Some important truths about conversion, delivered in sundry sermons, / by Increase Mather, D.D.…

2. Herein is implied, a fear with respect to the service of God, that is, lest God should not be served & worshipped after a due and acceptable manner, Psal. 2 11. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling: Fear and tremble, lest you should miss it in the service of God. And indeed all acceptable Service or Worship doth proceed from a principle of fear in the heart towards God, Heb. 12.28. Let us have Grace whereby we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear. If a man doth serve God acceptably, his service doth proceed from a gracious principle of godly fear: And men express their fear of God, in and by their serving of him; therefore the Service or Worship of God is in the Scripture called his fear, Psal. 19.9. The fear of the Lord is clean, that is, the Worship and Ordinances of God, whereby men express their fear towards him. And the true Worshippers of God are styled fearers of him, Psal. 115.12, ⟨p. 236⟩13. He will bless the house of Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron; He will bless them that fear the Lord. Mark, here are three sorts of persons spoken of; 1. The house of Israel, that is, the common Members in the Church of Israel. 2. The house of Aaron, That is, the Ministers in the Church of Israel. 3. Those that fear the Lord; that is, Proselytes to the true Religion and Worship of God; such as did serve God in that way of Worship which himself hath appointed. Now this fear is implied in working out our Salvation with fear and trembling; For Gods Service and Glory, and our Salvation go together. It is the great goodness of God, that these cannot be separated, but that in faithful attending to the one, we shall promote the other also. A man cannot serve God aright, but that he will thereby help forward his own Salvation; hence the Psalmist saith, It is good for me to draw nigh to God, Psal. 73.28 It is not only good in it self, but good for me: Why? Because in serving God, he did promote his own Eternal safety and welfare. And those unto whom Salvation is promised, are described to be such as serve God; and they against whom Destruction is threatened, are said to be such as serve him not,