the inheritance Col. 1.12 O let this Star of faith appear in the dark night of affliction Ionahs faith was never more in Heaven than when he lay in the belly of Hell Ionah 2.4 6. When we are brought low in affliction let us labour to be bettered by being brought low Pick some good out of the cross get some hony out of this Lion The wicked are worse for affliction Weeds stamped in a Mortar are more unsavoury 2 Chron. 28.22 In the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord. This is that King Ahaz But let us labour to be meliorated and made better by affliction Christ learned obedience by what he suffered Heb. 5.8 If we are brought low in affliction and get no good then the affliction is lost When are we battered by afflictions When our eyes are more opened and we are not only chastned but taught Psal. 94.12 Wormwood is bitter to the taste but is good to clear the eye-sight then our spiritual eye-sight is cleared 1. When we see more of Gods holiness He is a jealous and sin-hating God he will not suffer evil in his own children to go unpunished if they make light of sin he will make their chain heavy Lam. 3.2 2. When we have a clearer infight into our selves We see more of our hearts than we did before we see that earthliness impatience distrust of God which we did not discover before We never thought we had such a flux of corruption or that there had been so much of the old man in the new man The fire of affliction makes that skum of sin boyl up which before lay hid When our eye-sight is thus cleared and both the rod and the lamp go together now we are bettered by affliction 2. When our hearts are softned Affliction is Gods fornace where he melts his gold Jer. 9.7 I will melt them and try them When our eyes are more watery our thoughts more serious our consciences more tender when we can say as Job Chap. 23.16 God makes my heart soft This melting of the heart whereby we are fitted to receive the impression of the Holy Ghost is a blessed sign we are bettered by affliction 3. When our wills are subdued Mic. 7.9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him Why doth God bring us low but to tame our curst hearts A wicked man is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 when he is brought low he quarrels with God therefore is compared to a wild Bull in a net Isa. 51.20 If you go to rub a piece of Stuff which is rotten it frets and tears So when God rubs a wicked man by affliction he frets and tears himself with vexation Isa. 8.21 They shall fret themselves and curse their King and their God But when our spirits are calmed and we are wrought to a sweet submission to Gods will we accept of the punishment Levit. 26.41 and do in patience possess our souls Luke 21.19 When we say as Eli 1 Sam. 3.18 It is the Lord let him do what seemeth him good I know this tryal is in mercy God will rather afflict me than lose me let him hedge me with thorns if he will plant me with flowers Let him do what seemeth him good now we are bettered by the affliction 4. When sin is purged out Isa. 27.9 This is all the fruit to take away iniquity Our hearts are dreggish and sinful our Gold is mixed with Dross our Stars with Clouds now when affliction consumes pride formality hypocrisie when Gods Launce lets out our spiritual Imposthume then we are bettered by affliction 5. When our hearts are more unglued from the world What are all these under-moon things the cares of the world exceed the comforts The Emblem that King Henry the seventh used was a Crown of Gold hung in a bush of Thorns Many who have escaped the Rocks of scandalous sins have been cast away upon the Golden sands The Arabick Proverb is The world is a carkass and they that hunt after it are dogs Is not love of the world become almost the epidemick Disease If the Lord bestows a plentiful estate upon men they are apt to make an Idol of it And therefore God is forced to take that out of their hand which kept him out of their heart Now when the Lord comes and afflicts any of us in that which we most love he hits us in the apple of our eye and our hearts grow more dead to the world and sick of love to Christ when God hath been withering our gourd and our affections to it begin to wither when he hath been digging about our root and we are more loosened from the earth then we are bettered by affliction 6. When affliction hath produced more appetite to the Word Perhaps in health and prosperity we and the Bible seldom meet or if we did chance to read it was in a dull cursory manner but the Lord by imbittering the breast of the creature hath made us run to the breast of a Promise and we can say as David Psal. 119.103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste yea sweeter than honey Solomon saith truly the light is sweet Eccles. 11.7 But we can say truly the Word is sweet We have tasted Christ in a Promise the Word hath caused an exuberancy of joy Psalm 19.8 This is the Manna we love to feed upon every leaf of Scripture drops Myrrhe and as a rich Cordial cheers our spirit when it is thus now we are bettered by our tryals Psalm 119.50 7. When our title to Heaven is more confirmed In prosperity we are more careless in getting at least in clearing our spiritual title People would be loth their evidences for their Land were no better than their evidences for Heaven Many a mans evidence for glory is either forged or blotted he is not able to read any discriminating work of Gods Spirit he is pendulous and hangs in a doubtful suspence not knowing whether he hath Grace or no now when we are brought low in affliction and we fall to the work of self-examination we see how matters stand between God and our souls we turn over every lea◠of the Book of conscience we make a critical descant upon our hearts and after a thorough survey o◠our selves we can say We know the grace of God in truth Col. 1. ◠We have received the holy anointing 1 John 2.27 Our Grace will bear the touchstone though not the ballance certainly then we have made a good proficiency in the time of affliction and are bettered by it 8. When we grow more fruitful in Grace A Christian should be like the Olive-tree fair and of goodly fruit Jer. 11.16 There is a tree in the Isle of Pomonia which hath its fruit folded and wrapped up in the leaves of it An emblem of a good Christian who hath the fruits of Grace wrapped up in the leaves
made all of Glass and that if any one touch them they shall break Melancholy cloaths the mind in Sable it puts a Christian out of tune that he is not fit for prayer nor praise Lute-strings when wet will not sound nor can one under the power of Melancholy Make melody in his heart to the Lord Ephes. 5.19 when the mind is troubled it is unfit to go about work Melancholy doth disturb Reason and weaken Faith Satan works much on this temper it is balneum diaboli he bathes himself with delight in such a person Through the black Spectacles of Melancholy every thing appears black When a Christian looks upon sin saith he this Leviathan will devour me when he looks upon Ordinances these will serve to increase my guilt when he looks upon affliction this gulf will swallow me up Melancholy creates fears in the mind it excites jealousies and misprisions I may allude to that Psal. 53.5 There were they in great fear where no fear was 5. Sin brings a man low in spiritual Plagues It brings many an one to a seared conscience to final induration Isa. 29.10 The Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of a deep sleep and hath closed your eyes Men are brought low indeed when the sound of Aarons Bell will not awaken them no Sermon will stir them They are like the Smiths Dog that can lye and sleep near the Anvil when all the sparkles fly about Conscience is in a Lethargy When once a mans speech is gone and his feeling lost he draws on apace to death So when the checks of Conscience cease and a man is sensible neither of sin nor wrath you may ring out the Bell he is past hope of recovery Thus some are brought low even to a reprobate sense This is limen inferni the threshold of damnation 6. Sin brings a man low in temptation Paul began to be proud and he had a messenger of Satan to buffet him 2 Cor. 12.7 Some think it was a visible apparition of Satan tempting him to sin others that the Devil was now assaulting Pauls faith making him believe he was an hypocrite Satan laid the train of temptation to blow up the fort of his Grace And this temptation was so sore that he called it a thorn in the flesh it did put him to much anguish Such temptations do the godly oft fall into They are tempted to question the truth of the Promises or the truth of their own Graces Sometimes they are tempted to blasphemy sometimes to self-murder thus they are brought low they are almost gone and ready to give consent The Devil nibbles at their heel but God wards off the blow from their head 7. Sin brings one low in desertion This is an abysse indeed Psal. 88.6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit Desertion is a short Hell Cant. 5.6 My beloved hath withdrawn himself and was gone Christ knocked but the Spouse was loth to rise off her bed of sloath and open to him presently Christ was gone When the Devil finds a person sleeping he enters but when Christ finds him sleeping he is gone And if this Sun of Righteousness withdraws his Golden beams from the soul darkness follows Desertion is the arrow of God shot into the soul. Job 6.4 The arrows of the Almighty are within me the poison whereof drinketh up my Spirit The Scythians in their Wars did use to dip their Arrows in the blood and gall of Asps that the venemous heat of them might the more torture the enemy So the Lord did shoot his poisoned arrow of desertion at Iob under the wounds whereof his Spirit lay bleeding God is called in Scripture a light and a fire The deserted soul feels the fire but doth not see the light So dreadful is this that the most tormenting pains Stone Collick Strangury are but a pleasure to it All the delights under the Sun will administer no comfort in this condition Worldly things can no more relieve a troubled mind than a silken Stocken can ease a broken Leg. Psal. 88.15 While I suffer thy terrors I am distracted Luther in desertion was like one giving up the ghost He had no blood seen in his face nor was heard to speak but his body seemed dead as one writes in an Epistle to Melancthon 8. Sin brings many low in despair this is a gulf that none but reprobates fall into Jer. 18.11 Thou saidst there is no hope Despair is devoratoria salutis it is a milstone tyed about the soul that sinks it in perdition Despair looks on God not as a Father but a Iudge It refuseth the remedy Other sins need Christ despair rejects him It closeth the Orifice of Christs wounds that no blood will come out to heal This is the voice of despair My sin is greater than the mercy of God can pardon It makes the wound broader than the plaister Despair is a God-affronting sin it is sacriledge it robs God of his Crown-jewels his Power Goodness Truth How doth Satan triumph to see the honour of Gods Attributes laid in the dust by despair Despair casts away the Anchor of hope and then the soul must needs sink What will a Ship do in a storm without an Anchor Despair locks men up in impenitency I have read of one Hubertus who dyed despairing he made his Will after this manner I yield my goods to the King my body to the grave my soul to the Devil Isa. 38.18 They that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth They who go down into this pit of despair cannot hope for the truth of Gods promise And this despair grows at last into horror and raving Eheu quis intus scorpio 9. Sin brings a man without repentance into the bottomless pit and then he is brought low indeed Sin draws Hell at the heels of it Psal. 9.7 The wicked shall be turned into Hell Not to speak of the punishment of loss which Divines think is the worst part of Hell i. e. the being separated from the beatifical sight of God in whose presence is fulness of joy The poena sensus the punishment of sense is bad enough Then wrath will come upon sinners 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the uttermost 1 Thes. 2.16 If when Gods anger is kindled but a little and a spark of it flyes into a mans conscience in this life it is so terrible what will it be when he stirs up all his wrath Psal. 78.38 How sad was it with Spira when he did but sip of the Cup of wrath he was a very Anatomy his flesh consumed he became a terror to himself What is it then to lye steeping in Hell Some may ask where the place of Hell is but as Chrysostome saith let us not be inquisitive where it is but rather let our care be to escape it But to satisfie curiosity Hell is some infernal place it lies low Prov.
for himself He hath set an hedge about it Remember to keep holy the Sabbath Day But how is this enclosure made common This blessed day which is made purposely for communion with God is become a day of perambulation People frequent the Fields or Taverns more than the holy assemblies O that our head were waters and our eyes a fountain of tears That we might weep To see men pollute what God himself hath consecrated If they are to take Physick it must be on the Lords Day if they are to make Feasts or Visits it must be on this day And so in a prophane sense they call the Sabbath a delight Sabbath-breaking is Sacriledge 't is a robbing God of his due People take that time which should be dedicated wholly to the Lord and spend it in the service of the Devil and their lusts and hath not this sin brought us low God threatens Jer. 17.27 If ye will not hearken to me to hallow the Sabbath Day then will I kindle a fire I observe the devouring Fire which brake out in London began on the Sabbath Day as if God would tell us from Heaven he was now punishing us for our prophaning his day 3. The third sin which hath brought us low is neglect of Family-worship Religion in mens families is brought low No reading of Scripture they look oftner upon a pair of Cards than a Bible No praying 't is made the note of a reprobate He calls not upon God Psalm 14.4 The Atheist will be sure his prayer shall not be turned into sin for he never prayes at all The Graecians asked counsel of their feigned Gods by their Oracles the Persians by their Magi the Galls by their Druides the Romans by their Augures Shall Ethnicks pray and not Christians Creatures by the instinct of nature cry to God Psal. 147.9 The young Ravens which cry Prayer hath no enemies unless infernal spirits and such as are near of Kin to them Keyes that are often used are bright but if they be laid aside and never used they grow rusty so it is with mens hearts if they are not used to family-prayer they will be rusted over with sin For this God hath brought us low Why did he pull down many houses in this City but because they were unhallowed houses there was no prayer in them How do we think to have a blessing from God if we never ask it Then God should do more for us than he did for his own Son Heb. 5.7 In the dayes of his flesh he offered up prayers with strong cryes and tears 4. Another sin which hath brought us low is Covenant-violation Psal. 78.10 They kept not the Covenant of God Ver. 50. He made a way to his anger he spared not their souls from death The Carthaginians were noted for Covenant-breaking O that this sin had dyed with them Doth not this poisonful Weed grow in our soil Did not we make a vow in Baptism to fight under Christs banner against world flesh and Devil Did not we solemnly covenant to be the Lords people to shine in sanctity going each one before another in an exemplary Reformation Deut. 5.28 29. They have well said in all that they have spoken O that there were such an heart in them that they would fear me and keep my commandments We have much conforming but where is reforming Is not Jesus Christ opposed in his Kingly Office This is the great Controversie who shall reign Sin or Christ for this God hath been as a Moth to us and we may fear lest he make good that commination Levit. 26.25 I will bring a Sword that shall avenge the quarrel of my Covenant 5. Another sin which hath brought us low is the abuse of the Gospel We are sick of Israels disease they despised Manna Num. 21.5 Our soul loatheth this light bread We did nauseate the bread of life The Gospel is the visible token of Gods presence it is the sacred Conduit-pipe that empties the golden Oyle of mercy into us it is the Glass in which we see the face of Christ it is the Celestial banquet wherewith God doth chear and refocillate the souls of his people But was there not a Gospel surfeit in England People had itching ears and knew not who to hear and hath not our curiosity brought us to scarcity God had no better way to raise the price of the Gospel than by abating the plenty God surely did bring us low when darkness did overspread our Horison and the Lord suffered so many hundred Lights to be at one time put under a bushel The Aegyptian Priests of old told the people when any Eclipse happened that the Gods were angry and great miseries would follow What sad catastrophies have ensued this spiritual Eclipse is not unknown 6. Another sin which hath brought us low is Covetousness When mens Spirits are low and with the Serpent they lick the dust then God layes them in the dust Isa. 57.17 For the iniquity of his Covetousness I was wroth and smote him Covetousness is the Dropsie of the soul men are set upon the world when God is plucking it from them Covetousness is a Key that opens the door to further wickedness opes irritamenta malorum 1 Tim. 6.10 The love of money is the root of all evil A covetous man wil stick at no sin This made Absolom attempt to dethrone his Father this made Ahab stone Naboth And what is one the better for all his wealth at death 1 Tim. 6.10 We brought nothing into the world and it is certain we can carry nothing out When the rich Miser dies what scrambling is there his friends are scrambling for his goods the worms are scrambling for his body and the Devils are scrambling for his soul. This sin is most uncomely in those that profess better They pretend to live by faith and yet are as worldly and griping as others These are spots in the face of Religion Jer. 45.5 Seekest thou great things for thy self For this sin God hath brought us low he hath made our Fig-tree to wither and suffered the Palmer-worm to eat our Vine 7. Another sin which hath brought us low is Barrenness under the Means of Grace Hos. 10.1 Israel is an empty Vine his juice runs out only into leaves We have had much pruning and dressing the silver drops of Heaven have fallen upon us but we have not brought forth the fruits of humility and repentance we can discourse of Religion but this is only to bring forth leaves not fruit non-proficiency hath laid us low and we may fear will lay us waste God may pull up the hedge and let in a forraign Wild-Boar Ursin tells us that those who fled out of England in Queen Maries dayes acknowledged that that calamity befell them for their great unprofitableness under the Means of Grace in King Edwards dayes What man will sow seed in barren ground