he lets it goe on till the Physicke have wrought well carried away the malignant matter that he may be the better for it and that hee is a loving and tender Physitian yet so God when we are in trouble it is as Physick we cry but God he turnes the glasse as the Physitians doe nay this time shall be expired it shall work so long till thy pride be taken away thou shalt be humbled throughly till thou be weaned from thy former wicked pleasures till thou be prepared to receiue further blessings therefore they crie and crie and God deferres to heare the voyce of his children in the meane time he loues to heare the cry of his children and their prayer is as sweet incense yet he deferres stil but all is for the patients good be not weary of waiting it is a great mercy that Hee makes thee able to continue crying that thou hast the spirit of Prayer that thou canst poure out thy soule to God it is a great mercy and so account of it Perhaps thou hast not cast out thy Ionas thy Achan that there is some particular sinne vnrepented of and thou cryest and cryest but thy sinne cries louder thy pride or thy oppression cries thy wicked course cries thou cryest unto God and there is another thing cries in thee that cries vengeance as thou doest for mercie therefore search out thy Achan cast out thy beloued sinne see if thou regard iniquity in thy heart if thou regard any pleasing or profitable or gainfull sin and never thinke that God will heare thee till that bee out for it will out-cry thy prayers The next thing is the manner of Gods cure Hee sent his word and healed them WHAT word His secret commaund his will Let such a thing be as in the creation Let there bee light c. Besides his word written there is his word creating and preserving things created and so here restoring them that were sicke Hee sent his word and healed them and so at the resurrection his Word his voyce shall raise our bodies againe It is a strange manner of cure for GOD to cure by his word by his commaund It shewes that GOD hath an universall commaund of all things in the world in heaven and earth over divells and over sicknesses as it is said in the Gospell Hee rebuked the sicknesses Hee can rebuke the agues the plague and the pestilence and they shall bee gone by his word as the Centurion sayd I am a man that have servants under mee and I say to one come and hee commeth and to another goe and he goeth so thou hast all things under thee thou art GOD and if Thou say to a disease Come it commeth if Thou say goe it goeth GOD sent his word of command and healed them It is but a word of God to heale but a word of God to strike Hee is the Lord of Hostes If Hee doe but hisse as the Prophet saith for the flie of Egypt If Hee doe but call for an Enemie they come at his word as wee see in Pharaohs plagues the Flies and Frogs all things obey his word There is a sâ—cret obedience in all things to God when his will is that they shall doe this or that why doth the Sea keepe his bounds when as the nature and position of the Sea is to bee above the earth It is the command of GOD that hath sayd Let it bee there and hither shall thy proud waues goe and no further I might give many instances how GOD doth all by his word The Divells are at his word the whales the Sea when Christ rebukes it obeyes It should teach us not to displease this GOD that can strike us in the middest of our sinnes even with a word Let us feare this GOD put case we had no enemie in the world God can arme a mans humours against him he can raise the spirit and soule against it selfe and make it fight against it selfe by desperate thoughts hee needed not forreine forces for Achitophel and Saul he could arme their owne soules against themselves And when hee will take downe the greatest Gyant in the world he needs not forreine forces it is but working of a disease but giving way to a humour but inflaming the spirits and the soule shall abhorre all manner of meat Againe he gives a command a rebuke and they are gone presently therefore let us not offend this great God that is commander of heaven and earth let us labour to please him and it is no matter who else wee displease for hee hath all things at his command even the hearts of kings as the rivers of water when Esau sought for Iacob to hurt him there was a secret command God set upon him to love him therefore we should feare him and all other things shall feare us we need feare nothing so we have a care to feare God further then in God and for God but not so to feare them as to doe evill for them and offend the great God that can with a word command sicknesse to come or bid it be gone Againe in that God when all second causes faile can heale by his word therefore let us never bee discouraged from praying though wee see a hurly-burly and tumult in the Church though we see all Europe in combustion and the Church driven into a narrow corner let us not give over prayer for Christ that with a word commanded the waves to bee still and the divels to be gone and they presently obeyed him he can still the waves of the Church hee can pt a hooke into the nostrils of his enemies and draw them which way hee please he can still all with his word therefore howsoever things seeme to run contrary and opposite to our desires yet let us not give over hee that sees no ground of hope in carnall fleshly reason let him despaire of nothing despaire shuts the gate and doore of mercy and hope as it were you see here when all meanes faile when they were at the very gates and entrie of death God fetcheth them backe againe how with physick no hee is not tyed to physicke there is difference betweene God and betweene nature and art nature and art can doe nothing without meanes but the God of nature and art can doe it with his word How made hee this heaven and earth this glorious fabrick with his word Let there be light and there was light c. And how shall hee restore all againe with his mightie commanding word how doth hee preserve things by his word how are things multiplyed by his word increase and multiplie a word of blessing he doth all things with his word So hee can confound his enemies with a word Nay Christ in his greatest abasement when they came with â—taves and armes to take him Whom seeke ye Saith hee that word struck downe all the Officers of the Scribes and Pharisees they fell flat on the ground
I will not force this point further at this time Shee was a woman that feared and worshipped God Shee was faithfull in that light shee had and to him that hath shal be given Shee worspipped God NOT in any sight of her owne she had the grace of God from the spirit of God All feare comes from the spirit of God initiall feare and ripened feare all feare is from God but I will not conflict with adversaries at this time You see the person a woman her calling A seller of purple and her pious disposition shee was such a one as worshipped God And she heard Paul The sweete providence of God brings those that belong to Election vnder the compasse of the means at one time or other Let the divell and the instruments of the Divell rage and oppose and doe what they can those that belong to God God will haue a time to bring them within the compasse of his calling and effectually call them by his spirit As here Lydia there was a sweete preventing providence that shee never thought of God brought an Apostle for the saluation of her soule shee heard Paul and was converted To come to the description of her conversion in the next words Whose heart the Lord opened to attend to the things that were spoken of Paul GOD opened her heart To what purpose To attend to the things spoken of Paul God by the word preached opens the heart to attend to the word by the word we are fitted to the word The spirit and the word draw us to themselues The spirit and the word draw us to regard the word by the word her heart was opened to attend to the word First I will speake of the opening her heart And then of her attending upon the word preached by Paul God opened her heart Shee was a religious woman yet her heart was shut before God opened it Shee was religious in her kind yet her heart must be further opened before shee could bee saved There is no staying in preparations in this or that degree as many abortiues in our times that make many offers they haue the spirit of bondage and are cast downe but there they stick and neuer come to proofe But those that will attaine to salvation must not rest in religious dispositions in good affections and gracious offers they must goe on further and further as wee see here God opened her heart Obserue then in the opening of the heart these things First the heart is naturally shut and closed up as indeed it is to spirituall things it is open enough to the world and to base contentments here but it is shut to heauen and heauenly things naturally it is cleane locked up Partly in its owne nature being corrupt and earthly partly because Sathan he beseigeth all the senses and shuts up all There is a spirit of deafenesse and blindnesse and a spirit of darknes and deafnesse in people before God hath brought them by the powerfull worke of the Gospell from the Kingdome of Satan that poffesseth every man naturally Naturally therefore our hearts are not open but locked and shut up that is supposed here so that except God be mercifull to breake the prison as it were whereby by vnbeleife and the wickednesse of our nature we are shutt up there is no hope of salvation at all God opens the heart The second thing is this that as our hearts are shut and closed up naturally so God and God alone opens the heart by his spirit in the use of the means God opened Lydia's heart God hath many keyes he hath the key of heauen to coÌ„mand the raine to come downe he hath the key of the wombe the key of hell and the graue and the key of the heart especially He opens and no man shuts and shuts and no men opens He hath the key of the heart to open the vnderstanding the memory the will and affections God and God only hath the key of the heart to open that it is his prerogatiue He made the heart and he onely hath to doe with the heart he can vnmake it and make it new againe as those that make locks can doe And if the heart be in ill temper hee can take it in peices and bring it to nothing as it were as it must be before conversion and he can make it a new heart againe It is God that opens the heart and God only All the Angels in heauen cannot giue one grace not the least grace Grace comes meerly from God it is meerly from God All the creatures in the world cannot open the heart but God only by his holy spirit For nature cannot doe aboue its sphere as we say aboue its owne power Naturall things can doe but naturall things For nature to raise it selfe up to beleeue heavenly things it cannot be Therefore as you see vapours goe as high as the sunne drawes them up and no higher so the soule of man is lift up to heauenly thâ—ngs by the power of Gods spirit God drawes us and then we follow God I say onely openeth the heart Because there is not only want of strength in the soule to open it selfe but likewise there is enmity and poyson in the heart â—o shut it selfe and shut out all goodnesse A man hath no senses to spirituall things no eyes no eares no taft no life Nay there is an opposition to all A naturall man perceiveth not the things of God neither can he he wants senses and those senses hee hath are set against goodnesse as the Apostle saith he esteemeth them foolishnesse I need not bee much in so easie an argument that you are well enough acquainted with Naturally the heart is shut and God only must open it This should teach us patience when we can do little good with those that are under us by all our instructions and corrections wait the due time Grace is not of thy giving the heart is not of thy opening or of any mans opening therefore as it is 2 Tim. 2. waite and beare with patience men of contrarie minds waiting when God in due time giue them grace to repent Grace is Gods creature it is none of our owne Therefore take heed that we be not short angry spirited if we cannot haue all we would haue of those that are under us children or servants let us waite Gods time he opens the heart in his time And if wee find not grace wrought in our owne hearts at the first or second or third sermon Let us doe as hee at the Poole of Bethesda lie there till the Angell stirre the water till God bee effectuall by his spirit God doth it and he only doth it only we must waite he will doe it in his good time be not ouer short-spirited This we ought to obserue out of these words God opened the heart of Lydia The heart is put for the whole soule he opened her understanding to
conceiue for all things beegin with heauenly light of the understanding all grace comes into the soule by the understanding There is no sanctifying grace in the affections but it comes by enlightning the understanding we see the grounds of it in the understanding first God opens the understanding and then he opens the memory to retaine That the memory may bee as the pot of Mannah to hold heauenly things he opens and strengthens it with retention to keepe them and he opens the will to close with holy things and the affections to joy and delight in them So the heart is the whole inward man he not only enlightens the understanding but infuseth grace into the will and affections into the whole inward man We must take it in that extent for else if God should only open the understanding and not through the understanding flow into the will by the power of his spirit the will would alway rebell as indeed it is a poysonfull thing there is nothing so malicious next the divell as the will of man God will haue one way and it will haue another Therefore God doth not only open the vnderstanding to conceiue but he opens the will to close with and to imbrace that that is good or else it will take head and take armes against the understanding in that that is good and neuer come to the worke of grace Therefore take it so he opened the will and affections as well as the understanding though what-soeuer is in the will and affections comes through the understāding as well as heate comes through light God opened her heart to what end To attend to the things that were spoken of Paul THe word signifies to applie and set her mind to the things that Paul said to joyne and fasten the mind to what Paul sayd First you see then here is the opening of the heart before there is attending before there can bee any attending and applying of the mind the mind must be sanctified and strengthened the soule must be sanctified before it can attend The reason is nothing can flow but from a sutable facultie and ability to attend is a power and act of the soule it must come from a sanctified power of the soule the heart must first bee opened and then the heart attends God sayth he will circumcise the heart and then we shall loue him he sanctifies the heart and then it loues him God changeth and altereth the frame of the soule and then holy actions come from it First grace begins with the abilities and powers of the soule the heart is opened and then come holy actions sutable There is no proportion betweene holy actions and an vnsanctified soule the heart must first be opened and then it attends Whose heart the Lord opened that shee attended c. YOU see then in the next place that God opening the heart of any Christian it is to carrie the attention to the word God by grace carries the heart to the word shee attended to what Paul spake Where true grace is wrought it carries not to speculation or to practise this or that idle dreame but where the heart is open grace carries to attend to the word especially to the good word the Gospell of Christ. As grace is wrought by the word so it carries the soule to the word And therefore it may be a use of tryall to know whether wee haue our hearts wrought on by the grace of God or no whether GOD by his spirit haue opened our hearts or no if our hearts be carried to the blessed word of God to rellish that If they be God hath opened our hearts to attend to the word And there is no better evidence of a child of God then that that is fetched from the affection that hee carries to the word and blessed truth of God Oh! he rellisheth it as his appointed food he cannot be without it take away that and you take away his life My Sheepe heare my voyce you are none of mine because you heare not my word A delight in the blessed truth of God is an argument that God hath first opened the heart Therefore poore soules when they want good evidence when they doubt whether their estate be good or no Let them consider what rellish they have of diuine truths Whether it be connaturall to the word or no whether it be savourie or no whether they could be without the meanes of salvation or no and let them judge of themselves by their delight in Gods truth her heart was opened to attend to the word Shee attended to the things which were spoken of Paul WHich were the blessed truths of salvation The forgiuenesse of sinnes The free mercy of God in Christ. The particulars are not set downe but it was the Gospell and shee beleeued upon it therefore it must needes be the word of faith We see heere then that The seed and ground of faith is the Gospell Her heart was opened to attend to that that Paul spake which was the Gospell And indeed so it is The foundation of faith the word of faith is the Gospell nothing can breed faith but the word of God for how can wee hope for heauen and happinesse but by the mind of God discovered Can we looke for any thing but GOD must discover his mind to bestow it and where haue wee the mind and bosome of God opened to us is it not from the scriptures the word of God from the good word especially It is called the word of grace and the word of the Kingdome and of glory The word of life because by it all these blessed things are conveyed to us Now it is not the word simply here but the word spoken by Paul that is the word preached by an authorized minister is the usuall meanes of faith her heart was opened to attend to what was spoken by Paul an authorized minister so the word preached is the ordinary though not the sole foundation of faith Therefore the Apostle saith that God by that converted the world by the foolishnesse of preaching And in the ladder of heauen in Rom. 10. How shall they call on him of whom they haue not heard and how shall they preach except they bee sent so there is no faith without teaching The point is playne you heare it oft The word is the ground of faith and the word especially as it is preached by a Paul by a Minister unfolding it Therefore be stirred up as yee fauour the soules of Gods people to pray to God to send labourers into his harvest and to pray that the Gospell and the preaching of it may haue a free passage that God would set vp lights in all the darke corners of the kingdome and every where to those that are in darkenesse and in the shadow of death And blessed are their indeauour that labour that the Gospell may be preached in euery part of the Kingdom For we see here it
is the word unfolded the unsearchable riches of Christ spread open the Tapestry laid open that usually beget faith The mine must be digged people must see it familiarly layd open Therfore saith he here Lydia's heart was opened and shee attended to the word spoken by Paul Let this teach us to set a price upon the ordinance of God doth God set up an ordinance and will he not giue vertue and power to it Yes there is a majesty and a power in the word of God to pul people out of the Kingdome of Sathan to the blessed light of Gods Kingdome It was the word and the word opened by the ministery of Paul But it was the word and the word opened and attended to shee mixed it with her attention and her heart closed with it There are these 3. goe together The word and the word preached and then attending to the word preachedth at was the ground of her faith these 3. meeting together There are these foure things must alwayes be in the senses of our body If wee will see there must be an object to see we must see something and a facultie to see our eye and then a light whereby wee see we cannot see in the dark And then there must bee an application of the eye to see the object by that light So in spirituall things there is the blessed truth of God the mercie of God in Iesus Christ that wee may see these things wee must haue a light by which we may see them And there must be a power to see which is the sanctified opened understanding when the understanding is opened then there is an application of the soule to attend to the word of God by the light of the word So that there must be application and attention to the word before the word can doe us good it must be applyed to the object the tast to the thing tasted and so in all the other senses Attention is a speciall thing how many sermons are lost in this Citie that are as seed drowned that never come to fruite I thinke there is no place in the world where there is so much preaching and no place where there are so many sermons lost why because people want a retaining power and facultie to attend and retaine and keepe what wee heare shee attended to the word preached To giue a little direction in this poynt of attending and applying the mind not to speake much I will name two or three principall things that I thinke fit at this time If we would come as we should to the word preached let us search our wants before wee come and all the occasions wee shall have to encounter with all temptations that we are like to encounter with let us fore-cast by presenting to our soules I am weake in knowledge and I want such graces I am like to encounter with such temptations I am too weake for it I shall meete with such adversaries I know not how to answer them I am plunged in such businesses I shall be lost in them without grace then the soule comes with a mind to be supplied and then it will attend and wll pray for the preacher Oh Lord direct him that he may speak fitly to me somewhat for my understanding somewhat for my affections somewhat to helpe me against such such a temptation this is wanting and therfore we profit no more by the word then we doe Then when we come to heare the word let us heare it with all spirituall subjection as that Word that hath power to Command the conscience This is the word of God the Minister of God speaks in the place of God to me I must give an account of it I will subject my conscience to it It is spoken with evidence and proved I will stoupe to it Thus we should come with subjection of soule and conscience to whatsoever is taught and not come to judge and censure or to delight in it as musique as if wee came to a play to heare some prettie sentences but come to heare God as to the ordinance of God come as to that Word that shall judge our soules at the latter day that is the way to attend Then againe if we would attend when we have heard the word of God let us labour by all meanes to bring it neare to us that it may be an ingrafted Word that the soule may be leavened by it that it may be so ingrafted in the understanding and affections that we may thinke the better in the vertue of it and love and speake and doe the better as a Sience savours of the plaâ—â— it is put into Let us labour that the word of God may be written in our soules in the tables of our hearts that the truth of God may be neare us as any temptation shall be neare us or any corruption neare us What is the reason wee yeeld to corruptions and temptations They are neare and the Word is farre off We never attended to the Word to bring it neare home If the word were as neare as corruptions and temptations that it were ingrafted and in vested into the soule we should have the word readie for every temptation there should not â—e a temptation offered nor a corruption arise but wee should subdue it and beat it downe with the blessed truth of God accompanied with the spirit Let us labour to get it neare us that the reasons of the word and our reason that the judgment of God and our iudgement that the wil of God our own wil may be all one and so to have it incorporated and naturalized into our hearts that we may speake and thinke and doe nothing but that which is Divine that is to have the word written in our hearts our attention should be to that end Therefore when we heare we should doe as nature doth with the meate we eate it suckes out a strength sutable for every part every part hath a power to draw out nourishment what is sutable to it selfe so when wee heare the word of God we should be able to say this is good for such and such an end and never leave thinking of the word of God when wee have heard it till we have turned the word into our soules till we have it fixed in our understandings that we can say Now I know it till we have subdued our hearts to it and we be molded and delivered up to it that we can say Now I have it now the word is mine Let us never leave the truth wee heare till we be brought to that alas to what purpose is it to heare except we make it our owne as nature makes the meate our owne that we eate There is a second or third digestion that goes before digestion be perfectly made and the meate turned into it It is ruminating and meditating and altering of that wee heare and working on it that makes spirituall nourishment thus
wee should doe to attend to purpose And that we may doe it let us adde some meditations to these practises Consider first of all whose word it is It is the word of the great God and the word of God for my good It is the good word of God and the word of God that brings me much good eternall salvation if I obey it it is the word of God that brings eternall damnation if I obey it not It is the word of the great King a Proclamation a Law whereby I shall be judged and perhaps that word that I shall not heare another time perhaps the spirit may worke more now then at another time therefore I will be wise give way to the spirit of God and not beate it backe perhaps I shal never have such a gale of the spirit offered againe it may be the last Sermon I shall heare while I live we should have such meditatiōs we that speak as if it were the last time we should speake and you that heare as if they should be the last things that ever you should heare for how doe wee know but it may be so It is another manner of matter to heare then we take it Take heed how yee heare saith our blessed Saviour We heare nothing but it sets us forward in the way of Grace to heaven or forward to hell we are helped by it to heaven or else hardened by it further to hell We had need to take heed how we heare we must be judged by that wee heare and that that wee heare now negligently and carelesly God will make good at the day of judgement We may shake off as prophane spirits doe the Ministers exhortations but will you shake off depart ye Cursed at the latter day Will you shake off that sentence you would not heare me and I will not heare you Oh! no Therefore shake not that off now that will be made good then If thou entertaine the Gospell now God will make it good then if thou receive mercie now he will shew that thou art acquitted then before Divels and Angells and Men. Let us regard this and let it make us heare the word with attention as this good woman here God opened her heart and shee attended to the things that were spoken of Paul But you will aske how shall I know a man whose heart is opened and attends better then another man doth I will give two or three briefe rules of discerning He that by the spirit of God attends to the good word of God to purpose with an opened underding he not only knowes the words and the shell in preaching the word of God but the things he knowes not only what faith and repentance is in the words but he hath a spirituall light to know what the things are what repentance is and faith and love and hope and patience hee knowes the things And likewise he that hath attended to purpose he can do the things he not only knowes what he should doe but by the grace of the spirit and attending upon the word of God he knowes how to doe them Grace teacheth him not onely that hee should denie himselfe and live soberly and righteously and Godly but it teacheth him how to live soberly and righteously and Godly Grace when we attend upon the word as wee should teacheth us to doe the things not only that we should repent and pray c. but to doe them it opens the things and gives abilitie to doe them And in the next place those that attend as they should doe there is a spirituall eccho in their soules to every thing that is taught that is when they are exhorted to beleeve they answer Lord I will beleeve Lord I will heare I will repent and I will take heed of such sins by thy grace when God saith seeke my face Lord thy face will I seeke This is the answer of a good conscience this eccho where there is attention to the word of God by the spirit there is an eccho to that the spirit speaks Lord it is good and it is good for me if I yeeld to this if I doe not it is naught for me to put off repentance till another day I desire to yeeld now and oh that my heart were directed if it be rebellious and not yeelding there is a desire that the heart may be brought into subjection to every truth revealed there is a gracious eccho in them that attend to purpose Then againe those that doe attend from a sanctifing grace they see things by another light by a spirit of their owne by a heauenly light by a species in their owne kind spirituall things with a spirituall light Many come and heare sermons and can discourse and wrangle and maintaine janglings of their owne and all this out of naturall parts and out of pride of heart but a gracious holy man sees spirituall things by a spirituall light in their owne kind A man that is borne in a dungeon and neuer saw the light when he heares discourse of the Sun and stars and earth and flowers and plants he that Imaginations what they should be but he fancies other things so a man that neuer had spirituall eye-sight to see spirituall things in their kinde he fancies them to bee this and that but he sees them not by their owne light many speake and talke of good things but it is by the spirit of other men out of books and hearing and not by a spirit of their owne He that attends by grace speakes out of a spirit of his owne and not out of other mens spirits he sees spirituall things in their owne colours Thus wee see how to discerne spirituall attention And he that knowes what this meanes what is it to haue his heart opened to attend when he goes from hearing the word he judgeth of his profiting by it not by what he can say by heart but by how much the meeker hee is how much more patient how much more able to beare the crosse to resist temptations and to haue communion with God so hee values his attending upon the meanes and hearing the word by the growth of his grace and the decay of his corruptions Shee attended to the things that were spoken of Paul And shee was baptized and her houshold SHEE had the meanes of salvation and shee had the seale likewise which is baptisme We haue all need of seales wee haue need to hane our faith strengthened God knowes it betthen wee our selues We thinke Baptisme and the Communion small matters but God knowes how prone wee are to stagger hee knowes that all seales are little enough therefore it is sayd here shee was baptized and all her houshold Baptisme is a solemne thing it is the seale of the Covenant of grace you are well enough acquainted I imagine with the thing therfore I will not enter into the common place it is needlesse As the whole trinitie
to GOD and importune him that hee would bee good to the State that as he hath given us a pledg of his favour in delivering us from the plague so hee would not bee weary of doing good unto us but that hee would still make it a token of further favours and deliverances hereafter That as Hee delivered us in former times in 88 and magnified his mercie to us so now Hee would not expose us to the crueltie of Idolatrous enemies whose mercies are cruell Let us stirre up our selves Securitie and carelesnesse alway fore-runnes one destruction or other Prayer will doe a great deale more good now then when trouble hath overtaken us for now it is a signe it comes from a religious seeking of God then it comes from selfe-love There is a great deale of difference when a malefactor seeks to the judge before the time of the Assises and when hee seeks to him at the present time for then it is meerly out of selfe respect and not respect to him If wee seeke to God now hee will single and marke out those that mourne for the sins of the time and poure out their spirits to him in prayer that hee would still dwell and continue the meanes of salvation amongst us when God I say comes to gather his Iewells Mal. 3. He will single and cull out them as peculiar to himselfe Therefore let us in all our prayers put in the Church things doe more then speake they cry to us to cry to GOD earnestly put case wee bee not in trouble our selves our prayers will bee the more acceptable before trouble come it is the onely way to prevent it as it is the only way to rescue us when we are in trouble I come now to the remedie Hee saved them out of their distresse GOD is a Physitian good at all manner of sicknesses it is no matter what the disease bee if GOD bee the Physitian though they bee as these at the gates of death hee can fetch them backe herein GOD differs from all other Physitians First of all hee is a generall Physitian hee can heale a Land a whole Kingdome of sicknesse of pestilence and as it is in 2 Chro. 7.14 Then he is a Physitian of body and soule of both parts And then he is not tyed to meanes Other Physitions can cure but they must haue meanes Other Physitians cannot cure all manner of diseases nor in all places but GOD can cure all He saved them out of their distresse Other physitians cannot bee alway present but God is so to euery one of his patients he is a compassionate tender present Physitian Which should incourage vs in any extremity especially in sicknesse of body to haue recourse to God and never to despaire though wee bee brought never so low he that can rayse the dead bodies can rayse vs out of any sicknesse therefore let vs use the meanes and when there is no meanes trust God for hee can worke beyond meanes and without meanes They cryed to the Lord and he saved them out of their distresse It was the fruit of their prayers There was never any prayer from the beginning of the world made to God successelesly What should I speake of prayer our very breathings are known to God when wee cannot speake our sighs as it is Psal. 38. My groanes and sighs are not hid from thee God hath a bottle for our teares and preserves our sighes and groanes there is nothing that is spirituall in us but God regards as in Rom. 8. We know not what to aske but the spirit of God stirreth vp in us sighs and groanes that cannot be expressed And God heares the voyce of the sighs of his owne spirit Let us also bee exhorted from this issue to cry vnto the Lord for there was never any man did sow prayers in the breast and bosome of God but he received the fruit of it he is a God hearing prayer hee will not loose his attribute Nay further marke the instances in this Psalme are not made onely of men in the Church but likewise of men out of the Church of men that have not the true religion they pray to GOD as creatures to the Creator and though GOD have not their soules yet hee will not bee beholding to any man for duties if Ahab do but hypocritically fast Ahab shall haue outward deliverance for his outward humiliation and these men mentioned in the text if they call to GOD but as creatures and not to Idols GOD will regard them in outward things and deliver them GOD will not be in any mans debt for any service to him though it bee outward And doe we think that he that regards dogges out of the Church will neglect his children in the Church Hee that regards heathen men when they pray to him in their extremity and delivers them to shew his over-flowing bounty and goodnesse will hee not regard his owne children that haue the spirit of Adoption of supplication and prayer that put vp their suits and supplications in the mediation and sweete name of Christ will he not regard the name and intercession of his sonne and of his spirit the Holy Ghost stirring vp prayers in them and the state of his children being his by adoption since he regards the very heathen Nay more then so God heares the very young ravens and spreads a table for euery living thing and will not suffer them to die for hunger but provides for them because they are his creatures and will hee not for his children those that he hath taken to be so neere him to be heires of heaven happinesse Let us I say be incouraged to cry unto the Lord upon all occasions if God bee so good as to deliver sinfull men that haue nothing in them but the principles of nature when they flye to God in praier as the author and preserver of nature much more will hee heare his owne children he will giue his spirit to them that aske him Luke 11. But here may an objection be made I haue cried long I am hoarse with crying I haue wayted a longtime I have bin a long time sick or annoyed with some particular trouble God seemes as it were to stop his ears to harden his heart against me to shut up his bowels of compassion and pitty therefore I were as good giue ouer as continue still crying and not be heard I answer there is no one duty almost more pressed in scripture then waiting watching to prayer waite still hath not God waited thy leasure long enough and wilt not thou waite on him A patient when he feeles his body distempered with Physicke oh hee cries out partly for the Physick and partly for the sicknes that trouble him both together and make civill warre in his body yet notwithstanding the Physitian wisely lets it worke he shall haue no cordiall nor nothing to hinder it
Could he in his humiliation before his great abasement on the crosse strike downe his enemies with his word what shall he doe at the day of judgement when all flesh shall appeare before him And what can he doe now at the right hand of God in heaven Let us never despaire what state soever we be in in our owne persons or in respect of the Church or common wealth Let us yet pray yet solicite God and wrastle with him for wee see here when they were at the gates of death he fetcheth them againe with his word hee can fetch things againe when they are at destruction as it were when mans wit is at a losse that he knoweth not what course to take God with a word can turne all things againe Oh that men would therefore prayse the Lord for his goodnesse and for his wondrous works to the children of men Let them sacrifice the sacrifice of Thansgiving and declare his workes with rejoycing YOU see that God the great Physitian he is good at all disseases hee is never set at any thing for he can create helps and remedies of nothing if there be none in nature hee can create peace to the soule in the the middest of trouble of conscience God can make things out of nothing nay out of contraries you see here what this great Physitian hath done hee fetched them from the gates of death when their soule abhorred all manner of meate and what doth he require for all this great cure surely the text tells us he looks for nothing but prayse Oh that men would therefore prayse the Lord for his goodnesse c. In which words you haue these circumstances considerable together with the substance of the duty First the persons who must prayse God Oh that men would prayse the Lord And then the duty they are to performe to prayse God to sacrifice to God to declare his works one main duty expressed by three termes The third is for what they should prayse him For his goodnesse It is the spring of all for all particular actions of God doe come from his nature his nature is goodnesse it selfe and indeed all other attributes are founded on goodnesse why is he gracious and mercifull and long-suffering because he is good this is the primitiue attribute And then another thing for which we must praise him For his wondrous workes for the children of men Fourthly the manner how this should be done with rejoycing and singing as the word signifies declare his workes with rejoycing For as all holy actions must be done joyfully and chearefully so especially prayse God loveth a chearefull giver much more a chearefull thanksgiver for chearfulnesse is the very nature of thankesgiving it is a dead sacrifice of thanksgiving it is a dead sacrifice else these are the mayne things considerable in these words First of all of the persons Oh that men would prayse the Lord. THE blessed Psalmist whosoever he were directed by the spirit of God hee would haue all men to prayse God not onely those that participate and haue interest in the favour but the beholders also of the goodnesse of God to others for here hee that was not interressed in these favours for his owne particular yet hee prayseth God for the blessings to others and hee wisheth that God might haue praise from them For we are all of one societie of one family wee are all brethren therefore wee must prayse God for his blessings and benefits on others and not onely our selues but we must wish that all would do so and specially wee must prayse God for our selues when we haue part of the benefit for shall others prayse God for us and shal notwe for our selues Shall the Churches of God abroad prayse God for his great deliverance of this citie as there is no Church in the world that heares of it but is thankfull for it and shall not wee for our selues Shall the angels in heaven prayse God and sing for the redemption of the Church by the blood of Christ Glory to God on high peace on earth good will to men and shall not we that haue interest in the worke of redemption For Christ is not a mediator of redemption to Angels hee hath relation to them in another respect yet they out of loue to God and the Church and a desire to glorifie God hey prayse God for this and shall not wee much more for our selues wee must prayse God our selues and desire that all would doe so as he saith here Oh that men would prayse the Lord c. and in some other Psalmes he stirs up ' all the creatures hayle and snow and winde and all to prayse God How can these praise God They doe it by our mouthes by giving vs occasion to prayse him And they praise him in themselues for as the creature groaneth Rom. 8. That none knowes but God and it selfe they groane for the corruption and abuse that they are subject unto and God knowes those groanes so the creature hath a kind of voyce likewise in praysing of God they declare in their nature the goodnesse of God and minister occasion to us to praise GOD therefore the Psalmist being desirous that GOD might be praysed for his goodnesse and mercy hee stirres vp every creature Psal. 103. even the very Angels insinuating that it is a worke fit for Angels The children of God haue such a loue and zeale to the glory of GOD that they are not content only to prayse GOD themselues but they stirre vp all they need not to wish Angels to doe it but only to shew their desire oh the blessed disposition of those that loue God in Christ What shall wee thinke then of those wretched persons that greiue that the word of God should run and haue free passage and be glorious and that there should be a free use of the sacraments and the blessed meanes of salvation they envie the glory of God and the salvation of peoples soules What shall we say to those that desire to heare God dishonoured that perhaps sweare and blaspheme themselues or if they doe not yet they are not touched in their hearts for the dishonour of God by others this is far from the disposition of a Christian he desires that all creatures may trumpet ouâ— the prayse of God from the highest Angell to the lowest creature from the Sunne and starres to the meanest shrub only divellish spirited carnal men take delight to blaspheme God that can strike them with his word and send them to their owne place to hell without repentance and can heare him dishonoured without any touch of spirit a child of God desires God to be glorified from his very heart roote and is greived when God is dishonoured any kind of way so much breifly for the first Now what is the dutie this holy man wishes That men would prayse God And sacrifice the sacrifice of thankesgiving and declare his workes OUT
malice David thought this a favour even that God would single him out to punish him with the Plague of pestilence that he might not fal before his enemies The mercies of God are wondrous great when we fall into his hands hee is a mercifull God hee hath tender bowels fuâ—ll of pitty and compassion but The very mercies of wicked Idolaters are cruell there was a mercie therefore in that that God would take us into his owne hands In the third place we see when he had taken us into his own hands how he hath stopped the raging of the pestilence and hath inhibited the destroying Angell even in a wondrous manner that the Plague when it was so raging that it should come to decrease upon a sudden God was wondrous in this worke is not here matter of praise Then againe it is a mercy to us all here that he should give us our lives for a prey as God saiâ—h in Ieremiah to Baruch Wheresoever thou goest thou shalt have thy life for a prey might not Gods arrow have followed us wheresoever wee went Whither can a man goe from this arrow but that God being every where might smite him with the pestilence now in that hee hath watched over us and kept us from this noysome contagious sicknes and hath brought us altogether here quietly and freely that so there may bee entercourse betweene man and man in trading and other callings this is the fourth ground of praysing of God And that it did not rage in other parts in former time God scattered the pestilence more ouer the kingdome It is a great matter to blesse God for I beseech you let us say with the same spirit as this holy man hâ—re Oh that men therefore would prayse the Lord for his goodnes and for the wonders that he doth for the children of men For his goodnesse that hee would rather correct us here then damne us for his goodnesse that hee would not giue us up to our enemies For his goodnesse that he stayd the infection so suddenly and that he stayd the spreading of it further For his goodnesse vnto us in particular that hee hath kept us all safe What shall wee doe now but consecrate and dedicate these liues of ours for he giues us our liues more then once at the beginning there is neuer a one heere but can say by experience GOD hath given me my life at such a time and such a time let us give these lives againe to God labour to reforme our former courses and enter into a new covenant with God this is one part of thanksgiving to renew our covenant with God to please him better and indeed in every thanksgiving that should bee one ingredient Now Lord I intend and resolue to please thee better whatsoeuer my faults haue formerly beene I resolue by thy grace and assistance to breake them off without this all the other is but a dead performance Now breifly by way of analogie and proportion to rayse some meditations from that that hath hath beene delivered concerning the body to the soule for God is the Physitian both to soule and body If God with his word can heale our bodies as the Psalmist sayth here much more can hee with his word heale our Soule There are many that their bodies are well thanks be to God but how is it with their soules here you haue some symptomes to know their spirituall state and oh that people were apprehensiue of it haue you not many that their soule loatheth all manner of meate and they draw neere the gates of death their soules are in a desperate state they are deeply sick how shall wee know it their soule abhorreth all manner of wholsome meate how many are there that relish Poets and history any trifle that doth but feed their vaine fancie and yet cannot relish the blessed truth and ordinances of God Where is spirituall life when this spirituall sence is gone when men cannot relish holy things if they relish the ordinance of God it is not the spirituall part of it so farre as the spirit toucheth the conscience but something that it may be is sutable to their conceit expressions or phrases or the like but it is a symptom and signe of a fearefull declining state when men doe not relish the spirituall ordinances of God which should be as it were their appointed food when they doe not delight to acquaint themselues with God in hearing of the word and reading and the like let such therefore as delight not in spirituall things know that their soules lye gasping they are at the gates of spirituall death all is not well there is some fearfull obstruction upon the soule that takes away the appetite the soule runnes into the world ouermuch they cloy themselues with the world when men caÌ„not relish heavenly things they are eate vp with the delight and joy of other things pleasures and profits Let them search the cause and labour for purging sharpe things that may procure an appetite Let them judge themselues and see what is the matter that they doe not delight more in heauenly things let them purge themselues by confession to God and consideration of their sins and labour to recover their appetite for it is almost a desperate estate They are at the gates of death Especially now when we come to the communion what doe we heere if we cannot relish the food of our soules let us examine if we desire to tast the loue of God and to be acquainted with God here if not What shall wee doe in these spirituall distempers Desire of God cry to God that he would forgiue our sinnes and heale our soules by his holy Spirit that hee would make us more spirituall to relish heavenly things better then we haue done before that as the things that are heauenly are better in their kind then other things are so they may be better to our tast A man may know the judgement of his state when hee answereth not the difference of things what the difference is between the food of life and ordinary food what the difference is between the comforts of the holy Ghost and other comforts betweene the riches and pelfe of the world and the riches of the spirit the graces of God that will cause a man to liue and die with comfort the true riches that make the soule rich to eternity there is no comparison beg of God this spiâ—ituall relish to discerne of things that differ that we may recouer our appetite God by his word and spirit can doe it not only the word written but the in ward spirituall word written in our hearts desire God to joyne his spirit with his word and sacraments and that will recover our tast and make us spirituall that we shall relish him that is both the feast-maker and the feast it selfe he is both the meat and the provider of the banquet For whence is it that all other things are