are more desirable then Gold and Silver Then here we may see who are the richest men in the world and have the best treasure even those that have gotten most of the Word into their hearts not most of the world into their houses and into their possessions the Word is better than thousands of Gold and Silver They are the richest that have most of this heavenly riches let the word of Christ dwell richly in you Col. 3. To be rich in promises there 's the true riches and great riches Here we say he is a rich man that hath many Bonds or Ships or Houses or Lands that hath many Hundreds or Thousands lay'd up or abroad but he is the richest man in the Scripture account and in Gods account that hath most of the Word of God lay'd up in his heart that hath most light in his understanding most promises in his Soul that hath a good stock that hath a treasure within I have hid thy Law in my heart saith David So when Gods Law is hid in your hearts then you are the richest men the wealthiest men and men of substance indeed Thirdly Then I infer from hence that you may see a great difference between men and men between Saints and the men of the world The men of the world they prize Gold and Silver the Saints prize the Word of God Psal 119.72 The Law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of Gold and Silver David prized the Law of God more than his Kingdom or the Crown of Gold that was upon his head more than the Gold of Vphaz of Havilah and the Gold of Ophyr the finest Godl that might be had Fourthly If the Word of God be more desirable than Gold and Silver then certainly their loss is great that have the Word taken from them I mean the Word outwardly and the Ordinances and enjoyments when our Silver and Gold is taken away we cry out we are undone we are undone No no you are not undone if you have God and his Word but if Gods Word be taken away from men and women they are more undone than others It 's a great loss to lose that that is better than Gold Silver better than all the world There are many in the world at this day that are depriv'd of their Teachers of Sabbaths and of the Word of God They cannot read themselves and they have none to read unto them it 's a sad condition and a great loss unto them and those that rob them of these they must answer for it one day and they are very guilty that have done it Fifthly If the Word of God be more desirable than Gold and Silver then let us esteem if according to the value and worth of it above outward treasure above all Gold and Silver Joâ— esteemed the Word of God more than his necessary food people cannot eat Gold and Silver and House and Land but their necessary food maintains their lives and 't is more valuable than Gold and Silver If you could not have meat and drink what would your Gold and Silver do you good you would part with it all for a little bread for a little drink now Job did value the Word of God more than his necessary food O that we would set such a price upon the Word of God I love thy Commandments above Gold yea above fine Gold Let us all set such a price upon the truths of God there 's more worth in them than you can find out you have riches unsearchable in the promises and in the truths of God Phil. 3.8 Paul accounts all but dung for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus And where will you have that but in the Word of God prize it therefore at a high rate Psal 84.10 A dayâ—n thy Courts is better than a thousand elsewhere A thousand dayes are almost three years and one would think they might meet with brave things in such a time but one day in the Courts of God is better than a thousand elsewhere The Word of God is little esteemed in these dayes and every thing preferred before it but let it not be so with you Sixthly If the Word of God be more desirable than Gold and fine Gold then let us keep the Word of God as men keep their Gold and lay it up as men lay up their Gold and know the Word of God if you will lay it up it will be a defence unto you and a Buckler unto you Psal 91.4 his truth shall be thy Shield and Buckler Solomon tells you money is a defence and Gold is a defence it will defend you from the injuries of the world and wrongs of men so is the Word of God it is a defence it is a Shield a Buckler therefore lay it up safely as you would your Gold and Silver Job 22. The Almighty shall be thy defence so you read it but the Margent is the Almighty shall be thy Gold God would be your Gold if you would lay up Gods truth in your hearts God will be your defence he will be your Gold your treasure Seventhly Lastly if the Word and Testimonies of God be more desirable than Gold yea than fine Gold then let us desire it more than outward treasure let us desire it with ardent and strong desires with sincere desires with abiding constant desires with acting and endeavouring desires let us use our utmost endeavour to be enriched with these riches Psal 84.2 My soul longeth yea even fainteth for the Courts of the Lord my Soul longs saith David and my soul faints for the Courts of the Lord why what was there There was the Word of the Lord there were the Ordinances of the King in his own Courts and he long'd to be there where he might hear the word of God and have the benefit of the Word of God And in Psal 119.131 I opened my mouth and panted for I longed for thy Commandments Let us wait daily at the Courts of the Lord lot us long and take any pains we can for them Joh. 6. Labour not for the meat that perisheth all your Gold and Silver and these things are all of a perishing nature and will not continue long but let us labour for the meat that endureth to everlasting life part with your Silver and Gold which is from the earth to get Scripture Gold which is from Heaven To get Divine truths into your heads and hearts One question more Qu. You will say how shall we get our hearts and the desires of them more inflamed after the Word of God Ans First Consider your own poverty and what riches there are to be had in the Word when men consider they are poor men I am a poor man I have neither house nor Land I have neither Gold nor Silver and in such a place is a Mine and I may go thither and have riches enough this will inflame his desires Now consider your spiritual poverty consider then I have
scattered and are strengthened with strength in your souls how sweet is this Now there is true sweetness in acting for Christ a true friend will do Christ service and be thankful for the service because there is a great deal of sweetness in it 1 Tim. 1.12 saith Paul I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who hath enabled me c. putting me into the Ministry I thank the Lord Jesus Christ that hath put me into service he would not have been thankful unless he had found some sweetness in his service It will be our wisdom therefore to do all in the name of Christ if you would find sweetness in the name of Christ so David and the Princes when they had offered so willingly as in the 1 Chron. 29.13 14. Now therefore our God we thank thee and praise thy glorious name But who am I and what is my people that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort for all things come of thee and of thine own have we given thee Lord thou hast given to us and we have given to thee and we thank thee that we have had hearts to give unto thee how sweet delightful and pleasing is thy service therefore it will be your wisdom to do all in the name of Christ for it comes from love in you and you will find sweetness in doing for Christ and you will be thankful for the service you do upon that account Thirdly we should do all in the name of Christ from this consideration that it is a special means both to prevent sin and to promote holiness First to prevent sin 2 Tim. 2.19 Let every one that names the name of the Lord Jesus depart from iniquity He that names the name of Christ must depart from iniquity this is a preventing of sin now mentioning his name should make us depart from iniquity Why the Lord Christ himself he hated iniquity and loved righteousness His very name should mind us thereof Christ hates iniquity and I will depart â—som iniquity Secondly and acting in his name will put us upon holiness and labouring to he holy The soul saith will Jesus Christ do this I am a doing now but would Christ do thus would Christ think thus would Christ speak thus no Christ would not Christ would speak holy words and do holy actions and think holy thoughts therefore I must do as Christ would do I do all in his name we read of Alexander that had a Souldâ—er in his Camp that did bear his name when Alexander heard it he calls for the Soldier and asks him his name he told him his name was Alexander is it so saith he then see you do nothing unworthy the name of Alexander do that which becomes Alexander so do we bear the name of Christ we must do that which becomes the name of Christ do we bear the name of Christian we must do what becomes a Christian one said I could do this or that if I were not a Christian but I am a Christian and I dare not do this or that I dare not go into such Company I dare not drink healths I dare not be in the mode and fashion of the world And so in the Primitive times the question was have you kept the Sabbath the answer was I am a Christian I dare not neglect the Lords day I dare not speak my own words nor think my own thoughts nor find my own pleasure and why I am a Christian and so it promotes holiness therefore we should do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Fourthly Lastly we should do all in his name because it will unite and tye the heart of God and Christ abundantly to us Those persons who act all in the name of Christ they are faithful persons as a Servant that doth all in the name of his Master he is a faithful Servant The unjust Steward did not things faithfully he did things in his own name and therefore his Masters favour was not towards him he had none of his favour nor countenance his heart was alienated from him but those that do all in the name of the Lord Christ they are faithful and the heart of Christ is towards such and is wide unto such in Mat. 24.46 Blessed is that Servant whom his Lord when he cometh shall find so doing Blessed is that Servant why his heart is towards this Servant and pronounces a blessing upon him Blessed is that Servant whom his Lord when he cometh shall find so doing how doing doing all in my name and according to my will and for my glory doing all by invocation of my name O blessed is that Servant which when his Lord cometh shall find so doing his heart is greatly towards him The heart of his Master can trust safely in him all the dayes of his life as it 's said of the virtuous Wife Prov. 31.11 The heart of her Husband doth safely trust in her so that he shall have no need of spoil So the Lord Christ can trust in that man or woman who doth all in his name they are faithful and he can trust in them I it is a great honouring of Christ and Christ will honour such a one it 's an honouring of Christ honouring of Christs wisdom honouring of Christs power honouring of his word and name it is the highest service we can do to Christ to do all in his name and the Lord Christ will honour such an one his heart is tyed to him he dares trust him with all he commits his secrets to such So then you see the exhortation back'd with some motives why we should do all in the name of Jesus Christ One thing more which is what directions will you give us now to help us to do all in the name of Christ we see it is a duty a good work and we would gladly do it but what directions and helps may be given to further us therein First consider that the Lord Christ is your Lord. Whatsoever ye do in word or deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus if you be Christians he is your Lord Now our Lords commands our Lords will our Lords councels we must do them we must not do our own wills we are the Lords he is our Lord and therefore we must do his will Luke 6.46 Why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I say What do you call me Lord and will not you do what I say command and appoint you and do it as I appoint you do all in my name why do you call me Lord Surely if Christ be our Lord we must do all in his name and the more we shall think of Christs Lordship and authority over us the more will our hearts be inclined to do things in his name why he is the best of Lords he is a blessed Lord a sweet Lord a good Lord there is no Tyranny in this Lord no hurt in this Lord nothing but all for good in this Lord he
fruit of Christ where there is a spiritual life there is a spiritual taste where there is no spiritual life there is no spiritual taste at all Heb. 5. They had their senses exercised to discern between good and evil some have no spiritual senses they cannot discern between good and evil therefore they find no â—â—etness in the word of God that 's one reason men and women are dead in sins and trespasses and never are quickned with the life of grace Secondly Some have their tastes yet find no sweetness because they have a fullness of other things in them Prov. 27.7 The full soul loatheth an Honey-comb If there be a fulness in us nothing is sweet unto us now men and women are full of several things First some are full of the world Amos 8.5 when will the new moon be gone that we may sell Corn and the Sabbath that we may set forth wheat and the like these were full of the world and so they could not taste of spiritual things Matth. 13.12 He that received among Thorns is he that heareth the word and the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the world and he becometh unfruitful Secondly Some are full of conceitedness in Luke 18.11 The Pharisee he was conceited of his own goodness righteousness and doings and the Church of Laodicea she was full and wanted nothing and so could not taste the dainties of the Lord nor the sweetness that was in his Ordinances and his word there was such a fullness in them of their own conceitedness that they wanted nothing Thirdly There is a fullness of errors in many a fullness of opinions Scribes and Pharises they found no sweetness in Christ nor in Christs way they were full of their own opinions errors traditions and false doctrines So many now are full of their own light and the light within that 's all in all unto them and they find no sweetness in Ordinances nor in the means of Grace Fourthly Many yea most are full of creature delights and creature contentments and creature comforts full of sensual pleasures they take so much pleasure in the creature in their outward comforts contentments in their estates and relations in their gifts and parts and things of that nature that they can taste no sweetness in the word of God Thirdly Men taste not the sweetness in the word because of their slighting of the word and hence it is a just Judgment of God to suffer them not to taste the sweetness that is in the word when they made light of the Gospel and the Gospel dainties prepared for them Matth. 22.5 They went away and flighted the invitation to the Gospel feast It is said in Luke 14.24 none of them shall Taste thereof that is none of them shall ever taste the sweetness or goodness therein they might hear but they should taste no sweetness in their hearing and therefore to slight the word of God is a great evil and will hâ—nder persons from tasting the sweetness that is in the word of God Fourthly A fourth reason is that formality that is in the people they come to the Word and Ordinances of God with formal hearts and spirits we come not to the Ordinances as the Ordinances of God we come not to the word as the word of the great God we hear not for time to come we hear not for eternity we hear not as matters of life and death and therefore we dont find that sweetness as they do that hear so Men pray but not in the Spirit serve God but not in Spirit they draw near God with their lips but their hearts are far from him Fifthly And I may add one thing more people dont find sweetness in the word of God because they do nourish some base lust or corruption in their hearts And Peter gives you an intimation of this 1 Pet. 2.1 Wherefore laying aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisie and envies and evil-speakings as new-born babes desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby If there be in our hearts such things we shall not taste the sweetness of the sincere milk of the word neither shall we grow thereby so now you see what hinders the tasting of the sweetness of the word Qu. Another question may arise hereupon and that is What should we do to find sweetness in the word of God An. First If you would find sweetness in the word of God get hungry souls Prov. 27.7 To the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet If we had hungry souls the bitterest truth in all the word of God would be sweet unto us Now there be three things which beget hunger in men and women there 's Fasting Purging and Excercise First If you would have hungry souls you must fast much I dont mean a fasting from bread meat and drink but from sin fasting from pleasures and delights fasting from lawful things of the world 1 Cor. 7.29 The time is short It remaineth that both they that have Wives be as though they had â—one and they that weep as though they wept not and they that rejoyce as though they rejoyced not and they that bay as though they possessed not Fast from your lawful enjoyments from your pleasures delights and contentments and this will breed an appetite to the word of God Secondly Purging we take bitter things to purge us so we should take something to purge our Hearts our Heads and Consciences Be sensible of sin and the bitterness of sin what a bitter and evil thing sin is what danger sin doth involve the soul in and expose it to the wrath of God hell and damnation we should take some pills to mortifie our lusts and then the word of God would be sweet unto us indeed Thirdly Exercise will beget a stomach 1 Tim. 4.7 Exercise thy self to Godliness If men and women did pray much read much meditate much and have their hearts much in Heaven they would have hungry souls after the word of God and find a sweetness in the word of God Joh. 7.17 saith he there If any man will do his will he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self He shall know whether the Doctrine be not an heavenly Doctrine and a sweet Doctrine he shall taste the sweetness of my Doctrine that I have brought down from my Father if he will do the will of God So that that 's the first thing to get hungry Souls and then we shall reâ—ith the word of God and find sweetness in it Secondly If we would find sweetness in the word of God we should make much Conscience of the Lords time and day and sanctifie the Lords day if we did sanctifie the Lords day as we ought to do we should find sweetness in his Ordinances and sweetness all the week after in his Ordinances and in his word Isa 58.13.14 If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath from doing
earth and therefore savoured the things of the earth and spake of them but Christ he was of heaven and spake of heavenly things They were minding of their Cummin and Annise and Mint and Tythes and neglected the weighty things of the Law their hearts were upon those things 1 Joh. 4.5 saith he they are of the world therefore speak they of the world and the world heard them Men that are of the world that love the world they speak of the world and men love to hear them speak of the world And when any speak of heavenly things how unwelcome and unsavory are they 1 Cor. 2.14 The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God for they are foolishness unto him neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned They do not perceive the things of God nor receive the things of God they are spiritual and unwelcome unto them Therefore in the 8. Rom. 5 6. saith the Apostle They that are after the flesh do savour the things of the flesh they savour them relish them and delight in them but they that are after the Spirit do savour the things of the Spirit and in Isa 58.13 If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath from doing thy pleasure on my Holy day and call the Sabbath a delight The Holy of the Lord Honourable and shalt honour him not doing thine own wayes nor finding thine own pleasure nor speaking thine own words God accounts that man a gracious man a heavenly man a good man that turns his foot away from the Sabbath from finding his own pleasure and doing his own will and calls the Sabbath a delight and honourable and doth not his own work and will nor speaks his own words Now our own words are the words of the world the words of the flesh It 's an Argument a man is not of the world when he savours the things of God and turns away his feet from the Sabbath from doing his pleasure on Gods Holy day c. But when a man relishes and savors the world and the things of it in his discourses this shews we are glewed to the world and love the world Ninthly A man loves the world when he doth mourn and lament for the things of the world being taken from him That which we love we mourn when we lose it when men mourn exceedingly for a child it 's an argument they lov'd their child so when men mourn and are afflicted for the loss of Estate Names Friends and Relations it 's an argument they loved the world Rachel weeps and refuses to be comforted why her Children are not Many how greatly are they afflicted when they lose some outward things â—redit profit honours pleasures estates and reâ—â—tions how they mourn and are disconâ—tâ—ted and hang down the head and will not be comforted They love the world and the things of the world Tenthly Lastly we are said to love the world when men are resolved to be rich and will have the world one way or other they will have the world by hook or by crook as we use to say 1 Tim. 6.9 They that Will be rich They are resolved to be rich and to have the world whatsoever comes of it These men love the world indeed Thus then you see what the world is and what it is to love the world The next thing is why we should not love the world nor the things of the world First Those that are in a state of grace be they Babes little Children young men or Fathers they should not love the world because they are called out of the world called off from the world They are called to another state to a state of grace and now their love should run out to grace and the things of another world which they are called unto They are called to be Heirs with Christ and that of Heaven Glory and Happiness and therefore they should not love the world Secondly They should not love the world because it will put them upon things that are unreasonable which will be seen in tvvo or three particulars First 'T will put you upon things that are but probable and make you leave things that are certain Now this is unreasonable to be taken off from things that are certain and to be put upon things that are but probable It is but probabâ— for any man in this world to get the world noâ— to follow hard after that which is but probable whether we shall get it or no Hag. 1.6.9 saith the Prophet ye have sown much and bring in little ye eat but ye have not enough ye drink but ye are not filled with drink ye cloath you but there is none warm and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes and v. 9. Ye looked for much and loe it came to little and when ye brought it home I did blow upon it It is a hazzard a venture to get the things of this world men may take a great deal of pains and pursue these things eagerly and yet come short of them The greatest part of men dye in their expectations they look to get these things and do not get them nay those that labour most do usually attain least And therefore as the wise man saith Eccles 9.11 I returned and saw under the Sun that the race is not to the Swift who should get the race but the swift it's most probable that the swift should get the Race But the Race is not to the swift nor the Battel to the strong neither yet bread to the wise wise men dont get bread nor understanding men get riches nor get favour to men of skill but time and chance happeneth to them all 't is uncertain whether they shall get these things or no. The World and the Devils promises are seldom made good but now for other things they are certain and therefore it puts men upon unreasonable things to leave certain things for improbable things God's promises are certain God will not fail men that take pains for true Wisdom and understanding Ask and ye shall have seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you First seek these things for they are certain Secondly Suppose we do get the world with our endeavours yet we cannot keep them without fear of losing them Prov. 23.4 5. Wilt thou set thine Eyes upon that which is not for riches certainly make themselves wings they flee away as an Eagle towards Heaven Wilt thou set thine Eyes upon that which is not which is not considerable which is not long to continue Riches certainly makes themselves wings others need not make them wings And they flee away as an Eagle towards Heaven Prov. 27.1 Boast not thy self of to morrow for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth To morrow may be a great storm and may blow down the house a great Tempest and the Ship be overturned or driven upon an Anchor and all the
is immoveable he is fixed he holds out to the end Seventhly The excellency of a sound heart is that it hath a blessedness intail'd unto it Psal 32.2 Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity and in whose Spirit there is no guile if a mans heart be unsound there 's guile in it there 's Hypocrisie in it there are rotten principles in it but Blessed is the man in whose Spirit there is no guile when a mans heart is purged from guile his heart is sound and he hath a blessedness entail'd upon it Nathaniel a man without guile and Christ looks upon him and saith he is a blessed and happy man you know Hypocrisie hath a woe woe to Scribes Pharisees Hypocrites but sincerity hath the blessing soundness hath the blessing blessed is the man in whose spirit there is no guile blessed is the man whose heart is pure and free from sin there is a blessedness entail'd upon it and thus you see wherein the excellency of a sound heart lyes Now to come to the use and application of the point I. Is soundness of heart a thing very desirable then in the first place take heed of all things may make your hearts unsound Men and Women will take heed of any thing will corrupt their Garments will corrupt their Stomachs will corrupt their Flesh you will not endure dirt in your Garments why it will rot them you will not endure poyson in your broath or wine or meat or bread it will undo you well take heed of that then which may make your hearts unsound and rotten take heed of carnal policy take heed of errors that are abroad every where erronious Doctrines and Opinions concerning God and Christ and his natures and death and satisfaction concerning the Scriptures Ordinances Sabbaths take heed of these An erroneous opinion may be the bane of your hearts make it a sick heart and sick unto death if you can be careful for your Garments for your meat and drink for your Bodies be careful for your Souls Paul had a jealousie for the Corinthians 2 Cor. 11.2 I am jealous over you with a Godly jealousie and v. 3. I fear least by any means as the Serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ you have itching ears and you heap up Teachers according to your lusts and the simplicity of the Gospel is neglected plain honest and sincere preaching to the Conscience which would do your souls good you are weary of many look for new and strange things Stories out of the Fathers and Heathen Authors to please their itching ears they look after learning and not after the Gospel but such things will not save you it 's the Gospel and the simplicity of it will do your souls good I am jealous of you saith Paul So I am jealous over you least you should be led away by the delusions of Satan led away by this world led away by the evils and errors of the times well take heed of all may corrupt your minds and make you unsound Secondly Is a sound mind so desirable then be advised and take heed whom you do make your familiar friends and converse familiarly with all If men have not sound minds there 's great danger for their breath will be stinking and they will infect you if men breath out corrupt words corrupt opinions corrupt doctrines corrupt principles they will undo you but as for them who are sound hearted make them your friends 2 King 10.15 Is thine heart right as my heart is with thy heart said Jehu to Jehonadab yes saith he my heart is right then he takes him up into the Chariot So question whether mens hearts are sound or no if their hearts be sound then take them up into the Chariot of your hearts otherwise no a heart not right will never be faithful it 's hard to find such a man who can find a man of a faithful heart of sound principles of a healthy constitution that is free from hyppocrisie and ends and reachings and over-reachings well such a one if thou canst find him make him thy familiar make him thy friend David makes Jonathan his friend and such thou mayest trust who are sound hearted they dare not wrong the soundness of their hearts but they labour to preserve it and in preserving that they preserve friendship with thee Thirdly Let us all examine what our hearts are whether we have sound hearts or no whether our hearts be sound in Gods Statutes yea or no 't was that David begged at the hand of God 't was that he knew was of great worth 't is that we should all look after well let us enquire and for discovery hereof I shall give you sundry particulars First A sound heart is very inquisitive into the nature of persons or things what they are before it entertains them a sound heart will not be over credulous but will try them Try the Spirits saith John a found heart will try the Spirits Job 34.32 That which I see not teach thou me O Lord teach me I am afraid least I should be deceived O teach me tell me the nature of this man of this woman of this and that opinion Paul saith Prove all things hold fast that which is good prove them as Gold bring them to the fire to the light to the hammer and when you have tryed them then hold fast you will not pocket up Brass Money but say away with it so sound hearted Christians will try persons and opinions and will not give them entertainment in their hearts unless they be sound to the Law and to the Testimonie and if they speak not according to this word there is no light in them Secondly A sound heart doth find a great deal of sweetness in the word of God and digests it it 's like unto a healthy Stomach a man that hath a healthy Stomach he digests his meat but a sickly Stomach digests it not Take a man now whose heart is sound in Gods Statutes he finds savour and sweetness in Gods word and doth relish and digest his word and lives upon it in Psal 19.10 saith David of the Statutes of the Lord More are they to be desired than Gold yea than much fine Gold they are sweeter than the Hony or the Hony Comb how sweet is Hony to you and especially when it drops from the Comb saith David in Psal 119.103 How sweet are thy words unto my tast yea sweeter than the Honey to my mouth O Lord saith he thy words they are sweet words they are sweet to my mouth they are sweeter than Honey to my taste how sweet are they they are sweeter than I can express or conceive how did he relish the truths of God his meditation was in them night and day And more do I esteem them saith Job than my appointed food The word of God is the food of the soul and a man that hath
a sound heart he must live upon the word he cannot go a day and not read the word nor meditate on the promises that 's a sickly if not a dead heart which doth so but a sound heart will be feeding upon sound truths relish and digest the same Thirdly A heart that is sound in the Statutes of God doth look at the Statutes of God for themselves for their own sakes many you know do look at learning they will learn at the Grammar School and they will profit at the University but they do not look at learning for learning but for credit and to get a living and be some body in the world this is base So many look at the Statutes of God but not for the Statutes sake but that they may be encreased in knowledge and be sav'd at last but a sound heart looks at Gods Statutes for themselves in Psal 119. I have chosen the way of truth and v. 31. I have stuck unto thy Testimonies O God and he saith he doth prize them above thousands of Gold and Silver and above great spoils and they are his Songs in the house of his Pilgrimage why he look'd at them for themselves O! Gods Statutes they are such precious truths that let me have them though I have nothing of the world Some you know look at a Diamond because of the shining and sparkling of it self not because they shall Merchandize with it and make themselves rich So that 's sound when a man looks at Gods divine truths they are full of Glory they are beams of Gods wisdom there 's excellency in them this argues soundness of heart but many look at the truths of God as suitable to their humours they have such a lust and this will agree with their lust and so they will pick here and there which argues unsoundness as a sickly Stomach will pick a bit here and there but a sound heart looks at Gods Statutes for themselves and that excellency and worth is in them Fourthly A sound heart labours to know the will of God and seeing it to be the will of God sticks not at hard things at reproachful things let the things be never so hard never so reproachful it sticks not at it well is this the will of God saith the sound heart I will embrace it saith Christ It is written in the volume of thy Book that I should do thy will and loe I come but consider what this will is thou must be a servant thou must be persecuted into Egypt thy life must be sought among the little Children thou must be accounted an enemy to Caesar a breaker of the Sabbath thou must be reproach'd and hanged upon a Cross and be Crucifyed between Thieves and Murderers what wilt thou go now I it 's written in the volume of thy Book that I must do thy will and loe I come he sticks not at any or all of these things saith God to Abraham Abraham go and Sacrifice your onely Son Isaac unto me O Lord might he say this is a hard business what murder my Son what will my Wife say it will be her death what will the Nations say here was a bloody man to murther his Son and so I may be put to death for it I but it was the will of God and so he stuck not at it Fifthly a sound heart may be known by this that it is willing and ready to part with any thing for the Lords sake saith a sound heart what will this do me good if I lose my integrity if I lose my sincerity if I lose now my fitness to do God service by defiling my self what shall I get you know the young man comes to Christ and saith Good Master what shall I do to inherit eternal life saith he keep the Commandements Why all these things have I kept from my youth up saith Christ go and sell all that thou hast and give to the poor and come and follow me and thou shalt have treasure in heaven One would think here had been promise enough for him and treasure enough for him but he had rotten principles in him he had the world in him his heart was for the world and the creature and nothing of it for God Simon Magus went further than this man did he was a Professor and got into a Church Relation he brings out his bags of Gold and Silver and would give them to the Apostles that he might have that power they had to give the Holy Ghost but saith Peter thy heart is not right therefore pray if it be possible that the thoughts of thy heart may be forgiven thee But now a gracious heart indeed will part with all saith Paul I account all less and dung Phil. 3. All my priviledges all my learning all that ever I have I account it loss and dung for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and say the Disciples Master we have left all to follow thee and you know Galeatius left all for Christs sake and comes to Geneva that he might enjoy the Gospel And the Martyrs they left their lives what dearer than a mans life yet they were ready to let go their lives rather then to let go their foundness Sixthly A sound heart is that which doth fill up all its relations what relation soever it stands in towards God towards man towards the publick towards its family it will fill up its relations Acts 24.16 saith Paul herein do I exercise my self to have alwayes a Conscience void of offence towards God and towards man saith Paul I stand in relation to God and I do exercise my self in this that I may have my Conscience cleer and free I will do all my duties towards God that he calls for otherwise I shall not have a Conscience free and towards men in every relation I stand in towards men I am careful to fill up those relations So that a sound heart is wonderful cautious in doing any thing in any relation that may not fill up its relation as Joshua Ch. 24.15 Let others do what they will I and my house will serve the Lord Others will serve their lusts and serve the times and serve men and serve Devils but I and my house will serve the Lord I am Master of this Family and I will see my Wife and Children and Servants and all under my roof to serve the Lord so saith God of Abraham I know that he will instruct and teach his Family Gen. 18.19 And so David in Psal 101. I will walk in my house with a perfect heart I will not suffer a wicked person to stay within my Family No Drunkard no Swearer no Sabbath-Breaker no prophane wretch shall stay in my Family So that a sound heart fills up its relations some make no Conscience at all of their places they are unfaithful they can hardly be trusted in any place they are in but they have no sound hearts Husbands to Wives Wives to Husbands if not
yet doest the same things what if I condemn another for breaking Covenant with men when I break Covenant with God my self am not I a greater sinner I do the same things and the Judgment of God is according to truth and God will Judge take heed then of censuring others of Judging and Condemning others least you condemn your selves you declare the rottenness of your hearts and you will be found rotten at last Seventhly If men profess Religion and be zealous towards God and yet be without mercy and without Justice these men will be found unsound and rotten and be ashamed at last There are many in these dayes are zealous and will hear the word and that 's to be commended but withall let them not rest in the duties of the first Table but let them do the duties of the second In James 1. saith the Apostle there If any man among you seemeth to be Religious and bridleth not his Tongue he deceiveth his own heart and this mans Religion is in vain pure Religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this to visit the Fatherless and Widdows in their distress and to keep himself-unspotted in the world To shew mercy here 's Religion if I seem Religious and not be merciful merciful to the afflicted to the Widdow to the Orphan to the Poor to the Prisoner my Religion is all vain a dead Religion is like a dead Faith and so for acts of Justice 1 Joh. 3.10 In this the Children of God are manifested and the Children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God Who is he of then he is of the Devil 't is not talking of Righteousness but doing Righteousness unless men and women will keep their promises unless they will pay their Debts unless they will pay their Servants wages unless they will pay their Rents unless they will pay what 's borrowed unless they will restore what they have defrauded what Religion is here Heathens will deal justly and Righteously And therefore those that say they are Christians and not Righteous they are of the Devil and not of God Eighthly They have unsound hearts and will be ashamed who take up Religion upon wrong grounds I told you before upon base ends and a multitude of people take up Religion upon wrong grounds some take up Religion upon a State account the countenance of a State the State doth countenance Religion and make Laws for Religion and the like and upon this account they take up Religion thus was it in King Edward's dayes when he came then many turned Protestants who were Papists before but when Queen Mary came in and there was another face of things then they turned Papists again and in Queen Elizabeth's dayes then they turned Protestants again And thus many in these dayes because there is a state Religion and Worship they desert their former principles and professions and fall in with what is present such men are unsound and will be discovered one day to their shame Many from the Customes of the places where they live it 's the Custom of the Town or of the place it 's the Custom of the great ones to hear the word on the Lords day or to Pray and Read and the like and so upon this account they will become Religious others upon the account of their forefathers oru forefathers did so and so and therefore they will do so others upon the account of education but these are unsound grounds and at one time or other such men and women will be discovered to be rotten-hearted and will be made ashamed of their Religion and therefore men and women should look to the ground Is it the command of God and because you find it 's written in the book of God Is it out of love to God and glorifying of God and saving of your Souls according to the will of God unless it be thus all your grounds are false and vain Ninthly They are like to prove unsound and to be ashamed who have their hearts soaked in the things of the world who are strongly carried out to them and are taken up with these outward things they are like to be ashamed at one time or other it 's said in James 4.4 Ye Adulterers and Adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity to God whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is an enemy to God tell me now whether any Adulteresses or Adulterers have a sound heart all those that are friends to the world and have their affections carried to the world are they not enimies to God are they not Adulterers Men that are lovers of the pleasures prosits honours and fashions of this world are unsound hearted and will be discovered at one time or other 1 Joh. 2.15 Love not the world neither the things that are in the world if any man love the world the love of the Father is not in him and if that be not in him he is an unsound hearted man and will be discovered one day to be so Demas he professes Christianity he goes along with Paul but because the world was in his heart he leaves Paul and embraces the world and Dorotheus an Ecclesiast cal Writer he tells us that he went to Thessalonica and there he turned an idolatrous Priest Paul tells you plain enough in the 1 Tim. 6.9 10 They that will be rich some men and women are resolved to be rich they will be rich in spight of all they know it 's but rising early and lying down late and using their wits and their hands But they that will be rich fall into Temptations and a snare and into many foolish and burtful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition for the love of money is the root of all evil is this heart sound now is that heart sound that hath the root of all evil in it look to it those that have their hearts soak'd in the world and carried out to the things of the world they are rotten and so they will be discovered to be one day to their shame tâ— therefore David saith incline not my heart to covetousness O let not my heart go out to the world least I be ashamed Tenthly Their hearts are unsound who have a secret dislike of the wayes and things of God and the strictness of Religion many men though they will not openly and outwardly speak against the wayes of God against strictness and holiness exact and circumspect walking yet they have a secret dislike of them a secret slighting of them and they do not approve of them and think men may be too strict such men their hearts are unsound and they will be discovered one day saith he in Mal. 3. ye have said it is in vain to serve God and what profit is it that we have kept his Ordinances and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of Hosts They had slight thoughts of the wayes of God and they were rotten
all in his own name and for himself and not for Christ he had a covetous heart So Annanias and Saphira miscarried they did things in their own name so Demas he did things in his own name the world was still upon him and he miscarried and Godly men and women they miscarry they begin not with Christ they do not things in the name of Christ they do not do things for Christ and therefore they miscarry fearfully because Christ is not taken along with them This is a true cause if not the onely cause why Saints and precious ones miscarry in their actions Secondly see hence why Godly men and women have so much guilt and fear upon their spirits which appears in ill times especially when Gods judgments are abroad and dangers are at hand Oh how guilty are they how fearful are they what 's the reason of this it's because the thoughts and words and actions have not been in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ we have thought our own thoughts and spoke our own words and done our own wills and hence it comes to pass that we are full of guilt and full of fear in 12. Mat. 36. I say unto you that every idle word that men shall speak they shall give account thereof in the day of Judgment God hath many dayes of judgment here in the world before the great day of judgment hereafter For by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned Our words condemn us and we find guilt upon us for our words and our actions do condemn us and we find guilt upon us for our actions Rom. 2.7 8. Who will render to every man according to his deeds to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality eternal life but unto them that are contentious and do not obey the truth but obey unrighteousness indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doth evil of the Jew first and also of the Gentile We find fears and we fear tribulation and fear ruine and destruction because our actions have not been done in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for his honour and glory but for our selves Fourthly if Christians must do all in the name of the Lord Jesus then nothing is to be done in but own names to do things in our own names is not currant is not legal is not warrantable who authorized you will Christ say to do this or that in your own name what warrant have you what word have you for it to do it in your own name no neither must we do things in our own strength nor in our own wisdom we think we are wise and we are able but Prov. 3.5 6 7. Lean not unto thine own understanding dont lean to thy own understanding thou art but a fool unto God and thy wisdom is nothing lean not to thine own understanding in all thy wayes acknowledge him Mark in all thy wayes acknowledge him look up to him do things in his name by his wisdom by his strength not by thy own and he shall direct thy path is not Gods direction better than our own Gods councel better than ours Gods strength better than ours lean not then to your own wisdom acknowledge him in all your wayes be not wise in thine own eyes We are loth to lay down our own wisdom and our own apprehensions and conceptions Prov. 23.4 Labour not to be rich cease from thine own wisdom make not that thy design I will be rich and like the great ones in the City and I will be high and I will be so and so this is thy own wisdom thy own folly indeed we are not to do any thing in our own names no nor in the name of Angels nor of Saints the Papists do many things in the name of this Saint and the other Saint and in the name of the Virgin Mary they do many things pray in her name and act in her name and suffer in her name but this is not in the name of Christ whatsoever ye do in word or deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Therefore remember we are to do nothing in our own names or in the names of any but in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ Fifthly I infer hence that whosoever would steer a right course in this world and have his thoughts words and actions accepted and blessed must have a special eye unto the Lord Christ we must look to him as the Pole-star as Marriners their eye is much upon the Pole-star or the compass upon which they sail by their eye is upon these otherwise they will go out of their way and miscarry but if we observe the courses of men and women they sail most by the compass of the world look what the world doth and such and such a man doth that they will do or if not so yet by the custome of places where they are why 't is the custom of the place to do thus and thus or else according to the tradition of the Elders our Elders did so they wash'd their hands before meat and we will do it or else they look to the Laws of men But this is not yet in the name of Christ or else they do things by their own wills and lusts they will have these fulfilled but where 's the name of Christ all this while men go wrong and out of the way not looking at Christ few direct their course by Christ his name his councel according to his will and his word It was otherwise with that blessed Apostle Paul Paul had his eye upon Christ therefore he saith in 1 Cor. 11.1 Be ye followers of me as I am of Christ I have Christ alwayes in my eye I begin with Christ I go on with Christ I end with Christ I have Christ alwayes in my eye dont follow me at all if I dont follow Christ I am a learned man and you think you may follow me because I am a learned man or I am an Apostle and you will follow me therefore but if I dont follow Christ notwithstanding my learning and my Apostleship dont follow me it is Christ you must have in your eye it is Christ you must regulate all by he must be your Pole star he must be your compass so in 5 Eph. 1. Be ye therefore followers of God as dear Children dont follow the world dont follow the customes of places dont follow any but God and be followers of God as dear Children Children will follow their Parents and follow no others So then if we would steer our course aright we must be followers of Christ and eye Christ and eye God and take up all from them and not from men Sixthly if we must do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ according as we have opened then here see to whom we owe the success of all we do 't is not to our selves
we need not trouble our selves about them and spend our strength and desires after them but after these and then they will be cast in Fifthly Gold is of an earthly nature and of an earthy abstract but the Word is from Heaven heavenly 't is a spiritual thing There is nothing comparable unto the Word of God all things thou canst desire are not to be compared to her to the wisdom of the Word Now the Word being heavenly it is more to be desired than Gold which is but out of the bowels of the earth The Word is spiritual and comes from Heaven and heavenly and therefore more desirable So that you see upon what account it is that the Word is more to be desired than Gold and Silver Qu. Now a question may be moved with what desires are we to desire the Word of God Ans First We must desire the Word of God with strong and ardent desires with strength of heart and soul this should be in our desires Psal 42.1 2. As the Hart panteth after the water brooks so panteth my soul after thee O God My soul thirsteth for God for the living God when shall I come and appear before God He was banished from the house of God and from the Ordinances of God and from the Word of God now saith he when shall I come and appear before God I have ardent desires strong desires to be where God is and his Word and Ordinances are and in Psal 119.20 a remarkable place My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy Judgments at all times My soul breaketh what ardent what strong desires were in the heart of David now after the Word of God So then they must be strong and ardent desires in our Souls after the Word of God which is better than Gold or Silver Secondly These desires must be sincere desires It may be men have desires to the Word but they are not sincere they should desire the Word for it self because it is the Word of God because it is pure Psal 119.440 Thy Word is very pure therefore thy Servant loveth it It is a good argument of Truth of Grace and of a servant of God to love the Word for the purity of it Many cannot endure it because it is pure but if we love it and desire it for its purity it 's an argument we are right Such should our desires be sincere desires to love the Word for it self It is sincere milk and it calls for sincere desires sincere affections there should be no Bias in our affections no crookedness no selfishness but sincere desires unto the Word of God 3. Our desires must be permanent and abiding not fleeting and flashy desires but permanent abiding desires our desires should be alwayes to the Word of God our hearts should stand bent to the Word of God continually Psal 119.20 My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy Judgments at all times Mark at all times my soul is carried out with venement desires unto thy Judgments at all times I do continue and maintain my desires towards thy Word Psal 1.2 In his Law doth he meditate day and night when a mans desires are to the Word of God night and day here 's permanent constant and abiding desires But you will say that 's impossible for a man to hold up his desires at such a height and to continue them True to flesh and blood it is but we must renew our desires when they begin to flag and fall 4. Lastly our desires they must be opperative and working desires many have lazy and sluggish desires they have velleities wishes O that I did understand such and such things O that I were acquainted with the Word of God and the like they have velleities and wishes but they must be real desires which will put men upon searching the Scriptures comparing place with place reading and meditating and improving of truths Mens desires after Gold are such 1 Tim. 6.9 They that will be rich how they will work and labour rise early and lye down late and study and cast this way and that way to get the world to get Gold and Silver such should be our desires Joh. 6. Labour not for the meat that perishes but for the meat that endures to everlasting life So you see what kind of desires the desires of our souls should be after the Word of God I shall now come to some Inferences from the point Are Divine truths more to be desired than Silver and Gold Then First I infer many are very faulty and worthy of blame yea of great blame First Those that have no desires to the Word of God There are some people in the world that have no desire to the Word of God Job 21.14 We desire not the knowledg of thy wayes we have better wayes than thine our own wayes and as for thy wayes we dont desire the knowledge of them do these men look at the Word of God to be better than Gold or Silver No we dont desire the knowledge of thy wayes it blames and condemns them Secondly It blames those who have most desire after Gold and Riches and after the things and pleasures of the world They have little desire after Gods Testimonies Statutes Laws and Judgments little desire after these they cannot say the zeal of thy house hath eaten me up but the zeal of the world hath eaten me up These are blameable that have so little desires after the things of God and such ardent desires after the world and the things of the world Thirdly It blames those that have fleeting transient desires now and then they have a fit they have some desires after the Word of God but their desires are fleeting and transient they dont keep up and maintain their desires Every morning noon and night we should have desires after the Word of God and the wayes of God David would prevent the morning watches and seven times a day be would have his heart in a frame for God and the things of God I at midnight would he rise to praise God for his Righteous Judgments but we have a fit now and then and away and this is blameable Fourthly It condemns those that have not sincere and pure desires They have desires after the Word of God for some base ends they make a profession that they may cover their wickedness with a pretence of Zeal and Profession and Religion and Godliness As the Scribes and Pharisees they made a shew O they minded the Word and every Letter and Syllable of the Word and yet within as Christ saith they were full of Excess Hypocrisie and Uncleanness Lastly It reproves those that rest in their desires and labour not to accomplish their desires they dont put forth their desires into endevours and those desires are foolish and hurtful desires that dont carry out the soul to endeavours All these come under censure and are blameable Secondly If the truths of God
Church of God and to believing souls the Church is called the Temple of God 1 Cor. 3.16 So is every believer the Church is said to be the Lords portion and his treasure Jer. 12.10 So is every believing soul Gods portion and his pleasant portion Again it 's called the ransomed ones Isa 35.10 the ransomed of the Lord. God hath been at great cost and charges to ransome the Church purchased it with his own blood Acts. 20.28 It 's called Christs body and how sweet is it to the thoughts of Saints to think I am a member of Christs own body I am a member of the precious body of the Lord Jesus It 's called Gods beloved Psal 108.6 The dearly beloved of his Soul Jer. 12.10 The Church is the Bride the Lambs wife Rev. 21.9 The Church is the blessed of God and so is every believing soul Isa 61.9 It 's the seed which the Lord hath blessed The other seed is a cursed seed but this seed is a seed which the Lord hath blessed yea blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ Lastly it 's the glory of God the Church is the glory of God and every believing soul is the very glory of God Isa 4.5 Upon all the glory shall be a defence All true believers they are accounted the glory of God Thus you see there is sweetness in the word But wherein is the word sweeter than Honey and sweeter than the Honey-comb In several particulars First the sweetness of Honey is Natural that of the Word is Divine and Spiritual and look how much spiritual doth exceed natural so much the sweetness of the word doth exceed the sweetness of honey All spiritual things do exceed natural things and the word is from Heaven a divine word a heavenly word and honey is but from the earth Rom. 7.14 The Law is spiritual and the Gospel is spiritual it is the Ministration of the Spirit and Heb. 6.4 and have tasted of the heavenly gift The word is a heavenly gift and it hath heavenly sweetness in it It is sweeter in the taste than any earthly gift whatsoever Secondly The sweetness of the word refresheth the heart of a man so doth not honey honey dont affect the soul it doth affect the pallate and the taste but it dont refresh the heart and the soul but the word doth affect the soul and the heart of a man or woman Psal 110.111 Thy Testimonies are the rejoycing of my heart the Testimonies Statutes and truths of God they do rejoyce the very heart and soul of a man or of a woman and v. 77. Thy Law is my delight and Psal 19.8 The Statutes of the Lord rejoyce the heart when the heart is heavy and sad the word of God will rejoyce it and revive it which all the honey in the world can never do Thirdly Honey and Honey-combs they cannot sweeten bitter afflictions they may sweeten bitter waters or bitter things but they cannot sweeten bitter afflictions But the word of God doth sweeten bitter afflictions and can do that which honey cannot do If a man eat never so much honey it will not sweeten his affliction Psal 119.49 Remember the word unto thy Servant upon which thou hast caused me to hope This is my Comfort in my affliction for thy word hath quickned me The word of God will comfort you in any affliction whatsoever it will sweeten the bitterest waters that can be and so in the 92. v. Unless thy Law had been my delights I should then have perished in mine affliction Men and Women would perish in their afflictions if they had not some word of God to uphold them and to comfort them and in the 54. v. Thy Statutes have been my Songs in the house of my pilgrimage So that they are sweeter than honey and can sweeten any affliction that we meat withall As the bough that was cast into the bitter waters it sweetned them so doth this bough the word of God sweeten the most bitter waters that are Fourthly The Word doth sanctifie all things and makes them sweeter than they were yea the word doth sweeten honey it self 1 Tim. 4.5 Every creature of God is good and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving for it is sanctified by the Word of God and Prayer Sanctified by the word of God let your mercies be covenant mercies and choice mercies they are sanctified more now by the Word of God They are sanctified by the Word of God and Prayer your very honey which is so sweet is made sweeter when it is sanctified honey by the Word of God and Prayer So that the word of God is sweeter than honey it sweetens all things unto us Fifthly Men may eat too much of honey Prov. 25.27 'T is not good to eat much Honey and in the 16. v. you have the reason of it Hast thou found honey eat so much as is sufficient for thee lest thou be filled therewith and vomit it If you eat too much honey you may vomit it But now for the word of God we can never eat too much of that honey John did eat up the little book Rev. 10. he eat up the whole book So if we should eat up the whole book of God 't would never be too much it will never make us vomit Col. 3.16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly and in the 119. Psal 27. O how I love thy Law it is my Meditation all the day you can never meditate too much in the Law of God nor feed too much upon the promises invitations c. Sixthly Lastly The word is the savour of life unto life so is not honey honey cannot produce life it cannot work in any man a spiritual life but the word is the savour of life unto life it begets life in the soul 't is called the word of life and Phil. 2.16 't is the savour of life of spiritual life yea of eternal life The words that I speak they are spirit and they are life And saith Peter Thou hast the words of eternal life how sweet is life and how sweet is eternal life and the word of God hath this sweetness in it Qu. Now having shown you that the word is sweeter than honey and wherein a question may arise here if the word be so sweet what is the cause that persons taste not the sweetness of it There be many read the word and hear the word but dont taste the sweetness of the word There be several reasons for it An. First Because some have no spiritual taste no spiritual sense We read of Barzillai that said to David when he would have had him gone with him to the Court saith he thy Servant cannot taste what I eat or what I drink so many there be that have no spiritual taste at all in them And where there is no taste all things are alike Cant. 2.3 his fruit was sweet unto my taste the Church had a taste and found sweetness in the
thy pleasure on my Holy day and call the Sabbath a delight the holy of the Lord honourable and shalt honour him not doing thine own wayes nor finding thine own pleasure nor speaking thine own words Then shalt thou delight thy self in the Lord thou wilt find sweetness in the Lord and sweetness in the words and wayes of the Lord in all things of the Lords thou wilt find sweetness such sweetness as will make thy soul to delight in the Lord. Thirdly If you would find sweetness in the word of God then take that which is suitable to your conditions There is somthing alwayes suitable to your conditions when you read the word or hear the word Preach'd something will concern you now that which is most suitable to your condition will be most sweet unto you If one want peace and there be a word suits you take that if one want comfort take that if one want counsel take that that that is suitable to the soul that 's sweet Fourthly Lastly make the word your delight Psal 119.24 Thy Testimonies are my delight So in the 77. v. Thy Law is my delight They were the delight of David and so he delighted in them that he meditated in them day and night Thy Testimonies are my Meditation v. 99. what you delight in you find a sweetness in so if you would delight much in the word of God you would find much sweetness in the word of God Thus you see those questions answered I shall now come to some Inferences or Conclusions First If the word of God be sweet and sweeter than the Honey and the Honey-comb then they that find no sweetness in the word of God they are in an ill condition they are in a state of death they are dead men and dead women A dead man tastes nothing so that man or woman that tastes no sweetness in the word of God is a dead man you read in Scripture of men dead in sins and trespasses and twice dead Let the dead bury their dead saith Christ how can the dead bury their dead let them who are dead in sins bury those that are dead in body if you find no sweetness in the word of God you are dead men dead women Secondly If the word be so sweet then it 's no wonder if some persons are so taken with the word of God they are always reading the word of God and looking into the word of God and meditating in it and why its sweet and delightful to their souls Those that have Gardens full of sweet flowers they love to be often looking into their Gardens so those that are Godly how do they find sweetness in the word of God In every promise in every truth in all the providences and experiences of the Saints they find a great deal of sweetness therein Thirdly If the word of God be so sweet then praise and bless the Lord for the sweetness of his word that he hath given you out such a word praise him for his sweet invitations for his sweet promises for the sweet and heavenly doctrines for the sweet titles you meet with therein In the 56. Psal you have it three times I will praise his word praise the word and praise God who hath given you such a word such a word that is so sweet that is so precious have you not found the sweetness of it in your affliction in your temptations in your darkness in your desertions O praise the Lord for his sweet word and let God have the glory of it Fourthly If the word of God be sweet and sweeter than Honey and the Honey-comb then surely they do ill that cast off the word of God and cast off his Ordinances and leave off the things that are good Many in these dayes they cast off Ordinances and lay aside the word of God and are altogether for the light within and nothing but for the light within but it is to be seared that their light is but darkness for the light of the Scripture will never direct men to cast off it self The word of God is to be a light unto our feet and a lamp unto our paths therefore they do ill who cast off the word of God that is sweeter than Honey and the Honey-comb and that lay aside the Commands of God and the Ordinances of God But they will say we lay aside the Honey-comb and we take the Honey For answer to that look into the 5. Cant. 1. I am come into my garden c. I have eaten my Honey-comb with my Honey The Church would eat the Honey-comb with the Honey she would have the Ordinances and the sweetness through the Ordinances by the Ordinances The Ordinances are the Honey-comb and the sweetness that God conveys through them is the Honey Fifthly If the word be sweeter than Honey and the Honey-comb then in all your afflictions and bitter waters you have to drink sweeten them with this Honey and this Honey-comb sweeten them with the word of God Afflictions are very sowr sad and heavy many times but the word of God is Honey to sweeten them when they came to the waters of Marah and could not drink them they were murmuring and troubled and they should perish for want of water but Moses takes a bough and throws in and sweetens the waters so that they could drink them and were revived and refreshed So if men and women would but sweeten their afflictions with the word of God they would go down very sweetly The steps of a good man saith the Psalmist are ordered by the Lord and he delighteth in his way though he fall he shall not utterly be cast down what though you fall into afflictions you shall not utterly be cast down for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand and James 1.12 Blessed is the man that endureth Temptations that is afflictions for when he is tryed he shall receive the crown of life which the Lord hath promised to them that love him who would now be troubled at temptations and afflictions when a blessedness is fixed to them Blessed is the man that endureth Temptations c. You shall have a crown of life for your temptations what if they take away life you shall have another life and a crown of life so that we should sweeten our afflictions with the consolations of the word 2 Cor. 4.17 The outward man decayes but the inward man is renewed daily and saith he our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory Here 's light affliction here 's weighty glory here 's glory opposed to affliction here 's weight opposed to light here 's eternal opposed to momentary and here 's exceeding above all that How sweet would this be in our afflictions if we did lay it to heart and receive in these truths to sweeten our afflictions Sixthly If the word of God be sweeter than Honey and the Honey-comb Then esteem the word of God very
highly dont think meanly of the word of God Phil. 3.8 Paul did esteem the knowledge of Christ above all knowledge in the world the excellency of the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ that is the knowledge of the Gospel and the knowledge of the word There 's an excellency in it beyond all knowledge all Histories and all Arts and Sciences whatsoever there is not that excellency in them as in the word of God therefore esteem it highly Psal 84.10 A day in thy courts is better than a thousand In the courts of God There was the word of God preached and held forth and read and interpreted and therefore a day there is worth a thousand dayes elsewhere Seventhly If the word of God be so sweet sweeter than the Honey and the Honey-comb then feed much upon the word of God in the 24. Prov. 13. saith Solomon to his Son My Son eat thou Honey because it is good So let me say to you Eat this Honey because it is good Honey hath three great properties Honey doth cleanse it doth preserve and honey doth please Eat this spiritual Honey 't will please your spiritual souls and appetites it will preserve you from all evil it will cleanse you from all your pollutions David loved to be in the courts of God and to be feeding upon this Honey continually and to be satisfied with it Psal 65.4 We shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house it will satisfie me in point of cleansing in point of preserving in point of pleasing I am never better pleased nor safer nor in a purer condition then when I am under thy word seed much upon this others feed upon Acorns and upon the Wind and Ashes and the like but Saints feed upon Honey the Honey of Gods word the Honey that will do your souls good to eat it will sweeten all of your afflictions Eighthly Lastly if the word be sweeter than Honey and the Honey-comb then try whether it be so to you or no Try whether you have found the word to be sweet to you sweet as Honey and as the Honey comb Honey will sweeten other things so if the word have been Honey to you it will sweeten you it sweetens men and women it sweetens their spirits men have harsh sowr and bitter spirits of themselves but if the word have been Honey to them it hath sweetned their spirits and calm'd and meekned their spirits Eph. 4.31 32. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamur and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice put away all of this nature this is sowr leaven and be ye kind one to another tender hearted for giving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Have you found the word to be Honey to you to sweeten your spirits and make them peaceable and plyable to the will of God it 's an argument that you have tasted the sweetness that is in the word of God and so in the 4. Cant. 11. where it 's said Thy lips O my Spouse drop as the Honey-comb That is her words and expressions were sweet a Law of kindness was in her lips so if the word of God have been sweet to us there will be sweetness and meekness of spirit in us therefore try whether the word have been Honey unto you Thus you see that the Statutes and Law of the Lord they are more to be desired than Gold yea than much fine Gold sweeter also than Honey and the Honey-comb And the Lord make them sweet to every one of your Souls Against Love of the World 1 Joh. 2.15 Love not the World neither the things that are in the World IOhn was the beloved Disciple of Christ and he writes this Epistle unto those that were dear unto Christ and his great scope is to confirm them in the faith of Christ and to put them on to holiness and love as may appear in the 23. v. of the third Chapter This is his Commandment saith he that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another as he gave us Commandment And in the second Chapter he lay'd down a remedy against the infirmities of weak Christians in the first and second verses that if any sinned they had an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the Righteous And lest that should be abused and men take liberty to sin seeing there was such a remedy he puts them upon keeping the Commandments of the Lord in the 3 4 5 6. verses that if they have any benefit by Christ they will love Christ and if they love Christ they will keep the commands of Christ and walk as Christ walked And in the 7 8 9 10 11. verses he puts them on to love shewing that it is a new Commandment and an old Commandment in divers respects And then he comes and speaks in particular unto little Children verse 12. and to young men in the 13 verse and to fathers in the 14 verse and tells them in the Text that they must not love the world neither the things that are in the world for this is a great impediment both to holiness of life and love one to another The words will afford us two observations Obs The first is that there is a proness even in Saints to love the world There would not be a prohibition against it unnless there were a proness in us to it Even Christians and Believers are too apt and prone to love the world and the things of the world There is a great suitableness between the world and our corrupt hearts and natures Pleasures Profits Honours and things of that nature do suit with our sancies and suit with our affections dispositions and inclinations and therefore he saith Love not the world but this I shall not stand upon Obs The second observation which I shall insist upon is this That those that are in a state of Grace be they little Children or be they young Men or be they Fathers they are not to love the world Love not the World nor the things that are in the world Now here I must shew you what is meant by the World 2. What it is to love the World 3. Some reasons why we should not love the World 4. Answer a question or two For the first what is meant by the World By world in the first place is meant the visible Heavens and Earth with all the creatures in them as they came out of the hand of God Gen. 1.1 In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth and afterwards he tells you of particulars that were created Joh. 1.3 It 's said By him all things were made and verse 10. he was in the world and the world was made by him The world and all things were made by Christ God imployed Christ in making of the world and the things of the world So that all the visible things in this world are the workmanship of God and Christ and are
and the things of the world are a great enemy to growing in grace and to Communion with God It makes men to leave the best things and most excellent things even Grace it self and God himself and Communion with God A worldly heart hath little or no Communion with God If a Woman fall in love with another and commit folly with another her Husband cares not for Communion with her so is it here ye Adulterers and Adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God Psal 73.27 They went a whoring from under God Men go a whoring from God when they love the world and dote upon the world and the things of it Now what an enemy is the world to growth in grace and Communion with God Twelfthly The world is the Devils Instrument whereby he ensnares men and women and leads them captive at his pleasure he is called the God of the world and he takes men with the world The world is his grand Instrument to take men and women In Matth. 4.8 9. he thought to catch Christ with the glory of the world The Devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain and sheweth him all the Kingdoms of the World and the glory of them Here was his last bait whereby he thought to catch Christ And saith unto him all these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me He thought to catch Christ with it but the Lord Christ was too hard for him but 't is his Instrument whereby he catches men and women Thus he caught Eve by the fruit of the Garden thus he caught David by Bathsheba and thus he caught Achan by a Wedg of Gold and a Babilonish Garment And thus he catches men and women some by Wine some by Women some by Kingdoms and he leads them captive when he hath taken them by some bait or other of the world something or other he presents sutable to the eye to the taste to the fancy or to their opinion he presents something or other sutable by which he leads them Captive at his will 13. Lastly We should not love the world because it is that which causes men to erre and go astray from the truth and from the wayes of God and leads them to Apostacy in the end 1 Tim. 6.10 The Love of money is the root of all evil which while some coveted after they have erred from the faith Mark they have erred from the faith if we love the world we will let the faith go and truth go and the wayes of God go and so we make way for Apostacy what was it caused Spira to renounce the faith whose story you have heard of and is among you it was the love of the world of his credit and esteem and outward engagements that he had These made him to renounce the faith And so Demas 2 Tim. 4.10 Demas hath forsaken me saith Paul and embrac'd the present world What forsake Paul that great Apostle brought up at the feet of Gamaliel a man wrapt up into the third Heavens a man of that note that Paul was to forsake him for the present world yet Demas did it the Love of the world drew him off from Paul and his Doctrine and Church State and wayes the Devil by that means drew him away So then you see the reasons why we should not love the world nor the things of the world But now a Question or two comes to be answered Qu. What must we then quite cast off the world and have nothing to do with the world Anâ— I answer not so neither 't is not said here we may not have the world but we must not love the world We may have to do with the world I shall answer this question in three or four things First We may study the world make it a part of our study we may study the works of God in the world they are honourable sought out of all them that have pleasure therein we may study the world for the world will teach us many good lessons First We may study the world and come to the knowledge of the invisible things of God by these visible things Rom. 1.20 For the invisible things of him from the Creation of the world are cleerly seen being understood by the things that are made even his eternal power and God-head so that they are without excuse We may come to know there is an eternal God an Omnipotent God by these visible things and in the 12. Job 7 8. Ask now the Beasts and they shall teach thee and the fowls of the Air and they shall tell thee or speak to the Earth and it shall teach thee and the Fishes of the Sea shall declare unto thee These will teach us something the Beasts and the Fowls and the Earth and the Fishes will teach us the invisible things of God and instruct us in those things may do us good There 's something to be learned from these therefore we may study these God's power wisdom goodness mercy are all learned by the creatures Secondly The creatures do teach us prudence and providence Go to the Ant thou Sluggard he layes up in Summer against Winter Thirdly The creatures will teach us to do the will of God Psal 119.91 They Continue to this day according to thy Ordinances for all are thy Servants They all serve thee The Sun and Moon and Stars they all serve the Lord and the Winds do serve the Lord Psal 148.8 Stormy winds fulfil his Word The very winds do fulfill the word of God and obey his voice and do what he commands them to do They teach us therefore to do the will of God shall the waves and winds and all the creatures obey the Lord and shall not man obey the Lord for whom all these were made Fourthly They teach us to wait upon God 145. Psal 15. The eyes of all wait upon thee that thou mayest give them their meat in due season the fowls of the heaven wait upon God the very Leviathan in the Sea waits upon God for its meat in due season And what shall we be carking and caring about what shall we eat and what shall we drink and wherewith shall we be cloathed who feeds the Wild fowl in the air the Lord feeds them and therefore they teach us to wait upon God without carking and being distracted and desponding Fifthly The creatures do teach us to expect glorious liberty from the hand of God Rom. 8.14.21 The earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the Sons of God and v. 21. They wait to be delivered into the glorious liberty of the Children of God there is a glorious liberty for the Children of God to come to they may be in bondage and are at this day but there is a liberty and a glorious liberty and shall not we wait for it when the whole
things that we know we must part with and the loss of other things concerning our souls and which we should mind above all things in the world the Word of God and his Sabbath and Ordinances and Worship and the like these little trouble us Well by these things you may know whether you love the world yea or no and if it be so you are worthy of great blame for loving of the world In the next place it shall be a use of exhortation to exhort you not to love the world nor the things of the world the pomp of the world tho pleasures of the world the profits preferments and honours of the world and the things that are in it Love them not I shall do two things here First Give you several grounds or arguments to enforce the exhortation Secondly Some directions how to take off our hearts from loving the world First We should not love the world because it is a sin to love the world whatever is forbidden us is a sin and will you live in sin is sin a small matter sin is the transgression of a Law you will say well here 's the Law Love not the world If you love the world you transgress this Law therefore dont live in the transgression of this Law It 's an ill thing to live in sin Ezek. 18.4 The soul that sins shall dye be it what soul it will the souls of the highest or lowest learned or ignorant rich or poor if they live in sin they shall dye it 's a dangerous thing to live in sin a pleasing sin a profitable sin an honourable sin if you love the world you live in sin and we should as in the 12. Rom. 9. abhor that which is evil and love that which is good sin is evil the least sin is evil sinful thoughts sinful lusts are evil if unconsented to it's evil much more if consented to and lived in and practised it will bring forth death death eternal for the wages of sin is death that 's the first reason Secondly We should not love the world because it is the command of the great God the great and blessed and glorious God he commands us to not to love the world Love not the world saith he nor the things that are in it shall not the command of the great God obtain upon us and prevail with us In the word of a King there is power here 's the word of the greatest King of all Kings the great God of Heaven and Earth Love not the world saith God saith Peter Lord we have been toyling all the night and caught nothing nevertheless at thy command I will throw out the Net So the command of God we should hearken to it at thy command Lord I will not love the world nor the things of the world In the 35. Jer. 6. There are the Rechabites their Father commanded them to drink no Wine to plant no Vineyards to build no Houses and one comes to them and sets Wine before them and fills Cups and saith unto them drink Wine say they v. 6. we will drink no Wine for Jonadab the Son of Rechab our Father commanded us saying ye shall drink no Wine neither ye nor your sons for ever neither shall ye build House nor sow Seed nor plant Vineyard now see in the 14. v. what the Lord saith The words of Jonadab the Son of Rechab that he commanded his Sons not to drink Wine are performed Here 's dutiful Sons observe the command of their Father they will drink no Wine build no House sow no Seed They are performed for unto this day they drink none but obey their Fathers Commandment Notwithstanding I have spoken unto you rising early and speaking but ye hearkned not unto me saith God what a reproach is this to me faith God that the command of a man is observed and obeyed and the command of me the great God that have your lives and all in my hand is not observed not regarded well the great God he faith unto us Love not the world Therefore let his commands be of force and authority with us to knock our hearts off from the love of the world Thirdly Love not the world nor the things of it because it is the portion of the wicked of ungodly men Psal 17.14 From men which are thy hand O Lord from men of the world which have their portion in this life There are men of the world Inhabitants of the world they are of the world of worldly principles of worldly affections and of worldly practices and conversations they have their portion in this life saith he the things of this world are their portion would you have your portion here have your portion in these things it 's a poor portion a perishing portion an unsatisfying portion the worst portion of all In the 21. Job 7 8 9. Wherefore do the wicked live saith Job Lord wherefore doth the wicked live wicked men are not worthy to live in the world wherefore do the wicked live become old you are mighty in power To live and live long and be mighty in power and place and honour and estates they are mighty in power Their seed is established in their sight with them and their off-spring before their eyes They have their seed and posterity and are established Their houses are safe from fear neither is the rod of God upon them Their Bull gendreth and faileth not their Cow calveth and casteth not her Calf they send forth their little ones like a Flock and their Children dance They take the Timbrel and Harp and Rejoyce at the sound of the Organ They spend their dayes in wealth and in a moment go down to the Grave Here are wicked men now you see it 's their portion to have the world to have the musick and mirth and all things according to their hearts desires it 's their portion and who would have such a portion It was the trouble of Jer. 12.1 Wherefore doth the wicked prosper wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously wicked men prosper in the world though they deal treacherously yet they prosper and saith he Thou hast planted them yea they have taken root They grow yea they bring forth fruit Thou art near in their mouth and far from their Reins The world is the portion of wicked men therefore we should not love it Alexander a Heathen he had all the world he had it for his portion So Julius Caesar he had the Roman Empire for his portion Ahashuerus had 127 Provinces for his portion The world is meat for Dogs as the Apostle calls it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 'T is a portion fit for Dogs and 't is not Childrens meat therefore we should not love the world it is the portion of the wicked Fourthly We should not love the world because if we do we shall meet with great disappointments much trouble and little good in it Great afflictions we shall have in the world Joh. 16.