The Greatest Sinners Exhorted and Encouraged, Question 3
Quest. 3. Why must there be a day of Judgment?
ANSW. 1. Reas. That so the glory of the Divine Attributes may be cleared and vindicated. To vindicate the HOLINESS of GOD Because He is patient and longsuffering sinners conclude that He is not so Holy as he is, that he does not hate Sin with such an infinite hatred and indignation as indeed He does: Therefore the Lord will have a day of Judgement that so all men might see that He is glorious in Holiness, Psal. 50. 21. And to clear the Justice of God; Great sinners do sometimes prosper in the world: But therefore a day of Judgment must come wherein God will bring them forth and deal with them for all their wickedness. Job. 21. 7. Wherefore do the wicked live, yea become mighty in power? Ver. 30, The wicked is reserved to the day of destruction, they shall be brought forth in the day of wrath. If they escape punishment here, they shall have the greater punishment in the day of judgement, which is called the day of wrath. So will the Justice of God be cleared for ever. Hence it is called a day of the revelation of the righteous judgement of God. Rom. 2. 5. q. d. The Righteousness of God is not yet clearly revealed, but it shall be at that day. Then also will the Truth and Faithfulness of God be vindicated. There are many Threatnings in the Word of God against wicked men, and many Promises to the Righteous. The Summe and Scope of the whole Bible is declared in those few words, Isai. 3. 10, 11. Say to the righteous, that it shall be well with him; Woe to the wicked it shall be ill with him. whenas for the present we see it not so: As to outward concerns it goeth well with the wicked, and ill with the Righteous. Should good men have nothing but what they receive in this world, they would many times be of all men the most miserable. 1. Cor. 15. 19 Therefore there must be a Resurrection and a day of judgement. Things at present are very much out of order. The proud are called happy; and such as fear God are trampled upon by the foot of Pride. Hence there must be a day of judgement when all things shall be set to rights: which may be the reason why the day of judgement is called the time of the restitution of all things. Act. 3. 21. Thus will the glory of God be vindicated, in the sight and hearing of Heaven and Earth.
Reas. 3. There must be a day of judgement that so Jesus Christ, the son of God may be glorified before all men and Angels. For Christ is the person whom God the Father has appointed to be the Judge of the World. Act. 17. 31. He hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness, by that man whom He hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance to all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead Christ's Resurrection is an evidence of this. His Exaltation began in his Resurrection: we may from thence conclude that the last degree of His Exaltation. which is in His sitting to judge the world at the great Day, will in the appointed time take place. It is said concerning Joshuah, (who in that as well as in many other respects was a Type of Christ) On that day the Lord magnified Joshuah in the sight of all Israel. Chapt. 4. 14. So on the Day of Judgement, God will magnifie His Son Jesus Christ in the sight of all the world. God will have all the world to know, that His Son is more than a man; that the honour due to God shall be given to him. Therefore hath He made Him the Judge of all. Joh. 5. 22, 23. The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgement to his Son, that all men should honour the son, even as they honour the Father ther. Moreover, Christ will come to judge the world in greatest State, Majesty and Glory that ever was, or that can be conceived. Mat. 24. 30. They shall see the Son of man coming in power and in great GLORY. Hence His second Coming is called His glorious appearance, Tit. 2. 13. He will command an Herauld to blow the Trumpet, and to summon all the world to appear before Him; and this Herauld shall be no less than an Angel, yea an Arch-Angel, 1. Thes. 4. 16. For the Lord Himselfe shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the the voice of the Arch-Angel and with the trump of God. A most glorious Retinue will then attend and wait upon Him. All the Angels in heaven shall come down from thence to wait upon the Son of God in that Day, Mat. 25. 31. The Son of man shall come in his glory and all the holy Angels with Him. Hence Daniel in his Vision of the Day of Judgement, beheld a Thousand Thousand ministring to Him, and ten Thousand times ten Thousand stood before him. Yea, and all the Saints in heaven shall come down from thence to wait upon the blessed Son of God. 1. Thes. 3. 13. At the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His Saints. Yet more, All the Saints then found alive on the Earth, shall be miraculously caught up into the Air, to meet the Lord at His coming, Chapt 4. 17. As when a great Person is coming to this or that place, many go out to meet him; so when the Son of God shall visit this lower world with His Personal presence, all the Saints on Earth shall meet Him in the Air. And this may be the true meaning of that Scripture Luk. 17, 34. where Christ saith In that night there shall be two men in one bed, the one shall be taken and the other left. One shall be taken and caught up by the holy Angels to meet the Lord Jesus in the air, and the other shall be left to perish in that Fire which shall then consume the world. Moreover, At the Day of Judgement, the Son of GOD shall sit upon a most glorious Throne, Matth. 25. 31. Then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory, that is to say, His most glorious Throne: So that He will reign then visibly before the world. It is most true, that Christ reigns now in Heaven, but the greatest part of the Children of men in this world, do not know nor believe that: But therefore at the Day of judgment He shall reign in the visible, lower world. Jer. 23. 5. A King shall reign and prosper and execute Judgment and justice in the earth. Christ's Judging the world belongs to his Kingly Office, Math. 25. 34. Hence the Dispensation of Judgment is called His Kingdom, 2. Tim. 4. 1. The holy Prophets of Old have spoken magnificently concerning the Reign and Kingdom of the Messiah. At the Day of Judgment the Truth of all those divine Predictions shall be manifest to all men. Then will Christ appear to be the greatest and most glorious Monarch that ever was. The world has look'd upon the King of Persia as a mighty Monarch, because he reigned over a hundred and seven and twenty Provinces, Est. 1. 1. But Christ shall reign over all Nations, from one end of the earth to the other. There shall be given to Him Dominion and glory, and a Kingdom that all People, Nations and Languages should serve Him, His Dominion is an everlasting Dominion which shall not pass away. The Lord shall be King over all the earth, in that day there shall be one LORD, and His Name One.
Reas. 3. There must be a Day of Judgement with respect to the Saints of God, That so they may be vindicated from those Reproaches which are cast upon them in the world. The best of men, and those that are most dear to Christ, are oftentimes most reproached and abused. Wicked men speak all maner of evil against them falsly. And it may be their names are never cleared in this world; but therefore the Day of Judgment must come to clear all, Psal. 37. 6. Commit thy way to God, and He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, & thy judgment as the noon day. This is one reason why good men are so patient under those vile reproaches which are cast upon them; it is because they know that at the day of judgement, the LORD whom they serve will vindicate them. With me (sayes the Apostle) it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of mans judgment; He that judgeth me is the Lord. 1. Cor. 4. 3, 4. And a Day of Judgment must come that so the Lord's faithful Ones may be rewarded for all that they have done or suffered for God and for the Lord Jesus Christ. For then God will give Reward to them that fear His Name, small and great. Rev. 11. 18. And they that have suffered for His sake shall then reign with Him.
ƲSE. Let every soul endeavour to be prepared for this Day. A Day of Judgement will come. All that are wise will make it their chief endeavour to give up their Account with joy and not with grief in that Day.
Consider. 1. That all and every one of us must make our personal appearance, before that dreadful Tribunal. 2. Cor. 5. 10. We must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ. O do you think of that! All in this Congregation, every Mothers Child; and throughout the whole world, High and Low, Rich and Poor, Old and Young they must all to judgement. Rev. 22. 12. I saw the dead small and great stand before God; and the books were opened, and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their workes. Whoever thou art, God will have thee to judgment, Eccles. 11. 9. Know thou, God will bring thee to judgement. Therefore it will be a vain thing for any sinner to think he shall escape. If God that made Heaven and earth will bring him into judgment, how shall he escape? Not a soul of man shall escape the Tryal. The Great God has resolv'd, and said, and sworn, that every one shall come before His Tribunal. Rom. 14. 10, 11, 12. We shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ; For it is written, as I live saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to mee and every tongue shall confess to God: So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. If but one man should escape apearing, the Oath of God must be broken, which is impossible. O man, as sure as the Lord liveth, thou shalt stand before his judgment seat, and be tryed and judged, either to everlasting Life, or everlasting Death.
Consider, 2. That at the day of judgment, men must be called to a very particular and strict Account. All the Actions of their Lives must then be look'd over. The things which they did whilst their souls continued in their bodies, they must be accountable for them. God shall bring every work into judgment. Eccles. 12. 14. Yea, they must be called to account for their words: So has Truth himself declared, Mat. 12. 36. I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give an account thereof in the Day of judgement. How much more shall men give account for wicked words, for unclean, filthy words, for lylying words, for Oaths and Curses, and Blasphemies which they have poured forth out of an evil mouth. And what a dreadful account will many Sinners have to give up for these things in the day of judgment! Yea, men shall be called to an account in that day, not only for all that they have done, but for all they have received. It is said in the Parable concerning the Talents, after a long time the Lord of those servants cometh and reckoneth with them. Matth. 25. 19. Whatever Talents God shall entrust any man withal, first or last a day of reckoning will come. The Lord Jesus will say to some at the great Day, You had such Estates in the world, but what did you do with your Riches? did you improve them for God, or did you not abuse them for sin and to dishonour His Name? He'le say to another; Thou hadst a Talent of understanding, thou hadst Wit and Memory and Learning above many others, but how didst thou make use of thy parts? He will say to another, You enjoyed the meanes of grace, you heard many Sermons: Did not you live in New-England? and whose Ministry did you live under there? What account can you now give concerning all the Sermons which you have heard? Did you repent of Sin and believe on the Son of God, and deny all UnUngodliness and worldly lusts, and live soberly, righteously, and Godly in the world?
Consider. 3. That as death leaveth a man, so judgement will find him. All the time which men have to prepare for Judgment is only whilest they are in this world. There is no work in the grave whither thou goest. For there is a particular Judgement passeth upon every soul at death, Heb. 9. 27. It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment. When once a mans soul is out of his body, it appears before the Judge of all, and is sentenced, either to Life or Death for ever; which particular judgement will be published at the Last Day. If death find a man unprepared, so will Judgment. Therefore it highly concerns every man to prepare now. Miserable Sinner, thou knowest not how soon death may come upon thee like an armed man, and dragg thy soul before the Judgment seat of GOD! It may be this night it will be so. Death sometimes giveth no warning before it comes. Remember that Scripture, Amos. 4. 11. I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrha. And how was that? verily by Thunder and Lightning from Heaven. And has it not been so amongst us also? There have been (to my observation) about Twenty persons in this Land, who have at several times, and places been killed with Lightning: some such very lately. Therefore if God fell upon them, and struk them dead in a moment; how doest thou know but that it may be so with thee? If thou continuest unprepared for Death and Judgment, thou knowest not but that the next Thunder-storm that cometh, may prove to thy soul, as snares, and fire, and brimstone, and an horrible Tempest.
Consider. 4. As Judgment shall find a man so it will be with him to all Eternity. Eternity will fasten its iron Teeth upon thy soul then. Hence the Scripture speaketh of Eternal judgement. Heb. 6. 2. because men shall then be judged to an eternal estate either of weal or of woe. The wicked shall then goe away into everlasting punishment, and the Righteous into Life eternal. If Judgment find a man in a good estate he shall be for ever with the Lord, he shall be where there is Fulness of joy, and pleasures for evermore. But if judgement find him in his sins, he shall be cast into a dungeon out of which he shall never come, even into blackness of darkness for ever. O think of this one word, If Judgment find thee in thy sins; after thou hast been in misery as many millions of Ages as there have been dayes and minutes since the world began, thou art no nearer to an end of thy misery than thou wast the first hour that the Son of God passed on thee a sentence of eternal death.