Moses Choice, Treatise · Part 3 · Chapter 40
CHAP. XL. How far we may aym at the recompence of reward in what we do.
IT is true, will ſome ſay, there are glorious things prepared for ſome of the children of men; but whether may we look after them? may we have a reſpect to the reward? Is not this a mercenary thing, and hypocriſie? we are not to ſerve God for reward, but for himſelf: and therefore how is this that Moſes had a reſpect unto the recompence of reward, and how is this a thing that ſhould help us on in our way?
Firſt, this is granted, that we are bound to ſerve the 1.Lord, and to walk with him, and obey him; if there were no reward to be expected hereafter, God is infinitely worthy of himſelf, of all our ſervices, of all that we are able to do in this world; and whatſoever we have, the Lord hath more intereſt in it, then we have in it our ſelves; and therefore we owe all that we are, or have, unto him, and righteouſneſs it ſelf is ſufficient to cauſe us to perform the works of it: In the keeping of thy Commandments there is great reward, Pſalm 19. 11. Not onelyonly for keeping them, but in keeping them there is great reward, and the excellency of our work would be ſufficient reward for our work; though there were no reward that were to come hereafter, we are bound to do all we do.
But yet ſecondly, notwithſtanding this, God is 2.pleaſed to give leave unto us his poor creatures, to help and encourage our ſelves in the expectation of that reward that is to come; yea, to make it our aim (though I will not ſay the higheſt aim) for ſo the word ſignifies in 2 Cor. 4. 18. While we look not at things which are ſeen, but at the things which are not ſeen; the word ſignifies, While we make things that foreign.are not ſeen our ſcope and aym, ſo that God gives us leave to have ſuch reſpect unto them, as to make them our aym: and ſo the people of God have looked at the recompence of reward, as a great encouragement to them in their way, Pſal. 119. 112. I have enclined my heart to perform thy ſtatutes alway, even to the end: the ſame word that ſignifies end, ſignifies reward alſo, becauſe reward is to come at the end of all our works, and therefore the ſame word is tranſlated reward in Pſal. 19. 11. and ſo the word ſeems to carry more, then to the end: as if David ſhould ſay, I have enclined my heart to perform thy Statutes alway, looking unto the reward. In Heb. 12. 3. it is ſaid of Chriſt himſelf, That for the joy that was ſet before him, he endured the Croſs, and deſpiſed the ſhame: Now if Chriſt made uſe of the joy that was ſet before him, and that was a help to him to endure the Croſs, and deſpiſe the ſhame, much more may we make uſe of it, and it may be a help to us; ſo that we have leave to look at it.
Yea thirdly, we have not onelyonly leave to look at it, 3.but it is our duty to ſeek to help our ſelves in eying the reward; we ſin againſt God if we do it not: and the reaſon is, becauſe we are bound to make uſe of the word, in that way that God hath revealed it to us: now God hath revealed the glorious things of the recompence of the reward in a way of encouragement; and therefore we ſin againſt God if we do not encourage our ſelves in it. Some think, why ſhould we look at the reward, we muſt look to the rule, and ſee that our obedience be accordingly: but know, if you do not look to the reward, you do not only hinder your ſelves of the good you might have, but do ſin againſt God in it. Here you deceive your ſelves, as Ahaz did deceive himſelf in Iſaiah 7. 11. where God bid him ask a ſign; he was modeſt, and baſhful, and would not ask a ſign, he would not tempt God, he would believe the Lord without a ſign, ſee how the Lord is angry: Is it a ſmall thing to weary man, but will you weary God alſo? When as the Lord in favor towards you will vouchſafe you a ſign, and you refuſe it, as if you had no need, why will you weary God? ſo as when God for the help of our weakneſs, will grant us an argument to help us in our way, and we think it is modeſty, or what you will to leave it, in this we ſin againſt the Lord our God.
Fourthly, I never finde that the Scripture does accuſe any of Hypocriſie, of unſoundneſs, and not 4.to have truth of grace meerly for this, becauſe that they did aym at the reward which is in Heaven, for that they did; you ſhall finde in Scripture many are diſcovered for hypocrites, for looking at the glory of the world as their aym, for ſeeking of riches and credit; but give me an inſtance where any is accuſed for unſoundneſs, for ſeeking of immortallity, and eternity, and happineſs; this is that which troubles many Chriſtians, that which they do is out of ſelflove, and they aym at themſelves; God did never diſcover any to be unſound upon this ground, and therefore we ſhould be cautious in accuſing our ſelves of this, as many do, becauſe, for the preſent they cannot ſee how they go further then ſeeking of themſelves, though we cannot ſee how we do go further, yet it is an argument we do go further, if we get up to this. Paul made it a mighty work of grace in him, that he could have his heart taken off from all temporal things that are ſeen, and to look at eternal things that were not ſeen.
Fifthly, yet we ought to look at God, and to lift up 5.God beyond our ſelves, or any thing that concerns our ſelves, and not to aym at God more then any worldly thing onelyonly; but to aym at God more then at the glory of Heaven.
But yet further, though we are to aym at God beyond 6.our own good any way, yet it is the will of God that he would not have us to part with any of our ſpiritual good, no not for any glory to his own name: if you look at your reward in Heaven as ſpiritual, you may ſo far look at it, as not to be willing to part with it, for any glory that you conceive may come to God: by ſpiritual good, I mean grace. Now if it could be ſuppoſed that God ſhould have never ſo much glory by my abating the leaſt degree in grace, yet I am ſo bound to the work of grace, as I muſt not abate the leaſt degree for the higheſt glory that can come to God; yea, though it is true I am to deſire the glory of God, and that others ſhould glorifie God: yet I ſhould more deſire the furtherance of grace in my own ſoul, ſo as I ſhould not be willing to part with the leaſt degree of grace, though thereby all the world ſhould glorifie God.
But here lies one objection: Paul ſeems to go Object.otherwiſe; for he wiſhed himſelf accurſed, or anathamized from Chriſt for his brethren, his kinſmen after the fleſh, ſo that it ſeems St. Paul did wiſh the glory of God in others, more then any grace in himſelf.
To this I anſwer, That ſeparation from Chriſt we muſt underſtand rightly; we are not to underſtand by Anſw.ſeparation, that he ſhould be ſeparated from the Spirit and grace of Chriſt, but that he might be ſeparated from the comforts of Chriſt, that he might not have that comfort and that happineſs that comes in by Chriſt: If he had deſired to be ſeparated from the grace of Chriſt, he ſhould have ſinned in it; Gods glory and our good are ſo annexed together, that though we may ſuffer much for the good of others, yet we are not to deſire to be in any ſinful condition, though it could ſave all the world: If it could be conceived, unleſs I ſin the leaſt ſin in thought, all the men of the world ſhould be damned, I ſhould ſuffer them all to be damned, rather then to ſin the leaſt ſin. I remember St. Auguſtine hath a tractate about an officious lye, to tell a lye for no hurt, but for good; ſays he, We are not to tell ſuch a lye, though it were to ſave all the world: Chriſt had rather all the world ſhould have been damned, then that he ſhould have committed the leaſt ſin.
In the next place, whoſoever does underſtand what 7.the true reward is that is in heaven, it is impoſſible, if he deſire heaven aright, but he muſt deſire the glory of God above himſelf: What is the heighth and top of heaven? it is not any carnal good, any carnal content that is the heighth and top of the glory of heaven? It is that our ſouls being in the perfection of them, might live to the praiſe of God for ever: Now if this be the end of all, we ſhall receive from God in heaven that we might live for ever, to reflect the glory upon God again in our praiſe; then it is impoſſible to deſire heaven, but in our deſires of heaven, we do deſire God above our ſelves: Surely we may freely aym at our reward in heaven, for if we aym at our reward, and know it aright, it is ſuch as we cannot but aym at God above our ſelves; yea further, ſo near is Gods glory and 8.our reward joyned together, that we cannot aym at God above our ſelves, but we ſhall by that means in the beſt maner provide for our ſelves; and the more we ſtrive to aym at God above our ſelves, we come in the beſt maner, that poſſibly can be, to provide for our ſelves.
And yet laſtly, there is a great difference between 9.a gracious heart looking to the reward, and a carnal heart looking to the reward: As
Firſt, the difference lies here, a gracious heart does 1. Difference between a gracious mans aim at the Reward, and one that is carnal.love the reward for the works ſake; a carnal heart does onelyonly love the work for the rewards ſake: As a gracious heart loves heaven, and loves the glory of heaven; but it loves heaven, and the glory of heaven the better, becauſe there is ſuch a bleſſed way to it. If a man were to go home, and had an ill way, he would love his home; but if he have a fair ſmooth way home, he loves his home the better for the ways ſake; therefore many men are at great coſt to have a fair going to their houſes: And ſo a gracious heart loves the way, that God does reveal to come to heaven by, and loves heaven the better becauſe of the way: A carnal heart may love heaven, but he does not love heaven the better for the way, but wiſhes the way to heaven were otherwiſe; he looks upon the way to heaven as a neceſſary burthen to him: As a man that is going out a journey, and muſt go through a dirty lane, he goes through it, but complaining; and ſo, though they deſire heaven, yet all the while they are complaining of the way: Certainly there is a great deal of difference between the deſires of heaven in a carnal heart, and the deſires of it in a gracious heart.
Secondly, the eye that a gracious heaat hath to 2.the recompence of reward, is another maner of eye then any carnal heart can have. What kinde of eye is it? Firſt, the eye that a gracious heart hath to the 1.reward, it is a clear diſcerning eye; he does not take the things of heaven as gueſſes, and imaginary things, but looks upon them as certain ſubſtantial realties: For my own part, I much doubt whether any man in the world be able to ſee the glorious things in heaven, as certain ſubſtantial things, that hath not the truth of grace: The truth of grace it is partly in this thing, in having that principle in the ſoul, that makes the ſoul able to look at the things of heaven as the onelyonly real, ſubſtantial, excellent things, ſo as to darken all the glory of the things of the world; ſo that when you come thus far, whereas before you heard ſomething of heaven, and they were but imaginary things; and now there is ſuch a light ſet up in your ſouls, as you ſee the things of heaven as the onelyonly real, ſubſtantial, glorious things; certainly there is the work of grace: The ground of it is that of Heb. 11. 1. Faith is the evidence of things not ſeen, ſo that the work of faith is there ſeen: Whoſoever ſpeaks of the reward that is in heaven, if the glory of the world be not darkned in their eyes, it argues there is no true ſaving faith.
A ſecond difference is, a gracious heart looks upon 2.the reward by ſome experimental ſweet, and good that he findes in himſelf, as the beginning of that eternal good he expects; whereas others look upon the reward as a thing onelyonly to come unto them hereafter: He reads in the word, and hears Preachers ſay ſo, and ſo he can ſpeak of them, but it is not from any experimental ſweetneſs that he findes of the beginning of eternal life wrought in him: That place is very remarkable for this, in Heb. 10. 34. Knowing in your ſelves that ye have in heaven a better and enduring ſubſtance: Other men may know in others, in books, that there is a reward; but a gracious heart knows in himſelf, by that experimental ſweetneſs of the beginning of eternal life that he findes in himſelf.
A third difference is, The eye that a gracious heart 3.hath unto the recompence of reward, is a fixed eye, a ſetled conſtant eye: Another man that is an hypocrite may have a flaſh of lightning, even from heaven it ſelf, that may diſcover ſomething unto him of the glorious condition of the people of God; as Balaam, Let me dye the death of the righteous, and let my laſt end be like his: This was more then natural, I may call it a ſupernatural work that was upon Balaam, yet not ſaving and gracious: It appeared not to be ſaving, becauſe it had not a ſaving power went with it, and it was not conſtant; and ſo many hypocrites that are unfound, when they have enlargement in prayer, they may have ſome flaſhes of lightning let into their hearts, they may have ſome glimmerings of the glorious things of heaven; and as the Holy Ghoſt ſpeaks in Heb. 6. 5. they may have a taſte of the powers of the world to come; but a gracious heart hath it not as a flaſh of lightning, but as a conſtant light that is ſet up in his ſoul, and as that light which does tranſform his ſpirit into light, and makes him to be a childe of light.
Fourthly, there is a great deal of difference in this, 4.the eye that a gracious heart hath is truly ſpiritual, the other is but carnal. A ſpiritual eye, what is that? that is, he looks at the reward as a ſpiritual thing, a carnal heart looks at it carnally: O the flaſhes of joy to have a crown and a kingdom! but a ſpiritual heart looks at the reward ſpiritually; time is coming when I ſhall be wholly free from the body of ſin and death; time is coming, when as the image of God ſhall be made perfect in my ſoul; time is coming, when I ſhall behold the bleſſed face of God, and live to the praiſe of that bleſſed God, without any intermiſſion, joyning with thoſe bleſſed creatures that are eternally bleſſing God: Now the heart that looks at it thus ſpiritually, and looks at the top of it to be a ſpiritual good; ſuch an one ſees the reward after another maner then any carnal heart doth.
The laſt difference is, the eye of the gracious heart is a believing eye, ſuch an eye, as he looks upon 5.the glorious and bleſſed things of heaven, as the things that his ſoul hath an intereſt in, as the things wherein his riches and happineſs does conſiſt; another may look upon them as glorious things that may be deſired; but for an eye to be fixed upon the promiſe, ſo as to be content to venture all upon the bare word of God for ſuch great things, ſo as to count his riches to conſiſt in theſe things that he hath but a bare word for; ſuch a believing eye as this is not the eye of a carnal heart.