5. Again, as they spring from the love of God, so they tend to the
soul from the love of God; for what saith he here? 'One thing have I desired.' What was that? 'To dwell in the house of the Lord.' What to do? 'To behold the beauty of God;' to see God in his excellency and beauty and worthiness. All his desire was from this, that his soul was enamoured with the beauty of God's house. The love of God stirred up this blessed desire in the prophet. Therefore, it was a holy and spiritual desire.
5. Again, as they spring from the love of God, so they tend to the honour of God; for what comes from heaven, goes to heaven back again. As waters that come from a spring, they go as high as the place they come from; so holy desires, being kindled from heaven from a spirit of love, they go to heaven again. The love of God stirs them up, and he seeks God's glory, and honour, and inward communion with God in this. For a man out of a natural desire may desire holy things sometimes, to be free from such or such a sin, and to have such and such a grace, not out of a desire to honour God; but if he had grace, he sees he might escape troubles, he might be free from temporal judgments, and he might ingratiate himself, and commend himself to this or that person, whom he desires to benefit by. Therefore, he desires as much grace as may help forward his intentions in the world. He joins the world and God together. Oh! no, these are not the desires that distinguish a Christian from another man; but those that spring from the love of God, that proceed inwardly from the truth of the heart, and that the things themselves please God, and that there is a loveliness in them, and that they tend to the honour of God especially, and our own good in a secondary place. This is a character of good desires. Thus we see, though I should go no further than the text, how we may distinguish holy and heavenly desires from other desires. 'One thing have I desired, and that will I seek,' &c.
Therefore, let us examine what our desires are, what our bent is.
Desires issue from the will and affections, and they shew the frame of the soul more than anything in the world. As the springs in low places are discovered by the steams and vapours that come out of the place, men gather that there is a spring below, because of the ascent
of vapours; so the vapouring out of these desires shew that there is a spring of grace in the heart; they discover that there is a spring within.
And let those that mourn in Sion, that have some evidence (though they are not so good as they would be), let them look to their hearts.
What is thy desire? What is the bent of thy soul? When a man is once converted and turned, wherein is his turning? Especially, his mind and judgment and esteem of things are altered. There is a change of mind, and withal the desire and bent of the soul is altered; that if a man ask him, and examine what the bent is of all the course of his life, oh! that God might be glorified, that his church and cause might prosper, that others might be converted; this is the bent of his soul; not that he might be great in the world, and ruin those that stand in his way (this shews that a man is a rotten hypocrite). The bent and sway of the soul shews what a man is.
Because I would not have any deceived in the point, take one evidence and sign more with you, and that shall be instead of all, and it is out of the text too, 'One thing have I desired, and that will I seek after,' not by prayer only, but in the use of all means; as, indeed, he was never quiet till he was settled again in Sion, nor then neither till he had gotten materials for the temple, and a place for God's honour
'to dwell in,' Deut. 12:11. If desires be not the desires of the sluggard, there will be endeavour; as we see in the desire of David here, 'One thing have I desired, and that will I seek.' He used all means to enjoy communion with God sweetly.
The sluggard lusts and hath nothing. So there are many spiritual sluggards that lust and have nothing, because they shew not their desire in their endeavours. There will be endeavour where the desire is true. For desire springs from the will, the will being the appetite of the whole man, Voluntas appetitus, &c. The understanding carries not, but the will. When the will will have a thing, it carries all the parts. Hereupon, when the desire is true, it stirs up all the powers
and faculties to do their duty, to seek to attain the accomplishment and possession of that that is desired.
Those, therefore, that pretend they have good desires to God, and yet live scandalously and negligently, and will take no pains with their souls, alas! it is the sluggard's desire, if they take not pains to remove all lets and hindrances. For a man may know the desire of a thing is good when he labours to set the hindrances out of the way, if he can.
If the lets and hindrances be not impossible, he will remove it, if he can. Therefore, those that pretend this and that, 'There is a lion in the way,' Prov. 26:13, when they might remove it, if they would, there is no true desire; for desire is with the removing of all possible hindrances of the thing desired.
Quest. But to resolve one question. How shall I know whether my desire be strong enough and ripe enough or no to give me comfort?
Ans. I answer, if the desire of grace be above the desire of any earthly thing, that a man may say with David, 'One thing have I desired,' I desire to be free from sin, as a greater blessing to my soul, than to be free from any calamity, Oh! it is a good sign. And surely a man can never have comfort of his desire till his desires be raised to that pitch. For none ever shall come to heaven that do not desire the things that tend to heaven, above all earthly things; nor none shall ever escape hell that do not think it worse and more terrible than all earthly miseries. God brings no fools to heaven that cannot discern the difference of things. Therefore, let us know, that our desires are to little purpose if we have some desire to be good, &c.; but we have a greater desire to be rich and great in the world, to have such and such place. If the desire of that be greater than to be gracious with God, if we hate poverty, and disgrace, and want, and this and that more than sin and hell, to which sin leads, it is a sign that our judgments are rotten and corrupt, and that our desire is no pure spiritual desire. For it is not answerable to the thing desired; there is no proportion. David saith here, 'One thing have I desired.' His desire carried him amain to 'one thing necessary,' above all other
things whatsoever. Thus you see out of the text, what are the distinguishing notes of true desires from those that are false. I need name no more, if we consider what hath been spoken.
Now for our comfort, if we find these holy desires: Oh! let us take comfort in ourselves: for 'God will fulfil the desires of them that fear him,' Ps. 37:4. Holy desires, they are the birth of God's Spirit, and there is not one of them that shall be lost; for God regards those desires, 'My groanings are not hid from thee,' Ps. 38:9; my groanings in trouble, and desires of grace. There is not the least thing stirred up in the soul by the Spirit of God, but it prevails with God in some degree, answerable to the degree of worth in it. Therefore, if we have holy desires stirred up by God, God promotes those desires. God will regard his own work, and to 'him that hath shall be given,' Mat.
13:12. 'Lord, be merciful to thy servants, that desire to fear thy name,' saith Nehemiah, 1:11.* It is a plea that we may bring to God, 'Lord, I desire to please thee,' as it is, 'The desire of our souls is to thy name,
O Lord,' Isa. 26:8. We fail sometimes, that we cannot perform actions with that zeal and earnestness as we should; but the desire and bent of our soul is to thy name. A Christian may make it his plea to God,—truly our desires are towards thy name, and we have some suitable endeavours; and our desires are more that way than to anything in the world. It is a good plea, though we be much hindered and pulled back by our corruptions. So much for that, the act upon this object, 'One thing have I desired.'
Of whom doth he desire it? Of the Lord.
'One thing have I desired of the Lord.'
It was not a blind desire of the thing, but a desire directed to the right object, to God, to fulfil it. Holy desires are such as we are not ashamed of, but dare open them to God himself in prayer, and desires to God. A Christian, what he desires as a Christian, he prays for, and what he prays for he desires; he is a hypocrite else. If a man pray, as St Austin, in his confessions, that God would free him from
temptations, and yet is unwilling to have those loving baits from him, he prays, but he doth not desire. There are many that pray; they say in their prayers, 'Lead us not into temptation,' Mat. 6:13, and yet they run into temptation; they feed their eyes, and ears, and senses with vain things. You know what they are well enough, their lives are nothing but a satisfying of their lusts, and yet they pray, 'Lead us not in temptation.' And there are many persons that desire that, that they dare not pray for, they desire to be so bad. But a Christian what he desires, he prays for. I desire in earnest to be in the house of the Lord, I desire it of the Lord, I put up my request to him; and what I pray to him for, I earnestly desire indeed. Learn this in a word, hence, that, When we have holy desires stirred up by God, turn them to prayers.
A prayer is more than a desire. It is a desire put up to God. Let us turn our desires into prayers. That is the way to have them speed.
'One thing have I desired of the Lord.'
The reason why we should, in all our desires, make our desires known to God, is to keep our acquaintance continually with God. We have continual use of desires of grace, and desires of mortification of corruptions, and of freedom from this and that evil that is upon us.
As many desires as we have, let them be so many prayers; turn our desires into prayers to God, and so maintain our acquaintance with God. And we shall never come from God without a blessing and comfort. He never sends any out of his presence empty, that come with a gracious heart, that know what they desire. And it brings peace with it, when we make our desires known to God by our prayer. It brings 'peace that passeth understanding,' Philip. 4. Put case God doth not hear our request, that he doth not grant what we ask. 'The peace of God which passeth understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds.' So that when we put up our requests to God with thankfulness for what we have received, the soul will find peace.
Therefore I say, let us turn all our desires into prayers, to maintain
perpetual communion and acquaintance with God. Oh! it is a gainful and comfortable acquaintance.
It is an argument, and sign of a good conscience, for a man to go oft to God with his desires. It is a sign that he is not in a wicked course; for then he dares not appeal to the presence of God. Sore eyes cannot endure the light; and a galled conscience cannot endure God's presence. Therefore it is good to come oft into the presence of God. It shews that the heart doth not regard iniquity. 'If I regard iniquity in my heart, God will not hear my prayers.' Ps. 66:18. It is an argument of a good conscience to come oft into the presence of God. But I will not enter into the common place of prayer.
We see next his earnestness, 'I have desired it of the Lord, and I will seek after it.'
I will follow God still. Here is his importunity in prayer, his fervency, his uncessancy and perseverance, as the apostle exhorts, he persevered in prayer, Eph. 6:18. 'I will seek after it.' In prayer, and in the use of all good means, I will do what I can. So you see one qualification of prayer, it must be with perseverance and importunity. God loves importunate suitors. Though we cannot endure to be troubled with such persons, yet God loves importunate suitors, as we see in Luke 18:1–8, in the parable of the widow. God there vouchsafes to compare himself to an unrighteous judge, that 'cared neither for God nor man,' yet the importunity of the widow moved him to regard her. So the poor church of God, she is like a widow, with her hair hanging about her. 'This is Zion, whom none regardeth;' yet this widow, the poor church of God, and every particular member of it, they are importunate with the Judge of heaven and earth, with God; and will not he more regard the importunity of his children whom he loves, and delights in, that 'call upon him day and night'? Ps. 102:2, will not he regard their petitions, when an unrighteous judge shall care for the importunity of a poor widow? Thus you see the excellent fruit of importunity in our blessed Saviour himself, and here in David, 'I will seek after it,' I
will have no nay. Therefore we are exhorted in the Scriptures, not to keep silence, to give God no rest. 'You that are the Lord's remembrancers, keep not silence, give him no rest.' As Jacob with the angel, wrestle with him, leave him not till we have a blessing. As the woman of Canaan, let us follow him still, and take no nay. Oh this is a blessed violence, beloved, when we can set upon God, and will have no nay, but renew suit upon suit, and desire on desire, and never leave till our petitions be answered. Can the hypocrite pray alway? Would you know a comfortable note to distinguish an hypocrite from a true Christian? take it hence, will the hypocrite pray alway? Sometimes he will pray; but if God answer him not presently he gives over; but God's children pray always, if the ground be good, if they see the excellency of the thing, and the necessity, and withal join at the amiableness of it, that it may be gotten. When they see the excellency, and the necessity and usefulness of the thing, and the attainableness of it, and that it is attainable in the use of means, they need no more, they will never give over. That is the reason of that in the petitions, 'Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven,' Mat. 6:10. But can we do the will of God on earth as it is done in heaven? and doth God's glorious kingdom of heaven come while we are here on earth? No; it doth not, but the soul that is guided with the spirit of prayer, it rests not in this or that degree, but prays till it be in heaven, 'Thy kingdom come.' I have grace now, but I desire glory. 'Thy will be done.' I desire to do it as thy saints in heaven, though I cannot do it; but I desire, and I will not give God rest, but pray, till all my prayers be answered in heaven; and then I shall do the will of God as it is done in heaven indeed. Thus we ought eagerly, and constantly to persevere in our desires, till they be fully satisfied, or else we are but hypocrites.
Let us make conscience, I beseech you, of this duty more than we have done, and never give God over for grace; for strength against our corruptions; for his church; for the prosperity of the means of salvation; for those things that we have ground for; let us never give him over till we see he hath answered our desires. And when he hath answered our desires, let us go on still to desire more; for this life is a