{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_5831/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_5831","id":"gutenberg_5831","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/5831","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Theology, Doctrinal"],"text":"Charles Aldarondo and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.\n\n\n\nTHE RICHES OF BUNYAN:\n\nSELECTED FROM HIS WORKS,\n\nFOR\n\nTHE AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY,\n\nBY Rev. Jeremiah Chaplin.\n\nWITH AN INTRODUCTORY NOTICE\n\nBY\n\nREV. WILLIAM R. WILLIAMS. D. D.\n\nNEW YORK\n\n1850\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\n\n\n\n\nPREFATORY NOTICE, by Rev. Dr. Williams\n\nI. GOD\n    Glory of God\n    Majesty of God\n    Justice of God\n    Holiness of God\n    Sovereignty of God\n    Sovereignty of God in conversion\n    Providence of God in conversion\n    Condescension of God\n    Mercy of God\n    God the justifier\n    Glory of God in redemption\n    God a father\n    Faithfulness of God\n    Presence of God\n    God's repenting\n    Providence of God\n\nII. THE TRINITY\n\nIII. THE SCRIPTURES\n\nIV. MAN\n    The image of God\n    Value of the soul\n    Adam's transgression\n    Depravity of Nature\n    Love of sin\n    Sin\n    Pride\n    Envy\n    Drunkenness\n    Sinners\n    Sinful ease\n    The child and the bird\n    The sinner warned\n    Conscience\n    A good conscience\n    A tender conscience\n    A guilty conscience\n\nV. THE LAW\n    Its nature and effects\n    The law and the gospel\n    The law a rule of life\n\nVI. DIVINE GRACE\n    Grace, love, and mercy\n    Grace described\n    Operation of grace\n    Grace abused\n    Grace, the water of life\n\nVII. CHRIST\n    The incarnation of Christ\n    The humanity of Christ\n    The humiliation of Christ\n    The glory of Christ\n    The love of Christ\n    The righteousness of Christ\n    Christ a complete Saviour\n    Christ not a Saviour by his example\n    Christ a teacher\n    The death of Christ\n    The resurrection of Christ\n    The glorification of Christ\n    The offices of Christ\n    Christ an intercessor\n    Christ an advocate\n\nVIII. THE HOLY SPIRIT\n\nIX. JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH\n    Faith the instrumental cause of salvation\n    True and false faith distinguished\n    Faith and works\n    Justification and sanctification distinguished\n\nX. CONVICTION OF SIN\n\nXI. CONVERSION\n    The difficulty of conversion\n    Conversion the power of God\n    Regeneration\n    The strait gate\n    Coming to Christ\n    Temptations of the soul coming to Christ\n    Trials and encouragements of the awakened\n    Fears in coming to Christ\n    Mercy's experience\n    Fears and encouragements of the awakened\n    Despair of mercy unreasonable\n    Power of the gospel\n    Bunyan's conversion\n    Fears about election\n    Young converts\n\nXII. THE CHRISTIAN DESCRIBED\n    Happiness of the Christian\n    Dignity of the Christian\n    The family in heaven and earth\n    Feebleness of the Christian\n    The Christian under a sense of guilt--Bunyan's experience\n    Sin and the Saviour\n    The Christian in darkness\n    The valley of the shadow of death\n    The Christian doubting\n    Indwelling sin\n    Mr. Fearing\n    Encouragement for the doubting Christian\n    Adoption\n    Christ our life\n    Union with Christ\n    Life of faith\n    Divine love improved\n    Holy living\n    Opportunities improved\n    Good works\n    Self-denial\n    Obedience in little things\n    Motives to holy living\n    Obedience rewarded\n    Self-examination\n    Watchfulness\n    Constitution-sins\n    The Christian professor admonished\n    Failings and sins of Christians\n    The backslider\n\nXIII. THE CHRISTIAN RACE\n\nXIV. TRIALS OF THE CHRISTIAN\n    Affliction--its nature and benefits\n    Persecution\n    Bunyan's trial and imprisonment\n    Martyrs\n    Christian courage\n    The Christian warfare\n    The Christian armor\n\nXV. TEMPTATIONS\n    Temptations of Satan\n    Temptations of the world\n    Encouragements for the tempted\n    Bunyan's temptations\n\nXVI. SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS\n\nXVII. THE PROMISES\n\nXVIII. CHRISTIAN GRACES\n    Faith\n    Trust\n    Faith and hope\n    Hope\n    Patience\n    Love\n    Fear\n    Humility\n    Zeal\n    Repentance\n\nXIX. PRAYER\n    Characteristics of prayer\n    Preparation for prayer\n    The throne of grace\n    Prayer in the name of Christ\n    Benefit of prayer\n    Discouragements in prayer\n    Discouragements to prayer removed\n    Affectionate confidence in prayer\n    God's method of answering prayer\n    Relief in prayer\n    Faith in prayer\n    Wrestling prayer\n    The publican's prayer\n    Posture in prayer\n    Closet-iniquity\n    Formal prayer\n    The prayerless\n\nXX. FALSE PROFESSION\n    Hypocrisy\n    Christ's love abused\n    Perversion of the truth\n    A Latitudinarian\n    Changing sins\n    The unholy professor\n    The fruitless professor\n    The unpardonable sin\n    The man in the iron cage\n\nXXI. THE CHURCH\n    From the preface to the \"Holy City\"\n    Church-fellowship\n    The church a light\n    Spiritual character of the church\n    Warning to the professor\n    Church-order\n    The church in affliction\n    Satan's hostility to the church\n    Security of the church\n    Future glory of the church\n\nXXII. THE MINISTRY\n    Importance of the ministry\n    Duty of churches to the ministry\n    Different classes of ministers\n    Duty of ministers\n    Ministers warned\n    Ministers servants of the church\n    Gifts and grace in ministers\n    The false minister\n    The minister at the day of judgment\n    Bunyan's ministry\n    Bunyan's character and principles\n\nXXIII. ANTICHRIST\n    Antichrist described\n    Rise and progress of antichrist\n    Corruption of the church by antichrist\n    Conflict between the church and antichrist\n    Fall of antichrist\n    Manner of antichrist's destruction\n    Present state of antichrist\n    Slaying of the witnesses\n    Reasons for antichrist's destruction\n    Time of antichrist's destruction\n    Signs of antichrist's destruction\n    Hope of antichrist's destruction\n    Effects of antichrist's destruction\n    Warning against a return to antichrist\n    Introduction to the \"Holy City\"\n    The wooden cross\n\nXXIV. DEATH\n    Death of the sinner\n    Death of the Christian\n    The Christian wishing to depart\n    The dying Christian\n    Death of Mr. Badman's wife\n    Death of Standfast\n    Death of Christian and Hopeful\n    Bunyan's death\n\nXXV. THE RESURRECTION\n    Salvation complete at the resurrection\n\nXXVI. THE JUDGMENT\n    The saints judged\n    Saints rewarded at the judgment\n    Sinners judged\n    Sinners without excuse at the judgment\n    \"Ignorance\" condemned at the judgment\n\nXXVII. HEAVEN\n    Happiness and glory of heaven\n    Employments of heaven\n    Soul and body glorified in heaven\n    Christ the glory of heaven\n    The glory of salvation\n    Heaven\n\nXXVIII. HELL\n\nXXIX. MISCELLANEOUS\n    The Sabbath\n    Woman\n    The family\n    Bunyan's domestic character\n    Dr. Owen\n    Truth\n    Style\n    The old and new dispensations\n    The Pilgrim in New England\n\n\n\n\n\n\nNOTICES OF BUNYAN\n\nPREFATORY NOTICE.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe subscriber has been requested by his friend the Rev. Jeremiah\nChaplin, the worthy son of an honored father, [Footnote: The late\nRev. Dr. Chaplin, the founder and first president of Waterville\ncollege, in the state of Maine.] and the editor of the present\nselections from Bunyan, to attach to them some prefatory remarks.\nNeedless as he feels it himself to be, and presumptuous as, to some,\nthe attempt even may seem, to say aught in behalf of a work that,\nfaithfully drawn as it is from Bunyan's overflowing stores, can\nrequire no other recommendation; yet the subscriber could not refuse\nall compliance with the wishes of one who has given diligent and\nhearty and appreciating study to the rich and varied remains of \"the\nimmortal Dreamer.\"\n\nMany of the Christians of our time, though conversant with the\nPILGRIM'S PROGRESS, and HOLY WAR, are apparently little aware of the\nglowing genius, and fervent piety, and strong sense, and picturesque\nimagery, and racy, vigorous English, that mark the many other\nwritings of the honored tinker of Elstow. These last, if less known\nthan the story of the pilgrimage to the Celestial City, and of the\nsiege and recovery of the good town of Mansoul, yet bear all of them\nthe traces of the same vivid fancy, the same earnest heart, and the\nsame robust and sanctified intellect. To save from comparative\ndisuse and consequent unprofitableness--from being buried in an\nundeserved seclusion, if not oblivion, many sparkling truths, and\npithy sayings, and pungent rebukes, likely to do great good if they\ncould but have, in our busy day, a more general currency over the\nwide mart of the world;--and to bespeak a new circle of influence,\nand a broader sphere of notoriety and usefulness for these\noverlooked legacies of a good and great man of a former age, has\nbeen the editor's object in the prolonged sifting to which he has\nsubjected all Bunyan's writings. Of that patient and conscientious\nstudy the present selection has been the result. It is not hoped, or\neven wished for them, that in the case of any readers able to give\nthe requisite leisure, these excerpts should supersede the original\nwritings. But these last, in mass, are beyond the means and the time\nwhich are at the command of many Christians, who would yet greatly\nprize the briefer examples of Bunyan's experience and Bunyan's\nteachings that are here presented. And even to others of more\naffluence and leisure, this manual may serve to commend the author's\nworks in their entireness. Mr. Chaplin himself would most anxiously\ndisavow any claim to have exhausted the mines from which he brings\nthese gatherings. His specimens resemble rather those laces which\nthe good Bunyan tagged in Bedford jail--not in themselves garments,\nbut merely adjuncts and ornaments of larger fabrics. He who would\nsee the entire wardrobe of the Dreamer's mind, and the shape and\nproportions of the goodly vestures of truth in which he sought to\narray himself and his readers, must, after handling these the LACES,\nturn to the ROBES, from whose edge these have been skilfully\ndetached.\n\nIn the character and history of JOHN BUNYAN, the great Head of the\nchurch seems to have provided a lesson of special significance, and\nsingular adaptedness, for the men and the strifes of our own time.\nBorn of the people, and in so low a condition, that one of Bunyan's\nmodern reviewers, by a strange mistake, construed Bunyan's\nself-disparaging admissions to mean that he was the offspring of\ngypsies--bred to one of the humblest of handicrafts, and having but\nthe scantiest advantages as to fortune or culture, he yet rose,\nunder the blessings of God's word and providence and Spirit, to\nwidest usefulness, and to an eminence that shows no tokens of\ndecline. Down to our own times, the branches of his expanding\ninfluence seem daily spreading and extending themselves; and the\nroots of his earthly renown seem daily shooting themselves deeper,\nand taking a firmer hold on the judgment of critics and the hearts\nof the churches. When the English houses of Parliament were recently\nrebuilt, among the imagery commemorative of the nation's literary\nglories, a place was voted for the bust of the Bedford pastor, once\nso maligned and persecuted. Once tolerated by dainty Christians for\nthe sake of his piety, while they apologized for what they deemed\nhis uncouthness; he is now, at last, even from men of the world, who\ndo not value that piety, receiving the due acknowledgment of his\nrare genius and witching style. It is not many years since Gilpin,\nan English clergyman of cultivated taste--himself a ready and\npopular writer--issued an edition of the Pilgrim's Progress,\nmodified, if not rewritten in much of its phraseology, because he\ndeemed the original too rude for usefulness. In our own day, one of\nthe highest authorities as to the graces and powers of our language,\nthe English statesman and scholar, T. B. Macaulay, has pronounced\nupon that style, which Gilpin by implication so disparaged, the most\nglowing eulogies. Schools and leisure and wealth are useful, but\nthey are not indispensable either to felicity or to honor. Bunyan\nlacked them all; and yet in the absence of them achieved greatness\n--and what is far better, wide and enduring usefulness. No man, with\nGod's exhaustless Scriptures in his hands, and with the rich book of\nnature and providence open in its pictured radiance before his eyes,\nneeds to have either a dwindling or an impoverished soul. Of that\nlatter volume, the works of God, as of that former, the word of God,\nBunyan was evidently a delighted and unwearied student. His\nreferences to birds and insects, flowers and running brooks and\nevening clouds, and forests and mountains, all show a man whose\nnature was genially awake to the harmony and beauty of the material\nworld that lay in order and splendor around him. It was, in Bunyan,\nno mere mimicry caught from books and companions--the echo of any\nfashion of his times. He writes of what he had seen with his own\neyes; and seems to avoid aiming at aught beyond that. Hence to the\nocean, which probably he never thus saw--and which had he beheld it\nin its placid vastness, or in its stormy wrath, he could not well\nhave forgotten--his writings contain, as far as we remember, no\nallusions, in all the varied and exuberant imagery which they\nemploy. His books, more than those of his more learned\ncontemporaries, Richard Baxter, and John Owen, that \"mighty\narmor-bearer of the truth,\" as Bunyan happily calls him, were\nwritten exclusively from the resources of his own personal\nobservation. And, in consequence of this, they have the freshness\nand odors of the outer world pervading them--scents and sounds of\nthe highways along which, in the trampings of his trade, he had\nplodded, and of the hedges that had shaded him. To use the language\nof the patriarch's benediction, they have \"THE SMELL OF A FIELD\nWHICH THE LORD HATH BLESSED.\" His books are, like Walton's Angler,\nof the open air, and the purling streams. You catch, back of the\ngood man's Bible, as he reverently ponders and commends it, glimpses\nof rural landscapes, and of open skies--God's beautiful world, still\nlovely, even though sin has marred it. Like the Sermon on the Mount,\nBunyan's page has the traits of field-preaching. And it was so,\nalso, in his references to the inner world of his own heart. He\nwrote not from the dried specimens of earlier collectors--from the\nshrivelled and rustling leaves of some old herbary--from the\nphilosophy and metaphysical analysis of other men's emotions, so\nmuch as from the glowing records of his own consciousness and\nexperience, the fruits of grace and plants of righteousness,\nblooming and fragrant in the watered garden of his own heart. And\nthis dipping of the pencil into his own soul, and into the freshness\nof nature around him, is doubtless a part of the secret of his\nperpetual originality and unsating freshness. Now, when men say\nrepiningly, and in a temper which impeaches alike society and\nprovidence, that a lowly lot, with its necessary privations and its\nconsequent ignorance, is a barrier, perpetual and insuperable,\nagainst usefulness and happiness and honor, we turn to the name and\nmemory of Bunyan as an embodied denial of the impeachment, and as\ncarolling forth their cheerful rebuke of such unmanly and ungodly\nplaints. With God's grace in the heart, and with the gleaming gates\nof his heaven brightening the horizon beyond the grave, we may be\nreformers; but it cannot be in the destructive spirit displayed by\nsome who, in the prophet's language, amid darkness on the earth,\n\"fret themselves, and curse their King and their God, and look\nupward.\" Poverty cannot degrade, nor ignorance bedwarf, nor\npersecution crush, nor dungeon enthral the free, glad spirit of a\nchild of God, erect in its regenerate strength, and rich in its\neternal hopes and heritage. And this hopeful and elastic temperament\ncolors and perfumes every treatise that Bunyan sent out even from\nthe precincts of his prison. With a style sinewy as Cobbett's, and\nsimple and clear as Swift's; with his sturdy, peasant nature showing\nitself in the roundness and directness of his utterance, how little\nhas he of their coarseness. He was not, on the one hand, like\nCobbett, an anarchist, or libeller; but yet, on the other hand, as\nlittle was he ever a lackey, cringing at the gates of Power, or a\ntrain-bearer in the retinue of Fashion. Still less was he, like\nSwift, the satirist of his times and of his kind, snarling at his\nrulers, and turning at last to gnaw, in venomous rage, his own\nheart. And yet he who portrayed the character of By-ends, and noted\nthe gossipings of Mrs. Bats-eyes, lacked neither keenness of vision,\nnor niceness of hand, to have made him most formidable in satire and\nirony.\n\nHis present station in the literature of Britain affords an\nillustration, familiar and obvious to every eye, of God's\nsovereignty, and of the arrangements of Him \"who seeth not as man\nseeth.\" Had Pepys, or any other contemporary courtier that hunted\nfor place and pension, or fluttered in levity and sin, in the\nantechambers of the later Stuarts, been asked, who of all the\nwriters of the times were likely to go down to posterity among the\nlights of their age, how ludicrously erroneous would have been his\napportionments of fame. Pepys might, from the Puritan education of\nhis boyhood, have named Owen, Bates, and Baxter; or from the\nConformist associations of his later years, have selected South, or\nPatrick, or Tillotson, as the religious writers who had surpassed\nall rivalry, or named a Walton or Castell, as having taken bonds of\nfame for the perpetuity of their influence. Had he known of\nClarendon's preparations to become the historian of the Commonwealth\nand Restoration, or of Burnet's habits of preserving memoirs of the\nincidents and characters around him, he might have conjectured their\nprobable honors in after-times. But in poetry he would have classed\nDryden the royalist far above Milton the republican apologist of\nregicide; and might, aping the fashions of the palace, have\npreferred to either the author of Hudibras together with the lewd\nplaywrights who were the delight of a shameless court--hailing the\nlast as the most promising candidates for posthumous celebrity. How\nlittle could he have dreamed that among these Puritans and\nNon-conformists, whose unpopular cause he had himself deserted, and\nwhom his royal masters Charles and James had betrayed, amerced,\nexiled, and incarcerated; in those conventicles so closely watched\nand so sternly visited, which these persecuted confessors yet by\nstealth maintained; aye, and in those dungeons, whither the informer\nso often from these conventicles dragged them, British freedom had\nits truest guardians, and British literature some of its noblest\nillustrations. How little thought he that God had there, in his old\nand glorious school of trial, his \"hidden ones,\" like Bunyan, whose\nserene testimony was yet to shine forth victorious over wrong and\nneglect, and reproach and ridicule, eclipsing so many contemporary\ncelebrities, and giving to the homes and the sanctuaries of every\nland inhabited by an English race, one of the names \"men will not\nwillingly let die.\" How little could gilded and callous favorites of\nthe palace have dreamed that their Acts of Uniformity and Five-mile\nActs, and the like legislation of ecclesiastical proscription, were\nbut rearing for the best men of the age, in the prisons where they\nhad been immured, a Patmos, serene though stern, where the sufferer\nwithdrew from man to commune with the King of kings. There the\nprisoned student was receiving for the churches new lessons of\nsurpassing beauty and potency; and the confessor, pillaged by\ninformers and bullied by judges, and lamented in his own stricken\nhousehold and desolate home, but only derided by his godless\nsovereign and heartless courtiers, yet often found himself\ncompensated for every loss, when, like an earlier witness for the\ngospel of the Cross, enwrapped \"IN THE SPIRIT, ON THE LORD'S DAY.\"\nSuch were the schools where Non-conformist piety received its\ntemper, its edge, and its lustre. The story of Bunyan is, we say,\none of the golden threads binding together into harmony and\nsymmetry, what, seen apart, seem but fragmentary and incoherent\ninfluences--the track of a divine Providence controlling the fates\nand reputations of the race. It is a Providence disappointing men's\njudgments and purposes, exalting the lowly and depressing the\nillustrious, rebuking despondency on the one hand and on the other\ncurbing presumption, setting up one and putting down another. This\nis done even now and even here, as one of the many intimations which\neven time and earth present, of that final and universal reparation\nwhich is reserved for the general resurrection and the last\njudgment. Then the unforgetting and universal Sovereign will avenge\nall the forgotten of his people, nor leave unpunished one among the\ntallest and mightiest of his enemies. As the foreshadowing of this,\nthere is often in this life what Milton has called, \"a resurrection\nof character.\" Seen in Bunyan and others on earth, it will be one\nday accomplished as to all the families of mankind. We pronounce TOO\nSOON upon the apparent inequalities of fame and recompense around\nus; while we fail to take in the future as well as the present, and\nattempt to solve the mysteries of time without including in the\nfield of our survey the retributions of that eternity which forms\nthe selvage and hem of all the webs of earth. And we pronounce not\nonly too soon but VERY SUPERFICIALLY upon the inequalities of\nhappiness in the lot of those who fear and those who scorn God;\nwhile we look mainly or merely to the outward circumstances of home\nand station and bodily well-being, but take no note of the inner and\nmore enduring elements of felicity, supplied to the sufferer for\nChrist by the blended powers of conscience and of hope--the one of\nthem purified and pacified by the blood of the great sacrifice on\nCalvary; the other of them steadily and cheerfully soaring to the\nglories and rest of the mount Zion above. Faithful, in his cage,\nbearing the gibes and flouts of the rabble who thirsted for his\nblood, was one of the happiest men in all Vanity Fair, even ere the\nhour when his spirit mounted the fiery chariot that hurried him to\nhis celestial home.\n\nThe style of Bunyan, it may be further said, is one of the countless\nand brilliant testimonials to the merit and power of our excellent\nreceived version of the Bible. Shut out, as Bunyan was, from direct\ncontact with much other literature, he was most thoroughly\nconversant with the remains of prophets and apostles, embalmed in\nthat venerable work. With those scriptures his mind was imbued,\nsaturated, and tinged, through its whole texture and substance. Upon\nthe phraseology and imagery and idioms of that book was formed his\nown vernacular style, so racy, glowing, and energetic--long indeed\nunderrated and decried, but now beginning to receive its due honors,\nand winning the praise of critics whose judgment and taste few will\nhave the hardihood to impeach. No immaculate perfection, indeed, is\nclaimed for the English version of the Scriptures. No perfect\nversion has the world ever seen, or is it ever like to see; but the\nwritings of Bunyan must be admitted to stand among the many crowding\ntrophies of the power of our common Bible to furnish the mind with\n\"thoughts that breathe and words that burn\"--with holiest\nconceptions and mightiest utterances.\n\nAnd Bunyan himself, as a theologian on whose head no learned academy\nhad laid its hand of patronage, or let fall its anointing dews, but\nwho, whether confronting the fanatics of his time or the\ndistinguished latitudinarian divines, showed himself so powerful a\nreasoner, so acute and clear and practical a thinker, and so mighty\nin his knowledge of the Scriptures--Bunyan himself, in his position\nand merits as a theologian, furnishes a standing monument of the\npower of the divine Spirit to fashion, by prayer and the study of\nthe Bible, by affliction and by temptation, and by bitter\npersecutions even, a preacher, pastor, and writer, such as no\nuniversity need have disdained to own. To that Spirit Bunyan gave\nzealous, earnest, and continual worship. Receiving his light and\npower from that good Spirit, and anxiously directing to that great\nAgent all the hopes and the praises of the flock whom he led, and of\nthe readers whom he taught, his writings remain to diffuse and\nperpetuate the lesson of his life. Into whatever tribe of the\nancient East or of the remote West his Pilgrim has been introduced,\nthe name and story of the writer bear, as their great lesson, the\ntestimony that God's Scriptures are the richest of pastures to the\nhuman soul; and that God the Holy Ghost, as working with those\nScriptures and by those Scriptures, is the one Teacher on whose\nsovereign aid all the churches, all the nations, and all the ages\nmust depend. For the absence of those influences of the divine\nSpirit no earthly lore can compensate; while the exuberance of those\ninfluences may supply, as on Pentecost, the lack of all human\nhelpers and patrons, and more than replace all universities and all\nlibraries. We love to dwell on the illustrious Dreamer, as one of\nthose characters for whom man had done so little and God did so\nmuch.\n\nAnd to Christians who are neither authors nor preachers, this life\nof romantic privacy and illustrious obscurity has its lessons, alike\nto awe and to cheer, of solemn warning and of sustaining hope. No\nscene or station of all the earth that can eye paradise, or catch\nthe gleams of the atoning cross, is truly ignoble or utterly\nforlorn. He who promised that, in the last days, the inscription\nwhich shone on the front of the high-priest's mitre, \"HOLINESS UNTO\nTHE LORD,\" should be written also on the very bells of the horses,\nand that \"every pot\" in Jerusalem, and its outlying streets should\nbecome holy as the consecrated furniture of his own temple and\naltar, can in like manner render the lowliest scenes of human art\nand toil and traffic the schools of truth and duty and peace,\nschools ministering alike to the truest happiness and to the most\nperfect holiness of our race. He who gave, as in Bunyan's case he\ndid, to the maker or mender of culinary vessels the sacred skill to\ngrave the all-holy Name, as one dignifying and consecrating them, on\nall the objects and scenes and accompaniments of his humble labors,\ncan, in our times and in our various stations, make each allowable\ntask of our earthly life to become also \"HOLINESS TO THE LORD;\" and\nas the Christian's body is made a TEMPLE of the Holy Grhost, so can\nhe render the Christian himself, in all his social relations and\nenterprises, \"A PRIEST AND A KING UNTO GOD.\" And the great principle\nof conciliation amid earth's jarring tribes and clashing interests,\nand of true and helpful communion among mankind, is not external but\ninternal, not material but spiritual, not, terrene but celestial;\nand is found in the blending by this one divine Spirit, of all\nearth's inhabitants, in a common contrition before a common\nredemption, tending as these inhabitants are, under a common sin and\ndoom, to the same inevitable graves; but all of them invited, in the\none name of one Christ, to aspire to the same heaven of endless and\nperfect blessedness.\n\nWILLIAM R. WILLIAMS.\nNEW YORK, January, 1851.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nTHE RICHES OF BUNYAN.\n\nI. GOD.\n\nGLORY OF GOD.\n\n\n\n\n\nGod is the chief good--good so as nothing is but himself. He is in\nhimself most happy; yea, all good and all true happiness are only to\nbe found in God, as that which is essential to his nature; nor is\nthere any good or any happiness in or with any creature or thing but\nwhat is communicated to it by God. God is the only desirable good;\nnothing without him is worthy of our hearts. Right thoughts of God\nare able to ravish the heart; how much more happy is the man that\nhas interest in God. God alone is able by himself to put the soul\ninto a more blessed, comfortable, and happy condition than can the\nwhole world; yea, and more than if all the created happiness of all\nthe angels of heaven did dwell in one man's bosom. I cannot tell\nwhat to say. I am drowned. The life, the glory, the blessedness, the\nsoul-satisfying goodness that is in God, are beyond all expression.\n\nIt was this glory of God, the sight and visions of this God of\nglory, that provoked Abraham to leave his country and kindred to\ncome after God. The reason why men are so careless of and so\nindifferent about their coming to God, is because they have their\neyes blinded--because they do not perceive his glory.\n\nGod is so blessed a one, that did he not hide himself and his glory,\nthe whole world would be ravished with him; but he has, I will not\nsay reasons of state, but reasons of glory, glorious reasons why he\nhideth himself from the world and appeareth but to particular ones.\n\nWhat is heaven without God? But many there be who cannot abide God;\nno, they like not to go to heaven, because God is there. The nature\nof God lieth cross to the lusts of men. A holy God, a glorious holy\nGod, an infinitely holy God; this spoils all. But to the soul that\nis awakened, and that is made to see things as they are, to him God\nis what he is in himself, the blessed, the highest, the only eternal\ngood, and he without the enjoyment of whom all things would sound\nbut empty in the ears of that soul.\n\nMethinks, when I consider what glory there is at times upon the\ncreatures, and that all their glory is the workmanship of God, \"O\nLord,\" say I, \"what is God himself?\" He may well be called the God\nof glory, as well as the glorious Lord; for as all glory is from\nhim, so in him is an inconceivable well-spring of glory, of glory to\nbe communicated to them that come by Christ to him. Wherefore, let\nthe glory and love and bliss and eternal happiness that are in God,\nallure thee to come to him by Christ.\n\nMAJESTY OF GOD.\n\nWhat is God's majesty to a sinful man, but a consuming fire? And\nwhat is a sinful man in himself, or in his approach to God, but as\nstubble fully dry?\n\nWhat mean the tremblings, the tears, those breakings and shakings of\nheart that attend the people of God, when in an eminent manner they\nreceive the pronunciation of the forgiveness of sins at his mouth,\nbut that the dread of the majesty of God is in their sight mixed\ntherewith? God must appear like himself, speak to the soul like\nhimself; nor can the sinner, when under these glorious discoveries\nof its Lord and Saviour, keep out the beams of his majesty from the\neyes of its understanding.\n\nAlas, there is a company of poor, light, frothy professors in the\nworld, that carry it under that which they call the presence of God,\nmore like to antics than sober, sensible Christians; yea, more like\nto a fool of a play, than those who have the presence of God. They\nwould not carry it so in the presence of a king, nor yet of the lord\nof their land, were they but receivers of mercy at his hand. They\ncarry it even in their most eminent seasons, as if the sense and\nsight of God, and his blessed grace to their souls in Christ, had a\ntendency in it to make men wanton: but indeed it is the most\nhumbling and heart-rending sight in the world; it is fearful.\n\nOBJECTION. But would you not have us rejoice at the sight and sense\nof the forgiveness of our sins?\n\nANSWER. Yes; but yet I would have you, and indeed you shall when God\nshall tell you that your sins are pardoned indeed, \"rejoice with\ntrembling;\" for then you have solid and godly joy: a joyful heart\nand wet eyes in this, will stand very well together; and it will be\nso, more or less. For if God shall come to you indeed, and visit you\nwith the forgiveness of sins, that visit removeth the guilt, but\nincreaseth the sense of thy filth; and the sense of this, that God\nhath forgiven a filthy sinner, will make thee both rejoice and\ntremble. O, the blessed confusion which will then cover thy face,\nwhile thou, even thou, so vile a wretch, shalt stand before God to\nreceive at his hand thy pardon, and so the first-fruits of thy\neternal salvation. \"That thou mayest remember, and be confounded,\nand never open thy mouth any more, because of thy shame, when I am\npacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lord\nGod.\" Jer. 33:8, 9; Ezek. 16:63.\n\nSince the NAME of God is that by which his nature is expressed, and\nsince he naturally is so glorious and incomprehensible, his name\nmust needs be the object of our fear; and we ought always to have a\nreverent awe of God upon our hearts at what time soever we think of\nor hear his name; but most of all when we ourselves do take his holy\nand fearful name into our mouths, especially in a religious manner;\nthat is, in preaching, praying, or holy conference.\n\nMake mention then of the name of the Lord at all times with great\ndread of his majesty on your hearts, and in great soberness and\ntruth. To do otherwise is to profane the name of the Lord, and to\ntake his name in vain.\n\nNext to God's nature and name, his service, his instituted worship,\nis the most dreadful thing under heaven. His name is upon his\nordinances, his eye is upon the worshippers, and his wrath and\njudgment upon those that worship not in his fear.\n\nHis presence is dreadful; and not only his presence in common, but\nhis special, yea, his most comfortable and joyous presence. When God\ncomes to bring a soul news of mercy and salvation, even that visit,\nthat presence of God is fearful. When Jacoh went from Beersheba to\nHaran, he met with God in the way by a dream, in the which he\napprehended a ladder set upon the earth, whose top reached to\nheaven. Now in this dream, at the top of this ladder, he saw the\nLord, and heard him speak unto him, not threateningly, not as having\nhis fury come up into his face, but in the most sweet and gracious\nmanner, saluting him with promise of goodness after promise of\ngoodness, to the number of eight or nine. Yet, I say, when he awoke,\nall the grace that discovered itself in this heavenly vision to him\ncould not keep him from dread and fear of God's majesty: \"And Jacob\nawoke out of his sleep and said, 'Surely the Lord was in this place,\nand I knew it not;' and he was afraid, and said, 'How dreadful is\nthis place; this is none other but the house of God, and this is the\ngate of heaven.'\"\n\nAt another time, when Jacob had that memorable visit from God, in\nwhich he gave him power as a prince to prevail with him; yea, and\ngave him a name, that by his remembering it he might call God's\nfavor the better to his mind; yet, even then and there such dread of\nthe majesty of God was upon him, that he went away wondering that\nhis life was preserved. Man crumbles to dust at the presence of God;\nyea, though he show himself to us in his robes of salvation. Gen.\n28:10-17; 32:30.\n\nJUSTICE OF GOD.\n\nYou may see a few of the sparks of the justice of God against sin\nand sinners, by his casting off angels for sin from heaven and hell,\nby his drowning the old world, by his burning of Sodom and Gomorrah\nto ashes.\n\nGod is resolved to have the mastery. God is merciful, and is come\nforth into the world by his Son, tendering grace unto sinners by the\ngospel, and would willingly make a conquest over them for their good\nby his mercy. Now he being come out, sinners like briars and thorns\ndo set themselves against him, and will have none of his mercy.\nWell, but what says God? Saith he, \"Then I will march on. I will go\nthrough them, and burn them together. I am resolved to have the\nmastery one way or another; if they will not bend to me and accept\nof my mercy in the gospel, I will bend them and break them by my\njustice in hell-fire.\"\n\nHOLINESS OF GOD.\n\nThe holiness of God makes the angels cover their faces, and crumbles\nChristians, when they behold it, into dust and ashes.\n\nSOVEREIGNTY OF GOD.\n\nThe will of God is the rule of all righteousness, neither knoweth he\nany other way by which he governeth and ordereth any of his actions.\nWhatsoever God doeth, it is good because he doeth it; whether it be\nto give grace or to detain it, whether in choosing or refusing. The\nconsideration of this made the holy men of old ascribe righteousness\nto their Maker, even when yet they could not see the reason of his\nactions; they would rather stand amazed and wonder at the heights\nand depths of his unsearchable judgments, than quarrel at the most\nstrange and obscure of them.\n\nSOVEREIGNTY OF GOD IN CONVERSION.\n\nMercy may receive him that we have doomed to hell, and justice may\ntake hold on him whom we have judged to be bound up in the bundle of\nlife. We, like Joseph, are for setting of Manasseh before Ephraim;\nbut God, like Jacob, puts his hands across, and lays his right hand\nupon the worst man's head and his left hand upon the best, Gen. 48,\nto the amazement and wonderment even of the best of men.\n\nPROVIDENCE OF GOD IN CONVERSION.\n\nDoth no man come to Jesus Christ by the will, wisdom, and power of\nman, but by the gift, promise, and drawing of the Father? Then here\nis room for Christians to stand and wonder at the effectual working\nof God's providence, that he hath made use of as means to bring them\nto Jesus Christ.\n\nWhat was the providence that God made use of as a means, either more\nremote or near, to bring thee to Jesus Christ? Was it the removing\nof thy habitation, the change of thy condition, the loss of\nrelations, estate, or the like? Was it the casting of thine eye upon\nsome good book, the hearing thy neighbors talk of heavenly things,\nthe beholding of God's judgments as executed upon others, or thine\nown deliverance from them, or thy being strangely cast under the\nministry of some godly man? O take notice of such providence or\nprovidences. They were sent and managed by mighty power to do thee\ngood. God himself hath joined himself to this chariot, yea, and so\nblessed it that it failed not to accomplish the thing for which it\nwas sent.\n\nCONDESCENSION OF GOD.\n\nNotwithstanding there is such a revelation of God in his word, in\nthe book of creatures, and in the book of providences, yet the\nscripture says, \"Lo, these are parts of his ways, but how little a\nportion is heard of him;\" so great is God above all that we have\nread, heard, or seen of him, either in the Bible, in heaven, or\nearth, or sea, or what else is to be understood. But now that a poor\nmortal, a lump of sinful flesh, or, as the scripture phrase is, poor\ndust and ashes, should be in the favor, in the heart, and wrapped up\nin the compassions of such a God! O amazing; O astonishing\nconsideration! And yet, \"this God is our God for ever and ever, and\nhe will be our guide even unto death.\"\n\nMERCY OF GOD.\n\nAs God has mercies to bestow, and as he has designed to bestow them,\nso those mercies are no fragments or the leavings of others, but\nmercies that are full and complete to do for thee what thou wantest,\nwouldst have, or canst desire. As I may so say, God has his bags\nthat were never yet untied, never yet broken up, but laid by him\nthrough a thousand generations for those that he commands to hope in\nhis mercy.\n\nI tell you, sirs, you must not trust your own apprehensions nor\njudgments of the mercy of God; you do not know how he can cause it\nto abound: that which seems to be short and shrunk up to you, he can\ndraw out and cause to abound exceedingly. There is a breadth and\nlength and depth and height therein, when God will please to open\nit, that for its infiniteness can swallow up not only all thy sins,\nbut all thy thoughts and imaginations, and that also can drown thee\nat last. \"Now unto him that is able,\" as to mercy, \"to do exceeding\nabundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power\nthat worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus\nthroughout all ages, world without end. Amen.\"\n\nThis therefore is a wonderful thing, and shall be wondered at to all\neternity, that the river of mercy, that at first did seem to be but\nancle deep, should so rise and rise that at last it became \"waters\nto swim in, a river that could not be passed over.\" Ezck. 47:5.\n\nGOD THE JUSTIFIER.\n\nThe first cause of justification before God dependeth upon the will\nof God, who will justify because he will; therefore the meritorious\ncause must also be of his own providing, else his will cannot herein\nbe absolute; for if justification depend upon our personal\nperformances, then not upon the will of God. He may not have mercy\nupon whom he will, but on whom man's righteousness will give him\nleave; but his will, not ours, must rule here, therefore his\nrighteousness and his only. So then, men are justified from the\ncurse in the sight of God, while sinners in themselves.\n\nGLORY OF GOD IN REDEMPTION.\n\nIn redemption by the blood of Christ, God is said to abound towards\nus in all WISDOM. Here we see the highest contradictions reconciled;\nhere justice kisseth the sinner; here a man stands just in the sight\nof God, while confounded at his own pollutions; and here he that\nhath done no good, hath yet a sufficient righteousness, \"even the\nrighteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ.\"\n\nThe JUSTICE of God is here more seen than in punishing all the\ndamned.\n\nThe MYSTERY OF GOD'S WILL is here more seen than in hanging the\nearth upon nothing; while he condemneth Christ though righteous, and\njustifieth us though sinners, while he \"maketh him to be sin for us,\nand us the righteousness of God in him.\"\n\nThe POWER of God is here more seen than in making heaven and earth;\nfor, for one to hear and get the victory over sin when charged by\nthe justice of an infinite Majesty, in so doing he shows the height\nof the highest power; for where sin by the law is charged, and that\nby God immediately, there an infinite Majesty opposeth, and that\nwith the whole of his justice, holiness, and power; so then, he that\nis thus charged and engaged for the sin of the world, must not only\nhe equal with God, but show it by overcoming that curse and judgment\nthat by infinite justice is charged upon him for sin.\n\nWhen angels and men had sinned, how did they fall and crumble before\nthe anger of God! They had not power to withstand the terror, nor\ncould there be worth found in their persons or doings to appease\ndispleased justice. Here then is power seen: sin is a mighty thing;\nit crusheth all in pieces, save him whose Spirit is eternal. Heb.\n9:14. Set Christ and his sufferings aside, and you neither see the\nevil of sin nor the displeasure of God against it; you see them not\nin their utmost. Jesus Christ made manifest his eternal power and\ngodhead more by bearing and overcoming our sins, than in making or\nupholding the whole world. 1 Cor. 1:24.\n\nThe LOVE AND MERCY of God are more seen in and by this doctrine than\nany other way. Here is love, that God sent his Son--his darling--his\nSon that never offended--his Son that was always his delight!\nHerein is love, that he sent him to save sinners--to save them by\nbearing their sins, by bearing their curse, by dying their death,\nand by carrying their sorrows! Here is love, in that while we were\nyet without strength, Christ died for the ungodly!\n\nGOD A FATHER.\n\nO how great a task is it for a poor soul that comes, sensible of sin\nand the wrath of God, to say in faith but this one word, Father! I\ntell you, however hypocrites think, yet the Christian that is so\nindeed finds all the difficulty in this very thing; he cannot say\nGod is his Father. O, saith he, I dare not call him Father. And\nhence it is that the Spirit must be sent into the hearts of God's\npeople for this very thing, to cry Father; it being too great a work\nfor any man to do knowingly and believingly without it. When I say\nknowingly, I mean knowing what it is to be a child of God and to be\nborn again; and when I say believingly, I mean for the soul to\nbelieve, and that from good experience, that the work of grace is\nwrought in him. This is the right calling of God, Father; and not as\nmany do, to say in a babbling way the Lord's prayer by heart. No,\nhere is the life of prayer, when in or with the Spirit, a man being\nmade sensible of sin and how to come to the Lord for mercy, he\ncomes, I say, in the strength of the Spirit, and crieth, Father.\nThat one word spoken in faith, is better than a thousand prayers in\na formal, cold, lukewarm way.\n\nNaturally the name of God is dreadful to us, especially when he is\ndiscovered to us by those names that declare his justice, holiness,\npower, and glory; but the word FATHER is a familiar word; it\nfrighteth not the sinner, but rather inclineth his heart to love and\nbe pleased with the remembrance of him. Hence Christ also, when he\nwould have us to pray with godly boldness, put this word FATHER into\nour mouths, saying, \"When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in\nheaven;\" concluding thereby that in the familiarity which by such a\nword is intimated, the children of God may take more holdness to\npray for and ask great things. I myself have often found that when I\ncan say but this word, FATHER, it doth me more good than when I call\nhim by any other scripture name.\n\nIt is worth your noting, that to call God by his relative title was\nrare among the saints in Old Testament times; but now in New\nTestament times, he is called by no name so often as this, both by\nthe Lord Jesus Christ himself and by the apostles afterwards. Indeed\nthe Lord Jesus was he that first made this name common among the\nsaints, and that taught them in their discourses, in their prayers,\nand in their writings, so much to use it; it being more pleasing to,\nand discovering more plainly our interest in God, than any other\nexpression. For by this one name we are made to understand that all\nour mercies are the offspring of God, and that we also who are\ncalled are his children by adoption.\n\nFAITHFULNESS OF GOD.\n\nFaithfulness in him that rules is that which makes Zion rejoice,\nbecause thereby the promises yield milk and honey. For now the\nfaithful God, that keepeth covenant, performs to his church that\nwhich he told her he would. Wherefore our rivers shall run and our\nbrooks yield honey and butter. Job 20:17.\n\nLet this teach all God's people to expect, to look, and wait for\ngood things from the throne. But O, methinks this throne out of\nwhich good comes like a river, who but would be a subject to it? who\nbut would worship before it?\n\nPRESENCE OF GOD.\n\nGod's presence is renewing, transforming, seasoning, sanctifying,\ncommanding, sweetening, and lightening to the soul. Nothing like it\nin all the world: his presence supplies all wants, heals all\nmaladies, saves from all dangers, is life in death, heaven in hell,\nall in all.\n\nGOD'S REPENTING.\n\n\"And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth.\"\nRepentance in us is a change of the mind, but in God a change of his\ndispensations; for otherwise he repenteth not, neither can he,\nbecause it standeth not with the perfection of his nature. \"In him\nis no variableness, nor shadow of turning.\"\n\nWherefore it is man, not God, that turns. When men reject the mercy\nand ways of God, they cast themselves under his wrath and\ndispleasure; which, because it is executed according to the nature\nof his justice and the severity of his law, they miss of the mercy\npromised before; which that we may know, those shall one day feel\nthat shall continue in final impenitency. Therefore God, speaking to\ntheir capacity, tells them he hath repented of doing them good. It\nrepented the Lord that he had made Saul king; and yet this\nrepentance was only a change of the dispensation which Saul by his\nwickedness had put himself under; otherwise the Strength, the\nEternity of Israel will not lie nor repent.\n\nThe sum is, therefore, that men had now by their wickedness put\nthemselves under the justice and law of God; which justice, by\nreason of its perfection, could not endure they should abide on the\nearth any longer; and therefore now, as a just reward of their deed,\nthey must be swept from the face thereof.\n\nPROVIDENCE OF GOD.\n\nWe should tremblingly glory and rejoice when we see God in the\nworld, though upon those that are the most terrible of his\ndispensations. God the Creator will sometimes mount himself and ride\nthrough the earth, in such majesty and glory that he will make all\nto stand in the tent-doors to behold him. O how he rode in his\nchariots of salvation, when he went to save his people out of the\nland of Egypt. How he shook the nations. Then his glory covered the\nheavens, and the earth was full of his praise. His brightness was as\nthe light: he had horns coming out of his hand, and there was the\nhiding of his power.\n\nThese are glorious things, though shaking dispensations God is\nworthy to be seen in his dispensations as well as in his word,\nthough the nations tremble at his presence. \"O that thou wouldest\nrend the heavens, that thou wouldest comedown,\" saith the prophet,\n\"that the mountains might flow down at thy presence.\"\n\n\"We know God, and he is our God, our own God; of whom or of what\nshould we be afraid? When God roars out of Zion, and utters his\nvoice from Jerusalem, when the heavens and the earth do shake, the\nLord shall be the hope of his people and the strength of the\nchildren of Israel.\"\n\nHe that knows the sea, knows the waves will toss themselves; he that\nknows a lion, will not much wonder to see his paw or to hear the\nvoice of his roaring. And shall we that know our God, be stricken\nwith a panic fear when he cometh out of his holy place to punish the\ninhabitants of the earth for their iniquity? We should stand like\nthose that are next to angels, and tell the blind world who it is\nthat is thus mounted upon his steed, and that hath the clouds for\nthe dust of his feet, and that thus rideth upon the wings of the\nwind: we should say unto them, \"This God is our God for ever and\never, and he shall be our guide even unto death.\"\n\nThere are providences of two sorts, seemingly good and seemingly\nbad; and those do usually as Jacob did when he blessed the sons of\nJoseph, cross hands and lay the blessing where we would not. There\nare providences unto which we would have the blessings entailed; but\nthey are not. And these are providences that smile upon the flesh,\nsuch as cast into the lap health, wealth, plenty, ease, friends, and\nabundance of this world's good: because these, as Manasseh's name\ndoth signify, have in them an aptness to make us forget our toil,\nour low estate, and from whence we were; but the great blessing is\nnot in them.\n\nThere are providences again, that take away from us whatever is\ndesirable to the flesh; such are sickness, losses, crosses,\npersecution, and affliction; and usually in these, though they shock\nus whenever they come upon us, blessing coucheth and is ready to\nhelp us. For God, as the name of Ephraim signifies, makes us\nfruitful in the land of affliction. He therefore, in blessing his\npeople, lays his hands across, guiding them wittingly and laying the\nchiefest blessing on the head of Ephraim, or in that providence that\nsanctifies affliction. Abel-what to the reason of Eve was he, in\ncomparison with Cain? Rachel called Benjamin the son of her sorrow;\nbut Jacob knew how to give him a better name. Jabez, also, though\nhis mother so called him because, as it seems, she brought him forth\nwith more than ordinary sorrow, was yet more honorable, more godly,\nthan his brethren.\n\nHe that has skill to judge of providences aright, has a great\nability in him \"to comprehend with other saints what is the breadth\nand length and depth and height;\" but he that has no skill as to\ndiscerning them, is but a child in his judgment in those high and\nmysterious things. And hence it is that some shall suck honey out of\nthat at which others tremble, for fear it should poison them. I have\noften been made to say, \"Sorrow is better than laughter, and the\nhouse of mourning better than the house of mirth.\" And I have more\noften seen that the afflicted are always the best sort of\nChristians. There is a man never well, never prospering, never but\nunder afflictions, disappointments, and sorrows; why, this man, if\nhe be a Christian, is one of the best of men: \"They that go down to\nthe sea, that do business in great waters, they see the works of the\nLord and his wonders in the deep.\"\n\nI do not question but that there are some that are alive who have\nbeen able to say the days of affliction have been the best unto\nthem, and who could, if it were lawful, pray that they might always\nbe in affliction, if God would but do to them as he did when his\nhand was last upon them; for by them he caused his light to shine.\n\nOh how should we, and how would we were but our eyes awake, stand\nand wonder at the preservations, the deliverances, the salvations,\nand benefits with which we are surrounded daily, while so many\nmighty evils seek daily to swallow us up as the grave!\n\nHow many deaths have some been delivered from and saved out of\nbefore conversion. Some have fallen into rivers, some into wells,\nsome into the sea, some into the hands of men; yea, they have been\njustly arraigned and condemned, as the thief upon the cross, but\nmust not die before they were converted. They were preserved in\nChrist, and called.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nII. THE TRINITY\n\n\n\n\n\nIF in the Godhead there be but one, not three, then the Father, the\nSon, or the Spirit must needs be that one, if any one only; so then\nthe other two are nothing. Again, if the reality of a being be\nneither in the Father, Son, nor Spirit, as such, but in the eternal\nDeity, without consideration of Father Son and Spirit as three, then\nneither of the three are any thing but notions in us, or\nmanifestations of the Godhead, or nominal distinctions, so related\nby the word; but if so, then when the Father sent the Son, and the\nFather and Son the Spirit, one notion sent another one manifestation\nsent another. This being granted, it unavoidably follows there was\nno Father to beget a Son, no Son to be sent to save us, no Holy\nGhost to be sent to comfort us and to guide us into all the truth of\nthe Father and Son. At most it amounts to hut this: a notion sent a\nnotion, a distinction sent a distinction, or one manifestation sent\nanother. Of this error these are the consequences: we are only to\nbelieve in notions and distinctions, when we believe in the Father\nand the Son; and so shall have no other heaven and glory than\nnotions and nominal distinctions can furnish us withal.\n\nIf thou feel thy thoughts begin to wrestle about this truth, and to\nstruggle concerning this, one against another, take heed of\nadmitting such a question, \"How can this be?\" for here is no room\nfor reason to make it out; here is only room to believe it is a\ntruth. You find not one of the prophets propounding an argument to\nprove it, but asserting it; they let it lie for faith to take it up\nand embrace it.\n\n\"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the\ncommunion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.\"\n\nIn a word, if you would see it altogether, God's love was the cause\nwhy Christ was sent to bleed for sinners. Jesus Christ's bleeding\nstops the cries of divine justice. God looks upon them as complete\nin him, and gives them to him as by right of purchase. Jesus ever\nlives to pray for them that are thus given unto him. God sends his\nHoly Spirit into them to reveal this to them, sends his angels to\nminister for them, and all this by virtue of an everlasting covenant\nbetween the Father and the Son. \"Happy the people that are in such a\ncase.\" He hath made them brethren with Jesus Christ, members of his\nflesh and of his bones, the spouse of this Lord Jesus; and all to\nshow how dearly, really, and constantly he loveth us who by the\nfaith of his operation have laid hold upon him.\n\nThe doctrine of the Trinity! that is the substance, that is the\nground and fundamental of all, for by this doctrine and this only\nthe man is made a Christian; and he that has not this doctrine, his\nprofession is not worth a button.\n\nYou must know that sometimes the church in the wilderness has but\nlittle light, hut the diminution of her light is not then so much in\nor as to substantials, as it is as to circumstantial things; she has\nthen the substantials with her in her darkest day.\n\nThe doctrine of the Trinity! you may ask me what that is? I answer,\nit is that doctrine that showeth us the love of God the Father in\ngiving his Son, the love of God the Son in giving himself, and the\nlove of the Lord the Spirit in his work of regenerating us, that we\nmay be made able to lay hold of the love of the Father by his Son,\nand so enjoy eternal life by grace.\n\nThe Father's grace saveth no man without the grace of the Son,\nneither do the Father and the Son save any without the grace of the\nSpirit; for as the Father loves, the Son must die, and the Spirit\nmust sanctify, or no soul must be saved.\n\nSome think that the love of the Father, without the blood of the\nSon, will save them; but they are deceived, \"for without shedding of\nblood is no remission.\"\n\nSome think that the love of the Father and blood of the Son will do,\nwithout the holiness of the Spirit of God; but they are deceived\nalso, for \"if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of\nhis.\"\n\nThere is a third sort, that think the holiness of the Spirit is\nsufficient of itself; but they are deceived also, for it must be the\ngrace of the Father, the grace of the Son, and the grace of the\nSpirit, jointly, that must save them.\n\nBut yet, as these three do put forth grace jointly and truly in the\nsalvation of a sinner, so they put it forth after a diverse manner.\nThe Father designs us for heaven, the Son redeems from sin and\ndeath, and the Spirit makes us meet for heaven: not by electing,\nthat is the work of the Father; not by dying, that is the work of\nthe Son; but by his revealing Christ, and applying Christ to our\nsouls, by shedding the love of God abroad in our hearts, by\nsanctifying our souls, and taking possession of us as an earnest of\nour possession in heaven.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIII. THE SCRIPTURES.\n\n\n\n\n\nTHE Scriptures carry such a blessed beauty in them to that soul that\nhas faith in the things contained in them, that they do take the\nheart and captivate the soul of him that believeth them into the\nlove and liking of them, believing all things that are written in\nthe law and the prophets, and having hope towards God that there\nshall be a resurrection of the dead both of the just and unjust.\n\nTo him that believes the Scriptures aright, the promises or\nthreatenings are of more power to comfort or cast down, than all the\npromises or threatenings of all the men in the world; and this was\nthe cause why the martyrs of Jesus did so slight both the promises\nof their adversaries when they would have overcome them with\nproffering the great things of this world unto them, and also their\nthreatenings when they told them they would rack them, hang them,\nburn them. None of these things could prevail upon them or against\nthem.\n\nI never had in all my life so great an inlet into the word of God as\nnow, [in prison.] Those scriptures that I saw nothing in before,\nwere made in this place and state to shine upon me. Jesus Christ\nalso was never more real and apparent than now. Here I have seen and\nfelt him indeed: O that word, \"We have not preached unto you\ncunningly devised fables,\" and that, \"God raised Christ from the\ndead and gave him glory, that our faith and hope might he in God,\"\nwere blessed words unto me in this condition.\n\nThese three or four scriptures also have been great refreshments\nin this condition to me, John 14:1-4; 16:33; Heb. 12:22-24; so that\nsometimes, when I have been in the savor of them, I have been able\nto laugh at destruction, and to fear neither the horse nor his\nrider. I have had sweet sights of the forgiveness of my sins in this\nplace, and of my being with Jesus in another world. Oh the mount\nZion, the heavenly Jerusalem, the innumerable company of angels, and\nGod the judge of all, and the spirits of just men made perfect; and\nJesus has been sweet to me in this place: I have seen THAT here,\nwhich I am persuaded I shall never while in this world be able to\nexpress. I have seen a truth in this scripture, \"Whom having not\nseen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye\nrejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.\"\n\nThe glass was one of a thousand. It would present a man one way with\nhis own features exactly, and turn it but another way and it would\nshow one the very face and similitude of the Prince of the pilgrims\nhimself. Yes, I have talked with them that can tell, and they have\nsaid that they have seen the very crown of thorns upon his head by\nlooking in that glass; they have therein also seen the holes in his\nhands, in his feet, and in his side. Yea, such an excellency is\nthere in that glass, that it will show him to one where they have a\nmind to see him, whether living or dead, whether in earth or in\nheaven, whether in a state of humiliation or in his exaltation,\nwhether coming to suffer or coming to reign. James I: 23-25; I Cor.\n13:12; 2 Cor. 3:13.\n\nThen said Greatheart to Mr. Valiant-for-Truth, \"Thou hast worthily\nbehaved thyself; let me see thy sword.\" So he showed it him. \"When\nhe had taken it into his hand, and looked thereon awhile, he said,\nHa, it is a right Jerusalem blade.\"\n\nVALIANT. \"It is so. Let a man have one of these blades, with a hand\nto wield it and skill to use it, and he may venture upon an angel\nwith it. He need not fear its holding, if he can but tell how to lay\non. Its edge will never blunt. It will cut flesh and bones, and soul\nand spirit, and all.\"\n\nI saw then in my dream, that they went on in this their solitary\nground, till they came to a place at which a man is apt to lose his\nway. Now, though when it was light their guide could well enough\ntell how to miss those ways that led wrong, yet in the dark he was\nput to a stand; but he had in his pocket a map of all ways leading\nto or from the celestial city; wherefore he struck a light--for he\nnever goes without his tinder-box also--and takes a view of his book\nor map, which bids him be careful in that place to turn to the right\nhand.. And had he not been careful to look in his map, they had in\nall probability been smothered in the mud; for just a little before\nthem, and that at the end of the cleanest way too, was a pit, none\nknows how deep, full of nothing but mud, there made on purpose to\ndestroy the pilgrims in. Then thought I with myself, Who that goeth\non pilgrimage but would have one of these maps about him, that he\nmay look when he is at a stand which is the way he must take?\n\nIf we consider that our next state must be eternal, either eternal\nglory or eternal fire, and that this eternal glory or this eternal\nfire must be our portion according as the word of God revealed in\nthe holy Scriptures shall determine, who will not but conclude that\ntherefore the words of God are they at which we should tremble, and\nthey by which we should have our fear of God guided and directed?\nfor by them we are taught how to please him in every thing.\n\n\"Noah drank of the wine and was drunken.\" The Holy Ghost, when it\nhath to do with sin, loves to give it its own name; drunkenness must\nbe drunkenness, murder must he murder, and adultery must bear its\nown name. Nay, it is neither the goodness of the man, nor his being\nin favor with God, that will cause him to lessen or mince his sin.\nNoah was drunken; Lot lay with his daughters; David killed Uriah;\nPeter cursed and swore in the garden, and also dissembled at\nAntioch. But this is not recorded to the intent that the name of\nthese godly should rot, but to show that the best men are nothing\nwithout grace, and that \"he that standeth should not be high-minded,\nbut fear.\" Yea, they are also recorded for the support of the\ntempted, who, when they are fallen, are oft raised up by considering\nthe infirmities of others. \"Whatsoever things were written aforetime\nwere written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort\nof the scriptures might have hope.\"\n\nGod's word has two edges; it can cut back-stroke and fore-stroke: if\nit do thee no good, it will do thee hurt; it is the savor of life\nunto life to those that receive it, but of death unto death to them\nthat refuse it.\n\nI do find in most such a spirit of idolatry concerning the learning\nof this world and wisdom of the flesh, and God's glory so much\nstained and diminished thereby, that had I all their aid and\nassistance at command, I durst not make use of aught thereof, and\nthat for fear lest that grace and those gifts that the Lord hath\ngiven me, should be attributed to their wits, rather than to the\nlight of the word and Spirit of God. Wherefore I will not take of\nthem from a thread to a shoe-latchet, lest they should say, We have\nmade Abraham rich.\n\nWhat you find suiting with the scriptures, take, though it should\nnot suit with authors; but that which you find against the\nscriptures, slight, though it should be confirmed by multitudes of\nthem. Yea, further, where you find the scriptures and your authors\nagree, yet believe it for the sake of scripture's authority. I honor\nthe godly as Christians, but I prefer the Bible before them; and\nhaving that still with me, I count myself far better furnished than\nif I had, without it, all the libraries of the two universities.\nBesides, I am for drinking water out of my own cistern: what God\nmakes mine by the evidence of his word and Spirit, that I dare make\nbold with. Wherefore, seeing, though I am without their learned\nlines, yet well furnished with the words of God, I mean the Bible, I\nhave contented myself with what I have there found; and having set\nit before your eyes,\n\nI pray read and take, sir, what you like best; And that which you\nlike not, leave for the rest.\n\nRead, and read again, and do not despair of help to understand\nsomething of the will and mind of God, though you think they are\nfast locked up from you. Neither trouble your heads though you have\nnot commentaries and expositions; pray and read, and read and pray;\nfor a little from God is better than a great deal from men: also\nwhat is from men is uncertain, and is often lost and tumbled over\nand over by men; but what is from God is fixed as a nail in a sure\nplace. There is nothing that so abides with us, as what we receive\nfrom God; and the reason why Christians at this day are at such a\nloss as to some things, is because they are content with what comes\nfrom men's mouths, without searching and kneeling before God to know\nof him the truth of things. Things that we receive at God's hand\ncome to us as things from the minting-house, though old in\nthemselves, yet new to us. Old truths are always new to us, if they\ncome to us with the smell of heaven upon them.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIV. MAN.\n\nTHE IMAGE OF GOD.\n\n\n\n\n\nMAN is God's image, and to curse wickedly the image of God, is to\ncurse God himself. Suppose that a man should say with his mouth, I\nwish that the king's picture were burned; would not this man's so\nsaying render him as an enemy to the person of the king? Even so it\nis with them that by cursing wish evil to their neighbors or\nthemselves; they contemn the image of God himself.\n\nThis world, as it dropped from the fingers of God, was far more\nglorious than it is now.\n\nVALUE OF THE SOUL.\n\nThe soul is a thing, though of most worth, least minded by most. The\nsouls of most lie waste, while all other things are inclosed.\n\nSoul-concerns are concerns of the highest nature, and concerns that\narise from thoughts most deep and ponderous. He never yet knew what\nbelonged to great and deep thoughts, that is a stranger to\nsoul-concerns.\n\nThe soul is capable of having to do with invisibles, with angels,\ngood or bad, yea, with the highest and supreme Being, even the holy\nGod of heaven. I told you before that God sought the soul of man to\nhave it for his companion; and now I tell you that the soul is\ncapable of communion with him, when the darkness that sin hath\nspread over its face is removed. The soul is an intelligent power,\nand it can be made to know and understand depths and heights and\nlengths and breadths, in those high, sublime, and spiritual\nmysteries that only God can reveal and teach; yea, it is capable of\ndiving unutterably into them. And herein is God, the God of glory,\nmuch delighted--that he hath made for himself a creature that is\ncapable of hearing, of knowing and of understanding his mind, when\nopened and revealed to it.\n\nThe greatness of the soul is manifest by the greatness of the price\nthat Christ paid for it to make it an heir of glory, and that was\nhis precious blood. We do use to esteem things according to the\nprice that is given for them, especially when we are convinced that\nthe purchase has not been made by the estimation of a fool. Now the\nsoul is purchased by a price, that the Son, the wisdom of God,\nthought fit to pay for the redemption thereof; what a thing then is\nthe soul!\n\nSuppose a prince, or some great man, should on a sudden descend from\nhis throne or chair of state, to take up, that he might put in his\nbosom, something that he had espied lying trampled under the feet of\nthose that stand by; would you think that he would do this for an\nold horseshoe, or for so trivial a thing as a pin or a point? Nay,\nwould you not even of yourselves conclude that that thing for which\nthe prince, so great a man, should make such a stoop, must needs be\na thing of very great worth? Why, this is the case of Christ and the\nsoul. Christ is the prince, his throne is in heaven, and as he sat\nthere he espied the souls of sinners trampled under the foot of the\nlaw and death for sin. Now what doth he, but comes down from his\nthrone, stoops down to the earth, and there, since he could not have\nthe trodden-down souls without price, he lays down his life and\nblood for them.\n\nADAM'S TRANSGRESSION.\n\nIn a word, Adam led mankind out of their paradise; that is one woe:\nand put out their eyes, that is another; and left them to the\nleading of the devil. O sad! Canst thou hear this, and not have thy\nears to tingle and burn on thy head? Canst thou read this and not\nfeel it, and not feel thy conscience begin to throb? If so, surely\nit is because thou art either possessed with the devil, or beside\nthyself.\n\nO, this was the treasure that Adam left to his posterity, it was a\nbroken covenant, insomuch that death reigned over all his children,\nand doth still to this day, as they come from him---both natural and\neternal death. Rom. 5.\n\nDEPRAVITY OF NATURE.\n\nLet a man be as devout as is possible for the law and the holiness\nof the law. Yet if the principles from which he acts be but the\nhabit of soul, the purity, as he feigns, of his own\nnature--principles of natural reason, or the dictates of human\nnature; all this is nothing else but the old gentleman in his\nholiday clothes: the old heart, the old spirit, the spirit of the\nman, not the spirit of Christ, is here.\n\nLOVE OF SIN.\n\nSin has been delightfully admitted to an entertainment by all the\npowers of the soul. The soul hath chosen it rather than God; and\nalso, at God's command, refuses to let it go.\n\nIf there be at any time, as indeed there is, a warrant issued out\nfrom the mouth of God to apprehend, to condemn and mortify sin, why\nthen the souls of sinners do presently make these shifts for the\nsaving of sin from things that by the word men arc commanded to do\nunto it:\n\n1. They will, if possible, hide it, and not suffer it to be\ndiscovered.\n\n2. As the soul will hide it, so it will excuse it, and plead that\nthis and that piece of wickedness is no such evil thing, men need\nnot be so nice.\n\n3. As the soul will do this, so to save sin it will cover it with\nnames of virtue, either moral or civil.\n\n4. If convictions and discovery of sin be so strong and so plain\nthat the soul cannot deny but that it is sin, and that God is\noffended therewith, then it will give flattering promises to God\nthat it will indeed put it away; but yet it will prefix a time that\nshall he long first, saying, Yet a little sleep, yet a little\nslumber, yet a little folding of sin in my arms, till I am older,\ntill I am richer, till I have had more of the sweetness and the\ndelights of sin.\n\n5. If God yet pursues, and will see whether this promise of putting\nsin out of doors shall he fulfilled by the soul, why then it will be\npartial in God's law; it will put away some, and keep some; put away\nthe grossest, and keep the finest; put away those that can best be\nspared, and keep the most profitable for a help at a pinch.\n\n6. Yea, if all sin must be abandoned, or the soul shall have no\nrest, why then the soul and sin will part--with such a parting as it\nis--even as Phaltiel parted with David's wife, with an ill-will and\na sorrowful mind; or as Orpah left her mother, with a kiss. 2 Sam.\n3:16; Ruth 1:14.\n\n7. And if at any time they can or shall meet with each other again,\nand nobody never the wiser, O what courting will be between sin and\nthe soul.\n\nBy all these, and many more things that might be instanced, it is\nmanifest that sin has a friendly entertainment by the soul, and that\ntherefore the soul is guilty of damnation; for what do all these\nthings argue, but that God, his word, his ways and graces, are out\nof favor with the soul, and that sin and Satan are its only pleasant\ncompanions?\n\nSIN.\n\nSin so sets itself against the nature of God that, if possible, it\nwould annihilate and turn him into nothing, it being in its nature\npoint-blank against him.\n\nWhat a thing is sin; what a devil and master of devils is it, that\nit should, where it takes hold, so hang that nothing can unclutch\nits hold, but the mercy of God and the heart-blood of his dear Son.\n\nNo sin is little in itself; because it is a contradiction of the\nnature and majesty of God.\n\nO, sin, what art thou! What hast thou done! and what still wilt thou\nfurther do, if mercy and blood and grace do not prevent thee!\n\n    Sin is the living worm, the lasting fire;\n    Hell soon would loss its heat, could sin expire.\n    Better sinless in hell, than to be where\n    Heaven is, and to be found a sinner there.\n    One sinless with infernals might do well,\n    But sin would make of heaven a very hell.\n        Look to thyself then, keep it out of door,\n        Lest it get in and never leave thee more.\n\n    No match has sin but God in all the world;\n    Men, angels, has it from their station hurled,\n    Holds them in chains as captives, in despite\n    Of all that here below is called might.\n    Release, help, freedom from it none can give,\n    But even He by whom we breathe and live.\n        Watch therefore, keep this giant out of door,\n        Lest, if once in, thou get him out no more.\n\n    Fools make a mock at sin, will not believe\n    It carries such a dagger in its sleeve.\n    How can it be, say they, that such a thing,\n    So full of sweetness, e'er should wear a sting?\n    They know not that it is the very spell\n    Of sin, to make men laugh themselves to hell.\n        Look to thyself, then, deal with sin no more,\n        Lest He that saves, against thee shut the door.\n\nThere are sins against light, sins against knowledge, sins against\nlove, sins against learning, sins against threatenings, sins against\npromises and vows and resolutions, sins against experience, sins\nagainst examples of anger, and sins that have great and high and\nstrange aggravations attending them; the which we are ignorant of,\nthough not altogether, yet in too great a measure.\n\nSins go not alone, hut follow one another as do the links of a\nchain.\n\nA presumptuous sin is such a one as is committed in the face of the\ncommand, in a desperate venturing to run the hazard, or in a\npresuming upon the mercy of God through Christ, to be saved\nnotwithstanding: this is a leading sin to that which is\nunpardonable, and will be found with such professors as do hanker\nafter iniquity.\n\nOne leak will sink a ship; and one sin will destroy a sinner.\n\nHe that lives in sin and hopes for happiness hereafter, is like him\nthat soweth cockle and thinks to fill his barn with wheat and\nbarley.\n\nCrush sin in the conception, lest it bring forth death in thy soul.\n\nSome men's hearts are narrow upwards and wide downwards--narrow as\nto God, but wide for the world.\n\nPRIDE.\n\nPride is the ringleader of the seven abominations that the wise man\nnameth. Prov. 6: 16, 17.\n\nApparel is the fruit of sin; wherefore, let such as pride themselves\ntherein remember, that they cover one shame with another. But let\nthem that are truly godly have their apparel modest and sober, and\nwith such shame-facedness put them on; remembering always, that the\nfirst cause of our covering our nakedness was the sin and shame of\nour first parents.\n\nENVY.\n\nMr. Badman's envy was so rank and strong, that if it at any time\nturned its head against a man, it would hardly ever be pulled in\nagain. He would watch over that man to do him mischief, as the cat\nwatches over the mouse to destroy it; yea, he would wait seven years\nbut he would have an opportunity to hurt him, and when he had it, he\nwould make him feel the weight of his envy. This envy is the very\nfather and mother of a great many hid eous and prodigious\nwickednesses. It both begets them, and also nourishes them up till\nthey come to their cursed maturity in the bosom of him that\nentertains them.\n\nDRUNKENNESS.\n\nDrunkenness is so beastly a sin, a sin so much against nature, that\nI wonder that any who have but the appearance of men can give up\nthemselves to so beastly, yea, worse than beastly a thing.\n\nMany that have begun the world with plenty, have gone out of it in\nrags, through drunkenness. Yea, many children that have been born to\ngood estates, have yet been brought to a flail and a rake through\nthis beastly sin of their parents.\n\nYea, it so stupefies and besots the soul, that a man who is far gone\nin drunkenness is hardly ever recovered to God. Tell me, when did\nyou see an old drunkard converted? No, no; such a one will sleep\ntill he dies, though he sleep on the top of a mast; so that if a man\nhave any respect either to credit, health, life, or salvation, he\nwill not be a drunken man.\n\n\"And Noah was uncovered.\" Behold ye now, that a little of the fruit\nof the vine lays gravity, grey hairs, and a man that for hundreds of\nyears was a lover of faith, holiness, goodness, sobriety, and all\nrighteousness, shamelessly as the object to the eye of the wicked.\n\n\"And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years.\" He\nlived, therefore, to see Abraham fifty-and-eight years old; he lived\nalso to see the foundation of Babel laid, nay, the top-stone\nthereof; and also the confusion of tongues; he lived to see of the\nfruit of his loins, mighty kings and princes. But in all this time\nhe lived not to do one, work that the Holy Ghost thought worthy to\nrecord, for the savor of his name or the edification and benefit of\nhis church, save only, that he died at \"nine hundred and fifty\nyears:\" so great a breach did this drunkenness make upon his spirit.\n\nSINNERS.\n\nUsually in wicked families, some one or two are more arch for\nwickedness than are any other that are there. Now such are Satan's\nconduit-pipes; for by them he conveys of the spawn of hell, through\ntheir being crafty in wickedness, into the ears and souls of their\ncompanions.\n\n\"And she bare Cain:\" the first sprout of a disobedient couple, a man\nin shape, but a devil in disposition.\n\nThe sinner, when his conscience is fallen asleep and grown hard,\nwill lie like the smith's dog at the foot of the anvil, though the\nfire-sparks fly in his face.\n\nPeace in a sinful course is one of the greatest of curses.\n\nThere is a wicked man that goes blinded, and a wicked man that goes\nwith his eyes open, to hell; there is a wicked man that cannot see,\nand a wicked man that will not see, the danger he is in; but\nhell-fire will open the eyes of both.\n\nThe soul with some is the game, their lusts are the dogs, and they\nthemselves are the huntsmen; and never do they more halloo and lure\nand laugh and sing, than when they have delivered up their soul,\ntheir darling, to these dogs.\n\nI may safely say, that the most of men who are concerned in a trade,\nwill be more vigilant in dealing with a twelvepenny customer, than\nthey will be with Christ when he comes to make unto them by the\ngospel a tender of the incomparable grace of God.\n\nSINFUL EASE.\n\n'Tis true there is no man more at ease in his mind--with such ease\nas it is--than the man that hath not closed with the Lord Jesus, but\nis shut up in unbelief. Oh, but that is the man that stands\nconvicted before God, and that is bound over to the GREAT ASSIZE!\nthat is the man whose sins are still his own, and upon whom the\nwrath of God abideth; for the ease and peace of such, though it keep\nthem far from fear, is but like to that of the secure thief that is\nignorant that the constable standcth at the door: the first sight of\nan officer makes his peace to give up the ghost. Oh, how many\nthousands that can now glory that they were never troubled for sin\nagainst God--I say, how many be there that God will trouble worse\nthan he troubled cursed Achan, because their peace, though false and\nof the devil, was rather chosen by them than peace by Jesus Christ,\nthan peace with God by the blood of his cross.\n\nAwake, careless sinners, awake, and arise from the dead, and Christ\nshall give you light. Content not yourselves either with sin or\nrighteousness, if you be destitute of Jesus Christ; but CRY, CRY, Oh\ncry to God for light to see your condition by. Light is in the word\nof God, for therein is the righteousness of God revealed; cry\ntherefore for light to see this righteousness by: it is a\nrighteousness of Christ's finishing, of God's accepting, and that\nwhich alone can save the soul from the stroke of eternal justice.\n\nTHE CHILD AND THE BIRD.\n\n    \"My little bird, how canst thou sit\n        And sing amidst so many thorns?\n    Let me but hold vipon thee get,\n        My love with honor thee adorns.\n    Thou art at present little worth,\n        Five farthings none will give for thee,\n    But prithee, little bird, come forth,\n        Thou of more value art to me.\n\n    \"'Tis true it is sunshine to-day,\n        To-morrow birds will have a storm;\n    My pretty one, come thou away.\n        My bosom then shall keep thee warm.\n    Thou subject art to cold o' nights,\n        When darkness is thy covering;\n    At day thy danger's great by kites;\n        How canst thou then sit there and sing?\n\n    \"Thy food is scarce and scanty too,\n        'Tis worms and trash that thou dost eat\n    Thy present state I pity do,\n        Come, I'll provide thee better meat.\n    I'll feed thee with white bread and milk,\n        And sugar-plums, if them thou crave;\n    I'll cover thee with finest silk,\n        That from the cold I may thee save.\n\n    \"My father's palace shall be thine,\n        Yea, in it thou shalt sit and sing;\n    My little bird, if thou'lt be mine,\n        The whole year round shall be thy spring.\n    I'll teach thee all the notes at court,\n        Unthought-of music thou shalt play,\n    And all that thither do resort\n        Shall praise thee for it every day.\n\n    \"I'll keep thee safe from cat and cur,\n        No manner o' harm shall come to thee;\n    Yea, I will be thy succorer,\n        My bosom shall thy cabin be.\"\n    But lo, behold, the bird is gone!\n        These charmings would not make her yield;\n    The child's left at the bush alone,\n        The bird flies yonder o'er the field.\n\n    The child of Christ an emblem is;\n        The bird to sinners I compare;\n    The thorns are like those sins of theirs,\n        Which do surround them everywhere.\n    Her songs, her food, her sunshine day,\n        Are emblems of those foolish toys\n    Which to destruction lead the way--\n        The fruit of worldly, empty joys.\n\n    The arguments this child doth choose\n        To draw to him a bird thus wild,\n    Shows Christ familiar speech doth use,\n        To make the sinner reconciled.\n    The bird, in that she takes her wing\n        To speed her from him after all,\n    Shows us vain man loves any thing\n        Much better than the heavenly call.\n\nTHE SINNER WARNED.\n\nThy bed, when thou liest down in it, preacheth to thee thy grave;\nthy sleep, thy death; and thy rising in the morning, thy\nresurrection to judgment.\n\nWouldst thou know, sinner, what thou art? look up to the cross, and\nbehold a weeping, bleeding, dying Jesus; nothing could do but that,\nnothing could save thee but his blood: angels could not, saints\ncould not, God could not, because he could not lie, because he could\nnot deny himself.\n\nWhat a thing is sin, that it should sink all that bear its burden;\nyea, it sunk the Son of God himself into death and the grave, and\nhad also sunk him into hell-fire for ever, had he not teen the Son\nof God, had he not been able to take it on his hack and bear it\naway.\n\nO this Lamh of God! Sinners were going to hell; Christ was the\ndelight of his Father, and had a whole heaven to himself; hut that\ndid not content him, heaven could not hold him, he must come into\nthe world to save sinners.\n\nAye, and had he not come thy sins had sunk thee, thy sins had\nprovoked the wrath of God against thee to thy destruction for ever.\nThere is no man hut is a sinner; there is no sin hut would damn an\nangel, should God lay it to his charge.\n\nSinner, the doctrine of Christ crucified cries therefore aloud unto\nthee, that sin has made thy condition dreadful. See yourselves, your\nsins, and consequently the condition that your souls are in by the\ndeath and blood of Christ Christ's death gives us the most clear\ndiscovery of the dreadful nature of our sins.\n\nI say again, if sin he so dreadful a thing as to break the heart of\nthe Son of God, how shall a poor, wretched, impenitent, damned\nsinner wrestle with the wrath of God?\n\nAwake, sinners; you are lost, you are undone, you perish, you are\ndamned; hell-fire is your portion for ever, if you abide in your\nsins, and be found without a Saviour in the dreadful day of\njudgment.\n\nSinner, doth not all this discourse make thy heart twitter after the\nmercy that is with God, and after the way that is made by this\nplenteous redemption thereto? Methinks it should; yea, thou couldest\nnot do otherwise, didst thou but see thy condition. Look behind\nthee, take a view of the path thou hast trodden these many years.\nDost thou think that the way that thou art in will lead thee to the\nstrait gate, sinner? Ponder the path of thy feet with the greatest\nseriousness; thy life lies upon it; what thinkest thou? But make no\nanswer till in the night, till thou art in the night-watches;\ncommune with thine own heart upon thy hed, and there say what thou\nthinkest of whither thou art going.\n\nOh that thou wert serious! Is not it a thing to be lamented, that\nmadness and folly should be in thy heart while thou livest, and\nafter that to go to the dead; when so much life stands before thee,\nand light to see the way to it? Surely men void of grace and\npossessed of carnal minds must either think that sin is nothing,\nthat hell is easy, and that eternity is short; or else that whatever\nGod has said about the punishing of sinners, he will never do as he\nhas said; or that there is no sin, no God, no heaven, no hell, and\nso no good or bad hereafter; or else they could not live as they do.\nBut perhaps thou presumest upon it, and sayest, I shall have peace,\nthough I live so sinful a life. Sinner, if this wicked thought be in\nthy heart, tell me again, dost thou thus think in earnest? Canst\nthou imagine thou shalt at the day of account outface God, or make\nhim believe thou wast what thou wast not; or that when the gate is\nshut up in wrath, he will at thy pleasure and to the reversing of\nhis own counsel, open it again to thee? Why shall thy deceived heart\nturn thee aside, that thou canst not deliver thy soul, nor say, Is\nthere not a lie in my right hand?\n\nFriend, because it is a dangerous thing to be walking towards the\nplace of darkness and anguish, and because notwithstanding, it is\nthe journey that most of the poor souls in the world are taking, I\nhave thought it my duty for preventing thee, to tell thee what sad\nsuccess those souls have had that have persevered therein. Why,\nfriend, it may be--nay, twenty to one, thou hast had thy back to\nheaven and thy face towards hell ever since thou didst come into the\nworld. Why, I beseech thee, put a little stop to thy earnest race,\nand take a view of what entertainment thou art like to have, if thou\ndo in deed and in truth persist in thy course. \"Thy ways lead down\nto death, and thy steps to hell.\" It may he, indeed, the path is\npleasant to the flesh, but the end thereof will he bitter to thy\nsoul. Hark! dost thou not hear the bitter cries of them that are\nnewly gone before thee, saying, \"Let him dip the tip of his finger\nin water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame!\"\nDost thou not hear them say, \"Send one from the dead, to prevent my\nfather, my brother, my father's house, from coming to this place of\ntorment!\" Shall not these mournful groans pierce thy flinty heart?\nWilt thou stop thine ears and shut thine eyes? And wilt thou NOT\nregard? Take warning, and stop thy journey before it be too late.\nWilt thou he like the silly fly, that is not quiet unless she be\neither entangled in the spider's web or burnt in the candle? O\nsinner, sinner, there are better things than HELL to be had! There\nis heaven, there is God, there is Christ, there is communion with an\ninnumerable assembly of saints and angels!\n\nThe poor, carnal, ignorant world miss of heaven, even because they\nlove their sins and cannot part with them John 3:9, 20.\n\nThe poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they stop their ears\nagainst convictions, and refuse to come when God calls. Prov. 1:\n24-29.\n\nThe poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because the god of this\nworld hath blinded their eyes, that they can neither see the evil\nand damnable state they are in at present, nor the way to get out of\nit; neither do they see the beauty of Jesus Christ, nor how willing\nhe is to save poor sinners. 2 Cor. 4: 2, 3.\n\nThe poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they defer coming to\nChrist until the time of God's patience and grace is over. Some\nindeed are resolved never to come; but some again say, \"We will come\nhereafter;\" and so it comes to pass, that because God called and\nthey did not hear, so \"they shall cry and I will not hear,\" saith\nthe Lord. Zech. 7: 11-13.\n\nThe poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they have false\napprehensions of God's mercy. They say in their hearts, \"We shall\nhave peace, though we walk in the imagination of our heart.\" Deut.\n29: 19-21.\n\nThe poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they make light of\nthe gospel that offers mercy to them freely, and because they lean\nupon their own good meanings and thinkings and doings. Matt. 22:\n1-5; Rom. 9: 30, 31.\n\nThe poor carnal world miss of heaven, because by unbelief, which\nreigns in them, they are kept for ever from being clothed with\nChrist's righteousness, and from washing in his blood, without which\nthere is no remission of sin nor justification.\n\nBlush, sinner, blush! Ah, that thou hadst grace to blush.\n\nMy first word shall be to the openly profane. Poor sinner, thou\nreadest that many that expect heaven will go without heaven. What\nsayest thou to this, poor sinner? If judgment begins at the house of\nGod, what will be the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?\nThis is Peter's question: canst thou answer it, sinner? Yea, I say\nagain, if judgment must begin at them, will it not make thee think,\nWhat shall become of me? And I add, when thou shalt see the stars of\nheaven tumble down to hell, canst thou think that such a muck-heap\nof sin as thou art shall be lifted up to heaven? Peter asks thee\nanother question: \"If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall\nthe ungodly and the sinner appear?\" Canst thou answer this question,\nsinner? Stand among the righteous thou mayst not: \"The ungodly shall\nnot stand in the judgment.\" Stand among the wicked thou then wilt\nnot dare to do: where wilt thou appear, sinner? To stand among the\nhypocrites will avail thee nothing: \"The hypocrite shall not come\nbefore him,\" that is, with acceptance, \"but shall perish.\"\n\nBecause it concerns thee much, let me over with it again. When thou\nshalt see less sinners than thou art bound up by angels in bundles\nto burn them, where wilt thou appear, sinner? Thou mayst wish\nthyself another man, but that will not help thee, sinner. Thou mayst\nwish, \"Would I had been converted in time;\" but that will not help\nthee neither. And if, like the wife of Jeroboam, thou shouldst feign\nthyself to be another, the prophet, the Lord Jesus, would soon find\nthee out. What wilt thou do, poor sinner? Heavy tidings, heavy\ntidings will attend thee, except thou repent, poor sinner!\n\nSluggard, art thou asleep still? art thou resolved to sleep the\nsleep of death? Will neither tidings from heaven nor hell awake\nthee? Wilt thou say still, \"Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a\nlittle folding of the arms to sleep?\"\n\nO that I was one that was skilful in lamentation, and had but a\nyearning heart towards thee, how would I pity thee; how would I\nbemoan thee! Poor soul, lost soul, dying soul, what a hard heart\nhave I that I cannot mourn for thee! If thou shouldst lose but a\nlimb, a child, or a friend, it would not be so much; but, poor man,\nit is thy soul: if it was to lie in hell but for a day, but for a\nyear, nay, ten thousand years, it would in comparison be nothing;\nbut O it is for ever! O this cutting EVER!\n\nSinner, awake; yea, I say unto thee, awake! Sin lieth at thy door,\nand God's axe lieth at thy root, and hell-fire is right underneath\nthee. I say again, awake. Every tree that bringeth not forth good\nfruit, is hewn down and cast into the fire.\n\nPoor sinner, awake: Eternity is coming, and his Son; they are both\ncoming to judge the world: awake; art yet asleep, poor sinner? let\nme set the trumpet to thine ear once again. The heavens will he\nshortly on a burning flame; the earth and the works thereof shall be\nburned up, and then wicked men shall go into perdition: dost thou\nhear this, sinner?\n\nHark again: the sweet morsels of sin will then be fled and gone, and\nthe bitter, burning fruits of them only left. What sayst thou now,\nsinner? canst thou drink hell-fire? will the wrath of God be a\npleasant dish to thy taste? This must be thine every day's meat and\ndrink in hell, sinner.\n\nI will yet propound to thee God's ponderous question, and then for\nthis time leave thee: \"Can thine heart endure, or can thy hands be\nstrong in the day that I shall deal with thee, saith the Lord?\" What\nsayst thou? Wilt thou answer this question now; or wilt thou take\ntime to do it; or wilt thou be desperate and venture all? And let me\nput this text in thine ear to keep it open, and so the Lord have\nmercy upon thee: \"Upon the wicked shall the Lord rain snares, fire,\nand brimstone, and a horrible tempest; this shall be the portion of\ntheir cup.\" Repent, sinners.\n\nCONSCIENCE.\n\nConscience hath its place in the soul, where it is as a judge to\ndiscern of things good or bad, and judge them accordingly. Romans 2:\n14. This conscience is that in which is the law of nature, I Cor.\n11: 14, which is able to teach the Gentiles that sin against the law\nis sin against God.\n\nNow this conscience, this nature itself, because it can control and\nchide them for sin who give ear unto it--must it therefore be\nidolized and made a god of? O wonderful! that men should make a God\nand a Christ of their consciences because they can convince of sin.\n\nThou gayest, He that convinces of sins against the law, leads up to\nthe fulfilling of the law.. Friend, thy conscience convinces of sins\nagainst the law: follow thy conscience, and it may lead thee under\nthe curse of the law, through its weakness; but it can never deliver\nthee from the curse of the law by its power. For if righteousness\ncome by obedience to the law, or by thy conscience either, then\nChrist is dead in vain. Gal. 2: 21.\n\nA GOOD CONSCIENCE.\n\nThis must needs be a blessed help in distress, for a man to have a\ngood conscience when affliction hath taken hold on him; for a man\nthen, in his looking behind and before, to return with peace to his\nown soul, that man must needs find honey in this lion.\n\nThis is the way to maintain always the answer, the echoing answer of\na good conscience in thy own soul. Godliness is of great use this\nway; for the man that hath a good conscience to God-ward, hath a\ncontinual feast in his own soul: while others say there is casting\ndown, he shall say there is lifting up; for God shall save the\nhumble person. Some indeed, in the midst of their profession, are\nreproached, smitten, and condemned of their own heart, their\nconscience still biting and stinging them because of the uncleanness\nof their hands; and they cannot lift up their face unto God, they\nhave not the answer of a good conscience towards him, but must walk\nas persons false to their God and as traitors to their own eternal\nwelfare. But the godly upright man shall have the light shine upon\nhis ways, and he shall take his steps in butter and honey. The work\nof righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness,\nquietness, and assurance for ever. \"If our heart condemn us, God is\ngreater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our\nheart condemn us not, then have we confidence towards God.\"\n\nA TENDER CONSCIENCE.\n\nA tender conscience is to some people like Solomon's brawling woman,\na burthen to those that have it; but let it be to thee like those\nthat invited David to go up to the house of the Lord.\n\nA GUILTY CONSCIENCE.\n\n\"And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord\nGod.\" These latter words are spoken, not to persuade us that men can\nhide themselves from God, but that Adam and those that are his by\nnature will seek to do it, because they do not know him aright.\nThese words therefore further show us what a bitter thing sin is to\nthe soul; it is only for hiding-work, sometimes under its\nfig-leaves, sometimes among the trees of the garden. O what a\nshaking, starting, timorous evil conscience is a sinful, guilty\nconscience: especially when it is but a little awakened, it could\nrun its head into every hole, first by one fancy, then by another;\nfor the power and goodness of a man's own righteousness cannot\nwithstand or answer the demands of the justice of God and his holy\nlaw.\n\nThere is yet another witness for the condemning transgressors of\nthese laws, and that is conscience: \"Their consciences also bearing\nwitness,\" says the apostle. Conscience is a thousand witnesses.\nConscience! it will cry amen to every word that the great God doth\nspeak against thee. Conscience is a terrible accuser; it will hold\npace with the witness of God, as to the truth of evidence, to a\nhair's breadth. The witness of conscience, it is of great authority;\nit commands guilt and fastens it on every soul which it accuses.\nConscience will thunder and lighten at the day of judgment; even the\nconsciences of the most pagan sinners in the world will have\nsufficient wherewith to accuse, to condemn, and to make paleness\nappear in their faces and breaking in their loins, by reason of the\nforce of its conviction. O the mire and dirt that a guilty\nconscience, when it is forced to speak, will cast up and throw out\nbefore the judgment-seat. It must out; none can speak peace nor\nhealth to that man upon whom God has let loose his own conscience.\nCain will now cry, \"My punishment is greater than I can bear;\" Judas\nwill hang himself; and both Belshazzar and Felix will feel the\njoints of their loins to be loosened, and their knees to smite one\nagainst another, when conscience stirreth.\n\nWhen conscience is once thoroughly awakened, as it shall be before\nthe judgment-seat, God will need say no more to the sinner than\nSolomon said to filthy Shimei, \"Thou knowest all the wickedness that\nthy heart is privy to.\" As who should say, \"Thy conscience knows,\nand can well inform thee of all the evil and sin that thou art\nguilty of.\" To all which it answers even as face answers a face in a\nglass; or as an echo answers the man that speaks: as fast, I say, as\nGod chargeth, conscience will cry out, \"Guilty, guilty, Lord; guilty\nof all, of every whit; I remember clearly all the crimes thou layest\nbefore me.\" Thus will conscience be a witness against the soul in\nthe day of God.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nV. THE LAW.\n\nITS NATURE AND EFFECTS.\n\n\n\n\n\nTHE law is the chief and most pure resemblance of the justice and\nholiness of the heavenly Majesty, and doth hold forth to all men the\nsharpness and keenness of his wrath.\n\nThis is the rule and line and plummet whereby every act of every man\nshall be measured; and he whose righteousness is not found every way\nanswerable to this law, which all will fall short of but they that\nhave the righteousness of God by faith in Jesus Christ, he must\nperish.\n\nThe law is spiritual, I am carnal. Therefore every requirement is\nrejected and rebelled against. Strike a steel against a flint, and\nthe fire flies about you. Strike the law against a carnal heart, and\nsin appears, sin multiplies, sin rageth, sin is strengthened.\n\nSin seen in the glass of the law is a terrible thing; no man can\nbehold it and live. \"When the commandment came, sin revived and I\ndied;\" when it came from God to my conscience, as managed by an\nalmighty arm, then it slew me. And now is the time to confess sin,\nbecause now a soul knows what it is, and sees what it is, both in\nthe nature and consequence of it.\n\nHe that is under the law is under the edge of the axe.\n\nThe proper work of the law is to slay the soul, and leave it dead,\nin a helpless state.\n\nThe law has laid all men for dead as they come into the world; but\nall men do not see themselves dead, until they see the law that\nstruck them dead striking in their souls and having struck them that\nfatal blow. As a man that is fast asleep in a house, and that on\nfire about his ears, and he not knowing it because he is asleep;\neven so because poor souls are asleep in sin, though the wrath of\nGod, the curse of his law, and the flames of hell have beset them\nround about, yet they do not believe it because they are asleep in\nsin. Now, as he that is awakened and sees this, sees that through\nthis he is a dead man, even so they that see their state by nature,\nbeing such a sad condition, do also see themselves by that law to be\ndead men naturally.\n\nTake heed of fleshly wisdom. Reasoning suiteth much with the law: \"I\nthought verily that I ought to do many things against the name of\nJesus,\" and so to have sought for life by the law. For thus reason\nwill say, Here is a righteous law, the rule of life and death;\nbesides, what can be better than to love God, and my neighbor as\nmyself? Again, God has thus commanded, and his commands are just and\ngood; therefore, doubtless, life must come by the law. Further, to\nlove God and keep the law, are better than to sin and break it; and\nseeing men lost heaven by sin, how should they get it again but by\nworking righteousness? Besides, God is righteous, and will therefore\nbless the righteous. O the holiness of the law! It mightily swayeth\nwith reason when a man addicts himself to religion. The light of\nnature teaches that sin is not the way to heaven; and seeing no word\ndoth more condemn sin, than the words of the ten commandments, it\nmust needs be therefore the most perfect rule for holiness.\nWherefore, says reason, the safest way to life and glory is to keep\nmyself close to the law. But though the law indeed be holy, yet the\nmistake as to the matter in hand is as wide as the east from the\nwest; for therefore the law can do thee no good, because it is holy\nand just; for what can he that has sinned expect from a law that is\nholy and just? Naught but condemnation. \"There is one that accuseth\nyou, even. Moses in whom ye trust.\"\n\nHere is the poison; to set this law in the. room of a Mediator, as\nthose do who seek to stand just before God thereby. And then nothing\nis so dishonorable to Christ, nor of so soul-destroying a nature as\nthe law; for that, thus placed, has not only power when souls are\ndeluded, but power to delude by its real holiness, the\nunderstanding, conscience, and reason of a man; and by giving the\nsoul a semblance of heaven, to cause it to throw away Christ, grace,\nand faith.\n\nAlas, he who boasteth himself in the works of the law, he doth not\nhear the law. When that speaks, it shakes mount Sinai, and writeth\ndeath upon all faces, and makes the church itself cry out, A\nMediator! else we die.\n\nThe law out of Christ is terrible as a lion; the law in him is meek\nas a lamb.\n\nFAITHFUL. \"So I went on my way up the hill. Now when I had got about\nhalf-way up, I looked behind me and saw one coming after me swift as\nthe wind; so he overtook me just about the place where the settle\nstands.\n\n\"So soon as the man overtook me, he was but a word and a blow; for\ndown he knocked me, and laid me for dead. But when I was a little\ncome to myself again, I asked him wherefore he served me so. He\nsaid, 'Because of thy secret inclination to Adam the first;' and\nwith that he struck me another deadly blow on the breast, and beat\nme down backwards; so I lay at his foot as dead as before. When I\ncame to myself again, I cried to him for mercy; but he said, 'I\nknow not how to show mercy;' and with that knocked me down again. He\nhad doubtless made an end of me, but that one came by and bid him\nforbear.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"Who was it that bid him forbear?\"\n\nFAITHFUL. \"I did not know him at first, but as he went by I\nperceived the holes in his hands and his side; then I concluded that\nhe was our Lord. So I went up the hill.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"The man that overtook you was Moses. He spareth none,\nneither knoweth he how to show mercy to those that transgress his\nlaw.\"\n\nFAITHFUL. \"I know it very well; it was not the first time that he\nhas met with me. It was he that came to me when I dwelt securely at\nhome, and that told me he would burn my house over my head if I\nstaid there.\"\n\nThis ungodly fear of God, is that which will put men upon adding to\nthe revealed will of God their own inventions and their own\nperformances of them, as a means to pacify the anger of God. For the\ntruth is, where this ungodly fear reigneth, there is no end of law\nand duty. When those that you read of in the hook of Kings, 2 Kings,\n17: 26, were destroyed by the lions because they had set up idolatry\nin the land of Israel, they sent for a priest from Babylon that\nmight teach them the manner of the God of the land; but behold, when\nthey knew it, being taught it by the priest, yet their fear would\nnot suffer them to be content with that worship only. \"They feared\nthe Lord,\" saith the text, \"and served their own gods.\" And again,\n\"So these nations feared the Lord, and served their graven images.\"\nIt was this fear also that put the Pharisees upon inventing so many\ntraditions; as the washing of cups, and beds, and tables, and\nbasins, with abundance of such other gear. Mark 7: 4. None knows the\nmany dangers that an ungodly fear of God will drive a man into.\n\nHow has it racked and tortured the papists for hundreds of years\ntogether! for what else is the cause but this ungodly fear, at least\nin the most simple and harmless of them, of their penances--as\ncreeping to the cross, going barefoot on pilgrimage, whipping\nthemselves, wearing of sackcloth, saying so many pater-nosters, so\nmany Ave-Marias, making so many confessions to the priest, giving so\nmuch money for pardons, and abundance of other the like---but this\nungodly fear of God? For could they be brought to believe this\ndoctrine, that Christ was delivered for our offences and raised\nagain for our justification, and to apply it by faith with godly\nboldness to their own souls, this fear Would vanish, and so\nconsequently all those things with which they so needlessly and\nunprofitably afflict themselves, offend God, and grieve his people.\n\nTHE LAW AND THE GOSPEL.\n\nThou must have salvation either at the door of the law or at the\ndoor of grace. \"But,\" sayest thou, \"I am for having it at the hands\nof both. I will trust solely to neither. I love to have two strings\nto my bow. If one of them, as you think, can help me by itself, my\nreason tells me that both can help me better; therefore will I be\nrighteous and good, and will seek by my goodness to be commended to\nthe mercy of God; for surely he that hath something of his own to\ningratiate himself into the favor of his prince withal, shall sooner\nobtain his mercy and favor than one that comes to him stripped of\nall good.\"\n\nI answer, \"But there are not two ways to heaven: there is but one\n'new and living way which Christ hath consecrated for us through the\nveil, that is to say, his flesh;' and besides that one, there is no\nmore. Heb. 10: 19-24. Why then dost thou talk of two strings to thy\nbow?\"\n\nMercy then is to be found alone in Jesus Christ. Again, the\nrighteousness of the law is to be obtained only by faith of Jesus\nChrist; that is, in the Son of God is the righteousness of the law\nto be found; for he, by his obedience to his Father, is become the\nend of the law for righteousness. And for the sake of his legal\nrighteousness---which is also called the righteousness of God,\nbecause it was God in the flesh of the Lord Jesus that did\naccomplish it---are mercy and grace from God extended to whomsoever\ndependeth by faith upon God, by this righteousness of Jesus, for\nthem.\n\nHe that is dark as touching the scope, intents, and nature of the\nlaw, is also dark as to the scope, nature, and glory of the gospel.\n\nI must confess it is a wonderful mysterious thing, and he had need\nhave a wiser spirit than his own that can rightly set these two\ncovenants in their right places, that when he speaks of the one he\ndoth not jostle the other out of its place. O, to be so well\nenlightened as to speak of the one, that is the law, for to magnify\nthe gospel---and also to speak of the gospel so as to establish and\nyet not to idolize the law, nor any particulars thereof---it is\nrare; and to be heard and found but in very few men's breasts.\n\nA man may appeal from the law to the throne, from Moses to\nChrist---from him that spoke on earth to him that speaks from\nheaven; but from heaven to earth, from Christ to Moses, none can\nappeal. Acts 3: 22, 23.\n\nTell me, you that desire to mingle the law and the gospel together,\nand to make of both one and the same gospel of Christ, did you ever\nsee yourselves undone and lost, unless the righteousness, blood,\ndeath, resurrection, and intercession of that man Christ Jesus in\nhis own person, were imputed to you; and until you could by faith\nown it as done for you, and counted yours by imputation? Yea, or no?\nNay, rather, have you not set up your consciences and the law, and\ncounted your obedience to them better and of more value than the\nobedience of the Son of Mary without you to be imputed to you? And\nif so, it is because you have not been savingly convinced by the\nSpirit of Christ of the sin of unbelief.\n\nI would riot be mistaken; I do not say that the Spirit of Christ\ngives the least liberty to sin; God forbid; but its convictions are\nof a more saving and refreshing nature than the convictions of the\nlaw, and do more constrain the soul to holiness than that: the law\nsaying, Work for life; the Spirit saying, Now to him that worketh\nnot (for life,) but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,\nhis faith is counted for righteousness. As thus: if I should owe to\ntwo creditors ten thousand talents, the one should say unto me,\n\"Thou owest me five thousand talents, pay that thou owest;\" the\nother should say, \"Thou owest me five thousand talents, and I\nfrankly and freely forgive thee all.\"\n\nNow, these expressions are contrary one to another; even so is the\nend of the convictions of the law not according to the end of the\nconvictions of the Spirit of Christ: the one saying, \"Pay me that\nthou owest;\" the other saying, \"Thou art frankly and freely forgiven\nall.\"\n\nThen the Interpreter took Christian by the hand, and led him into a\nvery large parlor that was full of dust, because never swept; the\nwhich, after he had reviewed it a little while, the Interpreter\ncalled for a man to sweep. Now, when he began to sweep, the dust\nbegan so abundantly to fly about, that Christian had almost\ntherewith been choked. Then said the Interpreter to a damsel that\nstood by, \"Bring hither water and sprinkle the room;\" the which,\nwhen she had done, it was swept and cleansed with pleasure.\n\nThen said Christian, \"What means this?\"\n\nThe Interpreter answered, \"This parlor is the heart of a man that\nwas never sanctified by the sweet grace of the gospel; the dust is\nhis, original sin and inward corruptions that have defiled the whole\nman. He that began to sweep at first is the law; but she that\nbrought water and did sprinkle it, is the gospel. Now whereas thou\nsawest that so soon as the first began to sweep, the dust did so fly\nabout that the room by him could not be cleansed, but that thou wast\nalmost choked therewith: this is to show thee that the law, instead\nof cleansing the heart by its working, from sin, doth revive, put\nstrength into, and increase it in the soul, even as it doth discover\nand forbid it; for it doth not give power to subdue it. Rom. 5: 20;\n7:11; 1 Cor. 15:56.\"\n\nAgain, as thou sawest the damsel sprinkle the room with, water,\nupon which it was cleansed with pleasure this is to show thee that\nwhen the gospel comes in the sweet and precious influences thereof\nto the heart, then, I say, even as thou sawest the damsel lay the\ndust fry sprinkling the floor with water, so is sin vanquished and\nsubdued, and the soul made clean through the faith of it, and\nconsequently fit for the King of glory to inhabit. John 14: 21-23;\n15:3; Acts 15:9; Rom. 16: 25, 26; Eph. 5:26.\n\nWhen Christ dwells in my heart by faith and the moral law dwells in\nmy members, the one to keep up peace with God, the other to keep my\nconversation in a good decorum, then am I right, and not till then.\n\nBut this will not be done without much experience, diligence, and\ndelight in Christ. For there is nothing that Satan more desires,\nthan that the law may abide in the conscience of an awakened\nChristian, and there take up the place of Christ and faith; for he\nknows if this may be obtained, the veil is presently drawn over the\nface of the soul, and the heart darkened as to the knowledge of\nChrist; and being darkened, the man is driven into despair of mercy,\nor is put upon it to work for life. There is therefore much\ndiligence required of him that will keep these two in their places\nassigned them of God; much diligent study of the word, diligent\nprayer, with diligence to walk with God in the world.\n\nWhen this law with its thundering threatenings doth attempt to lay\nhold on thy conscience, shut it out with a promise of grace: cry,\nThe inn is taken up already; the Lord Jesus is here entertained, and\nhere is no room for the law. Indeed, if it will be content with\nbeing my informer, and so lovingly leave off to judge me, I will be\ncontent; it shall be in iny sight, I will also delight therein: but\notherwise, I being now made upright without it, and that too with\nthat righteousness which this law speaks well of and approveth, I\nmay not, will not, cannot, dare not make it my saviour and judge,\nnor suffer it to set up its government in my conscience; for by so\ndoing I fall from grace, and Christ Jesus doth profit me nothing.\n\nThe sum then of what hath been said is this: the Christian hath now\nnothing to do with the law as it thundereth and burneth on Sinai, or\nas it bindeth the conscience to wrath and the displeasure of God for\nsin; for from its thus appearing he is freed by faith in Christ. Yet\nhe is to have regard thereto, and is to count it holy, just, and\ngood; which that he may do, he is always, whenever he seeth or\nregards it, to remember that he who giveth it to us is MERCIFUL,\nGRACIOUS, LONG-SUFFERING, and ABUNDANT IN GOODNESS AND TRUTH.\n\nHere thou mayst say, O law, thou mayst roar against sin, but thou\ncanst not reach me; thou mayst curse and condemn, but not MY SOUL;\nfor I have a righteous Jesus, a holy Jesus, a soul-saving Jesus, and\nhe hath delivered me from thy threats, thy curses, thy\ncondemnations; I am out of thy reach and out of thy bounds; I am\nbrought into another covenant, under better promises of life and\nsalvation, free promises to comfort me without my merit, even\nthrough the blood of Jesus, the satisfaction given to God for me by\nhim.\n\nThe law is that which standeth at the entrance of the paradise of\nGod, as a flaming sword, turning every way to keep out those that\nare not righteous with the righteousness of God--that have not skill\nto come to the throne of grace by that new and living way which he\nhath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.\nFor though this law, I say, be taken away by Christ Jesus for all\nthat truly and savingly believe, yet it remains in full force and\npower in every tittle of it against every soul of man that now shall\nbe found in his tabernacle, that is in himself and out of the Lord\nJesus; it lie'th, I say, like a lion rampant at the gates of heaven,\nand will roar upon every unconverted soul, fiercely accusing every\none that new would gladly enter in through the gates into this city.\nSo then, he that can answer all its most perfect and legal commands,\nand that can live in the midst of devouring fire and there enjoy God\nand solace himself, he shall dwell on high and shall not be hurt by\nthis law. His place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks;\nbread shall be given him, and his waters shall he sure; thine eyes\nshall behold the King in his beauty, they shall see the land that is\nvery far off.\n\nTHE LAW A RULE OF LIFE.\n\nThe law is cast behind the back of many, when it should be carried\nin the hand and heart that we might do it, to the end the gospel\nwhich we profess might he glorified in the world. Let then the law\nbe with thee to love it, and do it in the spirit of the gospel, that\nthou be not unfruitful in thy life. Let the law, I say, be with\nthee, not as it comes from Moses, but from Christ; for though thou\nart set free from the law as a covenant for life, yet thou still art\nunder the law to Christ; and it is to be received by thee, as out of\nhis hand, to be a rule for thy conversation in the world.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nVI. DIVINE GRACE.\n\nGRACE, LOYE, AND MERCY.\n\n\n\n\n\n_I_ FIND that the goodness of God to his people is diversely\nexpressed in his word, sometimes by the word grace, sometimes by the\nword love, and sometimes by the word mercy. When it is expressed by\nthat word grace, then it is to show that what he doeth is of his\nprincely will, his royal bounty, and sovereign pleasure. When it is\nexpressed by that word love, then it is to show us that his\naffection was and is in what he doeth, and that he doeth what he\ndoeth for us with complacency and delight. But when it is set forth\nto us under the notion of mercy, then it bespeaks us to be in a\nstate both wretched and miserable, and that his bowels and\ncompassions yearn over us in this our fearful plight.\n\nGRACE DESCRIBED.\n\nThere are many things which men call the grace of God that are not.\n\n1. The light and knowledge that are in every man.\n\n2. That natural willingness that is in man to be saved.\n\n3. That power that is in man by nature to do something, as he\nthinketh, towards his own salvation.\n\nBut do thou remember that the grace of God is his good-will and\ngreat love to sinners, in his Son Jesus Christ; by the which\ngood-will they are sanctified, through the offering up of the body\nof Jesus Christ once for all.\n\nHis blood is not laws, nor ordinances, nor commandments, but a\nprice, a redeeming price. He justifies us by bestowing upon us, not\nby expecting from us. He justifies us by his grace, not by our\nworks.\n\nOPERATION OF GRACE.\n\nThe good child is not the first-born, but Abel. God often doth as\nJacob did, even cross hands in bestowing blessings, giving that\nwhich is best to him that is least esteemed; for Cain was \"the man\"\nin Eve's esteem: she thought, when she had him, she had got an\ninheritance; but as for Abel (vanity,) he was little worth; by his\nname they showed how little they set by him.\n\nIt is so with the sincere to this day; they bear not the name of\nglory with the world: Cain with them is the profitable son; Abel is\nof no credit with them, neither see they form or comeliness in him;\nhe is the melancholy or lowering child whose countenance spoils the\nmirth of the world. \"The heart of the wise is in the house of\nmourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.\"\n\nAbel, last in appearance, but in truth the first in grace; as it\nalso is at this day. Who do so flutter it out as our ruffling,\nformal worshippers? Alas, the good, the sincere, the humble, they\nseem to be least and last; but the conclusion of the tragedy will\nmake manifest that the first is last and the last first.\n\n\"And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering.\" Herein are\nthe true footsteps of grace discovered; the person must be the first\nin favor with God---the person first, the performance afterwards:\nfor though it be true among men that the gift makes way for the\nacceptance of the person, yet in the order of grace it is after\nanother manner; for if the person be not first accepted, the\noffering must be abominable; for it is not a good work that makes a\ngood man, but a good man makes a good work. The fruit does not make\na good tree, but a good tree bringeth forth good fruit.\n\nAbel then presented his person and offering, as shrouding both by\nfaith under the righteousness of Christ, which lay wrapped up in the\npromise; but Cain stands upon his own legs, and so presents his\noffering. Abel therefore is accepted, both his person and offering,\nwhile Cain remains accursed. This then makes the difference hetwixt\nAbel and his brother; Abel had faith, but Cain had none. Abel's\nfaith covered him with Jesus Christ; therefore he stood righteous in\nhis person before God.\n\nThere is a man proceeded against for life by the law and the\nsentence of death is in conclusion most justly and righteously\npassed upon him by the judge. Suppose now, that after this, this man\nlives and is exalted to honor, enjoys great things, and is put into\nplace of trust and power, and this by him that he has offended, even\nby him that did pass the sentence upon him.\n\nWhat will all say, or what will they conclude, even upon the very\nfirst hearing of this story? Will they not say, \"Well, whoever he\nwas that found himself wrapped up in this strange providence, must\nthank the mercy of a gracious prince; for all these things bespeak\ngrace and favor?\"\n\nForgiveness is according to the riches of God's grace, wherein he\nhas abounded towards us in all wisdom and prudence. Grace can\ncontinue to pardon, favor, and save---from falls, in falls, and out\nof falls. Grace can comfort, relieve, and help those that have hurt\nthemselves; and grace can bring the unworthy to glory. This the law\ncannot do; this man cannot do; this angels cannot do; this God\ncannot do, but only by the riches of his grace, through the\nredemption that is in Christ Jesus.\n\nA throne is the seat of majesty and greatness; it is not for things\nof an inferior quality to ascend or assume a throne. Now, then,\nsince this river of water of life proceeds from the throne, it\nintimates that in grace and mercy there is great majesty; for grace,\nas it proceeds, has a voice from the throne. And indeed there is\nnothing in heaven or earth that can so awe the heart as the grace of\nGod. Hos. 3: 5. It is that which makes a man fear; it is that which\nmakes a man tremble; it is that which makes a man how and bend, and\nbreak to pieces. Jer. 33: 9; Exod. 34: 6-9. Nothing has such\nmajesty, and commanding greatness in and upon the hearts of the sons\nof men, as has the grace of God. There is nothing overmastereth the\nheart like grace, and so obligeth to sincere and unfeigned obedience\nas that.\n\nStrong grace makes corruptions weak and strikes them through, laying\nthem at the point of death, always gasping for life.\n\nMercy and the revelation thereof is the only antidote against sin.\nIt is of a thawing nature; it will loose the heart that is frozen up\nin sin; yea, it will make the unwilling willing to come to Christ\nfor life.\n\nSome say, When grace and a good nature meet together, they do make\nshining Christians: but I say, When grace and a great sinner meet,\nand when grace shall subdue that great sinner to itself, and shall\noperate after its kind in the soul of that great sinner, then we\nhave a shining Christian.\n\nMen may fall by sin, but cannot raise up themselves without the help\nof grace.\n\nThere were two men that went on pilgrimage; the one began when he\nwas young, the other when he was old: the young man had strong\ncorruptions to grapple with, the old man's were weak with the decays\nof nature: the young man trode his steps as even as did the old one,\nand was every way as light as he. Who now, or which of them, had\ntheir graces shining clearest, since both seemed to be alike? The\nyoung man's, doubtless; for that which heads it against the greatest\nopposition, gives best demonstration that it is strongest.\n\nAs nature, even where grace is, cannot without the assistance of\nthat grace do any thing acceptably before God; so grace received, if\nit be not also supplied with more grace, cannot cause that we\ncontinue to do acceptable service to God.\n\nA present dispensation of grace is like a good meal, a seasonable\nshower, or a penny in one's pocket, all of which will serve for the\npresent necessity. But will that good meal that I ate last week\nenable me without supply to do a good day's work in this? or, will\nthat seasonable shower which fell last year, be, without supplies, a\nseasonable help to the grain and grass that is growing now? or will\nthat penny that supplied my want the other day--I say, will the same\npenny also, without a supply, supply my wants to-day?\n\nThe day of grace is the day of expense; this is our spending time.\nHence we are called pilgrims and strangers in the earth; that is,\ntravellers from place to place, from state to state, from trial to\ntrial. Now, as the traveller at the fresh inn is made to spend fresh\nmoney, so Christians, at a fresh temptation, at a new temptation,\nare made to spend fresh and a new supply of grace. Great men, when\nand while their sons are travellers, appoint that their bags of\nmoney be lodged ready or conveniently paid in at such and such a\nplace; and so they meet with supplies. Why, so are the sons of the\ngreat One; and he has allotted that we should travel beyond sea, or\nat a great distance from our Father's house: wherefore he has\nappointed that grace shall be provided for us, to supply at such a\nplace, such a state or temptation, as need requires. But withal, as\nmy lord expeeteth his son should acquaint him with the present\nemptiness of his purse and with the difficulty he hath now to\ngrapple with; so God our Father expects that we should plead by\nChrist our need at the throne of grace, in order to a supply of\ngrace. \"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we\nmay obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.\"\n\nThen I saw in my dream that the Interpreter took Christian by the\nhand, and led him into a place where was a fire burning against a\nwall, and one standing by it always casting much water upon it to\nquench it; yet did the fire burn higher and hotter.\n\nThen said Christian, \"What means this?\"\n\nThe Interpreter answered, \"This fire is the work of grace that is\nwrought in the heart; he that casts water upon it to extinguish and\nput it out, is the devil; but in that thou seest the fire\nnotwithstanding burn higher and hotter, thou shalt also see the\nreason of that.\" So he had him about to the backside of the wall,\nwhere he saw a man with a vessel of oil in his hand, of which he did\nalso continually cast, but secretly, into the fire.\n\nThen said Christian, \"What means this?\"\n\nThe Interpreter answered, \"This is Christ, who continually with the\noil of his grace maintains the work already begun in the heart; by\nthe means of which, notwithstanding what the devil can do, the souls\nof his people prove gracious still. 2 Cor. 12: 9. And in that thou\nsawest that the man stood behind the wall to maintain the fire; this\nis to teach thee that it is hard for the tempter to see how this\nwork of grace is maintained in the soul.\"\n\nThere is to be seen at the bottom of this holy river, the glory of\nGod. We are saved, saved by grace, saved by grace through the\nredemption that is in Christ, to the praise and glory of God. And\nwhat a good bottom is here. Grace will not fail, Christ has been\nsufficiently tried, and God will not lose his glory; therefore they\nthat drink of this river, shall doubtless be saved; to wit, they\nthat drink of it with a spiritual appetite to it.\n\nIt pleased God, for the glory of his wisdom, to make this the way;\nto wit, to set up grace to reign. I have often thought, and\nsometimes said, If God will be pleased with any way, surely he will\nbe pleased with his own. Now this is the way of his own devising,\nthe fruit and effect of his own wisdom. Wherefore, sinner, please\nhim, please him in that wherein he is well pleased; come to the\nwaters, cast thyself into them and fear not drowning; let God alone\nto cause them to carry thee into his paradise, that thou mayest see\nhis throne.\n\nLet us take notice of the carriage of God to man, and again of man\nto God, in his conversion.\n\nFirst, of God's carriage to man. He comes to him while he is in his\nsins; he comes to him now, not in the heat and fire of his jealousy,\nbut in the cool of the day, in unspeakable gentleness, mercy, pity,\nand love--not in clothing himself with vengeance, but in a way of\nentreaty, and meekly beseecheth the sinner to be reconciled unto\nhim. 2 Cor. 5: 19, 20.\n\nIt is expected among men, that he who gives the offence, should be\nthe first in seeking peace; but, sinner, betwixt God and man it is\nnot so: not that we loved God, not that we chose God; but God was in\nChrist reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their\ntrespasses unto them. God is the first that seeketh peace; and in a\nway of entreaty, he bids his ministers pray you in Christ's stead:\n\"As if God did beseech you by us, we pray you in Christ's stead, be\nye reconciled to God.\"\n\nO sinner, wilt thou not open? Behold, God the Father and his Son\nJesus Christ stand both at the door of thy heart, beseeching there\nfor favor from thee, that thou wilt be reconciled to them; with the\npromise, if thou wilt comply, to forgive thee all thy sins. O grace,\nO amazing grace! To see a prince entreat a beggar to receive an\nalms, would be a strange sight; to see a king entreat the traitor to\naccept of mercy, would be a stranger sight than that; but to see God\nentreat a sinner, to hear Christ say, \"I stand at the door and\nknock, with a heart full and a heaven full of grace to bestow upon\nhim that opens;\" this is such a sight as dazzles the eyes of angels.\nWhat sayest thou now, sinner? Is not this God rich in mercy? hath\nnot this God great love for sinners? Nay, further, that thou mayst\nnot have any ground to think that all this is hut complimenting,\nthere is also here declared, that \"God hath made him to be sin for\nus, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God\nin him.\" If God would have stuck at any thing, it would have been at\nthe death of his Son; but he delivered him up for us freely: how\nshall he not then with him freely give us all things?\n\nLet us now come to the carriage of these sinners to God, and that\nfrom the first day he begins to deal with their souls, even to the\ntime that they are to be taken up into heaven.\n\n1. And to begin with God's ordinary dealing with sinners: when at\nfirst he ministers conviction to them by his word, how strangely do\nthey behave themselves. They love not to have their consciences\ntouched; they like not to ponder upon what they have been, what they\nare, or what is like to become of them hereafter: such thoughts they\ncount unmanly and hurtful. And now they are for any thing rather\nthan the word: an alehouse, a playhouse, sports, pleasures, sleep,\nthe world, and what not, so they may stave of the power of the word\nof God.\n\n2. If God now comes up closer to them, and begins to fasten\nconviction upon the conscience, though such convictions be the first\nstep to faith and repentance, yea, to life eternal, yet what shifts\nwill they have to forget them and wear them off! Yea, although they\nnow begin to see that they must either turn or turn, yet ofttimes\nthey will study to waive a present conversion. They object, they are\ntoo young to turn yet; seven years hence is time enough; when they\nare old, or come upon a sick bed.\n\nO what an enemy is man to his own salvation! I am persuaded that God\nhas visited some of you often with his word, and you have thrown\nwater, as fast as he hath by the word cast fire, upon your\nconscience.\n\nChristian, what had become of thee, if God had taken thy denial for\nan answer, and said, \"Then will I carry the word of salvation to\nanother, and he will hear it?\"\n\n\"Sinner, turn!\" says God. \"Lord, I cannot attend to it,\" says the\nsinner. \"Turn or burn,\" says God. \"I will venture that,\" says the\nsinner. \"Turn and be saved,\" says God. \"I cannot leave my\npleasures,\" says the sinner; \"sweet sins, sweet pleasures, sweet\ndelights,\" says the sinner. But what grace is it in God thus to\nparley with the sinner! O the patience of God to a poor sinner! What\nif God should now say, \"Then get thee to thy sins, get thee to thy\ndelights, get thee to thy pleasures, take them for thy portion; they\nshall be all thy heaven, all thy happiness, all thy portion?\"\n\n3. But God comes again, and shows the sinner the necessity of\nturning now or not at all; yea, and giveth the sinner this\nconviction so strongly that he cannot put it if. But behold, the\nsinner has one spark of enmity still: if he must needs turn now, he\nwill either turn from one sin to another, from great ones to little\nones, from many to few, or from all to one, and there stop. But\nperhaps convictions will not thus leave him. Why, then he will turn\nfrom profaneness to the law of Moses, and will dwell as long as God\nwill let him, upon his own seeming goodness. And now observe him, he\nis a great stickler for legal performance; now he will be a good\nneighbor, he will pay every man his own, will leave off his\nswearing, the ale-house, his sports, and carnal delights; he will\nread, pray, talk of scripture, and be a very busy one in religion,\nsuch as it is; now he will please God, and make him amends for all\nthe wrong he has done him, and will feed him with chapters, and\nprayers, and promises, and vows, and a great many more such dainty\ndishes as these; persuading himself that now he must be fair for\nheaven, and thinks besides that he serveth God as well as any man:\nbut all this while he is as ignorant of Christ as the stool he sits\non, and no nearer heaven than was the blind Pharisee, only he has\ngot in a cleaner way to hell than the rest of his neighbors are.\n\nMight not God now cast off this sinner, and cast him out of his\nsight? might he not leave him to his own choice, to be deluded by\nand to fall in his own righteousness, because he trusts to it and\ncommits iniquity?\n\nBut grace, preventing grace preserves him. It is true, this turn of\nthe sinner is a turning short of Christ. But,\n\n4. God in this way of the sinner will mercifully follow him, and\nshow him the shortness of his performances, the emptiness of his\nduties, and the uncleanness of his righteousness. This I speak of\nthe sinner, the salvation of whose soul is graciously intended and\ncontrived of God; for he shall by gospel light be wearied out of\nall; he shall be made to see the vanity of all, and that the\npersonal righteousness of Jesus Christ, and that only, is it which\nof God is ordained to save the sinner from the due reward of his\nsins. But behold, the sinner now, at the sight and sense of his own\nnothingness, falleth into a kind of despair; for although he hath it\nin him to presume of salvation through the delusiveness of his own\ngood opinion of himself, yet he hath it not in himself to have a\ngood opinion of the grace of God in the righteousness of Christ.\nWherefore he concludeth that if salvation be alone of the grace of\nGod through the righteousness of Christ, and all of a man's own is\nutterly rejected as to the justification of his person with God,\nthen he is cast away.\n\nNow, the reason of this sinking of heart is the sight that God has\ngiven him--a sight of the uncleanness of his best performance. The\nformer sight of his immoralities did somewhat distress him, and make\nhim betake himself to his own good deeds to ease his conscience;\nwherefore this was his prop, his stay. But behold, now God has taken\nthis from under him, and now he falls. Wherefore his best doth also\nnow forsake him, and fly away like the morning dew.\n\nBesides, this revelation of the emptiness of his own righteousness\nbrings also with it a further discovery of the naughtiness of his\nheart, in its hypocrisies, pride, unbelief, hardness of heart,\ndeadness, and backwardness to all gospel obedience; which sight of\nhimself lies like millstones upon his shoulders, and sinks him yet\nfurther into doubts and fears of damnation. For bid him now receive\nChrist; he answers, he cannot, he dares not. Ask him why he cannot;\nhe will answer, he has no faith nor hope in his heart. Tell him that\ngrace is offered him freely; he says, \"But I have no heart to\nreceive it.\" Besides, he finds not, as he thinks, any gracious\ndisposition in his soul, and therefore concludes he does not belong\nto God's mercy, nor has an interest in the blood of Christ, and\ntherefore dares not presume to believe. Wherefore he sinks in his\nheart, he dies in his thoughts, he doubts, he despairs, and\nconcludes he shall never be saved.\n\n5. But behold, the God of all grace leaves him not in this distress,\nbut comes up now to him closer than ever; he sends the Spirit of\nadoption, the blessed Comforter, to him to tell him God is love, and\ntherefore not willing to reject the broken in heart; bids him cry\nand pray for an evidence of mercy to his soul, and says,\n\"Peradventure you may be hid in the day of the Lord's anger.\"\n\nAt this the sinner takes some encouragement; yet he can get no more\nthan that which will hang upon a mere probability, which, by the\nnext doubt that ariseth in the heart, is blown quite away, and the\nsoul left again in its first plight, or worse; where he lamentably\nbewails his miserable state, and is tormented with a thousand fears\nof perishing; for he hears not a word from heaven, perhaps for\nseveral weeks together. Wherefore unbelief begins to get the mastery\nof him, and takes off the very edge and spirit, of prayer, and\ninclination to hear the word any longer; yea, the devil also claps\nin with these thoughts, saying, \"All your prayers, and hearing, and\nreading, and godly company, which you frequent, will rise up in\njudgment against you at last; therefore better it is, if you must be\ndamned, to choose as easy a place in hell as you can.\"\n\nThe soul at this being quite discouraged, thinks to do as it has\nbeen taught, and with dying thoughts it begins to faint when it goes\nto prayer or to hear the word. But behold, when all hope seems to be\nquite gone, and the soul concludes, \"I die, I perish,\" in comes on a\nsudden the Spirit of God again, with some good word of God which the\nsoul never thought of before; which word of God commands a calm in\nthe soul, makes unbelief give place, encourages to hope and wait\nupon God again: perhaps it gives some little sight of Christ to the\nsoul, and of his blessed undertaking for sinners.\n\nBut behold, so soon as the power of things again begins to wear off\nthe heart, the sinner gives place to unbelief, questions God's\nmercy, and fears damning again. He also entertains hard thoughts of\nGod and Christ, and thinks former encouragements were fancies,\ndelusions, or mere think-sos.\n\nAnd why doth not God now cast the sinner to hell, for thus abusing\nhis mercy and grace? O no: \"He will have mercy on whom he will have\nmercy, and he will have compassion on whom he will have compassion;\"\nwherefore goodness and mercy shall follow him all the days of his\nlife, that he may dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.\n\n6. God, therefore, after all these provocations, comes by his Spirit\nto the soul again, and brings sealing grace and pardon to the\nconscience, testifying to it that its sins are forgiven and that\nfreely, for the sake of the blood of Christ. And now has the sinner\nsuch a sight of the grace of God in Christ, as kindly breaks his\nheart with joy and comfort. Now the soul knows what it is to eat\npromises; it also knows what it is to eat and drink the flesh and\nblood of Jesus Christ by faith; now it is driven by the power of his\ngrace to its knees, to thank God for forgiveness of sins and for\nhopes of an inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith\nwhich is in Christ; now it has a calm and a sunshine; now \"he washes\nhis steps with butter, and the rock pours him out rivers of oil.\"\n\n7. But after this, perhaps the soul grows cold again; it also\nforgets the grace received, and waxes carnal; begins again to hanker\nafter the world; loseth the life and savor of heavenly things;\ngrieves the Spirit of God; wofully backslides; casteth off closet\nduties quite, or else retains only the formality of them; is a\nreproach to religion, and grieves the heart of them that are awake\nand tender of God's name.\n\nBut what will God now do? Will he take this advantage to destroy the\nsinner? No. Will he let him alone in his apostasy? No. Will he leave\nhim to recover himself by the strength of his now languishing grace?\nNo. What then? Why, he will seek this man out till he finds him, and\nbring him home to himself again: \"For thus saith the Lord God,\nBehold I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out, as a\nshepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among the sheep\nthat are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver\nthem out of all places where they have been scattered. I will seek\nthat which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away; I\nwill bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which\nwas sick.\" Ezek. 34:11-16.\n\nOf God's ordinary way of fetching the backslider home I will not now\ndiscourse; namely, whether he always breaketh his bones for his\nsins, as he broke David's, or whether he will all the days of his\nlife for this leave him under guilt and darkness; or whether he will\nkill him now, that he may not be condemned in the day of judgment,\nas he dealt with them at Corinth. I Cor. 11: 30-32.\n\nGod is wise, and can tell how to imbitter backsliding to them he\nloveth. He can break their bones and save them; he can lay them in\nthe lowest pit, in darkness and the deep, and save them; he can slay\nthem as to this life, and save them. And herein appears wonderful\ngrace, that Israel is not forsaken.\n\n8. But suppose God deals not either of these ways with the\nbackslider, but shines upon him again, and seals up to him the\nremission of his sins a second time, saying, \"I will heal their\nbackslidings, and love them freely.\" What will the soul do now?\nSurely it will walk humbly now, and holily all its days. It will\nnever backslide again, will it? It may happen it will not; it may\nhappen it will. It is just as his God keeps him; for although his\nsins are of himself, his standing is of God; I say, his standing\nwhile he stands, and his recovery if he falls, are both of God.\nWherefore, if God leaves him a little, the next gap he finds, away\nhe is gone again: \"My people,\" says God, \"are bent to backsliding\nfrom me.\"\n\nHere is grace. So many times as the soul backslides, so many times\nGod brings him back again--I mean the soul that must be saved by\ngrace; he renews his pardons and multiplies them. Yea, for aught I\nknow, there are some saints, and they not long-lived either, that\nmust receive, before they enter into life, millions of pardons from\nGod for these; and every pardon is an act of grace, through the\nredemption that is in Christ's blood.\n\nThe first step to the cure of a wounded conscience is for thee to\nknow the grace of God, especially the grace of God as to\njustification.\n\nGrace can pardon our ungodliness and justify us with Christ's\nrighteousness; it can put the Spirit of Jesus Christ within us; it\ncan help us when we are down; it can heal us when we are wounded; it\ncan multiply pardons, as we through frailty multiply transgressions.\n\nGRACE ABUSED.\n\nA self-righteous man, a man of the law, takes grace and mercy for\nhis greatest enemy.\n\nThe best of things that are of this world are some way hurtful.\nHoney is hurtful, wine is hurtful, silver and gold are hurtful; but\ngrace is not hurtful. Never did man yet catch harm by the enjoyment\nand fulness of the grace of God. There is no fear of excess or\nsurfeiting here. Grace makes no man proud, no man wanton, no man\nhaughty, no man careless or negligent as to his duty that is\nincumbent upon him, towards either God or man. No; grace keeps a man\nlow in his own eyes, humble, self-denying, penitent, watchful,\nsavory in good things, charitable: and makes him kindly affectioned\nto the brethren, pitiful and courteous to all men.\n\nTrue, there are men in the world that abuse the grace of God, as\nsome are said to turn it into wantonness and into lasciviousness.\nBut this is not because grace has any such tendency, but because\nsuch men are themselves empty of grace, and have only done as death\nand hell have done with wisdom, \"heard the fame thereof with their\nears.\"\n\nSome receive the rain of God and the droppings of his clouds,\nbecause they continually sit under the means of grace. But alas,\nthey receive it as stones receive showers, or as dunghills receive\nthe rain: they either abide as hard as stones still, or else return\nnothing to heaven for his mercy, hut as dunghills do, a company of\nstinking fumes.\n\nTo slight grace, to do despite to the Spirit of grace, to prefer our\nown works, thus derogating from grace---what is it but to contemn\nGod? to contemn him when he is on the throne, when he is on the\nthrone of his glory? I say again, it is to spit in his face, even\nthen when he commands thee to how before him, to be subject unto\nhim, and to glorify the grace of his glory, that proceeds from the\nthrone of his glory. If men in old time were damned because they\nglorified him not as God, shall not they be more than damned, if\nmore than damned can he, who glorify him not for his grace? And, to\nhe sure, none glorify him for his grace but those that close in\ntherewith, and submit themselves thereto. Talkers of grace are but\nmockers of God, but flatterers of God. Grace God has exalted; has\nset it upon the throne, and so made it a king, and given it\nauthority to reign; and thou goest by and nearest thereof, but wilt\nnot submit thyself thereto, neither thy soul, nor thy life. Why,\nwhat is this more than to flatter God with thy lips, and than to lie\nunto him with thy tongue? What is this but to count him less wise\nthan thyself, while he seeks glory by that by which thou wilt not\nglorify him---while he displays his grace before thee in the world\nfrom the throne, and as thou goest by, with a nod thou callest it a\nfine thing, but followest that which leadeth therefrom? Tremble,\ntremble, ye sinners, that have despised the riches of his goodness.\nThe day is coming when ye shall behold and wonder and perish, if\ngrace prevaileth not with you to be content to be saved by it to the\npraise of its glory, and to the glory of him who hath set it upon\nthe throne. Acts 13: 38-41.\n\nThere is a spring that yields water good and clear, but the channels\nthrough which this water comes to us are muddy, foul, or dirty; now\nof the channels the waters receive a disadvantage, and so come to us\nas savoring of what came not with them from the fountain, hut from\nthe channels.\n\nThis is the cause of the coolness, and of the weakness, and of the\nflatness, and of the many extravagances that attend some of our\ndesires: they come warm from the Spirit and grace of God in us; hut\nas hot water running through cold pipes, or as clear water running\nthrough dirty convey ances, so our desires gather soil.\n\nGRACE--THE WATER OF LIFE.\n\n\"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal,\nproceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.\" Rev. 22: 1.\n\nThis \"water of life\" is the Spirit and grace of God, and the spirit\nof life. Zech. 12: 10; John 4: 10, 11, 14; 7: 37-39; Rev. 11: 11.\n\nA throne is the seat of justice: \"Justice and judgment are the\nhabitation of thy throne.\" Psal. 89: 14. And it is also from justice\nthat this river of grace flows to us: justice to Christ, and justice\nto those that are found in him. Rom. 3: 24. God declares that he can\njustly justify, justly forgive: now, if he can justly justify and\njustly forgive, then can he give grace and cause that it should\nproceed to, yea, flow after us as a river. But whence must this\ncome? the text says, from the throne--from the throne, the seat of\njustice; for from thence, by reason of what He hath found in Christ\nfor us, he in a way of righteousness and justice lets out to us\nrivers of his pleasures, whoso original is that great and wide sea\nof mercy that flows in his infinite heart beyond thought.\n\nThere is a river, clear and pleasant, the streams whereof make glad\nthe city of God.\n\nThese are the waters that the doves love to sit by, because by the\nclearness of these streams they can see their pretty selves as in a\nglass. Song 5: 12.\n\nThese he the streams where the doves wash their eyes, and by which\nthey solace themselves and take great content. These streams are\ninstead of a looking-glass; their clearness presents us with an\nopportunity of seeing our own features.\n\nAs in fair waters a man may see the hody of the sun, and of the\nmoon, and of the stars, and the very body of heaven; so ho that\nstands upon the bank of this river, and that washeth his eyes with\nthis water, may see the Son of God, the stars of God, the glory of\nGod, and the habitation that God has prepared for his people. And\nare not these pleasant sights? Is not this excellent water? Has not\nthis river pleasant streams?\n\nSome men fly from the \"river of the water of life,\" as from a bear;\narid some are afraid to drink of it, for fear it should he poison\nunto them. Some again, dare not take it, because it is not mixed,\nand as they, poor souls, imagine, qualified and made toothsome by a\nlittle of that which is called the wisdom of this world. Thus one\nshucks, another shrinks, and another will none of God. Meanwhile,\nwhoso shall please to look into this river, shall find it harmless\nand clear; yea, offering itself to the consciences of all men to\nmake trial if it be not the only chief good, the only necessary\nwaters, the only profitable for the health of the soul, of all the\nthings that are in the world, and as clear of mischief as is the sun\nof spots.\n\nIn old times the ancients had their habitations by the rivers; yea,\nwe read of Aroer, that stood upon the brink of the river Arnon.\nBalaam also had his dwelling in his city Pethor, by the river of the\nland of the children of his people. O, by the river side is the\npleasantest dwelling in the world; and of all rivers, the river of\nthe water of life is the best. They that dwell there shall not\nhunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat or sun smite them; for he\nthat hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by springs of water\nshall he guide them. Isa. 49: 10; Psal. 1: 3; Jer. 17: 8.\n\nTrees planted by the rivers, and that spread out their roots by the\nrivers, they are the flourishing trees, they bring forth their fruit\nin their season. And the promise is, that men that take up their\ndwellings by this river of water of life, shall be fruitful as such\ntrees.\n\nIf thou be a Christian, thou hast more than an ordinary call and\noccasion to abide by these waters; thy things will not grow but by\nthese waters. Weeds, and the excellences of most men, we may find in\nthe barren wilderness; they grow under every hedge, Jer. 31: 12; but\nthine are garden, and so choice, things, and will not thrive without\nmuch water; no, not without the water of God's river. Isa. 21: 1-3.\nDwell therefore here, that thy soul may be as a watered garden.\n\nBy the characters that are given of this water of life, thou art\ncapacitated to judge, when a notion, a doctrine, an opinion comes to\nthy ears, whether it is right good and wholesome, or how. This river\nis pure, is clear, is pure and clear as crystal. Is the doctrine\noffered unto thee so? or is it muddy and mixed with the doctrines of\nmen? Look, man, and see if the foot of the worshippers of Bel\n[Footnote: Story of Bel and the dragon in the Apychrypha.] be not\nthere; and if the waters be not fouled thereby. What water is fouled\nis not the water of life, or at least, not the water of life in its\nclearness. Wherefore, if thou findest it not right, go up higher to\nthe spring-head; for always the nearer to the spring, the more pure\nand clear is the water. Fetch then thy doctrine from afar, if thou\ncanst not have it good nearer hand. Job 36: 3. Thy life lies at\nstake; the counterfeit of things is dangerous; every body that is\naware, is afraid thereof. Now a counterfeit here is most dangerous,\nis most destructive; wherefore take heed how you hear what you hear;\nfor, as men say of the fish, by your color it will be seen what\nwaters you swim in. Wherefore look you well to yourselves.\n\nThe grace of God is called a river, to show that it is only suited\nto those who are capable of living therein. Water, though it is that\nwhich every creature desireth, yet is not an element in which every\ncreature can live. Who is it that would not have the benefit of\ngrace, of a throne of grace? But who is it that can live by grace?\neven none but those whose temper and constitution is suited to\ngrace. Hence, as the grace of God is compared to a river, so those\nthat live by grace are compared to fish; for that, as water is that\nelement in which the fish liveth, so grace is that which is the life\nof the saint. \"And there shall be a very great multitude of fish,\nbecause these waters shall come thither; for they shall he healed,\nand every thing shall live whither the river cometh.\" Ezek. 47: 9.\nArt thou a fish, man--art thou a fish? canst thou live in the water?\ncanst thou live always, and nowhere else hut in the water? is grace\nthy proper element? The fish dieth if she be taken out of the water,\nunless she be timely put in again; the saint dieth if he be not in\nthis river. Take him from his river, and nothing can make him live;\nlet him have water, water of life enough, and nothing can make him\ndie.\n\nI know that there are some things besides fish that can make a shift\nto live in the water; but the water is not their proper, their only\nproper element. The frog can live in the water, but not in the water\nonly; the otter can live in the water, hut not in the water only.\nGive some men grace and the world, grace and sin--admit them to make\nuse of their lusts for pleasure, and of grace to remove their guilt,\nand they will make a pretty good shift, as we say; they will finely\nscrabble on in a profession. But hold them to grace only, confine\ntheir life to grace, put them into the river and let them have\nnothing hut river, and they die; the word, and way, and nature of\ngrace, is to them as light bread, and their soul can do no other but\nloathe it, for they are not suited and tempered for that element.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nVII. CHRIST.\n\nTHE INCARNATION OF CHRIST.\n\n\n\n\n\nTHE first main design of the life and conversation of the Lord\nJesus, was that thereby God, the Eternal Majesty, according to his\npromise, might be seen by, and dwell with, mortal men. For the\nGodhead being altogether in its own nature invisible, and yet\ndesirous to be seen by and dwell with the children of men, therefore\nwas the Son, who is the self-same substance with the Father, clothed\nwith or tabernacled in our flesh, that in that flesh the nature and\nglory of the Godhead might be seen by and dwell with us. \"The word\nwas made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory;\" what\nglory? \"the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of\ngrace and truth.\" Again, \"The life\"--that is, the life of God in the\nworks and conversation of Christ--\"was manifest, and we have seen it\nand bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life which was with\nthe Father and was manifested unto us.\" And hence he is called the\nimage of the invisible God; or he by whom the invisible God is most\nperfectly presented to the sons of men.\n\nDid I say before that the God of glory is desirous to be seen of us?\nEven so also have the pure in heart a desire that it should be so.\n\"Lord,\" say they, \"show us the Father, and it sufficeth us.\" And\ntherefore the promise is for their comfort, that \"they shall see\nGod.\" But how then must they see him? Why, in the person, and by the\nlife and works of Jesus, When Philip, under a mistake, thought of\nseeing God some other way than in and by this Lord Jesus Christ,\nwhat is the answer? \"Have I been so long time with you,\" saith\nChrist, \"and hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me,\nhath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?\nBelievest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?\nThe words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself; hut the\nFather, that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I\nam in the Father, and the Father in me, or else believe me for the\nvery work's sake.\"\n\nSee, here, that both the words and works of the Lord Jesus were not\nto show you, and so to call you back to the holiness we had lost,\nbut to give us visions of the perfections that are in the Father.\n\"He hath given us the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of\nJesus Christ.\" And hence it is that the apostle, in that brief\ncollection of the wonderful mystery of godliness, places this in the\nfront thereof: \"God was manifest in the flesh\"--was manifested in\nand by the person of Christ, when in the flesh he lived among us;\nmanifest, I say, for this as one reason, that the pure in heart, who\nlong after nothing more, might see him. \"I beseech thee,\" said\nMoses, \"show me thy glory.\" \"And will God indeed dwell with men on\nthe earth?\" saith Solomon.\n\nThough Adam be called the image or similitude of God, yet but so as\nthat he was the shadow of a more excellent image. Adam was a type of\nChrist, who only is the express image of his Father's person, and\nthe likeness of his excellent glory; for those things that were in\nAdam were but of a human, but of a created substance; but those\nthings that were in Christ, of the same divine and eternal\nexcellency with the Father.\n\nIs Christ then the image of the Father, simply as considered of the\nsame divine and eternal excellency with him? Certainly not; for an\nimage is doubtless inferior to that of which it is a figure.\nUnderstand, then, that Christ is the image of the Father's glory, as\nborn of the Virgin Mary, yet so as being very God also: not that his\nGodhead in itself was a shadow or image, but by the acts and doing\nof that man, every act being infinitely perfect by virtue of his\nGodhead, the Father's perfections were made manifest to flesh. An\nimage is to be looked upon, and by being looked upon, another thing\nis seen; so by the person and doings of the Lord Jesus, they that\nindeed could see him as he was, discovered the perfection and glory\nof the Father. \"Philip, he that hath seen me, hath seen the Father;\nand how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?\" Neither the Father\nnor the Son can by us at all be seen, as they are simply and\nentirely in their own essence. Therefore the person of the Father\nmust be seen by us through the Son, as consisting of God and man;\nthe Godhead, by working effectually in the manhood, showing clearly\nthere through the infinite perfection and glory of the Father. \"The\nword was made flesh, and\" then \"we beheld his glory, the glory of\nthe only begotten of his Father\"--he being in his personal\nexcellencies, infinitely and perfectly, what is recorded of his\nFather, \"full of grace and truth.\"\n\nWhen Jesus Christ came down from glory, it was that he might bring\nus to glory; and that he might be sure not to fail, he clothed\nhimself with our nature--as if we should take a piece out of the\nwhole lump instead of the whole, Heb. 11:l4--and invested it with\nthat glory which he was in before he came down from heaven. Eph.\n2:6.\n\nTHE HUMANITY OF CHRIST.\n\nWe perceive love, in that the human nature, the nature of man, not\nof angels, is taken into union with God. Whoso could consider this\nas it is possible for it to be considered, would stand amazed till\nhe died with wonder. By this very act of the heavenly Wisdom we have\nan inconceivable pledge of the love of Christ to man; for in that he\nhath taken into union with himself our nature, what doth it signify\nbut that he intends to take into union with himself our persons? For\nthis very purpose did he assume our nature. Wherefore we read that\nin the flesh he took upon him, in that flesh he died for us, \"the\njust for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.\"\n\nThe psalmist saith of Christ, that \"he was fairer than the children\nof men;\" and that, as I believe in his outward man as well as in his\ninward part, he was the exactest, purest, completest, and\nbeautifulest creature that ever God made, till his visage was so\nmarred by his persecutions; for in all things he had, and shall have\nthe preeminence.\n\nTHE HUMILIATION OF CHRIST\n\nChrist did not only come into our flesh, but also into our\ncondition, into the valley and shadow of death, where we were, and\nwhere we are, as we are sinners.\n\nThat which would have been death to some--the laying aside of glory,\nand the King of princes becoming a servant of the meanest form--this\nhe of his own goodwill was heartily content to do. Wherefore he that\nwas once the object of the fear of angels, is now become a little\ncreature, a worm, an inferior one, born of a woman, brought forth in\na stable, laid in a manger, scorned of men, tempted of devils, was\nbeholden to his creatures for food, for raiment, for harbor, and a\nplace wherein to lay his head when dead. In a word, he made himself\nof no reputation, took upon him the form of a servant, and was made\nin the likeness of men, that he might become capable to do this\nkindness for us, to give himself a ransom for us.\n\nAnd it is worth your noting, that all the while that he was in the\nworld, putting himself upon those other preparations which were to\nbe antecedent to his being made a sacrifice for us, no man, though\nhe told what he came about to many, had, as we read of, a heart once\nto thank him for what he came about. No; they railed on him they\ndegraded him, they called him devil, they said he was mad and a\ndeceiver, a blasphemer of God and a rebel against the state; they\naccused him to the governor; yea, one of his own disciples sold him,\nanother denied him, and they all forsook him, and left him to shift\nfor himself in the hands of his horrible enemies, who beat him with\ntheir fists, spat on him, mocked him, crowned him with thorns,\nscourged him, made a gazing-stock of him, and finally, hanged him up\nby the hands and feet alive, and gave him vinegar to increase his\naffliction, when he complained that his anguish had made him\nthirsty. And yet all this could not take his heart off the work of\nour redemption. To die he came, die he would, and die he did, before\nhe made his return to the Father, for our sins, that we might live\nthrough him.\n\nWhen Christ betook himself to his ministry, he lived upon the\ncharity of the people; when other men went to their own houses,\nJesus went to the mount of Olives.\n\nTHE GLORY OF CHRIST.\n\nChrist is rich indeed, both in his blood, resurrection,\nintercession, and all his offices, together with his relations, and\nall his benefits; all which he bestoweth upon every one that\nreceiveth him, and maketh them unspeakably wealthy.\n\nThe pearl, as it is rich, and so worth much, so again it is\nbeautiful and amiable, even to take the eyes of all beholders; it\nhath, I say, a very sweet and sparkling light and glory in it,\nenough to take the eye and affect the heart of all those that look\nupon it. And thus is Christ to all that come to him, and by him to\nthe Father. \"My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest of ten\nthousand; his mouth is most sweet, he is altogether lovely.\"\n\nTHE LOVE OF CHRIST.\n\nHere is love, that God sent his Son, his darling, his Son that never\noffended, his Son that was always his delight. Herein is love, that\nhe sent him to save sinners; to save them by bearing their sins, by\nbearing their curse, by dying their death, and by carrying their\nsorrows. Here is love, in that while we were yet enemies, Christ\ndied for us; yea, here is love, in that while we were yet without\nstrength, Christ died for the ungodly.\n\nOh, blessed Jesus, how didst thou discover thy love to man in thy\nthus suffering! And, O God the Father, how didst thou also declare\nthe purity and exactness of thy justice, in that, though it was\nthine only, holy, innocent, harmless, and undefiled Son Jesus, that\ndid take on him our nature and represent our persons, answering for\nour sins instead of ourselves; thou didst so wonderfully pour out\nthy wrath upon him, to the making of him cry out, \"My God, my God,\nwhy hast thou forsaken me?\" And, O Lord Jesus, what a glorious\nconquest hast thou made over the enemies of our souls--even wrath,\nsin, death, hell, and devils--in that thou didst wring thyself from\nunder the power of them all. And not only so, but hast led them\ncaptive which would have led us captive; and also hast received for\nus that glorious and unspeakable inheritance that eye hath not seen,\nnor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to\nconceive.\n\nThe great Bringer of the gospel is the good Lord Jesus Christ\nhimself; he came and preached peace to them that the law proclaimed\nwar against. And to touch a little upon the dress in which, by the\ngospel, Christ presents himself unto us, while he offers unto sinful\nsouls his peace by the tenders thereof:\n\nHe is set forth as born for us, to save our souls. Isa. 9:6; Luke\n2:9-12; 1 Cor. 15:3; Gal. 3:13; Rom 10:4; Dan. 9:24.\n\nHe is set forth before us as bearing our sins for us, and suffering\nGod's wrath for us.\n\nHe is set forth before us as fulfilling the law for us, and as\nbringing everlasting righteousness to us for our covering.\n\nAgain, as to the manner of his working out the salvation of sinners\nfor them, that they might have peace and joy, and heaven and glory\nfor ever:\n\nHe is set forth as sweating blood while he was in his agony,\nwrestling with the thoughts of death, while he was to suffer for our\nsins, that he might save the soul. Luke 22:24.\n\nHe is set forth as crying, weeping, and mourning under the lashes of\njustice that he put himself under, and was willing to bear for our\nsins.\n\nHe is set forth as betrayed, apprehended, condemned, spit on,\nscourged, buffeted, mocked, crowned with thorns, crucified, pierced\nwith nails and a spear, to save the soul from being betrayed by the\ndevil and sin; to save it from being apprehended by justice and\ncondemned by the law; to save it from being spit on in a way of\ncontempt by holiness; to save it from being scourged with guilt of\nsins as with scorpions; to save it from being continually buffeted\nby its own conscience; to save it from being mocked at by God; to\nsave it from being crowned with ignominy and shame for ever; to save\nit from dying the second death; to save it from wounds and grief for\never.\n\nDost thou understand me, sinful soul? He wrestled with justice, that\nthou mightest have rest; he wept and mourned, that thou mightst\nlaugh and rejoice; he was betrayed, that thou mightest go free; was\napprehended, that thou mightst escape; he was condemned, that thou\nmightst be justified, and was killed, that thou mightest live; he\nwore a crown of thorns, that thou mightest wear a crown of glory;\nand was nailed to the cross with his arms wide open, to show with\nwhat freeness all his merits shall be bestowed on the coming soul,\nand how heartily he will receive it into his bosom.\n\nAll this he did of mere good-will, and offers the benefit thereof\nunto thee freely. Yea, he comes unto thee in the word of the gospel,\nwith the blood running down from his head upon his face, with his\ntears abiding upon his cheeks, as with the holes fresh in his hands\nand his feet, and as with the blood still bubbling out of his side,\nto pray thee to accept of the benefit, and to be reconciled to God\nthereby.\n\nBy this we may see his love, in that as a forerunner he is gone into\nheaven to take possession thereof for us; there to make ready and\nprepare for us our summer-houses, our mansions and dwelling-places;\nas if we were the lords, and he the servant. Oh, this love!\n\nThou Son of the Blessed, what grace was manifest in thy\ncondescension! Grace brought thee down from heaven; grace stripped\nthee of thy glory; grace made thee poor and despicable; grace made\nthee bear such burdens of sin, such burdens of sorrow, such burdens\nof God's curse as are unspeakable.\n\nO Son of God, grace was in all thy tears; grace came bubbling out of\nthy side with thy blood; grace came forth with every word of thy\nsweet mouth; grace came out where the whip smote thee, where the\nthorns pricked thee, where the nails and spear pierced thee. O\nblessed Son of God, here is grace indeed! unsearchable riches of\ngrace! unthought of riches of grace! grace to make angels wonder,\ngrace to make sinners happy, grace to astonish devils!\n\nAnd what will become of them that trample under foot this Son of\nGod?\n\nChrist is the desire of nations, the joy of angels, the delight of\nthe Father. What solace then must that soul be filled with, that\nhath the possession of him to all eternity.\n\nWho can tell how many heart-pleasing thoughts Christ had of us\nbefore the world began? Who can tell how much he then was delighted\nin that being we had in his affections, as also in the consideration\nof our beings, believings, and being with him afterwards?\n\nChrist was never so joyful in all his life, that we read of, as when\nhis sufferings grew near; then he takes the sacrament of his body\nand blood into his own hands, and with thanksgiving bestows it among\nhis disciples; then he sings a hymn, then he rejoices, then he comes\nwith a \"Lo, I come.\" O the heart, the great heart that Jesus had for\nus to do us good! He did it with all the desire of his soul.\n\nWhen a man shall not only design me a purse of gold, but shall\nventure his life to bring it to me, this is grace indeed. But, alas,\nwhat are a thousand such short comparisons to the unsearchable love\nof Christ?\n\nChrist Jesus has bags of mercy that were never yet broken up or\nunsealed. Hence it is said, he has goodness laid up; things reserved\nin heaven for his. And if he breaks up one of these bags, who can\ntell what he can do?\n\nIt is not exaltation, nor a crown, nor a kingdom, nor a throne that\nshall make Christ neglect his poor ones on earth; yea, because he is\nexalted and on the throne, therefore it is that such a river of\nlife, with its golden streams, proceeds with us. And it shall\nproceed, to be far higher than ever were the swellings of Jordan.\nRev. 22:1.\n\n    How the brave sun doth peep up from beneath,\n    Shows us his golden face, doth on us breathe;\n    Yea, he doth compass us around with glories\n    Whilst he ascends up to his highest stories,\n    Where he his banner over us displays\n    And gives us light to see our works and ways.\n\n    Nor are we now, as at the peep of light,\n    To question is it day or is it night;\n    The night is gone, the shadow's fled away,\n    And now we are most certain that 'tis day.\n\n    And thus it is when Jesus shows his face,\n    And doth assure us of his love and grace.\n\nThis makes Christ precious, if I consider how he did deliver me: it\nwas, I, with his life, his blood; it cost him tears, groans, agony,\nseparation from God; to do it, he endured his Father's wrath, bare\nhis Father's curse, and died thousands of deaths at once.\n\n2. He did this while I was his enemy, without my desires, without my\nknowledge, without my deserts; he did it unawares to me.\n\n3. He did it freely, cheerfully, yea, he longed to die for me; yea,\nheaven would not hold him for the love he had to my salvation, which\nalso he has effectually accomplished for me at Jerusalem.\n\nHonorable Jesus! precious Jesus! loving Jesus! Jonathan's kindness\ncaptivated David, and made him precious in his eyes for ever. \"I am\ndistressed for thee, my brother Jonathan,\" said he; \"very pleasant\nhast thou been to me; thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love\nof women.\" Why, what had Jonathan done? Oh, he had delivered David\nfrom the wrath of Saul. But how much more should He be precious to\nme, who hath saved me from death and hell--who hath delivered me\nfrom the wrath of God? \"The love of Christ constraineth us.\" Nothing\nwill so edge the spirit of a Christian as, \"Thou wast slain, and\nhast redeemed us to God by thy blood.\" This makes the heavens\nthemselves ring with joy and shouting.\n\nTHE DAY, BEFORE THE SUN-RISING.\n\n    But all this while, where's he whose golden rays\n    Drive night away, and beautify our days?\n    Where's he whose goodly face doth warm and heal,\n    And show us what the darksome nights conceal?\n    Where's he that thaws our ice, drives cold away?\n    Let's have him, or we care not for the day.\n        Thus 'tis with those who are possessed of grace;\n        There's naught to them like the Redeemer's face.\n\nOh thou loving one, Oh thou blessed one, thou descrvest to have me;\nthou hast bought me; thou deservest to have me all; thou hast paid\nfor me ten thousand times more than I am worth!\n\nO you that are upon this march [to hell,] I beseech you, consider a\nlittle. What, shall Christ become a servant for you, and will you be\ndrudges for the devil? Shall Christ covenant with God for the\nsalvation of sinners, and shall sinners covenant with hell, death,\nand the devil, for the damnation of their souls? Shall Christ come\ndown from heaven to earth to declare this to sinners; and shall\nsinners stop their ears against these good tidings? Will you not\nhear the errand of Christ, although he telleth you tidings of peace\nand salvation? How if he had come, having taken a command from his\nFather to damn you and to send you to dwell with devils in hell?\nSinners, hear this message, John 3: 16, 17, etc.; he speaketh no\nharm, his words are eternal life; all men that give ear unto them\nhave eternal advantage by them-advantage, I say, that never hath an\nend.\n\nBesides, do but consider these two things; they may have some sway\nupon thy soul.\n\n1. When he came on his message, he came with tears in his eyes, and\ndid even weepingly tender the terms of reconciliation to them--I\nsay, with tears in his eyes. And when he came near the city with the\nmessage of peace, beholding the hardness of their hearts, he wept\nover it, and took up a lamentation over it, because he saw they\nrejected his mercy, which was tidings of peace. I say, wilt thou\nthen slight a weeping Jesus, one that so loveth the soul that rather\nthan he will lose thee, he will with tears persuade thee?\n\n2. Not only so, but also when he came, he came all on a gore of\nblood, to proffer mercy to thee, to show thee still how dearly he\ndid love thee; as if he had said, \"Sinner, here is mercy for thee;\nbut behold my bloody sweat, my bloody wounds, my accursed death;\nbehold, and see what danger I have gone through to come unto thy\nsoul. I am come indeed unto thee, and do bring thee tidings of\nsalvation, but it cost me my heart's blood before I could come at\nthee, to give thee the fruits of my everlasting love.\"\n\nTHE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST.\n\nMany there are who, in the day of grace and mercy, despise those\nthings which are indeed the birthright to heaven, who yet when the\ndeclining days appear will cry as loud as Esau, \"Lord, Lord, open to\nus;\" but then, as Isaac would not repent, no more will God the\nFather, but will say, \"I have blessed these, yea, and they shall be\nblessed; but as for you, Depart, you are workers of iniquity.\"\n\nWhen I had thus considered these scriptures and found that thus to\nunderstand them was not against, but according to the Scriptures,\nthis still added further to my encouragement and comfort, and also\ngave a great blow to that objection--to wit, that the Scriptures\ncould not agree in the salvation of my soul.\n\nAnd now remained only the hinder part of the tempest, for the\nthunder was gone beyond me, only some drops did still remain that\nnow and then would fall upon me; but because my former frights and\nanguish were very sore and deep, therefore it oft befell me still,\nas it befalleth those that have been seared with the fire, I thought\nevery voice was, \"Fire, fire'!\" Every little touch would hurt my\ntender conscience.\n\nBut one day, as I was passing into the field, and that too with some\ndashes on my conscience, fearing lest yet all was not right,\nsuddenly this sentence fell upon my soul: \"Thy righteousness is in\nheaven;\" and methought withal I saw with the eyes of my soul Jesus\nChrist at God's right hand--there, I say, as my righteousness; so\nthat wherever I was, or whatever I was doing, God could not say to\nme, he wanted my righteousness, for that was just before him. I also\nsaw, moreover, that it was not my good frame of heart that made my\nrighteousness better, nor yet my bad frame that made my\nrighteousness worse; for my righteousness was Jesus Christ himself,\n\"the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever.\"\n\nNow did my chains fall off my legs indeed; I was loosed frorn my\nafflictions and irons; my temptations also fled away; so that from\nthat time those dreadful scriptures [Footnote: Numb. 15:30; Jer.\n7:16; Heb. 10:31; 12:27.] of God left off to trouble me: now went I\nalso home rejoicing, for the grace and love of God. So when I came\nhome, I looked to see if I could find that sentence, \"Thy\nrighteousness is in heaven,\" but could not find such a saying;\nwherefore my heart began to sink again, only that was brought to my\nremembrance, \"He is made unto us of God wisdom, righteousness,\nsanctification, and redemption.\" By this word I saw the other\nsentence true.\n\nFor by this scripture I saw that the man Christ Jesus, as he is\ndistinct from us as touching his bodily presence, so he is our\nrighteousness and sanctification before God. Here, therefore, I\nlived for some time very sweetly at peace with God through Christ.\nOh, methought, Christ! Christ! there was nothing but Christ that was\nbefore my eyes. I was now not only for looking upon this and the\nother benefits of Christ apart, as of his blood; burial, or\nresurrection, but considering him as a whole Christ--as he in whom\nall these, and all his other virtues, relations, offices, and\noperations met together, and that he sat on the right hand of God in\nheaven.\n\nFurther, the Lord did also lead me into the mystery of the union\nwith the Son of God--that I was joined to him, and that I was flesh\nof his flesh and bone of his bone; and now was that a sweet word to\nme in Eph. 5:30. By this also was my faith in him as my\nrighteousness, the more confirmed in me; for if he and I were one,\nthen his righteousness was mine, his merits mine, his victory also\nmine. Now, I could see myself in heaven and earth at once: in\nheaven, by my Christ, by my Head, by my Righteousness and Life,\nthough on earth by body or person.\n\nLet divine and infinite justice turn itself which way it will, it\nfinds One that can tell how to match it. For if it say, \"I will\nrequire the satisfaction of man,\" there is a man to satisfy its cry;\nand if it say, \"But I am an infinite God, and must and will have an\ninfinite satisfaction,\" here is One also that is infinite, even\n\"fellow\" with God; fellow in his essence and being; fellow in his\npower and strength; fellow in his wisdom; fellow in his mercy and\ngrace, together with the rest of the attributes of God. So that, let\njustice turn itself which way it will, here is a complete person and\na complete satisfaction.\n\n\"The law,\" sayst thou, \"must be obeyed.\" I answer, \"Christ Jesus has\ndone that in his own person, and justified me thereby; and for my\npart, I will not labor now to fulfil the law for justification, lest\nI should undervalue the merits of the man Christ Jesus, and what he\nhas done without me; and yet will I labor to fulfil, if it were\npossible, ten thousand laws, if there were so many. And Oh, let it\nbe out of love to my sweet Lord Jesus; for the love of Christ\nconstraineth me.\"\n\nThough no man can be justified by the works of the law, yet unless\nthe righteousness and holiness by which they attempt to enter into\nthis kingdom be justified by the law, it is in vain once to think of\nentering in at this strait gate. Now, the law justifieth not, but\nupon the account of Christ's righteousness; if therefore thou be not\nindeed found in that righteousness, thou wilt find the law lie just\nin the passage into heaven to keep thee out.\n\nCHRIST A COMPLETE SAVIOUR.\n\n\"This is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he\nhath given me, I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again\nat the last day.\" John 6:39.\n\nThe Father therefore, in giving them to him to save them, must needs\ndeclare unto us the following things:\n\n1. That he is ABLE to answer this design of God to save them to the\nuttermost sin, the uttermost temptation. Hence he is said to \"lay\nhelp on one that is mighty,\" mighty to save. Sin is strong, Satan is\nalso strong, death and the grave are strong, and so is the curse of\nthe law; therefore it follows, that this Jesus must needs be by God\nthe Father accounted almighty, in that he hath given his elect to\nhim to save them from these, and that in despite of all their force\nand power. And he gave us testimony of this his might, when he was\nemployed in that part of our deliverance that called for a\ndeclaration of it. He abolished death; he destroyed him that had the\npower of death; he was the destruction of the grave; he hath\nfinished sin, and made an end of it; he hath vanquished the curse of\nthe law, nailed it to his cross, triumphed over them upon his cross,\nand made a show of these things openly. Yea, and even now, as a sign\nof his triumph and conquest, he is alive from the dead, and hath the\nkeys of death and hell in his own keeping.\n\n2. The Father's giving them to him to save them, declares unto us\nthat he is and will be FAITHFUL in his office of Mediator, and that\ntherefore they shall be secured from the fruit and wages of their\nsins, which is eternal damnation. And of this the Son hath already\ngiven a proof; for when the time was come that his blood was by\ndivine justice required for their redemption, washing, and\ncleansing, he as freely poured it out of his heart as if it had been\nwater out of a vessel; not sticking to part with his own life, that\nthe life which was laid up for his people in heaven might not fail\nto be bestowed upon them.\n\n3. The Father's giving of them to him to save them, declares that he\nis and will be GENTLE AND PATIENT towards them under all their\nprovocations and miscarriages. It is not to be imagined, the trials\nand provocations that the Son of God hath all along had with these\npeople that have been given to him to save. Indeed, he is said to be\nA TRIED STONE; for he has been tried not only by the devil, guilt of\nsin, death, and the curse of the law, but also by his people's\nignorance, unruliness, falls into sin, and declining to errors in\nlife and doctrine. Were we but capable of seeing how this Lord Jesus\nhas been tried, even by his people, ever since there was one of them\nin the world, we should be amazed at his patience and gentle\ncarriages to them. It is said indeed, \"The Lord is very pitiful,\nslow to anger, and of great mercy.\" And indeed, if he had not been\nso, he could never have endured their manners as he has done, from\nAdam hitherto. Therefore are his pity and bowels towards his church\npreferred above the pity and bowels of a mother towards her child.\n\"Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have\ncompassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I\nnot forget thee, saith the Lord.\"\n\nGod did once give Moses, as Christ's servant, a handful of his\npeople to carry them in his bosom, but no further than from Egypt to\nCanaan; and this Moses, as is said of him by the Holy Ghost, was the\nmeekest man that was then to be found upon the earth. God gave them\nto Moses that he might carry them in his bosom, that he might show\ngentleness and patience towards them, under all the provocations\nwherewith they would provoke him from that time till he had brought\nthem to their land. But he failed in the work; he could not exercise\nit, because he had not that sufficiency of patience towards them.\nBut now it is said of the person speaking in the text, that \"he\nshall gather his lambs with his arm, shall carry them in his bosom,\nand shall gently lead them that are with young.\"\n\n4. The Father's giving them to him to save them, declares that he\nhath a SUFFICIENCY OF WISDOM to wage with all those difficulties\nthat would attend him in his bringing his sons and daughters unto\nglory. He hath made him to us to be wisdom; yea, he is called Wisdom\nitself. And God saith, moreover, that he \"shall deal prudently.\" And\nindeed, he that shall take upon him to be the Saviour of the people,\nhad need be wise, because their adversaries are subtle above any.\nHere they are to encounter the serpent, who for his subtlety\noutwitted our father and mother when their wisdom was at highest.\nBut if we talk of wisdom, our Jesus is wise, wiser than Solomon,\nwiser than all men, wiser than all angels; he is even \"the wisdom of\nGod.\" And hence it is that he turneth sins, temptations,\npersecutions, falls, and all things, for good unto his people.\n\nI do not doubt but there is virtue enough in the blood of Christ,\nwould God Almighty so apply it, to save the souls of the whole\nworld. But it is the blood of Christ, his own blood, and he may do\nwhat he will with his own. It is also the blood of God, and he also\nmay restrain its merits, or apply it as he sees good. But the coming\nsoul, he shall find and feel the virtue thereof, even the soul that\ncomes to God by Christ, for he is the man concerned in its worth.\n\nThere is sufficiency of merit in Christ to save a thousand times as\nmany more as are like to be saved by him.\n\nNo man needs at all to go about to come at life and peace and rest:\nlet him come directly from sin to grace, from Satan to Jesus Christ.\n\nThe cross, it stands and hath stood from the beginning as a way-mark\nto the kingdom of heaven. Art thou inquiring the way to heaven? Why,\nI tell thee Christ is the way; into him thou must get, into his\nrighteousness to be justified; and if thou art in him, thou wilt\npresently see the cross: thou must go close by it, thou must touch\nit, nay, thou must take it up, or else thou wilt quickly go out of\nthe way that leads to heaven, and turn up some of those crooked\nlanes that lead down to the chambers of death.\n\nMany there be that begin with grace and end with works, and think\nthat is the only way. Indeed, works will save from temporal\npunishments, when their imperfections are purged from them by the\nintercession of Christ; but to be saved and brought to glory, to be\ncarried through this dangerous world from my first moving after\nChrist until I set foot within the gates of paradise, this is the\nwork of my Mediator, of my High-priest and Intercessor. It is he\nthat fetches us again when we are run away; it is he that lifts us\nup when the devil and sin have thrown us down; it is he that\nquickens us when we grow cold; it is he that comforts us when we\ndespair; it is he that obtains fresh pardon when we have contracted\nsin, and that purges our consciences when they are laden with guilt.\nI know that rewards do wait for them in heaven, that believe in\nChrist, and shall do well on earth; but this is not a reward of\nmerit, but of grace. We are saved by Christ, brought to glory by\nChrist, and all our works are no other ways made acceptable to God\nbut by the person and personal excellencies and works of Christ;\ntherefore, whatever the jewels are, and the bracelets and the\npearls, that thou shalt be adorned with as a reward of service done\nfor God in the world, for them thou must thank Christ, and before\nall confess that he was the meritorious cause thereof.\n\nChrist must be helpful to thee every way, or he will be helpful to\nthee no way; thou must enter in by every whit of Christ, or thou\nshalt enter in by never a whit of him. Wherefore look not to have\nhim thy Saviour, if thou take him not for King and Prophet; nay,\nthou shalt not have him in any one, if thou dost not take him in\nevery one of these.\n\nChrist shall bear the glory of our salvation from sin, preservation\nin the midst of all temptations, and of our going to glory; also he\nshall bear the glory of our labor in the gospel, of our gifts and\nabilities, of making our work and labor effectual to the saving of\nsinners, that in all things he might have the preeminence.\n\nIf you have indeed laid Christ, God-man, for your foundation, then\nyou do lay the hope of your felicity and joy on this, that the Son\nof Mary is now absent from his children in his person and humanity,\nmaking intercession for them and for thee in the presence of his\nFather. 2 Cor. 5:6.\n\nAnd the reason that thou canst rejoice hereat is, because thou hast\nnot only heard of it with thine ear, but dost enjoy the sweet hope\nand faith of it in thy heart; which hope and faith are begotten by\nthe Spirit of Christ, which Spirit dwelleth in thee if thou be a\nbeliever, and showeth those things to thee to be the only things.\n\nAnd God having shown thee these things thus within thee, by the\nSpirit that dwells in thee, thou hast mighty encouragement to hope\nfor the glory that shall be revealed at the coming again of the man\nChrist Jesus; of which glory thou hast also greater ground to hope\nfor a share, because that Spirit which alone is able to discover to\nthee the truth of these things, is given to thee of God as the first\nfruits of that glory which is hereafter to be revealed---being\nobtained for thee by the man Christ Jesus' death on Calvary, and by\nhis blood that was shed there, together with his resurrection from\nthe dead out of the grave where they had laid him.\n\nAlso, thou believest that he is gone away from thee in the same body\nwhich was hanged on the cross, to take possession of that glory\nwhich thou, through his obedience, shalt at his the very same man's\nreturn from heaven the second time, have bestowed upon thee, he\nhaving all this while prepared and preserved it for thee; as he\nsaith himself, \"I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and\nprepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to\nmyself; that where I am, there ye may be also.\"\n\nAgain, if thou hast laid Christ, God-man, for thy foundation, though\nthou hast the Spirit of this man Christ within thee, yet thou dost\nnot look that justification should be wrought out for thee by that\nSpirit of Christ that dwells within thee; for thou knowest that\nsalvation is already obtained for thee by the man Christ Jesus\nwithout thee, and is witnessed to thee by his Spirit which dwells\nwithin thee. And thus much doth this man Christ Jesus testify unto\nus, where he says, \"He shall glorify me,\" saith the Son of Mary. But\nhow? Why, \"he shall take of mine\"---what I have done and am doing\nin the presence of the Father--\"and shall show it unto you.\" John\n16:14.\n\nCHRIST NOT A SAVIOUR BY HIS EXAMPLE.\n\nA third thing you mention is, that \"the Son of God taught men their\nduty by his own example, and did himself perform what he required of\nthem; and that himself did tread before us every step of that which\nhe hath told us leadeth to eternal life.\"\n\nANSWER. Now we are come to the point, namely, that \"the way to\neternal life is, first of all, to take Christ for our example,\ntreading his steps.\" And the reason, if it be true, is weighty; for\n\"he hath trod every step before us which he hath told us leads to\neternal life.\"\n\n\"Every step.\" Therefore he went to heaven by virtue of an imputative\nrighteousness; for this is one of our steps thither.\n\n\"Every step.\" Then he must go thither by faith in his own blood for\npardon of sin; for this is another of our steps thither.\n\n\"Every step.\" Then he must go thither by virtue of his own\nintercession at the right hand of God before he came thither; for\nthis is one of our steps thither.\n\n\"Every step.\" Then he must come to God and ask mercy for some great\nwickedness which he had committed; for this is also one of our steps\nthither.\n\nBut again, we will consider it the other way.\n\n\"Every step.\" Then we cannot come to heaven before we first be made\naccursed of God; for so was he before he came thither.\n\n\"Every step.\" Then we must first make our body and soul an offering\nfor the sin of others; for this did he before he came thither.\n\n\"Every step.\" Then we must go to heaven for the sake of our own\nrighteousness; for that was one of his steps thither.\n\nO, sir, what will thy gallant, generous mind do here? Indeed, you\ntalk of his being an expiatory sacrifice for us, but you put no more\ntrust to that than to baptism or the Lord's supper; counting that\nwith the other two but things indifferent in themselves.\n\nYou add again, that \"this Son of God being raised from the dead and\nascended to heaven, is our high-priest there.\" But you talk not at\nall of his sprinkling the mercy-seat with his blood, but clap upon\nhim the heathens' demons, negotiating the affairs of men with the\nsupreme God, and so wrap up [Footnote: That is, dismiss the\nsubject.] with a testification that it is needless to enlarge on the\npoint.\n\nWhat man that ever had read or assented to the gospel, but would\nhave spoken more honorably of Christ than you have done? His\nsacrifice must be stepped over; his intercession is needless to be\nenlarged upon. But when it falleth in your way to talk of your human\nnature, of the dictates of the first principles of morals within\nyou, and of your generous mind to follow it, Oh what need there is\nnow of amplifying, enlarging, and pressing it on men's consciences,\nas if that poor heathenish pagan principle was the very Spirit of\nGod within us, and as if righteousness done by that was that and\nthat only that would or could fling heaven's gates off the hinges.\n\nYea, a little after you tell us that \"the doctrine of sending the\nHoly Ghost was to move and excite us to our duty, and to assist,\ncheer, and comfort us in the performance of it;\" still meaning our\nclose adhering, by the purity of our human nature, to the dictates\nof the law as written in our hearts as men; which is as false as God\nis true.\n\nFor the Holy Ghost is sent into our hearts, not to excite us to a\ncompliance with our old and wind-shaken excellencies that came into\nthe world with us, but to write new laws in our hearts, even the law\nof faith, the word of faith and of grace, and the doctrine of\nremission of sins through the blood of the Lamb of God, that\nholiness might flow from thence.\n\nCHRIST A TEACHER.\n\nAt this time I sat under the ministry of holy Mr. Gifford. whose\ndoctrine, by God's grace, was much for my stability. This man made\nit much his business to deliver the people of God from all those\nhard and unsound tests that by nature we are prone to. He would bid\nus take special heed that we took not up any truth upon trust, as\nfrom this or that or any other man or men; but cry mightily to God\nthat he would convince us of the reality thereof, and set us down\ntherein by his own Spirit in the holy word; \"for,\" said he, \"if you\ndo otherwise, when temptation comes strongly upon you, you not\nhaving received them with evidence from heaven, will find you want\nthat help and strength now to resist, that once you thought you\nhad.\"\n\nThis was as seasonable to my soul as the former and latter rain in\ntheir season, for I had found, and that by sad experience, the truth\nof these his words; for I had felt that no man, especially when\ntempted by the devil, \"can say that Jesus Christ is Lord, but by the\nHoly Ghost.\"\n\nBut O now, how was my soul led from truth to truth by God; even from\nthe birth and cradle of the Son of God, to his ascension and second\ncoming from heaven to judge the world.\n\nOnce I was troubled to know whether the Lord Jesus was a man as well\nas God, and God as well as man; and truly, in those days, let men\nsay what they would, unless I had it with evidence from heaven, all\nwas nothing to me. Well, I was much troubled about this point, and\ncould not tell how to be resolved; at last, that in Rev. 5:6 came\ninto my mind: \"And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne, and\nof the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb.\"\n\"In the midst of the throne\"--thought I, there is the godhead; \"in\nthe midst of the elders\"--there is his manhood: but Oh, methought\nthis did glister; it was a goodly touch, and gave me sweet\nsatisfaction. That other scripture also did help me much in this:\n\"Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government\nshall be upon his shoulders; and his name shall be called Wonderful,\nCounsellor, the mighty God, the ever lasting Father, the Prince of\nPeace.\"\n\nO friends, cry to God to reveal Jesus Christ unto you; there is none\nteacheth like him.\n\nIt would be long to tell you in particular how God did set me down\nin all the things of Christ, and how he did, that he might do so,\nlead me into his words; yea, and also how he did open them unto me,\nand make them shine before me, and cause them to dwell with me, talk\nwith me, and comfort me over and over, both of his own being and the\nbeing of his Son and Spirit, and word and gospel.\n\nTHE DEATH OF CHRIST.\n\nWe never read that Jesus Christ was more cheerful in all his life on\nearth, than when he was going to lay down his life for his enemies;\nnow he thanked God, now he sang.\n\nChrist died and endured the wages of sin, and that without an\nintercessor, without one between God and him. He grappled\nimmediately with the eternal justice of God, who inflicted on him\ndeath, the wages of sin; there was no man to hold off the hand of\nGod; justice had his full blow at him, and made him a curse for sin.\n\nA second thing that demonstrates that Christ died the cursed death\nfor sin, is the frame of spirit that he was in at the time he was to\nbe taken. Never was poor mortal so beset with the apprehensions of\napproaching death as was this Lord Jesus Christ; amazement beyond\nmeasure, sorrow that exceeded seized upon his soul: \"My soul is\nexceeding sorrowful, even unto death. And he began to be sore\namazed, and to be very heavy.\" Add to this that Jesus Christ was\nbetter able to grapple with death, even alone, than the whole world\njoined all together. 1. He was anointed with the Spirit without\nmeasure. 2. He had all grace perfect in him. 3. Never had any so\nmuch of his Father's love as he. 4. Never one so harmless and\nwithout sin as he, and consequently never man had so good a\nconscience as he. 5. Never one prepared such a stock of good works\nto bear him company at the hour of death as he. 6. Never one had\ngreater assurance of being with the Father eternally in the heavens\nthan he. And yet, behold, when he comes to die, how weak is he, how\namazed at death, how heavy, how exceeding sorrowful! and, I say, no\ncause assigned but the approach of death.\n\nAlas, how often is it seen that we poor sinners can laugh at\ndestruction when it cometh; yea, and rejoice exceedingly when we\nfind the grave, looking upon death as a part of our portion, yea, as\nthat which will be a means of our present relief and help. 1 Cor.\n3:22.\n\nThis Jesus could not do, considered as dying for our sin; but the\nnearer death, the more heavy and oppressed with the thoughts of the\nrevenging hand of God; wherefore he falls into an agony and\nsweats--not after the common rate, as we do when death is severing\nbody and soul: \"His sweat was as it were great drops of blood\nfalling down to the ground.\"\n\nWhat should be the reason but that death assaulted him with his\nsting? If Jesus Christ had been to die for his virtues only,\ndoubtless he would have borne it lightly.\n\nHow have the martyrs despised death, having peace with God by Jesus\nChrist, scorning the most cruel torments that men and hell could\ndevise and invent! but Jesus Christ could not do so, as he was a\nsacrifice for sin; he died for us, he was made a curse for us. O, my\nbrethren, Christ died many deaths at once; he made his grave with\nthe wicked, and with the rich in his death.\n\nIt was because of sin, the sin that was put into the death he died,\nand the curse of God that was due to sin, that that death was so\nbitter to Jesus Christ; it is Christ that died. The apostle speaks\nas if never any died but Christ; nor indeed did there, so wonderful\na death as he. Death, considered simply as a deprivation of natural\nlife, could not have these effects in a person personally more\nrighteous than an angel; yea, even carnal wicked men, not awakened\nin their conscience, how securely they can die! It must therefore he\nconcluded that the sorrows and agony of Jesus Christ came from a\nhigher cause, even from the curse of God that was now approaching\nfor sin.\n\nAt last they condemn him to death, even to the death of the cross,\nwhere they hang him up by wounds made through his hands and feet,\nbetween the earth and the heavens; where he hanged for the space of\nsix hours. No God yet appears for his help. While he hangs there\nsome rail at him, others wag their heads, others tauntingly say, \"He\nsaved others, himself he cannot save.\" Some divide his raiment,\ncasting lots for his raiment before his face; others mockingly hid\nhim come down from the cross; and when he desires succor, they give\nhim vinegar to drink. No God yet appears for his help.\n\nNow the earth quakes, the rocks are rent, the sun becomes black, and\nJesus still cries out, that he was forsaken of God; and presently\nboweth his head and dies.\n\nAnd for all this there is no cause assigned from God, but sin. \"He\nwas wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our\niniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his\nstripes we are healed.\"\n\nTHE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.\n\nYou shall have the testimony of the holy angels by the Scriptures,\nto the resurrection of the Son of God. And first, in Mark 16: 3-7,\nthe words are these:\n\n\"And they said among themselves, Who shall roll away the stone?\"\nThey had a good mind to see their Lord; but they could not, as they\nthought, get away the stone which covered the mouth of the\nsepulchre. \"And when they had looked,\" that is, towards the\nsepulchre, \"they saw the stone rolled away, for it was great; and\nentering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man,\" that is, an\nangel, \"sitting on the right side, clothed with a long white\ngarment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not\nafraid,\" you have no cause for it; \"you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who\nwas crucified; he is not here, he is risen: behold the place where\nthey laid him.\" What scripture can be plainer spoken than this? Here\nis an angel of the Lord ready to satisfy the disciples of Jesus that\nhe was risen from the dead. And lest they should think it was not\nthe right Jesus he spoke of, Yes, saith he, it is the same Jesus\nthat you mean; you seek Jesus of Nazareth, do you not? Why, \"he is\nrisen, he is not here.\" But do you speak seriously and in good\nearnest? Yea, surely; if you will not believe me, \"behold the place\nwhere they laid him.\" This scripture is very clear to our purpose.\n\nBut again, in Matt. 28: 3-7, there is an angel as before bearing\nwitness of the resurrection of Jesus. \"His countenance was like\nlightning, and his raiment white as snow. And for fear of him the\nkeepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered\nand said unto them,\" the women who came to seek Jesus, \"Fear you\nnot; but let them that seek to keep the Lord in his grave fear if\nthey will, for you have no ground of fear who seek the Jesus that\nwas crucified: he is not here, he is risen; he cannot be here, in\nbody, and risen too: if you will not believe me, come, see where the\nLord lay. And go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen\nfrom the dead; and behold, he goeth before you into Galilee, there\nshall you see him.\" But shall we be sure of it? \"Yea,\" saith the\nangel; \"lo, it is I that have told you.\" See how plainly this\nscripture also doth testify of Christ's resurrection. \"Here,\" saith\nthe angel, \"you seek a Saviour, and none will content you but he,\neven the same that was crucified: well, you shall have him, but he\nis not here.\" Why, where is he then? \"He is risen from the dead.\"\nBut are you sure it is the same that we look for? \"Yea, it is the\nsame that was crucified.\" But where shall we find him? Why, \"he\ngoeth before you into Galilee, where he used to be in his lifetime,\nbefore he was crucified. And that you might be sure of it there to\nfind him, know that he is an angel of God that has told you.\"\n\nTHE GLORIFICATION OF CHRIST.\n\nFor God to adorn his Son with all this glory in his ascension, thus\nto make him ride conqueror up into the clouds, thus to go up with\nsound of trumpet, with shout of angels and with songs of praises,\nand let me add, to be accompanied also with those that rose from the\ndead after his resurrection, who were the very price of his\nblood--this does greatly demonstrate that Jesus Christ, by what he\nhas done has paid a full price to God for the souls of sinners, and\nobtained eternal redemption for them: he had not else rode thus in\ntriumph to heaven.\n\nConsider those glorious circumstances that accompany his approach to\nthe gates of the everlasting habitation. The everlasting gates are\nset, yea, bid stand open: \"Be ye open, ye everlasting doors, and the\nKing of glory shall come in.\" The King of glory is Jesus Christ, and\nthe words are a prophecy of his glorious ascending into the heavens,\nwhen he went up as the High-priest of the church, to carry the price\nof his blood into the holiest of all.\n\nTHE OFFICES OF CHRIST.\n\nChrist as a Saviour is not divided. He that hath him not in all,\nshall have him in none at all of his offices in a saving manner.\n\nCHRIST AN INTERCESSOR.\n\nStudy the priesthood, the high-priesthood of Jesus Christ, both the\nfirst and second part of it. The first part was that when he offered\nup himself without the gate, when he bore our sins in his own body\non the tree.\n\nThe second part is that which he executes there whither he is now\ngone, even into heaven itself, where the throne of grace is. I say,\nstudy what Christ has done and is doing. Oh, what is he doing now?\nHe is sprinkling his blood, with his priestly robes on, before the\nthrone of grace. That is too little thought on by the saints of God:\n\"We have such a High-priest, who is set down on the right hand of\nthe Majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary and of the\ntrue tabernacle, which the Lord pitched and not man.\" Busy thyself,\nfellow-Christian, about this blessed office of Christ. It is full of\ngood, it is full of sweet, it is full of heaven, it is full of\nrelief and succor for the tempted and dejected.\n\nThe priestly office of Christ is the first and great thing that is\npresented to us in the gospel; namely, how he died for our sins, and\ngave himself to the cross, that the blessing of Abraham might come\nupon us through him. But now because this priestly office of his is\ndivided into two parts, and because one of them, to wit, this of his\nintercession, is to be accomplished for us within the veil,\ntherefore--as we say among men, out of sight, out of mind--he is too\nmuch as to this forgotten by us. We satisfy ourselves with the\nslaying of the sacrifice; we look not after our Aaron as he goes\ninto the holiest, there to sprinkle the mercy-seat with blood upon\nour account.\n\nBut since his dying is his laying down his price, and his\nintercession the urging and managing the worthiness of it in the\npresence of God against Satan, there is glory to be found therein,\nand we should look after him into the holy place. The second part of\nthe work of the high-priests under the law, had great glory and\nsanctity put upon it. Forasmuch as the holy garments were provided\nfor him to officiate in within the veil, also it was there that the\naltar stood on which he offered incense. Also there were the\nmercy-seat and the cherubim of glory, which were figures of the\nangels, that love to be continually looking and prying into the\nmanagement of this second part of the priesthood of Christ in the\npresence of God. For although themselves are not the persons so\nimmediately concerned therein as we, yet the management of it, I\nsay, is with so much grace and glory, and wisdom and efiectualness,\nthat it is a heaven to the angels to see it. O, to enjoy the odorous\nscent and sweet memorial, the heart-refreshing perfumes that ascend\ncontinually from the mercy-seat to the throne where God is, and also\nto behold how effectual it is to the end for which it is designed,\nis glorious; and he that is not somewhat let into this by the grace\nof God, there is a great thing lacking to his faith, and he misseth\nof many a sweet bit that he might otherwise enjoy. Wherefore, I say,\nbe exhorted to the study of this part of Christ's work in the\nmanaging of our salvation for us.\n\nThey who are justified by the blood of Christ, should still look to\nhim for the remaining part of their salvation; and let them look for\nit with confidence, for it is in a faithful hand. And for thy\nencouragement to look and hope for the completing of thy salvation\nin glory, let me present thee with a few things.\n\n1. The hardest or worst part of the work of thy Saviour is over: his\nbloody work, his bearing thy sin and curse, his loss of the light of\nhis Father's face for a time. His dying upon the cursed tree, that\nwas the worst, the sorest, the hardest, and most difficult part of\nthe work of redemption; and yet this he did willingly, cheerfully,\nand without thy desires; yea, this he did, as considering those for\nwhom he did it in a state of rebellion and enmity to him.\n\n2. Consider also that he has made a beginning with thy soul to\nreconcile thee to God, and to that end has bestowed his justice upon\nthee, put his Spirit within thee, and begun to make the unwieldable\nmountain and rock, thy heart, to turn towards him and desire after\nhim, to believe in him and rejoice in him.\n\n3. Consider also that some comfortable pledges of his love thou\nhast already received; namely, as to feel the sweetness of his love,\nas to see the light of his countenance, as to be made to know his\npower in raising thee when thou wast down, and how he has made thee\nto stand while hell has been pushing at thee utterly to overthrow\nthee.\n\n4. Thou mayst consider also, that what remains behind of the work of\nthy salvation in his hands, as it is the most easy part, is so the\nmost comfortable, and that part which will more immediately issue in\nhis glory; and therefore he will mind it.\n\n5. That which is behind is also more safe in his hand than if it was\nin thine own. He is wise, he is powerful, he is faithful, and\ntherefore will manage that part that is lacking to our salvation\nwell, until he has completed it. It is his love to thee has made him\nthat he putteth no trust in thee: he knows that he can himself bring\nthee to his kingdom most surely, and therefore has not left that\nwork to thee, no, not any part thereof.\n\nLive in hope, then, in a lively hope, that since Christ is risen\nfrom the dead he lives to make intercession for thee; and that thou\nshalt reap the blessed benefit of this twofold salvation that is\nwrought and that is working out for thee by Jesus Christ our Lord.\n\nEvery believer may say, Christ did not only die and rise again, but\nhe ascended into heaven to take possession thereof for me, to\nprepare a place for me. He standeth there in the second part of his\nsuretyship to bring me safe thither, and to present me in a glorious\nmanner, \"not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing.\" He is\ntherefore exercising his priestly office for me, pleading the\nperfection of his own righteousness and the virtue of his blood.\n\nHe is there ready to answer the accusations of the law, the devil,\nand sin, for me. Here a believer may through faith look the devil in\nthe face and rejoice, saying, \"O Satan, I have a precious Jesus, a\nsoul-comforting Jesus, a sin-pardoning Jesus.\" Here he may listen to\nthe thunders of the law, and yet not be daunted. He may say, \"O law,\nthou mayest roar against sin, but thou canst not reach me; thou\nmayest curse and condemn, but not my soul; for I have a righteous\nJesus, a holy Jesus, a soul-saving Jesus; and he hath delivered me\nfrom thy threats, thy curses, and thy condemnation. I am brought\ninto another covenant, under better promises of life and salvation,\nfreely to comfort me without my merit, through the blood of Jesus;\ntherefore though thou layest my sins to my charge and provest me\nguilty, yet so long as Christ hath brought in everlasting\nrighteousness and given it to me, I shall not fear thy threats. My\nChrist is all, hath done all, and will deliver me from thine\naccusations.\" Thus also thou mayest say, when death assaulteth thee,\n\"O death, where is thy sting? Thou canst not devour; I have comfort\nthrough Jesus Christ, who hath taken thee captive and taken away thy\nstrength; he hath pierced thy heart and let out all thy\nsoul-destroying poison. Though I see thee, I am not afraid of thee;\nthough I feel thee, I am not daunted; for thou hast lost thy sting\nin the side of the Lord Jesus, through whom I overcome thee. Also, O\nSatan, though I hear thee make a hellish noise, and though thou\nthreaten me highly, yet my soul shall triumph over thee so long as\nChrist is alive and can be heard in heaven--so long as he hath\nbroken thy head and won the field--so long as thou art in prison and\ncanst not have thy desire. When I hear thy voice, my thoughts are\nturned to Christ my Saviour; I hearken to what he will say, for he\nwill speak comfort: he hath gotten the victory and doth give me the\ncrown, and causeth me to triumph through his most glorious conquest.\n\n\"And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne stood a Lamb as it\nhad been slain.\" Rev. 5: 6. That in the midst of the throne is our\nsacrifice, with the very marks of his death upon him, showing to God\nthat sitteth upon the throne the holes of the thorns, of the nails,\nof the spear; and how he was disfigured with blows and blood when at\nhis command he gave himself a ransom for his people; for it cannot\nbe imagined that either the exaltation or glorification of the body\nof Jesus Christ should make him forget the day in which he died the\ndeath for our sins; especially since that which puts worth into his\nwhole intercession is the death he died, and the blood he shed upon,\nthe cross for our trespasses.\n\nSince Christ is an intercessor, I infer that believers should not\nrest at the cross for comfort: justification they should look for\nthere; but being justified by his blood, they should ascend up after\nhim to his throne. At the cross you will see him in his sorrows and\nhumiliations, in his tears and blood; but follow him to where he is\nnow, and then you shall see him in his robes, in his priestly robes,\nand with his golden girdle about him. There you shall see him\nwearing the breastplate of judgment, and with all your names written\nupon his heart. Then you shall perceive that the whole family in\nheaven and earth is named of him, and how he prevails with God the\nFather of mercies for you. Stand still awhile and listen, yea, enter\nwith boldness unto the holiest, and see your Jesus as he now appears\nin the presence of God for you; what work he makes against the devil\nand sin, and death and hell, for you. Ah, it is brave following of\nJesus Christ to the holiest: the veil is rent; you may see with open\nface as in a glass the glory of the Lord.\n\nThis then is our High-priest; this is intercession--these the\nbenefits of it. It lies in our part to improve it; and wisdom to do\nso--THAT also comes from the mercy-seat or throne of grace where he,\neven our High-priest, ever liveth to make intercession for us. To\nwhom he glory for ever and ever.\n\nCHRIST AN ADVOCATE.\n\n\"We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.\"\nThis consideration will yield relief, when by Satan's abuse of some\nother of the offices of Christ, thy faith is discouraged and made\nafraid. Christ, as a prophet, pronounces many a dreadful sentence\nagainst sin; and Christ, as a king, is of power to execute them: and\nSatan, as an enemy, has subtlety enough to abuse both these to the\nalmost utter overthrow of the faith of the children of God.\n\nThis consideration will help thee to put by that vizor [Footnote:\nThat is, mask.] wherewith Christ by Satan is misrepresented to thee,\nto the weakening and affrighting thee. There is nothing more common\namong saints, than thus to be wronged by Satan; for he will labor to\nfetch fire out of the offices of Christ to burn us: so to present\nhim to us with so dreadful and so ireful a countenance, that a man\nin temptation and under guilt shall hardly be able to lift up his\nface to God.\n\nBut now, to think really that he is my Advocate, this heals all. Put\na vizor upon the face of a father, and it may perhaps for a while\nfright the child; but let the father speak, let him speak in his own\nfatherly dialect to the child, and the vizor is gone, if not from\nthe father's face, yet from the child's mind; yea, the child,\nnotwithstanding that vizor, will adventure to creep into its\nfather's bosom.\n\nWhy, thus it is with the saints when Satan deludes and abuses them\nby disfiguring the countenance of Christ to their view: let them but\nhear their Lord speak in his own natural dialect--and he doth so\nindeed when we hear him speak as an advocate--and their minds are\ncalmed, their thoughts settled, their guilt vanished, and their\nfaith revived.\n\nIs Christ Jesus the Lord my advocate with the Father? Then awake, my\nfaith, and shake thyself like a giant; stir up thyself and be not\nfaint: Christ is the advocate of his people; and as for sin, which\nis one great stumble to thy actings, O my faith, Christ has not only\ndied for that as a sacrifice, nor only carried his sacrifice unto\nthe Father into the holiest of all, but is there to manage that\noffering as an advocate, pleading the efficacy and worth thereof\nbefore God against the devil for us.\n\nThe modest saint is apt to be abashed, to think what a troublesome\none he is, and what a make-work he has been in God's house all his\ndays; and let him be filled with holy blushing, but let him not\nforsake his Advocate.\n\nIf thy foot slippeth, if it slippeth greatly, then know thou it will\nnot be long before a bill be in heaven preferred against thee by the\naccuser of the brethren; wherefore then thou must have recourse to\nChrist as advocate, to plead before God thy Judge against the devil\nthine adversary for thee. And as to the badness of thy cause, let\nnothing move thee save to humility and self-abasement, for Christ is\nglorified by being concerned for thee; yea, the angels will shout\naloud to see him bring thee off. For what greater glory can we\nconceive Christ to obtain as advocate, than to bring off his people\nwhen they have sinned, notwithstanding Satan's so charging of them\nas he doth?\n\nHe gloried when he was going to the cross to die; he went up with a\nshout and the sound of a trumpet to make intercession for us; and\nshall we think that by his being an advocate he receives no\nadditional glory?\n\nChrist, when he pleads as an advocate for his people in the presence\nof God against Satan, can plead those very weaknesses of his people\nfor which Satan would have them damned, for their relief and\nadvantage. \"Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?\" This is\npart of the plea of our Advocate against Satan, for his servant\nJoshua, when he said, \"The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan.\" Zech. 13: 2.\nNow, to be a brand plucked out of the fire, is to be a\nsaint--impatient, weakened, defiled, and made imperfect by sin. This\nthen is the next plea of our goodly Advocate for us: \"O Satan, this\nis a brand plucked out of the fire.\" As if he should say, \"Thou\nobjectest against my servant Joshua, that he is black like a coal,\nor that the fire of sin at times is still burning in him. And what\nthen? The reason why he is not totally extinct as tow, is not thy\npity but rny Father's mercy to him. I have plucked him out of the\nfire, yet not so out but that the smell thereof is yet upon him; and\nmy Father and I, we consider his weakness and pity him; for since he\nis as a brand pulled out, can it be expected by my Father or me,\nthat he should appear before us as clear and do our biddings as well\nas if he had never been there? This is a brand plucked out of the\nfire, and must be considered as such, and must be borne with as\nsuch.\"\n\nHis righteousness Christ presents to God for us; and God, for this\nrighteousness' sake, is well pleased that we should be saved, and\nfor it can save us and secure his honor and preserve the law in its\nsanction.\n\nFor Christ, in pleading against Satan as an advocate with, the\nFather for us, appeals to the law itself if he has not done it\njustice; saying, \"Most mighty law, what command of thine have I not\nfulfilled? What demand of thine have I not fully answered? Where is\nthat jot or tittle of the law that is able to object against my\ndoings for want of satisfaction?\"\n\nHere the law is mute; it speaks not one word by way of the least\ncomplaint, but rather testifies of this righteousness that it is\ngood and holy. Rom. 3:22,23; 5:15-19.\n\nNow then, since Christ did this as a public person, it follows that\nothers must be justified thereby; for that was the end and reason of\nChrist's taking on him to do the righteousness of the law. Nor can\nthe law object against the equity of this dispensation of heaven;\nfor why might not that God who gave the law its being and its\nsanction, dispose as he pleases of the righteousness which it\ncommends? Besides, if men be made righteous, they are so; and if by\na righteousness which the law commends, how can fault be found with\nthem by the law? Nay, it is \"witnessed by the law and the prophets,\"\nwho consent that it should be \"unto all and upon all them that\nbelieve,\" for their justification. Rom. 3:20,21.\n\nAnd that the mighty God suffereth the prince of the devils to do\nwith the law what he can against this most wholesome and godly\ndoctrine, it is to show the truth, goodness, and permanency thereof;\nfor this is as if it were said, Devil, do thy worst.\n\nWhen the law is in the hand of an easy pleader, though the cause\nthat he pleads be good, a crafty opposer may overthrow the right;\nbut here is the salvation of the children in debate, whether it can\nstand with law and justice: the opposer of this is the devil, his\nargument against it is the law; he that defends the doctrine is\nChrist the advocate, who in his plea must justify the justice of\nGod, defend the holiness of the law, and save the sinner from all\nthe arguments, pleas, stops, and demurs that Satan is able to put in\nagainst it. And this he must do fairly, righteously, simply,\npleading the voice of the self-same law for the justification of the\nsoul that he standeth for, which Satan leads against it; for though\nit is by the new law that our salvation comes, yet by the old law is\nthe new law approved of, and the way of salvation thereby consented\nto.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nVIII. THE HOLY SPIRIT.\n\n\n\n\n\nIT is the Spirit of God, even the Holy Ghost that convinceth us of\nsin, and so of our damnable state because of sin.\n\nTherefore the Spirit of God, when he worketh in the heart as a\nspirit of bondage, doeth it by working in us by the law, for by the\nlaw is the knowledge of sin. Rom. 6: 20. And he in this his working\nis properly called a spirit of bondage; because by the law he shows\nus that indeed we are in bondage to the law, the devil, and death\nand danmation.\n\nHe is called in his working the spirit of bondage, because he here\nalso holds us--to wit, in this sight and sense of our bondage\nstate--so long as it is meet we should be so held; which to some of\nthe saints is a longer, and to some a shorter time. Paul was held in\nit three days and three nights, but the jailer and the three\nthousand, so far as can be gathered, not above an hour; but some in\nthese later times are so held for days and months, if not for years.\nBut I say, let the time be longer or shorter, it is the Spirit of\nGod that holdeth him under this yoke, and it is good that a man\nshould be his time held under it.\n\nNow, as I said, the sinner at first is by the Spirit of God held\nunder this bondage; that is, hath such a discovery of his sin and of\nhis damnation for sin made to him, and also is held so fast under\nthe sense thereof, that it is not in the power of any man, nor yet\nof the very angels in heaven, to release or set him free, until the\nHoly Spirit changeth his ministration and comes in the sweet and\npeaceable tidings of salvation by Christ in the gospel to his poor\ndejected and afflicted conscience.\n\nThe Spirit loveth to do what it does in private: that man to whom\nGod intendeth to reveal great things, he taketh him aside from the\nlumber and cumber of this world, and carrieth him away in the solace\nand contemplation of the things of another world.\n\nThis water of life is the very groundwork of life IN us, though not\nthe groundwork of life FOR us. The groundwork of life FOR us is the\npassion and merits of Christ; this is that for the sake of which\ngrace is given unto us, as is intimated by the text, Rev. 22:1. It\nproceeds from the throne of God, who is Christ. Christ then having\nobtained grace for us, must needs be precedent as to his merit, to\nthat grace he hath so obtained. Besides, it is clear that the Spirit\nand grace come from God through him. Therefore, as to the\ncommunication of grace to us, it is the fruit of his merit and\npurchase.\n\nBut I say, IN US grace is the groundwork of life; for though we may\nbe said before to live virtually in the person of Christ before God,\nyet we are dead in ourselves, and so must be until the Spirit be\npoured upon us from on high; for the Spirit is life, and its graces\nare life, and when that is infused by God from the throne, then we\nlive, and not till then. And hence it is called as before, living\nwater, the water of life, springing up in us into everlasting life.\nThe Spirit then and graces of the Spirit, which is the river here\nspoken of, is that, and that only, which can cause us to live; that\nbeing life to the soul, as the soul is life to the body. All men\ntherefore, as was said afore--though elect, though purchased by the\nblood of Christ--are dead and must be dead until the Spirit of life\nfrom God and his throne shall enter into them; until they shall\ndrink it in by vehement thirst, as the parched ground drinks in the\nrain. Now when this living water is received, it takes up its seat\nin the heart, whence it spreads itself to the awakening of all the\npowers of the soul. For as in the first creation, the Spirit of God\nmoved upon the face of the waters, in order to the putting of that\ncreation into that excellent fashion and harmony which now we behold\nwith our eyes, even so the new creation, to wit, the making of us\nnew to God, is done by the overspreading of the same Spirit also.\n\nAs the herb that is planted or seed sown needs watering with\ncontinual showers of the mountains, so our graces implanted in us by\nthe Spirit of grace must also be watered by the rain of Heaven.\n\"Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly, thou settest the\nfurrows thereof, thou makest it soft with showers, thou blessest the\nspringing thereof.\" Hence he says that our graces shall grow. But\nhow? \"I will be as the dew unto Israel; he shall grow as the lily,\nand cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches shall spread, and\nhis beauty shall be as the olive-tree, and his smell as Lebanon.\nThey that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as\nthe corn, and grow as the vine; the scent thereof shall be as the\nwine of Lebanon.\"\n\nAll the warmth that we have in our communion, is the warmth of the\nSpirit. When a company of saints are gathered together in the name\nof Christ to perform any spiritual exercise, and their souls are\nedified warmly and made glad therein, it is because this water, this\nriver of water of life, has, in some of the streams thereof, run\ninto that assembly. Then are Christians like those that drink wine\nin bowls, merry and glad; for that they have drank into the Spirit,\nand had their souls refreshed with the sweet gales and strong wine\nthereof. This is the feast that Isaiah speaks of when he saith, \"In\nthis mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast\nof fat things, a feast of wine on the lees, of fat things full of\nmarrow, of wines on the lees well refined.\" Isa. 25:6. This is\ncalled in another place, \"The communion of the Holy Ghost.\" 2 Cor.\n13:14. Now he warmeth spirits, uniteth spirits, enlighteneth\nspirits, reviveth, cherisheth, quickeneth, strengtheneth graces;\nrenews assurances, brings old comforts to mind, weakens lusts,\nemboldeneth and raiseth a spirit of faith, of love, of hope, of\nprayer, and makes the word a blessing, conference a blessing,\nmeditation a blessing, and duty very delightful to the soul. Without\nthis water of life, communion is weak, flat, cold, dead, fruitless,\nlifeless; there is nothing seen, felt, heard, or understood, in a\nspiritual, heart-quickening way. Now ordinances are burdensome, sins\nstrong, faith weak, hearts hard, and the faces of our souls dry,\nlike the dry and parched ground.\n\nThis drink also revives us when tempted, when sick, when persecuted,\nwhen in the dark, and when we faint for thirst. The life of religion\nis this water of life; where that runs, where that is received, and\nwhere things are done in this spirit, there all things are well--the\nchurch thrifty, the soul thrifty, graces thrifty, and all is well.\n\nYou that are spiritual, you know what a high and goodly lifting up\nof heart one small gale of the good Spirit of God will make in your\nsouls; how it will make your lusts to languish, and your souls to\nlove and take pleasure in the Lord that saves you. You know, I say,\nwhat a flame of love, and compassion, and self-denial, and endeared\naffection to God and all saints, it will beget in the soul: \"Oh, it\nis good to be here,\" saith the gracious heart.\n\nThis is the reason why so many are carried away with the errors that\nare broached in these days, because they have not indeed received\nthe Lord Jesus by the revelation of the Spirit and with power, but\nby the relation of others only; and so having no other witness to\nset them down withal, but the history of the word and the relation\nof others concerning the truths contained in it, yet not having had\nthe Spirit of the Lord to confirm these things effectually to them,\nthey are carried away with delusions.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIX. JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH.\n\n\n\n\n\nTrue justifying faith is said to receive, to embrace, to obey the\nSon of God as tendered in the gospel; by which expressions is showed\nboth the nature of justifying faith in its actings in point of\njustification, and also the cause of its being full of good works in\nthe world. A gift is not made mine by my seeing it, or because I\nknow the nature of the thing so given; but it is mine if I receive\nand embrace it, yea, and as to the point in hand, if I yield myself\nup to stand and fall by it. Now he that shall not only see but\nreceive, not only know but embrace the Son of God to be justified by\nhim, cannot but bring forth good works; because Christ, who is now\nreceived and embraced by faith, leavens and seasons the spirit of\nthis sinner, through his faith, to the making of him so to be. Acts\n15:9. For faith has joined Christ and the soul together, and being\nso joined, the soul is one spirit with him: not essentially, but in\nagreement and oneness of design. Besides, when Christ is truly\nreceived and embraced to the justifying of the sinner, in that man's\nheart he dwells by his word and Spirit through the same faith also.\nNow Christ by his Spirit and word must needs season the soul he thus\ndwells in; so then the soul being seasoned, it seasoneth the body\nand soul, the life and conversation.\n\nIf the receiving of a temporal gift naturally tends to the making of\nus to move our cap and knee, and binds us to be the servant of the\ngiver, shall we think that faith will leave him who by it has\nreceived Christ, to be as unconcerned as a stock or stone, or that\nits utmost excellency is to provoke the soul to a lip-labor, and to\ngive Christ a few fair words for his pains and grace, and so wrap up\nthe business? No, no; the love of Christ constraineth us thus to\njudge, that it is but reasonable, since he gave his all for us, that\nwe should give our some for him. 2 Cor. 5:14.\n\nWe are said to be saved by faith, because by faith we lay hold of,\nventure upon, and put on Jesus Christ for life: for life, I say,\nbecause God having made him the Saviour, has given him life to\ncommunicate to sinners; and the life that he communicates to them is\nthe merit of his flesh and blood, which whoso eateth and drinketh by\nfaith hath eternal life, because that flesh and blood have merit\nsufficient to obtain the favor of God. Yea, it hath done so, that\nday it was offered through the eternal Spirit a sacrifice of a\nsweet-smelling savor to him. Wherefore God imputeth the\nrighteousness of Christ to him that believeth in him, by which\nrighteousness he is personally justified and saved from that just\njudgment of the law that was due unto him. John 5:26; 6:53-57; Eph.\n4:32; 5:2; Rom. 4:23-25.\n\nHere let Christians warily distinguish betwixt the meritorious and\nthe instrumental cause of their justification. Christ, with what he\nhas done and suffered, is the meritorious cause of our\njustification; therefore he is said to be \"made unto us of God\nwisdom and righteousness,\" and we are said to be \"justified by his\nblood and saved from wrath through him,\" 1 Cor. 1:30; Rom. 5:9,10;\nfor it was his life and blood that was the price of our redemption.\n\nThou art therefore to make Christ Jesus the object of thy faith for\njustification; for by his righteousness thy sins must be covered\nfrom the sight of the justice of the law. Acts 16:31; Matt. 1:21.\n\nFAITH THE INSTRUMENTAL CAUSE OF SALVATION.\n\nFaith as the gift of God is not the Saviour, as our act doth merit\nnothing. Faith was not the cause that God gave Christ, neither is it\nthe cause why God converts men to Christ; but faith is a gift\nbestowed upon us by the gracious God, the nature of which is to lay\nhold on Christ, whom God before did give for a ransom to redeem\nsinners. This faith hath its nourishment and supplies from the same\nGod who at the first did give it; and is the only instrument through\nthe Spirit that doth keep the soul in a comfortable frame both to do\nand suffer; for Christ helps the soul to receive comfort from him,\nwhen it can get none from itself, bearing up the soul in its\nprogress heavenward. But that it is the first cause of salvation, I\ndeny; or that it is the second, I deny. It is only the instrument or\nhand that receiveth the benefits that God hath prepared for thee\nbefore thou hadst any faith; so that we do nothing for salvation, as\nmen. But if we speak properly, it was God's grace that moved him to\ngive Christ a ransom for sinners, and the same God with the same\ngrace, that doth give to the soul faith to believe and by believing\nto close in with him whom God out of his love and pity did send into\nthe world to save sinners; so that all the works of the creature are\nshut out as to justification and life, and men are saved freely by\ngrace.\n\nTRUE AND FALSE FAITH DISTINGUISHED.\n\nThere are two sorts of good works; and a man may be shrewdly guessed\nat with reference to his faith, even by the works that he chooseth\nto be conversant in.\n\nThere are works that cost nothing, and works that are chargeable;\nand observe it, the unsound faith will choose to itself the most\neasy works it can find: for example, there is reading, praying,\nhearing of sermons, baptism, breaking of bread, church-fellowship,\npreaching, and the like; and there is mortification of lusts,\ncharity, simplicity, and open-heartedness with a liberal hand to the\npoor, and their like also. Now, the unsound faith picks and chooses,\nand takes and leaves; but the true faith does not so. Satan is\nafraid that men should hear of justification by Christ, lest they\nshould embrace it. But yet if he can prevail with them to keep\nfingers off, although they do hear and look on and practise lesser\nthings, he can the better bear it; yea, he will labor to make such\nprofessors bold to conclude they shall by that kind of faith enjoy\nChrist, though by that they cannot embrace him nor lay hold of him;\nfor he knows that how far soever a man engages in a profession of\nChrist with a faith that looks on but cannot receive nor embrace\nhim, that faith will leave him to nothing but mistakes and\ndisappointments at last.\n\nThe Son of God was manifest that he might destroy the works of the\ndevil, but these men profess his faith and keep these works alive in\nthe world. 1 John, 3. Shall these pass or such as believe to the\nsaving of the soul? For a man to be content with this kind of faith\nand to look to go to salvation by it, what to God is a greater\nprovocation?\n\nThe devil laugheth here, for he knows he has not lost his vassal by\nsuch a faith as this, but that rather he hath made use of the\ngospel, that glorious word of life, to secure his captive, through\nhis presumption of the right faith, the faster in his shackles.\n\nFAITH AND WORKS.\n\nWhen I write of justification before God from the dreadful curse of\nthe law, then I must speak of nothing but grace, Christ, the\npromise, and faith; hut when I speak of our justification before\nmen, then I must join to these good works; for grace, Christ, and\nfaith are things invisible, and so not to be seen by another,\notherwise than through a life that befits so blessed a gospel as has\ndeclared unto us the remission of our sins for the sake of Jesus\nChrist. He then that would have forgiveness of sins, and so be\ndelivered from the curse of God, must believe in the righteousness\nand blood of Christ; but he that would show to his neighbors that he\nhath truly received this mercy of God, must do it by good works, for\nall things else to them is but talk; as for example, a tree is known\nto be what it is, whether of this or that kind, by its fruit. A tree\nit is without fruit; but so long as it so abideth, there is\nminisered occasion to doubt what manner of tree it is.\n\nJUSTIFICATION AND SANCTIFICATION DISTINGUISHED.\n\nA believer is to do nothing for justification, only believe and be\nsaved; though the law be a rule for every one that believes to walk\nby, it is not for justification. But if you do not put a difference\nbetween justification wrought by the Man Christ without, and\nsanctification wrought by the Spirit of Christ within, teaching\nbelievers their duty to their God for his love in giving Christ, you\nare not able to divide the word aright; but contrariwise, you\ncorrupt the word of God, and cast stumbling-blocks before the\npeople, and will certainly one day most deeply smart for your folly,\nexcept you repent.\n\nTo those who do believe in Christ aright, and lay him for their\nfoundation: see that you are laborers after a more experimental\nknowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ; fly more to his birth, death,\nblood, resurrection, ascension, and intercession, and fetch\nrefreshing for your souls more and more from him without, through\nthe operation of his Spirit within; and though the fruits of the\nSpirit be excellent, and to be owned where they are found, yet have\na care you take not away the glory of the blood of Christ shed on\nthe cross without the gates of Jerusalem, and give it them; which\nyou will do, if you content yourselves and satisfy your consciences\nwith this--that you find the fruits of the Spirit within you--and do\nnot go for peace and consolation of conscience to the blood of Jesus\nshed on the cross.\n\nTherefore learn of the saints, or rather of the Spirit, who teaches\nto sing this song, \"Thou art worthy to take the book and to open the\nseals thereof, for thou wast slain and hast redeemed us to God by\nthy blood.\" Rev. 5: 9.\n\nAnd as for you that cannot yet well endure to think that you should\nbe justified by the blood of the Son of Mary shed on the cross\nwithout the gate, I say to you, \"Kiss the Son, lest he he angry and\nye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little:\nblessed are all they that put their trust in him.\" Psa. 2:12.\n\nThe work of the Spirit is to lead us into the sayings of Christ;\nwhich, as to our redemption from death, are such as these: \"I lay\ndown my life, that you may have life; I give my life a ransom for\nmany; and the bread which I give is my flesh, which I will give for\nthe life of the world.\"\n\nThe Holy Ghost breatheth nowhere so as in the ministry of this\ndoctrine; this doctrine is sent with the Holy Ghost from heaven.\n\nWhat is the church of God redeemed by from the curse of the law? It\nis by something done within them, or by something done without them.\n\nIf you say it is redeemed by something that worketh in them, then\nwhy did the man Christ Jesus hang on the cross on Calvary, without\nthe gate of Jerusalem, for the sins of his children? and why do the\nScriptures say that \"through this man is preached to us the\nforgiveness of sins?\"\n\nThe answer thou givest is, \"The church of God is redeemed by Christ\nJesus who is revealed in all believers, and Christ Jesus wrought in\nthem mightily, and it was he that wrought in them to will and to do.\nThis is plain scripture; and the man Christ Jesus,\" sayest thou,\n\"hanged on the cross on Calvary because they wickedly judged him to\nbe a blasphemer, and through their envy persecuted him to death\nbecause he bore witness against them, and in their account he died\nand hanged on the cross an evil-doer.\"\n\nHa, friend, I had thought thou hadst not been so much hardened. Art\nthou not ashamed thus to slight the death of the man Christ Jesus on\nthe cross, and reckon it not effectual for salvation, but sayest,\nthe church is redeemed by Christ Jesus who is revealed within? and\nto confirm it, thou dost also corruptly bring in this scripture:\n\"Whereunto I labor, according to his working which worketh in me\nmightily; \"by which words Paul signifies, that as God was with him\nin the ministry of the word, so did he also strive according to his\nworking which wrought in him mightily. What is this to the purpose?\n\nThat thy answer is false, I shall clearly prove. First, because thou\ndeniest that redemption was wrought out for sinners by the man\nChrist Jesus on the cross on Calvary; when the scripture says\nplainly, that when he did hang on the tree, then did he bear our\nsins there in his own body. And secondly, in thy saying it is\nredeemed by Christ within, by being within, when the work of the\nSpirit of Christ in believers is to make known to the soul, by\ndwelling within, which way and how they are redeemed by the man\nChrist Jesus on the cross. And this I prove further, because when\nthou art forced to answer to these words, Why did the man Christ\nJesus hang en the cross, on Calvary for the sins of his children?\nthou sayest, \"Because they wickedly judged him to be a blasphemer.\"\nFriend, I did not ask thee why the JEWS did put him to death; but\nwhy was he crucified there for the sins of his children? But thou,\nwilling to cover over thine error, goest on cunningly, saying, that\nthrough their envy they persecuted him to death for an evil-doer.\n\nAs for thy saying that salvation is Christ within, if thou mean in\nopposition to Christ without, instead of pleading for Christ thou\nwilt plead against him; for Christ, God-man, without on the cross,\ndid bring in salvation for sinners; and the right believing of that\njustifies the soul. Therefore Christ within, or the Spirit of him\nwho did give himself a ransom, doth not work out justification for\nthe soul in the soul, but doth lead the soul out of itself and out\nof what can he done within itself, to look for salvation in that Man\nthat is now absent from his saints on earth. 2 Cor. 5:6. Why so? For\nit knows that there is salvation in none other, Acts 4: 12; and\ntherefore I would wish thee to have a care what thou doest, for I\ntell thee, that Man who is now jeered by some, because he is\npreached to be without them, will very suddenly come the second time\nto the great overthrow of those who have spoken and shall still\nspeak against him.\n\nAnd indeed they that will follow Christ aright must follow him\nwithout, to the cross without, for justification on. Calvary\nwithout--that is, they must seek for justification by his obedience\nwithout--to the grave without, and to his ascension and intercession\nin heaven without; and this must be done through the operation of\nhis own Holy Spirit that he has promised shall show these things\nunto them, being given within them for that purpose. Now the Spirit\nof Christ, that leads also; but whither? It leads to Christ without.\n\nWhat a poor argument is this to say, that \"because the Spirit of\nChrist doth convince of sin, therefore whatsoever doth convince of\nsin must needs be the Spirit of Christ:\" as much as to say, because\nthe saints are called the light of the world, therefore the saints\nare the Saviour of the world, seeing Christ also doth call himself\nthe light of the world; or because the moon hath or is light,\ntherefore the moon is the sun.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nX. CONVICTION OF SIN.\n\n\n\n\n\nWHEN man is taken and laid under the day of God's power, when Christ\nis opening his ear to discipline, and speaking to him that his heart\nmay receive instruction, many times that poor man is as if the devil\nhad found him, and not God. How frenzily he imagines; how crossly he\nthinks; how ungainly he carries it under convictions, counsels, and\nhis present apprehension of things! I know some are more powerfully\ndealt withal, and more strongly bound at first by the word; but\nothers more in an ordinary manner, that the flesh and reason may be\nseen to the glory of Christ. Yea, and where the will is made more\nquickly to comply with its salvation, it is no thanks to the sinner\nat all. It is the day of the power of the Lord that has made the\nwork so soon to appear. Therefore count this an act of love, in the\nheight of love; love in a great degree.\n\n\"I heard thy voice in the garden.\" Gen. 3: 10. It is a word from\nwithout that does it. While Adam listened to his own heart, he\nthought fig-leaves a sufficient remedy; but the voice that walked in\nthe garden shook him out of all such fancies.\n\nA man's own righteousness will not fortify his conscience from fear\nand terror, when God begins to come near to him to judgment.\n\nFew know the weight of sin. When the guilt thereof takes hold of the\nconscience, it commands homeward all the faculties of the soul.\n\nIt was upon this account that Peter and James and John were called\nthe sons of thunder, because in the word which they were to preach\nthere were to be not only lightnings, but thunders--not only\nilluminations, but a great seizing of the heart with the dread and\nmajesty of God, to the effectual turning of the sinner to him.\n\nLightnings without thunder are in this case dangerous, because they\nthat receive the one without the other are subject to miscarry: they\nwere once enlightened, but you read of no thunder they had, and they\nwere subject to fall into an irrecoverable state. Paul had thunder\nwith his lightning, to the shaking of his soul; so had the three\nthousand, so had the jailer: they that receive light without\nthunder, are subject to turn the grace of God into wantonness; but\nthey that know the terror of God will persuade men. So then, when he\ndecrees to give the rain of his grace to a man, he makes a way for\nthe lightning and thunder; not the one without the other, but the\none following the other.\n\nWe have had great lightnings in this land of late years, but little\nthunders; and that is one reason why so little grace is found where\nlight is, and why so many professors run on their heads in such a\nday as this is, notwithstanding all they have seen.\n\nThe method of God is to kill and make alive, to smite and then heal.\n\nHe that hath not seen his lost condition, hath not seen a safe\ncondition; he that did never see himself in the devil's snare, did\nnever see himself in Christ's bosom.\n\nGrace proceeds from the throne, from the throne of God and of the\nLamb. Wherefore, sinner, here is laid a necessity upon thee; one of\nthe two must be thy lot: either thou must accept of God's grace, and\nbe content to be saved freely thereby, notwithstanding all thy\nundeservings and unworthiness, or else thou must be damned for thy\nrebellion, and for thy neglecting of this grace. Wherefore consider\nwith thyself, and think what is best to be done. Is it better that\nthou submit to the grace and mercy of God, and that thou accept of\ngrace to reign for thee, in thee, and over thee, than that thou\nshouldst run the hazard of eternal damnation because thou wouldst\nnot be saved by grace? Consider of this, I say, for grace is now in\nauthority: it reigns, and proceeds from the throne. This therefore\ncalls for thy most grave and sedate thoughts. Thou art in a strait;\nwilt thou fly before Moses, or with David fall into the hands of the\nLord? Wilt thou go to hell for sin, or to life by grace? One of the\ntwo, as was said before, must be thy lot; for grace is king, is upon\nthe throne, and will admit of no other way to glory. Rom. 5:2. In\nand by it thou must stand, if thou hast any hope, or canst at all\nrejoice in hope of the glory of God.\n\nIf thou do get off thy convictions, and not the right way--which is\nby seeing thy sins washed away by the blood of Jesus Christ--it is a\nquestion whether God will ever knock at thy heart again or no; but\nrather say, \"Such a one is joined to idols; let him alone. My\nspirit, my ministers, my word, my mercy, my grace, my love, my pity,\nmy common providences, shall no more strive with him; let him\nalone.\" O sad! O miserable! who would slight convictions that are on\ntheir souls, which tend so much for their good?\n\nIn the creation of man, God began with his outside; but in the work\nof regeneration, he first begins within, at the heart.\n\nWhoever receive the grace that is tendered in the gospel, they must\nbe quickened by the power of God, their eyes must be opened, their\nunderstandings illuminated, their ears unstopped, their hearts\ncircumcised, their wills also rectified, and the Son of God revealed\nin them.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXI. CONVERSION.\n\nTHE DIFFICULTY OF CONVERSION.\n\n\n\n\n\nCONVERSION to God is not so easy and so smooth a thing, as some\nwould have men believe it is. Why is man's heart compared to fallow\nground, God's word to a plough, and his ministers to ploughmen, if\nthe heart indeed has no need of breaking in order to the receiving\nof the seed of God unto eternal life? Why is the conversion of the\nthe soul compared to the grafting of a tree, if that be done without\ncutting?\n\nCONVERSION THE POWER OF GOD.\n\nA broken heart is the handy-work of God, a sacrifice of his own\npreparing, a material fitted for himself. By breaking the heart he\nopens it, and makes it a receptacle for the graces of his Spirit;\nthat is the cabinet, when unlocked, where God lays up the jewels of\nthe gospel: there he puts his fear: \"I will put my fear in their\nheart;\" there he writes his law: \"I will write my law in their\nheart;\" there he puts his Spirit: \"I will put my Spirit within you.\"\n\nThe heart God chooses for his cabinet: there he hides his treasure;\nthere is the seat of justice, mercy, and of every grace of God.\n\nHere is naught but open war, acts of hostility, and shameful\nrebellion on the sinner's side; and what delight can God take in\nthat? Wherefore, if God will bend and buckle the spirit of such a\none, he must shoot an arrow at him, a bearded arrow, such as may not\nbe plucked out of the wound--an arrow that will stick fast, and\ncause that the sinner fall down as dead at God's foot. Then will the\nsinner deliver up his arms, and surrender up himself as one\nconquered into the hand of God, and beg for the Lord's pardon, and\nnot till then sincerely.\n\nAnd now God has overcome, and his right hand and his holy arm have\ngotten him the victory. Now he rides in triumph, with his captive at\nhis chariot-wheel; now he glories, now the bells in heaven do ring,\nnow the angels shout for joy, yea, are bid to do so: \"Rejoice with\nme, for I have found my sheep which was lost.\"\n\nREGENERATION.\n\nThou thinkest that thou art a Christian; thou shouldst be sorry\nelse. Well, but when did God show thee that thou wert no Christian?\nWhen didst thou see that; and in the light of the Spirit of Christ\nsee that thou wert under the wrath of God because of original sin?\nRom. 5:12. Nay, dost thou know what original sin means? Is it not\nthe least in thy thoughts? And dost thou not rejoice in secret that\nthou art the same that thou ever wert? If so, then know for certain\nthat the wrath of God to this very day ahideth on thee, John 3:36;\nand if so, then thou art one of those that will fall in the\njudgment, except thou art born again and made a new creature. 2 Cor.\n5:17\n\nTHE STRAIT GATE.\n\nThe porch, at which was an ascent to the temple, had a gate\nbelonging to it. This gate, according to the prophet Ezekiel, was\nsix cubits wide. The leaves of this gate were double, one folding\nthis way, the other folding that. Ezek. 40:48.\n\nNow here some may object, and say, \"Since the way to God by these\ndoors was so wide, why doth Christ say the way and gate is narrow?\"\n\nANSWER. The straitness, the narrowness, must not be understood of\nthe gate simply, but because of that cumber that some men carry with\nthem that pretend to be going to heaven. Six cubits! What is sixteen\ncubits to him who would enter in here with all the world on his\nback? The young man in the gospel who made such a noise for heaven,\nmight have gone in easy enough, for in six cubits breadth there is\nroom; but, poor man, he was not for going in thither unless he might\ncarry in his houses upon his shoulders too; and so the gate was\nstrait. Mark 10:17-23.\n\nWherefore, he that will enter in at the gate of heaven, of which\nthis gate into the temple was a type, must go in by himself, and not\nwith his bundles of trash on his back; and if he will go in thus, he\nneed not fear but there is room. \"The righteous nation that keepeth\nthe truth, they shall enter in.\"\n\nThey that enter in at the gate of the inner court must be clothed in\nfine linen; how then shall they go into the temple that carry the\nclogs of the dirt of this world at their heels? Thus saith the Lord,\n\"No stranger uncircumcised in heart, or uncircumcised in flesh,\nshall enter into my sanctuary.\"\n\nThe wideness, therefore, of this gate, is for this cause here made\nmention of, namely, to encourage them that would gladly enter\nthereat according to the mind of God, and not to flatter them that\nare not for leaving off all for God.\n\nWherefore let such as would go in remember that here is room, even a\ngate to enter at, six cubits wide. We have been all this while but\non the outside of the temple, even in the courts of the house of the\nLord, to see the beauty and glory that is there. The beauty hereof\nmade men cry out and say, \"How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord\nof hosts; my soul longeth, yea, fainteth for the courts of the\nLord;\" and to say, \"A day in thy courts is better than a thousand.\"\n\nCOMING TO CHRIST.\n\nQUESTION. How must I be qualified before I shall dare to believe in\nChrist?\n\nANSWER. Come, sensible of thy sins and of the wrath of God due unto\nthem, for thus thou art bid to come Matt. 11:28.\n\nQUESTION. Did ever any come thus to Christ?\n\nANSWER. David came thus, Paul and the jailer came thus; also\nChrist's murderers came thus. Psa. 51:1-3; Acts 9:6; 16:30, 31;\n2:37.\n\nQUESTION. But doth it not seem most reasonable that we should first\nmend and be good?\n\nANSWER. The whole have no need of the physician, but those that are\nsick; Christ came not to call the righteous, but sinners to\nrepentance.\n\nQUESTION. But is it not the best way, if one can, to mend first?\n\nANSWER. This is just as if a sick man should say, \"Is it not best\nfor me to be well before I go to the physician?\" or as if a wounded\nman should say, \"When I am cured I will lay on the plaster.\"\n\nQUESTION. But when a poor creature sees its vileness, it is afraid\nto come to Christ, is it not?\n\nANSWER. Yes, but without ground; for he has said, \"Say to them that\nare of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not;\" and \"to this man will\nI look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and\ntrembleth at my word.\" Isa. 35:4; 66:2.\n\nQUESTION. What encouragement can be given us thus to come?\n\nANSWER. The prodigal came thus, and his father received him, and\nfell upon his neck and kissed him. Thus Christ received the\nColossians, and consequently all that are saved. Luke 15; Col. 2:13.\n\nQUESTION. Will you give me one more encouragement?\n\nANSWER. The promises are so worded, that they that are scarlet\nsinners, crimson sinners, blasphemous sinners, have encouragement to\ncome to him with hopes of life. Isa. 1: 18; Mark 3:28; John 6:36;\nLuke 24:47; Acts 13:36\n\nTEMPTATIONS OF THE SOUL COMING TO CHRIST.\n\nNo sooner doth Satan perceive what God is doing with the soul in a\nway of grace and mercy, but he endeavoreth what he may, to make the\nrenewing thereof bitter and wearisome work to the sinner. O what\nmists, what mountains, what clouds, what darkness, what objections,\nwhat false apprehensions of God, of Christ, of grace, of the word,\nand of the soul's condition, doth he now lay before it, and haunt it\nwith! whereby he dejecteth, casteth down, daunteth, distresseth, and\nalmost driveth it quite into despair. Now, by the reason of these\nthings, faith and all the grace that is in the soul is hard put to\nit to come at the promise, and by the promise, to Christ; as it is\nsaid, when the tempest and great danger of shipwreck lay upon the\nvessel in which Paul was, \"They had much work to come by the boat.\"\nActs 27:16. For Satan's design is, if he cannot keep the soul from\nChrist, to make his coming to him and closing with him as hard, as\ndifficult and troublesome as he by his devices can. But faith, true\njustifying faith, is a grace that is not weary by all that Satan can\ndo; but meditateth upon the word, and taketh stomach and courage,\nfighteth and crieth; and by crying and fighting, by help from\nheaven, its way is made through all the oppositions that appear so\nmighty, and draweth up at last to Jesus Christ, into whose bosom it\nputteth the soul; where, for the time, it sweetly resteth, after its\nmarvellous tossings to and fro.\n\nAnd besides what hath been said, let me yet illustrate this truth\nunto you by this familiar similitude.\n\nSuppose a man, a traitor, that by the law should die for his sin, is\nyet such a one that the king hath exceeding kindness for; may not\nthe king of his clemency pardon this man, yea, order that his pardon\nshould be drawn up and sealed, and so in every sense be made sure,\nand yet for the present keep all this close enough from the ears or\nthe knowledge of the person therein concerned? Yea, may not the king\nafter all leave this person, with others under the same\ntransgression, to sue for and obtain this pardon with great expense\nand difficulty, with many tears and heartachings, with many fears\nand dubious cogitations?\n\nWhy, this is the case between God and the soul that he saveth: he\nsaveth him, pardoneth him, and secureth him from the curse and death\nthat are due unto sin, but yet doth not tell him so; but he ascends\nin his great suit unto God for it. Only this difference we must make\nbetween God and the potentates of this world: God cannot pardon\nbefore the sinner stands before him righteous by the righteousness\nof Christ; because he has, in judgment, and justice, and\nrighteousness, threatened and concluded that he that lacks\nrighteousness shall die.\n\nTRIALS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS OF THE AWAKENED.\n\nThere are two things in special, when men begin to be awakened, that\nkill their thoughts of being saved.\n\n1. A sense of sin. 2. The wages due thereto. These kill the heart;\nfor who can bear up under the guilt of sin? \"If our sins he upon us,\nand we pine away in them, how can we then live?\" How, indeed! it is\nimpossible. So neither can man grapple with the justice of God. Can\nthy heart endure, or thy hands be strong? they cannot. A wounded\nspirit, who can bear? Men cannot, angels cannot; wherefore, if now\nChrist he hid, and the blessing of faith in his blood denied, woe be\nto them: such go after Saul and Judas, one to the sword and the\nother to the halter, and so miserably end their days. For come to\nGod they dare not; the thoughts of that eternal Majesty strike them\nthrough.\n\nBut now present such poor dejected sinners with a crucified Christ,\nand persuade them that the sins under which they shake and tremble\nwere long ago laid upon the back of Christ, and the noise and sense\nand fear of damning begins to cease, depart, and fly away: dolors\nand terrors fade and vanish, and that soul conceiveth hopes of life;\nfor thus the soul argueth: \"Is this indeed the truth of God, that\nChrist was made to be sin to me--was made the curse of God for me?\nHath he indeed borne all my sins, and spilt his blood for my\nredemption? O blessed tidings, O welcome grace! Bless the Lord, O my\nsoul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Now is peace\ncome, now the face of heaven is altered. Behold, all things are\nbecome new.\" Now the sinner can abide God's presence, yea, sees\nunutterable glory and beauty in him; for here he sees justice smile.\nWhile Jacob was afraid of Esau, how heavily did he drive, even\ntowards the promised land; but when killing thoughts were turned\ninto kissing, and the fears of the sword's point turned into\nbrotherly embraces, what says he? \"I have seen thy face as though it\nhad been the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me.\"\n\nSo and far better is it with a poor distressed sinner, at the\nrevelation of the grace of God through Jesus Christ. \"God was in\nChrist reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their\ntrespasses unto them.\" O, what work will such a word make upon a\nwounded conscience, especially when the next words follow: \"For he\nhath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be\nmade the righteousness of God in him.\"\n\nNow the soul sees qualifications able to set him quiet in the sight\nof God--qualifications prepared already. Prepared, I say, already,\nand that by God through Christ; even such as can perfectly answer\nthe law. What doth the law require? If obedience, here it is; if\nbloody sacrifice, here it is; if infinite righteousness, here it is.\nNow then the law condemns no more him that believes before God; for\nall its demands are answered, all its curses are swallowed up in the\ndeath and curse Christ underwent.\n\nOBJECTION. But reason saith, \"Since personal sin brought the death,\nsurely personal obedience must bring us life and glory.\"\n\nANSWER. True, reason saith so, and so doth the law itself, Rom.\n10:5; but God we know is above them both, and he in the covenant of\ngrace saith otherwise, to wit, \"That if thou shalt confess with thy\nmouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thy heart that God hath\nraised hint from the dead, thou shalt be saved.\"\n\nLet reason then hold its tongue; yea, let the law with all its\nwisdom subject itself to him that made it; let it look for sin where\nGod hath laid it; let it approve the righteousness which God\napproveth: yea, though it be not that of the law, but that by faith\nof Jesus Christ.\n\nGod hath made him our righteousness; God hath made him our sin; God\nhath made him our curse; God hath made him our blessing: methinks\nthis word, God hath made it so, should silence all the world.\n\nI shall leave the obstinate where I found him, and shall say to him\nthat is willing to be saved, \"Sinner, thou hast the advantage of thy\nneighbor, not only because thou art willing to live, but because\nthere are those that are willing thou shouldst, to wit, those unto\nwhom the issues of death belong; and they are the Father and the\nSon, to whom be glory with the blessed Spirit of grace.\"\n\nI have seen some, that have promised nothing at first setting out to\nbe pilgrims, and that one would have thought could not have lived\nanother day, that have yet proved very good pilgrims.\n\nOBJECTION. I am afraid the day of grace is past, and if it should\nbe, what shall I do then?\n\nANSWER. With some men indeed, the day of grace is past before their\nlives are at an end: or thus, the day of grace is past before the\nday of death is come; as Christ saith, \"If thou hadst known, even\nthou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy\npeace,\" the word of grace or reconciliation; \"but now they are hid\nfrom thine eyes.\" Luke 19:42. But for thy better satisfaction, let\nme ask, Doth the Lord knock still at the door of thy heart, by his\nword and Spirit? If so, then the day of grace is not passed with thy\nsoul; for where he doth so knock, there he doth also proffer and\npromise to come in and sup, that is, to communicate of his love unto\nthem; which he would not do were the day of grace passed with the\nsoul. Rev 3:20.\n\nOBJECTION. But how shall I know whether Christ doth so knock at my\nheart as to be desirous to come in, that I may know also whether the\nday of grace be passed with me or not?\n\nANSWER. Doth the Lord make thee sensible of thy miserable state\nwithout an interest in Jesus Christ; and that naturally thou hast no\nshare in him, no faith in him, no communion with him, no delight in\nhim, or the least love to him? If he hath, and is doing this, he is\nknocking at thy heart. Doth he, together with this, put into thy\nheart an earnest desire after communion with him, with holy\nresolutions not to be satisfied without it? Doth he sometimes give\nthee some secret persuasions, though scarcely discernible, that thou\nmayest attain an interest in him? Doth he now and then glance in\nsome of the promises into thy heart, causing them to leave some\nheavenly savor, though but for a short time, on thy spirit? Dost\nthou at times see some little excellency in Christ, and doth it stir\nup in thy soul some breathings after him? If so, then fear not. The\nday of grace is not passed with thy poor soul; for if the day of\ngrace should be passed with such a soul as this, then that scripture\nmust be broken, where Christ saith, \"Him that cometh to me, I will\nin no wise,\" upon no terms whatsoever, \"cast out.\" John 6:37.\n\nGet thy heart warmed with the sweet promise of Christ's acceptance\nof the coming sinner, and that will make thee make more haste unto\nhim. Discouraging thoughts are like unto cold weather; they benumb\nthe senses and make us go ungainly about our business; but the sweet\nand warm gleeds [Footnote: Glowing coals.] of promise are like the\ncomfortable beams of the sun, which enliveneth and refresheth. You\nsee how little the bee and the fly do play in the air in\nwinter--why, the cold hinders them from doing it: but when the wind\nand sun are warm, who so busy as they?\n\nOBJECTION. But saith another, \"I am so heartless, so slow, and, as I\nthink, so indifferent in my coming, that to speak truth, I know not\nwhether my kind of coming ought to be called a coming to Christ.\"\n\nANSWER. I read of some that are to follow Christ in chains--I say,\nto come after him in chains. Isa. 45:14. Surely they that come after\nChrist in chains, come to him in great difficulty.\n\nAnd what chain so heavy as those that discourage thee? Thy chain,\nwhich is made up of guilt and filth, is heavy; it is a wretched band\nabout thy neck, by which thy strength doth fail. But come, though\nthou comest in chains; it is glory to Christ, that a sinner comes\nafter him in chains. The chinking of thy chains, though troublesome\nto thee, is not, nor can be, destruction to thy salvation. It is\nChrist's work and glory to save thee from thy chains, to enlarge thy\nsteps, and set thee at liberty. The blind man, though called, surely\ncould not come apace to Jesus Christ; but Jesus Christ could stand\nstill and stay for him.\n\nTo slight grace, to despise mercy, and to stop the ear when God\nspeaks, when he speaks such great things so much to our profit, is a\ngreat provocation.\n\nHe offers, he calls, he woos, he invites, he prays, he beseeches us,\nin this day of his grace, to be reconciled to him; yea, and has\nprovided for us the means of reconciliation himself. Now, to despise\nthese must needs be a provoking; and it is a fearful thing to fall\ninto the hands of the living God.\n\nOBJECTION. But some man may say unto me, \"Fain I would be saved,\nfain I would be saved by Christ; but I fear this day of grace is\npast, and that I shall perish, notwithstanding the exceeding riches\nof the grace of God.\"\n\nANSWER. To this doubt I would answer several things.\n\nFirst, with respect to the day: 1. Art thou jogged and shaken and\nmolested at the hearing of the word? Is thy conscience awakened and\nconvinced, then, that thou art at present in a perishing state, and\nthat thou hast need to cry to God for mercy? This is a hopeful sign\nthat the day of grace is not past with thee.\n\n2. Are there in thy more retired condition, arguings, strugglings,\nand strivings with thy spirit to persuade thee of the vanity of what\nvain things thou lovest, and to win thee in thy soul to a choice of\nChrist Jesus and his heavenly things? Take heed and rebel not, for\nthe day of God's grace and patience will not be past with thee till\nhe saith his Spirit shall strive no more with thee: for then the woe\ncomes, when he shall depart from them, and when he says to the means\nof grace, \"Let them alone.\"\n\n3. Art thou visited in the night seasons with dreams about thy\nstate, and that thou art in danger of being lost? Hast thou\nheart-shaking apprehensions, when deep sleep is upon thee, of hell,\ndeath, and judgment to come? These are signs that God has not wholly\nleft thee, or cast thee behind his back for ever.\n\nAll this while God has not left the sinner, nor is come to the end\nof his patience towards him, but stands at least with the door of\ngrace ajar in his hand, as being loath as yet to bolt it against\nhim.\n\n4. Art thou followed with affliction, and dost thou hear God's angry\nvoice in thy affliction? Doth he send with thy affliction an\ninterpreter to show thee thy vileness, and why or wherefore the hand\nof God is upon thee and upon what thou hast, to wit, that it is for\nthy sinning against him, and that thou mightst be turned to him? If\nso, thy summer is not quite ended, thy harvest is not quite over and\ngone. Take heed; stand out no longer, lest he cause darkness, and\nlest thy feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and lest while you\nlook for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it\ngross darkness.\n\n5. Hast thou any enticing touches of the word of God upon thy mind?\nDoth as it were some holy word of God give a glance upon thee, cast\na smile upon thee, let fall though it be but one drop of its savor\nupon thy spirit; yea, though it stays but one moment with thee? Oh,\nthen, the day of grace is not past, the gate of heaven is not shut,\nnor God's heart withdrawn from thee as yet. Take heed therefore, and\nbeware that thou make much of the heavenly gift and of that good\nword of God of which he has made thee taste.\n\nSecondly, with respect to thy desires, what are they? Wouldst thou\nbe saved? Wouldst thou be saved with a thorough salvation? Wouldst\nthou be saved from guilt and filth too? Wouldst thou be the servant\nof thy Saviour? Art thou indeed weary of the service of thy old\nmasters, the devil, sin, and the world? And have these desires put\nthy soul to the flight? Hast thou through desires betaken thyself to\nthy heels? Dost thou fly to him that is a Saviour from the wrath to\ncome, for life?\n\nIf these be thy desires, and if they be unfeigned, fear not. Thou\nart one of those runaways which God has commanded our Lord to\nreceive, and not to send thee back to the devil thy master again,\nbut to give thee a place in his house, even the place which thou\nlikest best.\n\n\"But,\" you say, \"I am afraid I am not elect or chosen to salvation.\"\n\nAt present, lay the thoughts of thy election by, and ask thyself\nthese questions: Do I see my lost condition? Do I see salvation is\nnowhere but in Christ? Would I share in this salvation by faith in\nhim? And would I be thoroughly saved from the filth as well as from\nthe guilt? Do I love Christ, his Father, his saints, his words and\nways? This is the way to prove we are elect.\n\nWherefore, sinner, when Satan or thine own heart seeks to puzzle\nthee with election, say thou, \"I cannot attend to talk of this point\nnow; but stay till I know that I am called of God to the fellowship\nof his Son, and then I will show you that I am elect, and that my\nname is written in the book of life.\"\n\nIf poor distressed souls would observe this order, they might save\nthemselves the trouble of an unprofitable labor under these\nunreasonable and soul-sinking doubts.\n\nLet us therefore, upon the sight of our wretchedness, fly and\nventurously leap into the arms of Christ, which are now as open to\nreceive us into his bosom as they were when nailed to the cross.\n\nLet me tell thee, soul, for thy comfort, who art coming in to Christ\npanting and sighing as if thy heart would break, let me tell thee,\nsoul, thou wouldst never have come to Christ if he had not first, by\nthe virtue of his blood and intercession, sent into thy heart an\nearnest desire after Christ; let me tell thee also, that it is his\nbusiness to make intercession for thee, not, only that thou mayest\ncome in, but that thou mayest be preserved when thou art come in.\n\nThey that are coming to Jesus Christ are ofttimes heartily afraid\nthat Jesus Christ will not receive them.\n\nThis word, \"in nowise,\" cutteth the throat of all objections; and it\nwas dropped by the Lord Jesus for that very end, and to help the\nfaith that is mixed with unbelief.\n\nBut I am a great sinner, sayest thou. I will in nowise cast out,\nsays Christ. But I am an old sinner, sayest thou. I will in nowise\ncast out, says Christ. But I am a hard-hearted sinner, sayest thou.\nI will in nowise cast out, says Christ. But I have served Satan all\nmy days, sayest thou. I will in nowise cast out, says Christ. But I\nhave sinned against light, sayest thou. I will in nowise cast out,\nsays Christ. But I have sinned against mercy, sayest thou. I will in\nnowise cast out, says Christ. But I have no good thing to bring with\nme, sayest thou. I WILL IN NOWISE CAST OUT, says Christ.\n\nFEARS IN COMING TO CHRIST.\n\n1. This fear that Christ will not receive thee is FOR CANT OF THE\nKNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST. Thou knowest but little of the grace and\nkindness that is in the heart of Christ; thou knowest but little of\nthe virtue and merit of his blood; thou knowest but little of the\nwillingness that is in his heart to save thee. Slowness of heart to\nbelieve flows from thy foolishness in the things of Christ; this is\nevident to all that are acquainted with themselves, and are seeking\nafter Jesus Christ. The more ignorance, the more unbelief; the more\nknowledge of Christ, the more faith. \"They that know thy name, will\nput their trust in thee.\"\n\n2. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee may be also A\nCONSEQUENCE OF THY EARNEST AND STRONG DESIRES AFTER THY SALVATION BY\nHIM. For this I observe, that strong desires to have are attended\nwith strong fears of missing. What man most sets his heart upon, and\nwhat his desires are most after, he ofttimes most fears he shall not\nobtain. So, the ruler of the synagogue had a great desire that his\ndaughter should live, and that desire was attended with fear that\nshe would not. Therefore Christ saith unto him, \"Be not afraid.\"\n\nNow thou fearest the sins of thy youth, the sins of thine old age,\nthe sins of thy calling, the sins of thy Christian duties, the sins\nof thine heart, or something; thou thinkest something or other will\nalienate the heart and affections of Jesus Christ from thee.\n\nBut be content. A little more knowledge of him will make thee take\nbetter heart; thy earnest desires shall not be attended with such\nburning fears; thou shalt hereafter say, \"This is my infirmity.\"\n\n3. Thy fear that Christ will not receive thee, may arise from a\nsense of THY OWN UNWORTHINESS. Thou seest what a poor, sorry,\nwretched, worthless creature thou art; and seeing this, thou fearest\nChrist will not receive thee. \"Alas,\" sayst thou, \"I am the vilest\nof all men, a townsinner, a ringleading sinner. I am not only a\nsinner my self, but I have made others twofold worse the children of\nhell also. Besides, now I am under some awakenings and stirrings of\nmind after salvation, even now I find my heart rebellious, carnal,\nhard, treacherous, desperate, prone to unbelief, to despair; it\nforgetteth the word, it wandereth, it runneth to the ends of the\nearth. There is not, I am persuaded, one in all the world that hath\nsuch a desperate wicked heart as mine is. My soul is careless to do\ngood; but none more earnest to do that which is evil.\n\n\"Can such a one as I am live in glory? Can a holy, a just, and a\nrighteous God think, with honor to his name, of saving such a vile\ncreature as I am? Saved I would be; and who is there that would not,\nwere he in my condition? Indeed I wonder at the madness and folly of\nothers, when I see them leap and skip so carelessly about the mouth\nof hell. Bold sinner, how darest thou tempt God by laughing at the\nbreach of his holy law? But, alas, they are not so bad one way, but\nI am worse another; I wish myself were any body but myself. And yet,\nhere again I know not what to wish. When I see such as I believe are\ncoming to Jesus Christ, Oh I bless them. But I am confounded in\nmyself, to see how unlike I am to a very good many in the world.\nThey can hear, read, pray, remember, repent, he humble, and do every\nthing better than so vile a wretch as I.\"\n\nThus the sense of unworthiness creates and heightens fears in the\nhearts of them that are coming to Jesus Christ. But indeed it should\nnot, for who needs the physician but the sick? Or whom did Christ\ncome into the world to save, but the chief of sinners? Wherefore,\nthe more thou seest thy sins, the faster fly thou to Jesus Christ.\nAs it is with the man that carrieth his broken arm in a sling to the\nbonesetter, still, as he thinks of his broken arm, and as he feels\nthe pain and anguish, he hastens his pace to the man. And if Satan\nmeets thee, and asketh, \"Whither goest thou?\" tell him thou art\nmaimed, and art going to the Lord Jesus. If he objects thine own\nunworthiness, tell him, that even as the sick seeketh the physician;\nas he that hath broken bones seeks him that can set them; so thou\nart going to Jesus Christ for healing for thy sin-sick soul.\n\nBut it ofttimes happeneth to him that flies for his life, he\ndespairs of escaping, and therefore delivers himself up into the\nhand of the pursuer. But up, up, sinner; be of good cheer; Christ\ncame to save the unworthy one. Be not faithless, but believing. Come\naway, man. The Lord Jesus calls thee, saying, \".And him that cometh\nto me, I will in nowise cast out.\"\n\n4. Thy fear that Christ will not receive thee, may arise from a\nsense of THE EXCEEDING MERCY OF BEING SAVED. Besides, the Holy Ghost\nhath a way to greaten heavenly things to the understanding of the\ncoming sinner; yea, and at the same time to greaten, too, the sin\nand unworthiness of that sinner. Now, the soul staggering by\nwonders, saying, \"What! to be made like angels, like Christ; to live\nin eternal bliss, joy, and felicity! This is for angels, and for\nthem that can walk like angels.\"\n\nThus doth the greatness of the things desired quite dash and\noverthrow the mind of the desire. \"O, it is too big, it is too big,\nit is too great a mercy.\"\n\nBut, coming sinner, let me reason with thee. Thou sayest it is too\nbig, too great. Well, will things that are less satisfy thy soul?\nWill a less thing than heaven, than glory and eternal life, answer\nthy desires? \"No, nothing less. Yet I fear they are too big, and too\ngood for me even to obtain.\" Well, as big and as good as they are,\nGod giveth them to such as thou. They are not too big for God to\ngive; no, not too big to give freely. Be content; let God give like\nhimself; he is that eternal God, and giveth like himself. When kings\ngive, they do not use to give as poor men do. Now, God is a great\nKing; let him give like a king; nay, let him give like himself, and\ndo thou receive like thyself. He has all, and thou hast nothing.\n\n5. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee, may arise from THINE\nOWN FOLLY IN INVETING, yea, in thy chalking out to God a way to\nbring thee home to Jesus Christ. Some souls that are coming to Jesus\nChrist are great tormentors of themselves upon this account. They\nconclude that if their coming to Jesus Christ is right, they must\nneeds be brought home thus and thus.\n\nNow, I say, if God brings thee to Christ, and not by the way that\nthou hast appointed, then thou art at a loss; and for thy being at a\nloss, thou mayest thank thyself. God hath more ways than thou\nknowest of to bring a sinner to Jesus Christ; but he will not give\nthee before-hand an account by which of them he will bring thee to\nChrist.\n\nSometimes he hath his ways in the whirlwind, but sometimes the Lord\nis not there.\n\nIf God will deal more gently with thee than with others of his\nchildren, grudge not at it; refuse not the waters that go softly,\nlest he bring up to thee the waters of the rivers strong and many,\neven those two smoking firebrands, the devil and guilt of sin. He\nsaith to Peter, \"Follow me;\" and what thunder did Zaccheus hear or\nsee? \"Zaccheus, come down,\" said Christ; and he came down, says\nLuke, and received him joyfully.\n\nBut had Peter or Zaccheus made the objection that thou hast\nmade-looking for a heavy load of guilt, or fearful temptations of\nSatan-and directed the Spirit of the Lord as thou hast done, they\nmight have looked long enough before they had found themselves\ncoming to Jesus Christ.\n\nPoor creature! Thou criest, \"If I were tempted, I could come faster\nand with more confidence to Jesus Christ.\" Thou sayest thou knowest\nnot what. What says Job? \"Withdraw thy hand far from me, and let not\nthy dread make me afraid: then call thou, and I will answer; or let\nme speak, and answer thou me.\" Job 13: 21, 22. It is not the\nover-heavy load of sin, but the discovery of mercy-not the roaring\nof the devil, but the drawing of the Father, that makes a man come\nto Jesus Christ. I myself know all these things.\n\nTrue, sometimes they that come to Jesus Christ, come the way that\nthou desirest-the loading, tempted way; but the Lord also leads some\nby the waters of comfort. If I was to choose when to go a long\njourney, to wit, whether I would go it in the dead of winter or in\nthe pleasant spring-though if it was a very profitable journey, as\nthat of coming to Christ is, I would choose to go it through fire\nand water before I would lose the benefit-but I say, if I might\nchoose the time, I would choose to go in the pleasant spring,\nbecause the way would be more delightsome, the days longer and\nwarmer, the nights shorter, and not so cold.\n\nTrouble not thyself, coming sinner: if thou seest thy lost condition\nby original and actual sin; if thou seest thy need of the spotless\nrighteousness of Jesus Christ; if thou art willing to be found in\nhim, and to take up thy cross and follow him, then pray for a fair\nwind and good weather, and come away. Stick no longer in a muse and\ndoubt about things, but come away to Jesus Christ.\n\n6. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee may arise from THOSE\nDECAYS THAT THOU FINDEST IN THY-SOUL, even while thou art coming to\nhim. Some, even as they are coming to Jesus Christ, do find\nthemselves grow worse and worse. To explain myself: there is such a\none coming to Jesus Christ, who, when he first began to look out\nafter him, was sensible, affectionate, and broken in spirit, but now\nis grown dark, senseless, hard-hearted, and inclining to neglect\nspiritual duties. Besides, he now finds in himself inclinations to\nunbelief, atheism, blasphemy, and the like; now, he finds he cannot\ntremble at God's word, his judgments, nor the apprehension of\nhell-fire; neither can he, as he thinketh, be sorry for these\nthings.\n\nThis man is in the wilderness among wild beasts. Here he sees a\nbear, there a lion, yonder a leopard, a wolf, a dragon. Devils of\nall sorts, doubts of all sorts, fears of all sorts haunt and molest\nhis soul. This man feeleth the infirmity of his flesh; he findeth a\nproneness in himself to be desperate. Now he chides with God, flings\nand tumbles like a wild bull in a net, and still the guilt of all\nreturns upon himself to the crushing of him to pieces. Yet he\nfeeleth his heart so hard that he can find, as he thinks, no\nkindness under any of his miscarriages. Now, he is a lump of\nconfusion in his own eyes, whose spirit and actions are without\norder. \"Now, I see I am lost,\" says the sinner; \"this is not coming\nto Jesus Christ; such a desperately hard and wretched heart as mine\nis, cannot be a gracious one,\" saith the sinner. And bid such a one\nbe better, he says, \"I cannot; no, I cannot.\"\n\nQUESTION. But what will you say to a soul in this condition?\n\nANSWER. I will say, that temptations have attended the best of God's\npeople; I will say that temptations come to do us good; and I will\nsay also, that there is a difference betwixt growing worse and\nworse, and thy seeing more clearly how bad thou art.\n\nThere is a man of an ill-favored countenance who hath too high a\nconceit of his heauty, and wanting the benefit of a glass, he still\nstands in his own conceit. At last a limner is sent unto him, who\ndraweth his ill-favored face to the life. Now, looking thereon, he\nhegins to be convinced that he is not half so handsome as he thought\nhe was. Coming sinner, thy temptations are these painters; they have\ndrawn out thy ill-favored heart to the life, and have set it before\nthine eyes, and now thou seest how ill-favored thou art.\n\nSome that are coming to Christ cannot lie persuaded, until the\ntemptation comes, that they are so vile as the scripture saith they\nare. True, they see so much of their wretchedness as to drive them\nto Christ. But there is an over and above of wickedness which they\nsee not. Peter little thought that he had had in his heart cursing\nand swearing and lying, and an inclination to deny his Master,\nbefore the temptation came; but when that indeed came upon him, then\nhe found it there to his sorrow.\n\nIt may be that thy graces must be tried in the fire, that that rust\nwhich cleaveth to them may be taken away, and themselves proved,\nboth before angels and devils, to be far better than gold that\nperisheth. It may be also, that thy graces are to receive special\npraises and honor and glory, at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ\nto judgment, for all the exploits that thou hast acted by them\nagainst hell and its infernal crew, in the day of thy temptation.\n\nBut to conclude this, put the worst to the worst, and then things\nwill be bad enough: suppose that thou art to this day without the\ngrace of God; yet thou art but a miserable creature, a sinner that\nhas need of a blessed Saviour; and the text presents thee with one\nas good and kind as heart can wish, who also for thy encouragement\nsaith, \"And him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out.\"\n\nMERCY'S EXPERIENCE.\n\nSo the Interpreter addressed him to Mercy, and said unto her, \"And\nwhat moved thee to come hither, sweetheart?\"\n\nThen Mercy blushed and trembled, and for a while continued silent.\n\nThen said he, \"Be not afraid; only believe, and speak thy mind.\"\n\nThen she began, and said, \"Truly, sir, my want of experience is that\nwhich makes me covet to be in silence, and that also that filleth me\nwith fears of coming short at last. I cannot tell of visions and\ndreams as my friend Christiana can, nor know I what it is to mourn\nfor my refusing of the counsel of those that were good relations.\"\n\nINTERPRETER. \"What was it then, dear heart, that hath prevailed with\nthee to do as thou hast done?\"\n\nMERCY. \"Why, when our friend here was packing up to be gone from our\ntown, [the city of Destruction,] I and another went accidentally to\nsee her. So we knocked at the door and went in. When we were within,\nand seeing what she was doing, we asked her what she meant. She said\nshe was sent for to go to her husband; and then she up and told us\nhow she had seen him in a dream, dwelling in a curious place, among\nimmortals, wearing a crown, playing upon a harp, eating and drinking\nat his Prince's table, and singing praises to him for the bringing\nhim thither. Now methought, while she was telling these things unto\nus, my heart burned withm ran. And I said in my heart, 'If this be\ntrue, I will leave my father and my mother, and the land of my\nnativity, and will, if I may, go along with Christiana.'\n\n\"So I asked her further of the truth of these things, and if she\nwould let me go with her; for I saw how that there was no dwelling,\nbut with the danger of ruin, any longer in our town. But yet I came\naway with a heavy heart; not for that I was unwilling to come away,\nhut for thai so many of my relations were left behind. And I am come\nwith all my heart, and will, if I may, go with Christiana to her\nhusband and his King.\"\n\nINTERPRETER. \"Thy setting out is good, for thou hast given credit to\nthe truth; thou art a Ruth, who did, for the love she hare to Naomi\nand to the Lord her God, leave father and mother, and the land of\nher nativity, to come out and go with a people that she knew not\nbefore. 'The Lord recompense thy work, and a full reward be given\nthee of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to\ntrust.'\"\n\nFEARS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS OF THE AWAKENED.\n\nSome men are blood-red sinners, crimson sinners, sinners of a double\ndye: dipped and dipped again before they come to Jesus Christ. Art\nthou that readest these lines such a one? Speak out, man. Art thou\nsuch a one? and art thou now coming to Jesus Christ for the mercy of\njustification, that thou mightest be made white in his blood and be\ncovered with his righteousness? Fear not; forasmuch as this thy\ncoming betokeneth that thou art of the number of them that the\nFather hath given to Christ; for he will in no wise cast thee out.\n\"Come now,\" saith Christ, \"and let us reason together: though your\nsins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be\nred like crimson, they shall be as wool.\"\n\nI might tell you of the contests and battles that great sinners at\ntheir conversion are engaged in, wherein they find the besettings of\nSatan above any other of the saints. At which time Satan assaults\nthe soul with darkness, fears, frightful thoughts of apparitions;\nnow they sweat, pant, cry out, and struggle for life.\n\nThe angels now come down to behold the sight, and rejoice to see a\nbit of dust and ashes overcome principalities, and powers, and\nmights, and dominions.\n\nBut whea these come to be a little settled, they are prepared for\nhelping others, and are great comforts unto them. Their great sins\ngive great encouragement to the devil to assault them; and by these\ntemptations Christ takes advantage to make them the more helpful to\nthe churches.\n\nThe biggest sinner, when he is converted and comes into the church,\nsays to them all by his very coming in, \"Behold me, all you that are\nmen and women of a low and timorous spirit, you whose hearts are\nnarrow--for that you have never had the advantage to know, because\nyour sins are few, the largeness of the grace of God--behold, I say,\nin me the exceeding riches of his grace. I am a pattern set forth\nbefore your faces, on whom you may look and take heart.\" Christ\nJesus makes of the biggest sinners bearers and supporters to the\nrest.\n\nChrist saved the thief, to encourage thieves to come to him for\nmercy; he saved Magdalen, to encourage other Magdalens to come to\nhim for mercy; he saved Saul, to encourage Sauls to come to him for\nmercy; and this Paul himself doth say: \"For this cause,\" saith he,\n\"I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth\nall long-suffering for a pattern to them which should hereafter\nbelieve on him to life everlasting.\"\n\nWhen Christ was crucified and hanged up between the earth and\nheavens, there were two thieves crucified with him; and behold, he\nlays hold of one of them and will have him away with him to glory.\nWas not this a strange act and a display of unthought of grace? Were\nthere none but thieves there, or were the rest of that company out\nof his reach? Could he not, think you, have stooped from the cross\nto the ground, and have laid hold of some honester man, if he would?\nYes, doubtless. O, but then he would not have displayed his grace,\nnor have so pursued his own designs, namely, to get himself a praise\nand a name; but now he has done it to purpose. For who that shall\nread this story but must confess that the Son of God is full of\ngrace? for a proof of the riches thereof he left behind him, when\nupon the cross he took the thief away with him to glory.\n\nI have one thing more to offer for thy encouragement, who deemest\nthyself one of the biggest sinners; and that is, thou art as it were\ncalled by thy name, in the first place to come in for mercy. Thou\nman of Jerusalem, Luke 24:47, hearken to thy call: men do so in\ncourts of judicature, and presently cry out, \"Here, sir;\" and then\nshoulder and crowd, and say, \"Pray give way, I am called into the\ncourt.\" Why, this is thy case, thou great, thou Jerusalem sinner; be\nof good cheer, he calleth thee. Why sittest thou still? Arise. Why\nstandest thou still? Come, man, thy call should give thee authority\nto corne. \"Begin at Jerusalem,\" is thy call and authority to come;\nwherefore up and shoulder it, man; say, \"Stand away, devil, Christ\ncalls me; stand away, unbelief, Christ calls me; stand away, all ye\ndiscouraging apprehensions, for my Saviour calls me to him to\nreceive of his mercy.\" Men will do thus, as I said, in courts below;\nand why shouldst not thou approach thus to the courts above? The\nJerusalem sinner is first in thought, first in commission, first in\nthe record of names; and therefore should give attendance with\nexpectation that he is first to receive mercy of God.\n\nIs not this an encouragement to the biggest sinners to make their\napplication to Christ for mercy? \"Come unto me, all ye that labor\nand are heavy laden,\" doth also confirm this thing; that is, that\nthe biggest sinner and he that hath the biggest burden, is he who is\nfirst invited. Christ pointeth over the heads of thousands as he\nsits on the throne of grace, directly to such a man, and says,\n\"Bring in hither the maimed, the halt, and the blind; let the\nJerusalem shiner that stands there hehind, come to me.\" Wherefore,\nsince Christ says to thee, Come, let the angels make a lane and let\nall men give place, that the Jerusalem sinner may come to Christ for\nmercy.\n\nDESPAIR OF MERCY UNREASONABLE.\n\nWould Jesus Christ have mercy offered, in the first place, to the\nbiggest sinners? Then this shows how unreasonable a thing it is for\nmen to despair of mercy.\n\nI am concerned only with the despair of those that would be saved,\nbut are too strongly borne down with the burden of their sins. I\nsay, therefore, to thee that art thus, And why despair? Thy despair,\nif it was reasonable, should flow from thee because found in the\nland that is beyond the grave, or because thou certainly knowest\nthat Christ will not or cannot save thee.\n\nBut for the first, thou art yet in the land of the living; and for\nthe second, thou hast ground to believe quite the contrary. Christ\nis able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by him; and\nif he were not willing, he would not have commanded that mercy, in\nthe first place, should be offered to the biggest sinners. Besides,\nhe hath said, \"And let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will,\nlet him take the water of life freely\"--that is, with all my heart.\nWhat ground, now, is here for despair? If thou sayest, \"The number\nand burden of my sins;\" I answer, Nay; that is rather a ground for\nfaith; because such a one, above all others, is invited by Christ to\ncome unto him, yea, promised rest and forgiveness, if he come. Matt.\n11: 28. What ground, then, to despair? Verily, none at all Thy\ndespair, then, is a thing unreasonable, and without footing in the\nword.\n\n\"But I have no experience of God's love; God has given me no comfort\nor ground of hope, though I have waited upon him for it many a day.\"\n\nThou hast experience of God's love, in that he has opened thine eyes\nto see thy sins, and in that he has given thee desires to be saved\nby Jesus Christ. For by thy sense of sin, thou art made to see thy\npoverty of spirit, and that has laid thee under a sure ground to\nhope that heaven shall be thine hereafter.\n\nAlso, thy desires to be saved by Christ have put thee under another\npromise, Matt. 5: 3, 6; so there are two to hold thee up in them,\nthough thy present burden be never so heavy. As for what thou sayest\nas to God's silence to thee, perhaps he has spoken to thee once or\ntwice already, but thou hast not perceived it. Job 33:14, 15.\n\nBesides, God says, \"They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their\nstrength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles;\" but perhaps it\nmay be long first. \"I waited patiently,\" says David, \"I sought the\nLord;\" and at length his cry was heard: wherefore, he bids his soul\nwait on God, and says, \"For it is good\" so to do \"before thy\nsaints.\" Psalm 40:1; 52:9; 62:5.\n\nAnd what if thou waitest upon God all thy days? Is it below thee?\nAnd what if God will cross his book and blot out the handwriting\nthat is against thee, arid not let thee know it as yet? Is it fit to\nsay unto God, Thou art hard-hearted? Despair not; thou hast no\nground to despair, so long as thou livest in this world. It is a sin\nto begin to despair before one sets his foot over the threshold of\nhell-gates. For them that are there, let them despair, and spare\nnot; but as for thee, thou hast no ground to do it. What, despair of\nbread in a land that is full of corn; despair of mercy, when our God\nis full of mercy; despair of mercy, when God goes about by his\nministers, beseeching sinners to be reconciled to him?\n\nThou scrupulous fool, where canst thou find that God was ever false\nto his promise, or that he ever deceived the soul that ventured\nitself upon him? He often calls upon sinners to trust him, though\nthey walk in darkness, and have no light. Isa. 50:10. They have his\npromise and oath for their salvation, that flee for refuge to the\nhope set before them.\n\nDespair, when we have a God of mercy and a redeeming Christ alive!\nFor shame, forbear; let them despair that dwell where there is no\nGod, and that are confined to those chamhers of death which can be\nreached by no redemption.\n\nA living man despair, when he is chid for murmuring and complaining!\nLam. 3:39. Oh, so long as we are where promises swarm, where mercy\nis proclaimed, where grace reigns, and where Jerusalem sinners are\nprivileged with the first offer of mercy, it is a base thing to\ndespair.\n\nDespair undervalues the promise, undervalues the invitation,\nundervalues the proffer of grace. Despair undervalues the ability of\nGod the Father, and the redeeming blood of Christ his Son. Oh,\nunreasonable despair!\n\nDespair makes man God's judge; it is a controller of the promise, a\ncontradictor of Christ in his large offers of mercy; and one that\nundertakes to make unbelief the great manager of our reason and\njudgment, in determining about what God can and will do for sinners.\n\nDespair! it is the devil's fellow, the devil's master; yea, the\nchains with which he is captivated, and held under darkness for\never: arid to give way thereto, in a land, in a state and time that\nflows with milk and honey, is an uncomely thing.\n\nI would say to my soul, O my soul, this is not the place of despair;\nthis is not the time to despair in. As long as mine eyes can find a\npromise in the Bible, as long as there is a moment left me of breath\nor life ill this world, so long will I wait or look for mercy, so\nlong will I fight against unbelief and despair.\n\nThis is the way to honor God and Christ; this is the way to set the\ncrown on the promise; this is the way to welcome the invitation and\nthe inviter; and this is the way to thrust thyself under the shelter\nand protection of the word of grace. Never despair, so long as our\ntext is alive; for that doth sound it out, that mercy by Christ is\noffered in the first place to the biggest sinner.\n\nLet none despair, let none presume: let none despair, that are sorry\nfor their sins and would he saved by Jesus Christ; let none presume\nthat abide in the liking of their sins, though they seem to know the\nexceeding grace of Christ; for though the doors stand wide open for\nthe reception of the penitent, yet they are fast enough barred and\nbolted against the presumptuous sinner. Be not deceived, God is not\nmocked; whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap. It cannot be\nthat God should be wheedled out of his mercy, or prevailed upon by\nlips of dissimulation; he knows them that trust in him, and that\nsincerely come to him by Christ for mercy.\n\nIt is, then, not the abundance of sins committed, but the not coming\nheartily to God by Christ for mercy, that shuts men out of doors.\n\nIs it so, that they that are coining to Jesus Christ, are ofttimes\nheartily afraid that he will not receive them? Then this should\nteach old Christians to pity and pray for young comers. You know the\nheart of a stranger, for you yourselves were strangers in the land\nof Egypt. You know the fears and doubts and terrors that take hold\nof them, for they sometimes took hold of you. Wherefore, pity them,\npray for them, encourage them; they need all this.\n\nTHE POWER OF THE GOSPEL.\n\nThat Jesus Christ, by what he has done, has paid full price to God\nfor sinners and obtained eternal redemption for them, is evident, if\nyou consider how the preaching thereof has been from that time to\nthis a mighty conqueror over all kinds of sinners. What nation, what\npeople, what kind of sinners have not been subdued by the preaching\nof a crucified Christ? He upon the white horse with his bow and his\ncrown has conquered, doth conquer, and goeth forth yet conquering\nand to conquer.\n\nThe doctrine of forgiveness of sin conquered his very murderers.\nThey could not withstand the grace; those bloody ones that would\nkill him whatever it cost them, could stand no longer, but received\nhis doctrine, fell into his bosom, and obtained the salvation which\nis in Christ Jesus. \"They shall look upon him whom they have\npierced, and mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son, and\nthey shall be in bitterness for him as one is in bitterness for his\nfirst-born.\" Now was the scripture eminently fulfilled, when the\nkindness of a crucified Christ broke to pieces the hearts of them\nthat had before been his betrayers and murderers. Now was there a\ngreat mourning in Jerusalem; now was there wailing and lamentation,\nmixed with joy and rejoicing.\n\nThough Paul was mad, exceeding mad against Jesus Christ of Nazareth,\nseeking to put out his name from under heaven; yet the voice from\nheaven, \"I am Jesus, I am the Saviour,\" how did it conquer him, make\nhim throw down his arms, fall down at Christ's feet, and accept of\nthe forgiveness of sins freely by grace, through redemption by faith\nin his blood.\n\nHow was the sturdy jailer overcome by a promise of forgiveness of\nsins by faith in Jesus Christ. It stopped his hand of self-murder,\nit eased him of the gnawings of a guilty conscience and fears of\nhell-fire, and filled his soul with rejoicing in God.\n\nWhat shall I say? no man could as yet stand before, and not fall\nunder, the revelation of the forgiveness of sins through a crucified\nChrist; as hanged, as dying, as accursed for sinners, he draws all\nmen unto him, men of all sorts, of all degrees.\n\nShall I add, how have men broken through all difficulties to Jesus,\nwhen he hath been discovered to them! Neither lions, nor fires, nor\nsword, nor famine, nor nakedness, nor peril; \"neither death nor\nlife; nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers; nor things\npresent, nor things to come; nor height, nor depth, nor any other\ncreature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is\nin Christ Jesus our Lord.\"\n\nBUNYAN'S CONVERSION\n\nI speak by experience: I was one of these verminous ones, one of\nthese great sin-breeders; I infected all the youth of the town where\nI was born with all manner of youthful vanities. The neighbors\ncounted me so; my practice proved me so: wherefore Christ Jesus took\nme first, and taking me first, the contagion was much allayed all\nthe town over. When God made me sigh, they would hearken, and\ninquiringly say, \"What is the matter with John?\" They also gave\ntheir various opinions of me; but, as I said, sin cooled, and failed\nas to his full career. When I went out to seek the bread of life,\nsome of them would follow, and the rest be put into a muse at home.\n\nWhen it pleased the Lord to begin to instruct my soul, he found me\none of the black sinners of the world; he found me making a sport of\noaths, and also of lies; and many a soul-poisoning meal did I make\nout of divers lusts, as drinking, dancing, etc., with the wicked\nones of the world. The Lord finding me in this condition, opened the\nglass of his law unto me, showing me so clearly my sins--both the\ngreatness of them, and also how abominable they were in his\nsight--that I thought the very clouds were charged with the wrath of\nGod, and ready to let fall the fire of his jealousy upon me; yet for\nall this I was so wedded to my sins, that I thought with myself, \"I\nwill have them, though I lose my soul,\" wretch that I was. But God,\nthe great, the rich, the infinitely merciful God, did not take this\nadvantage of my soul to cast me away; but followed me still, arid\nwon my heart by giving me some understanding, not only of my\nmiserable state which I was very sensible of, but also that there\nmight he hopes of mercy; taking away my love to lust, and placing in\nthe room thereof a holy love to religion. Thus the Lord won my heart\nto some desire to hear the word, to grow a stranger to my old\ncompanions, and to accompany the people of God, giving me many sweet\nencouragements from several promises in the scriptures. But after\nthis, the Lord wonderfully set my sins upon my conscience; those\nsins especially that I had committed since the first convictions:\ntemptations also followed me very hard; especially such as tended to\nmake me question the way of salvation--whether Jesus Christ was the\nSaviour or not, and whether I had best to venture my soul upon him\nfor salvation, or take some other course--and I continued a year and\nupwards without any sound evidence as from God to my soul, touching\nsalvation as it comes by Jesus Christ. But at the last, as I may\nsay, when the set time was come, the Lord did set me down blessedly\nin the truth of the doctrine of Jesus Christ.\n\nAbout this time the state and happiness of these poor people at\nBedford was thus, in a kind of a vision, presented to me. I saw as\nif they were on the sunny side of some high mountain, there\nrefreshing themselves with the pleasant beams of the sun, whilst I\nwas shivering and shrinking in the cold, afflicted with frost, snow,\nand dark clouds. Methought also, between me and them I saw a wall\nthat did compass about this mountain. Now, through this mountain my\nsoul did greatly desire to pass; concluding that if I could, I would\neven go into the very midst of them and there also comfort myself\nwith the heat of their sun.\n\nAbout this wall I bethought myself to go again and again, still\nprying as I went, to see if I could find some way or passage by\nwhich I might enter therein; but none could I find for some time: at\nthe last, I saw as it were a narrow gap, like a little door-way in\nthe wall, through which I attempted to pass; now the passage being\nvery strait and narrow, I made many offers to get in, but all in\nvain, even until I was well-nigh quite beat out by striving to get\nin; at last, with great striving, methought I at first did get in my\nhead, and after that, by a sideling striving, my shoulders and my\nwhole body; then was I exceeding glad, and went and sat down in the\nmidst of them, and so was comforted with the light and heat of their\nsun.\n\nNow, this mountain and wall, etc., was thus made out to me: the\nmountain signified the church of the living God; the sun that shone\nthereon, the comfortable shining of his merciful face on them that\nwere therein; the wall I thought was that which did make separation\nbetwixt the Christians and the world; and the gap which was in the\nwall, I thought was Jesus Christ, who is the way to God the Father.\nBut forasmuch as the passage was wonderful narrow, even so narrow\nthat I could not but with great difficulty enter in thereat, it\nshowed me that none could enter into life but those that were in\ndownright earnest, and unless also they left that wicked world\nbehind them; for here was only room for body and soul, but not for\nbody and soul and sin.\n\nThis resemblance abode upon my spirit many days; all which time I\nsaw myself in a forlorn and sad condition, but yet was provoked to a\nvehement hunger and desire to be one of that number that did sit in\nthe sunshine; now also would I pray wherever I was, whether at home\nor abroad, in house or field; and would also often, with lifting up\nof heart, sing that of the fifty-first Psalm, \"O Lord, consider my\ndistress;\" for as yet I knew not where I was.\n\nNeither as yet could I attain to any comfortahle persuasion that I\nhad faith in Christ; hut instead of having satisfaction here, I\nbegan to find my soul to be assaulted with fresh doubts about my\nfuture happiness; especially with such as these: \"Whether I was\nelected;\" \"But how if the day of grace should be past and gone?\"\n\nNow was I in great distress, thinking in very deed that this might\nwell be so: wherefore I went up and down bemoaning my sad condition;\ncounting myself far worse than a thousand fools for standing off\nthus long, and spending so many years in sin as I had done; still\ncrying out, \"O that I had turned sooner! O that I had turned seven\nyears ago!\" It made me also angry with myself to think that I should\nhave no more wit but to trifle away my time till my soul and heaven\nwere lost.\n\nBut when I had been long vexed with this fear, and was scarce able\nto take one step more, these words broke in upon my mind: \"Compel\nthem to come in, that my house may he filled; and yet there is\nroom.\" These words, but especially these, \"and yet there is room,\"\nwere sweet words to me; for truly I thought that by them I saw there\nwas place enough in heaven for me, and moreover, that when the Lord\nJesus spake these words, he did then think of me; and that he\nknowing that the time would come that I should be afflicted with\nfear that there was no place left for me in his bosom, did before\nspeak this word and leave it upon record, that I might find help\nthereby against this vile temptation.\n\nHow lovely now in my eyes were all those that I thought to be\nconverted men and women. They shone, they walked like a people that\ncarried the broad seal of heaven about them. Oh, I saw the lot was\nfallen to them in pleasant places, and they had a goodly heritage.\nBut that which made me sick, was that of Christ in Mark 3:13, \"He\nwent up into a mountain, and called unto him whom he would; and they\ncame unto him.\" This scripture made me faint and fear, yet it\nkindled fire in my soul. That which made me fear was this, lest\nChrist should have no liking to me; for he called \"whom he would.\"\nBut Oh, the glory that I saw in that condition did still so engage\nmy heart, that I could seldom read of any that Christ did call; but\nI presently wished, \"Would I had been in their clothes; would I had\nbeen born Peter; would I had been born John; or would I had been by\nand had heard him when he called them, how would I have cried, 'O\nLord, call me also.'\" But Oh, I feared he would not call me.\n\nFEARS ABOUT ELECTION\n\nBefore thou canst know whether thou art elected, thou must believe\nin Jesus Christ so really, that by thy faith there shall be life\nbegotten in thy soul--life from the condemning of the law; life from\nthe guilt of sin; life over its filth; life also to walk with God in\nhis Son and ways; the life of love to God the Father, to Jesus\nChrist his Son, to his saints, and to his ways, because they are\nholy, harmless, and altogether contrary to iniquity.\n\nYOUNG CONVERTS\n\nIn young converts, hope and distrust, or a degree of despair, do\nwork and answer one another as doth the noise of the balance of the\nwatch in the pocket. Life and death is always the motion of the mind\nthen; and this noise continues until faith is stronger grown, and\nuntil the soul is better acquainted with the methods and ways of God\nwith a sinner. Yea, was but a carnal man in a convert's heart, and\ncould see, he should discern these two, to wit, hope and fear, to\nhave a continual motion in the soul--wrestling and opposing one\nanother as do light and darkness, in striving for the victory.\n\nAnd hence it is that you find such people so fickle and uncertain in\ntheir spirits; now on the mount, then in the valleys; now in the\nsunshine, then in the shade; now warm, then frozen; now bonny and\nblithe, then in a moment pensive and sad, as thinking of a portion\nnowhere but in hell.\n\nIn the general, all the days of our pilgrimage here are evil; yea,\nevery day has a sufficiency of evil in it to destroy the best saint\nthat breatheth, were it not for the grace of God. But there are also\nparticular specious times, times more eminently dangerous and\nhazardous unto saints. As,\n\n1. There are their young days, the days of their youth and childhood\nin grace. This day is usually attended with much evil towards him or\nthem that are asking the way to Zion with their faces thitherward.\nNow the devil has lost a sinner; there is a captive has broke\nprison, and one run away from his master; now hell seems to be\nawakened from sleep; the devils are come out, they roar, and roaring\nthey seek to recover their runaway; they tempt him, threaten him,\nflatter him, stigmatize him, throw dust in his eyes, poison him with\nerrors, spoil him while he is upon the potter's wheel; any thing to\nkeep him from coming to Jesus Christ. And is not this a needy time?\nDoth not such a one want abundance of grace? Is it not of absolute\nnecessity that thou, if thou art the man thus beset, shouldst ply it\nat the throne of grace for mercy and grace to keep thee in such a\ntime of need as this?\n\nTo want a spirit of prayer now, is as much as thy life is worth. Oh,\ntherefore, you that know what I say, you that are broke loose from\nhell, that are fled for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before\nyou, and that do hear the lion roar after you, and that are kept\nawake with the continual voice of his chinking chain, cry as you\nfly; yea, the promise is, that they that come to God with weeping,\nwith supplication, he will lead them.\n\nWell, this is one needy time; now thy hedge is low, now thy branch\nis tender, now thou art but in the bud. Pray that thou be not marred\nin the potter's hand.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXII. THE CHRISTIAN DESCRIBED\n\nHAPPINESS OF THE CHRISTIAN\n\n\n\n\n\nO HOW happy is he who is not only a visible, but also an invisible\nsaint! He shall not be blotted out the book of God's eternal grace\nand mercy.\n\nDIGNITY OF THE CHRISTIAN\n\nThere are a generation of men in the world, that count themselves\nmen of the largest capacities, when yet the greatest of their\ndesires lift themselves no higher than to things below. If they can\nwith their net of craft and policy encompass a bulky lump of earth,\nOh, what a treasure have they engrossed to themselves!\n\nMeanwhile, the man who comes to God by Christ, has laid siege to\nheaven, has found out the way to get into the city, and is resolved,\nin and by God's help, to make that his own. Earth is a drossy thing\nin this man's account; earthly greatness and splendors are but like\nvanishing bubbles in this man's esteem. None but God as the end of\nhis desires, none but Christ as the means to accomplish this his\nend, are things counted great by this man. No company now is\nacceptable to this man, but the Spirit of God, Christ, angels and\nsaints, as fellow-heirs with himself. All other men and things, he\ndeals with as strangers and pilgrims were wont to do. This man's\nmind soars higher than the eagle, or stork of the heavens. He is for\nmusing about things that are above and their glory, and for thinking\nwhat shall come to pass hereafter.\n\nIs it so, that coming to Christ is by the Father? Then this should\nteach us to set a high esteem upon them that are indeed coming to\nJesus Christ, for the sake of him by virtue of whose grace they are\nmade to come to Jesus Christ.\n\nWe see that when men, by the help of human abilities, do arrive at\nthe knowledge of, and bring to pass that which, when done, is a\nwonder to the world, how he that did it is esteemed and commended.\nYea, how are his wits, parts, industry, and unweariedness in all,\nadmired; and yet the man, as to this, is but of the world; and his\nwork the effect of natural ability. The things also attained by him,\nend in vanity and vexation of spirit. Further, perhaps, in the\npursuit of these his achievements, he sins against God, wastes his\ntime vainly, and at long run loses his soul by neglecting of better\nthings. Yet he is admired.\n\nBut, I say, if this man's parts, labor, diligence, and the like,\nwill bring him to such esteem in the world, what esteem should we\nhave of such a one that is, by the gift, promise, and power of God,\ncoming to Jesus Christ?\n\n1. This is the man with whom God is, in whom God works and walks--a\nman, whose motion is governed and steered by the mighty hand of God,\nand the effectual working of his power. Here is a man!\n\n2. This man, by the power of God's might which worketh in him, is\nable to cast a whole world behind him, with all the lusts and\npleasures of it, and to charge through all the difficulties that men\nand devils can set against him. Here is a man!\n\n3. This man is travelling \"to mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem,\nthe city of the living God; and to an innumerable company of angels,\nand the spirits of just men made perfect, to God the judge of all,\nand to Jesus.\" Here is a man!\n\n4. This man can look upon death with comfort, can laugh at\ndestruction when it cometh, and long to hear the sound of the last\ntrump, and to see the Judge coming in the clouds of heaven. Here is\na man, indeed!\n\nWe pass through a threefold state from nature to glory; the state of\ngrace in this life, the state of felicity in paradise, and our state\nin glory after the resurrection.\n\nThey are all kings that go to that world, and so shall be proclaimed\nthere. They shall also be crowned with crowns, and they shall wear\ncrowns of life and glory, crowns of everlasting joy, crowns of\nloving-kindness.\n\nThe coming man, the man that comes to God by Christ, if his way, all\nhis way thither were strewed with burning coals, would choose, God\nhelping him, to tread that path rather than to have his portion with\nthem that perish.\n\n\"The angel of the Lord encampeth about them that fear him, and\ndelivereth them.\" This, therefore, is a glorious privilege of the\nmen that fear the Lord. Alas, they are some of them so mean, that\nthey are counted not worth taking notice of by the high ones of the\nworld; but their betters do respect them: the angels of God count\nnot themselves too good to attend on them, and camp about them to\ndeliver them. This then is the man that hath his angel to wait on\nhim, even he that feareth the Lord.\n\nIt is said, that when the church is \"fair as the sun, and clear as\nthe moon,\" she is \"terrible as an army with banners.\" The presence\nof godly Samuel made the elders of Bethlehem tremble; yea, when\nElisha was sought for by the king of Syria, he durst not engage him\nbut with chariots and horses, a heavy host. Godliness is a wonderful\nthing; it commandeth reverence, and the stooping of the spirit, even\nof the ungodly ones.\n\nGodliness puts such a majesty and dread upon the professors of it,\nthat their enemies are afraid of them; yea, even then when they rage\nagainst them, and lay heavy afflictions upon them. It is marvellous\nto see in what fear the ungodly are, even of godly men and\ngodliness; in that they stir up the mighty, make edicts against\nthem, yea, and raise up armies, and what else can be imagined, to\nsuppress them; while the persons thus opposed, if you consider them\nas to their state and capacity in this world, are the most\ninconsiderable--but as a dead dog or a flea. O, but they are clothed\nwith godliness; the image and presence of God is upon them. This\nmakes the beasts of this world afraid. \"One of you shall chase a\nthousand.\"\n\nThe ornament and beauty of this lower world, next to God and his\nwonders, are the men that spangle and shine in godliness.\n\nTHE FAMILY IN HEAVEN AND EARTH\n\n\"The whole family in heaven, and earth.\" The difference betwixt us\nand them is, not that we are really two, but one body in Christ, in\ndivers places. True, we are below stairs, and they above; they in\ntheir holiday, and we in our working-day clothes; they in harbor,\nbut we in the storm; they at rest, but we in the wilderness; they\nsinging, as crowned with joy, we crying, as crowned with thorns. But\nwe are all of one house, one family, and are all the children of one\nFather.\n\nFEEBLENESS OF THE CHRISTIAN\n\nIsrael, as the child of God, is a pitiful thing of himself; one that\nis full of weaknesses, infirmities, and defects, should we speak\nnothing of his transgressions. He that is to be attended with so\nmany mercies, absolutely necessary mercies, must needs be in himself\na poor indigent creature. Should you see a child attended with so\nmany engines to make him go, as the child of God is attended with\nmercies to make him stand, you would say, \"What an infirm, decrepid,\nhelpless thing is this!\" Would you not say, \"Such a one is not worth\nthe keeping, and his father cannot look for any thing from him, but\nthat he should live upon high charge and expense, as long as he\nliveth?\" Why, this is the case. Israel is such a one, nay, a worse:\nhe cannot live without tender mercy, without great mercy, without\nrich mercy, without manifold mercy. He cannot stand, if mercy doth\nnot compass him round about, nor go, unless mercy follows him. Yea,\nif mercy that rejoiceth against judgment doth not continually\nflutter over him, the very moth will eat him up, the canker will\nconsume him.\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN UNDER A SENSE OF GUILT--BUNYAN'S EXPERIENCE\n\nI had no sooner began to recall to my mind my former experience of\nthe goodness of God to my soul, but there came flocking into my mind\nan innumerable company of my sins and transgressions; amongst which\nthese were at this time most to my affliction, namely, my deadness,\ndulness, and coldness in holy duties; my wanderings of heart, my\nwearisomeness in all good things, and my want of love to God, his\nways, and his people, with this at the end of all: \"Are these the\nfruits of Christianity? Are these the tokens of a blessed man?\" Now,\nI sunk and fell in my spirit, and was giving up all for lost; but,\nas I was walking up and down in the house, as a man in a most woful\nstate, that word of God took hold of my heart, \"Ye are justified\nfreely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus\nChrist.\" But Oh, what a turn it made upon me.\n\nNow was I as one awakened out of some troublesome sleep and dream;\nand listening to this heavenly sentence, I was as if I had heard it\nthus spoken to me: \"Sinner, thou thinkest that, because of thy sins\nand infirmities, I cannot save thy soul; but behold, my Son is by\nme, and upon him I look, and not on thee, and shall deal with thee\naccording as I am pleased with him.\" At this I was greatly\nenlightened in my mind, and made to understand that God could\njustify a sinner at any time; it was but his looking upon Christ,\nand imputing his benefits to us, and the work was forthwith done.\n\nAnd as I was thus in a muse, that scripture also came with great\npower upon my spirit, \"Not by works of righteousness that we have\ndone, but according to his mercy he saved us.\" Now was I got on\nhigh; I saw myself within the arms of grace and mercy; and though I\nwas before afraid to think of a dying hour, yet now I cried, \"Let me\ndie;\" now death was lovely and beautiful in my sight, for I saw we\nshould never live indeed till we reach the other world. Oh,\nmethought, this life is but a slumber, in comparison of that above.\nAt this time also I saw more in these words, \"heirs of God,\" than\never I shall be able to express while I live in this world. HEIRS OF\nGOD! God himself is the portion of the saints. This I saw and\nwondered at, but cannot tell you what I saw.\n\nSometimes I have been so loaded with my sins, that I could not tell\nwhere to rest nor what to do; and at such times I thought it would\nhave taken away my senses; but God, through grace, hath so\neffectually applied the atonement of Jesus to my poor wounded,\nguilty conscience, and I have found such a sweet, solid, sober,\nheart-comforting peace, that it hath made me rejoice exceedingly;\nand I have for a time been in a strait and trouble, that I should\nlove and honor him no more, the virtue of whose blood hath so\ncomforted my soul.\n\nMy sins have at times appeared so great, that I have thought one of\nthem as heinous as all the sins of all the men in the world. Reader,\nthese things are not fancies, for I have smarted for this\nexperience; yet the least believing view of the blood of Jesus hath\nmade my guilt vanish to my astonishment, and delivered me into sweet\nand heavenly peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.\n\nSometimes when my heart hath been hard, slothful, blind, and\nsenseless--which are sad frames for a poor Christian--then hath the\nprecious blood of Christ softened, enlivened, quickened, and\nenlightened my soul.\n\nWhen I have been loaded with sin and harassed with temptations, I\nhad a trial of the virtue of Christ's blood, with a trial of the\nvirtue of other things; and I have found that when tears, prayers,\nrepentings, and all other things could not reach my heart, one\nshining of the virtue of his blood hath in a very blessed manner\ndelivered me. It hath come with such life and power, with such\nirresistible and marvellous glory, as to wipe off all the slurs,\nsilence all the outcries, and quench all the fiery darts and flames\nof hell-fire, that are begotten by the charges of the law, Satan,\nand doubtful remembrances of a sinful life.\n\nSIN AND THE SAVIOUR.\n\nSaints are sweetly sensible that the sense of sin and the assurance\nof pardon will make famous work in their poor hearts. Ah, what\nmeltings without guilt; what humility without casting down; and what\na sight of the creature's nothingness, yet without fear, will this\nsense of sin work in the soul. The sweetest frame, the most\nheart-endearing frame that possibly a Christian can get into while\nin this world, is to have a warm sight of sin and of a Saviour upon\nthe heart at one time. Now it weeps not for fear and through\ntorment, but by virtue of constraining grace and mercy, and is at\nthis very time so far off of disquietness of heart by reason of the\nsight of its wickedness, that it is driven into an ecstasy by reason\nof the love and mercy that is mingled with the sense of sin in the\nsoul. The heart never sees so much of the power of mercy as now, nor\nof the virtue, value, and excellency of Christ in all his offices,\nas now; and the tongue is never so sweetly enlarged to proclaim and\ncry up grace as now: now will Christ come to be glorified in his\nsaints and admired in them that believe.\n\nDost thou see in thee all manner of wickedness? The best way that I\ncan direct a soul in such a case, is to place a steadfast eye on Him\nthat is full, and so to look to him by faith as that thereby thou\nmayest draw his fulness into thy heart.\n\nThe best saints are most sensible of their sins, and most apt to\nmake mountains of their molehills.\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN IN DARKNESS.\n\nI know it is dreadful walking in darkness; but if that should be the\nLord's lot upon me, I pray God I may have faith enough to stay upon\nhim till death; and then will the clouds blow over, and I shall see\nhim in the light of the living.\n\nTHE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH.\n\nThen they went on again, and their conductor did go before them,\ntill they came to a place where was cast up a pit the whole breadth\nof the way; and before they could be prepared to go over that, a\ngreat mist and a darkness fell upon them so that they could not see.\nThen said the pilgrims, \"Alas, what now shall we do?\" But their\nguide made answer, \"Fear not; stand still, and see what an end will\nbe put to this also.\" So they staid there, because their path was\nmarred. Then they also thought they did hear more apparently the\nnoise and rushing of the enemies; the fire also and smoke of the pit\nwas much easier to be discerned. Then said Christiana to Mercy, \"Now\nI see what my poor husband went through; I have heard much of this\nplace, but I never was here before now. Poor man! he went here all\nalone in the night; he had night almost quite through the way; also\nthese fiends were busy about him, as if they would have torn him in\npieces. Many have spoke of it, but none can tell what the Valley of\nthe Shadow of Death should mean until they come in themselves. The\n'heart knoweth its own bitterness; a stranger intermeddleth not with\nits joy.' To be here is a fearful thing.\"\n\n\"This,\" said Mr. Greatheart, \"is like doing business in great\nwaters, or like going down into the deep; this is like being in the\nheart of the sea, and like going down to the bottom of the\nmountains; now it seems as if the earth with its bars were about us\nfor ever. But let them that walk in darkness and have no light,\ntrust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon their God. For my part,\nI have often gone through this valley, and have been much harder put\nto it than now I am; and yet you see I am alive. I would not boast,\nfor that I am not my own saviour; but I trust we shall have a good\ndeliverance. Come, let us pray for light to Him that can lighten our\ndarkness, and can rebuke not only these, but all the devils in\nhell.\" So they cried and prayed, and God sent light and deliverance.\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN DOUBTING.\n\nIt is a rare thing for some Christians to see their graces, but a\nthing very common for such to see their sins, yea, and to feel them\ntoo in their lusts and desires, to the shaking of their souls.\n\nQUESTION. But since I have lusts and desires both ways, how shall I\nknow to which my soul adheres?\n\nANSWER. This may be known thus:\n\n1. Which wouldest thou have prevail; the desires of the flesh, or\nthe lusts of the spirit? Whose side art thou of? Doth thy soul now\ninwardly say, and that with a strong indignation, \"Oh, let God, let\ngrace, let my desires that are good, prevail against my flesh, for\nJesus Christ's sake?\"\n\n2. What kind of secret wishes hast thou in thy soul, when thou\nfeelest the lusts of thy flesh to rage? Dost thou not inwardly, and\nwith indignation against sin, say, \"O that I might never, never feel\none such motion more. O that my soul were so full of grace, that\nthere might be no longer room for even the least lust to come into\nmy thoughts?\"\n\n3. What kind of thoughts hast thou of thyself, now thou seest those\ndesires of thine that are good so briskly opposed by those that are\nbad? Dost thou not say, \"Oh, I am the basest of creatures; I could\neven spew at myself. There is no man in all the world, in my eyes,\nso loathsome as myself is. I abhor myself; a toad is not so vile as\nI am. O Lord, let me be any thing but a sinner; any thing, so thou\nsubduest mine iniquities for me?\"\n\n4. How dost thou like the discovery of that which thou thinkest is\ngrace in other men! Dost thou not cry out, \"Oh, I bless them in my\nheart! Oh, methinks grace is the greatest beauty in the world! Yea,\nI could be content to live and die with those people that have the\ngrace of God in their souls. A hundred times, and a hundred when I\nhave been upon my knees before God, I have desired, were it the will\nof God, that I might be in their condition?\"\n\n5. How art thou, when thou thinkest that thou thyself hast grace?\n\"Oh, then,\" says the soul, \"I am as if I could leap out of myself;\njoy, joy, joy then is in my heart. It is, methinks, the greatest\nmercy under heaven to be made a gracious man.\"\n\nAnd is it thus with thy soul indeed? Happy man! It is grace that has\nthy soul, though sin at present works in thy flesh. Yea, all those\nbreathings are the very actings of grace, even of the grace of\ndesire, of love, of humility, and of the fear of God within thee. Be\nof good courage; thou art on the right side.\n\n\"I find,\" says the doubting Christian, \"weakness and faintness as to\nmy graces; my faith, my hope, my love and desires to these and all\nother Christian duties, are weak: I am like the man in the dream,\nthat would have run, but could not; that would have fought, but\ncould not, and that would have fled, but could not.\"\n\nANSWER. Weak graces are graces--weak graces may grow stronger; but\nif the iron be blunt, put to the more strength. Eccles. 10:10.\nChrist seems to be most tender of the weak: \"He shall gather lambs\nwith his arm, shall carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead\nthem that are with young.\" Only here thy wisdom will be manifested,\nto wit, that thou grow in grace, and that thou use lawfully and\ndiligently the means to do it. 2 Pet. 3:18; Phil. 3:10, 11; I Thess.\n3:11-13.\n\nI never heard a presumptuous man in my life say that he was afraid\nthat he presumed; but I have heard many an honest, humble soul say\nthat they have been afraid that their faith has been presumptive.\n\nINDWELLING SIN.\n\nA man, in mind and affections, may depart from that which yet will\nnot depart from him, yea, a man in mind may depart from that which\nyet will dwell in him as long as he lives.\n\nFor instance, there are many diseases that cleave to men, from which\nin their minds they willingly depart; yea, their greatest\ndisquietment is, that so bad a distemper will abide by them; and\nmight they but have their desire accomplished, they would be as far\ntherefrom as the ends of the earth are asunder: and while they are\nfound to continue together, the mind departs therefrom, and is gone\neither to God or to physicians for help and deliverance from it.\n\nAnd thus it is with the saint, and should be with every one that by\nway of profession nameth the name of Christ, Rom. 7; he should\ndepart from his indwelling sin with his mind: \"With his mind he\nshould serve the law of God.\"\n\nMR. FEARING.\n\nHONEST. It seems he was well at last.\n\nGREAT-HEART. Yes, yes; I never had a doubt about him. He was a man\nof a choice spirit; only he was always kept very low, and that made\nhis life so burdensome to himself and so very troublesome to others.\nHe was, above many, tender of sin; he was so afraid of doing\ninjuries to others, that he would often deny himself of that which\nwas lawful, because he would not offend.\n\nHONEST. But what should be the reason that such a good man should be\nall his days so much in the dark?\n\nGREAT-HEART. There are two sorts of reasons for it. One is, the wise\nGod will have it so; some must pipe, and some must weep: now, Mr.\nFearing was one that played upon the bass. He and his fellows sound\nthe sackbut, whose notes are more doleful than the notes of other\nmusic are, though indeed some say the bass is the ground of music.\nAnd, for my part, I care not at all for that profession that begins\nnot in heaviness of mind. The first string that the musician usually\ntouches is the bass, when he intends to put all in tune; God also\nplays upon this string first, when he sets the soul in tune for\nhimself. Only, there was the imperfection of Mr. Fearing, he could\nplay upon no other music but this till towards his latter end.\n\nHONEST. He was a very zealous man, as one may see by the relation\nwhich you have given of him. Difficulties, lions, or Vanity Fair, he\nfeared not at all: it was only sin, death, and hell that were to him\na terror, because he had some doubts about his interest in that\ncelestial country.\n\nWhen he was come at the river where was no bridge, there he was in a\nheavy case. \"Now, now,\" he said, \"he should be drowned for ever, and\nso never see that face with comfort, that he had come so many miles\nto behold.\" And here I took notice of what was very remarkable--the\nwater of that river was lower at this time than ever I saw it in all\nmy life; so he went over at last, not much above wet-shod When he\nwas going up to the gate, Mr. Great-heart began to take his leave of\nhim, and to wish him a good reception above; so he said, \"I shall, I\nshall;\" then parted we asunder, and I saw him no more.\n\nENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE DOUBTING CHRISTIAN.\n\nDoth this water of life run like a river, like a broad, full, and\ndeep river? Then let no man, be his transgressions never so many,\nfear at all but there is enough to save his soul and to spare.\nNothing has been more common to many, than to doubt the grace of\nGod: a thing most unbecoming a sinner of any thing in the world. To\nbreak the law, is a fact foul enough; but to question the\nsufficiency of the grace of God to save therefrom, is worse than\nsin, if worse can be. Wherefore, despairing soul, for it is to thee\nI speak, forbear thy mistrusts, cast off thy slavish fears, hang thy\nmisgivings as to this upon the hedge, and believe; thou hast an\ninvitation sufficient thereto, a river is before thy face. And as\nfor thy want of goodness and works, let that by no means daunt thee;\nthis is a river of water of life, streams of grace and mercy. There\nis, as I said, enough therein to help thee, for grace brings all\nthat is wanting to the soul. Thou, therefore, hast nothing to do--I\nmean as to the curing of thy soul of its doubts and fears and\ndespairing thoughts--but to drink and live for ever.\n\nPRUDENCE. Can you remember by what means you find your annoyances,\nat times, as if they were vanquished?\n\nCHRISTIAN. Yes; when I think on what I saw at the cross, that will\ndo it; and when I look upon my embroidered coat, that will do it;\nand when I look into the roll that I carry in my bosom, that will do\nit; and when my thoughts wax warm about whither I am going, that\nwill do it.\n\nPRUDENCE. And what is it that makes you so desirous to go to mount\nZion?\n\nCHRISTIAN. Why, there I hope to see him alive that did hang dead on\nthe cross, and there I hope to be rid of all those things that to\nthis day are in me, an annoyance to me: there, they say, there is no\ndeath; and there shall I dwell with such company as I like best.\nFor, to tell you the truth, I love him because I was by him eased of\nmy burden; and I am weary of my inward sickness. I would fain be\nwhere I shall die no more, and with the company that shall\ncontinually cry, \"Holy, holy, holy!\"\n\nBe often remembering what a blessed thing it is to be saved, to go\nto heaven, to be made like angels, and to dwell with God and Christ\nto all eternity.\n\nADOPTION.\n\nThe Spirit cannot, after he hath come to the soul as a Spirit of\nadoption, come again as a Spirit of bondage to put the soul into his\nfirst fear, to wit, a fear of eternal damnation, because he cannot\nsay and unsay, do and undo. As a Spirit of adoption, he told me that\nmy sins were forgiven me and I was included in the covenant of\ngrace, that God was my Father through Christ, that I was under the\npromise of salvation, and that this calling and gift of God to me\nare permanent and without repentance. And do you think that, after\nhe told me this, and sealed up the truth of it to my precious soul,\nhe will come to me and tell me that I am yet in my sins, under the\ncurse of the law and the eternal wrath of God? No, no; the word of\nthe gospel is not yea, yea; nay, nay. It is only yea and amen; it is\nso, \"as God is true.\" 2 Cor. 17:20.\n\nSin, after that the Spirit of adoption has come, cannot dissolve the\nrelations of Father and son, of Father and child. And this the\nchurch did rightly assert, and that when her heart was under great\nhardness and when she had the guilt of erring from his ways; saith\nshe, \"Doubtless thou art our Father:\" doubtless thou art, though\nthis be our case, and though Israel should not acknowledge us for\nsuch.\n\nThat sin dissolveth not the relation of Father and son, is further\nevident: When the fulness of time was come, God sent forth his Son\nmade of a woman, made under the law, that we might receive the\nadoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the\nSpirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, \"Father, Father!\" Now\nmark: \"Wherefore, thou art no more a servant;\" that is, no more\nunder the law of death and damnation, but a son; and if a son, then\nan heir of God through Christ.\n\nSuppose a child doth grievously transgress against and offend his\nfather; is the relation between them therefore dissolved? Again,\nsuppose the father should scourge and chasten the son for such\noffences, is the relation between them therefore dissolved? Yea,\nsuppose the child should now, through ignorance, cry and say, \"This\nman is now no more my father;\" is he therefore no more his father?\nDoth not every body see the folly of arguings? Why, of the same\nnature is the doctrine, the faith, that after we have received the\nSpirit of adoption, the Spirit of bondage is sent to us again to put\nus in fear of eternal damnation.\n\nKnow then that thy sin, after thou hast received the Spirit of\nadoption to cry unto God, \"Father, Father,\" is counted the\ntransgression of a child, not of a slave; and that all that\nhappeneth to thee for that transgression is but the chastisement of\na father: \"And what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?\"\n\nNow let not any, from what hath been said, take courage to live\nloose lives, under a supposition that once in Christ they are ever\nin Christ, and the covenant cannot he broken, nor the relation of\nFather and child dissolved; for they that do so, it is evident, have\nnot known what it is to receive the Spirit of adoption. It is the\nspirit of the devil, in his own hue, that suggesteth this unto them,\nand that prevaileth with them to do so. Shall we do evil that good\nmay come? Shall we sin that grace may abound; or shall we be base in\nlife because God by grace hath secured us from wrath to come? God\nforbid: these conclusions betoken one void of the fear of God\nindeed, and of the Spirit of adoption too.\n\nThough God cannot, will not dissolve the relation which the Spirit\nof adoption hath made betwixt the Father and the sons, for any sins\nthat such do commit; yet he can and often doth take away from them\nthe comfort of their adoption, not suffering children while sinning\nto have the sweet and comfortable sense thereof on their hearts.\n\nGod can lay thee in the dungeon in chains, and roll a stone upon\nthee; he can make thy feet fast in the stocks, and make thee a\ngazing-stock for men and angels.\n\nGod can tell how to cause to cease the sweet operations and blessed\ninfluences of his grace in thy soul; to make those gospel-showers\nthat formerly thou hast enjoyed, to become now to thee nothing but\npowder and dust.\n\nGod can tell how to fight against thee with the sword of his mouth,\nand to make thee a butt for his arrows; and this is a dispensation\nmost dreadful.\n\nGod can tell how to bow thee down with guilt and distress, that thou\nshalt in nowise be able to lift up thy head.\n\nGod can tell how to break thy bones, and to make thee, by reason of\nthat, to live in continual anguish of spirit; yea, he can send a\nfire into thy bones that shall burn, and none shall quench it.\n\nGod can tell how to lay thee aside, and make no use of thee as to\nany work for him in thy generation. He can throw thee aside as a\nbroken vessel.\n\nGod can tell how to kill thee, and take thee away from the earth for\nthy sins.\n\nGod can tell how to plague thee in thy death, with great plagues and\nof long continuance.\n\nWhat shall I say? God can tell how to let Satan loose upon thee;\nwhen thou liest dying, he can license him then to assault thee with\ngreat temptations; he can tell how to make thee possess the guilt of\nall thy unkindness towards him, and that when thou, as I said, art\ngoing out of the world; he can cause that thy life shall be in\ncontinual doubt before thee, and not suffer thee to take any comfort\nday or night; yea, he can drive thee even to a madness with his\nchastisements for thy folly, and yet all shall be done by him to\nthee as a father chastiseth his son.\n\nFurther, God can tell how to tumble thee from off thy death-bed in a\ncloud, he can let thee die in the dark; when thou art dying, thou\nshalt not know whither thou art going, to wit, whether to heaven or\nto hell. Yea, he can tell how to let thee seem to come short of\nlife, both in thine own eyes and also in the eyes of them that\nbehold thee. \"Let us therefore fear,\" says the apostle--though not\nwith slavish, yet with filial fear--\"lest, a promise being left us\nof entering into rest, any of us should seem to come short of it.\"\n\nNow all this and much more can God do to his, as a father by his rod\nand a father by rebukes: ah, who know but those that are under them,\nwhat terrors, fears, distresses, and amazements, God can bring his\npeople into? He can put them into a furnace, a fire, and no tongue\ncan tell what, so unsearchable and fearful are his fatherly\nchastisements, and yet never give them the spirit of bondage again\nto fear. Therefore, if thou art a son, take heed of sin, lest all\nthese things overtake thee and come upon thee.\n\nDost thou fear the Lord? \"The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting\nto everlasting on them that fear him.\"\n\nChild of God, thou that fearest God, here is mercy nigh thee, mercy\nenough, everlasting mercy upon thee. This is long-lived mercy. It\nwill live longer than thy sin; it will live longer than temptation;\nit will live longer than thy sorrows; it will live longer than thy\npersecutors. It is mercy from everlasting to contrive thy salvation,\nand mercy to everlasting to resist all thy adversaries. Now what can\nhell and death do to him that hath this mercy of God upon him? And\nthis hath the man that feareth the Lord.\n\nTake that other blessed word, and O, thou man that fearest the Lord,\nhang it like a chain of gold about thy neck: \"As the heaven is high\nabove the earth, so great is his mercy to them that fear him.\" If\nmercy as big, as high, and as good as heaven itself will be a\nprivilege, the man that feareth God shall have the privilege.\n\nCHRIST OUR LIFE.\n\nHere is my life, namely, the birth of this Man, the righteousness of\nthis man, the blood of this man, the death and resurrection of this\nman, the ascension and intercession of this man for me, and the\nsecond coming of this man to judge the world in righteousness. I\nsay, here is my life, if I see this by faith without me, through the\noperation of the Spirit within me: I am safe, I am at peace, I am\ncomforted, I am encouraged; and I know that my comfort, peace, and\nencouragement is true, and given me from heaven by the Father of\nmercies, through the Son of the Virgin Mary--the Son of man, the Son\nof God, the true God.\n\nUNION WITH CHRIST.\n\nStay not in some transient comforts, but abide restless till thou\nseest a union betwixt thee and this blessed One, to wit, that he is\na root and thou a branch--that he is head, and thou a member. And\nthen shalt thou know that the case is so between thee and him, when\ngrace and his Spirit have made thee to lay the whole stress of thy\njustification upon him, and have subdued thy heart and mind to be\none spirit with him.\n\nLIFE OF FAITH.\n\nO man or woman, whoever thou art, that art savingly convinced by the\nSpirit of Christ, thou hast such an endless desire after the Lord\nJesus Christ, that thou canst not be content with any thing below\nthe blood of the Son of God to purge thy conscience withal; even\nthat blood that was shed without the gates. Also thou canst not be\nat quiet, till thou dost see by true faith that the righteousness of\nthe Son of Mary is imputed unto thee and put upon thee. Rom.\n3:21-23. Then also thou canst not be at quiet, till thou hast power\nover thy lusts and corruptions, till thou hast brought them into\nsubjection to the Lord Jesus Christ. Then thou wilt never think that\nthou hast enough of faith: no, thou wilt be often crying out, \"Lord,\ngive me more precious faith; Lord, more faith in thy righteousness;\nmore faith in thy blood and death; more faith in thy resurrection;\nand, Lord, more faith in this--that thou art now at the right hand\nof thy Father in thy human nature, making intercession for me a\nmiserable sinner.\" And then, O poor soul, if thou comest but hither,\nthou wilt never have an itching ear after another gospel.\n\nIf thou wouldst be faithful to do that work that God has allotted\nthee to do in this world for his name labor to live in the savor and\nsense of thy freedom and liberty by Jesus Christ; that is, keep\nthis, if possible, ever before thee--that thou art a redeemed one,\ntaken out of this world and from under the curse of the law, out of\nthe power of the devil, and placed in a kingdom of grace and\nforgiveness of sins for Christ's sake.\n\nThis is of absolute use in this matter; yea, so absolute that it is\nimpossible for any Christian to do his work christianly, without\nsome enjoyment of it.\n\nThe first thing of which the soul is sick, and by which the\nconscience receiveth wounding, is the GUILT of sin and fear of the\ncurse of God for it; for which are provided the wounds and precious\nblood of Christ, which flesh and blood, if the soul eat thereof by\nfaith, give deliverance therefrom. Upon this FILTH of sin appears\nmost odious; for that it hath not only at present defiled the soul,\nbut because it keeps it from doing those duties of love which by the\nlove of Christ it is constrained to endeavor the perfecting of. For\nfilth appears filth, that is, irksome and odious to a contrary\nprinciple now implanted in the soul; which principle had its\nconveyance thither by faith in the sacrifice and death of Christ\ngoing before. \"The love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus\njudge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: and that he\ndied for all, that they who live should not henceforth live unto\nthemselves, but to him that died for them and rose again.\"\n\nThe man that has received Christ desires to be holy, because the\nnature of the faith that lays hold on Christ worketh by love, and\nlongeth, yea, greatly longeth, that the soul may be brought not only\ninto a universal conformity to his will, but into his very likeness;\nand because that state agreeth not with what we are now, but with\nwhat we shall be hereafter: \"Therefore in this we groan, being\nburdened\" with that which is of a contrary nature, \"earnestly\ndesiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven;\"\nwhich state is not that of Adam'a innocency, but that which is\nspiritual and heavenly, even that which is now in the Lord in\nheaven.\n\nBlessed be God for Jesus Christ, and for that he took our nature and\nsin and curse and death upon him; and for that he did also by\nhimself, by one offering, purge our sins. We that have believed have\nfound rest, even there where Christ and his Father have smelled a\nsweet savor of rest: because we are presented to God even now\ncomplete in the righteousness of him, and stand discharged of guilt\neven by the faith of him; yea, as sins past, so sins to come, were\ntaken up and satisfied for by that offering of the body of Jesus. We\nwho have had a due sense of sins, and of the nature of the justice\nof God, know that no remission of the guilt of any one can be, but\nby atonement made by blood. Heb. 9:22.\n\nWe also know that where faith in Jesus Christ is wanting, there can\nbe neither good principle, nor good endeavor; for faith is the first\nof all graces, and without it there is nothing but sin. Rom. 14:23.\n\nWe know also that faith, as a grace in us, severed from the\nrighteousness of Christ, is only a beholder of things, but not a\njustifier of persons; and that if it lay not hold of and applieth\nnot that righteousness which is in Christ, it carries us no further\nthan to the devils.\n\nWe know that this doctrine killeth sin, and curseth it at the very\nroots: I say, we know it, who have mourned over him whom we have\npierced, and who have been confounded to see that God by his blood\nshould be pacified towards us for all the wickedness we have done.\nYea, we have a double motive to be holy and humble before him: one,\nbecause he died for us on earth; another, because he now appears for\nus in heaven, there sprinkling for us the mercy-seat with his blood,\nthere ever living to make intercession for them that come unto God\nby him. \"If any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus\nChrist the righteous, who is the propitiation for our sins.\" Yet\nthis works in us no looseness nor favor to sin, but so much the more\nan abhorrence of it: \"She loveth much, for much was forgiven her;\"\nyea, she weeps, she washeth his feet, and wipeth them with the hairs\nof her head, to the confounding of Simon the Pharisee, and all such\nignorant hypocrites.\n\nDIVINE LOVE IMPROVED.\n\nEmpty notions of the love of God and of Christ will do nothing but\nharm; wherefore they are not empty notions that I press thee to rest\nin, but that thou labor after the knowledge of the savor of this\ngood ointment which the apostle calls \"the savor of the knowledge of\nthis Lord Jesus.\" Know it until it becomes sweet or pleasant to thy\nsoul, and then it will preserve and keep thee. Make this love of God\nand of Christ thine own, and not another's. Many there are that can\ntalk largely of the love of God to Abraham, to David, to Peter, and\nPaul. But that is not the thing. Give not over until this love be\nmade thine own; until thou find and feel it to run warm in thy heart\nby the shedding of it abroad there, by the Spirit that God has given\nthee. Then thou wilt know it with an obliging and engaging\nknowledge; yea, then thou wilt know it with a soul-strengthening and\nsoul-encouraging knowledge.\n\nWouldst thou improve this love of God and of Christ? then set it\nagainst the love of all other things whatsoever, even until this\nlove shall conquer thy soul from the love of them to itself.\n\nThis is Christian. Do it therefore, and say, \"Why should any thing\nhave my heart but God, but Christ? He loves me with love that\npasseth knowledge. He loves me, and he shall have me; he loves me,\nand I will love him; his love stripped him of all for my sake; Lord,\nlet my love strip me of all for thy sake. I am a son of love, an\nobject of love, a monument of love, of free love, of distinguishing\nlove, of peculiar love, and of love that passeth knowledge; and why\nshould not I walk in love? in love to God, in love to men, in holy\nlove, in love unfeigned?\"\n\nThis is the way to improve the love of God for thy advantage, for\nthe subduing of thy passions, and for sanctifying of thy nature.\n\nIt is an odious thing to hear men of base lives talking of the love\nof God, of the death of Christ, and of the glorious grace that is\npresented unto sinners by the word of the truth of the gospel.\nPraise is comely for the upright, not for the profane.\n\nTherefore let him speak of love that is taken with love, that is\ncaptivated with love, that is carried away with love. If this man\nspeaks of it, his speaking signifies something; the powers and bands\nof love are upon him, and he shows to all that he knows what he is\nspeaking of. But the very mentioning of love is, in the mouth of the\nprofane, like a parable in the mouth of fools. Wherefore, Christian,\nimprove this love of God as thou shouldst, and that will improve\nthee as thou wouldst.\n\nIt is natural for children to depend upon their father for what they\nwant. If they want a pair of shoes, they go and tell him; if they\nwant bread, they go and tell him; so should the children of God do.\nDo you want spiritual bread? Go tell God of it. Do you want strength\nof grace? Ask it of God. Do you want strength against Satan's\ntemptations? Go and tell God of it. When the devil tempts you, run\nhome and tell your heavenly Father; go pour out your complaints to\nGod; this is natural to children--if any wrong them, they go and\ntell their father.\n\nIf thou wouldst improve this love of God and of Christ, keep thyself\nin it: \"Keep yourselves in the love of God.\" Living a holy life is\nthe way, after a man has believed unto justification, to keep\nhimself in the favor and comfort of the love of God. And O that thou\nwouldst indeed do so. And that because, if thou shalt want the savor\nof it, thou wilt soon want tenderness to the commandment, which is\nthe rule by which thou must walk, if thou wilt do good to thyself,\nor honor God in the world. \"To him that ordereth his conversation\naright, I will show the salvation of God.\" He that would live a\nsweet, comfortable, joyful life, must live a very holy life.\n\nAll God's children are criers: Cannot you be quiet unless you are\nfilled with the milk of God's word? cannot you be satisfied unless\nyou have peace with God? Pray you consider it, and be serious with\nyourselves; if you have not these marks, you will fall short of the\nkingdom of God, you shall never have an interest there: there is no\nintruding: they will say, \"Lord, Lord, open unto us;\" and he will\nsay, \"I know you not.\" No child of God, no heavenly inheritance. O\ndo not flatter yourselves with a portion among the sons, unless you\nlive like sons. When we see a king's son playing with a beggar, this\nis unbecoming; so if you bo the King's children, live like the\nKing's children: if you be risen with Christ, set your affections on\nthings above, and not on things below; when you come together, talk\nof what your Father promised you; you should all love your Father's\nwill, and be content and pleased with the exercises you meet with in\nthe world; if you are the children of God, live together lovingly;\nif the world quarrel with you, it is no matter, but it is sad if you\nquarrel together: if this be among you, it is a sign of\nill-breeding; it is according to no rules you have in the word of\nGod. Dost thou see a soul that has the image of God in him? Love\nhim, love him; say, \"This man and I must go to heaven one day;\"\nserve one another, do good for one another; if any wrong you, pray\nto God to right you, and love the brotherhood.\n\nHOLY LIVING.\n\nRemember, man, if the grace of God hath taken hold of thy soul, thou\nart a man of another world, and indeed a subject of another and more\nnoble kingdom, the kingdom of God--which is the kingdom of the\ngospel, of grace, of faith, and righteousness, and the kingdom of\nheaven hereafter. In these things thou shouldst exercise thyself,\nnot making heavenly things which God hath bestowed upon thee, stoop\nto things that are of the world; but rather here beat down the body,\nto mortify thy members, hoist up thy mind to the things that are\nabove, and practically hold forth before all the world that blessed\nword of life.\n\nAssure thyself, thy God will not give thee straw, but he will expect\nbrick.\n\nIt is amiable and pleasant to God when Christians keep their rank,\nrelation, and station, doing all as becomes their quality and\ncalling. When Christians stand all in their places, and do the work\nof their stations, then they are like the flowers in the garden,\nthat stand and grow where the gardener hath planted them; and then\nthey shall both honor the garden in which they are planted, and the\ngardener that hath so disposed of them. From the hyssop in the wall\nto the cedar in Lebanon, their fruit is their glory. And seeing the\nstock into which we are planted is the most fruitful stock, the sap\nconveyed thereout the most fruitful sap, and the dresser of our\nsouls the wisest husband-man, how contrary to nature, example, and\nexpectation we should be, if we should not be rich in good works.\nWherefore, take heed of being painted fire, wherein is no warmth; of\nbeing painted flowers, which retain no smell; and of being painted\ntrees, whereon is no fruit. Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift,\nis like clouds and wind without rain. Farewell; the Lord be with thy\nspirit, that thou mayest profit for time to come.\n\nTHEY only have benefit by Christ to eternal life, who die by his\nexample as well as live by his blood; for in his death was both\nmerit and example; and they are like to miss in the first, that are\nnot concerned in the second.\n\nAs it is natural for the stranger, so soon as ever he has entered\nthe gates of a city, to have his feet in the streets of the city, so\nit is natural for the sinner, so soon as ever he is entered into the\nchurch of Christ, to have his feet treading in the way and paths of\nholiness. Wherefore it is usual in the holy Scripture to call the\ntransformation of the sinner from Satan to God a holy way, and also\nto admonish him that is so transformed to walk in that way, saying,\nWalk in the faith, love, spirit, and newness of life, and walk in\nthe truth, ways, statutes, and judgments of God.\n\nJacob, when sick, would worship God, though so weak as not able to\ndo it without leaning upon the top of his staff: a blessed example\nfor the diligent, and reproof for those that are slothful.\n\nOPPORTUNITIES IMPROVED.\n\nGood opportunities are God's seasons for doing the work; wherefore,\nwatch for them and take them as they come. Paul tells us, he was \"in\nwatchings often;\" surely it was that he might take the season that\nGod should give him to do his work for him; as he also says to\nTimothy, \"Watch thou in all things, do the work,\" etc.\n\nOpportunities as to some things come but once in one's lifetime, as\nin the case of Esther, and of Nicodemus and holy Joseph; when Esther\nbegged the lives of the Jews, and the other the body of Jesus; which\nhad they once let slip or neglected, they could not have recovered\nit again for ever. Watch, then, for the opportunity:\n\nBecause it is God's season, which without doubt is the best season\nand time for every purpose.\n\nBecause Satan watches to spoil, by mistiming as well as by\ncorrupting whatever thou shalt do for God. \"When I would do good,\"\nsays Paul, \"evil is present;\" that is, either to withdraw me from my\npurpose, or else to infect my work.\n\nThat the opportunity may not slip thee, either for want of care or\nforecast,\n\n1. Sit always loose from an overmuch affecting thine own\nconcernments, and believe that thou wast not born for thyself: a\nbrother is born for adversity.\n\n2. Get thy heart tenderly affected with the welfare of all things\nthat bear the stamp and image of God.\n\n3. Study thy own place and capacity that God hath put thee in in\nthis world; for suitable to thy place are thy work and\nopportunities.\n\n4. Make provision beforehand, that when things present themselves,\nthou mayst come up to a good performance: be prepared for every good\nwork.\n\n5. Take heed of carnal reasonings; keep the heart tender, but set\nthy face like a flint for God.\n\n6. And look well to the manner of every duty.\n\nGOOD WORKS.\n\nTo stoop low is a good work, if it be done in faith and love; though\nbut by a cup of cold water, it is really more worth in itself, and\nof higher esteem with God, than all worldly and perishing glory.\n\nWhen holiness is lovely and beautiful to the soul, and when the name\nof Christ is more precious than life, then will the soul sit down\nand be afflicted, because men keep not God's law. \"I beheld the\ntransgressors, and was grieved, because they kept not thy word.\"\nPsalm 119:158.\n\nThe heart that is fullest of good works has in it the least room for\nSatan's temptations.\n\nSouls rightly touched, will labor to draw not only their families,\nbut a whole city after Christ. John 4:28, 29.\n\nSELF-DENIAL.\n\nIf thou wouldst be faithful to do that work that God hath appointed\nthee to do in this world for his name, then beware thou do not stop\nand stick when hard work comes before thee. The word and Spirit of\nGod come sometimes like chainshot to us, as if it would cut down\nall--as when Abraham was to offer up Isaac, and the Levites to slay\ntheir brethren. Oh, how willingly would our flesh and blood escape\nthe cross for Christ! The comfort of the gospel, the sweetness of\nthe promise, how pleasing is it to us! Like Ephraim, we like to\ntread out the corn, and to hear those pleasant songs and music that\ngospel sermons make, where only grace is preached and nothing of our\nduty as to works of self-denial. But as for such, God will tread\nupon their fair neck, and yoke them with Christ's yoke; for then\nthey have a work to do, even a work of self-denial.\n\n\"Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his\ncross and follow me.\" Let him first sit down and count up the cost\nand the charge he is like to be at, if he follow me; for following\nof me is not like following of some other masters. The winds set\nalways on my face; and the foaming rage of the sea of this world,\nand the proud and lofty waves thereof do continually beat upon the\nsides of the bark that myself, my cause, and my followers are in; he\ntherefore that will not run hazards, and that is afraid to venture a\ndrowning, let him not set foot into this vessel.\n\nSome, when they come at the cross, will either there make a stop and\ngo no further, or else, if they can, step over it; if not, they will\ngo round about. Do not thou do this, but take it up and kiss it, and\nbear it after Jesus.\n\nWhere is the man that walketh with his cross upon his shoulder?\nWhere is the man that is zealous of moral holiness? Indeed, for\nthose things that have nothing of the cross of the purse, or of the\ncross of the belly, or of the cross of the back, or of the cross of\nthe vanity of household affairs--for those things, I find we have\nmany, and very busy sticklers; but otherwise, the cross,\nself-denial, charity, purity in life and conversation, is almost\nquite out of doors among professors. But, man of God, do thou be\nsingular as to these.\n\nOBEDIENCE IN LITTLE THINGS.\n\nLittle things do ofttimes prove us most; for we, through the pride\nof our hearts, are apt to overlook little things, because, though\ncommanded, they are but little.\n\nSometimes God would have men exact to a word, sometimes even to a\ntack or pin or loop, sometimes to a step. Be careful, then, in\nlittle things, but yet leave not the other undone.\n\nMOTIVES TO HOLT LIVING. When God shows a man the sin he has\ncommitted, the hell he has deserved, the heaven he has lost--and yet\nthat Christ and grace and pardon may be had--this will make him\nserious, this will make him melt, this will break his heart, this\nwill show him that there is more than air, than a noise, than an\nempty sound in religion; and this is the man whose heart, whose\nlife, whose conversation and all will be engaged in the matter of\nthe eternal salvation of his precious and immortal soul.\n\nThough there are many mercies that lay an obligation upon men to be\nholy, yet he that shall want the obligation that is begotten by the\nfaith of redeeming mercy, wanteth the main principle of true\nholiness; nor will any other be found sufficiently to sanctify the\nheart to the causing of it to produce such a life; nor can such\nholiness be accepted, because it comes not forth in the name of\nChrist. That which constrained David was forgiving and redeeming\nmercy, and that which constrained Paul was the love that Christ\nshowed to him in dying for his sins and in rising from the dead.\n\nPaul also beseecheth the Romans by the redeeming, justifying,\npreserving, and electing mercy of God, that they present their body\na living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which, saith he, is\nyour reasonable service. Hence all along, they that are exhorted to\nholiness in the New Testament, are exhorted to it upon the\nsupposition of the benefit of redemption which they have received by\nJesus Christ. Walk in love, as Christ loved us.\n\nCan you give me some motive to self-denial? Yes, the Lord Jesus\ndenied himself for thee: what sayest thou to that?\n\nOh, I have thought sometimes what bloody creatures hath sin made us.\nThe beasts of the field must be slain by thousands before Christ\ncame, to signify to us that we should have 'a Saviour; and after\nthat, he must come himself and die a worse death than died those\nbeasts, before the work of saving could be finished. O redemption,\nredemption by blood, is the heart-endearing consideration! This is\nthat which will make the water stand in our eyes, that will break a\nheart of flint, and that will make one do as they do that are in\nbitterness for their firstborn.\n\nPerhaps in the day of thy conversion thou wast more unruly than\nmany. Like a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke, hardly tamed, thou\nwast brought home by strong hands. Thou wouldst not drive: the Lord\nJesus must take thee up, lay thee upon his shoulder, and carry thee\nhome to his Father's house. This should engage thy heart to study to\nadvance the grace of God.\n\nIt may do thee no harm but good to cast an eye over thy shoulder, at\nthose that now lie roaring under the vengeance of eternal fire; it\nmay put thee in mind of what thou wast once, and of what thou must\nyet assuredly be, if grace by Christ preventeth not: keep then thy\nconscience awake with wrath and grace, with heaven and hell; but let\ngrace and heaven bear sway.\n\nGet thou thy soul possessed with the spirit of the Son, and believe\nthou art perfectly set free by him from whatsoever thou by sin hast\ndeserved at the hand of revenging justice. This doctrine unlooseth\nthy hands, takes off thy yoke, and lets thee go upright; this\ndoctrine puts spiritual and heavenly inclinations into thy soul, and\nthe faith of this truth doth show thee that God hath so surprised\nthee and gone beyond thee with his blessed and everlasting love,\nthat thou canst not but reckon thyself his debtor for ever.\n\"Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh, to live after\nthe flesh.\" Rom. 8: 12.\n\nIf thou wouldst be faithful to that work that God hath allotted thee\nto do in this world for his name, then labor to see a beauty and\nglory in holiness and in every good work; this tends much to the\nengaging of thy heart. O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;\nfear before him all the earth; and for thy help in this, think much\non this in general, that \"thus saith the Lord\" is the wind-up of\nevery command; for indeed much of the glory and beauty of duties\ndoth lie in the glory and excellency of the person that doth command\nthem; and hence it is, that \"Be it enacted by the king's most\nexcellent majesty\" is the head of every law, that that law should\ntherefore be reverenced by and be made glorious and beautiful to\nall. And we see upon this very account, what power and place the\nprecepts of kings do take in the hearts of their subjects, every one\nloving and reverencing the statute because there is the name of\ntheir king. Will you rebel against the king? is a word that shakes\nthe world. Well then, turn these things about for an argument to the\nmatter in hand, and let the name of God, seeing he is wiser and\nbetter and of more glory and beauty than kings, beget in thy heart a\nbeauty in all things that are commanded thee of God. And indeed, if\nthou do not in this act thus, thou wilt stumble at some of thy duty\nand work thou hast to do; for some of the commands of God are in\nthemselves so mean and low, that take away from them the name of God\nand thou wilt do as Naaman the Syrian, despise instead of obeying.\nWhat is there in the Lord's supper, in baptism, yea, in preaching\nthe word and prayer, were they not the appointments of God? His name\nbeing entailed to them makes them every one glorious and beautiful.\nWherefore no marvel if he that looks upon them without their\ntitle-page, goeth away in a rage like Naaman, preferring others\nbefore them. \"What is Jordan? Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of\nDamascus, better than all the waters in Israel? May I not wash in\nthem and be clean?\" saith he. This was because he remembered not\nthat the name of God was in the command. Israel's trumpets of\nrams'-horns, and Isaiah's walking naked, and Ezekiel's wars against\na tile, would doubtless have been ignoble acts, but that the name of\nGod was that which gave them reverence, power, glory, and beauty.\nSet therefore the name of God and \"thus saith the Lord\" against all\nreasonings, defamings, and reproaches that either by the world or\nthy own heart thou findest to arise against thy duty; and let his\nname and authority alone be a sufficient argument with thee, to\nhehold the beauty that he hath put upon all his ways, and to inquire\nin his temple.\n\nChristians should so manage their time and the work that God hath\nappointed them to do for his name in this world, that they may not\nhave part thereof to do when they should be departing this world;\nbecause, if they do not, dying will be a hard work with them,\nespecially if God awakeneth them about their neglect of their duty.\nThe way of God with his people is to visit their sins in this life;\nand the worst time for thee to be visited by them is when thy life\nis smitten down as it were to the dust of death, even when all\nnatural infirmities break in like a flood upon thee-sickness,\nfainting, pains, wearisomeness, and the like: now, I say, to be\ncharged also with the neglect of duty when in no capacity to do\nit-yea, when perhaps so feeble, as scarce able to abide to hear thy\ndearest friend in this life speak to thee-will not this make dying\nhard? yea, when thou shalt seem both in thine own eyes and also in\nthe eyes of others, to fall short of the kingdom of heaven for this\nand the other transgressions; will not this make dying hard? David\nfound it hard when he cried, \"O spare me a little, that I may\nrecover strength, before I go hence and be no more.\" David at this\ntime was chastened for some iniquity, yea, brought for his folly to\nthe doors of the shadow of death. But here he could not enter\nwithout great distress of mind; wherefore he cries out for respite,\nand time to do the will of God and the work allotted him. So again:\n\"The pains of hell caught hold upon me, the sorrows of death\ncompassed me about, and I found trouble and sorrow; then I cried\nunto the Lord.\" Aye, this will make thee cry, though thou he as good\nas David. Wherefore learn by his sorrow, as he himself also learned\nat last to serve his own generation by the will of God, before he\nfell asleep. God can tell how to pardon thy sins, and yet make them\nsuch a bitter thing and so heavy a burden to thee that thou wouldst\nnot, if thou wast but once distressed with it, come there again for\nall this world. Ah, it is easy with him to have this pardon in his\nbosom, even when he is breaking all thy bones and pouring out thy\ngall upon the ground--yea, to show himself then unto thee in so\ndreadful a majesty, that heaven and earth shall seem to thee to\ntremble at his presence. Let then the thoughts of this prevail with\nthee as a reason of great weight, to provoke thee to study to manage\nthy time and work in wisdom while thou art well.\n\nOBEDIENCE REWARDED.\n\nKeep those grounds and evidences that God hath given you of your\ncall to be partakers of this love of Christ, with all clearness upon\nyour hearts and in your minds. For he that lacks that sight of them,\nor a proof that they are true and good, can take but little comfort\nin this love. There is a great mystery in the way of God with his\npeople. He will justify them without their works, he will pardon\nthem for his Son's sake. But they that are careless, carnal, and not\nholy in their lives, shall have but little comfort of what he hath\ndone, doth, and will do for them.\n\nNor shall they have their evidences for heaven at hand, nor out of\ndoubt with them; yea, they shall walk without the sun, and have\ntheir comforts by bits and knocks; while others sit at their\nFather's table, have liberty to go into the wine-cellar, rejoice at\nthe sweet and pleasant face of their heavenly Father towards them,\nand know it shall go well with them at the end.\n\nThose that make conscience of walking in the commandments of God,\nthey shall be blessed with the bread of life, when others shall be\nhunger-bit.\n\nThe greatest part of professors nowadays take up their time in\ncontracting guilt and asking for pardon, and yet are not much the\nbetter. Whereas, if they had but the grace to add to their faith,\nvirtue, etc., they might have more peace, live better lives, and not\nhave their heads so often in a bag, as they have. \"To him that\nordereth his conversation aright, will I show the salvation of God.\"\n\n\"And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years.\nAnd Enoch walked with God, and was not, for God took him.\" Enoch\ntherefore lived here but a while: he was too good to live long in\nthis world; the world was not worthy of him; neither could he be\nspared so long out of heaven, for God took him.\n\nThe end of walking with God, or the pathway thereof, leads men to\nheaven, to the enjoyment of the glory of God. Thus also it was with\nblessed Elijah; he followed God from place to place, till at length\nhe was caught up into heaven.\n\nThose that shall be found, in the day of their resurrection, the\npeople of God most laborious for God while here, they shall at that\nday enjoy the greatest portion of God, or shall be possessed of most\nof the glory of the Godhead then. For that is the portion of the\nsaints in general. And why shall he that doeth most for God in this\nworld, enjoy most of him in that which is to come, but because by\ndoing and acting, the heart and every faculty of the soul are\nenlarged and more capacitated, whereby more room is made for glory?\nEvery vessel of glory shall at that day be made full of it: but\nevery one will not be capable to contain a like measure; and so if\nthey should have it communicated to them, would not be able to stand\nunder it; for there is an eternal weight in the glory that saints\nshall then enjoy; and every vessel must be at that day filled, that\nis, have its heavenly load of it.\n\nSELF-EXAMINATION.\n\nExamine: Dost thou labor after those qualifications that the\nScriptures describe a child of God by-that is, faith, yea, the right\nfaith, the most holy faith, the faith of the operation of God? And\nalso, dost thou examine whether there is a real growth of grace in\nthy soul, as love, zeal, self-denial, and a seeking by all means to\nattain, if possible, to the resurrection of the dead; that is, not\nto satisfy thyself until thou be dissolved and rid of this body of\ndeath, and be transformed into that glory that the saints shall be\nin after the resurrection-day?\n\nAnd in the mean time, dost thou labor and take all opportunities to\nwalk as near as may be to the mark, though thou knowest thou canst\nnot attain it perfectly? Yet I say, thou dost aim at it, seek after\nit, press towards it, and hold on in thy race; thou shunnest that\nwhich may any way hinder thee, and also closest in with what may any\nway further the same, knowing that that must be, or desiring that it\nshould be, thine eternal frame; and therefore, out of love and\nliking to it, thou dost desire and long after it, as being the thing\nthat doth most please thy soul.\n\nOr how is it with thy soul? Art thou such a one as regards not these\nthings, but rather busiest thy thoughts about the things here below,\nfollowing those things that have no scent of divine glory upon them?\nIf so, look to thyself; thou art an unbeliever, and so under the\nwrath of God, and wilt for certain fall into the same place of\ntorment that thy fellows have fallen into before thee, to the grief\nof thy own soul and thy everlasting destruction.\n\nConsider and regard these things, and lay them to thy heart before\nit be too late to recover thyself, by repenting of the one and\ndesiring to close in with the other.\n\nOh, I say, regard, regard; for hell is hot, God's hand is up, the\nlaw is resolved to discharge against thy soul. The judgment-day is\nat hand; the graves are ready to fly open; the trumpet is near the\nsounding; the sentence will ere long be past, and then you and I\ncannot call time again.\n\nReckon with thy own heart every day before thou lie down to sleep,\nand cast up what thou hast received from God and done for him, and\nwhere thou hast also been wanting. This will beget praise and\nhumility, and put thee upon redeeming the day that is past; whereby\nthou wilt be able, through the continual supplies of grace, in some\ngood measure to drive thy work before thee, and to shorten it as thy\nlife doth shorten, and mayst comfortably live in the hope of\nbringing both ends sweetly together.\n\nWATCHFULNESS.\n\nHe that will keep water in a sieve, must use more than ordinary\ndiligence. Our heart is a leaky vessel; and therefore we ought to\ngive the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest\nat any time we should let them slip.\n\nCONSTITUTION-SINS.\n\nThey that name the name of Christ, let them depart from their\nconstitution-sin, or if you will, the sin that their temper most\ninclines them to. Every man is not alike inclined to the same sin,\nbut some to one, and some to another. Now, let the man that\nprofesses the name of Christ religiously consider with himself,\n\"Unto what sin or vanity am I most inclined? is it pride? is it\ncovetousness? is it fleshly lust?\" and let him labor by all means to\nleave off and depart from that. This is that which David called his\nown iniquity, and saith, \"I was also upright before him, and I kept\nmyself from mine iniquity.\" Psa. 18:23. Rightly are these two put\ntogether, for it is not possible that he should be an upright man\nthat indulgeth or countenanceth his constitution-sin; but on the\ncontrary, he that keeps himself from that will be upright as to all\nthe rest; and the reason is, because if a man has grace to trample\nupon and mortify his darling, his bosom, his only sin, he will more\neasily and more heartily abhor and fly the rest.\n\nAnd indeed, if a man will depart from iniquity, he must depart from\nhis darling sin first; for as long as that is entertained, the\nother, at least those that are most suiting to that darling, will\nalways be haunting of him. There is a man that has such and such\nhaunt his house and spend his substance, and would be rid of them,\nbut cannot; but now, let him rid himself of that for the sake of\nwhich they haunt his house, and then he shall with ease be rid of\nthem. Thus it is with sin. There is a man that is plagued with many\nsins, perhaps because he embraceth one; well, let him turn that one\nout of doors, and that is the way to be rid of the rest. Keep thee\nfrom thy darling, thy bosom, thy constitution-sin.\n\nAmong the motives to prevail with thee to fall in with this\nexhortation, are,\n\n1. There can no great change appear in thee, make what profession of\nChrist thou wilt, unless thou cast away thy bosom sin. A man's\nconstitution-sin is, as I may call it, his visible sin; it is that\nby which his neighbors know him and describe him, whether it be\npride, covetousness, lightness, or the like. Now, if these abide\nwith thee, though thou shouldst be much reformed in thy notions and\nin other parts of thy life, yet say thy neighbors, \"He is the same\nman still: his faith has not saved him from his darling. He was\nproud before, and is proud still; was covetous before, and is\ncovetous still; was light and wanton before, and is so still; he is\nthe same man, though he has got a new mouth.\" But now, if thy\nconstitution-sin be parted with, if thy darling be cast way, thy\nconversion is apparent; it is seen of all; for the casting away of\nthat is death to the rest, and ordinarily makes a change throughout.\n\n2. So long as thy constitution-sin remains, as winked at by thee, so\nlong thou art a hypocrite before God, let thy profession be what it\nwill; also, when conscience shall awake and be commanded to speak to\nthee plainly what thou art, it will tell thee so, to thy no little\nvexation and perplexity.\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN PROFESSOR ADMONISHED.\n\nO thou professor! thou lamp-carrier! have a care and look to\nthyself; content not thyself with only that which will maintain thee\nin a profession, for that may be done without saving grace; but I\nadvise thee to go to Aaron, to Christ the trimmer of our lamps, and\nbeg of him thy vessel full of oil, that is, grace for the seasoning\nof thy heart, that thou mayest have wherewith not only to bear thee\nup now, but at the day of the bridegroom's coming when many a lamp\nwill go out and many a professor be left in the dark.\n\nSin is in the best of men; and as long as it is so, without great\nwatchfulness and humble walking with God, we may be exposed to shame\nand suffering for it. It is possible for Christians to suffer for\nevil-doing, and therefore let Christians beware; it is possible for\nChristians to be brought to public justice for their faults, and\ntherefore let Christians beware.\n\nA Christian can never be overcome unless he should yield of himself.\n\nThere is no way to kill a man's righteousness but by his own\nconsent. This Job's wife knew full well; hence she tempted him to\nlay violent hands on his own integrity. Job 2:9.\n\nFAILINGS AND SINS OF CHRISTIANS.\n\n\"And Noah began to lie a husbandman, and he planted a vineyard. And\nhe drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within\nhis tent.\"\n\nThis is the blot in this good man's scutcheon; and a strange blot it\nis, that such a one as Noah should be thus overtaken with evil. One\nwould have thought that Moses would now have begun with a relation\nof some eminent virtues and honorable actions of Noah, since now he\nwas delivered from the death that overtook the whole world; and was\ndelivered, both he and his children, to possess the whole earth\nhimself. Indeed, he stepped from the ark to the altar, as Israel of\nold did sing on the shore of the Red sea; but as they, HE soon\nforgot; he rendered evil to God for good.\n\nNeither is Noah alone in this matter. Lot also, being delivered from\nthat fire from heaven which burnt up Sodom and Gomorrah, falls soon\nafter into lewdness. Gideon also, after he was delivered out of the\nhands of his enemies, took that very gold which God had given him as\nthe spoil of them that hated him, and made himself idols therewith.\n\nWhat shall I say of David, and of Solomon also, who, after he had\nbeen twenty years at work for the service of the true God, both in\nbuilding and preparing for his worship, and in writing proverbs by\ndivine inspiration, did after this make temples for idols, yea,\nalmost for the gods of all countries? Yea, he did it when he was\nold, when he should have been preparing for his grave and for\neternity.\n\nAll these were sins against mercies, yea, and doubtless against\ncovenants and the most solemn resolutions to the contrary. For who\ncan imagine but that when Noah was tossed with the flood, and Lot\nwithin the scent and smell of the fire and brimstone that burned\ndown Sodom with his sons and daughters, and Gideon, when so fiercely\nengaged with so great an enemy, and delivered by so strange a hand,\nshould in the most solemn manner both promise and vow to God? But\nbehold, now they in truth are delivered and saved, they recompense\nall with sin: \"Lord, what is man? how abominable and filthy is man,\nwho drinketh in iniquity like water!\"\n\nLet these things teach us \"to cease from man, whose breath is in his\nnostrils; for wherein is he to be accounted of?\" Indeed, it is a\nvain thing to build our faith upon the most godly man in the world,\nbecause he is subject to err; yea, better men than he have been so.\nIf Noah and Lot and Gideon and David and Solomon--who wanted not\nmatter from arguments, and that of the strongest kind, as arguments\nthat are drawn from mercy and goodness be, to engage to holiness and\nthe fear of God--yet, after all, did so foully fall as we see, let\nus admire grace that any stand; let the strongest fear, lest he\nfearfully fall; and let no man but Jesus Christ himself be the\nabsolute platform and pattern of faith and holiness: as the prophet\nsaith, \"Let us cease from man.\"\n\nTHE BACKSLIDER.\n\nNone knows the things that haunt the backslider's mind; his new sins\nare all turned talking devil's, threatening devils, roaring devils,\nwithin him. Besides, he doubts of the truth of his first conversion,\nconsequently he has it lying upon him as a strong suspicion, that\nthere was nothing of truth in all his first experience; and this\nalso adds lead to his heels, and makes him come, as to sense and\nfeeling, more heavily and with the greater difficulty, to God by\nChrist. As the faithfulness of other men kills him, he cannot see an\nhonest, humble, holy, faithful servant of God, but he is pierced and\nwounded at the heart. \"Aye,\" says he within himself, \"that man fears\nGod; that man hath faithfully followed God; that man, like the elect\nangels, has kept his place; but I am fallen from my station like a\ndevil. That man honoreth God, edifieth the saints, convinceth the\nworld and condemneth them, and is become 'heir of the righteousness\nwhich is by faith.' But I have dishonored God, stumbled and grieved\nsaints, made the world blaspheme, and, for aught I know, been the\ncause of the damnation of many. \"These are the things, I say,\ntogether with many more of the same kind, that come to him; yea,\nthey will come with him, yea, and will stare him in the face, will\ntell him of his baseness and laugh him to scorn, all the way that he\nis coming to God by Christ-I know what I say-and this makes his\ncoming to God by Christ hard and difficult to him. Shame covereth\nhis face all the way he comes. He doth not know what to do; the God\nthat he is returning to is the God that he has slighted, the God\nbefore whom he has preferred the vilest lusts; and he knows God\nknows it, and has before Him all his ways.\n\nThe man that has been a backslider, and is returning to God, can\ntell strange stories, and yet such as are very true. No man was in\nthe whale's belly, and came out again alive, but backsliding and\nreturning Jonah; consequently no man could tell how he was there,\nwhat he felt there, what he saw there, and what workings of heart he\nhad when he was there, so well as he.\n\nThe returning again of the backslider gives a second testimony to\nthe truth of man's state being by nature miserable, of the vanity of\nthis world, of the severity of the law, certainty of death, and\nterribleness of judgment to come. His first coming to God by Christ\ntold them so, but his second coming tells them so with a double\nconfirmation of the truth. \"It is so,\" saith his first coming; \"OH,\nIT is SO!\" saith his second.\n\nThe backsliding of a Christian comes through the overmuch persuading\nof Satan and lust, that the man was mistaken, and that there was no\nsuch horror in the things from which he fled, nor so much good in\nthe things to which he hasted. \"Turn again, fool,\" says the devil,\n\"turn again to thy former course. I wonder what frenzy it was that\ndrove thee to thy heels, and that made thee leave so much good\nbehind thee, as other men find in the lusts of the flesh and the\ngood of the world. As for the law, and death, and an imagination of\nthe day of judgment, they are but mere scarecrows, set up by polite\nheads to keep the ignorant in subjection.\" \"Well,\" says the\nbackslider, \"I will go back again and see;\" so, fool as he is, he\ngoes back, and has all things ready to entertain him: his conscience\nsleeps, the world smiles, flesh is sweet, carnal company compliments\nhim, and all that can be got is presented to this backslider to\naccommodate him. But behold, he doth again begin to see his own\nnakedness, and he perceives that the law is whetting his axe: as for\nthe world, he perceives it is a bubble; he also smells the smell of\nbrimstone, for God hath scattered it upon his tabernacle and it\nbegins to burn within him. \"Oh,\" saith he, \"I am deluded; Oh, I am\nensnared. My first sight of things was true. I see it so again.\" Now\nhe begins to be for flying again to his first refuge: \"O God,\" saith\nhe, \"I am undone; I have turned from thy truth to lies; I believed\nthem such at first, and find them such at last: have mercy upon me,\nO God.\"\n\nThis, I say, is a testimony, a second testimony by the same man.\n\n\"And him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out.\" I shall\nhere speak a word or two to him that is coming, after backsliding,\nto Jesus Christ for life.\n\nThy way, O thou sinner of a double dye, thy way is open to come to\nJesus Christ. I mean thee, whose heart, after long backsliding, doth\nthink of turning to him again. Thy way, I say, is open to him, as is\nthe way of the other sorts of comers; as appears by what follows.\n\n1. Because the text makes no exception against thee. It doth not\nsay, \"And any one but a backslider; any one but him.\" The text doth\nnot thus object, but indefinitely openeth wide its golden arms to\nevery coming soul, without the least exception. Therefore thou\nmayest come. And take heed that thou shut not that door against thy\nsoul by unbelief, which God has opened by his grace.\n\n2. Nay, the text is so far from excepting against thy coming, that\nit strongly suggesteth that thou art one of the souls intended, O\nthou coming backslider; else why need that clause have been so\ninserted, \"I will in no wise cast out?\" as if he should say, \"Though\nthose that come now are such as have formerly backslidden, I will in\nno wise cast away the fornicator, the covetous, the railer, the\ndrunkard, or other common sinners, nor yet the backslider neither.\"\n\nIf thou yet, instead of repenting and doing thy first works, dost\nremain a backslider,\n\n1. Then remember that thou must die; and remember also, that when\nthe terrors of God, of death, and a back-slidden heart meet\ntogether, there will be sad work in that soul: this is the man that\nhangeth tilting over the mouth of hell, while death is cutting the\nthread of his life.\n\n2. Remember, that though God doth sometimes, yea, often, receive\nbacksliders, yet it is not always so. Some draw back unto perdition;\nfor, because they have flung up God and would none of him, he in\njustice flings up them and their souls for ever. Prov. I: 24-28.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXIII. THE CHRISTIAN RACE.\n\n\n\n\n\nThey that will go to heaven must run for it, because, as the way is\nlong, so the time in which they are to get to the end of it is very\nuncertain; the time present is the only time: it may be thou hast no\nmore time allotted thee than that thou now enjoyest: \"Boast not\nthyself of to-morrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring\nforth.\" Do not say, I have time enough to get to heaven seven years\nhence; for I tell thee the bell may toll for thee before seven days\nmore be ended; and when death comes, away thou must go, whether thou\nart provided or not; and therefore look to it--make no delays--it is\nnot good dallying with things of so great concernment as the\nsalvation or damnation of thy soul. You know, he that hath a great\nway to go in a little time, and less by half than he thinks of, he\nhad need to run for it.\n\nThey that will have heaven must run for it, because the devil, the\nlaw, sin, death, and hell, follow them. There is never a poor soul\nthat is going to heaven, but the devil, the law, sin, death, and\nhell make after that soul. \"Your adversary the devil, as a roaring\nlion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour.\" And I will assure\nyou the devil is nimble; he can run apace, he is light of foot, he\nhath overtaken many, he hath turned up their heels, and hath given\nthem an everlasting fall. Also the law, that can shoot a great way;\nhave a care thou keep out of the reach of those great guns the ten\ncommandments. Hell also hath a wide mouth; it can stretch itself\nfurther than you are aware of. And as the angel said to Lot, \"Take\nheed; look not behind thee, neither tarry thou in all the\nplain\"--that is, anywhere between this and the mountain--\"lest thou\nbe consumed;\" so say I to thee, Take heed; tarry not, lest either\nthe devil, hell, death, or the fearful curses of the law of God, do\novertake thee and throw thee down in the midst of thy sins; then\nthou, as well as I, wouldst say, They that will have heaven must run\nfor it.\n\nThey that go to heaven must run for it, because, perchance, the\ngates of heaven may be shut shortly. Sometimes sinners have not\nheaven's gates open to them so long as they suppose, and if they be\nonce shut against a man, they are so heavy that all the men in the\nworld and all the angels in heaven are not able to open them. \"I\nshut, and no man can open,\" saith Christ. And how if thou shouldst\ncome but one quarter of an hour too late? I tell thee it will cost\nthee an eternity to bewail thy misery in. Francis Spira [Footnote:\nFrancis Spira, an eminent lawyer of Padua, Italy, flurished in the\nfirst half of the sixteenth century. He embraced the reformed\nreligion, and advocated evangelical sentiments with very great zeal.\nBut at legnth, terrified by the threats of the papal church, he made\na public recantation of his religious opinions. His apostasy from\nthe faith threw him into despair, and amid intolerable mental\nagonies, refusing all sustenance and comfort, and affirming his\ncertain condemnation for having abjured the known truth, he\nmiserably expired. See Sleidan's History of the Reformation, page\n475.] can tell thee what it is to stay till the gate of mercy be\nquite shut; or to run so lazily that they be shut before thou get\nwithin them. What, to be shut out--what, out of heaven! Sinner,\nrather than lose it, run for it; yea, and \"so run that thou mayest\nobtain.\"\n\nBe not daunted though thou meetest with never so many\ndiscouragements in thy journey thither. That man that is resolved\nfor heaven, if Satan cannot win him by flatteries, he will endeavor\nto weaken him by discouragements, saying, Thou art a sinner, thou\nhast broke God's law, thou art not elected, thou comest too late,\nthe day of grace & past, God doth not care for thee, thy heart is\nnaught, thou art lazy--with a hundred other discouraging\nsuggestions. Then thou must encourage thyself with the freeness of\nthe promises, the tender-heartedness of Christ, the freeness of his\ninvitations to come in, the greatness of the sin of others that have\nbeen pardoned, and that the same God through the same Christ holdeth\nforth the same grace free as ever. If these be not thy meditations,\nthou wilt draw very heavily in the way to heaven if thou do not give\nup all for lost; therefore I say, take heart in thy journey, and say\nto them that seek thy destruction, \"Rejoice not against me, O my\nenemy, for when I fall I shall arise, when I sit in darkness the\nLord shall be a light unto me.\"\n\nLet me give thee a few motives along with thee. It may be they will\nbe as good as a pair of spurs to prick on thy lumpish heart in this\nrich journey.\n\n1. Consider there is no way but this; thou must either win or lose.\nIf thou winnest, then heaven, God, Christ, glory, ease, peace, life,\nyea, life eternal, are thine; thou shalt be made equal to the angels\nin heaven; thou shalt sorrow no more, sigh no more, feel no more\npain; thou shalt be out of the reach of sin, hell, death, the devil,\nthe grave, and whatever else may endeavor thy hurt.\n\nBut contrariwise, if thou lose, then thy loss is heaven, glory, God,\nChrist, ease, peace, and whatever else tends to make eternity\ncomfortable to the saints; besides, thou procurest eternal death,\nsorrow, pain, blackness and darkness, fellowship with devils,\ntogether with the everlasting damnation of thy own soul.\n\n2. Consider that this devil, this hell, death, and damnation follow\nafter thee as hard as they can, and have their commission so to do\nby the law, against which thou hast sinned; and therefore for thy\nsoul's sake make haste.\n\n3. If they seize upon thee before thou get to the city of refuge,\nthey will put an everlasting stop to thy journey. This also cries,\nRun for it.\n\n4. Know also, that now heaven-gates, the heart of Christ with his\narms are wide open to receive thee O methinks that this\nconsideration, that the devil followeth after to destroy, and that\nChrist standeth open-armed to receive, should make thee reach out\nand fly with all haste and speed!\n\n5. Keep thine eyes upon the prize: be sure that thine eyes be\ncontinually upon the profit thou art like to get. The reason why men\nare so apt to faint in their race for heaven, lies chiefly in either\nof these two things:\n\n(1.) They do not seriously consider the worth of the prize; or else\nif they do, they are afraid it is too good for them. Therefore keep\nthine eye much upon the excellency, the sweetness, the beauty, the\ncomfort, the peace that is to be had there by those that win the\nprize.\n\n(2.) And do not let the thoughts of the rareness of the place make\nthee say in thy heart, This is too good for me; for I tell thee,\nheaven is prepared for whosoever will accept of it, and they shall\nhe entertained with hearty good welcome.\n\n6. Think much of them that are gone before; how safe they are in the\narms of Jesus. Would they be here again for a thousand worlds? Or if\nthey were, would they be afraid that God would not make them\nwelcome? What would they judge of thee if they knew thy heart began\nto fail thee in thy journey, or thy sins began to allure thee and to\npersuade thee to stop thy race? Would they not call thee a thousand\nfools, and say, O that he did but see what we see, feel what we\nfeel, and taste of the dainties that we taste of? O if he were one\nquarter of an hour to behold, to feel, to taste, and enjoy but the\nthousandth part of what we enjoy, what would he do? What would he\nsuffer? What would he leave undone? Would he favor sin? Would he\nlove this world below? Would he be afraid of friends, or shrink at\nthe most fearful threatenings that the greatest tyrants could invent\nto give him? Nay, those who have had but a sight of these things by\nfaith, when they have been as far off from them as heaven from\nearth, yet they have been able to say with a comfortable and merry\nheart as the bird that sings in the spring, that this and more shall\nnot stop them from running to heaven. Sometimes when my base heart\nhath been inclining to this world, and to loiter in my journey\ntowards heaven, the very consideration of the glorious saints and\nangels in heaven hath caused me to rush forward--to disdain these\npoor, low, empty, beggarly things, and say to my soul, Come soul,\nlet us not be weary; let us see what this heaven is; let us even\nventure all for it, and try if that will quit the cost. Surely\nAbraham, David, Paul, and the rest of the saints of God, were as\nwise as any are now, and yet they lost all for this glorious\nkingdom.\n\n7. To encourage thee a little further, set to work, and when thou\nhast run thyself down weary, then the Lord Jesus will take thee up\nand carry thee. Is not this enough to make any poor soul begin his\nrace? Thou perhaps criest, \"O, but I am feeble, I am lame;\" well,\nbut Christ has a bosom; consider, therefore, when thou hast run\nthyself down weary, he will put thee in his bosom. \"He shall gather\nthe lambs with his arms, and carry them in his bosom.\" This is the\nway that fathers take to encourage their children, saying, Run,\nsweet babe, until thou art weary, and then I will take thee up and\ncarry thee.\n\n8. Or else he will convey new strength from heaven into thy soul.\n\n9. Again, methinks the very industry of the devil, and the industry\nof his servants, should make you that have a desire to heaven and\nhappiness, run apace. Why, the devil he will lose no time, spare no\npains, also neither will his servants, both to seek the destruction\nof themselves and others; and shall not we be as industrious for our\nown salvation? Shall the world venture the damnation of their souls\nfor a poor corruptible crown, and shall not we venture the loss of a\nfew trifles for an eternal crown? Shall they venture the loss of\neternal friends, as God to love, Christ to redeem, the Holy Spirit\nto comfort, heaven for habitation, saints and angels for company,\nand all this to get and hold communion with sin and this world, and\na few base wretches like themselves? And shall not we labor as hard,\nrun as fast, seek as diligently, nay, a hundred times more\ndiligently, for the company of these glorious eternal friends,\nthough with the loss of such as these, nay, with the loss of a\nthousand times better than these poor, low, base, contemptible\nthings? Shall it be said at the last day, that wicked men made more\nhaste to hell than you did make to heaven; that they spent more\nhours, days, and that early and late, for hell, than you spent for\nthat which is ten thousand thousand of thousand times better? O let\nit not be so, but run with all might and main.\n\nIs the soul such an excellent thing, and is the loss thereof so\nunspeakably great? Then this commends those for the wise ones that\nabove all business concern themselves with the salvation of their\nsouls; those that make all other matters but things by the by, and\nthe salvation of their soul the one thing needful.\n\nLet me then encourage those that are of this mind to be strong and\nhold on their way. Soul, thou hast chosen right; I will say of thy\nchoice, as David said of Goliath's sword, \"There is none like that,\ngive it me.\"\n\nBut who told thee that thy soul was such an excellent thing as by\nthy practice thou declarest thou believest it to be? What, set more\nby thy soul than by all the world? What, cast a world behind thy\nback for the welfare of a soul! Is not this to play the fool in the\naccount of sinners, while angels wonder at and rejoice for thy\nwisdom?\n\nWhat a thing is this, that thy soul and its welfare should be more\nin thy esteem than all these glories wherewith the eyes of the world\nare dazzled! Surely, thou hast looked upon the sun, and that makes\ngold look like a clod of clay in thine eyesight.\n\nBut who put the thoughts of the excellencies of the things that are\neternal--I say, who put the thoughts of the excellency of those\nthings into thy mind in this wanton age, in an age wherein the\nthoughts of eternal life and the salvation of the soul are with too\nmany like the Morocco ambassador [Footnote: Evelyn, who lived in the\ntimes of Charles I., Cromwell. Charles II., and William, refers in\nhis \"Diary\" to this ambassador, named Hamet. When presented to the\nking, he and his retinue were \"clad in the Moorish habite, cassocks\nof colored cloth or silk, with buttons and loopes; over this an\nALHAGA or white woolen mantle, so large as to wrap both head and\nbody; a shash or small turban; naked legg'd and armed, but with\nleather socks like the Turks; rich scymeters, and large\ncalico-sleeved shirts. The ambassador had a string of pearls oddly\nwoven in the turban. Their presents were lions and estridges\n(ostriches.) But the concourse and tumult of the people was\nintolerable, so as the officers could keep no order.\"] and his men\nof strange faces, in strange habits, with strange gestures and\nbehaviors, monsters to behold?\n\nBut where hadst thou that heart that gives entertainment to these\nthoughts, these heavenly thoughts? These thoughts are like the\nFrench Protestants, [Footnote: By the famous edict of Nantes, which\nwas granted the Huguenots by Henry IV., they were allowed liberty of\nconscience and the free exercise of religion. Louis XIV., grandson\nof Henry, after a series of arbitrary infractions of that edict by\nhis father and himself at the instigation of the Jesuits, at length\nin 1685 abrogated it, and banished the Protestants from the kingdom\nunder circumstances of aggravated cruelty. Great numbers of them\nwere dispersed through all the countries of Europe. Evelyn, in his\nDiary, says that in 1685, \"there had now been numbered to passe\nthrough Geneva onely forty thousand towards Swisserland. In Holland,\nDenmark, and all Germany were dispersed some hundred thousands,\nbesides those in England.\" In the Memoirs of the Reformation in\nFrance prefixed to Saurin's Sermons, it is stated that eight hundred\nthousand were banished from France, and that they carried with them\nmore than twenty millions of property. The refugees charged their\nsufferings on the RELIGION of Rome, for Pope Innocent XI highly\napproved of this persecution. He wrote a brief to the king, assuring\nhim that what he had done against the heretics of his kingdom would\nbe immortalieied by the eulogies of the Catholic church. He\ndelivered a discourse in the Consistory in 1689, in which he said,\n\"The most Christian king's zeal and piety did wonderfully appear in\nextirpating heresy.\" He ordered the TE DEUM to be sung. Evelyn says,\n\"I was show'd the harangue which the bishop of Valentia on Rhone\nmade in the name of the cleargie, celebrating the French king for\npersecuting the poor Protestants; with this expression in it: 'His\nvictory over heresy was greater than all the conquests of Alexander\nand Caesar.'\"] banished thence where they willingly would have\nharbor: how came they to thy house, to thy heart, and to find\nentertainment in thy soul? The Lord keep them in every imagination\nof the thoughts of thy heart for ever, and incline thine heart to\nseek him more and more.\n\nAnd since the whole world have slighted and despised and counted\nfoolish the thoughts wherewith thy soul is exercised, what strong\nand mighty supporter is it upon and with which thou bearest up thy\nspirit, and takest encouragement in this thy forlorn, unoccupied,\nand singular way, for so I dare say it is with the most? But\ncertainly it is something above thyself, and that is more mighty to\nuphold thee than is the power, rage, and malice of all the world to\ncast thee down, or else thou couldst not bear up, now the stream and\nthe force thereof are against thee.\n\nOBJECTION. \"I know my soul is an excellent thing, and that the world\nto come and its glories, even in the smallest glimpse thereof, do\nswallow up all the world that is here; my heart also doth greatly\ndesire to be exercised about the thoughts of eternity, and I count\nmyself never better than when my poor heart is filled with them; and\nas for the rage and fury of this world, it swayeth very little with\nme, for my heart is come to a point; but yet for all that, I meet\nwith many discouragements, and such things as indeed do weaken my\nstrength in the way.\"\n\nBut, brave soul, pray tell me what the things are that discourage\nthee, and that weaken thy strength in the way.\n\n\"Why, the amazing greatness of this my enterprise. I am now pursuing\nthings of the highest, the greatest, the most enriching nature, even\neternal things; and the thoughts of the greatness of them drowned\nme: for when the heat of my spirit in the pursuit after them is a\nlittle returned and abated, methinks I hear myself talking thus to\nmyself: Fond fool, canst thou imagine that such a gnat, a flea as\nthou art, can take and possess the heavens, and mantle thyself up in\nthe eternal glories? If thou makest first a trial of the\nsuccessfulness of thy endeavors upon things far lower, more base,\nbut much more easy to obtain, as crowns, kingdoms, earldoms,\ndukedoms, gold, silver, or the like, how vain are these attempts of\nthine, and yet thou thinkest to possess thy soul of heaven. Away,\naway! by the height thereof, thou mayest well conclude it is far\nabove, out of thy reach; and by the breadth thereof, it is too large\nfor thee to grasp; and by the nature of the excellent glory thereof,\ntoo good for thee to possess. These are the thoughts that sometimes\ndiscourage me, and that weaken my strength in the way.\"\n\nANSWER. The greatness of thy undertakings does but show the\nnobleness of thy soul, in that it cannot, will not be content with\nsuch low and dry things as the base-born spirits that are in the\nworld can and do content themselves withal.\n\nAnd as to the greatness of the things thou aimest at, though they\nbe, as they are indeed, things that have not their like, yet they\nare not too big for God to give; and he has promised to give them to\nthe soul that seeketh him; yea, he hath prepared the kingdom, and\nlaid up in the kingdom of heaven the things that thy soul longeth\nfor, presseth after, and cannot he content without.\n\nArt thou got into the right way? Art thou in Christ's righteousness?\nDo not say, Yes, in thy heart, when in truth there is no such\nmatter. It is a dangerous thing, you know, for a man to think he is\nin the right way, when he is in the wrong. It is the next way for\nhim to lose his way; and not only so, but if he run for heaven, as\nthou sayest thou dost, even to lose that too. O this is the misery\nof most men, to persuade themselves that they are right, when they\nnever had one foot in the way! The Lord give thee understanding\nhere, or else thou art undone for ever. Prithee, soul, search when\nit was thou turnedst out of thy sins and righteousness into the\nrighteousness of Jesus Christ. I say, dost thou see thyself in him;\nand is he more precious to thee than the whole world? Is thy mind\nalways musing on him; and lovest thou to be walking with him? Dost\nthou count his company more precious than the whole world? Dost thou\ncount all things but poor, lifeless, empty, vain things, without\ncommunion with him? Doth his company sweeten all things; and his\nabsence imbitter all things? Soul, I beseech thee be serious, and\nlay it to heart, and do not take things of such weighty concernment\nas the salvation or damnation of thy soul without good ground.\n\nArt thou unladen of the things of this world; as pride, pleasures,\nprofits, lusts, vanities? What, dost thou think to run fast enough,\nwith the world, thy sins and lusts in thy heart? I tell thee, soul,\nthey that have laid all aside, every weight, every sin, and are got\ninto the nimblest posture, they find work enough to run; so to run\nas to hold out. To run through all the opposition, all the jostles,\nall the rubs, over all the stumbling-blocks, over all the snares,\nfrom all the entanglements that the devil, sin, the world, and their\nown hearts lay before them--I tell thee, if thou art going\nheavenward, thou wilt find it no small or easy matter.\n\nArt thou therefore discharged or unladen of these things? Never talk\nof going to heaven if thou art not. It is to be feared thou wilt be\nfound among the \"many that shall seek to enter in and shall not be\nable.\" If so, then in the next place, what will become of them that\nare grown weary before they are got half-way thither? Why, man, it\nis he that holdeth out to the end, that must be saved; it is he that\novercometh, that shall inherit all things; it is not every one that\nbegins. Agrippa took a fair step for a sudden: he steps almost into\nthe bosom of Christ in less than half an hour. \"Almost,\" saith he to\nPaul, \"thou persuadest me to be a Christian.\" Ah, it was but ALMOST;\nand so he had as good have never been a WHIT; he stepped fair\nindeed, but yet he stepped short; he was hot while he was at it, but\nhe was quickly out of wind. O this BUT ALMOST! I tellyou, this BUT\nALMOST lost his soul. Methinks I have seen sometimes how these poor\nwretches that get but almost to heaven, how fearfully their almost\nand their but almost will torment them in hell; when they shall cry\nout in the bitterness of their souls, saying, \"Almost a Christian. I\nwas almost got into the kingdom, almost out of the hands of the\ndevil, almost out of my sins, almost from under the curse of God;\nalmost, and that was all; almost, but not altogether. O that I\nshould be almost at heaven, and should not go quite through!\"\nFriend, it is a sad thing to sit down before we are in heaven, and\nto grow weary before we come to the place of rest; and if it should\nbe thy case, I am sure thou dost not so run as to obtain.\n\nEVANGELIST. The crown is before you, and it is an incorruptible one;\n\"So run, that you may obtain it.\" Some there be that set out for\nthis crown, and after they have gone far for it, another comes in\nand takes it from them: \"Hold fast, therefore, that ye have; let no\nman take your crown:\" you are not yet out of the gunshot of the\ndevil; \"you have not resisted unto blood, striving against sin:\" let\nthe kingdom be always before you, and believe stead-fastly\nconcerning things that are invisible; let nothing that is on this\nside the other world get within you; and, above all, look well to\nyour own hearts and to the lusts thereof, for they are \"deceitful\nabove all things, and desperately wicked:\" set your faces like a\nflint; you have all power in heaven and earth on your side.\n\nThough the way to heaven be but one, yet there are many crooked\nlanes and by-paths that shoot down upon it, as I may say. And again,\nnotwithstanding the kingdom of heaven be the chief city, yet usually\nthose by-paths are most beaten, most travellers go those ways; and\ntherefore the way to heaven is hard to be found, and as hard to be\nkept in, by reason of these. Yet, nevertheless, it is in this case\nas it was with the harlot of Jericho; she had one scarlet thread\ntied in her window, by which her house was known: so it is here; the\nscarlet streams of Christ's blood run throughout the way to the\nkingdom of heaven; therefore mind that: see if thou do find the\nbesprinkling of the blood of Christ in the way; and if thou do, be\nof good cheer, thou art in the right way.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXIV. TRIALS OF THE CHRISTIAN\n\nAFFLICTION--ITS NATURE AND BENEFITS.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe school of the cross is the school of light; it discovers the\nworld's vanity, baseness, and wickedness, and lets us see more of\nGod's mind. Out of dark afflictions comes a spiritual light.\n\nIn times of affliction, we commonly meet with the sweetest\nexperiences of the love of God.\n\nThe end of affliction is the discovery of sin; and of that, to bring\nus to a Saviour.\n\nDoth not God ofttimes even take occasion, by the hardest of things\nthat come upon us, to visit our souls with the comforts of his\nSpirit, to lead us into the glory of his word and to cause us to\nsavor that love that he has had for us even from before the world\nbegan till now? A nest of bees and honey did Samson find even in the\nbelly of that lion that roared upon him. And is all this no good; or\ncan we do without such holy appointments of God? Let these things be\nconsidered by us, and let us learn like Christians to kiss the rod,\nand love it.\n\nThe lamps of Gideon were discovered, when his soldiers' pitchers\nwere broken: if our pitchers are broken for the Lord and his\ngospel's sake, those lamps will then be discovered that before lay\nhid and unseen.\n\nPeople that live high and in idleness bring diseases upon the body;\nand they that live in all fulness of gospel ordinances, and are not\nexercised with trials, grow gross, are diseased and full of bad\nhumors in their souls.\n\nThe righteous are apt to be like well-fed children, too wanton, if\nGod should not appoint them some fasting-days.\n\nThe Lord useth his flail of tribulation to separate the chaff from\nthe wheat.\n\nObserve Paul: he died daily, he was always delivered unto death, he\ndespaired of life. And this is the way to be prepared for any\ncalamity. When a man thinks he has only to prepare for an assault by\nfootmen, how shall he contend with horses; or if he looks no further\nthan to horses, what will he do at the swellings of Jordan?\n\nOh, when every providence of God unto thee is like the messengers of\nJob, and the last to bring more heavy tidings than all that went\nbefore him; when life, estate, wife, children, body and soul, and\nall at once, seem to be struck at by heaven and earth, here are hard\nlessons--now to behave myself even as a weaned child: now to say,\n\"The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of\nthe Lord.\"\n\nOur afflictions work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal\nweight of glory. Our afflictions do it, not only because there is\nlaid up a reward for the afflicted according to the measure of\naffliction, but because afflictions, and so every service of God,\nmake the heart more deep, more experimental, more knowing and\nprofound, and so, more able to hold, to contain, and bear more.\n\nLet Christians beware that they set not times for God, lest all men\nsee their folly. \"It is not for you to know the times and the\nseasons which the Father hath put in his own power;\" yea, I say\nagain, take heed lest, for thy setting of God a seven-day's time, he\nset thee so many as seven times seven.\n\nGod's time is the time, the best time, because it is the time\nappointed by him for the proof and trial of our graces, and that in\nwhich so much of the rage of the enemy and of the power of God's\nmercy, may the better be discovered unto us. \"I the Lord do hasten\nit in his time;\" not before, though we were the signet upon his\nhand.\n\nAfflictions are governed by God, both as to time, number, nature,\nand measure. In measure, when it shooteth forth, thou wilt debate\nwith it: \"He stayeth his rough wind in the day of his east wind.\"\nOur times, therefore, and our conditions in these times, are in the\nhand of God, yea, and so are our souls and bodies, to be kept and\npreserved from the evil while the rod of God is upon us.\n\nEase and release from persecution and affliction come not by chance,\nor by the good moods and gentle dispositions of men; but the Lord\ndoth hold them back from sin, the Lord restraineth them. 2 Chron.\n18:31.\n\n\"And he stayed yet other seven days.\" It is not God's way with his\npeople to show them all their troubles at once, but first he shows\nthem a part: first, forty days, after that, seven other days, and\nyet again, seven days more; that coming upon them by piecemeal, they\nmay the better be able to travel through them. When Israel was in\naffliction in Egypt, they knew not the trial which would meet them\nat the Red sea. Again, when they had gone through that, they little\nthought that yet for forty years they must be tempted and proved in\nthe wilderness.\n\n\"And Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked;\" the failing\nagain of his expected comforter caused him to be up and doing.\nProbably he had not as yet uncovered the ark, that is, to look round\nabout him, if the dove, by returning, had pleased his humor; but she\nfailing, he stirs up himself.\n\nThus it should also be with the Christian now. Doth the dove forbear\nto come to thee with a leaf in her bill as before? Let not this make\nthee sullen and mistrustful, but uncover the ark and look; and by\nlooking, thou shalt see a further testimony of what thou receivest\nby the first manifestations. \"He looked, and behold the earth was\ndry.\"\n\nGod doth not let us see the hills for our help before we have first\nof all seen them drowned. Look not to them, therefore, while the\nwater is at the rising; but if they begin to cease their raging, if\nthey begin to fall, and with that the tops of the mountains be seen,\nyou may look upon them with comfort; they are tokens of God's\ndeliverance. Gen. 8.\n\nIt was requisite that the hills, Gen. 7:19, should be covered, that\nNoah might not have confidence in them; but surely this dispensation\nof God was a heart-shaking providence to Noah and them that were\nwith him; for here indeed was his faith tried, there was no hill\nleft in all the world; now were his carnal helpers gone, there was\nnone shut up or left. Now therefore, if they could rejoice, it must\nbe only in the power of God.\n\nNoah was to have respect in his deliverance not only to himself and\nfamily, but to the good of all the world. Men's spirits are too\nnarrow for the mind of God, when their chief end, or their only\ndesign in their enjoying this or the other mercy, is for the sake of\ntheir own selves only. It cannot be according to God, that such\ndesires should be encouraged. \"None of us liveth unto himself;\" why,\nthen, should we desire life only for ourselves?\n\nThe church cries out thus: \"God be merciful to us and bless us, and\ncause his face to shine upon us.\" Why? \"That thy way may be known\nupon earth, and thy saving health among all nations.\" So David:\n\"Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy\nfree Spirit; then will I teach transgressors thy ways, and sinners\nshall be converted unto thee.\"\n\nSo then, we must not desire to come out of trials and afflictions\nalone or by ourselves, but that in our deliverance the salvation of\nmany may be concerned.\n\nIn every affliction and persecution, the devil's design is to impair\nChrist's kingdom; wherefore, no marvel that God designs in our\ndeliverance the impairing and lessening the kingdom of sin and\nSatan. Wherefore, O thou church of God, which art now upon the waves\nof affliction and temptation, when thou comest out of the furnace,\nif thou come out at the bidding of God, there shall come out with\nthee the fowl, the beast, and abundance of creeping things. Gen.\n8:17. \"O Judah, he hath set a harvest for thee, when I returned the\ncaptivity of my people.\"\n\nPERSECUTION.\n\nThere are several degrees of suffering for righteousness: there is\nthe scourge of the tongue, the ruin of an estate, the loss of\nliberty, a jail, a gibbet, a stake, a dagger. Now answerable to\nthese are the comforts of the Holy Ghost prepared, like to like,\npart proportioned to part; only the consolations are said to abound.\n2 Cor. 1:5.\n\nBut the lighter the sufferings are, the more difficult it is to\njudge of the comforts of the Spirit of God; for it is common for a\nman to be comfortable under sufferings when he suffereth but little,\nand knows also that his enemy can touch his flesh, his estate, or\nthe like, but little. And this maybe the joy of the flesh, the\nresult of reason; and may be very much, if not altogether, without a\nmixture of the joy of the Holy Ghost therewith. The more deep,\ntherefore, and the more dreadful the sufferings are, the more\nclearly are seen the comforts of the Spirit. When a man has comfort\nwhere the flesh is dead, stirreth not, and can do nothing; when a\nman can be comfortable at the loss of all; when he is under sentence\nof death, or at the place of execution--if yet a man's cause, a\nman's conscience, the promise, and the Holy Ghost, have all one\ncomfortable voice, and do all together with their trumpets make one\nsound in the soul, then good are the comforts of God and his Spirit.\n\nThere are several degrees of sufferings; wherefore it is not to be\nexpected that he that suffers but little should partake of the\ncomforts that are prepared for them that suffer much. He that has\nonly the scourge of the tongue, knows not what are the comforts that\nare prepared for him that meets with the scourge of the whip. And\nhow should a man know what manner of comforts the Holy Ghost doth\nuse to give at the jail and the gibbet, when himself for\nrighteousness never was there?\n\nPersecution of the godly was never intended of God for their\ndestruction, but for their glory, and to make them shine the more\nwhen they are beyond this valley of the shadow of death.\n\n\"We that are Christians have been trained up by his Son in his\nschool this many a day, and have been told what a God our Father is,\nwhat an arm he has, and with what a voice he can thunder; how he can\ndeck himself with majesty and excellency, and array himself with\nbeauty and glory; how he can cast abroad the rage of his wrath, and\nbehold every one that is proud and abase him. Have we not talked of\nwhat he did at the Red sea and in the land of Ham, many years ago;\nand have we forgot him now? Have we not vaunted and boasted of our\nGod, both in church, pulpit, and books, and spake to the praise of\nthem that attempted to drive antichrist out of the world with their\nlives and their blood instead of stones; and are we afraid of our\nGod? He was God, a Creator, then; and is he not God now? and will he\nnot be as good to us as to them that have gone before us? or would\nwe limit him to appear in such ways as only smile upon our flesh,\nand have him stay and not show himself in his heart-shaking\ndispensations until we are dead and gone? What if we must now go to\nheaven, and what if he is thus come to fetch us to himself? If we\nhave been as wise as serpents and innocent as doves--if we can say,\nNeither against the law of the Jews, neither against the temple, nor\nagainst Caesar, have we offended any thing at all--of what should we\nbe afraid? Let heaven and earth come together; I dare say they will\nnot hurt us.\"\n\nReligion that is pure is a hot thing; and il usually burns the\nfingers of those that fight against it.\n\nAh, when God makes the bed, he must needs lie easy whom weakness\nhath cast thereon: a blessed pillow hath. that man for his head,\nthough to all beholders it is hard as a stone. Psa. 41:1-3.\n\nIt is as ordinary as for the light to shine, for God to make back\nand dismal dispensations usher in bright and pleasing.\n\nChristian reader, let me beg of thee that thou wilt not be offended\neither with God or men, if the cross is laid heavy upon thee. Not\nwith God, for he doeth nothing without a cause; nor with men, for\nthey are the hand of God: and will they, nill they, they are the\nservants of God to thee for good. Psa. 17:14; Jer. 24:5. Take,\ntherefore, what comes from God by them thankfully. If the messenger\nthat brings it is glad that it is in his power to do thee hurt and\nto afflict thee, if he skips for joy at thy calamity, be sorry for\nhim, pity him, and pray to thy Father for him: he is ignorant, and\nunderstandeth not the judgment of thy God; yea, he showeth by this\nhis behavior, that though he as God's ordinance serveth thee by\nafflicting thee, yet means he nothing less than to destroy thee: by\nthe which also he prognosticates before thee that he is working out\nhis own damnation by doing thee good. Lay therefore the woful state\nof such to heart, and render him that which is good for his evil,\nand love for his hatred to thee; then shalt thou show that thou art\nmoved by a spirit of holiness, and art like thy heavenly Father. And\nbe it so, that thy pity and prayers can do such a one no good, yet\nthey must light somewhere, or return again, as ships come laden from\nthe Indies, full of blessings into thine own bosom.\n\nPoor man, thou hast thy time to be afflicted by thy enemies, that\nthy golden graces may shine the more; thou art in the fire and they\nblow the bellows. But wouldst thou change places with them? Wouldst\nthou sit upon their place of ease? Dost thou desire to be with them?\nO rest thyself contented; in thy patience possess thy soul, and pity\nand bewail them in the condition in which they are.\n\nThe cup that God's people in all ages have drank of, even the cup of\naffliction and persecution, it is not in the hand of the enemy, but\nin the hand of God; and he, not they, poureth out of the same.\n\nThere are but two ways of obeying: the one to do that which I in my\nconscience do believe that I am bound to do, actively; and where I\ncannot obey actively, there I am willing to lie down and to suffer\nwhat they shall do unto me.\n\nA Christian, when he sees trouble coming upon him, should not fly in\nthe face of the instrument that brings, but in the face of the cause\nof its coming. Now the cause is thyself, thy base self, thy sinful\nself, and thy unworthy carriages towards God under all the mercy,\npatience, and long-suffering that God has bestowed upon thee, and\nexercised towards thee. Here thou mayest quarrel, and be revenged,\nand spare not, so thou take vengeance in a right way; and thou wilt\ndo so, when thou takest it by godly sorrow. 1 Cor. 7:10,11.\n\nIt is a rare thing to suffer aright, and to have thy spirit in\nsuffering beat only against God's enemy, sin.\n\nLet them that are God's sufferers pluck up a good heart; let them\nnot be afraid to trust God with their souls, and with their eternal\nconcerns. Let them cast all their care upon God, for he careth for\nthem.\n\n\"But I am in the dark.\" I answer, never stick at that. It is most\nbravely done to trust God with the soul in the dark, and to resolve\nto serve God for nothing, rather than give out. Not to see and yet\nto believe, and to be a follower of the Lamb and yet to be at\nuncertainty what we shall have at last, argues love, fear, faith,\nand an honest mind, and gives the greatest sign of one that hath\ntrue sincerity in his soul. It was this that made Job and Peter so\nfamous; and the want of it took away much of the glory of the faith\nof Thomas. Wherefore, believe verily that God is ready, willing;\nyea, that he looks for and expects that thou, who art a sufferer,\nshouldst commit the keeping of thy soul to him as unto a faithful\nCreator.\n\nIs there nothing in dark providences, for the sake of the sight and\nobservation of which such a day may be rendered lovely, when it is\nupon us? Is there nothing of God, of his wisdom and power and\ngoodness, to be seen in thunder and lightning, in hailstones, in\nstorms and darkness and tempests? Why then is it said, he hath his\nway in the whirlwind and storm? And why have God's servants of old\nmade such notes, and observed from them such excellent and wonderful\nthings? There is that of God to be seen in such a day, which cannot\nbe seen in another. His power in holding up some, his wrath in\nleaving others; his making shrubs to stand, and his suffering cedars\nto fall; his infatuating the counsels of men, and his making the\ndevil to outwit himself; his giving his presence to his people, and\nhis leaving his foes in the dark; his discovering the uprightness of\nthe hearts of his sanctified ones, and laying open the hypocrisy of\nothers, is a working of spiritual wonders in the day of his wrath\nand of the whirlwind and storm.\n\nThese days, these days of trial, are the days that do most aptly\ngive an occasion to Christians to take the exactest measures and\nscantlings of ourselves. We are apt to overshoot in days that are\ncalm, and to think ourselves far higher and more strong than we find\nwe are when the trying day is upon us. The mouth of Gaal, Judges\n9:38, and the boasts of Peter, were great and high before the trial\ncame; but when that came, they found themselves to fall far short of\nthe courage they thought they had. We also, before the temptation\ncomes, think we can walk upon the sea; but when the winds blow, we\nfeel ourselves begin to sink. Hence such a time is rightly said to\nbe a time to try us, or to find out what we are; and is there no\ngood in this? Is it not this that rightly rectifies our judgment\nabout ourselves, that makes us to know ourselves, that tends to cut\noff those superfluous sprigs of pride and self-concitedness,\nwherewith we are subject to be overcome? Is not such a day the day\nthat bends us, humbles us, and that makes us bow before God for our\nfaults committed in our prosperity? And yet doth it yield no good\nunto us? We could not live without such turnings of the hand of God\nupon us.\n\nThine own doubts and mistrusts about what God will do and about\nwhither thou shalt go, when thou for him hast suffered awhile he can\nresolve, yea, dissolve, crush, and bring to nothing. He can make\nfear flee far away, and place heavenly confidence in its room. He\ncan bring invisible and eternal things to the eye of thy soul, and\nmake thee see THAT, in those things in which thine enemies shall see\nnothing, that thou shalt count worth the loss of ten thousand lives\nto enjoy. He can pull such things out of his bosom, and can put such\nthings into thy mouth; yea, can make thee choose to be gone, though\nthrough the flames, rather than to stay here and die in silken\nsheets. Yea, he can himself come near, and bring his heaven and\nglory to thee. The Spirit of glory and of God resteth upon them that\nare but reproached for the name of Christ. And what the Spirit of\nglory is, and what is his resting upon his sufferers, is quite\nbeyond the knowledge of the world, is but little felt by saints at\npeace. They that are engaged, that are under the lash for\nChrist--they, I say, have it, and understand something of it.\n\nLook not upon the sufferings of God's people for their religion, to\nbe tokens of God's great anger. It is, to be sure, as our heavenly\nFather orders it, rather a token of his love; for suffering for the\ngospel and for the sincere profession of it, is indeed a dignity put\nupon us, a dignity that all men are not counted worthy of. Count it\ntherefore a favor that God has bestowed upon thee his truth, and\ngrace to enable thee to profess it, though thou be made to suffer\nfor it.\n\nLet God's people think never the worse of religion because of the\ncoarse entertainment it meeteth with in the world. It is better'to\nchoose God and affliction, than the world, and sin, and carnal\npeace.\n\nIt is necessary that we should suffer, because we have sinned; and\nif God will have us suffer a little while here for his word, instead\nof suffering for our sins in hell, let us be content, and count it a\nmercy with thankfulness.\n\nThe wicked are reserved to the day of destruction, they shall be\nbrought forth to the day of wrath. How kindly, therefore, doth God\ndeal with us, when he chooses to afflict us but for a little, that\nwith everlasting kindness he may have mercy upon us.\n\nSince the rod is God's as well as the child, let us not look upon\nour troubles as if they came from and were managed only by hell. It\nis true, a persecutor has a black mark upon him; but yet the\nScriptures say that all the ways of the persecutor are God's.\nWherefore as we should, so again we should not, be afraid of men: we\nshould be afraid of them, because they will hurt us; but we should\nnot be afraid of them as if they were let loose to do to us and with\nus what they will. God's bridle is upon them, God's hook is in their\nnose; yea, and God hath determined the bounds of their rage; and if\nhe lets them drive his church into the sea of troubles, it shall he\nhut up to the neck; and so far it may go and not he drowned. Isaiah\n8:7, 8.\n\n\"May we not fly in a time of persecution? Your pressing upon us that\npersecution is ordered and managed by God, makes us afraid to fly.\"\n\nThou mayest do in this even as it is in thy heart. If it is in thy\nheart to fly, fly; if it be in thy heart to stand, stand. Anything\nbut a denial of the truth. He that flies, has warrant to do so; he\nthat stands, has warrant to do so. Yea, the same man may both fly\nand stand, as the call and working of God with his heart may be.\nMoses fled, Moses stood; Jeremiah fled, Jeremiah stood; Christ\nwithdrew himself, Christ stood; Paul fled, Paul stood.\n\nBut in flying, fly not from religion; fly not, for the sake of a\ntrade; fly not, that thou mayest have care for the flesh: this is\nwicked, and will yield neither peace nor profit to thy soul, neither\nnow, nor at death, nor at the day of judgment.\n\nThe hotter the rage and fury of men are against righteous ways, the\nmore those that love righteousness grow therein. For they are\nconcerned for it, not to hide it, but to make it spangle; not to\nextinguish it, but to greaten it, and to show the excellency of it\nin all its features and in all its comely proportion. Now such an\none will make straight steps for his feet, lest that which is lame\nbe turned out of the way. Heb. 12: 13.\n\nNow he shows to all men what faith is, by charity, by self-denial,\nby meekness, by gentleness, by long-suffering, by patience, by love\nto enemies, and by doing good to them that hate us. Now he walketh\nupon his high places, yea, will not now admit that so slovenly a\nconversation should come within his doors, as did use to haunt his\nhouse in former times. Now it is Christ-mas, now it is\nsuffering-time, now we must keep holy day every day.\n\nThe reason is, that a man when he suffereth for Christ, is set upon\na hill, upon a stage, as in a theatre, to play a part for God in the\nworld. And you know, when men are to play their parts upon a stage,\nthey count themselves if possible more bound to circumspection; and\nthat for the credit of their master, the credit of their art, and\nthe credit of themselves. For then the eyes of every body are fixed,\nthey gape and stare upon them, Psalm 22:17, and a trip here is as\nbad as a fall in another place. Also now God himself looks on. Yea,\nhe smileth, as being pleased to see a good behavior attending the\ntrial of the innocent.\n\nThere are some of the graces of God that are in thee, that as to\nsome of their acts cannot show themselves, nor their excellency, nor\ntheir power, nor what they can do, but as thou art in a suffering\nstate. Faith and patience in persecution have that to do, that to\nshow, and that to perform, that cannot be done, shown, nor\nperformed, anywhere else but there. There is also a patience of\nhope, a rejoicing in hope when we are in tribulation, that is over\nand above that which we have when we are at ease and quiet. That\nalso that all graces can endure and triumph over, shall not be\nknown, but when and as we are in a state of affliction. Now these\nacts of our graces are of such worth and esteem with God, and he so\nmuch delighteth in them, that occasion, through his righteous\njudgment, must be ministered for them to show their beauty and what\nbravery there is in them.\n\nIt is also to be considered that those acts of our graces that\ncannot be put forth or show themselves in their splendor but when we\nchristianly suffer, will yield such fruit to those whose trials call\nthem into exercise, as will in the day of God abound to their\ncomfort and tend to their perfection in glory. 1 Peter, 1:7; 2 Cor.\n4:17.\n\nWhy then should we think that our innocent lives will exempt us from\nsufferings, or that troubles shall do us harm?\n\nAlas, we have need of those bitter pills at which we so much wince.\nI see that I still have need of these trials; and if God will by\nthese judge me, as he judges his saints, that I may not he condemned\nwith the world, I will cry, Grace, grace, for ever.\n\nShall we deserve correction, and be angry because we have it? Or\nshall it come to save us, and shall we he offended with the hand\nthat brings it? Our sickness is so great that our enemies take\nnotice of it; let them know too that we take our purges patiently.\n\nWe are willing to pay for those potions that are given us for the\nhealth of our body, how sick soever they make us; and if God will\nhave us pay too for that which is to better our souls, why should we\ngrudge thereat? Those that bring us these medicines have little\nenough for their pains; for my part, I profess I would not for a\ngreat deal be bound, for their wages, to do their work. True,\nphysicians are for the most part chargeable, and niggards are too\nloath to part with their money to them; but when necessity says they\nmust either take physic or die, of two evils they desire to choose\nthe least. Why, affliction is better than sin; and if God sends the\none to cleanse us from the other, let us thank him, and be also\ncontent to pay the messenger.\n\nBUNYAN'S TRIAL AND IMPRISONMENT. FROM BUNYAN'S EXAMINATION BEFORE\nJUSTICES KEELING, CHESTER, [Footnote: On the restoration of the\nhouse of Stuart, Charles II. entered London, in May, 1600. In\nNovember of that year, Bunyan was indicted for an upholder of\nunlawful assemblies and conventicles, and for not conforming to the\nchurch of England. \"He was sentenced,\"] ETC.\n\nKEELING. Justice Keeling said that I ought not to preach, and asked\nme where I had my authority; with many other such like words.\n\nBUNYAN. I said that I would prove that it was lawful for me, and\nsuch as I am, to preach the word of God.\n\nKEELING. He said unto me, By what scripture?\n\nBUNYAN. I said, by that in the first epistle of Peter, fourth\nchapter and eleventh verse, and Acts eighteenth, with other\nscriptures; which he would not suffer me to mention, but said, Hold,\nnot so many: which is the first?\n\nBUNYAN. I said, This: \"As every man hath received the gift, even so\nlet him minister the same unto another, as good stewards of the\ngrace of God. If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of\nGod.\"\n\nKEELING. He said, Let me a little open that scripture to you. As\nevery man hath received the gift; that is, said he, as every man\nhath received a trade, so let him follow says Crosby, \"to perpetual\nbanishment, in pursuance of an act made by the then parliament.\"\nThis sentence was never executed, but he was kept in prison for more\nthan twelye years.\n\nSubsequently to this year, 1660, several oppressive acts were\npassed, as the Corporation act, 1661, the act of Uniformity, 1662,\nthe Five-mile act, 1665, the Conventicle acts, 1666 and 1671, and\nthe Test act, 1673. The act of Uniformity required that every\nclergyman should be reordained; should declare his assent to every\nthing contained in the Book of Common Prayer, etc. By this act,\nabout two thousand dissenting ministers were ejected from their\nlivings, and the most cruel persecution followed. The Five-mile and\nConventicle acts imposed various fines, imprisonment, and death upon\nall persons above sixteen years of age, who attended divine service\nwhere the liturgy was not read; ordained that no non-conformist\nminister should live within five miles of any town; and aimed to\nsuppress all meetings for worship among the non-conformists. These\nin a short time made frightful desolations, and all the jails in the\nkingdom soon became filled with men who were the brightest ornaments\nof Christianity. The persecuted included both sexes and all ages,\nfrom the child of nine or ten years, to the hoary-headed saint of\neighty. In Picart's Religious Ceremonies, it is stated that the\nnumber of dissenters of all sects, who perished in prison under\nCharles II., was EIGHT THOUSAND. On the accession of William III.,\nthese penalties and disabilities were removed by the Toleration act.\nThe Corporation and Test acts, however, disgraced the statute-book\nof England till the year 1828, when they were triumphantly repealed.\nOffer's Introduction, Hume's History, and Ency. Amer. it. If any man\nhath received a gift of tinkering, as thou hast done, let him follow\nhis tinkering; and so other men their trades, and the divine his\ncalling, etc.\n\nBUNYAN. Nay, sir, said I, but it is most clear that the apostle\nspeaks here of preaching the word: if you do but compare both the\nverses together, the next verse explains this gift what it is;\nsaying, \"If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God;\" so\nthat it is plain that the Holy Ghost doth not so much in this place\nexhort to civil callings, as to the exercising of those gifts that\nwe have received from God. I would have gone on, but he would not\ngive me leave.\n\nKEELING. He said we might do it in our families, but not otherwise.\n\nBUNYAN. I said, if it was lawful to do good to some, it was lawful\nto do good to more. If it was a good duty to exhort our families, it\nis good to exhort others; but if they held it a sin to meet together\nto seek the face of God, and exhort one another to follow Christ, I\nshould sin still; for so we should do.\n\nKEELING. He said he was not so well versed in scripture as to\ndispute, or words to that purpose. And said, moreover, that they\ncould not wait upon me any longer; but said to me, Then you confess\nthe indictment; do you not? Now, and not till now, I saw I was\nindicted.\n\nBUNYAN. I said, This I confess: we have had many meetings together\nboth to pray to God and to exhort one another, and we have had the\nsweet comforting presence of the Lord among us for encouragement;\nblessed be his name therefor. I confessed myself guilty no\notherwise.\n\nKEELING. Then said he, Hear your judgment. You must be had back\nagain to prison, and there lie for three months following; and at\nthree months' end, if you do not submit to go to church to hear\ndivine service, and leave your preaching, you must be banished the\nrealm: and if, after such a day as shall be appointed you to be\ngone, you shall be found in this realm, or be found to come over\nagain without special license from the king, you must stretch by the\nneck for it; I tell you plainly. And so he bid my jailer have me\naway.\n\nBUNYAN. I told him, as to this matter I was at a point with him; for\nif I was out of prison today, I would preach the gospel again\ntomorrow, by the help of God.\n\nI continued in prison till the next assizes, which are called\nmidsummer assizes, being then kept in August, 1661.\n\nNow at that assizes, because I would not leave any possible means\nunattempted that might be lawful, I did, by my wife, [Footnote:\n\"This courageous woman [his second wife] and lord chief-justice Hale\nand Bunyan have long since met in heaven; but how little could they\nrecognize each other's character on earth! How little could the\ndistressed, insulted wife have imagined, that beneath the judge's\nermine there was beating the heart of a child of God, a man of\nhumility, integrity, and prayer! How little could the great, learn-\ned, illustrious, and truly pious judge have dreamed that the man,\nthe obscure tinker whom he was suffering to languish in prison for\nwant of a writ of error, would one day be the subject of greater\nadmiration and praise than all the judges in the kingdom of Great\nBritain.\" Dr. Cheever's Lectures on Pilgrim's Progress, p. 158.]\npresent a petition to the judges three times, that I might be heard,\nand that they would impartially take my case into consideration.\n\nThe first time my wife went, she presented it to Judge Hale, who\nvery mildly received it at her hand, telling her that he would do\nher and me the best good he could; but he feared, he said, he could\ndo none. The next day again, lest they should through the multitude\nof business forget me, we did throw another petition into the coach\nto Judge Twisdon, who, when he had seen it, snapt her up, and\nangrily told her I was a convicted person, and could not be released\nunless I would promise to preach no more, etc.\n\nWell, after this, she again presented another to Judge Hale, as he\nsat on the bench, who, as it seemed, was willing to give her\naudience; only Justice Chester being present, stept up and said that\nI was convicted in the court, and that I was a hot-spirited fellow,\nor words to that purpose; whereat he waived it, and did not meddle\nwith it. But yet, my wife being encouraged by the high-sheriff, did\nventure once more into their presence, as the poor widow did to the\nunjust judge, to try what she could do with them for my liberty\nbefore they went forth of the town. The place where she went to them\nwas to the Swan Chamber, where the two judges and many justices and\ngentry of the country were in company together. She then, coming\ninto the chamber with abashed face and a trembling heart, began her\nerrand to them in this manner.\n\nWOMAN. My lord-directing herself to Judge Hale--I make bold to come\nonce again to your lordship to know what may be done with my\nhusband.\n\nJUDGE HALE. To whom he said, Woman, I told thee before I could do\nthee no good, because they have taken that for a conviction which\nthy husband spoke at the sessions; and unless there be something\ndone to undo that, I can do thee no good.\n\nWOMAN. My lord, said she, he is kept unlawfully in prison; they\nclapped him up before there was any proclamation against the\nmeetings; the indictment also is false; besides, they never asked\nhim whether he was guilty or no; neither did he confess the\nindictment.\n\nONE OF THE JUSTICES. Then one of the Justices that stood by, whom\nshe knew not, said, My lord, he was lawfully convicted.\n\nWOMAN. It is false, said she; for when they said to him, Do you\nconfess the indictment? he said only this, that he had been at\nseveral meetings, both where there was preaching the word and\nprayer, and that they had God's presence among them.\n\nJUDGE TWISDON. Whereat Judge Twisdon answered very angrily, saying,\nWhat, you think we can do as we list! Your husband is a breaker of\nthe peace, and is convicted by the law, etc. Whereupon Judge Hale\ncalled for the statute-book.\n\nWOMAN. But, said she, my lord, he was not lawfully convicted.\n\nCHESTER. Then Justice Chester said, My lord, he was lawfully\nconvicted.\n\nWOMAN. It is false, said she; it was but a word of discourse that\nthey took for conviction.\n\nCHESTER. But it is recorded, woman, it is recorded, said Justice\nChester; as if it must of necessity be true, because it was\nrecorded. With which words he often endeavored to stop her mouth,\nhaving no other argument to convince her but, It is recorded, it is\nrecorded.\n\nWOMAN. My lord, said she, I was a while since at London, to see if I\ncould get my husband's liberty; and there I spoke with my Lord\nBurkwood, one of the House of Lords, to whom I delivered a petition,\nwho took it of me and presented it to some of the rest of the House\nof Lords for my husband's releasement; who, when they had seen it,\nsaid that they could not release him, but had committed his\nreleasement to the judges at the next assizes. This he told me; and\nnow I come to you to see if any thing can be done in this business,\nand you give neither releasement nor relief. To which they gave her\nno answer, but made as if they heard her not.\n\nCHESTER. Only Justice Chester was often up with this, He is\nconvicted, and it is recorded.\n\nWOMAN. If it be, it is false, said she.\n\nCHESTER. My lord, said Justice Chester, he is a pestilent fellow;\nthere is not such a fellow in the country again.\n\nTWISDON. What, will your husband leave preaching? If he will do so,\nthen send for him.\n\nWOMAN. My lord, said she, he dares not leave preaching as long as he\ncan speak.\n\nTWISDON. See here: what should we talk any more about such a fellow?\nMust he do what he lists? He is a breaker of the peace.\n\nWOMAN. She told him again, that he desired to live peaceably and to\nfollow his calling, that his family might be maintained; and\nmoreover said, My lord, I have four small children that cannot help\nthemselves, of which one is blind; and we have nothing to live upon\nbut the charity of good people.\n\nHALE. Whereat Justice Hale, looking very soberly on the matter,\nsaid, Alas, poor woman!\n\nTWISDON. But Judge Twisdon told her that she made poverty her cloak;\nand said, moreover, that he understood I was maintained better by\nrunning up and down a preaching, than by following my calling.\n\nHALE. What is his calling? said Judge Hale.\n\nANSWER. Then some of the company that stood by said, A tinker, my\nlord.\n\nWOMAN. Yes, said she, and because he is a tinker and a poor man,\ntherefore he is despised and cannot have justice.\n\nHALE. Then Judge Hale answered, very mildly, saying, I tell thee,\nwoman, seeing it is so that they have taken what thy husband spake\nfor a conviction, thou must apply thyself to the king, or sue out\nhis pardon, or get out a writ of error.\n\nCHESTER. But when Justice Chester heard him give her this counsel,\nand especially, as she supposed, because he spoke of a writ of\nerror, he chafed and seemed to be very much offended, saying, My\nlord, he will preach and do what he lists.\n\nWOMAN. He preacheth nothing but the word of God, said she.\n\nTWISDON. He preach the word of God! said Twisdon--and withal she\nthought he would have struck her--he runneth up and down and doeth\nharm.\n\nWOMAN. No, my lord, said she, it is not so; God hath owned him, and\ndone much good by him.\n\nTWISDON. God! said he; his doctrine is the doctrine of the devil.\n\nWOMAN. My lord, said she, when the righteous Judge shall appear, it\nwill be known that his doctrine is not the doctrine of the devil.\n\nTWISDON. My lord, said he to Judge Hale, do not mind her, but send\nher away,\n\nHALE. Then said Judge Hale, I am sorry, woman, that I can do thee no\ngood: thou must do one of those three things aforesaid, namely,\neither to apply thyself to the king, or sue out his pardon, or get a\nwrit of error; but a writ of error will be cheapest.\n\nWOMAN. At which Chester again seemed to be in a chafe, and put off\nhis hat, and as she thought scratched his head for anger; but when I\nsaw, said she, that there was no prevailing to have my husband sent\nfor, though I often desired them that they would send for him, that\nhe might speak for himself, telling them that he could give them\nbetter satisfaction than I could in what they demanded of him, with\nseveral other things which now I forget: only this I remember, that\nthough I was somewhat timorous at my first entrance into the\nchamber, yet before I went out I could not but break forth into\ntears, not so much because they were so hard-hearted against me and\nmy husband, but to think what a sad account such poor creatures will\nhave to give at the coming of the Lord, when they shall there answer\nfor all things whatsoever they have done in the body, whether it be\ngood or whether it be bad. So when I departed from them, the book of\nstatutes was brought; but what they said of it I know nothing at\nall, neither did I hear any more from them.\n\nMARTYRS.\n\nIn the house of the forest of Lebanon you find pillars, pillars; so\nin the church in the wilderness. Oh the mighty ones of which the\nchurch was compacted; they were all pillars, strong, bearing up the\nhouse against wind and weather; nothing but fire and sword could\ndissolve them. As therefore this house was made up of great timber,\nso this church in the wilderness was made up of giants in grace.\nThese men had the faces of lions; no prince, no king, no threat, no\nterror, no torment could make them yield. They loved not their lives\nunto the death. They have laughed their enemies in the face, they\nhave triumphed in the flames. None ever showed higher saints than\nwere they in the church in the wilderness. Others talked, these have\nsuffered; others have said, these have done; these have voluntarily\ntaken their lives in their hands, for they loved them not to the\ndeath, and have fairly and in cool blood laid them down before the\nworld, God, angels, and men, for the confirming of the truth which\nthey have professed.\n\nThat which makes a martyr, is suffering for the word of God after a\nright manner. And that is when he suffereth not only for\nrighteousness, but for righteousness' sake; not only for truth, but\nof love to truth; not only for God's word, but according to it, to\nwit, in that holy, humble, meek manner that the word of God\nrequireth. A man may give his body to be burned for God's truth, and\nyet be none of God's martyrs. 1 Cor. 13:1-3.\n\nCHRISTIAN COURAGE.\n\nWhen we see our brethren before us fall to the earth by death,\nthrough the violence of the enemies of God, for their holy and\nChristian profession, we should covet to make good their ground\nagainst them, though our turn should be next. We should valiantly do\nin this matter as is the custom of soldiers in war; take great care\nthat the ground be maintained, and the front kept full and complete.\n\nThere are but few when they come to the cross, cry, Welcome, cross!\nas some of the martyrs did to the stake they were burned at.\nTherefore, if you meet with the cross in thy journey, in what manner\nsoever it be, be not daunted and say, Alas, what shall I do now? but\nrather take courage, knowing that by the cross is the way to the\nkingdom. Can a man believe in Christ, and not be hated by the devil?\nCan he make a profession of Christ, and that sweetly and\nconvincingly, and the children of Satan hold their tongue? Can\ndarkness agree with light?\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN WARFARE.\n\nDeparting from iniquity is not a work of an hour, or a day, or a\nweek, or a month, or a year; but it is a work that will last thee\nthy lifetime, and there is the greatness and difficulty of it. Were\nit to be done presently, or were the work to be quickly over, how\nmany are there that would be found to have departed from iniquity;\nbut for that it is a work of continuance, and not worth any thing\nunless men hold out to the end; therefore it is that so few are\nfound actors or overcomers therein. Departing from iniquity, with\nmany, is but like the falling out of two neighbors; they hate one\nanother for a while, and then renew their old friendship again.\n\nBut again, since to depart from iniquity is a work of time, of all\nthy time, no wonder if it dogs thee, and offereth to return upon\nthee again and again; for sin is mischievous, and seeks nothing less\nthan thy ruin. Wherefore, thou must in the first place take it for\ngranted that thus it will be, and so cry the harder to God for the\ncontinuing of his presence and grace upon thee in this blessed work,\nthat as thou hast begun to depart from iniquity, so thou mayest have\nstrength to do it to the last gasp of thy life.\n\nAnd further, for that departing from iniquity is a kind of warfare\nwith it-for iniquity will hang in thy flesh what it can, and will\nnot be easily kept under-therefore no marvel if thou find it\nwearisome work, and that the thing that thou wouldst get rid of is\nso unwilling to let thee depart from it.\n\nAnd since the work is so weighty, and makes thee to go groaning on,\nI will for thy help give thee here a few things to consider of: And,\n\n1. Remember that God sees thee, and has his eyes open upon thee,\neven then when sin and temptation are flying at thee to give them\nsome entertainment. This was the thought that made Joseph depart\nfrom sin, when solicited to embrace it by a very powerful argument.\nGenesis 39:6, 7.\n\n2. Remember that God's wrath burns against it, and that he will\nsurely be revenged on it, and on all that give it entertainment.\nThis made Job afraid to countenance it, and put him upon departing\nfrom it: \"For destruction from God was a terror to me, and by reason\nof his highness I could not endure.\" Job 31: 23.\n\n3. Remember the mischiefs that it has done to those that have\nembraced it, and what distress it has brought upon others. This made\nthe whole congregation of Israel tremble to think that any of their\nbrethren should give countenance to it. Joshua 22: 16-18.\n\n4. Remember what Christ hath suffered by it, that he might deliver\nus from the power of it. This made Paul so heartily depart from it,\nand wish all Christians to do so as well as he. 2 Cor. 5: 14.\n\n5. Remember that those that are now in hell-fire went thither for\nthat they loved iniquity, and would not depart from it. Psalm 9: 17;\n11:6.\n\n6. Remember that a profession is not worth a pin, if they that make\nit do not depart from iniquity. James 2:16, 17.\n\n7. Remember that thy death-bed will be very uneasy to thee, if thy\nconscience at that day shall be clogged with the guilt of thy\niniquity. Hos. 7: 13, 14.\n\n8. Remember that at the judgment-day Christ will say, Depart from\nme, to those that have not here departed from their sin and\niniquity. Luke 13:27; Matt 25:41.\n\nLastly, Remember well, and think much upon what a blessed reward the\nSon of God will give to them at that day, that have joined to their\nprofession of faith in him a holy and blessed conversation.\n\nHe that will depart from iniquity must be well fortified with faith\nand patience and the love of God; for iniquity has its beauty-spots\nand its advantages attending on it; hence it is compared to a woman,\nZech. 5: 7, for it allureth greatly. Therefore I say, he that will\ndepart there-from had need have faith; that being it which will help\nhim to see beyond it, and that will show him more in things that are\ninvisible, than can be found in sin, were it ten thousand times more\nentangling than it is. 2 Cor. 4:18. He has need of patience also to\nhold out in this work of departing from iniquity. For indeed, to\ndepart from that is to draw my mind off from that which will follow\nme with continual solicitations. Samson withstood his Delilah for a\nwhile, but she got the mastery of him at the last. Why so? because\nhe wanted patience; he grew angry and was vexed, and could withstand\nher solicitations no longer. Judges 16: 15-17. Many there be, also,\nthat can well enough be contented to shut sin out of doors for a\nwhile; but because sin has much fair speech, therefore it overcomes\nat last. Prov. 7:21. For sin and iniquity will not be easily said\nnay. Wherefore, departing from iniquity is a work of length, as long\nas life shall last. A work, did I say? It is a war, a continual\ncombat; wherefore, he that will adventure to set upon this work,\nmust needs be armed with faith and patience, a daily exercise he\nwill find himself put to by the continual attempts of iniquity to be\nputting forth itself. Matt. 24: 13; Rev. 3:10.\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN ARMOR.\n\nThe war that the church makes with antichrist is rather defensive\nthan offensive. A Christian also, if he can but defend his soul in\nthe sincere profession of the true religion, doth what by duty, as\nto this, he is bound. Wherefore, though the New Testament admits him\nto put on the whole armor of God, yet the whole and every part\nthereof is spiritual, and only defensive. True, there is mention\nmade of the sword, but that sword is the word of God-a weapon that\nhurteth none, none at all but the devil and sin, and those that love\nit. Indeed, it was made for Christians to defend themselves and\ntheir religion with, against hell and the angels of darkness.\n\nOBJECTION. But he that shall use none other than this, must look to\ncome off a loser.\n\nANSWER. In the judgment of the world this is true, but not in the\njudgment of them that have skill and a heart to use it. For this\narmor is not Saul's which David refused, but God's; by which the\nlives of all those have been secured, that put it on and handled it\nwell. You read of some of David's mighty men of valor, that their\nfaces were as the faces of lions, and that they were as swift of\nfoot as the roes upon the mountains. Why, God's armor makes a man's\nface look thus; also it makes him that useth it more lively and\nactive than before. God's armor is no burden to the body, nor clog\nto the mind, but rather a natural, instead of an artificial\nfortification.\n\nBut this armor comes not to any, but out of the King's hand. Christ\ndistributeth his armor to his church. Hence it is said, \"It is given\nto us to suffer for him.\" It is given to us by himself, and on his\nbehalf.\n\nI saw also, that the Interpreter took him again by the hand and led\nhim into a pleasant place, where was builded a stately palace\nbeautiful to behold; at the sight of which Christian was greatly\ndelighted: he saw also upon the top thereof certain persons walking,\nwho were clothed all in gold.\n\nThen said Christian, \"May we go in thither?\"\n\nThen the Interpreter took him, and led him up towards the door of\nthe palace; and behold, at the door stood a great company of men, as\ndesirous to go in, but durst not. There also sat a man at a little\ndistance from the door, at a table-side, with a book and his\nink-horn before him, to take the name of him that should enter\ntherein; he saw also, that in the doorway stood many men in armor to\nkeep it, being resolved to do to the men that would enter what hurt\nand mischief they could.\n\nNow was Christian somewhat in a maze; at last, when every man\nstarted back for fear of the armed men, Christian saw a man of a\nvery stout countenance come up to the man that sat there to write,\nsaying, \"Set down my name, sir;\" the which when he had done, he saw\nthe man draw his sword, and put a helmet upon his head, and rush\ntowards the door upon the armed men, who laid upon him with deadly\nforce; but the man was not at all discouraged, but fell to cutting\nand hacking most fiercely. So after he had received and given many\nwounds to those that attempted to keep him out, he cut his way\nthrough them all, and pressed forward into the palace; at which\nthere was a pleasant voice heard from those that were within, even\nof those that walked upon the top of the palace, saying,\n\n\"Come in, come in; Eternal glory thou shalt win.\"\n\nSo he went in, and was clothed with such garments as they. Then\nChristian smiled and said, \"I think verily I know the meaning of\nthis.\"\n\nIn the description of the Christian armor, we have no provision for\nthe back.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXV. TEMPTATIONS.\n\nTEMPTATIONS OF SATAN.\n\n\n\n\n\nSatan, even from himself, besides the working of our own lust, doth\ndo us wonderful injury, and hits our souls with many a fiery dart,\nthat we think comes either from ourselves or from heaven and God\nhimself.\n\nSatan diligently waiteth to come in at the door, if Careless has\nleft it a little ajar.\n\nThere is nothing that Satan more desires than to get good men in his\nsieve to sift them as wheat, that if possible he may leave them\nnothing but bran; no grace, but the very husk and shell of religion.\n\nSo long as we retain the simplicity of the word, we have Satan at\nthe end of the staff; for unless we give way to a doubt about that,\nabout the truth and simplicity of it, he gets no ground upon us. In\ntime of temptation, it is our wisdom and duty to keep close to the\nword that prohibits and forbids the sin; and not to reason with\nSatan, of how far our outward and worldly privileges go, especially\nof those privileges that border upon the temptation, as Eve here\ndid: \"We may eat of all but one.\" By this she goeth to the outside\nof her liberty, and sees herself upon the brink of the danger.\nChrist might have told the tempter, when he assaulted him, that he\ncould have made stones bread, and that he could have descended from\nthe pinnacle of the temple, as afterwards he did; but that would\nhave admitted of other questions; wherefore he chooseth to lay aside\nsuch needless and unwarrantable reasonings, and resisteth him with a\ndirect word of God, most pertinent to quash the tempter and also to\npreserve himself in the way. To go to the outside of privileges,\nespecially when tempted of the devil, is often if not always very\ndangerous and hazardous.\n\nAs long as the devil is alive there is danger; and though a strong\nChristian may lie too hard for, and may overcome him in one thing,\nhe may be too hard for, yea, and may overcome the Christian two for\none afterwards. Thus he served David, and thus he served Peter, and\nthus he in our day has served many more. The strongest are weak, the\nwisest are fools, when suffered to be sifted as wheat in Satan's\nsieve; yea, and have often been so proved, to the wounding of their\ngreat hearts and the dishonor of religion.\n\nIt is usual with the devil in his temptings of poor creatures, to\nput a good and bad together, that by show of the good the tempted\nmight be drawn to do that which in truth is evil. Thus he served\nSaul; he spared the best of the herd and flock, under pretence of\nsacrificing to God, and so transgressed the plain command. But this\nthe apostle said was dangerous, and therefore censureth such as in a\nstate of condemnation. Thus he served Adam; he put the desirableness\nof sight and a plain transgression of God's law together, that by\nthe loveliness of the one they might the easier be brought to do the\nother. O, poor Eve, do we wonder at thy folly? Doubtless we had done\nas bad with half the argument of thy temptation.\n\nSatan by tempting one may chiefly intend the destruction of another.\nBy tempting the wife, he may aim at the destruction of the husband;\nby tempting the father, he may design the dsstruction of his\nchildren; and by tempting the king, he may design the ruin of his\nsubjects, even as in the case of David: \"Satan stood up against\nIsrael, and provoked David to number the people.\" He had a mind to\ndestroy seventy thousand, therefore he tempted David to sin.\n\nI have sent you here enclosed a drop of that honey that I have taken\nout of the carcass of a lion. I have eaten thereof myself, and am\nmuch refreshed thereby. Temptations, when we meet them at first, are\nas the lion that roared upon Samson; but if we overcome them, the\nnext time we see them we shall find a nest of honey within them.\n\nTEMPTATIONS OF THE WORLD.\n\nIf thou wouldst be faithful to do that work that God hath appointed\nthee to do in this world for his name, then labor always to possess\nthy heart with a right understanding, both of the things that this\nworld yieldeth, and of the things that shall be hereafter. I am\nconfident that most if not all the miscarriages of the saints and\npeople of God have their rise from deceivable thoughts here. The\nthings of this world appear to us more, and those that are to come\nless, than they are; and hence it is that many are so hot and eager\nfor things that be in the world, and so cold and heartless for those\nthat be in heaven. Satan is here a mighty artist, and can show us\nall earthly things in a multiplying-glass; but when we look up to\nthings above, we see them as through sackcloth of hair. But take\nthou heed; be not ruled by thy sensual appetite that can only savor\nfleshly things, neither be thou ruled by carnal reason which always\ndarkeneth the things of heaven; but go to the word, and as that\nsays, so judge thou. That tells thee all things under the sun are\nvanity, nay, worse, vexation of spirit; that tells thee the world is\nnot, even when it doth most appear to be: wilt thou set thine heart\nupon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings,\nand fly away as an eagle towards heaven. The same may be said for\nhonors, pleasures, and the like; they are poor, low, base things to\nbe entertained by a Christian's heart. The man that hath most of\nthem may in the fulness of his sufficiency be in straits; yea, when\nhe is about to fill his belly with them, God may cast the fury of\nhis wrath upon him; so is every one that layeth up treasure for\nhimself on earth, and is not rich towards God. A horse that is laden\nwith gold and pearls all day, may have a foul stable and a galled\nback at night. And \"woe to him that increaseth that which is not\nhis, and that ladeth himself with thick clay.\" O man of God, throw\nthis bone to the dogs; suck not at it, there is no marrow there.\n\"Set thy affections on things that are above, where Christ sitteth\non the right hand of God.\" Colos. 3:1-4.\n\nENCOURAGEMENTS FOR THE TEMPTED.\n\nLet us cast ourselves upon this love of Christ. No greater\nencouragement can be given us, than what is in the text, Eph.\n3:18,19, and about it. It is great; it is \"love that passeth\nknowledge.\" Men that are sensible of danger, are glad when they hear\nof such helps upon which they may boldly venture for escape. Why,\nsuch a help and relief the text helpeth trembling and fearful\nconsciences to. Fear and trembling as to misery hereafter, can flow\nbut from what we know, feel, or imagine; but the text speaks of a\nlove that passeth knowledge, consequently of a love that goes beyond\nall these. Besides, the apostle's conclusion upon this subject\nplainly makes it manifest, that this meaning which I have put upon\nthe text is the mind of the Holy Ghost. Now \"unto him,\" saith he,\n\"that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or\nthink, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory\nin the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without\nend. Amen.\" What can be more plain? What can be more full? What can\nbe more suitable to the most desponding spirit in any man? He can do\nmore than thou knowest he will. He can do more than thou thinkest he\ncan. What dost thou think? Why, I think, saith the sinner, that I am\ncast away. Well, but there are worse thoughts than these; therefore\nthink again. Why, saith the sinner, I think that my sins are as many\nas all the sins in the world. Indeed this is a very black thought,\nbut there are worse thoughts than this; therefore prithee think\nagain. Why, I think, saith the sinner, that God is not able to\npardon all my sins. Aye, now thou hast thought indeed; for this\nthought makes thee look more like a devil than a man; and yet,\nbecause thou art a man and not a devil, see the condescension and\nboundlessness of the love of thy God. He is able to do above all\nthat we think. Couldst thou, sinner, if thou hadst been allowed,\nthyself express what thou wouldst have expressed--the greatness of\nthe love thou wantest--with words that could have suited thee\nbetter? For it is not said he can do above what we think, meaning\nour thinking at present, but above all we can think; meaning, above\nthe worst and most soul-dejecting thoughts that we have at any time.\nSometimes the dejected have worse thoughts than they have at other\ntimes. Well, take them at their worst times, at times when they\nthink, and think, till they think themselves down into the very\npangs of hell, yet this word of the grace of God is above them, and\nshows that he can yet recover and save these miserable people.\n\nAnd now I am upon this subject, I will a little further walk and\ntravel with these desponding ones, and will put a few words in their\nmouths for their help against temptations that may come upon them\nhereafter. For as Satan follows such now with charges and\napplications of guilt, so he may follow them with interrogatories\nand appeals; for he can tell how by appeals, as well as by charging\nof sin, to sink and drown the sinner whose soul he has leave to\nengage. Suppose, therefore, that some distressed man or woman should\nafter this way be engaged, and Satan should with his interrogatories\nand appeals be busy with them, to drive them to desperation; the\ntext last mentioned, Eph. 3: 18,19, to say nothing of the subject of\nour discourse, yields plenty of help for the relief of such a one.\nSays Satan, Dost thou not know that thou hast horribly sinned? Yes,\nsays the soul, I do. Says Satan, Dost thou not know that thou art\none of the vilest in all the pack of professors? Yes, says the soul,\nI do. Says Satan, Doth not thy conscience tell thee that thou art\nand hast been more base than any of thy fellows can imagine thee to\nbe? Yes, says the soul, my conscience tells me so. Well, saith\nSatan, now will I come upon thee with my appeals. Art thou not a\ngraceless wretch? Yes. Hast thou a heart to be sorry for this\nwickedness? No, not as I should. And albeit, saith Satan, thou\nprayest sometimes, yet is not thy heart possessed with a belief that\nGod will not regard thee? Yes, says the sinner. Why then, despair,\nand go hang thyself, saith the devil. And now we are at the end of\nthe thing designed and driven at by Satan. And what shall I now do,\nsaith the sinner? I answer, take up the words of the text against\nhim: Christ loves with a love that \"passeth knowledge.\" And answer\nhim further, saying, Satan, though I cannot think that God loves me,\nthough I cannot think that God will save me, yet I will not yield to\nthee; for God can do more than I think he can. And whereas thou\nappealedst unto me, if whether, when I pray, my heart is not\npossessed with the belief that God will not regard me, that shall\nnot sink me neither; for God can \"do abundantly above what I ask or\nthink.\" Thus this text helpeth where obstructions are put in against\nour believing, and thereby casting ourselves upon the love of God in\nChrist for salvation.\n\nAnd yet this is not all; for the text is yet more full: \"He is able\nto do abundantly more, yea, exceeding abundantly more, or above all\nthat we ask or think.\" It is a text made up of words picked and\npacked together by the wisdom of God; picked and packed together on\npurpose for the succor and relief of the tempted; that they may,\nwhen in the midst of their distresses, cast themselves upon, the\nLord their God. He can do abundantly more than we ask. O, says the\nsoul, that he would but do so much for me as I could ask him to do:\nhow happy a man should I then be. Why, what wouldst thou ask for,\nsinner? You may be sure, says the soul, I would ask to be saved from\nmy sins. I would ask for faith in, and love to, Christ; I would ask\nto be preserved in this evil world, and ask to be glorified with\nChrist in heaven. He that asketh for all this, doth indeed ask for\nmuch, and for more than Satan would have him believe that God is\nable or willing to bestow upon him. But mark: the text doth not say\nthat God is able to do all that we can ask or think, but that he is\nable to do above all, yea, abundantly above all, yea, exceeding\nabundantly above all that we ask or think. What a text is this! What\na God have we! God foresaw the sins of his people, and what work the\ndevil would make with their hearts about them; and therefore, to\nprevent their ruin by his temptation, he has thus largely, as you\nsee, expressed his love by his word. Let us therefore, as he has\nbidden us, make this good use of this doctrine of grace, to cast\nourselves upon this love of God in the times of distress and\ntemptation.\n\nThe bird in the air knows not the notes of the bird in the snare,\nuntil she comes thither herself.\n\nWhen I have been laden with sin, and pestered with several\ntemptations, and in a very sad manner, then have I had the trial of\nthe virtue of Christ's blood, with trial of the virtue of other\nthings; and I have found that when tears would not do, prayers would\nnot do, repentings and all other things could not reach my heart, O\nthen one touch, one drop, one shining of the virtue of THE BLOOD, of\nthat blood that was let out with a spear, it hath in such a blessed\nmanner delivered me, that it hath made me to marvel. O, methinks it\nhath come with such life, such power, with such irresistible and\nmarvellous glory, that it wipes off all the slurs, silences all the\noutcries, and quenches all the fiery darts and all the flames of\nhell-fire, that are begotten by the charges of the law, Satan, and\ndoubtful remembrances of my sinful life.\n\nThere are three things that do usually afflict the soul that is\nearnestly looking after Jesus Christ.\n\n1. Dreadful accusations from Satan. 2. Grievous, defiling, and\ninfectious thoughts. 3. A strange readiness in our nature to fall in\nwith both. By the first, of these, the heart is made continually to\ntremble. Hence his temptations are compared to the roaring of a\nlion. For as the lion by roaring killeth the heart of his prey, so\ndoth Satan kill the spirit of those that hearken to him; for when he\ntempteth, especially by way of accusation, he doth to us as\nRabshakeh did to the Jews; he speaks to us in our own language. He\nspeaks our sin at every word; our guilty conscience knows it. He\nspeaks our death at every word; our doubting conscience feels it.\n\n2. Besides this, there do now arise even in the heart such defiling\nand soul-infectious thoughts, as put the tempted to his wit's end,\nFor now it seems to the soul that the very flood-gates of the flesh\nare opened, and that to sin there is no stop at all; now the air\nseems to be covered with darkness, and the man is as if he was\nchanged into the nature of a devil. Now, if ignorance and unbelief\nprevail, he concludeth that he is a reprobate, made to be taken and\ndestroyed.\n\n3. Now also he feeleth in him a readiness to fall in with every\ntemptation--a readiness, I say, continually present. Romans 7:21.\nThis throws all down. Now despair begins to swallow him up; now he\ncan neither pray, nor read, nor hear, nor meditate on God, but fire\nand smoke continually burst forth of the heart against him; now sin\nand great confusion puts forth itself in all. Yea, and the more the\nsinner desireth to do a duty sincerely, the further off he always\nfinds himself; for by how much the soul struggleth under these\ndistresses, by so much the more doth Satan put forth himself to\nresist, still infusing more poison, that if possible it might never\nstruggle more, for stragglings are also as poison to Satan.\n\nThe fly in the spider's web is an emblem of the soul in such a\ncondition: the fly is entangled in the web; at this the spider shows\nhimself; if the fly stirs again, down comes the spider to her, and\nclaps a foot upon her; if yet the fly makes a noise, then with\npoisoned mouth the spider lays hold upon her; if the fly struggles\nstill, then he poisons her more and more: what shall the fly do now?\nWhy, she dies, if somebody does not quickly release her. This is the\ncase of the tempted; they are entangled in the web, their feet and\nwings are entangled; now Satan shows himself; if the soul now\nstruggleth, Satan laboreth to hold it down; if it now shall make a\nnoise, then he bites with blasphemous mouth, more poisonous than the\ngall of a serpent. If it struggle again, then he poisoneth more and\nmore; insomuch that it must needs at last die in the net, if the\nman, the Lord Jesus, helps not out. The afflicted conscience\nunderstands my words.\n\nFurther, though the fly in the web is altogether incapable of\nlooking for relief, yet this awakened, tempted Christian, is not.\nWhat must he do, therefore? How should he entertain hopes of life?\nIf he looks to his heart, there is blasphemy; if he looks to his\nduties, there is sin; if he strives to mourn and lament, perhaps he\ncannot; unbelief and hardness hinder. Shall this man lie down and\ndespair? No. Shall he trust to his duties? No. Shall he stay from\nChrist till his heart is better? No. What then? Let him NOW look to\nJesus Christ crucified; then shall he see his sins answered for,\nthen shall he see death dying, then shall he see guilt borne by\nanother, and then shall he see the devil overcome. This sight\ndestroys the power of the first temptation, purifies the heart, and\ninclines the mind to all good things.\n\nDidst thou never learn to outshoot the devil with his own bow, and\nto cut off his head with his own sword, as David served Goliath, who\nwas a type of Satan?\n\nQUESTION. O how should a poor soul do this? This is rare indeed.\n\nANSWER. Why, truly thus: Doth Satan tell thee thou prayest but\nfaintly, and with very cold devotion? answer him thus, and say, I am\nglad you told me, for this will make me trust the more to Christ's\nprayers, and the less to my own; also I will endeavor henceforward\nto groan, to sigh, and to be so fervent in my crying at the throne\nof grace, that I will, if I can, make the heavens rattle again with\nthe mighty groans thereof. And whereas thou sayest that I am so weak\nin believing, I am glad you remind me of it; I hope it will\nhenceforward stir me up to cry the more heartily to God for strong\nfaith, make me the more restless till I have it. And seeing thou\ntellest me that I run so softly, and that I shall go near to miss of\nglory, this also shall be through grace to my advantage, and cause\nme to press the more earnestly towards the mark for the prize of the\nhigh calling of God in Christ Jesus. And seeing thou dost tell me\nthat my sins are wondrous great, hereby thou bringest the\nremembrance of the unsupportable vengeance of God into my mind if I\ndie out of Jesus Christ, and also the necessity of the blood, death,\nand merits of Christ to help me; I hope it will make me fly the\nfaster and press the harder after an interest in him. And so all\nalong, if he tell thee of thy deadness, dulness, coldness, or\nunbelief, or the greatness of thy sins, answer him and say, I am\nglad you told me; I hope it will be a means to make me run faster,\nseek more earnestly, and be the more restless after Jesus Christ. If\nthou didst but get this art, so as to outrun him in his own shoes,\nas I may say, and to make his own darts to pierce himself, then thou\nmightest also say, Now do Satan's temptations, as well as all other\nthings, work together for my good.\n\nOBJECTION. But I find so many weaknesses in every duty that I\nperform, as when I pray, when I read, when I hear or attempt any\nother duty, that it maketh me out of conceit with myself; it maketh\nme think that my duties are nothing worth.\n\nANSWER. Thou by this means art taken off from leaning on any thing\nbelow Jesus for eternal life. It is likely, if thou wast not\nsensible of many by-thoughts and wickednesses in thy best\nperformances, thou wouldst go near to be some proud, abominable\nhypocrite, or a silly, proud, dissembling wretch at the best; such a\none as wouldst send thy soul to the devil in a bundle of thy own\nrighteousness.\n\nWould Jesus Christ have mercy offered, in the first place, to the\nbiggest sinner? Let the tempted harp upon this string for their help\nand consolation. The tempted, wherever he dwells, always thinks\nhimself the biggest sinner, one most unworthy of eternal life.\n\nThis is Satan's master-argument: Thou art a horrible sinner, a\nhypocrite, one that has a profane heart, and one that is an utter\nstranger to a work of grace. I say, this is his maul, his club, his\nmasterpiece; he does with this, as some do by their most enchanting\nsongs, singing them everywhere. I believe there are but few saints\nin the world that have not had this temptation sounding in their\nears. But were they but aware, Satan by all this does but drive them\nto the gap out at which they should go, and so escape his roaring.\n\nSaith he, Thou art a great sinner, a horrible sinner, a\nprofane-hearted wretch, one that cannot be matched for a vile one in\nthe country.\n\nAnd all this while Christ says to his ministers, Offer. mercy in the\nfirst place to the biggest sinners. So that this temptation drives\nthee directly into the arms of Jesus Christ.\n\nWas therefore the tempted but aware, he might say, Aye, Satan, so I\nam, I am a sinner of the biggest size, and therefore have most need\nof Jesus Christ; yea, because I am such a wretch, therefore Jesus\nChrist calls me; yea, he calls me first--the first proffer of the\ngospel is to be made to the Jerusalem sinner. I am he; wherefore\nstand back, Satan, make way for me, my right is first to come to\nJesus Christ.\n\nThis now will be like for like. This would foil the devil. This\nwould make him say, I must not deal with this man. thus; for then I\nput a sword into his hand to cut off my head.\n\nWell, sinner, thou now speakest like a Christian; but say thus in a\nstrong spirit in the hour of temptation, and then thou wilt, to thy\ncommendation and comfort, quit thyself well.\n\nThis improving of Christ in dark hours is the life, though the\nhardest part of our Christianity. We should neither stop at\ndarkness, nor at the raging of our lusts, but go on in a way of\nventuring and casting the whole of our concerns for the next world\nat the foot of Jesus Christ. This is the way to make the darkness\nlight, and also to allay the raging of our corruption.\n\nWhat a brave encouragement is it for one that is come for grace to\nthe throne of grace, to see so great a number already there on their\nseats, in their robes, with their palms in their hands and their\ncrowns upon their heads, singing of salvation to God and the Lamb!\n\nAnd I say again--and speak now to the dejected--methinks it would\nbe strange, O thou that art so afraid that the greatness of thy sins\nwill be a bar unto thee, if amongst all this great number of pipers\nand harpers that are got to glory, thou canst not espy one that,\nwhen here, was as vile a sinner as thyself. Look, man; they are\nthere for thee to view them, and for thee to take encouragement to\nhope, when thou shalt consider what grace and mercy have done for\nthem. Look again, I say, now thou art upon thy knees, and see if\nsome that are among them have not done worse than thou hast done.\nAnd yet behold, they are set down; and yet behold, they have crowns\non their heads, their harps in their hands, and sing aloud of\nsalvation to their God and the Lamb. Behold, tempted soul; dost thou\nnot yet see what a throne of grace here is, and what multitudes are\nalready arrived thither, to give thanks unto His name that sits\nthereon, and to the Lamb for ever and ever? And wilt thou hang thy\nharp upon the willows, and go drooping up and down the world, as if\nthere was no God, no grace, no throne of grace, to apply thyself\nunto for mercy and grace to help in time of need? Hark; dost thou\nnot hear them what they say? \"Worthy,\" say they, \"is the Lamb that\nwas slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength,\nand honor, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in\nheaven\"--where they are--\"and on the earth\"--where thou art--\"and\nunder the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are\ntherein, heard I saying, Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power,\nbe unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for\never and ever.\"\n\nAnd this is written for our learning, that we through patience and\ncomfort of the Scriptures might have hope; and that the drooping\nones might come boldly to the throne of grace, to obtain mercy and\nfind grace to help in time of need.\n\nIn general, God was pleased to take this course with me: First, to\nsuffer me to be afflicted with temptations concerning the truths of\nthe gospel, and then reveal them to me; as sometimes I should lie\nunder great guilt for sin, even crushed to the ground therewith; and\nthen the Lord would show me the death of Christ, yea, and so\nsprinkle my conscience with his blood, that I should find, and that\nbefore I was aware, that in that conscience where but just now did\nreign and rage the law, even there would rest and abide the peace\nand love of God through Christ.\n\nThus by the strange and unusual assaults of the tempter, my soul was\nlike a broken vessel driven as with the winds, and tossed, sometimes\nheadlong into despair, sometimes upon the covenant of works, and\nsometimes to wish that the new covenant and the conditions thereof\nmight, so far forth as I thought myself concerned, be turned another\nway and changed. But in all these, I was as those that jostle\nagainst the rocks; more broken, scattered, and rent. Oh, the\nunthought of imaginations, frights, fears, and terrors that are\neffected by a thorough application of guilt yielding to desperation.\nThis is the man that hath his dwelling among the tombs, with the\ndead--that is always crying out, and cutting himself with stones.\nBut I say, all in vain; desperation will not comfort him, the old\ncovenant will not save him: nay, heaven and earth shall pass away\nbefore one jot or tittle of the word and law of grace will fail or\nbe removed. This I saw, this I felt, and under this I groaned. Yet\nthis advantage I got thereby, namely, a further confirmation of the\ncertainty of the way of salvation, and that the Scriptures were the\nword of God. Oh, I cannot now express what I then saw and felt of\nthe steadfastness of Jesus Christ, the Rock of man's salvation: what\nwas done could not be undone, added to, nor altered.\n\nOften when I have been making towards the promise, John 6:30, I have\nseen as if the Lord would refuse my soul for ever; I was often as if\nI had run upon the pikes, and as if the Lord had thrust at me, to\nkeep me from him, as with a flaming sword. Then would I think of\nEsther, who went to petition the king contrary to the law. I thought\nalso of Benhadad's servants, who went with ropes upon their heads to\ntheir enemies for mercy. The woman of Canaan also, that would not be\ndaunted though called a DOG by Christ, and the man that went to\nborrow bread at midnight, were also great encouragements unto me.\n\nI never saw such heights and depths in grace and love and mercy, as\nI saw after this temptation. Great sins draw out great grace; and\nwhere guilt is most terrible and fierce, there the mercy of God in\nChrist, when showed to the soul, appears most high and mighty. When\nJob had passed through his calamity, he had twice as much as he had\nbefore. Blessed be God for Jesus Christ our Lord.\n\nIf ever Satan and I did strive for any word of God in all my life,\nit was for this good word of Christ: \"Him that cometh to me, I will\nin nowise cast out;\" he at one end, and I at the other. Oh, what\nwork we made. It was for this, in John.6:30, I say, that we did so\ntug and strive: he pulled, and I pulled; but, God be praised, I\novercame him and got sweetness from it.\n\nI prayed to God, in prison, that he would comfort me, and give me\nstrength to do and suffer what he should call me to; yet no comfort\nappeared, but all continued hid. I was also at this time so really\npossessed with the thought of death, that oft I was as if on the\nladder with a rope about my neck: only this was some encouragement\nto me: I thought I might now have an opportunity to speak my last\nwords unto a multitude, which I supposed would come to see me die;\nand thought I, if it must be so, if God will but convert one soul by\nmy last words, I shall not count my life thrown away nor lost.\n\nBut yet all the things of God were kept out of my sight, and still\nthe tempter followed me with, But whither must you go when you die?\nWhat will become of you? Where will you be found in another world?\nWhat evidence have you for heaven and glory, and an inheritance\namong them that are sanctified? Thus was I tossed for many weeks,\nand knew not what to do; at last, this consideration fell with\nweight upon me, That it was for the word and way of God that I was\nin this condition; wherefore, I was engaged not to flinch a hair's\nbreadth from it.\n\nI thought, also, that God might choose whether he would give me\ncomfort now, or at the hour of death; but I might not therefore\nchoose whether I would hold my profession or no. I was bound, but he\nwas free: yea, it was my duty to stand to his word, whether he would\never look upon me, or save me at the last. Wherefore, thought I, the\npoint being thus, I am for going on and venturing my eternal state\nwith Christ, whether I have comfort here or no: if God doth not come\nin, thought I, I will leap off the ladder even blindfold into\neternity, sink or swim, come heaven come hell. Lord Jesus, if thou\nwilt catch me, do; if not, I will venture for thy name.\n\nBefore I had got thus far out of these my temptations, I did greatly\nlong to see some ancient godly man's experience, who had writ some\nhundreds of years before I was born; for those who had writ in our\ndays, I thought--but I desire them now to pardon me--that they had\nwrit only that which others felt; or else had, through the strength\nof their wits and parts, studied to answer such objections as they\nperceived others were perplexed with, without going themselves down\ninto the deep. Well, after many such longings in my mind, the God in\nwhose hands are all our days and ways, did cast into my hand one day\na book of Martin Luther's: it was his Comment on the Galatians; it\nwas also so old that it was ready to fall piece from piece, if I did\nbut turn it over. Now I was pleased much that such an old book had\nfallen into my hands; the which when I had but a little way perused,\nI found my condition in his experience so largely and profoundly\nhandled, as if this book had been written out of my heart. This made\nme marvel; for thus thought I, this man could not know any thing of\nthe state of Christians now, but must needs write and speak the\nexperience of former days.\n\nBesides, he doth most gravely also, in that book, debate of the rise\nof these temptations, namely, blasphemy, desperation, and the like;\nshowing that the law of Moses, as well as the devil, death, and\nhell, hath a very great hand therein: the which, at first, was very\nstrange to me; but considering and watching, I found it so indeed.\nBut of particulars here I intend nothing; only this methinks I must\nlet fall before all men, I do prefer this book of Martin Luther upon\nthe Galatians, excepting the Holy Bible, before all the books that\never I have seen, as most fit for a wounded conscience.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXVI. SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS.\n\n\n\n\n\nChristians, were you awake, here would be matter of wonder to you,\nto see a man assaulted with all the power of hell, and yet come off\na conqueror. Is it not a wonder to see a poor creature, who in\nhimself is weaker than the moth, stand against and overcome all\ndevils, all the world, all his lusts and corruptions? Or if he fall,\nis it not a wonder to see him, when devils and guilt are upon him,\nrise again, stand upon his feet again, walk with God again, and\npersevere after all this in the faith and holiness of the gospel? He\nthat knows himself, wonders; he that knows temptation, wonders; he\nthat knows what falls and guilt mean, wonders: indeed, perseverance\nis a wonderful thing and is managed by the power of God; for he only\n\"is able to keep us from falling, and to present us faultless before\nthe presence of his glory, with exceeding joy.\"\n\nHe that is saved must, when this world can hold him no longer, have\na safe conduct to heaven; for that is the place where they that are\nsaved must to the full enjoy their salvation. Here we are saved by\nfaith and hope of glory; but there we that are saved shall enjoy the\nend of our faith, and hope, even the salvation of our souls.\n\nBut now for a poor creature to be brought thither, this is the life\nof the point. But how shall I come thither? There are heights and\ndepths to hinder. Rom. 8:38, 39. Suppose the poor Christian is upon\na sick-bed, beset with a thousand fears, and ten thousand at the end\nof that--sick-bed fears, and they are sometimes dreadful ones:\nfears that are begotten by the review of the sin perhaps of forty\nyears' profession--fears that are begotten by fearful suggestions of\nthe devil, the sight of death and the grave, and it may be of hell\nitself--fears that are begotten by the withdrawing and silence of\nGod and Christ. But now, out of all these the Lord will save his\npeople; not one sin, nor fear, nor devil shall hinder, nor the grave\nnor hell disappoint thee. But how must this be? Why, thou must have\na safe conduct to heaven. What conduct? A conduct of angels. \"Are\nthey not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them\nthat shall be heirs of salvation?\"\n\nThese angels therefore are not to fail them that are saved, but\nmust, as commissioned of God, come down from heaven to do this\noffice for them. They must come, I say, and take the care of our\nsouls, to conduct them safely into Abraham's bosom. It is not our\nmeanness in the world, nor our weakness of faith, that shall hinder\nthis; nor shall the loathsomeness of our diseases make these\ndelicate spirits shy of taking this charge upon them. Lazarus the\nbeggar found this a truth--a beggar so despised of the rich glutton\nthat he was not suffered to come within his gate; a beggar full of\nsores and noisome putrefaction--yet behold, when he dies angels come\nfrom heaven to fetch him thither.\n\nTrue, death-bed temptations are ofttimes the most violent, because\nthen the devil plays his last game with us; he is never to assault\nus more. Besides, perhaps God suffereth it thus to be that the\nentering into heaven may be the sweeter, and ring of this salvation\nthe louder. O it is a blessed thing for God to be our God and our\nguide, even unto death, and then for his angels to conduct us safely\nto glory. This is saving indeed.\n\nMercy seems to be asleep when we are sinking; for then we are as if\nall things were careless of us; but it is but as a lion couchant, it\nwill awake in time for our help.\n\nThere are those that have been in the pit, Psa. 40:2, now upon mount\nZion, with the harps of God in their hands, and with the song of the\nLamb in their mouths.\n\nGod hath set a Saviour against sin, a heaven against a hell, light\nagamst darkness, good against evil, and the breadth and length and\ndepth and height of the grace that is in himself for my good,\nagainst all the power and strength and subtlety of every enemy.\n\nIs it not a thing amazing, to see one poor inconsiderable man, in a\nspirit of faith and patience, overcome all the threatenings,\ncruelties, afflictions, and sorrows that a whole world can lay upon\nhim? None can quail him, none can crush him, none can bend down his\nspirit; none can make him forsake what he has received of God, a\ncommandment to hold fast. His holy, harmless, and profitable\nnotions, because they are spiced with grace, yield to him more\ncomfort, joy, and peace; and do kindle in his soul a goodly fire of\nlove to and zeal for God that all the waters of the world shall\nnever be able to quench.\n\nNow, a creation none can destroy but a creator, wherefore, here is\ncomfort. But again, God hath created us in Christ Jesus; that's\nanother thing. The sun is created in the heavens; the stars are\ncreated in the heavens; the moon is created in the heavens. Who can\nreach them, touch them, destroy them, but the Creator? Why, this is\nthe case of the saint, because he has to do with a Creator: he is\nfastened to Christ, yea, is in him by an act of creation. So that\nunless Christ and the creation of the Holy Ghost can be destroyed,\nhe is safe that is suffering according to the will of God, and that\nhath committed the keeping of his soul to him in well-doing, as unto\na faithful Creator.\n\nThe strife is now, Who shall be Lord of all: whether Satan the\nprince of this world, or Christ Jesus the Son of God; or which can\nlay the best claim to God's elect, he that produces their sins\nagainst them, or he that laid down his heart's blood a price of\nredemption for them. Who then shall condemn, when Christ has died\nand does also make intercession?\n\nStand still, angels, and behold how the Father divides his Son a\n\"portion with the great,\" and how he \"divides the spoil with the\nstrong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death, and was\nnumbered with the transgressors, and did bear the sin of many, and\nmade intercession for the transgressors.\" The grace of God and the\nblood of Christ will, before the end of the world, make brave work\namong the sons of men. They shall come for a wonderment to God by\nChrist, and--be saved for a wonderment for Christ's sake.\"\nBehold, these shall come from far; and lo, these from the north and\nfrom the west, and these from the land of Sinim.\"\n\n\"What man is he that feareth the Lord?\" says David; \"him shall he\nteach in the way that he shall choose.\"\n\nNow, to be taught of God, what is like it? Yea, what is like being\ntaught in the way that them shalt choose? Thou hast chosen the way\nto life, God's way; hut perhaps thy ignorance about; it is so great,\nand those that tempt thee to turn aside are so many and so subtle,\nthat, they seem to outwit thee and confound thee with their guile.\nWell, but the Lord whom thou fearest will not leave thee to thy\nignorance, nor yet to thine enemies' power or subtlety, but will\ntake it upon himself to be thy teacher and thy guide, and that in\nthe way that thou hast chosen. Hear, then, and beliold thy\nprivilege, O thou that fearest the Lord; and--whoever wanders, turns\naside, and swerveth from the way of salvation, whoever is benighted\nand lost in the midst of darkness--thou shalt find the way to heaven\nand the glory that thou hast chosen.\n\nThere is between those that have taken sanctuary in Christ, and the\nbottomless pit, an invincible and mighty wall of grace and heavenly\npower, and of the merits of Christ to save to the utmost all and\nevery one that are thus fled to him for safety.\n\nOh, how my soul did at this time [while in spiritual darkness] prize\nthe preservation that God did set about his people. Ah, how safely\ndid I see them walk whom God had hedged in. Now did those blessed\nplaces that spake of God's keeping his people, shine like the sun\nbefore me, though not to comfort me, yet to show me the blessed\nstate and heritage of those whom the Lord had blessed. Now I saw\nthat as God had his hand in all the providences and dispensations\nthat overtake his elect, so he had his hand in all the temptations\nthat they had to sin against him; not to animate them in wickedness,\nbut to choose their temptations and troubles for them, and also to\nleave them for a time to such things only as might not destroy, but\nhumble them--as might not put them beyond, but lay them in the way\nof the renewing of his mercy. But Oh, what love, what care, what\nkindness and mercy did I now see, mixing itself with the most severe\nand dreadful of all God's ways to his people! He would let David,\nHezekiah, Solomon, Peter, and others fall; but he would not let them\nfall into the sin unpardonable, nor into hell for sin. O, thought I,\nthese be the men that God hath loved--these be the men that God,\nthough he chastiseth them, keeps in safety by him, and whom he makes\nto abide under the shadow of the Almighty.\n\nSurely his salvation, his saving, pardoning grace, is nigh them that\nfear him; that is, to save them out of the hand of their spiritual\nenemies. The devil and sin and death do always wait even to devour\nthem that fear the Lord; but to deliver them from these, his\nsalvation doth attend them. So, then, if Satan tempts, here is their\nsalvation nigh; if sin by breaking forth beguiles them, here is\nGod's salvation nigh them; yea, if death itself shall suddenly seize\nupon them, why, here is their God's salvation nigh them.\n\nI have seen that great men's little children must go no whither\nwithout their nurses be at hand. If they go abroad, their nurses\nmust go with them; if they go to meals, their nurses must go with\nthem; if they go to bed, their nurses must go with them; yea,--and\nif they fall asleep, their nurses must stand by them.\n\nO, my brethren, those little ones that fear the Lord are the\nchildren of the highest; therefore they shall not walk alone, be at\ntheir spiritual meats alone, go to their sick-beds or to their\ngraves alone: the salvation of their God is nigh them, to deliver\nthem from the evil. This is then the glory that dwells in the land\nof them that fear the Lord.\n\n\"He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him.\" Where now is the\nman that feareth the Lord? let him hearken to this. \"What sayest\nthou, poor soul? Will this content thee? the Lord fulfil thy\ndesires. O thou that fearest the Lord, what is thy desire? \"All my\ndesire,\" says David, \"is all my salvation;\" so sayest thou, \"All my\nsalvation is all my desire?\" Well, the desire of thy soul is granted\nthee; yea, God himself hath engaged himself even to fulfil this thy\ndesire. \"He will fulfil the desires of them that fear him; he will\nhear their cry, and will save them.\" O this desire, when it cometh,\nwhat \"a tree of life\" will it be to thee! Thou desirest to be rid of\nthy present trouble; the Lord shall rid thee out of trouble. Thou\ndesirest to be delivered from temptation; the Lord shall deliver\nthee out of temptation. Thou desirest to be delivered from thy body\nof death; and the Lord shall change this thy vile body, that it may\nbe like to his glorious body. Thou desirest to be in the presence of\nGod, and among the angels in heaven; this thy desire also shall be\nfulfilled, and thou shalt be made equal to the angels. Exod. 6:6; 2\nPeter, 2:9; Phil. 3:20, 21; Luke 16:22; 26:35, 36. \"Oh, but it is\nlong first.\" Well, learn first to live upon thy portion in the\npromise of it, and that will make thy expectation of it sweet. God\nwill fulfil thy desires; God will do it, though it tarry long: Wait\nfor it, because it will surely come, it will not tarry.\"\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXVII. THE PROMISES.\n\n\n\n\n\nGOD hath strewed all the way from the gate of hell where thou wast,\ncoming sinner, to the gate of heaven whither thou art going, with\nflowers out of his own garden. Behold how the promises, invitations,\ncalls, and encouragements, like lilies, lie about thee. Take heed\nthou dost not tread them under foot.\n\nYou say you believe the Scriptures to be the word of God. I say,\nWert thou ever quickened from a dead state by the power of the\nSpirit of Christ through the covenant of promise? I tell thee from\nthe Lord, if thou hast been, thou hast felt such a quickening power\nin the words of Christ, that thou hast been lifted out of the dead\ncondition thou before wert in; and that when thou wast under the\nguilt of sin, the curse of the law, the power of the devil, and the\njustice of the great God, thou hast been enabled by the power of God\nin Christ, revealed to thee by the Spirit through and by the\nScripture, to look sin, death, hell, the devil, and the law, and all\nthings that are at enmity with thee, with boldness and comfort in\nthe face, through the blood, death, resurrection, and intercession\nof Christ, made mention of in the Scriptures.\n\nOn this account, O how excellent are the Scriptures to thy soul! O\nhow much virtue dost thou see in such a promise, in such an\ninvitation! They are so large as to say, Christ will in nowise cast\nme out. My crimson sins shall be as white as snow.\n\nI tell thee, friend, there are some promises through and by which\nthe Lord has helped me to lay hold of Jesus Christ, that I would not\nhave out of the Bible for as much gold and silver as can lie between\nYork and London piled up to the stars; because through them Christ\nis pleased by his Spirit to convey comfort to my soul. I say, when\nthe law curses, when the devil tempts, when hell-fire flames in my\nconscience, my sins with the guilt of them tearing of me, then is\nChrist revealed so sweetly to my poor soul through the promises,\nthat all is forced to fly and leave off to accuse my soul. So also\nwhen the world frowns, when the enemies rage and threaten to kill\nme, then also the precious promises do weigh down all, and comfort\nthe soul against all.\n\nThe grace of God and the Spirit of grace are called or compared to a\nriver, to answer those unsatiable desires, and to wash away those\nmountainous doubts, that attend those who indeed do thirst for that\ndrink. The man that thirsteth with spiritual thirst, fears nothing\nmore than that there is not enough to quench his thirst: all the\npromises and sayings of God's ministers to such a man, seem but as\nthimbles instead of bowls: I mean, so long as his thirst and doubts\nwalk hand in hand together. There is not enough in this promise, I\nfind not enough in that promise, to quench the drought of my\nthirsting soul. He that thirsteth aright, nothing but God can quench\nhis thirst. \"My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God.\" Psalm\n43:2; 63:1; 143:6. Well, what shall he done for this man? Will his\nGod humor him, and answer his desires? Mark what follows: \"When the\npoor and needy seek water, and there is none\"--when all the promises\nseem to be dry, and like clouds that return after the rain--\"and\ntheir tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the\nGod of Israel will not forsake them.\" Aye, but, Lord, what wilt thou\ndo to quench their thirst? \"I will open rivers,\" saith he, \"in high\nplaces, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the\nwilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.\"\nBehold, here are rivers and fountains, a pool and springs, and all\nto quench the thirst of them that thirst for God.\n\nWhat greater argument to holiness, than to see the scriptures so\nfurnished with promises of grace and salvation by Christ, that a man\ncan hardly cast his eye into the Bible but he espies one or another\nof them? Who would not live in such a house, or he a servant to such\na prince; who, besides his exceeding in good conditions, has gold\nand silver as common in his palace as stones are by the highway\nside?\n\nIt sometimes so falleth out, that the very promise we have thought\ncould not reach us to comfort us by any means, has at another time\nswallowed us up with joy unspeakable: Christ the true prophet has\nthe right understanding of the word as an Advocate, has pleaded it\nbefore God against Satan; and having overcome him at the common law,\nhe has sent to let us know it by his good Spirit, to our comfort and\nthe confusion of our enemies.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXVIII. CHRISTIAN GRACES.\n\nFAITH.\n\n\n\n\n\nFAITH! Peter saith, faith, in the very trial of it, is much more\nprecious than gold that perisheth. If so, what is the worth or value\nthat is in the grace itself?\n\nFaith is so great an artist in arguing and reasoning with the soul,\nthat it will bring over the hardest heart that it hath to deal with.\nIt will bring to my remembrance at once, both my vileness against\nGod, and his goodness towards me; it will show me, that though I\ndeserve not to breathe in the air, yet God will have me an heir of\nglory.\n\nFaith is the mother-grace, the root-grace, the grace that has all\nothers in the bowels of it, and that from which all others flow.\n\nFaith will suck sweetness out of God's rod; but unbelief can find no\ncomfort in his greatest mercies.\n\nFaith makes great burdens light; but unbelief maketh light ones\nintolerably heavy.\n\nFaith helpeth us when we are down; but unbelief throws us down when\nwe are up.\n\nUnbelief may be called the WHITE DEVIL; for it often-times, in its\nmischievous doing in the soul, shows as if it was an angel of light;\nyea, it acteth like a counsellor of heaven.\n\nIt is that sin above all others that most suiteth the wisdom of our\nflesh. The wisdom of our flesh thinks it prudent to question a\nwhile, to stand back a while, to hearken to both sides a while; and\nnot to be rash, sudden, or unadvised in too bold a presuming upon\nJesus Christ.\n\nThere is nothing like faith to help at a pinch; faith dissolves\ndoubts, as the sun drives away the mists. And that you may not be\nput out, know your time of believing is always. There are times when\nsome graces may be out of use; but there is no time wherein faith\ncan be said to be so. Faith is the eye, the mouth, the hand, and one\nof these is of use all day long. Faith is to see, to receive, to\nwork, or to eat; and a Christian should be seeing, or receiving, or\nworking, or feeding, all day long. Let it rain, let it blow, let it\nthunder, let it lighten, a Christian must still believe.\n\n\"Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith you shall be able\nto quench all the fiery darts of the wicked:\" to quench them, though\nthey come from him as kindled with the very fire of hell. None\nknows, save he that feels it, how burning hot the fiery darts of\nSatan are; and how, when darted, they kindle upon our flesh and\nunbelief; neither can any know the power and worth of faith to\nquench them, but he that hath it and hath power to act it.\n\nThere are three things in faith, that directly tend to make a man\ndepart from iniquity.\n\n1. It apprehendeth the truth of the being and great ness of God, and\nso it aweth the spirit of a man.\n\n2. It apprehendeth the love of this God in Christ, and so it\nconquereth and overcometh the spirit of a man.\n\n3. It apprehendeth the sweetness and blessedness of the nature of\nthe godhead, and thence persuadeth the soul to desire here communion\nwith him, that it may be holy, and the enjoyment of him when this\nworld is ended, that it may be happy in and by him for ever.\n\nThere is a man sows his field with wheat, but as he sows, some is\ncovered with great clods: now, that grows as well as the rest,\nthough it runs not upright as yet; it grows, and yet is kept down.\nSo do thy desires--when one shall remove the clod, the blade will\nsoon point upward I know thy mind; that which keeps thee that thou\ncanst not yet arrive to this, to desire to depart and to be with\nChrist, is because some strong douht or clod of unbelief as to thy\neternal welfare lies hard upon thy desiring spirit. Now let but\nJesus Christ remove this clod, and thy desires will quickly start up\nto be gone.\n\nUPON THE SWALLOW.\n\nThis pretty bird, O how she flies and sings! But could she do so if\nshe had not wings? Her wings bespeak my faith, her songs my peace.\nWhen I believe and sing, my doubtings cease.\n\nTRUST.\n\nWhy, this is the case, thou art bound for heaven, but the way\nthither is dangerous. It is beset everywhere with evil angels, who\nwould rob thee of thy soul. What now? Why, if thou wouldst go\ncheerfully on in thy dangerous journey, commit thy treasure, thy\nsoul, to God to keep. And then thou mayest say with comfort, \"Well,\nthat care is over. For whatever I meet with in my way thither, my\nsoul is safe enough; the thieves, if they meet me, cannot come at\nthat; I know to whom I have committed my soul, and I am persuaded\nthat he will keep that to my joy and everlasting comfort against the\ngreat day.\"\n\nWhen a tyrant goes to dispossess a neighboring prince of what is\nlawfully his own, the men that he employeth at arms to overcome and\nget the land, fight for half-crowns and the like, and are content\nwith the wages; but the tyrant is for the kingdom, nothing will\nserve him but the kingdom. This is the case: Men, when they\npersecute, are for the stuff; but the devil is for the soul, nor\nwill any thing less than that satisfy him. Let him then that is a\nsufferer, commit the keeping of his soul to God, lest stuff and soul\nand all be lost at once.\n\nNow, to commit this soul to God, is to carry it to him, to lift it\nto him upon bended knees, and to pray him for the Lord Jesus\nChrist's sake, to take it into his holy care, and to let it be under\nhis keeping. Also, that he will please to deliver it from all those\nsnares that are laid for it between this and the next world, and\nthat he will see that it be forthcoming, safe and sound, at the\ngreat and terrible judgment, notwithstanding so many have engaged\nthemselves against it.\n\nFAITH AND HOPE.\n\nNo faith, no hope. To hope without faith, is to see without eyes, or\nto expect without grounds; for \"faith is the substance of things\nhoped for,\" as well with respect to the grace, as to the doctrine of\nfaith.\n\nFaith has its excellency in this, hope in that, and love in another\nthing. Faith will do that which hope cannot do, hope can do that\nwhich faith cannot do, and love can do things distinct from both\ntheir doings. Faith goes in the van, hope in the body, and love\nbrings up the rear; and thus now abideth faith, hope, and charity.\n\nFaith is the mother-grace, for hope is born of her, but charity\nfloweth from them both.\n\nFaith comes by hearing, hope by experience. Faith comes by hearing\nthe word of God, hope by the credit that faith has given to it.\nFaith believes the truth of the word, hope waits for the fulfilling\nof it. Faith lays hold of that end of the promise that is next to\nus, to wit, as it is in the Bible; hope lays hold of that end of the\npromise that is fastened to the mercy-seat. For the promise is like\na mighty cable that is fastened by one end to a ship, and by the\nother to the anchor. The soul is the ship where faith is, and to\nwhich the hither end of this cable is fastened; but hope is the\nanchor that is at the other end of this cable, and \"which entereth\ninto that within the veil.\"\n\nThus faith and hope getting hold of both ends of the promise, they\ncarry it safely ALL away.\n\nFaith looks to Christ as dead, buried, and ascended; and hope to his\nsecond coming. Faith looks to him for justification, hope for glory.\n\nFaith fights for doctrine, hope for a reward; faith for what is in\nthe Bible, hope for what is in heaven.\n\nFaith purifies the heart from bad principles, hope from bad manners.\n2 Peter, 3:11, 14.\n\nFaith sets hope at work, hope sets patience at work. Faith says to\nhope, Look for what is promised; hope says to faith, So I do, and\nwill wait for it too.\n\nFaith looks through the word of God in Christ; hope looks through\nfaith, beyond the world, to glory.\n\nThus faith saves, and thus hope saves. Faith saves by laying hold of\nGod by Christ; hope saves by prevailing with the soul to suffer all\ntroubles, afflictions, and adversities that it meets with betwixt\nthis and the world to come, for the sake thereof. Take the matter in\nthis plain similitude:\n\nThere was a king that adopted such a one to be his child, and\nclothed him with the attire of the children of the king, and\npromised him that if he would fight his father's battles and walk in\nhis father's ways, he should at last share in his father's kingdom.\nHe has received the adoption and the king's robe, but not yet his\npart in the kingdom; but now, hope of a share in that will make him\nfight the king's battles, and also tread the king's paths. Yea, and\nthough he should meet with many things that have a tendency to deter\nhim from so doing, yet thoughts of the interest promised in the\nkingdom, and hopes to enjoy it, will make him cut his way through\nthose difficulties, and so save him from the ruin that those\nobstructions would bring upon him, and will, in conclusion, usher\nhim into a personal possession and enjoyment of that inheritance.\n\nHope has a thick skin, and will endure many a blow; it will put on\npatience as a vestment, it will wade through a sea of blood, it will\nendure all things if it be of the right kind, for the joy that is\nset before it. Hence patience is called \"patience of hope,\" because\nit is hope that makes the soul exercise patience and long-suffering\nunder the cross, until the time conies to enjoy the crown.\n\nLearn of Abraham not to faint, stumble, or doubt, at the sight of\nyour own weakness; for if you do, hope will stay below, and creak in\nthe wheels as it goes, because it will want the oil of faith.\n\nHOPE.\n\nHope is the grace that relieves the soul when dark and weary. Hope\ncalls upon the soul not to forget how far it is arrived in its\nprogress towards heaven. Hope will point and show it the gate afar\noff; and therefore it is called the HOPE OF SALVATION.\n\nTrue hope, in the right exercise of it upon God, makes no stumble at\nweakness or darkness, but rather worketh up the soul to some comfort\nby these. Thus Abraham's hope wrought by his weakness. And as for\nthe dark, it is its element to act in that, \"For hope which is seen\nis not hope.\"\n\nHope is a head-grace and governing. There are several lusts in the\nsoul that cannot be mastered, if hope be not in exercise-especially\nif the soul be in great and sore trials. There is peevishness and\nimpatience, there is fear and despair, there is doubting and\nmisconstruing of God's present hand; and all these become masters,\nif hope be not stirring; nor can any grace besides put a stop to\ntheir tumultuous raging in the soul. But now, hope in God makes them\nall hush, takes away the occasion of their working, and lays the\nsoul at the foot of God.\n\nPATIENCE. \"And he stayed yet other seven days.\" This staying shows\nus that lie exercised patience, waiting God's leisure till the flood\nshould be taken away. This grace, therefore, has yet seven days'\nwork to do, before he obtained any further testimony that the waters\nwere decreasing. O this staying work is hard work. Alas, sometimes\npatience is accompanied with so much heat and feverishness, that\nevery hour seems seven until the end of the trial, and the blessing\npromised be possessed by the waiting soul. It may be, Noah might not\nbe altogether herein a stranger. I am sure the psalmist was not, in\nthat he often under affliction cries, But how long, O Lord; for\never? Make haste. O Lord, how long?\n\nLOVE.\n\nLove is the very quintessence of all the graces of the gospel.\n\nFEAR.\n\nIt seems to me as if this grace of fear was the darling grace, the\ngrace that God sets his heart upon at the highest rate. As it were,\nhe embraces and lays in his bosom the man that hath and grows strong\nin this grace of the fear of God.\n\nThis grace of fear is the softest and most tender of God's honor of\nall the graces. It is that tender, sensible, and trembling grace,\nthat keepeth the soul upon its continual watch. To keep a good watch\nis, you know, a wonderful safety to a place that is in continual\ndanger because of the enemy. Why, this is the grace that setteth the\nwatch, and that keepeth the watchman awake.\n\nA man cannot watch as he should, if he be destitute of fear: let him\nbe confident, and he sleeps; he unadvisedly lets into the garrison\nthose that should not come there.\n\nThis fear of the Lord is the pulse of the soul; and as some pulses\nheat stronger, some weaker, so is this grace of fear in the soul.\nThey that beat best are a sign of best life; but they that beat\nworst, show that life is present. As long as the pulse beats, we\ncount not that the man is dead, though weak; and this fear, where it\nis, preserves to everlasting life. Pulses there are also that are\nintermitting; to wit, such as have their times of beating for a\nlittle, a little time to stop, and beat again: true, these are\ndangerous pulses, which, nevertheless, are a sign of life. This fear\nof God also is sometimes like this intermitting pulse; there are\ntimes when it forbears to work, and then it works again. David had\nan intermitting pulse; Peter had an intermitting pulse, as also many\nother of the saints of God. I call that an intermitting pulse, with\nreference to the fear we speak of, when there is some obstruction by\nthe workings of corruption in the soul: I say, some obstruction from\nand hinderance of the continual motion of this fear of God; yet none\nof these--though they are various, and some of them signs of\nweakness--are signs of death, but life. \"I will put my fear in their\nheart, and they shall not depart from me.\"\n\nWhere the fear of the Lord and sin are, it will be with the soul as\nit was with Israel when Amri and Tibni strove to reign among them\nboth at once. One of them must be put to death, they cannot live\ntogether. Sin must down, for the fear of the Lord begetteth in the\nsoul a hatred against it, an abhorrence of it; therefore sin must\ndie, that is, as to the affections and lusts of it.\n\n\"Thy heart shall fear and be enlarged\"--enlarged towards God,\nenlarged to his ways, enlarged to his holy people, enlarged in love\nafter the salvation of others. Indeed, when this fear of God is\nwanting, though the profession be never so famous, the heart is shut\nup and straitened, and nothing is done in that princely free spirit,\nwhich is called \"the spirit of the fear of the Lord,\" but with\ngrudging, legally, or with desire of vain glory. Psa. 51:12; Isa.\n11:2.\n\nIf a king will keep a town secure to himself, let him be sure to man\nsufficiently the main fort thereof. If he have twenty thousand men\nwell armed, if they lie scattered here and there, the town may be\ntaken for all that; but if the main fort be well manned, then the\ntown is more secure. What if a man had all the parts, yea, all the\narts of men and angels, that will not keep the heart to God.\n\nBut when the heart, this principal fort, is possessed with the fear\nof God, then he is safe, not else.\n\nO they are a sweet couple, to wit, a Christian conversation coupled\nwith fear.\n\nYour great, ranting, swaggering roysters, that are ignorant of the\nnature of this fear of God, count it a poor, sneaking, pitiful,\ncowardly spirit in men to fear and tremble before the Lord. But\nwhoso looks back to jails and gibbets, to the sword and the burning\nstake, shall see in the martyrs THERE the most mighty and invincible\nspirit that has been in the world.\n\nThis grace of fear can make the man that in many other things is not\ncapable of serving God, serve him better than those that have all\nelse without it. Poor Christian man, thou hast scarce been able to\ndo any thing for God all thy days, but only to fear the Lord. Thou\nart no preacher, and so canst not do him service that way: thou art\nno rich man, and so canst not do him service with outward substance:\nthou art no wise man, and so canst not do any thing that way; but\nhere is thy mercy, thou fearest God. Though thou canst not preach,\nthou canst fear God. Though thou hast no bread to feed the belly,\nnor fleece to clothe the back of the poor, thou canst fear God. O\nhow blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, because this duty of\nfearing of God is an act of the mind, and may be done by the man\nthat is destitute of all things but that holy and blessed mind.\n\nBlessed, therefore, is that man; for God hath not laid the comfort\nof his people in the doing of external duties, nor the salvation of\ntheir souls, but in believing, loving, and fearing God. Neither hath\nhe laid these things in actions done in their health, nor in the due\nmanagement of their most excellent parts, but in the receiving of\nChrist, and fear of God; the which, good Christian, thou mayest do,\nand do acceptably, even though thou shouldst lie bedrid all thy\ndays; thou mayest also be sick and believe, be sick and love, be\nsick and fear God, and so be a blessed man.\n\nAnd here the poor Christian hath something to answer them that\nreproach him for his ignoble pedigree, and shortness of the glory of\nthe wisdom of the world. True, may that man say, I was taken out of\nthe dunghill, I was born in a base and low estate; but I fear God. I\nhave no worldly greatness, nor excellency of natural parts, but I\nfear God.\n\nWhen Obadiah met with Elijah, he gave him no worldly and fantastical\ncompliment, nor did he glory in his promotion by Ahab the king of\nIsrael, but gravely and after a gracious manner said, \"I thy servant\nfear the Lord from my youth.\" Also, when the mariners inquired of\nJonah, saying, \"What is thine occupation, and whence comest thou;\nwhat is thy country, and of what people art thou?\" this was the\nanswer he gave them: \"I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of\nheaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.\" Jonah 1:8, 9.\n\nIndeed this answer is the highest and most noble in the world, nor\nare there any, save a few, that in truth can thus express\nthemselves, though other answers they have enough: most can say, I\nhave wisdom, or might, or riches, or friends, or health, or the\nlike; these are common, and are greatly boasted in by the most; but\nthe man that feareth God can say, when they say to him, \"What art\nthou?\" \"I thy servant do fear the Lord:\" he is the man of many, he is\nto be honored of men, though this, to wit, that he feareth the Lord,\nis all that he hath in this world. He hath the thing, the honor, the\nlife, and glory, that is lasting; his blessedness will abide when\nall men's but his is buried in the dust, in shame and contempt.\n\nDost thou fear God? The least DRACHM of that fear giveth the\nprivilege to be blessed with the greatest saint: \"He will bless them\nthat fear the Lord, small and great.\" Psalm 115:13. Art thou in\nthine own thoughts, or in the thoughts of others, of these last\nsmall ones, small in grace, small in gifts, small in esteem upon\nthis account? Yet if thou fearest God, if thou fearest God indeed,\nthou art certainly blessed with the best of saints. The least star\nstands as fixed as the brightest of them all, in heaven. \"He shall\nbless them that fear him, small and great.\" He shall bless them,\nthat is, with the same blessing of eternal life. For the difference\nin degrees of grace in saints doth not make the blessing, as to its\nnature, differ. It is the same heaven, the same life, the same\nglory, and the same eternity of felicity, that they are in the text\npromised to be blessed with. Christ at the day of judgment\nparticularly mentioneth and owneth the least: \"Inasmuch as ye did it\nnot to one of the least.\" The least then was there, in his kingdom\nand in his glory, as well as the greatest of all.\n\nDost thou fear God? Why, the Holy Ghost hath on purpose indited for\nthee a whole psalm to sing concerning thyself. So that thou mayest\neven as thou art, in thy calling, bed, journey, or whenever, sing\nout thine own blessed and happy condition to thine own comfort, and\nthe comfort of thy fellows. The psalm is called the 128th Psalm.\n\n\"Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; he is their help and\ntheir shield.\" Psalm 115:11. Now what a privilege is this: an\nexhortation in general to sinners, as sinners, to trust in him, is a\nprivilege great and glorious; but for a man to be singled out from\nhis neighbors, for a man to be spoken to from heaven as it were by\nname, and to be told that God has given him a license, a special and\npeculiar grant to trust in him, this is abundantly more; and yet\nthis is the grant that God has given that man that feareth the Lord.\n\n\"O fear the Lord, ye his saints, for there is no want to them that\nfear him. The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger; but they that\nseek the Lord\"--that fear him--\"shall want no good thing.\" Psalm\n34:9, 10.\n\nNot any thing that God sees good for them, shall those men want that\nfear the Lord. If health will do them good, if sickness will do them\ngood, if riches will do them good, if poverty will do them good, if\nlife will do them good, if death will do them good, then they shall\nnot want them; neither shall any of these come nigh them, if they\nwill not do them good.\n\nSinner, hast thou deferred to fear the Lord? Is thy heart still so\nstubborn as not to say yet, Let us fear the Lord? O, the Lord hath\ntaken notice of this thy rebellion, and is preparing some dreadful\njudgments for thee. \"Shall I not visit for these things, saith the\nLord; shall not my soul be avenged of such a nation as this?\"\n\nSinner, why shouldst thou pull vengeance down upon thee? why\nshouldst thou pull vengeance down from heaven upon thee? Look up;\nperhaps thou hast already been pulling this great while, to pull it\ndown upon thee. Oh, pull no longer; why shouldst thou be thine own\nexecutioner? Fall down upon thy knees, man, and up with thy heart\nand thy hands to the God that dwells in the heavens; cry, yea, cry\naloud, \"Lord, unite my heart to fear thy name, and do not harden\nmine heart from thy fear.\" Thus holy men have cried before thee, and\nby crying have prevented judgment.\n\nHUMILITY.\n\nI take the pinnacles on the top of the temple to be types of those\nlofty, airy notions, with which some delight themselves, while they\nhover like birds above the solid and godly truths of Christ. Satan\nattempted to entertain Christ Jesus with this type and antitype at\nonce, when he set him on one of the pinnacles of the temple, and\noffered to thrust him upon a false confidence in God, by a false and\nunsound interpretation of a text. Matt. 4:5,6; Luke 4:9-11.\n\nYou have some men who cannot be content to worship in the temple,\nbut must be aloft; no place will serve them but pinnacles--pinnacles,\nthat they may be speaking in and to the air, that they may be promoting\ntheir heady notions, instead of solid truth--not considering that now\nthey are where the devil would have them be. They strut upon their\npoints, their pinnacles; but let them look to it: there is difficult\nstanding upon pinnacles; their neck, their soul, is in danger. We read,\nGod is in his temple, not upon these pinnacles. Psalm 4; Hab. 2:20.\n\nIt is true, Christ was once upon one of these; but the devil set him\nthere, with intent to dash him in pieces by a fall; and yet even\nthen told him, if he would venture to tumble down, he should be kept\nfrom dashing his foot against a stone. To be there, therefore, was\none of Christ's temptations; consequently one of Satan's stratagems:\nnor went he thither of his own accord, for he knew that there was\ndanger; he loved not to clamber pinnacles.\n\nThis should teach Christians to be low and little in their own eyes,\nand to forbear to intrude into airy and vain speculations, and to\ntake heed of being puffed up with a foul and empty mind.\n\nZEAL.\n\nThe loaves or showbread in the temple were to have frankincense\nstrewed upon them as they stood upon the golden table, which was a\ntype of the sweet perfumes of the sanctification of the Holy Ghost.\n\nThey were to be set upon the pure table, new and hot, to show that\nGod delights in the company of new and warm believers. \"I remember\nthee, the kindness of thy youth; when Israel was a child, I loved\nhim.\" Men at first conversion are like to a cake well baked, and new\ntaken from the oven; they are warm, and cast forth a very fragrant\nscent, especially when, as warm, sweet increase is strewed upon\nthem.\n\n\"When the showbread was old and stale, it was to be taken away, and\nnew and warm put in its place, to show that God has but little\ndelight in the service of his own people, when their duties grow\nstale and mouldy. Therefore he removed his old, stale, mouldy church\nof the Jews from before him, and set in their room upon the golden\ntable the warm church of the Gentiles.\"\n\nZeal without knowledge is like a mettled horse without eyes, or like\na sword in a madman's hand; and there is no knowledge where there is\nnot the word.\n\nREPENTANCE.\n\nRepentance carries with it a divine rhetoric, and persuades Christ\nto forgive a multitude of sins committed against him.\n\nOne difference between true and false repentance lieth in this: the\nman who truly repents crieth out against his heart; but the other,\nas Eve, against the serpent, or something else.\n\nThere are abundance of dry-eyed Christians in the world, and\nabundance of dry-eyed duties too--duties that never were wet with\nthe tears of contrition and repentance.\n\nTake heed that a sin in thy life goes not unrepented of, for that\nwill make a flaw in thine evidence, a wound in thy conscience, and a\nbreach in thy peace; and a hundred to one if at last it doth not\ndrive all the grace in thee into so dark a corner of thy heart, that\nthou shalt not be able, for a time, by all the torches that are\nburning in the gospel, to find it out to thy own comfort and\nconsolation.\n\nAs vices hang together, and have the links of a chain, dependence\none upon another, even so the graces of the Spirit also are the\nfruits of one another, and have such dependence on each other that\nthe one cannot be without the other.\n\nNo faith, no fear of God: devil's faith, devil's fear; saints'\nfaith, saints' fear.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXIX. PRAYER.\n\nCHARACTERISTICS OF PRAYER.\n\n\n\n\n\nWHAT is prayer? A sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the\nsoul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the\nSpirit, for such things as God hath promised.\n\nThe best prayers have often more groans than words.\n\nAlas, how few there be in the world whose heart and mouth in prayer\nshall go together. Dost thou, when thou askest for the Spirit, or\nfaith, or love to God, to holiness, to saints, to the word, and the\nlike, ask for them with love to them, desire of them, hungering\nafter them? Oh, this is a mighty thing; and yet prayer is no more\nbefore God than as it is seasoned with these blessed qualifications.\nWherefore it is said, that while men are praying, God is searching\nthe heart to see what is the meaning of the Spirit, or whether there\nbe the Spirit and his meaning in all that the mouth hath uttered,\neither by words, sighs, or groans, because it is by him and through\nhis help only that any make prayers according to the will of God.\nRom. 8:26,27.\n\nPREPARATION FOR PRATER.\n\nBefore you enter into prayer, ask thy soul these questions: To what\nend, O my soul, art thou retired into this place? Art thou not come\nto discourse the Lord in prayer? Is he present, will he hear thee?\nIs he merciful, will he help thee? Is thy business slight, is it not\nconcerning the welfare of thy soul? What words wilt thou use to move\nhim to compassion?\n\nTHE THRONE OF GRACE.\n\nWe know the throne of grace from other thrones by the glory that it\nalways appears in when revealed to us of God: its glory outshines\nall; there is no such glory to be seen anywhere else, either in\nheaven or earth. But I say, this comes by the sight that God gives,\nnot by any excellency that there is in my natural understanding, as\nsuch: my understanding and apprehension, simply as natural, are\nblind and foolish; wherefore, when I set to work in mine own spirit\nand in the power of mine own abilities, to reach to this throne of\ngrace and to perceive somewhat of the glory thereof, then am I dark,\nrude, foolish; I see nothing, and my heart grows flat, dull,\nsavorless, lifeless, and has no warmth in the duty; but it mounts up\nwith wings like an eagle when the throne is truly apprehended.\n\nThis throne is the seat of grace and mercy, and therefore it is\ncalled the mercy-seat and throne of grace. This throne turns all\ninto grace, all into mercy; this throne makes all things work\ntogether for good. It is said of Saul's sons, 2 Sam. 21:10-14, they\nwere not buried after they were hanged until water dropped upon them\nout of heaven; and it may be said of us, there is nothing suffered\nto come near us until it is washed in that water that proceeds from\nthe throne of grace. Hence afflictions flow from grace; persecutions\nflow from grace; poverty, sickness, yea, death itself is now made\nours by the grace of God through Christ. Psa. 119:67-71; 1 Cor.\n3:22; Rev. 3:19; Heb. 12:5-7. O grace, O happy church of God! all\nthings that happen to thee are for Christ's sake turned into grace.\nThey talk of the philosopher's stone, and how if one had it, it\nwould turn all things into gold. Oh, but can it turn all things into\ngrace--can it make all things work together for good? No, no; this\nquality, virtue, excellency--what shall I call it?--nothing has in\nit but the grace that reigns on the throne of grace, the river that\nproceeds from the throne of God. This, this turns majesty,\nauthority, the highest authority, glory, wisdom, faithfulness,\njustice, and all into grace. Here is a throne; may God let us see\nit. John had the honor to see it, and to see the streams proceeding\nfrom it. O sweet sight, O heart-cherishing sight! \"He showed me a\npure river of water of life proceeding out of the throne of God.\"\n\nIndeed, as was hinted before, in the days of the reign of antichrist\nthere are not those visions of this throne, nor of the river that\nproceedeth therefrom: now he holdeth back the face of his throne,\nand spreadeth a cloud upon it; but the preserving, saving benefits\nthereof we have, as also have all the saints in the most cloudy and\ndark day. And since we can see so little, we must believe the more;\nand by believing, give glory to God. We must also labor for more\nclear scripture knowledge of this throne, for the holy word of God\nis the perspective-glass by which we may, and the magnifying-glass\nthat will cause us to behold with open face the glory of this Lord.\n2 Cor. 3: 18.\n\n\"A throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne;\" that is,\nGod. And this intimates his desirable rest for ever; for to sit is\nto rest, and Christ is his rest for ever. Was it not therefore well\nworth the seeing-yea, if John had taken the pains to go up thither\nupon his hands and knees?\n\nIt is grace that chooses, it is grace that calleth; it is grace that\npreserveth, and it is grace that brings to glory, even the grace\nthat, like a river of water of life, proceeds from this\" throne of\ngrace;\" and hence it is, that from first to last, we must cry,\nGrace, grace, unto it.\n\nThus you see what a throne the Christian is invited to: it is a\nthrone of grace whereon doth sit the God of all grace; it is a\nthrone of grace before which the Lord Jesus ministers continually\nfor us; it is a throne of grace sprinkled with the blood, and in the\nmidst of which is a Lamb as it had been slain; it is a throne with a\nrainbow round about it, which is the token of the everlasting\ncovenant, and out of which proceeds a river, a pure river of water\nof life, clear as crystal.\n\nLook then for these signs of the throne of grace, all you that would\ncome to it, and rest not until by some of them you know that you are\neven come to it: they are all to be seen, have you but eyes; and the\nsight of them is very delectable, and has a natural tendency to\nrevive and quicken the soul.\n\nPRAYER IN THE NAME OF CHUIST.\n\nHe that thinks to find grace at God's hand, and yet enters not into\nthe holiest by the blood of Jesus, will find himself mistaken, and\nwill find a dead instead of a living way. For if not any thing below\nor besides blood can yield remission on God's part, how should\nremission be received by us without our acting faith therein? We are\njustified by his blood, through faith in his blood.\n\nWherefore look, when thou approachest the throne of grace, that thou\ngive diligence to seek for the \"Lamb as it had been slain,\" that is\nin the midst of the throne of grace; and then thou wilt have not\nonly a sign that thou presentest thy supplication to God where and\nas thou shouldst, but there also wilt thou meet with matter to\nbreak, to soften, to bend, to bow, and to make thy heart as thou\nwouldst have it. This sight shall dissolve and melt down the spirit\nof that man that is upon his knees before the throne of grace for\nmercy; especially when he shall see, that not his prayers, nor his\ntears, nor his wants, but the blood of the Lamb, has prevailed with\na God of grace to give mercy and grace to an undeserving sinner.\n\nGod hath prepared a golden altar for thee to offer thy prayers and\ntears upon, coming sinner. A golden altar! It is called a _golden\naltar_, to show what worth it is of in God's account; for this\ngolden altar is Jesus Christ--this altar sanctifies thy gift, and\nmakes thy sacrifice acceptable.\n\nThis altar then makes thy groans golden groans, thy tears golden\ntears, and thy prayers golden prayers, in the eye of that God thou\ncomest to.\n\nBENEFIT OF PRAYER.\n\nPray often; for prayer is a shield for the soul, a sacrifice to God,\nand a scourge for Satan.\n\nLook yonder! Ah, methinks mine eyes do see Clouds edged with silver,\nas fine garments be; They look as if they saw the golden face That\nmakes black clouds most beautiful with grace.\n\nUnto the saints' sweet incense of their prayer, These smoky curled\nclouds I do compare; For as these clouds seem edged or laced with\ngold, Their prayers return with blessings manifold.\n\nPrayer is as the pitcher that fetcheth water from the brook,\ntherewith to water the herbs: break the pitcher and it will fetch no\nwater, and for want of water the garden withers.\n\nThe godly have found all other places, the throne of grace excepted,\nempty, and places that hold no water. They have been at mount Sinai\nfor help, but could find nothing there but fire and darkness, but\nthunder and lightning, but earthquakes and trembling, and a voice of\nkilling words.\n\nThey have sought for grace by their own performances; but, alas,\nthey have yielded them nothing but wind and confusion; not a\nperformance, not a duty, not an act in any part of religious\nworship, but they, looking upon it in the glass of the Lord, do find\nit specked and defective.\n\nThey have sought for grace by their resolutions, their vows, their\npurposes, and the like; but alas, they all do as the other, discover\nthat they have been very imperfectly managed, and so are such as can\nby no means help them to grace.\n\nThey have gone to their tears, their sorrow, and repentance, if\nperhaps they might find some help there; but all has fled away like\nthe early dew.\n\nThey have gone to God as the great Creator, and have beheld how\nwonderful his works have been; they have looked to the heavens\nabove, to the earth beneath, and to all their ornaments; but neither\nhave these, nor what is of them, yielded grace to those that had\nsensible want thereof.\n\nThey have gone with these pitchers to their fountains, and have\nreturned empty and ashamed; they found no water, no river of water\nof life.\n\nPaul, not finding it in the law, despairs to find it in any thing\nelse below, but presently betakes himself to look for it where he\nhad not yet found it: he looked for it by Jesus Christ, who is the\nthrone of grace, where he found it, and rejoiced in hope of the\nglory of God.\n\nO, when a God of grace is upon a throne of grace, and a poor sinner\nstands by and begs for grace, and that in the name of a gracious\nChrist, in and by the help of the Spirit of grace, can it be\notherwise but such a sinner must obtain mercy and grace to help in\ntime of need?\n\nAll the sorrow that is mixed with our Christianity proceeds, as the\nprocuring cause, from ourselves, not from the throne of grace; for\nthat is the place where our tears are wiped away, and also where we\nhang up our crutches: the streams thereof are pure and clear, not\nmuddy nor frozen, but warm and delightful, and they make glad the\ncity of God.\n\nDISCOURAGEMENTS IN PRAYER.\n\nThere is an aptness in those that come to the throne of grace, to\ncast every degree of faith away that carries not in it self-evidence\nof its own being and nature, thinking that if it be faith, it must\nbe known to the soul; yea, if it be faith, it will do so and\nso--even so as the highest degree of faith will do: when, alas,\nfaith is sometimes in a calm, sometimes up, and sometimes down, and\nsometimes in conflict with sin, death, and the devil. Faith now has\nbut little time to speak peace to the conscience; it is now\nstruggling for life, it is now fighting with angels, with infernals;\nall it can do now, is to cry, groan, sweat, fear, fight, and gasp\nfor life.\n\nI know what it is to go to God for mercy, and stand all the while\nthrough fear afar off, being possessed with this, Will not God now\nsmite me at once to the ground for my sins? David thought something\nso when he said as he prayed, \"Cast me not away from thy presence,\nand take not thy Holy Spirit from me.\"\n\nNone know, but those that have them, what turns and returns, what\ncoming on and going off, there are in the spirit of a man that\nindeed is awakened, and that stands awakened before the glorious\nMajesty in prayer.\n\nIt is a great matter, in praying to God, not to go too far; nor come\ntoo short; and a man is very apt to do one or the other. The\nPharisee went so far, he was too bold; he came into the temple\nmaking, such a ruffle with his own excellencies, there was in his\nthoughts no need of a Mediator.\n\nIt has been the custom of praying men to keep their distance, and\nnot to be rudely bold in rushing into the presence of the holy and\nheavenly Majesty, especially if they have been sensible of their own\nvileness and sins, as the prodigal, the lepers, and the poor\npublican were. Yea, Peter himself, when upon a time he perceived\nmore than commonly he did of the majesty of Jesus his Lord, what\ndoth he do? \"He fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me,\nfor I am a sinful man, O Lord.\"\n\nOh, when men see God and themselves, it fills them with holy fear of\nthe greatness of the majesty of God, as well as with love to, and\ndesire after, his mercy.\n\nWhat is poor sorry man, poor dust and ashes, that he should crowd\nup, and go jostlingly into the presence of the great God?\n\nFor my part, I find it one of the hardest things that I can put my\nsoul upon, even to come to God, when warmly sensible that I am a\nsinner, for a share in grace, in mercy. Oh, methinks it seems to me\nas if the whole face of the heavens were set against me. Yea, the\nvery thought of God, strikes me through; I cannot bear up, I cannot\nstand before him; I cannot but with a thousand tears say, \"God be\nmerciful to me a sinner.\" Ezra 9: 15.\n\nAt another time, when my heart is more hard and stupid, and when his\nterror doth not make me afraid, then I can come before him and ask\nmercy at his hand, and scarce be sensible of sin or grace, or that\nindeed I am before God. But above all, they are the rare times, when\nI can go to God as the publican, sensible of his glorious majesty,\nsensible of my misery, and bear up, and affectionately cry, \"God be\nmerciful to me a sinner.\"\n\nAt certain times the most godly man in the world may be hard put to\nit by the sin that dwelleth in him; yea, so hard put to it, that\nthere can be no way to save himself from a fall, but by imploring\nheaven and the throne of grace for help. This is called the\nneedy-time, the time when the wayfaring man that knocked at David's\ndoor shall knock at ours; or when we are got into the sieve into\nwhich Satan did get Peter; or when those fists are about our ears\nthat were about Paul's; and when that thorn pricks us that Paul said\nwas in his flesh. But why, or how comes it to pass, that the godly\nare so hard put to it at these times, but because there is in\nthem--that is, in their flesh--no good thing, but consequently all\naptness to close in with the devil and his suggestions, to the\noverthrow of the soul?\n\nBut now, here we are presented with a throne of grace, unto which,\nas David says, we must continually resort; and that is the way to\nohtain relief and to find help in time of need.\n\nDISCOURAGEMENTS TO PRAYER REMOVED.\n\nQUERY. What would you have a poor creature do, that cannot tell how\nto pray?\n\nANSWER. Thou canst not, thou complainest, pray; canst thou see thy\nmisery? Hath God showed thee that thou art by nature under the curse\nof his law? If so, do not mistake. I know thou dost groan, and that\nmost bitterly; I am persuaded thou canst scarcely be found doing any\nthing in thy calling. But prayer breaks from thy heart. Have not thy\ngroans gone up to heaven from every corner of thy house? I know it\nis thus: and so also doth thine own sorrowful heart witness thy\ntears and thy forgetfulness of thy calling. Is not thy heart so full\nof desires after the things of another world, that many times thou\ndost even forget the things of this world? Prithee, read this\nscripture: Job 23: 12.\n\nQUERY. Yea, but when I go in secret, and intend to pour out my soul\nbefore God, I can scarce say any thing at all.\n\nANSWER. Ah, sweet soul, it is not thy words that God so much\nregards, that he will not mind thee except thou comest before him\nwith some eloquent oration. His eye is on the brokenness of thy\nheart; and that it is which makes the compassions of the Lord run\nover: \"A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.\"\n\nThe stopping of thy words--may arise from overmuch trouble in thy\nheart. David was so troubled sometimes that he could not speak. But\nthis may comfort all such sorrowful hearts as thine, that though\nthou canst not through the anguish of thy spirit speak much, yet the\nHoly Spirit stirs up in thy heart groans and sighs so much the more\nvehement.\n\nAFFECTIONATE CONFIDENCE IN PRAYER.\n\nGod has given thee his Son's righteousness to justify thee; he has\nalso, because thou art a son, sent forth the Spirit of his Son into\nthy heart to satisfy thee, and to help thee to cry unto him, Father,\nFather! Wilt thou not cry? wilt thou not desire? Thy God has \"bidden\nthee open thy mouth; he has bid thee open it wide,\" and promised,\nsaying, \"and I will fill it;\" and wilt thou not desire?\n\nOh, thou hast a license, a leave, a grant to desire; wherefore, \"be\nnot afraid to desire great mercies of the God of heaven.\"\n\nOBJECTION. \"But I am an unworthy creature.\"\n\nANSWER. That is true; but God gives to no man for his worthiness,\nnor rejects any for their sinfulness, that come to him sensible of\nthe want and worth of mercy for them. Besides, the desires of a\nrighteous man, and the desires or his God, agree. God has a desire\nto thee, thou hast a desire to him. God desires truth in the inward\nparts and so dost thou with all thy heart. God desires mercy, and to\nshow it to the needy; that is what thou also wantest, and what thy\nsoul craves at his hand.\n\nSeek, man; ask, knock, and do not be discouraged; the Lord will\ngrant all thy desires. Thou sayest thou art unworthy to ask the\ngreatest things, things spiritual and heavenly: well, will carnal\nthings serve thee, and answer the desires of thy heart? Canst thou\nbe content to be put off with a belly well filled and a back well\nclothed?\n\n\"Oh, better I never had been born.\"\n\nSee! thou wilt not ask the best, and yet canst not make shift\nwithout them.\n\n\"Shift? no; no shift without them; I am undone without them, undone\nfor ever and ever,\" sayest thou.\n\nWell then, desire.\n\n\"So I do,\" sayest thou.\n\nAh, but desire with more strong desires; desire with more large\ndesires; desire spiritual gifts, covet them earnestly; thou hast a\nlicense too to do so. God bids thee do so, for he hath said, \"The\ndesire of the righteous shall be granted.\"\n\nGOD'S METHOD OF ANSWERING PRAYER.\n\n\"The desire of the righteous shall be granted.\" But I find it not\nso, says one; for though I have desired and desired a thousand times\nupon my knees, for something that I want, yet I have not my desire;\nand indeed, the consideration of this has made me question whether I\nam one of those to whom the promise of granting desires is made.\n\nANSWER. What are the things thou desirest; are they lawful or\nunlawful? for a Christian may desire unlawful things.\n\nBut we will suppose that the thing thou. desirest is good, and that\nthy heart may be right in asking, as, suppose thou desirest more\ngrace; yet there are several things for thy instruction may be\napplied to thy objection: as,\n\n1. Thou, though thou desirest more of this, mayest not yet be so\nsensible of the worth of what thou askest, as perhaps God will have\nthee be before he granteth thy desire.\n\n2. Hast thou well improved what thou hast received already?\n\n3. When God gives to his people the grant of their desires, he doth\nit so as may be best for our advantage: as,\n\n(1.) Just before a temptation comes; then if it rains grace on thee\nfrom heaven, it may be most for thy advantage. This is like God's\nsending plenty in Egypt just before the years of famine came.\n\n(2.) Christians, even righteous men, are apt to lean too much to\ntheir own doings; and God, to wean them from them, ofttimes defers\nto do, what they by doing expect, until in doing their spirits are\nspent, and they, as to doing, can do no longer. When they that cried\nfor water, had cried till their spirits failed, and their tongue did\ncleave to the roof of their mouth for thirst, then the Lord did\nhear, and then the God of Israel did give them their desire. The\nrighteous would be too light in asking, and would too much owrprize\ntheir works, if their God should not sometimes deal in this manner\nwith them.\n\n(3.) It is also to the advantage of the righteous, that they be kept\nand led in that way which will best improve grace already received,\nand that is, when they spin it out and use it to the utmost; when\nthey do with it as the prophet did with that meal's meat that he ate\nunder the juniper-tree, \"go in the strength of it forty days and\nforty nights, even to the mount of God.\" Or when they do as the\nwidow did--spend upon their handful of flour in the barrel, and upon\nthat little oil in the cruse, till God shall send more plenty.\n\nA little true grace will go a great way, yea, and do more wonders\nthan we are aware of. If we have but grace enough to keep us\ngroaning after God, it is not all the world that can destroy us.\n\n4. Perhaps thou mayest be mistaken. The grace thou prayest for may\nin a great measure be come unto thee.\n\nThou hast been desiring of God, thou sayest, more grace, but hast it\nnot.\n\nBut how, if while thou lookest for it to come to thee at one door,\nit come to thee at another? And that we may a little inquire into\nthe truth of this, let us a little, consider what are the effects of\ngrace in its coming to the soul, and then see if it has not been\ncoming unto thee almost ever since thou hast set upon this fresh\ndesire after it.\n\n(1.) Grace, in the general effect of it, is to mend the soul, and to\nmake it better disposed. Hence, when it comes, it brings convincing\nlight along with it, by which a man sees more of his baseness than\nat other times. If, then, thou seest thyself more vile than\nformerly, grace by its coming to thee has done this for thee.\n\n(2.) Grace, when it comes, breaks and crumbles the heart in the\nsense and sight of its own vileness. A man stands amazed and\nconfounded in himself; breaks and falls down on his face before God;\nis ashamed to lift up so much as his face to God, at the sight and\napprehension of how wicked he is.\n\n(3.) Grace, when it comes, shows to a man more of the holiness and\npatience of God; his holiness to make us wonder at his patience, and\nhis patience to make us wonder at his mercy, that yet, even yet,\nsuch a vile one as I am should be admitted to breathe in the land of\nthe living, yea more, suffered to come to the throne of grace.\n\n(4.) Grace is of a heart-humbling nature; it will make a man account\nhimself the most unworthy of any thing, of all saints. It will make\na man put all others before him, and be glad too if he may be one\nbeloved, though least beloved because most unworthy. It will make\nhim with gladness accept of the lowest room, as counting all saints\nmore worthy of exaltation than himself.\n\n(5.) Grace will make a man prize other men's graces and gracious\nactions above his own; as he thinks every man's candle burns\nbrighter than his, every man improves grace better than he, every\ngood man does more sincerely his duty than he. And if these be not\nsome of the effects of the renewings of grace, I will confess I have\ntaken my mark amiss.\n\n(6.) Renewings of grace beget renewed self-bemoanings,\nself-condemnations, self-abhorrences.\n\nAnd say thou prayest for communion with, and the presence of God.\nGod can have communion with thee and grant thee his presence, and\nall this shall, instead of comforting thee at present, more confound\nthee and make thee see thy wickedness.\n\nSome people think they never have the presence and renewings of\nGod's grace upon them, but when they are comforted and when they are\ncheered up--when, alas, God may be richly with them, while they cry\nout by these visions, My sorrows are multiplied; or, Because I have\nseen God, I shall die.\n\nAnd tell me now, all these things considered, has not grace, even\nthe grace of God which thou hast so much desired, been coming to\nthee and working in thee in all these hidden methods? Thus therefore\nthy desire is accomplishing, and when it is accomplished will be\nsweet to thy soul.\n\n5. But we will follow thee a little in the way of thy heart. Thou\nsayest thou desirest, and desirest grace, yea, hast been a thousand\ntimes upon thy knees before God for more grace, and yet thou canst\nnot attain.\n\nI answer, (1.) It maybe, the grace which thou prayest for is worth\nthy being upon thy knees yet a thousand times more. \"We find that\nusually they that go to king's courts for preferment, are there at\ngreat expenses, yea, and wait a great while, even until they have\nspent their whole estates, and worn out their patience too.\"\n\nYet they at last prevail, and the thing desired comes; yea, and when\nit is come, it sets them up anew and makes them better men, though\nthey did spend all they had to obtain it, than ever they were\nbefore. Wait, therefore, wait, I say, on the Lord; bid thy soul\ncheer up and wait. \"Blessed are all they that wait for him.\"\n\n(2.) Thou must consider that great grace is reserved for great\nservice. Thou desirest abundance of grace; thon doest well, and thou\nshalt have what shall qualify thee for the service that God has for\nthee to do for him, and for his name in the world. The apostles\nthemselves were to stay for great grace until the time their work\nwas come. I will not allot thy service, but assure thyself, when thy\ndesire cometh, thou wilt have occasion for it--new work, new trials,\nnew sufferings, or something that will call for the power and virtue\nof all the grace thou shalt have to keep thy spirit even, and thy\nfeet from slipping, while thou art exercised in new engagements.\n\nAssure thyself thy God will not give thee straw, but he will expect\nbrick. \"For unto whomsoever much is given, of him much shall be\nrequired.\" Wherefore, as thou art busy in desiring more grace, be\nalso desirous that wisdom to manage it with faithfulness may also be\ngranted unto thee.\n\nThou wilt say, Grace, if I had it, will do all this for me.\n\nIt will, and will not. It will, if thou watch and be sober; it will\nnot, if thou be foolish and remiss. Men of great grace may grow\nconsumptive in grace, and idleness may turn him that wears a plush\njacket into rags. David was once a man of great grace, but his sin\nmade the grace which he had so to shrink up and dwindle away as to\nmake him cry out, O take not thy Spirit utterly from me!\n\n(3.) Or, perhaps God withholds what thou wouldst have, that it may\nbe the more prized by thee when it comes. \"Hope deferred maketh the\nheart sick; but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.\"\n\n(4.) Lastly. But dost thou think that thy more grace will exempt\nthee from temptations? Alas, the more grace, the greater trials.\nThou must be, for all that, like the ship of which thou readest:\nsometimes high, sometimes low; sometimes steady, sometimes\nstaggering; and sometimes even at the end of thy very wits: \"For so\nhe brings us to our desired haven.\"\n\nYet grace is the gold and preciousness of the righteous man: yea,\nand herein appears the uprightness of his soul, in that, though all\nthese things attend the grace of God in him, yet he chooseth grace\nhere above all, for that it makes him the more like God and his\nChrist, and for that it seasons his heart best to his own content;\nand also for that it capacitates him to glorify God in the world.\n\nRELIEF IN PRAYER.\n\nIf from a sense of thy vileness thou do pour out thy heart to God,\ndesiring to be saved from the guilt and cleansed from the filth with\nall thy heart, fear not; thy vileness will not cause the Lord to\nstop his ear from hearing thee. The value of the blood of Christ,\nwhich is sprinkled upon the mercy-seat, stops the course of justice,\nand opens a floodgate for the mercy of the Lord to be extended unto\nthee.\n\nFAITH IN PRAYER.\n\nOf old, beggars did use to carry their bowls in their laps when they\nwent to a door for alms; consequently, if their bowls were but\nlittle, they ofttimes came off with a loss, though the charity of\nthe giver was large. Art thou a beggar, a beggar at God's door? be\nsure thou gettest a great bowl, for as thy bowl is, so will be thy\nmess. \"According to thy faith be it unto thee.\"\n\nWRESTLING PRAYER.\n\nA wrestling spirit of prayer is a demonstration of an Israel of God;\nthis Jacob had, this he made use of, and by this he obtained the\nname of Israel. A wrestling spirit of prayer in straits,\ndifficulties, and distresses--a wrestling spirit of prayer when\nalone, in private, in the night, when no eye seeth but God's, then\nto be at it, then to lay hold of God, then to wrestle, to hold fast,\nand not to give over until the blessing is obtained, is a sign of\none that is an Israel of God.\n\nAs this word, \"LET Israel hope in the Lord,\" is sometimes equivalent\nto a command, so it is expressed sometimes also to show a grant,\nleave, or license to do a thing, such are these that follow: \"Let us\ncome boldly to the throne of grace; let us draw near with a true\nheart; let us hold fast the profession of our faith without\nwavering.\" Understand the word thus, and it shows you how muddy how\ndark those of Israel are, and how little they are acquainted with\nthe goodness of their God who stand shrinking at his door like\nbeggars, and dare not in a godly sort be bold with his mercy.\nWherefore standest thou thus with thy ifs and thy O-buts, O thou\npoor benighted Israelite? Wherefore puttest thou thy hand in thy\nbosom, as being afraid to touch the hem of the garment of thy Lord?\n\nTHE PUBLICAN'S PRAYER.\n\n\"God be merciful to me a sinner.\" Herein the publican showeth\nwonderful wisdom. For,\n\n1. By this he thrusts himself under the shelter and blessing of the\npromise; and I am sure it is better and safer to do so than to rely\nupon the best excellencies that this world can afford. Hosea 14:\n1-4.\n\n2. He takes the ready way to please God; for God takes more delight\nin showing mercy than in any thing that we can do. Hosea 6:6; Matt.\n9:13; 12:7. Yea, and that also is the man that pleaseth him, even he\nthat hopes in his mercy. Psalm 147: 1. The publican, therefore,\nwhatever the Pharisee might think, stood all this while upon sure\nground, and had by far the start of him for heaven. Alas, his dull\nhead could look no further than to the conceit of the pitiful beauty\nand splendor of his own righteousness; nor durst he leave that to\ntrust wholly to the mercy of God. But the publican comes out, though\nin his sins, yet like an awakened, enlightened, resolved man; and\nfirst abases himself, then gives God the glory of his justice, and\nafter that the glory of his mercy, by saying, \"God be merciful to me\na sinner.\" And thus in the ears of the angels he did ring the\nchanges of heaven. And,\n\n3. The publican, in his thus putting himself upon mercy, showeth\nthat in his opinion there is more virtue in mercy to save, than\nthere is in the law and sin to condemn. And although this is not\ncounted a great matter to do, while men are far from the law and\nwhile their conscience is asleep within them, yet when the law comes\nnear and conscience is awake, whoso tries it will find it a\nlaborious work. Cain could not do thus for his heart, no, nor soul;\nnor Judas neither. This is another kind of thing than most men think\nit to be, or shall find it whenever they shall behold God's angry\nface, and when they shall hear the words of his law.\n\nHowever, our publican did it, and ventured his body, soul, and\nfuture condition for ever in this bottom, with other the saints and\nservants of God; leaving the world to swim over the sea of God's\nwrath, if they, will, in their weak and simple vessels of bulrushes,\nor to lean upon their cobweb-hold, when he shall arise to the\njudgment that he hath appointed.\n\n\"He would not lift up his eyes to heaven.\" Why? Surely because shame\nhad covered his face. Shame will make a man blush and hang his head\nlike a bulrush. Shame for sin is a virtue, a comely thing, yea, a\nbeauty-spot in the face of a sinner that cometh to God for mercy.\n\nOh, to stand, or sit, or lie, or kneel, or walk before God in\nprayer, with blushing cheeks for sin, is one of the excellent sights\nthat can be seen in the world.\n\nPOSTURE IN PRAYER.\n\nThere is no stinted order presented for our behaving ourselves in\nprayer, whether kneeling, or standing, or walking, or lying, or\nsitting; for all these postures have been used by the godly. Paul\nkneeled down and prayed; Abraham and the publican stood and prayed;\nDavid prayed as he walked; Abraham prayed lying upon his face; Moses\nprayed sitting. And indeed prayer, effectual fervent prayer, may be\nand often is made unto God under all these circumstances. For God\nhas not tied us up to any of them; and he that shall tie himself or\nhis people to any of these, doeth more than he hath warrant for from\nGod. And let such take care of innovating; it is the next way to\nmake men hypocrites and dissemblers in those duties in which they\nshould be sincere. Acts 20:36; 2 Sam. 15:30, 31; Gen. 17:17, 18;\nExod. 17:12.\n\nCLOSET-INIQUITY.\n\nLet those that name the name of Christ depart from the iniquity of\ntheir closet--when men have a closet to talk of, not to pray in; a\ncloset to look upon, not to bow before God in, a closet to lay up\ngold in, but not to mourn in for the sins of the life; a closet\nthat, could it speak, would say, My owner is seldom here upon his\nknees before the God of heaven, seldom here humbling himself for the\niniquity of his heart, or to thank God for the mercies of his life.\n\nThen also a man is guilty of closet-iniquity when, though he doth\nnot utterly live in the neglect of duty, he formally, carnally, and\nwithout reverence and godly fear, performs it. Also when he asketh\nGod for that which he cannot abide should be given him; or when he\nprayeth for that in his closet, that he cannot abide in his house\nnor his life.\n\nIt is a great thing to be a closet-Christian, and to hold it; he\nmust be a close-Christian that will be a closet-Christian. When I\nsay a close-Christian, I mean one that is so in the hidden part, and\nthat also walks with God. Many there be that profess Christ, who do\noftener frequent the coffee-house than their closet; and that sooner\nin a morning run to make bargains, than to pray unto God and begin\nthe day with him. But for thee, who professest the name of Christ,\ndo thou depart from all these things; do thou make conscience of\nreading and practising; do thou follow after righteousness; do thou\nmake conscience of beginning the day with God. For he that begins it\nnot with him, will hardly end it with him; he that runs from God in\nthe morning, will hardly find him at the close of the day; nor will\nhe that begins with the world and the vanities thereof in the first\nplace, be very capable of walking with God all the day after. It is\nhe that finds God in his closet, that will carry the savor of him\ninto his house, his shop, and his more open conversation. When Moses\nhad been with God in the mount his face shone, he brought of that\nglory into the camp. Exod. 34.\n\nFORMAL PRAYER.\n\n\"Thy kingdom come; thy will be done.\" Wouldst thou have the kingdom\nof God come indeed, and also his will to be done in earth as it is\nin heaven? Nay, notwithstanding thou sayest, \"Thy kingdom come,\" yet\nwould it not make thee ready to run mad, to hear the trumpet sound,\nto see the dead arise, and thyself just now to go and appeal before\nGod, to reckon for all the deeds thou hast done in the body? Nay,\nare not the very thoughts of it altogether displeasing to thee?\n\nAnd if God's will should be done on earth as it is in heaven, must\nit not be thy ruin? There is never a rebel against God in heaven;\nand if he should so deal on earth, must he not whirl thee down to\nhell? And so of the rest of the petitions.\n\nAh, how sadly would even these men look, and with what terror would\nthey walk up and down the world, if they did but know the lying and\nblaspheming that proceedeth out of their mouth, even in their most\npretended sanctity!\n\nTHE PRAYERLESS.\n\nI tell thee who never prayest, the ravens shall rise up in judgment\nagainst thee; for they will, according to their kind, make signs and\na noise for something to refresh them when they want it; but thou\nhast not the heart to ask for heaven, though thou must eternally\nperish in hell if thou hast it not.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXX. FALSE PROFESSION.\n\n\n\n\n\nAs there are trees and herbs that are wholly right and noble, fit\nindeed for the vineyard, so there are also their semblance, but\nwild; not right, but ignoble. There is the grape, and the wild\ngrape; the vine, and the wild vine; the rose, and the canker-rose;\nflowers, and wild flowers; the apple, and the wild apple, which we\ncall the crab. Now, fruit from these wild things, however they may\nplease the children to play with, yet the prudent and grave count\nthem of little or no value. There are also in the world a generation\nof professors that, notwithstanding their profession, are wild by\nnature; yea, such as were never cut out or off from the wild\nolive-tree, nor ever yet planted into the good olive-tree. Now these\ncan bring forth nothing but wild olive-berries; they cannot bring\nforth fruit unto God. Such are all those that have lightly taken up\na profession, and crept into the vineyard without a new birth and\nthe blessing of regeneration.\n\nThe porch [Footnote: This passage is from \"The House of the Forest\nof Lebanon,\" which Bunyan regarded as a type of the church in her\npersecuted state.] is but the entrance of the house, whither many go\nthat yet step not into the house, but make their retreat from\nthence; but it is because they are non-residents: they only come to\nsee; or else, if they pretended more, it was not from the heart.\n\"They went out from us,\" said John, \"but they were not of us; for if\nthey had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us; but\nthey went out that it might be made manifest that they were not all\nof us.\"\n\nAnd forasmuch as this porch was fifty cubits long, men may take many\na step straightforward therein, and be but in the porch yet; even as\nwe have seen men go as one would think till they are out of view, in\nthe porch of this church in the wilderness; but presently you have\nthem without the door again.\n\nTrue, this porch was made of pillars; and so to every one, at first\nentrance, it seemed the power of the place. The church in the\nwilderness also is so builded, that men may see that it is ordained\nfor defence. Men also, at their first offer to step over the\nthreshold there, with mouth profess that they will dwell as soldiers\nthere. But words are but wind: when they see the storm coming, they\nwill take care to shift for themselves. This house or church in the\nwilderness must see to itself for all them.\n\nThe church also in the wilderness, even in her porch or first\nentrance into it, is full of pillars--apostles, prophets, and\nmartyrs of Jesus. There also hang up the shields that the old\nwarriors have used, and there are plastered upon the walls the brave\nachievements which they have done. There also are such\nencouragements there for those that stand, that one would think none\nthat came thither with pretence to serve there, would for very shame\nattempt to go back again; and yet not to their credit be it spoken,\nthey will forsake the place without blushing, yea, and plead for\nthis their so doing.\n\nThere is the wilfully ignorant professor, or he that is afraid to\nknow more for fear of the cross. He is for picking and choosing of\ntruth, and loveth not to hazard his all for that worthy name by\nwhich he would be called. When he is at any time overset by\narguments or awakenings of conscience, he uses to heal all by, \"I\nwas not brought up in this faith;\" as if it were unlawful for\nChristians to know more than hath been taught them at first\nconversion. There are many scriptures that lie against this man, as\nthe mouths of great guns.\n\nThere is another professor; and he is for God and for Baal too: he\ncan be any thing for any company; he can throw stones with both\nhands; his religion alters as fast as his company; he is a frog of\nEgypt, and can live in the water and out of the water; he can live\nin religious company, and again as well out. Nothing that is\ndisorderly comes amiss to him; he can hold with the hare and run\nwith the hound; he carries fire in one hand and water in the other;\nhe is a very, any thing but what he should be. This is also one of\nthe many that \"will seek to enter in, and will not be able.\"\n\nChristian and Hopeful, after their headstrong manner, (said Mr.\nBy-ends,) conclude that it is their duty to rush on their journey\nall weathers; and I am for waiting for wind and tide. They are for\nhazarding all for God at a clap; and I am for taking all advantages\nto secure my life and estate. They are for holding their notions,\nthough all other men be against them; but I am for religion in what\nand so far as the times and any safety will bear it. They are for\nreligion when in rags and contempt; but I am for him when he walks\nin golden slippers, in the sunshine, and with applause.\n\nThen I saw in my dream that Christian and Hopeful forsook him, and\nkept their distance before him; but one of them looking back, saw\nthree men following Mr. By-ends; and behold, as they came up with\nhim he made them a very low congee, and they also gave him a\ncompliment. The men's names were, Mr. Hold-the-world, Mr,\nMoney-love, and Mr. Save-all; men that Mr. By-ends had formerly been\nacquainted with, for in their minority they were schoolfellows, and\nwere taught by one Mr. Gripe-man, a schoolmaster in Love-gain, which\nis a market-town in the county of Coveting, in the North. This\nschoolmaster taught them the art of getting, either by violence,\ncozenage, flattery, lying, or by putting on a guise of religion; and\nthese four gentlemen had attained much of the art of their master,\nso that they could each of them have kept such a school themselves.\n\nThe Interpreter takes them out into his garden, and had them to a\ntree whose inside was all rotten and gone, and yet it grew and had\nleaves. Then said Mercy, \"What means this?\" \"This tree,\" said he,\n\"whose outside is fair and whose inside is rotten, is it which may\nbe compared to them that are in the garden of God, who with their\nmouths speak high in behalf of God, but in deed will do nothing for\nhim; whose leaves are fair, but their heart good for nothing but to\nbe tinder for the devil's tinder-box.\"\n\nThis is the reason of that evil-favoredness that you see attending\nsome men's lives and professions; they have been corrupted, as Adam\nwas, either by evil words or bad examples, even till the very face\nof their lives and professions are disfigured as with the pox or\ncanker.\n\nAs the bramble said to the rest of the trees, so saith Christ to\nfeigned thanksgivers, who pretend to give thanks for liberty, but\nrather use their liberty as an occasion for the flesh: If in truth\nye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust under my\nshadow; submit to my law, and be governed by my testament.\n\nHYPOCRISY.\n\nHypocrisy is one of the most abominable of iniquities. It is a sin\nthat dares it with God. It is a sin that saith God is ignorant, or\nthat he delighteth in iniquity. It is a sin that flattereth, that\ndissembleth, that offereth to hold God, as it were, fair in hand,\nabout that which is neither purposed nor intended. It is also a sin\nthat puts a man upon studying and contriving to beguile and deceive\nhis neighbor as to the bent and intent of the heart, and also as to\nthe cause and end of actions. It is a sin that persuadeth a man to\nmake a show of civility, morality, or religion, as a cloak, a\npretence, a guise to deceive withal. It will make a man preach for a\nplace and praise, rather than to glorify God and save souls; it will\nput a man upon talking, that he may be commended; it will make a\nman, when he is at prayer in his closet, strive to be heard without\ndoor; it will make a man ask for that he desireth not, and show zeal\nin duties when his heart is as cold, as senseless, and as much\nwithout savor as a clod; it will make a man pray to be seen and\nheard of men, rather than to be heard of God; it will make a man\nstrive to weep when he repenteth not, and to pretend much friendship\nwhen he doth not love; it will make a man pretend to experience and\nsanctification when he has none, and to faith and sincerity when he\nknows not what they are. There is opposed to this sin, simplicity,\ninnocence, and godly sincerity, without which three graces thou wilt\nbe a hypocrite. Believe that a hypocrite, with the cunning and\nshrouds for his hypocrisy, can go unseen no further than the grave;\nnor can he longer flatter himself with thoughts of life.\n\nA hypocrite and a false professor may go a great way; they may pass\nthrough the first and second watch, to wit, may be approved by\nChristians and churches; but what will they do when they come at the\niron gate that leadeth into the city?\n\nAs Luther says, \"In the name of God\" begins all mischief. For\nhypocrites have no other way to bring their evils to maturity, but\nby using and mixing the name of God and religion therewith. Thus\nthey become whited walls; for by this white, the white of religion,\nthe dirt of their actions is hid.\n\nReligion to most men is but a by-business, with which they use to\nfill up spare hours; or as a stalking-horse, which is used to catch\nthe game.\n\nThe Pharisees did carry the bell and wear the garland for religion.\n\nA fawning dog and a wolf in sheep's clothing; they differ a little\nin outward appearance, but they can both agree to worry Christ's\nlambs.\n\nCHRIST'S LOVE ABUSED.\n\nTake heed of abusing this love of Christ, Eph. 3: 18, 19. This\nexhortation seems needless; for love is such a thing as one would\nthink none could find in their hearts to abuse. But for all that, I\nam of opinion that there is nothing that is more abused among\nprofessors at this day, than is this love of God. And what can such\na one say for himself in the judgment, that shall be charged with\nthe abuse of love? Christians, deny yourselves, deny your lusts,\ndeny the vanities of this present life, devote yourselves to God,\nbecome lovers of God, lovers of his ways, and a people zealous of\ngood works; then shall you show to one another and to all men that\nyou have not received the grace of God in vain. And what a thing\nwill it be to be turned off at last, as one that abused the love of\nChrist; as one that presumed upon his lusts, this world, and all\nmanner of naughtiness, because the love of Christ to pardon sins was\nso great! What an unthinking, what a disingenuous one wilt thou be\ncounted at that day; yea, thou wilt be found to be the man that made\na prey of love, that made a stalk ing-horse of love, that made of\nlove a slave to sin, the devil, and the world; and will not that be\nhad?\n\nOBJECTION. If it be so, then men need not care what they do; they\nmay live in sin, seeing Christ hath made satisfaction.\n\nANSWER. If I were to point out one under the power of the devil,\ngoing hastily to hell, I would look no further for such a man than\nto him that would make such a use as this of the grace of God. What,\nbecause Christ is a Saviour, thou wilt be a sinner; because his\ngrace abounds, therefore thou wilt abound in sin! O wicked wretch,\nlet me tell thee before _I_ leave thee, as God's covenant with\nChrist for his children stands sure, immutable, and unchangeable, so\nalso hath God taken such a course with thee, that unless he deny\nhimself, it is impossible that thou shouldst go to heaven, dying in\nthat condition. They tempted God, proved him, and turned his grace\ninto lasciviousness; so he sware in his wrath, They shall not enter\ninto my rest. No, saith God, if Christ and heaven will not satisfy\nthem, hell must devour them. God hath more places than one in which\nto put sinners: if they do not like heaven, hell must be their\nresidence; if they do not love Christ, they must dwell for ever with\ndevils.\n\nPERVERSION OF THE TRUTH. Let those that name the name of Christ\ndepart from the iniquity that cleaveth to opinions. This is a sad\nage for that: let opinions in themselves be never so good, never so\nnecessary, never so innocent, yet there are spirits in the world\nthat will entail iniquity to them, and will make the vanity so\ninseparable from the opinion, that it is almost impossible with some\nto take in the opinion and leave out the iniquity that by craft and\nsubtlety of Satan is joined thereto. Nor is this a thing new and of\nyesterday; it has been thus almost in all ages of the church of God,\nand that not only in things small and indifferent, but in things\nfundamental and most substantial. I need instance in none other for\nproof hereof, but the doctrine of faith and holiness. If faith be\npreached as that which is absolutely necessary to justification,\nthen faith fantastical, and looseness and remissness in life, with\nsome, are joined therewith. If holiness of life be preached as\nnecessary to salvation, then faith is undervalued and set below its\nplace, and works, as to justification with God, set up and made\ncopartners with Christ's merits in the remission of sins. Thus\niniquity joineth itself with the greatest and most substantial\ntruths of the gospel; and it is hard to receive any good opinion\nwhatever, but iniquity will join itself thereto.\n\nA LATITUDINARIAN.\n\nWhat you say about doubtful opinions, alterable modes, rites, and\ncircumstances in religion, I know none so wedded thereto as\nyourselves, For you thus argue: \"Whatsoever of such are commended by\nthe custom of the place we live in, or commanded by superiors, or\nmade by any circumstance convenient to be done, our Christian\nliberty consists in this-that we have leave to do them.\"\n\nSo that, do but call them things indifferent, things that are the\ncustoms of the place we live in, or made by any circumstance\nconvenient, and a man may not doubt but he hath leave to do them,\nlet him live at Rome or Constantinople, or amidst the greatest\ncorruption of worship and government. There are therefore,\ndoubtless, a third sort of fundamentals, by which you can wrestle\nwith conviction of conscience, and stifle it-by which you can suit\nyourself for every fashion, mode, and way of religion. Here you may\nhop from Presbyterianism to a prelatical mode; and if time and\nchance should serve you, backwards and forwards again: yea, here you\ncan make use of several consciences, one for this way now, another\nfor that anon; now putting out the light of this by a sophistical,\ndelusive argument. then putting out the other by an argument that\nbest suits the time. Yea, how oft is the candle of the wicked put\nout by such glorious learning as this. Nay, _I_ doubt not but a man\nof your principles, were he put upon it, would not stick to count\nthose you call gospel-positive precepts,\n\n[Footnote: \"Latitudinarian.\" This term is used of a \"remarkable\nclass of divines,\" who flourished in England about the middle and\ntowards the close of the seventeenth century. Coleridge, in his\nLiterary Remains, says that they were generally Platonists, and all\nof them admirers of Grotius. \"They fell into the mistake of finding\nin the Greek philosophy many anticipations of the Christian faith,\nwhich in fact were but its echoes. The inference is as perilous as\ninevitable, namely, that even the mysteries of Christianity needed\nno revelation, having been previously discovered and set forth by\nunaided reason.\" They are thus characterized by Dr. Wm. R. Williams,\n(\"Miscellanies,\" p. 196:) \"Against infidelity and popery they did\ngood service in the cause of truth. Their dread of enthusiasm made\nthem frigid, and their mastery of the ancient philosophy made them\nprofound. Their doctrines were generally Arrninian. Their notions of\nchurch power were less rigid than those of the rival party, and they\nwere also more tolerant of difference in opinion. But in their\npreaching they laid the whole stress, well-nigh, of their efforts\nupon morals, to the neglect of doctrine; and in their theology, they\nattributed to human reason a strength and authority which gradually\nopened the way to the invasion of the gravest heresies. Of generally\npurer character than their opponents, they were also abler\npreachers. But while valuable as moral treatises, their sermons were\nmost defective; for the peculiar doctrines and spirit of the gospel\nwere evaporated.\" It cannot be doubted, that a class which included\nsuch men as Henry More, Cudworth, Tillotson, and Burnet, hardly\ndeserves the wholesale reprobation hurled upon it by Bunyan. That\nsome of them carried their LIBERALISM to a dangerous extreme, and\nthat all of them allowed too great latitude of sentiment in\ntheology, and, by their philosophical speculations, obscured the\nsimple glory of the gospel, is indeed true; but some who bore this\nname were men of unquestionable piety, as well as of eminent genius\nand scholarship.]\n\nIt is interesting to contrast the mixture of divine truth and human\nspeculation, and the almost melancholy doubts, exhibited in the\nwritings of so excellent a man as Cudworth, with the strong and\ncertain convictions, and the clear, well-defined views of Christian\ndoctrine of John Bunyan, connected as they were in his case with the\nalmost exclusive study of the word of God. We learn thereby not to\ndespise learning and philosophy, but to beware of lowering the\nauthority and of no value at all in the Christian religion; for now,\neven now, you do not stick to say that even the duty of going to God\nby Christ is one of these, and such a one as, if absolutely\nconsidered in itself, is neither good nor evil.\n\nHow, then, if God should cast you into Turkey, where Mahomet reigns\nas lord? it is but reckoning that it is the religion and custom of\nthe country, and that which is authorized by the power that is\nthere; wherefore, it is but sticking to your dictates of human\nnature, and remembering that coming to God by Christ is a thing of\nan indifferent nature in itself, and then for peace' sake and to\nsleep in a whole skin, you may comply and do as your superior\ncommands. Why? because in Turkey are your first sort of fundamentals\nall found; there are men that have human nature and the law of\nmorals written in their hearts; they have also the dictates thereof\nwritten within them, which teach them those you call the eternal\nlaws of righteousness: wherefore you both would agree in your\nessential and immutable differences of good and evil, and differ\nonly about these positive laws--indifferent things. Yea, and Mahomet\nalso for the time, because by a custom it is made convenient, might\nbe now accounted worshipful; and the circumstances that attend his\nworship, especially those of them that clash not with the dictates\nof your human nature, might also be swallowed down.\n\nBehold you here then, good reader, a glorious Latitudinarian, that\ncan, as to religion, turn and twist like an eel on the hook; or\nrather like the weathercock that stands on the steeple.\n\nCHANGING SINS.\n\nDost thou profess the name of Christ, and dost thou pretend to be a\nman departing from iniquity? Then take sufficiency of divine\nrevelation before human reason and speculation, and to acknowledge\nwith humble gratitude the rich rewards of an earnest and prayerful\nstudy of the English Scriptures. heed thou dost not deceive thyself,\nby changing one bad way of sinning for another bad way of sinning.\nThis was a trick that Israel played of old; for when God's prophets\nfollowed them hard with demands of repentance and reformation, then\nthey would \"gad about to change their ways.\" Jer. 2: 36. But behold,\nthey would not change a bad way for a good, but one bad way for\nanother; hopping as the squirrel from bough to bough, but not\nwilling to forsake the tree. Many times men change their darling\nsins, as some change their servants; that which would serve for such\na one this year, may not serve for the year ensuing. Hypocrisy would\ndo awhile ago, but now debauchery. Profaneness would do when\nprofaneness was in fashion, but now a deceitful profession. Take\nheed, professor, that thou dost not throw away thy old darling sin\nfor a new one. Men's tempers alter. Youth is for pride and\nwantonness; middle age for cunning and craft; old age for the world\nand covetousness. Take heed, therefore, of deceit in this thing.\n\nDost thou profess the name of Christ, and dost thou pretend to be a\nman departing from iniquity? take heed lest thy departing from\niniquity should be but for a time. Some do depart from iniquity, as\npersons in wrangling fits depart from one another, to wit, for a\ntime; but when the quarrel is over, by means of some intercessor\nthey are reconciled again. Oh, Satan is the intercessor between the\nsoul and sin; and though the breach between these two may seem to be\nirreconcilable, yea, though the soul has sworn it will never more\ngive countenance to so vile a thing as sin is, yet he can tell how\nto make up this difference, and to fetch them back to their vomit\nagain, who, one would have thought, had quite escaped his sins and\nbeen gone. 2 Pet. 2: 18--22. Take heed, therefore, O professor, for\nthere is danger of this, and the height of danger lies in it; and I\nthink that Satan, to do this thing, makes use of those sins again to\nbegin, this rejoinder, which he findeth most suitable to the temper\nand constitution of the sinner. These are, as _I_ may call them, the\nmaster-sins, they suit, they agree with the temper of the soul.\nThese, as the little end of the wedge, enter with ease, and so make\nway for those that come after, with which Satan knows he can rend\nthe soul in pieces. Wherefore,\n\nTo help this, take heed of parleying with thy sins again, when once\nthou hast departed from them: sin has a smooth tongue; if thou\nhearken to its enchanting language, ten thousand to one but thou art\nentangled. Take heed, therefore, of listening to the charms\nwherewith sin enchanteth the soul. In this, be like the deaf adder;\nstop thine ear, plug it up to sin, and let it only be open to hear\nthe words of God.\n\nTHE UNHOLY PROFESSOR.\n\nA professor that hath not forsaken his iniquity, is like one that\ncomes out of the pest-house, among the whole, with his plague-sores\nrunning upon him. This is the man that hath the breath of a dragon;\nhe poisons the air round about him. This is the man that slays his\nchildren, his kinsmen, his friend, and himself. What shall _I_ say?\nA man that nameth the name of Christ, and that departeth not from\niniquity, to whom may he be compared? The Pharisees, for that they\nprofessed religion but walked not answerably thereto, unto what doth\nChrist compare them but to serpents and vipers; what does he call\nthem but hypocrites, whited walls, painted sepulchres, fools, and\nblind, and tells them that they made men more the children of hell\nthan they were before? Matt. 23. Wherefore, such a one cannot go out\nof the world by himself; for as he gave occasion of scandal when he\nwas in the world, so is he the cause of the damnation of many. The\napostle did use to weep when he spake of these professors, such an\noffence he knew they were and would be in the world. Acts 20:30;\nPhil. 3:18, 19.\n\nThese are the chief of the engines of Satan; with these he worketh\nwonders. One Balaam, one Jeroboam, one Ahab, O how many fish such\nbring to Satan's net. These are the tares that he strives to sow\namong the wheat, for he knows they are mischief to it. \"Wherefore\nlet every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.\"\n\nThose that religiously name the name of Christ and do not depart\nfrom iniquity, how will they die; and how will they look that Man in\nthe face, unto the profession of whose name they have entailed an\nunrighteous conversation; or do they think that he doth not know\nwhat they have done, or that they may take him off with a few cries\nand wringing of hands, when he is on the throne to do judgment\nagainst transgressors. O, it had been better they had not known, had\nnot professed; yea, better they had never been born. And as Christ\nsays it had been good, so Peter says it had been better, Mark 14:12;\n14:22; 2 Pet. 2: 20, 2l--good they had not been born, and better\nthey had not known and made profession of the name of Christ.\n\nWe read that the tail of the dragon, or that the dragon by his tail,\ndid draw and cast down abundance of the stars of heaven to the\nearth. Rev. 12:4; Isa. 9:14,15. The prophet that speaketh lies\neither by opinion or practice, he is the tail, the dragon's tail,\nthe serpentine tail of the devil. Isa. 9:14,15. And so in his order,\nevery professor that by his iniquity draweth both himself and others\ndown to hell, he is the tail. Nor can Satan work such exploits by\nany, as he can by unrighteous professors. These he useth in his hand\nas the giant useth his club; he, as it were, drives all before him\nwith it. It is said of Behemoth, that \"he moveth his tail like a\ncedar.\" Job 40:17. Behemoth is a type of the devil; but behold how\nhe handleth his tail, even as if a man should swing about a cedar.\nThis is spoken to show the hurtfulness of the tail, as it is also\nsaid in another place, Rev. 9:5,10,19. Better no professor than a\nwicked professor; better openly profane, than a hypocritical namer\nof the name of Christ; and less hurt shall such a one do to his own\nsoul, to the poor ignorant world, to the name of Christ, and to the\nchurch of God.\n\nThere is the sin of professors; there is a profession that will\nstand with an unsanctified heart and life. The sin of such will\noverpoise the salvation of their souls, the sin-end being the\nheaviest end of the scale: I say, that being the heaviest end which\nhath sin in it, they tilt over, and so are, notwithstanding their\nglorious profession, drowned in perdition and destruction.\n\nThe iniquity that cleaveth to men that profess, if they cast it not\naway, but countenance it, will all prove nettles and briars to them;\nand I will assure thee, yea, thou knowest, that nettles and thorns\nwill sting and scratch but ill-favoredly. \"I went,\" saith Solomon,\n\"by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void\nof understanding; and lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and\nnettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was\nbroken down.\" Prov. 24:30,31.\n\nSuppose a man were, after work all day, to be turned into a bed of\nnettles at night; or, after a man had been about such a business,\nshould be rewarded with chastisements of briars and thorns; this\nreward for work would be but little help, relief, or comfort to him.\nBut this is the reward of a wicked man, of a wicked professor from\nGod: nettles and thorns are to cover over the face of his vineyard,\nhis field, his profession, and that at the last of all; far this\ncovering over the face of his vineyard with nettles and thorns, is\nto show what fruit the slovenly, slothful, careless professor will\nreap out of his profession when reaping-time shall come.\n\nNor can he whose vineyard, whose profession is covered over with\nthese nettles and thorns of iniquity, escape being afflicted with\nthem in his conscience; for, as they cover the face of his vineyard\nthrough his sloth now, so will they cover the face of his conscience\nin the day of judgment. For profession and conscience cannot be\nseparated long: if a man then shall make profession without\nconscience of God's honor in his conversation, his profession and\nconscience will meet in the day of his visitation. Nor will he whose\ncondition this shall be, be able to ward off the guilt and sting of\na slothful and bad conversation from covering the face of his\nconscience, by retaining in his profession the name of Jesus Christ;\nfor naming and professing the name of Christ will, instead of\nsalving such a conscience, put venom, sting, and keenness into those\nnettles and thorns that then shall be spread over the face of such\nconsciences. I beseech you, consider this, namely, that the man that\nprofesseth the name of Christ and yet liveth a wicked life, is the\ngreatest enemy that God has in the world, and consequently one that\nGod will most eminently set his face against.\n\nTHE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR.\n\nBarren-fig-tree, thou art not licensed by thy profession, nor by the\nLord of the vineyard, to bear these clusters of Gomorrah; neither\nshall the vineyard, nor thy being crowded among the trees there,\nshelter thee from the sight of the eye of God. Many make religion\ntheir cloak and Christ their stalking-horse, and by that means cover\nthemselves and hide their own wickedness from men: but God seeth\ntheir hearts, hath his print upon the heels of their feet, and\npondereth all their goings; and at last, when their iniquity is\nfound to be hateful, he will either smite them with hardness of\nheart and so leave them, or awaken them to bring forth fruit. Fruit\nhe looks for, seeks, and expects, O thou barren fig-tree.\n\nBut what, come into the presence of God to sin What, come into the\npresence of God to hide thy sin! Alas, man, the church is God's\ngarden, and Christ Jesus is the great Apostle and High-priest of our\nprofession. What, come into the house that is called by his name,\ninto the place where his honor dwelleth, where his eyes and heart\nare continually--what, come there to sin, to hide thy sin, to cloak\nthy sin! His plants are an orchard with pleasant fruits; and every\ntime he goeth into his garden, it is \"to see the fruits of the\nvalley,\" and to see if the vines flourish and if the pomegranates\nbud.\n\nYea, he came seeking fruit on this fig-tree. The church is the place\nof God's delight, where he ever desires to be; there he is night and\nday. He is there to seek for fruit, to seek for fruit of all and\nevery tree in the garden. Wherefore assure thyself, O fruitless one,\nthat thy ways must needs be open before the eyes of the Lord. One\nblack sheep is soon espied, although in company with many; it is\ntaken with the first cast of the eye; its different color still\nbetrays it. I say, therefore, a church and a profession are not\nplaces where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves from God,\nthat seeks for fruit: \"My vineyard,\" saith God, \"which is mine, is\nbefore me.\" Song 8:12; Psa. 26:8; 1 Kings, 9:3; Song 4:13-15.\n\nBarren soul, how many showers of grace, how many dews from heaven,\nhast thou enjoyed! How many times have the silver streams of the\ncity of God run gliding by thy roots, to cause thee to bring forth\nfruit! These showers and streams, and the drops that hang upon thy\nboughs, will all be accounted for; and will they not testify against\nthee, that thou oughtest of right to be burned? Hear and tremble, O\nthou barren professor!\n\nWhen a man seeks for fruit on a tree, he goes round it and round it,\nnow looking into this bough and then into that; he peeps into the\ninmost boughs and the lowermost boughs, if perhaps fruit may be\nthereon. Barren fig-tree, God will look into all thy boughs.\n\nThere is a man that hath a hundred trees in his vine yard, and at\nthe time of the season he walketh into his vineyard to see how the\ntrees flourish; and as he goes and views and pries and observes how\nthey are hung with fruit, behold, he cometh to one where he findeth\nnaught but leaves. Now he makes a stand, looks upon it again and\nagain; he looks also here and there, above and below; and if, after\nall this seeking, he finds nothing but leaves thereon, then he\nbegins to cast in his mind how he may know this tree next year, what\nstands next it, or how far it is off the hedge; but if there be\nnothing there that may be as a mark to know it by, then he takes his\nhook and giveth it a private mark, saying, Go thy way, fruitless\nfig-tree, thou hast spent this season in vain.\n\nYet doth he not cut it down--\"I will try it another year; may be\nthis was not a hitting season.\" Therefore he comes again next year\nto see if now it have fruit; but as he found it before, so he finds\nit now, barren, barren, every year barren; he looks again, but finds\nno fruit. Now he begins to have second thoughts. How, neither hit\nlast year nor this! Surely the barrenness is not in the season, sure\nthe fault is in the tree; however, I will spare it this year also,\nbut will give it a second mark; and, it may be, he toucheth it with\na hot iron, because he begins to be angry.\n\nWell, at the third season he comes again for fruit, but the third\nyear is like the first and second, no fruit yet; it only cumbereth\nthe ground. What now must be done with this fig-tree? Why, the Lord\nwill lop its boughs with terror; yea, the thickets of those\nprofessors with iron. I have waited, saith God, these three years; I\nhave missed of fruit these three years; it hath been a cumber-ground\nthese three years; cut it down. Precept hath been upon precept, and\nline upon line, one year after another, for these three years, hut\nno fruit can be seen; I find none: fetch out the axe.\n\n\"Lord, let it alone this year also.\" Here is astonishing grace\nindeed; astonishing grace, that the Lord Jesus should concern\nhimself with a barren fig-tree; that he should step in to stop the\nblow from a barren fig-tree! True, he stopped the blow but for a\ntime; but why did he stop it at all? Why did he not fetch out the\naxe? Why did he not do execution? Why did he not cut it down?\n\nBarren fig-tree, it is well for thee that there is a Jesus at God's\nright hand, a Jesus of that largeness of pity to have compassion for\na barren fig-tree; else justice had never let thee alone to cumber\nthe ground, as thou hast done.\n\nSee the care, the love, the labor, and way which the Lord Jesus, the\ndresser of the vineyard, is fain to take with thee, if haply thou\nmayest be made fruitful.\n\n\"Lord, let it alone this year.\" Lord, a little longer; let us not\nlose a soul for want of means. I will try, I will see if I can make\nit fruitful; I will not beg a long life, nor that it might still be\nbarren, and so provoke thee. I beg for the sake of the soul, the\nimmortal soul; Lord, spare it one year only, one year longer, this\nyear also; if I do any good to it, it will be in little time. Thou\nshalt not be overwearied with waiting; one year and then--\n\nBarren fig-tree, dost thou hear what a striving there is between the\nvinedresser and the husbandman for thy life?\n\n\"Cut it down,\" says one; \"Lord, spare it,\" says the other. \"It is a\ncumber-ground,\" saith the Father; \"One year longer,\" prays the Son:\n\"let it alone this year also.\"\n\n\"Till I shall dig about it and dung it.\" I doubt if it is not too\nmuch ground-bound. \"The love of this world and the deceitfulness of\nriches\" lie too close to the roots of the heart of this professor.\nThe love of riches, the love of honors, the love of pleasures, are\nthe thorns that choke the word; how then can there be fruit brought\nforth to God?\n\nBarren fig-tree, see how the Lord Jesus by these words suggests the\ncause of thy fruitlessness of soul. The things of this world lie too\nclose to thy heart; the earth and its things have bound up thy\nroots; thou art an earth-bound soul, thou art wrapped up in thick\nclay. \"If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in\nhim;\" how then can he be fruitful in the vineyard?\n\nThis kept Judas from the fruit of caring for the poor. This kept\nDemas from the fruit of self-denial. And this kept Ananias and\nSapphira his wife from the goodly fruit of sincerity and truth. I\nJohn, 2:15, 16; John 12: 6; 2 Tim. 4:10; Acts 5: 5-10; I Tim. 6: 9,\n10.\n\n\"And if it bear fruit, well.\" And if the outlay of all my labor doth\nmake this fig-tree fruitful, I shall count my time, my labor, and\nmeans, well bestowed upon it; and thou also, O my God, shalt be\ntherewith much delighted; for thou art gracious and merciful, and\nrepentest thee of the evil which thou threatenest to bring upon a\npeople.\n\nThese words therefore inform us, that if a barren figtree, a barren\nprofessor, shall now at last bring forth fruit to God, it shall go\nwell with that professor, it shall go well with that poor soul. His\nformer barrenness, his former tempting of God, his abuse of God's\npatience and long-suffering, his misspending year after year, shall\nnow be all forgiven him. Yea, God the Father and our Lord Jesus\nChrist will now pass by and forget all, and say, \"Well done,\" at the\nlast.\n\n\"And if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.\" There is\nnothing more exasperating to the mind of a man, than to find all his\nkindness and favor slighted; neither is the Lord Jesus so provoked\nwith any thing, as when sinners abuse his means of grace. If it be\nbarren and fruitless under my gospel, if it turn my grace into\nwantonness, if, after digging and dunging and waiting, it yet remain\nunfruitful, I will let thee cut it down.\n\nGospel-means applied are the last remedy for a barren professor; if\nthe gospel, if the grace of the gospel will not do, there can be\nnothing expected but, \"Cut it down.\"\n\n\"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets and stonest\nthem that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy\nchildren together, as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings,\nand ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.\"\nMatt. 23:37,38.\n\nYet it cannot be but that this Lord Jesus, who at first did put a\nstop to the execution of his Father's justice, because he desired to\ntry more means with the fig-tree--it cannot be but that a heart so\nfull of compassion as his, should be touched to behold this\nprofessor must now be cut down. \"And when he was come near, he\nbeheld the city and wept over it, saying, If thou hadst known, even\nthou, at least in this thy day, the things that belong to thy peace!\nbut now they are hid from thine eyes.\"\n\nWhen Christ giveth thee over, there is no intercessor, no mediator,\nno more sacrifice for sin; all is gone but judgment, but the axe,\nbut \"a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery\nindignation, which shall devour the adversaries.\" Heb. 10:26-28.\n\nThe day of grace ends with some men before God takes them out of\nthis world. Now, then, I would show you by some signs how you may\nknow that the day of grace is ended, or near to ending with the\nbarren professor.\n\nFirst sign. The day of grace is like to be past, when a professor\nhath WITHSTOOD, ABUSED, AND WORN OUT GOD'S PATIENCE: then he is in\ndanger; this is a provocation; now God cries, \"Cut it down.\"\n\nThere are some men that steal into a profession, nobody knows how,\neven as this fig-tree was brought into the vineyard by other hands\nthan God's; and there they abide lifeless, graceless, careless, and\nwithout any good conscience to God at all. Perhaps they came in for\nthe loaves, for a trade, for credit, for a blind; or it may be, to\nstifle and choke the checks and grinding pangs of an awakened and\ndisquieted conscience. Now, having obtained their purpose, like the\nsinners of Zion, they are at ease and secure, saying, like Agag,\nSurely the bitterness of death is past: I am well; I shall be saved\nand go to heaven. Thus in these vain conceits they spend a year,\ntwo, or three; not remembering that at every season of grace, and at\nevery opportunity of the gospel, the Lord comes seeking fruit.\n\nWell, sinner, well, barren fig-tree, this is but an evil beginning.\nGod comes for fruit. What have I here? saith God. What a fig-tree is\nthis, that hath stood this year in my vineyard, and brought me forth\nno fruit! I will cry unto him, Professor, barren fig-tree, be\nfruitful; I look for fruit, I expect fruit, I must have fruit;\ntherefore bethink thyself. At these the professor pauses; but these\nare words, not blows; therefore off goes this consideration from the\nheart.\n\nWhen God comes the next year, he finds him still as he was, a\nbarren, fruitless cumber-ground. And now again he complains, Here\nare two years gone, and no fruit appears; well, I will defer mine\nanger for my name's sake. I will yet wait to be gracious. But this\nhelps not, this hath not the least influence upon the barren\nfig-tree: Tush, saith he, here is no threatening; God is merciful,\nhe will defer his anger, he waits to be gracious; I am not yet\nafraid. O, how ungodly men, that are unawares crept into the\nvineyard, how do they turn the grace of our God into lasciviousness!\n\nWell, he comes the third year for fruit, as he did before, but still\nhe finds but a barren fig-tree; no fruit. Now he cries out again, O\nthou dresser of my vineyard, come hither: here is a fig-tree hath\nstood these three years in my vineyard, and hath at every season\ndisappointed my expectation; for I have looked for fruit in vain.\nCut it down; my patience is worn out, I shall wait on this fig-tree\nno longer.\n\nAnd now he begins to shake the fig-tree with his threatenings: Fetch\nout the axe. Now the axe is death; death therefore is called for.\nDeath, come, smite me this fig-tree. And withal the Lord shakes this\nsinner, and whirls him upon a sick-bed, saying, Take him, death; he\nhath abused my patience and forbearance, not remembering that it\nshould have led him to repentance and to the fruits thereof: death,\nfetch away this fig-tree to the fire, fetch this barren professor to\nhell. At this, death comes with grim looks into the chamber, yea,\nand hell follows with him to the bedside, and both stare this\nprofessor in the face, yea, begin to lay hands upon him. One smites\nhim with pains in his body, with headache, heartache, backache,\nshortness of breath, fainting qualms, trembling of joints, stopping\nat the chest, and almost all the symptoms of a man past all\nrecovery. Now, while death is thus tormenting the body, hell is busy\nwith the mind and conscience, striking them with its pains, casting\nsparks of fire in thither, wounding with sorrows and fears of\neverlasting damnation the spirit of this poor creature. And now he\nbegins to bethink himself, and to cry to God for mercy: Lord, spare\nme; Lord, spare me. Nay, saith God, you have been a provocation to\nme these three years. How many times have you disappointed me! How\nmany seasons have you spent in vain! How many sermons and other\nmercies did I of my patience afiord you; but to no purpose at all.\nTake him, death. O good Lord, saith the sinner, spare me but this\nonce; raise me but this once.\n\nIndeed I have been a barren professor, and have stood to no purpose\nat all in thy vineyard; hut spare, O spare me this one time, I\nbeseech thee, and I will he better. Away, away, you will not; I have\ntried you these three years already; you are naught: if I should\nrecover you again, you would he as bad as you were before. (And all\nthis talk is while death stands by.) The sinner cries again, Good\nLord, try me this once; let me get up again this once, and see if I\ndo not rnend. But will you promise me to mend? Yes indeed, Lord, and\nvow it too. I will never be so bad again, I will he better. Well,\nsaith God, Death, let this professor alone for this time: I will try\nhim a little longer; he hath promised, he hath vowed, that he will\namend his ways. It may be he will mind to keep his promises. Vows\nare solemn things; it may he he may fear to break his vows. Arise\nfrom off thy bed. And now God lays down his axe. At this the poor\ncreature is very thankful, praises God, and fawns upon him, shows as\nif he did it heartily, and calls to others to thank him too. He\ntherefore riseth, as one would think, to be a new creature indeed.\nBut by that he hath put on his clothes, is come down from his bed,\nand ventured into the yard or shop, and there sees how all things\nare gone to sixes and sevens, he begins to have second thoughts, and\nsays to his folks, What have you all been doing? How are all things\nout of order! I am I cannot tell how much behindhand; one may see if\na man be but a little laid aside, that you have neither wisdom nor\nprudence to order things. And now, instead of seeking to spend the\nrest of his time for God, he doubleth his diligence after this\nworld. Alas, he saith, all must not be lost; we must have provident\ncare. And thus, quite forgetting the sorrows of death, the pains of\nhell, the promises and vows which he made to God to be better,\nbecause judgment was not speedily executed, therefore the heart of\nthis poor creature is fully set in him to do evil.\n\nThese things proving ineffectual, God takes hold of his axe again,\nsends death to a wife, to a child, to his cattle. I will blast him,\ncross him, disappoint him, cast him down; and will set myself\nagainst him in all that he putteth his hand unto. At this the poor\nbarren professor cries out again, Lord, I have sinned; spare me once\nmore, I beseech thee. O take not away the desire of mine eyes; spare\nmy children, bless me in my labors, and I will mend and be better.\nNo, saith God, you lied to me last time, I will trust you in this no\nlonger; and withal he tumbleth the wife, the child, the estate, into\na grave.\n\nAt this the poor creature is afflicted and distressed, rends his\nclothes, and begins to call the breaking of his promise and vows to\nmind; he mourns and prays, and like Ahab, a while walks softly at\nthe remembrance of the justness of the hand of God upon him. And now\nhe renews his promises: Lord, try me this one time more, take off\nthy hand and see; they go far that never turn. Well, God spareth him\nagain, sets down his axe again: \"Many times he did deliver them, but\nthey provoked him with their counsels, and were brought low for\ntheir iniquities.\" Now they seem to be thankful again, and are as if\nthey resolved to be godly indeed. Now they read, they pray, they go\nto meetings, and seem to be serious for a while; but at last they\nforget. Their lusts prick them, suitable temptations present\nthemselves; wherefore, they return to their own crooked ways again.\n\nYet again, the Lord will not leave this barren professor, Luke 13:\n6-9, but will take up his axe again, and will put him under a more\nheart-searching ministry, a ministry that shall search him and turn\nhim over and over--a ministry that shall meet with him, as Elijah\nmet with Ahab, in all his acts of wickedness: and now the axe is\nlaid to the roots of the tree. Besides, this ministry doth not only\nsearch the heart, but presenteth the sinner with the golden rays of\nthe glorious gospel: now is Christ Jesus set forth evidently, now is\ngrace displayed sweetly; now, now are the promises broken, like\nboxes of ointment, to the perfuming of the whole room. But alas,\nthere is yet no fruit on this fig-tree. While his heart is searched,\nhe wrangles; while the glorious grace of the gospel is unveiled,\nthis professor wags and is wanton, gathers up some scraps thereof,\ntastes the good word of God and the power of the world to come,\ndrinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon him, but bringeth not\nforth fruit meet for him whose gospel it is; takes no heed to walk\nin the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart, but\ncounteth that the glory of the gospel consisteth in talk and show,\nand that our obedience thereto is a matter of speculation--that good\nworks lie in good words, and if men can finely talk, they may think\nthey bravely please God. He thinks the kingdom of God consisteth\nonly in word, not in power; and thus proves ineffectual this fourth\nmeans also.\n\nWell, now the axe begins to be heaved higher, for now indeed God is\nready to smite the sinner: yet before he will strike the stroke, he\nwill try one way more at last; and if that misseth, down goes the\nfig-tree.\n\nNow this last way is to labor and strive with this professor by his\nSpirit. Therefore the Spirit of the Lord is now come to him; but not\nalways to strive with man, Gen. 6:8; yet awhile he will strive with\nhim, he will awaken, he will convince, he will call to remembrance\nformer sins, former judgments, the breach of former vows and\npromises, the misspending of former days. He will also present\npersuasive arguments, encouraging promises, dreadful judgments, the\nshortness of time to repent in; and that there is hope if he come.\nHe will show him the certainty of death and of the judgment to come,\nyea, he will pull and strive with this sinner. But behold, the\nmischief now lies here; here is laboring and striving on both sides.\nThe Spirit convinces, the man turns a deaf ear to God; the Spirit\nsaith, Receive my instruction and live, but the man pulls away his\nshoulder; the Spirit shows him whither he is going, but the man\ncloseth his eyes against it; the Spirit offers violence, the man\nstrives and resists: he has \"done despite unto the Spirit of grace.\"\nHeb. 10:29. The Spirit parleyeth a'second time and urgeth reasons of\na new nature, but the sinner answereth, No; I have loved strangers,\nand after them will I go. Amos 4: 6-12. At this, God comes out of\nhis holy-place, and is terrible; now he sweareth in his wrath they\nshall never enter into his rest. Ezek. 34:13. I exercised towards\nyou my patience, yet you have not turned unto me, saith the Lord. I\nsmote you in your person, in your relations, in your estate, yet you\nhave not returned unto me, saith the Lord. \"Cut it down; why\ncumbereth it the ground?\"\n\nThe second sign that such a professor is almost, if not quite past\ngrace, is when God hath GIVEN HIM OVER, or lets him alone and\nsuffers him to do any thing, and that without control; helpeth him\nnot either in works of holiness, or in straits and difficulties:\n\"Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone.\" \"Woe be to them when I\ndepart from them.\" \"I will laugh at their calamity; I will mock when\ntheir fear cometh.\"\n\nBarren fig-tree, thou hast heretofore been digged about; God's\nmattock has heretofore been at thy roots; thou hast heretofore been\nstriven with, convinced, awakened, made to taste and see, and cry, O\nthe blessedness! Thou hast heretofore been met with under the word;\nthy heart has melted, thy spirit has fallen, thy soul has trembled,\nand thou hast felt something of the power of the gospel. But thou\nhast sinned, thou hast provoked the eyes of his glory, thy iniquity\nis found to be hateful; and now perhaps God has left thee, given\nthee up, and lets thee alone.\n\nHeretofore thou wast tender; thy conscience startled at the\ntemptation to wickedness, for thou wert taken off from the\npollutions of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and\nSaviour Jesus Christ, 2 Pet. 2: 20-22; but that very vomit that once\nthou wert turned from, now thou lappest up again,\n\nSeest thou a man that heretofore had the knowledge of God, and that\nhad some awe of majesty upon him; seest thou such a one sporting\nhimself in his own deceivings, Rom. 1:30, 31, \"turning the grace of\nGod into lasciviousness, and walking after his own ungodly lusts?\nHis judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and his damnation\nslumbereth not.\" 2 Pet. 2:13.\n\nDost thou hear, barren professor? It is astonishing to see how those\nwho once seemed sons of the morning, and were making preparations\nfor eternal life, now at last, for the rottenness of their hearts,\nby the just judgment of God are permitted, being past feeling, \"to\ngive themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness\nwith greediness.\" Eph. 4:18, 19. A great number of such were in the\nfirst gospel days; against whom Peter and Jude and John pronounce\nthe just judgment of God. 2 Pet. 2:3-8; Jude 5-8. Barren fig-tree,\ndost thou hear? These are beyond all mercy; these are beyond all\npromises; these are beyond all hopes of repentance; these have no\nintercessor, nor any more share in the one sacrifice for sin. For\nthese there remains nothing but a fearful looking for of judgment.\n\nThese men go whither they will, do what they will; they may range\nfrom opinion to opinion, from notion to notion, from sect to sect,\nbut are steadfast nowhere: they are left to their own uncertainties;\nthey have not grace to establish their hearts; and though some of\nthem have boasted themselves of this liberty, yet Jude calls them\nwandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for\never. They are left to be fugitives and vagabonds in the earth, to\nwander everywhere but to abide nowhere, until they shall descend to\ntheir own place, with Cain and Judas, men of the same fate with\nthemselves.\n\nLook thou certainly, fruitless professor, for an eternal\ndisappointment in the day of God; for it must be; thy lamp will he\nout at the first sound the trump of God shall make in thine ears;\nthou canst not hold up at the appearance of the Son of God in his\nglory; his very looks will he to thy profession as a strong wind is\nto a blinking candle, and thou shalt he left only to smoke.\n\nOh, the alteration that will befall a foolish virgin. She thought\nshe was happy, and that she should have received happiness with\nthose that were right at the heart; but behold the contrary: her\nlamp is going out, she has now to seek for saving grace, when the\ntime of grace is over; her heaven she thought of has proved a hell,\nand her god has proved a devil. God hath cast her out of his\npresence, and closes the door upon her. She pleads her profession\nand the like, and she hath for her answer repulses from heaven. \"So\nare the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall\nperish; whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be the\nspider's web: though he lean upon his house, it shall not stand; he\nshall hold it fast, but it shall not endure.\"\n\nTake heed, therefore; thy soul, heaven, and eternity lie at stake;\nyea, they turn either to thee or from thee upon the hinge of thy\nfaith, If it be right, all is thine; if wrong, then all is lost,\nhowever thy hope and expectations are to the contrary.\n\nThere are bare notions, there are common workings, and there is a\nwork that is saving and that will do the soul good to eternity.\n\n1. There are bare notions, and they that have them are such unto\nwhom the gospel comes in word only, 1 Thess. 1:5; 1 Cor. 4:19, 20;\nsuch whose religion stands in word only, and is not attended with a\npower suitable: that is, there goes not with the word a power\nsufficient to subdue and work over the heart to a cordial and\ngracious close with thut word that comes to them. Yet such is the\nnoise and sound of the word, that they are willing to become\nprofessors thereof; there is some kind of musicalness in it,\nespecially when well handled and fingered by a skilful preacher.\n\"And lo,\" saith God unto such preachers, when their auditory is made\nup of such kind of hearers, \"lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely\nsong of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an\ninstrument; for they hear thy words, but they do them not.\"\n\n2. But then, besides these there is another sort, and they go\nfurther than these. For to them the word came, not in word only but\nalso in power: though not in such a power as is sufficient,\nabsolutely against all attempts whatsoever, to bring the soul to\nglory.\n\n(1.) They attain light or illumination to see much of their state by\nnature. Heb. 6:4.\n\n(2.) This light stands not in bare speculation, but lets fall upon\nthe conscience convincing arguments to the bowing and humbling of\nthe spirit. 1 Kings, 21: 27-29.\n\n(3.) They submit to these convictions and reforms, and may for a\ntime not only come out from them that live in error, but escape the\npollutions of the world by the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour\nJesus Christ. 2 Peter, 2:18-20; Gal. 3:4; 4:20.\n\n(4.) Yea, so powerful will this dispensation be, that it will\nprevail with them to do and suffer many things for the vindication\nof the truth of that gospel which they profess. For the word will be\nsweet unto them; Christ, the gift of God, will be relished by them.\nHeb. 6:4, 5. The powers of the world to come will be in them; some\nworkings of the Holy Ghost will be in them; and joy, which is as oil\nto the wheels, will be with their souls. Luke 8:13.\n\nThus is it with some professors, who yet cannot be said to depart\nfrom iniquity, because the things that now are upon them abide with\nthem but awhile: \"For awhile they believe; they rejoice in the light\nfor a season,\" and after that return to their old course, and are\nagain entangled with their iniquities and overcome.\n\nNow the causes of this declension, or falling away again unto\niniquity, are many.\n\nOne is, that this work, this work of power which they have been made\npartakers of, has not been thorough enough upon all the powers of\ntheir souls. Their understandings, their judgments and consciences\nhave been dealt with, but the power of God has not been upon their\nwills and minds and affections rightly to subdue them to the grace\nof the gospel.\n\nTherefore also such persons, upon the withdrawing of those\ninfluences that at present are mighty upon them, do forthwith forget\nboth what they had and what work it made upon them. Straightway they\nforget what manner of men they were. It is said of Israel, \"They\nsang his praises; they soon forgat his word.\" So these; they forget.\n\nThey forget what light and what convictions they had. They forget\nwhat sorrow for sin they had. They forget what tastes of Christ and\nhis word they had.\n\nThey forget what joy and comfort they had. They forget how fair for\nheaven they were. And they forget how cleansed once they were. \"They\nhave forgotten that they were purged from their old sins.\" 2 Pet.\n1:9.\n\nNow, forgetfulness makes things that are past as nothings; and if\nso, then it can lay no obligations upon the mind to engage it to\ndelight in them; no, not in thoughts of them, as if they were\nremembered by us.\n\nForgetfulness is a very dangerous thing; it makes preaching vain,\nprofession vain, faith vain, and all to no purpose. 1 Cor. 15:1, 2.\nSuch profession is but a dream; and such professors but as dreamers;\nall vanishes in the morning. This made Paul so caution the\nCorinthians that they should forget not the preaching; arid the\nwriter to the Hebrews so earnestly call them, in their backsliding,\nback to the remembrance of former days, and to the recollecting what\nit was that then made them so willingly endure their great fight of\naffliction.\n\nForgetfulness, I say, makes things nothings; it makes us as if\nthings had never been; and so takes away from the soul one great\nmeans of stay, support, and encouragement. When choice David was\ndejected, the remembrance of the hill Hermon was his stay; when he\nwas to go out against Goliath, the remembrance of the lion and the\nbear was his support; so when those that have had the power of the\nthings of God upon them, can think of this when they are withdrawn,\nit will, even the thinking of it, have some kind of operation upon\nthe soul. And therefore you shall find, that the recovering of a\nbackslider usually begins at the remembrance of former things.\n\"Remember from whence thou art fallen, and repent and do thy first\nworks.\"\n\nIt is marvellous to see how some men are captivated with this\nforgetfulness. Those that sometimes have prayed, cried, groaned, and\nsighed for eternal life; those that sometimes thought no pains too\nmuch, no way too far, no hazards too great to run, for eternal life;\nthose that sometimes were captivated with the word, and with the\ncomforts and joy thereof, and who, had it been possible, would have\npulled out their eyes, and have given them to gospel ministers, so\ndear and sweet were the good tidings which they brought. to such. I\nsay, it is marvellous to see how such men are captivated with the\nforgetfulness of this. They are as if they had never been those men;\nthey are as if they had had no such things, or as if they never had\nthought about them. Yea, they are strange, and carry it strangely to\nall those that still are under the power of that word, and of that\nmighty hand by which sometimes themselves were guided.\n\nShould one say to them, Art not thou the man that I once saw crying\nunder a sermon, that I once heard cry out, \"What must I do to be\nsaved?\" and that some time ago I heard speak well of the holy word\nof God? how askew will they look upon one; or if they will\nacknowledge that such things were with them once, they do it more\nlike images and rejected ghosts, than men. They look as if they were\nblasted, withered, cast out and dried to powder, and now fit for\nnothing but to be cast into the fire and burned. John 15.\n\nTHE UNPARDONABLE SIN.\n\nTHE MAN IN THE IRON CAGE.\n\n\"Now,\" said Christian, \"let me go hence.\" \"Nay, stay,\" said the\nInterpreter, \"till I have showed thee a little more, and after that\nthou shalt go on thy way.\" So he took him by the hand again, and led\nhim into a very dark room, where there sat a man in an iron cage.\n\nNow the man to look on, seemed very sad. He sat with his eyes\nlooking down to the ground, his hands folded together, and he sighed\nas if he would break his heart. Then said Christian, \"What means\nthis?\" At which the Interpreter bid him talk with the man.\n\nThen said Christian to the man, \"What art thou?\" The man answered,\n\"I am what I was not once.\"\n\nCRISTIAN. \"What wert thou once?\"\n\nThe man said, \"I was once a fair and flourishing professor, both in\nmine own eyes, and also in the eyes of others; I once was, as I\nthought, fair for the celestial city, Luke 8:13, and had then even\njoy at the thoughts that I should get thither.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"Well, but what art thou now?\"\n\nMAN. \"I am now a man of despair, and am shut up in it as in this\niron cage. I cannot get out: O NOW I cannot.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"But how earnest thou in this condition?\"\n\nMAN. \"I left off to watch and be sober; I laid the reins upon the\nneck of my lusts; I sinned against the light of the word, and the\ngoodness of God; I have grieved the Spirit, and he is gone; I\ntempted the devil, and he is come to me; I have provoked God to\nanger, and he has left me; I have so hardened my heart that I CANNOT\nrepent.\"\n\nThen said Christian to the Interpreter, \"But is there no hope for\nsuch a man as this?\" \"Ask him,\" said the Interpreter.\n\nThen said Christian, \"Is there no hope but you must be kept in the\niron cage of despair?\"\n\nMAN. \"No, none at all.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"Why? the Son of the Blessed is very pitiful.\"\n\nMAN. \"I have crucified him to myself afresh; I have despised his\nperson, I have despised his righteousness, I have counted his blood\nan unholy thing. I have done despite to the Spirit of grace, Luke\n19:14; Heh. 6:4-6; 10:28, 29; therefore I have shut myself out of\nall the promises, and there now remains to me nothing but\nthreatenings, dreadful threatenings, fearful threatenings of certain\njudgment and fiery indignation which shall devour me as an\nadversary.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"For what did you bring yourself into this condition?\"\n\nMAN. \"For the lusts, pleasures, and profits of this world; in the\nenjoyment of which I did then promise myself much delight; but now\nevery one of those things also bites me and gnaws me like a burning\nworm.\"\n\nCHRISTIAN. \"But canst thou not repent and turn?\"\n\nMAN. \"God hath denied me repentance. His word gives me no\nencouragement to believe; yea, himself hath shut me up in this iron\ncage: nor can all the men in the world let me out. O eternity,\neternity! how shall I grapple with the misery that I must meet with\nin eternity?\"\n\nThen said the Interpreter to Christian, \"Let this man's misery he\nremembered by thee, and be an everlasting caution to thee.\"\n\n\"Well,\" said Christian, \"this is fearful! God help me to watch and\nhe sober, and to pray that I may shun the cause of this man's\nmiseiy.\"\n\nWe that religiously name the name of Christ should depart from\niniquity, because the Spirit of the Father will else be grieved.\nEph. 4:30. The countenancing of iniquity, the not departing\ntherefrom, will grieve the Spirit of God, by which you are sealed to\nthe day of redemption; and that is a sin of a higher nature than men\ncommonly are aware of. He that grieveth the Spirit of God shall\nsmart for it here, or in hell, or both. And that Spirit that\nsometimes did illuminate, teach, and instruct them, can keep\nsilence, can cause darkness, can. withdraw itself, and sufler the\nsoul to sin more and more; and this last is the very judgment of\njudgments. He that grieves the Spirit, quenches it; and he that\nquenches it, vexes it; and he that vexes it, sets it against\nhimself, and tempts it to hasten destruction upon himself. 1 Thess.\n5:19.\n\nWherefore take heed, professors, I say, take heed, you that\nreligiously name the name of Christ, that you meddle not with\niniquity, that you tempt not the Spirit of the Lord to do such\nthings against you; whose beginnings are dreadful, and whose end in\nworking of judgments is unsearchable. Isa. 63:10; Acts 5:9.\n\nA man knows not whither he is sjoing, nor where he shall stop, that\nis but entering into temptation; nor whether he shall ever turn\nback, or go out at the gap that is right before him.\n\nHe that has begun to grieve the Holy Ghost, may be sufiered to go on\nuntil he has sinned that sin which is called the sin against the\nHoly Ghost. And if God shall once give thee up to that, then, thou\nart in the IRON CAGE, out of which there is neither deliverance nor\nredemption.\n\nThere is a sin called the sin against the Holy Ghost, from which\nthere is no redemption, and this sin doth more than ordinarily\nbefall professors; for there are few, if any, that are not\nprofessors, that are at present capable of sinning this sin. They\nwhich \"were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and\nwere made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word\nof God, and the powers of the world to come,\" Heb.6:4, 5--of this\nsort are they that commit this sin. Peter also describes them to be\nsuch, that sin the unpardonable sin: \"For if after they have escaped\nthe pollution of the world, through the knowledge of our Lord and\nSaviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein and overcome,\nthe latter end is worse with them than the beginning.\" 2 Pet. 2:2.\n\nThe other passage in the tenth of the Hebrews holdeth forth the same\nthing: \"For if we sin wilfully, after we have received the knowledge\nof the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin. but a\ncertain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation that\nshall devour the adversaries.\"\n\nThese, therefore, are the persons that are the prey for this sin.\nThis sin feedeth upon professors, and they that are such do often\nfall into the rnouth of this eater.\n\nThe unpardonable sin, the sin against the Holy Ghost, is a sin of\nthis nature: For a man after he hath made some profession of\nsalvation to come alone by the blood of Jesus, together with some\nlight%and power of the same upon his spirit--I say, for him\nknowingly, wilfully, and despitefully to trample upon the blood of\nChrist shed on the cross, and to count it an unholy thing, or no\nbetter than the blood of another man; and rather to venture his soul\nany other way, than to be saved by this precious blood.\n\nIt is called the sin against the Holy Ghost, because such sin\nagainst the manifest light of the Spirit; that is, they have been\nformerly enlightened into the nature of the gospel, and the merits\nof the man Christ, and his blood, righteousness, intercession, etc.,\nand also have professed and confessed the same, with some life and\ncomfort in and through the profession of him; yet now against all\nthat light, they maliciously and with despite to all their former\nprofession, turn their backs, and trample upon the same.\n\nThis sin is immediately committed against the motions and\nconvictions and light of that Holy Spirit of God, that makes it his\nbusiness to hand forth and manifest the truth and reality of the\nmerits and virtue of the Lord Jesus.\n\nTo some men that have grievously sinned under a profession of the\ngospel, God. gives this token of his displeasure: they are denied\nthe power of repentance; their heart is bound, they cannot repent.\nIt is impossible they should ever repent, should they live a\nthousand years. It is impossible for those fall-aways to be renewed\nagain unto repentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of\nGod afresh, and put him to open shame. Now, to have the heart so\nhardened, so judicially hardened, this is as a bar put in by the\nLord God against the salvation of this sinner. This was the burden\nof Spira's complaint: \"I cannot do it; O, now I cannot do it.\"\n\nThis man sees what he has done, what should help him, and what will\nbecome of him; yet he cannot repent. He pulled away his shoulder\nbefore, he shut his eyes before, and in that very posture God left\nhim; and so he stands to this very day. I have had a fancy that\nLot's wife, when she was turned into a pillar of salt, stood yet\nlooking over her shoulder, or else with her face towards Sodom; as\nthe judgment caught her, so it bound her, and left her for a\nmonument of God's anger to after-generations.\n\nI have been the more plain and simple in my writing, because the sin\nagainst the Holy Ghost is in these days more common than formerly,\nand the way unto it more beautified with color and pretence of truth\nI may say of the way to this sin, it is, as was once the way to\nJerusalem, strewed with boughs and branches, and by some there is\ncried a kind of Hosanna to them that are treading these steps to\nhell. Oh, the plausible pretences, the golden names, the feigned\nholiness, the demure behavior mixed with damnable hypocrisy, that\nattend the persons that have forsaken the Lord Jesus, that have\ndespised his person, trampled upon him, and \"counted the blood of\nthe covenant wherewith they were sanctified an unholy thing.\" They\nhave crucified him to themselves, and think that they can go to\nheaven without him, yea, pretend they love him, when they hate him;\npretend they have him, when they have cast him off; pretend they\ntrust in him, when they bid defiance to his undertakings for the\nworld.\n\nSo they both went on, and Ignorance he came after. Now, when they\nhad passed him a little way, they entered into a very dark lane,\nwhere they met a man whom seven devils had bound with seven strong\ncords, and were carrying him back to the door that they saw on the\nside of the hill. Matt. 12: 45; Prov. 5: 22. Now good Christian\nbegan to tremble, and so did Hopeful, his companion; yet as the\ndevils led away the man, Christian looked to see if he knew him; and\nhe thought it might be one Turn-away that dwelt in the town of\nApostasy. But he did not perfectly see his face; for he did hang his\nhead like a thief that is found. But being gone past, Hopeful looked\nafter him, and espied on his back a paper with this inscription:\n\"Wanton professor and damnable apostate.\"\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXI. THE CHURCH.\n\nFROM THE PREFACE TO THE \"HOLY CITY.\"\n\n\n\n\n\nUPON a certain First-day, I being together with my brethren in our\nprison-chamber, they expected that, according to our custom,\nsomething should be spoken out of the word for our mutual\nedification; but at that time I felt myself--it being my turn to\nspeak--so empty, spiritless, and barren, that I thought I should\nnot have been able to speak among them so much as five words of\ntruth, with life and evidence: but at last it so fell out that\nprovidentially I cast my eye upon the 11th verse of the 21st chapter\nof this prophecy of Revelation; upon which when I had considered\nawhile, methought I perceived something of that Jasper, in whose\nlight you there find this holy city is said to come or descend:\nwherefore, having got in my eye some dim glimmerings thereof, and\nfinding also in my heart a desire to see further thereinto, I, with\na few groans, did carry my meditation to the Lord Jesus for a\nblessing. This he did forthwith grant, according to his grace; and\nhelping me to set before my brethren, we did all eat and were all\nrefreshed; and behold also, that while I was in the distributing of\nit, it so increased in my hand that, of the fragments that we left\nafter we had well dined, I gathered up this basketful. Methought the\nmore I cast my eye upon the whole discourse, the more I saw lie in\nit. Wherefore, setting myself to a more narrow search, through\nfrequent prayer to God--what first with doing, and then with\nundoing, and after that with doing again--I thus did finish it.\n\nBut yet, notwithstanding all my labor and travail in this matter, I\ndo not, neither can I, expect that every godly heart should in every\nthing see the truth and excellency of what is here discoursed;\nneither would I have them imagine that I have so thoroughly viewed\nthis holy city, but that much more than I do here crush out is yet\nleft in the cluster. Alas, I shall only say thus: I have crushed out\na little juice to sweeten their lips withal; not doubting but in a\nlittle time more large measures of the excellency of this city, and\nof its sweetness and glory, will by others be opened and unfolded,\nyea, if not by the servants of the Lord Jesus, yet by the Lord\nhimself, who will have this city builded and set in its own place.\n\nCHURCH-FELLOWSHIP.\n\nIt is the ordinance of God, that Christians should be often\nasserting the things of God to each other; and that by their so\ndoing, they should edify one another.\n\nThe doctrine of the gospel is like the dew and the small rain, that\ndistilleth upon the tender grass, wherewith it doth flourish and is\nkept green.\n\nChristians are like the several flowers in a garden, that have upon\neach of them the dew of heaven; which being shaken with the wind,\nlet fall their dew at each other's roots, whereby they are jointly\nnourished and become nourishers of one another.\n\nChurch-fellowship, rightly managed, is the glory of all the world.\nNo place, no community, no fellowship is adorned and bespangled with\nsuch beauties, as is a church rightly knit together to their Head,\nand lovingly serving one another.\n\nThe church and a profession are the best of places for the upright;\nbut the worst in the world for the cumberground.\n\nTHE CHURCH A LIGHT.\n\nThe Holy Ghost is well pleased to bring in the shining virtues of\nthe church, under the--notion of a shining moon; because, as the\nchurch herself is compared to the moon, so her virtues are as\nnaturally compared to a shining light: as Christ saith, \"Let your\nlight so shine;\" and again, \"Let your loins be girded, and your\nlights burning.\" For indeed, while we are here, that church and\ncongregation of the Lord doth most shine, and most send forth the\ngolden rays and pleasant beams of Christianity, that is most in the\nexercise of the aforementioned virtues. Take away the moon, and the\nnight is doubtful; or, though the moon be in the firmament, if she\nhath lost her light, the night is not thereby made more comfortable.\nAnd thus, I say, it is first with the world, where there is no\nchurch to shine, or where there is a church that doth not so shine\nthat others may see and be lighted.\n\nSPIRITUAL CHARACTER OF THE CHURCH.\n\nShe meddleth not with any man's matters but her own; she comes all\nalong by the king's highway; that is, only by the rules that her\nLord hath prescribed for her in his testament. The governors of this\nworld need not at all fear a disturbance from her, or a diminution\nof aught they have. She will not meddle with their fields nor\nvineyards, neither will she drink of the water of their wells. Only\nlet her go by the king's highway, and she will not turn to the right\nhand or to the left, until she has passed all their borders It is a\nfalse report that the governors of the nations have received against\nthe city, this new Jerusalem, if they believe according to the tale\nthat is told of her, that she is and has been of old a rebellious\ncity, and destructive to kings, and a diminisher of their revenues.\nShe is not for meddling with any thing that is theirs, from a thread\neven to a shoe-latchet. Her glory is spiritual and heavenly, and she\nis satisfied with what is her own. 'Tis true, the kings and nations\nof this world shall one day bring their glory and honor to this\ncity; but yet not by outward force or compulsion: none shall\nconstrain them but the love of Christ, and the beauty of this city.\n\"The Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness\nof thy rising.\" The light and beauty of this city, these only shall\nengage their hearts and overcome them.\n\nIndeed, if any shall, out of mistrust or enmity against this city\nand her prosperity, bend themselves to disappoint the designs of the\neternal God concerning her building and glory, then they must take\nwhat follows. Her God in the midst of her is mighty; he will rest in\nhis love, and rejoice over her with singing, and will UNDO all that\nafflict her. Wherefore, associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye\nshall he broken in pieces; for God is with us.\n\nWARNING TO THE PROFESSOR.\n\nHe that sins himself out of the church, can find no good in the\nworld; and they that have sinned God out, can find no good in the\nchurch. A church that has sinned God away from it, is a sad lump\nindeed. You, therefore, that are in God's church, take heed of\nsinning yourselves out thence; also take heed, that while you keep\nin, you sin not God away, for thenceforth no good is there. \"Yea,\nwoe unto them when I depart from them, saith the Lord.\"\n\nCHURCH-ORDER.\n\nIt is hard to have all things according to rule in the day of the\nchurch's affliction, because of the weakness and fearfulness of\nsome, and because possibly those who have most skill in that matter\nmay for a time be laid up in chains. But when the church has rest\nand quietness, then as she praises God, so she conceives and brings\nforth governors and good government and rule among her members.\nDavid, a man of blood, could not build the house to the Lord, which\npeaceable Solomon, that man of rest, afterwards did. When armies are\nengaged and hot in battle, it is harder to keep them in rank and\nfile than when they have rest and time for discipline.\n\nTHE CHURCH IN AFFLICTION.\n\nWhen the church of God is afflicted, both heaven and hell have their\nhand therein; but from a differing consideration, and to a diverse\nend. From heaven it comes, that we may remember we have sinned, and\nthat we may be made white and tried; but from hell, that we might\nsin the more, and that we might despair and be damned.\n\nSATAN'S HOSTILITY TO THE CHURCH.\n\nSatan has tried many ways to be at amity with the church--not\nbecause he loves her holiness, but because he hates her welfare. And\nthat he might bring about his enterprise, he sometimes has allured\nher with the dainty delicacies of this world, the lusts of the flesh\nand of the eyes, and the pride of life. This being fruitless, he has\nattempted to entangle and bewitch her with his glorious appearance\nas an angel of light; and to that end he has made his ministers of\nrighteousness, preaching up righteousness, and contending for a\ndivine and holy worship. But this failing also, he has taken in hand\nat length to fright her into friendship with him, by stirring up the\nhellish rage of tyrants to frighten and molest her; by finding out\nstrange inventions to torment and afflict her children; by making\nmany bloody examples of her own bowels before her eyes, if by that\nmeans he might at last obtain his purpose. But behold, all has been\nin vain; there can be no reconciliation. And why, but because God\nhimself maintains the enmity? God hath put enmity between the devil\nand the woman; between that old serpent called the devil and Satan,\nand the holy and beloved and espoused wife of Christ.\n\nSECURITY OF THE CHURCH.\n\nGold is a metal so invincible and unconquerable, that no fire can\nconsume it: it may burn it indeed, and melt it; the dross indeed\ndoth consume and give way to the power of the fire, but the gold\nremains and holds its ground, yea, it gets ground even of the\nfurnace and fire itself; for the more it is burned and melted, the\nmore it recovers its color, and the more it shakes off its dross and\ndishonor.\n\nJust thus it is with the people of God, and hath been so even from\nthe beginning: the more men oppressed them, the more they grew. His\nchurch has been now for many hundred years in the king of Babylon's\nfurnace; all which time she hath most gloriously endured and\nwithstood the heat; and at last, when the fire hath done its worst\nagainst her, behold, there comes out a city of gold. Wherefore, let\nher be bold to say, even before she comes out of the fire, \"When I\nam tried, I shall come forth as gold.\"\n\nSo long as the church endured hardship and affliction, she was\ngreatly preserved from revolts and backslidings; but after she had\nturned her face from the sun, and had found the plain of Shinar,\nGenesis 11, that is, the fleshly delights that the pleasures and\nprofits and honors of this world afford, she, forgetting the word\nand order of God, was content to dwell in the land of Babel.\n\nAs the sins of God's people brought them into captivity, so their\nsins can hold them there; yea, and when the time comes that grace\nmust fetch them out, yet the oxen that draw this cart may stumble,\nand the way, through roughness, may shake it sorely. However, heaven\nrules and overrules: and by one means and another, as the captivity\nof Israel did seem to linger, so it came out at the time appointed,\nin the way that best pleased God, that most profited them, and that\nmost confounded those that were their implacable enemies. This\ntherefore should instruct those that yet dwell where the \"woman\"\nsitteth, to quietness and patience.\n\nTo quietness; for God rules and has the disposal of things. Besides,\nit is a kind of arraigning of his wisdom, to be discontent at that\nwhich at present is upon the wheel. Above all, it displeases him\nthat any should seek, or go about to revenge their own injuries, or\nto work their own deliverances; for that is the work of God: nor is\nhe weak, nor has he missed the opportunity; nor does he sleep, but\nwaketh, and waiteth to be gracious.\n\nThis also should teach them to be patient, and put them upon bearing\nwhat at present they may undergo, patiently Let them wait upon God;\npatiently let them wait upon men, and patiently let them bear the\nfruits of their own transgressions; which though they should be none\nother but a deferring of the mercy wished for, is enough to try, and\ncrack, and break their patience, if a continual supply and a daily\nincrease thereof be not given by the God of heaven.\n\nAnd before I conclude this, let me add one word more, to wit, to\nexhort them to look that they may see what God at present may be\ndoing among the Babylonians.\n\nWhen God had his people into Babylon of old, he presented them with\nsuch varieties there as he never showed them in their own country.\nAnd is there nothing now to be seen by them that are not yet\ndelivered from that oppression, that may give them occasion to stay\nthemselves and wonder? What, is preservation nothing? What, is\nbaffling and befooling the enemies of God's church nothing? In the\nMaryan [Footnote: Upon the accession of Mary to the throne of\nEngland, the sanguinary laws against heretics were revived, and\nthose shocking scenes of cruelty followed which have fixed upon this\nprincess the epithet of Bloody Queen Mary. Her gloomy bigotry caused\nthat two hundred and seventy-seven persons should be committed to\nthe flames, including prelates, private clergymen, laymen of all\nranks, women, and even children.\n\nAmong the number were archbishop Cranmer, bishops Ridley. Latimer,\nand Hooper, John Rogers, John Bradford, and John Philpot.\n\nBishops Latimer and Ridley were burnt together. When they came to\nthe stake, Dr. Ridley embraced Latimer fervently, and bade him be of\ngood heart; he then knelt by the stake, and after earnestly praying\ntogether, they had a short private conversation. A lighted fagot was\nlaid at Dr. Ridley's feet, which caused the other to say, \"Be of\ngood cheer, Ridley, and play the man. We shall this day, by God's\ngrace, light up such a candle in England, as I trust will never be\nput out.\" When Dr. Ridley saw the flame approaching him, he\nexclaimed, \"Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.\" Latimer\nceased not to say, \"O Father of heaven, receive my soul.\"\n\nSanders, another martyr, was offered a pardon; but he rejected it,\nand embraced the stake, saying, \"Welcome the cross of Christ!\nwelcome, everlasting life!\" Fox's Book of Martyrs and Hume's Hist.\nEng] days here at home, there were such sweet songs sung in the\nfire, such sweet notes answering them from prison, and such\nprovidences, like coals of burning fire, still dropping here and\nthere upon the heads of those that hated God, that it might, and\ndouhtless did, make those that did wisely consider of God's doings,\nthink God was yet near in behalf of his despised and afflicted\npeople.\n\nDeep things are seen by them that are upon the waters. \"They that go\ndown to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these\nsee the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep.\" Indeed it\noft falls out that the church sees more of God in affliction, than\nwhen she is at rest and ease; when she is tumbled to and fro with\nwaters, then she sees the works of God and his wonders in the deep.\nAnd this makes persecution so pleasant a thing; this makes \"the ark\ngo upon the face of the waters.\" She sees more in this her state,\nthan in all the treasures of Egypt.\n\nNothing is more natural to the church, while in a wilderness\ncondition, than such cups and draughts as the cup of the Lord's\nfury, the cup of trembling, the cup of astonishment.\n\nHence she is said to be clothed in sackcloth, to mourn, to weep, to\ncry out, and to be in pain as a woman in travail. Since the church\nin the wilderness has been so persecuted, so distressed, so\noppressed, and made the seat of so much war, so much blood, and so\nmany murders of her children within her, can it be imagined that she\ndrank of more of these cups? Yes, yes, she has drunk the red wine at\nthe Lord's hand, even the cup of blood, of fury, of trembling, and\nof astonishment; witness her own cries, sighs, tears, and\ntremblings, with the cries of the widows, children, and orphans\nwithin her.\n\nBut all these cups are of pure gold. They are of God's ordaining,\nappointing, filling; and also sanctified by him for good to those of\nhis that drink them. Hence Moses chose rather to drink a brimmer of\nthese, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.\n\nThe sourness, bitterness, and wormwood of them, therefore, is only\nto the flesh, that loveth neither God, nor Christ, nor grace. The\nafflictions, therefore, that the church in the wilderness hath met\nwith, these cups of gold, are of more worth than are all the\ntreasures of Egypt; they are needful and profitable, and\npraiseworthy also, and tend to the augmenting of our glory when the\nnext world shall come.\n\nBesides, they are signs, tokens, and golden-marks of love, and\njewels that set off the beauty of the church in the sight of God the\nmore. They are also a means by which men are proved to be sound,\nhonest, faithful, and true lovers of God; to be those whose graces\nare not counterfeit, feigned, or unsound, but true, and such as will\nbe found to praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus\nChrist.\n\nAnd this has been the cause that the men of our church in the\nwilderness have gloried in tribulation, taking pleasure in\nreproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, and in distresses, for\nChrist's sake. Yea, this is the reason why they have bade one\nanother rejoice, when they fell into divers temptations, saying,\n\"Happy is the man that endureth temptations;\" and, \"Behold, we count\nthem happy that endure.\" And again, \"If ye be reproached for the\nname of Christ, happy are ye.\"\n\nThese, therefore, are vessels of pure gold, though they contain such\nbitter draughts, at which we make so many wry faces before we can\nget them down.\n\nDo you think that a Christian, having even this cup in his hand to\ndrink, would change it for a draught of that which is in the hand of\nthe woman that sits on the back of the scarlet-colored beast? No,\nverily; for he knows that her sweet is poison; and that his bitter\nis to purge his soul, body, life, and religion, of death.\n\nGod sends his love-tokens to his church two ways; sometimes by her\nfriends, sometimes by her enemies. When they come by the hand of a\nfriend, as by a minister, a brother, or by the Holy Ghost, then they\ncome smoothly, sweetly, and are taken, and go down like honey. But\nwhen these love-tokens come to them by the hand of an enemy, then\nthey are handed to them roughly. Pharaoh handed love-tokens to them\nroughly; the king of Babylon handed these love-tokens to them\nroughly. They bring them of malice; God sends them of love. They\nbring them and give them to us, hoping they will be our death; they\ngive them therefore with many a foul curse; but God blesses them\nstill.\n\nNor is this cup so bitter but that our Lord himself drank deep of\nit, before it was handed to his church. He did, as loving mothers\ndo, drink thereof himself, to show us it is not poison, also to\nencourage us to drink it for his sake, and for our endless health.\nTherefore the cup is called Christ's cup: \"Are ye able to drink of\nthe cup that I drink of? Ye shall indeed drink of my cup.\" Here you\nsee they are joined in a communion in this cup of affliction.\n\nBut these are not all the cups that belong to the church in the\nwilderness. There is also a cup, out of which, at times, is drunk\nwhat is exceeding sweet. It is called the cup of consolation, the\ncup of salvation; a cup in which God himself is, as David said, \"The\nLord is the portion of my cup.\"\n\nThis cup, they that are in the church in the wilderness have usually\nfor an after-draught to that bitter one that went before. Thus, as\ntender mothers give their children plums or sugar to sweeten their\npalate after they have drunk a bitter potion, so God gives his\nchildren the cups of salvation and consolation after they have\nsuffered awhile: \"For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so\nour consolation aboundeth by Christ.\"\n\nSome of these cups are filled until they run over; as David said his\ndid, when the valley of the shadow of death was before him: \"Thou\npreparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; thou\nanointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.\"\n\nThis is that which the apostle calls \"exceeding\"--that which is\nbeyond measure. \"I am,\" says he, \"filled with comfort; I am\nexceeding joyful in all our tribulation.\"\n\nNow he has one answering the other: \"Thou hast made summer and\nwinter; thou hast made the warm beams of thy sun answerable to the\ncold of the dark night.\" This may yet be signified by the building\nof this house, this type of the church in the wilderness, in so\npleasant a place as the forest of Lebanon was. Lebanon! Lebanon was\none of the sweetest places in all the land of Canaan. Therefore we\nread of the fruit of Lebanon, of the streams from Lebanon; the\nscent, the smell, the glory of Lebanon; and also of the wine and\nflowers of Lebanon.\n\nLebanon! That was one thing that wrought with Moses to desire that\nhe might go over Jordan, that he might see that goodly mountain, and\nLebanon. The glory and excellent beauty of the church Christ also\nsetteth forth by comparing her to Lebanon: \"Thy lips, O my spouse,\ndrop as a honeycomb; honey and milk are under thy tongue, and the\nsmell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon.\"\n\nI know there are extravagant opinions in the world about the kingdom\nof Christ, as if it consisted in temporal glory in part; and as if\nhe would take it to him by carnal weapons, and so maintain it in its\ngreatness and grandeur. But I confess myself an alien to these\nnotions, and believe and profess quite the contrary, and look for\nthe coming of Christ to judgment personally; and betwixt this and\nthat, for his coming in Spirit and in the power of his word; to\ndestroy antichrist, to inform kings, and so to give quietness to his\nchurch on earth: which shall assuredly be accomplished when the\nreign of the beast, the false prophet, and the man of sin is out.\n\nLet this teach men not to think that the church is cursed of God,\nbecause she is put in a wilderness state. Alas, that is but to train\nher up in a way of solitariness, to make her Canaan the more welcome\nto her. Rest is sweet to a laboring man.\n\nYea, this condition is the first step to heaven; yea, it is a\npreparation to that kingdom. God's ways are not as man's: \"I have\nchosen thee,\" saith he, \"in the furnace of affliction.\" When Israel\ncame out of Egypt, they were led of God into the wilderness. But\nwhy? That he might have them to a land that he had espied for them,\nthat he might bring them to a city of habitation.\n\nThe world know not the way of the Lord, nor the judgment of our God.\nDo you think that saints that dwell in the world, and that have more\nof the mind of God than the world, could so rejoice in God, in the\ncross, in tribulations and distresses, were they not assured that\nthrough many tribulations is the very road to heaven?\n\nLet this then encourage the saints to hope, and to rejoice in hope\nof the glory of God, notwithstanding present tribulations. This is\nour seed-time, our winter: afflictions are to try us of what mettle\nwe are made; yea, and to shake off worm-eaten fruit, and such as are\nrotten a core.\n\nTroubles for Christ's sake are but like the prick of an awl in the\ntip of the ear, in order to hang a jewel there.\n\nLet this also put the saints upon patience. When we know that a\ntrial will have an end, we are encouraged to exercise patience. I\nhave a bad master, but I have only a year to serve under him, and\nthat makes me serve him with patience. I have but a mile to go in\nthis dirty way, and then I shall have my path pleasant and green,\nand this makes me tread the dirty way with patience.\n\nI am now in my rags; but by that a quarter of a year is come and\ngone, two hundred [Footnote: That is, pounds: a large income in the\nEngland Bunyan's day.] a year comes into my hand; wherefore I will\nwait and exercise patience. Thus might I multiply comparisons.\n\nBe patient, then, my brethren. But how long? \"To the coming of the\nLord.\" But when will that be? \"The coming of the Lord draweth nigh.\"\n\nHow unseen the strength of the church under persecution is of all\nthat are without her. Alas, they think that she will be run down\nwith a push; or, as they said, \"What do these feeble Jews? Will they\nfortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a\nday? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish which\nare burnt? Alas, if a fox go up, he will even break down their stone\nwall.\"\n\nBut do you think these men saw the strength of the Jews? No, no;\ntheir pillars were within, and so were shadowed from their eyes.\nDavid himself could not tell what judgment to make of the way of the\nworld against the people of God, until he went into the sanctuary of\nGod.\n\nHow then can the world judge of the condition of the saints? Alas,\nhad they known the church's strength, surely they would not have so\nfuriously assaulted her. But what have they got by all they have\ndone, either, against the Head or body of the church?\n\nShe has yet being in the world, and will have, shall have, though\nall the nations on earth should gather themselves together against\nher. Nor is it the cutting off of many that will make her cease to\nflourish. Alas, were she not sometimes pruned and trimmed, her\nboughs would stand too thick. Those therefore that are taken away\nwith God's pruning-hooks, are removed that the under branches may\ngrow the better.\n\nNo man needs be afraid to let Jesus Christ be chief in the world: he\nenvies nobody; he designs the hurt of none: his kingdom is not of\nthis world, nor doth he covet temporal matters: let but his wife,\nhis church, alone, to enjoy her purchased privileges, and all shall\nbe well; which privileges of hers, since they are soul-concerns,\nmake no infringement upon any man's liberties. Let but faith and\nholiness walk the streets without control, and you may be as happy\nas the world can make you. I speak now to them that contend with\nhim.\n\nBut if seasonable counsel will not go down, if hardness of heart and\nblindness of mind and so perishing from the way shall overtake you,\nit is but what you of old have been cautioned of: \"Be wise now,\ntherefore, O ye kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve\nthe Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest\nhe be angry, and ye perish from the way when his wrath is kindled\nbut a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.\"\n\nThe very name of Jesus is the very tower of the Christian church,\nand that by which she frights the world, not designedly, but through\ntheir misunderstanding; for neither she nor her Jesus is for doing\nthem any hurt. However, this is that which renders her yet, in their\neye, terrible as an army with banners.\n\nAlways when antichrist made his inroads upon the church in the\nwilderness, to slay, to cut off, and to kill, yet some of the\npillars stood; they were not all burnt in the fire, nor cut down.\nThey said indeed, \"Come, let us cut them off from being a nation,\nthat the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.\" But what\nthen? There is a difference betwixt saying and doing; the bush was\nnot therefore consumed because it was set on fire; the church shall\nnot be consumed, although she be afflicted.\n\nAnd the reason is, because God has his reserve: therefore if Abel\nfalls by the hand of Cain, Seth is put in his place; if Moses is\ntaken away, Joshua shall succeed him; and if the devil break the\nneck of Judas, Matthias is at hand to take his office. God has a\nsuccession of pillars in his house; he has to himself a reserve.\n\nThey therefore brought out Faithful, to do with him according to\ntheir law; and first they scourged him, then they buffeted him, then\nthey lanced his flesh with knives; after they had stoned him with\nstones, they pricked him with their swords; and last of all, they\nburned him to ashes at the stake. Thus came Faithful to his end. Now\nI saw in my dream that Christian went not forth alone, for there was\none whose name was Hopeful--being so made by the beholding of\nChristian and Faithful in their words and behavior in their\nsufferings at the fair--who joined himself unto him; and entering\ninto a brotherly covenant, told him that he would be his companion.\n\nThus one died to bear testimony to the truth, and another rises out\nof his ashes, to be a companion with Christian in his pilgrimage.\n\n\"And she bare a son, and called his name Seth; for God, saith she,\nhath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.\"\nGen. 4. When Seth comes, then the ground is made good again; then a\nliving saint is found to stand, and maintain that truth which but\nnow his brother bled for.\n\nTHE FUTURE GLORY OF THE CHURCH.\n\nThy children shall all be holy or righteous, and \"great shall be the\npeace of thy children; and the nations of them that are saved shall\nwalk in the light of it.\" Surely the Holy Ghost would never have\nspoken such a word as this if he had not intended to show us that at\nthe day of the setting up of this Jerusalem, a great harvest of\nsinners shall be gathered by the grace of the gospel. But the truth\nis, the Scriptures go with open arms towards the latter end of the\nworld, even as if they would grasp and compass about almost all\npeople then upon the face of the whole earth with the grace and\nmercy of God: \"The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the\nglory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.\"\n\nNever was fair weather after foul, nor warm weather after cold, nor\na sweet and beautiful spring after a heavy and nipping and terrible\nwinter, so comfortable, sweet, and desirable and welcome to the poor\nbirds and beasts of the field, as this day will be to the church of\nGod. Darkness! it was the plague of Egypt; it is an empty, forlorn,\ndesolate, solitary, and discomforting state. Wherefore light, even\nthe illuminating grace of God, especially in the measure that it\nshall be communicated unto us at that day, it must needs be\nprecious. In light there is warmth and pleasure. It is by the light\nof the sun that the whole universe appears unto us distinctly, and\nit is by the heat thereof that every thing groweth and flourisheth;\nall which will now be gloriously and spiritually answered in this\nholy and new Jerusalem. O how clearly will all the spiders and\ndragons and owls and foul spirits of antichrist, at that day, be\ndiscovered by the light hereof. Now also will all the pretty and\nlittle birds in the Lord's field, most sweetly send forth their\npleasant notes, and all the flowers and herbs in his garden spring.\nThen will it be said to the church by her husband and Saviour, \"Rise\nup, my love, my fair one, and come away; for lo, the winter is past,\nthe rain is over and gone, the flowers appear on the earth, the time\nof the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is\nheard in our land; the fig-tree putteth forth her green figs, and\nthe vine with her tender grapes give a good smell.\" You know how\npleasant this is, even to be fulfilled in the letter of it, not only\nto birds and beasts, but to men; especially it is pleasant to such\nmen as have for several years been held in the chains of affliction.\nIt must needs therefore be most pleasant and desirable to the\nafflicted church of Christ, who hath lain now in the dungeon of\nantichrist for. above a thousand years. But, Lord, how will this\nlady, when she gets her liberty and when she is returned to her own\ncity, how will she then take pleasure in the warmth and spangling\nbeams of thy shining grace, and solace herself with thee in the\ngarden, among the nuts and pomegranates, among the lilies and\nflowers, and all the chief spices!\n\n\"And in the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the\nriver, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of\nfruits, and yielded her fruit every month; and the leaves of the\ntree were for the healing of the nations.\"\n\nThis tree of life is the Lord Jesus Christ; and that he is here\ncalled a tree, is to show how fruitful and exceeding advantageous he\nin all his benefits will be to the inhabitants of this city. This is\nthe tree under whose branches the fowls of heaven shall now most\nsafely lodge, and find relief from the hot and fainting beams of the\npersecuting sun of this world.\n\nIn that he saith this city hath a tree of life in it, he alludes to\nthe garden of Eden, the pleasant paradise that God began the world\nwithal; whereby he signifies, that as the world began with a\nparadise, so also it shall end with a paradise, when sin and Satan\nhave done their worst. This new Jerusalem shall be the wind-up of\nthe world; and in it shall stand the tree of life, as there stood\none in the goodly garden which was the beginning thereof.\n\nNow this tree of life being in the midst of this city, it signifies\nthat the inhabitants of it shall be sweetly shadowed, refreshed, and\ndefended with its coolness, and also sweetly nourished and comforted\nwith its dainties. \"As the apple-tree is among the trees of the\nwood, so is my Beloved among the sons. I sat under his shadow with\ngreat delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.\" Indeed the\nshadow of this tree of life, as always it is refreshing to the\ntempted and weary, so now it will be far more: \"They that dwell\nunder his shadow shall return; they shall revive as the corn and\ngrow as the vine, and the scent thereof shall be as the wine of\nLebanon.\" His shadow will make us return, that is, to our first\nlove--to the days of our youth, to our young, fresh, tender, and\nflourishing faith, love, and self-denial, that we received in the\nday of our espousals.\n\nO they will be green, savory, reviving, flourishing, growing\nChristians that shall walk the streets of the new Jerusalem.\n\nNow there shall be a oneness of judgment and understanding in the\nhearts of all saints; they shall be now no more two, but one in the\nLord's hand.\n\nAlas, the saints are yet but as an army routed, and are apt\nsometimes through fear, and sometimes through forgetfulness, to\nmistake the word of their Captain-general the Son of God, and are\nalso too, too prone to shoot and kill even their very right-hand\nman. But at that day all such doing shall be laid aside, for the\nknowledge of the glory of the Lord shall cover the earth, as the\nwaters cover the sea: which knowledge shall then strike through the\nheart and liver of all swerving and unsound opinions in Christ's\nmatters; for then shall every one of the Christians call upon the\nname of the Lord, and that with one pure lip, or language, to serve\nhim with one consent.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXII. The Ministry.\n\nImportance of the ministry.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe church itself, without its watchmen, is a weak, feeble, and very\nhelpless thing. What can the lady or mistress do to defend herself\nagainst thieves and sturdy villains, if there be none but she at\nhome? It is said, when the shepherd is smitten, the sheep will be\nscattered. What could the temple do without its watchmen? 1 Chron.\n9:24.\n\nThen let the churches love their pastors, hear their pastors, be\nruled by their pastors, and suffer themselves to be watched over,\nand to be exhorted, counselled, and if need be, reproved and rebuked\nby their pastors. And let the ministers not sleep, but be watchful,\nand look to the ordinances, to the souls of the saints, and the\ngates of the church. Watch, man; WATCH, MAN; WATCH!\n\nDuty Of Churches To The Ministry.\n\nO churches, let your ministers be beautified with your love; that\nthey may beautify you with their love, and also be an ornament unto\nyou, and to that gospel they minister to you, for Jesus Christ's\nsake.\n\nDifferent Classes Of Ministers.\n\nIs the soul such an excellent thing, and is the loss thereof so\nunspeakably great? Then this should teach the people to be very\ncareful to whom they commit the teaching and guidance of their\nsouls.\n\nThis is a business of the greatest concern: men will be careful to\nwhom they commit their children, whom they make the executors of\ntheir wills, in whose hand they trust the writing and evidences of\ntheir lands; but how much more careful should we be, unto whom we\ncommit the teaching and guidance of our souls. And yet most men are\nin these matters least of all careful.\n\nThere are idol shepherds. Zech. 11:7. There are foolish shepherds.\nZech. 11:15. There are shepherds that feed themselves, and not their\nflocks. Ezek. 34:2. There are hard-hearted and pitiless shepherds.\nZech. 11:3. There are shepherds that instead of healing, smite,\npush, and wound the diseased. Ezek. 34:4, 21. There are shepherds\nthat cause their flocks to go astray. Jer. 50:6. And there are\nshepherds that feed their flocks: these are the shepherds to whom\nthou shouldst commit thy soul for teaching and for guidance.\n\nThen said the Interpreter, \"Come in; I will show thee that which\nwill be profitable to thee.\" So he commanded his man to light a\ncandle, and bade Christian follow him. So he had him into a private\nroom, and bid his man open a door: the which when he had done,\nChristian saw the picture of a very grave person hang up against the\nwall; and this was the fashion of it: it had eyes lifted up to\nheaven, the best of books in its hand, the law of truth was written\nupon its lips, the world was behind its back; it stood as if it\npleaded with men, and a crown of gold did hang over its head.\n\nThen said Christian, \"What meaneth this?\"\n\nINTERPRETER. \"The man whose picture this is, is one of a thousand;\nhe can beget children, 1 Cor. 4:15, travail in birth with children,\nGal. 4:19, and nurse them himself when they are born. And whereas\nthou seest him with his eyes lifted up to heaven, the best of books\nin his hand, and the law of truth written on his lips; it is to show\nthee that his work is to know and to unfold dark things to sinners;\neven as also thou seest him stand as if he pleaded with men. And\nwhereas thou seest the world as cast behind him, and that a crown\nhangs over his head; that is to show thee that, slighting and\ndespising the things that are present for the love that he hath to\nhis Master's service, he is sure, in the world that comes next, to\nhave glory for his reward.\n\n\"Now,\" said the Interpreter, \"I have showed thee this picture first,\nbecause the man whose picture this is, is the only man whom the Lord\nof the place whither thou art going hath authorized to be thy guide\nin all difficult places thou mayest meet with in the way; wherefore,\ntake good heed to what I have showed thee, and bear well in thy mind\nwhat thou hast seen, lest in thy journey thau meet with some that\npretend to lead thee right, but their way goes down to death.\"\n\nDUTY OF MINISTERS.\n\nWould Jesus Christ have mercy offered in the first place to the\nbiggest sinners? then let God's ministers tell them so.\n\nThere is a tendency in us, I know not how it doth come about, when\nwe are converted to contemn them that are left behind. Poor fools as\nwe are, we forget that we ourselves were so.\n\nBut would it not become us better, since we have tasted that the\nLord is gracious, so to act towards them that we may give them\nconvincing ground to believe that we have found that mercy which\nalso sets open the door for them to come and partake with us?\n\nAusterity doth not become us, neither in doctrine nor in\nconversation. We ourselves live by grace; let us give as we receive,\nand labor to persuade our fellow-sinners whom God has left behind\nus, to follow after, that they may partake with us of grace. We are\nsaved by grace, let us live like them that are gracious. Let all our\nthings to the world be done in charity towards them; pity them, pray\nfor them, be familiar with them for their good. Let us lay aside our\nfoolish, worldly, carnal grandeur; let us not walk the streets, and\nhave such behaviors as signify we are scarce for touching the poor\nones that are left behind, no, not with a pair of tongs.\n\nRemember your Lord; he was familiar with publicans and sinners to a\nproverb. \"Behold a gluttonous man and a wine-bibber; a friend of\npublicans and sinners.\" Matt. 11:19. The first part, concerning his\ngluttonous eating and drinking, to be sure, was a horrible slander;\nbut for the other, nothing was ever spoken truer of him by the\nworld.\n\nNow why should we lay hands cross on this text; that is, choose good\nvictuals and love the sweet wine better than the salvation of the\npoor publican? Why not be familiar with sinners, provided we hate\ntheir spots and blemishes, and seek that they may be healed of them?\nWhy not be fellowly with our carnal neighbors, if we take occasion\nto do so that we may drop and be distilling some good doctrine upon\ntheir souls? Why not go to the poor man's house, and give him a\npenny and a scripture to think upon?\n\nMINISTERS WARNED.\n\n\"There were giants in the earth in those days.\" These words seem to\nbe spoken to show us the hazards that Noah run while he preached the\ntruth of God; he incurred the displeasure of the giants, who\ndoubtless made all men tremble and kept the whole world in awe. But\nNoah must engage the giants, he must not fear the face of a giant.\n\nThis way God also took with Moses and with his people of Israel.\nThey must go to possess the land of the giants, a people high and\ntall as the cedars, a people of whom went the proverb, \"Who can\nstand before the children of Anak?\" They must not be afraid of Og\nthe king of Bashan, though his head be as high as the ridge of a\nhouse, and his bedstead a bedstead of iron.\n\nThis should teach us not to fear the faces of men; no, not the faces\nof the mighty; not to fear them in the matters of God, though they\nshould run upon us like a giant.\n\nPersecution, or the appearance of the giants against the servants of\nGod, is no new business; not a thing of yesterday, but of old, even\nwhen Noah did minister for God in the world.\n\n\"And Noah began to be a husbandman.\" This trade he took up for want\nof better employment; or rather, in mine opinion, from some liberty\nhe took to himself to be remiss in his care and work as a preacher.\nFor seeing the church was now at rest, and having the world before\nthem, they still retaining outward sobriety, poor Noah, good man,\nnow might think with himself, \"I need not now be so diligent,\nwatchful, and painful in my ministry as formerly; the church is but\nsmall, without opposition and also well settled in the truth; I may\nnow take to myself a little time to tamper with worldly things.\" So\nhe makes an essay upon husbandry: \"He began to be a husbandman.\" Ha,\nNoah, it was better with thee when thou wast better employed; yea,\nit was better with thee when a world of ungodly men set themselves\nagainst thee--yea, when every day thy life was in danger to be\ndestroyed by the giants, against whom thou wast preacher above a\nhundred years--for then thou didst walk with God: then thou wast\nbetter than all the world; but now thou art in the relapse.\n\nMINISTERS, SERVANTS OF THE CHURCH.\n\nGifts and office make no men sons of God; as so, they are but\nservants; though these, as ministers and apostles, were servants of\nthe highest form. It is the church, as such, that is the lady, a\nqueen, the bride, the Lamb's wife; and prophets, apostles, and\nministers are but servants, stewards, laborers for her good.\n\nAs therefore the lady is above the servant, the queen above the\nsteward, or the wife above all her husband's officers, so is the\nchurch, as such, above these officers.\n\nGIFTS AND GRACE IN MINISTERS.\n\nA tinkling cymbal, 1 Cor. 13:1, 2, is an instrument of music with\nwhich a skilful player can make such melodious and heart-inflaming\nmusic, that all who hear him play can scarcely hold from dancing;\nand yet behold, the cymbal hath not life, neither comes the music\nfrom it, but because of the art of him that plays therewith; so then\nthe instrument at last may come to naught and perish,--though in\ntimes past such music hath been made upon it.\n\nJust thus I saw it was and will be with them that have gifts, but\nwant saving grace: they are in the hand of Christ, as the cymbal in\nthe hand of David; and as David could with the cymbal make that\nmirth in the service of God as to elevate the hearts of the\nworshippers, Christ can so use these gifted men, as with them to\naffect the souls of his people in his church; and yet when he hath\ndone all, hang them by, as lifeless, though sounding cymbals.\n\nA man may be used as a servant in the church of God, and may receive\nmany gifts and much knowledge of the things of heaven, and yet at\nlast, himself be no more than a very bubble and nothing.\n\nThis our day doth indeed abound with gifts; many sparkling wits are\nseen in every corner; men have the word and truths of Christ at\ntheir fingers' ends. But alas, with many, yea a great many, there is\nnaught but wits and gifts: they are but words; all their religion\nlieth in their tongues and heads; the power of what they say and\nknow is seen in others, not in themselves. These are like the lord\non whom the king of Israel leaned; they shall see the plenty, the\nblessed plenty that God doth provide and will bestow upon his\nchurch, but they shall not taste thereof.\n\nAlas, great light, great parts, great works, and great confidence of\nheaven, may be where there is no faith of God's elect, no love of\nthe Spirit, no repentance unto salvation, no sanctification of the\nSpirit, and so, consequently, no saving grace.\n\nTHE FALSE MINISTER.\n\nSo Christian and Hopeful went on, and Ignorance followed. They went\nthen till they came to a place where they saw a way put itself into\ntheir way, and seemed withal to lie as straight as the way which\nthey should go; and here they knew not which of the two to take, for\nboth seemed straight before them; therefore, here they stood still\nto consider.\n\nAnd as they wore thinking about the way, behold, a man black of\nflesh, but covered with a very light robe, came to them, and asked\nthem why they stood there. They answered, that they were going to\nthe celestial city, but knew not which of these ways to take.\n\"Follow me,\" said the man; \"it is thither that I am going.\" So they\nfollowed him in the way that but now came into the road, which by\ndegrees turned, and turned them so far from the city that they\ndesired to go to, that in a little time their faces were turned away\nfrom it; yet they followed him. But by and by, before they were\naware, he led them both within the compass of a net, in which they\nwere both so entangled that they knew not what to do; and with that\nthe white robe fell off from the black man's back: then they saw\nwhere they were. Wherefore, there they lay crying some time, for\nthey could not get themselves out.\n\nThen said Christian to his fellow, \"Now do I see myself in an error.\nDid not the shepherds bid us beware of the flatterer?\" Thus they lay\nbewailing themselves in the net. At last they spied a shining one\ncoming towards them with a whip of small cords in his hand. When he\nwas come to the place where they were, he asked them whence they\ncame, and what they did there. They told him that they were poor\npilgrims going to Zion, but were led out of their way by a black man\nclothed in white, who bid us, said they, follow him, for he was\ngoing thither too. Then said he with the whip, \"It is Flatterer, a\nfalse apostle that hath transformed himself into an angel of light.\"\nSo he rent the net, and let the men out.\n\nThen said he to them, \"Follow me, that I may set you in your way\nagain.\" So he led them back to the way which they had left to follow\nthe flatterer. Then he asked them, saying, \"Where did you lie the\nlast night?\" They said, \"With the shepherds upon the delectable\nmountains.\" He asked them then, if they had not a note of direction\nfor the way. They answered, \"Yes.\" \"But did you not,\" said he, \"when\nyou were at a stand, pluck out and read your note?\" They answered,\n\"No.\" He asked them, \"Why?\" They said they forgot. He asked,\nmoreover, if the shepherds did not bid them beware of the flatterer.\nThey answered, \"Yes; but we did not imagine,\" said they,\" that this\nfine-spoken man had been he.\" Rom. 16:17, 18.\n\nThen I saw in my dream that he commanded them to lie down, Deut.\n29:2; which when they did, he chastised them sore, to teach them the\ngood way wherein they should walk, 2 Chron. 6:26, 27; and as he\nchastised them he said, \"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be\nzealous therefore and repent.\" This done, he bid them go on their\nway, and take heed to the other directions of the shepherds. So they\nthanked him for his kindness, and went softly along the right way,\nsinging.\n\nAnother reason why delusions do so easily take place in the hearts\nof the ignorant, is because those that pretend to be their teachers\ndo behave themselves so basely among them. And indeed I may say of\nthese, as our Lord said of the Pharisees in another case, All the\nblood of the ignorant, from the beginning of the world, shall be\nlaid to the charge of this generation. They that pretend they are\nsent of the Lord, and come saying, Thus saith the Lord; we are the\nservants of the Lord; our commission is from the Lord--I say, those\nwho pretend themselves to be the preachers of truth, but are not, do\nby their loose conversation render the true doctrine of God and his\nSon Jesus Christ contemptible, and do give the adversary mighty\nencouragement to cry out against the truths of our Lord Jesus\nChrist, because of their wicked walking. Now \"shall not his soul be\navenged on such a nation as this?\" who pretend to be teachers of the\npeople in goodness, when, as for the most part of them, they are the\nmen that at this day do harden their hearers in their sins, by\ngiving them such ill examples that none goeth beyond them for\nimpiety? As for example, Would a parishioner learn to be proud? he\nor she need look no further than to the priest, his wife, and\nfamily; for there is a notable pattern before them. Would the people\nlearn to be wanton? they may also see a pattern among their\nteachers. Would they learn to be drunkards? they may also have that\nfrom some of their ministers; for indeed they are ministers in this,\nto minister ill examples to their congregations. Again, would the\npeople learn to be covetous? they need but look to their ministers,\nand they shall have a lively, or rather a deadly, resemblance set\nbefore them, in both riding and running after great benefices and\nparsonages, by night and by day; nay, they among themselves will\nscramble for the same. I have seen, that so soon as a man hath but\ndeparted from his benefice as he calls it, either by death or out of\ncovetousness of a bigger, we have had one priest from this town, and\nanother from that, so run for these tithe-cocks and handfuls of\nbarley, as if it were their proper trade and calling to hunt after\nthe same.\n\nA covetous minister is a base thing; a pillar more symbolizing Lot's\nwife, than a holy apostle of Jesus Christ.\n\nThe unbelieving world slight the Scriptures because carnal priests\ntickle the ears of their hearers with vain philosophy and deceit,\nand thereby harden their hearts against the simplicity of the gospel\nand word of God; which things the apostle admonished those that have\na mind to close in with Christ, to avoid, saying, \"Beware lest any\nman,\" be he what he will, \"spoil you through philosophy and vain\ndeceit, after the traditions of men and rudiments of the world, and\nnot after Christ.\"\n\nAnd you who muzzle up your people in ignorance, with Aristotle,\nPlato, and the rest of the heathenish philosophers, and preach\nlittle if any thing of Christ rightly--I say unto you, that you will\nfind you have sinned against God and beguiled your hearers, when God\nshall in the judgment-day lay the cause of the damnation of many\nthousands of souls to your charge, and say, \"I will require their\nblood at your hands.\"\n\nTHE MINISTER AT THE DAY OF JUDGMENT.\n\nSome men, it is to be feared, at the day of judgment, will be found\nto be the authors of destroying whole nations. How many souls, do\nyou think, Balaam with his deceit will have to answer for? How many\nMahomet? How many the Pharisees that hired the soldiers to say the\ndisciples stole away Jesus, and by that means stumbled their\nbrethren to this day?\n\nHow many poor souls hath Bonner to answer for, think you; and\nseveral filthy, blind priests? How many souls have they been the\nmeans of destroying by their ignorance and corrupt doctrine?\npreaching that which was no better for their souls than ratsbane to\nthe body, for filthy lucre's sake. They shall see that they, many of\nthem it is to be feared, will have whole towns to answer for, whole\ncities to answer for. Ah, friend, I tell thee, thou that hast taken\nin hand to preach to the people, it may be thou hast taken in hand\nthou canst not tell what. Will it not grieve thee to see thy whole\nparish come bellowing after thee to hell, crying out, This we may\nthank thee for; thou didst not teach us the truth; thou didst lead\nus away with fables; thou wast afraid to tell us of our sins, lest\nwe should not put meat fast enough into thy mouth. O cursed wretch,\nthat ever thou shouldst beguile us thus, deceive us thus, flatter us\nthus. We would have gone out to hear the word abroad, but that thou\ndidst reprove us, and also tell us that that which we see now is the\nway of God was heresy and a deceivable doctrine, and wast not\ncontented, blind guide as thou wert, to fall into the ditch thyself,\nbut hast also led us thither with thee.\n\nI say, look to thyself, lest thou cry out when it is too late, Send\nLazarus to my people, my friends, my children, my congregation to\nwhom I preached, and whom I beguiled through my folly. Send him to\nthe town in which I did preach last, lest I be the cause of their\ndamnation.\n\nBUNYAN'S MINISTRY.\n\nIn my preaching of the word, I took special notice of this one\nthing, namely, that the Lord did lead me to begin where his word\nbegins with sinners; that is, to condemn all flesh, and to open and\nallege that the curse of God by the law doth belong to, and lay hold\non all men as they come into the world, because of sin.\n\nNow this part of my work I fulfilled with great feeling; for the\nterrors of the law, and guilt for my transgressions, lay heavy on my\nconscience: I preached what I felt, what I smartingly did feel; even\nthat under which my poor soul did groan and tremble to astonishment.\n\nIndeed, I have been as one sent to them from the dead; I went myself\nin chains, to preach to them in chains; and carried that fire in my\nown conscience, that I persuaded them to be aware of. I can truly\nsay, and that without dissembling, that when I have been to preach,\nI have gone full of guilt and terror even to the pulpit-door, and\nthere it hath been taken off, and I have been at liberty in my mind\nuntil I have done my work; and then immediately, even before I could\nget down the pulpit-stairs, I have been as bad as I was before; yet\nGod carried me on, but surely with a strong hand, for neither guilt\nnor hell could take me off my work.\n\nThus I went on for the space of two years, crying out against men's\nsins, and their fearful state because of them. After which the Lord\ncame in upon my soul with some sure peace and comfort through\nChrist; for he did give me many sweet discoveries of his blessed\ngrace through him: wherefore now I altered my preaching--for still I\npreached what I saw and felt. Now, therefore, I did much labor to\nhold forth Jesus Christ in all his offices, relations, and benefits\nunto the world; and did strive also to discover, to condemn, and\nremove those false supports and props on which the world doth both\nlean and by them fall and perish. On these things also I staid as\nlong as on the other.\n\nWhen I have been preaching, I thank God, my heart hath often all the\ntime of this and the other exercise, with great earnestness cried to\nGod that he would make the word effectual to the salvation of the\nsoul; still being grieved lest the enemy should take the word away\nfrom the conscience, and so it should become unfruitful: wherefore I\nhave labored so to speak the word, as that thereby, if it were\npossible, the sin and person guilty might be particularized by it.\n\nAnd when I have done the exercise, it hath gone to my heart to think\nthe word should now fall as rain on stony places; still wishing from\nmy heart, Oh, that they who have heard me speak this day did but see\nas I do, what sin, death, hell, and the curse of God are; and also\nwhat the grace, and love, and mercy of God are, through Christ; to\nmen in such a case as they are who are yet estranged from him. And\nindeed, I did often say in my heart before the Lord, that if I\nshould be hanged up presently before their eyes, and it would be a\nmeans to awaken them and confirm them in the truth, I gladly should\nbe contented.\n\nFor I have been in my preaching, especially when I have been engaged\nin the doctrine of life by Christ without works, as if an angel of\nGod had stood at my back to encourage me. Oh, it hath been with such\npower and heavenly evidence upon my own soul, while I have been\nlaboring to unfold it, to demonstrate it, and to fasten it upon the\nconsciences of others, that I could not be contented with saying, I\nbelieve, and am sure. Methought I was more than sure--if it be\nlawful thus to express myself--that those things which then I\nasserted were true.\n\nIf any of those who were awakened by my ministry did after that fall\nback--as sometimes too many did--I can truly say, their loss hath\nbeen more to me than if my own children, begotten of my body, had\nbeen going to their grave. I think verily I may speak it without any\noffence to the Lord, nothing has gone so near me as that; unless it\nwas the fear of the loss of the salvation of my own soul. I have\ncounted as if I had goodly buildings and lordships in those places\nwhere my children were born: my heart hath been so wrapped up in the\nglory of this excellent work, that I counted myself more blessed and\nhonored of God by this, than if he had made me emperor of the\nChristian world or the lord of all the glory of the earth without\nit. Oh these words: \"He that converteth the sinner from the error of\nhis way, shall save a soul from death.\" \"The fruit of the righteous\nis a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.\" \"They that be\nwise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that\nturn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and ever.\" \"For\nwhat is our hope, our joy, our crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye\nin the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? For ye are\nour glory and joy.\" These, I say, with many others of a like nature,\nhave been great refreshments to me.\n\nI have observed that a word cast in by the by, hath done more\nexecution in a sermon, than all that was spoken besides: sometimes\nalso, when I have thought I did no good, then I did the most of all;\nand at other times, when I thought I could catch them, I have fished\nfor nothing.\n\nBUNYAN'S CHARACTER AND PRINCIPLES\n\nFor my descent, it was, as is well known by many, of a low and\ninconsiderable generation; my father's house being of that rank that\nis meanest and most despised of all the families of the land.\nWherefore I have not, as others, to boast of noble blood and of any\nhigh-born estate according to the flesh; though all things\nconsidered, I magnify the heavenly Majesty for that by this door he\nbrought me into the world, to partake of the grace and life that is\nin Christ by the gospel.\n\nWhat need you, before you have showed one syllable of a reasonable\nargument in opposition to what I assert, thus trample my person, my\ngifts, and grace--have I any--so disdainfully under your feet,\nbecause of my low descent among men; stigmatizing me for a person of\nthat rank that need not to be heeded. And what, is my rank so mean\nthat the most gracious and godly among you may not duly and soberly\nconsider what I have said? Was it not the act of the false apostles\nto say thus--to bespatter a man that his doctrine might be\ndisregarded? \"Is not this the carpenter?\" and, \"His bodily presence\nis weak and his speech contemptible,\" did not use to be in the\nmouths of the saints; for they knew the wind blew where it listed.\nNeither is it high birth, worldly breeding, or wealth; but electing\nlove, grace, and the wisdom that comes from heaven, that those who\nstrive for strictness of order in. the things and kingdom of Christ,\nshould have in regard and esteem. Need I read you a lecture? Hath\nnot God chosen the foolish, the weak, the base, yea and even things\nthat are not to bring to naught things that are? Why then do you\ndespise my rank, my state, and quality in the world?\n\nSince you would know by what name I would be distinguished from\nothers, I tell you, I would be, and I hope I am, A CHRISTIAN; and\nchoose, if God should count me worthy, to be called A CHRISTIAN, A\nBELIEVER, or other such name which is approved by the Holy Ghost.\n\nYour artificial, squibbling suggestions to the world about myself,\nmy imprisonment, and the like, I freely bind unto me as an ornament\namong the rest of my reproaches, till the Lord shall wipe them off\nat his coming.\n\nFaith and holiness are my professed principles, with an endeavor, so\nfar as in me lieth, to be at peace with all men. What shall I say?\nLet mine enemies themselves be judges, if any thing in these\nfollowing doctrines, or if aught that any man hath heard me preach,\ndoth or hath, according to the true intent of my words, savored\neither of heresy or rebellion. I say again, let them themselves be\njudges, if aught they find in my writing or preaching doth render me\nworthy of almost twelve years' imprisonment, or one that deserveth\nto be hanged or banished for ever, according to their tremendous\nsentence. Indeed my principles are such as lead me to a denial to\ncommunicate in the things of the kingdom of Christ with the ungodly\nand open profane; neither can I consent that my soul should be\ngoverned in any of my approaches to God by the superstitious\ninventions of this world, because commanded to the contrary, or\ncommended for so refusing. Wherefore, excepting in this one\nthing--for which I ought not to be rebuked--I shall, I trust, in\ndespite of slandor and falsehood, discover myself at all times a\npeaceable anl obedient subject. But if nothing will do, unless I\nmake my conscience a continual butchery or slaughter-shop--unless,\nputting out mine own eyes, I commit myself to the blind to lead me,\nas I doubt not is desired by some--I have determined, the Almighty\nGod being my help and shield, yet to suffer, if frail life might\ncontinue so long, even till the moss shall grow on mine eyebrows,\nrather than thus to violate my faith and principles.\n\nTo the reader. I marvel not that both yourself and others do think\nmy long imprisonment strange--or rather strangely of me for the sake\nof that--for verily I should also have done it myself, had not the\nHoly Ghost long since forbidden me. 1 Pet. 4: 12; 1 John, 3: 13.\nNay, verily, notwithstanding that, had the adversary but fastened\nthe supposition of guilt upon me, my long trials might by this time\nhave put it beyond dispute; for I have not hitherto been so sordid,\nas to stand to a doctrine right or wrong; much less, when so weighty\nan argument as above eleven years' imprisonment is continually\ndogging of me to weigh and pause and weigh again the grounds and\nfoundation of those principles for which I thus have suffered. But\nhaving not only at my trial asserted them, but also since--even all\nthis tedious tract of time, in cool blood, a thousand times--by the\nword of God examined them, and found them good, I cannot, I dare not\nnow revolt or deny the same, on pain of eternal damnation.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXIII. ANTICHRIST.\n\nANTICHRIST DESCRIBED.\n\n\n\n\n\nANTICHRIST is the adversary of Christ; an adversary really, a friend\npretendedly. So then antichrist is one that is against Christ; one\nthat is for Christ, and one that is contrary to him; and this is\nthat \"mystery of iniquity.\"\n\nAgainst him in deed; for him in word, and contrary to him in\npractice: antichrist is so proud as to go before Christ, so humble\nas to pretend to come after him, and so audacious as to say that\nhimself is HE. Antichrist will cry up Christ; antichrist will cry\ndown Christ; antichrist will proclaim that himself is one above\nChrist.\n\nAntichrist is the \"man of sin,\" the \"son of perdition;\" a beast that\nhath two horns like a lamb, but speaks as a dragon.\n\nChrist is the Son of God; antichrist is the son of hell.\n\nChrist is holy, meek, and forbearing; antichrist is wicked,\noutrageous, and exacting.\n\nChrist seeketh the good of the soul; antichrist seeks his own\navarice and revenge.\n\nChrist is content to rule by his word; antichrist saith the word is\nnot sufficient.\n\nChrist preferreth his Father's will above heaven and earth;\nantichrist preferreth himself and his traditions above all that is\nwritten, or that is called God or worshipped.\n\nChrist has given us such laws and rules as are helpful and healthful\nto the soul; antichrist seeketh to abuse those rules to our hurt and\ndestruction.\n\nThe spirit or soul or life of antichrist is that spirit of error,\n\"that wicked,\" that \"mystery of iniquity,\" that under color and\npretence of verity draws men from truth to falsehood.\n\nThe body or flesh of antichrist is that church or synagogue of Satan\nin which the spirit of antichrist dwells, or unto which the spirit\nof antichrist is become a soul and life.\n\nBut God will destroy both soul and body.\n\nAntichrist therefore is a mystical man, so made or begotten of the\ndevil, and sent into the world, Satan himself being the chief and\nhighest part of him.\n\nThree things therefore go to the making up of antichrist: the head,\nbody, and soul. The devil, he is the head; the synagogue of Satan,\nthat is the body; that wicked spirit of iniquity, that is the soul\nof antichrist.\n\nChrist then is the head of his church, the devil is the head of\nantichrist; the elect are the body of Christ, the reprobate\nprofessors are the body of antichrist; the Holy Ghost is the Spirit\nof life that acteth Christ's body; that wicked spirit of iniquity is\nthat which acteth the body of antichrist.\n\nThus therefore are the two great mighties set forth before us, who\nare the heads of those two bodies.\n\nRISE AND PROGRESS OF ANTICHRIST.\n\nThe reason why Christ came into the world was, that he might destroy\nall the works of the head of antichrist, and them which he endeavors\nto complete by his wicked spirit working in his body. And the reason\nwhy antichrist came into the world was, that the church, which is\nthe body of Christ, might be tried and made white by suffering under\nhis tyranny, and by bearing witness against his falsehoods. For, for\nthe trial of the faithful and for the punishment of the world,\nantichrist was admitted to come. But when he came, he first appeared\nwhere one would have thought there had been no place nor corner for\nhis reception.\n\nHere therefore was his first appearance, even in the church of God.\nNot that the church did willingly admit him there to sit as such; he\nhad covered his cloven foot; he had plums in his dragon's mouth, and\nso came in by flatteries, promising to do for Christ and his church\nthat which he never meant to perform; for he showed himself that he\nwas God, and in appearance set his heart to do as the heart of God.\n\nAnd who could have found in their heart to shut the door upon such a\none? True, he came, when he came thither, out of the bottomless pit;\nbut there came such a smoke out thence with him, and that smoke so\ndarkened the light of the sun, of the moon, of the stars, and of the\nday, that had they been upon their watch, as they were not, they\ncould not have perceived him from another man. Besides, there came\nwith him so many locusts to usher him into the house of God, and\nthey so suited the flesh and reason of the godly of that day, that\nwith good words and fair speeches, by their crafty and cunning\nsleights whereby they lay in wait to deceive, they quite got him in,\nand set him up and made him a great one, even the chief, before they\nwere aware. Further, he quickly got him a beast to ride on, far, for\nsumptuous glory, beyond--though as to nature as assish a creature\nas--that on which Balaam was wont to ride; and by this exaltation he\nnot only became more stately, but the horns of the beast would push\nfor him.\n\nAgain, this man of sin, when he came into the world, had the art of\nmetamorphosing, and could change himself, both in form and shape,\ninto the likeness of a beast, a man, or woman.\n\nA lily among thorns, a pearl on a dunghill, and beauty under a veil,\nwill make one turn aside to look on it. Answerable to this, the\nchurch, even in the wilderness or under persecution, is compared not\nonly to a woman, but to a comely and delicate woman. Thus the\nchurch, though in her weeds of widowhood, is become the desire of\nthe eyes of the nations; for indeed her features are such\nconsidering who is her head, where mostly to the eye beauty lies,\nthat whoso sees but the utmost glimpse of her is easily ravished\nwith her beauties. The church, the very name of the church of God is\nbeautiful in the world; and as among women, she that has beauty has\nher head desired, if it might be, to stand upon another woman's\nshoulders; so this and that and every nation that beholds the beauty\nof the church, would fain be called by that name.\n\nThe church, one would think, was but in a homely dress when she was\ncoming out of captivity; and yet then the people of the countries\ndesired to be one with her: \"Let us,\" said they to Zerubbabel and to\nthe fathers of the church, \"build with you, for we seek your God as\nyou do.\"\n\nThe very name of the church is striven for of the world; but that is\nthe church which Christ has made so; her features also remain with\nherself. Hear the relation that the Holy Ghost gives of the\nintrinsic beauty of the church when she was to go to be in a\npersecuted state: \"She was clothed with the sun, had the moon under\nher feet, and had upon her head a crown of twelve stars.\" And yet\nnow the dragon stood by. But I say, here is a woman! Let any one who\nwill attempt it show such another in the world if he can.\n\nThey therefore that have any regard to morality, civility, or to\nceremonial comeliness, covet to be of the church of God, or to\nappropriate that glorious title to themselves.\n\nAnd here indeed antichrist came in. She took this name to herself;\nand though she could not come at the sun, nor moon, nor stars, to\nadorn herself with them, yet she has found something that makes her\ncomely in her followers' eyes. See how the Holy Ghost sets her\nforth: she was arrayed in purple and scarlet color, and decked with\ngold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her\nhand. Hence she is called the well-favored harlot, the lady of\nkingdoms.\n\nBut because the chaste matron, the spouse of Christ, would not allow\nthis harlot to run away with this name therefore she gets upon the\nback of her beast, and by him pushes this woman into the dirt; but\nbecause her faith and love to her husband remain, she turns again\nand pleads by her titles, her features, and ornaments, that she and\nshe only is she whose square answereth to the characters which her\nLord had given of his own; and so the strife began. For so soon as\nthis mistress became a dame in the world, and found that she had her\nstout abettors, she attempts to turn all things topsy-turvy, and to\nset them and to make of them what she lists.\n\nCORRUPTION OF THE CHURCH BY ANTICHRIST.\n\nMischief must needs follow this ugly deed of the man of sin. If a\nhouse be on fire, though it is not burnt down, the smell of the\nflame may long remain there: also we count it no wonder to see some\nof the effects upon rafters, beams, and some of the principal posts\nthereof. The calf that was set up at Dan defiled that people until\nthe captivity of the land.\n\nFor by antichristian darkness, though they might call it light, the\ntrue light was darkened, and so the eye made dim, even the eye of\nthe truly godly. Also the Holy Ghost did much withdraw himself from\nthe church; so the doctrines, traditions, and rudiments of the world\ntook more hold there, and spread themselves more formidably over the\nface of that whole church.\n\nAnd this being the effect of light against light at first, is the\ncause of what to this day we see in the church among the true\nbrotherhood. For as a cause produceth an effect, so oftentimes an\neffect sets on foot another cause. Witness the jars, the\noppositions, the contentions, emulations, strifes, debates,\nwhisperings, tumults, and condemnations, that like cannon-shot have\nso frequently on all sides been let fly against one another.\n\nThe godly all hold the Head; for there antichrist could never divide\nthem. Their divisions therefore are only about smaller things.\n\nI do not say that the antichristian darkness has done nothing in the\nchurch as to the hurting it in the great things of God. But I say,\nit has not been able to do that which could sever their Head from\nthem. Otherwise, there appears even too much of its doings there.\nFor even as to the offices of our Lord, some will have his authority\nmore large, some more strait; some confine his rules to themselves\nand to their more outward signification, and some believe they are\nextended further; some will have his power in the church purely\nspiritual, others again would have it mixed; some count his word\nperfect and sufficient to guide in all religious matters, others\nagain hold that an addition of something human is necessary.\n\nThis darkness could not sever the true church from her Head; yet it\nhas eclipsed the glory of things. By two lights a man cannot see\nthis or that thing so exactly as by one single light; no, they both\nmake all confused, though they make not all invisible. As for\ninstance, sunlight and moonlight together, firelight and sunlight\ntogether, candlelight and moonlight together, make things more\nobscure than to look on them by a single light. The word reflecting\nupon the understanding without the interposing of man's traditions,\nmakes the mind of God to a man more clear than when attended with\nthe other.\n\nThings therefore will never be well in the church of God so long as\nthere is thus light against light therein. When there is but one\nLord among us, and his name one; and when divisions, by the consent\nof the whole, are banished--I mean, not persecuted, but abandoned in\nall by a joint consent, and when every man shall submit his own\nsingle opinion to those truths that by their being retained are for\nthe health of all--then look for good days, and not till then.\n\nCONFLICT BETWEEN THE CHURCH AND ANTICHRIST.\n\nThey that are the church do in God's light see light but they that\nare not, do in their own way see. And let a man and a beast look out\nat the same window, the same door, the same casement, yet the one\nwill see like a man, and the other but like a beast.\n\nNo marvel then if there is here a disagreement; the beast can but\nsee as a beast, but the church is resolved not to be guided by the\neye of a beast, though he pretends to have his light by that very\nwindow by which the church has hers. The beast is moon-eyed, and\nputs darkness for light, yea, and hates the light that is so indeed;\nbut the saints will not hear him, for they know the voice of their\nLord.\n\nOn both sides they are resolved to stand by their way: the church is\nconfident, the man of sin is confident; they both have the same\nwindows--that is, \"the word\"--to see by, and so they manage their\nmatters; yet not so simply by the windows as by the diverse judgment\nthey make of that which shineth in at them. Each one therefore that\nhath the true or false profession will be confident of his own way:\nhe that was right, knew he was right; and he that was wrong, thought\nhe was right; and so the battle began: \"There is a way that seemeth\nright to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.\"\n\nNor is it in man to help it: there has been reasoning, there has\nbeen disputing, there has blood also been spilt on both sides,\nthrough the confidence that each had of the goodness of his own way:\nbut no reconciliation is made; the enmity is set here of God; iron\nand clay cannot mix; God will have things go on thus in the world\ntill his word shall be fulfilled; the deceived and the deceiver are\nhis. Things therefore must have their course in the church in the\nwilderness till the mystery of God shall be fulfilled. God will get\nto himself great glory by permitting the hoar, the man of sin and\nthe dragon, to revel in the church of God; for they by setting up\nand contending for their darkness, and calling it the light, and by\nsetting it against that light which is light in very deed, do not\nonly prove the power of truth where it is, but illustrate it so much\nthe more; for as black sets off white, and darkness light, so error\nsets off truth. He that calls a man a horse, doth but fix the belief\nof his humanity so much the more in the apprehension of all rational\ncreatures.\n\nIt is not therefore to be wondered at that we hear both parties\nplead so much for their authority, crying out against each other as\nthose that destroy religion. So doth the church, so doth the man of\nsin. The living child is mine, saith one. Nay, but the dead child is\nthine, and the living child is mine, says the other. And thus they\nspake before the king.\n\nThe church will not give place, for she knows she has the truth; the\ndragon and his angels, they will not give place, but as beaten back\nby the power of truth. Therefore there will, there must, there\ncannot but be a spiritual warfare here, and that until one of the\ntwo is destroyed, and its body given to the burning flame.\n\nFALL OF ANTICHRIST.\n\nAntichrist had a time to come into the world, and so must he have a\ntime to go out again. For although he saith that he is a god, yet he\nmust he subject to the will of God, and must go as well as come\naccording to that will. Nor can all the fallen angels, with all the\nmembers and limbs of antichrist, cause this, that their brat should\nabide so much as one day longer than our God's prefixed time. The\nLord Jesus shall consume him, and cause him to melt away; not all at\nonce, but now this part and then that, now his soul and after that\nhis body, even until soul and body are both destroyed.\n\nAnd that you may be convinced of the truth of this thing, do but\nlook back and compare antichrist four or five hundred years ago,\nwith antichrist as he is now, and you shall see what work the Lord\nJesus has begun to make with him, even with the spirit and soul and\nlife of antichrist, both in confounding and blasting it by the\nSpirit of his mouth, as also by forcing it to dishonorable retreats,\nand by making it give up to him as the conqueror, not only some of\nhis superstitious and diabolical rites and ceremonies to be\ndestroyed, but many a goodly truth which this vile one had taken\nfrom his church, to be renewed to them. Nay, further, he has also\nalready begun to take from him both kingdoms and countries, though\nas to some not so absolutely as he shall do by and by.\n\nAnd how has this long ago been fulfilled here in England, as also in\nScotland, Holland, Germany, France, Sweden, Denmark, Hungary, and\nother places. Nor has this spirit of antichrist, with all his art\nand artifices, been able to reduce to antichrist again those people,\nnations, or parts of nations, that by the Spirit of Christ's mouth\nand the brightness of his coming have been made to forsake him, and\nto turn from him to Christ.\n\nThe reason is, that the Lord has not retreated, but is still going\non in the Spirit of his mouth and in his brightness to make that\nconquest over him that is determined, in the way that is determined;\nfor the pathway that he goeth is as the shining light which shines\nmore and more unto noon.\n\nThe first and chief proceeding of the Lord with the man of sin is to\nslay his soul, that his body may also be consumed; and when the\nspirit of antichrist shall be made to leave both the body and\nordinances of antichrist, it will be easy to deal both with the one\nand the other.\n\nAnd first, for the ordinances of antichrist, because the spirit of\nerror is in them as well as in the body itself. When that spirit has\nleft them, they will of themselves even moulder away and not be; as\nwe have seen by experience here in England, and as others also have\nseen in other countries.\n\nFor as concerning his masses, prayers for the dead, images,\npilgrimages, monkish vows, sinful fasts, and the beastly single life\nof their priests, though when the spirit of antichrist was in them\nthey did bear some sway in the world, yet now of what esteem are\nthey, or who has reverence for them? They are now blown together\nunder hedges as the dry leaves, for the mice and frogs to harbor in.\nBy ordinances of antichrist, I do not intend things that only\nrespect matters of worship in antichrist's kingdom, but those civil\nlaws that impose and enforce them also, yea, enforce that worship\nwith pains and penalties, as in the Spanish inquisition.\n\nThese are the very pillars and sinews by which antichristianism\nremains; and were these dispirited, the whole building would quickly\nbecome a ruinous heap.\n\nWhat could the king of Babylon's golden image have done, had it not\nbeen for the burning fiery furnace that stood within view of the\nworshippers? Yea, what could that horrible command to pray for\nthirty days to neither God nor man but to the king, have done, had\nit not been for the dark den and the roaring lions there in\nreadiness to devour those that disobeyed it?\n\nAs therefore the burning fiery furnace and the den of lions were the\nsupport of the horrible religion of the Babylonians of old, so\npopish edicts are the support of the religion of antichrist now; and\nas long as there is spirit, that is, authority in them, they are\nlike to those now mentioned. The spirit of such laws it is that\nmakes them dreadful: for as the furnace would have been next to\nnothing if void of fire, and the den as little frightful if\ndestitute of lions, so these laws will be as insignificant when\nChrist has slain the spirit that is in them--that spirit which\ncauses that as many as will not worship the image of the beast\nshould be killed.\n\nMANNER OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION.\n\nAntichrist shall be brought to ruin gradually; a part after a part:\nhere a fenced city and there a high tower, even until she is made to\nlie even with the ground.\n\nAs for the order of the angels that pour forth this wrath, they\nplainly show that this enemy must come down by degrees; for these\nvials are by them poured out one after another. Now, since by these\nvials antichrist must fall, it is evident that this man of sin, this\nson of perdition, is to fall and die by degrees. He would not die at\nall, as is manifest by his wrestling with it; but it is an almighty\nGod that judges, and therefore he must come down. His friends also,\nwith what cordials they can, will labor to lengthen out his\ntranquillity; but God hath set his bounds, and he cannot go beyond\nthe time appointed.\n\nWe must also put a difference betwixt his being fought with and\nwounded, and that of his dying the death. Michael and his angels\nhave been holding him in play a long season, but yet he is not dead;\nbut, as I said, he shall descend into battle and perish, and shall\nbe found no more for ever.\n\n\"And the cities of the nations fell,\" Rev. 16:19; the cities of the\nnations, the antichristian churches, otherwise called the daughters\nof the mother of harlots. This is a second stroke that God will give\nthis man of sin, and a third cometh quickly.\n\nWherefore it follows, upon the downfall of those cities of the\nnations, that great Babylon came into remembrance before God, to\ngive unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.\nNow then, strike at great Babylon. Great Babylon! What is that? Why,\nI take it to be the mother, the metropolitan, the great harlot\nherself. For though sometimes by great Babylon we may understand the\nchurch of antichrist in general, yet by it is meant more properly\nthe mother of the daughters, of whose overthrow we have spoken\nbefore.\n\nWe are now, then, come to the threshold of the door of the house of\nthe old one--to the door of the mother of harlots and abomination of\nthe earth. This then that but now is said to come into remembrance\nwith God, is that which gave being to the cities destroyed before,\nto wit, the ministers, the queen, the mother-church as she calls\nherself.\n\nAnd this is the wisdom of God concerning her, that she should not be\nthe first that should die, but that she should live to see the\ndestruction of her daughters, and pine away under the fright and\nsense of that, even until judgment also shall overtake herself.\n\nThus Pharaoh and his chief ones did live to see the greatest part of\nEgypt destroyed, before judgment overtook them; but at last it came\nto their doors also. Zedekiah lived to see his children slain before\nhis face, before judgment overtook him to his own personal\ndestruction.\n\nBabylon also, when God sent the cup of his fury unto her, yet was to\nlive to see the nations drink before her.\n\nFrom all which I conclude that the mother, the metropolitan, the\nlady of kingdoms, shall live to see her daughters executed before\nher face; after which, she shall come into consideration herself,\nfor she must assuredly drink of the cup.\n\nThis destruction must be last for this reason also, because she most\ndeserves the bottom of the cup. The bottom is the dregs, the most\nbitter part, and that where the most heat and fiercest wrath of God\ndo lie. And great Babylon came into remembrance before God: \"To give\nunto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.\"\n\nNow then is the time of iniquity, when it will be come to the full;\nand now also is the time of God's anger, when it will be come to the\nfull. Now therefore must the murders and thefts and blasphemies and\nfornications belonging to this mother of harlots, be recompensed to\nthe full, to wit, with the dregs of this cup. Yet since the\nhailstones come by weight and the wrath comes by measure--for so a\ntalent and a cup imports, Rev. 16:17-21--it follows that the\nalmighty God, even in the midst of the heat of all this anger, will\nkeep to the rules of justice and judgment while he is dealing with\nthis enemy: he has not passions to carry him beyond rules of\njudgment, nor weakness to cause him to fall short of doing justice;\ntherefore he has his judgments for her by weight, and his\nindignation by measure. But yet this weight and measure are not\nsuited to her constitution, not with an intent to purge or refine\nher; but it is disposed according to the measure and nature of her\niniquity, and comes to sweep her as with the besom of destruction,\nuntil she is swept off from the face of all the earth.\n\nNow since she is dying, let us ring her passing-bell; for when she\nis dead, we that live to see it intend to ring out.\n\nPRESENT STATE OF ANTICHRIST.\n\nNow I saw in my dream, that at the end of this valley lay blood,\nbones, ashes, and mangled bodies of men, even of pilgrims that had\ngone this way formerly; and while I was musing what should be the\nreason, I spied a little before me a cave, where two giants, Pope\nand Pagan, dwelt in old time; by whose power and tyranny the men\nwhose bones, blood, and ashes lay there, were cruelly put to death.\nBut by this place Christian went without much danger, whereat I\nsomewhat wondered; but I have learnt since, that Pagan has been dead\nmany a day; and, as for the other, though he be still alive, he is,\nby reason of age, and also of the many shrewd brushes that he met\nwith in his younger days, grown so crazy and stiff in his joints,\nthat he now can do little more than sit in his cave's mouth,\ngrinning at pilgrims as they go by, and biting his nails because he\ncannot come at them.\n\nSLAYING OF THE WITNESSES.\n\nThus, as to sense and reason, all shall be hush, all shall be quiet\nand still, Rev. 11:7-15: the followers of the Lamb shall be down;\nthe followers of the beast shall be up, shall cry, Peace and safety,\nand be as secure as a hard heart, false peace, and a deceitful devil\ncan make. them. But behold, while they thus sing in the window,\ndeath is striding over the threshold! While they are crying peace\nand safety, sudden destruction cometh. By that they have well\nsettled themselves at their table with Adonijah, 1 Kings, 1, they\nshall hear it proclaimed with sound of trumpet, The witnesses are\nrisen again.\n\nNow the Christians' pipes will go again, and surely the earth will\nbe rent with the sound of their shouts and acclamations, while they\ncry with joyful sound, \"The kingdoms of this world are become the\nkingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever\nand ever.\"\n\nREASONS FOR ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION.\n\nAntichrist must be destroyed, for that he has usurped the name and\nattributes of God upon himself. He hath said, I am God. For that\nantichrist has thus taken the place of God, prescribed and imposed a\nworship as a God, got the world to worship and wonder after him as\nafter a God; therefore he shall die the death of the uncircumcised,\nboth in the soul, spirit, body, or flesh of antichrist. Therefore\nwill God enlighten and gather and set the kings and nations against\nhim, that both he and his may be buried, and have their dolesome\nwithdrawing-rooms from the world in the sides of the pit's mouth.\n\nAntichrist must be destroyed, because he hath set himself against\nthe Son of God; against the Father, and against the Son. He had a\nspite against the Son betimes, even then when he came forth but in\nlittle things, when he attempted to deny that He was come in the\nflesh. But seeing he could make no earnings of that, he has changed\nhis methods, and seeks to run him out and down by other means and\nways. \"Because, therefore, he hath set himself against the Son of\nGod, the King, therefore he must die.\"\n\nThat he hath also set himself against the Son of God, is evident;\nfor he has his name from thence: he is therefore called Anti-Christ.\n\nThat he hath set himself against Him, is yet further evident; for\nthat he has endeavored to take from him his headship once, and his\noffices for and in the church, which is his body; and has called\nhimself the head of the universal church of God.\n\nAntichrist must he destroyed, because of his exceeding covetousness.\nReligion, such as it is, is the thing pretended to; but the great\nthings of this world are the things really intended by him in all\nhis seeming self-denials and devotions. And for this covetousness\nalso it is that this destruction is to fall upon him. Woe to him\nthat coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, (to his church,)\nthat he may set his nest on high: for he could not do the one before\nhe had obtained the other. For then indeed they began to be high,\nwhen they had so inveigled Constantine that he bestowed upon them\nmuch riches and honor; and then it was cried, by an angel, and the\ncry was heard in the city of Constantinople, Woe! woe! woe! this day\nis venom poured into the church of God.\n\nNor has any generation, since the world began, been so insatiably\ngreedy of gain, as these POOR people have been. They have got\nkingdoms, they have got crowns, they have got--what have they not\ngot? They have got every thing but grace and pardon. Did I say\nbefore that religion was their pretence? Doth not the whole course\nof their way declare it to their face? Every one of them, from the\nleast even to the greatest, is given to covetousness; from the\nprophet even to the priest, every one dealeth falsely. Money, money,\n[Footnote: Similar is the testimony of an eminent historian. \"In\nevery misapplication which the popes now (thirteenth century) made\nof their power, money was the object. Every new operation which they\nperformed, was one of extortion; and every new act of oppression was\non their part, a financial speculation.\" Planck. V. 574.\n\nSays Luther, in his address to the German nobility, speaking of the\npope, \"He is a shepherd: yes, so far as you have money, and no\nfarther.\" The above passage from Bunyan is altogether in the manner\nof Luther when describing the rapacity and avarice of Rome. hath\nremoved them. And these seeds has antichrist sown where the kingdom\nof Christ should stand.] as the pedlar cries, \"broken or whole,\" is\nthe sinews of their religion; and it is for that they set kingdoms,\ncrowns, principalities, places, preferments, sacraments, pardons,\nprayers, indulgences, liberty, yea, and souls and bodies of men,\nwomen, and children, to sale; yea, it is for this that they have\ninvented so many places, offices, names, titles, orders, vows, etc.:\nit is to get money, to rob countries, that they may make their nests\non high. And indeed they have done it, to the amazement of all the\nworld. They are clambered up above kings and princes and emperors;\nthey wear the triple crown; they have made kings bow at their feet,\nand emperors stand barefoot at their gates; they have kicked the\ncrowns of princes from their heads, and set them on again with their\ntoes. Thus their covetousness hath set them on high, even above the\nsuns, moons, and stars of this world: but to what end? that they may\nbe cast down to hell.\n\nAntichrist must be destroyed, because he stands in the way of the\nsetting up of the kingdom of Christ in the world. Many princes were\nin Edom before there was a king in Israel; and Christ has suffered\nantichrist to set up before him; and he stands in Christ's way, and\nhas so overspread the world in all places with that which is\ndirectly contrary to him, that he cannot set up his kingdom until\nthat which is antichrist's is tumbled down to the ground. Even as a\nman whose ground is full of thorns and briars and weeds, cannot sow\nin expectation of a crop, until he hath removed them. And these\nseeds has antichrist sown where the kingdom of Christ should stand.\n\nWhen God came from Egypt with his people to set up his kingdom in\nCanaan, he cast out the heathen before them, in order thereunto:\n\"Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt; thou hast cast out the\nheathen and planted it.\" Wherefore antichrist must be removed and\ndestroyed for this; for antichrist is in flat opposition to Christ,\nas Tibni was to Omri; wherefore antichrist must die.\n\nThe reason is, because Christ's kingdom shall be peaceable, without\nmolestation, and glorious without the fumes and fogs of\nantichristian darkness. Because also, as the world has seen the\nmanner of the reign of antichrist, and how tyrannical and outrageous\na kingdom his is; so they shall see the reign of Christ by his word\nand Spirit in his people, how peaceable, how fruitful in blessedness\nand prosperity his kingdom is. And hence it is, that God purposes to\nbury antichrist before he sets glory in the land of the living; as\nalso you read in the book of Revelation, for there you find the\nkingdom of antichrist was destroyed before the new Jerusalem was set\nup. When men intend to build a new house, if in the place where the\nold one stood, they first pull down the old one and raze the\nfoundation, and then they begin their new. Now God, as I said, will\nhave his primitive church-state set up in this world, even where\nantichrist has set up; wherefore, in order to this, antichrist must\nbe pulled down, stick and stone; and then they that live to see it,\nwill behold the new Jerusalem come down from heaven, as a bride\nadorned for her husband.\n\nTIME OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION.\n\nThe time of her fall is not certainly known by the saints, nor at\nall believed by her; wherefore her plagues must come unlooked for by\nher. And as to the saints, their guesses as to the time of her ruin\nmust needs be conjectural and uncertain. For her part, she shall\nsay, and that when she stands where she must suddenly fall, \"I shall\nbe a lady for ever.\"\n\nNor have I been without thought but that this mistake of the godly\nmay become a snare to antichrist, and a trap to her upholders. For\nwhat can be a greater judgment, or more effectually harden the\nhearts of the wicked, than for them to behold that the predictions,\nprophecies, expectations, and hopes of their enemies as to their\nruin, should quite, as to the time, be frustrate and made void?\n\nIt is to be bewailed, namely, the forwardness of some in this matter\nwho have predicted concerning the time of the downfall of\nantichrist, to the shame of them and their brethren; nor will the\nwrong that such by their boldness have, done to the church of God be\never repaired by them nor their works. But the judgments of God are\na great deep; and therefore who can tell, since the enemy of God\nwould not be convinced by the power of truth and the virtuous lives\nof some, but that God might leave them to be snared, hardened, and\nemboldened to run upon their unavoidable destruction by the lies and\nlightness of others? They begin to vaunt it already, and to say,\nWhere is the word of the Lord as to this? let it come now. But when\nAgag said, \"Surely the bitterness of death is passed,\" then was the\ntime for him to be hewn in pieces.\n\nI shall not therefore meddle with the times and seasons which the\nFather has put in his own power--no, though they, as to antichrist's\nruin, are revealed--because by the Holy Ghost there is a challenge\nmade, notwithstanding the time is set, and by the word referred to\nthe man of wisdom to find it out if he can.\n\nIf Sampson's riddle was so puzzling, what shall we think of this?\nAnd though the angel hath intimated that this sealed matter shall be\nopened towards the time of the end, yet it is evident some have\neither been too hasty, or presumed too much upon their own\nabilities; for I am sure they have missed the mark, hardened the\nheart of the enemy, stumbled the weak, and shamed them that love\nthem.\n\nSIGNS OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION.\n\nForbearance is no payment: God's patience is not a sign that he\nforgetteth to take vengeance, but rather that he waiteth till his\nown are come out of her, and until her iniquity is filled up; for\nthen he will execute the judgment written, and will remember the\nBabylonians and all their ways.\n\nMust antichrist be destroyed? Then this should make us glad when we\nsee the signs of his fall presenting themselves to our view. Indeed,\nthe signs of his fall, or those that forerun it, are terrible and\namazing to behold. But what of that, since the wrinkles that are in\ntheir faces threaten not us but them? A man is angry and will\npunish; yea, whets his sword and makes his rod; and he speaks not a\nword, but blood, blood is in it.\n\nIndeed this should make them that are concerned in that anger\nafraid. But what terror is there in all this to those for the\npleading of whose cause he is so angry with the other? Nothing\nwhereat the innocent should be afraid.\n\nCold blasts in November are not received with such gentleness as are\ncolder in March and April; for that these last cold ones are but the\nfarewell notes of a piercing winter; they also bring with them the\nsigns and tokens of a jomfortable summer. Why, the church is now at\nthe rising of the year; let then the blasts at present or to come be\nwhat they will, antichrist is surely drawing towards his downfall.\nAnd though the devil, knowing what is to be done to him and to his\nkingdom, shall so blind his disciples and fright the godly, and do\nsomething like it upon the church of Christ, yet we should look\nthrough these paper windows, and espy in all this that fear, yea,\ncertain terrible judgments, are following him at the heels, by which\nnot only the soul, spirit, and life of antichrist, but the body\nthereof--yea, body and soul and head--are quickly to go down\nthither, from whence they, as such, shall not arise again. Amen.\n\nHOPE OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION.\n\nIs antichrist to be destroyed? then let us live in the expectation\nof it; and let this be one of our songs in the house of our\npilgrimage. God bids his people, while in Babylon, to let Jerusalem\ncome into their mind; and writes to them that were then in her, to\nacquaint them that he remembered them still, and would assuredly\ndeliver them from that place and state. And wherefore doth he thus,\nbut to beget an expectation in them of their salvation and\ndeliverance? The Lord is so pleased with the faith and expectation\nof his people as to this, that they seldom are herein concerned as\nthey should, but he steps in with them and warms their hearts. The\nreason is, because the faith of God's people as to the downfall of\nBabylon, stands upon so sure a foundation as doth the salvation of\ntheir souls; and that next to that, God is as much delighted in what\nhe has purposed to do against Babylon, as in any thing else in the\nearth: and therefore, if you consider it well, the great and\nglorious promises that are to be fulfilled on earth, are to be\nfulfilled when antichrist is dead and buried. These dainties are too\ngood even for his children to have, so long as this dog is by, lest\nhe should snatch at the crumbs thereof; wherefore they are reserved\nuntil he is gone. Jer. 19: 31, 32.\n\nEFFECTS OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION.\n\nIt shall be done unto antichrist as he hath done to the church of\nGod. As he hath made women childless, so shall he be made childless;\nas he has made Zion sit upon the ground, so now must this wicked one\ncome down to sit in the dust; yea, as he has made many churches\ndesolations, so now shall he lie also made a desolation. Wherefore,\nwhoso will find his body, must look for it in the side of the pit's\nmouth; and whoso will find his friends and companions, must look for\nthem there likewise.\n\nNow then Babylon is gone down, when all these things shall be\nfulfilled. And what remains now but to talk of her as folk use to do\nof them that are dead; for the day will come, that the church of God\nshall have no more of antichrist, Babylon, or the mother of harlots,\nthan only the remembrance of her; that there was such an enemy of\nGod in the world; that there was such a superstitious, idolatrous,\nbloody people in the world. Wherefore, the people, that shall be\nborn, that shall live to serve God in these happy days, shall see\nantichrist only in its ruins; they shall, like the sparrows, the\nlittle robins, and the wren, sit and sing, and chirp one to another,\nwhile their eyes behold this dead hawk. Here, shall they say, did\nonce the lion dwell; and there once a dragon inhabited: here did\nthey live that were the murderers of the saints; and there another\nthat did use to set his throat against the heavens: but now in the\nplaces where these ravenous creatures lay, grows grass, with reeds\nand rushes; now their habitation is cursed; nettles grow, and so do\nthorns and brambles, where their palaces were wont to be.\n\nA day is coming when antichrist shall be unknown; not seen nor felt\nby the church of God. There are men to be born who shall not know\nantichrist, but as they read in the word that such a thing has been.\nThese shall talk of her as Israel's children's children were to talk\nof Pharaoh--of his cruelty, of his tasks, of his pride, of the Red\nsea, and how he was drowned there. They shall talk of them as of\nthose that have been long dead; as of those who, for their horrible\nwickedness, are laid in the pit's mouth. This will be some of that\nsweet chat that the saints shall at their spare hours have, in time\nto come.\n\nThere will he a strange alteration when antichrist is dead; and that\nboth in the church and in the world. The church and the members of\nit then shall wear the name of their God in their foreheads; that\nis, they shall be bold in the profession of their King and God, yea,\nit shall be their glory to be godly, and carnal men shall praise\nthem for it; the praise of the whole earth shall the church of God\nbe in those days. Now the world shall return and discern, between\nthe righteous and the wicked; yea, they shall cleave to and\ncountenance the people of God, being persuaded, as Laban was of\nJacob, that the Lord will bless them for his people's sake.\n\nNow will he broken up those prophecies and promises that to this day\nlie as under lock and key, and that cannot be opened until they be\nfulfilled. Now the church of God shall read with great plainness the\ndepths of providence, and the turnings and windings of all God's\ndark and intricate dispensations, through which she hath waded in\nthe cloudy and dark day: now, I say, they shall see there was a\nharmony in them, and that, if one of them had been wanting, the work\nand way of her deliverance could not have been so full of the wisdom\nand justice and goodness of God. Wherefore now will that song be\nsung with clearer notes than ever: \"Great and marvellous are thy\nworks, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of\nsaints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for\nthou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before\nthee; for thy judgments are made manifest;\"\n\nWARNING AGAINST A RETURN TO ANTICHRIST.\n\nMust antichrist be destroyed? Then what mean they who were to\nappearance once come out, but now are going thither again.\n\nIf it cost Lot's wife dear for but looking hack, shall it not cost\nthem much dearer that are going back, that are gone back again; and\nthat after the angel had flown through the midst of heaven,\npreaching the gospel to those that dwell on the earth?\n\nThey that received the mark of the beast at first, before this angel\ncame forth, are, when compared with these, excusable. Wherefore they\nare not threatened with the smoking wrath that these are.\n\nYou dread that which is like to become of them that will be so mad\nas to run into a house when fire is put to the gunpowder barrel in\norder to its blowing up. Why, thus do they, let their pretended\ncause he what it will, that are returning again to Babylon. Are her\nplagues pleasant or easy to be borne? Or dost thou think that God is\nat play with thee, and that he threateneth but in jest? Her plagues\nare death and mourning and famine and fire; are these things to be\noverlooked? And they that, as before hinted, shall receive the mark\nof the beast in their forehead or in their hand, and shall worship\nhim, they shall drink the wine of the wrath of God. And will this be\na delightsome draught?\n\nFROM THE \"INTRODUCTION TO THE HOLY CITY.\"\n\nMy fourth word is to the lady of kingdoms, the well-favored harlot,\nthe mistress of witchcrafts and the abominations of the earth.\n\nI suppose I have nothing here that will either please your wanton\neye, or go down with your voluptuous palate. Here is bread indeed,\nas also milk and meat; but here is neither paint to adorn thy\nwrinkled face, nor crutch to uphold or undershore thy shaking,\ntottering, staggering kingdom of Rome; but rather a certain presage\nof thy sudden and fearful final downfall, and of the exaltation of\nthat holy matron whose chastity thou dost abhor, because by it she\nreproveth and condemneth thy lewd and stubborn life. Wherefore,\nlady, smell thou mayest of this, but taste thou wilt not. I know\nthat both thy wanton eye, with all thy mincing brood that are\nintoxicated with thy cup and enchanted with thy fornications, will,\nat the sight of so homely and plain a dish as this, cry, Foh! will\nsnuff, put the branch to the nose, and say, Contemptible! \"But\nwisdom is justified of all her children.\" \"The virgin-daughter of\nZion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; Jerusalem hath\nshaken her head at thee;\" yea, her God hath smitten his hands at thy\ndishonest gains and freaks. \"Rejoice ye with Jerusalem and be glad\nwith her, all ye that love her; rejoice for joy with her, all ye\nthat mourn for her, that ye may suck and be satisfied with the\nbreasts of her consolations, and be delighted with the abundance of\nher glory.\"\n\nTHE WOODEN CROSS.\n\nSome have thought the altar to mean the cross on which the body of\nChrist was crucified when he gave himself an offering for sin; but\nthey are greatly deceived, for he also himself was the altar through\nwhich he offered himself; and this is one of the treasures of wisdom\nwhich are hid in him, and of which the world and antichrist are\nutterly ignorant.\n\nThe altar is always greater than the gift, and since the gift was\nthe body and soul of Christ--for so saith the scripture, \"He gave\nhimself for our sins\"--the altar must be something else than a sorry\nbit of wood, or than the accursed tree.\n\nWherefore I will say to such, as one wiser than Solomon said to the\nJews when they superstitiously magnified the gift, in counting it\nmore honorable than the altar, \"Ye fools and blind; for whether is\ngreater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?\"\n\nIf the altar be greater than the gift, and yet the gift so great a\nthing as the very humanity of Christ, can it--I will now direct my\nspeech to the greatest fool--can that greater thing be the cross?\nWas the cross, the wooden cross, the cursed tree that some worship,\ngreater than the gift, to wit, the sacrifice which Christ offered,\nwhen he gave himself for our sins? O idolatry! O blasphemy!\n\nBut what then was the altar?\n\nThe divine nature of Christ, that eternal Spirit, by and in the\nassistance of which \"he offered himself without spot, to God.\" \"He\nthrough the eternal Spirit offered himself.\"\n\nAnd it must be this, because, as was said, the altar is greater than\nthe gift; but there is nothing but Christ's divine nature greater\nthan his human. To be sure, a sorry bit of wood, a tree, the stock\nof a tree, is not.\n\nIt must be this, because the Scripture says plainly, the altar\nsanctifies the gift, that is, puts worth and virtue into it. But was\nit the tree, or the godhead of Christ, that put virtue and efficacy\ninto this sacrifice that he offered to God for us? If thou canst but\ncount thy fingers, judge.\n\nLet the tree then be the tree, the sacrifice the sacrifice, and the\naltar the altar; and let men have a care how, in their worship, they\nmake altars upon which, as they pretend, they offer the body of\nChrist; and let them leave off foolishly to doat upon wood and the\nworks of their hands.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXIV. DEATH.\n\n\n\n\n\nSeeing man was taken from the ground, he is neither God nor angel,\nhut a poor earthen vessel, such as God can easily knock in pieces\nand cause to return to the ground again.\n\nAnd the time of need is the day of death, when I am to pack up all\nto be gone from hence, the way of all the earth. Now the greatest\ntrial is come, except that of the day of judgment. Now a man is to\nhe stripped of all but that which cannot be shaken. Now a man grows\nnear the borders of eternity. Now he begins to see into the skirts\nof the next world. Now death is death, and the grave the grave\nindeed. Now he begins to see what it is for soul and body to part,\nand what to go and appear before God. Now the dark entry and the\nthoughts of what is in the way from a death-bed to the gate of the\nholy heaven, come nearer the heart than when health and prosperity\ndo compass a man about.\n\nSome men are cut off like the tops of the ears of corn, and some are\neven nipped by death in the very bud of their spring; but the safety\nis when a man is ripe, and shall be gathered to his grave as a shock\nof corn to the barn in its season.\n\nDEATH OF THE SINNER.\n\nDeath is the axe which God often useth, therewith to take the barren\nfig-tree out of the vineyard, out of a profession, and also out of\nthe world at once. But this axe is now new-ground; it cometh well\nedged to the roots of this barren fig-tree. It hath been whetted by\nsin, by the law, and by a formal profession, and therefore must and\nwill make deep gashes, not only in the natural life, but in the\nheart and conscience also of this professor. The wages of sin is\ndeath, the sting of death is sin. Wherefore, death comes not to this\nman as he doth to saints, muzzled, or without his sting, but with\nopen mouth, in all his strength; yea, he sends his first-born, which\nis guilt, to devour his strength and to bring him to the king of\nterrors.\n\nThe dark entry which the barren professor is to go through will be a\nsore amazement to him, for \"fears shall be in the way,\" yea, terrors\nwill take hold on him when he shall see the yawning jaws of death\ngape upon him, and the doors of the shadow of death open to give him\npassage out of the world. Now, who will meet me in this dark entry?\nHow shall I pass through this dark entry into another world?\n\nThere is no judgment to be made by a quiet death of the eternal\nstate of him that so dieth. Suppose one man should die quietly,\nanother should die suddenly, and a third should die under great\nconsternation of spirit; no man can judge of their eternal condition\nby the manner of any of these kinds of death. He that dies quietly,\nsuddenly, or under consternation of spirit, may go to heaven, or may\ngo to hell; no man can tell whither a man goes by any such manner of\ndeath. The judgment, therefore, that we make of the eternal\ncondition of man, must be gathered from another consideration, to\nwit, Did the man die in his sins? Did he die in unbelief? Did he die\nbefore he was born again? He that is a good man, a man that hath\nfaith and holiness, a lover and worshipper of God by Christ,\naccording to his word, may die in consternation of spirit; for Satan\nwill not be wanting to assault good men upon their death-bed. But\nthey are secured by the word and power of God, yea, and are also\nhelped, though with much agony of spirit, to exercise themselves in\nfaith and prayer; the which he that dieth in despair can by no means\ndo.\n\nDEATH OF THE CHRISTIAN.\n\nLet dissolution come when it will, it can do the Christian no harm,\nfor it will be but only a passage out of a prison into a palace; out\nof a sea of troubles into a haven, of rest; out of a crowd of\nenemies to an innumerable company of true, loving, and faithful\nfriends; out of shame, reproach, and contempt, into exceeding great\nand eternal glory.\n\nAnother improvement of Christ's death for us was this: by it he slew\nfor us our infernal foes; by it he abolished death; by death he\ndestroyed him that had the power of death; by death he took away the\nsting of death; by death he made death a pleasant sleep to saints,\nand the grave for a while an easy house and home for the body.\n\nWe change our drossy dust for gold, From death to life we fly: We\nlet go shadows, and take hold Of immortality.\n\nBlood takes away the guilt; inherent grace weakens the filth; but\nthe grave is the place, at the mouth of which sin and the saved must\nhave a perfect and final parting. Not that the grave of itself is of\na sin-purging quality, but God will follow Satan home to his own\ndoor, for the grave is the door or gate of hell, and will there,\nwhere the devil thought to have swallowed us up, even there by the\npower of his mercy, make us shine like the sun and look like angels.\n\nTHE CHRISTIAN WISHING TO DEPART.\n\n\"I have a desire to depart, and to be with Christ.\"\n\nThe strength of this desire is such that it is ready, so far forth\nas it can, to dissolve that sweet knot of union that is betwixt body\nand soul--a knot more dear to a reasonable creature than that can be\nwhich is betwixt wife and husband, parent and child, or a man and\nhis estate; for even all that a man hath will he give for his life,\nand to keep body and soul firmly knit together. But now, when this\ndesire comes, this silver cord is loosed, is loosed by consent. This\ndesire delightfully grants to him that comes to dissolve this union,\nleave to do it. \"We are confident and willing rather to be absent\nfrom the body, and to be present with the Lord.\"\n\nThe strength of this desire shows itself in this, that it is willing\nto grapple with the king of terrors, rather than to be detained from\nthat sweet communion which the soul looks for when it comes into the\nplace where its Lord is. Death is not to be desired for itself; the\napostle chose rather to be clothed upon with his house which is from\nheaven, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.\n\nBut yet rather than he would be absent from the Lord, he was willing\nto be absent from the body. Death, in the very thought of it, is\ngrievous to flesh and blood; and nothing can so master it in our\napprehensions as that by which we attain to these desires. These\ndesires do deal with death, as Jacob's love to Rachel dealt with the\nseven long years which he was to serve for her. It made them seem\nfew, or but a little time; so do these desires deal with death\nitself. They make it seem little, nay, a servant, nay, a privilege,\nbecause by that a man may come to enjoy the presence of his beloved\nLord. I have a desire to depart, to go from the world and relations,\nto go from my body, that great piece of myself--I have a desire to\nventure the tugs and pains, and the harsh handling of the king of\nterrors, so I may be with Jesus Christ. These are the desires of the\nrighteous.\n\nAre not these therefore strong desires? Is there not life and mettle\nin them? Have they not in them power to loose the bands of nature,\nand to harden the soul against sorrow? Flow they not, think you,\nfrom faith of the finest sort, and are they not bred in the bosom of\na truly mortified soul? Are these the effect of a purblind spirit?\nAre they not rather the fruits of an eagle-eyed confidence? Oh,\nthese desires! they are peculiar to the righteous.\n\nChrist in glory is worth the being with. If the man out of whom the\nLord Jesus cast a legion, prayed that he might be with him\nnotwithstanding all the trials that attended him in this life, how\ncan it be but that a righteous man must desire to be with him, now\nhe is in glory?\n\nTo see Jesus Christ, to see him as he is, to see him as he is in\nglory, is a sight that is worth going from relations and out of the\nbody and through the jaws of death to see; for this is to see him\nHead over all, to see him possessed of heaven for his church, to see\nhim preparing mansion-houses for those his poor ones that are now by\nhis enemies kicked to and fro like footballs in the world: and is\nnot this a blessed sight?\n\nSecondly, I have a desire to be with him, to see myself with him;\nthis is more blessed still: for a man to see himself in glory, this\nis a sight worth seeing.\n\nSometimes I look upon myself and say, Where am I now? and do quickly\nreturn answer to myself again, Why, I am in an evil world, a great\nway from heaven, in a sinful body, among devils and wicked men;\nsometimes benighted, sometimes beguiled, sometimes fearing,\nsometimes hoping, sometimes breathing, sometimes dying. But then I\nturn the tables, and say, But where shall I be shortly? Where shall\nI see myself anon, after a few more times have passed over me? And\nwhen I can but answer this question thus: I shall see myself with\nJesus Christ; this yields glory, even glory to one's spirit now.\n\nThirdly, I have a desire to be with Christ: there the spirits of the\njust are perfected; there the spirits of the righteous are as full\nas they can hold. A sight of Jesus in the word; some know how it\nwill change them from glory to glory. But how then shall we be\nchanged and filled, when we shall see him as he is? \"When he shall\nappear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.\"\n\nMoses and Elias appeared to Peter and James and John, at the\ntransfiguration of Christ, \"in glory.\" Hew so? Why, they had been in\nthe heavens, and came thence with some of the glories of heaven upon\nthem. Gild a bit of wood, yea, gild it seven times over, and it must\nnot be compared, in difference from wood which is not gilt, with the\nsoul that but a little while has been dipt in glory.\n\nGlory is a strange thing to men that are on this side of heaven; it\nis that which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, nor hath entered into\nthe heart of man: only the Christian has a word and Spirit that at\ntimes give a little of the glimmering thereof unto him.\n\nBut Oh, when he is in the Spirit and sees in the Spirit, do you\nthink his tongue can tell? But if the sight of heaven at so vast a\ndistance is so excellent a prospect, what will it be when one is in\nit?\n\nNo marvel, then, if the desires of the righteous are to be with\nChrist.\n\nThere is a man upon a bed of languishing; but Oh, he dares not die,\nfor all is not as he would have it betwixt God and his poor soul;\nand many a night he lies thus in great horror of mind; but do you\nthink that he doth not desire to depart? Yes, yes; he also waits and\ncries to God to set his desires at liberty. At last the visitor\ncomes and sets his soul at ease, by persuading him that he belongs\nto God; and what then? Oh, Now let me die; welcome death!\n\nTHE DYING CHRISTIAN.\n\nWhen men are faithful to God in this world, to do the work he hath\nappointed for them, by this means a dying bed is made easier.\n\n1. By reason of that present peace such shall have, even in their\ntime of languishing.\n\n2. By reason of the good company such shall have at their departure.\nThe angels of heaven shall wait upon them, as they did upon the\nblessed Lazarus, to carry them into Abraham's bosom. I know all that\ngo to paradise are by these holy ones conducted thither; but yet,\nfor all that, such as die under the clouds for unchristian walking\nwith God, may meet with darkness in that day--may go heavily hence,\nnotwithstanding that; yea, their bed may be as uncomfortable to them\nas if they lay upon nothing but the cords, and their departing from\nit, as to appearance, more uncomfortable by far.\n\nBut as for those who have been faithful to their God, they shall see\nbefore them; shall know their tabernacle shall be in peace; \"the\neverlasting gates shall be opened unto them:\" in all which from\nearth they shall see the glory of heaven.\n\nDEATH OF MR. BADMAN'S WIFE.\n\nATTENTIVE. \"And how did his good wife take it when she saw that he\nhad no amendment, but that he returned to his old courses again?\"\n\nWISEMAN. \"Why, it broke her heart; it was a worse disappointment to\nher than the cheat that he gave her in marriage; at least she laid\nit more to heart, and could not so well grapple with it. You must\nthink that she had put up many a prayer to God for him before, even\nall the time that he had carried it so badly to her; and now when he\nwas so affrighted in his sickness, and so desirous that he might\nlive and mend, poor woman, she thought that the time was come for\nGod to answer her prayers; nay, she did not fail with gladness to\nwhisper out amongst her friends that it was so. But when she saw\nherself disappointed by her husband turning rebel again, she could\nnot stand up under it, but fell into a languishing distemper, and in\na few weeks gave up the ghost.\"\n\nATTENTIVE. \"Pray how did she die?\"\n\nWISEMAN. \"Die! she died bravely; full of comfort in the faith of her\ninterest in Christ, and by him in the world to come. She had many\nbrave expressions in her sickness, and gave to those that came to\nvisit her many signs of her salvation. The thoughts of the grave,\nespecially of her rising again, were sweet thoughts to her. She\nwould long for death, because she knew it would be her friend. She\nexpressed herself like one that was making herself ready to go to\nmeet her bridegroom. 'Now,' said she, 'I am going to rest from my\nsorrows, my sighs, my tears, my mournings, and complaints: I have\nheretofore longed to be among the saints, but might by no means be\nsuffered to go; but now I am going, and no man can stop me, to the\ngreat meeting, 'to the general assembly and church of the first-born\nwhich are written in heaven.' There I shall have my heart's desire;\nthere I shall worship without temptation or other impediment; there\nI shall see the face of my Jesus whom I have loved, whom I have\nserved, and who now I know will save my soul. I have prayed often\nfor my husband that he might be converted, but there has been no\nanswer of God in that matter. Are my prayers lost; are they\nforgotten; are they thrown over the bar? No; they are hanged upon\nthe horns of the golden altar, and I must have the benefit of them\nmyself that moment that I shall enter into the gates, in at which\nthe righteous nation that keepeth truth shall enter: I say, I shall\nhave the benefit of them. I can say as holy David--I say, I can say\nof my husband as he could of his enemies, 'As for me, when they were\nsick, my clothing was of sackcloth; I humbled my soul with fasting,\nand my prayer returned into my bosom.' My prayers are not lost, my\ntears are yet in God's bottle; I would have had a crown and glory\nfor my husband, and for those of my children that follow his steps;\nbut so far as I can see yet, I must rest in the hope of having all\nmyself.'\n\n\"When she drew near her end she called for her husband, and when he\nwas come to her, she told him that now he and she must part; and,\nsaid she, 'God knows, and thou shalt know, that I have been a\nloving, faithful wife unto thee; and as for all the abuses that I\nhave received at thy hand, those I freely and heartily forgive, and\nstill shall pray for thy conversion, even as long as I breathe in\nthis world. But, husband, I am going thither where no bad man shall\ncome; and if thou dost not turn, thou wilt never see me more with\ncomfort. Let not my plain words offend thee; I am thy dying wife,\nand of my faithfulness to thee would leave this exhortation with\nthee: Break off thy sins, fly to God for mercy while mercy's gate\nstands open: remember that the day is coming when thou, though now\nlusty and well, must lie at the gates of death, as I do; and what\nwilt thou then do, if thou shalt be found with a naked soul to meet\nthe cherubims with their flaming swords? Yea, what wilt thou then do\nif death and hell shall come to visit thee, and thou in thy sins and\nunder the curse of the law?'\n\n\"When she saw that she was not regarded, she fetched a deep sigh and\nlay still. So he went down; and then she called for her children,\nand began to talk to them. And first she spoke to those that were\nrude, and told them the danger of dying before they had grace in\ntheir hearts. She told them also, that death might be nearer than\nthey were aware of; and bid them look, when they went through the\nchurchyard again, if there were not little graves there. 'And ah,\nchildren,' said she, 'will it not be dreadful to you, if we only\nshall meet at the day of judgment, and then part again and never see\neach other more?' And with that she wept; the children also wept. So\nshe held on her discourse: 'Children,' said she, 'I am going from\nyou. I am going to Jesus Christ; and with him there is neither\nsorrow nor sighing, nor pain nor tears, nor death: thither would I\nhave you go also; but I can neither carry you nor fetch you thither.\nBut if you shall turn from your sins to God, and shall beg mercy at\nhis hands by Jesus Christ, you shall follow me, and shall, when you\ndie, come to the place where I am going, that blessed place of rest;\nand then we shall be for ever together, beholding the face of our\nRedeemer, to our mutual and eternal joy.' So she bade them remember\nthe words of a dying mother when she was cold in her grave, and\nthemselves were hot in their sins, if perhaps her words might put a\ncheck to their vice, and they might remember and turn to God.\n\n\"Then they all went down but her darling, to wit, the child that she\nhad most love for, because it followed her ways. So she addressed\nherself to that: 'Come to me,' said she, 'my sweet child, thou art\nthe child of my joy; I have lived to see thee a servant of God; thou\nshalt have eternal life. I, my sweetheart, shall go before, and thou\nshalt follow after, if thou shalt hold the beginning of thy\nconfidence steadfast to the end. When I am gone, do thou still\nremember my words. Love thy Bible, follow my ministers, deny\nungodliness still, and if troublesome times shall come, set a higher\nprice upon Christ, his word and ways, and the testimony of a good\nconscience, than upon all the world besides; carry it kindly and\ndutifully to thy father, but chose none of his ways.\n\n\"'I would have thee also, my dear child, to love thy brothers and\nsisters, but learn none of their naughty tricks; 'Have no fellowship\nwith the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.'\nThou hast grace; they have none. Do thou therefore beautify the way\nof salvation before their eyes, by a godly life and conversation\nconformable to the revealed will of God, that thy brothers and\nsisters may see and be the more pleased with the good ways of the\nLord.'\n\n\"Thus she talked to her children and gave them counsel; and after\nshe had talked to this a little longer, she kissed it and bid it go\ndown.\n\n\"Well, in short, her time drew on, and the day that she must die. So\nshe died with a soul full of grace, a heart full of comfort, and by\nher death ended a life of trouble.\"\n\nDEATH OF STANDFAST.\n\nWhen Mr. Standfast had thus set things in order, and the time being\ncome for him to haste him away, he went down to the river. Now there\nwas a great calm at that time in the river; wherefore Mr. Standfast,\nwhen he was about half way in, stood a while and talked to his\ncompanions that had waited upon him thither: and he said, \"This\nriver has been a terror to many; yea, the thoughts of it also have\noften frightened me: now, methinks, I stand easy; my foot is fixed\nupon that on which the feet of the priests that bare the ark of the\ncovenant stood, while Israel went over this Jordan.\n\n\"The waters indeed are to the palate bitter and to the stomach cold;\nyet the thoughts of what I am going to, and of the convoy that waits\nfor me on the other side, doth lie as a glowing coal at my heart. I\nsee myself now at the end of my journey; my toilsome days are ended.\nI am going to see that head that was crowned with thorns, and that\nface that was spit upon for me. I have formerly lived by hearsay and\nfaith, but now I go where I shall live by sight, and shall be with\nhim in whose company I delight myself. I have loved to hear my Lord\nspoken of; and whenever I have seen the print of his shoe in the\nearth, there I have coveted to set my foot too. His name has been to\nme as a civet-box, yea, sweeter than all perfumes. His voice to me\nhas been most sweet, and his countenance I have more desired than\nthey that have most desired the light of the sun. His words I did\nuse to gather for my food, and for antidotes against my faintings.\nHe has held me, and hath kept me from mine iniquities, yea, my steps\nhave been strengthened in his way.\"\n\nNow while he was thus in discourse, his countenance changed; his\n\"strong man bowed under him;\" and after he had said, \"Take me, for I\nam come unto thee,\" he ceased to be seen of them.\n\nBut glorious it was to see how the open region was filled with\nhorses and chariots, with trumpeters and pipers, with singers and\nplayers on stringed instruments, to welcome the pilgrims as they\nwent up, and followed one another in at the beautiful gate of the\ncity.\n\nDEATH OF CHRISTIAN AND HOPEFUL.\n\nThey then addressed themselves to the water, and entering, Christian\nbegan to sink, and crying out to his good friend Hopeful, he said,\n\"I sink in deep waters; billows go over my head, all his waves go\nover me.\"\n\nThen said the other, \"Be of good cheer, my brother; I feel the\nbottom, and it is good.\"\n\nThen said Christian, \"Ah, my friend, the sorrow of death hath\ncompassed me about. I shall not see the land that flows with milk\nand honey.\" And with that a great darkness and horror fell upon\nChristian, so that he could not see before him; also he in a great\nmeasure lost his senses, so that he could neither remember nor\norderly talk of any of those sweet refreshments that he had met wilh\nin the way of his pilgrimage. But all the words that he spake still\ntended to discover that he had horror of mind, and heart-fears that\nhe should die in that river and never obtain entrance in at the\ngate.\n\nHere also, as they that stood by perceived, he was much in\ntroublesome thoughts of the sins that he had committed both since\nand before he began to be a pilgrim. It was also observed that he\nwas troubled with apparitions of hobgoblins and evil spirits; for\never and anon he would intimate so much by words.\n\nHopeful therefore here had much ado to keep his brother's head above\nwater; yea, sometimes he would be quite gone down, and then, ere a\nwhile, he would rise up again half dead. Hopeful did also endeavor\nto comfort him, saying, \"Brother, I see the gate, and men standing\nby to receive us; but Christian would answer, \"It is you, it is you\nthey wait for; you have been hopeful ever since I knew you.\"\n\n\"And so have you,\" said he to Christian.\n\n\"Ah, brother,\" said he, \"surely if I was right, he would now arise\nto help me; but for my sins he hath brought me into the snare, and\nhath left me.\"\n\nThen said Hopeful, \"My brother, you have quite forgot the text,\nwhere it is said of the wicked, 'There are no bands in their death,\nbut their strength is firm: they are not troubled as other men,\nneither are they plagued like other men.' These troubles and\ndistresses that you go through in these waters, are no sign that God\nhath forsaken you, but are sent to try you whether you will call to\nmind that which heretofore you have received of his goodness, and\nlive upon him in your distresses.\"\n\nThen I saw in my dream that Christian was in a muse a while. To whom\nalso Hopeful added these words: \"Be of good cheer; Jesus Christ\nmaketh thee whole.\"\n\nAnd with that Christian broke out with a loud voice, \"Oh, I see him\nagain, and he tells me, 'When thou passest through the waters, I\nwill he with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow\nthee.'\"\n\nThen they both took courage, and the enemy was after that as still\nas a stone until they were gone over. Christian therefore presently\nfound ground to stand upon, and so it followed that the rest of the\nriver was but shallow; thus they got over.\n\nNow upon the bank of the river, on the other side, they saw the two\nshining men again, who there waited for them. Wherefore, being come\nout of the river, they saluted them, saying, \"We are ministering\nspirits, sent forth to minister to those that shall be heirs of\nsalvation.\" Thus they went along towards the gate.\n\nBUNYAN'S DEATH.\n\nFROM THE FIRST BIOGRAPHY OF BUNYAN.\n\n\"He comforted those that wept about him, exhorting them to trust in\nGod, and pray to him for mercy and forgiveness of their sins;\ntelling them what a glorious exchange it would be, to leave the\ntroubles and cares of a wretched mortality to live with Christ for\never, with peace and joy inexpressible; expounding to them the\ncomfortable scriptures by which they were to hope and assuredly come\nunto a blessed resurrection in the last day. He desired some to pray\nwith him, and he joined with them in prayer; and his last words,\nafter he had struggled with a languishing disease, were these: 'Weep\nnot for me, but for yourselves. I go to the Father of our Lord Jesus\nChrist, who will, through the mediation of his blessed Son, receive\nme, though a sinner; where I hope we ere long shall meet to sing the\nnew song, and remain everlastingly happy, world without end.'\"\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXV. THE RESURRECTION.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe doctrine of the resurrection, however questioned by heretics and\nerroneous persons, yet is such a truth, that almost all the holy\nscriptures of God point at and centre in it.\n\nThere is a poor dry and wrinkled kernel cast into the ground; and\nthere it lieth, swelleth, breaketh, and, one would think, perisheth.\nBut behold, it receiveth life, it chippeth, it putteth forth a\nblade, and groweth into a stalk. There also appeareth an ear; it\nalso sweetly blossoms, with a full kernel in the ear. It is the same\nwheat; yet behold how the fashion doth differ from what was sown.\nAnd our BRAN will be left behind, when we rise again. The body\nariseth, as to the nature of it, the self-same nature; but as to the\nmanner of it, how far transcendent! The glory of the terrestrial is\none, and the glory of the celestial is another.\n\n\"It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.\" At our first\nappearance, the world will tremble. Behold, the gates of death and\nthe bars of the grave are now carried away on our shoulders, as\nSampson carried away the gates of the city. Death quaketh, and\ndestruction falleth down dead at our feet. What then can stand\nbefore us? We shall then carry such grace, majesty, terror, and\ncommanding power in our souls, that our countenances shall be as\nlightning. Then shall death be swallowed up of victory.\n\nGlory is the sweetness, comeliness, purity, and perfection of a\nthing. The light is the glory of the sun, strength is the glory of\nyouth, and gray hairs are the glory of old age. That is, it is the\nexcellency of these things and that which makes them shine.\nTherefore to arise in glory, it is to arise in all the beauty and\nutmost completeness that is possible for a human creature to\npossess, in all its features and members inconceivably beautiful.\nSin and corruption have made mad work in our bodies as well as in\nour souls; 'tis sin commonly that is the cause of all that deformity\nand ill-favoredness that now cleaveth to us, and that rendereth us\nso dishonorable at our death. But now at our rising, we shall be\nraised incorruptible; we shall appear in such perfection that all\nthe beauty and comeliness, sweetness and amiableness that hath at\nany time been in this world, it shall be swallowed up a thousand\ntimes told with this glory.\n\nThe body when it ariseth will be so swallowed up of life and\nimmortality, that it will be as if it had lost its own human nature.\nYou know that things which are candied by the art of the apothecary,\nare so swallowed up with the sweetness and virtue of that in which\nthey are candied, that they are now as though they had no other\nnature than that in which they are boiled. Just thus, at the last\nday, it will be with our bodies. We shall be so candied by being\nswallowed up of life, that we shall be as if we were all spirit;\nwhen in truth, it is but this body that is swallowed up of life.\n\nThe body is also gathered up into glory, but not simply for its own\nsake, or because it is capable of itself to know and understand the\nglories of its Maker, but that it has been a companion with the soul\nin this world, and has also been its house, its mantle, its cabinet,\nand tabernacle here: it has also been that by which the soul hath\nacted, in which it hath wrought, and by which its excellent\nappearances have been manifested; and it shall also there be its\ncopartner and sharer in its glory.\n\nIn this world the soul of the regenerate is a gracious soul; and in\nthat world it shall be a glorious one. In this world the body was\nconformable to the soul as it was gracious, and in that world it\nshall be conformable to it as it is glorious. Yea, it shall have an\nadditional glory to adorn and make it yet the more capable of being\nserviceable to and with the soul in its great acts before God in\neternal glory.\n\nIf a man receive the mercy of the resurrection of the body, what a\nbundle of mercies will be received as wrapt up in that. He will\nreceive perfection, immortality, heaven, and glory. And what is\nfolded up in these things, who can tell?\n\nAs to the manner of the change of the body in its rising, this\nsimilitude also doth fitly suit: as, 1. It is sown a dead corn, it\nis raised a living one. 2. It is sown dry, and without comeliness;\nit riseth green and beautiful. 3. It is sown a single corn, it\nriseth a full ear. 4. It is sown in the husk, but in its rising it\nleaveth that husk behind it.\n\nFurther, though the kernel thus die, be buried, and meet with all\nthis change in these things, yet none of them can cause the nature\nof the kernel to cease; it is wheat still. Wheat was sown, and wheat\narises; only it was sown dead, dry, and barren wheat, and riseth\nliving, beautiful, and fruitful wheat. \"God giveth it a body as it\npleaseth him; but to every seed his own body.\"\n\nAll the glory that a glorified soul can help this body to, it at\nthis day shall enjoy. That soul that has been these hundreds or\nthousands of years in the heavens, in the bosom of Christ, it shall\nin a moment come spangling into the body again, and inhabit every\nmember and vein of the body, as it did before its departure. That\nSpirit of God also, that took its leave of the body when it went to\nthe grave, shall now in all perfection dwell in the body again. I\ntell you, the body at this day will shine brighter than the face of\nMoses or Stephen, even as bright as the sun, the stars and angels.\n\"When Christ who is our life shall appear, we shall appear with him\nin glory.\"\n\nChrist has showed us what our body at the resurrection shall be, by\nshowing us in his word what his body was at and after his\nresurrection. We read that his body after he was risen from the\ndead, though it yet retained the very same flesh and bones that did\nhang upon the cross, yet how angelical was it at all times, upon all\noccasions! He could come in to his disciples with that very body,\nwhen the doors were shut upon them. He could at pleasure, to their\namazement, appear in the twinkling of an eye in the midst of them.\nHe could be visible and invisible, as he pleased, when he sat at\nmeat with them. In a word, he could pass and repass, ascend and\ndescend in that body with far more pleasure and ease than the bird\nby the art of her wing.\n\nNow I say, as we have in this world borne the image of our first\nfather; so at that day we shall have the image of Jesus Christ, and\nbe as he is. 1 Cor. 15:49.\n\nTo mount up to heaven, and to descend again with pleasure, shall\nwith us in that day be ordinary. If there were ten thousand bars of\niron, or walls of brass, to separate between us and our pleasure and\ndesire at that day, they should as easily be pierced by us as is the\ncobweb, or as air by the beams of the sun. And the reason is,\nbecause to the Spirit, wherewith we shall be inconceivably filled at\nthat day, nothing is impossible; and the working of it at that day\nshall be in such nature and measure as to swallow up all\nimpossibilities. \"Who shall change our vile body, that it may be\nfashioned like unto his glorious body\"--now mark--\"according to the\nworking whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.\"\n\nNay further, we do not only see what operation the Spirit will have\nin our body by the carriage of Christ after his resurrection, but\neven by many a saint before his death. The Spirit used to catch\nElijah away, no man could tell whither. It carried Ezekiel hither\nand thither. It carried Christ from the top of the pinnacle of the\ntemple into Galilee; through it he walked on the sea. The Spirit\ncaught away Philip from the eunuch, and carried him as far as\nAzotus.\n\nThus the great God has given us a taste of the power and glory that\nare in himself, and how easily they will help us, by possessing us\nat the resurrection, to act and to do like angels; as Christ saith,\n\"They that shall be counted worthy of that world and of the\nresurrection from the dead, they shall not die, but be equal to the\nangels.\"\n\nSALVATION COMPLETE AT THE RESURRECTION.\n\n\"Now we shall see him,\" to wit, Christ in his glory. Not by\nrevelation only, as we do now, but then face to face; and he will\nhave us with him to this very end. Though John was in the Spirit\nwhen he had the vision of Christ, yet it made him fall at his feet\nas dead; and also turned Daniel's beauty into corruption, it was so\nglorious and so overweighing a glory that he appeared in. But we\nshall at the day of our resurrection be so furnished, that we shall\nwith the eagle be able to look upon the sun in his strength. We\nshall then \"see Him as he is,\" who now is in the light that no eye\nhath seen, nor any man can see till that day.\n\nNow we shall see into all things; there shall not be any thing hid\nfrom us. For the Spirit, with which we shall in every cranny of soul\nand body be filled, \"searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of\nGod.\" We see what strange things have been known by the prophets and\nsaints of God; and that when they knew but in part. Abraham could by\nit tell to a day how long his seed should be under persecution in\nEgypt. Elisha by it could tell what was done in the king of\nAssyria's bedchamber. Abijah by this could know Jeroboam's wife so\nsoon as, yea, before her feet entered within his door, though he saw\nher not. The prophet of Judah could tell by this what God would do\nto Bethel for the idolatry there committed, and could also point out\nthe man by name that should do the execution, long before he was\nborn.\n\nWhat shall I say? Enoch by it could tell what should be done at the\nend of the world. How did the prophets circumstantially prophesy of\nChrist's birth, his death, his burial, of their giving him gall and\nvinegar, of their parting his raiment and piercing his hands and\nfeet, of his riding on an ass also. All this they saw when they\nspake of him. Peter also, though half asleep, could at the very\nfirst word call Moses and Elias by their names, when they appeared\nto Christ in the holy mount. He is very ignorant of the operation of\nthe Spirit that scrupleth these things.\n\nBut now, I say, if these things have been done, seen, and known by\nspiritual men while their knowledge has been but \"in part,\" how\nshall we know, see, and discern, when \"that which is perfect is\ncome!\" which will be at the resurrection: \"It is raised a spiritual\nbody.\"\n\nPaul said to the Philippians that he was confident that he who had\nbegun a good work in them, would perform it until \"the day of\nChrist.\" Which day of Christ was not the day of their conversion,\nfor that day was past with them already, they were now the children\nof God; but this day of Christ is the same which in other places is\ncalled the day when he shall come with the sound of the last trump\nto raise the dead. For you must know that the work of salvation is\nnot at an end with them that are now in heaven; no, nor ever will be\nuntil their bodies be raised again. God has made our bodies the\nmembers of Christ, and God does not count us thoroughly saved, until\nour bodies be as well redeemed and ransomed out of the grave and\ndeath, as our soul from the curse of the law and dominion of sin.\n\nThough God's saints have felt the power of much of his grace, and\nhave had many a secret word fulfilled on them, yet one word will be\nunfulfilled on their particular person, so long as the grave can\nshut her mouth upon them. But when the gates of death do open before\nthem, and the bars of the grave do fall asunder, then shall be\nbrought to pass that saying which is written, \"Death is swallowed up\nof victory.\" And then will they hear that most pleasant voice,\n\"Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for thy dew is as the\ndew of herbs, and the earth shall cast forth her dead.\"\n\nThe body is no such ridiculous thing in the account of Christ as it\nwas in the account of the Sadducees. \"The body is not for\nfornication, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body;\" and that\nnot only in this world, but in that which is to come.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXVI. THE JUDGMENT.\n\n\n\n\n\nOh my heart, it is in vain now to dissemble, or to hide, or to\nlessen transgressions; for there is a judgment to come, a day in\nwhich God will judge the secrets of men by his Son.\n\nTHE SAINTS JUDGED.\n\nWhen the saints are raised, they must give an account of all things\nthat they have done while they were in the world, of all things\n\"whether they be good or bad.\"\n\n1. Of all their bad. But mark, not under the consideration of\nvagabond slaves and sinners, but as sons, stewards, and servants of\nthe Lord Jesus. \"We must all stand before the judgment-seat of\nChrist;\" we saints; \"for it is written, As I live, saith the Lord,\nevery knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.\"\n\nIt is true, God loveth his people; but yet he loveth not their sins,\nnor any thing they do, though with the greatest zeal for him, if it\nbe contrary to his word. Wherefore, as truly as God will give a\nreward to his saints and children, for all that they have indeed\nwell done, so truly will he at this day distinguish their good and\nbad; and when both are manifest by the righteous judgment of God, he\nwill burn up their bad, with all their labor and travail in it, for\never. He can tell how to save his people, and yet take vengeance on\ntheir inventions.\n\nThat is an observable place, 1 Cor. 3:12-15: \"If any man build upon\nthis foundation, (Christ,) gold, silver, precious-stones, wood, hay,\nstubble, every man's work shall be manifest; for the day shall\ndeclare it; because it shall be revealed by fire, and the fire shall\ntry every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work shall\nabide that he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If\nany man's work shall be burned, that man shall suffer loss, but he\nhimself shall be saved, yet so as by fire.\"\n\nI am persuaded that there are many things done by the best of\nsaints, which then they will gladly disown and be ashamed of; yea,\nthey have and do still do this with great devotion. In many things\nnow, we offend all; and then we shall see the many offences we have\ncommitted, and shall ourselves judge them as they are.\n\nBut yet take notice, that in this day when the saints are thus\naccounting for their evil before their Saviour and Judge, they shall\nnot then, as now at the remembrance and confession of sin, be filled\nwith that guilt, confusion, and shame, that now, through the\nweakness of faith, attend their souls: neither shall they in the\nleast be grieved or offended that God has, before the angels and the\nrest of their holy brethren, laid open to a tittle their infirmities\nfrom the least and first to the biggest and last.\n\nFor the God to whom they confess all, they will now more perfectly\nthan ever see he doth love them and free them from all, even when\nand before they confess and acknowledge them to him; and they shall\nhave their soul so full of the ravishing raptures of the life and\nglory that now they are in, that they shall be of it swallowed up in\nthat measure and manner that neither fear, nor guilt, nor confusion\ncan come near them or touch them. Their Judge is their Saviour,\ntheir husband, and head; who, though he will bring every one of them\nfor all things to judgment, yet will keep them for ever out of\ncondemnation. Perfect love casteth out fear, even while we are here;\nmuch more then when we are with the Saviour, our Jesus, being passed\nfrom death to life.\n\nSAINTS REWARDED AT THE JUDGMENT.\n\nNow the saved having accounted for all their evil, and confessed to\nGod's glory how they fell short and did not the truth in this or\nthat particular, and having received their eternal acquittance from\nthe Lord and Judge, in the sight of both angels and saints,\nforthwith the Lord Jesus will make inquiry into all the good and\nholy actions they do in the world. Now here shall all things be\nreckoned up, from the very first good thing that was done by Adam or\nAbel, to the last that will fall out to be done in the world--the\ngood of all the holy prophets, of all apostles, pastors, teachers,\nand helps in the church--here also will be brought forth to light\nall the good deeds of masters of families, of parents, of children,\nof servants, of neighbors, or whatever good things any man doeth.\n\n1. Here will be a recompense for all that have labored sincerely in\nthe word and doctrine. Now shall Paul the planter, and Apollos the\nwaterer, with every one of their companions, receive the reward that\nis according to their works.\n\nNow all the preaching, praying, watching, and labor thou hast been\nat, in thy endeavoring to catch men from Satan to God, shall be\nrewarded with spangling glory. Not a soul thou hast converted to the\nLord Jesus, not a soul thou hast comforted, strengthened, or helped\nby thy wholesome counsel, admonition, and comfortable speech, but it\nshall stick as a pearl in that crown which the Lord the righteous\nJudge shall give thee at that day; that is, if thou doest it\nwillingly, delighting to lift up the name of God among men; if thou\ndoest it with love, and longing after the salvation of sinners:\notherwise thou wilt have only thy labor for thy pains, and no more.\nIf I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if against my will, a\ndispensation of the gospel is committed to my charge.\n\nBut if thou do it graciously, then a reward followeth; \"for what is\nour hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye,\" says\nPaul, \"in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? For\nye are our glory and joy.\"\n\nLet him therefore that Christ has put into his harvest, take comfort\nin the midst of all his sorrows; and know that God acknowledges that\nhe that converteth a sinner from the error of his way, doth even\nsave that soul from death, and covereth a multitude of sins.\nWherefore, labor to convert, labor to water, labor to build up and\nto feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight\nthereof not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but\nof a ready mind; and when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall\nreceive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.\n\n2. And as the ministers of Christ's gospel shall at this day be\nrecompensed, so shall also those more private saints be with tender\naffections and love looked on and rewarded for all their work and\nlabor of love which they have showed to the name of Christ, in\nministering to his saints and suffering for his sake. \"Whatsoever\ngood thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord,\nwhether he be bond or free.\"\n\nAh, little do the people of God think how largely and thoroughly God\nwill at that day own and recompense all the good and holy acts of\nhis people. Every bit, every drop, every rag, and every night's\nharbor though but in a wisp of straw, shall be rewarded in that day\nbefore men and angels: \"Whosoever shall give to drink to one of\nthese little ones, a cup of cold water only, in the name of a\ndisciple, verily I say unto you,\" saith Christ, \"he shall in no wise\nlose his reward.\" \"Therefore, when thou makest a feast,\" saith he,\n\"call the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind, and thou shalt\nbe blessed; for they cannot recompense thee; for thou shalt be\nrecompensed at the resurrection of the just.\"\n\nIf there be any repentance among the godly at that day, it will be\nbecause the Lord Jesus, in his person, members, and word, was no\nmore owned, honored, entertained, and provided for by them, when\nthey were in this world; for it will be ravishing to all to see what\nnotice the Lord Jesus will then take of every widow's mite. He will\ncall to mind even all those acts of mercy and kindness which thou\nhast showed to him when thou wast among men. He will remember, cry\nup, and proclaim before angels and saints those very acts of thine\nwhich thou hast either forgotten or through bashfulness wilt not at\nthat day count worth the owning. He will reckon them up so fast and\nso fully that thou wilt cry, \"Lord, when did I do this, and when did\nI do the other? When saw we thee hungry and fed thee. or athirst and\ngave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger and took thee in, or\nnaked and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick or in a prison, and\ncame unto thee?\" And the King shall answer and say unto them,\n\"Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least\nof these my brethren, ye did it unto me. The good works of some are\nmanifest beforehand, and they that are otherwise cannot be hid.\nWhatever thou hast done to one of the least of these my brethren,\nthou hast done it unto me. I felt the nourishment of thy food and\nthe warmth of thy fleece; I remember thy loving and holy visits,\nwhen my poor members were sick and in prison and the like. When they\nwere strangers and wanderers in the world, thou tookest them in.\nWell done, thou good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy\nof thy Lord.\"\n\n3. Here also will be a reward for all that hardness and Christian\nenduring of affliction that thou hast met with for thy Lord, while\nthou wast in the world. Here now will Christ begin from the greatest\nsuffering even unto the least, and bestow a reward on them all, from\nthe blood of the suffering saint to the loss of a hair.\n\n4. There is also a reward at this day for all the more, secret and\nmore retired works of Christianity. 1. There is not now one act of\nfaith in thy soul, either upon Christ or against the devil and\nantichrist, but it shall in this day be found out, and praised,\nhonored, and glorified in the face of heaven. 2. There is not one\ngroan to God in secret against thy own lusts, and for more grace,\nlight, Spirit, sanctification, and strength to go through this world\nlike a Christian, but it shall even at the coming of Christ he\nrewarded openly. 3. There has not one tear dropped from thy tender\neye against thy lusts, the love of the world, or for more communion\nwith Jesus Christ, but as it is now in the bottle of God, so then it\nshall bring forth such plenty of reward, that it shall return upon\nthee with abundance of increase. \"Blessed are ye that weep now, for\nye shall laugh.\" \"Thou tellest my wanderings and puttest my tears in\nthy bottle; are they not in thy book?\" \"They that sow in tears shall\nreap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed,\nshall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with\nhim.\"\n\nIf thou indeed and in truth close in with Jesus, thou shalt be\nlovingly received and tenderly embraced of Christ at that day, when\nhe hath thousands of noble saints, as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David,\nIsaiah, Jeremiah, with all the prophets, apostles, and martyrs,\nattending on him; and many thousands of glittering angels\nministering before him. When the ungodly shall appear there, with\ntheir pale faces, with their guilty consciences and trembling\nsouls--who would then give thousands of worlds, if they had so many,\nif they could enjoy but one loving look from Christ--then shalt thou\nhave the hand of Christ reached to receive thee, saying, Come, thou\nblessed, step up hither; thou wast willing to leave all for me, and\nnow I will give all to thee. Here is a throne, a crown, a kingdom;\ntake them. Thou wast not ashamed of me when thou wast in the world\namong my enemies, and now will not I be ashamed of thee before thine\nenemies, but will, in the view of all these devils and damned\nreprobates, promote thee to honor and dignity. Come, ye blessed of\nmy Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation\nof the world. Thou shalt see that those who have served me in truth\nshall lose nothing, but they shall be as pillars in my temple and\ninheritors of my glory, and shall have place to walk in among my\nsaints and angels. Oh, who would not be in this condition? who would\nnot be in this glory?\n\nAt the day of judgment, Israel will be sufficiently weary of this\nworld; they will even as it were inexpressibly groan to be taken up\nfrom hence: wherefore the Lord will come, as making use of the\nweariness and groaning of his people, and will take them up into his\nchambers of rest, and will wipe away all tears from their eyes.\n\nThat we are justified in the sight of the divine Majesty by free\ngrace, through that one offering of the body of Jesus Christ once\nfor all, I bless God I believe it; and that we shall be brought to\nglory by the same grace, through the same most blessed Jesus, I\nthank God I believe that also Again, that the glory to which we\nshall be brought by free grace through the only merits of Jesus, is\nunspeakably glorious and complete, I question no more than I\nquestion the blessed truths but now confessed.\n\nBut notwithstanding all this, there is a reward for the righteous, a\nreward for their works of faith and love, whether in a doing or in a\nsuffering way, and that not principally to be enjoyed here, but\nhereafter: \"Great is your reward in heaven.\"\n\nPaul was as great a maintainer of the doctrine of God's free grace,\nand of justification from sin by the righteousness of Christ imputed\nby grace, as any one that ever lived in Christ's service from the\nworld's beginning till now; and yet he was for this doctrine: he\nexpected himself, and encouraged others also to look for such a\nreward for doing and suffering for Christ, which he calls \"a far\nmore exceeding and eternal weight of glory.\" Surely, as Christ says\nin a case not distant from this in hand, \"If it were not so, he\nwould have told us.\"\n\nWherefore a reward I find, and that laid up in heaven; but what it\nis I know not, neither is it possible for any here to know it any\nfurther than by certain general words of God, such as these:\n\"Praise, honor, glory, a crown of righteousness, a crown of glory,\nthrones, judging of angels, a kingdom, with a far more exceeding and\neternal weight of glory.\"\n\nWherefore, though in the day of judgment thou shouldst there slight\nall thou didst on earth for thy Lord, saying, \"When, Lord, when did\nwe do it?\" he will answer, \"Then, even then when ye did it to the\nleast of these my brethren, ye did it unto me.\"\n\nSINNERS JUDGED.\n\n\"There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and\nunjust.\" For as the just go before the unjust in name and dignity\nand honor, so they shall, in the last day, go before them in the\nresurrection.\n\nNow then, when the saints have risen out of their graves, given up\ntheir accounts, received their glory, and are set upon their\nthrones--when they are all of them in their royal apparel, with\ncrowns of glory, every one presenting the person of a king, then\ncome the unjust out of their graves, to receive their judgment for\nwhat they have done in the body. \"We must all appear before the\njudgment-seat of Christ, that every one,\" both saints and sinners,\n\"may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath\ndone, whether it be good or bad.\"\n\n\"And the windows,\" or floodgates, \"of heaven were opened.\" This\nopening of the floodgates of heaven was a type of the way that shall\nbe made for the justice of God upon ungodly men, when Christ has\nlaid aside his mediatorship; for he indeed is the sluice that stops\nthis justice of God from its dealing according to its infinite power\nand severity with men. He stands like Moses, and as it were holdeth\nthe hands of God. Oh, but when he shall be taken away, when he shall\nhave finished his mediatorial work, then will the floodgates of\nheaven be opened, and then will the justice and holiness of God deal\nwith men without stint or diminution, even till it has filled the\nvessels of wrath with vengeance till they run over. \"It is a fearful\nthing to fall into the hands of the living God,\"\n\nThe Judge is the almighty and eternal God: the law broken is the\nholy and perfect rule of God, in itself a consuming fire: sin is so\nodious, and a thing so abominable, that it is enough to make all the\nangels blush to hear it but so much as once mentioned in so holy a\nplace as that is, where the great God doth sit to judge. This sin\nnow hangs about the neck of him that has committed it, yea, it\ncovers him as doth a mantle.\n\nDoubtless before the flood had carried off the ark, others besides\nwould with gladness have had there a lodgingroom though no better\nthan a dog-kennel; but now it was too late, \"The Lord had shut the\ndoor.\"\n\nAs the just shall rise in power, so the wicked and unjust in\nweakness and astonishment. Sin and guilt bring weakness and\nfaintness in this life; how much more when both, with all their\nforce and power, like a giant fasten on them? As God saith, \"Can thy\nhands be strong, and can thy heart endure in the day that I shall\ndeal with thee?\" Now will the ghastly jaws of despair gape upon\nthee, and now will condemnings of conscience, like thunderclaps,\ncontinually batter against thy weary spirit. It is the godly that\nhave boldness in the day of judgment; but the wicked will be like\nthe chaff which the wind driveth away.\n\nNow when the wicked are thus raised out of their graves,'they shall,\ntogether with all the angels of darkness, their fellow-prisoners, be\nbrought up, being shackled in their sins, to the place of judgment;\nwhere there shall sit upon them Jesus Christ, the King of kings and\nLord of lords, the Lord Chief-judge of things in heaven, and earth,\nand things under the earth. On whose right hand and left shall sit\nall the princes and heavenly nobles, the saints and prophets, the\napostles and witnesses of Jesus; every one in his kingly attire upon\nthe throne of his glory. Then shall be fulfilled that which is\nwritten, \"But those my enemies, which would not that I should reign\nover them, bring hither and slay them before me.\"\n\nWhen every one is thus set in his proper place, the Judge on his\nthrone with his attendants, and the prisoners coming up to judgment,\nforthwith there shall issue forth a mighty fire and tempest from\nbefore the throne, which shall compass it round about. Which fire\nshall be as bars and bounds to the wicked, to keep them at a certain\ndistance from the heavenly Majesty. \"Our God will come and not keep\nsilence; a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very\ntempestuous round about him.\" \"His throne was like the fiery flame,\nand his wheels like burning fire. A fiery stream issued, and came\nforth from before him.\"\n\nThis preparation being made--to wit, the Judge with his attendants\non the throne, the bar for the prisoners, and the rebels all\nstanding with ghastly faces to look for what comes after--presently\nthe books are brought forth, the books both of death and life, and\nevery one of them opened before the sinners now to be judged and\ncondemned; for after that he had said, \"A fiery stream issued, and\ncame forth from before him,\" he adds, \"Thousands, thousands\nministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before\nhim. The judgment was set, and the book was opened.\" And again, \"I\nsaw a great white throne and him that sat upon it, from whose face\nthe earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no more\nplace for them', and I saw the dead, small and great, stand before\nGod; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which\nis the book of life. And the dead were judged out of the things that\nwere written in the books, according to their works.\"\n\n\"For many will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.\" They will\nput on all the confidence they can; they will trick and trim up\ntheir profession, and adorn it with what bravery they can. Thus the\nfoolish virgins sought to enter in; they did trim up their lamps,\nand made themselves as fine as they could. They made shift to make\ntheir lamps to shine a while; but the Son of God discovering\nhimself, their confidence failed, their lamps went out, the door was\nshut upon them, and they were kept out.\n\nThey will make a stop at this gate, this beautiful gate of heaven;\nthey will begin to stand without at the gate, as being loath to go\nany further. Never did malefactor so unwillingly turn off the ladder\nwhen the rope was about his neck, as these will turn away in that\nday from the gates of heaven to hell.\n\nIt may be that when thou hearest that the dust of the street, that\ncleaveth to a minister of the gospel while thou rejectest his word\nof salvation, shall be a witness against thee at the day of\njudgment, thou wilt be apt to laugh, and say, The dust a witness!\nwitnesses will be scarce when dust is forced to come in to plead\nagainst a man.\n\nWell, sinner, mock not; God doth use to confound the great and\nmighty by things that are not, and that are despised.\n\nWhen once the master of the house is risen up, that is, when Christ\nhath laid aside his mediation for sinners, and hath taken upon him\nonly to judge and condemn, then will the wicked begin to stand\nwithout, and to knock and contend for a portion among them that are\nblessed. Ah, how will their hearts twitter while they look upon the\nkingdom of glory! And how will they ache and throb at every view of\nhell, their proper place; still crying, O that we might inherit\nlife, and O that we might escape eternal death!\n\nThus you see how loath the sinner is now to take a hay of life\neverlasting. He that once would not be persuaded to close with the\nLord Jesus, though one should have persuaded him with tears of\nblood, behold how fast he now hangs about the Lord: what arguments\nhe frames with mournful groans; how with shifts and words he seeks\nto gain time, and to defer the execution. \"Lord, open unto us! Lord,\nLord, open unto us! Lord, thou hast taught in our streets, and we\nhave both taught in thy name, and in thy name have we cast out\ndevils. We have eat and drank in thy presence. And when did we see\nthee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in\nprison, and did not minister to thee?\" O, poor hearts; how loath,\nhow unwillingly do they turn away from Christ; how loath are they to\npartake of their ungodly doings! Christ must say, \"Depart,\" once,\nand \"Depart,\" twice, before they will depart. When he hath shut the\ndoor upon them, yet they knock, and cry, \"Lord, open unto us:\" when\nhe hath given them their answer, that he knows them not, yet they\nplead and mourn. Wherefore, he is fain to answer again, \"I tell you,\nI know you not whence you are; depart.\"\n\nO this word, depart, how dreadful is it; with what weight will it\nfall on the head of every condemned sinner! For you must note, that\nwhile the ungodly stand thus before the Judge, they cannot choose\nbut have a most distinct view both of the kingdom of heaven, and of\nthe damned spirits in hell. Now they see the God of glory, the King\nof glory, the saints of glory, and the angels of glory; and the\nkingdom in which they have their eternal abode. Now they also begin\nto see the worth of Christ and what it is to be smiled upon by him,\nfrom all which they must depart; and as I say they shall have the\nview of this, so they will most clearly behold the pit, the\nbottomless pit, the fire, the brimstone, and the flaming beds that\njustice hath prepared for them of old.\n\nAt the day of judgment, will be tried whether thou art within that\npart of the book of life wherein all the elect are recorded; for all\nthe elect are written here, as Christ saith, \"Rejoice that your\nnames are written in heaven.\"\n\nNow then, if thy name be not found either among the prophets or\napostles or the rest of saints, thou must be put by as one that is\ncast away, as one polluted, and as an abominable branch. Thy name is\nwanting in the genealogies and rolls of heaven; thou art not marked\nfor everlasting life; therefore thou must not be delivered from that\nsoul-amazing misery: for there are no souls can, though they would\ngive a thousand worlds, be delivered at the day of God, but such\nthat are found written in this book. Every one of those that are\nwritten, though never a one of those that are not written, shall in\nthat day be delivered from the wrath to come.\n\nBut O methinks, with what careful hearts will the damned now begin\nto look for their names in this book. Those that, when once the\nlong-suffering of God waited on them, made light of all admonition,\nand slighted the counsel of making their calling and election sure,\nwould now give thousands of treasures, that they could but spy their\nnames, though last and least among the sons of God. But, I say, how\nwill they fail; how will they faint; how will they die and languish\nin their souls, when they shall still, as they look, see their names\nwanting! What a pinch will it be to Cain, to see his brother there\nrecorded, and he himself left out. Absalom will now swoon and be as\none that giveth up the ghost, when he shall see David his father,\nand Solomon his brother written here, while he withal is written in\nthe earth, among the damned. Thus, I say, will sadness be added to\nsadness in the soul of the perishing world, when they fail of\nfinding their names in this part of the book of life of the Lamb\nslain from the foundation of the world.\n\nSINNERS WITHOUT EXCUSE AT THE JUDGMENT.\n\nObserve, that among all the objections and cavils that are made and\nwill be made by the ungodly in the day of the Lord Jesus, they have\nnot one about election, and reprobation: they murmur not at all that\nthey were not predestinated to eternal life; and the reason is,\nbecause then they shall see, though now they are blind, that God\ncould in his prerogative royal, without prejudice to them that are\ndamned, choose and refuse at pleasure; and besides, they at this day\nshall be convinced that there was so much reality, and downright\nwillingness in God, in every tender of grace and mercy to the worst\nof men, and also so much goodness, justness, and reasonableness in\nevery command of the gospel of grace, which they were so often\nentreated and beseeched to embrace, that they will be drowned in the\nconviction of this, that they did refuse love, grace, and\nreason--love, I say, for hatred, grace for sin, and things\nreasonable for things unreasonable and vain. Now they shall see they\nleft glory for shame, God for the devil, heaven for hell, light for\ndarkness. Now they shall see, that though they made themselves\nbeasts, yet God made them reasonable creatures; and that he did with\nreason expect that they should have adhered to, and have delighted\nin, things that are good and according to God. Yea, now they shall\nsee and be convinced, that though God did not determine to bring\nthem to heaven against their hearts and wills, and the love that\nthey had to their sins, yet that God was far from infusing any thing\ninto their souls, that should in the least hinder, weaken, obstruct,\nor let them in seeking the welfare of their souls. Now, men will\ntattle and prattle at a mad rate about election and reprobation, and\nconclude that because all are not elected, therefore God is to blame\nthat any are damned. But then they will see that they are not damned\nbecause they were not elected, but because they sinned; and also,\nthat they sinned, not because God put any weakness into their souls,\nbut because they gave way, and that wilfully, knowingly, and\ndesperately, to Satan and his suggestions; and so turned away from\nthe holy commandment delivered unto them. Yea, then they will see,\nthat though God at some times did fasten his cords about their heads\nand heels and hands, both by godly education and smarting\nconvictions, yet they rushed away with violence from all, saying,\n\"Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their cords from\nus.\" God will be justified in his sayings, and clear when he\njudgeth; though men's proud ignorance thinks to have and to multjply\ncavils against him.\n\nNow shall be brought before thee and all men, how many strugglings\nGod had with thy heart, on the sick-bed, to do thee good; yea, and\nat such times, how many vows, promises, engagements, and resolutions\nthou madest before God to turn, if he would release thee from thy\naffliction and turn off his rod from thy back; and yet how thou\ndidst, like the man possessed, break and snap in twain all these\nchains of iron with which thou hadst bound thy soul; and that for a\nvery lust or sin. Here also will be opened before thee how often\nthou hast sinned against thy light and knowledge; how often thou\nhast laid violent hands on thy own conscience; how often thou hast\nlabored to put out that light that hath stood in thy way to hinder\nthee from sinning against thy soul. Ah, Lord, what a condition will\nthe Christless soul be in at that day; how will every one of these\nthings afflict the damned soul they will pierce like arrows, and\nbite like serpents, and sting like an adder. With what shame will\nthat man stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, who must have all\nthings he hath done against God to provoke the eyes of his glory to\njealousy, laid open before the whole host of the heavenly train. It\nwould make a man blush to have his pockets searched for things that\nare stolen, in the midst of a market, especially if he stand upon\nhis reputation and honor. But thou must have thy heart searched, the\nbottom of thy heart searched; and that, I say, before thy neighbor\nwhom thou hast wronged, and before the devils whom thou hast served;\nyea, before God whom thou hast despised, and before the angels,\nthose holy and delicate creatures, whose holy and chaste faces will\nscarce forbear blushing.\n\n\"IGNORANCE\" CONDEMNED AT THE JUDGMENT.\n\nWhile I was gazing at all these things, I turned my head to look\nback, and saw Ignorance come up to the riverside; but he soon got\nover, and that without half the difficulty which the other two men\nmet with. For it happened that there was then in that place one\nVain-hope, a ferryman, that with his boat helped him over. So he, as\nthe others I saw, did ascend the hill to come up to the gate; only\nhe came alone, neither did meet with any the least encouragement.\nWhen he was come up to the gate, he looked up to the writing that\nwas above, and then began to knock, supposing that entrance should\nhave been quickly administered to him; but he was asked by the men\nthat looked over the top of the gate, \"Whence come you? and what\nwould you have?\" He answered, \"I have eat and drank in the presence\nof the King, and he has taught in our streets.\" Then they asked him\nfor his certificate, that they might go in and show it to the King.\nSo he fumbled in his bosom for one, and found none. Then said they,\n\"Have you none?\" But the man answered never a word. So they told the\nking; but he would not come down to see him, but commanded the two\nshining ones that conducted Christian and Hopeful to the city, to go\nout and take Ignorance, and bind him hand and foot, and have him\naway. Then they took him up and carried him through the air to the\ndoor that I saw in the side of the hill, and put him in there. Then\nI saw that there was a way to hell even from the gates of heaven, as\nwell as from the city of Destruction.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXVII. HEAVEN.\n\nHAPPINESS AND GLORY OF HEAVEN.\n\n\n\n\n\nHEAVEN! It is called the paradise of God--a paradise, to show how\nquiet, harmless, sweet, and beautiful heaven shall be to them that\npossess it.\n\n\"The street of the city was pure gold.\" All the visions were rich,\nbut this the richest, that the floor of the house should be covered\nwith gold. The floor and street are walking-places, and how rich\nwill our steps be then! Alas, here we sometimes step into the mire,\nand then again stumble upon blocks and stones. Here we sometimes\nfall into the holes, and have our heel often catched in a snare; but\nthere will be none of these. Gold! gold! all will be gold, and\ngolden perfections, when we come into the holy place.\n\nIf a sight of sin and the love of God will make such work in that\nsoul where yet there is unbelief, blindness, mistrust, and\nforgetfulness; what will a sight of sin do in that soul which is\nswallowed up of love, which is sinless and temptationless, which\nhath all faculties of soul and body strained by love and grace to\nthe highest pin of perfection that is possible to be in glory\nenjoyed and possessed?\n\nO the wisdom and goodness of God, that he at the day of judgment\nshould so cast about the worst of our things, even those that\nnaturally tend to sink us and damn us, for our great advantage. All\nthings shall work together for good, indeed, to them that love God.\nThose sins that brought a curse upon the whole world, that spilt the\nheart-blood of our dearest Saviour, and that laid his tender soul\nunder the flaming wrath of God, shall, by his wisdom and love, tend\nto the exaltation of his grace, and the inflaming of our affections\nto him for ever and ever.\n\nThese visions, that the saved in heaven shall have of the love of\nChrist, will far transcend our utmost knowledge here; even as far as\nthe light of the sun at noon goes beyond the light of a blinking\ncandle at midnight.\n\nAs there are great saints and small ones in the church on earth, so\nthere are angels of divers degrees in heaven; some greater than\nsome; but the smallest saint, when he gets to heaven, shall have an\nangel's dignity, an angel's place.\n\n    What goodly mansions He for them provides,\n    Though here they meet rough winds and swelling tides;\n    How brave a calm they will enjoy at last,\n    Who to the Lord and to his ways hold fast.\n\nEMPLOYMENTS OF HEAVEN.\n\nThis love of Christ, if I may so say, will keep the saints in an\nemploy, even when they are in heaven; though not an employ, that is\nlaborsome, tiresome, burdensome, yet an employ that is dutiful,\ndelightful, and profitable; for although the work and worship of\nsaints in heaven is not particularly revealed as yet, and so it doth\nnot yet appear what we shall be, yet in the general we may say,\nthere will be that for them to do that has not yet by them been\ndone; and by that work which they shall do there, their delight will\nbe unto them. Nor will this at all derogate from their glory. The\nangels now wait upon God, and serve him; the Son of God is now a\nminister, and waiteth upon his service in heaven. Some saints have\nbeen employed about service for God after they have been in heaven;\nand why we should be idle spectators when we come thither, I see not\nreason to believe. It may be said, They there rest from their\nlabors. True, but not from their delights. All things then that once\nwere burdensome, whether in suffering or service, shall be done\naway, and that which is delightful and pleasurable shall remain.\n\nNow, just as the gates were opened to let in the men, I looked in\nafter them, and behold, the city shone like the sun; the streets\nalso were paved with gold, and in them walked many men with crowns\non their heads, palms in their hands, and golden harps to sing\npraises withal. There were also of them that had wings; and they\nanswered one another without intermission, saying, \"Holy, holy, holy\nis the Lord.\" And after that they shut up the gates; which when I\nhad seen, I wished myself among them.\n\n\"Strive to enter in.\" \"Enter in\"--into heaven, that is the meaning,\nwhere the saved are and shall be--into heaven, that place, that\nglorious place where God and Christ and angels are, and the souls of\njust men made perfect. \"Enter in:\" that thing included though not\nexpressed in the words, is called in another place the \"mount Zion,\nthe heavenly Jerusalem, the general assembly and church of the\nfirst-born which are written in heaven.\" And therefore the words\nsignify unto us that there is a state most glorious, and that when\nthis world is ended; and that this place and state is likewise to be\nenjoyed by a generation of men forever. Besides, this word \"enter\nin\" signifies that salvation to the full is to be enjoyed only\nthere, and that there only is eternal safety; all other places and\nconditions are hazardous, full of snares, imperfections,\ntemptations, and afflictions. But there all is well; there is no\ndevil to tempt, no desperately wicked heart to deliver us up, no\ndeceitful lust to entangle, nor any enchanting world to bewitch us;\nthere all shall be well to all eternity. Further, all the parts of\nand circumstances that attend salvation, are only there to be\nenjoyed: there only is immortality and eternal life; there is the\nglory and fulness of joy and the everlasting pleasures; there is God\nand Christ to be enjoyed by open vision; and more, there are the\nangels and the saints; there is no death nor sickness, no sorrow nor\nsighing for ever; there is no pain, nor persecution, nor darkness to\neclipse our glory. O this mount Zion! O this heavenly Jerusalem!\n\nSOUL AND BODY GLORIFIED IN HEAVEN.\n\n\"When this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this\nmortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass\nthat saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.\"\n\nSo when this comes to pass, then we shall be saved, then will\nsalvation in all the parts of it meet together in our glory, then we\nshall be every way saved: saved in God's decree, saved in Christ's\nundertakings, saved by faith, saved in perseverance, saved in soul,\nand in body and soul together, in the heavens; saved perfectly,\neverlastingly, gloriously.\n\nI would discourse a little of the state of our body and soul in\nheaven, when we shall enjoy this blessed state of salvation.\n\n1. Of the soul. It will then be filled in all the faculties of it\nwith as much his and glory as ever it can hold.\n\nThe understanding will then be perfect in knowledge. \"Now we know in\npart\"--we know God, Chrit, heaven, and glory, but in part; \"butswhen\nthat which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be\ndone away.\" Then shall we have perfect and everlasting visions of\nGod, and that blessed One his Son Jesus Christ; a good thought of\nwhom doth sometimes so fill us, while in this world, that it causeth\njoy unspeakable and full of glory.\n\nThen shall our will and affections be ever in a burning flame of\nlove to God and his Son Jesus Christ. Our love here hath ups and\ndowns; but there it shall be always perfect with that perfection\nwhich is not possible in this world to be enjoyed.\n\nThen will, our conscience have that peace and joy, that neither\ntongue or pen of men or angels can express.\n\nThen will our memory be so enlarged as to retain all things that\nhappened to us in this world; so that with unspeakable aptness we\nshall call to mind all God's providences, all Satan's malice, all\nour weaknesses, all the rage of men, and how God made all work\ntogether for his glory and our good, to the everlasting ravishing of\nour hearts.\n\n2. For our body, it shall be raised in power, in incorruption, a\nspiritual body and glorious.\n\nIt is compared to the brightness of the firmament, and to the\nshining of the stars for ever and ever. It is compared to the\nshining of the sun. It is said that then our vile body shall be like\nthe glorious body of Jesus Christ. Their state is then to be equally\nglorious with angels.\n\nAnd now when body and soul are thus united, who can imagine what\nglory they both possess? They will now be both in capacity without\njarring to serve the Lord; with shouting, thanksgivings, and with a\ncrown of everlasting joy upon their head.\n\nIn this world there cannot he the harmony and oneness of body and\nsoul that there will he in heaven. Here the body sometimes sins\nagainst the soul, and the soul again vexes and perplexes the body\nwith dreadful apprehensions of the wrath and judgment of God. While\nwe are in this world, the body oft hangs this way, and the soul\nquite the contrary; but there in heaven they shall have such perfect\nunion as never to jar more. The glory of the body shall so suit with\nthe glory of the soul, and both so perfectly suit with the heavenly\nstate, that it passeth words and thoughts.\n\nOh sinner, what sayest thou? How dost thou like being saved? Doth\nnot thy mouth water? Doth not thy heart twitter at being saved? Why,\ncome then. \"The Spirit and the bride say, Come; and let him that\nheareth say, Come; and let him that is athirst come; and whosoever\nwill, let him take the water of life freely.\"\n\nCHRIST THE GLORY OF HEAVEN.\n\n\"For the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light\nthereof.\" Mark, though now there shall be no need of temple, sun, or\nmoon, yet Christ the Lamb, or the man who was offered in sacrifice\nfor our redemption, shall be of use and benefit; \"for the glory of\nGod did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.\" Wherefore,\nall that we who are the saved shall enjoy of glory and sweetness in\nanother world, though we shall not enjoy it from God through Christ\nby and in the ordinances, yet we shall enjoy it through Christ the\nLamb without them; for \"the Lamb is the light of it.\"\n\nBy this word Lamb he would have us understand, that when we are in\nglory, the blood, death, and bloody conquest that the man Christ did\nget over our infernal enemies, will be of eternal use to us; because\nthat benefit of Christ shall not only for ever be the foundation of\nour eternal felicity, but the burden of our song of glory in all our\nraptures among the angels. It will he the blood, the blood, the\nredeeming blood of the Lamb. \"Blessing, and honor, and glory, and\npower be unto him that sits upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for\never and ever.\" It is he in whom will be found the seven eyes, the\nseven Spirits of God; in whose light we shall see the heights and\ndepths of those springs and everlasting fountains and depths of\nglory for ever. And indeed the conceit of the contrary is foolish.\nIs not Christ the head, and we the members? And do not the members\nreceive their whole light, guidance, and wisdom from it? Is not he\nalso the price, the ground, and bottom of our happiness, both in\nthis world and that which is to come? And is it possible it should\nbe forgotten, or that by it our joy, light, and heaven should not be\nmade the sweeter to all eternity? Our soul is now bound up in him as\nin a bundle of life; and when we come thither he is still the\nChrist, our life; and it is by our being where he is that we shall\nbehold his glory and our glory, because he is glorified: \"For the\nglory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.\" As\nhe said, \"Ye now therefore have sorrow; but I will see you again,\nand your heart shall rejoice and your joy no man taketh from you.\"\n\nTHE GLORY OF SALVATION.\n\nWhat a surprise will it be to them that now have come to God by\nChrist, to see themselves in heaven indeed, saved indeed, and\npossessed of everlasting life indeed. For alas, what is faith to\npossession?--faith that is mixed with many tears, that is opposed\nwith many assaults, and that seems sometimes to be quite\nextinguished--I say, what is that to a seeing myself in heaven?\nHence it is said that \"he shall then come to be admired in them that\nnow believe;\" then they shall admire that it was their lot to\nbelieve when they were in the world. They shall also admire to\nthink, to see, and behold what believing has brought them to; while\nthe rest, for refusing to come to God by Christ, drink their tears\nmixed with burning brimstone.\n\nWhat a joy will it be to the truly godly to think now that they are\ncome to God by Christ. It was their mercy to begin to come; it was\ntheir happiness that they continued coming; but it is their glory\nthat they are come, that they are come to God by Christ.\n\nTo God! why, he is all in all; all that is good, essentially good,\nand eternally good. To God, the infinite ocean of good. Oh that I\ncould imagine, Oh that I could think, that I might write more\neffectually to thee of the happy estate of them that come to God by\nChrist.\n\nHEAVEN.\n\n    What gladness shall possess our heart,\n        When we shall see these things;\n    What light and life in every part\n        Rise like eternal springs!\n    O, blessed face; O, holy grace,\n        When shall we see this day?\n    Lord, fetch us to this goodly place,\n        We humbly to thee pray.\n\n    Thus when in heavenly harmony\n        These blessed saints appear,\n    Adorned with grace and majesty,\n        What gladness will be there!\n    Thus shall we see, thus shall we be,\n        O, would the day were come:\n    Lord Jesus, take us up to thee,\n        To this desired home.\n\n    Angels we also shall behold,\n        When we on high ascend,\n    Each shining like to men of gold,\n        And on the Lord attend.\n    These goodly creatures, full of grace,\n        Shall stand about the throne,\n    Each one with lightning in his face,\n        And shall to us be known.\n\n    There cherubim, with one accord,\n        Continually do cry,\n    \"Ah, holy, holy, holy Lord,\n        And heavenly majesty!\"\n    These will us in their arms embrace,\n        And welcome us to rest,\n    And joy to see us clad with grace\n        And of the heavens possest.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXVIII. HELL.\n\n\n\n\n\nHELL is a place and state utterly unknown to any in this visible\nworld, excepting the souls of men; nor shall any for ever be capable\nof understanding the miseries thereof, save souls and fallen angels.\n\nNow I think as the joys of heaven stand not only in speculation or\nin beholding of glory, but in a sensible enjoyment and unspeakable\npleasure which these glories will yield to the soul; so the torments\nof hell will not stand in the present lashes and strokes which by\nthe flames of eternal fire God will scourge the ungodly with; but\nthe torments of hell stand much, if not in the greatest part of\nthem, in those deep thoughts and apprehensions which souls in the\nnext world will have of the nature and occasion of sin, of God, and\nof separation from him--of the eternity of those miseries, and of\nthe utter impossibility of their help, ease, or deliverance for\never. Oh, damned souls will have thoughts that will clash with\nglory, clash with justice, clash with law, clash with themselves,\nclash with hell, and with the everlastingness of misery.\n\nMiseries as well as mercies sharpen and make quick the apprehensions\nof the soul. Behold Spira in his book, Cain in his guilt, and Saul\nwith the witch of Endor, and you shall see men ripened, men enlarged\nand greatened in their fancies, imaginations, and apprehensions,\nthough not about God and heaven and glory, yet about their loss,\ntheir misery, their woe, and their hell.\n\nA man may endure to touch the fire with a short touch, and away; but\nto dwell with everlasting burnings, that is fearful. Oh then, what\nis dwelling with them and in them for ever and ever? We use to say,\n\"Light burdens carried far are heavy:\" what then will it be to bear\nthat burden, that guilt, that the law and the justice and the wrath\nof God will lay upon the lost soul for ever? Now tell the stars, now\ntell the drops of the sea, and now tell the blades of grass that are\nspread upon the face of all the earth, if thou canst; and yet sooner\nmayest thou do this than count the thousands of millions of\nthousands of years that a damned soul shall lie in hell! Suppose\nevery star that is now in the firmament was to burn by himself one\nby one, a thousand years apiece, would it not be a long while before\nthe last of them was burnt out? and yet sooner might that be done\nthan the damned soul be at the end of punishment.\n\nHe that has lost his soul has lost himself. He is, as I may say, now\nout of his own hands; he has lost himself, his soul self, his own\nself, his whole self, by sin and wrath; and hell hath found him. He\nis now no more at his own dispose, but at the dispose of justice, of\nwrath and hell. He is committed to prison, to hell prison, there to\nabide, not at pleasure, not as long and as little time as he will,\nbut the term appointed by his Judge; nor may he there choose his own\naffliction, neither for manner, measure, or continuance. It is God\nthat will spread the fire and brimstone under him, and it is God\nhimself that will blow the fire. Isa. 30:33.\n\nThere will be no such grace as patience in hell with him who has\nlost himself: here will also be wanting a bottom for patience, to\nwit, the providence of God; for a providence of God, though never so\ndismal, is a bottom for patience to the afflicted; but men go not to\nhell by providence, but by sin.\n\n\"Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the\ndevil and his angels.\" This curse is the chief and highest of all\nkinds of curses. It lieth in a deprivation of all good, and in a\nbeing swallowed up of all the most fearful miseries, that a holy and\njust and eternal God can righteously inflict, or lay upon the soul\nof a sinful man.\n\nNow let reason here come in and exercise itself in the most\nexquisite manner, yea, let it now count up all and all manner of\ncurses and torments that a reasonable and immortal soul is or can be\nmade capable of, and able to suffer under; and when it has done, it\nshall come infinitely short of this great anathema, this\nmaster-curse, which God has reserved amongst his treasures, and\nintends to bring out in that day of battle and war which he\npurposeth to make upon damned souls in that day.\n\n\"The sting of death is sin.\" Sin in the general of it is the sting\nof hell, for there would be no such thing as torment even there,\nwere it not that sin is there with sinners; for the fire of hell,\nthe indignation and wrath of God can fasten and kindle upon nothing\nbut for or because of sin. Sin then, as sin, is the sting and the\nhell of hells, of the lowest and upmost hells--sin, I say, in the\nnature of it, simply as it is concluded both by God and the damned\nto be a breach of his holy law, so it is the sting of the second\ndeath, which is the worm of hell.\n\nBut then, as sin is such a sting in itself, so it is heightened,\nsharpened, made more keen and sharp, by those circumstances that\nattend it in every act; for there is not a sin at any time committed\nby man, but there is some circumstance or other attends it that\nmakes it, when charged home by God's law, bigger and sharper and\nmore venomous and poisonous to the soul, than if it could be\ncommitted without them; and this is the sting of the hornet, the\ngreat sting. I sinned without a cause, to please a base lust, to\ngratify the devil: here is the sting. Again, I preferred sin before\nholiness, death before life, hell before heaven, the devil before\nGod, and damnation before a Saviour: here is the sting. Again, I\npreferred moments before everlastings, temporals before eternals, to\nbe racked and always slaying before the life that is blessed and\nendless: here is the sting. Also, this I did against light, against\nconvictions, against conscience, against persuasions of friends and\nministers, and the godly lives which I beheld in others: here is the\nsting. Also, this I did against warnings; yea, though I saw others\nfall before my face by the mighty hand of God for committing the\nsame: here is the sting.\n\nSinners, would I could persuade you to hear me out: a man cannot\ncommit a sin, but by the commission of it he doth by some\ncircumstance or other sharpen the sting of hell, and that to pierce\nhimself through and through and through with many sorrows.\n\nAlso, the sting of hell to some will be, that the damnation of\nothers stands upon their score; for that by imitating them, by being\ndeluded by them, persuaded by them, drawn in by them, others perish\nin hell for ever.\n\nAh, this will be the sting of those that are principal, chief, and\nas I may call them, the captain and ringleading sinners. Vipers will\ncome out of other men's fire and flames, and settle upon, seize\nupon, and for ever abide upon their consciences; and this will be\nthe sting of hell, the great sting of hell to them.\n\nI will yet add to this, how will the fairness of some for heaven,\neven the thoughts of that, sting them when they come to hell. It\nwill not be so much their fall into the pit, as from whence they\nfell into it, that will be to them the buzzing noise and sharpened\nsting of the great and terrible hornet. \"How art thou fallen from\nheaven, O Lucifer!\"--there is the sting. Thou that art exalted up to\nheaven, shalt be thrust down to hell; though thou hast made thy nest\namong the stars, from thence will I fetch thee down: there is a\nsting. To be pulled, for and through love to some vain lust, from\nthe everlasting gates of glory, and caused to be swallowed up for it\nin the belly of hell, and made to lodge for ever in the darksome\nchambers of death: there is the piercing sting.\n\nBut again, as there is the sting of hell, so there is the strength\nof that sting; for a sting, though never so sharp or venomous, yet\nif it wanteth strength to force it to the designed execution, it\ndoth but little hurt. But this sting hath strength to cause it to\npierce into the soul: \"The sting of death is sin, and the strength\nof sin is the law.\" I Cor. 15:56; Rom. 7:8; 4:15.\n\nHere then is the strength of the sting of hell: it is the law in the\nperfect penalty of it; for without the law, sin is dead; yea, where\nno law is, there is no transgression. The law then followeth, in the\nexecutive part of it, the soul into hell; and there strengthened\nsin, that sting in hell, to pierce the soul for ever and ever by its\nunutterable charging of sin on the conscience. Nor can the soul\njustly murmur or repine at God or his law; for that then the sharply\napprehensive soul will well discern the justness, righteousness,\nreasonableness, and goodness of the law, and that nothing is done by\nthe law unto it, but that which is just and equal.\n\nThis, therefore, will put great strength and force into sin to sting\nthe soul, and to strike it with the lashes of a scorpion.\n\nAnd besides these, the abiding life of God, the Judge and God of\nthis law, will never die. When princes die, the law may be altered\nby which at present transgressors are bound in chains; but Oh, here\nis also that which will make this sting so sharp and keen: the God\nthat executes it will never die. \"It is a fearful thing to fall into\nthe hands of the living God.\" Heb. 10: 30, 31.\n\n\"This shall they have of my hand, they shall lie down in sorrow;\"\nthey shall lie down in it, they shall make their bed there, there\nthey shall lie. And this is the bitter pill that they must swallow\ndown at last; for after all their tears, their sorrows, their\nrepentings, their wishings and wouldings, and all their inventings\nand desires to change their state for a better, they must lie down\nin sorrow.\n\nThe poor condemned man that is upon the ladder or scaffold, has, if\none knew them, many a long wish and long desire that he might come\ndown again alive, or that his condition was as one of the\nspectators, that are not condemned and brought thither to be\nexecuted as he. How carefully also does he look with his failing\neyes, to see if some one comes not from the king with a pardon for\nhim, all the while endeavoring to fumble away, as well as he can,\nand to prolong the minute of his execution. But at last, when he has\nlooked, when he has wished, when he has desired and done whatever he\ncan, the blow with the axe, or the turn with the ladder, is his lot:\nso he goes off the scaffold; so he goes from among men.\n\nAnd thus will it be with those we have under consideration: when all\ncomes to all, and they have said and wished and done what they\ncould, the judgment must not be reversed; they must lie down in\nsorrow.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nXXIX. MISCELLANEOUS.\n\nTHE SABBATH.\n\n\n\n\n\nTHIS day is called the Lord's day, the day in which he rose from the\ndead. The Lord's day: every day, say some, is the Lord's day. Indeed\nthis, for discourse' sake, may he granted; but strictly, no day can\nso properly be called the Lord's day, as this first day of the week;\nfor that no day of the week, or of the year, has those hadges of the\nLord's glory upon it, nor such divine grace put upon it, as his\nfirst day of the week.\n\nThere is nothing, as I know of, that bears this title but the Lord's\nsupper, and this day. And since Christians count it an abuse to\nallegorize the first, let them also be ashamed to fantasticalize the\nlast.\n\nThe Lord's day is doubtless the day in which he rose from the dead.\nTo be sure, it is not the old seventh day; for from the day that he\narose, to the end of the Bible, we find not that he did hang so much\nas one twist of glory upon that; but this day is beautified with\nglory upon glory, and that both by the Father and the Son, by the\nprophets, and those that were raised from the dead thereon:\ntherefore this day must be more than the rest.\n\nAs for the seventh day, that is gone to its grave with the signs and\nshadows of the Old Testament. Yea, and has such a dash left upon it\nby apostolical authority, that is is enough to make a Christian fly\nfrom it for ever. 2 Cor. 3.\n\nGod the Father leaves such a stamp of divine note and honor upon\nthis day, as he never before did leave upon any, where he saith to\nour Lord, \"Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee;\" still\nhaving respect to the first day of the week, for that and no other\nis the day here intended by the apostle: THIS DAY, saith God, is the\nday. \"And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no\nmore to return to corruption, he saith on this wise, I will give\nthee the sure mercies of David;\" wherefore he saith in another\npsalm, \"Thou wilt not suffer thy Holy One to see corruption.\"\n\nNow shall not Christians, when they read that God saith, THIS DAY,\nand that too with reference to a work done on it by him so full of\ndelight to him, and so full of life and heaven to them, set also a\nmark upon it? \"This was the day of God's pleasure,\" for that his Son\ndid rise thereon; \"and shall it not be the day of my delight in\nhim?\"\n\nShall kings and princes and great men set a mark upon the day of\ntheir birth and coronation, and expect that both subjects and\nservants should do them high honor on that day; and shall the day in\nwhich Christ was both begotten and born be a day contemned by\nChristians?\n\nIf God remembers it, well may I. If God says, and that with all\ngladness of heart, \"Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee;\"\nmay not, ought not I also to set this day apart to sing the songs of\nmy redemption in?\n\nThis day my redemption was finished.\n\nThis day my dear Jesus revived.\n\nThis day he was declared to be the Son of God with power.\n\nYea, this is the day in which the Lord Jesus finished a greater work\nthan ever yet was done in the world; yea, a work in which the Father\nhimself was more delighted than he was in making heaven and earth;\nand shall darkness and the shadow of death stain this day? Or shall\na cloud dwell on this day? Shall God regard this day from above, and\nshall not his light shine upon this day? What shall be done to them\nthat curse this day, and would not that the stars should give their\nlight thereon? THIS DAY! after this day was come, God never, that we\nread of, made mention with delight of the old seventh-day Sabbath\nmore.\n\n\"The woman which thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the\ntree.\" Gen. 3. The woman was given for a help, not a hinderance; but\nSatan often maketh that to become our snare which God hath given us\nas a blessing.\n\n\"And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast\ndone?\" Gen. 3. What is this? God seems to speak as if he were\nastonished at the inundation of evil which the woman by her sin had\noverflowed the world withal. What is this that thou hast done? Thou\nhast undone thyself, thou hast undone thy husband, thou hast undone\nall the world; yea, thou hast brought a curse upon the whole\ncreation, with an overplus of evils, plagues, and distresses.\n\nWhat is this that thou hast done? Thou hast defiled thy body and\nsoul, thou hast disabled the whole world from serving God; yea,\nmoreover, thou hast let in the devil at the door of thy heart, and\nhast also made him the prince of the world. What is this that thou\nhast done? Ah, little, little do sinners know what they have done,\nwhen they have transgressed the law of the Lord.\n\nAs death and the curse came into the world by a woman, so also did\nlife and health: \"God sent forth his Son, made of a woman.\" Yea, to\nshow how much those that came after did abhor the act of the mother,\nthis sex, in the Old Testament, coveted children, if happily this or\nthat woman might be the mother of the Saviour of the world. I will\nsay again, that when the Saviour was come, woman rejoiced in him,\nbefore either man or angel. I read not that ever man did give unto\nChrist so much as one groat; but the women followed him and\nministered unto him of their substance. It was a woman that washed\nhis feet with tears, and a woman that anointed his body to the\nburial. They were women that wept when he was going to the cross;\nand women that followed him from the cross, and that sat by his\nsepulchre when he was buried. They were women that were first with\nhim at his resurrection-morn, and women that brought tidings first\nto the disciples that he was risen from the dead. Women therefore\nare highly favored, and show by these things that they are sharers\nwith us in the grace of life.\n\nAll the glory of this world, had not Adam had a wife, could not have\ncompleted this man's blessedness. He would yet have been wanting.\n\nTHE FAMILY.\n\nA master of a family and a mistress of the same are those that are\nentrusted of God with those under their tuition and care to be\nbrought up for him, be they children or servants.\n\nLook to it and consider with thyself whether thou hast done such\nduty and service for God in this matter, that, setting common\nfacilities aside, thou canst with good conscience lift up thy face\nunto God; the which to be sure thou canst by no means do, if\niniquity to the utmost be not banished out of thy house.\n\nAnd will it not be a sad complaint that thy servant shall take up\nagainst thee before the Judge, at the last day, that he learnt the\nway to destruction in thy house, who art a professor? Servants,\nthough themselves be carnal, expect, when they come into the house\nof professors, that there they shall see religion in spangling\ncolors; but behold, when he enters thy door, he finds sin and\nwickedness there. There is pride instead of humility, and height of\nraillery instead of meekness and holiness of mind. He looked for a\nhouse full of virtue, and behold nothing but spider-webs; fair and\nplausible abroad, but like the sow in the mire at home.\n\n\"Bless me,\" saith such a servant, \"are these the religious people?\nare these the servants of God, where iniquity is made so much of and\nis so highly entertained?\"\n\nAnd now is his heart filled with prejudice against all religion, or\nelse he turns hypocrite like his master and mistress, wearing, as\nthey, a cloak of religion to cover all abroad, while all is naked\nand shameful at home.\n\nBut perhaps thy heart is so hard and thy mind so united to the\npleasing of thy vile affections, that thou wilt say, \"What care I\nfor my servant? I took him to do my work, not to train him up in\nreligion.\" Well, suppose the soul of thy servant be thus little\nworth in thine eyes; yet what wilt thou say for thy children, who\nbehold all thy ways, and are as capable of drinking up the poison of\nthy footsteps, as the swine is of drinking up swill: I say, what\nwilt thou do for them? Children will learn to be wicked of\nparents--of professing parents soonest of all; they will be tempted\nto think all that they do is right. I say, what wilt thou say to\nthis? Or art thou like the ostrich whom God hath deprived of wisdom,\nand hath hardened her heart against her young? Will it please thee,\nwhen thou shalt see that thou hast brought forth children to the\nmurderer? or when thou shalt hear them cry, I learnt to go on in the\npaths of sin by the carriage of professing parents? If it was\ncounted of old a sad thing for a man to bring forth children to the\nsword, as Ephraim did; what will it be for a man to bring up\nchildren for hell? Hos. 9:13.\n\n\"And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat\nsons and daughters.\" He lived therefore to see the fruit of his good\nrule and government in the church, even to see his teachable and\ndedicated son caught up to God and to his throne.\n\nA good encouragement to all rulers in the house of God, and also to\nall godly parents, to teach and rule in the fear of God; for that is\nthe way to part with church-members and children with comfort; yea,\nthat is the way, if we shall outlive them, to send them to heaven\nand to God before us.\n\nIf parents carry it lovingly towards their children, mixing their\nmercies with loving rebukes, and their loving rebukes with fatherly\nand motherly compassions, they are more likely to save their\nchildren than by being churlish and severe towards them. But if they\ndo not save them, if their mercy do them no good, yet it will\ngreatly ease them at the day of death to consider, I have done by\nlove as much as I could to save and deliver my child from hell.\n\nLet them that name the name of Christ depart from family-iniquity.\nThere is a house-iniquity--an iniquity that loves not to walk\nabroad, but to harbor within doors. This the holy man David was\naware of; therefore he said that he would behave himself wisely, in\na perfect way; yea, saith he, \"I will walk within my house with a\nperfect heart.\"\n\nMany that show like saints abroad, yet act the part of devils when\nthey are at home by giving way to this house-iniquity. This iniquity\nmeeteth the man and his wife at the very threshold of the door, and\nwill not suffer them to enter, no, not with one foot into the house,\nin peace: but how far this is from walking together as heirs of the\ngrace of life, is easy to be determined. Men should carry it in love\nto their wives, as Christ doth to his church; and wives should carry\nit to their husbands, as the church ought to carry it to her\nSaviour, Eph. 5: 21-28; 1 Pet. 3: 7; and until each relation be\nmanaged with respect to these things, this house-iniquity will be\ncherished there. Oh, God sees within doors as well as without, and\nwill judge too for the iniquity of the house as well as for that\nmore open.\n\nA man's house and his conduct there do more bespeak the nature and\ntemper of his mind than all public profession. If I were to judge of\na man for my life, I would not judge of him by his open profession,\nbut by his domestic behaviors.\n\nOpen profession is like a man's best cloak, which is worn by him\nwhen he walks abroad, and with many is made but little use of at\nhome. But now what a man is at home, that he is indeed. There is\nabroad, my house, my closet, my heart; and my house, my closet, show\nmost what I am: though not to the world, yet to my family and to\nangels.\n\nTo make religion and the power of godliness the chief of my designs\nat home, before those among whom God by a special hand has placed\nme, is that which is pleasing to God, and which obtaineth a good\nreport of him. Genesis 18:17-19.\n\nCHARACTER OF TALKATIVE. He talketh of prayer, of repentance, of\nfaith, and of the new birth; but he knows but only to talk of them.\nI have been in his family, and have observed him both at home and\nabroad. His house is as empty of religion as the white of an egg is\nof savor. There is there neither prayer nor sign of repentance for\nsin; yea, the brute in his kind serves God far better than he. He is\nthe very stain, reproach, and shame of religion to all that know\nhim: it can hardly have a good word in all that end of the town\nwhere he dwells, through him. Thus say the common people, that know\nhim, \"A saint abroad and a devil at home.\" His poor family find it\nso: he is such a churl, such a railer at, and so unreasonable with\nhis servants, that they neither know how to do for or speak to him.\n\nDomestic iniquity stands also in the disorders of children and\nservants. Children's unlawful carriage to their parents is a great\nhouse-iniquity, yea, and a common one too. 2 Tim. 3:2, 3.\n\nDisobedience to parents is one of the sins of the last days. O it is\nhorrible to behold how irreverently, how saucily, and malpertly,\nchildren, yea, professing children, at this day carry it to their\nparents; snapping and checking, curbing and rebuking them, as if\nthey had never received their being by them, or had never been\nbeholden to them for bringing them up; yea, as if the relation was\nlost, or as if they had received a dispensation from God to dishonor\nand disobey parents.\n\nI will add, that this sin reigns in little and great; for not only\nthe small and young, but men are disobedient to their parents; and\nindeed this is the sin with a shame, that men shall be \"disobedient\nto parents.\" Where nowadays shall we see children that are come to\nmen and women's estate, carry it as by the word they are bound, to\ntheir aged and worn-out parents? I say, where is the honor they\nshould put upon them? Who speak to their aged parents with that due\nregard to that relation, to their age, to their worn-out condition,\nthat becomes them? Is it not common nowadays for parents to be\nbrought into bondage and servitude by their children; for parents to\nbe under, and children above; for parents to be debased, and\nchildren to lord it over them?\n\nThis sin is, I fear, grown to such a height in some, as to make them\nweary of their parents, and of doing their duty to them. Yea, I wish\nthat some be not murderers of fathers and mothers by their thoughts,\nwhile they secretly long after and desire their death, that the\ninheritance may be theirs, and that they may be delivered from\nobedience to their parents. 1 Tim. 1:9. This is a sin in the house,\nin the family; a sin that is kept close; but God sees it, and has\ndeclared his dislike against it, by an implicit threatening to cut\nthem off that are guilty of it. Eph. 5:1-3.\n\nMany that have had very hopeful beginnings for heaven, have, by\nvirtue of the mischiefs that have attended unlawful marriages, Deut.\n7:4,5; 2 Cor. 6:14, miserably and fearfully miscarried. Soon after\nsuch marriages, conviction, the first step towards heaven, hath\nceased; prayers, the next step towards heaven, have ceased;\nhungerings and thirstings after salvation, another step towards the\nkingdom of heaven, have ceased. In a word, such marriages have\nestranged them from the word, from their godly and faithful friends,\nand have brought them again into carnal company, among carnal\nfriends, and also into carnal delights; where and with whom they\nhave, in conclusion, both sinfully abode and miserably perished.\n\nServants are goers as well as comers: take heed that thou give them\nno occasion to scandal the gospel when they are gone, for what they\nobserved thee unrighteously to do when they were with thee.\n\nThough thy parents be never so low, and thou thyself never so high,\nyet he is thy father, and she thy mother, and they must be in thine\neyes in great esteem.\n\nBUNYAN'S DOMESTIC CHARACTER.\n\nBut notwithstanding these helps from God, I found myself a man\nencompassed with infirmities; the parting with my wife and poor\nchildren,[Footnote: Bunyan had four children, all by his first\nmarriage. About 1658, some three years after his baptism, he married\nhis second wife, the heroic Elizabeth. In 1660 he was first\nimprisoned.] hath often been to me in this place as the pulling the\nflesh from the bones; and that not only because I am somewhat too\nfond of these great mercies, but also because I should have often\nbrought to my mind the many hardships, miseries, and wants that my\npoor family was like to meet with, should I be taken from them;\nespecially my poor blind child, who lay nearer my heart than all\nbeside. Oh, the thoughts of the hardships which my poor blind one\nmight undergo, would seem to break my heart in pieces. Poor child,\nthought I, what sorrow art thou like to have for thy portion in this\nworld! thou must he beaten, must beg, suffer hunger, cold,\nnakedness, and a thousand calamities, though I cannot now endure the\nwind should blow upon thee. But yet, recalling myself, thought I, I\nmust venture you all with God, though it goeth to the quick to leave\nyou. Oh, I saw in this condition I was as a man who was pulling down\nhis house upon the heads of his wife and children; yet, thought I, I\nmust do it, I must do it: and now I thought on those two milch kine\nthat were to carry the ark of God into another country, and to leave\ntheir calves behind them. 1 Sam 6:10.\n\nDR. OWEN.\n\nWhat if, as you suggest, the sober Dr. Owen, though he told me and\nothers, at first, he would write an epistle to my book, (\"Peaceable\nPrinciples and True,\") yet waved it afterwards; this was also to my\nadvantage; because it was the earnest solicitations of several of\nyou that at that time stopped his hand: and perhaps it was more for\nthe glory of God that truth should, go naked into the world, than as\nseconded by so mighty an armor-bearer as he.\n\nTRUTH.\n\nThe truth is of that nature, that the more it is opposed, the more\nglory it appears in; and the more the adversary objects against it,\nthe more it will clear itself.\n\nThere belongs to every true notion of truth, a power; the notion is\nthe shell, the power the kernel and life.\n\nIt is impossible that a carnal heart should conceive of the weight\nthat truth lays upon the conscience of a believer. They see nothing,\nalas, nothing at all but a truth; and, say they, Are you such fools\nas to stand groaning to bear up that, or what is contained therein?\nThey see not the weight, the glory, the weight of glory, that is in\na truth of God; and therefore they laugh at them that will count it\nworth the while to endure so much to support it from falling to the\nground.\n\nTruths are often delivered to us, like wheat in full ears, to the\nend we should rub them out before we eat them, and take pains about\nthem, before we have the comfort of them.\n\nSTYLE.\n\n    I could, were I so pleased, use higher-strains,\n    And for applause on tenters stretch my brains;\n    But what needs that? The arrow out of sight\n    Does not the sleeper nor the watchman fright:\n    To shoot too high doth make but children gaze,\n    'Tis that which hits the man doth him amaze.\n\n        Should all be forced their brains to lay aside,\n        That cannot regulate the flowing tide\n        By this or that man's fancy, we should have\n        The wise unto the fool become a slave.\n\nWords easy to be understood do often hit the mark, when high and\nlearned ones do only pierce the air. He also that speaks to the\nweakest, may make the learned understand him; when he that striveth\nto be high, is not only for the most part understood but of a sort,\nbut also many times is neither understood by them nor by himself.\n\nTHE OLD AND NEW DISPENSATIONS.\n\nThere is as great a difference between their dispensation and ours\nfor comfort, as there is between the making of a bond with a promise\nto seal it, and the actual sealing. It was made indeed in their\ntime, but it was not sealed until the blood was shed on Calvary.\n\nTHE PILGRIM IN NEW ENGLAND.\n\n    My Pilgrim's book has travelled sea and land;\n    Yet could I never come to understand\n    That it was slighted, or turned out of door\n    By any kingdom, were they rich or poor.\n    In France, and Flanders, where men kill each other\n    My Pilgrim is esteemed a friend, a brother.\n    In Holland too, 'tis said, as I am told,\n    My Pilgrim is with some worth more than gold;\n    Highlanders and wild Irish can agree\n    My Pilgrim should familiar with them be.\n    'Tis in New England under such advance,\n    Receives there so much loving countenance,\n    As to be trimmed, new clothed, and decked with gems,\n    That it may show its features and its limbs.\n    Yet more, so public doth my Pilgrim walk,\n    That of him thousands daily sing and talk.\n\nNOTICES OF BUNYAN.\n\nTHIS wonderful book, [the Pilgrim's Progress,] while it obtains\nadmiration from the most fastidious critics, is loved by those who\nare too simple to admire it. Dr. Johnson, all whose studies were\ndesultory, and who hated, as he said, to read books through, made an\nexception in favor of the Pilgrim's Progress. That work, he said,\nwas one of the two or three which he wished longer. In every nursery\nthe Pilgrim's Progress is a greater favorite than Jack the\nGiant-killer. Every reader knows the strait and narrow path as well\nas he knows a road in which he has gone backward and forward a\nhundred times. This is the highest miracle of genius--that things\nwhich are not should be as though they were, that the imaginations\nof one mind should become the personal recollections of another.\nCowper said, forty or fifty years ago, that he dared not name John\nBunyan in his verse, for fear of moving a sneer. We live in better\ntimes; and we are not afraid to say, that though there were many\nclever men in England during the latter half of the seventeenth\ncentury, there were only two great creative minds. One of those\nminds produced the Paradise Lost, the other the PILGRIM'S PROGRESS.\n\nThe style of Bunyan is delightful to every reader, and invaluable as\na study to every person who wishes to obtain a wide command over the\nEnglish language. The vocabulary is the vocabulary of the common\npeople. There is not an expression, if we except a few technical\nterms of theology, which would puzzle the rudest peasant. We have\nobserved several pages which do not contain a single word of more\nthan two syllables. Yet no writer has said more exactly what he\nmeant to say. For magnificence, for pathos, for vehement\nexhortation, for subtle disquisition, for every purpose of the poet,\nthe orator, and the divine, this homely dialect, the dialect of\nplain working-men, was sufficient. There is no book in our\nliterature on which we could so readily stake the fame of the old\nunpolluted English language--no book which shows so well how rich\nthat language is in its own proper wealth, and how little it has\nbeen improved by all that it has borrowed. T. B. Macaulay--Essays.\n\nTo the names of Baxter and Howe must be added the name of a man far\nbelow them in station and in acquired knowledge, but in virtue their\nequal, and in genius their superior, John Bunyan. Bunyan had been\nbred a tinker, and had served as a private soldier in the\nparliamentary army. Early in his life he had been fearfully tortured\nby remorse for his youthful sins, the worst of which seem, however,\nto have been such as the world thinks venial. His keen sensibility\nand his powerful imagination made his internal conflicts singularly\nterrible. He fancied that he was under sentence of reprobation, that\nhe had committed blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, that he had sold\nChrist, that he was actually possessed by a demon. Sometimes loud\nvoices from heaven cried out to warn him. Sometimes fiends whispered\nimpious suggestions in his ear. He saw visions of distant\nmountain-tops, on which the sun shone brightly, but from which he\nwas separated by a waste of snow. He felt the devil behind him\npulling his clothes. He thought, that the brand of Cain had been set\nupon him. He feared that he was about to burst asunder like Judas.\nHis mental agony disordered his health. One day he shook like a man\nin the palsy. On another day he felt a fire within his breast. It is\ndifficult to understand how he survived sufferings so intense and so\nlong-continued. At length the clouds broke. From the depths of\ndespair the penitent passed to a state of serene felicity. An\nirresistible impulse now urged him to impart to others the blessing\nof which he was himself possessed. He joined the Baptists, and\nbecame a preacher and writer. His education had been that of a\nmechanic. He knew no language but the English, as it was spoken by\nthe common people. He had studied no great model of composition,\nwith the exception--an important exception undoubtedly--of our\nnoble translation of the Bible. His spelling was bad. He frequently\ntransgressed the rules of grammar. Yet his native force of genius,\nand his experimental knowledge of all the religious passions, from\ndespair to ecstasy, amply supplied in him the want of learning. His\nrude oratory roused and melted hearers who listened without interest\nto the labored discourses of great logicians and Hebraists. His\nworks were widely circulated among the humbler classes. One of them,\nthe Pilgrim's Progress, was in his own lifetime translated into\nseveral foreign languages. It was, however, scarcely known to the\nlearned and polite, and had been during nearly a century the delight\nof pious cottagers and artisans before it was publicly commended by\nany man of high literary eminence. At length critics condescended to\ninquire where the secret of so wide and so durable a popularity lay.\nThey were compelled to own that the ignorant multitude had judged\nmore correctly than the learned, and that the despised little book\nwas really a masterpiece. Bunyan is indeed as decidedly the first of\nallegorists as Demosthenes is the first of orators, or Shakspeare\nthe first of dramatists. Other allegorists have shown equal\ningenuity, but no other allegorist has ever been able to touch the\nheart, and to make abstractions objects of terror, of pity, and of\nlove.\n\nIt may be doubted whether any English dissenter had suffered more\nseverely under the penal laws than John Bunyan. Of the twenty-seven\nyears which had elapsed since the Restoration, he had passed twelve\nin confinement. He still persisted in preaching; but that he might\npreach, he was under the necessity of disguising himself like a\ncarter. He was often introduced into meetings through back doors\nwith a smockfrock on his back, and a whip in his hand. If he had\nthought only of his own ease and safety, he would have hailed the\nindulgence with delight. He was now at length free to pray and\nexhort in open day. His congregation rapidly increased; thousands\nhung upon his words; and at Bedford, where he ordinarily resided,\nmoney was plentifully contributed to build a meeting-house for him.\nHis influence among the common people was such that the government\nwould willingly have bestowed on him some municipal office; but his\nvigorous understanding and his stout English heart were proof\nagainst all delusion and all temptation. He felt assured that the\nproffered toleration was merely a bait intended to lure the Puritan\nparty to destruction; nor would he, by accepting a place for which\nhe was not legally qualified, recognize the validity of the\ndispensing power. One of the last acts of his virtuous life was to\ndecline an interview to which he was invited by an agent Of the\ngovernment. T. B. Macaulay--History of England.\n\nThe demeanor of Sir Matthew Hale in the case of John Bunyan, the\nauthor of the Pilgrim's Progress, shows him paying respect both to\nthe rules of law and to the dictates of humanity. This wonderful\nman--who, though bred a tinker, showed a genius little inferior to\nthat of Dante--having been illegally convicted by the court of\nQuarter-sessions, was lying in prison under his sentence in the jail\nof Bedford. Soon after the restoration of Charles II., the young\nenthusiast had been arrested while he was preaching at a meeting in\na private house; and, refusing to enter into an engagement that he\nwould preach no more, had been indicted as \"a person who devilishly\nand perniciously abstained from coming to church to hear divine\nservice, and a common upholder of unlawful meetings and\nconventicles, to the great disturbance and distraction of the good\nsubjects of this realm.\"\n\nLittle do we know what is for our permanent good. Had Bunyan then\nbeen discharged and allowed to enjoy liberty, he no doubt would have\nreturned to his trade, filling up his intervals of leisure with\nfield-preaching; his name would not have survived his own\ngeneration, and he could have done little for the religious\nimprovement of mankind. The prison-doors were shut upon him for\ntwelve years. Being cut off from the external world, he communed\nwith his own soul; and inspired by Him who touched Isaiah's hallowed\nlips with fire, he composed the noblest of allegories, the merit of\nwhich was first discovered by the lowly, but which is now lauded by\nthe most refined critics, and which has done more to awaken piety\nand to enforce the precepts of Christian morality, than all the\nsermons that have been published by all the prelates of the Anglican\nchurch. Lord Campbell.\n\nThe Pilgrim's Progress is a book which makes its way through the\nfancy to the understanding and the heart. The child peruses it with\nwonder and delight; in youth we discover the genius which it\ndisplays; its worth is apprehended as we advance in years; and we\nperceive its merits feelingly in declining age. If it is not a well\nof English undefiled, to which the poet as well as the philologist\nmust repair if they would drink of the living waters, it is a clear\nstream of current English, the vernacular of his age--sometimes\nindeed in its rusticity and coarseness, but always in its plainness\nand its strength. Robert Southey.\n\nNo man of common-sense and common integrity can deny that Bunyan,\nthe tinker of Elstow, was a practical atheist, a worthless\ncontemptible infidel, a vile rebel to God and goodness, a common\nprofligate. Now be astonished, O heaven, to eternity; and wonder, O\nearth and hell, while time endures. Behold this very man become a\nmiracle of mercy, a mirror of wisdom, goodness, holiness, truth, and\nlove. See his polluted soul cleansed and adorned by divine grace,\nhis guilt pardoned, the divine law inscribed upon his heart, the\ndivine image, or the resemblance of God's moral perfections\nimpressed upon his soul. Mr. Ryland.\n\nIt has been the lot of John Bunyan, an unlettered artisan, to do\nmore than one in a hundred millions of human beings, even in\ncivilized society, is usually able to do. He has produced a work of\nimagination of such decided originality as not only to have\ncommanded profound admiration on its first appearance, but amidst\nall changes of time and style and modes of thinking, to have\nmaintained its place in the popular literature of every succeeding\nage, with the probability that, so long as the language in which it\nis written endures, it will not cease to be read by a great number\nof the youth of all future generations at that period of life when\ntheir minds, their imaginations, and their hearts are most\nimpressible with moral excellence, splendid picture, and religious\nsentiment. It would be difficult to name another work of any kind in\nour native tongue, of which so many editions have been printed, of\nwhich so many readers have lived and died, the character of whose\nlives and deaths must have been more or less affected by its lessons\nand examples, its fictions and realities. James Montgomery.\n\nI know of no book, the Bible excepted as above all comparison, which\nI, according to my judgment and experience, could so safely\nrecommend as teaching and enforcing the whole saving truth,\naccording to the mind that was in Christ Jesus, as the Pilgrim's\nProgress. It is in my conviction the best Summa Theologiae\nEvangelicae ever produced by a writer not miraculously inspired.\nColeridge's Remains.\n\nSo great was Bunyan's popularity as a preacher, that an eyewitness\nsays, when he preached in London, \"If there were but one day's\nnotice given, there would be more people come together to hear him\npreach than the meeting-house would hold. I have seen, to hear him\npreach, about twelve hundred at a morning lecture, by seven o'clock\non a working-day, in the dark winter time.\" Charles Doe.\n\nI hold John Bunyan to have been a man of incomparably greater genius\nthan any of them, [the old English divines,] and to have given a far\ntruer and more edifying picture of Christianity. His Pilgrim's\nProgress seems to be a complete reflection of Scripture, with none\nof the rubbish of the theologians mixed up with it. Thomas Arnold,\nD. D\n\nO thou whom, borne on fancy's eager wing Back to the season of\nlife's happy spring, I pleased remember, and while memory yet Holds\nfast her office here, can ne'er forget; Ingenious Dreamer! in whose\nweil-told tale, Sweet fiction and sweet truth alike prevail; Whose\nhumorous vein, strong sense, and simple style, May teach the gayest,\nmake the gravest smile; Witty, and well-employed, and like thy Lord,\nSpeaking in parables his slighted word; I name thee not, lest so\ndespised a name Should move a sneer at thy deserved fame; Yet e'en\nin transitory life's late day, That mingles all my brown with sober\ngray, Revere the man, whose Pilgrim marks the road And guides the\nProgress of the soul to God. Cowper","title":"The Riches of Bunyan: Selected from His Works","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":164617}