A Sermon

BY THE REV. CHRISTOPHER LOVE,
One of the Presbyterian Ministers of London in the
Seventeenth Century.*

“But rather fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.”
MATTHEW x. 38.

BELOVED, you may remember I have preached ten sermons upon the glorified condition of the saints in heaven. It is now in my thoughts to speak of the tormented condition of the damned in hell, that if the former sermons about glory have not gained your affections, this of hell might startle your consciences. Ministers, as having a mixed people, must mix their doctrine, somehow with comfort and sometimes with terror. You have heard ten sermons upon the former text; you may haply hear so many more upon this subject. Before I can give you the sense of the text I must give you the scope of the chapter, which lies thus: Jesus Christ, having called his twelve disciples together, and given them a commission to preach the Gospel throughout the regions of Judea and (as a confirmation of their doctrine) to work all manner of miracles, and cure all manner of diseases, and dispossess devils, yet knowing (verse 16) “that they must go as silly sheep among ravenous wolves,” and what persecution and opposition you should meet with in the world in carrying on the great work of promoting the Gospel, therefore labours to prop up the hearts of His people by four several arguments in this chapter.

1. The first argument is in verses 19 and 20: “They shall bring you before governors for my name’s sake; but take no thought what you shall say, for it shall be given you in the same hour.” As if Christ should say, you shall be called before courts of judicature for my name’s sake for preaching my Gospel, but do not study what you shall plead for yourselves, for my Spirit shall dictate to you what you shall say; and so (Luke xxi. 15) you have the same phrase—“They should have a mouth and wisdom given them” to make their defence, and to vindicate the Gospel in their hands.

* “Christopher Love was successively minister of St. Anne’s, Aldersgate, and St. Lawrence, Jewry, in London. He was a man of fervent piety, eloquent and popular as a preacher, and respected and beloved for his excellent Christian character. He is the author of various works on practical divinity.” See sketch of his wife, by the Rev. James Anderson, in “Memorable Women of the Puritan Times.” Mr. Love seems to have been a vigorous preacher of the terrors of the law as well as of the grace of the Gospel. The present discourse is the first of a series which he preached with a view to awaken consciences at ease in Zion, and to preserve God’s people from carnal security.—ED.

1. Another argument He brings is this, that though they should meet with troubles in the flesh, yet Christ should save their souls (verse 22); if they do suffer in their bodies, their soul shall be saved; “for he that endures to the end shall be saved.”

2. That before they had preached in every city Christ promised them to come in the blessing of His Spirit to make their spirit efficacious for the conversion of souls (Matt. xvi. 28). Some say it is meant till Jerusalem be destroyed, but Calvin understands it of His giving the Spirit (verse 23).

3. He bears them up with this comfort—that Jesus Christ was partner with them in suffering. Now, they must not expect to be above Christ—above their Master (verse 24). “The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord;” it is enough to be as he is. As if He should say: Do not be discouraged; I, your Lord and Master, suffered and must suffer more; I must suffer death. Therefore be not discouraged, for the disciple is not above his Lord.

4. And then another argument is in my text. Be not afraid, because the power of your enemies is limited. All your enemies can do shall only reach the body but never hurt your souls. Fear not him that can kill the body but not kill the soul; so telling them whom they should and whom they should not fear. “But fear him who is able to cast both body and soul into hell.”

Thus I have brought you to the words, I shall now give you the sense.

“But rather fear him.”—This word, rather, is not to be taken in a comparative sense—you may fear men, but you must fear God more; but is an adversative particle—you are not to fear men at all, but God alone.

“But rather fear him that can kill both body and soul.” “Kill” in this place is not to be taken for the annihilation or destroying of the body, but for a continual tormenting of body and soul under the wrath of God to all eternity. And so is expounded by Luke (xii. 5). “Who is able to cast both body and soul into hell,” that is, to destroy both soul and body. It were well for the damned if the soul and body, in that sense, should be destroyed so as to be annihilated; and the reason why both body and soul are mentioned is because the body hath been the partner with the soul in sin, and therefore shall be sharer with it in punishment.

“Fear him that can destroy both soul and body in hell.” Hell, in Scripture, admits of a four-fold signification.

1. It is taken for the grave; (Psalm xvi. 10), “Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, nor suffer thy Holy One to see corruption,” that is, Christ should not lie and rot in the grave, but He should rise again. And so the Apostle Peter makes mention of this prophecy, that He should not see corruption nor be left in the grave (Acts ii. 31, 32). This he spake of His resurrection from the dead. Again,

2. Hell, in Scripture, is taken for the belly of the whale into

which Jonah was cast. So the phrase is (Jonah ii. 2), “Out of the belly of hell I cried unto the Lord, and he heard me.” Out of the belly of hell! Jonah was never in hell, but the belly of the whale was called hell, because a dark place, as hell is. But you must not take it in this sense neither. But,

1. Hell, in Scripture, is taken for the devil himself or his malignant spirits. So (James iii. 6), “The tongue of man is set on fire by hell”—not hell as the place, but the devil in hell. The devil in hell doth kindle the fire of an enraged and passionate spirit. The tongue is set on fire by the devil of hell.

2. Hell is taken in Scripture for the place of the damned, where God doth torture and torment to all eternity the souls and bodies of all reprobate men in the world. In this sense it is frequent in Scripture, as Matthew v. 29, Luke xii. 5, and xvi. 23; and in this place it is thus taken. “Fear him that can cast both body and soul into hell,” that is, into that place of torment which the Lord, to all eternity, reserves for the punishment and torment of all ungodly men and women. Thus I have opened the phrase, “into hell.”

The word that is here rendered “hell” is from the Hebrew word gehinnom, which signifies the valley of Hinnon. It was a valley near Jerusalem, which was possessed by Hinnon or his son (Joshua xv. 8; Neh. xi. 30). Hell is called in Scripture after the name of this place, in allusion to it, because in this valley the idolatrous Jews set up an idol called Molech, which was made of brass in the form of a man, hollow within, wherein the Jews kindled a fire. Then the children were put within the bands of the idol and so burnt. The Jews thought that the father which delivered one of his children to this idol should have a blessing and a comfort of all his other children. Now, from hence the Greek word comes, and carries an allusion to this place, that as there was a continual fire in that idol, and continual shrieking and crying, so shall it be in those fiery torments of hell. The story is at large (2 Chron. xxxiii. 6; 2 Kings xvi. 3; 2 Chron. xxviii. 3; Jer. vii. 31; Jer. xxxii. 35; Levit. xviii. 21). Good King Josiah destroyed this place (2 Kings xxiii. 10). And thus, having laid open the words, nothing lies in my way but to give you the observations the text will bear. And there are two observations which I shall draw from these words.

First, from the context, “but rather fear him.” Observe hence, Doct. 1.—That the fear of God doth fence the heart against the fear of man. The more you fear God, the less you will fear men; (Isaiah viii. 13), “Fear not their fear, but sanctify the Lord in your hearts; let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” But this point I pass, because I only intend, in the handling of this subject, to set before you the torments of the damned in hell, which haply may awaken some drowsy consciences, and I am sure may much heighten the joy of believers, that are delivered from these hellish torments. The observation therefore that will engross the sum and substance of this text is this,

Doct. 2.—That the consideration of this—that God has an absolute power over men and women, to cast their bodies and souls into hell—should work an awful fear of God in the hearts of His own people. This is the point, and a point that carries a great deal of dread and terror with it. Before, therefore, I shall come distinctly to handle the doctrine, I must necessarily lay down reasons why I preach upon this terrible subject, and then answer some objections that may be raised against the preaching of so dreadful a doctrine as this is.

First.—The reasons why I handle this are four.

(1) I handle it now because I have so largely handled the glory of the elect in heaven, for the comfort of the godly. Now I shall speak of the torments of hell for the punishment of the wicked, that so, if the glory of the elect have not allured your affections, the hearing of the torment of the damned in hell might startle your consciences and awaken you out of your security.

(2) I handle it lest any of you should grow secure and presumptuous in nourishing ungrounded hopes of glory, expecting to be in glory with Jesus Christ, upon the former sermons. Lest you should thus vainly hope, I deemed it meet to conjoin this subject with it, that so you might be equally poised from presumption on the one hand and despair on the other.

(3) Because it is a doctrine so little preached and so little writ of in these days. I know but only one book in English writ upon this subject, by Mr. Bolton, and very few in Latin. And therefore being so useful a subject—useful for the wicked and useful for the godly—and yet so little handled, and now-a-days much cried down and much cried against, this reason also put me upon this doctrine.

(4) I handle this doctrine because I am persuaded did many men know distinctly the torments of hell, they would never walk in a way of sin that leads to hell, so as they do. I do persuade myself were this doctrine of hell well studied and better known by the people, they would take more care to avoid hell and gain glory than they do. Did men but know that they who live and die unrepenting, and lie burning in their lusts, shall one day burn in fire; did they but know that they that can swallow bowls of wine, and drink to excess, shall one day drink draughts of brimstone in hell; did men but know that they that grind their teeth, through hatred and indignation, against the godly here, shall one day gnash their teeth in hell hereafter; did men but know that they that oppress the people of God by persecution, and hale them into prison now, shall one day be dragged into an everlasting prison, and haled by devils into hell; that those who could not endure the company of saints on earth should be with devils and damned spirits in hell—did men but know this doctrine well, they would not be so profane and sinfully wicked as they are now-a-days. But the want of the study of this point doth open a gap to the world of profaneness. And therefore for these reasons I resolved to treat a little upon this subject.

Secondly.—Now there are two objections why men should not preach upon such a subject as this is.

1. Some will say this is legal preaching. To cast flashes of hell fire about the congregation; this is not to preach the Gospel, but the law. To take off this, therefore, I shall speak four things by way of answer.

(1) Surely Jesus Christ was no legal preacher, yet He preached this doctrine, for these are Christ’s own words; and therefore preaching of hell and the torments thereof cannot justly be called legal preaching, because Jesus Christ, the Minister of the new covenant, was the Person that most of all preached of hell. And it is observable that neither the apostles nor all the evangelists preached so much of hell as Jesus Christ did. Jesus Christ hath seven particular texts of hell and the torments of the damned, which the apostles never had. And therefore I say this is not legal preaching, seeing it is the doctrine of Jesus Christ Himself.

(2) It is the great policy of the devil to nuzzle men in security in their sins; to have all soul-searching preaching, and sin-reproving preaching, all conscience-awakening, duty-pressing preaching—to have all such doctrines as these called legal preaching. It is the great policy of the devil to put so bad a name on so good a work.

(3) If preaching of terror be legal preaching, then the law was more preached in the New Testament than ever it was under the Old. I make it appear thus. There are more terrible and dreadful doctrines scattered up and down in the New Testament than in the Old. It is a note of Chrysostom that in all the Old Testament the word “damnation” was never used, but is used thirteen times in the New. And it is observable further that, in the Old Testament, though the word “hell” is often used, yet it is most commonly used for the grave and not for the place of the damned; but in the New Testament, unless in two places, hell is altogether taken for the place of the damned. Therefore it is clear to every eye that the Gospel is more backed with terror and with the doctrines of hell and damnation than ever the law was. The preaching of the law hath only anathema, but the Gospel hath maranatha also. Therefore all they that are of the Antinomian error—that cry down pressing duty, as preaching the law—much deceive themselves; for Christ Himself and the apostles and the evangelists all preached more of terror than any of the prophets ever did.

(4) Whereas it is said that preaching of terror is legal preaching, I say this, that sermons of terror have done more good* upon unconverted souls than sermons of comfort ever have done; sermons of hell have kept many out of hell. I have read often of Mr. Throgmorton that he was converted by a sermon of terror

* We understand Mr. Love to mean “good” in a way of arresting and awakening—stopping sinners on the broad way to perdition.

upon that text: “How shall you escape the damnation to come?” I have heard of another famous divine that tells us he was converted by that text: “Christ preaching to the spirits in prison.” I have heard of Mr. Greenham, a famous minister, that hearing a sermon of the last judgment, and the torments of the damned, proved his conversion and first call. I have read of other ancient authors. Hierom tells himself: “Whether I eat or drink,” saith he, “I hear a voice sounding in my ears, Arise, arise, you dead, and come to judgment.” And this very sound converted him, and so many more. Beloved, doctrines of terror God hath more sanctified for the conversion of souls than any other doctrine in the world. And therefore it is observable of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, and that made way for Christ, that the first sermon that he preached was a sermon of terror and wrath to come—”Ye generation of vipers, who hath forewarned you to flee from the wrath to come?” And so this was the second sermon that ever Christ preached, and here He preaches a terrible sermon of hell. “Let us not flee sermons concerning hell,” saith Gregory, “that we may flee hell.”

1. But it may be some will object and say, “Indeed, preaching of hell is lawful, but preaching of Christ’s love and preaching of free grace are more winning subjects, and they are doctrines more to be built upon; and the doctrines more to refresh and cheer the people of God. These doctrines do more gain upon men than such terrible doctrines do.” To which objection likewise, I entreat you, take these five things by way of answer.

(1) It is true indeed, were all our hearers converted, doctrines of grace and doctrines of love and comfort might be most for edification; but seeing we have to deal with a mixed people our doctrines must be mixed also, else we shall never profit.

(2) It is true indeed, were all men’s natures alike—that all men were of a soft and tender disposition—that all men were troubled in mind and under a sense of God’s wrath—then we should preach only love and only grace, to bear up their heart; for ingenium potius ducitur quam trahitur.^* But when the Scripture tells us the tempers of men are different—some men of a soft disposition, others of a knotty and rough spirit—some will be won with mercy, others not without judgment. The Scripture telling us the tempers of men are various, our doctrines must be different also—sometimes of mercy, sometime of judgment—that as sermons of love will win upon soft hearts, so doctrines of terror must be for knotty spirits. (Jude 22, 23), “On some have compassion, making a difference; and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating the garment spotted with the flesh.” Some, saith the apostle, you must show compassion to and preach love and kindness to, but others you must save with fire, that is, show them hell-fire, and terrify them with the fear of God’s wrath. Some

^* The mind is better led than driven.

men are more yielding and more tender; these must be dealt with in meekness. Others that are more stout-hearted sinners must be saved with fear, pulling them out of the fire of hell. That is my second answer. Some men’s natures are rather led than driven, yet others are so stout and knotty that nothing but flashes of hell-fire will make their consciences startle.

(3) To those that plead so much for doctrines of free grace and strains of comfort, and must not have such points of terror preached unto them, I answer, man’s nature is more apt to abuse doctrines of free grace (though these must be preached in their season) than they are to abuse these doctrines of terror and of wrath to come. This Jude tells us (Jude 3), “They turn the grace of God into wantonness.” And the Apostle Paul raised the objection, “Shall we sin because grace abounds? God forbid”; implying that some men did make it their practice that, because grace did abound, they would abound in sin.

(4) How can a minister discharge his conscience to God that he hath preached to his people the whole counsel of God, if in the course of his ministry he shall run only upon strains of free grace and Christ’s love and doctrines of comfort? What are doctrines of terror? Are they not the will of God, to be preached as well as comfort?

(5) Those men that have cried so much to have preaching upon strains of love and of free grace, I am sure, as some manage the matter, have hardened more souls than ever they have converted by those sermons. For my part, beloved, I know not one man that hath been converted by these new teachers that pretend more light than their brethren, and pretend to hold Christ more clearly forth than their brethren. I do not see holiness shining in their lives above others. Whereas I am sure those that did preach mixed doctrines—sometimes fear and sometimes love, sometimes strains of wrath, sometimes of grace—did most work upon the consciences of their hearers. I have read of Mr. Hildersham, a minister at Ashby-de-la-Zouch, a most terrible preacher, and it is said God gave him more success to his ministry for the conversion of souls than to all the ministers about the country besides. And when Paul preached a sermon of judgment to come, it made the heart of Felix to tremble; it made the great man’s heart tremble to hear of judgment. And we find in Scripture that as God had His Barnabases (sons of consolation), so He had His Boanergeses (sons of thunder), to make the stout hearts of people to tremble. And thus, lest any seduced heart should be carried away to think all this legal, I deemed it meet to make this apology in entering upon this subject. Remember the doctrine—that the consideration of this, that God hath an absolute power over men and women, to cast both into hell, should work in God’s own children an awful fear of God.

In the handling of this dismal subject I have fifteen queries to go over: as (1) I shall inquire whether there be a hell or no; (2)

Why there must be a hell to receive the souls of wicked men; (3) What this hell is; (4) Whether there be degrees of torment in hell; etc.

1. Whether there be a hell or no.—And to answer this I shall make it appear from the confession of heathens that had only the glimmerings of nature, and never saw the Bible; and secondly from the testimony of Scripture.

(1) From the confession of heathens. Though they could not tell distinctly (as never being acquainted with the Word), yet by the glimmering light of nature, they had some fancies and apprehensions of this place of the damned. Virgil tells us, Facilis descensus Averni, etc. (Æneid, line 6).

Therefore they had one called Pluto (that was the chief person in hell) which chiefly did torment them that were most wicked. And they had their Charon’s boats—a fancy that there was a man with a boat that ferried over wicked persons into hell; and they had their Ætna, their burning mountains, which they fancied to be hell. And they fancied hell to be a continual rolling of stones upon dead bodies; with many other fancies. And so Pluto had many footsteps of hell, that, saith he, if a man had no punishment after he is dead, he shall have somewhat of guiltiness in him to torture and torment him. All these were merely apprehensions of hell. But these I pass.

(2) As you have a testimony from heathen, so you have this truth clearly from Scripture also; to name two or three texts—(Deut. iii. 2), “I will kindle a fire in mine anger, and it shall burn to the lowest hell.” (So Psalm ix. 18), “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the people that forget God.” (So Psalm xi. 6), “Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire, and brimstone, and a horrible tempest.” (So Matt. xxiii. 33), “Ye serpents and generation of vipers, how can you escape the damnation of hell?” (So Peter ii. 3, 4), “He cast them down to hell. They are locked up in chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.” (So Jude 6), “They are reserved in everlasting chains of darkness to the judgment of the great day.” All which do plainly prove that there is a hell. But now,

1. Why there must be a hell.—It appears by these demonstrations.

(1) Because of the filthy nature of sin. Sin is against an infinite God, and the offence being infinite, the punishment must be infinite also. But the punishment cannot be infinite upon earth, because we stay here but a while, and our bodies rot in the grave; therefore, of necessity, there must be a hell that must keep the bodies and souls of the wicked, that so they may receive proportionable punishment to the sins they committed here upon earth.

(2) Because else the justice of God could never be satisfied for the sins of the wicked men here done upon earth. And the reason is [1] Because Christ would not satisfy and suffer God’s

wrath for wicked men; therefore they must bear it themselves. [2] Upon earth they cannot satisfy God’s wrath. Why? Because sin being an infinite offence, their punishment here can be but finite, lasting for a time. Therefore all their sufferings here cannot satisfy God’s wrath which is due to them for their sins; therefore, of necessity, there must be a hell to keep men to all eternity, that by their everlasting torments God’s justice might be satisfied, which otherwise it could not be. (2 Thes. i. 5.)

(3) It appears there must be a hell by those horrors and terrors of conscience that are in wicked men when they are dying. Many a man in his health will “tush” at hell; he will scorn the fire and scoff at the flames. Many a man, when he is in his health, never thinks of hell, but he can drink one day, swear another day, play the adulterer the third day, and sin every day, and the thoughts of hell never trouble him. But now bring this man to his sick-bed, and what horrors and fears seize upon his soul! Should I appeal from a healthful drunkard to himself when dying—(as one said he would appeal from King Philip drunk to King Philip sober, who thereupon did repeal his act and did the man justice)—thou who by thy sinning hast spent thy strength and estate in drink, and dost not think of hell when thou art drunk, I would appeal to thee, a dying man, and tell me what wouldst thou say then? What wouldst thou then give for a Christ? What wouldst thou then give for a pardon, that thou mightest not be damned? The very horrors and wounds of conscience at thy dying day doth demonstrate that there is a time of torments to be endured by thee; else how could conscience be so terrible a vexation to the souls of men at that day, were there not such a thing as hell provided for them? What made the Roman emperors to be afraid of death, and when it thundered to run under their beds for fear of death? Only this, that the very workings of conscience showed them something was to come after this life. The very terrors of conscience declare there is a hell, a place of torment, provided for wicked men.

And thus having finished these queries, the use I shall make shall be for condemnation and astonishment.

1. It shall be for condemnation—a condemnation to all them that hold there is no such thing as hell. The Photinians hold there is no hell, but that which we call hell is the annihilation of the body; that man is brought to nothing, and no other. There are fifteen sorts of heretics, an author writes of, that deny a hell; and amongst the rest, one called Empecta was held by Barba, the wife of Sigismundus, the emperor, who gave her followers money to hold this opinion, that she might have their consciences seared up in sensuality and lustful pleasure. This truth condemns all them that have their consciences seared so as to deny there is a hell.

2. This is for astonishment. To whom? Why, to all you that add sin to sin, and drunkenness to thrift, and one provocation to

another, as if there were neither a heaven for the godly nor a hell for you. You that are like Sardanapalus, say, Ede, bike, lude, post mortem nulla voluptas. “Eat, drink, and be merry, for after death there is no pleasure,” and consequently no pain; and therefore, while men live, they should live as pleasurable and joyous as possible might be. (Isaiah xxviii. 19). O beloved, tremble if all these places alleged prove such a place to be. How should this astonish thy soul—that all the actions of thy life have been but a running race to these chambers of death? All the actions of thy life have been but a laying-up of treasure in this place of torment. How should this astonish you whose course only leads you to this doleful dungeon of hell? But,

1. Though this be a doctrine terrible and dreadful, yet you may suck forth consolation hence, who are the elect people of God. It is true indeed there is a hell, and wicked men shall unavoidably come to hell. As John says, “You serpents and generation of vipers, how shall you escape the damnation of hell?” But all you that are the elect of God, you are not only forewarned but you are forearmed also; you need not fear this place of hell. For, first, you need not fear the devil, that is, the torments of hell, because God shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. Though he now goes about like a roaring lion, seeking his prey whom he may devour, yet then he shall be in chains and go abroad no more. And, secondly, you need not fear those torments the damned undergo. Though there be a worm that shall never die, a fire that shall never go out; though there be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth; though they lie under the wrath of an incensed God; yet lift up your heads with joy, ye elect of God, for Jesus Christ is your redemption and your life. “He hath destroyed him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” (Hebrews ii.) Hereupon (2 Thes. i.) you are by Jesus Christ delivered from wrath to come. Here, then, is matter of joy for you, though there be a hell and the wicked tormented night and day, yet by Jesus Christ you are delivered from this wrath to come.

Superstition in Inverness-shire in the Twentieth Century.—That there is yet much superstition in the Highlands will be readily acknowledged, but we were not quite prepared to learn that recently 1,000 persons visited one of the “holy” wells at Culloden on the Lord’s Day. Those who drank the water dropped a coin in the well or attached a rag to the trees in the vicinity. This would be bad enough happening in priest-ridden Ireland, with all its superstition, but what are we to think of these pagan rites carried on in Scotland? No doubt, the devotees of the Romish Church would be largely represented at this desecration of the Lord’s Day, but there are plenty of Protestants silly enough and superstitious enough to think that there is some virtue in these so-called holy wells.