(1.) Take heed of pretending or holding out the gospel for a covert or shadow for other things. God will not have his gospel made a stalking-horse for carnal designs. Put not in that glorious name, where the thing itself is not clearly intended. If in any thing it be, let it have no compeer; if not, let it not be named. If that you aim at be just, it needs no varnish ; if it be not, it is the worse for it. Gilded pills lose not their bitterness, and painted faces are thought to have no native beauty. All things in the world should
' Gililas (le Excid. Biitanninc. " Omnia quix? Deo placebant, et displiccbaiit, irquali lance pendcbantiir, nou igitur admiiandiim est degeiieres tales patriuni illam aniittere, quam pracdicto modo maculabant." — Hist. M.S., apud Foxum.
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serve the gospel; and if that be made to serve other things, God will quickly vindicate it into liberty.
From the beginning of these troubles, right honourable, you have held forth religion and the gospel, as whose preservation and restoration was principally in your aims ; and I presume malice itself is not able to discover any insincerity in this. The fruits we behold proclaim to all the confonnity of your words and hearts. Now, the God of heaven grant that the same mind be in you still, in every particular member of this honourable assembly, in the whole nation, especially in the magistracy and ministry of it;- — that we be not like the boatmen, — look one way, and row another; — cry " Gospel," and mean the other thing, — " Lord, Lord," and advance our own ends; — that the Lord may not stir up the staff of his anger and the rod of his indignation against us, as a hypocritical people.
(2.) Take heed of resting upon and trusting to the privilege, how- ever excellent and glorious, of the outward enjoyment of the gospel. When the Jews cried, " The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord," the time was at hand that they should be destroyed. Look only upon the gxace that did bestow, and the mercy that doth con- tinue it. God will have none of his blessings rob him of his glory; and if we rest at the cistern, he will stop at the fountain.
(3.) Let us all take heed of barrenness under it : "For the earth that drinks in the rain that cometh upon it, and beareth thorns and briers, is rejected, and nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned," Heb. vi. 7, 8. Now, what fruits doth it require ? Even those reck- oned. Gal. V. 22, 23, " The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." 0 that we had not cause to grieve for a scarcity of these fruits, and the abundant plenty of those works of the flesh recounted, verses 19-21 ! 0 that that wisdom which is an eminent fruit of the gospel might flourish amongst us ! — it is " first pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated;"- — that we might have less writing, and more pray- ing ! — less envy, and more charity ! — that all evil surmisings, which are works of the flesh, might have no toleration in our hearts, but be banished for nonconformity to the golden rule of love and peace ! James iii. 1 7. But d--sx,c}. Come we now to the last propo- sition.
III. No men in the world want help hke them that want the gospel ; or, of all distresses, want of the gospel cries the loudest for relief
Rachel wanted children, and she cries, " Give me children,^ or I die;" — but that was her impatience; she might have lived, and have had no children; yea, see the justice of God, — she dies so soon as ever ' Gen. XXX. 1, xxxv. 18.
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she hath children. Hagar^ wants water for Ishmael, and she will go far from him, that she may not see him die; — a heavy distress; and yet if he had died, it had been but an early paying of that debt which in a few years was to be satisfied. But they that want the gospel may truly cry, Give us the gospel, or we die ; and that not temporally with Ishmael, for want of water, but eternally in flames of fire.
A man may want liberty, and yet be happy, as Joseph was; a man may want peace, and yet be happy, as David was ; a man may want children, and yet be blessed, as Job was; a man may want plenty, and yet be full of comfort, as Micaiah was ; — but he that wants the gospel, wants every thing that should do him good. A throne without the gospel is but the devil's dungeon. Wealth without the gospel is fuel for hell. Advancement without the gospel is but a fifoinff hiffh to have the greater fall.
Abraham^ wanting a child, complains, " What will the Lord do for me, seeing I go childless, and this Eliezer of Damascus must be my heir?" Much more may a man without the means of grace complain. What shall be done unto me, seeing I go gospelless; and all that I have is but a short inheritance for this lump of clay, my body?