Jobs Appeal, Title page – Dedication
JOB's Appeal. BEING A Funeral Diſcourſe Delivered at NORTHONNAM in York-ſhire, Upon Occaſion of the Death of Mr. JONATHAN DENTON, WHEREIN A Chriſtian's State is ſtated before GOD, and his Sufferings from the Hand of GOD cleared.
Grounded upon JOB x. 7.
By OLIVER HEYWOOD, Miniſter of the Goſpel.
LONDON, Printed for B. Aylmer, at the Three Pigeons over againſt the Royal Exchange in Cornhill, 1695.
To His Worthy Friend, Mr. John Denton, In Southwark, near London.
Dear Friend,
THE Conception and Birth of theſe Two Sermons was ſhort and ſudden, as the Tydings of the Death of your Dear Brother, my Cordial Friend, was ſurprizing to me; and the Tranſcribing of theſe Notes an unexpected Motion, managed ſomething prepoſterouſly, with a ſlight Hand, ſnatch…d from my many other preſſing Occaſions, and now ſent to you, upon the Requeſt of ſome Relations to you and your dear deceaſed Brother, by his very weak unworthy Pastor, who had the Knowledge of him, and Inſpection over him, many Years, and can teſtifie to the Comfort of his ſurviving Friends, that he was a Man of good Ʋnderstanding, ſolid Judgment, ſavory Spirit, and blameleſs Converſation; of good uſe in the Society where he was a Member, beloved of all that knew him, and very imitable in his modeſt, humble, chaſte Converſation, in a ſingle Condition; his Contempt of the World, Mortifiedneſs to Pleaſures and Honours, Diligence in both general and particular Calling, studying the Word of God, reading good Books, conſtant Attendance on Ordinances, writing Sermons, ingenuous asking Caſes of Conſcience; his Abilities in Prayer, Diſcourſe, ſeriouſneſs in the practick part of Religion; to which Many will bear their Teſtimony, and are concerned for the loſs of him. Theſe things I write to you, not as informing you, nor flattering him, which cannot at all add to his preſent Happineſs, but to quicken us in our Diligence, and as a Memorial of the Dead that dye in the Lord; for God hath ſaid, The Memory of the Juſt is bleſſed, and ſuch as have obtained a good Report thro' Faith, Prov. 10 7. …eb. 1….39.may be preſented to ſurviving Generations, for their imitation, eſpecially ſince our dead Friend left us Posterity to bear up his Name.
Notwithſtanding his even Carriage, yet his Heavenly Father thought fit to exerciſe him towards the latter end of his days with Severe Afflictions, both in his Body and Spirit: His Body was a meer Skeleton, worn away, decrepit; and tho' he had been very active and agile, yet had much ado to go upon Crutches, thro' a violent Rheumatiſm ſeizing his lower parts: His Mind was much diſquieted with the ſenſe of his own guiltineſs great unprofitableneſs under Means of Grace, much Ʋnbelief, Hypocriſie, which oft gave him occaſion to call his ſtate into queſtion; ſo that he told me he had great Fears upon him about his Sincerity, and queſtioned how matters would prove at laſt, and Satan ſet in with his violent Temptations, and GOD alſo ſuſpended the Light if his Countenance and Sealings of his Spirit; ſo that he walk'd in darkneſs for a conſiderable time: Yet before he dyed, the Lord ſcattered his Fears, erected his Hopes, and ſhined upon his Soul with the Beams of his Love, and the Lord carried him off the Stage comfortably, honourably, yea, triumphantly. He ſlept in the Lord July the Fifth, and was interred at Hallifax July the Eighth, 1695.
The Spiritual Legacies he left were, 1. Advice to his Friends; 2. This Text.
1. He had given ſeveral weighty pieces of his Counſel to ſeveral of his Friends and Relations formerly; near his End he ſaid to a Young Man that came to viſit him, Oh Friend! now, by the Grace of God I am ready; come Lord Jeſus: Oh, be ſure you get ready for this dying hour; ſee to the getting of the Spirit of God, in what you do, you may pump for Expreſſions and Affections, but ſee you get the Spirit of God, for where the Spirit is, there is Liberty. Several things beſides he ſaid, but the Diſtemper going up into his Head, and he not ſ…eeping of a long time, was not ſo ſenſible and capable of Diſcourſe as he had been.
2. The other Legacy he left was this Text. A Relation of his apprehending danger of his Death, asked him what he would have me to do for him (he having given an hint of his Mind before) he anſwered, He would deſire me to preach a Funeral Sermon out of thoſe words, Job 10.7, There is none that can deliver out of thine hand. I had notice of it when I was abroad, and at my return preached on Lord's Day, July 14. 1695, on that ſecond part, according to Order, but have prefixed ſomething to it on the former part of the Text, becauſe I knew it was, firſt, proper to him, ſecondly, profitable to us all; and wiſh from my Soul we could all appeal thus ſincerely to the Heart-ſearching God, who then would tranſmit our afflicted Souls and Bodies out of the hands of Juſtice into the hands of Mercy.
There's none of the Servants of God, but they meet with a ſevere Purgatory in this Life, and paſs through Seas of Trouble to the Haven of Reſt, which make them Sea-ſick, and did not our bleſſed Pilot ſecure them, Pſal. 42.they would ſplit upon dangerous Rocks of Preſumption or Deſpair: ſometimes Deep calls to Deep, which imports, Dr. Horton, in loc.(as a learned Expoſitor obſerves) 1. Variety or plurality of Evils, and Evil in one kind to an Evil in another; Troubles of Body, Mind, eſtate, manifold Temptations; without Fightings, 2 Pet. 1.6.2 Cor. 7.….within Fears. 2. Conjunction of Evils, one Evil within another; not as in a Channel where Water runs, and leſſens in running, but divers Waters meeting, make a vaſt Flood; not ſucceſſively, Job 16.14.but breach upon breach, all at once.
Yea, 3. A Connexion or dependance of one Evil upon another; one Calamity invites another, as if God purſued us till he make an end of us, proceeding in Puniſhments. This was the Conception of this good Man, that had God's Hand on his Body, Soul, as is Earth, Heaven, and Hell conſpired to make him every way miſerable; Deſertions from God, Temptations from Satan; for that curſed Coward ſets on God's Children where they are weakeſt: God orders this for wiſe and gracious Ends, partly to try our Spirits, exerciſe Graces, prevent worſe Evils, keep us humble, conform us to Chriſt, teach us to live by Faith, to long for Chriſt and Heaven, and prepare us for divine Cordials. To be ſure, God's great care is to ſecure the main Stake in his Children; He will not ſuffer their Souls to miſcarry; He would rather his Children ſhould go to Heaven maimed, than go to Hell with all their Limbs; yea, it may be they will march on faſter lame, or ſee Heavenly Things better when bodily blind, or hear God's Voice better when corporally deaf, than otherwiſe: And our Bleſſed Saviour ſaith, It's better want any Member than be damned. Mat. 5.29.32.Strong Humors muſt have ſtrong Phyſick to work them out, but bitter Pills bring ſweet Health; and the Almighty God ſupports, ſanctiſtes, and at laſt ſatisfies the afflicted, tempted Soul, that all this was but needful. It was a fine Saying of Luther's concerning Satan, by whom he was ſo often buffered, [Eſ…o, Diabolis magnipotens, nunquam erit omnipotens]. The Devil is mighty, never Almighty; he may foil us, but never our Captain; the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah hath conquered the roaring Lyon.
We little know what ſhocks and batteries we may meet with from GOD, Satan, World, our own Conſcience: if we be Graceleſs, Chriſtleſs, wee to us. How dreadful is the caſe of a poor Sinner when Death arreſts, Conſcience accuſeth, the Devil roars, Hell gapes, GOD frowns, and Vengeance purſues him, and he hath no Burrough to flee to! he never thought of ſuch a day, never made proviſion, took no care to get furniſh'd for ſuch a Storm, and now, Sinners, ſhall go into the holes of the rock, Iſa. 2.19, 21.and into the caves of the Earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his Majeſty, when He ariſeth to ſhake terribly the earth. How little will Cap and Knee from Men, or many Thouſands a Year, or wallowing in ſenſual Pleaſures, avail in ſuch a day! Beds of Ivory, numerous Attendants, pompous Funerals, rhetorical Panegyricks profit not the tormented Soul of poor Dives in Hell, of whom it may be ſaid as once of Ariſtotle, [Laudatur ubi non eſt, Cruciatur ubi eſt;] "He is Praiſed where he is not, but Tormented where he is.
Oh that the variety of Inſtances of our Mortality might alarm our Souls to a preparation for that last Encounter, for go we muſt, ready or unready, when God calls Heaven and Hell are before us; when Breath goes out of our Bodies, our Souls lanch into the vaſt Ocean of Eternity, to be crowned or confounded. No doubt but the worſt of Men, from a principle of Self-preſervation, would be happy at death; Numb. 23.10.a Balaam will be content to dye the death of the righteous; as 'tis storied of the young Gallant, with his ſwaggering Companion, when standing by dying Ambroſe, ſeeing his carriage, hearing him ſweetly welcome Death, he ſaid to his Companion, Oh, that I might live with thee, and dye with Ambroſe! Alas, vain Fools, think to reap Wheat when they ſowed Tares, and find a Pearl that laid up Dirt: Men may cheat themſelves, but cannot mock GOD; Gal. 6.7. Heb. 12.14.Such as Men ſow ſuch ſhall they reap; without Holineſs no man ſhall ſee God. Certainly God knows his own, and will not take the wicked by the Hand, to lead them into his glorious Manſions when they have ſinned as long as they can, and confronted his glorious Majeſty with their Rebellions. Alas, how careleſly do moſt men live, keeping vain company, talking …idly, miſpending precious Time, neglecting God's Worſhip in Family, in Secret, heedleſs in their dealings with Men, living at large, heed not which end goes forward, wondering at and cenſuring others for their niceneſs, zeal, and tenderneſs, yet hope to go to Heaven as well as the best of them all: Oh, what a diſappointment will theſe wretched Souls meet with, when gracious and induſtrious Saints are ſaved with ſo much difficulty!1 Pet. 4.18.
I do humbly tender this ſhort and mean Diſcourſe to you, begging your kind acceptance of it, and profit by it. Ʋſe it as you pleaſe, ſo it may anſwer my Ends: It's full of good will, both as a Teſtimony of my due reſentment of the Memory of my dear deceaſed Friend, and earneſt deſires of your Soul's Health and Happineſs here and hereafter; for whom, and the reſt of Relations, I am bound to continue my poor Prayers, That we may meet before the Throne, cloathed with the Wedding-garment, Mat. 22.11.that fine Linnen, clean and white, Rev. 19.8.which is the Righteouſneſs of the Saints, having the Bleſſed JESƲS to ſpeak for us as our Advocate; to whoſe Hands I commit You and Yours, whilſt I am
Your Cordial, Well-wiſhing Friend, O.H. Aug. 8. 1695.