A Fathers Testament, Chapter 9
CAP. IX.
What is required of us to be entered into this Covenant.
ALL that our gracious God demands of us, is only to Seek him… Seek the Lord, and his strength, seek his face continually, 1 Chron. 16.11. Seek the Lord while he may by found, Isa. 55.6. Naturally in this …abour we are notorious sluggards; ready to project vain, and imaginary dangers: There is a Lyon in the way; and when Gods gracious hand is stretched forth, reaching out his Covenant to us, we hide our hand in our bosome, and will not draw it out to receive his of…er: when he puts, and even thrus…s thi… Bread of Heaven into our hand, it griev… …s …o bring it again unto our mouth, Prov. 26.…3, 15. Therefore our Lord (who desires …ot our death, Ezek. 18.32.) presseth hard …his duty upon us: Seek the Lord, and ye …hall liv…: Se…k me, and ye shall live: Seek …im that makes the seven starrs, and Orion, …hat turneth the shadow of death into the morn…ng, and maketh the day dark with night, …mos 5.4, 6, 8. And because this Wisdom is the principal thing, (Prov. 4.7.) therefore he commands us that it should be the first of our thoughts, and wayes: Seek first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness, Matth. 6.33. This is his way, and we must walk in it. So do his Saints: With wy whole heart have I sought thee, Oh let me not wander from thy Commandments, Psal. 119.10.
Conscious of their starting nature they enter into Covenant, and bind themselves with an Oath, and penalty of death to seek the Lord with their whole desire, 2 Chron. 15…12, 13, 14, 15. Even half servants, and such who have nothing to shew of his Service but a Coat, and Livery, and that so worn, torn, and thread-bare, that men may see their nakedness through it, even these confess (sometime) the necessity of it, and in their manner set themselves to this duty, and when they do, (oh mercy!) they lose not all their labour. Those hypocrites, whose hearts were not upright with him, but flattered him with their tongue, yet in their extremity sought him, and enquired early after God: so he forbore them, and destroyed them not, Psal. 78…34, 36, 37, 38. Iehoash in the life of Jehojadah, (2 King. 12.2.) and Uzziah in th… time of Zechariah (meer temporisers, 2 Chron. 26.5.) sought the Lord and prospered.
And truly there is an absolute necessity which will enfor…e, and drive us to this search with all diligence. For there are two things which compell the most slothful heart to labour with all industry. 1. The great need of a thing, when he cannot subsist without it. 2. The extream want, when he hath nothing of it. Both here meet, and that in the highest degree. First, We are, in our nature, wholly without him. Without Christ, without God in the world, strangers to the Covenant of Promise, (and therefore) without hope, Ephes. 2.12. we have utterly lost him. As the Gileadites dealt with Iepthah, (Judg. 11.2.) we have driven him from us, thrust him out of our doors, shut our gates upon him, and even defied him: as they (Job 21.14.) Depart from us; or those in the Gosp…l, We will not have this man reign over us, Luk. 19.14. we have compelled him by our sins to forsake us, and to separate from us, Isa. 59.2. We have broken him with our whorish hearts in departing from him, Ezek. 6.9. and so forced him to leave us, Isa. 2.6. 2. Our need of him is palpable. We can have nothing, do nothing, be nothing without him; for, In him we live, move, and have our being, Act. 17.28. Our wants are innumerable, and he the only Fountain that supplies them: Our enemies also numberless, strong, subtile, malicious, and he our only Sheild that defends us. Our weakness notorious: Of no strength, Rom. 5.6. All our strength, hope, comfort lies only in him. Get him therefore we must, or perish; and seek him we must, or never get him. But wherein consists this seeking of God? In all seeking. 1. The heart seeks in the desires, and longings of it. 2. That sets it self, and the whole man on work constantly, and diligently to use all means whereby we may attain what we may desire, and seek. The root is in the heart, that blades in the desire, (mark 2 Chron. 15.12, 15.) ears, and grows fruitful in the actions, and earnest endeavours. David seeks God, How? 1. His soul thirsted, his flesh longed for God. 2. He follows hard after him, Psal. 63.1, 8. so those Saints (Isa. 26.8, 9.) in the night desire him with their soul, seek him early in the morning, waiting for him in the way of his judgements.
Again, that which we seek must be the end of our seeking: whatsoever we seek not for it self, but for some other, we seek not it indeed, but that other, for which we desire, and seek it. God must be sought for himself; we must not in seeking him look to any thing beyond him: when we seek our Lord as the Iews sought Christ, not b…ause of the miracle, but because they had eaten, and were filled, we seek not our God, but our bellies.
But what are the mean… wherein we seek, and find? The Lord hath given us blessed means. 1. Holy Ordinances, the way of hi… judgements: prayer, the Word, Sacraments: (See Isa. 26.8.) 2. A powerful Mediatour, and prevalent Intercessour with God for man, God, and Man, the Lord Iesus Christ: he the only Door, (Joh. 10.9.) the only Way, by which we come to God, Ioh. 14.6. His blood hath scored out our path to the Holiest, a new, and living way through the Veil of …is flesh, Heb. 10.19, 20. 3. Faith, which effectually applies both unto us. The Ordinances not mingled with faith profit not, Heb. 4.2. Prayer without faith God accounts howling, Hos. 7.14. the word, men who have no faith count babbling, Act. 17.18. Christ is ours, and dwells in our hearts by faith, Ephes. 3.17. but without faith we are still under the curse, Iob. 3.36. He then that thirsteth for God, looks to Christ in every Ordinance, not to serve himself of God, but to serve him in all faithfulness, this man seeks God.
Many there are which deceive themselve…, and suppose they are not now to begin that work: they have long …ince (they hope) both sought, and found him. But have they prep…red their heart? have th…y put aw…y iniquity far from them? do they not suffer wickedness to dwell in their Tabernacles? Job 11.13, 14. How should men seek, and find God in the wayes of ungodliness? the righteous Lord in all unrighteousness? Can God be found in Atheism? In such wayes they find God (as Balaam his Angel) with a drawn sword in his hand, not as a Father, but a Iudge, and Avenger. Indeed if we rejoice to work righteousness, remember him in his wayes, he will surely meet us in his mercy, Isa. 64.5. But if we seek him after our own devices, and, though we walk after the imagination of our own wicked hearts, yet dream we shall have peace (Deut. 29.19.) he will meet us, not as a man, (Isa. 47.3.) but as a Lion to tear us in pieces, where none can deliver, Psal. 50.22.
And yet further (that we deceive not our selves in a matter of such consequence) we must know that this seeking of God may be considered in divers periods of it. 1. When being without God in the World we seek to be initiated into his service (see Act. 17.27.) 2. After some breach, when by our misbehaviour we have caused him to withdraw his favour, and to hide himself from us, as Cant. 5.6. 3. Even when we are in peace, and amity, we must still seek him, labouring to get more union, and communion with him in a continual waiting upon him, and looking unto him, Psal. 105. 4. Some perhaps will think, All this is needless: what necessity of seeking him, when he first seeks us? (Luk. 15.4, 8.) nay finds us before we seek him, (Isa. 65.1.) God indeed loveth us first, (1 Ioh. 4.19.) and in his love draws us, (Jer. 31.3.) In infinite love he gives us his Son, (Joh. 3.16.) Thus he seeks us lost Creatures, as that Woman her lost Groat, Luk. 15.8. He lights up the Gospel, and sends in with it that great light, offers him, and in him offers us grace, and happiness: so he seeks, and finds us, as Keepers their strayed De…r; he sends in Hunters, and they hunt us from every Mountain, and every hill, and from holes of Rocks: he sends those Apostolical Fishers, and they shall spread their Nets, (Ezek. 47.10.) and fish them, Ier. 16.16. Till which time we do but (as thos… blind Heathens) feel after him, Act. 17.27. we sit in darkness, he sends in his Word, and calls us …orth unto his marvelous Light, 1 Pet. 2.9. we are enemies, he beseeches us to be reconciled, and offers us peace in Christ; but further gives his chosen an heart to know him, (Jer. 24.7.) an heart to fear him, (Jer. 32.39.) an heart to walk in his wayes, (Ezek. 36.27.) He circumciseth their hearts to love him, (Deut. 30.6.) opens the heart for Christ, (Act. 16.14.) and brings in the Lord Jesus to dwell there, Eph…s. 3.17. so he first seeks us in calling us, seek ye my f…ce; and then we (when he hath given us that new heart) seek him, when we answer Lord thy face will I seek, Psal. 27.8. He first waits to be gracious to us, then we wait on him, and ar… blessed, Isa. 30.18. Let me shut up this Chapter, with that Princely Preacher, and Prophetical Poet, in this Paraphrase (in Verse) upon his Ecclesiast. 2.
I.
Oh I am tir'd, I faint, I swoon, I dye,
I travel all the world to find a station,
Where weary soul… may sa…e, and happy lye,
I search for rest, feel but vexation;
I grope for substance, grasp but vanity;
I seek for life, and health, find death, damnation;
I meet approaching death, death to eschew:
Toyl'd with vain sweat, I wax old, to renew
My weary life: so spend, and hate what I pursue.
II.
To Pleasures house I fail'd, and safe arriv'd
I lookt for Joy, but …ound a Bedlam there:
Into rich Mammons baggs, and Chest… I div'd,
But saw them fill'd with grief, with care, and …ear:
The Crown was but a Skep, where swarms are hiv'd
Of stinging thoughts; it wears me w…ich I wear.
Has man no good? is't lost? or a… blind?
Who? who will point the way? or cleer my mind?
To find what I should seek, to seek that I may find?
III.
Look as th' industrious Bee from flowr to flow…
Jumps lightly, vi…its all, but dwells in none:
Or as a sickly taste tries sweet, and sowre,
Runs through a World of dishes, finds not o…
To please his curious Pal…te… has no power
To relish what it likes: this bit, that bone
Long'd …or, and loath'd… thus my unquiet brea…
In Earth, S…, Ayer, Heav'… vainly …:
But serving them is curst, and serv'd by them not blest.
IV.
Can rivers seek, find re… in res…less Seas?
Can Ayer in stormy ayers quiet stay?
Can Heavens find in swiftest raptures ease?
Has only man no Centre? none to lay
His weary soul to rest? no place to …ase
His boundless thoughts? Me thinks I see a ray,
A glorious b… break through Heav'ns Canopy;
Me thinks I hear a voice, Come Soul, and see,
Come; here, here lies thy rest; rest in my word, & me.
V.
It is thy lovely voice, great Love, oh where,
Where, Lord of love, where should I seek to find thee?
In every place I see thy footsteps cleer,
Yet find thee not: what are the mi…s that blind me?
I know Lord where thou art, and seek thee there,
Yet there I find not: thee before, behind me,
On every side I see, yet seeing blind
I find not what I see: but heark (my mind)
He speaks again: Soul seek, seek thou, and I will find.
A great encouragement which will much hearten us in this quest is that.