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Mercy magnified on a penitent prodigal, or A brief discourse, wherein Christs parable of the lost son found, is opened and applied, as it was delivered in sundry sermons, / by Samuel Willard teacher of a church in Boston in New-England. ; [Two lines from Luke]
printed by Samuel Green for Samuel Philips, 1684
Title page typeset from the transcription.
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.
1. Your sins should make and keep you humble: The sin of your heart, the leprosy of your nature, the body of death, that heart-full of filthiness and corruption: your daily sins of act, in omission of duty, in transgressing the command; especially your particular enormities, Psal. 51. 1. This evil. It will be a truth for ever that you have committed things worthy of death, and are not worthy to be called sons and daughters of God, an hired servants place is too good for you.
1. Your sins should make and keep you humble: The sin of your heart, the leprosie of your nature, the body of death, that heart-full of filthiness and corruption: your daily sins of act, in omission of duty, in transgressing the command; especially your particular enormities, Psal. 51. 1. This evil. It will be a truth for ever that you have committed things worthy of death, and are not worthy to be called sons and daughters of God, an hyred servants place is too good for you.
2. Your duties should humble you: Hast thou done any thing for God? it was not thou didst it of thy self, but the spirit in thee. And in all your duties you may see humbling considerations; how cold your affections? how little impression had they on your hearts? of how little continuance, even as the morning ⟨p. 260⟩dew? How little sincerity, how much hypocrisy? How little grace, how much corruption?
2. Your duties should humble you: Hast thou done any thing for God? it was not thou didst it of thy self, but the spirit in thee. And in all your duties you may see humbling considerations; how cold your affections? how little impression had they on your hearts? of how little continuance, even as the morning ⟨p. 260⟩dew? How little sincerity, how much hypocrisie? How little grace, how much corruption?
3. All your afflictions should humble you: God hath hung many weights on thy heart to crush thee, and thou shouldest be ashamed that they have brought thee no lower: All personal, & all public rebukes of God's Providence, all Wilderness Trials, are to humble the people of God, Deut. 8. 1.5, 16.
3. All your afflictions should humble you: God hath hung many weights on thy heart to crush thee, and thou shouldest be ashamed that they have brought thee no lower: All personal, & all publick rebukes of God's Providence, all Wilderness Tryals, are to humble the people of God, Deut. 8. 1.5, 16.
4. All God's mercies should humble you; you have not deserved them, but the contrary: The mercies of your being, preservation, special deliverances; above all those saving mercies, the grace of God in Christ, and the promise of eternal life: In a word; whoever thou art, whether Believer or unbeliever, thou hast abundant cause to be always affecting thy heart unto a low frame, and to bring thee down to […] foot of the great God, and lie there as a poor despicable nothing, resigning thy self up to, and placing all thy hope upon his mere love & mercy in Christ, and endeavouring that that may have the praise and glory of all.
4. All God's mercies should humble you; you have not deserved them, but the contrary: The mercies of your being, preservation, special deliverances; above all those saving mercies, the grace of God in Christ, and the promise of eternal life: In a word; whoever thou art, whether Believer or unbeliever, thou hast abundant cause to be alwayes affecting thy heart unto a low frame, and to bring thee down to 〈…〉 foot of the great God, and ly there as a poor d•spicable nothing, resigning thy self up to, and placing all thy hope upon his meer love & mercy in Christ, and endeavouring that that may have the praise and glory of all.
The Directions may be: 1. To the awakened sinner to come humbly to, and wait humbly upon God for his grace. 2. To the believer to carry humbly all his days.
THe Directions may be: 1. To the awakened sinner to come humbly to, and wait humbly upon God for his grace. 2. To the believer to carry humbly all his dayes.
1. Art thou one, who finding thine own misery, and hearing of God's plenty, art thinking to make proof of it: Wouldest thou speed? then, in a deep sense of thy own unworthiness Throw thy self down at his feet: would you find God merciful, be you sure to be humble: And for help,
1. Remember how much you have done to provoke God to reject you, and hide his face from you. Think what manner of lives you have led; and in special how you have slighted the Gospel, despised the Calls, counsels, reproofs, encouragements that have been given you; how often you have refused to accept of tendered Grace and Salvation; and therefore well may God refuse to hear you when you cry unto him, and bid you go to the Gods that you have served, Jer. 2. 28.
2. Think how useless and unprofitable creatures you are in your selves; no ways fit to be active in glorifying of him: The whole world is become unprofitable, Rom. 3. 12. Have neither will nor power of their own to glorify God till he restore it, Philip. 2. 13. What can you do for him, till your enmity be taken away, your rebellion subdued? Nothing but his grace can fit you to do him any the least service.
2. Think how useless and unprofitable creatures you are in your selves; no wayes fit to be active in glorifying of him: The whole world is become unprofitable, Rom. 3. 12. Have neither will nor power of their own to glorifie God till he restore it, Philip. 2. 13. What can you do for him, till your enmity be taken away, your rebellion subdued? Nothing but his grace can fit you to do him any the least service.
3. See that you have nothing by which you can challenge the least favour from him. It is true, the Gospel saith, If you believe, you shall be saved; but is also tells you, this believing is not of your selves, Eph. 2. 9. Till you believe you are under condemnation; the first grace must come from him; and it is at his pleasure whether he will give you to believe or no. He hath indeed freely engaged himself in promise to believers; but he hath not promised to you that he will make you such, and if he do not, you cannot. since then the case is such, that without Faith no Salvation, and you no way deserve that God should give it you, but have many ways provoked him to deny it; what remains but that you cast your selves do […] at his feet, and ask it, not only as beggars that deserve no alms, but as traitors that have forfeited your lives, and stand to the courtesy of ⟨p. 263⟩their Prince of his own free favour to pardon and restore them.
3. See that you have nothing by which you can challenge the least favour from him. It is true, the Gospel saith, If you believe, you shall be saved; but is also tells you, this believing is not of your selves, Eph. 2. 9. Till you believe you are under condemnation; the first grace must come from him; and it is at his pleasure whether he will give you to believe or no. He hath indeed freely engaged himself in promise to believers; but he hath not promised to you that he will make you such, and if he do not, you cannot. since then the case is such, that without Faith no Salvation, and you no way deserve that God should give it you, but have many wayes provoked him to deny it; what remains but that you cast your selves do 〈…〉 at his feet, and ask it, not only as beggars that deserve no alms, but as traitors that have forfieted your lives, and stand to the courtesie of ⟨p. 263⟩their Prince of his own free favour to pardon and restore them.
2. You that are believers, here is that which may teach you to carry it humbly all your days, and in all respects: There is none hath more reason to be humble than a child of God, whose all is of grace, hath nothing but what he hath freely received: in particular, walk humbly towards God, and towards man.
1. Carry it humbly towards God; and that both in respect of his special and spiritual grace, and in respect of his outward Providences.
1. In respect of his special and spiritual grace; and the both in regard of the first gift of saving grace, and progress of it.
1. In respect of the first gift of saving grace; let the constant remembrance of it serve to make and keep you humble. And therefore remember: 1. Who thou wast to whom God brought this grace? Ezek. 16. begin. One in thy blood. 2. That thou didst nothing to the working of this great work, Eph. 2. 9. Not of your selves. 3. How much thou didst to obstruct it; how often thou didst resist God's calls and counsels, wert obstinate, rebellious, not hearkening to his Spirit, shutting thine eyes, stopping thy ears, rising up against reproofs, &c. God often came to thee, and entreated thee, but thou hadst no mind to hear him, but didst all thou couldst to have undone ⟨p. 264⟩thy soul. 4. The patience which the great God used with thee; how long he waited upon thee, pitying thine obstinacy, bewailing the hardness of thy heart, and would not let thee alone, though many a time thou baddest him depart from thee. 5. Much meditate upon the distinguishing grace which was revealed in thy conversion. 1. How few are saved, and that thou shouldest be one of them. 2. That thou art no better than they, hast nothing more to commend thee to God than Cain or Judas had; nothing out of God could move him. 3. Thou didst many ways more dishonour God before thy conversion than any of them did; that young man, Mat. 19. might shame thee. 4. That the same means which hardened others converted thee. And when thou hast laid all these things together, put thy mouth in the dust, and let God's converting grace make thee nothing in thine own eyes: and let this grace never be forgotten, but always magnified by thee: only by humility is converting grace glorified.
1. In respect of the first gift of saving grace; let the constant remembrance of it serve to make and keep you humble. And therefore remember: 1. Who thou wast to whom God brought this grace? Ezek. 16. begin. One in thy blood. 2. That thou didst nothing to the working of this great work, Eph. 2. 9. Not of your selves. 3. How much thou didst to obstruct it; how often thou didst resist God's calls and counsels, wert obstinate, rebellious, not hearkening to his Spirit, shutting thine eyes, stopping thy ears, rising up against reproofs, &c. God often came to thee, and entreated thee, but thou hadst no mind to hear him, but didst all thou couldst to have undone
2. In respect of the progress of grace in your souls: the people of God meet with many changes, exercises, temptations; and in these, diversities of our-lettings and withdrawings of grace, and without humility cannot carry it right in these interludes: in particular.
1. Limit not God to such a measure or manner ⟨p. 265⟩of the dispensation of his grace: as we should desire all grace, so we should be thankful for every portion of it: Beggars must not be choosers. Paul would have grace to vanquish temptation; God would have him content with grace sufficient to keep him from being vanquished by it: If you have any Grace, it is a gift, and if you would have more, you must be humbled, 1 Pet. 5. 5.
1. Limit not God to such a measure or manner ⟨p. 265⟩of the dispensation of his grace: as we should desire all grace, so we should be thankful for every portion of it: Beggars must not be chusers. Paul would have grace to vanquish temptation; God would have him content with grace sufficient to keep him from being vanquished by it: If you have any Grace, it is a gift, and if you would have more, you must be humbled, 1 Pet. 5. 5.
