Chapter 11 — Against Sin; For Steadfastness; Trials
My friends, I am here dealing with good works, and persuading you to flee what hinders them: so bear with my plainness when I speak against sin. I would pierce it with every word, because otherwise it will pierce us with many sorrows (1 Tim 6:9, 10). I do not treat of good works as if doing them would save us, for we are justified by his grace, according to the hope of eternal life; yet our sins and evil works will make us obnoxious to the judgements both of God and man. He who walks not uprightly, according to the truth of the gospel, is likely to have his peace assaulted often, both by the devil, the law, death, and hell; yes, and is like to have God hide his face from him also, for the iniquity of his covetousness (Isa 57:17).
How can he who behaves corruptly in the sight of men think he behaves well in the sight of God? And if so dim a light as is in man can justly see that you are wrong, how shall your sins be hid from him whose 'eyes test the children of men?' (Psa 11:4).
It is true, faith without works justifies us before God (Rom 3:28; 4:5): yet faith that is alone will be found to leave us sinners in the sight both of God and man (Jas 2:18). And though you add nothing to what saves you by what you do, yet your righteousness may benefit the son of man; as also says the text: but if you are so careless as to say, What do I care about being righteous to bless others? I tell you, that the love of God is not in you (Job 35:8; 1 John 3:17; 1 Cor 13:1-3). Walk in God's ways, and do them, for this is your wisdom and understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear of all these statutes, and say, 'This great nation is a wise and understanding people' (Deut 4:6).
THIRD. Observe. Every believer should not only be careful that his works are good, and so do them now, but should carefully study to maintain them; that is, to exercise them throughout his life.
It is easier to begin to do good than it is to continue it; for there is not so much of a Christian's cross in the beginning of a work, as there is in a continual, hearty, conscientious practice of it. Thus Christians need not only to start to do good, but also to continue the work. Man, by nature, is rather a hearer than a doer, continually listening for some new thing; seeing many things, but observing nothing (Acts 17:20; Isa 42:20). It is noticeable that after Christ had divided his hearers into four parts, he condemned three of them as fruitless hearers (Luke 8:58). O it is hard continuing to believe, continuing to love, continuing to resist all that opposes; we tend to be weary of well-doing (Gal 6:9). To pluck out right eyes, to cut off right hands and feet, is no pleasant thing to flesh and blood; and yet only these shall have the promise of life; because none but these will be found to have the effective work of God's grace in their souls (Matt 18:8, 9): 'If you continue in my word, then you are my disciples indeed' (Matt 24:13; John 8:31). And so it is, that you find so many IFS in the Scripture about men's happiness; as, 'if children, then heirs;' and 'if you continue in the faith;' and 'if we hold our confidence firm to the end' (Rom 8:17; Col 1:23; Heb 3:14). Not that continuing in the way of God causes the work to be right; but the work being right causes us to continue. As John says in another place, 'They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would, no doubt, have continued with us' (1 John 2:19). But I say, where the work of God indeed is savingly begun, even there the flesh, corruption, and the body of death oppose it. Therefore Christians should be careful, and be careful to maintain a continual course of good works.
Besides, as there is in our own heart what opposes goodness, so there is the tempter, the wicked one, both to animate these lusts, and to join with them in every assault against the work of God in our souls. That is why he is called the devil, the enemy, the destroyer, and he who seeks continually to devour us (1 Peter 5:8), I need say no more but this. He who will walk like a Christian indeed, as he shall find it is necessary to continue in good works, so his continuing in them will be opposed; so if he determines to continue in them, he must make it his business to study how to oppose those who oppose such a life, that he may continue in them.
FOURTH. Now then to help in this, here fitly comes in the last observation, that is, That the best way both to provoke ourselves and others to good works is to often affirm to others the teaching of justification by grace, and believe it ourselves. 'This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works' (Titus 3:8). I told you before, that good works must flow from faith: and now I tell you, that the best way to be fruitful in them, is often to exercise the teaching of justification by grace; and they both agree; for as faith animates to good works, so the teaching of grace animates faith. So, the way to be rich in good works is to be rich in faith; and the way to be rich in faith is to conscientiously affirm the teaching of grace to others, and believe it ourselves.
First, To constantly affirm it to others. Thus Paul tells Timothy, that if he put the brethren in mind of the truths of the gospel, he would not only be a good minister of Christ, but would be built up in the words of faith and good teaching (1 Tim 4:6). It is the plan of God that Christians should often assert the things of God; and that by so doing edify one another (Heb 10:24, 25;1 Thess 5:11).
The teaching of the gospel is like the dew and the small rain that distils on the tender grass, which makes it grow and keep green (Deut 32:2). Christians are like the flowers in a garden, who have on each of them the dew of heaven,, drop their dew at each other's roots when shaken with the wind so they are jointly nourished by one another. For Christians to commune sweetly of God's matters one with another is as if they opened to each other boxes of perfume. Says Paul to the church at Rome, 'I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established; that is, that I may be strengthened together with you, by our mutual faith' (Rom 1:11, 12). Christians should often affirm the teaching of grace, and justification by it, to one another.
Second, As they should be thus doing, so they should live in the power of it themselves; they should by faith suck and drink in this teaching, as the good ground receives the rain; when it is done, good works are proclaimed. Paul to the Colossians says; 'We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and love to all the saints; for the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, which is come to you, as it is in all the world, and brings forth fruit, as it does also in you.' But how long ago? Why, 'since the day you heard it, and knew the grace of God in truth' (Col 1:3-6).
Apples and flowers are not made by the gardener; but are a result of planting and watering. Plant good teaching in the sinner, and let it be watered with the word of grace; the effect of that is the fruits of holiness, and the end everlasting life (Rom 6:22).
Good teaching is the teaching of the gospel, which shows to men that God freely clothes them with the righteousness of his Son, and gives all his benefits to them in Him; by which free gift the sinner is made righteous before God; and because of that, a principle of grace is infused into the heart, which both makes alive, and causes it to produce fruit (Rom 3:21-26; 1 Cor 1:30; 2 Cor 5:21; John 1:16).
Now then, since good works flow from faith, and since faith is nourished by an affirming of the teaching of the gospel, take these few reasons from the teaching of the gospel for the support of your faith, that you may be indeed fruitful and rich in good works.
Consider 1. The whole Bible was given for just this, that you should both believe this teaching, and live in the comfort and sweetness of it: 'For whatever was written before, was written for our instruction, that we through patience and the comfort of the Scriptures might have hope' (Rom 15:4; John 20:31). Consider 2. That therefore every promise in the Bible is yours, to strengthen, enliven, and encourage your heart in believing. Consider 3. Nothing you do can so please God as believing; 'The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his mercy'
(Psa 147:11). They please him, because they embrace his righteousness. Consider 4. That all God's withdrawings from you are not for the weakening, but for the testing of your faith; and also, that whatever he allows Satan, or your own heart to do, it is not to weaken faith (Job 23:810; 1 Peter 1:7). Consider 5. That believing is what will keep you aware of the things of heaven and glory; by it the devil will be discouraged, sin weakened, and your heart enlivened and sweetened (Heb 11:27; Jas 4:7; 1 Pet 5:9; Eph 6:16; Rom 15:13).
Consider lastly, By believing, the lover of God is kept with warmth in his heart, and that this will stir you to continually bless God for Christ, for grace, for faith, hope, and all these things, either in God, or you, that accompanies salvation (2 Cor 2:14; Psa 103:1-3).
Third, The teaching of forgiveness of sins, received by faith, will have a clear effect in the heart of a sinner to produce good works. But, since there is a body of death and sin in every one who has the grace of God in this world; and because this body of death will always oppose what is good, as the apostle says (Rom 7:21), so let us consider further how to deal with the hindrances to a fruitful life.
1. Keep a continual watch over the wretchedness of your own heart; not to be discouraged at the sight of your vileness, but to prevent its wickedness. For evil will labour to hinder you from starting good works, or from doing them; for evil will do both of these. Be careful then, that you do not listen to it at any time, but deny, though with much struggling, the workings of sin against you. 2. Let this be continually before your heart, that God's eye is on you, and sees every secret turning of your heart, either to or from him: 'All things are naked and opened to the eyes of him with whom we have to do' (Heb 4:13). 3. If you deny to do the good that you should, with what your God has given you; then consider that though he loves your soul, he can chastise; First, Your inward man with such troubles that your life shall be restless and comfortless. Secondly, Your outward man, that all you get shall be put in a bag with holes (Psa 89:31-33; Hag 1:6). And if he should permit one thief in your house, or one spark of fire among your barns, how quickly might that be consumed against your will, which you should willingly have spent to God's glory; and I tell you further, if you lack a heart to do good when you have enough, you may lack in those things from others when yours is taken from you. Jude 1:6, 7. 4. Consider that a life full of good works is the only way you can respond to the mercy of God extended to you; God has had mercy on you and saved you from all your troubles; God has not been reluctant to give you his Son, his Spirit, and the kingdom of heaven. Says Paul, 'I beg you therefore, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service' (Rom 12:1; Matt 18:32, 33). 5. Consider that this is the way to convince all men that the power of God's things has taken hold of your heart (I speak to those who are unashamed); and whatever you say, if your faith does not result in a holy life, you will be judged a withered branch, a nominal believer, salt without savour, and as lifeless as a gong, and a little cymbal (John 15; Matt 13:1 Cor 13:1, 2). For, they say, show us your faith by your works, for we cannot see your hearts (James 2:18). But I say on the contrary, if you walk as befits those who are saved by grace, then you will witness in every man's conscience that you are a good tree; you will leave guilt on the heart of the wicked (1 Sam 24:16, 17). Now you remove the opportunity from those who look for opportunity to criticise; and now you are clear from the blood of all men (2 Cor 11:12; Acts 20:26, 31-35). This is the man also who provokes others to good works. The ear that hears such a man shall bless him; and the eye that sees him shall bear witness to him. 'Surely,' says David, 'he shall not be moved for ever: The righteous shall be remembered for ever' (Heb 10:24; Job 29:11; Psa 112: 6). 6. Again, The heart that is fullest of good works, has in it least room for Satan's temptations. And this is what Peter means when he says, 'Be sober, be vigilant;' that is, be occupied with faith and holiness, 'because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, prowls around seeking whom he may devour' (1 Pet 5:8). 'He who walks uprightly, walks safely; and those who add to faith, virtue; to virtue, knowledge; to knowledge, temperance; to temperance, brotherly kindness; and to these love; what abounds in them shall neither be barren nor unfruitful; he shall never fall; but an entrance shall be given to him into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ' (2 Pet 1:5-10; Prov 10:9). 7. The man who is fullest of good works, is fittest to live and fittest to die: 'I am now ready to be offered,' says fruitful Paul (2 Tim 4:6). But he who is barren, is fit neither to live, nor to die: he knows he is not fit to die, and God himself says he is not fit to live; 'cut him down, why does he clutter the ground?' (Luke 8:7). Lastly, Consider, to provoke you to good works, when you come to glory God will give you a reward for everything you do for him on earth. Little do the people of God consider how richly God will reward what, from a right principle and to a right end, is done for him here; not a bit of bread to the poor, not a drink of water to the least of those who belong to Christ, or the loss of a hair of your head, shall in that day go without its reward (Luke 14:13, 14; Matt 10:42).
'For our light momentary affliction,' and so all other pieces of selfdenial, 'works for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison' (2 Cor 4:17). I tell you, Christian, only be rich in good works, and you shall have more than salvation; your salvation you have freely by grace through Christ, without works (Eph 2:8-10), but now being justified and saved, and as its fruit, renewed by the Holy Ghost, you shall be rewarded for every work that proved good; 'For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which you have showed toward his name, in that you have ministered to the saints' (Heb 6:10; 1 Cor 3:14). Moses counted the reward he was to have, for a short suffering with the people of God, of greater worth than the treasures of Egypt, the smiles of the king, or the honour of his kingdom (Heb 11:2527). In a word, let the disappointments that do, and shall most surely happen to the fruitless professors, provoke you to look with all diligence to your standing. For,
1. Such a one is only deceived and disappointed concerning the work of grace he supposes to be in his heart; he thinks he is a Christian, and has grace, as faith, hope, and so on, in his soul, yet no fruits of these appear in him; only his tongue is tipped with the talk and gossip of religion. Poor man, poor empty man! Faith without works is dead; your hope shall be like giving up the ghost; the gifts your soul has are only what is common to humanity; you are therefore disappointed; God considers you still wicked, though you come and go to the place of the Holy (James 2:19, 20; Job 11:20; 1 Cor 13:1-3). 2. Therefore all your joy and comfort must fall short of saving comfort, and so leave you in the ditch; your joy is the joy of the Pharisees (John 5:35), and your gladness as that of Herod (Mark 6:20), and the longest it can last is only a Scripture-moment (Job 20:5). Alas! in all your gladness and contentment with your religion, you are like the boy who plays with brass instead of gold; and with counters instead of currency. Thus, 'if a man thinks himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceives [or disappoints] himself' (Gal 6:3). 3. This is not all, but expect certainly eternal disappointment in the day of God; for it must be; your lamp will go out at the first sound the trump of God shall make in your ears; you cannot stand at the appearance of the Son of God in his glory; his very looks will be to your belief as a strong wind is to a blinking candle, and you shall be left only to smoulder. Oh the change that will happen to a foolish maiden! She thought she was happy, and that she should have received happiness with those who had a good heart; but on the contrary, her lamp is going out; must she now seek for saving grace when the time of grace is over? The heaven she thought hers is proved a hell, and her god is proved a devil. God has cast her out of his presence, and shuts the door on her. She pleads her profession, and son on, but has for her answer repulses from heaven. 'So are the paths of all who forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall perish; whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider's web. He shall lean on his house but it shall not stand; he shall hold it fast, but it shall not endure' (Matt 25:1-10; Luke 8:25, 26; Job 8:13-15).
Be careful therefore; your soul, heaven, and eternity, lie at stake; they swing either towards you or away from you on the hinge of your faith; if it is right, all is yours: if wrong, then all is lost, whatever your hopes and expectations to the contrary: 'For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision is worth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which works by love. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things the wrath of God comes on the children of unbelief. For the earth which drinks in the rain that comes often on it, and brings forth fruit fit for them by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God: but what bears thorns and briars is REJECTED, and is nigh to cursing, whose end is to be burned' (Gal 5:6; Eph 5:3-6; Heb 6:7, 8).
Object. But what shall I do? I am so cold, slothful, and heartless that I cannot find any heart to work for God in this world? There was a time when his dew rested all night on my branches, and when I could with desire, with earnest desire, be doing and working for God; but, alas! now it is otherwise.
Answer. If this is true, your case is sad, you are to be pitied; the Lord pity you. And for your recovery out of this condition, I would give you no other advice than was given to Ephesus when she had lost her first love.
1. 'Remember,' says Christ, 'from where you are fallen, and repent, and do the first works,.' (Rev 2:5).
Note: Your first work is to seriously consider, and remember where you have fallen from. Remember that you have left your God, the support of your soul, without whom there is no support, comfort, or strength for you to do or endure anything in this world: 'Without me,' says he, 'you can do nothing' (John 15:5). A sad condition; to remember this surely is the first step to recover a backsliding heart; for remembering this brings to mind your loss, how it has lost its former visits, smiles, and consolations of God. When your conscience was made supple with the blood of your Saviour; when every step you took was, as it were, honey and butter; and when your heart could meditate terror with comfort (Job 29:2-6; Isa 33:1419). Instead of that you feel darkness, hardness of heart, and the thoughts of God are terrible to you (Psa 77:3). Now God never visits you; or if he does, it is only as a visitor, who stays only for a night (Jer 14:8, 9).
This also brings to mind how your situation has changed concerning your confidence in God for your future happiness, how uncertain you now are of your hopes for heaven, how much life is uncertain before you (Deut 28:65, 66).
2. 'Remember therefore from where you are fallen, and repent.' These are words well put together; for considering what I have lost in my backsliding will provoke in my heart a sorrow, and godly heaviness, which will make me regret my condition, and say, 'I will return to my first husband, for then was it better with me than now' (Hos 2:7). And believe it, the reason of God has withdrawn that comfortable communion with himself is that you might first see the difference between sticking close to God, and forsaking him; and next, that you might acknowledge your sin, and seek his face (Hos 5:15). He takes no pleasure in your forlorn condition; he had rather you should have him in your heart, but it must be in his own way. 'He looks on men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted what was right, and it was no good to me; then he will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light' (Job 33:27, 28).
3. 'Remember where you have fallen from, and repent, and do the first works.' As you should remember and repent, so you should heartily doing your first works; believe as before, lay hold of the things of heaven and glory, as at first; for now is God returned to you, as before (Zech 1:16). And though you may, through the loss of your hair, like Samson, be weak to start with, yet it will soon grow again; that is, your former experience will soon be as long, large, and strong, as in the former times. At first you will find all the wheels of your soul rusty, and all the strings of your heart out of tune; and when you first begin to stir, the dust and filth of your heart will, like smoke, block that clear sight of the grace of your God, and his love to your soul; but wait, and go on, and though you find you are unable to do things like you used to; yet I say, get up, and be doing, and the Lord will be with you; for he has not despised the day of your small things (1 Chron 22:16; Zech 4:10).
I know you will be afflicted with a thousand temptations to drive you to despair, that your faith may be faint. But against all them set the word of God, the promise of grace, the blood of Christ, and the examples of God's goodness to great backsliders who are for your encouragement recorded in the scriptures; and remember, that turning to God after backsliding is the greatest service you can do for him, and the greatest honour you can bring to the blood of Christ; and know also, that God, to show his willing reception of so unworthy a one, says, there shall be joy in heaven when you return to him (Lk 15:7, 10).
Conclusion
If despite what has been said, you remain a backslider:
1. Then remember you must die; and remember also, that when the terrors of God, of death, and a backslidden heart, meet together, there will be sad work in that soul; this is the man who leans over the mouth of hell, while death is cutting the thread of his life.
2. Remember, that though God sometimes, yes, often, receives backsliders, yet it is not always so. Some go into endless loss; for, because they have thrown away God, and want none of him, he in justice flings up them and their souls for ever (Prov 1:24-28).
I have observed, that sometimes God, as it were in response to injury done him, snatches away souls in the very nick of their backsliding, as he served Lot's wife, when he turned her into a pillar of salt, even while she was looking over her shoulder to Sodom (Gen 19:26). An example that every backslider should remember with astonishment (Luke 17:32).
Thus have I, in few words, written to you, before I die, a word to provoke you to faith and holiness, because I want you to have the life that is laid up for all those who believe in the Lord Jesus, and love one another, when I am dead. Though there I shall rest from my labours, and be in paradise, as through grace I am sure, yet it is not there but here, I must do you good. So, not knowing the shortness of my life, nor the difficulties I may have later of serving my God and you, I have taken this opportunity to present these lines to you for your benefit.
Consider what has been said; and the Lord give you understanding in all things. Farewell.