Secondly Look upon the things of the World with the prospective of the Scripture not with one of the worlds glasses Not with the worlds Multiplying-glass The world and the glass of the world If you look upon the world with the glass of the world there you shall find that the things of the world are called Goods and they are called Substance An Estate and Substance But look upon the world with the Prospective of the Scriptures there they are called Shadows there they are called Vanities there they are called Things that are not What 's the reason that people are so much in love with the things of the world but because they look upon them with the multiplying glass of the world and not with the glass and prospective of the Scripture Thirdly Never fall in love with any condition for it self but for the good of the condition Love not your condition for the condition it self but for the God of your condition I do but name things Fourthly Take all Gods Allarums of death and mingle those with the consideration of the death of Christ Christ crucified There is never a death that doth pass before us but its Gods Alarm and it calls off from the world and the things thereof Truly this I must say It is not all the deaths in the world will make us dye to the world only the death of Christ take Christ Crucified and then you will dye to the world And therefore I say take Gods Allaâ—ums of death but be sure that you mingle those Alarums with the consideration of the death of Jesus Christ And then fifthly Afford the world and the things thereof so much of your love as better things do leave For Christians that which is too cold for God is hot enough for the world I say it again That which is too cold for God is hot enough for the world and therefore afford the things of the world so much of your love as better things do leave for that which is too cold for God is hot enough for the world and the things thereof Sixthly Let the name of the Lord be very precious in your hearts and in your eyes and then you will use the things of the world as if you us'd them not Abraham had a very great regard unto the Name of God and he would not have it said that the King of Sodom made him rich not a shoe-latchet will he take from him it shall never be said that the King of Sodom made Abraham rich He had a very high esteem of the Name of God O God alone shall have the honour saith Abraham of making Abraham rich it shall never be said the King of Sodom made Abraham rich He had a great care of the Name of God So if men would carry the sense of Gods Name with them into the World and the things thereof they would use the World as if they us'd it not It shall never be said that a base unworthy way made me rich no God shall have the honour of it and Faith shall have the honour of it and Prayer shall have the honour on 't Seventhly Go to the Lord and beg of the Lord to fulfil his promises Now Gods promises are very many this way but I shall only turn you unto that in the last of Zech. 20. a promise spoken concerning the latter times In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses holiness unto the Lord. The bells of the horses upon the bells of the Temple no upon the bells of the horses your Carriers horses In that day shall there be holiness upon the bells of the horses holiness unto the Lord And the pots in the Lords house shall be like the bowls before the Altar yea every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of Hosts Every pot in Jerusalem every pot in your house shall be holiness unto the Lord go to God to fulfil this promise O â—here is such a promise lies for the lâ—tter times let 's go to God to fulfil this promise that holiness may be written upon all our pots and then shall we use this world as if we us'd it not Eighthly and lastly Consider what a good thing it is to use this world as if we us'd it not Thereby you shall be able for to want and to part with the world with ease I know how to want saith Paul and I know how to abound Truly give me but this grace and I will speak with Paul give me but this grace to use the world as if I us'd it not and I will say with him Now I know how to want and how to abound If you use your Relation as if you us'd it not you will part with your Relation more easily if you use your Land as if you us'd it not you will part with it more easily Christians parting times are coming the Lord knows how soon we may be parted from the bosom of our dearest Relations and from all our enjoyments that we have here would you part easily when the parting blow shall come Now use the world as if you us'd it not now use the world as if you us'd it not Thereby also you shall have more of the world have it in more abundance by using the world as if you us'd it not you shall be no loser I have sometimes stood and wondred at Abraham for we say that the rouling stone gathers no Moss Abraham went out of his own Country God commands him in Gen. 12. to forsake his Kindred and his Fathers house So Abraham departed v. 4. and Abraham came and they went out to go into the Land of Canaan and into the Land of Canaan they came v. 5. And at v. 10. There was a famine in the Land and Abraham went down into Egypt A famine in the Land why but did not God call him thither yes Go unto a Land that I shall shew thee v. 1. God shewed him thither yet there he met with a famine Obs So one may have a clear call from God and yet meet with a great deal of afflictions in the way that God calls them to he goes down to Egypt to sojourn there When he came into Egypt the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarah Abrahams Wife At v. 18. And Pharoah called Abraham and said what is this now therefore behold thy Wife take her and go thy way And they sent him away and his Wife and all that he had ver 10. Well away they go And Abraham went out of Egypt he and his Wife and all that he had and Lot with him into the South v. 2. And Abraham was very rich in Cattel in silver and in gold A strange thing to grow rich in Cattel How could he drive his Cattel up and down from Egypt to Canaan and up and down the Country Yes thus removing at the Command of the Lord living in Tents and using the world as if he
you do suffer according to Christs example which you may do if you suffer with the same spirit and disposition that Christ did suffer in the strength of Christ set all upon the head score of Christ Fifthly if you would so order and manage all your sufferings as that they may turn to a good account then take heed that there be no contradiction found in the way of your suffering A man may be very stiff and stand out here and yet he may yeeld there Saith the Apostle If I build again what I have destroyed I make my self a transgressor And Blessed is the man that condemns not himself in the thing that he allows 'T is possible I may build that with one hand that I may pull down with another Possibly a man may be very stiff and stand out at such a thing and yet he may yeeld there There may be contradictions found in the way of our suffering And let me tell you this if it be thus your sufferings will come to little Take heed that there be not contradictions therefore found in the way of your sufferings Sixthly if you would manage your sufferings so as they may turn to a good account then let your eye be more upon the Publike good then upon your own private loss more upon Gods designe then your own detriment more upon Gods dishonour then your own grievance or your own pressure 'T is good for a man to be spiritual and savoury in his suffering our Saviour saith Such worshippers the Father seeks c. and truly I say Such sufferers doth the Father seek that suffer in spirit and truth whose spirits are savoury in their sufferings And when is that when that your eye is more upon the publick good then your own private loss more upon Gods designe then your own detriment more upon Gods dishonour then your own grievance and your own pressure Sevently if you would so order and manage all your sufferings as that they may turn to a good account then let your eye be upon that and observe what that is that you have most delighted in and that your heart is most upon in this world and give that up to God the first thing you do for truly nothing is done till that be done 'T is said of Abraham that God tempted Abraham Divines observe that Abraham met with ten temprations but it 's never said before that God tempted him till he spake to him to offer up his son Isaac Why there was his heart and his love and his delight And where doth a mans temptation grow but where his Isaac is he shall be sure to be tried there Here was Abrahams heart here lay his temptation And so it may be my heart is upon my house or upon my land or upon my trade and I cannot part with this I can part with any thing else but when it comes to this I am ready to say The good Lord pardon me in this Many say I will not adventure to suffer any further for the Name of Christ then I can secure my trade or my land or relations but when it comes to this I cannot part with these I must have my trade c. Here 's a but comes in Anamas and Sapphira they parted with a great deal but it came to little because they had a reserve And so if we have our reserves with the Lord our sufferings will come to little So that observe that you give that up first to God that your hearts are most upon for nothing is done in suffering till that be done Eighthly if you would so order and manage your sufferings as they may turn to a good account then let the load and let the weight and the burden of all your sufferings be drawn upon the wheels of faith and love those two wheels of faith towards God and love towards man Saith the Apostle By faith Moses chose rather to suffer afflictions with the people of God How so why by faith he saw him that is invisible and so trampled upon visible things And by faith he had an eye to the recompence of reward and so overlooked these things And by faith he saw greater wealth in the reproach of Christ then in all the treasures of Egypt And so the three children they suffered by faith and it turned to a good account And as for love you know what the Apostle saith If I give my body to be burnt and want love it profiteth me nothing So then as ever you desire your sufferings may turn to a good account let your faith towards God and your love towards man be exercised And let these be the two great wheels that all your sufferings shal be drawn upon Ninthly if you would order your sufferings so as they may turn to a good account then labour to be serviceable in and by your sufferings If ever God call you to a prison labour to be as serviceable in and by your suffering as ever you can Peter was in prison what came on 't was there any converted No. Why so Peter slept I but Paul and Silas they sang in the stocks and they preach in the prison and there 's the Jaylor converted They were serviceable in and by their sufferings and it turned to a good account And therefore if you would desire that your sufferings may turn to a good account labour to be serviceable in by your sufferings as God calls you into Tenthly when you have done all and suffered all then say and think in truth that you are unprofitable servants and let your eye be wholly to the sufferings of Christ offer your own sufferings upon the sufferings of Christ in reference to your acceptance For though you may have an eye to the recompence of reward to encourage you to suffer yet you are wholly to look to the sufferings of Christ in reference to your acceptance And therefore when you have done all think and say you are unprofitable Two men went up to pray and the one he was a Pharisee and the other a Publican The Pharisee he comes and praises God he was not as the Publican I thank God I am not as this Publican I fast and pray and I am not as this Publican Well there comes the Publican and he smites himself upon the brest and says I am a poor sinner Oh! the Lord be merciful unto me a poor sinner So say I Two men go up to suffer and there 's one stands and vaunts and saith I thank the Lord I am not so cowardly and dastardly as these poor-spirited men that dare do nothing my flesh shall fry in the fire But the other stands at a distance and saith Oh I am a poor creature I am afraid to suffer and I am afraid I shall betray the Cause of Christ Now I tell you this poor trembling soul that is last shall be first and he goes away rather justified Eleventhly and lastly if you would so order and manage your
to be enriched with divine promiseâ— one promise is worth a world he is rich indeed that is rich in promises We say a man may be a rich man though he have never a peny of money in his purse he may have a great many Bonds and we say he is a rich man I am sure that Christian is rich indeed that 's rich in promises Well when comes the promise Look when a man doth forsake any worldly interest for the Lord then comes the promise For that look into Gen. 12 and you shall sâ—e what a great promise God makes to Abraâ—am vers 2. I will mâ—ke of thee a great nation and I will bless thee and make thy name great and thou shalt be blessed Well but when comes this promise The first verse tells you Now the Lord said unto Abraham Get thee out of thy country and from thy kindred and from thy fathers house unto the land that I will shew thee Quest. I but suppose that Abraham do so what will â—he Lord then bestow upon Abraham Answ Why I will make of thee a great nation Object But if I go out of my country Abraham might say I shall be scattered and come to noâ—hing I and my posterity Answ Nay but I will make of thee a great nation and I will bless thee Object I but every body will say I am a fool to leave my country and go I know not whither Answ Nay but I will make thy name great and thou shalt be a blessing Object I but I shall meet with divers enemies abroad and they will fall upon me and ruine me Answ Nay saith the Lord And I will bless them that bless thee and I will curse him that curseth thee See what a great promise here is made When did this promise come So Abraham departed as the Lâ—rd had spoken to him Look when we do forsake any worldly interest for the Lord then comes the promise Now is not one promise better then any worldly interest an hundred times better But secondly is it not a greâ—â— matter to have the favour of God the Father the heart of God drawn out unto us to be amiable and beautiful in the eyes of God the Father Now look when a man doth forsake any worldly interest for God then he is beautiful in the eyes of God never so amiable or beautiful in the eyes of God as then Take it thus Beauty raises Persecution and Persecution raises Beauty they are matual causes First I say Beauty raises Persecution Persecution you shall find doth always fall upon the beautiful piece of Religion upon those that are the most beautiful pieces of Religion So long as Christ our Saviour liv'd persecution lay upon him and not upon the Apostles when Christ was dead then the Apostles were the most beautiful piece and then the persecution lay upon them especially When the Apostles were gone off the stage in the Primitive times the Persecution always fell upon the most eminent Saints Persecution always falls upon the beauty of Religion In Matth. 13 we finde that persecution is compared to the scorching of the Sun And when the sun was up they were scorched speaking of the stony ground which is expounded in vers 21. by persecution For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word The scorching sun here is interpreted to be persecution And you shall finde that the scorching Sun falls with most prejudice upon the greatest beauty the greatest beauty suffers most by the scorching sun Truly so persecution falls upon the beauty of Religion you may see it in Cant. 1. there the Spouse is described in her beauty If thou know not O thou fairest among women c. I have compared thee O my love to a company of horses in Pharaohs chariots Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels thy neck with chains of gold But saith she at vers 5. I am black but comely O ye daughters of Jerusalem as the tents of Kedar as the curtains of Solomon Here 's her beauty what then Look not upon me because I am black because the sun hath look'd upon me The sun hath look'd upon me what 's that Persecution My mothers children were angry with me The scorching sun of Persecution hath fallen upon my beauty That 's the thing I speak of namely that Persecution always falls upon the beautiful piece of Religion And so on the other side as Beauty raises Persecution so Persecution raises Beauty A man 's never more beautiful in the eyes of God then when he is persecuted for the Name of Christ and when he doth leave and forsake a worldly interest upon the account of Christ You may see it in Psal 45. vers 10. Hearken O daughter consider and incline thine ear forget also thine own people and thy fathers house so shall the King greatly desire thy beauty See where the beauty lies in forgetting of the fathers house in leaving and forsaking a worldly interest upon the account of Christ here 's beauty Now is it not an hundred times better to be beautiful in the eyes of God the Father and of Christ then to have a worldly interest Certainly it is But then thirdly Is it not a great matter for a man to have communion and fellowship with Jesus Christ in his sufferings If ye suffer with him ye shall reign with him saith the Apostle Now we have communion and fellowship with Christ in his sufferings either at the Lords Supper or in our suffâ—rings for Christ but with this diffâ—rence we have communion and fellowship with Christ in our sufferings for Christ by fiâ—ing up the suffâ—râ—ngs of Christ we have communion and fellowship with Christ in the Lords Supper but then we don't fill up the sufferings of Christ but in our sufferings for Christ we have communion and fellowship with Christ by filling up the sufferings of Christ So that here 's a specialty of communion with Christ by suffering for the Lord Jesus Now is it not an hundred times better to have communion and fellowship with Christ in his sufferings then to have a worldly interest Fourthly is it not a great matâ—er to have the Spirit of God and of glory rest upon us You know what the Apostle Peter saith concerning those that suffer for the Name of Christ Thâ— Spirit of God and of glory shall rest upâ—n you as the dove rested upon the Ark it hâ—vered upon the waters but at last she rested upon the Aâ—k so the Spirit of the Lord hovâ—rs over men but it rests upon the suffâ—ring Saints Now is it not an hundred times better to have the Spirit of God and of glory resting upon us then to have any worldly iâ—terest Certainly it is Fifthly is it not a great deal better to be filled and abound with divine and spiritual consolations Look when a man doth leave any worldly interest for Christ or doth suffer for the Name of Jesus Christ then shall his heart be filled with consolations You see
we have too much love to the world Love is the cause of grief the more passionately you grieve for any outward thing the more abundantly you shew your love thereunto and it will in some measure reflect upon your God 'T is a considerable speech that of a child when the mother of the child had us'd to say upon al her losses Yet my God lives when she had lost a child she would say yet my God's alive when she had lost a friend yet my God's alive At last loosing a child she loved much she wept very much and another of her children came unto her and said Mother is your God dead Mother is not your God alive She used to say still yet my God's alive and now weeping much and not saying so the child said Mother is not your God alive Truly this grieving much it hath such a reflexion as this Is not your God alive Christians is not your God alive you know what the Apostle saith Rejoyce in the Lord evermore and again I say rejoyce If that we are to rejoyce in the Lord evermore then surely we are to weep as if we wept not and to grieve as if we grieved not And thus we are to use the world as if we us'd it not in reference to this concernment the matter of our grief Thirdly As for the matter of our joy the Apostle saith And let them that rejoyce be as though they rejoyced not 't is lawful to rejoyce even in the things of the world Rejoyce in the wife of thy youth God hath provided several delightful objects for every sense there 's Musick for hearing and there are smells and sweet smells for smelling sweet things for the taste God hath so ordered things that every Sense hath its delightful object surely therefore it is lawful to take pleasure and to rejoyce in the things of this world But still though we do rejoyce in the things of this world we must rejoyce as if we rejoyced not For why should I joy much in that which I cannot enjoy why now the things of this world I may use but I cannot enjoy them God only is to be enjoyed Who will rejoyce with all his might in the blaze of a Wisp a Wisp of Straw set on fire makes a great blaze but it ends in black ashes who rejoyces much in the blaze of the Wisp why truly the best outward thing it is but the blaze of a Wisp and if we dont take heed it ends in black ashes Who would rejoyce much in that which is but a Tanquam a quasi of good which he cannot satisfie his soul in there is a crack in the finest Christal Glass in this world a crevice what outward thing is there in all the world but hath some crevice in it what beauty but hath some Wart grows upon the face on 't Our Saviour Christ was at a Wedding and when he was there the Wine was spent why for to shew that in the midst of all our fulness and joy there is a deficiency and there is a want bottles will be empty And if it be the great work of a Christian for to moderate his affections then shold we not grieve as if we grieved not and rejoyce as if we rejoyced not The great work of a Christian what is it why the great work of a Christian is not for to know much the great work of a Christian is not to have much he is a Christian indeed that grieves as if he grieved not and rejoyces as if he rejoyced not that moderates his affections that hath the command and the true moderation of his affections I he is a Christian indeed So that thus then we see that we are to use the world as if we us'd it not in reference to this concernment the matter of our joy Fourthly As for the matter of our possessions the Apostle saith And let them that buy be as though they possessed not 't is lawful and very lawful to buy and sell and to possess For else there would be no propriety but there is a propriety in nature the last Commandment Thou shalt not covet thy Neighbours Oxe nor his Ass nor any thing that is his nor any thing that is his The Moral Law the Law of Nature tells us that there is an his that is a propriety and the Gospel tells us and the Law of the Gospel tells us that there must be liberality surely then its lawful to buy and sell and to possess 't is lawful But though we may buy and sell and possess yet we must possess as if we possessed not buy as if we bought not and possess as if we possessed not For else How can we be strangers here 't is said of Abraham by Faith he was a stranger in the Land of Promise A stranger in the Land of Promise certainly if a man would let out his heart â—pon any Land a good man would let out his heart to the utmost upon the Land of Promise What the Land of Promise and yet a stranger to it Yes though it were the Land of Promise yet a stranger to it How can a man be patient in the loss of things If he be not weaned from them while he hath them Surely Job was weaned from what he had by being so patient under his loss And if that good men have other greater things and possessions for to mind and they cannot intensively mind both why then a man must surely so possess as if he possessed not Why now a good man hath higher and greater possessions to mind and inheritance Incorruptible undefiled that fadeth not away reserved in the Heavens And both he cannot mind together but he must love the one and hate the other The intention about the one must be remisness about the other Then surely it is our duty to use the World as if we used it not in reference unto this concernment namely this concernment of our possessions And so you see the thing now cleared by these four instances We are to use the World as if we used it not In the matter of our Relations In the matter of our griefs In the matter of our Joyes And in the matter of our possessions Well but then fourthly In the fourth place What is there in these Reasons of the Apostle The shortness of the time And the Fashion of the world passing away What is there in these Reasons that may inforce this Exhortation To use the World as if we used it not Much every way still I must but touch at things The time is short Use the World as if we used it not For the time is short The time of our life is short 't is but short A great business we have to do in reference to our eternity and our time to do it in is but short Time roul'd and trust up as it were into a little bundle and therefore why should we not use the World as if we used it not If a
off his Hat and bow and say God save Justice And so now when we come by this Gibbit we should not come by but bow with Fear and Reverence and Adoration adoring the Justice and the Soveraignty of God in his proceedings We are to remember Lot's Wife in a way of Fear and Reverence and Adoration 4. We are to remember Lot's Wife in a way of Caution so as to take heed by her Remember how she looked back and take heed that we do not look back And thus we are to remember Lot's Wife But then Fourthly What and when is the special time that Lot's Wife is to be remembred by us It is good to remember her frequently But we are in a special manner to remember Lot's Wife in the time of declining in declining times remember her that you do not decline Thus our Saviour Christ brings her in for to be remembred by us that we do not look back as she looked back 2. We are to remember her in times of security of great security As in the days of Noah saith Christ they were in great security They ate and drank c. And as in the Dayes of Lot they ate and drank they marryed they were in great security Now saith our Saviour So shall it be but remember Lot's Wife So that in times of great security Lot's Wife is to be remembred by us 3. She is to be remembred by us also In time when God doth call upon his people by his dispensaâ—ions to go out of Sodom and make no delay For so our Saviour also presses it to you Let not him that is on the house top go down c. But remember Lot 's Wife God would have no delay then So when God calls upon a people to come out of Sodom make no delay but remember Lot's Wife Thus we see what the time is But fifthly and lastly What good shall we get by remembring Lot's Wife Is there any good to be gotten by remembring Lot's Wife Yes much every way Something in a way of Instruction something in a way of Caution First By way of instruction I shall lay before you ten or eleven instructions that we may gain hereby First If this story of Lot's Wife be true and do live in our Memory then why should not we stand and admire and say Lord how unsearchable are thy Jâ—dgments and thy way 's past finding out Here are four and but four that came out of Sodom and yet one of the foâ—r were destroyed God may deliver our Family in the time of common Calamity and yet some of our house may suffer God in the midst of Judgment doth remember mercy In the midst of Mercy he Remembers Judgment In the midst of Judgment upon Sodom he remembred mercy for Lot and for his Family In the midst of mercy upon Lot and upon his Family he remembred Judgment upon Lot's Wife The same thing may be done by one in a way of Faith and he may live and done by another in a way of unbelief and he may die Abraham looked upon Sodom when Sodom was a burning Abraham got up early in the morning at the 27 ver to the place where he stood before the Lord and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the Land of the Plain and beheld and lo the smoke of the Country went up as the smoke of a Furnace Abraham beheld and looked upon it in a way of believing and lived Lot's Wife looks back in a way of unbelief and she dies The same thing may be done by one in a way of Faith and live and by another in a way of unbelief and die But literally here two shall be in one bed the one shall be taken and the other shall be left two shall be in the field the one shall be taken and the other left Two in a bed Lot and his Wife one taken and the other left Two in a field they were going both out of Sodom one taken and the other left Lord how unsearchable are thy Judgments and thy wayes past finding out 2. If this story of Lot's Wife be true and do live in our Memory then here we may learn by way of Instruction and see how far a Man or Woman may go in Religion and yet come short at the last Lot's Wife went far she was a professor of the first and the highest form she had lived a long while in Abraham's Family she had walked with her Husband Lot and injoyed his prayers many years she stood out against the wickedness of Sodom while she was there she was in some meâ—sure obedient unto the voice of the Angel in going out of Sodom and as some observe she was a Professor of seventy years growth and yet she miscarried How far may Men and Women go in Religion and yet miscarry at the last 3. If this story of Lot's Wife be true and do live in our memory Then you may learn and see by way of Instruction That the best Relations will not secure from the hand of God if we continue evil She was the nearest Relation to a Holy Righteous man Lot yet sinned Her Relation would not save her and would not excuse her Why should any say I am the Child of such a godly Parent I am the Servant of such a godly Master I am a member of such a Church 'T is not the nearest and the best Relations will save us from the hand of God if we sin against him Here was the nearest Relation and yet not exempted from the severest punishment 4. If this story of Lot's Wife be true and do indeed live in our memory Then here you may see what an evil thing it is to look back from that which God hath delivered us from It is an evil thing to sin against that Deliverance that hath a Such written on it In the 9th of Ezra see how he argues After all that is come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great trespasses seeing thâ—t thou our God hast punished us lesse than our iniquities deserve and hast given us Such deliverance as this A deliverance with a Such written on it should we again break thy Commandements and joyn in affinity with the people of these abominations Wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us so that there should be no remnant nor escaping See 't is a very evil thing for to sin after a Deliverance that hath Such written upon it but to turn back or to look back unto that which God hath delivered us from that is yet worse For the Lord to have delivered us from Superstition from Idolatry and to look back to that which God hath delivered us from What 's this but after the manner of Lot's Wife But you see how it far'd with her Well then you see it 's an evil thing to look back to that which God hath delivered us from 5. If this story of Lot's Wife be true and live in our memory