if he should say Do you know whom you serve You serve the Lord the high and mighty and glorious and infinite God and therefore you had need be fervent in spirit do that you do with all your might and power for it is for that God that will do such great things for you As David when he danced before the Ark he did it with all his might Michol not knowing his meaning scorned him in her heart but says he It was before the Lord that chose me before your Fathers house that hath bestowed such mercies upon me and will bestow more mercies and if this be to be vile I will be more vile Carnal hearts cannot endure earnestness and fervency in Gods service as the wilde beasts cannot endure fire so beastly carnal spirits cannot endure fire fervency and zeal in Gods ways but suppose they should oppose you for fervency in Gods ways you might answer them If this be to be vile I will be more vile It is for that God that hath done great things for me and that I hope to receive great things from hereafter eternally Fourthly if there be such a glorious reward be encouraged to be abundant in Gods service this is the Argument of the Apostle in 1 Cor. 15. 58. Be ye stedfast unmoveable always abounding in the work of the Lord forasmuch as you know your labor is not in vain in the Lord. By that which hath been said you may know your labor is not in vain with the Lord be abundant in service there shall not be one tear nor one sigh nor one prayer lost many say Why do you so much will not less serve The godly do not onely aym at the reward that will require abundance but they would have the heigth of the reward and therefore they think they never have done enough It is an expression of Austin If a man should serve the Lord a thousand years it would not deserve an hour of the reward in Heaven much less an eternity Though it is true the grace of the Lord is glorious and he does accept of his grace as the most glorious thing in the world yet considering what our actions are how much corruption is mingled with them it would not deserve a moment in Heaven and therefore we had need do as much as we can 2 Peter 3. 11. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved what maner of persons ought ye to be in all maner of holy conversation and godliness We should be ashamed and confounded in our thoughts that we can do no more and if there should be shame in Heaven when the Saints shall see and enjoy so much there would they not be ashamed that they have done no more for that God so glorious in his bounty goodness here Fifthly if there be such a glorious recompence of reward then let us labor to be faithful with God because we have such a good Master that is so good and gracious to us Princes make account they engage the hearts of their subjects that are about them to be faithful with them by their great rewards and by keeping of them in expectation of great things The great things that God hath prepared for us do lay more engagements upon our hearts to be faithful with him Let us not be false to such a God as this is God expects we should be faithful upon this ground Isaiah 63. 7 8. There are large expressions of the goodness of the Lord unto his people and what follows Surely they are my people children that will not lye As if he should say These are a people that I expect should be satisfied with me In Psal 36. 5. there God joyns his mercy and his faithfulness both together As Gods mercies and faithfulness are joyned together so let the hope of Gods mercies to us and our faithfulness unto God be joyned together It was an argument of God unto Abraham I am God All-sufficient and I am your exceeding great reward walk before me and be upright As if he should say You need not go and shark unto any other creature you have reward enough in me therefore walk before me and be upright So by all that which God hath revealed unto you concerning this glorious reward of his people God says You need not go and seek any thing else you need not be sharking up and down after the creature Is there not enough in me to satisfie any creature living The ground why any depart from God in a way of unfaithfulness is because they have distrustful thoughts and think there is not enough to be had in God but they had need shift for themselves another way If we understand this glorious reward and our hearts close with it this temptation could not have power to draw our hearts from it Therefore God is so plentiful in the manifestation of his goodness because his people should not have any shifting thoughts there is enough in God and in the treasures of his grace to make up all Now by that which hath been said be encouraged to go on in those ways in which you have no present encouragement there are many ways in which you have no encouragement from God or men you pray and hear and perform duties and do not finde God come in that way let the reward that is to come be enough to encourage you You do many good things and men are ungrateful and will not requite them well let this quiet you There is a glorious reward to come I remember a speech of Luther That servitude to men though it be to ungrateful men does please God and God says he wil abundantly reward you for it and that should be more sweet to us then all the treasures in the world In Isa 49. 4. says the Prophet I have labored in vain I have spent my strength for nought and in vain yet truly my judgement is with the Lord and my work with my God It is a speech of Latimer speaking of Ministers that would leave their flock because they did no good says he It is very naughtily done we must look to that which God commands us and leave the issue to God Christ saith Follow me me me three times he hath it and not your own lusts let us do our own work and leave the reward with God Though it be a sweet encouragement for the Ministers of God to see something of their labor yet if they do not it is enough to make them go on in a way of obedience for the present because God commands it though there were no reward but when we do obey God and please God for the present and it shall be rewarded so gloriously hereafter let not this be any excuse We can do no good if you be convinced of a duty whether there be good or no good come of it whether there be present encouragement or not it is enough that it shall be gloriously rewarded hereafter Sixthly if there be
secrets of all hearts shall be opened of being shy of the ways of Religion because of affliction many when they see they must suffer in those ways although they be convinced of them yet they are ready to say with Augustine as he confesses of himself I do not love to pass through those straits it is too hard and narrow away for them If such thoughts work in thee at any time take these considerations for the rebuking of thy self and the raising of thy heart to a more Christian magnanimity of spirit First at what a low rate doest thou prize the ways of God the glory of God that such and such more low comforts must not be laid down for them that such light afflictions must not be endured for the maintenance of them Secondly consider if Christ had stood upon such terms as to have said I could be content indeed that these poor creatures might be delivered from misery but seeing such grievous evils must be suffered for their deliverance let them perish I am not willing to be their deliverer upon such hard terms What had become of us if Christ had reasoned thus if this argument had prevailed with him against us as it prevails with us against him Thirdly thou who art so shy of suffering mayest be forced to suffer in spight of thy heart and what a sad thing will that be to thee What a sad thing was it to Cranmer after he had recanted for fear of sufferings yet he was forced to suffer what a darkning was it to this spirit his cause and name Mr. Fox relates of a Smith in King Edwards time who was the means of conversion of a friend of his who in Queen Maries time was cast into prison whereupon he sends to this Smith who had been the means of his conversion wondring that he hears not of his apprehending and imprisonment this Smith sends him word again that it was true that he had taught him such and such things and those things were certain truths but for his part he could not burn but a while after the house of this Smith was on fire and he was burnt in it God made him burn whether he would or no and so may he make you suffer whether you will or no who refuse to suffer for his truth Fourthly whatsoever prosperity thou enjoyest when God calls thee to suffer for him is cursed unto thee if thou blessest thy self in thy estate thy liberty thy name thy life that thou enjoyest having avoided the way of suffering that God called thee unto thou deceivest thy self for there is no blessing in them they are all accursed unto thee Fifthly all duties of Religion that now thou performest out of a suffering condition are not now accepted of God thou must not think now having avoided suffering for Gods truth that because thou art willing to perform duties to be diligent in some service for God that God now accepts of thee No it was another work that God called thee unto a work of suffering seeing thou hast refused this do what thou canst God casts it as dung in thy face and regards it not this is a sad condition What joy can such a man have of his life if he hath an enlightned conscience Sixthly what intolerable pride and delicacy is this in thee that thou wilt not venter the loss of any thing the enduring of any thing for God and his truth the least truth of God is worth more then heaven and earth and what is thy ease thy liberty thy name thy life to it Thou art too delicate O Christian says Tertullian who must have pleasure in this world Seventhly How vile is the unbelief of thy heart who darest not trust God with thy name estate liberty How canst thou trust God with thy soul thy eternal estate How lightly doest thou regard all the faithfulness the mercy goodness wisdom power of God working for his people in their suffering conditions Of what little account are all these gracious blessed promises of the Lord for their encouragement herein thy base shyness and cowardise of spirit is such as if there were no God no faithfulness mercy wisdom power to help as if there were no promise to support and relieve thee Eighthly there is a necessity of thy miscarrying in the ways of eternal life for if God hath so ordered things in his providence as that such ways must be in ways of affliction and thy heart cannot bear affliction how is it possible but that thou must needs miscarry in them It is a woeful thing to have a mans heart opposite to Gods order in any thing but much more in things of infinite consequence if afflictions be a block to thee in the way of life you must have this block Ninthly How little love is there in thine heart to God when thou art so shy of any thing to be suffered for God love rejoyces in suffering for the beloved The avoiding hell and the getting Heaven are no great things says Chrysostome where the love of God is then surely the avoiding outward troubles and the enjoyment of outward comforts would be no great matter to us if the love of God were in us Tenthly Did you never suffer affliction in your ways of sin and will you not now be willing to suffer as much in the ways of God Shall your sins have a greater testimony of respect to them from you then God himself Art thou nor confounded at the mention the thought of such a thing as this so unreasonable so vile Eleventhly What honor should God have in the world where would there be any witness to truth against the rage and malice of devil and wicked men if all should do as thou doest If there be any Christian blood left in thee if any spirit worthy of thy profession be ashamed of thy baseness this way and be not so shy of afflictions Secondly when thou art under afflictions let there be an humble contented frame of spirit as beseems a Christian seeing thou art now under an Ordinance of God take heed of the least murmuring repining against God as if he were a hard Master or as if his ways were hard and burthensom because of the afflictions thou meetest withal when thy spirit begins any way to rise in such workings charge thy soul to be silent unto God it is a great shame for a Christian not to be well skilled in that art instructed in that mystery of Christian contentation Say with thy Savior Shall not I drink of that cup my Father hath given me to drink It is Gods appointment that his people should be in an afflicted estate in this world it is the cup of my Father and shall not I quietly and contentedly drink of that cup Now thou hast an opportunity to manifest the power and excellency of thy grace to shew what thy grace can enable thee to do strength of reason
Lord is pleased to condescend to our weakness to express his especial presence with his Church and therefore it is good to be with them these are the expressions of it But wherein does the presence of God with his people appear more then with other people In these two things especially First because there God makes himself known reveals himself there and makes his beauty to appear Psal 27. 4. One thing have I desired of the Lord that I will seek after that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in his Temple It is the glory of Heaven to see God in his beauty and this is one of the greatest promises of God to his Church that they shall see the King in his majesty We may see some glimmering light of God in the Heavens Sun Moon and Stars but in the Church there God shews his beauty there we may see the face of God and this is that which Moses did desire Lord-shew me thy glory It is much granted to us in the Church in enjoying his Ordinances and there is no way to see Gods face so clearly as this way Every childe of God that is in the Temple shall speak of Gods glory for they see God in his glory in a special maner Secondly the especial presence of God with his people is especially manifested in that he communicates to his people as namely First the choice mercies of God are communicated to his people If you would have any share in Gods choice mercies his peculiar mercies come amongst Gods people joyn with them as that place is observable in Psal 134. 3. The Lord that made Heaven and earth bless thee out of Sion He does not say the Lord that made Heaven and Earth bless thee out of Heaven and Earth but the Lord that made Heaven and Earth bless thee out of Sion as if he should say The blessings that come out of Sion are the choice blessings and the peculiar mercies of God even above any that come out of Heaven and Earth Secondly God communicates his mercies more fully then any where else Isa 25. 6. And in this mountain that is in the Church I will make a feast of fat things a feast of wines on the lees of fat things full of marrow c. and Psal 36. 8. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures In a private way there may be some drops of pleasure from God but there is not that full communication from God as with his people in his Ordinances there is in the world in the creature drops in private communion there are ponds but in a pulique Church-communion there are rivers of pleasure and that is the height of all Thirdly God communicates his mercies more powerfully in the Church then any where else Psal 133. 3. For there the Lord commanded the blessing even life for evermore God did not onely speak and said there should be a blessing but spake in a commanding way There Where is that There in the Church amongst his people there God commanded the blessing even life for evermore Lastly God blesseth more universally with all kinde of blessing and therefore he is more present there and in that respect the Psalmist says Psalm 87. 7. All my springs are in thee This whole Psalm is to set out the excellent condition of the Church and he concludes the Psalm with this All my springs are in thee Now this expression is very emphatical Spring is taken two or three ways in Scripture The Law of God the Doctrine of Gods Law is compared to a spring and heavenly knowledge is compared to a spring and then it is thus All my springs All the truths I have all the knowledge I come to be made partaker of are all in the Church Again All my springs all the comforts of my heart and that good and joy my spirit receives and all the graces of the Spirit that I have and all the quickning and strengthning I have is communicated to me this way And upon this ground the Church is called the very perfection of all beauty Psal 50. 2. Out of Zion the perfection of all beauty God hath shined Out of Zion there is his glory wonderfully apparent The word that is translated the perfection of beauty is translated by some the universality of beauty all kinde of beauty all kinde of excellency as if the Psalmist should say Put all excellencies together that possibly you can imagine to make a thing comely and lovely they are all in the Church Thus you see it is good being with Gods people when as God is thus present with them in a special maner Eighthly it is good being with Gods people because there is Gods special protection others are but as the wilderness the Church is as a garden enclosed Cant. 4. 12. A man regards his garden that he hath enclosed and bestowed cost about more then a wilde field the fields have hedges to keep out the beasts but gardens have brick wals or wood walls Isa 27. 3. I the Lord do keep it I will water it every moment lest any hurt it I will keep it night and day How full is this his care over it is such as he threatens those which shall but touch it Jer. 12. 14. to pluck them out of their land Zach. 2. 5. God promiseth he will be a wall of fire round about his people alluding to the custom of travellers in the wilderness who used to make fires round about them in the night for their safety because then none of the wilde beasts durst come near them such a defence is God to his people There is nothing in the Book of God wherein God is so full in his expression as when he comes to this argument to manifest his affection to his Church Christ is the Shepherd and when sheep are together they are under the protection of the Shepherd when the sheep are scattered the Shepherds eye is not so over them And therefore in Hosea 4. 16. God threatens his people he would feed them as a Lamb in a large place as a Lamb getting from the fold goes up and down bleating so when Gods people are scattered they are as a Lamb in a large place and when God would threaten the sorest judgement against his people Ezekiel 34. he says He will scatter them and they shall become to be meat to the beasts of the field And hence it is that the condition of the Church is so stable a condition and therefore in Isaiah 60. 15. the Church is called an eternal excellency because it is under the Lords protection and is it not good being there to be under the wing of God Ninthly to be amongst Gods people is a blessed thing because they have so many
such a glorious reward such blessed things as these reserved for the people of God hence then let us dwell a little in admiring at the goodness of God at the infinite treasures of the riches of the glory of the grace of God towards the children of men Certainly Brethren great are the thoughts of God towards mankinde wonderful are his ways to this poor creature of his What is man says the Psalmist nay what is man indeed when as we consider what God hath done for him In Rom. 8. 31. after the Apostle had spoke of glorification and of the blessed estate of Gods people hereafter says the Apostle What shall we say to these things So seeing these things are so that are revealed What shall we say to these things O the heighth and length and depth and breadth of the loving kindeness of the Lord how unsearchable are his judgements shall we say How unsearchable are his mercies and his mercies past finding out O how great is thy goodness which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee which thou hast wrought before the sons of men Psal 31. 19. If ever God wrought about any thing it was about the communication of his goodness to mankinde yea how great is it before the sons of men before us that have but a little made known to us How great is it before Angels then and before God himself In Psal 113. 6. it is said God humbleth to behold things that are done in heaven It is much that God should vouchsafe to behold any thing in heaven but now that God should vouchsafe to behold such a poor wretched creature as man is here upon earth and not to behold him onely but to work thus gloriously for him and that from all eternity to make it his great work to communicate himself to man O how does God humble himself here and how is his mercy and goodness to be admired and adored by the sons of men God is to be praised for the least of his mercies here but he is to be admired in the glory of his rich grace in heaven We read Psal 136. God is praised twenty five times for his mercies but the conclusion of all is Praise the God of Heaven for his mercies endure for ever his mercies as he is the God of heaven they are the glorious mercies indeed When the Scripture would set forth the excellency of a thing it expresseth it by heaven as the excellency of Christ He is the Lord from heaven 1 Cor. 15. 47. The excellency of God the God of heaven Jonah 1. 9. It is made the top of Christs glory that he is made higher then the heavens Heb. 7. 26. When Christ would shew the excellency of the bread of life he says It is bread from heaven the excellency of spiritual blessings is set out in this that they are blessings in heavenly places Eph. 1. Because gold is the most precious mettal therefore we lay it over other things not onely wood and cloth but silver it self so because heaven is so excellent the Lord gilds as it were his choicest blessings with this adjunct and all to shew the wonderful excellency there is in heaven it self Brethren God hath therefore revealed these things to us to that end that the glory of his grace might be great in the world God would have us have high and honorable and glorious thoughts of his goodness God would have the high praises of his grace to be in the hearts and in the mouthes of his Saints it is a great evil to have low and mean apprehensions of the glorious grace of God to mankinde you do not know what dishonor you bring to God in it If your hearts be not raised on high and enlarged in the thoughts of the free and glorious grace of God to mankinde it is an exceeding dishonor to him To see the riches of Gods glorious grace to the children of men it is a mighty work of faith and such a work as the soul is enabled to do onely by a mighty and glorious work of the holy Ghost in it indeed there is in the world a base and poor and mean apprehension of the grace of God in Christ such as does not work at all to raise and enlarge and glorifie the heart of a man but the true sight of the riches of Gods glorious grace it hath a mighty power to raise and enlarge and glorifie the hearts of the children of men while they are here as mark the expressions of the Apostle in his Prayer for the Ephesians 1 Ephes 17. 18. That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of glory may give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him The eyes of your understanding being enlightned that ye may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the Saints not the inheritance of the Saints but the inheritance in the Saints and the glory of the inheritance and the riches of the glory and they must not onely have understanding to know this but the eyes of their understanding must be enlightened and this must come from the knowledge of Christ from the Spirit of wisdom and Revelation and from the Father of glory the God of our Lord Jesus Christ The sight of the excellency and riches of Gods grace here it is that that is the work of God shining into the heart 2 Cor. 4. 6. For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness hath shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ The unsearchable truths of the Gospel are in that which hath been revealed so far as we are able to wade into them The sight of Gods rich glory is that which the Princes of the world have not known it is that which requires a work of the Spirit of God Of that Spirit which searcheth the deep things of God O brethren if you had a true spiritual sight of the richness of the goodness of God in the way of his communication of happiness and glory to the children of men then you see into the great design of God into the deep counsels of his wisdom then God hath laid open his heart unto you God hath brought you into the treasures of his riches and given you a view of them the very secrets of Gods soul are imparted to you and blessed are your eyes that have seen these things if the sight of Gods glory in his grace towards mankinde be seen in true beauty and height and glory indeed there is no fear that they should do hurt to any soul it is true the apprehension of the grace of God in a natural way is the cause of security or presumption in many but there was never any in the world that was furthered in a way of security and presumption upon the spiritual sight and view they
acknowledge we do not know what the ways of wisdom mean if we do not subscribe to this truth that her ways are ways of pleasantness Ways of pleasantness they are and this pleasantness that is in her ways hath abundance of excellencies in it Very many I thought to have spoken of and enlarged take onely the very mention of them because I must not be too long and then we will answer to some quaeres and apply all and so conclude For the excellent properties of this pleasantness it is that which is the sweetest soul-satisfying pleasantness the very rule it self is sweet sweeter then honey oh how sweet is the souls acting by it it hath the very quintessence of all other delights extracted in it it is the most solid such as hath not vanity and froth in it as other delights have it is such a delight as ennobles the soul it spiritualizeth the heart it is immixt not dangerous as others are it is abiding not vanishing it is continually virid and fresh though there is a fulness in it yet it grows not to satiety by use but grows more and more sweet for it raiseth and enlargeth the faculty it is Heavenly it is divine it is independent in regard of the creature there needs no sharking out to the creature for the upholding it all other delights depend on this there is no pleasure had but in the ways of godliness Una guttula malae conscientiae totum marae mundani gaudii absorbet One drop of an evil conscience swallows up the whole Sea of worldly joy says Luther but one drop of this delight is enough to sweeten all sorrows one drop of gall will imbitter much sweet but one drop of sweet cannot sweeten much gall but here it is otherwise one drop of this sweet sweetens all bitterness of afflictions but all the bitter of afflictions cannot imbitter one drop of this delight Yea this pleasure is the rule of all pleasure and the end of all pleasure whatsoever pleasure is not regulated by this and subordinate to this is evil But how are the ways of wisdom the ways of pleasantness It appears otherwise for the ways of godliness do abridge men of abundance of pleasure and delight in many things in the world What is so great an enemy to the pleasures of men and women as Religion It causeth them to be cut short of abundance of delightful things that others rejoyce in To that I answer first Suppose it were so you heard in the commendation that the pleasantness of the ways of godliness was exceeding great that it hath that excellency in it to make up whatsoever pleasure it wants Though it should cut you short of abundance of pleasure if it shall put a principle that shall enable you to stand in no need of that pleasure it cuts you short of what have you lost As suppose a man that is weak and hath little blood or spirits in him and is chill and cold and puts on many clothes to keep himself warm if these clothes should be al taken away save only his inward garment if there could be put into him spirits and blood and marrow and that which should make him not to be sensible of the want of his clothes it is a great deal better What man that is weak and sickly and is fain to have abundance of clothes to keep him warm would not be willing to part with his clothes if he might have spirits and blood put into him not to feel the want of those clothes So why is it that your hearts are set upon the delight of the creature because you want a principle within to satisfie your souls withal and therefore you are fain to seek the cloathing of the creature and to keep your selves warm with the cloathing of the creature but if Religion take away those things and give you a principle not to feel the want of them but have them made up another way and better you have no cause to complain of the want of pleasantness Secondly I answer that godliness abridges us of no lawful pleasure if it abridges of any it is delightfulness to want those delights that godliness abridges us of What hast thou delight in that which is sinful if it be not sinful Religion does not abridge thee of it onely such delights in which thou dishonorest God and provokest him against thee But secondly How are the ways of God ways of pleasantness when they require abundance of humiliation trouble for sin and is not that bitter and grievous To that I answer First there is more sweetness in that which thou callest bitterness then in all the delightfulness of the world besides those waters Christ does turn into wine And to convince you that these are not bitter waters but that the tears of repentance and humiliation are sweet refreshing waters of life consider from what fountain they come First the work of humiliation if it be right the principle of it is the melting work of the Gospel in the soul the sweetness of the goodness and mercy of God in Jesus Christ melting the heart and causing it to dissolve and fall down under the hand of God certainly that which comes from such a sweet principle cannot have much bitterness in it Secondly the soul in the work of humiliation melting before the Lord eases it self in that melting of abundance of sin and much sweetness there must needs be in those tears that ease the soul of and deliver the soul from much sin Thirdly in the work of humiliation there is much delight because the soul hath much delight in looking back to that sorrow it hath had and if godliness makes mourning to be delightful what does it make rejoycing to be But if it be said in the third place But there are many hardthings that Gods people do meet withal in the ways of godliness and the ways of godliness put them upon such things as cause them to meet with sore temptations and trials here in the world how then can the ways of godliness be so pleasant To that I answer Here is a mighty commendation to the pleasantness of the ways of Religion notwithstanding the hardest and sorest things a godly heart meets with there is that delight in the ways of godliness as upholds the heart under all and carries the heart sweetly on What commendation was it to the grace in the hearts of the Martyrs that did uphold their hearts and carry their hearts sweetly in the enduring of such hard things Secondly these being hard to flesh and blood hinder not the pleasure of a gracious heart it is the highest improvement of all our estates that can be the highest testimony of giving your respect to God whereby the soul enjoys most of God all times The Spirit of God and glory resteth upon the soul while it is enduring such things And how opposite is thy heart and
reproaches are the reproaches of Christ and we shall not need to depend upon any outward comfort for to comfort us much less have we need to help our selves by reviling again The comfort of a Christian is this That his reproaches are the reproaches of Christ this is enough to quiet his heart you need not comfort your selves in your parts or estates this is enough alone do but answer all your distractions and troublesome workings of your hearts with this and this will quiet them Quest But how shall I know that my reproaches are the reproaches of Christ Answ First if you be reproached for the sake of Christ though you be not a member of Christ yet if your adversaries reproach you because they take you for a member of Christ there is some comfort in this Secondly if you can under all reproaches bring your hearts in subjection unto Christ and quiet your hearts under reproaches in obedience unto him Thirdly if you finde the rule by which you are guided and acted in that condition to be the rule of Christ Fourthly if you finde the chiefest comfort that you gather in to help you to be the comfort of Christ Fifthly if you finde the end you do aim at in your bearing them is the honor of Christ and that you do desire rather that Christ may be in the conclusion honored then your selves cleared Sixthly take this as a special note if you make those reproaches that Christ suffers in his cause his truth his people yours then he makes yours his how does your hearts stand affected to the reproaches Christ suffers in others Zeph. 3. 17 18. God promises much mercy to such to whom the reproach of the solemn assemblies were a burthen That heart that is burthened with the reproaches of Gods ways shall finde ease in the comforts of Gods Spirit If these things be in you certainly these come from the Spirit of Christ and if from the Spirit of Christ then you are Christs and if you be Christs then your reproaches are Christs A third Use is this Seeing Christ suffers for us and all our reproaches are the reproaches of Christ Let us take heed that he do not suffer by us Now Christ may come to suffer by us two ways First if so be that we cause the name of Christ to be spoken evil of Secondly when we come to be actors our selves in speaking evil of Christ or of his people First if we cause Christ or his people to be spoken evil of by any sinful way of ours this is the reproach of Christ but not in that sense I spoke of before Christ does not onely suffer in you but he suffers by you This is the charge that the Apostles lays upon the Romans For your sake is the name of God blasphemed we had need look to our selves in this Mark what charge the Apostle lays upon women 1 Tim. 5. 13 14. that they should take heed of tatling and carrying themselves unchristianly and that they give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully That was the reason why Nehemiah was so careful in his business in Neh. 5. 9. Because of the reproach of the Heathen And so I say to you that are Gods people Is it not enough that Christ hath suffered for you and in you but must he suffer by you O that the fear of God might be upon you because of the reproach of your adversaries Is Christ dear to you did Christ ever do any thing for you Is it not better a thousand times that you were crost and your lives were taken away and you laid rotting in the grave if your names could wash away any stain that is upon the name of Christ know there are many that Christ have fuffered reproach by and you cannot clear your selves of it and know what an evil and bitter thing it is that after all the goodness and mercy of Christ to you and the near relation that he hath taken you into will you abuse all this mercy and this near relation if Christ had never taken you for his own had you been never so vile Christ had not suffered reproach by you but now in regard of your near relation to him he suffers reproach by you and is this the use you make of your near relation When therefore you finde your hearts begin to stir and corruption boil consider the name of Christ lies prostrate before you and will you trample upon the name of Jesus Christ if one were set upon going to a place to do mischief and his Father and Mother should throw themselves in the path that if he goes on he must tread upon them and they should say You shall tread upon the bowels out of which you came upon the loyns that begat you this would be a great stop and so you that are Professors of the Gospel if you have a temptation to a lust the name of Christ calls Stay and says If you go you shall trample upon me and my blood and bring reproach upon me will not this stop you Never think that gain that you get by the reproach of Christ It is true indeed if we be going on in our duty and do that we should though men say the name of Christ shall be reproached we are to go on and do our duty and let Christ vindicate his name if he will but if it be any thing that concern out selves and the satisfaction of our own wills and desires whereby Christ may be reproached this is a mighty argument to keep us from it the word hath scarce a stronger argument to keep us from an evil way then this The name of Christ shal suffer by it for the people of God to suffer reproach by you is an evil thing for a man to have but his kindred ashamed of him what an evil thing is it but that it may be said of one that is a Professor of Religion that he is not onely a reproach to the Church of God but a reproach to Jesus Christ if you have any ingenuity in you this might strike to your hearts It is reported of Alexander having a Soldier of his name and his Soldier being a coward he came to him and said Either leave off the name of Alexander or be a Soldier and so we have the name of Christians but when we are vile in our lives Christ says Either leave off your profession your name or be a Christian indeed do not come in amongst the number of Professors to let profession suffer by you And so Alexander Severus the Emperor seeing a company of Christians fighting together he commanded them to leave off the name of Christians for says he You profess your selves to be Christians and yet you are thus contending this is not the spirit of him whom you do profess It is a lamentable thing that we should profess such a glorious name as we do and that we should handle the
happiness at all but besides it hath a kinde of infinite capacity whereby it is made capable of the highest happiness that belongs to the capacity of a Creature and certainly God hath not made this in vain God does intend to fill this capacity You will say An infinite capacity of happiness how is that Thus for there are two things in the rational part of man his understanding and his will now the capacity of this part must be judged according to the objects that are suitable unto these two faculties in mans soul For the understanding it is not any particular thing that is the object of it but truth in general take truth in the utmost latitude of it in the universality of it that is the object of mans understanding and therefore the understanding is infinite because it is not satisfied in this or that particular but truth in the utmost extent And for the object of the will it is good in the general it is not this or that particular good but good in the universality of its nature and therefore till it come to enjoy God that does eminently contain all good in him it can never come to have full satisfaction And here observe the difference between the capacity of mans nature and the capacity of other Creatures as for other Creatures their faculties can extend no further then some particular good and they are limited within the narrow bounds of their own nature and therefore if so be the eye have colour it goes no further and if the ear have sound it goes no further and so taste it goes no further then some particular good but the intelligent soul the rational soul goes beyond all particulars Now God having made mans nature of such a capacity for good and happiness certainly God intends great things for the children of men other maner of things then there are in this world and if for any surely for the righteous Thirdly surely there is a reward because it is the great design that God had in the making of the world in all his works to lift up and advance the glory of the riches of his mercy and grace now if this be Gods great design to advance the glory of his infinite mercy then certainly there must needs be a glorious condition for some of the children of men for that is not yet done though there be something of Gods mercy manifested that we have cause to admire at yet certainly God does not reveal that in the world whereby he should attain to the great design of lifting up of the glory of his great Name Fourthly the chief of the deep infinite counsels of God and the works of his wisdom that have been from all eternity have been and are yet exercised about this especially namely to bring mankinde to his eternal estate and to communicate unto the children of men that glory that he hath appointed for them that it might be in the most glorious way that can be now if God have set his infinite wisdom on work from all eternity about this namely what might be the most glorious way of communication of himself in the riches of his goodness unto mankinde certainly when this comes to pass that God should communicate himself as much as he does intend it must be infinitely glorious certainly there are great things and glorious things to be communicated hereafter Fifthly the power of God hath been already exercised in subserviency to other attributes of his to make known his wisdom and his bounty and his general goodness the power of God have been wonderfully manifested in the works of creation and providence now certainly the power of God is as well to be put forth in a way of subserviency unto his grace and mercy now if there be such a time as Gods infinite power is to be let out and work unto that end that it might be subservient unto the infiniteness of his mercy then certainly there are glorious and great things to be revealed and made known Sixthly certainly there are glorious and great things for mankinde in that God hath raised the nature of man unto such a heighth as he hath done in Christ namely to unite mans nature unto himself unto the second person of the Trinity and that with the nearest union that possibly can be namely an hypostatical union certainly then God intends great things for the children of men for that nature that is one person with the Divine nature This is such a great work of God as all other of the works of God are darkned in the honor of this great work Seventhly the great purchase that Jesus Christ hath made in that he hath been content to leave so much glory certainly this was to purchase great glory and in that he was content to be made a curse for mans-sin and to shed his blood and to give his life for man surely this was not onely to purchase outward comforts in the world it was to purchase higher things and therefore great must needs be the fruit of the purchase of the blood of Christ and therefore great are the things that are to be revealed hereafter Eighthly there are in Scripture many glorious promises which yet are not fulfilled abundant rich and glorious promises that have infinite treasures of good in them there must be a time of fulfilling of them all to the utmost extent of them and therefore certainly there are great things to be revealed hereafter Thy word O Lord is setled for ever in Heaven Psal 119. 89. Ninthly the great things that God hath done for his enemies is a demonstration that there is a glorious condition for Gods people afterward in that God hath filled their bellies with his hid treasure what treasures hath God to fill the souls of his own people with when as he does fill the bellies of the wicked whom he does intend to cast out as accursed Tenthly it appears there are great things for the people of God hereafter because of the great hopes that are wrought in the hearts of Gods servants by the power of the Holy Ghost Now surely such hopes as are wrought by the power of the Holy Ghost they must attain unto glorious things Rom. 15. 13. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost the hope of Gods people is that which is not onely wrought by the Holy Ghost but by the power of the Holy Ghost and such an hope as God is pleased to stile himself the God of this hope and therefore certainly glorious things are to be revealed Another demonstration is this the very natures and excellency of grace is to take off our hearts from these present things in the world and from all the good that is here in the creature God does give grace for this end now then I reason thus if the chief excellency
have had of the heighth and depth of the riches of the glory of the grace of God in the face of Jesus Christ That sight of Gods grace that is the cause of security in people is that which is grounded meerly upon a natural light which hath no efficacy to raise and enlarge and to purge the heart But this true spiritual sight of Gods grace it hath a mighty efficacy and nothing more to raise and enlarge and purge the heart In 2 Corinth 3. 18. says the Apostle We beholding the glory of the Lord as in a mirror What then are we secure and presumptuous upon this No We are changed into the same image from glory to glory What was that glory that the Apostle did behold the glory of God in the mirror of the Gospel the glory of God in the riches of his grace towards the Saints Now says he While we behold as in a mirror this glory of God this is the fruit of it We are changed from glory to glory People talk of Gods mercy but how few ever had a spiritual sight of Gods mercy they would have Ministers preach much of Gods mercy but if people had eyes to behold it in the glory of it how would it change their hearts wherefore then I beseech you labor to have more then a natural sight of Gods mercy and goodness towards mankinde A man by a low apprehension of Gods mercy and goodness may think thus So long as I serve God it shall be well with me God will bless me and be merciful to me but that spiritual and supernatural sight of the riches of the glory of Gods mercy is this for a soul though it sees it self a base vile wretched worm a lump of filth and sees it self standing guilty before the Lord and God seems to look with an angry face upon it and conscience within it accuses it and the threats of the fiery Law come out against it yet for a soul to be able to look into the deep bowels of Gods infinite compassion that are in Christ and in them to look upon it self for all this as an heir of glory and eternal life so as to have the soul raised and enlarged and devoted to the magnifying praising and adoring the riches of Gods grace and to venture all upon this this is more then a natural sight of Gods grace and of his mercy towards mankinde You will say We could admire Gods grace and mercy towards mankinde and praise him and bless him for it and our hearts would be enlarged If we were sure these things did belong to us and that we had any interest in them there is enough in them to enlarge and raise our hearts but this is that which hinders We do not know that we have an interest therein To that I answer That this very work of God it self that gives this sight of his grace to raise up the heart to close with it and to make the soul venture all upon it that does bring the soul to devote it self to the praise and honor of it this very work of it self does interest your souls in it therefore do not say If I were interested in these things then I could praise and magnifie God for them If you can do this you are interested in them for this is an immediate work of faith and it is from a divine principle to be able to do this and therefore though you know no good at all in your selves before and you had no arguments to encourage you before and you had no preparation in your own apprehensions before yet if you have but this work of grace it does interest your souls in all that which hath been revealed concerning the recompence of reward of the Saints of God But may we not presume to think that such great things belong to us To that I answer Where ever presumption is it is built upon a natural sight of Gods grace and that is a poor low flat dead thing that hath no such efficacy to raise the heart to such a glorious work as this is and therefore if the heart be raised to such a glorious work as this by the appprehension of the riches of the grace and goodness of God towards mankinde that is not presumption And this is the sixth Use CHAP. LIV. Gods people to be highly honored SEventhly if there be such blessed things reserved for the people of God Hence let us look upon all the servants of God as honorable in our eyes and let them be honored in our thoughts for great are the thoughts of God upon them and towards them and therefore great and honorable should be our thoughts of them though they be never so poor and mean in the world We use to look upon great heirs with admiring thoughts and blessing of them every time we look upon them Do you see one walking in the ways of God whatsoever he be for his outwards let your hearts bless him and say Here is one indeed born to great things other maner of things then any the world affords Did we know what were the things that the people of God should be possessed of within a while we would say in our hearts O blessed that ever they were born blessed is the womb that bare them and blessed are the paps that gave them suck Did we with a spiritual believing eye behold what things they should have and saw them as now possessed of them we would see cause to fall down and kiss the ground upon which they tread The blessed Angels look upon them as great ones as the glory of the world and therefore do joyfully minister unto them because they know they are the great heirs of Heaven for whom such great things are prepared Great things are spoken of thee O thou City of God says the Psalmist Great things are spoken of you O ye Saints of God If Heaven must be so glorious to entertain the Saints how glorious are those for whom heaven is prepared Says Ahasuerus What shall be done to the man whom the King will honor O what shall be done to those whom an infinite God hath set his heart upon to raise to honor and to manifest to Angels and to all the world what his infinite power is able to do in raising of a creature to glory In the Saints there is a meeting as it were of the beams of Gods grace and goodness as in a center and that must needs be very warm and hot indeed The beams of the Sun in the circumference scattered in the ayr are warm but in a glass where they are united together as it were in a center there they warm after another maner there they burn so all the works of Gods grace abroad in the world they are as the beams of the Sun in the circumference that are scattered abroad but in his people there is the center where they are united together and there they burn and