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A70206
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A sermon on Acts xxviii, 22 shewing, that the Christian religion is not a sect, and yet that it is every where spoken against / by Matthew Henry ...
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Henry, Matthew, 1662-1714.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing H1476; ESTC R19814
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33,478
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57
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it They are not to make a new Law and Gospel but to preach that which is made they have their Rule in that Caution given to the Prophet Jer. 15.19 Let them return unto thee but return not thou unto them The Hearts and Lives of Men must be brought to comply with the Word of God for the Word of God can never be made to comply with the Humours and Fancies of Men. Ministers as they would not for the World make the way to Heaven any straiter or narrower than Christ hath made it so they dare not make it any broader or easier nor offer Life and Salvation upon any other Terms than the Gospel hath already settled If they aim at pleasing Men they cannot approve themselves the Servants of Christ and therefore are they so much spoken against And the same is the Reason why the most strict and serious Christians are so much spoken against because their Piety and Devotion their Justice and Sobriety their Zeal and Charity is a standing Reproof to the wicked World and condemns it as the Faith and holy Fear of Noah condemned the Infidelity and Security of the Old World The Sodomites were vexed at Lot's Conversation as much as he was at their filthy Conversation Wherefore doth the Blood-Thirsty hate and revile the Vpright while the Just seek his Soul but for the same Reason for which Cain hated Abel because his own Works were Evil and his Brothers Righteous Now for the APPLICATION of this DOCTRINE Let us see what good Use we may make of this Observation concerning the Wickedness of the Wicked in speaking so much against Religion and Godliness and what is our Duty in reference hereunto First Let us admire the Patience and Forbearance of the God of Heaven in that he bears so much and so long with those that thus speak against Him and his Holy Religion The Affront hereby given Him is very great and we would think intollerable even Hard Speeches that reflect upon an Infinite Majesty have in them a kind of Infinite Malignity He hears and knows all that which is said against Him and against his Truth and VVays and as a Jealous God resents it He hath always Power in his Hands to punish the proudest of his Enemies nor would their immediate Ruine be any Loss to him and yet Sentence against these Evil Words and Works is not executed speedily Be astonished O Heavens at this and wonder O Earth that those wretches which rebel against the Beams of such Light and Glory which spurn at the Bowels of such Love and Grace are not immediately made the visible Monuments of Divine VVrath and Vengeance and like Sodom and Gomorrah set forth for an Example That the Blasphemers and Scoffers of these last Days are not instantly struck Dumb struck Dead That He who hath so much said against him yet doth himself keep silence and doth not answer all these Reproaches and Contradictions as he easily could in Thunder and Lightning Though his Silence and Forbearance is turn'd to his Reproch even by those that have the Benefit of it who therefore think him altogether such an one as themselves and take occasion from his Patience to question his Faithfulness and challenge his Justice saying Where is the Promise of his Coming Yet he bears and his Patience is stretched out even to Long-suffering because he is not willing that any should perish nor that any means should be left untried to prevent their perishing Therefore he bears with Sinners because this is the Day of his Patience and of their Probation The Wrath of God is reveal'd from Heaven in the Word of God that we might be aw'd by Faith more than in present Providences which would be an aw to Sense But there is a Day coming a dreadful Day when our God shall come and shall no longer keep silence a Day foretold in the early Ages of the VVorld by Enoch the seventh from Adam when Judgment shall be executed upon ungodly Sinners for all their hard Speeches which Day he will not anticipate for he knows it is coming Psal 37.13 It is agreeable to the regular course of Justice that all Judgments be adjourn'd till the Judgment-Day and all Executions defer'd till Execution-Day And therefore now he condescends to reason with those that speak against him for their Convicttion as he doth by the Prophet Ezek. 18.25 c. where he fairly debates the Case with those who said The way of the Lord is not equal That every Mouth may be stopped with an unanswerable Argument before it be stopt with an irreversible Sentence and those who have spoken against him may be sent speechless to Hell He keeps silence now because when he doth speak he will be justified When our Lord Jesus was here upon Earth with what an invincible Patience did he endure the contradiction of Sinners when so many ill things were witnessed against him he was silent to admiration answered not a word to all their unjust Calumnies and Accusations but at the same time he bound them over to the Judgment of the great Day by that awful word Mat. 26.64 Hereafter ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of the Power and still he bears in expectation of that same Day He doth not take Vengeance presently because he hath an Eternity before him for the doing of it And by the way we may infer from hence That those who would be like their Heavenly Father must bear Reproach and Contradiction patiently When any thing is said against us reflecting never so little Disparagement upon us or our Families our Resentments of it are very sensible and we are apt to take it hainously nay and to say we do well to be angry for it is not a thing to be endur'd not to be endur'd O think how much God bears with the Contempt and Reproach cast upon his great Name and that will surely qualify our Resentments of any indignity done to our little Names Who are we that we must not be spoken against Or what are our Sayings that they must not be contradicted Such Affronts as these we should learn to bear as David did when Sbimei cursed him So let him Curse and as the Son of David did when his Enemies reviled him Blessing them that Curse us and Praying for them that thus Persecute us that we may be the Children of our Father which is in Heaven God adjourns his Vindication to the great Day and then surely we may adjourn ours to that day as St. Paul doth his 1 Cor. 4.5 Secondly Let us acknowledge the Power of Divine Grace in keeping up the Christian Religion in the World notwithstanding the universal Contradiction and Opposition it hath met with One would think that a way thus spoken against every where should have been long ere this lost and ruin'd and the Christian Name cut off to be no more in remembrance
that they keep up some secret Haunts of Sin under the cloke and covert of a specious Profession when they that profess the Christian Faith lick up the vomit of Heathen and allow themselves in those things that are contrary to the Light and Law even of Natural Religion This is that which opens the mouths of the Adversaries to speak reproachfully of that Religion the Profession of which is made to consist with such vile Practises which cannot possibly consist with the Power of it This makes People ready to say as that Mahometan Prince did when the Christians had broke their League with him O Jesus are these thy Christians Or as the complaint was upon another occasion Aut hoc non Evangelium aut hi non Evangelici Either this is not Gospel or these are not to be call'd Professors of the Gospel If Ministers give offence in any thing not they only but their Ministry will be blamed Nay if Servants Christians of the lowest rank and figure if they be unfaithful and disobedient to the Government they are under the Name of God and his Doctrine is likely to be blasphemed Let us therefore who profess Relation to the Eternal God and Dependance upon the Blessed Jesus and a Regard to the Holy Scriptures as we tender the Reputation of our Religion walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing Let us Order our Conversation so in every thing as that we may adorn the Doctrine of God our Saviour While we are call'd by so good a Name let us not dare to do an ill thing The Disciples of Christ are as a City upon a Hill and have many eyes upon them and therefore have need to behave themselves with a great deal of Caution and to abstain from all appearance of evil Let us not do any thing that is unjust or unbecoming us nor allow our selves in that which we know the Gospel we profess doth by no means allow of lest we be to answer another day for all the Reproach of Religion which we have occasion'd How light soever we may make of this now we shall find that it will greatly enflame the Reckoning shortly when God will affect the Honour of his own Name and will be glorified upon those by whom he was not glorified In consideration of this let us see to it that we have our Conversation honest among the Adversaries of our Religion that they who speak against us as Evil doers may by our Good Works which they shall behold be brought to glorify God and to entertain good thoughts of Religion or at least that we may with well-doing put to silence the ignorance of foolish Men. Our Religion I am sure is an Honour to us let not us then be a Dishonour to it Sixthly If there be those every where that speak against Religion and Godliness let us then as we have opportunity be ready to speak for it Every Christian should be both a Witness and an Advocate for his Religion and the rather because it is so much oppos'd and contradicted Next to our Care not to be a Shame to the Gospel should be our Resolution not to be asham'd of the Gospel You are Subpaena'd by the King of Kings to appear for him in the World Ye are my Witnesses saith the Lord Isa 43.10 Do not betray this Cause then by declining your Testimony how much soever you may be brow-beaten and confronted Say with a holy boldness as Elihu Job 36.2 Suffer me a little and I will shew you that I have yet to speak on God's behalf You hear what is daringly said against God how his holy Name is trampled upon and abus'd his Truths contradicted his Word and Ordinances vilified and have you never a word to say for him Is our Lord Jesus appearing for us in Heaven pleading our Cause there pleading it with his own blood and shall not we be ready to appear for him on Earth and plead his Cause though it were with the hazzard of our blood As it is then a time to keep silence when we our selves are spoken against I as a Deaf Man heard not so it is then a time to speak when God is spoken against and the Honour of our Religion lies at stake and at such a time we must take heed Jest by a cowardly silence we wrong so J st a Cause as if we were either asham'd or afraid to own it Wisdom's Children should take all occasions to justify Wisdom and vindicate it from the aspersions that are cast upon it Read the doom of him that is asham'd of Christ and of his Words in this adulterous generation Mark 8.38 Of him shall the Son of Man be asham'd when he comes in the Glory of his Father Not confessing Christ when we are call'd to it is in effect denying him and disowning Relation to him and they who do so except they repent as Peter did will shortly be denied and disowned by him If we should with an angry countenance at least drive away a backbiting Tongue that reproacheth our Brother much more a Blasphemous Tongue that reproacheth our Maker Should we hear a near Relation or a dear Friend in whose Reputation it is natural to us to reckon our selves sharers spoken against and slander'd we would readily appear in his Vindication and have we no resentments of the Contempt and Contumely cast upon Religion Can we sit by contentedly to hear God and Christ and the Scripture and serious Godliness reflected upon and have we nothing to say in their behalf Common equity obligeth us to be the Patrons of a just but wronged Cause And that we may not think our selves discharged from this Duty by our inability to defend the Truths and Ways of God and so make our Ignorance and unskilfulness in the word of Righteousness an excuse for our Cowardise and want of Zeal we ought to take pains to furnish our selves with a clear and distinct knowledge of the certainty of those things wherein we have heen instructed We must labour to understand not only the Truths and Principles but the Grounds and Evidences of our Religion that we may be able to give an Answer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an Apology to every Man that asks us a Reason of the Hope that is in us How industrious are the prophane Wits of the Age to find out something to say against Religion and should not that quicken us to provide our selves with the Armor of Righteousness both on the right hand and on the left aiming at the Riches of the full assurance of Vnderstanding And if we do as there is occasion with Humility and Sincerity and from a principle of Zeal for God and his Honour appear in Defence of Religion and its injur'd Cause we may doubtless take encouragement from that promise Mat. 10.19 It shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak God will own those that own him and will