The Dead Saint Speaking to Saints and Sinners Living, Treatise 3 · Royalty 14
Fourteenth Royalty. 14. Royalty of Faith. Its an Heart-inriching-Grace.14 Faith is an Heart-inriching, and filling-Grace.
When Faith hath once emptied a man of himſelf, makes him a fit receptacle: then it fills his ſoul with Chriſt: when it hath ſtrip'd a man of his own rags; then it puts on the Garments of Christ: when it hath made a man poor in himſelf, it inriches the ſoul with Chriſt? when wee are nothing in our ſelves, then Chriſt is made all to us.Cor humile, eſt vacuum ſpirituale. — Wiſdome, Justification, Sanctification and Redemption, 1 Cor. 1.30.
An humble empty heart is the veſſel of all Grace. So much Emptineſs, ſo much Grace: Becauſe humility doth empty the heart for God to fill it. If the heart bee emptied once, it muſt needs bee filled.Non datur vacuum. Nature abhors emptineſs, Grace much more.
Faith doth inrich the ſoul with all the merits of Chriſt, with the Spirit of Christ, Christ imputed, Chriſt imparted, Chriſt infuſed: with the Righteouſneſs of Chriſt for Juſtification: with the Holineſs of Chriſt for Sanctification. Faith will not want it, if Chriſt have it: Faith will not bee poor, if Chriſt bee rich, will not bee empty, if Chriſt bee full.Ego non ſum meriti inops, quamdiu ille non eſt inops miſerationum. Bernard.— I cannot bee poor (ſaith Bernard) ſo long as God is rich: his Riches are mine: Of his fulneſs I receive Grace for Grace.
Chriſt indeed is a Fountain, but hee is a Fountain ſealed up: Hee is a Treaſure, but hee is a Treaſure lockt up to an unbeleeving heart. Faith is the Key that unlocks this Treaſure, opening the Treaſuries of Heaven, making an inlet of all the Glory of Chriſt. Faith gives the ſoul communion with all the Riches of Chriſt. So far as it is poſſible for Chriſt to bee communicated; hee is made ours by Faith; by it there is a conveyance made of all the great revenues of Christ. The great ſtock, which Chriſt did purchaſe by his Blood, is paſſed over to the beleeving ſoul. There is a Deed of Gift made to ſuch; wherein I ſay, Not the whole Righteouſneſs of the Mediator; Non tota Juſtitia Mediatoris, ſed Juſtitia tota Mediatoria.his eſsentiall and incommunicable Righteouſneſs: but his whole Mediatory Righteouſneſs; that Righteouſneſs which Chriſt purchaſed for us as Mediator, the Righteouſneſs of his active and paſsive obedience; by the one doing our ſervices, by the other bearing our ſcourges; by the one as was ſaid before, anſwering Gods commanding Juſtice, by the other anſwering Gods condemning Juſtice: the one in Praemium, to free us from wrath: the other in Pretium, to intitle us to Glory: all this is made ours.
As Boaz ſaid to his Kinſman — Marry the Woman, and the Field is thine: So when once by Faith wee are married to Chriſt, his Blood is ours, his merits ours, his Spirit ours: all are ours: Faith gives us a propriety in all.Tu vita mea; ego mors tua. Tu coelum meum; ego gehenna tua. Tu Juſtitia mea; ego p…ccatum tuum. Tu divitiae meae; ego paupertas tua. So that Faith may break forth into this rapture with that Father. — Lord, I am thy death; thou art my life; I am thy Hell; thou art my Heaven; I am thy ſin, thou art my Righteouſneſs; I am thy poverty, thou art my Riches. And all the Riches which Chriſt did purchaſe with his Blood (and ſit down and think what the Blood of Chriſt, the Blood of God (as the Apoſtle calls it, by communication of Properties) what this might buy out, at the hands of a Father) why all this is made thine by Faith.
So that you ſee, Faith is a Soul-inriching-Grace. It gives a man not only Title, and intereſt into a Soul-inriching-God, a Soul-inriching-Chriſt, a Soul-inriching-Treaſure: but gives the ſoul the poſſeſſion and injoymnet of all this. By Faith wee poſſeſs God; injoy God, and by no other way, but by Faith in Chriſt.
Though Faith be poor in it ſelf, the pooreſt Grace of all, as having nothing of its own; ſuch a Grace as lives all upon anothers ſtock, is fed with anothers food; rich by anothers riches; as the Apoſtle ſaid of himſelf — Hee was poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, yet poſſeſsing all things: ſo I may ſay of Faith. Though it bee poor in it ſelf, yet it makes us rich, doth inrich us with all the riches of Chriſt, though it hath nothing in it ſelf; yet it poſſeſſes all things, it poſſeſſeth Chriſt, which is all.
Oh! If you bee rich in Faith, you cannot bee poor in Grace,Quantum credimus, Tantum amamus, Quantum credimus, Tantum ſperamus. Saith Aug. poor in Holineſs: Faith ſanctifies. So much Faith, ſo much Grace; ſo much Faith, ſo much Love: ſo much Faith, ſo much Hope; ſo much Faith, ſo much Humility; ſo much brokenneſs of ſpirit for ſin; ſo much Patience, Zeal, &c. Never was it known a ſtrong Beleever to bee a weak Chriſtian. So much Faith write down, ſo much Grace. Little in Faith, and little in Grace; little in love, &c. Grace is ſtill proportionable to the meaſure and degrees of Faith, like the fountain and the flood. Hence Faith is called the Mother-Grace, 2. Pet. 1.2, 3. — Grace and Peace bee multiplyed on you by the Knowledge of God: foreign: By the acknowledgement; that is, by Faith. The augmentation of Faith doth cauſe the multiplication of Grace; not in the kinds only, but in the degrees. The more Faith in degrees, the more Grace. Grow in Faith, and you grow in all Grace. Decreaſe in Faith, and all the Graces of God decreaſe in thee. There is decay of Love, of Joy, of Patience. The ground of all decayes, is the decay of Faith.
Well then. To draw to a concluſion of this; you ſee Faith is an inriching-Grace.
1. It inricheth the underſtanding with knowledge, with heavenly wiſdome, which is better than gold. It makes the Head a ſtore-houſe of divine knowledge.
There is ſome Knowledge before Faith. Scientia Principiorum; the Knowledge of Principles. But the beſt Knowledge is after Beleeving. — Wee beleeve and know, ſaith John. Firſt beleeve, and then know. Crede, ut intelligas: beleeve, that thou mayeſt underſtand. Hence David, Pſal. 119. — Teach mee good Judgement, for I have beleeved thy Word. Not that I may beleeve: but — for I have beleeved.
Non poſſunt diſcere, qui nolunt credere. Addiſcentem oportet credere.Hence Auguſtine, upon Heb. 4.2. (— The Word did not profit them, becauſe it was not mixt with Faith in them, that heard it) ſaith, — They cannot learn; becauſe they will not beleeve. Hee that would learn, must beleeve.
As Knowledge of things revealed goes before Faith; ſo Faith goes before the exact underſtanding, and clear apprehenſions of them. How ſhall a man bee able to underſtand theſe heavenly Myſteries in the Word; all which are far above Reaſon. The Myſtery of the Trinity, the Myſtery of Chriſt, in whom there is nothing but Myſteries.
His Perſon a Myſtery; his Nature; his Works; all Myſteries, 1 Tim. 3.16. — Without Controverſy great is the Myſtery of godlineſs; God manifeſted in the fleſh; justified in the ſpirit; ſeen of Angels; preached unto the Gentiles; believed on in the World; received up into Glory. That hee ſhould bee God-Man; mortall, and immortal: That there ſhould bee ſuch greatneſs, and ſuch baſeneſs: ſuch infiniteneſs, and yet ſuch finiteneſs in one perſon. Theſe are all Myſteries.
Hence Chriſt is called (Iſa. 9.6.) Wonderful; becauſe all is wonderfull in Chriſt; hee is wonderful in his Perſon, in his Nature, in his offices, in the managing of them. A chain of wonders.
So the Creation a Myſtery, Reſurrection a Mystery. Chriſtian Religion is nothing elſe but a bundle of holy Myſteries.
Which, how ſhall any man underſtand, until firſt hee beleeve: Hee that ſeeks to know before hee beleeve, ſhall never know.
The beſt way to know, is to ſhut your eyes, captivate Reaſon, and Beleeve: and then you ſhall ſee and know.
Thus you ſee, Faith inricheth with Spiritual Knowledge.
2. As Faith inriches the Underſtanding, the Head with Knowledge; ſo it inriches the Heart with Grace. It makes the Heart a Treaſury of divine and holy Graces. The leaſt of which are worth all the Riches of the World.
Divines ſet down four invaluable things.
1. The Favour of God in Chriſt.
2. The Souls of Men.
3. The Spirit.
4. The Graces of the Spirit.
1. The Favour of God; That's invaluable, Pſal. 63.3. — Thy loving kindneſs is better than Life. And Life is the moſt precious thing a man hath in the World — Skin for Skin, and all a man hath will hee give for his life. The Devil was right there. Now Gods loving-kindneſs is better than Life.
2. The Souls of Men. — What will it profit a man to gain the whole World, and loſe his Soul? Chriſt ſets the gain of the whole World againſt the loſſe of one Soul. Hee puts one Soul in one Balance, and the whole World in another. And one Soul weighs down all. — What will it profit? its too light. All that gain cannot make up this loſs. It is an incomparable loſs, becauſe an irrecoverable loſs; once loſt, loſt for ever. There's no recovery of a loſt ſoul. Though a man may loſe other things, yet may hee recover them again: Man may loſe Riches, &c. but not his Soul, when once loſt for want of beleeving.
3. The third invaluable, is the Spirit: not to bee — bought with ſilver or gold. Hence Peter told Simon-Magus, when hee would have bought the Spirit. — Thy mony periſh with thee. Thinkeſt thou the Gift of God may bee bought with mony?
4. The Graces of the Spirit. The leaſt of which doth weigh down all the World. The leaſt grain of Grace, of Love, of Repentance, of godly ſorrow, Humility, is worth ten thouſand Worlds. — Faith is more precious than gold, ſaith Peter. Now theſe are the Riches, that Faith doth poſſeſs the Soul of, the invaluable Riches of Grace.
Other Riches God deals out promiſcuouſly, and—No man knows either love or hatred, by any thing before him. A man may do wickedly and proſper, as it was ſaid of Antiochus Epiphanes. Dan. 8.24, …5.Theſe Riches Gods enemies do ſhare in, as well as his friends. Nay, and have often the greateſt ſhare, the greateſt portion, Job 21.7. Jer. 12.1. Dives may have more wealth; Saul more command; Agrippa more gorgious apparel, than the deareſt of Gods Saints.
But now theſe are ſuch Riches as God beſtows upon none but Beleevers, — Abraham gave portions to the Sons of the Concubines, and ſent them away: but unto Iſaac hee gave all hee had.Rex honores dignis.
Other Riches may bee taken away. A man may bee rich to day, and poor to morrow. — The Lord hath given, Dominus dedit; Dominus abſtulit.the Lord hath taken away. Both with one breath. Hence the wiſe man. — Riches make themſelves wings, and flye away. But theſe are abiding Treaſure: A Treaſure, whoſe ſpring is in Heaven; whoſe Foundation is in Chriſt. — Our life is hid with Chriſt in God: not only hid for ſecrecy: but hid for ſafety. It is a ſafe life, an abiding life.
Nay, but if they ſhould continue: yet will they do us no good in the day of trouble. They cannot ſave our ſouls from, nor in the day of wrath. They cannot ſave us from ſickneſſe, nor from death; not from Hell. Nor are they able to mitigate our Torments, to purchaſe one drop of water in that lake of fire. What profit had Ahab of his Vineyard? Baltazar of his cups? Dives of his wealth? Judas of his thirty-pence? Agrippa of his gay apparel? The rich fool of his full barns? All theſe would do them no good. Neither quench, nor bribe theſe flames; but rather afford Oile to increaſe them.
But now Grace; that riches, which Faith doth inrich us withall; it is ſuch as will uphold us in ſickneſs, bee a choice cordial in that bitter potion; it will deliver us in death, ſave us in the day of wrath, and inable us to lift up our heads with joy and boldneſs in the day of Judgement, that terrible day of the Lord, when the wicked ſhall tremble before the Judge, and call upon the Mountains to fall upon them, and the Hills to cover them from the preſence of him that ſitteth on the Throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.
Haſt thou other riches, and wanteſt thou Faith? Haſt thou Mountains of Gold, Rocks of Diamonds, ſhores of Rubies? And wanteſt thou Faith? wanteſt thou Grace? Oh! thou art a poor man.
Thus you ſee, Faith is an Heart-inriching-Grace. A Beleever hath title to all.
A Beleever is the pooreſt and the richeſt man in the World. As none is poorer than a godly man in himſelf; ſo none is richer than a Beleever in Chriſt. — Hee is as having nothing, and yet poſſeſsing all things. Chriſt is the Heir of all things. All are yours, if you bee Chriſts. No ſooner can the ſoul ſay — Chriſt is mine; but hee may ſay — His Blood is mine, his Spirit mine; his Glory mine; all is mine.
Chriſt and all his are conveyed and made over by the ſame Deed of Gift. Hence the Apoſtle ſaith — Wee are made partakers of Chriſt: Not of ſome part: but of Chriſt; all Chriſt; not of Juſtification only; but ſay Chriſt, and there is all.