of justice and wrath for thou mayest want Gods face to comfort thee but thou shalt not want Gods hand to help thee God may lend thee his ear to thy prayers when he may deny thee the shines of his face it is the truth of grace and not the sense and sight of grace that brings the soul to heaven it is not the measure of grace nor the sense and sight of grace but the truth of grace that entitles the soul to glory though while you live you may be without your masters joy yet you shall be sure to come to your masters joy when you die though thou never hadst a heaven in thy soul while thou livest yet thy soul may come to heaven when thou diest 9. Consider and be not so cast down for want of comfort for when you come to heaven you shall have comfort enough God doth reserve the fulnesse of thy comfort untill the fulnesse of thy glory This is the time of thy travelling in this world and you must not expect your reward till you come to your journeys end Here you have joy and comfort for a time but there in heaven you shall have joy and comfort for evermore here in this world joy and comfort entreth into you but in the world to come you shall enter into joy and that is trascendently and infinitely more then to have joy to enter into you here in this world you have but the beginnings of comfort but there you shall have enduring lasting comforts here you have comforts by drops but there you shal come to enjoy and see an ocean of comfort and that for ever Object There is one Objection to be answered which is this and it is a practicall case of conscience Me thinks I hear some poor souls say It is true if I thought that God in his hiding his face from my soul in his withdrawing the comforts of his spirit from me if the absence of the light of his countenance were meerly an act of his Soveraignty and Power and to try my love to try the confidence of my heart in trusting in him and the strength of my love to him and the more to put me forward to look after Jesus Christ if this was so I should not be much troubled but alas what shall I do my conscience tels me that it is for sin that God doth withdraw the light of his countenance and the comforts of his Spirit and for this cause he deals with me and my conscience tells me that I have grieved the spirit of God and sent that sad to heaven and therefore it is just with God to let me live sadly upon earth and to live in a comfortlesse condition and I have committed great sins to take away my comforts and for the guilt of sin it is for which God doth hide his face and this is the sad objection and reasonings of many a poor soul Now there are four particulars why a child of God should not be thus dejected although he may be cast down under sin 1. If thou canst not retain the sense of Gods love yet if you retain the sense of your own sins for which thou hast lost the sense of Gods love to be much in the latter though thou hast little of the former to grow down ward in humiliation thou dost grow but little upward in consolation it is a great mercy Hosea 14. 5. I will be as a dew unto Israel he shall grow as a lilly or blossom or flourish and cast forth or strike forth his root as Lebanon you that do blossom like the lillies though you may not so much blossom in the enjoyment of comfort yet if you do grow downward strike your roots downward by the sense and sight of sin and grow downward in humiliation it is a great mercy it is better and safer for to strike thy roots of grace downward in growing in the sap of humiliation then to grow upward and flourish in the sense of pardoning-grace and the reason is this because the one is of absolute necessity and necessary to the saving of the soul but the other is necessary towards the comforts of the soul and therefore the one is more needful then the other if I were put to my choice I had rather want the sense of the pardon of sin then to want the sense of my own sinfulnesse the Lord had rather to see his people to be in mourning weeds then to be in garments of pleasantnesse if God doth not see thy face full of smiles yet if he sees thy eyes full of tears that is more acceptable to him though you may want the light of Gods countenance yet if you have the sense of your own sinfulnesse that doth eclipse the light of Gods favour to thy soul thou hast no cause to be too much cast down under sin 2. In case thou art cast down for sin yet if you can love Jesus Christ really you need not be discouraged when you do not know seriously that Jesus Christ doth love you yet though thou dost not know thou art beloved yet to love Christ in this time thou needest not to trouble thy self and though thou hast not seen Jesus Christ yet to believe in him and by faith to apply Jesus Christ to thy soul if this hath been thy work and thou canst say so you may be confident that Christ loves you truly though it may not be apparently and the reason is strong because that we can never love Jesus Christ until he first loveth us a man being in trouble of mind wanting the assurance of Gods love he said that he never knew what the testimony of the spirit of God meant and what it was to his soul but yet he could say that he did rest and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and though he knew not that Christ loved him yet he did desire to love Christ so I say to you although you cannot sensibly feel the love of Christ to thy soul yet if thou canst dearly love Jesus Christ be confident that Christ loveth thee 3. In case you want the quieting and comforting work of the spirit yet if you have the quick ning work of the spirit be not too much cast down thou that canst act grace although thou dost want comfort and although thou hast not the sight of thy graces sensibly to feel and find the comforts of them yet if thou canst live in the exercise of grace in this case thou needst not to be troubled cast down if it be with thy soul as with a Well that hath two buckets while one is down the other is still up so if one bucket of thy soul be down and thou be dejected for want of the sense of Gods favour and gratious love to thy soul yet if the other bucket be up in thy living and exercising of grace though thou wantest sensible comforts yet this is matter of joy and comfort to thy spirit if you are dejected for want of
comfort yet if you abound in grace it is matter of joy Do I speak to any this day that are clouded with sin in the want of the sense of the comforting work of the spirit and cannot see and cannot feel the sense and manifestations of Gods love as others do go and pray and mourn and be humbled for thy sin and act thy grace and though you do go without the manisestation of Gods love yet in this case thou art not to be too much cast down God had rather see and hear your graces then that you should see them your selves Cant. 8 13. 4. Though thou art cast down for sin yet be not troubled in case it hath this gratious effect upon thee as to make thee to be more watchful against sin for the time to come more then thou wast before so when thou shalt be afraid of sin and to hate sin in this case thou hast cause to blesse God said the Psalmist my heart is not turned back neither have we slipped again from thy wayes all this is come upon us and yet have we not forgotten thee nor deals falsely against thy Covenant cur hearts have not turned backward neither have our steppings swarved from thy path So when you can say although God hath covered me with the shadow of death and though there is a cloud between God and my soul yet I am afraid of sinning against him and I am afraid of offending him and I have not gone out of his paths for all this in this case you may be comforted though you do apprehend that Christ hath turned his back upon you and yet to say I will not for all the world leave living upon and to Jesus Christ in a way of love and obedience Obj. 2 If it be so That many souls may be cast down for sin and yet you say that it is their sin to be so much cast down but they are to labour against this trouble and casting down for sin Doth not this nourish a principle of presumption in many a mans breast for to presume of his salvation and to make him bold in sinning against God seeing you say they are not to be troubled Answ It is true if this doctrine be not well used and wisely handled it may for as it may comfort one soul it would cause a hundred to run into a presumptious condition for in some cases God doth suspend his favour and hide his face from the soul it being for sin you have cause of mourning in this particular and that in these five cases 1. Thou hast cause to hang down thy head with sorrow thou that wantest the sense and manifestations of Gods love in Christ to thy soul and yet at that time thou dost want the sense and sight of sin thou hast a troubled spirit and yet at that time thou hast not a troubled conscience thou wantest the sense of Christs love to thy soul and yet at that time thou wantest the sight and sense of thy sins against Jesus Christ Many men are in this case there are many men that will say that they do not know whether they shall go to heaven or hell whether they are the children of God or the children of wrath whether Christ loveth them or not and yet no sin troubleth them and no guilt disquieteth them but they presume of grace and presume of pardon when for any thing thou knowest there is but a step between thee and hell and in this case thy condition is very sad 2. You that say that you want the sense of Gods love and yet not at that time want the sense of the losse and absence of that love you say you once had that mans sad spectacle that grieves for the losse of an estate but not for the losse of God when a man shall not know whether God loveth him or not and yet at that time for all this to take no care though his state be a lost state to lose grace and to lose heaven this case is sad to be in such danger and yet not to be sensible of that danger 3. Your case is sad in case when you want a sense of Christs love to your souls and yet at that time you want acts of love and to expresse your love to Jesus Christ you would fain know whether Jesus Christ loveth you or not yet never labour to know and examine whether you love Jesus Christ or not in drawing out your souls in a way of love to him but instead of loving Jesus Christ you do draw forth reginings against God against Jesus Christ when you shall be so far from trusting in him as you shall repine against him and not say with Job Though be kill me yet will I trust in him and though I perish yet I will perish in trusting in him if under the sense of Gods love you also want love to Jesus Christ your case is sad 4. At that time when you want the comforting work of the spirit and yet at that time you want the quickning work of the spirit thy case is sad when you shall not only want comfort but want grace too this maketh thy condition to be sad to be disquieted for want of comfort and to be disquieted for want of grace O look into your own hearts you that want comfort do you want grace too have you no tendernesse of conscience no remorse of spirit no love to duties no zeal for God no faith to live by no hopes in Christ to hang upon no love to Christ in thy soul no repentance for sin in this case thy condition is very sad 5. When thou hast been a long time under the losse of comfort and in trouble of mind and perplexity of spirit and yet so to live without any enquiries how thou mayest get out of this sad condition and to get the comforts you wants when it may be your comforting-work and the quickning-work is gone too to want comfort and to want grace and yet to live and not to look after it but to do as Cain did to pursue the world to pursue the profits and pleasures of this world and all for this end to stifle his conscience for to take no pains to stir up grace in thy soul and to quicken thy heart that thou mightest have the joyes of heaven and the comforts of grace the love of God the shines of Christs face the manifestations of his love and assurance of thy salvation when you shall not look after any means either of grace or comfort this renders thy case to be very sad And thus I have done with this question That the people of God have no cause to doubt though they may be cast down for sin or for the absence of the favour of God to their souls SERMON VII Psal 42. 11. Why art thou cast down O my soul and why art thou disquieted within me hope thou in God for I shall yet praise him The health of my Countenance and my God
have not power in their hand but when they come to be warm with the prosperity of the World then they will hurt and doe mischief Secondly God doth let wicked men prosper that so their mouths might be stopped and they may have nothing to say when God shall proceed in Judgement against them when God shall say to them I gave you mercies and you never performed your duty towards me I gave you prosperity and you returned me no glory and God shall say that such a man that had no riches no prosperity in the World which you had and yet he did his duty and had more grace and brought me more glory then ever you have done I have been bountiful towards you but you have not been humble before me you have had much from me and yet returned little to me this prosperity will be an Argument to stop their mouths that they shall not be able to speak a word against God Thirdly God doth let wicked men prosper to this end that so he might see whether his people will love God for himself love Christ for his own sake whether they can love a naked God a naked Christ and a naked truth for their own sakes God doth it to try his people whether they will love holinesse and love grace and love the ways of God when they are paved with thorns as well as when they are strewed with roses and to see if his people will love Religion when it is a persecuted Religion and to love holiness and exact walking when it is scorned and the professors thereof reproached and love Religion when it shall have neither power nor successe on its side rather then to love sin and the ways of vanity when prosperity and profit and pleasure and successe and all on that side and this is one and whereby he doth try his own servants by letting the men of the world prosper to see if they will love God for himself Fourthly That thereby it may hasten and aggravate the ruine of wicked men what is the main end of putting Oxen into fat pastures but to fatten them up against the day of slaughter So the Lord doth put wicked men into fat pastures of prosperity and riches in this world but it is for this end to fatten them up against the day of flaughter and to make them be a sweeter morsel not only for worms in the grave but Divels in hell God lets wicked men for to prosper and to let them have the world at will but it is that it might carry them with the more speed into the place of darknesse Psal 92. When the wicked spring up as grasse and all the workers of iniquity do flourish that they might saith he be destroyed for ever Fifthly That the prosperity of wicked men might be a shelter and desence to his own people What was the reason that Cyrus a wicked man should so prosper in strength and power in the world and to destory the Caldees and Baby lonians he was a Heathen and God did make use of him for his own peoples safety it was by the hand of Cyrus that deliverance came to the poor Jews out of captivity It was a question what might be the reason that Egypt must be the fruitful place in the seaven years of famine when all the Nations round about them had famine in them now Gods end was this that they might have provision to maintain his own people and Jacob and his Sons So the Cananites the Land of Canaan was never so fruitful as it was that very year that the Jews were to inherite it now what was the reason God did not love the Cananites But they build houses and Gods people come and live in them they shall plant Vineyards and Gods people come and eat the fruit of them it was for their sakes that he suffered them to do this God did not love Pharoah and God did not love the Cananites but God did love his own people and for their sakes he did all this to let them prosper and thrive and grow great in the world that his own people might enjoy the lands for their possession Now you shall find that there are three Texts more particularly that do intimate and set forth this more clearly the one is in Prov. 13. 22. A good man leaveth an inheritance to his childrens children but the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just It may be a wicked man will sell his conscience and ingage the soul and all to the Divel and all to get a little wealth in the world and God may suffer him to prosper in his ways and to get wealth by this sinful way but what then then the end will be it shall be laid up for the just they shall have it God so orders it many times that that which wicked men do get godly men enjoy So likewise in Job 27. 16 17. Though they heap up silver as the dust and prepare rayment as the clay v. 16. He may prepare it but the just shall put it on and the innocent shall divide the silver This is the portion of wicked men to heap up silver as dust and to prepare rayment as clay c. But this he may do but the just shall divide it and the innocent put it on God will not let good men be so far tempted to get the world but he lets wicked men imbrace that temptation but after they have done his own people shall enjoy it The third and last place for this purpose is in Prov. 28 8. He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance he shall gather it for him that will pitie the poor Therefore we see how that many men it may be go to hell for getting riches and leave it to them that are godly and liberal to injoy that substance and shall this trouble godly men it may be thou seest wicked men get riches he doth run the hazard of losing a soul to get it and thou injoy the benefit after him the child that shall see his fathers shepherd to have many sheep shall the child envy him he doth but keep them till his father dies So do wicked men get the world and run the hazard of a soul and do not know who shall injoy what they have gotten for godly men have a right to that which God suffers wicked men to injoy I do not say they have a civil right for that they have not but they have a religious right and a spiritual right to that and to all the World for all the World is given unto you for your good and though wicked men are suffered to prosper in the World be not disquieted at them Sixthly God doth it for the spiritual good of his own people when Gods people shall see that the wicked do prosper in the world and they themselves do not prosper in the world this doth administer an occasion to them to live the life of
the other Now what reason can those Christians give that make conscience of all their ways and labour to live usefull in all their relations and to live in the use of Ordinances and to walk close with God in all their ways what reason have they to be too much cast down for sin Therefore as you will reason for believing and comfort so also you must reason against excessive casting down for sin for to do this you have no reason you must shew reasons of your dejections as well as of your assurance and perswasions Wicked men come and ask them concerning Heaven they will tell you that they are sure of Heaven and then ask their reason wherefore they think so they can give you no reason at all therefore that is presumption So good men are apt under too much dejection of spirit to say that they shall goe to hell and be cast off from Heaven but ask them a good reason they can give none at all And this is a sin on the other side I would ask such doubting Christians upon serious thoughts because you are apt to think you shall goe to hell can you say that you have no more reason in you then wicked reprobates have And can you say that you are guilty of those actual sins that are impossible to stand with a principle of true grace and that there is that in you raigning that no child of God can have these are indeed some reasons but if these be not found you have no cause to be cast down Though you must check your own hearts for too much casting down for sin yet you must not cast off all dejection for sin for to be cast down for sin is a duty but to be overmuch and excessively cast down for sin that is a sin There is such duties that you are to put your hearts upon but not to deject your hearts excessively under And if you ask me how I shall know that these are duties I Answer in these Four particulars First You are not to check your hearts for dejection under sin when the measure of your dejection is subservient to the ends of dejection Now the end of dejection it is two-fold First It is to imbitter sin And Secondly To endear Jesus Christ And when thy dejection hath these two ends namely to make sin to be bitter to thy soul and to make Jesus Christ to be precious to thy soul then is thy dejection right thou not to check thy heart for it but to cherish it embrace it But when thy dejection doth not make sin bitter nor make Christ to be precious but trouble thy mind and cast down thy soul and drive thee away from Christ this is excessive and not subservient to those two ends and so becomes sinful Secondly You are to cherish this dejection when with this humiliation dejection for sin you do joyn with itthe sense of Gods love favour when thy heart is brought into this frame as to see sin with one eye and Gods love and free grace and pardoning mercy with an other but those that do so pore upon their corruptions and sinful miscariages as never to be able to see Gods love and free grace and pardoning mercy in the promises of the Gospel this is a sin and this you should check your hearts for Thirdly Thy dejections are not excessive when thy dejections are more for the evil of fact then for the danger of punishment when your dejection is more for sin committed then thy state thou hast endangered that is not excessive But when thy dejections are more in mourning for the state you have endangered then the sin you have committed that is excessive When a man shall commit a sin and he shall be dejected and say I shall goe to hell and lose my happy estate in Heaven and fear hell as punishment more then to mourn for sin as a sin this is excessive sorrow for sin When thou shalt mourn more for the fear of punishment of sin then for sin as it is a dishonour to God and that thou hast committed and aggravated evil it is excessive But when thy sorrow shall be more for sin and Gods dishonour then for fear of punishment if this be the trouble of thy soul thou art not to check thy heart for it Fourthly Those dejections and castings down for sin are to be entertained when they have this effect for to make thee to justifie God and to condemn thy self to justifie God in all this proceedings But when under dejections of mind thou shalt entertain hard thoughts of God to murmur and to repine and to be disquieted these thoughts are not to be cherished but thou art to check thy heart for them But when thou canst justifie God in all his dispensations towards thee these workings of spirit are not to be checked but cherished Job 40. 4 5. Behold I am vile what shall I answer thee I will lay my band upon my mouth And verse 5. Once have I spoken but I will not answer yea twice but I will proceed no further As if Job had said In my trouble of mind I have spoken often against God once and a second time against God but I will lay my hand upon my mouth and justifie God and condemn my self and acknowledge my self vile in my own eyes thus did Job learn to doe And so when you can under your casting down for sin justifie God and condemn your selves and acknowledge God to be just in all his dispensations and to acknowledge your selves vile in your own eyes then is your casting down for sin not excessive and you are to cherish it and not to check your hearts for it And thus I have finished the first ground why Gods people are cast down for sin SERMON V. Psal 42. 11. Why art thou cast down O my soul and why art thou disquieted within me hope thou in God for I shall yet praise him The health of my Countenance and my God Question 2 THe second Question is For what are the people of God cast down and that is for the want of the apprehension of Gods love and favour and in the handling of this case I shall take this way First To shew you why God doth suffer his people to be cast down under the apprehensions of the want of Gods love and favour Secondly To shew you that though this be your condition yet there is no great cause of your dejection and trouble and casting down of soul under this condition Thirdly To lay down some Theological rules what a Christian is to doe what course to take that so he may gain the love and favour of God And Fourthly I shall lay down the use and application First Then I shall shew you why God doth suffer his people to be cast down under the apprehensions of the want of Gods love and favour that though God may love them yet they may not know that love and favour that
an act of his power there is no such trouble nor cause of being cast down but you may take comfort under that state for that God may sometimes withdraw and suspend his love and favour meerly upon an act of his power In peace-offerings there was oyle mixt not so in sin offerings because there is no peace nor comfort in suffering for our faults as God to shew the goodnesse of his Will sometimes gives assurance so to shew the absolutenesse and liberty of his Will he sometimes withdraws it You read of the desertion of the Church in Cant. 5. 5 6. I rose up to open to my beloved but my beloved was gone he had withdrawn himself my soul failed when he spake I sought him but I could not find him I called him but he gave me no answer Now this was an act of Justice in Christ to withdraw himself Jesus Christ he knocked until his head was filled with the dew and his locks with the drops of the night and yet she would not open to him therefore Christ as an act of Justice might withdraw himself to punish them for sin because the Spouse would not let Christ come in when he knocked and then you read of the desertion of the Church not as an act of Justice for the punishment of sin but as an act of his meer power Cant. 3. 1. By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loved I sought him but I could not find him Now if thy conscience can tell thee that thou art careful in thy duties towards God and thy heart is upright and to labour to walk exactly and yet thou canst not see thy comforts appearing now thou mayest say peradventure yea thou mayest say without all peradventure it is not an act of Justice but an act of power that he withdraweth his favour and the light of his countenance from thy soul 2. God may withdraw his love and favour from the soul not for any displeasure that he hath to them but out of an act of love to try his own peoples love to him as a mother a tender-hearted mother many times runs behind the door from her child in a corner and hides her self but it is not because she is angry with her child but to try the strength of her childs love in seeking after the mother so God he may withdraw his love from the souls of his people but it is not from any anger but from love to his people for to try the strength of his peoples graces and to try their love in seeking of him God tryes your graces strength in going after Christ and your graces love in looking after Jesus Christ it was so in Joseph unto which I may allude Gen. 42. 7. it is said that Joseph he spake roughly to them or hard things with them that is to his brethren and he cast them into prison for three dayes ver 17. Now all this his dealing with his brethren was not for want of love to them but it was to try the affections of his brethren and to cause them to call to mind their former unkindnesse Thus God deals many times with his own people he doth withdraw his love and suspend his favour and with-hold the light of his countenance to try the strength of his peoples graces and the strength of his peoples love to him see Luke 24. 28. when the two Disciples were going to a Village and Christ came and walked with them and when they came nigh unto the Village whether they were going Christ seemed as though he would have gone further but this action of Christ it was to try the love of his two Disciples whether they would presse him to make him stay with them so God may withdraw the beams of his love he may suspend his divine favour to this end to try the love of his people how they will long after him and much desire his love to their souls 3. God may suspend his favour because there may be more of Gods fatherly love in withdrawing his love then in manifesting his love in some cases unto the souls of his people and that in these two particulars 1. When a man doth injoy the sense of Gods love and that injoyment makes him to be spiritually proud then it is in mercy to with-hold his love and favour when he cannot injoy the sense of Gods love without the sense of spiritual pride it is in this case great love Job 33. 17. That he may withdraw man from his purpose and hide pride from man it is in the Hebrew That he removeth his works from man c. lest men should be proud of Gods grace and proud of comforts God will keep him from the comforts of his grace and in this case it is great mercy to have the love of God withdrawn when to have it continued Gods people would grow proud a little Boat cannot bear a great Sail without sinking nor a weak vessel strong liquor without breaking some of Gods people are like to little vessels you know that little boats are like to weak vessels Weak Christians they are not able to bear strong comforts to put strong liquor in weak bottles is the way to break them so to put strong manifestations strong comforts into weak souls would soon break them God sees that sometimes his people are not able to bear nor able to use comforts and divine manifestations well and in this case it is great mercy when you cannot bear them then to be without them for then the want of comfort doth make you more eager after Jesus Christ then when you do injoy it many times the injoyment of comfort makes you to grow secure and to grow carelesse whereas the want of comfort maketh you the more eager for to look after it Non-deserit ut deseratur deserit potius ne deseratur ideo videtur deserere quia non vult deseri God doth sometimes forsake that so he might not be forsaken and he doth seemingly forsake that his people might not forsake him As it is credulis misericordia cruel mercy for a wicked man to have hopes and presumption of heaven and yet go to hell so 't is misericors crudelitas merciful cruelty that a godly man should lie under fear of Hell and yet go to heaven 2. The suspension of Gods love and favour is in love when it doth make thee to prize Jesus Christ more in the want of him then thou didst in the enjoyment of him the Lord doth many times bring his own people into great wants and expose them to great exigencies and streights that they might the more prize mercy and be the more eager in the pursute after it and not to grow proud when they have it you read Deut. 32. 13. He made them to ride on the high places of the earth that he might eat the fruits of the field and he made him to suck honey out of the rocks and oyle out of the flinty rock
God did not give them water but God gave them honey it had been a mercy had God given them water to drink when they were ready to die for thirst but when Moses comes to speak of this he makes mention that God gave them honey to suck because they saw the want of a lesser mercy God gave them a greater mercy so it is in spiritual things when we in our straights see the want of mercy a spiritual want of mercy to the soul O then the soul would be glad of a little mercy the least crumb of comfort then would refresh the soul The want of spiritual mercies makes us for to see the spiritual worth of mercies the want of Gods favour the want of the light of Gods countenance makes the soul to prize the enjoyment of it the want of the love of Jesus Christ shining on the soul makes the soul to see and feel and know that the love of God in Christ is exceeding precious Now when the withdrawments of the light of Gods countenance from the soulworks these gratious effects it is in great love and mercy to the soul 4. That you may not be too much cast down consider That the people of God they have alwayes ground of comfort in their souls though they have not alwayes the sense of comfort though the souls of the children of God may be sometimes without the present sense of comfort yet the people of God are never without the cause of comfort in their souls as a man hath right to an inheritance though he cannot read the evidences for it so they have a real right to an inheritance with them that are sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ though you may not sensibly enjoy your inheritance as it was with Hagar so it is with many doubting Christians about Gen. 21. She flying into the wilderness of Bersheba her water was spent in the bottle she casts her child under one of the shrubs and sate down over against it and wept and there was a Well of water by her the Well was there before and she knew it not but when God opened her eyes then she saw the Will of water that was by her So it may be with many a poor soul salvation may be neer thee very nigh thy soul and yet the soul may not have a sensible knowledge of it but may be ready to think that he shall perish for want of salvation and for want of comfort and consolation from God in Christ it is very observable what is spoken concerning Josephs brethren they had so much love from their brother that they had a testimony of his love along with them they had the money in their sacks and yet they never knew it nor never knew him to be their Brother So a poor soul may have the testimony of Gods love in the soul and the sure pledge of Gods everlasting and eternal love to the soul and yet thou mayst not know this testimony and thou mayest not know and sensibly feel the loving kindnesse of thy God to thy soul 5. Remember this for thy support that none of Gods people do retain alwayes the like sense and manifestation of Gods love to their souls but it fares with the souls of Gods people in reference to comfort as it is with the Sea sometimes ebbing and sometimes flowing and as with the air sometimes cloudy and sometimes clear and so like the season of the year sometimes winter and sometimes summer as it is in nature so it is in grace nothing in nature doth alwayes retain and keep the same likenesse at all times to keep the like perfection so it is in grace no child of God under heaven doth alwayes at all times retain and keep the same measure of comforts in his own spirit As Sampson had not the same strength at all times so a Christian hath not alwayes the same comforts 6. If at any time God doth suspend his love and favour the light of his countenance yet consider that God never doth this but he seeth great reason need for it you read 1 Pet. 1. 6. Wherein you greatly rejoice though now for a season if need be ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations there it referreth to the sufferings for the Gospel so I may say to you If need be you shall be in heavinesse for want of the enjoyment of Gods love in Christ if you need heavinesse you shall have heavinesse if no need of sorrow you shall have no sorrow Philosophers say there is great need of wind and thunder as well as of shining of the Sun for thereby the air is kept clear so when God doth thunder into thy soul and sometimes bluster like wind into thy soul God doth see some need of that dealing with thee to sweep thy soul from sin and the love of the world and to quell thy pride and to subdue thy lusts and to purge away that slightnesse of spirit wherein thou art apt to slight others God many times doth suspend the light of his countenance and hold from thy soul the comforts of thy graces for this end that thou mightest not be proud of thy measure of grace and sometimes God may do it to stir up in thee a compassionate spirit towards others in affliction and that thou mightest exercise thy grace and God may let thee want the comforting work of the spirit that thou mightest have more of the sanctifying work of the spirit therefore comfort thy self for if God did not see need of this afflicting of thee he would never let thee lie under this sad condition 7. Consider this for thy comfort That Jesus Christ himself was under spiritual desertion as well as thou Christ himself cried My God my God why hast thou for saken me Mat. 27. 46. Here was substractio visionis though not unionis and thou dost no more but cry my God my God under the absence of the favour of God Jesus Christ did it to sanctifie thy death was buried to make thy grave a bed of roses to thee and was tempted to sanctifie thy temptations and deserted to sanctifie thy desertions he drank deep of the cup thou dost but sip of it Now he himself was under troubles and desertions and temptations that he might be able to succour them that are tempted he was able to succour them before I but now he is made experimentally able to succour his people in the like case 8. Consider this That the seeming loss of Gods favour it is not simply prejudicial to the state of grace for it doth not hinder thy having accesse to and having successe at the throne of grace neither can it hinder thee of glory thou mayest trust and wait upon God in the way of thy duties and though thou dost not enjoy the light of his countenance yet this will not hinder thee of successe at the throne of grace It is the want of Christ not of comfort that makes the throne of grace a throne
I Am now to lay down some Scripture rules for to help a child of God that is cast down under the want of assurance of Gode love how to recover the sense of Gods love again Now for your help in this matter I shall proceed in two general directions 1. You are to remove those things which cause a suspension of Gods favour and love within you which did cast you down 2. You must labour to practice those things that may further you in the attainment of this comfortable sense and certain assurance of Gods love For the first Here are eight things which are to be removed which happily hath occasioned this suspicion of Gods love 1. Labour to remove natural melancholy there is such a natural sympathy between the soul and the body that a distemper in the one causeth trouble in the other It is no more wonder for a consciencious man overcome with melancholy to fear doubt c. then for a sick man to groan or a child to cry when it is beaten if there be melancholy on the body there will be trouble on the soul that is under desertion and trouble of mind in Christians it doth sometimes begin from a natural melancholy Now this must be removed in case you would recover a comfortable sense and assurance of the love of God Saith the Physitian natural melancholy hath sad effects that do attend it as fear subject to frets terrible dreams sad apprehensions why now the devil can tell when thy apprehension is disturbed and he can tell how to turn this and to make you fear your salvation the devil is a powerful spirit and when the natural temper is thus exorbitant he can make this that was a natural to become spiritual evil 2. You must remove spiritual pride Job 33. 17. that he may withdraw man from his purpose and bide pride from man If those swelling humours of pride be in thy spirit God will send a messenger of Satan to buffet thee men of proud spirits saith Preston They are exposed to sad desertions and darkned eclipses of their comforts it is usual with God when he seeth men proud and high-conceited of the measure and degree of their graces to pull down their pride he keeps from them the comfort of their own graces Pride is not onely a bane of grace but of comfort too God resists the proud the Greek word signifies That God puts himself in battel array against him Beloved God doth put himself in battel array against a proud man therefore if ever you would regain the certainty and assurance of Gods love remove pride 3. If you would regain this comfortable assurance remove dulnesse and deadnesse of heart in holy duties when the vigor and liveliness of our spirits are abated in duty the comforts of Gods spirit shall be detained little duty and lesse comfort shall go hand in hand together when the affections are dead and the heart straitned in duties evidences will be darkned and comfort will be eclipsed carelesse performances are recompenced by God with frowns not with smiles 4. Sensual joyes and delights in the Creature in the things of this world they do enervate spiritual joy the Sun when it shines on the fire doth hinder the burning of the fire When thou hast a Sun shine of comforts in this world it is a hundred to one but that thy affections have neither light nor heat comforts are heated by grace the more heat is in thy affections the more strength is in thy comforts and consolations Now sensual delights they take away the heart and when the heart is gone comfort is gone Hosea 4. 11. Whoredome and wine and new wine take away the heart To be swilling and guzling at the Cup and to be following of wantons this takes away the heart Sensual joys they are very contrary to godly joyes a man will never have joy in the Holy Ghost that is overwhelmed with sensual and vain delights in the things of this world 5. Take heed of grieving the spirit if ever you would retain the comfortable assurance of Gods love Isaiah 63. 10. But they rebelled and vexed his holy spirit therefore he was turned to be their enemy and fought against them If thou dost grieve his spirit in heaven he will sadden thy spirit on earth Res delicata est spiritus sanctus it a nos tract at sicut à nobis tractatur saith Tertullian The spirit of God will handle us as we handle it if you grieve Gods spirit he will grieve yours he wil not powre joy into your spirits when you but grieve his if you vex Gods spirit by resisting the holy motions of the spirit he will vex your spirits by retaining the comfortable motions of the spirit It is observable the spirit of God in Scripture it is not only called a Comforter but the Holy Ghost therefore it is in vain to believe that the spirit shall be a Comforter to you if you withstand the office of the spirit as he is the holy ghost therefore O you that grieve the spirit by resisting the holy motions of it you shall never regain the comforting work of the spirit 6. Remove all unmercifulnesse and uncompassionatenesse of spirit to others that are troubled in mind Many Christians are like a herd of Dear it is their manner that when one of the herd is wounded by the Forrester all the rest leave him and forsake him and put him away from them and let the wounded Deer shift for it self alone there are many such uncompassionate souls that if a man be in trouble of mind and have the arrows of Gods wrath sticking in the soul they run away from them and leave them many men are thus wanting tenderness and wanting bowels of compassion towards tempted and troubled souls full of censures contempt rough dealing now for this rigidnes and uncompassionatenes God doth oftentimes cause eclipses in their own souls If ever you would regain comfort pity tempted soule pity and compassionate disquieted souls and that is the way to regain your comfort 7. Remove a wantonnesse and a fearlesnesse of the Majesty and greatnesse of God if the parents dandle a child on the knee their child wanting discretion is apt to grow wanton therefore the Parents are forced sometimes by an austere earriage to prevent this wantonnesse If God should alwayes manifest smiles it would breed a contempt to God therefore God doth with a majestick Soveraignty carry himself with a seeming displeasure with frowns in his brow and all to correct that spirit of wantonnesse that is in his people The Persian Kings shunned familiarity with their Subjects and would be but twice a year seen by them lest their Subjects should contemn them if they should often see them so God doth hide himself from them lest there should be a spirit of wantonnesse growing in his people Lastly If you would not be cast down under these desertions then remove from you all worldly-mindednesse to be
an impatient man may have a good wife amiable children a rich estate but if this man be apt to be impatient under one cross it makes him he can take no comfort in any thing in the World he hath What a mischievous temper is this the impatiency of one crosse shall eat out the comforts of a hundred mercies An impatient and disquieted spirited man he may fitly be compared to a Hedg-hog and some writers make the Hedg-hog an Embleme of an impatient man now the Hedg-hog they say it is of this properity that the way she hath to bring provision into her hole is to go after a windy day into an Orchard when the fruit is fallen and turns it self round like a Ball and on its bristles and prickles fills it self full of Apples and carries them to her hole but if in the carrying of them to the hole one doth but fall off she throws all the rest down So an impatient man God may load him with many mercies heavy laden with mercies yet if God doth but take away one blessing from him he throws down the comfort of all the rest of the mercies the Lord bestows on him this is the mischievous effect of those disquiets of soul under outward crosses SERMON XII Psal 42. 11. Why art thou cast down O my soul and why art thou disquieted within me hope thou in God for I shall yet praise him The health of my Countenance and my God I Am now to finish this third cause of disquiet There are two things by way of Application The first Use shall be by way of Instruction The second by way of tryal By way of Instruction it shall be to instruct you in several Theological rules that may be laid down to allay all excessive disquiet and discontent of soul under outward afflictions of what ever kind they be whether privative or positive I shall lay down ten Rules First Rule is Live in the continual meditation of the joyes and glories of Heaven It is observable of Paul though his life was a whole course of affliction yet when he was taken up into the third Heaven but whether I was in the body I cannot tell Paul tels you he had many infirmities in his body in hunger and nakednesse in perils by Sea and Land and great troubles in the body yet when he was taken up in a vision he forgot all the infirmities sufferings and sorrows that he met withall in the body 2 Cor. 12. 1. So likewise when Peter saw the transfiguration of Christ Mat. 17. 4. Then answered Peter Lord it is good to be here and build three Tabernacles A Divine observes Peter begged no Tabernacle for himself but said it was good to be there and yet onely upon a barren Mountain where there was no meat to eat nor house to lodge in why he forgot that there was no house here nor no food here having a view of Heaven he said it was good to be here on a barren Mountain It is observed by one touching those birds of the lowest flight they are the most mournful but those Birds of the highest flight are the most noble birds the Dove mourns the Crane chatters the Raven croaks but the Eagle never makes a lamentable noise which is a bird of the highest flight Divines make this use of it that those that are low-spirited men they will croak like Ravens and mourn like Doves when they are afflicted but to be as the Eagle flying aloft in the joyes of Heaven in your meditations this will keep you from that dispondency and that mournfulness of spirit If things go ill with you in the world there is no better way under Heaven to be gotten to allay disquiet of soul under bodily afflictions then to have thy soul transported with the joyes of Heaven It was the Counsel of Jerome which he gave to an Hermit Paradisum mente deambula tamdiu in Eremo non eris take but a walk or two in Heaven and then thou wilt not think thou art in a Wildernesse could you but take a turn or two in Heaven then you would not be troubled for the afflictions here upon Earth The Apostle hath an expression in 2 Cor. 4. 17. For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory The weight of glory made the Apostle to look on heavy afflictions to be but light therefore he called them light afflictions An eternal glory made the Apostle look on long afflictions to be but short afflictions If you would not then account afflictions burdensome think what a weight there is in glory and if you would not think afflictions long why think what eternity there is in glory A Second Rule is this If you would not be inordinately disquieted for afflictions in the World Labour to get your hearts more troubled disquieted for sin when a man bleeds too much at nose or any one part of the body Physicians open a vein in another part to make a diversion of the bloud Beloved when you grieve too much for worldly crosses do as Physicians doe with the blood make a diversion make a diversion of your sorrows open the sluces of your tears for sin pour them out for sin and then you will grieve lesse for the World that is the reason men are troubled to much for afflictions because they are troubled too little for sin and corruption It is a true rule Religious fear it doth banish out a slavish fear and spiritual joy eternal joy so spiritual trouble expels worldly trouble they that are much troubled for sin are not much troubled for any thing in the World besides sin Thirdly Be sure you do not place an excessive love on any comforts in the World you do enjoy if you would keep your trouble but regular keep your love but ordinate It is observable what we read of Jacob Genesis 37. 34 35. And Jacob rent his cloaths and put sackcloth on his loynes and mourned for his son many daies And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him but he refused to be comforted and he said I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning What was the reason that the good old man was so excessively grieved for his son Verse 3. It is said That Israel he loved Joseph more then all his brethren because he was the son of his old age Now Jacob loving Joseph more then all his children made him grieve more for Joseph then all his children if he had not loved Joseph too much when he had him he had not grieved too much for him when he thought he had lost him O Labour to keep an ordinate love to worldly comforts A man that can part with the pairing of his naile cannot part with his finger why because he looks on the naile as superfluity could you look on the World as the pairing of the naile it is but a
doth destroy the soul and not because sin doth defile the soul because God pursueth sin not because he hates sin more because it is against Gods justice that is provoked then because it is against the holiness of God which is dishonoured wicked men are troubled and disquieted because God threatens sin not because God doth forbid sin because of the Hell for sin not because of the Hell in sin But now godly men do hate sin and loath sin more because it is against the nature of God and because God loathes it and hateth it more because it is against Gods commands then because God doth punish sin as it is with a child that forbears to touch a coal because it will black his hand now the child will not touch the coal because it is a fire-coal because it will burn his fingers So it is with godly men they will not touch sin because it is of a smutting and defiling nature but wicked men are like the child that will not touch sin but it is onely because it will burn Now if you can say that you hate sin because God hateth it and you do hate sin not because of the punishment of sin but because of the evil of sin not because of the damning power of sin but because of the defiling power of sin in this case thy disquietness for sin shall never hurt thee The fourth Difference Although wicked men may be troubled and disquieted for sin yet that disquietnesse doth not make them for to leave sin but when their pangs of sorrow is over them they will run to their sin again they may be disquieted for sin sometimes but it is onely for the time that the trouble doth last and no longer You read Jer. 18. 12. They said there is no hope but we will walk after the imaginations of our own hearts Their consciences did a little smite them for sin but they would follow sin for all that But godly men doth reason with themselves thus Doe such sins trouble my soul and disturbe my conscience and hinder my Communion with God and break my peace and shall I yet touch them No I will cast them away as a menstruous cloth and break off from them and I will say to them Get you hence this is another difference godly men do break off from sin but wicked men though they may be disquieted yet they continue still in the same sin assoon as the troule is over Fifthly Wicked men may be troubled for sin at the present yet this doth but lay a bare cessation on the act of sin but not to put the soul in a way of detestation of sin it is possible that there may by reason of natural conscience be such a cessation of sin that for a long time he may not commit the same sin again but yet this doth not breed in the soul a detestation of sin but when the trouble is over the cessation is ended and then he goeth to the same way of inning again You have an instance of this in Pharaoh Exodus 8. 15. When Pharaoh saw that there was respit he bardened his bears and hearkned not unto them as the Lord had said When he had a pang upon him and in great trouble then his sin was abated and a cessation of it I but when the trouble was gone then his heart hardned again So when conscience shall fly into the face of ungodly men and wicked livers and shall tell them that thus and thus they have done O then they will labour to stifle conscience and say they will break off from their wicked ways and will do so no more and when trouble of conscience is over then they will to their old sinful ways again and this is the condition of wicked and ungodly men In 2 Pet. 2. 22. It is said there It is happened to them according to the true Proverb The dog is turned to his own vomit again and the sow that is washed to the wallowing in the mire Wicked men are like dogs while they have a pang over their stomach they are troubled and vomit it up but when the pang is over they return to the vomit again so doe wicked men when conscience shall gripe them and trouble them and punish them then they will vomit up their sins and will say they will do so no more but when pain and trouble is gone they go to their sin again Trouble of soul to a wicked man is like a Prison to a thief a Prison to a thief doth restrain his practise to keep him from doing those parts of Robbery which he would be apt to doe were he at liberty but it doth not change his thievish disposition and inclination from that sin Just so it is with a wicked mans conscience it may check and controul and restrain him from those exorbitant practises and keep him from gross acts of sin but it cannot change his sinful inclination and take away that wicked habit of sin that is within him and to stir up indignation against sin It is observable of Balaam You read in a Pet. 2. 15. Which have forsaken the right way and are gone astray following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor who loved the wages of unrighteousness He loved profit and the pangs of natural conscience were so great upon him that it did restrain him from the receiving of this sinful gain and profit but when Peter came to take cognizance of the sin of Balaam you find that he saith that he loved the wages of unrighteousness though he did not receive them his love and desire went out after it though he did not by reason of his trouble of his natural conscience receive it he would sain have had it It is no thanks to thee O wicked man if thou dost not commit sin thou it may be canst not doe it because of the checks of conscience but hast not thou a love to it and a desire to commit it it is charged upon thee as if thou hadst done it Hast thou a desire to commit adultery and though thou hast not opportunity yet if thou lovest it and delightest to contemplate upon it this is looked upon by God as thy sin And so if thou hast a desire to be drunk and lovest strong drink and hast not opportunity to doe it no thanks to thee yet thy love to the sin renders thee guilty and God will judge thee according to that But godly men they are disquieted for sin and they do desire not onely to take away the act but the habit of sin Psal 119. 104. Through thy precepts I get understanding therefore I hate every false way The Psalmist he by considering the sweet precepts of God came to undestand the nature of sin and the evill of sin and therefore he hated sin and every false way not onely false ways in the outward acts of sin but false ways in regard of the secret actings of sin in his own