The Dead Saint Speaking to Saints and Sinners Living, Treatise 3 · Royalty 6
Sixth Royalty. 6 Faith is an heart-humbling Grace.
6 Royalty of Faith. Its a ſoul-humbling Grace.Whether it bee a Legal, or whether it be an Evangelical-Faith, it works humiliation. The one a Legal humiliation, and caſting down: The other an Evangelical-humiliation; we ſhall in this cheifly deal with the firſt.
It is ſaid of Ahab, that he humbled himſelf, put on ſackcloath, and went ſoftly. And this was the fruit and effect of his Legal-Faith, whereby hee beleeved the truth, and certainty of Gods Judgements denounced againſt him, and his houſe. The men of Nineveh, when Jonah preached that ſad Sermon. Jonah 3.4.— Yet forty days, and Nineveh ſhall bee deſtroyed — It is ſaid — They beleeved God; That is, The truth of that meſſage, which Jonah brought from God. And it follows, as an effect of this Faith — They humbled themſelves, and proclaimed a faſt, and put on Sack-cloath, and ſate in aſhes, from the King upon the Throne, to the meaneſt of them.
And my Brethren, Faith hath a great influence into the work of ſelf-humbling.
1 It takes up ſelf-humbling Conſiderations.
From God, the juſtice of God, the threatnings, the curſes God hath denounced againſt ſin.
2. Faith doth Realize all this to the Soul, which God hath ſaid againſt ſin. Faith doth not make theſe things more reall, then they are: but doth Realize things to the Soul, not imaginary, but real things, which, being lookt upon as reall things, do humble.
This is the Reaſon, why one, when he hears of Gods threatnings denounced againſt Sin; goes home, and lyes in the duſt; is humbled, and caſt down; as Joſiah, when hee read the book of the Law. And another ſtands up, out-faceth Hell, and the curſe; He is never humbled; nor caſt down. It is becauſe the one he looks upon theſe things are reall; and true: the other hee looks upon them, as fancies, Imaginary things.
If men beleeved, that all that evil, which God hath threatned againſt Sin, were true, they could not drink down ſinne as water, nor eat the bread of Sin, with ſuch delight, as they do.
If the ſwearer did beleeve, there were a flying Rol gone out againſt him, as Zachary ſaith. If the Drunkard did ſee death in the Pot, &c. If I ſay, wicked men beleeved the Reality and Truth of theſe things; they could not go on ſo quietly in their wicked courſes: but would be humbled.
Hence the Apoſtle ſets this down for the ground, why the Preaching of the word was not profitable to them. — Becauſe it was not mixed with Faith in them that heard it. They did not beleeve what they heard: and ſo neither the word of Terror, nor the word of Comfort did profit them.
As the promiſes of God are not quickning, raiſing, comforting, except there bee Faith: ſo the Threats are not Killing, humbling, working, if Faith be not there.
Wee may preach, till our ſpirits fail, and ſpend our labour in vain, our ſtrength and pains for nought, if the things which God ſpeaks, and we preach, be not beleeved.
If you by unbelief, do ſlight all the threats of God denounced againſt ſin, if you make childs play of them, as the word ſignifies, 2 Pet. 3.3.
If you look upon theſe but as Bug-bears, things to keep men in awe, and not real things: No marvel if you bee not Humbled.
But, if by Faith you would Realize theſe things to your ſelves, and behold them not as Fancies, and ſad dreams, but ſuch things as are infallibly true, real things, not as painted Hell, painted fire, but as reall: you would them finde them to work; Theſe mingled with Faith, would lay a man in the duſt. Now this is a property of Faith, to Realize the Object, or thing beleeved; and hence comes an influence on the ſoul, to humble and abaſe it.
3 Faith doth not only take up humbling Conſiderations, and Realizeth all theſe to the Soul. But Faith makes all this preſent. Faith doth give a preſent being to all this. Hence Heb. 11.13. Faith imbraceth the promiſe. The word is foreign. — Faith kiſſeth the promiſe; gives a preſent being to the promiſe.
And as it gives a preſent being to the promiſe, or word of comfort: ſo to the threatning and word of terror. Faith diſcovers death and hell, and all at hand for Sin. Faith looks upon ſinne, in all it's Doomeſ-day apparrel, and array: ſmels fire and Brimſtone in ſin.
Whereas unbeleevers, they look on theſe things at the wrong end of the Proſpective, and that makes things neer, ſeem a far off, and that afar off, is not ſeen at all.
But Faith looks upon them through the right end of the proſpective; And there things a far off, are ſeen at hand, preſent. Hence it is called — The Evidence of things not ſeen. As it was ſaid of Abraham — Hee ſaw the day of Chriſt, and rejoyced: and yet Abraham was dead many hundred of years before Chriſt: yet by vertue of his proſpective, by vertue of his Faith, hee ſaw it, as if it had been preſent, though it were never ſo far off: So here though the ſecond day of Chriſt, the day of judgement bee a far off; yet Faith ſees it, and is humbled; Faith gives it a preſent Being.
4. Faith applies and brings home all this to Soul. As the word of Comfort, the Promiſe is applyed, and brought home to the Soul by Faith: ſo the word of Terror, the Threatning is brought home to the ſoul by the ſame Faith; by which the Soul is caſt down and humbled.
The manner of Faiths Application is by a practical Syllogiſme, where the Major, or firſt Propoſition is the Word of God: The Aſſumption, or ſecond Propoſition is the Teſtimony of Conſcience: and the concluſion is inferred from them both, as hee that beleeveth not, but continueth in ſir, is for the preſent guilty and obnoxious to wrath, at the laſt Judgement.
But I beleeve not, but continue in ſin.
Therefore I am for the preſent guilty and obnoxious to wrath, to bee inflicted at the laſt Judgement.