Mr. Richard Baxter's Funeral Sermon. t. 'Tis our more excellent Part in its Nature and Capacity. Man is a compounc ded Creature, of a Body and a Soul : the Body in its Original and Refolmion iS Earth ; the Soul is of a di,•ine Defcent, a [piritual Sub!l:ance, and in the Nobility and PerfeB:ions of its Nature, but a little lower than the A11gel.r : 'tis the vile Body, but the preci011s SoJtl. In its Capacity it incompa rably excels the Body ; for the Body lives and moveS in the low Region of the Senfes, that are common with the Worms of the Earth.; bm the Soul in itS Underfl:andi ng and Defires, is capable of Communion wi tli the bleffcd God, of Grace and Glory. From hence it is, that the whole World can't tmke one Man happy; for the Ingredients of true and compleat Happinefs are the Perfection and Sarisfafrion of the SouL The Apo!l:le tells us, The le{s I< blef!id of the greater. Can the World bri ng Perfection to Man, that is fo incomparably !hart of hi s f mperfettio~ ? Our Saviour affures us, the Gaiu of the wholeWorld cannot recompenfo the Lofi ofone So~tl. There is a vafl: Circuit in our Defires, and all the Lines terminate in the Centre of Bleffednefs. Can the World give fincere Satisfaction to them? Solomon who was as rich and high as the World could make him, has left an everlafl:ing Tefl:imony of the Vanity of tranfient Things, from his experimental Obfervation, and the Direct ion of the Holy Spirit: So he begins and ends his Sermon, &ot.f. , , VtmiiJ ofVauities, nil is Vanity ; fo vain and vexing, that we fhaU not only be weary '· & 12. s. of them, but of this Life, wherein we ufe them. Can the Crea ture make us happy, EooH '· . ,. when their Emptinefs, and Angui(b annex'd to it, makes our Lives mifcrable? Th~ World cannot farisfy our narrow Senfes : The Eye ;, not fiaiijied with feeing , nor the ;1;1,~~;~ ~~·~7~~1~~~~ ~!~~ htl;'~ Zfu~~~e~~re,~i~~i~~r~fr~f:~;il:~~~\t~:~ th;o~~~~ its £1Ife Colours. As when one awakes, all the pleafant Scenes of Fancy in his }:~~~h:;:~}~,h ~':.~;h~~~l~ch~~~~~~~r~~ec~e~/t~:~~ End of Life, the World and the thin°fr~n~ag[X~'~({e~:~h~ g~:~~rEj~;~c~~~ ~:],~~~o~f }~~e0~~\~~t~~~~~uu!~ of our firfl: Parent that broutrht him under a double D eath in one Sentence, tern.: poral and eternal; and that afi Mankind was defperately loll: in him, then his compaffionate Counfels were concerning his Recovery : His Love and Wifdom accorded to contrive the Means to acconiplilh out Redemption, by the Death of his incarnate Son: We arc not redeemed With S_ilver and Gold, hilt Jvith the precio11s Blood 1 Pet. i. cfCl>rift, a! a Lamb witho11t foot and blemifh. Of what value is a Son) in God's account, that he bought with his ownSon's Blood, the moO: facred T reafure of Heaven? \Ve may fay for the Honour of our Redeemer arid our own, that which the o animal Angels cannot, we were fo valued by God himfelf, that his Son became Man, and er;ge u:,un~ died on the Crofs for the Salvation of our Souls. I {hall only mention another Evi- ~~a~~·,~;~· dence and Effect of God's valuation of our Souls, the etmzal Weight ofGiory, which exceeds all the Thoughts of our Minds, and Defires ofour Hearts. What are all the Kingdoms and Pleafures of the World, in comparifon of that BleffednefsGod has prepar'd for thofe who love him? Now the Soul that is ine!l:imably precious, and Ihoo~1~~~ ~~~ i~~~r ti':n~~~:Ifc~~r~.fr~!,;':~g;r,is'~~~p~~~J~dd ~lj?r~i~~ ~r~~~f~ pies, frail ~nd mortal: A Cafualty or Sicknefs diffolves the vital Union, and it falls to the Dull:. But the Soul is a Spirit by Nature, and immortal by its inherent Property. Its fpiritual Operat ions perform'd without the mini!l:ry of the Senfes, ( the Eye of the Mind contemplates its Objects, when the Eyes of the Body are clos'd) demonftrate its fpiritual Nature: for the Being is the Root of its working, and confequ ently that it exifl:s independantly upon the Body: But of this we have the clear~ eO: a!furance in the Scripture. This is another D emonfl:ration that prefent Things cannot make ns happy, for they forfake us the firfl: O:ep we take into the next World, and then the Soul enters into Happinefs or Mifery equally eternal. The Immorta~ Jity of the Soul, and •he Immutability of its State, are infeparable then ; for the prefent Lite is the time of our Work, the next is of Recompence's according to out Works. If>w die i" the uwl, the Confeqnence is infallible, we !hall live with him !or ever : l f we die in our Sins, we !hall not be received by his merciful Hands, bur fall into his bottomlefs Difpleafure. And of what concernment is it to have our Souls with God in t!nt infinite and incomprehenfible Duration ? All the Meafures of Tiote, Days and Weeks, Months ano Years, and Ages, are fwallow'd up in that in- , ,iliblc Depth, as the Rivers that pour into the Sea, are (wallowed up without any OYcrflowingofits Waters. The Dove that No•h letoutofthe Ark, as a Spy to difMm m mm cover
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