than ordinary remarkable and to bee minded by us Here is a Woman and a Woman of such a Country and so coming and that upon such an account that both the one and the other and altogether may very well bee brought in with a Behold I have formerly spoken at large of souls coming to Christ how God leads them and how by Faith they are brought to him and therefore shall not handle that now Onely there are here three heads of Observation to which I shall reduce all at this time And as sometimes I make three Sermons upon one head or point so at this time I shall make one Sermon upon three heads And the order in which I shall proceed to speak of them shall bee this First Wee will a little consider the party coming Secondly The manner how shee comes Thirdly The occasion or the account upon which shee comes at this time To begin with the first Behold saith the Holy Ghost A Woman You will bee ready to say to mee What shall wee see in her why truly in this Woman coming to Christ you shall see this Truth That the way to Christ is very free for poor souls of any place in any condition Here is a Woman I list not to quibble upon that but here is a Woman of Canaan Canaan of all the places at those times had a mark upon it to bee most opposite to goodness and it may bee said of it as once it was said of another place Can any good come out of it But of what place of the Country shee was a borderer to Tyre and Sidon Now Tyre and Sidon were the worst places of that Country They were in a sense the Sodome sinks of Canaan The Salvage places as wee say of some Sea-Towns the most notorious Cities of all that Country and yet now a Woman of this bad Country the door is open and shee comes to Jesus Christ You read of some in John 12.20 21. that came to Philip and said Sirs wee would see the Lord c. Why my Brethren It is a certain truth whatever Country you are of whatever place sex or condition the way is open and you may freely come to Jesus Christ This truth is so general in all the Gospel and so frequently preached that I shall not need to stay upon it You read that Christ freely invited and lovingly entertained all that came even Publicans and Harlots Sinners and Rebels Enemies and ungodly ones I say not qua tales but qui quondam tales i. e. such as once were so vile and therefore unworthy and unlikely to come yet come they did and the way was not hedged up nor the door shut against them There are three ends why I touch upon it and for which I desire you to Behold this truth in this woman First Behold this Woman and truth for this end To let you see The certainty of that great truth That some of all sorts shall bee saved Is the way to Christ open and free for any sex of any condition and Country then some of all sorts and Countries shall come in Rev. 7.9 you read besides the sealed ones of the Jews the Holy Ghost takes notice of an innumerable company of the Gentiles and they are thus set out to bee of all Nations and Kindreds and People and Tongues My Brethren I do not intend so much as in the least to prop the opinion of general Redemption but this I say that sith the way to Jesus Christ is so free and so open unto all that therefore some of all though not all may come to him and shall bee saved at last I say not that all shall bee saved I could wish that errour had died with Origen but I say some of all i. e. some of all conditions Countries Kindreds c. shall bee saved by Jesus Christ And why O soul may not wee bee of that some But secondly See my Brethren what an incouragement here is unto Faith The poor soul would come and when hee comes hee must beleeve your Faith are your feet by which you must come to Christ But now the great question is When the soul is upon his way going to Christ or upon his feet It is such a sinner that the question is May hee come yes hee may the way is open and free to any In Luk. 7.37 You read of a Woman that came to Christ that is called a sinner c. What ever Country you are of I pray minde mee bee it never so barbarous and base Bee thou O soul a sinner of any City suppose Sodome there is this ground for your Faith to build upon and if you could as it were peep and look within the Veil you should see that there are some of your Country-men and women in Heaven Father Abraham was in an Idolatrous Nation yet in the 51. of Isaiah saith the Holy Ghost Look to Abraham consider what hee was c. and Behold saith my Text A Woman of Canaan came to Christ take notice of her well for this end also to strengthen my Faith you may come what ere bee your Country Thirdly Behold withall How inexcusable poor creatures will bee that do not put forth indeavours to come to Christ What will you have to say will you say you might not this truth will tell you there is a way open for any of you This story as it is in Mark 7.24 saies Christ would have hid himself but hee could not Therefore as it is an incouragement to Faith so it will leave unbeleef without excuse This poor woman will condemn thee poor Christless careless Creature Behold her coming and tremble to think of thy tarrying away To terrifie all poor negligent souls that minde not seek not come not to a Christ is another end why I would have you all behold the Woman of Canaan coming When shee is gone before what will become of you if that you follow not after certainly her coming will bee your condemnation So much for the first head the party coming Secondly How doth this Woman come Why truly my Brethren you must keep Behold in your hand all along Behold how shee comes shee comes crying and saying Lord thou Son of David have mercy on mee Verily my Brethren this manner of her coming deserves a Behold as the very coming it self There are three circumstances in the manner of her coming First It is said shee cried Secondly Shee cried Have mercy on mee And thirdly O Lord thou Son of David First Shee cried unto him The word doth denote a very passionate cry the Syriack doth use a word which doth signifie such a cry which is as a beast that doth low after its Calf Shee cried unto him that is Shee came with abundance of affection and of intention of spirit The Evangelish Mark tells us shee fell at his feet I cannot better open this than by turning you to that which is as it were a parallel 2 King 4.87 where you have a poor woman
whose soul was bitter coming to the Prophet and so soon as shee came to him shee fell down and caught him by the feet I pray behold and learn in all your addresses unto Jesus Christ put forth the highest affection put forth the most intenseness of your spirits that may bee cry and get hold of him Christ will not charge thee with unmannerliness Shee cried it notes the Agony of her spirit that shee was in Oh that our drousie careless souls would but learn of this Woman Many are so far from crying that they scarce lisp But remember it Sirs when you come to the Lord Jesus stir up all your souls let all your affection then go out Oh! when should wee ever let out all our souls to the utmost if not then when wee come to close with Jesus Christ There is a lawful and laudable passion to bee manifested in this matter Christ loves and likes to hear our cries O let not this poor womans crying cry any of us shame who are so far from a crying after Christ that wee do almost cry away Christ Well behold her praise-worthy passion and go thy way soul and imitate her therein Never approach Christ but with much passion with most earnest and ardent affection Secondly Shee cried Have mercy on mee Poor Woman shee speaks as one poor in spirit that is rich in Faith as Christ calls her afterwards shee had no Merit but shee knew the Lord had Mercy Behold it and know this as a lesson to bee learnt hence viz. That when you approach Christ let it bee by Mercy by meer Mercy That same poor Publican in the Gospel of Luke cries Lord bee merciful to mee a sinner My Brethren right closing with Christ right saving justifying Faith which carries the soul to Christ eyes nothing but Mercy This is the main incouragement that keeps up Faith yea and this is the great Motive that doth still prevail with the Lord therefore wee should take hold of it in Ephes 2.4 It is said But God who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith hee loved us c. Thou hast misery that pincheth thee but the Lord hath mercy that will pitty thee and thou that sayest thou hast no works know this the Lord hath much grace Behold the Woman of Canaan and see how shee doth and wee ought to eye and plead meer mercy and that onely and alwaies when wee come to Christ Thirdly Observe a little further what shee saith Lord thou Son of David Shee speaks in language beyond the learning of the Scribes and Pharisees though they were great Doctors of the Law yet they had not learned this mystery to look upon Christ as the Lord and as the Son of David It was indeed a miracle that a Woman of Canaan should have this knowledge and wee might say as it was said in another case of Christ whence hath this Woman knowledge why my Brethren what could any of us have said more to Christ to speak out our Faith what is it but that wee do beleeve in the Lord Jesus Christ This phrase speaks Faith Learn hence In all your addresses to Christ to come in the language of Faith and speak to Christ as becomes Jesus Christ Still know hee is the Lord Davids Son the promised one indeed When you come to deal with Jesus Christ bee not hasty consider who hee is hee is the Lord and hee is the Son of David the true and the onely Messiah Remember this lesson in all your addresses to Jesus Christ remember this good example it is a Saints pattern There are two sorts of people I would desire to look upon this pattern The first are those who it may bee are but now beginning to close with Jesus Christ And secondly Those who it may bee have revolted and back slidden from Christ and are now returning again I pray Sirs make as much haste as you can but observe how you go Go to Jesus Christ with much affection with much humility renounce Merit and cry Mercy and still give the Lord his due So you see this Woman of Canaan doth and go thou O soul in any case and do likewise That is all I will speak to the second head To proceed to the third and last thing Behold once again the occasion of this Womans coming It was That her daughter was grievously vexed with a Devil The Evangelist Mark saies shee was vexed with an unclean spirit The one is a general the other is a particular expression of it I do not think it worth the while to dispute about this infirmity or this possession under which her Daughter lay what it was All that I shall note shall bee not of a Physical but rather of a Spiritual and Theological Nature from this Mothers coming to Christ upon this occasion In the general shee takes her childe to bee possessed with a Devil shee goes not to a figure-flinger not to any cunning man as simple ones use to say shee goes not to the Devil in a Doctor to cast out the Devil of her Daughter No but shee comes to Christ I pray in the general Learn in all cases distempers diseases c. to go first to Jesus Christ You may go to men to Physicians though not to Wizards but you must go to Christ and behold the Woman of Canaan to establish you in that good Christian custome of having recourse to Christ on all occasions in all necessities whether for yours and your selves But this is general There are two things in particular The first particular thing I would have you learn out of this Mothers coming upon this account Is Parentive pitty in compassion on children This Woman of Canaan pitties her childe and cries as if shee her self felt her Daughters pain and though shee was not sick simply yet shee was Sympathetically thou that canst let the little one cry and it may bee perish while thou art fooling abroad Oh remember the Woman of Canaan have pitty on your poor children and for their sakes go to Jesus Christ And do I mean onely you should go to Christ for them when they are sick no but Oh pray for thy childes sick soul It was a notable speech of one of the Antients said hee Wilt thou mourn over a body from whom the soul is gone and not over a soul from whom God is gone Oh shew that you have spiritual sympathy many of you have a natural sympathy if you see the childe burn and snake c. of a Feavour thou canst pitty him but it may bee thou seest him shake and reel with drunkenness and not pitty them at all It is Motherly pitty to sympathize with sick bodies but Christian pitty to sympathize with sick souls Friends put on bowels as the Elect of God as the Woman of Canaan and have compassion on your children In all their afflictions bee yee afflicted with all their sorrows bee yee affected and go to Christ on their behalf but not onely for bodies
say they hunger who yet have not a spiritual stomach at all to Christ the Bread of Life They ask bread but it is onely an asking Now Christ will try us and by this strange carriage hee trieth us indeed And for us to continue begging crying bread after Christ hath spoke to us as to this woman After hee hath said I am not sent for you it is not meet to give unto you bee gone what should a Dogg have childrens bread after this I say to wait and worship to beg and reiterate cries for bread this will make Christ say this longing is sincere and strong beleeve it here is a hungry soul indeed Many wish for Christ who do not heartily hunger for him Secondly Christ will try Faith too and it is good for us to bee tried in our Faith Saith Christ Here comes a soul to mee hee looks as if hee would take hold of mee I will try whether hee bee one of Jacobs children that will wrestle a fall and keep his hold when I seek and seem to cast him off I will see if I call him Dogg Whether hee will trust and beleeve hee may bee a Childe It was a trial and demonstration that Jobs Faith was right when hee would trust in a killing God and it will try our Faith indeed to wait upon and cling to a seemingly rejecting Redeemer And this was the great matter in the case of this poor woman Oh Woman great is thy Faith Jesus Christ did all this to try the womans Faith God will see whether the soul will take hold of an angry Christ and run after a going-away Christ In 1 Pet. 1.7 saith the Apostle there That the trial of your Faith being much more precious than of gold that perisheth c. It is not spoken of Faith in it self that that is more precious than gold that perisheth though that is precious but of the trial of it The very trial of Faith is a precious thing Now that Christ may try our Faith as well as our Hunger therefore hee deals a little harshly with us Thirdly The Lord hath this design too By his harsh dealing with one hee will make many wise When two or three of the younger boles shall see the Father deal something harsh with the eldest it teaches them all something The Lord help us wee are a company of mad untoward children wee neglect many a precious opportunity Christ calls and wee will not answer c. Now when Christ shall deal harshly with some then wee shall bee made wise to hearken when Christ calls How many have preached this truth from that experience Children have some Parents said take a Christ while hee smiles take a Promise when it is tendered you do not know what it may cost you I neglected my seasons and I found it a hard matter for mee to close with Jesus Christ You have a great word in Heb. 3.7 8. Wherefore to day if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts as in the provocation in the day of temptation in the wilderness c. What doth hee allude to hee alludes to the story of the children of Israel in the wilderness and of Gods harsh dealing with them and all because of their unbeleef The Lord Jesus Christ hee doth deal harshly with many leads them thorow wildernesses stings them with Scorpions to make others wise to accept of mercy when and while it may bee had Ah! how many think it an easie matter to come to Christ and have bread presently and therefore defer and delay put by at best lay by many a choice tender till another time as they think wherein they may at pleasure take it But now when they shall see such examples as this that a man or woman may come and call and crouch and worship and begg and yet bee put off yet have no mercy No nor no kinde word as was this womans case this will make them wise to take heed how they refuse that which afterwards they may request with tears and yet bee rejected But besides fourthly The Lord Christ doth deal thus that indeed hee may bring the soul to Gospel-self-denial I say unto Gospel-self-denial The Lord is resolved that whosoever will bee his Disciple must deny himself Now some have observed that nothing doth so much tame any as hunger The Lord Jesus Christ will take the soul upon the hip and make the soul fully deny it self and now saith God If thou wilt come to mee in my way well otherwise no bread Bread bread saith the hungry man if I may have it this way or that way any way I will take it well saith Christ I see the soul is come pretty well too as wee say I will keep off a little longer make him fast a few daies more Deny him till hee is ready to dye for hunger and then I shall make him deny himself in his honour in his inheritance in his very birth-right I shall make him say what profit will that or any thing do mee if I dye for hunger and I am at the point of death Therefore whatever the terms are I will deny all part with all for this Bread of Life So that real universal self-denial is by the Lords grace effected through this delaying and seemingly-denying carriage And to this end or for this reason doth Christ sometimes deal with us as with the woman of Canaan Hee will seemingly deny us that wee may really deny our selves Hee will tame us and then put his own terms upon us and for that end carries it so strangely to us Fifthly Christ doth intend to heighten himself in our hearts Before Christ give us himself hee will greaten himself And my Brethren it is our sore misery that wee are too apt to have sleight thoughts of Jesus Christ Now Christ will make us prize him very highly and therefore wee shall come by him very hardly It is a Rule and a general Observation That wee prize that highly which wee come by very hardly Oh Sirs the Lord Christ knows how to heighten himself in your hearts by deferring to grant your request Possibly thou art a poor ignorant creature in thy first coming unto Christ one who thinkest well but not well enough of Christ Thou valuest him a little but not as the chiefest Now Christ is resolved to heighten himself in thy heart and will therefore keep off so long that thou shalt come thereby to prize him at a higher rate than all the world and shalt have cause to say I value him much and love him dear for I came by him very hardly and was fain to wait long before I did enjoy him Lastly The Lord Christ may have this end Namely That the soul might catch at him more hastily and keep him more fastly therefore hee doth hold off thus and deal thus harshly wee are not eager enough in closing with Christ My Brethren the soul is apt to linger in the matter of taking Christ but when Christ
shall stand off that will make the soul come on more hastily Jesus Christ doth catch us by craft as the Apostle saith 2 Cor. 12.16 Truly Christ doth catch some poor souls by craft as the fisher-man doth the fish you know or may have heard how that is The fisher-man laies the bait and draws it as it were away hee draw it before the fish and when the fish is ready to take it hee doth make as if hee snatched it away and why so truly that the fish may catch at it more eagerly and bee held by it more surely So doth Christ with us when hee shall offer and seem to draw back when hee shall come neer and suffer us as it were to touch him and then snatch away again this will make us come on more earnestly and close with him more eagerly The soulby this means takes the bait I and the soul will hold it too when it hath it beleeve it Sins the Lord Jesus Christ is kinde to catch by craft Well this is the account of the Reason wherefore it is that sometimes Christ is seemingly harsh to some souls There are but three Uses I aim at in this Doctrine Use 1. The first Use is To let us all see that Christ is not so easily come by as the generality of people do think All have Christ freely but not easily Minde it My Brethren I think and I will tell you my thoughts because it may awaken you and do you good I think many will go to Hell as upon other mistakes so upon this that they do think it easie to go to Heaven and easie to come by Jesus Christ But if it bee true that Christ stands a loof off from a poor soul then it will appear to bee a hard work to come by him Remember this you will finde three things will make it hard work ere Jesus Christ and you bee brought together 1 The backwardness of your own hearts 2 The many hinder ances and puts in of Satan 3 And the seeming backwardness of Jesus Christ First Your own hearts will bee backward Ah soul unless the Lord make it a day of his power they are not a willing people Psa 110. hee that talks of free-will I am afraid was never sensible of free-grace nor of the backwardness of his own heart Secondly The Devil makes it hard work too Verily when the soul would go to Christ the Devil will hinder and set one to hinder another to keep the soul off from going to Jesus Christ But thirdly and especially The seeming harsh dealing of Jesus Christ makes it very hard work Oh say some poor souls My thinks the Lord makes mee willing and hungring after a Christ but when I come to Christ Christ hangs off My thinks God the Father is willing I should have Christ hee hath sent him the Spirit is willing hee hath revealed Christ to mee and my heart is willing but I come to Christ and hee doth not hear mee verily here you will finde difficulty and it will much pazzle and try Faith to beleeve upon and close with a Christ who seems to stand at a distance His seeming harsh dealing will make it real hard beleeving Use 2. The second Use is of Caution I pray learn by this to take heed how you provoke the Lord Jesus Christ to deal thus harshly with any of you My Brethren the Lord Christ can frown and look bitterly and deal severely c. and beware how you provoke him so to do The truth is there bee some souls that rationally I mean religiously rationally cannot expect otherwise that if Christ do receive them hee should receive them very harshly Let mee in a word touch upon this and do you remember it Two words I would speak my minde in that I may not bee mistaken First this I do not say that there are any souls that have reason to think Jesus Christ will reject them Whatever you are Canaanite Perisite or Jebusite c. Whoever you are before the Lord I do not say there is reason for you to conclude that there is no coming to the Lord. But This I say secondly That though you have no reason to think hee will cast you off yet you have reason to think hee will deal harshly with you you may have reason to fear hee will not presently entertain you First I think there bee some souls that may verily expect God may make them stand at the door and wait till they cool their heels and though Christ will let them in at last yet hee may set them stand all night Some souls Christ may let them bee hoarse with crying and yet Jesus Christ may stand off Secondly There are some souls that may expect that though hee should let them in yet it may bee with them as with some childe the childe is let in and hee sits at the table but the Father looks so strangely and harshly on him that his meat doth him no good thou mayest never rellish mercy sweetly till thou comest to Heaven it may bee Thirdly There are some souls that may expect that though Christ will give them mercy yet hee will dispure it out with them that they shall wrestle a whole night as Jacob and go limping all their life time and bee called Dogg many a time and as it were threatned with a cudgel before ever hee give them childrens bread Therefore I beseech you for the Lords sake souls look about you Now there are three sorts of people that have thus reason to think that though Christ may receive them at last yet it may bee very harsh at first First Those that have dealt very harshly with Jesus Christ With the froward I will bee froward saith God Grace will receive froward ones at last yet hee will bee harsh Why what was the matter Joseph looks so roughly upon his Brethren their consciences could tell them Wee had not pitty upon our Brother Gen. 42.21 Sirs there are many poor souls deal harshly with Jesus Christ I say deal harshly with Christ is there any deals harshly with him you will say how can that bee why bee not mistaken as you deal with Christs members so you deal with him You scoff at poor Saints and Christ takes it as against himself O minde it you that have been or are the persecutors of the Lords people you can expect no other but that Christ should deal harshly with you since you have done so by him It may bee there is a poor man or woman by thee that hath precious Faith I say that hath precious Faith thou dealest hardly with them and so thou dealest hardly with Jesus Christ in them and hee may do so with thee Secondly Those souls that have lived in any more notable prophaneness than others may expect if Christ receive them it should bee as the woman of Canaan harshly Take a plain similitude Let two men go to a Physician the one hath a little knock on the crown a little dressing a
eat of the crumbs which fall from their Masters Table The Lord had in a manner called her Dogg and said it was not for doggs to have childrens bread shee doth not deny it but shee grapples with grace and saith Truth Lord yet doggs may have a crumb c. I shall put all that is spoken here of her carriage into one Lesson but before I do that I shall name two other observable points The first is this A right Faith coming and carrying of the soul to Christ is a resolute Faith That is one point I would name pray mark it The Lord Jesus seems to put her off hee gives her nothing that was a visible incouragement yet shee will go on and yet shee will not bee put off When the soul comes to Christ hee comes as one that needs a Christ and wants a Christ will have and as one that must have a Christ and what then hee will have a Christ before hee goes away Though hee have not evidence hee will have adherence though the soul can see nothing and though no hope yet hee will bee resolute although Christ will not smile though conscience is not quiet though the wound bee not healed though the Lord put off angrily yet the soul keeps resolute to him and will not bee sent away empty Faith if right is still resolute The second Point that I shall name is this That a right Faith knows how to confess and beleeve at once A true Beleever will not conceal his sin yet will close with Jesus Christ A right Faith will deny nothing and yet it will beleeve all things My Brethren mark it a little there are a company of vile people that are as they say all for Faith and nothing for confession and what say they beleevers it is not for them to come and confess sin Why a beleever will confess sin doth the Lord say dogg yes truth Lord I am a dogg will the soul say as this Woman did There are others that will confess and not beleeve Oh they cry out they must confess and bewail and lye low and humble themselves c. but they cannot beleeve they dare not beleeve confession is their work c. Why poor hearts you may do both you may say Lord I am a sinner yet I beleeve for mercy is for sinners I am ungodly yet I beleeve for Abraham beleeved in him who justifieth the ungodly I am a dogg as thou sayest Lord yet I beleeve a dogg may gather up a crumb Well remember it True Faith doth not hinder confession nor confession should not hinder Faith But the particular Lesson of the place is this Namely That it is the duty the wisdome the glory of poor souls to carry it holily and humbly unto Christ when Christ seems to carry it harshly unto them So doth this poor Woman or if you will take it shortly thus It becomes Christians to carry it really well when Christ carries it seemingly ill I know my Brethren this is a hard work but as hard as it is wee must learn it and I will assure you if ever God intend to do you good though flesh and blood murmure yet the Lord will whip you into this Lesson but hee will make you learn it Namely to carry it holily to him when hee carries it seemingly harsh to you I remember that passage in 1 Pet. 2.18 Servants bee obedient to your Masters not onely to the good and gentle but also to the froward It is the duty of a servant professing the Name of God though hee have a froward Master yet hee must carry it well Now mark it Is it the duty of a servant to carry it well to a bad Master and is it not the duty of Saints to carry it well to Christ wee are the servants hee is the Master So in Heb. 12.9 Mark the Apostles argumentation saith hee Wee have had Fathers of our flesh which corrected us and wee gave them reverence shall wee not much rather bee in subjection unto the Father of spirits and lâ—ve Mark there is life in this our life depends on our reverent carriage in this case Alass if Christ bee gone our life goes with him carry it well therefore if thou love thy life you must bee subject and submissive even when hee seems to bee sharp otherwise death is at the door Minde it then would you have a pardon and doth Christ seem to deny you where can you go for it but to him and when you come if you submit there it is soul in the point is your life Therefore mark the lesson well It is the duty wisdome and glory of Saints to carry it well to Christ when hee carries it seemingly ill to them There are four persons in the book of God recorded that God did seem to deal very hardly withall and of all of them this Woman of Canaan was most rare Good old Aaron holy Job the Virgin Mary the Mother of our Lord and this Woman in the Text. But truly as the Apostle said now remains Faith Hope and Charity the greatest thereof is Charity so of these that are upon record the greatest of these is this Woman shee seems to excel in good carriage under hard usage For Aarons carriage you have it recorded in Lev. 10.3 The Lord had dealt very severely with him Nadab and Abihu his two sons were consumed with fire from Heaven before the Lord. Ah Lord how harsh was this to flesh and blood what meer man having nothing more than man could bear it a good Priest hath two sons taken away suddenly But how doth Aaron carry it The Lord spake to Moses and Moses to Aaron saying This is that the Lord spake I will bee sanctified in them that come nigh mee and before all the people I will bee glorified and Aaron held his peace The Lord seemed very severe against the old man hee took away two of his children at once when they were about his work the Lord satisfies him by Moses and hee held his peace A blessed behaviour it was well-becoming him and very patternable unto us The second is that of Job In the first and second chapters you may read and see that God carries it strangely to him yet it is said in all this Job carries it very well so well that the Holy Ghost bears him witness Hee sinned not nor charged God foolishly And when his Wife put him on to curse God Oh saith hee Thou speakest like one of the foolish women what shall wee receive good at the hand of God and not evil There was a carriage indeed very good and right according to our Doctrine Thirdly Our Lords Mother carries it well to the Lord when hee seemed to carry it harsh to her In John 2.3 There you have our Lord and his Mother at a Wedding and there was wanting some Wine and the Mother said to Jesus they have no Wine saith Christ Woman what have I do with thee mine hour is not yet come What
it nothing but Faith will do it I will give you but an instance of it Self doth hinder coming to Christ two waies 1 Either by too much diffidence 2 Or too much confidence One while it is too high and will nor stoop to come to Christ Another while too low it cannot bee raised up to such a work Sometime Self is arrogant and proud what I go to Christ not I I can shift well enough c. Other while it is diffident and fearful and crieth out that it is not fit or able not is it meet for his soul to go c. Well yet for all this I pray mark it is Faith makes Self go notwithstanding all this For as to the Pride of self Faith brings in so clear a light of the excellency and necessity of Christ that self-confidence is put to silence And the high thoughts are brought down by the obedience of Faith and so carried to the obedience of Christ Hee that beleeves the testimony which God gives of Christ in the Gospel must stoop and bow and Faith helping the soul in that business carries the soul out of proud Self so as that arrogancy shall not hinder the souls coming and closing with Christ And for diffidence and the working of Self that way why Faith doth evidently carry the soul over that hinderance For Faith seeth the arm of Christ stretched forth to receive the feeble soul Faith tells the weak heart that Christ will come to it if it cannot go to him Faith assures the soul that Christ will inable it to imbrace himself Faith shews Christ as able and willing to create a hand and heart in us to receive and to take hold of himself When Self cries but childe-like I am weak and same and cannot go to Christ then mark it Faith saies true thou hast no leggs but hee that bids the man arise gives him feet Faith saith thou hast no strength but hee that bids thee beleeve will make thee beleeve What did carry Abraham above and against himself It is said Rom. 4.19 Being not weak in Faith hee considered not his own body now dead when hee was about an hundred years old neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb c. Faith raiseth up the soul and carries it on to Christ even notwithstanding the souls nothingness Faith incourageth the soul to go although it bee empty Faith saith though Christ bee a great King yet a poor soul may come to him without a present In a word Faith levels the mountains and fills the Vullies it carries the soul on its way to Christ notwithstanding any hinderance from Self Self shall not keep off where Faith is the soul denies Self and goes to Christ But then to proceed Secondly Satan hee binders And remember it Satan doth more oppose your going to Christ than hee doth oppose your leaving of sin If thou wilt leave thy fin Satan will bee content so thou wilt but trust to Self and not go to Christs Grace But when once the soul opposes sin and goes to Christ then Satan opposes now what shall help and carry on the soul and strengthen the opposed soul to oppose Satan In Ephestans 5. saith the Apostle Above all take the shield of Faith whereby you shall bee able to quench the fiery darts of the Devil Let Satan do his worst Faith will carry on the soul it will quench his darts and tread upon his devices and sweetly strengthen the heart to cloze with the Lord Jesus in despite and in defiance of Satan and all his hinderances But then Thirdly the world that opposes too The world hinders the soul by saying what will you go to Christ and leave my pleasures and leave my riches and my honour c Now what carries up the soul above the world why the Apostle tells 1 John 5.4 And this is the victory that overcometh the world even our Faith And then Lastly Christ himself seems to oppose The Lord doth not speak and that is sad and sometimes hee doth speak and that is as sad For as wee formerly noted hee seems to speak harshly and Christ may seem to deny and reject the soul in its approach to him Now what shall carry up the soul when Christ himself seems to put back nothing but Faith It is observed that it was Faith carried up Job to go to God it is therefore very observable that Job doth oftentimes profess his Faith in God As in Job 13.15 Though hee kill mee yet I will trust in him it is a known speech But that expression in Job 19. makes it more evident what carried him up to God you have very sad expressions in that chapter intimating how God himself seemed to oppose Job Hee hath overthrown mee verse 6. And hee hath stript mee of my glory vers 9. Yea Hee hath destroyed mee on every side and hath kindled his wrath against mee verse 10 11. Now what shall carry Job up See vers 24 25. I know my Redeemer liveth and oh that this profession of my Faith were written on a Rock for perpetual remembrance It is as if hee should say My friends my dispuring-friends do not break my heart with arguments you oppose and God opposes too but this carries mee up I have a Redeemer and I know that my Redeemer lives c. Had Job no other grace but Faith Yes You have heard of the Patience of Job but yet Jobs Patience failed Had hee not Humility Yes Hee that could lay his mouth in the dust at first and say Naked came I into the world and naked must I return Certainly Job had Humility also but it was not that which supported him Had hee not Prayer without doubt Job had a praying spirit and did call on God again and again as hee often intimates But yet it seemeth â—â—ayer failed and therefore hee is charged by Eliphaz with neglect of it in Job 15.4 Thou restrainest Prayer thou dost lessen Prayer thou dost diminish Prayer so the word signifieth I but mark though Patience failed and Humility and Prayer failed yet Faith carries Job thorow all Yet I will beleeve and trust I pray observe whatever Grace or Gift you have nothing will carry you thorow difficulties and discouragements in your way to Christ but onely Faith It was the Womans Faith that kept her up all the while And it is that and that alone which carries every soul thorow all hinderances as well as those which I have hinted unto Jesus Christ So you see the demonstration of the Point to come to the next thing then You will ask mee the Reason Whence is it that Faith should thus bee the onely Grace to carry up and carry out the soul in the midst of all difficulties in going to Christ I will name very briefly these two heads of Reasons The first is From the appointment of Faith by God Secondly The operation of Faith in us These are the two great pillars of this Truth First From the appointment of Faith
by God My Beloved Faith doth therefore carry us out thorow all because it is that Grace that God alone hath appointed Read the Gospel or the Prophets and you will finde them speaking of these two great Truths First That Christ is the onely one that is appointed to bring us to salvation There is no name but his Act. 4.12 Secondly That Faith is the onely Grace appointed to bring us to Christ You have our Lord shortly in one place speaking of both in John 6.40 And this is the will of him that sent mee that every one which seeth the Son and beleeveth on him may have everlasting life and I will raise him up at the last day There is a great Question among Divines Why Faith rather than Charity Patience or Gospel-Obedâ—ence should bee the great instrument of Justification And my Beloved this is the absolute Answer to the Question Because God hath onely appointed it There may bee some conjectural Reasons why God hath appointed Faith but the chief Reason is because God hath appointed it Now Divine Institution being upon Faith thence it is that Faith doth the work it is not from any inherent worth in the Grace Alass What is the worth of a sinners hand to take a glorious Christ But it is onely from Gods pleasure and appointment that Faith alone shall bee the Grace to carry the soul to and help the soul in its receiving of Christ God hath appointed no other leggs to carry us and because hee hath appointed these hee will bless his own apointment to effect the work The Lords appointment makes all things operative Therefore Secondly The Reason is from the operation of Faith in us by virtue of that appointment My Beloved Faith it is a working Grace and Faith is our great strength in every working Grace it conveyeth strength unto all Graces There is a threefold Operation of Faith to carry the soul thorow all difficulties and discouragements in its going to Christ viz. an Inlightening an Enlivening and an Embracing work in the blessed business of closing with Christ I will a little open them all three First Faith hath an Inlightening work An inlightning work is that which carries a man thorow many difficulties and discouragements In Psal 34. you have a fine expression where David is speaking of his and others seeking God and of their incouragement in that work saith hee in vers 5. They looked unto him and were lightened and their faces were not ashamed by Faith the soul sees the necessity of Christ the inclinableness of the heart of Christ c. and this carries the soul thorow all difficulties Saith Faith look yonder there and there alone is the rock of safety And if you bee not there you must sink this makes the soul swim amain And look saith Faith there is a safe Landing Christ saith Faith stands with out-stretched arms of power and love to imbrace thee and Faith realizeth such a fight evidenceth it to the soul and so inabling the soul to see it helps the soul to go to Christ Secondly Faith hath not onely an inlightening work but an inlivening work My Beloved other graces stir us up and put us on to go to Christ but Faith doth onely enliven us Love and humility doth marvelously stir up the soul to go to Jesus Christ and so do other Graces I but these do not feed the soul nor strengthen there is a great deal of difference between the Whip and the Meat you give the horse A whip a blow that stirs it but doth not strengthen it A conviction of need a fear of hell stirs us to go to Christ but it doth not inable us or inliven us My Beloved Faith is the strengthening Grace The Just shall live by Faith Heb. 10. there saith hee you have need of patience that after you have done the will of God yee might receive the Promise c. Now The Just shall live by Faith 36 37 38. verses Do not cast away your confidence what then You have need of patience c. doth hee stay there No but adds The Just shall live by Faith True you will need patience if you go to Christ but you will live alone by Faith Wee need patience to tarry the Lords leisure to bear the Lords frowns to tarry till hee come but how shall wee live in the mean time Oh The Just shall live by Faith Faith being an enlightening Grace therefore it is an enlivening Grace Faith it findes honey as Jonathan and Faith it findes a Promise and dips in the finger and takes a little and that enlivens and strengthens the soul Nay Faith though it bee full of fears it is a soul-enlivening-Grace Take that instance of the Woman with a bloody Issue in Luke 8.44 compared with vers 46. It is clear shee had a Faith and shee had fears and shee had virtue For this Faith full of fears did gather virtue from Jesus Christ So thy Faith that is full of fears may gather virtue from Jesus Christ and therefore is it that it carries us thorow all difficulties in our going to Christ Thirdly Faith it hath an imbracing work These all died in Faith not having received the Promises What then how could they live but having seen them afar off embraced them Heb. 11.13 My Beloved Faith it hath an imbracing work of the Promise and because Faith can imbrace the Promise therefore can it carry the soul thorow all the difficulties that it meets with in the way to Christ What is the Anchor at the end of a Cable one Ship will carry a thousand Anchors but one Anchor will hold the Ship because it hath a fastening power Faith is but a little Anchor of it self I but it hath a fastening power and so Faith staies the soul In Isa 26.3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose minde is stayed on thee because hee trusteth in thee because you trust in God therefore are your minds stayed Oh Sirs what shall I say more Faith it is a catching hold of that Christ that puts thee off And because Faith imbraces and holds him that is sure and strong it doth therefore ipso facto as wee say in that very thing carry the soul to Christ thorow all difficulties Well I pray minde and meditate a little upon these things for they are of the life and Mystery of real Christianity But I will now speak to some Uses of this Point Therefore to make some Application there are onely three Uses Use I Let mee say This Doctrine is profitable for reproof Is Faith such a Grace is it Faith that carries the soul thorow all Oh then bee reproved all who profess to beleeve and yet are ignorant of what Faith is Why poor soul what shall carry thee thorow all but Faith and art thou ignorant of that Is there but one boat to carry us over the Sea and are wee ignorant of that Ask what is your Faith why saith one I say my I beleeve I
say my prayers c. Ask another what is your Faith hee replies I leave my sins saith hee c. this is thy Repentance but not thy Faith There are three great parts of peoples ignorance about Faith First Many are ignorant about the ground of Faith What is the ground of Faith why the ground of my Faith is this saith one I am so and so mended of what I was formerly and God hath a little frightened mee and troubled mee for my sins and therefore I beleeve As if trouble for sin and moral amendment were a ground to build Faith upon whereas the great and the precious Promises are the onely and alone ground of Faith Secondly Others are ignorant about the Object of Faith The Object of my Faith is the Promise saith one c. Now the Promise is not the object of Faith it is true the object of Faith is in the Promise but the Promise it self is not the object of Faith It is Christ in the Promise that is the object of Faith the Promises are your spectacles thorow which you see Christ it is hee alone that is the object of your Faith which you are to eye to look and to live upon Thirdly Others are very ignorant about the working of Faith c. Many know not how Faith works therefore minde it The work of Faith is onely to bee our hands and our feet to go to Christ and to take Christ It is observable in Heb. 11. That Faith was the life of those worthies there mentioned some did this some did that some went this way some went that way but still it was all through Faith and they obtained a good report but all by Faith for it was Faith that carried them thorow all But alass how ignorant are some about the working of Faith Ask what do you when you beleeve one saith I say my prayers another I read the Bible c. Ah souls you are much to bee reproved that know not yet what that is which onely carries the soul to Christ Let that bee for reproof Use 2. It serves very much for Consolation to all those who have true Faith Bear up thy heart O Beleever with that which is in the heart The soul is ready to say sometimes in the way to Christ what have I to carry my heart up hast thou Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ beleevest thou the Scriptures beleevest thou in God upon the Son of God c. then bee of good comfort thou hast that which will carry thee thorow You know the story of Father Jacob hee must go over Jordan but hee hath no company nor help nothing but his single staff in his hand and hee walked all his pilgrimage forward and backward with that staff O! the staff of Faith thou who hast it thou mayest walk thorow a wilderness into the good Land with it Faith it is your Jacobs staff your Moses Rod c. Object But saith the soul I fear I have but a little Faith yea I fear I have none at all c. Answ 1. Thou sayest thou hast but a little Faith mark what saith our Lord If you have Faith but as a grane of Mustard seed you shall say unto this Mountain remove hence c. Matth. 17.20 Though thou hast but a little Faith it shall not fail it shall carry you thorow It is true Faith doth all this not thy great Faith Object I but saith the soul I do not see that I have any Faith at all Repl. Why Jesus Christ hee can see it when thou canst not The Woman that had the bloody Issue had great Faith though possible shee saw it not Hast thou that which that Woman had hast thou said of all the world they bee Physicians of no value and dost thou though in much fear come bee it but behinde Christ perswaded as shee was that Christ can though thou question whether hee will heal thee why comfort thy soul notwithstanding thy fear Christ will observe and own thy Faith as hee did hers Use 3. If it bee thus That it is Faith alone that carries the soul thus to Christ thorow all Discouragements this will then bee profitable for Instruction My Beloved in the Lord look within you strengthen Faith Oh my Beloved as the love of many waxes cold so the Faith of many waxes weak but remember a Christ above you and a Faith within you is all that which you ought to minde Christ above you will carry you thorow all things to glory and Faith in you will carry you thorow all to Christ But I pray look to this look to True Faith A poor fearful beleever that hath a trembling soul at a dying hour what shall relieve it then but Christ and what shall carry and keep the soul to and with Christ but Faith when your souls must immediarely go to God for Judgement nothing but Faith will or can carry you with comfort or with confidence against a dying hour prepare a living Christ and in order to a clozing with Christ strengthen Oh strengthen your Faith I shall give you two Directions If you would have Faith carry you thorow all c. First Leave Faith to it self Let Faith alone Faith alone must do it and Faith alone can do it I will tell you how God clears up the thing to mee You have seen a brave work-man that was to remove such a peece of Timber and hee by his own skill could remove it but there bee some that stand by and will bee helping when as wee know that they do but hinder him and saith the Artist let mee alone and I can do it my self and wee use to say let the man alone you do but hinder him hee will do it himself So here let Faith alone in its work you think to help it but you oft hinder it You have seen or heard it may bee of a man that being to go over a River and having two friends with him one saith it is deep and dangerous I will go and see if there bee any shallow place The other faith it is good to make a bridge or boat to go over Oh but saith the man I can swim and I must go and I will venture let mee alone I will swim and never look for bridge or boat Truly so it is here Faith would go to Jesus Christ but Reason and Sense will not let Faith alone Reason comes and saith Bee wise beware what you do If you will needs go to Christ saith Reason I will go make a bridge or invent a boat then cometh Sense and saith I will go look a shallow place where you may go over c. whereas Faith will swim thorow And saith the beleeving soul I must venture and swim I cannot bee drowned in a way of swiming Oh Sirs let Faith alone and it will swim to Christ Sense and Reason do but hinder not help Faith Single simple Faith doth its work alone Therefore I say Let Faith alone do not trouble
it with suggestions of Sense or Reason But then A second Direction is Let Faith have its perfect work Therefore as the Apostle faith about Patience so let Faith have its perfect work Faith goes at first to half a Promise but let it alone it knows where to fetch a whole Promise Let Faith alone it will go to a Promise for what for refuge for help for all Faith will go to and look upon Abraham as Isa 51.2 and finde incouragement from him Nay it can run back to Adam and help it self with the thoughts of his experience let Faith have its course and it will carry you to every Promise and Example to incourage you If it have its perfect work it will gather strength from all the Word of God to help you in your work of closing with Christ I beseech you in these Directions strengthen and labour to incourage Faith O soul minde it storms and trials may come and then you will need afresh to run to Christ Look to your leggs your Faith it is that must carry you If death come death and doubting will come together now remember what must carry you thorow nothing but Faith Trust to no parts duties c. onely trust to the Lord in the way of Faith I shall conclude with two things First Woe to thee poor soul whoever thou art that wantest Faith I do not say woe to thee that art a poor man nor woe to thee if thou beest mean in the world nor say I thou art a sick or weak man and therefore woe No No But art thou an unbeleever a soul without Faith then woe indeed to thee Ah woe bee to that man that wants Faith for without Faith it is not possible to please God or to go to Christ and how sad is the state of that soul that can do neither Woe to all unbeleevers Secondly Blessed are you that have Faith I say not that have so great a Faith but Faith true Faith I say Blessed are you that beleeve you that do beleeve though but a little yet your little Faith will do this great work it will keep you from drowning it will carry you to Christ That little Faith Peter had for all his fears kept him up from sinking I remember what our Lord said to Nathaniel who beleeved as I may say a little Beleevest thou thou shalt see greater things than these John 1.50 Do but go on beleeving and thou shalt see greater things than yet thou hast seen Two things your Faith will do First It will bee your Leggs to carry you to Christ and that thorow all difficulties so you see it did this Woman And Secondly It will if I may say so Compel as it were Christ to entertain you after all denials Ah souls what a glorious entertainment did Christ give this poor Woman at last Well therefore strengthen Faith and that will help you to do as this Woman did and then you shall in the Issue speed even as shee did But of that in the next Christ will bee certainly kinde at last The Seventh SERMON Matthew 15. vers 28. Then Jesus answered and said unto her O Woman great is thy Faith bee it unto thee even as thou wilt c. YOu have sometimes seen or at least heard of a poor beggar who hath long lain and loudly cried at the gate of some great person and yet never liftened to never let in but anon it may bee the Master of the house himself hath opened the door and spake to the man kindly and dealt with him very comfortably how was the face of this beggar lightened how was his heart refreshed just so Nay greater than so was the heart of the Woman of Canaan cheared when our Lord answered and spake unto her the words that I have read Shee had as it were lain long and cried loud and begged hard and no answer but now at last the Lord answers and the Lord answers sweetly Oh Woman great is thy Faith bee it unto thee even us thou wilt The last day wee came to this verse in it I told you wee had the last particular of the story of the Woman of Canaan which holds forth the blessed conclusion which our Lord doth make with this poor Woman After I had hinted and resolved three questions I told you there were three particulars which in an eminent manner are remarkable in this place The First wee did dispatch then and that was this The Grace which did carry on and carry out this poor Woman in all this address it was her Faith And thence wee noted this Doctrine Doct. That it is onely Faith which can carry the soul thorow all difficulties and discouragements in the way to Christ Onely Faith Remember it Sirs some of you have a little knowledge and others of you have a great deal of Profession some of you talk much and the poorest thinks it may bee as well of himself as hee that saith most but remember whatever you know talk or think nothing will carry you to Jesus Christ but Faith you may have fine words and good wishes but alass wording and wishing is not coming to Jesus Christ Why this Woman had other gifts and other graces shee had much humility and shee had much patience and shee had a fine gift of prayer c. yet it is not said Woman much is thy patience or great is thy love strong are thy prayers but oh Woman great is thy Faith c. Wee did open the point at large and pressed it upon you in the Application in divers particulars which I shall not add unto or repeat Onely I beseech you my Beloved let this abide upon your hearts streng then Faith When you come to dye you will then see a need of Christ if you do not now and if you have not a living Faith you cannot have a living Christ and then is your soul dead before death Faith is another kinde of thing than the world is aware of wee hardly know the notion now but wee shall never bee able to know the preciousness of it as indeed it is precious but by the experience of it Now the greatest experience of Faith is seen in that blessed business of going to Christ In that wee have this experience of the use power and price of Faith that whatever wee have and pretend unto nothing but sincere single Faith will carry us unto Jesus Christ But I proceed The second thing which indeed is the principal thing is this The kindness of Christ now to this Woman You see his commendation of her Faith well now mark his condescension to her how much doth Christ condescend to this poor Woman hee condescends to talk with her commends her Faith and complies with her wishes to heal her Daughter c. Oh blessed condescension The Observation from the whole will bee this Doct. That however the Lord Jesus may deal at first with poor souls that come to him in the issue hee will deal very kindly
doth appear upon this consideration nothing but this could have so quieted the heart of David that the childe was happy Indeed some think that the phrase I shall go to him is no more but I shall bee dead as hee is and they say David did acquiesce in this that the will of God was fulfilled and therefore David comforts himself in this I shall go to him But if this had not been to Heaven it could have been no great comfort Alass what comfort is this bare thought to a mourning Parent my childe is dead and I shall dye too David might have had that comfort in Absolons death but here was his comfort I shall go to him i. e. to glory the bare grave is not comfort nor was it to David but the glory beyond the grave is And this is that comfort which doth stay the heart I shall go to him Though God did not hear him for his childes life yet I think for his childes soul So that is another thing to satisfie any Christian in this case I say when Christ doth not hear prayers to restore a childe to life and health yet in this case in particular go to the Lord Jesus you may go and you may prevail for corporal kindnesses for them and if not for their bodies who can tell but you may for their souls Then I beseech you all in the words of the Apostle Phil. 4.6 compared with verse 19. Bee careful for nothing but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request bee made known unto God My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus Whatever your condition bee bee not over careful go to the Lord Jesus and hee will supply all thy wants hee will give a pardon to thy soul and a plaister to thy body and to thy childes body too you may go to Jesus Christ for what you will in a way of beleeving and to bee sure you shall alwaies prevail in spirituals and sometimes in corporals But there are two questions that wee must answer First But in what cases may it bee lawful to put Prayer and Faith a working in going to Christ for corporal kindnesses Secondly When may wee hope that wee may prevail with Christ for corporal kindnesses First In what cases may wee go to the Lord Jesus and set Prayer and Faith on work for corporal kindnesses It is a Case of Conscience which is not oftentimes touched upon Three things I shall tell you to regulate you and then in any case you may go to Christ and act Faith for corporal mercies First When the thing is lawful that you ask There are many things that are not lawful for us to ask Like Neroes Mother ask and say I will have my Son King though I dye for it You may not begg of the Lord that your childe may bee thus great or thus honourable but you may begg of the Lord life and health creature accommodations so far as necessary these things you may begg and go to Christ for Secondly You must look that your spirits bee not inordinately set upon the things When ever thou findest thy heart inordinately set upon any thing then do not pray for it And then Thirdly When you can appeal to Jesus Christ that the end for which you begg a corporal kindness it is for his glory then you may begg it As David there in Psa 119.17 Deal bountifully with thy servant that I may live and keep thy Word You may go and say Lord Jesus Let my childe live for what end that hee may bee a great man a rich man c. No the Lord will abhor it But that my childe may live to serve the Lord if that bee your end you may pray for it And then Quest 2. But you will say When shall I know or may I guess that I shall prevail with Christ What are the signs of the time and season when I may hope I shall prevail with Christ for mercy c Answ I answer When the frame of your spirit is as the frame of the spirit of the Woman of Canaan I pray mark it a little what the frame of the spirit of this Woman was Take it in some particulars I will name onely two viz. First Shee had this frame of spirit That though shee mentioned her childes case yet shee seems to minde her own soul most And Secondly Shee had this as the frame of her spirit To beleeve for both Now to urge it in a few words to you The first frame of her spirit was That though shee did begg this mercy for her childe yet the frame of her spirit was principally set upon her soul This poor Woman did desire her Daughters life but however Lord bread for my poor soul Oh Sirs when you can go to God and say Lord I would have such a corpotal mercy but however Lord soul-mercy when you can desire a sick childe may bee made well but especially an evil heart mended when your soul is set mostly upon your soul and its concernments then are you in a good frame Secondly This Woman was raised up to measure of Faith Indeed some great and considerate Divines do think that that Text of James 5. where it is said The prayer of Faith shall save the sick is to bee understood in reference to a particular Faith And my Beloved howsoever yet let mee tell you it is not alwaies necessary wee should have a particular perswasion yet when the Lord doth intend to answer in a corporal kindness hee doth secretly either out of the word or by providence hint some word that may bring the soul to a beleeving frame Something is presented to us which raiseth up a Faith in us so that when wee are in such a frame of heart as to minde spiritual things most and yet to beleeve that in a temporal thing God will gratifie us then may wee expect that wee shall not bee ashamed of our Faith and that wee shall have the particular corporal mercy granted to us But to end This is that I would press upon the whole As ever you would have mercy for body and soul go to Jesus Christ But now there is some general word that I would draw from the whole story Wee have now dispatched this whole discourse of the Woman of Canaan What is there that is upon my spirit to begg of the Lord for you and for my own soul but this That this story may bee alwaies a good story to us First of all therefore I say Look about you that the story of the Woman of Canaan may not bee a sad story to any Is there any such as may have cause to fear that you will say Yes man or woman whoever thou art who dost not faithfully go to Jesus Christ the story of the Woman of Canaan shall condemn you you have no excuse to keep you off from going to Jesus Christ but this Woman will condemn you
A Cluster of Grapes Taken out of the Basket of the Woman of Canaan OR COUNSEL and COMFORT FOR BELEEVING SOULES Comming to CHRIST and meeting with Discouragements BEING The summe of certain SERMONS Preached upon Matthew 15. from Verse 22. to Verse 29. Wherein among other things is declared more particularly I. What seeming harsh entertainment the soul may find from Christ II. What holy and humble behaviour the soul ought to have under that entertainment III. How blessed and comfortable a conclusion Christ will make with the soul at last By JOHN DURANT Preacher of the Gospel in CANTERBURY London Printed for L. C. and are to bee sold by H. Mortlocke at the Phoenix in Pauls Church-yard neer the little North-door 1660. This shade 's the Authors outside but this booke his inside opens prethee doe not looke Admiringly one either Passe them o're as emptye shaddowes for they are noe more Both bookes and writers y'ea and all things else at best are shaddowes but the bodye's Christ. Soul art dejected Christ a lone can ease thee and giue both comfort and councell to raise thee A. P Durants Counsel and Comfort for Beleeving Soules To the Right Worshipful Thomas Bonner Esq Mayor the Recorder Aldermen Sheriff c. With the Reverend the Ministers and the Saints and Faithful ones in Christ Jesus in the Town of New-castle upon Tine Grace and Peace bee multiplyed THat Dedication of Books hath been wretchedly abused is a thing past doubt Holy and wise men in all ages have complain'd of it and some of late years have scrupled it But yet that Books may bee dedicated is to mee beyond controversie Such Books as carry in them any thing besides what is truth and of concernment gain no patronage by a Dedication no persons being great enough to patronize errour or vanity And such Dedications as are onely stuffed with applause and flatteries as they have not been owned by any wise Patron so they have been rejected by every understanding Reader When Writings as Vessels are fraught with rich and necessary things and such are all spiritual Truths with which kind of Treasure I have indeavoured to fill this Tract And when Dedications are designed rather for service than for ceremony which is my design in this then without doubt they may pass without stop or Scruple as Ships consigned to particular Ports and persons Nor can such Dedications be suspected as a precarious policy to seek patronage of what is written Certainly Luke never intended that when hee dedicated his Gospel to Theophilus Neither may they be accused of Patent Monopoly as if they onely intended the persons to whom they are directed Without doubt the same Evangelist Luke intended the General good in his Gospel though hee sent it first to the particular hand of his most excellent Friend as hee did also his History of the Acts. The following Sermons are intended by mee for the general good of many But I thought it more than meet to consign them particularly to your Port and persons which when you have received may pass further as Commodities of price and profit to many souls Now if I bee demanded a reason of this particular Assignation unto you spare mee to say the truth which is this I do heartily desire 1 to witness how much I honour you whom God hath honoured And 2 also to acknowledge a debt wherein with and for my Brother jointly and my self singly I am ingaged unto you which albeit I cannot repay yet I must remember I know your Virtue and Prudence will not bear those worthy words of your own worthiness which yet may bee spoke concerning you with truth and soberness And I can truly say I never loved to rub their itching ears who count no sound sweet but what trumpets their own praises Upon this account I shall forbear to speak that of you to your selves which yet I think I am bound for the benefit of the example to tell others Yet this I must needs crave your License to print that having heard of you much by the hearing of the ear I saw more by the seeing of my eye when I was amongst you And though my stay was not long yet my observation was such as that I must say that those good reports of your Town do not like the bad rumours of the times exceed the truth If fame bee found so faithful in its reports of all persons and places as of yours henceforth It will bee a Slander to call her Liar You are indeed as you have been famed persons fearing God doing justice holding forth the truth and practising godliness I must say of many Towns which I have seen The fear of God is not in those places but of New-castle I may say in a sober sense JEHOVAH SHAMMAH the Lord is there For you Right Worshipful Magistrates suffer mee though not to applaud yet to approve how much soever you are above my approbation your worthy doings in the management of your power and places wherein if you have any equals I am sure you have no Superiors I could wish others did imitate that wherein you excell You are found to bee Ministers of God to such as do good for good and those that do evill Know you bear not the Sword in vain Sabbath-breakers Swearers but why should I instance in particulars all sorts of vicious persons feel your Sword sharp and you a Terror to them whereas your eies are upon those that are faithful Ministers and people fearing God and doing that which is good have of you the praise of the same I beseech you give mee leave not to praise your selves but to provoke others to a godly jealousie to tell these Southern parts that there is fair weather in the North And if in any place in England certainly in your Town and under your Government men may and do lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty And this one thing I must needs say Were all the Ministers in England so carefully and tenderly provided for and encouraged as they are in New-castle there would not be that complaining in our streets as there now are upon that account Indeed the Ministers of your place have their double honour Your incouragement of them and provision for them is such that I know not whether I should intreat other parts to imitate your Bounty or Wisdome most Certainly both are laudable You know not any Minister among you by any Character but of Christ To preach and practise the power of godliness is the work you equally countenance and encourage them in and though there bee as where is not some difference amongst them yet that makes no difference of them to you who have the like care of all What can I say of this Spare mee to take up the Psalmists words For my brethren and companions sakes I will now say Peace be within thee yea the peace of God which the Learned know to comprehend in it all blessings be for ever
especially considering the many former Presidents of persons coming to Christ that this woman should have been embraced presently How lowly doth shee come how loudly doth shee cry in the language of what Eaith doth shee speak yet Christ doth not answer her Remember yee the Lord Jesus may let a soul sometimes long lye before him and never take him up You indeed read of the Prodigal who when hee fell upon his face the Father fell upon his neck but beware thou promise not thy self this presently Christ may let thee fall upon thy face and not fall upon thy neck In Matthew 11. verse last You have there a sweet call Come unto mee yee that are weary c. Now I pray minde it a poor soul may go to Jesus Christ very weary and heavy laden and the Lord may let it lye a great while under the burthen of filth under the burthen of guilt and of fears and may seem for a while not at all to minde it Certainly it could not bee a little while that David lay under the burthen of Gods absence after hee had sinned against him See Psal 38. and the beginning where hee complains That his wounds did fester and were corrupt David was like a man going to a Chirurgion with many wounds and the Chirurgion lets the wounds stink before hee gives a plaister to him Sinners look about you The Lord Christ may let you lye without a plaister many a day without washing your wounds many a day Paul prayed three times for one thing and that thing denied him If ever you come and knock and cry and call and the Lord doth not presently open do not say never one was so dealt withall as I am the Woman of Canaan was so before thee that is clear shee was not presently made welcome Secondly The Lord did not onely not entertain her but did not speak a word to her So it is expresly vers 23. The Lord answered her not a word Oh my Brethren how harsh was this what not a word O! not a word Why if the Lord Jesus will not presently give the balm that the wounded soul doth beg will hee not speak No not a word And yet it is noted Shee cried after him yet not a word not a word It is upon record as the case of Saul setting forth the greatness of his distress when God did most severely deal with him That he Lord did not answer him by dreams or visions nor by Urim nor Thummim that is God did not speak a word And my Brethren let mee tell you It is a harsh dealing when the Lord shall let us lye crying and hee bee dumb as if hee did not hear It is harsh not to bee heard There are two waies by which the Lord speaks viz. 1 By his Spirit 2 By some actual dealing with the soul 1 Sometimes Christ saith by the Spirit Soul bee of good comfort thy sins are forgiven 2 At other times hee gives good signs by supporting and refreshing the soul but it may so fall out as that hee may carry it so seemingly harsh as not to answer a word to the soul either way And this is no new thing wee read in Psal 22.1 2. David there who was then a type of poor souls cries out there Why art thou so far from helping mee and from the words of my roaring O God I cry but thou hearest not So in Job 30.20 saith Job I cry unto thee and thou dost not hear mee I stand up and thou regardest it not Hee saith God did not so much as regard what hee said If the Lord Jesus would not presently entertain us to do as wee wish yet certainly one would think a word were but little but sometimes Christ will not speak a word Thirdly The Lord carries it so seemingly harsh that when others speak on her behalf hee refuses to hear Mark it here were as wee say good spokesmen for this woman Vers 23. His Disciples besought him saying send hâ—r away for shee crieth after us i. e. As if they should say Lord the poor woman cries very loudly shee cries after us as the beast after the Foal c. What saith Christ why I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel Hee puts them by hee gives them a denial and something more as wee shall shew by and by In Numb 12. you read a sad story of Miriam Moses his Sister shee had provoked God and God had smote her with a Leprosie and Moses cried to the Lord for her saith the Lord If her Father had spit upon her face should shee not bee shut out of the Camp seven daâ—es Oh my Brethren sometimes the Minister may the Father may pray and the Mother may pray for the childe and yet the Lord will not speak but put them off If Moses and Samuel should speak to mee for this people yet my minde could not bee towards them Jer. 15.1 Oh my Brethren It is no new thing for the Lord to carry it so seemingly harsh as not to hear others when they speak on our behalf Possibly the soul may say I am unworthy to speak but had I some friend to speak on my behalf certainly then hee would hear why they may all speak for thee and yet Christ may put them all by Fourthly The Lord doth reject her though shee doth renew and reiterate her motion again to him This is harsh And pray minde how shee doth it Shee came and shee WORSHIPPED him saying Lord help mee It is not said in verse 22. that shee worshâ—pped him or that shee fell down But here it is said Shee worshipped him Shee renews her request with vehemency and with reverence and here was her humiliation put forth Weigh it but a while Lord help mee c. My Brethren shee speaks at this rate as if shee should say Lord help if thou do not help mee I perish Lord help mee if thou dost not help mee vain is the help of Man Shee adores him as the Lord But doth this prevail nothing less though shee renews her cry yet the Lord turns her off It is harsh not to bee bid welcome not to have a word not to have others heard when they speak for us but when the soul shall repeat and re-inforce and as it were heighten her humiliation and prayer then to bee rejected this is an addition to all the former yet sometimes the Lord doth thus And wee finde a like instance to this in oâ—hers saith Job in chap. 16.6 7. Though I speak my grief is not asswaged and though I forbear what am I eased but now hee hath made mee weary thou hast made desolate all my company The Lord may as it were tyre out the soul and make it weary And so in Psal 69. and the beginning I sink into the deep I am weary of crying my throat is dried mine eyes fail while I wait for my God The Lord may let the soul cry again and again till
nothing c. Why know the Lord doth do it but sometimes and know that that God that speaks harshly to thee now will speak sweetly afterwards Note that place Judges 10. The people of Israel there cry to God deliver us this once what saith the Lord in vers 13. You have forsaken mee go to your Gods I will deliver you no more get you gone saith God and yet mark they follow on their cry save us but this once and it is said in vers 16. his soul was grieved for them Oh my Brethren though the Lord do seemingly entertain you harshly at first yet bee of good comfort hee may yet speak well to you yea hee will at last Onely let mee conclude with a little peece of the story of Joseph It may bee there are some of the women of Canaan that have cried long pray remember Joseph and Josephs Brethren came down to him My Lord say they wee are the children of one Man and wee come to buy corn and Joseph answered them roughly by and by hee laies one by the heels hee lets them go and keeps but one Oh the poor Brethren of Joseph might think what shall wee do wee are come into a strange Country and wee meet with strange language wee came to buy bread and wee are made prisoners you all know the story how Joseph entertained his Brethren at last Three things are in Josephs story in the book of Genesis First Though hee speaks roughly yet his bowels were towards his dear Brethren Secondly Though hee spake roughly it was that hee might have Renjamin And thirdly Though hee spake roughly yet at last hee entertained them royally Jesus is our Joseph and wee go to him for corn the Lord may speak roughly to us as Joseph did to them But first Hee hath bowels when hee speaks roughly Oh Jesus his bowels did roll to this poor woman when hee spake roughly When I spake against him my bowels were turned within mee saith God of Ephraim Oh thou childe of Canaan thou sayest hee hath called thee Dogg beleeve it hee is grieved for it at his heart Oh the sounding of the bowels of Christ are often towards us when hee seems to carry it harsh And then secondly Why did hee speak so harshly at first it was all to get Benjamin let us allude to it and apply it to you You have a Benjamin the Lord loves your hearts your soul your spirit that is your Bejamin the Lord speaks roughly that hee may have Benjamin and when once that Benjamin comes a living heart is brought to him hee will quickly make friends Lastly Joseph made a large recompence for all and truly so will the Lord Jesus make a large amends for all Oh children of Canaan in the Promise and thou woman of Canaan in the letter though the Lord seem harsh at first yet at last hee will bee sweet they shall have corn and mony too they shall have enough to bring them where they shall have all the Land Thou shalt have soul and body-mercies mercy for the way and mercy for the Country The Lord Jesus will deal bountifully The Lord may deal roughly but hee will yet deal royally How did hee deal with this woman Oh Woman bee it unto thee even as thou wilt Jesus did never speak so to any body Christ may say at last Oh soul go to the pot of Manna and take and eat what thou wantest what thou wishest And poor soul bee it to thee even as thou wilt for soul body daughter and all Though the Lord Christ may speak roughly at first and entertain seemingly severe yet hee doth end really sweet Thus much at present Reasons why Christ at first seems to bee harsh The Third SERMON Matthew 15. from vers 23 and so on But hee answered her not a word And his Disciples came and besought him saying Send her away for shee crieth after us But hee answered and said I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel Then came shee and worshipped him saying Lord help mee But hee answered and said It is not meet to take the childrens bread and to cast it to doggs c. BEsides those things which are commonly experienced and which must bee certainly expected in the coming of every soul to Christ besides those there are some RARE extraordinary things that now and then fall out upon some souls in their coming to â—hrist And my Brethren it concerns us to bee acquainted with them that in case they should befall us as others wee may know what to think and how to carry our selves Now in this story of the Woman of Canaan wee have some of those rare and extraordinary things which may befall some souls when they come to Christ Indeed wee have not the like History in all the New Testament unto this you read of many that came to Christ and you read how Christ did entertain them but you never read that Christ did carry it so to any as hee did to the Woman of Canaan There were four heads of matter unto which I said we might reduce this story First The coming of the Woman to Christ that wee have dispatched The Woman came upon a low account at first shee had a childe-sick possessed with Satan and her sick childe did revive a dead soul and brings her to Christ But now the second head wee are come to It is Christs entertainment of this Woman How doth Christ entertain her shee comes with much affection shee speaks with great humility how doth Christ welcome her truly very strangely hee answers her not a word And when the Disciples spake on her behalf hee seems to reprove them when shee renews her request hee puts her off with a dreadful answer so strangely doth Christ sometimes carry it to poor souls The Doctrine wee are upon from the carriage of Christ to the Woman is Doct. That Iesus Christ is seemingly harsh sometimes to some souls when they come to him Wee expressed the Doctrine with more caution because it is rare and it must not bee mistaken Therefore wee told you the lâ—st day those three expressions are boundaries of the point 1 It is but seemingly There is harshness in the carriage when none in the heart 2 And that sometimes 3 And but to some persons wee do not read of any more but this one to whom Christ did carry it so There were two things I said I would open in the doctrinal part First Wherein Christ might shew some kinde of harshness sometimes to poor souls This wee opened by this instance of Christs carriage to this Woman 1 Hee doth not entertain her 2 Hee doth not speak to her 3 Puts off them that spake for her 4 When shee renews her request shee is not the better 5 Nay hee speaks that as might dash her hope 6 And at last hee doth for her but upon a great dispute and after denials and delaies Secondly But whence is it that the Lord should thus
little washing doth cure it another hath a wound in the thigh or the arm that must have a great deal of lancing and washing ere it bee whole Oh! sins are wounds the least vanities are knocks on the crowns but there are blasphemies and uncleannesses and unrighteousnesses with a witness and the Lord must deal a little harshly with thee how else should hee deal with thee Tremble at every little sin but tremble especially at great sins I say not that great sins shall hinder us from Christ but upon the account of them at our first beleeving wee may meet with harshness in Christ The deeper our wounds the sharper our cure alwaies Thirdly There are a third sort of people that cannot but expect Christ will deal harshly with them Those that do neglect many a sweet and gracious tender of mercy and salvation by Jesus Christ many a day Suppose two people in the same Congregation one is crouded here that never heard the Gospel all his daies another is here that hath heard the Gospel many years you that have neglected sweet calls and precious opportunities if Christ receive you at last it will bee rich mercy but it will bee harshly I have often thought of it young people do not know how much bitterness of spirit they avoid by closing with Christ betimes My thinks I see some souls under such a condition you have stayed out all day and come home at midnight I do not say you shall not bee received when you come but you may bee received with a whip and go to bed without a Supper as wee use to say to some children Now I am afraid of one snare of the Devil My thinks I hear the Devil whispering to some souls well bee it so as you say so long as Christ will receive you at last so long as I shall not go to Hell so long as I shall have mercy at last then I will go on c. I will speak three words to this First of all It is more than you know I say it is more than you know that you shall bee saved at last I say it is possible Christ may receive the soul but how do you know it who did tell thee that it thou didst sin so many years after all thou shouldest have Christ with a whip and a knock Secondly It is a thousand to one that it shall bee so The soul that puts off closing with Christ upon this presumption that hee shall have it at last and will presume to tarry because hee perswades himself of a sure reception though it may bee sore I say these of all persons in my judgement have ground to fear lest the Lord give them to a deluded heart to damning dreams and soul-cheating hopes I fear if any bee thus Christ will not receive them no not at first nor last neither sweetly nor severely therefore take heed of this delusion But let mee add Thirdly I will suppose this that thou shalt bee saved at last very harshly Consider the terms dost thou know how harsh they will bee Dost thou know what terrours of the Lord may bee upon thee what terrours of Hell may bee in thee c Oh Sirs who knows the power of Gods wrath who knows the terrour of a wounded conscience can you live seven years under the apprehension of Gods wrath fourteen years under terrour and every day to walk up and down under everlasting burnings Beware how you go on upon those tearms but let every soul bee wise now beware now bee watchful now that sith the Lord though hee bee sweet can bee bitter beware how you provoke him to bee so to you Last Use The third and last Use It is for Exhortation to exhort you all to receive this truth so as not to bee offended with it I say so to receive this truth c. I remember our Lord and Saviour in John 16. preaches the truth of persecution upon this account These things saith hee I speak that you may not bee offended c. My Brethren this Truth this great Truth this strange Truth that Christ may deal thus hardly with some souls that come to him I preach it and tell you of it that you may not bee offended not offended when it comes to pass as to your particulars There are two offences one is therefore to say I will never go to Christ The other offence is I finde it so that Christ is harsh and therefore I will go no further I pray bee not thus offended First Do not stumble upon this as a rock of offence and say I will not go to Christ this is but to some I do not say the Lord will deal thus with all say not were I in the Woman of Canaans condition I could never hold up and therefore I will stand off Do not say so who are you that walk uprightly and avoid sin and snatch at a tender of mercy and are willing to come at a call go to Christ and you will finde that hee will entertain you friendly or suppose it bee seemingly harsh yet remember better bee entertained by Christ seemingly harsh than not to go at all and bee shut out for ever bee not offended therefore do not stumble at going to Christ Secondly Let no soul bee so offended at this dealing as to say I will bee gone I will bee gone I will wait no longer By Brethren it may bee there may bee some poor soul here before the Lord that may say I am a second Woman of Canaan a woman of a bitter spirit of a grieved soul because I have gone to Christ and am not entertained I have got Father Mother Minister childe to pray for mee I am not yet answered My beloved for all this thou art but a Woman of Canaan and the Lord may deal with you as such what though hee speak not at all or but harshly this is not new neither do thou so wonder at it or bee offended by it as to think of drawing back or going away from Jesus Christ Therefore let mee speak two words to thee 1 One is Bee advised 2 The other is Bee encouraged The first word is of Advice I pray take advice O poor heart Thou sayest thou hast gone to Christ and hee frowns thou sayest thou hast looked up to the brazen Serpent and yet the sting of the fiery Serpent abides thou sayest thou hast called for a crum of bread and no answer comes bee advised to look about you to see why God deals thus with you you may bee bold with the Lord Jesus hee never checked the Woman with boldness ask Christ Lord is thy design to humble mee then do so or Lord what is thy design is it to try mee then do so but support mee Is it to heighten thy self in my heart Lord what is thy design look about you and consider for which of all the Reasons it is that the Lord deals thus with you Secondly Bee encouraged to wait upon the Lord yet a
dost thou call upon mee for Wine in the middle of the feast shee was taken up as wee say sharply I but how sweetly doth shee carry it In vers 5. saith shee to the servants Whatsoever hee saith unto you do it Truly a very sacred speech it was and argued that her soul was really good and would appear so to Christ even when his carriage was to appearance very cross to her Lastly You have this story in the Text which in a sense as I said is the greatest of all four for beleeve it God never dealt so with Aaron Job and Mary as hee did with this Woman nor in some respects consideratis considerandis as they say did they carry it so well as shee There was something in those children of Abraham for so they were which did oblige and inable them to carry it better than could bee expected from this stranger this Canaanite yet shee transcends in her holy humble sweet behaviour to our Lord as I shall open by and by Well There are two things to bee opened for the explication of the point The first is How the soul should carry it well to Christ when Christ carries it ill to him Wherein doth this good behaviour lye Let the Lord carry it how hee will what is our good behaviour I say what is our good behaviour which wee should shew to him And then secondly Why wee ought so to carry it what are or may bee the reasons and grounds of such a carriage I begin with the first And shall not instance nor inlarge in any particulars but what wee may finde in this pattern and pray mark it well For my thinks in this Text there are six things in this Womans good behaviour shewing and evidently teaching all of us what should bee out carriage when wee come to Christ c. First of all Though the Lord dealt roughly with her shee kept up honourable thoughts of him Secondly Shee doth not suddenly nor sullenly go away but tarries and waits upon Christ Thirdly Shee speaks to Christ as professing her onely hope in his help Fourthly Shee denies nothing of what the Lord seems to charge her with Fifthly Shee doth gather upon Jesus Christ as it were and catches bold of that by which Christ would cast her off Sixthly and lastly Shee was content to have a little in the lowest manner when shee might not have her first and great request in the highest manner First of all This good carriage the Woman had Shee thinks honourably of Jesus Christ The Lord puts her off hardly what doth shee do doth shee in a carping censorious manner revile and speak evil of Christ Crieth shee out oh pride O stateliness O sowre man Doth shee say yee followers of his is this your good Lord and Master whatever hee may say or you think certainly hee is an austere man and beleeve it hee is a surly Master c. not a word of this but the Text saith Shee came to him and worshipped him and said Lord help mee If Jesus Christ had dealt never so well with her shee could not have dealt better with him It is the Royal Carriage of the Spouse of Jesus Christ The â—ueen in Psal 45. when shee was brought into the Kings presence and dealt withall best All that is advised and required of her is this Hee is thy Lord worship thou him But this poor Woman when shee is turned off shee comes to him and worships him and saies Lord help mee When the Lord seems to deal harshly with a soul the Devil is at hand to put on a poor soul to think hardly of Jesus Christ Oh Sirs Experimentally souls know this to bee true that they can hardly keep down murmuring thoughts when Christ doth not entertain them presently I remember it was the speech of Mr. Calvin intimating the moderation of his spirit about Luther saith hee Though Luther should call mee a Devil I would honour him as a Saint So truly do thou though Christ call thee a Devil do thou honour him as the Messiah In Psal 22. you have a very remarkable passage Why art thou so far saith the Psalmist from the words of my roaring O my God I cry in the day time but thou hearest not vers 1 2. It was harsh dealing for God to let David cry all the day long and not to hear him what then Read the 3. vers But thou art holy c. Oh Sirs Sirs look about you and learn your Lesson well you must carry it well to Christ though hee deal harshly with you you must speak to him and think of him honourably you must beware of blasphemy The Devil thought Job would curse God if God carried it cross but hee was deceived and set Satan bee deceived so in you hee will tempt and put you on to entertain dishonourable thoughts of Christ and if it may bee hee will make you charge God foolishly and speak of Christ fouly but take heed see your pattern of piety in this womans practice and carry it as shee did Whatever Christ do or say though hee put thee off and call thee dogg yet come neer and bow worship him and call him Lord Say hee is holy and honourable and thou wilt still count him so this is thy good behaviour which will bee thy wisdome and glory to strive for and to come up unto This is the first thing in this Womans carriage I proceed A second thing in her good behaviour is this Shee doth not suddenly nor sullenly go away from him Shee goes not away in a fume or a pet as wee use to say No but as the Disciples said Master Shee crieth after us Poor souls may come to Christ and cry and hee may go away knock and hee not open call and no body answer what shall you do Oh take heed of going away grumbling and sullen The Woman shee renews her cry shee comes and saies Lord help mee Truly my Brethren it was a proud speech of those in Isa 58.3 that said Wherefore have wee fasted and thou seest not Wherefore have wee afflicted our souls and thou takest no knowledge c And my Brethren it is spiritual pride for us to say Lord why do I cry and thou not hear keep on crying Soul that is thy duty Wee are apt to bee very sullen though the Lord bee very wise in not hearing what wee say It was a strange peece of sullenness in Jonah in Jonah 4.8 when hee wished in himself to dye and said It is better for mee to dye than live It will argue much hypocrisie in your coming to Christ if although Christ do deny you do not tarry and wait upon him begging In Job 27.10 It is said of the hypocrite Will hee cry alwaies Thou sayest thou dost hunger for Christ thou dost thirst for Christ thou hast a hungring and thirsting for righteousness well then because you have it not will you go away it is but an hypocritical hunger were it cordial it would
have you dealt treacherously with mee O house of Israel saith the Lord. What then do they deny it No. A voice was heard upon the high places weeping and supplâ—cation of the children of Israel for they have perverted their way and they have forgotten the Lord their God Oh here is good carriage when the Lord shall deal harshly bring all thy sins to remembrance rip up sin here and fin there Oh with a voice of weeping say truly it is so Let God charge any thing Let Christ say what hee will hee cannot lye whatever his language bee If Christ say Swine Dogg reply nothing onely say as this Woman did Truth Lord. That is the fourth thing But then again Fifthly This Womans good carriage lies in this Shee doth gather upon Jesus Christ as it were and catches hold of that by which Christ would seem to cast her off and doth take an argument from his harsh speech to plead for her self It is not meet to give the childrens bread to Doggs See how shee takes hold of it Truth Lord But the Doggs may eat of the crumbs that fall from their Masters Table Doth Christ say go Woman dogg Woman say thou I will take hold of this word a crumb Lord. It is good when a soul can catch hold upon a Christ even by that with which hee would put it off For instance suppose Jesus Christ should say to thee thou art an ungodly wretch come not to mee catch hold of that and say thou art a God that justifies the ungodly Saith God thou art a Rebel get thee gone catch at it and say truth Lord it is so but the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to give gifts to Rebels Doth the Lord yet say thou art an enemy answer true Lord but there is reconciliation for enemies in the blood of Christ c. Learn to catch at that hand by which Christ seems to thrust thee away hold that It is indeed a Mystery but so is all godliness and wee must learn it and out of this Womans example wee may bee helped therein That is the fifth But not to inlarge I will come to the next The sixth and last thing in her good carriage is this That shee is content with a little in the lowest manner if shee may not have a great deal in the highest manner For mark her expression A crumb Lord there is little and under the Table I will bee glad to stoop so low and lick that which lies there upon the ground Oh that this frame of spirit were in us surely it is a blessed thing to bee thus bowed in our hearts to stoop thus to Christ Wee cannot enough admire nor I fear imitate this Woman pray look upon her listen to her Truly my thinks the poor Woman saies thus Indeed I am a poor Canaanite I am not one of the children of the house of Israel I may not sit down at the childrens table nor take of the bread so soon as cut from the Loaf but I will bee content to take it under the table there I will lye c. And truly my Brethren this was the good carriage of the Prodigal mark how the Prodigal comes home Father make mee one of thy hired servants Hee doth not say Father remember I was a childe and let mee come in for a portion c. No but make mee but a servant and what servant would hee bee a hired servant the houshould servants had a priviledge that the hired servants had not I shall turn you to a Scripture for it Exod. 12.44 45. verses The hired servant might not eat of the Passeover when the houshold servant might Hee would bee a hired servant that if his Father would not take him into full grace and give him a childes place and portion again hee would bee contented with any thing Now the Lord help you and I to think of these things here is good carriage Here are six things you see wherein shee carries it well But now In the second place I should give you the Reasons why this same good carriage should bee notwithstanding Christ carry it harshly There are three heads of Reasons First of all If you consider who Christ is to whom you come Secondly If you consider what your selves are who come to this Jesus Christ And Thirdly If you consider the Errant for which you come to him at any time you will finde in all these three Matter and Motive enough to make you carry it thus well to Christ though hee carries it ill to you The Woman considered who Christ was the Son of David the Messias and shee considered who shee was a Canaanite and shee remembers that shee had a childe under the power of the Devil and let us touch a little upon them First Consider who Christ is to whom you come I shall hint out my meditations as to this in four particulars who Christ is First of all Hee is the Lord God blessed for evermore Therefore worship thou him saith the Psalmist Psal 45.11 FOR hee is thy Lord and because hee is thy Lord therefore worship thou him The Lord Jesus to whom you and I come hee is the Lord Jehovah God blessed for evermore and should wee not carry it well to him wert thou to come to a man but a meer man upon a weighty affair though hee were a little cross thou wouldest carry it well and shouldest thou go to the Lord God blessed for evermore and carry it ill Surely the consideration of a God ought to fill the soul with all reverence in every approach unto him and with all humbleness of carriage in our dealings with him If thou art an Arrian doubting and denying Christs deity there might bee the shadow of a Plea for an irreverent deportment but being thou art one who callest Christ Lord and professest at least to acknowledge him God this very thing obligeth thee to demean thy self well however hee deals with thee Secondly As hee is thy Lord so hee is thy Life My meaning is thou goest to him without whom thou canst not live and therefore thou hadst need to carry it well Whither should wee go saith Peter thou hast the words of eternal life Christ is your Physician for that you must carry it well to him you do carry it well and wait upon a Doctor fairly because your life lies upon it and will you not deal so with Christ when the life of your souls lies upon it I knew a Physician that was of great Name and Practice a man of a very cynical spirit as rugged crabbed a carriaged person as any of that Profession hee could scarce give a pleasing look and would often give course cross indeed very bad language and yet I have heard him so reverently spoke unto and so patiently waited on that I have admired it but what was the reason Oh hee was a Doctor and they came to him knowing his skill and therefore it made them carry themselves so respectfully to him Oh
shee did not speak it But then in the second place Quest 2. Why doth our Lord say unto her Bee it unto thee even as thou wilt Take a double Answer to this likewise Answ 1. The Lord Jesus saw that this Woman did want more things than one Jesus Christ saw all her wants and all her wishes too though shee did not express them That place in Romans 8. is known to all of you but the 27. verse is not so often taken notice of And hee that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the spirit because hee maketh intercession for the Saints according to the will of God The soul sighs and groans by the Spirit and many a time the soul doth not know his own sighing who shall know it why Hee shall know it that makes intercession this is particularly spoken of Jesus Christ The Spirit helps thee to sigh and thou canst not tell thy own sighs Jesus Christ can tell what it means I say Jesus Christ knows for that place is to bee understood particularly of Christ for it is hee that maketh intercession as it is there expressed It is a Scripture which may much stay our hearts Christ knows what wee want even then when wee cannot tell our selves onely in the general sigh Minde it Oh my Beloved you go to Jesus Christ with one word and a many sighs the Lord will answer all your sighs and will say Bee it to you not onely as you speak but as you groan and as you sigh too Answ 2. The Lord Christ loves to shew his bounty in rewarding any souls for any delay Isa 61.7 for your shame you shall have double And Zechariah 9.12 Turn yee to the strong hold yee prisoners of hope even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee Upon these accounts it was that our Lord doth not answer this Woman with a particular word take what you come for but in a general way bids her take all things any thing which shee could desire take what thou wilt as thou wilt But to proceed to the last Question The Third and last Question is Why doth the Lord give this in the last place Her Daughter was made whole One would have thought this should have been the first word Woman go thy way thy daughter is whole but first hee speaks of her Faith and then to her souls desire Why doth Christ so that is the Question Answ Now the Answer hereunto is easie and it may bee this Our Lord Jesus is wise and gracious and therefore knowing what wee need most and what is best to bestow upon us Hee doth still give that first which is most necessary and which is the chiefest My Beloved I pray remember it The Lord loves to give the best mercies first her Daughter was possessed with a Devil but that was but a corporal infirmitie her own soul was more under the power of the Devil and the deliverance of that most needful therefore hee gives the more necessary thing first O my Beloved you have a wise Christ a good Christ hee will satisfie particular desires but hee will first do the best things Indeed Christ reacheth us to begg the best things first Seek yee first the Kingdome of Heaven and therefore first pray Thy Kingdome come But wee are ignorant and apt to mistake wee often ask the best things last Now Christ will give the best first Therefore hee begins to speak to the Mothers soul here before hee mentions her Daughters distemper But let this suffice for these Questions To come to the words there are many Points observable from this place Particular Notes I shall take in by the by and therefore shall not touch upon them Neither shall I press the words too hard there is no need of it This Text like a brave hony-comb drops out in three things like hony without any pressing First Observe here What it was that carried the Woman on and thorow all this while what bladder kept his Woman from sinking It was Faith O Woman great is thy Faith Secondly Observe What rich bounty is here here is glorious Grace rich Grace Have what thou wilt And then Thirdly Observe That shee hath a particular grant of her special request her Daughter was made whole It is the second thing I do principally aim at but shall speak of the two other And first Observe from the first That it is true Faith alone that carries the soul thorow all difficulties and discouragements in the way to Christ I shall not bee large in the handling of this Point I have often spoken of Faith and the work of Faith as it doth receive Christ how that is performed c. therefore I shall confine my self to the Text and the boundaries of it to shew that in all the difficulties the soul meets withall in coming to Christ Faith bears the soul up under all And pray mark what I say I say true Faith nor strong Faith neither do I say a degree of Faith but a true Faith It is true this Woman had great Faith and shee needed it for she had great difficulties but the Point lies positively thus Faith if it bee true it is that and that alone that carries up the soul above all difficulties and discouragements in its coming to Christ I suppose I need not tell you that there are difficulties in the way of coming to Christ This Woman knew there were difficulties and discouragements but what carried her thorow did her Patience carry her thorow shee had that did her reverend esteem of Christ carry her thorow shee had that did the pinch of her wants carry her thorow No Christ doth not say Oh Woman great is thy patience or great is thy esteem of mee or great is thy want But O Woman great is thy Faith It was the Womans Faith that carried her thorow these difficulties I will demonstrate this Doctrine by some instances and therefore I shall mention some of the difficulties which are in our way to Christ and shew how that it is Faith and Faith alone by which the Lord doth use to help us against all these difficulties Now therefore I pray minde it and you may mostly observe in our-coming to Christ There are four waies from whence our difficulties and discouragements do arise and you will see that true Faith alone will carry the soul thorow all these The difficulties arise thus from 1 Self 2 Satan 3 The World 4 Christ himself may do that seemingly which may and doth make it difficult to come unto him But now yet see as to each how Faith carries the soul thorow all these To begin with the first which is Self that comes in to oppose us And pray good people look about you your selves are the greatest hinderances to keep you from Christ now what shall carry us up above our selves but Faith by Faith Moses denies himself And saith Christ Whoever will come after mee must deny himself how shall hee do
Or if you will wee shall express the Observation to prevent mistakes thus That all those who truly come to Christ shall in the issue finde his carriage to bee very kinde howsoever at first it may seem very strange You see the Doctrine lies full in the words wee have opened in the story already how strangely Christ did carry it at first to this poor Woman but how sweetly doth hee carry it at last Sorrow and weeping may bee for a night saith David Psal 30.5 but joy comes in the morning Oh my Beloved it may thunder and lighten and bee tempestuous in the beginning of the day and yet it may prove a fair sun-shiny day after First coming to Christ may have clouds and darkness but the latter part shall have light and life This point is very comfortable certain and clear in this instance It is comfortable in all its branches and it is certain in its bottoming this example being a sure bottom to build the Doctrine upon And you will see it clear also if you will but minde the terms in which I express it Now there are two terms I keep in the Point that I would desire you to minde The first relates to the persons that are considered in this Point And the Second relates to the thing it self The first relates to the persons that are considered in this point And they are all those that truly come to the Lord Jesus My Beloved there are two sorts of persons who live under the sound of the Gospel that I cannot think upon but with a sad heart The one are those who never so much as pretend to go to Jesus Christ Notwithstanding all Christs tenders of himself notwithstanding all their own need of him upon no account one or other do they so much as pretend to go to Jesus Christ Some are enemies and opposire to very professing of coming to Jesus Christ Secondly There is another sort that pretend to go but go neither rightly nor truly They do not truly come to the Lord Jesus you have a type of both these and their miserie Matth. 22. in the parable of the Wedding There were some that would not go to the Wedding-supper and there was another hee went but hee went without his Wedding-garment why now how did the Lord deal with them for the one it is said in versf 7. Hee sent and miserably destroyed them with his armies And for the other It is said hee found him out and cast him out into utter darkness Therefore minde it all you that have heard of Jesus Christ all you that talk of Jesus Christ if you do not go at all or if you do not go aright this point doth not concern you I do not say Christ will deal well with you alass you deal ill with him and hee will deal sadly with you It is onely those that truly go to Jesus Christ that this point deals withall The Woman of Canaan came to him truly and shee came to him rightly also shee came to him as appears here in this story as to the Messiah the Son of David and shee comes with great humility shee worships him with great resolution shee would not bee put off but above all shee came with a good Faith and this Woman so coming though the Lord dealt strangely with her at first yet hee concludes kindely with her at last The second thing I put in the point is That in the issue and at last Christ will deal kindly with them that rightly come to him I do not say at first hee will do it No at first hee may seem to bee strange but at last in the issue hee will bee kinde Christ will not presently it may bee grant our request but in the issue hee will I will open it thus There is a Threefold Issue or end in which all that come to Christ shall experience his kindness The first is the Issue of the Act of comming it self Secondly The Issue of our whole life And The third is The Issue and End of all things Now in one of these three Issues all that come to Christ shall finde him deal kindely with them First In the Issue of the Act of coming it self I pray mark this Coming to Christ is an action made up of many steps wee do not at once come to Jesus Christ There is the Agress Ingress and Prâ—â—ress in every going The Agress or Address to it The Ingress The first setting upon it And then the Progress The going on in it Possibly when thou dost first set up a resolution of going to Christ hee will not come in and give thee an answer possibly when thou hast set thy foot in the way and gone a good way hee will not come and speak kindly to you but by that time you are come up to Christ fully then you shall finde Christ will deal kindly with you The soul doth not at first fully come up to Christ it is a great while ere the soul doth fully come off from fin ere the soul doth fully come out of Satans power ere hee doth fully come up to the proposals of Jesus Christ Now do not wonder if Jesus Christ do not deal kindly with you till the Issue of the whole Act but in the Issue of the Act when it is compleated then you shall finde him deal kindly with you You are now it may bee poor soul treating with Jesus Christ and as it is in a treaty of peace between differing states there are some preliminary treatments all is not presently concluded as soon as it is presented There are demurs and debates and there are seeming breakings off and departures no compleatings but as it were for a while complementings It is seldome seen that at first all things are fully concluded upon But when the Treaty is perfected then you have the sound of Trumpets and the noise of Drums and all the expressions pressions of joy that may bee It hath been said of old that comming to Christ it is a Marriage Act and so indeed it is Now there are not compleat Acts of kinâ—ness till the whole Marriage bee consummate Therefore though Christ may carry it strangely at first yet in the Issue when the Marriage is consummate then you shall finde Christ complying and shewing himself kinde Secondly There is that which wee call the Issue of our life And my Beloved at Death the Lord Jesus Christ will smile upon many a soul who have gone softly in the bitterness of their spirits all their daies Mark the just man and behold the perfect man For the end of that man is peace Psal 37.37 Though you have clouds and darkness upon you all your daies and though Jesus Christ doth seem to carry it roughly to you through the whole course of your pilgrimage yet when you are actually going into the good Land then you shall see Joshuah going before you Many that have had fears and terrours all their life time yet at the end of their
saith God I have commanded it it shall bee so Bee it unto thee My Beloved Jesus Christ at last will say I command every Ordinance every Creature every word thou readest that it bee to thee as thou wilt Time was at first that Christ carried it so as nothing did subserve you or yeeld unto you any respect but when the Lord is reconciled at last hee will command all to bee yours Time was when no Man Means Creature Ordinance had any commission to smile on you or speak well to you and then it was sad But at length Christ will give a word send a Commission to all and command them saying Bee it so and so to such a poor soul as it will as it wisheth Secondly As there is a Commanding so there is a Creating Power in the Word and that is much Beleever Beleever though the Lord carry it at first like a man astonished hee will create mercy at last As in the Creation of the world God said Let there bee light and there was light c. So in Isa 57.7 saith God I create the fruit of the lips peace The Lord that creates light out of darkness peace out of trouble sweet out of bitter Hee will create for thee bee it light unto such a soul such a soul wants light and there is light created for him strength bee thou created for him c. I remember the Apostle Peter doth exhort Beleevers as their last refuge to eye the creating power of Christ and act Faith upon him not onely as a Redeemer but as a Creatour In 1 Pet. 4.19 Saith hee Commit the keeping of your souls to him in well doing as unto a faithful Creatour Soul if Creating Mercy can help you bee confident Christ will put it forth at length there shall bee another fiat another let there bee this or that for such a soul and that with creating influence in it And oh how kindly doth Christ carry it now at last that hee commands all and will create rather than fail comfort for this poor Woman Bee it unto thee even as thou wilt Thus have wee in Christs speech to this Woman seen as in a glimpse what his last dealings will bee with those that come to him And is not this enough to confirm your hearts that at last Christ will bee kinde however hee is at first But I proceed to the other thing here in Christs Carriage to this Woman Thirdly Her Daughter is made whole the same hour Poor Creatures you are full of unbeleef and I must say to you as John said These things are written thâ—t you might beleeve Christ will deal so well with poor souls that at last hee will give them their desires to the full And that which may bee their request in an eminent manner more particularly will the Lord Christ give them that I pray mark it a little thus The soul wants many mercies wishes all but it hath some particular pinch for the present c. Now that shall bee given in to the soul You have a fine expression to import the condescention of God to particular mercies in Psal 21.2 4. Thou hast given him his hearts desire and hast not with-holden the request of his lips Hee asked life of thee and thou gavest it him even length of daies for ever and ever Why my Beloved you that wait upon the Lord and truly come to him know and remember however hee carries it as if at first hee will grant nothing yet at last hee will grant every thing and in particular that Mercy that particular special Mercy which thy heart is drawn forth to mention before the Lord. Oh saith the soul I would have all sin dead but let this sin dye Now the soul shall have his this thing In this thing the good Lord bee merciful to mee why the Lord will in that thing bee kinde Let the soul single out its particular request Oh in this matter in that childe in this cause c. And hee shall finde Christ at last will come down to that very thing But I shall speak to this in the last Sermon by it self therefore I will not urge it here Onely now put all together and tell mee if the point bee not certain That Christ at last will deal very kindly with souls that truly come to him however at first hee may seem to deal harshly What could the poor soul wish more than shee had hee spake kindly now hee doth what shee will and as much as shee will now her Daughter shall bee whole in a moment c. This is all I shall say for the demonstration of the point There are some Objections to bee answered I shall at this time mention one Object I but will the soul say This is a particular example and particular examples they are not foundations for general conclusions Here is a Woman of Canaan and the Lord deals well with her what is this to mee For Answ Beloved in the Lord know this That every example of Gospel-grace is not so particular but that it is a general pattern All this was written that wee might beleeve And you know what the Apostle saith in that same Rom. 15. and the beginning These things are written for our learning c. Do not say This was a Woman of Canaan and I am a poor other kinde of creature Know this was written for thee In 1 Tim. 1.16 saith Paul there That in mee first Jesus Christ might shew forth all long-suffering for a pattern to them which should hereafter beleeve on him to life everlasting If the Woman of Canaan were alive shee would say I was a pattern for thee shee would say Christ dealt thus with mee first to shew how hee would deal with other poor creatures afterwards Let this bee an answer But then the Second Answer is this The account upon which shee had this grace it was not particular but common A particular thing with a particular account is too streight to bee made a general Rule but a particular example upon a general account may bee made a general Rule remember that Now this mercy was given to her not upon any personal particular account but upon a general account what is that account Woman great is thy Faith Shee hath this mercy not as a Woman nor as a Woman of Canaan nor as so and so speaking but as a Beleever Now upon this Reason Because the Lord dealth thus with her upon the account of Faith where-ever there is true Faith the Lord will deal thus It is the particular argument of Rom. 4. The Apostle proves that Abrahams Justification was a general type to others How doth hee prove it because it came to him by Faith The strength of the Argument lies thus Abraham was not justified as such a man upon any personal account but because hee was a beleever and therefore hee argues that all beleevers should bee justified as hee was Therefore do not say it was a particular example it
Lord may seem to put us off for a while and make as if hee would not give us a Morsel yet secretly hee will give supports to the soul as in Psal 138.3 In the day when I cried thou answeredst mee and strengthenedst mee with strength in my soul Secret sufficient soul-strength shall certainly bee given in by Jesus Christ however hee may carry it at first at last the soul shall bee able to say All the while Christ did frown upon mee I had some secret supports given So that though the example bee rare and though some things in it bee extraordinary yet in these three particulars every soul at last shall finde Christ will carry it kindely however at first hee may carry it strange To come now to give an account of the Reasons of the point There are many Reasons which if need were wee might dilate upon I shall onely name these four or five The first Reason whence it comes to pass that Jesus Christ will deal thus kindly at last Is taken from God the Father My Beloved that same Will Command and Commission which Jesus Christ hath received from the Father and which hee is careful to observe is the great reason of this Carriage of Jesus Christ I pray mark it a little Christ coming into the world hee comes not onely as our Saviour but as his Fathers Servant and this hath an influence upon the heart and upon the hand of Christ in all his carriage to us This i. e. That hee comes as the Fathers Servant and because God the Father will have him do thus and thus therefore to bee certain hee will do it As for instance doth Jesus Christ come into the world to dye for sinners what is the ground of it because God the Father hath given him in Commission so to do So will not Christ break the bruised Reed nor quench the smoaking Flax as it is prophesied hee will not Isa 42 Why this is the Reason because hee is his Fathers Servant as it is there vers 1. and God hath charged him that hee shall not break the bruised Reed c. And so in this particular Jesus Christ will at last deal kindly with all that truly come unto him because this is the will of him that sent him This is particularly the reason in John 6.37 38. a Scripture that you may look upon as the foundation of your Faith but I wish you did well understand what you did build your Faith upon All that come to mee I will in no wise cast off What is the reason Mark the 38. vers For I came down from Heaven not to do my own will but the will of him that sent mee When you act your Faith upon Jesus Christ for his kindness I pray look to God the Father likewise and this will further strengthen your Faith The poor soul is ready to say why should Jesus Christ receive mee why should Jesus Christ carry it kindly to mee what is there in mee nothing But there is another ground there is the will of him that sent him there is the Fathers will God the Father deals well with us for Christs sake and Jesus Christ deals well with us for the Fathers sake So that now my Beloved when the poor soul goes to Jesus Christ you may imagine that God the Father saies thus Son deal well with that soul it is my will that thou shouldest not cast him off Indeed in this place Christ doth intimate that hee doth carry himself according to his Commission The Commission that was given to Christ it was the ground of this whole carriage of Christ But here is the Commission Christ hee shall not give childrens bread to Doggs yet if Doggs will come to him and lye at the Fathers door it is the will of his Father that hee should not cast them off Secondly The innate kindness and tenderness of the heart of Christ is the reason of this truth that hee will deal well at last though hee seem to carry it strange at first My Beloved the Lord Jesus hath that personal renderness in himself that if his Father should never have wished him nor willed him to deal thus kindly with poor souls his own bowels would have put him on to it Indeed the bowe 's of Christ are so tender that the tenderest love is set out by the bowels When Paul would have the Philippians to know how much hee did love them and long after them saith hee Phil. 1.8 I long after you in the bowels of Jesus Christ My Beloved the Lord Jesus Christ hee hath tender bowels and because of that it is that hee doth deal tenderly with poor souls that come to him What is the particular nature and notion of bowels in the Scripture it is this For a person to bee moved at last by the sense of a persons misery though at first hee may seem to stand off You have many notable instances of this That of Joseph what was it which made Joseph deal kindly at last though hee did deal roughly at first In Gen. 43.30 His bowels yearned within him and that made him to speak kindly to his brethren O my Beloved The Lord Jesus is full of bowels hee doth pitty many times when hee is not spoken to as in Luk. 7.13 It is said there concerning a Woman that Christ had compassion on her hee was troubled for his bowels did yearn towards her The Lord Jesus having therefore such tender bowels thence it comes to pass that though at first hee may carry it strangely yet at last hee will carry it kindly This poor Woman of Canaan once the Lord seemed to speak harshly to her but his bowels did yearn and upon that account hee dealt well at last The third Reason in a word is this Christ will carry it thus well at last because in a sense hee is very fearful and therefore very careful that none do perish in a good way at least through his neglect My Beloved Christ is fearful of the perishing of poor souls especially in a good way and most especially through his neglect Sinners look about you if you will rebel and run away from Christ and wander from him and perish Christ cares not but if thou hast a heart to look towards God if thou goest after Jesus Christ and criest to him hee is very fearful lest thou shouldest perish in such a good way Isa 57.16 Saith God there For I will not contend for ever neither will I bee alwaies wrath for the spirit should fail before mee and the souls which I have made If Christ should carry it tough alwaies the spirit of the poor creature would fail If so bee you will wander in the high waies from Christ then the speech of the Prophet may bee made good in Isa 51.20 Thy Sons have fainted they lye at the head of all the streets as a wilde Bull in a Net they are full of the fury of the Lord the rebuke of thy God Yea but if
all doth depend upon Jesus Christ Now my Beloved That the Lord may fulfil temporal Promises hee will upon the faithful coming of his servants sometimes give them temporal mercies Wee shall now come to the Use There are but two Uses that I would make of this Point First of all therefore Let this serve for a word of Conviction And Secondly For a word of Instruction First It serves for a word of Conviction To convince the folly and the mistake of many poor creatures who think and say that going to Jesus Christ may bee good for the soul but they cannot tell what it is for the body Repentance Faith real Conversion to the Lord Jesus may save our souls but they cannot see what it will do for their bodies This kinde of Dutch-divinity is every where to minde Mammon and body best and most and to think Religion is not for any profit or purpose in those particulars But see here this folly and know that Religion is good for all things Length of daies are in Christs right hand and in his left riches and honour Oh souls learn to see going to Jesus Christ is good not onely for our souls but for our bodies You shall go to the Lord Jesus Christ and have the mercies of Heaven and the mercies of Earth too Can the Son of Jesse give you Olive yards and Vine-yards c. Was the speech of Saul 1 Sam. 22.7 So say the men of the world Do you think to get any thing by being godly Yes if the Lord please you may get for body as well as for soul by going to Jesus Christ The world is mightily mistaken that think godliness is good for nothing but salvation it is good for this present world too But then Secondly Let it serve for an Use of Instruction To teach us all whither to go in all cases whether spiritual or corporal why to go to the Lord Jesus Whatever thy case bee away to Christ going to Christ is good for soul and for body What is your condition Say some I am a poor man and I have a little estate and a great charge I hope beleeving in Jesus Christ will save my soul but what shall become of my Family go to Jesus Christ hee can give corporal as well as spiritual mercies Saith another I am sick c. little do wee know what may bee expected from Christ even in corporal cases You have a fine speech in Proverbs 3.16 Length of daies are in her right hand and in her left hand riches and honour Shee is a tree of Life and shee is health to the Navel and the Flesh chap. 4.22 This is spoke of Wisdome what Wisdome why it is spoken of Essential Wisdome Jesus Christ why what of Christ it is said Length of daies are in his right hand Eternity of Life is a right-hand-mercy for Jesus Christ to give I but how shall I live here why In his left hand are riches and honour You go to Jesus Christ and say Lord I have a dead soul dead in trespasses and sins Lord Length of daies are with thee But thy body is sick why go to Christ hee can cure bodies too and is this onely for your selves No but for others too you may go to the Lord Jesus not onely for a morsel of bread for thy poor soul but for some cure for thy childe Object But may I go to the Lord Jesus will the Lord Christ accept mee who come to him upon a carnal account Answ For answer That Jesus that hath the mercy of God to pitty souls hath the pitty of a man to pitty bodies and humane compassions will prevail with him for bodily pitty Object I but will the soul say Is there then any hope that I may prevail with the Lord for my sick childe Answ My Beloved I told you in the beginning That the Prayers and Faith of the Parent will much prevail with Christ for the good of the childe In Gen. 17. Abraham goes to the Lord and hee praies for Ishmael Oh that Ishmael might live in thy sight That is that hee might bee the childe of the Promise Hee was a Son of the Flesh but not an Heir of the Promise but yet mark what follows though Ishmael should not bee the childe of the Promise yet the Lord doth there assure Abraham of this that Ishmael shall bee blessed Isaac is the childe of the promised seed yet Ishmael shall bee blessed too Many a time doth the Lord hear the prayers of his servants even for an Ishmael i. e. for a childe yea a carnal childe and this is certain even bad children have many corporal mercies for their Parents sakes and wee may expect it Object But wee have known many a Parent that have gone in Faith to Jesus Christ for a poor childe that never have prevailed How then can you build us up in this Truth when wee see the contrary Answ I answer If thou goest to the Lord and prayest for a childe and dost not prevail God deals no worse with thee than hee dealt with thy betters David who was a man after Gods own heart went to God for a childe and hee prayed hard but yet the Lord did not hear him You have the story in 2 Sam. 12.16 David besought God for the childe and fasted c. And if it bee so with you yet are you as well in this respect as David was But more fully to answer the Objection I pray mark it that in that place there are two things might satisfie David and so any in the like case First It was not good for David that the childe should live I make that appear thus what was the childe that David did desire might live you know the story it was the base-begotten childe which hee got upon Bathsheba Certainly it was not good for David that the childe should live had the childe lived it would have been his Fathers shame c. When thou goest to God to begg the life of thy childe if thy childe do not live what is the reason hee may live to bee thy shame Some have begged of God the life of a childe what ever came of it God hath given it as a curse and the childes life hath been a monument of their shame and a perpetual heart-breaking to the Parents all their daies As a good Woman once sadly said So that is one thing it may bee for good to the Parent that God should not hear prayers for a childes life and then that may satisfie us if hee do not But then Secondly Though the Lord did not hear David for the life of the childe I perswade mee Hee did hear David for the soul of the childe I shall give you this account of it Saith David in v. 23. I shall go to him but hee shall not return to mee Whither is that not so much I shall go to him in my body to the grave but in my soul to God And my Beloved that this is intended