5. Worldly lusts must be mortified ; for if our love be pre-engaged, God will be defrauded. As when the pipe breaketh out, the water cannot go forwards. It is an inordinate affection to other things that deadeneth our hearts to God.
A FAST SER3I0N.
Return unto me, and I luill return unto you, saith the Lord of host^. But ye said, Wherein shall loe return ? — Mal. iii. 7.
Though tlie time of this i:)rophecy be not exactly specified, yet the matter showeth that Malachi prophesied after the return from captivity. When the people were established again in their possessions, they soon forgot God and the mercy of their deliverance, and polluted themselves with divers sins and abominations. Therefore the prophet is sent to expostulate with them, which he doth in a warm and close way of arguing. The sins charged upon them are pollution of Grod's worship, and profaneness in the people ; but in the priests, who should teach them better, ignorance and partiality in God's law. Besides, in the people again, carelessness in worship, a parsimonious detention of God's rights, marriages with infidels, polygamy, abuses of divorce, blasphe- mous and hard thoughts of God, contemptuous speeches of hispro\'idence. Observe how soon a people may forget the mercy of their deliverance. A man would have thought that persons newly come out of a long and tedious captivity should have been more awful and thankful. But man is man still ; and no moral means will cure them, without God's special and powerful grace. They were tainted by long converse with the heathen, and smelt of Babylon when they came back to Zion, having brought home the sins of the country with them where they had been scattered. To such a people is Malachi sent ; and his dealing with them is suitable ; sometimes boldly expostulating, other whiles sharply threatening, again seriously exhorting the people.
The verse, of which the text is a branch, carrieth the face of a sweet exhortation to repentance : a duty very seasonable ; for, saith he, ' from the days of your fathers ye have gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Eeturn unto me, and I will return unto yon, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, AVherein shall we return ? '
In which words there is —
1. An accusation — Ye have gone away.
2. An exhortation — Eeturn unto me.
3. The rejoinder or reply of the people.
1. In the accusation there is the nature of their sin ; they had gone off from God's ordinances, and had not kept them. Sin is a going away from God's ordinances, or a breach of his law, 1 John iii. 4 ; and the law may be broken, either by omitting the good required, or doing the evils forbidden. This people are supposed to be charged with both in
316 A FAST SERMON.
the text. Ye are gone away from mine ordinances, by doing things contrary to the law ; there is transgression, or sins of commission. And ye observed not what the law required, ye have not kept them ; there sins of omission are impHed. The next thing in the accusation is their long continuance in their sins, ' from the days of your fathers.' The longer we lie in sin, the more heinous and provoking it is, and the worse it is remedied, and it bringeth us nearer to the curse and actual judgment ; for God Avill not bear always. A chimney long foul and not swept, is fired at length.
2. The exhortation. There you may take notice of the duty, the motive and authority with which it is backed. (1.) The "duty, * Keturn to me.' They that are gone away from God's ordinances are gone away from God himself ; by breaking his laws they re- nounce their fealty to their rightful Lord, and turn the back upon him, and not the face. Therefore repentance towards God, Acts XX. 21, is necessary to set the creature right again, and put him in his proper place and posture, called therefore a turning or returning to God often in scripture, because the bent of the heart is altered, and set to love, please, serve, and glorify God. This is the duty we must mind, if we mean to be safe. And it must be done, not by a few, but all, or many, at least ; but especially every one must look to himself. Many are willing others should turn from their sins, but stay behind themselves. No ; let us come jointly and generally, every one of us bring our bucket to quench the common burning ■'. Hosea vi. 1, ' Come let us return unto the Lord, for he hath torn, and he will heal us ; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.' This turning is not an hanging our heads for a day like a bulrush ; but a putting away the evil of our doings, and a fixing and engaging our hearts to love God, and live to him ; this is the duty. (2.) The motive is. 'And I will turn unto you.' If we turn to God in a way of duty, he will turn to us in a way of mercy. We turn to him -by his preventing grace, and God turneth to us by his rewarding grace, giving us blessing, comfort, peace. Our returning to God is our great duty ; his returning tons is our great happiness, (3.) The authority with which both are backed, in those words, ' saith the Lord of hosts ; ' that is, which hath all things at his command, to arm them for us or against us, according as we make him a friend or an enemy. (1st.) This bindeth the duty. Keraember with whom your business lieth, with the Lord of hosts. It is ill to be found in a course of disobedience to him. He that commandeth all things, shall he not command your hearts ? (2d.) It assureth the promise ; for what difficulties soever lie in the way of our happiness, the Lord of hosts can remove them.