1244. Rash, Inconsiderate Service or Worship of God condemned. It is observed by physiognomists, that the most courageous and discreet men have not the speediest pace, but rather a quiet, decent, and settled kind of gait; whereas a hasty pace is looked on as a certain sign of a rash, foolish, and illiberal man. Thus it is that rashness is not altogether so hurtful in other business, as it is most dangerous in God's service, and the duties of religion; all rashness must be banished from God's service, it must not be any sudden work; yea rather, it is such a business as requireth our exactest care, our greatest attention, our best wits, nay wisdom itself to go about it; the greatest care we can take is not enough; hence is that charge of the Apostle, Bλérete, See to it, have a care, take heed that you walk åкpißws, circumspectly, exactly, warily, not as fools, but as wise, i. e. to do the service of God advisedly, to walk decently and orderly, evoxnuóvws, with a comely pace, and that with another caution too, ws ev quépa, as in the day time, when all men see us, that so we may not be ashamed of what we do. Aristot. Ethic. ad Nicom. &c. Adamant. Physiog. Lib. ii. c. 28. J. Browning's Serm. of Reverence in God's House, 1636. 1245. Faith, though Weak, yet Rewarded; and why so. THEY that did look on the brazen serpent but with one eye, yea, but with half an eye, were as well and as fully cured of the deadly stings of the fiery serpents, as those that beheld it with both: and again, suppose that a prince be disposed to bestow on sundry and several malefactors, a pardon of grace, or some precious jewels, (as signals of his civil respects) unto mere beggars; is not the one as fully acquitted from his offences, and the other made as actually rich by the possession of such jewels, though but received with a palsy-shaking hand, as they that receive them with one that is more strong and lusty? Even so the case is here; hast thou (whosoever thou be) but a dimmish, darkish faith, a weak, waterish eye of faith; yet, for thy comfort, if it be such an one as doth look up to Christ, and only to Him, for salvation; such a hand as doth reach out unto Christ, and the pardon of sins offered in and by Him; and dost clasp it about Him with all thy feeble strength, make not doubt but that thou art justified in the sight of God, and dost stand clearly acquitted from all thy sins, and shalt be healed from the deadly stings thereof, for it is the possession of the jewel, not the strong holding of it, that made those beggars rich; and the king's pardon relieveth none but such as are willing to accept of it, and plead to it; and so it is not our strong or weak faith that is our righteousness and full discharge before God, but Jesus Christ and His obedience, that is it that doth all. This only is required on our part, that we accept of Christ offered in the Gospel, and rely on Him for full righteousness and redemption, all which a weak and feeble faith doth as truly and entirely (if not more) as the strongest ; nay, which is yet more for the comfort of such as are weak in faith, and cannot yet in an express and explicit manner believe on Christ; they have Christ, and enjoy Him unto righte ousness, and the pardon of all their sins and transgressions committed. P. Bayne, Mirror of God's Mercy, on John iii. 16. inesse fides. Ovid, Epist. 16. Tarda solet magnis rebus. Non opus est verbis, credite rebus, ait. Ovid, Fast. iv. 1246. All must Die. THE heathens usually compared the sons of Adam to counters, the game at chess and stage-plays, because that counters have their several places and use for a time, but in the end they are jumbled into a heap; in a game at chess, some are kings, some bishops, some knights, &c., but after a while they go all into one and the same bag; on the stage one is in his rags, another in his robes: one is the master, another is the man, and very busy they be; but in the end the play ends, the bravery ends, and each returns to his place. Such and no other is the estate of man, either weeds or flowers, and both wither; whether trees, good or bad, both die, as dieth the wise, so the fool; rich men die, and poor too; death is unavoidable, life and death take turns each of other; the man lives not that shall not see death, be he a king with Saul, a prophet with Jeremiah, a wise Solomon, a foolish Nabal, a holy Isaac, a profane Esau: be he of what rank soever, he must die; nay, let there be a concurrence of all in one; let Samuel, both a good man, a good minister, a good magistrate, have as many privileges as are incident to a man, yet can he not procure a protection against death; his mother may beg his life, but none can compound for his death; so sure it is that all must lie down in the dust and die. Rob, Harris, Sam. Funeral, 1612. manet. Longius aut propius mors sua quemque Propertius. 1247. Why it is that we must be Charitable to all Men. It is written of that Moses Atticissans, that when he did give alms to a poor profligate wretch, his friends were much admired that Ocios Plato, the great divine philosopher, would take pity on such a wretched miscreant; but he, like himself, in such misty days as those were, made answer, Humanitati non homini, I show mercy on the man, not as he is wicked, but as, and because he is a man of my own nature. His answer was good and warrantable; for if we consider our first parents, we shall find ourselves bound (though è longinquo) by the same obligation to do good unto all men; there is neither Jew nor Grecian, bond nor free, male nor female, but all are one in Christ Jesus, Gal. iii. 28; neither Indian, whether of the East or West, neither barbarian of Morocco, nor inhabitant of Monomotapa, but all are brethren, whom, as we have opportunity, we must embrace with charity; such as are true saints, with joy for their sanctification; those that are not such, in the judgment of charity, with hearty and earnest supplications to the great God of Heaven and earth for their true and timely conversion to the faith, that is to be found only in the Lord Jesus. Plutarch in Apophthegm. Sanguinis conjunctio devincit homines caritate. Tull. Arch. Symnier, Sp. Posie for Sion, 1629. 1248. Not to Grieve or be Troubled at the World's Discourtesies, and why so. SUPPOSE a man, by birth noble, and by revenues rich, that as travelling homewards, through a foreign country, he should be waylaid, fall into the hands of thieves and villains, and by them be robbed of his money and stripped of his rich and courtly apparel, and besides that have many indignities and base unworthy affronts put upon him, and yet should pass by all as little or nothing concerned in the business; and why so? but because he considers that he is not in his right ubi, he hath no long time to abide with such wretched people, and that if he can but make some shift for a time, till he come to his own country and place of abode, there he should have his friends about him, monies and all things necessary to supply his want and necessities. The same is our case; why should any of us grieve and be troubled at the world's discourtesies, at the reproaches and wrongs that are put upon us by the world and worldly men? for (have we but so much faith as to believe it) we have an heavenly home, and an eternal life by Christ prepared for us, at the which, when we once arrive, we shall be sure to meet with friends enough, even God, His blessed saints and angels, who will honour us; riches and treasures inestimable, that will store us; joy and glory unspeakable, that will for evermore refresh us. P. Bayne's Miracle of God's Love, on John iii. 16. Paria fumus dulcis.. Manet altera Cælo. 1249. To Regulate our Wills by God's Will. IF a man lay a crooked stick upon an even level ground, the stick and ground ill suit together, but the fault is in the stick; and in such a case, a man must not strive to bring the even ground to the crooked stick, but bow the crooked stick even with the ground. So is it between God's will and ours, there is a discrepancy and jarring betwixt them; but where is the fault, or rather, where is it not? Not in the will of God, but in our crooked and corrupt affections, in which case we must not, like Balaam, seek to bring God's will to ours, but be contented to rectify and order the crookedness of our will, by the rectitude and sanctity of the will of God, which must be the ruler and moderator of our will; for which cause we are to cry out with David, Teach me, O Lord, to do Thy will, Psalm cxliii. 10, and with the whole church of God, in that pattern of wholesome words, Fiat voluntas Tua, Thy will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven; never forgetting that too of Christ Jesus Himself, in the midst of His agony and bloody sweat, Non mea sed Tua fiat voluntas, Father, not my will, but Thine be done, Luke xxii. 42. S. Augustin. in Psalm xliv. 6. END OF VOL. I. Aberdeen: Printed by Arthur King & Co., Broad Street. INDEX. A. ... Abuse of a thing (for the), the use is not to be taken away, ... Adversity rather than prosperity is the preserver of piety, Afflicting (God) His children for the improvement of their graces, Afflictions, not to be afraid of, because God sends them, ... ... Afflictions torment the wicked, (the very approach of), Afflictions, a good man is bettered by, ... Afflictions, crosses, &c., a surer way to heaven than pleasures, Afflictions, God's trial of His children by, ... 154 168 175 191 206 287 312 358, 379 422 498 516 534 553 572 324 126 74 148 Afflictions happen both to good and bad but to several ends, Afflictions, not to be daunted at, Age, how it becomes truly honourable, All things come from God who is therefore to be praised, Allurements, the world's dangerous, Ambition proves its own ruin, Ambition, the poisonous nature of, ... |