Works, Part 4 · Religious instruction · Chapter 63
CHAP. LXIII. Of Physicke and Diet, Sicknesse and Health.
IN that Christ doth vouchsafe to bee called our Physition, and to bee so, it doth greatly commend vntounto vsus his kindnesse vnspeakable, and merciemercy vnmeasurable, that hee would come downe from heauen from his throne of glorie, to become a PhysitionProperties of an expert Physition. to heale our desperate diseases. More that hee is no common leach, but such a one as wee may safely put our liues into his hand, it wil appeare easily if we consider the properties of an expert Physition, in whom these three are chiefly to be considered and required. First a sense of the infirmitie, wherby in looking wel ouer vsus, we may know the disease the more1 throughly. Such a one was Christ, Esay 53. He had good cause to know our infirmities, he needed not that any should counsaile him, he knew what was in man. Secondly, a very readie2 and willing minde to heale them, and take paines with them that are diseased. This also was in our Sauiour, Esay 64. The Spirit of the Lord is vponupon me, in that hee hath annointed me, that I was willing to heale the broken hearted, & preach forth the acceptable yeere of the Lord. Thirdly, a facultie and facilitie in healing. This also was in full measure in him. He went about, saith Matthew, doing good, healing eueryevery disease and maladie among the people, which may far more fitly by way of a Metaphor, be translated vntounto the soule, where after a more singular way he worketh great masteries, and doth great cures. This is the comfort of all comforts to the groaning soule, to hauehave a pitifull, a willing, and a skilfull Physition to looke vponupon them, and take them in hand.
2 When sicknes or any affliction is vponupon vsus, wee must take heede that wee indent not with the Lord, but learne presently to liue righteously, and to profit by whatsoeuer is laid vponupon vsus, though we see not present release. For if the crosse onelyonly humble vsus, and wee be not humbled in heart, what shall we be when the crosse is gone? Therefore let vsus see the Lord, and bee humbled, because it is his doing, and with our whole heart subscribe thereunto, and let the Lord remoue it in his time, so that we presently profit by it.
3 A certaine man who had bin three yeeres pained with a grieuous disease, and findingTo be truly humbled in sicknesse to beare the Lords crosse. no remedie by Physick, wished many times to die, and yet when he had better considered, he humbled himselfe and said with his heart, If this lie on me all my life, yet wil I serue the Lord, which done he found present ease, and was not troubled therewith afterward. Also when men are fallen into the hands of the Magistrate, or of the discipline of the Church, they will shew great repentance for the time. But when the time of their examination and course of Iustice is past, then also is their pietie past, they are neuer the better; which sheweth that they were not truly humbled, neither receiued any profit by their present correction. But let vsus learne to profit by both, namely, by the immediate, or mediate hād of God vponupon vsus, and know that if the Lord forgiue our sinnes they shall be forgotten of men, and if we shame our selues, and be truly humbled vnderunder his hand for them, then the Lord will take away our shame, and whatsoeuer affliction in his due time.
4 If wee promise amendment in the time of our trouble, and yet followe it not in theHardnesse of heart. time of prosperitie: it is for hardnesse of heart. For Pharaoh his example is for to feare, we must not put it off for time to come, but presently learne to amend our liues, otherwise the Lord may deale with vsus as he did with him.
5 When sicknes or any other trouble doth afflict vsus, if we would know▪ whether it proceed from the fauour & louelove of God towards vsus, let vsus learne to see it in the example of the theefe on the crosse, who fled vntounto God, profited by the crosse, and would that others alsoThe theefe on the crosse. should so do: for if we can in trouble flie to God, not to witches, and profit by our crosse, which in it nature is able to make vsus worse, whereunto also Sathan will set to his hand; if wee desire to amend our life, and that others also should amend by our example: by these fruites we may see that our sicknes is sanctified in Christ, and all other our troubles are also sanctified in him. For God would not hauehave receiued vsus so graciously in the sacrifice of his sonne Christ, if he ment to destroy vsus, he hath giuen vsus so many pledges of his louelove: So we may reason with our soules, as Manoal…s wife did with her husband, ludg. 12. 23.
5 Seeing God created all things, nothing hath vertue in it, but as God giueth it; and when it pleaseth him he taketh it away. Our father Adam liued with hearbs, and yet should hauehave liued for euer; but we hauehave many other things for our nourishment, and yet liue not. Again, our fathers before the flood liued longer than we do, yet had not so many …shes as we hauehave. The children of Israel liued fortie yeeres with Manna, and Moses and Elia▪ liued fortie daies without meate: all these teach vsus, that man liueth not by bread onelyonly, and that the want of the creatures doth not necessarily cast vsus into diseases, but that it is our si…e which casteth vsus into them. Meate doth not nourish vsus, Physick doth not heale vsus, and the creatures doe not strengthen vsus, but the Lord doth all in all, as it pleaseth him, to trie his children, or to punish the wicked.
6 In corporall blessings, if we hauehave not the spirit to teach vsus, that by the word, and by prayer they are sanctified vntounto our vse, if we cannot receiue euen eueryevery morsel of meate at Gods hands, as tokens and pledges of his fauour, surely we shall either at the last be brought to loathe them, or to set our hearts too much vponupon them: so that the Lord shall be constrained to take them from vsus, to make them …ot, melt, and stinke, so that we shall not finde them, nor hauehave any good, holy and profitable vse of them. Contrariwise, if the spirit doe teach vsus, and assure our hearts, that all the creatures of God are sanctified vntounto vsus by the word, and by prayer: then shall we giuegive God due glorie in them, finde profit by them, and hauehave them so long continued vntounto vsus, as shall be expedient for vsus. Some do looke on the word of God onelyonly to get knowledge, or to be as others are, at the last it willHow to entertain… the Ministers of Christ. be loathed of them. So the Minister of God if we like him onelyonly for fauour o… some gifts that he hath, and not for that he is the minister of our saluation, we tha… quickly either make him an Idoll, or else vtterly despise him. Therefore if we will alwaies hauehave them in due estimation, let vsus acknowledge them to be such as labour for our saluation.
7 As oftentimes it falleth, that some men receiue naturall sicknesses from their naturall parents; so doe some likewise receiue from their naturall parents naturall sinnes.
8 When some had admonished him for making mention of old sinnes when he was at the death of any: he said first, I esteeme not men as they are in the time of their sicknesse, but ordinarily I measure them, as they were in their liues. Againe, they are not guiltie of olds sins in death, which repented truly of their old sins in health, and life. Besides, if they be not guiltie, my prayer or speech hurteth them not, but profiteth others: if they be guiltie, the trouble of them shall turne to their good, in that they shall finde the iudgement of this world, and escape the finall iudgement that is to come.
9 He thought that there should not be one Minister for the sicke and the whole in thePlague. time of the plague, but that one should minister to the whole, whilest their owne Pastor tended the sicke.
10 So greatly he reioyced in troubles, that he would not wish to be vtterly freed from often infirmities, because the Lord had very much by them prouoked him often to examine himselfe.
11 A certaine godly and especiall friend of his making knowne his purpose in takingIf a crosse be remoued before we profit by it. God will send an other. physicke to helpe him in a lesse infirmitie, he said, Sir your physick may ease you of some paine, but I hope it shall not purge you of the fauour of God: for although you be eased in this, yet for that God loueth you, he will meete with you in some other thing.
12 Asa was reprooued, because he sought not the Lord when he was sicke of the gowte, which was a punishment of his vnlawfull couenant, 2. Chron. 19 though it came of his age and trauaile. The children of God must so thinke of the meanes, that they see God disposing nature, & destituting them of grace, if they faile in the right vse of the meanes. Many now adaies in sicknesse goe to the Physitions with Asa, neuer considering their sins, the iust cause therof. It is good to seeke to the Physitions, so that God be first sought to by repentance of that sinne, which we thinke to be the cause of the same. But when the Physition cannot helpe them, and when they know no cause of their sicknesse, but are strangely stricken, and suddenly, then they are found, and say they are taken, as Moses Exod. 4. iuddenlyExdo. 4. 24. stricken saith, that the Lord hath met him: so the strangenesse of the thing did sooner bring him to God. Therefore as the children of God are by this meanes sooner brought to God, as Moses and Iob; so the wicked in the like cases doe flie further from God, and thinke it lawfull to goe to witches, when their Physitians cānot help. Let vsus then both in ordinarie and extraordinarie meanes of blessings and punishments alwayes confesse, that the hand of the Lord hath wrought it, and seeke to bee cured of him by whom we hauehave been wounded. And let vsus so looke to the meanes, as that wee first reconcile our selues to God for our sinnes, and pacifie him, in that hee may blesse, and not curse the meanes of Physicke.
13 The Lord sendeth plagues one greater than another, yet alwaies threatneth before the plagues doe come; so that if wee would profit by the threatnings wee should preuent the plague that it should not come. And this vse ought we to make of the threatning, that so we may escape the iudgements by profiting by the word, and by them.
14 Some will say, that they doe not finde in themselues those fruits of true repentance,Fruites of repentance. by their sicknes and troubles, which are set downe to bee in the children of God. Such must take heed that they doe not denie that which God hath wrought in them. Iob could neuer be brought to doe so. But if thy afflictions continue, and thou findest not that profit that should be in thee, reason thus with thy selfe: I am the child of God, and am afflicted, and yet profit not as I ought: therefore God doth continue the same vponupon me, that I may reape due profit by it. Therefore I willingly yeelde to the crosse, and take it vp▪ but if thou feelest not this, yet if in thy heart thou doest louelove Gods word, and his children, and all goodnesse, and hatest sinne, and all wickednesse, thou must needes be his child, and thereforeSo so…e as we b…e humbled w… hauehave the fruite of our afflictions. be comforted: for because thou art not humbled, therefore thou reapest not the fruit of affliction, and therefore they lie still vponupon thee, that at what time soeuer thou art humbled, the Lord may take away the crosse, and giuegive thee the fruite of thine afflictions. For when thou art humbled, he will cease to afflict.
16 A godly Physition in the time of persecution hauing three patients resorting vntounto him, to be cured of one great euill, said: this strange disease and sicknesse be tokeneth some strange sinnes and corruptions to be in you, and therefore if you will by me be freed from the sicknesse, reconcile your selues to God that he may free you from your sinnes. They all at once excused themselues, wherein they bewraying their great ignorance: the Physition vnripped their liues, and at the first inquired of them, if they did not frequent the Masse. They could not plainly denie it, but couertly excused it, saying, that therein they did but as others: which when the man of God perceiued: hauehave you so highly displeased God, and know not of any sinne to be in you? goe your wayes, and first learne how grieuous your sinne is, before God: for the Lord hauing laide his rod vppon you, I dare not take it off, vnlesse yee shew fruites of repentance. And thus he dismissed them, vntill they knowing and acknowledging their sinne, with griefe returned, and afterward were healed.