Letters in Two Parts, Part 1 · LETTER 194
To the Lady BUSBIE. (194)
MTSTRESS.
I Know ye are thinking sometimes what Christ is doing in Zion, & that the haters of Zion may get the bottom of our cup & the burning coals of our furnace, that we have been tryed in these many yeers by gone. O that this Nation would be awakened to cry mightily unto God, for the setting up of a new …abernacle to Christ in Scotland. O if this Ki…gdom kne… how worthy Christ were of his room! His worth wa… eve… above man's …stimation of him: And for my self I a… pained at the heart, that I cannot finde my self disposed to leav… myself & goe wholly in to Christ: Alas that there should b… o…e bit o… me out of him, and that we leave too much liberty and latitude for our selves, and our own ease, and credit, & pleasures; & so little room for All-love-worthy Christ! O what pains & charges it costeth Christ ere he get us, & when all is done we are not worth the having: It is a …ond…r that he should seek the like of us, but love overlooketh blacknes and …ecklesness; for if it had not been so, Christ would never have made so fair & blessed a bargain with us, as the covenant of Grace is. I finde that in all our sufferings, Christ is but …iddi…g marches, that every one of us may say, Mine & T…ine, and that men may know by their crosses, how weak a bottom nature is to stand under a trial; that then, which our Lord intendeth in all our sufferings, is, to bring Gra…e in …uit a…d r…qu…st amongst us: I would succumb and …me sho…t of hea en, if I had no more but my own strength to s…pport me, and if Christ should say to me, Eit…r doe or die, it were easie to determine what should become of me, the ch…ice were easie, for I b…hooved to die, if Christ should passe by wit… strai…ned bowel▪ and who then would take us up in our str…its? I know we may say that Christ is kindest in his love, when we are at our weakest, and that if Christ had not been to the fore in our sad dayes, the waters had gone over our soul: His mercy ha…h a …et period and appointed place, how far & no further the s…a of affliction shall flow, and where the waves thereof shall be st…yed; he prescribeth how much pain and sorrow both for weight and measure, we must have: Ye have then good cause to r…call your love from all lovers and give it to Christ: He who is afflicted in all your afflictions, looketh not o… you i… your sad hours with an insensible heart or dry eyes: All the Lords saints may see, that it is lost love wh…ch is bestowed upon this perishing world: death & judgement will make men lament that ever their miscarrying heart▪ …arryed them to lay & lavish out their love upon false appearances right-dreams. Alas that Christ should fare the worse, because o… … own goodness, in making peace & the gospel to ride together, & that w… have never yet weighed the worth of Christ in his ordinances, & that now we are like to be deprived of the well, ere we have tasted the sweetness of the water: it may be with water… eyes … a w…t face and wea…i…d feet, we seek Christ & shall not find… him. …h that this land were humbled in time, and by prayers, …ye & humiliation, would bring Christ in at the churchdoor again, now, when his back is turned toward us, and he is gone to the threshold & his one foot [as it wer…] is out of the …oor: I am sure his departure is our deserving, we have bought it with our iniquities; for even the Lord's own children are fallen asleep: And alas professours are made all of shews & fashions, and are not at pains to recover themselves again: Every one hath his set measure of faith & holiness, and co…te…teth himself with a stinted measure of godliness, as if that were …ough to bring them to heaven: We forget, that as our gifts and light grow, so God's gain and the interest of his talents should grow also, and that we cannot pay God with the old use and wont [as we use to speak] which we gave him seven yeers agoe; for this were to mock the Lord and to make price with him as we list. O what difficulty is there in our christian journey, & how often come we short of many thousand things that are Christ's due, and we consider not how far our dear Lord is behinde with us! Mistress, I cannot render you thanks as I would for your kindness to my Brother, …n oppr…ss…d stranger; but I remember you unto the Lord as I am able: I entreat you think upon me his prisoner, & pray that the Lord would be pleased to give me …oom to speak to … people in his name. Grace grace be with you.
Aberd. 1637 Yours in his sweet Lor… and Master. S. R.