The Dead Saint Speaking to Saints and Sinners Living, Treatise 3 · Royalty 7
Seventh Royalty. 7. Faith is an Heart-ſoftening-Grace.
Such a Grace as doth not only humble us, but ſoften us: not only break us,7. Royalty of Faith. Its an Heart-ſoftening-Grace. but melt us. In the Law it humbles us, it breaks us: but the heart like a flint, every duſt ſtill reteins its flinty, ſtony Nature, is a ſtone. And therefore in the Goſpel it melts us, it diſſolves us. Thunders of Sinai terrifie, but Dews of Sion mollifie.
So much Faith, ſo much Sorrow, they are like the Fountain and the Stream, whereof the one ariſeth no higher than the other. So much Faith and apprehenſion of Mercy: ſo much brokenneſs of ſpirit for ſin.
Where Unbelief doth ſtony the Heart, harden the Heart, dries up the ſpring and iſſues of ſorrow. No Heart is ſo hard as an Unbeleeving-heart: neither the Promiſes, nor Threatnings; neither Mercy, nor Juſtice; neither Word, nor works will melt it: Faith on the contrary turns the Soul into Water; diſſolves a man into tears; opens all the deep ſprings of ſorrow in the Soul.
1. Faith looks upon Heart-melting-Promiſes: Takes a ſurvey of the Riches of Gods Love and Mercy, in making ſuch precious Promiſes, which doth exceedingly melt.
2. Faith takes up Heart-ſoftening-Conſiderations, from the Love and Mercy of God towards us, which are Heart-melting-Mercies; from the goodneſs and ſweetneſs of God. Faith makes us ſee God as hee is. It makes God no otherwiſe than hee is, not more gracious, not more merciful than hee is: But Faith diſcovers him as hee is, a gracious and a mercifull God. It doth but undraw the Curtain, but take off the Mask, which Satan and Infidelity have put on; and makes us to behold God as hee is, in all his glorious excellencies, Soul ſaving attributes, and Mercies: which who can behold by Faith but muſt needs mourn and diſſolve into tears, that they have offended him? Thus you ſee, Ezek. 36.31. when God had diſcovered himſelf in his Pardoning-Mercy, his waſhing, Forgiving-Mercy to the beleeving ſoul; then they ſhall mourn and bee humbled.
Oh! There is nothing breaks the heart more than Mercy; nothing melts a man more than the ſmiles of God, the Mercies of God; which being diſcovered to the Soul, the Soul is not able to ſtand ſtubborn under it.
3. Faith looks upon a Soul-melting, a Soul-ſoftening Object; upon Chriſt; a wounded, a broken Chriſt. And who can behold him but with an Humbled, and a broken-heart? A bleeding Chriſt, without a bleeding Heart?
Oh! Here is enough in this Object to open all the ſprings of ſorrow in us; wee need not to go to Bellarmines Twelve Conſiderations to open the Fountain of tears in us, wee need not bring in the miſeries of mankind for one; nor the ſad condition of the Souls in Purgatory for another. Wee need not bee beholden to him for ſuch conſiderations as theſe, to help us to mourn. Oh! Here is enough in Chriſt, in a broken and wounded Chriſt, to open all the ſprings in thee; and if thou hadſt a Fountain of tears, to ſpend them all. The Conſiderations of his ſufferings,
1. Either in themſelves.
2. Or in their cauſe.
3. Or as the Effects of ſin.
1. The Conſiderations of his breakings and ſufferings as they were in themſelves.
1. The ſufferings of his Body. What woundings? breakings? ſcourgings? crownings? peircings did hee endure upon his Body?
2. The ſufferings on his Soul. What conflict and ſtruglings with the wrath of God? the powers of darkneſs? what weights? what burdens? what wrath did hee undergo, when his Soul was heavy unto death; be ſet with terrors? as the word implies. When he drunk that bitter Cup, that Cup of bitterneſs? that Cup mingled with Curſes, which made him ſweat drops of blood? which if men or Angels had but ſip's of, 'twould have made them reel, ſtagger, and tumble into Hell.
2. The Conſideration of his ſufferings, in the Cauſe, as the meriting cauſe of all our good, procurer of all our Peace, Life, Salvation. — Hee was wounded, that wee might bee healed, ſcourged, that wee might bee ſolaced; drank the bitter Cup of wrath, that wee might have the draught of Mercy. — Hee was ſlain.
But not for himſelf, ſaith Daniel. But— wounded for our tranſgreſſions, broken for our iniquities; The Chaſtiſement of our peace was upon him. Faith looks upon theſe his ſufferings, as the meriting cauſes of our good.
3. The Conſiderations of his ſufferings, as effects of ſin; as the effects of our ſin; as that which our ſins have brought upon him: Which Conſideration muſt needs effect and break our hearts.
When the ſoul ſhall look upon Chriſt, and ſay. It was I, that have been the murderer; I, that have been the Traitor: my ſins which brought all this evil on thee. I ſind, and thou ſufferedſt. It was I, that did eat the ſoue Grape; and thy teeth were ſet en edge. My ſins were thy death: yet by thy death, thou brought'ſt the ſinner life. I have wounded thee, yet thou haſt healed mee: even out of that wound which my ſins have made, haſt thou ſent out a Plaiſ…er, even thy Blood for my ſins. Oh! This muſt needs fill the heart with ſorrow.
Faith ſtill looks upon an Humbled Chriſt, with an Humbled Heart: upon a Broken Chriſt, with a Broken Heart: upon a Bleeding Chriſt, with a Bleeding Heart: upon a Wounded Chriſt, with a Wounded Heart: Hence, Zach. 12.10. — They ſhall look upon him whom they have peirced. And how ſhall that ſight affect them? It follows.— They ſhall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only Son, and lament for him, as one lamenteth for his firſt born. In that day there ſhall bee a great mourning, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon, in the Vallie of Megiddon.
God made the ſame Organ for ſeeing, and for weeping. And the ſoul that ſees well, weeps well. Never ſoul that did by the Eye of Faith look upon this Son of Righteouſneſs, but their frozen hearts did melt within them.
Would you ever bee mourning men and Women for ſin? would you bee in bitterneſs, as one is in bitterneſs for his firſt born? Oh! Steep your thoughts in the blood of the Lamb: Dwell a little on Chriſt crucified: Look wiſtly upon Chriſt by Faith: and this will ſolvere Gelicidium: melt and thaw our frozen hearts; turn us from ſtones into fleſh.