THE LIGHT OF Gods Countenance OR THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE FACE OF GHRIST JESUS Infinitely out-shining all earthly VANITIES Set out in a Sermon preached at Lantilio Pertholy in Monmouth-shire June 5. 1653. By JOHN CRAGGE Master of Arts and Dispenser of the GOSPELL there JOHN 1.9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 MAT. 13.45 46. The Kingdome of Heaven is like unto a Merchant man seeking goodly Pearles who when he had found one Pearl of great price he went and sold all that he had and bought it LONDON Printed by J.G. for NATH WEB and WILL GRANTHAM at the sign of the Bear in S. Paul's Church-yard near the little North door 1654. To my much honoured Friend Mr. William Williams and Mrs. Margaret Williams his Wife Grace Mercy and Peace be multiplied WORTHIES I Present you here with a small Token of my Love and Thankfulnesse which may be worth your acceptation not as mine for so it 's rude and homely but as it 's God's a truth most deare and precious Diamonds are esteemed not for the curiosity of cutting but for their weight and worth when you heard it it affected the eare and I hope the heart which made you desire a copy of it I dare not quench the Spirit but according to promise tender it to the eye though not so soone as expected yet perhaps in a dress unexpected Segnius irritant animum demissa per aurea Quam quae sunt oculis commissa fidelibus c. Hor. It containes a heavenly Jewell in an earthly Cabinet worth all the Arabian Gold Indian Pearle Riches of China the wealth of the West Indians company or that which Solomons Navy brought from Tarshish for it 's that one precious Rearle Christ for which the Merchant sold all that he had and bought it Chymists boast much of the Philosophers Stone that turnes all mettalls into Gold Empericks of Aesculsapius his Herbe Panase that cures all diseases Warriers of Vulcans Panoplie or Armour of proof against all weapons Jewellers of the precious Stone Opalum that hath the vertue of all Stones But here is an Elixir or Quintescence that turnes all things into Gold of the Sanctuary an Herb of Grace that cures all Soule-sicknesses Christs whole Armorie both offensive and defensive to shield against all spirituall enemies a precious Corner Stone that comprises the vertue of all stones in the building of the New Jerusalem nay it is the New Jerusalem it selfe from above whose light is the Lambe a light which if truely received would quell Schisme in Discipline Heresie in Doctrine Sects in the Church Factions in the State Quench that Granado of Selfishness and Pride that rends the mysticall body of Christ in pieces I can assure you in the Word of Life and Truth the richest and rarest confluence of all humane happinesses the most exquisite excellency and variety of the greatest worldly pompe and splendour that ever the Sun saw since the first moment of its creation or shall look upon while it shines in heaven is but dust in the ballance to one graine of grace it is but dung to an humble mind savingly enlightned but with the fore-tast but of the least glimpse of that incomprehensible endless glorie which shall shortly be revealed it is all in the true valuation but as vaine smoake which does not onely vanish as it riseth it utterly loseth it selfe at the highest but also drawes teares from a mans eyes nay at last wrings the very heart-strings of every impenitent soule with that extreamest everlasting honour which would burst ten thousand hearts seriously and sensibly to think on it before hand it is not onely vanity but vexation of spirit let worldly wisdome say what it will and disparage them who sincerely by the help of the holy Ghost hold a constant counter motion to the course of the world and corrections of the time that they may keep a good Conscience the richest Treasure the dearest Jewell that ever the heart of man was acquainted with who infinitely desire rather to be Religious than Rich to be Good than Great to enjoy the favour of God than the Soveraignty and pleasures of all the Kingdomes of the Earth yet assuredly when all is said and summed up it is onely the true feare of Gods blessed Name a zealous forwardnesse for his Glory Goodnesse and good Causes that at the last day shall truly beautifie and adorne both all other personall sufficiencies and indeed sanctifie and blesse all publique Employment and services of State Goe then in this golden meane betwixt Prophanenesse on the one hand Singularity and Hypocrisie on the other and yours shall be the crowne and comfort when wickednesse shall lye buried in the dust and dungeon of hell To this end the thirsty longing of my heart and heartiest prayers shall ever be that you may shine every day more and more gloriously in all personall sanctity in all holy zeale in setting forward the affaires of God that when the last period of your mortall abode in this vale of tears which drawes on apase shall present it selfe you may looke death in the face without doubt the grave without feare the Lord Jesus with comfort and Jehovah blessed for ever with everlasting joy That as God hath blessed you and your parents with the things of this life he may blesse you and your posterity with the treasures of grace and the life to come which are the serious votes of him who will be for ever Yours to serve you in the LORD JESUS JOHN CRAGGE PSAL. 4 6. There be many that say Who will shew us any good Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us THe heavenly language of this Psalm informes us That it was inspired by the holy Ghost the Inscription that it was penned by David the matter and manner in generall that it was a comfortable sob of a distressed soule in time of affliction The stream of Interpreters the whole course and current of the Text his mixt passion of joy and sorrow distraction and consolation as the pings of a woman in travell compared with the History in Samuel as shreds of a broken vessell laid one to another tells us that it was occasioned by Sauls persecuting of him after he was elected and chosen King by Samuel This will appeare more plainly by the parts which are three The first concernes God and David and that 's a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or deprecation wherein he petitions God that he would shield him from Saul and his complices The second concernes David and his enemies for having made God his shield he falls into an expostulation with them in the second verse the third verse is a defence and apologie for himselfe being deeply slandered the fourth and fift shew of what spirit he is like Christ that came out of his loynes he spends his breath for their Instruction that sought his Destruction The third part is an earnest prayer unto God againe for us he was his Alpha so he must
be his Omega 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 beginning and ending as the Serpent before the Fight drinks when she is wounded runs to the Spring againe runs to God the Fountaine of Living water and so concludes thus the Analysis The Text is a parcell of the third part and such a principall one as it gives denomination to all the rest a Petition For as Prayer is an act of the nobler part of Man the Soule so it is to be performed by the noblest and most spirituall faculties of the souls David here makes choice of the noblest and purest object Light and of all Light the noblest the light of Gods countenance And as the light of the Sunne is to the bodily eye best knowne by Darknesse the contrary by effects the beams and heat of it so is this spirituall light to the eye of the so ule Therefore David proves the incomparable worth of it 1. From an Argument drawn from an Antithesis or opposition with it and all other Creatures in the Text. 2. From the effects it works which are two 1. Spirituall comfort in the soule ver 7.2 Security and safety of both body and soule ver 8. The Antithesis in the words of the Text stands thus As if he had said Let some swell with Pride some boyle with Revenge some burne with Lust some gaspe for Honour some gape for Riches all sweat and toyle and cling for Something and some for All things while the world is dealing her Legacies yet none nor all these can give my Soule content there is unum necessariam One onely necessary thing which neither Prince nor People Men nor Angels have in their keeping Height nor Depth Principalities nor Powers Life nor Death can take away which makes my Prayers break thorow the Clouds towards Heaven importunes God to bow down the Heavens and come downe into my heart Lord life up the light of thy countenance upon us The division of the Text we have pre-occupated in the context which you see is an Antithesis or opposition betwixt the Worldlings wish and the Saints wish the Worldlings wish in these words There be many that will say who will shew us any good The Saints wish in these Lord lift up the light of thy countenance upon us This will be made more clears from the parts 1. Consider the opposition betwixt the Subjects or parties who the children of the World and the children of Light 2. The quantity the multitude of the one 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 many that say the paucity and scantling of the other but David and some few that tread in his foot-stepts that we can scarce trace them out 3. The Object or divers wishes The Worldlings wish is like Himselfe Momentaris fading temporaris trash any good The Same 's wish like unto God grate favour the light of his countenance an inheritance laid up in heaven an everlasting good 4. The modality or manner The Worldling onely sayes the Saint prayes the Worldling as he would have any good so he cares not from what hand who will c. the Saint as he would have the chief good so onely from the hand of God Lord lift c. The Worldlings wish is propounded interogatively full of Passion distraction distrust despaire the Saints wish is preferred in an humble petition before the Throne of grace full of faith Hope confidence and spirituall consolation Lord life c. Now we should passe from the Div sion to Observations but that the words are to be unfolded for clearer understanding of the matter there be many Many is alwayes a note of Universality and sometimes taken so universally as it includes all excludes none Rom. 5.19 By the disobedience of One many are made sinners that is all men sometimes for a great number simply considered yet but a few compared with others By the obedience of some many shall be made righteous that is a great number saved yet but a few in comparison of Reprobates 3. It signifies the most and greatest part of men Mat. 7.13 Wide is the gate that leadeth to destruction and many there be that enter in In the first sense to say that all men wished thus were not charity in the second to say these Worldlings were but few in comparison of Saints were neither truth nor piety in the third to say they are many in comparison of Saints agrees with Scripture truth experience and the true meaning of this place That say Saying sometimes imports an act of the Understanding when one thinks so of the Will when one desices so of the Affection when one inordinately desires properly of the tongue when they expresse that in words which they think and desire with the heart All this suits with this place with all worldlings their Thoughts are wholly taken up their Wills wholly bent their Affections set a whoring after the things of this world and sometimes out of abundance of the heart the tongue will not stick to speak as much and if many say so more think so And though men carry not their hearts on their tongues ends it is hard to think so alwayes and never to speak so No children but they that want their due conception or still-borne but they cry at the birth no vile thoughts but those that are choaked in the heart by grace but will sometimes be uttered by the tongue Who This note of interrogation sometimes hath the force of negation and denyes more strongly than a plaine negation would do as psal 76.7 Who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry That 's none And true it is that such is the wavering distrust and boundlesse wishes of Worldlings that they are often times wracked with despaire of ever receiving good and if they enjoy it it 's but in handling a feather in fight a shadow in weight a smoak in opening an Image of plaister-work nay plaine nothing But this is not the meaning Quis Who sayes Piscator is as much as O si quis O that any would optatively and in conclusion this jumps with the former for oftentimes where there are the greatest Wishes there are the greatest Wants nay greatest despaire And here we may observe an implyed diminution 1. O si quis O that any would as if it were but wish and have then a Si quis or Proclamation if any will then as if he were at a losse interrogatively Quis Who will What Prince what People what Man what Angel what Saint what Reprobates nay before they stick out what Devill rather than their hands be empty with Ahaziah will goe to Beelzebub the God of Ecron for Health with Saul to the Witch for Counsell with those of Lapland so they arrive at their Wished-for port buy wind of the Devill if their soules will purchase it Shew that is performe it hath relation to the word say going before and must answer to it as if he should say present to our understandings consent to our Wills satisfie our
observe the Divine Rhetorick and Suador of the Spirit as by the Matter so by the Manner implying that there is no more comparison betwixt God and Mammon than there is betwixt Light and Darknesse Hence two points of Doctrine implyed might arise if you look back at the Antecedent this though the Worldlings be high in Dignity glorious in Title infinite in Number yet they are not to be followed if forward at the Consequence this that there is a Pearle in Gods keeping for gaining of which all worldly things are to be trodden under foot but we must leave these as lesser Starres hid under a cloud we come to that which is expressed The light of Gods Countenance a Starre able to set all mortall eyes on Earth immortall in Heaven at a gaze at a maze Lift thou up the Light c. There is no darkenesse in the words unlesse too much light dazle our eyes it is a speech borrowed from men that use to cast a lightsome Countenance upon those they favour or affect as though he should say O Lord affect our Soules ravish our Spirits with the sensible feeling of thy Favour Grace and Blessing that flowes from thee Hence issues this point of Doctrine that the Grace of God and the Light of his Countenance is a Blessing beyond all prices unvaluable beyond all contradictions impregnable beyond all conceptions transcendet beyond all comparisons superlatively great Every word in the Text hath a speciall Emphasis to prove this Lord the word in the Originall is Jehovah composed of spirtuall letters to note the spirituall simplicity of his infinite Being a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that the Hebrewes durst not speak onely used in the singular number to note the Unity of the Daity appropriated to none but him excluding all creatures having Being independent in himselfe giving subsistence to all other things faithfully performing his promises and then shall not be that is All in All made All sustaines All is All-sufficient perform that to his Saints more than a World or thousands of worlds beside But what is the suit that none but such a Majesty can grant It is Light not the Light created the first day though that enlivened the blinde Chaos not those on the fourth day the greater and the lesser Lights hung up in the Canopy of Heaven to enlighten the Theater of the World against mans entrance on the stage not the force of reason implanted in man though John 1.4 that be the Light of Man not the Word of God though that be a Light unto our Feet not the Ministers of the Gospel though they Math. 5.14 be Lights of the World not Christ alone which truly is virtually All though John 1.8 he be the true Light that enlightens every one that comes into the World not that in Heaven Colos 1.12 the Inheritance of Saints in Light but a Light that includes all these that God Christ Jesus his Word his Ministers Light temporall spirituall eternall are all ours and that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 here by way of eminence The Light of Gods Countenance Christ was comforted in his Agony with the Light of Angels Moses his Face shined at the light of Gods hinder parts O then The Light of Gods Countenance What Comfort brings it here what eternall Blisse hereafter First To prove that The Light of Gods Countenance is beyond all Prices unvaluable Consider 1. But what this Light was before sinne put it out 2. What it cost before it could be lighted againe Before sinne put it out it was Gods gracious favour in giving Man the comfortable use and interest in all Gods creatures the Hosts of Heaven Sun Moone and Starres Foules of the Aire Fishes of the Sea Beasts of the Barth Creeping things Herbs Fruit Corn Wine Oyle were lines drawn from the infinite circumference of Gods goodnesse to the center of Mans felicity These were but blanks besides the Communion of Angels in Heaven that seemes to be a Price the blessed Vision eternall Union with God through Christ a Price able to make Men and Angels sound up their Trumpets of praise for ever Secondly what the lighting of it againe cost The Vestals fire put our might not be kindled but by the beams of the Sun nor the light of Gods Grace but by the obedience of his onely Sonne Men Angels Bloud of Martyrs Incence of Saints a thousand Worlds ten thousand Rivers of Oyl could not but the Death of him that was the Lord of Life Secondly that it is beyond all contradictions impregnable the whole legion of Saints can witnesse it is Armour of Proofe a strong Tower an invincible Fort a rock of Salvation that if Men Devils Behemoths Leviathans Losses Diseases Torments swarme about one like the flyes of Egypt it will make one sing under the whip at the stake in the flames make the patient laugh when the spectator weeps carry fraile flash singing and rejoycing through a world of bonds rodds swords racks wheeles flames strappadoes break thorow torments armies tempests floods towards Heaven shake off bonds fetters manacles and lead captivity captive Thirdly That it is beyond all Conceptions transcendent Reasons Scripture Testimony Experience can all tell for Man or Angel to conceive or expresse the secret VVorking the powerfull Operation the infinite splendor of Gods Grace were to span the Heavens with his Fingers to grasp the waves of the Sea in his Fist gather the waters of the Ocean into a bottle Reason cannot fathome it but is at a stand Scripture expresses nothing so much as that it is unexpressible Eye hath not seene Eare hath not heard neither hath it entred into the heart of Man 1 Cor. 2.9 the Saints at the sense of it are wrapt into an extasie Cherubims vaile their Faces sanctifying grace in man comes somewhat neare it which causes Groans of the spirit unutterable Joy in the heart unspeakable and yet there is as great a dis-proportion as for one Starre that is enlightned by the Sun to expresse the whole glory of the Sun the world is but a printed Mappe the reall Vision is in Heaven all creatures are but leaves in this imperfect Abridgement the large Volume is sealed up by him that keepes the keyes of life Fourthly That it is beyond all comparisons superlatively great the very devils can tel and therefore to rob one man of it will offer the whole world in counterpoise we are like Sun Dials unlesse it shine blaze Torches Tapers Candles all Starres at ones are of no use flow Riches Honour Strength Wives Friends Childen to our contentment without that Sun it is still night they may be Copies of Gods Grace but without Seale Ciphers of no value unlesse the Unity of the Spirit be joyned with them we cannot conceive so great a number of earthly things but still more may bee added more may be desired but he that hath The Light of Gods Countenance is ravished in Spirit cannot conceive more hath contentment in heart cannot desire more his