to do God good service Phil. 3.6 Concerning zeal persecuting the Church And Saul out of a blinde zeal to the children of Israel and Judah slew the Gibeonites for which sin though done in zeal the whole Land was punished with three years Famine 2 Sam. 21.1,2 2. Look that your zeal for God be true and real and not pretended Jehu pretended great zeal for God 2 Kings 10.16 Come with me and see my zeal for the Lord But it was rather a zeal to establish the Kingdom to himself than any true zeal for God 3. Let your zeal be chiefly exercised in those things wherein the life and power of godliness consisteth in the essential and fundamental matters of Religion and not in circumstantials Pharisaical zeal that was punctual in tything Mint and Cummin and Annise and neglected the weightier matters of the Law as Faith and the love of God Judgment and Mercy was disallowed and condemned by Christ 4. Look that your zeal be not for a fit while the sence of your affliction is fresh upon your spirits but let it be constant Gal. 4.18 It is good to be zealously affected alwayes in a good thing 3. God aims at the making of you partakers of his holiness by this affliction Heb. 12.10 He chasteneth us for our profit that we might be partakers of his holiness These persons to whom the Apostle writes this Epistle had been chastned with the loss of their Goods Heb. 10.34 and this chastning was for this end that they might be partakers of Gods Holiness They were holy before the Apostle calls them chap. 3.1 Holy brethren partakers of the heavenly calling They were such as had been sufferers for Christ and had suffered joyfully they had attained to assurance of their salvation chap. 10.32,33,34 Yet these persons were chastned that they might be made more holy Now seeing Gods design in this affliction is to make you partakers of his holiness let this affliction stir you up to follow after holiness if you had only a form of godliness a shew and appearance of holiness before now follow after the power truth reality of godliness if you had true holiness before labour now to be more holy be more holy in your hearts in your thoughts in your affections in your speech and discourse with all men be more holy in all manner of conversation 1 Pet. 1.15 As he which called you is holy so be ye holy in all manner of conversation This exhortation though it belong to all Gods called ones is more especially directed to such as are in affliction for to such this Epistle is directed as you may see ver 1 6. Let your sufferings excite you to do the works of your Callings in a more godly sort and to perform your Closet and Family Duties in a more holy manner to be more holy in your relative Duties to be more holy in your converses with all sorts of men and to express more of the power of holiness in all manner of conversation 4. God aims at the stirring of you up to a more close and humble walking with himself and to deal justly and mercifully with all men Micah 6.8 He hath shewed thee O man what is good and what doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God This God required at such a time as he was pleading a controversie with his people as you may see ver 2. The Lord hath a controversie with his people and he will plead with Israel And while he was pleading his controversie he destroyed Jerusalem the chiefest City of the Jews chap. 3.12 Zion shall be plowed as a field and Jerusalem shall become heaps And Samaria which was one of the principal Cities belonging to the ten Tribes Isa 7.9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria Micah 1.6 I will make Samaria as an heap of the field I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley and I will discover the foundations thereof Now when God had a great controversie with Israel and Judah for this Prophet was sent to both Kingdoms chap. 1.1 and was laying waste their chiefest Cities that which he required from the inhabitants with whom he was pleading his controversie was that they should do justly and love mercy and walk humbly with their God 5. God aims at making of you more fruitful by this affliction that you may bring forth both more and better fruit John 15.2 Every branch that beareth fruit he purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit When great wrath was coming upon the Jews and the axe was even laid to the root of the tree John the Baptist giveth them this exhortation Mat. 3.8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance Now if you would know what it is wherein God would have you more fruitful in you may be resolved from such Scriptures as these Gal. 5.22,23 The fruit of the Spirit is love joy peace long-suffering gentleness goodness faith meekness temperance Phil. 1.11 Being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God Col. 1.10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing being fruitful in every good work If then you would comply with Gods ends in your present affliction labour to be filled with the fruits of righteousness abound in all the fruits of the Spirit which are as you heard before love joy peace long-suffering gentleness goodness faith meekness and temperance Labour to be fruitful in every good work only remember in so doing that you bring forth your fruit to God and not to your selves Rom. 7.4 That we should bring forth fruit unto God for what fruit is brought forth for selfish ends God accounts next to none Hos 10.1 Israel is an empty vine he bringeth forth fruit unto himself SECT 7. 7. The losses and other afflictions which you have sustained by this dreadful Fire should stir you up to glorifie God Isa 24.15 Wherefore glorifie ye the Lord in the Fires even the name of the Lord God of Israel In the former part of the Chapter the Prophet speaks of a time of great desolation as ver 1. Behold the Lord maketh the earth empty and maketh it waste and turneth it up-side down and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof ver 3. The land shall be utterly emptied and utterly spoiled ver 11 12. All joy is darkned the mirth of the land is gone in the City is left desolation and the gate is smitten with destruction and then tells them what use they should make of these sore Judgments Glorifie ye the Lord in the fires When God is executing any remarkable Judgments it should awaken all men to glorifie God Rev 15.4 Who shall not fear thee O Lord and glorifie thy name for thy judgments are made manifest We read Rev. 14.6,7 That when it was an hour wherein God was executing his Judgments that an Angel cryed to every nation and kindred and tongue
upon it as Gods minde that you should embrace it for Gods distributing of abilities for an employment is one principal ingredient in those things which concur to the making out of our call to that employment 1 Cor. 7.17 As God hath distributed to every man as God hath called every one 3. Consider how God enclines your heart after you have sought him for Gods call to an employment may be gathered by his inclining of the heart unto it as in the case of the Levite Deut. 18.7,8 The ardent desire of his minde was one way of evidencing his call to Ministers in the Name of the Lord his God 4. Observe Gods providence which way that guides and leads you whilest you are waiting upon God for counsel for that is one way by which God guides and directs us namely by his providence Ps 32.8 I will instruct and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go I will guide thee with mine eye By the eye of God with which he will guide us we may understand his providence for so the eye of God is oft-times used to signifie his providence as Psal 34.15 Psal 33.18,19 It is true many men run into great mistakes by pretending to follow providence but this doth dot hinder but that such as regulate their lives by the word of God may in many cases receive light and direction from his Providence 5. Consider what Calling hath least temptations and snares in it and chuse that rather than a calling where you are like to be exposed to many temptations We ought as much as in us lieth to avoid temptations else why do we pray Lead us not into temptation Mat. 6.13 SECT 11. Obj. 11. I am afraid this Judgment came in wrath and that God is angry with me because he hath consumed and burnt all my Estate and that is it which most of all disquiets and troubles my minde namely that I look upon this Judgment as coming in wrath and do apprehend God is angry with me Answ 1. When God sends such great and dreadful Judgments upon any place as the late Fire was it is a token of his fierce anger and of his hot displeasure Psal 78.21 The Lord heard this and was wrath so a fire was kindled against Jacob and anger also came up against Israel Isa 66.15 Behold the Lord will come with fire to render his anger with fury and his rebuke with flames of fire 2. If this Judgement did come upon you in wrath yet you must bear it with a patient submissive spirit Micha 7.9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him To free or murmur at the taken of Gods wrath is not the way to appease but to increase the indignation of the Lord. 3. If you conceive that God is angry with you do what you can to pacifie his anger Solomon observes Prov. 16.14 The wrath of a King is as messengers of death but a wise man will pacifie it The wrath of God is more dreadful thâ—n the wrath of all the Kings in the world and therefore if you do apprehend God to be angry with you endeavour to get the Lords anger pacified and turned away from you If you ask How shall we get Gods anger pacified and turned away from us I answer 1. Turn from your sins and God will turn away his anger from you Jonah 8.9 Let them turn every one from his evil way and from the violence that is in their hands who can tell if God will turn and repent and turn away from his fierce anger that we perish not Jer. 3.12 Return thou back-sliding Israel saith the Lord and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you When the people of Israel did at the call of God turn from their sins God saith of Israel Mine anger is turned away from him Hosea 14.1,2,4 2. Turn to the Lord Jesus embrace and lay hold on Christ by a lively Faith and then Gods anger shall be turned away from you and the Lord will be at peace with you Isa 27.5 Let him take hold of my strength that he may make peace with me and he shall make peace with me By Gods strength here understand Christ who is called 1 Cor. 1.24 Christ the Power of God and the wisdom of God By taking hold of Gods strength understand believing in Christ if then you desire to make your peace with God follow the counsel which God himself giveth you to this purpose namely take hold of his strength for upon so doing you shall make peace with him God testifieth concerning Christ Mat. 3.27 This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased If you flee for refuge from the wrath of God unto Jesus Christ and cast your selves into his armes the Lord will be well pleased with you 3. Yield your selves to God to do and suffer his will what Solomon saith Eccles 10.4 Yielding pacifieth great offences 't is true in this case though you have greatly offended God if you yield your selves unto the Lord he will be pacified towards you and turn away his wrath from you 2 Chr. 30.8 Be ye not stiff-necked as your fathers were but yield your selves unto the Lord and serve the Lord your God that the fierceness of his wrath may turn away from you 4. Though this Judgment be the effect of Gods wrath yet there may be much love in it to many persons that have been great sufferers by this Fire The Lord sheweth love when he takes away our outward comforts and enjoyments and chastneth us with his rod as well as when he loadeth us with his benefits Heb. 12.6 Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth Psal 107.39,43 They are minished and brought low through oppression affliction and sorrow who so is wise and will observe these things even they shall understand the loving kindeness of the Lord. Now if you would know whether this affliction whereby you have been deprived of so great a part of your Estates came in love I will mention two or three things whereby you may know this and they will be of use to you in other afflictions also 1. Such afflictions as draw your souls nearer to God come from love for it is Gods love which causeth him to draw our souls to himself Jer. 31.3 With loving kindeness have I drawn thee Hosea 11.4 I drew them with cords of a man with bands of love Now how do you finde it with your selves in this respect do your losses put you upon seeking reconciliation with God do they stir you up to seek communion with God do they cause you to live and depend more upon his providence and promises if in any respect you finde them drawing your souls nearer to God you may conclude that God hath taken away your Estates out of love to your souls 2. Such afflictions as make us zealous in renewing our repentance come from love Rev. 3.19 As many as I love I rebuke and chasten be zealous therefore and repent 3.