Eighteen Sermons, Sermon 4
EPH. 2.1, 2, 3.
And you hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins, where in times past you walked according to the course of this world, according to the Prince that ruleth in the Aire, the Spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience: Amongst whom also, &c.
THe last time I declared unto you the duty that was necessarily required of us if we look to be saved, that we must not onelyonly take the matter speedily into consideration, and not be deluded by our own hearts and the wiles of Satan; but that we must not do it superficially or perfunctorily, but must bring our selves to the true touchstone, and not look upon our selves with false glasses, because there is naturally in every one self-love; and in these last and worst times men are apt to think better of themselves then they deserve. If there be any beginning of goodnesse in them, they think all is well, when there is no danger in the world then being but half Christians. He thinks that if he hath escaped the outward pollutions of the world through lust, and be not so bad as formerly he hath been, and not so bad as many men in the world are, therefore he is well enough: whereas his end proves worse then his beginning.Superficial repentance will not change the nature of man. No morality, nor external change of life will do, without quickning grace and a new life wrought. This superficial repentance is but like the washing of a hog, the outside is onelyonly wash't, the swinish nature is not taken a way. There may be in this man some outward abstaining from the common grosse sins of the world, or those which he himself was subject unto; but his disposition to sin is the same, his nature is nothing changed: there is no renovation, no casting in a new mould, which must be in us. For it is not a little reforming will serve the turn, no, nor all the morality in the world, nor all the common graces of Gods Spirit, nor the outward change of the life: they will not do, unlesse we are quickned, and have a new life wrought in us; unlesse there be a supernatural working of Gods Spirit we can never enter into Heaven. Therefore in this case it behooves every man to prove his own work, Gal. 6. A thing men are hardly drawn unto, to be exact examiners of themselves. Coelo descendit, foreign, a Heathen himself could say, to know a mans self is a heavenly saying; and it's an heavenly thing indeed if we have an heavenly Master to teach us. The Devil taught Socrates a lesson that brought him from the study of natural to moral Philosophy, whereby he knew himself; yet the Devil knew morality could never teach him the lesson indeed. All the morality in the world cannot teach a man to escape Hell: we must have a better instructer herein then the Devil or our selves, the Lord of Heaven must do it, if ever we will be brought to know our selves aright. St. Paul was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, one of the learnedst Doctors of the Pharisees, and yet he could not teach him this. When he studied the law, he thought himself unblameable, but coming to an higher and better Master, he knows that in him, that is, in his flesh dwells no good thing, Rom. 7. By self examination a man may finde m…ny faults in himself, but to find that which the Apostle afterwards found in himself, to see the flesh a rottenness, the sink of iniquity that is within him, and to find himself so bad as indeed he is, unlesse it please the Lord to open his eyes, and to teach him, he can never attain it.
Now we come to this place of the Apostle, wherein we see the true glasse of our selves, the Spirit knows what we are better then our selves, and the Spirit shews us that every man of us either was or is such as we are here set down to be. We are first natural before we can be spiritual, there is not a man but hath been, or is yet a natural man, and t…efore see we the large description of a natural man before he is quickned, before God which is rich in mercy enlivens him being dead in sins, and saves him by grace in Christ. Thus is it with us all, and thus must it be; and we shall never be fit for grace till we know our selves thus far, till we know our selves as far out of frame, as the Spirit of truth declares us to be. In this place of Scripture consider we
1. Who this carnal man is; what they are which the Apostle speaks of, to be dead in sins: and that walk after the course of the world, led by the Devil, and have their conversation after the flesh, children of wrath. These are big words and heavy things: Consider therefore first the subject▪ of whom this is spoken.
Then follows the P…aedicate, or
2. What th… till newes is which he delivers of them. We begin with the first.
1. Who they are of whom this is spoken: and that is (you) You hath he quickned who were dead: and (ye) (in the words following) that in times past walked after the course of the world: and in the third verse more particularly: Among whom we had our conversation also in times past. He speaks now in the first person, as before in the second, so that the subject is we, and ye all. Not a man in this Congregation, but is or was as bad as the Holy Ghost here makes him. But
2. To come to that which is delivered of him: he is one not quickned, dead in sins: no better then nature made him, that corrupt nature which he hath from Adam, till he is thus spiritually enlivened.
Now he's described,
1. By the quality of his person.
2. By his company. Even as others. Thou mayst think thy self better then another man, but thou art no better; never a barrel the better herring (as we say:) Even as others, thou art not so alone, but as bad as the worst, not a man more evil in his nature then thou art. When thou goest to hell, perhaps some difference there may be in your several punishments, according to your several acts of rebellion: but yet you shall all come short of the glory of God, And for matter of quickning you are all alike.
1. First then concerning their quality: And this is declared
1. By their general disposition, they are dead in trespasses and sins. Dead, and therefore unable and indisposed to the works of a spiritual living man: Besides, not onelyonly indisposed and unable thereto, but dead in trespasses and sins. He lies rotting in his own filth, like a rotten carkasse, and stinkking carrion in the nostrils of the Almighty, so loathsome is he: all which is drawn from original sin. Not onelyonly dis-enabled to any good, but prone to all sin and iniquity.
2. By his particular conversation: And that appeares in the verse following. Where in times past ye walked. How? Not according to the word and will of God, not according to his rule, but they walked after three other wicked rules. A dead man then hath his walk you see: a strange thing in the dead, but who directs him in his course? these three, the world, the flesh, and the Devil, the worst guides that may be; yet if we look to the conversation of a natural man, we see these are his Pilots, which are here set down.
1. The World. Where in times past ye walked after the course of the world. He swims along with the stream of the world. Nor will he be singular, not such a precise one as some few are, but do as the world doth, run amain whither that carries him. See the state of a natural man. He's apt to be brought into the slavery of the world. This is his first guide. then follows
2. The Second, which is the Devil. The Devil leads him as well as the World: According to the Prince of the power of the Aire, the Spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. In stead of having the Spirit of God to be led by, he's posted by the Spirit of Sa…an, and the works of his Father the Devil he will doe, He hath not an heart to resist the vi…est lusts the Devil shall perswade him to. When Satan once fills his heart, he hath no heart to any thing else, then to follow him.
3. There remains the Flesh, his guide too, and that's not left out, v. 3. Amongst whom we had our conversation in times past in the lusts of the flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. So that you see the three guides of a natural man; and he is as bad as these three can make him: and till the stronger man comes and pulls him out, in this condition he remains, and in this natural estate, he is a son of disobedience. We see then the state of disobedience described to be wretchednesse.
3. This further appeares by that which must follow, which is cursednesse. Rebellion and wretchednesse going before, cursednesse will follow. For God will not be abused, nor suffer a Rebel to go unpunished: Therefore saith the Apostle, We are by nature the children of wrath. Being the natural sons of disobedience, we may well conclude we are the children of wrath, If we can well learn these two things of our selves, how deep we are in sin, and how the wrath of God is due to us for our sins, then we may see what we are by Nature. Thus much concerning the quality of a natural man. Next follows
2. His company. Even as others. By nature we are the children of wrath even as others. That is to say, we go in that broad wide way that leads to damnation, that way we all naturally rush into: though we may think it otherwise, and think our selves better, yet we are deceived. For it is with us even as with others. Naturally we are in the same state that the worst men in the world are; so that we see the glasse of a natural man, or of a man that hath made some beginnings, till Christ come and quicken him.
Q. Quest.See we then who it is spoken of to be dead men, that are rotten and stinking, as bad as the world, the flesh, and the Devil can make them: Who should these be?
A. Ans.I answer, it's you: you hath he quickned. And ye, wherein ye walked, &c. But who are they?
The Ephesians perhaps that were in times past heathens: I hope it belongs not to us. They were Gentiles and Pagans that knew not Christ, v. 12. Aliens to the Commonweal of Israel, strangers to the covenant of promise, having no hope, without God in the world. foreign, as the Text renders it, Atheists, and therefore they might well be so. But I hope it's not thus with me, I was never a Pagan or Heathen, I was born of Christian Parents, and am of the Church.
But put away these conceits. Look on the 3d. v. Amongst whom we also had our conversation: and wherein ye your selves, &c. It's not onelyonly spoken of you Gentiles, but verified of us also: As if he had s…id here as Gal. 2. We who are Jewes by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles. He paints out no… onelyonly you the Gentiles in such ugly colours, but we Jewes also, we of the Commonwealth of I…rael. We, before we were quickned, were in the same state that you are described to be in.
Obj. Obj.Oh but the Apostle may do this out of fellowship, and to avoid envy, as it were making himself a pa…ty with them, as Ezra did cap. 9. that included himself in the number of the offenders, though he had no hand in the offence: O our God (saith he) what shall we say? Our evil deeds, &c. and how shall we stand before thee because of this? making a particular confession, whereas he was not accessory to the fault, but to sweeten it to them.
Sol. Sol.But here the Apostle doth not so, he was not thus minded, but it's we all, he puts universality to it: So that it's clear, that before conversion and quickning by grace from Christ, we all, all of us are in as foul and filthy a condition, as this which is here described and set down: So that this is the point, that it is not spoken of some desperate sinners, but that it is the common state and condition of all the sons of Adam.
Doct.Doct. All men, every man and woman in this place, either is or hath been in the state that here the Apostle describeth him to be.
Therefore we have all need to examine our selves, whether we yet remain in that condition or not. The Apostle brings this description to testifie the truth of the point, Gal. 3.22. The Scripture hath concluded… all under sin. The whole current and course of the Scripture shewes the universality of it, that it's true of all. See, the Apostle speaking of himself and the rest, Tit. 3.3. saith, We our selves also, not onelyonly you of the Gentiles, but we our selves also were foolish, disobedient, &c. but after the kindnesse of God towards man appeared, &c. that is, before the day-star of grace did arise in our hearts, there's not the best of us all but have been thus and thus.
Rom. 3.3. There the Apostle insists on the point expresly, that every mouth might be stopped; to shew the state of all men naturally, having laid down a large beadrole of the iniquities of the Heathen, cometh afterward to convince the Jews. What are we better then they; no, we have proved that all are under sin: there is none good, no not one.
Obj. Obj.But though you bring many places to prove that all are sinners, yet I hope the Virgin Mary was not.
Sol. An inch breaks no squares, but All are sinners. There is none righteous, no not one. The drift of the Apostle in this, is to shew that these things are not spoken of some hainous sinners onelyonly, but there's not one to be exempted; and therefore in his Conclusion, v. 19. he saith, That every mouth may be stopped, and all the world become guilty before God: and that by the deeds of the Law no flesh can be justified from sin.
So that now having proved this so clearly to you, consider with your selves how needful it is to apply this to our own souls. Many men, when they read such things as these in the Scripture, read them but as stories from strange Countries. What, are we dead in sins, not able to stir one foot in Gods wayes? bad we are indeed:No natural man doth judge himself so bad as he is: but dead, rotten, and stinking in sins and trespasses? what, as bad as the world, the devil, and flesh can make us? what, children of wrath? firebrands of hell? few can perswade themselves that it is so bad with them. Therefore take this home to your selves; think no better of your selves then you are: for thus you are naturally. Therefore consider, if thou wert now going out of the world, what state thou art in, a child of wrath, a child of Belial, or the like. Set about the work speedily, goe to God, pray, and cry earnestly: give thy self no rest, till thou know this to be thy condition: Let not thy corrupt nature deceive thee, to make thee think better of thy self then God saith thou art.
Now that we may the better know to whom these things belong, know it is thou and I, we all have been or are in this estate, till we have supernatural grace; and therefore we are declared to be children of wrath, and children of disobedience, till regenerated. Why? It's because it's thy nature, it belongs to all. Now we know the common nature alwayes appertaines to the same kind: There's nothing natural but is common with the kind. If then by nature we are children, then certainly it belongs to every Mothers son of us, for we are all sons of Adam. In Adam we all die, Rom. 5. That's the fountain whence all misery flowes to us. As thou receivedst thy nature, so the corruption of thy nature from him; for he begat a son in his own likenesse. This therefore is the condition of every one. The Apostle in 1 Cor. 15. speaks of two men, the first was from the earth, earthy, the second was the Lord from heaven. What, were there not many millions and generations more? True, but there were not more men like these, men of men, two head men, two fathers of all other men. There were but two by whom all must stand or fall, but two such men. By the fall of the first man we all fell; and if we rise not by the second man, we are yet in our sins. If he rise not, we cannot be risen. We must rise or fall by him. He is the Mediator of the second Covenant. If he rise and we are in him, we shall rise with him; but if not, we are dead still. So it is in the first Adam, we all depend on him, he is the root of all mankind. It's said in Esay 53. Our Saviour should rejoyce to see his seed. His seed, that is to say, he is the common father of all mankind, I mean of all those that shall proceed from him by spiritual generation. He shall present them to his father, as when one is presented to the University: Behold here am I, and the children that thou hast given me. So in Adam, he being the head of the covenant of nature, that is, the Law, if he had stood, none of us had fallen; if he fall, none of us all can stand He is the peg on which all the keyes hang: if that stand, they hang fast; but if that fall, they fall with it. As we see in matter of bondage; if the father forfeit his liberty, and become a bondman, all his children are bondmen to a hundred generations: here is our case. We were all once free, but our father hath forfeited his liberty; and if he become a slave, he cannot beget a free-man. When our Saviour tells the Jewes of being free-men: We were never bond-men, say they, though it be false; for even Cicero himself could tell a Jew that he was a slave, genus hominum ad servitium natum, although they had a good opinion of themselves: But our Saviour saith, you are bond-m…n unto sin and Satan. For till the Son make you free, you are all bond-men: but when he makes you free, then are you free indeed. So that we see our condition here set down.
1. We are dead in trespasses and sins; that is, there is an indisposition in us to all good works. A dead man cannot walk, or speak, or do any act of a living man; so these cannot do the actions of men that are quickned and enlivened, they cannot pray with the spirit, they cannot love God, &c. they cannot doe those things that shall be done hereafter in heaven. There's not one good duty which this natural man can do. If it should be said unto him, Think but one good thought, and for it thou shalt go to heaven, he could not think it. Till God raise him from the sink of sin, as he did Lazarus from the grave, he cannot doe any thing that is well-pleasing unto God. He may do the works of a moral man, but to do the works of a man quickned and enlightned, it's beyond his power. For if he could do so, he must then have some reward from God; for however we deny the merit of good works, yet we deny not the reward of good works to a man that is in Christ. There's no proportionable merit in a cup of cold water and the Kingdom of heaven, yet he that gives a cup of cold water to a Disciple in the name of a Disciple, shall not lose his reward. Here then is the point. The best thing that a natural man doth,The best works of a natural man cannot please God. cannot so relish with God, as that he should take delight in it, or reward it: whereas the least good thing that comes from another root, from a quickned spirit, is acceptable and well-pleasing to him. Consider for this end that which is set down, Prov. 15.8. Take the best works of a natural man, his prayers or sacrifice, and see there what is said. The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord. It is said again, Prov. 21.27. where there are additions, The prayers of the wicked are an abomination to the …ord: how much more when he brings it with a wicked mind? Suppose there should come upon this man a fit of devotion, where he hath or should have some good motions, is it then accepted? no, it is so far from being accepted, that it is an Abomination to God, how much more then if he brings it with a wicked mind? That is, if he bring it not with a wicked mind, it is an abomination, how much more with it? See the case set down in Haggai 2.12, 13, 14. If one bear holy flesh, &c. shall he be unclean? And the Priest answered, no. Then said Haggai, if an unclean person touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And he said, it shall be unclean. Then answered Haggai, so is this people, so is this nation before me, saith the Lord, and so is every work of their hands, it is unclean. A man may not say prayer is a sin, because it is so in them; no, it's a good duty, but spoil'd in the carriage. He marrs it in the carriage; and therefore in stead of doing a good work, he spoils it; and so in stead of a reward, must look for punishment, 1 Tim. 1 5. The end of the Commandement is love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned. Let the things thou doest be according to the Commandement: look what thou doest be according to the middle, end, and beginning of the Commandement. If wrong in all these, then though the work be never so materially good, being faulty in the original, middle, or end, it's so far from being a good work, that God will not accept of it, and thou mayst rather expect a plague for spoiling it, then a cure.
See then the beginning of a good work,Look to the oginal of duties. it must be from a pure heart. A man not ingrafted into Christ, is a defiled, polluted person, his very mind and conscience are defiled. The conscience is the purest thing a man hath, it holds out last, and taketh part with God, that as Jobs messenger said, I onelyonly am escaped to tell thee: so conscience onelyonly remaines to declare a mans faults to God, and to witnesse against the man; and yet this very light, the eye of the soul, is defiled: therefore if thou have a corrupt fountain, if the heart be naught, the fountain muddy, whatever stream comes from it,Look to the end of duty. cannot be pure.
Again, the end of it is love. Consider when thou doest any duty, what puts thee on work. Is it love doth constrain thee? If love do not constrain thee, it is manifest that thou dost not seek God but thy self, and art to every good work a Reprobate; that is, thou art not then able to do any thing that God will accept; the best thing thou doest wil not relish with God. A hard estate indeed, that when a man shall come to appear before God, he shall not have one good thing that he hath done in all his life that God will own. Some there be that take a great deal of paines in coming to the word, in prayer publique and private, in charity and giving to the poor: Alas, when thou shalt come to an account, and none of these things shall stead thee, not one of them shall speak for thee, but all shall be lost, How heavy will thy ease be? 2 John 8. Look to your selves, that you lose not the thing that you have wrought: By being indisposed to doe the works of a living man we lose all; that is to say, God will never own nor accept them: we shall never have reward for them. So that here is the case, thou being dead, unable to perform the works of a living man, canst have no reward from heaven at all, until a man is quickned, and hath life from Christ. Without me, saith our Saviour, you can doe nothing. St. Austin on this place observes that Christ saith not, Without me ye can doe no great matter: no, but unlesse you be cut off from your own stock, taken from your own root, and be ingrafted into me, and have life from me, and be quickned by me, you can do nothing at all: Nothing, neither great nor small, all that you do is lost. So that if there were nothing but this being dead, you could do no good action. I know that in me, that is, in my flesh (saith St. Paul) there dwelleth no good thing: that is, nothing spiritually good, nothing for which I may look for a reward in heaven. The Lord will say of such a man, thou hast lived ten, twenty, forty, or it may be fifty yeares under the Ministry, and yet hast not done a good work, or thought a good thought that I can own. Cut down this fruitlesse tree, why cumbers it the ground? And this is the case of every man of us while we continue in our natural condition: till we be ingrafted into Christ, and live by his life, God will own nothing we do.
But now we are not onelyonly dead, and indisposed to the works of a living man, though this be a very woful case, and we need no more misery; for this will bring us to be cut down and cast into the fire, if we continue so: But this is not onelyonly the case of a natural man, but he's very active and fruitful in the works of darknesse, the others were sins of omission. Here he is wholly set upon the commission of sins and trespasses, Heb. 6.7. He not onelyonly brings not forth meet fruit, or good fruit, or no fruit, but he brings forth thorns and briars; and is therefore rejected, and nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burnt. Thou art not onelyonly found a barren tree, and so deservest to be cut down; but thou bringest forth thorns and briars, and deservest to be burnt; not onelyonly no good fruit, but noxious, bad and poyson'd fruit; and this doth mightily aggravate the matter. Now for us that have lived so long under the Ministry, and the Lord hath watered, and dressed, and hedged us, do we think the Lord expects from us no good fruit? Had we lived among heathens, or where the word is not taught, then so much would not be expected; but we have heard the word often and powerfully taught, and therefore it is expected that we should not onelyonly bring forth fruit, but meet fruit, answerable to the means. Where God affords greatest means, there he expects most fruit. If a man live thirty or forty yeares under powerful meanes, the Lord expects answerable fruit, which if he bring forth, he shall have a blessing from the Lord. But when a man hath lived long under the meanes, and brings forth no fruit pleasing to God, but all Gods cost is lost, when notwithstanding the dew and the rain which falls oft upon him, he brings forth nothing but thorns and briars, he is rejected, and nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burnt. The earth which drinketh in the former and the latter rain, &c. if it bring not forth fruit answerable to the labour of the dresser, it's nigh unto the curse.
Now if we consider but the particulars, and search into Gods testimonies, we shall see how bad this man is.
But who should this man be?
We have Gods own word for it. It's men, generally all men, Gen. 6.5. God saw the wickednesse of man was great in the earth, and that every thought and imagination of his heart was onelyonly evil continually. Every word is as it were a thunder-bolt: and was it not time, when it was thus with them for God to bring a flood? The thoughts are the original, from which the words and actions do usually proceed. Now all their thoughts were evil: What, was there no kind of goodnesse in their thoughts? no, they were onelyonly evil continually: and that was the reason the flood came. Well, but though it were so before the flood, yet I hope they were better after the flood. No, God said again after the flood, cap. 8. The thoughts of the hearts of men are evil, &c. Like will to like. Men are all of one kinde, till they receive grace from Christ. We are all of one nature, and naturally all the thoughts and imaginations of our hearts are onelyonly evil continually.
See it in the understanding, 1 Cor. 3.14. The natural man perceiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, neither can he know them, for they are foolishness unto him &c.
Look upon his will, Rom. 8. It is not subject to the will of God, neither indeed can it be. Our Saviour, Mat. 15.8. doth anatomize the heart of such a man. Those things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile the man, for out of the heart proceeds evil thoughts, murthers, adulteries, &c. these are they which defile the man, because they come from his heart from within. If a man go by a house, and see great flakes of fire come out of the …himney, though he see not the fire within, yet he cannot but know there is fire within, because he seeth the flakes without. I am not able to see the heart of any man, and to declare to you what I have seen with mine eyes; but yet if I see such flakes to come forth, as murther, thefts, blasphemies, lying, and the like. I may say there is hel-fire in the heart; thy heart is a little hell within thee, these manifestations from without make it appear to be so. The words of this man are rotten words and stinking words, and his heart is much more. So, this is the point, we are utterly indispos'd, aliens to all good, and bent to all evil. I am carnal (saith the Apostle) we are sold under sin, slaves unto it; sin is our Lord, and we its slaves. We have generally forfeited our happy estate, and are servants to Satan, whom we obey. Therefore this is a thing not easily to be passed over; this is our condition, of which if we were once truly perswaded, we would never give our selves any rest till we were got out of it.
If the party that goes to the Physician, could but know his disease, and cause the Physician to know it, and the causes of it, whether it came from a hot cause or a cold, it were easily cured, it were as good as halfe done: That is the chief reason why so many miscarry, because their disease is not perfectly known. That is the reason we are no better, because our disease is not perfectly known: That is the reason that we are no better, because we know not how bad we are. If we did once know our disease, and knew our selves to be heart sick, and not like the Laodiceans, which thought themselves rich and wanted nothing, when they were poor, blind, and naked, then we would seek out, and were in the way to be cured. So much for this time, but we will have another Lecture on this point.