the Saints sufferings but doth not see their crown and the Saints Crown is hid from their own eyes too for a while 1 Job 3. 2. It does not yet appear what we shall be our happiness that we hope for it is hid out of sight why if our crown be hid why may not our comforts be hid they are not better than our crown is But you will say unto me but why does the Lord thus hide the comforts of his people does he intend to bury them I answer no the Lord is all this while carrying on a desigh of mercy and love to the Saints Pray observe 1 st God hath a design in hiding their temporal comforts from them withdrawing them Secondly God hath a design in the hiding the Saints spiritual comforts and withdrawing them 1. The Lord hath a design in hideing the temporal comforts of his people God does it for this great end that he may lessen and unglew their hearts from the world We ost let the world have too great a share in our love It is a very hard thing to enjoy any temporal mercy and not make an Idol of it and therefore the Lord in wisdome and love hides and withdraws those comforts of the world from us As suppose that a husband were beyond the Sea and he should send his Wife a Jewel and she should be so taken with the Jewel as quite to forget her husband was it not time for him to send home for the Jewel again that she might love him more So it is here the Lord inricheth you with temporal mercies health and estate sends you these Jewels you are apt to fall in love with these Jewels and forget God that sent them It is time for God to call home for those Jewels that he might have more of your love Secondly God hath a design in hideing and withdrawing the spiritual comforts of his People their spiritual comforts as First Perhaps God sees that they cannot bear comfort comfort is not for all it is like strong Waters that break the Glass Joys are strong things all cannot bear it no more than a weak eye can bear the Sun When Peter was upon the Mount of Transfiguration the glory of Heaven began a little to shine in his eyes he was transported and said he knew not what those sugared joyes of Heaven were they are so sweet and ravishing that some have tasted of them and have died they have not been able to bear them therefore God hides and withdraws them all cannot bear comfort Secondly God may hide those spiritual comforts from Believers for a time that they may value them the more when they have them Oh brethren Did we come by our comforts easily as Water at the strst pumping we should begin to disesteem and vilifie our comforts that is our nature Though Manna was Angels food when it grew common it was slighted it was dis-esteemed VVhat is this Manna and who is this Moses they began to slight the Manna When Pearls grew common at Rome they slighted them and wore them upon their shoes so would we do with our spiritual comforts therefore God to inhaunce and raise the price of our spiritual comforts he does for a time suspend them hides them as the seed under ground Thirdly God may hide the spiritual comforts of his Children for trial he will try their ingenuity he will see what metal they are made of whether they will serve him for himself and not for comfort only It is a harlots love to love the Husbands money and tokens more than his person Such as serve God onely for Comforts they serve God more for his gifts than for himself We do dislike such as will do nothing for us without a Fee God likes not those Christians who will serve him only when he fees and bribes them with Comfort Fourthly God hides his peoples spiritual comfort that he may quicken the exercise of their Grace Many times Grace is strong when Comforts are weak Grace is at full-tide when Comforts are but at a low ebb Jonah 2. 4. I said I was cast out of thy sight There he had no comfort Yet will I look again to thy holy Temple There was a strong Faith Faith and Love like two starrs shine brightest in the darkest night In the night of dissertion we are taken with Comfort but God is more taken with the acting of our Grace The truth of it is when God sometimes gives his people spiritual comfort why then they are apt to be more remiss in their walking and they are not so quick and lively in duty as they were just like Musicians as soon as you throw them down mony out of the window they will leave off playing you will hear no more Musick The Lord with-holds comforts from his people sometimes because he loves to hear the musick of their Graces Fifthly God hides the Spiritual comfort of the Saints for a time that they may be more humble there is nothing the Saints are more apt to be proud of than spiritual comforts and enlargement because they look upon those things as most excellent therefore their hearts are apt to be lifted up Now when God takes away those comforts and hides them their hearts begin to be more humble St. Pauls danger was in being lifted up when he had so many Visions and Revelations Therefore he had a Thorn in his flesh to humble him It was an humbling Thorne 2 Cor. 10. 12. Lest that I should be exalted above measure thou hast given me a Thorn in the Elesh When Christians have much joy in their Spirits they need a thorn in the flesh to humble them It is a very hard thing to be high in joy and to be low in humility Oh what corruption is there in mans heart God cannot humble a Soul but it grows dejected and God cannot comfort him but he is ready to grow proud and therefore he is forced sometimes to withdraw spiritual comforts hide them as seed under ground God had rather you should want comfort than that you should be proud with your comforts Sixthly The Lord sometimes hides the spiritual comforts of his people and they walk in the dark and see no light that they may long the more to be in Heaven then their comforts shall be in perfection and shall never cease then the Saints they shall be upon the Mount of Vision seeing Gods glory ever and shall never complain more My beloved hath with drawn himself In Heaven they shall have nothing but comfort then because they have nothing but grace The Saints they shall be for ever sunning themselves in the light of Gods countenance Oh blessed time Believers they shall never have an angry word from God more they shall never see a frown in his face more the Sun-light of Gods favour will be without clouds and will never set and therefore God lets our comforts be hid as seed under ground that we may long for a Spring-time of glory
when the flowers of spiritual Joy shall be fully ripe and blown we shall have comsort and nothing but comfort There shall be no more weeping then in Heaven there shall be joy in Hell Now to make some Application of this Vse 1. Then if we see not Spiritual joy rising suddenly in our hearts let us not wonder you see God hath a design of love and mercy to his People who hides Spiritual comforts If God pleased he could presently let out the Sun-light of his face he could presently give us joy but he sees it better sometimes to be without it than have it the Sun dulls the fuel and puts it out The Sun-shine of comfort makes the fervour of grace abate Note therefore God hides the spiritual comforts of his Saints like seed under ground He is all this while carrying on a design of mercy and love to them To come to the next this thing is implyed in the Text Comfort may be hid as seed as seed under clodds Secondly I come to that which is express'd here in the Text Though the comforts of Believers are for a time hid out of sight as seed under ground why yet still a seed of comfort remains for the godly that is express'd in the Text. Light that is Comfort is sown for the righteous though comfort is hid for a time yet there is a seed of comfort still remaining for all the righteous this is methinks like a brest of consolation do but lay your faith to this brest and you may suck out comfort This is the observation The Doctrine is this That in the midst of all tryals and discomforts of the godly still there is a seed of comfort left for them Light is sown for the Righteous Psal 18. 28. For thow wilt light my Candle as if David had said though at present all my comforts they seem to be blown out why yet the Lord will light my Candle Light is sown for the Righteous Why now you will say Why will the Lord in great trials of his people preserve a seed of comfort for them Light is sown for them I answer God does it for this end that he may sweeten Religion to them if nothing were to be seen but sorrow and trouble nothing but the dark side of the cloud and there were no intervals it would imbitter Religion It would cast a prejudice upon the ways of God and therefore the Lord that he may shew you the beauty and pleasantness in Religion he does chequer his work and preserve some seeds of comfort in the worst of times this sweetens Religion Light is sown for the Righteous Now to illustrate this proposition to clear it to you in case the Lord does preserve alive seeds of comfort for his people First In their outward comfort Secondly In their spiritual agony and dissertion God preserves a seed of comfort for his people 1. In their outward trouble in persecutions in sufferings why now God preserves seeds of comfort there are two seeds of comfort sown for the righteous in time of Persecution 1. The Promises are seeds of comfort in Persecutions There is no promise made to prosperity but abundance of promises made to persecution these promises are seeds of comfort sown for the Righteous I will only instance in these four promises First God hath promised that he will moderate the sury of his Enemies he will in the day of the Rough wind stay the East wind God will blunt the edge of their Razor when their Spirits are sharpened against the Righteous God will blunt the edge he will moderate the stroke Psal 76. 10. The remainder of wrath thou shalt restrain That promise is a seed of Comfort Secondly The Lord hath promised that he will sanctifie our Afflictions and Persecutions to us they shall do us good Jer. 24. 5. They shall be carried captive but it is for their good to make them holy brightning their graces fitting them for glory fiery trials make good Christians Thirdly Promise in Persecution is this that God will proportion his strength to our tryals and this promise is a seed of comfort Psal 7. 39. He is their strength in the time of trouble either God will lighten our burthens or will strengthen our faith Fourthly Another promise is this in Persecution that God will in his time open the door of deliverance for his People when the Rod of the Persecutor hath done its work when it hath humbled and purified the Saints God he can soon throw away the Rod. 1 Cor. 10. 13. He will with the temptation make a way to escape Never was Gold-smith more curious to observe when the Gold is thorough-refined to take it out of the furnace than God is to watch the first season when his People are fit for deliverance then he will take his gold out of the furnace Why these promises are great seeds of comfort in an hour of Persecution Secondly As the promises are seeds of comforts so Persecution it self does carry in it seeds of comfort for the godly these two wayes Persecution it self hath seeds of comfort in it two wayes First Persecution ripens the sin of the Enemy and as their sin doth ripen so the godlys deliverance does hasten Secondly Persecutions have seeds of comfort in them as they are a means to distil comfort into the Soul The Saints have joy out of sorrow as Sampson had honey out of the Lion John 16. 20. You shall be sorrowful but your sorrow shall be turned into joy by the very Persecution God will let in more joy into the Soul your sorrow saith Christ shall be turned into joy here is water turned into wine The Soul hath never so much of God as in an hour of affliction this made Paul to glory in tribulations and as a Bird to sing in Winter 2 Cor. 7. 4. Thus you see the Saints very persecutions do carry in them seeds of comfort for them Light is sown for the Righteous Secondly The inward Agony of the Soul and dissertion still God preserves a seed of comfort in the Soul Light is sown for the Righteous When God hides his face from his people looks like an enemy draws a curtain between him and his people why yet all this while in this agony there is some seed of comfort left in the Soul But you will say what seeds are here These two 1. This is a seed of comfort in dissertion that God is still a God in Covenant there is a seed of comfort Though the Lord may forsake us in regard of Vision he will never forsake us in regard of Union The Covenant relation the Marriage relation still holds that is a seed of comfort A Husband he may be gone a long Voyage he may be a thousand Leagues off from his Wife Oh but still the Marriage relation holds between them God may be gone dissert the Soul but still the Marriage knot is bound God is a God in Covenant Isa 55. 53. I will make an everlasting
Covenant with you even the sure mercies of David Beloved Gods truth is the richest Jewel of his Crown and he hath laid this Jewel to pawn in the Covenant he hath promised he hath sworn it he will be our God eternally Though it is true we forseit the mercy of the Covenant yet God will not break the truth of the Covenant Psal 89. 28. My Covenant shall stand fast The earth does not alwayes stand fast that is shaken and removed as in some Earth-quakes Oh but faith God My Covenant shall stand fast Mat. 2. 16. The God of Israel faith that he hates putting away God that would not have other men put away their Wives do you think he will divorce his own Spouse the Lord hates putting away Here is seeds of comfort in dissertion Secondly In dissertion in a Spiritual Agony why now grace is a seed of comfort the tree may be without blossom and without fruit but still it is alive there is sap in the root of the tree there may be vital sap and grace in the heart though fruit of joy and assurance be not seen But a disserted soul will ask me this question when grace appears now in an hour of dissertion to be a seed of Joy and a seed of comfort I answer First The Soul mourns for Gods absence that shews grace It is a sign love is in thy heart else thou wouldest not Mourn for Gods absence When the Sun is gone the dew falls when God withdraws from the Soul why then the dew of tears that drops from the eye David felt this mourning lamenting Gods absence that is a sign of grace in the heart Secondly When the Lord hath left thee in dissertion a Christian hath quite loft his taste to all worldly comforts like one in a Fever every thing tastes bitter he takes content in nothing so long as he cannot enjoy God As Job speaks I may elude to it I went mourning without the Sun so a poor disserted Christian I go mourning up and down without the Sun God gives me some Star-light some worldly comfort what is all this still in a night of dissertion I went mourning without the Sun I cannot see Christs face the Son of Righteousness doth not sbine Is not this a seed of grace the Soul hath lost its taste to all worldly comfort he cannot taste the sweetness in Friends and estate as he could do 2 Sam. 14. 32. Saith Absolon Let me see the Kings face Oh nothing will satisfie a poor disserted Soul but to see the King of Heavens face to see Gods smiling countenance why this shewes that the Soul is deeply in love with God and ready to faint away for him this grace is a seed of comfort in an hour of dissertion thus you see light is sown for the Righteous Both outward troubles persecutions inward agonies dissertions thus you see light is sown for the Righteous seeds of comfort is still left in that Soul Let me now come to make some Application and the Lord give a blessing to it Three several inferences I shall draw from this Doctrine 1. See then from hence my Brethren the super-abundant goodness of the Lord to his people in the midst of all their sorrow and sufferings still he preserves a seed of comfort for them light is sown for the Righteous God does chequer his work with troubles he does intermix comfort like a Limner who mingles bright colours with dark shadows I may elude to that Scripture Zac. 14. 7. I do but elude to it It shall not be day nor night Neither day nor night the people of God they have some afflictions so that it is not day yet they have some seed of comfort in their Souls so that it is not night light is sown for them The condition of believers in this world is never so bad but they may spie mercy in it they may see some light they may behold a Rainbow in the black cloud Psal 148. 7. Though I walk in the borders of trouble thou wilt revive me Joseph was in prison there he was in affliction but the Lord was with Joseph there was a seed of comfort Paul had a thorn in the flesh there was his trouble but God said to him My grace shall be sufficient for thee there was a seed of comfort In the Ark there was laid up the Rod and Manna together truly in this life Gods people Gods suffering people with the Rod taste some Manna Oh the goodness of God that never brings his people so low but still reserves seeds of comfort for them that they may not murm ure but rather praise him in their worst condition that is the first inference Secondly If it be Gods work and his great design to sow seeds of comforts for the Righteous than what will we think of those who are sowing seeds of sorrow for the Righeous Surely these act directly against God there is a woe belongs to them that make the heart of the Righteous sad whom God will not have made sad Ezek. 13. 22. God is sowing light for his people and these men are laying snares for them God is powering in Wine and Oyl into his peoples wounds and they powre in Vinegar these act directly contrary to God who still would preserve seeds of comfort for the Saints We read in Scripture of Gods Bottle of his Bag of Gods Bottle Psal 56. 8. and of his Bag Job 14. 17. The Lord will put the tears of his Saints in his bottle and he will seal up the sins of the wicked in his bag such as afflict the righteous they strike at Christ through his Members sides let them take heed God is making his Bow and Arrows ready to shoot Psal 7. 13. The Lord ordains his Arrows against the Persecutors Never did any persecutor thrive on that trade but were broken at last Domanter and others ran mad and poysoned themseves If there be either Justice in Heaven or Fire in Hell Persecutors shall never go unpunished That is the second Thirdly See here the difference between the wicked and the godly Oh here is a great difference the godly in all their sorrows have seeds of comfort sown for them The wicked in all their comfort have seeds of sorrow sown for them What are those seeds of forrow that are sown for the wicked they are the threatnings of God Here be seeds of sorrow so long as the wicked and those seeds will come up Psal 68. 21. God shall wound the head of his enemies and the hairy scalp of such an one that goeth on in trespasses Why this threatning is a seed of sorrow sown for the wicked Oh it is a dreadful thing to be in the number of the wicked to be of the Devils black-guard the sinner he lives every day in fear of arresting there remains for him saith the Apoftle a fearful looking for a Judgment and fiery indignation Heb. 10. 27. A wicked man when he dies he drops into the grave