CHAPTER V.—Grace is little at first.
in his bosom, Isa. 40:11; 'Peter, feed my lambs,' John 21:15. He was most familiar and open to the troubled souls. How careful was he that Peter and the rest of the apostles should not be too much dejected after his resurrection! 'Go, tell the disciples, and tell Peter,'
Mark 16:7. Christ knew that guilt of their unkindness in leaving of him had dejected their spirits. How gently did he endure Thomas his unbelief! and stooped so far unto his weakness, as to suffer him to thrust his hand into his side (a).
CHAPTER V.
Grace is little at first.
For the second branch, God will not quench the smoking flax, or wick, but will blow it up till it flameth. In smoking flax there is but a little light, and that weak, as being not able to flame, and this little mixed with smoke.
The observations hence are, first, That in God's children, especially in their first conversion, there is but a little measure of grace, and that little mixed with much corruption, which, as smoke, is offensive.
Secondly, That Christ will not quench this smoking flax.
Obs. 1. For the first, Grace is little at the first. There are several ages in Christians, some babes, some young men: grace is as 'a grain of mustard seed,' Matt. 17:20. Nothing so little as grace at first, and nothing more glorious afterward: things of greatest perfection are longest in coming to their growth. Man, the perfectest creature, comes to perfection by little and little; worthless things, as mushrooms and the like, like Jonah's gourd, soon spring up, and soon vanish. A new creature is the most excellent frame in all the world, therefore it groweth up by degrees; we see in nature that a
mighty oak riseth of an acorn. It is with a Christian as it was with Christ, who sprang out of the dead stock of Jesse, out of David's family, Isa. 53:2, when it was at the lowest, but he grew up higher than the heavens. It is not with the trees of righteousness as it was with the trees of paradise, which were created all perfect at the first.
The seeds of all the creatures in this goodly frame of the world were hid in the chaos, in that confused mass at the first, out of which God did command all creatures to arise; in the small seeds of plants lie hid both bulk and branches, bud and fruit. In a few principles lie hid all comfortable conclusions of holy truth. All these glorious fireworks of zeal and holiness in the saints had their beginning from a few sparks.
Let us not therefore be discouraged at the small beginnings of grace, but look on ourselves, as 'elected to be blameless and without spot,'
Eph. 1:4. Let us only look on our imperfect beginning to enforce further strife to perfection, and to keep us in a low conceit.
Otherwise, in case of discouragement, we must consider ourselves, as Christ doth, who looks on us as such as he intendeth to fit for himself. Christ valueth us by what we shall be, and by that we are elected unto. We call a little plant a tree, because it is growing up to be so. 'Who is he that despiseth the day of little things?' Zech. 4:10.
Christ would not have us despise little things.
The glorious angels disdain not attendance on little ones; little in their own eyes, and little in the eyes of the world.
Grace, though little in quantity, yet is much in vigour and worth.
It is Christ that raiseth the worth of little and mean places and persons. Bethlehem the least, Micah 5:2, Mat. 2:6, and yet not the least; the least in itself, not the least in respect Christ was born there.
The second temple, Hag. 2:9, came short of the outward