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<DATE>2014-09-15</DATE>
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<NAME>Kate Allen</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="modern bookplate">
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<P> Massachusetts Historical Society</P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
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<P> <HI>The Way to Excel.</HI></P>
<P><HI>MEDITATIONS, Awakened by the DEATH of the Reverend Mr. Jo&s;hua Moodey; With &s;ome Short Character of that Eminent Per&s;on: Who</HI> Slept in <HI>Je&s;us,</HI> 4d. 5. m. 1697.</P>
<P><HI>In the Sixty fifth year of his Age.</HI></P>
<P><HI>By <HI>Cotton Mather.</HI></HI></P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Jo&s;h. XXIV.</HI> 22, 23, 29.</BIBL>
<P>JOSHUA &s;aid unto the People,&mdash;ye have Cho&s;en you the Lord, to Serve Him.</P>
<P>Now therefore Incline your Heart unto the Lord.</P>
<P>And it came to pa&s;s, after the&s;e things, that <HI>Io&s;hua,</HI> the Servant of the Lord, Dyed.</P></Q>
<P>BOSTON, <HI>in</HI> N. E.</P>
<P><HI>Printed by</HI> B. Green, <HI>and</HI> J. Allen.</P>
<P>1697.</P>
<PB REF="3">
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB N="3" REF="3">
<OPENER><SALUTE>Reader,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>TELL me not, that the Peoples being Taken with <HI>Publicola's</HI> Funeral Oration in Prai&s;e of the Dead <HI>Brutus,</HI> or the Decree of the <HI>Roman Senate,</HI> That it &s;hould be Lawful to make a Funeral Oration on &s;uch as de&s;erved well of the Common wealth, made <HI>Polydore Virgil</HI> &s;ay, <HI>Hinc mortuos Laudandi mos fluxit, quem nos hodie Servamus.</HI> The Book of <HI>Lamentations,</HI> on the Death of <HI>Jo&s;iah,</HI> is of an Elder Date; The Roll of <HI>Lamentations,</HI> on the Death of <HI>Jonathan,</HI> is of yet an Elder; And cer|tainly, to be Imitated among the faithful People of God. Tell me not, that &s;ome Eminent <HI>Non|conformi&s;ts</HI> have therefore Scrupled, the Preaching of any <HI>Funeral Sermons:</HI> that in &s;ome <HI>Reformed Churches,</HI> the Practice of them is wholly omitted; that in the <HI>Primitive Churches,</HI> they were not practi|ced until the <HI>Apo&s;ta&s;y</HI> began; and that there have been <HI>Decrees of Councils</HI> again&s;t them. I readily grant, That the Cu&s;tome of <HI>Prai&s;ing the Dead,</HI> ha's been Scandalou&s;ly Abu&s;ed; but I cannot grant, That the Abu&s;e is be&s;t Corrected, by taking away all <HI>Publick Meditations,</HI> on the <HI>Funerals</HI> of Tho&s;e, in who&s;e <HI>Deaths</HI> God from Heaven &s;peaks Great Things unto the <HI>Living.</HI> We do but wi&s;ely Ful|fil our Mini&s;try, by <HI>Watching,</HI> to &s;uit the <HI>Words</HI> of
<PB N="4" REF="4"> God, unto tho&s;e <HI>Works</HI> of His, which occur to our Notice, when <HI>Men of Note</HI> are taken away. Be|hold, According to the Laudable u&s;age in the Churches of <HI>New England,</HI> the <HI>Meditations</HI> which have been <HI>Awakened,</HI> by the falling <HI>A&s;leep</HI> of an Eminent Per&s;on, who was, <HI>A Memorable Servant of tho&s;e Churches!</HI> I am out of mea&s;ure A&s;toni&s;h|ed, when I read in an Author as old, and as great as <HI>Austin,</HI> the Wonderful Effects, which the pre|tended <HI>Reliques</HI> of the Martyr <HI>Stephen</HI> had upon tho&s;e who repaired thereunto, for the cure of Ma|ladies. The be&s;t &s;ort of <HI>Reliques,</HI> are tho&s;e which we have here pre&s;erved, &amp; propo&s;ed; &amp; it will be no <HI>Super&s;tition,</HI> to hope, that a cure of Spiritual Ma|ladies too generally prevailing, may be promoted, by Repairing unto them. And, I do not more que&s;tion the Opinion of a very Learned man, concerning the <HI>Angels,</HI> whom we find mention'd in the Scriptures as doing very <HI>Humane</HI> Actions, <HI>Veros Homines fui&s;&s;e, qui a Spiritu Me&s;&s;iae, et a Spiriti|bus Angelicis agebantur; et movebantur ad ea Agenda, quae ip&s;i non intelligebant, phanta&s;ia Eorum ob&s;e&s;&s;a, et a Cogitationibus con&s;uetis abducta: Qui Homines, Ne|gotio peracto&punc; ad quod fuerant a Deo adhibiti, di&s;cu&s;&s;o veterno, et ce&s;&s;ante Ec&s;ta&s;i, ad Con&s;ueta munera rever&s;i &s;unt, immemores eorum, quae Impul&s;ore Spiritu Divino, aut Angelico, egerant:</HI> Than I do believe, That in our <HI>Actions,</HI> there is an Imitation of the Holy <HI>Angels</HI> to be endeavoured, by which a man, may become another <HI>Stephen.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
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<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="treatise">
<PB N="5" REF="4">
<HEAD>The way to Excel.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<BIBL><HI>Acts VI.</HI> 15.</BIBL>
<Q>&mdash;Looking Stedfa&s;tly on him, they &s;aw his Face, as it had been the Face of an ANGEL.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>SInce the <HI>Oracles</HI> of Heaven, have (with a mo&s;t &s;ignificant Admonition!) allow'd a well &s;erved Church, to call its <HI>Pa&s;tor,</HI> by the Name of its <HI>Angel,</HI> we may now &s;ay, <HI>The Angel of the Church of</HI> Port&s;mouth, <HI>has newly taken wing!</HI> Yea, not the Lea&s;t of the <HI>Angelical Chariots and Hor&s;emen of</HI> New England, have de|parted from us, in the <HI>Withdraw</HI> of One, after whom that Bereaved Church, is crying, <HI>My Fa|ther, My Father!</HI></P>
<P>To prae&s;erve the <HI>Idea,</HI> and <HI>Memory,</HI> of his <HI>Face,</HI> as far as the Infirmities of this <HI>Mortal State</HI> per|mitted any Approaches to the <HI>Angelical</HI> Chara|cter in it, is that whereto not only <HI>Nature</HI> does Invite us, but al&s;o <HI>Scripture</HI> does oblige us: 'Twill be but a compliance with that Edict of Heaven, <HI>Remember them who have &s;poken to you, the Word of God; who&s;e Faith follow, con&s;idering the End of their Conver&s;ation.</HI></P>
<PB N="6" REF="5">
<P>'Tis well known, That among the chief Works of the Mo&s;t High, Created by the Son of God, at the Fir&s;t Beginning of Time, there were His <HI>Good</HI> ANGELS: <HI>Angels,</HI> which are Spiritual and Rational Sub&s;tances, Created by the Lord, for His own Immediate Service and Honour. None Deny, None Di&s;pute, the Exi&s;tence of tho&s;e <HI>Good Angels,</HI> but men that are under a more than ordinary Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of <HI>Evil</HI> Ones.</P>
<P>Our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, has given it, as a De|&s;cription of that <HI>Future State,</HI> wherein He will make us Happy for ever, Math. 22. 30. <HI>They are as the Angels of God in Heaven.</HI> And if we Hope, to be <HI>Happy</HI> in that <HI>Future State,</HI> we mu&s;t endeavour to Anticipate it, by being very <HI>Holy</HI> in our <HI>Pre&s;ent State.</HI> But the way for us, to be very <HI>Holy,</HI> is to Re&s;emble, and Imitate, the <HI>An|gels of God in Heaven,</HI> while we are on Earth, as far as we are able. Every <HI>Holy man</HI> does a <HI>Little</HI> of This; and <HI>how much</HI> of it, was done by that <HI>Holy man,</HI> who is now gone to Live, and Prai&s;e, and &s;ee CHRIST, among the <HI>Angels</HI> for ever, may be propo&s;ed with &s;ome Advantage unto the <HI>Exhortation,</HI> wherein I have a <HI>few Things to Preach unto the People.</HI></P>
<P>But my <HI>Exhortation</HI> mu&s;t be introduced, with a Report of that <HI>Glory,</HI> which the Martyr <HI>Ste|phen,</HI> while he was yet on Earth, attain'd unto.</P>
<P>There being occa&s;ion to choo&s;e <HI>Deacons</HI> in the Primitive Church, that &s;o they who were to give them&s;elves continually unto the <HI>Mini&s;try of</HI>
<PB N="7" REF="5"> <HI>the Word,</HI> might be Relea&s;ed, by the faithful Cares of tho&s;e <HI>Deacons,</HI> from Secular Encumbran|ces; <HI>One</HI> of them was the Ble&s;&s;ed <HI>Stephen;</HI> who being the Fir&s;t that arriv'd unto the <HI>Crown of Martyrdome</HI> for our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, in the New-Te&s;tament, had in the Name of <HI>Stephen,</HI> which &s;ignifies, <HI>A Crown,</HI> a notable Specification, of the <HI>Event</HI> and <HI>Reward,</HI> which will attend all our <HI>Sufferings</HI> for the Lord.</P>
<P>It was then an Age of many <HI>Miracles</HI> wrought by the <HI>Spirit</HI> of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t; and &s;uch a <HI>mea&s;ure</HI> of that <HI>Spirit,</HI> po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed this Excellent man, that by the <HI>Impul&s;e</HI> of that <HI>Spirit,</HI> He could, with all A&s;&s;urance, perceive when the <HI>Spirit</HI> was going to work <HI>Miracles,</HI> and apply him&s;elf to ac|company the <HI>Miracles</HI> of the <HI>Spirit,</HI> by &s;ome wonderful <HI>Actions</HI> of his own. This Illu&s;trious Worker of <HI>Miracles,</HI> was Accu&s;ed before the <HI>Council</HI> at <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> for &s;aying, That it was the De&s;ign of <HI>Je&s;us,</HI> to de&s;troy the <HI>Temple,</HI> and the <HI>City,</HI> and alter the <HI>Rites,</HI> which <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> had, from God, commanded unto <HI>I&s;rael.</HI> When he appear'd before the <HI>Council</HI> to an&s;wer this Accu&s;ation, 'tis here &s;aid, <HI>They &s;aw his Face, as it had been the Face of an Angel.</HI></P>
<P>Concerning the <HI>Face of an Angel,</HI> we have a Remarkable Account, in what we read about one of the <HI>Angels,</HI> in Mat. 28. 3. His <HI>Countenance was like Lightning.</HI> And we read concerning a Great man, who had got the <HI>Face of an Angel,</HI> by being much with the <HI>Angels,</HI> in Exod 34. 10. <HI>Behold,</HI>
<PB N="8" REF="6"> <HI>the skin of his Face &s;hone.</HI> If we carry the pa&s;&s;age now before us, unto the Highe&s;t &s;en&s;e, which it would lay claim unto, we are to &s;uppo&s;e, That &s;uch a <HI>Splendor</HI> was di&s;cernible upon the <HI>Face</HI> of <HI>Stephen:</HI> And &s;urely, if they who di&s;cerned it, had not had the <HI>Heart of a Devil</HI> in them, they dur&s;t not have gone on, to Abu&s;e a <HI>man,</HI> that Appeared before them, with the <HI>Face of an Angel.</HI> Alas, the more of an <HI>Angel</HI> there is in any <HI>man,</HI> the more <HI>Stones</HI> will the <HI>Devil</HI> procure to be thrown at &s;uch a <HI>Man!</HI> But, behold, the <HI>Agreeablene&s;s</HI> of the matter; <HI>Stephen</HI> was per&s;ecuted for vilifying of <HI>Mo&s;es;</HI> and, behold, at this very Time, he is vindicated with a <HI>Shine</HI> upon his <HI>Face,</HI> like that once upon the <HI>Face</HI> of <HI>Mo&s;es.</HI> The Things here &s;poken by <HI>Stephen,</HI> were tho&s;e very Things, which the <HI>Angel Gabriel,</HI> had formerly &s;poken unto the <HI>Prophet Daniel;</HI> and behold, the A&s;pect of an <HI>Angel</HI> adorns him, in his Di&s;cour&s;e.</P>
<P>We may from hence, take Leave to Ob&s;erve, <HI>That a</HI> Saint on Earth, <HI>may arrive to tho&s;e Attain|ments, that &s;hall make him Look like an</HI> Angel of Heaven.</P>
<P>There are <HI>Angelical Excellencies,</HI> a Degree whereof, poor <HI>man,</HI> &s;orry <HI>man,</HI> &s;inful <HI>man,</HI> even while &s;uch, may very much attain unto.</P>
<P>But now, this CASE calls for our Attention; <HI>What are tho&s;e Excellencies, that would make a Saint, Look like an</HI> ANGEL?</P>
<P>And the General An&s;wer hereunto is, The <HI>Excellencies of Holine&s;s,</HI> For,</P>
<PB N="9" REF="6">
<P> Fir&s;t, The <HI>Angels</HI> of God, have many <HI>Excel|lencies,</HI> the Imitation whereof cannot by men in this Life, be Rea&s;onably propo&s;ed. The <HI>Angeli|cal Maje&s;ty,</HI> as a <HI>Mortal Eye</HI> would not be able &s;teadily to <HI>Behold</HI> it, much le&s;s, in this <HI>Mortal State,</HI> may we <HI>Affect</HI> it. A man may not wi&s;h to <HI>Shine</HI> like <HI>Stephen,</HI> in this World, and have a <HI>Face,</HI> that may dazzle the Spectators. Or, what would it avail, if a man could make a Glare on his <HI>Face,</HI> by &s;mearing it with &s;ome of the <HI>Noctilu|ca's</HI> invented by the <HI>Modern Chymi&s;try?</HI> A <HI>Devil</HI> has before now, pretended unto &s;uch a <HI>Face.</HI> 'Tis not the <HI>Face,</HI> but the <HI>Grace,</HI> of an <HI>Angel,</HI> which is here to be A&s;pired after. It were a Fooli&s;h, and a Faulty Thing, for any man, to be ambitious, of wearing in this World, &s;uch a Figure, as that in Dan. 10. 6. <HI>His Body like the Beryl, and his Face as the Appearance of Lightning, and his Eyes as Lamps of Fire. Immortality</HI> it &s;elf, is one of the <HI>Angelical Excellencies.</HI> But, while we are among <HI>Mortals</HI> here, we mu&s;t &s;ubmit unto the Laws of <HI>Mortality,</HI> and be willing to <HI>Dy,</HI> When, and How, the So|veraign God &s;hall order it. There are al&s;o, tho&s;e Flights of <HI>Wi&s;dom,</HI> and tho&s;e Heights of <HI>Power</HI> among the <HI>Angelical Excellencies;</HI> wherein, 'tis not for us, to Dream of being <HI>Like</HI> them, until we are become, <HI>The Children of the Re&s;urrection&punc;</HI> It was the Ruine of our <HI>Fir&s;t Parents,</HI> to imagine, in Gen. 3. 5. They <HI>might be as Elohim!</HI> No, this cannot be, until our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, has by a <HI>New Birth</HI> brought us into that <HI>World to come,</HI>
<PB N="10" REF="7"> where, the <HI>Wi&s;e Converters of many to Righteou&s;ne&s;s,</HI> will be tho&s;e, who &s;hall <HI>Shine as the Brightne&s;s of the Firmament, and as the Stars for ever and ever!</HI> Our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, will make <HI>us</HI> the <HI>Angels</HI> of the <HI>New World.</HI> Indeed the <HI>Angels</HI> now turn and move all the <HI>Wheels</HI> of the <HI>Kingdoms</HI> of <HI>this World,</HI> but <HI>we</HI> are they that &s;hall <HI>Receive the Kingdom that cannot be moved.</HI></P>
<P>But, Secondly, The <HI>Excellencies of Holine&s;s,</HI> [For, the <HI>Saints,</HI> are the <HI>Excellent!]</HI> The&s;e are They, wherein the Imitation of the <HI>Angels</HI> by <HI>men,</HI> may be very far proceeded in. The <HI>Angels</HI> of God, are &s;tyled, in Mat. 25. 31. <HI>The Holy Angels;</HI> and in Dan. 4. 17. <HI>The Holy Ones.</HI> 'Tis not as they are <HI>Mighty Angels,</HI> but as they are <HI>Holy Angels,</HI> that we mu&s;t propound our coming to Look like unto them. The&s;e <HI>Holy Angels,</HI> never did, and never will Sin again&s;t their God; but are conti|nually Serving of Him; <HI>They Serve Him Day and Night in His Temple!</HI> And it may be, the <HI>Bright Garments,</HI> wherein the&s;e <HI>Angels of Light,</HI> have ap|peared, may be an Emblem of their <HI>Holine&s;s</HI> and their <HI>Purity.</HI> Now it hath been the <HI>Will of God in our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t concerning us,</HI> that there &s;hould be &s;et before us, the Greate&s;t Exemples of <HI>Holine&s;s</HI> for our Imitation. And hence, as we have the Greater <HI>Exemple</HI> of our Lord JESUS CHRIST Him&s;elf given unto us, to Direct and Excite and Promote our <HI>Holine&s;s,</HI> with a Charge, <HI>To be Holy, as He that hath called us is Holy;</HI> So, we have al&s;o the <HI>Exemple</HI> of the <HI>Holy Angels</HI> given unto us, That
<PB N="11" REF="7"> we may &s;trive as far as may be, to be Like unto them in their <HI>Holine&s;s.</HI> Hence when the P&s;ami&s;t of old &s;aw the <HI>Angels</HI> prai&s;ing of God, he cryed out, <HI>O my Soul, do Thou &s;o too!</HI> Yea, &s;ome Inter|preters Judge, That when the <HI>Face</HI> of <HI>Stephen</HI> Look'd like an <HI>Angel,</HI> it was no more than what you and I may <HI>thro' Chri&s;t who &s;trengthens us,</HI> reach unto. <HI>q d.</HI> The <HI>Con&s;olations</HI> of the <HI>Holy Spirit</HI> of God, &s;o filled him, that he di&s;covered not the lea&s;t <HI>Con&s;ternations</HI> in his <HI>Face:</HI> His <HI>Face</HI> was as Joyful, and Serene, as if he had &s;tood free from all the <HI>Sorrows</HI> of this World, among the <HI>Angels</HI> of God.</P>
<P>I remember the Apo&s;tle Enjoins the <HI>Woman</HI> in the Church to have a covering on her Head, in Token of Subjection to her <HI>Husband; Becau&s;e of the Angels.</HI> [2 Cor. 11. 10.] Why, if you turn to the Beginning of the &s;ixth Chapter of <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI> you'l find the <HI>Angels</HI> before their Superiour, the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, in the <HI>Temple</HI> a&s;&s;uming a <HI>Cover|ing,</HI> out of the Reverence which they pay unto Him. Hence then, &s;ays the Apo&s;tle, it becomes <HI>Women</HI> to take <HI>Example</HI> by the <HI>Angels;</HI> let them con&s;ider, how the <HI>Angels</HI> behave them&s;elves in the Pre&s;ence of the <HI>Son</HI> of God, who is the Grand Repre&s;entative of the <HI>Image</HI> and <HI>Glory</HI> of God; and let them in their <HI>Habit</HI> &s;how &s;ome Analogy to the <HI>Habit</HI> of the <HI>Angels:</HI> betokening their Sub|jection to the <HI>man,</HI> who is under the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, the <HI>Image</HI> and <HI>Glory</HI> of God, while <HI>They</HI> the <HI>Women,</HI> are &s;o of the <HI>man.</HI> But I only touch
<PB N="12" REF="8"> on this glo&s;s, by the by. What I in&s;i&s;t on, is, That the <HI>Angelical Example</HI> is to be imitated.</P>
<P>Indeed, we &s;hall, as long as we Live in this World, come far &s;hort of the <HI>Original,</HI> when we go to Write after the <HI>Angelical Example.</HI> In this <HI>Pre&s;ent Evil World,</HI> we cannot approach near to the <HI>Holine&s;s</HI> of the <HI>Good Angels:</HI> Much of Sin, and Fault, &amp; Folly, will unavoidably cleave unto us: That <HI>Lepro&s;y</HI> will never wholly out of the <HI>Walls,</HI> until the <HI>Clay-hou&s;e</HI> be utterly demoli&s;hed: There will be as much Di&s;tance between the <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed Spi|rits</HI> and <HI>Us,</HI> as between <HI>Giants</HI> and <HI>Children,</HI> as be|tween <HI>Stars</HI> and <HI>Gloworms,</HI> as between the <HI>Cedars</HI> of <HI>Lebanon,</HI> and the <HI>Hy&s;op</HI> that <HI>Grows out of the Wall;</HI> Thus it will be, until we come at length to dwell [And, <HI>Oh! Why do we no more Long for it!]</HI> with the <HI>Innumerable Company of Angels,</HI> in another World.</P>
<P>However, to Attempt the Imitation, is the rea|dy way to be <HI>Excellent.</HI> Particularly in the En|&s;uing In&s;tances.</P>
<P N="1"><HI>I.</HI> If a man could have his <HI>Eye</HI> upon the <HI>Face of God</HI> continually, would not that procure the <HI>Face of an Angel</HI> for him? It would make a man Look like an <HI>Angel,</HI> if he were Looking unto God, in the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t continually. Of the <HI>Angels</HI> there is that Account given, in Mat. 18. 10. <HI>In the Heavens, they do always behold the Face of my Father which is in the Heavens.</HI> The <HI>Angels</HI> do conver&s;e with GOD continually. And, why may not we pre&s;s after a conver&s;e with GOD, a
<PB N="13" REF="8"> little Emulating the <HI>Angelical?</HI> To be <HI>Heavenly|minded,</HI> by having the <HI>God of Heaven</HI> almo&s;t al|ways in our minds, and by being <HI>in the Fear of God all the Day Long; This</HI> were to be as the <HI>An|gels</HI> are! Oh! That we were thus, <HI>Filled with all the Fulne&s;s of God.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, We may have a continual <HI>Apprehen&s;ion</HI> of GOD in our minds. In every <HI>Place,</HI> we may Apprehend GOD Wherever we are, we may Sub&s;cribe to that Article of the Ancient Faith, in P&s;al. 139. 7. Lord, <HI>Whither &s;hall I flee from thy Pre&s;ence?</HI> What if we &s;hould never be from un|der the Awe of &s;uch a Thought as that, <HI>The Om|nipre&s;ent God ob&s;erves all my wayes!</HI> And we may Apprehend GOD, in every <HI>Thing.</HI> We need not &s;tay at any <HI>Second Cau&s;es;</HI> but we may with a <HI>Spiritualized Soul,</HI> Soar up to &s;ome Notice of <HI>God</HI> in all. Upon all the Works of <HI>Creation</HI> we may &s;ay, <HI>The Finger of God is here!</HI> And we may make the Po&s;itions of the <HI>Pauline</HI> Philo&s;ophy, in Acts 17. 24, 28. <HI>God made the World, and all Things therein; In Him we Live and Move and have our Being.</HI> Upon all the Works of <HI>Providence,</HI> we may &s;ay, <HI>This comes from that God, who&s;e Kingdome Ruleth over all.</HI> And we may make the Conclu|&s;ions once taught by our Lord, no doubt alluding to the <HI>Two Birds,</HI> whereof one was to be <HI>killed,</HI> the other to be <HI>Let Loo&s;e into the Open Field,</HI> at the clean&s;ing of the <HI>Leper,</HI> in Mat. 10. 29. <HI>Two Spar|rows, one of them &s;hall not fall on the Ground without our Father.</HI> To be Led unto &s;ome Notice of
<PB N="14" REF="9"> GOD continually, This, O This, it is <HI>Angelical.</HI> 'Tis <HI>Godline&s;s.</HI> What is <HI>Holine&s;s,</HI> but <HI>Godline&s;s?</HI> This were a little of the <HI>Angelical Holine&s;s.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Our continual <HI>Apprehen&s;ion</HI> of GOD, may bring a continual <HI>Dedication</HI> to GOD, upon all that we <HI>Have,</HI> and all that we <HI>Do.</HI> If we <HI>Glance</HI> at <HI>Inferiour Ends,</HI> yet we may not <HI>Stop</HI> there: All our <HI>Ends</HI> are to be Swallowed up in GOD. We &s;hould not, with any patience con&s;ent unto it, that any but GOD, &s;hould have our <HI>Strength,</HI> our <HI>Time,</HI> our <HI>All.</HI> Whatever <HI>Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions</HI> are be&s;tow'd upon us, we may put them under that Con&s;idera|tion, which the <HI>Hou&s;e</HI> of <HI>David</HI> had, in P&s;al&punc; 30. <HI>Tit. Dedicated Things.</HI> All our <HI>Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions,</HI> all the Powers of our <HI>Spirits,</HI> all the Members of our <HI>Bodies,</HI> our <HI>E&s;tates,</HI> our <HI>Credit,</HI> our De&s;ireable <HI>Friends;</HI> we may contrive with our &s;elve<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>What Acknowledg|ments may GOD have out of the&s;e Things:</HI> And Improve them no farther, than as <HI>In&s;truments,</HI> whereby GOD may be <HI>Acknowledged.</HI> Yea, and our daily <HI>Actions;</HI> may we not be driving a <HI>Trade</HI> for GOD in all? As 'tis &s;aid, in 1 Cor. 10. 31. <HI>Whatever ye do, do all to the Glory of God:</HI> So, our <HI>Eating,</HI> our <HI>Drinking,</HI> our <HI>Sleeping,</HI> what is it for? We may di&s;tinctly &s;ay, <HI>I do This, that I may be &s;upported in the Service of God.</HI> Thus, our <HI>La|bours,</HI> our <HI>Travels,</HI> our <HI>Vi&s;its,</HI> and our Exerci&s;es of <HI>Religion,</HI> we may thus Ennoble them, <HI>I do This, I will do it carefully and cheerfully, becau&s;e God hath Commanded my doing of it.</HI> A <HI>Dedication</HI> to GOD, is the proper meaning of <HI>Holine&s;s:</HI> And very <HI>An|gelical</HI>
<PB N="15" REF="9"> would be our <HI>Holine&s;s,</HI> if we could be fre|quent, and con&s;tant in &s;uch Acts of <HI>Dedication.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly; Our continual <HI>Apprehen&s;ion</HI> of GOD, may produce our continual <HI>Satisfaction</HI> in GOD, under all His <HI>Di&s;pen&s;ations.</HI> Whatever <HI>Enjoyments</HI> are by God conferred upon us, where lies the <HI>Re|li&s;h,</HI> where the <HI>Sweetne&s;s</HI> of them? Truly, we may come to Reli&s;h our <HI>Enjoyments,</HI> only <HI>&s;o far</HI> as we have &s;omething of GOD in them. It was requi|red in P&s;al. 37 4. <HI>Delight thy &s;elf in the Lord.</HI> Yea, And what if we &s;hould have no <HI>Delight,</HI> but the <HI>Lord?</HI> Let us ponder with our &s;elves, over our <HI>Enjoyments; In the&s;e Enjoyments I See God, and by the&s;e Enjoyments I Serve God!</HI> And now, Let all our <HI>Delight</HI> in, and all our Value and Fondne&s;s, for our <HI>Enjoyments,</HI> be <HI>Only,</HI> or <HI>Mainly,</HI> upon &s;uch a <HI>Divine Score</HI> as <HI>This.</HI> As far as any of our <HI>En|joyments</HI> Lead us unto GOD, &s;o far let us Reli&s;h it, Affect it, Embrace it, and Rejoyce in it; <HI>O Ta&s;t, and Feed upon God in all;</HI> and Ask for Nothing, no, not for <HI>Life</HI> it &s;elf, any further than as it may help us, in our <HI>Seeing,</HI> and our <HI>Serving,</HI> of our GOD. And then, whatever <HI>Afflictions,</HI> do lay Fetters upon us, Let us not only Remember, that we are concerned with GOD therein, but let our concernment with GOD procure a very profound <HI>Submi&s;&s;ion</HI> in our Souls. Be able to &s;ay, with him, in P&s;al. 39. 9. <HI>I opened not my mouth, becau&s;e Thou did&s;t it.</HI> In all our <HI>Afflictions,</HI> Let us Remark the <HI>Ju&s;tice</HI> of that GOD, before whom, <HI>Why &s;hould a Living man Complain for the Puni&s;hment of his Sin?</HI>
<PB N="16" REF="10"> the <HI>Wi&s;dom</HI> of that GOD, <HI>who&s;e Judgments are Right;</HI> the <HI>Goodne&s;s</HI> of that GOD, who <HI>Puni&s;hes us le&s;s than our Iniquities do de&s;erve.</HI> Let us behave our &s;elves, as having to Do with none but GOD, in our <HI>Afflictions:</HI> And let our <HI>Afflictions</HI> make us more conformable unto GOD; which Conformi|ty being Effected, Let us then &s;ay, <HI>'Tis Good for me that I have been Afflicted.</HI> Sirs, what were this, but a pitch of <HI>Holine&s;s,</HI> almo&s;t <HI>Angelical!</HI> Oh! Mount up as with the <HI>Wings of Eagles,</HI> of <HI>Angels;</HI> be not a &s;orry, puiny, Mechanick &s;ort of <HI>Chri&s;tians</HI> any longer; but <HI>Reach Forth</HI> unto the&s;e things, that are thus before you!</P>
<P>But, in fine, 'Tis our Lord JESUS CHRIST, who is, <HI>The Face of God. That</HI> is His <HI>Name,</HI> fre|quently in the Old Te&s;tament; and in this <HI>Hint,</HI> I have given you a <HI>Golden Key</HI> to come at the &s;en&s;e of many pa&s;&s;ages in the Sacred Pages, about, <HI>The Face of God,</HI> and, <HI>The Light of that Face:</HI> 'Twas the <HI>Me&s;&s;iah.</HI> Tis then our Lord JESUS CHRIST, who is to be the more <HI>Immediate Object</HI> of our <HI>Apprehen&s;ions,</HI> when we would become <HI>Angolical;</HI> 'Tis God in our Lord JESUS CHRIST: When|ever we entertain any Thing of GOD in our minds, it &s;hould be with a CHRIST, and thro' a CHRIST. Tho&s;e who do all they can, to Forge a CHRISTIANITY, without a CHRIST, are &s;o far from Like <HI>Angels</HI> of the Lord, that they are <HI>Traitors</HI> to the King of Heaven!</P>
<P N="2"><HI>II.</HI> We may render our &s;elves <HI>Angelical,</HI> by our Endeavours of a <HI>pre&s;ent,</HI> and <HI>a plea&s;ant</HI> and an
<PB N="17" REF="10"> <HI>Univer&s;al Obedience,</HI> unto the Lord JESUS CHRIST, the <HI>Lord of Angels.</HI> Who's are the <HI>An|gels,</HI> but the <HI>Angels of the Lord?</HI> And, [as in 1 Kin. 18. 12. and Act. 8. 39.] <HI>The Spirits of the Lord.</HI> Our Lord JESUS CHRIST is the <HI>Lord General</HI> of all the <HI>Angels;</HI> He is the <HI>Lord of Ho&s;ts;</HI> and all tho&s;e <HI>Ho&s;ts</HI> of Heaven are under His Command; We read in P&s;al. 103. 20, 21. <HI>They do His Com|mandments, Hearkening unto the Voice of His Word: They are His Ministers which do His Plea&s;ure.</HI> The very Highe&s;t <HI>Angel</HI> in Heaven de&s;ires and &s;tudies to be a <HI>Servant</HI> of the Lord JESUS CHRIST: The Great God, would &s;oon &s;trike him down from Heaven, with Hot Thunder-bolts, if he did not &s;o. Even <HI>Michael,</HI> the <HI>Archangel,</HI> ha's Receiv|ed that Charge from God, concerning our Lord-Redeemer, <HI>Do thou Wor&s;hip Him! Gabriel</HI> him&s;elf, mu&s;t give this Account of him&s;elf, <HI>I &s;tand in the pre&s;ence of the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t;</HI> namely, As a <HI>Servant</HI> &s;tanding in the <HI>Pre&s;ence</HI> of his Ma&s;ter.</P>
<P>Come then; Let every one of us, become the <HI>Servants</HI> of our Lord JESUS CHRIST. By con|&s;enting to the Methods of <HI>Grace</HI> in the <HI>New Cove|nant,</HI> Let us yield our &s;elves unto our Lord JESUS CHRIST, as unto our LORD; and &s;ay, with him in P&s;al. 119. 38. <HI>Lord, I am thy Servant, De|voted unto thy Fear.</HI> Let us Reckon it the Highe&s;t <HI>Plea&s;ure</HI> unto our &s;elves, to be alwayes <HI>Plea&s;ing</HI> of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t: Let us E&s;teem it the High|e&s;t <HI>Honour</HI> unto our &s;elves, to be alwayes <HI>Honouring</HI> of Him. To be, <HI>A Man of God,</HI> is to be like an
<PB N="18" REF="11"> <HI>Angel,</HI> An <HI>Angel</HI> was called, in Judg. 13. 8. <HI>The Man of God.</HI> We are <HI>Men of God,</HI> when we be|come the <HI>Devoted Servants</HI> of our Lord JESUS CHRIST. Sirs, The Bright <HI>Angels</HI> of Heaven, Invite us, to become their <HI>Fellow Servants,</HI> by giving our &s;elves up unto the work of <HI>Witne&s;&s;ing</HI> to the <HI>Truths</HI> and <HI>Wayes,</HI> of their Heavenly Lord. When we have Solemnly Con&s;ecrated our &s;elves unto this Work, Then, whatever <HI>Commands</HI> our Lord JESUS CHRIST layes upon us, Let us Readily, Joyfully, Univer&s;ally yield <HI>Obedience</HI> thereunto. Be upon the <HI>Wing,</HI> as the <HI>Angels</HI> are, to do every thing, that our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t would have to be done. Delay none, De&s;pi&s;e none, Refu&s;e none, of the <HI>Commandments,</HI> which our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t &s;hall give unto us; but &s;ay, as in 1 Joh. 5. 3. <HI>His Commandments are not Grie|vous.</HI> And whatever we &s;hall <HI>know</HI> to be <HI>Accep|table</HI> unto our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, Let us Imme|diately <HI>Do,</HI> what we <HI>know:</HI> Let this be <HI>Argument</HI> Enough unto us, for any thing, though <HI>Fle&s;h and Blood</HI> [Body and Soul] be never &s;o much again&s;t it: <HI>My Lord JESUS CHRIST would have me to Do this Thing!</HI> Thus our <HI>Labour</HI> &s;hould be accor|ding to our <HI>Prayer,</HI> That <HI>the Will of God may be done on Earth, as it is in Heaven.</HI></P>
<P N="3"><HI>III.</HI> To be ve<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">y <HI>Serviceable</HI> is to be <HI>Angelical:</HI> To <HI>Do Good,</HI> is the Di&s;po&s;ition of a <HI>Good Angel.</HI> Tho&s;e men, who&s;e perpetual Bu&s;ine&s;s, tis, <HI>To Go about for the Doing of Good,</HI> as, they are like the Lord JESUS CHRIST, [Act 10. 38.] So they
<PB N="19" REF="11"> are like the <HI>Angels,</HI> that wait upon our Lord Je|&s;us Chri&s;t. The <HI>Angels</HI> are alwayes Employ'd in &s;ome Service, for our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and for tho&s;e that belong unto Him. 'Tis &s;aid, in Heb. 1. 14. <HI>Are they not all Ministring Spirits?</HI> Oh! Let it, in like &s;ort, be our Ambition, to <HI>Mini&s;ter</HI> &s;ome way or other, for the <HI>Good</HI> of them, that are to be the <HI>Heirs of Salvation;</HI> and let us be much and oft, in &s;tudying with our &s;elves, <HI>What Good may I do, with tho&s;e Talents, where with my Lord Je&s;us Christ ha's betru&s;ted me?</HI> How many <HI>Good Offices,</HI> does the <HI>Bible</HI> Report, as done by the <HI>Angels</HI> of God, for the <HI>People</HI> of God? And, how many &s;uch <HI>Good Offices</HI> are &s;till done, for the <HI>People</HI> of God, by the <HI>Angels</HI> of God, which <HI>Encamp as an Ho&s;t about them that Fear Him?</HI> Chri&s;tians, If we are advi&s;ed of any <HI>Opportunity</HI> to <HI>Do Good,</HI> Let us be as Ready to do it, as the <HI>Angel</HI> that came down to the <HI>Pool</HI> of <HI>Bethe&s;da,</HI> was to help the Mi&s;era|bles a&s;&s;embled there. Yea, though they &s;hould be never &s;o Poor, never &s;o Small, never &s;o <HI>Mean People,</HI> that we may <HI>Do Good</HI> unto, Let us be ready to Do it, with all our Hearts. The Fir&s;t Appari|tion of an <HI>Angel,</HI> that we Read in the Scripture, was to Relieve a <HI>Poor Maid,</HI> in Trouble of Spirit. The Martyr <HI>Bradford,</HI> That man had the <HI>Face</HI> of an <HI>Angel,</HI> concerning whom it was Noted, <HI>He was alwayes, either with Pur&s;e, or Tongue, or Pen, do|ing of Good.</HI> Whatever <HI>Company</HI> we fall into, tis ea&s;y for us, ordinarily to Think, <HI>What Good may I do in this Company before I Leave it?</HI> That man
<PB N="20" REF="12"> <HI>Speaks with the Tongue of Angels,</HI> who will never di&s;mi&s;s his <HI>Company,</HI> without &s;ome Con&s;cientious E&s;&s;ay, to <HI>Speak</HI> what &s;hall be <HI>Profitable</HI> unto them. And, <HI>Inventions</HI> to <HI>Do Good,</HI> and be <HI>Benefactors</HI> to all that are about us, the more <HI>Upright</HI> we are, the more we &s;hall <HI>&s;eek out many &s;uch Inventions.</HI> There is an <HI>Angelical Air</HI> upon them!</P>
<P N="4"><HI>IV. Near Approaches</HI> to God, in <HI>Devotions</HI> and <HI>Communions,</HI> full of <HI>Intimacy</HI> with Him, will give a man, if not the <HI>Face,</HI> yet the <HI>Heart</HI> of an <HI>Angel.</HI> When was it, that the <HI>Face</HI> of <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> had an <HI>Ange|lical,</HI> and an Extraordinary <HI>Lu&s;tre</HI> upon it? It was, when he had been <HI>with God, in the Mount.</HI> We read, in Exod. 34. 29. <HI>When Mo&s;es came down from Mount Sinai, with the Two Tables of Testimony, the Skin of his Face &s;hone.</HI> They that are very much with God, in tho&s;e Exerci&s;es, wherein the <HI>Power of Godline&s;s,</HI> does mainly con&s;i&s;t, will con|tract a <HI>Lu&s;tre</HI> therefrom, and be &s;omewhat like the <HI>Angels,</HI> made <HI>Partakers of the Divine Nature.</HI> To be often in <HI>Secret Prayers,</HI> and <HI>Secret Prai&s;es,</HI> with Rai&s;ed Strains of <HI>Heavenly Zeal</HI> before the Lord, <HI>This</HI> is to be as it were, of the <HI>Angelical Fraternity!</HI> Yea, 'Tis a <HI>Golden</HI> Pa&s;&s;age of <HI>Chry&s;o&s;|tome, That the very Angels them&s;elves, cannot but Ho|nour the man, whom they &s;ee Familiarly and Frequent|ly, Admitted unto the Audience, and as it were Di&s;|cour&s;e with the Divine Maje&s;ty.</HI> Truly, whether the <HI>Angels</HI> may <HI>Reverence</HI> the&s;e <HI>men</HI> or no, the&s;e <HI>men</HI> do <HI>Re&s;emble</HI> the <HI>Angels.</HI> It becomes more
<PB N="21" REF="12"> Notably thus, when men do often &s;et apart <HI>whole Dayes,</HI> for their <HI>Prayers,</HI> and their <HI>Prai&s;es,</HI> and are <HI>With God in the Mount,</HI> for <HI>whole Dayes</HI> together. Great Things did the <HI>Angels</HI> do for <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> Great Things for <HI>Elias,</HI> who often &s;pent <HI>whole Dayes</HI> a|lone with the Lord; And what &s;aid an <HI>Angel</HI> un|to <HI>Daniel,</HI> when he had been &s;pending <HI>whole Days</HI> at &s;uch a rate, <HI>Thou art a man of De&s;ires, and an Angel thinks not much to fly down from Heaven unto thy Conver&s;ation!</HI> Such <HI>Dayes,</HI> do leave an <HI>Angeli|cal Savour</HI> upon the <HI>Souls</HI> of men; they Leave our <HI>Souls,</HI> for many Dayes afterward, under &s;uch a Gracious, and Generous, and Serious, &amp; Watch|ful, and U&s;eful <HI>Bia&s;s,</HI> as has the <HI>Face</HI> of an <HI>Angel</HI> thereupon. And therefore, the <HI>Lords Dayes;</HI> Let us keep <HI>them</HI> with a peculiar Sollicitude, a &s;ingular Elevation, of <HI>Sanctity.</HI> It was the privi|ledge of <HI>John,</HI> in Rev. 1. 10. To be <HI>in the Spirit on the Lords Day.</HI> Syrs, If we are &s;o, we &s;hall be <HI>with the Angels on the Lords Day;</HI> And if <HI>with</HI> them, then <HI>like</HI> them. To be wholly under the <HI>Confinement,</HI> [I mi&s;took the word, I &s;hould &s;ay, <HI>Liberty!]</HI> of <HI>Religious Applications,</HI> throughout our whole <HI>Chri&s;tian Sabbath,</HI> Let us not count it, as a Ceremonious per&s;on once call'd it, <HI>A being on the Rack a whole Day together. Angels</HI> have &s;trang|ly vi&s;ited and comforted &s;ome on the <HI>Rack;</HI> but never &s;uch as complain'd, that a &s;trict <HI>Lords Day</HI> put 'em on a <HI>Rack.</HI> During the whole Day, Let our <HI>Thoughts</HI> be full of <HI>God,</HI> and <HI>Chri&s;t,</HI> and <HI>Hea|ven;</HI> During the whole Day, Let our <HI>words</HI> be
<PB N="22" REF="13"> <HI>Few,</HI> and <HI>Fitt,</HI> and <HI>Savoury,</HI> and &s;uch as may <HI>Mi|ni&s;ter Grace unto the Hearers;</HI> During the whole Day, Let our <HI>Earthly Defilements</HI> be Bani&s;hed from us; Let our Hearts, be every Hour Sallying forth with Numberle&s;s <HI>Ejaculations</HI> to the Lord. Such <HI>Lords Dayes,</HI> will <HI>Ripen</HI> men into <HI>Angels</HI> at the La&s;t! But on the <HI>Lords-Day,</HI> there &s;ometimes does Recur, a mo&s;t &s;pecial and &s;ignal opportunity to <HI>Draw near unto God;</HI> namely, <HI>The Lords Supper;</HI> an Ordinance of the <HI>Neare&s;t Fellow&s;hip</HI> with Heaven; an Ordinance, wherein a CHRIST Suffering for us, is, by the Symbols of <HI>Bread</HI> and <HI>Wine</HI> &s;o tendred unto the Faithful, that in their Obeving His Appointment thereof, they do with Ineffable Advantage partake of Him. Well then, Let our <HI>Preparations</HI> for this Great Ordinance, be with as much of Solemnity, as if we were to <HI>Dy</HI> our &s;elves, at the Time, when we do <HI>Annun|ciate</HI> here the <HI>Death of our Lord.</HI> Let us <HI>Examine</HI> our &s;elves, &amp; <HI>Supplicate</HI> our God, before we come to the <HI>Table</HI> of the Lord, as if we were to <HI>Dy</HI> when we come. And at this <HI>Holy Table,</HI> where <HI>Man Eats Angels Food,</HI> Let us <HI>Fix</HI> our <HI>Meditations</HI> on our LORD JESUS CHRIST, with all po&s;&s;ible <HI>Attention,</HI> with all &s;uitable <HI>Affection.</HI> Thus, <HI>Behol|ding, as in a Gla&s;s, the Glory of the Lord, we &s;hall be Changed into the &s;ame Image, from Glory to Glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord.</HI> Now, 'tis that <HI>Glory</HI> that makes an <HI>Angel!</HI></P>
<P N="5"><HI>V.</HI> An <HI>Heart</HI> much Affected with the Lord JESUS CHRIST, will procure the <HI>Face of an An|gel,</HI>
<PB N="23" REF="13"> unto the <HI>man,</HI> who hath an <HI>Heart</HI> &s;o affected. Unto the <HI>Angels,</HI> there is nothing &s;o precious, &amp; nothing &s;o glorious, as the Lord JESUS CHRIST; yea, 'tis our CHRIST, that makes the be&s;t part of their <HI>Heaven</HI> for them. Our Lord JESUS CHRIST, is, as the Apo&s;tle Enumerates it among the <HI>My&s;teries</HI> and <HI>Evidences</HI> of our Faith, in 1 Tim. 3. 16. <HI>Seen of Angels.</HI> But how <HI>Seen?</HI> Truly, <HI>Seen</HI> with Wonders, and <HI>Seen</HI> with Raptures, and <HI>Seen</HI> with Endle&s;s <HI>Hallelujahs.</HI> Would we be Like the <HI>Angels?</HI> Then Let our Lord JESUS CHRIST be <HI>Seen</HI> by us, as the <HI>Be&s;t Thing</HI> in Heaven and Earth, and as infinitely <HI>Better</HI> than the very <HI>An|gels</HI> them&s;elves. At the <HI>Incarnation</HI> of our Lord JESUS CHRIST. What were the Songs of <HI>An|gels?</HI> in Luk. 2. 14. <HI>There was a multitude of the Heavenly Ho&s;t, prai&s;ing of God, and &s;aying, Glory to God in the Highe&s;t!</HI> Would we be like the <HI>Angels?</HI> Let us then join in a Con&s;ort with tho&s;e <HI>Morning Stars,</HI> and <HI>Sons of God.</HI> It was with <HI>Joy Un&s;peak|able and full of Glory,</HI> that the <HI>Angels</HI> attended up|on our Lord JESUS CHRIST, fir&s;t throughout His <HI>Humiliation,</HI> and then, unto His <HI>Exaltation</HI> Let the whole of <HI>That,</HI> be the mo&s;t Ravi&s;hing Subject of our <HI>Contemplation;</HI> Let us Love to &s;ee our Lord JESUS CHRIST, fir&s;t <HI>Suffering,</HI> and then <HI>Entring into His Glory.</HI> And let our Acclamations, be like tho&s;e of the <HI>Angels,</HI> upon tho&s;e marvellous Di&s;|pen&s;ations of the Grace of God! When the <HI>An|gels</HI> do <HI>Look</HI> on the Lord JESUS CHRIST, they are <HI>Covered</HI> with A&s;toni&s;hment, and cry out, O
<PB N="24" REF="14"> <HI>Holy, Holy, Holy Lord of Ho&s;ts, all Heaven is full of thy Glory!</HI> And &s;hall not <HI>we</HI> &s;o Look on that our <HI>Lord of Glory?</HI> When the <HI>Angels</HI> do <HI>Speak</HI> of our Lord JESUS CHRIST, they make a mo&s;t Reve|rent mention of His <HI>Holy and Reverend Name,</HI> and &s;ay, <HI>Oh! there is none among the Sons of the Mighty, that may be compared unto this Lord.</HI> And &s;hall not <HI>we</HI> &s;o &s;peak of that Great <HI>King,</HI> with a <HI>Tongue, like the Pen of a Ready Writer?</HI> Something of <HI>Chri&s;t,</HI> the <HI>Angels</HI> mu&s;t have; they would think them|&s;elves to be <HI>Starved,</HI> if they had not this <HI>Manna</HI> to Feed upon! Syrs, Let the <HI>Meat</HI> of our Souls be the <HI>Fruit</HI> growing on this <HI>Tree of Life;</HI> &amp; Let the <HI>Drink</HI> of our Souls be, the <HI>Honey of this Rock:</HI> This is the daily Repa&s;t of <HI>Angels;</HI> This Nou|ri&s;hment will <HI>Angelify</HI> us in a little while. What &s;hall I &s;ay? The <HI>My&s;tery of CHRIST,</HI> is the mo&s;t grateful Contemplation of the <HI>Angels:</HI> Tho&s;e <HI>Cherubims</HI> about the <HI>Ark of God,</HI> we are told, in 1 Pet. 1 12. <HI>They De&s;ire to Look into the&s;e Things.</HI> I &s;ay then, <HI>Go and do Likewi&s;e.</HI></P>
<P N="6"><HI>VI.</HI> If we would always Behave our &s;elves as before the <HI>Face of Angels,</HI> we &s;hould at length ob|tain the <HI>Face of an Angel,</HI> by the Exactne&s;s, the Circum&s;pection, the Accuracy of our Behaviour. It was a Good <HI>Memento,</HI> written upon a Study-Wall, <HI>Angeli ad&s;tant;</HI> or, <HI>The Angels of God &s;tand by!</HI> Did men Remember the Eye of the Invi&s;ible <HI>Angels</HI> upon them, in all their ways, how grave, how cautious, how pious would they be; and at La&s;t, how like unto tho&s;e <HI>Angels!</HI> If a man, were
<PB N="25" REF="14"> as bad as <HI>Balaam</HI> him&s;elf, yet the bare &s;u&s;picion of having the Eye of &s;ome <HI>Angel</HI> upon him, would be enough to &s;top him from Ru&s;hing on to <HI>Sin. Why &s;houlde&s;t thou Sin,</HI> &s;ays the Wi&s;e man, in Eccl. 5. 6. <HI>Before the Angel?</HI> If we were <HI>Wi&s;e,</HI> we &s;hould often think, <HI>I am now before &s;ome Angel!</HI> and that Thought would make us <HI>Wi&s;e.</HI> The Aged Apo|&s;tle &s;aid unto a younger Mini&s;ter, <HI>I charge thee be|fore the Elect Angels:</HI> from whence 'tis infallibly &s;ure, That the <HI>Elect Angels</HI> take notice, how we Acquit our &s;elves, each one in his <HI>Charge.</HI> Said the P&s;almi&s;t, in P&s;al. 138. 1. <HI>Before the Gods I will Sing prai&s;e unto thee:</HI> The LXX tran&s;late it, <HI>I will &s;ing prai&s;e unto thee, before the Angels.</HI> Chri&s;ti|ans, The <HI>Angels</HI> take Notice of us, in all our <HI>Em|ployments,</HI> yea, in our Clo&s;e&s;t <HI>Retirements.</HI> We give no <HI>Prai&s;es</HI> to God, we Perform no <HI>Duties,</HI> we En|dure no <HI>Troubles,</HI> we Re&s;i&s;t no <HI>Temptations,</HI> but the <HI>Angels</HI> of God, are the <HI>Witne&s;&s;es</HI> of what we do; we are a <HI>Spectacle to Angels</HI> in all of our <HI>Encounters.</HI> Well, Now Let our <HI>Deportment,</HI> be mightily under the Influence of this Con&s;ideration; <HI>The Angels take Notice; What Report will the Angels of God, give of my Behaviours!</HI> It has been propounded as a <HI>Rule of Prudence,</HI> for a man, wherever he comes, to Imagine, that there is pre&s;ent &s;ome Eminent, Wi&s;e, and Good man, to &s;ee and hear all that pa&s;&s;es. <HI>Man,</HI> There is an <HI>Angel</HI> to &s;ee and hear all that pa&s;&s;es, wherever thou come&s;t; This is no <HI>meer Imagination.</HI> Could we, like the Servant of the Prophet, in the Mount, &s;ee the un&s;een Regi|ment
<PB N="26" REF="15"> of the World, by the Subordinate Govern|ment of <HI>Angels,</HI> what an <HI>Awe,</HI> what an <HI>Awe,</HI> what an <HI>Awe</HI> would it &s;trike us with! The <HI>Angels</HI> of the Lord &s;ee, how men are Di&s;po&s;ed, and Em|ployed, for the Service of Their Lord, and gladly contribute their unknown A&s;&s;i&s;tences unto that Service. But it cannot be any other than a Grief unto tho&s;e <HI>Angels,</HI> to &s;ee <HI>Enormities,</HI> in tho&s;e, for who&s;e welfare they are concerned. If they have <HI>Joy</HI> over a <HI>Paenitent,</HI> they mu&s;t needs have &s;ome &s;ort of <HI>Grief</HI> over a <HI>Tran&s;gre&s;&s;or.</HI> Yea, in all pro|bability, the mi&s;carriages of &s;uch offenders, work in them a &s;ort of <HI>Di&s;ta&s;t,</HI> which inclines them, on many accounts, to withdraw from the Offenders, until they have <HI>Wa&s;hed</HI> them&s;elves over again, <HI>In the Fountain &s;et open for Sin &amp; for Uncleanne&s;s.</HI> Now, Let this con&s;ideration accompany us, in all our Walk; and let the <HI>Eye</HI> of an <HI>Angel</HI> be more to us, than the <HI>Eye</HI> of a <HI>Cato,</HI> could be to any <HI>Roman.</HI> The <HI>Face of Angels</HI> will at la&s;t be gain'd, by &s;uch a Con&s;ideration!</P>
<P N="7"><HI>VII.</HI> Let us Beware of every <HI>Sin;</HI> for <HI>Sin</HI> will Turn a <HI>Man</HI> into a <HI>Devil.</HI> Oh! Vile SIN, horrid SIN, cur&s;ed SIN; or, to &s;peak a more Pungent word, than all of That; Oh, SINFUL Sin; how Pernicious art thou unto the Souls of Men! Tis &s;aid, in 1 Joh. 3. 8. <HI>He that Committeth Sin, is of the Devil. Holine&s;s</HI> will make men <HI>Incarnate Angels;</HI> but <HI>Wickedne&s;s</HI> will make them <HI>Devils Incarnate.</HI> An Impenitent <HI>Sinner;</HI> hath he the <HI>Face of an An|gel?</HI> No, but the <HI>Heart of a Devil</HI> in him. Let
<PB N="27" REF="15"> your <HI>Zeal</HI> again&s;t all <HI>Sin</HI> then, be like that of the <HI>Seraphim.</HI> The <HI>Angels,</HI> are <HI>Seraphims,</HI> or Burning ones; They <HI>Burn</HI> [and &s;o let <HI>us!]</HI> again&s;t all <HI>Sin,</HI> becau&s;e of its being &s;o contrary &amp; provoking to their mo&s;t <HI>Holy Lord.</HI> Sirs, Mark it; If any of you wittingly, and willingly, Sin again&s;t God, you do as the <HI>Devils</HI> do, and as the <HI>Devils</HI> would have you to do, and as our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t &s;peaks, in Joh. 8. 44. <HI>Ye are of your Father the Devil, and the Lu&s;ts of your Father ye will do.</HI> Dreadful words! There is the <HI>Image</HI> of the <HI>Devil,</HI> and there is the <HI>Practice</HI> of the <HI>Devil,</HI> in every SIN. To <HI>Commit</HI> SIN, is <HI>Humane;</HI> to <HI>Indulge</HI> it, will be <HI>Diabolical.</HI> But e&s;pecially, there is much of the <HI>Devil</HI> in <HI>Apo&s;ta|&s;y</HI> from Good Beginnings. Of the <HI>Devils,</HI> we find in Jude 6. <HI>They kept not their Fir&s;t E&s;tate:</HI> They once joined, it &s;eems, in Prai&s;ing of God, with the <HI>Angels</HI> of the Ble&s;&s;ed Regions; but they <HI>Left</HI> it all. You that have <HI>Left</HI> the <HI>Societies,</HI> and the <HI>Exerci&s;es,</HI> of Chri&s;tianity, wherein you were <HI>at Fir&s;t</HI> Engaged; Behold, who your <HI>Leader</HI> is! The fir&s;t and great <HI>Apo&s;tate,</HI> the <HI>Devil,</HI> is your <HI>Leader,</HI> in this <HI>De&s;ertion;</HI> And, alas, whither will he <HI>Lead</HI> you? There is much of the <HI>Devil</HI> al&s;o, in <HI>Hypocri&s;y</HI> under Good Profe&s;&s;ions. When there was a Secret, Rotten <HI>Hypocrite,</HI> among the Di&s;ciples of our Lord. Our Lord &s;aid, in Joh. 6. 70. <HI>He is a Devil:</HI> Indeed, the <HI>Devil</HI> is never &s;o much a <HI>Devil,</HI> as when <HI>Transformed</HI> into <HI>an Angel of Light.</HI> When &s;trict pretenders, and pleaders, and it may be, Preachers of the <HI>Go&s;pel,</HI> &s;hall yet <HI>Cloak &s;ome</HI>
<PB N="28" REF="16"> <HI>Hidden Practices of Di&s;hone&s;ty</HI> under their fair pre|tences, Behold, Men playing the <HI>Devil</HI> horribly. What &s;hall I &s;ay more? The <HI>Devil</HI> is an <HI>Unclean</HI> Spirit, a <HI>Lying</HI> Spirit, a <HI>Proud</HI> Spirit, a Spirit full of <HI>Envy.</HI> Oh! Take heed le&s;t you be of &s;uch a <HI>Spirit,</HI> and &s;o, Le&s;t you Peri&s;h <HI>with the Devil and his Angels,</HI> throughout Eternal Ages.</P>
<P>Thus, the <HI>Rules</HI> of becoming <HI>Angelical,</HI> have been &s;et before us.</P>
<P>But if we do now Humbly Reflect upon our &s;elves, for our not Living up to the&s;e <HI>Rules;</HI> we cannot ea&s;ily be more Humble in &s;uch Reflections, than was that MAN OF GOD, the Reverend, JOSHUA MOODEY, who from his <HI>E&s;&s;ayes</HI> to obtain the <HI>Face of Angels,</HI> is now gone unto the <HI>Place of Angels.</HI></P>
<P>All the Churches of <HI>NEW ENGLAND,</HI> Con&s;i|dered him, as a Per&s;on, whom an Eminency both in <HI>Sen&s;e,</HI> and in <HI>Grace,</HI> had made Con&s;iderable. All the Churches of BOSTON, Enjoy'd and Admired, his Accompli&s;hments for the <HI>Evangelical Mini&s;try,</HI> many years together. The Church of <HI>Port&s;mouth,</HI> (a part of the Country that very much ow'd its <HI>Life</HI> unto him!) Cryes out, of, <HI>A Dead|ly Wound,</HI> in his <HI>Death;</HI> and is ready to cry out, <HI>Our Breach is Great like the Sea; who can heal it?</HI> His <HI>Labours</HI> in the Go&s;pel, were frequent and fervent; whereof the <HI>Pre&s;s</HI> hath given &s;ome <HI>La&s;t|ing,</HI> as the <HI>Pulpit</HI> gave many <HI>Lively</HI> Te&s;timonies: and unto his Cares to Edify his Flock by <HI>Sermons,</HI> he added more than Ordinary Cares to do it by
<PB N="29" REF="16"> <HI>Vi&s;its:</HI> No man Perhaps being a kinder <HI>Vi&s;itant.</HI> He was not only Ready to <HI>Do Good,</HI> but al&s;o to <HI>Suffer</HI> for doing it; and as he was Exemplarily Zealous for a <HI>Scriptural Purity</HI> in the Wor&s;hip of the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, &s;o, he cheerfully Submitted unto an <HI>Impri&s;onment,</HI> for that <HI>Cau&s;e of God, and of this Country;</HI> wherein, like <HI>Stephen,</HI> he had the Honour to be the <HI>First,</HI> that Suffered in that way for that <HI>Cau&s;e,</HI> in the&s;e parts of the World. Briefly, For <HI>Piety,</HI> for <HI>Charity,</HI> and for <HI>Faithfulne&s;s</HI> to the main Intere&s;ts of our Churches; all that knew him, and know the worth of the&s;e things, wi&s;h that among the <HI>Survivers,</HI> he may have many <HI>Followers.</HI></P>
<P>He was of a very Robu&s;t and Hardy Con&s;titu|tion, and a notable Exception to the General Re|mark, <HI>Raro &s;olent Ingenia in&s;igniter faelicia, Robu&s;ta &s;ortiri Corpora;</HI> and, it may be, too <HI>Prodigal</HI> of his <HI>Athletick Strength,</HI> in doing the Service, whereto a Good Ma&s;ter called him. Neverthele&s;s, when a <HI>Complication</HI> of Di&s;tempers, was diver&s;e Months before his Di&s;&s;olution, brought thereby upon him, he Exceedingly Lamented, <HI>His Neglect,</HI> (as he ac|counted it) <HI>of his pa&s;t Opportunities to be Serviceable.</HI> At Length, Coming to <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> for Advice about the Recovery of his Lo&s;t Health, his Di&s;tempers here &s;o grew upon him, as to Threaten a Quick <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">eriod unto his Pilgrimage. His Di&s;tre&s;&s;ed <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">hurch at <HI>Port&s;mouth</HI> now Importunately made their <HI>Prayer</HI> with <HI>Fa&s;ting</HI> before the <HI>Great Shepherd of the Sheep,</HI> that they might not be deprived of
<PB N="30" REF="17"> &s;o Rich a Ble&s;&s;ing; and he was him&s;elf Excee|dingly de&s;irous to have Returned unto <HI>Port&s;mouth,</HI> that he might e&s;tabli&s;h his Flock yet further a|gain&s;t all Temptations to for&s;ake <HI>the Right wayes of the Lord.</HI> But Heaven determines otherwi&s;e.</P>
<P>When the La&s;t Summons of <HI>Death</HI> came to be Served upon him, he had neither <HI>Time,</HI> nor <HI>Strength,</HI> to &s;peak very much; and they that have &s;poken much while they <HI>Live,</HI> &s;ometimes mu&s;t not &s;peak very much at their <HI>Death.</HI> His Di&s;cour&s;es, were generally full of <HI>Self-Condemna|tion;</HI> and indeed, that man knows not how to <HI>Dy,</HI> who thinks to Dy otherwi&s;e, than <HI>Condemning of him&s;elf,</HI> Exceedingly. The mo&s;t of what he &s;aid, was, I &s;uppo&s;e, unto a Mini&s;ter, who Vi&s;ited him, the Day before his Expiration. Unto that Mini&s;ter, he Signifyed, That he <HI>was Rejoycing in the Hope of the Glory of God;</HI> That he <HI>was Longing to Go to the Precious Chri&s;t, whom he had Cho&s;e and Serv'd;</HI> That <HI>the Spirit of Chri&s;t, had Comfortably taken away from him the Fear of DEATH.</HI> When that Mini&s;ter urged him, to Leave with him, any &s;pecial De&s;ire, that he &s;hould Judge pro|per to be mentioned, He &s;aid, <HI>The Life of the Churches! The Life of the Churches! and the Dying Power of Godline&s;s in them; I be&s;eech you to Look af|ter that!</HI> The Mini&s;ter at la&s;t &s;aid, <HI>The Lord Je&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> Chri&s;t, is now, Sir, going to do for you, as once</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 span"> Jo&s;hua <HI>[your Names-&s;ake!] He is ju&s;t going to take from you, your old, &s;orry, ragged Garments. Tho&s;e of</HI>
<PB N="31" REF="17"> <HI>your Fle&s;h, and clothe you with change of Raiment, with the Garments of Heavenly Glory, and give you a place among His Angels:</HI> Whereto he Replied, with &s;ome Tran&s;port, <HI>I Believe it! I Believe it!</HI> After this, he &s;aid little, but Lay in an unea&s;y Drow&s;ine&s;s, until the Afternoon of the Day following; which was, <HI>The Lords Day;</HI> and then, even on the Day, whereon he had &s;o often been <HI>in the Spirit,</HI> he went unto the Ble&s;&s;ed <HI>World of Spirits;</HI> on the Day, which he had &s;o often Sanctifyed in a <HI>Sa|cred Re&s;t,</HI> he went into his <HI>Eternal Re&s;t.</HI> A <HI>Fatal Day</HI> was this Day unto our Land! It is an Omen of a &s;ad Fate unto a Land, when the <HI>Angels</HI> do &s;ay, <HI>Migremus hinc;</HI> Let us be gone! How far he had the <HI>Face of an Angel,</HI> while he Sojourned here, no doubt <HI>Envy</HI> may <HI>Cavil;</HI> and I have &s;ometimes, with wonder &s;een it, in the poor <HI>E|nergumens</HI> among us, that when the <HI>Mini&s;ter,</HI> who might be the mo&s;t likely to do them Good, came unto them, the Fiends that po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed them, would make the Mini&s;ters <HI>Face</HI> Look &s;o Dirty and Swarthy, that they mu&s;t by no means acknow|ledge him. This I may venture to &s;ay, with|out Flattery: It is Long ago, that in another <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 span">&s;e than <HI>Aquinas,</HI> we call'd him, <HI>An Angeli|cal Doctor;</HI> And he has now attained, <HI>The Face of an Angel,</HI> without the lea&s;t <HI>Wrinkle</HI> in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 span"> He is, with <HI>Stephen,</HI> and the <HI>Angels of God,</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 span">ne to Behold the Glory of the Lord JESUS <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">HRIST, and bear a part with the <HI>Many An|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="4 letters"> round about the Throne, &s;aying, Worthy is the</HI>
<PB N="32" REF="18"> <HI>Lamb that was Slain!</HI> I cannot but Recom|mend him to you, as one that was, <HI>A Candi|date of the Angelical Life;</HI> and &s;ollicit you to Re|member, not only the <HI>Le&s;&s;ons,</HI> and <HI>Coun&s;ils,</HI> and <HI>Warnings,</HI> which you have had from him, in private or publick Di&s;pen&s;ations, but al&s;o his <HI>Example,</HI> to <HI>Follow</HI> him, wherein he <HI>Fol|lowed,</HI> [and in many things he Followed!] <HI>the Lord JESUS CHRIST.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
<PB REF="18">
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