The Combat Between the Flesh and Spirit, Sermon 6
SERM. VI.
1 Cor. 7.30,31.
—And they that rejoyce as though they rejoyced not.
WEe now proceed to the ſecond part of the Apoſtolicall Directory, and they that rejoyce as though they rejoyced not. If your condition here in the world be ſad and miſerable, and afflicted, then your duty is to weep as if you wept not. But if you meet with a gale of proſperity and happineſs, and enjoy the comforts of this world in abundance, then you muſt rejoyce as if you rejoyced not; that is, you muſt rejoyce moderately and with diſcretion. And the point of inſtruction that I ſhall give you from hence, ſhall be this.
Doct. That it is the duty of Chriſtians, not onelyonly to take heed that they be not exceſſive in worldly ſorrow for outward croſſes; but alſo to take care that they be not exceſſive in worldly joy for outward comforts. All under-moone comforts, we may joy in them too much.
In the proſecution of this Doctrine, I ſhall diſpatch theſe 2. or 3. queries.
1. I ſhall ſhew you when your joy is exceſſive.
2. I ſhall lay you down ſome Rules to keep your joy within bounds, that you do not over-joy in the comforts of this life.
3. And then I ſhall give you ſomething by way of Uſe and Application.
I ſhall not come to handle any of theſe at this time; Severall Concluſions concerning immoderate joy for worldly comforts.but ſhall firſt as my uſuall method is, lay down 6. or 7. Concluſions by way of premiſe.
1. Take this Concluſion, That though Chriſtians muſt take heed, that they are not immoderate in their joy for worldly comforts; yet you muſt know that you are allowed by God, to rejoyce in the outward comforts that he gives you here in this world. Eccleſ. 3.4. ſaies Solomon, There is a time to mourn, and a time to rejoyce, and in Eccleſ. 9.7.9. Goe thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart, live joyfully with the wife whom thou loveſt. So in Eccleſ. 7.14. in the day of proſperity rejoyce; ſo Deut. 12.7. ye ſhall rejoyce in all that you put your hand unto. This Con… ſion is neceſſary for ſad and melancholy Chriſtians, that though they enjoy an affluence and confluence of worldly comforts, yet will not at all rejoyce in them: beloved, God allowes you to rejoyce.
Conſid. 2 2. Conſider, that Religion does not extirpate or annihilate worldly rejoycing; but only regulate it. It is not like a Weeding-hook, to pluck up your joy by the roots; but like a Pruning-hook, to lop off the luxuriancy of it, and to keep your joy in its due decorum. This I lay down to take away thoſe prejudices that many men harbour againſt Religion, as if it made men melancholy, being apt to think, that when once they begin to be Religious, that then they muſt forſake and abandon all worldly comforts, and for ever ſhake hands with all the pleaſures of this life. Beloved, Religion doth not annihilate, but regulate your joyes: nay, being Religions, does rather increaſe then any way diminiſh your joyes, when God made a Covenant with Abraham, he promiſed him a Son, and God gave him the name, ſaying, thou ſhalt call his name Iſaac, which ſignifies laughter. Gen. 17.19. to ſhew, that after thou art in Covenant with God, thou mayſt have joy and pleaſure; and therefore do not harbour ſuch ill thoughts of Religion, as to imagine you muſt ſhake hands with joy, when you cloſe with Religion.
3. Take this concluſion, that the worldly joy of a wicked man is oftentimes mingled with more inward gripes, & grief of ſpirit, then the worldly joy of a godly man is; As in Prov. 13,14. In the midſt of laughter the heart is ſorrowfull. 2 Cor. 5.12. the Apoſtle there ſpeaks of ſome that did glory in appearance, but not in heart. The joy of the wicked is but in appearance, but not in reality. When they are in their greateſt jollity and mirth, even then they have ſome inward gripes and anguiſh of conſcience that galls & troubles them: a man may have a neat ſhooe on his foot, yet no man knows where it pincheth, but he that wears it. A wicked mans joy, is like a godly mans ſorrow: the formers joy is but in appearance, not in truth; and a godly man hath ſomething like ſorrow; but it is not ſo indeed, they are but as ſorrowing, yet alwayes rejoycing, 2 Cor. 6.10. The bleſſing of the Lord maketh rich, and he addeth no ſorrow with it, Prov. 10.22.
Conclu. 4 4. A ſmaller matter will interrupt the worldly joy of a wicked man, then will interrupt the joy of a godly man: I mean that outward worldly joy that he hath here in this world. Eſth: 5.13.How ſoon was Hamans joy interrupted? though he had ſo much cauſe of ioy in the glory of his riches, and the multitude of his Children, and his promotion in the Court above all the Princes and Servants of the King. And yet becauſe poor Mordecai did not bow to him and reverence him, he was ſore diſpleaſed, and could take no joy in all that he had. So it was with Ahab, though he had a whole Kingdom, yet he could take no content in it, for want of Naboths Vineyard: a little thing diverts the joy of a wicked man, and therefore their joy is compared to the crackling of thorns under the pot, Eccleſ. 7.6. they make a noyſe and a blaze for a little while, but are ſoon put out. Belſhazzer, when he was quaffing in his golden Bowles, and in the midſt of all his jollity, yet a hand-writing upon the wall quickly daſht all his joyes, and made him hang down his head.
Conclu. 5 5. Though it be lawfull and allowed by God, for you to rejoyce in worldly comforts, yet there are ſome things that you are not to rejoyce in, I ſhall give them you in five or ſix particulars.
1. You muſt not rejoyce in your own ſins, the ſins you do commit muſt never be matter of rejoycing to you; but thus wicked men do many times, as in Jer. 11.15. when thou doeſt evill then thou rejoyceſt: ſo in Prov. 2.14. Solomon ſpeaks of ſome who did rejoyce to do evill, ſo in Pſal. 52.1. it is ſaid of Doeg, why boaſteſt thou thy ſelf in miſchief oh mighty man, and thou loveſt evill more then good, Gaudia panitenda.God does not allow us to boaſt and rejoyce in ſin. Such rejoycings (as one ſaith) are joyes to be wept for, theſe go merrily to Hell.
2. Neither are you to rejoyce in the ſins of other men, they are never permitted by God to be matter of your joy, 1 Cor. 13.6. it is ſaid of love, that it rejoyceth not in iniquity, but rejoyceth in the truth, that is, love to any man, does not make us to rejoyce in that mans ſin, but in his well-doing. In Rom. 1. laſt, thoſe are not only condemned by God that do the ſame things with wicked men; but thoſe alſo that have pleaſure in them that do them, not only Covenant-breakers, uninercifull men, backbiters, haters of God, deſpitefull, proud, boaſters, inventers of evill things, &c. not onelyonly thoſe that commit theſe things, but they alſo that delight in thoſe men that do commit them are condemned. This is rather matter of grief then joy, Pſal. 119.136. Rivers of water run down mine eyes, becauſe men keep not they Law, and 2 Pet. 2.8. 'tis ſaid, Lot vexed his righteous ſoul with the ungodly converſation of wicked men; and upon this ground, learned Mr. Perkins condemns the uſe of Stage-playes, they being for the moſt part repreſentations of mens villany and wickedneſs, to provoke the ſpectators to joy and laughter, and therefore are unlawfull, and not to be uſed.
3. You are not to rejoyce at all for the puniſhment of ſin, in the unreaſonable Creatures. And upon this ground, the ſame Authour condemns the uſe of Bull or Bear-baiting, or Cock-fighting, becauſe it is a rejoycing in that which is the product of ſin; for it was ſin that firſt put an enmity between the Bear and the Dog, and between Creature and Creature, ſin was the cauſe of all diſcords and antipathies between Creatures, and therefore it is not allowable for us to rejoyce in that which is the effect of our own ſin. Indeed, for Bullbaiting more may be ſaid; it may make the Bull the more ſerviceable for mans food; but meerly to bait a Bull for recreation is unlawfull. So likewiſe hawking and hunting, are allowable, becauſe thoſe Creatures cannot be taken without it. But all you that delight in Stage-playes, and make other mens ſin the matter of your joy. And you that frequent Bear-beatings, and Cock-fightings, and the like, are to be reproved; and let me perſwade you to leave it off in time to come.
And upon this ground likewiſe, the ſame Authour condemns Noble-men that keep fools in their Houſes, to be matter of ſport and pleaſure to them. This is not allowed by God, becauſe it is a rejoycing in that which is a puniſhment for ſin in another Creature.
4. You muſt not rejoyce in goods ill gotten, goods ill gotten the Lord never allows you to rejoyce in, Pſal. 62.10. Rejoyce not in robberies, neither in goods ill gotten; ſo in Habakkuk 1.13,14,15. The Lord is of purer eyes then to behold evill, wherefore lookeſt thou upon them that deal treackerouſly, and holdeſt thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous then he, and makeſt men as fiſhes of the Sea, as the creeping things that have no Ruler over them. They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them into their Net, and gather them in their drag, that is the poor; and what followes? therefore they rejoyce and are glad. The Lord condemns the rich men, becauſe they got their Eſtates by wronging the poor, and by uſury, and the like: therefore you had more need make reſtitution for what you have injured men, and fraudul…ntly taken from them, then to rejoyce in it, or to build Hoſpitalls, and make a great flouriſh in the world, to advance thy pride and vain glory. Levit. 6.4.You may rejoyce in your lawfull negotiations in buying and ſelling, and getting gain honeſtly, theſe you may rejoyce in. But you are not to rejoyce in goods illgotten. If thou canſt in buying or ſelling over-reach or circūvent a man, & when thou haſt got a good penyworth then to laugh in thy ſleeve, that's an evill, Prov. 20.14. it is naught, it is naught, ſaies the buyer; but when he is gone his way, then he boaſteth. In Deut. 23.18. I hate, ſaies God, the hire of a whore, or the price of a Dog to be for a ſacrifice; though the mony in its ſelf be good, yet becauſe gotten by wickedneſs and uncleanneſs, the Lord abhorrs it; the Lord abominates thoſe that bring their wickedneſs before him to rejoyce in. Micah 1.7. all the graven Images of Samaria were to be beaten in peeces, and all the hire thereof burnt with fire, becauſe ſhe gathered it of the hire of an Harlot. When Ahab was heavy, and diſpleaſed, becauſe he could not have Naboths Vineyard in 1 Kings 21.7. Jezebel his wife did very wickedly, when ſhe bid him riſe up and be merry, becauſe ſhe would get the Vineyard for him. It is a very ungodly practice to rejoyce in goods ill gotten, by cozening and defrauding the poor.
5. You muſt not rejoyce for the afflictions and ſufferings of Gods people: this is that which the Lord condemned the Edomi…es for, in the Prophecy of Obadi…th 12. thou ſhouldeſt not have rejoyced over the Children of Judah, in the day of their deſtruction, neither ſhouldeſt thou have ſpoken proudly in the day of diſtreſs, and ſo on; and ſo the Lord threatneth Mount Seir and Idumea for their hatred of Iſrael, and rejoycing over her in the day of their diſtreſs, Ezek. 35.16. ſaies God, as thou didſt rejoyce at the inheritance of the houſe of Iſrael, becauſe it was deſolate, ſo will I do unto thee, thou ſhalt be deſolate oh Mount Seir, &c. Micah 7.8. ſaies the Church there, rejoyce not againſt me oh mine enemies; for though I fall I ſhall ariſe, Prov. 17.5. he that is glad at other mens calamities ſhall not go unpuniſhed, Lam. 1.21.
6. You are not to make the miſeries and ſufferings of your very enemies to be matter of rejoycing to you, Prov. 24.17. Rejoyce not when thine enemy falleth, & let not thy heart be glad when he ſtumbleth. Job was ſo conſcientious in this particular, that he quite diſclaimes any ſuch practice, Job 31.29. ſaies he, if I rejoyced at the deſtruction of him that hated me, or lift up my ſelf when evill found him, neither have I ſuffered my mouth to ſin by wiſhing a curſe to his ſoul. Job diſavoues ſuch courſes as theſe: you ought not to make the afflictions and ſufferings of the worſt enemy you have in all the world, to be matter of rejoycing to you. Indeed, if you look upon them as the enemies of God, and of his Church, then you may rejoyce at their deſtruction as they are Gods enemies: thus David did, ſaies he, I hate them that hate thee, yea I hate them with a perfect hatred. You muſt hate no man as he is your enemy, or does an injury to you; but as he is Gods enemy, you ought to hate him, and to rejoyce at his deſtruction: neither of theſe ſix particulars ought to be the matter of a Chriſtians joy.
Con. 6 Sometimes unfit to rejoyce in lawfull, things.6. Take this concluſion, that there are ſome times and ſeaſons, wherein it is not expedient to rejoyce, even in lawfull things; I ſhall name them to you very briefly.
Firſt, in dayes of publick and ſolemn faſting, and humiliation, then the Bride muſt come out of her Cloſet, and the Bridegroom out of his Chamber, expreſſions of joy are then unſeaſonable.
Secondly, When a Land is made deſolate by waſting and ruining Judgements, Iſa. 23.12.Eſay 24.8. all rejoycing ſhall ceaſe, becauſe the day of their captivity is drawing on, Ezek. 21.10. A ſword, a ſword is ſharpned, and alſo furbiſhed, to make a ſore ſlaughter, ſhould we then make mirth, it contemneth the rod of my Son, as every Tree. As if he ſhould have ſaid, now the Sword is ſharpned, and afflictions ready prepared for us, if we ſhould now make mirth, were not this to contemn the Rod of God? and to account no more of his glittering Sword, then of a rod that growes upon a Tree, Nehem. 1.4.5. it is ſaid of Nehemiah, that was the Kings Cup-bearer, though he were never ſad aforetime in the Kings preſence, yet when he heard that the remnant that were left of the captivity were in ſuch great diſtreſs, the Wall of Jeruſalem broken down, and the Gates thereof burnt with fire; then he ſate down and wept, and mourned, and faſted, and prayed before the God of Heaven, and would by no means rejoyce.
Thirdly, when the hand of God lies heavy on any particular man or Family wherein he dwelleth, it ſhould be a houſe of mourning then, Eccleſ. 7.2.
Fourthly, after ſome great defection or apoſtatizing from God; after you have fallen into ſome great and foul ſin or tranſgreſſion, then is no time to rejoyce. You have an excellent Text for this, Hoſea 9.8. rejoyce not oh Iſrael for joy, as other people, for thou haſt gone a whoring from thy God: other people may rejoyce; but thou muſt not, becauſe thou haſt gone a whoring after other Gods: Pſa. 38. Pſa. 31.10.thou ſhouldeſt go mourning all thy life long, till the ſcandall were ſtopt, thy ſin ſubdued, and thy ſoul reconciled. It is very obſervable of David; you read, after he fell into the ſin of uncleanneſs, what a ſad man he was a great while, ſaies he, I have no quietneſs in my bones by reaſon of my ſin, I roar in the diſquietneſs of my heart; but was all Davids joy gone? Yes; for though he had many mercies that might have promoted his joy, yet he could take no comfort in any. There were three circumſtances more eſpecially, that might have provoked David to break forth into worldly joy.
As firſt, he was a King, and ſate upon a Throne in State and pomp, and dignity, and yet this could not chear up his ſpirits; but he lay humbling himſelf, and ſorrowing in the duſt.
And ſecondly, David was a Muſitian, a man cunning in playing upon the Harp, 1 Sam. 16,17,18. and yet the melody of his muſick could not chear up his heart.
Thirdly, He was naturally a man of a merry conſtitution, David was of a ruddy countenance, and merrily diſpoſed, and yet all theſe advantages could not make him rejoyce. His ſin did ſo trouble him and deject him, lying upon his conſcience, that though he were a King, a Muſitian, and of a merry temper, yet all theſe could not make him rejoyce, neither could he rejoyce till after his ſin was pardoned. So much for the ſixth Concluſion.
Con. 7 7. That a man whoſe naturall temper is joyous, is expoſed to ſeverall evills, as luſt, lightneſs of ſpirit, abundance of diſcourſe, to company-keeping, &c.
Con. 8 8. Take notice, that there may be an exceſs in ſpirituall joy, as well as in worldly joy: though you may think this concluſion a very ſtrange one, yet it is a true one: Chriſtians ſhould take heed that they be not exceſſive in their ſpirituall joy, as well as in their worldly ſorrow, and then they are exceſſive when their ſpirituall joy makes them inconſiderate and raſh in their undertakings, when it makes them wilfull and precipitant, and neglect their Callings, and live above Ordinances, and the like; in theſe caſes ſpirituall joy is immoderate, which I ſhall prove to you by two places of Scripture: the firſt is in the 12. Acts 12,14,15. there were many gathered together, praying in the houſe of Mary the Mother of John, and as Peter knocked at the dore of the Gate, a Damſell came to hearken, named Rhoda, and when ſhe knew Peters voice, ſhe opened not the gate for gladneſs; but ran in again, and told how Peter ſtood without at the Gate. the Damſell rejoyced ſo much that Peter was at the dore, that ſhe could not open the dore, which was a ſin in her, and her joy was exceſſive, becauſe it made her inconſiderate, no… to open the dore when Peter ſtood without knocking, ſhe opened not the dore for gladneſs, that is one Text to prove your joy may be exceſſive. Another we have in Luke 24.39. This was ſpoken here after Chriſts Reſurrection from the dead. When Chriſt came and ſtood in the middſt of his Diſciples (where they were together) and ſhewed them his hands and his feet which were pierced, that they might believe it was he, and that he was riſen from the dead, it is ſaid, they believed not for joy. This was a ſpirituall joy, when Chriſt had conquered death, and hell, and the grave, and was riſen again from the dead, they rejoyced ſo much, that they could not believe it, one grace hindered and interrupted another; and therefore their joy was exceſſive. I ſpeak this only in reference to young Converts, they may have much ſin mingled with their joy.
And thus I have done with theſe eight Concluſions, I ſhall now proceed to the diſpatching of the Queries which will be more uſefull, in the proſecution of this Doctrine, That Chriſtians muſt not only take heed of being exceſſive in their ſorrow for worldly croſſes; but alſo of being exceſſive in their joy for worldly comforts.