expose himself to ruin and misery through his carelessness and obstinacy. And yet, though you are condemned for sin to far worse torment and misery, that which is more dreadful than ten thousand painful deaths, and all this mischief and punishment may be avoided and escaped, if you will accept of the pardon which Christ hath provided, and in the gospel is proffered unto you, and withal [if you will] break off your sins by repentance; yet no words or arguments will persuade you to use the means of prevention, but still you live in the neglect of pardon and “so great salvation," and are secure, however great your danger be. O the folly and strange madness of unconverted sinners! O the unspeakable sottishness and senselessness they are under! Although we make it appear to their consciences that their condition is unutterably miserable, they are not moved, except it be with choler against the minister that warns them of the sword of God's vengeance which hangeth over them, and they champ at the bridle that would hold them from running to their destruction. But O that you would rather turn your anger against your sins, and say, "This iniquity will be my ruin; and that sin, without pardon, will be my damnation!"

USE III. Therefore, in the next place, let me exhort all of you that lie under the guilt of sin, that you would labour after this blessedness of forgiveness.-O that you would pity your own souls! Think what provision you have made for them. Think whither they are likely to go, upon their separation from your bodies; and what you will do, at the last day, when Christ cometh to judge and punish unpardoned sinners. Think how you will be able to dwell with devouring fire, to inhabit everlasting burnings. Methinks you should take-up such thoughts as these, and argue thus with yourselves :—

"What! shall I undo myself for a filthy lust? Shall I lose my soul to gain a little uncertain earthly riches? Shall I forfeit a crown of glory for the empty honour of this world? Shall I cast myself into everlasting horror and pain for a little vain, fading, carnal delight and pleasure? Can I be contented to be tormented for ever in hell to satisfy the desires of my flesh on earth, and that when they will never be satisfied? Shall I hug a viper in my bosom that will kill me? harbour lusts in my heart that will slay me? Shall I dishonour God, and damn my own soul, to gratify the devil my enemy, and please my flesh which will soon be turned into dirt and rottenness, and withal throw away the hopes of a glorious resurrection for my body hereby? Away then, ye foolish, filthy lusts! I will no more hearken to you, or be entangled or enslaved by you. Begone, thou deluding, tempting devil! I will lend my ear no longer to thy lying suggestions, nor yield any more to thy beguiling and bewitching temptations. Farewell, thou glozing, flattering world, with all thy charms and allurements! Thy gold is but dross, thy wine mixed with water, thy honour but wind and vanity, thy delights are bittersweets, such as will end in death and ruin. I will choose another portion, and look after a better blessedness, than thou canst give me, even the blessedness of forgiveness, which will bring me unto eternal blessedness."

Methinks you should take no sleep nor rest, and find no comfort in house, or trade, or friends, or any thing, until the anger of God be

دو

appeased, your sins all pardoned, and so your souls set in safety from all that ruin unto which they are exposed by unpardoned iniquity. The absolute necessity of forgiveness should quicken you to look after it. You have not so much need of food to remove your hunger, as you have need of mercy to remove your guilt. You have not so much need of clothes to cover your bodies, as you have need of righteousness to cover your iniquities. Better be starved than damned; better be hanged than burned; better be exposed to the misery of the weather, and any bodily distemper, than to be exposed unto the storms and strokes of God's vengeance, and the eternal ruin of body and soul in hell, which there is no possibility of escaping without a pardon. And that which may encourage you to seek after forgiveness is the attainableness of it, and that by the vilest and most guilty amongst you. Others have obtained pardoning mercy that have been found as guilty: Manasseh was pardoned who was so heinous a transgressor; Paul, who was so zealous a persecutor; Mary Magdalene, who was possessed with seven devils; the Corinthians, some of whom were idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, extortioners, drunkards, revilers, yet they were "justified in the name of the Lord Jesus; some of them who had imbrued their hands in Christ's blood, had the guilt of their sins washed away by it. There is mercy enough in God to give a pardonfor the greatest transgression; there is merit enough in Christ to purchase a pardon, and prevalency in his intercession to procure it, whatever your offences have been. The invitation unto Christ for remission and salvation is general; none are excluded, but such as exclude themselves. The promises are full crimson sins, such as are of the deepest dye, God promiseth to make as wool; and the promises are free; the acceptation of a pardon by faith makes it yours, without any price or merit on your part. We ministers have a commission to preach remission of sins in the name of Christ, and to declare to you the glad tidings of salvation; yea, we have instructions, as ambassadors, in the name of God and Christ to beseech you that you would be reconciled, that you would accept of forgiveness : "Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled unto God." (2 Cor. v. 20.) Give me leave to press this argument upon you the great God of heaven and earth, so glorious in holiness and righteousness, is so infinitely merciful and gracious, as to beseech you that you would be reconciled, although you are so infinitely inferior unto him. He condescends to entreat you, not that you would show kindness unto him, but that you would show kindness to yourselves, and accept of the greatest kindness at his hands,-of forgiveness and reconciliation. God might command; and, upon once the least refusal, he might execute his vengeance upon you. But although some of you have stopped your ears so long, refused his gracious proffer so often; though you have abused his kindness, trampled upon his patience, slighted his invitations, despised his threatenings, disregarded his promises, and, turning all his rich grace into wantonness, do continue still in your disobedience; yet the Lord doth again make suit unto you, stretcheth forth his hands unto you, however disobedient and gainsaying you have been, and by me doth entreat you that you would be reconciled. Need we use entreaties with

condemned malefactors to accept of a pardon? If we had commission to preach pardoning mercy unto devils, would they need entreaties to accept? Would they be fooled-out of such a gracious proffer by any, as you hitherto have been by them? Sinners, I beseech you, in the name of the great and glorious Jehovah, and the Lord Jesus Christ your gracious Redeemer, that you would be reconciled, and that you would befriend yourselves, and accept of the forgiveness of all your sins. I entreat you that you would not, through neglect of pardon, and perseverance in a sinful course, irrecoverably ruin and damn your souls. Methinks my heart doth yearn over you, and bleed for you, who are wounding yourselves, and rushing-on inconsiderately toward the place of everlasting weeping and woe, from whence there is no coming back, no coming out for ever. Sinners, why should you be so hard to be persuaded, without any further delay, to be reconciled unto God? Why do I need to use so many entreaties? May I at length prevail with you, that you would not be miserable, and prove your own murderers; that you would be blessed here and hereafter, through your ready acceptation of pardoning mercy? What answer must I carry back to my Master, who sent me this day to proclaim in your ears the blessedness of forgiveness, and to use entreaties with you in his name that you would become thus blessed? Must I complain ?

Lord, there are a company of obstinate sinners, whom I have entreated to accept of pardon. But there is not the least spark of ingenuity amongst them, nor the least sense of their sins upon them. Had I been to preach to beasts or fowls, to the earth or stones, they would have been as much moved as these sinners. Lord, I spent my strength and pains, my voice and lungs, for nought. I know not how to persuade, I know not which way to prevail with them. I thought, thy beseechings would have taken with them; that the entreaties of God, like a sweet flame, would have melted their hearts as wax within them. I thought, when thou didst vouchsafe by me to request them to leave their sins, and be reconciled unto thee, that this would marvellously have affected them, and that they would readily have complied in a thing so necessary for them, and so much for their own happiness. I did begin with terror to them, and yet they were not affrighted; but I hoped, when I came to end with mercy, and to speak in the soft and sweet language of thine entreaties, and to urge this most winning argument of thy requests unto them, that then they would immediately have yielded, and most thankfully have accepted so gracious proffers made unto them. But, alas, Lord! I found it far otherwise than I expected. If their ears were open, their hearts were shut up; and they would not receive my message, which from thee, in faithfulness and tenderness, I delivered unto them. And what may I farther hope will prevail with them, if thy entreaties be thus disregarded?”

Must I thus complain : or may I have occasion to say?" Lord, I have been preaching the blessedness of forgiveness, which I backed with thine entreaties of sinners that they would accept of it; and, through thy blessing, the arguments I used were not altogether in vain. Some sinners, that had stouted it out a long time against thee, began at length to relent and yield, when they heard thine entreaties of them to be reconciled. Lord, I heard scalding sighs break forth from such and such,

whose hearts were breaking within them for their sins. I saw brinish tears trickling down from some eyes, proceeding from a spring of godly sorrow within, newly given them by the Spirit. How did they look and seem to long after thy salvation! How greedily did they hearken, even like the condemned malefactor, when he hath first tidings of a pardon! I hope, they are gone home to entreat that of thee which thou hast by me been entreating of them to accept of. O Lord, grant them their desires! Be reconciled to that drunkard and unclean wretch! Forgive the iniquities of that swearer, sabbath-breaker, and profane sinner!" What do you say, sinners? Will you send me back to my Master saddened or rejoiced? Accept of my message, and it will be the joy of my heart; yea, it will be the joy of angels in heaven; and however it will cost you some grief and tears in your repentance of sin at the first, yet if you so seek after this blessedness of forgiveness as to obtain it, the issue will be joy to yourselves; you will have the beginnings of joy here, and in the other world your joys will be full, ineffable, and eternal. Methinks some of you seem almost persuaded. O that you were quite persuaded, without further delay, to put in practice the directions given for the obtaining the blessedness of forgiveness!

SERMON XXX.

BY THE REV. MATTHEW SYLVESTER,

OF ST. JOHN'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE.

HOW WE MAY OVERCOME INORDINATE LOVE OF LIFE AND FEAR OF DEATH.

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.-Acts xx. 24.

THE context tells us, that the apostle was now at Miletus; (verse 17;) and from hence he sends to Ephesus, and calls for the elders of the church. Now these elders were not Timothy and Trophimus; for they were in his company already, and had been with him in his journey hither; (verse 4;) but rather those twelve men on whom he laid his hands, and bestowed the Holy Ghost, in order to their ministry at Ephesus, (Acts xix. 1-7,) and the rest whom Timothy had ordained whilst he was there.

From verse 18 of this chapter, we have the apostle's farewell sermon ; wherein he clears himself, by close and smart addresses to their consciences and experiences, as to all charges and surmises of ministerial miscarriages among them, (verses 18, 27,) and works them all within the conscience of their ministerial charge and trust from God, to imitate

his ministerial faithfulness, by urging such significant and cogent arguments as were apt and proper to startle and engage them to and in their work. And these arguments are drawn from the present and instantly succeeding circumstances and concernments of the church of God. They were in danger of wolves breaking in upon them, and seducers arising from amongst them; they were the church of God, the price of his blood, committed to the care and guidance of these ministers to whom the apostle spake; and therefore the interest and worth of souls, and their relation to them, and all those sad and dangerous exercises, underminings, and obstructions, which they were sure to meet with in their pastoral work, did call aloud upon them for all possible circumspection, activity, and resolution, in and for their work; of all which, the apostle was an exemplary and awakening instance and example.

My text is the generous heroism of an awakened and prepared heart, occasioned by the tidings that were brought him by the Spirit, who told him there, that bonds and afflictions did abide him in every city. (Verse 23.) Here you may see those sinews cut of hopes and fears, which might obstruct his faith, diligence, and perseverance; he is mortified to all that love of life and fear of death which possibly might control his better prospect, hopes, and work. In the words we have the apostle concerned in reference to a double state :

1. As to this mortal life. It is implied in the text, and expressed in the context, that it is a theatre of smart contentions and miseries, and that he was concerned in the agonistical exercises thereof.

2. As to the other life. He had the prospect of transcendent joys, exhibited to his views and hopes as the determined and proposed reward of his well-managed exercises; the influences and impressions whereof did strangely invigorate and fix his resolutions to maintain such a masculine frame of spirit as should entertain and answer all the challenges of danger, difficulties, and temptations, and to preserve that necessary liberty from, and useful indifferency to, the hopes and love of life, and fears of death and danger, which might secure the spirit and prowess of a resolved and successful valour. Ουδενος λογον ποιουμαι, "I make no reckoning of any thing;" and he grows regardless of his life, and hath mortified the vigour of all the arguments and inducements that can be fetched therefrom. For the utmost reach of rage and villany is to effect no more, and can extend no farther, than the loss of life; (Matt. x. 28;) and all those comforts which are liable to the casualties and sequestrations of transient time, and cannot run parallel with our capacious souls beyond the limits of a dying breath, cannot be valued beyond the value of their end; and therefore he that conquers and subdues the estimation of his life, hath so far overcome all the disturbing and ensnaring influences of hopes and fears relating to it, and derived from it.

Well, we have here an instance and example, in this great and gracious apostle, of a resolved and proficient Christian; yea, and a visible practical demonstration of what blood and spirits are in the veins of Christianity, and are bred there, and what an energy and force there is in one right believing look and glance at things to come. (2 Cor. iv. 16-18; Heb. xii. 2.)

And if it be objected, that, "as the apostle's course was ministerial, so