Rejoicing in the Lord Jesus in All Cases and Conditions, Sermon 11
SERMON XI.
Habakkuk 3.18.
Yet I will rejoyce in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my Salvation.
WE are now upon the directing of the Believer that is able in ſome meaſure to make out his Intereſt in this Jeſus, to live upon him, and to rejoyce in him in all trials. Of the Directions, five or ſix I have already given you, and ſhall now proceed.
7. In the ſeventh place; If you would live by Faith upon Chriſt, ſo as to fetch in joy and comfort from him in every condition, then labour to bring your will to your condition, and keep your ſpirit within the confines of the will of God under all the various diſpoſes of providence. The recoilings and claſhings of our will with our condition, is a main hinderance unto our rejoycing in, and acting Faith upon the Lord Jeſus under a ſad providence: And the great reaſon why ſome perſons are under ſuch great diſſatisfaction in their own ſpirits, that they know not how to bear the troubles of their ſtate, is, becauſe their wills are not brought to their condition; but they go about to bring their condition to their wills; and when any thing conſiderable comes in upon them that doth not ſuit with their wills, it cauſeth royls, diſquiets, and diſturbances of ſpirit, and diſcompoſure of heart, and ſuch a Soul will never rejoyce in Chriſt in an evil day. Now Chriſtians, if you would get into the Life of Faith, you muſt then bring your will to your condition, be what it will; own the diſpoſing hand of God, that makes the change, whatever your change is, and yield obedience to the Lord's will, that hath the over-ruling power of your ſtate, and keep your ſpirits within the confines of the will of God; otherwiſe a croſs, or a tryal in your outward condition will make a great alteration in the inward frame of your ſpirit. I will give you a few Inſtances for the clearing of this. Paul was a man that rejoyced and gloried in Chriſt Jeſus, when he had almoſt nothing elſe left him in this world; many times his heart was made ſad among the Churches of Chriſt that he came to make glad; and as to loſſes, who met with more? ſays he, I was in perils oft, and in hunger, and in diſtreſs, and in nakedneſs; and yet this man he glories in tribulations; he counted it all joy when he fell into divers tribulations; how came this about, that this man was got thus into a rejoycing in Chriſt Jeſus, when the whole world frowned upon him? He tells us, Phil. 4.11, 12. his will was brought unto his condition. I ſpeak not, ſays he, in a complaining way, in reſpect of want, for I have learned in whatſoever ſtate I am, therewith to be content, for I know how to want, and how to abound. Says he, if God empties me, my will is brought to my condition; I am willing to be emptied; if the Lord will make me poor, and take away what I have, I am willing to be made poor; my ſpirit is brought to my condition: He that can live in the confines of the will of God, will live comfortably and rejoyce in the Lord at all times. Another inſtance for this is Job; Job you know was a man that was ſorely tryed, I think as much as ever man was upon earth; now Job's will was brought to his condition; and hence came he to rejoyce in the Lord, Job 1.21. Now Job's wife's ſpirit was not brought to her condition, ſhe could not tell how to be contented, for ſhe ſaid unto him, Chap. 2.10. Doſt thou ſtill retain thy integrity? Curſe God and die; but he ſaid unto her, Thou ſpeakeſt as one of the fooliſh women ſpeaketh; what, ſhall we receive good at the hand of the Lord, and not evil? As if he had ſaid, It was the Lord that filled me, and ſhall not the Lord empty me? We were ſatisfied when the Lord was filling of us, and ſhall we not be ſatisfied now the Lord is emptying of us? Another inſtance is that of good old Eli, 1 Sam. 3.18. Samuel told him every whit, and held nothing from him; and he ſaid, It is the Lord, let him do what ſeemeth him good: Why, if the Lord will ſtrip me, ſays he, I am willing to be ſtript; if the Lord will take away my Children, and take away my comforts, and break up my houſe; It is the Lord, I am contented; if the Lord will do ſo, let him; my will is brought to my condition; Let him do as ſeemeth him good. So David, 2 Sam. 15.26. But if he ſay thus; I have no delight in thee; behold here I am, let him do to me as ſeemeth good to him. And thus it was with our Lord Jeſus, the greateſt inſtance of all; Father, ſays he, not my will, but thy will be done. Let my Father chuſe for me; I will not bring my will into competition with his: If he will have me to drink off this Cup, I will drink it; if he will have me to lay down my life, I will; if he will have all my glory obſcured, it ſhall be ſo; if he will have me a man of ſorrows, his will be done, and not my will. You do not know Chriſtians, what an alteration of heart, and what an alteration of life this living in the will of God will make.
8. Captivate and throw out all the ſuggeſtions of ſenſe and reaſon upon the riſing difficulties of your ſtate. If that reaſon ſpeak over your hearts in a ſtrait, and ſenſe give the ruling word over your ſpirits in your condition, it will certainly cauſe you to repine and murmure, and to ſin againſt God: Senſe and reaſon are great enemies unto our peace and comfort: If ſenſe and reaſon have liberty to ſpeak, and to be heard in your hearts, they will certainly lay your ſpirits under a diſcouragement, and drive you off from the Lord. Thus it was with Iſrael when they were in the wilderneſs, as ſoon as they were come out of Egypt, where they had their Rivers and their Pools, and their Ponds of Water, and where they had their Fleſh-pots, and were fed to the full: They came into a howling wilderneſs, into a dry and barren place, where they had no Wells of Water, where there was no plowing, nor ſowing, then they fell a murmuring and chiding of Moſes, and ſaid, Wherefore haſt thou brought us hither into this place to ſlay us? for it is not ſuppoſed to be rational that we can live here in this wilderneſs, but if we abide here we muſt die, Numb. 11.4, 5, 6. And the mixt multitude that were among them fell a luſting, and all the children of Iſrael wept again, ſaying, Who ſhall give us fleſh to eat? We remember the fleſh that we ate in Egypt freely, the Cucumbers, and the Millons, &c. And Pſal. 78 19. Yea, they ſpake againſt God: They ſaid, Can God furniſh a Table in the wilderneſs? And Numb. 20.12. Bebold there is no water for the Congregation; and they gathered themſelves together againſt Moſes, and againſt Aaron, and they chod with Moſes, ſaying, would to God we had died when our Brethren died before the Lord? and why have ye brought up the Congregation of the Lord into this wilderneſs, that we and our Cattel ſhould die there? and wherefore have ye made us to come out of Egypt, to bring us unto this evil place? It is no place of ſowing ſeed, or of Fields, or of Vineyards, or of Pomegranats. Here you ſee ſenſe and reaſon ſpake over their condition, and how did it lay their Souls under diſcouragement? And if you do but review at your leiſure, the great murmurings of this people, when they were in the wilderneſs; it was ſomething or other that ſenſe and reaſon ſuggeſted to them under ſome providence or other that diſquieted their ſpirits; it was through the ſuggeſtion of ſenſe and reaſon that Zachartas queſtioned the truth of the Word of God ſent to him by the Angel about having a Son, Luk 1.18. And Zacharias ſaid to the Angel, whereby ſhall I know this, for I am an old man, and my Wife well ſtricken in years. It was from the inſtigation of ſenſe and reaſon that that unbelieving Lord did queſtion that great plenty that the Prophet told him ſhould be the next day, 2 King. 7.1, 2 Thus ſaith the Lord, To morrow about this time ſhall a meaſure of fine flower be ſold for a ſhekel, &c. Then a Lord on whoſe hand the King leaned, anſwered the man of God, and ſaid, If the Lord ſhould make windows in Heaven, might this thing be? He only argued upon the Prophecy in his own reaſon, and in his own ſenſe, and this made him ſo unbelieving, as to reject the Prophecy of the Prophet. This ſenſe and reaſon made the Diſciples themſelves to queſtion the intention of the Lord about feeding ſo great a multitude as there was, with ſuch ſmall proviſion as they had, Mark 8.1, 2. In thoſe daies the multitude being very great, &c. At the 14th verſe his Diſciples ſaid unto him, From whence ſhall we buy bread that theſe may eat? So that if you would get into this life of Faith, keep down ſenſe and reaſon, and caſt out their ſuggeſtions, which will not bring you near to, but ſet you further off from the Lord. Do not ſay upon a new difficulty, here is no way to eſcape, or upon a loſs, this or that is gone, and can never be made up to me again, but throw out the reaſonings of ſenſe; if the diſcouraging ſuggeſtions of ſenſe be reſiſted, and ſet by, Faith will then get up, and ſpeak in the heart.
9. Look through and beyond the diſcouragements of ſecond Cauſes, unto the encouragements of the firſt Cauſe; that is alwaies abſolute and independent, and there fix your eye in a ſtrait. Second Cauſes they are failable, but ſo is not the firſt Cauſe, that is the efficient of all; and the Lord who is the firſt Cauſe, and efficient of all, oftentimes dries up all creature ſtreams, and cauſes viſible humane help to fail, that we may ſee how great the firſt Cauſe is. Though the Lord doth ordinarily make uſe of ſecond Cauſes, yet the Lord will ſo walk towards us, to diſcover to us that he is not tyed to means, that he is not tyed to ſecond Cauſes; and he oft-times cauſeth viſible helps to fail, that our eyes may be upon him, as the firſt abſolute independent Cauſe of all. I will give you an inſtance for this, and it is that of Iſrael; Iſrael was in the way of the Lord marching towards the Land of Promiſe; and as ſoon as ever they were come into the way of the Lord, that they were entered into the wilderneſs, they were brought to the mouth of the Red Sea. Now all ſecond Cauſes failed for help; there was not a Ship, nor a Boat to be got to carry the Hoſts of Iſrael over the water; but the firſt Cauſe was not at a ſtrait, and therefore ſays Moſes from the Lord, Iſrael ſtand ſtill and ſee the Salvation of God: Now, let not your eyes be upon the ſecond Cauſe, but upon the firſt Cauſe, and you ſhall ſee what a deliverance God can make for you; and he carried all the Hoſt of Iſrael, men women and children through the drowning Sea, and not a man, woman nor child was loſt in the paſſage, and yet there was neither Ship nor Boat to aid them over. And ſo afterwards when they came at Jordan; the waters were before them, there was no Boat to ſwift them over the waters, but the Lord he commands Iſrael to go on, and the waters made a lane for them; they run on heaps on both ſides, and Iſrael hath a path made in the great deep for them. And I will give you an inſtance now of a good man, a man of great Faith, and that was Moſes; Moſes in a conſiderable ſtrait fixes his eye upon the ſecond Cauſe, and pored upon the diſcouragements of that, and was loſt in his ſpirit by not looking beyond unto the firſt Cauſe, and the encouragements that the firſt Cauſe did adminiſter. It is Numb. 11.19, 20.21. and ſo on. The people in the preceding verſes, they murmured againſt Moſes, becauſe they had no fleſh; they were come from their full Tables in Egypt, and they had not now their dainties to live upon, and they did not know now how to be content; why, ſays God, you ſhall not eat one day, nor two, but even a whole month. Now ſee what Moſes ſaid, at the 21th verſe; The people among whom I am are ſix hundred thouſand footmen, and thou haſt ſaid, I will give them fleſh that they may eat a whole month. Shall the Flocks and the Herds be ſlain for them to ſuffice them? or, ſhall all the Fiſhes of the Sea be gathered together for them to ſuffice them, &c. Here is the relation. God tells this whole Congregation that they ſhould have Fleſh to eat for a month; they ſhould eat their bellies full; they ſhould eat till they could eat no more. Moſes had his eye fixed upon ſecond Cauſes, and not upon the firſt Cauſe, and he queſtions this; Lord, ſays he, how can this be? So many hundred thouſands of us; and what, ſhall we all have fleſh to eat? Now on the other hand, we read of Aſa, when a mighty Hoſt came out againſt him, 2 Chron. 14.11. An Hoſt of a thouſand thouſand that came out againſt him; he lookt beyond the diſcouragements of ſecond Cauſes, unto the encouragements of the firſt Cauſe, that is abſolute and independent, and ſee how his ſpirit held up; And Aſa cryed unto the Lord his God, and ſaid, Lord, it is nothing with thee to ſave, whether with many, or with thoſe that have no might; help us O Lord our God, for we reſt on thee, and in thy Name we go againſt this multitude, &c. He looks unto God the firſt Cauſe of all, and he ſaw there the Power of God was enough to charge this whole Army, and to engage againſt this great multitude that came out againſt him. And this was the Prophet's Spirit, and the courſe that he took here in the Text; all ſecond Cauſes failed, and frowned, and adminiſtred only diſcouragement; The Figg-tree that bloſſomed not, there was no fruit in the Vine, the labour of the Olive failed, the Fields yielded no meat, the Flocks were cut off from the fold, and there was no herd in the ſtall. Here was a failure of all ſecond Cauſes, now, ſaith he, I will look unto the firſt Cauſe; I will rejoyce in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my Salvation. Chriſtians, let me tell you, that if you lay the weight of your caſe upon ſecond Cauſes, you will never come to rejoyce in Chriſt Jeſus in a ſtrait. Remember therefore, that when ſuch a ſtream is dried up, the fountain is full ſtill, and the fountain can ſend out more waies than one. The fountain that iſſued out a ſtream in ſuch a place, can iſſue out a ſtream in another place; as long as the fountain is full, there is no fear of want; and if you would come to live upon the Lord Jeſus Chriſt in a ſtrait, you muſt keep your eye upon the fountain that is ever full, and overflows.