The Christians Daily Monitor, Part 13
§. 13. A few Motives to young perſons to be Religious.
…here was never more need for Miniſters, Parents, Tutors, Maſters, to ſeaſon youth with piety, and to improve their intereſt, wiſdom, authority in this Work, then in theſe days, wherein there is ſuch a general decay of Godlineſs, that if God do not ſtir up the hearts of Governours, and if they will not ſtir up themſelves, and thoſe under their charge, the next Generation are like to prove Banquerupts in Religion, and to prove either Papiſts or Atheiſts. To encourage young perſons to look to themſelves, and to call them out of the tent… of wickedneſs;, I would earneſtly intreat them to let theſe few conſiderations reſt upon their minds.
1. O young man or young woman, conſider the end of thy being, Why God made thee, and gave thee a reaſonabl… ſoul, capable of eternal happineſs? why did God beſtow upon thee many endowments of mind and body? why he hath vouchſafed the cultivation and improvement of thy natural abilities by education and inſtruction? Wa… all this that thou mighteſt glorifie him, and be ſerviceable in thy Generation to the great end of being and living? Canſ… thou imagine that ſo bright a lamp as a… …mmortal ſoul, was ever put into the …arthen candleſtick of thy body, for …aſe and ſenſual ends, meerly to ſerve …y fleſhly appetite, the moſt deformed …nd unſatiable monſter that is in the …orld? Canſt thou upon ſerious …oughts conceive thy being is for …ch poor low ends? No, remember …od and men expect better things from …ee. You that are young, the good …d welfare of Church and State de…ends on you: you are the Seed-plots …d Nurſeries of all Religion and Vertue, … Liberty, Honour, Trade; either you …uſt tranſmit, and hand theſe down to …oſterity, or all theſe muſt dye and be …xtinguiſhed in your hands; and are …ou willing to be recorded in future …iſtories for prodigals and betrayers of …hem all? Such a man by Religion and …ertue raiſed his Family; and ſuch an …eir, ſuch a Grand-child ruined it by …is debauchery. Stobeus relates, that …he Ephebi among the Athenians took …n Oath, not to leave their Country in a worſe condition then they found i… but in a better: Oh that it might be … ſaid of this Generation.
2. Conſider, It is a monſtrous thi… for young perſons to be old ſinners. T… Age in which ſin is committed is ſo f… from excuſing it, that it aggravates it. … is a ſad character of a man, he was ſo a… ſo wicked of a Child; he was a ſweare… a lyar, a ſcoffer, an enemy to Godline… from his long Coates. God himſelf wh… he would aggravate mans ſin, ſaith, t… imaginations of mans heart hath be… evil from his youth, Gen. 8.21. A… guſtine in his Confeſſions bewails h… boyiſh tricks, Lord, when I was a litt… Boy I was a great ſinner. And Davi… begs pardon for the ſins of his youth Pſal. 25.7. and mark how God brand the diſobedience of Iſrael, Jer. 22.2… I ſpake unto thee in thy proſperity, b… thou ſaideſt I will not hear; this has been thy manner from thy youth, tha… thou obeydſt not my voice. And in Jer… 32.30. God aggravates the ſin of Iſrael and Judah, that they had done evil before him from their youth. Take heed of calling ſin, tricks of youth, and and thinking your age gives you a diſpenſation. If ever you return to God, thoſe ſins muſt be repented of, and they will coſt you dear; as you may ſee in thoſe Converts, Jer. 3.25. We lye down in our ſhame, and our confuſion covereth us, for we have ſinned againſt the Lord, we and our fathers from our Youth even to this day. Conſider therefore how dear you muſt pay for your youthful luſts, they will prove dear bought pleaſures, they are but honey licked off from thorns: Like that fruit in the Weſt Indies, the Spaniards call the Devils ſweet meat; a fruit very delicious, but the place where it grows is ſo hot in the day, and ſo infeſted with venemous inſects in the night, that none care for dwelling near them. Your youthful pleaſures expoſe you to the ſcorchings of Gods wrath, to the bitings and ſtingings of your own conſcience. Your youthful luſts muſt be repented of either here or in hell, where repentanc… will do you no good. Conſider wha… theſe courſes are, none can prevail wit… you now to leave, and whither they tend; they provoke God to hate you… good men are grieved for you, and aſhamed of you, nay, even wicked me… themſelves in their cool thoughts would not have their children as bad a… themſelves. But O how few perſon… conſider, that by youthful luſts, the… lay a foundation for old age miſeries.
3. Conſider it is the greateſt honou… to be good betimes. It was the praiſe o… that good Courtier Obadiah, he feare… the Lord from his youth. It was the Glory of Joſiah, that while he was ye… young he began to ſeek after the God o… David his father, 2 Chron. 34.3. It wa… the commendation of Timothy, tha… from a child he had known the Holy Scriptures, 2 Tim. 3.15. God takes i… very kindly when you begin betimes to ſerve him, Cant. 7.12. Chriſt loves the buds, the bloſſomings of Grace, as well as the ripe fruit; and the Devil is a great enemy to this age, he oppoſes the bringing young perſons to Chriſt to be dedicated and to be inſtructed and catechiſed. There are four reaſons among others why the Devil labours to corrupt youth.
1. Becauſe he knows a vicious youth layes the foundation of a vicious life. Reaſon teaches, that if we would alter the diſpoſition of any thing, we muſt do it while it is young: Now the Devil acts according to this principle; and becauſe youth is an age of fancy, and apt to receive impreſſions, therefore he labours to ſtain and pollute it: no colour holds ſo well, as that which is dyed in the wool.
2. Becauſe their age being leaſt able to diſcern between good and evil, will ſooneſt bite at his baits, and yield to his temptations. Young perſons are ſooneſt catched in his ſnare.
3. He doth not know how ſhort a time they have to live, and therefore he would get them into his clutches as ſoon as he can.
4. Becauſe God loves this age, therefore he loves to be cropping early buds; indeed God highly values a… a Religious Child-hood and youth, he hath given us all teſtimonies how much he accepts it. Under the Law, the acceptable ſervices were young things, young lambs, young bullocks, young pigeons; the firſt ripe fruits, the firſt born, God challenged to be his. O how doth God delight in young Samuels, young Davids, young Daniels, young Johns; the one was a young Prophet, the other a young Apoſtle. Saith God, When Iſrael was a Child then I loved him: And can there be a greater honour to you, then to ſay, I loved God from my Child-hood, I knew Chriſt from my Child-hood? to ſay as David, Pſal. 71.5. O Lord I have truſted in thee from my youth.
4. The word of God doth concern you, and Religion is as proper and fit for you as for any perſons whatſoever.
The Scriptures are written for young perſons, that they may know how to cleanſe their wayes, Pſal. 119.9. The word is the beſt ſtaff for old men to lean on, and the beſt ſword for young men to fight withall. The Heathens indeed thought, that youth might be indulged in ſin. Cicero in his defence of …aelius, ſaith, ſomething is to be allowed to youth, till the heat of that age be abated; but I could appeal from him as a Mercenary Oratour pleading for his Fee the Cauſe of a debauched young man, to himſelf in another place in his ſober mind, telling us, That this age is in a ſpeciall manner to be kept from luſt, and that they are much miſtaken, that think way ſhould be given to the licentiouſneſs of young men. But it is no great matter what they thought; ſince we know God hath ſo framd the Scriptures that Religion belongs not only to thoſ… of riper years, but to Children alſo, Deut. 29.29. Thoſe words as the learned obſerve have extraordinary point… in the Hebrew, and three times there are mention made of Children in th… Decalogue. The Scripture teaches, ther… is a duty you owe to God, Eccl. 12.1. There is a duty you owe to men, Eph. 6.1. and both theſe are clear, becauſe God hath appointed correction, as a… means to keep them in the way of thei… duty, Prov. 22.15. and God promiſes a bleſſing to it, Pr. 23.13. now God promiſe… not a bleſſing, but as a means appointe… by him to an end. Nor is there any ag… more proper for Religion then this is This the learning age: now you hav… leaſure, now your minds are not ſo preingaged and prejudiced as they will b… hereafter. Religion is like water, fit to be poured upon tender plants. You will never have a fitter time in your lives. The time of youth is the faireſ… flower that grows upon the ſtalk of Time. Now your underſtandings are quick, your memories tenacious, your affections ſoft and pliable. If you redeem not this time for God and your ſouls, I dare be bold to ſay, you will repent of it ſometime before you dye.
5. Converſion after youth proves very difficult and rare. I would not be thought ſo arrogant, as to ſet any bounds to Gods Grace, or limit it to any time. Poſſibly ſome unwary expreſſions that way have done much harm: But this I ſay, ſins of youth are hardly left, and ſeldom forſaken; as thoſe bones that grow crooked in Childhood, are hardly rectified when we become men. It is ſaid, Mark 11.13. the time of figs was not yet; the time of gathering figs was not yet, as ſome expound that place, it was a time of bearing figs, for that kind of fig tree, ſaith a learned man, uſes to have fruit on it of the firſt, ſecond, and third years growth: Now Chriſt being hungry came to ſee if he could find any thing upon it. Old age i… the time of gathering fruit; Youth i… the time of bearing fruit. If you do no… bear fruit while you are young, how ſhall Chriſt gather fruit when you are old? and what then can you look fo… but a curſe?
6. Good education makes the ſins of youth more heynous. You therefore that have ſprang from Godly Parents, that have been the Children of many prayers and tears; you that have been brought up in Godly Families, that have had many Fathers, many Inſtructors, know you cannot ſin at ſo eaſie a rate as others. And here I cannot but take up a ſad lamentation over the degenerate children of Godly parents and anceſtours; Then which there is not a worſe ſymptome among us of Gods utter leaving and forſaking us: Many Sons and Daughters are ſo given over to looſeneſs, prodigality, ſcurrility, pride, uncleanneſs, contempt both of the form and power of Religion, that if their Parents and Anceſtours were now upon …arth, would they know them to be …eir Poſterity? Surely it may be ſaid …f them, as in the Prophet, Abraham is …gnorant of them, and Iſrael knows them …ot. Sarah, and thoſe Holy Women of …ld, would not know their Daughters. Thoſe Squirril-brain'd creatures that …isk from one faſhion to another; thoſe …potted and painted faces of yours, do …ore reſemble Jezebel, then the Saints of old: And know you not that their Children you are whoſe works you do? …any young men, their fathers were …overs of God and Worſhippers of him, …ept the Sabboth, prayed in their Families, were chaſt in their minds and body, …uſt in their dealings, careful of giving offence, meek, humble, lovers of them that were good. But look upon their Children, do theſe things live and ſurvive in them? are they the inheritours of their Fathers vertues, do they walk in the ſteps of their Godly Anceſtours? O no, it may be ſaid of them as in Judges 2.17. You have turned quickly out o… the way wherein your fathers walked obeying the Commandment of the Lord but you do not ſo. Is not Gods ſervic… contemned by you? Do not you loo… upon it as a diſgrace to be Religious▪ When do you hear Gods word, or whe… doth God hear from you in prayer? An… not all dayes alike with you? even tha… holy time God hath choſen for himſelf, is it not many times more vainly and wickedly ſpent, then the week day? What are your Conſciences but graves, wherein you have buried all the good principles you had in your education? Are not your bodies the ſinks of luſt and the epitome of Diſeaſes? You… eſtates ſo waſted in the ſervice of th… Devil, that they are become but a mea… skeleton? Your breath is become mor… infectious then the ſteam of a Sepulcher; who more bitter againſt Godlineſs then you? Who more ready to ſhake hands with the wicked then you… Who more aſhamed of their Godly Anceſtours then you are? Do not many …f you think their ſtrictneſs and circum…pect walking a crime, and for fear leaſt you ſhould be involved in it, you think …hat you have no way to clear your ſelves but by doing the quite contrary? And now Sirs, do you think to ſcape? I tell you in the name of God, except you repent, your condition will be doubly miſerable.
1. In this life, the judgements of God will overtake you, Deut. 32.20. They …e Children in whom is no faith: ſaith God in the 23, I will heap miſchief …pon …em, I will ſpend mine arrows upon them. What a fatal deluge befel thoſe Sons of God, and of the Church, that corrupted themſelves, and fell from God, Gen. 7.8. What a dreadful curſe befel degenerate Cham in Noahs family? How heavy was Gods hand upon Iſhmael and Eſau? the time would fail to let off the ſad ends wicked children of Godly Parents have come to; to ſpeak of Nadab and Abihu, Hophni and Phineas, Abſolom, the Sons of good Samuel, of Jehoram, the Son of good Jehoſhaphat, of the Children of Joſiah, of the… poſterity of the ſeven Aſian Churches. O you degenerate ones read theſe examples, and tremble at them.
2. But moſt miſerable will you be i… the day of judgement, Mat. 8.13. Whe… the Children of the Kingdom ſhall be caſ… into utter darkneſs. There ſhall be weeping and wailing and gnaſhing of teeth; that day will be a ſad day to two ſorts of perſons, to wicked Parents and Rebellious Children; when Chriſt ſhall ſay to a Child, who taugh… …ou to ſwear & drink? &c. and they ſhall ſay Lord, I had a Father and Mother did n… more for me then beaſts do for their young I never was taught any thing was good; … was never warned againſt ſin, I knew little of thee and Christ, (except it were how to abuſe and prophane thy Name.) O the miſery of thoſe Parents. But o… the other ſide, when Chriſt ſhall ſay t… another, who taught you to take ſuc… courſes, and do ſuch things? and the Parents ſhall ſay, Lord, this our Son, …ur Daughter, were Children of Belial, we warned them night and day with tears, we were gentle to them, and exhorted them as fathers ſhould do their their Children; we corrected them, we …rayed for them, we entreated others to …ray for them, we wept over them; Lord thou knoweſt the ſighs and tears, the heart-breakings we had from them, but they would not hear: O the miſery of …hat Child, and of all ſuch Children.
Now let me add but a little Counſel to you, which if followed will do you much good.
1. Engage your hearts to God, give up your ſelves to him. Avouch the Lord to be your God, and reſolve to be his Servants; then you will eaſily anſwer thoſe many temptations, that will come a ſui…oring for your hearts, and be very importunate with you. Satan is Gods rival in ſuing for the heart, the world and the fleſh are his Pandors. Now O… young man engage thy heart to God, and then thou mayeſt ſay, I am not mine own, I have beſtowed my affections already, and I like my choice too well to change.
2. Do not think your ſelves too wiſe to learn, and too good to be taught, which is the ſin of moſt young people. It is your great wiſdome to hearken to inſtruction, Prov. 12.15. He that hearkneth to counſel is wiſe, Prov. 13.1. A wiſe Son hears his Fathers inſtruction. There is no greater folly in young people, ahen to think themſelves wiſe enough already. It is reckoned in Sacred Scripture, great impiety not to hear inſtruction, and there is a curſe promiſed againſt thoſe that like the deaf Adde… ſtop their ears, and will not hearken to Parents, Miniſters, Godly, wiſe friends. Whom do you deſpiſe but God himſelf? Ezek. 3.7. You find it the brand of Reprobates, 1 Sam. 2.25. Eli hi… …ons hearkned not to the voice of their father, becauſe the Lord would ſlay them, 2 Ch. 25.16. The Prophet tells A…aziah, that his not hearkning to counſel, was an argument God had determined to deſtroy him. I have read a ſtory of Bernard, who had a younger brother that was a Souldier, and led a wicked life; his brother uſed many wayes to reclaim him, but he ſlighted all; Well ſaith he to him, Brother, the time may come that God may let my …ords into your heart by a hole in the ſide; not long after this gallant was wounded in his ſide: then his Brothers words came to his mind with great aſtoniſhment. You that have faithfull Parents, Maſters, Friends, that advice and counſel you, take heed of ſhutting it out of your ears and hearts, leaſt God let it in with a witneſs afterwards. I would intreat young perſons to ſtudy that place, Eph. 6.1, 2. It is the firſt Commandment that hath a promiſe with it, and there is a four-fold cord to bind to the performance of it.
1. It is juſt and equal, this is right:
2. That it is the firſt Command, tha… which leads to all the reſt; he or ſh… that keeps this, will keep the other; h… or ſhe that breaks this, is in danger o… breaking all the other, 2 Tim. 3.1.
3. It is a Command, with a promiſ… to allure them to it, and that of a temporal bleſſing, and that bleſſing whic… every one deſires, long life.
And 4. The Apoſtle in Col. 3.20 adds one more; this is well-pleaſing t… the Lord; and who is there that woul… not pleaſe him? O remember how i… all other things you are willing to b… inſtructed: What Schollar is not willing to learn of his teacher the Tongue… and Arts? What Servant is not willing to learn his trade, and to be inſtructed and bind himſelf ſeven, eight, nine years to learn an Art or Myſtery that he may live by hereafter? And are you… ſouls nothing to you? Are you ſo wiſe for ſaving them you need no help?
3. Though you are in ſtrength and health, likely to live many years, yet remember all you Young ones that you muſt dye, and come to judgement. It is Solomons counſel, Eccleſ. 11.9. There are in Goigotha skulls of all ſizes; there is only this difference between a youth and an old man, That the one muſt dye through the neceſſity of nature, the other may die through the violence of a diſeaſe. There is nothing ſo powerful to hold men off from ſin as the meditation of death. There are ſaith one, two ſorts of trees God quickly cuts down, old trees that bear no fruit, and young trees that bear evil fruit.
4. Labour to work on thy heart the Meditation, how little the world bids for thy ſoul, and what inconſiderable things, thoſe vanities and pleaſures are young perſons are ſo much taken with: Many are but the pleaſures of fancy, at the beſt they are but the pleaſure of ſenſe. It is very little that young perſons know and underſtand of this, and that makes them ſo mad after them, and ſo deſirous to taſte and try them. We pleaſe Children with bables; and they are no better the world puts you off with, ſuch things as dare not endure a ſcrutiny at the bar of Reaſon. What do theſe things contribute to the bettering your beings, and ſatisfying your appetites? I mean to the giving you true content. Alas! they are things that periſh in the uſing, and it will not be long e're you your ſelves will be of another mind. Now the more you underſtand youthful vanities, the more carefull you will be to paſs that age with as much innocence as may be, and to avoid thoſe ſins you muſt commit before you can come at them; and you will be afraid to venture much in the cracking that ſhell, that will yield you nothing but matter for repentance.
5. Take heed you be not aſhamed of your Dutie. Satan doth many times abuſe that natural modeſtie that is in your Age, to ſtave you off from Religion, telling you, you will be but laughed at, and ſcorned for your pains: But learn to be aſhamed of nothing but ſin; and this is that modeſty that is alwayes the companion of comlineſs and beauty, to be aſhamed to do evil: But when a man hath done evil not to be aſhamed, this is that which hath the greateſt deformity in it: He that is aſhamed of doing good, it is to be feared will grow past …hame in doing evil. It is the common excuſe, I ſhall be laught at, and I am aſhamed. But if you be derided for your piety and ſingularity in Godlineſs, becauſe you will not run with the wicked to the ſame exceſs of ryot; ſo were your betters, both Prophets and Apoſtles, nay, the Lord of both, Jeſus Christ himſelf was deſpiſed and mocked. But who are they that deride you? none but wicked men. And will it not be more grievous to have God laugh at your calamity, then for men to deride your piety? Choſe whether you will be aſhamed of Chriſt and his words in an evil Adulterous Generation, that you may avoid the reproach of the ungodly; or whether you will own Chriſt now, that he may own you when he comes in the Glory of his Father bringing all his Holy Angels with him.
6. Look well to your companie; let your delight be in the Saints that are on the earth, and in them that excell in vertue. Young trees ſeldome grow ſtraight in hedge-rows, nor young perſons good in evil company. Where your own corruption would draw you one mile, your company will draw you two… as a mans company is ſo is he, Prov. 13.20. Ch. 28.7.