A Christian Library, Chapter 4
CHAP. IV.
§ 1. BUt admit mens unbelief, impenitency, and prophanenesse, in such glorious times of light, and means of grace as ours is, were not enough to provoke God, to inflict this heavy & grievous judgement upon them; how well do they deserve this, and much more for their horrible and abominable ingratitude to so good a God, so gracious a Saviour and Redeemer, that hath done and suffered, or would do more for them, then can either be expressed, or conceived by any heart, were it as deep as the Sea? As mark well what I (the meanest of a million) shall but paint or draw ou… as it were with a cole, of his unspeakable goodnesse to sinners: I will according to my slender ability, but give you a drop to taste out of that ocean.
Touching what God and Christ hath done for us: In the first place he gave us our selves, and all the creatures to be our servants; yea, he created us after his own Image in righteousnesse and holinesse, and in perfect knowledg of the truth, with a power to stand, and for ever to continue in a most blessed and happy condition; and this deserves all possible thankfulnesse; but this was nothing in comparison; for when we were in a sad condition; when we had forfeited all this, & our selves: when by sin we had turned that image of God into the image of Satan, and wilfully plunged our souls and bodies into eternal torments, when we were become his enemies, mortally hating him, and to our utmost fighting against him, and taking part with his only enemies; (Sin and Satan) not having the least thought or desire of reconcilement, but a perverse and obstinate will to resist all means tending thereunto; He did redeem us, not onelyonly without asking, but even against our wills: so making of us (his cursed enemies) servants, of servants sons, of sons heirs, and coheirs with Christ, Gal. 4.7. Here was a fathomless depth, a wonder beyond all wonders!
§ 2. But that we may the better consider what an alms or boon God gave us, when he gave us his Son: Observe that when neither heaven, earth, nor hell, could have yielded any satisfactory thing, besides Christ that could have satisfied Gods justice, and merited heaven for us, then, O then! God, in his infinite wisdom and goodness, did not onelyonly finde out a way to satisfie his Justice and the Law, but gave us his Son, his only begotten Son, his only beloved Son out of his bosome: And his Son gave himself to die, even the most shameful, painful, and cursed death of the Cross to redeem us; That whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life, Iohn 3.16. The very thought of which death, before he came to it, together with the weight and burthen of our sins, put him into such an Agony in the Garden, that it made him to sweat, even drops of blood. A mercy bestowed, and a way found out, that may astonish all the sons of men on earth, and Angels in Heaven! Wherefore, ô wonder at this, you that wonder at nothing! That the Lord should come with such a price to redeem our worse then lost souls, and to bring salvation to us, even against our wils: The Lord Ies… Christ being rich, for our sakes became poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich, 2 Cor. 8.9. Even the eternal God would die, that we might not die eternally; ô the deepness of Gods love! ô the unmeasurable measure of his bounty! ô Son of God, who can sufficiently express thy love? Or, commend thy pity? Or, extol thy praise? It was a wonder, that thou madest us for thy self, more that thou madest thy self man for us; but most of all, that thou shouldest unmake thy self, that thou shouldest die to save us.
§ 3. And which is further considerable, It cost God more to redeem the world, then to make it: In the Creation he gave thee thy self; but in the Redemption he gave thee himself. The Creation of all things cost him but six dayes to finish it; the Redemption of man cost him three and thirty years. In the Creation of the World, he did but only speak the word; in the Redemption of man, he both spake and wept, and sweat, and bled, and died, and did many wonderful things to do it: Yea, the saving of one soul single, is more and greater then the making of the whole World. In every new creature are a number of miracles, a blinde man is restored to fight, a deaf man to hearing, a man possest with many Devils dis-possest; yea, a dead man raised from the dead, and in every one a stone turned into flesh in all which God meets with nothing but opposition, which in the Creation he met not with.
§ 4. But the better to illustrate this love, consider, that salvation stands in two things: First, in freedome and deliverance of us from Hell Secondly, in the possession of Heaven, and eternal life; Christ by his death merits the first for us; and by his obedience fulfilling the Law, merits the second. The parts of our Iustification are likewise two; the remission of our sins, and the imputation of Christs righteousnesse. And to this would be added, first, Conversion, which comprehends both Faith and Repentance: Secondly, Sanctification ▪ the Parts whereof are Mortification that is, dying unto sin; and Vivification, which is living unto righteousnesse. Thirdly, Glorification begun and perfected, which is freedome from all evil here, and the perfection of all good and happiness in heaven.
§ 5. What shall I say? God of his goodnesse hath bestowed so many and … great mercies upon us, that it is not possible to expresse his bounty therein; for if we look inward, we finde our Creators mercies; if we look upward, his mercy reacheth unto the heavens, if downwards the earth is full of his goodnesse, and so is the broad Sea; if we look about us, what is it that he hath not given us? Air to breath in, Fire to warm us, Water to cool and cleanse us, Clothes to cover us, Food to nourish us, Fruits to refresh us; yea, Delicates to please us, Beasts to serve us, Angels to attend us, Heaven to receive us; And which is above all, Himself and his own Son to be injoyed of us: So that whithersoever we turn our eyes, we cannot look besides his bounty; yea, we can scarce think of any thing more to pray for, but that he would continue those blessings, which he hath bestowed on us already: Yet we covet still, as though we had nothing, and live as if we knew nothing of all this his beneficence. We are bound to praise him above any Nation whatsoever; for what Nation under Heaven enjoyes so much light, or so many blessings, as we? above any creature, &c.
God might have said before we were formed, Let them be Toads, Monsters, Infidels, Beggars, Cripples, Bond-slaves, Idiots, or Mad men, so long as they live, and after that Castaways for ever, and ever: But he hath made us to the best likenesse, and nursed us in the best Religion, and placed us in the best Land, and appointed us to the best, and only inheritance, even to remain in blisse with him for ever; yea, thousands would think themselves happy, if they had but a piece of our happinesse; for whereas some bleed, we sleep in safety; others beg, we abound; others starve, we are full fed; others grope in the dark, our Sun still shines; we have eyes, ears, tongue, feet, hands, health, liberty, reason, others are blinde, deaf, dumb, are sick, maimed, imprisoned, distracted, and the like, yea, God hath removed so many evils from us, and conferred so many good things upon us, that they are beyond thought or imagination: For if the whole Heaven were turned into a Book, and all the Angels deputed Writers therein, they could not set down all the good, which Gods love in Christ hath done us. For all those millions of mercies that we have received from, before, and since we were born, either for soul or body, even to the least bit of bread we eat, or shall to eternity, (of which we could not well want any one) Christ hath purchased of his Father for us, and yet God the Father also, hath of his free grace, & merciemercy given us, in giving us his Son; for which read Psal. 68.19. and 145.15, 16. and 75.6, 7. Yea, God is many times working our good, when we least think upon him: as he was creating Adam an help meet for him, when he was fa… asleep. And as much do we owe unto God, for the dangers from which he delivereth us: as for the great wealth and dignities whereunto he hath alwayes raised us.
Now if we are so bound to blesse God for his external, temporal, inferiour, earthly, perishing benefits: what praise do we owe for the lasting fruits of his eternal love and mercy? and how thankful should we strive to be? which shall be the next thing treated of.
Now what should we render unto the Lord our God so good and gracious, in way of thankfulnesse for all these his mercies? for favours bestowed, and deliverances from danger, binde to gratitude; or else the more bonds of duty, the more plagues for neglect. The contribution of blessings require retribution of thanks, or wil bring distribution of plagues.
Neither could we possibly be unthankful, if we seriously thought upon what God gives, and what he forgives: For in reason hath he contrived so many wayes to save us; and should not we take all occasions to glorifie him? hath he done so much for us, and shall we denie him any thing that he requireth of us, though it were our lives, yea our souls; much more our lusts? We have exceeding hard hearts, if the blood of the Lambe cannot soften them: stony bow…ls, if so many mercies cannot melt them. Was Christ crucified for our sins? and should we by our sins crucifie him again?
§ 6. Now the meditation of what God and Christ hath done for us, should make us do what we are able for him again. For did Christ all this for us, and shall we do nothing for him for our selves? like favours require like gratitude. He that confers a benefit upon a grateful nature robs him of his liberty, and self also: and in one and the same act makes him a vassal, and himself his master. Wherefore if we have any ingenuity in us, it will make us to direct all our thoughts, speeches, and actions to his glory, as he hath directed our eternal salvation thereunto.
But to help and further you herein, if you be willing so to do, take these few directions.
First, Let these things be never out of the mindes, memories, & mouthes of those whom Christ hath done thus for. O let us (I say) remember, as we should never forget. Si totum me debeo pro me facto, quid jam reddam pro merefecto, saith holy Bernard. If I owed my whole self unto thee, for giving me my selfe in my creation: what have I left to pay for giving thy self for me to so cruel a death, to procure my Redemption, which was not so cheap as my creation? Great was the benefit that thou wouldst create me of nothing; but what tongue can sufficiently expresse the greatnesse of this grace, that thou didst redeem me with so dear a price, when I was worse then nothing? We are full of thy goodnesse: O let our hearts run over with thankfulnesse; yea, let so many of us as have either heart or brain, in the next place say, O Lord, What is man that thou art so mindefull of hi… ▪ Psal. 8.4. And O man, what is God that thou art so unmindful of him. And then conclude with, What shall I render unto thee, ô Lord, for all these thy benefits? but love thee my Creator, and Redeeme…, and become a new creature. I will serve thee, ô Lord, by the assistance of thy grace, because thou hast given me my self: but much more honour thee, because thou hast given me thy Son Christ.
§ 7. Nor can any man in common reason meditate so unbottomed a love, and not study and strive for an answerably thankful demeanure. If a friend had given us but a thousand part of what God hath, we should heartily love him all our lives, and think no thanks sufficient. What a price then should we set upon Iesus Christ! who is the life of our lives, and soul of our souls?
But, thirdly, this should at least make us part with our nearest, dearest, and sweetest darling sins, to serve him in righteousness and holiness every day; every hour, all the dayes of our lives: Even every sin; for what sin should be so dear to us, as Gods onelyonly Son was to him? Do we then for, Gods sake not spare our dearest sin; when God for our sakes, did not spare his dearest Son.
Yea, what a brutish and barbarous unthankfulness, and shame were it that God should part with his Son, and his Son with his own precious blood for us? and we not part with our sinful lusts, and delights for him.
§ 8. Fourthly, Hath Christ done all this for us, his servants, so much, and so many wayes obliged unto him? let us do what we are able for him again. 1 Let us be zealous for his glory, and take his part when we see or hear him dishonoured. Nor can there be any love, where there is no zeal, saith Augustine. Well-born Children are touched to the quick, with the injuries of their Parents. And it is a base, vile, and unjust ingratitude in those men that can endure the disgrace of them, under whose shelter they live. 2 Let us seek to draw others after us, from Satan to Him. 3 Do we all we can, to promote his worship and service. 4 Take all good occasions to publish to others, how good God is; and what he hath done for us. 5 Let us wholly ascribe all the good we have, or do to free grace; and give him the glory of his gifts, imploying them to our masters best advantage. 6 Let us, (that we may expresse out thankfulnesse to him) shew kindnesse to his Children, and poor …embers, who are bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh, Ephes. 5.30.7 … or we ourselves for our former unthankfulnesse, and our wonderful provoking of him. 8 Hearken we unto Christs voice, in all that he saith unto us, and express our thankfulness by our obedience. Yea, all this …, if we do it but for our own sakes: For what should we have, if … thus serve Christ, who hath done all these things for his enemies … and dishonouring him?
True, we cannot properly be said to do any thing for … that have all we have from him: Or if we could give him our bodies and souls, they should be saved by it; but he were never the better for them; yet we may do these, and many the like things, which he accounts, and rewards as done to himself.