A Christian Library, Chapter 14
CHAP. XIV.
Lastly, For conclusion of this point, Wouldst thou be a contented and Happy man? then strive to be a Thankefull man: and when God hath the fruit of his mercies, he will not spare to sow much, where he reapes much. Wouldest thou become thankefull? then bethink thy self what cause thou hast, by calling to mind and considering, what God and Christ hath done for thee. As first, That he is the Authour of thy natural life: For in him we live, and move, and have our being, Act. 17.28. Secondly, Of thy spiritual life: Thus I live, saies Paul, yet not I now, but Christ liveth in me, Gal. 2.20. Thirdly, Of thy eternal life, 1 Joh. 1. He is the way, the truth, and the life, John 14.6. The resurrection, and the life, John 11.25.
Or more particularly thus: 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 knowledge 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, and our selves: when by sinne 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 only without asking, but even against our wils: so making of us (his cursed enemies) servants, of servants sons, of sons heirs, and coheirs with Christ, Gal 4.7. Here was a fathomlesse 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 goodnesse, did not only find out a way to satisfie his Justice and the Law, but gave us his Sonne, his only begotten Son, his only beloved Son out of his bosome: And his Son gave himself to die, even the most shamefull, painfull, and cursed death of the Crosse to redeem us; That whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life, John 3.16. The very thought of which death, before he come to it, together with the weight and burthen of our sinnes, 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 sonnes of men on earth, and Angels in Heaven! Wherefore, O wonder at this, you that wonder at nothing! That the Lord should come with such a price to redeem our worse than lost souls, and to bring salvation to us, even against our wils. The Lord Iesus 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; O the deepnesse of Gods love! O the unmeasurable measure of his bounty! O Son of God! who can sufficiently expresse 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, than 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 daies 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 wonderfull things to do it: Yea, the saving of one soul single, is more and greater than the making of the whole world. In every new creature are a number of Miracles, a blinde man is restored to sight, 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.
What shall I say? God of his goodnesse hath bestowed so many and so great mercies upon us, that it is not possible to expresse his bounty therein; for if we look inward, we find 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 breathe in, fire to warm us, water to cool and cleanse us, cloathes 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, … 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.
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 Castawayes 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 blind, 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 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, and mercy given us, in giving us his Son; for which read Psal. 68.19. & 145.15, 16. & 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 fast 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 alwaies raised us.