A Christian Library, Chapter 35
CHAP. 35. Other grounds of comfort to support a Christian in his sufferings. And first, that God is specially present with his servants in their afflictions, takes notice of their sufferings, and allayes their grief.
THis rub being removed, and the p…ssage made clear, proceed wee to other grounds of comfort which the Word of God affords in this case, for the better upholding, and strenghtening of a weak Christian in his sufferings: Wherein, that wee may not exceed, I will select out onelyonly five, because instructions, if they excee… …re wont, like nails, to drive ou… one another.
First, wee shall bear the Cross with the more patience and comfort; if wee consider, that God is specially present with his servants in their afflictions; takes notice of their sufferings, and allays their grief. The troubles of a Christian are very great for number, variety, and bitterness; yet there is one ingredient that sweetens them all, the promise of God, I will bee with thee in trouble, and deliver thee, Psal. 91.15. And thou shal… not bee tempted above thy strength, 1 Cor. 10.13. Again, fear not; for when thou passest through the water, I will bee with thee; and through the floods, that they do not over-flow thee: When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not bee burnt, neither shall the …lame kindle upon the…, Isa. 43.1, 2. Lo, here are promises like Flaggons of Wine, to comfort the distressed soul. Wherefore as C…sar said to the trembling Marriner, … not afraid, for thou carriest Caesar; so, O Christian! bee not afraid, for hee that is in thee, for thee, with thee, that guides thee, that will save thee, is the invincible King Iehova. And upon this ground David was so comforted and refreshed … his soul, Psal. 94.19. that hee was able to say, Though I should walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evill: Why? For thou art with mee, thy Rod and thy Staffe shall comfort mee, Psal. 23.4. Yea, our Enemies can no sooner assault us with their tongues, but God coms in to our rescue. If yee bee railed upon for the name of Christ, (saith Saint Peter) blessed are yee, for the Spirit of God resteth upon you, 1 Pet. 4.14. God is never so much injoyed of us, as when we are in the deep, with David, Psal. 130.1. and when wee are worst of all bestead with Iehosaphat, a Chron. 20.12. When did Iacob see a Vision of Angels? but when hee fled for his life, making the cold earth his bed, and a stone his pillow; or when was his heart so full of joy, as now that his head lay hardest? When was Paul wrapp'd into the third heaven to hear words from Christ not fit to bee uttered, 2 Cor. 12.2.4. but as some of the learned conceive, when hee was bereaved of his sight. Stephen saw great happiness by Christ, in his peace: but under that shower of stones, hee saw heaven it self open, Act. 7. When wee are slain all the day long for his sake, with the Martyrs, then wee are given to see him with our eyes, as Iob did, who till that time had onelyonly heard of him by the hearing of the ear. Then wee come to know that the Lord, hee is God, with Manasses 2 Chron. 33.13. and that he is our hope and strength and refuge, and a very present help in troubles, ready to bee sound of all that seek to him, 2 Chron. 15.4.15. Psal 9.9, 10, and 46.1.
The Israelites never fared so well, as when they lived at Gods immediate finding, and at night expected their morrows break-fast from the clouds: When they did daily ask and daily receive, their daily bread. Yea, even when they were wandering in a forlorn wilderness, how did God as it were attend upon them in their distress, to supply their wants? They have no guide, therefore God himself goes before them in a piller of fire; they have no shelter, the Lord spreads a Cloud over them for a Canopy; are they at a stand, and want way; the Sea shall part and give them passage; do they lack bread? Heaven it self shall power down the food of Angels; have they no meat to their bread? a wind shall send them inn… merable Quails; do they yet want drink, behold a hard rock smitten wi…h a little wand; shall powr them out water in abundance; have they no supply of Apparell, their Garments shall not wax old on their backs; bee their Enemies too strong for them for want of Engines, the Walls of Ie… cho shall fall down before them; are their enemies yet too many and potent, hail-stones shall fall and brain them: Lamps, Pitchers, and Dreams shall get them Victory, the Sun shall stand till in Gibeon, and the Moon in the valley of Ajalon: lack they yet a Land to inhabite, the Lord will cast cut all the inhabitants, and give them a Land which flows with milk and honey, &c. Afflictions have this advantage, that they occasion God to shew that mercy to u…, whereof the prosperous are uncapable; as wee further see in Hagar, Gen. 21.17, 18, 19. And Manoah's Wife, Iudg. 13.3… to whom the Angel of the Covenant had not been sent, if they had not been in distress.
It would not become a mother …o bee so indulgent to an healthfull child, as to a sick: and in deed some have found their outward castigations so sweetned with the inward consolations of Gods Spirit, that they have fonud and confessed their receipts of joy and comfort, to bee an hundred fold more than their payments, even in this present life according to that promise of our Saviour, Mark. 10.29, 30. So that a Christian is still a gainer in all his losses; yea, hee gains by his losses.
Now if wee could but remember and lay to heart these promises, thus back'd with examples; when wee feel the greatest assaults or pangs, how could wee want courage? But alass, most of us are like the Prophets servant, 2 King. 6. who saw his foes, but not his friends: we are like Iosephs brethren, who saw him, converst with him, were fed by him, yet knew him not. Like Peter, who when the Angell brought him out of prison, and went before him; wist not that it was so, but thought hee saw a vision, Act. 12.9. Christ at his Resurrection was so changed, that his own Disciples knew him not; much more since his ascention may hee pass by us, as hee did by Iob, Chap. 9.11. or meet us as hee did Saul in the way to Damascus; or walk and talk with us, as hee did with the two Disciples in the way to Emaus, Luk. 24.16. or stand by us while wee are seeking him, as hee did by Mary in the Garden, Joh. 20.1…. and yet wee bee ignorant that it is hee. Yea, hee may bee in us by his spirit; even whil'st wee feel him not. Iacob saw him both asleep and awake, yet (saith hee) the Lord was in this place, and I was not aware of it, Gen. 28.16. at least wee are apt to thinke, that God is removed from us, when wee any way suffer calamity; as the Israelites do but want water, and presently they cry, Is the Lord among us, or no? Exod. 17.7. as if God could nor bee with them, and they a thirst; either hee must humour carnall minds, or bee distrusted.
But both his presence and love, is the same in adversity, as it is in prosperity; our sence onelyonly makes the difference, even as a Church, Castle, or Town, is unmoveable, and keepeth one place; though to us it may seem somtime on our right hand, other while on our left: as wee change our standing, sitting, or walking. Yet if some unusuall crosses disturb our peace ▪ presently there breaks out a voice mix'd with murmuring, and despair, God hath forsaken us. It was a common complain: with David, The Lord hath forsaken us; thou hast cast off, and abhorred us: why hast thou forsaken mee &c.? Yea, the onelyonly Son of God came to this, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken mee? Yet consider, did God forsake either of them? hee might bee angry with David, more angry with Christ, for the sins of all the world: and in their present sence, that anger might work in them an apprehension of his forsaking them: but hee did not forsake them, nor will hee forsake thee, if thou dost not first forsake him ▪ Thou maist think so, but God will not do so; but in the mean-time, how can this bee well taken? wee see our wretchedness, wee do not see our blessedness: No talk of his presence, of his absence wee complain. Our cowardly spirits give him for quite gone; yet hee is not far from every one of us, Act. 17.27. Yea, this confession could Seneca make, (but like a Divine) God is near unto thee, hee is with thee, hee is within thee: and surely if hee had not been with these Israelites, they had not lived; if hee had been in them, they had not murmured. Wee can think him absent in our want, and cannot see him absent in our sin; yet, wickedness, not affliction, argues him gone: yea, hee is then most present, when hee most chastiseth; for as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolations abound through Christ, 2 Cor. 1.5.
Again, God may bee present with us, and yet wee not bee pleased; as the Israelites repined for a King, when the Lord was their King: or Christ may bee with us, and yet wee want somthing that wee desire. Christ was in the Ship, and yet (say the Apostles) wee have no bread Iesus was at the Marriage, yet saith his Mother, they have no wine, Ioh. 2.3. Wee may want Bread and Wine, and yet have Christ's company: but if food fail, it is because Manna is to come; if Wine bee absent, yet grace and salvation is present: if God takes away flesh, and gives Manna; deny Sun and Moon, and gives himself, hee doth us no wrong.
Now why doth God by his promise tye himself to bee present with us more especially in affliction? but that hee may resist our enemies, sustain us when wee faint, and crown us when wee overcome; but that hee may bee exact in taking notice of our particular sufferings, and as David saith, Count our wandrings, put our tears into his bottle, and enter all into his Register, Psal. 56.8.9. All our afflictions are more noted by that God that sends them, than of the patient that suffers them; every pang, and stitch, and gird, is first felt of him that sends it: could wee bee miserable unseen, wee had reason to bee heartless: but how can it bee but less possible to indure any thing that hee knows not, than that hee inflicted not? As hee said to Manoah by an Angell, Thou art barren, Iudg. 13.3. so hee saith to one, thou art sick, to another, thou art poor, to a thi…d, thou art defamed; thou art oppressed to another; that all-seeing eye takes notice from heaven of every mans condition, no less than if hee should send an Angell, to tell us hee knew it: and his knowledge compared with his mercy, is the …ust comfort of all our sufferings. O God! wee are many times miserable, and feel it not; thou knowest even those sorrows which we might have, thou knowest what thou hast done, do what thou pleasest.