implied in them What matter of rejoycing may it now give me to admit the Hope that my Blessed Saviour will say such words as these to me and bid me stand upon his Right-hand among his Sheep O what an exulting frame of Soul will such Expressions raise How shall all my Doubts and Fears and Sorrows be scatter'd in a moment and cease for ever O Glorious Day when my blessed Lord shall thus publickly acknowledge me for his own and plead my Cause against all the Accusations of Satan and the malicious Calumnies of all his Instruments when I shall be able to say of all my Sins and Sufferings as my Lord upon the Cross It is finished it is finished My warfare being accomplish'd being more than Conquerour over all through him who loved me and died for me and now is come to wipe away all tears from mine eyes as it were with the Napkin that was bound about his Head when laid in the Grave all being the fruit of his meritorious Death Then shall I have nothing more to fear or wish or beg I shall offend provoke and dishonour him no more or by my folly and scandal discredit his holy Name and Gospel but by consummate Holiness be fitted to rejoyce in his Presence and Love and celebrate his Praise for ever I shall never more lament his Absence or complain of his Anger never see a cloud on his Face or a Frown in his Look any more Now I must wait and pray struggle and strive labour and suffer desire and expect believe and hope c. but then perfect Rest and Holiness Love and Joy Vision and Fruition Bliss and Glory unutterable and everlasting shall take place All the Attributes of God all the wonderful Perfections of Christ will then be glorified in Believers and admired by them His invariable Truth will then be honoured which they trusted to and waited for for now they shall know and find they did not wait in vain They hop'd in his Word and ventur'd their Salvation upon it and now they shall receive the end of their Faith and Hope infinitely beyond what they ever expected or believed The Glory of Divine Wisdom will then appear when the Constitution Administration and Design of the Mediator's Kingdom shall be fully known in the admirable Order and Beauty of every part of it with the exact tendency of all the particulars to one Glorious End and the whole Undertaking crown'd with so blessed an Issue What is now a Mystery even to Believers themselves and hath a Veil upon it shall then no longer be so all the Riddles of God's Grace and Providence shall be plainly understood O how transporting a View must it needs be when the Glory of all the Divine Attributes which God intended to accomplish in and by Christ shall be manifest to his Redeemed Saints The whole method of our Salvation will then appear to be the fruit of unsearchable Wisdom when we shall all see the Reality and Substance and entire Scheme of all that God designed in and by him all that was typified of him and foretold concerning him in the Old Testament How will it all appear to be the manifold Wisdom of God! Ephes 3. c. 10. As in uniting Heaven and Earth together in the Person of our Mediator fulfilling the Truth of a terrible threatning in his Death and by the same way accomplishing * Vid. Mr. Charnock of the Divine Attribute Wisdom many gracious Promises satisfying Justice and at the same time shewing Mercy manifesting infinite Grace and Kindness by shedding of Blood conquering Death by dying and disarming the Law by Obedience to it c. afterwards subduing the world to the Faith of the Gospel by the foolishness of Preaching making men wise to Salvation by the knowledge of the Cross and spreading that Faith the more by all the opposition made against it c. How wonderfully will a clear View of these things discover and glorifie the Wisdom of God. But the Love and Grace of Christ the infinite Goodness and Compassion of God will then be magnified in an especial manner What but Soveraign Love in the whole Contrivance and Counsel of God about our Redemption What admirable Love and Grace in the whole management of that design What unparallel'd kindness in the accomplishment of it by the Sacrifice of the Son of God And how Glorious will this Love appear when he shall come again to give us the full Harvest of all his Purchase With what admiring Thankfulness shall Believers then contemplate the unsearchable Riches of his Grace In all the Parts and Instances of his Humiliation from his Conception to his Crucifixion and Burial in all the Evidences and Discoveries made of it from the first Promise to its Completion yea from before the Foundation of the World in the Covenant of Peace between the Father and the Son until his second Coming to Judge the World and deliver up the Kingdom to his Father How shall we then admire and adore his Powerful Grace which snatcht us as Firebrands out of everlasting Burnings that effectually shin'd into our minds by heavenly Light conquer'd the Opposition of our stubborn Wills Sanctified our carnal Hearts rescued us from the Tyranny of Satan and the Dominion of Lust giving cherishing and preserving the holy Seed of Grace and making it Spring up to Eternal Life defeating the malicious and subtil Endeavours of the Devil to destroy it inabling us to indure Tribulation and persevere to the end giving us Victory over Death conducting us through the dark Valley raising our Bodies reviving and reuniting them to our Souls and rendring them glorious like his own Body and at length rewarding our imperfect Services with Eternal Life Yea tho our best Services were mixt with Sin our holiest Duties spotted our most couragious Sufferings mixt with unbelief yet rewarded with a Blessedness that hath no alloy of Evil but all the ingredients of a Perfect Felicity and nothing to lessen and interrupt it How shall we then admire the Bounty of our Gracious Lord the Freeness Tenderness Riches and the exceeding Greatness and Glory of his Infinite Goodness and Grace to poor Believers With what Extasies of Joy and Gratitude may we imagine that our Lord will be then admired by all his Redeemed ones Saying This is He who made our Peace with God and reverst the Sentence of Damnation which we were under who bought us with the price of his most precious Blood bore the Wrath of his Father and submitted to an infamous and cursed Death for us He assumed our Nature that we might partake of his became the Son of Man that we might be made the Children of God for our sakes he became poor that we through his Poverty might become Rich He stoopt to bear the greatest Ignominy and Reproach to confer Honour on us He was for a time forsaken of his Father that we might not be so eternally He felt the stroke of his Anger against Sin that
can do for me more abundantly than I can ask or think exceed my largest thoughts out-strip my highest Expectations And no man was ever disappointed who made Thee his Hope When I meet with Crosses and Wrongs Unfaithfulness Contempt Hatred and Persecution from Men I need not wonder I was never told by God it would be otherwise here Did I look for less from Creatures and expect more from God Did I reckon this World to be a state of Trial and not a place of Rest and Satisfaction My Faith and my Desires would be stronger with respect to God and Heaven and temporal Calamities and Disappointments less afflictive and vexatious And what is there O Lord in Heaven or in Earth my Soul can desire besides Thee Is there any thing desirable but as it is thine of thee and from thee And bears some Impression of thine Excellence or brings some Intimation of thy Love And what can I reasonably desire what that is worth desiring or having but thou art able to be and do and give In whom or what shall I Rejoyce but in Thee O Lord shall I solace my self in transitory Goods that slip between my Fingers and perish in the Using or relish carnal Joys which pollute and debase the Soul When I may and ought to Rejoyce in Thee at all Times as the only Source of perfect Everlasting Joy. Let me then stir up my drooping desponding unbelieving Heart to rejoyce in God who takes Pleasure in the chearful Service and Obedience of his Children who delighteth in those who delight in him Is not * Vid. Mr. Howe Of Delighting in God. Delighting in God a most essential vital part of Religion Should it not be my constant Frame Hath not God sufficiently provided that it may be so Can I say and believe that God is the Portion of my Soul that he is my God and I hope to live with him for ever and not Rejoyce Or can I consider the Grace of the new Covenant the matchless Love of Christ and the precious Promises of the Gospel and not see reason to Rejoyce Yea doth my Soul love God and endeavour to please him and is not the very Act and Exercise of holy Love mixt with unspeakable sweetness Whom is there in Heaven or in Earth or Hell that I ought to Fear but Thee Who hast a negative Voice in all the Designs of Men and Devils an hook in their Nostrils a Bridle in their Mouths to make them fulfil thy Pleasure and in every thing accomplish thy Soveraign Decree Is there any other in whom I may repose my Trust but in Thee O Lord the Rock of Ages The might of thy Power the unsearchableness of thy Wisdom the righteousness of thy Nature the stability of thy Truth the riches of thy Grace and the immutability of thy Promise are a sure foundation for my Soul to trust to and rely upon Thy word stands firm for ever and the Truth of thine ability and readiness to help in every time of need endures the same throughout all Generations At all times and in all places my soul may trust in thee and find relief And they who know thy name will do so for in the Lord Jehovah is Everlasting Kindness and Strength To answer all my doubts to supply all my wants to fill all my desires May not God take it unkindly that I trust him no more And is it not a criminal unkindness that I give him not the glory of all these Excellent Attributes which are the grounds of Trust by a constant steady intire dependance on him for all that I need I have none in Heaven but Thee O Lord as the object of my Invocation and Worship Let other Christians have recourse to new Mediators and call upon other Gods I will make mention of thy Name and of thy Righteousness only And ask of thee whatsoever I need for the sake of thy Christ my only adorable Mediator Him thou hearest alway with him thou art always well pleased I honour the holy Angels as glorious Attendants about thy Throne and bless thee for them as Ministring Spirits for the good of thy Servants but I dare not invoke or worship 'em because they are Fellow Servants On the same account I honour the memory of Departed Saints but neither invoke them or pay them religious worship That Glory thou wilt not give unto another I have no precept in Holy Scripture to direct no promise to encourage no Example to authorize the invocation of any other but Thee in whom I believe and trust Rom. 10.14 Having such a God in Heaven what can I need on Earth His Eyes behold me his Wing is over me his Hand can supply me his Grace provide for me I can want nothing that is Good unlese I should need somewhat which God the infinitely Blessed and Allsufficient God cannot bestow If thou art the Portion of my Soul all mine Enemies cannot make me miserable unless they can void Heaven of the presence of God hinder his care bind up his hand or obstruct his Love. But tho my Enemies cannot I fear my Sins may They alone can separate between God and my Soul. And considering the multitude and aggravations of them and thine unspotted Holiness and Justice I should have too much reason to fear and tremble yea and utterly despair If I had none in Heaven but Thee But thy word assures me that I have a Mediator there a faithful and a compassionate High Priest Jesus Christ the Righteous whom thou hast exalted to be a Prince and a Saviour to give Repentance and Remission of Sins Who lives for ever in Heaven to make Intercession till he hath brought me there to behold his Glory and partake of it That Glory O Lord thou hast reserved for Heaven in this world we only desire believe and hope to injoy it Whom have I in Heaven That is the place of Fruition What can I desire upon Earth This world is the place of Desires as the other of full Injoyment Most of that which men call Injoyment in this Life consists but in Desire Desire or Lust is all that is in the wicked world 1 John 2. c. 13. the Riches of a Covetous worldling makes him desire more and the great mystery of Intemperance is to create and increase desires and Desires of another kind are the portion of good men in this world O that I could breathe after a state of perfect Fruition in Heaven with more importunate desires Who will give me to be in Heaven with Thee On Earth I desire nothing So one version Let me O my Soul think of Heaven as such a place or state of blessed Injoyment speak of it seek it long for it prepare for it as such And let Jesus Christ who is the desire of all Nations through whom all Divine Communications are made to fallen Sinners be the great object of my present desires and love Let me desire nothing but as in him and for him that believing
a good while a-go How have you behav'd your self ever since Have you not reason to look back with shame If you but slightly examin'd your self formerly resolve to do it more effectually now Review the sins you have been since guilty of And if you have not done any thing considerable of this kind you ought now to begin It is seasonable to begin the year by such an Exercise and it will be found of great use in all the following parts of it especially when you come to examine your self afresh in order to the Lord's Supper For we ought frequently to renew the sad remembrance of our former Sins that from time to time we may renew our Repentance which is the work of our Life and not of one day And he that comes to the Sacrament and will look no farther back than to the last Communion may possibly presume too much that all was then as it should be and not be humble enough If any one therefore resolve in good earnest upon an holy Life and seriously design to prepare for Eternity as it is necessary to make a general review of his Life so I desire to afford him the best Counsel I can in order to it It may be advisable (a) Vid. Mr. Baxter's Saints Rest p. 3. chap. 7 8 9. if you have not formerly begun this work to imploy one hour at least in a Day for several Days following in writing down the most considerable Passages of your Life you can remember desiring God's Assistance therein and keeping your Eye upon your End in the whole that is thinking seriously that 't is in order to Eternity that you now examine your self Chuse a place of Retirement and the most convenient Time that you may not be interrupted and when your Heart is most serious Every man may divide his Life into several parts as from Infancy till he left off going to School or was bound Apprentice or setled in any way of Education From thence 'till fixt in some Imployment If a married person till entred into that Condition And from thence to another remarkable Period or to the present Time. It may better assist some persons memory to consider the several Places of their abode and compute according to them In each portion of time recollect what sins you were most addicted to in what Instances with what Frequency and with what other various aggravations you committed 'em and what have been the effects and consequences of those sins to your selves and others in order to Repentance and godly Sorrow Which must not be judg'd of by Tears but Grief and inward hatred of Sin. Remembring that no man is the better meerly for being examin'd if there follows nothing after it 'T is in order to a Judgement to be pass'd upon our selves 'T is to search out our own Iniquity our Beloved sin in order to the mortification of it That Goliah must first be slain if ever the other Philistims are conquered In some it is Pride in others Worldliness in some Uncleanness in others Drunkenness Gluttony c. That you may discover it observe What sin 't is you are most unwilling to part with which you could even wish were not forbidden Which you have formerly been most apt to plead for to extenuate or excuse and hide The thoughts whereof do most frequently occur especially when alone first in the morning and last at night and are most distracting in Prayer and Worship Which an awaken'd Conscience hath most plainly told you of under a Sermon or at a Sacrament or under some heavy affliction or on a sick-bed c. Which you can least bear to be reprov'd for Which the Temperament of your body doth most incline to Which your Calling Imployment Company and Converse administer the greatest Temptations for That especially which hath the Throne of the Heart and sets all the faculties a work to contrive fuel and opportunities for its Gratification Observe likewise what Passion was most Predominant in each Period of Time or is yet so and what ill effects it hath produced Consider farther what dangerous Temptations you have met with how you have fallen by 'em or been inabled to resist Consider withal the Time and the Means whereby God hath at any time formerly awaken'd convinc't and humbled you what Purposes of Amendment and Promises of Reformation you have ever made and how far you have or have not perform'd ' em Recollect likewise all the special Mercies you have receiv'd from God in every State and Period of your Life in order to thankfulness The last Section of these Papers may give you some assistance therein and consider what Returns you have made to God for all his Kindness You may do well to consider your self also in the Relations you have stood to others as Inferior Equal or Superior in Family Church or State in your Calling Profession Imployment c. And examine in what more notorious Instances you have been faulty in your Relative Duties How you did ordinarily carry it in your Place and Station for that is the best the truest Picture of a Man which is like him in his ordinary every days Habit. Particularly reflect upon the Sins you have committed in Company with others By whose Example you have been drawn to Sin who may probably have been tempted by yours and bewail it and if the Persons are living admonish them to Repent and if you have injur'd and wrong'd any acknowledg your Fault and to the utmost of your Power make speedy Restitution If any of your Companions in Sin are dead and you fear dyed without Repentance humble your self particularly before God for having contributed to their Damnation I know of some who have made such a Catalogue of their Sins with the most observable Aggravations of them which they constantly preserv'd and frequently review'd to keep them Humble Penitent Watchful and Thankful and on some occasions of secret Humiliation have spread them before the Lord as Hezekiah did the writing of his Enemy covering themselves with Shame and Confusion of Face by considering what they have been and thence admiring the Riches of free Grace in the forgiveness of such Crimes through the Blood of Christ Examine me O Lord and prove me try my Reins and my Heart for thy Loving kindness is before mine Eyes and I will walk in thy Truth Thou hast searched me O Lord and known me thou knowest my Thoughts a far off all my secret Sins are in the Light of thy Countenance and thou art acquainted with all my ways set my Sins in order before me that I may Repent and forsake them Show me mine Infirmities and Weaknesses that I may watch against them And teach me to Judge and Condemn my self that I may not be judged of the Lord or condemned with the World. XXV How Christians ought to examine their Decays of Grace and Piety The greatness of their Sin and of their Loss under such a Declension God's Displeasure and departure