Balm for Bleeding England and Ireland, Sermon 14
USEFULL INSTRVCTIONS FOR THESE Evill Times.
COLOSS. 1.12.
Giving thanks to the Father, &c.
Defin.THanksgiving (according to the ſenſe of this and other Texts) is a divine returne of divine love: 'Tis a Sea going forth into al the veines of the Earth, and returned againe to its ſelfe, by Rivers and Streames. God is infinitly out here below, and yet all upon finite man, man is to make a returne of al, and in Gods own coyne; love, for love; to make Gods owne doings and dealings, acknowledge him and own him; al love to the Creature, reſpecting body and ſoule, in proſperity and adverſity, to cal him Father: giving thankes to the Father.
Man is the mouth of the Creation, to make all the workes of God ſpeake, and acknowledge their proper Author; all the power, al the wiſdome, al the love that is in them, to God as their Father. Every Creature hath a rude ſpeech to this purpoſe, of its owne: that is, as Gods owne glory, gloriouſly revealed in them, ſenſibly ſpeakes forth himſelfe. But man is formed intentionally, and very tranſcendently to this worke; to ſpeake not rudely, but divinely, accurately; to make power ſpeake, and to ſpeake to the life; wiſdome ſpeake, and ſpeake to the life; every mute Creature and action, and al the love that lies mute and ſilent in them, to ſpeake out and proſtrate it ſelfe, to God as it's Father. Giving thanks to the Eather; who hath made us, &c.
All things in the World, in the Heavens, in the Earth, in the Sea, have Gods marke upon them, as his goods; as great Merchants ſet their marke upon all the goods which are theirs. God hath not left himſelfe without witneſſe, throughout the Creation; Now thankfulneſſe, 'tis a going from Creature to Creature, from worke to worke, to finde out God, his marke, his image and ſuperſcription: to whom doth this belong? To whom that? if the Echo be to God: why? give unto God the things that are Gods: if this creature or action, be ſo fat, ſo mute that it cannot ſpeake, nor call God Father, I will for it, ſaith a thankfull ſoule: let God have all his owne, let him weare his one glory himſelfe, and none elſe; Father al love, to al things here below, temporall love eternal love, upon him. Give thankes to the Father, who hath made us meete, &c.
Thankefulneſſe is a making every thing that is good, to cry Abba Father to God: every thing that is good, and al the good that is in every thing; what is ſimply and totally good; what is ſubordinately and finally good, good in its end, as troubles which prepare and fit for Heaven: what good is in the ſtaffe, what good is in GOD? what good is in good, and what good is in evil? thankfulneſſe goes a fiſhing and gathering for love, every where, and to every ones doore; to hel doore, to Heaven doore, to preſent it to its owne Father, giving thankes to the Father who hath made us meete to be partakers of the inheritance of Saints in light.
Thankfulneſſe, it is Gods faithfull regiſter. 'Tis Recorder to the great City above; 't'hath an admirable memory, nothing dies that love does; tis a grace which layes up doings, ſayings, yea, whiſperings of love in the heart, many yeares and ponders them every day, every houre, and keepes them alive, and as freſh and fragrant in the ſoule, as if but now done. Shee writes love, as he writes beloved, upon the Palme of her hand; ſhe is never forgotten, nor never forgets; ſhe remembers dayes of Old; dayes of love, though never ſo old, are new. Thankefulneſſe makes mercies live as God lives, for ever. His name is had in everlaſting remembrance, &c. By whom? by a thankefull ſoule by none elſe. There is no grace makes Chronology ſo exact for yeares for dayes, for houres for all circumſtances, as thankfulneſſe doth. How long God hath beene a Father: in what condition a Father, in what manner and meaſure a Father: to what end a Father, to beſtow an inheritance; what inheritance for kinde, for ſituation; whether in darkeneſſe or in light, ſhe exactly records all. Giving Thanks to the Father who hath made us meete to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light.
Thankefulneſſe, 'tis Gods bountifull paymaſter: 'tis a returne of Gods own with advantage; his favours, and mans heart in over and above, for Gods favours. A thankfull man cannot nakedly returne fatherly love; hee binds up his heart in his acknowledgements; hee bundles up bleſſings, and bundles up his ſoule in them, and ſo carries them al together to Heaven. All his benefits, and all my ſoule, and all that is within it, let them al goe together to Heaven, to make an offring of thankſgiving. Let the Arke goe home againe, but by no meanes let it goe home empty; ſend coſtly Pictures of Gods dealings home with it, golden Emrods, golden Mice: let Chriſt and love revealed in my ſoule, be returned by my ſoule home againe, but let them not be returned empty, ſayes a thankfull man; let me picture out and engrave Gods kinde dealings in my heart, and ſo ſend Divine favours and heart together, home to Heaven: yea if I had ten thouſand ſoules, ten thouſand Jewells more precious, then that inmoſt Jewell of all in my breaſt let that love which hath made it ſelfe my father, and made me out an inheritance, as a child, and me fit for that inheritance, have all. Giving thankes to the Father, &c. Underſtand this to be a heart ſpeech, a ſoule breathing, an intenſe totall ſoule breathing, heaven-ward.
Thanksgiving 'tis a preſenting God with his own; with all his own:—with thine own have wee offered unto thee ſaith David in his thansgiving: wiſdom, might are thine, all that is good comes of thee. A thankfull man hath no good thing of his own, 'tis all Gods that he has; his wiſdome, Gods; his ſtrength, Gods; every good thought of God; to doe, to will good, of God; whatſoever hee has, whatſoever hee is, is grace—by his grace I am that I am: this is the naturall language of a thankfull ſoule. All good in me, al good that comes from me, is of him and through him, and therefore all ſhall be for him: inheritance, fitneſſe for this inheritance; all felicity, all that belongs to felicity, have no naturall, but a divine father. Giving thanks to [the] Father, &c. 'Tis an expreſſion foreign, 'tis a breathing out of all, for all, to him that is al. Gods fathering of man, hath al favours in it, all favours have two parts, an inheritance, and fitting for it, and both in this Text, and both taken up with one hand, to wit with thanksgiving, and lifted up as high as Heaven.
Thanksgiving, 'tis a ſpirit ſtill upon the wing, riſing and aſcending to Heaven from every thing; never at home but at Heaven, 'tis a very low thing, that he cannot riſe from as high as Heaven: hee eates and lookes up; drinkes and lookes up; lookes downe and lookes up; whatſoever he lookes upon, he cannot looke off God: whatſoever he ſees, heares, taſts ſmells, he takes wing from, and goes bound in ſpirit for Heaven—whether yee eate, or drinke, or whatſoever hee doth, he doth all to the glory of God. Thankfulneſſe is an Eagle-grace, whoſe game lies all in ſoaring & mounting, towards the Sun: 'tis a ſoule ſtill travelling from Earth to Heaven, from the creature to the Creator: tis he that brings tidings to Heaven ſtill of the loſt groat, of the loſt ſheepe, of the loſt Son; of what of Gods was loſt, and is found here and there, in this perſon and that, in this thing and that, which makes that tranſcendent joy above: 'tis a man whoſe minde runs upon God (as you have ſuch a phraſe) nothing but God is in all his thoughts; he is loſt in love, and can finde no way out, but by breaking out to Heaven. O the depth of the riches both of the wiſdom and knowledge of God, &c.
Thankfulneſſe doth preſuppoſe admiration: a minde over-matcht with matter. The ſoule is big with admiration as it can goe, ere it kindly and nuturally brings forth thanksgiving. A little makes a thankfull man, admire much; the leaſt of Gods mercies, O how great tis, to a thankfull ſoule? A thankfull ſoule ſees nothing but wonders; bread a wonder, a crum of bread in his mouth, a wonder: clothes a wonder, any rag on his back, a wonder: any whole peece in his fleſh, in his ſpirit, in his eſtate, in his name, a wonder; O how big are all a thankfull mans mercies, and how little he? how tall and proper every merciemercy, and what a dwarfe he! How good is every piece, but the midle piece! what a worme is man, and yet how uſed by God above a man, ſet little lower then Angels! What a nothing, what a worſe then nothing is man, and yet what an all is God to him! theſe two wonders make a third, to wit a dead heart alive, and leape as high as Heaven. Giving thankes to the Father, who hath made us meete, &c. You ſee thankfulneſſe hath here a great many wonders in her eye, and this ſtirs her—who hath made, and made us: and made us, what? why partakers of an inheritance: what inheritance? why an inheritance of Saints: where doth … lie, why? wonderfull ſtrangely, as high as Heaven, in light: admiration (you ſee) is the naturall mother of thanksgiving, giving thanks to the Father who hath done all theſe, and theſe favours for us.
Finally (for I will name no more things about the opening of this doctrin, though it were worthy long dwelling upon; thanksgiving, 'tis the proper worke of a Chriſtian, and the naturall worke of an Angel. A Chriſtian is organized above all men, ſweetly to tell God, his own: he can dive deeper, aſcend higher, run faſter and further after God, then all the lower World beſide. 'Tis proper onelyonly to a Chriſtian to ſee love, to taſte love, which are the ſtrings onelyonly which thanksgiving makes muſick upon; ſhee can play nothing but love leſſons. No man is divine but a Chriſtian, all others are but ſenſuall, and to be ranked with bruites in point of thanksgiving, for they give as good praiſe to God for any thing they have, as any carnall man, and better. Bruites cannot ſpeake, but their bodies really anſwer their end, which is reall thanksgiving, for what they have and are: 'Tis a reall returne of all, for all. A carnall man can ſpeake God I thanke thee, &c. But neither tongue nor hand, neither ſoule nor body anſwer their end, and ſo man makes himſelf an Hypocrite, which a beaſt cannot do.
The Waves clap their hands (ſaith the Pſalmiſt) many carnall men do not ſo much in point of thanksgiving, the beſt of them can do no more. All inanimata and meere animata, they are only Creatures ad extra reſpecting thanksgiving, they can onelyonly clap their hands, and clap their wings, and all carnall men can do no more; their Creatures onelyonly ad extra reſpecting divine workes, what they can do at theſe is onelyonly with their hands and with their tongues, clap their hands, clap their breaſts and lift up their eyes which ſome Bruites will be taught to doe in time.
As thanksgiving is the proper worke of a Chriſtian ſo 'tis the naturall worke of an Angel, their breathing is divine prayſing: they are ſpirits of honour waiting upon the King of glory, their place and their ſhape is for tranſcendent melody: the advancing of infinite love is all their worke, they ſpeake nothing elſe, doe nothing elſe, nor can doe; as the workes you doe naturally you doe neceſſarily; you breath and you can doe no otherwiſe. They are juſt under the line, love ſhines mighty hot upon them; with full face, with perpendicular rayes that they are in a continuall rapture which neceſſitates heart lifting and leaping and nothing elſe, and makes Hallelujah's all their language. They are taken up with returning what they heare, ſee, feele, taſte, and live in, and live upon. The reſult of all is this thanksgiving, is a divine returning of divine love: a rendring to God as wee have received as that expreſſion concerning Hezekiah is; 'tis ſaid hee rendred not, or as it is in the Originall repayed not according to what he received, which is a full and a lively definition of thanksgiving.
Ʋſe. Lets all mourne and take on, we are all behind hand with God. The Chriſtian world is become bankrupt, quite broke, makes no returne to God of his love: he is iſſuing out proceſſe to ſieze upon body, goods, life, and will be put off no longer: bloudy Bayliffs are abroad for bad debters, all the Chriſtian world over; Chriſtians are broke and make no returne, God is breaking of all. He cannot have what he would have, what he ſhould have, hee will take what hee can get; for mony he will take goods, limbs, armes, legs; hee will have his owne out of your skin, out of your bloud, out of your bodies and ſoules: he is ſetting the Chriſtian World as light and as low, as they have ſet his love. Ah Lord! what a time do we live in? Long ſuffering is at an end: mercy will be righted by Juſtice, Juſtice will have all behinde, 'twill be paid to the utmoſt farthing; 'twill ſet abroach your bloud, but 'twill have all behind. England looke to thy ſelf: how much haſt thou received? what haſt thou return'd? there is but one thing will undoe thee O England, to wit, ingratitude, not returning as thou haſt received.
There be three or foure things which broadly ſpeake, Englands ingratitude. Great favours overlookt, So great things ſcarce in any age as in ours, hath God wrought, yet what impreſſion is there to be found, in any mans heart? wroks are great, and yet make but little impreſſion; as faſt as wrought, dead; 'tis deadly ominous. Tell mee, are your hearts in a flame of love? doth Heaven ring with your praiſes? have not, doe not the dealings of God challenge this of every one? The dealings of God with England, carry a ſweete Face of love, and their inſide ſeemes very killing and judiciary, they leave all hearts ſo flat and ſo low, at ſuch a deſperate loſſe ſtill, as if nothing were done: the greateſt Victories, the greateſt deliverances, keepe up the heart but a day, but an houre: Our favours are great, but worke not anſwerably, There is no one thing more ſad in my obſervation: they are great onelyonly to looke upon, not great in their efficacy and power upon the ſoule, which may make you all look about you.
The buddings of great deſolation appeare, The Lord pity thee England, The Lord pity thee England. Wee grow cold, under the rayes of fervent love: dead, and nothing will keepe us alive. The Revelation of great love, made us a little warme for a time, and lifted up our hearts a while, high; and now they fall deadly faſt; 'tis deadly preſaging. If nothing will keepe up the heart, all wil downe, all muſt neceſſarily downe. If Ely cannot keepe up his ſpirit, hee will not keepe up his perſon: if the heart be broke and downe, the necke will be broke too ere long, and all downe: a ſinking ſpirit, preſages a ſinking ſtate. Every mans heart ere while, was at his mouth leaping, now 'tis at their heeles running; love unto miracle will not keepe us alive, nor keepe up our hearts and hands, to magnifie God: what deſolating ingratitude is this? Every one lookes heavy, ſpeakes heavy, ſighes heavy, ſcarce one magnifying God. What ſhall I doe ſayes one? What ſhall I doe ſayes another? Why, what does God doe? eye him, doe your duty, follow after him with praiſe, or you will murther your ſelves and many more.
A ſecond thing that ſpeakes broadly and ſadly, Englands ingratitude, is, Concuring and aſſiſting providence checkt: A willing God to doe great things for his people, ſleighted. Love workes richly, wee worke poorely: wee let love die in travell at our doore; we are likely then, to make a goodly returne of love, are we not? we are lazily making our ſelves ready, when love calles and puts in her finger at Key holes, and crannies, gloriouſly to us, which is groſſe ingratitude, and for which the Church was heavily judged, with a departure. We take not Chriſt by the hand, when he ſtretcheth it out to us; we doe not welcome Chriſt, as hee comes ſmiling and with a countenance like Lebanon, towards us; wee doe not bleſſe, kiſſe, and embrace him, when hee ſhewes his Face as an Angel: greater unkindneſſe and ingratitude, can there be? Wee let mercies, great mercies, melt away in their owne greaſe, and make nothing of them for Gods glory, or our owne good; as if great favours coſt GOD nothing, Gods people nothing, or were worth nothing. Heaven opens and our Eyes are ſhut: Heaven opens againe, and our Eyes are ſtill ſhut. God makes his glory paſſe by us, and we let it paſſe. Greene mercies, raw mercies, halfe mercies, baſtard bleſſings will content us, when full favours, mature favours, admirably proffer'd. We check a bountifull God, a willing Father, Is not this baſe ingratitude? we ſleight full love, when fully proffer'd; a plant of renowne, when proffer'd in a way of renowne: Is this to returne full love, fully? to kill it in travaile? to ſtrangle it in the wombe? Becauſe the man-Childe makes Panges and Throwes, therefore weary of travaile, and any peace, ſo but an end of this War; Any reformation, ſo this corporall deſolation, were but ended: O baſe England.
A third thing that broadly ſpeakes Englands ingratitude, is this, gentle corrections unobſerved. Who obſerves how tenderly the bloudy ſwords, is manag'd in England? How in the middeſt of Juſtice, God remembers mercy? who is taken with this? how many hearts doth this raiſe to follow God with praiſes? What an Earth-quake Juſtice makes, in the joints of the wicked! What a breſt worke in Bataile mercy makes? to ſave the innocent! Few to reſiſt many: few to kill many! how ſparing of good bloud, is our good God! how careleſſe of bad! How hee doth droppe in reliefe like Aquavitae, when wee are ready to ſwoune, things goe ſo ill! How many hearts are taken, raiſ'd up, kept up, bleſſing God for this? Mercy Exalts her ſelfe againſt Juſtice, ſhee leads and guides our bloudy Armies; Juſtice is but as a common man, wounds and killes here and there, where mercy bids it. At moſt, juſtice brings up but the reare in our Warre, ſhee comes behinde and Treades a little upon our heele, and bruiſes that, whiles ſhee breakes the heads and neckes of the wicked. O what Heavenly pillage, every battaile in England, hath hitherto afforded! how much of God, how much Divine power, how much Divine wiſdome, Divine love, to be gathered up! but who hath inricht himſelfe, with this Noble treaſure? thy greateſt mercies O England, are but ſhort liv'd: thy tendereſt mercies quickly dye, I like it not, ſhalt thou live O England? God admirably ſaves us, we wickedly kill his kindneſſe: 'twill kill us all, if not well look't to. God is full of bowells, wee are brawny, 'twill not laſt ſo alwayes. God killes malice, wee kill love what dealings are gentle, we groane under as tedious; too long, and too broad, too ſpoiling, too killing: who bleſſes God that Englands miſeries are mild? that England is dealt with, far better then ſhee doth deſerve.
I have ſpoken more generally to the Land, I will ſpeake more particularly to you Chriſtians. You have a great ſtock of love in your hand, what returne doe you make? I am commanded by this point in hand, to looke after my maſters income, his great revenue of this lower world; rent day is come, and I am come to demand it. You were Lepers, are yee cleanſed? How many returne and give thankes; you were caſt out to loathing, are yee taken into embracing? what acknowledgment doe you make? Infinite love is out upon you Chriſtians, how does it returne into the boſome from whence, it came out?
Ingratitude makes great guilt, and great breach; that heart will grow too heavy for the man, that cannot be taught to praiſe God, to ſing new ſonges as God renewes his favour. Three incomparable things, are ſpoiled by ingratitude; Gods glory, mans peace, and increaſe of grace; hee growes backward (as you have ſuch a phraſe) that is ungratefull: it turnes all mans welfare into a conſumption: tis the thiefe that robs God and man, tis baſe baſeneſſe; Gods love and mans knit up in a Sack, and the mouth cannot be opened; all divine ſtirrings chok't, cripl'd, kill'd and deaded, which makes merrily, and ſweetly, heaven-ward. 'Twere endleſſe to tell you, the evils of ingratitude.
I will give you a word of remedy, and ſo conclude this point. The heart is in thankefulneſſe, as tis in truth. Thankfullneſſe is the vitall breathing, of integrity. A ſound heart arrogates nothing, but aſcribes all to God; hypocriſy is the worſt giver of all to another, that can be: truth is beſt at giving every one their owne; 'tis her greateſt paine, that ſhee can doe it leaſt, to him that is beſt to her. Integrity hath no other felicity, but to paint out love and carry it to Heaven, to ſee if God will owne any art of hers, to make him glorious. All the complaint of integrity is, that favours are loſt upon her, that love dies in her boſome, and many made-priſoners by her, ſo chain'd and fettered with an evill heart, that they cannot returne to God that gave them. Integrity is ſtill ſighing and panting to get up hill, with all Gods bleſſings on her back; Oh that I could carry all ſweetely home againe, that God lends me.
Secondly, as the ſoule is in life, ſo tis in thankefulneſſe; heat is beſt at making up ward. Truth is ſometimes, much ſeparated from life; zeale from integrity; an honeſt heart, but ſomething cold and heavy; does not run well (I confeſſe) in Chriſtian propriety of ſpeaking) but we will ſuppoſe this caſe, and ſpeake on; let there be what integrity and honeſty in the heart there will be, if there be not fervent love and life, warmth and heat, thankeſgiving will bee poore. Thankfulneſſe comes the deadlieſt off, of any duty in a dead heart. Some birds have longer wings then others; they uſually flee higheſt, which have longeſt: he had neede have a large ſtrong wing'd ſoule, that is good at thanksgiving, the duty is ſo meerly and ſo highly heavenly. A cold heart can doe but little at prayer, but juſt nothing at thanksgiving; you were as good goe to ſtring a ſtone and play upon it, as to make divine melody upon a ſtony cold heart. Defect in natural heat, maks benū mednes to action, if you be benumm'd to duty, certainly there is a defect in ſpirituall heat; you are not warme enough at heart: a man is in thankfulneſſe, as he is in ſtrength of love: ſtrong love will fall a limming out of Chriſt from head to foote acutely; his eyes are like, his haire like that, &c.
Thirdly, as the ſoule is in Prayer, ſo tis in thanksgiving; as a man is in conſcience to the meanes, ſo he is in aſſiſtance to the end: as a man is at one duty, ſo he is in likelyhood and capacity to be at another. Dutys they are introductive, one leades into another; we goe from ſtrength to ſtrength, from the ſtrength of one duty, wee are made ſtrong to another; the bleſſing of one duty leaves ſupply behind it, to bring on another higher. God ſteps in on a ſudden and lifts up the ſoule, when the man is upon his knees. A man does beyond expectation, when hee humbly caſts himſelfe upon the means; when a Chriſtian cannot doe a divine duty, let him come as neere it as he can, and God ſteps in and makes it out. When a Chriſtian cannot give thankes, let him pray, and God will turne a ſpirit of Prayer, into a ſpirit of praiſe. Some are diſcourag'd from Prayer, they can give thankes no better; I come ſtill as a Raven, meerely craving; why? doe ſo ſtill, tis not impoſſible to God to teach a Raven to ſing.
Finally a man is at thanksgiving according to an inward ſecret aſſiſtance and concurrence, which no man can expreſſe: as the ſpirit helps in Prayer, with ſighes and groans which cannot be expreſſed, ſo in thanksgivings, with heart-liftings, and heart-rayſing and raviſhing which cannot be expreſſed. Saylers to Heaven finde ſome times a current, as Saylers here below doe in ſome voyages; when the ſoule lights of this, it ſayles a pace, whether it will or no, with no paine: there are ſecret whiſpers from above; bunches of the holy Land, taſtes of the powers of the World to come; theſe are above all to raiſe the ſoule, and to ſet all a prayſing God: as the ſoule is brought nearer Heaven, this duty becomes naturall. I ſee ſome very thankefull, and yet very poore, ſcarce any thing without to make Muſick on; ſurely, they have a mighty advantage within; there is one winds up, blowes and breakes within, the inſtrument could never goe, without any thing elſe, ſo, as it ſeemes to doe.
FINIS.