Military Duties Recommended, Rule 1
RULE. I.
Let Unfeigned Repentance put an end unto your Warring and Fighting against the GOD of Heaven.
It is very proper to begin with the Caution which Doctor Gamaliel gave to the Iewish Sanbedrim, (in Act. 5. 39.) Be not found to fight against God. Until men are brought unto the Experience of a Conversion to and a Covenant with God in Jesus Christ, all the Affayrs of a Christian Warfare will be no less unsuitable than unacceptable to them. All Unregenerate m…n which live in KNOWN Sins are so farr from warring and fighting against the Arm… of Hell, that they desperately set themselves in Battle Array against the infinite GOD. The black Description of every Impenitent Transgressor is that in Iob. 15. 25, 26. He stretcheth out his hand against God, and strenghens himself against the Almighty, He runneth upon Him, even upon his Neck, upon the thick Bosses of his Buckler. O that these foolish & unwise kind of people would now be perswaded to bethink themselves! What a prodigious Phrensy is this, for them that lately came out of the Creating hands to cast themselves into the Avenging hands of God! The First and the best Direction that can be given to these Children of Folly, is,
Oh Lay down your Arms, and make your peace with that terrible God, whom by your sin you have made your provoked Adversary. The secure Sinner perhaps is not aware of his own makeing these daring Adventures. But this must be plainly told unto every man that maintains a Trade of wilful Disobedience unto the Commandments of God: Man, thou art Sounding a Challenge against GOD Himself, thou art every Day Bidding Defiance to the Eternal GOD; Thou art certain of that which which was only a mistake in Io… of old: God counteth me for His Enemy. O that such hd… less men and women would sit down in sobe… s…dness to think on the none-such Madness which hath possessed them. Are you not every day (Conscience, do thine Office) Are you not daily allowing your selves in those things▪ for which you are not ignorant that the Wrath of God comes-upon the Children of Disobedience? If you are not such hold Debauche…s as to live in Swearing, in Uncleanness, in Drunkenness, in Sabbath-breaking; and to make nothing of a vile Cheat, or a fl…tt Lye; yetdo you not make Light of a Prayer-less Life? and so, of a Faithless and a Christ-less Life? Now every such Sin of yours has a Tongue in it, a Blasphemous Tongue, that talks against heaven, and saith, I am for the Waging a Warr & a Fight with God. As they sometimes said in Isa. 5. 19. Let the Lord hasten his work that we may see. Such an insolent Bravado do you affront the most High withall. The faithful and holy God has said Cast away from you all your Idols, or I'le break you sore in the place of Dragons: I will burn you in the fiery bottom of Hell for those Rebellions. But every unreclamed Sinner now, doth as bad as reply Let God do His worst; His Darts are but Stubble and the shaking of his spear is but to be Laughed at. Thus the unrepenting and unrelenting Sinner, h… knowes that he sins, and yet with an high-hand he rushes on, to the doing of those things whereof the Compassionate God saith unto him, O do not those abominable things which my soul hateth. But O venturesome unthinking Sinners, consider the doleful plight which you are in, Consider this ye that forget God, lest He tear you in peices and there be none to deliver you. The blessed God hath positively declared unto you, (in Psal. 7▪ 12, 13.) that He has whe… His sword and bent His Bow, and ordained the Instruments of Death against the Sinners who Turn not from their evil wayes; He hath declared upon the word of a GOD, (in Psal. 68. 21.) that He will wound the Head of these His enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in His Trespasses. It was the short and smart Return which Iehu made unto Ioram in 2. King. 9. 22. Joram when he saw Jehu said, is it Peace? and he answered, what Peace, so long as the Whoredomes of thy mother are so many? Thus, if any unrenewed Sinner ask, Is there not a Peace between God and me? It must be said unto him, No, such sins as thine are inconsistent with Peace, thy Sins render God thy dreadful enemy. But O now turn from all Sin unto God in Christ, Lest ye perish, Cry for Quartor, yea, cry for Pardon, and Agree quickly with your matchless Adversary. Let that Question be put unto you (1. Cor. 10. 22.) Do you provoke the LORD to Iealousy? are you stronger than he? Surely you cannot presume that you shall make your party good against God, who can Thunder the whole world into nothing in a moment? It is said in Luc. 14. 31. That one going to warr against another, sitteth down first, and consulteth whether h… be able to meet him that cometh against him. Be you entreated to admit so much Consideration here as Common Prudence will suggest. I have heard of a man in the West-Indies a little while ago who being in a Boat with another when a High Wind made a rough Sea, at his Companion's Expressing some Concernment about the Issue, which he was disturbed at, The Wretch flew out into this out-rage of Blasphemy, Let God Almighty blow, let Him blow if He list, I fear Him not; And behold the words were but just out of his mouth, when he was blown over-board and drown'd, while the other gatt safe to shoar. All Deliberate Sinning soameth out such a Contempt of God, and verily the Event is like to be … better: … the black dead Sea of God's Wrath will swallow up such Despisers till they perish, it is written concerning … … …mb. 32. 31. that when he saw a F…ming Swo…d in the hands of an Angel ch…cking of his motions, it put him to … …and. Oh … durst you go on in a Course of …in, when you …erceive t… great GOD with Flaming Sword… and …ott Thunder-bolts opp…ng of you? L… it not be f…d that your sturdy Obstinacy in S… out-goes the stout Stomach of the very Devil… themselves, who believe and tremble, whi… you sin and tremble not. It is no less tha… an Omnipotent Enemy whom by Unforsake… Sin you … the just Revenges of; and wi… the sorry … of the Earth make light of His hor…dous Indignation? It is the Exclamation of the Psalmist in Psal. …6. 7. W… …ay stand in thy sight when once thou art ang… O Lord! O No more, No More Harden y… selves against this GOD; It is impo… that you should prosper if you do. You … …he Lord of Hosts against you; and while y… have, all the Hosts of the Lord are up in A… against you too. While you are thus un… …he Curse of God, every Creature of Go… hath been crying unto him against you, a… … King …to the Prophet about the … Syrian…, Shall I smite them, O Lor… … I … them▪ The … … … … …, shall I swallow them up alive? as I d… Corah and his Company? The Se… … … Lord, shall I run over the heads of 'em, as I did to Pharaoh and his Followers? The Clouds have rumbled, Lord, shall we showre down fierce Lightenings upon them, as we did upon Sodom & Gomorrah? Thus are even all the Creatures of God only staying for that Word Fall on; and upon that Signal given, they would all joyn to Plague you, more than the Sun and Moon did Sisera of Old▪ when by producing the Inundations of Kishon they did in their courses fight against him. But there is that which, is more tremendous yet: You must expect that if Repentance prevent it not, you will at length fall into the Hands of the everliving GOD Himself, whose Hands it is … fearful thing to fall into. And O how ca… you bear the Gripes of those Iron Arms, … …e Immedeate stroaks where-with he will one day dispense his fiery Fury in those Ovens of Hell, the Souls of his Enemies; Can your hands be strong or can your heart endure, in the day that I shall deal with you, saith the Lord? The Hands of God! Alas those Ir…ful Hands …o splitt the Everlasting Rocks, and make the very Pillars of Heaven Tremble. I Knew … very stout man, who in the Ang…ishes of Death thus express'd himself, I have …een said he) among drawn Swords and Armed Souldiers; I have stood before the mouths of roaring Canons, from whence th… Bullets have flown about my ears, and yet I never knew what it was to be afraid; but now I am apprhensive of my being exposed to the everlasting Anger of GOD, my heart shivers & fails-within me, at the though… of that. Sometimes when my Visits have been call'd for by men on their Death-Beds, perceiving themselves on the Borders of Eternity, I have found them quaking and there very Beds shaking under them, and their first Speech has been to this purpose, O Sir, the Wrath of a dreadful GOD makes me tremble, I tremble, I tremble at it! How full of Hellish Dimness, and Darkness and Bitterness, will Presumpteous Transgressors then be in the Day of God's Unmixed Wrath, in the Day when He shall fulfil that Threat in Psal. 50. 21. I will reprove thee, and set thy sins in Order (in Battle-Array) before thine eyes? Now let every hitherto-unchanged Sinner count himself concerned to put a penitent Period unto the dangerous deadly Warfare, wherein he is warring and fighting against the Almighty God. In this case the Teaching which you have from God is, Lay down your Arms, O war and fight no more. All the Powers of your souls, all the Members of your Bodies have hitherto bee… … tis said in Rom. 6. 13. The Weapons of unr…ghteousness. O find out now a better, a fitter employment for them; otherwise your only Wages or Stipend will be (as the Apostle …aith, alluding to the military Stipends of old) Death, Death, forevermore. Wherefore …ere make a Pause. O Commune with your selves about what you have been and done. Now Confess, now Bewail before the Most High all your past miscarriages, entreating that thro' the Prince of Peace they may be all forgiven and the Breach be made up between God and you; promising there-withal, that for the fu…ure it shall be your hearty study to have no more to do with Idols. O say, It is enough, Lord, I have done Iniquity, and I will do so no more.
But so much may suffice to b… … unto them who have not yet known th… … of Cana…n.
More Briefly in what remains.