SERMON

XXII.

The Scripture evidence of a future judgment.

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[From SHERLOCK on Judgment.]

HE B. IX. 27..

-After this, the judgment.

HE apostle, having obferved that it is appointed unto men once to die, directs our thoughts to what will be the confequence of death, after death the judgment. And a very grave and serious confideration it is, if any thing will make men serious; for nothing can be of greater concernment to us than a future judgment, which will determine our final ftate and condition to eternity.

The evidences of a future judgment are deduced, either from reafon, or from revelation. By our natural reason we can prove, that God will judge the world, as that fignifies, that God will call all men to an ac

count

count for their actions, and that he will reward good men, and punish the wicked, in the next world. This the heathens themfelves difcovered by the light of nature. They talked very much of the infernal judges, and of the rewards and punishments of good and bad men after death; and therefore in this fenfe did believe a future judgment.—But yet, the revelation of the gofpel has given us a more plain and undeniable affurance of this, and has discovered something more than the light of nature could difcover. The light of nature and reafon may fatisfy us, as it did the heathens, that God will reward good men, and punish the wicked, in the next world; but it could not tell us, that God had appointed a general day of judgment, wherein all the dead fhall rife again out of their graves, and re-affume their bodies, and be fummoned to judgment. It could not tell us, who shall be our judge; with what glory and majesty he fhall appear; and with what pomp, and awful folemnity, he fhall judge us. The world knew nothing of this, before the gospel was preached; for it depends wholly upon the will

and

and pleasure of God, and therefore can be known only by revelation.

I propose therefore to confider in this difcourfe, the fcripture evidences of this great doctrine. And this indeed might be dispatched in very few words, by referring you to fome plain texts of Scripture, which exprefsly affert it; but I shall do something more than this, which, if it be not necefsary for the proof of a future judgment, yet will be of ufe for the better understanding the christian religion, and to rivet this belief fafter in our minds; that is, I fhall represent to you those parabolical reafonings whereby our Saviour infinuates this belief into our minds; and shew you, that the whole chriftian religion is founded on, and adapted to the belief of a future judgment, and would be a very unintelligible institution without it.

I BEGIN with those plain and express proofs, which the gofpel of our Saviour contains, of a future judgment. And fome few texts will be fufficient for this purpose. This is expressly affirmed by St. Paul, Acts xvii. 31 .That God hath appointed a day

in the which he will judge the world in righte

oufness.

Our Saviour tells us that we fhall be judged, Matt. vii. 1, 2. Judge not, that ye be not judged: For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you again.

And, in the fame chapter, v. 22, 23. he fays, that in that day (that is the day of judgment) many will fay unto me, Lord, Lord, have we not prophefied in thy name, and in thy name have caft out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profefs unto them, I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Thus he tells us, Matt. xvi. 27. The fon of man shall come, in the glory of his father, with his angels; and then shall he reward every man according to his works.

And, in Matt. xxv. 31, &c. he gives a lively description of the future judgment : When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him; then shall he fit upon the throne of his glory; and before him fhall be gathered all nations; and he Shall feparate them one from another, as a Shepherd

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Shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats; and he shall fet the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. And then he judges them, and pronounces their final doom and sentence according to their works (as it follows in that place.)

It would be easy to produce many other texts of Scripture to this purpose, as every one knows, who is acquainted with the Scripture: But there is no need of it. These few are fo exprefs, that if we believe the gofpel, we must believe that we shall be judged.

I PROCEED therefore to the next thing I proposed, which was, to confider, that our Saviour doth not only exprefsly declare this, that there fhall be a judgment, but infinuates the belief and reasonableness of it by fome proper allufions and comparisons; which is the true scope and defign of

of his PARABLES.

many

As to inftance in fome of them: In the 19th chapter of St. Luke, he tells us of a certain nobleman, who went into a far country, to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return; where he defcribes his own leaving this world, and afcending into VOL. III. Bb heaven,