Looking unto Jesus a view of the everlasting gospel, or, the souls eying of Jesus as carrying on the great work of mans salvation from first to last / by Isaac Ambrose ...

SECT. IX. Of conforming to Jesus in that respect.

9. LET us conform to Jesus, as coming again to judge the World. Looking to Jesus contains this; when the Apostle would perswade Christians to patience under the cross, he lays down first the cloud of witnesses, all the Martyrs of the Church of Christ; and secondly Jesus Christ himself, as of more vertue and power than all the rest; the Martyrs suffered much, but Christ endured more than they all; and therefore saith the Apostle, look unto Jesus; surely he is the best exemplar, the chief pattern to whom in all his transactions, we may in some way or other conform.

But how should we conform to Christ in this respect? I Answer—

1. Christ will in his time prepare for judgment; Oh let us at all times prepare for his judging of us; doth it not concern us to prepare for him, as well as it concerns him to prepare for us? if Christ come, and find us careless, negligent, unprepared, what will become of us? the very thought of Christ's sudden coming to judgment might well put us into a waiting, watching posture, that we might be still in readiness; it cannot be long, and alas, what is a little time when it is gone; how quickly shall we be in ano∣ther World, and our souls receive their particular judgments; and so wait till our bodies be raised, and judged to the same condition, or salvation? it is not an hundred years in all likelyhood, till every soul of us shall be in heaven or hell; it may be with∣in a year, or two, or ten, or thereabouts, the greatest part of this congregation will

be in Heaven or Hell; and I beseech you what is a year, or two, or ten? what is an hundred, or a thousand years to the dayes of eternity? how speedily is this gone? and how endless is that time, or eternity that is come? is it not high time then to prepare our lamps, to trim our souls, to watch, and fast, and pray, and meditate, and to re∣member that for all our deeds, good or evill, God will bring us to Judgment? herein is our Conformity to Christ's coming; before he comes he prepares for us, oh let us against his coming prepare for him.

2. Christ at his coming will summon all his Saints to arise, to ascend, and to come to him in the clouds; O let us summon our souls to arise, to ascend, and to go to Christ in the Heavens. What Christ will do really at that day, let us do spiritually on this day. It was the prodigal's saying, I will arise, and go to my Father, and say unto him. We are naturally sluggish, we lye in a bed of sin, and security; and we are loath to arise, to ascend, and to go to God. Oh then let us call upon our own souls! Awake, awake Deborah! why art thou so heavy O my soul? let us stir up our spirits, consciences, wills, affections every day; let us wind them up, as a man doth his Watch, that it may be in a continual motion. Alas! alas! we had need to be continually stirring up the gifts and graces that are in us; it is the Lords pleasure that we should daily come to him, he would have us on the wing of Prayer, and on the wing of Meditation, and on the wing of Faith; he would have us to be still arising, ascending and mounting up in di∣vine contemplation to his Majesty. And is it not our duty, and the Saints disposition to be thus? Whethersoever the dead carcass is, thither will the Eagles resort: if Christ be in Heaven, where should we be but in Heaven with him? For where your Treasure is, there will your hearts be also. Oh that every morning, and every evening, at least, our hearts would arise, ascend, and go to Christ in the Heavens.

3. Christ will at last judge all our souls, and judge all the wicked to eternal flames; oh let us judge our selves, that we may not be judged of the Lord in that sad Judgment. If we would judge our selves (saith the Apostle) we should not be judged. Good reason we have to conform to Christ in this point, or otherwise how should we escape the judgment of Christ at the last day? but in what manner should we judge our selves? I answer— 1. We must search out our sins. 2. We must confess them before the Lord. 3. We must condemn our selves, or pass a sentence against our own souls. 4. We must plead pardon, and cry mightily to God in Christ for the remission of all those sins whereof we have judged our selves, and condemned our selves.

1. We must search out our sins. Winnow your selves O people, not worthy to be beloved. There should be a strict scrutiny to find out all the prophaness of our hearts and lives, all our sins against light, and love, and checks, and vows; winnow your selves. If you will not, I pronounce to you from the eternal God, that ere long the Lord will come in the Clouds, and then will he open the black Book wherein all your sins are writ∣ten; he will search Jerusalem with candles, he will come with a Sword in his hand to search out all secure sinners every where, and then will all your sins be discovered to all the World. O that we would prevent this by our search and scrutining a forehand.

2. We must confess our sins before the Lord; we must spread them before the Lord as Hezekiah did his letter; onely in our confessions observe these rules; As—

1. Our confession must be full of sorrow, I will declare my iniquity (saith David) I will be sorry for my sin. His confessions were dolorous confessions; he felt sin, and it wrought upon him as an heavy burthen, They were two heavy for me. There's nothing in the World can make an heart more heavy, than when it feels the weight and hea∣viness of sin.

2. Our confession must be a full confession, we must pour it out. Thus David stiles one of his Psalms, A prayer of the afflicted when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his complaint before the Lord. We must pour out our complaints, as a man poureth wa∣ter out of a Vessel. Arise, cry out in the night, in the beginning of the watches, pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord. Water runs all out of a Vessel, when you turn the mouth downward, never a spoon-ful will then stay behind; so should we pour out our hearts before God, (and if it were possible) leave not a sin unconfessed, at least for the kinds, if not for the particular sins.

3. Our confession must be with full aggravation; we should aggravate our sins by all the circumstances, that may shew them odious. Thus Peter when he had de∣nyed Christ, it is said that he thought thereon, and he wept. He thought thereon, or he

cast in his thoughts one thing upon another; q. d. Jesus Christ was my Master and yet I denyed him, he told me of this before-hand, that I might take heed of it, and yet I denyed him; I professed to him that I would never do it, I would never forsake him, and yet I denyed him; yea, this very night, and no longer since, I said it again and again that I would not deny him, and yet I denyed him; yea, I fail'd, Although others deny thee, yet will not I; and yet worse than all others, I denyed him with a witness, for I affirmed desperately that I knew not the man; nay, I sware desperately that I knew not the man; nay more than so, I sware, and I cursed too, If I knew the man, let Gods curse fall upon me; and all this I did within a few strides of my Lord; at that very time when I should have stood for my Lord, in that all the World forsook him; why, these were the circumstances of Peters sin, and meditating on them, He went out and wept bitterly. And thus we should aggravate our sins in our confessions; O my sins were out of mea∣sure sinful. O they were sins against knowledg, and light, against many mercies recei∣ved, against many judgments threatned, against many checks of conscience, against ma∣ny vows and promises; thus oft, and in this place, and at that time, and in that man∣ner, I committed these and these sins; but of all the aggravations, let us be sure to re∣member how we sinned against the goodness, and patience, and love, and mercy of God; surely these circumstances will make our sins out of measure sinful. The Angel that re∣proved the Children of Israel at Bochim, after the repetition of his mercies towards them, and of their sins against him, he questions them in these words, Oh why have ye done this? q. d. The Lord hath done thus and thus mercifully unto you, oh why have ye done thus unthankfully towards him? why was his mercy abused, his goodness slighted, his patience despised? do ye thus requite the Lord O foolish people and un∣wise? in like manner should we confess and aggravate our sins, O my God, thou art my Father; was I ever in want, and thou didst not relieve me? was I ever in weakness, and thou didst not strengthen me? was I ever in straits, and thou didst not deliver me? was I ever in sickness, and thou didst not cure me? was I ever in misery, and thou didst not succor me? hast thou not been a gracious God to me? all my bones can say, who is like un∣to thee; Lord, who is like unto thee? and shall I thus and thus reward the Lord for all his mercies towards me? hear O Heavens, and hearken O Earth; Sun stand thou still, and thou Moon be thou amazed at this! hear Angels, and hear Devils; hear Heaven, and hear Hell, and be you avenged on such a sin as this is! O the sinfulness of my sin in regard of these many circumstances.

3. We must condemn our selves, or pass sentence against our own souls; Lord, the worst place in Hell is too good for me; Lord here is my soul, thou mayst if thou pleasest send Satan for it, and give me a portion among the damned. This self-judging, or self-con∣demning is exemplified to this life in Ezra; for—

1. He fell on his knees, he did not bow down his knees, but like a man astonished he fell on his knees; he had before rent his garment, and mantle, and pluckt off the hair of his head and off his beard, and sate down astonished; and now at the evening sa∣crifice he falls on his knees, and on the ground in great amazement.

2. He spread out his hands unto the Lord; q. d. here is my breast, and here is my heart-blood, I spread my arms, and lay all open, that thou mayst set the naked point of thy sword of justice at my very heart.

3. He is dum, and speechless (as it were) before the Lord; And now our God, what shall we say after all this? for we have forsaken thy commandments; q. d. shall I excuse the matter? alas! it is inexcusable? what shall we say after all this? shall we call for thy patience? we have had it, but how did we abuse it? should we call for mercy? indeed we had it, but our stubborn hearts would never come down: O our God what shall we say? I know not what to say, for we have sinned a∣gainst thee.

4. He layes down his soul, and all the Peoples souls at God's feet, q. d. here we are, thou mayest damn us if thou wilt, Behold we are all here before thee in our tres∣passes, for we cannot stand before thee, because of this. Behold here we are, rebels we are; here are our heads and throats before the naked point of thy vengeance, if now thou shouldst take us from our knees, and throw us into Hell, if we must go from our prayers to damnation, we cannot but say that thou art just and righteous; Oh its mercy, its mercy indeed that we have been spared, its just and righteous with God that we should be damned.

In this more especially lyes self-condemnation; it makes a man to trample upon his own self, it makes a man freely to accept of damnation; They shall accept of the punish∣ment of their iniquity, and then will I remember my covenant with Jacob; they save God (as it were) a labour, judging themselves, that they may not be judged.

4. We must plead pardon, and cry mightily to God in Christ, for the remission of all our sins. This is the way of judging our selves, we see nothing but Hell and dam∣nation in our selves, but then we fling down our selves at God's gate of mercy; we de∣spair not in God, though in our selves; God in Christ is gracious and merciful, for∣giving iniquity, transgression, and sin; and hence we make bold to intreat the Lord for Christ's sake to be merciful to us; surely herein lies the difference betwixt nature and grace; the natural man may see his sins, and confess his sins, and judge himself for his sins; thus Saul did, and thus Judas did, but then they despaired in God, and were dam∣ned indeed; now the gracious man hath a conscience within, that represents to him his damned estate, but withal, it represents to him the free grace of God in Jesus Christ, and so he onely despairs in himself, and not in his God; now thus far good: come Christi∣ans! do we despair in our selves? do we fling off all our own hopes, and our own de∣pendencies, hangings, holdings on duties, purposes, graces, performances? and do we go to God in Christ, and tell him, We hang upon nothing but the mere mercy, the free grace of God in Christ; and therefore Lord pardon, Lord forgive for thy Names sake, promise sake, mercies sake, and for the Lord Jesus sake: O let free grace have his work; Lord glorifie thy Name, and glorifie the riches of thy grace in saving us: Why, this is the best hold in the World, though the World cannot abide it; surely if we thus judge our selves, we should not be judged.

4. Christ at his coming will be glorified in his Saints; not onely in himself, but in his Saints also; whose glory as it comes from him, so it will redound to him: Oh let him now be glorified in us, let us now in some high way conform to the image of his glory, let us look on Christ till we are like Christ, not onely in grace, but in glory; and this glory as it comes from him, so let it redound to him. I will not say, that the Kingdom of Heaven and glory is in this life, I leave this opinion to the dreamers of this time, I mean to the Familists, Quakers, and such like; but this I say, that even in this life the Saints of God enjoy a begun and imperfect conformity to Christ's glory; and this is that I would now press upon us; let us so behold the glory of the Lord in the glass of the Gospel, as that we may be changed into the same image from glory to glory; from a lesser measure to an higher measure of glory. The day is a coming that Christ will be glorified in himself, and he will be glorified in his Saints, O the glories that will then be accumulated and heap∣ed upon Jesus Christ! come now, let us behold this glory of Christ till we are changed in some high measure into the same glory with Christ; Christ's glory rightly viewed is a changing glory: And herein the views of Christ surpass all creature-views, if we behold the Sun, we cannot possibly be changed into another Sun, but if with the eye of knowledge and faith we behold Jesus Christ, we shall be changed into the glorious image of Jesus Christ; if the Sun of righteousness cast forth his golden beams upon us, and we enjoy this light; why then, Who is she that looketh forth as the morning (as Au∣rora, the first birth of the day) fair as the Moon, clear as the Sun.

I know this glorious change is but a growing change by degrees, from glory to glory; and yet who can deny but there is some conformity to Christ's glory, even in this life? do not these very Texts speak the self same thing? These things have I spoken to you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. And ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. And rejoyce with Jerusalem, and be glad with her all ye that love her,—that ye may suck and be satisfied with the brests of her consolations, that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. And the God of all hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing. Surely all joy, and peace, are synechdochically put for all other inchoations of glorification. But how is a Saint in this life filled with all joy? I answer, 1. In regard of the obiect, God and Christ. 2. In regard of the degrees; though not absolutely, yet so far forth, as the measure of ioy is in this life attainable; I might instance in the joy of Mr. Peacock, Mrs Brettergh, and of some Martyrs, who sung in the fires. 3. In regard of duration, rejoyce always, not onely in the calm of peace, but in the storm of violent opposition. A Saint may have his troubles, but these troubles can never totally or finally extinguish his joy, your joy no man taketh from you. He rejoyceth always.

O that something of the glory of Christ might rest upon us! oh that having this glory of Christ in our thoughts, we could now feel a change from glory to glory! Is it so that the Lord Jesus will be glorified in all his Saints? and shall we have in-glorious souls; base and unworthy affections and conversations? or shall we content our selves with a little measure of grace? O be we holy, even as he is holy; let our conversati∣ons be heavenly, let us purifie our selves even as he is pure; let us resemble him in some high measure of grace. And lastly, let us glorifie him in bodies and spirits; all our glory is from him; and therefore let all our glory redound to him; let us now begin that Gospel-tune of the eternal song of free grace, which one day we shall more perfect∣ly chant in glory; Allelujah! and again Allelujah! and Amen Allelujah! salvation, and glory, and power, and praise, and thanksgiving, and obedience, be unto him that sits on the throne, the Lamb blessed for ever and ever, Amen.

Notes

• Heb. 12.2.
• Luk. 15.18.
• Matth. 24.28.
• 1 Cor. 11.31.
• Zeph. 2.1.
• Psal. 38.18.
• Ver. 4.
• Psalm 102. Preface.
• Lam. 2.19.
• Matth. 14 72.
• Judges. 2.2.
• Ezra. 9.5.
• Ver. 5.
• Ver. 10.
• Ver. 15.
• Levit. 26.41, 42.
• 2 Cor. 3.18.
• Cant. 6.10.
• John 15.11. 1 John 1.4. John 16.24. Isa. 66.10, 11.
• Rom. 5.13.
• Phil. 4.4.
• John 16.22.