thâ— Lord Jesus may the more fully and sweetly manifest his love to the Souls of his people See Mr. Burr on the Second of Hos Verse 9 10 11 12 13. There are many heavy Judgments threatned the taking away all the Comforts of the outward Man Where we may note God's absolute Soveraignty over all our enjoyments and his propriety in them all So Ezek. 16. 18 21. All we have is the Lord's and his gracious sweet and blessed ends and purposes in threatning and executing those terrible things and that is wonderful as Verse 14. Therefore Behold I will allure her and bring her into the Wilderness and speak comfortably to her It was to make way for the communications of glorious Mercies The gracious God hath gracious Ends in all his taking Providences towards his poor people to make the wastings fadings totterings perishings of their outward Man to prove helpful to the increasing prospering and flourishing of the inner Man Outward Takings make way for inward Givings I will take away saith God all her Lovers dry up all her Cisterns that I may open to her the Fountain I will strip her naked of all her outward Comforts that I may speak comfortably to her Soul Now I will allure her now I have brought her into the Wilderness now my poor peoples hearts are taken off from the Creature I will see now to win them to my self I may now win their love and gain their hearts to me seeing they are stript of the earthly comforts O what support should this be to God's afflicted People O that we could believe it and improve it that God's design in all his takings from us is but to make way that he may bestow greater and better Mercies upon us This Argument our Lord used to comfort his Disciples with John 16. 6 7. Of all earthly Comforts the bodily presence of Christ with his Disciples was the best yet he tells them he must leave them and withal assures then for their comfort that it was for their advantage and that it was expedient for them that he should leave them that the Comforter might come which should abundantly supply his absence and who would not come to them if he did not go away This would be enough to quiet and comfort â—â— in all sinking providences that these takings an intended to make way for the giving of Spirituâ—â— Mercies if our unbelief distrust despondencâ— and impatience do not hinder Oh could we but drink in this truth and firmly believe it that God's takings from us are iâ— order to his givings to us as God took from Daviâ— an Infant begot in Adultery and gave him Solomon in its room and that his Castings of â— down are in order to his Raisings of us up hâ— witherings of our outward intended for the reneâ—ings of our inner how patiently and comfortablâ— should we bear our troubles yea and how fervently should we pray that God would bring pass all those his gracious purposes upon oâ— Souls I shall conclude this particular by setting dowâ— an Instance of our times which I had from a Person of Quality and Honesty tho' I never use â— record Reports but this upon the credit of tâ— relator I shall for once and it is very remarkable There was some years since in London a veâ—â— Godly Gentleman and his Wife who had a veâ—â— fair Estate both of them very zealous professors Religion eminent for Piety and Charity who had lived together many years but had never a Child which they much desired and often sought the Lord to build their Family for them and at last God was pleased to give them a Son to their great joy which lived and grew up to be three or four Years Old exceeding fair and witty very delightful and pleasant tractable and teachable and they having but this one Child their affections were much set upon him and likely too much The Husband and Wife lived exceeding lovingly together insomuch that many observed their sweet Carriage to each other he being of a lovely disposition and every way well bred and a Man of good Parts and of an Holy Life so amiable and tender to his Wife that her Life was even bound up in his In the midst and height of this their Prosperity the Gentleman fails Sick and Dies which was so heavy a stroak to his poor Wife that she could not bear up under it her Spirit sinks and she refused to be comforted many Prayers were put up to God for her in the publick Congregations and many pious Ministers and godly Friends visited her to Comfort her but to no purpose for she had no regard to her self or did care to Eat or Drink but for meer necessity but would sit in the Chimney-corner all day sighing and weeping and hanging downher head seldom giving an answer to any body Upon a certain day some godly Ministers with Christian Friends by agreement met at her House to Fast and Pray and seek God for her and it came to pass that after they had ended their work walking up and down where this disconsolate Widow was her lovely Child playing there in the Room of whom she took no noice had got a Joint-steel and carrying it up and down at last he turns the Stool upside down and immediately fell or thrust himself into it no Person present knew how but the Stool and the Child overturning together the Childs head being downward he brake his Neck they sent presently for Physicians and Chirurgeons but the Child died presently and no means would avail at all to get so much as one breath from him which was most amazing and astonishing to all the beholders the Chamber being then full The poor Mother sat there all this while in her usual posture but when she saw her Child was really dead she arose up and before them all uttered these words or words to this purpose most of them are the very words O! blessed Jesus will nothing please thee but the heart of thy poor Creature and the whole heart and the whole love now take it Lord take it thou hast won it thou art worthy of it I give thee my whole heart Lord take it take it fill it with thy Love and possess it for ever And from that very moment she was filled with joy and comfort and walked very chearfully and comfortably several Months even until God took her unto himself Here we see the truth of what I have been treating of the Lord made the blastings and breakings of her outward Man the means of refreshing and comforting her inner I should not have set this down but that I depend upon the Credit of the Relator O Lord how unsearchable are thy Judgments and thy ways past finding out 4. The last particular proposed was that for a Christian to be renewed in the inner Man when the outward Man doth decay and perish is the Character and Comfort of gracious Persons That it is their Character appears because the
delight upon him Always minding that it is God in Christ that we must thus look unto and mind in all these particulars God in Christ not God singly considered but God in Christ for God cannot be comfortably thought upon out of Christ our Mediator in whom alone he is well pleased No Communion with God but in Christ no Communication of any good from God to us but in Christ and by his Spirit It is the invisible eternal God by the invisible eternal Son of God and through the invisible eternal Spirit that we must make all our Addresses unto and expect all Communications of good from It is Christ alone that must bring God and the Soul together In Christ we are reconciled to him even by the Blood of his Cross 2 Cor. 5. 19. Col. 1. 21. And being reconciled to God by him we have Peace with God and then have Communion with him In Christ God's Nature becomes lovely to us and ours to God otherwise there is an utter Enmity betwixt his pure and our impure Nature Christ hath made up the vast gulf between God and us He drank of the brook in the way Psal 110. last Aim at and thirst after Communion with God in Christ in all your receipts of Mercies from him and in all your returns of Duty to him Pray and pant that all that you receive from him may come to you from his Love in Christ Oh that this Mercy that this Affliction may proceed from God's Fatherly Love in Christ Jesus so in all your Approaches to God in Ordinances and Duties pray and pant after Communion with God in Christ Oh that I may meet with God in this Ordinance and in this Duty without which we should not be satisfied in any Ordinances and Duties and all outward Blessings are but visible temporal things we must look beyond them and above them unto God in Christ for the invisible eternal love and grace and blessing of God in them So holy David Psal 63. 1 2 3. That I may see thy power and thy glory saith he And Vers 8. My soul followeth hard after God to see God's power and love and grace in Ordinances So Psal 42. 1 2. My soul thirsteth for God for the living God This is the marrow and fatness of God's Ordinances and this is that will satisfie the Soul therefore this is the thing that our Souls should long and breath after that we may have sights sweet sights of the invisible eternal God in Christ in Ordinances and Duties and tasts of his love and goodness in them And if we have Communion with God in our Mercies we shall be able thankfully to receive them and fruitfully to improve them for God And also we shall be enabled patiently and comfortably to bear all our Afflictions and profitably to improve them Now if we would have Communion with God in Christ we must look well to these things viz. 1st We must labour to be pure in Heart for such as are pure in Heart and they only shall see God God in his Son God in his Ordinances in his Providences and in Glory at last If we regard Iniquity in our Hearts God will not hear our Prayers nor afford us any Communion with him Mat. 5. 8. A pure Heart is a new Heart an Heart purged by the Blood of Christ from the guilt of Sin and purified by his Spirit Acts 15. 9. An Heart renewed and sanctified a single sincere and upright Heart that hath pure Principles planted in it the Spirit of God the Fear of God the Love of God Faith in God and Christ Christ formed there the Image of God stamped there the Kingdom of God set up there These are the true Principles of Purity of Heart and Life and also an Heart set and bent by the Rules of God's pure Word that pure Rule and that acteth for pure ends to please God to bring Glory to him to do good to others and to enjoy God in our Salvation Such may expect sweet Communion with God 2 Cor. 6. 16 17. the Lord God Almighty will walk and dwell with such 2ly We must labour to be poor in Heart poor in Spirit Mat. 5. 3. broken in Heart contrite in Spirit Isa 57. 15. O the wonderful condescension of the high and lofty one who dwelleth in the Heavens that He should stoop so low as to dwell in the broken Heart to revive such Hearts such Spirits O the Revivings of God they are Soul-satisfying things The Consolations of God are not small Happy indeed are those Souls in whom the great and glorious God dwells Blessed Souls that are the Temple of the holy God Habitations of God by the Spirit 1 Cor. 3. 16. Eph. 2. 22. Isa 66. 2. To the man will God look that is poor and of a contrite Spirit and God's looks on such are sweet looks Love-looks such shall have much communion with God and Christ for Christ was sent to bind up the broken hearted Luke 4. 18. What a comfortable support is this to a poor afflicted Christian that is poor in this World destitute of Friends and earthly Comforts restrained and shut up in Prison or otherwise confined to Chamber or Sick-bed and withal is poor in Spirit is content in this condition Yet now in this his desolate condition he may have Communion with the great God he may enjoy the blessed and sweet Company of the Lord Jesus by day and by night even when Lover and Friend is put far from him even then his God is near him his everlasting Father is with him his dear Lord and Redeemer his â—â—eet Saviour and loving Husband is with him Psal 25. 15 16 17. Psal 102. 17. He will regard â—e prayer of the destitute and not despise their prayer He will never leave them nor forsake them Yea He will then speak most comfortably to their poor Souls Hos 2. 14. He will speak to their Hearts He knows their Souls best in Adversity and their Souls know him best then Jesus Christ will then â—hew them his Love and manifest it unto them and support them 3ly If we would have Communion with God â—n every condition we must labour to be upright in Heart Psal 125. The Lord is nigh unto them that call upon him in truth they shall have Communion with him He loveth truth in the inner parts He that walketh uprightly shall dwell in God's tabernacle and abide in his holy hill Psal 15. 1 2. God hates Hypocrisie Oh the guile and falshood of our hearts let us bewail it and cry to God with David Make my heart sound in thy statutes 4ly Be heavenly in heart be heavenly-minded such shall have sweet Communion with God such as have their Conversation in Heaven have converse with God Phil. 3. 20. We must be very watchful that the World do not lye too near our hearts nor lodge too long in our hearts for that will steal away our hearts from God and hinder our Communion with him We must take
in whole or in part in point of justification if you do you can have nothing to do with the Righteousness of Christ Rom. 10. 3. the Jews being ignorant of God's Righteousness went about to establish their own Righteousness Here you see a perfect opposition between a Man's establishing his own Righteousness and getting an interest in Christ Friends you must not think of two Righteousnesses one in Christ and another in your selves I will make mention of thy righteousness even of thine only Down with all Self-righteousness or you can have nothing to do with Christ 3. The third thing that is to be let go for the Lord Jesus Christ are all Companions in Sin How much Delight soever you have formerly had in them you must henceforth make them no more your delightful chosen Associates Here 's the parting Point between wicked Men and the Saints of Jesus Christ I don't speak of Civil Commerce as Men in the World there we must have to do with wicked Men but I speak of chosen delightful Companions in Sin when 't is an Act of the Will 1 Pet. 4. 3 4. Wherein they wonder that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot speaking evil of you Ay here 's the breach made when we come to Christ between us and the wicked World Psal 15. 4. and so you shall find in Psal 119. 63. I am a companion of all them that fear thee Beloved Christ requires you to cast off the delightful company of wicked ones Christians are a company of themselves and none but such should be chosen All my delight is in the Saints saith David Whatever Tyes there be unless it be those of natural and civil Relations they must not tye us to wicked men but we must be the Companions of the Servants of Christ if we will have Christ Secondly There are some things that may be let go or may not that is according as God calls or calls not for them If the Glory of God shall require it then we are to part with them and these are all Earthly Comforts if so be they come to be inconsistent with the Truths or Glory of Christ rather than deny the Truths of Christ when his Glory or Enjoyment comes in competition then Christ requires us to part with them Such are our estates when the Glory of the Lord Jesus shall call us to deny them as the believing Hebrews were Such are our Liberty when we cannot keep it without the eclipsing the Honour of the Lord Jesus Yea such is also our natural Life if that be laid in ballance with the Truths of Christ He would not have his People reckon their Lives dear upon his account either I must deny the known Truth or my Liberty Life or Estate must go And now if any of these come in competition with Christ they must all go Luke 14. 33. Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath he cannot be my Disciple This includes Estate Liberty and Life Now here is the stick in the case How far a poor Soul can come up to Christ's Terms upon this Conditional Necessity I do not doubt but there be many Souls in Christ that have many Fears about it what their Heart will do many shaking Fears what they will do in an hour of Temptation yet Christ hath the consent of their Hearts that all shall go they will forsake Father Mother Wife Children Why Lord saith a poor Christian if I cannot enjoy these without the destruction of my poor Soul in thy Strength I resolve to follow thee in the deepest paths of Self-denyal to the last breath And without this you cannot be Christ's Disciples My Friends the Lord Jesus hath set down the Terms and he will not come lower and if you cannot come up to his Terms Christ and you must part he will not come down for the sake of any man therefore consider of those things Now he that is contented to part with all rather than part with Christ that Soul is for Christ and Christ is for that Soul But there is the last thing and that is the embracing of all those things that may help you to enjoy Christ These are deep tryals of the Heart and therefore it concerns us to make deep searches here Well then there be four things that do further a man's Soul in the way to Christ and are you contented and that deliberately Christians to embrace them all to help you to Christ 1. First Are you contented to embrace and welcome all the Ordinances of God and Duties of Religion both publick and private without exception of one of them Can you turn your feet to all his Ordinances I know some Christians have a Zeal for some Duties and not for others but publick and private Duties Heart-duties and Life-duties all that have the Stamp of Christ's Institution upon them must be embraced as in Psal 119. 6. Then shall I not be ashamed when I have respect unto all thy commandments When you dare not neglect a Duty but bring a serious Heart to every Duty if you be Christ's you must come under the Law of his House 2. Secondly Are you contented to embrace all Fatherly Corrections from the hand of God for the killing of the Remainders of Sin in you If you will be for Christ you must submit to Chrisi's Method It is in vain to say If I can travel to Heaven without meeting a Storm in the way I am willing to go thou must be contented with all Afflictions to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Paul could say in 2 Cor. 12. 10. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities in persecutions for Christ's sake for when I am weak then am I strong Ay that was a high frame I will not strain up your Experiences to Paul's But can you consent to endure them Can you bear a Rod from God when it is to purge your Corruptions Can you bear a Persecution from God without starting from your Duty 3. Thirdly If you will be Christ's you must submit to all those means Christ hath appointed for the mortification of your Corruptions be they never so hard Rebukes from GOD Rebukes from Men by Afflictions and by the Word for the mortification of Sin Can you say Christians that you are willing to have your Mistakes detected by GOD or Men your Corruptions discovered any thing that helps to the pulling up the Roots of Corruption Surely thus it must be if you will be for Christ all faithful Admonitions all necessary Afflictions 4. Fourthly and lastly If you will be for Christ and be his you must embrace all pains watchings and labourings after Holiness to the end of your days Holiness will cost a Christian abundance of Labour but this you must do or you cannot be Christians 2 Cor. 7. 1. Having these promises let us cleanse ourselves from all silthiness of flesh and spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God Here 's the Work of a Christian cleansing Work and perfecting Work in the fear of God to the end of our Lives You must take the pains that other Christians do if you will have Christ for your Portion Now mark what I say He that is willing to part with all that hinders the enjoyment of Christ as sinful Self and righteous Self and he that resolves to embrace all things that may help him forward to the enjoyment of Christ as all the Ordinances of God all Fatherly correction from the hand of God all means of mortification from GOD or Men and all pains for Holiness he that is contented with these terms is as surely Christ's as ever was any Soul I have not made the terms in one point higher than Christ hath made them And thus I have shewed you Christians what the Terms are in which you are allowed to enroll your selves in the Catalogue of Christians And oh that the Lord would set home this one tryal to the satisfaction of our Souls then we may say The Lord is my God and My beloved is mine and I am his FINIS 1 Joh. 3. 2.
man perished 3ly It hinders communion with God which is the very life of gracious Souls their Heaven upon Earth Communion with God in holy Ordinances and holy Duties as Prayer Praises Meditation c. is that which fattens and prospereth the Souls of God's people but outward prosperity hinders communion with God in these for then even while outward comforts are present God and his company and presence are not so much sound wanting nor so much valued desired and panted after as in a barren Wilderness where no waters of worldly comforts are Psalm 64. 1 2 3. Psalm 42. 1 2 3. When David was in great straits stript of his earthly Comforts bedewed all with Tears then his Soul panted after God when he was in the Valley of Baca then he looks unto the Mountains of Myrrh the Garden of Spices Psalm 84. 1 2 3 4. Is it not so with God's People when their Liberty Friends Health Estate c. are gone then God is sought for and communion with him earnestly longed and thirsted for more than ever and then usually most enjoyed By Acts of Communion with God Souls converse commerce and trade with God trade in Heaven and that turns greatly to their advantage We can never take a Voyage to Heaven by Prayer or Meditation but it will turn to account first or last some gain to our Souls will accrue by every act of communion We cannot touch Christ by our Faith or Love but some Vertue will flow from him to our Souls Psalm 145. 18. God will fulfil the desires of them that fear him He will satisfie the hungry with good things Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness Every groan of a gracious Soul after Grace every pant and breathing after God in truth is observed and recorded in Heaven Mal. 3. 16. A book of remembrance for them that thought upon his Name O the transcendent goodness of our most gracious God to take notice of such poor things He will not despise the day of small things and what an encouragement is this to us to spend our most serious thoughts on God But Prosperity in the World doth stop and interrupt the Soul's converse and trade with God by estranging the heart from God and heavenly things and so it becomes very prejudicial to the prosperity of the inward man It is very hard for a man to have much of the World in his hands and much of Heaven in his heart also to have much converse with and much enjoyment of Creature-comforts and to have his Conversation in Heaven too And when do our Souls thrive and flourish best but when we are trading above conversing with God Now these great Mischiefs I have named to the inner man are promoted by the prosperity of the outward man thus 1. By making us forgetful of those things that we should necessarily remember in order to the good of our Souls Prosperity spoils the Memory exceedingly as to heavenly and spiritual things and that in these particulars Prosperity breeds 1. Forgetfulness of God the chief good and surely that Soul can never thrive that forgets God who is the Fountain of all its Life Grace and Comfort The remembrance of God brought sweetness and satisfaction to David's Soul Psalm 63. 5 6. but Prosperity makes us forgetful of God Deut. 6. 11 12. and Deut. 8. 14 19 20. Yea fulness of outward things makes men to deny God of which good Agur was afraid Proverb 30. 9. 2. Forgetful of their best part their Souls the Soul is then mostly forgotten when the Body is mostly minded 3. Forgetful of their Duties to God and Man so it was with Pharoah's Butler 4. Of the Affliction of Joseph Amos 6. 6. When we our selves are at liberty how apt are we to forget them that are in Bonds 5. Of Sin that usually is most remembred in time of Affliction as in Joseph's Brethren 6. Of God's Word that is too much forgotten in Prosperity the Precepts of God not obeyed nor the Promises so relished and believed not Threatnings feared 7. Prosperity makes us forgetful of Death Judgment the World to come Eternity The Evil Day is put far off All these Seven Things should be always remembred by us and have our frequent Thoughts and Meditations for the remembrance of them is very advantageous to the welfare of the inner man and will tend to the good of our Souls but the flourishing of the outward man breeds too much forgetfulness of all these things and the forgetfulness of these things drives us from God and God from us keeps us at a distance from him casts him out of our Minds and Thoughts makes us unserviceable to him and hinders our communion with him 2ly The flourishing of the outward man begets Pride Wantonness Security Envy Ambition Contention negligence in God's Service contempt of others and many hurtful Lusts Deut. 32. 15. Experience proves this 3ly It consumes precious Time and Strength wastes the Spirits Thoughts and Affections being placed on earthly things which should all be spent on God principally and but so much on other things as may fit us for his Service and in subordination to him But while men are contriving how to get how to manage how to spend c. This fills up their Time Hearts Thoughts Minds Spirits and all so that there is no place nor room left for God or the concerns of their Souls Therefore the wife God in great Love and Mercy to the Souls of his People breaks their outward Prosperity which otherwise would ruine their Souls removing those things that hinder the welfare of the Soul for when outward Prosperity is gone then the Soul flies to God it draws nigh to God Prosperity kept it at a distance before it forgot God before now it remembers him seeks God early serves him diligently Now it seeks communion with God pants after his Favour and the sense of his Love Now the Soul is awakened and enlightned and now it remembers God and it self and Sion and its former miscarriages it now minds Death and Eternity more seriously than ever and is more diligent in preparation for them and now the Soul that lay languishing and pining before while the outward man flourished begins to be in a thriving way for these things promote the welfare of the Soul And this is the first way how the perishings of the outward man help towards the renewing and strengthning of the inner Secondly The Adversity of the outward man promotes the Prosperity of the inner by being a means of bringing in Light and Conviction into the Soul Prosperity shuts Men's Eyes and deafens their Ears but vexatio dat visum Affliction opens Men's Eyes so that they see what they did not before and they see things otherwise than before dark Dispensations bring Light with them Afflictions put God's People upon the search Lamen 3. 40. Then they retire and look within themselves then they find out the filthiness vanity frowardness pride earthliness of their
contrary is true of wicked Persons they are curs'd in Soul when cross'd in Body their outward perishings prove inward perishings also for then usually they murmur and repine fret against God and Instruments then they think of sinful shifts and unlawful means to get out of trouble when their outward Man is hurt by affliction they hurt their Souls by sin by impatience and discontent as that wicked King who said what shall I wait upon God any longer but now we find the servants of the Lord as Eli David Job Micah Habakkuk and others when their outward comforts failed them then they submitted to the will of God fled to him for supplies trusted in him and so by the exercise of their Faith and Patience their Souls were supported and strengthned David expressly confesseth that it was good for him that is for his Soul his inner Man that he was afflicted Psal 119. 71. And in the Text we have the attestation of the Apostle and Primitive Christians And this is the comfort also of God's People that their greatest outward evils through the goodness and blessing of God turn to their greatest inward good and this makes them rejoyce in afflictions and glory in tribulations as Rom. 5. 2. to wit because of the Spiritual benefit they receive by afflictions and upon this very ground God gives that command Heb. 12. 12. Wherefore lift up the hands that hang down that is therefore be comforted and encouraged Therefore wherefore because of the great profit and sweet fruits of God's chastnings upon his People Therefore lift up the hands that hang down As it is a comfort to a Man that hath a Wound in his Body to have his Cloths torn off that so his wound may be healed so it is to have the diseases of our Souls cured tho' our outward comforts be rent and torn from us The Application I. For Information First Hence it appears that there is a great difference between the Godly and Ungodly in reference to afflictions between the upright and the hypocrite The godly are the better the wicked are the worse for affliction The godly Man gains in his inner Man by his losses in his outward Man but the wicked in their afflictions commit more wickedness and their Corruptions break out more to the ruine of their Souls The Righteous holdeth on his way altho' Briers and Thorns yea Lyons be in his way that tear and spoil all his outward Comforts and he that hath clean Hand and a clean Heart groweth stronger and stronger even when his outward Man grows weaker and weaker Job 17. 9. The wicked in affliction are like the troubled Sea that casts up nothing but miâ—â— and dirt Isa 57. 20. Secondly That an afflicted godly Person is in a far better case than an afflicted wicked Person thâ— the affliction be of the same kind measure and degree because an afflicted godly Person hath faâ— better grounds of Comfort than the other forth godly Man may be confident that his affliction oâ— his outward Man shall tend to the good of his Soul but the ungodly hath ground enough to fear that he shall be the worse for his affliction the wicked shall grow worse and worse Tho' all things may happen alike to all as to outward afflictions yet the godly have the best on 't upon this account that their outward afflictions shall tend to their Inward Spiritual and Eternal Good O happy are the People that are in such a case that no Winds can blow amiss to them but that all the cross and contrary winds that they meet with upon the Stormy Sea of this World shall but further them in their Passage and hasten them to their Harbour in Heaven Blessed be the Lord our God Amen Thirdly Then a gracious person hath more and better ground of Patience quietness and Contentation under all his afflictions than a wicked Person hath because every gracious Person hath good ground to hope believe and conclude that his good God is doing him good doing his Soul good by all the troubles on his outward Man and having ground to hope believe and conclude so he hath good ground of Patience and Contentation Now a Child of God hath good ground to hope believe and conclude so because he hath the faithful word of the true and faithful God for to ground his Hope and Faith upon who hath said that all things shall work together for good to his People if all things then afflictions Rom. 8. 28. And that all things are theirs 1 Cor. 3. 22 23. things present all their present sufferings and troubles are theirs that is shall work for their Spiritual good and God's word tells us expresly Hebr. 12. 10. that all our chastisements are for our profit our greatest profit namely to make us partakers of God's Holiness to purge away our Sins Isa 27. 9. to make us conformable to Christ and to fit and prepare us for that far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory 2. Cor. 4. 17. Here we have a sure word of Promise the God of Truth who cannot Lye the Almighty God who is able to perform his promises which promises flow from his everlasting Love and unsearchable goodness mercy and are founded in the full satisfaction of Jesus Christ in whom they are made and through whom they shall be fulfilled to assure us of the truth of them I say the Almighty God hath engaged his word that all the sufferings of his Children shall work for the good of their Souls which is a most firm ground of Patience Contentation and Consolation to them When I can believe and be perswaded in my Soul that all my afflictions shall promote the welfare of my Soul I have all the reason in the World to be patient and content under them Our great care must be to look to this that we be the Heirs of the Promises and if we be in Christ really united to Christ grafted into him made partakers of his Spirit Life and Grace then are we the Heirs of the Promises Hebr. 6. 17 18. Gal. 3. last and we being the Heirs of the promises we have grounds of Patience because God hath promised all shall work for our good and then next that we may be able with patience to bear our afflictions we must labour to keep these promises still in our eyes looking to them and to the love goodness faithfulness and all-sufficiency of God in them and looking unto Jesus through whose satisfaction and mediation they come to us and labouring to keep our Eyes the Eyes of Faith and Hope fixed on those promises trusting in God and relying upon him and so shall we be able in our Patience to possess our Souls and Patience will do us great service in affliction for altho' it cannot keep us from misery it will keep us from being miserable for we can never be miserable so long as we have an interest in Christ and through him in the promises Now Faith in the