made like Him was under no Limitation of Service in the History we have of Him Jacobs Patriarchal Line reach'd even to Moses and there ceased Moses Faithful in All his House Run that whole and very Great Line of Service in the Wilderness but was so Limited He must by no means enter into Canaan but must Dye in the Borders And Joshuah must enter upon his Course and having settled the People of Israel in Canaan and after the Lord had given them rest round about He Finished his course Then came on the Days of the Judges and their course with Samuel reached with the Intervention of Saul unto David who served his Generation according to the Will of God And so the Line came down to John Baptist Fulfilfilling his course as a Forerunner and so to our Lord Jesus who walked as He said in his course here on Earth though as the Son an Eternal Priest this Day and to Morrow and the Third Day should be perfected Then the course of the Apostles and the Witnesses under a most Definitive Line as hath been said This therefore gives great satisfaction in the Term of Life Calls for Great self-Resignation and to have our Eye Fixed on the Great End of Life the Line of Faith and Service It is true There is a Line allowed to Evil Men in their Wickedness and in their Enjoyments of their Lusts and Pleasures of this World and they cannot exceed it But this is not of the present consideration But it is most necessary here to remember That the Lowest and Meanest even the Infant Servants of God have their Line and Service and the Just Times of it Fixed by God even as their Reward because it is wholly the Reward of Free Grace It is in the essence of the Reward equal as hath been argued 2. The Time of the Servants of God is therefore Defined and Limited That it may be seen God hath no need of this or that Servant or Generation of Servants but that He hath successive Servants or Generations of Servants and He is so Far off being in want of them That He can allow them no longer Time how Eminent how Excellent soever then He hath appointed and resolved with Himself and of Free Grace as their Honour and Priviledge chosen them unto 3. The Servants of God are many That they may reach through and unto the Time of his Kingdom And each must have His Time and each must therefore of those who go before give way to those who are to follow after and so every one is Limited to his own Time For though it may be thought They might be together The Wise God having appointed Times more Dark and more Glorious How many of his Servants are proportion'd to each He sees and knows and so Limits accordingly There was one Noah and no more in the Old World One Elijah only in view in that so Fowl Apostacy of the Ten Tribes And when the Light is clearest and most High It must not be clear Light till his Kingdom The General Assembly cannot be before so each Time hath such and such Numbers of Stars which He telleth the Number of and calleth them All by their Names and knoweth what Lustre of Rays and Beams each and together shall cast There is a Counterpoizing consideration of Wicked Men in the World and the Darkness and Fire of Hell they spread But that is not within the present purpose 4. There is a Gracious Pleasure of God There should such Numbers of his Servants be all along from Age to Age with Jesus Christ their Lord Philip. 1. Dissolved from Body and with Him in Spirit Absent from the Body and present with the Lord 2 Cor. 5. 1 c. And in their House not made with Hands Eternal in the Heavens And that our God may come and All His Saints with Him Zech. 14. He cometh with Ten Thousand of his Saints as the Armies of Heaven on white Horses Bodys of the Resurrection washed in the Blood of Jesus in fine Linnen clean and white Rev. 19. 14. To shew This hath been all along from the former Times of the World There is a Reception in Heaven Styled Abrahams Bosome A Jerusalem above the Mother of us All that shall come down from Heaven Gal. 4. With all its Children Rev. 21. There is the State of the Spirits of Just Men Heb. 12. Who shall be made perfect in Bodys made like to his Glorious Body Phil. 3. ult There must be therefore a Limitation of their Time of Service here below That they may be taken within the Veil and made acquainted with the Glory that is to be Revealed And the Apostle Intimates These Dead in Christ shall have some precedency For the Dead in Christ shall not be prevented by the Living Remaining as we Translate but shall not be so much as overtaken according to the true force of the Original we shall not attain or come equal with those asleep 1 Thes c. 4. v. 13. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Nullo Modo Assequemur Now in all such Particularities God is pleas'd to be at Liberty in dealing with His own Servants The essential Glory the Crown of Righteousness the Crown of Life the Crown of Glory being alike sure to all And so I have open'd the second Point propos'd The Limitation of the Time of the Servants of God continuing in His Service here on Earth I come to the Point 3d. 3. That the Limitation of their Time is made known to them in the manner of a severe and angry Process in the way of what we Call a Prohibition the proper sense of what we Translate not saffered Heb. 7. 23. And this is a Point worthy to be enquired into for the removing the fears of Death and for the Consolation of Saints in Death 1. It must then be Acknowledg'd that the outward Face and appearance of Death bears the Resemblance of a Judgment and of that Denunciation In the Day thou Eatest thou shalt Dye Dust thou Art and to Dust thou shalt return It comes as a King of Terrors Flesh and Blood is ready to be affrighted at it Life is naturally Dear even to the Servants of God who desire not to be uncloathed They desire to continue in the Service of God here but when they are raised by Higher Considerations of being present with the Lord Clothed upon with their House from Heaven they even desire to be Dissolved And it cannot be denyed That God doth in the Dying of his Servants bear a Regard to that Justice and Truth of His Word That when Sin came in Death came in and passed upon All because All have sinned Rom. 5. 12. Wheu the Servants of God therefore are warm and zealous and lively in His Service Often there comes a Prohibition Thou mayest no longer continue in my Service here like the command to Moses to anoint Eleazar and to strip Aaron of his Priestly Garments who was presently to Dye A Prohibition to Moses to carry
Love of the Truth as it in Jesus is the ready way to be judicially hardened and blinded and to be given up by the holy God to believe Lies that we may be damn'd 2 Thes 2. 10 11. If you read the Scriptures in the margent you will plainly see that Gods judicial Mat. 13. 14 Mark 4. 12 Acts 28. 26 27. giving over this People to blindness c. was consequent to their sinful stopping of their Ears shutting of their Eyes and sinning against the light of the Word of their own Consciences received from it It is dreadful sinning against the Light of Conscience which is Gods spy and Mans Overseer and the Light of the holy Word for this cause many are blinded and judicially hardened by God the Judge of all God hath given them says St. Paul the Spirit of slumber Eyes that they should not see and Rom. 11. 8. 9. Ears that they should not hear unto this day Quest But who are they that thus sin against Light The Light of the Word and of Conscience which so highly provoke God to anger against them Answer First They are such as sin after the many Warnings and Admonitions given them by God in his holy Word God's Trumpet viz. his Word is blown in Sinners ears dayly which calls them to retreat and break off from sin God saith My Son if Sinners intice you if they would Prov. 1. 10 11. have partake with them in their Sins consent thou not give no way to them nor to their Temptations they that sin with others must look to suffer with others in their plagues without true Repentance They that like Simeon and Lovi Brethren in Iniquity shall also be Brethren in Misery Therefore says God enter not into the Path of the wicked go not in the way of evil Prov. 4. 14. 15. 16 17. Men Avoid it pass not by it turn from it and pass away for they sleep not except they have done Mischief and they eat the Bread of Wickedness c. Oh! how cautelous is this Caution to have a Care of sin and of being led away by the Wicked into the evil Ways of it Forsake says God the way of the 2 Cor. 6. 17 18. Foolish and walk in the way of Vnderstanding and come out from amongst them and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you and be your God and you shall be my Sons and Daughters saith the Lord. Sinners You cannot plead Ignorance as an Excuse for your sins who live under the Gospel You have heard the Word of God preached often by a many of Gods Servants which call you to break off Sin by Repentance to plow up the fallow Ground of your Hearts and not sow among Thorns lest the Fury of the Jer. 4. 3 4. Lord come forth like Fire and none can quench it because of the evil of your Doings The Word calls you to deny all Ungodliness and worldly Lust and to live sâ—berly righteously and Tit. 2. 11. 12. godly in this present World You have you Wretches been told often of Sin and warned against it and yet you will venter upon it You have been told of your Pride and Malice and Swearing calling God to damn your Souls and of your Drunkenness and Sabboth-Breaking and yet you live in these Tim. 3. 13. 1 Tim. 6. â— 12. Sins This is indeed to sin against Light Oh! have a Care you provoke not God to give you up to blindness of Mind to deceive and to be deceived Flee these things and follow after Righteousness and Godliness Faith Patience Love and Meekness But 2 dly Such sins against Light c. as Live in the total neglect of those Holy duties which God calls for and that they know well they should be found in the practice of You have been told often that Gal. 4. 2. 1 Thes 5. 19 20. you ought to Pray to continue in Prayer and to Pray alwayes that is always to have your hearts in a praying frame for God and yet you Live in the neglect of it there are many prayerless persons who mind not this Work which is their priviledge as well as duty You have been told also that it is your duty to hear God's Word often and to live the Sermons in your Lives which you hear with your Ears out of the Pulpit and to read the Scriptures much which are able to make you Wise unto Salvation But Oh! how is this Work neglected by many if they do hear and read now and then they mind it not but cast the Word of God behind them What wretches are these not to mind what the Great King of Heaven and Earth says to them I have called says God but they have Prov. â— 25 29. refused and have set at nought all my Counsels and would not be reprov'd by me they hate knowledge and have not chose the Lord this is matter of Lamentation and it shall be for a Lamentation that the great God should call after sorry sinful man and he refuse to hear and regard Is not this provoking what will God do to such Will he let them go unpunished No he 'll lay his Ireful Rod upon them and Laugh when their Calamity comes Many are convinc'd that it is their Ver. 27. 28. duty to pray in their Families and yet can go Days Weeks and Months without it and God never hear of them I fear many professors are guilty in this point let me tell you in the Name and Fear of the dreadful God that these are dreadful sins and a ready way to bring Gods Curse down upon you Pour out says the Prophet thy Fury upon Jer. 10. ult the Heathen and the Families which call not upon thy Name Here Heathens and prayerless Families and Persons are reckoned together as being nothing better than they Think often upon that word of the Apostle He that knoweth to do good and doth it not to Jam. 4. 18. him it is a sin But 3 dly Such persons sin greatly against Light that Live in the practise of those sins which they condemn in others it is the trick of Hypocrites and wicked Men to condemn that in others which they allow and practise themselves But what saith Paul to such kind of men Art thou inexcuseable Rom. â— 1 2 3. O man whosoever thou art that Judgest For wherein thou Judgest another thou Condemnest thy self for thou that judgest dost the same things But we are sure says he that the Judgment of God is according to Truth against such as commit such things thinkest thou this O man That judgest them which do such things and doest the same that thou shalt escape the Judgment of God Seneca wrote against Superstitions and the Superstitious and yet worship'd Images himself Many condemn that as sinful in others which they allow in themselves is not this to sin against Light Let such persons have a care they be not left of God
heavy Judgement the more it is upon a man the less he feels it and the further he is from a possibility of repenting truly and believing in Christ for Salvation he must needs run head-long to evil and to Hell whom the Devil drives But Some may ask me what they must do Quest to escape this Judgement of being blinded and hardned by the Word Answer First When ever you hear the Word preached hear it with Reverence and Attention Keep thy Foot when thou goest to Eccles. 5. 1 2. Psal 119. 11. the house of God be reverent in his Presence and hear the word with due Attention as it is the word of God Let it not go in at one Ear and out of the other but hide it in your hearts that you may not sin against God 2dly Meditate upon the Grace of God in Christ to poor sinners think dayly on the freeness fulness and riches of it If the serious Thoughts of Grace and Love to undone Sinners will not melt you and constrain you to leave your sins and love Christ who have loved you to the Death I know not what will The prodigal Son when he thought of the fulness of Bread that was in his Fathers House then he resolved to return home and fell down at his Fathers Feet and said Father I have sinned Luk. 15. 18 19. against Heaven and before thee and am not worthy to be called thy Son Nothing like Grace and Love to constrain melt and humble the Sinner Oh! Think much on God's Love and Grace But lastly For I must not enlarge pray earnestly to God for a soft and tender heart plead his Covenant Promise who hath said That he will take away the Heart of Stone and Ezek 36. 26. give a heart of Flesh Oh! Pray that every Sermon may soften your Heart and melt it Gal. 4. 2. down into godly Sorrow Many cry God damn me but there 's few in good earnest Pray for Grace and for a tender Heart Oh! 1. Thes. 5. 17. Luk. 18. 1. 6. Turn the word preached into Prayer and say Lord make this and every word of 〈◊〉 a good word unto my Soul I shall add do more but leave what hath been said to the Blessing of the GREAT GOD. SOLIDEO GLORIA FINIS ERRATA Pray Courteous Reader mend with your Pen these following Faults PAge 7. line 32. for Sword read Fear In the same Page for Temption read Temptation Page 13. line 23. for Means read Meant Page 9. line 3. for Judiciously read Judicially Page 15. line 32. for Promulging read Promulgation Page 38. line 3. for Ways read Voice Page 39. line 10. for Pleasures read Pleasure In the same for To read Into A FUNERAL SERMON 2 Tim. iv Verse vii viii I have fought a good fight I have finished my course I have kept the Faith Henceforth there is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness which the Lord the Righteous Judge shall give me at that Day And not to me only but unto all them also that love his appearing SOlomon the Wise tells us To every thing there is a Season and a Time a Time to be Born and a Time to Die a Time to Mourn and a Time to Rejoyce Eccles 3. 1. c. I doubt not All the Godly and the Serious and Sensible here present will readily acknowledge with me That this is a Time to Mourn But will it not look like the adventuring on a Paradox to affirm to you That it is also a Time to Rejoyce A Time it is indeed to Mourn for the loss of so dear a Relation and so Pious and Christian a Friend But are we not Christians as well as Men And while Nature seeles sighs nay sinks at the dismal Loss of Friends or Relations Grace should triumph over Nature and Faith over Sense While we are bemoaning their loss we should be Rejoycing in the Crown and Glory of Saints of which number she was we have so great Reason to be assured Our Deceased Friend was one of their Number who by their Holy Conversation give a plain and sensible demonstration of the Power of the Principles of our Holy Profession both by their Life and their Death For Words have not that Energy and Force that Action and Conversation hath a shining Life and a triumphant Death perswade beyond all the Power of Argument or charms of Rethoric And concerning the not only unblameableness but Piousness of her Life for whose Death we now Mourn it was so well known to all that knew her that she hath therein a better Character than I can give her for modesty of Stile and Reserves of Expression become me when I consider the Modesty and Humility of her Deportment through the whole of her Life I come therefore now to the Text I have proposed to Discourse upon The whole Text is drawn in Figures borowed from the Olimpic Games well known in the Times and Places in which the Apostle wrote Games appointed for all the activities of Persons prepared by Frame and Constitution of Body Vigour of Mind and Inclination and strictly Disciplined Dieted and Exercised thereunto Such an allusion is at other times made use of by the Apostle as 1 Cor. 9. 24. And being Sanctified by the Divine Spirit is most elegant and expressive of holy Senses In this Place The Apostle of the Gentiles gives us under these Emblems a threefold Character of himself and then sets out the Prize 1. His Encountring and Combating all the Temptations of Satan within and of the World without wherein he Fought not as one that beateth the Air but at sharps as they say with great effect for Offence and Defence as those Combatants alluded to used to do 2. He who received the Prize Finished his Course Therein he alludes to those who Run in a Race that they might Obtain He Ran not as in certainly He Ran the whole Course of Doing and Suffering and of his Ministry and Apostleship the whole Race set before him to the very Mark 3. He kept the Faith the great Faith of the Gospel in union to the Crucified Jesus which was the scandal of the Jews and Gentiles even the Cross of Christ and the Obedience of Faith in all the Holiness Mortification to the World and the Lusts of it within and without and doth extend to all kinds of Suffering Heavenlyness of Mind and Conversation Hereby he behaved himself as a mighty Champion that by no means would let go his Hold or Deposium the Pearl of great Prize or surrender it to the violence against it And so he leads us to the second Part of this great Text under the same allusion The Crown or the Prize not the Corruptible Crown of those Games but the Incorruptible to which the Apostle refers a Man is not Crowned except he strive Lawfully and herein he thus expresses himself Henceforth is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness which the Righteous Lord shall give me Before I begin
received not the Love of the Truth that they might be saved By Truth is meant Eph. 1. 13. Rom. 1. 18. the saving Truth of the Gospel which is called the Word of Truth There is a Truth natural which the Heathens had and detained in Unrighteousness which brought Gods Wrath down from Heaven upon them There is a supernatural Truth from divine Revelation This is here meant the Abuse of which Truth highly provokes God to give up men judicially to the Delusions of Sin and the Devil and at last as the just Event and Effect of their rejecting the truth and believing Lies are damned These Wretches that receive not the Love of the truth are first punished with spiritual Judgments and then with eternal ones they are first blinded here judicially and then as the just Reward of their rejecting Christ the truth as it is in Jesus they are damn'd Having divided and opened the Text I shall lay down this one general Proposition viz. Doct. That God by Christ in just Judgment gives over such as are enemies to his Gospel to the Delusions of the Devil and their own Hearts to be hardned and blinded while others in Mercy are enlightned and converted by it That Gospel which makes the way of Salvation by Christ clear and evident to many souls who are in darkness and sit as in the shadow of Death to others thro' their Ignorance Prejudice and Malice and the righteous Judgment of God for their Perverseness and Infidelity proves a means to blind and harden their Hearts That Word and Gospel which to some is a Savour of Life unto Life to others thro' their Pride and Unbelief is a Savour of Death 2 Cor. 2. 15 16. unto Death In this sense these words agree with what was prophesied by the Prophet Isaiah He shall be for a sanctuary Isaiah 8. 14 15. speaking of Christ but for a stone of stumbling and for a Rock of Offence to both the Houses of Israel For a Gin and for a Snare to the Inhabitants of Jerusalem and many among them shall stumble and fall and be broken snared Luke 2. 34. and taken And with the words of good old Simeon to Mary the Mother of our Lord This Child is set says he for the Fall and Rising again of many in Israel and for a sign to be spoken against By the Fall and Rising again is here meant undoubtedly the Salvation and Damnation of many Christ will be the occasion of many Peoples Damnation even of all that reject him and his precious Gospel and believe not in him As Christ is the Cause of many Peoples Salvation even of all that believe and shall be saved Acts 4. 12. for there is no other Name by which men can be saved but by his So he is the Cause of their Damnation eventually and accedentually who oppose his Gospel and believes not in him for he that believeth not shall be damned This is the thing which Mark 16. 16. Christ tells us of in my Text and is spoken of by Paul Behold I lay in Sion a stumbling stone and rock of Offence whosoever believeth Rom. 9. 33. on him shall not be ashamed nor confounded For the opening of this weighty Point I shall first shew you what those sins are which provoke God and Christ to such a-degree as to blind and harden men by that means by which others are enlightened and softned Secondly Lay down some Conclusions for the better clearing up this great Truth Thirdly shew you how this stands with the Holiness and Goodness of God to give Men up to Blindness of Mind and Hardness of Heart to believe Lies that as Paul saith 2 Thes 2. 10 11. they may be damned Fourthly Then I shall sum up the whole with some practical Application O Lord God the Father of the Spirits of all Flesh help thy poor sinful Dust the meanest of all employed in thy Vineyard Give him thy holy Spirit and Wisdom from above to manage this great Point for thy Glory the good of Souls O! let him not darken Counsel by words without Knowledge but be led into all truth and cause it to shine transparently to the Convincing of the erroneous World the Conversion of sinners and the est ablishing thy Children in their most holy Faith c. for Jesus Christ's sake to whom with thy Self and eternal Spirit of Truth be Honour and Glory for ever Amen First I shall shew you what those sins are which provoke God to such a high degree as to give men over to Blindness under the Gospel Would you know what those sins are that provoke God to blind and harden many by the Word I 'll tell you in general They are sins against Knowledge and Light 1st Sins against the Light of Nature There are such sins which Paul speaks of that are of a provoking Nature and highly displeasing Rom. 1. 21 22. unto God When they knew God that is by the Light of Nature for the Light of the Word they had not as for his Judgements and his Statutes says the Psalmist they have not known them they glorified him Ps 147. 20. not as God but became vain in their Imaginations and their foolish Hearts were darkened These Heathens had the Light of Nature which was sufficient to let ' em know that there was a God and that He was not like a Man or a Beast or a creeping thing as they foolishly imagined for that which might be known of God is manifest Ver. 29. Ver. 20. in them for God hath shewed it unto them for the invisible things of him from the Creation of the world are clearly seen What is seen Even his eternal Power and Godhead But how is this seen and understood Why by the things that are made So that they are without Excuse the Heavens declare Gods Psal 19. 1 2. Ver. 23. Glory and the Firmament shews his handy Work Now this Light they abused and misimproved they changed the Glory of the incorruptible God into an Image made like to corruptible Man and to Birds and four footed Beasts thus they became vain in their own Imaginations For which cause God gave Ver. 24. them up to uncleanness thro' the Lusts of their own Hearts yea he gave them up to vile Affections and to a reprobate Mind or Ver. 26. to a mind void of Judgment to do those things which are not convenient Now if sins against the Light of Nature be of such an aggravating Nature as to provoke God to give up Persons to blindness of Mind What will sins against the Light of the Gospel do the greater the Light is that persons sin against the greater must their Sin be and the more provoking in the Sight of God Which brings me to the Second thing Namely sins against the Light of the Gospel these are great sin and provoke God highly to Anger to reject Christ and his Gospel and not receive the
to the Last as to the First even as in the Parable Mat. 20. 2. In that all Saints Love the Appearance of Christ it is made certain They are those that have Fought Run hell fast the great Depositum Committed to them so as to obtain and not to be rejected the Faith which gives them the assurance and lifting up of the Head at the appearance of the great Judge and Arbitrator of the Prize and so they desire long for and Love his Appearance And thus I have given a breif View and Examination of the words of this Great Text. Applic. That which I would now infer from the whole discourse by way of Doctrinal conclusion by way of Practical enforcement by way of Consolation relating to the particular occasion shall be First That we would look to it To hold the Faith of Jesus Christ in its own Purity For the Gospel is so pure separate from all mixtures as Silver Purified in a Furnace of Earth Purified seven Times that we must not pervert it any way Every Word of God Prov. 30. 5 6. Much more the Great Gospel-Points Whoever add to it or diminish from it will be found Lyars unto it Blessed are they that trust in it It will be to them a Sheild of Salvation As to that Great Point Righteousness by Faith in Christ without works How suddenly do Men slide down to Another Gospel under the Apostles Anathema and yet It is not another but the clear pure streams of Gospel-Truth and Grace are hereby troubled and the satisfaction and comfort of Believers disturb'd and the Invitingness of it to strangers much obscur'd and defiled Now here in the subtility of the Enemies of the pure Doctrine of the Gospel is seen That they being afraid to take up the Insolent Anti-christian Word Merit or as the Apostle calls it Debt They would yet Privily bring in such a supposed presence of works after Grace as sincere obedience though not perfect into Justification as the condition of that Covenant upon which it justifies even as perfect obedience was the condition of the Covenant of Works and yet merit not once Named nor Allowed Because Adams strength to work by if he had rightly applyed it was indeed from the Bounty and Goodness of the Creator yet as in a way of Condecency of such a Creator to such a Creation as the Humane Nature that came pure and perfect out of His Hand But what Believers do is from Grace in Christ by and from His Spirit Vouchsafed to Sinners and so cannot Merit Now this hath indeed very great Truth in it Yet it doth not Answer the High Expression of the Gospel excluding all Created or Creature-Righteousness in the Court of Righteousness or Justification and placing all in the Righteousness of God by Faith in Jesus Christ In his obedience in his Expiation Filling up and so replenishing that Court That nothing else can enter but is kept out by the Flaming Sword of the Fiery Law Yea Angels that never sinn'd yet Cover their Faces Esa 6. and their Feet their Excellency and the Nakedness and Folly of all Created Being before Increated and consist in and by Christ Christ as the Head of Amity and Perseverance in their Glorious State and Adam not Flying to it upon those tenders of it signifid to Him as by that real evidence of it That he was and could be no more then the Figure of Him that was to come Rom. 5. 12. And that His and His Posteritys standing in Him was only their standing in Christ as this was also represented in those Sacramental Types the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil Gen. 2. Warning Him against subsisting in Himself as a God knowing or able to determine Good and Evil but to look to the Tree of Life so great a Type of Christ as we find in the Revelation Nothing therefore can enter into the Court of Justification but Poor empty single Faith Receiving Owning Acknowledging Grace Receiving Grace in Abundance excluding all else and the Gift of Righteousness by Jesus Christ alone And to this it is enabled by Grace and Accepted only for that Righteousness sake it does receive As to the enforcement by way of Action and Practice we see in this Great Portraicture the Apostle gives of a Man in Christ that Fights the Good Fight Finishes his Course keeps the Faith That a Believer in Christ is not a Loose or an Idle Slothful Unactive Person but shall appear in that Day as of the Overcomers in those so Famed Games or Exercises of all Prowess Courage Action so as to be judg'd worthy of those Crowns of which they were so Ambitious though but corruptible by the justest Judges or Arbitrators of them So the Saints shall be presented before the Father the Lord Jesus the Eternal Spirit of Holiness and before Saints and Angels to the Terror and Amazement of all the Lost as Persons of distinct Excellency and the Overcomers as in the Apocalyptic Expression is repeated and yet all in Christ and to the Glory and Praise of Grace in Him So that the Doctrine of Free Grace is indeed the most Powerful Effective Fruitful Doctrine of Holyness and so is most Discriminative of Persons in Christ and with greatest severity on those who are not and of those who shall be thought worthy of the Crown and who not and yet without the least Injury to Free Grace in Christ 3. Great Consolation have they who knew our Deceased Friend who had always Admiring Adoring thoughts of Free Grace and thereby a great sense of Perfecting Holiness in the Fear of God but all through Christ strengthning Her and in Fighting Running holding fast an Eye to the Crown but as purchased for her by Jesus Christ and that therefore she Loved the Appearance of Jesus When the Crown already received shall with Glory be set upon her at that Day That we may yet enter into the deeper enquiry into and consideration of all this Triumphant Declaration of the Apostle concerning Himself and all Saints in that supreme Point their receiving the Crown of Righteousness I will propose to give a breif resolution of these following Points 1. How in the lost undone State of the Children of Adam there can arise such a Generation of Servants of God both more eminent and smaller in this World 2. How or why they fall all under the Prohibition of serving God any longer here in the World then the Finishing such a Course of service on such a Measure of their Line Prescribed by God 3. Why this Prohibition is serv'd upon them by Death Two Persons only Enoch and Elias and why they only excepted Herein I shall with all the care and Caution according to the understanding given to me by and from the Word of God Discourse each of these Point 1. It is indeed the wonder of Divine Grace and Power That there should have been and are such a Generation of the Servants of God in the World in every Age