Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
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A62092
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Submission to the will of God in times of affliction asserted, in a sermon from I Sam. 3. 18 / by a Reverend Divine.
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Sylvester, Matthew, 1636 or 7-1708.
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1683
(1683)
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Wing S6332A; ESTC R41
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15,126
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41
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Meekness under the Reproof of Samuel whom he had brought up from a Child Eli was a very old Man Samuel but a Youth in effect yet when he was the Messenger of these sad Tydings to him he replieth It is the Lord let him do what seemeth him good Few Men love their Reprovers or Messengers of Evil Tydings but so did Eli. So did David he was not angry with Nathan but relented towards the Lord 2 Sam. 12.13 And David said unto Nathan I have sinned against the Lord. The Wicked when they are admonished and rebuked for their sins they despise the Threatning and hate the Reprover But so do not God's People they receive the Rebuke with meekness and confess their Sins against God and humbly submit to his Chastisements Doct. That God's People have attained a good degree of Grace when they can absolutely resign themselves to the Will of God Let me shew you I. What is this Resignation to the Will of God II. What an excellent and commendable thing it is I. What is this Resignation to the Will of God I Answer The Will of God may be considered two ways 1. As certain and known to us 2. As not yet known neither in the Word or Providence 1. As certainly known to us either by Threatnings or Executions of God's Sentence 1. By Threatnings and special Messages as here in the Case of Eli He doth not slight God's Wrath but reverenceth his Word So Hezekiah is an Instance also Isa 39.8 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah Good is the Word of the Lord which thou hast spoken It is a terrible and sad Word that his Treasures and Childrens Children should be carried to Babylon The only good that was in it That the Evil should not come in his time Yet that was not the main Consideration for 't is added He said moreover For there shall be Peace and Truth in my Days No but he had other Considerations the Pleasure and Soveraign Will of God 2. When the Evil is not only threatned but inflicted yet then God's People shew they have absolutely given up their Wills to God Instances we have of that in Job 1.21 The Lord hath given and the Lord hath taken away Blessed be the Name of the Lord. Psal 119.137 Righteous art thou O Lord and upright are thy Judgments Acts 21.14 And they ceased saying the Will of the Lord be done The sight of God's Will must silence all our Disputes 2. In things uncertain and unknown to us as yet we must refer it to God's Wisdom Power and Goodness to determine all Events as shall seem good in his Eyes He is so able that he can accomplish what we desire so good that we have no reason to trouble our selves about his Will but submit to it without Hesitancy So wise that he will choose that which is for the best We have an Instance in David 2 Sam. 15.25 26. And the King said unto Zadock Carry back the Ark of God into the City If I shall find Favour in the Eyes of the Lord he will bring me again and shew me both it and his Habitation But if he thus say I have no delight in thee Behold here am I let him do to me as seemeth Good unto him See how sweetly and meekly he submitteth to God's Pleasure wholly denying himself and his own Will And resigneth up Person Life Crown and Estate into God's Hands to be cast as a Dye high or low as it should seem good to God So Esther referreth her case to God If I perish I perish Esther 4.16 I might produce the Example of our Lord Jesus Christ tho the Event was known to him as Mediator yet when he speaketh as Man hear his Words John 12.27 28. Now is my Soul troubled what shall I say Father save me from this Hour but for this cause came I unto this hour Father glorify thy Name We learn of Christ when we are in great Perplexity and know not the Event That we should absolutely submit all things to his Will with respect to his Glory For surely God will determine and cast Matters so as it may be for his own Honour and our Good Christ consulted not with his own Case but the Glory of God he respected not the innocent Inclination of his humane Nature but the Glory of his Father So should we be content that God be glorified tho with our Loss and bitter Cost As natural Things will act against their particular Inclination for a general Good Air will descend and Water ascend to avoid a Vacuity or to preserve a Continuity in the World Now of this Resignation shall I speak for 't is not fit that Man should have the disposal of himself or his Condition and Affairs or that he should accommodate his Providence to their carnal Interest and Will or else he cannot bear it or think well of it No God's Will must always precede and ours follow Alas we have a corrupt Will guided by a dark Understanding and if the Blind lead the Lame what can be expected but Disorder and Ruine Therefore our Wills must not lead and make the first choice but God's And to bring our Hearts throughly to yield to this argueth a good degree of Grace II. How excellent and commendable this is will appear if you consider 1. The Grounds or Objective Reasons it goeth upon 2. The several Causes of it or Subjective Graces it floweth from 3. The Fruits and Effects or what Excellent Advantages we have thereby 1. The Grounds of this Resignation are the three grand Attributes of God his Wisdom Power and Goodness 1. God is infinitely Wise and knoweth what is best for us therefore his Divine Choices must be preferred before our foolish Fancies Isa 30.18 The Lord is a God of Judgment blessed are they that wait for him All his Dealings with his Children are full of Wisdom And therefore it is fit that he should choose our Condition and not we our selves We would choose Life but God chooses Death knowing thereby how to bring most Honour to himself and eternal Advantage to our selves as we suffer the loss thereof for being Faithful to his Interest in a Wicked World You would choose Riches when God knows Poverty is best for you to keep you holy and humble We should soon undoe our selves if we our selves had our own Will If God did not often deny us what we have a mind to as a Child would ruine his Health if you gave him all the Fruit his longing Appetite craveth no that must be left to the Parents Discretion or a Man in a Fever would hazard his Life if you should give him all that he calleth for that must be left to the Physicians Skill But now on the other hand nothing can be done amiss by God for Infinite Wisdom cannot err Deut. 32.4 As for God his work is perfect Some things may fall out cross to our Opinions and Desires but our Desires are not the measure of his Dispensations nor
him Therefore the best way is to submit and refer all to him Job 9.12 He taketh away who can hinder him So Job 33.12 13. God is greater than man why dost thou strive against him for he giveth not account of any of his Matters Now this should lay Men low before God and silence all their Quarrellings We all acknowledg that God's Power is Infinite yet what Worm is there that will submit willingly to him do further than themselves please 'T is evident do what they can God will be Master and take his own Way All Events are in his hands Our strivings may be sinful but they cannot be helpful to us Mat. 6.27 Which of you by taking Thought can add one Cubit to his Stature We cannot make our selves taller or shorter yea not change the colour of an Hair to make it white or black We may busy our selves with anxious thoughts about Events but what do we get by it We cannot cure a Disease in our Bodies nor prevent a breach in our Relations Nor increase our Trading nor draw Buyers to our selves The Hearts of all Men are in God's hands and when we have done all we must stand to God's allowance therefore 't is best at first to refer all Events to him God's Soveraignty sheweth that it is unjust if we consent not to it but God's Almighty Power that it is fruitless if we do otherwise God's Will doth and must govern the Affairs of the World if he require our consent and submission 't is for our Profit that we shew our Obedience and Adoration 3. The third Ground is He is incomprehensibly good and gracious to his Children that love him and fear him and will convert all that befalleth them to their Everlasting Good So that God as powerful can do what he pleaseth God as kind will do what is for the best Rom. 8.28 All things shall work together for good to them that love God And Cant. 4.16 Awake O North Winds and come thou South blow upon my Garden that the Spices thereof may flow out Out of what Corner soever the Wind bloweth it bloweth good to the Saints The goodness of God is many ways seen in the Dispensations of his Providence partly in this resigning is not the way to lose the Comfort which would most please us but to keep it still Abraham by offering Isaac to God had him nevertheless Heb. 11.19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead from whence also he received him in a Figure There is a kind of a Resurrection of our Comforts from the Dead which maketh them the sweeter to us We gave them to God and he giveth them back again partly because we shall have better things of God for we must not resign out of an hope that God will not take the Offer as the promise of an hundred fold in this Life with Persecutions to those that have left Houses and Lands and Relations for Christ's sake and the Gospel's Mark 10.30 But he shall receive an hundred fold now in this Time Houses and Brethren and Sisters and Mothers and Children and Lands with Persecutions and in the World to come Eternal Life Meaning thereby Peace of Conscience And the least Blessing of God with a quiet Conscience is more worth than all the Goods in the World Partly by support God will not be wholly wanting to his People nor leave them utterly destitute 1 Cor. 10.13 God is Faithful who will not suffer you to be tempted above what you are able but will with the Temptation make a way to escape that ye may be able to bear it Two things are promised here First The Gentleness and Wisdom of his Conduct Secondly A comfortable Issue For the present when our Condition is at worst if it be not comfortable it will be tolerable For the future he will give you a way to escape You are not cast into the deep Ocean where there are no Banks nor Bottom As long as a Man can look to the end of an Evil he is not quite discouraged As a Man in the deep Waters strugling for Life hath hope as long as he can see Shoar So that Afflictions are qualified both as to the Grievousness and Continuance by the Support and the Issue we may expect from God's Goodness Now that this may the more prevail with us God is represented under the Notion of a Father he doth not only act as a Lord out of Sovereignty or a Judge according to Justice but as a Father who loveth his Children and will not neglect them or any of their Concernments Mat. 6.12 Your Heavenly Father knoweth that you have need of these things As Children naturally expect Food and Rayment from their Parents So the Children of God may in all Estates refer themselves to his Fatherly Providence A Mother cannot be so tender of a Sucking Child as God is of his Children Isa 49.15 Can a Woman forget her Child her Sucking Child her only Child the Fruit of her Womb they may forget deface the feelings of Nature but I will not forget you saith the Lord. Fix but this one Principle that you have a Father in Heaven and then why should you disquiet your Thoughts about future Events Your Father knoweth how to breed up his own Children and will order all things for their Good 2. The Causes of it or the Subjective Graces it floweth from 1. Faith or a sound belief of God's Being and Providence and gracious Promises They know there is a God and that he hath a particular care of Human Affairs and hath made Promises that he will not leave his People to insupportable Difficulties Therefore they depend upon him and refer all Events that concern them and theirs to the disposal of his Fatherly Government Heb. 12.5 6. They know not how he will cast the Event but they wholly leave it to him Now this Submission is an especial act of Trust and the great Trust required of us as to Temporal Things For we cannot be confident of Success We are to go on with our Duty and refer the Event to God Submission after the Event is Patience but before the Event is Faith for it argueth high and honourable thoughts of God when we can blindfold trust our All in his Hands and refer all to his Pleasure tho we know not what will come of it Psal 37.5 Commit thy way unto the Lord and he shall bring it to pass And Psal 55.22 Cast thy Burden upon the Lord and he shall sustain thee And 1 Pet. 5.7 Cast all thy care upon the Lord who careth for thee All this argueth a sound belief of God's Being and Providence that he will cast all our Matters so as may be for his Glory and our Good Now on the contrary carking Care and anxious thoughts about the Event shew little Faith Mat. 6.30 Shall he not much more cloath you O ye of little Faith You have not honourable Thoughts of God's Wisdom Power