do it how much more when he saith Believe and ye shall be saved and He that believeth in him shall not be confounded To the other Proposition The strength whereby true Christians stand in the favor of God and the expectation of heaven is greater and better then all the strength of nature even taken at the best and strongest When the likeliest faint and are weary yet they shall renew their strength mount up with wings run and not be weary walk and not faint Where we have both a plain affirmation of renewing their strength and a borrowed speech of Eagles who cast their Bill when they be old and so get to be lively again when their crooked Bill is put away they take in their meat as before and grow as strong as ever All noting the perpetuity of the estate of grace wherein when the Elect fail at any time through mercy they recover all and hold out to the end of their course They are strong in the Lord and the power of his might On him they wait in the use of means and of him the receive strength a new to be constant He strengthneth they with strength in their soul Psal 138.3 Amidst many occasiom of fainting their inward man is renewed day by day 2 Cor. 4.16 They call in fresh supplies by prayer and so are strengthned with might by the Spirit in the inner man Eph. 3.16 And the prayer of other Believers sends in those fresh supplies Col. 1.11 That ye may be strengthned with all might according to his glorious power unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness Certain it is that the Lord hath undertaken to be the strength of his people The rock of their salvation the strength of their salvation the horn of salvation which he raised up in the house of his servant David and as much as the Creator is mighty above the creatures so is a godly man above himself and all his natural abilities In and of God he receives such puissant vertue and so may grow confident Esa 26.4 Trust ye in the Lord for ever for in the Lord Jehova is everlasting strength In special Christ himself is the strength of his chosen ones He gives them his flesh which is meat indeed and his bloud which is drink indeed He makes then a banquet at his own cost and with his own merits to feed them unto eternal life that though the old Israelites in the wilderness did eat Manna and dye after it yet so shall not they And as his merit is so efficacious so his Spirit abides with them for ever guides leads into all truth brings all things to their remembrance and establisheth their hearts in this their gracious and blessed estate There is a vertue in his death that they can dye no more in their sins and a vertue in his resurrection which makes them living members of his body and living branches of the true Vine to draw sap and juice from him and be still pruned that they may bear more fruit Further proofs of this unvanquishable strength of Believers One Scripture saith of the godly The righteous is an everlasting foundation Prov. 10.25 He in Scripture is called righteous who is justified and sanctified and he is called a foundation to note his firm and stable condition and as a foundation he bears up the pillaâ—s of the eâ—rth both Church and State Another Scripture saith God who hath begun a good work in his people will finish or perform it untill the day of Jesus Christ Phil. 1.6 When the work of conversion unto God is once well done it is done for ever it is as he said of his History 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an everlasting possession for God who is the Alpha is also the Omega Another Scripture saith Christ having loved his own which were in the world did love them unto the end John 13.1 and he saith himself chap. 10.28 I give unto my sheep eternal life and they shall never perish neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand no nor Devil but in him that loved them they are more then Conquerors Other Scriptures sound forth priviledges The righteous shall hold on his way and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger Job 17.9 They that are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God and still bring forth fruit in old age Psal 92.14 They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Sion which cannot be removed but abideth for ever Psal 125.1 The fear of the Lord is so put into their hearts that they shall not depart from him Jer. 32.40 Their house is built upon a rock so as it shall not fall though the winds blow strong and the waters flow a main Mat. 7.25 with other firm and undeniable grounds of persevering in grace which follow afterward all proving that true Believers shall still renew their strength and not faint nor be weary Here it may be asked How doth the Lord renew strength to his people The answer is He renews their strength in the use of holy means appointed thereunto namely those sacred Ordinances which he hath set apart first and last to carry on the work of grace in the hearts of his Chosen which that they may indeed obtain he puts them into a frame of waiting on his Majesty in his own way wherein he will meet them and bestow a blessing on them as he hath promised 2 Cor. 5.5 Now he that hath wrought us for the self same end thing is God who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit So at the Text it stands as a Description of the godly They are such as wait upon the Lord they must know they are Servants and need dependance on the heavenly Master and as Servants must wait till they receive mercy at his hands and so they shall be sure to speed of their suit Lam. 3.25 The Lord is good unto them that wait for him to the soul that seeketh him A Princes good Servant ever stands in the way of preferment and so for Christianity To speed of strength and every comfortable supply we must be careful to be found in the way of faith and obedience Here note these phrases of Scripture 1. Wait at the Posts of his doors Prov. 8.34 Blessed is the man that heareth me saith Christ the wisdom of God watching daily at my gates waiting at the posts of my doors Thriving Christians must diligently attend when a good Sermon is to be heard or a Sacrament to be received or a Fast to be kept or else a day of Thanksgiving They must come both preparedly and forwardly neither be absent nor yet backward but come upon the wing as Doves to their houses when pursued by a bird of prey Esa 60.8 swift to hear Jam. 1.19 Cornelius and his Company when Peter was coming to preach were ready beforehand to hear what he should say Act. 10.33 We are all here present before
God to hear all things that are commanded thee of God with ver 24. Cornelius waited for them and had called together his Kinsmen and near friends And it is a great sin in many to make the Minister and Congregation wait when they will please to appear 2. Wait till he have mercy Psal 123.2 Behold as the eyes of Servants look unto the hand of their Masters and as the eyes of a Maiden to the hand of her Mistress so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God untill that he have mercy upon us He hath promised great things to his people but his people must wait for performance The Vision of comfort will speak at last and not deceive but in the mean time we must wait to see when God will please to answer our expectation Hab. 2.3 And he that believeth must not make haste so limiting the Holy One of Israel much less rage or murmure or be impotent of mind least of all to utter that blaspheming voice This evil is of the Load and shall I wait for the Lord any longer 2 King 6.33 Remember it is a mercy to speed at the last if ever we be heard in prayer it is enough enough if ever an Isaac be had or supply or comfort or deliverance This that I said We must wait in the way of faith not only to the second and third watch of the night but till morning Davids soul waited for the Lord more then they that wait for the morning yea more then they that wait for the morning Psal 130.6 3. Wait upon the Office which God or man hath assigned thee unto Rom. 12.7 If we have received the ministery let us wait on our ministring or he that teacheth on teaching or he that exhorteth on exhortation And by the like reason a Magistrate must wait on governing an Housholder on looking to the ways of his Family a Servant on doing his business painfully and faithfully a Child in his place a poor creature in humble walking In every of which while we serve our Brethren or dispatch our own affairs yet doing all as we ought we shall serve the Lord Jesus Christ and wait on him in the way of our obedience especially if we make a business of our Calling and abide upon it and watch all opportunities for advancing the glory of God and our own reckoning not as those that are in and out when they have hit into a good way fickle uncertain only good by fits and starts who are not likely to inherit the promises the promise is to them that are constant unmoveable always abounding in the work of the Lord and this is the right waiting 4. Wait for the Lord in the way of his judgments Esa 26.8 Yea in the way of thy judgments O Lord have we waited for thee the desire of our soul is to thy Name and to the remembrance of thee namely to maâ—â— good use of afflictions and learn righteousness by them as ver 9. The Inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness The Lord sometimes corrects his people it may be with sore and grievous corrections yet even then they must abide with him each one according to his Calling and study to be better for the sharp Visitation saying What would the Lord have me to do or wherein may I be better or do better then I have done Lord shew me for what thou contendest with me and not only chastise me thus but teach me out of thy law that by all thy Discipline I may be blessed at the last Psal 94 12. It concerns Gods Children to wait on their Father not only when he causeth their way to prosper that they even wash their footsteps in butter but when he changeth his dispensations toward them that all is in clouds and storms and he seems an adversary to them for even then they may be made partakers of his holiness and when they are proved and humbled he means to do them good in their latter end 5. Wait all the days of thy appointed time as did Job chap. 14.14 If a man dye shall he live again all the days of my appointed time will I wait till my change come It is a great change when death comes so dye well is the greatest work we have to do in the world and we need to take all our time allotted for our being here to be fitting our selves for that great change All will prove little enough when we are entring into that narrow Wicket so to pass into another world And wait till Christ comes to judgment as the good servant who watcheth for the return of his Lord and will be careful to do up all his work before hand Christ comes to judge the quick and dead of all things done in the body good and evil and a strict account must be given of all therefore still wait and make ready thy accounts And wait till the Bridegroom open the door to the wise Virgins And to be able to enter provide Oil for thy Lamp in time and Oil that will hold till midnight that thou may not be put to borrow there will be no borrowing at that time Mat. 25.9 The wise answered the foolish Not so lest there be not enough for us and you but go ye rather to them that sell and buy for your selves Yet such foolishness reigns in many who profess to wait for the coming of Christ A lamp of outward profession they have but not sufficient Oil to feed their Lamp and so are excluded and left in the dark They seem good a little in the former part of their life and then wax râ—miss They begin in the spirit and end in the flesh either in respect of Doctrine or Practice and so they lose all the good they have done and are found trespassers against the truth which they have basely deserted Thus we see who they are that wait on the Lord. And these are they that renew their strength as the Eagles and persevere in the good way of God to the end So the conclusion remains firm The way whereby the strength of Gods Children is maintained is their attendance on him in an holy course of faith and obedience They must wait upon him by faith expecting the performance of his promises And they must wait upon him by their obedience in the use of his Ordinances as good servants ought to do and so they shall renew their strength out of all their faintings Christians complain sometimes of weakness in their faith dulness in prayer hardness of heart and the like corruptions They are ready to faint and be weary in their holy profession It grieves them that they proceed no better then they do They lack but little sometimes to cast up all and make Holy-day Now let such acknowledge and take notice where their great strength lieth Faith and obedience will in time remedy all this Let them believe above hope rather then cast away their confidence and let them still attend the good Ordinances of
NOW and EVER SHEWING Where the Work of Conversion is throughly done it is done for ever ESA. 46.3 4. Hearken unto me O house of Jacob and all the remnant of the house of Israel which are born by me from the belly which are carryed from the womb And even to your old age I am he and even to hoar haires will I carry you I have made and I will bear even I will carry and will deliver you PSAL. 48.14 This God is our God for ever and ever he will be our guide even unto death By William Jemmat Preacher of the Gospel in Reading LONDON Printed by L. Miller for John Chandler Bookseller in Reading 1666. To the Serious Reader THere be two weighty truths about the grace of Conversion in a soul that shall be saved One that of necessity it must be done in this present life according to that of Salomon Eccl. 9.10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do do it with thy might for there is no work nor device nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest Now or Never The other that when this work is once done well in some good manner as it ought to be done it is done for ever and shall never fail the Christian here or hereafter The former is a matter of serious diligence and carefulness The latter of strong and full consolation Happy is the soul that suffers it self to be perswaded and over-ruled in present to do this great business of coming home to his God and joyning it self to him in a perpetual Covenant that shall never be forgotten Hereby it hath done a work which shall last to Eternity and â—â—ver be undone any more Now and Ever And it is such a work as shall stand it in stead whatever sad occasions shall meet it in this evil and troublesome world Believers amidst all bodily infirmities and temptations and afflictions of this life yet in their God to whom through rich mercy they are come at conversion have a sure and strong stay to rest upon and may say as David Psal 73.26 My flesh and my heart faileth but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever O precious portion for a soul to find setling and contentment A portion is that wich falls to a man upon division of Land or Goods Now the Lord in his most wise dâ—spensation allots to some a portion in temporals They have their portion in this life Psal 17.14 To others he reserves himself for a portion who is infinitely better then the multitude of Riches Pleasures Honours and all the finest accommodations And because God is the portion of Believers therefore it is the good part or portion Luke 10.42 It is a blisfull portion and makes those for ever happy who share in it Psal 144.15 It is an all-sufficient portion and in every respect able to serve our turns and give complete contentment Gen. 17.1 And it is an everlasting portion my portion for ever saith David And thâ— us the Lord becomes the portion of a believing soul partly by his own free and voluntary giving himself to it both in his eternal Decree and purpose as also by actual application partly by the souls voluntary accepting owning and chusing the Lord for a portion with which it will rest satisfied Lam. 3.24 The Lord is my portion saith my soul The Lord himself perswade strengthen and establish our hearts by believing that we may rest contented with this our portion and be in some measure thankful for it that seeing he hath vouchsafed to be our portion we may ever think it fitting and necessary to be a peculiar people and portion unto him Deut. 32 9. The Lords portion is his people Jacob is the lot of his Inheritance W. J. Now and Ever ISAIAH 40.30 31. Even the youths shall faint and be weary and the young men shall utterly fall But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as Eagles they shall run and not be weary they shall walk and not faint IN the beginning of this Chapter the Lord by his Prophet had promised great and glorious things to his poor Church as return out of the Babylonish Captivity with wonderful mercies procuring and accompanying the same and such as reach to the times of the Gospel ver 3. Christ comes to do it and the Baptist makes way for him therefore Believers may expect performance Which that they may do the Prophet doth lively set forth the Power and Wisdom of God which are the main helps to accomplish his Decrees he knows how to do it and he is able to do it and a Believer may easily collect that if the Lord be so powerful and careful in the Government of the world how much more will he so be for the good of his Church and Chosen Then it might be objected Yea but the Church seems to be of all other most neglected and is most troubled in the world and this makes us even faint and cast hope away ver 27. For this they are blamed in the Verses following and told that God is sufficient for his Church against all her enemies and in all her faintness and they shall see Great Ones of the world fail and come to nothing when his people shall survive and be triumphant This last is the mind of the Holy Ghost in these two last Verses which have an amplification of the Churches strength by opposition to the strength of nature and of the world Even the youths shall faint and be weary and the young men shall utterly fall but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as Eagles they shall run and not be weary they shall walk and not faint As if he had said None have the strength that Gods people have no not the stoutest and choycest men that are whom Generals and Commanders of War do pick out from the rest and most trust in and brag of their puissance yet faintness comes upon such by Hunger Cold Watching Travelling Fighting rumors that they hear of the enemies might fear which the Lord sends upon their spirits a thousand wayes to cool their courage But my people go upon better and higher Principles namely of my favour and of my special grace in them whereby through believing they shall become strong out of weakness and hold out to a full and glorious victory over all enemies both from hell and in the world Now this opposition of strength and strength leads us to these two Propositions One That all created strength is of a fainting and failing nature The other That the strength whereby true Christians stand in the favour of God and the expectation of heaven is greater and better then all the strength of nature even taken at the best and strongest Briefly of the former All created strength is of a fainting and failing nature Though there be not only a firm and healthy body but much
courage of mind with assistance of Arts and Parts and alliance of Friends and all encouragements that are to be had yet in the Event all prevailes not to attain the desired end Even the youths shall faint and be weary and the young men shall utterly fall The race is not to the swift nor the battel to the strong neither yet bread to the wise nor yet riches to men of understanding nor yet favour to men of skill Eccl. 9.11 It is true by those accomplishments nature may attain to live long in the world to rise high in the world to get a great Estate to have great Victories over enemies with other great matters which Weaklings may not once think to attain But beside the sad disappointments which these sometimes meet withall even amidst all their bravery they commit foul errours they shorten their dayes by Intemperance they fall into Consumptions or at best the longer they live the nearer they draw to their end and it is seen ordinarily that the Bell rings out and the Grave opens for young ones as well as for the old few now-a-days come to the Age set in Moses time of threescore and ten or fourscore The reason is by the fall sin hath disabled our nature both in powers of the body and mind and so ministers occasion to the great God of heaven to cut us short of our hope and possibilities Our sins withhold good things from us Jer. 5.25 And the Lord will have the finest Naturalists see that not by might or power but by his spirit great things are to be accomplished He takes the wise in their craftiness he turns their counsel into foolishness he shews strength with his arm he scatters the proud in the imagination of their hearts he puts down the mighty from their seats and exalteth men of low degree he filleth the hungry with good things and the rich he sends empty away Application make thus 1. See what a poor happiness the happiness of worldlings is When they are at their height and in the best estate they can be in here below or desire to be in with a real and regular desire so that their Neighbours take them to be happy creatures and they think no less of themselves yet indeed they fall much short of the true happiness and godly men shall not change Estates with them though poor and miserable as to the world Why because the best and most complete attainments they have are but fading Commodities the one stroke of Death cuts the thred of their whole happyness there comes a Fever or other mischievous Disease and so an end of the man and all his braveries So that neither himself hath cause to vaunt or please himself in his fine condition nor others to envy his prosperity while it holds most together It is but as the green Bay-tree flourishing in present but soon blasted or cut down and the place of it shall know it no more 2. Let godly Christians bless the Lord who hath laid their happiness in things of another nature and endurance namely spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus that though they be poor or weak or otherwise low in the world yet in the best matters through rich mercy they are highly exalted none so happy as they indeed none but they Therefore not only be contented with your short pittance but thankful that your lines are fallen unto you in pleasant places and ye have a goodly heritage Psal 16.6 Had your lot fallen otherwise to you you had been of all men most miserable Think of Dives tormented in those flames and of the rich Churl whose soul in a night was taken from him and so an end of all his plenty and jollity Think how David blessed himself from faring as worldly-minded men shall fare Let me not eat of their dainties Psal 141.4 and again Deliver my soul from the wicked from men which are thy hand O Lord from men of the world who have their portion in this life and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure they are full of Children and leave the rest of their substance to their Babes Then refer all to the happiness that shall be revealed at the last day as the Prophet there concludes As for me I will behold thy face in righteousness I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness Psal 17.14 15 16 17. 3. If all present comforts be so weak and fickle Let not the strong man glory in his strength nor the rich man in his riches nor the wise man in his wisdom Jer. 9.23 Fine accommodations these are and conduce much to make ones life comfortable and he that is a wise Master of them may do much good in his place and Generation and greatly further his accounts in the day of accounting with God But alass they are but moth-eaten and poor comforts in themselves very like to Jonahs Gourd which came up in a night and perished in a night When we think we have them safest and take most pleasure in them they dye in our hands as flowers which we gathered â—rewhile and we our selves pass away with them we know not how soon And the wise Salomon hath said Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not for riches certainly make themselves wings they fly away as an Eagle toward heaven Prov. 23.5 and Paul said by the wisdom given unto him Rejoyce as not rejoycing and in all your enjoyments be as if ye had them not 1 Cor. 7.30 Remember Christians and not over-joy in a lusty Child a setled estate of health tallness comeliness or properness of the body the increase of a wealthy estate a great inheritance either by descent or purchase There is death in the pot a secret worm lies at the root and bites shrewdly and all the joy may quickly be mar'd and then the more joy was the greater will be the grief at parting and shame for the former boasting to see things turned to the quite conâ—rary 4. If natural comforts be turned upon such a wheel then trust not in an arm flesh Put not your trust in Princes nor in the son of man in whom there is no help His breath goeth forth he returneth to his earth in that day all his thoughts perish Psal 146.3 4. Nor may Princes trust in mighty and puissant armies horses warlike provisions multitude of an hoste or the best counsel they can take all these have failed some that relied on them and may fail others who rest on them as able to save Nor may we rest upon potent friends who are able to do much themselves and use their interest in others for raising a party Nor upon health and strength of body nimbleness or other natural perfections Nor upon a strong wit a deep reach a firm and retentive memory eloquence in discoursing fitness of expressions with other gifts of the mind All compared to a staff of reed whereon if a man lean he may get a fall
done which are quite contrary David failed so far in Charity toward Uriah that he contrived the murder of him Peter failed so far in Charity toward Christ that he denied and forswore him and that under a Curse So of the Drunkenness of Noah the Incest of Lot the rage of Asa against the Prophet and other mad moods of good men wherein it was strange to discover so much weakness and it is an horrible stumbling-block to the world that the Cedars of Lebanon were so shaken which is seen now and then even at this day For comforts they may seem sometimes to be utterly banished from an holy heart and despair set in the room witness the time of some spiritual desertion Oh the Lord hath forgotten to be gracious and shut up his loving kindness in everlasting displeasure Psal 77.7 8 9. David laments mournfully before he recovers the joy of his salvation Peter weeps bitterly before he gets a good look from Christ again and then he is shrewdly puzzled with those vexing questions Peter lovest thou me Peter lovest thou me Peter lovest thou me more then these Good Documents for all the Lords Darlings to be chary of their joys and take heed of lashing out at any time take heed of security take heed of wantonness take heed of quenching or grieving the Spirit It may cost thee the setting on Time may be that neither thy self nor others can afford thee comfort Neither Reading nor Praying nor Fasting nor all good exercises together can speak a word of peace to thy heart that is the work of God and he will take his own time both to chasten thy disloyalty and to turn thy captivity as he did for Job Here some may be inquisitive to know what it is that thus takes away the strength of a true Christian Whereto I say 1. It may be he wants his ordinary meals and then we know a strong man will grow weak quickly It may be he is removed from a powerful Ministery which sometimes he lived under or hears not good Preaching so often as he was wont to do while he heard duly and daily he was kept in flesh and good heart Or it may be he hath cast off his private exercises of reading the Scriptures and other good Books which should both fasten and renew the things delivered in the publick Ministery Or it may be he prays not by himself so often as he used to do but is a stranger in the Court of heaven the Father that sees in secret doth seldom see him in his Closet in respect of former days Or it may be the exercise of fasting is now wholly neglected he cannot intend it or it is an harsh exercise whereas indeed the only cause is his heart is not so holy and sincere as it was Or it may be he adventures too much to stand alone in the profession forsakes the Assemblies of Saints and so meets with that wo Wo to him that is alone 2. Too much eagerness upon the world slacks the love of heaven and heavenly things as hath been said Amor amore impeditur Carnal love either extinguisheth or lesseneth spiritual Where earthliness is predominant there is no love at all in sincerity these Thorns choak the seed of the word Or where it creeps too much upon a good heart the love is but weak low Thorns do some mischief to the Corn as in Demas who for a while forsook the Apostle and embraced the present world 2 Tim. 4.10 Many a good Christian hath found by woful experience that having too many Irons in the fire or taking too many cares into his head he hath much withered of his former greenness and liveliness in grace the world hath proved a Step-Mother to better things as in Martha who was encumbred with many things So of Ambition itching for repute and credit in the world till a reproof comes Seekest thou great things for thy self seek them not So complying with evil and carnal men till the Lord say Shouldest thou help the ungodly or be friends with them that hate the Lord This is one general cause why they are not so zealous in age as when they were young Converts 3. Scandalous or presumptuous sins do waste the Christians strength apace as in those holy men before rehearsed All sin is of a deadning and hardning nature and sets the Christian back a little that he is not so zealous as he should and would be as a Dog at his heels keeping him from running But while it is only of infirmity it little hinders him in his course God is easily intreated to assist him and continue the guidance of his Spirit and even by such rubs he gets ground daily But when the conscience is deeply wounded when the light is notoriously resisted when the heart smites and yet he will rush on this shall cost him dear now grace goes away exceedingly and comfort with the grace now he is become weak as another man and God hath some sharp correction in store for him to set him in his right wits again You know what evils followed David upon those scandals God will redeem his own glory and the honor of holy profession with the sorrows of his evil servants 4. Sometimes it is not for scandalous or presumptuous sins that the Lord forsakes his servants but their unthankfulness for former graces and comforts and mercies received They used them securely and gave not him the glory as he expected and deserved and therefore he leaves them for a while and it may be whips their own consciences They shall learn by the want what it was to have so much grace and comfort and may say as Psal 102.23 He weakned my strength in the way he shortned my days He takes a kind of revenge for the great unkindness This is the ordinary case of many who keep their ways and lives somewhat fair yet heavy and heartless Having been unthankful they are now left to this indifferency 5. Temptation may do much Never were the Philistine so watchful to bind Samson and know where his great strength lay that they might deprive him of it as the Devil is busie to rob and spoil us of our spiritual strength For this he watcheth continually and if he can come unobserved while we are secure and mindless of him he preys upon us exceedingly So he weakned our first Parents when they were much stronger then we are and David that he numbred the people and Peter that he was almost blown away like chaff These are the ordinary suckers that draw out much of the Life-bloud of true Christians It shall be our wisdom every one to examine his own heart and estate so to see how far he is decayed in the Trade of godliness and find out the true and proper cause of such languishing that so he may do afterward what is fit to be done by repentance prayer and more care in the use of holy means appointed for the regaining of his strength Consider it is
miserable to have ones spiritual strength so weakned even as miserable as to become poor after great wealthiness or sickly after great healthiness A lamentable change will nature and reason say and grace will teach a godly man to say likewise of spirituals By faith the Elders out of weakness were made strong and waxed valiant in fight Heb. 11.34 And this man of strong is become weak and fainteth in fighting the battels of the Lord. How is he decayed Oh this woful bankruptness of the soul whither doth it tend and what will be the end of these things unless the wiser course be taken in time Christians it concerns us much to lament and bewail this faintness whatever it is found in any Say not therefore I am safe in the main I cannot fall from grace I may do well enough though I be weaker then I was O who would miss so many comforts of the Spirit as such a one must miss or walk so heavily as such a one must walk it may be feel so many terrours as such a one must feel that there is but little difference between hell and him and he le ts go that perswasion concerning perseverance and hath some cause to doubt and fear he shall fall quite away I say who would be in such a woful case Therefore it is time to renew thy repentance and thy covenant and thy endeavours in footing it along in the ways of God as now toward a Sacrament the Lord offers thee new strength and more occasions to recover what is decayed since the last Sacrament he spreads his Table for thee again and hath kild his fatlings all is prepared and ready only be not thou unprepared and unready c. Know the only comfort is to them that take notice of their fainting and bewail it and would fain redress it Our Text saith They shall renew their strength Though their strength do decay at times yet it shall be renewed the labour that they take against a Sacrament shall not be lost therefore go in faith and go with confidence this is a promise and shall surely be performed Thou waitest on the Lord therefore thou shalt renew thy strength Heed and believe it and hear no accusing voices to the contrary either of the Devil or of thine own unbelieving heart Say not I often grow weak after I have been strong therefore I fear whether ever I shall come to that pitch and stature in grace or comfort which sometimes I had Know it is our condition in this life still to ebb and flow in heaven only we renew not our strength And divers Saints have relapsed as we see in the Spouse Cant. 3. and 5. And the promises here are indefinite after Relapses strength shall be renewed as well as in other cases though perhaps with more ado Only follow on and pray still one day thou shalt say as David Psal 138.3 in the day when I cryed thou answeredst me and strengthnedst me with strength in my soul And it is greater glory to God to preserve so weak a Vessel as thou art to his heavenly Kingdom having said My grace is sufficient for thee my strength is made perfect in weakness 2 Cor. 12.9 If we be strong in the Lord and the power of his might we are safe we are sure to do well enough Troubled we may be and shall be The Devil and the World and the Flesh will provide us troubles but in all this Conflict we shall stand and in the end overcome and in overcoming is the Crown and Glory To him that overcome will I give such and such mercies Now all this serves for Information Consolation and Exhortation USE I. INformation in two things If those things stand for truths according to the Scripture 1. Hereby is established the Doctrine of Saints perseverance in the estate of grace whereinto they are brought at their conversion When they are once regenerate and wait on the Lord as before they are sure to continue in that holy and happy estate to the end yea to an endless glory Now and Ever I speak not any thing to magnifie our selves and our pure naturals as some have pratled but only to advance the grace of God in Christ by whom we are able to do all things And we say It is vain whatsoever the Adversaries object concerning a mans own weakness that he is apt to fall into gross sins and shake off the grace of God and become no sheep no Member of Christ no Child of God no Heir of Heaven True of himself he is apt to do so and there is no other likelihood but if a Christian were left to himself he would fall both fearfully and finally We have an evil heart of unbelief to depart from the living God and are not sufficient of our selves to persevere in the good estate wherein we are set But what saith our Doctrine the strength whereby a true Christian standeth is a strength above that of Nature even most refined It is a borrowed strength a strength derived from God and will suffice him against all his weaknesses and all oppositions from hell and the world It will work so strongly in his heart that he will not fall away will not become a Goat when he was a Sheep will not run out of the sheepfold will not of a Child of God become a Child of the Devil nor lose the possession of heaven which he hath had in his eye to quicken and encourage him in his way The fear of God is so put into his heart that he neither can nor will depart from him The gifts and calling of God are without repentance God will never repent that he so revealed himself to the Elect and the Elect by grace shall never repent 2. The world is hereby convinced and condemned of passing rash and erroneous judgment upon the godly because of their falls and failings Oh they are Hypocrites Dissemblers make a shew of Religion and talk much of profession but see how they do the contrary But beware of Blasphemy It were good to hush and be silent and not condemn the Generation of Gods Children Know the Christian may be true though weak or he may be strong though weak in this or that particular his God is able to raise him again and make him stand Rom. 14 4. His strength shall be renewed when another with his meer civilities and formalities shall fall and fall without recovery I marvel what these would have said if they had lived in the days of David and seen him so scandalous in the matter of Urâ—ah Were they not Gods enemies who blasphemed because of those sins 2 Sam. 12.14 By this deed thou hast caused the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme It were time for all our Mockers and Censurers to repent bitterly USE II. THis stability of a godly mans estate ministers singular comfort to all who upon good evidence have owned and applyed Gods mercy to their poor hearts Their comfort is that they stand
tribulation yet in him they shall have peace and ought to be of good chear and Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivereth them out of all And if deliverance be delayed yet by the assistance of Christ and his Spirit the afflictions are sweetned and the heart supported and all the suffering sanctified that in time the Christian shall say It was good for me to be afflicted that I might learn thy statutes And remember that when the troubles last longest yet all the while the Christian Traveller is getting nearer and nearer to his Fathers house so that Yet a little while and he that shall come will come and his reward is with him In the Mount it will be seen 5. Other Believers who complain not of troubles in things of nature or the world yet trouble themselves much about the welfare of the Church which they see endangered by enemies some undermining others infected with errors and heresies and scattering their poison far and near Oh what will become of poor Sion which is so hated or defaced many enemies and but few real friends Answ Bear up chearfully it is a good sign in thee that thou art so tender of the Churches well-doing thou hast a promise They shall prosper that love Sion and all they that mourn for her shall be glad and rejoyce with her Esa 66.10 And as for the Church it self remember though lovest it well yet God loves it better and knows better how to provide for its safety and chiefest welfare Psal 87.2 The Lord loveth the gates of Sion more then all the dwellings of Jacob. As for the enemies secret or open let the King of Sion alone to deal with them for their conversion or confusion or to raise up friends as need shall require and he sees expedient that the Captivity may be turned and great gifts bestowed for the beautifying of Sion 6. Others know not what they shall do if persecution should arise for the Gospels sake they are fainty enough under the persecution of the tongue or in smaller tryals and they doubt they shall fall utterly if fire and faggot should come in use again But remember here who brought the Martyrs through the flames to give testimony to the truths of the Gospel They were flesh and bloud as we are and yet were strengthned to pass through the fire after Jesus Christ and they had relations and advantages to leave for the truth as near and dear as we have and yet by grace were enabled to part with all yea rejoyced that they were accounted worthy to suffer for the Name of Christ And ye may observe in reading the Histories of the Martyrs how they that were very timorous for a while yet coming in sight of the stake they have waxed joyful and confident as Mr. Glover to his friend who knew his fears O Austine He is come he is come meaning the Spirit of strength and comfort Remember too that the Lord hath continued his Church and brought it through persecuting times as well as times of prosperity yea the Primitive Church was planted and watered and thrived best in the persecution of the first three hundred years The bloud of the Martyrs proved the seed of the Church to propagate and make glorious the Kingdom of Christ Therefore faint not nor be weary for any persecution felt or feared 7. A Believer may say Death is the King of terrors and I fear I shall not dye with any patience or comfort I know not what kind of death I shall dye or where or with what Company it may be by the Pestilence or by the Sword or by some tormenting Disease or a lingring Disease I know not what but I doubt I shall faint at the last and then where is all my hope and reward Answ Remember what hath been said This God is our God for ever and ever he will be our guide even unto death Psal 48.14 And not only unto death but in dying Jesus Christ will be gain unto us Phil. 1.21 And not only Angels are ours with other good creatures but even death is a Friend though he come in a Mourning Gown 1 Cor. 3 22. And ye know how death is out-braved from doing us a mischief chap. 15.55 O death where is thy sting O grave where is thy victory the sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law But thanks be to God who hath given us the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord. As for the sad Harbingers and Messengers of death the Lord is able and hath promised to give a proportion of strength and comfort that when we faint and the outward man decays yet the inward man shall be renewed day by day and by rich mercy ye may come to fear nothing even when ye walk in the midst of the valley of the shadow of death And for the kind of Death Company Place Time and all circumstances it is best for the Child of God to submit to the will of his heavenly Father who hath said and would have us to rest in what he hath said My grace is sufficient for thee Only continue in a waiting condition as Job all the days of thy appointed time till that great change shall come thou shalt find it worth while to have so waited But because this waiting may be long and there go many things to waiting as the good servant who made all ready against the coming of his Lord I shall produce certain Motives as so many encouragements to the faithful servants of God who do so chearfully and constantly attend their God in those duties and those his Ordinances Many are the benefits of a due waiting 1. This at the Text they shall be enabled and blessed by this their waiting To renew their strength and hold out in the good ways of God unto glory Though there be divers weaknesses in themselves and discouragements in the world yet through rich mercy they shall run and not be weary walk and not faint A singular priviledge above all Apostates who have fallen away and come to nothing 2. They have hereby a note of true grace upon them that they are the Children and Servants of God in sincerity and not only in a general and common profession Our Text useth this Periphrasis or Description of the godly They that wait upon the Lord shall do thus and thus And it is a Description of the Gentiles conversion Esa 42.4 The Isles shall wait for his law with chap. 51.5 They shall wait upon me and on thy Name shall they trust and 60.9 Surely the Isles shall wait for me It is an ordinary Inquiry among tender spirits Whether am I indeed converted and brought home unto God or no The solution may hence be taken If ye wait on the Lord in the way and manner before described ye are indeed converted and need not trouble your selves any more 3. Another benefit is that these Waiters shall not in any thing be utterly disappointed so