what should befal the third part that should be left I will bring the third part through the fire and then adds a gracious promise that they should be refined by passing through the fire that is God thereby would purge and purifie their hearts and conversations urge God daily with these promises plead them at the Throne of Grace and rest upon God for the performance of them SECT 6. 6. Comply with Gods ends and designs in sending this affliction upon you The Lord doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men Lam. 3.33 but when ever he sends any affliction upon any man he hath gracious ends and designs in those afflictions and therefore as the Jews made enquiry when they were brought into great distress Wherefore doth the Lord our God all these great things unto us Jer. 5.19 And as the Apostle Paul when he was struck blinde with the vision that appeared to him as he was going to Dumascus enquires of the Lord Lord what wilt thou have me to do Acts 9.6 So should we make enquiry when the Lord afflicts us wherefore it is that he afflicts us and what it is that he aims at what he would have us to do when his afflicting hand is upon us We are enemies to our own good when we do not study the minde of God in our afflict ons and labour to comply with his ends for he alwayes chastneth us for our profit Heb. 12.10 and aims at the doing of us good Deut. 8.16 If you ask what are Gods ends and designs in sending this affliction upon us I answer The resolving of this question concerning Gods ends in afflicting us what he aims at and what he would have us learn when his rod is upon us may be gathered from Sect. 3. I shall adde a few things more besides what are mentioned there 1. Gods design in this affliction is to take away all pride and to make and keep you humble Isa 2.11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day This may refer to the day of affliction spoken of Isa 1.7 Your countrey is desolate your Cities are burnt with fire In that day when God should bring this desolation the lofty looks of man should be humbled c. When God afflicted the Israelites in the Wilderness with fiery Serpents that and all other afflictions were sent for this end to humble them Deut. 8.15,16 That he might humble thee and prove thee and do thee good in the latter end Elihu tells us that when God speaks once and twice to men It is that he may hide pride from man Job 33.17 When the Apostle Paul was afflicted he telleth us twice that the end of God was to prevent his being exalted above measure 2 Cor. 12.7 If then you would comply with Gods design in this affliction you must be no more proud of your riches beauty parts duties or any other thing but must put away all pride of spirit all high conceits of your selves and all proud looks and all pride of life and you must be of a lowly heart and go alwayes clothed with humility 2. God aims at the making of you more zealous Christians by this affliction Lukewarmness is a very odious detestable sin Rev. 3.15,16 I know thy works that thou art neither cold nor hot I would thou wert cold or hot so then because thou art luke-warm and neither cold nor hot I will spew thee out of my mouth this being so odious in Gods sight for a man to be luke-warm in his Religion When God findes any whom he loves to be in a luke-warm temper he chastens them for this very end to make them more zealous lous Rev. 3.19 As many as I love I rebuke and chasten be zealous therefore Now this is one way and a very sharp one of rebuking us when God contends by Fire Isa 66.15 The Lord will come with fire to render his anger with fury and his rebuke with flames of fire If therefore you were cold or if not wholly cold yet but luke-warm before God sent this Fire it concerns you now to grow zealous If you ask in what your affliction should make you zealous I answer 1. Be zealous in all acts of service and all religious duties which you perform to God shake off all drowsiness and formality and slightness of heart in prayer and in hearing and reading Gods Holy Word and be fervent in spirit when you are about these or any other holy duties Rom 12.11 Not slothfulness in business fervent in spirit serving the Lord. What is said of the Apostle Paul Acts 22.3 I was zealous towards God and of Phinehas Numb 25.13 He was zealous for his God Let the same be true of you put on an holy zeal for God and shew your zeal for God in all that you do either for or to the Lord. 2. Be zealous against sin strive against sin not in a faint cold manner but with all your might Be zealous and repent Rev. 3.19 Your zeal must be manifested in your repentance When a man is zealous against his sins and zealous in his repentance his zeal will breed indignation against sin a vehement desire to be rid of it a fear and carefulness that he do not commit it again See an example of zealous repentance 2 Cor. 7.11 Behold this self same thing that ye sorrowed after a godly sort what carefulness it wrought in you yea what clearing of your selves yea what indignation yea what fear yea what vehement desire yea what zeal yea what revenge 3. Be zealous of good works Tit. 2.14 Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works We should not only do good works but be zealous of and in doing good works We should be so zealous of good works as not only to embrace opportunities of doing good when they come in our way but we should covet earnestly and follow diligently after opportunities of doing good works 1 Tim. 5.10 If she have diligently followed every good work We should not only do good works but be careful to excel and continue constant therein whatever difficulties and discouragements we meet with in doing of them Tit. 3.8 This is a faithful saying and these things I will that thou affirm constantly that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works You see if you would answer Gods design in your affliction that you must be zealous and in what you must be zealous only let me adde here two or three cautions 1. Look that your zeal be regulated with knowledge There may be a zeal which is not guided by knowledge Rom. 10.2 I bear them record that they have a zeal of God but not according to knowledge Zeal without knowledge is dangerous Paul in a blinde zeal persecuted the people of God thinking therein
you Prov. 23.10,11 Remove not the old land-mark and enter not into the fields of the fatherless for their redeemer is mighty he shall plead their cause with thee By managing your work in truth and righteousness you shall prosper in what you take in hand Psal 45.4 Ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness 5. Before you enter upon building sit down and consider your cost and charge consider also your own ability whether you have sufficient to defray the charge of Building lest you be necessitated to leave your work imperfect or to run your selves into debt and bring great and unnecessary incumbrances upon your selves Luke 14.28,29,30 Which of you intending to build a tower sitteth not down first and counteth the cost whether he have sufficient to finish it lest haply after he hath laid the foundation and is not able to finish it all that behold it begin to mock him saying This man began to build and was not able to finish Especially be careful that you do not exceed your ability to build your houses in a more stately and magnificent manner than becometh your rank and quality The calamities of the present times and the many objects of charity call for frugality and moderation in this kinde Overmuch curiosity and expensiveness in Building is taxed as a sin Jer. 22.14 We may and many do transgress by too much cost and curiosity in adorning our Bodies 1 Tim. 2.9 1 Pet. 3.3 If not lawful to bestow too much coft in adorning our Bodies then surely we must use moderation in adorning our Houses for our Bodies are of more worth and value than our Houses 6. Follow your work with a willing minde and with diligence if you would have it go on successfully A willing minde will carry on difficult work with great ease Nehem. 4.6 So built we the wall and all the wall was joyned together unto the half thereof for the people had a minde to work Diligence and industry will effect great things but slothfulness and negligence will spoil and bring to nought good undertakings Eccles 10.18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through Yet here is need of caution that you do not immerse your hearts and spirits too much in your worldly business so as to forget or unfit your selves for the coming of Christ either by death or judgment Many men are so immoderate in their use and management of worldly things that they fall into a spirit of slumber and security so that the day of death and of judgment will come upon them as a snare when they neither think of or are prepared to meet the Lord Luke 17.28,29,30 As it was in the dayes of Lot they did eat they drank they bought they sold they planted they builded but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed It is not building or planting any more than eating or drinking but the inordinate affections of men and their worldly spirits their security and sensuality in the management of their worldly business that is here condemned by our Lord Jesus Christ 7. Aim at Gods glory in this work and not your own and so manage the whole business that nothing of reproach or dishonour may redound to the name of God but that God in all things may be glorified That general rule 1 Cor. 10.31 Whether ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do do all to the glory of God should take place in this as well as any other of your works You should not look only or chiefly at your own conveniences in Building but at the glory of God so the Jews did in building Jerusalem Ezra 4.3 We our selves together will build unto the Lord God of Israel If you be tempted from a vain-glorious painciple to be overcostly and curious in building your Houses consider 1. God would not have us do any action whatever for the procuring of vain-glory Phil. 2.3 Let nothing be done through strife or vain-glory Yea God would have us so far from doing any action for vain-glory that he would not have us so much as desirous of it Gal. 5.26 Let us not be desirous of vain-glory 2. With what mean Habitations were our fore-fathers contented Jacob who was a great man a Prince in the estimation of the Angel that wrastled with him Gen. 32.28 contented himself to dwell in a tent which was both a mean and a moveable habitation Gen. 25.27 Jacob was a plain man dwelling in tents so did his Father Abraham Heb. 11.9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise as in a strange Countrey dwelling in Tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob heirs with him of the same promise Yet Abraham was a great man he was the heir of the world Rom. 4.13 and the father of all the faithful ver 11 16. 3. If that which is expended by many persons in superfluous and needless adorning of their houses were given to the poor how much good might they do would it not be much to their comfort at the day of judgment wherein they must give an account for all their talents how they have used them and what improvement they have made of them 8. It is of much concernment to you whilest you are about this work of Building or when you are about any other work of moment to give good heed to the Word of God for thereby you will be helped much to carry on your undertakings successively When you faint and are discouraged Gods Word will put strength into you when you are under doubts that will resolve you when you turn aside to the right hand or to the left Gods Word will restore your souls and lead you in paths of righteousness it is of great use in these and divers other resnects to help you to carry on your civil employments successfully Deut. 29.9 Keep the words of this covenant and do them that ye may prosper in all that ye do That is a remarkable passage which you have Ezra 6.14 The elders of the Jews builded and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the Prophet and Zechariah the Son of Iddo and they builded and finished it according to the Commandment of the God of Israel The preaching of the word by these two servants of God was a means of carrying on this work of building Jerusalem successfully When God sent forth Joshua about a great work he gave him a special charge to take heed to his word and to read and meditate therein night and day which would be a sure way to be successful Joshua 1.8 This book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth but thou shalt meditate therein day and night that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous and then thou shalt have