The Works of Jeremiah Burroughs 9-11, Treatise 3 · Chapter 23
CHAP. XXIII.
A Fifth Direction for the exercise of Faith in want of Sence; which is, When Reasoning and Temptations wax strong, the way is not to answer them, but to pray. Sixthly, Set before thee, the Covenant of Grace. Seventhly, Act Faith and Repentance afresh.
FIfthly, Another Direction in the want of Sence, is this; That when Reasonings and Temptations grow strong, the way is not to answer them with Reasonings, and to seek to satisfie those temptations; but rather to fall to prayer, and to spread them before the Lord, as Hezekiah did Rabshekes rayling Letter: the Devil comes somtimes, and even rails upon God, and his Truths, and Waies, and Saints, but do thou go and spread them before the Lord, do not think to answer Reasoning with Reasoning, the Devil will be too hard; if thou beginnest to Reason with Flesh and Blood, and thinkest to satisfie thy self by thine own Reasonings, the Devil will be too hard, he is too cunning a Logitian for thee; we must not sight with the Devil in his own way, that is, by Reason, for the Devils have stronger Parts and Reasons than we can have, if we rest to our own Understanding: But the way is to fly to Jesus Christ, to beseech him that he would answer these Reasonings and Temptations: Oh when a soul can in the quietness of it commit its self to Jesus Christ, and spread its case before him, Lord, I am put to a non-plus here, I know not what to say to my self, and my condition, only I think that I can say this, That I love thee, as you know when Christ spake to Peter, Lovest thou me? Lord, thou knowest that I love thee: It may be Temptation comes and saith, If you loved God, you would do thus and thus, and surely these and these things cannot stand with a true Love to God: it may be thou canst not answer every particular, but canst thou go in the quiet of thy heart, and appeal to God, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee, I know not what to say to these things that are suggested; but Lord, thou knowest that I love thee? Indeed if a man should come and bring some Evidences to you, and Reasons to convince you, that your heart is naught, and your waies are evil; it's not enough for you to stand out and say, well, say what you will, yet I beleeve that my condition is good, and it's not so bad as you will make it; it's not for you to answer men so, but when there comes a temptation of the Devil, you are not bound to give the Devil an accompt, as you are to give your Brother an accompt: If you can go into the presence of God, and appeal to God that your waies are right, and that God knows you love him, that may be an answer to a thousand temptations that comes into your minds: And if you can open your hearts freely in Prayer, and look up to Jesus Christ your great Champion, and desire his help to assist you in this Combate: this is a better way than to think to stand out with Reasoning and wrastling with temptation: Oh rather, rather appeal to God in Prayer, and open your hearts to him, and that's the way. Luther used to say, That his Peayers were the Leeches of his Cares; as Leeches will suck out corrupt blood, so Prayers will get out the strength of temptations: Many Physitians in some cases will rather seek to purge the Body that way than by giving a Potion; the Leeches sucking out corrupt blood will sooner clense the Body than a Potion: And so the Leeches of Prayer will many times sooner help against a temptation than any other thing that can be done.
Sixthly: Further, In the time of Dissertion, the Direction that we should take, is this; Labor to keep in thine eye, the Object of Faith: So as to behold and look upon that which may help thy Faith, set before thee, the Covenant of Grace, the Freeness, the Fulness of Gods Grace in Christ as 'tis revealed in the Covenant, the plentiful Mercy that is there, keep that in thine eye: Many when they want the sight of Gods Favor, they then are altogether poring upon their corruptions, looking upon the black side of the cloud; but though you cannot apprehend yet, that God is yours, and the Favor and Love of God in Christ, yet you may keep in your eye those things that are the Object of the Faith of such as are true Beleevers; what is it that raises the Faith of Beleevers, but the presenting of the Glory and Riches of the Covenant of Grace to them? Now do not you turn away your eyes from it.
Object. You will say, But I know not whether it belongs to me.
Answ. Yet look upon it, keep your eyes upon it, upon some special part of the Gospel, some remarkable Scriptures as have most of the Gospel in them, as that, So God loved the world, that he sent forth his only begotten Son, &c. and 2 Cor. 5. 19. And such Scriptures that hold forth much of the Gospel should be kept in your eyes, meditate on them, roul them in your thoughts and you know not what they may work.
Object. You will say, These things do belong to Beleevers.
Answ. Nay, They do not belong only to those that are actual Beleevers already; but they are to that end reveal'd, that they might work Faith where it is not: they have a generative faculty in them, it is through the Gospel that Faith is begotten, as wel as encreased; therfore keep those things in your eye for the raising of your Faith: And that's another help in the want of Sence.
Seventhly, I shall give you one more, and that is, In the want of Sence and Sight, let it be you great care if you think you have not had Faith and Repentance before, yet now afresh to act it: That's likewise a Rule that upon any occasion in speaking to those in Dissertions, I ever make use of, and shall ever as a special Rule as any I know for to help those that are in any spiritual Dissertions, to renew an act of Faith and Repentance, yea, if they think they never beleeved before, yet to strive to put forth a work of Faith and Repentance; that is thus, It may be the soul hath examined and searched to know what the condition is between God and it, and can find no evidence at all that ever it had any grace, yet what hinders but that you may now beleeve? do not spend so much time to look over your old Evidences, to find out your Evidences that were of ancient date, as forthwith to strive to put forth a new act of Faith: If thou beest non-plust with the temptations of the Devil, or thine own heart, that thou knowest not what in the world to say; but answer thus, Well, grant the worst that may be, Suppose al that hath been before were false, yet what hinders, but that now I may beleeve? Remember what hath been said, There is nothing that gives right to Christ but beleeving, and nothing gives any man right to beleeve, but beleeving, therefore what hinders but that at this instant I may beleeve? I do not mean this by beleeving, to conclude that my condition is good, for many Christians are held under the Spirit of bondage by this, they think the Nature of Faith is this, For to conclude in their own thoughts, that their condition is good, and that they certainly shall be saved; that's a fruit of Faith, but not the Nature of Faith: The Nature of Faith is the rouling of the soul upon the free Grace of God in Christ. Now though there be many things that may hinder me from concluding that my state is good, yet there is nothing that should hinder me from rouling my soul upon the free Grace of God in Christ: A man hath some hope that he hath such an Acquittance, or a Bond among some Papers in his Boxes, but he cannot find it; if he hath to deal with one that's Faithful, he may go likely, and get his Bond renewed, or get an Acquittance made anew before he can find his old one▪ So 'tis here, we having to deal with a Faithful God, when many times we have lost our Evidences, lost our bonds; the way is to go and renew our Acquittances, to renew our Bonds, to renew our Evidences; that is, to go and exercise Faith afresh; what hinders me that now this very morning or evening, but that I may put forth an act of Faith upon Jesus Christ.
I shall conclude with this one Note: I affirmed to you before, that there was a Faith of Adhaerence, where there is not a Faith of Evidence; let me now tell you, That there is a Venturing Faith, as well as of Adhaerence and Evidence: Indeed this Venturing Faith is an Adhaerance, but when the soul cannot have encouragement to beleeve under the notion of Adhaering to Jesus Christ, it may be the violence of temptation seems to drive it off from Adhaering: But for the helping of those that are under temptation, and want Sence altogether, let Faith be presented under the Notion of Venturing; though we have not the word in Scripture, yet we have the thing, as that of the poor woman of Canaan, though she were put off, and call'd a Dog, and the like, yet Dogs have crum…; and so that of Job, Though he kill me, yet will I trust in him: If I perish, I perish, as Esther said: And so when the foul can but come to this, Well, it's true, I am out-reasoned by temptation, and I know not what in the world to say to my self what my condition is, I see I am puzled, and I am never like to work, out this temptation in that way of Reasoning I am in; but for my part, I am resolved upon this, If the Lord destroy me, he shall destroy me relying upon him; it's true, I do not know yet whether God will receive me or no, I have not that Evidence, and for my cleaving to the grace of God in Christ, whether I can do it o… no I cannot tel, but this I am resolved, Here I will venture, and if I perish, I wil perish, casting my …oul upon the Grace of God in Christ; this shall be my way: I am sure, if I depart from God, I must perish, if I should be weary of God and his Waies, and forsake them, and imbrace mine own sinful waies, I am certain that I shall perish there; but I'le rather do this, I will venture my soul here, and here I will lie as a poor, wretched, miserable Creature in my self, and I will cast an eye up towards his Holy Temple, towards the Grace of God, and here my soul shall pitch and venture, I'le cast Anchor here, whether the Tempest will be so great that it will break Anchor and Cable I know not, but I am sure if I do not cast Anchor, I shall run upon the Rocks and split, and suffer Ship-wrack.
I confess were not the soul in a temptation, this were not enough, meerly to venture, we must not rest in this, we must stil be laboring to find that our souls do adhaere, and cleave to the Grace of God in Christ, and never be at quiet till we have got some assurance of it too. But I declare what is to be done in the time of temptation; when a man is in a storm and tempest, then it is a work acceptable to God, and it hath had very often excceeding good success; when a soul not knowing what to do, yet at length it hath concluded thus, If I am undone I will be undone in Christs arms, and here I will hang, and ride at this Anchor, and if the Lord should shake me into Hell, yet I'le hang as long as I can, and here I'le venture: Oh this will keep thee from departing from God, and wil be such an acceptable work to God as it's like that thou shalt not be long without some manifestation of God to thee to encourage thee in thy way: and for to make all the former good, I'le leave this one thing with you, and that's this; Know, that all times are not fit times for you to judg of your condition in; it's not a fit time to judg whether a Tree be alive or dead in the midst of Winter; 'tis not a fit time to weigh Gold when I am abroad in a tempest and storm; 'tis not a fit time to judg of the Constitution of ones Body in the Fit of a Feaver; and of the comliness of ones Countenance in the time of an Ague; no, if you would judg of the Body, you must do it when it is in health; and so if you would weigh Gold, it must be when the Scales may stand even: There are many poor weak Beleevers that did never pass any judgment upon themselves, but in the hour of a Temptation, which is the unfittest time; no, rather stay while you are your self, and then you may be fitter to judg of your estate.
These Directions may be some good help for your Faith in the want of Sence, that while God withdraws himself, yet you may be able in some measure through the Lords assistance to walk by Faith, when you cannot walk by sight.