ness. But in the testimony of the Gospel, written for posterity, only Andrew is named, who sought out his brother Simon, and drew him in, and so propagated the church, and spread the glory of God. They who testify their faith by works, give us the better comfort, and posterity the better example. It will be but Christ's first question at the last day, What hast thou done for me? If we can answer that, he will ask, What hast thou suffered for me? and if we can answer that, he will ask at last, Whom hast thou won to me, what soul hast thou added to my kingdom? Our thoughts, our words, our doings, our sufferings, if they bring but ourselves to heaven, they are not witnesses; our example brings others; and that is the purpose, and the end of all we have said, John Baptist was a witness to us, we are so to you, be you so to one another.

SERMON CXX.

PREACHED AT ST. PAUL'S.

PHILIP. iii. 2.

Beware of the concision.

THIS is one of those places of Scripture, which afford an argument for that, which I find often occasion to say, that there are not so eloquent books in the world, as the Scriptures. For there is not only that non refugit, which Calvin speaketh of in this place, (Non refugit in organis suis Spiritus Sanctus leporem et facetias, the Holy Ghost in his instruments, in those whose tongues or pens he makes use of) doth not forbid, nor decline elegant and cheerful, and delightful expression; but as God gave his children a bread of manna, that tasted to every man like that that he liked best, so hath God given us Scriptures, in which the plain and simple man may hear God speaking to him in his own plain and familiar language, and men of larger capacity, and more curiosity, may hear God in that music that they love best, in a curious, in an harmonious style, unparalleled by any. For, that also Calvin

adds in that place, that there is no secular author, Qui jucundis rocum allusionibus, et figuris magis abundat, which doth more abound with persuasive figures of rhetoric, nor with musical cadences and allusions, and assimilations, and conformity, and correspondency of words to one another, than some of the secretaries of the Holy Ghost, some of the authors of some books of the Bible do. Of this rule, this text is an example. These Philippians, amongst whom St. Paul had planted the Gospel in all sincerity, and impermixt, had admitted [certain new men, that preached traditional, and additional doctrines, the law with the Gospel, Moses with Christ, circumcision with baptism. To these new convertites, these new doctors inculcated often that charm, You are the circumcision, you are they whom God hath sealed to himself by the seal of circumcision; they whom God hath distinguished from all nations, by the mark of circumcision; they in whom God hath imprinted, (and that in so high a way, as by a Sacrament) an internal circumcision, in an external; and will you break this seal of circumcision? will you deface this mark of circumcision? will you depart from this Sacrament of circumcision? you are the circumcision. Now St. Paul meets with these men upon their haunt; and even in the sound of that word which they so often pressed; he says they press upon you circumcision, but beware of concision, of tearing the church of God, of schisms, and separations from the church of God, of aspersions and imputations upon the church of God, either by imaginary superfluities, or imaginary defectiveness, in that church: for, saith the apostle, We are the circumcision, we who worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. If therefore they will set up another circumcision beyond this circumcision, if they will continue a significative, a relative, a preparative figure, after the substance, the body, Christ Jesus is manifested to us, a legal circumcision in the flesh, after the spiritual circumcision in the heart is established by the Gospel, their end is not circumcision, but concision: they pretend reformation, but they intend destruction, a tearing, a rending, a wounding in the body, and frame, and peace of the church, and by all means, and in all cases Videte concisionem, Beware of concision.

First then, we shall from these words consider, the lothness of God to lose us. For, first, he leaves us not without a law, he bids and he forbids, and then he does not surprise us with obsolete laws, he leaves not his laws without proclamations, he refreshes to our memories, and represents to us our duties, with such commonefactions as these in our text, videte, cavete, this and this I have commanded you, videte, see that ye do it, this and this will hinder you, carete, beware ye do it not, beware of concision.

And this, thus derived, and digested into these three branches, first, God's lothness to lose us; and then his way of drawing us to him, by manifestation of his will in a law; and lastly his way of holding us with him, by making that law effectual upon us, by these his frequent commonefactions, videte, cavete, look to it, beware of it, this will be our first part. And then our second will be the thing itself that falls under this inhibition, and caution, which is concision, that is, a tearing, a rending, a shredding in pieces that which should be entire. In which second part, we shall also have, (as we had in the former) three branches; for, we shall consider, first, concisionem corporis, the shredding of the body of Christ into fragments, by unnecessary wrangling in doctrinal points; and then, concisionem vestis, the shredding of the garment of Christ into rags, by unnecessary wrangling in matter of discipline, and ceremonial points; and lastly, concisionem spiritus, (which will follow upon the former two) the concision of thine own spirit, and heart, and mind, and soul, and conscience, into perplexities, and into sandy, and incoherent doubts, and scruples, and jealousies, and suspicions of God's purpose upon thee, so as that thou shalt not be able to recollect thyself, nor re-consolidate thyself, upon any assurance, and peace with God, which is only to be had in Christ, and by his church. Videte concisionem, beware of tearing the body, the doctrine; beware of tearing the garment, the discipline; beware of tearing thine own spirit, and conscience, from her adhesion, her agglutination, her cleaving to God, in a holy tranquillity, and acquiescence in his promise, and mercy, in the merits of his Son, applied by the Holy Ghost, in the ministry of the church.

For our first consideration, of God's lothness to lose us, this is argument enough, That we are here now, now at the partici

pation of that grace, which God always offers to all such congregations as these, gathered in his name. For, I pray God there stand any one amongst us here now, that hath not done something since yesterday, that made him unworthy of being here to-day; and who, if he had been left under the damp, and mist of yesterday's sin, without the light of new grace, would never have found way hither of himself. If God be weary of me, and would fain be rid of me, he needs not repent that he wrapped me up in the covenant, and derived me of Christian parents, (though he gave me a great help in that) nor repent that he bred me in a true church, (though he afforded me a great assistance in that) nor repent that he hath brought me hither now, to the participation of his ordinances, (though thereby also I have a great advantage) for, if God be weary of me, and would be rid of me, he may find enough in me now, and here, to let me perish. A present levity in me that speak, a present formality in you that hear, a present hypocrisy spread over us all, would justify God, if now, and here, he should forsake us. When our blessed Saviour says, When the Son of man comes, shall he find faith upon earth1? we need not limit that question so, if he come to a Westminster, to an exchange, to an army, to a court, shall he find faith there? but if he come to a church, if he come hither, shall he find faith here? If (as Christ speaks in another sense, that judgment should begin at his own house) the great and general judgment should begin now at this his house, and that the first that should be taken up in the clouds, to meet the Lord Jesus, should be we, that are met now in this his house, would we be glad of that acceleration, or would we thank him for that haste? Men of little faith, I fear we would not. There was a day, when the sons of God presented themselves befere the Lord, and Satan came also amongst them; one Satan amongst many sons of God. Blessed Lord, is not our case far otherwise? do not we, (we, who, as we are but we, are all the sons of Satan) present ourselves before thee, and yet thou, Lord, art amongst us? Is not the spirit of slumber and weariness upon one, and the spirit of detraction, and mis-interpretation upon another; upon one the spirit of impenitence for former sins, and the spirit of recidivation into old, or of facility and openness to

1

1 Luke xviii. 8.

2 Job i. 6.

admit temptations into new upon another? We, as we are but we, are all the sons of Satan, and thou Lord, the only Son of God, only amongst us. If thou Lord wert weary of me, and wouldest be rid of me, (may many a soul here say) Lord thou knowest, and I know many a midnight, when thou mightest have been rid of me, if thou hadst left me to myself then. But rigilavit Dominus, the Lord vouchsafed to watch over me, and delicio ejus, the delight of the Lord3 was to be with me; and what is there in me, but his mercy? But then, what is there in his mercy, that that may not reach to all, as well as to me? The Lord is loth to lose any, the Lord would not the death of any; not of any sinner: much less if he do not see him, nor consider him so; the Lord would not lose him, though a sinner, much less make him a sinner, that he might be lost: vult omnes, the Lord would have all men come unto him, and be saved, which was our first consideration, and we have done with that, and our second is, the way by which he leads us to him, that he declares and manifests his will unto us, in a law, he bids, and he forbids.

The labourers in the vineyard took it ill at the steward's hand, and at his master's too, that those which came late to the labour, were made equal with them, who had borne the heat, and the burden of the day. But if the steward, or the master had never meant, or actually never had given anything at all, to them that had borne the heat and the burden of the day, there had been much more cause of complaint, because there had passed a contract between them. So hath there passed a contract between God, and us, Believe, and thou shalt live, do this and thou shalt live. And in this especially hath God expressed his love to us, and his lothness to lose us, that he hath passed such a contract with us, and manifested to us a way, to come to him. We say, every day, in his own prayer, Fiat voluntas tua, Thy will be done; that is, done by us, as well as done upon us. But this petition presumes another; the fiat supposes a patefiat voluntas, if it must be done, it must be known. If man were put into this world, and under an obligation of doing the will of God, upon damnation, and had no means to know that will which he was bound to do, of all creatures he were the most miserable. That which Matt. xx. 22.

3 Prov. viii. 31.