Moses Choice, Treatise · Part 2 · Chapter 24
CHAP. XXIV. We ſhould ſatisfie our ſelves in communion with the Saints, and improve it to the utmoſt advantage we can.
AGain, another branch of the exhortation is this; if there be ſo much good to be had in 6.this communion, labor to ſatisfie your ſelves in it, ſo as to take heed of breaking from it; the forſaking the aſſemblies of the Saints, is made by the Apoſtle an argument of Apoſtacy, Heb. 10. 25. Not forſaking the aſſembling our ſelves together, as the maner of ſome is. Do not think to go and make up your comfort with going, and joyning with the world. Certainly, when men that are members of a Church ſhall for form come and joyn with Gods people, but their conſciences tell them, when they are in the world, their hearts are more content and ſatisfied; this is an argument of a carnal heart, that hath dallied with God. It is a diſhonor to godly men; as men that are raiſed to high priviledges, count it a diſhonor to company with thoſe that are mean. Thoſe who were free of the City of Rome, were not to be free of any other place. It is enough that we are Citizens of the new Jeruſalem, let us ſatisfie our ſelves in this.
Godly men, though never ſo poor, are to look upon thoſe who are carnal, as baſe and vile, eſpecially to think to take ſatisfaction in eating, and drinking, and playing with them, when as there are ſuch holy Ordinances, and high priviledges with Gods people, to ſatisfie your ſelves in, and in thoſe your hearts withdraw from them; Certainly, your hearts muſt needs be very carnal and ſenſual: Can God take it well at thy hands, to go and ſhake hands with his enemies? Job 8. 20. God will not take the wicked by the hand; ſo it is in ſome of your books; Why then will you? Canſt thou be in any place where thou ſeeſt God diſhonored, and be merry? Certainly, the ſight of ſin, whereſoever it is committed, ſhould cauſe horror in the heart; thus it was with David, Pſalm 119. 53. Horror hath taken hold upon me, becauſe of the wicked that forſake thy Law: It ſhould make men forbear to come into ſuch company where they ſee ſin committed.
It is reported of Mezentius the Hetrurian Tyrant, that he deviſed this torment, to chain a live man, and a dead man together, and ſo whereſoever he went, he ſhould have the dead man to rot before him, and ſtink in his noſtrils, till he was poyſoned with it: Surely this was a great miſery, a moſt grievous death: And Gods people ſhould count it as great an evil to have filthy dead wretches, that are unſavoury in any thing that is good, to be joyned with them: David prays in Pſal. 26. 9. Gather not my ſoul with ſinners: Would you not have your ſouls gathered with ſinners hereafter? for the preſent take heed of joyning with them. It was the prayer once that I have heard of a good Gentlewoman, when ſhe was to dye, being in much trouble of conſcience, O Lord, let me not go to hell where the wicked are, for Lord thou knoweſt, I never loved their company here: She prayed with David, Lord gather not my ſoul with ſinners: If you would have evidence that God will not gather your ſouls to ſinners, but that he will gather them to the godly, labor to ſatisfie your ſouls with Gods people.
Seventhly, if there be ſo much good in this way, labor to improve it to the utmoſt: Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool? This is a great price; if many had ſeen the days that we have ſeen, how would they have bleſſed God? what uſe would they have made of them? Seeing God therefore hath given you this opportunity, improve it: if you have any advantage in your trading, you will improve it. Take heed of ſuch things as may hinder that good you may have in communion with the Saints: What are they?
The firſt thing that I would forewarn Chriſtians What hinders our profiting by the Saints communion.of, it is ſullenneſs of ſpirit, that makes them love ſolitarineſs rather then communion; and this is amongſt many that have true grace: and certainly it comes ſometimes from abundance of pride, for if they come among others, they think they ſhall diſcover their weakneſs, and rather then they will diſcover their weakneſs, they will deprive themſelves of all that good which they might have. Conſider how unfaithfully you deal with God, God hath given you a talent, and you are not to wrap it up in a napkin, but to uſe it for God. Again, it is a wrong to the Church, for your gifts are not your own, but the Church hath an intereſt in them, and therefore you are to uſe them for their good. Again, you do much wrong to the Ordinance of God, when you do prefer the contenting of a pettiſh humor, before the Ordinance of God. God threatens it as a judgement, Hoſea 4. 16. To feed his people as a Lamb in a large place; that is, to ſcatter them from the fold, that they ſhould go one and one, as a Lamb bleating alone in the wilde wilderneſs: take heed you do not bring it upon your ſelves.
Again, there is a great deal of danger in this ſolitarineſs Danger of ſolitarineſs.of ſpirit.
Firſt, there will ſoon grow a wonderful drineſs, and barrenneſs of ſpirit: It is juſt with God to deprive 1.men of gifts, that have not hearts to improve the gifts that God hath given them.
Again, you will be ready to run into error, and 2.ſtrange conceits; for if you obſerve the workings of your hearts, you have ſtrange opinions of things, and think you are ſure of them, and when you come amongſt others, though you could not ſee the weakneſs of your opinions, others can quickly ſee them, whereas if you will not come amongſt them, but be ſtiff in your opinions, you may run into errors.
Again, you will be lyable to the temptations of Satan; immoderate ſolitarineſs, is joyned with immoderate 3.melancholy, which is the common ſhop of the Devil for to forge his temptations in, and it is a great evil to keep the Devils temptations cloſe; and therefore come into communion with the Saints.
And ſecondly, when you do come into communion, take heed of pride; pride ſometimes keeps away 2.from communion, and pride is a great hinderance to the benefit of communion: As round things do not joyn but onelyonly in one point, but take flat things, and they joyn in every point; and ſo hearts ſwoln with pride cannot joyn with others, but onelyonly in ſuch particulars as will ſerve their turns, but if we have plain hearts, we will cloſe in all things. If a bladder be blown with wind, when you touch it or handle it, it goes away, but when it is pricked, it falls, and you may handle it: ſo hearts that are ſwoln with pride, will not cloſe as low humble hearts will. A ſwoln member is fit for nothing, but all members muſt ſerve that; As a gouty leg, all the members muſt tend that, but it is unfit to be ſerviceable to any: and ſo a proud heart, it expects every one ſhould attend it, but when it comes to be ſerviceable to any, it is unfit.
Thirdly, take heed of envying at the gifts and graces of one another; the wicked men of the world 3.do envy one another, becauſe the good they look upon as their laſt end, is ſo ſtrait, that if one have much room, the other is ſtraitned; but the godly need not be ſtraitned, their good is in God, and they have place enough to expatiate themſelves, and ſatisfie themſelves. If men were riding or ſailing in a narrow paſſage, they would envy him that were ſailing before them, that hinders; but in the Sea they do not envy them, becauſe they have room enough to ſail: So in Chriſtians that place their happineſs in God, where there is room enough, there ſhould not be envy.
Fourthly, take heed of pettiſhneſs, and frowardneſs, or paſſions, theſe do darken communion: the meek 4.ſpirit is fit for communion. Moſes ſuffered much for communion with Gods people, and indeed he was fit to get good, and to do good by communion, he was the meekeſt man upon earth.
Fifthly, take heed of ſelf-ends in communion: when men are ſo politick, as to wheel about their 5.own ends, and not ſeem to aym at ſuch things, this hinders the ſweetneſs of communion, and though ſuch may carry things a while, as not to be diſcerned, yet at laſt they will be diſcerned to have ſelf-ends, and all will be ſhy of them. If you would have ſweet communion indeed, labor for open hearts to one another, that you may truſt one another.
Sixthly, labor ſo to improve your communion now, 6.as every time you do enjoy it, it may make your hearts to ſpring, putting you in minde of that bleſſed communion you ſhall have with God, and his people; and think thus, If we finde ſo much joy, in enjoying communion with Gods people here, what will there be in that communion our ſouls ſhall have in Heaven, when we ſhall not onelyonly have communion with ſome few of Gods ſervants, but with all, Abraham, Iſaac, and Jacob, and all the Prophets, and Patriarchs? As Cicero hath a notable O praeclarum diem, cúm ad illud animorū Concili um coetumque proficiſcar; & cum ex hac turba & colluvione diſcedam: proficiſcar enim non ad cos ſolum viros de quibus ante dixi, ſed etiam ad Catonem meum, &c. Cicero de ſenectute.ſpeech concerning the happineſs of his death; O famous day, that I ſhall go to the counſels of thoſe famous men, that I ſhall go from this rout of people, and go and converſe with thoſe famous men! But brethren, for us to think that we through Gods mercy, here have communion with Gods people, and ſhall hereafter enjoy communion with the Saints of God for ever, what is it worth the enduring? if it were but the enjoying of communion with Moſes alone, it were worth all you have endured; and therefore comfort your ſelves for the preſent in that you have, and let your hearts be raiſed in hope of better things hereafter, when you ſhall have them perfect. Now we rejoyce that we are with Gods people, if they be conferring about any thing of God and Chriſt; but hereafter we ſhall ſee nothing but God in his Saints, we ſhall ſee the full glory of God ſhining in them; then the very bodies of the Saints ſhall ſhine more glorious then the Sun; How glorious ſhall their ſouls be then? There ſhall then be no more danger of fallings out, and frampold carriages, no more jealouſies and ſuſpitions, but we ſhall ſee the image of God perfectly in them; and we ſhall have perfect love to rejoyce in the ſalvation of any as in your own ſalvation, and then we ſhall be with them in all holy exerciſes: It is good to be with Gods people, to trade with them, but better to be with them to pray with them, to receive Sacraments with them; the better the exerciſe is, the better it is to be with them: Then what is it to enjoy communion with them, and to be always in holy exerciſes, always ſinging praiſes to the Lamb, and giving glory to him that ſitteth on the Throne for evermore, bleſſing God for the great Myſtery of the Goſpel? And therefore improve your communion ſo here, as not onelyonly to put you in minde of your communion hereafter, but to prepare and fit your ſouls for it: And thus is this point finiſhed; and now we are come to the ſeventh and laſt Doctrinal point, out of Moſes his Choice, which is from the laſt words of the Verſe, Then to enjoy the pleaſures of ſin for a ſeaſon.
The Doctrinal Concluſion is this: