as another What a wonderful Word is that A Man may die with that Word in his Mouth The free Gift is of many Offences unto Justification Then added And though my Flesh and my Heart faileth God is the Strength of my Heart and my Portion for ever Another time being somewhat clouded and speaking of the Grace of God I cannot demand it nor have I deserved it But being asked if he would not accept of it Yes reply'd he very thankfully Towards Night he grew more distressed for several Friends being gathered about him he looked upon them dolefully and said Oh I tremble being asked at what he answered at the possibility of Perishing One then sitting by that knew how it was with him told him it was impossible he being helped through Grace to commit his Soul into such Hands It was said further None can pull you out of his Hands He speaks a little after Poor Hearts you are willing to hope the best I wish you are not mistaken You know said he to his Wife Dear oppressed Nature will cry out for Relief but being answered that oppressed Nature could not rest on Christ for Salvation or to this Effect he was silent Next Morning he was much complaining that he was to die and do Christ no Service in the World He cryed out Oh that I might live but one Year but may be if I should I would be wicked But yet said he I think verily if I know my Heart I am willing to imbrace Christ on his own Terms I think verily if I was to live the strictest Life as ever Saint lived yet I think I could embrace none but Christ A little after being full of Complaints as to his Soul it was told him Yesterday you could say though my Heart and my Flesh faileth c. He answered But I cannot say so to day Some time after his Faith began to mount up and being melted under the Sence 〈◊〉 God's Grace to him he said If I had strength I would soon make my Confession Town-Talk I need not tell the Town what my Life hath been they know that very well But I would have them know the difference between them that have Grace and them that have none Monday about Noon Mr. Bear came to visit him and asked him What art thee going now to Christ He answered Better now than ever But he was so weak and laboured with such Difficulty of Breathing that he could scarce speak which he expressed himself saying That if it were to save his Life he could not speak yet desired Mr. Bear that he would wrestle and strive with God in Prayer for him that he might be helped sincerely to close with Christ A little after finding his Weakness increase upon him he spake thus I am brought to the Dust of Death That Night which was the Night before he departed about nine a Clock he grew weaker and weaker and fetch'd his Breath shorter and shorter Being a little lifted up on his Pillow he lifted up his Hands and bad all farewell After which he drew his Breath as one just departing being as 't was thought past speaking was spoke to by a Friend thus putting him in mind of his own Expression Blessed be God for Jesus Christ whereat he was heard to say softly Amen Then his dear Relation added Christ the Fore-runner is for thee entred Then he with a pleasant Countenance nodded his Head being not able to speak And now Death indeed was in his Face in all its Symptoms and all concluded him just a dying when all of a suddain his Blood returned into his Face Vigor and liveliness into his opened Eyes and with a Voice exceeding loud as if he had rose from the Dead on purpose to give in his dying Testimony for free Grace he thus spake triumphantly I know that my Redeemer liveth and that with these Eyes I shall see him and not anothers Come Lord Jesus come quickly Come Lord Jesus come quickly Come Lord Jesus come quickly These Words he spake with such Vehemence that he made the whole House to eccho when afore he could scarce be heard if one laid his Ear to his Mouth and then continued thus with no less Accent and Affection I am no more afraid to die than I am to shut my Eyes I am no more afraid to die than I am to go to sleep God loves me dearly and I love God dearly I am sure he will do me no hurt Lord strike the Blow and the Work is done I long to be gone I long to see Jesus Christ O that all the Town might ring of God's free Grace to me What at the last Hour too Who would have thought of this a few Weeks ago Nothing less than Eternity is sufficient to admire free Grace This is blessed Work indeed This is Dying indeed Thy Father said he turning to his Wife will wonder to see me in Heaven He little thinks I am so near him His Wife asked him if he thought she should ever come where he was a going He answered I do not question it thou nor the poor Children neither Through God's Grace his dying Prophesie is in a likely way to be accomplished in all of them You will not be long after me Come one Bosom will hold us all He that hath begun the good Work in them meaning his Children will carry it on till the Day of Jesus Christ A Friend hearing him speak so heartily said Sir I hope you may live still He replied Oh do not tell me so I do not love to hear of that Ear I would not come back again for thousands of Gold and Silver but what the Lord will I am wholly swallowed up in Gods Soveraign will After he was spent with speaking he said I can speak no more I hope you are all satisfied Fare you well expecting as it seems he should have gone immediately to Heaven But it pleased the Lord to order it otherwise and to continue him till the next Night though under some Regret for he presently added Oh! I thought I had been going so sweetly but I am here still and next Morning hearing some Friends discoursing about the Distress he had been in he said to them but the Lord has now fully satisfied me Yet by reason his Dissolution was delayed it occasioned further Temptation and a black Cloud arose upon his Soul after all this glorious Sun-shine He burst out into such bitter Expressions as these God has forsaken me and I am afraid 't is a sore Judgment of God upon me that I lye in such a Condition I am afraid least I have deceived my self with false Hopes Some time after the beginning of his Distress there appeared on him Convulsive Fits whereupon he said to his Wife I have Fits She answered I am afraid you have He added I am almost frighted out of my Wits Being asked at what He replied At the Awfulness of Death This Conflict lasted for some time but the Lord was pleased to return again as was perceived for his Soul was composed and still His Fits ceased though his Strength was gone that he could speak but litttle However this for Satisfaction was had from him a little before he departed He said would I was up His Wife answered That would be a pleasant Sight indeed to see thee up again to tell us what thou hast seen on this sick Bed He answered I have seen that here which hath made my Heart and the Hearts of many more glad It was then told him you may see now what Satan's Temptations are when God permits him he will rob a Child of God of his Comforts but that is all he can do And it is a great All too said he it was that which made my Life a Burthen to me Being asked if he did not believe he should have Comfort again He answered Yes but did not know when But it was not long before he had it to the full for now he fell into a sweet Sleep the best he had for many Days in which Sleep he quietly slept in Jesus Thus I have given you an Account of some of his Death bed Experiences in whom though now dead he yet speaketh to you the Living and invites you all to partake of the same Grace with him that you may enter into the same Glory â—e now is in Have a care as I cautioned you afore to suck Poison to the Ruine of your own Souls out of this Instance of God's Free Rich and Glorious Grace but make this Improvement of it to stir you up now to accept of and venture on the boundless Grace of God in Christ Jesus Consider what has been said and the Lord give you Vnderstanding in all things His EPITAPH Here lies interred The Body of Mr. John Bigg Who departed this Mortal Life When he had seen his thirty seventh Year On the twenty eighth Day of January Anno Domini 1689. Cropt in his full blown Age if we by Grace His time compute he liv'd but five Weeks space Dead whilst alive in dying Life begins Short Race of Life But what a Crown he wins In Sin him Death attacks but Grace steps in And makes him Triumph over Death and Sin Thus by Christ's Death in death he 's made to cry Death where 's thy Sting Grave where 's thy Victory Now to the only wise God be Glory and Dominion World without end Amen FINIS
Assaults and fiery Darts to terrifie with these several ways of Attacks is the poor Believer harrassed as long as he lives but in Death he can insult over all Thus then can the Believer vaunt it Satan thou hast long tortured me with throwing in wicked and blasphemous Suggestions and then perswadedst me to my great Terrour I had sinned the sin against the Holy Ghost Thou shalt no longer be able to throw in any more of thy fiery Insinuations I am now beyond the reach of any of thy Darts Thou hast always endeavoured to tempt me to sin and then to make me question my Interest But now I shall sin no more nor question my Interest any longer I shall not now be tempted any more to Despair on the one hand nor presume on the other Thou darest not appear where I am going Thou vile Satan I shall be disturbed with thee no longer I shall have no further Concerns with thee till I come with my Lord to sit in Judgment upon thee at the great Day Sixthly and lastly THE Believer can thus triumph over the World which is the last thing that goes to make up the Sting of Death Thou empty confused World that didst use to terrify me with thy Threats I defy thee and them now and wast wont to allure me with thy Flatteries I am above their Undermining now I scorn thy Rattles and thy painted Beads and thy airy Bubbles I dread not now thy haggard Face nor shall I any more be moved with thine Enchantments It will add to my Pleasure in my Mansions of Glory to see thee burnt for thy Witchcraft I shall no more dread thy mighty Hunters nor be aw'd with thy grim Tyrants nor be enslaved in Body nor Conscience by thy bloody Laws now be harrased with brutish Executioners There are no oppressing Magistrates no Catch-poles nor Informers in the place I now enter to Nay now I tread under foot all in thee that is enticing I set Health Wealth Pleasures Honours Friends Relations and all in one Scale and my dear Fore-runner in the other and that Scale weighs down now to the Ground I now go to the heavenly Jerusalem and that better Country where I shall have better Riches and more durable Substance better Honours better Pleasures and far better Relations Thus will the Believer then triumph over Death and whatsoever goes to make up the Sting of it BUT Secondly The Believer can triumph over every thing else in Death that is formidable To instance in one for many Nature abhors a Dissolution and the Soul though it has but a bad Lodging does not care to be turned out of Doors It s tenement of Clay it cares not to be dislodged of though its all over tattered and needs Repairs It shrinks back at entring into a new way of acting separate from the Body when it has all the while been accustomed to act only by such an Organ It has been used to such a poor Garment yet as sorry as it is it knows not how to be undressed of it and made naked Whereas now in the Moment of Death that 's over to the Believer It can cry then like his Master giving up the Ghost All is finished It sees a better House to go to upon its being dispossessed of this even the Fathers House that has many Mansions And a better Garment to be cloathed with even his elder Brother's glorious Robe of curious Embroidery And can triumph in the Words of the Apostle varying a little the Form of speaking 2 Cor. 5.1 2. c. I now see that my earthly House of this Tabernacle being dissolved I have a Building of God an House not made with Hands eternal in the Heavens In this I have groaned earnestly desiring to be cloathed upon with my House which is from Heaven I am sure being so cloathed I shall not be found naked For I that in this Tabernacle did groan being burdened not for that I would be uncloathed but cloathed upon And now Mortality shall be swallowed up of Life THUS the Believer triumphs over this Terror of Death and every thing else in Death that is terrible And thus I have finished the first Branch of my Doctrine viz. That the Believer in Death triumphs over Death in reference to his Soul I should pass away now to various Uses but time will not permit I shall therefore wind up this Branch with one Word of Exhortation to poor Sinners O you poor perishing Sinners over whom my Bowels yearn In my Master's Name I beg that you would suffer a Word of Exhortation You must needs be all perswaded firmly of this that you must once die and you know not how soon You may perhaps go to bed well and never see Morning Would you then in that instant of time avoid being insulted over by Death and triumph over that cruel Dragon Death and his fatal Sting then look up to that brazen Serpent the blessed Jesus erected on the Pole of Gods Word the only Hope set before you in the Gospel O fly to it for Refuge Would you glory over that King of Terrors and all his Dread 2 Tim. 2.1 Be strong in the Grace that is in Christ Jesus Would you die the Death of the Righteous then you must live the Life of the Righteous and we are told what that is Rom. 1.17 The Just shall live by Faith Believe in the Lord Jesus the exalted Prince and Saviour and his God-like Righteousness and earnestly beg of the Lord for the Revelation of the Righteousness of God to you from Faith to Faith Rom. 1.17 That so when that Faith is going to be swallowed up of Vision you may triumph over Death and all its Terrors in respect of your precious and immortal Soul The Second SERMON 1 Cor. 15.55 O Grave Where is thy Victory SOME of you may remember that from the Words opened and Explained I raised this general Observation THAT every true Believer in the Moment of his Death can triumph over Death and the Grave as well in reference to his Soul as to his Body I divided it into two Branches the first whereof was this That a Believer in the Moment of his Death can triumph over Death in respect of his Soul which I have dispatched and now proceed to handle the second viz. THAT a Believer in Death can triumph over the Grave in respect of his Body I judge it most convenient to use the same Method in the Prosecution of this Branch as I did in the former viz. to illustrate it by its contrary and therefore lay it down thus to be spoken to THE Grave can triumph over the Unbelievers Body but the Believer can triumph over the Grave in respect of his Body SINNERS are apt to make Gods of their Bodies honouring them excessively with Food Rayment Lodging and the like and to glory in the Health Beauty and Strength of their Bodies but the Grave will trample upon all these Instead of delicious Wine and choice
in him and many more And thus I have answered this Question with all the brevity and perspecuity I could as the Lord has enabled me and as time would give leave And now methinks some are ready to ask in the words of the blind Man whom Christ had restored to his Sight Quest BUT who is he that I might believe on him John 9.36 You say he must be seen and ventured on pray then who is he Answ I shall answer you from the Sermons of the Apostles preached by them after they were endued with Power from on high And first the Apostle Peter tells you who he is Acts 2.22 23. Jesus of Nazareth a Man approved of God him being delivered by the determinate Counsel and Fore-knowledge of God ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and stain comp with 32. This Jesus hath God raised up whereof we are all Witnesses 33. Therefore being by the right Hand of God exalted hath received of the Father the Promise of the Holy Ghost Once more Acts. 5.30 The God of our Fathers hath raised up Jesus whom ye slew and hanged on a Tree 31. Him hath God exalted with his right Hand to be a Prinee and a Saviour for to give repentance to Israel and remission of sins Add to these Heb. 12.2 Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith who for the joy set before him in the saving of Sinners enduring the Cross despising the shame and is now set down at the right Hand of God In short he that was made of the Seed of David according to the Flesh Rom. 3. who yet is God over all blessed for ever Rom. 10.5 That mighty glorious God-Man who was born of a Virgin that lived and preached in Judea Rom 8.38 that died yea rather that is risen again who is even at the right Hand of God who also ever lives to make intercession Col. 1.18 the first born from the dead Col. 1.15 and the first born of every Creature the despised Jesus of Nazareth 1 Col. 2.9 in whom the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily And all the Glory Excellency Beauty and Majesty that shines on Jesus of Nazareth is the Glory Excellency c. of the Godhead This is he that blessed Object of your Faith this is he whom you must believe in When he lived on Earth the Faith of his Children was more dark about his God-head than his human Nature but now he is in Heaven their Faith is more at a loss about his human Nature and it is to be lamented that the glorified human Nature even Jesus of Nazareth is so little in the Preaching Profession Faith and Experience of Gods own Children But yet this is the Lord whom we through Grace have seen and tasted to be gracious Will not you too O Sinners come and taste and see how gracious he is Cant. 5.16 This is our Friend this is our Beloved O Daughters of Jerusalem He is altogether lovely Cant. 5.10 He is the chiefest among ten thousand He is able Heb. 7.27 to save you to the uttermost O come therefore and venture your Souls upon him commit them to him O that you would but try him you have tried his Patience to the utmost by your Rebellion and Obstinacy in Wickedness O that you would but try his boundless Grace by casting your selves into the Ocean of it You must venture on his Grace or you must be damned Mark 16.16 He that believeth shall be saved he that believeth not shall be damned If you accept not of this offered Jesus you despise this only Sacrifice and there remaineth no more Sacrifice for sin but a certain fearful looking for of Judgment and fiery Indignation which shall devour the Adversary Heb. 10.26 I am now come to the second Branch the Believers triumphing over Death AND 1. the Believer triumphs over the Sting of Death and what else does concur to make it 2. THE Believer triumphs over every thing else in Death that is formidable First THE Believer triumphs over the Sting of Death He then can rejoycingly cry out O Death I fear thee not thou art very harmless unto me Thou comest indeed like a Dragon with open Mouth but where is thy Sting I dread not that open Mouth or that wide Throat I with Joy am swallowed up of it and pass through it up to the highest Heavens into my Redeemers Arms. Here at this dark Portal I undress my self of this mortal Flesh and fly with holy Confidence to the Presence of the Lamb upon the Throne and the Presence of God the Father in him and the bright innumerable Company above in this full Assurance that I shall not be found naked Wellcome Death to dissolve and pull down this earthly House of my Tabernacle that so I may go to my House not made with Hands the Building of God eternal in the Heavens 2 Cor. 5.2 Wellcome sweet Messenger that comest to fetch me home from this mad confused wicked raging tottering World into my Fathers House I thank thee O grim Porter who openest the Gates to eternal Happiness 'T is true the News of thy Approach did terrifie me as the Report of the Coming of rough blustering Esau with his armed Men did Jacob Gen. 32. But yet now thou art come to me I can say as he did I behold thy black and grisly Face as the Face of the Angel of God or the Messenger of the Lord Jesus Christ For in thy black Face I see Beauty in thy grisly Terrors great Glory In thy Dragons Mouth no Sting at all O Death where is thy Sting Thus the Believer in dying triumphs over the Sting of Death 2. THE Believer in dying triumphs over those things that go to make up the Sting of Death And 1. OVER Sin The Sting of Death is Sin says the Words of my Text. And 1. In its Guilt 2. in its Pollution And 1. OVER the Guilt of Sin Thus the Believer in dying glories over it O Guilt of Sin who in my Life-time since my Conversion notwithstanding I was washed with the Blood of Jesus and he had obtained an eternal Redemption for me didst often use to sting my Conscience and thereby to fill me with Dread and Horrour and so didst weaken my Faith and Confidence in the Lord Jesus didst strengthen the Hands of my Unbelief in making me depart from the living God Didst make me often come in Prayer to God as my angry Judge and not as to my Father reconciled to me in Christ And thereby didst bind up my Soul fetter my Spirits so that I had no freedom of Access to God through Christ Thou didst often deal with me as the Man that went from Jerusalem to Jericho didst wound me and strip me and leave me half dead Didst often force me to entertain hard murmuring and outragious Thoughts against my dear Lord and Master Jesus and my reconciled God and Father in him Didst often make me add Iniquity to my Sin and a carnal