them to chew them no marvel then though they spit them out and do not swallow them they should swallow them down and not chew them And so when God gives us any bitter pills we must not alwaies be chewing of them in our thoughts but free the command of God and so go on in our work and labor to swallow difficulties as much as we can we have a notable place for this purpose in Psal 86.4 5. Rejoyce the soul of thy servant for unto thee O Lord do I lift up my soul for thou Lord art good and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy unto al them that cal upon thee Thus we apply it the cause why many go so drooping in their way and have no joy and comfort in any of their waies is because they look downward in the dark if a man were in the bottom of a deep pit and alwaies looks downward he could never see light if he would see light he must look upward to the Sun so mark the way of David Rejoyce the soul of thy servant for unto thee O Lord do I lift up my soul If David had let his heart alwaies fall downward he would never had joy in his way but when he would have joy he lift up his heart so if there be any work that is difficult and your hearts are troubled would you have that which should rejoyce you lift up your soules to God in those incouraging waies that he presents to you For thou Lord art good and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy Here is a way to get mercy he lifts up his soul and looked upon God as good and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy I appeale to you when did you lift up your soules and look up to God as plenteous in mercy you alwaies looked downward in the bottome of the pit and see the blackness of Gods justice ready to seize upon you but you should lift up your soul to God and look to the sun we should not alwaies be poring upon those things that are difficult but see those things that are incouraging 22. Do not make use of difficulties in your way to reason against your work or to make you out of love with your work but to reason against your hearts indeed it is an hard work but it is through my wretched sluggish heart and because I do not make use of the means and abilities that God affords me many that have less means and helps then I can go through harder works then I and so labor to reason against your own hearts and not the work many when they feel the work hard reason against the work the Lord knows I strive and do what I can but I have so many letts and hinderances God does not come in with his Grace to help me and I can do nothing without God How comes it to pass nothing is done because the work is hard or because you do not use what power God gives to do it withall now the safest way is rather to reason against your selves that you have not done what you can but you rather put off al the guilt from your selves and justify your selves and that is all the reason why nothing is done it is because the work is hard and you have so many hinderances and that God hath not given you his power but if you look into your own hearts you will find another reason it is not so much the hardness of the work as the ill disposition of your hearts and that should be your care not to reason against the work because it is difficult but against your hearts And to conclude all this is all I say we should labor to harden our selves by our Faith against all difficulties As unbeleefe is a hardning sin one way So faith is a hardning grace another way unbelief hardens in that which is evil and faith hardens in that which is good Acts 19.9 But when divers were hardned and beleeved not They were hardned because they did not beleeve and faith hath the contrary effect and wil do as much in that which is good as unbelief can do in that which is evil As unbelief wil make a man or woman so hard as to be as Iron to that which is good so Faith wil make a man as Iron to that which is evil and therefore the Prophet Jeremiah is compared to Iron and Steel Jer. 15.12 Shall Iron break the northern Iron and the Steel God hath revealed himself to him gratiously and he was hardned by it now of all graces especially Faith doth make the heart as Iron for God as unbelief doth make the heart as Iron to stand out against God And therefore is the exhortation of the Apostle 2 Peter 1.5 Ad to your Faith vertue the word Virtus comes from strength because every vertue puts forth strength so it is as much as if he should say ad to your faith strength put it forth strongly that it may help you against strong difficulties with a war-like power vertue hath a power to oppose enemies and so ad to your faith vertue And if we do so know it will be a very honorable thing it is an honor to God honor to us for us to go through difficult things it is honor to God as Davids men that endured so much that broke through an host for to get him water it was an honor to him and so for us to do difficult things for God it is an honor to God and it is honorable to us non so honorable as those that have gone through difficult works it will make them honorable to others as some observe from that place in 8. Cant. 3. If shee be a wal we will build upon her a palace of Silver If shee be a wal to stand out against opposition and temptation we wil build upon her a palace of Silver she shal be made honorable and glorious and so every Christian if your heart be as a wall to stand out against opposition and difficulty and hinderances in the way of God you shall have a pallace of Silver built upon you you shal be honorable in the eyes of God and all his Saints And going through difficulty is a mighty strengthening to grace and the more difficulty any go through the more Grace is strengthened As it is a rule of any thing that opposeth another if it do not overcome it it strengthens it as fire and water if you cast so much water into fire as the fire can overcome it the fire gathernig strength to overcome the water that opposes it burns the better So in all oppositions So in sin If that a man comes to be opposed in his sinful way by the word if the word do not overcome his lust his lust grows stronger And so in grace if any lust or sin or temptation or any thing do come and oppose grace or any gracious act and if they do not overcome grace but grace overcome them
God and it are good but faith and that it doth by putting the Soul into the Covenant of Grace and conveys the good of that everlasting Covenant that can never be broken unto the soul and transferreth upon the soul the sure mercies of David and that must needs make the soul in a secure condition A man is not troubled with feares when he knows he is provided for his life So a beleeving Soul is provided for Eternity what now can trouble such a soul The Apostle in 1 Pet. 4.19 Would have us in the time of danger commit your soul to God in wel doing when the soul is committed unto God in wel doing there is no further fear As if so be a man were travelling and he had some precious Jewel were worth abundance and he apprehends himself in some danger if he can commit his Jewel to some safe hand he is without fear And therefore in some countries you have your Banks men that are affraid of their money commit it to the Bank and there it is sure So a soul that can commit it self to God in weldoing and be sure of that it is not troubled with much fear Qust But should we not take care for our estates and lives and liberties Answ Sayth the Apostle be at a point for them but be sure you commit your souls to God and you are wel enough As in a time of common fire and burning If a man have some lumber in the fire he doth not care for them but if he hath Jewels and treasury he commits them to some safe custody and so a beleever having committed his soul to God by faith and so being sure of the termes between God and it his soul wil not admit of fear We read of Noah Gen. 6.14 When he had made an Ark he pitched it about the word that is translated pitched is the same word that is used for propitiation or attonement noting that pitch was to Noahs Ark that the attonement of Christ apprehended by faith is to the soul whn a soul by faith can apprehend the sure meercies of David in the propitiation of Christ this is to the soul in the middest of dangers to keep it from fears as the pitch was to Noahs Ark in the midst of the waves that kept it from the waters And that is the first thing Secondly Faith keepeth from fear because it hath a speiciall eye to the highest first being of all things now that is a rule No inferior cause can worke but by an influence from the Superior and therefore when by faith the eye can behold the highest supream cause so as to see First There is no Power in any creature but from that Secondly The Acting of that Power is from that Thirdly The Force of that Power is from that Fourthly The Success of that Power is from that cause and when the soul looks up to this highest cause and sees all cleare there it needs not much to look how it is with the inferior causes As if a man had an instrument that hung upon many wheels though the inferior moves and it seems as if it would break and fall upon him yet if he hath an eye upon the highest wheel that moves all upon which all depend and be sure that holds he doth not much regard the other And so it is with a spiritual eye A carnal eye looks only at things that are objects of sence he looks at the creatures but a beleever looks at the highest supreme cause and if that be right he doth not looke at the lowest causes We have a notable speech in Isay 54.16 Behold I have created the smith that bloweth the coales in the fire and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work and I have created the waster to destroy Are you affraid of the sword and the wasters I have created the smith that blows the Coals and I have created the waster to destroy If they have any power to do hurt it is from mee why do you look upon the instrument and not upon the hand If there be any power in any instrument of war they depend upon God and he makes them to destroy and therefore faith looks to the highest cause and is conversant with that and carries the affections to that it is not much affected with under causes it doth not fear the wrath of men nor the power of any creature because it looks so much at the highest cause that is above al. The confidence that carnal hearts have in outward helps keeps them from fearing God should not the confidence of the Saints in God keep them from fearing man Thirdly Faith helps against the feare of man because it helps the soul to overcome greater fear than any feare the creature can cause A beleeving soul hath been conversant with other manner of fears than the wrath of a King namely the wrath of an infinite God a beleever knows what the wrath of a Deity means what the terrour of conscience and the curse of the Law and the flashes of Hell meane and he hath had some experience concerning the feare of these and he hath received some thing of the spirit of bondage that hath caused him to feare other manner of things than the feare of man and when faith comes that hath delivered the soul from these fears others must needs vanish the power of faith soon extinguisheth them 1 Sam. 17.37 As David when he was delivered from the Mouth of the Lion and the paw of the Beare he was not affraid of Goliah so a beleeving soul is not affraid of the wrath of man because it hath been delivered by faith from the wrath of an infinite Deity and the terrors of the Law and of Conscience In the 51. of Isa 22. Mark how God brings the deliverance of his people from the fear of his wrath as an argument to strengthen them against all other fears Behold I have taken out of thy hand the cup of trembling even the dregs of the Cup of my fury To what end is this spoken In the beginning of the next chapter for Chapters were not divided by the Prophets but afterward and therefore they have an immediate connexion to one another Awake awake put on thy strength O Zion put on thy beautiful garments So sayth faith to a beleeving soul why art thou affraid of the wrath and displeasure of men be not feareful for I have taken out of thy hand the cup of trembling there was a time wherein there was a cup of trembling in thy hand and thou wert affraid thou shouldest drink of that I have taken that out of thy hand and therefore awake put on strength be not affraid of man being thou art delivered from such fear It is a passage in the book of Job Job 38.17 when God would bring Job to feare saith God you seem to have some boldness but have you seen the gates of death and hath the shadow of death been made known to you that
walk as they may say these people that make conscience of their waies surely they did come for conscience sake Their ways are according to that they profess We have a notable expression of some that came from another country for religion and yet walked so offensively as the name of God suffered much by them that the heathen said These are the people of the Lord and are gone forth out of his land Ezekiel 36.20 we dare not say we are among heathens but when they were among heathens they prophaned my holy name says God and so many Fleeing from their own Country profane the name of God in another Country that give occasion to the people among whom they are Fled to say look here are some that are gone from their own Land that profess themselves to be the people of the Lord and to Flee for religion look what kind of people they are thus Gods name is profaned let us take heed that we give no such occasion to the people with whom we live to say these are the people of the Lord that are Fled for religion 3. We should be careful to behave our selves as those that are Fled for religion as exiled people to be mortified to the things of the world and to be content with any condition that God shal cal us unto shal we repine when we meet with any trouble that were an argument we had too too delicate spirits when we Flee from great danger and yet think we should meet with no trouble at all 4. When we are Fled we should labor to get our spirits into a contented frame and walk in subjection unto God and give God praise as if we were in the greatest prosperity that we could have been in in our own Country we should not have our hearts dulled with any inconveniency but keep up our spirits free in the service of God It is a notable expression we have of David if you compare two Psalms together Psal 57. with the 108. and the 57. Psal was when he Fled from Saul and was in the care but mark how Davids spirit was kept up he was not dulled and stupified as many are that come from delicate houses and are faine to live in Sellars and blind holes their hearts begin to rise Oh! the fresh aire and brave living that once they had David was so and yet his heart was kept up In the shadow of thy wings wil I make my refuge a poor dark hole he was in and he counted that dark hole the shadow of Gods wings againe I wil cry to God most high though I be brought low and meane I have an interest in this high God and wil cry to that high God unto God that performeth al things Had God performed al things for David God promised David the kingdome and David is brought into a poor hole to shift for his life and yet David sayes he wil cry unto God that performeth all things for him He shal send from Heaven and save me though I be in this blind place the God of heaven regards me and shal send from heaven to save me vers 5. Be thou exalted above the heavens let thy glory be above al the earths vers 7. My heart is fixed O God my heart is fixed I will sing and give praise al this was when he was in the Cave if you compare this with Psal 108. which was a Psalm of thanksgiving and rejoycing that he made upon his deliverance and the same expression that David had within the cave the same expressions he had when God had fulfilled his promises and he was Blessing his name for his great deliverance noting thus much look what temper of heart we should have in the enjoyment of the greatest mercies we should labor to have that temper of heart in our submissions unto God when we are Fled from danger 5. Again let it be our care when we are delivered from the danger that we apprehended our selves to be in to keep our selves in the fervency of our hearts and spirits for God and in the fervency of our love unto God and his truth as we had in danger Many when they are in danger of their enemies and afraid of them their hearts are in a great deal of fervency and zeal for God and his truth and if they can get a few together to fast and pray or hear a Sermon repeated how do they rejoyce but when they are in safety their hearts are dead and Flat and if they meet together to pray or to commune about the word their spirits are not so fervent as before the Lord keep this from us 6. Again let us labor to do al the good we can to the place which we are Fled from by our prayers or any other way we can as the people of God when they were from their own country yet they would remember Jerusalem so ought we to do for we are much bound to God for it in regard of the good we have received in it 7. Lastly let us labor to make that hiding place that God provides for us to deliver us from danger to be but a preparing place for greater danger let us not think because we have avoided some danger and are in some safety that al is well but this should be our care that those places that are our hiding places to hide us from some danger should be our preparing places for greater dangers afterwards and thus using these directions we shal honor God in our Fleeing and shal not have cause to repent us And thus we have done with that argument the answering the case of conscience about Fleeing CHAP. 13. How the Heart may be taken off from the fear of man First it is against the solemn charge of God Secondly It is an Idolizing of the Creature Thirdly It becomes not the State and Spirit and profession of a Christian Fourthly It dishonors God and the Cause of God Fifthly It mightily heartens the enemies of Gods people Sixthly It is threatned as a great judgment of God upon a people Seventhly The evil effects of the sinful feare of man 1. It distracts our thoughts 2. Weakens the heart 3. Eates out the true feare of God 4. It indisposeth us to any service 5. Insnares a Christian 6. It causeth other desperate fears 7. Procures the judgment of God in our destruction A VVord of Exhortation How the heart may be taken off from the fear of man There are two things that yet remain in this point namely to labor to take off the heart from the fear of man or any danger by shewing the evil that there is in the sinful fearing of man or of any danger that may befal us Secondly by laying down some means to bring off the heart from creature fear First A Christian must take heed of sinful fear of man and not to fear any creature in an inordinate sinful way for there is much evil in it more than we are aware of 1. In
the lock we think may be there is some ward in the lock that is a little bent if that were mended it would do or the key is bent and rather then we wil throw it away we wil mend that may be I have bent some ward and a man wil reason al he can before he wil throw away the lock So when you have to deal with others that are of another opinion do not throw them away reason this way that way because there is much in ordering mens spirits in the communication of a truth unto them it is not alwaies the evidence of a truth that is sufficient to convince but the manner of presenting of the truth and that is the second reason of the difference of mens spirits Reason 3. The third reason is because that somtime the graces of men do not burne out so clearly and purely as they do at other times As in fire when you kindle a fire first there is a great deal of smoke and we see little brightness in the fire stay but a while and the smoak wil be consumed and the fire burne bright So in the graces of men and women sometime there is a great deal of corruption when grace is kindled at first a great deal of smother but grace continues and workes out that corruption and it burns more clearly So in the sun when it riseth in the morning it may be a great mist but when the sun is up a little while it consumes the mist and shines clearly So Children when they are young may be they have many il humors afterwards their natural strength consumes their humors and so they are more active and stirring so though the Godly have not that disposition of heart to do that for God they should yet when grace comes to burne more clearly they can do it Reason 4. Fourthly As grace is mixt at first so somtimes it is weak the parts and members not being consolidated and strengthened when an infant comes first into the world if you expose it to the cold it is not able to endure it which afterward it wil do when the Joynts are set and so young plants cannot endure that frost which they wil do afterwards And so Christians at first are as children carryed away with every wind of doctrine til afterward they come to be more strong and then they are fit for service As Christ would not have his disciples called to fasting and praying they were hard duties while they were weak he hath this expression no man puts new wine into old bottles nor sow a new peice of cloath into an old Garment for the bottles wil break and the garment wil rend in Math 9.16.17 The meaning is do not bring unsureable duties to mens spirits fasting and prayer is a duty but they are not strong enough for it yet noting when people grow strong they shal be fitter for duty service or suffering Reason 5. The fifth Reason is because somtimes our hearts are filled with more heavenly consolation then at other times that does refresh the souls of Gods people as with new wine that they can go forth as a Giant cal them to any duty and they can go through fire and water As for sin when a mans heart is warmed with sin and they have had delight and satisfaction in their sin come and speak what you wil against it and they can easily cast it off and so for duty when Gods people have been warmed by duty and their spirits are refreshed in Gods way with what resolution do they go and as that martyr Mr. Saunders sayd that which made the difference in him was because God was pleased to come in with such refreshments to his spirit that he felt the consolation of God not only upon his soul but flow into his body and that put a great deal of courage in him And in the stories that I have read of Scotland Mr. Knox reports of a young man of eighteen years of age that suffered martirdome under the Bishop of Glasgow and when he came to suffer he was mightily affraid and thought to have recanted and it pleased God that his spirit came in mightily to him at that time and he fell down on his knees and blest God Blessed Lord said he great is thy mercy to man kind and to me poor wretch that was like to forsake Christ my saviour and put my self into eternal damnation and now thou hast come with the consolation of Heaven and hast filled my heart and now I am freed from those fears that suppressed my soul let men do what they can I am ready And to God somtimes comes to fill the hearts of his people with mighty consolations and that makes a mighty difference Reason 6. The Sixth Reason is because sometimes the breathings of Gods spirit not only in consolation but in assistance comes more fully then at other times The spirit of God bloweth where it listeth and when it listeth John 3.8 Sometimes more fully somtimes more scantly Saies Christ in Math. 10.19 In that houre shal it be given you as Mr. Glover When he was in his dumps before yet when he was at the stake he cryed to his friend Austin he is come he is come And so it was with Sampson sometimes the miraculous work of Gods spirit came upon him and then he was strong and so in a spiritual way the spirit of God comes upon his people and then they are strong though they were weak before Isa 59.19 When the enemy shal come in like a flood the spirit of the Lord shal lift up a standard against him So when there comes a strong temptation like a flood that would bear him down then the spirit of the Lord shal lift up a standard and come in with abundance of assistance Reason 7. The seventh Reason is because somtimes a man sees his call to dutie to suffering a great deal more clear then at other times and that puts a great deal more strength As Moses now saw a further call to stand out against Pharoah and all his enemies and here is a great deal of deceit in the hearts of men when a man is loath to put himself to trouble he cannot be convinced of his call let us take heed of the deceit in this Question What shall we doe to take heed of the deceit in this Answer 1. When there is any work to doe either in doing or suffering hard things If you say I do not see the Lord call me Put it to your hearts againe and say deal truly and really with me doe you not see the Lords call Secondly observe this rule if so be you have put off service or suffering upon this ground do but examine whether you find upon this that your hearts be as stiring and lively in all other services as before Usually if men from sluggishness because they are loath to endure hardships shall put off the call of God their hearts wil fal more dead
humiliation and much seeking of God surely that should be the matter of our praises 3. This is a gracious visitation of God God comes in with this and here is the presence of God and therfore there is much cause of praise 4. It is an argument that God hath some especial service for you to do now those that are godly count this a great mercy for God to have any employment for them now that they have received an evidence to their souls that God intend to imploy them this is a great mercy Secondly Learn to check your Unbelief when your hearts were down you were ready to say it would never be otherwise now check your hearts and bring your hearts to this conclusion I will never think it in vain to seek God though I do not find him come in presently and I will learn though I may judg my self worthy that God should leave me yet I will never determine that God will not come in because I see Gods waies are not as my waies and Gods thoughts are not as my thoughts Oh take heed of judging the waies and thoughts of God according to your waies and thoughts Thirdly Is God come in and do you find that you have a spirit of courage and boldness more than before now you find God sweetly breathing upon you to put life into that dead and to raise that heavy heart of yours do you find God sweetly and comfortably enlivening your souls and putting the spirit of confidence in that unbeleeving heart of yours Labor to keep your hearts thus There is a great deal of difficulty when a thing is fallen down to get it up but when a thing is up if one be careful it is not difficult to keep it up It is a notable expression that David had when he found the hearts of the people got up in their willing Offering 1 Chron. 29.18 O Lord God of Abraham Isaac and of Israel our Fathers keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the hearts of thy people and prepare their hearts unto thee So let it be thy prayer and it is my prayer for thee Is thy heart up more than before Pray O God of Abraham Isaac and Israel keep this in the thoughts of the heart of this man or woman for ever be careful now to keep your hearts up so when you are well or otherwise if you should lose this through this negligence 1 It wil make you cal into question the truth of these gracious breathings yea you wil think it was but a meer flash such as Hypocrites may have yea not cal this into question only but to cal the truth of al into question this is that which makes men take the foundation of al because their hearts somtimes are raised and they through their negligence let them fall and lose that spiritual life and courage once they had and so bring abundance of sadness upon their hearts now as you would have an evidence of the truth of Gods work upon you and the truth of grace labor to keep up your hearts 2 Labor to keep up your hearts otherwise if they fal off again the waies of God wil come to be very tedious to you As a man that walks unevenly in regard of the unevenness of his leggs or the unevenness of the way he is quickly tired and so if a Christians way be up and down and there be not an evenness in his way he is quickly discouraged and a main means to help one to go on with freedom and courage in Gods waies is to go on in an even course 3 If so be you lose this you lose the beauty of your profession the beauty of the waies of Godliness consists much in the constancy and if your way be up and down there is no beauty in your conversation it takes away the convincing power of your way and conversation if others saw your hearts up and saw a constant evenness in your way this would mightily convince them that it is a work of Gods Spirit upon your hearts but somtimes your hearts are up and down again somtime you are patient and meek at other times you are passionate and fretting this doth not convince them that it is the work of Gods Spirit but only the stirring of a natural spirit 4 By this means you wil cause God to walk differently with you if you keep not up your hearts when God hath raised them though God be in a way of mercy you wil cause him to walk in a way of displeasure against you 5 Again When your hearts are up that is the thing that the Devil doth most watch to give you a trip in As when Daniel walked so strictly in al the matters of the Kingdom as they could find no fault in him they accused him in the matter of his God of his Religion so saies the Devil if I should tempt him to such and such sins I cannot prevail but there is such a way I may prevail and the Devil doth labor there most to trip you As he did with Christ in another case when you are on the top of the pinacle then he labors to throw you down It is true it is the work of God that hath brought you up to the pinacle but there the Devil doth labor to throw you down Quest You wil say How shall we come to keep up our hearts whenas our hearts are in a better frame than at some other times Answ First When your hearts are up labor to make use of that grace that raised your hearts improve it so as to make your hearts more holy and more upright A Tree if it sprout upward only and do not run down in the root proportionably it wil wither and die and so if grace do work only upward in abilities and performances of duties and joy and such things and do not proportionably work downward in the root it is like it will come to little and you will soon lose all Secondly Work that grace you find in your inward as wel as outward man Do not think it enough that you have stirrings of Grace to enable you to do duties but improve this grace for the working out of corruption consider the corruptions of your heart and now take the advantage to work them out Thirdly be sure you take nothing that is Gods due at this time that is if God have raised your hearts though the peace and joy of it be yours the Glory of it is Gods do not be fingering of that take heed of lifting up of your hearts in a way of pride it is enough your heart is lifted up in a way of grace and you must be content with that but many when God gives them a lift in a way of Grace they cannot be content with their part the peace and the joy but they lift up themselves in a way of pride and would have some of Gods part of the Glory and that spoils all Fourthly When you