ilISCOÚRSÈ IL - 435 sluices must be allowed to be held open a little; nature seems to demand it as a debt to lóve, and grace does not utterly forbid it : When Lazarusdied, Jesus groaned and wept: John xi. 33, 35. Yet let not sorrow triumph and reign, and like a flood break overall its bounds; rather give the stream of it a little diversion into a better channel. Come let us take the advice whichour blessed Saviour gives to the daughters of Jerusalem, who at- tended him to his cross with tears; Luke xxiii. 28. Weep not for me, but if you must weep, do it for yourselves, and your children ; because youare still left in the valley Of sin and sor- row, while the saints departed are arrived at the land of peace, and their feet stand upon the mountains of paradise. Could the voice of those blessed spirits made perfect reach onr ears, we should hear them speak in the language of their Lord, "°Weep not for us, but for yourselves ; you are still en- compassed with temptations anddifficulties, we have surmounted them all: You are wrestling with many errors, and entangled in dark and noisy controversies; we are perfect in knowledge,' and see divine mysteries in a divine light : You are labouring' in the race; we are crowned, and have received the prize : Yon are striving in the field of battle, andwe well remember the toil- some and painful conflict : we pity you, and call you rather to weep for yourselves than for us; we have finished all the war through divine grace, and are secure in the city of triumph : You are yet travelling through the valley of tears, we are re- freshing ourselves in the gardens of pleasure, and on hills of everlasting gladness. Hold on with courage, and faith, and patience? there are mansions of joy prepared for you also, and we wait your happy arrival." IV. Are the spirits ofjust wren in heaven made perfect, in the same excellencies and privileges Which they possessed on earth? Then if our curiosity, or our love, has a mind to know What are the circumstances of our pious friends departed, or how they areemployed above, let us review what they were here be -: low, and how they employed themselves when they were withus ; for, as I told you, in this life, we are trained up for the life of glory : We shall then be advanced to a glorious and transcen- dent degree of the same graces ; and there will be something in the future state of rewards answerable and correspondent t7, the present state of labour and trial. This thought necessarily calls our meditations backward a little to take a short survey of some peculiar characters of our excellent friend departed, that Me may learn to rejoice in the pre-' sent perfection of his graces and glories. - Sett..VIL=The character of the deceased.When I name Sir John Hurtopp, all that knew him will agree that I name a gentleman, a scholar, and a eheistian ; and neither of these E e 2
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