up and helpe maintaine a gratious frame within me Where true holinesse is the soule is sensible of all advantages and disadvantages of good An indifferency for any company or imployment shewes a dead heart This is a main difference to distinguish a childe of God from a prophane wretch that only lives to himselfe his heart is taken up wholy with the world and matters below wheras the godly are all for thriving in grace and increase of godlinesse The wicked man considers of things as they serve to satisfie his lust and if wee have better thoughts at any time it is but for a start But a godly mans aimes are alwayes holy and the strength of his soul is put forth that way He values himselfe as hee stands in relation to God and a better life and esteemes all other things more or lesse as they further or hinder his spiritual growth and bring peace and sorrow at the last unto him But I hasten to the second part of the Text The persons to whom this priviledge belongs that is to them that love God And why to them that love God because the Apostle speaketh of afflictions and wee know that the grace which is most conversant in the Saints sufferings is patience which floweth from love Also for that of all other graces is the first and sweetest it is the first for whom wee love wee are sorry to offend and hate whatsoever is contrary to that we affect we rejoyce in that we love grieve in the absence thereof It is the commanding affection of all others and setteth the whole man sweetly a work to attaine its defire Love makes us forward and zealous Christians all the inward worship of God is in the affections As thou shalt rejoyce in no God but me and feare no God but me All the Commandements of God are brought by Christ to this duty Againe love hath a speciall part in this priviledge of bringing all things to work for our good For when we love God wee will make the best use of every thing which we suffer or do If we love God and eye his glory therein Love makes any burthen easie it makes us studious of pleasing the party loved as we say in the Proverb Love me and doe with me what you will Love is full of inventions it studies complacencie and sets the soule a work to honour God in all things In that the Apostle saith To them that love God and not to the children or servants of God Wee may observe That Christianity is not a bare title but it requireth some qualification Therefore the Scriptures when they describe a Saint on earth doe not usually say the child of God but they set him forth by some holy affections or actions wrought in him As such as love God or feare God and walks in his wayes Hereby shewing that Religion is not a matter of complement but a reall and holy endeavour to please the Lord and although the Scriptures do name but some one particular affection yet it is all one as if they had named all for where one is in truth there all followes Again in that the Apostle here ascribes priviledges to those only that are thus qualified wee must take heed in applying the promises of God and these sweet consolations that we be such persons to whom of right they doe belong for all things work for the best not to every one but to such as love God We must not therefore preach comfort to all but must first labour to make men capable of it To this end 1. First wee will shew the Nature of this love 2. Secondly the exercises of it and directions unto it 3. Thirdly some incitements to this holy affection The ground of Love is a considering of God as our owne God in the covenant of Grace and an acknowledging of our selves to bee his peculiar children in Christ Jesus when wee can say as the Spouse in the Canticles I am my beloveds and my beloved is mine this is a loving of God not as the God of Nature only but as ours peculiar by Grace This union of love which knits us to Christ impileth another union by faith first which is a cleaving to God as my God and to Christ as my Christ whence issues a second conjunction or cleaving to him in love as my Saviour my Husband and my Head To come to the nature of this Grace and then to the working of it The Nature of Love is seene in foure things 1. In admiring of some secret good in the thing beloved which stirres up the soule to make out for it 2. In a studiousnesse of the contentation of the person beloved 3. In a desire of union and fellowship with the person we affect 4. In a resting and solacing of our selves in the thing wee love By these let us examine our selves whether we have the true love of God or no For it concernes us much to have this grace it will distinguish us from all others who feare him not First our love to Christ commeth from the high esteem of the good things wee see in him But how shall wee know whether that wee have this admiring of the good things we see in God and in his word and children Wee shal know it by our choice and our choice followes our judgement Would wee know whether our judgement be good See what do we choose especially when things of the world and God come together And here we want not examples to guide us The question was whether that Moses should still choose to live in Pharaohs Court and hee accounted his sonne in law or else depart and suffer adversity with Gods children Now Moses by sound judgement had an high esteeme of the excellencie and priviledges of the Saints And therfore chose rather to endure afflictions than to enjoy the pleasures of sinne for a season Let us then see whether wee can be contented to part with our preferment or pleasure for God or no. And whether we do esteeme the rebukes of Christ greater riches than the treasures of the world whether we can lay down our lives and liberties at Christs feet and gladly want all so we may enjoy him If it be so with us our estate is good Againe let us see whether wee have a right prizing of the good things in God Doe wee delight to speak much and often of Christ and the benefits we receive by him How was Saint Pauls heart enlarged and his tongue full of heavenly eloquence in setting sorth the unspeakable mercies of God which wee have by Christ Jesus our Lord If God be on our side who can be against us saith he What shall separate us from the love of Christ Shall tribulation shall anguish and affliction I am perswaded that neither death nor life nor any other thing can doe it Another signe to know whether we have a secret admiration of the good things
repentance do work together for the best unto us Yea the circumstances of sin as continuance therin which much agravates the sinne when such a one truly repents and is restored to Christ it maketh him more zealous and watchfull ever after as wee see in Paul and the Thiefe on the Crosse who finding favour acknowledgeth his worthinesse of punishment reprehendeth his fellow on the Crosse justifieth Christ to have done all things well and so giving glory unto God and crying for mercy receiveth a comfortable promise of an heavenly Kingdome All things are possible to God We can never be so ill as he is powerfull and good God can bring contrary out of contrary He hath promised to poure cleane water upon us which faith sues out and remembers that Christ hath taken upon him to purge his Spouse and make her fit for himselfe Further the very relapses and back-slidings of Gods servants into sinne doe not argue no repentance but a weak repentance and therefore when they are againe rebuked and turned from sin their relapses doe make them set upon the service of God more strongly and runne more constantly in his wayes Where true grace is sinne looses strength by every new fall for hence issues deeper humility stronger hatred of evill fresh indignation against our selves more experience of the deceitfulnesse of our hearts and renued resolutions till sinne bee brought under Adam lost all by once sinning but we are under a better covenant a covenant of mercy and are encouraged to go to God every day for the sins of that day For it is not with God as it is with men who being offended will scarce be reconciled but God offended still offereth mercy He is not only ready to receive us when we returne but perswades and intreates us to come unto him yea after backsliding and false dealing with him wherein he allowes no mercy to bee shewed by man yet he wil take liberty to shew mercy himselfe as in Ieremiah If a man have an adulterous Wife and shall put her away and shee become another mans he will not receive her any more to him But saith the Lord thou hast played the Harlot with many Lovers yet turne againe unto mee for I am mercifull and my wrath shall not fall upon you I will not alwayes keepe mine anger though your sinnes be as Crimson they shall bee white as Snow and though they were red like Skarlet they shall bee as white as Wooll if yee will turne to me and wash ye and make ye cleane and cease to doe evill and learne to do well So Revel 2. Christ speaking to the Church of Ephesus saith She hath fallen from her first love but saith he Remember from whence thou art fallen and repent and doe thy first works and I will receive thee to favour by which wee see that the relapses of Gods elect as they doe not finally hinder mercy from their soules so notwithstanding the same they are still encouraged to return to God to renew their covenant by faith and repentance and cleave more strongly to him As for outward evils they are First evils of estate as want and poverty which oft fals out to be the portion of Gods children yet are they not any whit the worse hereby but rather the better in their inner man for the lesse they have in this world the greater and larger happinesse shall they partake of in another world What they lose one way is supplied another Whatsoever comfort we have in goods or friends below it is all conveyed from God above who still remaines though these be taken away The Saints see that if to preserve the deerest thing in the world they break with God he can make it a dead contentment and a torment to them wheras if we care to preserve communion with God we shall be sure to finde in him whatsoever we deny for him honour riches pleasures friends all so much the sweeter by how much we have them more immediately from the Spring-head Our riches and friends and life it selfe may soon depart But God never loseth his right in us nor we our interest in him Every thing beneath teaches us by the vanity and vexation we finde in them that our happinesse is not there they send us to God they may make us worse but better they cannot our nature is above them and ordained for a greater good they can but go along with us for a while and their end swallowes up all the comfort of their beginning Besides none have that experience of Gods goodnesse and faithfulnesse as those that are in want and misery God in his wisdome foreseeing what is best for his servants knowes that the more worldly wealth they doe abound in the lesse their estimation would be of heavenly things he sees how apt the poore creature is to be carried away with present comfort and to have his love drawne to the world from better contentments The poorer they are in worldly riches the more they seek to bee rich in grace in knowledge faith and repentance which heavenly treasures incomparably surmount the most transcendent excellency which the creature can yeeld As for the evill of losing a good name a thing oft befalling the children of God to be slandered and evill spoken of They upon every small disgrace take occasion to enter into themselves and try whether they be guilty of such hard imputations as are flung upon them And if upon a serious consideration hee finde himself disgraced for good things he weares it as a Crowne and as a Garland upon his head Rejoycing that he is accounted worthy to suffer for the Lord Iesus esteeming the rebukes of Christ grea ter treasure than the riches of Egypt A true beleever resignes his good name and all that hee hath to God He is assured that no man can take away that from him which God will give him and keepe for him It is not in mans power to make others conceive what they please of us For the evils of Body such as sicknesse and diseases of all sorts which daily attend our houses of Clay God by meanes hereof acquaints his children with their fraile condition and shewes them what a little time they have to provide for eternity thereby driving them to search their evidences to make all straight betwixt him and them outward weaknesses are oft a meanes to restraine men from inward evils God usually sanctifies the pains and griefs of his servants to make them better The time of sicknesse is a time of purging from that defilement we gathered in our health We should not be cast down so much for any bodily distemper as for sinne that procures and invenomes the same That is a good sicknesse which tends to the health of the soule Naaman the Assyrian if he had not had a leprousie in his body had continued a Leper both in body and soule all his dayes his outward grievances made him inwardly sound The very
unbeleeving men hee is pleased to condiscend to our weaknesse hee stoops to the lowest capacity and frames his speech to the understanding of the simplest soule for which purpose this terme of earnest is here borrowed In these respects the Spirit of God together with the graces of it and the comforts it brings for they are not divided is called an earnest And thus having cleared the point we will observe this doctrine for our further instruction That a Christian ought to be and may be assured of his interest in God because as I said before an earnest is given not so much for Gods sake as for our sakes this then must needs follow from hence Either none have this earnest or else those that have it may be assured of their comfortable condition Otherwise God is fickle and playes fast and loose with his children which is blasphemy to affirme Besides if none have this earnest then the Apostle speaks false when he saith God hath stablished us and given us the earnest of his Spirit which is horrible impiety once to conceive If this be so then either such as have this seale and earnest of the Spirit may be assured of their estate in grace or not And if not where is the fault Will not God really and truly vouchsafe unto his people this earnest of the Spirit in their hearts Vndoubtedly he will he is desirous that wee should be perswaded of his love in all things and therefore we may and ought to bee assured of his favour towards us S. Iohns whole Epistle containes little else but sundry markes evidences how we may know that wee are the children of God wherefore was Christ himselfe sealed of the Father to the Office of Mediatour wherefore did he die and rise againe and wherefore doth hee still make intercession for us in Heaven that wee should doubt of Gods love when as he hath given us that which is greater than salvation yea greater than al the world even his owne Sonne no certainly can we desire a more ample testimony of his favour than he hath already bestowed upon us Is it not the errand of all Gods mercies to bring us neerer to him selfe that we should not doubt of his love but rest securely upon him why then doe we distrust the Almighty who is truth it selfe and never failed any Yet we must know that Christians have not at all times alike assurance of their interest for there is an infancy of grace where in we are ignorant of our own condition And there is a time of desertion when as God to make us looke better to our footing leaves us a little as if he would forsake us quite when indeed hee onely withdrawes his assistance for a while to make us cleave the closer to him There be also certain seasons wherin though we are assured of Gods favor yet we have no feeling or apprehension of the same which differeth in Christians much according as they are more or lesse sensible of their estates Some againe use not that care and diligence in the use of meanes which God requires whereupon they are justly deprived of that inward peace and comfort which others enjoy There is a difference likewise in growth and continuance in Christianity some are strong Christians and some weak answerable whereunto is the difference of assurance of Gods love usually in the hearts of his people Nay it s possible that for a long time the Lords Iewels his redeemed ones may want this blessed comfort For wee must conceive there is a double act of faith First an act whereby a poore distressed sinner casts himselfe upon God as reconciled to him in Christ. Secondly there is a reflect act whereby knowing that wee rely upon the truth and promise of the Almighty we have assurance of his favour Now a man may performe the one act and not the other many of the Saints sometimes can hardly say that they have any assurance but yet notwithstanding they will daily cast themselves upon the rich mercy and free grace of God in Jesus Christ. Besides there are many things which may hinder this act of assurance because together with beleeving God may present such things to my minde as may so damp and disquiet my soule that I cannot have any definitive thoughts about that which God would especially have mee to thinke upon As when God will humble a man he takes not away the Spirit of faith wholly from him but sets before such a sinfull creature his anger and sore displeasure together with the hellish torments and paines of the damned as due to his soule which makes him for the present to be in an estate little differing from the Reprobate so that he is far from saying he hath any assurance at that time yet notwithstanding he doth not leave off nor renounce his confidence but casts himselfe upon Gods mercy still Though the Lord kill him yet will he trust in him although he sees nothing but terror wrath before him This God doth to tame our presumption and prepare us for the enjoyment of his future glory If we feele not sense of assurance it is good to blesse God for what we have Wee cannot denie but God offers himselfe in mercy to us and that hee intends our good thereby for so we ought to construe his mercifull dealing towards us and not have him in jealousie without ground Had wee but willing hearts to praise God for that which we cannot but acknowledge comes from him he will bee ready in his time to shew himself more cleerely to us We taste of his goodnesse many wayes it is accompanied with much patience and these in their natures should leade us not only to repentance but to neerer dependance on him we ought to follow that which God leads us unto though he hath not yet acquainted us with his secrets These things we must observe that we give not a false evidence against our selves though wee have not such assurance as wee have had yet alwayes there is some ground in us whereupon we may bee comforted that wee are Gods children could we but search into it Let us not then be negligent in labouring for the same and in the Lords good time we shall certainly obtaine it it is the prophanenesse of the world that they improve not those helpes which God hath afforded for this purpose Nay they had rather stagger and take contentment in their own wayes saying If God will love mee in a loose licentious course so it is but I will not give diligence to make my calling and election sure I will never barre my selfe of such profits and delights nor forsake all chiefly to minde spirituall things Whereas wee ought constantly to endeavour for assurance of grace that God may have honour from us and we the more comfort from him againe that we may live in the world above the world and passe cheerefully through the manifold troubles and
suffered Adam to have fallen but for his owne further glory in the manifestation of his justice and mercy and for the greater felicity of his servants in Christ their Mediatour The next spirituall evill is the corruption of nature remaining in all mankinde howsoever broken and subdued in the Lords deere ones this worketh for the best to them after this manner First it serveth to make us see and know we are kept by God how that we are not the keepers of our owne selves but are kept by his power through faith unto salvation For were it not that God upholds and sustaines us our corruptions would soone overturn us but the sight of corruption being sanctified to the soule causeth us to ground our comfort out of our selves in Christ and no whit to rely on any thing that is in us Our corruptions are also good to abase the pride of our natures and let us see the naughtinesse of our spirits that we may be humbled before GOD. And it is good we should have something within us to make us weary of the world else when wee have run out our race we shal be unwilling to depart hence Now our bondage to this naturall corruption serves exceedingly to make us mourne for our sinfull disposition and hunger after our God to be joyned with him as we see in S. Pauls exam ple Rom. 17. where finding the rebellion of his nature and the strise that was in him the flesh lusting against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh he cryes out saying Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death and seeketh to God in Christ for mercy strait Sometimes God suffers corruption to break out of us that we mayknow our selves the better and because corruption is weakned not only by smothering but many times by having a vent whereupon grace stirs up in the soule a fresh hatred and revenge against it and lets us see a necessity of having whole Christ not only to pardon sinne but to purge and cleanse our defiled natures But yet that which is ill it selfe must not be done for the good that comes by it by accident this must be a comfort after our surprizals not an encouragement before It is our great consolation that our nature is perfect in Christ who hath taken our nature upon him and satisfied Divine justice not only for the sinne of our lives but for the sin of our natures who will finish his owne worke in us and never give over till by his Spirit he hath made our natures holy and pure as his owne till he hath taken away not only the reigne but the very life and being of sinne out of our hearts To which end he leaves his Spirit and truth in the Church to the end of the world that the seed of the Spirit may subdue the seed of the Serpent in us and that the Spirit may be a never failing spring of al holy thoughts desires and endeavours in us and dry up the contrary issue and spring of corrupt nature Lastly it is good that corruption should still remaine in us that the glory of God may the more appeare when as Satan that great and strong enemy of mankinde shall be foiled and overturned by a weak and poore Christian who is full of corruptions and that through the strength of faith though mixed with much distrust for a Christian in the state of sinne and corruption to overcome the great adversary of mankinde what a wonderment is it It tendeth much to the shame and dishonour of that fiery Dragon that weake and sinfull man should be his conquerour Oh how it confounds him to think that a graine of Mustardseed should bee stronger than the Gates of Hell that it should be able to remove Mountaines of oppositions and temptations cast up by Satan and our rebellious hearts betweene God and us Abi meleck could not endure that it should be said a Woman had slaine him and it must needs be a torment to Sathan that a weake Child a decrepid old man should by a spirit of faith put him to flight A third kinde of spirituall ill â—f sin are the things that issue out of this cursed stock and those are either inward or outward For inward sins they are eithers errours or doubt ings or pride or wrath or such like And first for doubtings of the truth this makes Gods servants often more resolute to seek and search out the same and to stand afterwards more firme and couragious for it For if wee doubted not of things we should not afterwards bee put out of doubt nor seek to be better grounded and instructed in them The Corinthians doubted once of the Resurrection but were ever after better resolved in that Doctrine the benefit whereof hath much redounded to the Churches good ever since Thomas had the like wavering disposition but this doubting more manifested the truth Luther being a Monk at the first and not fully grounded in the Doctrine of the Gospell did therefore suspect himselfe the more and wished all men after him to reade his writings warily The Doctrine of the Trinity hath formerly been much doubted of and therefore hath bin with the greater paines and study of worthy men then living in the Church more evidently prooved And when the Pelagians grew into Heresies they were by S. Augustine gainesayd and very strongly withstood So the doctrine of the Church of Rome being branched into divers erronious opinions and broached to the great hurt and prejudice of Christians hath occasioned the truth of God against them to bee the more excellently cleered and made knowne For when Religion is oppugned it is time then to hold fast as the Apostle S. Iude saith with both hands the Word and to fight for the faith that so wee may know both what to hold and upon what ground we oppose Heresie Now for inward sinnes as anger covetousnesse distrust and such like these often proove advantagious to the Saints their corruptions are a meanes of their humiliation Paul and Barnabas having a breach betweene them were so exasperated that they forsook each others company by which means it came to passe that the Church was more instructed than before And hence wee may see what the best men are in themselves If Luther had had no infirmities how would men have attributed to him above measure as we see they were ready to sacrifice to Paul and Barnabas which shewes us that even the distempers and weaknesses of Gods servants are disposed by Divine Providence to their eternall welfare Yea God often suffereth his children to fall into some outward grosse sinnes that by meanes thereof they might bee humbled and abased and in the end be cured of that provoking sinne of being proud in spirit The falling of Gods children doth much deject them and bring them upon their knees with shame It makes them gentle and meek in the reprehension of their brethren for having
heathen could say that we are then best in soule when we are weakest in body for then we are most in heavenly resolutions and seeking after God Yea then it appeares what good proficients we have beene in time of health Oh how happy were our conditions if we were as good when wee are well and in health as we usually are when we are sick and ill Even death it self which is the end of all though it be fearefull and irksome to nature yet it is to Gods servants a bed of Downe easing them of all their miseries and putting them in possession of an heavenly kingdome therefore saith Solomon the day of death is better than the day of birth God will be the God of his not only unto death but in death Death is the death of it selfe and not of us it is a disarmed and conquered enemy to all the faithfull for which cause S. Paul desired to be dissolved and to be with Christ which is best of all Death albeit it seemes terrible and dreadfull yet the sting thereof being taken away by the death of Christ it brings everlasting joy along with it and is only as a Groom-Porter to let us in to a stately Pallace Whether tend all the troubles we meet with in this world but only to fit us for a better condition hereafter and to assure the soule that when earth can hold it no longer Heaven shall Yea when friends forsake us and are false unto us God is a sure helpe in time of need he is our refuge from one generation to another do we not see that in the decay of worldly comforts God then manifests himselfe most comfortably to his people doth he not stile himselfe the Comforter of the comfortlesse and the helpe of them that are in distresses and doe not with him the fatherlesse finde mercy if men were more fatherlesse they would find more mercy at Gods hands As Christ makes us al to him so should we make him all in all to our selves If all comforts in the world were dead we have them still in the living Lord. How many friends have we in him alone who rather than we shall want friends can make our enemies our friends Thus it appeares that all miseries are a triall of us to God and to the world what we are they are a cure of sin past and a preparation to endure further crosses they have many excellent uses and ends and all for the best to Gods servants It is good we should be exercised with present crosses to put us in minde of the evils we have done long agoe that so we may repent of them Iosephs brethren being afflicted and imprisoned called to minde how hardly they had dealt with their brother long before It should be our wisdome while we remaine here to consider our warfaring condition how we are daily invironed with enemies and therefore ought to stand continually upon our guard against Satan and the Powers of darknesse and as Pilgrims and Strangers go on in our journey to Heaven not starting at the barking of every Dog nor intangling our selves in worldly things whereby we should be stopped in our way It is for our best not to bee condemned with the world Afflictions serve for this very end to make us more prize God deny the creature with all its excellencies are our crosses great here let us not be daunted but beare them patiently our comfort shall be the greater afterwards It is not only good for us that wee should have crosses but that they should be continued upon us that wee may the better know our selves If all were well with a man wounded and the sore clean healed the plaister would fall off it selfe So were wee thorowly cured of our spirituall wants and in a continuall resistance of every evill way These afflictions which are the plaisters of our soules would soone cease and leave us Furthermore Sathan himselfe and all his instruments when they most set themselves against Gods people and seek their overthrow then are they working their chief good The Devill when hee thought to make an end of Christ by putting him to death even then by that very thing was vanquished himselfe and the Church of God fully ransomed from hell and damnation God suffers many heretiques to be in the world but why not that the truth should be held in darknesse but that it might thereby bee more manifested and knowne It is Sathans continuall trade to seeke his rest in our disquiet When hee sees men will to heaven and that they have good title to it then he followes them with all tentations and discomforts that hee can Hee cannot endure that a creature of meaner rank than himselfe should enjoy a happinesse beyond him but our comfort is that Christ was tempted that hee might succour all poore soules in the like case Wee are kept by his power through faith unto salvation Now the causes why all things doe work together for the best to them that love God are these viz. 1. It is Gods Decree 2. It is Gods manner of working 3. It is Gods blessed Covenant 4. It is the foundation of the covenant Christ Iesus Gods decree and purpose is of bringing all his Elect unto eternall salvation and therefore all things in heaven and earth must conduce to bring his servants unto glory The reason is this God is infinitely wise and infinitely strong provident and good therefore by his infinite wisedome power providence and mercie hee turneth all things to the best for his whatsoever is in heaven earth or hell is ordered by God neither is there any thing without him therefore nothing can hinder his Decree Sathan himselfe with all his instruments yea the worst of creatures all must serve Gods purpose contrary to their natures for the good of his children The Prophet saith God hath commanded salvation and he hath commanded deliverance to Iacob When God hath determined to save any man all things must needs serve him that over-rules all things As it was said of Christ when he stilled the Seas Who is this that the very wind and Seas obey him God commanded the Whale to serve at his beck to save Ionah and it obeyed All creatures in the earth are at his disposing and serve to accomplish his pleasure The second cause why all works together for the best to beleevers Is the manner of God working in things which is by contraries he bringeth light out of darknesse glory out of shame and life out of death Wee fell by pride to hell and destruction and must be restored by humiliation to life and salvation Christ humbled himselfe being God to become man for us and by his death restored us to life When our sinnes had brought us to greatest extremities even then were we nearest to eternal happinesse Therefore saith the Apostle When wee are weak then are we strong in the Lord. When wee are abased then are wee readiest
to be exalted when we are poore then are we most rich and when we are dead then doe wee live For God worketh all by contraries hee lets men see his greatnesse and his goodnesse that so they may admire his works and give more glory to him he worketh without means and above meanes and against meanes out of misery hee bringeth happinesse and by hell bringeth men to heaven Which as it manifesteth Gods glory to his creatures so it serveth for the confusion of mans pride that hee may discern he is nothing in himselfe but is all that he is in the Lord. The third cause why all things work for the best to them that feare God Is Gods covenant with his Church when once this gracious covenant is made that hee will be their God and they shall be his people that he will bee their Father and Protectour must not all things then needs serve for their good When as God tells Abraham I am thy God All-sufficient only walk before me be thou perfect Doth not this engage him to set his power mercy his wisedome and providence all on work for the happy estate of Abraham When once God by his promise is become our God there is a covenant betwixt us and the creatures yea and the stones in the street that nothing shall wrong us but all conduce to our good The Angels are ours their service is for our protection safety welfare Heaven and earth is ours and all things in them for our behoofe Christ himselfe and together with him all things else are become ours in him we are heires of all What a wondrous comfort is this that God hath put himselfe over to be ours whom to enjoy is to possesse all things and to want is misery unexpressable Had we all the world without God it would prove a curse and no blessing to us whereas if we have nothing and enjoy God we have happinesse it selfe for our portion If we have no better portion here than these things wee are like to have hell for our portion hereafter Let God be in any condition though never so ill yet it is comfortable He is goodnesse it selfe And indeed nothing is so much a Christians as God is his because by his being ours in covenant all other things become ours and therefore they cannot but cooperate for our good When thou art in the fire and water I am with thee saith God And Thou art my Buckler my Glory and Shield therefore I will not be afraid though ten thousand of people shall be set me round about saith David for salvation belongeth unto the Lord. And if God be on our side who can bee against us If God justifie us who shall condemne us Can any thing hurt us when hee is become our loving Father Neither death nor life nor things present nor things to come nor principalities nor powers nor any thing whatsoever can separate us from his love toward us A fourth ground why all things fall out for the best to the Saints is The foundation of this covenant of God with his Church which is Christ Iesus who by his bloud hath purchased our peace hee being God became man and is the sole Author of all our comfort Without Christ God is a consuming fire but in him a most loving Father and ever well pleased God promiseth in Christ his Sonne to marry his people unto himselfe for ever Yea saith he I will marry thee unto me in righteousnesse and in judgement and in mercie and everlasting cōpassion Now upon this blessed contract made in Christ to his Church what followeth In that day saith the Lord I will heare the heavens and they shall heare the earth and the earth shall heare the Corne and the Wine and the Oyle and they shall heare Israel and I will have mercy upon her that was not pittied And I will say unto them which were not my people thou art my people And they shall say thou art my God Where wee see what is the reason of all their happinesse even this that God will marry them to himselfe So that this marriage worketh all our blisse our conjunction with Christ and reconciliation through his death is the cause of all our comfort in him wee have the adoption of Sonnes Hence it is that we are at peace with God and have freedom from all harmes Christ in his greatest reproach and deepest humiliation had his greatest triumph and exaltation In his death on the Crosse he vanquished Death and entred into eternall life When Christ came into the world and took upon him our nature even then the greatest Monarch in the world Augustus Caesar was at his command whom he so ordered as that by his causing all the world to bee taxed Christ was manifested to be borne at Bethlehem in Iury. How commeth it to passe that death which is fearefull in it selfe cannot hurt us The reason is Death is swallowed up in victory by his death It is Christ that sanctifieth all crosses afflictions and disgraces to the Saints advantage The evill of them all is taken away by him and turned to his peoples good How commeth it to passe that the Law cannot hurt us which pronounceth a curse against every one that abideth not in all things written therein to do them The reason is Christ was made a curse for us he was made under the Law that hee might redeeme us who were under the Law and thus is Christ a meritorious and deserving cause of procuring all good to us and removing all ill from us He doth not only overcome evill for us but also overcommeth evill in us and gives us his Spirit which unites us to himselfe whereby wee have ground to expect good out of every ill as knowing that whatsoever Christ wrought for the good of mankinde he did it for us in particular In Outward favours grace makes us acknowledge all the blessings wee have to be the free gifts of God and invites us to returne the glory to him Gods servants take all occasions and opportunities of doing good by those gifts and abilities wherewith they are endowed When Hester was advanced to great honor Mordechay told her that God had conferred that dignity upon her for his peoples welfare that she might be a means of their safety Whereas on the contrary a proud heart destitute of the Spirit of Christ ascribes all to it selfe waxeth more haughty and growes worse and worse the more good he enjoyes A gratious soule upon the sight of the evill of sin in it selfe is more deeply humbled before God and with S. Paul crieth out of his wretchednesse A heavenly minded man being smitten for his wickednesse laboureth for subjection under the hand of the Almighty and saith I will patiently abide and endure thy correction because thou Lord hast done it When the gracious man is held under the crosse and suffereth bitter things he saith It is good for me that I am afflicted for
and scandall the Saints on earth thirdly we sad the blessed Angels in Heaven and fourthly rejoyce the Devils and damned spirits in Hell putting Darts and deadly weapons into their hands to work our ruine and overthrow nay fifthly wee grieve the good Spirit of God who continually putteth us in minde of better things if wee would hearken to him and by whom wee are sealed up unto the day of redemption sixthly we slacken grace in our hearts and whereas we should grow forward in vertue and holinesse wee weaken the power of godlinesse exceedingly in us seventhly all willing sins do abate our affiance in God and the seeling of his favour towards us yea often times by so sinning many of his deere children have walked heavily without spirituall joy all the dayes of their lives for howsoever in regard the Lord hath elected us wee shall never finally fall away and perish yet wee may want the sweet sence of his favour and remaine afflicted in spirit all our life long And then wee shall know that the griefe and trouble which we here undergoe to avoid sinne and subdue it will be nothing so much as the mischiefe and sosrow That sin once committed and yeelded too will bring on the soule Yea there is no child of God but by experience shall one day feele that howsoever God by his wisedome and mercy can turne every sinne to our good yet it will prove bitter as Wormwood in the end the pleasure will never answer the smart and vexation that attends it The contrition and breaking of thy heart for thy sinnes committed if thou be Gods will more disquiet and trouble thee than possibly it can bee a trouble to resist and forsake sinne Nay oftentimes God doth punish the very want of reverence in his servants to him as also their slacknesse and unfitnesse in good duties so as they may easily discerne hee is offended with them for the same As we may see by the example of the Corinthians who comming unpreparedly to the Lords Supper for this very cause were so punished that some of them were sick and some weake and some were struck by Death Davids numbring of the people Hezekias shewing of his treasures to the Princes of Babell howsoever by some they may be thought small sinnes yet God scourged them for the same very sharply And it is good that Gods servants should a little know what it is to offend their Maker for if they will bee so negligent and carelesse in walking with him it is fit they should reape the fruit of their owne devices It causeth much relapsing and backsliding from God when men have never truly smarted for their sinne Having had knocks in our own wayes it establisheth us in Gods wayes For we love to wander from our selves and bite strangers at home till God by one crosse or other brings us to himselfe and then wee think of returning to him Nay it is better for them a thousand fold that God should so schoole them then that they should be let alone and so goe on without controulement from sin to sin till they come to desperation Howsoever therefore that God can and will turn the sinnes of his servants to their best advantage yet better it were for them they had never sinned at all Doe wee not think that David wished hee had never fallen into that sin of Adultery And would not Peter have bin glad that hee had never denied his Master The sin of David cost him many a cry for pardon Mercy Lord mercy against thee have I sinned forgive mee this haynous crime And it cost Peter many a bitter salt teare too Howsoever both David and Peter after their recovery by repentance were the better for it to their dying day As for all such as persist in sinne that God may turne all things to their best Let them know that all things shall work together for their bane and utter destruction for ever which I now come to shew First of all God himselfe and his blessed Angels are at enmity with them And therfore 2 All the creatures both in heaven and earth are against them In Pharaohs tenne Plagues wee see the creatures were all readie to execute the pleasure of the Almighty against him And the Beares out of the Forrest were armed by God to devour those scoffing children This is one part of the burthen under which the creatures of God do groane that they serve God against wicked men and are his Armies to punish the rebellious world 3. Even the good gifts of God are turned to the bane of the wicked Absoloms glory his goodly long locks were his halter to hang him up by Achitophels wit and policie brought him to that fearefull end of being his own hangman Hamans honor what good did it to him but only brought him to greater shame his greatnesse made him swell in pride and his pride had a suddaine fall What became of Herods high mind in taking to himselfe the glory of God which when foolish people ascribed it to him was hee not presently smitten so as the wormes consumed him and hee dyed a lothsome death What became of Dives his riches did not his abuse thereof plunge him deeper into hell Wicked men though they abound in this world yet not being in covenant with God they have nothing with a blessing The wicked are but as traytors before God And oft it is seene that great Traytors who are by the Prince kept in prison are nourished very liberally untill their time of Execution come So it is with all gracelesse persons how ever for the present they have great allowances yet as Traytors in the conclusion they shall have an hard account to make unto God for all those things they have sinfully enjoyed And not only so but they abuse the very truth of God as shall appeare in divers particulars First for the comfortable doctrine of justification by faith alone they pervert the same to their owne destruction saying Wee are justified by faith only what need wee then care for doing of good works Alas they profit us nothing to our salvation Therefore it is to no end to strive to do good Againe for the Doctrine of Christian liberty God having given us lawfull recreations and plentifull use of his creatures they turne all into licentiousnesse and in stead of moderate refreshment they make a daily occupation of sports and games In stead of a lawfull use of the creatures they runne into all excesse of ryot in meat drink apparell buildings and delights And for the Doctrine of mortality how do wicked men abuse it saying Let us eat drink and bee merry for to morrow wee shall die that which should put thē in mind of spending of their time well encreaseth their sin Whereas the long suffering of God should lead men to repentance the wicked by means of Gods patience runne more securely on in sinne treasuring up to themselves
wee see in God is this If we doe undrvalue all things else for Christ. Worldly men are ever admiring of the things below accounting such men happy and blessed that abound most therein Therefore there is nothing that doth more truly try a man than this The soul that sees a vanity in the things beneath and can rejoyce in God only as his true riches is in a good condition Where there is a true judgement of God and Religion the soule of that man will never stoop to the creature the soule so rejoyceth in God as that it will not yeeld it selfe to any other Adam and Eve in their innocencie were both naked and were not ashamed one reason might be because their thoughts were taken up with higher matters In heaven we shall not bee ashamed of things wee now are ashamed of A Christian soule is so ravished with the enjoying of God that it mindeth almost nothing but him The second branch in love is a desire to doe all things to the content of the party beloved Our love to God will frame us to the obedience of his will Obedience is the proofe of love If ye love mee saith Christ keepe my commandements If wee love God wee will pray for the enlarging of his Kingdome Where love is kindled in any heart there is a care to bee approved of him whom we so love This makes our obedience generall to all Gods commandements in all places and all things whatsoever It makes us give our inwards to God serving him with the soul and spirit Those therefore that nourish uncleane hearts within them and think it enough to abstaine from the outward act of evill love not the Lord sincerely The Devill himselfe will doe outward things as readily as you hee will confesse Christ to bee the Sonne of God and say Why art thou come to torment me before my time So that if thou dost outwardly only confesse God what dost thou more than the Devill In outward duties without sincerity there is no love You will pray the Devill will doe as much The Devill hath a bad end in good actions so there are many that come to Church make shew of Religion to cloke their evill courses But such poore wretches how ever they are pleased with shaddowes are little better than Satan himselfe Againe if wee be desirous to content him whō wee love then will wee suffer any thing for his sake Therefore the Apostles went away rejoycing and accounted it their glory that they were esteemed worthy to suffer hardship for Christ And David for dancing before the Ark being by Michal mockt saith I wil yet be more vile for my God He cared not for any reproach that could happen to him in a good way Yea this will make us zealous in his truth hee that hath no zeale hath no love If our hearts rise not when God is dishonoured what love have we to him Is Gods glory and the Churches welfare deare to us it is a signe we love him But can we see those things goe backward and have no zeale nor be any thing affected therewith surely then we have no love Againe if wee have a true love to God then have we a desire of union and cōmunion with him we will be much in meditating of him in speaking to him and conferring with him Those therefore that goe on from day to day without private speeches with God or solacing of their soules in him what affection have they to him Love is communicative and what desire of communion can that soule have that lives a stranger to his Maker Can wee say we love one with whom wee never conferre or speak to any purpose Againe if wee love a man we will advise with him especially in matters of moment so if wee love God wee will take counsell of him in his Word for the guidance of our lives and stablishing our consciences If we advise not with God it is a signe that we either think hee doth not regard us or else that we count him not worthy to be counselled by Another signe is To examine what desire wee have to be dissolved and to be with Christ Doe wee love his appearing to judgement and are wee now fit for his comming surely then it is a plaine signe that our love is fixed and set upon him So much as wee doe faile of this desire so much wee faile in love to Christ What was the reason that the people under the Law were so much afraid at the appearing of an Angell unto them was it not this that they were not fitted and prepared for God A man may bee a good Christian and yet not at all times willing to die for as eyes that are sore cannot alwayes endure the light so a soule galled with sinne desires not to heare of the day of jadgement yet ought wee to thirst after it Another signe of this grace is our eager and hungry desire after God when with David we can say Oh God my heart panteth after thee as the Hart panteth after the Brookes of waters When a soule is never at rest til he injoyes his Maker but cryes out still Oh when shall I appeare in his presence it is a good signe The last branch or property is a resting and quieting our selves in the love of God above all things whatsoever saying with David Whom have I in Heaven or in earth besides thee or what doe I esteeme in comparison of thee let me enjoy but the light of thy countenance and it suffices me demand therefore of thine owne heart what the things are that trouble thee most and what is the cause of thy sorrow and disquietments whether it be for losses or crosses outwardly or for want of Gods love and the sense and feeling of his favour inwardly They which grieve chiefly for outward evils are most carried in their affections that wayes but if in the confluence of all worldly blessings wee can grieve for our spirituall wants it is a comfortable evidence When a man reckons not his happinesse to stand in the possession of the creature but in the fruition of the Creator and desires his favour above any thing it is a gratious signe David had an abundance yea he had a Kingdome yet nothing would satisfie him but the mercies of God And when hec was in want what course did he take but stil comforted himselfe in the Lord his God That which a man sorroweth most for when he wanteth it that he rejoyceth most in when he hath it can we in our crosses rejoyce that God is ours This is an excellent signe and plainly discovers that we place our contentation more in him than in any thing else can we delight more in the solace of his favour than in outward prosperity it is a heavenly testimony of a renewed condition When David was in his greatest distresses what desires had he then most in him why