III. Another thing, against which a great deal has been said,
is having so frequent religious meetings, and spending so much time in
religion.
Indeed, there are none of the externals of religion but what are capable
of excess; and I believe it is true, that there has not been a due proportion
observed of late. We have placed religion too much in the external duties
of the first table; we have abounded in religious meetings, in praying,
reading, hearing, singing, and religious conference; and there has not
been a proportionable increase of zeal for deeds of charity, and other
duties of the second table; though it must be acknowledged that they are
also much increased. But yet it appears to me, that this objection has
been in the general groundless. Though worldly business must be done,
and persons ought not to neglect that of their particular callings; yet
it is to the honour of God, that a people should be so much in outward
acts of religion, as to carry in it a visible, public appearance of a
great engagedness of mind, especially at such an extraordinary time. When
God appears unusually present with a people in wonderful works of power
and mercy, they should spend more time than usual in religious exercises,
to put honour upon that God who is then extraordinarily present, and to
seek his face. Thus it was with the Christian church in Jerusalem, on
occasion of that extraordinary pouring out of the Spirit, soon after Christ's
ascension, Acts ii. 46. "And they continued daily with one accord
in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house;" and at Ephesus,
where the Christians attended public religious exercises, every day, for
two years together, Acts xix. 8, 9, 10. "And he went into the synagogue,
and spake boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading
the things concerning the kingdom of God. But when divers were hardened,
and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he
departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the
school of one Tyrannus. And this continued by the space of two years;
so that all they that dwelt in Asia, heard the word of the Lord, both
Jews and Greeks." And as to the grand objection of, six days shalt
thou labour; all that can be understood by it, and all that they very
objectors themselves understand by it, is, that we may follow our secular
labours in those six days that are not the Sabbath, and ought to be diligent
in them: not but that sometimes we may turn from them, even within those
six days, to keep a day of fasting or thanksgiving, or attend a lecture;
and that more frequently or rarely, as God's providence and the state
of things shall call us, according to the best of our discretion.
Though secular business, as I said before, ought not to be neglected;
yet I cannot see how it can be maintained, that religion ought not to
be attended, lest it should injure our temporal affairs, on any other
principle than that of infidelity.--None object against injuring one temporal
affair for the sake of another of much greater importance: And therefore,
if eternal things are as real as temporal things, and are indeed of infinitely
greater importance; then why may we not voluntarily suffer, in some measure,
in our temporal concerns, while we are seeking eternal riches, and immortal
glory? It is looked upon as no way improper for a whole nation to spend
a considerable time, and much of their outward substance, on some extraordinary
temporal occasion, for the sake only of the ceremonies of a public rejoicing;
and it would be thought dishonourable to be very exact about what we spend,
or careful lest we injure our estates, on such an occasion. And why should
we be exact only with Almighty God, so that it should be a crime to be
otherwise than scrupulously careful lest we injure ourselves in our temporal
interest, to put honour upon him, and seek our own eternal happiness?
We should take heed that none of us be in any wise like Judas, who greatly
complained of needless expense, and waste of outward substance, to put
honour upon Christ, when Mary broke her box, and poured the precious ointment
on his head. He had indignation within himself on that account, and cries
out, "Why was this waste of ointment made? For it might have been
sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor,"
Mark xiv. 3, &c. and John xii. 4, &c. Besides, if the matter
be justly examined, I believe it will be found, that the country has lost
no time from their temporal affairs by the late revival of religion, but
have rather gained; and that more time has been saved from frolicking
and tavern-haunting, idleness and unprofitable visits, vain talk, fruitless
pastimes, and needless diversions, than has lately been spent in extraordinary
religion; and probably five times as much has been saved in various ways,
as has been spent by religious meetings. The great complaint made against
so much time being spent in religion, cannot be in general from a real
concern that God may be honoured, and his will done, and the best good
of men promoted; as is very manifest from this, that now there is a much
more earnest and zealous outcry made in the country against this extraordinary
religion, than was before against so much time spent in tavern-haunting,
vain company-keeping, night-walking, and other thins, which wasted both
our time and substance and injured our moral virtue. The frequent
preaching that has lately obtained, has in a particular manner been objected
against as unprofitable and prejudicial. It is objected, that, when sermons
are heard so very often, one sermon tends to thrust out another; so that
persons lose benefit of all. They say, tow or three sermons in a week
is as much as they can remember and digest.--Such objections against frequent
preaching, if they be not from an enmity against religion, are for want
of duly considering the way that sermons usually profit an auditory. The
main benefit obtained by preaching is by impression made upon the mind
at the time, and not by an effect that arises afterwards by a remembrance
of what was delivered. And though an after-remembrance of what was heard
in a sermon is oftentimes very profitable; yet, for the most part, that
remembrance is from an impression the words made on the heart at the time;
and the memory profits, as it renews and increases that impression. A
frequent inculcating the more important things of religion in preaching,
has no tendency to rase out such impressions, but to increase them, and
fix them deeper and deeper in the mind, as is found by experience. It
never used to be objected against, that persons upon the Sabbath, after
they have heard two sermons on that day, should go home, and spend the
remaining part of the Sabbath in reading the Scriptures, and printed sermons;
which, in proportion as it has a tendency to affect the mind at all, tends
as much to drive out what they have heard, as if they heard another the
apostles to preach every day, in places where they went; yea, though sometimes
they continued long in one place, Acts ii. 42, 46. and xix. 8, 9, 10.
They did not avoid preaching one day, for fear they should thrust out
of the minds of their hearers wheat they had delivered the day before;
not did Christians avoid going every day to hear, for fear of any such
bad effect; Act ii. 42, 46. There are some things in Scripture that
seem to signify that there should be preaching in an extraordinary frequency,
at the time when God should introduce the flourishing state of religion
in the latter days; as Isa. lxii. 1, 2. "For Zion's sake will I not
hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness
thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that
burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy
glory." And ver. 5,6. "For as a young man marrieth a virgin,
so shall thy sons marry thee: And as a bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride,
so shall thy God rejoice over thee. I have set watchmen upon thy walls,
O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night." The
destruction of the city of Jericho is evidently, in all its circumstances,
intended by God as a great type of the overthrow of Satan's kingdom. The
priests blowing with trumpets, represents ministers preaching the gospel.
The people compassed the city seven days, the priests blowing the trumpets.
But, when the day was come that the walls of the city were to fall, the
priests were more frequent and abundant in blowing their trumpets; there
was as much done in one day then, as had been done in seven days before;
they compassed the city seven times that day, blowing their trumpets,
till at length it came to one long and perpetual blast, and then the walls
of the city fell down flat. The extraordinary preaching that shall be
at the beginning of that glorious jubilee of the church, is represented
by the extraordinary sounding of trumpets, throughout the land of Canaan,
at the beginning of the year of jubilee. And the reading of the law before
all Israel, in the year of release, at the feast of tabernacles; and the
crowing of the cock at break of day, which brought Peter to repentance;
seem to me to be intended to signify the awakening of God's church out
of their lethargy, wherein they had denied their Lord, by the extraordinary
preaching of the gospel that shall be at the dawning of the day of the
church's light and glory. And there seems at this day to be an uncommon
hand of Divine Providence, in animating, enabling, and upholding some
ministers in such abundant labours. |