218 / 674
198
THE
DEATH
OF
SAINTS
IMPROVED.
[SEAM.
XLI.
Boned.
Blessed be the
Lord
who
bath
given me
"
hope
in
death,
while
the wicked are driven
away
in
their
wickedness,
driven far
away from
hope
and
heaven,"
.Prom. xiv.
32.
4.
The death of impenitent
sinners does
another
ser-
vice also for
the
saints,
in
that it
sensibly excites their
pity
and
their prayers
for the
living.
It
awakens
the ex-
ercise
of
pious
charity
for the souls
of
their
friends,
that
are yet
in
the
gall
of
bitterness, and in the
bond
of
ini-
quity.
A
true
Christian,
that
has
tasted of the
grace
of
God,
can hardly
be
supposed
to
see his
impenitent
neigh-
bour
seized with
sudden death, and sent
away to
dark-
ness,
but it
touches the
springs
of
holy
tenderness
with-
in
hirn,
and constrains
him
to
speak
a
word
to others
in
the
same danger,
and
to
lift up
a cry to
God
upon
their account
for grace and salvation. Surely that
christian
is
not
in a
right temper of
mind, who
can
see
or hear
of impenitent
and
guilty souls seized away from
his
neighbourhood or
his
acquaintance, and plunging
into eternity
with
horror
and despair, and yet have no
compassion awakened
in him, no bowels
of
pity moving
for
those
of
his
acquaintance
that
are
involved
in
the
same iniquities, and are
yet
in the
land
of
the
living,
and
on
this side hell. Such an awful
providence
is
like
a
warning-word
which
heaven
puts into
our
mouths,
that
we
may echo
it
with solemn
horror
round
the
neighbour-
hood,
and
,try to rouze
stupid
sinners
from
their
danger-
ous and fatal lethargy.
[Here
is
a
proper
pause
in this sermon,
if it
be too long
to
be
read at once.]
But
it
is
time
now to
leave this
general head, and
go on
to the next.
Thirdly,
If
the
death of hardened
sinners
turns
to the
advantage of the
saint,
the death
of
fellow
-
christians
shall
certainly
work for
his
benefit too.
You
will
be
ready
to say,
"
What
?
Can the lost of
good men from the
earth
ever
be
turned
into a benefit?
Can
the
death
of
saints bring any
advantage
to
the sur-
vivors
?"
Yes, surely,
if
they die like
christians
indeed,
in
the
lively
exercises
of
faith and
hope;
and
this
will
appear;
in
these
four particulars
:
I.
It
confirms
our
faith
in
the
gospel
of
Christ, and
supports
our.
holy profession.
It
gives us
an assurance