this To murmure when we enjoy abundance of mercy the greater and the more abundant the mercy is that we enjoy the greater and the â—iler is the sinne of murmuring as here now when God had newly delivered them out of the house of bondage for them now to murmure because they want some few particulars that they desire oh to sinne against God after a great mercy this is a great aggravation and a most abominable thing Now my Brethren the Lord hath granted us very great merces I le but speak a word of what God hath done of late what mercies hath the Lord granted to us this summer heaped mercies upon us one mercie upon another what a condition were we in at the begining of this summer and what a different condition are we in now Oh what a mercie is it that the Lord hath not taken advantages against us that he hath not made those Scriptures before mentioned good upon us for all our murmuring the Lord hath gone on with one mercie after another we hear of mercie in Bristoll and mercy to our Brethren in Scotland But still if after this we should have any thing befall us that is but crosse to us that we should be ready to murmur again presently Oh let us not so requite God for those mercies of his Oh let 's take heed of giving God any ill requitall for his mercies Oh give God praise according to his excellent greatnesse to his excellent goodnesse and grace And now hath God given to you the contentment of your hearts take you heed of being the cause of any griefe to your brethren think not that because God hath been gracious to you that therefore he hath given you liberty for to bring them into bondage Oh let not there be such an il effect of Gods mercie to you as for you for to exclude by petitioning or any other way your brethren that the Lord hath been pleased to make instruments of your peace let not that be the fruit of it nor to desire any thing that your selves do not yet understand God is very jealous of the glory of his mercy if there should be any ill use made of the mercy of God after we injoy it Oh it would go to the heart of God nothing is more greivious to the heart of God then the abuse of mercie As now if any way that is hard and rigid should be taken towards our Brethren and those especially that God hath made such speciall instruments of good to us that have been willing to venture their lives and all for us now when we have our turns served let God and his people and servants that have been a means to save us shift for themselves as well as they can Oh this is a great aggravation of your sin to sin against the mercies of God But for this aggravation and specially in this particular we shall speak to God willing the next day SERMON IX PHILIPPIANS 4. 11. For I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content NOw because it is very hard to work upon â— murmuring spirit there are divers aggravations I told you we are to consider of for the further setting out of the greatnesse of this sin I mentioned but only one the last day now wâ— shall proceed in that The first aggravation of the sin of discontent murmuring is this For men women to be discontent in the midâ—st of mercies in injoyment of abundance of mercies To be discontent in any afflicted condition is sinfull and evill but to be discontent when we are in the middest of Gods mercies when we are not able to count the mercies of God yet after to be discontent because we have not all we would have this is a greater evill I only mentioned this the last day that I might shew to you what a great sin it is at such a time as this The Lord this sommer hath multiplyed mercies one upon another the Lord hath made this summer to be a continued miracle of mercie never did a Kingdom injoy in so little space of time such mercies one upon another Now the publicke mercies of God should quiet our hearts and keep us from discontent and the sin of discontent for private afflictions is exceedingly aggravated by the consideration of publique mercies to the Land when the Lord hath bin so merciful to the Land wilt thou be fretting and murmuring because thou hast not in thy family all the Comforts that thou wouldest have As it is a great agravation of a mans evill for him to rejoyce immoderately in his owne privat comforts when the Church is in affliction when the publick suffers grievous and hard troubles if any man shall then rejoyce and give liberty to himself at that time to satisfie his fâ—esh to the uttermost in all outward comforts this is a great Agravation of his sin So on the contrary for any man to be immoderately troubled for any private afflictions when it goes well with the publick with the Churches this is a great Agravation of his sin It may be when the Church of God was lowest it went worst in other parts yet thou didst abate nothing of the comforts of thy flesh but gavest full liberty to satisfie thy flesh as formerly know this was thy great sin so on the other side when we have received such mercies in publick we should have all our private afflictions swallowed up in the publick mercies And we should think with our selves though we be afflicted for our particular yet blessed be God it goes well with the Church and with the publick the consideration of that should mightily quiet our hearts in all our privat discontents and if it doth not so know that our sin is much increased by the mercies of God that are abroad Now shall Gods mercies aggravate our sins This is a sad thing this is to turne the mercies of God to be our misery Didst not thou pray to God for these mercies that God hath sent of late to the publique these great victories that God hath given didest not thou pray for them now thou hast them is not there enough in them to quiet thy heart for some privat trouble thou meetest withall in thy family Is not there goodnesse enough there to cure thy discontentment certainly they were not such mercies so worthy to be prayed for except they have so much excellency in them as to countervail some private afflictions publick mercies are the aggravation of privat discontent As so of publick discontent too if we receive so many publick mercies yet if every thing goes not in the publick according as we desire if we be discontent at that it will exceedingly aggravate our sin God may say what shall I bestow such mercies upon a people and yet if they have not every thing they would have they will be discontent Oh it is exceeding evill So in particular the mercies that concernes thy selfe thy family if thou wouldest
consider thou hast a great many more mercies then thou hadest afflictions I dare boldly aver it concerning any one in this congregation suppose thy afflictions to be what they will there is never a one of you but that have more mecies then afflictions Object You will say I but you doe not know what our afflictions are our afflictions are so as you doe not conceive of them because you feel them not Answ Though I cannot know what your afflictions are yet I know what your mercies are and I know they are so great as I am sure there can be no afflictions in this world so great as the mercies you have If it were but this mercie that you have this day of grace and salvation continued to you it 's a greater mercy then any affliction set any affliction by this mercy and see which would weigh heaviest this is certainly greater then any affliction that you have the day of grace and salvation that you are not now in hell this is a greater mercy That you have the sound of the Gospel yet in your ears that you have the use of your reason this is a greater mercy then your afflictions that you have the use of your limbs yout sences that you have the health of your bodies health of body is a greater mercy then poverty is an affliction there is no man that is rich but if he be wise if he hath a sickly body he would part with al his riches that he might have his health therefore thy mercies are more then thy afflictions We find in Scripture how the Holy Ghost doth agravate the sin of discontent from the consideration of mercies you have a notable Scripture for it in the 16. of Numb 8. verse c. It 's a speech of Mâ—ses to Korah and his company when they murmured And Moses said unto Korah hear I pray you yee sâ—ns of Levi there 's somewhat that you are sons of Levi Seemeth it but a small thing unto you that the God of Israel hath separated you from the Congregation of Israel to bring you neer to himselfe to doe the service of the Tabernacle of the Lord and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them Korah and his company were murmuring but marke how Moses agravates this Seemeth it a small thing unto you that the God of Israel hath separated you from the Congregation of Israel to bring you neer to himselfe to doe the service of the Tabernacle of the Lord c. You see 't is a great honour that God puts upon a man a great mercy that he doth bestow upon any man to separate him from others for himselfe to come neer to him to imploy him in the service of the Tabernacle to minister to the Congregation in holy things this is a great mercy and indeed it 's such a mercy as one would think there should be none that God bestows such a mercy upon that should have a murmuring heart for any affliction It 's true many Ministers of God they meet with hard things that might discourage them and trouble and grieve their spirits but now this consideration that God is pleased to imploy them in such a service neer to himselfe that though they cannot doe good to themselves yet they may do good to others this should quiet them And yet in the 10. verse And he hath brought thee neer to him and all thy Brethren the Sons of Levi with thee and seeke yee the Priest-hood also have not you enough already but still you are discontented with what you have and must have more seek ye yet more Seek ye the Priest-hood also for which cause both thou and all thy Company are gathered together against the Lord And what is Aaron that yee murmure against him what hath God given you such things and yet will you be murmuring because you cannot have more me thinks that this place should keep Ministers from murmuring though they should meet with never such afflictions and crosses and unkind dealings from men yet still they should go on with hearts quieted and comforted in the work that God hath set them about and labour to countervaile all their Afflictions by being more abundant in the work of the Lord that is the first text of Scripture that shewes how the mercies we enjoy are Agravations to the sin of murmuring And then a second Scripture is in the 2. of Job 10. ver A speech of Job to his wife what saith Iob when his wife would have had him cursse God and die that was a degree beyond murmuring why saith he thou speakest as one of the foolish women shall we receive good at the hand of God and not evill you see Iob did help himselfe against all murmuring thoughts against the ways of God with this consideration that he had received so much good from the Lord what though we receive evill yet doe not we receive good as well as evill let us set one against the other that 's the way we should go In the 7. of Ecclesiastes the 14. vers you have a notable Scripture there whereby you may see what course is to be taken when the heart rises in murmuring In the day of prosperity be joyfull but in the day of Adversity consider what should they consider mark what follows God also hath set the one over against the other to the end that man should find nothing after him God also hath set the one over against the other that 's thus when thou art in prosperity then indeed every man can be joyfull but what if Afflictions befals him what then then consider consider what That God hath set one over against the other thou hast a great deal of Affliction and thou hast had a great deal of prosperity thou hast many troubles and thou hast had many mercies make one column of mercies and one colume of afflictions and write one against the other and see if God hath not fill'd one colume as full as the other you look altogether upon your afflictions but look upon your mercies also for instance It may be God hath afflicted you in one child but he hath been mercifull to you in another child set one against the other God afflicted David in Absolom but he was mercifull to David in Solomon and therefore when David cryed out oh Absolom my Son my Son if David had thought upon Solomon and cryed oh Solomon my son my son it would have quieted him And it may be God hath been mercifull to thee in a wife or in thy husband set that against thy affliction it may be God crosses thee in thy estate but it may be he doth imploy thee in his service it may be thou art afflicted in some of thy friends but thou hast other friends that are great mercies to thee and therefore you should set one against the other and it doth concerne you so to doe for those mercies will be agravations of your sins and you had better make Gods
by what he finds in himself 57 He fetcheth supply from the Covenant Page 61 1 In Generall ibid 2 From particular promises 64 14 He realliseth the things of Heaven 67 15 He letteth his heart out to God ibid Lessons whereby Christ teacheth Contentment 1 Self-deniall 68 Whereby a Christian knows 1 That he is nothing 69 2 That he deserves nothing ibid 3 That he can do nothing 70 4 That he can receive no good of himself ibid 5 If God withdraw himself he can make use of nothing ibid 6 That he is worse than nothing 71 7 That there is no loss of him if he perish ibid 8 That he comes to rejoyce in Gods waies 72 2 Lesson To know the vanity of the Creature 73 3 Lesson to know that one thing wherefore 74 SERMON V 4 Lesson To know his relation in this world 76 5 Lesson Wherein the good of the Creature is Page 79 6 Lesson The knowledge of his own heart 82 Which helps to Contentment 1 By discovering wherein discontent lies ibid 2 By knowing what is suitable to our condition 83 3 By this we know what we are able to mannage 84 7 Lesson To know the burden of a prosperous estate 85 Which is four fold 1 The burden of trouble ibid 2 The burden of danger 86 3 The burden of duty 89 4 The burden of account ibid 8 Lesson A great evill to be given up to our own hearts desire 91 SERMON VI 9 Lesson The right knowledge of Gods providence 94 Wherein four things 1 The universality of it ibid 2 The efficacy of it 95 3 The variety of it ibid 4 Gods particular dealing with his people 97 In three things 1 They are ordinarily in affliction 98 2 When he intends them greatest mercies he brings them lowesi ibid 3 He works by contraries Page 99 The excellency of Contentment 1 Excellency By it we give God his due worship 101 2 Excel In it there is much exercise of grace 103 1 There is much strength of grace ibid 2 There is much beuty of grace 104 3 Excel The soul is fitted to receive mercy 106 4 Excel It is fitted to do service 107 5 Excel Contententment delivers from temptation 108 6 Excel It brings abundance of comfort 110 7 Excel It fetcheth in that that we possess not 111 In 4 particulars 131 SERMON VII 8 Excel Contentment a great blessing of God upon the soule 115 9 Excel A contented man may expect reward 116 10 Excel By Contentment the soul comes neerest the Excellency of God himself 117 â—se 1 To be humbled for want of Contentment Page 118 The Evils in a murmuring spirit 1 It is an Argument of much corruption in the soul 119 2 It is a note of a wicked man 120 3 Murmuring is accounted Rebellion 121 4 It is exceeding contrary to grace in conversion 122 The works of God in conversion 1 To make us sensible of the evill in sin 123 2 A sight of the excellency of Christ ibid 3 Taking the heart from the creature ibid 4 Casting the soul on Christ for all good 124 5 Subduing the soul to Christ as King ibid 6 Giving up the soul to God in Covenant 125 5 Evill Murmuring below a Christian 126 1 Below his relation 1 To God as a Father ibid 2 To Christ as a spouse ibid 3 To Christ as a member 127 4 To Christ as a Co-heir ibid 5 To Gods Spirit as a temple ibid 6 To Angels as one with them ibid 7 To Saints as of the same body ibid 2 Below his dignity Every Christian a King Page 128 3 It is below the spirit of a Christian 129 4 Below the profession of a Christian 131 5 Below the grace of faith ibid SERMON VIII 6 Below the helps of a Christian 132 7 Below the expectation of a Christian ibid 8 Below what other Christians have done 133 6 Evill by murmuring we undoe our prayers ibid 7 Evill The effects of a muring heart 1 Loss of much time 134 2 Vnfitness for Duty ibid 3 Wickedrisings of heart 135 4 Vnthankfulness ibid 6 Shifting 138 8 Evill Discontent a foolish sinne ibid 1 It takes away the comfort of what we have ibid 2 We cannot help our selves by it 139 3 It causeth foolish carriage to God and man ibid 4 It takes out the sweetness of mercies before they come ibid 5 It makes Affliction worse 141 9 Evill It provokes the wrath of God ibid 10 Evill There is a curse upon it Page 146 11 Evill There is much of the spirit of Satan in it 147 12 Evill It brings an absolute necessity of disquiet ibid 13 Evill God may justly withdraw his protection from such ibid Agravations of the sin of murmuring 1 Agravation The greater the mercies the greater the sin of murmuring 150 SERMON IX 2 Agrav When we murmur for small things 157 3 Agrav When men of parts and abilities murmur 158 4 Agrav The freeness of Gods mercy ibid 5 Agrav Discontent for what we have 159 6 Agrav When men are raised frrom a low condition ibid 7 Agrav When men have bin great sinners 160 8 Agrav When those murmur that are of little use in the world 161 9 Agrav To murmur when God is about to humble us ibid 10 Agrav When Gods hand is apparâ—nt in an affliction Page 162 11 Agrav To murmur under long afflictions 163 Pleas of a discontented heart 1 Plea I am but sensible of my affliction 1 Sense of affliction takes not away sense of mercies 165 2 It hinders not Duty ibid 3 It will make us bloss God for the mercies of others ibid 2 Plea My trouble is for my sins 1 It is not if you were not troubled for sin before 166 2 When the greatest care is to remove affliction ibid 3 If after affliction is removed sin troubles not ibid 4 If there be not care to avoid sin after 167 5 There is the more cause to accept of the punnishment ibid 3 Plea God withdrawâ— himselfe 1 We think God is departed when he doth but afflict 168 2 Disquiet is a sign and cause of Gods departure ibid 3 If God depart from us we should not from him 169 4 Plea I am troubled for mens ill dealing 1 Men are Gods instruments 170 2 We should rather pittie them then murmur Page 171 3 We have righteous dealing with God ibid SERMON X 5 Plea It is an affliction I looked not for 1 It is folly not to look for afflictions ibid 2 We should be more carefull of our carriage in it 172 6 Plea The affliction is exceeding great 1 It is not so great as thy sins ibid 2 It might have bin greater 173 3 It is greater for thy murmuring ibid 7 Plea It is greater then others afflictions Answered in 4 things 173 8 Plea If any other affliction they could be Content Answered in 4 things 174 9 Plea My afflictions make me unservicable to God 1 Though thou art mean thou art a member of the
know they had not such sweetnesse but how this comes they cannot tell and we may shew some particulars even in that godly men do injoy that makes their condition to be sweet As now Take these four or five particulars that a godly man finds Contentment in what he hath though it be never so little 1. Because in what he hath he hath the love of God he hath Gods love to him in what he hath If a King should send a peice of meat from his own table it is a great deal more comfortable to a Courtier then if he had twenty dishes at ordinary allowance if the King send but any little thing and say go and carry this to such a man as a token of my love Oh how delightful is that unto him are your husbands at Sea and send you a token of their love it is more then forty times so much that you have in your houses already Every good thing the people of God do injoy they injoy it in Gods love as a token of Gods love and coming from Gods eternal love unto them and this must needs be very sweet unto them 2. What they have it is sanctified to them for good Other men have what they injoy in a way of common providence but the saints in a speciall way Others have what they have and there is all they have meate and drinke and houses and cloathes and money and that 's all But a gracious heart finds contentment in this I have it and I have a sanctified use of it too I find God going along with what I have to draw my heart neerer to him and sanctifie my heart to him If I find my heart drawn nearer to God by what I injoy it 's more a great deal then if I have it without any sanctifying of my heart by it there 's a secret dew that goes along with it there 's the dew of Gods love in it and the dew of sanctification 3. A gracious heart what he hath he hath it upon free cost he is not like to be called to pay for what he hath The difference between what a godly man hath and a wicked man is in this A godly man is as a child in an Inne an In keeper hath his child in his house and the Father provides his dyet and lodging and what is fit for him Now there comes a stranger and the stranger hath dinner and supper provided and lodging but the stranger must pay for all it may be the childs fare is meaner then the fare of the stranger the stranger hath boyld and rost and baked but he must pay for it there must come a reckoning for it Iust thus it is many of Gods people have but mean fare but God as a Father provides it and it is on free cost and they must not pay for what they have it is paid for before but the wicked in all their pomp and pride and bravery they have what they call for but there must come a reckoning for all they must pay for all in the conclusion and is it not better to have a little upon free cost then to come to have all to pay for Grace doth shew a man that what he hath he hath it on free cost from God as from a Father and therefore must need be very sweet Fourthly a godly man may very well be content though he hath but little for what he hath he hath it by right of Iesus Christ by the purchase of Iesus Christ he hath a right to it another manner of right to what he hath then any wicked man can have to what he hath a wicked man hath these outward things I doe not say they are usurpers of what they have but they have a right to it and that before God but how it is a right by meer donation that is God by his free bounty doth give it to them but the right that the Saints have it is a right of purchase it is paid for and it is their own and they may in a holy manner and holy way challenge whatsoever they have need of We cannot expresse the right of a holy man the difference between his right and the right of the wicked more fully then by this similitude a Malefactor that is condemned to â—â—â— yet he hath by favourgranted to him his supper provided over night and you cannot say though the Malefactor hath forfeited all his right to all things to every bit of bread yet if he shall have a supper granted to him he doth not steale it though all his right is forfeited by his fault after he is once condemned he hath no right to any thing so it is with the wicked they have forfeited all their right to all comforts in this world they are condemned by God as Malefactors and are going to execution but if God will in his bounty give them something to preserve them here in the world they cannot be said to be thieves or robbers Now a man hath granted to him a supper overnight before his execution but is that like the supper that he was wont to have in his own house when he eat his own bread and had his wife and children about him oh a dish of green herbs at home would be a great deal better then any dainties in such a supper as that is but now a child of God hath not a right meerly by donation but what he hath it is his own through the purchase of Christ every bit of bread that thou eatest if thou beest a godly man or woman Iesus Christ hath bought it for thee thou goest to market and buiest thy meat and drink with thy money but know that before thou hast bought it or paid money Christ hath bought it at the hand of God the Father with his blood thou hast it at the hands of men for money but Christ hath bought it at the hand of his Father by his blood And certainly it is a great deale better and sweeter now though it be but a little Fifthly there 's another thing that shews the sweetnesse that there is in that little that the Saints have by which they come to have contentment whereas others cannot that is Every little that they have it is but as an earnest penny for all the glory that is reserved for them it is given them by God but as the Fore-runner of those eternall mercies that the Lord intends for them now if a man hath but twelve pence given to him as an earnest penny for some great possession that he must have Is not that better then if he had forty pounds given unto him otherwise So every comfort that the Saints have in this world it is an earnest penny to them of those eternall mercies that the Lord hath provided for them as every affliction that the the wicked have here it is but the beginning of sorrows and fore-runner of those eternall sorrows that they are like to have hereafter in Hell so
gracious you shall have them lie under grievous pains and extremities very cheerfully and you wonder at it this is the way that he gets it he gets it by acting his faith upon what pains Iesus Christ did suffer thou art afraid of death the way to get Contentment it is by exercising thy faith upon the death of Iesus Christ yea le may be thou hast inward troubles in thy soule and God with draws himselfe from thee but still thy faith is to be exercised upon the sufferings that Iesus Christ indured in his soule he poured forth his soule before God then when he sweat drops of water and blood he was in an Agony in his very spirit and he found even God himselfe in a way to forsake him now the acting thy faith upon Iesus Christ thus brings Contentment and is not this a mysterie to carnall hearts a gracious heart finds Contentment in a way of a mysterie no marvell though Saint Paul saith I am instructed in a Mysterie to be contented in whatsoever condition I am in In the eleventh place there is yet a further Mysterie for this I hope you will find a verie usefull point unto you and you will see what a plaine way there is before we have done for one that is skil'd in Religion to get contentment though it 's hard for one that is carnall I say the eleventh mystery in contentment is this A gracious heart hath contentment by fetching strength from Jesus Christ he is able to beare his burden by fetching strength from auother now this is a riddle indeede and it would be a rediculous thing to be spoken of in the schooles of philosophers to say if there be a burden upon you you must fetch strength from another indeed to have another to come and stand under the burden that way they would know but that you shall be strengthned by anothers strength that is not neer you to your outward view that they would thinke rediculous but now a christian finds satisfaction in every condition by geting strength from another by going out of it's selfe to Jesus Christ and by faith acting upon Christ and bringing the strength of Jesus Christ into it's own soul and thereby is inabled to bear whatsoever God lays upon him by the strength that he finds from Jesus Christ of his fullness doe we receave grace for grace there is strength in Christ not onely to sanctifâ—e and save us but strength to support us under all our burdens and afflictions and Christ expects that when we are under any burden that we should act our faith upon him to draw vertue and strength from him the acting of faith that 's the great grace that is to be acted under afflictions it 's true other graces should be acted but the grace of faith it drawes strength from Christ in looking upon him that hath the fullnes of all strength to be convayed into the hearts of all beleevers Now if a man hath a burden upon him yet if he can have strength added to him if the burden be doubled yet if he can have his strength to be trebled the burden will not be heavier but lighter then it was before to our naturall strength Indeed our afflictions may be heavie and we cry out oh we cannot bear them we cannot bear such an affliction Though thou canst not tell how to bear it with thine owne strength yet what canst thou tell what thou shalt doe with the strength of Jesus Christ Thou saist thou canst not bear it ' why doest thou thinke that Christ could not bear it if Christ could bear it why mayest not thou come to bear it You will say can I have the strength of Christ Yea that is made over to thee by faith so the Scripture saith that the Lord is our strength God himself is our strength and Christ is our strength divers scriptures we have that way that Christs strength is thine made over to thee that so thou mayest be able to bear whatsoever lies upon the and therfore we find such a strange kind of expression in the Epistle of saint Paul to the Colloâ—sians praying for the saints that they might be strengthned with all might according unto his glorious power unto what Vnto all patience and long suffering with joyfullnesse Strengthned with all might according to the power of God the glorious power of God unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness you may not therefore be content with a litle strength so that you are able to bear what a man might bear by the strength of reason and nature But to be strengthened with all might according to the glorious power of God unto all patience and to all long-suffering Oh you that are now under very heavey and sad afflictions more then ordinary look upon this Scripture and consider how this Scripture is made good in you why may you not have this Scripture made good in you if you be godly You should not be quiet in your own spirits except that you in some measure do get this Scripture to be made good in you so that you may with some comfort say through Gods mercy I find that strength coming in to me that is here spoken of in this Scripture You should labour when you are under any great affliction you that are godly to walk so that others may see such a Scripture made good in you Here is the glorious power of God that doth strengthen his servants to all long suffering and that with joyfulnesse Alâ—â—ie may be you do not exercise so much patience as a wise man or a wise woman that hath but natural reason â—ut where is the power of God the glorious power of God where s the strengthening with all might unto all long-suffering and patience and that with joyfulnesse It is true the spirit of a man may be able to sustain his infirmities may be able to sustain and keep up his spirits the naturall spirit of a man but much more then when this spirit is acted with grace and holinesse and when it is fill'd with the strength of Jesus Christ this is the way of a godly mans getting Contentment the Mystery of it â— it is by fetching in strength from Jesus Christ Twelfthly Another Mystery that there is in it it is That a godly heart injoys much of God in every thing it hath and doth know how to make up all wants in God himself that is another Mysterie he hath God in what he hath that I spoke too somwhat before in shewing the dew of Gods blessing in what he hath for God is able to let out a great deal of his power in little things and therefore the miracles that God hath wrought have been as much in little things as in great now as God lets out a great deal of his power in working miracles in smaler things so he lets out a great deal of goodnesse and mercy in comforting and rejoycing the hearts of his people in little things
heart yeilds to the stroke and thereby comes to this Contentment Now in this lesson of self-denial there are divers things I will not enter into the doctrine of self-deniall but only shew you how Christ teaches self-deniall and how that brings Contentment First Such a one learns to know that he is nothing he comes to this to be able to say well I see I am nothing in my self now that man or woman which indeed knows that he or she is nothing and hath learned it throughly will be able to bear any thing The way to be able to bear any thing it is to know our selves to be nothing in our selves Saith God to us Wilt thou set thine heart upon that which is nothing Pro. 23. 5. speaking of riches Why blessed God doest not thou do so thou hast set thy heart upon us and yet we are nothing God would not have us set our hearts upon riches because they are nothing and yet God is pleased to set his heart upon us and yet we are nothing that 's Gods grace free grace and therefore it 's no great matter what I suffer for I am as nothing Secondly I deserve nothing I am nothing and I deserve nothing suppose I have not this and that that others have I am sure I deserve nothing except it be hell you will answer any of your servants so that is not content I marvail what you deserve or your Children do you deserve it that you are so eager upon it you think to stop their mouthes thus so we may easily stop our own mouthes we deserve nothing and therefore why should we be impatient if we have not what we desire if we had deserved any thing we might have some trouble of spirit as a man that hath deserved well of the State or of his friends and he finds not an answerable incouragement it troubles him mightily but if he be concious to hiâ—self that he hath deserved nothing he is content with a repulse Thirdly I can do nothing without me you can do nothing saith Christ Joh. 15. 5. why should I stand much upon it to be troubled and discontented if I have not this and that when the truth is I can do nothing If you should come to one that is angery because he hath not such dyet as he desires and is disconted with it you will answer him I mervail what you doe what use you are of Shall one that will sit still and be of no use yet for all that he must have all the supply that possibly he can desire Do but consider of what use you are in the world if you consider what little need God hath of you and what little use you are of you will not be much discontented If you have learned this lesson of self-deniall though God doth cut you short of such and such comforts yet since that I do but little why should I have much this very thought will bring down a mans spitit as much as any thing That 's the Third Fourthly So vild I am that I can receive no good neither of my self I am not only an empty vessel but a corrupt and unclean vessell that would spoil any thing that comes into it so are all our hearts every one of our hearts is not only empty of good but are like a mustie vessel that if any good licquor be powred into it it spoils it And that 's the Fourth thing Fifthly If God doth cleanse us in some measure and doth put into us some good licquor some grace of his Spirit yet in the fifth place we can make use of nothing neither when we have it if God doth but withdraw himself If God doth but leave us one moment after he hath bestowed upon us the greatest gifts and whatsoever abilities we can desire if God should say I will give you them now go and trade now I have given you these and these abilities we cannot stir one foot further neither if God doth but leave us Doth God give us gifts and parts Then let us fear and tremble least God should leave us to our selves for then how foully should we abuse those gifts parts you think other men and women have memorie and gifts and parts and you would fain have them But suppose God should give you these and there leave you you would utterly spoile them Sixly We are worse then nothing for by sin we come to be a great deal worse then nothing sin makes us more vild then nothing sin makes us contrary to all good now it 's a great deal worse to have a contrariety to all that is good then meerly to have an emptiness of all that is good we are not empty pitchers in respect of good but we are like pitchers fill'd with poison and is it much for such as we are to be cut short of outward comforts In the Seventh place If we perish there will be no loss of us If God should anihilate me what loss would there be of me God can raise up an other in my place to do him other maÌ„ner of service then I have done Now put but these seven things together and then hath Christ taught you Self-denial I may call these the several words in our lesson of Self-denial Christ teaches the soul this so that as in the presence of God upon a real sight of its self it can say Lord I am nothing Lord I deserve nothing Lord I can do nothing I can receive nothing and can make use of nothing I am worse then nothing and if I come to nothing and perish ' there will be no losse at all of me and therefore what great matter is it for me to be cut short here A man that is little in his own eyes such a man or woman will account every affliction to be little and every mercy to be great Saul There was a time the Scripture saith that he was little in his own eyes and then his afflictions were but little to him when some would not have had him to be King but spake contemptuously of him he held his peace but when Saul began to be big in his own eyes then the affliction began to be great upon him There was never any such contented man or woman as this self-denying man or woman There was never any denied himself so much as Jesus Christ did he gave his cheeks to the smiters he opened not his mouth he was as a lamb when he was led to the slaughter he made no noise in the street Oh he denyed himself above all and was willing to empty himselfe and so he was the most contented that ever any was in the world the neerer we come to learn to deny our selves as Christ did the more contented shall we be by knowing much of out own vilenesse we come to learn to justifie God whatever the Lord shall lay upon us yet righteous is the Lord for he hath to deal with a most wretched creature A disconteÌ„ted
other Countries and through Gods mercy we have as great accomodations in our travelling to Heaven in England as any place under Heaven hath but yet though we do meet with travellers fare sometimes yet it should not be greiveous to us The Scripture tels us plainly that we must behave our selves here but as pilgrims and strangers In 1 Peter 2. 11. Dearly beloved I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the Soul Consider what your condition is you are pilgrims and strangers do not think to satisfie your selves here A man when he comes into an Inn If there be a fair cupbord of plate he is not troubled that it is not his own Why Because he is going away so let us not be troubled when we see other men have great estates but we have not Why we are going away into another Country you are lodging here but as it were for a night If you should live an hundered yeers in comparison of eternity it is not so much as a night it is but as you were travelling and were come into an Inn And were not this a madnesse for a man to be discontent because he hath not what he sees there seeing it may be he is to go away again within halfe a quarter of an hour So you find it in David this was the argument that brought off Davids heart from the things of this world and set him upon other maner of things Psal 119. 19. I am a stranger in the earth hide not thy Commandements from me I am a stranger in the earth what then then Lord let me have the knowledge of thy Commandements and it's sufficient as for the things of the earth I stand not upon them whether I have much or little but hide not thy Commandements from me Lord let me know the rule that I should guide my life by Again we are not only travellers but souldiers this is the condition of the life in which we are here in this world and therefore we are to behave our selves accordingly So the Apostle makes use of this argument in writing unto Timothy 2 Tim. 2. 3. Thou therfore endure hardnesse as a good souldier of Jesus Christ the very thought of the condition of a man that is a souldier doth still his disquiet of heart when he is abroad he hath not that accomodations in his quarters as he hath in his owne family perhaps a man that had his bed and curtaines drawne about him and all accomodations in his chamber now perhaps some times he must be put to lie upon straw and he thinketh with himselfe I am a souldier and it is sutable to my condition he must have his bed warm'd at home but he must lie abroad in the fields when he is a souldier and the very thought of this condition in which he stands quiets him in all things yea and he goes rejoycing to think this is but sutable to my condition in which God hath put me so it should be with us in respect of this world Now would it not be an unseemely thing to see a souldier go whyning up and downe with the finger in the eye and complayning that he hath not hot meat every meale and his bed warm'd as he had at home Now Christians they know that they are in their warfare they are here in this world fighting and combating with the enemyes of their souls and eternal condition and they must be willing to endure hardnes here The right understanding of this that God hath put them into such a condition it is that that will content them especially when they consider that they are certain of the victory and that ere long they shall tryumph with Jesus Christ and then all their sorrowes shall be don a way and their teares wiped from their eyes A souldier is content to indure hardnes though he knows not that he shall have the victory but a Christian knows himselfe to be a souldier and knows that he shall conquer and triumph with Jesus Christ to all eternity And that 's the fourth lesson that Christ doth teach the soul when he brings it into his School to learn the Art of Contentment he makes him understand throughly the relation in which he hath blaced him in in this world The fifth lesson that Christ teaches it is this He teacheth us wherein consists any good that is to be enjoyed in any creature in the world it 's true before it hath been taught that there is a vanity in the Creature that is take the Creature considered in its selfe but yet though there be a vanity in the Creature in its selfe in respect of satisfying the Soul for its portion yet there is some goodnesse in the Creature though there be a vanity there 's some desirablenesse But wherein doth that consist It consists not in the nature of the Creature it selfe for that is nothing but vanity but it consists in the reference it hath to the first being of all things this is a Lesson that Christ teaches if there be any good in an estate or in any comforts in this world it is not somuch that it pleases my sense that it is sutable to my body but the reference it hath to God the first being that by these creatures there should be somewhat of Gods goodnesse conveyed to me and I may have a sanctified use of the creature to draw me neerer to God and that I enjoy more of God and be made more serviceable for the glory of God in the place where God hath set me here 's the good of the Creature Oh were we but instructed in this Lesson did we but understand and throughly beleeve this to be a truth that there is no creature in all the world hath any goodnesse in it any further then it hath reference to the first infinit supream good of all that so farre as I can enjoy God in it so farre it is good to me and so fare as I doe not enjoy God in it so farre there is no goodnesse in any thing that I have in the Creature how easie were it then for one to be contented as thus suppose a man had a great estate but a few years agoe and now it is all gone I would but appeale to this man when you had your estate wherein did you account the good of that estate to consist a carnall heart would say any body might know that that it brought me in so much a year and that I could fare of the best and be a man of repute in the place where I live and men would regard what I said I might be cloathed as I would and lay up portions for my children in this consisted the good of my estate this man now never came into the Schoole of Christ to know wherein the good of an estate did consist no marvail if he be disquieted when he hath lost his estate But now a Christian that hath been in the School
of Christ and hath been instructed in the art of Contentment when such a one hath an estate he thinks in that I have an estate above my brethren in this consists the good of it to me in that I have an opportunity to serve God the better and I enjoy a great deal of Gods mercy to my Soule conveyed to me through the Creature and hereby I am inabled to doe a great deal of good and therein I account the good of my estate Now God hath taken this away from me now if God will be pleased to make up the enjoyment of himselfe another way that is will call me to honour him by suffering and if I may doe God as much service now in my way of suffering that is to shew forth the Grace of his spirit in the way of my suffering as I did in the way of prosperity I have as much of God as I had before if I may be led to God in my low condition as much as I was in my prosperous condition I have as much comfort and contentment as I had before Ob. But you will say it is true if I could honour God in my low estate as much as in my prosperous estate then it were somewhat but how can that be Answ You must know the speciall honour that God hath from his creatures in this world it is the manifestation of the Graces of his spirit It 's true God hath a great deal of honour when a man is in a publick place and so he is able to do a great deal of good to countenance Godlinesse and discountenance Sin but the main thing is in our shewing forth the vertues of him that hath called us out of darknesse into his marvellous light Now if I can say that through Gods mercy in my affliction I find the Graces of Gods spirit working as strongly in me as ever they did when I had my estate I am where I was yea I am fully in as good a condition for I have that good now that I had in my prosperous estate for I accounted the good of it but in my enjoyment of God and honouring of God and now God hath blest the want of it to stir up the Graces of his spirit in my soule and this is the worke that now God cals me to and I must account God is most honoured when I doe the worke that he cals me to he set me a worke in my prosperous estate at that time to honour him in that condition and now he sets me a work at this time to honour him in this condition Now God is most honoured when I can turne from one condition to another according as he cals me to it would you account your selves to be honoured by your servants when you set them about a worke that hath some excellency and they will go on and on and you cannot get them off from it Now let the work be never so good yet if you will call them off to another work you doe expect that they should manifest so much respect to you as to be content to come off from that though they be set about a meaner work if it be more sutable to your ends So you were in a prosperous estate and there God called you to some service that you took some pleasure in but suppose God saith I will use you in suffering condition and I will have you honour me in that way now here 's the honouring of God that you can turn this way or that way as God cals you to it thus now you having learned this that the good of the Creature consists in the enjoyment of God in it and the honouring of God by it you can be content because you have the same good that you had before and that 's the fift Lesson The sixt Lesson that Christ doth teach the Soul that hee brings into this School is this He doth instruct such a man or woman in the knowledge of their own hearts you must learn this or you will never learn Contentment you must learne to know your own hearts well to be good students of your own hearts you cannot all be Schollers in the arts and sciences in the world but you may all be students in your own hearts you cannot reade in the Booke many of you but God expects that every day you should turn over a leafe in your own hearts you will never come to get any skill in this Mysterie except you study the Book of your own hearts Marriners they have their Books that they study those that will be good Navigators and Schollers they have their Books those that study Logick they have their Books according to that and those that would study Rhetorick and Philosophy have their Books according to that and those that study Divinity they have their Books whereby they come to be helped in the study of Divinity but a Christian next to the Book of God is to look into the Book of his own heart and to read over that and this will helpe you to Contentment these three ways 1 By the studying of thy heart thou wilt come presently to discover wherein thy discontent lyes when thou art discontented thou wilt find out the root of any discontentment if thou doest study thy heart well many men and women they are discontented and the truth is they know not wherefore they think this and the other thing is the cause but a man or woman that knowes their own heart they will find out presently where the root of their discontent lyes that it lyes in such a corruption and distemper of my heart that now through Gods mercy I have found out It is in this case as it is with a little child that is very froward in the house if a stranger comes in he doth not know what the matter is perhaps the Stranger will give the child a rattle or a nut or such a thing to quiet it but when the Nurse comes she knows the temper and disposition of the Child and therefore knows best how to quiet it so it is here just thus for all the world when we are strangers with our own hearts we are mightily discontented and know not how to quiet our selves because we know not wherein the disquiet lieth and indeed when we are strangers to our own hearts we cannot tell how to quiet our selves but if we be very well verst in our own hearts when any thing fals out so as to disquiet us we find out the cause of it presently and so quickly come to be quiet so a man that hath a Watch and he understands the use of every wheel and pin if it goes amisse he will presently find out the cause of it but one that hath no skill in a Watch when it goes amisse he knows not what the matter is and therefore cannot mend it So indeed our hearts are as a Watch and there are many wheels and windings and turnings there and we should labour
of this for a man to be given up to his hearts desires now when the Soul comes to understand this the Soul then cryes out why am I so troubled that I have not my desires There is nothing that God conveys his wrath more through then a prosperous estate I remember I have read of a Jewish Tradition that they say of Vzziah when God struck Vzziah with a Leprosie they say that the beams of the Sun was darted upon the fore-head of Vzziah and he was struck with a Leprosie by the darting of the beams of the Sun upon his fore head the Scripture saith Indeed the Priests looked upon him but they say there was a speciall light and beam of the Sun upon the fore-head that did discover the Leprosie to the Priests and they say it was the way of conveying of it Whether that were true or no I am sure this is true that the strong beams of the Sun of prosperity upon many men makes them to be leprous would any poor man in the countrey have been discontented that he was not in Vzziahs condition he was a great King I but there was the Leprosie in his fore-head the poor man may say though I live meanly in the countrey yet I thank God my body is whole and sound would not any man rather have russet and skins of beasts to cloath him with then to have sattin and velvet that should have the Plague in it The Lord conveys the plague of his curse through prosperity as much as through any thing in the world and therefore the soul coming to understand this this makes it to be quiet and content And then spirituall judgements are the greatest judgements of all the Lord lays such an affliction upon my outward estate but what if he had taken away my life a mans health is a greater mercy then his estate and you that are poor people you should consider of that but is the health of a mans body better then his estate what is the health of a mans soul that 's a great deal better the Lord hath inflicted externall judgements but he hath not inflicted spirituall judgements upon thee he hath not given thee up to hardnesse of heart and taken away the spirit of prayer from thee in thine afflicted estate oh then be of good comfort though there be outward afflictions upon thee yet thy soul thy more excellent part is not afflicted Now when the soul comes to understand this that here lyes the sore wrath of God to be given-up to a mans desires and for spirituall judgements to be upon a man this quiets him and contents him though outward afflictions be upon him perhaps one of a mans children hath the fit of an ague or the tooth ake but perhaps his next neighbour hath the plague or all his Children are dead of the Plague now shall he be so discontented because his Children hath the tooth-ach when his neighbours children are dead now think thus Lord thou hast laid an afflicted conditioÌ„ upon me but Lord thou hast not given me the Plague of a hard heart Now take these eight things before mentioned and lay them together and you may well apply that Scripture in the 29. of Jsay the last verse saith the text there They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding and they that murmured shall learn doctrine Hath there bin any of you as I fear many may be found that have erred in spirit even in regard of this truth that now we are preaching of and many that have murmured Oh that this day you might come to understand that Christ would bring you into his School and teach you understanding And they that murmured shall learn doctrine what doctrine shall they learn These Eight doctrines that I have opened to you And if you will but throughly study these lessons that I have set before your eyes It will be a speciall help and means to cure your murmurings against and repinings at the hand of God And so you will come to learn Christian Contentment The Lord teach you throughly by his Spirit these lessons of Contentment SERMON VI. PHILIPPIANS 4. 11. For I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content I Shall only adde one lesson more in the learning of Contentment then I shall come to the Aug. 31. 1645. fourth head The excellency of Contentment The Ninth and last lesson that Christ teaches those that he doth instruct in this Art of Contentment It is the right knowledge of Gods providence and therein are these Four things 1 The universality of providence that the Soul must be throughly instructed in to come to this Art to understand the universality of providence that is how the providence of God goes through the whole world extends it's self to every thing Not only that God by his providence doth rule the world and govern all things in generall but that it reaches to every particular not only to Kingdoms to order the great affairs of Kingdoms but it reaches to every mans family â—â—â—eaches to every person in the family it reaches to every condition yea to every passage to every thing that falls out concerning thee in every particular not one hair falleth from thy head not a Sparrow to the ground without the providence of God There 's nothing befalls thee good or evill but there is a providence of the infinite eternall first Being in that thing and therein indeed is Gods infinitenesse that it reaches to the least things to the least worm that is under thy feet Then much more it reaches unto thee that art a rationall creature the providence of God is more speciall towards rationall creatures then any others The understanding in a spirituall way the universality of providence in every particular passage from morning to night every day that there 's not any thing that doth befall thee but there 's a hand of God in it it is from God it is a mighty furtherance to Contentment Every man will grant the truth of the thing that it is so but as the Apostle saith in Heb. 11. 3. By faith we understand that the worlds were made by faith we understand it why by faith we can understand by reason that no finit thing can be from it selfe And therefore that the world could not be of it's self but we can understand it by faith in another manner then by reason So whatsoever we understand of God in way of providence yet when Christ doth take us into his School wee come to understand it by faith in a better manner then wee doe by reason 2 The efficacie that there is in providence that is that the providence of God goes on in all things with strength and power and it is not to be altered by our power let us be discontented and vext and troubled and fret and rage yet we must not thinke to alter the course of providence by our discontent Some of Jobs friends said to him
this Gods ordinary course is that his people in this world should be in an afflicted condition God hath revealed in his word we may there find he hath set it down to be his ordinary way even frō the begining of the world to this day but more especially in the times of the Gospel that his people here should be in an afflicted condition Now men that do not understand this they stand and wonder to hear of the people of God that they are afflicted and the enemyes prosper in their way for those that seeke God in his way and seeke for reformation for them to be afflicted routed and spoiled and then enemyes to prevaile they wonder at it but now one that is in the schoole of Christ he is taught by Jesus Christ that God by his eternal counsels hath set this to be his course way to bring up his people in this world in an afflicted condition and therfore saith the Apostle account it not strange concerning the firey tryal 1 Pet. 4. 12. we are not therfore to be discontented with it seing God hath set such a course and way and we know such is the will of God that it should be so The second thing that is in Gods way is this Vsually when God intends the greatest mercy to any of his people he doth bring them into the lowest condition God doth seem to go quite crosse and worke in a contrary way when he intends the greatest mercys to his people he doth first usually bring them into very low conditions if it be a bodily mercie an outward mercie that he intends to bestow he useth to bring them bodily low and outwardly low if it be a mercie in their estates that he intends to bestow he brings them low in that and then raises them and in their names he brings them low there and then raises them and in their Spirits God doth ordinarily bring their spirits low and then raises their spirits usually the people of God before the greatest comforts have the greatest afflictions and sorrows now those that understand not Gods ways they think that when God brings his people into sad conditions that God leaves and forsakes them and that God doth intend no great matter of good to them but now a Child of God that is instructed in this way of God he is not troubled my condition is very low but saith he this is Gods way when he intends the greatest mercie to bring men under the greatest afflictions When he intended to raise Joseph to be the Second in the Kingdom God cast him into a dungeon a little before So when God intended to raise David and set him upon the Throne he made him to be hunted as a partridge in the mountains 1 Sam. 26. 20 God went this way with his Son Christ himselfe went into glory by suffering Heb. 2. 10 and if God deale so with his owne Son much more with his people as a little before break of day you shall observe it is darker then it was any time before so God doth use to make our conditions darker a little before the mercie come When God bestowed the last great mercie at Nazby we were in a very low condition God knew what he had to doe before hand he knew that his time was coming for great mercies it is the way of God to doe so Be but instructed aright in this course and tract that God uses to walke in and that will helpe us to contentment exceedingly The third thing that there is in Gods way and course is this It is the way of God to work by contraries to turne the greatest evill into the greatest good To grant great good after great evill is one thing and to turne great evills into the greatest good that 's another and yet that 's Gods way the greatest good that God intends for his people many times he works it out of the greatest evill the greatest light is brought out of the greatest darknesse and Luther I remember hath a notable expression for this saith he it is the way of God he doth humble that he might exalt he doth kill that he might make alive he doth confound that he might glorifie this is the way of God saith hee but saith hee every one doth not understand this this is the Art of Arts and the Science of Sciences the knowledg of knowledges to understand this that God doth use when he will bring life he doth bring it out of death he brings joy out of sorrow and he brings prosperity out of adversity yea and many times brings grace out of sin that is makes use of sin to work furtherance of grace it 's the way of God to bring all good out of evill not onely to overcome the evill but to make the evill to work toward the good here 's the way of God now when the soule comes to understand this it wil take away our murmurring and bring Contentment into our spirits But I fear there are but few that understand it aright perhaps they read of such things hear such things in a sermon but they are not by Jesus Christ instructed in this that this is the way of God to bring the greatest good out of the greatest evill Now thus having dispatcht the third head the Lessons that we are to learne we come to the fourth and that is The excellency of this Grace of Contentment and there is a great deale of excellency in Contentment that 's a kind of Lesson too for us to learn And this head likewise will be somewhat long Saith the Apostle J have learned as if he should say blessed be God for this Oh! it is a mercy of God to me that I have learned this Lesson I find so much good in this Contentment that I would not for a world but have it I have learned it saith he Now the very Heathens had a sight of a great excellency that there is in Contentment I remember I have read of Antistines a Philosopher that desired of his gods speaking after the heathenish way nothing in this world to make his life happy but Contentment and if he might have any thing that he would desire to make his life happy he would aske of them that he might have the spirit of Socrates that he might have such a spirit as Socrates had to be able to bear any wrong any injuries that he met withall and to continue in a quiet temper of spirit whatsoever befell him for that was the temper of Socrates what ever befell him he continued the same man whatever crosse befell him no body could perceive any alteration of his spirit though never so great crosses did befall him this a Heathen did attain to by the strength of nature and a common work of the Spirit Now this Antistines saw such an excellency in this spirit As when God said to Solomon what shall I give thee he asked of God wisdom so saith he if the gods should
so for you to be ready to say all that God hath given me is nothing worth will doe me no good they are but counters though they are the precious graces of Gods Spirit that are more worth then thousands of worlds yet for you to say they are nothing they are but comon gifts and all is but in hypocrisie all counterfeit Oh what an unthankful thing is this the graces of Gods Spirit are nothing to a discontented heart that hath not all that it would have and so for outward blessings though God hath given you health of body and strength and hath given you some competency for your family some way of lively-hood yet because you are disappointed in somwhat that you would have therefore all is nothing unto you Oh what unthankfullnesse is here God expects that every day you should spend some time in blessing his name for what mercy he hath granted to you there 's not any one of you who are in the lowest condition but you have abundance of mercies to blesse God for but discontentednesse makes them nothing It 's an excellent speech that I remember Luther hath saith he this is the Rhetorick of the Spirit of God it 's a very fine speech of his to extenuate evill things and to amplyfie good things if there falls out a crosse to make the crosse to be but little but if there be a mercy to make the mercy to be great as thus if there be a crosse if the Spirit of God prevails in the heart such a man or woman will wonder that it is no greater and will blesse God that though there be such a crosse yet that it is no more that 's the worke of the Spirit of God and if there be a mercy wonders at Gods goodnesse that God granted so great a mercy The Spirit of God extenuats evils and crosses and doth magnyfie and amplyfie all mercies and makes all mercies seem to be great and all afflictions seem to be little But saith he the Devill goes quit contrary the rhetorick of the devill is quit otherwise he doth lessen Gods mercies and amplyfy evill things as thus a godly man wonders at his crosse that it is no more a wicked man wonders his crosse is so much Oh saith he none was ever so afflicted as I am If there be a crosse the Devill puts the soul upon musing on it and making it greater then it is and so it brings discontent And then on the other side if there be a mercy then it 's the Rhetorick of the Devill to lessen the mercy I indeed saith he the thing is a good thing but what is it it is no great matter and for all this I may be miserable Thus the Rhetorick of Satan doth lessen Gods mercies and doth increase afflictions And for this I 'le give you a notable example that we have in Scripture it is the example of Korah Dathan Abiram In Numb 16. 12 13. And Moses sent to call Dathan Abiram the sons of Eliab which said we will not come up Is it a smal thing that thou hast brought us up out of a Land that floweth with milk and honey to kill us in the wilderness except thou make thy selfe altogether a Prince over us Mark they slighted the land that they were going unto the Land of Canaan that was the Land that God promised them that should flow with milk and honey But mark here their discontentednesse because they met with some troubles in the wildernesse oh it was to slay them they make their affliction in the wildernesse to be greater then it was Oh it was to kill them though it were indeed to carry them to the Land of Canaan But now their deliverance from Egypt though it was a great mercy they made that mercy to be nothing for say they you have brought us out of a land that floweth with mith milk and honey what land was that It was the land of Egypt the land of their bondage but they call it a land that flowed with milk and honey though it were the land of their most cruell and unsupportable bondage whereas they should have blessed God as long as they had liv'd for Gods delivering them out of the land of Egypt yet meeting with some crosse they make their deliverance from Egypt no mercy no it was rather a misery to them Oh say they Egypt was a land that flowed with milk and honey Oh what basenesse is there in a discontented spirit a discontented spirit out of envy to Gods grace will make mercies that are great to be little yea to be none at all Would one ever have thought that such a word should have come from the mouth of an Israelite that had bin under bondage and cried under it and yet when they meet with a little crosse in their may to say you have brought us out of the land that floweth with milk and honey to say they were better before then now and yet before they could not be contented neither this is the usuall unthankfull expression of a discontented heart And it is so with us now when we meet with any crosse in our estates any taxations and trouble especially if any among you have bin where the enemy hath prevailed you are ready to say we had plenty before and we are now brought to a condition of hardship we were better before when we had the Prelats and others to domineere and so we in danger our selves to be brought into that bondage again oh let us take heed of this of a discontented heart there is this wofull cursed fruit of discontent to make men and women unthankfull for all the mercies God hath granted to them and this is a sore and greivious evil And lastly There 's this evil effect in murmuring it causes shifttings of spirit they that murmur and are discontent are lyable to temptations to shift for them selves in sinfull and ungodly waies discontent is the ground of shifting courses and unlawful waies How many of you may have your consciences condemne you of this that you in the time of your afflictions have sought to shift for your selves by waies that have been sinfull against God and your discontent was the bottom and ground of it If you would avoid shiftings for your selves by wicked waies labour to mortifie this sin of discontent to mortifie it at the root The eight evill that there is in murmuring and discontent is this There is a great deal of folly extream folly in a discontented heart it 's a foolish sin I shall open the folly of it in many particulars 1. It takes away the present comfort of what you have because you have not somwhat that you would have What a foolish thing is this that because I have not what I would have I will not injoy the comfort of what I have Doe not you account this folly in your children you give them some victuals and they are not contented perhaps they say it 's not
enough they cry for more and if you doe not presently give them more they will throw away that they have and though you account that folly in your children yet you deal thus with God God gives you many mercies but you see others have more mercies then you and therefore you cry for more I but God gives you not what you would have and upon that you throw away what you have is not this folly in your hearts It is unthankfullnesse 2. There 's a great deal of folly in discontentment for by all your discontent you cannot helpe your selves you cannot get any thing by it Who can by taking any carking care adde one cubit to his stature or make one hair that is white to be black You may vex and trouble your selves but you can get nothing by it Doe you think that the Lord will come in a way of mercy ever a whit the sooner because of the murmuring of your spirits Oh no but mercy will be rather deferred the longer for it though the Lord were before in a way of mercy yet this distemper of your hearts were enough to put him out of his course of mercy and though he had thoughts that you should have the thing before yet now you shall not have it If you had a mind to give such a thing to your child yet if you see him in a discontented freting way you will not give it him and this is the very reason why there are so many mercyes denied to you because of your discontentment you are discontented for want of them and therefore you have them not you doe deprive your selves of the injoyment of your own desires because of the discontentment of your hearts because you have not your desires and is not this a foolish thing 3 There 's a great deal of folly in this there are many foolish carriages commonly that a discontented heart is guilty of They carry themselves foolishly towards God and towards men there are such expressions and such kind of behaviour comes from them as makes their friends to be ashamed of them many times their carriages are so unseemly they are a shame to themselves their friends 4. There is a great deal of folly in discontent and murmuring for it doth eate out the good and sweetnesse of a mercie before it comes if God should give a mercie that we are discontented for the want of yet the blessing of the mercie is as it were eaten out before we come to have it Discontent is like a worm that eates the meat out of the nut and then when the meat is eaten out of it then you shall have the shell If a child should crie for a nut that hath the meat eaten out or all worm-eaten what good would the child have by having the nut so such an outward comfort you would faine have and you are troubled for the want of it but the very trouble of your spirits is the worm that eates out the blessing of the mercy and then perhaps God gives it you but gives you it with a curse mixed with it that you were better not have it then have it That man or woman that is discontented for want of some good thing if God doth give that good thing to them before they be humbled for their discontent that did proceed from them such a man or woman can have no comfort of the mercy but it will be rather an evil then a good to them And therefore for my part if I should have a friend or brother or one that was as dear to me as my own soul that I should see discontented for the want of such a comfort I should rather pray Lord keep this thing from them tel thou wilt be pleased to humble their hearts for their discontent let not them have the mercy till they come to be humbled for their discontent for the want of it for if they have it before that time they will have it without any blessing And therefore it should be your care when you find your hearts discontented for want of any thing to be humbled for it thinking thus with your selves Lord if that that I do so immoderatly desire should come to me before I be humbled for my discontent for want of it I am certain I can have no comfort of it but I shall rather have it as an affliction to me Many things which you desire as your lives and think that you should be happy if you had them yet when they doâ— come you find not such happinesse in them but they prove to be the greatest crosses and afflictions to you that ever you had and upon this ground because your hearts were immoderatly set upon them before you had them As it was with Rachel she must have children or else she dyed well saith God seeing you must you shal have them but though she had a child she dyed according to what she said Give me children or else I die So in regard of any other outward comforts people may have the thing but often times they have it so as it proves the heaviest croâ—â—e to them that ever they had in all their lives such a child as you were discontent for the want of it it may be it was sick and your hearts were out of temper for fear that you should loose it and God restores it but he restores it so as he makes it a crosse to your heart all the daies of your lives One observes concerning Manna when the people were contented with their allowance that God allowed them then it was verie good but when they would not be content with Gods allowance but would gather more then God would have them then saith the text there was worms in it So when we are content with our conditions and that that God disposes of us to be in there 's a blessing in it then it is sweet to us but if we must needs have more and keep it longer then God would have us to have it then there will be wormes in it and no good at all 5 Ther 's a great deal of folly in discontentedness for it makes our affliction a great deal worse then otherwise it would be It no way removes our affliction nay while they do continue they are a great deal the worse heavier for a discoÌ„tented heart is a proud heart and a proud heart will not pull downe his sails when there comes a tempest and storme If a marriner when a tempest and storme comes should be froward and would not pull down his sails but is discontented with the storm is his condition the better because he is discontented and will not pull down his sails Will this help him Just so is it for all the world with a discontented heart a discontented heart is a proud heart and he out of his pride is troubled with his affliction and is not contented with Gods dispose and so hee will not pull down his spirit at all and
mercies a means to lessen your sins then to be the agravation of your sins If you make not the mercies of God to helpe you against your murmuring you will make them to be agravations of the sinne of murmuring I beseech you for this take but this one consideration further and if you will but work it upon your hearts I hope you may find a great deal of power in it you find afflictions and your hearts are troubled and murmur consider how Gods mercies doth agravate this sin thus In the midst of our sins we doe make account God should accept of our services doe but consider thus if in the midst of our many sinnes wee hope that God will accept of our poor services why then should not we in the midst of our afflictions blesse God for his many mercies shall God be thus gracious to us that notwithstanding our many sins yet he will not cast away our poor duties and services that we perform then why should not we in the midst of our sufferings accept of what mercies we have and not slight them and disregard them If thou in the midst of Gods mercies shalt not be willing to bear afflictions that God layes upon thee then it were just with God that in the midst of thy sins he should not regard any of thy duties now iâ— there not as much power in thy manifould sins to cause God to reject thy duties and seivices as there is power in afflictions in the mid'st of many mercies to take off thy heart from being affected with Gods mercies And that 's the fist aggravation of of the sinne of murmuring to murmur in the mid'st of mercies A second aggravation of the sin of murmuring is When we murmur for small things Saith Naamans servant to him Father for so he called him if the Prophet had required you to doe some great thing would not you have done it how much more this little thing So I say if the Lord had required you to suffer some great matter would not you have bin willing to suffer How much more this little thing I remember I have read in Seneca a Heathen he hath this similitude which is a very fine one to set out the great evil of murmuring upon smaller afflictions saith he suppose a man hath a very fair house to dwell in and he hath fair orchards and gardens and set about with brave tall trees for ornament if this man now should murmur because the wind blows off a few leavs off his trees what a most unreasonable thing were it for him to be weeping and wringing his hands because he looses a few leavs off his trees when he hath abundance of all kinde of fruit thus it is with many saith he though they have a great many comforts about them yet some little matter the blowing off of a few leavs from them is enough to disquiet them It was a great evill when Ahab having a kingdom yet the want of his neighbours vineyard had such power to disquiet him So for us to murmur not because we have not such a thing as we have need of but because we have not what possibly we might have this is a very great sin Suppose God gives a child that hath all the limbs and parts compleat a child that is very comly and hath excellent parts wit and memory but it may be there is a wart that grows upon the finger of the child and she murmurs at it and Oh what an affliction this is to her she is so taken up with that as she forgets to give any thankes to God for her child and all the goodnesse of God to her in the child is swallowed up in that would not you say this were a folly a very great evill in a woman so to do Truly our afflictions if we weighed them aright they are but such kind of things in comparison of our mercies Rebeckah she had a mighty desire to have children but because she found some trouble in her body when she was with child saith she Why am I thus As if she should say I had as good have none onely because she found a little paine and trouble in her body To be discontent when the affliction is small and little that increases very much the sin of murmuring it is to much for any one to murmur upon the heaviest crosse that can befall one in this world but upon some small things to be discontent and murmur that 's worse I have read of one when he lay upon a heap of damask-roses he complained that there was one of the rose leaves lay double under him So we are ready thus for very small things to make complaints and to be discontented with our condition and that 's a second aggravation A third aggravation is this For men that are of parts and abilities that God hath given wisdom to for them to be discontent and murmur that is more then if others do it Murmuring and discontentednesse it too much in the weakest yet we can bear with it sometimes in children and women that are weake but for those that are men men of understanding that have wisdom that God imployes in publick service that they should be discontent with every thing this is an exceeding great evill for men in their families to whom God hath given parts and wisdom when things fall out amisse there to be alwaies murmuring and repining their sin is greater then for women or children to do it A fourth agravation Is the consideration of the freeness of all Gods mercies to us What ever we have it is of free cost what though we have not all we would have seeing what we have is free If what we have were earned then it were somewhat but when we consider that all is from God for us to murmur at his dispensations is very evill Suppose a man were in a family entertaind by a friend and he did not pay for his board but he hath it given him for nothing it 's expected such a one should not be ready to find fault with every thing in the house with servants or with meat at table or the like if such a one that hath plentifull provision and all given him Gratis and payes nothing for his board should be discontented if a cup should not be filled for him as he would have it or if he should stay a minute of an houre longer for a thing then he would this we would account a great evill So it is with us we are at Gods table every day and it is upon free-cost whatever we have It is accounted very unmannerly for a man at his friends table to find fault with things though at home he may be bold Now when we are at the table of God for so all Gods administrations to us are his table and are at free-cost now for us to be finding fault and be discontented this is a great aggravation of our sinne A fift aggravation of the sin
my affliction is somewhat hard and I feel some trouble within me yet I thank God I break not out in discontented waies to the dishonour of God I keep in although I have much adoe with my own heart Oh do not satisfie your selves with that for the distempers of your hearts and their sinfull workings are as words before God My soulle silent to God that we spake of in the begining of the opening of this Scripture it is not enough for thy tongue to be silent but thy soul must be silent there may be a sullen discontentednesse of heart as well as a discontentednesse manifested in words And if thou doest not mortifie that inward fullennesse if thou beest afflicted a little more it wil break forth at last And thus the Lord I hope hath met with the cheife reasonings and Pleas for our discontent in our conditions I beseech you in the name of God consider of these things and because they do concerne your own hearts you may so much the better remember them I had thought to have made a little enterance into the next head and that is some way of helping you to this grace of Contentment It is a most excellent grace of admirable use as you have heard and the contrary is very sinfull and vile SERMON XI PHILIPPIANS 4. 11. For I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content Now we are coming to the close of this point of Contentment that Jesus Christ doth teach those that are in his School we have opened the point unto you and shewed you wherein the art and skill and mystery of Christian Contentment lies and divers things in the way of applycation rebuking the want of this and the last day I finished that point of shewing the several reasonings of a murmuring and discontented heart I shall now as being desirous to make an end leave what was said and proceed to what remains There are only these two things for the working of your hearts to this grace of Christian Contentment First The propounding of severall considerations for the contenting of the heart in any afflicted condition Secondly The propounding of directions what should be done for the working of our hearts unto this The First Consideration We should consider in all our wants and inclinations to discontent The greatnesse of the mercies that we have and the meanesse of the things that we want The things we want if wee be godly they are things of very small moment in comparison to the things we have and the things we have are things of very great moment for the most part that that people are discontent and murmur for the want of it is because they have not such things as reprobates have or may have why shoul'st thou be troubled so much for the want of that that a man or woman may have yet be a reprobate as that thy estate is not so great thy health not so perfect thy credit not so much thou mayest have all those things and yet be a reprobate now wilt thou be discontent for that that a reprobate may have I shall give you the example of a couple of godly men meeting together Anthony and Diddimus Diddimus was blind and yet a man of very excellent parts and graces Anthony askt him if he was not troubled at this his want of sight he confest he was but saith he shall you be troubled at the want of what flies and dogs have and not rather rejoyce be thankful that you have what Angels have God hath given you those good things that makes Angels glorious is not that enough to you though you want what thing a fly hath And so a Christian should reason the case with himselfe what am I discontented for I am discontented for want of that that a dog may have that a devill may have that a reprobate may have shall I be discontent for not having that when as God hath given me that that makes Angels glorious Blessed be God saith the Apostle in Ephe. 1. 3. that hath blessed us with all Spiritual blessings im heavenly places it may be thou hast not so great blessings in earthly places as some others have but if the Lord hath blessed thee in heavenly places that should content thee there 's blessings in heaven and he hath set thee here for the present as it were in heaven in a heavenly place the consideration of the greatnesse of the mercies that we have and the littlenesse of the things that God hath denyed us is a very powerful consideration to worke this grace of Contentment The Second Consideration The consideration that God is beforehand with us with his mercies should content us I spake to this as an agravation of our discontent but now I shall use it as a consideration to help us to Contentment Thou wantest many comforts now but hath not God bin beforehand with thee heretofore Oh thou hast had mercy enough already to make thee spend all the strength thou hast and time thou shalt live to bless God for what thou hast had already I remember I have read of a good man that had liv'd to fifty years of age and enjoyed his health for eight and forty yeares exceeding well and liv'd in prosperity and the two last years his body was evceedingly diseased he had the strangury and was in great pain but he reasoned the case with himselfe thus Oh Lord thou mightest have made all my life to have been a life of torment and pain but thou hast let me have eight forty years in health I will praise thy mercies for what I have had and will praise thy justice for what now I feel Oh it 's a good consideration for us to think that God is a forehand with us in the way of mercy Suppose God should now take away your estates from some of you that have lived comfortably a great while you will say that agravates our misery that wee have had estates but it is through thy unthankfulnesse that it doth so we should blesse God for what we have had and not think that we are worse because we have had thus and thus we might have been alwaies miserable and certainly that mans condition is not very miserable that hath no other great agravation of his misery but because once he was happy If there be nothing else to make you miserable that is no such agravation but that thou may est bear it for there is much mercy in that that thou hadst once and therefore let that content thee A Third Consideration The consideration of the abundance of mercies that God bestows we injoy It is a speech of Luther saith he the Sea of Gods mercies should swallow up all our particular afflictions name any affliction that is upon thee there 's a Sea of mercy to swallow it up If you powre a paileful of water on the flour of your house it makes a great shew but if you throw it into the
as well as in great there may be as much riches in a pearl as in a great deal of lumber but now this is a distinct thing Further a gracious heart as he lives upon Gods dew in a little that he hath so when that little that he hath shall be taken from him what shall he do then Then you will say If a man have nothing there can be nothing fetc ht out of nothing â—ut if the children of God have their little taken from them they can make up all their wants in God himself such a man is a poor man the plunderers came and took away all that he had what shall he do then when all is gone But when all is gone there is an art and skill that godlinesse teaches to make up all those losses in God many men that have their houses burnt go about gathering and so get up by many hands a little but a godly man knows whither to go to get up all even in God himself so as he shall injoy the quinresence of the same good and comfort as he had before for a godly man doth not live so much in himself as he lives in God This is now a Mysterie to a Carnal heart I say a gracious man doth not live so much in himself as he doth in God he lives in God continually if there be any thing cut off from the stream he knows how to go to the fountain makes up all there God is his all in all while he lives I say t is God that is his all in all Am not I to thee saith Elkanah to Hannah instead of ten Children so saith God to a gracious heart thou wantest this thy estate is plundered Why Am not I to thee instead of ten houses and ten shops I am to thee instead of All yet not only instead of All but come to me and thou shalt have all again in me This indeed is an excellent Art to be able to draw from God what it had before in the creature Christian how didest thou injoy comfort before was the creature any other to thee but a Cunduit a pipe that did convey Gods goodnesse to thee The pipe is cut off saith God come to me the fountain and drink immeadiately though the Beames be taken away yet the Sun remains the same in the firmament as ever it was What 's that that satisfies God himself but because he doth injoy all fulness in himself so he comes to have satisfâ—action in himself now if thou injoyest God to be thy portion if thy soul can say with the Church in Lamentations 3. 24. The Lord is my portion saith my soul why shouldest thou not be satisfied and contented as God God is contented he is in eternal Contentment in himself now if thou hast that God to be thy portion why shouldest not thou be contented with him alone God is contented with himself alone if thou hast him thou mayest be Contented with him alone and it may be that is the reason that thy outward comforts are taken from thee that God may be All in All to thee It may be whilst thou hadest these things here they did share with God in thy affection a great part of the stream of thy affection ran that way now God would have the full stream run to him As you know it is with a man that hath water come to his house and if there be severall pipes upon which he finde the water come but scantly into his wash-house he will rather stop the other pipes that he may have all the water come in where he would have it So here it may be God had some stream of thy affection that ran to him then when thou didest injoy these things Yea but a great deal was let out to the Creature a great deal of thy affections did run waste now the Lord would not have the affections of his Children to run wast hee doth not care for other mens affections but for thine they are precious and God would not have them to run waste therefore hath he cut off thy other pipes that thy heart might run wholly upon him As if you have Children because you have servants perhaps do feed them and give them things you perceive that your servants do steal away the hearts of your Children you would hardly be able to bear it you would be ready to turn away such a servant and when the servant is gone the Child is at a great losse it hath not the nurse but the father or mother intends by her putting away that the affections of the Child might run the more strongly towards himself or herself and what losse hath the Child that the affections that run in a rough chanell before towards the servant it runs now towards the mother So those affections that runs towards the creature God would have them run towards himself that so he may be All in All to thee here in this world And a gracious heart can indeed tell how to injoy God to be All in All to him that is the happinesse of heaven to have God to be All in All The Saints in heaven have not houses and lands and money and meat and drink and cloaths you will say they do not need them why do they not It is because God is All in All to them imediatly now while thou livest in this world thou mayest come to injoy much of God you may have much of heaven while we live in this life we may come to injoy much of the very life that there is in heaven and what is that but the injoyment of God to be All in All to us There is one text in the Revelations that speaks of the glorious condition of the Church that is like to be even here in this world Revel 21. 22. And I saw no Temple therein for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the Temple of it and the City had no need of the Sun neither of the Moon to shine in it for the glory of God did lighten it and the Lamb it the light thereof they had no need of the Sun or Moon it speaks of such a glorious condition that the Church is like to be in here in this world this doth not speak of heaven and that appears plainly that this is not spoken of heaven but of a glorious estate that the Church shall be in here in this world for it follows presently in the 24. and 26. verse And they speaking of the Kings of the earth And the Kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour unto it why the Kings of the earth shall not bring their glory and honour into heaven but this is such a time when the Kings of the earth shall bring their glory and honour to the Church And in the 26. versâ— And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it therefore it must â—â—â—ds be meant here in this world and nor in heaven now if
day of Jesus Christ the other things are pretty fine things indeed and I should be glad if God would give them me a fine habitation and comings in and cloaths and promotion for my wife and children these are comfortable things but these are not the necessary things I may have these and yet perish for ever but the other is absolutely necessary no matter though I be poor so be it I may have that that is absolutely necessary thus Christ instructs the Soul There 's many of you have had some thoughts about this that it is indeed necessary for you to provide for your Souls but when you come in to Christ s School there Christ causes the fear of eternity to fall upon you and there he causes such a real sight of the great things ofeternity the absolute necessity of those things that possesses your hearts with fear and that takes you off from all other things in the world Now I should have shown you how that will bring Contentment to the Soul when it comes to be instructed in the thing that is absolutly necessary but thus much for this time SERMON V. PHILIPPIANS 4. 11. For I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content Aug. 24 1645. I Mentioned Three lessons the last time that Christ teaches those Schollers that comes into his School whereby they might come to get Contentment First The lesson of Self-denial Secondly The lesson of the vanity of the Creature Thirdly The right understaÌ„ding of that one thing that is necessary A little to inlarge this one so to proceed to others It is said of Pompie that when he was to cary corne to Rome in time of dearth he was in a great deal of danger by stormes at Sea but saith he we must go on it is necessary that Rome should be releived but it is not necessary that we should live So it would be certainly when the Soul is once taken up with the things that are of absolute necessity it will not be much troubled about other things What are the things that do disquiet us here but some by matters in this world And it is because our hearts are not taken up with that one absolute necessary thing who are the men that are most discontented but idle persons persons that have nothing to take up their minds every little thing disquiets and discontents them but now a man that hath businesse of great weight and consequence if all things goes well with his great businesse that is in his head he is not sensible of meaner things in the family but now a man that lies at home and hath nothing to do he finds fault with every thing so it is with the heart when the heart of a man hath nothing to doe but to be busie about creature comforts every little thing troubles him but now when the heart is taken up with the weighty things of eternity with the great things of eternall life the heart being taken up with them these things that are here below that did disquiet it before are things now of no consideration with him in comparison to the other so as how things fall out here is not much regarded with him if the one thing that is necessary be provided for The Fourth lesson that the Soul is instructed in to come to this knowledge in the art of Contentment is this The Soul comes to understand in what relation it stands in here to the world By that I mean thus God comes to instruct the Soul effectually through Christ by his Spirit upon what tearms it lives here in the world in what relation it is that it doth stand as thus While I live in the world my condition is to be but a pilgrim a stranger a traveller and a souldiar now the right understanding of this being taught this not only by â—oâ—e that I can speak the words over but when I come indeed to have my Soul possest with the consideration of this truth that God hath set me in this world not as in my home but as a meer stranger and a pilgrim that I am travelling here to another home and that I am here a souldiar in my warfare it is a mighty help to Contentment in whatsoever befalls one as now to instance in all these conditions when a man is at home if he hath not things according to his desire he will be finding fault and is not contented but if a man travels abroad perhaps he meeâ—s not with conveniencies as he desires the servants in the house are not at his beck or are not so diligent as his own servants were and his dyet is not as at home and his bed not as at home yet this very thought may moderate a mans spirit I am a traveller and I must not be finding fault I am but in another mans house and it were not manners for one to find fault when he is abroad in another bodies family though things be not so as in my own family If a man meets with ill weather he must be content it is travellers fare we use to say both fair weather and foul weather this is the common travellers fare and we must be content with it but if a man were at home and it should drop down in his house he would account it an ill thing an affliction to him and he cannot bear it but when he is travelling abroad though he meet with rain and storms he is not so much troubled When you are abroad at Sea though you have not those many things that you have at home you are not troubled at it you are contented Why You are abroad at Sea you are not troubled at storms that do arise and though you have many things otherwise then you would have them at home but still you are quieted with that you are at Sea Marriners when they are at Sea they care not what cloaths they have then though they be picht and tar'd and but a clout about their necks and any mean cloaths but they think when they come home then they shall have their fine silke stockings brave sutes lac'd bands and such things and shall be very fine and so they are contented abroad upon that thought that it shall be otherwise with them when they come home and though they have nothing but sault meat and a little hard fare yet when they come to their houses then they shall have any thing Thus it should be with us in this world the truth is we are all in this world but as Seafaring men tost up and down on the waves of the Sea of this world and our haven is Heaven and we are here travelling but our home it is another world that long home Indeed some men have better accomodations then others have in travelling it 's true it 's a great mercy of God to us in England in that we can travell with such delight and accomodations more then they can in