Required reading
The Works (Vol 4) by William Bates (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Sermon XI (The marriage feast).
My summary
Today we read the fifth of five sermons on the text 'And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled' (Luke 14:23).
Today Bates expounds his third main point of the series of sermons: 'I shall now prove it is the great duty of the ministers of Christ to apply themselves with a holy zeal to bring men to partake of the saving mercies of the gospel.' This is shown by considering:
(i) the command of God;
(ii) the end of the commission of God.
Then Bates makes applications from his sermon series. We are exhorted to:
(i) admire the glorious grace of God in converting sinners;
(ii) consider what will be the issue of the obstinacy of those who make light of the invitations of grace;
(iii) be excited to discharge our commission with fidelity;
(iv) comply with the invitations of divine mercy.
What grabbed me
I enjoyed Bates' description of the mercy of God: 'Some divine attributes are more eminently the glory of God : as they are more declarative of his perfections, and more sensibly and powerfully affect the minds and hearts of men. In this respect mercy, as it is the most benign and comfortable, so it is the brightest light in all the constellation of the divine attributes; it is our happiness we are under its aspects and influences. The other essential excellencies of God are regarded as the qualities of our sovereign infinitely above us, with most humble fear and respectful admiration : but his mercy represents him as our father and friend, and engages our affections entirely to him.'
As we are sinners, to think of God apart from mercy is simply frightening.
Next week's reading
Read 'A sermon on the death of Queen Mary'.
Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
No comments:
Post a Comment