The Last Judgment, Tract · Doctrine 21
Ver. 37, 38, 39. Then ſhall the Righteous anſwer him, ſaying, Lord, when ſaw we thee an hungred, and …od thee? &c.
Doct. XXI. is this, That the Elect Saints at the laſt day will make ſo little reckoning of what they have done for Chriſt in his Members, that they do as it were forget what they have done in that kinde.
Reaſons. 1. From the Lord. 2. From themſelves. 8. From their Works of Bounty and Mercy.
From the Lord. 1. From his excellent Majeſty, which we can never do enough for; and therefore that little that is done for him, how can it come to minde? it muſt needs be forgotten, Iſa. 12.5. 2. From his Mercy and Goodneſs, he forgets their ſins, Iſa. 43.25. Jer. 31.34. makes them …s if they had never been committed, Micah 7.18. and is it any wonder that they ſhould forget their beſt works done for him? 3. From the exact Perfection of Obedience that his Juſtice calls for, Gal 3.10. Now we being able to do nothing exactly, how ſhould it be but that all we do ſhould be forgotten? 4. From the Lords fulfilling all Righteouſneſs for us, and imputation of his Righteouſneſs to us, Rom. 4.6, 7, 8. And how then ſhould any thing of ours be thought of? Cant. 4.7. 5. From his fore-ordaining us to walk in this way of good works, Epheſ. 2.10. and therefore he has been more in them then we; and how then ſhould we remember them in reference to our ſelves? 6. From his Acceptation of our will for the deed, 2 Cor. 8.12.
2. From the Saints. 1. They are ſo taken up with thoughts of the Lords mercy to them, that they cannot think of any mercy that they have ſhewn to him in his Members. 2. They are then ſo taken up with the Dignity and Honour that is put upon them, that what they have done upon earth is out of minde. 3. They are ſo taken up with his Praiſes, that what they have done cannot come into their hearts to be once thought upon. 4. They are ſo hu…ble and little in their own eyes, that what they have done ſeems nothing to them. 5. They are co…e to mans eſtate, and therefore forget what they did in their child …ood, 1 Cor. 13.11. 6. They are now perfect, Heb 12.23. and therefore forget their imperfect ſervices, 1 Cor. 13.10.
3. From their works of Mercy. 1. They are all his works, and flow from him, Hoſ. 14.8. John 15.5. Phil. 1.11. and therefore they muſt needs forget them, as in reference to themſelves. 2. They are little things in compariſon of what we owe him. 3. They are not worth remen bring, having been ſo full of fillings. 4. They are done ſo ſecretly, that they are eaſily forgotten, Matth. 6.1 -4.5. They are done to ſo few, and ſo ſeldome, that they may well be forgotten. 6. They have been done ſo ſparingly, that thoſe poor pittances cannot once ſo much as come into their mindes.
Ʋſe 1. for Information: 1. We ſee that they are not the Elect ones of God, that reckon up their good works, as the Phariſee did in Luke 18.11, 12. and that number their Devotions: for at the laſt day the Elect, a… though they had forgotten all, will ſay, Lord, when did we feed thee? &c. a. We ſee how conſcious we ſhould be of our falling ſhort of our duty to Chriſt in his Members now, for the time will come when we ſhall think that we have done nothing for him. 3. We ſee how little it is that the beſt of the Saints do for Chriſt here; ſo little, that they cannot think of any thing that they have done that way. 4. We ſee that they that upbraid others with what they have done for them, as they are unlike God, Jam. 1.5. ſo they are not of the ſpirit that the Elect Saints will be of at the laſt day. 5. We ſee that they that are moſt forgetful of what they have done for Chriſt in his Members, they come neareſt the perfection of the Saints at the laſt day. 6. We ſee that when we have done all we can for Chriſt in his Members, it well becomes us to be little in our own eyes, 1 Pet. 5.5. 7. We ſee that our kindneſſes done to Chriſt in his Members are very few, for they are eaſily all forgotten. 8. We ſee that forgetfulneſs of what we have done for Chriſt in his Members, argues a truly gracious heart. 9. We ſee that good works, though they be forgotten of us, loſe not their nature, for Chriſt before owns them. 10. We ſee that Elect Saints will carry Humility to Heaven. 11. We ſee that they are not for Works of Supererogation. 12. We ſee that ſurely they do not hold that they are ſaved by their Works, for they are as though forgotten and out of minde, Epheſ 2.8.9.
Ʋſe 2. for Humiliation: 1. To thoſe that now think too much, and ſpeak too much of their works, they ſhall be all forgotten at that day. 2. To thoſe that are ſo ſparing in their beneficence, it muſt needs be forgotten it is ſo little.
Ʋſe 3. for Exhortation: 1. To this holy forgetfulneſs now of what we do this way. Means hereof. (1) Remember we our ſins more, and we ſhall be leſs proud in remembring what we have done, Ezek 36.31. (2) Look upon our failings in the Grounds. Manner, and End of our works, and we ſhall ſee more ſpots then beauty in them. (3) Look upon what Chriſt has done for us, and all our doings will not come into minde. (4) Look upon his Greatneſs, and all our doings will be nothing to us but be forgotten. (5) Compare the Reward and the Work together: As he ſaid of ſufferings, Rom. 8.18. 2 Cor. 4.17. ſo here, our works appear as nothing, when ſet before the exceeding greatneſs of the Reward. (6) Remember his manifold mercies. (7) Remember what we did of old againſt him. (8) Remember, that all we can do is Debt and Duty. 2. To be humble when we ſhew moſt mercy. 3. To love Humility in others that are merciful. 4. To abhorre that Popiſh Conceit of Merit. 5. To deteſt all thoughts of Works of Supererogation. 6. To love Chriſts appearing, 2 Tim. 4 8.
Ʋſe 4. for Conſolation: 1. Againſt wicked mens charging us with neglect of Bounty and Mercy, they do no more then we ſhall one day do againſt our ſelves. 2. Againſt ſome pangs of vain-glory which we mourn for; we ſhall be troubled with none of them at that day.