their own brains? We think those young men fools, that are glad their parents are dead who restrained their vicious courses. If carnal men's eyes were open to know the advantages of a powerful ministry, or pure ordinances, they would lay it to heart as the most dreadful evil that ever befel them, and lament after the Lord with bitter cries, for the return of the means of grace, and say: "O Lord, is light gone, and my soul left still in darkness? is life gone, and I dead still? are means of salvation departed, and my soul left in imminent danger of perishing? Many tears did ministers shed for me: O what prayers to God! what beseechings of me to be reconciled to God! but I regarded not. Woe is me, these ambassadors of peace are called home, or have their mouths shut, what can I now. expect but a proclamation of war? Lord, have mercy on me, and send those men of God to knock again at my door, and I hope I shall give them and their message better entertainment." Thus carnal persons should say; but alas, such as most need, do often least regard these things, God knows; and after twenty years lying in the grave, we may fear they will not still believe, though we should arise from the dead. If however, after all this, there be little or no hopes of those persons laying this matter to heart, I will turn to another class. 2. Ye gracious souls, lament you after the Lord.— Though Israel play the harlot yet let not Judah offend; though wicked men will not understand nor lay any thing to heart, yet let God's people, his children lay to their hearts the displeasure of God, and with bitter cries lament after their departing Father. Oh that it could be said in this case, as God's own testimony is, Hos. xi. 12, Ephraim compàsseth me about with lies, pretending to worship God, when they intend nothing less, and the house of Israel with deceit, cheating men, thinking to deceive God himself, but Judah yet ruleth with God, that is, keeps up his interest at the throne of grace and prevails with me, and is faithful with the saints, in point of communion and reputation, or with the most holy.* O blessed Judah! but doth not God's Judah need stirring up to lament after the Lord! Alas! how senseless and slack are the best hearts in this exercise! Who would have once imagined that such a spirit of worldliness, security, and neutrality, would have seized upon God's own children? Ah friends! can you let God depart either from your spirits or from the assemblies of his people, and not stir up yourselves to take hold of him? Who would have thought that God himself or the tokens of his presence should go from you without weeping eyes, or mournful complaints? Who must hold him if you will not? Who must fetch him back if you will not follow him, and call after him? You that have interest in him; you that have given up yourselves to him; you that have had sweet experience of his presence; and now pretend more love to him than any one else; you that he hath drawn with cords of love, will not you lament after him? Have not you some reason to say as the nation of Israel, Hos. ii. 7, "I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better with me than now," especially considering how he hath hedged your way with thorns, disappointed you in your overtaking your other lovers; have not your souls grown lean, and ready to famish in other ways? Have you not in all this time discerned some difference betwixt the pure and wholsome waters of the sanctuary, and the impure puddle water of men's traditions? Yea, have you not to your cost discerned some difference by your dear* Marg. 66 bought experience, betwixt the powerful ordinances, and the very same or similar formally, heartlessly, and lifelessly administered? Tell me, deal ingenuously and candidly in the case; have not your souls been ready to pine for want of provision? Have you not even been tempted to loath some dishes handed to you by blind or slovenly cooks? have you not been in danger of being rocked asleep by such truths as should have awaked you, and would, if they had been faithfully managed? Have you not been forced to eat that which some have trodden under their feet, and to drink that which some have fouled with their feet?* Alas, sirs! whatever others have, have not you some reason to lament with holy David? Psal. Ixiii. 1, 2, “O God thou art my God, early will I seek thee; my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is, to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary:" O my Lord, time hath been that my soul hath been satisfied as with marrow, and fatness, and my doubts resolved, graces quickened, lusts discovered and weakened in thine ordinances, so that I could truly say from my own experience, God was in them of a truth; but alas, for this long time matters have been otherwise, I have attended (as I judged) in obedience to thy command, and have sometimes met with airy notions or sapless things, or mixture of errors, or such complimenting of God with a dry formality, that methinks my soul is dried away with this light food: I have reason to lay the blame upon myself, and charge my own unprofitable heart as the proper cause; but O my Lord, I long for a heart-searching, state-distinguishing, sin-rebuking word. O when shall my soul enjoy heart-melting ordinances! Thou that adaptest means Ezek. xxxiv. 19. 66 to the end, and dost use to produce conversion, consolation, and confirmation, by most proper efficient instruments, give suitable means of grace, and grace by the means; "O Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known, in wrath remember mercy; and let all thy children say, Amen." Hab. iii. 2. 3. You that are young, of the rising generation, that are coming up, and coming on, in the room of your ancestors, it becomes you to lament after the Lord and his ark. Be it known to you that the piety of your predecessors will not be your sanctuary or security.— You may please yourselves with being the children of the church, but think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham to our father; * for God is not under any obligation to you; you may be children of the devil, and may be cast into hell under that title:† no, no, you must have a faith of your own, a personal, as well as a federal relation to God. It is disputed at what age children are to stand on their own legs for personal faith, at five, or seven, or ten, or twelve; to be sure, at years of discretion, when they can discern betwixt good and evil, they are to choose for themselves, and are not to depend on relation to their parents any longer; however, they may improve their parent's covenant. But, O children! begin betimes to cry after your Father: God loves to be followed, as with the hosannas once, so with the small voice, and to be held with the little hands of the young: try what you can do with him; say not, you need him not; you cannot set up without him, you cannot live safely without him; and I am sure you are undone if you die without relation to him, and you may die young. O then make sure of God, you are cast upon him from your birth; say to * Mat. iii. 9. + John viii. 44. Luke xvi. 25. him, thou art my God from my mother's womb, so shall you be a seed to serve him, and shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.* What an advantage will it be when your father and mother forsake you, by unkindness or death, if you have a God to take you up. If God hath been your trust from your youth, he will not cast you off in old age; but if you run away from God, all your younger days, with what confidence can you lament after him in old age? May he not say, go to the gods and lusts which you have served and gratified? you come but to me for a reserve, with self-ends, and because you can follow your sensual pleasures no longer; you would never have had recourse to me, if you had been capable still to have made as good a bargain of the world as you were wont: you followed your lusts with a young and swift foot, but me you can but follow with a slow snail's pace; a little of this lamenting more early had been more acceptable. It is a hard venture, an awful risk, if you go on laughing in the devil's ways, to take it for granted that you will be cordial in lamenting after God in old age, and that the Lord will receive you and as you would enjoy God, lament after the ordinances of God. Thy testimonies, saith David, have I taken as an heritage for ever. O blessed heritage! O precious patrimony! beg it, plead for it, be not content without it. Whatever other inheritance you have, say, Lord, mine ears have heard, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. || What providences were arranged to settle ordinances? what excellent, powerful, heart-warming preaching they had? how God wrought wonders on the consciences of men by his word and Spirit? what pure worship they had, + Psal. xxvii. 10. || Psal. xliv. 1. *. Psal. xxii. 10, 30. |
