Meditations the Parable of the Prodigal Son, Chapter 6
CHAP. VI.
Wherein Application of the foregoing Doctrine is made in several Ʋses.
WE have already seen the inclination and lusting desire that is in man to forsake God, and the Reasons of it: I shall now proceed to apply the consideration hereof in the following Uses. And
This informs us of the sinfulness of man's nature, Ʋse 1 yea of the exceeding sinfulness of sin in man. For as the School-men say, Sin is a turning from God to the Creature, chiefly to a man's self, and his own Will.
But the truth is, sin is more than this; it is a despising of God, it makes men speak against God; The people spake against God: Num. 21.5.to turn their spirits against God; to multiply words against God; Job 15.13. Job 34.37.to speak marvellous things against the God of Gods, Dan. 11.36. The Serpents words to the woman at first stick to us still, Ye shall be as Gods— And if God should let men have their own way and wishes, he would soon lose himself in the world: Psal. 10.4.wicked men would turn God out of the world, as well as out of their thoughts. And wherefore? 2 Cor. 4.4.man would be God of this world, as well as the Devil. Men are naturally Polytheists, for many Gods. Some make their belly their God, Phil. 3.10. others make silver and gold their God; Dan. 5.23.They praised the Gods of silver and gold; yea to make Devils their Gods, they sacrificed to Devils, Deut. 32.17. to make their own Lusts their Gods, —serving divers lusts— Man would have any Gods rather than the true God; Tit. 3.but especially he is inclined to make a God of himself. That ye shall be as Gods, pleased our first Parents well. Man would have the disposing of his Estate in his own hand: he thinks he can do better for himself than God does.
As Alphonso of Spain said, as story reports, That if he had been of God's Counsel at the Creation, some things should have been better contrived. Ah thinks many a man with himself, and in his heart, If I had but my life, and health, and strength, and whole condition in my own power, then I should be a happy man. Thus is man in the fall, fallen from God to himself, and would be what himself would. When God will have him poor, he would be rich; and when God will have him low, he would be high: If it were in his power, almost nothing should be with him as it is, or as it is in the world.
Most men would be Rulers in the world; 2 Sam. 15.O that I were made Judge in the land, saith Absolom. Peter would live upon Mount Tabor, Luke. 9.33.Master it is good for us to be here, let us make three Tabernacles— How many have dispatched Princes and Popes out of the world, that their selves might be in their places? Those that are called Fifth-Monarchy men had need take heed of this Leaven; two of Christ's own Disciples aspired to sit one at Christ's right hand, Matth. 20. Luke 22.24.and the other on his left in his Kingdom; and all of them sought for the preheminence, and that in a Kingdom in this world, Acts 2.6. Some men would judge the World and Angels before the 1 Cor. 6.time. Oh how eager is our nature to be freed from God's will, and left to our own? then things should not only be altered in the World, but in the Word of God; the holy Scriptures themselves should come under an Index Expurgatorius, we see it at Rome; much of the Commandments, Threatnings, and Decrees of God should be blotted out: Men would be without the Word of God, or above it, as the Pope and Church of Rome presume to be. Our Saviour told the Pharisees and Scribes, That for the Commandments of God they had obtruded the Traditions of men, Mark 7.8, 13.and that they made the word of God of none effect by their Traditions. Yea, Dan. 11.there are more than Antiochus Epiphaues,, that would do what they will, and exalt themselves, and magnifie themselves above every God. O how are men beholding to God for his restraining grace? It's a mercy to men, that they are not what they would be, and that he keeps many of their unruly inclinations dormant.
This informs us of the power and excellency of Gospel grace, Ʋse 2 that hath begun to destroy this vileness of our corrupt nature, and will in time swallow it up into victory: Grace at length will be the destruction of this evil humour of leaving God, and cleaving to our selves; the Conquest will be gradual, as Joshua's was over the Natives of Canaan.
Believers would keep their station under God, they are much outed of themselves, Rom. 7.18.and out of conceit with themselves; In me (that is in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing. God is their all, and they are all for God: God is their hope, Psal. 39.and God is the strength of their hearts, and their portion for ever; Psal. 73.26.the desire of their soul is to him, Isa. 26.8.
They hide not themselves from God, as Adam did, nor can they bear God's hiding himself from them; Psal. 16. Psal. 41.12.they set the Lord always before them, as the Lord sets them alway before his face. They go not out of God's presence, Exod. 33.as Cain did, but as earnestly desire it, Psal. 73.as Moses did. They get and keep as near God as they can; It is good for me to draw near to God.
Grace makes a man desirous to be in subjection to the Father of Spirits; to be at his disposing; to begin to speak like Jesus Christ; yet not my will, but thine be done: Grace hath always brought men to this spirit and temper, good is the word of the Lord, Isa. 1 Sam. 3.18.39. ult. It is the Lord, let him do what seemeth him good. 2 Sam. 15.26.If he say thus, I have no delight in thee; behold here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good to him. When God gave Aaron most heavy blows, Lev. 10.3.Aaron held his peace. The Saints can do thus often, and they would always do thus; they pray, and strive to do so, and grieve when they cannot: They have indeed, they have great wrestlings with temptations to the contrary, yet their conflicts end in conquests.
The Viper may stick a while on Paul's hand, Acts 28.but he shakes it off again, and without any hurt. There is a great difference between a Saints temptations and his resolutions. The holy Psalmist was tempted to leave God and godliness; Psal. 73.13, 14, 15, 22, 28.Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain;— here was his temptation, but what was his resolution? to the contrary; he abhorr'd the temptation, and himself too, where he indulged it in the least. If I say I will speak thus, behold I should offend against the generation of thy Children: so foolish was I, and ignorant, I was as a beast before thee; but it is good for me to draw near to God. And here is the power and excellency of the grace of God in men; it would have men at God's disposing, and not their own.
This may exhort us to quicken this principle of grace into operation; else sin that dwelleth in us, Ʋse 3 Judg. 16.will make us weak as other men, as Sampson was, when he had lost his Nazrarites locks. If we take not heed, and great heed, there is a wisdome of the flesh that will beguile us, as the Serpent did Eve. Our lusts are deceitful lusts, Eph. 5.22. they are not dead, though they be dying; they are dead as to their dominion in all the Saints, but as to operation, in none; if we watch not, one or other of them will steal away our hearts from God, 2 Sam. 15.as Absolom did many of the peoples from David. Ezek. 14.3, 4, 5…O take heed ye set not up any Idol in your hearts; we are inclined to it by nature, and these will estrange us from God.
And let us take heed what we ask of God: this Prodigal Son would needs have his Portion out of his Fathers hand into his own: Yea, St. James and John asked unfitting things of Jesus, to sit one on his right hand, Mark 10.37.and the other on his left in his Kingdom. And again, they asked of him power, Luke 9.54.as Elias had, to command fire from Heaven upon the Village that slighted Jesus Christ; v. 55,an evil spirit that Jesus rebuked in them, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. And in the same Chapter, Peter asked of Christ that he might dwell with him, and Moses, and Elias, in the Mount where he was transfigured. And all his Disciples had an itch to have ruled with him in the Kingdom of Israel, 1 Pet. ….when he was risen from the dead.
O my Brethren, it is good that God deny us what we sometimes ask; we ask things for our own turns, without reference to his. 1 Kings 3.Did we ask, as Solomon did, Wisdom, for God's sake more than his own, we should not be denied.
The Lord knows what it is to give much into our hands, since he trusted Adam with his whole Portion in his; yet this is in our nature to seek, as we see in this Son, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. But the Lord knoweth that we cannot manage, or bear so much as we would have, as our Saviour said to his Disciples, John 16.12.I have many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now; and therefore he hath taken another course with us, to take us off of self, and from standing on our own bottoms. He hath put all our Portion into other hands, into better and safer hands than our own, even into Christ's; Col. 1.19. John 3.35.It pleased the Father, that all fulness should dwell in him; and the Father hath given all things into the Sons hands. So that now we must have all from Christ, and not all at once, but according to the measure of the gift of Christ, Eph. 4.7.and as we are able to bear and use it.
We must have all spiritual life from Christ, he is our life; Col. 3.4.and we must have all our righteousness from Christ, Jer. 23.6.inherent and imputed, he is the Lord our righteousness; and we must have all our spiritual strength from Christ, Phil. 4.13.I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me.
And we must have our temporals from Christ as well as spirituals; Matth. 28.All power in heaven and earth is given unto him: we can have nothing from God, but through the hands of Christ; 2 Cor. 4.6.The light of the knowledge of the glory of God must shine into our hearts through the face of Jesus Christ. John 1.16.It's from his fulness that we all have received, Eph. 1.6. and 3.12.and grace for grace. Our access to God, and acceptance with him, is by him. The holy Scriptures dwell much on this point: God is resolved to take his Children off from self-depending and self-disposing, and thereby from self-ascribing: Not unto us, Psal. 11.1.O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy Name give glory: 1 Chro. 29.14.Of thine own have we given thee, saith David of his and his people's freewill Offerings.
God will give all, and have all again; as the Sea feeds the Rivers, and the Rivers return again into the Sea. Lord, Eccles. 2. Isa. 26.12. 2 Phil. 1.3.thou hast wrought all our works in us. It is God that worketh in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure. And truly it is needful that we be kept off from self-weening, and that we be kept low. What we have in Grace and Comfort, that we have it by little and little, as Israel had the possession of Canaan. A little at a time is fittest for us, as the Mother does by her little Children.
God gives Grace to his own people with abatements as to their desires; Note. and when he gives them any great things, useth to do it with repercussives, to draw back the humour of Pride they are in danger of. When he gave St. Paul abundance of revelations, 2 Cor. 12.7.he forthwith gave him a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet him, lest he should be exalted above measure. And therefore when God at any time shews you great things, expect a thorn in the flesh to hide Pride from you.
God leaves his people sometimes to themselves to let them know of what ill consequence it is to be of themselves; 2 Chron. 32.so he did by good Hezekiah, who found the ill effect in the case. Oh let us be afraid to be left to our selves, to our own will, or wisdome, or strength, or desires, especially to our own lusts.
It was to Israel sorrow, that God gave them their requests; Psal. 106.15. Psal. 81.12.and when he gave them up to their own hearts lusts, and to walk in their own counsels. If we should be at our own dispose, and have our own will of God, as this younger Son had of his Father, it would be our ruin; and what was said to Israel would be said to us, Mos. 13.9.O Israel, thou hast destroyed thy self.
Many Children, if they be let alone, will eat Coals and Clay, yea, and Ratsbane for Sugar; and so foolish and ignorant are God's own Children sometimes, Psal. 73.22.in a time of temptation, as Asaph confessed of himself; Prov. 30.2.and good Agur, Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man.
I cannot but take up a Lamentation for poor man, Fourthly. that he is such an altered Creature from his original. God made man a companion for himself, as he did the woman for the man; though he needed not man's society as Adam did Eves: Therefore he made man in his own Image, Gen. 1.26. 1 Cor. 11.7.and after his own likeness, as he did the womans to the man's.
But man hath lost his likeness and his love to God together: Man naturally cares not for God's company; he hides himself from God, or would if he could, as Adam did; and goes out of the presence of God, Jonah 1.3.as Cain.
Such a man as Jonah went out of the presence of the Lord. It is natural to man to go a whoring from God as Israel did; I have loved strangers, Hos. 4.12. Jer. 2.25, 31.and after them will I go; and we will come no more unto thee.
Man is not satisfied with one God, but makes many Gods to himself, and himself the chiefest; According to the number of thy Cities are thy Gods, v. 28.O Judah. And so may it be said to every natural man, according to the number of thy Lusts so are thy Gods: An adulterous man is not satisfied with one woman, nor the adulterous woman with one man; so is not a natural heart satisfied with one God. O what a strange Creature is man since the fall.! Truly the Daughters of Israel did not more solemnly lament the Daughter of Jephta, than we should our natural disposition to cast off God, and to be as Gods our selves; the whole Creation groans under this grievous Distemper of ours, and how little sense have we of it our selves? This is for a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.
Lastly, Fifthly. Let us all make observation of our own spirits in this point: There is a difference in the spirits of the godly themselves in the case. Some are more carnal, and walk as men, as it was with some of the Corinthians; others are more spiritual, 1 Cor. 3.and walk as Saints indeed. Rom. 1.28. Psal. 10.4.Natural men like not to retain God in their knowledge, nor in their thoughts: They are weary of his presence, Job 21.14. and weary of his service; Mal. 1.13.what a weariness is it? weary of those that are like to God, as the Sodomites were of Lot. Matth. 8.34.The Gergesenes wished Jesus himself to depart out of their Coasts.
But there is another spirit in the truly godly, their desire is to set the Lord always before them. Psal. 16.8. Psal. 42.1. Lam. 3.24. Psal. 27.7.To live with him, to live upon him. They would not be at liberty from God's Commands, nor from his Government, nor from his Disposing. They are afraid to be left to themselves.
Now observe your own spirits how like you are to these, and how unlike the other: If you have Grace, the tendency of your Soul is towards God, Isa. 26.9.and not from him. With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early. The corruption of nature cries, Divide the heart between God and thy Lusts, and between God and other things, as that Harlot cry'd, 2 Kings 3. Psal. 119.10.Divide the Child: But Grace votes for God to have the whole heart; with my whole heart have I sought thee.
When therefore any hard thoughts arise in thee of God, look upon the Flesh, and that unclean Spirit the Devil, Job 2.to joyn in the evil motion. Satan would perswade others besides Job to curse God; he will insinuate and suggest to you after the manner of Absolom to Hushai, 2 Sam. 16.17.Is this thy kindness to thy friend? So will Satan seek to make thy heart secretly to reproach God when thou art under hard dispensations of Providence by himself, or by harsh and cruel men; Is this God's kindness to his friends, to let them be so harshly dealt with?
I, but lay things together, and wisely consider of God's doings, Psal. 64.9. Psal. 73.1.as the Psalmist said, and then you will say, Yet God is good to every one that is of a clean heart. O take heed of making any ill reflexions on God, either on his Word, or Works, or Decrees, or Attributes; this is the way to be tempted to leave God, and stand upon your own bottoms, as this Prodigal did; Give me my portion of Goods, and I'le be gone. I, but what follows? This leads to the second Particular, Point or Doctrine,
That mens leaving and casting off God's Government to live of themselves, and to be at their own dispose, is the cause of very much sin and sorrow in their lives. Of which in the following Chapter.