Sermon VIII - Sanctifying the Name of God in Hearing the Word
the Lord takes care that all things shall be sanctified for their good, for the furtherance of their eternal good.
And how ever it be here, yet hereafter at the great day of Judgment it will be a part of the glory of God to manifest before men and angels how He did accept of those holy services that thou didest tender up to Him; when hypocrites shall be cast away and abhorred, and thou who hadest an upright sincere heart shalt be owned before God, and before men and angels at that great day, and God shall say, Well, it is a part of the glory of My holiness to make it appear that I have accepted of these holy things, that these my poor servants have tendered up to Me. And this now is of marvelous use for the comforting of a gracious heart; those duties that thou doest now think thou hast lost, and there will nothing come of them, thou shalt certainly hear of them another day, God will make it appear, there is nothing that He stands more upon than the glory of His holiness; and it is the glory of His holiness that is thy strength in this thing and that makes it certain to thee that there must be a manifestation of thy acceptance; and therefore take these truths into thy heart about sanctifying the Name of God. You have had only the point in general opened to you. Oh, that the Spirit of God would bring things unto your remembrance.
Sermon VIII Sanctifying the Name of God in Hearing the word
LEVITICUS 10:3
I will be sanctified in them that come nigh Me.
We have (as you may remember) preached many sermons upon that point, of sanctifying the Name of God in the duties of His worship.
We have spoken unto the point in the general, the last day we finished it. I do not intend to look back to anything that was said, but we are to proceed to show how the Name of God should be sanctified in the particular duties of His worship. Now the duties of God's worship are especially these three:
1 The Hearing of the Word.
2 Receiving of the sacrament.
3 And Prayer.
Other things come under worship, but yet these are the three chief duties of worship, and I intend to speak to all these three, and to show how we should sanctify the Name of God in drawing nigh unto
Him, in the Word, sacrament, and prayer.
We might choose several Texts for all these, but they fall full within the general and therefore it shall be sufficient for to ground the sanctifying of God's Name in these duties of worship upon this text.
1. Of sanctifying the Name of God in the hearing of the Word.
That which we are to speak to this morning it is the sanctifying of the Name of God in the hearing of His Word. If you would have the ground of what we are to say concerning this in a particular
Scripture, you may have it in Luke 8:18, "Take heed therefore how you hear." It is not enough to come to hear the Word, that is good, and no question but God is pleased with the willingness of people to come to hear His Word, but you must not rest barely in hearing, "but take heed how you hear." Now this is a point of great consequence and I hope it may do good to help to make many sermons to be profitable to you, and the point I hope is seasonable and will be very suitable unto you. For those that come to hear so soon in a morning and are willing even in hard weather to come out of their beds, they
give some good testimony that they do desire to honor God in their hearing, and to get good by their hearing; and it is pity that labor and pains should be bestowed and no profit but hurt rather got by it, which God forbid. Therefore, now I am to speak to a point that may help you so to hear, as may recompense all your labor and pains in hearing. In preaching to those that come to hear, that so they may get good and benefit by it, there is a great deal more encouragement than to such as come in a formal way because they use to come; therefore, this point being a great point; I shall open it somewhat largely, and shall cast it into this method:
First, I shall show you that the hearing of God's Word is a part of the worship of God, for otherwise I could not ground it upon any text.
Secondly, I shall show you how we are to sanctify God's Name in the hearing of His Word, either in regard of preparation unto it, or our behavior in the hearing of the Word.
Thirdly, why it is that God will be sanctified in this ordinance of His.
Fourthly, how God will sanctify Himself in such that do not sanctify His Name in the hearing of His Word.
Fifthly, how God will sanctify His Name in ways of mercy to those that are careful to sanctify His Name in the hearing of the Word.
These are the five principal things that concern this argument.
For the first, that the hearing of God's Word it is a part of God's worship. You heard in the opening of the worship of God in the general what it was, I told you it was a tendering up of the creature's homage to God, a testimony of the respect that the creature did owe to God; now if that be the nature of worship, certainly the hearing of God's Word it is a part of the worship of God, for in the hearing of God's Word we,
1 First do profess our dependance upon God for the knowing of His mind and the way to eternal life. Every time we come to hear the Word, if we know what we do, we do thus much, we do profess that we do depend upon the Lord God for the knowing of His mind, and the way and rule to eternal life; we do as much as if we should say,
Lord, of ourselves we neither know Thee, nor the way and means how we should come to be saved, and therefore that we might testify our dependance upon Thee for this thing, we here present ourselves before Thee. Now this is a testimony of the high respect we owe to God.
2 Secondly, the hearing of God's Word is a part of His worship, because in it we come to wait upon God in the way of an ordinance, to have that good conveyed to us by way of an ordinance beyond what the thing is able in itself to do, and therefore 'tis worship. I wait upon God when I am hearing the Word (if I know what I do) to have some spiritual good conveyed to me beyond what there is in the means itself, this makes it worship. When I am busied in natural and civil actions, there I must profess that these things can do me no good without God, but I do not wait upon God in an ordinance for the conveyance of natural good beyond what God hath put into the creature; tis His blessing with it, that God in the ordinary course of His providence doth convey such natural or civil good in the use of those creatures. But now, when I come to hear His word, I here come to wait upon God in the way of an ordinance for the conveyance of some spiritual good that this ordinance hath not in itself, take it materially, but merely as it hath an institution in it, and is appointed by God for the conveyance of such and such things. God doth appoint meat to nourish me, and together with His appointment He hath given a natural power to meat to nourish my body that in an ordinary course of providence is enough for the nourishment of my body. But now when I come to hear the Word, I must look upon that not only as a thing appointed to work upon my soul and to save my soul by, not as a thing that hath any efficacy put into it in a natural way as the other hath; it's not the nature of the thing that carries such a power in it, but it is the institution of God, and the ordinance of God in it.
Now then, when I come to wait upon God in an ordinance for the spiritual good that is beyond the virtue of any creature to convey to me, certainly I worship God, that is a special part of worship to wait upon God in this way. Therefore, in these two respects, the hearing of God's Word it is a part of the worship of God, and I beseech you remember these two things every time you come to hear. I come now to give a testimony that I am not able to understand God and the way to eternal life of myself, but I do depend upon God for the knowledge of it. And here I come to wait upon God for the conveyance of that good to my soul that is not in the power of any creature to convey.
Now I worship when I do these.
But further (you shall find it more plain when we come to open how we should sanctify God's Name in the hearing of His Word) this is divine service, as much as any service can be performed. Heretofore our prelates and those kind of men, made all the worship of God to be in their divine service (as they call it) which was of their own inventions, and made light of the preaching or hearing of the Word, but the Word is a great part of that divine service that God requires of us in His worship, and in it you do tender up your homage to God.
You therefore must not only when you come to hear, think, I come to get something, I come to understand more than I did, and to hear such a man's parts, and the like, but remember you come to tender up your homage to God, to sit at God's feet and there to profess your subjection to Him. That is one end of your coming to hear sermons.
Now then you will say, what should be done in the hearing God's Word, so as God's Name may be sanctified? For that, as we opened in the general, that in the duties of God's worship there must be preparation, and then an answerable behavior of the soul, so here there must first be a preparation of the soul to this work, and then an answerable behavior of the soul in it.
1 There must be a preparation of the soul, so as when you come to hear, you may with all readiness receive the Word. The soul must be made ready, in Acts 17:11, there it is said, "These were more noble
than those of Thessalonica, in that they received the Word with all readiness of mind." The word is, with all alacrity as well as readiness; their minds were in a fit preparation to receive the Word; and the text saith, "They were more noble," the word that is translated "more noble," it signifies "better bred," for I do not take this Scripture, as if it were meant only of men that were earls or lords that did thus receive the Word with readiness, but they were of a more noble disposition, they were well bred men, so the Greek word signifies. A man sometimes preaching to a company of rude people that never had any good breeding, they will behave themselves rudely, they slight the Word, and like the swine, regard acorns rather than pearls.
And the Word is seldom so profitable to a company of rude people that have no breeding at all; but now there is more hopes to preach to men that have breeding. Men that are exercised in arts and sciences, and have some understanding, and so some ingenuity in them, they will hearken to reason.
Now there is a great deal of spiritual reason in the Word, there is a great deal to convince men that are but rational men; let a man be but a rational man and willing to attend to the Word, I say there is a great deal of reason to convince him in it, and it is a sign of good breeding, of men of ingenuity to be willing to hear the Word; who are those in a parish that so disregard the Word as not to hear it, but the ruder sort? There are many, I confess, that are men of parts perhaps the Word doth not prevail with their hearts to convert them; yet if they have any good breeding at all, if the Word be preached in a convincing way so that they see there is pains taken, and preached as the Word of God to them, they will vouch safe their presence at least.
But the rude multitude that know nothing at all, they had rather be in alehouses drinking and swilling; they never care to hear the Word.
As in such a place as this, there are very few of your miserable poor people that come to hear the Word. What place is there fuller of miserable poor people than this place is and yet what a poor appearance is there of such people at the hearing of the Word? But now those that have any ingenuity in them at all, or any breeding (for so the word is) they will receive the Word with readiness. But this
breeding here spoken of was a little higher than natural breeding; they were spiritually noble, and so they had a readiness in their hearts in receiving the Word. Now this readiness of heart in receiving the Word consists in these particulars:
First, when you come to hear the Word, if you would sanctify God's Name, you must possess your souls with what it is that you are going to hear, that what you are to hear is the Word of God, that it is not the speaking of a man that you are going to attend upon, but that you are now going to attend upon God, and to hear the Word of the eternal God. Possess your souls with this; you will never sanctify
God's Name else in the hearing of His Word; therefore, you find that the Apostle writing to the Thessalonians, he gives them the reason why the Word did them so much good as it did. It was because they did hear it as the Word of God, 1 Thess. 2:13, "For this cause also
(saith he) thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the Word of God, which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth the Word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." Mark, so it came effectually to work, because they received it as the Word of God; many times, you will say, come, let us go hear such a man preach; Oh no, let us go hear Christ preach, for as it doth concern the ministers of God that they preach not themselves, but that Christ should preach in them.
So, it concerns you that hear not to come to hear this man or that man, but to come to hear Jesus Christ. We as the ambassadors of Christ do beseech you, saith the Apostle.
2. Possess your hearts likewise with this consideration, that I come to hear the Word as an ordinance appointed by God to convey spiritual good to my soul, and this is a very useful consideration, and especially it concerns men of understanding and parts for the helping of them to hear. For men that are of understanding and parts, when they come to hear, this temptation is ready to come upon them, that except they hear some new thing that they did not understand before wherefore should they come? I am able to understand as much in such a point as can be said. And when I have come and heard many
times, I have heard but that I knew before, and upon that they think there is no use of coming to hear. Now this is a great mistake, when you come to hear the Word, you do not come always to hear what you did not know, it may be sometimes God may dart in something that you did not think of before, or so fully understand, but suppose it be not so, you are to come to it as an ordinance of God for the conveyance of spiritual good to your souls.
You will say, cannot we sit at home and read a sermon? But hath God appointed that the great ordinance for the converting and the edifying of souls in the way to eternal life? True, there is some use of it, but the great ordinance is the preaching of the Word, faith comes by hearing, the Scripture saith, and never by reading, so that though when you come to hear, you do not hear that which you heard not before, yet you come to attend upon this ordinance for the conveyance of some spiritual good that it may be hath not been conveyed before, or in a further degree than it hath been conveyed before. And so, you should come to hear the Word with your hearts possessed with that meditation, that it is the Word of God, and the great ordinance that God hath appointed for the conveyance of spiritual good. So that I come now in obedience to God, and in this do I testify my respect to God, that I will attend upon this ordinance of His for the conveyance of Spiritual good to me, and although I may think that this or the other means may do the deed as well, yet because God hath appointed this to be His ordinance, therefore in obedience to Him I will attend upon this means rather than upon other means. As you know, Naaman he thought the other waters would have been as good as the waters of Jordan to have healed him, but if God will appoint him the waters of Jordan that they should heal him rather than other waters he must wash there; no question but other waters had as much natural virtue in them as they had, but because the waters of Jordan were the ordinance that God for that time had appointed to cure his leprosy withal, he must come and wash in those waters rather than in any other. So, because preaching of the Word is the great ordinance that God hath appointed for to convey Himself by, therefore He doth require that thou shouldest
show thy respect to Him, so far as to attend upon Him in this ordinance.
2 The second thing that is to be done in way of preparation, it is to plow up the fallow ground of your hearts, and not to sow amongst thorns, as you have it in Jer. 4:3 and so in Hosea 10. The Word of God, you know, is compared to seed in that parable of Christ in Matthew 13. And an auditory is compared to the ground, I suppose you are all acquainted with that parable of the sower, that it is to set out the ministry of the Word, and what fruit it hath upon the hearts of men; a congregation is like the field; and a minister preaching is like the sower that sows the seed in the field. He knows not which truth, whether that or the other will prosper, the seed being sowed in some part of the ground is lost, and in another part it grows; so in one pew the seed of the word is lost, in another pew it grows up. But now if people that are compared to the ground would so hear the Word as God's Name may be sanctified in it, their hearts must be plowed as if one should sow seed upon green soil, sow it in the fields upon green grass, what would become of it? The ground must first be plowed for the preparation of the seed.
But you will say, what is the meaning of the plowing of our hearts for the preparation of the Word? The meaning is nothing else but this the work of humiliation, the humbling of the soul before the Lord when it doth come to hear God's Word.
Humble it in these two regards:
First be humbled for your ignorance that you know so little of God's mind as you do.
Secondly, be humbled for all the sinfulness of your hearts, be sensible of the sinfulness and wretchedness of your hearts and the miserable condition that you are in, if you can get your hearts broken with the sense of your sin and misery, and come so to hear the Word,
it is very likely the Word may be of mighty use, and God's Name may be very much sanctified in your hearing of the Word.
You will say, must we plow up our hearts before we come to hear? It must be the Word that must plow us, the Word is the plow, and so the ministers of God are compared to plowmen in the Word, "He that puts his hand to the plow and looks back is not fit for the kingdom of heaven."
It is true, it cannot be expected that the heart should be thoroughly plowed as it ought but by the Word, therefore at the first coming to hear there is not hope that men will sanctify God's Name till the Word gets in to plow them, and so by getting at one time into their hearts they come to be prepared for hearing at another time. And yet somewhat may be done before by that natural knowledge that men have, they may come to know themselves to be sinners, and come to understand themselves to be very weak and ignorant by some knowledge that they may have by the works of God, and by conference with others, and by reading and the like, and so they may in some measure come to have their hearts to be humbled. And it is good to make use of these to humble the heart. But now, you that have heard the Word often, and yet have not sanctified God's Name, there be truths that you have heard heretofore, that if you had made use of in private to have, plowed up your hearts, they would have prepared your hearts for the next time in hearing of the Word. If therefore you would hear the Word with a great deal more profit than formerly, your hearts must be plowed by humiliation.
2. Secondly, the heart must be plowed by laboring to get out those thorns that are in the heart, those lusts that grow deep in the heart as thorns grow in the ground. Labor to pluck them out, that is, when thou comest to hear the Word get thy heart into that frame as to be willing to profess against every known sin that thou hast found in thy heart, labor to find out those lusts that are in thy heart and then profess against them that thou art willing to have them to be rooted out of thy heart. If men and women would but do thus when they
come to hear, that God might see this in them, that they have before they come professed against every known sin, this would be an excellent thing indeed.
3. Again in the third place, which will follow from hence, when thou comest to hear the Word, come with a resolution to yield to whatever
God shall reveal to be His mind, "I am now going to hear Thy Word, Oh Lord, to wait upon Thee, to know what Thou hast to say to me, and Thou that art the searcher of the secrets of all hearts, Thou knowest that I go with such a resolution to yield up myself to every truth of Thine," how would the Name of God be sanctified if you did thus come to hear the Word. If you did come with such a resolution,
Job 34:32, "That which I know not, teach Thou me; and if I have done iniquity, I will do no more." In Isaiah 2:3, you have a prophecy of the Gentiles, how they should come to the Word, "And many people shall go and say, come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord to the house of the God of Jacob, and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths." Here is a blessed disposition when you come to hear the Word, some of you come together in streets and lanes, and over the fields, when you come together, and meet one with another as you walk over the fields, make use of this text. Oh, that this prophecy might be fulfilled in your coming over the fields every Lord's Day morning and at other times, that you would say one to another, or when you call one upon another to go to hear, come let us go up to the house of the Lord and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths. We are resolved that whatever the Lord shall teach us to be His ways we will submit unto it. This is a due preparation of the heart for the sanctifying of God's
Name in the hearing of His Word.
4. When you come to hear the Word, come with longing desires after the Word, come with an appetite to it. As in 1 Peter 2:2, "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word that you may grow thereby." Do it as newborn babes. Now you know little babes they do not desire milk to play withal but only to nourish them. Children of three or four years old, they may desire milk to play with; but
newborn babes never care for it but when they are hungry to nourish them. And so it is true, many come to hear the Word to play with it, but now you should come to hear the Word as newborn babes, with a hungering desire after the Word that your souls may be nourished thereby. That were excellent if every Lord's Day, and at other days you did come as hungry to the Word as ever you went to your dinner or supper. The Word of God should be to you more than your appointed food, and then you are likely to grow by it and to sanctify
God's Name in it.
5. Pray beforehand, that God would open thine eyes, and open thine heart, and accompany His Word, thus did David, "Open mine eyes O
Lord, that I may understand the wonders of Thy Law." And you know what is said of Lydia, "the Lord opened her heart to attend to the Word that was spoken." Now seeing it is an ordinance thou doest expect more good from than what itself of its own nature is able to convey, thou hadest need to pray, "Lord I go to such an ordinance of Thine, and I know there is no efficacy in itself, it is not able to reach to such effects as I expect, that is to have my heart spoken to, and quickened, and to have mine eyes opened, but O Lord, open mine eyes and open mine heart; Lord, my heart naturally is locked up against Thy Word, there are such wards in my heart, that except
Thou art pleased to put in a key that may fit my heart, it will never open. Man, he is not able to know my heart, and therefore he cannot fit a key to answer every ward, to resolve every doubt, to silence every objection, but Lord thou canst do it. Do Thou Lord therefore fit Thy
Word this day that may meet with my heart. Lord, I have gone often to Thy Word, and the key hath stuck in it and it hath not opened; but Lord, if Thou wouldest but fit it and turn it with Thine own hand, my heart would open." Oh, come with such a praying heart to the Word, and thereby shalt thou sanctify the Name of God in hearing His
Word, this is to come to the Word, as to the Word of God, you must not come to the hearing of the Word as to hear a speech or an oration, but come in such a preparation as this is, and so I say God will be glorified, and you will be profited.
The next thing is, what should be the behavior of the soul in the sanctifying God's Name in the Word when it is come. Now to that there are these particulars.
1. First, there must be a careful attention unto the Word, you must set your hearts unto it, as Moses in Deut. 32:46, he said unto the people, "Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which you shall command your children to observe to do, for it is not a vain thing for you, because it is your life." Set your hearts to it, for it is not a vain thing, it is your life; when you come to hear the Word, give diligent attention to what you hear. In Acts 8:6, it is said, "The people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spoke."
They gave heed, the word is used often in Scripture, sometimes it is used for "to beware" of a thing, "beware of the leaven of the Pharisees." Beware of them, as a man when he sees an enemy and is aware of him, he is very diligent to observe how to avoid him; so there should be as much diligence to get good by the Word, as one would be diligent to avoid any danger whatsoever. And the Word signifies sometimes to give such heed as a disciple gives unto his master, so they gave heed to the Word. So, in Prov. 2:1, 2, "My son, if thou wilt receive my words and hide my commandments with thee, so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom," we must diligently attend, and not to suffer our eyes and our thoughts to be wandering, but diligently attend to what is said. My Brethren, there is all things that may challenge attention in the Word. What would make you to attend to anything?
First, if he that speaks were much above you, if it were a great Prince, or Lord that spoke to you, then you would attend. Now, though it is true, it is but a man, (that it may be, is inferior to most of you, that speaks) yet know in him it is the Lord of heaven and earth that speaks to you. And so, you know what Christ saith, "he that heareth you heareth Me." So, though you would not attend in respect of the messenger so much, yet as it is the Son of God that is speaking to
you, it may challenge your attention. This day if you should hear a voice out of the clouds from heaven speaking to you, would you not then listen? The truth is, we should listen as much to the voice of God in the ministry of His Word as if (so be that) the Lord should speak out of the clouds to us. And I will give you a Scripture for that, that the voice of God in His Word should be as much regarded of you as if God should speak from heaven to you by an audible voice out of the clouds. In 2 Peter 1:18, 19, "This voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with Him in the holy mount." But mark, in verse 19, "We have also a mere sure Word of prophecy whereunto ye do well that ye take heed." Mark, we heard a voice from heaven, saith
Peter, yea, but we have a more sure Word of prophecy whereunto ye do well that ye take heed. There was a voice from heaven spoke, you will say, if we had heard that voice we would have given heed to that.
Saith the Apostle, you have a more sure Word of prophecy.
Now prophecy in Scripture is taken for preaching; despise not prophesy. As if the Holy Ghost should say, you must have regard to the Word of prophecy as you would have regard to any voice from heaven. Suppose an angel should come and speak to you, would not you attend to him? Then whatsoever thoughts you had, they would be taken off, for there is an angel that is come down from heaven to speak. Now mark what is said in Heb. 1:1, "God who at sundry times, and in divers manners spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom
He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds." And then in verse 3, He describes his Son, "And being made so much better than the angels, as He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent Name than they." If a prophet should come and speak, that is not so much as if the Son of God comes; no, nor as if an angel should come, for Jesus Christ hath obtained a more excellent
Name than the angels, and it is Christ that is in the ministry of His Word, "He that heareth you heareth Me."
2. Secondly, that which would cause attention is the greatness of the matter propounded. It is true, if a man should speak of some slight
and vain things, there need not so much attention. My brethren, the matters in the Word are the great things of God, it is the voice of God, the great mysteries of godliness, those deep things that the angels themselves desire to pry into. Yea, the angels themselves by the churches they come to have the knowledge of the mysteries of God. I make no question but in the ministry of the Word among the churches, the angels they attend and come to some knowledge in the mysteries of godliness; for so the Scripture saith, that they have it by the churches there the greatest things of God's will, the greatest counsels of God that were kept hid from all eternity, are opened to you in the ministry of the Word. We do not come to tell you tales and the conceits of men, but to open the great counsels of God, wherein the depth of the wisdom of God comes to be revealed to the children of men, and therefore these calls for attention.
3. Thirdly, suppose they be great things, yet if they do not so much concern us, there is no such great reason of attention. Therefore, in the third place, that which we speak, it is your life; it is that concerns your souls and eternal estates, your souls and everlasting estates do lie upon the ministry of the Word, if that be made effectual to you, you are saved, if that be not made effectual to you, you are damned and undone forever. If we should come to tell you of something whereby you might get some good bargain, or of a way how to get great riches, I make no question, but you would rise though it were a cold or rainy morning. But know when you are called to hear the Word you are called to hear that which may do you good forever, that for which you may bless God for to all eternity with the angels and saints in the highest heavens. If they be such things of so great concernment, then there had need be a great attention. You know what Christ said to Martha when she was troubled about His entertainment (Luke 10:41) "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, but one thing is needful; and Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her." What did Mary choose? It was this, that she did diligently attend upon Jesus Christ to hear the Word from His own mouth, when Martha was busied in the house to provide for His entertainment, but it is a
better thing to attend upon the Word than to entertain Christ in your houses. You that are of loving dispositions, that if a good minister shall come to your houses, or a good Christian, that you see but the image of Christ in your hearts spring within you, and you will do anything to entertain them. Well, but what if Jesus Christ should come, if you knew that such a man that came within your doors were the Son of God, how would you bestir yourselves to entertain Him?
But know, it is a more acceptable service to Jesus Christ to attend upon His Word than to provide for Him in your houses. And there is great reason to, that we should be diligent in drawing nigh to the Word and give ear unto it, because you find that the Lord doth express Himself in the Scripture, how He gives ear to us when we speak to Him. God is said to incline His ear, sometimes to open His ear, sometimes to bow His ear, sometimes to cause His ear to hear, and divers such expressions there are to that purpose. Now if God, when we that are poor wretches speak to Him shall bow His ear, bend His ear, open His ear, cause His ear to hear, much more should we when we come to attend upon Him.
2. Secondly, as there must be attending to the Word of God, so there must be an opening of the heart to receive what God speaks to you, it is true, it is the work of God to open the heart, but God works upon men as upon rational creatures and He makes you to be active in opening your hearts so that when you have any truth come to be revealed, you should open your understandings, your conscience, and will, and affections, "Oh Lord, Thy truth which Thou art presenting here to my soul at this time let it come in, let me receive it," as the expression is in Prov. 2:1, "My Son if thou wilt receive My words," and then in v. 10, "When wisdom entereth into thy heart," the words of wisdom, the Words of God, they must enter into the heart, get in; it may be they get into thy ear, but that's not enough, they must get into thy heart, as in John 8:37. There Christ complains that His Word had no place in them; that's a sad thing when the Word of God shall have no place in the heart. If a temptation to sin comes, that hath a place in the heart, but when the Word comes, that hath no place in the heart. I say, it is a very sad thing that we can find
no room for the Word; we should get room for the Word. Open ye gates, stand open ye everlasting doors, that the King of glory may come in. Know that when you come to hear the Word, the Lord is knocking at the doors of your hearts; have not you felt it sometimes?
Open, O open the doors, let all be opened to receive the Word into your hearts. That is the second thing for the behavior of the soul in hearing.
3 The third thing is the careful applying of the Word, so in Pro. 2:2, there must be an applying of the heart to the Word, and an applying of the Word unto the heart. All action is by an application of the thing that doth act unto the subject, there must be an application of the Word to thy soul. As now, suppose thou comest to hear the Word, and thou hearest of some sin, that it may be thou knowest thou art guilty of. Take the Word and lay it to thy heart and say, The Lord hath met with my soul this day, the Lord hath spoken to me, to the end that I might be humbled for this sin, and the other sin that my conscience tells me I am guilty of. So doth the Lord put thee upon a duty that concerns thee? Acknowledge this, the Lord hath spoken to me this day and put me upon the reformation of my family, and the reformation of my own heart. Is there a Word presented? Apply that and let not the trouble of thy heart cause thee to cast off that Word that God hath spoken to thee; application of the Word to thy heart is of marvelous use, and it concerns not only ministers in general to lay before people the doctrine of the Gospel but to apply it and know that it concerns you as well as ministers to apply it. And not only when they come to that that is called use, but all the way in the opening of the Word, it concerns you all to apply it to your own souls, and to consider, how doth it concern me in particular? My brethren, there is no such way to honor God, or get good to your own souls, as the application of the Word unto yourselves. As a man that is asleep, if there be a noise made it will not awake him so soon but come and call him by his name (and say John, or Thomas,) and that will awake him sooner than a greater noise will. So, when the Word makes a noise, when it is delivered only in the general, men take little notice
of it, but when the Word comes particularly to the souls of men and doth, as it were, call them by name, this awakens them.
Now God many times doth speak to your hearts but you should apply it; you know the Word is compared to meat, and it must be applied to the body. Then do we worship God in a right way when as we take notice of God's Word, as concerning us in particular; as that notable
Scripture that you have in 1 Cor. 14:24, 25, where there comes a poor man into the church of God, and hears prophesying, hears the Word opened, and the text saith, "he is convinced of all, he is judged of all," and then in verse 25, "Thus are the secrets of his heart manifest and so falling down on his face, he worships God and reports that God is in you of a truth," that is, when the Word comes and meets with his soul in particular, that he finds himself to be aimed at by the Word, then he worships God, and saith that God certainly is in them. Here's the reason now that when you come to hear the Word you do not worship God because you apply it not to yourselves, you are ready to say, this was well spoken to such a one, and it concerns such a one, but how doth it concern thy soul in particular? Sometimes the Lord doth even force men and women to apply it whether they will or no, for that they think the minister speaks to them in particular, and that nobody was spoken to in the congregation but themselves. This is a mercy when the Lord doth it unto you; but it is a greater mercy when the Lord gives you a heart to apply it to yourselves, and although it may trouble you a little for the present, yet be willing to apply it, and account it a great mercy from the Lord, that the Lord will be pleased to speak in particular to your souls.
4. Fourthly, we must mix faith with the Word, or otherwise it will do us but little good; apply it and then believe it. In Heb. 4:2, it is said that "the Word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Wherefore there must be a mixture of faith to believe the Word that the Lord brings unto you. Now concerning that, I'll but propound these few particulars. You will say, must we believe everything that is spoken? Sometimes there are some things spoken that we cannot tell how to believe? I do not
mean so to believe everything merely being spoken, for you must take heed what you hear as well as how you hear; but do thus much at least.
1. In the first place, whatsoever comes in the Name of God to you, (except you know certainly it is not according to the written Word) you owe so much respect to it as to examine it, at least to try it whether it be so or no, as it is said of those well-bred men that I spoke of, that they did examine whether things were so or no. Do not cast off anything presently that comes in the Name of God. Now anything that hath the broad seal upon it, you must not disobey. You will say, it may be counterfeit but do not disobey it until you be sure it be counterfeit. Oh, that men would give but this respect to all things that they hear, never to cast them off until they have examined and tried whether they be so or no.
2. Secondly, do but grant this respect to the Word that is spoken to you, as to think thus, what if all that I hear spoken against my sin, which lays open the dangerous condition that my soul is in, prove to be true, what a case were I in then? This hath been the beginning of the conversion of many souls, the having but such a thought as this.
It may be things are not so terrible as I hear, but what if they do prove so? Then I am undone forever. Dare I venture my soul and my eternal estate upon hopes that these things are not so bad as I hear? I believe if you would put yourselves to it, you would think it a bold adventure, and the comfort that any of you have grounded upon this, merely hoping that things are not so bad as you hear; it is a cursed comfort that hath no sure bottom. Grant that respect therefore to the Word.
3. Thirdly consider this, it may be I do not see clearly that these things are so which are delivered, I do not see enough to believe them now, but what if I were now dying? What if I were now going to receive the sentence of my eternal doom; would I not then believe these things? Would I not then think what I hear out of the Word to be true? It is an easy matter for men to reject the Word while they