396 THE NINETEENTH SERMON. [EPH. II. 10.
fear and trembling ; for it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his own good pleasure.' This principle can neither be a ground of looseness nor laziness. You are under an obligation both to return to God, and to use the means whereby you may return. Your impotency doth not dissolve your obligation. A drunken servant is a servant, and bound to do his work ; his master loseth not his right by liis default. An insolvent debtor is a debtor, and if he cannot i)ay all, lie is bound to })ay as much as he can. Besides, you are creatures in misery ; if you be sensible of it, j'our interest will teach you to do what you can to come out of it ; and God's doing all is an engagement to wait upon him in the use of means, that we may meet with God in his way, and he may meet with us in our way. I say, in his way ; for God lialli aj)[)ointed certain duties to convey and apply this grace. Now Ave are to lie at the pool till the waters be stirred, to continue our attendance till God givelh grace, Mark iv. 24. And I say, tiiat God may meet wilh us in our way ; for God infiuenceth all things according to their natural inclination. God, that enlighteneth the world by and with the sun, burnetii with fire, reasoneth with man, acteth necessarily wilh necessary causes, and freely with free causes, — he doth not oppress the liberty of the new creature, but preserveth tlie nature and interest of his own workmanship ; draweth men ' with the cords of a man,' Hoseaxi. 4. He propoundeth reasons and motives, which we nmst consider, and so betake ourselves to a godly course. The object of regeneration is a reasonable creature, upon whom God worketh, not as on a stock or stone, but maketh use of the faculties which we have, showing us our lost estate, and the i)0ssibility of salvation by Christ, sweetly inviting us to accept of this grace, that he may pardon our sins, sanctify and heal our natures, and lead us in a way of holiness unto eternal life. Now these means we are to attend upon ; and it is some advantage when you own your duty, and are sensible of a necessity of changing your estate, who would otherwise be altogether careless and mindless of such a thing. But when you look on'it as a duty, that must be speedily and earnestly gone about if you mean to be saved, you are in a fair way of cure. By exhortation we demand God's right, and make the creature sensible of his own obligation, that he may go about this work as well as he can, at least that he may acknowledge the debt, coni'ess his impotency, and beg grace. Besides, there are some things to be done before this renovation in order thereunto, as AYood is dried before it is kindled. There are some preparations before conversion, and we are to be active about them. As, for instance, tliat we should rouse up ourselves, and consider our case : Bs, xxii. 27, * All the ends of the earth shall remember, and turn unto the Lord ;' Vs. cxix. 51), ' I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies.' Man is very inconsiderate ; his soul is asleep till consi- deration awaken it again. We are to search and try our estate whether it be good or bad. Lam. iii. 40. Let us ' search and try our ways, and turn unto the Lord.' We are to observe God's rebukes : Prov. i. 23, * Turn ye at my reproof;' to set ourselves to seek after God in the best liishidu we can : Hosea v. 4, ' They will not frame their doings to turn unto their God,' that is, think of recovering themselves and bending their course to him. Chiefly we are to take heed that we
EpH. II. 10.] THE TWENTIETH SERMON. 397
do not hinder God's work, and obstruct our own mercies 5 Prov. i. 25, ' They set at nouj^ht my counsel, and would none of my reproof.' Sometimes conscience is startled, cither as bein<^ excited by the word, Acts XXIV. 25, or some notable affliction and strait, Grcn. xlii. 21 ; by one means or another the waters are stirred, great helps are vouch- safed to us ; observe these seasons. However, check despair. He that did turn water into wine, can turn sinners into saints, lions into lambs; he hath not excluded you from his grace, therefore do not exclude yourselves. When did he ever forsake the anxious and waiting souls that would not give over seeking till they did obtain the sanctifying Spirit?
SERMON XX.
For ive arelilsiuorhmanship,creaUd in Christ Jesus, unto good works, tvhich God hath before ordained that ive should loalk in them. — Eph. II. 10.
We come now to the end why we are brought into this estate, created imto good works, &c. The end is not to live idly or walk loosely, but holily, according to the will of God.
In this latter clause, ' Created unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them,' observe : —