The True Way to the Tree of Life, Part · Section 4 – Section 5
IV. Direction.
DAily and deeply revolve in thy mind, How few they are that are effectually recovered out of their Natural state of sin and misery, in comparison of the innumerable multitudes that die and perish therein everlastingly. That this is so, is evident;
1. By the express words of our Blessed Saviour: Enter ye in at the strait gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: How strait is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it, Mat. 7. 13, 14. What is this broad way leading to destruction, but the sinful and wretched way of the world, the flesh, and the Devil? Who are those many which go in thereat, but all those that live and die in their sinful and wretched state of Nature? What is that strait way leading unto life, but the way of God, by Christ, through faith? Who those few that find this strait way, but those that are converted from darkness to light, &c. Act. 26. 18. So then how few are the saved, in comparison of the multitudes that perish!
2. By the paucity of those that were saved of old under the Old Testament, from the dayes of the first Adam, till the death of Jesus Christ the last Adam. For,
1. From Adam till Moses the Church of God was only domestical, confined within certain Families succeeding one another, as within the Families of the 10 Patriarchs before the Flood, Adam, Seth, &c. and within the Families of the 12 Patriarchs after the Flood. Now during this time, which was above 2400 years, how few were recovered out of their sinful and wretched state of Nature! For, how few were within the Church of God, in comparison of them that were without? And those that were without the Church, and so died, may generally be supposed to have perished in their Natural state of sin and misery,… which were far the greatest number of the whole world. For, 1. When in the dayes of Noah, God brought the Flood of waters upon the old world, to destroy all flesh that breathed, Gen. 6. 13, &c. and 7. 21, 22, 23. the world of the ungodly, (as Peter stiles them, 2 Pet. 2. 5.) was drowned, when only one Family of Noah, in the whole world, consisting but of 8 souls, were saved in the Ark, Gen. 6. 18. and 7. 7. with 1 Pet. 3. 20. And of these 8 one was a wretched and cursed Cham, that mocked at his own Fathers nakedness, Gen. 9. 21, 22, 24, 25. 2. When God overthrew the Cities of Sodom, Gomorrha, Admah and Zeboim, he found not 10 righteous persons in all those Cities, for then he would have spared all for those tens sakes, Gen. 18. 32. Only 4 persons, viz. righteous Lot, with his Wife and 2 Daughters, escaped the dreadful showers of fire and brimstone, Gen. 19. 15, 16. And one of these 4, for looking back, viz. Lot's Wife, was turned into a pillar of salt; to season mens unsavoury lusts after worldly things, as Augustine oDenique uxor Lot, ubi respexit, remansit, & in salem conversa hominibus fidelibus quoddam praestitit condimenium, quo sapiant aliquid, unde illud caveatur exemplum. Aug. de Civit. Dei, lib. 14. ca. 30. Tom. 5.intimates. 3. In Iob's time (Iob is conceived to be of Abraham by Keturah, bypGeneral view of the Holy Scriptures, Edit. 2. p. 126, &c. A work like H. Broughton's, perfected by T. Hayne. some; his descent and time is variously reported by others, as I have elsewhereqSee in my Key of the Bible, on the Book of Iob, §. 4. shewed; but generally he is thought to have lived in the times of the Patriarchs by most) Satan had so over-run the whole earth, that none in the earth, (i. e. very few, or none in visible and conspicuous manner) were found righteous, fearing God and eschewing evil, forsaking the Idols of Egypt, as Iob did, Iob 1. 1, 7, 8. and 2. 2, 3.
2. From Moses till Christs Death, the Church of God became National, but was confined only to one Nation, among all the Nations of the world, viz. the Nation of the Iews, which were not moe in number then any people, but the fewest of all people, Exod. 19. 5, 6. 1 Pet. 2, 9. Deut. 7. 6, 7. Therefore, few in comparison, were, during that time, recovered out of the state of sin and misery by nature. Salvation was only of the Iews, Joh. 4. 22. And of such few Proselytes of other Nations as came in and joyned themselves to the people of the God of Abraham, Psal. 47. 9. All others were as forreigners and strangers they, the Commonwealth of Israel, and houshold of God, Eph. 2. 12, 13, 19. All other were reputed no people, as having not obtained mercy; no special saving mercy, they, the people of the living God, that had obtained mercy, 1 Pet. 2. 9, 10. All others were accounted as dogs; they, the children, Mat. 15. 26.
And yet all the Jews were not plucked out of their Natural state of sin and misery▪ and saved. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel, Rom. 9. 6. And though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved, Rom. 9. 27. A remnant is but a small number to the rest. Consider well; 1. All the men of Israel, able for war, from 20 years old and upwards, were numbred in the wilderness to be 603550, Numb. 1. 46, 47. besides the Levites; and all these, save Caleb and Ioshuah, for their unbelief and murmuring against God, and the promised Land, were destroyed in the wilderness, Numb 14 1, 2, &c. verse 26, 27, 28, 29, 30. to 39. 1 Cor. 10. 10. Heb. 3. 17, 18, 19. Iude 5. 2. Many of them also for their other wickedness were overthrown in the wilderness, 1 Cor. 10. 5. to 12. 3 In the dayes of the Iudges, they, even the generality of them fell away from Gods true Religion and worship, unto heathenish Idolatries, and that frequently, therefore God often gave them up into the hands of several sorts of oppressors, Iudg. 2. 11. to 16. 4. In the dayes of Ieroboam, 10 Tribes of the 12 apostatized from God, and fell to the Idolatry of the Calves in Dan and Bethel, and at last were carried captive into Assyria for their wickedness; and the Scripture makes no mention of their return, 1 King. 12. 28. to the end, and 19. 14, 18. 2 King. 17. 3. to 24. 5. The two Tribes of Iudah and Benjamin remaining, grew very wicked from time to time, especially in the reigns of wicked Kings: insomuch that at last the face of all things in the Church was so corrupt, that both the King, Priests and people grew to such an height of impiety, that there was no remedy, and God gave them into the hand of the Chaldeans, who destroyed them without pity, and carried them captive to Babylon, where they were in thraldom 70 years together, 2 Chron. 36. 11. to 22. 6. Many of the Jews after their return from the Babylonish Captivity, whereby they should have been reformed, fell into sundry offences in the dayes of Nehemiah, which he endeavoured to reform; as, most oppressive Usury, Neh 5. 7, &c. Prophanations of the Sabbath-day, Neh. 13. 15. to 23. Marriages with Wives of Ashdod, Ammon and Moab, Neh. 13. 23, &c. 7. Finally, In the dayes of Antiochus, the whole face of Religion was miserably corrupted, and the conscientious were cruelly persecuted, 1 Mac. 1. 45. to the end. And when our Blessed Saviour became incarnate, the whole affairs of Religion lay miserably prostrate and defaced. See Mat. 5. and 6, and 7, and 15, and 23.
Now, all these things Considered, How few can we rationally imagine to have been plucked out of their sinful and wretched state of Nature, when iniquity so abounded in the Church!
3. By the Scarcity of the Truth, Life, and Power of Godliness and Christianity, even in the Visible Churches of Christ, now under the New Testament: the fewness of those that are effectually recovered out of their Natural state of Sin and misery may further appear. For,
1. In our Blessed Saviours dayes, as the Scribes and Pharisees had in a manner engrossed all Religion to themselves, as is none were Religious but they, Luk. 18. 9. &c. Phil. 3. 5. Act. 26. 5. So the whole Religion of the Scribes and Pharisees stood in outward Forms, hypocritical appearances, &c. Rather then in any sincere Realities, Math. 6. 2. 5. 16. and 15. 2. to 10. and 23, 2, to 8, 13. to 34. and therefore our Saviour tells his hearers plainly; That Except their Righteousness exceed the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees; they shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, Mat. 5. 20.
2. The Apostle Paul hath prophecied of perillous times to come in the last dayes, viz. That men shall cloak and shelter their many notorious abominations, under a form of Godliness, denying the Power thereof, 2 Tim. 3. 1 2, 3, 4, 5.
3. In the New Testament we are oft informed how rare and precious true Religion is. As, That, Christs flock is but a little flock, Luk. 12. 32. That, of the ten Virgins, the one half were foolish, having lamps of Profession, no Oil of Grace in them, Math. 25. 1. &c. That, in the flower of the Church, as there is Wheat, so there is Chaff, and more Chaff than Wheat, Mat. 3. 12. That, of four sorts of Hearers, there are three naught. Mat. 13. Luk. 8. And, that it is very observable, If out of the Visible Church you take away, All the notoriously Prophane, All the meer Moral and Civil honest men, All the gross Hypocrites whose hypocrisy half an eye may discern, all the privy close Hypocrites who know themselves to be Hypocrites, and all formal Hypocrites or Temporary believers that believe only for a time, Luk. 8. 13. Mat. 13. 20, 21. the Residue will be very few, in Comparison, that are plucked by the hand of Heaven out of their Natural state of Sin and misery, and thereby prepared for eternal felicity.
V. Direction.
EArnestly and Effectually lay to heart, O Natural Man, How happy it would be for thy poor Soul, to he one of those few recovered out of the Sinful and wretched state of Nature; rather then one of those many that live and die and so perish therein eternally, Luk, 13. 24. Mat▪ 7. 13, 14.
O, do not follow a multitude to do evil, Exod. 23. 2. To walk according to the Course of this World; to do, as most do; to swim down the Common stream; &c, is the Natural man's way and delight, Eph. 2. 1; 2, 3. But 'tis no safe way. The broad way hath most Company, but the worst issue, Destruction: The Narrow way hath fewest passengers, but the best Event, eternal life. Mat. 7. 13. 14. Will it not be infinitely better for thee, To be converted with afew, then to remain carnal with a Multitude? To be Justified, adopted, acquitted at last day, and eternally saved with a few; rather then to be held guilty, cast out of Gods family, condemned at the last day, and eternally tormented with the greatest multitude? will it be any ease to thy …, to be tormented with the greater Company: when the numerousness of the Tormented will but augment and aggravate one anothers torments? Oh it will be far happier for thee, to be in Abraham's bosom with one Lazarus, then to be tormented in infernal Flames with Dives and all his five brethren, Luk. 16. 23. 28. and with all the ungodly of the World.