The Mystery of the Gospel in Salvation, Sermon 17
To be saved a Matter of the highest Importance. SERMON XVII.
ACTS XVI.30.
And said, Sirs, What must I do to be saved?
IT is an Enquiry of the greatest Importance that can be, and what well becometh every one of us to make, and to be most earnestly concerned to give a good Answer to. This therefore is the Doctrine I have observed from these Words; viz.
DOC. It is of the highest Concernment unto perishing Sinners, to be very solicitous, what they must do to be saved; or, to know, and practise, all that is necessary, in order to their Salvation.
There have been four general Heads named, as included in this Text, and Doctrine, worthy of our most serious Consideration.
I. To shew you what it is to be saved; or, what is that Salvation which perishing Sinners stand in Need of.
II. To evidence that perishing Sinners may be saved; or, there is a Possibility, notwithstanding their present miserable Condition, that they may be eternally saved.
III. That perishing Sinners must know, and practise, all that is necessary, in order to their Salvation; or, there is something to be done, by them, that they may be saved.
IV. This is a Matter of the highest Conc…rnment to them, and therefore they ought to be most seriously solicitous about it.
I have, at several Times, gone through the handling of the three first of these Heads; and have shewed you, what that Salvation is which the perishing Sinner standeth in Need of; and that he may possibly obtain it; I have also shewed you what the Sinner must do to be saved, namely, he must comply with the Demands of the Gospel, by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, and repenting of all his Sins; the Nature, and Necessity, of which two great Gospel Duties, I have endeavoured to set before you, and have also shewed you the Method to obtain these precious Gifts of God. I come now to the fourth, and last, general Head, under the Doctrine: viz.
IV. This is a Matter of the highest Concernment unto perishing Sinners, and therefore they should be most seriously solicitous about it. There is nothing of so much Concernment unto the Sinner, as that he may be eternally saved; the Loss, or Gains, of a Soul, Heaven, or Hell, all turn upon it; nor is there any Thing so worthy of his most steady Care, and Solicitude. A Soul is too big a Thing to be trifled with; Heaven, and Hell, are too august, and awful, to be sported with; if any Thing demandeth our serious Thought, and closest Care, these do. Here are two Things which fall under Consideration; namely,
I. To be saved is a Matter of the highest Importance to every perishing Sinner.
II. There is the greatest Reason, why every perishing Sinner should be most seriously solicitous that he may be saved.
I. The first Thing here is, to shew you, that to be saved is a Matter of the highest Concernment unto every perishing Sinner. This is an Affair which every Child of Adam is concerned in, and that in the highest Manner, and Degree, that possibly can be. There is nothing so nearly concerns us all, nor any Thing of such Importance to us, as this, that we escape Hell, and get safe to Heaven. Every Man's Interest is wrapped up in it, and it is his greatest Interest, compared with which, every Thing else is as nothing.
To make this plain, let us distinctly consider,
1. First; Every Child of Adam is concerned in this great Affair.
2. Secondly; This is a Matter of the highest possible Concernment to us all.
1. First; Every Child of Adam is concerned in this great Affair. It is an Enquiry which every one is to make, What must I do to be saved? Salvation! Where is the Man that has no Concernment in it! This is a Matter that belongeth not to a few only of the Sons, and Daughters, of Men, but it appertaineth to every individual Person, that ever did, or ever shall, descend from Adam, in the ordinary Way of Generation. If there be any Person here that has no Soul in him, let him withdraw, as having no Concern in this Discourse; or if there be any Man whose Soul standeth in no Need of Salvation, let him look upon himself as unconcerned herein. But, as no Man is destitute of a Soul, so neither is there any Soul but what wanteth to be saved. There never was, nor ever will be, any one single Person, proceeding from the Loyns of Adam, but what, as he came into, and before he departs out of, this World, wanteth to escape the Misery, and be secured of the Happiness, of the other World. For, there is no Man, of all Adam's natural Offspring, but what is a Sinner, and guilty in the Sight of the holy God; and, considered as such, is destitute of the Divine Favour, and liable unto the Curse of God; and therefore is perishing in his Sin, and needeth to be saved. The Apostle therefore said, Rom. iii.9. We have proved both Iews, and Gentiles, (under which Distribution he comprehendeth the whole World of Mankind, from Beginning, to End,) that they are all under Sin. There is none among them exempted from being a Sinner; for as he adds, v. 23. All have sinned, and come short of the Glory of God. And because all have sinned, therefore all are obnoxious unto Punishment, and so are in a miserable Condition, by Reason of Sin. Hence the Apostle said, in the same Epistle, Rom. v.12. By one Man Sin entred into the World, and Death by Sin, and so Death passed upon all Men, for that all have sinned. Which, at once, sheweth us, the real Guilt cleaving to all descending from the first Man, by Virtue of his Sin, and Fall; and the wretched miserable Condition which Guilt has involved them in. And how clearly does the Apostle argue the miserable Condition both of Iews, and Gentiles, i. e. of all Men, from their Sinfulness? says he, Rom. iii.10.17. They are all under Sin; and as a Consequence of this, there is none righteous no not one; they have no real Goodness in them; besides▪ they are hurtful, and injurious, to one an…ther; Their Throat is an open Sepulchre, with th…ir Tongues they have used Deceit, the Poison of Asps is under their Lips; their Mouth is full of Cursing, and Bitterness; their Feet are swift to shed Blood. And over and above all this Unhappiness attending them, for the Present, the End of their wicked Life will be compleat Misery; Destruction, and Misery, are in their Way, and the Way of Peace they have not known. But of these Things I have discoursed more largely, under some former Heads.
Now, because all have sinned, and are become guilty, and are miserable in their vicious Temper, and Disposition, and liable to the Displeasure of almighty God, to suffer the just Punishment of their various Sins; from hence it followeth, that it is a Matter, which concerneth every individual Person, to be saved from Sin, and the Misery consequent upon it. There is not a Mother's Child in this Assembly, (or that readeth this,) no, not throughout the whole Earth, but what the great Affairs of Salvation have a Relation to, and they have their Concernment in them, whether they will, or no; that is to say, Salvation, or Damnation, Happiness, or Misery, will be their Unavoidable Portion.
1. This is a Matter which belongeth unto the great, and honourable, and rich, among the Sons of Men. As for the great ones of the Earth, they are not so elevated as to be altogether above Want; they are also liable to fall, and can feel Pain, even as other mean Men; and therefore it as much concerneth them to escape the Damnation of Hell, and possess the Joys of Heaven, as any Men in the World. For though the mighty Monarchs, supream Judges, and wealthy Dives, of this lower World, are so much raised above the Level of the Rest of Mankind, that, in their exalted Station, they seem to be out of the Reach of many of the Dangers, which threaten those who move in a lower, more laboured, and turbulent Sphere, yet, in this Regard, those Grandees are but equal to the poorest Peasant, the meanest Beggar, that waiteth at their Doors, that they are, alike, subject to the Vengeance of almighty God, for their bold Transgressions of his holy Law, which no Priviledge of Peerage, and Escutcheon, will exempt them from Obligations to obey: And therefore they want to be saved, as much as any, the meanest, of their Fellow-Creatures. They may flatter themselves, that they are above the Laws of Men, and accountable to none upon Earth; but they will find that there is a God in Heaven, who is higher than the highest, whose Government reacheth even to them, whose sacred Laws take fast hold upon them, and to whom they must be accountable, in the Day, when the Father, without Respect to Persons, will judge according to every Man's Works. 1 Pet. i.17. And because, most commonly, the Condition of the great, and rich, and honourable, in this World, is attended with more, and stronger Temptations to Vice, to Contempt of God, and his Law, than that of other mean Men; and often they contract greater Guilt, by sinning against the best Advantages, misimproving the best of Tallents, and by giving the greater Scope, and Liberty, to their Lusts, and Passions, their Pride, and Luxury, their Avarice, and Ambition, their Oppression, and Cruelty; therefore surely this Matter belongeth unto them, one would think, more, if possible, than unto others; because their Danger is so much the greater, and their Misery, if they perish, so much the more insupportable. Persons, who are exalted in the Earth, and make a Figure among the…r Neighbours, do but deceive themselves, while they imagine the Salvation of the Soul, and the future Happiness, spoken of in the Gospel, does not concern them, and that it is only for the meaner of the People, who are very much destitute of worldly good Things, to lay in for being happy in a Time to come; such of whom the proud Pharisee could say, Joh. vii.49. This People, who know not the Law, are cursed: It is for this poor accursed People, in this World, to trouble themselves about Salvation, in the next; as for us, we are the Darlings of Providence, and in very happy Circumst…nces, at present, and doubt not bu… we shall be always s…; may the great ones of the Earth be ready to say. But, remember, O un…inking Persons, that if you are but equal Sinners with the meanest of the People, and much more if you ex…ed them in Wickedness, (as too … such do,) you are as truly under the Maled…n of the Divine Law, as they, and therefore y…u … in Need of Salvation as much as the … of them all; y…, and r…ther the more, … it will be a more dreadful, and amazing, … thee, to fall, fr…m the Heighth of thy … …j…yments, and Satisfactions, in this World, into the very Dr…gs of Misery, in the fu…ure World.
2. …, on the other Hand, this is a Matter which … unto the poor, mean, and low, among the S…ns of Men. Think not, O poor P…rs…n, whoev…r thou art, that, because thou art low, and d…spised, among Men, that therefore God will despise thee, and this his great Salvation is not for thee. Think not that it belongeth, only, to the rich, and great, those who seem now to be highly distinguished by Divine Providence, to gain Heaven hereafter; as if Heaven were inseparably intailed upon them that p…ss…ss…d the most of this Earth; but as for us, poor ones, alass, we are the Outcasts of the Earth, contemned by our fellow Creatures, and seem to be neglected by Providence, and shut out from the Benefits of it; and how then can we hope to enjoy the special Favour of God, or partake of the Salvation, and Happiness, of the heavenly World? So may some poor Person be ready to say. When the Psalmist reflected upon the unequal Distributions of Providence, in this World, and took a View of the Prosperity, Grandeur, Magnificence, and Ease, of many about him, and his own low, afflicted, distressed, Condition, among Men, he was ready to draw this wrong Conclusion, Psal. lxxiii.13. Surely, I have cleansed my Heart in vain, and washed my Hands in Innocency. As if he had said, to what Purpose is it … me to serve God; I see how his Favours are dispensed upon Earth; and it will be vain for me to entertain the Thought of obtaining his Favour in Heaven; but he correcteth himself, v. 15. If I speak thus, behold, I should offend against the Generation of thy Children; I should lay a stumbling Block in their Way, and cause them to fall. Such mistaken Conceptions of Things, perhaps, may have enervated all Attempts, in some poor Persons, about their own Salvation; as if Salvation, and Heaven, were Matters too high for them, and what they had nothing to do with. But remember, O thou poor, and aff…icted one, that thou hast a Soul to save, as well as the richest of Men, and thy Soul is as valuable in it's Nature, and as precious in the Sight of God, as the Soul of▪ the wealthiest and most honourable among the Sons of Men. No outward Circumstances of Riches, and Honour, can make any real Alteration in the Nature of the Soul, or render it truly better or worse.
Men, indeed, may despise thee, for thy Poverty, but so doth not God, who is the Maker of the Poor, and Rich together, and who respecteth thee, as truly as the greatest of Men, in the Offers of Salvation; and thou shalt be as welcome to put in for an Interest, and secure a Share in the Salvation of God, as any among the higher Orders of Men. It pleaseth God, sometimes, indeed, to select some Instances of his Grace, from amongst the Rulers, the Counsellors, and the great Men of the Earth, an Abraham, a David, an Hezekiah, a Chamberlain of the City, and some of Caesar's Houshold, and after all their Abundance, which they possessed here, bestow upon them the Kingdom of Heaven, as the Reward of their Vertue; but, more ordinarily, they are the lower Rank of Men whom God, in his sovereign Wisdom, and Goodness, calleth, and chooseth unto himself, in whose Conversion, and Salvation, his rich Grace will be admired, and glorified forever. Hence said the Apostle, 1 Cor. 1.26. — Ye see your Calling, Brethren, how that not many wise Men, after the Flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called; but God hath chosen, the foolish, — the weak, — the base Things of the World, and Things which are despised, &c. And the Apostle Iames addresseth us in such Terms as thes…, Jam. ii.5. Hearken, my beloved Brethren, hath not God chosen the Poor of this World, rich in Faith, Heirs of the Kingdom. And when Iohn sent some of his Disciples to our Lord, that they might receive Conviction from hi… …wn Mouth, and Works, that he was the true promised Messiah, said Christ to them, Matth. xi.4, 5. Go, and shew Iohn again those Things which you hear, and see; the blind receive their Sight, and the lame walk, the Lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the Poor have the Gospel preached to them. This is one of the wonderful Works of Christ, and a manifest Proof of his Messiaship, and of the Grace of God through him, that the Poor have the Gospel preached to them; i. e. the Poor are evangelized, invited to partake of Salvation, and are instructed in the Way to Heaven. The poorest Person, then, here before the Lord, (or that readeth this▪) though he should be destitute of worldly P…ssessions, and Accommodations, and hath neither House, nor Land, Silver, nor Gold, nor any Titles of Honour, to d…stinguish him among Men; yea, though he should be but a poor Servant, or a poor Slave, yet, has his Concernment in the great Salvation, offered in the Gospel. He has a Soul to save, and there is nothing of that Weight, and Moment, to him, as Salvation is. To thee therefore, O Soul in peril, poor as thou art, is this Salvation sent; and unto thee it belongeth to take Care that thou mayest be saved.
In short; The great Requisites of Salvation, namely, Faith in God, and in his Son, Jesus Christ, and a crediting the Reports of the Gospel, and an holy, religious, vertuous, Life, as the Product of this Faith, that is, that thou forsake all known Sins, and walk in Obedience to the holy Commandments of God, are the indispensible Duty of every individual Person, whether high, or low, rich, or poor; so that there is not so much as one of us all but what have our Concernment in this Matter; and to each of us, in particular, may it be said, Arise thou, for this Matter belongeth unto thee.
2. Secondly; I am now to consider, That this is a Matter of the highest possible Concernment unto us all. As it respecteth us all, without Exception, so it respecteth us chiefly, and above other Things; yea, there is nothing that is of equal Importance to us with this, What must we do to be saved? There are many Things which we are all of us called upon to be concerned about, but there is none of them all that is to be compared with this, of our being eternally saved, as to the Nearness, and Importance, of it to us. What is there that does so nearly concern us, as to acquaint ourselves with our Duty, and our main Interest, and diligently, and steadily, to perform the one, and pursue the Attainment, and Security, of the other? We may be negligent, and regardless, of every Thing else, in Comparison with this, and be no great Sufferers by our Negligence; but if we are careless, and unmindful, supine, and remiss, in this momentous Affair, we shall be the greatest Sufferers imaginable. We can't neglect our Duty, and our best Interest, without smarting for our Folly. 'Tis vain to be anxiously careful what we shall do to provide for our Bodies, to preserve them from Dangers, or to recover them from any unhappy Circumstances, which they may have fallen into, while we are remiss, and careless, about our Salvation: for this is, of all Things, most needful, yea, the only needful Thing to us. Hence our Lord said to Martha, when she was encumbered about worldly Things, Luk. x.42. But one Thing is needful. The Things we are so prone to concern ourselves about, respecting our Bodies, and their comfortable Subsistence, are little, and trifling, lighter than the small Dust of the Ballance, when weighed against the Salvation of our Souls. All our Happiness is laid up in this; and while other Things are but transcient, and fading, this Salvation is of the most lasting, and durable, Importance to us.
But to be more particular; There are two Things which will clearly evidence, that it is a Matter of the highest Concernment to perishing Sinners to be saved: namely,
[I.] It is to save ourselves, our own precious, and immortal Souls.
[II.] Our Happiness, or Misery, turneth upon it.
[I.] It is to save thyself, O perishing Sinner, to save thy precious, and immortal Soul, and therefore it is of the highest possible Concernment to thee. What is there so near to us as ourselves? And what … so nearly concern us? Is there any Thing … dear to us as ourselves? An… can any Thing … much affect us, as that which toucheth our very selves? What then can be of such Consequence, and Importance, to us, as this is? What is there that can so justly challenge, and employ, our chiefest Thought, and Care, and Labour, as to save ourselves? It is therefore our own Salvation that we are called upon to be concerned about. The Apostle thus perswades us, Phil. ii.12. Work out your own Salvation. It is a Salvation that relateth, not to our separate worldly Interests, but, to our very Persons. Save yourselves, said the Apostle Peter. Act. ii.40. Neither is it the Salvation of our Bodies only, from any temporal Evils, that may endanger them; but it is the Salvation of our Souls, that Divine Spark that is in us, which distinguisheth us from the Brute; it is that intellectual, and immortal, Part in us, which rendereth us capable of partaking of the pure, and endless, Joys of Heaven, or undergoing the exquisi…e, and everlasting, Pains of the Damned. Though every Man, in his Wits looks upon himself obliged, by the grand Law of his Make, and the first Principle of self Love in him, to do what he can to preserve his Body, from the Evils which threaten i…, ye…, is it not of much greater Importance to him, to save his Soul from impending Misery, exquisite, and endless, than to save his Body from any Evil, which it can possibly … su…ject to? especially, when we consider, that, over and above, he will have this Advantage by saving of his Soul, that his Body also will, anon, come in for a Snare in it's Salvation; whereas by saving his Body, only, and for the present, he loses both Soul, and Body, forever he…fter. Hence Christ said, Matth. xvi.25. Wh…soever will save his Life shall lose it; and whosoever will lose his Life, for my Sake, shall find it. He that thinketh to save the Life of his Body, at the …pence of his Soul, will sadly be deceived, and, in the Conclusion, will lose the Life which he thought to have saved; but he that will rather … the Life of his Body, that he might save his Soul, shall joyfully find, in the End, that he has saved the Life of his Body also.
It is the Salvation of the Soul that was chiefly intended by the Iayler, when he cryed out, Sirs, What must I do to be saved? He did not mean, what must I do to preserve my natural Life, the Life of my Body? for that was then safe, nor was there any known Danger that threatened it; but he meant, what must I do to save my Soul? The wonderful Works of God, and the preaching of the Apostle, (which, doubtless, at that Time, he took the Opportunity for,) awakened in him a Concern of quite an other Nature than the present Welfare of his Body, and his Soul then became his chief Care. And this is that which renders it a Matter of such infinite Importance to us all, because, O Man, it is thy Soul, thy precious, and immortal Soul, that thou art to be thoughtful about the Salvation of. Thus Moses bespake Israel of old, Deut. iv.9. Only take heed unto thyself, and keep thy Soul diligently. And there are two Things which render our Concernment herein truly great, and of the highest Importance to us all; viz. That our Souls are our better Part, and they are our immortal Part.
1. Our Souls are, by far, our better Part. I cannot say, that our Souls are our whole selves, because I think the Body to be essential to the humane Nature, and consequently to the Identity of that Nature, in any one humane Person, or to the Sameness of the Person of every Individual partaking of that Nature. But however our Bodies may be essential Parts of ourselves, yet our Souls are far more excellent, noble, and glorious Parts of ourselves, and there fore it is of the highest possible Concernment to us, to save our Souls; because it is to save all that is dear to us, not only our Bodies, but that Part of us which far more transcends our Bodies, in Excellency, and true Worth, than the Light of the Sun does the Glimmerings of a Glow-worm. For, a wise Man will ever account that to be of the greatest Importance to him, and what justly challenges his greatest Care, Thought, and Inspection, which is, in itself, of the greatest Value, Worth, and Excellency; as he is more concerned to preserve his Treasure, his Gold, and Jewels, than the deal Cabinet that containeth them; or to preserve his Life, than a single Joint of one of his Fingers.
Now, if we take a thorow View of ourselves, what Part is there of us, that is so valuable, and excellent, in it's Nature, and Capacity, as our Soul? It may well be said of the Soul, as of Wisdom, the Merchandise thereof is better than Silver, and the Gain thereof than fine Gold; She is more precious than Rubies, and all the Things thou canst desire are not to be compared with her. So precious is the Soul, that the Redemption thereof ceaseth forever, as to any of the Enjoyments of this World being a fit Price to give in Exchange for it. This is the great End of all our Faith, and Vertue, that our Souls may be saved in the Day of the Lord Jesus; so said the Apostle, 1 Pet. i.9. Receiving, the End of your Faith, the Salvation of your Souls.
And what are our Bodies, whose Welfare, Ease, and Comfort, we are so prone to be very much concerned about, if compared with our Souls? What are they, but Lumps of gross Flesh, and Bones, Blood, and Sinews, made up, perhaps, of a little finer Clay than the common, and curiously, indeed, moulded, and diversifyed, in the several Parts, and Powers, of them? Whereas, thy Soul, O Man, is of a spiritual, intellectual, Nature, near a Kin unto Angels, shining bright with the Rays of the Deity upon it. For, as Elihu observed, J… xxxii.8. There is a Spirit in Man, and the Inspiration of the Almighty giveth them Understanding. It is this Spirit that animates, and acts, the Body, which, however capable of the animal Life, dies, and returneth to it's original Dust, whenever the Soul, that active Principle of the humane Life, taketh it's final Leave of it. The Body is, indeed, wondrously made, in it's Parts, Contexture, and Powers, but how much more noble are the admirable Faculties, and Powers, of the Soul? How susceptible is the Soul, by Virtue of that Understanding she is furnished with, of all Kinds of Knowledge, natural, and divine? And what a large, extended, capacious, reach has the Understanding, like the Sun, compassing all it surveyeth, and surveying all that it compasseth, and not limited to Objects of Sense? How rec…ptive is it of the Discoveries of Truth, as well as inquisitive after it, in the Mysteries of Art, of Nature, and of Grace? And how swiftly doth it move, and mount from Earth, to Heaven, and, in the Twinkling of an Eye, leap, from a Converse with the lowest Shrub, to survey the Wonders of Divine Power, and Wisdom, and Goodness, in the Magnitude, Order, and Revolution, of the heavenly Bodies, which roll over us? Yea, how capable is it of searching into the hidden Mysteries of Divine Wisdom, Grace, and Love, in the Redemption of fallen Man; and of discovering such a Fulness, Excellency, and Beauty, therein, as raises it's Admiration, and fixes it's Gratitude, and Praise? Thus it can look into the third Heavens, and contemplate the Glories of the Deity, and view over the Wonders of the incarnate Son of God, enthroned at the Right-Hand of the eternal Father.
What a wonderful Power is the Will, the Volition, and Choice, of the Soul? What a surprising Sway, and extensive Dominion, has this governing Power in and over us? And yet with what perfect Lib…, and Freedom, does the Man Act in all his Choice, and Determinations? Though the Will always, and necessarily, is obsequious to the Understanding, and determines upon what that directive Power apprehendeth to be best, and, in this Sense, can never be said to be free, yet, is it forever free from all external Compulsion, so that no outward Force can compel, or controul it, in it's Acts, or necessitate it to Act contrary to it's own Determinations.
What an amazing Self-Consciousness attends the Soul, a Power of reflecting upon itself, of viewing over it's own Actions, and passing a Judgment upon them, as they are morally good, or evil, either to our Plaudit, and Comfort, or to our Condemnation, and Uneasiness?
And how is the Soul furnished with various Affections, and Passions, which are as a strong Guard about it, for our Defence, and Safety, that we may be put upon shunning what appeareth to …e hurtful, and be influenced to embrace what seemeth to be beneficial, and advantageous to us, and, according to the Scituation of Things with us, to afford us Pain, or Pleasure, Delight, or Torment?
But, to all of these natural Endowm… let us add the Consideration, of the Capacity of the Soul for very great, farther, additional Excellencies, and Improvements, especially in moral Perfections, which none of all the visible Creation, besides Man, are capacitated for; view the Soul as a Subject capable of receiving the most excellent Vertues, and Graces, while here, and of perfect Purity, and unsullied Rectitude, hereafter; receptive of the Beauty of Holiness, the Image of God upon it, in this World, and of a State of compleat, and endless Glory, and Happiness, in the Presence, and Enjoyment, of God, and Christ, and Fellowship with holy Angels, in the heavenly World; and say, now, what is there so excellent, and noble, and of so much Worth, and Value, as our Souls are? Verily; This is, by far, our better Part, to which our Bodies, beautiful, and wondrous, as they be, are not worthy to be compared; and therefore the Welfare, and Salvation, of our Souls are, of all Things, Matter of the highest Concernment to us.
2. Our Souls are our immortal Part, that Part of us which shall never die, and upon this Account are preferrable to, and more to be regarded by us than, our Bodies; and therefore we ought above all Things to be concerned that they may be saved. After all our Care of our Bodies, to preserve, and defend them, and render them easy, and comfortably provided for; though we should heap up Gold, and Silver, in an Abundance, and give our Bodies the utmost Fulness of Entertainment, and gratify all their Senses to the Height, yet shall we not be able, by all our Thought, and Pains, to keep them alive, that they should never see the Pi…. Psal. lxxxix.48. What Man, (what strong Man,) is he that liveth, and shall not see Death? Enoch, and Elijah, were favoured with an immediate Translation to a better World, without going through the ordinary Road, and such may be the Portion of those holy ones, who shall be found alive at the second Coming of our Lord; but otherwise, to die is the common Lot of all Men, and the living know that they shall die. For our Bodies are corruptible in their very Nature, being constituted of such Materials as we know to be perishable, and so put together as renders them subject to a Dissolution; and by the Law of their Maker, they are doomed to return to their original Dust: for thus he hath said, Gen. iii.19. In the Sweat of thy Face shall thou eat Bread, till thou return unto the Ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for Dust thou art, and unto Dust shalt thou return. So that it is appointed unto Man once to die.
But now, our Souls are immortal, and shall never die, never cease to have a Being, a Being capable of Action, and Enjoyment.
There go no corruptible Materials, like those of our Bodies, and therefore no jarring Qualities, into the Make of our Souls, from whence we are ready to conclude they partake of a natural Immortality. Nor can we conceive how any external Force, from mere Matter, can have any effect upon them to produce a Dissolution, nor how any Kindred Spirit should be able thus to hurt them; because a Spirit is destitute of the known Properties of Matter, and not passible, as that is. Every Man will readily grant that it is better to be a Man than a Brute; and yet; if we have nothing to do with an After, and Endless, Existence, the Brutes have much the better of us in this Life, in that they have more exquisite Sensation, at least as full bodily Gratifications, are subject to no Remorse, and take Leave of Life without any Reflection, and Concern. And what Nation, and People are there in the World, who have not some, though it may be, very imperfect, Conceptions, of their existing after Death? The Phythagorean Metempsychosis is entirely founded upon this Conception; and so are the Elysian Fields of the ancient heathen Poets. Yea, Eternity seemeth evidently to be stamped upon the Desires, and Actions, of the Soul. How craving, and thirsty, is the Soul after a State of Immortality? What a strong Appetite has it to live forever, in Children, and Lands, and Monuments, and the various Methods Men take to be known in future Ages? And however transcient the Actions of Men are, in a Physical Consideration, yet, in a moral one, they are permanent, and abiding. The natural Notions we have of the Goodness, and Justice, of God, and th… View of his providential Distributions among Mankind, in this present World, and the Influence, which the Consideration of the Immortality of the Soul, has upon Persons and Societies, to promote their moral Vertue, and suppress all that is vicious, and disorderly, all strongly pleadeth for it.
However, whether the Soul of Man be immortal in it's Nature, or no, it has Immortality stamped upon it by the Law of it's M…ker. Though the almighty Creator could easily annihilate our Spirits, if he pleased, (which, I suppose, no created Being could do,) yet, He hath sufficiently given us to understand, that he will not; and therefore, in his holy Word, we find, the Former of the Spirit of Man within him, ever treating it as an immortal Bein…, and prop…sing eternal Rewards, and Punishments, to it; (as we shall see under some of the following Heads,) which assures us, that whatever the Soul be in it's Nature, it is immortal, by the Determination of it's Maker, and shall never cease to have a Being. Hence we are told, Eccl. xii.7. When the Dust returneth to the Earth, as it was, the Spirit shall return unto God, who gave it. And, Matth. x.28. they, that kill the Body, are not able to kill the Soul.
And now, what is there of such Concernment, and Importance, to us, as the Safety, and Welfare, of such an excellent, and immortal, Being, as the Soul is? What can, in Reason, be supposed to challenge our Thought, and Care, equal to that which is, in it's own Nature, most valuable, and durable? If that Part of us, which is to last forever, which shall exist when Time itself, or the Succession of Ages, shall be no more, is not worthy of our most serious Consideration, what shall be done for it's Safety, and our most diligent Labour to promote, and secure, it's eternal Well-being, What can be so? 'Tis this precious, this immortal, Soul of thine, that distinguishes thee from the common Herd, and raises thee to something of an Equality with the Angels of God; this Soul, which is more excellent than Rubies, and more durable than the finest Gold; it is this high, and Heaven-born Soul, that thou art to take Care of, and endeavour to save, by a Life of Faith, and Obedience, by inuring of it to Vertue, that it may be prepared for Glory. And, surely, since it is thy own Soul, thy very self, thy better Part, thy immortal Part, therefore thou oughtest, above all Things, to be greatly concerned for it's Welfare; and do all that thou canst, that it may possess itself in perfect Peace, and want nothing to render it secure from Misery. Wilt thou act so foolish, and unreasonable, a Part, as to be greatly concerned for thy Body, what thou shalt eat, and what thou shalt drink, or wherewithal thou shalt be clothed, and how thou shalt preserve thy Body from Dangers, and from Death, and use thy best Endeavours for it's Safety, and to restore it to Health, and Ease, when Sickness, or Pains, invade it? Wilt thou do all this for that which is but perishable Dust, and must shortly dye, whether thou wilt, or no? and, at the same Time, wilt thou be altogether unconcerned about thy Soul; thy Soul, which is, in the very Nature of it, so vastly preferable to thy Body; thy Soul, which is much more thyself than thy Body is; thy Soul, in which thou wilt exist, when thy Body shall be turned into Dust, and Putrefaction? Wilt thou not be more concerned, that this thy Soul may be made Partaker of a Salvation, suitable to it's Nature, and Wants, and Duration? Oh! What Stupidity, and Madness, has seized upon the Children of Men! Oh! What a foolish Bargain does he make of it, who risqueth his precious, his immortal Soul, for the Sake of gaining any of the short-lived Pleasures, and Enjoyments, of a dying Body, and a perishing World! Remember the Words of our blessed Lord, who very well the Worth of a Soul, and the Vanity of the World, What is a Man profited, if he shall gain the whole World, and lose his own Soul? Or what shall a Man give in Exchange for his Soul? Matth. xvi.26.
So that from the Consideration of the Nature of our Souls, as our better, and our immortal Part, it is evident to every reasonable Man, that it is a Matter of the highest possible Concernment, and there is nothing of equal Importance, to us all, that we do all that we can, in the diligent Improvement of all our Abilities, Opportunities, and Advantages to secure their eternal Salvation.