England Faithfully Watched, Lecture 72
COLOS. 1.25.
To fulfill the Word of God.
THe finall cauſe of Divine diſtribution, is here doubly ſet down, ſubſtantially, and circumſtantially. What is given is to be imparted: to whom? To Saints; to you: how much is to be given to them? All that is given unto us; this laſt circumſtance is preſt in this laſt clauſe, as the other is in the former, we muſt foreign fulfill the Word of God, (i) preach fully the word of God. The ſame word is uſed, Romans 15.19. and ſo tranſlated; From Ieruſalem round about to Illyricum foreign, I have fully preached the Goſpell of Chriſt.
The matter and the manner of divine miniſtration, fall both here under conſideration. Sacred conſtitutions, are not ſtuffed with hay, ſtraw, ſtubble, things that hold forth onelyonly to ſenſe ſome humane fading thing; they are all of ſupreame authority, and hold forth ſomething of God and nothing elſe; ſome pure beame of the Sun ſhines in every ſacred Ordinance. There were many ſorts of inſtruments about the Tabernacle, and yet not a pin but pointed at ſome great thing: ſome pointed at the wiſdome of Chriſt, ſome at the power, ſome at the mercy of Chriſt; ſome noted the back-parts, ſome the face, ſome the body, ſome the bloud, ſome the Life, ſome the death, ſome the dying-breath of Chriſt, to wit the word. Know the nature and the authority of this Ordinance now managed, we breath the dying breath of Chriſt, to fulfill the Word of God, 1 Cor. 23.27.(i) to accompliſh his mind who thus made his will. By the laſt words of David were the Levites appointed, at ſuch certaine yeares to their worke; ſo by the laſt words of Chriſt, was this worke put upon our ſhoulders; Whereof J am made a Miniſter [to fulfill] the word of God (i) his laſt word of inſtitution. The dying breath of Section. Chriſt, we breath in your faces: the nature of this I will open to you, what it is naturally, what accidentally. Naturally tis pure, perfectly pure. There are three regions of Aire, and although one purer then another, yet none perfectly pure. 'Tis a diviſion that pleaſeth Schollers,Pure. but the ſubſtance is one. So we may diſtinguiſh in this matter in hand. There be three Regions in that Aire that blowes and breathes upon our ſoules, the breſt of the Father, the breſt of the Sun, the breſt of the holy Ghoſt, all pure, perfectly pure, theſe are perſonally diſtinguiſhed, but one in eſſence. As things are, ſo they breath Lungs and inwards rotten, and breath is anſwerably corrupt; cleane things come not out of the mouth of uncleane, wickedneſſe proceeds out of the mouth of the wicked; perſons when they are dying, their breath is moſt of all impure, all parts within are ſo over-run and ruined with filth; Chriſt was dying all that time hee lived among us, and yet ſound in all parts,; holy, and ſo breathed to the laſt, he gave up his laſt breath in Hell, and yet holy and heavenly: and therefore very apt and punctuall is that expreſſion of Solomon [Every word] of God is pure, Prov. 30.5. Chriſt never had any filth in his mouth, the fountaine that gave ſpring to that out-let was ſo pure; hee never ſpake a ſinfull word: if every word of Chriſt was pure, then his dying words were pure, his words in Hell Eloi, Eloi, &c. And yet this is not all the emphaſis of that Text, every word of God is Tſerupha, purgatus, purified, Surmo purgatus. 'Twas a Hell that Chriſt did ſpeake in, all his time here below, if this Hell did do any thing, it did purge and not pollute his words, hee learn'd obedience not diſobedience, by all he underwent; it ſet him more in Heaven, and made his expiration from more inſpiration, his breathings forth in this world, from ſtronger gales from that world above, and made his laſt words, like the laſt words of that ſweete ſinger of Iſrael, doubly ſweet: How tranſendently ſweete are all thoſe expreſſions in the Goſpell of Iohn, which hee ſpake as preparatory to his end▪
Pleaſant.Tis very pleaſant: tis ſo to every ſenſe, which nothing elſe is or can be, ſuch is the conſtitution of man and things now. It ſounds pleaſant, taſts pleaſant, lookes pleaſant, &c. The breath of Chriſt caſts a dew [thou haſt the dew of thy youth] that hangs the Locks of man with ſilver drops. The Aire in ſome Countries doth colour and varniſh the haire. Words in ſeaſon are like Apples of Gold in pictures of Silver, theſe are ſhining things indeed, and proper to the ſight, ſuch are all the words of Chriſt his laſt words were very ſeaſonable words without which, where would have been this Ordinance, and theſe words, which now you partake of? the gales that come from Chriſts mouth, are all ſeaſonable; let this winde ſit which way it will, and blow how it will, ſharply, or mildly, tis ſtill ſeaſonable; Chriſt is wiſdome, and wiſdome never breathes unſeaſonably, and ſuch words are as the Sun, irradiant beyond the glittering of gold, or ſparkling of Pearles, to the internall eye. Wiſdome makes the Face, the Tongue, the Lungs, yea the breath ſhine, which is a wonder.
The breath of Chriſt, as it is pleaſant to ſight, ſo to taſte, this is another wonder. Ephraim is derided for feeding on wind. Can one taſt or eate winde? Yet ſuch is the breath of Chriſts Lips, that one may feede on 't, like the Dewes of the holy Land, and make a very good meale, tis ſo ſweet to the taſte, and ſo nouriſhing to the ſtate of the ſoule: the breathings of Chriſts Lips are beyond expreſſion pleaſant to the taſte. How ſweet are thy words to [my taſte!] I cannot expreſſe it, as if the Prophet had ſaid, yea ſweeter then the Honey to my mouth: Pſal. 119.103. they that write of Honey, tell us of ſeverall ſorts, which the Bee makes at ſeverall ſeaſons, and anſwerably differ in their ſweetneſſe, and goodneſſe. There is a Honey which they call Flower-honey. which is made in the Spring and prime of the yeare, from choyce flowers, and this is accounted the prime Honey, and that which they judge beſt to nouriſh young Bees withall, when they are firſt put to worke, to put them in heart. The breath of Chriſt is Honey-dew, his words are combes full of Flower-honey; gathered out of the Garden above, and admirable to put yong and old in heart. There is a great diſpute about Honey-dewes, whether they come from the Earth, as exhalations from it, as other ordinary Dewes do, or not: ſome affirme it to be nothing elſe but a pure ſweat of the celeſtiall bodies, an unctuous gelly, from the benigne Starres, and therefore called a Heavenly liquor, and ſay, if it could be taken as purely as it falls from the Heavens, before it comes into the corrupt Aire in which we breath, 'twould be much beyond that which we have, it would be a ſoveraine Nectar, to cure all diſeaſes, it would fetch from death to life, and immortalize men. There may be ſomething in all this, though not ſo much as authors would have us think; and yet if all this were true, tis too ſhort to ſet out the thing in hand. The honey dew wee ſpeake of, tis no exhalation from any thing here below, tis indeed, nothing elſe but the ſweat of Heaven, an unctuous gelly dropping downe from that bright morning Star Chriſt, the ſweat of his celeſtiall body, and indeed is ſoveraine for all diſeaſes, to fetch man from Death to Life, to immortalize men; Chriſts Words are Words of eternall Life.
Ʋſe. Tranſgreſſion is much aggravated by this point. Sinne is heartily loved; nothing will turne men. Do you conſider what you go againſt? you go againſt the breath of God, the dying breath of our Lord Jeſus. Some mens bowells are all torne out; ſuch are paſt recovery. When Satan can ſerve any ſoule ſo, the caſe is very wofull, and yet this is common. Sinners have you any ſoule-bowells? will not a crying, dying, groaning voyce, work upon you? The miniſtration which is here below is glorious, but dying; it hath been ſo, tis ſo, 'twill be ſo. The Prophets, where are they? The great Prophet, Chriſt, where is he? The Apoſtles where are they? they that Preached to your fathers, where are they? we that now preach to you, are we not dying? is not every light waſting? Is it not warme dying breath that is now breathed in your faces by me? Are not the lights of this Generation almoſt burnt out? and yet ſinne more alive then ever it was. This World worſens apace: this Generation, the dregs of many paſt. Speake who will, cry, die, who will, Chriſt, and many thouſands more, yet ſinne muſt not die, no, not open ſinne. What a Sodome is London and England, notwithſtanding the Word of God! this aggravation kills us, this makes our carcaſſes now that they cannot reach the Sepulchers of our Fathers, but bed horſe feet, and the wrath of God. That place is worthy of note, 1 Kings 13.21. and hee cried to the man of God which came from Judah ſaying, Thus ſaith the Lord, for as much as thou haſt diſobeyed [the Mouth of the Lord] Obſerve the circumſtance of aggravation, and haſt not kept the Commandement which the Lord thy God commanded thee, but cameſt back and haſt eaten bread and drunk water, in the place of which the Lord did ſay unto thee, Eate no bread and drink no water, thy carcaſſe ſhall not come into the Sepulcher of thy fathers. He had cried againſt the Altar at Bethel, and againſt Jeroboam; this hee diſcharged well, but he was alſo not to eate nor drinke in that place, to have nothing to do with any there, becauſe of their pollution, and this alſo he obſerved well a while, as appeares by his ſtout Language to the King; If thou wilt give me halfe thy houſe J will not eate Bread with thee in this place. But he was fetched back by a flattering Prophet, and did eate and drinke in Bethel; and ſo went againſt the Mouth of God. The Prophets obedience was partiall, his carcaſſe fell for this ſadly: tis our caſe, at beſt, for the generall. Such whom ſinne doth not wholly ſway, neither doth truth. Thoſe that are againſt the Altar at Bethel, are for eating and drinking in Bethel, for countenancing ſomething forbidden about Gods worſhip; mens carcaſſes pay for this and will, till they know how to account of every tittle of what a God ſpeaks; till we become faithfull executors, of the will of a dying Saviour, we ſhall die.
We live in a very unhappy time; we are ſpectators of ſinne and juſtice in height Men prize their ſinne above their bloud. But as ſinne is feated, ſo it will abide: if ſinne be feated in the heart, it will abide there, till all the bloud of the man be ſpilt on the ground, yea, till all that which is ten thouſand times more noble then this, to wit, the ſoule, be loſt. I will tell you the property of the Word of God, in order to ſuch a foule, as ſtill keepes his ſin, tis though ſweet in it ſelfe, bitter to ſuch; ſearching, piercing, tormenting. The word of God is quick and powerfull, ſharper then any two-edged ſword, piercing even to the dividing of ſoule and ſpirit, and this hee ſpake in order to them which abode in the ſtubborneſſe of their heart, and flighted the promiſe of perfect reſt, in that Canaan above. The heart ſtrongly ingaged to evill, truth is very piercing: he that ſo loves ſinne that he ſlightes the reſt above, he ſhall have no reſt here. You cannot imagine the ſad boutes and fearfull expectations, that unſound ſoules have, and yet this muſt continue, becauſe the breath of the Lord like a River of Brimſtone, keeps in this Hell, as it doth that below. The breath of Chriſt which you ſpurne againſt, by your ſpurning, lights a fire, and ſhall ſerve to burne you, though it will not to lead you. Chriſt puts to the ſword all they which yeeld not, burnes and blowes up all that he cannot take. Did not our hearts burne within us whilſt he talked with us? The breath of Chriſt is hot, it burnes within men according to that degree of unbeliefe and reſiſtance it findes, in every one, without reſpect of perſons. Did not [our Hearts] burne?
Sinners conſider theſe things and repent, ſucke in the dying breath of Chriſt, charge folly upon your ſelves. Who is it that ſpeakes to mee? what would he have? who is it within me that anſwers, and what anſwers doth it make? There are fleſhly reaſonings, and carnall motions, take heede of them. Everybody will plead for it ſelfe, the body of death will do ſo, which is the death of the ſoule, but methinks the Word of God ſhould ſilence all; If the voyee that ſpeakes to us were conſidered as ſuch a voyce, ſurely it would. In what poſture your ſoules ſit in an ordinance, is all in all; If you thinke I ſpeake theſe things as a man, as Paul ſaith, that it is onelyonly a mans word, you will huſh your ſoules aſleepe againe, as ſoone as gone from the preſence of a man: and yet ingenuity would honour mans voyce. The beaſt that ſpake to Balaam that beaſt, was honoured to ſpeake with mans voyce, and that was throwne in Balaams face, that mans voyce from a beaſt would not calme his madneſſe. The dumb Aſſe ſpake with [mans voyce]. But when man is honored to ſpeak with Gods voyce, and to forbid your ſin and your madneſſe therein, will you on for all this? how much more will this be throwne in your face? Conſider with what voyce we ſpeak, and for how little while this Oracle ſpeakes in this earthen Tabernacle, and ſee how it will worke. To day if you will heare [his voyce]: this Tabernacle in which his voyce is and ſpeakes, laſts but a day; to day, if you will heare his voyce ſinners, doe; to morrow the tent will be removed, the vaile will be drawne, the Oracle will beſilent, his voyce and our own too, will be gone out of our Mouthes, and hid from your Eares.