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A26337 A sermon preach'd at White-Hall on Sunday, September 8, 1695 being the day of thanksgiving for the taking of Namur, and the safety of His Majesty's person / by J. Adams ... Adams, John, 1662-1720. 1695 (1695) Wing A485; ESTC R20047 10,228 27

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A SERMON Preach'd at WHITE-HALL ON Sunday September 8. 1695. BEING The Day of Thanksgiving for the taking of Namur and the Safety of His MAJESTY'S Person BY J. Adams A. M. Rector of St. Alban Woodstreet Published by Order of the Lords Iustices London Printed for Thomas Bennet at the Half Moon in St. Paul's Church-Yard 1695. A SERMON Preach'd at WHITE-HALL c. ON PSALM xxxiii 1. Rejoyce in the Lord O ye Righteous for Praise is Comely for the Vpright PRaise is so easy so pleasant and so profitable a Duty so readily acknowledg'd by Reason and-so justly claim'd by Revelation that there has never been much pains requir'd to persuade men to the performance of it But as all the Passions are difficultly govern'd when they rise to Excess so Joy which is the ground of this Duty is not only unruly in its own Nature but men are apt to Encourage it so much and give it such a loose upon any Publick Occasion that they seldom stay to consider the great Object of their Praise or what are the proper Qualifications to make it Acceptable But the Psalmist leads us to both these in this Excellent Psalm and whoever peruses it with attention will find that He had Consider'd well the adorable perfections of God before He presum'd to Rejoyce in Him and that He could never have been so Great a Master of Thanksgiving had not His Piety qualify'd Him for being a Prophet and the uprightness of His Heart made it worthy of Inspiration and from hence it is that He breaks out into this Holy Rapture Rejoyce in the Lord O ye Righteous for Praise is Comely for the Upright The Persons which the Psalmist calls upon here in particular are the Righteous and accordingly I shall endeavour to show 1. That Good and Righteous Men are most Oblig'd to the Duty of Praise and most fit to perform it 2. What is the True and Proper Object of Praise and the Reasonableness of it Applying Each particular to the present Occasion 1. That Good and Righteous Men are most Oblig'd to the Duty of Praise c. There are many of God's Blessings that are Universal in Regard to these the Duty of Thanksgiving should be of as large Extent But since some Men partake more particularly of His Favour since 't is with regard to the Righteous and sometimes for their sakes only that Whole Kingdoms and Nations Enjoy Publick Benefits They are in a more particular manner oblig'd to Gratitude and Thanksgiving They ought to be the most Early and most Active in their Praise and that too in Order to the spreading and promoting of God's Glory The Example of Good Men will always have an Influence upon the Worst part of Mankind for those Who deride Piety and Virtue in Private are Glad to imitate them in Publick There is such a Natural Beauty in Goodness as Commands Esteem and Veneration therefore People Readily joyn with those who are Righteous and out of an Opinion of their understanding and integrity take their Actions upon trust without farther Examination Whatever then can any ways Contribute to God's Glory What outward respect soever ought to be paid to Him in any part of Devotion This should be undertaken Chiefly by the Righteous not only in Consideration of What they owe to Their God but also of what they owe to their Neighbour Especially in matters of Praise and Thanksgiving Which are so pleasing and delightful in themselves that Every Body will readily joyn in the Offering of them But the Righteous are not only more Oblig'd to this Excellent Duty upon these Accounts but they are also most fit to Perform it and that for these Reasons 1. Because such Men are always Humble and Ready to Acknowledge their Unworthiness of God's Gooodness 2. Because They have a Quick and Lively Sense of it and are apt to be tenderly and passionately affected with it 3. Because They have always a Solid Foundation of True Joy in a Good Conscience 4. Because of that fitness and Congruity which there is between Praise and other Vertues I. The Righteous are most fit to perform the Duty of Praise because they are always Humble and ready to acknowledge their unworthiness of God's Goodness Humility is the chief ground of Gratitude and Praise and Nothing makes men wanting in these Virtues so much as Pride But where is Humility to be found to that Degree as in the Righteous The Sum of All Religion is the Knowledge of God and the Knowledge of our selves The more We know of God the more perfect and Excellent we find Him the more we Know of our selves we discover the more Weakness and Misery But no one can be so sensible How Wide these Extreams are as the Righteous man and Therefore no one can be so Humble so ready to acknowledge His Unworthiness of God's Goodness whenever it is manifested towards Him There are too many men that look upon Gods Benefits as their Due there are others that think the designs they have Compass'd the Estates they have Rais'd their Success in Peace or War is all thro their Own Prudence and Industry and therefore are more ready to Sacrifice to their Net as the Prophet speaks to themselves than to their God This kind of Pride Moses foresaw in the Israelites and therefore he warns them Deut. viii 14.17 That after God had shown such Great Wonders for them they should beware least they should forget the Lord and say in their Hearts my Power and the might of my Hands hath done this How much more Reasonable is that of Holy Jacob when he reflected from how many Dangers God had delivered him I am not worthy of the least of all thy mercies nor of all the truth which thou hast shewed unto me Alas If we Consider what God has done for us and yet the Stubborness and Ingratitude of a great part of this sinful Nation That neither the long Experience of God's Goodness nor the terrours of his Justice have been able to move us to Repentance but that old Heresies in our Faith are again reviv'd with the greatest Confidence that instead of mending in our Practice we have plainly grown worse and added the Vices of War to those of Peace If we Consider this how much more justly ought we to acknowledge that we are not worthy of the least of God's temporal mercies nor of that truth that saving Truth of the Gospel which He has show'd unto Us in a more Excellent manner than to any other Nation and Humble our selves into Praise and thanksgiving accordingly II. The Righteous have a quick and lively sense of God's Goodness and are apt to be Tenderly and Passionately affected with it and therefore are most fit to praise Him Good men are Acquainted with the Ways of God their thoughts are always taken up and Possest By Him nor are their Understandings Corrupted by prejudice or Weakned By intemperance so that they perceive Him immediately in His Works of mercy and