The Saints Temptations, Sermons · Sermon 9
SERMON IX.
2 Cor. 12.9.
And he ſaid unto me, My grace is ſufficient for thee: for my ſtrength is made perfect in weakneſs.
THat which we were laſt treating of in the Doctrinal part, was, how grace is ſaid to be ſufficient for the Saints; and two particulars have been already mentioned.
The 3. Particular is this,3. Particular how Grace is ſaid to be ſufficient. Gods grace is ſaid to be ſufficient, in that Divine grace ſhall not be wanting when it is neceſſary. As God will give out grace ſuitable to the trials and temptations of his Children; ſo he will give out grace to them in the fitteſt and moſt opportune time, 2 Cor. 6.2. I have heard thee in an accepted time. God may, and oftentimes doth permit things to come to extremity with his people, but when it is come to extremity, then he is ſure to help them. You know what was ſaid in that caſe, In the mount will the Lord be ſeen. When Iſaac was juſt ready to be ſacrificed, and the knife put to his throat, then did the Lord ſtep in and help. So likewiſe, Jonah 2.2. I cried by reaſon of my affliction to the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of Hell cried I, and thou heardeſt my voice. Jonah was in the Whales belly, which was to him in his apprehenſion as the belly of hell, becauſe he apprehended Divine diſpleaſure in it; there he ſaw no hope of deliverance, but then did he cry to the Lord, and the Lord heard and delivered him. It is an obſervation of Luther, God doth many times not hear his people till it come to the very laſt ſigh and groan that is in their hearts, and when they can pray, and ſigh, and groan no longer, then God hears them. Now then is Divine grace ſaid to be ſufficient, when grace ſteps in and helps us in the moſt opportune time, in the very nick, and utmoſt time of extremity, Pſal. 116.3. The ſorrows of death compaſs me, and the pains of Hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and ſorrow. What then? I was brought low, and the Lord helped me. So in another place, Who remembred us in our low eſtate, for his mercy indureth for ever.
In the laſt place,Partic. 4. Grace is ſaid to be ſufficient, when, as our temptations and trials are continued and lengthned out, ſo Divine grace is continued and lengthned out. If God ſhould give us Divine help and aſſiſtance at one time, and withdraw it from us at another time, we ſhould certainly fail. But then grace is ſaid to be ſufficient when there is a continuation of Divine grace: and as our temptations and trials are lengthned out, ſo divine grace is continued and lengthned out to us, and this ſeems to be the plain caſe in the Text. Paul could not obtain fredom from his temptation, but he obtained this anſwer, that Gods grace ſhould be ſufficient for him; the meaning is, God would not ſo anſwer him, as to remove the temptation from him; the temptation ſhould continue ſtill; yet Paul ſhould have this anſwer, that he ſhould not be deſerted in point of grace; grace ſhould continue conſtant with him, till the temptation was brought to a period. And thus grace is ſaid to be ſufficient for us, when though our temptations are great and of long continuance, yet we have grace given to us to counterbalance them, and to make us to bear up under them. It is an emphatical expreſſion, 1 Cor. 10.13. God will with the temptation make way to eſcape that we may be able to bear it. Obſerve that expreſſion, with the temptation; that expreſſion, with the temptation, ſeems to intimate thus much clearly, that the temptation may be lengthned out, that it may be continued for a long time. Yea, but Divine grace ſhall be continued all the while; though the temptation continue, yet Divine grace ſhall not be wanting; there ſhall be grace with the temptation, that is, grace and temptation ſhall run parallel; the temptation ſhall laſt no longer than Divine grace is continued and lengthned out to us, Rom. 14.4. God is able to make him ſtand. It is ſpoken of ſuch as are weak and infirm in grace. Now God is able to make them ſtand, when we are never ſo weak, and infirm, and impotent in our ſelves, Divine grace is able to make us ſtand, and if we have recourſe unto it, will make us ſtand.
Thus I have ſhewn what grace is, and how grace is ſaid to be ſufficient.
The 3. Particular that is to be ſpoken to in the Doctrine, is this, what that grace is that God affords to his people under their conflicts, trials and temptations. My grace ſhall be ſufficient for you. What is this grace that God affords and communicates to the ſouls of his people when they are under temptations, that I ſhall open to you in three Propoſitions briefly.
1. God gives to them corroborating or ſtrengthning grace to manage their temptations, and to help them to grapple and conflict with them. It is one property of Divine grace to corroborate and ſtrengthen the ſoul, ſtrengthned with might by his ſpirit in the inward man, Eph. 3.16. Strengthned with all might according to his glorious power, &c. Col. 1.11. The God of all grace ſettle, ſtrengthen, and eſtabliſh you, 1 Pet. 5.10. The God of all grace; It is the property of grace to ſtrengthen, to corroborate the ſoul. We are inſufficient of our ſelves to reſiſt or withſtand the leaſt temptation. Now this is one effect of Divine grace, that grace inables us to reſiſt, withſtand and repel a temptation. Whatever we may think of our ſelves, were it not for the help of Divine grace, we ſhould yield to the firſt touch and impreſſion of a temptation. Now Divine grace helps the infirmity of the will, which would ſoon yield, and make no reſiſtance, did not Divine grace fortifie and ſtrengthen it; It is a memorable paſſage of Auſtin, S…eatum eſt inſt…m…ati vol…a…s humanae, ut divina gratia indeclinahiliter & inſuperabiliter ageretur. Aug.God, ſaith he, hath provided againſt the infirmity of mans will by the help of Divine grace, by which it is ſo acted as not to be turned aſide or overcome; ſo that although it be weak and infirm of it ſelf, yet it ſhall not be overcome by any difficulty. And that which he farther adds is very remarkable: So it comes to paſs, ſaith he, that the weak and infirm will of man, by the ſtrength of Divine grace perſeveres in a little good, whereas the ſound and ſtrong will of the firſt man, did not perſevere in a greater good. If you conſider it, our firſt Parents when left to themſelves and the liberty of their own will, did not overcome a leſſer temptation. Adam when in Paradiſe being left to the freedom of his own will, did not by the ſtrength of his own free-will overcome the firſt temptation offered to him. But now Divine grace inables them who are under the power of it, to reſiſt greater temptations. The firſt Adam left to the freedom and liberty of his own will, was ſoon overcome by the firſt temptation offered to him. The ſecond Adam, the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, that was aſſaulted with all manner of temptations, being corroborated and ſtrengthned by Divine grace was overcome by none. So that we may clearly ſee the power of free-will, and the power of free grace in the two Adams; The firſt Adam being under the power of his own free-will, was overcome by the firſt temptation. The ſecond Adam being under the power of Divine grace overcame all temptations.
2. God gives to his people ſupporting grace, to keep them from fainting under their temptations. We are exceeding apt to faintings and deſpondencies under our conflicts, Heb. 12.3. Conſider him that indured ſuch contradiction of ſinners againſt himſelf, leſt ye be weary and faint in your minds. Long afflictions, long exerciſes and temptations do diſpoſe us to fainting and deſpondencie, (and experienced ſouls, ſouls trained up under conflicts, know this to be true) yea not only ſo, but they have a far worſe effect ſometimes, they ſometimes diſpoſe the children of God to hard thoughts of God, and repinings againſt God, and to unworthy ſpeeches of God. A ſad inſtance of this we have in very holy men, in Job and in the Prophet Jeremiah, though they bore their afflictions a long time, with a great deal of patience and calmneſs, yet having been under their afflictions for ſome time, they brake forth into intemperate ſpeeches and ſore ſits of impatience. And both the one and the other of them was found curſing the day of their birth; which ſhews what the effects of long trials and exerciſes is, unleſs there be Divine grace to ſupport and keep us under them. Now Divine grace ſo far as it is given to us keeps us from theſe deſpondencies, that we be not tired out with the length of our temptations, Iſa. 41.10. Fear not, I am with thee, be not diſmaied I am thy God, I will ſtrengthen thee, yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteouſneſs. God upholds his people under their temptations by Divine grace, ſo as to keep them from fainting under them, Pſal. 27.13. I had fainted unleſs I had believed to ſee the goodneſs of the Lord in the Land of the living. God keeps his people from fainting, by ſtirring up faith and hope in them, that they may ſee a gracious Iſſue of all their afflictions. It is a great relief to the Saints under their afflictions and temptations, to hope that things ſhall end well at laſt; Though I walk in the midſt of trouble thou wilt revive me, ſaith David, Pſal. 138.7. And thus Divine grace helps the Saints and keeps them from fainting, by keeping alive faith and hope in them, that things ſhall go well with them at laſt.
3. And Laſtly, God gives to his people victorious or conquering grace to inable them to overcome temptations; Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. The grace of God that is in the hearts of the Saints will make them ſuperior to all their temptations.
But you will ſay,Objection, doth not experience tell us to the contrary? Do not we ſee many of the Saints of God lamentably foiled and worſted by temptations? Was not Sampſon, and David, and Peter overcome and foiled by their temptations? How then is it that Divine grace is victorious in the Saints, and makes them overcome their temptations?
To this I Anſwer,Anſwer.
That though the Saints of God are foiled by ſome particular temptations, yet Divine grace overcomes in them at laſt. Though Sampſon had ſeveral foiles, yet his faith got the victory at laſt; and that appears from hence, that he is put upon record for one of the Worthies of God and eminent in faith, Heb. 11. And ſo Peter and David, though they were foiled by temptation, yet they were recovered from their falls by the power of Divine grace. Davids repentance, and Peters repentance were as eminent as their falls had been. And the fall of the inceſtuous perſon in the Church of Corinth, together with the defilement that came on the Church by reaſon of it, was followed by ſuch an after-work of repentance, both by the perſon himſelf and the whole Church, as that the Apoſtle ſaith they had approved themſelves to be clear in that matter, 2 Cor. 7.11. foreign.pure, chaſt in that matter, ſo the word ſignifies. So that as the falls of ſome of the Saints have been eminent, ſo their repentance hath been as eminent; Divine grace is victorious in the hearts of the Saints at laſt; though the Saints may receive a foil in particular temptations, yet Divine grace overcomes at laſt. To him that overcometh will I give to ſit with me on my throne, Rev. 3.21. It is by the help of Divine grace that we do overcome. Now the victoriouſneſs of Divine grace appears in two things.
1. The victoriouſneſs of Divine grace appears in this, in inabling the Saints to perſevere in the ſpiritual conflict, 1 Tim. 6.12. Fight the good fight of Faith; whilſt a man continues fighting he is not overcome. The Saints are inabled to continue fighting to the laſt. Hence is that of the Apoſtle Paul, I have fought a good fight, 2 Tim. 4.7.I have finiſhed my courſe, I have kept the faith, &c. Paul continued fighting to the laſt, and herein doth the victoriouſneſs of Divine grace diſcover it ſelf, that it makes the Saints keep the field, they go on fighting to the laſt.
2. The victoriouſneſs of Divine grace appears in this, in inabling the Saints to perſevere in a way of faith and obedience to the end, Rev. 2.7. Be thou faithful to the death. They could not be ſo, did not Divine grace help them. Rom. 2.7. To them who by patient continuance in well-doing, &c. obſerve the expreſſion, by patient continuance in well-doing. The Saints victoriouſneſs appears in this, in their patient continuance in well-doing. Now it is Divine grace that inables them unto this, Jer. 32.40. I will put my fear in their hearts, that they ſhall not depart from me. What is the meaning of that?Talis ac tantus trit timor meus, ut mihi perſeveranter adhaereant. Aug. that is, ſaith Auſtin, Such and ſo great ſhall that fear of mine be that I will put into their hearts, that they ſhall perſeveringly adhere to me. Our continuance and perſeverance in obedience, it is as well from Divine grace as the beginnining of it. It is another ſpeech of Auſtin, Si in nullo gloriandum, quando noſtrum nihil ſit, profecto nec de ob…dientiâ perſeverantiſſimâ gloriandum eſt. Aug.For as much as we ought to glory in nothing of our own, ſince nothing is our own, we ought not to glory in our moſt perſevering obedience. It is by Divine grace that we perſevere in obedience; the ſame grace that makes us to begin in a way of obedience at firſt, is that that makes us perſevere and continue in a way of obedience to the end.
Thus I have ſhewn you what that grace is that God is wont to afford to his people, under their trials, conflicts and temptations.
The 4. and laſt thing that remains briefly to be ſpoken to in the doctrinal part, is the grounds and reaſons of the point.
Why is it that praying ſouls ſhall have a fufficiency of grace to carry them through their conflicts and temptations. I ſhall touch at the Reaſons very briefly.
1. The firſt Reaſon is,Reaſon 1. Becauſe God loves the prayers of his people and delights in them. The prayer of the upright is his delight, Prov. 15.8.
2. Reaſon, Reaſon 2.As God loves the prayers of his people, why, ſo he will be ſure to anſwer their prayers one way or other, Matth. 7.8. Every one that asketh receiveth, whoſoever ſeeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it ſhall be opened.
3. Reaſon is,Reaſon 3. As God delights in the prayers of his people, ſo he delights in no prayers more than in thoſe that are made for Divine grace, Matth. 5.6. Bleſſed are they which do hunger and thirſt after righteouſneſs. He doth not ſay, that they that hunger after this and that temporal thing ſhall be ſatisfied, but they that thirſt after righteouſneſs, after ſpiritual and Divine grace, they ſhall be ſatisfied, Luke 11.13. If ye being evil know how to give good things to your children, how much more ſhall your heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to them that ask him? If his people ask grace and the ſpirit from him, this is the moſt pleaſing requeſt, and this requeſt ſhall be ſure to ſpeed, Iſa. 41.17. When the poor and needy ſeek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirſt, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Jacob will not forſake them. What is the water there ſpoken of? Certainly it is Divine grace. When they ſeek water, that is, when they ſeek Divine grace and the influences of the ſpirit, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Jacob will not forſake them. God is not wont to deny the prayers of his people when they ask Divine grace of him, God reſiſteth the proud, but he giveth grace to the humble, 1 Pet. 5.5. God is moſt delighted to give grace, and he is moſt pleaſed when his people ask grace.
4. Reaſon is this,Reaſon 4. Deſiderare auxilium gratiae eſt initium gratiae. Aug. The deſires that are in us after grace, are ſome beginnings of grace; to deſire the help of Divine grace is ſome beginnings of it. For we could not ſo will, that is, will Divine grace, did not God inſpire that will into us, for it is God that works in us to will, as well as to do. 1. It is God that works in us to will; it is we that will indeed, but it is God that helps us to will; for the preparations of the heart are from God. 2.Prov. 16.1. God having given us that grace to will and deſire grace, he crowns his own grace in us, he crowns that grace with ſucceſs. He works in us to will, and to do, of his good pleaſure, Phil. 2.13.
Laſtly, Reaſon 5.The end why God brings us under conflicts and temptations, it is, that his grace might be ſeen in helping of us. This is expreſt here in the Text, My ſtrength is perfected in infirmity. Therefore if God ſhould deny us grace under temptations, he ſhould loſe one of his main and principal ends in permitting us to be tempted; for one of Gods main ends in permitting us to be tempted is, that the power of his grace might be ſeen and magnified in us. It were not poſſible for the Saints to ſtand or bear up under their trials and temptations, did not Divine grace aſſiſt them. Now if God ſhould withhold his grace when they need it and cry to him for it, God ſhould loſe the honour of his own grace which he delights to magnifie and illuſtrate.
Theſe are the reaſons of the point.
We come now to make the Uſe and Application of the Doctrine.
The firſt Uſe may be by way of Information. Uſe 1.This point may inform us, that mans free-will is not ſufficient of it ſelf, without Divine grace, to reſiſt temptation, or indeed to do any thing that is ſpiritually good. This inference doth naturally ariſe from the Doctrine, If Paul had had a ſufficiency of himſelf to have grappled with his temptations, God needed not have promiſed his grace to him. But now when God promiſeth that his grace ſhall be ſufficient for Paul, that is a certain argument that Pauls own ability, and the ſtrength of his own Free-will was not ſufficient of it ſelf, to help him to overcome his temptations without Divine grace. What need were there that Gods grace ſhould be promiſed to us, to be ſufficient for us, if our Freewill were ſufficient of it ſelf, without Gods grace to carry us through our temptations? This Idol of Free-will forged by proud nature, which would fain retain that excellency, which man was only poſſeſt of before his fall, is that which hath been adored in the world all along. The Pelagians of old held that free-will was untouched, unmaimed, not hurt at all, and that mans will was ſufficient of it ſelf, if it pleaſed, to obey the commands of God. The Semipelagians held that free-will was wounded indeed and maimed, but then it was not wholly corrupt, and therefore they attributed mans converſion partly to grace, and partly to the free-will of man, and ſo divided the matter, partly between the grace of God, and partly between mans will. The Papiſts in the Council of Trent condemn this as a great error of the Proteſtants, that they hold that after the fall of Adam free-will is loſt. Now when they are pleaſed to faſten this opinion on the Proteſtants, that freewill is loſt; certainly no man was ever ſo abſurd as to imagine that that natural power or faculty of free-will was loſt. Man hath ſtill his natural faculties left to him ſince his fall. His underſtanding remains, and his will which is a free power, and hath a power and liberty of election in it, this facultie ſtill remains in him. Neither do the Proſteſtants affirm, that the will hath loſt its liberty in civil, natural and political matters; (although we muſt ſuppoſe, that even in theſe things the Divine Providence, that governs all other things, hath a ſupremacy over the will of man, and governs it in ſuch away as is conſiſtent with the liberty of the will.) But that which the Proteſtants affirm is this, that ſince the fall of Adam the will hath loſt its liberty to that which is ſpiritually good. The free-will that they deny is free-will to good, there is no free-will in man ſince the fall to that which is ſpiritually good. The will retains its liberty to ſin ſtill, it freely, yet neceſſarily wills ſin, but it cannot will good,Liberum Arbitri…m ad malum ſ…ſſicit, ad bonum autem nihil eſt niſi adjuvetur ab omnipotente bono. Auguſt. and to this agreeth the Doctrine of Auſtin, Free-will is ſufficient as to evil, but it is nothing at all as to what is good, unleſs it be helped and aſſiſted by the omnipotent good. Without the power of omnipotent grace the Scripture teaches us, that we have not ſufficiency of our ſelves to think a good thought. Nay, we are ſo far from having a ſufficiency of our ſelves to have a good thought, that Every thought and imagination of mans heart by nature is evil, only evil, and continually evil, Gen. 6.5. Evil thoughts do naturally proceed from us. But we are beholding unto Divine grace for every holy thought; and what ſhould this teach us, but to be exceeding humble in our ſelves, and to think meanly of our ſelves? It is a great ſaying of Calvin, The Foundation of our Religion is humility. Truly that Religion that exalts ſelf, will not be found to be a good Religion in the concluſion. The whole of the Goſpel (if we underſtand what the Goſpel is) it lies in this, to ſhew us that all our Salvation muſt be from grace, and grace alone. Deny this, and we overthrow the whole frame and fabrick of the Goſpel. Bleſſed are the poor in ſpirit, Matth. 5.3.for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Till we are emptied of all high thoughts of our own ſufficiency, we are not Subjects capable of receiving Goſpel grace, for the Goſpel offers grace to them that have nothing, to them that are poor.
In the ſecond place,Uſe 2. this ſhews us the excellency of Divine grace. When the Lord would give the beſt thing to Paul that he could give him, what is it that he doth promiſe to him? He promiſes grace to him, My grace ſhall be ſufficient for thee. He doth not promiſe to give to Paul that which he prayed for. Paul prayed to be delivered from his temptation, but God would not give him that, but he gives him that which is far better, he gives him Divine grace, he ſaith, My grace ſhall be ſufficient for thee, this ſhews us the excellency of Divine grace. O that we knew the excellency and ſweetneſs of Divine grace! Fain would I, if I were able, ſet before you a little the excellency and ſweetneſs of Divine grace, to make my own ſoul and yours more in love with it. There is infinite beauty, pleaſantneſs, delightfulneſs and ſweetneſs in Divine grace. Thoſe ſweet and freſh gales that we are ſenſible of in the ſpring ſeaſon are not ſo ſweet to our ſenſes, as the air and ſweet gales of Divine grace are to an holy ſoul, that hath experience of them. I ſhall inſtance only in one particular at preſent, to ſhew the ſweetneſs of Divine grace, though in another diſcourſe I ſhall ſet before you more at large the excellency and ſweetneſs of Divine grace. And the paticular I ſhall mention is only this.
1. It is all one what condition we are in, if we have but the gales of Divine grace, and are acted by Divine grace in every thing. If we be in proſperity, grace will make us ſpiritual in the uſe of all our comforts, grace will ſhew us God in every comfort, grace will cauſe us to find out God in every thing that we injoy, and lead us to God in every thing. Grace will keep us from ſticking in the creatures we injoy, and grace will elevate us to God by theſe things. So likewiſe, if we be in adverſity and afflictions, grace will quiet the ſoul under afflictions, grace will cauſe a man to reſt in the divine wiſdom and will; grace will cauſe a man to be content to be without the things another hath, and to ſatisfie himſelf in God without theſe things. This is that which made Paul to ſay, He had learnt whatſoever ſtate he was in, therewith to be content: he knew both how to be abaſed, and he knew how to abound: every where and in all things he was inſtructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and ſuffer need: he could do all things through Chriſts ſtrengthning of him, Phil. 4.11, 12, 13. Divine grace made every condition ſweet to him, thus will Divine grace make every condition ſweet to us, if we have a ſufficiency of grace to manage it aright. This ſhould teach us to covet and deſire Divine grace more than all other things. Truly, we need not be much concerned what our outward condition is, but our great concernment is to pray that we may have Divine grace to act us in every condition. If we can feel and experiment the energy and operation of Divine grace, that will carry us through every condition to the glory of God and our own comfort. We are expecting times of trouble, and I fear there is too great cauſe for us to expect them: but let us not be ſo much ſolicitous what may befall us, what difficulties we may be exerciſed withal, as we are ſolicitous to get Divine grace. Oh let us pray for a ſufficiency of Divine grace, and then whatever our troubles, trials and calamities may be, Divine grace will carry us through them all.
I ſhall add no more at preſent, but in another diſcourſe I ſhall inlarge farther on this ſubject, to ſhew the excellency and ſweetneſs of Divine grace.
The end of the Ninth Sermon.