3. The improvement of it, by way of use.
3. The improvement of it, by way of use.
1. That all providence is for the good of the church de facto, and has been so.
It will appear by an enumeration of things.
(1.) First, All good things.
(2.) Secondly, All bad things are for their good.
(1.) First, All good things.
[1.] The world.
[2.] Gifts and common graces of men in the world.
[3.] Angels.
[1.] The world. The whole world was made and ordained for the good of the church, next to the glory of God. This will appear in three things:
First, The continuance of the world is for their sakes. God would have destroyed the world because of the ignorance and wickedness of it, before this time, but he overlooked it all, and had respect to the times of Christ, and the publishing faith in him, and repentance: Acts
17:30, 'And the times of this ignorance God winked at,' God overlooked,* he looked not so upon them, as to be provoked to destroy the world, but his eyes were fixed on the times of Christianity, therefore would not take notice, in the extremity of his justice, of the wickedness of those foregoing ages. Believers are the salt of the earth, Mat. 5:13, which makes the world savoury to God, and keeps it from corrupting. It is meant not only of the apostles, but of Christ's disciples, of all Christians, for to them was that sermon made, ver. 1. 'If the salt have lost his savour,' if the salt be corrupted, and Christianity overthrown in the world, wherewith shall the world