Preparation for Suffering in an Evil Day, Chapter 11
CHAP. XI.
The eighth Direction for Sufferings is Humility. A high Fabrick muſt have a low foundation. Humility hath ſuch rays from God, as makes us very low in our own eyes: It is a Capacity for larger Effuſions of Grace; it ſubjects a man to to all the pleaſures of God; it cauſes him to depend upon God for ſupport and comfort.
THe eighth Direction is this, if we would be in a fit poſture for Suffering, we muſt labour after humility of mind. It is the direction of our Saviour to Chriſtians, Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, De Verb. Do n.ſer. 10.Math. 11.29. St. Auſtin upon thoſe words gives an excellent Rule; Cogitas magnam fabricam conſtruere celſitudinis, de fundamento prius cogita humilitatis: Thou thinkeſt to build a great high Fabrick, but firſt think to make a low Foundation: The higher the Building is, the lower muſt be the Foundation. If we would build our Chriſtianity as high as Suffering for Religion, we had need lay a deep Foundation in Humility for it. Our Saviour Chriſt was not only a Pattern of Suffering, but of Humility too: St. Peter tels us, that he ſuffered, leaving us an example, 2. Pet. 2.21. St. Paul tels us, how he came to Suffer; he emptied himſelf, or made himſelf of no Reputation, he humbled himſelf, and became obedient unto death, the death of the Groſs. Phil. 2.7, 8. He laid by his Robes of Majeſty, and became, as it were, nothing, that he might ſuffer for us: If we would follow Chriſt in Suffering, we muſt put off our Ornaments, and lay by our proud Plumes; we muſt empty our ſelves of all our Self-excellencies, and become vile; yea, nothing in our own eyes, that we may endure the trial.Ex Saulo factus eſt Paulus, ex ſuperbo modicus: Paulum enim modicum eſt. Auſt. in Pſal. 72. St. Paul was a great Sufferer For Chriſt, but withal he was one of the humbleſt that ever lived: Indeed before his Converſion he was a Saul, a proud Perſecutor; but after it he was a Paul, perſecuted, and little in his own eyes. Athanaſius, who ſuffered ſo much under the Arians, had this Character given him by Nazianzen, That he was high in worth, and humble in heart. There are four things to be noted in Humility; each of which tend to prepare us for Suffering.
1. Humility dwels in an enlightned mind, & hath ſuch rayes from God, as make the heart where it is, take up very low thoughts of itſelf. Of old the appearances of God in outward Symbols of Glory, made men lye very low before him. When Job heard the voice of the Lord out of the whirl-wind, he abhorred himſelf in duſt and aſhes, Iob 42. 6. When the Prophet ſaw the Lord ſitting upon a throne high and lifted up, he cried out. Woe is me, I am undone, Eſay. 6.5. When Daniel ſaw the Viſion of the bright ſhining man, his comelineſs was turned into corruption, Dan. 10.8. The noble man now hath not ſuch outward appearances, but he hath an inward light of faith, and when he looks up to God, and reflects upon himſelf, it makes him go in fundum, into the Center of the Earth, and there to ſee his own nothingneſs. I ſhall give a triple inſtance of this: When the humble man looks up to the glory and greatneſs of God, he reflects and communes with his Heart after this manner, O how high is God! his glory is above the Heavens, his Majeſty is infinitely brighter then a thouſand ſuns, the rayes of it bid me go down and hide my ſelf in the duſt of my own vileneſs and nothingneſs; how great is he, that ſpans the Heavens, weighs the mountains, and meaſures the Seas in the hollow of his hand? To him all Nations are but as a drop of the bucket, a duſt of the Ballance; nay, leſs then nothing itſelf: And I, what am I? the drop of a drop, a piece of a duſt, and much leſs then that which is leſs then nothing itſelf. Such thoughts as theſe do ſo abaſe and annihilate a man in his ſenſe, that the great and glorious God may do any thing with him; his own littleneſs will keep him from murmuring under any Croſs or Affliction that comes from the moſt High. Again when the humble man looks to the holineſs of God, he ſpeaks to his heart: God is very holy, he is perfect purity without any ſpot, infinite light without any darkneſs at all; the glance of his pure eyes bids me go down into my Spotted ſelf, and there cover my ſelf with the ſhame of that Corruption, that is worſe then nothing: The Stars are not pure in his ſight, and how can I be ſo? The glorious Angels cover their faces, and cry to him, holy, holy, holy; and what ſhould Worms do! What reaſon have I to cry out over my ſelf, as the Leper was to do, Ʋnclean, Ʋnclean. The ſenſe of this is ſo deeply humbling, that it diſpoſes him that hath it to be willing to go into any Furnace, which God orders for the melting out of his Droſs. The excellent Martyr Mr. Hooper, carried his humility with him to the Fiery Trial, there he prayed thus; Lord I am Hell, but thou art Heaven; I am a Sink of Sin, but thou art a gracious Redeemer: The ſenſe of his own imperfections made him lye very Low. Moreover, when the humble man looks to the Grace of God, he adores that pure ſelf-moving Fountain of all Good; and withal, abaſes himſelf under his great unworthineſs of the Leaſt drop of it: The evil that is in me (ſaith he) is my own, but all the good that is in me is entirely from Grace. This taſt of Grace to a mans unworthy ſelf, admirably diſpoſes him to bear the Croſs: Such an one will argue with himſelf, Shall God give me Grace and Glory, and ſhall I not ſuffer for him? The ſuffering is not the Hell I deſerve, but that which is much leſs, and ſhall I not ſuffer? There is a glorious Heaven to come after it, and why ſhould I hang back?Expoſit. on the Theſſal. The words of Doctor Sclater are very remarkable, God (ſaith he) rewards ultra condignum, afflicts citra condignum; that Perſwaſion who ſo carries, and is acquainted with his foul ſins, willingly prays with Auſtin, Hîc ure, hîc ſeca, ut in aeternum parcas; here burn, here cut me, that thou maieſt ſpare for ever. Thus humility, by the rayes that it hath from God, makes a man very vile in his own eyes, and ſo prepares him for the Croſs. The proud man, that thinks highly of himſelf, will murmure at any thing; and the humble man that thinks meanly of himſelf will bear with any thing.
2. Humility puts the Soul into a capacity to have larger effuſions of Grace beſtowed upon it; God reſiſteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble, Jam. 4.6. God hath two hands; with the one, he caſts down the proud that lift up themſelves againſt him; with the other, he lifts up the humble, that lye at his feet for mercy. Humility is not only a Grace, but a capacity to receive more of it. He, that goes to a River to take up water, puts the mouth of his Veſſel downward to do it; he that goes to God for Grace, muſt put his mouth in the duſt, and cry to have it, not for his worths ſake, but for his ſpiritual poverty. An humble Heart is (as Pariſienſis cals it) a ſpiritual Vacuum; and as nature doth not ſuffer a Vacuum in Bodies, but fils up the ſpace one way or other, ſo Grace doth not ſuffer a Vacuum in Spirits, but fils up the humble Soul with freſh ſupplies of Grace. St. Auſtin ſets out this by a notable ſimilitude,Si humiles ſunt, valles ſunt, quod infuderis capiunt, non dimittunt. Auſt. de Verb. Apoſt. ſer. 9. The water that fals down from Heaven upon the Mountains, flows away, but the water that fals upon the Vallys, ſtays there; In like manner the Divine Grace, that diſtils from above, doth not reſt upon high proud perſons, but upon humble ones: God leaves the full Souls, and fils the empty; abaſes the exalted, and exalts the abaſed: All other Graces grow together with Humility; the more humble we are, the more we have of God with us, the more we have of Grace in us; and the more we have of theſe, the more we have of ſtrength in the inner man, and the more we have of preparation for a day of Trial. If we build ſo high as ſuffering for Chriſt, we muſt dig deep, and lay the Foundation low; that, when the ſtorm comes, we may ſtand faſt and unmovable.
3. Humility makes a man freely to bow and ſubject himſelf to God in all things: This is a choice and excellent preparative for ſuffering; the ſame which our Saviour commends to weary and heavy laden ſouls; take my yoke upon you; and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, Math. 11.29. Chriſtians are to take up a double yoke, the yoke of Evangelical Commands, and the yoke of the Croſs that accompanies them; in both ſubjection is requiſite; In the one, Subjection to Chriſts Authority commanding; in the other, ſubjection to his Providence ordering: And that Chriſtians may be ſubject to both, they muſt look to the great Pattern, & learn meekneſs and humility from him. The heart of man naturally is a very proud Belial thing, that will bear no yokes, it will not be under Chriſt; not under his Righteous Commands by Obedience; nor under his Afflicting Providences by Patience; it lifts up itſel, and by a kind of Blaſphemy practicallſ aſpires to be above God himſelf: But duplicate page duplicate page when the Divine Grace hath melted the heart and made it humble, then it will bow down and take both yokes upon itſelf; it will become freely ſubject to God and all his holy pleaſure. I ſay, freely: A proud man may be bowed down under the preſſure of an external Calamity, but an humble man bows himſelf down by an internal Principle of Grace; in the one, the ſubjection is meerly of neceſſity, in the other it is free and of choice. Humility makes a man lye at Gods foot, and ſay, Lord what wilt thou have me to do? or What wilt thou have me to ſuffer? Let the word of God come (ſaith Baldaſſer the German Divine) and we will ſubmit to it ſix hundred necks, if we had ſo many. Let the Croſs come (ſaith the humble man) and I will ſubmit to it: Humility is virtually all obedience and patience, it makes a man to be as a little child, ruleable by all the Will of God: Whether that Will come forth in Precepts or providences, Humility will comply and bow down under it: The lowly in heart will do, or be any thing for God; therefore our Saviour promiſes reſt to ſuch,De Tempore Ser. 213. as the gracious reward of their labors and ſufferings. It is good counſel that St. Auſtin gives, Eſto parvus in oculis tuis, ut ſis magnus in oculis Dei; be thou little in thine own eyes, that thou mayſt be great in Gods; Subjecting thy ſelf to all his pleaſure is the way to be exalted by him.
4. Humility cauſes a man to depend upon God for ſupport and comfort in his Sufferings. The proud perſon ſtands in the poſture of the Phariſee, foreign, ſtanding to himſelf, Luk. 18.11. he ſtands upon his own bottom, and thinks himſelf able by his own power to do or ſuffer any thing as he pleaſes: But ſtanding in his own preſumption, it is very likely that he will fall off as ſoon as the trial comes. But it is otherwiſe with the humble man; he knows that he is weak in himſelf, and muſt be ſtrong in God, and therefore he will not truſt in his own Power or Will, but look up to God for ſupport and comfort in the evil day.De Verb. Dom. ſer. 13. It is a notable paſſage of St Auſtin, Multos impedit a firmitate praeſumptio firmitatis, nemo a Deo fit firmus, niſi qui a ſeipſo ſentit infirmum: A preſumption of firmneſs hinders many from being firm; no man is made firm by God, but he that feels infirmity in himſelf. The ſtory in the Marian Perſecution is very memorable; Mr. Sanders the Martyr at firſt ſhewed much weakneſs and fear, but Dr. Pendleton ſaid to him, What man! fear? I will ſee every drop of my greaſe melted before I forſake Christ and his truth: But afterwards, Sanders triumphantly Suffered, kiſſing the Stake, and ſaying, Welcome the Croſs of Chriſt; but proud Pendleton turned Papiſt. Unto this inſtance I ſhall add a more ancient one; Peter a Great Apoſtle fell and denied his Lord; but among the Primitive Chriſtians, Women and little Children ſuffered in a brave and heroical maner.Auſt. in Joh. tract. 113. The greateſt Chriſtians may fall, by preſuming upon themſelves; the Leaſt may ſtand, by depending on the power of God: The poor in Spirit would not be their own Keepers, but would commit themſelves unto God, Pſal. 10.14. as being ſafer in his hands then in their own. Humble ſouls, not being able to bear up their own weight, lean upon the Rock of Ages; and, having no reſt in themſelves, they acquieſce in the Center of Souls. The feeble Conies have their houſes in the Rocks, and the weak Chriſtians dwell in the ſecret of the moſt high. Annas Burgus, a Senator of Paris, ſuffered for the pure Religion with that conſtancy, that many were curious to know what Religion that was, for which he ſo patiently endured death; and one reaſon of his patience was his humble dependance upon God, which he expreſſed in that often repeated prayer at his death, Deus mi, ne me derelinquas, ne ego te derelinquam; Thuan Lib. 23.O my God leave me not, leſt I leave thee: He knew that his ſtrength was in God only. Oh let us labor to have an humble dependance upon God, that, when ſufferings come, we may look and be ſupported, wait and renew ſtrength, be nothing in our ſelves and have all in God: So we ſhall be ſafe and ſecure from anxious fears; dabitur in horâ, ſupport and comfort will come in the time of need.