England Faithfully Watched, Lecture 76
COLOS. 1.26.
But now is made manifeſt [to his Saints.]
VVHat was a myſtery and what was hid, is ſtill ſo to all but Saints, but now is made manifeſt to [his Saints] What a long night ſome have! they have Job's wiſh, they give up the ghoſt in the wombe, and their eyes never ſee the Sun, no not when he ſhines brighteſt. Goſpel-light is the cleareſt, plaineſt, and yet this is hid, unleſſe to a very few. If our [Goſpell] bee hid: the moſt are finally left. Never able to come to the knowledge of the truth, although ever making at it: that is a ſad expreſſion ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Death and Life are made paralell for length; one is everlaſting, ſo is the other. Some never die, others never live; the fire of the Altar never went out; the holy Spirit which is the onelyonly fire in the new Tabernacle, never goes out of ſome, and never comes in to other; hee never leaves nor forſakes ſome; though in the fire, though in the water, though in the belly of Hell, yet he comes to them: others he never comes neere, let them be where they will, doe what they will, pray, or cut themſelves like Baals Prieſts. Tis all day in ſome parts of the World, tis all night againe in other parts; ſuch is the ſet and fixed courſe of the Sunne about the great World, and ſuch likewiſe is the motion of the Sunne of Righteouſneſſe, about the little World.
Another thing is this: Divine courſe is ſo ſteered as to fulfill will, mans will and Gods,Mans will. therefore there can be no wrangling or diſcontent in this matter, on no ſide. The will of the wicked is at an utter, and at a finall reſiſtance of Chriſt, they bid the Almighty depart: for how long? for a weeke? for a month, and then come againe? No: he is in good earneſt, for ever, as one that does not like ſuch a man for a Husband of all the men in the World, and therefore bids him to come no more. When Chriſt comes to any ſoule, he comes a woeing, to gaine the ſoule for his onelyonly ſolace and delight; a wicked ſoule hath no mind to this, he hath ſo much love to his luſt and to his own courſe, and therefore if this be thy buſineſſe ſaith he to Chriſt, depart for ever, let mee ſee thy face no more; it was Pharoahs Language to Moſes, and yet Moſes repreſenting the perſon of Chriſt to him; and Pharoah in that, doth but repreſent to us, the perſon and practiſe of every wicked man, what he ſaith to Chriſt and the ſpirit, and to all that is holy, hee would ſee nor heare of theſe no more; hee loves darkeneſſe better then light, and would never out on't, nor never have light brought neere him. This thing is accompliſhed by God the ſoule would have a finall parture, God at a finall diſtance, that ſo hee might take his fill of ſinne, and it is ſo: J will ſee thy face no more; thy night ſhall be as long as thou wilt, black and darke for ever, hence forth ſleepe on and never open thy Eyes more.
Now mans will is fulfilled and Gods will too: for ſuch ſinners,Gods Will he ſweares the eternall death of them, and hee cannot goe back. When ſoules are ſo wicked to bid him depart for ever, hee layes this much to heart, and remembers it well for ever, yea, every repulſe of this Strength, Length, and Nature; yea, and all the circumſtances about it; and oppoſes to this ſinfull will, a righteous will, of as much Strength and Length: he ſweares a revenge which hath no revocation; hee ſets himſelfe at a finall diſtance from repentance, as the ſinner hath Reade Amos the eight and the ſeventh, the Lord hath ſworne by the excellency of Jacob, ſurely I will never forget any of their workes. This is ſpoken in order to Iſraels end; and what is ſpoken in order to many, hath its force in order to one. J will never forget any of [their workes.] Such perſons as I have woed, and laboured by all manes to eſpouſe to my ſelfe, for ſuch to put mee off, yea to caſt mee off finally, I will never forget this, ſaith God; I will ſet them at as great a diſtance from me, as they ſet me from them; and if there be any excellency in me, it ſhall run out all this way, in ſtrength and length of Juſtice: this is paying the utmoſt farthing.
Ʋſe. Sinners let this point entice you to conſider your condition, when our Saviour had diſcourſed of one that ſhould betray him and be loſt for ever, a ſonne of perdition which the Scripture had long before ſpoken off; how they all ſmote their breaſts! Is it J? is it I? There are children of perdition now, ſuch as are loſt for ever, ſuch as of old are ordained to this condemnation we have ſpoken off, to wit, a finall diſſertion. Tis hard to determine who theſe be, becauſe we have not Chriſts skill in this point; yet two things there are which more eminently hint ſuch a ſtate, Hypocriſie, and Malice. The Kingdome of God comes nigh ſome men, they have taſtes of the good Word of God, and of the powers of the World to come; ſweete taſtes, and then temptations intervene, and then all theſe ſweete …angs and taſtes of truth are loſt, and the glorious throne and Kingdome of Chriſt that was going up apace, pulled downe againe as faſt, and demoliſhed quite, and onelyonly ſome out-workes left upon the tongue, upon the eyes, and the other externall parts, to make a ſpecious ſhew to the World: this gives ſad ſuſpition of a forlorne eſtate, of a child of perdition. When Chriſt comes ſo neere a ſoule, as to begin to ſweepe and cleanſe it, and to fit it for his dwelling, and afterward is thruſt out, and all given up againe to more uncleane ſpirits then before, to make up temporary advantages of delight and profit, Chriſt now returnes no more; for this groſſe Hypocriſie, wretched ſoules ſuffer finally; the laſt end of theſe men is ſad, worſe then their beginning; their ſoules abide in ſinne, till they abide no longer in this world; an Hypocrites laſt-love to ſinne holds him, though his firſt love to Chriſt would not.2 Pet. 2. Further authority concurring to this is that of Peter, where he diſcourſeth of Hypocriſie largely and very ſadly, yea very prophetically, as pointing at theſe times wherein we live. He ſpeakes of ſuch who had eſcaped the pollutions of the World, by the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Verſ. 20.and afterward were intangled; and he ſpeakes alſo of thoſe which did generate theſe monſters, to wit falſe Teachers, Hypocriticall Prophets, ſuch as Baalam, and then panells altogether, Fathers and children thus. Wells they are without water, Cloudes carried about with a tempeſt, to whom is reſerved the miſt of darkneſſe for ever. Truth hath loſt its power; it is a ſtincking carcaſſe, and no Chriſtian, whatſoever he ſaith;Verſ. 17. and this ſtincking carcaſſe is to be buried for ever, in ſuch a grave as hath no reſurrection. Love to truth is loſt, and therefore no eyes can be found to ſee it, ſo as to imbrace it and practiſe it; other things ſtand in the way and make a miſt, that the man cannot ſee this nor that, not he; Hypocriſy raiſeth this miſt of darkeneſſe, and ſuch fogges and miſts as ſpring out of this, oft times abide for ever. That which is here named the miſt of darkeneſſe, or the thickneſſe of darkeneſſe,foreign. is tranſlated in Jude blackneſse of darkeneſſe, tenebras denſiſſimas denotat, it notes ſaith the Critick the moſt thick darkeneſſe; the miſt of the night, which makes the greateſt darkeneſſe, ſuch thorough which no ſight at all can be made.
The ſecond thing which hints a child of perdition, one in utter darkneſſe, or one finally puniſhed, is malice againſt the truth; perſecution of truth by unlightened perſons. The Apoſtle encouraging the Theſſalonians, tells them, they had ſuffered ſuch things from their owne Country men, and compares them that did it, unto the Jewes which crucifyed the Lord Jeſus, and their own Prophets, who pleaſed not God and were contrary to all men, forbidding to ſpeake to the Gentiles that they might be ſaved, filling up the meaſure of their ſinne alwayes, [whoſe doome obſerve] for wrath is come upon them to the uttermoſt. The alluſion here made plainely ſhewes, that theſe bloudy wretches were men of parts, noone Devills, as one of the ancients calls them, or mid-day Scorpions: tis written of this creature, that he is moſt apt to ſtrike and ſting at noone, when Sun beames are brighteſt and hotteſt upon him. Innocent bloud ſhed by day light, ſpeakes conſcience feared, and conquered, and this is the laſt power that gives up in the ſoule; Divine Life is quite gone when this is gone; the laſt breath gone, is not ſucked in againe. Conſcience twiſteth cords and binds the ſinner, to keepe him in from his ſinnes; but when all the cords he makes, yea, and himſelfe too, are broken by the ſinner, then is the ſinner given up as a Sampſon in ſinne, one unconquerable, and ſo left for ever. Conſider ſinners what fire burnes in your breaſt, and with what fuell, and you may gueſſe whether it be unquenchable fire or not, of the nature of that below, which by decree is to burne for ever: you are perſons of parts; the great dangers we ſpeake about, lies moſt amongſt ſuch as you. Truth is hindered in its courſe every where by you, within and without, in your ſelves and in others; for you to be opoſites and adverſaries to all men, to all good men and to all good things, perſons and things of the nobleſt nature, tis very ſad: write Lord have mercy upon ſuch wretches, at their doore; wrath is come upon them to the utmoſt; foreign to the end, that is, which will make an end of thee: thy ſoule burnes with ſuch a Feaver as will kill thee for ever. This generation hath a deadly countenance in my eye; mens hands are ſomething tyed up now by common diſtreſſe, but with the tongue we are killed all the day long; men ſpit blood which is a ſad ſigne, and they moſt which pretend moſt to more then ordinary knowledge, and yet are brute beaſts as the Apoſtle Peter ſpeakes in many things, and ſpeake evill of things they know not, 2 Pet. 2.12.who ſaith he, ſhall utterly periſh in their owne corruption. This is ſo certaine that it is called an evident token of perdition, by the Apoſtle.
Matter of admiration and thanſgiving, might alſo be ſuckt from this point, if we had time to lie longer at the breſt; though all men forſake Chriſt, yet ſhall not Chriſtians utterly; one might go this way and make ſweete Muſick. Our mercy is eternall; our miſeries but for a moment. Chriſt doth but hide his face, when he ſeemes moſt out with us; he doth not caſt off, nor put away, he hates that in order to his Spouſe: though he give her to the Rod, yet tis not to the black Rod, to a fatall ſtroake. Our prime mercies are married to us, which is as ſure as the being of any thing will afford; a marriage Knot holds we know, till the very being molders, which thing ſhould take us much: it much tooke Solomon that God had ſpoken well of his houſe for a great while. The eternity of mercies, is that which makes them Heaven: ſuch is the Sun that ſhines upon you Saints.