The Profit of Godliness, Sermon 2
Serm. 2. Preached Novemb. 10. 1661.
CHAP. V.
SECT. 1.
I Have shewn in what true Godlines… doth consist: I shall now shew that it i… profitable unto all things: as they say o… the Philosophers stone, that it will turn all metals into gold; so Godliness will tur… all things into profit and advantage to us, that in the end men shall cry out, It is good for me that I was godly. Before I come to shew how it is beneficial to particular things: I shall shew,
1. That Godliness is in it self transcendently good and beneficial, 1 Tim. 6.6. Godliness is great gain: if you want all things, not Godliness, you have yet riches enough; it is great gain, it is the best good, it is the chiefest of blessings; the word is emphatically significant; it is not foreign, it is not the rent or great tribute, but foreign, a constant and continued gain, a fountain of profit: it is equivalently all things, it answers all things, it makes a man rich and happy without the addition of other things: but all other things cannot make a man happy without Godliness: A rich man is not happy because of his riches, nor an honourable man because of his honours, but happy is the man that hath the Lord for his God: wretched rich glutton, because wicked; but happy poor Lazarus, because godly; he was exceeding rich, he had a good God, a good Christ, a good Covenant, good Pardon, good Grace, and a good Conscience: Oh what gain had Lazarus! As the Philosopher said of virtue, that if men could but see it, all would desire virtue; if men could but see what gain Godliness is, evry man would desire it: Oh that I were godly and say as Themistocles did to his servants seeing Jewels and Bracelets lying before him, Tolle tu ista, ego Themistocles sum, Tak… thou up these things, I am Themistocles; Le… others take up gold and silver, and worldly gain; oh that I were godly! I must b… godly.
Now Godliness is not only beneficial it it self (which I shall not insist upon) bu… proceed to shew how profitable it is to other things, that if we would be blesse… in every thing, let us add Godliness to every thing, which, like a Diamond, make that in which it is set to be rich; set a Diamond in a ring of straw, or of wood, or o… lead, it is a rich ring; take away the Diamond, it is but straw and wood, and o… little or no value: so, do but add Godlines… to your mony, to your riches, to your possessions, every thing is the richer: tak… away Godliness, and they are dung and dross.
SECT. 2.
LEt us now come to consider particulars.
1. It is profitable to our outward estat… in many respects.
1. It will teach us to get riches justly; a penny thus gotten, is better than a pound gotten by iniquity; Luther Luther.said of unjust profit, it is lucrum in arca, damnum in conscientia: it is gain in the purse, but it is loss in the conscience; at last it will sting like a Serpent, and bite like an Adder: that which makes a man to smile now, will make him to sigh hereafter; that which makes him proud now, will confound him with shame at the last: riches, be they more or less gotten in Gods way, will be found sweet gain.
2. Godliness is it that brings a blessing upon our labours for worldly gain. Psal. 128. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, and walketh in his wayes; for thou shalt eat the labour of thy hands; happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee, ver. 1, 2. The fear of God will bring a blessing upon the labour of your hands; thou shalt not only by thy labour provide food and rayment, but it shall be well with thee; thou shalt treasure up gain; it is ungodlniess that cloatheth men with raggs.
3. It will put us upon seeking outward gain in due order; first the Kingdom of God, then these things; first Heaven, then Earth; first Christ and Grace, then mony and riches; first a sure title to Heaven, then possessions on Earth, Matth. 6.33. It is because men are ungodly, therefore they seek for earthly things before heavenly: it is ungodliness that makes men seek to defer seeking pardon, Grace and Heaven to the last; it is ungodliness that makes men take immoderate pains for earth, and makes them so slack and negligent in soul-saving commodities; were men godly, they would see a necessity of Grace, of Heaven, of Salvation; it is absolutely necessary to be saved; it is not necessary that I am rich, but I must be saved.
4. Godliness will enable thee to improve thy riches to the glory of God, and the furtherance of thine own salvation: it is Godliness that will make thee honour the Lord with thy substance, and to feed Christ in his members. 'Tis Godliness that will make us wise and faithful servants in improving our talents for our Masters use; this will bring comfort to our souls, and admittance into the Masters joy: it is ungodliness that makes men to lay out their gain on their pride, vanity, lusts; it is ungodliness that makes men the more wicked, by how much the more rich they are: we must all give an account of the use of our estate; wicked men shall not give an account of their having, but of their not rightly improving, or their abusing of their riches: the slothful servant was cast into outer darkness, not for having a talent, but for not improving it: and there is not a penny which they lay out upon their lusts, but God will bring them to an account for it.
5. Godliness is that which makes outward possessions to be bl…ssings to us; they are blessings in themselves, but they are not to us, but as we are; if we are wicked, then they are curses, and not blessings. Mal. 2.2. I will curse your blessings, yea I have cursed them already: Wine is wholesome in it self, but being put into poisoned vessels, it is poison to him that drinketh it. All wicked men may cry out of their worldly goods, as the young Prophet to Elisha; My Father, there is death in the pot; there is a curse in my basket; there is a curse in my store, a curse in my baggs, in my houses, in my lands; all that I have, I receive from an angry God. Now Godliness is like the Meal which the Prophet cast into the pot, which caused no harm to be in the pot, but they might eat of it: So Godliness makes makes all our enjoyments good, that we may comfortably enjoy and use them.
SECT. 3.
2. Godliness is profitable to poverty.
1. Godliness (if thy estate be little and mean) makes it great: A little that the righteous man hath, is greater than the great revenews of the wicked: A little with Godliness, is better than the gain of the whole world without it: the least number in Arithmetick stands for more than a thousand cyphers; all created comforts without Godliness, are but empty and insignificant cyphers. The righteous (saith the wise man) is more excellent than his neighbour: A godly man in a mean condition, is more rich, honourable, excellent than his neighbour that aboundeth in all worldly things.
2. Godliness brings contentment; if we cannot bring our estates to our minds, Godliness will bring our minds to our estates, and make us quietly sit down with what portion soever the Lord shall give us▪ What saith a godly man? My poverty is not a thing of chance, but of Gods providence; it is the will of God I should be poor; my Saviour Christ was poor: What if I am not rich in this worlds goods? yet I am rich in fairh: What if I have not precious substance? yet I have precious faith, precious promises, precious pardon, precious holiness: I can be contented to be without the fatness of the earth, as long as I have the dew of Heaven: it was Godliness that taught Paul the mystery of contentation in every estate, to know how to abound, and how to want, Phil. 4.12. Contentation with our mean estate is great riches: The Philosopher could say,Possessio rei, & contentatio in re possess…̄. Two things make a man rich, the possession of substance, and contentation in the thing we do possess.
3. Godliness sweetens poverty to a godly man; it turns his cup of cold water into wine, it turns his raggs into robes, his crust of course bread into delicates, and makes a dinner of green Herbs better than a stalled Oxe: To him that is hungry every bitter thing is sweet, saith Solomon: So it is to him that is godly; the more Godliness, the more contentment, and the more sweetness they shall find in poverty.
4. It is Godliness that turns want and poverty, hunger and nakedness into a blessing: it is a blessing that they want outward blessings; it is riches to want riches, and abundance to want all things: Lazarus his poverty was his blessing; the glutton… riches was his curse: How doth the one i… glory acknowledge, It was good for m… that I was poor! How doth the other i… torments cry out, It was my happines… that I was rich! God can give riches to th… godly, and make them the richest men i… the places where they live, but God knoweth poverty is better for some than riche…
SECT. 4.
3. Godliness is profitable to all our change in this world.
WE see how Gods providence turns an… tosseth the worldly states of men; to day he placeth them in the Mount of prosperity, shortly he puts them in the valley o… adversity: to day Job is in a Palace, to morrow on a dunghill: to day Belisarius is it triumphant pomp, to morrow he is begging, Date obolum Belisario, give an half-penny to poor Belisarius. Now what changes soever Providence effecteth, Godliness is profitable: It made Job to bless God when he gave, and to bless God when he took away; to fear God in prosperity, to fear him in adversity; Godliness wil… make men to carry their cups even in every estate and change; like Bells that ring the same tune at Funerals, as at Marriages: the Philosopher said, that an honest man is homo quadratus, a four-squar'd man: A godly man is thus, he will stand upright in every turn and change of condition.
4. Godliness is profitable to afflictions.
1. It is Godliness that turns and changeth the nature of afflictions (which are evil and penal in themselves) to be medicinal and good to us; it turns these waters into wine, and these stones into bread: Like Moses's Rod, it makes a pass…ge of the Red Sea into Cannaan, that they shall speak out of experience, It was good for me that I was afflicted; this loss was good for me, this cross was good for me, this trouble; this persecution was good for me; all the sufferings of this life do work the good of godly men, Rom. 8.28. All things shall work together for good: they are other mens punishments, other mens distruction; that which is a red Sea to godly men, is a Serpent to wicked men, co nomine, because they are ungodly: All afflictions are the indignation and wrath of God on them that do evil.
2. 'Tis Godliness that makes us submissive to, and patient under the hand of God: It is the Lord, let him do what seemeth good in his sight, said old Eli. I was dumb, and opened not my mouth, because it was thy doing, saith D…vid. We will bea… the indignation of the Lord, because we have sinned, said the Church: the more godly the more patience and submissiveness: the yoke seems more easie; and the burde… more light to them.
3. It is Godliness that makes us joyfu… in sufferings, and brings true and solid comfort; sometimes superlative and unspeakable joy; that as St. Paul speaks of his rapture, he did not know whether he was i… the body, or out of the body; such is th… joy of godly men sometimes in the mid… of afflictions, that they feel not whethe they be in afflictions, or out of afflictions
5. Godliness is profitable to all relations.
It doth not only make us good men, bu… good Magistrates, good Ministers, goo… Husbands, good Wives, good Fathers good Children, good Masters, good Servants: Jacob was a good Son, a good Servant, a good Master… it is Godliness th… makes us careful and conscionable of the duties of our several relations; and the Godliness of men is as much tryed in relation-duties, as in any other duties.
6. Godliness is profitable to all our religious duties.
They are not pleasing nor acceptable unto God, unless the person be godly; all the duties of wicked men are an abomination to the Lord; this is the Altar that sanctifies this gold: it is Godliness that fits us for duty, and it is that which makes us to delight in holy duties; this is that which makes the Spirit willing, when the flesh is weak: daies and duties of religion are tedious burdens to ungodly men.
SECT. 5.
7. Godliness is profitable to our bodies, to our souls.
GOdliness is very beneficial and profitable to our bodies.
1. Bodily exercises may keep down the body, but Godliness purifies the body from the filthiness of the flesh: Bodily exercises may restrain, but Godliness mortifies the deeds of the body. Rom. 8.13. Bodily exercises (such as abstinence from meats, an… lying on the ground) may starve the body and weaken it; but Godliness destroys th… body of sin in the body.
Godliness makes every member an instrument of righteousness and true hol… ness; it makes the tongue an instrument … Gods glory, which ungodliness makes a instrument of blasphemy; it makes th… tongue a fountain of good discourse ten… ing to edification; ungodliness makes it fountain of cursed speaking: Godline… will make the heart liberal, the hand bou… tiful, the eye to delight in seeing God his works, the ear to hear the word … God, the feet swift to go and come in… the Lords Courts, and to delight to sta… there ministring to the Lord. All t… members of ungodly men are instrumen… of wickedness, and enmity to holines… their tongues are worlds of iniquity, the eyes worlds of vanity, their hands worl… of wicked deeds.
3. It is Godliness which doth not on… preserve the body from gross sins (for morality and hypocrisie may do) but mak… us to hate all gross defilements; moral m… are restrained from them, but yet abh… them not; it is Godliness that makes them abhor all bodily pollutions, to watch against them, that they be not overcome with such vices.
8. Godliness is profitable to our souls.
1. It is the best good and perfection of the soul, it is the Image of God, making the soul like to God: God is said to be glorious in holiness; a godly soul is a glorious soul: There is no perfection of the soul makes the soul so like God as Godliness doth: 'Tis not the spirituality of the soul; for the souls of wicked men and reprobates in Hell are spiritual substances; neither is it the immortality of the soul; for so all souls are, and Devils are immortal spirits; it is only the purity, the holiness of the soul that makes the soul like to God.
2. It is Godliness that makes and keeps the soul more pure, more holy: the more grace increaseth, the more sin decreaseth; this light expels the darkness; 'Tis this that keeps the conscience void of offence both toward God and man.
3. Godliness is profitable to the soul against temptations to sin; the Devil throws his fiery darts at the godly to set them on fire of Hell, but it is Godliness that quencheth them: It was Godliness that made Joseph say, How can I commit this gre… wickedness, and sin against God? How da… I to be drunk, and sin against God? Ho… dare I to swear, and sin against God? Ho… dare I to prophane Sabbaths, and sin again… God? Godliness will teach a man thus t… s…y, The fear of the Lord is to depart fr… evil. It is thtough ungodliness that tent… tions hurry wicked men into swinish sins ungodly men can no more withstand a te… tation, than a feather can withstand t… wind.
4. It is Godliness that brings the pea… of God, and joy of the Holy Ghost into t… soul; God will not pour this heavenly wi… into old bottles; the purified conscience the pacified conscience.
5. Godliness puts the soul into a fitn… for glory and blessedness in Heaven; r… unclean thing can enter into Heaven: H… must be godly that lives with God: t… want of this Oyl was the cause of the Virgins dejection from Heaven to Hell: I… Heaven there are none but the spirits of ju… men made perfect in holiness and righteousness: Blessed are the pure in heart, f… they shall see God.
6. Godliness is profitable to the soul in death.
1. It is Godliness that makes the soul not to fear the King of terrours, not to fear the grim looks of death.
2. It is Godliness that makes the soul to desire death; I desire to be dissolved, saith godly Paul.
3. It is Godliness that makes men to dye full of solid comfort, and solid hope; it assureth a man of a better life after death.
4. It is Godliness that makes death a gain to them, that makes death to be a short passage into Heaven: Oh what fills the souls of many with horrour and terrour, but the sad reflect…on of their consciences on their by-past-life, which they have misspent in all ungodliness! Every man will see that Godliness is the only profitable thing at death: When thy soul is in a certain expectation of death and judgment, and in perplexing doubts of thy future condition, what will become of thy soul after death? what wilt thou desire then? what will most please thee then? Thou wilt then cry out, Oh that I had grace! oh that I were godly! oh that I had spent my time in Godliness! one mite of true Godliness then, will be more worth than all the world.
7. Godliness is profitable for the day of judgment: this is it that will make men stand with boldness before the dreadful tribunal of Christ: all proceedings at that day will be according to our Godliness an… ungodliness: we shall all be judged according to the quality of our persons & works ye fed me, and ye fed me not; ye visite… me, and yet visited me not, will the charg… be on that day, Psal. 1. The ungodly shal… not stand in judgment, nor sinners in th… Congregation of the righteous: they shal… not stand, but were it possible to hide themselves, they would; but that they canno… be able to do; therefore they shall fall int… perdition, when as the righteous shall b… enabled to stand.
8. Godliness is and will be profitable t… the godly to eternity: it is now profitab… to entitle us to it, to assure us of it, and t… fit us for it, and hereafter it will be profitable to the eternal fruition of it; life eternal is nothing else but Godliness in glory, … happiness to perfection, and it is Godline… that will enable us to do the will of Go… perfectly and eternally.
Thus you see what compleat provisio… Godliness makes for a man: the wicke… man and the hypocrite at best is provide… but for one half of himself; the greatest man is but provided for his body, his body is cloathed, his belly fed; but what is the poor soul that is naked and starved? Again, he is provided but for half his time: I have spoken a great word, in saying half his time: Alas! it is but for a day, yea less, for an hour, for a minute in comparison of eternity; he is only provided for in this life, he hath all his goods in this life; at death he parts with all; when a mans Lease is expired, he surrenders up all again to the Lord: Now a godly man is provided for his whole self, and for ever: for his body, for his soul, for this life, and for that which is to come; they have grace on Earth, and glory in Heaven; the best of mercies, and the best of Heaven is provided for them.
One Reason of the Point.
The reason of this Point is, because God himself takes the whole care of godly men on himself. Psal. 4.4.foreign. Know ye that the Lord hath set apart the man that is godly for himself: The Hebrew word signifies both to deal wonderfully, and to separate; therefore some render it, The Lord hath wonderfully separated him that is godly for himself: God hath set him apart to provide for him, to guide, to protect, to bless him, to do him all manner of good, to sanctifi… and save him; then he cannot but profi… in every thing, and be blessed in every purpose: God having separated him to salvation, will order that all things shall promot… his salvation. I shall forbear any furthe… reasons, seeing the Apostle hath given … the main reason, because Godliness hat… the promise of this life, and of that whic… is to come; therefore Godliness is profitabl… unto all things. I should now have mad… some application, but shall forbear till have handled the next doctrine.