A Caveat to Prevent Future Judgments, Part 4
Thou art made whole.
CHriſt heere remembers the man of the benefit hee had ſo lately and ſtrangely receiued in his health, which was giuen him, not mediately in the Poole of Betheſda, but immediately by diuine power. And theſe words are the ground of the ſubſequent admonition firſt, as if the Lord Chriſt had ſaid: ſin made thee ſick, & God hath made thee whole; fall not backe to thy ſins paſt, leſt the relapſe make thee worſe then euer. Queſt. Queſt. Anſw. Doct.But who made this man whole? Anſw. God by his power, and Chriſt as God: whence learne, that as God can make ſicke; ſo it is he onelyonly that can make whole. We reade as much in the Text of Hannabs ſong; which Text ſpeaketh of a greater matter: for it ſaith; the Lord killeth and maketh aliue, bringeth downe to the graue, and raiſeth vp, 1. S…m. 2.6. Now, it is eaſier to raiſe from ſickneſſe to health, then to bring from death to life. Therefore, Hezekiah (King of Iudah,) went the right way for health, when he turned his face to the wall, and prayed vntounto the Lord, Eſay 38.2. hence Moſes in his ſong ſaith, what we hauehave heard Hanna in her ſong to ſay, Deut. 32.39. And the Prophet Hoſea, exhorting the people that went farre from God in their ſinnes, to draw back by repentance, giues this for one reaſon, that the Lord would heale them, Hoſea 6.1. as if there were no Phyſitian but he, nor balme of healing but by him: further alſo, ſo much the king of Iſrael (none of the beſt, rather one of the worſt) confeſſed, ſaying; that he muſt hauehave Gods place, who will take vponupon him to heale a man of his Leproſie, 2. King. 5.7. the reaſons:
Hence, Reaſons our health is commonly and truly called Gods bleſſing: and here corporall Phyſitians, or Phyſitians of the body, are as the ſpirituall of the ſoule: for they are but Miniſters by whom we beleeue, 1. Cor. 3.5. and ſo, theſe are but Miniſters of health, and God is the giuer: he that maketh an vnbeleeuer faithfull, is he that maketh a ſicke man whole: and this is God, for Faith is the gift of God, Epheſ. 2.8. Secondly, ſin cauſeth ſickneſſe, and impaiteth health, Micah 6.10.13. but God onelyonly forgiueth ſins: it was alledged by the Scribes, and not denied by Chriſt, Mar. 2.6.7. and therefore he only can take away ſicknes… and ſend health.
An inſtruction to vſe ſuch Phyſitians for our neceſſitie, Vſe 1 as by whom we may be perſwaded that God, who maketh whole, will ſend a meſſage of health vntounto vsus. And theſe muſt be men of good conſcience and ſound Religion; not Popiſh, or of no Religion, if wee can chooſe: elſe it will be ſaid: is it not becauſe there is no God in Iſrael, that yee goe to enquire of the God of Ekron for your health? 2. King. 1.3. God giueth the bleſſing: and can we thinke that hee will incloſe it to vsus in euill meanes? further, hauing made our beſt choiſe this way, we muſt take certaine religious preparatiues, that their phyſick may hauehave the better worke vponupon vsus. And here, we muſt humble our ſoules with repentance, and confeſſion of ſinnes: yea craue pardon for them, and forſake them, purpoſing amendment: alſo, we muſt ſanctifie our ſicke beds, and make them vp by the Word of God and prayer, 1. Tim. 4.5. The truth is; when a man is made whole, good medicines are good meanes vntounto it, but Gods bleſſing is it that ſtrikes the ſtroke of health, and recouers him. Therefore let thoſe who hauehave lately felt the ſweet fruit of Gods worke, in their reſtorings to health from the wound of Plague, bring forth like fruit of thankfulneſſe in their turnings to him that hath healed them: elſe better they had died then; and that the Plague had taken away their life, when it tooke away their health. The want of this is (often) cauſe that diſeaſes, curable in themſelues, are made incurable by our ſinnes: which ſhould make vsus, when God begins his correction by ſickneſſe, to begin repentance by turning to him that ſmiteth vsus: when we take phyſick for our recouery, we muſt not take it as truſting in it, but repoſe on God for health: nor muſt our end of taking it be to put off death further then God hath bounded our terme here: for, phyſick can goe no farther then hee hath appointed, who puts his ſtaffe into it without which it falls to nothing.
A reproofe of thoſe who with Aſa in ſickneſſe, Vſe 2 ſeeke to phyſitions, and not to God, 2. Chron. 16.12. or to them in the firſt place, and to God, when there is no other remedie. Some neuer call when God bindeth them, Iob 1.36.13. bid them pray, they liſt not, or cannot: and for their ſickneſſe, they fret at it, and with Cain ſay; the puniſhment is greater then they can beare, Gen. 4.13 as if they ſhould ſay: God doth not well ſo to puniſh them; that is, ſo ſeuerely, or ſo for nothing. And ſo, they anger him with their impatiencie, who muſt giuegive them their health if they euer recouer; and increaſe the wrath, going further in but not comming out of ſickneſſe to health. But ſome, inſteede of ſeeking the Lord by prayer, ſeeke to the diuel in ſome witch for eaſe of paine, or end of ſickneſſe: ſo did Ahaziah, who falling through a latteſſe in his vpper chamber in Samaria, was ſo bruiſed with the fall, that he lay ſick of it vponupon his bed, till he died: hereupon, when he ſhould hauehave ſent to God in Iſrael he ſent to an Idol in Ekron, Baal-zebub; that is, not to God in faith, but to the diuell in ſinne, to know if he ſhould recouer of that diſeaſe, 2. King. 1.2.6.
The admonition followeth.