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the Title under which he expreffeth God in the former Verfe: The Hour cometh when the true Worshippers fhall worship the Father in Spirit and in Truth; for the Father feeketh fuch to worship him, for God is a Spirit, Now a good Father is not honoured by his Son, tho' he has the most beautiful Shape, tho' his Countenance fhews the Likeness of his Father, if yet his Son be a Villain or a Fool. A good Man is not at all pleased with his Child's outward Likeness to him, if he degenerates from his Father's Virtue and Wisdom, and bears no Refemblance to him in Moral Perfection, which is the Perfection of the best Part of his Nature. How much less can God, who is the Father of Spirits, who is alfo a pure and infinitely perfect Mind, without any Mixture of Body, how fhould he, I fay, be pleased with external Expreffions of Worship, that are no way like any Perfection that is in God, when that inward Goodness, that Spiritual Virtue is wanting, by which indeed we may refemble the Purity and Holiness of the Divine Nature? And the Homage we pay to God with our Bodies, when we want the Spiritual Endowments of a pious, and charitable, and a pure Mind, is to be sure as of little an Account with God, as the Bodily Shape of a Son, who is void of good Manners and Virtue, is pleafing to his Earthly Parent, who himself is a good Man. And

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therefore our Saviour intimating in this Place that God is our Father, doth thereby give us to understand why he, being a Spirit, must be worshipped in Spirit and in Truth, because they are our Minds and Spirits, by which we are like him, and bear any Refemblance to his Perfections, So then if by a vicious Will and worldly Affections we degenerate from him, we do him the greatest Dishonour we can, which we can never be able to repair by any outward Profeffion and Service.

And fo much for the Illustration of the Meaning of our Saviour's Words.

II. The fecond general Head was, to put in Caution against wrong Conclufions that have been made from these Words, by some that have perverted and abused them, to wit, that no Outward Worfhip is pleasing to God at all, but that he is rather offended with it, because it is unsuitable to his Spiritual Nature, at leaft, that the Care of fetting it out with any Rites or Ornaments, is not agreeable to the Simplicity of Evangelical Worship; and in particular, that no one Place is upon any Account more holy than another, and that Difference of Places is taken away by the Gofpel. Now altho thefe Confequences are very weak and foolifh, yet because inconfiderate Men have been carried away into the Belief of them, I cannot

I cannot think it befides my Business to say fomething to them; and that,

1. By fhewing that our Saviour's Reafoning in this Place does by no means exclude the Duty of giving Bodily Worship and External Honour to God.

2. By fhewing the abfolute Neceffity of fuch Worship, in order to true Christia nity.

1. That our Saviour's Reasoning here excludes it not. To this purpose I have already told you that Spiritual Worship is called true Worship, in Oppofition to Outward and Bodily Performances, not as Truth is opposed to Falfhood or Unlawfulness, but as it is opposed to that which is lefs perfect and lefs valuable. Now of this Way of Expreffion there are feveral other Instances in the Scripture; our Saviour faid of himfelf that he was the true Vine, and the true Bread, &c. But will any Man argue from hence either that there is no other Bread, or no other Vine, or that they are not to be ufed? God faid in the Old Teftament, I will have Mercy, and not Sacrifice; Now here is more Colour from these Words to exclude Sacrifice, as being from the Time unlawful to be offered. But who does not fee the Meaning of fuch Expreffions is to fhew the Preference of one thing before another, not that this is to be quite laid afide, but that in comparifon 'tis nothing to the

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former? And fhall not our Saviour give plain reason why God is incomparably more pleased with a pious and good Mind, than with all External Ways of honouring and worshipping him, but he must presently make all his Outward Service needlefs and unprofitable? Or is there any thing in the Scope of this Place, with the fhewing of which I began this Discourse, is there any thing at all in that, I fay, that excludes the outward Worfhip of God, which is agreeable to the Inftitutions of the Chriftian Religion, that forbids the vifible Profeffion of honouring God, by affembling together for his publick Service, that fhall hinder the building of Houfes for that Service, that fhall reproach the making of them beautiful and magnificent, fuch as may beseem that Use to which they are fet apart, or that fhall void all Rules and Provifions for the decent and orderly Performance of this Service in them? Here is indeed the Spiritual Worship which I have been defcribing, oppofed principally to the Legal Sacrifices and the Temple Service of the Jews, which were to be foon abolifh'd; and the reason given why it is infinitely better than thofe that were to ceafe, holds indeed, to give it the Preference too, to that outward Worship which was to fucceed, viz. because God is a Spirit; but it doth not hold to abolish all Kind of External Worship,

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but rather to establish that Outward Worfhip of the Gospel, which is more agreeable and ferviceable to the worshipping of God in Spirit and in Truth, than the Mofaick Service was. He doth not now require to be ferv'd with Sacrifices of living Creatures, or the Fruits of the Earth, but with the more reasonable Service of Prayers and Thanksgivings, without the other; and tho' the former was to be performed but in one Place, yet this may be offered up every where; and God now expects no Outward Worship to be performed in Religious Affemblies, but what Temples may be built for in any Place of the World, feeing he is every where prefent, and of every Nation be that feareth him, and worketh Righteous nefs, is accepted of him.

To conclude this Matter Tho' God is a pure Spirit, yet we are Bodies as well as Spirits, and there's the Authority of St. Paul as well as natural Reafon for it, that we are to glorify God in our Body, and in our Spirit, which are Goa's, 1 Cor. 6 20. caufe God is a Spirit, therefore the Worship of the Spirit is most valuable; but because we are Bodies too, therefore Bodily Worfhip is not to be neglected.

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2. This is abfolutely neceffary in Christianity, and therefore was never intended to be excluded by our Saviour in the Words of the Text. To omit the Example of our Saviour,

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