N00129:95
Useful instructions for a professing people in times of great security and degeneracy
Useful instructions for a professing people in times of great security and degeneracy: delivered in several sermons on solemn occasions: / by Mr. Samuel Willard Pastor of the Church of Christ at Groton. ; [Eight lines of Scripture texts]
printed by Samuel Green, 1673
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Hence therefore, let this teach us to pray unto God, to put a Spirit into our Rulers, Zealous against Sin, especially in these times of prevailing iniquity; and let us, in our place encourage them in so doing, by rejoicing in acts of Justice and severity, against such evils as grow and thrive among us: Pray that they may not respect persons, nor encourage some in sin, by sparing others; especially remembering, that as long as such a spirit is in Rulers, what ever sins there be in a people, the• […] still some to stand in the Gap.
Hence therefore, let this teach us to pray unto God, to put a Spirit into our Rulers, Zealous against Sin, especially in these times of prevailing iniquity; and let us, in our place incourage them in so doing, by rejoycing in acts of Justice and severity, against such evils as grow and thrive among us: Pray that they may not respect persons, nor encourage some in sin, by sparing others; especially remembring, that as long as such a spirit is in Rulers, what ever sins there be in a people, the• 〈…〉 still some to stand in the Gap.
5. The greatest Mercy abused by sin, give God the highest provocation God recounts what he had done for them, and what they had done against him, Israel sinned grievously, after such and such favours, and when God heard this, when this was the report brought him of the improvement that they had made of all his mercies, this brings them into abhorrence: and good reason there is for it, for every mercy is an obligation laid upon the creature to obedience; hence the greater the mercy is, the stronger tie lies upon the creature; to sin therefore against mercy, grace, and special mercies, is to break Gods strong cor• of Love, then which, what greater provocation can there be: Consider David & Han••, 2 Sam. 10. Ingratitude in return for friendship, is the […] hard to bear of any thing. Ask we then our own hearts, what […] we have made of all those great mercies which our God hath bestowed up on us: great favours we have had, equal with those he had showed to his people at Shiloh; yea, if all things be considered, we may well say, Superior unto them, in as much as the lays of the Gospel