Paul. A third is in the manner of managing: The unbeleever, he will, like the prodigal, have all the eftate into his own hands, he will cruft upon himself, he dares not fettle on God, for he feares him, he fufpects him, he thinks verily God will not do him good, but he will faile: But the beleever knows whom he hath trufted, God is his God; and hath undertaken for him, and he who hath promised is faithful who will also do it: Now though I have not in hand, yet I have in promife, though E have not in the coffer, yet I have in the bonds; my eftate is even all that is good for me, and it lies in a fure hand, in the hand of my good God who will not faile; Hereupon I live, to this I truft, though others vex, and fret, and curfe, yet I fit down quietly; Why? because faith goes about what we fee, and it is able to fee the estate large enough, though lying in divine promises; and this is to live like a Chriftian, for this is to acknowledge a God, and a Chrift to fome purpose. 2. The life of faith, it is the only comfortable life. It is with our life, as it is with fire, which if it burnes faire and clear, then is it pleasant and delightful, but if it be dull and fmoking, it makes us weary both of it, and the roome. Whiles faith doth guide our lives, (by feeling our thoughts and defires on God and Chrift) then the lamp is cleare, life feels like life, we can pray with joy, and hear with delight, and follow our callings with cheerfulneffe, and lie down in peace; But if you fever faith from the life, that we dare not to trut on God, nor reft on Chrift; we muft poffeffe, or else we cannot trust nor live; Now the chimney fmoaks,the foul becomes difpleafing to it felf; the foul craves help from the body, and the body from the foul, but neither is able to help either, and therefore that is wanting, and this is vexing. The waves now get over the ship, and finks it with a load and deluge of worldly, endleffe, fruitleffe, anxious, vexing cares, and feares; And in fober-fadneffe tell me, what you think of fuch a life, wherein the head is disturbed and curiously tortured with va riety of manifold, and exquifite fufpitions, and thoughts, and the heart is deeply racked with the continual breakings of trembling fighes and griefes? That a man is not able to get, nor yet patient to want, he can neither give himself help, nor will he truft him who can; That his eftate is burdened, with many many wants, and all this is made unspeakably grievous by another worfe burden unbeieeving thoughts;that a man fees he cannot beare, and yet will not eale his fhoulder by trusting. That a man cannot begin to think, but his thoughts throw him into a way of what ifs? What if the Lord will not do me good? what if I cannot have that what if fuch an one faile? or what ifit comes not on fuch a day? &c. So that he cannot think without tumults; nor fpeak without difcontents, nor eat with out diflike, nor walk without flavifhneffe, nor work without distrustfulneffe, nor fleep without terrours,nor awake without bitterneffe, nor rife without carefulnesse; and amidst all this,he hath no heart to duty, nor no God, nor to heaven, nor earth, nor to Chrift, nor to himself, nor his; for either he hath no faith, or elfe will not live by it: He dares not truft God, or Christ. There be three things which concur to make the life uncomfortable; 1. One is a fenfe of want: A man hath an extreame feeling of need, no fn'e, or flight sense, availe not to break our spirits. 2. Another is a ftrong defire, the heart pants and reacheth after the supply, and this multiplies thoughts and cares. 3. A third is palpable infufficiency; that a man cannot for his life compaffe his defires and fupplics, and therefore like Ahab, who was impeached for Naboths vineyard, he is dejected and grieved; all which fall ordinarily into the life of unbe liefe. But now to wheel about on the contray, the life of faith is feet and comfortable, Foure things wou'd make a mins life very comfortable. 2. Another: If he were fecured from all prejudices, 3. 4. A fourth: If he were affured that whatsoever good he fhould need, of that he should be without fail fupplied in a fic time. Now then the life of faith produceth all thefe, Ii. First, 4. Things. adavalerafeth'a man of all burdens: There be but two burdens which we can well think of, 1. One is the finful burden. 2. The other is the earthly burden: The burden of guilt, and the burden of cares: But faith (if a man could live by it) takes them both off: It lives upon Clift for the one, and upon Gods providence for the other : 16 fees a fufficiency and an accepted price in his blood to remit our guilt, and it fets an alfufficient, careful, faithful providence to remove our care: And I tell you, that the foule comes to great eale which is releafed of both theft: Sonne, be of good comfort, thy finnes be forgiven thee. Sinne fhall be difcharged, therefore I am comfortable; cares are gone therefore I am cheer fol. 2. It fecures against all prejudices, and why? because it states the perfon in goodneffe it felfe, in him who is nothing but goodneffe, (that is) who is in refpe of himselfe good, and who will order all things for good to the Beleever, nay, and in his hands who is an abfolute Lord. 'Tis true, that one change in our eftate may be contrary to another, and because we efteeme one of them to be good, therefore we judge the other be evil: but then, though changes be oppofite in fenfe, yet they are concordant in iffue, in the event all falls out for good: As fickneffe, though oppofite to health, yet it may fall out for the further preservati on of life; fometimes the Chriftian is high, fometimes low, fometimes he is in a freed ftate, fometimes in a clouded ftate; fometimes he is in conqueft, fometimes he is in conflict; fome times he is oyled in the mouths of men, and fometimes traduced and torne in pieces, as if the tongues of Chriftians were the teeth of Lions: (Paul gives a Catalogue of his changes in these and the like cafes;)yet in all and after all,the Chriftians condition is not prejudiced, God ftill owns the perfon, watching over his fafeties; Keeps all poyfon from the beart, and like a fhip (fometimes by a fair winde, fometime by a rough ftorm) he ftill brings him fafe to harbour. As Paul spake even of bis bonds, that they fell out to the furtherance of the Gofpel; So I fay of the calamitous occurrences, the fenfe fees nothing but mifery, yet faith can fee the good end which God made madewith Job, and therefore to rejoyce in troubles. 3. It makes the prefent condition good, and enough. I will tell you one reason why the life of fenfe is uncomfortable; name!! ly,because it is grounded on a short and empty good; that which a man can fee with his eye, and hold in his hand, is not halfe of that which he can defire with his heart, no worldly thing can, ever be enough to an unbelieving heart. But faith makes the foul well pleased, because it prefents the foul with fuch a good,as cannot only fatisfie, but also exceed it. God is an infinite goodneffe; he,who can fatisfie more then a world, may well content one mans heart; and Gods favour is a fatisfying good, ( I shall be Satisfied with thy favour, said David; and to this doth faith entitle, yea, this is doth reveale to the foul; And I will tell you one thing, that he who cannot be contented with a God, and his favour; with a Christ, and his blood; with a Covenant, and its fulneffe; he will never be content with any thing: if alfufficiency be not enough to thee, when can emptineffe and vanity please and fatisfie thee. What if a man hath but a little Garden, yet if he hath a large Parke, and ten thousand Acres of Arables, and the Kings royal favour to grace all this? I tell you this would sparkle bis fpirit, it would breath a well-pleafedneffe in him. Thou complaineft that thou haft but little of earthly things, I grant ir, and a little may be enough: (enough depends more on quality, then quantity but then, though the Garden be but fmall, yet the Park is large; though thy portion in externals be not fo great, yet this with a great and all fufficient God, and a bleffed Saviour, and a heaven to boot, is enough, and enough. If the wife faich the hath but a small joynture, yet if the hath a rich and tender buss band, he is to be blamed if the faith the hath not enough; Faith viewes the Chriftians eftate, not as it is in its hand, but as in her husbands hand, in Chrifts, and then all is well enough, 4. It affures of universal and reasonable supplies: The Lord is my Shepheard, shall not want, so David Pfal. 23. 1. follow him a little in that Pfalme, and you shall fee what God hath done for him; he made his pastures green, and bis waters ftill, verf, 2. O,what a freshneffe, and what a calmneffe doth faith make in the state! His foul is taken care for, and at the worst, when he was in the valley of the shadow of death, yet he was quieted from Ii2 fear, Time paft. Prefent. Future fear, because his faith faw God there; yea, and found him there to uphold andcomfort: That for what was paft; Then for his prefent condition See ver. 5. His table is prepared for him, as if he took no care (no anxious care ) he needed not to trouble himfelf, (thon prepareft a table for me) and not a mean table neither (my cup runneth over) nor yet a dull and uncheerful table, thou anointeft my head with oyle;) fo that faith for the prefent findes food, and cheer enough too; But then for the future condition, will this hold out? See what faith findes in reverfion ver. 6. Surely goodneffe and mercy fall follow me all the dajes of my life; (Goodneffe!) perhaps that refpected his temporal estate, (Mercy!) perhaps that refpected his fpiritual, 1. One his body. 2. Another his foul, and both these (hall follow him) as the shadow that followes the body, they fhould be ftill at hand; but how long? not for a day only, but (all his dayes ) not all the dayes of his dignities, abilities, health, but all the dayes of bis life. Nay, yet againe, (furely) they thall follow me: It was not a fpeech of fancy, but of certainty, it was out of all doubt, and peradventure, furely mercy and goodnesse shall, &e. So Pfal 84.11. The Lord Godis a Sun, and a shield; the fun is the parent of light, fo is God of all good; The Sun is the cause of all fruitfulneffe and cheerfulneffe, fo is God of all bleffings: and he is a fhield to a Sunne for the doing of good, and a fhield to fecure and prote& from evil. The Lord will give grace and glory: Grace is the best thing which a man can have on earth, and Glory is the highest thing which a man can have in heaven : But thefe he will give, they fhall not be bought,but freely bestowed. No good thing will be withheld, &c. As if he fhould fay, if grace be not enough for earth, if glory be not enough for heaven; think then of any other good thing, there is not any other good thing, which fhall be withheld (that is) which shall not, like the rain, (which ceaseth to be withheld) poure down upon you. Will you heare the Prophet fay a word to this to this future fupplies for them who live by faith: then read Jer. 17. 7. Blef fed is the man that trufteth in the Lord, whose hope the Lord is Here we finde the beleever at his work of trufting, or living by faith, and at his wages too: Bleffed is the man that trusterb, &c. |