England Faithfully Watched, Lecture 52
COLOS. 1.21. Yet now hath he reconciled.
THe love of God is wholly diſpenſed as love; 'tis in giving out as in taking in, all along free, birth bears it not to this rather then to that. Not many noble, &c. friends work it not; there is but one Mediator, but one favourite in all the world, that appears in the preſence of God about any ſuch thing, and he is no reſpecter of perſons. The vileſt as ſoon as thoſe that are more beholding to nature, obtain grace. And ye that were ſometimes alienated, and enemies in your minde by wicked works, [yet now hath he reconciled].
Reconciliation in the formality of it, I have already handled, this therefore I ſhall not meddle with again, neither is it that which the Holy Ghoſt doth principally point at here; but as you ſee by reading the whole verſe, one inviting property of reconciliation, is moſt aim'd at, to wit, that the favour of God goes forth to all ſorts, that there is nothing in one ſort of perſons more then another, to invite or diſcourage God, to diſpence his eternall grace; all ſorts, and all at one price, may obtain the favour of God, (i.)
Doctr. The Grace of God unto life is in all reſpects free; and this is that ſweet property of reconciliation, which according to the ſcope of this place, and the neceſſity of many poor ſouls at this time, I would demonſtrate to you.
The love of God is compared to a Feaſt; in feaſting men are free, if men be not, God is, and you will ſay ſo, if ſome circumſtances in his feaſting be obſerved.Ʋniverſally. God doth invite univerſally: You make feaſts, but yet every one may not come; God ſets no ſuch bound, nor makes no ſuch diſtinction of perſons. Ho, every one, [as many as you ſhall find] bid to the marriage, Matth. 22.9. The heavens are generall in their influence, not one graſſe on the ground, but dewed. The Ark had of all ſorts brought into it; from the Eaſt, Weſt, North and South, come and ſit downe in the Kingdome of God: As perſons are in eſtate, ſo they invite, and ſo they feaſt. Chriſt is a great King over all the earth, and ſo he invites over all the earth; he hath one houſe that will hold all, he hath one table that will hold all; yea, he hath one diſh that will ſerve all, and anſwerably he invites, Ho, every one that thirſts. If there be any thing looked at in thoſe which Chriſt invites, 'tis ſomething within, not any thing without. If the man be lame, blinde, halt, if he be bodily ſoare, yet its nothing; if he would ſit at Gods table, and if he would have crums or flagons, this is all that is looked at.
God doth univerſally invite, and he doth affectionatly invite,Affectionatly. which loudly ſpeaks his love free. The world is deaf; 'twould diſcourage any one to make a feaſt for a company of deaf folks, ſtocks and blocks, that one muſt ſtrain ones lungs, to make them heare, and yet it doth not diſcourage God; certainly his love is very affectionate, God doth lay his mouth to the eare of the deaf, and cries aloud, [Ho] every one that thirſts. John was a crier in the Wilderneſſe, he did Chriſts work; ſo are we at this day, and the injunction is, to cry aloud like a trumpet; ſpirits, lungs, nothing to be ſpared, in expreſſion of Gods affection to mans eternall good. Souls are precious to God, diſtreſſe is laid to heart as 'tis: bowels ſound, lungs ſound, [Ho] every one, &c. vocations, interjections, &c. ſpeaks very affectionate motion towards the diſtreſſed: Why will you die, O Jeruſalem? Matters of weight move not us, we make expreſſion from no impreſſion; God ſmites his heart again and again, and then ſpeaks and proffers love. O Ephraim, what ſhall I do unto thee, O Judah? how ſhall I give thee up? God calls and knocks, and waites; he calls and beſeeches; calls and weeps: what he utters is from his heart, that it may go to our heart. Things are ſo molded and ſhaped, as to make their own way: Every word of God, hath ſo much Majeſty and ſweetneſſe, conviction and conſolation, which plainly ſpeaks him very free, and willing to be reconciled to man. Who puts on ſuch apparell when he wooes a Spouſe, as Chriſt does? Who ſpeaks ſuch effectuall words, or preſents ſuch precious jewels when he wooes, as Chriſt doth?
I will give you ſomething elſe to demonſtrate this thing to you. God purſues prerogative altogether in his gracious diſpenſations: Grace muſt needs be in all reſpects free, becauſe no obligement is upon God, to give to this, rather then to that. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy. The counſell of Gods will, is his guide: Mercy goes forth and embraces this or that perſon, and not from any reſpect elſe, but Gods will; he does all things according to the counſell of his will: Prerogative carries all with him. God is free, and will be free, to give what he will, to whom he will; he hath no reſpect nor obligement upon him, nor will have: I will have mercy upon whom I will; men proffer to ſome perſons this or that, to induce them to do this or that for them, and they ſay no; what we do, we will do freely: God is ſuch a noble Spirit. The whole creation is ſpiritually turned into a Chaos, darkneſſe is upon the face of the deep, upon the deepeſt underſtanding; every ſoule under heaven, without form and void of God. As all things were then materially, as clay in the hands of the Potter, free for God to ſhape how he would, one to this, another to that; ſo are we now ſpiritually: and as then he was led in the old creation by his will, ſo is he now in the new creation, and by nothing elſe; the will of none interrupts or ſwayes a jot with God. Of his own will be begat us by the Word of truth, Jam. 1.18. Not any thing without God ſwayes him, in what he does in the old creation or in the new, and therefore all that comes forth from him is free, and can be no otherwiſe.
I will give you an argument more of this nature, and then the uſe of all; not a creature upon the face of the earth that can preſent any thing of his own to God to draw love, and to make friendſhip in the leaſt kinde. Diſtance and diſparitie is ſo great between ſome perſons, that there is an utter incapacitie in one ſide, to make and ingage the other. What can a begger, a vagabond, preſent a Prince with, to make his favour, if he would be made with a gift. The caſe is ours; out of naught comes naught; we are naught and nothing elſe, and can preſent nothing elſe to him who is nothing but good. There is [no ſoundneſſe] in us, Eſa. 1. 'Tis a remarkable expreſſion, if we had any ſoundneſſe, and 'twere but very light, we might preſent that to attract and make friendſhip and love, and ſo with ſomething of our own, help by art a bad condition; but there is no ſoundneſſe in us from the crown of the head, to the ſole of the foot. What grace doth by degrees in a very long ſpace of time, that ſin did preſently. Grace doth purge wholly, but 'tis long firſt. The God of peace ſanctifie you [wholly] &c. Sin corrupts wholly preſently; as ſoone as ever Adam tranſgreſſed, it did as ſome ſtrong poyſon, run quite over him preſently, ſo that we are become as the Pſalmiſt ſaith, Altogether filthy, Pſal. 14.3. Such as are altogether filthy, cannot offer any thing of their own altogether cleane, and yet ſo it muſt be, to him who is altogether ſo, or elſe it obtaines nothing with him; and therefore 'tis that the Scripture ſpeakes of our righteouſneſſe, as menſtruous ragges.
Ʋſe. I have now ſhewed, you that mercy cannot be merited, but juſtice may. The favour of God goes for nothing in man, but the wrath of God goes forth alwayes for ſomething in man: a courſe of ſin ſhould be trembled at: ah Lord, what will this bring about? My goodneſſe extends not to God, but my wickedneſſe doth. My grace merits nothing, but my ſin merits much. A man may doe enough to deſerve hell quickly. The troubles of the whole Land are many, every Country dyed with bloud; I know how folkes ſpeake of all this, yet not a drop of bloud more ſhed, then merited. If thy many wounds and much bleeding prove mortall, O England, thy death will be but juſt deſert. 'Twere well if what now is upon us, were all we have deſerved, we ſhould then give a gueſſe, when our troubles would end, whereas now we can give none. A perſon or Nation purſued according to merit, periſheth unavoydably. The wages of ſin is death: Our remedie is free mercy, that God breake off from what he is yet but entred upon, to wit, judgement; for if he goe on to doe but juſtice, woe unto us all, he will finde matter enough to keep juſtice alive, till every perſon in the Land be dead. See Eſa. 9. He ſhall ſnatch on the right hand, and be hungry, and he ſhall eate on the left hand, and not be ſatisfied; they ſhall eate every man the fleſh of his own arme, Manaſſeh Ephraim, and Ephraim Manaſſeh, &c. And for all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is ſtretched out ſtill, verſ. 20, 21. Juſtice will finde worke a great while, if this be onelyonly imployed about a people, 'twill eate out all and looke over the hatch for more. For all this his anger is not put away, &c. When juſtice hath deſtroyed a whole Land, yet not a jot ſatisfied nor pacified, but ſtands ready to burne it againe and againe. Mercy finiſheth her worke, that conſummates the creature: juſtice finiſheth her worke too, and this conſumes the creature. When juſtice doth finiſh her worke, yet then 'tis righteous, 'tis in righteouſneſſe. He will finiſh his worke [in righteouſneſſe]. If this be the determination of God upon us, that juſtice ſhall finiſh her work in the middeſt of us, we are in a conſumption, and can never recover. He [will finiſh] his worke in righteouſneſſe, &c. That's a fatall ſentence. If free grace intercept not, till juſtice hath finiſhed her worke, 'twill eate us out all. Wee have deſerved to die all; beate at heaven, to know whether the heart of God be hardened as yours is, and whether he be onelyonly judiciarily bent againſt us. And whom he will he hardens, &c. Flint to flint, ſtrikes nothing but fire. God hardened and we hardened, nothing but blowes and fire, will or can iſſue out of this. Plead with God for grace and compaſſion for the Land, or we cannot live.
More particularly, I would make application of this point. Grace is free in ſoule diſtreſſes, let us all feed upon this doctrine. God doth not chooſe us and imbrace us for our beautie, as Ahaſuerus did Eſther, and yet this is it that makes many poore ſoules, to ſhake off what they ſhould take hold on. I am very filthy, preyed upon with this luſt or that, & ſhould ſuch a one as I kiſſe the King of glory? Is there any reaſon to thinke, that he will take me into his armes, and make me his delight? Wee may not meaſure the wayes of God, by the wayes of man: Grace workes above reaſon, that which we can give no ground for, God doth: his love paſſeth knowledge, in the breadth, length, height, and depth of it, in the ſpring of it. Why is this man or that beloved? can any man give a ground, more then that which Paul doth? It [pleaſed] God to reveale his Son in me. Nothing can be rendered as a reaſon of Gods love to any thing, but to Chriſt; if any thing incite him towards us, 'tis that which deters us from him, to wit, our deſperate condition. The poore man that lay wounded, when all paſſed by, Chriſt took compaſſion upon him. Grace doth ſo worke, as beſt to ſhew its own nature; the leſſe you ſee in your ſelves, the leſſe you can ſay for your ſelves, the likelier to find favour and friendſhip with God. Chriſt is come of purpoſe to make favour and friendſhip for ſuch, that ſee themſelves worthy of none. Let what will be ſaid of this nature, yet tempted ſoules will put all off: ſomething muſt be on my part, to get the favour of God, and I can doe nothing, I am under the power of darkneſſe, and cannot ſtirre a limbe: what can become of me but ruine? I cannot pray, nor heare, nor believe: yet thou maiſt be bleſſed. When we have no legs to goe forth to fetch in good things, they make legs to themſelves, and come to us. As Solomon ſaith of riches, that they make wings to themſelves, and flie away from us: ſo divine favours make wings and legs to themſelves, and come to us. Salvation is come to thy houſe. Joy comes in the morning. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. The doctrine in hand anſwers this objection too, grace is in all points, and according to all circumſtances free. The preparations of the heart in man, and the anſwer of the tongue; what to thinke, what to ſay, what to doe, to make you bleſſed, you ſhall have all from the Lord. Poore creatures, at an utter loſſe in themſelves, conclude God is ſo too, otherwiſe why ſhould you give up your condition as deſperate? When you can doe no more, can Chriſt doe no more, to ſet the wheele of mercy going? Yes he can, but he will not for mee. Why? Becauſe of this and that. This is all one to ſay, that his love is not fully free, which is a direct contradiction of the doctrine in hand. Grace hath riches in it, unſearchable riches, it workes beyond what you can aske, beyond what you can thinke; it blots out uncleanneſſe, bloud, guilt, treaſon againſt the higheſt State; grieving, quenching, reſiſting the holy Ghoſt.
All this is to tempted Chriſtians; to men in their carnall condition, a word more, and this diſcourſe will end. Your condition is not ſuppoſedly miſerable, but indeed ſo. You are not the people of God, you have not obtained mercy; and yet all this may be, becauſe grace is in all reſpects free. Conſcience though in a dead ſleepe, is ſtartled now and then, and then rages terribly; cuts and wounds, raves and teares, and then lies down againe, as your bedlams doe; this is a wofull condition, and by ſo much the more wofull, becauſe ſuch pangs come and goe, and nothing done by them, but naked torment and deſpaire. Such diſtempers of ſoule, are much like thoſe diſtempers of body, which you call convulſions, falling ſickneſſe, it takes men by fits, upon changes of weather, condition, and the like: ſuch as are troubled with theſe fits, ſhould doe well to have in readineſſe ſuch Scriptures, as that 1 Pet. 2.10. Which in times paſt were not a people, which in times paſt had not obtained mercy, but now all is otherwiſe. And that Scripture, Ezek. 32.36. I will waſh you, and cleanſe you, but not for your ſakes. Though at preſent you are ſuch and ſuch ſinfull livers, you may have mercy from the Lord, and be changed. Diabolicall convulſions wry and wreſt your mouthes and eyes gaſtly againſt good, and make you foame at mouth againſt Chriſt, and yet as fearfully wicked as you are, you may obtaine mercy. The Apoſtle ſpeakes of ſuch a generation as theſe in the text; And yee which were enemies in your minde, by wicked workes, hath he reconciled. God doth foreign, and then he doth foreign, beare mens manners, and then beares their ſoules out of them at laſt. If theſe things harden you in your ſins, they will haſten your ruine; but if they melt you, and make you inquire after God, who is ſo ſweet, ſo giving and forgiving, you will be bleſſed for ever.