you do suffer according to Christs example which you may do if you suffer with the same spirit and disposition that Christ did suffer in the strength of Christ set all upon the head score of Christ Fifthly if you would so order and manage all your sufferings as that they may turn to a good account then take heed that there be no contradiction found in the way of your suffering A man may be very stiff and stand out here and yet he may yeeld there Saith the Apostle If I build again what I have destroyed I make my self a transgressor And Blessed is the man that condemns not himself in the thing that he allows 'T is possible I may build that with one hand that I may pull down with another Possibly a man may be very stiff and stand out at such a thing and yet he may yeeld there There may be contradictions found in the way of our suffering And let me tell you this if it be thus your sufferings will come to little Take heed that there be not contradictions therefore found in the way of your sufferings Sixthly if you would manage your sufferings so as they may turn to a good account then let your eye be more upon the Publike good then upon your own private loss more upon Gods designe then your own detriment more upon Gods dishonour then your own grievance or your own pressure 'T is good for a man to be spiritual and savoury in his suffering our Saviour saith Such worshippers the Father seeks c. and truly I say Such sufferers doth the Father seek that suffer in spirit and truth whose spirits are savoury in their sufferings And when is that when that your eye is more upon the publick good then your own private loss more upon Gods designe then your own detriment more upon Gods dishonour then your own grievance and your own pressure Sevently if you would so order and manage all your sufferings as that they may turn to a good account then let your eye be upon that and observe what that is that you have most delighted in and that your heart is most upon in this world and give that up to God the first thing you do for truly nothing is done till that be done 'T is said of Abraham that God tempted Abraham Divines observe that Abraham met with ten temprations but it 's never said before that God tempted him till he spake to him to offer up his son Isaac Why there was his heart and his love and his delight And where doth a mans temptation grow but where his Isaac is he shall be sure to be tried there Here was Abrahams heart here lay his temptation And so it may be my heart is upon my house or upon my land or upon my trade and I cannot part with this I can part with any thing else but when it comes to this I am ready to say The good Lord pardon me in this Many say I will not adventure to suffer any further for the Name of Christ then I can secure my trade or my land or relations but when it comes to this I cannot part with these I must have my trade c. Here 's a but comes in Anamas and Sapphira they parted with a great deal but it came to little because they had a reserve And so if we have our reserves with the Lord our sufferings will come to little So that observe that you give that up first to God that your hearts are most upon for nothing is done in suffering till that be done Eighthly if you would so order and manage your sufferings as they may turn to a good account then let the load and let the weight and the burden of all your sufferings be drawn upon the wheels of faith and love those two wheels of faith towards God and love towards man Saith the Apostle By faith Moses chose rather to suffer afflictions with the people of God How so why by faith he saw him that is invisible and so trampled upon visible things And by faith he had an eye to the recompence of reward and so overlooked these things And by faith he saw greater wealth in the reproach of Christ then in all the treasures of Egypt And so the three children they suffered by faith and it turned to a good account And as for love you know what the Apostle saith If I give my body to be burnt and want love it profiteth me nothing So then as ever you desire your sufferings may turn to a good account let your faith towards God and your love towards man be exercised And let these be the two great wheels that all your sufferings shal be drawn upon Ninthly if you would order your sufferings so as they may turn to a good account then labour to be serviceable in and by your sufferings If ever God call you to a prison labour to be as serviceable in and by your suffering as ever you can Peter was in prison what came on 't was there any converted No. Why so Peter slept I but Paul and Silas they sang in the stocks and they preach in the prison and there 's the Jaylor converted They were serviceable in and by their sufferings and it turned to a good account And therefore if you would desire that your sufferings may turn to a good account labour to be serviceable in by your sufferings as God calls you into Tenthly when you have done all and suffered all then say and think in truth that you are unprofitable servants and let your eye be wholly to the sufferings of Christ offer your own sufferings upon the sufferings of Christ in reference to your acceptance For though you may have an eye to the recompence of reward to encourage you to suffer yet you are wholly to look to the sufferings of Christ in reference to your acceptance And therefore when you have done all think and say you are unprofitable Two men went up to pray and the one he was a Pharisee and the other a Publican The Pharisee he comes and praises God he was not as the Publican I thank God I am not as this Publican I fast and pray and I am not as this Publican Well there comes the Publican and he smites himself upon the brest and says I am a poor sinner Oh! the Lord be merciful unto me a poor sinner So say I Two men go up to suffer and there 's one stands and vaunts and saith I thank the Lord I am not so cowardly and dastardly as these poor-spirited men that dare do nothing my flesh shall fry in the fire But the other stands at a distance and saith Oh I am a poor creature I am afraid to suffer and I am afraid I shall betray the Cause of Christ Now I tell you this poor trembling soul that is last shall be first and he goes away rather justified Eleventhly and lastly if you would so order and manage your
for the Apostle saith That we are not to suffer as evil doers But I pray tell me When did any of the people of God suffer for the Cause of God but there were such glosses as these saith Haman These are a rebellious people and it is not for the Kings profit to suffer them And so when Christ himself suffered He is not a friend to Caesar but an enemy Well then came the Apostles and when the Apostles came what a guise was put upon their sufferings These are seditious and thâ—se that turn the world upside-down are come hither And do not you finde in Scripture and experience that it is no new thing for men to persecute Religion upon the account of Religion Saith Christ For which of my good works go ye about to kill me No no thou art mistaken we go not about to kill thee for thy good works but because thou breakest the Sabbath c. So that 't is no new thing to persecute Religion even upon the account of Religion But then you will say If it be so how shall I be able to know that I do truely suffer for the Name of Christ How shall I be able in the midst of all these blinds and disguises How shall I see through them all that I may be able to say Nay but in truth I do suffer for the Name of Christ Why you have heard it in the general already onely a little more particularly to open it If you do suffer for the Work of the Spirit of God upon your heart the Work that the Holy Ghost hath wrought upon your heart If you do suffer for the Truth which is properly the Truth of the Gospel whatsoever disguises men put upon your sufferings plainly you suffer for Name of Jesus Christ Again if you suffer for the Cause of Christ for the Ways of Christ for the Ordinances of Christ for the Children of Christ for the Liberty which Christ hath purchased for you then you do suffer for the Name of Jesus Christ But thirdly if you do suffer for the worship of Christ as it is distinguisht from Jewish worship from Antichristian worship from Worldly worship then you suffer for the Name of Christ for the Worship of Christ is the Name of Christ And all Nations go forth in the Name of their God Now if you do suffer for the worship of Christ as it is distinguished from the Jewish worship from Antichristian worship from Worldly worship then you do plainly suffer for the Name of Christ The worship of the Jews and the way of the Jews was National but the worship of Christ and the Gospel is Congregational The worship of Christ is distinguisht from Antichristian worship For that 's humane and by humane inventions but the worship of Jesus Christ is Divine and from Heaven The worship of Christ is distinguisht from the worship of the world for that 's Pompous that 's Ceremonious a carnal worship like unto the world it self but the worship Jesus Christ is plain and simple Such worshippers doth the Father seek as worship him in spirit and in truth Now if you do suffer for the worship of Christ as it is distinguisht from the worship of the Jews Antichrist and of the World then you do certainly suffer for the Name of Christ Fourthly if you do suffer for the not-doing of that which Jesus Christ hath justified his own Disciples for the not doing of then do you suffer for the Gospel and so for the Name of Jesus Christ Now look into the 15 of Matth. and you shall see what Christ did justifie his Disciples in And the Scribes and the Pharisees came to Christ and they say unto him Why do thy Disciples transgress the tradition of the Elders What 's that for they wash not their hands when they eat bread VVhy that 's an indifferent thing surely the Disciples would not stand off for an indifferent thing Yes that they did I and Christ justified them in it But this was hatcht with the tradition of the Elders of the Church and surely they would not stand off now Yes that they did and Christ justifies them in it for Christ said Why do you also transgress the commandments of God by your traditions So that if you do suffer for not doing that which Jesus Christ hath justified his Disciples for the not doing of then you suffer for the Gospel and for the Name of Christ Fifthly If two things be laid before you and there is sin on the one hand and on the other hand there is suffering for Christ Sin on the one hand and suffering on the other If now you chuse rather to take up the suffering theâ— to commit the sin you do plainly suffer for the Name of Jesus Christ And therefore look whatsoever the reward is that great reward is which they shall have that suffer for the Name of Christ all that reward is yours Be of good comfort all that reward is yours O and if ever you be call'd to suffer for the Name of Christ go away rejoycing that you are accounted worthy to suffer shame or any thing for the Name of Jesus Christ O what great encouragement is here from this great Rewarder Who would not be willing now to suffer for the Name of Jesus Christ But you will say to me What shall we do that we may be willing to suffer for the Name of Christ for I confess I am very backward and unwilling to suffer for the Name of Christ Do you say so But it may be you are not convinced that it is for the Name of Christ But are you sensible of your unwillingness Why I use to say this He is not far from a grace that is sensible of a contrary evil And 't is a true speech He is not far from humility that is sensible of pride he is not far from faith that is sensible of unbelief So he is not far from being willing to suffer for the Name of Christ that is sensible of his own unwillingness But now suppose that for the present you be very unwilling to suffer for the Name of Christ You may know this That willingness to suffer for the Name of Christ is part of our suffering Grace and suffering Grace is given upon suffering ground Vnto you it is given not only to believe but to suffer The opportunity to suffer is the gift of God The will and heart to suffer is the gift of God And the strength to suffer is the gift of God These are three gifts in one gift But when is this suffering grace given It 's given upon suffering ground In that hour there shall be wisdom given you well to be willing to suffer for the Name of Christ is part of our suffering grace and therefore when you come upon the suffering ground then you shall have the suffering grace I but you will say Indeed I find my heart extreamly backward to suffer for the Name of Christ What shall I do
offer a great Sacrifice unto God But this is the thing I bring it for The more Religious end any evil action hath the more holding and continuing is that evil action Now wicked men for their malice they shall have a Religious end they shall think they do God good service their malice therefore and their wrath against the people of God is never dying and an everlasting wrath Thus you see what kind of wrath it is It is a violent anger It is a fraudulent anger It is a Mortal anger It is a blasphemous anger It is an unreasonable anger It is an insulting anger It is an universal anger against all the people of God upon one mans occasion And it is an everlasting and a never dying anger But then secondly How comes it to pass that there should be such a deal of anger and wrath in the hearts of men against the people of God for the people of God are a quiet and a peaceable people 'T is true so they are But who more quiet and peaceable and meek than our Lord and Saviour Christ he lift not up his voice in the streets and yet who ever bare more anger and wrath from men than He. Yea the Saints are not only quiet meek and peaceable but beneficial to the men where they live The innocent delivers the Land Yet notwithstanding saith Solomon in Eccles 9. I have seen a sore evil under the Sun there was a little City and few men within it And there came a great King against it and besieged it and built great Bulwarks against it Now there was found in it a poor wise man and he by his wisdome delivered the City yet no man remembred that same poor man Then said I Wisdom is better than strength nevertheless the poor mans Wisdom is despised and his words are not heard So though the Saints and people of God do deliver a Nation and are exceeding beneficial to the people where they live and where they are yet they shall be despised yet there shall be wrath and malice in the hearts of men against the Saints of God But you will say how doth this come to pass that there should be such a deal of wrath and malice in the hearts of men against the people of God First of all the Saints and people of God and the men of the world they are directly contrary one unto another they are contrary in their Birth and in their Original For the men of the world they are of their Father the Devil who was a Murderer But the Saints and people of God God is their Father They are not only contrary in their original but they are contrary in their principles For the one are the Seed of the Woman and the other the Seed of the Serpent whose Principles are contrary The Seed of the Bond-woman at the best and the Seed of the Free-Woman Yea they are not only contrary in their Principles but they are contrary in their Worship For the Worship of the World is a pompous and a carnal Worship but the Worship of the Saints is Spiritual Such worshippers doth the Father seek that Worship him in Spirit and truth And as their Worship is contrary one unto another so their deeds and their practices are contrary For why saith the Apostle did Cain kill his Brother Abel but because his deeds were evil and his Brothers good Now one contrary seeks to destroy another Why these are contrary They are contrary one to another contrary in their Original Contrary in their Principles Contrary in their Worship Contrary in their lives and Practices And therefore no wonder that there is such a deal of wrath and anger in the hearts of the men of the World against the Saints and people of God But secondly The Saints and people of God they do not regard the men of the World and the men of the World they think so Now for high and lofty men to be slighted and not regarded this makes them angry In Dan. 3. when the three children would not bow down unto the Image There are certain Jews say they to the King that thou hast set over the Affairs of Babylon Shadrach Meshach and Abednego These men O King have not regarded thee Why they think now that if the people of God don't bow down to their Commandments and to their Idols that they don't regard the Magistrate These men have not regarded thee And the truth is Godly men that are the Saints and people of God they cannot regard them For blessed is the man saith the Holy Ghost that regardeth not the proud nor such as turn aside to lyes God hath given a blessing to those that regard not the proud Now wicked men cannot bear this that they should not be regarded high and great men of the world that they should not be regarded and therefore no wonder that there is such a deal of wrath and anger in their hearts against the people of God 3. The Saints and people of God they do withdraw from the men of the world and do separate from them Come out from among them and be ye separate touch no unclean thing Now when we withdraw from men and from their Worship We do condemn their Worship and the men of the world don't love to be condemned Noah condemned the world And by the separation of the Saints from them they do condemn them and they don't love I say to be condemned To separate from them and from their Worship this they cannot bear The Saints do separate from them and therefore there is such a deal of anger and wrath in their hearts against them 4. As the Saints and people of God do separate and withdraw from them upon which they are much provoked So the Saints and people of God do hinder them in their proceedings A man doth not love to be hindered in his proceedings the Saints and people of God they do hold wicked mens hands that they cannot proceed hold their hands by their Prayers I remember a story of Mr. Tyndal that blessed first Translater of the Bible into English that dyed a Martyr in Flanders being then at Antwerp and much respected by the Merchants there There was a great report of a certain juggler that could bring a dish of meat from any Princes Table and so set the Table that they were at with several Dishes from several Princes Tables Pray saith Tyndal to the Merchants will you let me be at your Supper Yes and so they carried him And when he was there the Juggler tryed his skill and sweat and took a great deal of pains but saith he I cannot do it there is some man here that doth hold my hands And Tyndal only set himself to this to believe that he should not do it I speak it only to this that the people of God they hold their hands And in this 76. Psalm The men of might they find â—â—t their hands There brake he the Arrows of the Bow