supplicated for) given me to see the happy effects of sound doctrine, and hath long ago blessed it unto many.
These first-fruits of Restored Liberty, and wliich many have importuned me to publish, I now most humbly offer unto you. Induloe a brother, the weakest of all, and one who reckons him- self justly inferior to all the servants of Christ ; if, on this signal and most extraordinary occasion. Christian zeal should break forth a little more freely than may be suitable to either my small share of learning or experience.
Here your preacher hath not sought after the pomp of elo- quence. Through the whole I have used a popular, not polite, stile ; pithy, not showy ; for I thought it might be justly said con- cerning Theology^ what Cicero says of Philosophy, That to talk upon subjects of that nature in an elaborate stile, is childish ; but to be capable of delivering with plainness and perspicuity, is the part of a learned and knowing man. I should be justly displeased with myself, if I preached the doctrine of a crucified Christ, in a stile unbecoming his cross ; which surely is the character of a stile pom- pous and swelling.
These things being premised,
I. Let us rejoice m our liberty, with a joy duly moderated ; I mean, with a joy equally balanced, and guarded on all hands by gi*ief for past sins, and dread of future ones. We read in Jere- miah, of the voice of sighing and weeping, with which the faith- ful would, about the time of their deliverance, confess their sins, by which they had provoked God, and would sincerely bewail them with contrite hearts. And how suitable was the song of the church, even at the laying of the foundation of the second temple ; a song equally composed of joyful shouting, and abundant weeping, Ezra iii. 10. " Many weeped with a loud voice, many shouted " aloud for joy ; so that the people could not discern the noise " of the shout of joy, from the noise of the weeping of the peo- *' pie." Nor are the saints ashamed to confess their falls and shameful deeds to the glory of God, for nothing is a loss to us which redounds to his glory. Our countenance must in his sight be comely and amiable, when he sees penitential tears mixed with those of joy and thanksgiving. It is the character of a true peni- tent to lament his faults, that he may not again commit things to be lamented.
Asaph hath set before us an illustrious example of penitence, Psal. Ixxiv. 8. Remember not (says he) against us our former inu quities. God is said to remember iniquities when calling sins to an account, and judging of their greatness and number, he resolves to punish. Asaph speaks of God after the manner of men ; for they, when greatly offended, and about to punish their children, do then call
to mind all their former faults : let us, in like manner, reflect oif ours, and sincerely bewail our past slothful conduct, an unhappy concomitant of liberty : Thus we have neither flamed with ardent love on the one hand, nor grieved with that degree of sorrow which was requisite on the other : we have oftentimes spoken more fi'om the head than from the heart, We have both prayed and preached too too coldly about matters the most awful and impor- tant. We have not followed the footsteps of those worthies that went before us in the last age, so as to come up with them. We have been at small pains to support the majesty of religion, by the graiity of our conversation, and the usefulness of our discourses. For which cause our God has conceived just anger against us, and hath manifested that by the past calamities ; and by so manifesting it, hath plainly admonished us io be on our guard for the time to pome.
II. Therefore brethren, I earnestly beg of you, in the bow- els of Christ, that you will not forget these words of the apostle, If it be possible, as viuch as lieth in you, live 'peaceably 7vHh all men, Rom. xii. 8. There is added a twofold imitation, first, If it be possible, that is, consistently with justice, piety, and truth : Such a regard is not to be had to truth, as that the study of peace be entirely neglected ; nor is such unity to be sought after as destroys truth ; but speak the truth in love, as the same apostle exhorts, Eph. jv. 15. For, as our countryman Mr. Davenant justly observes, they love neither from the heart, who love not both. Christians therefore, when they both hve peaceably in owning the truth, and speak the truth in love, are a great ornament to their profession. The other limitation is, As much as lieth in you, that is, live in friendship with all, if it be possible ; and if they will not be friendly on their part, be sure you be so on yoiirs. Truth begets hatred among the wicked, and godhness is ever despised by them ; of which Lactantius * assigns this reason, " That he who sins
* wants to have a free opportunity of sinning, and thinks he can no ' otherwise enjoy securely the pleasure of his ill deeds, than when
* there are many who delight in the same faults. Hence they
* study to destroy and cut oiF root and branch those who are wit-
* nesses of their wickedness, and they cannot endure that good men^
* lives should be a reproof, as it were, of theirs. Therefore by the
* friendship of the wicked, piety is endangered."
We have some amongst us tliat put on a form of godliness, but have denied the power thereof: of such •)- Bernard in his time thus complained : ' Woe to this generation which hath the leaven of — — . , — ■ I
♦ Lactantius on Justice, b. 5. p. 332. 383. f Jiern^d, Sermon xxxiii. on C^nt,
' tlie Pharisees, which is hypocrisy : If indeed that should be call-,
* ed hypocrisy, which now through its prevalency cannot be hid,
< and through its impudency seeks not to be hid. At present,
< rottenness and corruption affects the whole body of the church, f and the wider it spreads, the more desperate ; and the more ^ inwardly it spreads, the more dangerous : for if an heretic, an f open enemy, should rise up, he would be cast out ; if a vio- f lent enemy, she, (i. e. the church) would perhaps conceal herself ^ from him. But now, whom shall the church cast out ? or whom ' shall she hide herself from ? All are friends, and all are enemies : ^ all are in mutual connexions, as relations, yet in mutual contests, f as adversaries : all are fellow-members of one family, yet none ' are promoters of peace : all are neighbours, yet all are seekers of
< their own things : by profession servants of Christ, in reality they
* serye Antichrist : they make an honourable figure by the good
* things they have received from the Lord, while, at the same time, ' they give no honour to the Lord.' I will say of these men. My >6oul, come not into their council ; my glory, be not in their as- sembly.