Εικόνες σελίδας
PDF
Ηλεκτρ. έκδοση
[ocr errors]

life to be an example to us, of holinefs and virtue. Therefore in fcripture we find several titles given him, which import his exemplarinefs, as of a Prince and a Captain, a Mafter and a Guide. Now, if he be our pattern, we should endeavour to be like him; to have. the fame mind that was in Chrift Fefus; to walk in love, as he alfo hath loved us, and given himself for us. We should aspire after the highest degree of holiness; and make it our conftant and fincere endeavour to please God, and do his will, and to fulfil all righteousness, as he did. Does any man profefs himself a Christian, and yet abandons himself to intemperance and filthy lufts? is this like our Saviour? Are we cruel and unmerciful?. is this like the High Priest of our profeffion? Are we proud and paffionate, malicious and revengeful? is this to be like-minded with Chrift, who was meek and lowly in fpirit, who prayed for his enemies, and offered up his blood to God on the behalf of them that fhed it? If we call ourselves Chriftians, we profefs to have the life of Chrift continually before us, and to be always correcting and reforming our lives by that pattern.

3. He that calls himself a Christian, hath folemnly engaged himself to renounce all fin, and to live a holy life. By baptifm we have folemnly taken upon us the profeffion of Chriftianity, and engaged ourselves to renounce the devil and all his works, and obediently to keep God's commandments. Anciently those who were baptized, put off their garments, which fignified the putting off the body of fin; and were immerfed and buried in the water, to represent their death to fin; and then did rise up again out of the water, to fignify their entrance upon a new life. And to these customs the apostle alludes, when he fays, How shall we that are dead. to fin, live any longer therein? Know ye not, that fo many of us as were baptized unto Jefus Chrift, were baptized unto his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptifm unto death: that like as Chrift was raifed up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even fo we also fhould walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be alfo in the likeness of his refurrection: knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of fin VOL. I.

M

might

:

might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not ferve fin, Rom. vi. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. So that by baptifm we profefs to be entered into a new state, and to be endued with a new nature; to have put off the old man with his deeds to have quitted our former converfation, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lufts; and to be renewed in the Spirit of our minds, and to have put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. And therefore baptifm is called the putting on of Chrift: As many of you as have been baptized unto Chrift, have put on Chrift, Gal. iii. 27. Now, if we profefs to have put on Chrift, we must quit and renounce our lufts; because these are inconfiftent; as appears by the oppofition which the apoftle makes between them: Put ye on the Lord Jefus Chrift, and make not provifion for the flesh, to fulfil the lufts thereof, Rom. xiii.

14.

And as we did folemnly covenant with God, to this purpose, in baptifm, fo we do folemnly renew this obligation fo often as we receive the bleffed facrament of Chrift's body and blood. Therefore the cup in the facrament is called the new covenant in his blood; that is, this represents the fhedding of Chrift's blood; by which rite the covenant between God and man is ratified. And as by this God doth confirm his promises to us, fo we do oblige ourselves to be faithful and obedient to him: And if we fin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, that is, after we are become Chriftians, we account the blood of the covenant a common thing; that is, we make nothing of the folemnest rite that ever was used in the world for confirmation of any covenant, the fhedding of the blood of the Son of God. And that this was always understood to be the meaning of this holy facrament, to renew our covenant with God, and folemnly to confirm our refolution of a holy life, is very plain from that account which Pliny gives us of the worship of the Chriftians, in a letter to Trajan the Emperor; in which he tells him, "That they

affembled early in the morning before day, to fing a "hymn to Chrift as God. And then (faith he) they "do (facramento fe obftringere) bind themselves by a

facrament or oath, not to rob or steal, or commit #adultery; not to break their word, or falfify their

"trust;

[ocr errors]

"truft; and after they have eaten together, they depart home," Plin. lib. 10. ep. 97. Which is plainly an account of the Chriftians celebrating of the holy facrament, which it feems was then looked upon as an oath, whereby Christians did folemnly covenant and engage themselves against all wickedness and vice.

Thus you fee what obligation the profeffion of Chriftianity lays upon us, to holiness of life. From all which it is evident, that the gospel requires fomething on our part. For the covenant between God and us is a mutual engagement; and as there are bleffings promised on his part, fo there are conditions to be performed on ours. And if we live wicked and unholy lives, if we neglect our duty towards God, we have no title at all to the bleffings of this covenant. The contrary doctrine to this hath been greedily entertained, to the vast prejudice of Christianity, as if in this new covenant of the gospel God took all upon himself, and required nothing, or as good as nothing, of us; that it would be a difparagement to the freedom of God's grace, to think he expects any thing from us; that the gofpel is all promifes, and our part is only to believe and embrace them; that is, to be confident that God will perform them, if we can but think fo, though we do nothing elfe which is an eafy condition to fools, but the hardeft in the world to a wife man; who, if his falvation depended upon it, could never persuade himself to be. lieve, that the holy God, without any respect at all to his repentance and amendment, would bestow upon him forgiveness of fins, and eternal life, only because he was confident that God would do so; as if any man could think that it were a thing fo highly acceptable to God, that men fhould believe of him, that he loves to difpenfe his grace and mercy upon the most unfit and unreasonable terms. A covenant does neceffarily imply a mutual obligation; and the fcripture plainly tells us what are the terms and conditions of this covenant, both on God's part and ours, namely, that he will be our God, and we shall be his people. But he hath no where said, that though we be not his people, yet he will be our God. The feal of this covenant hath two infcriptions upon it; one on God's part, that he will know them that are his; and another on our part, that

we fhall depart from iniquity. But if we will not fubmit to this condition, God will not know us; but will bid us depart from him. So our Saviour tells us : I will fay unto them, Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity: I know you not, Matth. vii. 23. If we deal falfely in covenant with God, and break loofe from all our engagements to him, we release God from all the promiles that he hath made to us. If we neglect to perform thofe conditions upon which he hath fufpended the performance of his promifes, we difcharge the obligation on God's part; and he remains faithful, though he deny us that happiness which he promised under those conditions which we have neglected.

II. I come now to the fecond thing propounded; and that is, to perfuade those who profefs Chriftianity to anfwer thofe obligations to a holy life, which their religion lays upon them. We all call ourselves Christians, and would be very much offended at any man that should deny us this title. But let us not cheat ourselves with an empty and infignificant name; but, if we will call ourfelves Chriftians, let us fill up this great title, and make good our profeffion, by a fuitable life and practice. And to perfuade us hereto, I will urge these three confiderations.

1. The indecency of the contrary.

2. The great fcandal of it to our bleffed Saviour, and his holy religion. And,

3. The infinite danger of it to our own fouls.

1. Confider how unbecoming it is for a man to live unfuitably to his profeffion. If we call ourselves Chriftians, we profefs to entertain the doctrine of the gofpel; to be taught and inftructed by the beft mafter; to be the difciples of the highest and most perfect inftitution that ever was in the world; to have embraced a religion which contains the most exact rules for the conduct and government of our lives, which lays down the plaineft precepts, fets before us the best patterns and examples of a holy life, and offers us the greatest affiftances and encouragements to this purpose. We profess to be furnished with the best arguments to excite us to holiness and virtue; to be awed with the greatest fears, and animated with the beft hopes, of any men in the world,

Now,

Now, whoever makes such a profeffion as this, obligeth himself to live anfwerably, to do nothing that shall grossly contradict it. Nothing is more abfurd, than for a man to act contrary to his profeffion; to pretend to great matters, and perform nothing of what he pretends to. Wife men will not be caught with pretences, nor be imposed upon with an empty profeffion; but they will inquire into our lives and actions, and by these they will make a judgement of us. They cannot fee into our hearts, nor pry into our understandings, to discover what it is that we inwardly believe; they cannot difcern thofe fecret and fupernatural principles that we pretend to be acted by: but this they can do, they can examine our actions, and behold our good and bad works; and try whether our lives be indeed answerable to our profeffion, and do really excel the lives of other men who do not pretend to fuch great things. There are a great many fagacious perfons who will eafily find us out; will look under our mafk, and fee through all our fine pretenfions; and will quickly difcern the ab furdity of telling the world, that we believe one thing, when we do the contrary.

If we profefs to believe the Christian religion, we expose ourselves to the fcorn and contempt of every difcerning man, if we do not live up to it. With what: face can any man continue in the practice of any known fin, that profeffeth to believe the holy doctrine of the gofpel, which forbids all fin, under the highest and severest penalties ? If we did but believe the history of the gofpel, as we do any ordinary credible history, and did we but regard the laws of Christianity as we do the laws of the lands; were we but perfuaded, that fraud and oppreffion, lying and perjury, intemperance and uncleannefs, covetoufnefs and pride, malice and revenge, the neglect of God and religion, will bring men to hell, as certainly as treafon and felony will bring a man under the fentence of the law; had we but the fame awe and regard for the threatenings and promifes of the gofpel, that we have for the frowns and fmiles of those who are in power and authority even this would be effectual to keep us from. fin. And if the gofpel have: not this effect upon us,. it is an argument that we do not believe it.

« ΠροηγούμενηΣυνέχεια »