The Case and Cure of a Deserted Soul, Chapter 24
CHAP. XXIV. Sixth and Seaventh means: Be doing, and wiſely and diligently uſe the meanes of grace.
BE doing: many cry Lord help,Direct. 6. Be doing. but they ſtirre not up themſelves,gOrans & non operans iramprovocat. Greg. mor. l. 18. c. 3. but thinke to live all upon ſupply from heaven: but if you keep the ſeed in the garden God will not encreaſe your ſtore, you muſt plough and ſow, and in your endeavours looke for the bleſſing from above; you have a life in you, and you muſt put it forth, God hath ſaid he will help you: that is, you muſt doe what you can, and he then will joyne with youhDii facientes adjuvant. Certate, adjuvabo; vincite, coronabo. Aug. apud Pariſienſ. de ten. & reſiſt. c. 1., he hath ſaid, hee will meete you, Eſay 64.5. that is to ſay, he expects that you ſhould be comming, and then he will come; the mother will lead the child by the hand, but the child muſt uſe his legges, he will doe as men doe with young ſwimmers, he will hold your head, but you muſt uſe your limbs; I ſhall ſpeake more of this when I come to ſpeake of ſuch as ſeeme to be deſerted of God but are not, they finde … deadneſſe, but it is not becauſe God will not co-worke with them, but becauſe they doe not co-work with him: I will at preſent onelyonly ſay what David ſaid … Solomon his ſonne, ariſe therefore and … doing, and the Lord be with thee, 1 …. 22.16. Sit not weeping and ſigh…, for that will not profit, you muſt be … ingiSi lachrymae prodeſſent malis auro eas emeremus. Plut. conſol. ad Apoll. foreign, Dictum Priami ad Achillem. apud Homer. Direct. 7..
Wiſely and diligently improve the meanes of grace, for God doth ordinarily worke onelyonly in them and by them, where they are afforded: he hath ſhewed you the way of life; if you walke no… his counſells, no wonder if deadneſſe and deformity of Spirit overtake you; having ſpoken ſomewhat of this before, I will here adde theſe two things. 1. The faults of men in the uſe of the meanes: 2. The inducements to uſe them rightly.
Firſt, there is a faultineſſe in the godly, often in the uſe of the meanes, which weakens them and takes off th… vigour.
1. Prophaneneſſe, when men co… with ſlight and common ſpirits to the… holy things, without due compoſedneſſe, reverence, and preparedneſſe; this is to provoke God to forſake his ſanctuary, and to leave his ordinances, uncloathed of their wonted working power, and quickning vertue, for this is not ſervice that he can beare, it overthrowes his Majeſty, and layeth his honour low when men come ſo before him; If I be a Father where is mine honour? Mal. 1.6. As if God had ſaid, your unholy and contemptible carriage in my worſhip, declares that you ſet light by me, and make nothing of me; if you had me in eſteeme as your God, you would worſhip me as God; Let us have grace whereby we may ſerve God acceptably with reverence and godly feare, Heb. 12.28.
2. Confidence miſplaced; when you make the miniſter his gifts, graces, prayers, or the things that he adminiſters your truſt, God will not beare it: remember that gifts and ordinances though they be ordained for edification, yet they are but inſtruments, and the whole force of the Inſtrument depends upon the chiefe agent, the waters of Betheſda heale not except the Angel move themkIpſa adjutoria diſtinguenda ſunt; aliud eſt ſine quo non fit aliquid, aliud quo fit: prioris generis ſunt media inſtituta a Deo, ſecundi eſt gratia Dei. Aug. apud Camer. coll. amic. p. 306.; neither is he that pluteth any thing, neither he that watere…, but God that giveth the increaſe, 1 Cor. 3.7. God hath not appointed theſe a things without which hee could not worke, but out of liberty, becauſe it pleaſed him, partly to convey himſelfe i… a way ſutable to nature; the word and Sacraments being fit things to de…l… with intelligent and rationall creature, and partly that his name might bee more honoured in the fellowſhip …f many in the ordinances, therefore o… truſt muſt not be in them, but in God. 1 Cor. 2.5.
3. Men come not to them for this end, but as the empty ſpirits of men unchanged, gather the chaffe, and cockle, but lets goe the wheat, and preferre a fine weed before the eares of corne, ſo many that are good doe catch at things leſſe uſefulllIn picturis, Colores plus afficiunt quam lineae. Plut. foreign. picturam amamùs, foreign, at, orationem non quae convenit, ſed quae placet. ibid., for the moſt part men ha… what they ſeeke and no more; in a fie… one comes to get wood, another to pi… flowers, another to take ayre, and the ſheep come to get foodmSicut in agris apis captat florem, capra germen, ſus radicem, &c. ſic in legendis poematis, alius hiſter: am captat, alius elegantiam, idem ibid.: there is a ſpirit among men too much carryed after difficulties, novelties, depths, diſputes, and by this meanes they become to be like ſome children of ſwelled heads, but weake limbs and little ſtrength: this ſhould be your end, to get life, to meet God, to be filled with the Spirit: you may be fatted in gifts, and leane in grace, like a tree full of leaves and branches, but empty of fruit: knowledge is good, when it is ſought to a due end, not to ſet up your ſelves above others, but to ſet up God; it were good to count nothing good to you, till you finde God in it; a thouſand notions are but vanities, and as empty clouds in the ayre, except they diſſolve themſelves in ſhowres of grace and holyneſſe upon the heart; As new borne babes deſire the ſincere milke of the word, that you may grow thereby, 1 Pet. 2.2.
4. Men uſe not the meanes in faith, but are ready to ſay as Naaman, what are the waters of Iordan? except you believe you ſhall not ſee the power of God; when you ſay in your hearts, my heart is corrupt, dead, darke, paſt cur… what is this but to charge God with weakneſſe and folly, in appointing theſe helps that cannot profit? though luſts and tentations bee many and ſtrong, yet remember God is able to deliver.nforeign; Dixit Antigonus Nauarchae ob hoſtium multitudinem metuenti. Plut. apophth.
5. Not drawing out the efficacy of the meanes, by prayer, application, neditation; you ſhould heare for hereafter, the word ſhould remaine upon you, and you ſhould mould oRo. 6.17. foreign.and forme you hearts to it, and by it: the benefit of the ordinances comes not alwayes at preſent; they are like grapes that muſt b… preſſed: what encouragement doth God give oftentimes? If you were wiſe you might get much; doth not God preſe… them ſometimes like the flowing breaſts? now if you would lye ſucking, how might you bee filled? you p… from you the word when it is like … mine not half broken up, yea often whe… you are neare to ſprings of life, yo… ceaſe to digge; the diligent hand maket… rich; a hungry ſoule findes many ſweet meales in your leavings, God would give much of himſelf if you would ſtay by it: what if nothing come at preſent, doe with the ordinances as with a pump, dwell at it and the waters will flow; it is not much hearing, but wiſe hearing that carrieth the bleſſing, the word muſt be laid up, and muſt ſoake into the heart. Ioh. 8.37pforeign. i. e. foreign. Camerarius. Sermo meus non penetrat in vobis. Ludov. de Dieu..
Secondly, let me adde a little for indutement, to put you upon ſeeking God in this way.
1 Conſider it is Gods way, therefore you muſt not expect good without it, it is his way and he will make it good; he hath appointed the meanes for this end, and therefore they ſhall proſper that uſe them; his power, wiſdome, goodneſſe, ſtand all inviting you, being as ſo many ſeals of this truth, that they ſhall live that heare, and they ſay to thee, Oh thou that art named the houſe of Iſrael, is the Spirit of the Lord ſtraitned? are theſe his doings? doe not my words doe good to them that walk uprightly? Micah 2.7.
2 His promiſe is with you; how fully hath he expreſſed himſelfe in this, Incline your eare and come unto me, he are and your ſouls ſhall live. Eſay 55.1, 2, 3qVerbum Dei animae vita, virtus victus, cuſtodia, &c. Bern.. And hath not Chriſt annexed his prſence to his ordinances, for his people good unto the end of the world? Mat. 28.20. Look then at the ordinances in the promiſe, and ſee how God hath engaged himſelfe unto his ſervants: if you could beleeve, you would ſee God more in his Sanctuary; but as it is ſaid that Chriſt wrought no more miracles in his own countrey becauſe of their unbeliefe, Mat. 13.58. ſo God ſhuts in his power from working, becauſe your hear… is ſhut up in unbeliefe; you ſhould go… with gladneſſe to the houſe of God, as to a place of feeding and healing, rejoycing in hope to finde an effuſion of the Spirit from on high, according to the promiſe.
3 God hath done it; you ſee by theſe meanes he prevailes upon men, and turnes from darkneſſe to light, and raiſeth from death to life; you ſee others how they flouriſh in the Courts of Gods houſe as trees by the water ſide, and have not you your ſelves found God often, cauſing the ordinances to come as Ships laden with rich treaſures for you? hath not your heart burned when you have heard him ſpeaking? have not ſome ſermons been as Elias Chariot? hath not Chriſt come often when his Diſciples have been together? why doe you not then upon ſuch experiences, walk diligently and chearfully in the Goſpell?
4 It is Gods glory to meet his people; it ſets out his goodneſſe, wiſdome, power, mercy, faithfulneſſerCaeſari, cum ſtatuas Pompeii delapſuras erigi juſsit, dixit Oice. ro, foreign Flut. de capiend. ex. hoſtib. utilit., as the Sunne in cleareneſſe, it makes his name precious, his wayes ſweete, his people fruitfull, and herein (ſaith Chriſt) is my father glorified, that ye bring forth much fruit, John 15. therefore you have cauſe to ſeek to enjoy God in this way.
5 Conſider with whom you have to deale. 1. One that knoweth who ſeek him, he knoweth who are his friends, and ſeeth all the reachings of thy heart after him: Chriſt asked the woman whom ſhee ſought, but he knew ſhee ſought him, and ſo ſhewed himſelf unto her; the childe may, ſeek the mother and ſhe may be ignorant of it; but there is not a prayer, not a ſigh after him, but it is in his eare, not a teare for him, but it is in his eye. 2. He can doe what you deſire; he can carry you on as upon Eagles wings, he is a fountaine of life, and hath enough for you, and for thouſands. 3. He is pittyfull, he is ſenſible of your caſeſHeb. 4.15. Compaſſio cum impaſſibilitate perdurat. Bern. de grad. humil., he knoweth your need of him, what weakneſſe you are left in, if he be not with you, what tentations and luſts break in, what ſorrow and heavineſſe if you enjoy him not. 4. He is the author of that deſire which you have after him, and God knoweth the meaning of his own Spirit; theſe deſires hee ſent from himſelfe, to bee as Pharaohs Chariots to bring Iacob to Ioſeph; and when they have brought you to God, will he not accept you? he would not have ſent for you, if he meant not to helpe you, therefore ſeeke him with faith and diligence in the meanes, that you may have his preſence for your guide and guard in all your wayes.