46 SERMON UPON MATTHEW XIX. 30-
David sent and inquired after the woman : and one said, Is not this^ Batbsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite ? ' Gen. xxxix. 7-9, ' And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph, and she said, Lie with me. But he refused, and said unto his master's wife. My master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand. There is none greater in the house than I ; neither hath he kept back anything from me but thee, because thou art his wife : how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God ? ' The one was a young man, the other old, and well experienced in the ways of God : Joseph a single man, David had a multitude of wives ; Joseph had the advantage of secrecy, David was fain to make way to his adultery by other sins ; Joseph was solicited, David the solicitor ; yet how foully did the one fall, because secure ? The other had his heart possessed with the fear of God.
2. In appearance only. I have spoken to you of the softest inter- pretation of the words ; now I shall show you how they maybe under- stood of those that are first in their own oi)inion only, or in the opinion of the world ; and so they that are first, that made a great blaze of profession for a while, and at length, last ; and so to be last is to be no- thing. It is not meant of gradual declinings, but total apostasy, which is the end of many that are forward in outward show and profession of Christ and the gospel, do, after they have professed a religion awhile, suflFer it to die away, and vanish into nothing ; a greater abuse and mis- chief to the church of God than if they had never professed : so they come to be least in the kingdom of heaven ; that is, to have no room nor place there, Mat. v. 19 ; and elsewhere, to reap sparingly is not to reap at all, 2 Cor. ix. 6 ; and Mat. xxi. 31, ' Publicans and harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.' It is not to be understood as if the one made haste into the kingdom of God, and the other were only slow and remiss, but did at length enter. No ; they were opposite, and averse, and never entered : ' This man went to his house justified rather than the other,' Luke xviii. 14. Not as if the pharisee was justified ; biit the meaning is, not justified at all. There are many such speeches : so that many that have begun well for the present shall afterwards fall away, and be utterly excluded from the kingdom of heaven. Such as are foremost in outward shows and profession of religion are not always the best christians : Gal, iii. 3, 4, ' Are ye so foolish ? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh ? Have you suffered so many things in vain ? if it be yet in vain.' All former profession, praying, hearing, suffering, is lost, if we by one afterchange should re- proach our former practice : Gal. v. 7, * Ye did run well ; who did hinder you ? ' They had made some progress in the ways of God ; their after- carriage may be no way answerable to their promising beginnings ; they may not only grow remiss and lazy, but strangely perverted by the allurements of the flesh and the world. A carnal and unsound heart will either take some ofience, or by some temptation or other be taken off from the profession and practice of godliness, by sensuality, error, or worldliness : John vi. 66, ' From that time many of the dis- ciples went back, and walked no more with him.' Demas for a time made a good profession, but afterwards was blinded by the world : 2
SERMON UPON MATTHEW XIX. 30, 47
Tim. iv. 10, ' For Demas bath forsaken us, having embraced the pre- sent world.' So the scripture taketh notice of many other blaziug meteors that fell from heaven like lightning. It will be so ; all that are called are not elected : Mat. xx. 16, 'So the last shall be first, and the first last ; for many are called, but few are chosen.' Therefore we should not be contented with the beginnings of Christianity only ; many times there are plenty of blossoms, and yet but little fruit, and those that have had good beginnings may afterwards greatly dishonour the name of Christ by their scandal or defections from him. They may seem to be first in the kingdom of heaven, and to be the very flower of Christianity, but prove afterwards the very dregs of Christianity. The foolish virgins had their lamps as well as the wise, but their oil failed ; they went forth to meet the bridegooom as the wise did, but they were afterwards shut out. Mat. xxv. 10. It is not enough to make the profession plausible, but to see the practice be real and the heart sound. Some in an hopeful way went far, but at last all is lost.