Part 212

THE apostle _Paul_, in his epistle to the _Hebrews_, informs us, “That it is appointed for all men once to die; after that is the judgment.” And I think, if any consideration be sufficient to awaken a sleeping drowsy world, it must be this, That there will be a day wherein these heavens shall be wrapt up like a scroll, this element melt with fervent heat, the earth and all things therein be burnt up, and every soul, of every nation and language, summoned to appear before the dreadful tribunal of the righteous Judge of quick and dead, to receive rewards and punishments, according to the deeds done in their bodies. The great apostle just mentioned, when brought before _Felix_, could think of no better means to convert that sinful man, than to reason of temperance, righteousness, and more especially of a judgment to come. The first might in some measure affect, but, I am persuaded, it was the last consideration, a judgment to come, that made him to tremble: and so bad as the world is now grown, yet there are few have their consciences so far seared, as to deny that there will be a reckoning hereafter. The promiscuous dispensations of providence in this life, wherein we see good men afflicted, destitute, tormented, and the wicked permitted triumphantly to ride over their heads, has been always looked upon as an indisputable argument, by the generality of men, that there will be a day in which GOD will judge the world in righteousness, and administer equity unto his people. Some indeed are so bold as to deny it, while they are engaged in the pursuit of the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. But follow them to their death-beds, ask them, when their souls are ready to launch into eternity, what they then think of a judgment to come? and they will tell you, they dare not give their consciences the lie any longer. They feel a fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation in their hearts. Since then these things are so, does it not highly concern each of us, my brethren, before we come on a bed of sickness, seriously to examine how the account stands between GOD and our souls, and how it will fare with us in that day? As for the openly prophane, the drunkard, the whoremonger, the adulterer, and such-like, there is no doubt of what will become of them; without repentance they shall never enter into the kingdom of GOD and his CHRIST: no; their damnation slumbereth not; a burning fiery _Tophet_, kindled by the fury of GOD’s eternal wrath, is prepared for their reception, wherein they must suffer the vengeance of eternal fire. Nor is there the least doubt of the state of true believers. For though they are despised and rejected of natural men, yet being born again of GOD, they are heirs of GOD, and joint heirs with CHRIST. They have the earnest of the promised inheritance in their hearts, and are assured, that a new and living way is made open for them, into the holy of holies, by the blood of JESUS CHRIST, into which an abundant entrance shall be administered to them at the great day of account. The only question is, what will become of the _almost Christian_, one that is content to go, as he thinks, in a middle way to heaven, without being prophane on the one hand, or, as he falsly imagines, righteous over-much on the other? Many there are in every congregation, and consequently some here present, of this stamp. And what is worst of all, it is more easy to convince the most notorious publicans and sinners of their being out of a state of salvation, than any of these. Notwithstanding, if JESUS CHRIST may be our judge, they shall as certainly be rejected and disowned by him at the last day, as though they lived in open defiance of all his laws. For what says our LORD in the parable of which the words of the text are a conclusion, and which I intend to make the subject of my present discourse. “Then,” at the day of judgment, which he had been discoursing of in the foregoing, and prosecutes in this chapter, “shall the kingdom of heaven, (the state of professors in the gospel church) be likened unto ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.” In which words, is a manifest allusion to a custom prevailing in our LORD’s time among the _Jews_ at marriage solemnities, which were generally at night, and at which it was customary for the persons of the bride-chamber to go out in procession, with many lights, to meet the bridegroom. By the _bridegroom_, you are here to understand JESUS CHRIST. The church, i. e. true believers, are his _spouse_; he is united to them by one spirit, even in this life; but the solemnizing of these sacred nuptials, is reserved till the day of judgment, when he shall come to take them home to himself, and present them before men and angels, as his purchase, to his Father, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing. By the ten virgins we are to understand, the professors of christianity in general. All are called virgins, because all are called to be saints. Whosoever names the name of CHRIST, is obliged by that very profession to depart from all iniquity. But the pure and chaste in heart, are the only persons that will be so blessed as to see GOD. As CHRIST was born of a virgin, so he can dwell in none but virgin souls, made pure and holy by the cohabitation of his holy Spirit. What says the apostle? “All are not _Israelites_ that are of _Israel_,” all are not christians that are called after the name of CHRIST: No, says our LORD, in the 2d verse, “Five of those virgins were wise,” true believers, “and five were foolish,” formal hypocrites. But why are five said to be wise, and the other five foolish? Hear what our LORD says in the following verses; “They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.” They that were foolish took their lamps of an outward profession. They would go to church, say over several manuals of prayers, come perhaps into a field to hear a sermon, give at a collection, and receive the sacrament constantly, nay, oftner than once a month. But then here lay the mistake; they had no oil in their lamps, no principle of grace, no living faith in their hearts, without which, though we should give all our goods to feed the poor, and our bodies to be burnt, it would profit us nothing. In short, they were exact, nay, perhaps superstitious bigots as to the form, but all the while they were strangers to, and, in effect, denied the power of godliness in their hearts. They would go to church, but at the same time, think it no harm to go to a ball or an assembly, notwithstanding they promised at their baptism, to renounce the pomps and vanities of this wicked world. They were so exceedingly fearful of being righteous over-much, that they would even persecute those that were truly devout, if they attempted to go a step farther than themselves. In one word, they never effectually felt the power of the world to come. They thought they might be christians without so much inward feeling, and therefore, notwithstanding their high pretensions, had only a name to live.