33. Joining Graces
Chapter Thirty-Three Joining Graces
. Wisdom The deepest seas are the most calm, so men of the deepest judgments are most quiet. A man of understanding is of an excellent spirit, Prov. 17:27, or thus, is of a cool spirit, for so the word signifies; his spirit is not heated with passion, there is a cool dew of examination and deliberation upon his spirit. He weighs the circumstances, consequences, and issues of things; he orders and disposes of things so that jars, contradictions, and oppositions are prevented. The wisdom that is from above is pure, peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, James 3:17. Reason and wisdom have a majesty in them and will force reverence. Let passion reverence the presence of reason, says Basil, as children doing things unseemly are afraid of the presence of men of worth.
2. Faith 1. This unites us to Christ and God, and in them to one another. 2. Faith commits all causes, all fears, injuries to God. 3. Faith lays hold upon and improves those gracious promises that God has made to His Churches for union. Faith sues out the bond. 4. Faith is able to descry the issue of
troubles and afflictions; though sense says, it will not be, reason says, it cannot be, yet faith gets above and says, it shall be, I descry land: and thus quiets all in the soul; all being quiet there, the turbulent motions that are in our spirits one towards another are soon quieted.
3. Humility Colossians 3:12: Put on as the elect of God, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind. Ephesians 4:2: With all lowliness and meekness, and long-suffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Philippians 2:3: Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. We may say of humility, as Tertullus, Acts 24 said of Felix, By thee we enjoy great quietness. A humble heart looks upon every truth of God as infinitely above itself; therefore it is willing to receive it from any; a child may lead it, Isaiah 11:6. One Baldassar, a German Divine, writing to Oecolampadius, has this notable expression: Let the Word of the Lord come, let it come, and we will put under six hundred necks if we had them. Such a disposition as this would make much for peace. Isaiah 32:1819: we have a promise that the people of God should dwell in a peaceable habitation and in quiet resting places, and the city shall be low, in a low place. When the heart lies lowest, it is quietest.
4. Self-Denial The joints in the body cannot join unless one part is hollow and gives way to the other. Condescension of one to another is a principal thing in friendship. Philippians 2: The example of Christ emptying Himself and making Himself to be of no reputation is set before us as an argument for our union; that therefore we should do nothing through strife but be likeminded, having the same love, and be of one accord and one mind. It is
indifferent to a heart emptied of self whether it conquers or is conquered so that truth may triumph. In other conflicts, the conqueror has the honor and the conquered is disgraced; but in the conflict for truth, both conquered and conqueror are honorable; the mercy is greater to him that is conquered; but he must have a self-denying heart to make him think so.
5. Patience The olive, the emblem of peace, will continue green though overflown by waters for a long time together. After Noah had been so long in the ark, the dove brought an olive leaf in her mouth to him. It may be an emblem of patience as well as peace. Patience and peaceableness are near akin.
Ephesians 4:2-3: Long-suffering is among the graces where the unity of the spirit is to be kept in the bond of peace.
There is a notable story I find in the lives of the German Divines: One Vitus Theodorus, a Divine, sends to advise with Melanchthon what he should do when Osiander preached against him; Melanchthon writes to him and beseeches him for the love of God, yea charges him that he should not answer Osiander again but that he should hold his peace and behave himself as if he heard nothing. Vitus Theodorus writes back again that this was very hard, yet he would obey. Let not men be too hasty to oppose oppositions but let them go on patiently in a constant way, resolving to bear what they meet with, and God at length will make their righteousness break forth as the light. Confute evil reports by thy life. He that knows not how to bear calumnies, reproaches, injuries knows not how to live, says Chytræus, another German Divine.
6. Joy in the Holy Ghost Romans 14:17: The Kingdom of heaven is righteousness, peace, joy in the Holy Ghost. This grace in the heart puts a grace upon all a man's
conversation; it makes it lovely and amiable. The beams of the sun shining upon the fire will put it out; the beams of this spiritual joy will put out the fire of our passions.
7. Meekness, Gentleness Milk quenches wildfire; oil (says Luther) quenches lime which water sets on fire. Opposition will heat and fire men when meekness and gentleness will still and quench all. Cicero says sweetness in speech and carriage is that which seasons friendship; severity in everything and sadness must not be among friends in their converse; such a kind of carriage may have a seeming gravity but friendship must have a remissness; it must be more free and sweet, disposed to all mildness and easiness. Ephesians 4:2-3:
Meekness comes in as a special grace for peace and unity, so Colossians 3:12.
8. Love That is the special uniting grace; Faith indeed has the preeminence in our union with Christ our head, but Love is the grace that unites the members.
In 1 Corinthians 13, the Apostle shows many of the fruits of this grace, all tending to union and peace: It suffers long, it envies not; it is not puffed up, it behaves not itself unseemly, it seeks not its own, it is not easily provoked, thinks no evil, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Bearing all things and enduring all things seem to be the same. Therefore, some would have it that it covers all things, for so the word also signifies; but there is a greater elegance in it, in the translation, bears all things. It is like the cross main beam in a house, supporting the whole building: and were it not for some who have the love of God and his truth, and the good of the public, enabling them to undergo what they do, more than any
encouragement from men, all things in Church and State would be ready to fall into confusion, to be nothing but a heap of rubbish; but this love enables them to bear all things.
But if they have no encouragement, but see that though they hazard themselves ever so much, be of ever so great use, do the greatest services that can be expected from men, yet when men's turns are served, they are little regarded, but envied and narrowly watched to spy out anything that may have some show of exception against them, and left to shift for themselves as well as they can, when they might justly expect a great reward for their services, yet are disappointed, their hearts are grieved. But yet because they are acted by a principle of love to God, his cause, the public, they therefore still hold out, go on in their way, labor to be as instrumental as they can for good, commit themselves and all their endeavors to God, expecting encouragement from him, and so they endure all things: such men are worth their weight in gold: here is a heart that has much of the spirit of God in it. God is love, and he that dwells in love dwells in God, and God in him. No wonder though these men act so swiftly in their way; no wonder though their motion in public service be so speedy, for their chariot is like that chariot of Solomon's, Canticles 3:10. The middle thereof is paved with love, and this is for the daughters of Jerusalem. Now may the love of God be forever with these his servants; the blessing of the Almighty and all his Saints be with them, upon them, in them and theirs forever.
Where men are acted by love they may do anything without offense. If you be silent, and be silent out of love; if you cry out, and you do it out of love; if you spare, and it be out of love; if you correct, and you correct from
love; let all be for amendment for good, all from the root of love; love, and do what you will. Thus Augustine in his 7th Tractate upon John.
These with other uniting graces that might be mentioned are the graces that God expects should be in a special manner acted in these times; and this is in a holy manner καῖρω δουλεύειν (to serve the time), as some copies have it, Romans 12:11. This is the most suitable work for the times wherein we live. What is more seasonable for divided times than uniting graces?
And that union that comes from the acting of these graces is a spiritual, holy, truly Christian union—a raised union to a far higher pitch than any natural excellencies can raise unto. It is an excellent saying of Clemens
Alexandrinus: If the spiritual man be in us, our humanity is fraternity. What then is our fraternity? It is raised to that which has no name to express it: the union of the Saints in heaven is beyond the union of fraternity; this which is of grace is of the same nature.