Secondly, Consider this by way of motive to provoke you 1to exercise and improve your Graces; The exercise and improvement of your Graces, will provoke others to bless and admire the God of Grace. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. The light of your Conversation, and the light of your graces; Oh! how many thousand souls be there now triumphing in heaven, whose gifts and graces shined gloriously when they were on earth: and ah! how many thousands are there now on earth, that bless and admire the Lord for the shine of their graces, who are now in heaven; That bless the Lord for the Faith of Abraham, and the Zeal of David, and the Meekness of Moses, and the Patience of Job, and the Courage of Joshua, &c. Ah Christians! as you would stir up others to exalt the God of grace, look to the exercise and improvement of your graces. When poor servants shall live in a family, and see the faith of a Master, and the love of a Master, and the wisdom of a Master, and the patience of a Master, and the humility of a Master, &c. shining like so many stars of heaven, oh how doth it draw forth their hearts to bless the Lord, that ever they came into such a family? 'Tis not a profession of Religion, but the exercise and improvement of grace, that contributes so much to the lifting up of the glory of the Lord, and to the greatening of his praise in the ⟨p. 194⟩world. Many Saints have had their hearts warmed and heated by siting by other Saints fire, by eying and dwelling upon other Saints graces. Ah! when mens graces shine as Moses his face did; when their lives, as one speaketh of Joseph's life, is a very heaven, sparkling with variety of virtues, as with so many bright Stars; ah! how are others stirred up to glorify God? and to cry out these are Christians indeed? these are an honour to their God, a Crown to their Christ, and a credit to their Gospel: Oh! if they were all such, we would be Christians too. 'Tis a very great stumbling-block to many poor sinners, to see men that make a very great and large profession 2of Christ, never to exercise and show forth the virtues of Christ; they profess they know him, and yet by the non exercise of his virtues, they deny him.
Secondly, Consider this by way of motive to provoke you 1to exercise and improve your Graces; The exercise and improvement of your Graces, will provoke others to blesse and admire the God of Grace. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good workes, and glorifie your Father which is in heaven. The light of your Conversation, and the light of your graces; Oh! how many thousand soules be there now triumphing in heaven, whose gifts and graces shin'd gloriously when they were on earth: and ah! how many thousands are there now on earth, that blesse and admire the Lord for the shine of their graces, who are now in heaven; That blesse the Lord for the Faith of Abraham, and the Zeale of David, and the Meeknesse of Moses, and the Patience of Job, and the Courage of Joshua, &c. Ah Christians! as you would stirre up others to exalt the God of grace, look to the exercise and improvement of your graces. When poor servants shall live in a family, and see the faith of a Master, and the love of a Master, and the wisedome of a Master, and the patience of a Master, and the humility of a Master, &c. shining like so many stars of heaven, oh how doth it draw forth their hearts to blesse the Lord, that ever they came into such a family? 'Tis not a profession of Religion, but the exercise and improvement of grace, that contributes so much to the lifting up of the glory of the Lord, and to the greatning of his praise in the ⟨p. 194⟩world. Many Saints have had their hearts warmed and heated by siting by other Saints fire, by eying and dwelling upon other Saints graces. Ah! when mens graces shine as Moses his face did; when their lives, as one speaketh of Joseph's life, is a very heaven, sparkling with variety of virtues, as with so many bright Stars; ah! how are others stirr'd up to glorifie God? and to cry out these are Christians indeed? these are an honour to their God, a Crowne to their Christ, and a credit to their Gospel: Oh! if they were all such, we would be Christians too. 'Tis a very great stumbling-block to many poor sinners, to see men that make a very great and large profession 2of Christ, never to exercise and shew forth the virtues of Christ; they professe they know him, and yet by the non exercise of his virtues, they deny him.
- 1Mat. 5. 16. The exercise of virtue will draw I ve from a mans very enemies. Tilligny for his •are virtues was reserved from death, by his greatest enemies, at the Massacre of Paris; as you may see in the French History, in the life of Charles the Ninth.Mat. 5. 16. The exercise of virtue will draw I ve from a mans very enemies. Tilligny for his •are virtues was reserved from death, by his greatest enemies, at the M•ssacre of Paris; as you may see in the French History, in the life of Charls the Ninth.
- 2Those in whom virtue is extinguished, are like unto painted, and printed papers, which ignorant men honour and worship instead of Christ. Rawleigh.
