drawn and gone, as he is from this apostate world yet un- | first comes among a people, and when it hath long conreconciled: and so are all said to be lost in wickedness, tinued among them. perdite nequam, as the common phrase is. (1.) When it first comes among them, here are the proper apt means set on foot for the saving that which was lost: the Redeemer approacheth them, makes his first trial upon them: Have you a mind to be saved, have you a mind to accept of a Saviour, of a Redeemer, to put yourselves under his shelter, and under his government, which you must do at the same time? Here are hopeful appearances in these men's cases. It is true the Redeemer comes to them as a company of lost creatures; but he comes on purpose to propose to them the certain means and methods of their being saved. And you that now have a mind to fall in with the Redeemer, you may have him; you must then take him to be yours, and give up yourselves to be his: and if this agreement on your part be cordial and vital, and you are in good earnest in it, you are safe in the midst of danger; yea, though you live in surrounding deaths that do ingulf and are ready to swallow up, and are sure to swallow up all that do not so. But consider here, 2dly, All were lost in wrath too, or under wrath; "The wrath of God being revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men," Rom. i. 17. who hold the truth in unrighteousness, as men universally do. And so, in this double respect, men being generally said to be lost; lost in sin, and lost under Divine wrath; the phrase of their being lost is so applicable to them as the like phrase would be to any man in this case, supposing these two things to concur in the particular case of any man; 1st, That he is a person dreadfully diseased, that some mortal disease is upon him that is likely to be the end of him very soon; and 2nd, That he is an offending criminal besides, that he hath fallen under the sentence of the law that condemns him to die. When these things concur in any particular person's case, that is, he is a most dangerously diseased person, hath a mortal disease upon him, and that he is under a sentence and doom to die at the same time; who would not say the man were lost? It is a great question whether his disease or the halter will (2.) That a people among whom the Gospel hath long despatch him soonest. But he is lost the one way or the continued, and it may be with happy success as to many, other: so it is with the apostate world; they are lost in many have been gathered in; but there are also such as sin; this is their disease which carries death in it. "To yet stand out: they have heard the words of grace soundbe carnally minded is death;" these men carry their owning in their ears often, which have sounded to them like death about them wherever they go: and then they are a tale that is told. All that hath been said to them of the under a doom besides; that is, all the impenitent unbe- Son of God's having come down into this world to die a lieving world lie under a doom, under a sentence. "There reconciling sacrifice for lost sinners, that he might bring is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus, who about union and peace and friendship between the offendwalk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit," Rom. viii. 1. ed Majesty of heaven and them, hath made no more imWhat doth this imply, but that there is condemnation to pression on them than so many breaths of air would do all the rest, only those are excepted from condemnation upon a rock. Sure the case is far worse with these men who are in Christ, walking not after the flesh, but after than the common case of sinners, as such, can be supposthe Spirit? all the rest then are condemned men, dead ed to be. There may be even of these yet some whose men, all lost? This is one notion wherein those not ac- case is not altogether desperate; we do not know what tually destroyed, or on whom the infernal pit hath not wonders the power of grace may yet work, but there may already shut its mouth, may yet be said to be lost, as being be among these some also that are lost irrecoverably, upon liable to be lost, and as in a visible manifest tendency to whom an irrevocable doom is past; so as that repentance destruction, that being continually impendent and ap- is hid on both sides, both from God's eye and theirs; they proaching. But then, will never repent, and he will never repent: they have a heart that can never repent, and God hath passed his doom that he will never repent. And now, as touching this case, that such a case there is, plain scriptures put us out of all doubt; some that are never to be forgiven in this world, nor in the world to come. I need not tell you for what crime. "All sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven to men, excepting that one, the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, which shall never be forgiven in this world, nor in the world to come." Matt. xii. 31. But I say as to their case, who may be thus said to be irrecoverably lost, while they are yet on this side hell, whether it may be known to others, or even to themselves that they are so lost, I shall say nothing now; I have spoken my mind to that very publicly another way in that book called "The Redeemer's Tears;" and may say somewhat more to it in the use, before I pass from this subject. But that there are some (I say) so irrecoverably lost, while they as yet are under the Gospel, is out of all doubt; whether they can know it or others know it, which is less to be supposed, I shall say no more now. But concerning them, of whom this is not to be said of them, that they are irrecoverably lost, though their case be much worse than the common case: yet there may be degrees in it of greater and less probability of their yet being wrought upon to their recovery and salvation. And that we shall come to and consider by and by, when we speak of the connexion between these two, the Gospel's being hid, and their being lost. Besides this common case wherein men may be thus said to be lost, there is somewhat special in the case of some that renders their case far worse than the common case; so as that if all may (in the fore-mentioned respects, till redeeming mercy have taken place in reference to them) be said to be lost, they much more, as having somewhat in their case much more dismal, much more frightful, than is or can be in the common case of unreconciled sinners merely as such. You would think the case to be very dismal of Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed by vindictive flames that caught hold of them from heaven; hell rained down upon them (as it were) out of heaven, fire and brimstone and a horrible tempest. Yet our Lord tells us of some whose case was much more dismal than that of Sodom and Gomorrah; some that were under his own preaching, under his own ministry, from day to day he was preaching grace and life among them in that Gospel which was designed the savour of life unto souls. Many that heard it were surprised and admired, "wondering at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth," Luke iv. And yet even among these, there were some whose case was worse by far, and more dreadful, than that of Sodom and Gomorrah; and it is easy to apprehend in general wherein. I shall not descend to particulars now, but reserve that to a further place afterwards in our discourse. It is very evident that among those that are lost in the sense and intendment that hath been mentioned; that is, as being liable to perish, and whose destruction is approaching and impending; among these some are yet, though lost, recoverably lost, others are irrecoverably, of the common case of the apostate world as such; though it be said of them they are all lost, yet they are recoverably lost; that is, if you consider no more than the common case as such; for there are proper apt means appointed for recovery and salvation which may probably have their effect upon them, their blessed effect, to recover and save them. And though there be degrees, very different degrees of danger, some may be more in danger, some are less so; yet the case admits of very vast difference when the Gospel But as to the import and meaning of the phrase here, it is plain it doth chiefly refer to the latter sort of men, that is, that are lost in a worse sense than the common case doth amount to. It is not to be supposed that men's being lost in the common sense, can be the thing here intended in this Scripture, "If our Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:" why, all are lost! it must therefore be meant in a peculiar sense. It is evident then he doth not speak here of men's being lost in that sense wherein all are fost by nature; but he speaks of them that live under the Gospel and are not yet recovered and saved by it, whether these may be said to be recoverably or irrecoverably lost, yea or no; whether it be the one or the other of them, the thing is sad; and because the determination is so very distinct, how to bring a determining line between those that are, under the Gospel, lost irrecoverably, and them that are lost recoverably; and since we cannot tell among all, those who belong to the one rank, and who belong to the other rank, and it may be no one person can tell concerning himself, that he doth most certainly belong to that more horrid view of such as are lost irrecoverably; therefore we shall only take the matter indefinitely concerning those that are lost, in a worse sense than men in general can be said to be. And so we pass on in the next place, 3. To show the connexion between these two, the Gospel being hid and such men being lost; for I told you in the doctrine that the Gospel being hid unto such, is a sad token of their being lost, that I may state this connexion to you; you may in the general take this for a ground, that those are to be reckoned the significant tokens that do belong to the thing they betoken, either as causes or effects of it; or whatsoever things are connected with one another as cause and effect, the one of these doth significantly betoken the other. Now that connexion which there is between these two, the Gospel's being hid, and the soul's being lost, is a connexion of cause and effect. And this connexion may be mutual and interchangeable; that is, something of the Gospel's being hid, may be the cause of the soul's being lost; and again, the soul's being lost may be the cause of the Gospel's being hid. And so they may change places; they may be alternate, as it were, in the matter; they may be mutual causes and effects to one another. We shall consider, 1. The connexion between these two the former way, that is, the Gospel's being hid being the cause why they are lost. And if it be hid it must needs endanger their being lost by a casual contribution that it hath thereunto, whether we can say they are recoverably lost or irrecoverably; the Gospel's being hid to them is a cause of it, a manifest cause of it; if they are at last lost, into this it most manifestly results, the Gospel was hid from them. If it be always hid they are surely lost; if it be so hid that at length the veil be done away, it will appear, that though they were lost they were not remedilessly lost, but upon a two-fold account the Gospel's being hid must be the cause of the soul's being lost. 1st, As the Gospel's being hid doth include in it the want of somewhat that's necessary to salvation; and, 2ndly, As the Gospel's being hid doth include somewhat in it that promotes their destruction. These two ways the Gospel's being hid is the cause of their soul's being lost. 1. As it carries in it the want of somewhat that was necessary to salvation is the Gospel hid to them, then they must want that without which they cannot be saved so long as the Gospel is hid to them. The knowledge and belief of Gospel truths, the acceptance of Gospel offers, and subjection to Gospel commands, are things without which they cannot be saved. But while the Gospel is hid to them, these things must be wanting: they must want the saving knowledge of Gospel truths; they must want true acceptance of Gospel grace and offers; they must want entire and sincere obedience to Gospel commands; and without these they will be lost: these they can never attain to while the Gospel remains hid; while it is a hidden Gospel all things contained in it may be represented to them, but they are all so many parables, they understand nothing of the meaning of them; all that is said to them is only as a story told to a man asleep, or between sleeping and waking, and whereof there is no more perfect sense begot in their minds than there is of any thing that you mutter to the ear of a man asleep. They cannot believe what they do not understand, and they cannot accept those offers that depend upon truths which they do not believe; and they can never yield obedience to those commands which stand in conjunction with such offers, and their obedience and subjection thereunto must be in equal connexion with their acceptance of those offers. I cannot take Christ to be my Saviour, but I must take him to be my Lord at the same time; and he that takes him to be his Lord, doth it without despair; but with hope that he shall be entertained by him, and treated by him as a Saviour. But nothing of this can be where the Gospel is hid, and while it remains still a hidden Gospel. So all this, while these souls do yet continue lost souls, even for this very cause, for this as the cause, that the Gospel being a hidden Gospel doth imply the want of things necessary to salvation. But also, 2. The Gospel's being a hidden gospel doth imply also that which manifestly tends to promote their destruction. And under that head two things do come to be considered, indisposition on their part, and provocation on God's part; and both these growing so much the more, by how much the longer they continue void of impression under the Gospel. (1.) An indisposition on their part to all the duty they are to do, and to all the advantages they are to use and enjoy in order to their salvation; they grow more and more indisposed the longer they live under the Gospel as a hidden Gospel. It is necessary, in order to their salvation, that they should exercise "repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." But they grow more and more indisposed to these, by how much the longer they continue under the Gospel as a hidden Gospel to them; and that in several respects. 1. The great things contained in the Gospel that should influence them hereunto, they grow from time to time less and less considerable to them: what should have influence to the turning of a soul through Christ to bring him to exercise "repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ," grows from time to time less considerable. These mighty, weighty motives are contained in the Gospel. Sinner, if thou dost not turn thou diest! If thou dost not fall into a closure with the Son of God as thy Redeemer, Saviour, and Lord, thou art a ruined creature to all eternity. Lo, here is a glorious heaven before thee, that will be the reward of thy Gospel obedience. Here is a place and state of torment, a fiery gulf, a flaming hell before thee, and in view too, that must determine thy place, and the state of thy eternal torment and punishment, if thou turn not, if thou do not obey the Gospel, if thou becomest not a serious, penitent and sincere believer, a faithful dutiful subject to God in Christ. Here are the great considerations which the Gospel presents men with, to influence their turning, their renovation and conversion to God through Christ. Now the longer men continue under the Gospel, while it yet continues a hidden Gospel to them, the less do these considerations signify with them from day to day; because the force of them hath been spent upon them (as it were) heretofore, and now they signify little, still less and less. Such considerations as these, though they are the weightiest and most important that can be imagined, yet they have been blown upon; and, saith the obdurate sinner, I have learned long ago to make light of these things; and, what? do you tell me of these things now? These are the greatest things that can be told them, or mentioned to them. But these things they have learned long ago to make very little of, so as they can say, in case you talk of heaven to me now, pray what doth it signify more now than it did ten or twenty years ago? Is heaven grown a better thing than it was seven or ten years ago? and I made light of it then. And is hell grown a more terrible thing now than it was seven or ten years ago? and I made light of it then; and, pray, why cannot I as well do so now? These considerations, which should have the mightiest power upon the spirits of men, may still signify less and less, when they continue long under the Gospel, while it remains still a hidden Gospel to them; for these are blown upon, and men have taught themselves to make light of them, and to have them signify little or nothing to them:-if you cannot speak to me of somewhat greater than heaven and hell, eternal blessedness and eternal misery, you move not me, for these things I have heard and made light of long ago. And, 2. The longer the Gospel is hid, the minds of men grow the blinder; as if there be no ability to face the sun without prejudice, the longer you face it the more your prejudice will be. There is a way of beholding that glorious light which shines in the Gospel without prejudice, and with the greatest advantage, its beams being refracted as they are allayed by grace; and so it is not an amazing astonishing glory, but a cheering, reviving, heart-exhilarating glory, that shines through the glass of the Gospel dispensation. But if the Gospel be so hid from men that it cannot be thus looked upon, then their minds grow blinder and blinder. The sun hath put out their eyes, as the God of this world is said to do in the very next verse. It is a very dreadful thing to be struck blind with Gospel light; but that is the case with many,-Gospel light strikes them blind, and their minds grow less and less receptive, the longer they remain under this Gospel without effect, without receiving the proper impressions of it. The proper impression of it would contemper the eye to the object, the visible power to that glory that clothes the object; but while nothing of this is done, the longer the light of the Gospel shines, the less perspicuity there is in the eye of their minds, it is less perceptive, less capable of taking it in. And, 3. Conscience is grown weaker; and so they are more indisposed to all the duties, and the use of the advantages that are requisite to their salvation. Conscience, it grows weaker, and is more debilitated for the doing its proper office. The context shows us plainly how the state of this case must be understood; that is, that in the ministration of this Gospel, they, whose work it is, do apply themselves to the very consciences of men in the sight of God; and that truth which they preach carries in it (as you have heard) a self-recommending evidence to the consciences of men. Hereupon there is a close grappling between such truth and conscience; for they do apply themselves in the sight of God, in preaching such truths to the consciences of men, that they do, and that they must do; truth then is insinuating, and gets within; as it must be supposed to do when it is held in unrighteousness. "The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, (Rom. i. 18.) who hold the truth in unrighteousness." They that hold the truth in unrighteousness do hold it; it is got within them. Then, I say, there is a close and immediate grapple and tug between truth let in, truth intermitted, and conscience; but they have got the victory. Truth, so far as conscience receives it in, is engaged against corrupt inclinations, against vicious appetites, against the carnal heart that is averse and disaffected to God. Here lies the grapple between truth in the conscience, and the power of corrupt inclination in the heart. Well, vicious inclination hath got the victory; every such victory makes the next easier; every former victory makes way for a following one, with so much the greater facility; and conscience having been baffled once by the power of corrupt and carnal inclination, can the more easily be baffled again. As you know, if there be two combatants engaged with one another in a very close tug and grapple, he that is conquered and receives the foil hath spent a great deal of his strength, and is grown weaker, and so is the more easily thrown again if there succeed another grapple. So it is in this case, when men have once brought conscience to yield, when they have succeeded so far in the design of mortifying conscience, further conquest is the more easy; for (as it hath been heretofore told you upon some occasion) when these two are engaged against one another, carnal inclination in the heart, and light in the mind, or conscience, they being opposite one to another, and mutually engaged one against another, the one must die; either conscience must be mortified, or corrupt inclination must be mortified. And whereas, the design, intendment, and tendency of Gospel truth is to enforce a mortification of corrupt inclination, but the Gospel is hid and doth not prevail in order thereunto, then the other part is doomed to death. There can be no consent, no yielding to it, that corrupt inclination should die: then that of course must be yielded to, let conscience die; if there must be a mortification, let it be upon conscience, and not upon appetite, not upon corrupt inclination, let that live, and let conscience die. And so much now is done towards the killing and mortifying of it; and so it grows weaker and weaker still, by how much the more the resistance to a Gospel yet hid hath been continued and kept on foot. And so the indisposition grows more and more, the longer the Gospel is hid; and so there is so much the more likelihood to be a being finally lost. That such will be finally lost, are in the way and tending to it apace, in the concurrence of such things as do now * Preached April 12th, 1691. meet in their case; as we would say of a vessel in a storm, and as was said of that wherein the apostle Paul was, all hope that they should be saved was taken away, Acts xxvii. 20. No hope left of being saved. You may suppose such a concurrence in such a case, that there shall appear very little hope; here are so violent storms upon the soul that hath abandoned and surrendered itself, against conscience, to the government of lust and corrupt inclination. And here is the Spirit of God gone; as we shall have occasion to show more hereafter. And here is the devil let loose upon a man. "In whom the god of this world hath blinded their eyes." Any one that looks upon this endangered vessel would say the ship were lost, it doth not obey the helm; for so the man doth not whose conscience hath no power over him, doth not govern him; she doth not answer the helm; she falls from the helm; she is lost, would we say of such a vessel. The storm is violent upon it; corrupt inclination grows stronger; God is gone, and the devil hath seized it, and taken possession, and is putting out the eyes of the poor creature as fast as he can. The man is visibly lost. We do not know what miracles God may work; we know not what he may do, but in all appearances the man is lost. There are other things to be said concerning the growing indisposition upon such a soul, as to the things that are necessary to its being saved; and many things that will show the provocation grows on God's part while this indisposition is growing on man's part. And, take all together, and it seems a very hopeless case, if it be not altogether desperate. Truly there is very little hope left in such a case, that they should be saved at length to whom the Gospel doth thus remain hid. SERMON X.* 2 Cor. iv. 3. But if our Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. I HAVE already opened unto you what is meant by the Gospel being hid, and what is meant by their being lost to whom it is so; and shown you in what peculiar sense both those must be taken, different from what is the common case of the apostate unconverted world; that both here must be understood to superadd somewhat to that common case, wherein men as sinners in the state of apostacy, in the most general sense have the Gospel hid to them, and are themselves in a lost state. We have from hence gone on to show you the connexion between these two, the Gospel's being hid and their being lost; and you have heard the one of these may be spoken of as betokening the other, and so they are manifestly pat together here; and that these tokens are most significant when the token and the thing betokened have the relation of cause and effect one to another; that these two may be understood to have that mutual and reciprocal relation to one another. That is, that the Gospel being hid may be the cause that such are lost to whom it is so hid, and their being lost the effect; and back again, that their being lost may be the cause, and the Gospel's being hid the effect; and accordingly, with some difference may this context be understood, according to that two-fold sense, or reference, that one of these may have to the other. Take the former reference or habitude of these to the other, and the sense will run thus; that is, that since the great things of the Gospel, about which we apply ourselves to the very consciences of men in the sight of God, are so very plain, and do carry so clear and convictive light with them, as they do, if yet the Gospel shall remain hid to such as are thus dealt with from time to time, their minds will grow, in all likelihood, more and more indisposed to comport with the design of it; God will grow more and more displeased, his displeasure will rise higher and higher; their guilt will grow greater and greater, and they will be more visibly ir. danger of being finally lost; or, according to the latter re-afford us, come to understand things more to advantage. ference, the sense will be thus, that the great things of the Gospel are of such evidence, and of such manifest importance, that the consciences of men being applied to, and dealt with from time to time about them, it is hardly conceivable such things can be hid to such persons unless they be lost. The matter is otherwise unaccountable, why such things should not take hold of men; surely they are lost that such things will not fasten upon them. You know, according to the former reference, as being hid is the cause, being lost is the effect; this we have spoken already, and showed you that the Gospel being hid must be the cause of their being lost to whom it is so; both as its being hid doth exclude what is necessary to their salvation, and as it doth include what contributes to their destruction. And now we go on to the other reference that the one of these hath to the other; that is, as being lost may be the cause, and the Gospel's being hid may be the effect: and it is exceeding agreeable to the design of this context to understand the matter so. We do, saith he, in this ministry of our's commend ourselves to the consciences of men in the sight of God. This is plain; and this is our constant course. And what? is it a supposable thing, that our Gospel should be hid to them while we do so? How can it be? It can be upon no other account but that they are lost; it must needs argue and suppose them a lost sort of men, upon whom a Gospel, so applying itself to conscience, doth not fasten, takes no hold." But then, (will you say,) How must being lost be understood? I have told you already how it must be understood in this place; you are sure it cannot be that they are eventually lost, or already in hell; it cannot be understood so; and it cannot be understood that they are lost in that sense that is common to the apostate world, in respect whereof the Son of man is said to have come to seek and "save that which was lost." But there are two things besides that it may and must mean in this case. 1. That they are sinfully lost; they are lost in sin; they are lost in carnality, and that in a deeper degree than is common to the rest of the world. There is a greater and more confirmed dominion of sin in them, in their several faculties and powers, than in the generality of the unconverted world, as such; greater, deeper, blacker darkness upon their minds; the god of this world (as it follows in the next verse) hath put out their eyes, hath blinded them, so as they have less light, less eye-sight than before they had, (so it must be understood,) or than men commonly have, otherwise there were no peculiar reason in the case why this should be said of them. But we find it said. If it were to be understood that the god of this world hath no otherwise blinded them than he hath blinded the unconverted world, why should it be said that they are lost more than all others upon that account? That would argue and be a reason that all are lost alike, if all were blind alike. But he hath "blinded the minds of them that believe not ;" he hath been dealing with them all the while they have been otherwise dealt with by another hand, to be brought to faith; he hath been endeavouring to confirm them in their unbelief, and hath made their minds more blind than ever they were; and they are at a remoter distance from believing than ever, as that fascination by which he hath possessed their minds, hath more and more taken hold of them. And it must be understood that they are lost more in heart-sins; disaffection to the holy designs of the Gospel, enmity against God and against Christ hath prevailed to a greater height in them, and so they are lost, lost in sin. And, 2. They must be understood hereupon to be lost under deeper guilt and a heavier doom, that is from God, penally upon them; so that he hath been even provoked to swear against them, in his wrath, that they should not enter into his rest;" as in that Heb. iii. 11. quoted from the 95th Psalm, that was sworn against them that believed not; as it was here in this context said, the minds were blinded of them that believed not. And some things I shall offer to you that may tend partly to justify, and partly to mollify, this severity. It is indeed very severe, that men under the Gospel should arrive to that state, to that pitch, to be so far lost, as that to suppose them now to continue never so long under it, they shall never be the better for it. Let the plainest things that can be thought or spoken be said to them, they shall be always hid to them, because they are lost. A fearful thing! But do but consider a little what I shall offer to you, which may have that double tendency, that I spoke of, partly to justify this severity, and partly to mollify it. As, 1. Consider this, that those that are thus lost, hereupon is likely to be still a hidden Gospel to them, let them hear it never so long, they are like to be never the better for it. I say, consider, that if any are thus lost, they were not always so lost. This is a thing that is come upon them, and which they have drawn upon themselves. It must be understood with reference to a former day which they have had, wherein the matter was otherwise, wherein they lay not under that dreadful stupefaction, and that heavy doom which now will come upon them. They had their day; those had so in that 95th Psalm, who are given us for a sort of paradigm, they against whom God sware in his wrath that they should not enter into his rest." He bare their manners in the wilderness forty years, as the expression is, in the 7th of Acts, of dying Stephen. There is time supposed to have been afforded to such under the Gospel, to whom the matter is come to this. They had their day; those that live within the compass of that light which revelation adds to the common light of natural reason, they have their more special day, and have always had so. There is a time, concerning which it is said to sinners, "To-day, if ye will hear my voice, harden not your hearts." He limits a certain day, a certain now; and this is a more critical now. There is a more peculiar crisis of time with such as live under the Gospel, than is with other men that have not that peculiar light which is afforded to the church of God in the world. God did, in a sort, connive at the nations of the earth that went every one in their own way, as it is said in the 17th of Acts, did overlook them, did not look upon them with so curious, so narrow, so inquisitive an eye; (as it were, speaking of God after the manner of men ;) "but now (saith the apostle) he commandeth all men every where to repent." As that Roman consul, who, treating with Antiochus, (who made war upon some allies of the Roman state,) demanded of him in the name of the senate and commonwealth of Rome to withdraw his forces from molesting such a place. Saith the king, What time do you allow me to think of this, or consider it? He immediately draws, with a rod he had in his hand, a circle about the king, and tells him,-Now, before you stir out of this circle, declare whether you will be a friend to the senate and people of Rome, or an enemy:so doth God circumscribe men, and set them limits. Now, out of hand, it may be in reference to some of us here in this assembly; the determination may be now, before you stir out of this place, Declare whether you will be reconciled, or persist in your enmity and unreconciled state. How many passages of scripture do speak to this sense! "Seek the Lord while he may be found, and call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and unto our God, for he will abundantly pardon," Isa. iv. 5, 6. Now or never; now you have time for it; it may be, shortly you will have none, nor any ever after. It is a great thing which you find in that somewhat parallel text, (Luke xix. 42.) our Saviour beholds Jerusalem with weeping eyes, in his approach to it, being then upon the opposite hill, the mount of Olives, between which and that whereon Jerusalem stood there was a valley, in which ran the brook Kidron; when he was on the opposite hill, and on his descent of that, he having a convenient view of Jerusalem, as it lay before him, he weeps over it in such words as these, (mingled with tears,) "Oh! that thou hadst known, at least in this thy day, the things that belong to thy peace! But now they are hid from thine eyes." Tears intermingle with and at length interrupt the words, and cause that apotheosis, so as that the sentence was not filled up. "If thou hadst known, in this thy day, the things that belong to thy peace." It is filled up with a more speaking silence, by a silence more emphatical than words could be,-"If thou hadst known;" we are only left to conceive what had been if they had known the things that belong to their peace in that their day; "but now they are hid from thine eyes!" Oh, how terribly emphatical is that now!-Now they are hid, a little while ago they were not hid; now they are. The curtain is drawn that creates (for ought we know) an eternal night; that curtain being drawn between the wretched soul and that glorious light that did shine upon it; "Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation," 2 Cor. vi. 1, 2. There is such a now, and there is another now; wherein this now is over, as in that 2 Cor. vi. 2. referred to that of the prophet Isaiah, xlix. 8.; supposing then, any to be thus lost, they were not always so lost; the case was in this respect sometimes otherwise with them. And then, 2. Supposing them thus lost, and the Gospel thereupon thus hid, permanently hid, this must refer to the former provocation; with many of them God was not well pleased, they who had that day in the wilderness, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness. If our congregations be full of carcasses, if there be so many walking carcasses that fill our streets from day to day, God is not well pleased; if the Gospel be a lifeless Gospel, God is not well pleased, he is provoked. But, further, 3. The causes of that provocation are high and great, so that we have no reason to think it strange if the effects that ensue have very dreadful severity in them. Let me but instance to you, in some concurrences that do make the cause of such displeasure and provocation. As, (1.) That when men let themselves thus be lost under the Gospel by their neglect of it, and their non-attendance to it; they are the greatest things imaginable which they did neglect, to which they refused their attendance, which they would not regard. When the Gospel did in the first age of it begin to shed its light upon the world, (though in that more wonderful manner the things were not more wonderful than now,) you hear in that, (Acts ii. 11.) that when that gift of tongues was so amazingly, by miracle, first conferred, all the people in that vast confluence at Jerusalem, at that time, from so many several countries, each one heard in his own tongue.-What did he hear?"The wonderful things of God." The Gospel is not another Gospel from what it was then; it acquaints us with most wonderful things still. This was the aggravation upon Israel of old, upon Ephraim; "I have written unto them the great things of my law, and they have accounted them a strange thing," counted them strange to them, Hos. viii. 12. That might have been more commodiously expressed according to the significancy of the word there used, were counted to them an alien thing," a foreign thing; a thing that concerned them not, which they had nothing to do with, which they looked upon as we used to look upon strangers, men that we never saw or knew before; we look upon them wistly: so they looked upon the wonderful things of the law of God, and so those do here upon the wonderful things of the Gospel; whereas they are great and wonderful, they should command a man's ears, and engage the attention of his mind to consider and take notice of them; they look upon them as strange things, as alien and foreign to them, and which they had nothing to do with. This is very provoking, when such things are brought to our notice, as "angels stoop down to look into." The descent of the glorious Son of God into the world, how did it amaze the glorious angels above! What is the meaning of this? say they. They look down after him. What is the intention of this strange descent? What is it for that the heir of heaven should go down into that lost, forlorn, wretched world? He that was the brightness of his Father's glory, and the express image of his person, is going down to visit that dark region of death. What means he there? What would he do there? Did they think he went down to die? Did they think he went down to be a man? Did they think he went down to offer himself a sacrifice upon a tree for the redemption and salvation of such? When so wonderful things as these are made known; and about these things (saith the apos tle) we apply ourselves to the consciences of men in the sight of God; we appeal to their consciences about the rights of the Redeemer, and what duty, and what homage, must be owed to him from the redeemed. And, if our Gospel be hid you are lost; if you will not regard such a Gospel, though having in it so great things, you must be lost. And then, (2.) These great things are set in the Gospel dispensation before men in the clearest light. They are not represented darkly and unintelligibly, and in parables; but the most important things, and those about which they are most of all dealt with, are the plainest things, that every one that runs may read. What? is there so much of mystery in " repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ," and in loving the Lord our God with all our hearts, and souls, and might, and our neighbour as ourselves? Is there so much of mystery in these, that men will not regard the greatest things, and clothed with the clearest light? What else doth that mean-We recommend ourselves to the consciences of men in the sight of God? They are such things, as every conscience of man may be expected to admit conviction about out of hand, without more ado; then, sure, if the Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. It comes from hence that they are a lost sort of men, otherwise such things could not be hid from them. And, (3.) They are things that men are dealt with about in the highest name; for, when we come to you, to deal with you about these things, we do not come upon our own errand; we do not come to you in our own name; but the ministers of this Gospel are ministers of Christ, and they come to you in the name of Christ; and he hath expressly said; "He that heareth you, heareth me; and he that heareth me, heareth him that sent me." This same Gospel dispensation is the ministry of the Son of God, as the case is plainly stated before us in that 1st of Hebrews, beginning, "God, that spake many other ways in former times, hath now spoken to us by his Son;" and continues speaking to us by his Son ; and (as he represents the case in the next chapter) "How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation, which began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by them that heard him; God bearing them witness?" And afterwards, in the 12th chap. and 25th verse, "See that ye refuse not him that speaketh; for if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven." This is said, when we are told that our Lord was at the right hand of God on the throne of the Majesty on high; as in the 3rd verse of that chapter, having given an account of our being under this ministry of the Son of God; though we are told, that "he, having purged our sins by himself, he sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;" yet still we are under his dispensation, and still he is the great Speaker to us; so that now, when any suffer themselves to be thus lost under the Gospel, in their own sinful and chosen deceiving blindness and enmity against it, no wonder if it be determined that it shall be a hidden Gospel to them, and they lie long enough under the dispensation of it, and be never the better; for they have been affronting the Majesty of the son of God under the dispensation all this time. He that did seek and command greater attention, and greater reverence, and greater subjection of spirit, and upon higher right and title than when there was that terrible appearance upon mount Sinai, that shook the earth, and that seemed as if it would have put the creation into a paroxysm; there hath been a greater obligation to the deepest reverence and veneration upon them. And how just is the provocation when this Gospel is neglected, and men lose themselves under it, for him to say and determine this,-Well now, as to you it shall always be a hidden Gospel! And again, (4.) There is this further in the case, that these great things in that great name, in that most excellent name, have been hinted, not once but often; and often inculcated and urged over and over again in the authority of the same name. What a mighty weight doth this add to the same load of guilt! and how much matter doth it supply to feed the indignation, to heighten the provocation, that such were applied to from time to time, in a continued |