CHAPTER VII. That our obedience ought to be continued
Therefore the greatest glory God hath from the saints and angels, is that which no creature can give a witness of. Now then, to do a thing to the glory of God, is to do it so as to please God, aiming at him, moved by his glory, referring it to his glory, and intending it so; and this is necessary to every good work that is a fruit of righteousness. I shall give you but a place or two: Col. 1:10, he prays that they might
'walk worthy of the Lord unto all well-pleasing, being fruitful in every good work.' A man never walketh worthy of the Lord, that is, as becomes one that hath communion with God, unless he aims at him in all things to please him. The like scripture you have in 2 Tim. 2:5,
6, compared (for I still choose out such scriptures as near as I can that have the metaphor of fruit in them), 'The husbandman that labours,' saith he, 'must be first partaker of the fruits'; so must God.
And, saith he, verse 4, 'No man that warreth entangleth himself in the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.' It was the law of the militia of Rome, and of that empire, that they should do nothing else but give themselves up to the commands of their general, and unto matters of war; they were not to be sent of an errand by their captains, nor employed by them in any private business; and all was that they might please him that had chosen them, that they might please their general, to whom, and unto whose service they were assigned. Thus now to give a man's self up wholly unto God, to aim to please him in all things, and to act all to the glory of God, to make that the chiefest guide and rule of all my actions, this is to do all to the praise and glory of God.
CHAPTER VII
That our obedience ought to be continued; that a man shall in the day of Christ appear with all those fruits of righteousness which he hath brought forth in Christ to the glory of God.
There is only a third thing to be explained, and that is, what is meant by the words of the text, Philip. 1:10, 'till the day of Christ.'
Now, as in relation to that reference, I do observe from thence, 1. All the good acts and fruits of righteousness, inward and outward, that any man hath done by Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God, though in never so weak a measure, he shall appear with them all at the day of Christ. It shall not be with him as with other trees that have long borne fruit, and at the last have none appearing on them; but all the fruit that a man hath borne successively in his whole life, he shall appear withal at the latter day. Wicked men shall appear with all their bad works, and godly men shall appear with all their good works; and therefore the end of the world (Matt. 13:39) is called a harvest; and it is called a reaping. Gal. 6:5–7, where the apostle alludeth to the day of judgment, though he speaks of our liberality—'what a man soweth that shall he reap;' and at the harvest the crop comes in all at once: whatsoever a man soweth, though he sow barley at one time, and wheat at another, and rye at another, yet at the harvest all the crop comes in. 'He goeth forth,' saith the psalmist, 'carrying precious seed with him;' but when the harvest is, he shall come again, 'bringing all his sheaves with him,' Ps. 126:6. All the works that he hath done, he brings them with him at the day of judgment. Now, then, that which the apostle prays for in the behalf of these Philippians is, that at that day they might appear filled with all the fruits of righteousness, and fruits of that kind, which are by Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. And the reason is this, because a man's fruit remaineth, John 15:14, 16, and remaining for ever, they meet him there at the day of judgment. 'Charge them that are rich' (saith the apostle, in 1 Tim. 6:17–19), 'that they be rich in good works, laying up in store for themselves a good foundation
against the time to come.' It will be a store and a treasury, which a man shall meet withal at that day.
2. As a man shall appear thus with all his fruits of righteousness, so to appear at that day filled with the fruits of righteousness which he brought forth in the whole course of his life, shall be of exceeding great moment and concernment. It will be of concernment every way then, besides all the uses of it now. For,
(1.) As all these fruits were by Jesus Christ, so there will be a great deal of honour arise to Jesus Christ, 'who shall then come to be glorified in his saints' (as you have it in 2 Thes. 1:10), 'and to be made wonderful in them that believe.' For Jesus Christ shall present us to the Father at the latter day, Col. 1:22, and our fruit will be found on him: 'All thy fruit is found in me,' saith he in Hos. 14:8. All our fruit, I say, will be found on him, and he will have the glory of all; therefore to have brought forth fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus
Christ, will be infinitely to the glory of Jesus Christ. As he will say, 'Here are the children which thou hast given me,' so here are the fruits these children have brought forth. We are married unto Christ, saith the apostle, that we may bring forth fruit unto God. I am the husband, will Christ say, and these are the children of those unto whom I am married; and therefore a saint is called the glory of Christ, 2 Cor. 8:19.
(2.) And this will be for the glory of Christ, so for the glory of God the Father, to whom all this was done. Therefore the apostle Peter, 1 Pet.
2, exhorts them to hold forth the virtues and graces of Jesus Christ, to have their conversation honest amongst the Gentiles; that whereas they speak against them as evil doers, they may by their good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation, that at that great and general muster, as I may so call it, when every man
shall shew his arms, God may then be glorified. So that in respect of the glory that shall arise to God the Father at that day, and that even before others also, it is of great use to be filled with fruits of righteousness; not only that God may be glorified here in this world
(as you have it, Mat. 5:16, 'That they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven'), but that there may also a great deal of glory arise unto God, and confusion of face unto wicked men, even in that day of visitation.
(3.) It is of infinite use likewise unto us; for I do believe it to be a great truth in the word of God, if I had time to open it, that there are degrees of glory, and especially at that great day of judgment, which will be according as a man hath been filled with fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ to the glory of God, here in this world. The prophet (in Jer. 17:8, 10, verses compared) compares a man that trusts in the Lord, and so out of faith worketh and bringeth forth fruit, to 'a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her root by the river; that hath her leaf green, and is not careful in the year of drought, neither doth cease from yielding fruit.' And ver. 10 saith he, 'The Lord shall reward every man according to his doings;' that is, by an Hebraism, according to their doings, which were their fruits. Compare the two verses together, and you shall find them pertinent to the thing in hand; and answerably in Gal. 6:8, 10, saith the apostle, 'as a man soweth so shall he reap.' Now a man soweth either to the flesh, to his lusts, or to the Spirit; all his thoughts and affections are laid out either upon things spiritual, or else upon things carnal, or else, as others interpret it, either on things of the soul and the eternal glory thereof, or on things of the body. Now, saith the apostle, whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap, both according to the kind and according to the measure; look what a man sows to his lusts, to the flesh, he shall of the flesh reap corruption; even to a godly man,
whatsoever he sows to the flesh will be all lost. But what is sown to the Spirit it will rise up to eternal life; 'He that soweth to the Spirit,' saith he, 'shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.' He compares every action that a man doth to a seed; every action hath a seed (let us look to it, my brethren), a man sows a seed in every thought, in every affection, in every word, in every action that he doth in any kind; and there will either come up corruption if it be bad seed, or it will come up to eternal life if it be good. 'Be not deceived,' saith he, 'God is not mocked,' for he seeth and observeth every seed that is sown, and it is he that makes the harvest (for so I take those words in Gal. 6 to refer to that coherence): 'Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, he shall also reap.' He will look to that; he seeth every seed you sow, every thought, and every affection, and every action, and he will be sure to make the harvest accordingly.
James speaketh in the same language too; chap. 5, he exhorteth them there to patience in well-doing, and he doth it under this very metaphor I have now spoken of. 'Be patient,' saith he ver. 7, 'till the coming of our Lord,' do but stay till then. Whence hath he his similitude? What shall we expect at the coming of our Lord? 'Behold,' saith he, 'the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.' He compares the coming of the Lord to the harvest, and the time of this life to sowing of seed. 'The husbandman waiteth,' saith he, 'for the precious fruit of the earth.' It is called precious fruit, because, indeed, the fruit of the earth is more precious than gold, for a man cannot eat gold; gold, and silver, and pearl, are not so precious as corn. And sometimes it is precious seed which is sown, because it cost him a great deal of money, and he saves it out of his own belly to sow it in the earth; and when he hath done, he endureth all weathers, and still waiteth and hath long patience for the harvest. 'Do you also,' saith he, 'wait for the coming of the Lord,
because then is the harvest, and he will reward every man according to the fruit of his doings.' And hence therefore you shall find (still that I may speak in the language of the metaphor) in this epistle to the Philippians, chap. 4 ver. 17, whenas they had sent him a benevolence, saith he, 'It is not that I desire a gift,' or that I rejoice in what you have done, 'but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.' He compares it to merchandising; there is, saith he, so much set upon your account in heaven for it, it is a fruit of righteousness, and a seed sown, which you will have an account of at the latter day. Certainly, my brethren, God, as he will reward every man according to the kind of his works, that is, those that have done good shall go into eternal life, as the expression is; and he will make it out by the kind of the works that this man is a good man and the other not; so he will reward according to the proportion, the proportionality. But why should I call it proportion, since it holds no proportion with degrees of glory? You have a place very considerable,
Rev. 22:11, it is Christ's last speech from heaven, his last sermon that he makes: 'He that is unjust, let him be unjust still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy, let him be holy still.' The reason why he speaks thus of wicked men, 'he that is unjust, let him be unjust still,' is because, that notwithstanding all that he had said in this book, and in the whole book of God, they would go on in their wickedness; and because the day of judgment is deferred, they would be more wicked (as Daniel also had foretold in his prophecy, chap.
12:10); but be not offended at it, 'But he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy, let him be holy still;' let him continue and increase in holiness. And why? 'Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me;' that is, I have it ready, for so in 1 Peter
4:5 he is said to be 'ready to judge the quick and the dead.' I have every man's account in my head, and I have the reward he shall have, for I have summed up all the holiness that is in the heart and life of a
godly man, and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be, not only for the kind but for the degree. Why?
Clearly because he that is righteous let him be more righteous; he that is holy, let him be more holy; for my reward is with me, and I will give every man according as his work shall be found at that day.
Therefore doth the apostle here (Philip. 1:10) pray that they may be filled with fruits of righteousness; for the more they are filled with such fruits, the more will there be fruit come in then to their account.
Truly they hold no proportion with what shall be then, that is certain, none at all; yet as a man that is casting up of what is due to him may do it with counters, when the money that is paid holds no proportion with the counters, and yet may truly say the money that is paid him is according to that account made up with the counters; so here, though all the fruit we bring forth here, all the works we do here, are not worthy of that glory that shall be revealed, they have nothing in them proportionable to it, yet notwithstanding it shall be according to that account. How this stands with free grace, and is not of works,
I have shewed in my sermons on Eph. 2.
How should these thoughts make us for ever grow up in holiness, and to endeavour to be filled with the fruits of righteousness! 'Every man,' saith the apostle, 1 Cor. 3:8, 'shall receive his proper reward.' It is a reward proper to his work, to his labour. And to the same purpose is what the apostle says, 2 Cor. 5:10, 'For we must all appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.' 'In the body,' that is, proper to the body, as some read it; or as it followeth, as he hath behaved himself in the body. And he speaks suitable, 1 Cor. 3:8, 'Now he that planteth, and he that watereth, are one, and every man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labour.' It is meant of heaven, for saith he, ver.
15, 'He shall be saved, yet by fire;' he shall suffer so much loss, for the
Spirit of God will reveal all. Consider also another place of the apostle, Eph. 6:8, 9, he speaks upon occasion of ordinary duties, of the duties of servants that do service in their callings; but you may apply it to anything else that is good, that hath any ingenuity* in it, that is done through Christ to the glory of God. 'Servants,' saith he,
'be obedient, &c., not with eye-service;' he speaks not only of holy duties, but of all that a man doth, of servants serving their masters,
'knowing that whatsoever good thing a man doth, the same shall he receive of the Lord.' A man doth such a one a good turn, and he doth it out of a principle of grace and holiness; whatsoever good thing any man doth, whatsoever ingenuity any man sheweth of any kind, the same he shall receive of the Lord. He would never condescend to particulars else, to a cup of cold water, as he doth in Mark 9. All yield, even those that are against degrees of glory, that at the last day there shall more approbation be given to one man than to another; but why not for ever, seeing a man's righteousness remaineth for ever?
And therefore, my brethren, how should all these things make us endeavour after holiness, as Peter saith (suffer the words of exhortation, for these things the holy apostles pressed upon the hearts and spirits of men): 2 Pet. 3:14, 'Seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent, that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless,' which is the first part; 'And seeing that these things must be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be, in all holy and godly conversation!' so it is in the original. The apostle
Peter, who doth in his epistles sparkle forth so much holiness, yet he hath so great and so vast a sight of holiness, which yet he would attain to, that he knows not bow to express it. 'What manner of men,' saith he, 'ought we to be!' It is a word of admiration, as when Christ did still the sea in Mat. 8:27, 'What manner of man is this!' say they; so here, what manner of holiness should we use, 'looking for and