among the spirits of just men made perfect if thou resolvest to seek after it which through the grace of God thou mayest assuredly attain to Second Part shewing what is the righteousness of the Saints that exceeds that of the Pharisees 1 THe Pharisees as righteous as they were did not acknowledge Jesus Christ nor entertain him as the Son of God and the Saviour of the world Now if thou wilt acknowledge him as all this and answerably resolve to beleeve in him relye upon him for pardon and strength against sin if thou wilt love him above thy father mother son daughter house land living above thy sins and lusts and wilt readily part with them all at his command thou hast done something the Pharisees never did thy righteousness shall bee more than theirs and thou shalt enter into heaven when they shall bee shut down into hell 2 The Pharisees beleeved it a sin to commit Murder but they did not count it murder to bee angry with their brethren or neighbours without a cause and to call them Fools or Racha Now Reader if thou wilt strive and struggle all revenge and unlawful passion out of thy heart thou art more righteous than ever the Pharisees were Reader see thou to it it must bee done without thou wilt bee content to bee no more righteous than the Pharisees were do not dispute it Christ will have it so Matth. 5.22 I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall bee in danger of Judgement and whosoever shall say Thou Fool shall bee in danger of Hell fire If thou wilt have it more clear consider 1 Joh. 3.15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer and yee know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him As thou likest the casting into hell fire or being accounted a murderer in the judgement of God of being void of eternal life give way hereafter to thy proud peevish revengeful passionate nature 3 The righteousness of the Pharisees condemned the act of Adultery to bee a sin but they did not think that a lascivious look and a lustful defire of the heart after a woman was a sin Now Reader if thou wilt resolve to conquer the desires of thy lustful eyes and heart thou hast attained a righteousness the Pharisees never had stick not at it sinner this Command as the whole yoak of Christ is easie and may bee born Christ will have it and thou must do it if thou resolvest to exceed the Pharisees Mat. 5.28 I say unto you sayes Christ whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed Adultery already with her in his heart Now think if thou wilt still give way to thy lustful eyes and heart know this that the Adulterer God will judge and thou mayest bee such though thounever dost commit the act 4 The Pharisees thought it onely a sin to forswear themselves but the Command of Christ is Swear not at all Mat. 5.34 except it bee in cases that are true certain and certainly known lawful possible and weighty wherein the glory of God and the welfare of thy neighbour is considerably concerned but ordinarily before a Magistrate and then an oath is lawful This I must prove because it is so stifly denied by some in this age inconsiderately enough The onely Objection which they have is founded on that of our Lord Christs Matth. 5.34 But I say unto you swear not at all which saying I confess if broken off from the scope of Christ in his whole discourse seems to intimate so much that it was not onely the corrupt prophane use of Oaths that hee condemneth but that hee intended an utter abolition of the use of all how ever circumstantiated Ans 1 I grant that from this Text not only perjury but that swearing is forbidden 2 I farther grant that all manner of swearing by any creature is expresly forbidden as by Heaven Earth Jerusalem by thy head and that in no case what ever is it lawful to use them and the Lord Christ gives you the reason why But 3 I deny that from this Text may bee proved that it is unlawful to swear by God himself before a Magistrate or in the cases above expressed My reasons are these 1 Because the Lord Christ doth not mention that oath which was onely lawful amongst the Jews but takes up in chiding them for perjury in general and for oaths by creatures in particular which Hierom noted long since Considero inquit quod hic Salvator non per Deum jurare prohibuerit sed per Caelum per terram c. 2 Because the God and Father of our Lord Jesus did constitute the lawfulness of swearing by his Name Deut. 6.6.13 and 10.20 Thou shalt swear by the Name of God Exod. 22.1 The oath of Jehovah shall bee between you Now is it probable that the Son should make that unlawful which the Father made lawful Is not this to establish the old Manichaean heresie That taught that the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New were as contrary as light and darkness and their work was to contradict each other If any reply that it is a granted case that Christ abolished the Cerâ—monial Law that under the Mosaical dispensation was in force at the appointment of his Father and why may hee not then abolish this I answer But then it must bee well proved that an oath was a ceremony and then I pray tell mee what it was a type of But secondly I have far more ground to think it one of the Judicial Laws as being highly subservient to put the other Laws in execution which in many cases might have been suspended or not with so clear justice executed without an Oath to render the testimony evident 3 Because hee expresly sayes of himself I came not to dest roy the Law but to fulfil it and can you perswade your self that hee can say hee will not and yet o it was not there once a Law for swearing have I not proved it But can Christ bee said to fulfil that Law by an utter abolishing of it he being the Substance came in the room of all the Ceremonies which were shadows but prove that an Oath is a shadow and I have done 4 I argue à genere from the nature of an Oath it self which if well understood it is very unlikely that the Son of God should take away the use of it An Oath is an appeal to God wherein hee is beseeched as the onely searcher of hearts that hee would bear testimony to the truth and would punish the swearer if hee know him to bear a false testimony but that all such appeals to God should bee prohibited and condemned by Christ can hardly bee affirmed without blasphemy 5 Let mee reason from the end and use of an Oath which will farther discover it was never the intent of Christ utterly to abolish all oathes 1 An Oath then is that whereby men give to God the praise
first make bold to press thee to a revew of the text I say unto you Except your Righteousness exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees yee can in no case enter into the Kingdome of Heaven This verse is a part of that Bible that thou and I and all the Christian world do take to bee the word of God which is as free from any lye or falshood as the Sun-beams are from darkness I shall not therefore injure thee so much as if I did mistrust thee to ask whether thou beleevest this portion of Scripture to bee true or false but rather dost thou beleeve that it is so written there as here it is transcribed if thou doubtest take thy Bible and turn to the Chapter and the Verse if thou wilt take it for granted on my word I profess I have not I would not deceive thee for a world The first part of the Text opened I say unto you To you Who are those Why those that were present at that time in which Christ was preaching this Sermon they were his Disciples his followers such as owned him for their Saviour and called him Lord and Christ in a word they were such as thou professest thy self to bee that art my Reader 2 I say unto you who is this I It was heâ— that preached the Sermon Jesus Christ it was Christ and not Matthew that did record it it was Christ and not I that am about to plead withthee at this time for thy life And now thou knowest the Author I presume the Text will have some authority upon thy heart I hope thou wilt not say of Jesus Christ as the prophane worldlings say of us his Ministers that wee are a company of prating sawcy fellows and they hope that all is not true that wee say and they are confident that God is more merciful than wee Preachers would make them beleeve But think Reader it is not I nor any Minister on earth that is the Preacher in my Text it is Jesus Christ the Master of us all and canst thou hope it is not true that Christ here tells thee were not this all one as to hope Jesus Christ is a lyar and is not this to make thy self a blasphemer or darest thou bee so impudent to say or think that God is more merciful than Christ hath made him what canst thou think thy gracious Saviour would deceive thee or that the Son of God would make false reports of God his Father he tells thee the contrary if thou hast a minde to beleeve him Joh. 12.49 I have not spokex of my self but the Father which sent mee hee gave mee Commandement what I should say and what I should speak And wilt thou dare yet to unsay all his sayings though hee tells thee hee sayes nothing but what God his Father commanded him If hee tells thee plainly Except thy righteousness exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees thou shalt in no case enter into the Kingdome of heaven Wilt thou boldly contradict all and say that notwithstanding what ever Jesus Christ hath said I yet hope to bee saved yea though thou hast no righteousness at all or such as falls short of what the Pharisees had wilt thou give the lye both to God the Father and the Son No sinner no I know thou hast not such hard thoughts of the Saviour of the world to think hee is a lyar Thou callest him Jesus Christ and confessest him to bee the Son of God and that it is impossible hee should lye yea I know thou wilt confess hee here speaks true and what hee speaks hee speaks to thee That except thy righteousness exceeds that of the Pharisees thou canst by no means bee saved Doest thou beleeve it Answer mee Doest thou verily beleeve That except thou A. B. by name provest a more righteous man or woman than ever any Scribe or Pharisee was thou canst in no case enter into heaven Come Come I know thou beleevest it as thou lovest heaven then and thine own soul I intreat thee pronounce these words after mee but speak them seriously to thine own conscience I A B Who am reading this book do in the presence of God that searcheth my heart and will judge mee at the last day do unfeignedly beleeve that except I am by the power of the Spirit through the preaching of the Word made a more righteous man or woman than ever any Scribe or Pharisee yea and this before I dye I never hope by any means to enter into the Kingdome of heaven but must assuredly as now I am reading within a few dayes bee in everlasting torments where I shall weep and wail and gnash my teeth without all remedy Hast thou confessed so much yea and unfeignedly yea as in the presence of God the searcher of thy heart Yea. Well said Now let mee tell thee thou hast taken one step towards heaven thou art half way there already Ah sinner bee not so much thine own enemy as to withdraw thy foot and recall thy words why shouldest thou repent that step that is taken towards a Kingdome that is so blessed or draw in that breath that hath filled thysails and will make thy voyage to heaven both quick and easie if it continue For know Reader that when thy soul is once throughly convinced of that righteousness that is absolutely necessary to salvation half the work of thy conversion is done the new creature is half formed in thee and thy soul half saved but when that righteousness is attained that is when it is brought down into thy conversation and thou livest righteously then is conversion finished the new creature perfected thy salvation secured and thou art made a blessed man or woman But thou wilt say What am I the nearer for all this if I neither know how righteous these Pharisees were nor what a righteousness it is wherein I must exceed them pray will you tell mee how righteous they were and how much more righteous I must bee than they Answ I will tell thee but if I do I must have another promise from thee and I profess as in the presence of the living God if I thought that thou wouldest not grant it to mee I would not tell thee what those things mean but rather out of pity to thee suffer thee to lie and dye in thy ignorance tell me wilt thou promise God and mee that when I have told thee what the righteousness is that thou must seek wilt thou by the help of God endeavour with all thy soul and strength to live that righteous life this Doctrine will call for But stay sayest thou There is no haste tell mee what it is first Answ What doest thou scruple Art thou afraid I will deceive thee and make it harder than it is Reader to put thee out of doubt from that I protest solemnly as I shall answer it before the Judge of quick and dead before whom I am confident I must give an account of what
nor bee beloved of him thou shalt not see nor live with Jesus Christ the best friend that ever thou hadst thou shalt never see nor understand the blessedness of those Angel-spirits that bee there nor enjoy the fellowship of the Saints on high thou shalt never taste of the River of pleasures that run out of the throne of the Lamb nor behold the sweet light that streams in flouds from his countenance thou shalt never hear him call thee blessed or pronounce thee just nor bid thee welcome to the joy of thy Master Pish sayest thou And is this all it is even as good as nothing thou never heardest or sawest or tastedst or didst eâ—joy any such things as these on earth and yet thou sayest thou livedst happily enough without them thou ever foundest more pleasure in an Alehouse than in a Church and admired the melody of a wanton lascivious song above the harmony of a Psalm a cup of wine and a good feast at a Tavern hath ever been more delicious to thee than the blessed Sacrament of the body and blood of Christ yea the smiles of a wanton Harlot have been more indearing than the love and kindness of a tender Saviour if the loss of heaven bee no more than the loss of seeing or enjoying God Christ Angels Saints in a glorious union of the Spirit fare them well all give mee but the full streams of my sinful pleasures though I swim in them to hell Answ But stay sinner sure thou art not in good earnest think again thou darest not say so once more I have better hopes of thee than so thou art sure not so far gone certainly thou hast some reason left the light of thy conscience is not quite put out surely thou art no Beast nor Devil Sinner Well it is no matter what I am I am resolved to hazzard all for this beloved gold these pleasant cups and dishes of wines meats and sensual pleasures if I should not say so I am resolved to do so for this sinful life I will not part with though I lose an hundred Kingdomes of heaven and as many Crowns as there are stars and as rich a glory as God himself can pretend to give mee Give mee to live on earth in sin and what care I for God or heaven and all his happiness Answ Mee thinks yet sinner I cannot beleeve thee this is but a bravado thou darest not say so in cool blood no nor if thou wert on thy death-bed I never heard a Rogue at a Gallows say so though while hee was at liberty was perhaps as desperate a wretch as thy self If yet thou thinkest thou darest both say and do so hear mee then once more thou hast not heard the worst at least not all that shutting out of Heaven implies it signifies thus much more 2 If thou art shut out of Heaven thou must bee shut out of earth too the Paradise above shall not onely bee kept against thee with a flaming sword but thou shalt lose the happiness of cursed Cain of being a vagabond upon the earth Sinner the time is coming and then will bee that all thy gold and silver with rich apparel with all thy house and lands livings with all thy meats and drinks thou must leave behinde thee to bee devoured by the merciless flames that shall consume the world what wilt thou get then to delight thy liquorish palate or to quench thy drunken thirst or to cover thy rotten carkass or to satisfie thy beastly unsatiate lust I pray thee Reader think am I telling thee a fable or art thou a dying man or woman Is not thy life most or much of it spent already how often more dost thou think will the clock strike round before it strikes the hour that thou must dye art thou sure of the morrow doth not the bell hang in thy Parish-steeple that must towl thy knell doth not thy coffin and thy grave stare thee in the face and tell thee wee must shortly have thy body and dost not thou then know for certain that all the fewel of thy sensual pleasures and so the pleasures themselves must bee left behinde What sayest thou now Reader how dost thou like shutting out of heaven when thou must not onely lose the delights there but all that are upon the earth What is thy minde yet changed speak man thou hast time yet given thee to make thy choice wilt thou endeavour to bee more righteous than the Pharisees or sit down content to bee shut out of heaven Thou foolish sinner why dost thou delay thy answer what difficulty can there bee in the question that I ask thee heaven thou knowest and righteousness thou knowest for I have told thee what they mean already Ah that mans heart should bee so sottish to make it a doubtful case whether it is better to chuse heaven with righteousness or hell with wickedness Mee thinks I hear thee begin to cry out Good Lord what a streight hath this book driven mee to I did not think these foolish Preachers had half so much reason on their sides I begin now to think it is hard to hear them or to read them without being of their minds though I care not much for heaven yet I am loath to lose heaven and earth together What shall I do there is nothing can keep mee out of heaven but an unrighteous wicked life but how shall I leave my sin I know not I am not used to read and pray and repent in tears and I care not to begin but I am used to swear and lie and drink and whore and them I cannot leave but if I do not I cannot enter into heaven what shall I do Oh that I might dye like a beast and lye in a benummed state of death for ever free from all sense or feeling of any joy so I might live on earth but as I list Oh my dear works of darkness I do so love you that I could bee willing to bee a dog or any other beast at death so I might but have your company while I live Reply Ah Fool Fool Fool What Devil hath been the Priest to espouse thee so nearly to thy filthy stinking rotten sinful life that neither Christ nor his Ministers can perswade thee to a divorce Thou senseless sinner hast thou not too justly provoked thy Maker to repent that hee made thee a man what content to dye like a beast and lose the glorious priviledge of an immortal life for a base filthy sin how much pitty is it that ever thou wert man or woman and not rather a dog or toad thou art a disgrace to the humane nature but thou wretched desperate sinner I tell thee thou shalt not have thy wish because thou art so unwilling to live like a son or daughter of God on earth thou shalt not have so much happiness to lye down in thy grave like a dog thou shalt assuredly go to hell and so to torment therefore shutting out of heaven
speaks more sadness than I have acquainted thee with 3 Lastly Consider this if thou wilt not resolve to live more righteously than ever any Pharisee did Assure thy self that Jesus Christ that shuts thee out of heaven shall shut thee up in Hell that tongue that pronounceth the righteous blessed shall pronounce thee cursed and hee that bids them enter into the joy of their Master shall command thee to descend into torments with the Devils there shalt thou receive the stroak of his iron rod that shall dash thee in peeces and bear the stroaks of his revengeful arm for thy abusing of his tender and long-suffering mercy There shalt thou feel the worrowings of an inraged conscience and suffer the tortures of devouring flame and this for ever and ever Reader If thou art obstinate deceive not thy self God will not bee mocked and in his punishing thee for sin hee will not seem to bee in jeast for as the Lord liveth and as thy soul liveth there is not a tittle of what I say but what is contained in thy Bible if I shew it thee to bee there thou wilt not sure question whether it bee true Read then and let thine own eyes bear witness Matth. 25.41 Then shall hee say unto them on the left hand Depart from mee yee cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels Mark 9.47 And if thine eye offend thee that is thy sin as dear as thy eye hinder thee in the way to heaven pluck it out that is cast it away and leave that sin It is better for thee to enter into the Kingdome of God with one eye yea with no eye than having two eyes to bee cast into hell fire where their worm dyeth not and the fire is not quenched Rev. 21.8 but the fearful that is such as fear to part with sin and life and all for Christ and unbeleeving and abominable and Murderers and Whoremongers and Sorcerers and Idolaters such are covetous men and all lyars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone this is the second death Rev. 20.10 And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of the fire and the brimstone where the Beast and the false Prophets are and shall bee tormented day and night for ever and ever 2. Thess 1.7 8. When the Lord Jesus shall bee revealed from heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall bee punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power Now thou hast read all these Texts I cannot think thou wilt unsay them all thou hast the witness both of John and Paul and Christ himself I am sure their testimony will passe in the Court of Heaven and there it is and onely there that thou must take thy trial receive thy sentence and bee sent to this dreadful punishment what hast thou more to say The Sinners last Refuge I have here read sayest thou That there is no salvation without I live an exceeding righteous life it is plain Scripture I cannot deny it and surely my drunkenness my swearing lying whoreing neglect of praying reading do not speak mee an exceeding righteous man What shall I do shall I think my self in so miserable estate that if I dye before I change my life I must go to hell Oh I dare not what then to leave my sins I will not but how then shall I keep them if I do the Scripture is plain I cannot go to heaven truly I know not what to say but perhaps there may be some way to heaven that the Scripture doth not tell us of I resolve to venture it at least and I know I shall have many to bear mee company and thus I will satisfie my self and continue as I am Answ A poor shift Thou hopest God will finde a way to save thee that hee hath not revealed that is in plain English thus thou hopest that God hath told thee by Jesus Christ that except thou art more righteous than the Pharisees thou canst not bee saved yet hee intendeth the quite contrary and will save thee and others though thou livest more wickedly than ever the Pharisees did What is this but to put God the Father and Jesus Christ at variance and make them contradict each other yea to think so impudently of God that hee sent his onely Son into the world to deceive and cheat it in a company of untruths as this would bee one if it should ever bee as thou art bold to hope But I have somewhat in my Text still behinde that will spoil thy hopes and convince thee of this wicked imagination sayes my Text Yee shall in no case enter mark that in no case what do those three words mean Do they not plainly signifie that God hath shut up all other wayes to heaven or that there are no means left by which thou canst possibly scape the misery of the damned but onely this of becoming righteous 1 Perhaps thou thinkest to hide thy self in the Grave and to lurk close in the corner of that dark room But Fool never think of it for the doors of those chambers of death shall all flye open the Trumpet shall sound and thou amongst the rest shalt arise and stand up before him 2 Perhaps thou conceivest a way to escape by crying for mercy Ah sinner that will not do neither for then it will bee too late there is no room for repentance nor for mercy when thou hast once left this earth 3 What dost thou think to plead the blood of Christ It will bee answered by Christ that shed it that hee shed it only for the penitent beleeving godly sinner and thou art none of those 4 Dost thou think then to flye from the Justice of God the Son to the Mercy of God the Father and if thou shouldest I tell thee hee would send thee back again unto Christ his Son and with all acquaint thee that hee hath committed all Judgement to his Son and is resolved to spare none that his Childe Jesus will not save and thou art sure already of this that Christ his Son will save none but such whose righteousness hath exceeded that of the Pharisees Read my Text hath he not there said it and canst thou think that upon his Judgement-seat hee will deny this Sermon or this part of it that hee preached upon the earth Shall so great a Judge as Christ make a Law and publish it on the earth and then upon the Bench deny hee never said so or then repent it no no Sinner it is impossible hee should deny himself or his word Now Reader if thou bee a man or woman whose heart and life is not yet changed if thou hast not a righteousness above the Pharisees in what a sad case dost thou see thy self or at least thou mayest if thou