sayes Yea what seare 2 Cor 71. 1. a natural conscience may cause a kind of feare too nay a horrible feare The sinners in Zion are afraid fearefulnesse saith surprized the Hypocrites c. Isa 33. 14. for a guilty Conscience cannot but worke feares when it s awakened but this feare is meerely out of selfe love and of Bondage But when the Conscience hath done so its owne duty upon a man that it hath made him to doe his now it makes him filially afraid to sinne against God as a true Childe feares to offend his Father when a man hath this feare in him this is a signe of a living Conscience Fourthly another effect is trembling despaire in ones self it maks him see nothing but hell and damnation in himselfe and it flings him downe at Gods Gate as a man utterly undone in himselfe having no hope in himselfe for as God dealt with Paul in regard of his recovery out of sicknes he brought him to despaire of life in himselfe 2 Cor. 1. 8. so does a living Conscience in regard of mercy a naturall Conscience the effect of that is to despaire too But that is to despaire in God because when there is nothing but nature in the Conscience how can it be otherwise But when there is grace in the Conscience grace in the heart now though Conscience represent to him his damned estate it represents withall the free grace of God in Jesus Christ to all such as are heavy laden and so it is onely despaire in himselfe now hast thou such an effect in thee to despaire in thy self to fling of all thine own hopes and thy own dependences hangings holdings ye know the soule hath a thousand thousand such wishes wouldings purposes dutyes performances these the soule hangs on But now hast thou this effect in thee that thou doest absolutely despaire in thy selfe I meane selfe confidence with whatsoever good is in thee be it grace or what ever doest thou despaire in thy selfe this is a signe of a living Conscience now thou hang'st upon nothing but the meere mercy and good will of God And this is the best hold in the world though the world cannot abide it Thus ye see for sinne The livingnesse of Conscience in regard of sinne Secondly now for the livingnesse of Conscience in regard of good Then is the Conscience alive to that which is good First when it goes and it does not onely urge a man to that which is good so it did Agrippa Almost thou perswadest me to be a Christian Act. 28. 28. when Paul spake unto him it seemes his Conscience tooke hold of Pauls words and it did mightily urge it had almost done the deed alas this is not it a dead Conscience may doe this yea with admirable importunity as it is in many But when the Conscience doth not onely urge when that does not onely doe its duty in this point but it makes a man doe his duty too the man freely urges himselfe and freely sets himselfe to it and about it as it was with David when thou sayest seek ye my face my heart said unto thee thy face Lord will I seek Psal 27. 8. that is when thou sayest thus in my Conscience seeke my face my heart ecchoed back I will doe so indeed marke his Conscience did not onely doe its duty but it made him to doe his as his Conscience did urge him so he tooke these urgings and urged himselfe Secondly when the Conscience hath life towards good it excuses and it does not onely excuse in part for so it may doe in a wicked heart many a wicked man hath such an excusing Conscience when he does good for the matter of it as we read in the Heathen Rom. 2. 15. their Consciences accusing or else excusing their Conscience did excuse in part But it excuses full out it tels him he hath done it unfeignedly in the truth of his heart that he does beleeve in God that he does truly repent from dead workes that he does in some poore measure walke in new obedience from day to day and that he stands guiltlesse before God by faith in Christ Jesus or if it doe not excuse thus it is meerly out of Ignorance of the things given him of God a living Conscience is an excusing conscience it does not onely say the thing that he does is good but that he does it unfeignedly withall his heart true a naturall Conscience not awakened may doe thus but that 's a misprision for when it comes to see its owne condition indeed then it will be in another tale ah I am rotten I have beguiled mine owne soule to this very day but a living Conscience can never be confuted as it excuses so its excuses shall stand before God because it is quickened by the grace that is in Jesus Christ his bloud is sprinkled on it Thirdly when the Conscience hath life towards good it approves a man and his wayes it either may or does pronounce a man to please God As it was with Enech he had a conscience that told him he was approved of God before his translation he had this Testimony that he pleased God Heb 11. 5. this is the nature of conscience if it be alive to do its duty and so as to make a man to doe his to tell a man that he is allowed of God which is an admirable mercy that a childe of God should have such an intelligencer in his owne bosome that can tell him he is approved of God no creature is able to expresse what comfort this is none but good people can have this others may be approved of men others may heare that such and such doe approve them but they can never heare that God does approve them These are the consciences onely towards good which it can never doe except it be alive Now the effects of these be First Joy when the conscience does its duty towards God and makes a man doe his duty too this worketh Joy in his heart as Paul says This is our rejoyeing even the Testimony of our conscience that with sincerity and godly purenesse we have had our conversation in the world 2 Cor. 1. 12. There is no joy like this joy wicked men may laugh and seeme as merry as crickets but in the of their laughter their conscience gives them but cold comfort now when a man hath such a conscience as this that sets him about that which is good this makes him have truer joy then all the world besides for howbeit the world are besotted that they doe not looke after God Yet the conscience knowes it is goodnesse onely that will please God and therefore when the conscience is privy to this no tongue can speake what a joy this is unto one Secondly another effect is boldnesse and freedome from slavish feare There 's a deale of feare in a mans heart as long as he does not serve God and doe the things that are
is all our preaching and dressing up of our Sermons like the riging of the sayles that 's nothing except the wind blow The Spirit of Christ is the winde except hee blow upon you we are nothing the tampering on the Organs is nothing but when the breath comes then there is musique So we may keep adoe to turne your hearts but till God breath into you there is nothing done True the preaching of the Gospel is a very powerfull thing I when Christs arme goes along with it it is the sword of the Spirit but if the Spirits arme be not with it we may brandish it here every week and doe little as Scanderbagge said One hearing what mighty feats Scanderbagges sword had done sent for it and when he saw it he made nothing of it Is this the Sword that hath done such great exploits what 's this Sword more than other swords O sayes Scanderbagge I sent thee my sword but not my arme that did handle it So my Brethren the word which wee preach is but Christs sword God sends you his sword many times when he keeps his arme to himself and so nothing is done So then we are nothing and therefore all successe is of Christ First our wills are nothing to doe it we may will to doe you good but Converts cannot bee made by our wills as the Evangelist sayes Joh. 1. 13. Secondly our paines and labours are nothing we may labour and take paines but look Esa 49. 4. Thirdly our gifts are nothing who had better gifts than Christ had as hee was man and yet that would not doe it Joh. 12. 38. Fourthly our Prayers are nothing they may doe something sometimes but except God be pleased to give successe they are nothing Jeremiah prayed Jer. 14. 7 8 9. yet the Lord told him that should not doe it ver 11. Secondly the Conversion of Soules is a supernaturall work we that are Ministers preach to make men new creatures to turn Leopards into Kids as if we should preach to make Blackamores white the dead alive which is a work for God alone to doe and therefore the successe must needs be from him Alas what are we able to doe as the Apostle sayes You are Gods wormanship in Christ Jesus created to good works Ephes 2. 10. we are his instruments that 's true indeed but yee are his workmanship you are the Epistle of Christ administred by us Writen not with Inke but with the Spirit of the living God 2 Cor. 3. 3. The Epistle of Christ but ministred indeed by Christ his is the hand wee are but the pen when we bid you repent and beleeve and be holy and godly and heavenly minded men deny your selves be dead to the world and alive to God come out of Satans power come into Christs Kingdom it is like Ezekiels bidding of the dead bones to gather flesh and stand up living men All the successe must needs be of God And therefore what does this teach us The Use of it is First That we that are the Ministers of God can but make tryall whether we can convert our people or no as the Apostle speaks proving if at any time God will give them repentance 2 Tim. 2. 25. so it is in some of your Bibles so we must make proofe we must try come into the Pulpit every week and try sharpen our nailes as sharp as we can and strike them as farre in as we can and so try often try as the wiseman speaks in another case In the morning sow thy seed and in the evening let not thy hand rest for thou knowest not whether shall prosper this or that or both Eccle. 11. 6. So Jeremiah did hee would try first hee went to the poorer sort to see whether they would hearken unto him when he had no successe there then thought he I will try the great men I will get mee to the great men Jer. 5. 5. we should make assayes we doe not know may be God will give us good successe we must make assayes as it is said of Paul and Silas That they assayed to goe into Bithynia but the Spirit suffered them not Act. 16. 7. O thought they here bee a great many soules in this Countrey we will try whether there be any for Christ yea or no. Indeed they found that they had no successe in their attempt But they made an assay though Secondly This teacheth us to wait though we have not successe presently yet we should wait all successe is from Christ and therefore it is fit we should wait for it and therefore a Minister is commanded to be patient The servant of the Lord must be gentle to all men apt to teach patient 2 Tim. 2. 24. q. d. he hath not the successe in his own hands to have it when he will no though he doe no good yet nor yet hee must be patient He is not apt to teach poore people else except he be patient as he is not fit to teach a dull Schollar that is over-hasty And therefore my Brethren though we have lost all our labour hitherto on the most of you yet now again we speak to you come will ye yet go to heaven come are ye yet in the minde to hearken and obey wee come to you once more will ye yet c. as Jeremiah sayes Woe unto thee O Jerusalem wilt thou not bee made clean when shall it once be Jer. 13. 27. Beloved wee are dull Schollars in Religion and people are hard to take their learning in this kinde and therefore if we would be apt to teach wee must be patient what though we see no good yet this must not make us out of heart or to grudge our paines we must bee patient still wee are to think may be the next time I preach God will give me good successe Isaiah and Paul gave not over though they had cause to complain Thirdly This may serve to condemn all the world whether the Gospel comes and specially us hereabouts that doe not let Ministers have any good successe you will say how doe I make this use of it If all the Ministers successe be from Christ then one would think this were an excuse unto people I answer no the meaning of the Doctrine is this that the people are so contrary to the Word such enemies to the wayes of Jesus Christ that a Minister can look for no successe except the Lord turn their hearts This is the meaning of the point Does this excuse any what does your enmity against Christ and all goodnesse afford you any excuse nay this aggravates your sin Now this is the meaning of it As Saint Paul when he spake how little successe he and all the rest of his fellow-Apostles had hee layes the blame upon the people All the day long I have stretched out my hands against a disobedient and a gainsaying people Rom. 10. 21. So the Prophet Isaiah from whom these words are taken complaines of the unfruitfulnesse
detect us at last before others and then what a shame will this bee as David sayes of Doeg the Lord would discover him Hee would make all the good people round about say of Him Lo this is the Man that tooke not GOD for his strength Psalme 52. 7. So hee will doe with us Lo this is the Man that had such a Name to Live Lo this is the Man now wee see here 's a wretch now wee see how hee deceived his owne soule hee never truely sought GOD in all his life hee was not the Man that wee tooke him for hee built upon the Sand hee did not lay a good foundation and therefore now hee is tumbled downe and what is become of his name Now hee shewes himselfe in his Colours now wee see hee is an Enemy of GOD hee can side with the Times hee can embrace this present VVorld hee hath no eternall life abiding in him Nay the Lord will not onely doe thus with us if wee rest in a Name but also hee will pour his Wrath upon us otherwise too yee may read how that this was the reason why the Lord drowned all the old World not onely the wickednesse of them that were without for if they that professed Religion had beene sound they might have prevented the Deluge and prayed it away But they that professed Religion had only a Name The Sonnes of GOD saw the Daughters of men that they were faire Genesis 6. 2. That is the Sonnes of God they were onely so in Name their workes plainely shewed that they were onely so in Name therefore the Lord swept them all away So the Lord will pour bitter things on us if wee bee Christians onely in Name and the servants of CHRIST onely in Name if wee bee not so indeede nay this is not all but wee shall have a deeper Portion in Hell too then Pagans or Papists or any in our owne Land the more wee have borne of his Name the surer shall our damnation bee if wee doe not really answer the Holy Name wherewith wee are called Wee may see this in the Man in the Gospell Friend how camest thou in hither Binde him hand and soote cast him into utter darkenesse where is weeping c. Matthew 22. 12. 13. Come Friend how came you in hither marke hee had the Name of a friend of Jesus Christ therefore the Text sayes hee was speechlesse hee had nothing to say for himselfe his damnation had nothing to lessen it other people shall have something to say for themselves to lessen their damnation but those that have a Name to live shall not have the least syllable Thirdly then let another use bee to humble our hearts let us goe to God in humiliation of heart as the poore prodigall Sonne did and downe on the knees of our soules and bodies and say Lord I have sinned against Heaven and before thee and am no more worthy to bee called thy Sonne Luke 15. 21. So as many of us as are guilty of this sinne as who almost is not and that in a horrible manner let us say Lord I have beene called a Christian I have beene called a child of thine I have had the Name a good while but O what a Wretch have I beene I am not worthy of this Name I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight I have not answered the Name I have had and therefore it were just with thee to cut mee asunder with Hypocrites and so fling mee downe to Hell REVEL 3. 1. And art Dead THese words are a part of the Epistle that Christ sent to the Ministers and Church of Sardis Ye have heard the inscription to the Angel of the Church in Sardis write Ye have heard too of the subscription These things saith he that hath the seven spirits of God and the seven Starres We are come to the Subject matter and therein first to the reproof in generall I know thy workes and secondly to the partculars of the reproof The first particular was this Thou hast a name that thou livest all these have been delivered already now followes the second particular reproof And art dead Here the question is what Christ meanes by dead By dead he does not mean dead in errors and heresies though these be called deadly poysons and may make a Church dead For the truth is called the word of life Phil. 2. 16. and wholesome Doctrine as the Apostle cals it and ergo errors and heresies these poyson dead any people that drink them in But this cannot be the meaning here for we see no such thing here laid to their charge it should seeme this Church was an orthodox Church neither by dead does he meane prophane wicked manners though they make a people dead too as we see the prodigall Sonne that had been given to prophane and dissolute courses his Father sayes he was dead in those dayes Luke 15. 24. Yet this cannot be the meaning neither for this Church had a name to live and it had this name among the Churches of Jesus Christ which had more wit then to Judge them to be alive if they had been so palpably wicked no it seemes they were an excellent Church to see to a good Ministry to see to but both dead so then this is the meaning For all their seeming to be alive they were indeed dead as the Apostle sayes of himselfe before he was quickned by Christ Jesus He was dead sin revived and I dyed Rom. 7. 9. yet he was as jolly a good man as any other and yet he confesses he was dead so they were dead for the most part and those that were not all out dead yet they were dead-hearted and without life in Gods wayes For as it was with the Moraller Heathen they did the things contained in the Law yet they were dead so a people may doe the things contained in the Gospell too and yet be dead people may beleeve yet as Iames sayes their saith be dead saith Jam. 2. 26. namely when their faith is without works so people may have goodly works for the morall part of them and yet doe them with a dead heart to be sober and temperate and loving and chaste and civilly humble and meek and diligent in their calling and known to frequent all the ordinances of God in publik in private these are outwardly good works and yet may be in the number of those works that the Apostle cals dead works Heb. 6. â— namely when there is no life of God in them Thousands deceive themselves in this when they have a kinde of faith and a kind of particular faith and such works as these flowing from their faith they think this to be a lively faith no no a man may be dead for all that This truth will not sink into mens minds fancies fancies say they these are nothing but the whimses of a company of giddy â—raines what would they have if this be not true religion we wonder what
no worke and no devise and no wisdome and no purpose in the grave whether thou goest that is when men are dead then they can doe nothing so it is here as long as we are dead we can doe nothing True because we have the life of sense and of nature and of a naturall conscience in us we may counterfeit good workes as a painter may make a man True he cannot make a living man so as long as we are dead-hearted we doe but paint out good duties before God all our Prayers are but painted prayers all the good workes we doe are but paint there 's none of them to the life as God sayes of the Jewes you will say they did very many good workes they fasted and prayed and sacrificed and many other things they did But what sayes God they are vanity their workes are nothing Isa 41. 29. as a dead Corps there be eyes and nostrils and eares and mouth But when the life is out they are as good as nothing so it is with a dead heart we may thinke we preach much and study much and heare much and professe much and doe much the truth is we doe nothing Secondly all that we doe with a dead heart it does not please God God sayes my Son give me thy heart Prov. 23. 26. ye know the heart that is primum vivens that's the first living thing in us now if we give God never so many performances yet if all our heart be not with them what cares he for them all when they are a company of heartlesse things when the Apostle had said that to be fleshly minded is death by and by he concludes so then sayes he they that are in the flesh cannot please God Rom. 8. 8. would that please any of us that one should come and rake up a dead stinking carcase and lay it before us no more can it please God to lay a dead duty before his heavenly Majesty ye know a dead carion it is loathsome as long as life remaines in it that 's a sweet thing and it preserves it from stinking and therefore the heathens called the soule the salt of every living thing because the life is a preserving thing it preserves a thing sweet but when the life is gone out presently it becomes odious so is all that we doe when we doe it with a dead heart it is odious with God it cannot be accepted of him as the Apostle Peter speakes Ye also as lively stones are built up a spirituall house a holy Priesthood to offer up spirituall Sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ 1 Pet. 2. 5. that is the Apostle had compared true Christians unto stones now he correcteth himselfe did I call true Christians stones I pray doe not mistake me I doe not meane for deadnesse but for firmenesse a stone is a dead livelesse thing O sayes he ye must be stones I but ye must take heed of deadnesse ye must be lively otherwise ye cannot offer acceptable sacrifices unto God this is even as if a Jew should have taken a dead sheep out of a dich and laid it on Gods Altar This is abomination to God even so are dead doings to Almighty God as Vinagar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes so is a sluggard to him that sends him Prov. 10. 26. that is when a Master sends a servant on his errand if he goe dully about it even as if he had no life nor heart in him at all to doe his Masters businesse this will not please him nay it will offend him as smoke does the eyes or as Vinegar does the teeth it will make him looke with a sowre looke upon such a servant so beloved when God bids us serve him in all our wayes may be we are not so grosse as not to goe about it at all But we goe about it with a dull and a dead heart this does not please God one whit nay he takes it ill that we should thinke he will accept it at our hands as when the Jews had no heart to Gods holy and pure worship it was too chargeable to them it put them to too much charges what a whole sheep and a whole lamb every morning besides many whole ones at other times whole Bullocks whole Oxen and whole Goates this was even as death to them they went up to Gods Temple with a dead heart nay they thought much to give him of the best they gave him the torne the maimed now mark what he says should I accept this at your hand saith the Lord Malac. 1. 13. He took it ill they should thinke he would accept it so when we thinke much to be so precise and so strict to pray so much to heare so much to minde him so much and to deny our selves so much to watch so much over our hearts to humble our selves so much what may we not keep one lust may we have no more liberty then so may be we doe some thing this way but God knowes how with a dead heart it is the Lord takes it ill that we should hope he will accept this at our hands Thirdly all that we doe with a dead heart it cannot yeeld us any comfort true if we were quickened up towards God if we served God with all our heart and soule and life this would comfort us indeed to seeke him daily in a lively manner to goe into his presence with all our minde if we went eagerly a dayes to the throne of grace if we were earnest in prayer earnest against sinne earnest for all goodnesse this were a signe of his favour and a Testimony of the true grace of life this would comfort our hearts exceedingly this would breed peace in our conscience as the Apostle speakes To be spiritually minded is life and Peace Rom. 8. 6. there 's life and therefore there is peace The reason is thus because lively works alone can truely pacifie conscience when a man hath beene a professour all his dayes and done never so many things yet if the conscience can say yea but all these are dead workes all this while I have gone on with a dead-heart this fowles the conscience it can never have true peace How much more shall the blood of Christ purge your conscience from dead workes to serve the living God Heb. 9. 14. it shall purge the conscience from dead workes dead workes foule the conscience whether they be dead for matter or manner sinne is a dead worke for matter and good duties heartlessely done are dead workes for manner now both fowle the conscience the conscience remaines under guilt continues without peace it is an ill conscience why because the conscience knowes it hath the living God to serve that will not like of such workes when a man payes in his rents onely by halves or by dribblets or with light money the Kings receiver will not give him an acquittance my brethren conscience is Gods receiver no wonder it does not
let his Baalisme alone or if the conscience be against all manner of sinnes it is but in a fume cito redibit in gratiam they are but like new Wine in old Bottels at last the Bottels break and the Wine is all spilt so all these workes in an awakened conscience are onely then while the conscience cannot sleep But when it can fall asleep againe then the man can be quiet againe the conscience is an old conscience and not renewed and therefore it is not able to hold them well then ye see these are not consciences life What then is the consciences life for this ye must know First the conscience hath a Testimoniall life a life whereof it lives as the soul lives for it is the reflexion of the soule the soules privity to it selfe betweene God and it selfe And therefore if the soule be alive towards God then the conscience is alive too as the Apostle sayes How much more shall the bloud of Christ who through the eternall spirit offered himself without spoâ— to God purge your conscience from dead workes is to serves the living God Heb. 9. 14. marke when a mans dead workes are purged away the conscience is alive when a mans selfe is alive and his workes are alive the conscience is alive as we say of the goodnesse of conscience though the conscience be never so good in it selfe yet as long as the man is not good his conscience can never be good conscience is said to be good as a Messenger is said to be good namely when he bringeth good tydings though he be never so good a man yet if he doe not bring good tydings we say he is an ill Messenger he sent evill Angels among them Psal 78. 49. Calvin thinkes it may be meant of good Angels yet said to be ill Angels because they brought evill Plagues upon Aegypt so stands a good conscience that can bring good tydings of a man that he is a good man true a wicked mans conscience may report well of him as Absolon did of the people O your matters are good sayes he when they were stark naught so thy conscience may flatter thee and say thy matters are good But when conscience can say truly thy matters are good The conscience is like a Register or a Bill now then it is a Bill of good Items when all thy sinnes are blotted out ye know we call it a fowle bill that hath fowle crimes written in it Item this man stole a horse Item he brake into such a mans house Item he murdered such a man when such a Bill as this comes in at the Assizes against a poore Prisoner this is a black Bill this is a fowle Bill so as long as thy conscience is a fowle Bill Item I was born in sinne Item I have lived very loosely Item I have heard so many Sermons and gotten litte good Item I was at such a Sacrament and was nere the better thy conscience is a fowle Bill this is a fowle conscience as the Apostle sayes a defiled conscience Tit. 1. 15. This is a bad conscience now when the conscience is cleane then it is a good conscience so I may say of a lively conscience the conscience is alive when the man is alive towards God then it beares witnesse but that is not all the conscience hath other acts Secondly the conscience hath another life of it's own namely the conscience is said to be quickened up to its duty when it quickens up the whole man to doe his As the conscience of the good people that offer'd to the Tabernacle was a quick conscience their conscience was quick to doe its duty because it quickened them up to doe theirs their heart made them willing Exod. 35. 29. that is their conscience made them willing though the conscience be never so eager that is not it it never does its duty with life till it make thee doe thy duty with life The conscience of the godly may be is not so eager neither does it keep such a doe as many a wicked mans conscience The eagerer conscience is faine to be it 's a signe the man is the more dead when a man is alive the conscience stirres him up with more ease like a man that is willing to pay his debts the creditor need no more then aske whereas when the debter is a slye fellow there needs the more Bawling so that if thou would'st know whether thy conscience be quick the question is not whether it be eager or no But whether does it quicken thee up to doe thy duty or no. This then is the life of conscience when it makes a man doe his duty towards God and man when it makes a man beleeve with all his heart when it makes him love God with all his soule and mind to serve him in truth to doe his holy will to humble himselfe soundly before God for all his sinnes to make his peace with God daily to please him and to walke before him in newnesse of life This is a living conscience this conscience hath the grace of life in it whether it doe it by eagernesse or not that is not it whether with much a doe or little that is all one First When the conscience does not onely check but it checkes to some purpose as when David had numbred the people his heart smote him 2 Sam. 24. 10. such checks there may be in a wicked heart when a man is made to doe the Lords will for conscience sake Secondly When it does not onely accuse for sinne so a naturall conscience may doe but it pulls a man downe before God and cites himselfe effectually before God The just man first accuseth himselfe as the Greek and the Latin read it Prov. 18. 17. Thirdly when it does not onely condemne one for sinne for so the wicked have condemning consciences as the Apostle sayes if our heart condemneth 1 Joh. 3. 20. that is if we be wicked as Paul sayes knowing that he that is such is subverted and sinneth being condemned ef himselfe Tit. 3. 11. that is he is a wicked wretch so that a wicked mans conscience may and will and shall condemne himselfe But I meane when the conscience does not onely condemne one for sinne but it tramples upon ones self as a damned wretch in himselfe to save God a labour as the Apostle speakes if we would judge our selves we should not be Iudged 1 Cor. 11. 31. Fourthly when it does not onely pull a man a dayes so it may doe the wicked and the ungodly they feele many puls every day and may be their conscience makes them leave many particular sinnes But when the conscience puls a man out of every known sinne withall the detestation and loathing out of unbeleife out of inpenitency and heardnesse of heart out of formality and all this is a lively conscience as Iob sayes my heart shall not reproach me as long as I live Job 27. 6. These are the
lively acts of conscience about sinne The lively effects whereof are three The first is penitent shame that ever he hath done it conscience makes him flye from it as a horrible shame and confusion of face before God as the Apostle sayes what fruit have ye of those things whereof ye are now ashamed Rom. 6. 21. Secondly another is penitent griefe and compunction of heart so ye may see this effect in the new converts They were pricked in their hearts Act. 2. 37. Thirdly another effect is penitentiall feare whereby he is afraid to sinne against God againe 2 Cor. 7. 11. Fourthly another is humbling despaire in himselfe that he sees nothing in him but death and damnation and so he lies at Gods Gate as a man utterly undone in himselfe having no hope but onely in Christ for as God dealt with Paul in regard of his recovery out of his sicknesse he brought him to despaire of life in himselfe 2 Cor. 1. 8. so does a lively conscience in regard of misery Thus ye see for sinne Secondly now for the lively acts of conscience in regard of good when the conscience hath life it does not onely excuse in part for so it may doe in a wicked heart nay a wicked man hath such an excusing conscience when he does good for the matter of it as we read in the Heathens Rom. 2. 15. But it does sweetly excuse him and tels him he hath done it unfeignedly in the truth of his heart that he does beleeve that he does truly repent that he does in some measure walke in new obedience from day to day and that he stands guiltlesse before God through Jesus Christ When the conscience does not urge a man onely to that which is good As it urged Agrippa almost thou perswadest me c. 26. 28. Thirdly approbation when the conscience either may or does pronounce a man to please God The lively effects of these acts are 1 Ioy. 2 Cor. 1. 12. The second is boldnesse freedome from slavish feare The righteous is bold as a Lyon Prov. 28. 1. Againe a lively conscience is a sudden conscience Secondly a tender conscience REVEL 3. 1. And art Dead THe point we are in is when is the conscience alive when is that quickened up in a man ye have heard First what is the quickening of the minde Secondly what is the quickening of the heart now I say it followes what is the quickening of the conscience I shewed you how thousands are deceived here for the conscience may be awakened very much and yet never quickened indeed First the conscience somewhat awakened may like of good things Secondly the conscience somewhat awakened may oblige a man to all manner of good things Thirdly a conscience somwhat awakened may be much troubled about sinnes Fourthly a conscience somewhat awakened may urge one to good things Fifthly it may be very eager in this urging Sixthly it may prevaile very farre with its eagernesse Seventhly it may make one looke at God in some sence so farre as it prevailes All this may be in conscience and yet the conscience never quickened indeed and we have shewed you all these and cleared them unto you so that you see what need there is to enquire what the life of conscience is After the handling of these seven particulars we gave you five reasons to prove that these are not arguments that the conscience is truly alive that the conscience may doe all this and yet not have the grace of life in it First because all these workes of conscience may be in a naturall man 2. Because the conscience notwithstanding all these may be deader then ever it was Thirdly because such a conscience as this may be foolish and childish and soone pleased if the conscience were alive indeed nothing would content it but the favour of God and the Image of God and true faith ' and true peace c. But this conscience may be soone pleased if it have but any colour of grace and goodnes that 's able to still it quiet it Fourthly because the conscience though it be thus stirring as ye heard it is so far from being alive that it uses to be a help furtherance unto ones lusts Fifthly because this conscience is not universall it culs out onely some particular sinnes to be violent against and lets alone others it picks out some particular duties and good courses to be very eager for and is carelesse of others You will say then what is consciences life when is the conscience said truly to be quickened For the opening of this ye must know there be two lives of conscience in a godly man The first is a relative life whereby it 's alive when the man is alive The second is a simple life The first I say is a relative life whereby it is said to be alive when the man whose it is is alive for conscience is the reflection of the soule the soules privity to it selfe between God and it selfe And therefore if the soule be alive towards God then the conscience is alive too as the Apostle sayes How much more shall the blood of Jesus Christ who through the eternall spirit offered himselfe without spot to God purge your conscience from dead workes to serve the living God Heb. 9. 14. Marke when a mans dead workes are purged away the conscience is alive when a mans selfe is alive and his workes are alive the conscience is alive also as we say of the goodnesse of conscience so it is the life of conscience though the conscience be never so good in it selfe yet as long as the man is not good his conscience can never be good conscience is said to be good as a Messenger is said to be good namely when he bringeth good tidings as David said of Ahimaaz he is a good man and he bringeth good tidings 1 Sam. 18. 27. Though a Messenger be nere so good a man yet if he doe not bring good tideings we say he 'es an ill Messenger He sent evill Angels among them Psal 78. 49. Calvin thinkes it may be meant of good Angels yet said to be evill Angels because they brought evill upon Aegypt so that 's a good conscience that bringeth good tidings to a man that he does beleeve that he is in Christ that he is a good man True a wicked mans conscience may report well of him as Absolon did of the people O your matters are good sayes he when they were stark naught so thy conscience may flatter thee and say thy matters are good but when conscience can say truly thy matters are good The conscience is like a Register or a Bill now when it is a Bill of good Items when all thy sinnes are blotted out and good things are written in now it 's a good conscience ye know we call it a fowle Bill that hath fowle crimes written in it though the Bill be never so faire written yet if it have fowle
CHRISTS ALARM TO DROWSIE SAINTS OR Christs Epistle to his Churches By WILLIAM FENNER B. D. sometimes fellow of Pembroke Hall in Cambridge and Minister of Rochford in ESSEX REVEL 2. 7. Hee that hath an eare to hear let him hear what the spirit saith unto the Churches LONDON Printed by J. D. R. I. for John Rothwell at the Sun and Fountain in Pauls Church-yard M DC XLVI Insigni Eruditione Pietate V THOMAE HILL S. T. D. Acad Cantabrigienss Dignissimo Procancellario Coll Trin in eadem Acad Magistro Posthumum hoc GUILLIEL FENNERI Opusculum In Debitae observantiae Testimonium D. D. D. J. R. Bibliopola TO THE READER THE Author of these ensuing Sermons was a Minister of God famous in his Generation a burning and shining light one to whom if ever to any God had given the Art of winning of Soules whom I have often heard Preaching and alwaies in the demonstration of the Spirit and power and not in the inticing words of mans wisedome He was as Nazienzen saith of John Baptist Tota Vox all Voice A voice in his habite in his gestare and in his life and conversation as well as his Doctrine and being now dead he is still a voice by his Works which he hath left behinde him And in particular by these Sermons Printed according to a Copy written with his own hand which handle a Subject very necessary for these times wherein there are many that have a name to live but are indeed dead and many that are spiritually alive but yet full of deadnesse and unactivenesse to that that is good Now this Treatise will be usefull if God give a blessing to it to make the dead Christian living and the living Christian more active and lively in all godlinesse which that it may effect is the prayer of Thy soules friend in Jesus Christ ALAMY The Contents THE Coherence Page 1 The Division Page 2 1 Observ That Ministers are to be Angels Page 7 1 Vse The Ministery no base office Page 10 2 Vse If Angels they must be holy Page 11 3 Vse If Angels they must be ready to preach and labor in the word Page 13 4 Vse If Angels they are mainely for Gods Elect. Page 17 5 Vse If Angels with what reverence ought wee to hear them Page 19 2 Observ All true Ministers as one ibid. How Page 21 What unity Page 24 Ministers ought to preach often Page 32 The reasons of their unity Page 39 1 Vse Ministers not to envy one another for the faithfull discharge of their duty Page 41 2 Vse Ministers must labour to be of one minde Page 42 3 Vse Good for Ministers that they preach one for another Page 44 Ministers may be in fault the people are no better Page 46 People a cause of the Ministers deadnesse Page 48 Particular Preaching does good Page 51 Generall preaching hartfull seven Reason ibid. Morall preaching does no good Page 57 Not enough to professe onely the name of Christ Page 61 The more the word â—onvinces the more subtleties the heart aeviseth Page 63 Cold preaching of the word is unsutable to the nature of the word Page 64 It is cold two wayes Page 66 Evill life causeth thâ— Preacher seem vile Page 67 1 Vse A Minister may be the cause why the people are dead Page 68 2. Ministers of all mâ—n should care to be most quickned ibid. 3. People should pray for their Ministers Page 69 4. Ministers should take hâ—ed of their charge â—â—â—irable Royalties of Jesus Christ ibid. 1 That he hath the Seven Spirits of God Page 72 Gives the spirit to whom he pleases Page 75 The Reasons why Page 77 Vse 1. If Christ have the spirits what hath he not Page 80 2. We are without excuse if we want the spirit when Christ hath him to give Page 81 How we may obtain it Page 86 3. Those that want the spirit may have supplies from Jesus Christ Page 89 Signes of it Page 93 Second Royalty of Jesus Christ he hath the seven Stars Page 96 Ministers why Stars Page 97 Every Parish should have one Page 98 Vse 1. A Miserable thing when a Land is darkned Page 100 2. We are to blesse God when the Starres shine ibid. 3. Take heed those few Stars we have set upon us Page 101 Six fignes when they are about to vanish ibid. Why God will take away his Stars Page 105 Christ hath seven Stars in five respects Page 107 Vse 1. They have their Mission from him therefore t is comfort to true Ministers ibid 2. They must doe his Message Page 108 3. They must give him account Page 109 4. A great mercy Christ should send unto them ibid. The heads of their Commission their Authority Page 120 Vse 1. If their Commission be from Christ they are the greatest Embassadors that are or can be Page 121 2. They must take heed how they discharge their Function Page 122 3. To condemn them that obey not the Ministery Page 124 4. God takes it not well at our hands that Ministers should be vilipended Page 126 5. They must preach no mercy at all to them that stand out wilfully Page 129 6. They that fear God must obey the voyce of his Servants Page 131 Ministers had need of many rare gifts Page 133 1. To open the Scriptures ibid. 2. To deduce from them Page 134 3. To Convince Page 135 4. To move affections ibid. 5. To speak Pro Re Nata Page 136 6. To chuse speciall Texts for speciall occasions Page 137 Vse 1. A Minister had not need to be a foole Page 139 2. They are not Christs Ministers that are not gifted ibid. 3. They must goe to Christ for gifts Page 140 4. Stir up those he gives them Page 141 5. They must rely on Christ ibid. 6. People should pray for their Minister Page 142 Meanes to enlarge the Ministers hearts and gifts to the people ibid. Christ hath the prospering of his Ministers Page 149 The Reasons 1. Because Ministers are nothing in the World Page 151 2. Conversion is supernaturall Page 152 Vse 1. The Ministers can onely make try all whether they can convert the people or no. Page 153 2. They must waite though they have not successe presently Page 154 3. It may condemn the World that lets not Ministers have successe ibid A Minister hath all good successe from Christ Page 156 Vse 1. Why some Ministers now adayes have so little successe Page 157 Carnall Ministers may sometimes convert Page 159 2. Christ doth blesse true Ministers Page 161 3. If they have not successe they ought not to be discouraged Page 162 4. The greatest hurt to Ministers is to deprive them of the joy of their labors ibid. Christ disposeth continueth or removeth them Page 163 Reason 1. Because no man is a Pastour that entereth not at the doore Page 164 2. None can be placed in a Parish but by this Bishop Christ the Archbishop of our Soules Page 165 3. He payes them
For the place of his exile was like Pauls third Heaven unto him he was ravisht in the Spirit on the Lords day and had abundance of revelations vouchsafed unto him of the things that should occurre in the Church and out from thence unto the end of the world Before which he hath a charge given him to write to the seven Churches of Asia chap. 1. the Church of Ephesus the Church of Smyrna and of Pergamus and of Thyatira these foure are written unto in the second Chapter the other three are written unto in this the Church of Sardis and the Church of Philadelphia and the Church of Laodicea Now that which I have chosen to handle and if God afford liberty I desire to goe through it is the Epistle unto the Church of Sardis wherein we may consider foure things First The Inscription containing a specification whom the Epistle is specially directed unto And to the Angel of the Church in Sardis write Secondly the Subscription containing a description of the Lord Jesus Christ the King of the Church These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God and the seven Starres I call it a subscription because in our letters we use to subscribe our names or to write our names beneath at the latter end But it may be called rather a suprascription as Kings write their names above for honours sake so does Christ the King of Sion write his Name above Thirdly the substance or matter of the Epistle I know thy works that thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead Be watchfull strengthen the things which remain that are ready to die for I have not found thy works perfect before God c. vers 1 2 3 4. Fourthly the conclusion He that overcommeth the same shall be clothed in white raiment c. v. 5 6. First I say the Inscription And unto the Angel of the Church in Sardis write In which words Saint John is directed whom to inscribe this Epistle unto and that is unto the Church which is in Sardis but especially unto the Angel of it that is the Minister or Ministers of it for that 's the meaning of Angel in this place Secondly for the Subscription or rather suprascription that contains the description of the Lord Jesus Christ from whom the Epistle is sent and he is described by two Royalties the first is in having of the seven Spirits of God These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God that is that hath power to send the holy Ghost unto all the Elect for so the holy Ghost is called the seven Spirits that are before the Throne Rev. 1. 4. He meanes there the holy Ghost not as though there were seven holy Ghosts but he is expressed in the plurall number in regard of the abundance of graces that he infuses into his Churches and the number seven is rather taken then any other number partly because this number is put for a perfect number as implying the perfection of his influence partly because of the present businesse in hand for here he writes to the seven Churches of Asia Now the Lord Jesus Christ hath Spirit enough to send forth into them all This is his first Royalty that he hath the seven spirits of God Another Royalty of his is that he hath the seven Starres that is the seven Pastors of these Churches Christ hath them all in his hand it is he that preserves those Ministers that are faithfull he hath power to raise them up to gift them to protect them to defend them and they are called Stars because they are to shine in the firmament of the Church Thirdly for the substance and matter of the Epistle it containeth three parts First a Reproofe and the reproofe is in these words I know thy works that is I know them all and they are stark naught for the most part what ever they seem they may seem to be very good but I tell you plainly I know them all what they be q. d. generally they are stark naught and then he instances in particular as for example thy deadnesse of heart in Religion Thou hast a name to live but thou art dead that is thou goest for an excellent Minister and and excellent Church ye doe professe Religion very fairly and in a goodly manner that to see to thou art alive and thou art taken so too of all thy Neighbour-churches they all think and hope thou art alive but the truth is thou art dead the grace of life is hardly in thee at all This is the first the Reproof Then secondly here 's a remedy annexed for he does not reprove them out of any ill will but for their good and so he prescribes them a remedy and the remedy is twofold The first is To strengthen the things that remain that are ready to die q. d. as many of you as are not quite and clean dead stirre up your selves quicken up your hearts and this is amplified by shewing how they should doe thus O be watchfull sayes he q. d. that is the reason why ye languish in this fashion and yee will languish more and more because yee are not watchfull therefore Be watchfull and also by rendring a motive to presse this remedy For I have not found thy works perfect before God that is thou art hardly sincere a jot thou art full of hypocrisie and rottennesse and formality and thou wilt lose all thy labour if thou dost not look well about thee therefore shake up thy selfe and strengthen the things that remain This is the first remedy The second remedy is to repent and this is amplified by shewing how and that is two wayes First Remember how thou hast received and heard that is consider how thou hast been taught and bewaile thy declinings for thou art horribly departed from what thou hast learned in the Ministery of the word Secondly Hold fast that is so bewail thy warpings wanings and degeneratings that thou mayst get up againe hold thee fast there when thou art up Now lest they should neglect the using of this remedy the Lord Jesus sharpens his speech with a threatning telling them the danger if they will not be awakened If therefore thou shalt not watch I will come on thee as a thiefe and thou shalt not know what houre I will come upon thee This is the second part of the matter of this Epistle the Remedy Thirdly another part of the matter of this Epistle is a commendation of some particular persons in the Church that were not carried away in the deadnesse of the times and these he does praise very much and he gives them an excellent promise the praise is in these words Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments that is there be some among you though they be but a few that have not been sutted and soyled with others bad examples though others be dead yet they are not dead too for company
Churches in Asia to Ephesus to Smyrna to Pergamus to Thyatira to Sardis to Philadelphia and Laodicea The third is the conclusion of every Epistle Where it is said thus Hee that hath an eare let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches Rev. 3. 6. and so it is at the closure of every Letter to all the rest of the Churches and therefore the Holy Ghost there accuses the Church of Sardis of deadnesse I know thy works that thou art dead and yet hee directs it to the Minister of the Church as a thing that concernes him and that may bee laid to his charge and that hee is faulty in To the Angel of the Church in Sardis write I know thy works that thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead That is thou hast a dead-hearted people and thou art the cause of it Thou dost not doe thy duty thou dost not doe what lies in thee for to quicken them But thou art too remisse in thy Ministery and therefore their deadnesse may bee imputed unto thee Thus you see the Doctrine is very plain from the words The good or bad estate of a people dependeth much upon the Minister Commonly wee see it so fall out as the Prophet Hosea said Like people like Priest Hos 4. 9. Like sheepherd like sheep Such as the builder is such is the building as is the Husbandman so is the husbandry This wee may finde throughout all these Epistles where the Minister is commended the people are commended Where the Minister is taxed the people are taxed And therefore they stand and fall together they swim and sink together a wicked Minister a wicked people an ignorant Minister an ignorant people and so a good Minister the people either are a good people or else they are Monsters nay if the Minister bee good though the world in his Parish bee never so wretched yet hee hath a good people the Church of God in his Parish is very good commonly Well then wee have gotten our point out The Minister may bee in fault that the people are dead I doe not say it is alwaies thus For first the Minister may bee lively and yet the people dead The Lord tells us that Ezekiel had a stiffe-hearted people Ezek. 2. 4. and yet hee was not to bee blamed themselves were in all the fault So Isaiah had a dull-hearted people All the day long have I stretched out my hands to a disobedient and gain-saying people Rom. 10. 21. and therefore I doe not say it was alwaies thus Nay Secondly sometimes the people are the cause of the Ministers deadnesse The Jewes hardnesse of heart under the Ministery of Jonas was the cause why Jonas had no heart to goe unto Niniveh O thought hee if Israel will not heare mee much lesse will Niniveh heare mee Thus the people deaded Jeremiah at one time that hee had little or no heart to preach for a fit Then I said I will not make mention of him nor speak any more in his name Jer. 20. 9. Thus Ezekiel was deaded a while by his people too I came to them of the Captivity at Telabib and I sate where they sate and remained there astonisht among them seven daies Ezek. 3. 15. The Lord was fain to rowze his heart up and to tell him hee would require their blood of him before hee could pluck up a good heart to Preach livelily among them The people deaded him Nay more Thirdly sometimes the Lord locks up his good Ministers and suffers them to bee straitned in their utterance and other gifts May bee the people are ready to lay all the blame upon their Ministers O how tongue-tyed are they and it is their negligence and torpor Whereas it is for the peoples sinnes thus the Lord lockt up Ezekiel for the peoples sinnes I will make thy tongue cleave to the roofe of thy mouth and thou shalt bee dumb and shalt not bee to them areprover for they are a rebellious house Ezek. 3. 26. Nay Fourthly Sometimes peoples sinnes are the cause why their Ministers are quite dead and have no life at all in them the Lord sends foolish Ministers among them meerely because of their sinnes So it was in Hosea's time The Prophet is a foole the spirituall man is mad for the multitudes of thy iniquity Hos 9. 7. Mark they had fooles for their Ministers fooles besotted Ministers giddy Ministers Ministers that were wilde and like mad men you will say these were the causes of much sin to the people No saith the Text the peoples sinnes were the cause of such Ministers The Prephet is a foole the spirituall man mad for the multitude of thine iniquity These foure exceptions then there been of the point Otherwise the point is too too true that the Minister may bee in fault that the people are dead You see here the Church of Sardis was grown dead and the Lord faults the Angel of the Church for it I know thy works that thou art dead The like is said of Laodicea Loadicea was grown horrible lukewarme no zeale of God they were neither hot nor cold and the Lord imputes it to the Angel of Laodicea I know thy works that thou art neither hot nor cold and therefore I will spue thee out of my mouth Revel 3. 14 15 16. The same is said of the Church of Ephesus that they had left their first love and yet the Lord hits the Angell in the teeth with it I have somewhat against thee because thou hast left thy first love Rev. 2. 4. Beloved the last day I spake of the Ministers concord and unity to the Angel of the Church all the Ministers should bee as one man as if they made up one and the same Angel And therefore our Saviour Christ made choyce of Brethren and Kinksfolkes Simon and Andrew his Brother James and John his Brother St. Peters bark is a fisher-boat not a man of Warre it is not furnisht with mortall Engines but onely with nets to catch fish If Peter were reproved for drawing upon Malchus what reproofe had hee been worthy of if hee had drawn upon any of his fellows this was the Theme that wee spake of the last day Now then let us speak of the influence that a Minister hath in his people hee may bee the cause of his peoples deadnesse if hee doe not take heed And this hee may bee three waies first by his not preaching secondly by his dead manner of preaching thirdly by his dead manner of Life and Conversation First I say by his not preaching yee know the Word of God is the word of life Phil. 2. 16. The Word is that which quickeneth the heart as David saith Thy Word hath quickned mee Psal 119. 50. Now when Ministers doe not preach it this deads peoples hearts Wee see this in those places where the due preaching of the Word is wanting people are dead to all goodnesse nay they that had some quicknesse in them before doe lose them
but now the Lord hath put a vaile of flesh upon himselfe by incarnating his owne Son now we may make bold The use of this is First Is it so that Christ hath the seven Spirits of God Then what hath he not He is an all sufficient Saviour He is Gods Steward God hath put all his goods into his hands No man can be assured of any thing that is good but by comming unto him All things are delivered to me of my Father Mat. 11. 27. That is I have all my fathers goods in my hand Favour Pardon Mercy Grace Comfort Heaven it selfe yea and his holy Spirit and all I have the distributing of them all He is the store-house whither all needy soules are to goe He is full of all manner of good things as John saies Of his fulnesse have we al received Joh. 1. 1â— Looke what grace any of the Saints have they have it all of him he is Gods Conduit-pipe the Lord opens himselfe only in him he is the tap he lets out Gods Blessings and Graces and Spirit like a sluce Hee is the Lord Treasurer of Heaven and Earth As Joseph in Egypt if any one would have Corne they must goe to Joseph for it if they came to Pharaoh but for a pecke or a gallon presently he sent them to Joseph so the Lord sends all that will have any drop of mercy to his Sonne if yee will not goe to my Sonne yee shall not have one drop yee shall dye in your sinnes This is my welbeloved Sonne sayes hee looke yee heare him hearken to him obey him be ruled by him bow down unto him doe as he bids you if ye anger him and will not stoop unto him if your hearts will not burst if your minds will not off from the world and other things and be wholly intent unto him if yee slight him and suffer vain things to draw away your affections and thoughts and meditations from him there is no redemption for you No Salvation but onely by beleeving in his name he hath all the seven Spirits of God no Spirit of Grace at all can be had but onely of him he was the Rocke that Moses must stand on that the glory of Gods goodnesse might passe before him Secondly Another use is hath Christ the seven Spirits of God then wee are without excuse if wee be without the Holy Spirit of God Christ hath him to give and yet how few will seeke him of Jesus Christ as Christ sayes Yee will not come unto me that yee might have life Joh. 5. 40. That is if yee would come unto me I would make your dead hearts to live I would quicken you to all goodnesse I would powre my Holy Spirit upon you But you will not come unto me for it This makes us without excuse That Christ hath the Spirit in him for all that have a minde to him and wee have no minde How few among you to this very day have gotten yet Gods Holy Spirit Yee pray but yee have not the spirit of supplieation to pray by to lift up your hearts to enliven your desires to be able to wrestle with God to any purpose no Spirit of grace stirring in you When ye come to the house of God ye heare Sermons but the Holy Ghost does not fall upon you to make them effectuall and mightie in operation to convert you to God to knocke off your base lusts yee are dead in all holy duties voide of all Heavenly graces dull to every good thing even as the Body without the spirit is dead Nay the Spirit of the world dwelleth in most men tying and glving them to the things here below and will not let them savor and rellish the things of Heaven Whereby they cannot cease from sinne nor work the works of God Rare is that man now-a-dayes that hath the Holy Spirit of God remaining in him in any measure nay if people were asked whether they have the Spirit of God yea or no their owne Conscience could answer No they have not they never felt any such Divine ghuest their earthlinesse and lumpishnesse of heart in all the ordinances of God their unaquaintednesse with God their unsettlednesse and nakednesse and blindnesse in all the wayes of peace plainely does declare it and yet they will not come unto Christ that they might have life he hath the seven Spirits of God and yet they cannot finde in their hearts to be instant and earnest with him when Pharaoh appointed Joseph to distribute corne to all comers Goe to Joseph sayes he Gen. 41. 55. the Text sayes all Countries came to Joseph for Corne because the famine was sore in all lands But God hath appointed his own Sonne to be a dispencer of the Spirit and there is a sore want of the spirit every where in all Townes and Parishes and yet hardly any will come in Certainely this is the condemnation that men intend their pleasure and their profits and every outward thing and never seeke to Jesus to have the Holy Spirit of God For First many of us have hard hearts that cannot melt at our owne sinnes nor the publike provocations whereby God is provoked nor the generall calamities of the Church our hearts are like a stone and wee are not affected nor can be affected no relenting at the Word no bleeding in any other good dutie nothing moves us the spirit could soften yea and take the stone away and Christ saies hee would give him unto us if we did desire him I will put a new Spirit within you and take the stony heart out of the flesh Ezek. 11. 19. Hee hath spirit enough in him to doe it and yet we will not sue to him but in a feigned manner and so a hard heart possesseth us still which marres all our familie-duties and all that wee doe in the publike assemblies nothing comes of all that wee doe If our foolish hearts would come downe to be fervent after Christ this might be be remedied He hath the seven Spirits of God for the nonce But a spirit of slumber bewitches us and and nothing can awaken us to this very day Never was there a more hard-hearted time never more hard-hearted Christians nummed and past feeling wishing indeed the things mought be mended but never putting forth our hand to have them mended Secondly scarce any of us can pray but in a blunt-hearted-wise our prayers never stirre Heaven never give so much as a lift to any of our lusts neither are they any whit answerable to the miseries that are on us whether Personall or Nationall the spirit could helpe us and enlarge us as Paul saies of the good Romans Yee have received the Spirit of Adoption whereby yee cry Abba Father Rom. 8. 15. and Christ hath this Spirit in his hand to give But we would rather sit woulding and yawning then be downe on our knees before God Every one almost hath heavy things that he is consciencious of terrible guiltines horrible
us weary But still wee should goe on a seeking of the holy Spirit of God Thus as wee know where to have the Spirit of God namely in Christ so wee know how too and therefore wee are without excuse if wee suffer our selves to bee void of Gods holy and blessed Spirit this is the second use Thirdly another Use is to you that doe indeed complain of great want of the Spirit here you see where yee may have supplies even from our Lord Jesus Christ hee hath the seven Spirits of God They labour to know Christ more and more this is the way to have more and more of the Spirit as the Apostle saith That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of glory may give unto you the spirit of wisdome and revelation in the knowledge of him Ephes 1. 17. Get the knowledge of Christ more and more and thus the spirit shall come to thee more and more It is said of the Indian Gymnosophists that they would lye all the day long looking upon the Sun in the firmament so should Christians doe they should lye looking upon Christ the more spirit still they shall have if they doe so First May be ye want spirit to make you know the Lords will you finde your selves backward from day to day little or no heart to Gods Commandements look up to Christ and say Lord there is enough spirit in Christ and hee hath it for all them that doe want and would have the same O give mee some together with him as hee sayes I will put my Spirit into you and cause you to walk in my statutes Ezek. 36. 27. q. d. look up to mee I will doe this for you Secondly May bee yee want strength yee have many temptations and you have no strength to resist them they come in upon you like the breaking in upon you may bee yee are tempted to deny all and to say yee have nothing in you sometimes yee are tempted to give over all saying it is but a folly I shall one day bee damned and I were as good give over now as to doe it afterwards when it will bee worse and yee have no strength to hold out sometimes yee cannot meditate yee cannot pray yee are fain to break off in the midst with base feares with security and vain hopes you are tempted to doe as the world does and yee have no strength to oppose them Look up to Christ yee know the Spirit of Christ is a spirit of power and strength 2 Tim. 1. 7. and hee hath him for you Look up to him then and cry for his strong spirit Who knowes may bee you may bee able to say in the end as Paul does I can doe all things through Christ that strengthens mee Thirdly May bee yee want boldnesse to call God your Father yee are in a quandary whether yee should call him so or no yee are afraid hee is none of your Father and that yee are none of his adopted ones yee shall but blaspheme him to call him your Father or to expect of him a childes portion Look up to Christ hee hath such a spirit in him whereby yee may cry Abba Father Gal. 4. 6. Fourthly May bee yee want life and quickning you finde your selves very dead even as the Church of Sardis in this place I know thy works that thou art dead Look up to Christ as here hee does bid thee hee hath the seven Spirits of God and hath that which will quicken thee Christ himself when hee was naturally dead hee was quickned by his own spirit 1 Pet. 3. 18. That very spirit can quicken thy spirituall deadnesse to every good word and work His spirit is life and that will make thee lively though thy heart bee little better then a Timber-logge in duties yet if that spirit get within thee it will make thee agile and active in every good thing It is a horrible thing to see how little Christians know of Jesus Christ though they have been thought to know Jesus Christ so long a time yet they doe not know him Christ takes this very ill as hee told Philip Have I been so long time with you and hast thou not known mee Philip Joh. 14. 9. Christ could bee even angry with him for learning him no better what little spirit is there in Christians now adaies a signe though they have been a long time a learning Christ yet they hardly know him For if wee knew him Brethren wee could not bee at enmity with the holy Spirit Wee doe not look up to Christ You will say what is it to look up to Christ in all your wayes I Answer It is to follow Christ as where John said Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world The Text sayes That two of his Disciples went away and followed after Jesus Joh. 1. 36 37. O thought they is hee the Lamb of God does hee take away the sins of the world wee will follow him then John bade them look at him and they followed after him that is they lookt at him indeed as a man looks at one whom hee follows when a man so looks up to Christ that hee follows him when a man sees him his onely meanes to bee happy and godly and in the favour of God the onely meanes to doe well and to bee well and desires indeed to follow after him this is to look up to Christ when a man labours sincerely to follow the counsell and direction of Christ in all his wayes Hee bids him to deny himself and that is the thing that hee labours for Hee bids him to repent of all his sins and to ply himself to all Gods holy paths and to rely upon him for strength and acceptance and mercy and pardon and every blessing What-ever thing hee looks for at the hands of God hee sets himself to follow Christs counsell and to expect it in him If hee see his sins hee looks up to Christ and there hee sees his death to defray them when hee sees what power they have over him hee looks up to Christ for his Spirit to subdue them in the use of all those meanes that hee hath appointed Prayer Meditation Watchfulnesse Striving Purposing Endevouring and Fighting against all the lusts of his flesh And wherein soever hee failes hee labours to bee humbled and yet to look still up to Christ for forgivenesse and more help against another time This is to see the Son of God Every one that sees the Son hath everlasting life Joh. 6. 40. This is to look up to Christ to beleeve in Christ to have Christ to bee in Christ to dwell in Christ and Christ in him But you will say I am afraid I never lookt up to Christ then I never yet had him for I have not his holy spirit how shall I know whether I have the holy spirit I Answer first I will tell thee what bee not signes and then secondly what bee signes First What bee
company of hypocrites and teachers of vanities what are these Preachers wee see little good they doe what becomes of all their Preaching factions and odde opinions in one Towne and dissolutenesse and all manner of licensiousnesse in another If the whole world should let us alone I verily feare God himselfe would put us down immediately in the end So many scandals so many thousand offences are given every day that its a wonder wee stand as we doe That the Lord of heaven lets any Minister in England come into a Pulpit more nothing but pride and self-conceits and selftrustings and feared consciences dead hearts and profanenesse unlesse it be a very little handfull O Beloved if where preaching is it were honoured as it ought to bee and obeyed as it should if people would doe as we teach I dare be bold to affirme wee might Preach long enough If our Townes would sweetly reforme set up good Government root out all disorders and cursed abuses live like Christians indeed be humble and sober and loving and dutifull to God and Man Giving to Caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are Gods If we would feare God and honour the King Reverence Gods Courts obey the voyce of his servants love Christ and his word above our appointed food this would lengthen the Ministery of the Land this would bee a meanes for the establishing of Gods Kingdome among us Christ would never repent that ever hee sent his Gospell unto us where wee have some wee should have more where we have more wee should have a hundred times more as the Apostle Peter sayes Who is he that will harme you if yee be followers of that which is good 1 Pet. 3. 13. Thirdly Another Use is is it Christ that takes away Ministers either by death or restraining or by any other way Then let it bee a meanes to exhort us to repent of our sinnes that Christ may still give a doore of utterance to his Ministers that they may still speak in his name This should move us to seek God When Peter was cast into prison O what fasting and crying and praying was there to God for him till hee was restored again Act. 12. 5. they did not goe to Herod to restore him No they knew Christ was hee that tooke him from the Church whoever were the instrument therefore they sought to Heaven for him again if any peoples Ministery bee gone this is the best way to fetch them again Paul knew this to bee true and therefore when hee was in prison at Rome hee writes to Philemon thus I trust that through your prayers I shall be given unto you Philemon v. 22. Nay hee is so confident that if people would but cry hard for him to God that hee should quickly bee enlarged Nay sayes hee prepare mee a lodging for I trust that through your prayers I should be given unto you q. d. I make no question but I shall out of prison if you will but bee earnest with God So also it seems the Authour to the Hebrews was restrained from Preaching Now mark what an exhortation hee uses Pray for us sayes hee and I beseech you the rather to doe this that I may bee restored unto you the sooner Heb. 13. 18 19. Thus I have finished this part of the Description of Jesus Christ That hath the seven Starres in his hand and the whole Subscription too These things saith hee that hath the seven Spirits of God and the seven Starres I come now to the Epistle it self I know thy works that thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead but of this more c. REVEL 3. 1. And unto the Angel of the Church in Sardis write These things saith hee that hath the seven Spirits of God and the seven starres I know thy works that thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead I know thy works c. Revel 3. 1. I know thy workes c. YE have heard two things concerning this Epistle First the Inscription that declareth the person to whom it was sent To the Angel of the Church in Sardis write That is it was sent principally to the Minister of the Church in the Town of Sardis and also to the Christians that were in that Church Secondly the subscription that declareth from whom it was sent These things saith hee that hath the seven Spirits of God and the seven Stars that is it was sent from Jesus Christ Now we come to the third thing and that is the subject matter of this Epistle which consists of three things First a Reprehension of the sins of the Minister and the body of his congregation Secondly a Direction or the shewing of the remedy for the curing of their sins Thirdly a Commendation of some particular persons in that Congregation that were not carryed away with the sins of the times The reprehension is either in generall I know thy works that is I know them all and I know them to be stark nought for the most part what-ever they seem they may seem to be very good but I tell you plainly I know them all what they be q. d. Generally they are stark nought And then in particular hee instances in two first the sin of hypocrisie or seeming to be good Thou hast a name that thou livest Secondly the sin of deadnesse of heart But thou art dead This is the reprehension or the reproof Then follows the Direction or the shewing of the remedy for he does not reprove them out of any ill will but for their good And therefore he prescribes them a remedy and the remedy is twofold The first is to strengthen the things that remain that are ready to dye v. 2. q. d. as many of you as are not quite and clean dead stir up your selves quicken up your hearts and this is first illustrated by shewing how they should doe thus Be watchfull sayes he q. d. that 's the reason why ye languish on this fashion and ye will languish more and more because yee are not watchfull therefore be watchfull and then it is urged by rendring a motive to use this remedy For I have not found thy workes perfect before God that is thou art hardly sincere a jot thou art full of hypocrisie and formality and thou wilt lose all thy labour if thou dost not look well about thee therefore shake up thy self and strengthen the things c. this is the first remedy The second remedy is to repent v. 3. and this is amplified by shewing how and that is two wayes 1. Remember how c. i.e. consider how thou hast been taught and bewail thy declinings for thou art horribly departed from what thou hast heard out of the Word 2. Hold fast i.e. so bewaile thy warpings and degeneratings that thou mayest get up again and hold thee fast there when thou art up Now lest they should neglect the using of this remedy the Lord Jesus sharpens his speech with
that we know can't abide them Which among us when we pray and have base roving thoughts would not be ashamed that a man should see our thoughts rove which of us that are unsetled and dead-hearted would not blush that men had a casement to see how dead he sits at a Sermon and how dead at a Sacrament how dead in other of Gods Ordinances what base and impure thoughts sometime doe arise in his minde if he did thinke that any man should see them he would not hardly be able to shew his face among men Let but an adulterer that is naught with a whore have but a few men or but one man come and take him in the act O how it will gall him and vex him to be seen 〈◊〉 as Iob speakes if one know them they are in the terror of the shadow of death Job 24. 17. they abhorre the light they cannot abide to be brought out to be knowne Now beloved if this be our disposition by nature that we cannot abide that so much as a man should know us nay not a child of six or seven yeeres of age then O what a terror is it that the God of Heaven and Earth should know us that he should see all our lusts all our sinnefull and vile thoughts all our uncleane and noy some affections all our by ends and carelesnesse of God! O what a powerfull thing is this to worke upon the heart except it be delivered up to a reprobate sense to sleight God and care lesse for him then for a little Boy or a mortall man so then yee see this is a powerfull meanes to work upon a soule to know that God knowes all his workes though the Woman of Samaria stood jesting and playing and contesting with our Saviour a good while yet when she perceived that he knew all her villany this burst her heart O saies she this is no other then Christ he hath told me all that ever I did Joh. 4. 29. The use of this is First here we see they are desperato that this point cannot worke on its certaine they are gracelesse that can heare that God sees all their workes and yet it does not purge them from day to day it s an evident argument that a man contemnes God and makes nothing of him When David had shewed that the wicked care not for Gods eye they make a matter of nothing of it tush God does not see Psalm 19. 11. say they that is they knew he saw indeed but they made nothing of it as long as men did not see them they counted Gods seeing as nothing now marke what followes wherefore doe the wicked contemne God Psalm 13 Secondly is it so that this is such a powerfull meanes to worke upon our hearts let us not harden our hearts but let us consider of it that it may cut between the bone and the marrow and devide between the soule and the spirit God sees all our workes This point should fall upon our hearts like the almighty hand of God as it did upon Job I know thou canst doe every thing and that no thought can be hid from thee Job 42. 2. REVEL 3. 1. That thou hast a name that thou livest and art Dead WE are come to the subject matter of this example and First we meet with the reproofe that Christ gives to the Church of Sardis the reproofe is either in generall I know thy workes i e. I know them all to be starke naught for the generall and then in particular first their hypocrisie thou hast a name that thou livest secondly their deadnesse indeed and art dead The generall reproofe we spake of the last day I know thy workes and there ye heard that God knowes all the sinfull courses that any man takes he is privy to every mans sinnes though men carry them never so closely and cleverly yet he knowes them First he sees all mens sinfull actions as Elihu speakes his eyes are upon the wayes of man and he sees all his goings there is no darknesse or shadow of death where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves Job 34. 21. 22. people cannot get out of his sight they cannot sinne so in private but he seeth them they may goe into a secret roome and shut every living creature out but they cannot shut God out Secondly he knowes every syllable that men speake I have heard what the Prophets said they prophecy lies in my name Ier. 23. 25. the Lord can tell what men speake under the rose looke what the King of Aram spake in his bed chamber he could tell Elisha As Enoch speakes he knowes all the speeches that wicked men speake and will have them up at the day of judgement against them Thirdly he knowes every sinfull thought that is in mens hearts as Moses sayes God saw the wickednesse of man was great upon the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually Gen. 6. 5. though mens thoughts be slie things and are out of mens eyes and Angels eyes and Devils eyes yet they are not out of his eye he sees what men thinke Fourthly he knowes all that ever a man hath done as the woman said of Christ come see one that hath told me all that ever I have done Joh. 4. 29. Fifthly he knowes all the evill that ever men will doe hereafter the Lord told Moses what Pharaoh would doe before he went to him I know he will harden his heart and will not let them goe Exod. 3. 19. while the Children of Israel were in the wildernesse he knew what they would doe when they came into Canaan I know their imaginations even now before I have brought them into the Land which I sware to give them Deut 31. 21. Sixthly he knowes all the evills that men would doe in such and and such circumstances he knew Abimelech would have taken Sarah if he had not hindred him he knew that the men of Keilah would betray David if David should stay there 1 Sam. 23. 12. he knowes what a rich man would doe if he were poore what this or that poore man would doe if he were rich one dies in his infancy he knowes what he would have done if he had let him live to be a man her 's a man that lives in a good family and may be carrieth himselfe very squarely but the Lord knowes what he would doe if he lived in another place Seventhly the Lord knowes mens dispositions their natures their qualities their projects their intentions he knowes how many are rotten though they professe never so much he knowes mens persons he knowes vaine men Iob. 11. 11. I told you the reason of this First because he is omniscient and knowes all things his understanding is infinite Psal 147. 5. let a man set as good a colour as he can upon his wicked devices God can discover him let a man have never so many excuses though
manner of sinne when the Lord would quicken his people here in Sardis hee uses this as his first meanes to doe it by I know thy workes wee may see this in David I have kept thy Precepts and thy Testimonies for all my wayes are before Thee Psalme 119 168. when Solomon would convert the whorish man hee uses this for his argument why wilt thou O my Son be ravisht with a strange Woman for the wayes of man are before the Eyes of the Lord and He ponders all his goings Pro. 5. 20 21. The reasons of this point are First because the Lords knowing of our workes is joyned with a marking and a pondering of them too Hee diligently observes what wee doe Hee ponders and considers whence it proceeds whether it tends what light we goe against what checks of conscience wee meete with what mercies wee abuse what prickes wee kick against Hee does not barely see what wee doe but Hee considers what wee doe how hainously wee sinne what a vile thing it is that wee doe Hee considers how cursed wee are what a great One wee offend The Lords Throne is in Heaven his Eyes doe consider and his Eye-lids trie the children of men Psalme 11. 4. Hee ponders mens hearts Prov. 24. 12. if God did only see what wee doe it were another matter but when the soule shall heare that He markes and considers and that he ponders mens sinnes and weighs them how horrible they are how much against his glory what punishments they deserve how inexcusable they be how just it is to damne them it s a signe of a desperate heart when this wil not work Secondly the Lords seeing of our sinnes is with most holy and pure Eyes and such Eyes as cannot abide such an object before Him as the Prophet Habbakuk speakes Thou art of purer Eyes then to behold evill thou canst not looke on iniquity Hab. 1. 13. If God saw our sinnes with such an Eye as men see them with it were no such great thing many men can endure them well enough and like us little the worse nay may be they will like us the better but they are infinitely offensive to God Hee sees them with such an Eye that if the soule did but see how God lookes it would burst the very heart of it as when Peter had denyed Christ Christ look't upon him But it was such a looke that burst his very heart and made him goe out with shame and weepe bitterly Thirdly the Lords seeing of our sinnes is joyned with recording of them Hee notes them in a Booke that hee may never forget them as hee told the Iewes Behold it is written before mee and I will render it them into their bosome Isaiah 65. 6. if God did see our sinnes and there 's an end then indeed this Doctrine of Gods seeing of our sinnes would doe little good may be God will forget them againe yea but when hee sees them hee registers them too and hee will never forget them now when a soule shall come to consider them this will wound it to the quick O hee will never forget them hee sets them on our score and wee shall heare of them another day except we make our peace with him Fourthly when God sees our sinnes it is even all one as if the whole World saw them nay hee will shew them before all the whole World Hee will bring to light things hidden in darknesse 1 Cor. 4. 5. wouldst not thou bee loth that all the World should see all thy thoughts and heare every word that thou speakest and know all the evill thou hast done would it not much bridle thee if thou couldst doe nothing not thinke a thought but all the whole World should see it why man the Lord sees thee and that is all one and more too for hee will open it before all the World before hee hath done Fifthly another argument may be taken from our disposition our disposition is such that wee cannot abide our wickednesse should be seen by any body which among us when wee pray would not be ashamed that any body should see how our thoughts rove which of you that are unsetled and deadhearted would not blush that men had a casement to see how dead hee sits at a Sermon how dead and blockish at a Sacrament how dead at other of Gods Ordinances What base and uncleane and blasphemous thoughts doe sometimes come into our hearts if a man did thinke that any man should see them hee would hardly be able to shew his face among men should an Adulterer be but taken in the act by any Man or Woman or Child O how it would gall him and vex him to be seene as Job speakes If one know them they are in the terrour of the shadow of death Job 24. 27. now beloved if this be our disposition by nature that wee cannot abide that a man should see us doe something that wee doe nay not a child of seven yeares old then O what a terrour is it that the God of Heaven and Earth should see us and know us that hee should see all our lusts all our noysome and uncleane affections all our vile and hideous thoughts O what a powerfull thing is this to worke upon the heart except it be delivered up to a reprobate sense The Woman of Samaria shee was briske and frolique a great while till shee perceived that Christ knew all her villany this made her ashamed and brake her very heart The use of this was First here wee see they are desperate that this point cannot worke on its certaine they are gracelesse that can heare that God sees all their workes and yet it does not purge them from day to day it s an evident argument that a man contemnes God and makes nothing of him Secondly is it so that this is such a powerfull meanes to worke upon our hearts O let us not harden our hearts but let us consider of it that it may cut betweene the bone and the marrow God sees all our workes This point should fall upon our hearts like the Al-mighty hand of God so it did on Jobs I know thou canst doe every thing and that no thought can be hid from thee Job 42. 2. so much shall suffice to have spoken of the reproof in generall Now wee come to the particulars And the first is in these words thou hast a Name that thou livest and the other is and art dead That thou hast a name that thou livest This is the first particular whereby the Lord Jesus proves that which hee had implyed before viz. that the works of Sardis were all starke naught because they had onely a name to live they rested in a meere outward name to bee Religious and good Christians and people of God and believers and a Church of Jesus Christ they had the name and that was all they had a name to live well sayes hee for this very thing I
is thus they jear these things but beloved t is certain for it is not enough to beleive except we do it with life he that liveth and beleeveth in me Joh. 11. 26. faith without life is but equivocally termed faith so it is not enough to hope in God except we doe it with life he hath begetten us againe to a lively hope says Peter So it is not enough to be a member in Gods Church a Stone in Gods building except we be lively Stones Ye also as lively Stones sayes he 1 Pet. 2. 5. The like I may say of all the duties of Religion it is not enough to doe them but we must doe them with life as to pray to pray with a dead heart is nothing no sayes David Lord quicken us and we will call upon thy name Psal 80. 18. In a word not to heape particulars we cannot walk in any of Gods wayes aright as long as we walke in them with a dead heart as the psalmist sayes Lord quicken thou me in thy way Psal 119. 37. it is a poore thing to walk in Gods wayes onely for the matter of them That indeed a dead heart may doe there 's no duty that God bids a man doe unlesse it be them that consignifie life but flesh and blood may doe it for the matter of it if there be matter and forme in it True some duties are simple that flesh and blood cannot doe as to love God to delight in God to have communion with God himself to take God for ones Portion and Lot and inheritance to be all in all to him these are simple acts they are not compounded of matter and forme But when a duty is compounded of matter and forme flesh and blood may doe the matter of it whatsoever it be now then as the essentiall forme is the life of the matter so the matter without it is a dead matter and the doing of it dead Well then now we see what is meant by dead the next is what is the meaning of Thou Thou art dead the word hath a double relation the one to the Minister of the Church in Sardis thou art dead thy Ministry is dead the other to the Church in Sardis it selfe thou art dead thou art a dead people First it hath relation to the Ministry thou art dead thy Ministry is dead there 's no life in it at all hence the Doctrine is this that a dead Ministry is as good as no Ministry at all for this our Saviour meanes in regard of the Angell of the Church in Sardis q. d. thy Ministry is little better then no Ministry it is stark dead well neare it is not lively at all there is little or no warmth to be had by it Like the Ministry of the Scribes that had no authority nor power at all in it Mat. 7. 29. As Luther said when he heard a cold Sermon cold cold cold sayes he this is cold Preaching here is no heat at all to be gotten as God sayes of the Ministry of Laodicia Thou art luke-warme Rom. 3. 16. that is as there was no heat in his people so there was no heat in his Ministry this is little better then no Preaching at all it is even as good as nothing First because true preaching is lively preaching when the Minister is a stirring Minister as Peter speakes I think it meet to stirre you up a Pet. 1. 13. when the Minister is earnest to save the peoples soules as the Lord sayes I earnestly protested to your Fathers Jer. 11. 7. He speakes of the Ministry of Moses and the prophets down along untill the Prophet Jeremies time they did not onely witnesse the word of God unto the people but they did it in a lively and earnest manner as Paul did I have striven to Preach the Gospell Rom. 15. 20. marke he belaboured him in the Pulpit he lay about him soundly that his Ministry might have life in it Saint Luke shewes that he had sweaty Handker-chiefes Act. 19. 12. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Hugo sayes upon the place it seemes he swet much in preaching and so Christ compares Ministers to Harvest men that labour in Gods Harvest ye know Harvest men are hot at their worke so Ministers should be Harvest men they should be hot at their worke Thus ye see dry and dull Preaching is little better then no preaching at all it is contrary to the manner of preaching contrary to the practice of all true and right preachers Secondly a dead Ministry is called no Ministry the Scripture calls it no Ministry in effect The Scripture is the best Judge what is a true Ministry and what is not now the Scripture makes a dead Ministry and no Ministry all one the Scribes and the Pharisees ye know were partly morall men most of them as we may see by Pauls Testimony of himself and they were orthodox Ministers as our Saviour witnesses of them in the maine for our Saviour bids people heare them yet their Ministry was little better then no Ministry as the Text shewes the people that sate under their Ministry are said to be as sheep having no Shepheard Mat. 9. 36. they preacht as if they did not preach people might come to their Sermons and be neere a jot moved nay such as came with a desire to be quickned could get no quickning at all under them Matthew sayes they sate under darknesse yet for all them These are Idoll Sheepheards wo to the Idoll Shepheards Zach. 11. 17. Thirdly a dead Ministry does doe little or no good though it be never so true yet it is very unfruitfull it does not awaken any of the auditory it does not startle any of the hearers it does not rowze up mens hearts it does not grapple with the obstinate it does not pull down the proud neither does it carry life at all with it neither is it sitted to work upon the conscience you may see an example of this in the Angell of the Church of Sardic a dead Minister a dead people as he was dead himselfe so his people were dead too a lively Ministry does a great deale of good it even is the saveur of life unto life unto those that be of God or else the savour of death unto death unto those that be not of God 2 Cor. 2. 16. it ever workes one way either it makes people rage or it fats people up or else it drives people home unto God which way so ever it works it is a sweet savour unto God it glorifies God but a dead Ministry does neither it is a flat weapon and cuts not it is a blunt Sword and wounds not may be it hath the true words of God but they are not in a wise work mans hands to make them as Goads and sharp Nayles partly good points but not pointed to prick any bodies heart it is said when Paul Preacht some went away converted others went away blaspheming Act. 13. 45. 48. Fourthly a
how apt are people to forget any thing that is good to put off any thing that should pull them downe before God and therefore we should labour to help our poore people that if it be possible we may stop them from going downe into the pit Fifthly we should labour to make the things that we preach as if it were lively before peoples eyes as the Apostle preacht Christ crucified to the Galatians even as if he were crucified before their very eyes Gal. 3. 1. so Moses had a very lively Ministry the text sayes he set his points before their very eyes I call heaven and earth to record against you this day that I have set before you life and death blessing and crusing Deut. 30. 19. marke he set before their eyes life and death heaven and hell he preached so evidently that the people might see as it were with their eyes the things that he preached this is lively teaching as the Orator sayes Hypotyposis is an excellent meanes to perswade when the speaker does as it were point before the hearers eyes when he represents the things he speakes of this is preaching in the evidence and the demonstration of the spirit 1 Cor. 2. 4. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 when a Minister demonstrates his points and this it is this is the sinne and this is the case and this is the misery and thus it stands with you when he labours to make people see it and they must needs see it unlesse they be wilfull and shut their eyes otherwise people heare a Sermon as if it did not concerne them there 's a man in the pulpit and they heare what he says but they never consider how deeply it concernes them Sixthly we should be truly affected with the word of God our selves laying nothing on our peoples shoulders but what we lift upon our owne we should speake the truth from the bottom of our hearts uttering the word of God with feeling and with a contrite heart we should be heavenly as the word is that lip and heart and word may be all a like O if we did drop downe our Sermons as dew downe from heaven on our people this would be a lively preaching indeed as the Prophet Ezekiel did He dropt the word of God on Ierusalem Ezek. 21. 2. if our Sermons did come dropping downe from us as if they dropt downe from heaven O how homely doe our Sermons come from our mouthes as though they never were higher then the pulpit we doe not preach as if the word came dropping down from heaven and therefore people doe not look up to heaven while they heare their mindes are no higher then our pulpits whereas if we had heavenlier hearts and lippes it would more quicken a thousand times or at least be a sitter instrument to quicken Seventhly and lastly we should get the Lord to goe along with our Ministry for it is not our preaching it selfe that hath any life nay it is but a dead letter as it issues from us if we were such men that had the Lord going along with us throughout all our Ministry what a deale of profit would there be in our Ministry as Micha sayes I am full of power by the spirit of the Lord Micha 3. 8. But I let this point passe thus ye have heard the words as they have relation to the Ministry of the Church in Sardis Thou art dead that is thy Ministry is dead Now I come to the words as they have relation to the Church it selfe Thou art dead Thou art a dead people though thou hast a name to live yet thou art dead that is thou art outwardly reformed thou hast goodly order'd congregations good sober civill and faire carriaged people all professing the true religion and frequenting the good Ordinances of God yet thou art dead that is thou art even as good as nothing the doctrine hence is a dead Christian is as no Christian at all Ye know we are all dead by nature in trespasses and in sins that is we are alive to the workes of the flesh and to the world but dead towards God And a true Christian is he that is made dead unto sinne and the world but alive unto God as the Apostle Paul sayes Likewise reckon ye your selves to be dead unto sin but alive unto God through Iesus Christ our Lord Rom. 6. 11. this is a true Christian that so leaves his sinnes and so takes up the worship and service of God that he is dead to his sinnes and alive towards God now when a man it may be leaves his sinnes after a manner and takes up the profession of Gods Service and yet he is alive still unto the flesh and dead towards God this is just nothing By dead I meane things first deadnesse of guilt when a man is guilty of any offence that is death by the Law he is said to be a dead man therefore every man hath sinned against God which is death by Gods Law so that every man is dead by nature when a man is pardoned of God then he is alive again and therefore it is called justification of life Ro. 5. 18. now when a man is not pardoned of God he is dead though he have never so many hopes and conceits of forgivenesse thought to apprehend himselfe to be pardoned yet as long as God hath not pardoned him indeed he is a dead man Secondly deadnesse of minde when the minde is Ignorant of God in regard of saving knowledge when a mans minde is without saving understanding then his minde is said to be dead true saving understanding is the life of so many mindes as David sayes give me understanding and I shall live Psal 119. 144. then my minde shall be alive sayes he then I shall know thee aright now let a man have never so much knowledge and learning yet in divine things is otherwise and have nothing his minde is still dead he is a dead man to all the things of God he cannot see God in all his wayes no more then a dead man he cannot minde God he may minde earthly things but he cannot minde God nay though he can mind learning divinity learning learning about God yet he cannot minde God his minde is dead to such savoury knowledge even as dead as a dead man he knowes not how to pray to God as a childe to his Father he knowes not how to doe any duty in a godly gratious manner his minde is as dead to these things as a simple Country-mans is to Latin or Greeke or Hebrew Thirdly deadnesse of heart when the heart is not inclined towards God then we say it is dead towards God and all goodnesse though he goe to good duties every day yet as long as the heart is not inclined to them it goes about them in a dead manner when a mans heart is once inclined towards God now it begins to be alive towards him as David sayes the heart
to sinne we should be willing to ride or goe or be at charges nay we should be willing to deny our selves to lay downe our names and goods and friends and respects and all that we have at Christs foot and blesse God that gives us such a price in our hands But now to have a dead heart to this what a horrible thing is it though we doe take the opportunity yet to goe about it as though we were sorry that God hath given it unto us This is meere folly as Solomon sayes wherefore is there a price in the hand of a foole to get wisdome seeing he hath no heart to it Prov. 17. 16. But I will not repeat any more you see now that a dead Christian is as good as no Christian at all I shewed you the reasons of this point but I will let them passe I come now to the uses And first this is for the reproof of the deadnesse that is now among us the Lord may say to us as he did unto Sardis I know thy workes thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead for notwithstanding the great means of life that the Lord hath placed among us O how does deadnesse of heart reigne we are like them the Prophets speakes of that drew nigh to God with their mouth and honoured him with their lips but their heart was far from him Matth. 15. 8. they had no heart to his holy worship So it is with most of us we draw nigh to God with our outward man but our heart is farre from him no heart to prayer no heart to the word we heare it peradventure but no heart to it at all how ordinarily doe we come to Gods house but heartlesnes hath dominion over the most of us the doctrine of the Gospell does not quicken up our hearts we deale with it as Phinehas his wife did with her Sonne when the women about her told her she had a Sonne the text sayes she did not regard it So what little regard have we of the Gospell of God! I stretched out my hands and no man would regard Prov. 1. tell us of our damned estate by nature how cursed we are from the wombe what infinite need we have to be sensible of it we know it but how dead is our knowledge of it it does not stirre up our hearts to consider of it neither does it prick us so much as the pricking of a pin tell us of the the redemption of the world by Jesus Christ his precious bloud his passion and merits whose heart is enlivened and quickened up by them nay our soules are hardly moved at all at the hearing of them Tell us of the Kingdome of heaven the marriage Supper of the lamb his Oxen and his fatlings O they are all ready come Sirs come to the marriage we are even as they in the parable they made light of it Matth. 22. 5. these things are made as if they were of no moment as if they were light matters they finde poore entertainement at our hands what little irk somnesse do we feele in sinne what little dejectednesse of heart what little remorse of conscience nay few know by experience what humiliation meanes we can confesse in our prayers how vile we are and how unworthy and how wretched and sinnefull but as though these were words of course our hearts are so dead that there is little or no relenting at it we can say we are undone if God doe not heare us our prayers are all nothing except they be with faith and life and yet who strives to awaken and rowze up himselfe we can say O how are we beholding to God for life for health for his daily good providence for his patience his bounty and we can say it is not the bare naming of his Blessings before him that is counted thanksgiving without being affected with his infinite goodnesse and yet who does unseignedly labour to be affected with them from day to day no body of us dares deny but that we should set the Lord alwayes before us tthat he may be at our right hand and yet who hath the heart to provoke this hereunto The devill may be of their right hand not God for all the pains that they take to have him there So that dead-heartednes is a common evill now a dayes as Christ saies of the last times Because iniquity shall abound The love of many shall waxe Cold Matth 24. 12. so it is now because iniquity abounds the most are prophane and dissolute and licentious and loose therefore many that profession love to Jesus Christ their love does grow cold and dead no life heardly at all no signe that they are alive from the dead if they doe beleeve after a manner there 's all they doe not live in Jesus Christ if they have any hope of mercy or heaven that 's all they have it is not a lively hope that may quicken them up in Gods holy wayes if they doe see their sinnes there 's the utmost it is a dead sight that does not excite them up unto strictnesse and precisenesse of living if they doe follow good and godly duties alas there be few that doe so but if they doe goe so farre it is cleane without heart and life as though any thing would serve Gods turne well enough what a horrible thing i' st when a dead Christian is as good as no Christian all No matter how many Christians we have alas none of us are true but such as are alive from the dead Secondly is it so that a dead Christian is even as good as no Christian at all then learne hence my Brethren what a dangerous thing it is to be a dead hearted Christian First all that we doe with a dead heart 't is as good as nothing as Paul sayes of love had we all faith and all knowledge yet if we have not love we are nothing 1 Cor. 13. 2. Whatsoever we doe if we doe not doe it out of love all 's nothing so I may say of life whatsoever good duty we doe if we doe not doe it with life it is but a dead worke and therefore it is no more then nothing when the prophet David would doe good duties so as to doe them to good purpose indeed you shall see how he labours against a dead heart Quicken me after thy loving kindnesse so shall I keepe the Testimony of thy mouth Psal 119. 88. so we may say too Lord quicken me after thy loving kindnesse so shall I preach so shall I heare so shall I doe thy holy will so shall I goe up and downe doing good now as long as a man does it with a dead heart it is even all one as if a man had not done it at all a dead man is no man as the Apostle sayes God quickens the dead and calls things that are not marke dead things are no things so dead workes are no workes as Solomon sayes There is
is deep in the heart so if thou beest alive towards God God is in the deep of thy heart the word is deepe in thy heart nor like the salt water in the Sea onely on the Top. Ye know what became of the Seed that wanted depth of the earth Matth. 13. 5. so it is with the heart when the word does not get into the depth of it it never quickens in it The heart may be so farre towards goodnesse as to bring a man to good duties a dayes it may bring one to Sermon or to Prayer to others of the Ordinances of God and other good courses but what 's all this as long as it is dead the life lies in the bottome of the heart look what the bottome of the heart stands unto that 's a man alive unto then thou art alive towards God when the bottom of thy heart is unto him when thou labourest to obey him from the bottome of thy heart when thou callest upon him from the bottome of thy heart like Sugar at the bottome of the Cup stirre up the bottome the best is at bottome so thou must stirre up the bottome of thy heart the heart is a deep thing Psal 64. 6. though religion be on the top yet if the world be in the deepe thy heart is dead towards God as it is with a puddle it may be cleare at the top faire water at the top but there 's nothing but mudde at the bottome Secondly there be flitting Acts of the heart be they never so deep in the heart yet if they doe not stay there the heart is dead still Solomon sayes of his Father he said unto me let thy heart retaine my words keep my Commandements and live Prov. 4. 4. though the word does stirre neere so much for the present this is not life except thou retaine it and hold it fast a man may have many flashes of life in him but as long as the heart does not keep them it remaines dead they that seeke the Lord the heart shall live Psal 22. 26. that is when it is not a flash but it is an Act that abides by a man the heart is stedfastly set towards God now his heart lives now when people are moved onely by fits they are humbled by fits and startled by fits their righteousnesse is like a morning dew ye know there the dew is every morning but all the day it is gone may be when morning comes there it is againe but all the day it is gone It is true there may be horrible offs and on s in the Children of God to the confounding of their faces before God But I doe not speake to discourage them But let us take heed we may have admirable flashes of life fits of humblings fits of enlargements fits of selfe-denyall sits of great eagernesse after God the heart may be towards God for a sit a false heart as the Land of Israel their heart was firmely towards him for a sit they remembred that God was their rock and that the high God was their redeemer but their heart was not right with him they were not stedfast in his Covenant Psal 78. 37. mark it was but a fit like Esays crying for a fit This is a poore argument of life then no no the flitting acts of the heart may be no acts of life Thirdly there be wouldings and wishings in the heart and these cozen the world more then any other these they thinke verily are effects of true life First because these are not in the outside of the heart but lye or at least seeme to lye very deepe in the heart it is very certaine that many naturall men would give the whole world if they had it as they doe verily conceive that they had true grace that they were Saints that they could leave their sinnes that they were in a childe of Gods case they deeply wish it it is a profound would in their hearts and therefore now when they see such yearnings in their hearts they doe verily apprehend this is life certainly Hence it is that they will say they would from the bottome of their hearts serve God they have nere a lust but they would full faine have God deliver them from that indeed they confesse in their consciences if they might have a 1000 worlds they cannot give it over I but they would faine they could and thus they deceive themselves because this act seemes to be from the depth of their heart this fancy you may see to be in mens hearts out of Mich. 6. 6. 7. where ye see though they could not finde in their hearts to walke humbly before God to live justly and righteously yet they would give thousands they could O say they what would not we give for the sin of our soules no question but they thought they were alive but God told them they were not Secondly another reason why they thinke this is a token of life is because this is no flitting act neither But they have these wouldings every day nay you can never come to them but still they have these they would doe well nay they would doe as well as the best thus they hope they have a fountaine of living water in them that springeth up daily thus it was with them in the Prophets they seeke me daily sayes God Isa 58. 2. they thought it was their every dayes work to serve God and where they did faile they thought they could say they would doe better they sought the Lord daily Thirdly because they finde that this is attributed to the Saints as the Apostle sayes ye cannot doe the things that ye would Gal. 5. 17. nay the Apostle Paul himselfe speakes it of himselfe the good that I would doe that doe I not and the evill which I would not doe that doe I Rom. 7. 19. So that thus they argue now when they finde this same woulding in their hearts and cannot doe as they would O say they I may say with the Apostle the good which I would doe that doe I not I cannot doe as I would Thus they hoodwinke their owne soules It is very true these be the Saints groanes and a part of their sighing towards God that they cannot doe as they would this makes them a burthen to themselves and so againe when they finde themselves disturbed and limited and straightened by their flesh this is a comfort to their soules and an argument of Gods infinite goodnesse unto them that they can unfeignedly say they would doe better they doe please him in some measure through his grace and they would please him better they doe some good by his heavenly spirit and they would doe more they doe resist every sinne and they would resist it more This is very true But yet how many a thousands lul themselves asleep in security by the fancy of this thing The heart may put forth daily wouldings and be as dead as a carcasse to all the workes of
grace as our Saviour Christ sayes Strive to enter in at the straight Gate for many shall seeke to enter in and shall not be able Luke 13. 24. q. d. O stirre up your selves quicken up your hearts doe not onely seek to enter in many seeke to enter in O they would enter in and they would feigne enter in alas alas they are dead they cannot therefore quicken up your hearts and doe ye more then so I acknowledge that woulding is an argument of life in the heart First when a man does beleeve God in some measure and then would beleeve more does oppose every knowne sinne and would oppose it more does follow all manner of goodnesse and would follow it more when a mans would is above the simple will as when a man will reach as high as he can and then streins himself to reach higher he takes all the Stooles and Ladders that he can and stands on tip-toes and would reach higher this is an act of the will with some life and therefore the Apostle when he says that Christians would more then they do Gal. 5. 17. in the verse going before he tels them they must walke in the spirit though q. d. if ye should say ye walke in the spirit and doe not ye deceive your own selves so that the woulding it selfe is not a living act Secondly a woulding is an act of a living heart when it is a laborous woulding so that there is another thing in the will that is the living act and not woulding namely when the heart labours and therefore the woulding is not it I labour sayes the Apostle yea I laboured more abundantly then they all 1 Cor. 15. 10. marke though he said in another place that he would the good which I would doe yet that was not all that had been a dead act if that had been all therefore he laboured together with it Well then let us come to shew you what the life of the will is In a word the life of the heart is when the heart will doe a thing it may be it is hindred a thousand times but in some measure it will do it cost it never so much though flesh and bloud and world and devill and all be against it yet it will doe it now the heart is alive it will beleeve it will repent it will strive against sinne it will set God before its eyes it will love him above all feare him above all regard him above all I say though it meet with never so many hindrances without and within pull-backes rebellions yet it will doe it now it 's alive when the spirit indeed is willing Matth. 26. 41. as Paul sayes To will is present with me Rom. 7. 18. when a man can say it from the bottome of his heart that a will is present with him I will be ruled by God I will deny my selfe though the flesh be never so violent and it may be many times and often beares downe all before it yet there is a will present that will stand it out and that can never be borne downe the act may be borne downe now affections may be borne downe I but this still is present I will be for God he is my best his will is my rule his Law is my line and I will be at his dispose when it is thus in generall through all the wayes of God this is a living heart when to will is present with it as the author to the Hebrewes sayes his will was to live honestly Heb. 13. 18. As soone as ever the prodigall Sonne was come to this passe that he could unfeignedly speake I will arise I will goe to my Father Luk. 15. 18. you see his father presently sayes he was alive this my Sonne was dead but he is alive againe you will say what if one had bound him hand and foot that is all one he will goe he will wrastle he will bite the cord a sunder if he cannot doe that O how he will cry out O how they binde me here I will arise he will strive he will not be quiet he must goe and he will goe his will is absolutely to goe stopt or not stopt his will is simply to goe if he can but get away and leave an arme behinde nay a foot behinde nay both he will crawle but he will to his Father so when a man will leave his sinfull courses and he will have God for his God he will have Christ and there he will hang come death come feares come temptations there he will hang. This is that which God accepts when the hearts will is to God if there be first a willing minde it is accepted 2 Cor. 8. 12. Now that this is the life of the heart I prove it thus First because this is the prefectest operation of the heart when it absolutely willeth a thing There be many operations of the heart but none of them is perfect but this as David said to his Sonne my Sonne know thou the God of thy Father and serve him with a perfect heart and with a wiling minde 1 Chron. 28. 9. q. d. this is a perfect heart when thy will is to serve him how ever things goe thou wilt serve him then thy heart is absolutely set towards God this is the whole heart I eryed with my whole heart heare me O Lord I will keepe thy Statutes Psal 119. 145. what 's all the deadnesse of men but because either they have no heart to Gods wayes or but halfe hearts as it is said of Ephraim their heart is divided and God hath but a peece but when a man hath an absolute will hereunto now he is alive now his heart is perfect towards the Lord his God as it is in sinne when a man does nos onely goe on in sinne but he will doe it his will is absolute that way this man hath a perfect heart towards Satan so it is here Secondly because this is the might and strength of the heart while a mans heart puts forth inferior acts towards God he is dead to every good word and work If he have any heart at all it is but so so as God said of Iudah how weake is they heart Ezek. 16. 30. such a man the devill can easily take him off at any time for a need such a one can never stand it out to the end But he is off and on because the might of his heart is not towards God now when the will is absolutely towards God this man must needs be alive for the might of his heart is towards God as the Lord himselfe sayes Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soule and with all thy might Deut. 6. 5. Thirdly because this makes every thing possible naturally a man cannot beleeve he cannot resist his owne flesh he cannot overcome the world he cannot live godly in all his wayes he cannot forgoe his beloved lusts But now