Repent and be converted: A sermon preached at a meeting of the people called Quakers, 1768. : Also the heads of a sermon, preached at Horsleydown Meeting, upon the close of a visit to Friends families in that quarter, the 19th of the eleventh month, 1769.

Repent and be converted: A sermon preached at a meeting of the people called Quakers, 1768. : Also the heads of a sermon, preached at Horsleydown Meeting, upon the close of a visit to Friends families in that quarter, the 19th of the eleventh month, 1769.

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Title page

A SERMON.

THE HEADS OF A SERMON PREACHED at Horsleydown MEETING. upon the close of a visit to Friends Families in that QUARTER, the 19th of the Eleventh MONTH, 1769.

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Repent and be converted: A SERMON Preached at a Meeting of the People called QUAKERS 1768. ALSO THE HEADS of a SERMON, Preached at Horsleydown MEETING, [...] the close of a visit to Friends Families in that Quarter, the 19th of the Eleventh Month, 1769.

PHILADELPHIA: PRINTED, and SOLD by JOSEPH CRUKSHANK, in Market-street, between Second and Third-streets. M, DCC, LXXVIII.

A SERMON.

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THERE is a passage in Sacred Writ, which has been revived in my remembrance during the silence of this meeting, and the train of reflections which it excited, has seal'd instruction to my mind, and furnish'd me with renewed cause of humiliation and gratitude; "Men and Brethren, what shall we do to be saved?"

Every person who seriously believes in the existence of a God, in a future state, and in the awful doctrine of rewards and punishments, cannot be indifferent respecting what may be his lot, when he shall be dispossessed of this frail Tabernacle of clay which he now inhabits, and which is approaching to the period of its dissolution; it cannot be a matter of indifference to him, whether he shall finally receive the irrevocable sentence of "go ye cursed into the regions of irremediable misery;" or ‘come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for the righteous, enter thou into the Joy of thy Lord, and into thy masters rest.’ This concern has prompted many to enquire what is essentially necessary for them to believe and practise in order to render them the proper objects of divine complacence and furnish them with a well grounded hope of a glorious and happy immortality. Many of the honest and sincere of every Nation under Heaven, have formed different ideas [Page]of the requisites to salvation, and of course have [...] as different measures to accomplish that desirable end. It is not my present business, to particularize any of those various systems of Faith, which are adopted by any party amongst mankind; it is not to controvert matters, in which sincere men of the various denominations most surely believe; but rather to recommend them always to stand open to conviction, and [...] attention to those rules of conduct, which appear to [...] most agreable to the will of Heaven. I shall therefore address myself to those, in whatever religious society they are found, whose honest inquiries have not yet been attended with sufficient conviction, or led them clearly to perceive what are the terms on which their future happiness depends, and who are therefore looking one upon another, whilst this important question is found, at least in their hearts if not in their mouths ‘Men and Brethren what shall we do to be saved?’

I shall not presume arrogantly to dictate to any respecting matters of so important a concern as that of the salvation of the Soul; every Man should exercise those talents with which the Father of lights has endued him, in a close and sincere attention to the voice of the internal Teacher, and in the discovery of those truths both practical and speculative which have an immediate relation to the happiness of a Being circumstanced as he is. I shall simply propose those things which from my own experience as an individual appear to me worthy of God for their Author, and worthy of Man's most serious attention. It is an indisputable truth that we made not ourselves: ‘We are thine offspring, thou hast made us and not we ourselves,’ says the prophet in his appeal to God. The matter which forms the universe, the vehicles which the soul informs, and the intellectual powers and faculties we possess, derived their being from the eternal maintain of all power and intelligence, whom we characterize [Page]by the awful names of Jah, Jehovah and God. It is also clear to me that we were brought into existence with the benevolent design of finally sustaining the confluent dignities of Glory, Honour, Immortality and eternal Life; the Lord Almighty hath in unspeakable mercy promised, that after we have endured a season of probation on earth, a conflict with our passions excited by numerous causes, and a fight of afflictions, we should finally receive a glorious reward, a perpetuity of unmixed felicity in the unknown regions of eternity. But this desirable and excellent end is not to be effected, by what is generally call'd fate, the laws of necessity, or the arbitrary will and power of the Author of our existence. God has constituted us free and intelligent beings, and endued us with faculties capable of apprehending and practising those duties which he makes the condition of our final acceptance with him he offers, but does not impose, happiness on his creatures; he shows us the spiritual Canaan, he gives us power to possess it, but does not compel us to enter into it; good and evil are clearly set before us, but our election is not constrained to either; the sovereign of the universe is no respecter of persons, for of one blood he made all nations that dwell on the face of the earth; they stand in the same relation to the universal Father, Shepherd and Bishop of Souls, who tenderly invites the whole race of Mankind to inherit the Joy of his Salvation. To this doctrine the holy Apostle bore an ample and explicit testimony: ‘Of a truth, said he, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons, but in every nation those who fear him and work righteousness shall be accepted of him.’— ‘If ye live after the flesh ye shall die, but if through the spirit ye mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.’ This is a proposition that relates to every individual in the vast community of Mankind, however circumstanced, whether bond or free, or in whatever climate he resides.

[Page] All this indeed may be acknowledg'd both by those within and without the audience of my voice, who are yet in doubt what they shall do to be saved with an everlasting salvation; they want to be intormed of the precise ideas that should be affixed to the conditions contained in the text, though perhaps they readily apprehend the terms life and death imply future happiness and misery. I shall therefore attempt according to the ability I am endued with, to give you my thoughts on the important subject in question at this time. To "live after the flesh" is to live in the gratification of our animal appetites and passions, beyond the bounds of reason, temperance and sobriety, which as it frequently introduces numerous disorders into the animal system, and aggravates the infirmities to which these corruptible bodies are incident, so it affects the good of society, and renders unfit for those contemplations and that felicity which is adapted to the dignity of rational and immortal spirits, beings whom God in his wisdom has made a little (and perhaps but a little) lower than the Angels, and who would crown them with a superior glory, honour and happiness than that which animal gratifications can confer on their deluded votaries. Whilst we are in the body we must expect to find those appetites, affections and passions which belong to our nature; but these are to be restricted within the bounds of virtue, and attended to in proportion to our exigencies and necessities, of which the divine principle which God has graciously implanted in our hearts ought to determine.

This principle of intelligence although call'd by a variety of names in the different professions amongst Men, is the same in nature throughout all Mankind. It is the spirit in Man that giveth a right understanding; it is the light that more or less enlightens every Man; it is the word of God in the heart; the word of faith which the Apostle preach'd to the Gentiles; it is the [Page]Grace that hath appear'd to all Men, teaching them to deny ungodliness and the worlds justs, and to live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world; and finally it is the supreme reason, the law of truth and rectitude, the test of virtue and vice, which God himself hath erected in the hearts of all Men; and happy are those who hear and obey it in all things.

I would not be understood to mean that this principle of which I am speaking is designed to instruct us in all truths which the human mind may attempt to investigate, or to give a clear insight into those numerous speculative subjects, which have, not only unprofitably employ'd mankind and diverted their attention from more substantial objects, but which have perplexed and divided them from generation to generation; but by the exercise of it we may apprehend those truths that belong to us, and have an essential relation to the important end of our existence; of which truths the Father of spirits has enabled us to judge; this is imply'd by the question which our Lord himself proposed to a people misled by the traditions of their fathers, and who had taken for doctrine the commandments of men, ‘yea and why judge ye not for yourselves, what is right?’

Various are our obligations and duties, religious, relative and social, arising trom our various connections, natural and divine: The relation we stand in to the Author of our being is that of Children; filial fear, obedience and worship is therefore our indispensible duty to him, in our conduct at all times, throughout our whole lives. The relation which our fellow creatures stand in to us is that of brethren, children of the same universal Father, and formed for the same glorious and happy and; justice, charity and brotherly kindness are therefore our indispensable obligations unto mankind. There are also various accidental relations, such as father, governor, master, servant and numerous others, all [Page]which have their corespondent duties. Thus far perhaps the persons whom I immediately address at this time may concur with me in sentiment, but they as well as I, are perhaps conscious of having fail'd in numerous instances of discharging their religious duties to God and their social duties to mankind. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God! we have multiplied our transgressions without number! and our iniquities rise before us as a thick cloud! which obscures the brightness of that eternal Sun of righteousness, which would otherwise illuminate our understandings with its marvellous light. Who, therefore, (says the illuminated penitent soul) shall deliver us from the body of this death? who shall take from us the weight of our sins under which we groan incessantly? who shall save us from the wrath to come? "Men and Brethren what shall we do to be saved?" The condition of our reconciliation and redemption are very clearly express'd in the sacred oracles of truth; the placability of the divine nature is repeatedly asserted; he is represented to us in the adorable character of a God of mercy, long suffering and of unspeakable kindness; as a Being ready to blot out our transgressions from the celestial register, on our sincere repentance, and to remember them no more.

This important and interesting doctrine was typified under the Law, spoken of by the Prophets, and gloriously asserted by the Son of God, who is our Mediator with the Father, and the hope of our future Glory. In his character was displayed to Mankind, in the most eminent and striking manner, the provident care, mercy and goodness of God toward the whole rational creation; who like sheep have gone astray from the universal shepherd and bishop of Souls, who have widely wandered from the paths of purity and holiness, which are ways of pleasantness and peace; that path of the [Page]just Man, which (like the luminous orb as it arises in our hemisphere) shines with increasing refulgency, splendour and brightness, till it arrives at the meridian altitude of a gloriously perfect day! This path leads all who steadily pursue its direction, by degrees of experience, through the wilderness of this world to the grand and ultimate end of our Creation, to that compleat fruition of bliss that is figuratively represented to us by ‘a City that hath foundations, whose builder and maker God is;’ a City ‘whose Walls are salvation, and whose Gates are eternal praise;’ a City that hath no need of the elementary light of Sun, Moon and Stars, "for the Lord God and the Lamb are the light thereof" a City where God reigns triumphantly amongst his saints, and is to them an inexhaustible fountain of light and felicity; there the weary pilgrim finds an end of all his anxiety and labour, and receives the reward of his faith, the fruition of his hopes, even the salvation of his Soul.

The important message which Christ had in commission from his Father and our Father, from his God and our God, was, that he compassionated his Creatures, encompass'd with the distresses which their sins had brought upon them, that he will'd not their everlasting separation from him the source of happiness, that he was willing they should be reconciled to him; he therefore call'd upon them to Repent and be converted that their sins might be forgiven them, and that they might finally enter into his rest. This was the interesting doctrine which the Saviour of Man promulgated, and happy are those who hear and obey it. ‘Repent and be converted that your sins may be forgiven you.’ It is not the assent of the lip and of the tongue to the glorious truths of the Gospel; but a surrender of the will and affections, a renovation of heart, and conformity to the divine Image, which can alone gain us admission into the New Jerusalem, the City of God.

[Page] If we take an impartial survey of our past lives, review our frequent revoltings, and compare our conduct with the convictions we have often received of right and wrong, virtue and vice, there is scarcely a Soul present but must feel some degree of remorse, some degree of repentance for the turpitude of his morals, and his want of love, obedience and gratitude to so gracious a Father, who has encompass'd us with blessings, and preserved us by his providence from the earliest period of our lives to the present hour; we must (I say again) upon serious retrospection, possess some degree of repentance; but unhappily for us the impressions that are made on our minds by such a review of our actions, are frequently erased by the influence which a variety of creaturely objects are suffer'd to have upon us, and like the early dew they soon pass away. Those who have been cleansed in some degree by the water of contrition, are often desiled again by the repetition of that iniquity which in the moments of their humiliation they had determined to renounce and forsake, they are again caught in the snare of their lusts, and captivated by those objects which have a tendency to alienate their affections from the supreme good. Thus when the force of conviction again sounds the awakning alarm, they are ready to query with surprise and anxiety ‘what is to be done in this afflictive dilemma to which our inconstancy to our virtuous resolutions has reduced us? shall we despair of that divine mercy we have so often abused of that goodness we have so long trifled with?’ God forbid! rather prostrate your Souls at the Throne of Grace, and humbly implore the continued mercy of the universal parent, as a Father pitieth his Children, so he pitieth them that fear him; he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that we are but dust; beseech him therefore to send forth help from his holy sanctuary, that you may be strengthned [Page]to renew and keep your Covenants with him; refrain from the commission or evil, and wait on him in the silence of all flesh; since it hath pleased him again to enlighten your darkness, and thus to give you to see yourselves as you are seen of him; he may also be pleased to inflame your hearts with that celestial fire which purgeth away all the intellectual sith and dross, that prevents the ascent of the Soul godward, and renders it an unsit habitation for his holiness to dwell in. As our backslidings have frequently corrected us and cover'd our minds with anxiety, let our future conduct directed by his Grace, atone for what is pass'd, and by a conversation ordered aright, let us glority our Father who is in Heaven.

I feel at this season the influence (in degree) of that celestial Charity which breathes through Immanuel to the whole creation of God, wishing salvation to every Soul that inhabits the earth; in which I intreat you (as a being subject to the same infirmities which you sometimes unavailably deplore) ‘repent and be converted;’ repentance you have frequently experienced, but too little I fear of that essential conversion which the Gospel of Jesus proposes, 'tis highly probable that some persons present have seen the necessity of that renovation of heart and reformation of manners intended by conversion, but urged by the powerful prevalency of their lusts, would if possible find some other remedy for a wounded conscience, than that which the simplicity of the Gospel requires, as a necessary prelude to the favour of God; like the young Man in the Gospel, they have been animated with a desire to be enroll'd amongst the disciples of Jesus, who are called Heirs of God and Co-heirs with Christ of that inheritance which is incorruptable and full of Giory; they have asked counsel of the wonderful counsellor, addresling him with this important question, ‘what good thing shall I do, [Page]that I may inherit eternal life?’ yet when the unchangable terms of salvation have been proposed, when they have been 'told that they must part with all their Idols, they have gone away sorrowful, the terms have appear'd too hard for them to comply with; and like Naaman who wanted to be cur'd of his Leprosy, and was stagger'd at the thought of taking so long a journey as the Prophet directed, are crying out ‘are not Abana and Pharphar rivers of Damascus better than all the waters of Israel, may I not wash in them and be clean?’ thus numbers amongst Mankind are striving to elude the measures which the Gospel of Jesus enjoins, and are substituting others in their stead, which are better adapted to sooth the carnal mind, and prevent that mortification which human nature shrinks from.

Man is desirous to possess the crown of eternal life, but not to bear the Cross; he would indeed reign with Christ, but not suffer with him; he would accompany him to the mount of transfiguration, but not to Golgotha; he would be his attendant at his Glorification, but not in the awful scene of his Humiliation.

Divers have wander'd as from mountain to mountain and from hill to hill, seeking for the living in the Sepulchres of the Dead, they have sometimes adpoted one creed, and sometimes another, practised external ordinances, and comply'd with empty forms, addressing themselves frequently to guides as blind and impotent as themselves with this awful enquiry ‘Men and Brethren what shall we do to be saved?’ "I say again, "repent and be converted," for this is the only way to find salvation to your Souls; no external cerimonies, no verbal confessions, nor any change of opinions merely, can accomplish this repentance and conversion, and afford you the consequent reward of a glorious immortallity, this important work of salvation [Page]must be effected in man, by the powerful operation of the Holy Ghost, which is a consuming fire to the adverse part in Man, to the corrupt and perverse will, which would not that Christ should reign in his Kingdom, and that God should be all in all. It is the Baptism of fire (of which John's was but a type) which discriminating the pure from the impure, gathers the Wheat into the Garner but consumes the chaff with unquenchable burnings.

In the world there are many voices which correspond not with the voice of Christ, the only Shepherd of Souls (whom we ought to hear and obey in all things) but are the voices of those who preach for hire and divine for Money; who look for their gain from their respective quarters; and as to such conscien ous Men who cannot put into their mouths, they are ready to make war against them; these have found it for their worldly interest to lead the deluded people from, rather than to Christ, that glorious High Priest of the Christian Religion; they have attempted to render that mysterious which the Holy Ghost has left clear, and to perplex the understandings of Mankind with vain metaphysical speculations, without making them either wiser or better. This class of Men whose God is their belly, and whose Glory is their shame, have indeed proved physicians of no real value; instead of laying the Axe to the root of the corrupt Tree, they have only attempted to lop off some of its branches; they have prescribed emolients, where the most searching [...] were expedient; and healing the wound of the daughter of Zion deceitfully have lull'd multitudes into a fatal security, flattering them with hopes which it is to be fear'd will finally end in disappointment. There are others who assum-the Office of Ministers, the purity of whose intentions my Charity will not permit me to doubt, who like a Man that attempts to answer a question before he has [Page]fully heard it, have too precipitately embark'd in the important work of instructing Souls relative to the affairs of salvation; these are like Ephraim ‘a Cake not turn'd,’ are not yet instructed in the way of God perfectly, and whilst they are teaching others, had need themselves to be taught, what are the first principles of the Oracles of God; they have run on the Lord's errand unsent, and therefore have not essentially profited the people; they have taken upon them to guide those who are inquiring what they shall do to be saved, and have led them indeed from the confines of Egypt, but leave them (undirected to the spiritual Moses) to wander in uncertainty and to compass a mountain of doubts in the wilderness. May he Lord Almighty in his mercy gather these who are wandering as sheep without a Shepherd, and lead them in o the sacred inclosure of his fold, into eternal safety.

Let it not be thought from any thing I have said, that I look upon all those who appear girded with the linen Ephod, of other Christian societies, either as Impostors, or the deluded votaries of Antichrist; I freely declare, that I doubt not but many of them have had a dispensation of the Gospel committed to them, and although they may be bias'd by the prejudice of education and the traditions of their Fathers, yet the root of the matter seems to be in them; and I esteem these (in whatever society they are found or in whatever vestments they are cloath'd) as my Brethren in the fellowship of the everlasting Gospel of Christ; yet I cannot direct the searcher after truth who is pensively enquiring what he shall do to be saved, to the Ministry of any Man; but would rather recommend him to the immediate teaching of the word nigh in the heart, even the spirit of God; this is the only infallible teacher, the primary adequate rule of faith and practice, and will lead those who attend to its dictates into the peaceable [Page]paths of safety and of truth. ‘Ye need not (says the holy Apostle to the Church formerly) that any Man teach you, save as this anointing teacheth, which is truth and no lie;’ cease therefore from Man whose breath is in his nostrils, and whose existence is but a vapour, for wherein is he to be accounted of? as a fallible being he is liable to frequent deceptions, and therefore liable to deceive; whereas the spirit of God cannot be deceived, neither will it deceive any Soul that yields itself to its Government and obeys its dictates.

O ye penitent Prodigals! my Soul earnestly longs for your restoration to the mercy and favour of God! ye who are reduced by your wanderings in the wilderness of this world to a state of extream poverty, to the want of that bread that comes down from the celestial Regions above, which alone can nourish the Soul up unto eternal Life! ye who are attempting to satisfy the cravings of an immortal spirit with the spiritless husks and shells of an empty profession of Religion! look towards your Father from whom you have revolted; remember that in his House there is bread enough and to spare; there your Souls may be replenish'd with ever enduring substance: Return, O House of Israel! and seek the face of your everlasting friend and Father! he has in unspeakable kindness declared that he will be found of those who seek him in sincerity of heart, and that as many as knock at the Gate of mercy for an entrance, shall be admitted to his presence, and receive the remission of their Sins.

The humble address which the Prodigal made to his Father (in that excellent parable given us by Christ) the Father's return to it, and the manner of his reception into favour, is exceedingly expressive of the becoming, penitence of the one and the mercy of the other; ‘I have sinned against Heaven and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy Son, make me [Page]therefore as one of thy hired Servants.’ The injured parent compassionates his distress, takes the Prodigal in his arms, owns him for his Son; orders the fatted Calf to be kill'd, and rebukes the envy of his elder Brother with, ‘this my Son was dead but is alive again, was lost but is found!’ O the height and depth! of the goodness and mercy of God! look unto him all ye ends of the earth and be ye saved.

Before I conclude, I find it in my Heart to address another class in this Meeting, a class who have earnestly sought and happily found him of whom Moses and the Prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth the Immanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us; you who once were scatter'd as sheep without a shepherd, on the barren mountains and desolate hills of an empty profession, but the Great Shepherd of Souls hath gather'd you within the sacred Inclosure of his Sheepfold, and you are under the peculiar protection of the Lord Almighty, you hath he pluck'd as brands out of the burning, and redeem'd to himself with the saving strength of his right Arm; may you ever remember his unutterable mercy, and dedicate the remaining moments of life to the honour of his Name. My Soul salutes you in the endear'd affection of the Gospel of peace, and wishes your establishment in Righteousness, that you may abide in holy patience the fiery tryal of your faith throughout the days of your Pilgrimage on earth, and become as fixed pillars in the celestial building, the house of God, that shall go no more out.

If ye abide in the word of faith by which ye have been taught, the malice of Men nor Devils, nor all the united powers of darkness, shall be able to pluck you out of the hand of him, who is your Judge, your King your Protector, your Father and your everlasting Friend When the earth shall be wrap'd together as a scroll, and the Sun and Moon be darkned, when every Constellation [Page]of the Heavens sinks into everlasting obscurity, and the Elements of this world shall melt with fervent heat; you will possess an habitation within the superior regions of a new Heaven and a new Earth, where the Lord your Righteousness dwells.

Many of pretended wise, learned and prudent who have sought to climb up some other way, rather than to enter by Christ, who is the door (by the conditions which he has proposed) into the sheepfold, may pity you as fools, or ridicule you as enthusiasts, count your lives madness, and your end to be without honour, but they will one day be astonish'd at the strangeness of your Salvation, when they see to their confusion that you are finally number'd amongst the Children of God, and that the lot of your Inheritance is amongst the Saints. In the World you are to expect tribulations of various kinds; pain, sickness, temptations and disappointments invade the breast of the most righteous and temperate amongst Men; the cup of mixture (more or less impregnated with the wormwood and the gall) is the lot of all Men, design'd doubtless to affect a valueable purpose, by him who afflicts not willingly, nor without a righteous and benevolent cause, the Children of Men; as the Heavens are higher than the Earth so are the ways of Almighty Wisdom higher than our ways, and his thoughts than our thoughts! We see a little, and but a very little of the amazing universal plan of his Government over rational and immortal spirits. It lies beyond the reach of the most exalted human faculties to comprehend his wisdom, throughout the righteous administration of his Providence, which is unsearchable! It is our duty as frail dependant beings to meet every dispensation of his Providence with that resignation of spirit, which incessantly breathes the humble language of "not my will O Lord! but thine, be done in all things!" Under the evils which we feel and [Page]which our prudence could not prevent, let us [...] implore divine aid to endure them with patience, than to pray that they may be removed from us; least like ignorant Children we should seek to avoid that portion from our Heavenly Father's Hand, which he graciously design'd to remove or prevent a greater evil. This is not the place of your rest, but a state of probation, a painful pilgrimage, a Land of pits and snares, through which lies a narrow Path to the regions of eternal Peace.

The Soul by reason of its connection, with the body, inclosed within the walls of flesh, cannot extend its views and employ its faculties on divine objects, without frequent interruption; but when the days of its captivity are accomplish'd, it will be capable of a more glorious expansion in the Kingdom of Immortallity, and (if bearing the inscription of Holiness) will be put in possession of that Joy which is unspeakable and full of Glory. Therefore in all those calunities to which we are subject in the house of our pilgrimage, we have a place of refuge to flee to, where safety is alone to be four is though indeed we must feel in degred as Men, yet [...] may possess the patience, resignation and holy [...] of Christians, who are looking for a better Country, a more excellent Inheritance in that City whose Inhabitant cannot say "I am Sick."

Be ye therefore stedfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know than your labour shall not be in vain. Be ye in your several stations in the Church, and the world, as way-marks to the honest inquirers who are asking their way to Zion, and from a true sense of their condition are crying out "what shall we do to be saved?" shew forth by your example of Charity, Sobriety, Temperance and Holiness of Life, that you are redeem'd from the spirit of the world, that lies in wickedness; be not captivated by [Page]its trisling amusements, nor insanred by its lying vanities, but retain the fear of the Lord which will keep the heart clean, and prove a source of surest consolation when all things else will be unavailing! let the purity of your lives demonstrate that you are attentive to things more excellent, things that are permanent and eternal, essentially relating to the salvation of the Soul! by this means you will become the consecrated Temples of the Holy Ghost, and be a means of leading others in the way of Righteousness!

Finally, my Brethren, farewell! I commend you to God, the Shepherd of Israel, and to the word of his Grace; this is alone able to build us up in the most holy faith, to direct our feet in the way of Righteousness and Peace; and finally to put us in possession of a glorious Inheritance amongst the saints, that will never fade away.

THE HEADS OF A SERMON
PREACHED at Horsleydown MEETING. upon the close of a visit to Friends Families in that QUARTER, the 19th of the Eleventh MONTH, 1769.

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A SOLEMN summons which the Almighty gave through his Prophet Joel, to a People whom he had known above all the families of the Earth, (at a time when they had revolted and departed in Heart from him) has been revived in my mind; with an apprehension that the same authority requires the republication of it in this day, to a People likewise highly favour'd of him; and who have in like manner departed from their first love.

‘Blow the Trumphet in Zion—sanctify a fast—call a solemn assembly—gather the People—sanctify the Congregation—assemble the Elders—gather the Children and those that suck the breast—let the Bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the Bride out of her closet—let the Priests, the Ministers of the Lord, weep between the Porch and the Altar; let them say, spare thy People O Lord! and give not thy heritage to reproach, that the Heathen should rule over them! wherefore should they say amongst the People, where is their God? then will the Lord be jealous over his Land and pity his People.’

[Page] As I am about to conclude (perhaps finally conclude) my labours amongst you in this Quarter; I would query with some, with many that are present, whether they have not heard intelligibly the sound of the Trumpet, calling them with a degree of certainty, to arise and prepare themselves for the Battle. My Brethren and Sisters, amongst whom I have been constrain'd in the overflowings of the Fathers Love, to labour in a private capacity, breaking (I hope I may say) a little bread from house to house—the everlasting Gospel has been preach'd amongst you with all the force of pathetic energy, with all the tenderness of divine compassion; let it not be ineffectual! The Gospel message has been deliver'd with such indubitable clearness, that your judgments have been convinced, you have assented to "the Truth as it is in Jesus;" suffer not the impressions it has made on your minds to be speedily erased. Far, very far, be it from me to think highly of myself, to exalt the Officer, the Minister. I would not that you should hold any Man's person in high estimation. I am deeply sensible that to me belongs "blushing confusion of face," but I magnify mine office, and the power of him who has seen meet to employ me therein; I would endeavour to exalt in your view the adorable goodness and condescension of the great Author of all mercies, in that he has caused the Trumpet to be renewedly sounded in your borders; hear its important message with suitable attention; let it rouse and prepare all the ranks in the Armies of our Israel, to engage in the glorious Cause of our God. Let the Daughter of our Zion arise from the bed of Indolence; from the lethargic stupor of a fatal forgetfulness; from all the deadning benumbing gratifications of sensuality, and shake herself from the dust of the earth, that she may come up to the help of him who hath called her with an high and holy calling. The Trumpet [Page]is blown in her streets, the alarm has been heard by all, Oh! let not its language be rendered unintelligible by the multiplicity of trivial things that too much absorb the minds of many.

I am fully persuaded that the gracious Visitation of humbling melting goodness, has been afresh extended to individuals present, in (I had almost said) a very memorable manner; nor will I recall the expression, for if it is not treasured up in your remembrance now, for your prosit and advantage, it will be memorable in that awful approaching period, when every neglected mercy will appear deeply engraven, as a dread ‘Handwriting on the wall,’ against us. Let me therefore tenderly intreat you, with all the warmth of unutterable affection, as a Brother, as a fellow Pilgrim, through the vicissitudes of time to the unmix'd Joys of a happy eternity, that you will no longer neglect the offers of Mercy, or turn a deaf ear to the reproofs of Instruction. I feel my mind covered with that boundless Love, that wishes, that ardently desires, you may indeed be wise for yourselves: For although I may be deficient in many qualifications of a Gospel Minister, I am not wanting in that pure disinterested Love, which seeks not yours but you. ‘Blow the trumpet in Zion; sanctify a Fast.’ If we were but enough attentive to the sound of the Trumpet, we should see the absolute necessity of this sanctified fast; a fast from every of those delusive pleasures, those slavish attatchments, that render the mind insensible of Good. ‘Call a solemn Assembly.’ This branch of the summons (may some say) belongs only to a few, and we have no share in the duty it enjoins. I confess I am of another opinion: I think every Individual has a share in the Instruction couch'd in it. "Call a solemn Assembly." Oh! you active ones, stop a while in your swift carreer; make a solemn pause; stand collected from every object that [Page]can gratify or delight the sensual part; labour diligently to assemble all the powers and faculties of your Souls, that they may be sanctified by him who gave them. I believe there is no useless, dead, unactive member in the Church of God; and those that can thus assemble the collected attention of a redeemed mind, devoted to do the divine will, have an undoubted right from the highest Authority to call an holy convocation. ‘We can do nothing against the Truth but for the Truth,’ was the language of some formerly, who had indeed sanctified an acceptable Fast. I much desire that those who perhaps cannot be so active in promoting this glorious Cause amongst the Sons of Men, as some who are called into more eminent stations in the Church, may by a circumspect care over all their words and actions, see that they do nothing against the Truth. "Call a solemn assembly; gather the People." How scatter'd are many of the members of this Quarter! scatter'd indeed as sheep without a shepherd! dispersed up and down in the dark vale of insensibility and self-forgetfulness! many upon the barren Mountains of an empty profession; [...] to all sense of religious fellowship; unacquainted with that holy union in which is the bond of Peace! How many are the Gallios I have met with amongst you, who (a as! it may be said) care for none of these things! Oh you Elders! who are or might have been as Pillars in the Lords House; you delegated Shepherds, who might have adorned the first ranks in the armies of our Israel, if you had not sat down and taken up a rest short of those glorious abodes, which are prepared for them that steadily persevere in the line of divine appointment—to you the call is, "Gather the People."

"Am I my Brothers keeper!" let it suffice for me that I look to myself, and that my own Family is in tolerable order, is a language that too much prevails. [Page]But Oh! that you had the Cause of God more at heart that you were more engaged to gather the People that you might with a Fatherly care overlook those whose minds at present resemble the barren desert, the uncultivated wilderness; that you might comfort and encourage them that tread the gloomy scenes of an adverse allotment, as it were cut off from every Joy, and alive to each painful sensibility; how would it comfort many of these, if an experienced friend was now and then to drop into their families, and at times speak a word, in the opening of divine wisdom, suitable to their several states: I believe it would be a great means of gathering the People. Why should your care be circumscribed within the narrow limits of your own Families (altho' they should certainly be well regulated) but you might be more extensively serviceable, if thus engaged in the care of the Houshold of God. I am persuaded that the divine wing would be over you, and a Blessing would attend your labours. 'Tis not a time for us to dwell unconcerned in our ceiled Houses, when the House of God lies waste. We have, many of us, the same tender connections as you; I myself have the same endearing attachments as some of you, the same ties of domestic Love, and perhaps as deeply sensible of all their force, as some of you; not less attentive to every relative and social duty, than some of you; my Nature is not harsh, my Principles much less so; yet I am made willing to leave all, to come and labour with you; if so be I might be instrumental to rouse any to a more ardorous pursuit of their everlasting Interest; and I can freely acknowledge, with humble thankfulness, that I never more fully experienced my Peace to slow as a River; never could with greater Joy say ‘return Oh! my Soul to the place of thy rest, for the Lord thy God hath dealt bountifully with thee,’ than when I have been thus [Page]engaged in extensive private labours; visiting the sick; reviving the sorrowful; encouraging the disconsolate; strengthening the weak; watching over and carefully admonishing the giddy incautious Youth; and I doubt not but you would have the reward of Peace in your own bosoms, if as heads of the society you were more often thus employ'd in endeavouring to ‘gather the People.’

"Sanctify the Congregation; assemble the Elders." I have been deeply concern'd to see some of the Elders so deficient in filling the line of divine appointment. If they were more frequently engaged to assemble under the holy influence of that power in which they should move, they would many of them be commanded to "blow the Trumpet in Zion;" but I know of no state harder to speak to or more difficult to reach, than that of an Elder whose mind is overgrown by the earthly nature; ‘Oh! Earth, Earth, Earth! hear the word of the Lord.’ I don't recollect any other instance in sacred writ, where attention is demanded in a similar manner; "Oh! Earth, Earth, Earth!" thus thrice repeated, plainly signifying the great difficulty there is in reaching to those, who are as it were buried in the earth, whose minds are fixt in it.

"Gather the Children." You that have the rising Youth under your care, let me call upon you, let me intreat you to "gather the Children;" gather them from all the bewitching enticing allurements of the world, gather their attention to that of God in their own minds. Oh! how have I secretly mourned to see the poor Children so sorrowfully neglected; so uninstructed; so much estranged to that holy divine principle, which would so exceedingly beautify and enrich them! but alas! how few Parents are rightly qualified to teach their Children the law of divine love; to instill into their tender minds proper sentiments, to cultivate upon [Page]them those impressions that would be of everlasting advantage; and if the Children, when the gracious visitation of the Father of mercies moves upon their hearts, warming and animating them with the Love of Virtue, raising the secret sigh, and begetting desires after Heaven and Holiness: I say if the Children shou'd then ask the negligent parent; ‘what is this secret something which I feel; this principle which impresses my mind with the love of Virtue? what is it? what value shall I set upon it?’ How then can you give them suitable instruction? you cannot teach them obedience to its sacred dictates, when your own example speaks a language quite opposite: Oh! why should the Sea Monster be brought against you ‘the Sea Monster draweth forth the breast to her Young but the Daughter of my People is become cruel! but the Daughter of my People is become cruel as the Ostrich in the Wilderness that leaveth her Eggs in the Sand to be hatched by the beams of the Sun, and considereth not that the Foot of the Passenger may crush them!’ the Daughter of my People hath left her tender Offspring to the uncertainty of being accidentally benefited, or I should rather say, to the Mercy of God, unasked, unsought, exposed to all the dangers of a dreary Wilderness, unaided unassisted by the Care of a natural Parent! The Tongue of the sucking Child cleaveth to roof of its Mouth for thirst! the Children ask Bread and there is none in many Families to break it, they want to be nourished by the sincere Milk of the word, but alas! ‘the Daughter of my People is become cruel!’ Oh! you Parents, you delegated Shepherds, what account will you have to render when the Lord of the whole Earth ariseth to make inquisiton for Blood!

Bear with me my beloved Friends; flattery and smooth tales may please Fools, but they will not please [Page]him whom I desire to serve in the Gospel of his Son. All that is within me is moved, while I thus earnestly expostulate with you on behalf of the dear Children; suffer me to intreat you, for God's sake, for your own Souls sake, for the sake of the Cause of Truth, "Gather the Children, and those that suck the breast;" those that are filling themselves with the Worlds consolation, with the intoxicating pleasures and amusements of a degenerate age; wean them from these delights; gather them to the knowledge of themselves, to a sense of the Mercies that are offered them by the great Author of Mercies antient and new. ‘While thy Servant was busied hither and thither the Man made his escape,’ was the vain excuse of the Officer to whose custody a certain Captive was committed with this charge, ‘take care of this Man till I come, and if thou let him go, thy life shall go for his life.’ No plea of other engagements, nor even the want of ability to discharge our duty towards our Offspring will stand us in any stead; if, when the Almighty queries with us ‘What hast thou done with those Lambs I left under thy care in the wilderness, those tender Offsprings I gave thee in charge!’ we have through neglect, through unwatchfulness suffered him or her to go, but we shall most certainly, stand accountable for his or her Life. I said want of ability, because I assuredly believe, that want of ability will be so far from a palliation of our Crime, that it will rather increase our condemnation; can we plead want of ability to him who is always ready to furnish us with it, if we are but willing to receive it at his Hand!

I am of opinion respecting many of our Youth, that if they had been properly instructed, and carefully watched over, if they could have seen the beauty of Holiness shine in the example of their Parents, they [Page]would not have gone out so widely as they have. Oh you Parents of both sexes, an important trust is reposed in you; example your Childern in the practice of Piety; example speaks louder, much louder, than precept; its influence is far more extensive. And while on the one hand you are excited to a faithful discharge of your duty towards them, by the certain hope of a glorious reward; so on the other hand, the powerful ties of natural affection, the warm solicitude for the happiness of those you love, must stir up to diligence in the work and service appointed you.

"Gather the Children." If after your attentive care has been employed, for their preservation; if after by the forceable voice of example, you have called them to the perfecting of holiness in the fear of God, they will go, they will turn aside into the byways and crooked paths of sin and iniquity, they must stand by their own choice; you have redeemed your Souls, and will be found in your lots at the end of time, a ponderous Crown awaits you, you will close your eyes, and open them to the boundless fruition of unmixt Joy, in a happy eternity.

We do sometimes with sorrow observe, the unwearied labours of a Parents love, bestowed without the desired effect; 'tis mournful to see Children pierce with bitterness and anxiety the breast that has been their support in their infantile years; to fill that eye with sorrow, that has dropt over them the tear of maternal fondness! 'tis a cruel thing for a Child to mingle Gall and Wormwood, in the cup of a Parent descending to the Grave; let us be assured that their own portion of Gall and Wormwood will be doubly increased thereby, in the solemn hour of just Retribution! But, Oh beloved Youth! I earnestly desire that you may never thus widely deviate from the paths of rectitude; 'tis on you the hope of the present age must shortly devolve; may [Page]you wisely chuse an early submission to the holy discipline of the Cross of Christ, that you may come up as an Army for God. Consider the uncertainty of your stay here; consider the important business of Life; and let the love of every unprofitable delight, be swallowed up in the arduous pursuit of Glory, Honour, Immortality and Eternal Life. We are daily instructed by the powerful eloquent language of Mortality; Death invades all ranks, snatches those of all ages from the busy stage of life, she that was yesterday surrounded with nuptial Joys, must tomorrow be confined within the cold inclosure of the silent Grave. ‘Let the Bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the Bride out of her Closet;’ let the young, the joyous, those that are in the bloom of life, leave every thing that tends to retard their progress towards the City of the Saints solemnity; let them relinquish their most exalted satisfactions, rather than neglect to lay hold on the Joys of God's Salvation; which are unutterably more desirable, than all the sin-pleasing gratifications that this World can bestow.

‘Let the Priests the Ministers of the Lord weep between the Porch and the Altar;’ this should not be confined to those only whose mouths may be opened publickly amongst you, for it belongs to all those who Preach to others by the regularity of a Godly life and conversation; although we are favourd with a living ministry of divine appointment, who dare not fill the ears of Men with a repetition of unfelt Truths, nor amuse them with the unprofitable productions of of an empty mind, but are concerned to discharge themselves faithfully ‘as stewards of the mysteries of God’ yet let them be joined by all those that mourn for the desolation of Zion; by all that wish Peace within her Walls and prosperity within her Palaces. Let us weep between the Porch and the Altar, saying [Page] ‘Spare thy People O Lord! and give not thy Heritage to reproach, that the Heathen should rule over them! wherefore should they say among the People, where is their God?’ If we are thus unitedly engaged on behalf of our Israel it may be that the Lord will again "be jealous over his land" with an holy jealousy, for I cannot think that a People whom he has raised by his own invincible power, and so signally placed his name amongst, were ever designed to be only the transcient Glory of a couple of centuries; I am still revived by a secret Hope of better times, when our Zion shall again put on her beautiful Garments; and in her, and with her, shall arise Judges as at the first, and Counsellers and Lawgivers as at the beginning; let us weep between the Porch and the Altar; let us interceed for the People that the land may yet be spared! the gracious ear of our Heavenly Father is still open to the supplications of his Children, and I believe he will yet ‘be jealous over his Land and pity his People.’ The time approaches when the great dasher in pieces will more and more come up amongst us, and may all who are broken by him, wait to be healed by the arising of his Love; I shall not live to see it, but I live in the Faith, and I believe I shall die in the Faith, that the Lord of Hosts will yet beautify the place of his Feet, that our ‘Zion will yet become an Eternal excellency, and Jerusalem the praise of the whole Earth!’

Let us weep between the Porch and the Altar with unwearied intercession, for ‘the Lord will yet be jealous over his Land and pity his People.’ The bowels of adorable Compassion yet yearn over his Children, with all the tenderness of a Fathers Love, ‘How shall I give thee up O Ephraim? How shall I make thee as Admah and set thee as Zeboam?’ How shall I cut thee off from being a People before me? by this [Page]moving and pathetic language would the Great Father of the Universe induce you to return to the Arms of everlasting Mercy! And if we who are placed as Watchmen in Zion faithfully discharge the trust reposed in us, we shall be made Instrumental in gathering the scattered and dispersed Sheep, from the East and from the West, from the North, and from the South, to the great Shepherd, to the one Sheepfold; and finally obtain an admitance into those glorious Mansions where the morning Stars join in Singing Hallelujahs! and where all the Sons of God forever shout for Joy.

Now unto the King Eternal, Immortal, Invisible, the only God! be Honour and Praise for ever and ever.

FINIS.

Information about this book

Title statement

Repent and be converted: A sermon preached at a meeting of the people called Quakers, 1768. : Also the heads of a sermon, preached at Horsleydown Meeting, upon the close of a visit to Friends families in that quarter, the 19th of the eleventh month, 1769.

Fothergill, Samuel, 1715-1772.

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Text Creation Partnership,

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Ann Arbor, MI :

Date

2011-05.

ID [DLPS]

N12496

ID [TCP]

N12496

ID [STC]

Evans 15796

ID [NOTIS]

APX5026

ID [IMAGE-SET]

15796

ID [EVANS-CITATION]

99021806

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Early American Imprints, 1639-1800 ; no. 15796.

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(Evans-TCP ; no. N12496)

Transcribed from: (Readex Archive of Americana ; Early American Imprints, series I ; image set 15796)

Images scanned from Readex microprint and microform: (Early American imprints. First series ; no. 15796)

Source

— Repent and be converted: A sermon preached at a meeting of the people called Quakers, 1768. : Also the heads of a sermon, preached at Horsleydown Meeting, upon the close of a visit to Friends families in that quarter, the 19th of the eleventh month, 1769., Fothergill, Samuel, 1715-1772..

Extent

31, [1] p. ; 20 cm. (8vo)

Printed, and sold by Joseph Crukshank, in Market-Street, between Second and Third-Streets.,. Philadelphia: :: M,DCC,LXXVIII. [1778]. (Attributed to Fothergill by Hildeburn.)

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