The Best Treasure, Chapter 9
CHAP. IX.
Opening ſomewhat of the ſweet Diſpoſitions of Chriſt, viz. His Goodneſs, Love, and the Riches thereof, as to the kind, Fruits, and Effects of it.
I Am now come to the third particular, wherein we ſhall make a Diſcovery of the Riches of Chriſt, as they conſiſt in his excellent and ſweet Diſpoſitions as Mediator, with thoſe precious Graces and Endowments in him, which will much illuſtrate the perſonal Riches of Chriſt, and be of wonderful Encouragement both to Saints and Sinners, to think better of him, and to haſten after a Dependance on him.
Now the firſt thing we ſhall treat of, is the goodneſs of his Nature: He is Goodneſs it ſelf, Pſal. 34. 8. O taſt and ſee that the Lord is good: This Pſalm was penn'd by David, when he was driven from Achiſh, and was in ſore danger of his Life; in this Condition, he ſeeks the Lord, and found help, by reaſon of the Goodneſs of God, that is, God in Chriſt; indeed there is Creation-Goodneſs, and providential-Goodneſs, but the choiceſt is his Redemption-goodneſs, that Goodneſs which he lets out to poor Sinners in a Mediator. Thus is Jeſus Chriſt the Gift of his beſt Love, and is qualified, and diſpoſed to commend the infinite Goodneſs of God to periſhing Sinners: his Goodneſs is great, Zac. 9. 17. called the Riches of his Goodneſs, Rom. 2. 4. Now this goodneſs of Chriſt appears.
Firſt, In it's Extenſiveneſs, he is good to all, Mans goodneſs is contracted and narrow, its greateſt Proportion reacheth but a few, none but Friends, Relations, and ſuch as may oblige or requite them, are uſually Sharers in it; but the goodneſs of Chriſt is immenſe, it reacheth to all the work of his hands, Pſal. 145. 9. The Lord is good to all, by him all things conſiſt, Col. 1. 17. He upholdeth all things by the word of his Power, Heb. 1. 3. The very vileſt, and moſt unworthy Grace-abuſing Soul have ſome kind of ſhare in Chriſts Goodneſs; he upholds his very Enemies, and maintains the Being and Enjoyment of ſuch as oppoſe him.
Secondly, In it's Invincibleneſs; all the Provocations of his Enemies cannot impede it's deſigned current, he is reſolved they ſhall have a ſhare in his Mercy, though they oppoſe their own Mercies; nay all the Unkindneſs of his people cannot conquer it, nor many Waters quench it: He maketh his Sun to ſhine upon the good and bad, Math. 5. 45. It's ſtrange to think how rare a portion of Mercy the wicked have in their day; he that cryed Father forgive them they know not what they do, cries Father ſpare them to ſee what they will be.
Thirdly, It's Freeneſs; 'tis not extracted, but flows out of it's own Accord, Iſa. 65. 24. Before they call, I will anſwer, &c. It hath no Creature-merit to provoke it, Exek. 16. 6. I ſaid unto thee, when thou waſt in thy Blood, live, when there was no Beauty to attract it, no deſires to draw it forth: mans Worthyneſs is no ground for the Communication of Chriſts Goodneſs, what Lovelyneſs had the Epheſians to deſerve it's liberal Effuſions? Eph. 2. 1.
Fourthly, 'tis unwearied, enduring Goodneſs, it hath not the Shallowneſs of a ſlender Veſſel, which is eaſily emptyed, but the Unfathomableneſs of the Ocean that can never be exhauſted: the vaſt Expences and Communications of it, from the Creation of the World to it's final Deſtruction, will not diminiſh it one Iota; his Anger indeed hath but a momentary Continuance, Pſal. 30. 5. But his Goodneſs endureth for ever, Pſal. 52. 1.
Fifthly, 'Tis Communicative goodneſs, running over, flowing down, and liberally diffuſing it ſelf for the good of others; ſo 'tis defined to be a Vertue by which a perſon of his own accord is abundantly prone to acts of Benignity: Chriſt's Goodneſs is manifeſtative, diſtributive, and it's Diſpenſations are as natural as the irradiating Beams of the Sun.
Secondly, Another excellent Diſpoſition in Chriſt, is his Love, not only his Phylanthropy, or good Will he bears to all men, and the Deſire he hath of their Salvation, Ezek. 33. 11. But his foreign his ſpecial Love, from foreign valde & foreign acquieſco, ſuch an ardent Affection hath the heart of Chriſt, for a perſon adhering to him, that it greatly acquieſces in, and is fully contented with him, Eph. 2. 4. Such is the Sweetneſs of Chriſt's Nature, that it is full of Love, God is Love, 1 John 4. 16. And as the Father hath loved me, ſo have I loved you, Joh. 15. 9. Now this Love of Chriſt to his people, is,
Firſt, A ſupreme Love, the chiefeſt Love, he hath a love of Benevolence to all, Mark 10. 21. He beheld the young man and loved him; but the Love he bears his own, is tranſcendent, and exceeds the Love of men and Angels, Joh. 15. 13.
Secondly, An infinite Love, Love that paſſeth all Knowledge, exceedeth all Dimenſions, Eph. 3. 18. Chiſt's Love (ſaith one) hath Length in it, becauſe he loved his Elect from Eternity to Eternity; O unmeaſurable Length that hath no end! his Love hath Breadth in it, becauſe not the Jews only, but the Gentiles alſo, are ſharers in it; 'tis extended to the whole World, Math. 28. 19. It hath depth in it, becauſe it brought him down into the Deeps, not only of the Earth, but of unconceivable Sufferings: It brought him as low as the Grave, yea to the very Borders of Hell, Iſa. 53. 3. It hath height in it, becauſe it aſcended far above all Heavens, that he might fill all in all, become our Advocate there, prepare us for it, and it for us, and at laſt takes us up to himſelf, that we may behold his Glory.
Thirdly, An eternal Love, Jer. 31. 3. I have loved thee with an everlaſting Love. All Creature-affections have their Beginning and End, their Riſings and Settings, but the Love of Chriſt is as himſelf, everlaſting, Rev. 1. 13. The tranſiency of his peoples Love, cannot injure its permanency, for where he loves, he loves to the end, Joh. 13. 1.
Fourthly, An unchangeable Love, it hath no Ebbings and Flowings, Waxings and Waneings, Riſings and Fallings, but is th… ſame Yeſterday, to Day, and for ever, Heb. 13. 8. It knows no Alteration, Addition, or Diminution: the Heavens ſhall wax old as a Garment, and be changed, Heb. 1. 11. 12. But Chriſt and his Love is invariable, Mal. 3. 6. 'Tis true, the Manifeſtations of his Love is mutable, (he may ſmile to day, and frown to morrow) but not the nature of it; the Ciſterns may be dry but not the Fountain.
Fifthly, A free Love, it hath no Conſideration of Creature-merit, fore-ſeen Faith, or perſevering Holineſs, Hoſ. 14. 4. I will heal their Back-ſlidings, and love them freely. What reaſon can be given, that of the ſame Lump ſhould be made one Veſſel of Honour, and another of Diſhonour; nay that perſons of the moſt exquiſite Abilities, natural Endowments, unſpotted Moralities, and uncontroulable Sovereignty, ſhould be rejected, and left to the hardneſs of their Heart, and the righteous Judgment of God, and that others of the meaneſt parts, inconſiderable Qualifications, prodigiouſly vitious Lives and miſerable Penury, ſhould be elected to the higheſt Priviledges, received into the moſt intimate Communion, and made partaker of the higheſt Glory?
Sixthly, The Spring and Fountain of all that Love that is in Believers to God and one another, Creature-affections are but ſtreams deriv'd from this Ocean, Candles lighted at this Sun: We love him becauſe he firſt loved us, 1 John 4. 19. The aſcending Love of Saints is a faint Reflection of the deſcending Love of Chriſt; the ſame Waters that empty themſelves into the Sea, have their Birth from it.
Seventhly, An active love, Creature-affections are dull and ſluggiſh, and ſavour rankly of the Veſſel they are in, but Chriſt's are vigorous and laborious; a parental Love, that ſets his Wiſdom on deſigning, his Faithfulneſs on ſecuring, and his Power on accompliſhing the chiefeſt Concernments, and higheſt good of his Children.
Laſtly, a fruitful Love, full of good Works, 'tis commended love, Rom. 5. 8. manifeſted love, 1 John 4. 9. Not love in the Womb, or abortive, but love in the Birth: I ſhall name ſome of it's Fruits to his People.
Firſt, the giving of himſelf for them, Eph. 5. 25. Who loved me, and gave himſelf for me, Gal. 2. 20. This is the higheſt Teſtimony of his Love imaginable, he could not have beſtowed a better thing; he that gives himſelf, gives all. He gave himſelf to procure a purchaſed Treaſure to enrich them, to deſtroy the partition Wall, and fill up that bottomleſs Gulf, that lay in their way to glory: he gave himſelf to diſcharge their Debts, remove their Guilt, juſtifie their Perſons fulfil all Righteouſneſs, and make good the new Covenant.
Secondly, The opening of his heart to them, John 15. 14, 15. I have called you Friends, for all that I have heard of my Father, I have made known unto you: O! the wonderful Love and Kindneſs of Chriſt to his People, that he communicates his Secrets, and opens to them the Thoughts of his Heart from all Eternity; he leads them into his retired Chambers and ſecret Receſſes, and feaſts them liberally with hidden Manna, and excellent Diſcoveries of the things freely given them of God: Saints cannot aſcend up into Heaven, and ſee the Length Depth, Breadth and Height of thoſe glorious things God hath prepared for them, but they have the Priviledge to wade deep into ſanctuary Waters, and the Spirit of Grace is freely given them to reveal the Depths of divine Love.
Thirdly, The Communication of all good things to them, He will give Grace and Glory, and no good thing will he withhold, Pſa. 84. 11. Pſal. 34. 10. O boundleſs Love indeed! he may beſtow ſome ſublunar Portions on his Enemies, but his Children only ſhall have the Inheritance, they ſhall have his Wiſdom to direct them, his Goodneſs to ſupply them, his Power to protect them, and his Spirit to inſtruct them, Joh. 16. 13. 14. And O what a wonderful Gift is the Spirit; he will ſhew them their Duty, reprove them for their Sin, anſwer their Doubts, clear up their Way, and enlighten them in their Darkneſs: he will open their Hearts, enlarge their Souls, regulate their Wills, illuminate their Minds, and ſanctifie their Perſons; he will communicate Counſel, reveal Chriſt, diſcover their Inheritance, and ſeal them up to the day of Redemption.
Fourthly, His minding and purſuing all their Concerns in Heaven, the Buſineſs Believers have in another Country where they cannot come is very weighty; they need Receptions of more Grace every day, Strength againſt Corruption, Wiſdom in their Difficulties, Patience in their Sufferings, and Faith in their Temptations; now Chriſt doth agitate their Cauſe, becomes their Factor, and diſpatches their Work, Exod. 28. 29. Heb. 7. 25. Iſa. 49. 15. 16.
Fifthly, His gracious Preſence with them, Joh. 14. 18. I will not leave you comfortleſs, Heb. 13. 5. Jer. 32. 40. 2 Cor. 6. 16, He may hide his face for ſometime, and ſuſpend the gracious light of his Countenance: he may ſtand behind the Wall, and ſtep behind the Curtain, yet theſe are but momentary, not continual, and imaginary, not real.
Sixthly, His bearing with them, and forbearing of them, 1 Cor. 13. 7. Charity beareth all things, it cannot eaſily be overloaded: what groſs Indignities and abuſive Injuries doth Chriſt patiently receive from the hands of his People? Amos 2. 13. Pſal. 95. 10.
Seventhly, His thinking often and well of them, and his being a Friend to their Friends, and an Enemy to their Enemies: where a mans Affections are there will his Thoughts be alſo; the Adulterers Thoughts are on his Uncleanneſs, the wordly man's on his Treaſures, and the Ambitious on his Honours, but Chriſt's are on his People, Iſa. 43. 4. They are his Hephzibah's, the delight of his Soul, his Jewels and Treaſures, Iſa. 62. 4. Mal. 3. 17. He eſteems their Enemies as his, Exod. 23. 29. and favours their Friends with peculiar Bleſſings, Exod. 1. 20. Gen. 39. 5.
Eighthly, His being troubled with their Troubles, and delighted with their Welfare, Joh. 11. 33. 35, 36. when the Lord Jeſus came to raiſe Lazarus from the dead, and ſaw Mary weeping, and the Jews that were with her, 'tis ſaid, He groaned in Spirit, and was troubled: nay when he came to the place where Lazarus lay, he wept; whereupon the Jews ſaid, Behold how he loved him, and his Heart is the ſame now in Heaven, Iſa. 63. 9. True love will ſuffer in the Tryals of it's Friend, Acts 9. 4. hence the Afflictions of Saints are call'd the Afflictions of Chriſt, Col. 1. 24. what Heſter ſaid concerning her people, may be more truly ſpoken by Chriſt, Heſter. 8. 6. How can I endure to ſee the Evil that ſhall come upon my people. He is grieved at the Evil of their Sins or Sufferings, Mark. 3. 5. Eph. 4. 13. and takes wonderful Pleaſure in their Welfare, Poov. 8. 31. no tender parent can more earneſtly deſire the Happineſs, and rejoyce in the Advantages of his Children, than Jeſus Chriſt in his, Pſal. 147. 11. If the Joy of his Ambaſſadors doth much depend upon the Proſperity of the Souls of their Auditors, 3 Epiſt. Joh. ver. 4. Then ſurely himſelf is not altogether unconcern'd.
Laſtly, His preparing a Heaven for them, John 14. 2, 3. In my Fathers Houſe are many Manſions, I go to prepare a place for you, &c. The Lord Jeſus knows that his departure from the World with the ſad Conſequences thereof, would breed great Trouble in the Hearts of his Diſciples; therefore labours to prevent it, by telling them of the occaſion of his Departure, that it was for their ſakes, and in their buſineſs; and though the World would abuſe them when he was gone, and caſt them out of their Houſe and Country, yet he tells them, he had a Father in Heaven that would receive them, and he was going thither to prepare a place for them, and there was ſtore of room for them in Heaven. The word, tranſlated Manſion here, ſignifies, an abiding, fixed place. Here you dwell in Tabernacles, but in Heaven are places for you, out of which you ſhall never be turned more. Don't expect much Happineſs in the World, but look to Heaven for all your ſatisfying Comforts: There's a Reſt for you, after all your wearying Duties and Troubles; there are pleaſant Habitations, after all your Wilderneſs Journeyings: There's a large dwelling-place; here you are thruſt into corners, and may be have little conveniencies in your Houſes: Here you dwell in Strangers, and perhaps, Enemies Houſes, but there your dwelling ſhall be in your Father's Houſe. 'Tis really ſo, I do not flatter you with vain hopes, or feed you with falſe reports: if it were not ſo, I would have told you. Some might object here, That there may be Houſes in Heaven, and yet they in Hell. No (ſays Chriſt) I go to prepare a place for you; when I come to Heaven, I will beſpeak a Houſe for you, it ſhall be your own, your own proper Right, every one of you, and of all my People, ſhall have a Houſe of their own, and it ſhall be Fee ſimple, theirs to all Eternity. But ſome may ſay, How ſhall we be ſure of this, that when we dye we ſhall have a place in Glory? Why, ſaith Chriſt, As ſure as I go to Heaven, ſhall you have a Manſion there; for, 'tis one end of my going thither; 'tis part of my buſineſs there, I go to prepare a place for you. (foreign) This word, ſaith Grotius, notes a Divine Appointment, a place that God allots and appoints for you: that you might not think it is procured by your own Merit and labours. As if he ſhould ſay, you may be ſure, my People, you ſhall not miſs of a place in my Father's Houſe, becauſe he hath given you a houſe in Heaven, and I go to poſſeſs it for you, and to make it ſure: My Father hath given it, and I have purchaſed it, and now I go to take it into my own hand for you: yea, to fit and ſute your Lot in Heaven, as may be moſt meet for you, and as may bear a full proportion to all your Labours, and Sufferings for me. And thus the word likewiſe imports (ſaith Dr. Preſton) to fit and faſhion one, as a Veſſel is faſhion'd and ſhap'd to its proper Uſe. But Believers may urge, Lord, how ſhall we get thither? the Journey is far, the Way we know not; many Dangers lye betwixt this and Heaven; the Prince of the Air, and all the Devils of Hell lye betwixt this and Glory; and how ſhall we get ſafely through all theſe Dangers? Why, ſaith Chriſt, I will come again and receive you, when I have done your Work in Heaven, when I have difpatched my gathering, and compleating work on Earth, when all my Saints are called and perfected, then will I come again, and receive you to my ſelf; I will come and unite your Souls and Bodies together, and then will ſhew you the way to Heaven, and lead you into your own habitations there, and as ſurely put you into poſſeſſion of Glory, as I am going to poſſeſs it for my ſelf; and in the mean time, I will take care of you in the way, and ſend my Spirit to guide you, and bear you thorow it, and my Angels, when you are at your Journeys end, ſhall receive your Souls, and bring them unto me, that where I am you may be alſo, Joh. 17. 24. Joh. 12. 26. What greater Love can there be than the Engagements of Chriſt's Heart, to get all his Children brought home to Heaven, that they may be ever with him, and partake of his Glory, 1 Cor. 15. 22, 23.