fear of God and that Love and Concernedness for others which Religion requires and inspireth They who truly fear God will tremble to see him Angry tho' it be not against themselves but others When the Destruction of the Wicked is foretold it is said That the righteous shall see and fear And accordingly the Prophet Habakkuk foreseeing the Evils and Calamities that were to light upon the Tents of Cusham and the Land of Midian was so far from rejoicing and insulting thereat that he tells us when I heard my belly trembled my lips quivered at the voice rottenness entred into my bones and I trembled in my flesh Indeed it is added in the forecited place That the righteous shall also laugh And Psal. lviii 10. it is said the righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance But hereby is meant that as the righteous is careful to remark all the Acts of the Divine Providence and in particular his exemplary Punishments on notoriously wicked Persons so he will Applaud the Justice and Equity of them and he will be glad to see such evident and convincing proofs of a Deity and Providence for silencing the Atheist and restraining the wickedness of men though still his joy is mixed with a secret regret at the occasion and such an aweful apprehension of the Power and Justice of God as forbids him to mock at the Effects and Expressions of his Displeasure Even as a wise and good Citizen rejoiceth at the good Government of his City and finds a satisfaction in the procedure and execution of Justice which are too grave and important to be mocked at Again the rejoicing at the Calamities of others is inconsistent with the Spirit of Religion which is a Spirit of Love and Humility and which requireth the greatest Love and Sympathy that can be among Men its Precepts are love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them that persecute you and despitefully use you Rejoice with them that rejoice and weep with them that weep If thine enemy hunger feed him if he thirst give him drink Now how little do they observe these Precepts and how little have they of that Spirit which enjoins them who can contrive and work Mischief to their Brethren and when it falls on them behold it with Pleasure We may say to such what our Saviour said to his Disciples who would have been calling for Fire from Heaven on those who would not receive them you know not what manner of Spirit you are of The Miseries and Distresses of others call for Pity and Compassion and one must have put off very much of the Man who draweth Pleasure from the Miseries and Afflictions of other Men tho' they be Enemies Our Saviour knew the Wickedness of Ierusalem and that he was to be crucified therein yet as he drew nigh to it he wept over it by Reason of those sad Calamities which were coming upon it It was David's Interest that Saul was dead yet he did not rejoice at his Death but because the manner thereof was deplorable he mourned for him As it makes Herodias infamous that she rejoiced to see the Head of Iohn Baptist in a Charger so it is recorded to the Commendation of Alexander and Iulius Coesar that neither of them insulted over the Defeat and Distress of their Enemies the first was touched with Compassion when Darius his Mother Wife and Children were taken Prisoners and brought to him and afterwards when Darius himself was killed And the other wept when Pompey's Head was brought to him I know some charge these Tears of Coesar with Hypocrisie seeing he was the Man who pursued Pompey to Death but who knows but the Bowels of Nature at that time overcame his Ambition and other Passions Thirdly They who insult and rejoice in this wise are ignorant of themselves and also of the End of these Divine Judgments they cannot know they are Sinners and that others are so and so punished in their sight to fill them with Fear and to lead them to Repentance otherwise they would make other Uses thereof and would behave themselves otherwise When a Father chastises a Child is it to give Mirth to the rest Or is it not that they may stand in Awe of him and forbear those things which may bring the Rod on their own Back When any Criminal is laid hold on and brought to publick Punishment should they who are equally guilty stand by and laugh either at the Misfortune of their Fellow or the Execution of Justice What Stupidity were this Should they not take Warning and Fear and forsake those Ways which are attended with such Shame and Pain When some told our Saviour of those Galileans whose Blood Pilate mingled with there Sacrifices he answered them Suppose ye these Galileans were Sinners above all others because they suffered such things I tell you nay but except ye Repent ye shall all likewise perish And in Truth they who set light of the Afflictions of others and entertain the Rods on other Mens Backs with Scorn and Derision shall hardly escape themselves Laugh no Man to scorn in the bitterness of his Soul for there is one
but be sure to carry away the Victory If the Devil assault you resist him till he flee from you Are you persecuted troubled and afflicted maintain a Christian Courage and Magnanimity bear all with an invincible Patience and suffer the utmost rather than do what is dishonourable what may offend God or wound your own Conscience Doth the wind of false Doctrine blow from all quarters let us take heed that we be not carried away therewith let us search for the Truth and never suffer Lyes and Falshoods to have any Impression upon us And that other Errors may not find entrance let us shut out that great and gross one and the Mother of many viz. That it is no matter what Men think or believe that Opinions are not dangerous for the Apostle tells us That there are some Heresies damnable All Truths are not to be alike accounted of nor are all Errors dangerous But certainly some Truths are of such importance and are delivered with such evidence that to deny or question them is to resist God and question his Veracity and there are some Errors which debauch the Understanding as much as Vice doth the Heart and the one doth alienate from God as well as the other If we be tempted to mingle our Devotions with Idolatry and Superstition that the Worship of God may be splendid and magnificent let us not yield for God is not to be Worshipped with that which pleaseth him not nor must we study to Honour him by ways which he has forbidden Neither out of a pretext of shunning this let us be carried to the other extreme of Indecency Irreverence and of a nasty Familiarity Whatever be in vogue among others let us both in publick and in private keep up that Worship which is grave serious and deliberate which is suitable to the Majesty of God and proper to beget in us great and worthy thoughts of him which kindleth our Love to him heighteneth our Reverence and Esteem for him which instructs us in his Will and quickeneth our Obedience to his Commands Finally and particularly let us with all care escape the Pollution that is in the World thorow Lust let us stave off Vice and withstand the wicked Practices of this Age we live in and study to be found the Children of God without all rebuke even in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation whatever be the practices of others let us make it our business to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearance of the Son of God If we do not strive to overcome in this last particular our Victory in the rest will be to little purpose What will it avail us to stand out against Persecutions to resist Errour and Heresies Idolatry and Superstition if we be Slaves to Lust and suffer Sin or any manner of Impiety to reign in us All our Zeal for Christ's Kingdom without will profit us nothing if we do not set it up within us Though we Prophesie in Christ's Name and in his Name cast out Devils and in his Name do many wondrous Works yet if we do the works of Iniquity he will say to us in that day Depart from me I never knew you Thus you have seen your task and what as Christians is required of you Your task indeed is great but your Assistances are as great and if you resolve to acquit your selves well you must be active and diligent There is no place for Idleness or Loitering You have much to do but however do not despond for there shall be strength given you from above He that is with you is greater than any that can be against you If you have the heart be ready and willing God will enable you to overcome the greatest Goliah of the Philistines And if at any time you should faint look unto Iesus the author and finisher of your Faith let his Example direct and encourage you and as he did also look unto the Recompence of Reward consider what shall be done to you if you overcome You shall not be so meanly rewarded as they were who obtained the Mastery in Olympick Games who only got Crowns of Flowers Laurels and Myrtles nor yet as the Romans when they returned Victorious over their Enemies who only had the Honour of a days Solemnity and Triumph nor is it a Crown of Gold which shall be bestowed on you which is the greatest reward to be expected in this World but it is a Crown of Life Glory and Righteousness I have fought a good fight saith St. Paul I have finished my course and henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness Nothing is reckoned more August and glorious than a Crown some have been at great Pains and have run many Hazards to win one But there is no Crown so glorious as this which awaits us in the other World The splendor of it is represented by the Whiteness of the Stone in the Text Its Excellency and Magnificence by the weight thereof and its Duration and Continuance by the firmness of it Be ye therefore stedfast and immoveable and abounding always in the work of the Lord Forasmuch as you see that your labour is not in vain And unto him who is able to make you overcome and who has promised thus to reward you if you do overcome be Glory Honour and Praise for Ever and Ever Amen SERMON X. On LUKE VI. 46. Why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I say THE Name of Lord is not only a title of Honour but it implies Dominion and Authority so that to call one Lord is to acknowledge him Superiour and to profess Subjection to him Christ is called Lord by David Psal. cx And is almost always design'd so in Scripture This Name is due to him both by vertue of his Nature and Office so that to call Iesus Lord is to receive and Acknowledge him for the Son of God the Messias or Christ and the Saviour of the World For these Reasons he is our Lord and is called so in Scripture and they do not understand what they say who do not mean these things when they call Iesus Lord. By the things which Christ saith is to be understood the whole Doctrine of Christ as it respects both Faith and Manners A true Disciple will receive whatever his Lord saith and will own all that his Authority is concerned in But he is disobedient and rejects his Authority who rejects either the Truths required to be believed or the things commanded to be done To do then what Jesus saith is to frame both the inward Temper and Sentiments of our heart and our outward Conversation according to the Doctrine of Christ it is to receive by a Sincere Faith all the Truths revealed by him and to make Conscience of observing what he has commanded The Credenda or things to be believed are
summ'd up in that short summary and form of sound words called the Apostles Creed The Agenda or things to be done are contained in the Ten Commands given to Moses that excellent Commentary thereon we have in the Sermon on the Mount and may be learnt from his other Discourses and the Epistles of the Apostles All which in short teach us to forbear Evil and to do Good to deny Ungodliness and Worldly Lusts and to live Soberly Righteously and Godly in this present World The Laws of Christ discharge all Sin and Wickedness both in the inward and outward Man and do require Purity of Heart and Life they teach us to lay aside all Covetousness and inordinate Desires to despise this present Life and to set our hearts upon the things above they order the putting off Wrath Malice Anger Envy and to put on Bowels of Charity and Compassion towards our Brethren To conclude the sum of what Christ saith to us for directing our Morals is that we should deny our selves that is freely and heartily renounce any thing though never so dear than offend God That we should take up our Cross that is chearfully and willingly patiently and contentedly submit to whatsoever Afflictions God is pleased to lay upon us and to undergo the trouble which cannot be avoided without Sin And lastly that we follow him viz. In the ways of Devotion Zeal Affiance and Love towards God of Humility Meekness Forbearance and Charity towards Men in which he hath gone before us and that we labour carefully to imitate that perfect example of Lowliness and Purity which he hath left unto us This is the sum of what Christ hath said and these are the things he would have observed by all who call him Lord. But what God hath joined together Men have learned to put asunder God hath united the Profession and Practice of Christianity he hath commanded that all who call and own him for their Lord and Master should also carefully do his Will But this is not much looked to these things Men separate from one another how contrary soever the same be to the Divine Institution In our Saviour's time we read of some who really believed in him they were inwardly perswaded that he was the Messias but yet they would not profess him openly for fear of being cast out of the Synagogue But now the Scene is altered and as there is no hazard in making a publick Profession of Christ so many avowedly do it yet withal they refuse to obey him they own his Name but never mind his Will and Pleasure they confidently call him Lord Lord but the doing what he saith is the least thing in their thoughts In These days Christ wants not Followers he hath Disciples enough the number of Christians is not small but they are such as are so only nomine tenus only by Name and Profession unless that they say so it could not be well known that they were the Disciples of Jesus Christ unless they were sometimes seen in the Church and heard to cry Lord Lord they might readily be taken for Turks Pagans and the Enemies of Christ. Now the Church is indeed pretty numerous but if the secret Atheist and the openly Prophane if the impious Scorner and sneaking Hypocrite if the Glutton and Drunkard the Fornicator and Adulterer the Covetous Unjust and Dishonest Person the Malicious Revengeful and Common Swearer in a word if the careless and indifferent and such persons were removed as are destitute of Piety and Good Works and such who are ordinarily guilty of gross Scandalous Crimes which are altogether inconsistent with the Sincere Belief of the Gospel I fear the remainder would then be but few and the Church would become as thin as now it useth to be throng I shall not be so peremptory as to say that there should scarce be so many behind in every Parish City and Congregation as Abraham desired to find righteous Persons in Sodom but sure I am the Number would be very small and inconsiderable Now that they whose Lives are contrary to the Rules of Christianity and who in their Works deny Christ should yet profess him with their Mouths and confidently pretend to all the Privileges of his true Disciples is somewhat strange and unaccountable for whatever doth perswade and excite us to believe in Christ doth also oblige us to obey him that which binds to the one makes the other also necessary And if our obedience may be any ways dispensed with it matters little whether or not we adhere to the Profession of the Gospel as our Saviour intimates to us plainly in the words of our Text Why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I say Which words may be understood either by way of Question or as an Expostulation I intend to consider them both ways And first as it seems a Question and taking it so it is as much as if he had said What mean you by professing my Name and giving me out to be your Master when you do not my Will neither offer to keep my Commandments What end do you propose to your selves in this What advantage do you expect thereby Can you shew any reason for this behaviour of yours If you be not ingenuous when you call me Lord what makes you flatter me And if you really think I am your Lord and Master why is not your Practice suitable and consonant to your Belief and Profession Consider I pray you and think with your selves and see if ye can give any satisfactory account of this This I say is the sense and meaning of the Text when we construe it as an Interrogatory the scope and design of which is to shew the great absurdity and unreasonableness of making a Profession of Christ without accompanying that Profession with a suitable Practice seeing whatever doth induce us to the one doth also oblige us to the other We have the same obligations to both and that this may more clearly appear we will consider a little the True and Reasonable Motives which perswade us to the embracing of Christ and shall shew that if we be ingenuous in owning and acknowledging them they cannot but stirr us up to pay him all due and holy Obedience But in reckoning up these Motives we do not think our selves obliged to count that as one which yet perhaps is the most common and general inducement I mean the Custom and Fashion of the Country The generality of Christians are so only because Christ is believed and professed in those Countries where they have been born and bred and they do profess the Christian Religion for the same reason that others do Mahumetanism and Paganism because this was the Religion of their Forefathers and that generally those about them do the like So that if it had been their luck to have been born in another Country and under another Climate they would have owned another Lord and been of another Religion I