Fenner - Houston-Packer Collection BX5037 .F46 1651

CHRISTS alarm to plow and harrow and till the ground that our feed may quicken this is the very end of Preaching, that our hearers may heare and live. Secondly, as it is the end of all true Miniflers preaching, Cs it is the nature of all true and right Preaching; either to quic- ken, or to be a fitted inflrument of quickening ; when David heard the word, it quickened his heart, thy word high quicken me, Pfalj t940. And indeed it is never heard nor preach,: aright, unleffe it be in a quiekning way ; and therefore let us not think it is only the taking of a Text, and the fpeaking of good and whol{ome truths, but let us ever remember what right Preaching is, that our Miniflrybequiekaing, that God may afleóf our foules, and accompany our words, and teach us how to go beyond the policy of nsens hearts, and dire& us how to drive the truth home to the quick, to anfwer the evafions of flefh and blood, and fó put his live coale into our fpeeches, that our Sermons may be warming. Thirdly, lec us confider this is onely profitable Preaching ; we may preach all the dayes of' our life, and our people J Gird no more then a mill -poll, unleffe our Miniffry be quickening; they may heare what we fay, but unleife we could quicken their hearts, they will forget all again ; it may be they may remember the Doélrine, but J meane they will forget to doe what they heare ; it is the quickening that makes any re -. member to praelite; as David (ayes, L will never forget thy precepts, for with them thou haft quickened me, Phi l.t t 9, 92. We can never forget that friend, whom our hearts doe molt dearely affet ; to when our Miniflry doth quicken and affect peoples hearts, they will never forget what they have heard; The quickening of the corne in the earth, makes it the fafler in the earth, it twills about the earth, it gets a rooting if' it quicken ; fo it is with our Sermons, if they be quickening, they get about peoples Joules, and will not out againe; other - wife they are never the nearer. Fourthly, let us confider this kind of Preaching onely will yeeld us true comfort ; when our M;niflry is lively in our Pari(h,

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