Balm from Gilead, Sermon 5
After-noone Sermon.
OBserue in the next place, Doct. 5 that it is the Lord that will heale the Land: so the promise runneth.
Hence it is, that when as the Angell of the Lord had slaine 70000. men, and stretched out his hand to destroy Hierusalem, 2 Sam. 24.16.it is said, that the Lord repented him of the euill, and said vntounto the Angell that destroyed the people, it is enough, stay now thine hand.
1 Indeede, Reason 1 the plague is a messenger of the Lord, as the words import, if I send the pestilence; therefore at his commaund, at his come, at his goe: faithfull seruants vntounto men in authority, are at their Masters commaund, if they say vntounto one come, he commeth; goe, he goeth; doe, hee doeth it, that serueth such a Master, such are all the hoast of the Lord, and therefore it is the Lord.
Hee being offended, as wee hauehave heard, sendeth the plague: his anger being appeased, hee taketh it away. It is one of his properties, to kill, and to make aliue; all issues of life and death, are in his hands.
2 Besides, Reason 2 the blessing on all the meanes, I, the meanes themselues, are from the Lord: humiliation, prayer, seeking, repentance, his gifts; vponupon his acceptation they preuaile: the Physitian his skill, his materials, their operation is from him: hee hath filled him with that skill, and the hearbs, and with that power. God, as the first cause, concurreth with these as second, to their effects; suspending or prospering the same, according to his own pleasure. All second causes worke by vettue of the first; the burthen of all lyeth on the first, to whom it is to be attributed, and therefore it it is the Lord.
3 Adde yet all the meanes preuailing, Reason 3 looke vponupon God: hauehave him their obiect, goe vntounto God.
Outward, and corporall meanes must be sanctified by God, a blessing is brought downe by prayer from God: and so for spirituall: humiliation is vnderunder the mighty hand of God: call vponupon me, Psalm. 50.16. Sheweth the onelyonly obiect of prayer to be the Lord: the words are cleare, that seeking is to be imployed about the face of the Lord, and the terme ad quem, of turning from euill wayes, is vntounto the Lord: Turne vntounto the Lord your God, Ioel 2. All meanes of pacification; looke vponupon the Lord, when Aaron stoode betweene the liuing and the dead, and made an at tonement, hee offered to the Lord: all which shew, that the healing of the Land is from the Lord.
Last of all, Reason 4 all the causes producing the plague, are iniuries against the Lord: they are sinnes, and trespasses against the Lord: so all sinnes against the first Table, immediatly, and sinnes against the second, whose obiect is our neighbour, sinnes against the Lord. A King is vindex vtrius{que} tabulae, as the Vicegerent of the Lord, the Lord a iealous auenger of both much more. And the for giuenesse of sinnes is a peculiar vntounto the Lord, as in this place, and after more particularly, hee onelyonly can heale the land of the plague, that can take away the cause, sinne: hee onelyonly can take away the cause, sin, and so he onelyonly must be acknowledged the curer of the Land of the plague.
1 This put to vse, Vse 1 serueth as for reproofe of some, for caueat to all: reproofe of such as giuegive the cure of the plague to others, caueat that we giuegive it onelyonly to the Lord.
Those of the Church of Rome, hauehave according to the number of their diseases a Saint, or a petie God: vntounto this Saint they pray, from this Saint they expect deliuerance: they hauehave a Saint vntounto whom they pray, for deliuerance from the plague.
Tu qui Deo es tam charus,
Et in luce valde clarus,Breuiar. Sarisbur. Castig. p. 132.
Sana tuos famulos,
Et a peste nos defende
Opem nobis ac impende,
Contra mortis stimulos.
What's this but to ascribe Diuinitie vntounto Saint Roche, to giuegive that vntounto the creature, which is reuealed his owne priuiledge, the healing of the Land of the plague.
Saints themselues vponupon earth, such as are sanctified by God, oftentimes are taken away with the plague, cannot saue themselues: it were a vaine conceit to thinke they cā do it for others, especially Saints, such as diuers are in the Popish Calendar, fabulous, faigned, false; or at the best many of them doubtfull. Their Legends are Comments, or rather Commedies vponupon them, like lips, like Lettuce.
For caueat, giuegive it not vntounto the Physitian, giuegive it not vntounto the meanes, trust not in them, hope not vponupon them; let our trust and hope be onelyonly vponupon the Lord. Physitians disclaime that power, and generally flye and hide themselues from this hand of the Lord. Physitians are Gods ordinance, so are their prescripts; so to be vsed, the efficacie of both to be giuen to the Lord.
Physitians indeede cannot endure those cracking Empericks; an Artist may discouer them to be of no value: much lesse will the great Physitian, Physitians themselues, who giuegive or take vntounto themselues the priuiledges of God. It was Asas sinne to goe first vntounto the Physitian, it shall be ours: the reason of both is the healing of the Land of the plague, is the worke of God.
2 It serueth for direction vntounto vsus in this contagious time of the plague: Vse 2 eueryevery man now would bee directed vntounto an able Physitian. In this place the Lord proclaimeth himselfe such an one, and we are by this proposition, as it were by a bill directed whither to goe, euen vntounto the Lord.
And as for direction, so aduice that, that wee be ruled by him, and take his prescripts as preseruatiues against this plague. Perswasion of the skill of man to any effect, will carrie vsus to that man, will cause vsus to vse his meanes: one speciall argument vrged on Patients, to take an vnsauourie Potion, is, it is the prescript of such a skilfull Physitian: wee hauehave all cause to bee fully perswaded of the skill of God: let it carie vsus to God, and cause vsus to vse his meanes, to vrge vsus all along: remember it is the prescript of that able and skilfull Physitian, the Lord doth require at our hands humiliation, that wee humble our selues, that wee pray, that wee seeke his face, that we turne from our euill wayes: From all sinnes, the particular sinnes spoken of, discouered, as the causes of the plague: those sinnes to bee the causes, he hath discouered the booke, the Chapter, the verse: these particulars to be his meanes, he hath discouered in this Booke, Chapter, and Text, to moue you, to eueryevery one of these know, that they are prescripts of the Lord, the particulars are hard, impossible to flesh and bloud: a proud man to empty himselfe, a Rebell to submit, an vnbeleeuer to pray; a dead man in sinnes to seeke the Lord, a man accustomed to sins spoken of, bound in a double bond of nature and custome, another nature, for an habituated swearer, to refraine swearing, &c. so for the rest, it is an hard matter, it is a bitter Potion, our stomacks rise against the very naming of it. Those that are enabled by God, and attaine the particulars, in part finde great resistance, and that in eueryevery part, and yet if we will escape, wee must vse the meanes: this is the prescript of that able Physitian, to cure the land of the plague. O that wee did beleeue this great Physitian, that hee is able to doe it, and that these were his meanes, I suppose, in so great a straight as we are now, wee would be ruled by this Physitian: the prescripts of men are obayed to an haire, we make conscience of it, and wee doe well: a fewe of vsus vse the meanes of this great Physitian; in this we doe very ill, ye cannot expect a blessing, be the meanes otherwise neuer so sufficient: yea, it must bee a ground of the qualities required in eueryevery prescript, as of the vse of meanes, so of the maner: as those that hauehave to doe with the Lord: of faith, and hope, and confidence, in this Physitian, as hee hath reuealed himselfe of comfort and encouragement: all these may safely bee done, the healer of the Land of the plague, is the Lord. It must bee a ground of sinceritie and singlenesse of heart: the prescripts belong vntounto the hart specially: men deale but with the body, they cannot see infallibly the working of any Physicke vponupon the soule, as the Lord doth: men receiuing Physicke of men, deceiue men, the Physitian, I, thēselues, they heare what hee saith, and doe what they please; take Physick with one hand, and cast it away with another, faine taking of it.
So doe many a thousand deale with the Lord, I feare euen in these times: many obserue them not at all, many with the out side, a fewe with a sincere and a single heart, that the Lord requireth, is humility, and specially of the heart, prayer with the heart, seeking the Lord with the whole heart, the rending of the heart, the cleansing and purifying of the heart: though we deceiue man, wee cannot deceiue God: hee trieth the heart, and searcheth the reynes. Let vsus remember so much from this, that all these particulars are his prescripts, and that the curer of the Land of the plague, is the Lord.
3 It teacheth vsus to whom to giuegive the glory of this cure, the Lord. Vse 3 We hauehave beene smitten oftentimes with this iudgement, and hauehave bin healed; the glory of it must be giuen the Lord. If at this time when others are taken away, wee escape, when thousands fall at our right hand, and tenne thousands at our left, wee stand, and it commeth not neere our dwellings. If we be smitten, or ours, and yet liue, there is a cause of it; it is the Lord that healeth the Land, to him let vsus ascribe it.
GiueGive it not vntounto idle Saints, as St. Roche, vntounto the Physitian, or vntounto any preseruatiues: looke thorow all second causes, behold and acknowledge the first.
He doth all things for his glory, hee will not giuegive it vntounto another, let not vsus. Let vsus sing, that it is the Lord that killeth, and the Lord that maketh aliue. What Tertullus did of, and to felix, Acts 24. Let vsus to our God. It is by thee Lord that wee hauehave enioyed so great quietnesse, and all worthy deedes are done vntounto this Nation by thy prouidence, wee accept all, alwayes, and in all places, and with all thankefulnesse.
It is one speciall way to continue a kindnesse, and to obtaine the like againe, to bee thankfull.
One speciall cause of this present hand of the Lord vponupon our Land in the plague, is our vnthankfulnesse for former deliuerances; wee hauehave not acknowledged him the healer of the Land of the plague.
4 Last of all, Vse 4 it sheweth vsus the misery of such as liue still in their sinnes in these times, and the happinesse of that people that hath made a couenant with the Lord, and endeuoureth to keepe that couenant.
The miserie of the wicked: it is the Lord that healeth the Land of the plague, no wicked man can expect this blessing thus long, can as much as warrantably hope, that hee shall escape this deuouring plague.
No wicked man so long hath a promise of God, hath a way made open to hauehave recourse vntounto God: and (which is worst of all) hath any will, desire, or endeuour to vse the prescripts of the Lord: no wicked man so long can humble himselfe: pray, seeke the face of the Lord, and so not expect the end. They hauehave to deale with the Lord: If with man, if money, or fauour, might procure it, they might bee happy; but when as it is to bee had onelyonly of the Lord, these are of all other most miserable, the causes of the plague, their sinnes are in act, none of the cure; so long they are a company without God. What a desperate and damnable estate is this, to be a wicked man, how fearefull the fruits of sinne, pleasurable, profitable? What fruit or profit can there bee in these things, which put a man into so great straights, which depriue him of the protection of God? What greater motiue, to seperate, to come out, to hauehave no fellowship with vnfruitfull workes of darknesse: and neuer to leaue, vntill wee become by faith the friends of God.
Of the happinesse of Gods people, their confidence, and comfort, a thing needfull in these troublesome times, wherein on eueryevery side nothing is minaced more then desolation by this hand of the Lord, the plague.
One great ground of comfort in great distresse, is, a possibility of deliuerance, that there are meanes, and it is as great that those meanes may be attained; where there is no mean, deliuerance is impossible; ordinarily when there are meanes, but not to be attained, it is to little purpose.
How great soeuer our distresse is, there is a possibility of deliuerance, there are meanes, they may be attained: I will heale the land.
Consider who it is that promiseth curing, euen hee that smiteth; how able, how willing, our Husband, our Father, our King, and our God. What would not our gracious King doe, had hee power, for the health of the land? what will not a Master, a Father, an Husband for the safety of a seruant, a sonne, or a wife? and will not the Lord, made knowne vntounto vsus by all these relations, by eueryevery of those titles, attributes, or names? Looke what pittie a Father beareth vntounto his children, such doth the Lord beare vntounto vsus that feare him. Can a mother forget her childe? If shee can, the Lord will not forget vsus, wee are eternally grauen in his palmes: he will not forget vsus, remembring him now in his wayes: There is now a booke of remembrance for vsus before the Lord; the Lord will put a difference, and spare vsus, as a father his childe. HaueHave wee our trust in him, and out of it recourse vntounto him; let this bee our encouragement, let this be our comfort, let it encourage and comfort vsus, notwithstanding all our former and latter sinnes, that it is the cure of the Lord: there is greater cause of comfort in God, then all other fathers or husbands: mothers and fathers may forget their children: husbands, wiues that goe vntounto other men: Man will not returne vntounto her; thou hast played the harlot with many louers, yet returne vntounto mee, saith the Lord, Ier. 3.1. God our Father will neuer forget: the rule of louelove and tender affection, is not the affection of a naturall father, God is not regulated by it; the rule is the louelove of God, Math. 5. Comfort from hence may bee farre greater in these times vntounto vsus, seeing the healer of the land of the plague, is the Lord our God.