England Faithfully Watched, Lecture 83
COLOS. 1.28.
Whom wee preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wiſdome, that wee may preſent every man perfect in Chriſt Jeſus.
29.
Whereunto I alſo labour ſtriving according to his working, which worketh in mee mightily.
THe call of God, by whom, to whom, and to what, are the generalls expreſt, and amplified in theſe two verſes. The call of God now, is by men, whom wee preach, and whereunto [J] alſo labour.
Sinne is puniſhed, weakeneſſe condeſcended to; immediate commerce was our life, it is now our death; we cannot ſee God, nor heare God and live (take both in a parallel ſpeach) but wee ſhall doe both: 'Twas ſhadowed by the mediation of Moſes, who talked with God upon the Mount, and in the Tabernacle; (which ſhadowed Heaven; as our ſpirituall Tabernacles now do) Face to face as a man talkes with his friend, Exod. 33.11. there was very immediate viſion and commerce; though not perſonall, yet as neare it as it was poſſible for our frayle condition to beare, to be ſtrongly preaching and confirming what Chriſt our Mediator will one day bring us to againe, in that holy of holies, that glorious Tabernacle, where now he himſelfe officiates.
The call of God is by men, to men; by ſome ſelected, to all in generall; whom [wee] preach warning [every man and teaching every man. Earth to earth; Potſherds ſtrive with Potſherds of the Earth; wee muſt beſeech and intreat every one, and with every degree of patience; wee muſt be beggers at every ones dore for Chriſt, for earth to go to Heaven, and if it will not be, earth muſt ſhake off earth againſt earth; we muſt ſhake off the duſt of our feete againſt Adams ſons: Earth is uſed to ſave, or to deſtroy earth, Goliah is kil'd with a ſtone, a little heape ſtrikes downe a great. Goliah ſome thinke may ſignify a great heape, which if ſo, name and perſon did agree: and David who was but a little man, and with a little ſtone, ſtrikes downe this great perſon: Earth kils earth, and earth buries earth, earth rings the Funerall of earth: by us though poore earthen Veſſels, Chriſt ſounds and ſets forth who are dead eternally.
You know the call of God by whom it is, and to whom it is: to what it is, is the next generall, particularly to bee ſpoken to. Wee are cal'd to a perfect perſon, and in him to a perfect condition, That wee may preſent every man [perfect] in Chriſt Jeſus. Divine vocation is in oppoſition to diabolicall avocation; we were called from God by Satan, and God cal'd us to him againe, ſimply, and circumſtantially (i) not onelyonly to him, but as fully to him as ever, to be foreign toti dilecti, wholly beloved:
Having thus divided the verſes, wee will begin with the firſt clauſe thereof, whom we preaeh. The originall word foreign whom we exactly ſhew, or fully declare, foreign in this compoſition notes a ſuperlative, and is to intend the expreſſion like as it doth Luke 12.58. where our Saviour ſayes of conſcience, that it ſhould not onelyonly foreign, but foreign, That is, throughly draw, or perfectly draw. The word thus opened, that which I would ſtand on is this, That Goſpell adminiſtration makes exact illumination. the Goſpell hath a peculiar Idiom, nothing ſpeakes ſo plaine and ſo full of every thing concerning man, as this doth. 'Tis foreign as the Apoſtle ſpeakes, 1 Cor. 14.9. a word very ſignificative, (i) very plaine and very full; every adminiſtration humane, conducing to illumination, ſpeakes darkely, and by halves, no language yeelds, vox bene ſignificans: therefore are they which leane upon theſe helps children of darkneſſe, notwithſtanding all their light, their hearts and lives full of lyes, a lie is in their right hand. (i.) In that wherein they are confident they are intelligent, they underſtand nothing: Goſpel adminſtration makes that which the old Teſtament calls foreign,*Col. 3.24. Noting certaine knowledge. and the new Jadang *Iſa. 6.9.Perception, a looking through things, (i.) it makes every thing tranſparent, manifeſt quite through, out-ſide, and inſide. Yee ſee indeed, but perceive not: 'tis as if the Prophet had ſaid, yee doe not Goſpelly apprehend; your reception makes not perception, not viſion quite through as doth the Goſpell: therefore is the light of the Church of Chriſt compared to a ſtone moſt precious, as Jaſper, Chryſtall. He carried me away in the ſpirit, ſaith John, and ſhewed me the great City, holy Jeruſalem deſcending out of heaven, having the glory of God, and [her light was like to a ſtone moſt precious] even like to a Jaſper ſtone, Revel. 21.11. Like to this is Cant. 6.10. Who is ſhe that looketh forth as the morning, faire as the Moon, [cleare as the Sun!] By all which Metaphors is made manifeſt, that what light the goſpell gives, is very cleare.
Ʋſe. Goſpel-Adminiſtration makes exact Illumination; what hath it done in you? what is your light under all the meanes of light you enjoy? paines is conſidered; tis ſo with you, tis ſo with God: you obſerve ſuch under your tuition as are Drons, and ſigh, ah, what a living plague have I pinn'd upon me! I am very induſtrious to inſtruct, to propagate wholſome principles, I ravell out my Lungs, my Reines, my Braines, my life, and yet he ſees not this ſilver cord, to be led to any thing by it; ſay what I will, doe what I will, all dyes at the doore, equity will not enter, Rectum non potuit ingredi, 'twill not goe in; they were ſo crooked, that right things and ſtraghit things could not be made to goe in: Thus you complaine, and thus you ſee God complaines; he is ſenſible of painfulneſſe and ſucceſſeleſeneſſe as you are. The Metaphor is taken from denſe obdurate things, as ſtones, earth, which are ſuch things of all other, that light can make leaſt entrance into. The earth is the moſt deading and repelling body of reſplendency of any body: They that are but a little way under the earth, are darker many fathome, then they that are under water, becauſe Sunne-rayes can enter this bodie, and make light downe to the bottome, though very deep. As 'tis with bodies under earth, ſo 'tis with ſoules: worldlings, earthy wretches, your ſoules are under earth, you are in great darkneſſe, and light cannot come at you. The things under which your ſoules are, do ſo dead and dampe it out; incarnall ſoules there are great damps, which put out all the light that is brought in; know therefore what God complaines of: God burdened with any ſoule, that ſoule can be in no good condition; a ſoule in utter darkneſſe, I meane, in ſuch darkneſſe where no light can come, is abuſed both by fancy and conſcience; deluded, tormented, and finall and fatall wrath brings up the reare. In darkneſſe, fancy is a brave light, an approved guide; and alas what conception of divine things this makes! Chriſt is I know not what, and I know not from whence, any thing that the ſoule will, any thing that ſinne will to make a long life for it ſelfe in the ſoule. We know whence this man is, but when Chriſt commeth no man knoweth whence he is, Joh. 7.27. What a ſtrange Chimera is Chriſt to fancy! a big nothing! to carnall apprehenſion Chriſt is ſuch a one as comes no man can tell whence. Fancy raiſes things ſo high, that no body can ſee them; this tumor in the ſpirit, 'tis ſuch profound wiſdome, that it turnes man into a foole, and God into nothing. The foole hath ſaid in his heart there is no God. He doth not ſpeake ſuch words formally; but his fancy reſolved, and his conception of God rightly expreſt, ſpeaks God no God (i.) they ſpeak ſuch things of God as are inconſiſtent to ſuch a holy being, and ſo deſtroy God.
God murdered, his bloud cries in mans conſcience; morall light is made to torment, when Divine light cannot enter; The higher rejection of God, the greater guilt falls upon Conſcience; this is not all: The light a man hath in this caſe, ſhall not ſerve him ſo much as to ſhift with, to evade the Huy and Cry of Conſcience, but be arm'd againſt a man, and quickly to take hold on the Felon ſo guilty, and very reſolutely, and irreſiſtibly give the ſoule up to conſcience, ſhift how it will, or how it can. Shimei was a rough-ſpirited man, and hid from the Hue and Cry of his owne conſcience ſome ſpace of time in that buſineſſe about his dogged carriage to David, wherein he reſiſted ſome divine beames: but what they were, and how many, and how big, and bright, I know not: all his carriage in that bad buſineſſe he called perverſeneſſe, and againſt his Lord and King; and was himſelfe of the houſe of Joſeph, and therefore 'tis probable had ſome principles of light more then ordinary diſtil'd in that Line, and yet all thoſe black circumſtances of ill carriage towards David, not ſeen by Shimei a great while; at laſt they all revive, and Shimei's light quickned upon him, and by how much the greater in it ſelfe, the greater now againſt him, and gives him up, will he, …ill he, to a tormenting conſcience. The words of the Story are theſe; and ſpeak all that I have ſpoken, and more. Shimei came voluntarily to David as he paſſed over Jordan, one of the firſt of all the houſe of Joſeph, and falls downe at Davids feet, Doe not remember that which thy ſervant did perverſely that the King ſhould put it to his heart, for thy ſervant doth know that I have ſinned, 2 Sam. 19.20. Did not Shimei know that he had ſinned before now? that he had rejected David as King, and ſo in him Chriſt? No doubt: but he made ſhift to hide things from Conſcience till now, now his light was quickned and ſtrengthned upon him, and would ſerve to darken things no longer, but to brighten and to cleare them, and ſo irreſiſtibly, and with ſtrong hand to give him up to the purſuer; and thus will all your light ſerve you, who reject the cleare light of the Goſpell, and reſt in other dark lights.
The light a man hath and abuſes, to keep out more and better light, Chriſt will make this in the concluſion, to give up the man to conſcience; now is the man delivered up to the adverſary indeed, which is called in the originall foreign, from foreign, contra, & foreign vindicta, ſuch an adverſary as doth make revenge againſt one; when your carnall light hath delivered you up to conſcience for abuſing of it, conſcience will be a revenger againſt you, 'twill revenge the quarrell of Chriſt, according to all that he hath againſt you: Vindiction of Conſcience, ah, what a thing 'tis! 'tis a Granado ſhot into the houſe in the night when all are abed and aſleep, which awakens with a witneſſe, breaks open, teares open windowes, doors, eyes, bowels, and fetches the ſleeper out peece-meale, and doth Satans work to his hand, and makes a ſlaughter-houſe at home, and then brings every thing ready quarter'd out, and laies all peece by peece, joynt by joynt, faculty by faculty at hell doore, as neare Infinite Wrath as 'tis poſſible for things to be laid in this life. None kils ſo cruelly, nor buries her dead ſo forlornely, ſo neare Hell as Conſcience doth.
You that finde the truth of this poynt, that Goſpell adminiſtration hath maturated underſtanding, made your light exact, you will be very bleſſed ſoules, you will be very quick in application of divine things, and proportionable in the fruition of them, bleſſing of them, you will not ſet ſhort in duty nor rewards. At what hight we are in the underſtanding of Chriſt, we are in love to him; if perfect in one, ſo in the other; if perfect in light, perfect in love; if perfect in affection, perfect in action; for love is fire; fire doth aſcend all of it, every ſparke; and therefore your burnt offerings were called gnola, aſcenſion, becauſe they did all aſcend in a flame. Full Light will make you gnola, an whole aſcenſion, holocautomata, a whole burnt offering; all aſcending in a flame to Chriſt, that did ſo for us to God. Divine Light carries Energy with it, all tooles and inſtruments whereby all faculties and organs are made anſwerable to the eyes it opens; it makes not a blinde man open his eyes and lie ſtill, but opens eyes in order to legs and armes, and all other joynts; when God opens eyes, he opens cares, opens all: David is a demonſtration of this, and Chriſt. Sacrifice and offering thou wouldeſt not, Charitha.but mine eares haſt thou opened, digged open. Eyes were digged open, and eares together; when David knew what God would have, his Light warmed and opened his heart, and made that obedient unto it: and ſo Chriſt, if you apply the words to him, when he opened his Commiſſion at his journeys end, when come into the fleſh, and into this world, and unto offering age, to Prieſtly maturty for that Office, and ſaw what kinde of offering God expected, not ſuch offering as under the Law, the bodies of beaſts, but his own body, his Light inflamed his heart, and he proclames his Commiſſion, what body he might offer, a body haſt thou prepared [me;] and he longed to give it to its intended uſe, when he knew the intention of God concerning it: there is a proportion to this, in all the revelations of the ſame light in our hearts; Chriſt puts his honour here upon us as he doth above; as we ſhall have what he has in heaven, ſo we have in a degree what he had on earth; his ſpirit, and his peace, his light and his life: our life is ſaid to be hid in him; tis bravely typified I think, Numbers 27.20. Put ſome of thy honour upon him, ſaith God to Moſes, concerning Joſhua; their Unctions were communicative under the Law: to ſhadow that, ſo ſhould Chriſts Unction under the Goſpell be communicative unto us; you will be a whole aſcenſion, which have a whole light; and hee that aſcends wholly to Heaven, muſt needs have a ſweet and bleſſed life on't.