The Souls Conflict With Itself, Chapter 24
CHAP. XXIV.
…utward troubles disquieting the spirit: and comforts in them.
AS for the outward evills that we meet withall in this life; they are either …, 1. As deprive us of the comforts our 1.…e is supported withall; or else, 2. they 2.…g such misery upon our nature or condi…n that hinders our well-being in this …d.
For the first, Trust in God, and take 1. For outward evils.…t of his al-sufficiency whatsoever we …t. Sure we are by his promise, that …e shall want nothing that is good. …hat he takes away one way, hee can …e another, what he takes away in Amaziah.one hand, he can give in another, wha… he with-holds one way, he can supply in a better. Whatsoever comfort wee have in goods, friends, health, or any other blessings, it is all conveyed by him, who still remaines though these be taken from us. And wee have him bound in many promises for all that is needfull for us. We may sue him upon his owne bond; can we thinke that he who will give us a Kingdome, will fa… us in necessary provision to bring us thither, who himselfe is our portion?
As for those miseries which our weake nature is subject to, they are all 2. For the miseries of this life, of our nature and condition.under Christ, they come and goe at his command, they are his messengers sent for our good, and called back again when they have done what they came for. Therefore looke not so much upon them, as to him for strength and comfort in them, mitigation of them, and grace to profit by them.
To strengthen our faith the more in God, he calleth himselfe, a Buckler for defence from ill, and an exceeding great reward for a supply of all good. A sunne for the one, and a shield for the other. …st him then with health, wealth, …od name, all that thou hast. It is not …an to take away that from us which …d will give us, and keepe for us. It …ot in mans power to make others …ceive what they please of us.
Among crosses, this is that which …quieteth not the minde least, to bee …ceived in matter of trust, when as if …e had not trusted, wee had not beene deceived. The very feare of being dis…pointed, made David in his hast …ke all men were lyars. But as it is a Psal. 116.…pe crosse, so nothing will drive us …er unto God, who never faileth his.
Friends often prove as the reed of E…t, Iob 6. 15.as a broken staffe, and as a deceitfull …ke, that failes the weary passenger … Summer time, when there is most …ed of refreshing; and it is the unhap…esse of men otherwise happy in the …rld, that during their prosperous …dition, they know not who be their …nds, for when their condition de…es, it plainly appeares, that many …e friends of their estates, and not of their persons: But when men will know us least, God will know us most, he knowes our soules in adversity, and knowes them, so as to support and comfort them, and that from the spring head of comfort, whereby the sweetest comforts are fetcht. What God conveyed before by friends, that he doth now instill immediately from himselfe. The immediate comforts are the strongest comforts. Our Saviour Christ told his Disciples, that they would leave him alone, yet (saith he) I am not alone, but Joh. 16. 32.the Father is with me. At S. Pauls first Solus non est cui Christus comes est. Cypr.appealing, all forsooke him, but the Lord stood by him. Hee wants no company, that hath Christ for his companion. I Tim. 17.looked for some to take pitty (saith David) but there was none. This unfaithfulnesse Ps. 69. 120of man, is a foile to set out Gods truth, who is never neerer then when trouble is neerest. There is not so much as a shadow of change in him or his love.
It is just with God, when we lay too much weight of confidence upon any creature, to let us have the greater fal… Man may faile us, and yet bee a good man, but God cannot faile us and bee God, because he is truth it selfe. Shall God be so true to us, and shall not wee be true to him and his truth?
The like may be said in the departure Comfort in departure of friends.of our friends. Our life is oft too much in the life of others, which God takes unkindly: How many friends have we in him alone? who rather then we shall want friends, can make our enemies our friends. A true beleever …to Christ as his Mother, Brother, and Mat. 12. 50Sister, because he caries that affection …o them, as if they were Mother, Brother, and Sister to him indeed. As Christ makes us all to him, so should we make him all in all to our selves. If all comforts in the world were dead, we have them still in the living Lord.
Sicknesses are harbingers of death, Comfort in sicknes.and in the apprehension of many they bee the greatest troubles, and tame great spirits, that nothing else could …me, herein wee are more to deale with God then with men, which is one comfort sicknesse yeeldeth above other troubles. It is better to bee troubled with the distempers of our owne bodies, then with the distempers of other mens soules; In which wee have not onelyonly to deale with men, but with the devill himselfe, that ruleth in the humours of men.
The example of Asa teaches us in this case, not to lay too much trust upon Meanes not to be relyed on.the Physitian, but with Hezekich first, looke up to God, and then use the meanes. If God will give us a quietus est, and take us off from businesse by sicknesse, then we have a time of serving God by patient subjection to his will. If he meanes to use our service any further, hee will restore our health and strength to doe that worke he sets us about. Health is at his command, and sicknesse stayes at his rebuke. In the meane, the time of sicknesse is a time of purging from that defilement wee gathered in our health, till wee come purer out, which should move us the rather willingly to abide Gods time. Blessed is that sicknesse that proves the Optimi sumus dum infirmi sumus.health of the soule. Wee are best, for the most part, when wee are weakest. Then it appeares what good profici…s we have been in time of health.
Carnall men are oft led along by …lse hopes suggested by others, and cherished by themselves, that they shal …ye still, and doe well, till death comes, and cuts off their vaine confidence, and their life both at once, before ever they are acquainted what it is to trust in God aright, in the use of meanes. Wee should labour to learne of S. Paul in desperate cases, to receive the sentence of …h, and not to trust in our selves, but in God that raiseth the dead. Hee that 2 Cor. 1. 9.raiseth our dead bodies out of the …ave, can raise our diseased bodies out of the bed of sicknesse, if he hath a plea…e to serve himselfe by us.
In all kinde of troubles, it is not the ingredients that God puts into the C…p so much afflicts us, as the ingredi…ts of our distempered passions mingled with them. The sting and coare Sin the greatest trouble.of them all is sinne: when that is not …ely pardoned, but in some measure …led, and the proud flesh eaten out, …n a healthy soule will …eare any thing. After repentance, that trouble that before was a correction, becomes now a triall and exercise of grace. Strike Lord (saith Luther) I'beare any thing willingly, because my sinnes are forgiven. We should not be cast downe so much about outward troubles, as about sinne, that both procures them, and invenomes them. We see by experience, when conscience is once set at liberty, how chearefully men will goe under any burthen: therefore labour to keep out sinne, and then let come what will come.
It is the foolish wisdome of the Avoid not trouble by finne.world to prevent trouble by sin, which is the way indeed to pull the greatest trouble upon us. For sinne dividing betwixt God and us, moveth him to leave the soule to intangle it selfe in …s owne wayes. When the conscience is cleare, then there is nothing between God and us to hinder our trust. Outward troubles rather drive us neerer unto God, and stand with his love. But sin defileth the soule, and sets it further from God. It is well doing that inables 1 Pet. 4. 3. 21.us to commit our soules cheerefully …to him. Whatsoever our outward condition be, if our hearts condemne us …, we may have boldnesse with God. In Iohn 1.my trouble our care should be, not to avoid the trouble, but sinfull miscari age in and about the trouble, and so trust God. It is a heavy condition to be under the burthen of trouble, and under the burthen of a guilty conscience both at once. When men will walke in the light of their owne fire, and the sparkes which they have kindled themselves, it is just with God, that they should lye downe Esay 50. …ltin sorow.
Whatsoever injuries we suffer from those that are ill affected to us, let us commit our cause to the God of vengeance, and not meddle with his prerogative. He will revenge our cause better then we can, and more perhaps then we desire. The wronged side, is the …er side, *Me…or est tristitia, iniqua patientis, quam …titia, iniqua facientis. Aug.If in stead of meditating revenge, we can so overcome ourselves, … to pray for our enemies, and deserve well of them, wee shall both sweeten our owne spirits, and prevent a sharpe temptation which wee are prone unto, and have an undoubted argument, that we are sonnes of that Father that doth good to his enemies, and members of that Saviour that prayed for his persecutors. And withall by heaping coales upon Luk. …3. 34our enemies, shall melt them either to conversion, or to confusion.
But the greatest triall of trust, is in our last encounter with death, wherein we shall finde not only a deprivation of all comforts in this life, but a confluence Comfort in the houre of death.of all ill at once, but wee must know, God will be the God of his unto death, and not only unto death, but in death. We may trust God the Father with our bodies and soules which he hath created; and God the Sonne, with the bodies and soules which he hath redeemed; and the holy Spirit, with those bodies and soules that he hath sanctified. We are not disquieted when wee put off our cloathes and goe to bed, because we trust Gods ordinary providence to raise us up againe. And why should we be disquieted when we put off our bodies, and sleep our last sleep, considering we are more sure to rise out of … graves, then out of our beds. Nay, we are raised up already in Christ our …d: who is the resurrection and the life, Ioh. 11. 25in whom we may triumph over death, that triumpheth over the greatest Mo…chs, as a disarmed and conquered enemie. Death is the death of it selfe, and not of us. If we would have faith ready to die by, wee must exercise it well in living by it, and then it will no more faile us, then the good things we lay hold on by it, untill it hath brought … into heaven, where that office of it is …aid aside: here is the prerogative of a true Christian above an hypocrite and a worldling, when as their trust, and the thing they trust in, failes them, then a true beleevers trust stands him in greatest stead.
In regard of our state after death, a Comfort from the state after death.Christian need not bee disquieted, for the Angels are ready to doe their office in carying his soule to Paradise, those …ansions prepared for him. His Saviour Iohn 14. 2.will bee his Judge, and the Head will …t condemne the members: then hee is to receive the fruit and end of his Faith, the reward of his Hope; which is so great and so sure, that our trusting in God for that, strengtheneth the heart to trust him for all other things in our passage; so that the refreshing of our faith in these great things, refreshes its dependance upon God for all things here below. And how strong helpes have we to uphold our Faith, in those great things which wee are not able to conceive of, till wee come to possesse them? Is not our husband there? and hath hee not taken possession for us? doth he not keep our place for us? Is not our flesh there in him? and his spirit below with us? have we not some first fruits and earnest of it before hand? Is not Christ now a fitting and preparing of us daily, for what he hath prepared and keepes for us? Whither tends all we meete with in this world, that comes betwixt us and heaven, as desertions, inward conflicts, outward troubles, and death at last, but to fit us for a better condition hereafter, and …y Faith therein, to stirre up a strong desire after it? Comfort one another with …se things, saith the Apostle? these bee 1 Thes. ….… things will comfort the soule.