Work upon the ark. Meditations upon the ark as a type of the church; delivered in a sermon at Boston, and now dedicated unto the service of all, but especially of those whose concerns lye in ships. / By Cotton Mather.

APPLICATION.

Let not Us then introduce any thing into

the Church of God, of which we have not His Allomance and Countenance for its being there. We are most, or all of us, Ʋnder-Builders about the Ark of God; we have some work assigned us, in the Edification of the Church. But let us keep close to the Word of God, in our Building Are there any Materials which we would build the Church by the Admission of? Let them all be of Gods Constitution. Let us not willingly lay the Rotten Timber of either Hereticks or Hy∣pocrites in the sides of our Ark, nor allow Church-priviledges with us to evidently un∣godly men. We are admonished in Heb. 12. 16. Look diligently, lest there be any profane person among you. Even so, we are to Look Diligently, that the Church which we more immediately belong unto, be not filled with an ungodly Company. Some Great Men of God, have professed, That they would sooner Loose their Hands, than with those Hands administer the Sacraments to a visibly ungodly man; and it is a Golden Sentence, which dropt from the Pen of that Learned Scotch∣man; I believe (saith Mr Gilespy) no Con∣scientious Minister, would Baptise a man, whose works and words manifestly declare him to be an Unr••gen••rated, an unconverted man; and how shall we then bring such an one unto the Ta∣ble

of the Lord? No, they will be a sort of Barnacles, growing to the sides of the Ark, with not a little prejudice to its Interest. Again, are there any Exercises which we would Build the Church, by our attendance on? Let all them too be of Gods Institution. Let us not perform any Worship, or Service, about our Ark, but such as God calleth for. Our Lord saith in Mat. 15. 9. In vain do they worship me, teaching the Commandments of men. The Commandments of men, must not be our Guide, in What we do in and for the Church. We should not fetch astroke there, of which God has not said, This do! Luther judciously reckoned This, one of the three things which the Church would be fatally End angered by, Sapientia mundi, quae vult omnia redigere in Ordinem, & impjis me∣d••is Ecclesiae paci consulere; To follow the Dictates of Worldly Wisdom for the main∣taining of it. There are uninstituted Coe∣remonies brought into the House of God; the bold Inventors whereof, resemble them to Pins in the Building; and that of Pins, is a Name great enough truly to be be∣stowed upon them: But I assure you, They are Pins that produce Cracks and Leaks where they come; they are dangerous to the Ark of God.