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Chrift Strengthening us. And the Grace of God will not be wanting to them who earnestly pray for it, and diligently use it.

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4. Our chief care then must be to apply our felves diligently to the ufe of all the Means of Grace; Prayer, Temperance, Fafting, Studying the Holy Scriptures, Frequenting the Word and Sacraments, Avoiding the Occafions and Opportunities of Sin, and the feeking and embracing the Opportunities of the contrary Virtues, and by a Multitude of contrary Acts of Virtue destroying our evil Habits of Sin.

5. By all means we must not be difcouraged, if we obtain not the Victory at Firft: No Foils will totally overcome us, if we are not Difheartned, but return Vigorously to the Combat. And this Combat muft laft as long as we Live; for our Lufts are never fo totally fubdued in this Life, but that they will be ever and anon endeavouring to rebel. We fhall therefore have much Occafion for Patience, and for hope in God, that he will at last give us an entire Victory, and tread Satan under our Feet. In the mean tirne let us be still going on, and advancing towards higher and more perfect Degrees of all Duty; especially fuch Duties as are moft directly Oppofite to the Sins we are most endangered by. And let this very Confideration, that we are fo Low in Grace and Goodness, and that we are fo often furprized with Temptations, be improved to the Increase of our Humility, and to the enlarging of our Defires and Longings after Heaven; where our Victory over all our Lufts fhall be most compleat, and we shall be entirely delivered, not only from all Sin, but from all Temptation to it; where our

Joys

Joys fhall not be as here mixed with Sin and Sorrow, and frequent Interruptions of our good Courses; but there fhall be an Eternal fettled Habit of Confummate Holiness, and confequently pure and unmixed Joy and Happiness, of which there is little or none to be found in this Vain World. O could we be fenfible of this now, we should think all the Acts of Self-denial, the pulling out of a right Eye, and the cutting off of a right Hand, the parting with our Deareft and moft Beloved Sins, infinitely well beftowed, as being the fure only way to rescue us from Hell, and to bring us to the Poffeffion of Heaven and Happinefs. Which God of his infinite Mercy grant to us all, for the Merits, and through the Mediation of Jefus Chrift our Bleffed Lord and Saviour. To whom, &c.

SERM,

SERMON XXI.

MATT. V. 31.

It bath been faid, Whosoever shall put away his Wife, let him give her a Writing of Divorce

ment.

Ver. 32. But I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his Wife, faving for the cause of Fornication, caufeth her to commit Adultery: and whofoever fhall Marry her that is Divorced, committeth Adultery.

The First Sermon on this Text.

HIS Subject of Divorce is of great Affi

Tnity with the Doctrine immediately going

before, concerning the Duty of Chastity and Purity of Heart. For no doubt it is a great Part of Chastity to preferve the Inftitution of Marriage Sacred and Inviolable, to which the Limitation of Divorces has a mighty Tendency.

In the Words which I have read we have,

1. An Account of the Doctrine of Divorce, as it was Taught by many of the Jewish Doctors, 2. Our Saviour's Correction and further Explication of that Doctrine.

I. As to the first, the Doctrine of Divorce, as Taught by many Jewish Doctors; we may ob

serve these two or three Things concerning it, from the Words.

(1.) That in the Manner of Introducing it, the Phrafe is altered; instead of Ye have heard that it was faid to them of old Time, here is nothing but It hath been faid; intimating plainly that this Doctrine our Saviour is now Preaching againft, has not fuch a Title to Antiquity or Univerfality as the other Doctrines he had explained before out of the Moral Law. Divorces at this time were become fo frequent, contrary to the Primitive Defign of them, that they were in ufe for any flight Cause: and this our Saviour notes, not as an Ancient, or an univerfal Doctrine, but only as a late Opinion of fome loose Doctors among them.

(2.) After this Introduction, we have the Error itfelf touched at in thefe Words, whofoever shall put away his Wife, that is, whosoever is minded to put away his Wife, he need not trouble himself to find a juft Caufe to diffolve the Marriage, let him but obferve the Law-Forms, and give her a Bill of Divorce, all the reft is of courfe. In fhort the Error was, that fo they obferved but the Forms of Divorces, which were very eafily granted, and for very flight Caufes in thofe Days, they had nothing further to answer to God or their own Confciences in that Matter.

(3.) In this great Contempt and flighting of the facred Inftitution of Marriage, we have one good thing which was retained among them; namely, the external Form of Divorce, which was a Deed in Writing, let him give her a Writing of Divorcement. It was not upon any fudden hafty Words that this folemn Contract was to be dif folved; it was to be done gravely and deliberately

in

in Writing, under Hand and Seal, before a Magiftrate and Witneffes; and there were divers Things in this Practice, which tended to the Dif couraging of it. For 1. Though it was permitted, it was never thought a reputable Thing, but had been marked by God himself, as a Thing that he hated, Mal. ii. 15. Let none deal treacherously against the Wife of his Youth; for the Lord the God of Ifrael faith, that he hateth putting away. 2. The Bill of Divorce was to contain the Cause of the Parting; which, if it was a flight one, as often it was, was only a Record of the Perfons Ill-Temper, that would part fo needlefly or groundlefly. 3. Though for the hardness of their Hearts, the Parties were permitted to marry again, yet Care was taken in the Law, that they fhould be for ever feparated from one another; and therefore it is to be prefumed, the Law defigned that Divorces fhould not be made ufe of rafhly and inconfiderately.

So much for the Doctrine of Divorce, as it was taught by the Jewish Doctors.

II. I go on next to our Saviour's Correction and further Improvement of that Doctrine. But I fay unto you, that whosoever shall put away his Wife, faving for the Caufe of Fornication, caufeth her to commit Adultery: And whosoever shall marry her that is divorced, committeth Adultery. In which Words there are these three or four Things, which offer themselves to our Confideration.

1. We have here a total Prohibition of the parting of Man and Wife, excepting in the Cafe of Infidelity to the Marriage-Bed: For Interpreters generally mean that by the Word wogveia, which

we tranflate Fornication.

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