The Souls Conflict With Itself, Chapter 27
CHAP. XXVII.
…our worst condition wee have cause to praise God. Still ample cause in these dayes.
[Shall yet praise him.] Or, yet I will praise God; that is, however it goeth …ith me, yet as I have a cause, so I …ve a spirit to praise God; when we …e at the lowest, yet it is a mercy that …e are not consumed, we are never so ill, …t it might be worse with us; whatsoever is lesse then hell is undeserved. … is a matter of praise, that yet we have …e and opportunity to get into a …essed condition. The Lord hath afflicted Psal. 18. 18me sore, but he hath not delivered mee … death, saith David.
Is the worst times there is a presence … God with his children.
1. In moderating the measure of 1.the crosse, that it be not above their strength.
2. In moderating the time of it, The rod of the wicked shall not rest long upon the 2.lot of the righteous. God limits both measure Psal. 125. 3.and time.
3. Hee is present in mixing some comfort, and so allaying the bitternesse 3.of a crosse.
4. Yea, and he supports the soule by inward strength; so as though it faint, 4.yet it shall not utterly faile.
5. God is present in sanctifying a crosse for good, and at length when he 5.hath perfected his owne worke in his, he is present for a finall deliverance of them. A sound hearted Christian hath alwayes a God to goe to, a promise to goe to, former experience to goe to, besides some present experience of Gods goodnesse which he enjoyes: for the present he is a childe of God, a member of Christ, an heire of heaven, hee dwells in the love of God in the crosse, as well as out of it, hee may bee cast out of his happy condition in the world, but never out of Gods favour.
If Gods children have cause to praise God in their worst condition, what diffe…ce Object.is there betwixt their best estate and their worst?
Howsoever Gods children have con…uall Answ.occasion to praise God, yet …ere be some more especiall seasons of praising God then others, there bee dayes of Gods owne making, of purpose to …joyce in, wherein we may say; This is the day which the Lord hath made, let us Psal. 118. 24.rejoyce therein. And this I thinke is …iefly intended here. David comforts …imselfe with this, that however it was …w with him, yet God would deale so …iously with him hereafter, that he …uld have cause to blesse his name.
Though in evill times we have cause … praise God, yet so wee are, and such … our spirits (for the most part) that …ction straitens our hearts. There…re the Apostle thought it the fittest …y in affliction to pray, Is any afflicted Iam. 5. 13.… him pray; saith Iames, Is any joyfull, let … sing Psalmes, shewing that the day …ejoycing is the fittest day of prai… God. Every worke of a Christian is beautifull in its owne time, the graces of Christianity have their severall offices at severall seasons, in trouble, prayer is in its season, in the evill day Psal. 51. 15call upon me, saith God: In better times praises should appeare and shew themselves. When God manifests his goodnesse to his, hee gives them grace with it, to manifest their thankfulnesse Praise is most comly in prosperity.to him. Praising of God is then most comely (though never out of season) when God seemes to call for it, by renewing the sense of his mercies i… some fresh favour towards us. If a bird will sing in Winter, much more in the Spring. If the heart be prepared in the Winter time of adversity to praise God, how ready will it bee when it i… warmed with the glorious sunshine of his favour.
Our life is nothing, but as it were a webbe woven with interminglings … wants and favours, crosses and blessings, standings and failings, combate and victory, therefore there should be a perpetuall intercourse of praying and pr… sing in our hearts. There is alwayes ground of communion with God in …e of these kindes, till wee come to Christians have continuall ground of communion with God.…at condition wherein all wants shall be supplied, where indeed is only matter of praise. Yet praising God in this …fe, hath this prerogative, that here we praise him in the middest of his enemies. In heaven all will bee in consort with us. God esteemes it an honour in the middest of devils, and wicked men (whose life is nothing but a dishonour a… him) to have those that will make his …e (as it is in it selfe, so) great in the …ld.
David comforts himselfe in this, that he should praise God; which shewes he had inured himselfe well before to this holy exercise, in which hee found …ch comfort, that he could not but joy in the fore-thoughts of that time, wher… Thoughts of praise should be precious to us.he should have fresh occasion of his …mer acquaintance with GOD. Thoughts of this nature enter not into …eart that is strange to God.
It is a speciall Art in time of misery, … thinke of matter of joy, if not for the …sent, yet for the time to come; for joy disposeth to praise, and praise again stirres up joy; these mutually breed one another, even as the seed brings forth the tree, and the tree brings forth the seed. It is wisdome therefore to set faith on worke, to take as much comfort as wee can from future promises, that wee may have comfort and strength for the present, before we have the full possession of them. It is the nature of faith to antidate blessings, by making them that are to be performed hereafter, as present now, because wee have them in the promise. If God had not allowed us to take many things in trust for the time to come, both for his glory, and our good, hee would never have left such rich promises to us. For faith doth not only give glory to God for the present (in a present beleeving of his truth, and relying upon him) but as it lookes forward, it sees an everlasting ground of praising God, and is stirred up to praise him now, for that future matter of praise, which it is sure to have hereafter. The very hopes of future good, made David praise God for the present. If the happy condition wee looke for were present, wee would embrace it with present praises. Now faith is the evidence of things not Heb. 11. 1.s…ene, and gives a being to that, which is not; whereupon a true beleeving soule cannot but bee a praising soule. For this end God reveales before hand what wee shall have, that before hand we should praise him, as if we possessed it. For that is a great honour to his …uth, when wee esteeme of what hee speakes, as done, and what he promiseth, as already performed. Had wee not a perpetuall confidence in the perpetuity of his love to us, how is it possible we should praise him?
But we want those grounds for the time Object.is come which David had, hee had particular promises which we want.
Though we want Vrim and Thum…; and the Prophets to foretell us Answ.what the times to come shall be, yet we have the Canon of Scripture enlarged, …e live under a more glorious manifestation 1.of Christ, and under a more plentifull shedding of the Spirit, wherby that want is abundantly supplyed; we have generall promises for the time to come, that God will never faile nor forsake us, that he will be with us in fire Deut. 31. 6.and in water, that he will give an issue to the temptation, and that the issue of all Heb. 12. 11things shall be for our good, that we shall reape the quiet fruit of righteousnesse, and no good thing will he withhold from them that tend a godly life, &c. If wee had a Psal. 84. 11spirit of faith to apply these generalls. we should see much of Gods goodnesse in particular.
Besides generall promises, wee have some particular ones for the time to 2.come; of the confusion of Antichrist, of the conversion of the Iewes, and fulnesse of the Gentiles, &c. which though we perhaps shall never live to see, yet we are members of that body, which hereafter shall see the same, which should stir up our hearts to praise God, as if we did enjoy the present fulfilling of them our selves, for faith can present them to the soule, as if they were now present.
Some that have a more neere communion 3.with God, may have a particular faith of some particular deliverances, whereupon they may ground particular prayer. Luther praying for a sicke friend, who was very comfortable and usefull to him, had a particular Fred. Myco.answer for his recovery, whereupon he was so confident, that he sent word to his friend, that hee should certainly recover. Latimer prayed with great zeale, for three things, 1. That Queen Elizabeth might come 1.to the Crowne. 2. That hee might 2.seale the truth with his heart blood. 3. And that the Gospell might be restored 3.once againe, once againe, which he expressed with great vehemency of spirit. All which three God heard him in. But the priviledges of a few must not be made a generall rule for all. Priviledges goe not out of the persons, but rest there. Yet if men would maintaine a neerer communion with God, there is no doubt but hee would reveale himselfe in more familiar maner to them, in many particulars then usually he doth. Those particular promises in the 91. Psalme, and other places, are made good to such as have a particular faith, and to all others (with those limitations annexed to promises of that nature) so far forth as God seeth it will induce to their good and his owne glory, and so farre forth as they depend upon him in the use of meanes; And is not this sufficient to stay a gracious heart?
But not to insist upon particular promises and revelations, (the performance whereof wee enjoy here in this present life) we have rich and precious promises of finall and full deliverance from all evill, and perfect enjoying of all good in that life which is to come; yet not so to come, but that we have the earnest and first fruits of it here; All is not kept for heaven; Wee may say with David, Oh how great is thy goodnesse, Psal. 31. 19which thou hast laid up for them that feare thee, and (not onelyonly so, but) how great is that goodnesse which thou hast wrought in them that trust in thee, even before the sons of men; God treasures not up all his goodnesse for the time to come, but layes much of it out daily before such as have eyes to behold it.
Now Gods maine end in revealing …ch glorious promises of the life to come, is, that they might be a ground of comfort to us, and of praise to him even in this life; And indeed what can be grievous in this world to him that hath heaven in his eye? What made our blessed Saviour endure the …osse and despise shame, but the joy of Heb. 12. 2.glory to come set before him?
The duty that David brought his heart to before hee had a full enjoyment of what he looked for, was patient waiting, it being Gods use to put a long date often times to the peformance of his promises; David after h… had the promise of a Kingdome, was p…t off a long time ere he was invested to it; Abraham was an olde man before he enjoyed his sonne of the Promise; Waiting upon God a necessary duty.Ioseph stayed a long time before he was exalted; Our blessed Saviour himselfe was thirty foure yeares olde before he was exalted up into glory.
God deferres, but his deferring is no empty space, wherein no good is done, but there is in that space a fitting for promises. Whilest the seed lyeth hid in the earth, time is not lost, for Winter fits for Spring, yea the harder the Winter, the more hopefull the Spring; yet were it a meere empty space wee should hold out, because of the great things to come, but being onelyonly a preparing time, we should passe it with the lesse discouragement. Let this support us in all the thwartings of our desire; it is a folly to thinke, that wee should have Physick and health both at once; we must endure the working of Gods Physick; when the sick humour is caried away and purged, then wee shall enjoy desired health. God promiseth forgivenesse of sinne, but thou findest the burthen of it daily on thee. Cheere up thy selfe, when the morning is darkest, then comes day; after a weary weeke comes a Sabbath, and after a fight victory will appeare. Gods time is best, therefore resolve upon waiting his leisure. For the better demeaning of our selves herein, we must know we must so waite, that we provoke not in …e meane time his patience on whom …e depend, by putting forth our hand to any evill, which indeed is a crossing of our hopes. Therefore waiting upon What it is to waite upon GodGod, is alwayes joyned with doing good. There is an influence in the thing hoped for, in the spirit of him that truly hopes, stirring him up to a sutable conformity, by purging himself of whatso ever will not stand with the holines of that condition. Waiting implyes all graces, as Patience, Perseverance, Long suffering in holding out, notwithstanding the tediousnesse of time deferred, Courage, and breaking through all difficulties that stand betweene. For what is waiting indeed, but a continuing in a gracious inoffensive course, till the accomplishment of our desires?
Whence wee may discerne a maine difference betwixt a Christian, and a carnall man, who is short-spirited, and all for the present; hee will have his good here, whereas a Saint of God continues still waiting, though all things seeme contrary to what he expects. The presence of things to come is such to faith, as it makes it despise the pleasure of sinne for a season. What evidence Heb. 11. 25of goodnes is it, for a man to be good onelyonly upon the apprehension of something that contents him? Here is the glory of faith, that it can upon Gods bare promise, crosse it selfe in things pleasing to nature, and raise up the soule to a disposition, some wayes answerable to that blessed estate, which (though yet it enjoyes not, yet) it is undoubtedly perswaded of, and lookes for. What can incourage us more to waite, then this, that the good we waite for, is greater then wee are able to conceive, yea greater then wee can desire or hope for?
This was no presumptuous resolution of Davids owne strength, but it issued from his present truth of heart, (so farre as he knew the same;) together with an humble dependance upon God, both for deliverance, and a heart to praise him for it; because Gods benefits are usually entire, and are sweetned with such a sense of his love, as causeth a thankfull heart, which (to a …e Christian) is a greater blessing then …e deliverance it selfe, as making the …ule better. David doth acknowledge with humble admiration, that a heart …larged comes from God, Who am I (saith he) and who are my people?
He mentioneth here praising God, in …ead of deliverance, because a heart enlarged to praise God, is indeed the greatest part of the deliverance; for by it the soule is delivered out of its owne straits and discontent.