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E I G H T»E E N 
 
 S E R Ml O N S 
 
 Preached by die late 
 
 Rev. GEORGE WHITE FIELD, A.M 
 
 On the followi 
 
 Sermon 
 
 I. A Faithful Minifter's part- 
 ing Blefnn^. 
 
 II. Christ, the Believer's Re- 
 fuge. 
 
 III. Soul Profperity, 
 
 IV. The Gofpel, a dying 
 Saint's Triumph. 
 
 V« Repentance and Converflon. 
 
 VI. Glorifying God in the 
 Fire, or the right Improve- 
 ment of AiHiclion. 
 
 VII. The Beloved of God. 
 
 VIII. The Furnace of Afniccion. 
 
 ng Subjects: 
 
 Sermon 
 
 IX. The I.0R.D our Light.' 
 
 X. Self- Enquiry concerning 
 the Work of Goo. 
 
 XI. Tlie burning Bufh. 
 
 XII. Soul Dejeaion. '^' 
 
 XIII. Spiritual Baptifm. 
 
 XLV. Neglect of Christ the 
 
 killing Sin. 
 XV. All Mens Place. 
 XVT. GcD, a Believer's Glcry. 
 
 XVII. Jacob's Ladder. 
 
 XVIII. The Good Shepherd. 
 
 Taken verbatim in Short- Hand, and faithfully Tr.anfcribed 
 by Joseph G u r n e y. 
 
 Revifed by ANDREW GIFFORD, D. D. 
 
 <- M t i.aama m v>**v r^ t mt 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Printed for and fold by Joseph Gukney, Eookflfter, N' 54, 
 in Hoiborn, oppofite Katton-S:reet. 
 
 M.DCC.LXXX. 
 
 [ Price Five Shillings in Boards. ] 
 
1^ O THE 
 
 RIGHT HONOURABLE 
 
 S E L I N A 
 
 COUNTESS DOWAGER OF 
 
 HUNTINGDON 
 
 THESE SERMONS 
 
 ARE MOST HUMBLY INSCRIBED 
 
 BY HER LADYSHIP'S 
 
 MOST DEVOTED 
 
 AND OBEDIENT 
 
 HUMBLE SEAVANT 
 
 JOSEPH GURNEY. ' 
 
TO THE 
 
 READER 
 
 POfthumous publications generally need 
 an apology. This poor Orphan's plea 
 is, that it attempts to preferve the ge- 
 nuine remains of One who has inconteftibly 
 proved himfelf the deftitute hclplefs Orphan's 
 friend yet fpeaking to a ferious auditory 
 hanging on his lips for infl:ru6tion, and com- 
 fort, though in a fainter light, as the glo- 
 rious luminary of the heavens, the ruler of 
 the day, feems vifible, even after it is fet, 
 by the refradlion of its refplendent rays. As 
 to its fpots, if fuch there are, let them be put 
 dovv'n to the account of the editor. 
 
 A. G. 
 
Errata. 
 
 Page 51, line 24, for to read for 
 
 - S2> • II and 16, for needy read ttaughtf 
 • xzOt " 10 and ii« for y^rzr^ read l>almt 
 
T 
 
 THE 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 SERMON I. 
 
 A Faithful Minifter's parting Bleflipg. 
 
 A Farewell Sermon, February 23, 1763; 
 
 Revel, xxii. 21. 
 
 HE grace of 010^ Lord Jefus Chrtjl be with 
 you alL Amen. page i 
 
 SERMON II. 
 
 Christ, the Believer's Refuge. 
 On the Death of Mr. Beckman. 
 
 Psalm xlvl. i — 6. 
 
 God is our refuge and flreizgthy a very prefent 
 help in trouble j therefore "will we not fear^ 
 though the earth be removed^ and the moun- 
 tains be carried into the midjl of the fea, 
 though the waters thereof roar ^ and be troubled^ 
 though the mountains fimke- with the fwelling 
 thereof^ Selah. Inhere is a river y the fr earns 
 whereof foall make glad the city of God^ the 
 holy place of the tabernacles 'of the Mojl-High : 
 God is in the midJl of hcr^ f:c J}:all not be 
 b moved 'y 
 
the contents; 
 
 moved \ God f jail help her^ and that right 
 early, ^6 
 
 SERMON III. 
 Soul Profperity, 
 
 3 Ep. John ver, 2, 
 Beloved^ I wijlj above all thi?igs that thou 
 mayfi profper^ and be in healthy even as thy 
 foul profpereth. 54 
 
 SERMON IV. 
 
 The Gofpel a dying Saint's Triumph. 
 A Funeral Sermon. 
 
 Mark xvi. 15, 16. 
 And he faid unto them. Go ye into all the 
 worlds and preach the gofpel to every crea- 
 ture. He that believethy and is baptifedy 
 fiall befavedy but he that believeth not^ fhall 
 be damned. 78 
 
 SERMON V. 
 
 Repentance and Converlion. 
 
 Acts iii. 19. 
 Repent ye therefore and be converted^ that your' 
 fins may be blotted out^ when the times of 
 refrefdng f:all come from the prejence of the 
 Lord. io3 
 
 SEP- 
 
The CONTENTS. 
 
 SERMON VI. 
 dorifying God in the Fire ; or, the right Im- 
 provement of Afflidion. 
 
 Isaiah xxiv. 15. 
 
 Wherefore glorify ye the Lord in the fires, 134 
 
 SERMON VII. 
 
 The Beloved of God. 
 
 Deut. xxxiii. 12. 
 
 'And of Benjamin he faid, The beloved of the 
 
 Lord fiall dwell in Jajety by him ; and the 
 
 LordJJjall cover him all the day long^ and he 
 
 Jl:all dwell between his Jlmdders. 155 
 
 SERMON VIII. 
 
 The Furnace of Afflidlion. 
 On the Death of the Rev. Mr. Middleton. 
 
 Isaiah xlviii. 10. 
 Ihavechofen thee in the furnace of Affii^ion, 179 
 
 SERMON IX. 
 The Lord our Light. 
 
 Isaiah Ix. 19, 20. 
 ^he fun fiall be 710 more thy light by day, nci- 
 ther for brightnefs fiall the moon give light 
 unto thee, but the Lord Jlmll be unto thee a}\ 
 
 everlajling 
 
The CONTENTS. 
 
 everlafting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy 
 fun fiall no more go down, neither JJjall thy 
 moon withdraw itfelfy for the Lord Jhall be 
 thine everlafting light, and the days of thy 
 mourning Jloall he ended. 202 
 
 SERMON X. 
 
 Self-Enquiry concerning the Work of God. 
 
 Numb, xxiii. 23. 
 According to this time it fiall be f aid of Jacobs 
 and oflfrael. What hath God wrought ! 225 
 
 SERMON XL 
 
 The burning Bufb; 
 
 ExoD. iii. 2, 3. 
 
 And he looked, and behold the hujh burned with 
 fire, and the bujh was not confumed -, and Mofes 
 faid, I will now turn afide, and fee this great 
 fight ^ why the buflj is not burnt. 250 
 
 SERMON XII. 
 
 Soul Dejedtion. 
 
 Psalm xlii. 5. 
 Why art thou cajl down, my foul? and why 
 art thou difquieted within me? hope thou in 
 God, for Ifoall yet fraife him for the help of 
 his countenance. 272 
 
The CONTENTS. 
 
 SERMON XIII. 
 Spiritual Baptifm. 
 
 Rom. vi. 3, 4. 
 Kjtow ye not^ that Jo many of us as were lap^ 
 tized into Jefus Chrijiy were baptized into 
 his death ? Therefore we are buried with him 
 by baptifm into death : that like as Chri/i was 
 raijed up from the dead by the glory of the 
 Father, even fo we alfo Jhould walk in ncw^ 
 nefs of life, 293 
 
 SERMON XIV. 
 
 Negledt of Christ the killing Sin. 
 
 John v. 40. 
 
 And ye will 7iot come to me that ye may have 
 life. 317 
 
 SERMON XV. 
 
 All Men's Place. 
 
 EccLES. vi. 6. 
 T>o not all go to one place ? 2\S 
 
 SERMON XVI. 
 
 God a Believer's Glorv. 
 
 Isaiah Ix. 19. 
 A?id thy God thy Glory. 373 
 
The CONTENTS. 
 
 SERMON XVII. 
 
 Jacob's Ladder. 
 
 A Farewell Sermon at Tottenham-Court-Road 
 
 Chapel, Sunday, Auguft 27, 1769. 
 
 Gen. xxviii. 12, &c. 
 Ji}id he dreamed, and behold, a ladder fet upon 
 the earth, and the fop of it reached to hea- 
 'ven: and behold, the angels of God afcending 
 and defending on it. And behold, the Lord 
 food abo've it, and faid, I am the Lord God 
 of Abraham thy father, and the God of Ifaac : 
 the land whereon thou Heft, to thee will I give 
 it and to thy feed. And thy feed foall be as 
 the dii/l of the earth -, and thou fmlt fpread 
 abroad to the wefi, and to the eaji, and to the 
 north, and to the fouth : and in thee, and in 
 thy feed, Jl:all all the families of the earth be 
 hlefjed. And behold, I am with thee, and will 
 keep thee in all places, whither thou goeft, and 
 will bring thee again into this land : for I will 
 not leave thee, until I have done that which I 
 havefpoken to thee of 397 
 
 SERMON XVIII. 
 
 The Good Shepherd. 
 
 A Farewell Sermon at the Tabernacle, 
 Wednefday, Auguft 30, 1769. 
 
 John x. 27, 28. 
 
 My Jljeep hear my voice, and I know them, and 
 
 they follow me. And I give unto them eternal 
 
 life, and they foall never per if?, neither fiall 
 
 any pluck them out of my hand, 427 
 
;js( Hii-Ji{-^-4"«- X"'"°*$'°^'X •■^••^•••^•••jij-^- ';0^ 
 
 SERMON I. 
 
 A Faithful Minifter's Parting Bleffino;. 
 
 Revelations xxii. 21. ^^^^^^OP^^"^^ Oi 
 7S^ ^;7zr^ of our Lord Jefus Chrijl be ivith 
 
 you all Amen. irHSOLOGI 
 
 )s(^^)eC T is very remarkable that the *6ltl , v . . ' 
 
 ^ I v^ teftament ends with the word curfe ; 
 J^^'^M vi^hereby we are taught, that the' law 
 made nothing perfed : but blefled be God, the 
 new teftament ends otherwife, even a precious 
 bleffing, that glorious grace put into the heart, 
 and dropt by the pen of the dilciple whom 
 Jefus loved. 
 
 My brethren, as the providence of God calls 
 us now to bid each other a long farewel, can 
 I part from you better than in enlarging a little 
 upon this fliort but glorious prayer 3 can I wifh 
 
 B you. 
 
2 A Faithful Minijters Ser. L 
 
 you, or you me, better in time and eternity, 
 than that the words of our text may be fulfil- 
 led in our hearts, the grace of cur Lord Jejiis 
 Chrijl be ivith you ally Amen, In opening which, 
 
 Firft, it will be proper to explain what we 
 are to underftand by the w^ord grace. 
 
 Secondly, what by the grace of our Lord 
 Jefus Chrift, and its being with us all ; and 
 then to obferve upon the word Amen : fhew- 
 Ing you why it is that every one of us may wiili, 
 that the grace of our Lord Jefus Chrifl may 
 be with us all. 
 
 Perhaps, there is not a word in the book 
 of God that has a greater variety of inter- 
 pretations put upon it than this little, this 
 great word grace : I don't intend to fpin 
 out, or wafte the time by giving you all. It 
 will be enough in general to obferve, that the 
 word grace fignifies favour, or may imply the 
 general kindnefs that God bears to the world; 
 but it fignifies that here which I pray God we 
 may all experience, I mean the grace, the fpe- 
 cial grace of the blefled God communicated 
 to his people ; not only his favour difplayed to 
 us outwardly, but the work of the blefled Spi- 
 rit imparted and conveyed inwardly and moft 
 powerfully to our fouls^ and tliis is what our 
 
 church 
 
Ser. I. Parting Blefmg. j 
 
 church in the catechifm calls fpecial grace; 
 for though Jefus Chrift in one refpedt is the 
 Saviour of all, and we are to offer * Jefus 
 Chrift univerfally to all, yet he is faid in a 
 fpecial manner to be the faviour of them that 
 believe ; fo that the word grace is a very com- 
 plex word, and takes in all that the blefled 
 Spirit of God does for a poor finner, from the 
 moment he firft draws his breath, and brines 
 him to Jefus Chrift, till he is pleafed to call 
 him by death -, and as it is begun in grace, it 
 will be fwallovved up in an endlefs eternity of 
 glory hereafter ; this is called the grace of our 
 Lord Jefus Chrift : why fo ? becaufe it is pur- 
 chafed \ for us by the Lord Jefus Chrift : the 
 law was given by Mofes, but grace and truth^ 
 in the moft emphatical manner, came by Jefus 
 Chrift the Son of God, If it was not for the 
 purchafe of a Mediator's blood, if it was not 
 that Jefus Chrift had bought us with a price, 
 even with the price of his ow^n blood, you and 
 I Ihould never have had, you and I could never 
 have had the grace of God manifefted at all to 
 our fouls. The covenant of works being bro- 
 ken, our firft parents ftood convidcd before 
 God; they were criminals, though they did 
 B 2 not 
 
 * Preach. f Procured, 
 
4 A Faithful Minijiers Ser, I. 
 
 not care to own it; condemned before God, 
 and in themfelves, lb that like their children 
 they made excufes for their fin. Man by na- 
 ture had but one neck, and if God had pleafed 
 to have done it, he might juftly have cut it off 
 at one blow ; but no fooner had man incurred 
 the curfe of the law, but behold a Mediator is 
 provided under the charadter of the feed of the 
 woman, which fliould bruife the ferpent's 
 head ; implying what the Redeemer was firft 
 to do without, and afterwards to do in the 
 hearts of all his people : well therefore are we 
 taught in our church coUeds to end all our 
 prayers with the words, through Jefus Chriji 
 our Lord, 
 
 Moreover, brethren, this grace may be call- 
 ed the grace of our Lord Jefus Chrift, be- 
 caufe it is not only purchafed ^^ by him, but 
 it is conveyed into our hearts through Chrift 5 
 the federal head of his glorious body, is a head 
 of influence to thofe for whom he flied his 
 blood : thus his difciples laid, he was full of 
 grace and truth, and out of his fulnefs we, 
 all that are true believers, receive grace for 
 grace -, grace upon grace, fays Mr. Blackwall, 
 in his Sacred Clafficks : grace for grace, that 
 
 is, 
 * Procured. 
 
Ser. I. Farting Bleffing. j 
 
 Is, fays Luther, every grace that is in Chrift 
 jefus, will be by his bleffed Spirit tranfcribed 
 into every believer's heart, even as the warm 
 wax receives the imprefs of the feal upon it ; 
 as there is line upon line upon the feal left 
 upon the wax, fo in a degree, though we come 
 greatly fl:iort of what the law requires, the 
 grac3 that is in Jefus Chriil: is, in a meafure, 
 implanted in our fouls; but the Lord Jefus 
 Chrift, blefled be God, has our ftock in his 
 hands. God trufted man once, but never will 
 more; he fet Adam up, gave him a bleffed 
 ftock, placed him in a paradife of love, and he 
 fbon became a bankrupt, fome think in twenty- 
 four hours, however, all agree it was in fix or 
 feven days, and that he never had but one fab- 
 bath ; but now, bleffed be God, w^e are un-- 
 der a better difpenfation, our ftock is put into 
 Chrift's hands, he knows how to keep it, and 
 us too; fo this grace may be faid to be the 
 grace of our Lord Jefus Chrift, fecured by 
 his blood, and conveyed to our fouls by his 
 being the head of his church and people. 
 
 This grace has a variety of epithets put to it, 
 and I queftion whether there is any kind of 
 grace but what the Lord Jefus Chrift exercifes 
 towards his people fome way or other, every 
 hour^ every moment of the day. Firft, 
 
6 A Faithful MtnzJIers Ser. L 
 
 Firfl, His reftraining graces why, if itw2S 
 not for this, God's people would be juft as 
 weak and wicked as other folks are : remem- 
 ber what David faid when Abigail came to 
 him} he was going to kill a neighbour for 
 afti'onting him, forgot that he was a Pfalmift, 
 and was only ad:ing as a creature : bleffed be 
 God, faya he, that has fent thee to meet and 
 keep me : My brethren, we may talk what wc 
 pleaie, and build upon our own flock y we 
 are juft like little children that will walk by 
 themfelves ; well, fays the father, walk alone 
 then, they tumble down, get a broken brow, 
 and then are glad to take hold of the father : 
 thus Jefus Chrift is always ading in a reftrain- 
 mg way to his people y if it was not fo, by the 
 blindnefs of their underftandings, the corrup- 
 tiQn& of their hearts and affedions, together 
 with the perverfenefs of their will, alas ! alas ! 
 there is not a child of God that would not run 
 away every day, if Chrift did not reftrain 
 him ! 
 
 Secondly, There is convidting grace, which 
 from the Lord Jefus Chrift ads every day and 
 hour. Oh ! it is a blefled thing to be under 
 the Redeemer's conviding grace ! a man may 
 fpeak to the ear, but it is the Spirit of God 
 
 alone 
 
£er. L Parting Blefmg. j 
 
 alone can fpeak to the heart : I am not fpeak- 
 ing of convidling grace that wounds before 
 converfion, and gives us a fenfe of our fin and 
 mifery ; no, I mean convISing grace that fol- 
 lows the believer from time to time. If a hea- 
 then Socrates could fay, that he had always -^ 
 monitor witl? him to check him when he did 
 amifs, and dired: him when he went right, 
 furely the Chriflian may fay, and bieffed be 
 God for it, that he has got a JefuG that kindly 
 fliews him when he goes aftray, and by his 
 grace puts him into the way of righteoufnefs, 
 that his feet may not flip ; this is what the 
 iJiepherd does to his fheep when they have 
 wandered ; what does the fiiepherd do, but 
 fends fome little cur, his dog, after them, tr> 
 bring them to the fold again ? what does Jefug' 
 Chrift do in temptations, trials, and afflidions ? 
 he fetches his people home, and convinces- 
 them that they have done amiis. ^'.* 
 
 Then, thirdly. There is the converting grace 
 of our Lord Jefus Chrid:. Oh! what poor 
 unhappy creatures are they, that think th^y 
 can turn to God when they pleafe, to which 
 abominable principle it is ov/ing, that they 
 leave it till they cannot turn in their beds :• 
 Satan tells them then^ it Is too late, their co^^ 
 
 fciences 
 
b' A Faithful Minijlers Ser. I, 
 
 fciences are filled with horror, and they go 
 off in a whirlwind j may this be the cafe of 
 none here ! That is a moft excellent prayer in 
 our Communion Office, Turn us^ O good Lord, 
 a?id Tje Jhall be turned 'y we can no more turn 
 our hearts than we can turn the world upiide 
 down y it is the Redeemer, by his Spirit, muft 
 take away the heart of ftone, and by the in- 
 fluence of the holy Spirit give us a heart of 
 flefli. I might as well attempt to reach the 
 heavens with my hand -, I might as well go 
 to fome church-yard and command the dead 
 to rife; I might as foon fliake my handker- 
 chief and bid the ftreams divide, and they give 
 way, as to expedl a foul to turn to God with- 
 out the grace of the Mediator. Come, my 
 dear hearers, 1 am of a good man's opinion, 
 that prayed he might be converted every day. 
 In the divine life, not to go forwards is to go 
 backwards ; and it is one great part of the 
 work of the Spirit of God, to convert the foul 
 from fomething that is wrong to fomething that 
 is right, every day, hour, and moment of the 
 believer's life, fo that in fliort his life is one 
 continued ad of converting grace : there is not 
 a day but there is fomething wrong ; there is 
 fomething we want to have taken away ; we. 
 
 want 
 
Ser. I. Farting Blejjing. 9 
 
 want to get rid of the old man, and to get more 
 of the new man, and fo the Spirit of God works 
 every day : • O ! my brethren, God give us 
 more of this converting grace ! 
 
 Then there is eftabhiiliing grace. David 
 prays. Create in me a new hearty and renew a 
 right fpirit within me 3 in the margin, it is con- 
 ftant fpiritj and you hear of fome that are 
 rooted and grounded in the love of God, and 
 the apoftle prays, that they may always abound 
 in the work of the Lord : again, it is good to 
 have the heart eftabliflied with grace \ there is 
 a good many people have fome religion in 
 them, but they are not eftabliflied \ hence they 
 are mere weather-cocks, turned about by every 
 wind of dodlrine 5 and you may as foon mea- 
 fure the moon for a fuit of clothes, as fome 
 people that are always changing ; this is for 
 want of more grace^ more of the Spirit of God > 
 and as children grow that are got ftronger and 
 riper, fo as people grow in grace, and in the 
 knowledge of the Lord Jefus Chrift, they will 
 be more fettled, more confirmed : on firfl fet* 
 ting out they prattle, but they will be mors 
 manly, more firm, more fteady : young Clirif- 
 tians are like little rivulets that make a larg« 
 noife, and have Ihaliow \\'ater; old Qirif- 
 <^ tians 
 
10 A Faithful Minljicrs Ser. I, 
 
 tians are like deep water that makes little noifc, 
 carries a good load, and gives not way. 
 
 What think you, my brethren, of the Re- 
 deemer's comforting grace ? O ! what can you 
 do without it ? In the multitude of my thoughts 
 within me, fays the Pfalmifl:, thy comforts have 
 refrejhed my foul, I believe you will all find 
 what lord Bolinbrooke, in fpite of all his fine 
 learning, and deiftical principles, found when 
 under afflidion ; he fent a letter which I faw 
 and heard read to me, at leaft that part of it in ' 
 which he fays : Now I atn under this affile- 
 tion, I find my phllofophy fails me. With all 
 our philofophy and flriving, it is too hard to 
 work ourfelves into ■ a pafTive ftate: alas! it is 
 commendable to ftrive, but we ihall never be 
 content, we fliail never be chearful under fuf- 
 ferings, but through the afTiftance of the Re- 
 deemer. Even now, in refpcdl of parting from 
 one another, what can comfort friends when 
 feparated but the Spirit of God. Paul, when 
 going away for Jerufalem, faid, What mean ye 
 to weep and to break my heart ? he alfo fays, / 
 am ready not to he bound only, but alfo to die at 
 jerujalem, for the nc.me of the Lord Jejus, 
 which he could not have faid, had he not 
 felt the comforting grace of Jefus Chrift. 
 
 Our 
 
Ser. I. Parting Blejjmg. 1 1 
 
 Our Lord, when going away, fays, I will fend 
 the Comforter ; I will not leave you comfortlcfs 
 and helplefs, I will come again : the Lord 
 helps the believer from time to time. We 
 can eafily, my brethren, talk when not under 
 the rod ourfelvcs ; there is not a phyfician or 
 apothecary in London but can give good ad- 
 vice, but when they are fick themfelves, poor 
 fouls ! they are juft like their patients, and 
 many times are more impatient than thofe 
 they ufed to preach patience to -, fo it is with 
 the greateft Chriflian, we are all men of like 
 paffions, there is not one of us when under the 
 rod, if left to ourfelves, but would curfe God, 
 and, Ephraim like, be as a bollock imaccuflomed 
 to the yoke 'y and there are many here, I do not 
 doubt, that have faid to the Redeemer, What 
 dojl thou'? or, perhaps, with Jonah, We do 
 ipell to be angry -, if the Lord does but take 
 away his goard from us, if he is pleafed to 
 baulk us in regard to the creatures, how un- 
 comfortable are we? and there are fo many 
 afHidions and trials, that if it was not for the 
 Lord Jefus ChriiVs comfortings, no flefh could 
 bear them. 
 
 In a word, what think you, my brethren, 
 of the quickning grace of cur Lord Jefus 
 
 C 2 Chriftr 
 
J 2 A Faithful Minijler's Ser. I, 
 
 Chrift? Remember David fays, ^icken me 
 according to thy ivord, quicken me in thy isjay^ 
 quicken me in thy righteoufnefs : God's people 
 want quickening every day > this is trimming 
 our lamps, girding up the loins of our minds, 
 ftirring up tiie gift of God that is in us. It 
 is juft with a foul as it is with the plants and 
 trees ; how would it be with them if the Lord 
 did not command quickening life to them after 
 the winter ? the believer has his frofty and win- 
 ter days, and wo be to them that think they 
 have always a fummer^ the believer at times 
 can fay, The winter is paji^ the rain is over and 
 gone^ the flowers appear on the earthy the tifne of 
 the finging of birds is C07ne^ and the voice of the 
 turtle is heard in our land^ the fg-tree putteth 
 forth her green figs ^ ajid the vines with the tender 
 grapes give a good fmelly Cant. ii. I2. What 
 is all this but God's quickening grace, reftorlng 
 the believer to his bleffcd joy. Oh ! my bre- 
 thren, I have not time to fhow you in how 
 many ways the Redeemers grace is difplayed 5 
 but wherever this grace is, what reafon have 
 you that are partakers of it, and I, to pray that 
 it may be with us all; the grace of our Lord 
 Jefus Chrifly fays John here, be with you all: 
 it is not faid all ii^inifters, it is not faid all of 
 
 this 
 
Ser. I. Parting Blepig, 1 3 
 
 this or that particular people, but with all be- 
 lievers. O ! my friends, remember what Mr. 
 Henry faid, he defined to be a Catholic, but 
 not a Roman Cathohc. I have often thought 
 fince I went to fee the water-works, that it 
 was an emblem of Chrif: ; there is a great 
 rcfervoir of water from which this great city 
 is fupplied; but how is it fupphed from that 
 rcfervoir ? why by hundreds and hundreds of 
 pipes : but where does this water go, does it 
 go only to the diffenters or to the church peo- 
 ple, only to this or that people ? no, the pipes 
 convey the water to all ^ and I remember when 
 I faw it, it put me in mind of the great rcfer- 
 voir of grace, that living water that is in Chrift 
 Jefus, and the pipes are the ordinances by 
 which his grace is conveyed to all believing 
 fouls, God grant we may be of that happy 
 number. O what a mercy it is that Chrift has 
 faid, / nvill be with you always even to the end of 
 the worlds Matt, xxviii. 20. and therefore we 
 muft look upon this prayer to be as efficacious 
 now, as it was the moment the words dropt 
 from the apoftle's pen, 1 believe the mod 
 minute philofophers, and thofe t at have the 
 greateft ikill in aftronomy, cannot perceive 
 there has been any abacerncnt in ihe heat of the 
 
 lull 
 
I^^ A Faithful Minifiers Ser. I* 
 
 fun.fince God firft commanded it to rule the 
 day, then furely, if my God can make a fun 
 that for fo many thoufands of years iliall irradi- 
 ate, enlighten, and warm the world, without 
 loiing any of its light and heat, fo does the fun 
 of righteoufnefs, the Son of God, arife upon 
 the children of God with healing under his 
 wings ; he raifes, warms, nourifhes, and com- 
 forts his people, and we have the gofpel on 
 the ends of the earth,- as well as thofe who had 
 the honour of converfing with him in the days, 
 of his flefh. I mention this in anfwer to all 
 thofe who have wrote againft the Methodifts, 
 and reprefented them as fanatics j there is no 
 other way of talking againft the divine influence, 
 but by allowing it was fo formerly, but that it 
 is not io now 5 they fay the primitive Chrif- 
 tians had it, but it is not to be fo with us now 
 as it was formerly. O my brethren, what fools, 
 thefe great men are when they talk about things 
 they knov/ nothing of; give them a polyglot, 
 give them a lexicon, give them a geographical 
 text, or the chronological part of the fcripture, 
 they have fomething to fay; but v/hen they 
 come to talk of the Spirit of God, they fee the 
 w^ord Spirit, and they read ths word grace, but 
 while tliey read it their hearts cry, becaufe 
 
 their 
 
S^r. I. Parting Blejjing, 15 
 
 their knowledge pufFs them up, furely if it 
 wasfo, we gteat men that have been in the 
 wniverfity (hould have it, Gcd would give it 
 us ; and becaufe they find it not in themfelves, 
 their abominable pride will not own It may be 
 in any. Pray what was Peter, James, and 
 John, I don't mean to fpeak difrefpeftfully of 
 them, they were as weak, as blind, as cbfti^ 
 nate, and worldly-minded as others, till Jefus 
 Chrift changed their hearts ; and that fame 
 grace th^t changed their hearts, changes now 
 the hearts of God's people ; and bleffed be 
 God, that fame grace is with all his people. 
 
 It is fo in his ordinances. Here is the dif- 
 ference between a Formalift and a Chriftlan ; 
 the Formalift goes to ordinances, but then he 
 does not feel the God of ordinances, and that 
 is the reafon moft formal people don't care to 
 go to church very often : who cares to go to 
 the houfe of a pcrfon he does not love ? they 
 Avill only juft knock at the door, and afic if 
 fiich a perfon is at home, and are very glad to 
 hear the fervants fay their mafter or miilrefs is 
 not at home 5 the vifit is paid , fo it is with 
 many people that go to church and m.ccting ; 
 and I do not doubt but there are many Metho- 
 difts, hundreds and hundreds, that have been 
 
1 6 A Faithful Minijlers Ser. I. 
 
 at the ordinances, who never felt the God of 
 ordinances converting them to this day. 
 
 The grace of our Lord Jefus Chrift is with 
 his people in prayer. Who can pray without 
 grace ? they may laugh at it as will, but God 
 give you and I a fpirit of prayer ; let them 
 laugh as they pleafe -, what profit will it be to 
 us to read this book without the grace of God* 
 What a horrid blunder has the bifliop of G — r 
 been guilty of ? What do you think his lord- 
 fhip fays, in order to expofe the fanaticifm of 
 the Methodifts ? Why, fays he, they fay they 
 cannot underftand the fcriptures without the 
 ^ Spirit of God. Can any man underftand the 
 fcriptures without the Spirit of God helps him ? 
 Jefus Chrift muft open our underftanding to 
 underftand the fcriptures, and the Spirit of God 
 muft take of the things of Chrift and (how them 
 unto us y as we are taught to pray, Lord^ 
 thou haft caufed thy holy fcriptures to be written^ 
 &c. as in the fecond Sunday in Adventj and here 
 the b — p pretends to tell us, there is no need 
 
 of it ; here our collefl; and b p difagree very 
 
 much. So with refped to all ordinances it is 
 the fame : what fignlfies my preaching, and 
 your hearing, if the Spirit of God does not 
 enlighten r Formal minifters can fteal a fer- 
 
 mon. 
 
Scr. I. Parting BleJJing. 17 
 
 mon, and add a little out of their own heads, but 
 a minifter of the gofpel cannot preach to purpofv^ 
 without the afliftance of the Spirit of God, no 
 more than a fhip can fail without wind. As 
 for a carnal man he may take his fermon in 
 his pocket, and you will find his fermon s al- 
 ways the fame ; but fpiritual preachers are 
 feldom fo s fometimes they are in dark- 
 nefs, fo as to fpeak to thofe that are in dark- 
 nefs; fometimes they are tempted, fo as to 
 fpeak to thofe that are tempted , fometimes 
 they have a full gale, and go before the wind, 
 and this is all by the afliftance of the Spirit of 
 God, and without this a man may preach like 
 an angel, and do no good at all. So in refpecft 
 to hearing the word of God, I declare I would 
 not preach again, if I did not think that God 
 would accompany the word by his Spirit : what 
 are we but founding brafs and tiiikling cymbals ? 
 If the word is preached in the ftrength of the 
 Spirit, it will be attended with convidions, 
 and converfions, and the grace of God will be 
 both with preacher and hearer. 
 
 ^he grace of God is with his people in his 
 providence. Oh 1 fays biQiop Hall, a little aid 
 is not enough for me. My going on the 
 waters puts me in mind of what I have feen 
 
 D mqmy 
 
j^ A Faithfid Mimjltrs Ser. I.- 
 
 many times : if the failors perceive a ftorm s 
 comings they do not chufe to fpeak to the 
 pafTengers for fear of frightening them, they 
 will go quietly on deck, and give orders for 
 proper care to be taken \ and if a failor can tell 
 of ftorms approaching by the clouds, why 
 can't God's people tell why God does fo and 
 fo with them ? The people of God eye hirrv 
 in his providence y the very hairs of their heads- 
 are all numbered, and the grace of God is= 
 with them in the common bufinefs of life. 
 Some people think that the Methodifts preach 
 io and fo to make them negled: their bufinefsy 
 and we preach at unfeafonable times : we would 
 not preach at this time, but that we are going 
 to part from one another ; no, we preach that 
 the grace of God may attend them in their 
 countingJioufes, and wo be to thofe perfcns 
 that do not take the grace of God with them 
 into their eounting-houfes, and in their com- 
 mon bufinefs. O what bleffed times would it 
 be if every one made the grace of God their 
 employ, that when the Lord comes he may- 
 fay, Lord, here I am waiting for thee. 
 
 "The grace of the Lord jcjiis Chrtji is with his 
 people vA\zr\Jick and when dyi?2g, O my dear 
 fouls, what rtiall we do when death comes ? 
 ^ What 
 
Ser. I, Parting Blejjing. ^xg 
 
 What -a mercy it is that we have got a good 
 mafter to carry us through that time ! As a poor 
 converted Negro that faw a believer who wa3 
 dying in comfort, faid, Mader don't fear, Je- 
 fus Chrift will carry you fafe through the dark 
 valley of the ihadow of death. — But the time 
 would fail, if I was to (how you in how many 
 refpeds tbe grace of the Lord Jefus Chrijl helps 
 us ; but what I have faid will fliow, that we 
 need all join in a hearty Amen j Amen, I pray 
 God it may be fo, fo it is, fo may it be ! May 
 be what ? why that the grace of the Lord "Jefm 
 Chrijiy conviSing^ re/irainiiigy convertings ejla- 
 hlifhing and comforting grace ^ may be with us 
 in his ordinances, in his providences, in fick- 
 nefs, and when dying : then, blefTed be God, 
 we fhall carry it v/ith us after time. And 
 now, my dear hearers, by the help of my God, 
 in whofe flrength I defire once more to go up- 
 on the waters, I fhall pray wherever 1 am, 
 that this grace of the Lord jfiis Chrif may be 
 with 'iou all. 
 
 To whom fhall I fpeak firfl by way of im- 
 provement ? Are there any of you here uncon- 
 verted ? no doubt too many. Are there any of 
 you here this morning come out of curiofiry to 
 hear what the babler has to fay ? Many, per- 
 D 2 hnps 
 
20 A Faithful Minijlers Ser. I. 
 
 haps, are glad it is my laft fermon, and that 
 London is to be rid of fuch a monfler : I 
 don't doubt but it has been a pleafant para- 
 graph for many to read -, but whoever there 
 are of you that are unconverted, or whatever 
 you may think, fure you cannot be angry for 
 my v/ifhing that the grace of God may be with 
 yozL O that it may be with every unconverted 
 foul. O pray for me, my dear friends, that 
 the Lord may blefs me to fome unconverted 
 foul y what wilt thou do if the grace of God is 
 not with thee ? what wilt thou do \Ni\h the 
 favour of man if thou haft not got the grace of 
 God ? you will find, iTiy brethren, it will not 
 do, you cannot do without the grace of God 
 when you come to die. There was a noble- 
 man that kept a deiftical chaplain, and his 
 lady a chriftian one -, when he was dying, he 
 fays to his chaplain, I liked you very well when 
 I was in health, but it is my lady's chaplain I 
 muft have when I am fick. Do you know 
 that you are nothing but devils incarnate ? Do 
 you know that every moment you are liable to 
 eternal pains ? The Lord help thee to awake O 
 fmner, awake, awake thou ftupid foul, if the 
 grace of God was never with thee before, God 
 grant it may now, Don't fay I part with you in 
 
 an 
 
Ser. L Parting BleJJing. ix 
 
 an ill humour ; don't fay that a madman left yoa 
 with a curfe. BleiTed be God that when firft 1 en- 
 tered into the field, (and bleffed be God that ho- 
 noured me with being a field-preacher) I pro- 
 claimed the grace of God to the worft of fin- 
 ners, and I proclaim it now to the vileft finner 
 under heaven -, could I fpeak fo loud as that 
 the whole world mij^ht hear me, I would declare 
 that the grace of God is free for all poor fouls 
 that are willing to accept of it by Chrift ; 
 God make you all willing this day. 
 
 There are many of you, I doubt not, but 
 have got this grace, and I believe there are 
 many of you that can fay that this poor de- 
 fpifed place was that which God honoured firft 
 with giving it you : but v/hether you were 
 converted here, or elfe where, if you have got 
 the grace of God, the Lord grant you more 
 grace ; grace, mercy and peace be multiplied unto 
 you alL My brethren, they that have got 
 Chrift never have enough of him ; you want 
 more grace every day, and hour, and moment ; 
 I fee for my part more of my v/ant of grace than 
 I did ten or twenty years ago; may be that is 
 becaufe I don't grov/ in grace ; but tbofe th it 
 grow in grace will grov/ every day more fenii-' 
 ble of their want of grace, they will feel their 
 
 weak«» 
 
22 A Faithful Miniflers Ser. I. 
 
 weaknefs more and more every day. Some who 
 are called Chriftians are a moft foul-mouth peo- 
 ple, they abufe their neighbours, but real be- 
 lievers abufe themfelves moft, and call them- 
 felveS;, /. e, v^hat is in themfelves, the worfl of 
 ' neighbours. O my brethren, may the Lord 
 Jefus Chrift's grace be with you more and more, 
 that you may be transformed into the divine 
 likenefs, and pafs from glory to glory by the Spi- 
 rit of the Lord. May God grant that this grace 
 may be with you all, particularly thofe young 
 men that have given up their fouls to Chriil. It 
 delights my foul when I go round the commu- 
 nion table, to fee how many young fouls have 
 given themfelves to Chrift, the Lord grant that 
 you may not return again to folly. O young 
 men, flee youthful lufts -, O young women, the 
 Lord Jefus Chrift grant that grace may be with 
 you all, that you may ftudy the beauties of the 
 mind, fliine in the beauties of holinels, and be 
 wife to everlafting falvation. 
 
 May the grace of the Lord Jefus Chrijl be 
 with ycu all that are in the marriage ftate. It 
 needs much grace to bear with heavy trials, 
 much grace to deal with fervants, children, 
 and under difappointments in trade ^ to walk 
 with God with a pure heart. Some people 
 
 think 
 
Ser. I. 'Parting Blejfmg. 2% 
 
 think it clever to have wives and children, 
 but they want a thoufand times more grace 
 than they had when they were fingle; you 
 have need of much grace to honor God in 
 your houfes, much grace to teach you to be 
 prophets, much grace to teach you to be kingij 
 in the family 5 to know, wher to be pleafed j 
 to knoWi v/hen to be lilent ; to know, when 
 to be angry : but the greateft grace is to be 
 angry when called to it, to be angry with- 
 out fin. O ! may the grace of God be with 
 you all in your clofets, every tim.e you prav, 
 every time you come to an ordinance 5 O? 
 may the grace of God be v/ith you all when 
 you frequent this defpifed place ! blefled be 
 God fome may fay, that ever it was built 5 
 though as foon ..as it was built I was called 
 away. As foon alfo as the chapel was built 
 J was then called away, and fo am now 3 and 
 when I came out of my chamber, I could 
 hardly fupport it. I would as lieve go to an 
 execution, if my way was not very clear ^ 
 what is dying ? that is but for a moment. O 
 may the grace of God be with all, that preach 
 the gofpel here. Blefled be God his grace has 
 been with them ; don't let the world fay, he 
 is gone, and all the people are gone now; 
 
 don't 
 
24 -^ Faithjtd Minijler's Ser. L 
 
 don't weaken the hands of thofe that fhall 
 labour here ; I fliould not mention fuch a 
 word if I was not going away. The Lord 
 Jefus Chrift grant that you may keep fteady, 
 and honor the preachers more and more; there 
 will be good Mr. Adams, bleffed be God, 
 from time to time, with Mr. Beridge, and fo 
 there will be a bleffed change : may the Spirit 
 of God be with them, and you, more and 
 more ! and O my dear friends, if the Lord 
 God has vouchfafed to own thefe labours to 
 any of you, do remember me in a particular 
 manner, when gone; for though my body 
 has been weak, yet I thank God that he 
 has enabled me to fpeak when called to it. 
 
 And fo I muft go, whether well or illj 
 pray, that if it fliould pleafe God to fpare me, 
 that I may fpeak more effedlually to you, 
 -when I come back again ; pray, that the grace 
 of the Lord Jefus Chrift may be with me 
 in a reftraining, comforting, fupporting, and 
 transforming way, that it may be with me 
 when I am fick, and when I die. O my 
 brethren, I fee I want the grace of the Lord 
 Jefus Chrift, in every one of thefe refpedls, 
 every moment; O may the Lord God blefs 
 you all that have been kind to me, and for- 
 give 
 
Ser. L Parthig BhJJing. ^^ 
 
 give every thing that I have done amifs, 
 i am afhamed of myfelf, fo much of the mail 
 comes up with me, though I humbly hope, 
 and dare to fay, that at the bottom my heart 
 is upright towards God; I would employ it 
 to his praife, but there is fo much fin mixed 
 with all I do, that was not the blood of Chrift 
 conftantly applied to my foul, and the grace 
 of God continually manifefted to me, I could 
 not preach any more. You may fee a thoufind 
 things wrong in me, but I fee ten thoufand 
 more, O may the Grace of God he ivith you 
 all. Now, dear friends, farewel ! dear taber- 
 nacle, farewel ! if I never preach here any 
 more j O that we may meet in a better ta- 
 bernacle, when thefe tabernacles are taken 
 down, when thefe bodies fhall drop, when we 
 fliall be for ever with the Lord. I mufl have 
 done, I can't bear it; the Lord blefi you, the 
 Lord God* caufe his face to fiine upon you, I 
 cannot fay more, I dare not : The Grace of 
 our Lord jefus be 'with you ally Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
26 Chriji the Believers Refuge. Ser. II, 
 
 SERMON IL 
 
 Christ the Believer's Refuge. 
 
 Psalm xlvi. i — 6. 
 God is our refuge andflrength^ a very prefeni 
 help in trouble -^ tberejore ivill ive not fear, 
 though the eaj'th he re?7toved^ and the moun- 
 tains be carried into the midjl of the fea^ 
 though the ^i^aters thereof roar ^ and be troubled^ 
 though the mountai?2S fiake with the fwelling 
 thereof, Selah. There is a river, the Jlreams 
 whereof fiall make glad the city of God, the 
 holy place of the tabernacles of the Mojl High : 
 God is in the midf of her, fie fjall not be 
 ?noved', God fiall help her^ and that right 
 early, 
 
 THERE was a tradition among the 
 ancient Jews, that the manna which 
 came down from heaven, though it 
 was a little grain like coriander-feed, yet 
 faited every tafle y as milk unto babes, and 
 
 ftrong 
 
6'er. 11. Chrijl the Belien^ers Refuge, 27 
 
 flrong meat to grown perfons. Whether this 
 fuppofition be founded on fadl or not, the ob~ 
 fervation will hold good in a great meafure 
 refpeding the fayings of David ^ for if we 
 have eyes to fee, and ears to hear, if God has 
 been pleafed to take away the veil from our 
 hearts, we fiiall jfind, by happy experience, 
 that let our circumftances be what they will, 
 the book of Pfalms may ferve as a fpiritual 
 magazine, out of which we may draw fpiri- 
 tual weapons in the time of the hottefl fight, 
 efpecially thofe that are under trouble, 'when 
 the hand, of the Lord is gone ktmxn^y forth 
 againjl them ; when unbelief is apt to make 
 them fay, all thefe things are againjl tne ! if 
 we can have the prefence of mind to turn to 
 the book of Pfalms, we may find fomething 
 there faitable to our cafe, a word to refrefh 
 us in purfuing our fpiritual enemy. This is 
 true of the 46th Pfalm in particular, part of 
 which I have juft now read to you. and which 
 I pmy the blefied Spirit of God to apply to 
 every one of our hearts. It is uncertain at 
 what time, or upon what occafion, David 
 wrote it> probably under fome fharp afflic- 
 tion, which made him eloquent; or when the 
 afflidion was over, when his heart was fwim- 
 
 E 2 ing 
 
28 Cljriji the Believers Refuge. Ser. II. 
 
 ing with gratitude and love, and when out of 
 the fulnefs of it his pen was made the pen of a 
 ready writer. It was a favourite Pfalrrj with 
 Luther; for whenever Melandthon, who w^as 
 of a melancholy turn, or any other of his 
 friends, told him fome fad news, he ufed to 
 fay, come, come, let us ling the 46th Pfalm ; 
 and when he had fung that, his heart was 
 quiet. May every true mourner here, and 
 afflided perfon, experience the fame ! I know 
 not when I read it v^^hich to admire moft, the 
 piety, or the poetry 3 the matter, or the man- 
 ner 5 and I believe I may venture to defy 
 all the criticks on earth to fhew me any com- 
 pofition of Pindar, or Horace, that any way 
 comes up to the didion of this Pfahii con- 
 fidered only as human : he that hath an ear 
 to hear, let him hear, God is our refuge and 
 Jlrength^ a very prejent help in trouble. Stop 
 here, my friends, let us paufe a while, and 
 before we go further, may the Lord help us 
 to draw fome comfort from this very firil 
 verfe: for obferve, it is not faid, God is my 
 refuge 'y David fays fo in another Pfalm, but 
 he fays here, God is our refuge : he fpeaks in 
 the plural number, implying, that this Pfalm 
 was of no private interpretation, but was in-^ 
 
 tended 
 
Ser. II. Chrijl the Believers Refuge. 29 
 
 tended for the comfort and encouragement of 
 all believers, till time fhall be no more. Obferve 
 the climax, God is our refuge^ is one degree ; 
 God is our [irengthy another 3 God is our help^ and 
 not only io^ but is a prefenf help^ yea, is a very 
 prefent help^ and at a time when we want it moft, 
 in the time of trouble. It is here fuppofed, that all 
 God's people will have their troubles, man is 
 born to trouble , as the /parks fly upward *, and 
 if we are born to trouble as men, we are much 
 more fo as chriftians. We forget ourfelves, 
 and the ftation in which God has placed us, 
 when wx fo much as begin to dream of having 
 much refpite from trouble while we are here 
 belov/. The decree is gone forth like the laws 
 of the Medes and Perfians, it alters not j through 
 tribulation, through much tribulation, we muft 
 all go 3 but blefled be God we are to be carried 
 through it ^ and blefled be God, glory is to be 
 the end of it : may God give us to know this 
 by happy experience ! in the worlds fays our 
 bleffed Lord, ye Jloall have tribulation^ tribu- 
 lation and trouble of different kinds ; and in 
 another place, if any man will come ajter 
 mey fays he, let him take up his crofs dai^y^ 
 and follow me -y fo that the day, when we 
 take up no crofs, vvx may fay as Ti^us did, 
 
 wnea 
 
30 Chrijl the Believers Refuge, Ser. 11. 
 
 when he refleded that he had done no good 
 that day, I have loft a day! But then what 
 ihall we do, my dear hearers, when trouble 
 comes, when one trouble comes after another, 
 and afflidions feem to purfue us wherever 
 we go, feem to arife up out of the ground, 
 meet us as we are walking along ? why bleffed 
 be God, if we have an intereft in Chrift, 
 mind that, if we have an intereft in Chrift, 
 God is our help, God is our afylum, our city 
 of refuge, a place appointed by God himfelf, 
 to which the purfued faints may fly by faith, 
 and be fafe. The wicked have no notion of 
 this ; when they are in trouble, what is their 
 refuge ? let a foul be under fpiritual trouble, 
 and cry out what Jl^ all I do to be faved"^ let 
 him g-o to a carnal minifter, an unconverted 
 wretch that knows nothing about the matter, 
 he fhall be told, oh! go, and play an innocent 
 game at cards, and divert yourfelf ; that is to 
 fay, the devil muft be your refuge. Wordly 
 people have worldly refuges ; and Cain would 
 feem as if he was in earneft when he faid, my 
 pmiJJmient is greater than I can bear ; what 
 does he do, he goes and diverts himfelf by 
 building a city, goes and amufes himfelf by 
 building. The devil, my brethren, will give 
 
 you 
 
Ser. II. Chriji the Believer s Refuge, - 1 
 
 you leave to amufe yourfelves 5 you may have 
 your choice of diverfions, only take care to 
 be diverted from God, and the devil is fure 
 of you; but the believer has fomething better: 
 faith fweeps aucay the refuge of Ites^ and the 
 believer turns to his God, and fliys O my 
 Gody thou fialt be my refuge. The devil pur- 
 fues me, my falfe friends have defigns againft 
 me, my own wicked heart itfelf molefts me, 
 my foes are thofe of my O'jon houfe ; but do 
 thou, O God, be my refuge I will fly there 3 
 by thefe it may be faid, God is our refuge. The 
 qaeftion is, what fhall I do to make him my 
 refuge ? how fhall I be helped to do fo ? you 
 bid me fly; you fay, I may fly there, but 
 where fhall I get wings ? how fhall I be fup- 
 ported ? Here is a blefled word, God fhall net 
 only be our refuge^ hntGodJloallbe our ftrength 
 alfo. Strength, what is flrength ? why, my 
 brethren, to make every day of trouble fo eafy 
 to us by his power, as to carry us through it ^ 
 God has faid, and will fland to it, ^i thy day 
 isy fo Jhall thy ftrength be, AfHiflions even at 
 a diftance will appear very formidable, when 
 viewed by unbelief. Our fears fay, O iny 
 God, if I come to be tried this or that way, 
 how fhall I bear it ? but we don't know what 
 
. 32 Chrijl the Believers Refuge. Ser. IL 
 
 we can bear till the trial comes, and we do not 
 know what ilrength God can give us, or what 
 a ftrong God he will be, till he is pleafed to 
 put us into a furnace of afflidion; and there- 
 fore it is faid, not only that God is our refuge 
 and ourjirengthy but that God is our help alfo. 
 What help? why, my dear friends, h^elp to 
 fupport us under the trouble j help fo as to 
 comfort us as long as the trouble lafts ; and 
 blelTed be God, that the help will never leave 
 us, till we are helped quite over and quite 
 through it. But what kind of an help is it ? 
 O bleffed be God, he is a very prefent help. 
 We may have an helper, but he may be afar 
 off; I may be fick, I may want a phyfician, 
 and may be obliged to fend miles for one ; he 
 might be a help if he was here^ but what 
 fhall I do now he is at a diftance. This can- 
 not be faid of God, he is not only a help, but 
 he is a prefent help : the gates of the new Jeru- 
 falem are open flight and day. We need not 
 be afraid to cry unto God 3 we cannot fay 
 of our God as Elijah does of Baal, perhaps he' 
 is afeepy or talking ^ or gone a journey : it is 
 not fo with our God, he is a prefnt help 3 he 
 is likewife a fufficient help, that is, a very 
 prefent help ^ and that ioo in the time of trouble. 
 
 It 
 
Ser. 11. Chrijl the Believer' i Refuge. 33 
 
 It IS but to fend a fliort letter, I mean a fhort 
 prayer, upon the wings of faith and love, 
 and God, my brethren, will come down and 
 help us. Now to this David affixes his proha- 
 turn efly David proves it by his own experience, 
 and therefore if God is our refuge^ therefore if 
 Ged is our Jlre?7gthy if God is our help, if God 
 is a prefeiit help, if God is a very frefent helpy 
 and that too in a time of trouble, w^hat then ? 
 therefore will we not fear. — Therefore, is an 
 inference, and it is a very natural one, a con- 
 clufion naturally drawn from the foregoing 
 premifies ; for Paul fays, if God be for us, who 
 can be againjl us? There is not a greater enemy 
 to faith than fervile fear and unbeHef. Mv 
 brethren, the devil has got an advantage over 
 us when he has brought us into a ftate of fear ; 
 indeed in one fenfe we fhould always fear, I 
 mean with a filial fear ; ble/fed is the 7nan, in 
 this fenfe, that feareth always : but, my bre- 
 thren, have we ftrong faith in a God of refuge ? 
 this forbids us to fear ; fays Nehemiah, JJoall 
 fuch a man as Iflee ? and the Chriftian may 
 fay, fhall a believer in Jefus Chrifl fear ? fliall 
 I fear that my God will leave me ? fhall I fear 
 that my God will not fuccour me ? no, fays 
 Davidj we will not fear j how fo ? why though 
 F ths 
 
34 Cbrijl the Believers Refuge. Ser. IL 
 
 the mountains be carried into the midfi of thefeay 
 though the ^waters thereof roar and be troubled^, 
 though the mouv.taijis JJoake with the fwelling 
 thereof Where is Horace, where is Pindar,, 
 now ? let them come here and throw their 
 palms down before the fweet finger of Ifrael. 
 There is not fuch a bold piece of imagery in 
 any human compofition in the world. Can 
 any thing appear more great, more confider- 
 able than this ? Imagine how it was with us 
 fome years ago, when an enthuliaftic fool 
 threatened us with a third earthquake ; imagine 
 how it was with us when God fent us the 
 fame year two dreadful earthquakes 5 had the 
 earth been at that tim.e not only fhook, but 
 removed, had the fountains of the fea been 
 permitted to break in upon us, and carry all 
 the mountains of England before it, what a 
 dreadful tremor mull: we all unavoidably have 
 been in ? David fuppofes that this may be the 
 cafe, and I believe at the great day it will be 
 fomething hke it: the earth and all things 
 therein, are to be burnt up ^ and, my brethren, 
 what fliall we do then if God is not our refuge, 
 if God is not our ftrength ? 
 
 We may apply it to civil commotions : 
 David had lately been befet with the Philif- 
 
 tines,. 
 
Ser. II. Chrijl the Believers Refuge. ^ 5 
 
 tines, and other enemies, that threatened to 
 deprive him of his Hfe 5 and there are certain 
 times when we fliall be left alone. This alfo, 
 my brethren, may be applied to creature- 
 comforts : fometimes the earth feems to be re- 
 moved, what then ? why all the friends we 
 take delight in, our moft familiar friends, our 
 foul-friends, friends by nature, and friends by 
 grace, may be removed from us by the ftroke 
 of death 5 we know not how foon that ftroke 
 may come, it may come at an hour we thought 
 not of; the mountains themfelves, all the 
 things that feem to furround and promife us a 
 lafting fcene of comfort, they themfelves may 
 foon be removed out of cur fight, what then 
 fhall we do ? they may be carried into the ?nidji 
 ofthefea-, what is that? our friends may be 
 laid in the filent grave, and the places that k?2ew 
 them may know the?n no more. It is cafy talk- 
 ing, but it is not fo eafy to bear up under thefe 
 things : but faith, my brethren, teaches us to 
 fay, though all friends are gone, bleffed be 
 God, God is not gone. As a noble lady's 
 daughter told her mother, when fhe was 
 weeping for the death of one of her little chil- 
 dren, a daughter four years old faid, Dear 
 mamma, is God Almighty dead, that you cry 
 
 F 2 fo 
 
I 
 
 36 Chrijl the Believers Refuge. Ser. II. 
 
 fo long after my fifter ? No, he is not dead, 
 neither does he lleep. But here the imagery 
 grows bolder, the painting ftronger, and the 
 refemblance more ftriking, though the waters 
 thereof roar and be troubled^ though the inoim- 
 tains fhake with the fwelling thereof ^^ what 
 won't this make us fearful ? will not this fhake 
 us off our bottom, our foundation, and take 
 up the roots ? No, no, even then the believer 
 need not fear; why, God is in the midfl of her. 
 Don't you remember God fpoke to Mofes out 
 of the bufli ? did he ftand at a diftance, and 
 call to him at a diftance from the bufh ? no, 
 the voice came out of the bufh, Mofes I Mo- 
 fes ! as Mr. Ainfworth, who was a fpiritual 
 critic, fays. 
 
 Learn from hence, that in all our afflictions 
 God is afflicted'^ he is in the midft of the bufh-^ 
 and oh ! it is a fweet time with the foul when 
 God fpeaks to him out of the bufh, when he 
 is under afHidion, and talks to him all the 
 while. Though it was threatened by the fire 
 which furrounded it with immediate and total 
 defolation 3 yet the bufj burned^ and was 7iot 
 cojijumed, I do not know whether I told you, 
 but I believe I told them at Tottenham-court, 
 and perhaps here, that every chriftian has got 
 
 a 
 
Sa*. II. Chrijl the Believers Refuge. 37 
 
 a coat of arms, and I will give it you out of 
 Chrift*s heraldry, that is the burning bii/h-, 
 every chriftian is burned, but not confumed* 
 But hov^ is it the faint is held up, whence 
 does he get this ftrength 5 or how is this 
 ftrength, this fupporting, comforting ftrength, 
 conveyed to his heart ? read a little further, 
 you fliall find David fay, there is a river^ 
 mind that, there is a river the ftreams where- 
 of make glad the city of God^ the holy place of 
 the tabernacles of the Moji High ^ need I tell 
 you, that probably here is an allufion to the 
 fituation of Jerufalem, and the waters of 
 Shiloah, that flowed gently through the city 
 of Jerufalem, which the people found fweet 
 and refrefliing in the time of its being befieged. 
 So the rivers run through moft of the cities in 
 Holland, and bring their commodities even to 
 the doors of the inhabitants. Pray, what do 
 you think this river is? why, I believe it 
 means the covenant of grace ; O that is a 
 river, the fprings of which firfl burft out in 
 Paradife, when God faid, the feed of the woman 
 pall bruife the ferpenfs head ; then God made 
 this river vifit the habitation of man, as the 
 firft opening of his everlafting covenant. 
 
 No 
 
2 8 Chrifl the Believers Refuge, Ser. II. 
 
 No fooner had the devil betrayed man, and 
 thought he was fure to get him into the pit, 
 even when he was laughing at man's mifery, 
 and thinking he was revenged of God for 
 driving him out of heaven 5 at that very time 
 did the great God open this river, and made 
 it flow down in that bleffed ilream to man- 
 kind, implyed in thofe words, // JJoall bruife 
 thy head, O this is a ftream which, I pray, 
 may this night make glad this part of the city 
 of God. If by the river we underiland the 
 covenant of grace, then, my brethren, the 
 frojnifes of God are the ftreams that flow from 
 it. There is no promife in the Bible made 
 to an unbeliever, but to a believer 5 all the 
 promifes of God are his, and no one knows, 
 but the poor believer that experiences it, how 
 glad it makes his heart. God only fpeaks one 
 fingle word, or applies one fingle promife s for 
 if when one's heart is overwhelmed with 
 forrow, we find relief by unfolding ourfelves 
 to a faithful difinterefted friend ; if a word of 
 comfort fometimes gives us fuch fupport from 
 a minifl:er of Chrift, O ! my friends, what 
 fupport mufl: a promife from God applied to 
 the foul give? and this made a good v/oman 
 fay, I have oft had a blelTed meal on the pro- 
 mifes 
 
Ser.II. Chrijl the Believer s Refuge, 39 
 
 mifes, when I have had no bread to make a 
 meal for my body. 
 
 But by the river we may likewlfe under- 
 ftand, the Spirit of the living God. If you 
 remember, Jefus Chrifl: declared at the great 
 day of the feaft, if any man believe on jne^ out 
 of his belly JJ^all flow rivers of living wafer ; 
 thisy faith the beloved difciple, /pake he of the 
 Spirit^ which they that believe on him fi:ould 
 receive. My brethren, the divine influences 
 are not only a conduit, but a deep river, a 
 river of broad waters. Here is room for the 
 babes to walk, and for the man of God to 
 bathe and fwim in from time to time 5 and 
 fuppoling that the river means the Spirit of 
 God, as I believe really it does, why then the 
 ftreams that flow from this river are the means 
 of grace, the ordinances of God, which God 
 makes ufe of as channels, whereby to convey 
 his bleffed Spirit to the foul. Nay, by the 
 river we may underftand, Godhimfelf'^Aio is the 
 believer's river, the Three-one, Father, Son, 
 and Holy Ghofl. This river is in the midft of 
 the city, not at the court-end of the tov/n 
 only, or one corner, or end, but quite through, 
 in a variety of ftreams, fo that high and low 
 may come to it for fupply ; and not only be 
 
 fupported;, 
 
40 Chrtft the Believers Refuge. Ser. IL 
 
 fupported, but have their hearts made glad 
 daily thereby -, God help us to drink afrefh of 
 this river. If this be the cafe, well may David 
 triumph and fay, glorious things are fpoken of 
 the city of God-, are fpoken of her^ in the 
 feminine gender. The church is fpoken of in 
 that fenfe, becaufe Eve, the firfl: v^oman, was 
 the mother of all believers ; we may apply this 
 to a fingle faint, as well as to a community, 
 under trouble, fl.^e JJ:all 7iot be moved-, not 
 moved ? pray, would you have them ftupid ? 
 do you love when you ftrike a child, to fee 
 it hardened and regardlefs? do you not hke 
 the child fhould fmart under it and cry, and 
 when it is a little penitent, you almoft wifli 
 you had not ftruck it at all. God expeds, 
 when he flrikes, that we fhould be moved ; 
 and there is not a greater iign in a reprobate 
 heart of a foul given over by God, to have 
 afflI(Sion upon afftidion, and yet come out like 
 a Jool brayed in a mortar, unmoved and har- 
 dened. My brethren, this is the worft fign 
 of a man or woman's being given over by 
 God. Jefus was moved, w^hen he was under 
 the rod ; he cries, father ! if it be foffible, let 
 this Clip pafs from me I he was moved fo as to 
 fhed tears, tears of blood, falling to the ground. 
 
 Wo 
 
Ser. IL Chrij} the Believer's Refuge. ^j 
 
 Woe, woe, woe be to us, if when God knocks 
 at the door by fome Ihocking domeftic or fo-* 
 reign trial, we don't fayj my God ! my God I 
 wherefore doft thou ftrike ? When we arc 
 lick we allow phyficians to feel our pulfe, 
 whether it be high or languid 3 and when we 
 are fick, and tried with affliction, it is time to 
 feel our pulfe, to fee if we were not going into 
 a high fever, and do not want fome faiutary 
 purge. It is expeded therefore that we fhould 
 be moved y we may fpeak^ but not in a mur- 
 muring way : Job was moved^ and God knows 
 w^hen we are under the rod, we are all moved 
 more than we ought to be in a wrong way ^ 
 but when it is fiid here, Jl:e Jloall not be movcd^ 
 it implies, not totally removed; perplexed^ 
 fays the apoflle, but not in defpair i perjecuted^ 
 but 7iotJorfaken ; caft down, but not deployed 1 
 therefore removal means deflrudion : when the 
 earth is moved^ the moimtainsfiake^ and the 
 waters roar^ where can we flee ? what can we 
 fee but deflrudlion all round us ? But, mv 
 brethren, fmce there is a river the Jlr earns 
 whereof make glad the city of God ^ fince God 
 is our refuge^ fince God is our firength^ iinca 
 God is our help^ fince God is a prefent help^ 
 fince God is a very prefent help in the time cf 
 
 G trouble^ 
 
42 Chrijl the Believers Refuge, Ser. II. 
 
 trouble^ fince God is in the midjl of her^ fince 
 God caufes the Jlr earns to make her glady blefled 
 be God, we fliall not, my brethren, be totally 
 moved -, nay, though death itfelf does remove 
 our bodies, though the king of terrors, that 
 grifly king, fhould come armed w^ith all his 
 Hiafts, yet in the rnidft of death we are in lije^ 
 even then we Jloall not be moved ^ even though 
 the body is removed in fleep, the foul is gone 
 where it Ihall be forrowful no more. One 
 would have imagined that David had faid 
 enough, but pray obferve how he goes on, 
 he repeats it again, for when we are in an un- 
 believing frame we have need of line upon line^ 
 words upon words, God JJmll help her 5 ah ! 
 but when ? v/hen ? when will he help her ? 
 when will he help her? why, right early-y 
 God fdall help ber^ and that 7'ight early. Why 
 fometimes we knock for a friend, but he will 
 not get up early in the morning, but God fliall 
 help us^ and that right early, in the mornings 
 Ah ! but, fay you, I have been under trouble 
 a long while ; why God's morning is not come : 
 'you faid right early j yes^ but you are not yet 
 prepared for it, you muft wait till the precious 
 right moment comes, and you may be affured 
 of it. God never gives you one doubt more 
 
 than 
 
Ser. II. Chrijl the Believers Refuge. 43 
 
 than you want, or even defers help one mo- 
 ment longer than it ought to be. 
 
 Now, my dear hearers, if thefe things are 
 fo, who dares call the Chriilian a madman ? 
 If thefe things are fo, who would but be a 
 believer ? who would not be a faithful fol- 
 lower of the fon of God ? My brethren, did 
 you ever hear any of the devil's children com- 
 pofe an ode, that the devil is our refuge ; the 
 God of this world, whom we have ferved fo 
 heartily, we have found to be a prefent help 
 in time of trouble ? ah ! a prefent help to help 
 us after the devil : or did you ever hear, fince 
 the creation, of one fingle man that dared to 
 fay, that all the forty-fixth pfalm was founded 
 on a lie ? No, it is founded on matters of fact, 
 and therefore believer, believer, I wifh you 
 joy, although it is a tautology. l' pray God, 
 that from this time forth till we die, you and 
 I, when under trouble, may fay with Luther, 
 jcome let us iing the forty-fixth pfalm. 
 
 As for you that are wicked, what fliall I fay 
 to you ? are you in high fpirits to night ; has 
 curiofity brought you here to hear what the 
 babler has to fay on a funeral occafion ? well, 
 I am glad to fee you here, though I have 
 fcarce strength to fpeak for the violence of 
 G 2 the 
 
44 Chrijl the Believers Refuge. Ser. II. 
 
 the heat, yet I pray God to magnify his 
 flrength in my weaknefs 5 and may the God 
 of all mercy over-rule curiofity for good to 
 you. I intend to fpeak about this death to 
 the furviving friends ; but, my dear hearers, 
 the grand intention of having the funeral fer- 
 mon to night, is to teach the living how to die. 
 Give me leave to tell you, that however brifk 
 you may be now, there will a time come when 
 you will v/ant God to be your help. Some 
 pulpit may e'er long be hung in mourning for 
 you ; the black, the dreary appendages of 
 death may e'er long be brought to your 
 home ', and if you move in a high fphere, fome 
 fdch efcutcheon as this, fome atchievement 
 may be placed at your door, and woe, woe, 
 woe be to thofe who in an hour of death can- 
 not fay, God is my refuge. You may form 
 fchemes as you pleafe; after you have been 
 driven out of one fool's paradife, you may re- 
 treat into another; you may fay, now I will 
 iing a requiem to my heart, and now I fhall 
 have fome pleafant feafon ; but if God loves 
 you he will knock oft your hands from that, 
 you fhall have thorns even in rofes, and it will 
 imbitter your comforts. O what will you do 
 wh^a the dements (hall melt with fervent 
 
 heats 
 
S^r. II. Chrijl the Believer's P^cfuge. 4^ 
 
 heat ; when this earth, with all its fine furni- 
 ture, fhall be burnt up ; when the archangel 
 fliall cry, tiTiie Jhall be no more! whither then, 
 ye wicked ones, ye unconverted ones, will ye 
 flee for refuge ? O, fays one, I will fly to the 
 mountains : O filly fool, O Ally fool, fly to the 
 mountains, that are themfelves to be burnt up 
 and moved. O, fays you, I will flee to the 
 fea; O you fool, that will be boiling like a 
 pot : O then I will flee to the elements ; they 
 will be melting with fervent heat. I can fcarce 
 bear this hot day, and how can you bear a hot 
 element ? there is no fan there, not a drop of 
 water to cool your tongue. Will you fly to 
 the moon ? that will be turned into blood : will 
 you fl:and by one of the fl:ars ? they will fall 
 away : I know but of one place you can go 
 to, that is to the devil 5 God keep you from 
 that! Happy they that draw this inference; 
 fince every thing elfe will be a refuge of lies, 
 God help me from this moment, God help 
 me to m.ake God my refuge ! here you can 
 never fail j your expedations here can never 
 be raifed too high 5 but if you fl;op fliort of 
 this, as the Lord liveth^ in whofe name I 
 fpeak, you will only be a fport for devils ; a 
 day of judgment will be no day of refuge to 
 
46 Chrijl the Believer s Refuge, Ser. IL 
 
 you, you will only be fummoned like a cri- 
 minal that lias been caft already, to the bar to 
 receive the dreadful fentence, Depart^ ye 
 ciirfedy into everla/ling fire^ prepared for the 
 devil and his angels. There is no river to make 
 glad the inhabitants of hell, no ftreams to 
 cool them in that fcorching element : were 
 thofe who are in hell to have fuch an offer of 
 mercy as you have, how would their chains 
 rattle ! how would they come with the flames 
 of hell about their ears ! how would they re- 
 joice even there, if a minifter was to tell them. 
 Come, come, after you have been here mil- 
 lions and millions of years, there fhall come a 
 river here to make you glad. But the day is 
 over \ God help us to take warning : and oh ! 
 with vv^hat gratitude ihould we approach him 
 to night, for bearing with, and for for-bear- 
 ing us io long ; let each fay to night, why am 
 I out of hell ? how came I not to be damned, 
 when I have made every thing elfe my God, 
 my refuge, for fo many years ? May goodnefs 
 lead every unconverted foul to repentance, and 
 may love conftrain us to obedience : fly, fly, 
 God help thee to fly, flnner • hark ! hear the 
 word of the Lord, fee the world confumed, the 
 avenger of blood, thisgrirn death, is juft at thy 
 
 heels. 
 
SiM". II. Chrijl the Bat ever s Refuge. 47 
 
 heels, and if thou doft not this moment take 
 refuge in God, to-night before to-morrow, you 
 may be damned for ever ; the arms of Jefus 
 yet lie open, his loving heart yet ftreams with 
 love, and bids a hearty welcome to every poor 
 foul that is feeking happinefs in God. May 
 God grant that every unconverted i'oul may 
 be of the happy number. 
 
 But, my brethren, the mofl: heavy tafk of 
 this night yet lies unperformed ; indeed, if 
 my friendfliip for the deceafed did not lead me 
 to it, I fhould pray to be excufed j my body 
 is fo weak, my nerves fo unftrung, and the 
 heat beats too intenfely on this tottering frame, 
 for me to give fuch a vent to my affedions as 
 I am fure I fliould give if I was in vigorous 
 health ; you may eafily fee, though I have 
 not made that application, with what defign I 
 have chofe this Pfalm ; you may eafily fee by 
 the turn, I hope no unnatural one, that has 
 been given to the text as we have pafled along, 
 that I have had in my view a mournful wid^ov/ 
 here before me. Did I think when this bkck 
 furniture was taken from the pulpit when two 
 branches were lopt off" within about a year one 
 after another, both lopt off from on earth, I 
 hope and believe to be planted for ever in 
 
48 Chrijl the Believers Refuge. Ser. IL 
 
 heaven, little did I think that the axe was in 
 a few months time to be laid to the root of the 
 father ; little did I think that this pulpit was 
 then to be hung in mourning for the dear, the 
 generous, the valuable, the univerfally bene- 
 volent, Mr. Beckman ; a benefadtor to every 
 body, a benefactor to the Tabernacle ; he has 
 largely contributed both to the Chapel and Ta- 
 bernacle, and, my dear hearers, now his 
 works follow him, for he is gone beyond the 
 grave. Such a fingular circumftance I believe 
 rarely happens, that though I was laft night 
 at near eleven o'clock dead almoft with heat, 
 I thought if death was the confequence, I 
 would go to the grave and have the laft look 
 at my dear departed friend ; to fee a new vault 
 opened ; to fee a place of which he has been, 
 in a great meafure, the founder 5 to fee a place 
 which he was enlarging at the very time he 
 died 'y to fee a nev/ vault there firfl: inhabited 
 by the father, and two only fons, and all put 
 there in the fpace of two years time. Oh ! it 
 was almoft too much for me, it weighed me 
 down, it kept me in my bed all this day 3 and 
 now I have rifen, God grant it may be to give 
 a feafonable word to your fouls. Oh ! my 
 friends, put yourfelves in the ftate of a furvi- 
 
 vmg 
 
Ser. II. Chrtjl the- Believer's Refuge. 49 
 
 ving widow, and then fee who is fecure from 
 cutting providences. The very children when 
 they are young are a trial 5 but the young 
 man for whom a handiome fortune awaited 5 
 for a tender loving fluher to have his fon taken 
 away; for the widow to have the hufband 
 taken away foon after ; indeed, dear madam, 
 you had need read the forty-fixth Pfalm ^ you 
 may well fay, call me no more Nao??ii^ that 
 fignifies pleafant, but call me Marah^ for the 
 Lord hath dealt bitterly with 7ne, Thefe are 
 flrokes that are not always given to the great- 
 eft faints. Such fudden ftrokes, fuch blow 
 upon blow, Oh ! if God is not a ftrength and 
 refuge, how can the believer fupport under it ? 
 but bleffed be the living God, I am a witncfs 
 God has been your ftrength, I am witnefs 
 that God has been your refuge ; you have 
 found, I know you have, already, that there 
 is a river ^ a river in which you have fwam 
 now for fome years, thejlrea?ns whereof make 
 glad your waiting heart. Surely I ftiall never 
 forget the mom.ent in which I viiited your 
 deceafed huft)and, when the hiccoughs came, 
 and death was fuppofed to be really come, to 
 fee the difconfolate v/idow flying out of the. 
 room, unable to bear the fight of a departing 
 
 H hufband : 
 
5a Ckriji the BeUever''s Refuge, Ser. IL 
 
 hufband : I know that God was then your 
 refuge, and God will continue to be your re- 
 fuge. You are now God's peeuliar care, and 
 as a proof that you will make God your refuge, 
 you have chofen to make your firft appear- 
 ance in the houfe of God, in the Tabernacle^ 
 where I hope God delights to dwell, and 
 where you met with God, and which I hope 
 you will never leave till God removes you 
 hence. V/hatever trials may yet await you, 
 remember you are now become God's pecu- 
 liar care. You had before a hufband to plead 
 for you ; he is gone, but your pleader is not 
 dead, he lives, and will plead your caufe^ 
 may you fiad him better to you than ten thou- 
 fand hufbands > may he make up the awful 
 chafm that dea.th has made, and may the 
 Lord God be your refuge in time, and your 
 portion to all eternity y and then you will have 
 a bleiTed change. You are properly a Naofni ^ 
 I would humbly hope that your daughter-in- 
 law, which fo lately met with a ftroke of the 
 £ime nature, will prove a Ruth to you, and 
 though young, and having a fortune, fhe may 
 be tempted to take a walk in- the world, yet 
 1 hope file will fay, where thou goe/Iy I will 
 go y where thou lodgejl^ I will lodge y. thy peo- 
 
 pie 
 
Ser. II. Chrijl the Believer^ s Refuge, 51 
 
 pie Jhall be my people y a7id thy God my God ; 
 where thou diejl^ will 1 die^ and there rSill I 
 he buried ^y the Lord do fo tomey and more alfo^ 
 if ought but death part thee and me. It is to 
 your honour, madam, and I think it right to 
 fpeakofit, you had the fmiles of your depart- 
 ing father-in-law, you had behaved with de- 
 ference and love ; he was very fond of you ; 
 God make you a comfort to your furviving 
 mother^ who has adopted you, and may the 
 Lord Jefus Chrifl enable you to take God to 
 be your portion. 
 
 As for you that are the relations of the de- 
 ceafed, there is one of you that has been ho- 
 nourably called to the fervice of the m.iniflry : 
 you, fir, was fent for over by an endearing 
 uncle, you have been a ftranger in a flrange 
 land: the Palatines will blefs your man iftryj 
 God has, I hope, blefied it, and provided you 
 a place to preach in. May God grant that 
 that church may be filled with his prefence 
 and his glory ; and you, madam, be made 
 the inftrument of fending the news to heaven 
 ^ -to your hufoand, that this and that man was 
 born oj God there. As for you, the other 
 friends of the deceafed, may God grant that 
 when you die, and when you are buried, the 
 H 2 peo- 
 
52 Chrijl the Believer's Refuge^ Ser. II. 
 
 people may follow you with tears as they did 
 dear Mr. Beckman lail night. I was told by 
 one this morning that walked along with the 
 funeral, that it was delightful to hear what 
 the people faid when the coffin pafled by ; 
 they bleffed the perfon contained therein, Oh ! 
 he was a father to the poor. The poor have 
 indeed loft a friend ; and I believe there has 
 not been a man, a tradesman in London, for 
 thefe many years, that has been more lamented 
 than the dear man who now, I hope, is at reft. 
 You well know how mindful he has been of 
 you, and that foon after the deceafe of his dif- 
 confolate widow, his fubftance will be divi- 
 ded among fome of you. Give me leave to 
 charge and intreat you, by the mercies of God 
 in Jefus Chrift, to be kind to the honoured 
 widow. Don't fay, Mr. Beckman my uncle 
 i? dead, come pluck up, let us plague her now 
 ihe is living, we fliall have all when flie is 
 dead. The plague of God will follow you if 
 you do : if you valued your dear uncle, do all 
 you can to make her life eafy ; pay her that 
 refpedl which you would pay the deceafed was 
 be now living 3 this will fhew your love is 
 genuine, and not counterfeit, and do not lay up 
 wrath againft the (jay cj ivrath. Follow the 
 
 ex- 
 
Ser. 11. Chrijl the Believer's Refuge. 53 
 
 example of your dear deceafed uncle; the 
 gentleman was vifible in him as well as the 
 chriftian ; he would be in his warehoufe early 
 in the morning, that he might come foon to 
 his country-houfe, and there employ himfelf 
 in his friendly life, and open the door to the 
 difciples of Jefus. It is time to draw to an end, 
 but I will fpeak a word to the fervants of the 
 family, who have loft a good and a dear maf- 
 tcr. May the Lord Jefus Chrift be your 
 mailer for ever, that you may be the Lord's 
 fervants, however you may be difpofed of in 
 this world ; that you may meet your mafter, 
 your miftrefs, and all the family, in the king- 
 dom of the living God, then we fhall have a 
 whole eternity to refled upon the goodnefs of 
 a gracious God. O may God help us to fing 
 the forty-fixth Pfalm ; may v/e find him to be 
 our Jlrength and our refuge^ a very prefent help 
 in the time of trouble ; may the river of the 
 living God make glad your hearts, and may 
 you be with God to all eternity; even fo^ 
 Lord Jefus, Amen and Amen, 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 54 ] 
 
 SERMON III. 
 
 Soul Profperity. 
 
 3 Epiftle John ii. 
 
 Beiovedy I iioijh above all things that thou 
 mayjl profper^ and be in healthy even as thy 
 foul profperetb. 
 
 WHAT a horrid blunder has one of 
 the famous, or rather infamous, de- 
 iftical writers made, when he fays, 
 that the gofpel cannot be of God, becaufe 
 there is no fuch thing as friendship mentioned 
 in it. Surely if he ever read the gofpel, hav- 
 ing eyes he Jaw not^ having ears he heard not ; 
 but I believe the chief reafon is, his heart being 
 waxen grofs, he could not underftand; for 
 this is fo far from being the cafe, that the world 
 never yet faw fuch a fpecimen of fteady and 
 difinterefted friendfhip, as was difplayed in the 
 life, example, and conduft of Jefus of Naza- 
 reth. 
 
 John, 
 
Sfer. III. Soul Profperit)\ . 5^ 
 
 John, the writer of this epiftle, had the 
 honour of leaning on his bofom, and of being 
 called, by way of emphafis, the difdple 'who?n 
 Jefiis loved ', and that very difclple, which is 
 very remarkable concerning him, though he 
 was one of thofe whom the Lord himfelf named 
 Sons of Thunder, Mark iv. 17. and was fo fud- 
 denly, as bifliop Hall obferves, turned into a 
 fon of lightning, that he would have called 
 down fire from heaven to confume his Maf- 
 ter's enemies; confequently, though he was 
 of a natural fiery temper, yet the change in 
 his heart was fo remarkable, that if a judgment 
 may be formed by his writings^ he feems as 
 fall of lovcy if not fuller, than any of his fel- 
 low apoftle?. He learned pity and benevo- 
 lence of the father of mercies > and to fliovv 
 how chriflian friendfliip is to be cultivated, h^ 
 not only wrote letters to churches in genei-al^ 
 even to thofe he never faw in the ftefh, but 
 private letters to particular faints,, friends to 
 whom he was attached, and wealthy rich 
 friends, whom God had, by his Spirit, raifed 
 up to be helpers of the diftreffed. Happy 
 would it be for us, if we could all learn that 
 fimplicity of heart which is difplayed in thefe 
 particular words > happy if we could learn i\m 
 
 one 
 
5^ Soul Profperify, Ser. III. 
 
 one rule, never to write a letter without fome- 
 thingof Jefus Chrift in it; for, as Mr. Henry 
 obferves, if we are to anfwer for idle words, 
 much more for idle letters; and if God has 
 given us our pens, efpecially if he has given us 
 the pen of a ready writer^ it will be happy if 
 we can improve our literary correfpondence 
 for his glory and one another's good. But 
 what an unfafliionable ftile, if compared to 
 our modern ones, is that of the apoftle to 
 Gains. The fuperfcription from the elder to 
 the well-beloved Gaius^ who??i I love in the 
 truth ; there is fine language for you ! Many 
 who call themfelves Chrift's difciples, would 
 be afhamed to write fo now. I fend this, and 
 that^ and the other ^y I fend my compliment s» 
 Obferve what he fliles himfelf, not as the 
 pope ;* but he fliles himfelf the elder. A ju- 
 dicious expofitor is of opinion, that all the 
 other apoftles were dead, and only poor John 
 left behind. I remember a remark of his, 
 *' the taller we grow, the lower we fliall 
 *^ (loop." The apoftle puts himfelf upon a 
 level with the common elders of a church, 
 
 that 
 
 * Whether Univerfal BIfhop, or Vicar of Chrift, Supreme 
 Hefid, Lord or Governor of the World, or a more blafphe- 
 3noiis title, is uncertain, the writer not hearing dillinftly the 
 Latin words in which it was expreficd. 
 
Sen III. Sold Profpcj^ity. vj 
 
 that he might not feem to take ftaceupon him, 
 not to rule as a lion, but with a rod of love; 
 the elder to the well-beloved Gains y 'whom 1 love 
 in the truth. This Gaius feems to be in our 
 modern language, what we call a gentleman, 
 particularly remarkable for his hofpitality, Gaius 
 mi7ie hoji 'y and this Gaius was well-beloved, 
 not only beloved, but well-beloved -, that is, 
 one who I greatly efteem and am fond of; but 
 then he fhows us likev/ife upon what this fond- 
 nefs is founded, whom I love in the truth. 
 There are a great many people in waiting fliy, 
 dear fir y ox good fir ^ and fubfcribe _)Wt'r humble 
 jervant^ fir \ and not one word of truth either 
 in the beginning or end 3 but John and Gaius's 
 love was in truth, not only in words, but in 
 deed and in truth ; as if he had faid, my heart 
 goes along with my hand while I am writing, 
 and it gives me pleafure in fuch a correfpon- 
 dence as this, or whom I love for the truth's 
 fake^ that is, whom I love for being particu- 
 larly attached to the truth ; and then our 
 friendfliip has a proper foundation, when the 
 love of God, and the Spirit of the Lord Jefu% 
 is the bafis and bond of it. One would think 
 this was enough now; the epiftles originally 
 were not divided into verfes as now that pco- 
 
 I pie 
 
58 Soul Profperity. Ser. III. 
 
 pie may the better find out particular places, 
 
 though perhaps not altogether fo properly as 
 
 they might. The apoftle's faying beloved is 
 
 not neediefs tautology, but proves the ftrength 
 
 of his afFeftion ; I wiflj that thou mayft pro/per y 
 
 end be in healthy even as thy foul profperefh, 
 
 Gaius, it feems, at this time felt a weak qdfn- 
 
 ilitution, or a bad habit of body ^ this may 
 
 fhow, that the moft ufeful perfons, the choiceft 
 
 favourites of heaven, muft not expeft to be 
 
 without the common infirmities of the human 
 
 frame 5 fo far from this, that it is often found 
 
 that a thoufand ufeful Chriftians have weakly 
 
 . conftitutions. That great and fweet finger of 
 
 Ifrael, Dr. Watts, I remember about two and 
 
 ' thirty years ago told me that he had got no 
 
 I fleep for three months, but what was procured 
 
 I by the moft exquifite art of the moft eminent 
 
 phyficians; and, my dear hearers, none but 
 
 thofe that have fuch habits of body can fym- 
 
 pathize with thofe that are under them. 
 
 When we are in high fpirits we think people 
 
 might do if they would, but when brought 
 
 down ourfelves we cannot ; but notwithftand- 
 
 ing his body was in this condition, his foul 
 
 profpered fo eminently, fo very eminently^ that 
 
 the apoftle could not think it a greater mercy, 
 
 or 
 
Ser. III. ^oul Profperify. 59 
 
 or the church a greater bleffing, than that his 
 bodily health might be as vigorous as the 
 health of his foul. I remember the great colo- 
 nel Gardiner, who had the honour of being 
 killed in his country's caufe, clofes one of his 
 laft letters to me, with wifliing I might enjoy 
 a thriving foul in a healthy body ; but this is 
 peculiar to the followers of Jsfus, they find 
 the foul profpers mod: when the body is worft ; 
 and obferve, he wifhes him a profpering body 
 above all things, that he might have joy and 
 health with a profperous foul -, for if we have 
 a good heart, and good health at the fame 
 time, and our hearts are alive to God, we go 
 on with a frefli gale. I obferve, that the foul 
 of man in general muft be made a partaker of 
 a divine life before it can be faid to profper at 
 all. The words of our text are particularly 
 applicable to a renewed heart, to one that is 
 really alive to God. When a tree is dead we 
 don't fo much as expedl leaves from it, nor to 
 fee any beauty at all in a plant or flower that 
 we know is abfolutely dead • and therefore the 
 foundation of the apoflle's wifli lies here, that 
 the foul of Gains, and confequently the fouls 
 of all true believers, have life communicated 
 to them from the Spirit of the living God. 
 I 2 Such 
 
to Soul Profperity. Ser. III. 
 
 Such a life may God of his infinite mercy im- 
 part to each of us ! and I think, if I am not 
 miftaken, and I beheve I may venture to fay 
 that I am not, that where the divine life is 
 implanted by the Spirit of the hving God, that 
 life admits of decreafe and increafe, admits of 
 dreadful decays, and alfo of fome blelTed re- 
 vivings. The rays of the divine life being 
 once implanted, it will grow up to eternal 
 life ', the new creation is juft like the old 
 when God faid let there he lights there was 
 light, which never ceafed fince the univerfe 
 was made, and the favourite creature man was 
 born. Upon a furvey of his ov^n works, God 
 pronounced every thing g^od, and entered into 
 his refi ; fo it will be with all thofe who are 
 made partiukets of the divine nature, 'The 
 icatcr that I f jail give him, JJjall be a well of 
 water [fringing up into everlajling life. 
 
 My brethren, from our firft coming into 
 the world, till our pafling out of it to the fpi- 
 rits of jiif men made perjeB, all the Lord's 
 Children have found, fome more, and others 
 lefs, that they have had dreadful as well as 
 bleffed times, and all has been over-ruled to 
 bring them nearer unto God : but I believe, I 
 am fure, I fpeak to fome this night, that if it 
 
 was 
 
Ser.III. Soul Profperity. 6i 
 
 was put to their choice, had rather know that 
 their fouls profpered, than to have ten thoufand 
 pounds left them : and it is fuppofed that we 
 may not only know it ourfelves, but that others 
 may know it, that their profiting^ as Paul 
 fays, may appear to all. Becaufe John fays, 
 / wifl:) above all thiiigs^ that thy body may be in 
 healthy as thy fitd profpers. O may all that 
 converfe with us fee it in us ! We may fre- 
 quently fit under the gofpel, but if we don't 
 take a great deal of care, however orthodox 
 we are, we fhall fall into pradtical Antinomi- 
 anifm, and be contented that we were con- 
 verted twenty or thirty years ago, and learn, 
 as fome Antinomians, to live by faith. Thank 
 God, fay fome, we met with God fo many 
 months ago, but are not at all folicitous whe-j 
 ther they meet with him any more ; and therd 
 is not a fingle individual here that is favingly 
 acquainted with Jefus Chrift, but wifhes his 
 foul profpered more than his body. 
 
 The great queftion is, how fliall I know 
 that my foul profpers ? I have been told that 
 there is fuch a thing as knowing this, and 
 that I can be confcious of it myfelf, and others 
 too. It may not be mifpending an hour, to 
 lay down fome marks whereby we may know 
 
 whe- 
 
6z Soul Trofperity. Sen III. 
 
 whether our fouls profper or no. If there be 
 any of you of an Antinomian turn of mind, 
 (I don't know there are any of you) I don't 
 know but you will be of the fame mind of the 
 man that came to me in Leadenhall twenty- 
 five years ago : Sir, fays he, you preached 
 upon the marks of the new birth. Marks, 
 fays I, yes, fir : O thank God, fays he, I am 
 above marks, I don't mind marks at all : and 
 you may be aflured perfons are upon the brink 
 of Aniinomianifm, that fay away with your 
 legal preaching. I wonder they don't fay as 
 they go along the ftreets, away with your 
 dials, away with your dials, we don't want 
 marks, we know what it is o'clock without 
 any. If the marks upon the foul of a believer 
 are like the fun-dial, there are marks to prove 
 that we are upon the right foundation : if the 
 jfun does not fhine on the fun-dial, there is 
 ' no knowing what o'clock it is ; but let it 
 fhine, and inftantaneoufly you know the time 
 of the day % this is not known when it is 
 cloudy i and who dare to fay but that a child 
 of God, for want of the fun of righteoufnefs 
 fhining upon his heart, may write bitter things 
 againft himfelf. A good man may have the 
 vapours, as one Mr. Brown had, that wrote 
 
 a book 
 
Ser. III. Soul Profperity. 63 
 
 a book of good hymns, who was fo vapour- 
 ifli, that no body could make him believe he 
 had a foul at all. Let the fun fhine, the be- 
 liever can fee whether the fun is in the meri- 
 dian at the fixth, ninth, or twelfth hour. O 
 that there might be great fearching of heart. 
 I have been looking up to God for diredion j 
 I hope the preaching of this may be to awa- 
 ken fome, to call back fome backlliders, to 
 awaken fome fmners that don't care whether 
 their fouls profper or no. I don't mean the 
 Tabernacle comers, or the Foundery comers, 
 or the church, or diffenters, but I fpeak to ail 
 of you, of whatever denomination you are ; 
 God of his infinite mercy give you his Spirit. 
 You that are believers, come, let us have that 
 common name among us all; if we have got 
 it, we go off well. If you want to know 
 whether your fouls profper, that is, whether 
 they are healthy; you know what a perfon 
 means when he wifhes your body to profper ; 
 let me alk you how it is between you and 
 God, with refped to fecret prayer ? Good Mr. 
 Bunyan fays, if we are prayerlefs, we are 
 Chriftlefs. None of God's people, fays he,; 
 come into the world ftill-born. Good Mr. 
 Birket (whofe commentary has gone througk 
 
 five 
 
64 ^^^^ Profperity. Ser. Iir, 
 
 five or fix-and-twenty editions 3 and yet I think 
 if he was now alive, and to preach once or 
 twice a day, they would cry. Away with his 
 commentary, and preaching and all) fpeaks 
 to the fame purpofe. Cojne into the world JiilU 
 born ! what language is that in a preacher's 
 mouth ? but it will do for thofe that hke to ♦. 
 ufe marks and figns. / will pour out a Spirit of 
 grace and fiippli cation^ fays the Lord ^ and I 
 will venture to fay, if the Spirit of grace re- 
 fides m the heart, the Spirit of fupplication will 
 not be wanting. Perfons under their firft love 
 dare not go without God 3 they go to God, 
 not as the formalift does, not for fear of going 
 to hell, or being damned. It is a mercy any 
 thing drives to prayer ; and a perfon under the 
 fpirit of bondage, that has been juft brought 
 to the liberty of the fons of God, goes freely to 
 his heavenly father, under the difcoveries and 
 conftraints of divine love. Come, I will ap- 
 peal to yourfelves 3 did not you, like a dear 
 fond mother, if the child, the beloved child, 
 made but the leafl noife in the world, O, fays 
 the mother, the dear child crys, I muft go and 
 hufh it: fo time was, when many hearkened 
 to the call of God, and could no more keep 
 from the prefence of God in fecret, than a 
 
 fond 
 
S&r. III. Soul Trofperity. 6$ 
 
 fond mother from the prefence of her dear 
 child; Now. if your fouls do profpcr, this 
 connexion between you and God will be kept 
 up ; I don't fay that you will always have 
 the fame fervour as when you firft fet out ; I 
 don't fay you will always be carried up into 
 the third heavens 5 the animal fpirits poffibly 
 will not admit of fuch folace -, but you fliould 
 enquire with yourfelves, whether you would 
 be eafy to be out of God's company? Steal 
 from behind your counter, and go and con- 
 verfe with God, Sir Thomas Abney, who 
 was obfervable for keeping up conftant prayer 
 in his family, being afked how he kept up 
 prayer that night he was fworn in Lord- 
 Mayor ? Very wellj fays he, I got the com- / 
 pany into my room, and entertained them, 
 and when the time came, I told them I mufl 
 leave them a litde, while I went and prayed f 
 with my family, and returned again. God . 
 grant we may have many fuch Lord-Mayors* 1 
 If our fouls profperj the fame principle v»^ill 
 reign in us, and make us confcientioufly attend 
 on the means of grace. It is a moft dreadful 
 mark of an enthufiaflic turn of mind, when 
 perfons think they are fo high in grace, that 
 they thank God they have no need of ordi- 
 
 K nances. 
 
66 Soul Profperity. Ser. Ill, 
 
 nances. Our being the children of God, is fo 
 far from being the caufe of our wanting no 
 ordinances, that, properly fpeaking, the ordi- 
 nances are intended for the nourifliing of the 
 children of God 5 not only for the awaking the 
 foul at firft, but for the feeding the foul after- 
 wards. If the fame nourifliment the child re- 
 ceives before, feeds it after it is born ; and as 
 the manna never failed, but the children of 
 Ifrael partook of it daily white in the wilder- 
 nefs, till they came to Canaan, fo we fliall 
 want our daily bread, we fhall Want the God 
 of grace and mercy to convey his divine life 
 into our hearts, till we get into the heavenly 
 Canaan. There faith will be turned into vifion, 
 and then we fhall not want ordinances ; and 
 let people fay what they will, if our fouls 
 profper we fhall be glad of ordinances, we 
 ihall love the place where God dwells^ we 
 fliall not fay, fuch a one preaches and I luill not 
 go^ but If we are among them we fliall be glad 
 of a good plain country difli, as well as a fine 
 garniflied defert^ and if our fouls profper, wc 
 fliall be fond of the mefiengers as well as the 
 meffage: we fliall admire as much to hear a 
 good ram's- horn, fuch as blov/ed down the 
 w^alls of Jericho, as a fine filvcr trumpet. So 
 
 in 
 
Ser. III. Sou] Profperity 67 
 
 in all the ordinances of the Lord, that of the 
 Lord's-fuppcr for example ; if the foul does 
 not attend thereon, it is an evidence that it 
 does not profper. It is a wonder if that foul 
 has not done fomething to make it afraid to 
 meet God at his table. Adcvn^ u^here art 
 tboii ? fays the eternal Logos to his fallen crea- 
 ture ; and every time we mifs, whether we 
 think of it or no, the Redeemer puts It down j 
 but if our fouls profper, how fhall we run to 
 the table of the Lord, and be glad to come 
 often to the commemoration of his death. 
 
 I will venture to affirm farther, that if your 
 fouls profper, yoa will grow downwards. 
 What is that? why you will grow in the 
 knowledge of yourfelves. I heard, when I 
 v/as at Liibon, that fome people tlxere began 
 at the top of the houfe firft. It is odd kind of I 
 preaching that will do for the Papifts, refting \ 
 merely in externals. The knowledge of our- 
 felves is the firfi; thing God implants. LorJ, 
 let me know myfelj\ was a prayer that one of 
 the Fathers put up for fixteen years together ; 
 and if you have high thoughts of yourfelves, 
 you may knov/ you are light-headed, you for- 
 get what poor filly creatures you are. As oar 
 fouls profper we fliall be more and more fenli- 
 K 2 ble, 
 
68 Soul Profferify. Sen III. 
 
 ble, not only of the outfide, but of the infide ; 
 we firfl: battle with the outward man, but as 
 we advance in the divine life, we have nearer 
 views of the chambers of imagery that are in 
 our hearts 3 and one day after another we fhall 
 find more and more abominations there, and 
 confequently we fliall fee more of the glory of 
 Jefus Chrift, the wonders of that Immanuel, 
 who daily delivers us from this body of fin and 
 death ; and I mention this, becaufe there is 
 nothing more common, efpecially with young 
 Chriftians. I ufed formerly to have at leaft a 
 hundred or two hundred in a day, who would 
 come and fay, O dear, I am fo and fo, I met 
 with God 3 ah ! that is quite well ; a week 
 after they would come and fay, O, fir, it is all 
 delufion, there was nothing in it 3 what is the 
 matter? O never was fuch a wretch as I am, 
 I never thought I had fuch a wicked heart. 
 Oh ! God cannot love me 5 now, fir, all my 
 fervour, and all that I felt is gone 3 and what 
 then? does a tree never grow but when it 
 grows upward ? fome trees I fancy grow 
 flownward 3 and the deeper you grow in the 
 knowledge of yourfelf, the deeper you grow 
 in the knowledge of God and his grace, that 
 dilcov^rs the corruptions of ypur hearts. Do 
 
 not 
 
Ser. III. Soul Profperify. 69 
 
 not you find that aged men look back upon 
 fome former ftates. I know fome people 
 can't look back to fee hov/ many fins they have 
 been guilty of 5 but if grace helps us to a fight 
 of our inherent corruptions, it will make us 
 weary of it, and lead us to the blood of Chrifl 
 to cleanfe us from it; confequently, if your 
 fouls profper, the more you will fall in love 
 with the glorious Redeemer, and with his 
 righteoufnefs. I never knew a perfon in my 
 life that diligently ufed the word, and other 
 means, but as they improved in grace, faw 
 more and more the neceffity of depending 
 upon a better righteoufnefs than their own. 
 Generally when we firft fet out, we have got 
 better hearts than heads ; but if we grow in 
 the divine life, our heads will grow as well as 
 our hearts, and the Spirit of God leads out of 
 abominable felf, and caufes us to flee more 
 and more to that glorious and com pleat righ^ 
 teoufnefs that Jefus Chrifl: wrought out. 
 
 The more your fouls profper, the more you 
 will fee of the freenefs and difl:inguiihing na- 
 ture of God's grace, that all is of grace. We 
 are all naturally free-willers, and generally 
 young ones fay, O we have found the Meffiah, 
 of whom Mofes and the prophets fpoke ; 
 
 which 
 
yo Soul Frofperlty. Ser. III. 
 
 v/hich is right, except that word ive have 
 found % for the believer a Httie after learns, 
 that the Mejftah had found him. I mention, 
 this, becaufe we ought not to make perfons 
 offenders for a word ; we fliould bear with 
 young Chriftians, and not knock a young 
 child's brains out, becaufe he cannot fpeak in 
 blank verfe. 
 
 Let it not be forgotton alfo, that the more 
 your fouls profper, the more you will get 
 above the world. You cannot think that I 
 mean you fhonld be negligent 2bout the things 
 of this life. Nothing tries my temper more, 
 than to fee any about me idle ^ an idle perfon 
 tempts the devil to tempt him. In the ftate 
 of paradife Adam and Eve were to drefs the 
 garden, and not to be idle there; after the 
 fall they were to till the ground : but if any 
 body fays that the Methoditls think to be 
 idle, they injure them. We tell people to 
 rife and be at their work early and late, that 
 they may redeem time to attend the word. 
 If all tlut fpeak againfl the Methodifts were 
 as diligent, it would be better for their wives 
 and families. What do you think a true Me- 
 thodift will be idle ? no, he will be bufy with 
 his hands, he knows time is precious, and 
 
 there- 
 
Ser. III. Soul Profperity. f^t 
 
 therefore he will work hard that he may have 
 to give to them that need, and at the fame 
 time he will hve above the world ; and you 
 know the earth is under your feet, io is the 
 world. When he goes to fleep he will fay, 
 I care not whether I wake more. I can look 
 back, and tell you of hundreds and hundreds 
 t-hat once feemed alive to God, and have been 
 drawn away with a little fi/thy, nafty dirt. 
 How many places are there erhpty here, that 
 have been filled with perfons that once were 
 zealous in their attendance? As a perfon the 
 other day, to whofe having a place it was 
 objeded, that he was 'u Methodift ; no, f^iys , 
 he, I have not been a Methodifl thefe twd j 
 years. I do not, for my partj wifli people \ 
 joy when they get • money 3 only take care k 
 does not get into, and put your eyes out ; it ' 
 your money ihcreaies, let your zeal for good ; 
 works increafe. Perhaps fome ftranger will 
 fay, I thought you was againft good works, 
 I tell you the truth, I am againft good vi'orks, 
 don't run away before I have finished my {en- 
 tence ; we are againft good works being put f 
 in the room of Chrill, as the ground of our; 
 acceptance J but w^e look upon it, if we have 
 a right faith, our faith vvHl work by love. 
 
 Ever 
 
7* Svul Profperify, Sen III^ 
 
 Ever fince I was a boy, I remember to have 
 heard a ftory of a poor indigent beggar, who 
 alked a clergyman to give him his alm^, 
 which being refufed, he faid, will you pleafe, 
 xlir, to give me your bJeffing ; fays he, God 
 Iblefs you : O, replied the beggar, you would 
 ■not give me that if it was worth any thing. 
 There are many who will talk very friend- 
 ly to you, but if they fuppofe you are come 
 for any thing, they will run away as from a 
 pick-pocket; whereas, if our fouls profpered, 
 we fhould count it more blefed to give than to 
 receive. When we rife from our beds this 
 would be our queftion to ourfelve?, what can 
 I do for God to day ? what can I do for the 
 poor? have I two, or five, or ten talents? 
 God help me to do for the poor as much as 
 if I knew I was to live only this day. 
 
 In a word, if your fouls profper, my dear 
 hearers, you will grow in love. There are 
 fome good fouls, but very narrow fouls ; they 
 are fo afraid of loving people that differ from 
 them, that it makes me uneafy to fee it. 
 Party fpirits creep in among Chriftians, and 
 whereas it was formerly faid, fee how theje 
 Chrijiians love one another ! now it may be 
 faid, Jee how thefe Chrijliafis hate one a?iother I 
 
 Ide- 
 
Ser. III. Soul Profperify, 73 
 
 I declare from the bottom of my heart, that 
 I am more and more convinced that the prin- 
 ciples I have preached are the v^ord of God, 
 Pray u^hat do you do at Change 5 is there fuch 
 a thing as a Prefbyterian, or Independent, or 
 Church- walk there ? is there any chambers 
 there for the Prelbyterian?, and Independents, ; 
 and Churchmen to deal in ? People may] 
 boaft of their wildfire-zeal for God, till theyl 
 can*t bear the fight of a perfon that differs 
 from them. The apoftle commends Gaius 
 for his catholic love, for his love to ftrangers. 
 That was a glorious faying of a good woman 
 in Scotland, Come in^ fays fhe, ye blejfed of 
 the Lord ; I have a houfe that will hold a hun- 
 dred, and a heart that will hold ten thoufand. 
 God give us fuch a heart 5 he that dwelleth in 
 lovey dwelleth in God, I could mention twen- 
 ty marks, and fo go on wire-drawing till nine 
 or ten o'clock ; but it is befi to deal with our 
 fouls as with our bodies, to eat but little at a 
 time. It is fo with preaching; though I don't 
 proce;ed any farther in my difcourfe, God blefs 
 what has been faid. 
 
 But is there a child of God here that can go 
 away without a drooping heart ? I don't fpeak 
 that you may thiak me humble : I love fin- 
 
 L ceritv, 
 
74 ^0^^ Prcfperity. Ser. Ill, 
 
 cerity, inward and outward, and hate guile. 
 When I think what God has done to me, 
 how often he has pruned me, and dug and 
 dung'd about me, and when I think how little 
 I have done for God, it makes me weep if 
 poffible tears of blood 3 it makes me cry, O 
 niy leannefsy my leannefsy as I exprelTed myfelf 
 with my friend to day. This makes me long, 
 if my Itrength of body would permit, to be- 
 gin to be in earned for my Lord. What fay 
 you, my dear friends, have all of you got the 
 fame temper ? have you made the progrcfs you 
 ought to have done? O London! London! 
 highly favoured London! what would fomc 
 people give for thy privileges ? what would 
 the people I was called to preach to but this 
 day fe'ennight ? A good, a right honourable 
 lady, about three-and-twenty miles off, has 
 brought the gofpel there. The people that I 
 preached to longed and thirfted after the fame 
 meffage; they faid, they thought they never 
 heard the truth before. You have the manna 
 poured out round the camp, and I am afraid 
 you are calling it light bread y at leaft, I am 
 afraid you have had a bad digeftion. Conlider 
 of it, and for Jefus Chrift's fake tremble for 
 fear God fiould remove his candlefiick from 
 
 atnong 
 
Ser. III. Soul Profpenty. 75 
 
 among you. Labourers are fick ; thofe that 
 did once labour are almoft worn out, and 
 others they only bring thenifelves into a nar- 
 row fphere, and fo confine their ufefulnefs. 
 There are few that like to go out in the fields ; 
 broken heads and dead cats are no more the 
 ornaments of a Methodift, but fiik fcarves. 
 Thofe honourable badges are now no more : 
 the langour has got from the minifters to the 
 people, and if you don't take care, we fliall 
 all fall dead together. The Lord Jefus roufe 
 us, the Son of God roufe us all. Ye fhould 
 fliow the world the way, and ye that have 
 been Methodifts of many years (landing, (how 
 the young ones that have not the crofs to bear 
 as we once had, what ancient Methodilm was. 
 As for you who are quite negligent about 
 the profpericy of your fouls, who only mind 
 your bodies, who are more afraid of a pimple 
 in your faces, than of the rottennefs of your 
 hearts ; that will fay, O give me a good bot- 
 tle and a fowl, and keep the profperity of you^ 
 fouls to yourfelves. You had better take care 
 what you fay, for fear God Hiould take you 
 at your word. I knew fome trade(men and 
 farmers, and one had got a wife perhaps with 
 a fortune too, who prayed they might be 
 L 2 excufed. 
 
76 Soul Profperity. Ser. III. 
 
 excufedj they never came to the fupper, and 
 God fent them to hell for it too j this may be 
 your cafe. I was told to-day of a young wo- 
 man, that was very well on Sunday when fhe 
 left her friends, when fhe came home was 
 racked with pain, had an inflammation in her 
 bowels, aiid is now a breathlefs corpfe. Ano- 
 ther that I heard of, a Chriftlefs preacher, that 
 always minded his body, when he was near 
 death he faid to his wife, I fee hell opened for 
 me, I fee the damned tormented, I fee fuch a 
 one in hell that I debauched ^ in the midft of 
 his agony he faid, I am coming to thee, I am 
 coming, I muft be damned, God will damn 
 my foul, and died. Taxke care of jefting with 
 God ; there is room enough in hell, and if you 
 negled: the profperity of your fouls what will 
 become of you ? what will you give for a grain 
 of hope when God requires your fouls? awake 
 then thatjleepeji', hark ! hark ! hark ! hear the 
 word of the Lord, the living God. Help me, 
 O ye children of God : I am come with a 
 warrant from Jefus of Nazareth to night. Ye 
 rninifters of Chrift that are here, help me with 
 your prayers : ye fervants of the living God, 
 Jielp me with your prayers. O with what 
 iuccefs did I preach in Mooriields when I had 
 
 ten 
 
Ser. III. Soul Profperity. yy 
 
 ten thoufand of God's people praying for me ; 
 pray to God to ftrengthen my body : don't be 
 afraid I fhall hurt myfelf to-night : I don't 
 care what hurt I do myfelf if God may blefs 
 it^ I can preach but little, but may God blef^ 
 that little. I weep and cry and humble myfelf 
 before God daily for being laid afide 5 I would 
 not give others the trouble if I could preach 
 myfelf. You have had the firft of me, and 
 you will have the laft of me : the angels of 
 God waited for your converfion, and are now 
 ready to take care of the foul when it leaves 
 the rotten carcafe. The worft creature under 
 heaven, that has not a penny in the world, 
 may be welcome unto God. However it has 
 been with us in times paft, may our fouls prof- 
 per in time to come 5 which God grant of his 
 infinite mercy, Amen. 
 
 SERMOr 
 
[ 78 ] 
 
 ^ 
 
 S E R M O N IV. 
 
 The Gofpel a dying Saint's Triumph. 
 A Funeral Sermon. 
 
 Mark xvi. ver. 15, 16. 
 
 jind he [aid unto them^ Go ye into all the. 
 
 worldy and preach the gofpel to every crea-- 
 
 ture. He that believeth and is baptized 
 
 JJjallbefaved^ but he that believeth not Jhall 
 
 be damned. 
 
 I A M perfuaded I need not inform this 
 auditory, that when ambaffadors are fent 
 to a prince, or when judges go their re- 
 fpedtlve circuits, it is always cuftomary for 
 them to fhow their credentials, to open and 
 read their commiflions, by which they adl in 
 ]ns Majefty's name. The fame is abfolutely 
 neceflary for thofe who are ambaiTadors of the 
 Son of God, as they would be faithful to their 
 Lord \ fince they are to fit with him on the 
 
 throne. 
 
 i 
 
Ser. IV. The Go/pel a Saint* s Triumph. yg 
 
 throne, when he fhall come the fecond time 
 to judge both evil angels and men. If any 
 ll:iould aik me, where is their commiflion ? it 
 has been jufl now read unto you. Here it is 
 in my hand, it is written with the King's own 
 hand, by the finger of the ever-blefled God, 
 and fealed with the fignet of his eternal Spirit, 
 with his broad feal annexed to it. The com- 
 miffion is fhort, but v;3ry extenfive; and it is 
 remarkable, it was given out jull before the 
 Redeemer went to heaven ; he referved it in 
 infinite wifdom for his laft blefling, to appoint 
 and employ vicegerents to carry on his work 
 on earth. He that bath an ear^to hear^ let 
 him hear what the Son of God fays to a com- 
 pany of poor fifhermen. There was not one 
 fcholar among them all. What does he fay; 
 Go ye into all the worldy and preach the gofpel 
 to every creature. Let us paufe a while, and 
 before we go further let us fee what mercy, 
 what love, and yet withal, what equal ma- 
 jefty are blended in this expreflion or com- 
 miflion. Go yc^ ye poor filliermen, ye that 
 the letter-learned dodlors will look upon as 
 illiterate men ; Go ye^ that have hitherto been 
 dreaming of temporal preferments, quarrelling 
 'who fiouldfit on my right hand and on my left 
 
 hand 
 
8o The Gofpd a Scr. IV. 
 
 hand in my kingdom 5 Go ye^ not flay till the 
 people come to you, but imitate the condudt 
 of your Mafter 5 Go ye^ remembring that the 
 devil will not permit fouls to be fond of hear- 
 ing you : Go therefore 5 where ? into all the 
 world y there is a commiffion for you; there 
 never was fuch a commiffion on the earth 5 
 there never was any like this ^ Go into all the 
 worlds that is, into the Gentile as well as the, 
 Jewifh world. Hitherto my gofpel has been 
 confined to the Jews ; I once told you, you 
 muft not go to the Gentiles ; I once told a 
 poor woman that came to me, // is not meet 
 to take the^childrem breads and give it unto 
 dogs : but the partition wall being now broke 
 down, the veil of the tem.pic being now rent 
 in twain, he gave them a univerfal commif- 
 fion 'y Go ye, therefore, into all the world \ 
 how 1 what go into other minifters parifhes ? 
 for there was not a diftrict then but what was 
 fettled with fhepherds, fuch as they were; 
 yes, yes. Go into all the world-, and though 
 I will not pretend to fay, that this enjoins mi- 
 nifters to go into every part of the world ; yet 
 I infift upon it, and by the grace of God, if i 
 was to die for it, I will fay, that no power on 
 earth has power to reflrain minifters from 
 
 preach* 
 
Ser. IV» dying Saint's Triumph. 8i 
 
 preaching where a company of people are 
 willing to hear ^ and if minifters were of a 
 right temper, they would fay as a mlnifler did 
 at Oxford, that ufed to vifit the prifoners 
 there ; I remember once I went to afk him 
 whether I might go and vifit fome of his pa- 
 rifh, whether he was offended at our going to 
 vifit the prifoners? No, no, fays he, I am 
 glad I have any fuch young curates as you. 
 And if minifters were of fuch a temper now, O 
 dear the devil would fly before us. As good 
 Mr. Philip Henry faid to the minifter of Broad 
 Oaks, from whence he was ejedted, but 
 preached afterwards in a barn, and meeting , 
 the minifter after fermon was over; Sir, fays.' 
 Mr. Henry, I have been mailing bold to throw 
 a handful oj feed into your ground. Thank 
 you, fir, fays he, God blefs it, there is work 
 enough for us both. We may talk of what we 
 will, fearch into the bottom, it is not for 
 want of light, but of more zeal and love to 
 the Son of God : if we were as warm, and full 
 of the love of God as we ought to be, thefe 
 pretty excufes we urge to fave our bones, 
 would not be fo much as mentioned 5 we fhould 
 go out and leave thefe carcafes to the grace of 
 God. I don*t fee how we can adt as priefts 
 M o| 
 
82 The Go/pel a Ser. IV. 
 
 of the church of England without doing it. 
 Be fo kind as read the Ordination Service as 
 foori as you go home ; for the office of ordi- 
 nation and confecration of bifhops, priefls, 
 and deacons, is left out of moft of the com- 
 mon prayer books, fo that people are as igno- 
 rant of it as if it was not. The office of a 
 prieft is this : he is not to confine himfelf to 
 his place, no ; what then ? why he is to go 
 forth^ andfeek after the children oj God that 
 
 *"-/-i^^ i/r^ difperfed in this needy world -y thefe are the 
 
 ' very words that the bifhop fpeaks to us when 
 
 we are ordained j but if we are confined to one 
 
 particular place, and are to be fliut up in one 
 
 corner, pray how do we feek the children of 
 
 g^'^' I ^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ difperfed in this needy world ? 
 Pariffies and fettled minifters there muft be, 
 but we are not, I infifl: on it, to be hindered 
 from preaching Chrift any where, becaufe he 
 bids us go into all the world -, here is our li- 
 cence. I acknowledge the Chapel is licenfed ; 
 here is my licence, and wherever I go I Will 
 produce my licence ; where ? why out of the 
 1 6th of Mark ; Go ye^ and preach the go [pel 
 to all the world: there is the licence, and the 
 Spirit oi Chrift helping us to preach by that 
 licence, will make all the devirs children 
 
 cowards 
 
Ser. IV. dyifjg Saint's Triumph. 83 
 
 cowards before us. We have tried them thefe 
 thirty years, would to God we fet about it 
 now y if I had ftrength I would fet about it 
 to-morrow ; I only grieve that my body will 
 not hold out for field-preaching, elfe Ken- 
 nington-Common fliould be my pulpit, for 
 any place is confecrated where Chrifl; is pre- 
 fent. Well, what muft we go forth to do ? 
 Go ye into all the world, and preach -, preach ! 
 what is that? why the original w^ord for 
 preach is to fpeak out, as a crier does that cries 
 goods that are loft; proclaim it. And Ifaiah 
 would be reckoned a dreadful enthufiaft if 
 now alive. How does he preach ? he preaches 
 in the King's chapels fuch language and elo- 
 quence as would carry all before it ; and yet 
 how does he preach? Ho^ every one that 
 thirfteth. O, he lijts up his voice like atriim-' 
 pet. And the word preach fignifies to pro- 
 claim; to cry aloud, and [pare not. How do 
 you like one that cries your loft goods if he 
 only whifpers ? would you chufe to employ a 
 man that you could not hear two yards? O, 
 fay you, I fhall never find my goods : and if 
 perfons have what qualifications they may, if 
 they cannot be heard at all ; they need not < 
 preach at all. I knov/ a prebend in the cathe- 
 
 M 2 dral 
 
S4 ^^^ Go/pel a Ser. IV. 
 
 dral of York, who fpoke fo very low nobody 
 heard him ^ fomebody faid, they never heard 
 fuch a moving fermon in all their lives in that 
 cathedral, for it made all the people move outy 
 becaufe they could not hear. The matter of 
 the miniftry of the gofpel is of infinite impor- 
 tance: unlefs, my brethren, we could be 
 heard, what do we preach for ? It implies 
 earneftnefs in the preaching, and the preacher. 
 You expecft a perfon, like one that is crying 
 your goods, to be in earneft \ and if we preach, 
 and make the King's proclamation, we ihould 
 jbe in earneft. It is faid, Chrijl opened his 
 mouth and taught. Now a modern critic 
 would laugh at that; open his mouth, fay 
 they, how could he fpeak without opening his 
 mouth? Would it not be better to fay, he 
 taught them ? No, no, there is no idle word 
 in God's book. It is faid, the Lord Je/us 
 opened his mouth : what for ? why, to get in 
 breach that he might fpeak loud to the people, 
 when the heavens were Lis founding board j 
 then did he open his mouth, and taught them 
 in earneft, powerfully -, and therefore the peo^ 
 pie make this obfervation when he had done , 
 fpenking, that he fpoke as one having authority^ 
 ^na not fs the Scribes^. There is no difpenfa? 
 
 tion 
 
Ser. IV. dying Saint's Triumph. 85 
 
 tion from preaching, but ficknefs or want of 
 abilities, to thofe that are ordained to preach ; 
 and therefore it was a proverb in the primitive 
 church, fbat it Becomes a bijhop to die preach^ 
 ing, Bifliop Jewell, that blefled minifter of 
 the church of England, gave that anfwer to a 
 perfon that met his lordfhip walking on foot 
 in the dirt, going to preach to a few people. 
 Why does your lordfhip, weak as you are, 
 cxpofe yourfelf thus ? fays he, it becomes a 
 bifhop to die preaching. Lord fend all the 
 world that have bifliops fuch jewels as he was ! 
 Pray what are they to preach ? not themfelves. 
 What are they to preach ? why they are to 
 preach not morality : not morality ! come, 
 don't be frightened, any of you that are afraid 
 of good works don't be frightened this morn- 
 ing : I fay not morality ; that is, morality is 
 not to be the grand point of their preaching ; 
 they are not to preach as an heathen philofo- 
 pher would, A late bifhop of Lincoln, who 
 has not been dead a long while, faid to his 
 chaplain, You are not a minifter of Cicero, or 
 any of the heathen philofophers ; you are not 
 to entertain your people with dry morality, but ^ 
 remember you are a minifter of Chrift ^ you/ 
 are, therefore, to preach the gofpel 3 and if 
 
 you 
 
86 lie Gofpel a Ser. IV. 
 
 \ you will not preach the gofpel in the church, 
 
 ' I you muft not be angry for the poor people's 
 
 Igoing out into the fields where they hear the 
 
 / gofpel ; that is to be your grand theme, Go 
 
 '' into all the world and preach the gofpeL 
 
 Now the gofpel fignifies good news, glad 
 tidings : Behold I bring yoUy faid the angel, 
 glad tidings of great joy. Mean and con- 
 temptible as the ofHce of a preacher may be 
 thought now, the angels were glad of the 
 commiffion to preach this gofpel: and Dr. 
 Goodwin, that learned pious foul, fays in his 
 familiar way, and that is the beft way of wri- 
 ting, God had but one Son, and he made a 
 minifter of him 5 and I add, he made an iti- 
 nerant minifter of him too. Well, and fome 
 fay, you muft not preach the law 5 you can-, 
 not preach the gofpel without preaching the 
 law ; for you fhall find by and by, we are to 
 preach fomething that the people muft be £ved 
 by : it is impoffible to tell them how they are 
 to be faved, unlefs we tell them what they are 
 to be faved fi'om. The way the Spirit of God 
 takes, is like that we take in preparing the 
 ground : do you think any farmer would have 
 a crop of corn next year unlefs they plow now j 
 and you may as well exped; a crop of corn on 
 
 un- 
 
Ser. IV. dying Saint's Triumph. 87 
 
 unplowed ground, as a crop of grace, until 
 the foul is convinced of its being undone with- 
 out a Saviour. That is the reafon we have fo 
 many mufhroom converts, fo many perfons 
 that are always happy ! happy ! happy ! and 
 never were miferable ; why ? becaufe their 
 ftony ground is not plowed up 3 they have not 
 got a convicftion of the law ; they are ftony- 
 ground hearers -, they hear the word with ioy^ 
 and in a time of temptation^ which will foon 
 come after a feeming or real converfion, they 
 fall away. They ferve Chrift as the young 
 man ferved the Jews that laid hold of him, 
 who, when he found he was like to be a pri- 
 foner for following Chrift, left his garments; 
 and fo fome people leave their profeffion. That 
 makes me fo cautious now, which I w^as not 
 thirty years ago, of dubbing people converts la 
 foon. I love now to wait a little, and fee if ^ 
 people bring forth fruit ; for there are fo many \ 
 bloflbms which March winds vou know blow I 
 away, that I cannot believe they are converts' 
 till 1 fee fruit brought forth. It wiii do con- 
 verts no harm to keep them a little back ; it 
 will never do a fincere foul any harm. 
 
 We are to preach the gofpel : to whom ? to 
 every creature : here is the commiffion, every 
 
 crea- 
 
88 The Gofpel a Ser. IV. 
 
 creature. I fuppofe the apoftles were not to 
 fee every creature; they did not go into all 
 nations ; they had particular diftrids j but 
 wherever they did go, they preached. Did 
 you ever hear Paul, or any of the apoftles, 
 fent away a congregation without a fermon ? 
 No, no : when turned out of the temple they 
 preached in the highways, hedges, ftreets, and 
 lanes of the city : they went to the water-fide j 
 there Lydia was catched. My brethren, we 
 have got a commiffion here from Chrift ; and 
 not only a commiffion, but we have a com- 
 mand to preach to every creature ; all that are 
 willing to hear. He that hath an ear to hear^ 
 let him hear ; and if fome Ihall fay, they will 
 not come if we do preach, would to God we 
 tried them: where the car cafe is there will the 
 eagles be gathered together. We are to preach 
 glad tidings of falvation; to tell a poor be- 
 nighted world, lying in the wicked one the 
 devil, their ftate and condition : we are to tell 
 them, God is love-, to tell them, that God 
 loves them better than they do themfelves. 
 We muft preach the law, but not leave the 
 people there. We muft tell them how Mofes 
 brings them to the borders of Canaan, and then 
 tell them of a glorious Jofhua that will carry 
 
 them 
 
Ser. IV. dying Sainfs T^riumphT 89 
 
 them over Jordan ; firft, to fhew them their 
 wants; and then point out to them a Jefus that 
 can fupply, and more than iupply, all their 
 wants. This we are to tell e'very creature \ 
 and it is for this that people ftone gofpel preach- 
 ers. I don't think the prifoners would be 
 angry with us if we were to tell them, the 
 king commiflions us to declare to them that 
 they might come out of their prifon, that their 
 chains may be knocked off. If you was to go 
 to one of them and fay, Here you have your 
 chains ; and he was to fay, I have no chains 
 on at alii you would think that man*s brains 
 turned -, and fo are every man's that does not 
 fee himfelf to be in the chains of fin and de- 
 ceit. We are to preach liberty to the captives^ 
 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord -, 
 foimd the jubilee trumpet^ and tell them the year 
 oj releafe is come 3 that Jefus can make them 
 happy. 
 
 But, pray, if we are to preach, what are 
 the creatures to do that fee their ne^d of this 
 falvation ? I will tell you ; they are to believe. 
 He that believeth^ and is baptized^ &c. The 
 grand topics Chrift's minrfters are to preach, 
 are repentance towards God, and faith in our 
 Lo?:d je/us Chrijl, The men oi the world 
 
 N^^ fancy 
 
go 7he Go/pel a Sef. IV. 
 
 fancy they have believed already, and fome of 
 them lift up their heads and fay, Thank God^ 
 we have believed ever fince we were born 3 
 and in one fenfe many people believe, but in 
 what fenfe ? juft as the devil believes ; they 
 believe, and ftill continue devils in their carnal 
 ftate 5 that is, they alTent to the gofpel, they 
 aflent to it as a thing that is credible. This is 
 our fchool definition of faith ; and I believe 
 there are thoufands that call themfelves Chrlf- 
 tians, that don't believe a thoufandth part of 
 what the devil does. The devil believes more 
 than an Arian, for he does not believe Chrift 
 to be God j the devil faysj / know whom thou 
 art^ the Holy One of God. The devil will r:fe 
 up in judgment againft him. He believes 
 more than a Socinian, who beheves Jcfus 
 Chrift to be no more than an extraordinary 
 man; and he believes more of Jefus Chrifl 
 than thoufands of profeffors do, who are nei- 
 ther Arians or Socinians. There are a thou- 
 fand things in this book * that many people, 
 if you come to clofe- quarters with them, will 
 fay they do not believe, though they are 
 afl:iamed to own it. The furtheft that they 
 go, is to affent to the Creed, to the Lord's- 
 
 prayer^ 
 
 '♦' Holding oat his bible* 
 
Sen IV. dying Saint's Iriumph. 91 
 
 prayer, and Ten Commandments ; and if a 
 perfon can fay thefe in their mother tongue, 
 and have been baptized by the prieft, and 
 confirmed by the bi/hop, and go to church 
 once a week, and now and then on holidays, 
 they think they are not only believers, but 
 ftrong believers. I am not againft going to 
 church, nor againft the Creed, the Lord's- 
 prayer, and the Commandments ; I love and 
 honour them, and I pray God we may always 
 have them ; and I would not have our liturgy 
 or articles departed from for ten thoufand 
 worlds. Many would have them altered, be- 
 .caufe there are fome faults in them 3 but if our 
 modern people were to alter them, they would 
 make them ten thoufand times worfe than they 
 are. But believing is fomething more \ it is a 
 coming to Jefus Chrift, receiving Jefus, rolling 
 ourfelves on Jefus j it is a trufting in the Lord 
 Jefus. I do not know any one fingle thing 
 more varioufly expreffed in the fcriptures than 
 believing ; why ? becaufe it is the marrow of 
 the gofpel. Without faith we cannot be juC- 
 tified, either in our perfons or performances ; 
 and therefore the Holy Ghofl has varioufly 
 expreflcd it, to let us fee the importance of 
 the point. It is expreffed by a coming, truft* 
 N 2 ing. 
 
./ 
 
 9^ "J^ht Gefpel a Ser. IV. 
 
 ing^ receiving, and relying, (all which amounts 
 to the fame thing) under a felt conviftion that 
 we are loft, undone, condemned without him 2 
 for, as a good old Puritan obferves, Chrift is 
 beholden to none of us for our hearts ; we 
 never fhould come to Jefus Chrift, the 
 finner's laft ftiift, till we feel we cannot do 
 without him. We are like the woman with 
 the bloody illlie ^ flie fpent a great deal of mo- 
 ney upon phyficians ; if fhe had had the funi 
 of one half-guinea more, till that was gone 
 fhe never would have come to Chrift; but 
 having fpent all, and then hearing that Jefus 
 was to come that way, a fenfe of her need, a 
 feeling fenfe of her impotence, and infufficiency 
 of all other applications^ made her come to 
 Chrift; faying in her heart. If I could but 
 touch the hem of his garment IJJjould be whole ; 
 jefus^ the fon of Davidy would have mercy on 
 me ; or words to that purpofe* She did not 
 go about and fay, pray lend me a common- 
 prayer book ; it was not in print then. Where 
 muft fhe borrow one ? her heart, touched by 
 God, was the beft common-prayer 5 and a few 
 words, uttered from a i^wic of her weaknefs 
 and mifery, was more rhetoric, v^as more 
 mufic in the ears of God, than an extempore 
 
 prayer 
 
Scr. IVv dying Saint's Triwnpbl 93 
 
 prayer by a gifted man, admiring himfelf for 
 an hour and half.. As a perfon told me but 
 yefterday> of a poor outlandifli Papift that 
 was condemned to die, held out for a long 
 whiles he would not fpeak to a Proteftant 
 minifter, but a night or two before he fufFered, 
 comes out to him, and fays, Me now fee the ne^ , 
 cejjity of a greater abfohition than a priefl can. 
 give me ; and then, in his broken language, cries \ 
 out^ Dear Lord Jefus^ fidow thy charity to thy ; 
 poor [inner ! There is language ! there is rhe-»- j 
 toric for you ! and we ourfelves like fuch lan- 
 guage. You don't like fawning people that 
 come into your room, and by their very man- 
 ner of coming prove they are not fincere ; but 
 a poor creature that comes to pour out two or 
 three words you fee is honeft^ you will not fay 
 to fuch a one, Why do you come to me, and 
 not fpeak blank verfe ? why\do you come to 
 me, and not fpeak fine language ? No ; fince- 
 rity is the things fnicerity is all in all. When 
 we are once convinced of our need and help- 
 lefsnefs^ and of Jefus's being a Redeemer, 
 that is mighty and willing to fave, a poor foul 
 then throws himfelf upon this Jefus, receives 
 this Jefus, ventures upon this Jefus, believes 
 the word, and by thus venturing on the pro- 
 
 mife. 
 
94 T;^^ GofpeJ a Ser. IV. 
 
 mlfe, receives from Jefus the thing promifed. 
 Faith comes by hearings and hearing by the 
 'word of God. But then where there is true 
 faith, that will, my dear hearers, be attended 
 with what ? why, with falvation. He that 
 believcth, and is baptized^ faith our Lord, 
 Jhall be faved : faved from what ? why, from 
 every thing that he wants to be faved from, and 
 receives every thing that God can give to com- 
 fpleat his whole falvation. What is It a poor 
 finner wants to be faved from? O, fin, fin, 
 the guilt of fin. The firft convidion brings 
 the creatures to God by force ^ there are very- 
 few that are drawn by love intirely : and I fei- 
 dom find any of thofe that have been drawn by 
 love, but have had dreadful conflids after- 
 w^ards: for either before or after converfion, 
 our hearts mufi: be plowed up, or we fhall 
 never be prepared for the kingdom of heaven. 
 
 Ye fliall be faved from the painful guilt of 
 fin : what is that ? why, the common-prayer 
 book will tell you, in the communion office; 
 the remembrance of our Jins is grievous unto us^ 
 and the burden of them is intolerable. There 
 is methodiftical language. Cranmer, Latimer, 
 or Hooper, were, my brethren, what ? v/hy, 
 they were Methodift preachers ; and they ufed 
 
 to 
 
Ser. IV. dying Saint's "Triumph. g^ 
 
 to preach in Paurs-Crofs, a pulpit faid to be 
 made in the fliape of a crofs, near St. Paul's 
 church i and a falary given for that very pur- 
 pofe, I believe, to this day. No matter where 
 we preach, fo that finners feel Chrift's pov^'er 
 in delivering them from this, which certainly 
 implies a confcioufnefs of pardon. I don't 
 think the poor creature that was refpited the 
 other day, would have believed it, had he not 
 feen the king's warrant juft before the others 
 were carried out. Why, fay they, here is his 
 majefty's pardon j he takes and receives it with 
 joy, and is now freed from the gallows. And 
 if perlbns can give this credence to an earthly 
 king, why cannot a believer have a kn(c of the 
 pardon of his fins from God ? If a perfon's 
 reading this to me, telling me the king has 
 pardoned me, has fuch an effedl, why may 
 not God's word, backed by his Soirit, be 
 brought home with fuch power on my heart, 
 that I may be allured God has pardoned me, 
 as well as a criminal that his king has faved ? 
 If this is gofpel away with it, fay lome, who 
 think we are not to be juftifitd till we come to 
 judgment. O bleifed creatures 1 this is modern 
 divinity ! our reformers knew nothing about it. 
 We are to be declared, if you pleafe, jiulified, 
 
 in 
 
96 "The Gofpel a Ser. IV. 
 
 in the day of JefasChrift, who w HI pronounce 
 it before all mankind. But, my brethren, we 
 are to be married to Jefus Chrift in this world, 
 and the marriage is to be declared in another ; 
 and I will infift upon it, though I will not pre- 
 ! tend to fay that all that have not full affurance 
 are not Chriftians, yet I will fay, that affurance 
 is neceflary for the well-being of a Chriftian ; 
 the comfortable being, though not for his very 
 exiflence : and I will venture to fay, that a 
 foul was never brought to Chrift, but what 
 had fome ground of affurance of pardon ; tho', 
 for want of knowing better, he put it by, and 
 did not know the gift of God when it came. 
 But, my brethren, we Jhall be favedjrom all 
 ourfms. Here is glad tidings of great joy now 
 come: fatan may hear that) and any of you 
 here that are coming into the Chapel as you 
 pafs along. I am glad to fee poor creatures 
 come, that I may tell them., God is love. Be- 
 lievers, you (hall be faved from all your fins, 
 every one of them ; they fhall all be blotted 
 out. Generally, when perfons are convinced, 
 the devil preaches defpair 5 fome great fin lies 
 upon them 5 and, fays the poor finner, I fliall 
 be faved from all but that 5 had I not been 
 guilty of fach a cringe I mii>ht have hope, but 
 
 I am 
 
Ser. IV. dying Saint's Triumph, gy 
 
 I am guilty of fuch a fin, which is fo awful, 
 with fuch dreadful aggravations, I am afraid I 
 fhall never be pardoned. But, my dear fouls, 
 Chrifl is love ; and when he loves to forgive, 
 he forgives like a God ; / will blot out your 
 iniquities^ tranfgrejjions^ and fins. Come noWy 
 faith the Lord, let us reafon together 3 though 
 your fins are as fcarlet^ yet they J hall be as white 
 as /now. I am fo far from being unwilling to 
 fave or pardon, that the angels, every time the 
 gofpel is preached, are ready to tune their 
 harps, and long to fing an anthem to fome 
 poor finner's converiion. 
 
 They fliall be faved from the power of fin. 
 Don't you remember that when Jofliua was 
 going on with his conquefts, that there were 
 fome kings in a cave ; and when he returned, 
 he ordered them to bring the kings out for 
 God's people to tread upon them. When I 
 read that pallage, I ufed to think thefe kings 
 were like our corruptions hid in the cave of 
 our hearts, and the ftone of unbelief rolled to 
 keep them in : but when we receive Chrifl 
 by faith, and have pardon in him, our great 
 Jofhua takes away the ftone, and fays, bring 
 out thefe kingSy thefe corruptions, that have 
 reigned over my people^ and by faith let^ 
 
 O them 
 
98 The Go/pel a Ser. IV. 
 
 them tread on the necks of them. Oar great 
 Mafter, when he gave the command in the 
 text, fays, tbefe figns Jhall follow them that 
 believe^ in 7?iy name they Jl: all caji out devils^ 
 they fiall [peak with new tongues^ they Jloall 
 take up Jerpe72tSy and if they drink any deadly 
 thing it f'jall not hurt them. Thefe were 
 things peculiar, in one fenfe, to the apoilles 5 
 but in the power of faith, and as brought home 
 to every believer, he cafts out devilifli lufts 3 
 and if they had drank any deadly thing, as God 
 knows we have, they may do by them as Paul 
 did by the viper, through die power of faith 
 caft them off, and by this means prove that 
 Chrifl is God. 
 
 This is, my dear hearers, a prefent falva- 
 tion. The wickedeft wretch in the world 
 will cry, I hope to be faved, though they 
 have no notion of being ilwed but after their 
 death 5 as a woman in Virginia told me once, 
 when I faid flie muft be born again 5 I believe 
 you, fir, but that muft be after I am dead. 
 And by peoples living as they do, one would 
 fuppofe that they think they are not to be 
 faved till they die^ becaule they live fo. But 
 as I have told you, I teh you again, Chiiri^s 
 faivation is a great falvation} and '^xii that 
 
 Chnft 
 
Ser. IV*. dying Saififs Triumph, 99 
 
 Chrlfl does for his people on earth, is but an 
 earneft of good things to come, an anticipa- 
 tion of what he is to do for them in heaven. 
 Our Lord fays, the kingdoi7i of God is within 
 you J the kingdom is come nigh unto you. You 
 muft not only believe on Chrift, but believe 
 in him : we are not only to be baptized in the 
 name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft, 
 but we are to be baptized into the nature of 
 the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft 5 this is the 
 baptifm of the Spirit, and this is that falvation 
 which God grant we may all partake of. 
 
 We are to be fived, my brethren, from 
 what? why, from the fear of death. He came 
 to deliver them whoy through the J ear of deaths 
 were all their life time fubje^i to bondage. What 
 are there no children of God but thofe that 
 have full afTurance I you never heard me fay 
 fo \ yet I am apt to fpeak a litde faft, but at 
 the fame time I would chufe not to fpeak fo 
 fafl as to fpeak contrary to the word of God. 
 There are a great many good fouls, that at 
 times may doubt of the reality of this work 
 upon their fouls: a relaxed habit of body, a 
 nervous diforder, you may fay what you pleafe, 
 will make a weak child of God doubt of what 
 God has done in them, and that hurts the 
 O 2 mind 
 
'lOo 7he Gofpei a Ser. IV. 
 
 mind as It has fuch a clofe connexion with 
 the body; but then a believer is low : God's 
 people are low perfons : as the greateft ge- 
 iiuiffes are moft liable to lownefs of fpirit, for 
 the fcabbard is not ftrong enough for the fword, 
 and perfons that talk much muft wear out in 
 time ; but this I ftand to, it is our privilege to 
 live above the fears of cleath. We do not live 
 up to our dignity till every day we are wait- 
 ing for the coming of our Lord from heaven j 
 and I am perfuaded of this, though I believe 
 there may be fome exceptions, that the reafon 
 why we do not live more above the fear of 
 death is, becaufe we keep in fo much with 
 thefe nafty earthly things. You may have the 
 beft eyes in the world, and only put your 
 hands before them, you will find the fun hid 
 from you j and fo you may have a large fire, 
 but throw fome earth upon the fire that is in 
 your parlour, or drawing rooms, and you will 
 find the fire damped. And how can people 
 have much of God or heaven, when they have 
 fo much of the earth in their hearts ? It is our 
 privilege to hve above the fear of death, though 
 we are not to be faved from dyings and I am 
 fure a believer would not be faved from dying 
 for a million of worlds 5 it would be death to 
 
 him 
 
Ser. IV. dyhtg Smnfs I'rhwiph. loi 
 
 him not to die ; but a foul touched with the 
 love of God, even in ficknefs, in the midft of 
 a burning fever, in the midft of a fire that 
 will burn a thoufand bodies up, convulfed 
 with tortures and pains in every limb ; a be- 
 liever is enabled fometimes to fay, O my God^ 
 
 my Gody thou art love ; 1 am ready to come 
 to thee in the midfi of all. Blefled be God, I 
 need not go far for example ; yonder, under 
 the gallery, lies the remains, the carcafe of a 
 dear faint, who was for twenty-five days toge- 
 ther burned with a fever, enough to fcorch. 
 any creature up; yet, one filled with love 
 and power divine, bleflTcd the Lord Jefus; 
 though fhe cried out, If I was not fupported, 
 the agony of my body would make me impa- 
 tient i yet never faid a murmuring word, but 
 in the midft of all cried out to thofe about her, 
 God is love ! O my joys ! O the comforts that I 
 
 feel ! and in her very laft moments cried out, 
 
 1 am a coming ; dear Lord, I am a coming ; 
 and fo fweetly flept in Jefus. If this is enthu- 
 fiafm, God give us a good fhare of it when we 
 come to die ! Thefe are dying and yet living 
 witneffes that God is love ! She was in raptures 
 when Mr. Sheppard went to vifit her: flie 
 defired me to tell you, that God is love : de- 
 fired 
 
102 rhe Gojpel a Ser. IV. 
 
 iired me to tell you in the Chapel pulpit, that 
 fhe was called about four years ago. I think 
 Mr. Lee was the inftrument of her converfion. 
 Now her body is to be put to bed at noon ; 
 but her foul is crying, O the joys ! the joys ! 
 the joys ! of being faved by a bleffed Emanuel ! 
 Now will any one dare to deny this evidence ? 
 Do you fee worldly people work themfelves 
 up into that frame when they die ? Vifit them 
 when they are near death : ah dear ! they are 
 in the vapours ; they are fo afraid of dying, 
 that the dodor will not fuffer us to come near 
 them ; no, not common clergymen, for fear 
 we fhould damp their fpirits : till they find they 
 are juft gone, and then they give us leave to 
 fay the farewel prayer to them : but they that 
 are born from above, that are made new crea- 
 tures in Chrift, feel fomething that fmiles upon 
 them in death. She told them, fie believed 
 God would let her go over Jordan dry Jhod-y 
 that was her expreffion. If this is falvation on 
 earth, what muft it be in heaven ? If in the 
 midftof the tortures of a burning fever a rap- 
 tured foul can cry, O the joys ! O the com- 
 forts ! Lord, I am coming ! I am coming ! 
 what muft that be when enclofed in a Re- 
 deemer's arms ? in order to which, the glorious 
 
 angels 
 
Sen IV. dying Sainfs Triumph, 103 
 
 angels ftand at the top of the ladder to take a 
 poor wearied pilgrim home. Lord, give us 
 not only fuch a frame when v/e are dying, but 
 while we are living ^ for if it is comfortable to 
 die in fuch a frame, why not to live in it? 
 to live in heaven on earth, O, fay you, I 
 thank God I walk by faith j I have got the 
 promife. Well, thank God you have the pro- 
 mife 3 but with the promife, learn to walk by 
 ihdX faith which is the evidence of things notfeen^ 
 which brings God down, brings heaven near, 
 and gives the foul a heart-felt experience, that 
 God is love. Here is a falvation worthy of a 
 God ! here is a falvation worthy of the Medi- 
 ator's blood ! for this he groaned, for this he 
 bled, for this he died, for this he arofe, for this 
 he afcended, for this he fent the Holy Gho/1:, 
 and for this purpofe he now fends him into the 
 hearts of his people. 
 
 My brethren, what fay you to this? I hope, 
 it is enough to make you cry out, Lordy let 
 my latter end be like hers. This may comfort 
 you that are mourners about her corpfe, this 
 may comfort a fond hufband, whole beloved 
 is now taken away by a ftroke. What a 
 mercy is it, fir, that you was. inftrumental to 
 bring her uoder the word ? llie was onceaverfe 
 
 to 
 
104 ^he Gofpel a Scr. IV. 
 
 to coming here : "wkaty leave my parijh church ! 
 laid fhe ^ what^ go to a conventicle^ to a taber- 
 nacle of JMethodiJls ! he advifed her again and 
 again to come : at laft, one day as they were go- 
 ing to St. Giles's, fhe fays, Well, come put up 
 your walking-flick, if it falls towards St. Gileses I 
 will go there 3 if to the Chapel, I will go there j 
 the ftick fell towards the Chapel, (he came, 
 and was converted to God. O with what joy 
 muft her huiband meet her again in the king- 
 dom of heaven ! and O happy day, in which fhe 
 was encouraged to feek after God. Laft week, 
 another was buried in the like circumftances ; 
 and, bleffed be God, in yonder burying-ground 
 are the remains of many precious fouls, that in the 
 day of judgment will let the world know whe- 
 ther this Chapel was built for God or not. 
 
 O what an awful word is that in the 
 latter claufe of the text, he that believeth 
 notfiall be datnned, Paufe, — I will give you 
 time to think a little -, if you would have Chrifl 
 as good as his word of prom ife, remember he 
 will be as good as his word of threatning. You 
 hear the necefTity of preaching the gofpel, be- 
 caufe upon believing or non-believing, our fal- 
 vation or damnation will turn. What will you 
 laugh at the minifler that cries out. Lord help 
 
 you 
 
Set. IV* dying Saint's Triumph, 105 
 
 you to come 5 come, come, do you think that 
 we have nothing elfe to fay, and are at a lofs 
 for words, when we cry come, come, come, 
 to fill up our fermons? no, it is part of our 
 commiffion, it is one great part. And, my 
 fellow-finners, we are come to tell you, that 
 our Mafter has a two-edged fword as well as a 
 golden fcepter ; and if you will not come under 
 the found of the word, and do not feel the con- 
 verting power of it, yoii muft feel the confound- 
 ing weight of It. I repeat it again to you, he that 
 believe th not Jhallbe damned -^ the very word is 
 terrible, God grant you may never know how 
 terrible it is. You are condemned already; 
 he that believeth not is fo, "John iii. 18. why ? 
 becaufe he hath not believed on the name of the 
 Son of God. It is not his being a whore-mon- 
 ger or adulterer that will damn him, but his 
 unbelief is the damning fin j for this he wilt 
 be condemned ; for ever banifhed from the pre- 
 fence of the ever-blelTed God : and how will 
 you rave, how will you tear, and how will 
 you wring your hands, when you fee your 
 relations, your friends, thofe whom you de- 
 fpifed, and were glad they were dead out of 
 your way, fee them in Abraha^n's bofom, and 
 y our f elves lifting up your eyes in tormmt ! O 
 
jc6 The Gofpel a Ser. IV. 
 
 my dear hearers, do let me plead, let me in- 
 treat you; if that would do, I would down 
 on my knees ; if that would do, I would come 
 down from the pulpit, I would hang on your 
 necks, I would not let you go, I would offer 
 myfelf to be trodden under your feet j I have 
 known what it is to be trodden under the foot 
 of men thirty years ago, and I am of the fame 
 temper ftill : ufe me as you will, I am a poor 
 linner ; and if I was to be killed a thoufand 
 ways, I fuffer no more than my reward as an 
 unprofitable fervant of God : but don't tram* 
 pie the dear Jefus under foot ; what has he 
 done to you ? was it any harm to leave his fa- 
 therms bofom, come down and die, and plead 
 for linners ? See him yonder hang on the tree ! 
 behold him with his arm ftretched out! fee 
 him all of a bloody gore, and in his lafi: agony 
 preaching love ! Would you give him a frefh 
 ftab ? Are there any of you here that think the 
 fword did not pierce him enough ; that they 
 did not knock the briers and thorns into his 
 head deep enough? and will you give him 
 the other flafh, the other thorns ? and will 
 you pierce him afrefh, and go away without 
 believing he is love ? I cannot help it ; I am 
 free from the blood of you alh Oh that you 
 
 may 
 
Ser. IV. dying Sai?2t's Triuf7jph. T07 
 
 may not damn your own fouls! Don't be 
 murderers ; nor, like Efau, fell your birth- 
 right for a mcfs of pottage. God convince 
 you 5 God convert you; God help thofe that 
 never believed to believe ; God help thofe that 
 have believed to believe more ; that they may 
 experience more and more this falvation, till 
 faith is turned into vifion, and hope into 
 fruition ; till we have all, with yonder faint, 
 and all that have gone before us, experienced 
 complcat falvation in the kingdom of heaven : 
 even fo, Lord Jefus, Amen and Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
t io8 ] 
 
 S E R M O N V. 
 
 Repentance and Converfion. 
 
 Acts lii, ver. 19. 
 
 Repent ye therefore and be converted^ that 
 your fins may be blotted out, when the times 
 of rejreJJnng Jhall come from the prefence of 
 the Lord, 
 
 WH A T a pity is it that moderi^ 
 preachers attend no more to the 
 niethod thofe took who were firft 
 infpired by the Holy Ghoft, in preaching 
 Jefus Chrift ! the fuccefs they were honoured 
 with, gave a fandtion to their manner of preach- 
 ing, and the divine authority of their difcourfe?, 
 and energy of their elocution, one w^ould think, 
 fhould have more weight with thofe that are 
 called to difpenfe the golpe!, than all modern 
 ichemes whatever. If this was the cafe, mi- 
 nifters would then learn firft to fow, and then 
 to reap 5 they would endeavour to plow up 
 
 the 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and Converfion. 109 
 
 the fallow ground, and thereby prepare the 
 people for God's raining down bleffings upon 
 them. Thus Peter preached when under a 
 divine influence, as I mentioned laft Wcdnef- 
 day night: he charged the audience home, 
 though many of them were learned and high 
 and great, with having been the murderers of 
 the Son of God. No doubt but the charge 
 entered deep into their confcience, and that 
 faithful monitor beginning to give them a pro- 
 per fenfe of themfelves, the apoftle lets them 
 know that great as their fin was, it was not 
 unpardonable 5 that though they had been con- 
 cerned in the horrid crime of murdering the 
 Lord of Life, notwithftanding they had there- 
 by incurred the penalty of eternal death, yet 
 there was a mercy for them, the way to which 
 he points out in the text ; Repent ye therefore^ 
 fays he, and be converted^ and adds, that your 
 Jins may be blotted out. Though they are but 
 few words, they are weighty -, a (hort fentence 
 this, but fweet : may God make it a blcffed 
 fweetnefs to every ono. of your hearts ! 
 
 But muft we preach converfion to a profet- 
 iing people ? Son:ic of you, perhaps, are ready 
 to fay, go to America 3 go among the favages 
 and preach repentance and converfion tliere; 
 
 ^'^ 
 
X I o Repent a77ce and Con'VerJion. Ser. V. 
 
 or, if you muft be a field-preacher, go to the 
 highways and hedges; go to the colhers ; go 
 ramble up and down, as you ufed to do, preach 
 converiion to the drunkards: would to God 
 my commiffion might be renev/ed, that I 
 might have ftrength and fpirit to take the 
 advice 1 
 
 Poflibly others will fay, do not preach it to 
 us ; pray who are you ? I anfwer, one fent to 
 call you to repentance ; and although I might, 
 yet I will not come fo clofe to you at prefent, 
 as to inquire in my turn, who are you ? yet 
 permit me to pray, that while I am preaching 
 God's Spirit may find you out 3 and not only 
 let you know who you are, but what you 
 are 3 and then you will not be eafy with your^ 
 felves, nor angry with a minifter of Jefus 
 Chrift for preaching converfion to your fouls. 
 
 Repentance and converfion are nearly the 
 fame. The exprefiion in the text is complex, 
 and feems to include both what goes before 
 and follows turning to God: and if the Lord 
 is pleafed to honour me fo far to night to be 
 ufeful to finners, as well as faints, I will en- 
 deavour to fhew you, 
 
 Firft, what it is not to be converted % fe- 
 condly, w^hat it is to be trulv converted : third- 
 
Scr. V. Repentance and Converfcon. i \ i 
 
 ly, offer fome motives why you fliould repent 
 and be converted : and, fourthly, anfwer fome 
 objedlions that have been madki againfl perfons 
 repenting and being converted 5 and may God 
 fo blefs my preaching, and your hearing, that 
 every one may go away and fay, Lord, con- 
 vert me more and more. 
 
 Firft, I fhall endeavour to fliow you v/hat 
 it is not to be converted ; for I do verily be- 
 lieve there are thoufands, and ten thoufands, 
 that think themfeives converted, and yet at 
 the fame time, if you come and examine them, 
 they know not fo much as fpeculatively what 
 real converfion is : the general notion many 
 have of it is, a perfon's being a convert from 
 the church of Rome to the church of Eno;- 
 land. There is a particular office in the large 
 prayer book, to be ufed when any one publicly 
 renounces popery in the great congregation. 
 When this is done, that prayer read, and the 
 perfon faid Amen to the colleds upon the; 
 occafion, every body wifhes him joy, and 
 thanks God he is converted ; whereas, if this 
 is all, he is as much unconverted to God as 
 ever 5 he has in words renounced popery, but 
 never took leave of the fins of his heart. Well;, 
 after this he looks into the church, and does 
 
 not 
 
1 1 i Repentance and Converfion. Ser. V* 
 
 not like that white thing called a furplice ; he 
 looks, and thinks there are (bme rags of the 
 whore of Babylon left ftill : now, fays he^ I 
 will be converted ^ how ? I will turn Diffen- 
 ter : fo after he is converted from the churcli 
 of Rome to the church of England, he goes 
 to the diffenting church : may be, curiofity 
 \may bring him to the Methodifts, thofemon- 
 TOous troublefome creatures, and, perhaps, he 
 may then be converted a third time, like their 
 preaching, like their finging j O dear, I muft 
 have a Tabernacle-ticket, I muft have a Pfalm- 
 book, I will come as often as there is preach- 
 ing, or at leaft as often as I can ; and there he 
 fits down, and becomes an outfide converted 
 Methodift, as demure as poflible. : this is 
 going a prodigious way^ and yet all this is con- 
 verfion from one party only to another. If 
 the minifter gives a rub or two he will take 
 mifF perhaps, and be converted to fome other 
 perfuafion, and all the while Jefus Chrift is 
 left unthought of 5 but this is converfion only 
 from party to party, not real, and that which 
 will bring a foul to heaven. Poffibly, a per- 
 fon may go further, and be converted from 
 one fet of principfes to another ; he may, for 
 inftance, be born an Arminian, which all men 
 
 naturally 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and Converfion. 113 
 
 naturally are; and one reafon why I think 
 Calvinifm right is, becaufe proud nature \vill 
 not ftoop to be faved by grace. You that are 
 brought up in an orthodox belief, under an 
 orthodox miniftry, caiindt eafily make an al- 
 lowance for thoufands that have nothing ring- 
 ing in their ears but Arminianifm ; yoii have 
 fuck'd in orthodoxy with your mother's milk^ 
 and that makes fo many four and fevere pro- 
 feifors. I knew a risfid man that would beat 
 Chriftianity into his wife ; and fo many beat 
 people with their bibles, that they are likely, 
 by their bitter proceeding, to hinder them 
 from attending to the means God has defigned 
 for converfion. What is this but being con- 
 verted from one fet of principles to another ? 
 and I may be very zealous for them, without 
 being transformed by them into the Image of 
 God. But fome go further, they think they 
 are converted becaufe they are reformed : they j 
 fay, a reformed rake makes a gcodhujband^ but^ 
 I think a renewed rake will make a bettefir 
 Reformation is not renovation : I may have: 
 the outfide of the platter wafhed ; I may be 
 turned from prophanenefs to a regard for mo- 
 lality ; and becaufe I do not fwear, nor go ta 
 the play as I ufed to do ^ have left off cards^ 
 Q^ and 
 
114 Repentance and Converjton, Ser. V. 
 
 and perhaps put on a plain drefs 3 and fo be- 
 lieve, or rather fancy, that I am converted; 
 yet the old man remains unmortiiied, and the 
 heart is unrenewed ftill. Comparing myfelf 
 with what I once wa?, and looking on my 
 companions with difdain, I may there (lick 
 fafter in felf, and get into a worfe and more 
 dangerous ftate than I was before. If any of 
 you think me too fevere, remember you are 
 the perfon I mean y for you think me fo only 
 becaufe I touch your cafe. The drunkards 
 and fabbath-breakers, curfers and fwearers, 
 fay to us, you can never preach but you 
 preach againft us : as a good man once replied 
 to a perfon, who complained againft us mini- 
 fters for this preaching; I will put you in a 
 way, faid he, that we fhall never preach againft 
 you ; how is that ? why, leave off curfing and 
 fwearing, &c. then your confciences will be 
 clear, and the minifter will look over your 
 heads : happy they that are convinced of it ! 
 Ycu have not heard me, I hope, fpeak a word 
 againft reformation 5 you have not heard me 
 fpeak a word againft being converted from the 
 church of Rome 3 againft being converted to 
 the church of England ; or, againft being good : 
 no ^ all tkefe are riglu in their place ; but all 
 
 thefe 
 
Ser, V. Repentance and Converjion. \ i r 
 
 thefe converfions you may have, and yet never 
 be truly converted at all. What is converfion 
 then ? I will not keep you longer in fufpenfe, 
 my brethren : man muft be a new creature, 
 and converted from his own righteoufnefs to 
 the righteoufnefs of the Lord Jefas Chrift ; con- 
 vidion will always preceed fpiritual conver- 
 fion ; and therefore the Proteftant divines make 
 this diftindion, you may be convinced and 
 not converted, but you cannot be converted 
 without being convinced 5 and if v^^e are truly 
 converted, Vv'e lliall not only be turned and 
 converted from fmful felf, but we {hall be con- 
 verted from righteous felf; that is the devil of 
 devils: for righteous felf can run and hide itielf 
 in its own doings, which is the reafon feif- 
 righteous people are fo angry with gofpel 
 preachers ; there are no fuch enemies to the 
 gofpel as thefe : there ivere Jcivs who trufted in 
 themfelves that they were righteous, that fet all 
 in an uproar, and raifed the mob on the apof- 
 t!es. Our Lord denounced dreadful woes 
 againft the felf-righteous Pharifees : fo minifters 
 muft cut and hack them, and not fpare; but 
 fay wo, wo, wo to all thofe that will not fub- 
 mit to the righteoufnefs of Jefjs Chrifl ! I 
 could almoft fay, this is the lafi: flroke the 
 CL2 Lord 
 
1:^6 Repejitance and Converjion, Ser. V, 
 
 Lord Jefus gave Paul, I mean in turning him 
 to real Chriftianity ; for having given him a 
 blow as a perfecutor and injurious, he then 
 brought him out of himfeif by revealing his 
 perfon and office as a Saviour. 1 am Jefus. — 
 Hence fays the apoftle, / count all thmgs but 
 lofs — that I may 'win Chrift^ and be jcund 
 in him \ not having my own righteoiijncls^ 
 which is of the law, but that which is through 
 the faith of Chri/i ; the rigkteoufnefs which is 
 of God by faith. You hear him not only fpeak 
 of himfeif as injurious, as a blafphem.er, but 
 alfo as a Pharifee 5 and in vain v/e may talk 
 of being converted till we are brought out of 
 ourfelves -, to come as poor loft, undone fin- 
 ners, to the Lord Jefus Chrift^ to be waflied 
 in his blood ; to be cloathed in his glorious 
 imputed righteoufnefs : the confequence of this 
 imputation, or application of a Mediator's 
 righteoufnefs to the foul, will be a converfion 
 from fin to holinefs. I am almoft tempted to 
 fay, it is perverfenefs in people to preach againffc 
 the dodrine of imputed righteoufnefs, becaufe 
 they love holinefs, and charge the Calvinifts 
 with being enemies to it : how can they be 
 charged with being enemies to Sandification, 
 vvho fo ftrenuoully infift on its being thjf ge- 
 nuine 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and Co7iverJion. 117 
 
 nuine fruit, and unqueftionable proof of the 
 imputation of the righteoufnefs ot Chrift, and 
 application of it by the Spirit of grace ? They 
 that are truly converted to Jefus, and are juf- 
 tified by faith in the Son of God, will take 
 care to evidence their converlion, not only by 
 the. having grace implanted in their hearts, 
 but by that grace diffuiing itfelf through every 
 faculty pf the foul, and making a univerfal 
 change in the whole man. I am preaching 
 from a bible that faith, He that is in Chrijl is 
 a new creature^ old things^ not will be but, 
 are pajfed away ^ all things y not only w/7/ but, 
 are becojjie new. As a child when born has 
 all the feveral parts of a man, it will have no 
 more limbs than it has now, if it lives to four- 
 fcore years and ten ^ fo Vv^hen a perfon is 
 converted to God, there are all the features of 
 the new creature and growth, till he becomes 
 a young man and a father in Chrift ; till he 
 becomes ripe in grace, and God tranflates him 
 to glory. Any thing fhort of this is but the 
 fliadow inftead of the fubftance ; and however 
 perfons.may charge us with being enthufiafts, 
 yet we need not be moved either to anger or 
 forrow, fince St. Paul fays, / travel in birth 
 till Chrijl be formed in your hearts^ 
 
 The 
 
J 1 8 Repentance and Con'verfion. Ser. V, 
 
 The author of this converiion is the Holy 
 Ghofl : it is not their own free will ; it is not 
 moral fvvafion ; nothing fliort of the influence 
 of the Spirit of the living God can effefl: this 
 change in our hearts 3 therefore we are faid to 
 be born again^ born oj God, of the Spirit^ 
 not of water only^ but of the Holy Ghoji -, that 
 which is born of the flefto is flefh, but that 
 which is bar 71 of the Spirit is Jpirit : and tho' 
 there is and will be a conteft between thefe 
 two oppofites, flefh and fpirit, yet if we are 
 truly converted, the fpirlt will get the afcen- 
 dency; and though for a while nature and 
 grace may llruggle in the womb of a con- 
 verted foul, like Jacob and Efau, yet the elder 
 fliall ferve the younger, Jacob (liall fupplant and 
 turn outEfau, or atleaftkeep him under: God 
 grant we may al! thus prove that we are converg- 
 ed. This converiion, however it begins at home, 
 will foon walk abroad; as the Virgin Mary 
 v/as fbon found out to be with child, fo it will 
 be foon found out whether Chrift is formed in 
 the heart. There will be new principles, new 
 ways, new company, nev^ works ; there will 
 be a thorough change in the heart and life ^ 
 this is converfion : at iirfl: it begins with terror 
 and legal forrow, afterwards it leads to joyful- 
 
 nefs 3 
 
Ser. V. Repent a?ice and Converfion. 1 1 9 
 
 nefs ; firft we work for fpirltual life, afterwards 
 from it : firft we are in bondage, afterwards 
 we receive the Spirit of adoption to long and 
 thii-ft for God, becaufe he has been pleafed to 
 let us know that he will take us to heaven. 
 Converfion means a being turned from hell to 
 heaven, from the world to God. We have 
 not fo much as alked a pcrfon to fell his all, to 
 leave his lliop, to lay any thing at our feet: 
 when we talk of being converted from the 
 world, we mean being converted from the love 
 of it: the heart once touched with the mag- 
 net of divine love, ever after turns to the pole, 
 I think it is faid of a fun-flower, though I ques- 
 tion whether it will alv/ays hold true, that it 
 turns to the fun ; I am fure it is true of the 
 Redeemer's flowers that grow in his garden, 
 they not only look to the fun, but they find 
 fi'efh life, warmth, and transforming influence 
 from him who is their all in all. Here Chrif- 
 tianity appears in its glory; here the work 
 done is worthy the Son of God. To be con- 
 verted only to a party, is that v/orth ChriiVs 
 coming from heaven to earth for; that we 
 might have a fet of principles v/ichout having 
 
 them affedt the heart ? for to be baotized when 
 
 i. 
 
 young, or as fome to come out of the water at 
 
 age. 
 
I20 Repentance and Converfion. Scr. Y^ 
 
 age, and turn out as bad as ever, is a plain 
 proof of the neceffity of being baptized by the 
 Holy Ghoft. 
 
 What fay you to this change, my dear fouls ? 
 is it not god-like, is it not divine, is it not hea- 
 ven brought down to the foul j have you felt 
 it, have you experienced it ? I begin to cate-^ 
 chize you already, for I could fpend a v^hole 
 fermon in fpeaking of converfion ; but I am 
 afraid thofe that fit under the gofpel have more 
 need of heat than light : v^ould to God we 
 had as much warmth in our hearts, as light ia 
 our underftandings ! But if there be any of you 
 here that are not yet converted, upon what 
 grounds do you hope for converfion ? give me 
 leave to fay, that you ought to repent and be 
 converted, for till then you never can, never 
 will, never fhall find true reft for your fouls.- 
 What wrong notions have people got of con- 
 verfion ! they think it is a wretched thing, and 
 dread being converted ; not knowing v/hat it 
 is, they think it is a frightful thing. I knew 
 one fometime ago that came to fome Metho- 
 difis 5 dear, fays the perfon, you are ehearful, 
 I could be glad if I was a Method ift too, if 
 there was a majority of them in the land : but 
 God help us to go to heaven with the minority. 
 
Ser, V. Repentance and Con^oerfion. \ 2 1 
 
 if the majority will not follow. But, my 
 dear hearers, there is not a fingle foul of you 
 all that are fatisfied in your ftations : is not the 
 language of your hearts when apprentices, we 
 think we fhall do very well when journeymen ; 
 when journeymen, that we fliould do very 
 well when mafters : when fingle, that we fhall 
 do well when married ^ and to be fure you 
 think you fhall do well when you keep a car- 
 riage. I have heard of one who began low ; 
 he firft wanted a houfe, then, fays he, I want 
 two, then four, then fix ; and when he had 
 them, he faid, I think I want nothing elfe ; 
 yes, fays his friend, you will foon v/ant ano- 
 ther thing, that is, a hearfe and fix to carry 
 you to your grave ; and that made him trem- 
 ble. O if you are Chriftians, if the Lord loves 
 you, he will put a thorn in your flefli. I have 
 often thought of what a good man fays in his 
 Diary, the Lord put a thorn in my flefli. 
 Among politicians, when they find a man 
 ambitious, they fay, kick him up, that he 
 may fall and break his neck : fo it is in every 
 condition ; there is not one of you fifty years 
 old, but have had many changes: have not 
 you found thorns even on the rofe that fmelt fo 
 fweet, and thorns perhaps that pricked you (o 
 
 R clofely, 
 
122 Repentance and Converfion. Ser. V. 
 
 clofcly, that you have forgot the fcent of the 
 rofe by it ? and what Is all this for, but to teach 
 you that happinefs is only to be found in the 
 Lord. If a foul is truly converted, there v^ill 
 be a battle, and an awful chafm that will never 
 be filled up but with the love of God ; and 
 therefore when we fay. Repent and be con- 
 verted, it is no more than faying, repent and 
 be happy. Indeed we fhall never be com- 
 pleatly happy till we get to heaven. O that 
 every man could fee the good of every thing 
 of a fublunary nature drop off like leaves in 
 autumn : God grant this may be known by 
 every one of you. 
 
 If it is afked, why you (hould repent and 
 be converted ? I anfwer, becaufe elfe you can 
 never be happy hereafter. What do you think 
 heaven is? why, fays the covetous man, I 
 think it is a place full of gold ; fo you think to 
 ileal fome of the gold, do you ? Others would 
 like heaven very well if there was, a good 
 gaming-table in heaven; if there was card- 
 playing in heaven. I have heard of a lady 
 that was fo fond of gaming, that though fhe 
 had the pang? of death upon her, yet when in 
 the midil of her fits, or juft coming out of 
 one, inftead of afking after Jefus, v/here he 
 
 was 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and Converfwn. 123 
 
 was to be found, fhe aflied, what is trumps ? 
 So the gamefter will afk, where is the back- 
 gammon table ? where is the box ? he will 
 want to fhake his ungodly hand in heaven ; he 
 will fay, let us have a gaming-table in heaven, 
 where, as he will find, he has loft the game ; 
 that God has damned him without an intereft 
 in Chrift. Can two walk together unlefs they 
 are agreed ? If you die and do not love God 
 here, if you cannot love praying to God here, 
 and cannot watch one hour, fuppofe you wa? 
 to be ftruck by death and be taken to heaven, 
 there is no fuch language and amufement 
 there, what would you do ? Why, fay you, 
 thefe Methodifts are prefumptuous people, they 
 can tell us whether we are to go to heaven or 
 no. Good. Mr. Rogers, a Welfh Boanerges, 
 preaching in the mountains, faid, Chrift is hea- 
 ven, if I worfhip God here, and do all to God, 
 and for God, without any hopes of reward 
 upon the earth. My dear brethren, the de- 
 vils would never be troubled with fuch a wretch 
 in hell, he would fet all hell in an uproar ^ if 
 a true Methodift was to go to hell, the devil 
 would fay, turn that Methodift out, be is come 
 to torment us : therefore,, you muft be con- 
 verted if you will go to heaven. Dr. Scott 
 R z faysj^ 
 
124 Repentance and Converfion. Ser. V. 
 
 fays, if a natural man was to be put into hea- 
 ven, it would be fuch a hell to him, that he 
 would be glad to go to hell for fhelter : angels 
 they hate, God they hate \ and as Adam was 
 afraid to meet with God when he firfl; fell from 
 him, fo his fons hate God and flee away. 
 
 I mention one thing more, which is, that 
 you muft be converted, or be damned, and 
 that is plain Englifli, but not plainer than my 
 
 .Mafler made ufe of, He that believeth not Jloall 
 
 be dajnned, I did not fpeak that word ftrong 
 enough that fays. He that believeth mtfiall be 
 damned -, that is the language of our Lord ^ and 
 it is faidofone of the primitive preachers, that 
 ijfed to fpeak the word damned fo that it ftruck 
 all his auditory. We are afraid of fpeaking 
 the word damned for fear of offending fuch 
 and fuch a one \ at the fame time they defpife 
 the minifter for not being honeft to his mafter. 
 Some have (aid, and fland to it, that hell is 
 cnly a temporary puniihment : Who told them 
 fo ? A temporary punifliment ! nothing but a 
 guilty confcience. O go to Bedlam ! Do afk 
 ^ child of God what he feels when his Lord is 
 abfent ? Aik the fpoufe what fhe felt when fhe 
 cries, Saw ye him "JDhom my foul lovetb ? Afk 
 a child of God when he is ufmg this plaintive 
 
 language^ 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and ConverJio?i. 125 
 
 language. Why flandeft thou afar off^ O Lord'? 
 and he will tell you, it is hell to my foul to be 
 but one moment without the prefence of my 
 beloved. And if his abfence for a quarter of 
 an hour can fcarce be bore by a child of God, 
 what muft that foul undergo that is com- 
 manded to depart from him for ever ? and yet 
 thefe very words were faid to thofe that thought 
 they bid fair for heaven ; to thefe Jefus fays, 
 I hiow ye not. God grant you may never 
 know the meaning of thefe words by awful 
 experience ! Now, what fay you ? I could 
 make a hundred heads more, but I chufe to 
 make as few as poffible, that you may remem- 
 ber them. I fay, converfion makes you happy 
 hereafter, and without it you are dan:ined for 
 ever. 
 
 Are thefe things fo ? why then, my dear 
 hearers, do you think there can be any objec- 
 tion raifed againft converfion, do you think 
 there can be any argument raifed againft turn- 
 ing to God direcftly ? is there any pcrfon here 
 that will give himfelf time to confider a mo- 
 ment that will not fay, though you fpeak in a 
 rough, incoherent manner, yet there is fome 
 truth in what you fay ; I believe men ouzat 
 to be converted^ but the common faying is, I 
 
J 26 Repentance and Converjion. Ser. V. 
 
 don't care to be converted yet; we think it is- 
 time enough to he converted. Is not this a6t- 
 ing like the cardinal, v^hen told he waseledted 
 pope, and defired to come that night and have 
 the honour of pope conferred on him ^ becaufe 
 it was pretty late faid, it is not a work of dark- 
 nefs, I will put it offtill the morning; before 
 which they chofe another pope, and he loft 
 his triple crown. You may think to put it oiF 
 till the morning, though before the morning 
 you may be damned. Pray why will you not 
 be converted now? if you was in prifon, and 
 a perfon would take you out, you would chufe 
 to be let out to-night before morning, thatjou 
 jriight fleep the better ; why will you not do 
 that for your foul you would for your body ? 
 Well, I would be converted but I fliall be 
 laughed at : fuppofe you was to have it pro* 
 mifed, you fhould have a ten thoufand pound 
 lottery ticket, but you muft be laughed at all 
 your life-time ; there is none but v/ould fay^ 
 g^ive me the ten thoufand pounds, and call me 
 Method ift as long as I live: fo if you loved 
 God and your fouls, you would fay, give me 
 God and call me what you will. You are 
 afraid of being laughed at and nick- named,, 
 and ikulk into this and that placcj, becaufe is 
 
 does 
 
Ser. V. "Repentance and Converfwn] 12*7 
 
 does not ftink io much of Methodifm as this. 
 Put your cockades in your hats, and let the 
 world fee that you are not afhamed of God*9 
 badge : let the devil and his agents preach to 
 you ; they can proclaim their fin like Sodom ; 
 they are not afhamed of going to balls and 
 affemblies, to parties of pleafure, and fub- 
 fcribing to horfe-races. Is the gofpel the glo- 
 ry of the land, and are you afliamed of the 
 gofpel ? What think you, if you had given an 
 hundred pounds to learn fuch a trade, would 
 you fay, I fhall never attain it ! no, you will 
 perfevere, and by giving diligence make an 
 excellent mechanic, an admirable tradefman> 
 and do you think to go to heaven v/ithout fomc 
 trouble ? do you think the leopard can change 
 his fpots, the Ethiopian put his fkin intirely 
 off? can we have any thing to nourifh our bo- 
 dies without the labour of particular perfons ? 
 and therefore we are commanded to work out 
 our falvatton with jear a7id tre?nbling. Re- 
 member our Redeemer will 7iot quench the 
 fmoaking faXy nor break the briiijed reed > he 
 will gently lead thofe that are with young, V/e 
 are like poor fwimmers ; fome people will put 
 one foot in and cry oh ! and then another, 
 but a good fwimmer plunges in at once, and 
 
 comes 
 
128 Repentance and Converfwn. Ser. V* 
 
 comes out braced up : would to God we could 
 do fo, plunge into God at once, and God will 
 bear up our fouls indeed. 
 
 But fay you, all in good time, I do not chufe 
 to be converted yet ; why, what age are you 
 now? I will come down to a pretty mode- 
 rate age; fuppofe you are fourteen: and do 
 not you think it time to be converted? and 
 yet there are a great many here, I dare fay, 
 twenty years old, and not converted. Some 
 are of opinion, that moft people that are con- 
 verted, are fo before thirty. There was a 
 young man buried laft night at Tottenham 
 Court but feventeen, an early monument of 
 free grace ! Are you forty, or fifty, is not 
 that time ? Is it time for the poor prifoners 
 to be converted that are to be hanged to- 
 morrow morning ? if it is time for them, it 
 is time for you, for you may be dead before 
 them. There was a poor woman, but two or 
 three days ago, that was damning and curfing 
 moft fhockingly, now fhe is a dead corpfe, 
 was taken fuddenly, and died away. God 
 grant, that may not be the cafe with any 
 of you ; the only way to prevent it is, to be 
 enabled to think that now is an accepted timCy 
 that now is the day of Jalvation. Let me look 
 
 round. 
 
Ser. V* Repentance and Converfwn. 129 
 
 roundj and what do you fiippofe I was think- 
 ing ? why, that It is a mercy we have not 
 been in hell a thoufand times. How many 
 are there in hell that ufed to fay, Lord con- 
 vert me, but not now ? One of the good old 
 Puritans fays^ Hell is paved with good inten- 
 tions. Now can you blame me, can you 
 blame the minifters of Chrift if this is the cafe, 
 can you blame us for calling after you^ for 
 fpending and being fpent for your fouls ? it is 
 eafy for you to come to hear the gofpel, but 
 you do not know what nights and days we 
 have ; what pangs we have in our hearts, and 
 how we travel in birth till J ejus Chi'ijl be form- 
 ed in your fouls ^ Men, brethren, and fathers, 
 hearken, God help you, fave, fave, fave your- 
 fehjes from an untoward ge?ieratio?i. To-night 
 fomebody fits up with the prifoners; if they 
 find any of them aileep, or no fign of their 
 being awake, they knock and call, and the 
 keepers cry, awake ! and I have heard that 
 the prefent ordinary fits up with them all the 
 night before their execution : therefore, don't 
 be angry 'with me if I knock at your door?^ 
 and cry, poor finners, awake ! awake ! asd 
 God help thee to take care thou doft not lleep 
 in an unconverted ftate to-night. The court 
 
 S is 
 
130 Repentance and Converfion. Ser. V. 
 
 is juft fitting, the executioner ftands ready, 
 and before to-morrow, long before to-morrow, 
 Jefus may fay of fome of you, Bind them hand 
 and foot, Theprifoners to-morrow will have 
 their hands tied behind them, their thumb- 
 ftrings muil be put on, and their fetters knock- 
 ed off; they muft be tied faft to the cart, the 
 cap put over their faces, and the dreadful fignal 
 given 5 if you were their relations would not 
 you weep ? don't be angry then with a poor 
 minifter for weeping over them that will not 
 weep for themfelves. If you laugh at me, I 
 know Jefus fmiles. I cannot force a cry when 
 I will ; the Lord Jefus Chrlfl be praifed, I am 
 free jro7n the blood of you all : if you are 
 damned for want of converfion, remember 
 you are not damned for want of warning. 
 Thoufands that have no gofpel preached to 
 them, may fay. Lord, we never heard what 
 converfion is ^ but you are gofpel-proof ; and 
 if there is any deeper place in hell than other^ 
 God -will order a gofpel defpifing-Methodift to 
 be put in there. You w^ill have dreadful tor- 
 ments; to whom fo much is given, much 
 will be required. How dreadful to have mi- 
 nifter after minifter, preacher after preacher, 
 fa3% Lord Gody I preached but they would not 
 hear. Think of this, profeflorS;, and God make 
 you poirefibrs! ' Yoa 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and Converfion. 131 
 
 You that do pofTefs a little, and are really 
 converted, God convert you and ine every 
 hour in the day 5 for there is not a believer in 
 the world, but has got fomething in him that 
 he fliould be converted from 3 the pulling down 
 of the old houfe, and building up the new one, 
 will be a work till death. Do not think I 
 am fpeaking to the unconverted only, but to 
 you that are converted. God convert you 
 from lying a-bed in the mornings God con- 
 vert you from your conformity to the world ; 
 God convert you from lukewarmnefs; God 
 convert us from ten thoufand things which our 
 own hearts muft fay we want to be converted 
 from ; then you will have the Spirit of the liv- 
 ing God. Do not get into a curfcd Antino- 
 mian way of thinking, and lay, I thank God, 
 I have the root of the matter in me : I thank 
 God, that I w^as converted twenty or thirty 
 years ago ; and once in Chrift always in Chrift ; 
 and though I can go to a public-houle and play 
 at cards, or the like, yet, I blefs God, I am 
 converted. Whether you was converted for- 
 merly or not, you are perverted now; and 
 may God convert you all to clofe Chriftianity 
 with God ! 
 
 S a Yoa 
 
132 Repentance and Converpon. Ser. V. 
 
 You that are old profeflbrs, don't draw 
 young ones back from God, by faying, ah! 
 you will come down from the mount by and 
 by 5 you will not always be fo hot 5 and in- 
 ftead of encouraging poor fouls, you will pull 
 them down, becaufe you have left your firft 
 love : would you have Jefus Chrill: catch you 
 napping, with your lamps untrimmed ? 
 
 O ye fervants of the mofi: high God, if any 
 of you are here to-^night, though I am the 
 chief of finners, and the leaft of all faints, 
 fuffer the word of exhortation, I am fure I 
 preach feelingly now^ God knows I feldom 
 Ileep after three in the morning 3 I pray every 
 morning, Lord, convert me, and make me 
 more a new creature to day. I knov/ I want 
 to be converted from a thoufand things, and 
 £om ten thoufand more : Lord God, confirm 
 me ; Lord God, revive his work. 
 
 You young people, I charge you to con- 
 iider j God help you to repent and be con-^ 
 verted, who woo's and invites you. You 
 middle-aged people, O that you would re- 
 pent and be converted. You old grey-headed 
 people. Lord make you repent and be con- 
 verted, that you may thereby prove that your 
 fnis are blotted out, O I could preach till I 
 
 preachc4 
 
Ser. V. Repentance and Converfwn. 133 
 
 pre.ached myfelf dead ; I could be glad tp 
 preach myfelf dead, if God would convert 
 you 1 O God blefs his work on you, thaf you 
 inay bloflbm and bring forth fruits unto Godp 
 4:men gnd Ame^i, 
 
 SERMON 
 

 SERMON VI. 
 
 Glorifying God in the Fire ; or, the 
 right Improvement of Affliction^ 
 
 Isaiah xxiv. ver. 15. 
 Wherefore glorify ye the Lord in tbejires, 
 
 YO U have oft, my dear hearers, let me 
 tell yau> met with afflidtion ^ and I 
 believe you may perfuade yourfelves 
 afflidion is at hand, vi^hich makes fuch deep 
 impreffions, when fent and bleffed by heaven, 
 as to thaw the very heart. Faith, like fomeglaffes 
 to view objeds near us, fets them in fo ftrong 
 a light, that we cannot help being affedted 
 with the weight of the impreffion^ hence the 
 prophets', when under a divine impulfe, fore- 
 faw things at a diftance ; fpoke and wrote of 
 them as though adually prefent. They fimg 
 both oj judgment and mercy ^ in fuch ftrong 
 and perfuafive ftraihs, as to convince of the 
 reality of their exiftence. Ifaiah, who had a 
 
 courtly 
 
Ser. VI. Improvement of AffliBlons. 13^ 
 
 courtly education, being probably brother to 
 a king, feems to excel in this kind of fpeak- 
 ing ; a perfon of good natural, as well as ac- 
 quired abilities, which being tempered by the 
 Holy Ghoft, made him a kind of an angel of 
 an orator, of a writer, and a prophet* When 
 he penned this chapter, he probably forcfaw 
 the dreadful calamities coming on the land ; 
 and fo ftrong was his perfuafion, that he writes 
 as though he faw the things taking place. 
 Behold^ fays he, the Lord maketh the earth 
 empty ^ maketh it wajle^ and tiirneth it upfide 
 down^ and fcattereth abroad the inhabitants 
 thereof. How much is exprefTed in a few 
 words ! As with the people fo with the priejisy 
 who perhaps, on account of their lituation in 
 the church, might think they fhould be ex- 
 empted ^ but if the priefts fin with the people, 
 they fhali be punifhed with the people. As 
 with the fervant^ fo with his majier 3 as with 
 the maidy fo with her mijirefs-, as with the 
 buyer ^ fo with the feller -, as with the lender ^ 
 fo with the borrower -^ as with the taker of 
 ufury^ fo with the giver of iijury to him. So 
 yc^u fee that the vifitation would be univerfal; 
 that it iliould fall on all forts of people. Ver. 
 3. T.he land fmll be utterly emptied and utterly 
 
 fpoiled'. 
 
;136 Improvement of Affiiciions. Se'r. Vt 
 
 fpoiled 'y probably, by a foreign foe taking ad- 
 vantage of the domeftic eonfufions, who fliall 
 deflroy the fruits of the earth. Some may 
 think, perhaps, that this will never come to 
 pafs 'y butj faith Ifaiah, the Lord hath fpoken 
 it. It pleafed God the nation fhould be de-^ 
 voted to a dreadful flroke : The earth moiirn^ 
 eth and fadeth away^ the world languijheth and 
 fadeth awa)\ the haughty people of the earth do 
 languifldy whofe crimes, one would think, 
 would never be brought to puniihment, on 
 account of the eminence of their flations ^ they 
 thought themfelves out of danger, but they fhall 
 feel the common fcourge : For the earth alfoy 
 as in the fifth verfe, is defiled under the inhabi- 
 tants thereof y becaufe they have tranfgreffed the 
 lawSy changed the ordinances^ broken the ever^ 
 lafling coveiiant. God did not flrike without 
 a caufe 5 for the earth groaned, as it were, 
 under the fins of the inhabitants for their ne- 
 gledt of religion, for difowning God, for turn- 
 ing their back on the Mofl High. Therefore 
 hath the cur fe devoured the earthy (ver. 6.) and 
 they that dwell therein are defolate. He does 
 not fay it fhall be, but it is done. The i?iha-- 
 bit ants of the earth are burned y with dreadful 
 lire of confuming vengeance, and few men left. 
 
 All 
 
Ser. VI. Improvement of Affliciiom. 137 
 
 All the merry hearted, that minded nothing 
 but jollity and mirth, even they dofigb, 'The 
 joy of the harp ceafeth-^ they (loall not drink 
 wine with a fong^ firong drink fiall be bitter 
 to them that drink it. The very great city^ 
 tlie metropolis, is broken down 5 every hoife is 
 fjiit lip, becaufe deflation is left in it. The 
 inhabitants forfake it, their houles are left, 
 fhct up, becaufe they are afraid fome foreign 
 powder fhould come to their deftrudion. There 
 is a crying for wine in the freets^ all joy is 
 darkened^ the mirth of the land is gone : no 
 plays, no routs, no allemblies now ; the city is 
 left dejolate-, the court not excepted 5 defola- 
 tion herfelf takes her feat and ravages there. 
 The earth Poall reel to and fro like a drunkard^ 
 a7id foall be removed like a cottage-^ and the 
 tranfgrejjions thereof fiall be heavy upon it^ a?2d 
 it foall fall y and not rife again. What an 
 amazing fcene is this ! enough to fill us vv^ith 
 horror even at this diftance of time and place ! 
 But is there no way for efcape ? is there no 
 light breaking through this dark (hade ? bleiTed 
 be God, there isj look at ver, 13, you u^ill 
 find in the midft of dangers, God fhall lend 
 his prefence. When thus it fall be ^ pray mind 
 that, in the midf of the land among the people ^ 
 T what 
 
138 Improvefnenf of Afflict iom, Ser. VI. 
 
 what follows? there fiall be as the JJ:aking of 
 {171 clrce treey and as the gleaning grapes when 
 the vintage is do7ie 5 there (hall be a few godly 
 people left, let the devil do what he will ^ but 
 there will be but few. You know, after the 
 people have gathered the fruits from the tree, 
 they fhake it to bring down the remainder ; 
 and after reaping of corn there are a few glean- 
 ings, fo the Lord fays, it fliall deflroy moll 
 people, yet in fo difcriminating a way, that 
 God's people fliould be fafe, 
 
 I cannot well recolledt how archbiflioD 
 Ufher applies this 5 but this I am fure he fays, 
 there will certainly come a time when the 
 world will undergo the greatefl Icourge that 
 €ver it felt, which ihall chiefly fall on the 
 outward-court woriliippers, upon thofe that 
 know not God ; God will take particular care 
 of fecuring his own ; and when the wicked 
 are all deftroyed, the Chriftians ihai! go to a 
 little city, and there fhall dwell in Goihen, till 
 God fhall call home his ancient people the 
 Jews. So God will take care of his people, 
 that they fliall be fafe : pray look to ver. 14, 
 they PmU lift up their voice > what, to cry ? 
 no, they have done with prayers, they have 
 done with fafting 3 they have lifted up their 
 
Ser. VI. Improvement of AjfjUBlom. 159 
 
 voice, and often exhorted their neighbours to 
 flee from the wrath to come ; but now tliev 
 fhall fing for the majefty of God ; when all 
 people are mourning, they (hall rejoice. And 
 at the great day, when Jefus Chrill pronoun- 
 ces the wicked damned, depart ye curfcd^ 
 God's people will then lift up their voices with 
 majefty and triumph ; which made a good 
 man fay to his fon, juft before he died, I am 
 afraid I ftall never fee thee any more till I liear 
 Jefus Chrift fay unto thee, depart thou cur fed ! 1 
 Some years ago, being prefent at the trial of a ] 
 very vile perfon at the Old-Bailey, and being \ 
 in fufpenfe whether he would be brought in | 
 guilty or no, when the w^ord guilty came, and 
 the people heard of it, they ^id in effedt give 
 an eclat to i: ; whether juft or unjuft, I thought 
 it was an emblem of that av/ful day, when 
 all the angels of God, and his fliints, fliall fay 
 Amen ; when God configns the wicked to 
 hell: God grant this may not be any of your 
 cafe. Says the prophet, they Jhall cry aloud 
 Jrom the fea ; fome of them may be on the 
 other fide of the water, gone abroad while 
 others flay at home ; but whether at home or 
 abroad, though they have been banif]:ied by 
 perfecution, though they have been driven to 
 T 2 the 
 
140 Improvement of AffiiSlions. Ser. VI. 
 
 the other fide of the water, which has been 
 the cafe of many perfons before now, yet they 
 JJmll cry aloud-, they fliall find the fame God 
 abroad as they did at home. A judge laid to 
 a good old Chriftian that was perfecuted ia 
 Charles II/s time, I will banifh you to Ame- 
 rica ^ fays fhe. Very well, you cannot fend 
 me out of m,y Father's country. They fhall 
 cry aloud from the fea, wberejore glorijy ye 
 the Lord in the fires ; if this is the cafe, the 
 prophet draws the inference ; what mufl they 
 do under tnefe circumftances ^ why, they mufl 
 ftudy how to glorify God in the fires, not how 
 to efcape or run away from him, but how to 
 glorify him ; wherefore, faith he, glorijy me, 
 glorify me the Lord, in the fire* -, not the 
 lire, in the lingular number, but in the plural 
 number, fires. We are, my brethren, very 
 much miftaken, if we think we have but one 
 fire to go through. 
 
 The words imply, in order to bring thera 
 home to ourfelves, that all God's people mufl 
 be put into the fires. Fire fcm.etimes denotes 
 the love of God, fometimes the work of the 
 Holy Ghoff, and very often it denotes afflic- 
 tion ; therefore, the apoftle talks ot a fiery 
 trials and let it be of whatever kind it will> 
 
 let 
 
Ser. VI. Improvement of Jjli5fio7is, 141 
 
 let it be upon mind, body, or eftate -, whe- 
 ther it comes from friend or foe, or whether 
 it comes immediately from the hand of God 
 himfelf upon the foul, it may well be com- 
 pared to fire, for you all know that fire fcorches ; 
 God expeds when he ftrikes, that we fhould 
 feel. Of all things in the world to be avoided, 
 a ftony heart, or a flupidity under God's 
 afflicting hand, is mod to be deprecated. I 
 fuppofe you have heard of the Stoics *, with 
 whom the apoftle Paul difputed in the place of 
 public traffic in Athens. Paul did not take a walk 
 to Change to talk on trade, he went to talk about 
 Jeius Chriil, if he could meet with one to talk 
 with : I wifh the clergy took no other walks 
 but thefe. Every thing is to be tried by fire ; 
 we may talk what we pleafe, but we (hall ne- 
 ver know what metal we are made of,, till 
 God puts us into the fire. It is very eafy talk- 
 ing what w^e can bear, and what wx can do, 
 but let God lay his hand on us, and we fhall 
 fee what we are. We are apt to find fault, 
 and be peevifh v/ith our friends and relations 
 under fuch circumftances 5 they are apt to fay, 
 
 you 
 
 * They taught that a v/ife man fhould be free from all 
 afFei^ions and paliions whatloever. 
 
142 Improvement of Affliciio72s. Ser. VI. 
 
 you fhould be patient, and patient, and pa- 
 tient ; ah ! put thefe reprovers into the fame 
 furnace, and fee how patient they will be : 
 they fiy, there is no putting old mens heads 
 upon young mens fhoulders ^ and there is no 
 putting old heads upon fouls young in expe- 
 rience. The devil knew very well how it was 
 when he faid, Haji thou not made an hedge 
 cboiit Joby and about his hoiife^ and about all 
 that he hath on every fide j thou hajt bleffed the 
 work of his hands ^ and his fubftance is increafed 
 in the land-y but put forth thy hand now, and 
 touch all that he hath, and he will curfe thee 
 to thy face 'y fo we fhould all do if God was 
 to leave us to ourfelves, and our faith is not 
 of the right fort. 
 
 How fliall we know if our faith is good ? 
 we often pray. Lord, give us Abraham's faith, 
 but never pray, give us Abraham's trial at the 
 fame time. I was once in Scotland, at a great 
 man's houfe, where feveral rich people were 
 that knew Jefus Chrift ^ God having bleffed 
 my labours at a former vifit, I was defired by 
 the nobleman to pray 5 and I remember I pray- 
 ed the Lord to give us great faith and patience ; 
 — O faid Satan, as ftrong as if he had fpoke 
 to me, don't pray for that, for thou fhalt have 
 
 great 
 
Ser, VI. Improve7nent of AffiiBions. 143 
 
 great trials. O, faid I, if that be the cafe, I 
 will turn the devil's prayer againft himfelf; 
 and I prayed, O Lord^ give us great grace^ 
 end never mind what trials. Often when we 
 are under temptations, God takes us at our 
 words : O, fays one, what a prayer I had, I 
 prayed for faith and patience ; I was upon the 
 mount, and never thought of coming down, 
 and feeling a ftorm again. 
 
 Fire, my brethren, not only burns and 
 purges, but you know it feparates one thing 
 from another, and is made ufe of in chy- 
 millry and mechanical bufmefles. What could 
 we do without fire ? it tries metal to purge it : 
 God Almighty knows, we are often purged 
 more in one hour by a good found trial, than 
 by a thoufand manifeftations of his love. It is 
 a fine thing to come purified, to come par- 
 doned oat of the furnace of afHidtion j it is in- 
 tended to purge us, to feparate the precious 
 from the vile^ the chaff' from the wheat ; and 
 God, in order to do this, is pleafed to put us 
 into one fire after another, which makes me 
 love to fee a good man under afflictions, be- 
 caufe it teaches fomething of the work of God 
 in the heart. I remember fome years ago, 
 when I firft preached in the north of England, 
 
 at 
 
144 Improvement of AffliBions. Ser. VI. 
 
 at Shields near Newcaftle, I went into a glafs- 
 houfe, and {landing very attentive, I faw feve- 
 ral maffes of burning glafs of various forms : 
 the workman took one piece of glafs and put 
 it into one furnace, then he put it into a fe- 
 cond, and then into a third : when I afked 
 him, why do you put this into fo many fires ? 
 he anfwered, O, fir, the firft was not hot 
 enough, nor the fecond, and therefore we put 
 it into the third, and that will make it tranf- 
 parent. Taking leave of him in a proper 
 manner, it occurred to me, this would make 
 a good fermon : O, thought I, does this man 
 put this glafs into one furnace after another, 
 that we may fee through it 3 O may God put 
 I me into one furnace after another, that my 
 I foul may be tranfparent 3 that I may fee God 
 'as he is. My brethren, we need to be purged ; 
 how apt are we to want to go to heaven upon 
 a feather-bed 5 many go lying upon beds of 
 pain and languilTiing, which is the King's 
 highway thither. You know there are fome 
 v/ays in London called the king's road, and 
 they are finely gravelled, but the King's road 
 to heaven is ftrowed with croflfes and afHidlions, 
 We are all apt to think well of being Chrif- 
 tians 3 it is very pretty talking oi being Chrif- 
 
 jians^. 
 
 
S'ef. Vli Imptovemoit of Affllcliom, 145 
 
 tians, till we are put into one furnace after 
 another ; think it notjirange^ faith the apofllc, 
 concerning the fiery trial which is to try you. 
 What muft 1 do ? why^ lince I muft be in the 
 fire, I muft thank my corruptions for it 5 God 
 will not put you or me into the fire if there was 
 not fomething to be purged away ; the grand 
 thing is to learn to glorify God in the fire. 
 Wherej ore glorify ye the Lord in the fires. 
 
 When do we glorify him ? when we endea- 
 vour to get fuch grace from the Lord, that we 
 may not diihonour him when we are under 
 the crofs, and therefore we glorify God in 
 the fire when we quietly endure it as a chaf- 
 tifement for our fins : if you keep watch now, 
 and live near to God, you will never find that 
 you are put into a fire, but you firft brought 
 yourfelves into it ; and I do verily believe from 
 my heart, that our fin is always to be feen in our 
 punifliment. If any of you part from a child that 
 he loves dearly, upon examination he will fay, 
 I find now the creature's gone, that the ivy 
 twined too much about the oak ; and then he 
 turns off 5 ah ! fays he, God has met with 
 me now. And you will find in all the Old 
 and New Teftament, that the affiidions of 
 God's people were fuitablc to their fliults : Ja- 
 U cob 
 
146 Improvement of Afflictiom. Ser. VI* 
 
 cob was over-perfdaded by his mother to get 
 the bleffing by a lie ; but he was a fimple^ 
 hearted poor creature. Some perfons think 
 nothing of a lie ; if they can but get by it, 
 they do not mind it ; but an honeft man will 
 iliun it. Jacob argues with his mother againft 
 it ; O, fays fhe, the curfe be o?i fne^ my fon ! 
 O dreadful ! for a good woman to fay fo. 
 Doubtlefs, flie was perfuaded God would give 
 Jacob the bleffing, but fhe took a wrong way 
 to obtain it ; flie might have waited for the 
 bleffing to come with a bleffing. How did 
 God punifh Jacob ? why, in a night after- 
 wards poor Jacob v/as impofed upon by a 
 wrong wife, he got a Leah inflead of a Ra- 
 chel^ the poor creature was impofed upon 
 there, and fo all along almoft to the end of his 
 life; he bad a furnace of afflidion. Happy 
 they who pray in the furnace. Lord, let me 
 know why thou doft contend with me. There- 
 fore God fends this meffage to Ely by Samuel, 
 the thing that thou kjioisoeji^ feems to me to 
 refer to his too great lenity to his fons ; the 
 thing that thou hio%z:eft ; thou doft not ad like 
 a magiftrate. Thefe fons were the means of 
 bringing a judgment on his houfe, and break- 
 ing tlieir fither's neck : God Almighty keep 
 
 us from bringing a rod upon ourfelves. 
 
 Wc 
 
Ser. VL Improvement of AffliSimis. j^y 
 
 We glorify God in the fire when we bear 
 it patiently. It is a dreadful thing when we 
 are faying with Cain, MypuniJIment is greater 
 than 1 can bear 5 but the language of a foul 
 that glorifies God in the fire is this, fhall I, 
 Lord, fhall I a finful man, complain for the 
 punifhment of my fins ? It is a glorious thing 
 when we can fay with a good man, one of 
 whofe particular friends told me more than 
 •once, that when he was racked with pain, and 
 groaning all night with trouble, he would 
 often fay. Lord, I groan ; Lord, I groan j 
 Lord, I groan ; but, Lord Jefus, I appeal to 
 thee, thou knoweft I do not grumble. Then 
 we glorify God in the fire, when, though 
 we feel pain and anguifh, we at the fame time 
 fay. Lord, we deferve this and ten thoufand 
 times more. 
 
 We glorify God in the fire alfo, when we 
 are really and fully perfuaded, God will not 
 put us in the fire but for our good, and his 
 own glory. I am afraid fome people think 
 God does as fome cheating apothecaries, that 
 bring five things when they need not bring but 
 one, efpecially when they have fome filly pa- 
 tients that love to be taking phyfic ; they fend 
 one after another, when, perhaps, the beft 
 
 U 2 thing 
 
148 Improvement of Afflictions \Ser.VL 
 
 thing would be to throw them all away; fo 
 we think of God, but it is a miftake; he ne- 
 ver fends one but what Is necelTary, and feme- 
 thing to be purged away. 
 
 We glorify God in the fire when we fay. 
 Lord, don't let the fire go out till it has 
 purged away all my drofs. Then we glorify 
 God when we wifh for the good of the fire, 
 and not to have it extingulfhed ; when the 
 foul can fay, Here I am^ my Gody do with me 
 as feemeth good in thy fight \ I know I (hall 
 not have one ftroke but thou will give me a 
 plaifter, and let me know wherefore thou 
 contendeft with me. 
 
 We glorify God in the fire when we are 
 content to fay, / kno'm not what God does with 
 me 7ioWy but I JJoall know hereafter. Do yoi^ 
 tell your children that are five years old the 
 reafon oi things, no; and do you think God 
 will tell us ? What Jkall this man do T faith 
 the difciples; what is that to thee? faith 
 Chrift, follow thou me. You glorify God \x\ 
 the fire, v/hen you are content to walk by 
 faith and not by fight. 
 
 You glorify God in the fire when you ar^ 
 not grumbling, but humbly fubmitting to his 
 will 3 a humble fpirit walks not in fulkinels 
 
Scr. VL Improvement of Afflidionu 149 
 
 and ftubbornnefs: there are fome fpirlts too 
 ilout, they will not fpeak. When that awful 
 meflage was brought to Ely, what does he 
 fay ? It is the Lord^ let him do what fcemeth 
 him good', let my children be killed, whatever 
 be done it is the Lord's doing ^ only. Lord, 
 fave my foul at laft. 
 
 We glorify God in the fire, when in the 
 midftof the fire we can fing God's high praifes. 
 Thqs the children of Ifrael glorified the Lord ; 
 the fong of the three children in the fiery fur- 
 nace is a fweet fong ; as are all that are made 
 in the fire. O all the works of the Lord^ praife 
 and magnify him for ever / Then we glorify 
 God in the fire when we rejoice in him, when 
 we not only think, but know it bed, and caa 
 thank God for flriking us ; can thank God for 
 whipping us ; can blefs God for pot letting us 
 alone 3 thank God for not faying, Let him 
 alone : this is to glorify God in the fire. Not 
 only foy faith the apoftle, Sut we glory in tri- 
 JpiilatioUy knowing that tribulation worketh 
 patience. 
 
 In a word, we glorify the Lord in the fire 
 when we have in exercife, patience, meek- 
 nefs, humility 3 learning more to diilruft our- 
 iejve?, having a deeper knowledge of our own 
 
 weakr 
 
150 Improvement of AffliBions. Ser. VI, 
 
 weaknefs, and of God's omnipotence and grace. 
 Happy when we can look back and fay, thus 
 have I been enabled to glorify God in the fire. 
 Who can put his hand to his heart and fay, 
 I have glorified God in the fire as I ought ? 
 inftead of that I am afraid the foul muft fay, 
 that inftead of being thankful and refigned, I 
 have been fretful ; and becaufe I will not find 
 fault with myfelf, nor let the world know I 
 find fault with God, I find fault with all about 
 me. Did you never find yourfelf in fuch a 
 humour when your fpirits were low ? I heard 
 a good man once fpeak on thofe words, they 
 Jhall briijg forth fruit in old age : O the fruit, 
 faid he, is peviihnefs ^ I thought it was the 
 infirmity of old age, the fruit of which ought 
 to be heavenly-mindednefs, deadnefs to the 
 world, and a livelinefs to God. 
 
 My brethren, let us humble ourfelves to-* 
 night, and let us be afhamed and abafhed be- 
 fore God, and wonder he hath not ftruck us 
 into hell when we have been complaining the 
 fire was too hot, that God fent us not to the 
 devil. Let us weep, let us weep, let us weep 
 for our ilubbornnefs. Happy they who are 
 ufed to be put into the fire betimes ! It is good 
 jC7' a 7nan to bear the yoke in hi ^ youth. Some 
 
 years 
 
Ser. VI. Improvement of j^ffli^iGns. 151 
 
 years ago, when I was at the Orphan-houfe, 
 they told me they were going to yoke two 
 fteers together, one fturdy and old, the other 
 a little one, on which they no fooner put the 
 yoke, but he kicked once or twice, and then 
 bore it very well : O, thought I, it is a good 
 thing to have the yoke betimes. 
 
 Are any of you now in the furnace, are any 
 of you troubled, or can any of you fay, I have 
 no trouble ; a calm is fometimes the fore-run- 
 ner of a ftorm ^ thank God, you are not in the 
 fire 3 furely you have been in the fire. There 
 is the deviPs fire ; the fires of the luji of the 
 fiefht the liift of the eye^ and the pride of life : 
 God help you to come out of thefe fires, left 
 they damn your fouls for ever. You muft be 
 put eiiiher in the deviFs fire or God's fire, and 
 the devil's fires are hotteft, becaufe there is no 
 God to fupport under the trouble they bring 
 upon the foul. O v\^hat a dreadful thing it is 
 to be in the devil's fire continually, and to go 
 out of the fire of the devil here to burn with 
 the devil in hell hereafter ! If there are any of 
 you in this cafe, Lord Jefus Chrift fhorten 
 them, Lord Jefus Chrift fandify his afiliftions 
 to his people, as he did to one of the prifon- 
 ers laft Wedncfday : how fwcetly he behaved ! 
 
 while 
 
152 Improvement of AffliBtbns. Sef.VL 
 
 while the others were curfing and fwearing^ 
 toffing up who fhould fit on the right hand in 
 the cart, he was glorifying God, thanking 
 God he was fent there, and going to be exe-^ 
 cutcd : God, faith he, hath ftopt mey I might 
 have gone on in fin to ruin. O fend to my 
 father, go to him, warn him to flee from the 
 wrath to come : fomebody went to his parent, 
 and the father fent back xkiv^ loving meflage) 
 tell him to mind his own foul, and be damn*d ! 
 O, dear Lord, what lengths has man gone I 
 never was fuch a meflTage fent to a fon before ; 
 he bid him mind his own foul and be damn*d ! 
 God grant none of you may ever have fuch a 
 frame of mind as that ! O remember fire har- 
 dens as well as foftens 5 and if you are not 
 better by afflictions you will be worfe: and 
 / indeed you will know you cannot come out of 
 the furnace as you went in, you will either be 
 hardened or elfe be purified ; and if this be 
 the cafe,* the Lord Jefus Chrift help you to 
 bear the fire noWj that you may never be caft 
 into the fire of hell. God hafle you, haften 
 you that are out of the devil's fire to flee, flee, 
 ye weary fouls, to Jefus Chrift 3 fly to the 
 Lamb of God, from hell to heaven, as far as 
 you can from thcfe hellifli fires, to the fire of 
 
 his bleiL^d merit and love. 
 
 Happy 
 
Sen VI. hnproveinejit of AffliBions, 153 
 
 Happy you that have got into Chrift's fire ! 
 happy you that have found his fires in your 
 fouls ! I believe many fouls have : O Lord 
 Jefus Chrift help you to glorify him in what- 
 ever fires he fliall be pleafed to fend you, and 
 into v^hatever furnaces he fhall be pleafed to 
 put you : we fhall then fing ** the church tri- 
 umphant^'' much better than we fing to-niglu j 
 we fhall fee Jefus Chrift ready to help us when 
 we are in the furnace : O that this thought 
 may make every poor finner fay, by the help 
 of God I will be a Chriftian ; by the lielp of 
 God, if I muft burn, it fhall be burning with 
 the love of Chrift, I will fay then, O Lord, 
 glorify thyfelf by fjiatching me as a brand from 
 the devil's fire. O that this might be the 
 cry of every heart ! 
 
 I am going to afk a favour of you to-night 
 which I never did before, and, perhaps, may 
 not again for fome time : I have had com- 
 plaints made to me by the perfons that take 
 care of the poor, that the poor's ftock js 
 very low j though I cannot fpeak on Sunday 
 night, yet I will fpeak a word to the po )i on 
 Wednefday evening. There are numbers of 
 poor that are ready to perifh, and if ycu drop 
 Something to them in love, God will take 
 X care 
 
1 54 hnpro'oement of AffiiBions^ Ser. VI. 
 
 care to repay you when you come to judg- 
 ment. We fhall not only glorify God by a 
 fubmilTion to his will, when he is putting us 
 in the fire, but in doing any good, when we 
 lay all the glory at the foot of Jefus 5 which 
 God grant for Chrift's fake. Amen, 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ '55 ] 
 
 SERMON VIL 
 
 The Beloved of God. 
 
 Deut. xxxiii. ver. 12. 
 
 And of Benjamin, he faid^ 'The beloved of the 
 Lord Jhall dwell infafety, by him ; and the 
 Lord Jhall cover him all the day long^ and 
 he JJdall dwell between his fmdders. 
 
 OH ! what a difmal fight is it, to fee an 
 old man with his hoary head grown 
 grey in fin, and hardened in iniquity. 
 On the other hand, I believe to all that con- 
 fider rightly, there is no grander fight almofl 
 under the fun, than to fee an old grey-headed 
 man keeping up a confident charader; and 
 proving, by his condudl, that his path, like 
 that of the jufl:, is as the fining lights that 
 fineth more and ?nore to the perfe^ day ; efpe- 
 cially when perfons have been called to a6t in 
 a public charader ; when they have been 
 eminent either for the highnefs of their ftation, 
 X 2 or 
 
1^6 7'he Beloved of God. Ser. Vll. 
 
 or for the largenefs of their income. It is on 
 this account that I admire old Jacob \ hoW 
 grand he looked when leaning on his ftafF, 
 with all the compofufe iri the world, under a 
 divine influence, bleffing his children ftanding 
 round him. But, methirlks, there is one who 
 was called to adt a more public part, namely, 
 Mofes, who was honoured of God to be a great 
 legiflator, king in Jefhurun, a lawgiver be- 
 tween Judah's feet, as pupils ufed to be at the 
 feet of their teachers, to receive their inftruc- 
 tion ; if you have a mind to fee how bright he 
 fhines, you mufl: read Deut. xxxii. indeed you 
 mufl read all Deuteronomy, which is nothing 
 but a fermon that Mofes, at various times, 
 preached to the children of Ifrael ; and having 
 done preaching, he fang a hymn of his own 
 compofing, and that too at a time when he 
 knew, at the very finiflung the fong, he fiiould 
 immediately have his foul kiffed away, and 
 be called to fing a better fong in the kingdom 
 of heaven. A perfon would need a good deal 
 of compofure, a good deal of the Spirit's in- 
 fluences^ a large meafure of it, chearfully thus 
 tofland in view of death, juft on the very bor- 
 ders of the grave; you fee this in chap, xxxii. 
 and here in chap, xxxiii. One would have 
 
 thought 
 
Sen VII. ne Beloved of God, 157 
 
 thought he had faid enough, yet he feems as 
 it were not to know how to leave off; he 
 parted from the people bleffing them ^ they 
 had ufed him ill, they provoked him in the 
 wildernefs; he had bore with them many, 
 many long years 3 fure you would have thought 
 he would have went away in a huff 3 no, that 
 eminent fun by no means goes down in wrath ; 
 his eyes did not fo much as wax dim, nor 
 his intelledlual powers impair in all that time : 
 he fweetly gives them all a bleffing before he 
 goes. If you read this chap, xxxiii. you will 
 find how various, yet fpecial, are the bleffings 
 which, in a prophetic ffrain, he foretels fliould 
 attend particular perfons, or tribes. I have been 
 reading them over, and though I admire them 
 all, I was at a lofs which to fpeak from, till 
 the bleffing of Benjamin fixed my attention, 
 not only as fweet, but inftru6ting. ^he be-^ 
 loved of the Lord Jhall dwell infafety^ by him 5 
 and the Lord fiall cover him all the day longy 
 he Jhall dwell between his Jhoulders, This is a 
 bleffing indeed, if we look only to the literal 
 interpretation of the Words, and a literal com- 
 mentator can go no further ; he muft confine 
 them to Benjamin ; and will tell us, that this 
 fcripture was fulfilled at the building of the 
 
 Temple, 
 
158 The Beloved of God. Ser. VII. 
 
 Temple. The Temple was built upon two 
 hills, one in the tribe of Benjamin, the other 
 in the tribe of Judah 3 the Temple being built 
 there, and Benjamin being placed near it, then 
 Benjamin dwells in fafety by the Lord, by 
 having his lot caft near the Temple. How 
 often, alas ! is it the cafe, I am fure it is very 
 often the cafe in London, the nearer the church 
 the further from God 3 but fome make good 
 ufe of it, and are glad to get near the church 
 that they may be nearer God. The Temple 
 being placed between two hills, fo Benjamin 
 as it were dwells between God*s flioulders; fo 
 far a literal commentator can go, here he ftops ; 
 a fpiritual commentator, and a fpiritual reader, 
 go further j O, fays he, this is true, but at the 
 fame time this is not the whole truth ; and I 
 am perfuaded, when a perfon is helped by 
 the Spirit to read the fcriptures, the declara- 
 tions that are made, and thofe particular pro- 
 mifes, the true believer applies with great pro- 
 priety to himfelf 5 and therefore I think I may 
 venture to aver, that the bleffing w^hich Mofes 
 here pronounces upon him in the name of the 
 Lord, belongs to God's people in all ages 
 whatever > God, in his infinite mercy, grant 
 that this bleffing may defcend upon us and 
 
 ours. 
 
Ser. VII. The Beloved of God. 159 
 
 ours, that it may defcend to your lateft pot. 
 terity. 
 
 . Obferve how wonderfully the pcrfons, to 
 whom the blefling is given, are characterized : 
 of Benjamin it is faid, the beloved of the Lord -^ 
 the beloved of the Lord, pray who are they ? 
 why, the men that the fcriptures always fpeak 
 of, whofe conftant uniform charadter is, they 
 love God in all ages. It is not faid, the Prejf- 
 byterians fhall dwell in fafety ; Mofes never 
 heard of a Preibyterian in his life 5 he never 
 heard of the name ; nor it is faid the Inde- 
 pendents fliall dwell in fafety ^ he never heard 
 of that word ; nor is it faid the Papifls fhall 
 dwell in fafety 5 he never heard of Papifls, 
 nor of the pope ; nor is it faid that the Church 
 of England fliall dwell in fafety, no^ neither 
 is it faid that the Methodifls fliall dwell in fafe- 
 ty, though I trufl there are a great many good 
 people among thefe mongrels of the church ; 
 but it is fpoken of all the people of God 5 
 God help us all to apply it to ourfelves. 
 
 Here is a difpute between the Arminians 
 and the Calvinifts: afk an Arminian what is 
 meant by the beloved of the Lord -, O, fay they 
 that are for general redemption, the beloved of 
 the Lord figniSes, all the men that were ever 
 
 born 
 
i6o "The Beloved of God. Ser. VII. 
 
 born into the world 3 that is a good broad bridge 
 to take them in ; but broad bridges are not 
 always the ftrongeft bridges in the world. 
 The Arminians will aflert it, that Judas was 
 as much beloved of God as Peter, or any other 
 of the apoftles ; and thofe that are not Armi- 
 nians, but are what you call Quakers, and 
 there are a good many, I believe, amoiig them, 
 that have better hearts than heads, they fay, 
 that we are all alike, that we all come into the 
 world with a feed of grace, and fhall be hap- 
 py according to the improvement of that grace j 
 hence they talk nothing of a Chrift withoiit 
 but loithiti; happy they that experience a 
 Chrift within ! God's mercy is fure, and over 
 all his works ; and in one knk, our Lord Jefus 
 Chrift is the Saviour of all men, that is, of all 
 forts of men 3 even the wicked are beholden 
 to Jefus Chrift, whom they defpife, for every 
 worldly comfort they enjoy ; in this fenfe we 
 fliould learn to love as our Lord, we are told, 
 loved the young n>an when he faw he had 
 been a harmlefs and good liver : but we muft 
 go more to what we call Calvinifm, what I 
 call fcriptural truth. The love which Jefus 
 Chrift bore for the youngv man, quite differed 
 Ironi that love with which he loved Martha, 
 
 Mary, 
 
Sen Vli. Ihe Beloved of God. i6i 
 
 Mary, and their brother^ there was a cargo 
 for you ! three in one family 3 God grant it 
 may be your happy lot and mine ! two fifters 
 and one brother, three to entertain Jefus Chrifl:, 
 all in a peculiar manner beloved of the Lord, 
 It is not faid of Benjamin, they (hall, that is, 
 they that love the Lord, they fliall dwell in 
 fafety, no 5 it would not be fo (Irong to them, 
 as to fay the beloved of the Lord 3 for God 
 knows our love is not worth a ihilling 5 all 
 the fnth of God's people, fays bifhop Hall, 
 is but meer infidelity 3 and all the love of the 
 people of God is but meer hatred, compared 
 with God's love, or that which his law juftly 
 requires 3 therefore it is faid, beloved of the 
 Lordy and that becaufe if ever we love God, 
 he firft loved us, which is what Mofes's very 
 fexpreffion means 3 as ftreams flow from the 
 fountain, fo they fhall return to it. Hence 
 the apoflle fays. Knowing your elecfion^ bre^ 
 thretty beloved of God. 1 know very well the 
 Myfticks talk of loving God with a love for 
 himfelf only, without any refpedt to the crea- 
 ture at all 3 that is, we muft love God without 
 any regard at all for what God has done for 
 us 3 nay, fome go fo far as to fay, that if we 
 do not fo love God, v^e are not converted, 
 
 Y though 
 
1 62 "The Beloved of God. Scr. VI I^ 
 
 though we have as much grace as we can have ; 
 that we do not love God properly till we love 
 him for what he is, not what he has done for 
 us: I verily believe, the angels do not love 
 God in that manner ; and we cannot love God 
 till we are made partakers of a divine nature, 
 and have eyes given us to fee his glory. 
 
 The grand enquiry is then, how fhall I 
 know that I am one of the beloved of the 
 Lord ? The natural man never minds the love 
 of God ^ he flatters himfelf he loves God natu- 
 rally, that the love of God is a plant that 
 grows in nature's garden ^ but a fpiritual per- 
 fon does not fo. What does the king take 
 notice of me ? does the king look pleafant 
 upon me in a drawing-room ? am I called to 
 wait upon him ? am I beloved of this, and that, 
 and the other perfon ? if I am, let God go, I 
 care not ; if 1 have but the love of this and that 
 courtier, I care not whether God loves me or 
 no 5 this will not do for an awakened loul ; 
 and therefore the grand enquiry, and one proof 
 of a perfon 's being awakened is, how fliall I 
 know whether God loves me or not ? why 
 try; I am perfuaded of it, that we may as 
 well know that God loves us, and we love 
 God, as we may know that the fun fliines at 
 
 noon-. 
 
Set. Vll. The Beloved of God, 163 
 
 noon-day i how fhall I know it but by the 
 effeds of this love, by the fruits of it ? That 
 great man, Dr. Watts, who was called the 
 fweet finger of Ifrael, fay?, " we fhould go 
 iirft to the grammar- fchool of faith and repen- 
 tance, before we go to the univerfity of predef- 
 tination :'' whereas, the devil would have them 
 go firft to the univerfity, to examine whether 
 they were eledled or rejected, or no : they 
 fhould do as a good woman once did, when 
 fatan tempted her, and wanted to diftrefs her, 
 that there were but few to be faved ; ihe faid, 
 if there were but two to be faved, flie would 
 flrive to be one of them. Surely I am beloved 
 of the Lord, if my r^atural enmity againll the 
 Lord is flain. How do I know I love a per- 
 fon ? how can you prove that you love me ? 
 why, fay you, I hated you the ether day : 
 how many people met I with the other day, 
 that could a fev/ weeks ago have pulled me 
 out of Tottenham-court, but God has over- 
 come their hearts. The perfon now confeiTcs 
 his former enmity, and v/hen that enmity is 
 removed, and you are reconciled to them, 
 cannot you know that you love them ? and if 
 God has removed that enmity to Chrift out of 
 your hearts, furely you are one of the beloved 
 of the Lord. 
 
 Y 2 We 
 
1 64 *Ihe Beloved of God. Ser. VII. 
 
 ^ We are the beloved of the Lord, if we are 
 brought to abhor and renounce that which ftands 
 between us and the Lord; I mean, our curfed 
 felf-righteoufnefs. Can I prove that I have 
 renounced my own duties, that I arn fick of 
 my duties as well as my (ins ; none but the 
 beloved of the Lord fee this : an enemy to the 
 Lord may have this in his head, but it is only 
 a friend of the Lord that has this in his heart : 
 a talkative profeffor can fpeak of it ; you may 
 teach, perhaps, a parrot to pray, but it is odds 
 to talk like a parrot, and experience hke a 
 Chriftian. Now if I have renounced my own 
 righteoufnefs, and been helped to truft to 
 Chrifl's, to believe on the Son of God, let fa- 
 tan fay what he will, I ana fure I am the be- 
 loved of the Lord, for none but thofe that are 
 beloved by him with an everlafting love, are 
 brought to believe on him. 
 
 I may know \ am beloved of the Lord, 
 from what ? why, experiencing his love Jhed 
 ebroad in my heart by the Holy Ghojl. Jona- 
 than loved David as his own foul. Moft of 
 you know what love is in a carnal itn^t ; and 
 if there be a union of fouls between creature 
 and creature, furely there muft be a union of 
 fouls between the Creator and the creature 
 
 belovec} 
 
Ser. Vir, 7he Beloved of God. i6^ 
 
 beloved of God -, it cannot be otherwife ; this 
 love will have its efFeds. 
 
 If I am beloved of the Lord, If having his 
 love in my heart, I fliow it by loving tliofe he 
 has loved. Some people may fay, I love you, 
 but I do not love thofe about you, your friends ; 
 why you are not bound to love all alike, but 
 it may teach you to be civil to that perfon's 
 beloved. As foon as ever we hear of a Chrif- 
 tian, as foon as ever we hear of a believer, as 
 foon as ever we hear of a finner turning to God, 
 O it will rejoice us ^ and we fhall be like the 
 angels in heaven, who rejoice over one fivjiers 
 repeiitaJice^ more than over ninety-nine ju/i per^ 
 Jons that need no repejitance. Some people 
 inay fay, I love dearly to hear of a perfon's 
 being converted by fuch a minifterj I love 
 dearly to hear of perfons converted by a dif- 
 fenter ; I love dearly to hear of perfons con- 
 verted by a churchman, but I do not like peo- 
 ple fliould be converted by this and that perfon | 
 why I believe there are a great many people 
 whofe hearts are thus narrow, but this mixture 
 is not of God \ and I pray God they may know 
 it by experience; that they may kaocv they 
 are beloved of God, then they will rejoice 
 when other people are brought to believe on 
 
 him^ 
 
1 66 "The Beloved of God Ser. VII. 
 
 him, whoever is made the inftrument. Grace 
 and mercy be with all them that love the Lord 
 Jefus Chriji in fmcerity. What would have 
 become of poor Paul if he had only loved his 
 own followers : the Romans he never faw till 
 he was taken there a prifoner, but he loved all 
 the reft of the apoftles, writ letters to all forts, ^< 2-^ 
 not to their particular parties or churches, but 
 to all thofe that loved the Lord Jefiis infmce^ 
 rity 'y and if we do love in this manner, we 
 may be afTured we are beloved of the Lord, 
 for none but the Lord could beget fuch love 
 in us. 
 
 If we are beloved of the Lord, we (hall be 
 hated by the world. If you were of the worlds 
 the world would love you^ but becaufe you are 
 not of the worlds but I have chofen you out of 
 the worlds therefore the world hateth you. 
 Will you make me believe that any of you 
 are beloved of the Lord, that never loft 
 your good charadter by it 5 why you may as 
 well make me believe that you are emperors of 
 the world : where is the bleffing the fermon on 
 the mount fpeaks of 5 where is the bleffing of 
 perfecuticn ^ where is the bleffing of being 
 hated of all men 5 where is the bleffing of be- 
 ing hated for the crois ? you love the Lord, 
 
 and 
 
Ser. VII. The Beloved of Go.l 167 
 
 and not carry the crofs after you ; you love the 
 Lord, and not be hated as your Lord was ? I 
 don't fay all are hated alike 5 poor minifters 
 are fet in the front of the battle ; in proportion 
 to our fuccefles we fhall be hated. There are 
 numbers of minifters now fleep in whole fkins, 
 that were formerly in a worfe plight j the de- 
 vil difturbs them not becaufe they are quite 
 civil, and do not trouble and contradidt him ; 
 but if you oppofe the world and the devil, the 
 world will hate you ^ and no greater proof of 
 being beloved of the Lord, than the world 
 hating you, but it muft be for Chrift*s fake. 
 So Ahab faid of the prophet, all his prophcfy^ 
 iitg is againft vie ; I hate him ; the world hated 
 him ; the world hated me^ fays our Lord, before 
 it hated you j and the apoftles, when they be- 
 gan to fpeak for God too, they were hated 
 like their Lord 3 and glory to God for it, for 
 it is a bleffed mark of their belonging to God, 
 when they are honoured to fufFer for him, and 
 we are never right till we are bearing the crofs r 
 to fee men or women fleeping under the crofs, 
 fculk/ing and hiding from it, is this love ? give 
 me a profeffor that will wear a cockade in his 
 hat, and is never eafier than when he is com- 
 bating the enemies of his King, 
 
 If 
 
1 68 ^he BeionHed of God. Sef. Vlt, 
 
 If I am the beloved of the Lord, I really 
 Ihall live above the vi^orldi You may fay what 
 you willj and you may bring the fcriptures as 
 low as you think proper,^ but the friendjhip of 
 the world is hatred to God-, and if any man love 
 the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 
 Now by not loving the world, I don't meari 
 that you (hould Ihut up your fhops, and run 
 into a convent: how idle for perfons to fay 
 they love God, and hide themfelves from the 
 worlds that is no religion at all. But the 
 greateft proof of a Chriftian's loving God is^ 
 I am in the worlds but not of it; I work 
 with my hands all the day, but my heart is 
 from it. I remember a dear friend once fent 
 me word, many years agOj how bufy he was 
 morning and night, up early and latej per- 
 haps, fays he, you will think by this accountji 
 1 am worldly; he faid, no, fir, I thank God 
 that my heart is above the world : God grant 
 we may thus prove we love God ! I don't fayy 
 but many that love the Lord may be in another 
 fituation ; but when perfons are enabled to 
 leave all for Chrift, it is a great mercy : God 
 . be praifed, we have fome fuch ^ God add to 
 their happinefs. 
 
 They 
 
Ser. VII. Ihe Beloved of God. i6g 
 
 They that love the Lord, will ftudy to 
 keepffom ofFending God, not for fear of being 
 damned, bat becaufe fin murdered his dear 
 Son 3 there are a great many people abftain 
 from fin for fear of puniihment; but hear what 
 Jofeph faid. My 772a ft er has do7ie thus and thus 
 by i7ie^ how caTi I therefore do this great wick^ 
 ednefs a72dfm agai7ift God? my God that loves 
 me 'y fo they would not flab him, becaufe he 
 has been wounded enough already. 
 
 If we are the beloved of the Lord, we fhall 
 be willing to work for the Lord ; faith with- 
 out works is the religion of every carnal man ; 
 make an end of one good work and then be- 
 gin another, and lay it down and wonder that 
 Jefus Chrifl fhould accept any thing at your 
 hands. I knew a lady fometime ago, that 
 wanted ilill more to be employed for God -, fays 
 fhe, if Jefus Chrift w^ould but help me to do 
 fuch and fuch a thing I have in view, O I 
 would kifs his feet, and dedicate myfelf more 
 and more to his honour 2 a true Chriftian loves 
 to be thus employed, but above all he is glad 
 he has the blood of Chrift to wafh his duties in. 
 
 I fliall mention but one thing more, though 
 I might mention twenty ; if we have the love 
 of God in our hearts, though we cannot get 
 
 Z over 
 
s;o Ihe Bek'ved of God. Ser. VIL 
 
 over the fears of death at all times^ yet I think 
 the bent of the mind of fuch a perfon will be, 
 when fhall I fee the objeft of my love, him 
 whom my foul loves ? they fit at ordinances, 
 and long to be led to the fountain head. lam 
 in a (irait between twOy fays Paul % the word 
 fignifies a ftrong, an intenfe defire to be with 
 Chrift : he does not fay to be in heaven, but 
 to be with Chrijiy which is far better ; but to 
 ftay here is better for you, therefore you fliould 
 be content to ftay, not becaufe you love the 
 world, but as willing to wait your Matter's 
 call. I could not help admiring while I was 
 reading it> that when Chrift afcended to hea- 
 ven, one angel^ one particular angel, it muft 
 have been a blefled one, left thofe that were 
 attending Chrift into glory, ftopped in the 
 way, for what ? why, to preach to the apot* 
 ties : Why ftand ye thus gaxing into heaven ? 
 I am afhamed of you, fays he ; here is an an- 
 gel, one of the convoy, waiting upon them ; 
 he does not fay, let me go to heaven with thee, 
 and let me come down again and preach, no y 
 he ftays down thus to preach to a few pooir 
 fifliermen. Lord fearch us, Lord try us, Lord 
 God Almighty help us to examine ourfelves^ 
 that we may know whether we are beloved of 
 the Lord or not. So 
 
Sen VII. 'The Beloved of God. 171 
 
 So that fome may fay, I think I can apply 
 all the marks, though I don't depend upon 
 marks. I have a number of bills here to-night ; 
 one fays, if I am beloved of the Lord, why 
 am I fo poor ? another fays, if I am beloved of 
 tlie Lord, why am I fo afflidled ? fays another, 
 if I am beloved of the Lord, why am I left to 
 ftarve ; can I think God loves me, when I fee 
 thoufands and thoufands fquandered away every 
 day, and yet my poor babes groaning, my poor 
 children quite emaciated, for want only of a 
 little bread that I fee in the baker's fliop as I 
 go along 'y if I am beloved of the Lord, how 
 is it that my poor children are ready to cry for 
 bread, and I have none to give them ; that 
 others are adorned with diamonds, but I have 
 not fo much as a rag to put on my little one's 
 back. If I am beloved of the Lord, how is 
 it that my friends are againft me; my children, 
 inflead of being a bleffing, are a curfe, and 
 break my heart. If I am beloved of the Lord, 
 how is it that I have fo many domeflic trials 
 that caufe me to cry out. Wo is me that I Jo- 
 journ i?i Mejljecky and dwell i?i the tents of 
 Kedar. If I am beloved of the Lord, how is 
 it that I am harraffed with blafphemous thoughts 
 fhus; the trials I meet with ii) bringing down 
 Z 2 the 
 
172 The Beloved of God. Ser. VII. 
 
 the outward man. If I am beloved of the 
 Lord, how is it that in (lead of living in plenty, 
 I now want bread to eat, and fhould be glad 
 to have it from thofe / once /corned to fet with 
 the dogs of my flock ? Whom the Lord loveth he 
 chafleneth^ and fcourgeth every /on whom he 
 receiveth. Our dear Jefus was never more be^ 
 loved of his father than when he cried out. 
 My God ! my God ! why haji thou forfaken 
 me? never more beloved of his father than 
 when he was fweating great drops of blood, 
 when he cried. Father^ ij it be pojjible let this 
 Clip pafs jrom me, I remember a dear mini- 
 fler of Chrifl", now in Suffolk, told me, when 
 he was in Scotland, going to receive the facra- 
 ment, he was fo dry and dark, and benumbed 
 and tempted, that he thought he would go 
 away ; as he was going this word came to his 
 mind, when was Jefus Chrift moft acceptable 
 to his Father ? when did he give the greateft 
 trial of his love ? when he cried out, My God ! 
 my God ! why hajl thou forfaken me f Why 
 then, fays he, upon this I will venture ^ if I 
 perifh, I perilli at Chrift's feet ; and he came 
 away filled with comfort from his bleff^d God 
 and Father in Chrift, 
 
 Well 
 
Ser. VII. The Beloved of God. 173 
 
 Well then, what is to be done to thofe that 
 are beloved of the Lord ? here's for you, they 
 JI:all dwell in jafety 3 why ? they Jhall dwell 
 between his Jhoidders 5 obferve the expreflion 
 the prophet fays they JJ:all dwell in love. Will 
 God indeed dwell on earth ^^ fays Solomon • ves 
 God, fays he, dwells in my earthly heart, 
 made heavenly by the grace of God. Did ever 
 any hear fuch an expreflion from the mouth of 
 God, J will be thy God-, I am thy Jhield^ ajid 
 thy exceeding great reward ? He does not fay 
 an angel fhall go 3 if God had only faid in his 
 word, that I was to be kept by angels, I am 
 fure my wicked heart would defpair, becaufe 
 it would deceive all the angels in heaven : but 
 God faith, / will be thy keeper ; io they that 
 would hurt his people, muft go through God 
 himfelf. They pall dwell on high-, bread jlall 
 he given to them, and their waters Jloall be fure. 
 They are kept by the mighty power of God through 
 faith, to everlafling fahation. It is faid, they 
 fall dwell between his f milder s : the govern- 
 ment of the church, and the wprld, and all 
 ^re upon the Redeemer's flioulders, and the 
 Lord's evcrlafting arms are under his people. 
 Obferve it is faid, they dwell in fafcty, and 
 very often we are fafefl wh^n we think wc are 
 mo ft in danger, 
 
 ^hey 
 
174 ^ "^^^ Beloved of God. Ser. VIL 
 
 7hey Jloall dwell in fafety ; thofe that are 
 lovers of the Lord Jefus Ihall dwell fafely 
 with God on earth, and eternally with him 
 in heaven, O may God blefs this foolifhnefs 
 of preaching to fome of God*s poor, and, per- 
 haps, doubting beloved ones. Come you poor 
 fouls, I often think that \K\sJield preaching is 
 particularly comfortable to the poor; when- 
 ever jf^/*/ preaching is flopped, farewel to the 
 power of religion. When poor people have 
 been working hard all day, how fweet muft 
 it be for them to come to a place of worfhip, 
 and get a lift for to-morrow : may the Lord 
 God blefs this barley-bread ! If you can wrap 
 yourfelves in God, let the world hate you^ 
 God's children are the greateft plagues and 
 trials one to another, but God loves them, God 
 fmiles upon them, and therefore they fhall 
 dwell in fafety. The devil told me I fhould 
 not dwell in fafety, but I bid him defiance, 
 and turned him to Deut. xxxiii. and told hini 
 Benjamin's lot was mine ; the beloved of the 
 Lord Jf:all dwell in fafety by him. 
 
 Wo, wo, wo be to you that have no marks 
 of being beloved of the Lord. Have we any 
 prophane Efaus here to-night, that are faying, 
 do not tell me of your being beloved of the 
 
 Lord 5 
 
Ser. VIL rhe Beloved of God. jj^ 
 
 Lord ; if I can have the love of fuch a perfon^ 
 I don't care whether God loves me or not 5 
 you may tell me God loves people v^hen they 
 are afflidted, I want none of thefe marks, I 
 think God loves me becaufe I am in a good 
 frame ; I think God loves me becaufe I prof- 
 per ; I think God loves me becaufe I am very 
 healthy and ftrong 5 I do not care whether I 
 wait upon God or not, or give to the poor or 
 not. I will not foftcn the matter, there is no 
 going to heaven without wearing a fool's coat« 
 O, you may fay, that is owing to your impru- 
 dence 5 you make people uneafy, and fet them 
 upon a falfe fcent, and make them their own 
 perfecutors 5 thank God, I can go into a hun- 
 dred companies, and not give them reafon io 
 fay I am a Methodift: : I can go into company 
 and fing an innocent fong, I don't tell them I 
 have a Tabernacle hymn-book in my pocket. 
 There are few have the courage that the gen- 
 tleman had who loved God^ and went to fee 
 fome carnal relations after he became a fool 
 for Chrift's fake : fays one of the relations, it 
 is always our cuflom after dinner to fing a fong, 
 and afked him to fing ^ he faid, he would in 
 his turn ; two of them fung 5 his relation faid 
 to him, come, coufin, fing j fays he, I have 
 
 not 
 
176 The Beloved of God. Ser. VIL 
 
 not fung a fong a good while, but, if you 
 pleafe, I will fing a hymn : he fung it out, 
 but they never afked him to fing again, nor 
 did they fing afterwards. How fweet it is to 
 go through boldly with a thing for Chrifl ! Do 
 not you think you are a coward ? are you not 
 afhamed ? are any of you fuch cowards as to 
 plead your prudence: God help you to be 
 unmalked to-night. I do not know whether 
 you go to a mafquerade, but you have a dread- 
 ful mafque upon your fouls, a dreadful reli- 
 gious vifage. I heard fomebody appeared the 
 other night, in order to bring contempt upon 
 US) in a Methodift drefs, that was one of the 
 dreffes. O how can they do fo? fay you; 
 how canft thou do fo ? pretend to be a Me^ 
 thodift among God's people, and behave light 
 and foolilli among the children of the devil ; 
 for fhame unmafk yourfelves, for God will, 
 by death, unmafk your foul, and fliow your 
 hypocrify. The word hypocrite is taken from 
 a flage- player, who ad:s that part he is not: 
 God, of his infinite mercy, keep all here from 
 ftopping fhort. ^ 
 
 If any of you are awakened and convinced, 
 the Lord grant you may never reft till you 
 >know you are the beloved of the Lord. Ah ! 
 
 fays 
 
 ^ 
 
Sen VII. Ibe Beloved QJ God. 177 
 
 fay you, I fliall never know that, that I am 
 the beloved of the Lord : I am that old grey- 
 headed wretch you mentioned at the beginning 
 of your fermon \ can God love me a drunkard, 
 fabbath-breaker, a whoremonger, an adulterer, 
 an unclean wretch as ever trod on the ground ! 
 Pray what was Paul ? what was the jailor ? 
 what were all the three thoufand that were 
 converted at once ; what was their cafe ? nay, 
 what was Adam the firft finner ? and yet Adam 
 and Eve both, I believe, received mercy of 
 God y flie is therefore called the mother of all 
 livings becaufe fhe is the mother of all be- 
 lievers. Come then at a venture, come then, 
 throw thyfclf upon Chrifl ^ do not lay, Par- 
 don my iniquities becaufe they are fmall, but 
 fay, Lo7'dy pardon my iniquities for they are 
 great. One that was executed to-day for forg- 
 ing fomething to rob his father \ what a father 
 deal thus with his fon ? well, faid I, it is fo 
 with a man, but our heavenly father will par- 
 don i and though the law is called a fiery law, 
 yet there is, bleifed be God, a new and living 
 way. Oh finners ! oh fmners ! God help you 
 to come and venture, and flrive, though you 
 have none of the marks that have been men- 
 tioned, yet fay, God can put thele marks 
 A a U|:on 
 
178 ^be Beloved of God. Ser. VII, 
 
 upon me, I have been courting this and that 
 perfon's love; nay, I made no other ufe of 
 coming to worfhip, but to look out for fome- 
 tbing to advance myfelf. I have been look- 
 ing out for nothing but beauty ; I have been 
 looking out for nothing but money, or fome- 
 thing or other to make my fortune ; but now 
 begone, vain V70rld ; now, Lord, I would 
 look after thee. That you may know you are 
 the beloved of the Lord, dwell in fafety on 
 earth, and after death be conveyed to dwell 
 with, and love him to all eternity, God grant 
 for Chrifl's fake. Amen, . 
 
 SERMON 
 
r 179 3 
 
 SERMON VIII. 
 
 The Furnace of Afflidion. 
 
 - ■ -r 
 
 Isaiah xlvlii. ver. 10. 
 / have chofen thee in the furnace of affiiElioft. 
 
 GRACIOUS words indeed! words 
 worthy of a God ! who has promifed 
 that he "will not qlways chajiife^ that 
 he will not keep his anger for ever 3 but, on 
 the contrary, will take care in the midft of 
 judgment to remember mercy ; and if he ftrikes 
 with one hand, will uphold with the other. 
 
 I hope I need not tell you, my dear hear- 
 ers, that thefe words were fpoken to comfort, 
 the captives in Babylon, who, for their various 
 fins and great backflidings, conftrained the God 
 of love, the God of mercy, their covenant 
 God, to fend them captives into a foreign foil; 
 upon this their enemies take occafion to infult 
 them, ii'here are 7iow your fongs ? fay they; 
 give us one of your Temple fongs, with which 
 A a 2 you 
 
I So 7 he Furnace of Jffii^iiGiu S er. VIII. 
 
 you ufed to pour out your allelujahs ; let us 
 fee now whether you can praife him in a 
 flrange land< The enemy of fouls joining in- 
 wardly with them without, makes fome that 
 can fing, even afraid that God hath forgotten to 
 be graciouSy that he hath flmt up his loving 
 kindjiefs in difpleafure^ that the darknefs in- 
 which they were now involved would not be 
 a temporary, but a perpetual one \ and not- 
 withftanding the prophets v/ere fent in mercy 
 of God to comfort them in their trouble, yet 
 many of them were tempted to fay, all men^ 
 yea the prophets, were liars 3 it is very well 
 if they flopped there, and did not fay, God is 
 a liar too. The enemy being thus fuffered to 
 break in upon them like a flood, it was high 
 time for the blefled God to lift up a ftandard 
 againft him 5 and therefore the great Re- 
 deemer, the angel of the everlafling covenant, 
 lets them know that he would fome time or 
 other, nay, very fpeedily, appear to relieve 
 his afllifted people : he affures them, that 
 however for a while he might fuficr them ta 
 be tried, he would caufe a fpeedy deliverance, 
 that ihould make them look upon him as their 
 God 5 and this not for any merit found in this^ 
 people, not for any good forefeen, but he fays, 
 
 for 
 
Set-. Vlli. 7he Furnace of Affiidiion, i g i 
 
 for my own name's fake-, that the heathen 
 might not fay God had utterly forfaken them, 
 he will appear for their relief, and make them 
 more than conquerors through him that locoed 
 them 3 that however dark the feafon of afHic- 
 tion might be, yet he would let his own peo- 
 ple know that all that happened, happened 
 out of love; that it was fo far from being 
 true, that they were really caft off from God, 
 that, on the contrary, he intended to over-rule 
 thcfe troubles, both foreign and domeftic, to 
 bring them nearer to, and at lafi: to lodge 
 them fafe in the world above: well therefore 
 for their comfort might it be ulhcred in thu?, 
 for my name's fake will I defer 7ny anger ^ and 
 for my praife "will 1 refrain for thee^ that I 
 cut thee not off\ And to fix their attention 
 and gratitude, 'tis added, behold 1 have refined 
 thee^ but not with filver ; for this is fo far from 
 being contrary to the everlafting decree, or pur- 
 pofe, hid in my bofom, that, on the contrary, 
 it is the fulfilling it ; for, faith God in the 
 words of our text, 1 have chofen thee in the 
 furnace of affiiBion. 
 
 Though the words are ipoken in the Angu- 
 lar number, yet they are of a complex and 
 large import ; the great God ngt only fpeaks 
 
 to 
 
1 82 7he Furnace of Afflidiion. Ser. VlII. 
 
 to them as a people colledively confidered, but 
 particularizes them in this manner; not I have 
 chofen you, but I ha^ve chofen thee 5 for the 
 word of God itfelf will never, never, never do 
 us goodj if it is not applied by the blefled 
 Spirit of God to you and L The wifdom and 
 kindnefs of the Holy Ghoft deferves our no- 
 tice ; had the prophet gone on and faid, 1 have 
 chofen you, unbelief might have faid, ah, this 
 prophefy belongs only to the people of Ifrael> 
 the words were addrefled to thofe who were 
 under the Jewifh difpenfation, what have I to 
 do with them ? or unbelief would perfuade us 
 to fay fo of fuch a general promife as this ^ 
 but when it is faid I have chofen thee, and 
 we know that no fcripture is of private inter- 
 pretation, but, like its bleffed author, is the 
 fame yejierday, to-day, and for ever, there is 
 no loop-hole, as it were, for unbelief to creep 
 out at; but every believer may, in all ages, 
 in the words of the text, fay to himfelf, God 
 has chofen me in the jurnace of affliBion^ 
 Perhaps, there is not a more comfortable paf- 
 fage in the whole book of God ; I do not know 
 of one that has a greater tendency to filence a 
 complaining child of God, or to make a poor 
 fuffering believer happy, and to reft under 
 
 the 
 
Ser. VIII. The Furndce of Jffii5lion. 183 
 
 the promife, to kifs the rod of God that ftrikes 
 the blow. 
 
 Where ihall I begin, where fhall I end? 
 the very firft words open fuch a field, that eter- 
 nity itfelf will be but juft long enough for us 
 to take a view of it ; the time is come that even 
 fome good people that have the grace of God 
 in their hearts, have fuc4i muddy heads as to 
 kick at the dodtrine of eledtion, and look up- 
 on it as having a tendency to make us bad in 
 our heads, or Antinomians in our hearts 3 but 
 if we have eyes to fee, and ears to hear, and if 
 our hearts are really informed by the Spirit ; 
 if we have been anointed with his eye-falve, 
 O then elefting, fovereign, diftinguifhing love 
 flows in fuch a fcene, fuch a tranlporting fcene, 
 as will make a believer's heart leap for joy. 
 For my own part, I know no other dodtrine 
 that can truly humble the nlan 5 for either God 
 mufl chufe us, or we muft chufe God ; either 
 God muft be the firft mover, or man muft be 
 the firft mover; either God muft chufe them 
 on account of fome goodnefs, on account of 
 fome purity, . or ads of piety, or God muft 
 chufe them merely -of his grace, for his own 
 name's fake, and to let us know that we have 
 pot chofen hiin, but he has chofen us. I verily 
 
 believe^ 
 
1 84 ^"he Furnace of AffiiEilm. S^r> VUL 
 
 believe, that the grand reafon why fuch doc- 
 trine is fo fpurned at, and hated by carnal peo- 
 ple, is, that it ftrikes at the very root of hu- 
 man pride, cuts the linev^s of free-v^rill all to 
 pieces, and brings the poor finner to lie down 
 at the foot of fovereign grace 5 and, let his at- 
 tainments in the fchool of Chrift be ever fo 
 great, it conftrains him to cry out. Lord, why 
 me ! why me ! Our Mafter, and I think we 
 fhould not attempt to be wifer than our Mailer 
 was, fpeaks particularly of and to his own 
 fchool, his little college of apoftles : T^hine 
 they were^ and thou gavefi them me-y 1 have 
 chofenyoUy but ye have not chofen me, — Becauje I 
 have chofen you out of the world, therefore the 
 world hateth you. Before they were fully 
 enlightened, though they were afterwards 
 brought more to the light, two of them at firfl 
 faid, we have found the Meffiah ; yet when 
 they were funk deeper in the knowledge of 
 themfelves, they changed their note, and faid, 
 the Meffiah has found us. Obferve the man- 
 ner of the Redeemer's addreffing our firft pa- 
 rent, when their guilt had caufed them to hide 
 themfelves, jidam, where art thou ? Pray who 
 called firfl:, did Adam call after Chrifl:, or did 
 Chrifl call after him 5 or do you think there is 
 
 any 
 
Ser. VIII. T^he Furnace of AffliEiion, ig^ 
 
 any difference between us and Adam, or that 
 we have got better hearts than Adam had ; 
 do you think we are wifcr and better now ? 
 Adam run away from God, and {o fliould we 
 to this very day, unlefs Jefus Chrift had called 
 us to himfelf. 
 
 Some perfons, perhaps, may {d,y^ Well, I 
 like your dodrine very well; God chufes us, 
 you fay, when we have no regard to any good 
 works at all, therefore I will go on finnino-, 
 becaufe the fitter I fhall be for God's grace j 
 and the fitter thou mayft be for hell. — Grace 
 does not deftroy the ufe of the law 3 an honeft 
 heart will draw that inference from it, as a 
 good woman once did when the devil told her, 
 that either God had chofen her and fhe fhould 
 be faved, or if fhe was rejeded fhe fliould be 
 damned, fo, faid he, you need not flrlve ; flie 
 anfwered, if there were but two to be faved, 
 I would ftrive to be one of them : God help 
 us to draw that inference. 
 
 Now this word chofen^ refers us to God's 
 eternal eleflion ; it comprehends, and is the 
 fource of all that God has done for believers, 
 for every individual believer in particular when 
 Jefus bowed his head and gave up the ghoil. 
 Hence the apoftle, in the eighth of the Ro- 
 B b mans. 
 
t86 lie Furnace of Affliction. Ser. VI IL 
 
 mans, mentioning this dodlrine in the cleareft 
 manner, triumphs over the accufer by afking, 
 Whojhall lay any tbi?ig to the charge oj God's 
 eledi 1 and in the fame chapter declares, that 
 it is God that glorifies : for though glorifica- 
 tion is the laft thing done to us, yet it is the 
 firft thing God defigns for us. What is the 
 great thing for a natural man to hear ? what 
 is it ? why^ not only that God has chofen us,; 
 but ehojcn us in the furnace of affiiBion : O 
 that the Spirit of God may vouchfafe to tran* 
 fcribe thefe words into our hearts 1 God help 
 thee to take it to thyfelf, O man ; to take it 
 to thyfelf, O woman ^ to take it ta thyfelf 
 whoever thou art that art either a Chriftian 
 now, or defires or hopes to be a Chriftian be- 
 fore thou dieft, / have chofen thee in the fur- 
 mce of affliBion. 
 
 What can be the meaning of the words? 
 why, 'tis very plain that the import of them 
 muft be this j I have chofen thee, and it is 
 my determination from everlafting to the end 
 of time, and for ever. I have chofen thee 
 with this determination, that the v/ay to hea- 
 ven fhould be through the road of afilidlion : 
 this is the believer's way, efpecially the mini- 
 fters of Chrift, When Paul was converted,. 
 
Ser, VIII. The Furnace of u4ffli5lion. 187 
 
 pray what preferment did God promife him ? 
 was it to be a great dignitary in the church? 
 no, nothing about the church ? was it any 
 more eafe, was it to wear a triple crown, were 
 perfons to come and kifs his toe, what pre- 
 ferment did God chufe him to? what? fays 
 God, I willJJjow him what great thi?igs he mujl 
 fiiffer for my name*s fake, I verily believe, 
 that if we were to have no other preferment 
 than this of Paul, there is not one in a thou- 
 fand of the minifters that would afk for a liv- 
 ing, if they knew they were to have fuch poor 
 wages as Paul had. Minifters that hold the 
 ftandard up, muft expedt the enemy will fire 
 on them from every quarter ; and if they hap- 
 pen to be inftrumental in comforting others, 
 *with the fame comforts wherewith they therK- 
 [elves are comforted of God^ they muft expeft 
 to bear their part, not only for their own puri- 
 fication, but for the benefit of thofe to whom 
 they minifter; and I believe audiences find 
 that minifters minifter beft, and the bread 
 comes beft, when it comes out of the furnace j 
 of a minifter's afflidlion. 
 
 The word afiliftion is of a very complex 
 
 kind J it is like the word tribulation, which 
 
 comes from the latin tribidus^ fignifying a 
 
 B b 2 pricking 
 
i88 The Furnace of AffliBion. Ser.VIII. 
 
 pricking thorn, a fcratching briar, or wound- 
 ing fpikes concealed in the way ; and the word 
 afflidion arifes from a word that figniiies fome- 
 thing that beats down, preffes fore, and is 
 very grievous and tormenting 3 it is a word of 
 fo general import, that it takes in all the trou- 
 ble we meet with from men, all the wounds 
 we receive from enemies, as well as in the 
 houfe of our friends • it takes in all our domef- 
 tic trials, all our inw^ard ftruggles and dreadful 
 temptations occafioned by the fiery darts of a 
 watchful devil; and if I am not miftaken, 
 when the great God faid, 1 have chofen thee 
 in the furnace of affiiBion^ it implys, that this 
 is really to continue with us even to the very 
 end of cur days : this is what young converts, 
 in the time of their firft love, do not fee ; that 
 is, do not wholly fee it; for if young Chrif- 
 tians were to know all they have to fuffer, it 
 would dreaafuUy difcourage them. God fays, 
 his people fhall not do fo and fo, becaufe at 
 their firll fetting out they would be difheart- 
 ned, and think of going back. It is our hap- 
 pinefs God lets us know our trials but very 
 little before-hand, very little notice of them 
 have we before the time, and then, perhaps, 
 gives us but little refpite 5 but O when one 
 
 trial 
 
Ser. VIII. The Furnace of Jffliaion. 189 
 
 trial IS gone, God does with us as maflers do 
 with their Icholars, turns over a new leaf with 
 us ; and when one trial is over, teaches us ano- 
 ther ; hence our trials are not only new, but 
 conftant ; hence many a believer is apt to fay. 
 My trials rife out of the ground-^ and many 
 believers are faying, who would have thought 
 fuch a trial would have befallen me at fuch a 
 time, from fuch a hand ? this may, perhaps, 
 open to us a gloomy fcene; it would be 
 gloomy indeed, if we were not living in a flate 
 of preparation ; it would be gloomy indeed, if 
 God was to afflid: without a caufe ; but there 
 is fo much corruption, fuch remainders of in- 
 dwelling fin, even in God's own children that 
 are to ftand neareft to him in glory, that are 
 the deareft to him, and who are to be blefled 
 with being in his bofom, that if God was not 
 to fend them afflidlions, there is not a child of 
 God but would overfet even with the comforts 
 God vouchfafes to them. We find it fo with 
 our bodies, that if we live without exercife 
 we are liable to have a variety of difeafes, we 
 therefore fubmit to various ways and means 
 that a phyfician can prefcribe ; and if the dif- 
 orders to which we are expofed in our bodies, 
 make us willing to fubmit to a regimen pre- 
 
 fcribed 
 
f 9© Jhe Furnace of AffliBion, Ser. VIII, 
 
 fcribed by a fkilful phyfician, does it not fol- 
 low by a parity of realoning, that we for our 
 fouls want fometimes lenitives, and corrofives^ 
 and foniething like a caaftic to eat off the 
 proud flefh that cleaves to us ? and it vindicates 
 God's ways to man, that there is an hereafter 
 appointed for us, that there is another world, 
 to which, perhaps, v/e fhall be called to go 
 before the morning, 'where the inhabitant ij}:)all 
 no more fay^ I amfick. Believers know this, 
 and if they cannot keep a ledger book, if they 
 cannot pofl a merchant's book, they may learn 
 fo much of divine arithmetic, as to know that 
 the light afflictions "which are but for a moment^ 
 work for us afar more exceeding and eternal 
 weight of glory. The way to heaven, good 
 bifhop Beveridge fays, is narrow, but it is not 
 long; the gates are ftrait, but open to ever- 
 lafting life ; and therefore God has chofen us in 
 the fur?iace of affli^tiouy becaufe if we were 
 not afflidled, we Ihould never know what we 
 were made of Mr. Bohem, who was chap- 
 Iain to the prince of Denmark, that was mar- 
 ried to queen Anne, in one of his excellent 
 fermons upon affliflion, has this obfervation, 
 '^^ Affliftions and temptations are like fun- 
 beams falling upon a dunghill 5 they do not 
 
 bring 
 
Sen VIII. ne Fumace of JffliBion. 191 
 
 bring vapours into the dunghill, but they ex- 
 hale the vapours." So afflidtions do not bring 
 the corruptions into us 3 v^e blame fuch and 
 fuch a one for ftirring up fuch and fuch cor- 
 ruptions in us, but thefe tend to drav^ out the 
 vapours, and prepare us for the more lafting 
 funfhine of a fmiling God. God does not in- 
 tend to deftroy thee, but to refine thee, and 
 to humble thee by it. The devil wants to 
 fift thee as wheat > he thinks to let the grain 
 go through the fieve, but Chrifl: will only let 
 the chaff fall through, and the fooner that is 
 gone the better: fo it is no ways derogatory to 
 the honour of Chrift, but agreeable to the ftate 
 in which we are, agreeable to the ftate and 
 the preparations to be made for eternity, agree- 
 able to the militant difpofition that our graces 
 muft retain. Hence our Lord was content to 
 be called God's fervant. Behold my fervant 
 "whom 1 have chofeny mine ele5i in ivhom myfoul 
 delight eth. — Though he was a fon, he learned 
 obedience by the things that hefuffered-, he Vi^as- 
 made perfedl by his fufferings. We cannot 
 avoid trouble as men, as Chriftians we ihould 
 not attempt it : man is bor7t to trouble as the 
 jparks jiy upwards -y and Chriftians, efpecially 
 the man new-born, Jf thefe things were done 
 
 to 
 
192 "The FurJiace of Affliction, Ser. VII L 
 
 to the green tree^ what JJ:all be done to the dry ? 
 The crofs is the high-road to heaven, and fo 
 the king's highway ; you know there is always 
 a bar upon the king's road, the king has a 
 particular road for himfelf ; but the King of 
 kings will make all bars to be removed, and 
 then his people go the fame road he himfelf 
 went : this was the road of all the children of 
 God ; there is not an heir of God in heaven, 
 but is now thanking God for his fufferings here 
 below 'y there is not a child of God ever re- 
 ceived into glory, but, I believe, as foon as 
 he comes there, is made to know why he met 
 with fuch a trial, and from fuch a quarter ; 
 why he was under fuch a rod, why under it 
 fo long ; why it was fhifted, why it was chan- 
 ged, why the whip fometimes was turned to a 
 fcorpion, and the furnace heated kv^n times 
 hotter 5 then the believer fees the need of it : 
 in heaven, it makes him wonder he was not 
 afflidted fevcn times more on earth. I remem- 
 ber Virgil makes his hero in the iEneid to 
 fay, 'twould all end well ^. He comforts him- 
 felf with this confideration under his trouble, 
 that the difcharge from it would be the better ^ 
 
 and 
 
 * Babit Deus his quoque finem, 
 
 Forfan et hsec olrm meminiffe juvabit. 
 Per vaiios cafus, per tot difcrimina rerum, 
 Tendimus in Latium. 
 
Ser. VIII. TXf Furnace of AfjIiBion, 195 
 
 and if a child of God would think of that, 
 hereafter he will look with pleafure on what 
 he fuffered here ; much more a Chriftian en- 
 riched with the grace of God, will be willing 
 to die when he confiders he is hereafter to fit 
 in Abraham's bofom, and God fays to him. 
 Remember thou in thy life-time received thy 
 evil things. O my brethren, a fine fchool is 
 the fchool of Chrift ! I never knew any one of 
 my acquaintance that v/ere believers, and I 
 have been acquainted with fome thefe twenty- 
 eight years lafl: pal!:, but what flourifhed moil 
 under the affliding hand of God, I believe if 
 the devil had his will, he would bid too high 
 for every believer ; he does not love money ; a 
 covetous man is worfe than the devil, he loves 
 that which the devil fquanders away ; but fay 
 they, we think we fhould be very good if we 
 had a coach and fix 5 fo when they have it, 
 they think they are too good to go to that cha- 
 pel or foundery; it was a good place when 
 we walked a-foot, but now we have a coach 
 we will drive by. Happy is it for us that we 
 are chofen in the furnace of afflidlion; that is 
 a glorious petition in our litany, T^hat in all 
 time of our tribulation^ good Lord deliver us ! 
 You may very well excufe me for preaching 
 C c from 
 
194 ^^-^^ Furnace of Ajlitlion. Ser. VIII. 
 
 from fuch a text as this, becaufe I have been 
 in the furnace, and I find it Is very fweet ; it 
 is very fweet walking in a burning fiery fur- 
 nace when the Son of God leads by the arm. 
 In the account we have of the three children 
 being in the fiery furnace, the king could fay, 
 I fee one walking with them : v^hat an emblem 
 of the children of God ! O, fay you, does the 
 Son of God walk with you in the furnace ? I 
 anfwer, yes ; make the worft of it, tell them 
 the enthufiaft, the babler fays, God walks 
 with his people in the furnace ; he walks with 
 all that walk with him, and never walks clofer 
 with them than when they are in the furnace. 
 Daniel is generally painted young, but he was 
 four-fcore years old when he was thrown in 
 among the lions, there he^ fits as fweet and 
 eafy, and no lion dare to touch one of his 
 grey hairs. Nothing proves the truth of grace, 
 and fhows the love of God more, and you 
 may be aflured of it as you are of being in 
 this place alive, that fanftified afHixftions are 
 the greateft evidence God can give you of his 
 love 5 fo that if we are chofen in the furnace 
 of afHiftion, we are to exped: it 5 and k it not 
 a great fliame for us, that the heathens out-^ 
 do us ? when one came and told one of the 
 
 -heathens 
 
Scr. VIIL "The Furnace of Affli5llo. ig^ 
 
 heathens that his fon, a darling fon, wl^ dead, 
 he faid, " I know that I begot him mortal.'* 
 So Job faid, The Lord hath given^ and the 
 Lord hath taken away, O that God may blefs 
 this poor preaching to the raifing up fome 
 drooping foul. Underneath thee;^ O believer, 
 O fufferer, are God's everlafting arms ; there* 
 fore the beloved of the Lord Jlo all dwell infafety^ 
 becaufe they dwell near him, and he that 
 toiicheth thenty toucheth the apple of God's eye.^ 
 
 This may teach us, when one trouble is 
 over to expedl another \ none of your re- 
 quiems here. Abraham, I believe, thought 
 when he had got his Ifaac, he was to be tried 
 no more ^ but after thefe things God did te?npt 
 Abrahain. We know not what trials we are 
 to have, but remember they are marks of oar 
 adoption : not that all afflictions do prove us 
 children of God, becaufe there are fome afflic- 
 tions that are not fandlified : God give us all 
 to have fandified afflidlions 1 
 
 If this is the cafe, let young believers know 
 what they are to meet with ; God forgive 
 thofe, and vifible churches are too much pef- 
 tered with them, that daub with untempered 
 mortar : formerly, when the church was un- 
 der perfecution, they would forfake father, 
 C c 2 mother, 
 
ig6 dthe Furnace of ^ffliBion* Ser. VIII. 
 
 motlier. and all 3 but noWy ble/fed be GoJ, we 
 arr for beco?ni7tg Chrijiians 5 we live in Lon- 
 don, we live where the church is fmiled iipon^ 
 we may live where we are at eaje, — My dear 
 hearers, do you think that all the Londoners 
 are converted ? do you think they all bring 
 forth the fruits of the Spirit ^ or have you heard 
 that the devil is converted ? can any body 
 prove to me that the devil is not the fame j 
 can you prove that God is not the fame ; can 
 you prove that the v^orld is not the fame, that 
 the human heart is not the fame ? if you can 
 prove that neither of thefe are what they were 
 when Chrift came into the world, I will give 
 up the pointy but if they are the fame, we 
 mull expecfl the fame trials our forefathers 
 met with, if ever we hope to meet with them 
 in glory ; God forbid Ifiouldglory, fave in the 
 crofs oj Jefus Chrift, Therefore, if any of us 
 have a mind to fe.t out for heaven, expedl trou- 
 ble. Indeed, if we have enlifted under the 
 devil's banner, he fhows you the kingdoms of 
 the world, and the glory of them. When 
 Peter faid to our Lord, concerning his fufirr- 
 ings, far be that jrom thee 5 after having ihown 
 his difpleafure at it, as a fuggeiiion of fatan's, 
 he fays to all his difciples. If any man will 
 
 come 
 
;Ser. VIIL Ihe Furnace of AffliEllon. 197 
 
 come after mCy let him take up his crofs and 
 Jollow me. And I remember Mr. Law, who 
 was a great man, notwithftanding fome great 
 blunders and miftakes, told me thirty-two 
 years n2;o, all principles, all dodlrines, are com- 
 prehended in thefe few words. If any ma?i 
 will come after me^ let him deny hi?nfelf and 
 take up his crofs and follow me. And if you 
 do not chufe the furnace of afflidlion, if you 
 are too nice to enter in, you forfake the Lord, 
 ^nd are only preparing to be company for the 
 damned in hell. This was the cafe with 
 Dives 5 Son^ thcu in thy life^tim.e received thy 
 good things : and for a man that fares fump- 
 tuous every day ; for a man that is cloathed 
 in fine linen, to be tormented by the devil ; 
 to fee God, Chrift, heaven, with all he had, 
 loft 3 and the torments muft never ceafe. One 
 moments thought of this is very awful ! God 
 grant this may not be the lot of any ot us ! 
 Come, my dear hearers, may God of his in- 
 finite mercy grant this night, that fome poor 
 foul may be refcued from the devil, and en- 
 lift under Chrift's banner! I have bore the 
 crofs thirty-four years ; I never wore it long, 
 but I found to my great comfort it was lined 
 with the love of God. My yoke is eaf)\ my 
 
 burden 
 
198 T%e Furnace of AffliBion. Ser. VIII. 
 
 burden is light, faith our blefled Lord. Suf- 
 fering grace is given for fuffering times 3 the 
 reafon we have not more comfort is, becaufe 
 we have not more crofTes : happy they that 
 fay in this vifitation, my Jefus, my Lord, I 
 give up all for thee ; my life, and all things, 
 I caft behind. 
 
 A heart that no dejire will move, 
 Bict Jim to adore y obey, and love. 
 Give me, 7ny Lor J, my life, my all, 
 I wifh you joy that run this courfe ; don't 
 be weary of it, don't think hard of God, don't 
 lay, never was any body tried as I am, never 
 was any body tempted as I am, for if you was 
 to go and tell your crofs, there are a thoufand 
 in the congregation would, perhaps, fay, dear 
 I have had that and ten times worfe. One 
 Mr. Buchanan, a Scotchman, who died the 
 other day, having lofl his laft child, faid, " I 
 am now childlefs, but, blefled be God, I am 
 not Chriftlefs." A noble lady told me herfelf, 
 that when flie was crying on account of one of 
 her children's death, her little daughter came 
 innocently to her one day and faid, '* Mamma, 
 is God Almighty dead, you cry lo ? the lady 
 blufhing, faid, no -, flie replied, Madam, will 
 you lend me your glove ? flic let her take it, 
 
 and 
 
Ser. VIII. 'The Furnace of Affli^ion. 199 
 
 and after that afked for it again; upon which 
 the child faid. Now you have taken the glove 
 from me, fhali I cry becaufe you have taken 
 away your own glove ? and fhall you cry be- 
 caufe God has taken away my fifter.'' Out of 
 the mouths of babes has God perfected praife^ 
 and will for ever, O glorify God in the fur- 
 nace ! 
 
 If any of you are faying, don't tell me of 
 your ^fflidlons, I will live, I will drink, to^ 
 morrow Jhall be as to-day^ and Jo much the 
 more. If there be any of you that fay fo, take 
 care, take care, God himfelf can't iflue out a 
 worfe fentence againft you than this, Let him 
 (iloney let him alone 5 whom the Lord loves he 
 chaftens. What a pretty creature would you 
 make in heaven, if you was to go there, with- 
 out one of Chrift's crofles on your back, you 
 would be turned out ; no, there are none fuch 
 there. 
 
 Chrifliians endure the crofs -, happy ye that 
 are tried, and happy they that are gone to 
 glory. Where is Mr. Middleton now ? where 
 is my dear feliow-labourer, that honeft, that 
 fteady man of God ? Oh ! he was thanking 
 God for the gout in his head, in his feet, in 
 his ftomach, all decays > thanking God for 
 
 that 
 
200 The Furnace of AffiiBion* Ser. VIII. 
 
 that laft trouble that cut the thread of life, and 
 gave the foul a paiTage for heaven 5 if, in the 
 midfl: of that torture, he could anfwer his 
 daughter and fay, heaven upon earthy heaven 
 upon earthy and went to heaven but a little 
 after 3 now furely he muft fay, heaven in hea-^ 
 ven 3 muft he not now he fees God, and fees 
 Chrift ? and by his comfort, though in fuch 
 great pain, it fhows that God was kiffing away 
 his foul, he died at the very mouth of God. 
 O may the bleffed God blefs his parents and 
 children that are here to-night 5 I believe you 
 may be glad that God has chofen him in the 
 furnace of affliftion. I am glad to hear that 
 fo many are defirous that fomething may be 
 done for his family, and Mr. — -, and Mr, 
 
 . , and Mr. , are willing to take in the 
 
 fubfcri'ptions that any may be inclined to fend 
 them. May God blefs the family, and grant 
 that his children may not difgrace the memory 
 of their father; that they may live as followers 
 of his faith, who is now gone to inherit the 
 promifes of God. You know not how your 
 children may be left by you, though there is 
 not one of you here but may be called that 
 have children, to fay, by and by my children 
 muft be left to the goodnefs of God ; and it is 
 
 a great 
 
Ser. Vlth The Furnace of AffliBion. 201 
 
 a great happinefs to fee fo many fatberlefs 
 children provided for of late: there was never 
 a time when perfons were more beneficent to 
 the drftrelied ; let it riot be faid that betlevers 
 in London live on bread alone, but may they 
 be continuing to lay Up tfeafure in heaven \ 
 when we plead, not by way of merit, remem- 
 ber me, O Lord, I did fo and fo when others 
 were in trouble. Lord Jefus, I plead thy 
 promifes, if thou haft chofen me in the fur- 
 nace of afBidion ; O Lord, help me to lay 
 hold on thee : O that this may be your arid 
 my lot. I am haftning to the grave ; I am 
 aftonifhcd that I have again an opportunity to 
 preach the word of God. May God prepare 
 us to follow thofe that have gone before 
 us, where the wicked ceafe from troubling^ 
 and the weary foul enjoys everlafting reft with 
 thee, O Father, with thee, O Son, and with 
 the Holy Ghoft 5 to whom, three perfons but 
 one God, be all honour and glory, now and 
 for evermore. Amen. 
 
 D d SERMON' 
 
[ 202 ] 
 
 SERMON IX. 
 
 The Lord our Light, 
 
 Isaiah !x. ver. 19, 20. 
 
 The fun fiall be no more thy light by day^ nei- 
 ther jor brightne J s Jhall the mooji give light 
 tinto thee^ hut the Lordjhall be unto thee an 
 everlafling lights and thy God thy glory. 
 Thy fun Jhall no more go down, neither Jh all 
 thy moon ivithdraw itfelf for the Lord fmll 
 be thine everlafling lights and the days of 
 thy inourningfhall be ended, 
 
 UPON reading thefe wards, I cannot 
 help thinking of what the royal 
 Pfalmifl faid, Glorious things are fpo^ 
 ken of thee y O city of God. Selah. I am afraid^ 
 my dear hearers^ fhat even behevers them- 
 felves, who have tailed of the grace of God, 
 refleft not and meditate as they ought, on 
 the glorious and amazing felicity they are 
 
 called 
 
Ser. IX. T.l:)e Lord our Light. 203 
 
 called by the Spirit of God to experience in 
 this life. We content ourfelves too much with 
 our hopes, and if we attain to a good hope 
 through grace, we are ready to think we have 
 got up to the laft ftep of the gofpel ladder, and 
 have nothing more to do but to reft in that 
 hope, without ever attaining to an abiding, 
 full aiTarance of faith. If we would examine 
 the fcriptures, and not chufe to bring them 
 down to us, but beg of God to raife our hearts 
 up to them, we fhall find the believer is made 
 partaker of the grace of life, as well as an heir 
 of it; the one is on earth, the other in hea- 
 ven, and one is only a prelibation of the 
 other. This bleffed prophet Ifaiah, fpeaking 
 of the privileges of the children of God, faith. 
 Eye hath not feen, nor ear heard, neither hath 
 it entered into the heart of man to conceive the 
 things that God hath prepared (and that even 
 here below) for thofe that love him : God grant 
 that we may be of that happy number ! Hence, 
 like an evangelift, the prophet draws afidc 
 the veil, and as one infpired by the Spirit of 
 God, and filled with the rays of divine light, 
 gives us a tranfporting view of the gofpel ftate, 
 and the glory which the church militant en- 
 joys below, befjre its triumphant ftate above. 
 D d 2 The 
 
204 ^he Lord our Light. Ser. IX. 
 
 The text, probably, refers to the great 
 change that fhould be made in the affairs of 
 the Jews after their captivity, how wonder- 
 fully God would appear for them, after their 
 harps had been long hanging on the willows, 
 and they could make no other anfwer to their 
 infulting foes than this mournful one. How 
 can njoe fing the Lord*s fong i?i ajirange land^ 
 The gofpel is, doubtlefs, glad tidings of great 
 joy J and hov/ever the people of God might 
 be encouraged to ^hope that the time w^ould 
 come, when they fhould tread on the necks 
 of their enemies, the prophet teaches them to 
 look further, and lets them know that their hap- 
 pinefs was not to confifl in any external created 
 good, but in a larger pofTeflion of the graces 
 and comforts of the Holy Ghofl. So that 
 this chapter fpeaks not only of a temporal 
 deliverance and refl, which they fhould enjoy 
 after their trouble, but a fpiritual refl, which, 
 by faith, they fhould enter into here, as the 
 earneft and pledge of the refl and enjoyment 
 of the better world hereafter. As we know 
 no more of heaven than is difcovered by the 
 eye of faith, for even St. Paul acknowledges, 
 that the things he faw were unutterable, 'tis 
 obferv^ble that heave*^ in fcripture is defcribed 
 
 tQ 
 
Ser. IX. Ihe Lord our Light. 205 
 
 to us more by what it is not, than by what it 
 is. So in the words of the text, Ihy fimJJjall 
 no more go down^ neither jh all thy moon ivith- 
 draw itfelf^ for the Lord fkall be thine ever* 
 lafling light y and the days of thy mourning 
 fJoall be ended. Here are three negatives, and 
 but one pofitive, namely, the Lord f jail be 
 thy everlafiing lights which is a beautiful allu- 
 fion to the fun, that fhould teach us to fpi- 
 ritualize natural things ; and if we feared God, 
 and lived near to him as we ought, there is 
 no objed: of our bodily eyes but might im- 
 prove our fpiritual fight. You cannot fuppofe 
 the prophet meant a time fliould come, when 
 the fun fliould not literally go down, that 
 there fhould not be night and day as now ; 
 God indeed permitted a man once to fay, fun^ 
 (land thouflill^ and it was done ) but, perhaps, 
 there never will be any fuch thing again till 
 the fun is removed from its ftation, and the 
 moon forfake her orbit, and be turned into 
 blood. The word muft therefore be under-' 
 flood in a figurative fenfe 3 and then comparing 
 fpiritual things with fpiritual, it muft certainly 
 import, that Jefus Chrift, the Sun of Righ- 
 teoufnefs, fhall be what the fun is to the vifible 
 world, that is, the light and life of all liis 
 
 people ^ 
 
2o6 ^he Lord cur Light. Se'r. IX. 
 
 people y I fay, all the people of God, You 
 fee now, the fun fhines on us all: I never 
 heard that the fun faid. Lord, I will not {hine 
 on the Prefbyterians, I will not fhine on the 
 Independants, I will not fliine on the people 
 called Methodifts, thofe great enthufiafts ; the 
 fun never faid yet, I will not fliine on the Pa- 
 pifts 5 the fun fliines on all, which fliows that 
 Jefus Chrift's love is open to all that are made 
 willing by the Holy Ghoft to accept of him j 
 tind therefore it is fiid, the fun of righteoufnejs 
 fiall arife with healing under his wings. If 
 you were all up this morning before the fun 
 arofe at five o'clock, how beautiful was his 
 firfl appearance ! how pleafant to behold the 
 flowers opening to the riiing fun ! I appeal to 
 you yourfelves, vthen you were looking out at 
 window, or walking about, or opening your 
 fhop, if in a fpiritual frame, whether you did 
 not fay, Arife thou fun of righteoufnefs with 
 healing under thy wings, on me. All that the 
 natural fun is to the world, Jefus Chrill: is, and 
 more, to his people \ without the fun we 
 fliould have no corn, or fruit of any kind: 
 what a dark place would the wcrld be with- 
 out the fun, and how dark would the world 
 b^ without Jefqs Chrift y and as the fun does 
 
 really 
 
Ser. IX. 7he Lord cur Light. 2oy 
 
 really communicate its rays to the earth, the 
 plants, and to all this lower creation, fo the Son of 
 God does really communicate his life and power 
 to every new created foul, otherwife Chrift is 
 but a painted fun -, and is Chrift nothing but a 
 painted Chrift to us, while we receive heat 
 and benefit by the Holy Ghoft, on account of 
 the virtue of his blood ? Sometimes the fun 
 fhines brighter than at other times, and does 
 not always appear alike 3 clouds intervene and 
 interrupt its rays 5 fo it is between a renewed 
 foul and the Lord Jefus, the fun of righteouf- 
 nefs^ O my brethren, I believe you know it 
 by fatal experience : hold but )^our hand now, 
 w^hen the fun fhines in its meridian, between 
 it and you, and if by the breadth of that you 
 can keep the fun from you, ah ! how very 
 little earth will keep off thy heart from Jefus 
 Chrift ! It was a very excellent faying of one 
 of the antientSj that God never leaves a perfoii 
 till he firft leaves him. Some people think 
 God does fo of his fovereignty, but I am apt 
 to think when the fun fhines, we fhall find 
 fome people have taken up with fomething 
 fhort of the fun of righteoufnefs ; and I believe 
 there are times, when the poor believer thinks 
 his fun will quite go down, and rife no more : 
 
 he 
 
coB 7he Lord our Light. Set. IX^ 
 
 he lofcs his relifh, his tafte and evidence of 
 divine things > not only are the rays intercepted 
 for a while, but doubts and fears, a dreadful 
 cloud of them, come on. Though I hold 
 with a full affurance of faith, yet I am of opi- 
 nion that 'tis not always in a like exercife; 
 and therefore pray that doubting people will 
 not take hold of that, and fay, Bleffed be God, 
 I am in a doubting ftate, and I am content. 
 The Lord deliver you from a mind to flay in 
 prifon, and prevent the devil from locking the 
 door upon you, and keeping you there as long 
 98 he can. The Lord help you to come^ 
 come, come, and break out of prifon, that 
 you may know how pleafant it is to behold 
 the Sun, and praife his name. 
 
 Sometimes, inftead of the fun there is only 
 moon-light, which fhews the difference a be- 
 liever feels in his foul, both in relation to grace 
 and comfort. Both fun and moon give light, 
 but O how far fuperior is the one to the other : 
 the moon gives a very faint, uncertain lights 
 waxes and wanes, and at befl is almofl no- 
 thing when compared with the light-> and the 
 bleffed reviving heat of the fun. Hence, my 
 brethren, this world fometimes is a world of 
 mourners : it is faid, that the days of our 
 
 mourn- 
 
Ser. IX, The Lord our Light. 2op 
 
 mourning fiall be ended:, for if the text refers 
 to the future flate, as no doubt it does, it 
 means that the days of believers here below 
 are very often mournful, trying, and afflidling, 
 though they end in joy, as our Lord intimates 
 in his opening his gofpel-fermon almoft with 
 thefe very words, Blejfed are they that mourUy 
 for they Jhall be comjorted. Some, perhaps, 
 may think it is an odd kind of blefling 5 and 
 though worldly people are fond of the fifth of 
 Matthew, and wonder that Methodifts and 
 gofpel-minifters do not preach oftner on that 
 chapter, I am apt to believe, when you come 
 to preach and open that word, they will not 
 like that chapter any more than any other, 
 becaufe they are for a joyful Chrift, and not 
 for any mourning at all. Do you know God 
 in Chrift ? let me tell you, the more you are 
 acquainted with him, the more your fouls will 
 Se kept in a mourning ftate. A mournful 
 ftate ! — O, fay you, people will mourn before 
 they are converted. — x^h, that they will. — I 
 don't love to hear of converfions without any 
 fecret mourning \ I feldom fee fuch fouls efta- 
 blifhed. I have heard of a perfon who was iii 
 company once with fourteen minifters of the 
 gofpel, fome of whom were eminent fervants 
 E e of 
 
2IO 7he Lord cur Light, Sen IX, 
 
 of Chrift, and yet not one of them could tell 
 the time God firft manifefted himfelf to their 
 foul. Zaccheus's was a very quick conver- 
 fion, perhaps not a quarter of an hour*s con- 
 vldtion : this I mention, that we may not con- 
 
 r demn one another. We do not love the pope, 
 becaufe we love to be popes ourfelves, and kt 
 
 I up our own experience as a ilandard to others. 
 Thofe that had fuch a converfion as the jay- 
 lor, or the Jews: O, fay you, we do not like 
 to hear you talk of fhaking over hell, we love 
 to hear of converfion by the love of God v 
 while others that were fo fhaken, as Mr. Bol- 
 ton and other eminent men were, may fay, 
 you are not Chriftians becaufe you had not the 
 like terrible experience. You may as well 
 . fay to your neighbour, you have not had a child, 
 for you were not in labour all night. The 
 queftion is, whether a real child is born, not 
 how long was the preceding pain, but whether 
 it was produdive of a new birth, and whether 
 Chrift has been formed in your hearts -, it is 
 the birth proves the reality of the thing. 
 
 Some allow that there is mourning before, 
 but no mourning after converfion ; pray who 
 fays fo ? none but an Antinomian, a rank An- 
 tinomian j and when you hear a perfon fay, 
 
 that 
 
Ser. IX. The Lord our Light. 211 
 
 that after converfion you will have no mou' fl- 
 ing, you may be afliired that perfon is at bed 
 walking by moon-light ; he does not walk by 
 the fun, he has got feme dodrine in his head, 
 but very little grace, I am afraid, in his heart. 
 How ! how ! my brethren, not mourn after 
 we are converted j why, till then there is no 
 true mourning at all. The damned in hell are 
 mourning now, they put on their mourning 
 as foon as they get there. How am I tormen- 
 ted in this flame, fays Dives ; and Cain, my 
 punifliment is greater than I can bear. How 
 many worldly people break their hearts for 
 the lofs of the world : they cannot keep their 
 ufual equipage, nor do as they would 5 and 
 come not to worfhip on Sunday, becaufe they 
 cannot appear fo fine as formerly they did: 
 this is a forrow of the world that worketh 
 death; but there is a bleffed, a more evan- 
 gelical mourning, which is the habitual, bleiTcd 
 ftate and frame of a converted foul. Kow 
 ftrong the expreffion, They Jhall look on him 
 whom they have pierced^ and Jhall mourn : how 
 fliall they mourn ? as one mourneth jor afirft" 
 born^ an only child. Have you ever been 
 called to bury a child ? is there any tender 
 mother here ? were you merry diredly after 
 E z the 
 
212 ^he Lord our Light. Ser. IX. 
 
 the child was dead ? no, perhaps till this very 
 day, you continually call to remembrance your 
 little one and fhed a tear ; every thing relating 
 to it, caufes the repetition of your forrow. 
 When a poor believer is acquainted with Je- 
 fus Chrift, he mourns for having crucified the 
 Son of God, and you will mourn for the fame 
 fin after converfion as before. Surely, fays 
 feme, I mourn for my fins I committed before 
 my converfion. I do not know whether you 
 do or no, but I know you fliould. O, fays 
 David, Remember not againjl me thefim of my 
 youth^ in a Pfalm which was wrote when he 
 was an old man ; and Paul fays, I was a blaf-- 
 fhemer and injurious^ and therefore not worthy 
 to be called an apojlle^ becauje I perfecuted the 
 church oj God-^ and this after he had been 
 wrapped up to the third heaven. See Mary 
 rufhing into the houfe, wafhing her Lord's 
 feet with her tears, and wiping them with her 
 hair: I don't fuppofe fhe was drefl^ed as our 
 ladies are now j they did not make fuch apes 
 of themfelves 3 but her hair was very fine in 
 an honeft way : though fhe breaks the allibafter 
 box of ointment given her, perhaps by fome 
 poor filly creature that would die by her frowns, 
 ^nd live upon her fmiles, fee her at the feet of 
 
 he? 
 
Sen IX. The Lord our Light. 213 
 
 her Saviour ; and Jefus Chrifl: anfwers for her, 
 fome having thought fhe was profufe, that 
 having had much forgiven, flie loved much. 
 The more the love of God is manifefted, the 
 more it will melt the foul down : I appeal to 
 you Chriilians, whether the fweeteft times you 
 ever enjoyed, were not thofe when you were 
 much melted at the fight of a crucified Saviour ; 
 when you could fay. Lord, thou forgavefl 
 me, I feel it, I know it, but I cannot forgive 
 myfelf ; this will always be the efFe<fl of an 
 ingenuous mind ; and a perfon that is really con- 
 verted will thus mourn, and if you do not 
 know this, you may be afTured you know no- 
 thing favingly of Jefus Chrifl. You may go 
 and hear this and that warning, and you are 
 right to gather honey from every Tdower, but 
 you have not got within the inner court, but 
 are yet without. God give you to fee your 
 folly herein. 
 
 A true believer will mourn over his cor- 
 ruptions : I wonder what they can think, who 
 fuppofe they have no corruptions. I remem- 
 ber a poor creature of Rhode-Ifland, who 
 looked the mofl like the old Puritans I ever 
 faw, when I was talking with him, and faid^ 
 fome people fay there are fome men that have 
 
 np 
 
214 ^^^ Lord our Light. Ser. IX, 
 
 no fin 5 he faid, if you fend fuch a man to 
 me, I will pay his charges even from England 
 and back again. I have often learned fome- 
 thing from the difference of glalTes : you look 
 into the common glaifes, and fee yourfelves 
 there fo fine, and admire your perfon, drefs, 
 &c, but when you view yourfelves through a 
 microfcope, how many worms are difcovered 
 in that fine fkin of yours, enough to make you 
 afliamed of the vermin and filth that is feated 
 there : fo it is in faith, that glafs would fhow 
 you fo much corruption cleaving to every ac- 
 tion of your lives, that would make you fin- 
 Cck, and mourn that you have known God fo 
 long, and are like him fo little. What fays 
 Paul ? Who Jhall deliver me from the body of 
 this death ? Notwithftanding he knew that 
 there is no condemnation to them that are in 
 Chrijl JefuSy yet cries out, O wretched man 
 that I am! I fhould have thought, O happy 
 man that thou art \ formerly a perfecutor, and 
 no w a preacher 5 a man that has been honoured 
 fo much above every man in planting churches, 
 which is the higheft honour a man can have 
 under heaven ; here is a man that hath been 
 wrapt up to the third heaven, — what of him? 
 wretched man that 1 am^ who^fiall deliver 
 
Sen IX. I'he Lord our Light. 21^ 
 
 me from this body of Jin and death ? Do you 
 think that it was only a little qualm of con- 
 fcience ? no, it was the habitual temper of his 
 heart. Some people are much humbled by 
 fits and flarts, but Paul felt this daily : many 
 things that we are not concerned about, Paul 
 looked upon them as fuch that made his heart 
 ach, becaufe he thought he could not live near 
 enough to God. He not only watched to do 
 good, but he watched how he did that good ; 
 and nature was fo mixed with it, that he faid, 
 I cannot do as I would do, I would have 
 ferved God like an angel, but I find myfeif ta 
 be a poor finncr after all ; and if we are like* 
 minded with Paul, we fliL.ll mourn over our 
 corruptions, we fhall mourn over our hidden 
 fins that none know but God and ourfelveSr 
 It is a very dangerous thing to truft gofpel^ 
 goflips, who being flrangers to themfelves, 
 hear with wonder and contempt, and often 
 betray ; however, a judicious friend, mto 
 whole bofom we can pour out our fouls, and 
 tell our corruptions as well as our comforts, is 
 a very great privilege. When our corruptions 
 do not drive us from Chrift, but drive us to 
 him, it is the greateft bleffing to commune 
 with Chrift on this fide heaven : and, my 
 
 brethren, 
 
-i.^ 
 
 2x6 "The Lord our Light. Ser. IX* 
 
 brethren, if your hearts arc right with God, 
 you will fee fuch t|;iings as nobody elfe could 
 think of. A good woman, who was charmed 
 with Dr. Manton, faid, O, fir, you have made 
 an excellent fermon to-day, I wifh I had your 
 heart ; do you fo, faid he, good woman, you 
 had better not wifli for it, for if you had it, 
 you would wifh for your own again. The 
 beft of men fee themfelves in the worft light. 
 
 How many thoufand things are there that 
 make you mourn here below ! who can tell 
 the tears that godly parents (hed for ungodly 
 children ! O you young folks, you don't know 
 what plague your children may be to you ! O 
 they are pretty things while young, like rattle- 
 fnakes and alligators, which I have feen when 
 little, but put them in your bofom and you 
 will find they are dangerous. How many are 
 there in the world that would wifh, if it were 
 lawful, that God had written them childlefs : 
 there is many a poor creature that makes his 
 father's heart ach, I once afked a godly wi- 
 dow, madam, how is your fon^ fhe turned 
 afide with tears, and faid, fir, he is no fon to 
 me now. What in the world can come up to 
 that 1 here, fays one, I have bred up my chil- 
 dren, I cannot charge myielf with educating 
 
 them 
 
Seh IX. l!he Lord our Light, 2Vy 
 
 them wrong, though few parents can fay that, 
 for many parents lead them into the paths of 
 death, and fo are murderers of their own chiU 
 dren, and by their manner of education help 
 to damn them for ever ; but if you can fay, 
 I have done all I could, and yet, O my God^ 
 my children are worfe than any other peoples ^ 
 this is a dreadful flate indeed -, and the more 
 you mourn, the more they laugh at you ^ O 
 thefe are my godly parents. They increafd 
 their trouble, like Dr. Horneck's fon, who 
 faid, I'here is not a poji in my father's houfe but 
 Jii?iks of piety. I once faw a man that was 
 awakened at the Orphan-houfe, fall down and 
 throw himfelf on one of their beds, crying 
 out^ O, iir, what will become of my poor 
 grey-headed father, who knows nothing of 
 this birth ! It is a difficulty with fome to know 
 how to behave towards unconverted relations ; 
 if you don't go to them, they will fay you 
 are precife; if you do, and are faithful, they 
 will foon fliow you they have enough of your 
 company : this fends a godly perfon home 
 mournings and then there comes a thought^ 
 Hiall I fpeak to them any more, or let them 
 go to the devil. This is not like parting from 
 your friends by death, but burying them alive : 
 F f when 
 
 A 
 
:2iS *rhe Lord our Light. Ser. IX.> 
 
 when dead, we know we mud ilibmit, but to 
 part from friends, thofe we loved, and thought 
 to have hved with till we came to heaven, is 
 mournful indeed. 
 
 Moreover^ the poor ftate of the church 
 makes many a minifter and clofe-walker with 
 God to weep over the defolations of the fanc- 
 tuary, and to mourn for thofe that will not 
 mourn for thjemfelves: thus our Lord wept 
 over Jerufalem, O Jerufalem^ Jeriifaie??t, how 
 often would I have gathered thy children y as a 
 hen gatheretb her chickens^ but it is over with 
 thee now j the decree is gone forth, and Je- 
 rufalem fliall fufFer. 
 
 Brethren, the time will fail, and therefore 
 I leave it to you to fupply more cafes ; for if 
 I was to preach till to-morroyv morning, I 
 doubt not but a thoufand here would fay, 
 there are many things you have not mentioned 
 yet. You know the ftate of your own hearts, 
 and the many particular trials in your own 
 cafe 'y and you may alfo know, though your 
 trial feems over, it is only changed: but let it 
 be obferved, the day of your mourning fhall 
 be ended 5 mind, it is but days, though fome- 
 times made very fad ones indeed, by the neg-^ 
 lect and ingratitude of thofe \y ho. have made 
 
 the 
 
Ser. IX. Jbe Lord our Light. 219 
 
 the people of God ferve them with rigour, as 
 though all the world was made for them, as 
 well as their incapacity to help themfelves, by 
 poverty, pain, fore fickneffes, and of long con- 
 tinuance. This has been, and is the lot of ma- 
 ny a child of God ; ble/Ted be fovereign mercy, 
 'tis but a few days. An end fhall arrive, and 
 that end fliall be happy, when death, the be- 
 liever's friend, fhall come with an angel's face, 
 to difmifs them from all their fin and forrow. 
 When I was laft at Briflol, I could not help 
 remembring good Mr, Middleton, who ufed 
 you know to have the gout very much, and 
 in that clofet were kept his crutches: now, 
 thought I, he needs them no more, the days 
 of his mourning are ended, and fo fliall ours 
 by and by too, when we fliall no longer want 
 our fpiritual crutches or armour, but fliall fay 
 to the helmet of hope, the fliield of faith, I 
 have no more need of thee ; and the all-pre- 
 vailing weapon of prayer be changed into 
 fongs of endlefs praife 5 when God himfelf 
 ihall be our everlafting light, a fun that fliall 
 pever go down more, but fliall beam forth 
 his infinite and eternal love in a beatific flate 
 for ever. The profped: of this made one of 
 the fathers cry out, O glory ! how great ! how 
 
 F f a great ! 
 
220 T^e Lord our Light. Ser. IX. 
 
 great ! what art thou ? a friend alking him 
 what he faw ? he anfwered, I fee the glory 
 of the only begotten Son of God. And if a 
 fight of Chrift on earth is fo great, as could 
 make good Mr. Wardrobe, an excellent Scotch 
 minifter fay, after he was given over, ftarting 
 up in the arms of an excellent friend who told 
 it me, in a rapture of joy, crowns ! crowns ! 
 crowns of glory fhall adorn this head of mine ; 
 e're long! and ftretching up, added, ftarsl^i)^ 
 ^ftars ! ftars (hall e're long fill thefe hands of 
 mine ! and fo fweetly fell afieep in Jefus : 
 what a pleafing, awful trial is that for aa 
 affedionate friend ! So our dear fifter, who is 
 to be buried to-morrow night at Tottenham- 
 court, talked with her friends for an hour or 
 two, and took leave of her hulband and chil- 
 dren, and faid. Now come, ye heavenly cha- 
 riots ! We (hall thank God then for all our 
 lofTes, croffes, and difappointments ; and I be- 
 lieve thofe things which we mourn for moft, 
 and put$ us moft to the trial, will give us moft 
 comfort when we come to die: God fliall be 
 our everlafting light, as well as the days of 
 our mourning fhall be ended. 
 
 Take care, don't be fecure, pray don't 
 think the day of your mourning to be ended 
 
 yet; 
 
Scr. IX. The Lord our Light. $21 
 
 yet : you may put off mourning for your 
 friends, but may have frefli caufe of mourning 
 for your fouls 3 whilft you remember that holy 
 mourning is confident with holy walking, fol- 
 lowing the Lord in all his ways. You have 
 often heard me fpeak of one of our minifters, 
 who was not one of your fine velvet mouths, 
 that faid once in the pulpit, As fure as you fee 
 the fun fhine on my breaft, which at that time 
 it did, fo fure does the Spirit of God dwell in 
 the fouls of true believers. How often has he 
 told you, I am for halving you have godly for^ 
 roWy I wiJJj your hearts were full of ity becaufe 
 it will end in everlajling joy. Comfort, my 
 brethren, one another with thefe things, the 
 day of your mourning fhall foon be ended for 
 ever. 
 
 But what am I to fay ? I apprehend I fliall 
 grow forgetful to-night j—» I have fpoken fo 
 much to faints, I am afraid I fhall have but 
 little time to fpeak to finners : I mean, I have 
 taken fo much time up in fpeaking to you that 
 know God, that I have but little to fpeak to 
 •you that know him not. How different your 
 ftate, poor hearts ! poor hearts ! my foul 
 mourns for you ; my blood, whilft I am fpeak- 
 Jng, is ready to curdle in my veins. The fe- 
 
 raphig 
 
%2% ^he Lord our Light* Sen IX, 
 
 raphic Mr, Hervey, when he did me that 
 honour to fojourn under my roof, faid. My 
 dear friend, it is an awful thing when we fee 
 an unconverted man die, and his eyes clofed, 
 to think that that poor foul will never fee one 
 gleam of comfort or life more 5 to have a fight 
 of God, of Chrift, and the heavenly angels 
 and faints; but to fee what the rich man favv, 
 a God they want ; to fee Lazarus, whom he 
 would not permit to be it&n at his door, now 
 taken particular notice of in heaven 5 and to 
 fee himfelf now a beggar in helK The Lord 
 help you to think ! O think how foon your 
 gl&m will go down, and even your bodies will 
 feel damnation, not only in refpedl to pain, but 
 lofs. 
 
 Bifhop Ufher's opinion^ was, and I heartily 
 concur in it, that thofe who value themfelves 
 mofl on their beauty and drefs, and do not 
 love God on earth, will be moft deformed in 
 hell, and their bodies fuifer proportionally 
 there. There is no drefling in hell, nothing 
 tut fire and brimflonc there, and the wrath of 
 God always awaiting on thee, O finner, who- 
 ever thou art, man or woman. It was a fine 
 laying of Maclane, who was executed fome 
 years ago, when the cap was pulling over his 
 
 eyes. 
 
Set. IX. "The Lord our Light. 22;^ 
 
 eyes, Muft I never fee the light of yon fun 
 any morei Lord Jefus Chrift, thou fun of 
 righteoufnefs, arife wkh healing under thy 
 wings on my departing foul ! May the Lord 
 Jefus Chrift do that for us all ! When you are 
 damned, the days of your mourning will be 
 but at their beginning; there is no end of 
 your mourning in hell. There is bat one 
 fong, if it may be called fo, in hell, to wit, 
 that of Dives, which will be always repeating. 
 How am I tormented in this flame I Confider 
 this, ye that forget God; and O that God 
 may blefs you to-night with godly forrow* 
 Believers, pray for them : Lord help you,, 
 finners, to pray for your vile felvcs. Soma 
 may think, what do you cry for? whyi 1 
 cry for you. Perhaps you will fey as a, 
 wicked one did to a poor woman in Scotland, 
 when thoufands were awakened there ; feeing 
 her weep, he faid, what do you weep for ? 
 for this people, fays fhe ; wxep for yourfelf^ 
 fays he ; fhe replied, I do ; but what is my 
 foul, to all thefe poor fouls ! O that minifters 
 may never rife up in judgment againft you : 
 O may Mofes, in the hand of the Spirit, make 
 you mourn ! may the love of God make you 
 cry ! may you not go home to-night without 
 
 an 
 
2^4 ^'^^ Lord our Light, Ser. IX, 
 
 an arrow fteeped in the blood of Chrift. It 
 Was wonderful what a good woman awaking 
 thought flie faw written over her head, O earthy 
 earthy earthy bear the ivord of the Lord ! May 
 every earthly foul be made to hear it ; to awake, 
 arife from their lleep in iin. The fun is going 
 down, and death may put an end to all to- 
 night : the Lord help you to come, though it 
 is the eleventh hour: O that you would fly, 
 fly this night to Chrifl:, lefl: Giod defl:roy you 
 for ever, Jefus fl:ands ready with open arms 
 to receive you whom he has firfl: pricked to 
 the heart, and made you cry out, IVhat JImll 
 1 do to be faved ! he will then make you be- 
 lieve in his name, that you may be faved : 
 God grant this may be the cafe of all here 
 to-night. Amen, 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 225 ] 
 
 SERMON X. 
 
 Self- Enquiry concerning the Work 
 of God. 
 
 Numbers xxiii. ver. 23. 
 
 jic cor ding to this time it Jl.^all be faid of Jacob 
 and of Ifrael^ what hath God wrought ? 
 
 f H E N I read you, my dear hearers, 
 thele words 5 when I confider what 
 occafion, and by whom they were 
 originally fpoke, I can't help thinking of that 
 triumphant expreffion of the royal Pfalmift, 
 Why do the Heathen rage? When Pontius 
 Pilate and the Jews confpire to deftroy the 
 caufe of God, he that fit teth in heaven laughs 
 them to fcorn-y the Lord not only has them in 
 derijion^ but over-rules even their malice and 
 violence (no thanks to them) to promote that 
 very caufe they attempted to deilroy 5 fo that 
 'tis a very wrong maxim, and argues great 
 ignorance in us, to imagine that God never 
 G g brings 
 
226 Self-Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 brings about his defigns by the means and in- 
 ftrumentality of wicked men. This is the 
 Papifts objedtion againft the reformation : great 
 pains have been taken to blacken the reformers, 
 and to make it believed that a reformation 
 could not be good that was begun by people 
 of bad charader, and a king of an immoral 
 life. But fo far is this from eclipfmg, that it 
 illuftrates the wifdom and goodnefs of divine 
 Providence, in obliging the wicked to do what 
 they never defigned, and over-ruling their 
 ccunfels for the fulfilling God's holy, wife, 
 and fovereign decree. This obfervation natu- 
 rally arifes from the words of our text, which 
 were fpoken by, as far as I can judge, one of 
 the vilefi: men upon the earth, you doubtlefs 
 know his name, Balaam, who, though florid 
 in his exprefiions, and high in profeffion of in- 
 tercourfe with God, and puts on a fine face of 
 religion, was but a rotten-hearted hypocrite, 
 for he divined for money, made a trade of 
 religion i and fo loved the wages oi unrigh- 
 .teoufnefs, as to have wiflied to curfe even thofe 
 whom God had bleffed. 1 need not n;iform 
 you, that this was the end for which balak 
 fent for him \ and no wonder he was fo wil- 
 ling to go, when he knew he was to be well 
 
 paid 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 227 
 
 paid for his journey. Achilles, the Graccian 
 hero, is faid to be capable of being wounded 
 only in the heel, but bad priefts, minifters, 
 and people, have a great deal more dangerous 
 part to be wounded in, that is, the palm of 
 the hand 3 if you can keep that fecure from 
 being wounded with gold, never fear 3 the 
 devil can*t have his end. Balak promifed him 
 great preferment, if he would but come and 
 curfe the people of God. A prophet, or 
 foothfayer, is one that pretends to have inter- 
 courfe with God or the devil, and Balak did 
 not care by which of them it was, fo that he 
 could but get the Ifraeliles curfed 3 Balaam 
 catches at the golden bait, pretends to aflc 
 counfel of God; and what feems ftrange, God 
 bids him go, and yet fends an angel to meet 
 him in the way, who ftands ready to flay him 
 for going. Does it not feem very ftrange, that 
 God fhould bid a man go, and then offer to 
 flay him for going ; but people' that read this 
 pafl^age, fliould carefully mind the particulars 
 of it. God faid, if the men come and call 
 thee, go ; but he did not wait for that, but 
 faddles his afs and goes : this is called by St, 
 Peter, the madnefs of the prophet : witnefs 
 his rifing early in the morning, not waiting for 
 
 G g 2 ' the 
 
228 Self-Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 the call of the princes, which fhewed how 
 eager he was to be gone 5 and though this fo- 
 lution fhould not be allowed, God was juftly 
 angry for his going with an ill defign, that is, 
 malicioufly to curfe a people whom he knew 
 God refoived fhould be bleffed, and that for 
 the fake of the wages of unrighteoufnefs *• 
 The king and his nobles wait upon him, in 
 hopes this foothfayer will anfwer their pur- 
 pofe ; but after all he can do nothing without 
 God's leave : however, no coft is fpared to 
 obtain the end ; fo true is it, that the devil's 
 children are ten thoufand times more expeniive 
 in perfecuting the people of God, than God's 
 people are in promoting his glory. This footh- 
 faying prieft pretends to go to God, which is 
 permitted, but forced to fpeak what God 
 would have him ^ once and again his mouth 
 is flopped, or rather his curfes are flopped, 
 and turned into a blefiing. Balak, enraged 
 at his repeated difappointment, bids him nei- 
 ther to curfe or blefs them at all ; and thinking, 
 perhaps, that the fight of the people affeded 
 
 him, 
 
 . * It is 110 unufual thing in holy writ, foF heaven to refent 
 and punifii even thofe adions that it has permitted. Witnefs. 
 
 Deut. i. 2c — 35. comp. with Numb. xiii. 2. — Hof. xiii. 11. 
 comp.. witli I Samt viiL 7. cap. xv. 23. cap. xvi. i. PCaL 
 Si, II, 12. &c, &c. 
 
Ser* X. the Work of God. 229 
 
 him, carries him to a place where he would 
 fee but a fmall part of them ; he goes, and 
 there God made him confirm the bleffing in- 
 fteadof the curfe, more abundantly than be- 
 fore. Oratory is beautiful, thougli out of the 
 mouth of the worfl: of men, Surely^ faid he, 
 there is no enchantment againjl Jacoby 7ieither 
 is there any divination againjl IfraeL Behold^ 
 the people Jhall rife up as a great lion^ and lijt 
 up hi mf elf as a young lion ; he jJoall not lie down 
 witil he eat of the prey^ and drijik the blood of 
 the fain 'y having^'-faid juft before. According 
 to this time itfiallbefaidofjacobandlfraely 
 what hath God wrought ! 
 
 What words are here out of the mouth of a 
 wicked man ! and yet I hope it will do no 
 hurt to chufe them as a proper fubjedl for an 
 evening meditation. Let us leave this prophane 
 diviner, and the king his employer, vexed 
 that they could not get their end of the people 
 of God : let us fnatch the words out of the vile 
 prophet's mouth, and fee if we can ferve him 
 as David did Goliah, take his fword and cut 
 off his head. Some people run to extreams, 
 and becaufe fome have abufed religion, there- 
 fore they think there is no religion at alL 
 Perhaps it is for this reafon, that fo many 
 
 offences 
 
230" SelJ-Ejiqinry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 offences are permitted to happen in the churches, 
 that one of the twelve fhould be a traitor, and 
 that the devil iliould come with his bible un- 
 der his arm to tempt us to dilbelieve or abufe 
 it, by which God flirs up the people of God 
 to watch, fight, and pray. 
 
 How fhould we take the words of our text ? 
 by way of interrogation ? or admiration ? as 
 fpeaking in a prophetic ftrain how God had 
 wrought, and did then work, and would after- 
 wards work for the profperity of his faithful 
 Jacob and his pofterity, the Ifrael of God. 
 
 Suppofe we take them in the way of quef- 
 tion, which, perhaps, is moft agreeable to 
 the context, and it may be moft feryiceable to 
 you and to me ; and in order that I may not 
 run into too great a field to-night, I will con- 
 fine myfelf to Vv'hat Balaam confines himfelf, 
 jrom this ti?ne it fiall be /aid of Jacob and 
 Ifraely in a way of enquiry, "jvhat hath God 
 ivrought t 
 
 If we look round the world and furvey the 
 works of creation, the heavens declare God's 
 glory: and the firmament jheweth his handy 
 ivork. If we look further, my brethren, down 
 upon thefe bodies of ours, if we confider the 
 curious form of them, we may cry, ivhat 
 
 hath 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 231 
 
 bath God ^iirought ! furely I am fearfully and 
 wonderfully made ; and when we confider that 
 we are made up of the four elements ^ when 
 we confider to what cafualties we are expofed, 
 how wonderfully thefe bodies have been kept 
 up, when thou lands have dropped into the 
 grave before us, we may well lay, what hath 
 God wrought ! but I rather chufe to confine 
 myfelf to that better part ; and I am perfuaded 
 of it, we fhall never go to heaven unlefs God 
 works powerfully on our fouls : fuppoiing you 
 and I now were to forget all created beings, 
 fuppofing we were to forget our neighbours 
 to-night, and to hear only for ourfelves, as the 
 ihades of the evening are coming on, and as 
 we are going fhortly to reft, may be to rife 
 no more in this lower world, what if we fhould 
 fteal a little time from our ihop, a litde time 
 from our worldly bufinefs, as we know not 
 but we maybe called to judgment to-morrow, 
 and afk and fay, O my foul, what hath God 
 wrought in thy heart ? I am glad to hear you 
 are fo inquifitive. Obferve, what hath God 
 wrought J now whatever is done in us, is all 
 done by God -, it is all done by an Almighty 
 povv-er, and it is all the eiFedl of infinite vvif- 
 dom 3 fuppofing then you and I are new crea- 
 tures. 
 
232 Self 'Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 tures, hath God, O my foul, wrought in thee 
 a deep, a penitent, a humbling fenfe of thy 
 tranfgreflions againft his holy law; this is a 
 moft important queftion, this is the very be- 
 ginning of religion, this is the very iirft letter 
 of the Chriftian's alphabet, the firft line in his 
 book 3 with this Chrift himfelf began to teach 
 fallen man. Adam^ where art thou ^ was the 
 firft queftion that the Son of God put to his 
 fallen creatures 5 what condition art thou in ? 
 how art thou fallen, thou fon of the morn- 
 ing ! and when he came to the woman, he 
 took the fame way, he preached, and mini- 
 fters fliould preach convidtion firft 5 what is 
 thisy faith God, that thou haji done? to break 
 thy hufband, and bring all thy pofterity unto 
 ruin 5 and it feems to me that there was a 
 confcioufnefs in this 3 and I wonder fometimes, 
 the Deifts have not run fo far as to do it in jeft» 
 I don't know that I ever heard of a female 
 child's name called Eve ; probably, we are 
 afliamed to call a child by that name, becaufe 
 of the guilt of our mother Eve, that brought 
 us all into fin. Now hath God wrought in 
 you ? hath he even given this conviction to 
 you ; not a little flight now and then, or a 
 qualm of thy confcience 3 the devil and natural 
 
 coa- 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 233 
 
 confcience may do this ; but when it is wrought 
 in thy heart by the Spirit of God, it goes to 
 the bottom, the arrow flicks faft, and a poor 
 foul fometimes endeavours to pray, endeavours 
 to pull it out, but in vain. Hath God wrought 
 this in thy foul ? now when God works this 
 change in the foul, the devil is always bufy in 
 tempting the poor convicted finner to defpond, 
 if not defpair. Ignorant formahfls, who are 
 fome of the worft people under heaven, when 
 a perfon is under conviftion, think the devil 
 is got into them, whereas the devil is in 
 themfelves ; for the devil hoodwinks people, 
 and he endeavours to perfuade them, that there 
 is no harm done to God -by finning againft 
 him. It is God wounds the foul, and it is he 
 that heals it ; has he wrought in thee not only 
 a deep and humbling fenfe of the outward 
 adts of fin, but a humbling fenfe of the inward 
 corruptions of thy heart? has he led thee be- 
 yond the fl:reams, through the powerful opera- 
 tions of his Spirit, to the fountain-head ? when 
 he has done fo, then are we Chrifl:ians indeed ; 
 and this cannot be the work of the devil, who 
 never did, nor do I know whether he can, 
 fhow a perfon the inward corruptions of his 
 heart 3 it muft be the Spirit of God i the devil 
 
 H h may 
 
234 Self "Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 may frighten a perfon, as to outward things, 
 but I very much queftion whether it is in the 
 power or will of the devil to fhow a perfon 
 that he is totally depraved, that the whole 
 fountain is corrupt 3 this cannot be, becaufe 
 this would make the devil omnipotent, of 
 equal power with the Holy Ghoft, who alone 
 fliows thee the guilt and corruption of thy 
 heart. This I have found to be the fad:, from 
 thirty years obfervation and experience of 
 thoufands, thoufands, thoufands, w^th whom 
 I have fpoken about their hearts. So it was^ 
 I remember, when I went firll to Georgia, 
 when I was about twenty-five years old, I had 
 them day after day, week after week, and 
 night after night, faying, JVhat'JJjall I do to 
 ie faved? O my wicked heart, my deceitful 
 heart, from morning to night. Hath God 
 wrought this in any of you ? are you com- 
 plaining of your wicked heart and corrupt 
 nature ? have you found out that your hearts 
 are cages of unclean birds, only a lodging for 
 vain thoughts to dwell in ? O my friends, my 
 dear hearers, O may you turn the queftion 
 into a note of admiration, and fay, what hatb 
 God wrought ! he has not only convinced me 
 of my outward fins, but powerfully convinced 
 
 me 
 
Ser. X. the Work 'of GoL 235 
 
 me of the corruptions of my heart. Do afk 
 yourfelves this queftion, has God wrought in 
 me a view of the fpirituality of his holy law ? 
 till this is done, you are as faft in the devil's 
 arms as he can clafp you. Of all the children 
 the devil has in the v/orid, I believe he moll- 
 ]y loves his Pharifaical children: I was talking 
 with one of them fome time ago, and fomc- 
 body very innocently afked me where the 
 Pharifees lived, -O, faid I, they live every 
 where. Some people think that they only 
 lived in the times of the apoftles. Do you 
 know, vipers and toads have the moft eggs 
 and moft numerous progeny ? if you was to 
 fee the eggs of a toad through a microlcope, 
 you would wonder at the innumerable mul- 
 titude; and the Pharifees are an increafing 
 generation of vipers, which hatch and fpread 
 all over the world : if you want to know what 
 a Pharifee is, he is one who pretends to en- 
 deavour, and talks about keeping the law of 
 God, and does not know its fpirituality 3 they 
 are fome of them very great men in their own 
 opinion, and always made the greateft figure 
 in the church : one of them, a gentleman's 
 fon, becaufe he had not broke the letter of 
 the law, thought he was right and without 
 
 H h 2 fm^. 
 
236 Self 'Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 fin 5 O, fays he, if I have nothing elfe to do 
 but to keep the commandments, I am fafe ; I 
 have honoured my father and mother ; I never 
 ftole ; what need he fteal that had fo good an 
 eftate ? I never committed adultery ; no, no, 
 he loved his charafter too well: but our 
 Lord opens to him the law, this one thing thou 
 ) lackejiy go fell all thou hajl ; he loved his mo- 
 ney more than his God : Chrift brought him 
 back to the firft commandment, though he 
 catechized him firft in the fifth. So Paul was 
 a Pharifee ; he fays, / was alive without the 
 law once -, I was^ touching the law^ blamelefs j 
 how can that be, can a man be without the 
 lav^, and yet, touching the law, blamelefs j 
 fays he, / was without the law ; that is, I was 
 not brought to fee the fpirituality of it ; I 
 thought myfelf a very good man, no man 
 could fay of Paul, black is his eye ; but, faith 
 he, when God brought the commandment 
 with power upon my foul, then I faw my 
 fpecks, and do now. Pray mind and fay the 
 commandments, if you go to church you fee 
 them, and if you go to meeting I hope yoa 
 have not forgot them ; thoufhalt not bear falfe 
 witnefs againji thy neighbour ^ thou fJmlt not 
 (ovei i from repeating the laft commandment, 
 
 we 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 237 
 
 we are taught that God's law is fpiritual, 1 
 Jhould not have known fin^ as the apoftle faid, 
 if the law had not Jaidy thou J}:alt not covet ; 
 now has God wrought in you thefe things ? 
 haft thou really ktn his law that it is fpiritual ? 
 have you been made to fee that the law of God 
 requires perfed:, finlefs obedience ? have you 
 been made to fee that you are under the curfe, 
 becaufe you have finned, by the inward teach- 
 ing of the bleffed Spirit of God ? for then be 
 aiTured, as fure as thou art in this place, God 
 has wrought this in thy foul, and thou mayft 
 turn the queftion to admiration, and fay, what 
 hds God wrought ! has he wrought in thee a 
 fenfe of unbelief, that thou can ft no more 
 believe than thou canft create a world ? I men- 
 tion this, becaufe I have told you often, and 
 I am in the fame mind -, yet there are very 
 few books that talk about unbelief, there is a 
 long catalogue of fins, but not one word about 
 unbelief; why? O becaufe thefe good folks, 
 that have wrote communion books, take it for 
 granted, allfolks that go to church are believers -, 
 I take it there are more unbelievers in the 
 church than out of it ; why, fay you, do not 
 they aifent to the gofpel? fo does the devil ; 
 do not they affent tq all the articles of the 
 
 Chriftian 
 
238 Self'Efiquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 Chriftian faith ? fo does the devil ; the devil is 
 a ftronger believer than an Arianj the devilis 
 a ftronger believer than a Socinian, he believes 
 Chrift is God, for he has felt his pov^er by his 
 damning him to hell ; we know thee who thou 
 art^ the holy one of God* But remember 
 Chrift fays, when he is gone the Spirit of God 
 fliall come to reprove the world, in the mar- 
 gin it is, convince, and not a tranfient convic- 
 tion, but a convidlion that faftens, that brings 
 falvation with it ; if conviction brings its own 
 evidence, furely faith muft bring its own evi- 
 dence along with it too; now he Jhall convince 
 I the worlds faith our Lord, of Jin 3 what fin ? 
 I the fin of unbelief, bccaufe they believe not in 
 \ me. It is mentioned by the dear Mr. Hervey, 
 I hy the dear Mr. Marfhall himfelf, and alfo 
 by fomebody elfe, that when complaining 
 to a minifter that he could get no eafe to his 
 foul, and told the minifter he confefiTed his fins 
 every day, he put them all down, (a man 
 muft have a good memory that can do that) 
 the minifter faid to him, I think your cata-^ 
 logue is worth nothing at all, the grand fin is 
 not mentioned ; what is that ? fir, faid he, the 
 \ I fin of unbelief, a fin the poor creature thought 
 he had never been guilty of. Has God 
 
 wrought 
 
Ser» X. the Work of God. 239 
 
 wrought in thee a fenfe of thy unbelief? what 
 bleffed times have I feen in New, as well as 
 Old England and Scotland, when thoufands 
 were awakened at Edinburgh, at Glafgow, 
 and many other places, when I have feen them 
 taken out of the congregation by fcores, and 
 aiked what is the matter ? what do you want ? 
 I can't believe ! I can't believe ! I can*t be- 
 lieve ! We think we can believe when we will, 
 but the Spirit alone can convince us we have 
 no faith, the Spirit alone can convince us of 
 our want of faith, and can alone impart it to 
 the poor awakened finner j confequently, you 
 may aik yourfelves whether God has wrought 
 in you, not only a fenfe of your own mifery, 
 but alfo a fenfe of your remedy ^ fet you up- 
 on hungering and thirfting, fuch a hungering 
 and thirfting as has never been fatisfied but by 
 an application of the blood of Chrift imputed 
 to you. I do not want to difpute upon the 
 fcriptures with any body : there are a great 
 many good men have been prejudiced by An- 
 tinomian principles and practices, and becaufe 
 fome people have run to a dangerous extream, 
 and have not thought proper to make ufe of 
 the word imputed at all. The beft truth may 
 be fpoiled by bad books ; but, for my part, I 
 
 am 
 
 i- 
 
240 Self^Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 am more than ever convinced, that the doc- 
 trine of imputed righteoufnefs is a dodlrine of 
 the gofpel 3 and that as Adam's fin is imputed 
 to me, fo the righteoufnefs of Chrifl muft be 
 imputed alfo : I fland not only as a pardoned 
 finner, but as a juftified finner -, I ftand before 
 God juftified, and fo do all whom Jefus Chrifl 
 has purchafed. Now has God wrought this in 
 thee, O man -, in thee, O woman ? I am not 
 going to aflc, whether it was wrought in thee 
 by hearing a fermon or reading a book, God 
 may make ufe of a minifl:er, or of a book j 
 and I don't like people to get above minifl:ers 
 and books, faying, we do not want thefe. 
 God draws with the cords of a man, and gene- 
 rally draws us with cords by men fuch as our- 
 felvcs. Canfl: thou fay, there is a book, there 
 is the minifter, in reading or hearing which, 
 Chrift's blood was applied, and the Spirit of 
 God witneflTed with my fpirit that I was one 
 of his children? no V7 this is all God *s working, 
 indeed it is, the devil can't do this, it is out 
 of his power; he may attempt to perfuade 
 them that he has done it, when he has not, 
 and cannot. The magicians turned their rods 
 into ferpents, but the rod of Jehovah fvval- 
 lowed them all up. Has the Lord God wrought 
 
 a change 
 
Ser. X. ' the Work of Godi 341 
 
 a change of heart in theej and a change of life 
 as a-confequence of that 5 I mention this, but 
 I would have every body that flands up for 
 Chrift's imputed righteoufnefs, efpecially as 
 fome good people are apt to fpeak of it and 
 Garry it very high, to be careful in the fame 
 difcourfe to fpeak as highly of obedience too, 
 to Chrift's commandments. I don*t like only 
 to mention the w^ord promifes 5 when people 
 tell me they hang upon the promifes, I always 
 afk them how do you hang upon them ? have 
 you got the thing promtfed ? the promife is, 
 that the Promifer fhould come to my foul 5 
 the promife is, . what, my brethren ? the pro- 
 mife is, for this and that good thing ; have I 
 got it ? How would you do if you was to take 
 falfe bank notes, if you was to take falfe bills ? 
 the people generally afk, is the man that has 
 given me this note worth any thing ? if you 
 have a bad note you go to the notary and note 
 it, you fay, I was to have had this note paid 
 ten, twenty, thirty days after fight, or upon 1 
 fight ; where is the notary ? they hote it and 
 proteft it : let us be careful then to fee that 
 God pays his notes, as we are that man does. 
 Hafl: thou got the thing promifed ? the thing 
 promifed is, all peace and ail joy 3 the thing 
 I i promifed 
 
242 Self-Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 promifed is, a new heart ; the thing promifed 
 is, a new nature ; and therefore David goes to 
 God for the thing promifed, and fays, Create 
 in me a clean hearty Gody and renew a 
 right fpirit within me. Now is this the cafe 
 of thy heart ? the devil never can make a new 
 creature ; I am fure nothing but an Almighty 
 power can take away the heart of ftone, and 
 give a heart of flefh : has God wrought this 
 in thee ? if he has, though it is not come to 
 fuch a heighth as thou would wifli, yet be 
 thankful for what he has done, and fay, what 
 has God wrought in me ! Attend to the word, 
 I do not mean lazily, there is not a thing upon 
 the face of the earth that I abhor fo much as 
 idlenefs or idle people ; I am fo far from hav- 
 ing a love to people that are lazy, that if I had 
 the dealing with a number that are called 
 Chriftians, they fhould go to bed fooner, and 
 ~|v get up fooner 5 there is one thing that will 
 make people rife fooner in the morning in Lon« 
 don, and that is, for merchants to agree to 
 have the 'Change opened at fix, and that will 
 make people as much alive in the morning, as 
 the markets are after people have been travel- 
 ling all night to prepare for them. 
 
 Has 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 243 
 
 Has God wrought in you a fpirit of zeal and 
 love? has he wrought in you a love to his 
 name, a zeal for his caufe ? has he wrought in 
 thy heart a deadnefs to the world, that you 
 can live above it from morning to night, hav- 
 ing your converfation in heaven ? has he 
 wrought in thee a love to his people, not peo- 
 ple that are Calvinifls only ^ not people that 
 hold univerfal redemption only; O be careful 
 as to that -, O what nonfenfe is that, for people 
 to hold univerfal redemption, and yet not love 
 all mankind ; what nonfenfe is it to hold elec- 
 tion, and not as the eleSi of God to put on boweh 
 of mercy ^ kindnefs^ humblenefs of uiind^ meek- 
 726 fs and long'juffering ; as the woman faid, I 
 have a hpufe will hold a hundred, a heart i^w 
 thoufand. Has he wrought in thee a love to 
 thy enemies, fo that thou dofl not only love 
 them that love thee, but them that hate thee ? 
 what fay you ? muft I put a fnake in my bo- 
 fom, no, no ; I may hate the condudl, and at 
 the fame time pray to God for them. Enmity 
 is, an eye for an eye^ a tooth for a tooth. Love 
 as archbifhop Cranmer did, that it became a 
 proverb concerning him, that if any man would 
 make him his friend, he muft do him an in- 
 jury. Has he wrought in thee a defire to go* 
 
 I i 2 to 
 
244 Self-Enquiry concerning Ser. X. 
 
 to heaven ? has he wrought in thee fuch a love 
 to Jefus, that you prefer him to the heaven 
 he dw^ells in ? We count heaven a fine place, 
 and wx may fay, I am glad to fee the departed 
 faints and the angels, but all that will be nothing 
 unlefs I fee the Lamb in the midft of the 
 throne. Has God wrought in thee a defirc to 
 promote his glory, to be upon the ftretch for 
 God, to deny thyfelf, to take up the crofs 
 daily and follow him ? if God has wrought 
 this in thee, and I verily believe from my foul 
 he has wrought it in feme degree in many of 
 you, O you may well fay, what has God 
 wrought ! efpecially if you confider the man- 
 ner, and the time in which he wrought it -^ if 
 you confider the inftruments he made ufe of, 
 when, and by which he wrought it 5 and if 
 you confider the ineftimable price that was 
 paid for it, and the Spirit taking poffeffion of 
 your hearts. One part of our entertaintment 
 in heaven will be, to count the fteps of the 
 ladder by which God brought us there 3 one 
 will fay, God wrought in me when I was 
 young 3 another, when I had grey hairs. Mary 
 Magdalen will fay, God wrought in me when 
 I was a finner ; the expiring criminal will fay, 
 God wrought it in n^e juft as I was turned oiF, 
 
 I was 
 
Ser. X. the Work of Go J. 245 
 
 I was a brand plucked out of the burning. 
 The anthem, as good Mr. Erfkine obferves, 
 will be in heaven, what has God wrought I 
 Curiofity led me to hear the preacher, and 
 God touched my heart; there was a young 
 fellow, called emphatically wicked Will oj Ply- 
 mouth ^ who came, as he faid, to pick a hole 
 in the preacher's coat, and the Holy Ghoft 
 picked a hole in his heart. What has God 
 wrought, to work it in you, and not in your 
 father ; you, and not your children ; work it 
 in -^j^y and not a fellow-fervant ; work it in 
 one brother and not in another ; all thefe things 
 will make us cry, what has God wrought! 
 Well, I do not want you to reft in this by no 
 means ; I do not like to hear people talk, and 
 fpeak againft inward frames and inward works, 
 nor do I like to hear people legal, let every 
 thing have its proper place. It is about thirty- 
 three years ago, or very near, when a man came 
 to me, after I had preached upon marks and 
 evidences, at Whitechapel I think it was, 
 and faid, I am come to tell you, that I don't 
 chufe any marks at all ; then, faid I, you muft 
 be content with the marks of the devil, for 
 jpu muft have the one or the other. 
 
 Now, 
 
246 Self-Enquiry concerning Sen X, 
 
 Now, my brethren, if God has wrought 
 this in us, what ihall I fay ? why, I pray the 
 Lord Jefus Chrift that your Hfe and mine may 
 be a Hfe of praife. I would have you not only 
 dwell upon particular words of God fet home 
 upon your hearts, but his various providences, 
 the numerous trials he has brought you through: 
 O think how often you have been kept, think 
 how often you would have run away from God 
 if he had not flopped you 5 what has God 
 wrought, by preventing me from fin; what 
 has God wrought, by dehvering me from 
 blafphemous thoughts ^ what has God wrought, 
 in fnatching me out of the jaws of ruin ; even 
 after conveiiion, when I was damning my own 
 foul, his grace arrefted me. Have we brought 
 ourfelves into trials, how has he made thefe 
 very trials work for good ; made our fcolding 
 hufbands and wives, perfecuting fathers, friends 
 and relations, that you have thought would 
 devour you, made the bulls of Bafhan inftru- 
 ments of bringing you nearer to God; and 
 eternity will be too fhcrt to cry perpetually, 
 what hath God wrought ! 
 
 And if God has not wrought this in any of 
 you that are here, which, perhaps, may be 
 the cafe, though I cannot think what fhould 
 
 bring 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 2^y 
 
 bring any body here if they had not a defire 
 of the falvation of their fouls ; if God hath not 
 wrought it in you yet, O that this may be the 
 time; O that God may give us fome parting 
 bleffing; that fome poor creatures that have 
 nothing but the devil's work in them yet, may 
 now feek after the blefled work of the Holy 
 Ghoft. If we may afk what God has wrought, 
 let me afk you what the devil hath wrought in 
 you ; O thou unconverted foul, fin has made 
 thee a beaft, made thy body, which ought to 
 be the temple of the living God, a cage of 
 every unclean bird ; what hath fatan v/i-ought 
 in thee ? but made thee a nefl of vile flinkin'z 
 
 o 
 
 fwinc ; and what will he give thee ? hell, hell, 
 hell. The wages the devil gives no man can 
 live by ; the wages ojfin is death : and here I 
 come to bring you good news, glad tidings of 
 great joy ; O that God may now counter- work 
 the devil, and take thee into his own work- 
 manfhip, create thee anew in Chrift Jefus, 
 give thee to feel a little of his Spirit's work 
 on thy heart, and make thee, of a child of the 
 devil, a child of God ! Say not, it cannot be ; 
 fay not, it fhall not be ; fay not, it is too late ; 
 fay not, it is for others but not for me ; my 
 brethren, God help you to cry, and to try 
 
 to-night. 
 
248 Self-Enquiry cmcerning Ser, X^ 
 
 to-night, if thou canfl: turn the text into a 
 prayer. Lord God, I have felt the devil v^ork 
 in me, now, good God, Jet me know what it 
 is for thee to work in me ; make me a new 
 creature, create a new fpirit within me, that I 
 may join with thy dear people in finging, 
 iiuhat hath God wrought ! O remember, if this 
 is not the cafe with you, you muft have a 
 dreadful different ditty in hell ; the note there 
 will be, what hath the devil wrought ! what 
 hath fin wrought ! how am I come to this 
 place of torment ! I fold my birthright for a 
 mefs of pottage ! Heaven or hell is fet before 
 you to-night ; Jefus grant, that the terrors 
 of the Lord may awaken you to-night, and 
 that you may not reft till you have comfort 
 and fupport from God. 
 
 You that have this work begun in you, look 
 ftlll for better things to come, even after deaths 
 when our bodies are made like Chrift*s glorious 
 body, and our fouls filled with the fulnefs of 
 God, we fliall then cry. Churchmen and Dif- 
 fenters, Methodifts and Foundery-men, and" 
 the Lock too, we fliall all then join without 
 any bickerings, faying, what has God wrought ! 
 
 I could enlarge, but I am afraid I have 
 been too long already , yet as I ^hink the pro- 
 vidence 
 
Ser. X. the Work of God. 249 
 
 vidence of God calls me, and I fhall give a 
 particular account of my call to-morrow even- 
 ing, at the other end of the town, I think if 
 I fhould keep you a few minutes longer, it 
 might be excufed. I begin to feel already it 
 muft be executed in a few days ; I feel already 
 that I fhall foon part from you, and O that 
 God may awaken many of you poor unawak- 
 ned fouls ^ my heart bleeds for you ; O may 
 the oil of the blefled Spirit foften every hard, 
 unconverted heart, that we may go away 
 praifing and bleffing God that we fhall at 
 lafh meet, whether we go by land or by water, 
 before the throne, where we fliall afcribe 
 glory, and honour, and power, to him for 
 evermore. Amen. 
 
 K k SERMON 
 
[ 250 ] 
 
 SERMON XI. 
 
 The Burning Bufli. 
 
 Exodus iii. ver. 2, 3. 
 
 Aud he looked^ and behold the lujh burned with 
 Jire^ and the biijh was not conjumed-^ and 
 Mofes faidy I will now turn afide^ and fee 
 this great fight ^ why the bufd is not burnt. 
 
 IT is a common faying, and common fay- 
 ings are generally founded on matter of 
 fadt, that it is always darkeft before break 
 of day I and I am perfuaded, that if we do 
 juftice to our own experience, as well as 
 confider God's dealings with his people in pre- 
 ceding ages, we fhall find that man's extremity 
 has been ufually made God's opportunity, and 
 that when the enemy has broke in like a floods the 
 Spirit and providence of God has lifted up a 
 flandard againjl him : and I believe at the 
 lame time, that however wc may dream of a 
 
 con- 
 
Ser. XI. 'I'he Burnuig BuJIj. 2 «; i 
 
 continued fcene of profperity in church or ftate, 
 either in refped: to our bodies, fouls, or 
 temporal affairs, we fhall find this Hfe to be 
 chequered, that the cloud^r^turn after the rain, 
 and the mofi:' profperous ftate attended with fuch 
 cloiidy days, ^s may make even the people of 
 God fometimes cry, all men are liar 5^ and God 
 has forgciten to be gracious. 
 
 The chapter in which is our text, is an in- 
 ftarice of this. What a glorious day of the fon 
 of mail was that when Jofeph fent for his 
 father to jEgypt s and the good old patriarch, 
 after he had thought his fon had been dead 
 many years, agreeably furprized by a meffage 
 from him to come to liim, with all his family, 
 and are by him comfortably fettled in Gofhen ; 
 where the good old patriarch, after many a 
 ftormy day, died in peace, and was highly 
 honoured at hii. funeral by Pharaoh and his fer- 
 vants, and attenacd to the fepulchre of his fa- 
 thers in Canaan by all his fons. Aftfcr which, 
 Jofeph continued to live in fplendor, lord of 
 all the land gf Egypt ; and his brethren, doubt- 
 lefs, in the height of profperity : but how fad- 
 ly did the fcene change at Pharaoh's death, 
 foon after which, another king arofe that knew 
 not "Jofeph^ verifyin;^ the obfervation. New 
 K k 2 lords. 
 
252 T^he Burning Bujh. Ser. XI. 
 
 lords, new laws, by whom the defcendants 
 of Jacob, inftead of reigning in Gofhen, were 
 made bond-flaves; many, many long years, 
 employed in making bricks, and, in all pro- 
 bability, had what we call their bibles taken 
 from them, by being forced to conform to the 
 idolatry of Egypt, and fo were in a worfe ftate 
 than the unhappy Negroes in America are at 
 this day. No doubt, numbers of them either 
 wondered that ever they had been profpered at 
 all, or that God had forgot them now; but 
 what a mercy it is that a thoufand years in 
 God's f.ght are but as one day^ and therefore 
 when God*s time is come, the fet time that 
 he has appointed, he will, maugre all the oppo- 
 fition of men and devils, he will come down 
 and deliver his people, and in fuch a manner, 
 that the enemy fhall know, as well as friends, 
 it is the Lord's doing. A deliverer is born and 
 bred in Pharaoh's court, a Mofes is brought 
 up in all the learning of the Egyptians, for 
 Pharaoh intended him for a high and exalted 
 poft : but when offers of the higheft prefer- 
 ment are made to him, he did not catch at 
 them as fome folks now do, who are very 
 good and humble till fomething occurs to take 
 them from God. Young as he was, he re- 
 
 fufed 
 
Ser. XL ^he Burning Bujh. 253 
 
 fufed the higheft dignity, and fpurned at it 
 with an holy contempt \ and chufes rather to 
 fufFer afflidion with the people of God, than 
 enjoy all the grandeur and pleafures of, perhaps, 
 one of the greateft courts on earth. Forty years 
 continued he in this ftate of obfcurity, in which 
 time he acquired fuch a competent degree, 
 and variety of knowledge, as qualified him for 
 every thing God intended him for : the occa- 
 iion of this, was his kind attempt to compofe 
 a difference between two of his brethren, one 
 of whom accufed him of murder, on which 
 he that was to be king in Jefhurun, is forced 
 to fly into a ftrange land ; there he fubmits to 
 the humble office of a fervant, marries, and 
 lives in a ftate of fubje^lion for forty years, as 
 was faid before. At length, when he was 
 eighty years old, dreaming of no fuch thing, 
 behold God calls, and commands him to go 
 and deliver his people ; as he himfelf informs 
 us, who is the author of this book, ver. i. 
 'Now Mofes kept the foe k of Je thro his father- 
 in-law^ prieft of Midian: he might have faid, 
 what fuch a fcholar as I keep a parcel of fheep ! 
 fuch a learned man as I am employed in fuch 
 a menial fervice ! fome proud hearts would 
 break firft, but you never knew a truly great 
 
 man 
 
2 54 ^^^ Burning Bitjh. Sen XI. 
 
 man but would ftoop ; fome that are called 
 great men, fwell till they burft 5 like ftiirdy 
 oak^i they think they can fiand every wind, 
 till iome dreadful ftorm comes and blows them 
 up by the roots, while the humble reed bends 
 and rifes again . Mofes Was one of the lattery 
 he keeps the flock of Jethro his father-in-law; 
 and leads them to the mountain of God, even 
 to Horeb. This fliows how perfons ought to 
 methodize their time ; but however the name 
 of a rvlethodifl: is defpifed, they will never be 
 bad fervants and rnaflers ^ you would be only 
 weathercocks, unlefs you took care to order 
 things in proper feafons: the devotion and 
 bufinefs of a Methodift go hand in hand ; I 
 Vidll affure you, Mofes was a Methodift, a very 
 fine one, a very ftrong one too ; he kept his 
 flock, but that did not hinder his going to 
 Horeb, he took them to the defert, and be- 
 ing thus employed in his lav/iul buiinefs, God 
 met him. Some fay, we encourage people 
 in idlenefs 5 I deny it ; we fay, people ought 
 to be induftrious 5 and I defy any one to fay, 
 a- perfon is called by God that is negligent in 
 his calling, '^he angel of the Lord appeared to 
 him in a fame of fre out of the buJJj : fome 
 think this angel was Gabriel, but moft agree, 
 
 and 
 
Ser. Xr. .7he Burning Bufi. 25c 
 
 and I believe with the greateft probability, 
 that it \yas Jefus Chrift, the angel of the ever^ 
 lajiing covenant ; and an expofitor tells yon, 
 that the eternal Logos^ longing to become 
 man, often viiited this earth in that form, as 
 an evidence of his coming by and by, and 
 dying a curfed death for man. The manner 
 of this angel's appearing is taken particular 
 notice of, it was to Mofes when nobody was. 
 with him ; I do not hear he had fo much as 
 a boy, or one companion 3 and I mention this, 
 becaufe I believe we have often found that we 
 are never lefs alone than when with God ; we 
 often want this and that companion, but happy 
 they that can fay, Lord, thy company is 
 enough. Mofes was ftartled at the fight, and 
 I don't know that he is to be difcommended 
 for it, it was not to gratify a bare curioflty, 
 but feeing a bufli burning it engaged his atten- 
 tion, and made him think that fomething was 
 uncommon j the btiJJj burned withjire and yet 
 was not conjU7ned\ this flartled him, as it was 
 intended to do ^ for where God defigns to 
 fpeak, he will firft gain attention from the pcr- 
 fon fpoken to 5 Mofes therefore fays, / li/// 
 now tur7iafide and fee this great fight ^ why the 
 btiJJj is not burned'^ he did not, know but the 
 
 bufh 
 
256 ne Burnifig BuJI:). Ser. XI. 
 
 bufli might take fire by fome accident ^ he 
 faw no fire come from above, he faw no fire 
 round the bufh, yet that did not fo much 
 flartle him, as to fee, though it did burn, it was 
 not confumed, or in the leafl diminifhed 5 it 
 was a ftrange fight, but it was, my brethren, 
 a glorious one; a fight which, I pray God, 
 you and I may behold with faith and comfort 
 this evening ) for, my dear hearers, this bufh, 
 and the account of it, was given for our learn- 
 ing ; and I will venture to fay, could Mofes 
 arife from the dead, he would not be angry 
 with me for telling you, this is of no private 
 interpretation, but is intended as a flanding 
 leflbn, as a fignificant emblem of the church, 
 and every individual child of God, till time 
 it felf fhall be no more. I would therefore 
 obferve to you, that this bufh, 
 
 In the firfl place, is typical of the church 
 of God in all ages ; the bufh was burning, 
 why might it not be a tall cedar, why might 
 it not be fome large or fome glorious tree, why 
 fhould the great God chufe a bufh, a little bufh 
 of briars and thorns, above any other thing ? 
 but becaufe the church of Chrifl generally con- 
 fifls of poor, mean, defpicable creatures : tho' 
 it is all glorious within, yet it is all defpicable 
 
 without. 
 
Ser. XL 'The Bur?iing Btijl^ ±^y 
 
 without. It is obfervable, that when the 
 church came to profper, when Conftantine 
 fmiled on it, it was foon hugged to death; 
 and that great poet, Milton, obferves, that 
 when that emperor gave minifters rich veft^ 
 ments, high honours, great livings, and golden 
 pulpits, there was a voice heard from heaven, 
 faying, this day there is poifon come into the 
 church 5 and I have fometimes faid in dif- 
 courfe, I don't doubt but if any one made an 
 experiment, and left 100,000/. or 200,00c/. ! 
 only among the Methodifls, there would be 
 hundreds and thoufands that would not be j 
 reckoned Methodifls now, that would turn I 
 Methodifls prefently, that would buy an hymn- * 
 book, becaufe a part of the legacy would pay 
 for the hymn-book, and would wiflb to have 
 a living into the bargain ; but though not many 
 mighty men^ not many noble are called^ yet fome 
 are ; if any of you are rich here, and are 
 Chriftians, thank God for it, you ought to be 
 doubly thankful for it ; God's people are but 
 like a little bramble bufh. I remember an 
 eminent minifter faid once, when I heard him 
 preach upon Chriftmas-day, Chrijl perfonal is 
 'very richy but Chriji myjlical is ijcry poor -, and 
 Jefus Chrift does this on purpofe to confound 
 L I the 
 
258 The Burning Bufh. Sex, XI. 
 
 the world. When he conies to judgment, 
 millions that have their thoufands now, will be 
 damned and burn to all eternity, and Chrift's 
 church will be rich to all eternity, that is now 
 like a bramble all on fire. 
 
 The bu[h burned, what is that for ? it fhewed 
 ^^ihat Chrift's church while in this world, will 
 |be a bu(h burning 'with fiery trials and afflic- 
 Uions of various kinds s this was a lively em- 
 jblem of the ftate of religion, and liberty of 
 Ifrael at that time : they were bufy making of 
 brick, and there confequently were burning 
 continually 5 as though the Lord had faid, this 
 buih is burning with fire, fo my people are 
 burning with flavery. Ah but, fay you, that 
 was only the cafe of the Ifraelites when they 
 were under Pharaoh > pray is not that the cafe 
 of the church in all ages ? yes, it has been > 
 read your bibles, and you may inftantly fee 
 that it is little elfc than an hiftorical account of 
 a burning bufh ; and though there might be 
 fome periods wherein the church had reft, yet 
 thefe periods have been of a fhort date y and if 
 God's people have ^walked in the comjorts of 
 the Holy Ghoft^ it is only like a calm that pre- 
 ceeds an earthquake. If you remember, be- 
 fore the laft earthquake it was a fine morning, 
 
 and 
 
Ser. XL Tie Burnhig Bujh. 259 
 
 and who, when they arofe in the morning, 
 would have thought the earth fhould fhake 
 under them before night; and fo with the 
 church when they are in a calm, and all feems 
 fafe there, then comes a ftorm : God prepare 
 us for it. 
 
 But this is not only the cafe with the church 
 of Chrifl colled:ed, but alfo it is fo with indi- 
 vidual believers, efpecially thofe that God in- 
 tends to make great ufe of ^s prophets in his 
 church. I know very well that 'tis faid, that 
 now the caf& is altered : modern commentators 
 therefore, and our great Dr. Young, calls them 
 downy Dodors ; they tell us, now we have 
 got a Chriftian king and governor, and are 
 under the toleration adl:, we fhall have no 
 perfecution^ and, bleffed be God, we have 
 had none fince this family has been on the 
 throne : may God continue it till time ftiall 
 be no more. Yet, my dear hearers, we fliall 
 find, if God's word is true, whether we are | 
 born under a defpotic power, or a free go- 
 vernment, that they that will live godly in 
 Chrift Jefus muft fufFer perfecution. You 
 have heard of that faying, Wonder not at the 
 Jiery trial whereu/ith you are to be tried \ and 
 God faith, / have chofen tbee^ which is appli- 
 L 1 2 cable 
 
26 o The Burning Biijh. Scr. XI, 
 
 cable to every believer, in the fiirnace of 
 affiiBion, Now the furnace is a hot place, 
 and they that are tried in the furnace muft be 
 burnt furely. Now what muft the Chriftian 
 \burn with ? with tribulation and perfecution, 
 J heard a perfon not long ago fay, I have no 
 enemies. Bifhop Latimer came to a houfe 
 one day, and the man of the houfe faid, he 
 had not met with a crofs in all his life ; give 
 me my horfe, fays the good bifliop, I am fure 
 God is not here where no crofs is. But fup- 
 pofe we are not perfecuted by the world, is 
 there one Chriftian but is perfecuted by his 
 friends \ if there is an Ifaac in the family, I 
 warrant there is an Ifhmael to mock at him, 
 Woe is me^ fays David, that 1 muft dwell with 
 Mejl:eck^ and in Kedar : and in one's own 
 family, one's own brothers and ftfters, one's 
 own dependants, though they wait for our 
 death, and, perhaps, long to have us gone, 
 that they may run away with our fubftance, 
 to have thefe perfons piock at us, and if they 
 dare not fpeak put, yet let us fee they hate 
 the God we worfhip ; if this is fhy cafe, why, 
 God knows, poor foul, thou art a burning 
 bufh ; but if we have no fuch thing as mock^ 
 ing, yet if we are furrpunded with afflidions, 
 
 domeftic 
 
Ser. XI. tbe Burning BuJJ,\ 261 
 
 domeftic trials, the lofs of dear and near 
 friends, the bad condudl of our children, the 
 dreadful mifconduft ofthofe that are dependant 
 upon us ; O there is many a parent here that 
 is a burning bufh ; burning with what ? with 
 family afHidions ; feme don't care what be- 
 comes of their children ; O, I thank God, I 
 havp left my bpy io much, and my daughter 
 a coach, perhaps; ah! well your fon and 
 daughter may ride in that coach poft to the 
 devil : but the godly man fays, 1 want an 
 eternal inheritance for my fon ; I wapt God's 
 bleffing for him -, this is the poor man's prayer, 
 while the poor deluded youth mocks him : or, 
 liippofing this is not the cafe, a perfon may 
 burn with inward temptation 5 you have heard 
 of the fiery darts of the devil, and was you to 
 feel them, I believe you would find them fiery 
 darts indeed I and you have great reafon to fuC- 
 p^dt your experience, your having any interefl 
 in the love of the Son of God at all, if you 
 i^ever found the fiery darts of the devil. O, 
 fays one, I never felt the devil ; I am fure thou 
 mayft fed him nows thou art dadda's own 
 child ; thou art fpeaking the very language of 
 the devil, and he is teaching thee to deny thy 
 pyvn father ^ therefore, gracelefs child of the 
 
 devil, 
 
26 a ^he Burning BuJIj. Ser. XI. 
 
 devil, you never felt the devil's fiery darts, it 
 is beeaufe the devil is fure of thee ; he has got 
 thee into a damnable llumber 5 may the God 
 of love wake thee before real damnation comes ! 
 The fiery darts of fatan are poifoned, and 
 wherever they ftick they fill the perfon with 
 tormenting pain hke fire 5 this I mention, be- 
 eaufe there are fome poor fouls perhaps here 
 to-night, whom the devil tells, thou haft com- 
 mitted the unpardonable fin ; you are afraid to 
 come to facrament, you are afraid to go to 
 prayer, beeaufe at thefe feafons the devil dif- 
 turbs thee moft, and tempts you to leave thefe 
 feafons 5 and there are fome go on thus burn- 
 ing a great while. My brethren, the time 
 would fail, and I fhall draw this difcourfe to 
 too great a length, and hinder you from your 
 families, if I was to mention but a few more 
 of thofe thoufands that the believer burns with, 
 the trials without, and, what is ftill worfe, 
 their trials within. Why, fays one, it is very 
 ftrange you talk thus to-night 3 I am forry it 
 is ftrange to any of you ; fure you are not 
 much acquainted with your bibles, and lefs 
 with your hearts, if you know not this. Why 
 fure, fay fome, you make God a tyrant ; no, 
 but having made ourfelves devil's incarnate, 
 
 we 
 
Ser. XL The Burning BuJI:. 263 
 
 we are now in a ftate of preparation, and thefe 
 various trials are intended by the great God to 
 train us up for heaven 5 and therefore, that 
 you may not think I am drawing a pidurc 
 without any life, give me leave to obferve, 
 that it is particularly remarkable, that though 
 the bujh burned J it was not confiimed : it was 
 this ftruck Mofes, he looked to fee why the 
 bufh was not confumed. But the burning I 
 have been here painting forth to you, is not 
 a confuming, but a purifying fire ; is not that ; 
 enough to anfwer :the fhade that has been al- 
 ready drawn j it is true the bufli burns, the 
 Chrifiian is perfecuted, the Chriftian is op- 
 prefTed, the Chrifiian is burned v/ith inward 
 trials, he is perplexed at times, he is caji 
 down-, buty blelled be God, he is not dejiroyed^ 
 he is not in defpair. Who is that, that fays 
 he has got into fuch an eftate that nothing dif- 
 turbs him ? vain man ! he difcovers an igno- 
 rance of Chrift 5 are you greater then than the 
 apoftle Paul ? fome people think that the apof- 
 tles had no trials 5 fo they think, perhaps, of 
 fome minifters, that they are always on the 
 mount, while, perhaps, they have been in the 
 burning to get that fermon for theili. We 
 that are to fpeak for others, muft exped; to 
 
 be 
 
s64 7 he Burning Btijb. Sen XL 
 
 be tempted in all things like to our brethren, 
 or we fliould be only poor whip-fyllabub 
 preachers, and not reach mens hearts. But 
 whether minifters or people burn, the great 
 God, the angel of the everlafting covenant, 
 fpoke to Mofes out of the bufli ) he did not 
 iVand at a diftance from the bufh, he did not 
 ipeak to him fo much as one yard or foot from 
 the buflj, but he fpoke to him out of the bufh % 
 lie faid, Moles, Mofes, my people ihall burn 
 in this bufli to the end of time, but be not 
 afraid, I will fuccour them ; when they burn^ 
 I will burn too. There is a fcripture vaftly 
 ftrong to this purpofe, in which it is not faid> 
 the good will of him that was in the buj};)^ but 
 the good will oj him that dwelt ifi the bujh^ 
 Amazing ! I thought God dwelt in heaven y 
 but as a poor woman who was once in dark-^ 
 nefs fourteen years, before fhe was brought 
 out of it, faid, God has two homes, one in 
 heaven, the other in the loweft heart. He 
 dwells in the bufli, and I am fure if he did 
 not, the devil and their own curfed hearts 
 would burn th*e bufli to aflies. How is it that 
 it is not confumed ? why, it is becaufe God 
 has declared it fliall not be confumed; he has 
 made an everlafting covenant, and I pity thofe 
 
 that 
 
Ser. XI. ^he Burning Bujh. 265 
 
 that are not acquainted with an interefl in 
 God's covenant ; and it would be better that 
 people would pity them, than dilpute with 
 them: I really believe a difputing devil is one 
 of the worfl devils that can be brought into 
 God's church, for he comes with his gown 
 and book in his hand, and I fhould always 
 fufpedl the devil when he comes in his gown 
 and band, and this is the caufc they agree and 
 difagree. Some, who it's to be hoped are God's 
 children, if you tell them that God has loved 
 them with an everlafting love, they are afraid 
 to fuck it in, and efpecially it you pop out the 
 word eleftion, or that hard word predeflina- 
 tion, they will be quite frightned 3 but talk 
 to them in another way, their dear hearts will 
 rejoice. God hasfaid, ^s the waters of Noah 
 f:all ceafe for ever^ fo he will not j or get the 
 covenant of his peace ; nothing flM II pluck them 
 out of his hand. Ah ! fay fome, the apoflle 
 has faid, that neither things prefent^ nor things 
 to comCy fhall feparate us from the love of 
 Cbrijl J but he has not faid an evil heart Hiali 
 not ; I fancy that is one of the prefent things. 
 The bufh is not confumed, becaufe if the devil 
 is in the bufh, God is in the bufh too -, if the 
 devil afts one way, the Lord, the Spirit, adts 
 M m another 
 
266 The Burning Bufi. Ser. XT. 
 
 another to balance it, and the Spirit of God 
 is engaged to train up the fouls of his people ; 
 and God has determined the bufh fhall not be 
 confumed 3 his Spirit ftands near believers to 
 fupport and guide, and make them more than 
 conquerors : all that are given to Jefus Chrift 
 fliall come, he v^^ill not lofe one of them ; this 
 is food for the children of God ; a bad mind 
 will turn every thing to poifon ; and if it was 
 not for this, that God had promifed to keep 
 them, my foul within thefe thirty years would 
 have funk a thoufand times over. Come then, 
 O faifering faints, to you the word of this 
 falvation is fent, I don't know who of you 
 are the followers of the Lamb j may the Spirit 
 of the living God point them out, may every 
 one be enabled to fay, I am the man. O, 
 fays one, I have been watching and very at- 
 tentive to-night, but you have not mentioned 
 my burnings ; what do you think of my burn-i' 
 ing lufts ? what do you think of my burning 
 corruptions? what do you think of my burn-^ 
 ing pride ? O, perhaps fome of you will fay, 
 thank God, I have no pride at all ; like the 
 bifhop of Cambray, as mentioned by Dr. 
 Watts, who faid, he had received many iins 
 from his lather Adam, but;, thank God, he 
 
 had 
 
Ser. XI. ^he Burning BifJI.\ 267 
 
 had no pride. Alas ! alas ! we are all as 
 proud as the devil. Pray v/hat do you think 
 of paffion, that burns not only themfelves but 
 all around them ? what do you think of en- 
 mity ? what do you think of jealoufy, is not 
 this fomething that burns the bufn ? and thire 
 are fome people that pride themfelves, they 
 have not got fo much of the beaft about them, 
 they never got drunk, fcorn to commit mur- 
 der, and at the fame time are as full of enmity, 
 of envy, malice, and pride, as the devil : the 
 Lord God help fuch to fee their condition. 
 Happy is it Chrift can dwell in the bufh when 
 we cannot dwell ourfelves there : there are few 
 Chriilians can live together, very few relations 
 can live together under one roof j we can take 
 that from other people that we can't bear from 
 our own flefh and blood -, and if God did not 
 bear with us more than we bear with one ano- 
 ther, we fhould all have been dcftroyed every 
 day. Does the devil make you fay, that you 
 will give all up -, I will go to the Tabernacle 
 no more j I will lay upon my couch and take 
 my eafe -, Oh ! if this is the cafe of any to- 
 night, thus tempted by fatan, may God refcue 
 their fouls. O poor dear foul, you never will 
 bave fuch fweet words from God as w^hen you 
 M m 2 are 
 
268 Ihe Burning Bujh. Ser. XI. 
 
 are in the bufli ; our fuffering times will be 
 our beft times. I know we had more comfort 
 in Moorfield?, on Kennington-Common, and 
 • efpecially when the rotten eggs, the cats and 
 \dogs were thrown upon me, and my gown 
 jwas filled with clods of dirt that I could fcarce 
 move it ; I have had more comfort Jn this 
 burning bu{h than when I have been in eafe. 
 I remember when I was preaching at Exeter, 
 a ftone came and m^ade my forehead bleed, I 
 found at that very time the word came with 
 double power to a labourer that was gazing at 
 me, who was wounded at the fame time by 
 another ftone, I felt for the lad more than for 
 myfelf, went to a friend, and the lad came to 
 me. Sir, fays he, the man gave me a wound, 
 
 (but Jefus healed me ; I never had my bonds 
 broke till I had my head broke. I appeal to 
 you, whether you v^ere not better when it was 
 colder than now, becaufe your nerves were 
 braced up 5 you have a day like a dog-day, 
 now you are weak, and arc obliged to fan 
 yourfelves : thus it is profperity lulls the foul, 
 and I fear Chriftians are fpoiled by it. 
 
 Whatever your trials arc, let this be your 
 prayer. Lord, though the bufli is burning, 
 let it not be confumed. I think that is too 
 
 loWj 
 
Ser. XL The Burm?7g Bujh, 269 
 
 low, let it be thus ; Lord, when the bufli is 
 burning, let me not burn lower as the fire does, 
 but let me burn higher and higher : I thank 
 thee, my God, for trouble ; I thank thee, my 
 God, for putting me into thefe affliftions one 
 after another ; I thought I could fing a requiem 
 to myfelf, that I fhould have a little reft, but 
 trouble came from that very quarter where I 
 might reafonably expedl the greateft comfort : 
 I thank thee for knocking my hands off from 
 the creature > Lord, I believe, help my un- 
 belief 5 and thus you will go on blefling God 
 to all eternity : by and by the bufh fiiall be 
 tranflated to the paradife of God ; no burning 
 bufli in heaven, except the fire of love, won- 
 der, and gratitude ; no trials there, troubles 
 are limited to this earth, above our enemies 
 can't reach u?. 
 
 Perhaps there are fome of you here are fay- 
 ing, burning bujld^ a buJJo burnt and not con^ 
 Jumcdl I don't know what to make of this 
 nonfenfe: come, come, go on, I am ufed to 
 it, and I guefs what are the thoughts of your 
 hearts : I pray God, that every one of you 
 here may be afraid of comfort, left they fliould 
 be toffed about by the devil. What is it I have 
 faid ? hov.' have I talked in fuch an unintelli- 
 
 i gible 
 
270 72>^ Btirntng Eufm. Ser. XI. 
 
 gible manner? why, fay you, what do you 
 mean by a burning bufh ? why, thou art the 
 very man, how fo? why, you are burning 
 with the devil in your hearts 5 you are burning 
 with foppery, with nonfenfe, with the luji of 
 the fle(}.\ with the luji of the eye^ and pride of 
 life \ and if you do not get out of this ftate, as 
 Lot faid to his fons-in-law, e're long you fhall 
 be burning in hell, and not Gonfumed : the 
 fame angel of the covenant who fpake to Mofes 
 out of the bufh, he fhall eVe long dcfcend, 
 furrounded with millions of the heavenly hofts, 
 and fentence you to everlafling burnings. O 
 you frighten me ! did you think I did not in- 
 tend to frighten you ? would to God I might 
 frighten you enough ! I believe it will be no 
 harm for you to be frightned out of hell, to 
 be frightned out of an unconverted ftate : O go 
 and tell your companions that the madman 
 faid, that wicked men are as firebrands of hell : 
 God pluck you as brands out of that burning. 
 BlefTed be God, that there is yet a day of grace > 
 Ohl that this might prove the accepted time y 
 Oh ! that this might prove the day of fahation ; 
 Oh ! angel of the everlafling covenant, come 
 down 5 thou bleffed, dear comforter, have 
 mercy, mercy, mercy upon the unconverted, 
 
 upon 
 
Ser. XI. The Burning Bufi. 271 
 
 upon our unconverted friends, upon the un- 
 converted part of this auditory -, fpeak^ and it 
 fiall be done-y command^ O Lordy and it Pdall 
 cotne to pafs j turn the burning bufhes of the 
 devil into burning bu(hes of the Son of God : 
 who knows but God may hear our prayer, 
 who knows but God may hear this cry, 1 hav^ 
 feen^ 1 have feen the affii^iom of ?ny people -, 
 the cry of the children of Ifrael is come up to 
 incy and I am come down to deliver them : God 
 grant this may be his word to you under all 
 your trouble ; God grant he may be your 
 comforter. The Lord awaken you that are 
 dead in lin, and though on the precipice of 
 hell, God keep you from tumbling in : and 
 you that are God's burning ^bufhes, God help 
 you to ftand to keep this coat of arms, to fay 
 when you go home, bleifed be God,' the bujh 
 is burnings but not confumcd. Amen ! even iOy 
 Lord Jefus. Amen ! 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 272 ] 
 SERMON Xir. 
 
 Soul Dejedion. 
 
 Psalm xlii. ver. 5. 
 
 Why art thou cajl down, O my fouly and why 
 art thou di [quieted within me ? hope thou in 
 God, for IJhall yet praife him^ for the help 
 of his countenance. 
 
 I HAVE often told you, in my plain way 
 of fpeaking, that grace is very frequently 
 grafted on a crab-ftock; that the Lord 
 Jefus picks out perfbns of the moft peevifh, 
 churlifh difpolition, and imparts to them the 
 largeft meafure of grace, but for want of a 
 better natural temper, a great deal of grace 
 does not fhine' fo bright in them, as a fmall 
 degree in thofe that are conftitutionally good^ 
 natured : perfons of this difpofition are gene- 
 rally complaining, and are not only tormen- 
 tors of themfelves, but are great plagues to thofe 
 that are about them; you will hear them 
 
 always 
 
Sen XII. Soul D(je5lion. 273 
 
 always complaining fomething or other is the 
 matter. What a pity it is we cannot all agree 
 in one . thing, to leave ofF chiding others to 
 chide our own felves, till we can find nothing 
 in ourfelves to chide for 5 this we fhall find 
 will be a good way to grow in the divine life> 
 when, by conftant application to the Lamb 
 of God, we get a maftery over thofe things 
 which hitherto have had the maftery over us j 
 but are thefe the only people that complain ? 
 are people of a melancholy difpofition only fub- 
 jed: to a difquietude of heart ? I will venture 
 to affirm, that the greateft, the deareft chil- 
 dren of God, have got their complaining, and 
 their dreary hours. Thofe who have been 
 favoured with large meafures of grace, even 
 thofe that have been wrapped up as it were to 
 the third heavens, bafklng on the mount in 
 the funfhine of redeeming grace, and in raptures 
 of love crying out, It is goodjor us to be here^ 
 even thefe muft go down to Gethfemane ; and 
 if they would not be fcorched v/ith a ftrong 
 burning fever from the fun of profperity, fhall 
 find clouds from time to time overihadowing 
 them, not to burn, but to keep them low. It 
 is on this account, that you fee good men in 
 difFcTcnt frames at different times t our Lord 
 N n himfelf 
 
274 '^^^^ Dejeciion. -' SenXiT, 
 
 himfelf was fo, he rejoiced fometlmes in^ fpi- 
 rit, but at other times you jSndhim, efpecially 
 near the iaft, crying out, My foul is exceeding 
 forrowfid eve^i unto deaths tarry you here and 
 watch. And I am going to tell you of one to- 
 night, who had the honour of being called,. 
 the man after God's own heart ; and who, 
 though an Old Teftament faint, was greatly 
 bleffed with a New~ Teftament fpirit, and had 
 the honour of compofing Pfalms, which in 
 all pafl ages of the church have been, and in 
 future ones will be a rich magazine, and ftore- 
 hcufe of fpiritual experience, from which the 
 children of God may draw fpiritual armour 
 for fighting the good fight of faith^, until God 
 fliall call them to life eternal : may this be 
 your happy lot. What frame was this good 
 man in when he compofed this forty- fecond 
 Pfalm? the Plalm itfelf can beft tell. It 
 feems compofed when he w^as either perfe- 
 cted by Saul, or driven from his own court 
 by his fondling, beloved fon, Abfalom ; then 
 David appeared truly greats I honour him 
 when I fee him yonder, attending a few 
 flieepj but I admire the young ftripling, when 
 I fee him come out with his fling and ftone, 
 and aiming it at the head of Goliah, the ene- 
 my 
 
Sen XII. Soul DejeBion. 275 
 
 my of God ; or, when exalted and filling the 
 feat of juftice ; but to me he never appears 
 greater, than when he is bowed down in low 
 circumftances, befet on every fide, flruggling 
 between fenfe and faith \ and, as the fun after 
 an eclipfe, breaking forth with greater luftre 
 to all the fpedtators. In this view we mud 
 confider this great, this good man, David^ 
 when he cries out, Why. art thou cajl dow?2y 
 my foul, why art thou dif quieted "within me ? 
 hope thou in God, 
 
 Suppofing you underftand the words as a 
 queftion. Why art thou caji down^ O my foul ^ 
 though thou art in fuch circumftances ? pray 
 now what is the caufe of thy being fo dejected ? 
 The word implies, that he was finking under 
 the weight of his prefent burden, hke a perfon 
 fiooping under a lead that lies upon his flioul- 
 ders; and the confequence of this prefllire 
 without was difquietude, uneauncr;s and 
 anxiety within ; for, fay what yoa will tc the 
 contrary, there is fuch a connexion between 
 foul and body, that when one is difordered, 
 the other muft fympathize with its ever-loving 
 friend. 
 
 Or, you may underfl:and it as chiding Kim- 
 
 felf, Why art thou caJi down^ my foul ^ ivhy 
 
 N n 2 art 
 
276 Soul DejeBion. Ser.XII. 
 
 art thou difquieted within me^ how foolifh Is 
 it to be thus drooping and dejefted ; how 
 improper for one favoured of God with fo 
 many providences, and fpecial particular pri- 
 vileges, for fuch a one as thou art thus to 
 ftoop, and be made fubjedl to every tempta- 
 tion ; why dofl thou give thy enemies fuch 
 room to find fault with thy religion on ac- 
 count of thy gloomy looks, and the difqui- 
 etude of thy heart ? a yoke which thou wilt 
 find to be lined with love, and God will keep 
 it from galling thy ihoulders. You fee, he 
 fpeaks not to others but to himfelf j would to 
 God we did thus learn that charity begins at 
 home. Then he goes to God with his cafe, 
 O my God, fays he, my foul is cajl down within 
 me. O that we could learn, when in thefe 
 moods to go more to God, and lefs to man, 
 we fhould find more relief, and religion would 
 be lefs difhonoured. But fee how faith tri* 
 umphs in the midft of all, no fooner does 
 unbelief pop up its head, but faith immediately 
 knocks it down. A never-failing maxim is 
 here propofed, hope thou in Gody truft in God, 
 believe in Godj for I am fure, and all of you 
 that know Jefus Chrift are perfuaded of it 
 too, that all our troubles arife from our un- 
 belief ; 
 
Ser. XII. Soul Deje5tion. 277 
 
 belief: O unbelief, injurious bar to comfort, 
 fource of tormenting fear ! on the contrary, 
 faith bears every thing. Put thy trujl in God^ 
 as in the old tranflation ^ hope in God^ as in the 
 new, / Jloall yet praije him. The devil tells 
 me my trouble is fo great, I fhall never lift up 
 my head again ^ but unbelief and the devi! are 
 liars 3 I Jhall yet praife him 3 my God will 
 carry me through all -, I flVall yet praife him, 
 even for cafting me down ; I fhall praife him 
 even for that which is the caufe of all my dis- 
 quietude ; he will be the health of my counte- 
 nance 3 though my afflidlions have now made 
 my body low, fuck up my fpirits, and hurt my 
 animal frame, he wilt be the help of iny coufite- 
 nance 3 I fhall by and by fee him again, and 
 be favoured with thofe transforming vievv^s, 
 which my God has favoured me with in times 
 paft3 he is the health of my count enance^ and 
 my God : though the devil tempts me, and my 
 evil neighbours fay, where is now thy God^ 
 Doft thou think thou art a child of God, and 
 thy Father fuffers thee to be caft down ? I tell 
 thee, I tell thee, O fatan, that God who I 
 have been fo vilely tempted as to believe has 
 forfaken me, will come over the mountains of 
 my guilt, will forgive my backflidings againfl 
 
 himfelf, 
 
278 Soul DejeSlion. Ser. XII. 
 
 himfelf, my unbelief fhall not make his pro- 
 mifes of none efFecfl 5 I fhall praife him even 
 while I live, I fhall praife him before I die, I 
 iliall praife him for ever in heaven, where he 
 will be, after death, the health of my counte- 
 nance^ and my God \ thus faith will get the 
 better in a faint. David was fomelimes left to 
 fay, in efFedl, all things are againfl me; yet 
 ftill in mofl of the Pfalms, in this, the next, 
 the cxiiith, and many of the refl, he triumphs 
 in God ; and he compofed but very few with- 
 out praifing at the end, though he complains 
 at the beginning : God help us thus to do ! 
 
 But it is time to leave off fpeaking particu- 
 larly of David, and to turn to you to whom 
 thefe words, I pray God, may prove falutary 
 and ufeful. I have had a great flruggle in my 
 mind this afternoon what I Ihould preach from ; 
 I have been praying and looking up to God, 
 and could not preach for my life on any other 
 text, which has often been the cafe before, 
 and v/henever it was, fome poor foul has been 
 ■comforted and raifed up ; and among fuch a 
 mixed multitude, there are fome, no doubt, 
 come to this poor defpifed place caft down and 
 difquieted within \ I fliall endeavour to enquire 
 what you are caft down for, and then I fhall 
 
 propofe 
 
Ser. XII. Scul DejeBion. 279 
 
 propofe a great cure for you^ namely, trufl in 
 God; and I pray, that what was David's 
 comfort may be yours. Why fhould not we 
 expecSt an anfwer when we pray, that God 
 before you go home may make you whether 
 you will or no, leave your burdens behind 
 you ? and God keep you from taking them 
 up as you go home. 
 
 Probably, there may be fome of you that 
 are real believers ; perhaps, I ought to afk 
 your pardon : where am I preaching, in the 
 Tabernacle ! the moft defpifed place in Lon-j 
 don! fo fcandalous a place, that many of the 
 children of God would rather go elfewhere \ 
 God help us to keep up our fcandal ! But yet 
 I believe there are many King's daughters 
 here, many of you w^hom God enabled in this 
 place firft to fay, My Lordy and my God, 
 When you put your fingers, as it were, on the 
 print of Chrift's nails, and put your hands 
 into his fide, and were no longer faithlefs, but 
 believing, you thought you fhould never be 
 caft down any more, but now you have found 
 yourfelves miibken ; and I (hall endeavour, in 
 the profecution of this text, to fpeak to all that 
 are caft down, whether before or, after con- 
 verfion, and then to fuch that v/ere never caft 
 
 - down 
 
28o Soul DejeBion. Sef. XII. 
 
 down at all ^ and if you was never caft down 
 before, God call: you down now. 
 
 What are perfons caft down for ? what are 
 fome of you difquieted within for ? I have rea- 
 fon to believe, from the notes put up at both 
 ends of the town, that there are many of you 
 that have arrows of convidtion ftuck faft in 
 your fouls j I have taken in near two hundred 
 at the other end of the town, within a fort- 
 night; if this be the cafe, that God is thus at 
 work, let the devil roar, and we will go on in 
 the name of the Lord. And what are you 
 caft down for ? fome poor foul will fay, with 
 a fenfe of fin, the guilt of it, the enmity of 
 it, the very aggravated circumftances that at- 
 tend it, appear and fet themfelves as in battle- 
 array before me : once I thought I had no fin, 
 at leaft, I thought that fin was not fo exceed- 
 ing finful ; but I now find it fuch a burden, I 
 could almoft fay with Cain, it is greater than 
 I can bear. And, perhaps, fome of you are 
 fo caft down, as in your hafte to fay as colo- 
 nel Gardiner, that great man of God, told me 
 himfelf had faid when under convidion, " I 
 *' believe God cannot be juft, unlefs he damns 
 " my wicked foul." Is this thy cafe ? art 
 thou wicked, art thou fo caft down, fo dif- 
 quieted. 
 
Ser. XII. Soul DejeSiion, 281 
 
 quieted, thit thou canfl not reft night nor day, 
 
 fhall I fend thee away without any comfort ? 
 
 fhall I fend thee away as the legal preachers 
 
 do ? as a minifter fome time ago did, when a 
 
 man told him how wicked he had been 3 O, 
 
 fays he, if you are fo wicked you are damn'd 
 
 to befure> I fhall not trouble myfelf with you. 
 
 When a poor negro was taken up for thieving, 
 
 another went to him and faid, you are fo bad 
 
 I muft turn my back to you ^ that is the law, 
 
 but the gofpel is turn thy face to God j think 
 
 not that God is dealing with thee as an abfolute 
 
 God, a God out of Chrift. I would have 
 
 nothing to do, fays Luther, with an abfolute 
 
 God ; as fuch he is a confuming fire. Truft 
 
 God in Chrift, throw thyfelf upon him, 
 
 throw thyfelf on the Son of God ^ cry with 
 
 thy brother, and now thou art in that temper, 
 
 thou wilt not be afhamed to call the thief thy 
 
 brother > fay with him, Lord^ remember 7?ie 
 
 when thou art in thy kingdom : thou fhalt yet 
 
 praife him, thou flialt yet have the forgivenefs 
 
 of thy fins ^ thy pardon fhall not only be fealed 
 
 in heaven, but thou fhalt have it in thy heart : 
 
 thefe are only the pangs of the new birth, the 
 
 firft ftrugglings of the foul immerfing into the 
 
 divine life j he flmll yet be the health of thy 
 
 O o coun- 
 
2Sz Soul DejeBion. Ser. XII. 
 
 countenance: theie poor cheeks, though be- 
 dewed with tears, fhall by and by have a fine 
 blufli, when a pardoning God comes with his 
 love 'y it fliall even make a change in thy 
 countenance, for as a heavy heart makes a 
 man's countenance fad, fo a chearful heart 
 makes the countenance pleafant : thou ihait 
 know him to be thy God, thou flialt fay, my 
 Lordy and my God: Lord Jefus grant this may 
 be the happy moment. Was Jefus here, was 
 the Redeemer now in this metropolis, I am 
 fure he would go about the ftreets, he would 
 be a field-preacher, he would go out into the 
 highways and hedges, he w^ould invite, he 
 would run after them y Lord Jefus, take the 
 veil from our hearts, and let us fee to-night 
 thy loving heart as the Son of God 1 Truft in 
 God, you will fay, it is very eafy for you to fay 
 fo, but I cannot truft in God ^ can't you, who 
 told you that ? that is the work of God, you 
 are not far from the kingdom of God. Who 
 convinced thee of thy inability to believe, do 
 you think the devil did ? no, it was the Spirit 
 of God procured by the blood of the Lamb, 
 that was to come to convince the world of fin. 
 If thou canft not truft as thou wouldft, fay> 
 Lord^ I believe^ help my unbelief'^ ftretch out 
 
 thy 
 
•Ser. XII. Soul BejeBion. 283 
 
 thy poor hand. I am thinking of Sunday !aft, 
 when I was giving the facrament, I obferved 
 there was one blind communicant that could 
 not fee, but he thruft out his hand; I obferved 
 feveral lame perfons, but there were enough 
 to give it to them; I faw alfo a poor barrow- 
 woman, and I took particular care to give the 
 cup to her ; fo I put it up to the mouth of 
 the poor blind man : if that is the cafe, what 
 love muft there be in God to the poor foul ! 
 
 But, methinks, I hear fome poor foul fay, 
 that is not my cafe, I am not caft down for 
 that, but I am caft down becaufe after that 
 I knew God to be my God, after I knew Je- 
 ius to be my King, and after I had mounted 
 upon my high places, the devil and my un- 
 believing heart threw me down again ; would 
 you not have me caft down ? would you not 
 have me difquieted ? a perfon of an Antino- 
 mian fpirit would fay, don't tell me ot your 
 frames, I have learned to live by faith, I don't 
 care whether Chrift manifefts himfelf to me 
 or no, I have got the word and the promife, 
 I am content with a promife now ; fo thefe 
 poor creatures go on without any frame, be- 
 caufe they will not live in it : from fuch An- 
 tinomianilm, good God, deliver me. liow ! 
 O o 2 how ! 
 
284 Soul Dejection. Ser. XII. 
 
 how ! how ! not call down at an abfent God, 
 not difquieted when God withdraws? where 
 are yon gone ? you are gone far from your fa^ 
 ther's houfe 3 if nothing elfe will do, may your 
 father whip you home again. But tender 
 hearts when they refledl how it was once, are 
 caft down; David fays, My fears have been 
 my meat day and nighty for 1 had gone 'with a 
 multitude to the houje of God. Here he looks 
 back upon his former enjoyments, his fpiritual 
 profperity, (as Job looks back upon his tempo- 
 ral) and fays. Why art thou caft down^ my 
 foul; it is becaufe I don't meet God in his 
 ordinances as I ufed to do; poor deferted, 
 panting foul ! poor difquieted foul ! he muft 
 be the help of thy countenance, be will yet 
 be thy God. Who was it fought Jefus for- 
 rowing ? what would you have thought of the 
 Virgin Mary if fhe had faid, I don't care whe- 
 ther I fee my fon or not ; ilie fought him, and 
 found him in the temple: God grant every 
 poor deferted foul may find him to-night ^ I 
 mean, in the temple of his heart. And in the 
 cafe of Mary, fhe fays, They have taken away 
 my Lord, and I know not where they have laid 
 him 5 if they had not taken away her Lord, 
 Mary would have been rich : fo you may fay 
 
 your 
 
Ser. XIL Soul BejeBio?u 285 
 
 your corruptions, your backflidings and ingra- 
 titude, have taken away your Lord: Lord 
 grant thou may ft find him to-night. He that 
 faid, Mary, can call thee to-night, and can 
 make thee fay. My dear Lord, I come to- 
 night j he can call thee by thy name. 
 
 But, fay you, I am caft down becaufe I am 
 wearied with temptation ; not only my God is 
 departed from me, but an evil fpirit is come 
 upon me to torment me ; I am haunted with 
 this and that evil fuggeftion, that I am a terror 
 to myfelf. Come, come, hear what David faith 
 in the beginning of the Pfalm, jis the kart 
 panteth after the ^water-brooks^Jo panteth jny joul 
 after thee^ O God. What fay you to that? 
 if you have a mind to fee the beauty of 
 this verfe, read Mr. Hervey's Theron and 
 Afpafio, which will live when its defplfers 
 are dead ; and thofe that have endeavoured 
 to difparage him will be obliged to own, 
 that he was one of the greateft luminaries 
 we ever had, and one that has laid down 
 the doftrines of the gofpel, in a manner to 
 charm and allure the great and noble. Well, 
 is it thy cafe that unbelief dogs thee go where 
 thou will ? well, ftill truft in God, thou fbalt 
 yet praife him for the help of his countenance ^ 
 be will command his loving^kindnejs in the day^ 
 
 and 
 
2 86 Soul DejeBion. Ser. XIL 
 
 and his fo?2g fball be with thee in the night. 
 Though it be night, there is fome moon, 
 bleffed be God, or fome ftars ; and if there is 
 a fog that you cannot fee, God can quiet his 
 people in the dark, he will make the enemy 
 flee; fear him not, God will comfort thee, 
 and puniih the devil for tempting thee, if thou 
 truft in him. 
 
 But, fay you, I am caft down and difqui- 
 eted within me ; why ? becaufe I have one 
 afflidion after another, no fooner is one trial 
 gone, but another fucceeds j now I think I 
 Ihall have a little refl, the tormentor will not 
 come nigh me to-day, but no fooner has the 
 Chriftian fo faid, but another ftorm comes, 
 and the clouds return after the rain ; then we 
 think we muft be call down, and that we 
 ought to be difquieted ; this Was David's cafe ; 
 what does he fay ? All thy waves and thy biU 
 lows are gone over me, I believe he found 
 after that, there were more waves to come 
 than he had yet felt ; why ? fays a poor dif- 
 treffed foul, becaufe I have been fo long in 
 Chrift, and have got thefe curfed corruptions 
 yet within. I thought to have been rid of 
 them all long ago ; I thought I had no cor- 
 ruptions left thirty- three years ago, and that 
 
 the 
 
Ser* XIL Soul BejeBlon. 287 
 
 the Canaanites were all rooted out of the land, 
 that Pharaoh and his hoft were all drowned in 
 the red-fea j but I find the old man is ftrong 
 in me, 1 look upon myfelf to be lefs than the 
 lead of all faints, God knows ^ and you that 
 walk near God, and have made greater advan- 
 ces in the divine life, if you are honeft muft 
 fay, O this body of fin and death, if I fhut 
 this old man out at the fore-door, he comes in 
 at the back-door. Come, come, come foul, 
 truft in God, he will give power to the faint, 
 he will give flrcngth, and in due time deliver 
 thee : go to God, tell him of them 3 beg thy 
 Redeemer to take his whip into his hand, 
 either of fmall or large cords, and ufe it, ra- 
 ther than your corruptions fhould get head 
 again. 
 
 Time would fail to mention all that are call 
 down on thefe accounts, but I mufl mention 
 one more 5 perhaps, fome of you may be cafl 
 down with the fear not of death only, but of 
 judgment. I believe there are thoufands of 
 people die a thoufand times, for fear of dying 
 once. Dr. Mather and Mr. Pemberton, oi 
 New-England, were always afraid of dying, 
 but when they came to die; one or both of 
 them faid to fome that were intimate with 
 
 them. 
 
^88 Soul DejeBion. Sef. XIL 
 
 them, Is this all^ I can bear this 'very well: 
 and I have generally found that a poor foul, 
 that cannot adt that faith on God it once did, 
 or in old age when the body grows infirm, as 
 they ufed to do, yet they go off rejoicing in 
 God, as a good foul that was buried at the 
 Chapel the other day, faid, I am going over 
 Jordan, Therefore, O poor foul, leave this 
 to God, he will take care of thy dying hour. 
 If any of you are poor here, and I was to 
 promife to give you a coffin and a fhroud you 
 would be eafy ; now can you trufl the word 
 of a man, and not that of a God ? Well, the 
 Lord help you to truft in him ; having loved 
 his own^ he loves them to the end ; he is a faith- 
 ful, unchangeable friend, that fticketh clofer 
 than a brother. 
 
 Who would not be a Chrifiian, who would 
 but be a believer, my brethren ; fee the pre- 
 cioufnefs of a believer's faith ; the quacks will 
 fay, here buy this packet, which is good for 
 all difeafes, and is really worth nothing ; but 
 this will never fail the foul. Now I wifh I 
 could make you all angry ; I am a fad mlf- 
 chief-maker j but I will afTure you, I don't 
 want to make you angry with one another : 
 fome people that profefs to have grace in their 
 
 hearts^ 
 
£er. XIL Sozil jD ejection. 289 
 
 hearts, feem refolved to fet all God*s people at 
 variance; they are like Sampfon's foxes with 
 firebrands in their tails, fetting fire to all about 
 them. Are any of you come ft-om the Foun- 
 dery, or any other place to-night ? I do not 
 care where you come fi-om, I pray God you 
 may all quarrel to-night ; I want you to fall 
 out with your own hearts; if we were em- 
 ployed as we ought to be, we fhould have lefs 
 time to talk about the vain things that are the 
 fubjefts of converfation : God grant your crofles 
 may be left at the crofs of the Lamb of God 
 this night. 
 
 And if there be any of you here, as no doubt 
 there are many, that are crying what nonfenfe 
 he is preaching to-night, [ fhould not won- 
 der if they were to mimick me when they 
 go home 3 if they fliould fay, I thank God, I 
 was never caft down ; you take God's name 
 in vain ; you thank God you was never caft 
 down, the very anfvver ycu have given makes 
 me caft down for you ; why fo ? why, as 
 the Lord liveth, I fpeak out of ccmpaflion, 
 there is but one ftep between thee and death. 
 Don't you know the feflions began at the Old- 
 Bailey to-day, if there were any capitally con- 
 vided, what would you think to fee them 
 P p playing 
 
290 Soul DejeSlion, Ser. XII. 
 
 p'aying at cardr, o go on rattling and drink- 
 ing, and fwearing ? would not you yourfelf 
 cry, and if it were a child of your ov;n, would 
 it not break your heart ? but yet thou art that 
 wretch 5 1 muft weep for thee, my brother^ 
 finner; we ba4 both 01^ &ther and mother, 
 Adam and Eve ; ^hi^ was'our £id original. 
 
 Dear Chiiitians, pr^y for me to-nfght. I 
 remember once I was preaching in Scotland^ 
 and law ten thoufand aifedled in a moment, 
 fome with iov, others cryino; I cannot believer 
 Others, God has given me faith, fome faint-, 
 ing in their friends arms: feeing two ftout 
 creatures upon a tomb-ftone, hardened indeed, 
 1 1 cried out, you rebels come down, and down 
 Ithey fell direftly, and cried before they went 
 away, What Jhall we do to he faved ? Have 
 any of you got apprentices, whom you have 
 brought from time to time to the Tabernacle, 
 but now will not let them come, becaufe yoa 
 think they grow worfe and worfe, and you 
 will be tempted to leave off praying for them ? 
 don't do that ^ who knows but this may be the 
 happy time. Children of godly parents, ap-. 
 prentices of godly people, fervants of people 
 who fear the Lord, that hear gofpei-preachers, 
 that are on the watch for every iniirmity, that 
 
 g^ 
 
Sen XII. Soul D€Je5lion. 291 
 
 goto their fellow-fervants and fay, thefc faints 
 love good eating and drinking, they arc only 
 gofpel-goffips 3 is this the cafe of any of you, 
 if it is, you are in a deplorable condition, un- 
 der the gofpel and not convinced thereby : O 
 may God bring down you rebels to-night; 
 may this be the happy hour you may be call 
 down and difquieted within you. What can 
 I fay more ? I would fpeak till I burft, I would 
 fpeak till I could fay no more. O poor foul, 
 that haft been never yet caft down, I v/ill tell 
 you, if you die without being caft down, how- 
 ever you may die and have no pangs in your 
 death, and your -carnal relations may thank 
 God that you died like lambs, but no fooner 
 will your fouls be out of your bodies, but God 
 will caft you down to hell, you v*^ill be lifting 
 up your eyes in yonder place of torment, you 
 will be difquieted, but there will be nobody 
 there to fay, hope thou in God-, for I Jloall yet 
 praife him^ &c. O my God, when I think 
 of this, I could go to the very gates of hell to 
 preach. I thought the other day, O if I had 
 my health, I would ftand on the top of every 
 hackney coach, and preach Chrift to thofe 
 poor creatures. Unconverted old people, un- 
 converted young people, will you have no 
 P p 2 com- 
 
292 Soul DejeBion. Ser. XII. 
 
 compaflion on your own fouls: if you will 
 damn youifelves, remember I am free from the 
 blood of you all. O if it be thy blefled will. 
 Lord moil holy, O God moft mighty, take 
 the hearts of thefe fmners into thy hand. Me- 
 thinks I fee the heavens opened, the Judge fit- 
 ting on his throne, the fea boiling like a pot, 
 and the Lord Jefus coming to judge the world ; 
 well, if you are damned, it fhall not be for 
 want of calling after. O come, come, God 
 help you to come, whilffc Jefus is ftanding 
 ready to receive you. O fly to the Saviour 
 this night for refuge ; remember if you die in 
 an unconverted flate you mufl be damned for 
 
 ever. 
 
 O that I could but perfuade one poor foul 
 
 to fiy to Jefus Chrift, make him your refuge 5 
 
 and then, however you may be cafl down, 
 
 hope in God^ and youjljall yet praife hm, God 
 
 help thole that have believed, to hope more 
 
 and more in his falvation, till faith be turned 
 
 into vifion, and hope into fruition. Even fo. 
 
 Lord Jefus. Amen and Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 293 ] 
 
 S E R M O N XIII. 
 
 Spiritual Baptifm. 
 
 Romans vI. ver. 3, 4. 
 
 Know ye nofy that fo 777any of us as were bap^ 
 tized into Jefus Chriji^ were baptized into 
 his death ? Therefore we are buried with him 
 by baptifm into death : that like as Chrift was 
 raifed up from the dead by the glory of the 
 Father^ even fo we afo fhould walk in nsw- 
 nefs of life. 
 
 IBELEIVE, my dear hearers, I may ven- 
 ture to tell you, that the longer you live, 
 the more you will find that the royal 
 preacher fpoke truth when he faid, There is 
 nothing new under the fun % for as God is al- 
 ways the fame, fo the world, the flefh, and 
 the devil will be always the fame, frail, vile, 
 inimical and deceitful. New fcenes furprize 
 us, not becaufe they are really new, but be- 
 
 caufe 
 
294 Spiritual Baptiftn. Ser. XIII. 
 
 caufe they are new to us : our lives are moftly 
 taken up with viewing only the prefent appear- 
 ance of things 'y we have neither time or leifure 
 to look back as we ought, or might, upon 
 the events of Providence, or the efFeds of the 
 dodtrines of grace. I will not fay, my thoughts 
 always run in a religious channel, but I will 
 fay, I wifh they did. The words in our text, 
 as conneded with what preceeds and follows, 
 contain the unchangeable truths of God : nor 
 am I any ways ftaggered by oppofition to the 
 vindication of what the good old Puritans, and 
 the Diffenters of the prefent age, call evangeli- 
 cal docftrine. I do not know a man that has 
 wrote in a legal ftrain, or that reads, or talks 
 in common converfation in a legal ftrain, but 
 difcovers his ignorance of, if not his enmity 
 ' to the dodrine of juflification by faith alone, 
 by charging it with very bad confequences, 
 and endeavouring to explode it as a dangerous 
 .dodrine, deftrudive of holinefs, which they 
 would feem to patronize ; though if one were 
 always to judge of them by their calumniating 
 pradice, one would imagine they had never 
 read with proper attention, either the preceed- 
 ing or following chapters, nor that wherein is 
 our text, which proves it to be a dodrine 
 
 according 
 
Ser. XIII. Spiritual Bapfifm, 295 
 
 according to godiinefs, and therefore properly 
 begins. What Jhall we fay then^ Jhall we conti^ 
 7iiie in fm that grace may abound ? You will 
 fay, I have been iniifting upon the univerfal 
 depravity of nature, I have been bringing all 
 down upon an equal level ; that 1 have not 
 only mentioned the dreadful ftate of Heathens, 
 but the equally dreadful 'ftate of the' haughty 
 Jews, and ignorant Gentiles, one only finning 
 againft the light of nature, and the other fin- 
 ning againft the light of revelation, by which 
 both, in one fenfe, ftand on an equal footing, 
 though- the laft, who thinks he ftands upon 
 higher ground, appears to be only fuperior in 
 fin ; why then, how mufl either or both be 
 faved, fince they have nothing to recommend 
 them, nothing to plead as an atonement for 
 their fins ? Here comes in the bleffed dodrine 
 of juftiflcation, by the glorious imputed righ- 
 teoufnefs of Jefus Chrift, to be received by 
 faith as an inftrument by the poor convided 
 finner; If this be the cafe, pall we Jin that 
 grace may abound t this ferves as a foil, to fet 
 off the riches of grace with a greater luftre. 
 Is it not a very unfair dedudion, to fay never 
 mind holinefs, but fin that grace may abound, 
 that God's grace may be more confpicuous ? 
 
 Prav 
 
296 spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIII, 
 
 Pray how does the apoftle treat this? with 
 the utmoft abhorrence 5 God forbid^ fays he j 
 how dare you charge the doftrine of grace 
 with fuch a horrid confequence ? God forbid 
 that it fhould enter into our hearts ; for how 
 Jkall we that are dead to fin live any longer 
 therein ? Know ye not, faith he, that as many 
 of lis as were baptized into Chrifi^ are baptized 
 into his death : therefore, faith he, fo far from 
 finning that grace may abound, we look upon 
 ourfelves as beiiig buried with Chrifi by baptifm 
 into deaths that like as Chriji was raijed from 
 the dead by the glory of the Father ^ evenfo we 
 alfo fI:ould walk in newnefs of lije. This I 
 thought a proper fupplement to fome difcourfes 
 I have endeavoured to deliver you for fome days 
 laft part, when treating on the credibility and 
 authenticity ofourblefled Lord's refurredtion. 
 
 I cannot make fport for the devil by railing 
 againfl infant or adult baptifm^ it is a ftrange 
 thing how bigots can fet the world on fire by 
 throv/ing water at one another, and that peo- 
 ple cannot be baptized, or fprinkled, as the 
 others call it, without befpattering one ano- 
 ther, and fhow that the chief thing they have 
 been baptized into, are the waters of ftrife^ 
 this is catching at fhadows, and making fport 
 
 for 
 
S«er. Xllli Spiritual Baptifrni 297 
 
 for the devil, while the combatants on both 
 fides, being thus engaged in throwing the fha- 
 dowy water at one another, lofc the fubftan- 
 tials of religion, while they are defending the 
 outfide of it. For my part, I do not enter 
 into the debate about infant or adult baptifm; 
 there has been a difpute about the mode, as 
 well as the fubjeds ofbaptifm 5 perfons equally 
 fkilled in language, pretend to bring, various 
 texts from the original, to prove that the word 
 baptizOy fignifies either fprinkling or plunging j 
 and I believe you and I might as well attempt 
 to draw tv/o parallel lines, and bring them to 
 meet at fome certain place, as to bring thefe 
 learned combatants together ; for of all difpu- 
 tant?, religious difputants are the moil fiery 
 and obftinate 5 therefore, I am for thofe that 
 have learned to throw water upon bigotted 
 fire, to think y and let think y about the mode, 
 and confider what it imports. 
 
 It is certain, that in the words of our text, 
 there is an allufion to the manner of baptifm, 
 vvhich was by immerfion, which our own 
 church allows, and infifts upon it, that chil- 
 dren ihould be immerfed in water, unlefs thafe 
 that bring the children to be baptized afTure 
 *he minifter that they cannot bear the plunging. 
 CLq We 
 
29S * . spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIII. 
 
 We will allow this then, that one was plunged 
 when he was young, another plunged when 
 he was old 5 and, in fad:,- when adults are 
 plunged as they ought, it is backwards at 
 once : but whether I am plunged in a great 
 deal, or buried with a little water, as a body 
 is when it is faid. Earth to earth, aJJjes to ajhes^ 
 dujl to duft, what fignifies it, if I go in and 
 come out, and continue juft the fame as before, 
 unlefs you can fay, in Heathen and out Chrif- 
 tian ', but we fee very often they are not one 
 bit the better, they have not one grain of 
 Chriflianity more. Suppofing a child when 
 young grov/s up to a man, is fprinkled, or 
 dipped as the children I faw at Lifbon, or in 
 our font, as they are made large enough to 
 dip in, though now they fprinkle^ fuppofe 
 one of thefe grows up a child of the devil, and 
 fays, I don't look upon what was done in my 
 infancy to be baptifm, I will be baptized really ^ 
 and yet fuppofe alfo, that perfon takes up only 
 the outward fign, and both of them die and go 
 to the devil, would it give either of them 
 fatisfadion to fay, I am in hell, but I was bap- 
 tized when an infant, or adult ? both of them 
 would have to lament they were tormented in 
 the flame. Would it not be better for us to 
 
 take 
 
Ser. XIII. ■ Spiritual Eaptifm^ r^pc) 
 
 take care not to offend our brethren, not to 
 raife one anothers fpirits and corruptions, bat 
 rather, when we come together, talk of the 
 heart, and enquire whether, when we received 
 the outward lign by fprinkling or dipping, we 
 really received the thing fignified in our hearts, 
 and exemplify that thing fignified, in our lives. 
 
 Now pray what is the thing fignified ? we 
 need not go farther for an anfwer than our 
 text, uis many of them as were baptized into 
 yefus Chrijl^ were baptized into his death : and 
 it is worthy remarking, that our Lord told his 
 difciples, that they were to baptize all nations 
 in the name of the Father^ and of the Son^ and 
 of the Holy Ghojl, Now I believe all perfons 
 that have but a httle Ikill in fcripture interpre- 
 tation, muft allow that the word name figni- 
 fies Chrifl ; my name is in him, fpeaking in 
 the Old Teftament of Chrift's name 3 and 
 when we fay, in or by the 7tanie^ it has a pecu- 
 har reference to every thing that bebngs to 
 God : and I verily believe that when the Re- 
 deemer faid, baptize them in the iiame of Pa- 
 ther^ Son^ and Holy Gho/l^ he not only inten- 
 ded to eftablifh the dodrine of three perfons in 
 one God, but alfo to point out the nature of 
 true baptifm, namely, to be baptized into the 
 Q^q 2" nature 
 
300 Spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIII. 
 
 pature of the Father, into the nature of the 
 Son, and into the nature of the Holy Ghoft, 
 and this feems to be the meaning of our text^ 
 Know ye not that fo many as were baptia ed \ 
 if we have been baptized aright, have been 
 baptized not only in the name of Chrift, but 
 have been baptized into Chrift; that is, v^e 
 have not only put on Chrift in an outward pro- 
 feffion, but have been fo baptized by the Holy 
 Ghoft, as to be made members of Chrift's 
 myftical body, united to him by the bleffed 
 Spirit y fo that in a degree, though not in every 
 fenfe, we are one with Chrift, and the Father, 
 through him. This is religion common to all, 
 whether we are Baptift or Foedo-baptift^ for 
 w^e may call one another by this and that name, 
 it is no matter what we are called, the grand 
 matter is, what God looks upon us to be 5 
 whether we are become by baptifm, and with 
 the powerful operations of the Spirit of God 
 accompanying that ordinance, branches of 
 Jefus Chrift, the true vine. It has been always 
 an argument with me, and I may plead for 
 the fame liberty that I give, that I think in- 
 fant-baptifm is an ordinance of Chrift, becaufe 
 if our children are not to be baptized, they are 
 |eft inferior in their privilegfss to the Jews, 
 
 their 
 
Ser. XIII. Spiritual Baptifm. 30 1 
 
 their children were circumcifed to God, and 
 why fliould not our children be as foon initiated 
 into Chrift as they ? The apoftle faith, He is 
 not a Jew that is one outwardly y neither is that 
 circumcifion which is outwardly in the Jlejh^ 
 but circumcifion is that of the heart and of the 
 Jpirit, wbofe praife is not of men but of God*, 
 fo it may be faid of outward baptifm, he is 
 not a Chriftian who is baptized only outward- 
 ly, but he that is baptized inwardly of the 
 Spirit, whofe praife is not of men but of God, 
 When we get a profelite, we are fo fond of 
 them that we hug them to death : I have got 
 the praife of men efpecially when religion 
 walks in filver flippers ; when a perfon fays, I 
 may get bufinefs if I get into fuch a church, 
 into fuch a fociety 5 a man may become reli- 
 gious as he may go to 'Change for trade, but 
 he is a Chriftian who is one inwardly, who 
 has no worldly views, no defigns but what are 
 fubordinate to the glory of God. The primi- 
 tive Chriflians gave great proof of their fincerity, 
 they were baptized over the dead ; what Jloall 
 they do who are baptized for ^ or over, the dead? 
 notwithftanding they faw their fellow- creatures 
 murdered, they dared to go openly to be bap^ 
 dzed 5 though they knew very wel| foon after, 
 
 that 
 
302 spiritual Baptifin. Ser. XIII. 
 
 that for their baptlfm with water, they fhould 
 be baptized with fire, and yet they dared 
 openly to avow their profeffion of Chrift. 
 This is being baptized into Chrift ; well, what 
 then ? why, then we are baptized into his 
 death. Can you tell me what that is ? I can- 
 not fully, I don't know that myfelf ; and we 
 fhould preach according to our experience, (a 
 man of little true grace, he will give you a Ht- 
 tle, little, little practical application 5 very lit- 
 tle, becaufe he has but little himfelf j a man 
 that has a good deal of it in his heart, he will 
 not negied his principles, but he will give the 
 people a good found meal of praftical religion) 
 though I am but a babe in Chrift, though I 
 have been in Chrift four or five and thirty 
 years, and know but little of Chrift, yet I 
 think I can tell you a little what it is to be 
 baptized into Chrift, to be baptized into his 
 death. Am I immediately to die in the body ? 
 that does not always follow, but we are to dief 
 daily, we are to be conformed to Chrift's 
 death, which we never can till we have been 
 baptized into Chrift ; we can never die till we 
 have been enabled by his power to die. When 
 we talk of dying the death of Chrift, we 
 mean being crucified to the world with him. 
 
 I livey 
 
Ser.XIII. Spiritual Baptifm. 303 
 
 I live, fays Paul, yet not 7, hut Chrifl li-ces in 
 me ; and the world is crucified to me, and I 
 unto the world. Now we all come into the 
 world alive to the world, the flefli, and the 
 devil. Some people fay, a child muft cry in 
 order to prove itfelf an heir ; what do you 
 think it cries for ? I believe fome people think 
 'tis becaufe it is in pain, but I am afraid the 
 child cries becaufe he is hurt y I believe he finds 
 the air too cool for him ; and thefirft thing he 
 does, is giving a proof of original fin to his 
 parents, and all the attendants about him : 
 this is called in fcripture, the old man ; and 
 however fome may find fault with the Church 
 of England, and its forms (perhaps they may 
 be mended, but I queftion whether we have 
 men capable of mending them now-a-days, 
 cither for zeal or fpiritual knowledge) yet I 
 am fure there is fomething in it very good, 
 particularly there is that prayer to be put up 
 by a child, deferves to be written in letters 
 of gold. Grants O Lord, that all things be- 
 longing to the old man may die in me-, and then 
 follows (what I (hall fpeak of by and byj and 
 all belonging to the new man may live and grow 
 in me. There is the whole fum and fubftance 
 of religion, the Alpha and Omega, the be- 
 ginning, 
 
304 Spiritual Baptifm^ Ser. XnL> 
 
 ginning, the middle, and the end, as Mn 
 Ambrofe's works are intitled. We want no- 
 thing but all things belonging to the old man 
 to die in us, and all things belonging to the 
 new to live, to make us fit for the kingdom 
 of Chrift y and if we ean find this in us, God 
 grant we may not quarrel one with another^ 
 though I verily believe young men think the 
 old man is very troublefome. There is one 
 does not live very far from hence, who is a 
 very worthy man, I remember a few years 
 ago he came in, in his firfl love, faying, " he 
 had got on the mount ^ the fire burnt upwards, 
 though there was a good deal of fmoak. Pray^ 
 fays I, is the old man dead yet? no, faid he, 
 he is not quite dead, but fpoke as if he thought 
 he was expiring j fays I, I will fpeak to you 
 three or four years hence. Some time after 
 that, meeting him, I afked him concerning 
 the old man, he faid, he thought he was alive 
 and worfe than ever, and that he was a fly 
 creature, would lie down as if he was afleep, 
 that he may attack you when off your guard 
 the better/* I heard of a good man in the coun- 
 try, who faid, he found his corruptions were 
 a monfter of a thoufand heads ; now this is 
 
 called a crucifixion, which is a painful and a 
 
 gradual 
 
Ser. XIII, Spiritual Baptiftn. 30^ 
 
 gradual death, but a certain death : Gcd for- 
 bid any of you now fhould turn the food into 
 poifon, faying, this is a very good dodtrine, I 
 like it 5 the minifter fays the old man dies flow, 
 fo I will not crucify him ^ they tell me he will 
 die by and by, but not yet, fo I will not trou- 
 ble myfelf much about him ; why then, my 
 dear hearer, whoever thou art, thou talked 
 like a (linking hypocrite, or a rank, vile An- j 
 tinomian ; how, how, is the old man fuch a 
 pleafant companion, that you love to have him 
 dwelling under your roof? would you chufe 
 to have a parcel of whores and rogues to live 
 in your houfes ? would you hke, if you lived 
 by letting of lodgings, two or three rooms 
 fuppofe, to have a parcel of thieves and rob- 
 berSi and pickpockets, come and tell you 
 their profeffion, would it not be foolifh for 
 you to let fuch people in, would it not ? and 
 juft fuch fools you are to let pickpockets, 
 ftreet-robbers, God-robbers, vile proftitutes in • 
 your wicked hearts, the lufts of the flefh, the 
 lufts of the eye, and the pride of life, flay not 
 only till quarter-day, but long after : before 
 you turn them out, you rnay be dead; no, 
 no, it is not an inilantaneous, but a gradual, 
 
 progreffive work. 
 
 R r Then 
 
'306 spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIII. 
 
 Then we are baptized into Chrift, when we 
 ftudy to glorify Chrift; that is the reafon that 
 God Almighty fends you fo many trials, that 
 you may be baptized into his death 5 and ge- 
 nerally you will find, when you have had 
 moft communications from God, that fome 
 crofs trials foon foUovr. Haft thou been pray- 
 ing for refignation ? perhaps God • takes away 
 a beloved child ; you have been praying for 
 great patience, perhaps a crofs wife, a Naba! 
 of a hufband, bad fervants, undutiiul children, 
 or fomething or other, and the devil at the 
 head of them, making you uneafy, fo that 
 you find you have not fo much patience as 
 you thought you had 5 you never w^as upon 
 the mount in ypur lives, but when you came 
 down, you were tempted to break the tables : 
 was it not fo with Mofes after forty days com- 
 munion with God ? down he came, and fee- 
 ing the people dancing round the calf, down 
 he throws the tables, and breaks them all ta 
 pieces 3 and if God was not to keep us, after 
 all our communion with him, we fhould break 
 the tables to pieces and be- damned. After 
 all that perfon then is dying evei-y day,, 
 who looks upon himfelf every morning as one 
 that is to be crucified afrefh, that looks for 
 
 crolTes^j 
 
Sen XIII. Spiritual Baptifm, 307 
 
 croffe$,. and at the.fame time waljvS.fQ jnof- 
 fenfivgly. as to. bring no profs vipoa liimfelf. I 
 fpoke to a perfon ycfterclay .aboi;t. the: crofs ; 
 piay fir, fays he, would you have, me bring a 
 crqfs upon myfclf ; no, faid |, only behoueft, 
 and you will find crofles enough., * 
 
 Then we mufl: be raifed to newne(s of life, 
 as Chrift was raifed from the dead by the glory 
 of the Father; this, points out to us in -what 
 fenfe Jefus Chriil is the refurrcdion and the 
 life, and fliews us that, every thing Jefus Chri.ft 
 did and fuftered, mufl be fpirituahy experi- 
 enced in our hearts. You have often heard 
 me fay, as he was born in the Virgin's womb, 
 he.mufc be born in our hearts, and as he died 
 for fin, we muil die to fin, as lie rofe again, 
 we mufl: rife to newnefs of heart and life. 
 What is the new birth ? fays a great doctor : 
 fuppofe any of thefe dodors were to come to 
 any woman Vv'hen her travelling pains were 
 upon her, and flie was crying cut, and. labour 
 pains came on fafl:er and fafl:er, and they Ihould 
 ftand preaching at the door, and fay, good 
 woman, thefe are only metaphorical pains, 
 this is only a bold exprefiion of the Eafteras, 
 it is only metaphorical, I quefl;ion whether the 
 woman would not wifh the doflors fome of 
 R r 2 thefe 
 
3o8 Spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIII. 
 
 thefe metaphorical pains for talking fo, which 
 they would find real ones 5 though fhe could 
 not read fhe might feel. But notwithftanding 
 the reality of the new birth, and the pains that 
 attend it, yet they fay it is only a metaphorical 
 thing. I am of an odd temper, and of fuch a 
 temper, that I heartily wifh they may be put 
 under the pangs of the new birth, and know 
 what it is by their own experience, know there 
 is nothing in nature more real than the new 
 birth. The apoftle Paul faid, / travel in 
 birth till Chrift be formed in you : now don't 
 you think the apoftle had this metaphorical 
 expreffion of fomething real 5 the apoftle's 
 travelling in birth muft be fomething analogous 
 to the natural birth ; muft I fay there is no 
 fuch thing as pangs becaufe I don't feel them : 
 I am fearfully and wonderfully made, that my 
 foul knows right well ^ and in refpedt to the 
 new birth we may fay, I am fearfully and 
 wonderfully redeemed by Chrift, and renewed 
 by the Holy Ghoft ; the new life imparts new 
 principles, a new underftanding, a new will 
 and new afFedions, a renewed confcience, a 
 renewed memory, nay, a renewed body, by 
 making it the temple of the living God, an 
 habitation of God through the Spirit, tnd 
 
 walking 
 
Ser. XIII. Spiritual Baptifnu 309 
 
 walking in newnefs of life; if I am not mifta- 
 ken, it implies a progreffivc motion, going 
 from ftrength to ftrength, from one degree of 
 grace to another, pafling from glory to glory, 
 for grace is only glory in the bud, till grace is 
 fwallowed up in endlefs glory. A perfon that 
 walks, though he may not walk equally fall 
 as others, yet may get ground : hence, not t^ 
 go forward is to go backward, Enoch walked 
 with God ; it befpoke the habitual tendency 
 of his heart, the actual exercife of grace, that 
 he was kept in a lively frame, walked with 
 God among a very wicked generation, dared 
 to be good when all were wicked around him, 
 and he was fo favoured, as to be tranllated to 
 heaven ; this was the cafe with Elijah. Mofes^ 
 fays the Lord, go up to the mount and die : 
 God made him undrefs himfelf, and put on 
 his own grave cloaths, gives him a fight of 
 Canaan, but to let him know that he even to 
 the very laft would chaftife his people, when 
 he is even taking them to heaven ; tells him, 
 thou fhalt not go into the earthly Canaan, but 
 I will take thee to the heavenly one, which is 
 far better. Being baptized into the death of 
 Chrift, befpeaks the habitual tendency and 
 practice of the heart and life 5 the old man muft 
 
 die. 
 
3IO Spiritual Bapfifm. Ser. XIII. 
 
 die, hence the new man mufl: Hve ; it mufl 
 be emptied of felf, that there may be more 
 and more room for God: now I appeal to 
 your hearts, how far you have experienced 
 this. I believe the world pretty well knows, 
 the temper of my mind, both in refpedl to, 
 politics and church-government, and church- 
 principles : i am a profelTed avower of mode- 
 ration, and I heartily wifli that ail who. a^Q 
 concerned in church and Hate, may particularly 
 take care to let their moderation be known to 
 aU men, for if we quarrel with one another, 
 we fhall only make fport for the ' devil, and 
 cccafion. deftrudlion. I don't care whether 
 you go to church or meeting ; I am, I pro- 
 fefs, a member of the church of England, and 
 if they will not let me preach in the churcJi, 
 I will preach any where ; all the world is my 
 parifh, and I will preach wherever God gives 
 xne an opportunity, but you will never find me 
 difputing about the outv/ard appendages of 
 rj religion 3 don't tell me you are a Baptift, an 
 ; ilndependant, a Preibyterian, , a Diffenter, tell 
 / I me you are a Chriflian, that is all I want ; this 
 'is the religion of heaven,- and mufl: be ours 
 upon earth 3 I fay, are there any of you under 
 the gallery, or in the green-feat, or any where, 
 
 I will 
 
Ser. XIII. Spiritual Baptlfml 3 1 1 
 
 I will try to find you out before I have done 
 my fermon, though you are come in the dark. 
 
 But I will juft at prefent fpeak to you who 
 underftand the gofpel, to you that are my bx^e^ 
 thren, though, in all probability, rriy elder bre- 
 thren in the gofpel. Methinks there is fome- 
 thing folemn in meeting in the evening, fome- 
 thing folemn in coming to wor/hip after we 
 have been in the labours of the day; and I 
 verily believe, that when weekly preaching is 
 banifhed from London, that all Chriftianity 
 will be baniflied, it cannot be very long after 
 it, there have been fuch inftances, you may 
 die before to-morrow. I think a good tradef- 
 man, whether he deals largely or not, will 
 take care to keep his day-book well -, if a man 
 will not keep his day-book well, it is ten to 
 one but he lofes a good deal when he comes 
 to count up his things at Chriftmas; no^v I 
 take it for granted, a good fpiritual tradefman. 
 will keep his fpiritual day-book well : can 
 you fay, this day I hope I have died a little 
 more to the world than yefterd^y, this day I 
 hope 1 have been a little m^ore alive to God 
 than I was yefterday ; and yet when I look 
 upon my family, whether a man trades whdle- 
 fale or retail, when he finds he has done but 
 
 little 
 
312; Spiritual Baptifm. Ser. Xllt 
 
 little bufinefs that day, great going out, and 
 little coming in. I hope when you die but 
 little daily, that you go to bed begging pardon, 
 and begging grace, that you may die more to 
 yourfelves and the world, and live more to 
 God to-morrow j for I am fure I can call you 
 to witnefs, that you never lived fo comfortably 
 as when you lived near to God 3 you may as 
 well pretend to fay, that a perfon in a cold 
 winter's day is warmefl when he keeps from 
 the fire, as to fay, a foul can live near to God 
 when he does not die daily to fin, O, fays 
 one, don't tell me of your frames, don't mind 
 them 5 I will tell you of them, don' t mind your 
 frames^ I don't in refped to juflification, but 
 I will to the well-being and comfort of my 
 foul : a man that has got but very little fpirits 
 may be alive, but there is a wide difference 
 between having a diforder that one can hardly 
 fpeak, having no fpirits at all, or but very few^ 
 and having folid health : God grant we may 
 be healthy Chriflianss the more you live to 
 God, the more you will have health ; be not 
 angry with me ; affure yourfelves a lukewarm 
 Chriftian does more hurt to religion, than all 
 the open infidels in the kingdom; we have 
 God himfelf afferting this, T^kou art neither 
 
 hot 
 
Set, XIIL Spiritual Baptifm. 313 
 
 hot nor colJ^ 1 would thou wajl either cold or 
 Jooty but becaufe thou art neither cold nor hoty 
 but lukewarm^ Iwilljpew thee out of my mouth j 
 what an expreflion is that ! what a naufeous 
 thing is lukewarm water to a fick flomach ! 
 I will come ajid remove my candlejlick from you. 
 Therefore, I believe, it is the opinion of all 
 judicious men, that if we fhould have a fevere 
 rod of correftion to ftir us up, it is becaufe of 
 the lukewarmnefs of mofl: Chrifiians : my bre- 
 thren, God make us all alive to Chrifl to- 
 night; come, come, if your foul is for Chrift, 
 to arms, to arms, put on your cockades, you 
 that have them in your pockets, for fear you 
 fliould be known to be Chrift's. O you cow- 
 ards; many foldiers put of5f their cockades, as 
 if they were not foldiers ; as many of our cler- 
 gy affed: to drefs like the laity, that they may 
 go to the plays, that the orange-women may 
 not know them, and they don't care whether 
 God fees them or no. I deiire you will all 
 appear in your proper drefles, let us fee it is 
 painted on the breaft- plates of your hearts, by 
 the blelTed monitor, the eternal Spirit of God; 
 1 don't want you to wear them as the Papifts, 
 upon your faces, no ; you that are for infant- 
 baptifm, were figned with the fign of the 
 
 S f crofs, 
 
314 Spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIII. 
 
 crofs, for what ? that you might, when you 
 came of age, prove Chrijl's Jaithful Joldiers to 
 the e7id: God grant, the nearer we come to 
 the end the bolder we may be for Chrift. 
 
 If there be any of you here that are formalifts, 
 that have a natne to live and are dead, the 
 Lord grant, that our Lord Jefus Chrift, who 
 was raifed from the dead by the glory of his 
 Father, caufe a ftirring among thefe dry bones. 
 Think what it will be to go to hell to-night, 
 to want a drop of water, wherewith you was 
 fprinkled, to cool your tongues in hell > think 
 what it will be to go to hell by the way of 
 heaven, which is the worft way you can take j 
 think what it will be to bejuftat the threlliold, 
 and not have religion enough to take you over ; 
 my heart bleeds for you. ' Had you a fon, a 
 father, a mother, a relation, to be tried at the 
 Old-Bailey this feffions, how would you be 
 concerned, how carefully would you enquire 
 when your relation would be tried, iiow anxious 
 would you be to hear whether he is conderrned 
 or no \ and if fomebody was to qqhx to tell 
 you, now he is about to be tried ahd caft, aiid 
 now the judge is going to put his cap on, to 
 pafs fentence on him^ how would you bear it? 
 I believe lom^ ol you would aiop a tear, ^nd 
 
5er, Xin. Spiritual Baptifm. 315 
 
 fay, O that this poor creature fhould be born 
 for this i and can you blame a poor minifter of 
 Chrift, a poor finner that has been redeemed 
 by the blood of Chrifl, and I humbly believe 
 and hope, has been made a partaker of the 
 Spirit, will you blame me for being concerned 
 for you, my brethren and my fifters, for you 
 and I fprung from one father and mother, 
 Adam and Eve, the common parents of us all j 
 can you blame me for pouring out my foul, 
 can you blame me for fpeaking a little home, 
 v^'hen the Judge is juft ready to mount the 
 throne, when the books are open, when I fee 
 the elenients melting with fervent heat, when 
 I fee all nature concurring to uilier in the awful 
 coming of the Son of God. Sinners in Zion, 
 baptized heathens, profeiTors but not poiTelTors, 
 formalifts, believing unbelievers, talking of 
 Chrift, talking of grace, orthodox in your 
 creeds, but heterodox in your lives, turn yc, 
 turn ye. Lord help you to turn to him, turn 
 ye to Jefus Chrift, and may God turn you 
 infide out to-night; may the power of the 
 higheft overfhadow you, and may that glorious 
 Father that raifed Chrift from the dead, raife 
 your dead fouls. Turn the text into a prayer, 
 go home and fay, for what purpofe have I 
 S f 2 lived? 
 
3i6 Spiritual Baptifm. Ser. XIIT. 
 
 lived ? into what have I been baptized ? I 
 have not fo much as yet been baptized into. 
 Jordan j I have never led a life one day of re- 
 formation but when I was obliged to it : blefs 
 God that you are not now among the damned ; 
 blefs God that you are not now howling in 
 hell 'y blefs the Lord that Jefus ftands with 
 pitying eyes, and outftretched arms to receive 
 you now ^ will you go with the man ? will 
 you accept of Chrift ? will you begin to live 
 now ? may God fay, Amen ; may God pafs 
 by, not in anger but in love ; may he, as he 
 hath hitherto feen you in your blood, has faid 
 to you, live, and has preferved you in your 
 natural ftate, may that fame God of love, mer- 
 cy, and life, pafs by you, and caft the ikirts 
 of his love over you, and fay to you dead fin- 
 ners, come forth, live a life of faith on earth, 
 live a life of viiion in heaven 3 even fo. Lord 
 Jefus. Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 31? ] 
 
 ss'.^mi^^^It^gg 
 
 SERMON XIV. 
 
 Neglea of Chrift the killing Sin. 
 
 John V, ver. 40. 
 And ye will not come to me that ye may haix life. 
 
 THE great apoftle of the Gentiles, after 
 he had fet before the Hebrews the 
 great cloud of witneffes of Old Tefla- 
 nient believers, exhorts them to look higher, 
 even to Jefus the common Saviour, and that 
 not tranfiently, but earneftly and conftantly, 
 in his mediatorial chara(fter of humiliation, as 
 enduring unheard of, unparallelled contradic- 
 tion of finners againft himfelf ^ leajiy fays he, 
 ye be weary ^ and faint in your minds. If ure 
 had not fuch an example fet before us, and 
 brought to us by the Holy Ghoft in a faifering 
 hour, we fhould never hold out to the end : 
 this was not the contradidion of the openly 
 profape ^nd fcandalous, thofe that were with- 
 out. 
 
3 1 8 Negm of Chrijl Sen XIV. 
 
 out, fo much as from thofe that were within 
 the pale of the church, even thofe to whom 
 were committed the Hvely oracles of God, who 
 had not only the very bible in their own hands, 
 but were fet apart to explain it to others. That 
 the words of our text were fpoken to them, 
 appears from the preceeding verfe, in which 
 he bids thtm fearch the fcriptures -^ as a perfon 
 digs for a mine, or fearches for fome hidden 
 treafure. The word bible, or book which 
 I have in my hand, is well applied to the holy 
 fcriptures, becaufe it is the book of God, writ- 
 ten by him, that is, by his order, and by thofe 
 who were infpired by him for that end; and 
 yet, of all writings in the world, thefe are moffc 
 negleded! God has condefcended to become 
 an author, and yet people will not read his 
 writings. There are very few that ever gave 
 this book of God, the grand charter of falva- 
 tion, one fair reading through : though we 
 profefs to have affented to the truth of fcripture, 
 as our Lord faid, in them we think we have 
 eternal lifey yet moil read them as they would 
 a proclamation, a romance, a play, or novels, 
 that help only to bring them to the devil, but 
 chufe^ not to read God's book, which is to be 
 our guide to glory ; the^ are they^ fays Chrift, 
 
 which 
 
Ser. XIV. the killing Sin. ^{^ 
 
 which tejlify of me : Lord God convert and 
 change our hearts. 
 
 However, this was fpoken in reference to 
 the Old Teftament, and certainly fhows us, 
 that Chrift is the treafure hid in that field, yet 
 as there are equal proofs of the divinity of the 
 New Teftament, the word Holy Scriptures 
 include both, efpecially as Chrift is the anti- 
 type of all the types, the Alpha and Omega, 
 the beginning and the end of all divine revela-* 
 tion : would to God he was your Alpha and 
 Omega too ! Now, faith Chrift, you pretend 
 to reverence the fcriptures 3 you that are fet 
 apart as perfons learned in the fcriptures, ye 
 Scribes, ye lawyers, fuch as were mentioned 
 in the gofpel to-day. I fancy feme people 
 think, that when we read of lawyers in the 
 fcriptures, that we mean fuch lawyers as ours, 
 who deal only in the civil and common law, 
 but they were thofe that opened and explained 
 the law to the people; thefe were the perfons 
 who thought and profeffed, that in them they 
 had eternal life, that they teftify of Chrift the 
 great Prophet that was promifed in the fcrip- 
 tures to come into the world ^ yet, faith our 
 divine mafter, to thefe very profelTors, thefe 
 mafters in Ifrael, ye will not come to me that 
 
 ye 
 
320 Negk£t of Chrtjl Sen XIV. 
 
 ye may have life : though I am now prefent 
 with you, though I am now come to explain 
 the fcriptures, and fulfil them, am now come 
 to proclaim to you that life, that eternal life, 
 which the fcriptures declare were to be pub- 
 liflied and proclaimed by me, yet ye will not 
 come unto 7ne that ye may have life. 
 
 By eternal life we are to underftand, all the 
 bleffings of a converted ftate, particularly the 
 pardon of lins, not only before converfion but 
 after. It is impoffible but there fliould be fin 
 every day and every hour in every profeffing 
 perfon. My dear hearers, as I {hall not have 
 an opportunity for fome time to fpeak to you, 
 I don*t chufe, efpecially when I am about to 
 take my leave of you, to fpeak any thing that 
 is fevere, but I aflure you without attempting 
 to offend, with a broken heart I affure you, 
 i that this was the treatment Jefus Chrifl met 
 with of old, and, God knows, this is the treat- 
 ment Jefus Chrift meets with now : ye will n&t 
 come to me that ye ma) have eternal life. 
 
 If I am not miftaken, and I think I am not, 
 the words fuppofe, that they and we are all 
 dead in fm, for if we are not, I do not know 
 why we need come to have life ^ and I mentioa 
 this, becaufc for want of believing and know- 
 ing 
 
Self. XIV. fhe killing Sin. . 321 
 
 ing this, fome that pretend to know Chrifl 
 Stnd to preach him, forget to lay the proper 
 foundation, original fin 5 and that there is no 
 ability or inclination in the heart of a natural 
 man, fo much as to do any thing fpiritual; 
 he is ftupid and dead. But if we have eyes 
 to fee, if we have ears to hear, and if our 
 hearts are not waxed hard, doubtlefs it would 
 appear as clear to us as the fun fhining in its 
 meridian brightnefs, that man was dead till 
 God breathed into him the breath of life, and 
 then he became a living foul. I know fome 
 people believe that the words mean this, that 
 God breathed into man, and he became a natu- 
 ral living foul, like other animals , but then 
 they don't confider what a life God did breath 
 into the foul, he breathed into it the life of 
 Godj a fpiritual life was breathed into the foul ; 
 it is expreffed in the ftrongeft, but at the fame 
 time in the moft concife terms that is poffible, 
 none but God, none but a man infpired by 
 God, could fay fo much in fo few words* it 
 fliows great fkill in men to fay fo much in a 
 httle 5 what uninfpired nqian ever wrote fo as 
 Mofes did ? Now Mofes when he penned the 
 fcriptures, faid, God made man after his owrf 
 image^ and you know ten thoufand volumes 
 T t could 
 
322 Negle^ of Chriji Ser. XIV. 
 
 could not have faid more than that. How 
 long do you think it was that man continued in 
 his original purity ? I don't know that I ever 
 yet heard, that any one thought he continued 
 in his bleffed ftate (o long as from Saturday to 
 Saturday. Mr. Bofton, who, perhaps, is one 
 of the bed writers that ever Scotland produced, 
 fays, that there is an allufion in one of the 
 Pfalms to man's fudden fall, Man bei?2g born 
 in honour y continued not -, i. e. but a night be- 
 fore he fell. O much good may do thofe that 
 boaft of their free-will, that think they can 
 ftand by a power of their own, when father 
 Adam, who had no corruption, did not ftand 
 a week, perhaps not two days ^ and how can 
 we pretend to ftand, let us have what grace 
 we will, when that grace has fo much cor- 
 ruption to oppofe it ? if Jefus Chrift did not 
 take care to fecure our ftanding, we fhould 
 fall to our ruin. Adam fell, and being our 
 federal head, v^e fell in him. Why, fays a 
 Deift, and too many profefTors alfo, pray what 
 bufinefs had God Almighty to make our fall 
 or our ftanding depend on another ? you will 
 not objedl to this you church of England men, 
 will you ? then why have you god- fathers and 
 god-mothers to promife for you? why have 
 
 we 
 
Ser. XIV. the killing Sin. 323 
 
 we members of parliament to be the heads of 
 the people, and what the parliament does, the 
 people do, you have conftituted them your 
 heads and reprefentatives, you muft ftand and 
 fall by them 5 fo if you are bound for a pcrfon, 
 you muft ftand and fall with him, muft not 
 you? I remember one of the minifters that 
 preached the morning exercifes, when moft, 
 if not ail the churches in this city, were filled 
 with gofpcl-preachers, till on Bartholomew- 
 day near 2,500 of them in the whole were 
 turned out, and the other minifters that did 
 not preach the gofpel continued till the plague 
 came, and then they ran away, and left the 
 pulpits to thofe that were turned out, who 
 were willing to go into them, though they 
 expeded the plague would feize them in 
 preaching Chrift there ; one of thofe minifters 
 fays, fuppofe God had chofe all that were to 
 be created, and to proceed from the loins of 
 Adam, had been prefent, and that he ftiould 
 have faid to them, I have been feven days em- 
 ployed in preparing the whole creation; I 
 have made a garden, and will have one chofe 
 by you to dwell in it, as my vicegerent and 
 your reprefentative here below ; here is Adam, 
 the father of you all, whom I have bleflcd 
 T t 2 with 
 
3-24 l^egka of Chriji Seh XIV. 
 
 witha partner, that is bone of his bone, and 
 flefh of his flefh, a creature like himfelf ; all 
 that I define of your head and reprefentative is, 
 that he abftains from yonder tree, of every 
 other tree in the garden he n>ay freely eat 
 except that; this 1 ordain as a teft of his obe- 
 dience, to fee whether it is fulfilled, and you 
 iliall all ftand or fdlby this; who fhall be the 
 man ? would they not all fay, our firft parent 
 to be fure. O there is not a fingle man but 
 would have chofen Adam to be their repre- 
 fentative, they would rather ftand and fall by 
 him "than by any body elfe ; now pray why 
 fhould we quarrel with him for ading in the 
 manner we ourfelves fhould have done, had 
 we been in his fituation ? God^ faith the apof- 
 tle, included all under fin. What is fin but a 
 breach, that is, a tranfgreffion of the law ; the 
 wages of fm is death > every tranfgreffion of the 
 law incurs damnation. Have we eaten of the 
 forbidden fruit ? \vq muft die, we are legally 
 dead; and there is not a little child in the 
 world that is not. It is enough ,to make the 
 parents pray night and day for their children ; 
 there is not a child borli but, to ufe the words 
 of our own church, brings in with it'^corrup- 
 tion, which renders it liable to the wrath of 
 
 Cod 
 
•Ser. XIV. ' the hlltjig Sin. 325 
 
 God forever. Then, fay feme, it is true what 
 I have heard fay of you, that there are little 
 children in hell a fpan long ; I never hadfuch 
 a thought in my life ; I never believed that any 
 infants, black or white, were damned in hell. 
 I think a poor child, though it is born in a ftate 
 of original fin, and I have ofren thought that 
 is thereafon why little children are feized with 
 fuch terrible diforders as often carry them 
 out of the world, with ten times more agony 
 than parents feel 5 a great proof of man's 
 offence. We fee a poor little infant foon after 
 it is born, in two or three months taken with 
 fits^ lie . fcreaming and ftruggling, while the 
 diftreffed parents arc breaking their hearts, and 
 wifhing, though they love it dearly, that God 
 Would take it out of its pain. Is not this a 
 ftrong proof that man is fallen from God? elfe 
 who can tell what God defigns hereby : hov/- 
 ever, I verily believe that by his grace he fits 
 them for heaven. We have broken Gods 
 law, and are liable to eternal condemna^!on, 
 w^e are therefore legally dead, every one of us 
 without diftindion -, we are all upon a level, 
 frcm the greatefl king in the world, who has 
 it in his power to write death or life upon the 
 poor condemned malefaftors; bring him to 
 
 the 
 
3 26 Negle6l of Cbriji Ser. XIV. 
 
 the bar of God's holy law, and it will tell 
 him there, thou art the malefador in the 
 fight of God, thou thyfelf, and thus God is 
 glorified. It is not greatnefs of flation, nor 
 external differences, that make a difference in 
 the internal ftate of the foul. A nobleman 
 may come with his ftar and garter to the king's 
 bar, and be tried by his peers at Weftminfter- 
 hall, and may be attended from the Tower by 
 fome of the king's officers, but whether a no- 
 bleman be tried at Weftminfter-hall, or a cri- 
 minal in rags at the Old-Bailey, the law muft 
 be executed upon both : this is our ftate to- 
 wards God, we have lived in trefpafles and 
 fins, are legally dead now 5 is that all ? Dr. 
 Taylor, of Norwich, fays, that all the lofs 
 we have had by the fall is, that our mifery is 
 temporary. Alas ! alas ! when Arminians talk 
 of the fall, you will find very few of them have 
 courage enough to ftab themfelves. Confcience 
 makes them cowards; they have loft all by 
 Adam's fall. What death have we fuffered, 
 not only legally but fpiritually dead; what 
 do I mean by that ? why, that we are deprived 
 of that life of God in which we originally 
 ftood. Have you ever feen any body die ? I 
 have. Have you ever feen one of your friends 
 
 die? 
 
Sen XIV. the killing Sin. 327 
 
 die? have you ever ftole into the room, and 
 looked but once at the dear objed: of your love, 
 the partner of your life, but wait till the next 
 day, and efpecially in the fummer feafon, and 
 fee how changed ! the laft objeft I faw, put 
 me in mind of the fall I faw nature in. O what 
 a change ! the glory is departed ! 
 
 But belides this legal death, there is a fpi- 
 rltual death, and the confequence of that 13 
 eternal death ; if I die in that ftate I muft die 
 for ever ; that is, I muft be a creature living 
 eternally banifhed from God : if I be annihi- 
 lated when I die, then, indeed, temporal death 
 is all 'y but it is not fo, I am to live in another 
 world 5 the wifeft man upon earth tells us, 
 that there is a future ftate ; and therefore by 
 legal and fpirituai death, I am liable to death 
 eternal. I have the longer inlifted on this, 
 becaufe it is impoffible to know, or to value 
 that life that Jefus Chrift came into the world 
 to impart to us and procure for us, without 
 coniidering the nature of the death he delivers 
 us from. 
 
 Now let us attend to what our Lord fays, 
 Te will not come to me that ye may have life ; 
 in the tenth chapter he fays, / am come that 
 they might have life^ and that they might have it 
 
 more 
 
328 Negkei of Chrifl .Sen Xm 
 
 more abundantly \ now what life is that? to 
 be fure, the life which a malefador wants, 
 who is tried by a Jury 5 why, he wants to have 
 the chain taken ofFj what do you and I want ? 
 for we may want to eternity if we plead our 
 innocence 5 there Is not one of us but muft plead 
 guilty before God; well, what muft I do ? 
 why, if ever I have life, I muft be acquitted, 
 fomething muft pronounce me not guilty j my 
 confcience fays, guilty 3 why, then Jefus Chrift 
 came that we might have a legal life, that we 
 might be acquitted from all that condemna- 
 tion which we are under by our breaking his 
 law 5 fo far the remedy anfwers to the difeafe % 
 but the remedy would not be extenfive enough 
 if that was all 5 therefore, it was an excellent 
 anfwer a poor woman made at the Old-Bailey, 
 I heard of it twenty years ago : fhe was brought 
 fick to the bar to receive a pardon ; the judge 
 faid. Woman, his majefty has given you a 
 pardon : My lord, fays flie, I thank his ma- 
 jefty for a pardon, and you for pronouncing 
 it, but that is not all I want 3 what my poor 
 foul wants is, a pardon from Jefus Chrift; 
 what fignifies a pardon from a judge, if I have 
 a difeafe in me that will kill me ? whether I 
 am pardoned or not, I muft have my difeafe 
 
 cured, 
 
Ser. XIV. the killing Sin. 329 
 
 cured, that the pardon may do me good. I 
 thought it a ftrange plea of a man, a captain 
 of a fliip, that I heard tried fome years ago 
 for throwing a poor negro overboard ^ he 
 afkedthe furgeon, do you think that the child 
 will die ? Sir, faid he, it will not live above 
 an hour; then, fays he, you may let it down 
 now: O, fays the judge, you have murdered 
 the child. I muft have a pardon from my 
 God, or I am damned ; and if I have loft the 
 divine image, which was the original dignity 
 of man, I fliall never get to glory without the j 
 reftoration of that image I have loft by my/ 
 fin. Spiritual life in the heart, is that which' 
 comes from Jefus Chrift, and this is the life of 
 God in the fool of man ; it is not a meta- 
 phorical but a real thing, a refurredion to 
 life by the power of Chrift, who is the rejur- 
 reclion and the lifey fo there is a connexion 
 between a legal and a fpiritual life 5 the type 
 and antitype anfwers as face anfwers to face in 
 water: thus as all in Adam have died, fo all 
 in Jefus Chrift, the fecond Adam, are made 
 alive. We are apt to think that fuch a one, 
 and fuch a one, were found Chriftians and gone 
 to heaven, but there is a great deal of falfe 
 charity in the world ; without this life we are 
 all undone. U u Now, 
 
330 Negledt of Chrijt Sen XIV. 
 
 Now, my brethren, if this is the cafe, how 
 muft I have my life in glory ? how muft a 
 dead creature be a Chriftian ? how muft a fin- 
 ner that is fpiritually dead have divine life ? 
 and how muft a creature, every moment liable 
 to death eternal, be made eternally alive ? can 
 any body anfwer that queftion ? will reafon 
 tell me ? no ; will philofophy help me ? no ; 
 for if the world by wifdom knew not G-od^ furely, 
 the world by wifdom knows not how to turn 
 to God y therefore, you will find the greateft 
 fcholars the greateft fools, proudeft deifts, and 
 moft fcornful atheifts ^ for knov/ledge puffeth 
 up ; and if bare knowledge makes a Chriftian,. 
 the devil muft be very good, he is the moft 
 knowing, and yet the moft wicked. The only 
 way to get this life reftored, is to come to Jefus 
 Chrift 'y ye will riot come unto me^ faith our text, 
 that ye may have life-y implying, that without 
 coming to him they cannot have life : there is 
 no other name given under heaven whereby we 
 can be favedy but that of Jeftts Chrijl. I am 
 the wayy the truths and the life. 1 am the re^- 
 jurreBion and the life ^ faith the Lord. In order 
 to have this life, we muft come to Chrift for 
 it: I hope you don't think coming to Chrift^ 
 means coming to fee bi$ perfon, that can never 
 
 • bei 
 
Ser. XIV. the killing Sin. 331 
 
 be : for our Lord talks of coming to him 
 when he himfelf was the preacher, and they 
 were all about him; though fo many round 
 him, yet there was but one that touched him. 
 A great many people fay, dear, if Chrift was 
 here, how would I carefs him ! I would let 
 him in ! when, perhaps, at the fame time 
 turn out one of his members. Would you 
 like to fee Jefus Chrift with a parcel of boys 
 and girls running before him, a parcel of poor 
 fifliermen with him, and Mary Magdalen, 
 wdth a mob of poor people and publicans fol- 
 lowing him ? we have got the fame fpirit the 
 people had then, we fliould hoot at him and 
 defpife him, as the Pharifees did. A great 
 many people think coming to Chrift is to come 
 to the facrament ; you know very well I love 
 that privilege; and one of the greateft afflic- 
 tions I have is, that my health will not permit 
 me to attend all the ordinances ; but thoufands 
 come to ordinances, that have no view of the 
 God of ordinances in them, therefore you will 
 find, that in all our public places it is as much 
 the faftiicn to go to public worfliip about eleven 
 o'clock, as any where elfe. They are not up 
 time enough to their mattins ; they go and 
 fay, we thank God, who has brought us to 
 U u 2 the 
 
332 Negkdi of Chrijl Sen XIV. 
 
 the beginning of this day, and that when per- 
 haps the clock ftrikes twelve, and they juft 
 up; thus people go to church as to a play, ' 
 to fee and be ktn, and as foon as they go out 
 of church, they aflc where they are to go 
 to next, and what party ? Thoufands go to 
 church, or to meeting, and facrament, and 
 don't corTiC to Chrift : come and like this 
 preaching, and numbers who are called fools 
 for following us, eat the fragments that are 
 left, that hear preaching, eat the fifli and the 
 loaves, and are only feafling upon fhadows 
 and not upon Chrift : this ihould make us 
 extremely careful to examine whether we ever 
 came to Chrift or no. A great moral preacher 
 fays of our preaching, when all their ftock is 
 out, then they cry come, come, come, and 
 that is the burden of their fong, fay they • and 
 I hope that will be the burden of our fong till 
 Chrift fays. Come ye blejfed of my Fathe?^-, 
 what would you have us fay ? O, fay you, bid 
 a man do and live, fo we will ; and in the fame 
 fenfe Chrift in the gofpel fays, thou art dead 5 
 what fhall I do, fays the man, to inherit eter- 
 nal life ? thou knoweft our Lord faid to him. 
 Keep the law. Our Lord always fpoke to the 
 people in their own language ^ that is, thou 
 
 fcak 
 
Sen XIV. the killing Sim - 333 
 
 /halt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart ; 
 he began with morality at the right place, wc 
 begin at the fifth commandment. The great 
 morality, fays Dr. Young, is beginning .with ; 
 the love of God. Thoujhalt love thy neighbour \ 
 as thyfelf ; thou haft anjwered rights fays he, 
 do thisy and thou jhalt live. Whoever loves 
 the Lord God as he ought to do, with all his 
 foul and ftrength, fliall certainly live ; but our 
 Lord takes pains to convince him of his igno- 
 rance and folly ; fays he, *who is my neighbour ? 
 as to the love of God, he had no thought of 
 that. Thus we deceive our own fouls, till 
 Jefus Chrifl opens our eyes. What muft we 
 come to Chriftfor? to be acquitted; come to 
 his blood to be pardoned j yoii muft believe on 
 him, not only with a bare fpeculative belief^ 
 that the devil has, and all the damned in hell, 
 but to have his blood applied and brought home 
 to the foul ; we muft come to him as the au- 
 thor and finidier of our faith. Did not you 
 juft now fay, I believe in the Holy Ghoft, 
 the Lord and giver of life; and the form of 
 baptifm is in the name of the Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghoft ; it means, baptize them into the 
 nature of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft : 
 and I remember about three or four and thirty 
 
 years 
 
334 ISlegka of Chriji Ser. XIV, 
 
 years ago, a friend mentioned that word in 
 private converfation to me, we tranflate it, we 
 believe in God 5 faid he, we fhould tranflate 
 it, we believe it i?i Gody for we never do till 
 God has put his faith in us, then we have in 
 our fouls a new life in Chrift, then we live a 
 life of faith ; the life I now live is by faith in 
 the Son of God, I live^ yet not 7, but ChriJI 
 Jiveth in me. In order to. this I muftcome to 
 Jefus Chrift, and believe on him for life eter- 
 nal, the earneft of which eternal life I muft 
 have in my heart before I can be affured I do 
 believe on him. O, my dear hearers, do we 
 think of this, this is no new docSrine 5 I fet 
 out, bleffed be God, with this dodtrine. The 
 fecond fermon I ever made, the fecond fermon 
 I ever preached, wks on thefe words. He that 
 is in Chriji is a new creature : I was then about 
 twenty years and a half old. The next fer- 
 mon I preached was upon, Te are juflifiedi 
 the next fermon, Te are glorified -y which 
 (hows, that though I am near fifty-five years 
 old, yet, I thank my God, I am fo far from 
 changing my principles, v/hich I am fure I 
 was taught by God's word and Spirit, that I 
 am more and more confirmed, that if I was 
 to die this m.oment, I hope I fhould have 
 
 2r ftrength 
 
Sen XIV. the killing Sin. 335 
 
 ftrength and courage given me to fay, I am 
 more convinced of the efficacy and the power 
 of thofe truths which I preached when I was 
 twenty years old, when 1 firft preached them. 
 
 Now, my dear hearers, what could enter 
 into the heart of any perfon in the world, to 
 reject fuch a falvation as this ? can you think 
 that when a king faith to a prifoner, let him 
 go, he would refufe it ? there are fome per- 
 ibns that refufe Chrifl. I remember when, by 
 the bounty of the people here, we begged for 
 the poor, one man went to the turnpike and 
 faid, this is Dr. Whitefield's bread and be 
 damned. Human nature, what is it without 
 Chrift, the bread of life! We will not come 
 to him that we may have life, though we 
 may have it for afking ^ no, not for life eter- 
 nal, as a free gift : we will not come to Chrift 
 and accept it at his hand 3 we will not : it is 
 not faid, \NQ Jljall not J but we 'zc'/// not. Pray 
 why will not people come to Chrift to have 
 life ? becaufe they do not think that they are 
 dead, and do not want it ; remember when 
 you fay, you are rich and increafed in goods^ 
 that you know not, faith Chrift, that ye are 
 poor and mijerable, and blind and naked. We 
 do not fee ourfelves fallen creatures, we do 
 
 not 
 
336 NeglcEi of Chrifl Ser. XIV. 
 
 not know that : God give thee to know and 
 feel, that there is 710 name gt'ven under heaven 
 whereby we can be favedy but Jefus Chriji. 
 What, faith one, muft I have inward feeling ? 
 what would the polite world do without feel- 
 ing? do you think they would go to the play- 
 houfe and places of public diverfion without 
 feeling ? if I can feel other things that do not 
 concern religion, how can I come to God till 
 I feel a need of him. We don't chufe to come 
 to Chrift, becaufe we don't chufe to have him 
 as a free gift ^ we don't like to come to him as 
 poor and needy, I remember I heard an ex- 
 cellent minifler of Chrifl in Scotland, one Mr. 
 Wallis, of Dundee, preaching upon thefe words. 
 Behold 1 ft and at the door and knocks fays he. 
 Chrift comes knocking at the door to come 
 into your houfes, but you will not come 
 down to accept of his mercy. When 
 the prodigal faid, / will arife and go to 
 my Father^ and will fay unto him^ I have finned 
 againji heaven and in thy fght^ ajid ajnno more 
 worthy to be called thy fon^ make me as one of 
 thy hired fervants : now you think that it was 
 very humble in him, he who was a fon of the 
 head of the houfe, to be wiUing to be a fer- 
 vant. 'Tis true he fays, I will go to rny fa- 
 ther's 
 
 1 
 
Ser. XIV. the killhig Sin. 337 
 
 ther's houfe, but at the fame time he fays, I 
 will work for my living, he fliall not maintain 
 me for nothing ; but v/hen he comes to his 
 father, he is quite brought down, he fays, I 
 have finned againU heaven and in thy fight \ the 
 joyful father clafps him in his withered arms, 
 and takes the poor ragged wanderer home. 
 The lawyers and other Jews thought they 
 were righteous, and therefore they would not 
 come to Jefus Chrift, Our Lord fpoke of the 
 Pharifees, who trufted in themfelves that they 
 were righteous, and would not come to him 
 that they might have life -, and if we truft in 
 ourfelves, neither fliall we. Our Lord fays, 
 I receive not honour from men. How canyon 
 come to him, that receive honour one of another? 
 Honour to whom honour is due. To fuch as 
 are in pov/er, whether in church or ftate, 
 refpedt is due to their outward fituation. I am 
 for no levelling principles at all ; but, my bre- 
 thren, at the fime time there is a fault, that 
 we love to be applauded. There is no going 
 to heaven, faith Mr. Gurnal, without wear- 
 ing a fool's cap and a fool's coat, and there is 
 no going to heaven without being accounted 
 fools: fo you fee many profeflbrs follow the 
 world, they have not courage enough to live 
 X X 'in 
 
338 NegJeB of Chrijl Ser. XIV. 
 
 in holy non-conformity to the world; and 
 many people are frightned from Chrift, becaufe 
 they would not be counted Methodifts; the 
 fear of man has damned thoufands. You will 
 not come to him, becaufe you cannot truft 
 God, and then we love the world more than 
 Chriil. If any man love the worlds the love 
 of the Father is720t in him. If I had the ma- 
 nagement of people, their fliops would be open 
 three or four hours before they are now ; I do 
 not want to hinder mens bufinefs ; thofe that 
 have mofl money and moft power, if they 
 adted as they ought to do, would be the greateft 
 flaves to their fellow-creatures. When I talk 
 of loving the world, I mean an inordinate 
 love: I may hve in the world, and not live 
 upon it ; my heart may be towards God : 
 the love of the world is to be renounced, and 
 therefore they will not come to Jefus Chrift 
 they think, till they are going out of the 
 world. If you are one of thofe who hate 
 Chrift, why you are the man that will not 
 come to him 2 why, fay you, does any body 
 hrtte Chrift ? pray hold your tongue, for fear 
 of difcovering your ignorance : O, fay you, 
 God forbid I ftiould hate him. But, my dear 
 foul, learn from this time forward, that every 
 
 one 
 
Ser. XIV. the killing Sin\ 239 
 
 one of us by nature hates Jefus Chrifl : we fent 
 this mefTage to him ; we will not have this 
 man to reign over us, we hate him becaufe he 
 is defpifed, we hate him becaufe of the appear- 
 ance of the people that are his followers, we 
 hate him becaufe of the narrownefs of the way 
 we are to pais in to him, becaufe we muft part 
 with our lufts 3 we hate him becaufe we muft 
 be non-conformifts: I hate that rag of the 
 whore of Babylon, O that form of prayer, O 
 all that fluff, I thank God I was born a Dif- 
 fenter, I love to be a Puritan, I don't love 
 rites and ceremonies, no not in the church, 
 and yet, perhaps, are more conformed to the 
 world than numbers of the church, and have 
 nothing but rites and ceremonies about their 
 houfes and families. What do we more than 
 others? a churchman fliould prove himfelf a 
 churchman, by having his articles, and keep- 
 ing up the practice of religion 3 and a Diffenter 
 fhould prove hinifclf one, not by diffenting 
 from the church, but from the liifts of the 
 flcjh^ the liijt of, the eye^ and the pride of life, 
 and then we fliall agree very weh together, 
 though one went to a place called a church, 
 and another to a place called a meeting.: would 
 to God every foul now pref;nt would put this 
 X X 2 queftion 
 
340 Negka of Chrijl. Ser. XIV. 
 
 queflion to himfelf, Am I come to Chrift, or 
 am I ijot ? There is a great number of perfons 
 here, you have heard of Providence calling me 
 abroad, no doubt curiofity brings many of you 
 here, to hear what the poor babler fays : I 
 tell you what I will fay to you, that without 
 you have an intereft in the Son of God, you 
 mufl: be damned. Examine your f elves whether 
 you are in the jaith^ whether your religion 
 reaches any further than the church-door, whe- 
 ther you are the inward court worfhippers : 
 confcience, confcience, confcience, thou faith- 
 ful monitor, God help thee to give a proper 
 verdidl. When I had the honour of opening 
 lady Huntingdon's chapel, as I turned about I 
 obferved over my head were thefe words, 
 'Earthy earthy earthy hear the "word oj the 
 Lord: O that every earthly foul may hear 
 God's word this day. Don't be angry with 
 me, I am now upon the decline of life, going 
 toward threcfcore, farely now I may claim 
 leave to fpeak to you freely; after next Sun- 
 day, perhaps, you may never hear me any 
 more, though I do not intend to live abroad, 
 but return, if pleafe God, in a proper time, 
 but long before that thou maylt be in hel! oi* 
 heaven. As the Lord live?, in whofe name I 
 
 fpeakj 
 
Sen XIV. the killing Sin. 341 
 
 fpeak, if you will not come to Chrift to have 
 life, you muft come to his bar to hear him pro- 
 nounce you damned to all eternity. If you 
 come to him that you may have life, Come, ye 
 blejfed, v^ill be the fentence there, but if you 
 refufe now. Depart^ ye ciirfed, will be your 
 fentence then from the Lord, for in a little 
 while he that fhall come will come, and will 
 not tarry. Hark ! hark ! don't you hear him, 
 don't you hear him, don't you hear him yon- 
 der ; hark ! methinks I hear him, what does 
 he fay ? fee yonder, don't you fee, good peo- 
 ple, that yonder fun is darkened, and the moon 
 turned into blood. 0, who can abide the day 
 of his coming^ O, to think of his coming, 
 may the finner fay, when I know his coming 
 is only to damn my foul ! How do the mur- 
 derers dread the affizes, but pardoned finners, 
 pardoned criminals, are glad when they hear 
 the high-fheriff coming : O, fay they, I lon^^ 
 to go to the bar, becaufe I am going there 
 only to plead the king's pardon. Kappy, 
 happy, happy you, that have come to this Je,- 
 fus Chrift that you might have life, that you 
 might walk becoming him in your life and 
 converfation. O,'. Chrift will come, and come 
 to you as his cliildren 5 but God grant th:j life: 
 
 may 
 
342 NegleB of Chrijl Ser. XIV. 
 
 may be difplayed in you and me more and 
 more! If we are helped to know that Chrift 
 came that we might have life, and might 
 have it more abundantly, O, pray that others 
 may come, bring your children to Chrift. I 
 was pleafed one day after I had been preaching 
 on Mofes lifting up the ferpent in the wilder^ 
 nefsy I think it was in New-England, I was 
 taken up into a room to repofe myfelf, there 
 was a mantle-piece, reprefenting the children 
 brought in the arms of their parents to look at 
 the brazen ferpent : O may God help you to 
 bring your children and your relations to view 
 Chrift. O Lord help my mother, my fither, 
 my child, my fervant, to come to Jelus Chrift 
 that they may have life. The Lord help you 
 to come, come young people. O I was 
 charmed this morning, and every morning I 
 give the facrament, to fee fo many young men 
 there crouding to the table ; may the Spirit of 
 God keep you near to Jefus Chrift -, and you 
 young women, may God draw you nearer un- 
 to Chrift. I remember when God touched 
 my heart, and fent me down to fee my friends 
 in the country, I prayed God to blefs me to 
 thofe to whom I was called to dance and to 
 pl^y at cards with, and, bleffed be God, he 
 
 bleffed 
 
Ser. XIV. the killing Sin. 343 
 
 bkffed me to them all before I was twenty 
 years of age, and after that he fent me to a 
 prifon, I there preached to a murderer, and 
 fome others, and, bleffed be God, they came 
 to JeiusChrifl, and one of them went offmoft 
 triumphantly. A poor creature, fourfcore years 
 of age, who has made it a pradlice to go and 
 read to poor people, and to the prifoners, 
 faid, " Sir, I began late, but, by the help of 
 God, I now work the harder for Jefus Chrift." 
 May he incline you to come, O young wo- 
 men and young men. There was a good wo- 
 man who died fometime ago, whofe laft word 
 I think was, I now go to my God. Will you 
 come and go too, you old grey-headed iinners, 
 that have one foot in the grave, God help you 
 to- go, God remove every obftacle -, God grant 
 that every mountain may be brought low, and 
 a highway made into your hearts for Jefus 
 Chrifl. Don't be angry with me 5 in a week 
 or two I fliall be tolling on the ocean^ while 
 you are hearing God's word here ^ while I am 
 amidft ftorms and tempefts, you will be upon 
 the earth. Paul could ftand the whipping, 
 but it is not a whipping, but weeping, that 
 breaks my heart ; my greatell: trial is, what if 
 this fermon iLould help to fink thefe people 
 
 deeper 
 
344- JNegM of Chrijl, &c. Ser. XIV. 
 
 deeper in the pit, that makes my blood run 
 cold. O that my fermon may never rife in 
 judgment againft you, my poor dear fouls. I 
 believe you find it hard when any of you are 
 forced to be witneffes againft your own chil- 
 dren, your own friends, and whoever deals 
 with the word with a difmterefted fpirit, muft 
 do it s the only way to prevent it, is to come 
 to Chrift ; and if you cannot come, if you are 
 fenfible of it, God be praifed ; he will come 
 to you if you cannot come to Chrift, he will 
 come and make you willing in the day of his 
 power; that this may be the happy cafe, God 
 grant to us all, for his name's lake. Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 345 ] 
 
 SERMON XV. 
 
 All Mens Place. 
 
 EccLE,siASTES vi. ver. 6. 
 Do not all go to one place ? 
 
 I Remember an ingenious writer, who had 
 been very copious in his publications, ob- 
 ferved, that the beft and moft profitable 
 were written after he was fifty years of age : it 
 is fuppofed, then the judgment is ripened, and 
 the genius is as it were advanced to maturity 
 and knowledge -, and experiences gathered 
 when young, will be more ufeful in the de-- 
 cline of life, when grey hairs are it^n here and 
 there upon them. It is faid indeed, that old 
 men are twice children ; but there are feme 
 whofe geniuffes are fo very low that they can- 
 not be twice children, becaufe they are no bet- 
 ter than children from their cradle to their 
 grave i but this is not the cafe with God's 
 Y y children, 
 
346 Jil Mens Place. Ser. XV. 
 
 children, for upon a refledion of the wrong 
 fteps they have taken, if it proceeds from the 
 fandilied fenie of afflidions, they ferve to make 
 them more infLrudive in their latter day. This 
 was the cafe of Solomon, though highly fa- 
 voured when young, for the Lord appeared 
 unto him twice, yet he fell moft awfully, and 
 had we not read of his recovery again, the 
 dodrine of the final perfeverance of the faints,. 
 muft feem to fall to the ground, but we have 
 reafon to think that he was reftored, and gave 
 evidence of his recovery by writing in fuch a 
 manner, that none could but one that knew 
 much of God and himfelf > Vv^itnefs the book 
 ofEcclefiaftes, which in all ages of the church 
 has been received with a peculiar refped. Ec-^ 
 clefiaftes fignifies a preacher, fuch Solomon 
 ^was from his own experience, and exceeded 
 ! by none but him who /pake as no man ever did. 
 The chapter in which is the text, defcribes 
 the vanity and mifery of our prefent ftate, if 
 unfandified. 7 here is an evily faith he, that 
 I have feen under the fun^ and it is common 
 among men : though he is going about to de- 
 fcribe a monfter, yet it is a monfter that walks 
 and flaiks abroad, a man to whom God hath 
 given riches, wealth, and honour, fo that he 
 
 wanteth 
 
Scr. XV. All Mens Place. 347 
 
 wanteth nothing for his foul of all that he de- 
 fireth, though God gives him not power to 
 eat, this is vanity and a great difeafe. Was 
 there ever a more ftriking defcription of an 
 old covetous mifer, who leaves his wealth to 
 fome perfon that fpends it fafler than the poor 
 wretch got it ? He goes on and fays, If a jfian 
 beget an hundred children y and live many years^ 
 Jo that the days of his years he ma?iyy and his 
 foul be not filled with goody and alfo that be have 
 no burial y Ifay^ that an untimely birth is bet- 
 ter than he^ for he cometh in with njanityy and 
 depart eth in darknefSy and his namejl^all be co- 
 ijered with darknefs. Moreover^ he hath ?iot 
 feen the jun^ ?2or k?20wn any things this hath 
 more re/l than the other. And then though 
 this creature fhould be fuppofed to live a thou- 
 fand years twice told, why, faith he, yet hath 
 he feen no good, he has never been poflelled 
 of real good to make him happy here or here- 
 after, for, adds he, do not all go,, both the 
 abortive and the aged, young and old, high 
 and low, rich and poor, whether bleffed with 
 children, or have no children, whether like 
 Lazarus, that beg their bread, or Dives, 
 cloathed in purple and fine linen, and fire 
 fumptuoully every day. Do not all go Jo one 
 place ? Y y 2 An 
 
34^ '-^/^ Mens Place. Scr. XV. 
 
 An important queflion ! ihail I propofe it 
 to you to-night ? do you know what the wife 
 man. means when he offers this queftion to 
 your confideration, Do not all go to one place "^ 
 v/hat can be the defign of this ? the thing, no 
 doubt, here fpoken of is death, the place here 
 fpoken of, no doubt, is the grave. An ama- 
 zing confideration ! part of the firft fentence 
 that the great and holy God ever denounced 
 againft fallen man, to one and all, Dtijl thou 
 art^ and unto ditjl ihou JJoalt return. On ac- 
 count of our firft parentis tranfgrefllon, it is 
 appointed unto all men, all forts of men, all 
 the inhabitants under heaven, once to die; 
 and therefore the apoftle faith, Death hath- 
 fafjed upon all nien^ even upon thofe ivbo have 
 not fmned after ike fimilitude of the tranfgref- 
 Jion of Adam^ that is, who have not been 
 guilty of adual fin. Can there be a flronger 
 proof of the imputr^uon of Adam's guilt, of 
 original fin, or a more cutting trial that a ten- 
 der father and nurfing mother can undergo, 
 than to fee a dear little child juft born, or but 
 lent to the loving parents for a few months, 
 taken away often in the greateft agonies that 
 we can conceive ? and if God, m.y dear hear- 
 ers, has ever fuffered your dear children fud- 
 
 denly 
 
Ser. XV, M Mem Place. 349 
 
 denly to be feized with convulfions, and con- 
 tinue in anguifli and agonizing pains for many 
 days together, you have had fufficient proof 
 of it. A friend of mine in London, about 
 thirty-two years ago, that was dotingly foncj 
 of every child he had, to whom I wrote a let- 
 ter from Georgia, beginning with thefe words. 
 Is your idol dead yet ? for I thought it was 
 fuch an idol that would foon go. The account 
 he gave me the firft time I faw him was, that 
 the day before my letter was received, the 
 child died In fuch agony and torture, that 
 its excrements came out of its mou th, v^hic 
 made the fond and too indulgent parent wifh 
 to have rather died a thoufand deaths himfelf, 
 than that his child fhould die in fuch a way > 
 and added, I was obliged to go to God, and 
 defire him to take my darling away. What 
 an awful proof are their fufferings, that chil- 
 dren come into the world with a corruption 
 that renders them liable to God's wrath and 
 damnation, but the blood, the precious blood 
 of Jefus Chrirt, it is to be hoped, cleanfes them 
 from the guilt and filth of fin. So any of you. 
 that have got children dead in infancy, O may 
 you improve what 1 fliall fay by and by from 
 the text, and pray and endeavour to go to that 
 
 place, 
 
2 so All Mens Tiace. Scr. XV. 
 
 place, where I hope you will fee your children 
 making a bleiTed conilellation in the firmament 
 cf heaven : in this refped: all go to the fame 
 place, fome at the beginning of life, fome at 
 the middle, and fome at the decline ; and 
 happy, happy they who go to bed foonefl, if 
 their fouls are fived ! 
 
 But, my dear hearers, in another cafe wc 
 may venture to contradidl even Solomon ; for 
 if wc confider the words of our text in ano- 
 ther view, all do not go to one place ; it is 
 true, all are buried in the grave either of earth 
 or water, but then after death comes judg- 
 ment 5 death gives the decifive, the feparating 
 blow. Suppofe then in our enlarging on the 
 text, we fhould confine the word all to the 
 unregenerate, and to thofe who are not born 
 of God, thefe indeed, die when they will, all 
 go to one place. If you fhould afk me, for I 
 love dearly to have an inquifitive auditory, who 
 I mean by unregenerate ? who I mean by thofe 
 that are not born of God ? I anfvver, I do not 
 mean all that only bear the name of Jefus 
 Chrift 3 I mention this, becaufe a great many 
 people think that all that are baptized, either 
 when they are adult or when they are young, 
 whether fprinkled or put under water, I be- 
 lieve 
 
Ser. XV. All Mens Place. -ci 
 
 lieve a great many people think that all thcfe 
 go to heaven. I remember when 1 began to 
 ipeak againft baptifmal regeneration in my fii il 
 fermon, printed when I was about twenty- 
 two years old, or a little iix)re 5 the firft quar- 
 rel many had with me was, becaufe I did not 
 fay that all people who were baptized were 
 born again 3 I would as foon believe the doc- 
 trine of tranfubftantiation. Can I believe that 
 a perfon who gives no evidence of being a 
 faint, from the time of his baptifm to the time 
 perhaps of his death, that never fights againft 
 the world, the flefh, and the devil, and never 
 minds one word of w^hat his god-fathers and 
 god-mothers promifed for him, can I believe 
 that perfon is a real Chriflian ? no, I can as 
 foon believe, that a little wafer in the prielVs 
 hand, about a quarter of an inch long, is the 
 very blood and bones of Jefjs Chrift, who was 
 hung upon the crofs without the gates of Jei-u- 
 falem. I do believe baptifm to be an ordi- 
 nance of Chrift, but at the fame time, no can- 
 did perfon can be angry for my aflerting, that 
 there are numbers that have been baptized 
 when grovv^n up, or when very young, that 
 are not regenerated by God's Spirit, who 
 will all go to one place, and that place is where 
 
 there 
 
3 $2 Ail Mens Place. Ser. XV. 
 
 there will be no water to quench that dreadful 
 lire that will parch them with thirft* I am 
 fpeaking out of a book which contains the 
 lively oracles of God, and in the name of one 
 who is truth itfelf, who knowing very well 
 what he fpoke, is plea fed in the moft folemn 
 and avv'ful manner to fay, and that to a mailer 
 in Ifrael, that if a man be not horn again of 
 ivater aJid the Spirit^ he cannot fee the king- 
 dom of God ; he can have no idea, no proper, 
 no adequate notion of it, much lefs is he to 
 exped: to be happy eternally with God here- 
 after ; and therefore as our Lord fpoke to this 
 man, give me leave to obferve to you. I don't 
 \ mean the Deifts only by unregenerate linners -, 
 ll don't m.ean the profane mocker, who is ad- 
 vanced to the fcorner's chair, nor your open 
 profligate, adulterers, fornicators, abufers of 
 themfelves with mankind, thefe have damna- 
 tion as it were written upon their foreheads 
 wdth a fun-beam ; and they may know that 
 God is not mocked, for if they die without 
 repenting of thele things, they fhow they arc 
 in an unregenerate flate, and will all go to one 
 place : if any of you are going thither, may 
 God ilop you this night. But, my brethren, 
 1 will come clofer ; there are more unbelievers 
 
 within 
 
Ser. XV. All Mem Place. 353 
 
 within the pale than without the p\le of the 
 church ; let me repeat it again, you may ♦hink 
 of it when I am tofiing upon the mighty wa^ 
 ters, there are move unbelievers within the ■ 
 pale of the church than without: all are not 
 pofTeflbrs that are profcfTors, ail have not got 
 the thing promifcd, ai! are not partakers of the 
 pror'-jfe, that talk and blefs God they have got 
 the promifcd Saviour ; I may have him in my 
 mouth and upon my tongue, without having 
 the thing promifed, or tlie blcfled promile in 
 my heart, Jr\ mora! man that can walk 
 touching the law biameiels, a perfon that thinks 
 he i righteous, b-^caale he does not knov/ why 
 a perfon wiio has got no other religion but to 
 go to a particular place of v/orfhip, values 
 himfelf upon being a churchman or a diff^^n- - 
 ter 5 he is fuch a bigot, that he thinks no man 
 will go to heaven but himfcif; thefe, however 
 they may think themfelves fafe, will e'er long 
 go to one place, whether they think fo or no ^ 
 they will be foon fummoned to one bar, and 
 the voice of the archangel founding, Arife^ ye 
 dead^ and come to judgment^ will be the great 
 alarm ^ the dead fliall arife and appear before 
 the Son of God, as Judge of all mankind ; 
 thefe, as well as the infidels, would gladly be 
 
 Z z txcufeilj 
 
excufed 3 and as they once faid, I pray to have 
 me excufed from coming to Chrift, fo they 
 I will fain be excufed from appearing before, and 
 being condemned by him, but they mufl: all 
 go to one place : and as they know not God, 
 and are unacquainted with the divine life, they 
 mufl hear and fuiFer the dreadiul fentence. 
 Depart^ ye curfedy info everlafltiig firc^ pre- 
 fared jor the devil and his angels. This is a 
 thought, that if cur hearts, my cear hearers, 
 w^ere properly awakened, would make our 
 blood run cold : to be in a place of abfence 
 from God, a place where damned fouls will be 
 for ever curfing God and one another : give me 
 leave to dwell upon it a little, and may it be 
 blefled, under God, to awaken fome carelefs 
 perfon, who, perhaps, may be taking a walk 
 to-night, and juft ftep in to hear what the 
 babler has to fay wliile he is about to take 
 his leave of the people. When I faw you 
 from my fludy crowding to come in, when I 
 faw you pudiing forward, fome to go up to 
 the Tabernacle, or into the veftry, fome to fill 
 the area, and others to ftand at the door, I 
 thought hew fliall I manage with myfelf to- 
 night, fhail I endeavour to make thefe weep 
 and cry, fhail I not earneflly addrefs fo many 
 
 precious 
 
Ser. XV. 'All Mens Pkce. 355 
 
 precious fouls in a pradical way, to bring 
 them not to the preacher, but the preacher's 
 mafler^ knowing the terrors of the Lord, we 
 would fain perfuade all to fl^^e from this wrath 
 to come. O awful thought ! and yet it is a 
 certain truth, all on earth muft go to one 
 place; if we live like, and are devils here^ 
 we muft go to and be with them when we die 
 for ever ! A blefled minifter of Chrift, in 
 Scotland, told me a ftory he knew for truth, of 
 a dreadful anfwer a poor creature gave on her 
 death-bed, for the Scotch, except the people 
 of New-England, are the moft knowing people 
 in religious matters, perhaps any where ^ this 
 perfon when dying was aiked by a minifter, 
 where do you hope to go when you die I fays 
 fhe, I don't care where I go 3 what, fays he, 
 don't you care whether you go to heaven or 
 hell ? no, fays (lie, I don't care whither I go j 
 but, fays he, if you was put to your choice 
 where would you go ? fiys flie, to hell ; to 
 that he replied, are you mad, will you go to 
 hell ? yes, fays flie, I will ; v^hy fo ? fays 
 he ', why, fays flie, all my relations are there. 
 The dear minifter of Chtift preached after her 
 death, told the ftory, and afked, is it not 
 fliocking to hear a woman fay ftie would go 
 Z z 2 to 
 
356 Jh Mem Place. Sen XV. 
 
 to hell becaufe her relations were there : why, 
 you that are uniegenerate mufl go to hell tor 
 all ycur unregenen<te relations are there ; your 
 father the devil is there, all damned angels and 
 damned fpirit*^ y your brothers and fifiers are 
 there j as they went one way here, fo they 
 muft be banifhed from Jelus Chrift to one 
 place hereafter. 
 
 But I mufi; clofe this mournful theme, it is 
 too gloomy to dwell upon 5 bleffed be God, I 
 have another place to tell you of, and another 
 fort of people to fpeak of, who fliall all, as 
 well as thofe I have fpoken of, go to one place > 
 perhaps, here are fome of them ; bleffed ijs 
 it to live in God. When death clofes the eye's 
 ail adlual feparation is made, and inftead of 
 hearing, Depart, ye curfed^ they will hear. 
 Come, ye bleffed of my Father, inherit the king" 
 dom prepared for yoii jrom the foundation of the 
 world. Our bleffed maflcr, and who fpeaks 
 like him, gives us an awful view of Dives and 
 Lazarus, the one feafting and fattening his body 
 to the grave, not keeping one faft-day in a 
 year, and the other ftarving at his gate, per- 
 haps buried in the ditch, denied a grave by 
 the parifli, while this vile wretch, who died 
 alfo, had a pompous funeral ^ there^ he was 
 
 carried 
 
Ser. XV. .Aii Mens Place i^^y 
 
 carried to one place; he was, perhaps, laid 
 in ftate, two mutes attending round the coffin, 
 while damned devils Were gnawing his foul • 
 he lift up his eyes in torment. Hark ! don't 
 you hear him, I will flop a little that you 
 may : you ungodly ones, do not you hear your 
 brother cry ? he would not pray while alive, 
 but hell makes him pray, not to God but to 
 Abraham ; Father j^braham^ fays he, [end 
 Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water, 
 and cool yny tongue 3 and I verily believe, the 
 damned will have a fight of thofe that are in 
 heaven, to let them know what a heaven, 
 what a Chrift, what a glory they have lofl : 
 God grant this may be none of your cafe, it 
 will not be if you are of the number of thofe 
 who are born from above, that are made new 
 creatures in Chrift Jefus ^ for by being boni 
 again from above, 1 mean receiving a principle 
 of new life, im parted to our hearts by the 
 Holy Ghofl, changing you, giving you new 
 thoughts, new words, new adions, new views, 
 fo that old things pafs aWay, and all things 
 become new in our fouls. I know very well, 
 that the dodrine of a divine influence is ex- 
 ploded : I have often told you, and I tell yoa 
 again, now I am about going to another clime 
 
 for 
 
358 ^All Mens Place. Ser. XV* 
 
 for a-while, that the grand quarrel that our 
 Lord Jefus Ciirift has with England, and I do 
 not foQ^k it as a prophet, or the fon of a pro- 
 phet, but as the Lord God liveth, in whofe 
 name I fpeak, for whofe glory I am going, 
 abroad, and in whofe fear I defire to die, if 
 the Spirit of God and his divine influence is 
 not more regarded in this land than it has 
 been, wo, wo, wo to thofe that defpife it, 
 they may by and by, one day or other, won- 
 der and perifh. BlefTed be God, there are a 
 happy few who do regard it -, and I am per- 
 fuaded in my very foul, that the number in 
 England, in Scotland, in Ireland, in Wales, 
 and in i\merica, does, and I pray It may, ftill 
 greurly increafe. Yet, notwithftanding the 
 Word of God does run and is glorified, how 
 many are there at this day, that wilfully do 
 defpite to the Spirit of God, that hate the 
 doctrine of the Spirit's divine influences ; that 
 if it were in their power, but we live under 
 revolution principles, and are bleiled with tole- 
 ration, which is the bulwark of liberty of 
 conicience, otherv/ife the ftreet would run 
 with the blood of both churchmen and diifcn- 
 ters^ but whether the world will hear or for- 
 bear, bkiTeJ be God, when v/e fpeak of tiie 
 
 new 
 
Ser. XV. All Mens Place] 3^9 
 
 new birth, we do not fpeak of a cunningly 
 devifed fable ; what our eyes have feen, what 
 our hands have handled, and what our hearts 
 havje felt of the word of h*fe, that declare we 
 unto you. When I was fixteen years of age 
 I began to faft twice a week for thirty-fix 
 hours together, prayed many tim^es a-day, 
 received the facrament every Lord's-day, fall- 
 ing myfelf almoft to death all the forty days 
 of Lent, during which, I made it a point of 
 duty never to go lefs than three times a-day 
 to public worfliip, befides itv^n times a-day 
 to my private prayers, yet I knew no more 
 that I was to be born again in God, born a 
 new creature in Chrift Jefus, than if I was 
 never born at all. I had a mind to be upon 
 the ftage, but then 1 had a qualm of con- 
 fcience 3 I ufed to afk people, pray can I be 
 a player, and yet go to the facrament and be a 
 Chriftian ? O, fay they, fuch a one, who is a 
 player, goes to the facrament 5 though, ac- 
 cording to the law of the knd, no player 
 fijQuld receive the facrament, unlefs they give 
 proof that they repent ; that was archbifhop 
 Tillotfon's doctrine : well then, if that be the 
 cafe, fiid I, I will be a player, and I thought 
 to aft my part for the devil as well as any 
 
 body I 
 
360 All Mens Place. Ser. XV. 
 
 body; bijt, blefled be God, he flopped me 
 ip my journey. I muft bear teftimony to my 
 old friend, Mr. Charles Wefley, he put a book 
 into my hands, called, the Life of God in 
 the Soul of Man, whereby God fhewed me, 
 that I muft be born again or be damned. I 
 know the place ; it may be luperftitious, per- 
 haps, but whenever I go to Oxford, I cannot 
 help running to that place where Jefus Chrift 
 fii ft revealed himfelf to me, and gave me the 
 new birth. As a good writer fays, a man 
 may go to church, fay his prayers, receive the 
 facrament, and yet, my brethren, not be 2, 
 Chriftian. How did my heart rife, how did 
 my heart fliudder, like a poor man that is 
 afraid to look into his account-books, left he 
 fliould find himfelf a bankrupt; yet fhall I 
 burn that book, fliall I throw it down, fhall 
 I put it by, or fhall I fearch into it ? I did, 
 and holding the book in my hand, thus adr 
 dreffcd the Godof heaveji and earth: Lord, if 
 I am not a Chriftian, if I am not a real one, 
 God, tor Jefus Chiift's fake, fhow me what 
 Chriftianity is, that I may not be damned at 
 laft. I read a little further, and the cheat w^as 
 difcovered ; O, fays the author, they that 
 Icnov^ any thing of religion^ know it is a. vital 
 
 tinioa 
 
Ser. XV. All Mens Place. 361 
 
 union with the Son of God, Chrifl: formed in 
 the heart 5 O what a ray of divine lite did 
 then break in upon my poor foul, I fell a wri- 
 ting to all my brethren, to my fifters, talked 
 to the fludents as they came in my room, put 
 off all trifling converfation, put all trifling 
 books away, and was determined to ftudy to 
 be a flint, and then to be a fcholar ; and from 
 that moment God has been carrying on his 
 blefled work in my foul 3 and as 1 am now 
 fifty-five years of age, going towards fixty, I 
 tell you, my brethren, as I fhall leave you in 
 a few days, I am more and more convinced 
 that this is the truth of God, and without it 
 you never can be faved by Jefus Chrifl: : all 
 thofe born of God, whether when young or 
 old, at the fixth, ninth, or eleventh hour, 
 however feparated from one another, through 
 the grace of God, they fhdll ail go to one 
 place. 
 
 If you aflc where that place is ? I anfwer, 
 blcfl^ed be God, to heaven ^ if you aflc to 
 whom they fhall go ? I anfwer, to the fpirits 
 of jufl: men made perfed* -^ and, what will be 
 befl: of all, to Jefus Chrifl, the heavenly inhe- 
 ritance. If we were not to go to him, what 
 would heaven be ? if we were not to fee him, 
 A a a wlut 
 
362 All Mens Place. Ser. XV. 
 
 what would glory be? I know fome people 
 think heaven is a fine place, foitis; but what 
 makes it fo, but the prefence and joy of the 
 God of glory ? I would rather die a thoufand 
 deaths, than facriiice my aifedlions as I have 
 done : after I had taken leave of all my friends 
 fon^e years ago at Deptford, I burft out into 
 tears and faid, Lord, I would not fuiFer all I 
 feel for my friends but for thee, then returned 
 to my friends and faid, Now the bitternefs of 
 death is paffed, I am going to be executed, 
 God*s will be done. Bleffed be God, after 
 death there are no feparations, we fhall all go 
 to one place > miniflers that could not preach 
 in one pulpit, and Chriftians that could not 
 agree with one another, bleifled be God, fhall 
 by and by go to one heaven ; whether they 
 go to one place or no in this world, does not 
 fignify : fays one, I go to the DilTenters ; ano- 
 ther, I go to church j and a great many Chrif- 
 tians judge of one another as infidels, bccaufe 
 they are not of one fcntiment. A good wo- 
 man came to me fome years ago jufl as I had 
 done preaching, fome people love to be im- , 
 pertinent, what do you think, fays fhe, of 
 Cotton Mather and another minifter, one faid, 
 I ought to receive the facrament before my 
 
 expe- 
 
Sen XV. All Mens Place. 363 
 
 experience was given in, the other faid not, and 
 I believe the angels were glad to carry them 
 both to heaven. I faid, good woman, I believe 
 they have not talked about it fince, for they 
 will no more talk about thefe things. We have 
 but one Father, one Holy Ghoft, we have 
 lived in one communion of faith ; bleffed be 
 the living God, e'er long the angels Ihall come 
 and call the eleil from the eaft, the weft, the 
 north, and the fouth, to be at home with the 
 Lord. 
 
 If this be the cafe, my brethren, it may 
 fupport us under all the changes and partings 
 of this mortal ftate. As 1 have been in a pub- 
 Jic charader, I fuppofe 1 may venture to lay, 
 that no one has been called to fuch trequent 
 partings from God*s people as I have : I am 
 going now the thirteenth time over the water ; 
 ye^, I find what is faid of St, Paul i^ true, he 
 could bear a whipping, not a weeping : what 
 mean you, fays he, to weep and break my 
 heart i he never faid, whip me and break my 
 back, no, no. All get to one place : what a 
 bleffed ftate ! to fee one's fpintual father, to 
 fee one's fpiritual children, and hear them fay, 
 fuch and fuch a time God begat me to hira- 
 felf by your miniltry ! what a bleffing will it 
 A a a 2 bf 
 
364 'M Mens Place. Ser. XV. 
 
 be to hear them fay, bleffed be God, next to 
 the Spirit I owe my coming here to that fer- 
 vant of thine ! and with what ravifhment will 
 the minifter fay, behold me and the children 
 thou haft given me ! with what holy triumph 
 will they all then caft their crowns at the foot 
 of the Lamb ! with what joy wiil they cry, 
 grace, grace, when the top-ftone is brought 
 forth, and how will they then try who fhall 
 praife redeeming love and rich free grace in 
 the higheft ftrain ! The difference here is you 
 know, that we fing in parts, fome fing treble, 
 fome tenor, and fome bafe -, what then ? each 
 part helps the other, were all to ling alike the 
 harmony would not be compleat; however 
 Ihocking it is in this world, all the differences 
 that have been among the people of God, will 
 only make us fing and unite us the better in a 
 future ftate. 
 
 Well, my dear hearers, by this time then I 
 hope you have began to afk, to what place 
 am I going ? Suppofe now you reafon thus ; 
 I have heard to-night that all unregenerate 
 perfons go to hell, and dwell among the 
 damned ^ I have heard that all that are born 
 again of God, and all that believe in Jefus 
 Chrift, whether Jew or Gentile, whether 
 
 bp^4 
 
Ser. XV^ 'All Mens Place. 365 
 
 bond or free, all go to dwell with God, with 
 angels, and the fpirits of juft men made per- 
 fed ; I • have heard the minifter fiy, though 
 'he feems fometimes to ramble in his difcourfe, 
 "that we all go to one place, that is, the grave : 
 •^I am haftening there, autamn is coming on, 
 the fall of the leaf is approaching, a blaft, 
 occafioned by the fudden change of weather, 
 or a furfeit, by fealling too Ickuriantly on the 
 'fruits of- God's bounty 5 another illnefs may 
 take me to my long home. I hear of fjch-a- 
 one's dying, and of fuch-a-one, perhaps in an 
 apopledic, perhaps in a paralytic lit : I am 
 lufty and ftrbng, I am glorying in my ftrength, 
 but who knows but that may be only making 
 me food for a fever ^ one'would ftand it better 
 that was more emaciated than I am. If I 
 fhould be taken this night, am I going the 
 way to hell, or the way to heaven. Adrian, 
 the emperor, cried out upon a time. My trem- 
 blingy dear departing Joiil^ ^whither art thou 
 goi72g? thefe were his words. Won't you 
 hear an emperor preach, preach on his dying 
 bed, when the filver cords of life are loofed ? 
 Confcience, confcience, confcience, thou can- 
 dle of the Lord, may he help thee to light a 
 poor finner into a knowledge of himfelf I 
 
 charge 
 
3^6 '^// Mens Place] Ser. XV, 
 
 charge ''fitt in the name of our Lord Jefus 
 Chrift, in the name of that Saviour, in whofe 
 n:.me 3nd by whofe power, 1 truft, I now 
 preach ; O confciencc ! thou Litliful monitor, 
 kt every one hear their own. Come, if con- 
 fcience was to (peak what would it fay ? why, 
 that if you are not acquainted with yourfelfand 
 Chrift, you are lofl: for ever. The Ameri- 
 \ cans are the moft hofpitable people under 
 heaven, they love to entertain ftrangers, who 
 may be hereby kindly provided for without 
 going to an inn : I always endeavoured to 
 drop a word for Chrift when I came to their 
 houfes. I remember Mr. Seeward, and fome 
 other good friends were v/ith me ; when I firft 
 got into the houfe, 1 began to talk of Chrift j 
 the mafter of it faid, Sir, I believe you are 
 right J I can't open a leaf in my bible, but I 
 find I am no Chriftian : would to God all here 
 minded the fame leaf ! May be, many here 
 fay, fir, I fcorn your words ; well, don't I ? 
 don't God tell you that won t do ? you are 
 , a moral man, but don't love God 5 you don't 
 1 get drunk, becaufe it will make your head 
 ach ; you don't commit fornication and adul- 
 tery, which is common among the great, and 
 therefore they think God will not punifh them 
 
 for 
 
Ser, XV. M Mens Placel 367 
 
 for it ; perhaps you are not a fornicator, left 
 yoa {hould ftand in a fheet, though we have 
 no diTcipline among us now 5 you don't do 
 thefe things for fear of maintaining the baftard^ 
 or being taken up 3 but does your obedience 
 proceed from love to God, to Chrift i if not, 
 may God convince you of your mifcrable ftate 
 before you go hence. 
 
 But, blefled be God, there are numbers of 
 dear fouls here, that I hope e'er long to live 
 in one place and to eternal ages with. All 
 hail, my fellow Chriftians; all hail, my dear 
 brethren and friends ; all hail, ye that are chil- 
 dren of one parent, born of one Spirit, and 
 bring forth the Iruits of the Holy Ghoft in 
 your converfation > yet a little while, and 
 we muft part; whether I die, or you die, 
 blefled be God, one place fliall e'er long hold 
 us ; in yonder blefled world we fhall e'er long 
 meet, and praife free grace -, my brethren, we 
 fhall be then for ever with the Lord, for ever 
 one with Chrift ; and if this be the cafe, let 
 tis comfort one another with thefe things ; 
 and if we are all going to one place, God, of 
 his infinite mercy, keep us from falling out 
 by the way. Don't fay, I am of the Foun- 
 dery; dont fay, I am of the Tabernacle ; don't 
 
 fpend 
 
368 All Mens Place. Ser. XV. 
 
 ipend your time in talking againft John Wiefley 
 and George Whitefieldj don t fay, you go to 
 the Tabernacle, Til go to the chapel 5 no, 
 don't fpeak of Paul and Cephas ; God unite 
 us more and more to Jefus Chrifl: ; and if you 
 are going to heaven, God help you to travel a 
 little fafter than v^e do. My brethren, let us 
 prefs forward tovi^ard the mark of the prize of 
 our high calling in Chrift Jefus. O that the 
 God of love may fill us with fuch peace and 
 fuch joy, that every ftorm, every trial, every 
 temptation we meet with, may be over-ruled 
 to good for US; all our afflidlions, all our 
 temptations, are to make heaven more defi- 
 table, and earth more loathfome. 
 
 If this is not the cafe with fome of you, God 
 convert you to-night. Help me, my dear 
 Tabernacle and London hearers, help me^ 
 help me, help me for Jefus ChrilVs fake. 
 You was once going to hell yourfelves, for 
 God's fake endeavour to flop thofe that are 
 going there : pray for your unconverted friends. 
 Young people, young people, that are going to 
 hell giddily, may God flop you this night : 
 w^as I to talk to you ferioufly, you would fay 
 as a young gentleman did, when I defired he 
 would not fwear; he turned to me and faid, 
 
 Dodor. 
 
Ser. XV. All Mem Place. 369 
 
 Dodlor, (I was no more a dodior then than 
 now, and but young too) it is very hard you 
 will not let a man go to hell his own way ; if 
 any of you are of this ftamp, God grant he 
 may not let you go to hell your own way, 
 but go to heaven in God's way, in Chrifl's 
 way. I am fure you are not happy ; the de- 
 vil never had a happy child in the world : O 
 that God may turn your feet into the way of 
 peace to-night : O that it may be with you 
 as with a young man one night formerly : I 
 remember I had about two hundred notes 
 then 5 I came into mooriields this morning at 
 fix o'clock, fays he, to meet my fweetheart, 
 but, blefied be God, I met with Jefus Chrift, 
 my fweetheart : would to God you may do lo, 
 young men, to-night: when you have gone 
 on to that place, O that it may be with you 
 as it was with good Mr. Crane, who is ap- 
 pointed fteward of the Orphan-houle 5 he went 
 once to fee a play at Drury-lane, but tliat being 
 full he went to Covent-garden, and that was 
 fo full he could not put his head in; well, 
 fays he, he told it me himfelf^ and he is aa 
 Ifraelite indeed, one of the moft honeft men, 
 perhaps, in the world, I will go and 'hear 
 d^^flor Whitefield ; there God reached his 
 B b b heart, 
 
3^0 All Mens Place. Scr. XV. 
 
 heart, and now he (hines. I had letters yefter* 
 day or the day before from Georgia, that 
 made my heart leap for joy ; honeft Mr. 
 Wright, that ingenious, indefatigable man, 
 and Mr. Crane, have gone on fo well, and 
 have managed the Orphan-houfe fo well, that 
 all letters from all parts give me a pleafure : 
 would to God, one fays, you could fend ten 
 thoufand fucb people as Mr. Wright and Mr. 
 Crane ; would to God you could fend a thou- 
 fand fuch over, and an hundred preachers 
 to preach Chrift among us. O that curiofity 
 may be over-ruled for good to fome of you 
 to-night : but I forgot myfelf, and can you 
 blame me if I fliould detain you a little, tho* 
 I am really afraid of unfitting myfelf for my 
 voyage, if I tire myfelf before I go : to-mor- 
 row I am to go to fee where I am to ikep. I 
 intend, God willing, to have a facrament here 
 to-morrow, and another next Sabbath-day 
 morning. I intend, God willing, to give 
 you a parting word on Sunday evening, and 
 give you notice of taking my laft tarewel in 
 the week, for I muft get a day or two to dif- 
 patch my private bufinefs, and be ready to- 
 ga where my God calieth me. 
 
 IfhalL 
 
Ser. XV. ^// Mens Place. 371 
 
 I fliall, I think, be called to do fomething 
 which I would, if poffible, have avoided, and 
 that is, as this place has been repaired, you 
 fee 'tis frefli done, which is expenfive, and I 
 am willing to leave every thing clear before I 
 go, a collection muft be made for defraying 
 the charge. The world thinks I am very rich ; 
 a man, the other day, was fo perfuaded of 
 my riches, that he fent me word, if I did not 
 lay thirty pounds in fuch a place, I fliould be 
 killed as fure as I am alive; but, blcffed be 
 God, I am alive yet ; I do not fear dying fud- 
 denly, or being difpatched by a poignard, or a 
 piftol to make a paffage for my foul to flee 
 to God. You may think, perhaps, I get a 
 great deal by preaching here ; and now I am 
 going away, what do you think my ftated 
 allowance is for preaching at the Tabernacle ? 
 I have no more from this place than one hun- 
 dred pounds a year ; and I afked but laft night 
 how it flood, andinfteadofhavinga fingle lix- 
 pence, I was told there were fifty pounds 
 arrears ; well, faid I, ungrateful as it is to me, 
 I will make a coUedtion to-night that all may 
 be left free ; and if others are left to make an 
 advantage of it, may God make it a bleiiing. 
 There are not fix people in this place that I 
 B b b 2 have 
 
372 All Mens Place. Ser, XV. 
 
 have had the value of a guinea of from Janu- 
 ary to Auguft ; nor have I had a guinea from 
 all thefe ordinances towards bearing the expen- 
 ces of my voyage. When I come, my bre- 
 thren, to heaven, you fhall then know with 
 what a fpirit I have ferved youj you fhall 
 then know that all I have done is to build 
 places for others, where I hope God will 
 meet you and your children when I am dead 
 and gone. O that we may meet in one place, 
 when God calls me hence : the Lord quicken 
 you, the Lord ftrengthen you, the Lord Je- 
 fus Chrift be with you, and grant that e'er 
 long we may be where there fhall be no more 
 forrow, but we fhall dwell with God and one 
 another for ever 5 even f©. Lord Jefus Chrift, 
 Aincn, 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 373 ] 
 
 SERMON XVI. 
 
 God a Believer's Glory. 
 
 Isaiah Ix. ver. 19, 
 
 ^nci thy God thy Glory. 
 
 I LATELY had occafion to Ipeak on the 
 verfe immediately following that of our 
 text J but when I am reading God's 
 word, I often find it is like being in a tempt- 
 ing garden, when we pluck a little fruit and 
 find it good, we are apt to look after and 
 pluck a little more, only with this difference, 
 the fruit we gather below often hurts the body 
 at the fame time that it pleafes the appetite, but 
 when we walk in God's garden, when we ga- 
 ther fruit of the Redeemer's plants, the more 
 we eat the more we are delighted, and the 
 freer we are the more welcome 5 if any chap- 
 ter in the bible deferves this character and de- 
 
 fcription of an evangelical Eden, this does. 
 
 It 
 
374 ^^^ ^ Believer^ s Glory. Ser. XVI. 
 
 It is very remarkable, and I have often told 
 you of it, that all the apoftlcs preach firft the 
 law, and then the gofpcl, v^^hich finds man in 
 a ftatc of death, points out to him how he is 
 to get life, and then fweetly condufts him to 
 it. Great and glorious things are fpoken of 
 the church of God in this chapter ; and it ftruck 
 me very much this evening ever fince I came 
 into the pulpit, that the great God fpeaks of 
 the church in the Angular number : how can 
 that be, when the church is compofed of fo 
 many millions gathered out of all nations, 
 languages, and tongues ? how is it, that God 
 fays thy maker and not your maker, that he 
 fpeaks of the church as though it confifted 
 only of one individual perfon ? the reafon of it 
 IS this, and is very obvious, that though the 
 church is compofed of many members, they 
 have but one Head, and they are united by the 
 bond of one Spirit, by whom they have the 
 fame vital union of the foul with God ; and 
 therefore it teaches Chriftians not to fay to one 
 another, / am of Paul^ I am of Apollos^ or 
 Cephas^ but to behave and live fo, that the 
 world may know that we all belong to one 
 common Chrift: God revive, continue, and 
 increafe this true Chriftian love among us! 
 
 Qi 
 
Ser, XVI. God a Believer's Glory. ^75 
 
 Of this church, thus coUeftively confidered, 
 united under one head, the bleffed evangeli- 
 cal prophet thus fpcaks, Violence Jloall no more 
 be heard in thy land, isjafting nor deJiruBion 
 'within thy borders, but thou Jhalt call thy walls 
 fahationy and thy gates, where the magif- 
 trates affemble, and the people go in and out, 
 praife. From this text, a great many good 
 and great men have gathered what they call 
 the Millenium, that Jefus Chrift is to come 
 and reign a thouiand years on earth, but I 
 mull acknowledge that I have always rejedted 
 a great many good mens poiitive opinion about 
 the feafon when this ftate commences, and I 
 would w arn you all againft fixing aoy time j 
 for what fignifies whether Chrift comes to 
 reign a thoufand years, or when he comes, 
 fince you and I are to die very foon; and 
 therefore inftead of puzzling our heads about 
 it, God grant we may live fo that we may 
 reign with him for ever ; and it feems to me, 
 that whatfoever is faid of this ftate on earth, 
 that the millenium is to be underftood in a 
 fpiritual fenfe, as an emblem of a glorious, 
 eternal, beatific ftate in the kingdom of heaven. 
 The funJhaU no more be thy light by day, nor j or 
 brightnefs Jhall the moon give light unto thee, 
 
 but 
 
376 God a BeHeijers Glory. Ser. XVL 
 
 iut the Lord Jhall be unto thee an everlajling 
 light 'y and in order to prepare us for that 
 light, and fliow us the nature of it, while we 
 Ipeak of it may it come with light and power 
 to our fouls. He adds in our text, and thy 
 God Jhall be thy glory : this is fpoken to all 
 believers in general, but it is fpoken to all 
 fearful believers in particular ; and I don't 
 know that I can poffibly clofe my poor, fee- 
 ble miniftration among you here, better than 
 with thefe words; though, God willing, I 
 intend, if he fhall ftrengthen me this week, to 
 give you a parting word next Wednefday 
 morning j and O that what has been my com- 
 fort this day in the meditation on this paflage, 
 may be yours and mine to all eternity. He 
 that hath an ear to hear let him hear what the 
 evangelic prophet faith, thy God thy glory. 
 
 The Holy Ghofl feems, as it were, parti- 
 cularly fond of this expreffion ; when God 
 publifhed the ten commandments upon mount 
 Sinai, he prefaced it thus, / a?n the Lord^ 
 and not content with that, he adds, thy God; 
 and the frequency of it, I fuppofe, made 
 Luther fay, that the gqfpel dcah much in pro^ 
 nouns y in "which confijis a believer's cojrjort \ 
 but if there were no other argument than this, 
 
 it 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory. ^77 
 
 it would cut up that deflrudlive principle by 
 the very root that pretends to tell us that there 
 is no fuch thing as appropriation in the Bible ; 
 that our faith is only to be a rational aflent to 
 the word of God, without a particular appli- 
 cation of that word made to our fouls : this is 
 as contrary to the gofpel, and to experience of 
 every real faint, as light is contrary to darknefs 
 and heaven to helK My brethren, I appeal to 
 any of you, what good would it do you, if you 
 had ten thoufand notes wrote in large charaders 
 by the fineft hand that can write in London -, 
 fuppofc you have got them, as many men have, 
 and it is a very convenient way, that they were 
 put into your little pockets made on the infide 
 of your coat j fuppofe you fliould fay, my coat 
 is buttoned, I have all thefe here next my 
 heart : v/hen I come to look at them, I find 
 there is not one note payable to me, they are 
 all either forged, or payable to fome body elfe; 
 and therefore are good for nothing to me. All 
 the promifes of the gofpel, all that is faid of 
 God and Chrift, can do us no good, except 
 that God and Chriil is ours. The great queftion 
 therefore is, v/hether the God we profefs to 
 believe in, is our God ? not only, whether he 
 is fo in general, that the devils may fay 5 but 
 C c c Vf'hether 
 
378 Ocd a Believer's Glory. Ser. XVI. 
 
 whether he Is our God in particular. The devils 
 can fay, O God ; but the devils cannot fay, 
 my G^.d : that is a privilege peculiar to God's 
 chofen people, vi^ho really believe on the Lord 
 Jefus Chrift: and therefore, my brethren, a 
 deift cannot fay, my God, my Chrift, becaufe 
 he does not believe on that medium by which 
 God becomes our God. That was a noble 
 faying of Luther, " I will have nothing to do 
 with ati abfolute God ; *' that is, I will have 
 nothing to do with a God out of Chrift. Now 
 this is a deift's glory : Lord Bolingbroke va- 
 \ lues himfelf upon if, I am aftonifhed at that 
 1 man's infidelity and cowardice. I don't like 
 thofe men that leave their writings to be pub* 
 lifhed after their death : I love to fee men bold 
 in their writings : I like an honeft man that 
 will put out his writings while alive, that he 
 may fee what men can fay againft him, and 
 then anfwer them j but it is meer cowardice 
 to leave it to the world to anfwer for it, to 
 fet us a cavelling after they are got into the 
 grave : fays he, I will have nothing to do with 
 the God of Mofes; and I fuppole the prin- 
 ciples of that deift made one pretty near to 
 him afk as foon as his breath was out of his 
 body, where do you think he is gone to ? an- 
 other 
 
Scr. XVL God a Believer's Glory. 379 
 
 other replies, where do you think, bat to hell. 
 God grant that may not be the portion of any 
 here ! 
 
 The queftion then is, how God is our God j 
 thy God. My brethren, our all depends upon 
 it; what fignifies faying, this is mine, and that 
 is mine, ii you cannot fay, God is mine. The 
 beft thing that God has left in the New Tefta- 
 ment, is himfeif : 1 will be their God^ that is 
 one of the legacies \ and a new heart aljo will 
 I give the?ny that is another ; 1 will put my 
 laws in their mind^ and write them in their 
 hearts^ that is another : but all that is good for 
 nothing, comparatively fpeaking, unlefs God 
 has faid at the fame time, for they are all in- 
 feparable, I will be their God^ and they JJ:all 
 be my people. Now how fhall I know that 
 God is my God ? I am afraid, fome people 
 think there is no knowing; well then, if you 
 think fo, you fet up a worfhip, and go and 
 ered: an altar, and inftead of receiving God in 
 the facrament as yours, go and worfhip an un- 
 known God. I am fo far from believing, that 
 we cannot know that God is ours, that I am 
 fully perluaded of it, and would fpeak it with 
 huniility, and I would not chufe to leave you 
 with a lie in my m uth, that 1 have kn^wn 
 C c c 2 \X 
 
3 So God a Believer's Glory. Scr. XVI. 
 
 it for about thirty-five years as clear as the fun 
 is in the meridian^ that God is my God. And 
 how ihall I know it, my brethren ? I would 
 afk you this queftion, didft thou ever feel the 
 want of God to be thy God ? No body knows 
 God to be their God that did not feel him to 
 be his God in Chrift : out of Chrift, God is a 
 confuming fire. I know there are a great va- 
 riety of ways in peoples converfions, but ftill, 
 my brethren, we muft all feel our mifery, 
 we muft all feel our diftance from God, all 
 feel that we are eftranged from God, that we 
 bring into the world with us a nature that is 
 not agreeable to the law of God, nor poflibly 
 can be ^ we cannot be faid to believe that God 
 is our God, till we are brought to be recon- 
 ciled to him through his Son. Can I fay, a 
 perfon is my friend, till I am reconciled to 
 him? and therefore the gofpel only is the 
 miniftration" of reconciliation. Paul faith. We 
 befeech you as ambajfadors of Chrijly that you 
 'would be reconciled unto God : this is to be the 
 grand topic of our preaching ; we are to be- 
 feech them, and God himfelf turns beggar to 
 his own creatures to be reconciled to him : 
 now this reconciliation is brought about by a 
 poor finner's being brought to Jefus Chrift; 
 
 and 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory. 3 Si 
 
 and when once he fees his enmity and hatred 
 to God, feeling the mifery of departing from 
 him, and being confcious that he is obnoxious 
 to eternal wrath, flies to Jefus as to a place of 
 refuge, and expeds only a reconciliation thro' 
 the blood of the Lamb ; without this, neither 
 you nor I can fay, God is my God : there is 
 no peace ^ faith my Gody to the wicked. The 
 miniflers of Chrift mufi: take care they don't 
 preach an unknown God, and we mufl take 
 care we don't pretend to live upon an un- 
 known God, a God that is not appropriated 
 and brought home to our fouls by the efficacy 
 of the Spirit. But, my brethren, we cannot fay, 
 God is our God, unlefs we are in Jefus Chrift. 
 Can you fay, fuch a one is your father, unlefs 
 you can give proof of it ? You may be baftards, 
 there are many baftards laid at Chrift's door. 
 Now, God cannot be my God, at leaft I can- 
 not know him to be fo, unlefs he is pleafed to 
 fend into my heart the fpirit of adoption, and 
 to admit me to enjoy familiarity with Chrift, 
 
 My brethren, 1 told you the other night 
 that the grand controverfy God has with Eng- 
 land is for the flight put on the Holy Ghoft. As 
 fcon as a perfon begins to talk of the work of 
 the Holy Ghoft, they cry, you are a methodift : 
 
382 God a Believers Glory. Ser. XVI. 
 
 as foon as you fpeak about the divine influences 
 of the Holy Ghoft, O ! fay they, you are an 
 enthufiaft. May the Lord keep thefe metho- 
 diftical enthufiafts amongfl: us to the lateft 
 poflerity. Ignatius, fuppofed to have been one 
 of the children that Jefus took up in his arms, 
 in his firfl Epiftle (pray read it) v^^rote loon 
 after St. John's death, and we value nothing fo 
 authentic as what was wrote in the three firfl 
 centuries, bears a noble teflimony to this truth. 
 When I was performing my firfl exercifes at 
 Oxford, I ufed to take delight to walk and 
 read it, and could not help noting and putting 
 down from time to time fcveral remarkable 
 pafTages, In the fuperfcription of all his 
 Epiflles, I remember, he fliles himfelf Tbeo- 
 fhorosy i. e. Bearer of God *, and believed 
 that thofe he wrote to, were fo too. Some 
 body went and told Trajan, that one Ignatius 
 was an enthufiafl, that he carried God about 
 him : being brought before the emperor, who, 
 though in other refpefts ^ good prince, was 
 a cruel enemy to the Chriflians : but many a 
 good prince does bad things by. the influence 
 of wicked counfellors, like our king Henry the 
 Vthj who was brought in to perfecute the pour 
 
 Lollards^ 
 
 * Deum ferens, mfp'reJy iikine^ holy. 
 
Ser.XVI. God a Believer's Glory. 383 
 
 Lollards, for affembllng in St. Giles's fields to 
 hear the pure gofpel, by falfe accufation o£ 
 being rebels againfl him. Before fuch a prince 
 was Ignatius brought ; fays Trajan, who is this 
 that calls himfelf a bearer of God ? lays Igna- 
 tius, I am he, for v^rhich he quotes this paf- 
 fage, I will dwell in them^ and will walk in 
 them J and they Jhall be my fons and daughters^ 
 fayi the Lord almighty. The emperor was fo 
 enraged that, in order to cure him of his en- 
 thufiafm, he ordered him to be devoured by 
 lions 'y at which Ignatius laughed for joy : O ! 
 fays he, am I going to be devoured ? and when 
 his friends came about him, he almoft danced 
 for gladnefs ; when they carried him to execu- 
 tion he fmiled, and turning about, faid, now I 
 begin to be a martyr of Jefus Chrift! I have 
 heard that the lions have leaped from the mar- 
 tyrs, but when they come to me, I will en- 
 courage them to fall on me with all their vio- 
 lence. God give you fuch enthufiafm in a 
 trying hour ! This is to have God for our God : 
 he that belicveth hath the witnefs in himfelf] as 
 it is written in this blellcd word of God, and 
 I hope it will be the laft book that I fhall 
 read. Farewel father, fareu^el mother, farewel 
 fun, moon, and ftars ! was the language of one 
 
 of 
 
384 God a Believer's Glory. Ser. XVI. 
 
 of the Scotch martyrs in king Charles's time, 
 and it is amazing to me that even Mr. Hume 
 (I believe) a profelTed deift, in his Hiftory of 
 England mentions this as a grand exit, and 
 alfo that feraphic foul Mr. Hervey, now with 
 God, that the laft words of the martyr were, 
 Farewel thou precious Bible, thou blefled book 
 of God. This is my rock, this is my founda- 
 tion, it is now about thirty-five years fince I 
 have begun to read the Bible upon my pillow. 
 I love to read this book, but the book is no- 
 thing but an account of the promifes which it 
 contains, and almoft every word firom the be- 
 ginning to the end of it fpeaks of a fpiritual 
 difpenfation, and the Holy Ghoft, that unites 
 our fouls to God, and helps a believer to fay, 
 my Lord and my God ! If you content your- 
 felves with that, the devil will let you talk of 
 dodrines enough : O you fhall turn from Armi- 
 nianifm to Calvinifm ; O you fliall be orthodox 
 enough, if you will be content to live without 
 Chrift's living in you. Now when you have 
 got the Spirit, then you may fay, God is mine. 
 O this is very fine, fay fome, every body pre- 
 tends to the Spirit : and then you may go on 
 as a bifhop once told a nobleman. My Lord, 
 thefe methodifts, fay they, do all by the Spirit, 
 
 fo 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory, 385 
 
 fo if the devil bids them murder any body, 
 ihey will fay, the Spirit bid them do it; and 
 that very bifhop died, how ? why horrid ! the 
 laft words he fpoke w. re thefe, 7he battle is 
 fought, the battle is fought, the battle is fought^ 
 but the viBory is loft for ever. God grant, you 
 and I may not die with fuch words as thefe. 
 I hope you and I fhall die and fay, T^he battle 
 is fought, the battle is fought, the battle is 
 fought, J have fought the good fight ^ and the 
 victory is gained for ever. Thus died Mr. 
 Ralph Erfkine, his laft words were, Vidtory^ 
 vidory, vidlory ! and they that can call God 
 their God, fhall by and by cry, Vidory, vido- 
 ry 1 and that for ever. God grant, we may 
 all be of that happy number. 
 
 If we can call God our God, we ihall en- 
 deavour by the Holy Ghoft to be like God, we 
 fhall have his divine image ftamped upon our 
 fouls, and endeavour to be followers of that 
 God who is our Father : and this brings in the 
 other part of the text, thy God, thy Glory, What 
 is that ? The greateft honor that a poor believer 
 thinks he can have on earth, is to boaft that 
 God is his God. When it was propofed to 
 David, that if he killed an hundred Philiftines, 
 he (hould have the king's daughter for his 
 D d d wife, 
 
386 God a Believers Glory. Ser. XVI. 
 
 wife, and a very forry wife fhe was, no great 
 gain turned out to him : fays he, do you think 
 it is a jmall thing to be the fon-in-Iaw to a 
 king ? a poor ftrippling as I am here come 
 with my fhepherd*s crook, what ! to be mar- 
 ried to a king's daughter, do you think that is a 
 fmall thing ? and it David thought it no fmall 
 thing to be allied to a king by his daughter, 
 what a great thing muft it be to be allied to 
 the Lord by one* Spirit ? I am afraid there are 
 fome people that were once poor that are 
 now rich, that think it a great thing, that wifli, 
 O that my family had a coat of arms ; fomc 
 people would give a thoufand pounds, I believe^ 
 for one. Coats of arms are very proper to make 
 diftindion in Ufe, a great many people wear 
 coats of arms that their anceftors got honour- 
 ably, but they are a difgrace to them as they 
 wear them on their coaches. But this is out- 
 glory, whether we walk or ride, whatever our 
 pedigree may be in life, this is our honor that 
 our God may be our glory, O what manner 
 of love is thisy faith one, that the Lord doth 
 be flow on us^ that we Jhould be called the fons oj 
 God ! born not ot the will of man, born not 
 of flcflh, but born from above. O God grant 
 that this may be your glory and mine ! 
 
 My 
 
r 
 
 Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory. 387 
 
 My brethren, if God is our God and our 
 glory, ril tell you what we fliaH prove it by: 
 whether we eat or drink, or wiiatevtr we do, 
 we fliould do all to the glory oi God. Reli- 
 gion, as I have often told you, turns our whole 
 life into one continued facrifice of love to God. 
 As a needle, when once touched by a lodd- 
 ftone, turns to a particular pole, fo the heart 
 that is touched by the love of God, turns to 
 his God agam. I fhall have occafion to take 
 notice of it by and by, w^hen I am aboard a 
 fliip : for as foon as I get on board, I generally 
 place mylelf in one particular place under the 
 compais that hangs over my head, I often look 
 at it by night and by day 5 when I rife the 
 needle turns to one point, when 1 go to bed I 
 find it turns to the fame point ; and often, 
 while I have been looking at it, my heart has 
 been turned to God, faying, Lord Jefu", as that 
 needle touched by the loadftone, turns to one 
 point, O may my heart touched by the magnet 
 of God's love, turn to him! A great many 
 people think, they never worfliip God but 
 when at church ; and a great many are very 
 demure on Lord's days, though many begin to 
 leave that off. I know of no place upon the 
 face of the earth where the Sabbath is kept 
 
 as 
 
388 God a Believer's Glory. Ser. XVL 
 
 as it is at Bofton : if a fingle perfon was to 
 walk in Bofton ftreets in time of worfhip, ha 
 would be taken up 5 it is not trufted to poor 
 infignificant men, but the juftices go out in 
 time of worfhip, they walk with a white wand, 
 and if they catch any perfon walking in the 
 ftreets, they put them under a black rod. O ! 
 the great mifchiefs the poor pious people have 
 fuffered lately thro' the town's being difturbed 
 by the foldiers ! When the drums were 
 beating before the houfe of Dr. Sawell, one of 
 the holieft men that ever was, when he was fick 
 and dying, on the fabbath day, by his meeting, 
 where the noife of a fingle perfon was never 
 heard before, and he begged that for Ghrift's 
 fake they would not beat the drum; they 
 damned and faid, that they would beat to 
 make him worfe : this is not ading for the 
 glory of God 5 but when a foul is turned to 
 God, every day is a fabbath, every meal is a 
 fpiritual refrefhment, and every fentcnce hq 
 fpeaks, fhould be a fermon 5 and whether he 
 ftays abroad or at home, v^hether he is on th? 
 exchange, or locked up in a clofet, he can fay, 
 O God, thou art my God ! 
 
 Now, my dear friends, can you, dare you 
 fay, that your God is your glory, and do you 
 
 aim 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory. 389 
 
 aim at glorifying the Lord your God : if your 
 God is your glory, then fay, O God forbid that 
 I JJjould glory fave in the crofs of our Lord Je^ 
 fus Chrijl^ by whom the world is crucified to 
 me^ and 1 am crucified to the world. What 
 fay you to that now ? don't talk of God's be- 
 ing your glory, if you don't love his crofs. 
 If God is our glory, we fhall glory not only 
 in doing, but in fuffering for him 3 we fhall 
 glory in tribulation, and count ourfelvcs moft 
 highly honoured when we are called to fuffer 
 moft for his great name fake. I might enlarge, 
 but you may eafily judge by my poor feeble 
 voice this laft week, that neither my flrength 
 of voice, or body, will permit me to be long 
 to-night, and yet I will venture to give you 
 your laft parting falutation 3 and though I have 
 been difluaded from getting up to preach this 
 night, yet I thought as my God was my glor- 
 ry, I fhould glory in preaching till I died. 
 O that God may be all our glory ! Ail our 
 own glory fades away, there is nothing will be 
 valuable at the great day but this, Thou art 
 my God, and thou art my glory. It was a glo^ 
 fious turn that good Mr, Shepherd of Bradford 
 mentions in one of his fermons, where he repre- 
 sents JefusChrift as coming to judgment feated 
 
 tipoi^ 
 
3 90 God a Believer* s Glory. Sen XVI. 
 
 upon his throne, in a fermon preached before 
 fome minifters. Chrifl: calls one minifter to 
 him, Pray what brought you into the church ? 
 O, fays he, Lord, there was a living in the 
 family, and I was prefented to it becaufe it was 
 a family living : Hand thou by, fays Chrifl. A 
 fecond comes. What didfl thou enter into the 
 church for ? O Lord, fays he, I had a fine 
 elocution, I had pretty parts, and I went into 
 the church to fhew my oratory and my parts : 
 fland thou by, thou haft thy reward. A third 
 was called, And what brought you into the 
 church ? Lord, fays he, thou knoweft all things, 
 thou knoweft that I am a poor creature, vile 
 and miferable, and unworthy, and helplefs, but 
 I appeal to thee my glory, thou fitteft upon 
 the throne, that thy glory and the good of 
 fouls brought me there: "^Chrift immediately 
 fays. Make room, men, make room, angels, 
 and bring up that foul to fit near me on my 
 throne. Thus fhall it be done to all that 
 make God their glory here below. Glorify God 
 on earth, and he will glorify you in heaven. 
 Come, ye hie [fed of my Father, receive the king- 
 dom, prepared for you from the foundation of 
 the *world, fhall be your portion : and if fo. 
 Lord God almighty make us content to be 
 
 vilified 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory. 391 
 
 vilified whllft here, make us content to be 
 defpifed while below, make us content to have 
 evil things fpoken of us, all for Chrifl's fake, 
 yet a little while, and Chrifl: will roll away the 
 flone : and the more we are honoured by his 
 grace to fuffer, the more we fliall be honoured 
 in the kingdom of heaven. O that thought! 
 O that blcffed thought ! O that foul tranfport- 
 ing thought 1 it is enough to make us leap into 
 a fiery furnace ; in this fpirit, in this temper, 
 may God put every one of us. 
 
 If there be any of you that have not yet 
 called God your God, m.ay God help you to 
 do fo to-night. When I was reafoning within 
 myfelf, whether I fliould come up, or whether 
 it was my duty or not ? I could not help 
 thinking, who knows but God will blefs a 
 poor feeble worm to-night. I remember, a 
 dear friend fent me word after I was gone to 
 Georgia, " Your Jaft fermon at the Tabernacle 
 ** was blefled to a particular perfon;" I heard 
 from that peifon to-day : and who knows but 
 fome may come to-day, and fay, I will go 
 and hear what the babler has to fay ? who 
 knows but curiolity may be over-ruled for 
 good ? who knows but thofe that have ierved 
 the lull of the fle(h and the pride of life iot 
 
 their 
 
2gz God a Believer's Glory, Scr. XVL 
 
 their god, may now take the Lord to be their 
 God ? O ! if I could but fee this, I think I 
 could drop down dead for you. 
 
 My dear Chriftians, will you not help me 
 to-night^ you that can go and call God your 
 God? go and beg of God for me, pray td 
 heaven for me^ do pray for thofe that are in 
 the gall of bitternefs, that have no God, no 
 Chrift to go to, and if they w^ere to die to- 
 night, would be damned for ever. O poor 
 iinner, where is your glory then ? where is 
 your purple and fine linnen then ? your purple 
 robes will be turned into purple fire, and in- 
 ftead of calling God your God, will be damn'd 
 with the devil : O think of your danger ! O 
 earthy earthy earthy hear the word of the Lord ! 
 If you never was awakened before, may the 
 arrows of God, fteep'd in the blood of Jefus 
 Chriftj reach your hearts now ! Think how 
 you live at enmity with God, think of your 
 danger every day and every hour, your danger 
 of dropping into hell ; think how your friends 
 in glory will leave you, and may this confide- 
 ration, under the influences of the Holy Ghofty 
 excite you to chufe God for your God ! Tho' 
 the fun is going down, tho* the fliadow of the* 
 evening is coming on, God is willing, O man, 
 
 God 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Believer's Glory. 393 
 
 God is willing, O woman, to be a iinner's God^ 
 he has found out a way whereby he can be 
 reconciled to you. I remember, when I faw a 
 nobleman condemned to be hanged, the Lord 
 High Steward told him, that however he w*as 
 obliged to pafs fentence on him, and did not 
 know that juftice would be fatisfied but by the 
 execution of the law in this world, yet there 
 might be a way whereby juftice might be fa- 
 tisfied and mercy take place in another : when 
 I heard his Lordihip fpeak, I wifhed that he had 
 not only faid, there might be a way, but that 
 he had found out the way wherein God could 
 be juft, and yet a poor murderer coming to 
 Jefus Chrift fhould be pardoned. 
 
 You that can call God yours, God help you 
 from this moment to glorify him more and 
 more : and if God be your God and your glo- 
 ry, I am perfuaded, if the love of God abounds 
 in your hearts, you will be willing on every 
 occafion to do every thing to promote his ho- 
 nor and glory, and therefore ycu will be willing 
 at all times to affift and help as far as lies in 
 your power to keep up places of worfhip, to 
 promote his glory in the falvation and conver- 
 fion of finners 5 and I mention this becaufe 
 there is to be a coUedion this night -, I would 
 
 E e e have 
 
394 God a Believer s Glory. Ser.XVL 
 
 have chofe, if poffible, to have evaded this 
 point, but as this Tabernacle has been repaired, 
 and as the expence is -pretty large, and as I 
 would chufe to leave every thing unincumbered, 
 I told my friends, 1 would undertake to make 
 a colledion, that every thing might be left 
 quite clear : remember, it is not ior me, but 
 for yourfelves, I told you on Wednefday how 
 matters were ; I am now going a thirteenth 
 time over the water on my own expence, and 
 you fhall know at the great day what little, 
 very little affiftance I have had from thofe who 
 owed, under God, their fouls to my being 
 here : but this is for the place where you are 
 to meet,, and where I hope God will meet 
 you, when I am tofiing on the water, when 
 I am in a foreign clime. I think I can fay thy 
 glory, O God, calls me away, and as I am 
 going towards fixty years of age, I fhall make 
 what difpatch I can, and I hope, if I am fpared 
 to come back, that I fhall hear that fome of 
 you are gone to heaven, or are nearer heaven 
 than you were. I find there is near 70I, ar- 
 rears 'y I hope you will not run away, if you 
 can fay God is my glory, you will not pufh 
 one upon another, as though you w^ould loofe 
 yourfelves in the croud, and fay no body fees 
 
 me; 
 
Ser. XVI. God a Belt ever' s Giory, 39 r 
 
 me; but does not God Almighty fee you ? I 
 hope you will be ready to communicate, and 
 when I am gone that God will be with you ; 
 as many of you will not hear me on Wednef- 
 day morning. O may this be your prayer, O 
 for Jefus Chrift's fake, in whofe name I preach, 
 in whofe flrength I deiire to come up, and for 
 whofe honor I defire to be fpent, O do put up 
 a word for me, it will not coft you much 
 time, it will not keep you a moment from your 
 bufinefs ; G Lord Jefus Chrift thou art his 
 God 1 and, Lord Jefus Chrift let him be thy 
 glory ! If I die in the waters, I fliall go by 
 water to heaven ; if I land at the Orphan 
 Houfe, I hope it will be a means to fettle a 
 foundation for ten thoufand perfons to be in- 
 ilrudted ; and if I go by the continent, as I 
 intend to do, I hope God will enable me to 
 preach Chrift ^ and if I return again, my life 
 will be devoted to your fervice. You muft 
 excufe me, I cannot fay much more, afFecftion 
 works 5 and I could heartily wifh, and I beg 
 it as a favour, when I come to leave you, that 
 you will excufe me from a particular parting 
 with you; take my public farewell; I will 
 pray for you when in the cabin, I will pray 
 for you when ftorms and tempefts are about 
 E e e 2 me ; 
 
396 God a Believer's Glory. Ser. XVL 
 
 me 5 and this fhall be my prayer for the dear 
 people of the Tabernale, for the dear people 
 of the Chapel, for the dear people of London, 
 O God, be thou their God ! and grant, that 
 their God may be their glory. Even fo, Lord 
 Jefus ! Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 397 ] 
 
 SERMON XVII. 
 
 Jacob's Ladder. 
 A Farewel Sermon. 
 
 Genesis xxviii. ver. 12, &c. 
 
 ji72d he dreamed^ and behold^ a ladder fet upon 
 the earthy and the top of it reached to hea^ 
 ven : and behold^ the angels of God afcending 
 and defending on it. And behold^ the Lord 
 
 , flood above it^ and faid, I am the Lord God 
 of Abraham thy father^ and the God of Ifaac : 
 the land whereon thou lieft^ to thee will I give 
 it^ and to thy Jeed. And thy feedflmll be as 
 the dufl of the earth ; a7id thou fjalt fpread 
 abroad to the wefl^ and to the eajt^ and to the 
 norths and to thefouth: and in thee ^ and in 
 thy feed fJoall all the families of the earth he 
 blejTcd, And behold, I am with thee, and 
 will keep thee in all places^ whither then 
 goefi, and will bring thee again into this 
 
 land : 
 
398 ^acob'i Ladder. Ser. XVII. 
 
 land: for 1 will not leave theCy until I 
 have done that which I have fpoken to, thee 
 of. 
 
 TH E wife man obferves, that in the 
 rniiltitiide of dreams there is many va^ 
 77itieSy being often the effedts of a 
 peculiar diforder of body, or owing to fome 
 difturbance of the mind. They whofe nervous 
 fyftem' has been long relaxed, who have had 
 fevere domeftic trials, or have been greatly 
 affefted by extraordinary occurrences, know 
 this to be true by their own experience ; but 
 however this may be, there have been, and 
 poffibly may be ftill, dreams that have no 
 manner of dependance on the indifpofition of 
 the body, or other natural caufe, but feem to 
 bring a divine fandlion with them, and make 
 peculiar impreffions on the party, though this 
 was more frequent before the canon ot fcrip- 
 ture was clofed, than now. God fpoke to 
 his people in a dream, in avifion of the night j 
 witnefs, the fubje6t of our prefent meditation, 
 a dream of the patriarch Jacob's, when going 
 forth as a poor pilgrim with a ftaff in his 
 hand, from his father's houfe, deprived of his 
 mother's company and inftrudlion, perfecuted 
 by an elaer brother, without attendants or ne- 
 
 ceflaries. 
 
Ser. XVII. 'Jacob's Ladder. 399 
 
 ceflaries, only leaning on an invlfible power, 
 
 I need not inform you in how extraordinary 
 
 a way he got the bleffing, which provoked 
 
 his brother to fuch a degree, as determined 
 
 him to be the death of Jacob, as foon as ever 
 
 his aged father dropped : to what a height did 
 
 this wicked man's envy rife when he faid, the 
 
 days of mourning for my father will foon conic , 
 
 and what then ? why, though I have fome 
 
 compaffion for the old man, and therefore 
 
 will not lay violent hands upon my brother 
 
 while my father is alive, yet I am refolved to 
 
 kill him before my father is cold in his grave. 
 
 This is the very fpirit of Cain, who talked to 
 
 his brother, and then flew him : this coming 
 
 to the ears of his mother, fhe tells the good 
 
 old patriarch her huiband, who loving peace 
 
 and quietnefs, takes the good advice of the 
 
 weaker vefiel, and orders Jacob to go to his 
 
 mother's brother, Laban, and ftay a Uttle while 
 
 out of Efau's fight, (perhaps out of fight out 
 
 of mind) and by and by probably, faid he, 
 
 thou mayft come to thy father and mother 
 
 again in peace and fafety. Jacob, though 
 
 fure of the bleffing in the end, by his father's 
 
 confirmation of it, yet prudently makes ufc 
 
 oi proper means ^ therefore he obeyed bis 
 
 parents : 
 
^oo "Jacob's Ladder. Sen XVIL 
 
 parents : and wo, wo be to thofe who think 
 a parent's bleffing not worth their alking for ! 
 Having had his mother's bleffing, as well as 
 his father's, without faying, I will try it out 
 with my brother^ I will let him know that I 
 am not afraid of him, he views it as the call 
 of God, and like an honeft, fimple pilgrim, 
 went out from Beerflieba towards Haran. Was 
 it not a little unkind in his parents not to fur- 
 nifh him with fome neceffaries and conveni- 
 encies ? When the fervant was fent to fetch a 
 wife for Ifaac, he had a great deal of atten- 
 dance, why fhould not Jacob have it now; 
 his father might have fent him away with 
 great parade ; but I am apt to believe this did 
 not fuit Jacobus real, pilgrim fpirit ; he was a 
 plain man, and dwelt in tents, when, perhaps, 
 he might have dwelt under cedar roofs ; he 
 chofe a pilgrim's life, and prudence direded 
 him to go thus in a private manner, to pre- 
 vent increafing Efau's envy, and giving the 
 fatal blow. 
 
 Methinks, I fee the young pilgrim weeping 
 when he took his leave of his father and mo- 
 ther \ he went on foot, and they that are ac- 
 quainted with the geography of the place, 
 fay, that the firft day of his journey he walked 
 
 not 
 
Ser. XVII. "Jacob" i Ladder^, 401 
 
 not lefs than forty Englifli miles ; what exer- 
 dfe muft he have had all that way ! no won- 
 der, therefore, that by the time the fwn was 
 going down, poor Jacob felt himfelf very 
 weary, for we are told, ver. ii, that he lighted 
 GH a certain place^ and tarried there all nighty 
 becaufe the jitn was fet. There is a particular 
 cmphafis to be put upon this term, a certain 
 place "y he faw the fun going down, he was 
 a ftranger in a ftrange land. (You that are born: 
 in England can have very little idea of it, but) 
 perfons that travel in the American woods can 
 form a more proper idea, for you may there, 
 travel a hundred and a thoufand miles, an4 
 go through one continued tradl of tall green 
 trees, like the tall cedars of Lebanon 5 and 
 the gentlemen of America, from one end to 
 the other, are of fuch an hofpitable temper, 
 as I have not only been told, but have found 
 among them upwards of thirty years, that they 
 would not let public houfes be licenfed, that 
 they may have an opportunity of entertaining 
 Engiifli friends : may God, of his infinite 
 mercy, grant this union may never be dillol- 
 ved.) 
 
 Well, Jacob got to a certain place, and 
 
 perhaps he faw a good tree that Would ferve 
 
 Fff hioi 
 
402 . jfacob's Ladder. Ser. XViL 
 
 him for a canopy ; however, this we are told, 
 he tairied there all night becaufe the fun was 
 iet, and he took of the ftones of that place 
 and put them for his pillow, and laid down in 
 that place to lleep • hard lodgings for him wha 
 was ufed to lie otherwife at home: I don't 
 hear him fay, I wifli I was got back to my 
 mother again, I wifh I had not fet out 5 but 
 upon the hard ground and hard pillow he lies 
 down 3 I believe never poor man flept fweeter 
 in his life> for it is certainly fweet fleep when 
 God is near us 3 he did not know but his 
 brother might follow and kill him while be was 
 afleep, or that the wild beafts might devour 
 him ; (in America, when they fleep in the 
 woods, and I expedl to have fome fuch fleep- 
 ing times in them before a twelvemonth is 
 over, we are obliged to make a fire to keep the 
 beafts from us : I have often faid then, and I 
 hope I fhall never forget it, when I rife in the 
 morning, this fire in the woods that keeps the 
 wild beafts from hurting us, is like the fire of 
 God's love that keeps the devil from hurting 
 us:) thus weary and folitary he falls afleep, 
 and fweetly dreams, and behold 5 I don't remem- 
 ber many paflTages offcripture where the word, 
 heboid y is -repeated fo many times in fo fhort 
 
 a fpace 
 
Ser. XVII. Jacob* s Ladder, ^ 403 
 
 a fpace as in the pafTage before us, doubtlefs, 
 Ithe Lord would have us particularly take no- 
 tice of it, even us upon whom the ends of 
 the world are come : Behold, a ladder fet upon 
 the earthy and the top reached to heaven ; and 
 behold, the angels of God a fc ending and dc- 
 Jcenciing upon it ; and behold, the Lord jlaod 
 above it ; fo here are three beholds in a very 
 few lines. Was there any thing very extraor- 
 dinary in that ? perhaps the Deifls would fay, 
 your patriarch was tired, and dreamed among 
 other things of a ladder 5 yes, he did, but this 
 dream was of God, and how kind was he to 
 meet him at the end of the firft day's journey, 
 to ftrengthen and animate him to go forward in 
 this lonefome pilgrimage ! 
 [IW^'V- '^^^^ ladder is reckoned by fome to denote 
 the providence of God : it was let down as it 
 were from heaven, particularly at this time to 
 poor Jacob, that he might know that howpver 
 he was become a pilgrim, and left his all, all 
 for God's glory, that God would take care for 
 his comfort, and give his angels charge over 
 him to keep him in all his ways, which was 
 denoted by the angels afcending and defcending 
 upon the ladder. Some think that particular 
 faints and countries have particular guardian 
 F f f 2 angels. 
 
404 Jacob's Ladder. Ser. XVIL 
 
 angels, and therefore that the angels that 
 afcended were thofe that had the particular 
 charge of that place, fo far as Jacob had come; 
 that the angels that dcfcended were another 
 fet of angels, iept down from heaven to guard 
 him in his fixture journey 5 perhaps, this is more 
 a fancy than the word of God. However, 1 
 very much like the obfervation of good Mr. 
 Burket, " Why fhould y^e dilpute whether 
 " every individual believer has got a particu- 
 " lar angel, when there is not one believer 
 " but has got guards of angels to attend him,*' 
 which are a great deal better than a great 
 many fervants, that prove oar plagues, and 
 inftead of waiting upon us make us wait 
 upon them. 
 
 But, my dear hearers, I don't know one 
 fpiritual commentator, but agrees that this 
 1 ladder was a type of the Lord Jefus Chrift; 
 and that as Jacob was now banifhed from his 
 father's hcufe, and while fleeping upon a hard, 
 cold ftone, God was pleafed not only to give 
 him an aPlirance that he would be with him 
 in the way, but gave him a blcffcd fight of 
 Jefus Chrifl, in whom Jacob believed. ^ \vb \ 
 A ladder you know is fomeiiiing by which 
 we climb from one place to another 3 hence, 
 
 in 
 
Ser. XVH. "^Jacob's Ladder. 405 
 
 in condefcenlion to our weak capacities, God 
 ordered a ladder to be let down, to fhew us 
 that Chrift is the way to heaven : / am the 
 wa)\ the truth y and the life ; / am the door^ 
 fays he; neither is there falvation in any other, 
 for there is no other name given under heaven 
 whereby we muft be faved. The Deifts, 
 who own a God but deny his Son, dare go 
 to a God out of Ghrift; but Jacob is here 
 taught better : how foon does God reveal the 
 golpel unto him ; here is a ladder, by which 
 God preaches to us 5 if you have a mind to 
 climb from earth to heaven, you muft get up 
 by the Son of God ; no one ever pointed out 
 a proper way to heaven for us but himfelfl 
 When Adam and Eve fell from God, a flaming 
 fword turned every way to keep them from 
 the tree of life; but Jefus alone is a new and 
 living way, not only to the Holy of Holies 
 below, but into the immediate prefence of 
 God ; and that we might know that he was 
 a proper Saviour, the top of it reached to 
 heaven ; if it had flopped fhort Jacob might 
 have faid, ah ! the ladder is within a little way 
 of heaven, but does not quite reach it 3 if I 
 climb up to the top I fliall not get there after 
 all ; but the top reached to heaven, to point 
 
 ^ out 
 
406 'Jacob's Ladder. Ser, XVII, 
 
 out the divinity and exaltation of the Son of 
 God 5 fuch a Saviour became xis who was 
 God, God over all, bleffed for evermore : and 
 therefore the Arian fcheme is moft uncomfort- 
 able and deftrud:ive 5 to talk of Chrift as a Sa- 
 viour that is not God, is no Chrift at all. I 
 would turn Deift to-morrow if I did not know 
 that Chrift was God j but curfed is the man 
 that builds his faith upon an arm ofjiejh. If 
 Chrift is God, the Arians and Socinians, by 
 their own principles, are undone for ever j but 
 Jefus Chrift is very God and very man, be-f 
 gotten (and not made) of the Father : God^ 
 of his infinite mercy, write his divinity deep 
 in our hearts ! 
 
 The bottom of the ladder reached to the 
 earth ; this points cut to us the humiliation of 
 the blcfled Lord 5 for us men he came down 
 from heaven ; we pray to and for a defcending 
 God. All the fufFerings which our Lord vo- 
 luntarily expoied himfelf to, were that he 
 might become a ladder for you andj^to climb 
 up to heaven by. Come down from the 
 crofs, fay they, and we will believe thee \ if 
 he had, v/hat would have become of us? did 
 they believe on him when he was dead, bu- 
 ried, and rifen again ? no. Some people fay,^ 
 
 if 
 
Ser.XVlI. "Jacob's Ladder. 407 
 
 if Chrift was here, O dear we fhould love 
 him; juft as much as they did when they 
 turned him out of doors, when he came down 
 before* If he had come down from the crofs, 
 they would have hung him up again : O that 
 you and I might make his crofs a ftep to 
 glory ! 
 
 As the top of the ladder pointed out his ex- 
 altation, the bottom his humiliation, the two 
 fides of the ladder being joined together, point 
 out the union of the Deity and manhood in 
 the perfon of Chrift 5 and that as this ladder 
 had fteps to it, fo, bleffed be God, Jefus 
 Ghrift has found out a way whereby we may 
 go, ftep after ftep, to glory. The firft ftep is 
 the righteoufnefs of Chrift, the active and 
 paffive obedience of the Redeemer ; no fetting 
 one foot upon this ladder without coming out 
 of ourfelves, and relying wholly upon a better 
 righteoufnefs than our own. Again, all the 
 other fteps are the graces of the blefled Spirit 5 
 therefore, you need not be afraid of our de- 
 ftroying inward holinefs, by preaching the 
 dodlrine of the imputation of Chrift 's righte- 
 oufnefs, that one is the foundation, the other 
 the fuperftru6ture ; to talk of my having the 
 righteoufnefs of Chrift imputed to my foul, 
 
 without 
 
4o9 Jacol^'s LdddeK Sdr. XVIIJ 
 
 without my having the holinefs of Chrifl im- 
 parted to it, and bringing forth the fruits of 
 the Spirit as an evidence of it, is only deceiving 
 ourfelves. I would never preach upon im- 
 puted righteoufnefs, without fpeaking of in- 
 ward holinefs, for if you don't take a great deal 
 of care, you will unawares, under a pretence 
 of exalting Chrift, run into Antinomianifm, 
 depths that Calvin never went into j probably, 
 you will imbitter others fpirits that don*t agree 
 with you, and at the fame time hurt the 
 fruits of the Spirit : may God give you clear 
 heads, and at the fame time warm hearts. 
 
 On the ladder Jacob faw the angels of God 
 afcending and defcending 5 what is that for ? 
 to fhow that they are miniftring fpirits, fent 
 forth to minifter to them that fhall be heirs of 
 falvation ; therefore we find them attending 
 upon Chrift. We do rrot hear much of them 
 after the canon of fcripture was clofed, but as 
 foon as ever Chrift was born, the angels fang,- 
 till then we never hear of their finging below,- 
 as far as I can judge, finee the creation ; then 
 the fons of God fliouted for joy ; but when 
 Eve reached out her hand to pluck the fatal 
 apple, and gave to Adam, earth groaned, and' 
 the angels hung, as it were, their harps upon 
 
 the 
 
Ser. XVII. Jacob's Ladder. 409 
 
 the willows; but when Chrift, the fecond 
 Adam, was born, the angels fang at midnight, 
 Glory to God iii the hi^heji. I pray to God 
 we may all die finging that anthem, and fmg 
 it to all eternity. After his temptations, they 
 came and miniftred to him, as fome think, 
 food for his body, and wiflied him joy and 
 comfort in his foul ; and in his agonies in the 
 garden, an angel ftrengthned him. After his 
 refurredlion two appeared again, one at the 
 head and another at the foot of his fcpulchre, 
 to let thofe that looked into the fepulchre 
 know, that they would not only wait upon the 
 head but the foot 3 and the angels are glad to 
 wait upon the meaneft of the children of God. 
 When our Lord departed, a cloud received 
 him out of their fight, which probably was a 
 cloud of angels : having led his dilciples out 
 of the city, he bleffed them, and then away 
 he went to heaven : may that bleffing reft up- 
 on you and your children ! This intimates 
 that God makes u(e of angels to attend his 
 people, efpecially when they are departing 
 into eternity : perhaps, part of our entertain- 
 ment in heaven will be, to hear the angels 
 declare how many millions of times they have 
 affifted and helped us. Our Lord fays, an- 
 G g g gels 
 
410 "Jacob' i Ladder. Ser. XVII. 
 
 gels do there behold the face of the Father of 
 his little ones ; and therefore I love to talk 
 to the lambs of the flock, and why fhould I 
 not talk to them whom angels think it their 
 honour to guard ; and if it was not for this, 
 how w^ould any children efcape the dangers 
 they are expofed to in their tender age ? it is 
 owing to the particular providence of God, 
 that any one child is brought to manhood ; 
 therefore I can't help admiring that part of the 
 Litany, in which we pray, that God would 
 take care not only of the grown people, but of 
 children alfo : God take care of yours both in 
 body and foul. 
 
 But what gave the greateft comfort to Ja- 
 cob was, that the Lord was on the top of 
 the ladder, which I do not know whether it 
 would have been fo, if Jacob had not it^n 
 God there. It com.forts me, I afllire you, to 
 think, that whenever God fliall call for me, I 
 Ihall be carried by angels into Abraham's bo- 
 fom ) and I have often thought that whenever 
 that time comes, that blefled, long longed-for 
 moment comes,-' as foon as ever they have 
 called upon me, my firft queftion will be to 
 them, where is my dear mafler ? where is 
 Jefus ? where is that dear Emanuel, who has 
 
 loved 
 
 1 
 
Ser. XVIL "jdeob's Ladder. 411 
 
 loved me with an everlafting love, and has 
 called me by his grace, and have fent you to 
 fetch me home to fee his face ? But I believe 
 you and I fhall have no occafion to afk where 
 he is, for he will come to meet us, he will 
 ftand at the top of his ladder to take his piU 
 grims in ; fo God was at the top of the ladder, 
 pray mind that. He appears not fitting, as 
 he is often reprefented in heaven, but (landing ; 
 as much as to fay, here, here, Jacob, thy bro- 
 ther wants to kill thee 5 here thou art come 
 out without a fervant, art lying upon a hard 
 bed, but here I am ready in order to preferve 
 thee; I ftand above, and I fee thy wearinefs, 
 I fee the fatigue and hardfliips thou haft yet 
 to undergo, though thou doft not fee it thy- 
 felfj thou haft thrown thyfelf upon my pro- 
 vidence and protection, and I will give thee 
 the word of a God that I will ftand by thee; 
 the Lord flood above ; if he had faid nothing, 
 that would have been enough to have fhewa 
 his readinefs to help. 
 
 But God fpeaks, behold : well might this 
 be ufhered in with the word behold ; a ladder 
 fet on the earth, and behold the angels of God 
 afcending and defcending on it; and, above 
 all, behold God fpeaking from it ! what doth 
 G g g 2 he 
 
412 Jacob's Ladder. Ser.XVII. 
 
 he fay ? / am the Lord God cf Abraham thy 
 Jather. Oh! happy they that can fay, the 
 Lord God of my father ; happy you that have 
 got fathers and mothers in heaven, I remem- 
 ber, about twenty-five years ago as I v^as tra- 
 velling from Briftol, I met with a man on the 
 road, and being defirous to know whether he 
 was ferious or not, I began to put in a word 
 for Chrift, (and God forbid I fhould travel 
 with any body a quarter of an hour without 
 fpeaking of Chrift to them) he told me what 
 a wicked creature he had been ; but, fir, fays 
 he, in the midft of my wickednefs people 
 ufed to tell me, you have got a good many 
 prayers upon the file for you, your godly fa- 
 ther and mother have prayed very often for 
 you ; and it was the pleafure of God he w\is 
 wrought upon, and brought to Chrift. Lay 
 in a good ftock for your children, get a good 
 many prayers in for them, they may be an- 
 fwered when you are dead and gone. I ajit 
 the God oj Abraham thy father^ not thy grand- 
 father 5 to puc him in mind what an honour 
 God would put upon him, to make him as it 
 were the father of the church. Though you 
 have many inftrudtors, fays Paul, you have 
 but one Father : and the God of IfaaCy the land 
 
 ^whereon 
 
Ser. XVII. "Jacob' i Ladder. 41 j 
 
 'whereon thou lieft^ to thee will I give if^ and to 
 thy feed. Amazing ! amazing ! you know very 
 well when perfons buy or come to an eftate, they 
 ufually take pofleflion of it by fome ceremony, 
 fuch as receiving or taking up a piece of dirt, 
 or twig, in their hand, as a fign of their title. 
 Now, fays God, poor Jacob, thou doft little 
 think that this very fpot of ground that thou 
 lieft on to-night, cold and ftifF, I intend to 
 give to thee, and thy pofterity, for an inhe- 
 ritance, O my brethren, live all to God, and 
 God will give all to you : who would have 
 thought of this, probably Jacob did not : it is 
 as if God took a pleafure in feeing his dear 
 children lie on fuch hard ground 3 if he had 
 been on a feather-bed, he might not have had 
 fuch a vifit : thou fhalt have now a God to lean 
 upon, to thee will I give it^ and to thy fced^ 
 which Jljall be as the dufl of the earth, a7id thou 
 fl^alt fpread abroad to the wefl, and to the eaft^ 
 and to the north, and to the f out h ; and in theCy 
 and in thy feed, fl:all all the families cf the 
 earth be blejfed. Thus did heaven balance the 
 lois of the comforts of his father's houfe, by 
 the difcovery of his and his oftspring's profpe- 
 lity, by an intereft in the promifed feed. 
 
 My 
 
414 Jacob's Ladder. Ser. XVII, 
 
 My particular circumftances call me to ob- 
 ferve, and I believe God has done it on pur- 
 pofe to encourage me, that faith, refting on 
 the promife, is eafily religned to the lofs of 
 prefent good, whereas worldly hearts confider 
 profperity as a portion, they don't care if the 
 devil takes them hereafter, fo they have it 
 now^ and that makes carnal people wonder 
 how we can give up things in this world, for 
 the fake of thofe not yet born ^ but it is to 
 glorify God, and lay a foundation for others 
 happinefs. Here God gives Jacob to know, 
 that hereafter his feed fhould fpread on the 
 eaft, weft, north, and fouth, his branches 
 Ihould multipl}^, and at laft from his loins 
 fhould Jefus Chrift come ; what for ? in whom 
 all the families oj the earth Jhould be blejfed : 
 God Almighty grant we may be bleiled in 
 him. 
 
 Then if Jacob (hould fay in his heart, haft 
 thou no promife for me ? here is another 
 beheld comes in 5 Behold^ 1 am with thee^ and 
 ^ill keep thee in all places whither thou goejl^ 
 WhdX a word is this ! thou haft nobody with 
 thee, nothing but a ftaff, (he could not carry 
 much upon his back, like a poor foldier with 
 a napfack behind, and a little bread in his 
 
 pocket) J 
 
Ser.XVII. Jacob's Ladder. 415 
 
 pocket) well, faith God, I do not dcfpife 
 thee becaufe thou art deftitute, but I love 
 thee the better for it ; thy brother Efiu longs 
 to kill thee, but if Efau ftabs thee he fliall flab 
 thy God firft -, I will not only be with thee 
 now, but I will watch every ftep thou takeft, 
 1 will be with thee in all places whither thou 
 goejl : as much as to fay, Jacob, thou art a 
 pilgrim, thy life is to be a moving life, I 
 don't intend thou fiialt fettle and keep in one 
 place J thy life is to be a life of changes, thou 
 art to move from place to place, but 1 will 
 be with thee in all places whither thou goejl, 
 and thereby it fhail be known that I am Ja- 
 cob's God, and alfo by my bringing thee again 
 into this land. He not only aifures him of a 
 fuccefsful journey, whither he was now go- 
 ing, but promifes to bring him back ones 
 more to fee his dear father and mother, and 
 relations again ; / will bring thee back to this 
 'land ; and to confirm his faith and hope, the 
 great God adds, 1 will not leave thee till I have 
 done that I have Jpoken to thee of 5 that is, all 
 the good he had jufl now promifed. Some 
 people promife, but they cannot do it to-day, 
 and they will not do it to-morrow. I have 
 known the world, and have rung the changes 
 
 of 
 
41 6 Jacob's Ladder. Ser. XVIL 
 
 of it ever iince I have been here 3 but, bleffed 
 be God, an unchangeable Chrift having loved 
 his own, he loved them to the end ; / will 
 not leave you till I have performed all thi?2gs I 
 have promijed you : may this promife come 
 upon you and your children, and ail that God 
 fhall call. 
 
 Thus fpake the great Jehovah to poor Ja- 
 cob, juft letting out to a ftrange land, know- 
 ing not whiiher he went y but now God fpeaks 
 not only to Jacob, but he fpeaks to you > and, 
 blefTed be the living God, he fpeaks to me 
 alfo, lefs than the leaft of all ; and as my de- 
 fign is (though I cannot tell but this may be 
 the laft opportunity) to fpeak fomething to 
 you about my departure; yet, brethren, my 
 grand delign in preaching to you is, to recom» 
 mend the Lord Jefus Chriil to your fouls ^ 
 and, before I go, to make a particular, per- 
 fonal application. Give me leave, therefore, 
 to afli you, it may be the lail time 1 may afk 
 many of you, whether you have ever fet your 
 foot upon this blefTed ladder, the Son of 
 God ? I aik you in t;he name of the Lord Jelus 
 Chrift, in the name of the Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghoft, did you ever fet your foot, I 
 fay, upon this ladder? tha^i^^did you ever 
 
 "t ' yet 
 
Ser. XVII. "Jacob'i Ladder. 417 
 
 yet believe on Jefus Chrift, and come to him 
 as poor loft jfinners, relying upon no other 
 righteoufnefs than that of the Son of God ? 
 perhaps, if you was to fpeak, fome of you 
 would fay, away with your ladder; and what 
 will you do then ? why, fay you, I will climb 
 to heaven without it ; what ladder will you 
 climb upon ? O, I think to go to heaven be- 
 caufe I have been baptized, that ladder will 
 break under you ; what, a ladder made of 
 water, what are you dreaming of ? no ; O, I 
 think I fliall go to heaven btcaufe I have done 
 nobody any harm ; what, a ladder made of 
 negative goodnefs, no ; I think to go, you'll 
 fay, by good works; a ladder made of good 
 works, that has not Chrift for its bottom, 
 what is that ? I think, fay you, to go to hea- 
 ven by my prayers and faftings ; all thefe are 
 good in their place : but, my brethren, don't 
 think to climb to heaven by thefe ropes of 
 fand. If you never before fet your foot on 
 Chrift, this bleffed ladder, God grant this may 
 be the happy time. 
 
 I have been praying before moft of you 
 were up I believe^ that God would give me a 
 parting bleffing. I remember, foon after I 
 left England laft, that a dear ChA-^iftian friend 
 
 Hhh told 
 
41 8 "Jacob's Ladder. Ser. XVIL 
 
 told me, that there was one woman, who 
 came only out of curiofity, that dated her 
 converflon from hearing my lafl: fermon 5 and, 
 I blefs God, I never once left England, but 
 fome poor foul has dated their converflon from 
 my lall: fermon. When I put on my furplice, 
 to come out to read the fecond fervice, I 
 thought it was juft like a perfon's being de=* 
 cently dreffed to go out to be executed ^ I 
 would rather, was it the will of God, it fhould 
 be io^ than to feel what I do in parting from- 
 you, then death would put an end to all y but 
 I iim to be executed again and again, and no- 
 thing will fupport me under the torture, but 
 the confideration of God's bleffing me to fome 
 poor fouls. Do pray for me, ye children of 
 God, that God would give us a parting blef-* 
 fing. God help you, young people, to put 
 your foot on this ladder ^ don't climb wrong : 
 the devil has got a ladder, but it reaches down 
 to hell ; all the devil's children go down, not 
 up J the bottom of the devil's ladder reaches 
 to the depchs of the damned, the top of it 
 reaches to the earth 5 and when death comes,, 
 then up comes the devil's ladder to let you 
 dovn; for God's fake come away Irom the 
 devil's ladder 3 climb, cliUibv dear young men^ 
 
 Q it 
 
Ser. XVII. "Jacob's Ladder. 419 
 
 it delighted me on Friday night at the Ta- 
 bernacle, when we had a melting parting fa- 
 crament^ and it delighted me this morning to 
 fee fo many young men at the table 5 God 
 add to the bleffed number ! Young women, 
 put your feet upon this ladder; God lets one 
 ladder down from heaven, and the devil brings 
 another up from hell. O, fay you, I would 
 climb up God*s ladder, I think it is right, but 
 
 1 fhall be laughed at ; do you think to go to 
 heaven v/ithout being laughed at ? the Lord 
 Jefus Chrifl help you to climb to heaven; 
 come, climb till you get out of the hearing of 
 their laughter. O truft not to your own righ- 
 teoufnefs, your vows, and good refolutions. 
 
 Some of you, bleffed be God, have climbed 
 up this ladder, at leaft are cHmbing ; well, I 
 wiili you joy, God be praifed for fetting your 
 feet on this ladder, God be praifed for letting 
 down this ladder: I have only one word to 
 fay to you, for Jefus Chrifl's fake, and your 
 own too, climb a little fafler ; take care the 
 world does not get hold of your heels. It is a 
 fliame the children of God don't climb fafter ; 
 you may talk what you pleale, but God's 
 people's lukewarmnefs is more provoking to 
 \Xm than all the fins of the nation. We cry 
 H h h 2 out 
 
420 Jacob's Ladder. Ser. XVII. 
 
 out againfl the fins of the land, would to God 
 we did cry out more of the fins of the faints; 
 I will fpue you out of 7?iy mouthy becaufe you 
 are lukewa7'm, fays Chrift ; and if any of you 
 fay you cannot climb becaufe you are lame- 
 footed, look to Jefus Chrifl:, my dear friends, 
 and your afflidion fhall make you climb j 
 and if any of you are coming down the ladder 
 again, the Lord Jefus Chrift blefs the foolifh- 
 nefs of preaching to help you up again. O, 
 fay you, I am giddy, I (hall fall ; here, I will 
 give you a rope, be fure lay hold of it; juft 
 as the failors do when you go aboard a fhip, 
 they let down a rope, fo God lets down a 
 promife: climb, climb, then, till you have 
 got higher into a better climate, and God fhall 
 put his hand out by and by when you get to 
 the top of the ladder to receive you to himfelf. 
 BleflTed be the living God, I hope and believe 
 I fhall meet many of you by and by. 
 
 * And now, my brethren, it is time for me 
 to preach m.y own funeral fermon ; and I 
 would humbly hope that, as a poor finner, I 
 may put in my claim for what God promifed 
 Jacob ; and I do put in, with full afliirance 
 of faith that God will be with me. I am now 
 going, for the thirteenth time, to crofs the 
 
 n ^^ Atlantic : 
 
Ser. XVII. Jacob's Ladder. 421 
 
 Atlantic : when I came from America laft, I 
 took my leave of all the Continent, from the 
 one end of the provinces to the other, except 
 fome places w^hich vv^e had not then taken ; 
 I took my leave for life, without the leall de- 
 fign of returning there again, my health was 
 {o bad ; and the profped: of getting the orphan- 
 houfe into other hands made me fay when I 
 iirft came over, I have no other river to go 
 over than the river Jordan. I thought then 
 of retiring, for Ididnotchufe to appear when 
 my nerves were fo relaxed that I could not 
 ferve God as I could wiih to do ^ but as it 
 hath pleafed God to reftore my health much, 
 and has fo ordered it by his providence, that 
 I intend to give up the orphan-houfe, and all 
 the land adjoining, for a public college. I 
 wiflied to have had a public fanCtion, but his 
 grace the late archbifliop of Canterbury put a 
 flop to it; they would give me a charter, 
 which was all I defired, but they infifled upon, 
 at leaft his grace and another did, that I fhould 
 confine it totally to the Church of England, . 
 and thdt no extempore prayer fliould be ufed j 
 in a public way in that houfe, though Diffen- 
 ters, and all forts of people, had contributed 
 to it : I would fooner cut my head off than 
 
 betray 
 
42« Jacob's Ladder, Scr. XVII, 
 
 betray my Iruft, by confining it to a narrow 
 bottom ; I always meant it Ihould be kept upon 
 a broad bottom, for people of all denomina- 
 tions, that their children might be brought up 
 in the fear of God : by this means the orphan- 
 houfe reverted into my hands j I have once 
 more, as my health was reftored, determined 
 to purfue the plan I had fixed on \ and, thro' 
 the tender mercies of God, Georgia, (which 
 I iabout thirty-two years ago was a total defolate 
 ' place 5 and when the land, as it was given 
 me by the Houfe of Commons, would have 
 been totally deferted, and the colony have quite 
 i ceafed, had it not been for the money I have 
 j laid out for the orpKan-houfe, to keep the poor 
 people together) that colony is rifing to a moft 
 amazing height, by the fchemes now going 
 on, public buildings are eredling. I had news 
 laft week of the great profperity of the negroes -^ 
 and I hope by the twenty-fifth of March, 
 which is the day, the anniverfary day, I laid 
 «»wr^ ^^^the firil brick, in the year 1739 ; I fay, I hope 
 by that'time all things will be finifhed, and a 
 blcfled provinon will be made for orphans and 
 poor ftudents that will be brought up there ; it 
 will be a bl.fT.d fource of provifion for the 
 f hildrpn of God la another part of the world, 
 
 This 
 
Ser.XVII. ';jacohU Ladder. 423 
 
 This is the grand defign I am going upon ; 
 this is my vifible caufe ; but I never yet went 
 to them, but God has been pleafed to blefs 
 my miniftration among them- ; and therefore 
 after I have finiHiedthe orphan-houfe affair, I 
 intend to go all along the Continent by land^ 
 (which will keep me all the v/inter and 
 fpring) and when I come to the end of it, 
 which will be Canada and New-England, then 
 I hope to return again to this place 3 for, let 
 people fay what they will, I have not fo 
 much as a iingle thought of fettling abroad on| 
 this fide eternity ; and I am going in no pub-' 
 lie capacity, I fhali fet out like a poor pilgrim,. 
 at my own expence, trufting upon God to take 
 care 01 me, and to bear my charges 3. and I 
 call God to witnefs, and I muft be a curfed 
 devil and hypocrite, to ftand here in the pul- 
 pit and provoke God to ftrike me dead for 
 lying, I never had the love of the world, nor | 
 never felt it one quarter of an hour in my heartJ 
 fince I was twenty years old. I might have 
 been rich : but though the Chapel is built, and 
 I have a comfortable room to lie in, I allure 
 you I built it at my own expence, it cofl no- 
 body buv myfelf any thing. I have a watch- ) 
 coat made me, and in that I fhall lie everv 
 
 night 
 
424 "Jacob's Ladder. Sen XVII. 
 
 night on the ground, and may Jacob's God 
 blefs me. I will not fay much of myfelf, bat 
 when I have been preaching, I have read and 
 thought of thofe words v.'ith pleafure, Surely 
 this is the houje of God. And 1 will bring thee 
 again to this land. Whether that will be my 
 experience or not, blefled be God, I have a 
 better land in view ^ and, my dear brethren, I 
 do not look upon myfelf at home till I land in 
 my Father's kingdom ; and if I am to die in 
 the way, if I am to die in the fhip, it com- 
 forts me that I know I am as clear as the fun, 
 that I go by the will of God ; and though 
 people may fay, will you leave the world ? 
 will you leave the Chapel ? O, I am aftonifhed 
 that we cannot leave every thing for Chriil ; 
 my greateft trial is, to part with thofe who are 
 as dear to me as my own foul % and however 
 others may forget me, as thoufands have, and 
 do forget me, yet I cannot forget them: and 
 now may Jacob's God be with you; O keep 
 clofe to God, my dear London friends 5 I do 
 not bid you keep clofe to Chapel, you have , 
 done fo always: I fl:iall endeavour to keep up 
 the word of God among you in my abfence ; 
 I fhall have the fame perfons that managed 
 for me when I was out lad, and they fent 
 
 me 
 
Ser. XVIL 'Jacob's Ladder. 425 
 
 me word again and again, by letter, that it 
 was remarkable, that the Tottenham-court 
 people were always prefent when ordinances 
 were there. 
 
 You fee I went upon a fair bottom ; I 
 might have had a thoufand a year out of this 
 place if I had chofe it 3 when I am gone to 
 heaven you will fee what I have got on earth * ; 
 I do not like to fpeak now, becaufe it may be 
 thought boafting ; but I am lure there are 
 numbers of people here, if they knsw what I 
 have, would love me as much as they now 
 hate me. When we come before the great 
 Judge ot quick and dead, while I ftand before 
 him, God grant you may not part w^ith me 
 then, it will be a dreadtul parting then, it 
 will be worfe then to go into the fire, to be 
 among the devil and his angels ; God forbid 
 it ! God forbid it ! God forbid it ! O remem- 
 ber that my lall: words were, come, come to 
 Chrift 'y the Lord help you to come to Chi id ; 
 come to Chrift, come 10 Jacob's God 3 God 
 give you faith like Jacob's faith. 
 
 You that have been kind to me, that have 
 helped me when i was fick, fome of whom 
 
 I i i are 
 
 * The greateft part of the fubilance this mm of G^d left 
 behind him, vvhicti was not much, was utqueachcd to him by 
 ficceafed friends. 
 
426 "Jacob's Ladder. Sen XVII. 
 
 are here that have been very kind to me j 
 may God reward you, my friends, and God 
 forgive my enemies ; God, of his infinite 
 mercy, blefs you all ^ you will be amply 
 provided for, I believe, here ; may God fpread 
 the gefpel every where; and may God never 
 leave you, nor forlake you. Even fo^ Lord 
 Jefiis. Amen and Amen. 
 
 SERMON 
 
[ 427 ] 
 
 SERMON XVIII. 
 
 The Good Shepherd. 
 A Farewel Sermon. 
 
 John x. ver. 27, 28. 
 
 MyJJjeep hear my voice ^ and I know them^ and 
 they follow me. And I give unto them eter- 
 nal lifcy and they fiall never perijh^ neither 
 Jloall any pluck them out of my hand, 
 
 IT is a common, and, I believe, generally 
 fpeaking, my dear hearers, a true faying, 
 that bad manners beget good lav/s. Whe- 
 ther this will hold good in every particular, in 
 refpedl: to the affairs of this world, I am per- 
 fuaded the obfervation is very pertinent in re- 
 fpecS to the things of another ; I mean bad 
 manners, bad treatment, bad words, have been 
 over-ruled by the fovereign grace of God, to 
 produce and to be the caufe of the bell: fcr- 
 mons that were ever delivered from the mouth 
 of the God-man, Chrift Jefus. 
 
 I i i 2 One 
 
42 8 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 V"^ One would have imagined, that as he came 
 cloathed with divine efficience, as he came 
 with divine credentials, as he fpake as never 
 mati fpake, that no one fhould have been able 
 to have refifled the wifdom with which he 
 ' fpake ', one would imagine they fliould have 
 been fo ftruck with the demonftration of the 
 Spirit, that with one confent they fhould all 
 own, that he was that prophet that was to be 
 raifed up like unto Mofes. But you feldom 
 find our Lord preaching a fermon, but fome- 
 thing or other that he faid was cavilled at , 
 nay, their enmity frequently broke through all 
 good manners 3 they often, therefore, inter- 
 rupted him whilfh he was preaching, which 
 fhows the enmity of their hearts long before 
 God permitted it to be in their power to fhed 
 his innocent blood. If we lock no farther than 
 this chapter, where he reprefents himfelf as a 
 good fhepherd, one that laid down his life for 
 his fheep ; we fee the beft return he had, was 
 to be looked upon as pofleffed or diftraded ; 
 for we are told that there was a divifion there- 
 fore again among the Jews for thefe fayings, 
 and many of them faid, he hath a de%il and 
 is rnad^ why hear ye him? If the mailer of 
 the houfe was ferved fo, pray what are the 
 
 fer- 
 
Ser. XVIII. The Good Shepherd. 429 
 
 fervants to exped ? Others, a little more fober- 
 minded, faid, thefe are not the words of him 
 that hath a devil-, the devil never ufed to 
 preach or aft in this way. Can a devil ope?! 
 the eyes of the blind? So he had feme friends 
 among thefe rabble. This did not difcourage 
 our Lord, he goes on in his, work ; and we 
 fhali never, never go on with the work of 
 God, till, like our mafter, we are willing to 
 go through good and through evil report ; and 
 let the devil fee we are not fo complaifant as 
 to flop one moment for his barking at us as 
 we go along. 
 
 We are told, that our Lord was at Jerufa- 
 km at the feaft of the dedication, and it was 
 winter 3 the feaft of dedication held, I think, 
 feven or eight days for the commemoration of 
 the reftoration of the Temple and Altar after 
 its profanation by Antiochus : now this was 
 certainly a mere human inftitution, and had 
 no divine image, had no divine fuperfcription 
 upon it ; and yet I don't find that our bleffed 
 Lord and Matter preached againft it ; I don't 
 find that he fpent his time about this -, his 
 heart was too big with fuperior things 3 and 
 I believe when we, like him, are filled with 
 the Holy Ghoft, we fhall not entertain our 
 
 audi- 
 
430 "The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 audiences with difputes about rites and cere- 
 monies, but (hail treat upon the effentials of 
 the gofpeK and then rites and ceremonies will 
 appear with more indifference. Our Lord does 
 not fay, that he would not go up to the feaft, 
 for, on the contrary, he did go there, not fo 
 much to keep the feaft, as to have an oppor- 
 tunity to fpread the gofpel-net, and that ihould 
 be our method not to follow difputing j and 
 k is the glory of the Methodifts, that we have 
 been now forty years, and, I thank God, 
 there has not been one fingle pamphlet v^rote 
 by any of our preachers about the non-elTen- 
 tials of religion. 
 
 Our Lord always made the befl of every 
 opportunity ; and we are told, he ^walked in 
 the temple in Solomon's porch. One would 
 have thought the Scribes and Pharifees would 
 have put him in one of their flails, and have 
 complimented him with deiiring him to preach, 
 no, they let him walk in Solomon's porch ; 
 fome think he walked by himfelf, nobody 
 choofing to keep company with him. Me- 
 thinks, I fee him walking and looking at the 
 temple, and forefeelng v/ithin himfelf how 
 foon it would be deflroyed ; he walked pen- 
 five, to fee the dreadful calamities that would 
 
 come 
 
 I 
 
Ser. XVIII. The Good Shepherd. 431 
 
 come upon the land, for not knowing the day 
 of its vifiiation j and it was to let the world 
 fee he was not afraid to appear in public : he 
 walked, as much as to fay, have any of you 
 any thing to fay to me ? and he put himlelf 
 in their way, that if they had any thing to 
 alk him, he was ready to refolve them ; and 
 to fhew them, that though they had treated 
 him fo ill, yet he was ready to preach falva- 
 tion to them. 
 
 In the twenty-fourth verfe we are told, 
 J hen came the Jews round about him^ and [aid 
 unto hiniy how lojig dojl thou make us to doubt ^ 
 They came round about him when they faw 
 him Vv^alking in Solomon's porch ; now, fay 
 they, we will have him, now we will attack 
 him. And now was fulfilled that paiTage in 
 the Pjfalms, they compared me about like bees 
 to fling me, or rather like wafps. Now, fay 
 they, we wilPget him in the middle of us, 
 and fee what fort of a man he is; we will fee 
 whether we can't conquer him ; they came to 
 liim and they fay, how long doft thou make us 
 to doubt ? Now this feems a plaufible queflion, 
 how long doji thou make us to doubt ? Pray how 
 long, fir, do you intend to keep us in fuC- 
 ptjill* ? Some think the words will bear this 
 
 inter- 
 
432 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 interpretation ; pray, fir, how long do you 
 intend thus to ileal away our hearts? they 
 would reprefent him to be a defigning man, 
 like Abfalom, to get the people on his fide, 
 and then fet up himfelf for the Meffiah ; thus 
 carnal minds always interpret good mens ac- 
 tions. But the meaning feems to be this, 
 they were doubting concerning Chrift y doubt- 
 ing Chriftians may think it is God's fault that 
 they doubt, but God knows it is all their 
 own. How long doji thou make us to doubt? 
 I wifh you would fpeak a littie plainer, fir, 
 and not let us have any more of your parables ; 
 pray let us know w^ho you are, let us have it 
 from your own mouth; if thou be the Chriji 
 tell us plainly y and I don't doubt but they put 
 en a very fanclified face and looked very de- 
 mure; if thou be the Chrift tell us plainly^ 
 intending to catch him : if he does not fay he 
 is the Chrift, we will fay he is afliamed of 
 his own caufe ; if he does tell us plainly that 
 he is the Chrift, then we will impeach him 
 to the governor, we will go and tell the go^ 
 vernor that this man fays he is the Meffiah ; 
 ncvv we know of no Meffiah but what is to 
 joftle Cxfar out of his throne. The devil 
 always wants to make it beljeved that God^s 
 
 people^ 
 
Ser. XVIII. The Gcod Shepherd. 43 j 
 
 people, who are the mofl loyal people In the 
 world, are rebels to the government under 
 which they live ^ if thou be the Chrijl tell us 
 plainly. Our Lord does not let them wait long 
 for an anfwer ; honefly can foon fpeak : / 
 told you and ye believed not : the works that I 
 do in my Father^ s name^ they bear witnefs of 
 me. Had our Lord faid, I am the Meffiah, 
 they would have taken him up ; he knew that, 
 and therefore he joined the wifdom of the fer^ 
 pent with the innocence of the dove ; fays he, 
 I appeal to my works and dodrine, and if 
 you will not infer from them that I am the 
 Meffiah, I have no further argument. But^ 
 he adds, ye believe mfy becauje ye are not of 
 my fieep. He complains twice , for their un- 
 belief was the greateft grief of heart to Chrift : 
 then he goes on in the words of our text. My 
 fheep hear my voice ^ and I hiow them^ and 
 they follow me. And I give unto the?7i eieriial 
 lifcy and they fall never perify ?ieither 
 fall a?2y pluck them out of my hand. My 
 flieep hear my voice > you think to puzzle 
 me, you think to chagrin me with this kind 
 of conducSi but you are miftaken 3 you don't 
 believe on me, becaufe you are not of my 
 (heep. The great Mr. Stodart, of New-Eng- 
 K k k land. 
 
!| 
 
 ^34 The Good Shepherd. Sen XVIIJ. 
 
 land, (2nd no place under heaven produces 
 greater divines than New Englind) preached 
 once from thefe words, hut yc believe noty be^ 
 caiije ye are 7iot of my-fieep ; a very ftrange 
 text to preach upon to convince a congrega- 
 tion, yet God fo bleffed it, that two or three 
 hundred fouls were awakened by that fermon : 
 God grant fuch fuccefs to attend the labours 
 of all his faithful minifters. 
 
 Myfieep hear my I'oice, and they follow me. 
 It is very remarkable, there are but two forts 
 of people mentioned in fcripture^ it does not 
 fay the Baptifls and Independents, nor the 
 Methodifls and Prefbyterians ^ no, Jefus Chrift 
 I divides the whole world into but two clafTes, 
 ilieep and goate : the Lord give us to fee this 
 morning to which of thefe claffes we belong. 
 
 But it is obfervable, believers are always 
 compared to fomething that is good aod pro- 
 fitable, and unbelievers are always defcribed 
 by fomething that is bad, and good for little 
 or nothiiag. 
 
 If you aik me v/hy Chrifl's people are 
 called flieep ? as God (hall enable me, I will 
 give you a fliort^ and I hope it will be to you 
 an anfwer of *peace. Sheep, you know, ge- 
 Kerally love to be together j we fay a flock of 
 
 flieep. 
 
Ser. XVIII. rioe Good Shepherd. 435 
 
 fheep, we don't fay a herd of flieep ; flieep 
 are little creatures, and Chrift's peopL may be 
 called fheep, becaufe they are little in the 
 eyes of the world, and they are yec lelb In tlieir 
 own eyes. O fome people think if the great 
 men were on our fide, it we had ki:ig, lords, 
 and commons on our fide, I medn if they 
 were all true believers, O if v/e had all t )e 
 kings upon the earth on our fide, fuppofe you 
 had; alas! alas! do you think the church 
 would go on the better ? why, if it was fadiion- 
 able to be a Methodift at court, if it was 
 fafhionable to be a Methodift abroad, they 
 would go with a bible or a hymn-book in- 
 ilead of a novel; but religion ne\er thrives 
 under too much fun-fliine. Not many mighty^ 
 not many noble are called^ but God hath chojen 
 the jooliJJd things of the "joorld to conjoiind the 
 wife^ and God hath chojen the iveak things of 
 the world to confound the things which are 
 mighty. Dr. Watts fays, here and there I fee 
 a king, and here and there a great man in 
 heaven, but their number is but finall. 
 
 Sheep are looked upon to be the mofl 
 
 harmleis, quiet creatures that God hath made : 
 
 O may God, of his infinite mercy, give us 
 
 to know that we are his flieep, by our inving 
 
 K k k 2 this 
 
'436 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 this blefled temper infufed into our hearts by 
 the Holy Ghoft, Learn of me^ faith our blef- 
 fed Lord ; what to do, to work miracles ? no 5 
 Learn oj nie^ for I am meek and lowly in 
 heart. A very good man, now living, faid 
 once, if there is any one particular temper I 
 defire more than another, it is the grace of 
 meeknefs, quietly to bear bad treatment, to 
 forget and to forgive ; and at the fame time 
 that I am fenfible I am injured, not to be 
 overcome of evil, but to have grace given me 
 to overcome evil with good. To the honour 
 of Mofes it is declared, that he was the meek- 
 eft man upon earth. Meeknefs is neceffary 
 for people in pov/er -, a man that is paffionate 
 is dangerous 3 every governor fhould have a 
 warm temper, but a man of an unrelenting, 
 unforgiving temper, is no more fit for govern- 
 ment than Phaeton to drive the chariot of the 
 fun, he only fets the world on fire. 
 
 You all know, that flieep of all creatures in 
 the world are the mod apt to ftray and be 
 lofts Chrift's people may juftly, in that re- 
 fpeft, be compared to fheep ^ therefore, in 
 the introdudion to our morning fervice, we 
 fay, E'\' have erred and ftray ed from thy ways 
 like loft Jl:eep, Turn out a horfe, or a dog, 
 
 and 
 
Sen XVIII. rhe Good Shepherd. 437 
 
 and they will find their way home, but a 
 fiieep wanders about, he bleats here and there, 
 as much as to fay, dear flranger, fhew me my 
 way home again : thus Chrifl^s fheep are too 
 apt to wander from the fold 3 having their 
 eye off the great fhepherd, they go into this 
 field, and that field, over this hedge and that, 
 and often return home with the lofs of their 
 wool. 
 
 But at the fame time fheep are the moft ufe* 
 fui creatures in the world ; they manure the 
 land, and thereby prepare it for the feed ; they 
 clothe our bodies with wool, and there is not 
 the leaf]; part of a fheep but is ufeful to man : 
 O my brethren, God grant that you and I may, 
 in this refpecSl, anfwer the charadler of fheep. 
 The world fays, becaufe we preach faith we 
 deny good works ; this is the ufual objeftion 
 againfl the dodrine of imputed righteoufnefs, 
 but it is a flander, an impudent flander. It 
 was a maxim in the firft reformers time, that 
 tho' the Arminians preached up good works, \ 
 you muft go to the Cakinifls for them. 
 Chrift's fheep ftudy to be ufeful, and to clothe 
 all they can ^ we fhould labour w^ith our hands, 
 that we may have to give to all thofe that 
 need. 
 
 Believers 
 
438 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIIL 
 
 Believers confider Chrift's property in them > 
 he fays, My peep : O bleffed be God for that 
 little, dear, great word My. We are his by 
 eternal eleclion : the Jheep which thou haji given 
 me^ fays Chrill. They were given by God 
 the Father to Chrift Jefus, in the covenant 
 made between the Father and the Son from all 
 eternity. They that are not led to fee this, I 
 wifli them better heads ; though^ I beheve, 
 numbers that are againft it have got better 
 hearts: the Lord help us to bear with one 
 another where there is an honeft heart. 
 
 He calls them my fheep, they are his by 
 purchafe. O fmner, finner, you are come 
 this morning to hear a poor creature take his 
 lajl farewel 'y but I want you to iorget the 
 creature that is preaching, I want to lead you 
 farther than the Tabernacle 5 where do you 
 want to lead us? why, to Mount Calvary, 
 there to fee at what an expence of blood Chrift 
 purchafed thofe whom he calls his own ; he 
 redeemed them with his own blood, fo that 
 they are not only his by eternal eleftion, but 
 alfo by adual redemption in time ^ and they 
 wc:re given to him by the Father, upon con- 
 dition that he iliould redeem them by his 
 heart's blood. It was a hard bargain, but 
 
 Chrift 
 
Ser. XVIII. Ihe Good Shepherd. 439 
 
 Chrift was willing to ftrike the bargain, that 
 you and I might not be damned for ever. 
 
 They are his, becaufe they are enabled in a 
 day of God's power voluntarily to give them- 
 felves up unto him ; Chrift fays of thefe flieep 
 efpecially, that they hear his voice, and that 
 they follow him. Wilt "y (311 te {o good as to 
 -mind that ? here is an allufion to a fliepherd : 
 ^ow in fome places in fcripture, the fliepherd 
 is reprefented as going after his fheep * ^ that 
 is our way in England^ but in the Eaftern 
 nations, the fhepherds generally went before ; 
 they held up their crook, and they had a par- 
 ticular a\ll that the flieep underftood. Now, 
 fays Chrift, My fheep hear my voice, This is 
 my beloved Son, faith God, hear ye him. And 
 again, the dead Jloall hear the voice of the Son 
 oj God, and live : now the queftion is, what 
 do we underftand by hearing Chrift's voice ? 
 
 Firft, v/e hear Mofes' voice, we hear the 
 voice of the law > there is no going to Mount 
 Zion but by the way of Mount Sinai, that is 
 the right ftraight road. I know fome fay, 
 they don't know when they were converted ^ 
 thofe are, I believe, very few : generally, nay I 
 may fay almoft always, God deals otherwife. 
 
 Some 
 
 * 2 Sam. vii. 8. Pfal. Ixxviii. 71. 
 
440 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 Some are, indeed, called fooner by the Lord 
 than others, but before they are made to fee 
 the glory of God, they muft hear the voice 
 of the law ; fo you muft hear the voice of 
 the law, before ever you will be favingly 
 called unto God. You never throw off your 
 cloak in a ftorm but you hug it the clofer, fo 
 the law makes a man hug ciofe his corrup- 
 tions * ', but when the gofpel of the Son of 
 God fhines into their fouls, then they throw 
 off the corruptions which they have hugged 
 fo clofely; they hear his voice faying. Son, 
 dau2;hter, be of good cheer, thy fms, which 
 are many, are all forgiven thee. They hear his 
 'voice-, that befpeaks the habitual temper of 
 their minds : the wicked hear the voice of the 
 devil, the lufts of the flelli, the lufls of the 
 eye, and the pride of life j and Cbrifl's flieep 
 themfelves attended to them before converiion; 
 but when called afterwards by God, they hear 
 the voice of a Redeemer's blood fpeaking peace 
 unto them, they hear the voice of his word 
 and of his Spirit. 
 
 The confequence of hearing his voice, and 
 the proof that we do hear his voice, will be 
 to follow him. Jefus fiiid unto his difciple.% 
 
 If 
 
 * Rom. vli, 7, 8, 9,^ 
 
S^r. XVIIL Ihe Good Shepherd. 441 
 
 If any man will come after me^ let him deny 
 himfelf^ and take up his crofs and follow me. 
 And it is faid of the faints in glory, that they 
 followed the Lamb whither foever he went. 
 Wherever the fhephcrd turns his crook, and 
 the flieep hear his voice, they follow him ; 
 they often tread upon one another, and hurt 
 one another, they are in fuch hafte in their 
 way to heaven. Following Chrift, means 
 following him through life, following him in 
 every word and gellure, following him out of/ 
 one clime into another. Bid me come to thee \ 
 upon the water ^ faid Peter : and if we are com- 
 manded to go over the water for Chrift, God, 
 of his infinite mercy, follow us 1 We muil 
 firft be fure that the Great Shepherd points his 
 crook for us: but this is the chara(5ter of a 
 true fervant of Chrift, that he endeavours to 
 follow Chrift in thought, word, and work. 
 
 Now, my brethren, before we go farther, 
 as this is the laft opportunity I fliall have of 
 fpeaking to you for fome months if we live j 
 fome of you, I fuppofe, don't chufe in gene- 
 ral to rife fo foon as you have this morning ; 
 now I hope the world did not get into your 
 hearts before you left your beds ; now you 
 are here^ do let me intreat you to enquire 
 L 1 1 whether 
 
44^ "The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 whether you belong to Chrift's Iheep or no. 
 Man, woman, finner, put thy hand to thy 
 heart and anfwer me, didft thou ever hear 
 Chrift's voice fo as to follow him, to give up 
 thyfelf without referve to him? I verily do 
 believe from my inmoft foul, and that is my 
 comfort now I am about to take my leave of 
 you, that I am preaching to a vaft body, a 
 multitude of dear, precious fouls, who, if it 
 was proper for you to fpeak, would fay. 
 Thanks be unto God, that we can follow Je- 
 fus in the charafter of fheep, though we are 
 afhamed to think how often we wander from 
 thee, and what little fruit we bring unto thee ; 
 if that is the language of your hearts, I wifh 
 you joy ; welcome, welcome, dear foul, to 
 Chrill. O blefied be God for his rich grace, 
 his diflinguiihing, fovereign, electing love, by 
 which he has diftinguiflied you and me. And 
 if he has been pleafed to let you hear his voice, 
 through the miniftration of a poor,..miferable 
 finner; a poor, but happy pilgrim, may the 
 Lord Jefus Chrift have all the glory. 
 
 If you belong to Jefus Chrift, he is fpeaking 
 
 of you J for, fays he, 1 know my j beep, i 
 
 kiK>w them, what does that mean ? why, he 
 
 knows vheir number, he knows th^ir names, 
 
 ^ .. ■■ be 
 
Ser. XVIII. rhe Good Shepherd. 443 
 
 he knows every one for whom he died -, and 
 if there was to be one miffing for whom Chriil 
 died, God the Father would fend him down 
 again from heaven to fetch him. Of all, faith 
 he, that thou haji given me^ have I loft no7ie^ 
 Chrift knows his fheep ; he not only knows 
 their number, but the words fpeak the pecu- 
 liar knowledge and notice he takes of them ; 
 he takes as much care of each of them, as if 
 there was but that one fingle fheep in the 
 world. To the hypocrite he faith, Verily^ I 
 know you not ; but he knows his faints, he is 
 acquainted with all their forrows, their trials 
 and temptations -, he bottles up all their tears, 
 he knows their domeftic trials, he knows their 
 inward corruptions, he knows all their wan- 
 derings, and he takes care to fetch them back ^</ 
 again, j I remember I heard good Dr. Mar- 
 ryat, who was a good market- language preach- 
 er, once fay at PinnerVhall, (I hope that 
 pulpit will be always filled with fuch preach- 
 ers) God has got a great dog to fetch his f deep 
 back, fays he. Don't you know that when 
 the (heep wander, the fliepherd fends his dog 
 after them to fetch them back again ? fo when 
 Chrift's fheep wander, he lets the devil go ( 
 after them, ^d fuifers him to bark at them, 
 L U 3 v/ho. 
 
444 5r/j^ Good Shepherd. Scr. XVIII. 
 
 . who, inftead of driving them farther off, is 
 ' made a means to bring them back again to 
 Chrifl's fold. 
 
 There is a precious word I would have you 
 take notice of, 1 know them ; that may com- 
 fort you under all your trials. We fometimes 
 think that Chrift does not hear our prayers, 
 that he does not know us ^ we are ready to 
 fufpedt that he has forgotten to be gracious j 
 but what a mercy it is that he does know us. 
 We accufe one another, we turn devils to one 
 another, are accufers of the brethren, and 
 what will fupport tvi^o of God's people when 
 judged by one another but this, Lord, thou 
 knovs^eft my integrity, thou knoweft how mat- 
 ters are with me ? 
 
 But, my brethren, here is fomething bet- 
 ter, here is good news for you ^ what is that ? 
 fay you ; why, I give unto them eternal life^ 
 and they Jljall never periJI:, neither Jldall any 
 pluck them out of my hand, O that the words 
 may come to your hearts with as much warmth 
 and powder as they did to mine thirty-five years 
 ago. I never prayed againft any corruption I 
 had in my life, fo much as I did againft going 
 into holy orders, fo foon as my friends were 
 for having me go^ and biihop Benfon was 
 
 pleafed 
 
Scr. XVIII. Ihe Good Shepherd. 445 
 
 pleafed to honour me with peculiar friendfhip, 
 fo as to offer me preferment, or do any thing 
 for me : my friends wanted me to mount the 
 church betimes, they wanted me to knock my 
 head againft the pulpit too young ; but how 
 fome young men ftand up here and there and 
 preach, I don't know how it may be to 
 them 3 but God knows how deep a concern 
 entering into the miniftry and preaching was to 
 me 3 I have prayed a thoufand times till the 
 fweat has dropped from my face like rain, 
 that God, of his infinite mercy, would not let 
 me enter the church before he called me to, 
 and thruft me forth in his work. I remember 
 once in Gloucefter, I know the room, I look 
 up at the window when I am there and walk 
 along the flreet ; I know the window, the 
 bedfide, and the floor upon which I have 
 laid proftrate: I faid. Lord, I cannot go, I 
 fhall be puffed up with pride, and fall into 
 the condemnation of the devil ; Lord, don't 
 let me go yet 3 I pleaded to be at Oxford two 
 or three years more ; I intended to make an 
 hundred and fifty fermons, and thought I would 
 fet up with a good flock in trade however 5 
 but I remember praying, wreflling, and flri- 
 ving with God 5 I faid, I am undone, I am 
 
 unfit 
 
 < 
 
446 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 unfit to preach in thy great name, fend me 
 not, pray, Lord, fend me not yet. I wrote 
 
 Ito all my friends in town and country, to 
 pray againft the bifhop's folicitation, but they 
 inlifted I fliould go into orders before I was 
 twenty-two. After all their folicitation thefe 
 words came into my mind, nothing Jhall pluck 
 you out of my hand, O may the words be 
 bleifed to you, my dear friends, that I am 
 parting with, as they were to me when they 
 came warm upon my heart ; then, and not 
 
 \ till then, I faid, Lord, I will go, fend me 
 when thou wik. I remember when I was in 
 a place called Dover-lfland, near Georgia, we 
 put in with bad winds 5 I had an hundred and 
 [fifty in family to maintain, and not a fingle 
 
 'farthing to do it with, in the deareft part of 
 the king's dominions ^ I remember, I told a 
 minifter of Chrift now in heaven, I had thefe 
 words once, fir, Nothing JJoalt pluck you out of 
 my hand, O, fays he, take comfort from 
 them, you may be fure God will be as good as 
 his word, if he never tells you fo again. And 
 our Lord knew his poor Iheep would be al- 
 ways doubting they ihould never reach heaven, 
 therefore, fays he, I give to them eternal life^ 
 end tbeyf^all never perijb* 
 
 Here 
 
Ser. XVill. The Good Shepherd. 447 
 
 Here are in our text three blcfled declara- 
 tions, or promiffes : 
 
 Firft. / know them. 
 
 Second. "They (Imll never perijl: ; though 
 they often think they Ihall perifli by the hand 
 of their lufts and corruptions ^ they think they 
 fhall perifli by the deceitfulnefs of their hearts 5 
 but Chrift fays, they fiall never periJJj, I have 
 brought them out of the world to myfelf, and 
 do you think I will let them go to hell after 
 that. I give to them eternal life -, pray mind 
 that ; not I will, but I do. Some talk of be- 
 ing juftified at the day of judgment, that is 
 nonfenfe; if we are not juftified here, wefhull 
 not be juftified there. He give^ them eternal 
 life, that is, the earneft, the pledge, and aflii- 
 ranee of it j the indwelling of the Spirit of 
 God here, is the earneft of glory hereafter. 
 
 Third. IS either fhall any pluck them out of 
 my hand. He holds them in his hand, that is, 
 he holds them by his power, none ftiall pluck 
 them thence ^ there is always fomething pluck* 
 ing at Chrift's ftieep, the devil, the iufts of 
 the flefli, the lufts of the eye, and the pride 
 of life, all try to pluck them out of Chrift's 
 hand. O my brethren, they need not pluck 
 us, for we help all three to pluck ouriclvt^ 
 
 cut 
 
 ^. 
 
 <-% 
 
 K 
 
443 ne Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIIL 
 
 out of the hand of Jefus j but none Jloall pluck 
 them out of my handy fays Chrift. / give to 
 them eternal life, I am goi7ig to heaven to 
 f rep are a place for them^ and there they Jhall 
 be. O my brethren, if it was not for keep- 
 ing you too long, and too much exhaufling 
 my own fpirits, I could call upon you to leap 
 for joy y there is not a more blefled text to 
 fupport the final perfeverance of the faints j 
 and I am aftonifhed any poor foul, and good 
 people I hope too, can fight againft the doc- 
 trine of the perfeverance of the faints 5 what 
 if a perfon fay they ihould perfevere in wick- 
 ednefs ? ah ! that is an abufe of the doftrine ; 
 what, becaufe fome people fpoii good food, 
 are we never to eat it? But, my brethren, 
 upon this text I can leave my cares, all my 
 friends, and all Chrifl's fheep to the protection 
 of Chrifl Jefus's never-failing love. 
 
 1 thought this morning, when I came here 
 j riding from the other end of the town, it was 
 I to me like coming to be executed publicly ; 
 and when the carriage turned juft at the end 
 of the walk, and I faw you running here, O 
 thinks I, it is like a perfon now coming juft to 
 the place where he is to be executed : when 
 I went up to put on my gown, I thought it 
 
 was 
 
Ser. XVIII. rhe Good Shepherd. 449 
 
 was juft like drefling myfelf to be macle a pub- 
 lic fpedlacle to fhed my blood for Chrift ; and 
 I take all heaven and earth to witnefs, and 
 God and the holy angels to witnefs, that tho' 
 I had preferment enough offered me, that tho* 
 the bifliop took me in his arms, and offered 
 me two parifhes when I was but twenty-two 
 years old, and always took me to his table ; 
 though I had preferment enough offered me 
 when I was ordained, thou, O God, knoweft, 
 that when the bifhop put his hand upon my 
 head, I looked for no other preferment than 
 publickly to fuffer for the Lamb of God : in 
 this fpirit I came out, in this fpirit I cams 
 up to this metropolis. I was thinking v/hen 
 I read of Jacob's going over the brook with a 
 ftaff, that I would not fay fo much, but I 
 came up without a friend, I went to Oxford 
 without a friend, I had not a fervant, I had 
 not any one to introduce me ; but God, by 
 his Holy Spirit, was pleafed to raife m.e up 
 to preach for his great name's fake : through 
 his Divine Spirit I continue to this day, and 
 feel my affedions are as ftrong as ever towards 
 the work, and the people of the living God. 
 The congregations at both ends of the town 
 Jire dear to me : God has hcnouced me to 
 M m m build 
 
450 The Good Shepherd. Ser. XVIII. 
 
 build this and the other place -, and, bieff^d be 
 his name, as he called me to Georgia at firft, 
 and I left all London affairs to God's care, 
 when I had moft of the churches in London 
 open for me, and had twelve or fourteen con- 
 ftables to keep the doors, that people might 
 I not crowd too much 5 I had offers of hundreds 
 i then to fettle in London, yet I gave it up for 
 God, to go into a foreign clime 5 and I hope 
 with that fame fingle intention I am going 
 jiow. 
 
 When I came frorn Arnerica laft^ I thought 
 I had no other river to pafs over but the ri- 
 ver Jordan, I remember I told you fo ; and 
 as the orphan-houfe was then to be given, I 
 thought, out of my hands, I then intended to 
 retire into fome little corner, and pray when 
 I could not preach, my fpirits were fo low, 
 and my nerves and animal frame fo weak, but 
 God, of his infinite mercy, has renewed my 
 ftrength, and is pleafed to raife my fpirits, fo 
 that I find my heart is willing to go here or 
 there, wherever God fhall call. 
 
 The orphan-houfe being turned into a col- 
 lege is a matter of great confequence ; you 
 that have not been in America can't tell, but 
 I heartily wifh, I am neither a prophet, nor 
 
 the 
 
Ser. XVIII. Tbe Good Shepherd. 451 
 
 the fon of a prophet, and I hope none of us 
 will ever be driven to America for an afylum, 
 where God's people were driven from this land 
 an hundt-ed years ago : clouds are growing 
 thick, and if a fpirit of moderation does not 
 prevail among governors and governed, what • 
 but confufion muft happen to perfons who 
 jftrive one with another, and are making fport 
 for the devil by deftroying one another ? may 
 the great and gracious God avert every im- 
 pending ftorm^ and by diflfufing a fpirit of 
 moderation and of a found mind, and by- 
 keeping his people clofe to himfelf, avert 
 thofe liorms, thofe terrible judgments, that 
 we have reafon to exped from our repeated 
 provocations. I am going now to fettle the 
 orphttn-houfe upon a proper bafis ; I go now 
 in the fall, that I may be in Georgia in the 
 winter, which is fine weather there. The 
 twenty-fifth of March is the anniverfary of the j 
 day on which I laid the firft brick of the ' 
 orphan-houfe -, by that time, I hope, all the 
 buildings will be finiihed, and the plantation 
 fettled ; and then I hope to go and preach 
 along the continent to New-England, and 
 from thence I intend, if God permit me, to 
 M m m 2 return 
 
452 "the Good Shepherd. Sef. XVIII. 
 
 return to my dear London and Englifh friends 
 again. 
 
 I have blefled news from the orphan-houfe ; 
 one writes me word, Would to God you 
 could fend a thoufand fuch as you have fent, 
 Mr. Dixon, and his wife, that have been old 
 fervants there 5 Mr. Wright, Mr. Crayne, 
 and Mr. Wright's brother, and thofe that 
 have been employed with them to carry on 
 the work of the Lord ; and I cannot think but 
 God intends to lay a foundation for a blefled 
 feminary for Chrifl : Lord Jefus, hear our 
 prayers upon that account. 
 
 Now I muft come to the hardeft part I 
 have to adt : I was afraid when I came out 
 from home, that I could not bear the fhock, 
 but I hope the Lord Jefus Chrifl will help 
 me to bear it, and help you to give me up to 
 the bleffed God, let him do with me what 
 he will. This is the thirteenth time of my 
 croffing the mighty waters; it is a little difB- 
 cult at this time of life , and though my fpi- 
 rits are improved in fome degree, yet weak- 
 nefs is the befl of my ilrength : but I delight 
 in the caufe, and God fills me with a peace 
 that is unutterable, which nobody knows, 
 and a ilranger intermeddles not with : into 
 
 his 
 
Sen XVIIL The Good Shepherd. 453 
 
 his hands I commend my fpirit 3 and I beg 
 that this may be the language of your hearts. 
 Lord, keep him, let nothing pluck him out 
 of thy hands. I expedl many a trial while I 
 am on board, fatan always meets me there ; 
 but that God which has kept me, 1 believe 
 will keep me. I thank God, I have the ho- 
 nour of leaving every thing quite well and 
 eafy at both ends of the town^ and, my dear 
 hearers, my prayers to God fhall be, that no- 
 thing may pluck you out of Chrift's hands. 
 Witnefs againft me, if I ever fet up a party 
 for myfelf; did ever any minifler, or could 
 any niinifter in the world fay, that I ever 
 fpoke againft any one going to any dear mi- ' 
 nifter ? I thank God, that he has enabled me 
 to be always ftrengthning the hands of all, 
 though fome have afterwards been afhamed to 
 own me. I declare to you, that I believe 
 God will be with me, and will ftrengthen 
 me; and I believe it is in anfwer to your 
 prayers, that God is pleafed to revive my 
 fpirits: may th^ Lord help you to pray on. 
 If I am drowned in the waves I will fay. 
 Lord, take care of my London, take care of 
 my Eoglifli friends, let notliing pluck them 
 out of thy hands. 
 
 And 
 
454 ^^^ ^^^^ Shepherd. Ser. t.Vllt 
 
 Arid as Chrifl has given us eternal life, O 
 my brethren, fome of you, I doubt not, will 
 be gone to him before my return; but, my 
 dear brethren, my dear hearers, never mind 
 that; we fhall part, but it will be to meet 
 again forever. I dare not meet you now, i 
 can't bear your coming to me to part from me, 
 it cuts me to the heart and quite overcomes 
 me, but by and by all parting will be over, 
 and all tears {hall be wiped a Way from our 
 eyes. God grant that none that weep now 
 at my parting, may weep at our meeting at 
 \ the day of judgment ; and if you never were 
 I among Chrift*s fheep before, may Chrift Je- 
 ■ fus bring you now. O come, come, fee what 
 it is to have eternal life ^ don't refufe it 5^ 
 hafte, finner, hafte away : may the great, the 
 good iliepherd, draw your fouls. Oh! if you' 
 never heard his voice before, God grant you 
 may hear it now 5 that I may have this com- 
 fort when I am gone that I had laft, that 
 fome fouls are avv^akened at the parting fcr- 
 mon. O that it may be a farewel fermon to' 
 you ; that it may be a means of your taking 
 a farewel of the world, the lulls of the flefhy 
 the lulls of the eye, and the pride of life. 
 
 G comcj 
 
Sen XVIII. 'The Oood Shepherd. 455 
 
 O come, come, come, to the Lord Jefu$ 
 Chrifl ; to him I leave you. 
 
 And you, dear fheep, that are ah-eady in 
 his hands, O may God keep you from wan- 
 dering ; God keep you near Chrift's feet ; I 
 don't care what (liepherds keep you, fo as you 
 are kept near the great iliepherd and bi/hop 
 of fouls. The Lord God keep you, Hft up 
 the light of his countenance upon you, and 
 give you pe^ce. Amen. 
 
 P J N J S. 
 
 
g::5= Thefe Sermons being entered in the 
 Hall-Book of the Company of Stationers, 
 whoever ^ prefumes to pirate them will be 
 profecuted. 
 
Date Due 
 
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