Mary Magdalenes Tears Wiped Off, Objection 25 – Objection 27
OBJECT. XXV.
But ſtill, me thinketh, if God had ſuch a Love to my Soul, he ſhould vouchſafe me ſome manifeſtations thereof. St. Paul rejoyced in his Infirmities, deſiring to be diſſolved, and to be with Chriſt: but nothing is ſo terrible to me as Death; as if I had either no Chriſt to go unto, or no ſuch Chriſt as Saint Paul had.
SOLUTION.
31. THe Conſideration of the World to come, and expectation of the Revelation of the Righteous Judgement of God, diſpenſed by Jeſus Chriſt, according to the things that men have done in their bodies, whether it be good or evil, (2 Cor. 5.10.11.) is queſtionleſs a very terrible thing, even to ſuch Chriſtians, as ſhall never have their ſhare in the Lake that burneth with fire and brimſtone for evermore. But is it not the ſame Word of God which promiſeth a Pardon to the Penitent, and threatneth damnation to the impenitent Sinner? Why do you not believe him when he promiſeth Mercy, as well as when he threatneth Vengeance? He that believes not the Divine Majeſty in any one branch of Faith, revealed plainly in his Word, doth not believe him in the reſt; becauſe the ground of Faith, viz. the Veracity of God is the ſame in all: the ſame Truth in Promiſes of Mercy, as in Threatnings of Puniſhment; the ſame Fidelity in performance of Good things, as in the Execution of Evil.
As for your inſtance in St. Paul; (I think) I have already intimated unto you, that he being a Saint of moſt eminent and exemplary piety, of a Charity and Love to Chriſt and his Church even unto Extaſie and Frenzy in the eyes of the World; you ought not to expect the extraordinary favours vouchſaf't him by Heaven. A laſs why ſhould you or I look for ſo much of Heaven to be delivered to us before hand? or elſe muſt judge our ſelves wholly unconcern'd in the diſtribution of thoſe heavenly Manſions? I am confident either of us would be well content, for ſuch an aſſurance as had St. Paul, to lye mouldring in our graves a million of years, after the reſt of our Brethren are crown'd with Glory; yea (perhaps) as long in the Refining Flames of the Romiſh Purgatory. But I mention not this as the faint Ejaculations of men that live without Hope; but as expreſſions, ſuitable to a ſad Reflection upon our own Demerits.
Remember therefore, that if God think fit to give you no Aſſurance, yet he hath vouchſaf't unto you (with the reſt of Believers) Promiſes of Glorification, much fitter to be look't after, and relyed upon, then any ſenſible and experimental Conſolation: for what is tendred to us in the Holy Scriptures, is immutable and permanent: but ſuch concluſions as are drawn only from experimental knowledge of our own obedience, are very tranſjent and incertain; never (as is the Word of God) infallible and eternal.
As for your Fear of Death; which you are ſo far from meeting with St. Pauls alacrity of Spirit, that you dare not encounter the thought of it in your breaſt: the ſound of a paſſing Bell, or the Sight of a Friend ſtrugling with the pains of Death, being (next to your remembrance of your own laſt end) the formidableſt thing imaginable; no queſtion the moral cauſes thereof ought to be heeded, and the effects prevented. I ſay [moral cauſes] becauſe I preſume there is in all creatures (men not excepted) a natural cauſe of fear of death: which may be as innocent in men, as the affections of Joy, Delight, Grief, Anger, &c. and this can no more be alike in all men in the world; then it can be imagined, there ſhould be the ſame degrees of other Affections, in all conſtitutions and complexions of men. Death without queſtion is the moſt formidable of all things in the world; being that ſtrong bridle which the hand of Providence holdeth in the Jaws of wicked men, who elſe would (moſt of them) break out into the greateſt exceſſes of inſolency and outragious miſchief; this Great King of Terrors overawing the moſt daring, and violent Spirits of men in the world. And of this natural cauſe of fear of death, you cannot but be thought to have you ſhare; for that neither your Sex, nor your Complexion, can be ſuppoſed to ſeaſon you againſt the but ordinary impreſſions of that Afflictive Paſſion.
That which I have term'd a moral cauſe of this fear, I believe you already apprehend to be that (or ſome remainders of that) Spirit of Bondage, mentioned by S. Paul, Rom. 8.15. which (as it ſeems by that Apoſtle) doth in nothing more fully diſcover it ſelf, then in the bitter apprehenſions of death, Heb. 2.15. this cannot be excuſed (much leſs incouraged in you, or in any other; but will ſtand in need of much good counſel, and your own moſt ſinnewed endeavours to remove or leſſen it.
But what is it that you fear in death? the pains thereof you cannot in reaſon fear, becauſe you know not of what, or whether of any diſeaſe you may dye: whether you may have pains or no, or ſenſe to feel them, if you have any: though even againſt theſe you are not without a Promiſe (to which I am aſſured you have as good a claim as any one) viz. that God will make the merciful or Charitable mans bed in his ſickneſs, Pſal. 41.3. though when God undertakes to make the ſick mans bed, his Soul (indeed) ſhall lye much eaſier then his bodie. But that you indeed fear is after death: that Thunder-clap which ſet Foelix a trembling, when it ſounded from the mouth of St. Paul; I mean, Judgment to come, Acts 24.25. which for a good man to fear too much is a ſigne of Puſillanimiite; not to fear at all is no ſigne of Piety: our God is a Conſuming Fire, and in the beſt of us there is that droſs, which dreads the fury of Everlaſting Burnings. In a word; above all other Remedies againſt the fear of death, there is none more powerful, yea ſo powerful, as the contemplation of the death of Chriſt, which gave the fatal blow to the Chain of Adamant, wherein all mankinde till then, were held captive; being indeed the death of death, Hoſ. 13.14. The Repreſentations whereof may be (queſtionleſs) very uſefulty, as well as innocently beheld by you, or any other Chriſtians; but not under any barren and melancholick fixation of your eye or car on the ſtory of our Saviours Paſsion: but by a wiſe ſelecting out the fruits thereof, and feeding upon them by diſcreet contemplation, for the ſtrengthening of our inward man, againſt ſuch intimidating thoughts of Mortality.
Neither can I adviſe you to avoid any thing that may ſtirre up this paſsion of fear in your heart; but rather the contrary; I mean to be forward in imbracing any ſeaſonable opportunity of making theſe objects of ſadneſs familiar to you. For beſides that it is a duty of Religion to weep with them that weep, Rom. 12.15. to viſit the ſick; Matth. 25.36. to attend at the burial of our (not friends only, but) brethren, Tob. 2.2. yea to burie them with our own hands, or to do any preparatory office about their Corpſes, if need be: you will finde thereby this double advantage, viz. that you will moſt earneſtly fly ſin, (the cauſe and ſting of death) and in ſhort time gain a great victory over this Paſſion.
OBJECTION. XXVI.
But though my fear of death be removeable, yet is not my fear of falling away from Grace to be removed.
SOLUTION.
32. ANd why do you not as well fear, that the earth will open, and ſwallow you up quick? you have ſome dependance upon the Goodneſs and Providence of Allmighty God, that he will not thus deal with you; if you had not, your fear of the later would be as juſt, and as irremoveable as of the former. For what aſſurance have you againſt the one, that you have not againſt the other? are not the Souls of men as pretious in the Eyes of their Creatour and Redeemer, as are their bodies? can there be ſo great and prodigious a judgement happpen to the Bodie of any man, as is Gods total and final withdrawing of Grace from his Soul? and have you not the ſame Good Word of God to depend upon in your fears of the one, as well as of the other? Doth God take care for oxen? doth he give and perform promiſes of Food and Rayment, and Health and Peace, &c. unto the Bodie, but is he a dry and a barren Wilderneſs (as the Prophet expreſſeth it, Jer. 2.31.) unto the Souls of his People? I ſhall leave you to ruminate on that Argument of Saint Paul, Rom. 8.32. He that ſpared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all; how ſhall he not with him alſo freely give us all things?
Remember, I pray, that God takes his Grace from no man, who doth not abuſe it. The Talents were taken from none, but him who wrapt one up in a Napkin: from him it was taken away indeed, and that juſtly, becauſe he made no uſe of that, which was not only intended for uſe, but would have been increaſed by uſing. He could not help indeed the taking it from him, when God for his Sluggiſhneſs thought this the moſt proper puniſhment for the one, and reward for the other, upon their Reckoning for the Talents; but by Induſtry he might have prevented it, as did the other two Servants.
And to render you ſatisfyed with an evident and full paſſage of Scripture, be pleaſed to peruſe that of St. Paul to the Hebrews, Chap. 6.15. where after he had ſpoken of falling away, and the dreadful and irrecoverable eſtate of Apoſtacy, he addes, that he is perſwaded better things of them, and ſuch as are ſeen only in good Chriſtians; and his ground of that no fear is, for that God would reward their former labour of Love with the grace of perſeverance, the due reward of ſuch (as like you) do make uſe of Grace given, as our Saviour witneſſeth, Mat. 25.29.
OBJECT. XXVII.
But ſenſible alteration in me, and the Promiſed effects of Converſion, I finde none.
SOLUTION.
33. COnverſion ſounds not the ſame thing come as it did to the Jewes, & Heathen, in the Apoſtles times, and after the firſt Plantation of the Goſpell, who are not only to ſuffer a Change in point of morall practiſe, but in point of belief. Neither are there any extraordinary gifts of tongues, and Miracles, or Healings, &c. to be powred out upon new Converts, for confirmation of Faith, and increaſe of believers. When the Jewes were come into the promiſed Land, Manna ceaſed, we are now in a way of ordinary diſpenſation, and though the Holy Ghoſt be the Author of this, as well as of the other; and our ſubmiſſion to this, as deeply exacted, yet is the Method, and manner of the oeconomie, in ſome ſort changed, (at leaſt in the accidentall parts thereof;) experience of our Religion, and the Faith of former ages, being argument enough to convince any rationall Souls, of the truth of it.
Such extraordinary gifts, I ſuppoſe you will not look for; but if for an extraordinary change, in your minde (though this may be thought ſuperfluous) yet do but ſet Repentance from ſin, againſt Continuance in ſin, Obedience, againſt Rebellion, Righteousneſs againſt Sin, a Child of God againſt a Child of Wrath, Heaven againſt Hell, the Fellowſhip of God and his Holy Angells, againſt the Companie of Divels and Wicked men, Eternall joyes againſt Eternall torments, and the alteration is viſible enough. But if the Way bringing of you into this, muſt have been by miracle, as was the converſion of St. Paul. or with an audible voice, as was Gods Revelation of himſelf to Samuel: the weakneſſe of this expectation betrayes it ſelf, by the ſingularity of it, carrying with it a ſecret condemnation of the Stupidity, of other Chriſtians, who go hoodwink't they know not whether, never thinking on any ſuch ſenſible Epiphanie, and manifeſtation of Chriſt to their Souls.