instruction As 1. Our concerns of time are certainly but trifles and inconsiderable to unseen things Alas what is time to Eternity and what is 30 or 60 or a 100 Years the common utmost bounds of our abode here unto Eternity 't is but a flash a vapour or a dream Oh! whether we are miserable or felicitous in this world is nothing in comparison of happiness or misery in the other Mens utmost and longest day of happiness here will be quickly at an end and Mens utmost and longest day of misery here will very speedily expire but Eternity into which all must lanch will never end What a bubble is all sublunary glory and what a vanity is all sublunary ignominy and disgrace to the more weighty unseen concerns that are before us what are transient fading perishing Riches and wealth and what is a short season of poverty or want to the Riches of Heaven or the necessities of indigent Souls in Eternity Alas Men put too high a price and value on Creature-contents and are dolefully too proud of their earthly felicity and too much discontented with their temporal afflictions and miseries All concerns here whether contenting or not contenting are but things that are not And therefore the Apostle tells us It remains that both they that have wives be as though they had none and they that weep as though they wept not and they that rejoyce as though they rejoyced not and they that buy as though they possessed not and they that use the world as not abusing it for the fashion of this worldpasseth away 1 Cor. 7.29 30 31. Sorrow and joy here if rightly considered with Eternity are nothing or at least much less matters than mortals esteem them even the greatest felicity and infelicity upon the borders of time are poor inconsiderable things if seriously weighed and compar'd with the Unseen things of the other world which are eternal 2. Of what consequence and weighty import is the well or ill improvement of time here as time is spent here so will be our eternal portion As our daies hours and Years are husbanded here will be our reward for ever and for ever Heaven or Hell attend us the enjoyments whereof are everlasting according as we sow here As happiness or misery in this world is light trivial and inconsiderable to the weighty unseen things that are before us so our judgment of them is of eternal consequence Time well spent though it be but a short season will be our happy and everlasting advantage and time ill spent though it be very short will be our detriment and dammage Here the Seed of that harvest of felicity or misery that all reap in the other world is sown You have no more time or opportunity to provide for your eternal peace but your present day of mercy and grace And the neglect or abuse of your present transitory daies or hours will everlastingly undo you Oh! 't is not to no purpose that you are called upon to redeem your time and prize every inch of the Day of grace that is before you and to work whilst 't is called to day and not to harden your hearts whilst opportunity lasteth Alas an eternity of joy or sorrow and misery depends on it He that allures you to trifle away your precious time allures you to make shipwrack of eternal mercies and to adventure on eternal wrath distress and perplexity And how dreadful should temptations to such folly and madness be to us 3. Sin is no light matter for 't is the seed of unseen sorrow in the other world which is eternal 't is the seed of Hell and the furious rebuke of the infinitely terrible and dreadful God for ever and for ever This is little considered by the generality who wallow in it like swine as in their element little do they think or at least they have noâ— strong convictions that it prepares never ending exquisite and perfect misery for them Materially some sins are final matters as Adam's eating the forbidden-fruit or the speaking of a vain word c. but formally and in its cursed wages nothing is a greater evill If sinners did but see the dolefulâ— fruit that iniquity bears they would dread and abhor it in publick and in private aâ— they do extremity of misery or Hell it self Oh! how injurious is that which most take to be their profit and advantage what doth the world more hurt finally than sin what brings the rational Creature under God's eternal displeasure but iniquity whatever content at present any have in sin or wickedness be sure they will have none in the everlasting pernicious and cursed consequents of it they will not make light of it when it hath brought them under the miseries that are the portion of the damned for ever 4. What a dreadful evill is unbelief Alas this is the cause of all other sins and Mens dreadful making light of the weighty â—nseen things that are before them Men â—ear that the happiness and misery of the â—ther world is eternal and that here we sow â—or our portion there but they do not beâ—ieve it or but superficially believe it that is â—he reason why Heaven is neglected and not â—ecured and why its eternal mercies and â—oyes are slighted and that is the reason â—hy Hell and its everlasting miseries and â—orrows are no more industriously shunned â—nd that sin the seed thereof is no more abâ—orred and lothed Alas who could for â—hort perishing concerns slight these inconceivably weighty concerns of eternity â—hat did to purpose believe their certainty or had through convincing apprehensions of their verity Oh! unbelief is a more common malady than Mens profession intimates most are unbelievers and the faith of those â—hat do sincerely believe hath some unbelief mix'd with it otherwise unseen things would have more influence upon them The great reason why Believers themselves are not more the world's wonders in their signal and remarkable self-denyal crucifixion estrangedness to the vanities of time is because their faith is but imperfect and infirm Alas the weightiness of the concerns of Heaven and Hell would certainly work the greatest contempt in us of the things here below if we were as sensible of it as ere long we shall be Oh! unbelieâ— is that which undoth the World keeping them from knowing and firmly pursuing the things of their eternal peace 5. What an unspeakable price is Christ's Love and Blood what a singular mercy and rich advantage to sinners is the Redemption that Christ hath wrought for us The mercies of eternity would never have been our portion had it not been for Christ and eternal misery perdition and destruction would certainly have been our portion had it not been for Christ's appearing for our salvation and deliverance After a few daies spent upon the borders of time we should all have been the fire-brands of unquenchable fire and the vessels of God's furious rebukes to eternity without remedy had it not been for Christ
But Christ being incarnated and having satisfied justice and purchased a Gospel-Covenant we are now â—apable of escaping everlasting sorrow and â—erplexity and of triumphing eternally 〈◊〉 God's Love and Mercy And what a â—ich and glorious priviledg is this how â—appy are we if we knew and had wiseâ—om to lay hold on the things of our peace â—nd comfort We may be happy for ever â—hrough Christ if we will look about us Eternal life through Christ's Blood is obâ—ainable if we are not wanting to our selves â—nd that everlasting wrath which we have deserved will never be our portion if we do but ark our selves in Christ Oh! Christ â—s the greatest price that ever was put into â—he hands of mortals and they are the wisest Men that know his worth and prize him â—ccordingly And they are fools and mad-men that lightly esteem and neglect him 6. The Word and Ordinances of the Gospel are likewise an inestimable price in our hands for these help us to acquaintance with and security about these unseen concerns Alas notwithstanding all that Christ hath done for us if we had not the Word among us we should eternally without question perish and be undone How should we ever know the way to Heaven or an escape from the wrath to come without this how easily would Hell beguile the best of us cause us to make shipwrack of our eternal hopes and sow the seed of eternal misery had it not been for this Many poor Heathens are therefore in a lamentable condition that have nothing but the dim light of Nature to help them in this weighty affair though they know or have have some imperfect or superficial convitions of another life in the other world where it shall go well with the Good and ill with the Bad yet they do not know the way to true Happiness The Book of Nature preacheth not Christ or his Redeeming Love to sinners multitudes are in darkness and blindness in comparison of those that are priviledged with the Scripture Little do many that are only under the Tutorage of the Light of Nature know of their duty or of their sin and what wonder is it then that they walk not in the way of Life or forsake not the way of eternal death And those that now enjoy the Word and Ordinances of the Gospel if they should be deprived of them will be in no small danger of losing their eternal hopes In a little time they may forget those precious truths they are acquainted with or at least the constant preaching of temptations and the Spirit of seduction may in time wear off the impression the Word had formerly made upon them Experience tells us that the frequent pressing of the same truths is necessary to their effectual influence upon the hearts of mortals and to the prevention of the frauds and cheats of their Spiritual enemies Without the Word and Ordinances of Christ Men will not sow for eternal Life yea they will certainly sow the seed of eternal death And what a mercy doth this bespeak the Word and Ordinances to be And what enemies are they to a people that deprive them of these mercies considering the weightiness of eternal concerns that are before us 7. They are unworthy of unseen mercies that slothfully carelesly and indifferently prosecute them They bid too low a price for these stupendious Blessings and judge themselves unfit to enjoy them that faintly or lukewarmly mind them How righteously will they miss of everlasting Triumphs that think it much all the daies of their vanity here to sweat and labour to make them sure And how righteously will they be the Vessels of eternal misery that think not salvation from it worth their utmost endeavours during their short abode here Alas that there should be any so dismally unreasonable thus to undervalue Everlasting concerns and yet what more common general or epidemical malady in the world though these are the most weighty affair yet they are not at all or inconsiderably minded by the most Most seek after eternal life as if it were a matter of smallest moment Most prefer the trivial concerns of time before them Men's greatest care and most constant endeavours are about temporal enjoyments what they shall eat or drink or wherewith they shall be clothed or how they shall be Great or felicitous or happy here whereas Eternity is allow'd only those scraps of time care that the world or their earthly concerns can spare Oh! very few live like strangers here in the exercise of self-denyal and contempt of Creature-comforts and enjoyments 't is but a little flock that to purpose maketh it the business of their daies to work out their salvation and make sure their everlasting peace and comfort and how deservedly then is everlasting Life entailed and confined only to a little flock If never ending felicity be not worth the work and utmost diligence of a few daies and years 't is worth nothing and if salvation from Hell and the dismal miseries there attending the damned for ever more be not worth constancy in duty and utmost faithfulness during the little season of mortals abode here 't is worth nothing 8. The Unholy and Ungodly are unmeet and unfit to dwell in Heaven The enjoyments thereof are so much against their nature that they will soon be weary of them they cannot endure holy work or such a holy place a little while and much less for ever None but those that have Godliness for their element are meet for the everlasting mercies of the Paradise of God None else will delight to be housed in that eternal Dwelling Those that are enemies to holy love and praise and duty to God what should they do there where there is nothing else All that dwell in God's triumphant Kingdom must make holiness their delight and this the wicked do not and therefore are unmeet for these Eternal mercies 9. Afflictions and sharp providences that cause us to mind Unseen concerns most intensely and effectually are happy dispensations Alas 't is better to weep and groan dismally for a small season than for ever 't is better to be in heaviness and distress for a short moment than to eternity and Heaven's joy being everlasting will certainly fully make amends for all our temporal sufferings how great soever Though we should lye in extremity of misery during the age of Methusalah yet if all be sanctified to our never ending comfort and triumph we shall not ere long repent it but call our miseries happy miseries and our afflictions happy afflictions This was that which supported and caused our Apostle and the rest of his Brethren to rejoyce under all the most terrible providencâ—es attending them in the exercise of their duty and faithfulness that they worked for them a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory Yea all that are bound for Heaven are more or less the Sons and Daughters of sorrow here God estrangeth them from the world and its vanities by many
the attainments of hypocrites in Grace and Holiness can you say that you are got beyond the bounds of common Grace and Sanctification have you not merely a common repentance a common Faith and a common love to God and fear of him and a common obedience to him The generality among us are deceived in this weighty affair by common Grace which causeth them to think they are the Vessels and Heirs of Heaven when they are not 3. What delight have you in Holiness and duty to God is it your meat and drink is it your Element could you be contented with or take pleasure in an eternal Exercise of holy love duty and praise to the Infinite Jehovah Alas what should you do for ever in Glory if you delight not in these exercises which will be the eternal work of Saints in the Kingdom of their Father Heaven will be no Heaven to you whilst obedience to God and Spiritual enjoyments are your burden and not your recreation and complacency By this therefore do you enquire whether you are bound for Heaven and eternal Life yea or no. 3. We come to speak something by way â—f Dehortation And is it so that Unseen â—hings are eternal then 1. Take heed of sowing the seed of sorâ—ow grief or misery in the other world â—or you hear it will be eternal Oh! take â—eed at any rate of plunging your selves under the unseen wrath fury and vengeance of the Great Jehovah for you see it will be of everlasting duration You read of some that treasure up for themselves wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the Righteous Judgment of God Rom. 2.5 Oh! let not this be the case of any of you Yea the generality of Men and most Professours do walk in the broad way leading to everlasting destruction Matth. 7.13 do you take heed that you be not of their number And for that end take heed of hypocrisy for the hypocrites in heart heap up wrath Job 36.13 Watch also against every sin for the wages or fruit of it is eternal death Rom. 6.23 Get acquaintance with the things of your eternal peace for you find God himself complaining sometimes that for want of knowledg his people perish Hos 4.6 Be careful to be delivered from an evill heart of unbelief for he that believeth not wâ—… be damned Mark 16.16 Die not in impeâ—…cy for those that repent not will certaâ—… be destroyed Luke 13.3 Live not afâ—er the flesh for he that liveth after the flesh must die Rom. 8,13 Take heed of pride for this goeth before destruction Prov. 16.18 Abhor unmercifulness and cruelty for he shall have judgment without mercy that sheweth no mercy James 2.13 Especially neglect not the relief of Christ in his indigent Members for you see this is given as the reason of that dreadful sentence that will pass on the vessels of perdition at the last day Mat. 25.41 42. c. And lastly dread dis-obedience to the Gospel of Christ for Christ will come ere long to take everlasting vengeance on those that obey not his Gospel 2 Thess 18. Oh Sirs you are in fearful danger be not in insensible of it and do not further it Live not in peril of eternal damnation do not make sure everlasting burnings for your selves if you would not groan for ever under insupportable miseries take heed of being heirs of them 'T is here that sinners prepare for their never ending horror in the other world be not you guilty of this folly and madness And for that end consider 1. That most do sow for Hell and destruction and accordingly will reap the doleful harvest thereof to all eternity most are in the broad way leading to the chambers of everlasting death yea multitudes of those that to others seem bound for Heaven are certainly bound for perdition world without end Oh! you have need to look about you considering what abundance miscarry in this affair and especially what abundance that seem to bid fair for Heaven do yet eternally lose their Souls There are many that pray and fast and in some sort mourn for and repent of their sins and live in the exercise of much holy duty that yet remain in the gall of bitterness and at length groan under the insupportable wrath of God for evermore 'T is but a very little flock even among Professours that effectually take heed of the seed of Hell and eternal damnation Therefore you are fearfully concerned to look about you 2. You have a wicked nature within you addicted to this Soul-undoing course The hearts of Men and Women are desperately evill The seed of Hell is in your breasts already 'T is very difficult for you to escape the snares and entanglements of sin death through the doleful propensity of your Souls to comply with them 'T is upon this account that the Righteous are scarcely saved and that the best of Saints have so much ado to avoid the wrath to come If you are not very watchful the evill heart within you will be your eternal perdition without fail The law in your members will certainly captivate you to your everlasting doleful prejudice Oh! how natural is pride flesh-pleasing and worldliness to sinful Man which are the seed of Hellish misery And how doth carnal interest covertly secretly and insensibly sway the Souls of multitudes to their utter destruction you are in doleful peril of sowing for eternal misery Therefore you are concerned to take heed 3. Sorrow and much less eternal sorrow in the other world is not desirable 't is much less desirable unspeakably than a harvest of misery and utmost extremities and calamities here Yea 't is most abhorrent as the greatest evill Alas what is more dreadful to mortals than severe punishments and what greater severity of misery is there than what is the cursed fruit of sin in the eternal Ocean The damneds roarings and heart-sinking lamentation in Hell do evidence that their portion there is most dismal The stoutest heart will tremble as the sinners in Sion are said to do when they are to purpose sensible what they adventure on by sin in the other world and cry Who among us shall dwell with devouring fire who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings Isa 33.14 Deliberately none would choose destruction and much less everlasting destruction Sinners know not what they do when they treasure up wrath for their Souls in the Unseen world They little dream that they store up such fearful and dreadful sorrows as they must reap when they have left the borders of time Oh! Sirs 't is extremity of misery or perfection of calamity that you are now cautioned against 'T is that infelicity which will be the most eminent display of God's hottest fury and indignation and what can be imagined to be more dreadful Be careful therefore at any rate to flie from the wrath to come and not to make light of it considering how dismal it is and not desirable 4. You have a better
weighty affair Wherever you are slothful unfaithful or careless see that utmost unwearied diligence and faithfulness be used here Make this the buisiness of your daies to sow for Everlasting joy comfort when time is gone Yea see that you have no Imployment or affair but what is undertaken and managed in a due subserviency to this weighty affair Alas Sirs what greater buisiness have you to mind what an infinitely glorious prize doth the Unseen world set before you and how poor and inconsiderable are all concerns of time to it You spend your time and strength for trifles whatever you pursue if you neglect Heaven Eternal Life Earthly Kingdoms and Crowns are but shadows and vanity to the everlasting substantial enjoyments of the Paradise of GOD which you are invited to secure for your Souls 'T is a wonder that the World should have in it a rational creature that can find himself employment without reference to his comfort in the Eternal Ocean the concerns thereof are so infinitely weighty above all the things of time Oh be not you so unreasonable do not you thus neglect your own greatest most necessary and most glorious mercies For perishing fading contents let not never ending and everlasting triumphing Blessings be lost and jeoparded Seriously consider the weightiness of these concerns and surely they will influence you to utmost faithfulness for the assuring of them Everlasting joy or sorrow what is there here that is any thing like it Triumphs or howlings for evermore what on Earth bears any comparison to them If any thing here be worth your care or minding surely eternity and its concerns are infinitely more considerable and should be infinitely more influencing The Joyes of Heaven are Mercies indeed they are the most inconceivable glorious Blessings There 's happiness in perfection fulness of joy peace content and comfort without a dram of sorrow in glory There God is to be enjoy'd who is All in all There are Rivers of pleasure and an Ocean of the most Soul-satisfying goodness So glorious are the Blessings of eternity that eye never saw ear never heard and it never entred into the heart of Man to conceive their glory 1 Cor. 2. 9. These are mercies that quite surpass and exceed the very thoughts and imaginations of finite Men so unspeakably do they excel all contents here and infinitely more if you were capable to set your ear at Heaven's door and could hear the Souls ravishing Songs of the glorified quire in God's Paradise If there were but a hole or a little chink through which you might view their triumphant Robes or if by any means you could get a glimpse of that overflowing consolation wherewith they do abound unto eternity no temptation will ever be strong enough to make you neglect or slight the pursuit of their enjoyments yea you would certainly reach after an interest in them whatever they cost you and would not endure a diversion from a faithful prosecution of them Add to this that Eternal Life contains in it an eternal salvation from Hellish misery if you make sure of Heaven you shall not sip of the Lake of fire and brim-stone wherein the wicked will be tormented for ever This you are at present in danger of and this you will escape if you become the Heirs of eternal Blessings And what a rich Price is this which yet Infinite Mercy entrusteth you with How would the damned in Hell prize and improve it now they have tasted hellish sorrows if the priviledg of hope of deliverance were yet before them what would they not do or give for their redemption from those miseries 'T is not unlike but you have or may have all of you some troubles afflictions crosses pains or miseries to groan under here redemption from which you would be willing to purchase at the dearest rate And is not redemption and deliverance from Hell much more desirable and necessary Oh! how will you value this mercy when the Eternal Ocean hath effectually acquainted you with the worth of it to be saved from these sorrows that are unspeakable and never ending is a prize inestimable therefore spare no diligence or endeavour in pursuit of it Moreover remember you must and will be housed in Heaven or Hell for ever you will unquestionably have your portion in everlasting joy or sorrow there is no avoiding it but you will be the vessels of amazing mercy in God's triumphant Kingdom or the vessels of amazing wrath and indignation in unquenchable flames And which of you can think of dwelling with devouring fire or of being the fuell of everlasting burnings without horrour how should the thoughts of your dreadful peril cause you to mend you pace in your Christian course and double your diligence watchfulness and faithfulness that you may inherit eternal mercies especially if you consider the qualitie and nature of that misery that otherwise will certainly overwhelm you with the eternity of its duration Remember misery in perfection will be your inheritance for evermore if you lose Heaven's Mercies and Blessings extremity of sorrow you will endure world without end if you have no part nor lot in the triumphs of God's Paradise Once have the gate of Heaven shut against you and it will be shut against you for ever and once be plunged into the Infernal Lake where is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth without intermission and you will be hopeless of redemption from it forever Christ's love and blood will be insignificant to you and all the promises of the Gospel will be in vain to you and your day of Grace will be utterly unprofitable to you and have an everlasting period And oh Sirs soberly consider the weight of this adjunct eternal and everlasting and surely 't will effectually render unseen things most incomparable to you and make them chiefly influential in heart and life Upon serious consideration you will find eternity weighty beyond your conceptions Remember it notes not only lasting joyes and sorrows beyond the account of time inconceivably and not only a continuance of happiness and misery without any intermission but also an everlasting or never ceasing permanency of felicity and calamity without any period or ending When sinners have been groaning and roaring in Hell under unspeakable torments as many millions of millions of Years as there be drops of water in the Sea piles of grass in the field small dust in the Earth sand on the Sea shore hairs on Men and Women's heads in the world and Stars in the Firmament yet their miseries sorrows calamities are no nearer ending than at the beginning And when the Saints have been triumphing in the Paradise of God as many more millions of millions of Years yet still their joyes happiness and triumphs are no nearer expiring than at the first entrance into Glory As long as God is just holy and righteous that is as long as God is God the damned must howl and roar under inexpressible miseries and the Glorified Saints must be swimming and rejoycing in triumphant Blessings And how few to purpose consider the weightiness of these things If your danger were only to suffer God's hottest wrath and lose his special love for a million of years yea for a year or a month 't were yet so considerable as that you would forfeit your reason to slight this concern upon the account of any earthly happiness whatever and how much more unspeakably foolish will you be to make light of this concern which is eternal not only of inexpressible but inconceivable length of duration Oh Sirs pause more frequently on the meaning and weightiness of Eternity that the Gospel-promises and threatnings of the Word may more influence you and render temptations from worldly enjoyments and fleshly delights to byass you from holiness not only succesless but contemptible and whatever you do be careful to make sure of eternal Life and an escape from eternal misery 4. Be exhorted to perform every duty as for eternity Fast and pray and humble your Souls for sin as for eternal Life and an escape from eternal death Hear the Word labour to profit by it as persons that know eternity depends upon it love and serve God as for eternity As Solomon adviseth Whatsoever thy hand sâ—ndeth to do do it with thy might for there is no work nâ—r device nor knowledg nor wisedom in the grave whither thou goest Eccles 9.10 Set all the powers of your Souls on work in every duty for in Eternity you can't amend what is amiss you must then reap the cursed fruit of your negligence sloth and unfaithfulness in duty but you will not have opportunity or ability to reform your miscarriages in order to one dram of comfort or consolation for your Souls As Zeuxes therefore of old was used to draw his Pictures with singular exacteness because as he said he painted for eternity even so should we be industrious and exact in what we do because all is for eternity Oh! ask your Souls in all your undertakings and endeavours Is this to work for eternity do I now improve my self like a person sensible that an eternity of joy or sorrow happiness or misery depends upon my present carriage and deportment Shall I reflect back with heart-sinking remorse and regret or with heart-ravishing content and satisfaction upon my present work in the Ocean of eternity Say and think of every action what if this should be my last what if eternity should swallow me presently and bring me to God's impartial and eternal Judgment and accordingly with utmost vigour and faithfulness be found in your duty and the exercise of your integrity in pursuit of everlasting Blessings FINIS
time anâ— verily this doth bespeak unseen things or the happiness or misery of the other World to be fearfully and dreadfully weighty especially in comparison of our concerns here that are all shut up in the narrow compass and bounds of a little time Heaven is the Saints and Hell is the wickeds long abode and habitation whereas our stay here is comparatively very short The enjoyments of your other world are continuing and not of a short fading or transitory nature 2. Eternity implies continuance also without intermission or any discontinuance 'T is not like the life of mortals that hath a mixture of joy and sorrow or a succession of content and discontent but the happiness of the Saints continues without any intervening infelicity or sorrow And the misery of the wicked continues in Hell without the intermixture of any joy or comfort whatsoever Oh! so long as Eternity lasts the Pious will be triumphing in the highest Heavens and so long as Eternity lasts the wicked will have weeping and gnashing of teeth in the Infernal prison The Saints shall not weep an hour or a moment they shall not grieve or be sadned the continuance of the twinkling of an eye during their abode in the other World And the wicked shall not rejoyce an hour or a minute they shall have no intermission of their sorrow or misery in the other World The Saints joy will continue or last without the least mixture of grief to allay their happiness and the wickeds grief perplexity and horror will continue and last without the least mixture of joy or comfort to alleviate their infelicity The Rich man in Hell is not allow'd a drop of water to ease or refresh him for a moment's season Luke 16.24 c. And how much more considerable are unseen concerns in this respect than all our concerns here Alas who is there here that continues in a constant tenure of happiness or misery without change during the daies of their vanity in this World The most felicitous hath some sorrow mixed with his joy here and the most miserable hath some intervening hours or minutes of refreshment or ease here but in Eternity there is no change at all The Saints rejoyce still and are immutably triumphing and the wicked mourn alwaies and are unchangeably overwhelm'd with dismal amazement and astonishment The happiness of the one is eternal and the misery of the other is eternal and unchangeably so for the least moment 3. Eternity notes continuance without any period or length of space without any end and this completes the Saints joy and perfects the damneds misery in the other world 'T is not only a lasting continuance and a continuance without intermission but 't is an everlasting continuance without any final discontinuance When the bounds of time yea ten thousand millions of millions of the bounds of time are passed over and gone yet the Triumphs of the Glorified and the roaring and sorrows of the damned are no nearer ending than at the beginning Eternity is a space of continuance immeasurable and inexpressible yea and inconceivable 'T is pictured out by a ring or circle which you may turn round but cannot find any end in it And though we might give you strange measures of Eternity yet we shall fall infinitely short of fully measuring it we shall only set before you one which though common will best help you to conceive of it as indeed it is to be inconceivable Suppose God should make a Decree which he hath not done and never will do that if an Angel would take a drop of water from the Sea once in a million of Years till he had quite emptied it that then the misery of the wicked should have a period when the Sea is thus quite emptied so that there remaineth not one drop of water there more this would be an inconceivable term of time and yet this would be nothing unto Eternity Yea if we should add to the drops of water in the Sea the innumerable piles of grass in fields the small dust of the Earth the particular sands on the Sea-shore the atoms or motes in the Sun the small leaves of every tree the hairs on Men and Women's heads and the Stars in the spacious Firmament that an Angel should take but one of these away once in a milion of Years and when they are all gone with every drop of water in the Sea and in all Rivers that then the damned should be released and be delivered from their miseries this would be a much more inconceivable term of time and yet all would be nothing unto Eternity Nay further Suppose the condition of their discharge from those fearful miseries they groan under were straitned thus that when an Angel had thus emptied all the Sea and every River and carried away or removed every pile of grass in the field all the dust in the Earth the sand on the Sea-shore the atoms in the Sun the smal leaves of every tree or flower the hairs of Men and Women's heads and all the Stars of the Firmament by taking away only one once in a million of Years that then at the expiration of this term of time only one of the damned should be redeemed and released from their dreadful miseries and sorrows and so allow them all one after another successively the same priviledg as soon as the Angel had performed this condition particularly for each of them This would be an inconceivable term of time and yet all would be delivered at last Hell would be emptied of all its inhabitants at last but now when all this space of time is over and gone Eternity is no nearer ending than it was at the very beginning of the Saints entrance into Heaven or the wickeds entrance into Hell When all these Years are past and expired the Sints have as many more yea ten thousand times as many more to rejoyce and triumph in And the wicked have as many more yea ten thousand times as many more to weep and howl and to be miserable in Oh Eternity who can conceive the length thereof Finite Creatures cannot comprehend it when you think the utmost you can Eternity runs quite beyond your thoughts and much more beyond your utmost expressions Oh! this comforts the Saints to purpose in the Triumphant world that their happiness is everlasting and will never never end expire or have a period And this makes hellish inhabitants roar to purpose and sills them with horror unspeakable confusion and amazement that their misery will be everlasting even to the utmost bounds of Eternity and never never end expire or have a period 3. We come to make application of this Truth That the unseen things of the other world are eternal Which will be 1. By way of Inference 2. By way of Examination 3. By way of Dehortation and Caution 4. By way of Exhortation 1. To speak by way of Inference and so many things may be drawn from this Doctrine for our
price in your hand you may sow for Heaven and the Blessings of God's Paradise You may lay a foundation for comfort peace and glorious joy instead of misery and dismal sorrow in the other world if you will look about you working out your Salvation is not impossible Oh! you may live with God to your triumphant consolation if not wanting to your selves And should rational Creatures neglect this Prize and choose astonishing horrour Is Happiness contemptible and misery eligible and to be preferr'd before it How dolefully mad are the wicked and hypocrites in neglecting the Blessings and sowing for the curses and calamities of the other world God forbid that any of you should be guilty of this folly and madness Oh! Sirs remember Life and Immortality is brought to light through the Gospel and Heaven's Mercies and amazing enjoyments are obtainable by sinful dust and worms You are capable of becoming the Heirs of the matchless and unspeakable triumphs of the Kingdom of God And can you imagin that you shall not dolefully lament the loss of this Price if you lose it and sow for Hell and its inexpressible miseries 5. Consider the weight of Unseen things from this consideration in the Doctrine that they are eternal And let that prompt you to take heed of sowing for sorrow in the other world Alas what sad prejudice do you adventure Body and Soul upon by such a doleful seedness If misery in perfection for a season were tolerable yet surely eternal exquisite misery and uncessant weeping and wailing for ever will be intolerable and believe it if you look not about you you will have an eternity of time horribly to lament your stupendious and amazing folly Oh! you that are impatient and restless under God's light affliction for a season here and that cannot quietly bear the pain of the head-ach Gout or Stone for a little time how will you be able to endure the utmost revelation of God's most terrible indignation in Hell Oh! to be howling incredibly a whole eternity without intermission and without ending how horrible and dreadful is it If you do not therefore like eternal burnings and misery take heed of sowing the seed of it and become not the heirs thereof 2. Take heed that the things of time do not jostle out your care of Unseen things Let not this world's concerns cause you to neglect or be mindless of the Unseen world's concerns This is the folly that the generality are guilty of They prefer temporal riches before eternal and momentany pleasures before everlasting Let not this be the case of any of you Oh! learn to look on all things here as vanity and nothing in comparison of the weighty affairs of Heaven and Hell Remember you shall be here but a little while and all enjoyments here will be of use to you but for a very short season take heed that you be not gulled as the Rich man in the Gospel by a fancied selicity in Creature-contents Luke 12.19 c. Alas what is it that keeps persons from the power of Religion but things that are seen what coseneth the generality out of their everlasting hope but tâ—… things of time They cannot live in self-denâ—… or renunciation of visible comforts that is the reason why eternal Mercies are indiffeâ—…ly and lukewarly pursued Things that are seen have their hearts that is the reason why Heaven and Eternal life is neglected Oh! Sirs take heed of this folly in doting upon things that are but temporal Look upon them as they are trample them under your seet in comparison of the stupendiously more weighty concerns of Eternity Live like strangers here with weaned affections from all terrene enjoyments 'T is certain you will never sow for Heaven else you will never become the heirs of everlasting Blessings unless you are dead to the world and fleshly delights All the portion of comfort and peace you shall ever have will be only in this world unless you disengage your Souls from the vanities of time What ever profession you make or how ever any may flatter you you shall never win CHRIST or Eternal Life unless you can looke upon all things here as dross or dung in comparison of Unseen things Phil. 3.8 And certain it is that the stronger your Faith is the more you will despise and the less you will be impeded in your Christian course by concerns here The believing Soul will certainly be a self-denying Soul Can you believingly view the Glorious and weighty enjoyments of Heaven and Hell and not have undervaluing thoughts and conceits of temporal enjoyments Oh 't is an argument that you â—…nbelievers whilst ordinarily you permit earthly contents to rule and sway you Alas what trifles are all our subluâ—…y affairs to those that are arrived to the element of Souls and what fools do they account mortals in setting such an estimation on them as they do And if your Faith were strong it would be equivalent to sense and have the same impression on you Oh! if you would be accounted Believers and consequently Christians you must slight temporal concerns and let Heaven have chiefly your heart and affection Remember also the cloud of Witnesses that have gone before you that have lived like strangers here and looked upon all the contents of this life as vanity and emptiness and trampled visible enjoyments under their feet in pursuance of the more glorious hope before tâ—…n Alas there would have been no Martyrs in the world if there had not been self-denying Men and Women abroad Yea there is not a person got to Glory but what was mortisied to the World and the Flesh All that ever entred GOD's eternal Kingdom did march through the narrow gate of crucisixion to the vanities here below And as they were accounted fools and mad-Men by the worldly Wise so must we expect to be censured if ever we would sow for everlasting Mercies Add to this that this is as plain a duty as any the Scripture presseth and its necessity is likewise as clear they are strangers to the Scripture that are stangers to this necessary duty 'T is a wonder that any that call themselves Christians can over-look so plain a caution as this is They are most palpably blinded by the god of this world that enjoy the written Word and are not convinced that they must live like strangers here So how deeply will you repent it if your respect to Creatureconcerns cause you to lose Eternal Mercies When Eternity hath opened your eyes to see your loss and for what inconsiderable things you have lost everlasting joy and triumphs you will dolefully lament it Then you will know that Creature felicity was but a bubble and that the highest and most valuable enjoyments here were but a shadow or dream to those more substantial and neverfading contents you have made shipwrack of And you cannot now imagine how Conscience will then afflict you for such gross folly and madness especially when it appears that your