Chapter XII: Consectaries
exercises of your graces; see that you love, fear, and obey me, and then, depend upon it, I will look after and take care of you.
5. To conclude, The people of God only flee to God for sanctuary, and cast themselves upon him for protection, Psal. 56:3. "At what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee." Psal. 18:2. "The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust, my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower."
This their confidence in God, and reliance upon him, engage him to protect them in their dangers, Isa. 26:3. All others put themselves out of God's protection by making flesh their arm, and so giving the honour of God to the creature, Jer. 17:5. And thus much for clearing this last proposition also. All that remains will be dispatched in a brief and close application of the point thus opened and confirmed.
CHAPTER XII
Containing the first use of the point in several informing consectaries and deductions of truth from it.
Consectaries Consect. I. FROM the whole of this discourse we may be informed what a miserable and shiftless people all those will be in times of trouble who have no special interest in God, or the promises. Sad and lamentable was the case of Saul, as it is by himself expressed, 1 Sam.
28:15. "I am sore distressed, for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more." It is a wonderful and unaccountable thing, how carnal men and women subsist and bear up, when their earthly props and hopes sink under
and fail them; so long as any creature-coin fort is left, thither they will retreat for relief and succour: but if all fail, as quickly they may, whither will they turn for comfort, having not a God nor a promise to flee to? which the people of God can do when all things else fail them, Heb. 3:17. Their different conditions in the day of trouble is clearly expressed in Zeph. 2:3, 4. "Seek ye the Lord all ye meek of the earth which have wrought his judgment, seek righteousness, seek meekness, it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger."
There is God's may-be, which is better security than man's shall-be for their temporal deliverance: But what shall become of others that have no refuge but in the creature? Why, the misery and shiftlessness of their condition follows in the next words: "Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation; they shall drive out Ashdod at noon-day, and Ekron shall be rooted up;" i.e. All their earthly securities shall fail them; their strong-holds-shall not secure them; they shall find no shelter in the scorching heat of the day of trouble. Moab, Ashdod, and Ekron have no more benefit by the promises made to Zion, than the inhabitants of Rome can claim by the charter of London. If a wicked or hypocritical person cry to God in his distress, he will not hear him, Prov. 1:25, 26. Job 27:9. but will bid him go to his earthly refuges which he hath chosen. If he go to the promises, knock at those doors of hope, they cannot relieve him, being all made in Christ to believers; if to the name and attributes of God all the doors are shut against them, Psal. 34:16. There are seven dreadful aggravations of a wicked man's troubles.
(1.) When troubles come upon him, the curse of God follows him into his carnal refuges; Jer. 17:5. Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord." Trouble is the arrow, and this curse the venom of the arrow, which makes the wound incurable.
(2.) When troubles fall upon him from without, a guilty conscience will terrify him from within; so that the mind can give no relief to the body, but both sink under their own weights. It is not so with the people of God, they have inward relief under outward pressures, 2
Cor. 4:16.
(3.) The gusts and storms of wicked men's troubles may blow them into hell, and hurry them into eternal destruction: if death march towards them upon the pale horse, hell always follows him, Rev. 6:8.
(4.) If troubles and distresses overwhelm their hearts, they can give them no vent or ease by prayer, faith, and resignation to God, as his people use to do, 1 Sam. 1:18.
(5.) When their troubles and distresses come, then come the hour and power of their temptations; and, to shun sorrow, they will fall into sin, having no promise to be kept in the hour of temptation, as the saints have, Rev. 3:10.
(6.) When their troubles come, they will be left alone in the midst of them: these are their burdens, and they alone must bear them. God's gracious, comfortable, supporting presence is only with his own people.
(7.) If trouble or death come upon them as a storm, they have no anchor of hope to drop in the storm; the wicked is driven away in his wickedness; but the righteous hath hope in his death, Prov. 14:32. By all which it appears, that a christless person is a most helpless and shiftless creature in the day of trouble.
Consect. 2. Secondly, Hence it follows, That Christians ought not to drop like other men in the day of trouble. A wicked man's boldness, and a Christian's cowardliness, in times of affliction, are alike
ungrounded and uncomely. Why should thy heart, Christian, despond and sink at this rate, upon the prospect of approaching troubles? Are there not safe and comfortable chambers taken up, and provided for thee against that day? Is not the name of the Lord a strong tower, into which thou mayest run and be safe? The heart of a good man, saith Chrysostom, should at all times be like the higher heavens, serene, tranquil, and clear, whatever thunders and lightnings, storms and tempests trouble and terrify the lower world.
If a man have a good roof over his head, where he can sit dry and warm, what need he trouble himself to hear the winds roar, see the lightnings flash, and the rains pour down without doors? Why this is thy privilege, Christian; "A man (to wit the man Christ Jesus) shall be as an hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land," Isa. 32:2. Art thou in Christ, and in the covenant? give me then one good reason for thy dejections in a day of trouble; or if thou hast none to give, hearken to these reasons against it.
1. If thou be in Christ, thy sins are forgiven thee; and why should not a pardoned soul be a cheerful soul in adversity? Afflictions may buz and hum about thee, like bees that have lost their sting, but they can never hurt thee.
2. If thou be in Christ, thy God is with thee in all thy troubles; and how can thy heart sink or faint in such a presence? Let them that are alone in troubles fail under them: but do not thou do so, who art surrounded with Almighty power, grace, and love, Isa. 43:1, 2.
3. If thou be in Christ, thy greatest afflictions shall prove thy best friends and benefactors, Rom. 8:28. Sure then thou art more afraid than hurt; thou mistakest thy best friends for thy worst enemies; thou and thy afflictions shall part more comfortably than you met.
4. If thou be in Christ, thy treasure is safe, thy eternal happiness is out of the reach of all thine enemies, Luke 12:4. Luke 10:42. And if that be safe, thou hast no cause to be sad; to droop and tremble at the hazard of earthly comforts, whilst heavenly and eternal things are safe, is as if a man that had gotten his pardon from the king, and had it safe in his bosom, should be found weeping upon the way home, because he hath lost his staff or glove. These reasons are strong against the dejections of God's people under outward troubles; but yet I am sensible that all the reasoning in the world will not prevent their dejections, except they will take pains to clear up their interest in God against such a day, Psal. 18:2. and will act their faith by way of adherence and dependence upon God, in the want of former light and evidence, Isa. 50:10. And lastly, that they keep their consciences pure and inviolate, which will be a spring of comfort in the midst of troubles, 2 Cor. 1:12.
3. Consect. Thirdly, It hence appears to be the greatest folly and vanity in the world, to make any thing but God our refuge in the day of trouble. This practice, as you heard but now, is under God's curse; and that which is cursed of God can never be comfortable to us. It is an honour peculiar to God, the right of heaven, and therefore cursed sacrilege to bestow it on the creature. We read of some that make lies their refuge, and hide themselves under falsehood, thinking when the overflowing scourge comes, it shall not come nigh unto them, Isa.
28:15. They will trust to their wits and policies, they will fawn and flatter, lie and dissemble, cast themselves into a thousand shapes and forms to save themselves; but all in vain; the flood shall sweep away their refuge of lies. Others make riches their trust and confidence, Prov. 10:15. "The rich man's wealth is his strong city." If enemies come, their money shall be their ransom: But oh! what a poor refuge will this be! it may betray, but cannot secure them.
Behold, saith God, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall
not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it," Isa.
13:17. Riches profit not in the day of wrath, Prov. 11:4. Job blessed God in the day of his adversity, that he had not made gold his hope, or the fine gold his confidence, Job 31:24. Bless, not thou thyself, that thou hast such things to bestow thy hope and trust upon. Others make men their refuge, especially great and powerful men: But to how little purpose is it! Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help," Psal. 146:3, 4. They cannot keep their crowns upon their heads, no, nor their heads upon their shoulders; the greatest men are but dust, and what can dust do to dust? Three things aggravate their misery, who misplace their confidence by bestowing it on any creature, (1.) That creature will certainly deceive them; men are deceitful men, Psal. 62:9. Riches are deceitful riches, 1 Tim. 6:17. Every thing you lean on beside God will start aside like a deceitful bow, Psal. 78:57. (2.) The disappointment of your hopes from the creature will enflame your affliction, and greatly aggravate your sorrow, 2 Kings 18:21. The broken reeds of Egypt will not only fail, but pierce you. (3.) In a word, God will take none into his protection, who make anything besides himself their hope and confidence; if we fly from God to the creature, God will say,
To the creature thou shalt go; except I have thy dependence, thou shalt never have my protection; where I have no honour, thou shalt have no comfort.
Consect. 4. Fourthly, The former discourse yields us also this comfortable conclusion, That whatever confusions, desolations and troubles be in the earth, the church and people of God can never be wholly exterminated and destroyed, seeing such a secure refuge is prepared for them of God, Psal. 102:28. "The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee."
Which is assigned as the true reason of its perpetuity and safety, Psal. 48:3. "God is known in her palaces for a refuge." The church's
enemies have tried the utmost of their policies and powers in all ages against it, but to no purpose: whilst they have been plotting and persecuting, the preserved remnant have been singing their songs upon Alamoth, even praises to their great Preserver; though they have no external, visible defence, yet are they as safe as salvation itself can make them, "for salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks," Isa. 26:1, 2. Four things are exceeding remarkable in the church's preservation: (1.) No people were ever so fiercely opposed by the powers of this world, "The kings of the earth have set themselves, and the rulers have taken counsel together," Psal. 2:2.
All methods and artifices have been tried, sometimes to jeer and scoff them out of their religion, so did the apostate Julian; and sometimes by cruel tortures to affright them from their religion; the variety, and more than barbarous inhumanity whereof the churchhistories gives us a sad and amazing account. (2.) Under these cruel persecutions they have seemed to be utterly lost, to the eye of sense and reason; "I am left alone, said Elijah, and they seek my life," 1
Kings 19:10. "By whom, Lord, shall Jacob arise, (said Amos) for he is very small?" Amos 7:2. (3.) Notwithstanding all which, the church hath out-lived all its dangers; it is the true Phœnix which hath outlived the deluge. (4.) Such deliverances are proper and peculiar to the church alone; no people, besides the people of God, have such salvations upon record. The great and famous monarchies of the world have dashed one another to pieces, like earthen potsheards*.
And all this by virtue of that promise, Jer. 30:11. "For I am with thee, saith the Lord, to save thee; though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee."
Consect. 5. Fifthly, to conclude, If this be so, then it is a deep and dangerous policy of Satan to shut up our refuge in God against us, as much as may be, in times of trouble. Satan, like a cunning fowler, despairs of getting the birds in his net, except he can beat them out
of their coverts; it is therefore his great design, to estrange and alienate the saints from their God, as much as he can, thereby to cut off their retreat to him in times of trouble; a mischief which the people of God have always vehemently deprecated, Psal. 102:2. Jer.
17:17. and oh that we would beware of it, and shun this mischief by our seasonable preventing watchfulness. There are, among others, three special projects of Satan, whereby he manages this mischievous design against the people of God.
1. By drawing their consciences under guilt, on purpose to destroy the liberty, freedom, and child-like confidence of their souls in their addresses to God. This, if any thing in the world, will do it, Job 11:14,
15. What a loss will that poor soul be at, in times of trouble, whose grumbling and condemning conscience will not suffer him to look up cheerfully and believingly in the face of its God and father, having lost its ancient freedom at the throne of grace?
2. By prevailing with them to neglect and intermit the course of their daily duties, and thereby to let down their communion with God, and, in a great measure, lose their acquaintance with, him. This is a dangerous policy of the devil, and an unspeakable prejudice to the soul. Oh Christian! take heed of a lazy, slothful spirit, or a vain and earthly heart, which will easily suffer the duties of religion to be jostled aside and put by for every trivial occasion; especially beware of slight, formal, and dead-hearted performances of duty, which is little better than the intermission of them; it may, indeed, prevent the scandal, but can never give thee the comfort of religion.
3. By beclouding their interest in God, and darkening their titles and evidences, by thick clouds of doubts and fears. This is the sad case of many a poor Christian in a day of trouble; without are fightings, and within are fears. Brethren, I beseech you, think often what those
things are, which usually put men into such frights and straits, when imminent dangers stare them in the face; what it is that daunts and damps the hearts of Christians at such times; and as you value the peace and freedom of your souls with God, give not matter for your consciences to reproach you of mis-spent time, indulged sins, neglected duties, formality or hypocrisy in duties, sinister and byends in your transactions with God or man: preserve the purity and peace of your consciences, as you would preserve your two eyes; if by such wiles the devil cannot bar you from your God, or shut up your refuge in him, your outward troubles can do you no hurt.
The second use, of direction and advice.
Sect. II. The providences of God, in these days, giving us such loud warnings of approaching judgment; how are all that are wise in heart, and understanding of the times, now more especially concerned to clear their interest in these blessed attributes of God, which have here been opened, as their only refuge in the evil day. Let me therefore persuade and press you to betake yourselves to God, your refuge and strong-hold in trouble, and that more especially in these two great duties, viz.
1. Of fervent supplication.
2. Of universal resignation.
1. Betake yourselves to God by fervent prayer and supplication. Let me say of these times, as holy Mr. Perkins did of his*; "These are no times for Christians to contend and strive one with another, but with their united cries to strive with God;" and among other requests, strongly to enforce and follow home that of David, Psal. 71:2, 3.
Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape; incline thine ear unto me, and save me; be thou my strong habitation,
whereunto I may continually resort." That is a true and weighty observation of Austin†, "A refuge is not to be found in trouble, except it be provided before-hand in peace." "For this (saith the Psalmist) shall every one that is godly pray unto thee, in a time when thou mayest be found; surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him," Psal. 22:6. Had not Noah prepared and secured himself in the ark, before the floods of great waters came, he had not sat, as he did, mediis tranquillus in undis; sleeping quietly, when others were perishing in the waters. Gather yourselves therefore together, before the decree bring forth; seek the Lord, all ye meek of the earth; be more frequent and more fervent in prayer, now than ever; you have all the encouragements in the world to incite you to this duty: the nature of your God is exceeding pitiful, tender, and compassionate, James 5:11. The endeared relations betwixt God and you give singular encouragement of success: shall not God hear his own elect, which cry unto him day and night? Luke 18:7. The sweet returns and answers of former prayers are so many motives and encouragements to follow close that profitable duty, Psal. 51:1, 2, 3.
And above all, your prevalent Advocate in the heavens should encourage you to come frequently and boldly to the throne of grace,
"that you may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need," Heb. 4:16. In two things I shall briefly offer a few directions here, viz.
1. As to the matter of prayer.
2. As to the manner of prayer.
1. As to the matter of prayer, I mean such as the state and condition of the times, now more especially, suggest.
(1.) Unite your prayers, and cry mightily to the Lord, that if it be his good pleasure, this cup of wrath, which seems to be mingled and
prepared, may pass from his people. Now cry to God, as they are directed to do, Joel 2:17. "Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them, wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God, O pray, that England may not be delivered into the hands of bloodthirsty Papists, that the golden candlestick may not be removed, that idolatry may not return into those places where God hath been so sweetly worshipped; that a land so peculiarly blessed with gospellight, wherein so many thousand sons and daughters have been born to God, may not, at last, become an Aceldama, a great shambles, to quarter out the limbs of his dear saints: that the pleasant plant of reformation, planted with his own right-hand, and watered with so many tears, yea, with so much blood, may not, at last, be rooted up by the wild boar of the forest!
(2.) Pray indefinitely, that you may be kept from the sins and temptations of the times. O watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation; if you cannot prevail with God to turn away his anger, yet be importunate with him that you may be kept from sin; that if you lose your outward peace, you may be able to keep inward peace; that you may never sacrifice your consciences, to save your flesh; that you may never fall under the displeasure of God, to avoid the rage of men. Ah friends! we little think what a fearful havock an hour of temptation will make in such a professing nation as this is; then shall many be offended, Mat. 24:10. O pray, that you may never give offence to others, by scandal, or take offence yourselves at the ways of God, whatever sufferings and sharp trials shall come.
(3.) Pray earnestly for the sanctification of all your troubles to your eternal good; an unsanctified comfort never did any man good, and a sanctified trouble never did any man hurt; be more earnest therefore with God, rather to have your troubles sanctified than prevented; to
get the blessing than to avoid the smart of them; if they cannot be turned away from you, pray they may be turned to your salvation.
2. Betake yourselves to God, your refuge, by faith, resigning and committing all into his hands, "Now the just shall live by faith," Heb.
10:38. The more you can trust God, the more you secure yourselves from danger; he that can live by faith shall never die by fear; and be sure to inform yourselves well in two things, viz.
1. What it is to trust God over all.
2. What grounds you have so to do.
1. Be well instructed in the nature of this duty; there are six things imported in such acts of resignation.
1. An awakened sense of our dangers and hazards. "At what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee," Psal. 56:3. Suffering times are resigning times, 1 Pet. 4:19 "Let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well-doing, as unto a faithful Creator.". And the greater and nearer our dangers are, the more frequent and vigorous should the actings of our faith this way be: Be not far from me, for trouble is near.
2. Resignation to God necessarily implies our renunciation and disclaiming of all other refuges. "Ashur shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses, neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, ye are our gods, for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy," Hos.
14:3. He that relies upon God must cease from man; resignation to God excludes not the use of lawful means, but it doth exclude dependence upon them.
3. Resignation to God is always grounded upon an interest in God; we have no warrant nor encouragement to expect protection from him in time of trouble, except we can come to him as children to a father: It is the filial relation that gives encouragement to this fiducial resignation; and the clearer that relation and interest is, the more bold and confident those acts of faith will be; Psal. 86:2.
"Preserve my soul, for I am holy: O thou, my "God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee." And again, Psal. 119:94. "I am thine, save me."
I speak not here of the first act of faith which flows not from an interest, but gives the soul an interest in God. Nor do I say, that poor, doubting, and timorous believers, whose interest in him is dark and dubious, have no warrant to resign themselves and their concernments into his hands; for it is both their right and duty to do it: but certainly the clearer our interest is, the more facile and comfortable will those acts be.
4. The committing acts of faith imply a full acknowledgment and owning of God's power to protect us, be the danger never so imminent; Psal. 31:15. "My times are in thy hand, deliver me from the hands of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me;" q. d.
O Lord, I am fully satisfied, my life is not at the disposal of mine enemies; it is not in their hands, but in thine; all the traps and snares they lay for it shall not shorten one minute of my time; I know thine hand is fully able to protect me, and therefore into thine hands I resign myself and all I have.
5. Resignation involves in it an expectation of help and safety from God, when we see no way of security from men. "O Lord, saith
Jehoshaphat, We have no might, nor strength, neither know we what to do, but our eyes are unto thee," 2 Chron. 20:12. So David, Psal.
62:5, 6. "My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is
from him: he only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be moved."
6. Resignation to God implies the leaving of ourselves, and our concernments with him, to be disposed of according to his good pleasure; the resigning soul desires the Lord to do with him what he will, and is content to take what lot Divine pleasure shall cast for him: 2 Sam. 15:25. "And the king said unto Zadok, carry back the ark of God into the city; if I shall find favour in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me again, and shew me both it and his habitation; but if he thus say, I have no delight in thee, behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him." And so much of the nature of this duty, that we may understand what to do.
2. Next, let me shew you what encouragements you that are the people of God have to this duty; and they will appear to be great and many.
1. The sovereignty and absolute dominion of God over all creatures is a singular encouragement to commit ourselves into his hands, and trust him over all, Psal. 59:9. "Because of his strength will I wait upon thee; for God is my defence." If a man were in danger amidst a great army of rude and insolent soldiers, and were to put himself under the protection of any one, it would be his wisdom to chuse to do it under the general, who had all the soldiers of his army at his beck. Christian, thy God, into whose hands thou committest thyself is Lord-general of all the hosts and armies in heaven and earth; how safe must thou then be in his hands?
2. The unsearchable and perfect wisdom of God is a mighty encouragement to commit ourselves into his hands; With him is plenteous redemption, Psal. 130 ult. i.e. Choice and variety of ways and methods to save his people; we are, but God never is, at a loss to
find a door for our escape, 2 Pet. 2:9. "The Lord knoweth "how to deliver the godly out of temptation."
3. The infinite tenderness and compassionateness of our God, is a sweet encouragement to resign and commit ourselves and all we have into his hands; his mercy is incomparably tender towards his people, infinitely beyond whatever any creature felt stirring in its own bowels towards another that came out of its bowels, Isa. 49:15.
This compassion of God engageth the two fore-mentioned attributes, viz. his power and wisdom for the preservation and relief of his people, as often as distresses befal them. Yea,
4. The very distresses his people are in, do, as it were, awake the Almighty power of God for their defence and rescue; our distresses are not only proper seasons, but powerful motives to his saving power, Deut. 32:36. "For the Lord shall judge his people, "and repent himself for his servants when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up or left." God makes it an argument to himself, and his people plead it as an argument with him, "be not far from me, for trouble is near, for there is none to help."
5. We have already committed greater and weightier concernments into his hand than the dearest interest we have in this world; we have entrusted our souls with him, 1 Pet. 4:19. 2 Tim. 1:12. Well therefore may we commit the lesser, who have entrusted the greater with him:
What are our lives, liberties, estates, and relations, compared with our souls, and the eternal safety and happiness of them!
6. The committing act of faith is the great and only expedient to procure and secure the peace and tranquillity of our minds, amidst all the distractions and troubles of the present world; the greatest part of our affliction and trouble in such days is from the working of our own thoughts; these torments from within are worse than any
from without; and the resignation of all to God by faith is their best and only cure, Prov. 16:3. "Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established." A blessed calmness of mind, a sweet tranquillity and settlement of thoughts follow immediately hereupon,
Psal. 94:19. Oh then leave all with God, and quietly expect a comfortable issue: and for the better settlement and security of thy peace in times of distraction and trouble, I beseech thee, reader, carefully to watch and guard against these two evils.
Cautions Caution 1. Beware of infidelity or distrustfulness of God and his promises which secretly lurks in thy heart, and is very apt to bewry itself when great distresses and troubles befal thee. Thou wilt know it by such symptoms as these: 1. In an over-hasty and eager desire after present deliverance, Isa. 51:14. "The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail." The less faith, always the more impatience; and the more ability to believe, the more patience to wait. 2. It will discover itself in our readiness to close with, and catch at sinful mediums and methods of deliverance, Isa. 30:15, 16. And this is the handle of temptation, and occasion of apostasy. But lie that believeth will not make haste, Isa. 26:18. No more haste than good speed. 3. It will shew itself in distracting cares and fears about events, which will rack the mind with various and endless tortures.
Caution 2. Beware of dejection and despondency of mind in evil times; take heed of a poor low spirit that will presently sink and give up its hope upon every appearance and face of trouble; it is a promise made unto the righteous, Psal. 112:7. "He shall not be afraid of evil tidings, his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord." The trusting of God fixes the heart, and the fixing of the heart fortifies it against fear: But
I know what many poor Christians will say in this case; their timorousness and despondency arise not so much from the greatness of outward evils, as from the darkness and doubtfulness of their spiritual and inward condition, which, doubtless, is the very truth of the case; which brings me to the last use of this point.
Use the third.
Search and examine your hearts, Christians, whether those graces and qualifications, to which God hath promised protection in evil times, may not be found upon an impartial search in your hearts; amongst which, I will single out three principal ones, as the proper matters of your self-examination, viz.
1. Uprightness of heart and way.
2. Humiliation for your own and other's sins.
3. Righteousness in doing, and meekness in suffering the will of God.
1. Uprightness and integrity of heart and way. To this qualification belong many sweet promises of protection; such is that, Prov. 2:7.
"He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly," Psal 7:10. "My defence is of God, which saveth the upright in heart." If your hearts be true to God, these promises shall be truly performed to you? but beware you deceive not yourselves in so great a point as this is. Thy heart cannot be an upright heart, except, (1.) It be a renewed heart; the natural heart is always a false heart; it is only regeneration that gives the heart a right temper and frame; all the duties and labours in the world can never keep the heart right in its course, which is not first set right for God, by a principle of renovation. (2.) We cannot judge ourselves upright, except uprightness be the settled frame and standing bent of our hearts, Psal. 119:112, 117. It is not our integrity
in one or two single actions, but in the general course, and complex frame of our lives and ways, that will prove our integrity to God. (3.)
Then may we reckon ourselves upright, when the dread and awe of God's all-seeing eye keeps our hearts and steps from turning aside to iniquity, Gen. 39:9. 2 Chron. 2:17. That is a sincere and upright heart indeed, that finds itself at all times, and in all places, overawed from sin, by the eye of God upon him. (4.) That man's heart also is upright with God, who purely aims at, and designs the glory of God, as the scope and end of his life and actions, who lives not up to himself, neither acts ultimately and principally for himself, but lives to God, as a person dedicated and devoted to him, Rom. 14:7. (5.) That heart also is upright with God, which governs itself, and its ways, by the directions and rules of the word, Psal. 119:11, 24, 133. Happy is that soul that finds such evidences of integrity in itself, when it is brought to the trial of it at the bar of the word, Heb. 4:12. at the bar of conscience, 2 Cor. 1:12. at the bar of affliction, Psal. 119:87. and at the bar of strong temptations, Gen. 39:9. The eyes of the Lord shall run to and fro through the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of such whose hearts are thus perfect towards him.
2. Another gracious qualification, clearing the soul's title to God's special protection in the worst and most dangerous times, is true humiliation for our own and other men's sins: "Go, set a mark, saith
God, upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof," Ezek. 9:4. These that thus mourn, when others laugh, shall laugh when others mourn.
Lot was the only mourner in Sodom, and he was the only person exempted from destruction in the ruin and overthrow thereof. 2 Pet.
2:7. That is a sweet and blessed privilege mentioned in Isa. 66:10.
"Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her; rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her; that ye may suck and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations, that ye may
milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory." Be contented, Christians, to bear your part in Sion's groans and sorrows; you may live to bear your part in her triumphs and songs of deliverance: It is an argument of the true publicness and tenderness of your spirits for the present, and as sweet a sign as can appear upon your souls, that you are reserved for better days.
3. Righteousness in doing, and meekness in suffering the will of God, is another mark or note, distinguishing and describing those persons whom God will preserve in the evil day. You have both these together in Zeph. 2:3. "Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgments; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger." The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers, 1
Pet. 3:12. If righteousness brings you into danger, the righteous God will take care of you in that danger, and bring you out of it. Oh! it is a singular comfort, when a man can say, It was not my sin, but my duty, that brought me into trouble; this affliction met me in the path and way of my duty; it is for thy sake, O Lord, that I am in trouble; as the martyr that held up the bible at the stake, saying, This hath brought me hither.
To conclude: Manage all your sufferings for Christ, with christian meekness: As righteousness must bring you into them, so meekness must carry you through them; if you avenge yourselves, you take the cause out of God's hand into your own; but the meek Christian leaves it to the Lord, and shall never have cause to repent of his so doing. If thou have an upright heart with God, a tender and mournful heart for sin, and thou suffer with meekness for righteousness sake, thou art one of those souls to whom that sweet voice is directed in my text,
Come my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee; hide thyself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.
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