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<DATE>2014-09-30</DATE>
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<NAME>Simon Charles</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
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<P>THE DOVE, WITH AN Olive-Braunch In its Mouth; OR, GODS <HI>Mercy</HI> to <HI>Sinful</HI> MAN. Delivered in a <HI>SERMON</HI> at Great St. <HI>Helens</HI> London, <HI>March</HI> 15. 1662.</P>
<P>BY A B. CHEESMAN, A Mini&s;ter Blind from his Child-hood.</P>
<P>LONDON, Printed for the Author, in the Year 1663.</P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
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<Q><BIBL>Ephe&s;. 2. Ver&s;e 4<HI>th.</HI></BIBL>
<P>But God who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us.</P></Q>
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<P>THE Apo&s;tle in the fore-going Ver&s;es, lays down a five-fold Character that is agreeable to the condition of all men, while they continue in a Natural condition, Fir&s;t, They are <HI>dead in tre&s;pa&s;&s;es and &s;ins;</HI> As a man that is dead in re&s;pect of his body can contribute nothing for the re&s;titution of the life of his body: So tho&s;e that are dead in re|&s;pect of their Sins, they can contribute nothing for the re&s;ur|rection of their Souls; there is no Rea&s;onable man will look for Health and Strength in the Grave. Secondly, <HI>They walk ac|cording to the cour&s;e of the world;</HI> that is, they love to travel in the broad way where there is mo&s;t company; here they conform them&s;elves to the multitude. It is a certain &s;ign of a Corrupt heart, when men think that any action may pa&s;s for Current coin, if they follow therein a General Cu&s;tom. Thirdly, <HI>They obey Satan.</HI> All men whiles they continue in a &s;tate of Nature, they walk <HI>according to the Prince of the Air.</HI> Fourthly, <HI>They fulfill the de&s;ires of the fle&s;h,</HI> and they live after the Fle&s;h, not after the Spirit, they live as they li&s;t, they follow their own corrupt Imaginations. Fifthly, <HI>They are the Children of Wrath,</HI> they de&s;erve to be tormented in Hell for ever, and they are every moment lyable to fall under the wrath of God; and this is the Condition of all Men and Women by Nature: <HI>But,</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle, <HI>God who is rich in mercy, for the great love where|with he loved us:</HI> Then he proceeds to &s;hew the Dignity and Privilege to which tho&s;e that belong to the election of grace in due time do attain through Chri&s;t. The Mercy of God is the main thing to which I will &s;peak at this time, and the Doctrine is this,</P>
<PB N="2" REF="4">
<P><HI>That God is exceeding Merciful,</HI> or, <HI>There are riches of Mer|cy in God.</HI></P>
<P>And this does &s;ignify Readine&s;s in God to &s;uccour the crea|ture in di&s;tre&s;s; God has Compa&s;&s;ion without any Pa&s;&s;ion; and here I &s;hall give you divers particulars that God is exceeding Merciful; I &s;hall begin with the fir&s;t, That God is Merciful. And this will appear if we con&s;ider that his Mercy is of a &s;preading nature; the whole world is a large Volume written within and without with Characters of Mercy; the mercy of God is over all his works, he openeth the hand of Liberality and &s;upplieth the want of every Creature; 'tis Mercy that calls down &s;ea&s;onable &s;howers of Rain to refre&s;h the Thir&s;ty ground; 'tis Mercy that &s;ends the Sun, with a load of Ble&s;&s;ings, from one end of the world to the other; 'tis Mercy that cloaths the Fields with Gra&s;s, the Vallies with Corn, and the Spring with Flowers.</P>
<P N="2">2. It appears that God is Merciful, becau&s;e he looks upon Mercy as his Glory; when <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> de&s;ired to have a &s;ight of Gods Glory, <HI>God pa&s;&s;ed by him and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long &s;uffering, and abundant in goodne&s;s and truth, keeping mercy for thou&s;ands, forgiving ini|quities and tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion and &s;in;</HI> God looks upon Mercy as the choice&s;t thing that belongs to his Crown; Men oftentimes would be glad if they could find an opportunity to revenge and inflict their malice on them they have a Controver&s;ie with: but God he deals with &s;inners in a contrary way, he looks upon it as his Glory to pa&s;s over tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions iniquities and &s;ins.</P>
<P N="3">3. It will appear that God is exceeding Merciful, if we con|&s;ider that he Delights in &s;hewing Mercy, he doth not willingly afflict the Children of men, Judgement is his Strange work, Acts of Severity they are in a manner forced from God, he doth not puni&s;h till he is provoked by our &s;ins, but Acts of Mercy are performed by him with Delight, becau&s;e they are mo&s;t &s;uitable to his di&s;po&s;ition; as the Bee that gives Honey naturally, but it does not &s;ting but when it is forced; he had rather Quicken and make alive, than Kill and de&s;troy; God had rather hold up, than overturn and make de&s;olate; Ju&s;tice never takes place un|le&s;s it be to revenge the quarrel of abu&s;ed Mercy, like to the
<PB N="3" REF="4"> Prince de&s;cribed by the Poet; thus God is &s;wift to Reward, but &s;low to Puni&s;h. It is remarkable, God was longer in de&s;troy|ing One City, than in building the Whole world, he created the World in &s;ix days, but he was &s;even days in accompli&s;hing the de&s;truction of <HI>Jerico;</HI> God had rather glorifie his Mercy in Saving of Sinners, than in the Puni&s;hing of them. <HI>Ezekiel;</HI> 3.11. <HI>Say unto them, As I love, &s;aith the Lord God, I have no plea&s;ure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live: Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways, for why will you dye O Hou&s;e of I&s;rael?</HI> Here you &s;ee that God doth not delight in the de&s;truction of Sinners, the Confirmation of it is with an Oath, and there is an U&s;e of Exhortation, <HI>Turn ye, turn ye, why will ye dye O Hou&s;e of I&s;rael?</HI> God he profe&s;&s;eth that he <HI>hath no plea&s;ure in the death of a Sinner.</HI> And if it be Objected as it is in the 1. of <HI>Proverbs,</HI> and the 26. Ver&s;e, <HI>I will laugh at their Calamity, I will mock when their fear cometh,</HI> I an&s;wer, the Death of a Sinner may be con&s;idered two ways, as it is an Act of Ju&s;tice to puni&s;h a wilfull breach of the Law, and then he doth delight in the Death of a Sinner, but otherwi&s;e he doth not delight in the Sinners de&s;truction.</P>
<P N="4">4. It appeareth that God is merciful, becau&s;e he oftentimes &s;uffers other Attributes to be at a lo&s;s when he &s;hews mercy, namely his Ju&s;tice and Faithfulne&s;s. Fir&s;t in his Ju&s;tice, it doth often darken that in pardoning wilful &s;inners; Wicked men are apt to think that God doth not take notice of their evil ways, therefore they confidently walk on in vain cour&s;es, and becau&s;e God is &s;low in Puni&s;hing, therefore they are bold in Sinning.</P>
<P>Secondly, God oftentimes &s;eems to forget his faithfulne&s;s, by &s;hewing mercy, 3. <HI>Jonas</HI> 4. there <HI>Jonas</HI> is &s;ent with this Me&s;|&s;age, <HI>Yet forty days and Nineve &s;hall be de&s;troyed,</HI> but take notice, they believed the words of the Prophet, and accordingly pro|claimed a &s;olemn Fa&s;t, and they humbled them&s;elves greatly be|fore the Lord; but what follows? God gave a Commi&s;&s;ion to the Angel to put up his Sword, and &s;o they were delivered from en&s;uing dangers. God had &s;ent a threatning me&s;&s;age to King <HI>Ahab</HI> by his Prophet, but becau&s;e he <HI>humbled him&s;elf, God re|pented of the evil he thought to bring upon him.</HI> So in the 18. of <HI>Jerem.</HI> the 7 and 8 Ver&s;es, <HI>At what in&s;tant I &s;hall speak concern|ning
<PB N="4" REF="5"> a Nation, and concerning a Kingdom, to pluk up, and to put down, and to de&s;troy it; if that Nation again&s;t whom I have pro|nounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.</HI> And becau&s;e this place of Scripture is &s;o excel|lent to the purpofe, I &s;hall crave a little time to in&s;i&s;t on it.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, There are &s;pecial times wherein God will puni&s;h &s;in|ners, for tho&s;e Iniquities that are committed among&s;t them.</P>
<P>Secondly, The time will come wherein God is re&s;olved to puni&s;h a people, but yet he will not &s;trike, till fir&s;t he &s;peaks and gives a timely warning, <HI>at what in&s;tant I &s;hall speak concern|ing a Nation, to pluck up, and de&s;troy.</HI></P>
<P>And, Thirdly it is ob&s;ervable, That when a people turns from their evil ways, and repent of their evil doings, whereby they have provoked God to anger, he will repent him of the evil he thought to do to them.</P>
<P>But it may be objected, Doth God alter his Decrees? there is no &s;uch matter; You may &s;ee in the 6. of <HI>Zacharie,</HI> and the 1. Ver&s;e, there the Prophet &s;ees four Chariots coming forth from between the two Mountains of Bra&s;s; the four Chariots &s;ignifie Angels &s;ent forth into the world, to &s;hew unto men &s;everal di&s;pen&s;ations of God; and the two Mountains of Bra&s;s, do &s;ignifie the firmne&s;s and &s;tability of Gods Decrees; the De|crees of God are unchangeable; Men often repent of their acti|ons, becau&s;e of &s;ome inconveniency that is in them, but now God, by vertue of his Omni&s;ciency, having a full &s;ight of all things that &s;hall come to pa&s;s, he cannot repent, &s;o as to con|demn his own righteous coun&s;els, and therefore you have it in the 23. of <HI>Numbers,</HI> and the 19. Ver&s;e, <HI>God is not a man, that he &s;hould lye, nor the Son of man, that he &s;hould repent: hath he &s;aid, and &s;hall he not do it? or he &s;poken, and &s;hall he not make it good?</HI> God is infinitely wi&s;e in all his determinations, and it were bla&s;phemy to think that God will di&s;approve that which he hath decreed originally. God is &s;aid to repent in Scripture in his Attributes, and &s;eeming to imitate mens actions he is &s;aid to repent, but the Acts of God they are eminent Acts of God, they &s;tand like the Laws of the <HI>Medes</HI> and <HI>Per&s;ians,</HI> that alter not: God &s;ometimes willeth indeed a Change, but never chan|ges
<PB N="5" REF="5"> his Will, and to this purpo&s;e &s;aith St. <HI>Bernard,</HI> God doth &s;ometimes change a Sentence he hath pronounced, but never changes the Coun&s;el he hath decreed. And thus much for the fourth particular, God doth often &s;hew mercy to the &s;eeming lo&s;s of his Ju&s;tice and Faithfulne&s;s.</P>
<P N="5">5. It appears that God is merciful, becau&s;e he invites &s;inners to accept of Life and Happine&s;s, as it is in the 11. of St <HI>Matth.</HI> and the 28 Ver&s;e, <HI>Come unto me all ye that labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you re&s;t;</HI> and in the 55. of <HI>E&s;ay,</HI> and 1. Ver&s;e, <HI>Ho, every one that thir&s;teth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money: come ye, buy and eat, yea, come, buy Wine and Milk without money, and without price.</HI> And oh that &s;inners would but take notice of the bowels of Chri&s;t, that are yearn|ing towards them! how often, through the fooli&s;h ob&s;tinacy of a perver&s;e heart, have you refu&s;ed the offers of Grace, Life, and Salvation! and yet behold a door of mercy is &s;et open, and you are &s;olemnly invited to enter in; if God were not merci|ful, he would not knock at the doors of &s;inners hearts &s;o as he doth.</P>
<P N="6">6. He doth not only give Invitations to &s;inners, but he doth exerci&s;e a great deal of patience and forbearance towards them, he patiently waits upon them during the time of their Impeni|tency, and yet bears the wrong that is done to him. If a man had the meekne&s;s of all the Angels in Heaven, and all the Saints on Earth, and did &s;it in Gods place but for one hour, he would &s;oon turn the world to ruine and de&s;olation, as St. <HI>Cyprian</HI> &s;peaks. The patience of God is greatly to be wondred at, if we con&s;ider that God is acquainted with all the &s;ins of all men in the world, his patience doth not proceed out of Ignorance, he knoweth the hearts of all his Creatures, and takes notice of their wicked actions, there is nothing hid from him, he knows the &s;ecrets of all hearts; and further, he doth not only know the wickedne&s;s that is in the world, but he hates it, and he hath power enough to revenge it; 'tis not for want of power, that he doth exerci&s;e &s;o much patience. And thus much for the demon&s;tration of the Point, I &s;hall only make &s;ome U&s;es, and &s;o conclude.</P>
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<P N="1"><HI>U&s;e</HI> 1. Is to the people of God, Oh be per&s;waded, and prevailed with, by the riches of mercy that are in God. There are divers. Sea&s;ons of Mercy.</P>
<P N="1">1. There is Preventing mercy. God finds his people in a &s;tate of Nature with other men, he finds them Children of Wrath, and he makes them Ve&s;&s;els of Ho|nour, He comes to them when they are not able to Pitty them&s;elves. That is Preventing mercy; and then there is</P>
<P N="2">2. Pardoning mercy. God is willing to pa&s;s by the Iniquities of his People; though they have been full of reproachings and back&s;lidings again&s;t him, yet he is wil|ling to take and receive them again; God doth &s;o for|give, as that they &s;hall be fully delivered from Con|demnation. All the Afflictions that do befall the Chil|dren of God in this life, are not in regard of the &s;atisfaction of Gods Ju&s;tice, but to Purify them, as he is pure.</P>
<P>Thirdly, There is Directing mercy in God. He will not let his People to take a &s;tep in the dark; he will be to them a Piller of fire, leading them in the wilderne&s;s of this World.</P>
<P N="4">4. There is Providing mercy in God. He will cer|tainly provide for his own Children, he will give them &s;uch a portion of Outward things, as he knows to be mo&s;t needful for them; he will give them what they want, though not always what they wi&s;h; rather than Gods Children &s;hall want, he will cau&s;e Water to come out of the &s;tony Rocks, and the Clouds to rain down Bread in the Wilderne&s;s, and will not fail to give them a &s;ea&s;onable Supply in all times of their need.</P>
<P N="5">5. There is Protecting mercy in God. He leads them to their Chambers of Pre&s;ervation, in the mid&s;t of Ruine and De&s;olation.</P>
<P N="6">6. There is Crowning mercy in God. Oh often medi|tate upon that. He will put a Crown of never-fading
<PB N="7" REF="6"> Ble&s;&s;edne&s;s on his Childrens heads, they &s;hall have an exceeding, &s;urpa&s;&s;ing, eternal weight of Glory; they &s;hall have a Sea of Honey, for every Crum of Gaul. How happy will it be for them, when they &s;hall be laid up in the &s;ure imbracing arms of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, when they &s;hall never have &s;in in their &s;ouls, nor &s;in in their pre|&s;ence.</P>
<P N="2">2. Ob&s;erve the Malignant nature of Sin, that can cau&s;e Wrath in the bo&s;ome of a Merciful God. Were it not for Sin, God would be continually &s;miling upon his Crea|tures. Certainly never an Arrow that is &s;hot again&s;t us in a way of Suffering, but we have &s;hot it up in a way of Sinning. Labour therefore to receive tho&s;e Mercies from God, which may draw your hearts nearer to God. God is mo&s;t liberal in be&s;towing great mercies, that with earne&s;tne&s;s of &s;oul we &s;hall beg of him; As for mercies of the left hand, they are mercies that the be&s;t of Gods Children may want, and the wor&s;t of &s;inners may have; therefore take heed of murmuring; God is merciful, there|fore we are not to murmure at his Docrees; God is not to give an account of any of his Actions to his Creatures. I remember that of <HI>Au&s;tin,</HI> As none can lawfully com|prehend, &s;o none can ju&s;tly reprehend the Ju&s;tice of God.</P>
<P N="2">2. Do not murmure at the Laws of God. Men are &s;ubject to think that Gods Laws are too &s;trict and preci&s;e, or too narrow, they would have it a broader way: but remember, that the Laws that we are bound to make our rule to walk by, are the Laws of a merciful God, and there is none of them but it is for the Glory of the Crea|tor, and God of the Creature to keep.</P>
<P N="3">3. Do not murmur at the Providence of God. Faith and Patience, Humility and Heavenly mindedne&s;s, the&s;e are mo&s;t &s;weet in time of Affliction; and though God be exceeding merciful, yet we mu&s;t take heed that we abu&s;e not this Mercy, as <HI>Tertullian</HI> &s;peaks, Mercy improved will open the &s;ure&s;t, &s;o Mercy abu&s;ed will pull down the &s;ore&s;t Judgement; the Mercy of God, if we lay hold of
<PB N="8" REF="7" MS="y"> it by Faith and Repentance, it will appear our &s;weete&s;t Friend, but if we neglect it, it will become our greate&s;t Enemy; if Mercy be thy Accu&s;er at the La&s;t Day, who wilt thou have an Advocate for thee? That Fury that doth ari&s;e from Abu&s;ed Mercy it is dreadful and intollerable, that Mercy thou neglecte&s;t now in the time of thy health, if thou &s;halt continue therein; none &s;hall be more dread|fully tormented in Hell than they that have trifled away the choice&s;t opportunity of Mercy. Oh, &s;eeing God doth lead thee with Cords of Love, let Mercy prevail with thee to return unto the Lord, for if the White Flag be drawn in, the Bloody Flag will be &s;et up, and if the Spi|rit of Grace be neglected, it will turn to a Rod of Iron at la&s;t, and break thee in pleces like a Potters Ve&s;&s;el. And &s;o much &s;hall &s;erve for this time.</P>
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