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A62626 Sermons preach'd upon several occasions by his Grace John Lord Arch-bishop of Canterbury ; the first volume.; Sermons. Selections Tillotson, John, 1630-1694. 1694 (1694) Wing T1260; ESTC R18444 149,531 355

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also have confidence in the flesh if any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh I more circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel c. And yet he tells us he was contented to forgoe all these advantages for Christ and the Christian Religion v. 7. But what things were gain to me those I counted loss for Christ And not onely these but if there were any thing else that men value in this world he was willing to hazard that also upon the same account v. 8. Yea doubtless and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. In which words the Apostle declares the high esteem he had for the Christian Religion which he calls the knowledge of Christ Jesus his Lord the excellency whereof appear'd so great to him that he valued nothing in comparison of the advantages which he had by the knowledge of it My design at this time from this Text is to represent the excellency of this knowledge of the Christian Religion above that of any other Religion or Institution in the world And here I shall not consider the external evidence which we have of the truth of Christianity and of the Divinity of its doctrine in which respect it hath incomparably the advantage of any other Religion but onely the internal excellencies of the Doctrine it self abstracting from the Divine authority of it And that in these four respects First As it does more clearly reveal to us the nature of God which is the great foundation of all Religion Secondly As it give us a more certain and perfect Law for the government of our lives Thirdly As it propounds to us more powerfull Arguments to perswade men to the obedience of this Law Fourthly As it furnishes us with better motives and considerations to patience and contentedness under the evils and afflictions of this life Now these are the greatest advantages that any Religion can have To give men right apprehensions of God a perfect rule of good ●ife and efficacious arguments to perswade men to be good and patiently to bear the evils and sufferings of this life And these shall be the heads of my following discourse I. The Christian Religion doth more clearly reveal to us the nature of God than any Religion ever did And to have right apprehensions of God is the great foundation of all Religion For according as mens notions of God are such will their Religion be If men have gross and false conceptions of God their Religion will be absurd and superstitious If men fancy God to be an ill-natur'd Being arm'd with infinite power one that delights in the misery and ruine of his creatures and is ready to take all advantages against them they may fear him but they will bate him and they will be apt to be such towards one another as they fancy God to be towards them for all Religion doth naturally incline men to imitate him whom they worship Now the Christian Religion gives us a more perfect and a more lovely character of God than any Religion ever did It represents him to us as a pure spirit which the Heathens did not generally believe and that he is to be worship'd in such a manner as is most suitable to his spiritual nature which not onely the Heathens but even the Jews themselves were extremely mistaken about God is a spirit says our Saviour and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth It is true indeed God himself did command sacrifices to the Jews and all those external and troublesome observances of which their Religion did consist But then it is to be consider'd that he did not institute this way of Worship because it was most suitable to his own nature but because of the carnality of their hearts and the proneness of that people to Idolatry God did not prescribe these things because they were best but because the temper of that People would then admit of nothing better And this the Scripture gives us several intimations of Psal 51.16 Thou desirest not sacrifice thou delightest not in burnt-offerings saith David And elsewhere more expresly to this purpose I spake not unto your Fathers says God by the prophet Jeremiah nor commanded them in the day that I brought them forth out of the Land of Egypt concerning burnt-offerings and sacrifices but this thing commanded I them saying Obey my voice A sufficient intimation that God did not primarily intend to appoint this way of worship and to impose it upon them as that which was most proper and agreeable to him but that he condescended to it as most accommodate to their present state and inclination And in this sense also some understand what God says to the same people by the Prophet Ezekiel Ezek. 20.25 that he gave them statutes that were not good And as the Christian Religion gives a more perfect so a more amiable and lovely character of the Divine nature No Religion that ever was in the world does so fully represent the goodness of God and his tender love to mankind which is the best and most powerfull argument to the love of God The Heathens did generally dread God and looked upon him as fierce and cruel and revengefull and therefore they endeavoured to appease him by the horrid and barbarous sacrifices of men and of their own children And all along in the Old Testament God is generally represented as very strict and severe But there are no where so plain and full declarations of his mercy and love to the sons of men as are made in the Gospel In the Old Testament God is usually styl'd the Lord of Hosts the great and the terrible God But in the New Testament he is represented to us by milder titles the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ the father of mercies and the God of all consolations the God of all patience the God of love and peace nay he is said to be love it self and to dwell in love And this difference between the style of the Old and New Testament is so remarkable that one of the greatest Sects in the Primitive Church I mean that of the Gnosticks did upon this very ground found their heresie of two Gods the one evil and fierce and cruel whom they call'd the God of the Old Testament the other good and kind and mercifull whom they call'd the God of the New So great a difference is there between the representations which are made of God in the Books of the Jewish and the Christian Religion as to give at least some colour and pretence for an imagination of two Gods II. Christian Religion hath given us a more certain and perfect Law for the government of our lives It hath made our duty more plain and certain in many instances than either the Philosophy of the Heathen or the precepts of Moses had done It commands universal love and kindness and good